The Time-Meddlers [Harmione]

25. In Search of Susan Bones

"I wouldn't be surprised if Susan is being held under the Fidelius Charm," commented Harry.

"I'd be surprised if she's not, which leads to the question of how to find out who the Secret-Keeper is and get that person to tell us the secret." She took a deep breath. "I doubt it would be Snape, but he might know who it is, probably the Shadow. In that case, we'll have to find a way to capture the Shadow."

"What if we simply followed Snape there?"

"It wouldn't work, Harry. We wouldn't see..."

"What if someone was holding onto Snape when he entered the building?" interrupted Harry.

Looking as though she were lecturing a five-year-old, Hermione replied, "In the cases where someone has managed to enter a Fidelius-protected house without knowing the secret, the person is unable to see or hear anything, as though blind and deaf. Some reported brief flashes of sight and sound every few minutes, but not enough to accomplish any task inside the protected house. That person would be helpless to defend themselves against any occupant of the house who wished them harm."

"So you're saying it's a bad idea?" questioned Harry. His girlfriend didn't dignify that with an answer beyond rolling her eyes.

His thoughts returned to the present when the snack trolley showed up outside his compartment and they were offered to buy treats. After the kids made their purchases and the snack lady was gone, Ginny asked, "Before she got here, you seemed to space out for a few minutes. What were you thinking about?"

Harry saw she and Neville were looking at him curiously while Hermione looked concerned. Luna, as usual, had her face hidden behind an issue of the Quibbler.

"Truthfully, I was thinking about poor Susan Bones, wondering what's happening to her."

"That was terrible to read about, even if Rita Skeeter couldn't make up her mind about Susan's name," commented Neville.

"That's so scary to think about," said Ginny.

"I'm sure the Nargles will keep her alive until the snake saves her from the darkness," declared Luna without looking up from her magazine.

"I hope so," Harry agreed, thinking of his Animagus form.

❾¾ ❾¾❾¾❾¾ ❾¾❾¾❾¾

That night at dinner, Dumbledore made no mention of the tragic kidnapping of Susan Bones, and Harry knew exactly why.

"It's because he's still defending Snape!" he exclaimed once he was alone with Hermione. They'd snuck into the Chamber of Secrets so they could discuss the situation more freely. Harry still enjoyed looking at the images from the Pac Man game that had replaced the snake decorations Slytherin had put there originally, but right now, even they couldn't amuse him.

"Of course he is, Harry! We knew he would. Snape could Crucio me on the head table during dinner and he'd still say, 'I trust Severus.' In fact, we're counting on it."

Taking a deep breath, he replied, "I know. We even read it in the paper, but to have him totally ignore the fact that Susan was kidnapped by a former professor that he'd defended for years...he's probably still mad at me for getting Snape sacked."

Hermione looked thoughtful for a moment. "I just wish we knew why Dumbledore trusts Snape. Did he have proof that he had turned away from evil..."

"Which I doubt."

"...or just that he hated Voldemort?" she finished after glaring at Harry for interrupting her.

"That's got to be it!" declared Harry. "It makes perfect sense! Anyone watching Snape for five minutes would realize he hadn't become a good guy, especially around me. But if he simply hated Voldemort for some reason it would force him to work with Dumbledore."