95 How to Fix a Broken Brain

Professor Vector,

You've always been a great help to Hermione, and we need your help. For the past few weeks, her condition has deteriorated. She won't leave her room. Most of what we hear from her is crying.

Worst of all, we have reason to believe she's lost control of her magic. We can't begin to understand what's going on with her. I went to check on her shortly before writing to you, and my suspicion was confirmed. Her doorknob wasn't on her door, as if it were never there. Hermione was shocked by this. Before that, she blew the light bulb in her room, and broke part of the wall. Just like with the doorknob, she didn't know she'd done anything.

Please. We don't know what to do. We've been hesitant to get Hogwarts involved for personal reasons, but those don't matter anymore. Any help you can offer us would be more than appreciated.

Sincerely,

Emma Granger

Albus looked at the letter again, then back to the three people in his office. He envied them in a way. They didn't know how hopeless their endeavor was.

Septima stood in the center, just in front of Albus. Unsurprisingly, she'd been the most vocal about her distaste of their current circumstances.

Minerva stood to his left. He wasn't sure what it was about that spot, but she always seemed to stand there. She'd had little to say on the matter, although her concern was clear. The same look of frustration adorned her face that he'd seen just after the Quidditch fiasco of the previous year.

Then there was Rose. She'd obediently followed Minerva's lead, and stood waiting for orders from Albus, although she looked annoyed at something. Albus hoped it was just the letter and not him. After all, he hadn't seen her in weeks. No chance meetings in the middle of the night, no pleasant surprise appearances during the day. If not for her new locket, he'd have thought she'd been working on the final task all that time. Something about the locket with a large "S" on it struck him as familiar, but he couldn't place it.

Albus turned his attention back to the letter and impending crisis ahead of him.

"If you'd just let me talk to her," Septima said, "I'm sure—"

"I'm sorry, Septima, but you may well make it worse."

Albus spoke softly, calmly. While Septima was normally calm, the subject of Hermione Granger's safety made her… agitated. Surprisingly, Rose had been calm about the whole thing. No outbursts, no growled threats. It was just a little suspicious.

"You can't possibly know that!" Septima snapped. "I know I can get through to her."

"Without knowing her current state, we've got nothing to go on. I've seen this before, and it has never ended well. If we go in blind, we risk injuring her or one of us. She's already unstable; I fear that may push her beyond help."

He waited patiently for Septima to take a step back. When she did, he knew she was finished trying to convince him it was a good idea to go in. With that settled, he turned to Minerva.

"Are you sure none of her friends know about this?" he asked. "Apart from the obvious, of course."

"The Obvious" made no indication that she'd realized they were talking about her. Albus began to wonder if she hadn't fallen asleep.

"If Ms. Perks knew, she'd have asked me about it by now," Minerva said. "If Mr. Weasley or Mr. Potter knew, Ms. Perks would be one of the first to find out. Alexandra tells me they are quite forthcoming with her. I doubt Ms. Weasley or Mr. Longbottom would've worked any of it out, and she wasn't particularly close with either. I can't speak for anyone outside of Gryffindor."

Albus felt guilty about keeping them in the dark about their friend, but the less they knew, the better. It was difficult for adults to rationalize a loved one losing control of her magic, never mind children.

He turned to Rose, who met his gaze.

"Only if they leave first," she said, nodding to Septima and Minerva.

Septima shot a glare at Rose. Minerva merely scowled at her. Given their history, Albus thought it showed great restraint on Minerva's part.

"Oh?" Albus asked.

"You want to know what I can do about it," Rose said. "You wouldn't have bothered getting me involved if you weren't going to ask. The first thing I would've done is growl something at you, then vanish to go fix it myself. So you've got nothing else."

Albus stared at her for a moment. He'd nearly perfected Occlumency, so he had confidence that not even her friend could get inside his mind. It still struck him as odd that those were almost his exact thoughts.

"Septima, Minerva, please—"

"I'm not going to stand by—" Septima began, but Minerva laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Septima, it frustrates me just as much as you that Albus keeps secrets from all of us. But right now, I think that's for the best. By keeping us in the dark, he's letting us have hope."

She turned to him and gave him a glare that he was certain could see into his soul. Despite his best efforts, he could never perfectly replicate it.

"I suspect that's something he's lost." She turned back to her colleague. "There's nothing left to do now except find Severus, go to the Hog's Head, and talk about him behind his back with his brother."

"Do send my love," Albus said.

Minerva led Septima out of his office, leaving him alone with Rose. She picked up a chair, dragged it over to his desk, and sat down.

"I know about Ariana," she said.

Something arose in him that he hadn't properly felt in decades: fear. Just the tiniest flicker, then it was gone. The nausea he felt passed, and he focused on the task at hand.

"What do you know?" he asked.

"She was your sister, and she lost control of her magic after she was beaten," Rose said. "She never recovered."

As much as it pained him to relive the terrible memories, Albus felt a sense of relief. He'd known Rose would find out sooner or later; at least he didn't have to hide anything from her.

He nodded to the locket, hoping to change the subject.

"A gift from Sylvia?"

"Sort of. I had to go out and get it, but she let me keep it."

"I think that's enough catching up. Is there anything you can do?"

"Like you said, going in blind is bad. Once I know what we're dealing with, I can probably use Serendipity to restore her mind. That's what it's all about with you lot, isn't it?"

"It appears that is the case here."

Rose nodded.

"I'm sorry about what happened to your family."

They sat in silence after that. Albus found himself lost in thought. He remembered the image he saw in the Mirror of Erised three years ago: his family, together, happy. Unbroken by hate. He remembered Gellert and Aberforth. Being torn between them had felt like his own body was being ripped apart.

Then he returned to his office, and looked down at the little girl in front of him. Torn between two sides.

"Rose, do you know how Gellert Grindelwald is?"

"The BBEG from your last campaign?" Rose asked.

Albus smiled in spite of himself. It'd been a while since he'd heard Rose talk like that.

"He was far more than another villain to me," he said. "He was… a close friend. We were going to go far together, but I chose him over my family." Albus stepped carefully through his memories, hoping his words weren't lost on her. "Please, don't make the same mistake I did."

Rose stared into space, avoiding his gaze. Slowly, she nodded her head.

"Thank you." She smiled at him. "For everything, Professor."

Hermione sat on her floor, cradling her head in her hands.

"It's not real," she whimpered. "It's not real."

"It" towered over her, brandishing a club. It wasn't like the troll that had attacked her; this one's eyes were empty, vacant. There was nothing behind them.

It lifted its club, but then the club turned into a snake. It wrapped its long body around the troll's neck. The troll didn't move; it stood still as the snake grew larger, its gold eyes burning holes in the dark.

Hermione screamed when the troll fell to the floor next to her. As it fell, it burst into flames, taking the snake with it. They were ashes before they hit the ground.

"It's not real."

"What good are your books now?"

She screamed again when she heard the Death Eater's voice. She scrambled to get away from the wall as something melted out of it. It oozed out, forming into a featureless head, body, and hands.

Hermione squeezed her eyes shut. None of it was real; she knew it wasn't real, but it wouldn't disappear.

"You can't stop me, Mudblood. I'm going to find you, and I'm going to hurt you."

"No!"

More whispering came from behind her. An arm wrapped around her, then a hand grabbed hers.

"No!" She struggled against it, but it was no use. It had her.

"Please, no! Just leave me alone!"

The hand held hers fast, then closed around her ring.

Hermione flailed her legs uselessly. She tried slamming her head into her attacker, but she banged it into a brick wall. Dazed, she stopped her struggling, and the hand pulled off her ring.

"I wish she were restored."

Sunlight like she'd never seen flooded her tiny room, which had changed back to its proper size. The hand, which wore a black and red welding glove, slipped the ring back on her finger. Then it joined the other arm in holding her tightly.

"Rose," she breathed. She clung to Rose's arms as tightly as she could. "Am I glad to see you!"

Hermione curled up and pressed herself into her friend.

"It's alright, Brain."

Tears streamed down Hermione's face. She'd never cried so hard in her life, nor felt as safe as she did just then. She tightened her grip on Rose, praying that she never left her alone again.

"It was horrible!" Hermione sobbed. "I was hallucinating again! There were these creatures, these things!"

"You weren't hallucinating Brain. I saw them too when I got here."

A whirlwind of emotions struck her, but fear conquered all else. A shrill scream escaped her lips, but Rose didn't let go. Suddenly, Rose's arms didn't feel so safe.

"I must've been! Unless…" Hermione struggled to break free of her friend's grasp. "Unless you're not real either!"

She tried every muscle she had, pushing as hard as she could to break free. Hermione looked around desperately for something to use to help her, but darkness had set in again.

"Somebody help!" she screamed as loud as she could.

The walls grew bigger, taking the door far away. She couldn't think, or rationalize anything. All she knew was that she was an animal, and that was the only way out of her cage.

Hermione kicked and screamed, but the newest danger had her in its grasp.

"I wish she were restored."

Just as quickly as the room had fallen apart, it snapped back together. She hadn't even noticed that Rose had removed her ring again.

Rose's arms slid back from Hermione, then Hermione whirled around and backed away from her.

"It's me, Brain. You lost control of your magic, and you keep making those things real. You make the room bigger on the inside, you make it dark. All those things, you conjured them."

Hermione stared at Rose, trying to take in more air. Her head spun. She stared at Rose for nearly a minute before doubling over. Had she eaten anything in the past week, she'd have lost it then.

While she was doubled over, begging for the nightmare to be over, she felt a hand rubbing her back.

"I'm right here, Brain. Don't be afraid."

Hermione sank to the floor, covered in a cold sweat.

"I am afraid." She wrapped her arms around herself. "Can't you make it stop?"

She looked at Rose, but turned away when she saw pity in her eyes. Disappointment was bad enough; she didn't need Rose's pity along with it.

"I wish I could Brain."

"You can just make me forget it all, can't you? Can't you take the memories away?" Hermione risked the look of pity again and pleaded with Rose. "Please. Please, Rose. I need you."

Rose shook her head.

"Even if I took it all away, you'd forget what happens when you run in. You'd just try it again next time something like that happens."

Hermione squeezed her eyes shut and cried again. Fear consumed her every thought. All she wanted was for it all to go away. She struggled again, trying to clear her thoughts.

"What about mindrape?" she asked. "If you change me, then I won't run in again."

"I won't do that, Brain. I will never do that to someone."

Hermione closed her eyes again and clutched her head. The nightmares were closing in around her, and no one could stop them.

"Please, Rose! Just make it stop!"

"It has stopped, Brain. Just open your eyes."

"No!"

She curled into a ball. If Rose couldn't help her, then she had no chance. Why wouldn't Rose see that?

"Why won't you just help me?! You've got the scroll for it, haven't you?!"

"That scroll in my case casts create water."

"You're lying!"

"Valignatiejir kidnapped me so he could make me believe I was his spawn. With shapechange, there'd be no reason to question it. All he had to do was to make me believe it, and he was going to use mindrape to do it. Everything else was just to break me so he could! I will never do that to another person! Not even to save you!"

"Then what's the point of you?! Why come here?!"

For once, Rose had no response. The only sound in the room was that of Hermione's sobs. Slowly, she wore herself out. When she couldn't cry anymore, she sat up and looked at Rose.

"How'd you make them go away?"

"I used Serendipity. I think it was calm emotions."

Hermione nodded, then doubled over again. With some help from Rose, she climbed onto her bed and laid flat on the sheets.

"How long will it last?"

"I don't know. The first time didn't last long, but I think you got worked up again."

"I thought you were one of the nightmares." Hermione turned her eyes to Rose, then back when she discovered that it hurt to look anywhere but straight. "Why does everything hurt?"

"I wish I could tell you."

"Is there anything you can tell me?"

Rose sat on the floor where Hermione could see her.

"The trauma from the World Cup is causing you to lose control of your magic. The more stressed out you get, the worse it is."

"I could've told you all that." Hermione tried to smile, but it just made her sick. "Some nurse you are."

Rose tried smiling too, but it came out no better than Hermione's.

Hermione used the silence to start thinking again. She tried thinking of the future, but she could hardly remember what the rest of her house looked like, much less Hogwarts.

"How's everyone at school?" Hermione asked. "How's Ron?"

"I haven't seen much of them since we all got back. Professor Dumbledore gave me a pass from class so I can work on the last task."

"Did Neville ever figure out that orb?"

Rose nodded. "He figured out the first part. I made it a message with something called a Vigenere Cipher."

Hermione gave a faint laugh. "You monster. How were they supposed to work that out?"

"I used their school as the key." Rose grinned, although not as happily as she usually did. "Krum, Cedric, and Toad all worked together to figure that out. All according to plan."

"If you wanted them to work together, why not just break the message into four parts and give them a different part? Like every fourth letter?"

Rose stared at her.

"Never even occurred to you, did it?" Hermione smiled again, a task that she was finding easier with every passing minute. "That's my friend, Rose. Over complicates everything to show off for her girlfriend."

Rose just smiled back at her.

"I'm never going back, am I?" Hermione asked.

"I don't know. You're in control now, and looking much better for it."

A dark tunnel opened up in her mind. She stared down the tunnel, but refused to go in, because she knew what lay inside. Thousands of nightmares waiting to haunt her life. Waiting to scare her to death.

"It's still there." She felt tears in her eyes again. "I'm scared, Rose. I'm afraid that if I fall asleep, they'll all come back."

Rose grinned her arrogant, annoying grin. Hermione wouldn't admit it out loud, but she'd missed that grin. That grin told her everything would be alright.

"I can fix that."

Rose pulled a bottle of gray fluid out of her basket. She placed it and a vial on Hermione's nightstand.

"Take that before you go to bed. You won't dream anymore."

"Dreamless Sleep Potion?" Hermione asked.

Rose nodded vigorously, beaming away at her.

"I'll check on you so I know how much you've got left. It should help you sleep for the next few weeks."

"What happens then? Even if I get control over this now, what happens the next time I'm upset? If Ron says something stupid again, I could kill him! Or if I get too stressed out about schoolwork… I can never go back!"

For the second time that day, Rose was at a loss for words. She opened her mouth, trying to think of something to say, but Hermione knew she had nothing.

"We'll think of something."

A darkness spread out over her mind, and all Hermione wanted to do was sleep. She picked up her head, wincing as another dull pain spread through her body. She downed some of the potion, then put her head back on her pillow.

"I'll let you rest," Rose said. "See you later, Brain."

"Goodbye, Rose."

Ron glanced at the clock again. What was taking Rose so long? He had nothing to do that would take his mind off Hermione. It'd been a whirlwind for the past few hours. Finding Professor Dumbledore waiting for them outside of class had been bad enough, but then finding out how bad Hermione had gotten had made it impossible to think about anything else.

His friends had no such problems. Sally-Anne was talking to Professor McGonagall about… something, Neville wouldn't make a noise, Luna was drawing, and the only word he'd caught from Ginny and Harry was "Ellie".

It'd have helped him concentrate if they'd told him something other than "There's a problem with Hermione", but getting something out of the professors was just as pointed as getting something out of Rose.

Everyone stopped what they were doing when Rose appeared in the center of the room. She walked to the front and took a seat on the desk.

"A few weeks ago, Brain began losing control of her magic," Rose said. "At first, it was only when she was asleep, but then it got worse, coming out when she was awake. She thought they were hallucinations, but I saw them too when I got there. I was able to calm her down enough to regain control of her magic and make them disappear."

Ron clenched his fist on his desk. Harry was right about Rose; something was happening with Hermione, and she never felt the need to tell anyone.

"How long have you known about this?" Ron asked.

He caught Sally-Anne glaring at him out of the corner of his eye.

"Since this morning," Rose replied. "I lost my eyes and ears in her house when her parents shut away Ana last month."

"Is Hermione alright?" Sally-Anne asked.

"She's got control back, but… she's not quite alright."

"Peta-Lorrum," Professor Vector hissed.

"She's resting now. I think the potion's helping her, but I don't think she'll be coming back."

"For the time being, that would probably be best," Professor Dumbledore said, cutting off anyone else in the room. "As I told Ms. Peta-Lorrum, this is a very delicate situation. We are all here because we care about Ms. Granger, so I understand that this news comes as a shock to all of you. Do not make rash decisions because of this."

After that they were free to go. That was it. Rose stayed to talk to Professor Dumbledore, but they weren't allowed to listen. Ron tried to stay and eavesdrop, but Sally-Anne pulled him away the moment she could.

"How are you feeling?"

Ron glowered back at Sally-Anne. Why couldn't she be helpful for once?

"I'm fine."

"I will beat your feelings out of you if I have to. I know you, Ron. You'll keep this bottled up as long as you can, no matter what the harm to yourself or anyone else."

Sally-Anne smiled at him. It still wasn't the same as Hermione's smile. When Hermione smiled at him, it filled him with confidence. Like the smartest person he knew was telling him that he was just as brilliant as she was. When Sally-Anne smiled at him, it was just because she pitied him.

"What's it matter?"

"You're my friend, and you really like Hermione. At the end of the ball, I've never seen you two so happy."

"So? Rose said she's not coming back."

"It's going to be awhile before any of us sees Hermione again, but you can't just give up hope. We've got Rose and Professor Dumbledore on the job. She's going to be just fine."

Sally-Anne smiled at him again before heading off with Ginny.

Hermione looked out her window as more guests arrived. It was her dad's 50th birthday, so everyone was invited. Everyone except her. They'd agreed that it was better for her if she stayed upstairs. As far as anyone else knew, she had the flu.

She turned her gaze, and her thoughts, away from the guests. She'd been without incident for nearly a week, ever since Rose had been to her house. Her parents would stop by every night to check up on her. She hadn't spoken a word to them since.

Thoughts of her friends drifted into her mind, and she wondered how they were. She longed to see them again, to hear their voices. She even missed Luna's nonsensical ramblings about whatever imaginary creature about which her dad had told her.

Most of all, she missed Ron. Even though she knew he would say or do something stupid within the first 24 hours, she still longed to be part of it. That just made it all the more rewarding when he finally learned his lesson. She wished they'd kept up his practice with summoning at the end of their second year. He hadn't needed it, but it would've been a chance to have spent more time with him. Sitting on her bed, she didn't know if she'd ever see him again.

A knock on her door drew her attention away from thoughts of Hogwarts.

"Pssst! Hermione! It's me!"

"Estelle?"

"I'm here to bust you out!"

That's either Estelle, or Rose imitating her voice.

"I'm not being held prisoner, I'm sick."

"I know that, but it's more fun to pretend you're a princess locked in a tower."

Hermione knew right away she wasn't imagining things; there was no possible way her mind had devised this.

"Doesn't a prince usually do that?"

"Why should the boys get to have all the fun?"

Now she just sounds like Ginny. That I could've devised on my own.

"If you come in here, I could get you sick."

"So? I've been sick before. Please! Everyone else is boring!"

Hermione sighed and held her head in her hands.

Rose, you're not allowed around my family anymore.

"It's open."

Her door creaked open and Estelle slipped inside. She'd grown since Hermione had last seen her. Dark, curly hair and freckles covered her face along with a broad grin. She held Crookshanks in her arms, who looked remarkably comfortable for being held by a stranger.

"You don't look sick," she said as she sat down on Hermione's bed. "Are you sure you're sick?"

"No, Estelle. I'm actually a witch who's lost control of her magic, so they locked me away in the tall tower so I don't kill anyone."

"Oh, okay." She looked around the room. "Is Rose here?"

"No, she's at school."

Where I should be.

Estelle frowned.

"Why's she at school on a Sunday?"

"It's a boarding school. She's there all year, except during the winter and summer holidays."

Estelle nodded, clearly paying more attention to Crookshanks than to Hermione. She looked around and the clutter of her room, then spotted Hermione's books.

"You've got books!"

"Yes, just like the last time you were here. You said they were stupid."

"You didn't tell me there were good books!"

"Good books?"

"Like ones about magic and castles," she said in a matter-of-fact way that only children could manage.

My life is the book about magic and castles.

"There aren't any in here, but there are some in the spare bedroom."

Estelle looked around her room in disappointment. "It's boring up here!"

"Yup. Nice and boring."

"Boring isn't nice!"

"It's quite nice," Hermione said a little more condescendingly than she'd intended. "It's nice and safe."

"You sound like a grownup!"

Hermione couldn't help but smile at her.

"Sorry."

She glanced down at her cousin and saw her frowning at something. Hermione looked in the same direction, but didn't see anything.

"Something wrong?"

"Do grownups make mistakes?"

The odd question took her a moment to grasp. Then she realized there was a reason Estelle had sought her out.

"That's a strange question to ask. Do you think someone made a mistake?"

Estelle nodded. "Mummy and Daddy don't want to tell me, but I listen when they don't think I'm awake. I think Daddy lost his job."

"I'm… I'm sorry," Hermione said.

"Mummy says we should ask Uncle Dan and Aunt Emma for money until he finds a new job, but he doesn't want anyone's help. He always says to go for help when I need it. Why won't he ask for help?"

"Some people are like that," Hermione said, putting her arm around her little cousin. "I've got this friend called Ron that's just like that. He nearly… nearly got himself hurt because of it."

Estelle held Crookshanks closer. Crookshanks gave a quiet meow in protest, but made no effort to leave.

"Tell me about these books you've got," Hermione said, hoping to change the subject to something less depressing.

"I got a bunch of them for Hanukkah this year."

"Right, your mum's Jewish."

"Nine days of presents!" Estelle exclaimed, throwing her arms up just long enough for Crookshanks to escape to Hermione's lap. "No! Kitty!"

"Your dad still celebrates Christmas?" Hermione asked as Crookshanks curled up in her lap.

"I get one present every day of Hanukkah, and one on Christmas!" Estelle said like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

It dawned on Hermione that she'd spent so much time in the Magical World that she'd completely lost touch with the rest of her family. She must've known about that before, but she'd forgotten everything about them. They had their own problems, just like hers.

"This year, I got books about castles and knights and magic! Just like that story Rose told me!"

"Yeah. She's got one of those personalities that sucks you in," Hermione said more to herself than to Estelle. "I'm glad you're interested. I've always loved books."

She smiled at her bookshelves. Most of their contents lay scattered across her floor, but the memories were still there. Every time she'd come home crying from school, only to get lost inside a story. She loved reading and learning, and at that moment, she began wondering why she'd let someone else take it all away from her.

Hermione turned back to Estelle, who was looking gloomily at the floor.

"We're gonna have to move," she said. She shook her head. "I don't want to move."

Hermione put her arm around her cousin. Rose had once done the same for her. More than once, she realized after thinking about it.

"I wasn't allowed to go to school this year. It felt like moving away. Then I found out my friend Luna's going to be moving to America in a few months. It's… it's hard to have to say goodbye."

Estelle started to cry. Hermione thought fast of something to say to cheer her up, but she couldn't get her mind to work right.

A thought struck her. Her heart raced at the idea of it, but she knew she had no other choice. She couldn't think of it on her own.

Hermione looked down at Crookshanks. He looked back at her, then she nodded towards the corner of the room. Crookshanks knew exactly what she was asking, and in another minute, he padded over to her, her hair clip in his mouth.

A rush slammed into her like a bus when she put it on, but she fought hard to keep her mind under control. Thousands of thoughts flooded her head, but she found it easy to move them aside while she searched for an answer.

At last, she found it. It was the smallest glimmer of hope, but she knew it would work.

"Don't worry, Estelle," she said. "I'll fix it."

Estelle rubbed her eyes as Crookshanks hopped back into her lap. She looked up at Hermione. Seeing her cousin in such pain melted Hermione. She held her tightly, hoping to provide the comfort her friends had always provided her.

"You will?"

"Of course." Hermione grinned a toothy, Rose grin. "I can fix anything."

A few minutes later, Hermione's mum came upstairs looking for Estelle. By then, the girls had started talking about castles, something Hermione was glad of. With the hair clip, she could remember everything about Hogwarts, and her knowledge of all the secret hiding places fascinated her cousin. Most importantly, her mum found them laughing together, something Hermione hadn't done in months.

After everyone left, Hermione left her room for the first time since she'd hurled her parents against the wall. It felt foreign to her to walk down the stairs. But she settled in at the kitchen table and spoke with her parents.

"Estelle said her parents might need to move."

"Your Aunt Lois mentioned that," her mum said.

"I thought… I thought she'll be going through the same thing I am. She'll have to leave all her friends and have a whole new life. It's not fair for me, but it's not fair for her either, because there's nothing anyone can do about it. What happened to me is all my fault, and I'm the one that suffers the consequences. They didn't do anything wrong."

"You of all people should know how unfair life is."

"Oh, I know, but I think I can make it a little less unfair for them."

That got her parents' attention. They frowned, exchanged glances, then both eyed her.

"How?" her mum asked.

"And know that even if you can, you can't go back to Hogwarts," her dad added.

Hermione shook her head. "That's not why. It's because I want to be like Rose. Not run-in-and-get-myself-killed Rose, but fix-my-friends'-problems Rose. I can't do that if I'm not alright myself, so I want to get better. But I know how to fix this without being better."

"Once again: how?" her mum asked.

Hermione explained her plan to her parents and why she knew it would work. When she finished, she ran up to her room and grabbed the condition conch.

<Taltria, I need you to get a message to Mrs. Perks for me.>

Rose sat on a staircase, feeling the strange material. It looked like marble, but it didn't feel like it. Humans were so weird in her adopted world.

A door opened behind her, echoing down the large staircase. Unfortunately, her new friend didn't have her own room in the hotel, so they'd had to meet somewhere out of the way. Contrary to Shadow's claims, Rose was the best at stealth.

"I think she's better," Estelle said. Her face lit up with excitement. "She's got a kitty!"

Rose smiled, a little envious of Estelle's innocence.

"You might've saved her life," Rose told her. "You should be proud."

"I'm a hero, too! Just like Carolina!"

Rose laughed at the thought of her friend. She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen her. Those bright, haunting green eyes, so full of kindness and warmth. Had she still had blood, Rose would've blushed at the thought of them.

"She said she can stop my parents from moving," Estelle said. "Can she?"

Rose nodded.

"She can. If there's one thing I know, it's that you can always count on Brain to have the answer." She grinned. "Wanna hear another story?"

Rose wasn't sure she'd ever been as excited about anything as Estelle was at that moment.

A few days later, Hermione's father ran in to the living room where Hermione and her mum were sitting.

"Uncle Paul called," he said. "That was him on the phone. Apparently, someone turned up out of the blue with the offer of a lifetime. They offered him a job on the spot. They won't have to sell their house or move."

"That's brilliant!" her mum exclaimed.

They both turned to Hermione, who was a little more smug than she intended to be.

"How'd she do it?" her mum asked.

"Sally-Anne hasn't a clue," Hermione said. "She doesn't know what her mum does, only that she gets things done." She paused for a moment, not sure if she wanted to talk about the past few months. "I'm sorry I threw you both into a wall."

"There were no broken bones," her dad said. "Are you alright?"

"I don't know, but I will be," Hermione said.

She glanced up on the mantle and saw the photo from the ball. She'd seen it before, but still wasn't sure if she was ready to talk about it. At that moment, she decided she was finally ready.

"I mentioned that Rose built the first task. She didn't seal it off, and Ron got inside."

She'd kept her hair clip out of her hair, lest she risk another incident. She was glad of it, otherwise the thought of Ron nearly dying might've set her off.

"Was he alright?" her mum asked.

"We got to him before he did any permanent damage, which I think is a lot harder with magic. I stayed with him in the Hospital Wing that night, and he asked me to the ball." She smiled, then started laughing at the thought of her stupid friend. "The idiot said it was a good thing when we were dancing, and I stormed off. Alex talked me down, and Sally-Anne talked him up."

"Sounds like it all worked out in the end." Her mum smiled back at her. "You should write to him and let him know you're alright. I'm sure he's worried."

Hermione nodded. "I'm sure he'll never admit it, but you're right."

"So are we going to be seeing more of Ronald?" her dad asked.

"I don't see how. He's at Hogwarts, where I'm not allowed, and I'm here, where he's not allowed."

"I think your father means to ask if you two are dating."

"I don't know," Hermione admitted. "I've thought about it. He's really nice, and he was so sweet at the ball, which is unlike him. I think he was really trying, but I can't drag him into all this any more than I already have."

"That's a very mature perspective, Hermione," her mum said.

"I guess I was a little overdue for it," Hermione said, smiling.

None of them said anything after that. Hermione returned to her book, which she read once through with the bracelet, just because she could, then moved on to another one when she was finished.

Well after the sun had gone down, her father put down his own book and cleared his throat.

"Let's write to Professor Dumbledore. He seems competent, despite his school's shortcomings."

"None of which were his fault. If you want to point a finger, the Ministry's—"

"Let me finish," her dad said. "Let's see if he's got an idea about what to do now. Hogwarts obviously means a great deal to you, and… and if we hadn't written to them, who knows what would've happened."

Hermione nodded neutrally. She knew better than to get her hopes up about going back. But a glimmer of hope was better than nothing.