Chapter 7 The Trap and the Bait
"Lucius Malfoy, you have failed me," he said coldly. "Your humiliating defeat was very costly and you did not bring me the girl."
"My Lord," Malfoy pleaded, "we fought bravely. They were better prepared than we could have imagined. It was a trap."
"So what was the fate of this girl, Hermione Granger? I wanted to use her as bait to trap Harry Potter. Did she escape?"
"My Lord, I did not leave her alive," Malfoy asserted. "I killed Hermione Granger myself."
"For this small achievement, I will spare your life. But I have lost six dementors and four Death Eaters. You must be punished for your failure."
"Crucio!"
Harry was jolted awake by intense pain, his scar burning like fire. He had not had a dream like this in almost two blessed months. He fell out of bed. He struggled to his hands and knees and was sick. What had Malfoy done? Hermione was dead!
No, it couldn't be. It just couldn't be.
He struggled to his feet and lurched through the bedroom door. He stumbled and almost fell down the stairs leading to the common room. He clutched his stomach and sped up. He ran through the opening that was guarded by the portrait of the fat lady. It was before dawn. The corridors were dark, and the castle was silent. Harry was the only student there. He ran down halls, he stumbled down stairs. He charged down the grand marble staircase into the entry hall and then down the stone steps that led to the kitchen. He almost tore the picture of the bowl of fruit as he roughed up the pear. The door to the kitchen opened and he dashed in.
"Where is she?" he shouted in the empty kitchen. "Hermione! Hermione!"
He ran towards the pantries shouting. Terrified house elves began to appear. They stared at him with their mouths wide open in shock.
"Where is she?" he shouted at them. "Where's Hermione? Hermione!"
Cupboards were opening all around him. He saw dozens of bald heads with long pointed ears and terrified faces. Then he saw her long brown hair. Her face held a look of surprise and concern.
"Harry! What is it!" she cried out.
"Hermione!" he cried in relief, "You're alive!"
He dashed over to her cupboard and pulled open the door.
"Harry!" she squealed.
He pulled her into a tight embrace. There were tears of joy on his cheeks.
"Easy Harry, Easy," she said soothingly. "Everything is alright. What happened?"
"I had a dream. My scar hurt. It was bad," Harry stammered. "Lucius Malfoy told me… he told Lord Voldemort… that he had killed you. Voldemort was very angry at Malfoy, he tortured him with the cruciatus curse."
"Harry, it's OK," she said calmly patting his back, "I'm here and I'm fine. The dream wasn't real. Or Lucius Malfoy was lying. Or he was mistaken. If your scar has started hurting again, you must tell Dumbledore. I'll go with you to his office."
Harry kissed her.
"Relax Harry," she said giving him a squeeze. "Let me put something on."
She gently pushed Harry away and retreated into her cupboard. Harry suddenly realized that Hermione was naked. She closed the door of her cupboard.
Harry slumped down on the floor. A hundred house elves were gathered around him, they looked at him in fear and concern.
"Sorry," he tried to smile, "I had a bad dream."
Hermione emerged wearing the T-shirt and jogging shorts that she had on when she left her home.
"It's easier to throw on clothes than to tie tea towels into a bikini," she explained. "Let's go to Dumbledore's office now."
She led Harry through secret passageways that he had never imagined. They had to duck most of the time because of the low ceilings.
"These are the house elf passageways," she explained, "they run all over the castle. House elves are not supposed to be seen. Filch knows about them, I've had to be careful about him. Fortunately he’s too tall to use them."
They emerged from a hidden door behind a tapestry near Dumbledore's office. Before Harry could say the password, the door opened and Dumbledore appeared.
"Hermione and Harry, how convenient, I was just going to wake you," Dumbledore said. "Come into my office. I have serious news for you."
They followed Dumbledore back into his office. He directed them to sit down.
"First, I must ask you why you have come to me before I got to you," he said.
"I had a vision," said Harry, "Lucius Malfoy told Lord Voldemort that he had killed Hermione. I woke her up. I woke up all of the house elves," he said sheepishly.
"Have you been practicing occlumency?" Dumbledore asked Harry.
Harry had to admit that he had not. Dumbledore sighed and shook his head.
"Obviously Lucius Malfoy did not kill Miss Granger, but he believes that he did," Dumbledore stated.
"Miss Granger, I now understand why the sorting hat placed you in Gryffindor rather than Ravenclaw," Dumbledore continued. "You come from an extremely brave family. While you have been here, safe but uncomfortable, your parents have been in danger in their own home. And they have cooperated with us in a magnificent fashion. You see we feared that Lord Voldemort would try to kidnap you to use you as bait to trap Harry. But we used you as bait to set a trap for them."
"How did you use me as bait for a trap if I was here?" asked Hermione.
"Nymphadora Tonks has stayed with your parents since the night you left home. She did a very good impersonation of you. Your parents and Uncle went along with our little charade. Your family appeared to be unprotected. The Death Eaters were watching your house. We set a trap for them," explained Dumbledore. "They attacked your home last night."
Hermione gasped.
Dumbledore continued, "six dementors were destroyed and four Death Eaters were either killed or captured. It was a victory for our side. Unfortunately there is a price for victories."
"My… parents?" Hermione asked shakily.
"Your father is badly injured, but he will recover. Your mother is fine," he assured her. "But Lucius Malfoy thinks he killed you, because he did kill Miss Tonks. Your Uncle Jason was also killed, he fought beside Miss Tonks."
Gunny and Tonks were dead. The horror sank in. Hermione began to cry. Harry put his arm around her.
Dumbledore began again, "Your uncle, father and mother will all be receiving the Order of Galahad from the Ministry of Magic. It is the highest award given to Muggles. Your uncle wounded Glen Goyle and your father killed Theodore Nott. Apparently the Death Eaters were not expecting suburban Muggles to stand and fight. They were certainly not expecting machine guns. Your mother used a pair of tongs to carry the portkey over to your wounded father in the midst of the battle. Her extremely brave act saved your father. Your house and all of its contents were consumed by fire."
Hermione took a deep breath and sat up straight. Although there were still tears running down her cheeks, she made the effort to appear composed.
Dumbledore went on, "The battle will be reported in the Daily Prophet this morning. As usual the reports will be full of errors, but this time we are writing the lies. The paper will say that your parents were killed. In fact, they are going into hiding. That is for their safety, they deserve a rest. You will have to pretend that they have died, and mourn for them in public. The paper will say that you were wounded and were taken to St. Mungo's hospital. We will smuggle you into the hospital so you can be released in a few days. You will be interviewed by the Daily Prophet."
Harry wondered what Lord Voldemort would do to Lucius Malfoy when he learned that Malfoy had failed to kill Hermione. What happens to his followers that lie to him?
"The Daily Prophet will report the death of Nymphadora Tonks in a few days. The description of how she died will be a complete fabrication," added Dumbledore.
Harry and Hermione made their way back down to the kitchen through the tiny secret passageways. Their arrival produced a lot of nervous stares and whispering. Harry apologized again for disturbing their sleep that morning. That caused more nervous whispering.
"That surprised them, Harry," Hermione said to him. "Elves never hear apologies from wizards."
They sat at one of the little tables where the house elves took their meals. Dobby brought over some tea. Harry took Hermione's hand and she began to cry a little.
"I'm sorry about your uncle and your house," he said sympathetically.
"He was so brave," she said. "He's fought battles in places where the government won't even admit to having troops. Nepal. Africa. Malaysia. I never imagined him dying in a battle at my house."
"He wouldn't leave Tonks," observed Harry.
"She was becoming like a big sister to me…" she trailed away. "I'm just glad my parents are alive."
They sat for a few more minutes and had a small breakfast together with the elves. Then Hermione went back to her cupboard to change into her tea towels.
“What has happened to Miss Hermione?” Old George asked Harry.
“Her family was attacked by dark wizards and dementors,“ Harry explained. “Her uncle and a friend were killed and her home was destroyed.”
"This news saddens Old George," said the head house elf. "Elves feel sorrow when family dies too. Miss Hermione is a good house elf. She will be given light work today. Some of the elves have begun to talk to her. I will put them with her today."
Harry waited until Hermione reappeared. She always appeared so vulnerable when dressed so scantily in rags. Her sad face added to that impression. He kissed her good bye and left her with the elves.
The Daily Prophet arrived at around half past seven o'clock. The reports of the battle at the Granger home were rather sketchy.
Ministry of Magic Claims Victory
Early this morning officials from the Ministry of Magic released reports of a major battle between followers of You-Know-Who and Aurors from the Ministry, supported by volunteers from the Order of the Phoenix. The battle began when followers of You-Know-Who attacked the home of a muggle family named Granger. The dark wizards were apparently attempting to capture or kill the young witch, Hermione Granger, who is well known as the constant companion of Harry Potter. Ministry officials claim to have been expecting the attack and to have prepared for it. The officials claim that six dementors, that had recently left their posts at Azkaban to join You-Know-Who, were destroyed. Ministry officials also claim that one dark wizard was killed in the battle and three dark wizards were arrested. The names of the dead and captured Death Eaters are being withheld at this time but should be released within a few hours.
There were no significant injuries to members of the Ministry forces or to the auxiliaries. Miss Granger was seriously injured and has been admitted to St. Mungo's hospital. Miss Granger's parents and an uncle, all muggles, are reported to have been killed. The Granger home was destroyed by fire. Three other muggle houses also received damage from the battle and the fires that followed. Officials from the Ministry of Magic reported no difficulty in modifying the memories of the affected muggles.
There are persistent rumors that a Death Eater was killed in the battle by muggle gun fire. If confirmed, this would be the third wizard killed by muggles in the 20th century. The most famous being the muggle-studies scholar, Freddy "Forgetful" Furgenson. Furgenson is famous for going "over the top" with British forces during the muggle war of 1914 - 1918, without an Imperturbable charm.
Harry had very little to do the rest of the day, he took a walk around the lake, flew around the castle on his Firebolt and read up on spells. He also practiced summoning his wand with his bare hand. By the end of the day he could make his wand jump into his hand from the floor at a distance of ten feet.
Monday's Daily Prophet had some more details of the battle at the Granger home. The Ministry claimed it was a text book example of using control of magical transportation to set a trap. The Death Eaters were able to apparate into the Grangers’ neighborhood, but they were not able to dissapparate out. Portkeys played a key role in the rapid movement of ministry wizards and the ancient talisman necessary for destroying dementors. The paper confirmed that Theodore Nott was indeed killed by a burst of machine gun fire from Hermione's father. Another death eater, Glen Goyle, was wounded by a muggle, Jason Granger. The other captured Death eaters were MacNair and Crabbe. The paper also reported that the execution of MacNair, Crabbe and Goyle was scheduled for early Monday morning and would probably be over by the time papers were delivered.
The humor section of the Daily Prophet had a little comment about the battle too.
Theodore Nott
was killed by a shot
fired by a muggle's gun.
The Imperturbable Charm
will protect you from harm
but Mr. Nott had none.
Harry wondered what to expect from the Slytherin students this year. The fathers of Theodore Nott Jr., Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle had all died as a result of the Battle of the Granger House, as it was being called now. Draco Malfoy's dad would be in big trouble with Lord Voldemort when Hermione walked out of the hospital. Would the boys see reason and renounce the path taken by their fathers, or would they be eager to join Lord Voldemort so they could seek revenge? For the first time ever, Harry began to dread the start of the fall term. Would there be open combat in the halls of Hogwarts?
That afternoon Hermione showed up in Harry's room so they could conduct spell research. She started by laying out the charts and tables and summaries that she had been working on. The central question remained. What was the mysterious power that Harry could use to defeat Lord Voldemort?
During YWWMC Harry saw Hermione for five minutes a day. Now they had two hours together. They were the only students in the castle. He was alone with Hermione in his bedroom. Her tea towels didn't cover much of her body, and they looked like they would fall off easily.
"What should we do today?" Harry asked her.
"I'm not ready for an in depth study of "Human Sacrificial Rites and Spells" she said with a shudder. "I just can't face it today. It scares me."
"It can wait then," agreed Harry.
"The other book that Dumbledore recommended is almost as dark," she said sadly. "It's about blood magic."
"Dumbledore's not out to cheer us up is he?" Harry said flatly. "Dumbledore is an expert on the uses of dragon's blood. Maybe he knows something about spells based on dragon's blood that Voldemort doesn't know,” Harry said in a distracted sort of way as he looked at Hermione.
"Your mother's blood, in her sister's veins, protects you at home," Hermione mentioned, breathing deeply.
"Aunt Petunia might object if we tried to take some of her blood," Harry said absently as he stared into Hermione’s golden-brown eyes. "Voldemort used some of my blood..."
"I think that the mysterious power is Love," said Hermione as she stared into his eyes.
"Are there Love-based spells that can be used defensively?" asked Harry hopefully.
"With the proper enchantment, the tears of a lover can become a protective talisman," Hermione said, moving closer.
"Shall we study Love today?" asked Harry quietly, taking her hand.
"There are really interesting spells… in the books," she said tenderly, moving close.
"Excuse me please, Harry Potter," said Dobby, "Dobby is here to clean your room and turn the mattresses."
"Hi Dobby," said Harry absently without looking away from Hermione.
"DOBBY!" Harry exclaimed shaking his head, "what are you doing here?"
"Dobby is here to clean your room and turn the mattresses," said Dobby. "All of the mattresses in the castle must be turned before the students return for the fall term."
"Hi Dobby," Harry said again. "Do you have to do this room right now?"
"Oh yes, Harry Potter!" said Dobby cheerfully. "Dobby wants Harry Potter to have a clean and comfortable room."
"Right now?" Harry asked.
"Old George sends Dobby to clean Harry Potter's room, this very afternoon," explained Dobby.
"That's very thoughtful of Old George," Harry said sarcastically.
"I suppose we should stick to business," Hermione said with a disappointed sigh.
They spent about forty minutes looking up and cross referencing various love based spells that might be useful for defense, strengthening or healing. Hermione pointed out the oblique references to sympathetic magic. They didn't have the book of spells for sympathetic magic. It was clear that Hermione didn't know a lot of the details about sympathetic magic. But she had pieced together quite a lot from the comments in the other books. Harry was beginning to believe that there might be some spells in that domain of magic that could be powerful enough to make a difference.
They spent about fifteen minutes reading a few blood based spells, focusing on those that involved blood from dragons or other creatures.
Dobby put on some kneepads and began to scrub the floor.
"Harry," Hermione started timidly, "can I ask you something about the other day?"
"Sure," said Harry as he looked over at Dobby, wondering when he would leave. He had no idea what Hermione wanted.
"When I was upset, and I wouldn't give you the key to that awful book, you took the key from me. Were you… Were you angry at me?" she asked sadly.
"You were scared. I had to know why." Harry explained gently. "I wasn't angry, just worried. Dumbledore gave me that book. I had to know why it scared you. I thought if I surprised you, I could get the key without an argument."
"How did you summon the key, without using your wand?" Hermione asked.
Harry smiled. He took out his wand and laid it on the table. Then he walked across the room and turned around to face her. He held out his hand.
"Accio wand" he chanted.
His wand leapt from the table into Harry's hand.
"Wow!" said Hermione, "that's a good trick!"
"I thought it might be useful in a battle, if I loose my wand I can summon it back," Harry explained. "I've been working on it all summer. I call it Luke Skywalker's trick."
"I saw that movie!" said Hermione. "Can you teach me to do that?"
They worked on summoning for more than half an hour. Hermione made remarkable progress. In just thirty minutes she could make her wand roll across the desk a distance of two feet. They didn't even notice when Dobby left.
Suddenly Hermione looked at the clock.
"Oh no!" she cried, "I have to leave in ten minutes. You might have to go home tomorrow. I won't see you for two and a half weeks."
Their eyes met and they moved towards each other. They held each others hands and drew close to kiss.
"Harry will be going home on Wednesday, Miss Granger," said Dumbledore.
The Headmaster was standing in the door of Harry's room with an amused look on his face.
"Hermione, you will be going into London on Wednesday to do a little acting," said Dumbledore gesturing for Hermione to follow him. "First we'll go to St. Mungo's. You can see your parents. There will be an interview with reporters about the battle at your house. You need to get your story straight. The funerals will follow."
"Oh, just one thing before I go," Hermione interrupted.
She ran over to Harry.
"Harry," she asked sweetly, "may I borrow this book? I want to read it to the house elves."
She scooped up The Adventures of Brave Young Godric Gryffindor, and then ran to follow Dumbledore down the stairs.
Harry spent Tuesday helping Dumbledore sort through muggle newspapers and police reports looking for information about people who had gone missing in the last month. They placed numbered pins on a map of Britain for each case. Those that were likely to have run away from an abusive family were marked with yellow pins, those that were likely victims of sexual abduction or gang activity were white pins, and those that seemed odd were red pins.
"What exactly are we looking for?" asked Harry.
"Lord Voldemort will have a difficult time controlling the dementors, they will want people to feed on. It's so much easier to kidnap a poor muggle than a wizard," Dumbledore answered.
Harry took a break and looked out the window. Filch was taking the ice wagon into town, it was drawn by four thestrals.
"Hermione doesn't like thestrals," said Harry absently.
"I believe that she's dusting the paintings and armor this week," Dumbledore said as he studied a newspaper clipping. "This is an odd one, a missing carpenter. Accountants disappear all of the time. It happens when their sums don't add up."
Tuesday's Daily Prophet reported the death of Nymphadora Tonks in an accident involving experimental magic. At least she was credited with dying in the line of duty while doing something dangerous.
On Wednesday Dumbledore took Harry and Hermione to Number 12 Grimmauld place using the flue network. Harry was wearing his best school clothes and carried a suitcase and Hedwig’s cage. Hermione was wearing her T-shirt and jogging shorts. Since her house had been destroyed, it was the only clothing she owned. Fortunately she was able to borrow a black dress from Hestia Jones to wear to the funerals. Then they traveled to St. Mungo's using a portkey that took them to a back room unobserved. Hermione and Harry spent a few minutes with her parents who were reported to be dead, and then she was "released" from the hospital.
Hermione told the reporters that she had been knocked out of the fight early by Theodore Nott. Harry wondered if Lucius Malfoy would be killed or tortured by Lord Voldemort when the papers came out. He hoped it would be both. Tonight would be a good time to start practicing occlumency again, he thought.
The first funeral of the day was at a military cemetery for Jason Granger. The muggles believed that he had died while trying to save Hermione's parents from the fire. It was ironic, this soldier had died in combat and his unit didn't know it.
The next funeral was a closed casket affair for Hermione's parents. It was a very sad gathering, even though the coffins were empty. It reminded Harry of Mrs. Weasley's boggart. Arthur and Molly Weasley were there. Molly cried a lot and gave hugs to Hermione. Arthur quietly invited Harry to spend the last week of vacation at the Burrow.
Then it was off to yet another cemetery for Tonks' funeral. Hermione cried at all three funerals and leaned on Harry's shoulder. Harry was sad, but there was something about graveyards that made him too nervous to cry.
"I'm glad you were with me today, Harry," Hermione said quietly as they were leaving the last cemetery. "I needed your strong shoulder."
"I don't like graveyards," said Harry, "they're creepy, even during the day."
"It's such a beautiful day isn't it," Hermione observed. "The sun is warm, the grass is green, flowers are in bloom and birds are singing. It's hopeful."
Harry was silent.
"House Elves always have their funerals in the middle of the night, so it doesn't disrupt their work." she said distantly. "Isn't that so unfair?"
Dumbledore gave Harry a bag of galleons. The teachers at Hogwarts and the members of the Order of the Phoenix had taken up a collection for Hermione. Since her parents were pretending to be dead, the insurance settlements were taking a bit longer than usual. For the time being the Grangers had nothing. Harry was given the job of buying school supplies and clothes for Hermione. She had to return to Hogwarts to polish chandeliers.
Harry returned to 4 Privet drive that evening after dark. The Dursley's weren't happy to see him although they had been told he was coming. But they were civil to him, since he was coming in from three funerals in one day.
Harry spent just over a week at Privet Drive. He worked like a slave doing his chores every day. Some afternoons he got to work on spells at Mrs. Figg's house. Mrs. Figg did some shopping for him at Muggle stores. He pretended to have forgotten his boxing lessons and eventually Dudley gave up on the idea of sparring with him. They just lifted weights. His scar hurt only once, when Lucius Malfoy was tortured. Unfortunately, Lord Voldemort did not kill him.