Hermione Granger and the Paradigm Shift

Chapter 8 - Part 2

Breakfast the next day passed uneventfully as she, frustratingly, did not receive any owl post. She knew it had been wishful thinking to expect Mr. Dagworth to respond so quickly but was still disappointed when nothing had arrived.

She was busy packing up after a slightly mundane Potions lesson when she received the answer she had hoped for.

"Miss Granger," Professor Slughorn chimed in as she was set to leave, "I need to speak with you privately for a moment if that's all right. It will just take a moment"

"We'll wait for you," Harry commented reassuringly as he and Ron left her alone with the portly Professor. Quickly her paranoia kicked in as she ran through the last few days in her mind thinking of anything she had done that could get her in trouble.

"Nothing to worry about, my dear," the Professor said kindly as he waved her up to his desk. "Klaus Dagworth stopped by briefly last night...said you had some questions about how to handle a rather troublesome elf," he informed as he handed her an envelope. "He asked if I could deliver this to you personally."

She looked at the envelope dumbly, never expecting such a cloak and dagger reply.

"That's all I needed," Slughorn continued cheerfully as he waved her away. "I will see you Saturday morning. It is always helpful to have students volunteer to help with ingredient preparation."

At her questioning look he continued. "Just read the letter and you will understand."

Given how secretive Dagworth and Professor Slughorn had been she decided it would be best to wait until after lunch to read his reply away from prying eyes. She and Harry ducked into an abandoned classroom once their bellies were full and read the letter.

Miss Granger,

It was good to hear from you again. I was afraid that I'd scared you off after our discussion at the party but I'm happy to see that isn't the case. I should have known based on our prior correspondence that you would not be put off that easily.

You should know, the only place secrets and gossip travel faster than at Hogwarts is the Ministry. Although it was never made public it is an open secret here that Sirius Black was involved and died during your excursion to the Ministry last summer. Given your description of the elf, how he had been treated, and his pureblood beliefs it was fairly easy for me to connect the dots and determine that Mr. Potter was your 'friend' and that the elf served Mr. Black's family.

You should also know that it was already widely speculated that Mr. Black was more than likely innocent of the charges he was imprisoned for. The fact that he showed up that night on Mr. Potter's behalf essentially confirmed to everyone here with a working brain that his innocence wasn't just speculation but a fact.

Given what a popular topic Mr. Potter is these days I thought it would be best to handle our discussion privately, in person. Horace has graciously offered the use of his classroom this Saturday morning at 8:00 a.m. for 'potions ingredient preparation.' Given your high standing in his class this seemed like an excellent excuse for you to be visiting the Professor on Saturday. You are welcome to invite Mr. Potter to join us as well.

He also informed me that you have an Apparition lesson scheduled for 10:00 that day, hopefully I can answer any questions you have in the time available. If not, I will be happy to pay another visit.

Of course, I could be entirely wrong about the friend in question being Mr. Potter and if that is the case there is no need for him to attend. Regardless, please share with Mr. Potter that although it might be hard to believe given his recent treatment, there are many of us here at the Ministry who appreciate and support his efforts.

Arthur Weasley in particular has been a rather outspoken, passionate, and convincing advocate of Mr. Potter (and you) over the years. I personally find Arthur a much more credible source of information than the Daily Prophet or our dear, departed Minister, Cornelius Fudge.

Looking forward to seeing you on Saturday.

Sincerely,

Klaus Dagworth

P.S. Mr. Potter's owl is very distinctive and well known at the Ministry. Unless you want to openly broadcast you are writing about Harry Potter I would strongly suggest you use a Hogwarts owl in the future.

Hermione handed the letter to Harry for him to read, dreading his reaction once he was finished. She had promised Harry that she would be discreet and had thoroughly bungled it up in every way possible. She scrutinized Harry's facial expressions as he read, fearing the inevitable eruption of emotion due to her carelessness. Infuriatingly, he didn't seem upset at all. If anything he seemed pleased.

"This Dagworth bloke seems pretty sharp," he finally commented.

"I'm so sorry, Harry!" she exclaimed. "I should have known he would sort it out."

"Hermione," Harry attempted to interject. She wasn't finished. Not nearly.

"And I can't believe I was stupid enough to use Hedwig!"

"Hermione," Harry tried once again. She would not be deterred.

"The Headmaster even warned us about how distinctive Hedwig was last summer. How could I have forgotten that?"

"Hermione!" Harry nearly shouted in an effort to silence her. "I was the one who suggested using Hedwig so if anyone is at fault it's me," he continued in a much quieter voice, "it's really okay."

"No it's not! I just lectured you the other day about being smarter and I'm not following my own advice!"

"Obviously Professor Slughorn trusts him, and you do to. He seems genuine to me...plus he knows what a bell-end Fudge was. What's the worst that could happen?"

"He could try to murder you!" she answered, much more hysterically than she had intended.

Harry laughed out loud. The fact that he didn't seem to be bothered at all by her slip up was infuriating.

At her pointed glare Harry pulled her into a hug. "Sorry, I know it's not funny," he mumbled.

As much as she wanted to stay annoyed the physical contact and Harry's contrition did the trick, calming her instantly.

"If you are really worried you should go to the meeting by yourself," he continued. "And I honestly don't think there is any real harm in him knowing it was Sirius' elf. Okay?"

She nodded her agreement.

"I know it's probably irrational but I think I should go alone just in case," she mumbled into his shoulder.

"Okay," he replied as he released her. She forcefully resisted the urge to pull him back into a hug. She had enjoyed the consoling and could have stood for it lasting a few more seconds. Or minutes. Or hours.