Loving Lily: A Snily Story

Chapter 41 - Love

Ron and Hermione both listened eagerly as Harriet threw her hands up and sighed, "The boy who wants to kill me and my family must be after the Philosopher's Stone! He wants to arm himself with it so we can't fight back while he murders us!"

"Harriet, those are some very......serious...suspicions." Hermione sniffed, "You must have had a difficult night."

"What?!" Harriet asked as she narrowed her eyes.

Hermione and Ron glanced at each other before Ron shrugged and sheepishly said, "Well, yeah, I think Hermione's right on this one......We just learned about the stone yesterday......Now you've got all these wild ideas."

"What does that have to do with my night?!" Harriet snapped.

"Actually, you've been a bit off since we came back from winter recess." Ron shrugged at Harriet.

"Really?" Harriet scoffed, "And how do you figure that?"

"Because as soon as we got onto the train you started ranting and raving that the son of some dead man is trying to kill you and your entire family!" Hermione cried.

Harriet frowned as everyone looked over in their direction.

Hermione's cheeks tinted pink with embarrassment as she cleared her throat and went on more quietly, "You haven't even told Ron and I where you heard that from, Harriet......Now you're convinced this unnamed, would-be murderer is intent on using a professor to steal a random magical artifact for their own purpose? What sense are Ron and I supposed to make of that?"

"Sorry....." Harriet said as she contemplated Hermione's words. As she realized how her predicament sounded to her friends, she put her hands to her face and sighed, "I'm tired, I keep having nightmares....I suppose I haven't been very clear with you two about all of this."

"No." Ron agreed as he frowned and shook his head.

Hermione mirrored his expression as she added, "No, Harriet, you haven't."

Harriet glanced between them as Hermione took her hand and nodded, "Whatever it is, though, you can tell us.....We're the best of friends."

As Harriet looked over at Ron, he flashed her a soft smile of gentle reassurance.

".....Right." Harriet sighed before she sat her fork down and leaned towards the table to whisper privately.

Hermione and Ron did the same as they all huddled together so they could hear what Harriet had to say.

"My Mum and Dad...." Harriet began, ".....They have lots of friends, really.....But there's one who likes me a lot and I like him too."

Ron's face twisted in disgust but Harriet shook her head as she quickly explained, "No! Not...Not in that way....he's just....he's really brilliant, you know? Anyway, when I went home for Christmas, he told me that.....that apparently a boy was born the same year as me....an evil boy...who wants to kill us all."

"Why?" Hermione asked as her eyes widened.

"Dunno." Harriet shrugged, "He wouldn't tell me why."

"Who's this friend of your parents?" Ron asked with a curious scowl.

Harriet clammed up as she contemplated Severus's strict rule of not revealing Voldemort to others outside of their inner circle.

"I.......I'm not sure of his name." Harriet partially fibbed.

She knew her father's dark master as Lord Voldemort, but she had no idea he had been born Tom Riddle.

"You don't know the name of your family's dear friend?" Hermione asked suspiciously.