At the end of August, I still had to return to England. With handwriting made clumsy by grief, Susan wrote to me that Aunt Amelia had been killed and the funeral would be held on August thirtieth. I couldn't not come to my friend.
My parents were very upset and wanted to go with me. It took enormous effort to dissuade them. I would go to England by train, and none of the wizards would know ahead of time that I had returned, and for the return home I had a portkey to the French Ministry. I was in a new wig, and mom had disguised me so well that unless you were specifically looking for Hermione in this girl, you'd never think it.
There were many people at the funeral, mostly from the ministry. Next to the crying Susan stood Hannah. A large group of people in red Auror robes, some officials in strict suits. I saw Cedric with his father and the incomplete Weasley family. I didn't approach closely, pretended I had come to the cemetery for someone else, and watched the ceremony from afar. People began to disperse, and in the end only Susan remained with some very elderly lady - who looked half again as old as Dumbledore.
"Susan... it's me, Hermione."
Susan grabbed onto me and started crying again, I hugged her and stroked her hair. She had probably already taken a calming potion in the morning, but too much isn't allowed either. After some time my friend came to her senses and introduced me to her distant relative. Some many-times-great-grandmother cousin. Now Susan would live with her. Susan's grandmother interrupted us, saying that at her age one gets tired quickly, and she would wait for us at Susan's home.
Good thing Susan was already an adult; with a small child such an elderly person wouldn't be able to cope. Susan would pack her things today and move to her relative's, the Bones house would be closed until the heiress came of age.
I took out from my new bag with expanded space flowers under stasis that my parents had sent for the funeral, and placed them in the general flower pile. I wanted to cry too, I loved Aunt Amelia. Susan stopped her gaze on the grave one last time and took my hand, apparating home.
We landed in blazing hell, hellfire howled around us, skin and eyes were immediately burned by the scorching air. It hurt! I grabbed my friend and activated the international portkey.
***
I opened my eyes with difficulty, tearing apart my stuck-together eyelashes. My mucous membranes were completely dry. I tried to blink, from the sharp pain in my eyes tears welled up, and it became easier. It felt like I had a hellish hangover, but had I been drinking? What were we celebrating? And with whom? Or drowning our sorrows? Gradually my head cleared, the fire was the last thing I remembered. Were we saved? Where's Susan?
I looked around - I was in a hospital ward. Someone was lying on the neighboring bed... my god, it's bald Susan! Well, not completely bald - with a short hedgehog cut. I felt my own head - also a prickly hedgehog. Oh wow... So we got burned. But I didn't see any burns on Susan. I looked at my own hand - it seemed I had lost a lot of weight, but the skin was clean. If the burns were healed, then the hellfire itself didn't manage to burn us, its traces can't be healed by anything. Probably only ordinary fire and hot air got us. I tried to call someone, but my throat only croaked. But from my efforts some artifact next to me on the nightstand started blinking.
A young healer came running. Correctly understanding my pleading look, she poured me water and helped me drink, then began pouring potions into me. On the fourth potion she deigned to say that Doctor Defosse would answer all questions, and he would come shortly. She answered the only question about today's date - September nineteenth. Well, well, my birthday, I woke up just in time. Today I became an adult witch.
Well, we'll wait for the doctor. The weakness throughout my body was terrible. Why was I unconscious for so long?
The doctor came and explained why. Burns were the least of our troubles. It was all about the portkey. It was international and was calculated strictly for one person. I could take practically any weight with me - well, as much as I could manage myself. But consciousness, soul, magical core - should be in a single copy. Local keys are often made with a margin, and a group key for five or six will also transport without losses. But keys for long distances and across "big water" are strictly calculated for one, two, or three. I had a key for one, but we moved together, and from under an anti-apparition barrier. The barrier was weak, so the portkey could pull us out, but it also added troubles. So at the French Ministry of Magic two unconscious burned bodies tumbled out; broken bones, internal organ damage, twisted magical core included. We were immediately transferred to St. Nicholas Hospital. The doctors healed burns, fractures, internal damage fairly quickly, but restoring the magical core required effort. Doctor Defosse proudly told me that thanks to his skills, neither of us remained a squib. The second patient should also wake up soon, but we still had a long treatment ahead.
My parents were notified by the ministry, the doctor reassured me. They know my life is out of danger, and we need to be patient. My parents visited me twice, although for muggles it's difficult - they can only pass through if a wizard holds their hand. By the way, they brought paired parchments, and if I want, I can write to them at any moment, the doctor nodded toward the nightstand by my bed. There really were several parchments lying there (probably my parents brought all that I had) and a quill. Well, since I woke up, a ministry representative wants to talk to me - just like that, took and spoiled everything.
Young Auror Paul Benoit spoke with me. I told everything as it was. That I went to England for the funeral of my friend's aunt, who was head of the English DMLE. And when Susan and I apparated to her house, everything around was ablaze. Most likely, her last relative died in that fire. The portkey was our only chance to escape. I suggested that the fire was most likely the work of Death Eaters.
Monsieur Benoit was understanding, promised to find out more about that fire and said that Susan, considering all circumstances, would probably be able to get citizenship of magical France. If she wanted to stay. I got my magical citizenship already in the summer, also in connection with Death Eater terrorism. Susan and I here could be considered something like refugees. And having magical citizenship, ordinary citizenship with the help of a ministry employee is processed very quickly. Alas, my parents didn't get such a wonderful opportunity, so they only have residence permits.
Interesting point, Susan is still a minor for several more months, and she has no guardian now. Dumbledore would have become one if she returned to Hogwarts, but Susan didn't return - and no one can force her anymore, because she already passed her OWLs. She has no relatives left, and now by law there's generally no one who could become her guardian without Susan's own decision.
I was finally alone and wrote to my parents that I had woken up. I spent the rest of the day calming them down, with breaks only for chicken broth and potions.
The next morning, after breakfast consisting of liquid oatmeal and three potions, they levitated me into some non-standard diagnostic pentagram and spent a long time throwing various colored spells at me. I knew less than half of them, so after the procedure I tormented the doctor with questions. Though he seemed not to mind and answered in detail. As for my condition, I would have to lie in the hospital, it stands on a magical source, and I need it for more effective restoration of my core and channels. The doctor of course fixed everything, but new channels still need to grow and develop properly, and I need to be monitored, so I'll be delayed here for a couple of months. Alas, my studies this year are canceled, I'll have to start next year. St. Nicholas Hospital will also provide me with a muggle certificate.
Finally, Doctor Defosse remembered that yesterday he didn't tell me about one completely insignificant trifle!
"Ah yes, Mademoiselle Granger, the director from your former school came to see you."
I almost fell from such news. Of course, I hadn't even written anything to Professor Sprout.
"Yes, yes, still on September third. He declared that he performed a search ritual and discovered his missing student with us. He moved by phoenix directly into the reception ward - what rudeness! And, by the way, a serious offense - either you travel by muggle means and pass muggle document control, or you move to the Ministry of Magic and register there. But your Dumbledore violated all rules, including rules of decency! Naturally, we immediately called the Aurors. In the Auror office your director was detained for several hours," Doctor Defosse was clearly glad that the violator got at least some trouble, "but alas, then a DMLE representative asked to answer his questions."
"And what did you tell him, Doctor?" - damn, I just came to my senses, and here's such stress.
"Oh, this Dumbledore insisted on taking you and Mademoiselle Bones to England. I had to say that such a move would be fatal in your condition, please forgive me, Mademoiselle Granger, I slightly exaggerated, but I couldn't let him take a French citizen from France without her desire," the doctor gallantly bowed.
I'm liking being a citizen of magical France more and more.
"Thank you!" I said hoarsely. From worry, probably, I got hoarse, just now my voice was fine.
"Well, I'm glad I wasn't mistaken, mademoiselle, and you're clearly not in a hurry to see your director. I admit, I was very angry because of Dumbledore's demands, so I didn't try to calm him. I said that you and Mademoiselle Bones could very likely remain squibs - and you could have, if not for timely intervention - and you're unlikely to come to your senses in the next couple of months."
The doctor remembered another moment:
"By the way, the curse on your director is very nasty, it reeks of dark magic. A self-confident person, you can tell immediately. Confidence in his own rightness puts above laws."
Yes indeed, obviously Dumbledore greatly angered the doctor. When Doctor Defosse answered my diagnostic questions, he was benevolent and talkative, you could see he loves communicating with people. But toward Dumbledore's curse - barely concealed gloating. Perhaps Dumbledore blurted something about how in England Susan and I would be helped better, and the doctor was offended for French magical medicine. What kind of curse, I wonder? Still the ring?
***
In the second half of the day my parents came, they looked very bad. I really worried them. Mom said they only held on with my calming tincture for ordinary people, but it would be better if it were a bit stronger. And on conversations with the Blacks, who may not be the best psychotherapists, but are their only adult acquaintances from the magical world. They were much closer with Amelia, but now only the Blacks remain. My parents arranged with the healer that once a week a medical staff representative would meet them on the muggle side and help them pass through. I told them everything about the funeral and fire as it was. I feel they'll now have a new object of care in the person of Susan. Discussing my friend's possible future, mom began to sympathize with her and was distracted from her own experiences. But the main thing here is to wait for Susan to come to her senses. It makes no sense to discuss these questions without her.
Days pass monotonously. I still feel weakness, get tired quickly and sleep a lot. I read and gradually increase my walking time. On the hospital grounds there's a small garden covered with a magical dome - there's always good weather and blooming flower beds there. A very nice place, but in one walk I already learned it by heart.
A few days later Paul Benoit came to us again, he told us that the Bones family house was burned with hellfire, and above the house on the day of the fire was the sign of "your local dark lord." Yes, that's how Death Eaters did it in the first magical war, for demonstration that absolutely nothing remained of killed enemies. Susan's relative is considered dead, already buried, that is, they held a small ceremony with an empty coffin, after hellfire it's meaningless to look for a body. Yeah, this news will be hard for Susan to learn.
I looked through all the other parchments, they were filled with unanswered messages. I wrote back to friends that I'm alive but not quite healthy, Susan is also alive but hasn't come to her senses yet. In response they overwhelmed me with school news.
Dumbledore's hand has blackened. Yes, it's the ring! I felt such sharp joy about this that I scared myself.
They have a new potions teacher, Professor Slughorn. Neville boasted that he stopped exploding cauldrons, though potions are still not the best quality. But Professor Snape is teaching DADA this year, and now Neville suffers from him there.
Harry walks darker than a thundercloud, they report to me from different parchments, but I don't fall for provocations and don't support conversations on this topic.
I already pestered the doctor with questions: "and when?" and finally, to his great relief, on September thirtieth Susan woke up.
***
Susan was not at all glad that she woke up. Sleeping and knowing nothing was easier, and now so much fell on her at once. She hadn't yet managed to process and recover from her aunt's death, and here was new trouble. All her things died in the fire, and what's worse, all of Amelia's things, now she doesn't even have anything to remember her aunt by. Her distant relative died, even though Susan had only seen her once in her life before this, but it was difficult for the girl to accept that someone died because of her.
Susan now was afraid to be alone and was silent almost all the time. We were given strange wide bowl-artifacts with plain water poured in them. To develop new magical channels, we should take the bowl with both palms and act on the water. Boil-freeze it, spin it in a whirlpool, make it glow. At first it worked very weakly and slowly, but each day the result improved. And we still need to be careful with wand magic.
Since treatment would cost a pretty penny anyway, I decided not to economize on appearance and ordered hair growth potion for both of us. Susan doesn't complain, but constantly touches her hedgehog cut with a sad look. We decided one portion would be enough. In the spirit of classic comparison of warm with soft, I can say: now we both have bob haircuts, only Susan is redhead and I'm curly. You can grow hair to the floor with this potion, but why? The main thing is we no longer look like military academy cadets, and the potion is expensive anyway.
This time mom came alone, dad had some very complicated case at work that couldn't be postponed. The three of us talked for a long time. Mom convinced Susan to live with us for now and finish her education at Beauxbatons instead of Hogwarts. She'll also have to skip a year, the doctor promised to discharge us from the hospital closer to Christmas. But she'll have time to properly learn the language, unlike Malfoy, my friend still communicates with gestures and a dictionary. Susan still needs to sort out the funds she has left in Gringotts, but this was also postponed until full recovery.
We sent a letter to the Beauxbatons headmaster to find out admission conditions, but instead of an owl reply, a few days later we received an unexpected visit. With difficulty squeezing through the door, Hagrid squeezed into the hospital ward, and Madame Maxime glided in elegantly despite her size.
"Hermione! Susan! How glad I am to see you!" Hagrid came to hug me. He wanted to hug Susan too, but she cringed in fear, and the giant was embarrassed. "Olympia here got the letter, and we decided to visit you."
I was truly glad to see Hagrid and glad that he and Madame Maxime were still together. Madame Maxime barely fit on the chair next to Susan's bed, handed her a list of required books and began telling about Beauxbatons. Hagrid often interrupted the narrative with his simple-hearted comments - I didn't even think I missed him so much. After dismissal from Hogwarts, Hagrid works with animals at Beauxbatons. There's no Forbidden Forest with centaurs and acromantulas around the French school, but on the school grounds itself there are many animals that need care. Huge winged horses that brought the Beauxbatons carriage to Hogwarts in fourth year, hippogriffs, unicorns living in the gardens around the castle.
Embarrassed and blushing, Hagrid told us that he and Olympia are planning to get married. He even delivered several phrases in French about her beautiful eyes and his eternal love. How did Hagrid manage to learn this?! This is definitely great feeling! And the feeling is mutual, Madame Maxime smiles happily at his declarations.
The ceremony is planned for Christmas holidays, and we're invited too.
Growing sad, Hagrid told about his brother. He apologized for hiding it from me, was afraid I wouldn't approve - he was right, but I didn't confess this to him. Grawp missed Hagrid, attacked the centaurs, killed half the acromantula colony including poor old Aragog, and went somewhere deep into the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid and Olympia searched for him in summer but couldn't find him.
Since I still have a long time to stay in the hospital, and I persistently pestered Doctor Defosse with questions about magical medicine, he thought and thought, assessed my knowledge as satisfactory for a beginner and registered me as a half-time intern. The salary is symbolic, for our treatment Susan and I will pay more, but the experience is priceless. First thing, I was assigned to fill out medical histories and be present at primary patient diagnosis, dictating results to a self-writing quill. When I got to my own medical history, I understood that trouble came from where I didn't expect. I have a life debt to Severus Tobias Snape! And how could I forget about this? And Harry James Potter, Ronald Bilius Weasley and Susan Verity Bones have life debts to me. Hmm... I went to the doctor for clarification. Defosse spoke very disapprovingly about youth who manage not to track such vitally important information. How the debt was formed, he couldn't say, but he could conduct diagnostics of when. Susan's debt is quite fresh. Harry and Ron's debt arose in spring-summer 1994. At the same time Severus Snape's debt arose, but it was paid off around the same time. Probably it was Lupin's attack. Since it wasn't during class, Snape wasn't obligated to save me by duty. He saved me after I saved him - and at that moment we were even. But now I have a new debt hanging on me, formed this summer. I need to somehow quickly save the professor's life, before Dumbie through Snape's mouth makes me an offer I can't refuse. But Snape doesn't seem to be planning to die in the near future. I wonder, if I break Dumbie's wand so Voldemort won't kill Snape for it later - would that count? Or without Draco will the story go a completely different way? Though I can't reach the wand while the headmaster is alive. I'll think about it.