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Chapter Text

Head Girl's room; Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry

Ginny Weasley is going to die. Hermione was sure of it. As she paced back and forth in the Head Girls' room, she contemplated the duel that was going to happen in less than three hours. Then she thought about Ron, and what loosing Ginny would mean to him.

Ron was the reason that the duel was going to occur, Hermione thought sadly. If Ginny had kept Ron out of it, she might not have been moved to challenge the youngest Weasley. No, you know that's not true.

The thing about being honest with herself was that occasionally, her inner-self knew the truth better than her 'head-girl' self or any other part of her. Hermione knew, from the moment that she had discovered what had happened to Harry, that a duel with Ginny was probably inevitable.

Even as she paced, Harry lay in the school's hospital wing; suffering a massive overdose of Amortentia - the most powerful lust/love potion ever devised. Whether Harry pulled out of it depended on Harry's magical constitution and Madame Pomfrey's singular skills as a medi-witch. She had already tried a bezoar as well as a half-dozen other antidotes to no effect. Even the potions master, Horace Slughorn, had been unable to help.

Hermione was, at the moment, stumped, and that added to her rage and her fear. Ginny was no threat....at least not one that would cause her pause. Hermione had killed more than fifty death eaters while she had been at Harry's side, as they battled to defeat Tom and his minions at the end, so Ginny was really the least of her worries.

She stopped to look out the window, where the dueling grounds lay. It seemed fitting, as well as tremendously sad, that Ginny would die on the old Quidditch grounds at Hogwarts. The young, beautiful red-headed girl had often bragged about her Quidditch skills and had tried to rub the fact of it Hermione's face, in order to embarrass her in front of Harry.

Of course, Ginny's attempt to embarrass her had done nothing but make the future head-girl go out and learn the game better and more thoroughly than Ginny could have ever imagined. Harry had taught her everything he knew...and had practiced with her, secretly, until she was as good on a broom as Harry. She knew that she'd never be a Seeker, of course. She didn't have the courage to dive and roll - at least not at full speed like he did - but in all other ways, she was his equal. They had even gotten off together on Harry's broom one warm night at Godric's Hollow, hanging some five-hundred feet in the air, while illuminated by the moonlight. It was a memory that they both treasured.

Hermione was still pacing when she heard a knock on the door. A wave of the hand and the door opened. It was Ron.

"Hermione?" He looked pale and his eyes were bloodshot. She had only seen that look once - when Arthur had been attacked by Nagini and the healers at St. Mungo's weren't sure whether he'd make it or not. He had cried by his father's bedside then, while she and Harry had comforted him.

"Ron?"

He was standing, unmoving, in the doorway. She could tell that he was scared.

She shook her head. There was nothing for it. He had come; she was sure, to beg her not to kill Ginny. Very quietly, she looked at him and said, "I can't, Ron. You know she won't walk away from this and I can't, either."

He began crying again and she could feel his emotions, even from where she stood. Ron knew that she was Harry's girl and that Harry was hers. There was nothing Ron could do about it, and to his credit, he had long-since gotten over the hurt of loosing her to Harry. Luna had helped with that.

Suddenly, he moved from where he was standing and without another word, she was in his arms and he was hugging her. As he held her, he whispered to her "You're still my sister and I'll still love you, Hermione. Nothing can come between the three of us. Ginny picked her path."

She stiffened as she heard his words. It was a shock to her him giving up his sister. It was not what she was expecting.

When he finally separated himself from her, he held her face in his hands and she felt the gentleness that he intended. His eyes met hers. "Just....don't drag it out, 'Mione. Just.....end it quickly. Mom and Dad couldn't take it."

Hermione nodded. She had already decided what she was going to have to do and it would be quick. She owed Ginny that much, for the years they had been friends, and she owed it to the rest of the Weasleys, who had shown her a great deal of love.

Ron looked at her and an understanding passed between them in that instant. He forgave her and that's what mattered most to her. Harry would understand, she knew, and so she hadn't worried about

"I've got to go, 'Mione. I'll see you....." He trailed off; not wanting to put voice to what he knew would happen in less than three hours.

"Ron? If I've never said it before, I love you and I love your family. I'm sorry....."

She started to cry and it embarrassed her. She knew that Ron hated to see her cry and she didn't want to make him feel any worse than he already was. There was nothing more that either of them could say; so he simply nodded and then turned and fled down the stairs from her private room. She listened as he fled; the tears dripping down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Ron", she said into the air; hoping that someone would absolve her of the guilt and hurt she was feeling.
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Hospital wing; Hogwarts, two hours previously.

"What can we do, Pomona? If Harry doesn't survive, I don't want to think about what might happen to Hermione. You've seen how they are together. If we lose them both, I truly fear for our world."

It might have sounded funny or melodramatic if anyone else had said it, but the renowned Hogwarts medi-witch knew that Minerva McGonagall was not someone to make statements that were not thoroughly thought through. More, Pomona knew that Minerva legitimately worried for the future of the school. Having the Head Girl involved in a duel to the death with another student was horrifying enough; but having the Head Boy lying in the hospital, battling for his life because he had had been poisoned by the other student involved in the duel was that much worse. At a minimum, she knew that in the best, most optimistic scenario, the school was going to lose a student forever...and not because the student was transferring to another school, but rather because the officials were going to carry that student off the dueling grounds, to be memorialized and then buried.

It was just after breakfast when Hermione had brought Harry into the hospital; supporting him as best she could, as he staggered to 'his' bed. The bit about it being 'his' bed had started out as a joke...but like all jokes, had a grain truth to it. In his case, though, wasn't a joke. Harry had been an unwilling visitor to the school's hospital more than most of the other students put together in his seven years at the school and so the bed - the one nearest the window, by her office, had become his. There was even a plate on the wall that only Harry, Hermione, and Ron could see, proclaiming the bed to be 'his', which Pomona suspected had been placed there by either Hermione or Ron. It was an unusual bit of magic, so she felt it was better to credit the Head Girl until she knew for sure, otherwise.

Seeing Harry looking like he was going to pass out, Pomona had come rushing yet again out of her office. "Hermione! For Merlin's sake, what's happened now?!"

"He's been poisoned, Madame Pomfrey. I'm pretty sure it's Amortentia". She held up the cup from Harry's breakfast and the vial which she had seized for the medi-witch to examine.

Amortentia was a forbidden potion. Banned by an act of the Wizengamot, the potion, known by it's memorable mother-of-pearl sheen and the characteristic way that steam spiraled up from its surface, could interfere with the relationships of even those who were most strongly bonded. In large doses, it was almost always fatal and when not fatal, often left the victim in a permanent, mental fog. By the looks of it, given what was left in the vial, Harry had received three times the usual, fatal dose. The look on the medi-witches face told Hermione everything she needed to know about the gravity of Harry's situation. For all of his remarkable strength and resiliency, Hermione knew that there was a limit to what a persons' magic could fight off. Amortentia was not a potion that a person fought off easily.

As she laid her bond-mate; her soul mate down onto the bed, she felt him shutter and then grip her arm. He looked at her and his eyes bore into her. "Love? If I don't make it.....I love you and I always will. It's all been worth it."

It took everything she had to hold it together emotionally in that moment. Her lips met his and she tried to pour all of her love and desire for him into the kiss. She wanted him to know, even as the effects of the potion were starting to affect him, that she loved him more than life itself.

Harry gasped and she felt him shutter again as they broke the kiss. His skin had become pale and his eyes rolled back. If he had been a muggle, she would have said for sure that he was going into shock.

She felt herself being pushed out of the way, as the matronly medi-witch drew out her wand and performed a horribly complex charm over his body. The next moment, his body stopped shuttering and then settled back. Hermione knew that she was completely out of her depth and could do no more for him. There were other, pressing matters to attend to. One of them had red hair. That one, she knew, would require a 'final solution'.
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There were a few things that being Head Girl allowed her to do. One of them was to know where all the students in the school were at any given time. Very quickly, she found her target and made sure to note what exits led in and out of that particular room. She didn't want her quarry to get away.

Racing towards the Headmasters' Office, Hermione decided that she would take the direct approach. There was no point in being subtle or dishonest about what she planned to do. She knew she was within her rights and she also knew that precedent was on her side. The question was whether the Headmaster was going to allow what she planned. It was hard to say, of course, because it had not happened during his tenure, but there's a first time for everything, as the saying went.

Once she was in front of the stone gargoyles, she muttered "sugar quills" and the statutory pair sprang aside, revealing the spiral stairway which they guarded. She was tempted to run up the stairs, but decided that walking would give her a more graceful entrance. What she was about to say to the Headmaster was going to be disturbing enough, without her barging in like a forest hog or something.

The inner door looked like it was made of ancient oak, but bound with polished metal. She pushed it open and walked in. "Headmaster?"
"Ms. Granger, what brings you up here?"

He was standing with his back to his desk, looking out over the western hills, as the sun shown bright on the lake. "It's Harry, sir. He's been poisoned."

Any semblance of peace fled the Headmasters' countenance as he turned to face her. "Say that again, please. I thought you said that Harry has been poisoned."

"Yes, Headmaster, and I know who did it and how it was done. I have come to claim right of vengeance, as Harry's consort and bond-mate." Hermione was not in a joking mood and her voice reflected her anger. It was a side of Hermione that the Headmaster had never seen before and it worried him.

"He's in the hospital wing now, sir, and Madame Pomfrey is caring for him. There's nothing more I can do. I am going to kill his poisoner, though, and I will do it with or without your permission." Her hand was on her wand, in the event that the Headmaster tried to take it from her. She had no intention of being disarmed.

"Who poisoned him?"

Hermione was seething, as she thought about the red-haired girl who had poured the poison into Harry's drink. "Weasley, Sir. Ginny Weasley. And I am going to kill her for it."

He looked at her and then reached over to his desk, where a small, blue ball lay in a wooden cradle. He extended his hand to her and said, "Come with me."

She took his hand and they disappeared in a swirl of blue and white light; which marked both the comings and goings of portkeys. Wherever he was taking the two of them, he was not going to waste time getting there.

The next thing she knew, they were in the hospital wing, near Madame Pomfrey's private office. Dumbledore looked about; quickly finding both the medi-witch and her most famous patient. Drawing a zone of privacy around the entire wing, the Headmaster walked over to where Pomfrey stood. "Pomona, may I have a word with you?"

"Oh! Headmaster. I'm glad you're here. We definitely need to talk."

"Miss Granger just came to me and told me that Mr. Potter had been poisoned. Is this true?"

The medi-witch nodded, sadly. With her wand, she pointed at the vial and the cup which Hermione had brought in less than thirty minutes earlier. Closing her eyes, she muttered several incantations that made both the vial and the cup glow. The Amortentia that was still in the cup seemed to rise to its surface and then arc up and out of the cup; separating from the pumpkin juice with which it had been mixed, and migrated back into the vial. A magical stopper topped the vial and it settled down on its side, on the table where it had originally rested. The second incantation caused the vial to rise up into the air and begin to spin on its own axis. Hermione was fascinated to watch what the skilled medi-witch was doing. She thought she recognized pieces of the magic that was being employed, but she wasn't certain.

It took another full minute for the vial to stop spinning. Once it did, Madame Pomfrey summoned it to her; making it stop and hover at eye level, in mid-air, a foot or so in front of her. "See that residue, Albus? Those are the fingerprints of the person who handled this vial. The spell I used will allow us to match the fingerprints, and the DNA, to the person who created the potion."

"Amortentia?"

She nodded. It was just as he feared. If Hermione was right, and the Headmaster was sure that she was, the youngest Weasley had probably not only committed murder, but suicide as well, for he was certain that Harry's bond-mate would be true to her word and would, before the day was out, kill the youngest of the Weasley clan. It would be a very, very sad day for Hogwarts and for the wizarding world.

What he was about to do caused him more and greater pain than anything he had ever had to do before, including seeing Hagrid drummed out of the school. "Do what you must, Hermione. Remember, if you can, the proverb that said 'blessed are the merciful'".

She looked at him and then nodded. He wasn't going to refuse her the right of vengeance, but warned her, in his own way, what the cost of vengeance might be.

However, looking down at Harry, and knowing that his odds of surviving the poisonous effects of the Amortentia were slim, she decided that for once, nothing else mattered. It was time to act.
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Ginny knew she couldn't run. There was nowhere, in fact, where she could go that Hermione could not find her. She had been caught red-handed with the potion vial and what Harry had not drunk was had been left in his cup. It was only a matter of time until Hermione came looking for her. Ginny had a pretty good idea of what was going to happen. Hermione was either going to call her out, or kill her outright. It depended on what the Headmaster would allow. Hermione had always been a person who observed the rules and the rules said that she had to make a formal challenge. However, Hermione was also the one who had developed the Mortuis curse, which Harry had used, at the end, to kill Voldemort. The only question that Ginny had was whether Hermione would drag it out or not. "Probably not", she thought, as she sat on Ron's bed. "If Hermione wants me dead, she'll make it fast and clean"

Ron had fled the sight of her; so upset was he when it was discovered what she had done. She imagined that he was in Luna's arms at the moment. Was he crying over loosing his only sister? "Probably", she realized, in a moment of honesty. Their relationship had always been pretty good, and he had defended her in any number of family battles over the years. They had squabbled, like brothers and sisters often do, but had always reconciled afterwards. Ron had never been one to be shy about saying, "I love you", at least to her. She wasn't sure whether he loved Luna, but she hoped that he'd find lasting happiness with her. He deserved it; after all he had been through during the war.

There was a sudden disturbance in the room; as if the air pressure had changed, and she looked up to see Hermione Potter nee Granger looking at her, her wand out and pointed squarely at her chest.

"Ginerva Weasley, you have attempted to kill my consort bond-mate - the man who was willing to die a thousand times for me and for all of us - by using Amortentia to seduce him. I challenge you to a duel to the death, as is my right under wizarding law. Meet me at the Quidditch field at one pm today, or I will hunt you down and kill you, wherever I find you."

They said nothing as a terrible, black cloud filled the room, and then dissipated, as the magical challenge took effect. Hermione knew its significance, even if Ginny didn't. She took no satisfaction in it, though.

Before she could reply, Hermione disappeared. It looked like she had disapparated, but it was more subtle than that. It was almost like what the Hogwarts house-elves did when they disappeared. Seeing that, a cold lump fell into her stomach and Ginny realized that, baring a miracle, she was going to die.

The first tear hit the hand in her lap even before she realized that she was crying and the tears after that fell like rain in the spring. For the first time in her life, she knew the bitter sting of irresolvable remorse.

It wasn't that she was going to die. She knew that death claimed everyone, eventually. It was that she was going to die and her mother, father, and all of her brothers, would hate her until the day they went to their final rewards. The thought of it made her sadder than anything ever had before. The vileness of what she had done, and what she had caused to happen, sickened her. Making Hermione spill her blood....and by so doing, loose the love she had been given by the twins, Ron, and the rest of the family was suddenly so revolting that she swore that she would not let it happen. She would not make Hermione carry that burden. If she had to die for what she had done in a reckless and terrible moment of jealousy, so be it...but it would be by her own hand and no one else's.
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Hermione Granger entered the Headmasters' office the way everyone else did, even though she had faster and more expeditious ways of traveling around the school. She knocked once, quietly, on the large inner door, before entering the office. Fawkes trilled a greeting as she entered and she nodded to the beautiful phoenix. Hermione closed her eyes and touched her inner phoenix; just enough so that she could trill a greeting back. It was a game they played - one that was only between them - because the Headmaster knew nothing of it. He was blissfully ignorant of Hermione's status as an unregistered animagus, or of Harry's animagus ability to become a rainbow serpent. The secrecy was necessary, but regrettable, she thought.

The game between her and Fawkes almost caused her to be revealed to Dumbledore, though, as he came out of his inner office rather abruptly when he heard the second phoenix song. Hermione berated herself for not being more careful as she quickly composed her features, so as to give nothing away to the Headmaster that he didn't already know.

"Oh. Ms. Granger, or should I do what Minerva has suggested and call you Mrs. Potter?"

She blushed. "Hermione is fine, Headmaster. Actually, you can call me anything you want; though I think that it will disturb some people if you refer to me as Mrs. Potter." It took a moment for her to compose her thoughts, because his question distracted her momentarily from what she wanted to say to her mentor. "That's actually what I came here to tell you. I have challenged Ginny Weasley to a duel to the death, at the Quidditch field, at one pm today. I told her that if she didn't show up, I would hunt her down and kill her."

Fawkes gave a long, keening cry, which she felt to her very soul, and then burst into flames. She stood in the outer office, unable to move, or even contemplate what to do next. Dumbledore fixed his gaze at her, as the effect of the phoenixes' cry moved within her. "It's a rare thing that Fawkes would be moved to give up his life, Hermione, and be re-born when it's not his time. I think you know what it means, do you not?" She nodded, to signal that she understood. It meant that Fawkes saw her death looming near, if she proceeded. Was she willing to give up her life to gain revenge? Was it worth it?

If she lost Harry because of what Ginny did? Yes. It was worth it.

"Headmaster? Do I have a choice?"

Albus Dumbledore smiled, albeit sadly. "Hermione, as I told Harry right after he killed the basilisk and saved Ginny in the Chamber of Secrets, it is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. He was concerned about who or what he was, because the sorting hat had told him that he'd do well in Slytherin and because the almost-reborn Tom Riddle had told him that there were certain, unusual similarities between himself and Harry. To make my point, I showed Harry the blood-stained sword of Godric Gryffindor which Harry had used to kill the basilisk. I told him that night, and I am even more convinced of it now, that only a true Gryffindor could have pulled it from the Hat. In the same way, you have to decide, Hermione, who you are, and what you are...and your choices will reveal who the real person is, under that strong, determined mask which you wear."

"She tried to seduce Harry, Headmaster, even though she knew that Harry and I had already bound ourselves to each other. She gave him so much of the Amortentia that he probably won't survive it and I will be left never having had the chance to marry the one person who has always loved me."

"You must do what you feel is right. I cannot stop you from dueling Ms. Weasley and sad to say, I cannot keep you from killing her. She has done what you have said....and there is no forgiving her for it. The only question is whether you can forgive yourself for what you are about to do. I can't order you to not duel her...but I can ask you to think about what I've said, Hermione."

"Headmaster?"

"I have no more to say to you, Hermione. What happens now is in your hands, alone. Do what you feel is right. I will not see you again before this terrible matter is over."

She started towards him....for a hug or to be absolved or something...she didn't know what. She took another step and watched as he disappeared, in much the same way as she had learned to do from Harry and from Dobby. She found herself completely lost. Harry was ill and could not speak with her and her one other source of strength - the Headmaster who had guided her since she had arrived at the school - had left her alone with her thoughts.