A Matter of Honor
by Amy McWilliams (McAmy)

Book 1: The Honors Project

Chapter 13: The Forbidden Forest

Luckily for Ron, Hermione was too busy to give him as much of a hard time as she'd have liked. Somehow, though, the fact that he was seeing somebody else (it had worked out, after all) released a lot of the tension that had been with them since the holidays. Things were quieter around the common room with Ron spending more and more time with Sarah (Hermione's new favorite thing was to tease him about all the hours they spent in the library: "More hours than in your whole time at Hogwarts," she'd say with a gleam in her eye), and since Hermione was in the middle of a particularly difficult trial and spending more and more time in the dungeon, Harry was left on his own most evenings. He didn't mind too much, since the team had voted to add an extra Quidditch practice each week in preparation for their rematch against Slytherin.

It was mid-March, now, and the weather was beginning to look like spring, though the wind was still cold. Ron got back at Hermione by picking on her for spending so much time in the dungeon with Snape. She was so pleased with her progress--it looked as though they might have time to start on the last Curse before the end of the term, and the work on Imperius was just as promising as Cruciatus had been--that he couldn't really compete, since Harry was on Hermione's side, teasing him about Sarah.

One night after Quidditch, Harry stopped by to see Remus. His office door was closed, but he had told Harry that he'd be there grading, and to stop by. Harry knocked on the door, and heard Remus say, "Just a moment," and waited.

A few minutes went by before the door opened, and then Harry was startled to see Snape give Remus a nod as he exited.

"Mr. Potter," he said with his usual sneer. "I trust you'll be safely back in Gryffindor Tower before curfew." And he passed Harry and left down the hall.

"Ah, Harry, come in," Remus said. But he looked tired, and not a little distracted.

"I can come back some other night," Harry offered, but Remus gestured to the usual chair.

"No, no. I could use the visit."

They sat in silence for a moment, and Harry asked, "Is…is something wrong? I mean…with the Potion, or with…anything else?"

Remus looked at him. "Oh, no, nothing like that." He smiled, but Harry could see that it didn't quite reach his weary eyes. "Severus has just brought me some news…I'm sorry, I can't say anything more than that. It's nothing for you to worry about."

"All right," said Harry. "I just thought that it might be Sirius…"

"Sirius is fine, Harry," Lupin assured him. "I've just had an owl from him this week, and he sends his love to you." Harry smiled.

"So…" Remus changed the subject, looking for something a bit more quotidian. "How is your final semester at Hogwarts going?"

Now it was Harry's turn to look concerned.

"Is anything wrong?" Remus asked.

"No," Harry shook his head. "Not really. School is going well, and Quidditch is brilliant…" he trailed off.

"But?" Remus prompted.

"But I'm not sure what I'm going to do…after," Harry admitted. "I haven't told anybody this, but I have no idea what to do when I leave Hogwarts. Ron assumes that I'll try for a spot on a professional team. He's pretty sure he's going to work with Charlie, at least for a while. Hermione knows exactly what she's going to do--more school. And what she's doing is important. But I…" he glanced sheepishly at Remus. "I had hoped I could go to live with Sirius. But even if that happens, it's not really something to do, is it." It wasn't a question.

Remus studied him for a minute. "Have you ever considered being an Auror, Harry?"

Harry looked up at him, startled. "But…" he stammered. "Well, no. I haven't. I mean…I thought about it, but…I thought…" He took a breath. "I thought it would be too dangerous for me because of…" he pointed to his scar.

"Ah," Remus said, repressing a smile. "You think you'd be a sitting duck out there because of the target painted on your forehead?"

"Something like that," Harry admitted.

"Being an Auror is difficult work. You would be in great danger. But it is rewarding work. I suspect that you want something a little more important to do than playing professional Quidditch." Harry looked up, a little embarrassed, and nodded. "But not all Aurors are like Mad-Eye Moody. And I suspect…no, I know, Harry, that you would make a fine one."

Harry was silent. "Are you scared, Harry?"

Harry said softly, "Yes."

Remus came around to place a hand on his shoulder. "You should be. But Harry," and Harry looked up into Remus's kind face at the tone in his voice, "you have never been one to let your fear guide your actions."

Harry nodded. "Thank you, Remus."

And impulsively, he stood up and hugged his teacher--his friend.

By the end of the month it was clear to everybody that something was going on. The teachers seemed nervous, and kept a watchful eye on everything. Ron and Harry had come back five minutes late from visiting Hagrid one night, and McGonagall had taken twenty points from her own house. The next morning, she announced at breakfast that all students would be asked to stay in their dormitories whenever they were not in class, at meals, or in the library. Curfew was moved two hours earlier, causing Quidditch players across the room to grumble. Even Hermione had to get special permission to stay in her workroom as late as she was used to, and someone had to accompany her back to the tower afterwards. Ron reckoned that her worst escort was Snape, though McGonagall often came to walk with her student; Harry decided that the night Filch brought her back had to be worse than Snape, any day.

One evening, Hermione was in her workroom cleaning up after the end of an experiment when she again heard voices in the classroom. Getting up to close the door herself, she heard McGonagall's voice say, "…in Hogsmeade. We need to go now."

As she pulled the door closed, Snape appeared in the doorway and stopped it with his hand.

"Miss Granger, I need you to stay here. I must leave. If you need to return to your dormitory before I return--and I may be very late--" a shadow passed over his face, "do not, under any circumstance, walk the halls by yourself. Is that clear? I will have Mr. Filch check on you every half hour."

It had been a long time since she'd felt like a first year under his piercing gaze, but she managed a nod.

As he swept towards the classroom door, she said, "Professor?"

He stopped, not turning. "I can tell you nothing more, Miss Granger." But he waited.

"I was about to head back to my dormitory…"

Now he turned, his robes swirling around him. After a moment, he gestured to the door. "Come then, I'll take you there myself. I have a few minutes before…" and he stopped.

She hastily grabbed her bag from the workroom, not stopping to check if there was anything else she'd need before the next afternoon--it didn't seem important just now--and he held the door as she passed ahead of him.

They walked quickly and in complete silence to the portrait hole. She muttered the password, and as she moved to enter, he said, "Miss Granger, as Head Girl, I would ask you to keep a watchful eye on everyone tonight." She nodded. "As my student…" he paused, long enough that she wasn't sure he would continue, "I would ask you to please be careful, whatever may happen." A chill ran down her spine.

As he left, she said softly, "You be careful too, Sir." She didn't know if he'd heard her or not.

Most of the Gryffindors were sitting in silence, wide-eyed, in the common room. She looked around the room for Harry and Ron and didn't see them. Heading up to knock on their door, she said, "Everything will be all right, everyone. The teachers have it under control." Some of the younger students seemed reassured, but the older students knew that she didn't know anything more than they did. They were right. She had seen more than they had, however, and it didn't make her feel any better.

There was no answer at the boys' dormitory, and as she knocked for the third time, Neville approached. "They're not there," he said.

She whirled around to face him. "Where are they, then?" she demanded.

"I don't…I don't know…" Neville had to agree with Ron; Hermione could be scary sometimes.

Hermione sighed. "I'm sorry, Neville. But could you go in and see if they've left any sign of where they've gone?"

He opened the door, and, seeing that nobody was there, she entered with him. They looked over the room for a minute, and then Neville cried, "There! What's that?"

Hermione bent to pick up a letter that had dropped to the floor and lay halfway under Harry's bed. She scanned it quickly, and then opened the trunk at the foot of Harry's bed. She must have seen something that gave her an answer, Neville thought, because she exited quickly, leaving him to wonder what was going on. He picked up the note--she had left it on the bed in her haste--and read it to himself.

Dear Harry,

We have to talk. Meet me tonight in the Forbidden Forest. I'll be there until midnight.

S.

Neville looked at the clock. It was just before eleven.

Hermione crashed into Remus's office. He wasn't there; she knew that the teachers would probably all have left by now, but had hoped that she could catch him.

Harry's invisibility cloak was not in his trunk.

She knew from the note that Harry had gone to meet Sirius, and had probably taken Ron with him. She hoped beyond hope that Ron was instead sneaking out to meet Sarah somewhere. But Harry didn't know what she knew--didn't know that the teachers were headed out…and the Forbidden Forest lay between the school and Hogsmeade. What if…what if whatever-it-was that McGonagall had said was out there was coming this way? They had to think it was a possibility, or they wouldn't have shut up the school so tightly. Snape had even walked her back to the tower himself, probably wasting valuable time, rather than letting her go on her own. If it was something that could breach Hogwarts's security…and Harry was out there.

She had no choice. She had to find Harry and warn him.

But how did she get out of the castle without being spotted? A confident attitude and her Head Girl's badge would get her only so far. She looked around the office, and her eyes glanced across the fireplace. That was it. She moved to the mantelpiece and looked more carefully--there it was. The jar of Floo Powder that every witch or wizard kept near their fire.

She spread a bit over the logs, a little nervous about traveling this way on school grounds. Would it work? "Hagrid's hut," she said clearly, stepping into the blaze.

It had worked, and her hunch had been right. Hagrid was nowhere to be seen; she had counted on him leaving with the teachers. Fang was happy to see her, and stood up from the rug to slobber his greetings. "Not now, Fang," she whispered. "I've got something I have to do."

She paused at the door, looking back at the dog. "Do you want to come with me, boy?" Fang came to her side. "We're going into the forest--are you sure?" He cocked his head, looking worried, but nosed the door. "Thanks." She opened the door and the two crept out into the night.

She was glad for the company, even though she knew Fang was a coward and would run for home the moment he smelled trouble. The forest was forbidden for a reason, though, and at least Fang could act as her early warning system ("Dad would appreciate that metaphor," she thought with a pang).

At the edge of the forest, Fang hesitated. "It's ok, boy," she said, and patted his head. He whined, but didn't leave her side. She took hold of his collar for reassurance (hers as well as his) and they walked into the trees.

Hermione had no idea where in the forest Sirius would meet Harry. She doubted that the note was from Sirius at all, which was the reason she'd come out after her friends. She pushed her doubts aside, hoping that Sirius was there, for all their sakes. She decided to stick to the edge of the forest, not going in too far, and move generally in the direction of Hogsmeade. That way, if she didn't find him, she could get help from one of the teachers. ("Oh, that'll be a hundred points from Gryffindor for sure," she thought.) She didn't think Sirius would want Harry to have to come too far into the forest either, and she knew that he had stayed near Hogsmeade every time he was in the area.

She quickened her pace, listening carefully for any sound that might tell her where they were. There was nothing, though, until she'd gone most of the way around the forest. Then she heard it--not a conversation, but a yell. Somebody had been hurt. She stopped dead in her tracks. More voices--she heard Hagrid call out to someone. Fang left her then, headed for his master. "Well, I guess you have some bravery in you after all," she muttered. What should she do? It sounded like trouble up ahead, but she was worried sick about Harry and Ron.

She decided to move closer and see if she could tell what was happening. She moved from tree to tree, trying to stay in the shadows. After several yards, she heard McGonagall's voice: "Remus! Behind you!"

She hurried then, not caring about the house points, thinking that maybe, somehow, she could help. She caught a glimpse of Professor Sprout through the trees. Saw her raise her wand. Saw her cry out, "Expecto Patronum!"

Then sparks flew by Hermione's head and she hit the ground. "Dementors?" she thought. "Dementors in Hogsmeade?"

She stayed crouched at the base of the tree for what felt like an hour, though it was only ten minutes. The sounds of…of what she could only think of as a battle continued.

Finally, when things seemed quieter, she peeked around the tree. Seeing nothing, she wondered if it was over, or if they'd simply moved away from her. Taking a deep breath, she crept closer.

To her right, just outside the edge of the forest, she could see Remus. He had cast his own Patronus, and as it returned to his side and faded, she saw that there were two hooded figures at his feet. The other professors were still under the trees where she couldn't see them.

Quickly, she made her decision, and broke out into a run, calling his name. "Remus! Remus, I need your help! I can't find Harry!"

He whirled around, shocked to see her. His look turned to anger, and then fear, and he seemed to look past her.

"Hermione!" someone shouted, and then she felt it--the cold touch of a Dementor pressing down on her shoulder.

She fell hard on her knees to the ground, scraping her hand as she pitched forward. There was another hand on her ankle, pulling her backwards.

She screamed, and then everything went dark.

She woke to the muffled sounds of a conversation near her feet. It was as though she was underwater, and she couldn't hear what they were saying. She opened her eyes carefully, squeezing them shut again when a pain shot through her temple.

Then Madam Pomfrey was there, clucking over her. "There, there, dear. Don't move. You've had a hard night. Lie still, and I'll be back with something for the pain."

She lay quietly, but heard someone sit beside her. She turned her head to the right slightly, towards the sound, and gingerly opened one eye. It was Professor McGonagall, looking very worried.

"Professor…Harry…did they find…" McGonagall shushed her, taking her hand.

"It's all right, my dear. Harry is safe, and Ron," she added, seeing Hermione's next question on her face. "It's you we were worried about."

"But what…"

"Hush, now." McGonagall stopped her. "You need to rest for a while longer, and then we'll tell you everything."

Madam Pomfrey returned, and Professor McGonagall rose to leave. Hermione closed her eyes and sank back into her pillow. She felt a cool hand on her forehead, and then it supported her neck, helping her to raise her head enough to take a draught of something that tasted foul ("Of course it does," she thought, "any truly effective potion tastes foul"), and lowered her head back, gently, onto the pillow.

As she felt herself drifting off to sleep, she heard Madam Pomfrey say, "Why, bless my stars. He's been sitting there all night. I wonder where he could have gone?"

That afternoon, she woke again, this time hearing several voices at the door.

"But we have to see she's all right"--that was Ron.

"Not now, I said. She's sleeping." And Madam Pomfrey.

"Poppy, I think it'll be all right, just for a minute." And Remus.

She opened her eyes and found that her head didn't hurt at all anymore. "Please," she said softly, "I'd like to see them."

At that, Harry and Ron pushed past Madam Pomfrey ("Well, I never," she said) and came to her side.

"What were you thinking, going out by yourself?!" demanded Ron. You could have been killed!"

"That's right, Ron, tell her something that'll comfort her," Harry said, jabbing him in the arm.

Remus interrupted. "I think her story can wait for a bit, Ron. I suspect that she has some questions of her own. And instead of making her ask them, why don't I just tell the story so all of you will know what happened."

Ron and Harry took a seat on the next bed, while Remus took the chair.

Hermione shifted in the bed, wanting to sit up straighter, and all three of them moved to help. Remus added a pillow behind her head and helped her to sit up as the boys sat back down. "All right?" Remus asked her. She nodded.

He leaned back in the chair and said, "I'll start at the beginning, though there are some things I can't tell you. I think we've pieced together Hermione's part of the story as well, though she may want to add to it when she feels better. Now…" he looked at Harry and Ron, then back to Hermione. "You all know that something's been going on. If you didn't realize it at the start of the term, you had to recognize the signs that there was some danger once the curfew was changed and the other safety measures taken."

They all nodded.

"We had received word that a known Death Eater had been seen in Hogsmeade over the holiday," he said, watching for their reaction. When he saw that they were intent enough on his story not to react, he continued.

"We have, of course, been keeping a very close eye on the town this term. And Sirius," he looked at Harry, "has been in the country since just after the start of the year, listening for rumors. He's fine, Harry," he added. Harry nodded.

"Last month, we received word that there had been another sighting. Dumbledore suspected the new owner of The Three Broomsticks, and sent…well, he found a way to determine if she was a safety risk."

Hermione started; this must have been the night Dumbledore came to see Professor Snape. Remus glanced at her, but said nothing.

"Then, last night, a loyal associate in Hogsmeade sent an owl saying that something wasn't right. Hagrid went into town to canvas the situation--since he's a regular fixture at the pub--and reported that something was clearly amiss, though he couldn't put his finger on what. Dumbledore asked us all to accompany him--it seemed like he knew more than he was saying, and though I now know some of it, that is the part I cannot tell you. We headed to Hogsmeade after making sure all the students were accounted for."

He looked at Harry. "Of course, the note from Sirius--which was not from Sirius at all," Harry ducked his head at that, "came after we'd checked the dormitories. And with the teachers leaving or already gone, there was no one you could check with--even if you'd wanted to--before heading out. They knew you'd come; they'd intercepted something Sirius had written, or hoped he'd written, knowing that if they forged the handwriting and it was from him, you'd come when they called."

Harry looked up. "I would have come to you, Remus," he said quietly.

"Thank you, Harry. I'm glad of it."

He continued, "By the time Severus brought Hermione up to your common room, Harry and Ron had already left, but he knew that Minerva had already checked her house and headed out before him. He joined us, none of us knowing that the two of you were gone, or that Hermione would find the note and come after you."

"Did you think it was from Sirius?" he asked Hermione.

Hermione shook her head. "I wanted to believe that it was…that he'd keep Harry safe. But I knew it wasn't. That's why I had to go…" she trailed off, expecting a rebuke, but Remus returned to his story.

"What I can tell you, though I must ask you to keep it to yourselves, is that there has been a small group of Death Eaters meeting in Hogsmeade since Christmas. They were going to attempt to kidnap one of the students to hold for ransom--to show Dumbledore that he could not hope to keep Hogwarts safe from them in the future. With the sample of Sirius's handwriting, they knew they were going to do much better than they had hoped. Now, they wanted to kidnap Harry Potter."

Harry shifted nervously, and Ron put his hand on Harry's shoulder.

"The good news, Harry, is that they were acting on their own--they had no orders regarding Hogwarts, or you, and we have reason to believe that the few who got away…well, that they won't be in favor with the others for quite some time."

"Because they wound up giving us a warning," Hermione said softly.

Remus looked at her, surprised. "Yes. That's right."

Ron raised his hand.

"You're not in class, Ron," Remus smiled, "ask your question."

Too interested to be embarrassed, Ron said, "But Remus, there were…there were Dementors there. Aren't they supposed to work for us? You know, at Azkaban?"

Remus nodded. "There's no way of knowing how many Dementors are in existence at any given time," he answered. "We must assume, especially now, that there are many more than we knew about."

"Because if this small group of Death Eaters had some, there has to be more," Harry added.

"That's right," Remus said. "Perhaps I should give the three of you points for Defense Against the Dark Arts, the way you're putting things together."

Encouraged, Ron continued, "So Harry and I headed out to see Sirius, and they nabbed us. But the teachers were already between them and Hogsmeade. And by the time Hermione showed up, Dumbledore had sent us back to the castle with Hagrid, and you saved her from that last Dementor and the Death Eater that was trying to grab her."

"Remus?" Hermione's voice sounded small. They all turned to look at her, and saw that she was crying.

"What is it, child?" He smoothed a tear from her cheek.

"I'm…I'm sorry I came out there. I knew I shouldn't…I knew it was dangerous, and I wasn't any help at all--I just caused more trouble, and I…" she began to cry in earnest.

Remus took her hand, and looked at Harry and Ron. "You two should go on to dinner," he said. When they hesitated, he added, "I'll stay here with Hermione. Don't worry."

They stood, but didn't move away.

"Go on, now. She'll be fine." They left slowly.

Hermione had managed to stop crying when he turned back around.

"It's all right, dear heart. Cry, if it will make you feel better." He offered her his handkerchief and she blew her nose. When she didn't say anything, he began, "You shouldn't have gone into the forest; you're right about that. But no one can fault you for wanting to protect your friends."

She looked up at him. "I'm sure the Gryffindor house points won't agree," she said, attempting a smile.

"Don't worry about that right now," said Remus.

As he leaned back in his chair, she said, "Thank you…for now, and for last night too…"

He seemed confused. "Last night?"

She said, shyly, "I heard Madam Pince say that there had been somebody sitting here all night--a 'he.' I…I figured it had to be you."

He put his finger under her chin and lifted her eyes to his. "It wasn't me," he said. "It was Professor Snape."

Snape shut the door to his classroom as the last student of the day left. Nobody had paid attention all day, and, as irritating as it was, he couldn't blame them. Of course the rumors of last night's events had spread like wildfire. And when Hermione Granger wasn't in class, everyone knew that something serious had to have happened.

Damn Harry Potter for putting her in danger again.

He sighed, too tired to be angry, and his gaze drifted to the door opposite. He crossed the room and unlocked it. Inside, he checked her worktable to make sure there was nothing that needed to be done. She had left it, as always, in perfect order. There was a note for him, however, and he sat down to read it. She must have written it before Minerva had come to tell him that the Death Eaters were preparing to move from Hogsmeade.

Professor--

I've finished the work with the grindylowe's stomach (sorry, but that's still gross), and I think we're going to have to try something else--perhaps the dragon's heartstring you had suggested?

I'll be back in on Wednesday, and everything's shut down safely in the meantime.

H.

"She must not have wanted to interrupt me," he thought. "But she knew I'd come in to see what she had found when she didn't say anything." Reading the note again, he smiled exactly where she'd intended, though he doubted that she'd thought he actually would.

He took the note with him, picked up the homework parchments from the podium, and went to his office. After placing the kettle on the fire, he sat down at his desk, intending to grade the essays for his class the next day.

Some time later, his eyes re-focused, and he realized that Remus Lupin was taking the kettle from the blaze.

He sat up, startled. "Wha…what is it?" He stumbled over the words.

"You looked like you were under some sort of petrification curse, Severus," Remus said, pouring out the tea.

Snape didn't answer. Remus set the cup in front of him, but didn't sit down. Snape looked up to find the other man watching him. He frowned. "Did you want something, Professor Lupin?"

Remus smiled. "I just came by to tell you that Hermione is awake again, and Madam Pomfrey says that she'll be fine. She should be back in classes tomorrow."

Snape looked away. After a moment, Remus opened the door to leave.

As he pulled it closed behind him, he heard, barely a whisper, "Thank you."

A/N: The thought of using Floo powder on Hogwarts grounds, as well as the reminder that any good potion tastes awful, come from The Darkness & Light Trilogy, by R. J. Anderson.

On to Chapter 14