Hermione Granger and the Paradigm Shift

Chapter 12 - Part 3

As fascinating as her first experience using a Pensieve had been her intellectual curiosity was squelched by the annoyance she was now feeling as she listened to Dumbledore's equivocating. She had intentionally let him see it all...everything that had happened from the moment she and Harry had spotted the trio and she had volunteered for duty. She wanted to ensure there could be no ambiguities or doubt about what had been happening so the parties involved would be punished accordingly.

But now he was talking about not having any actual proof of wrongdoing beyond some unauthorized potion taking and hinting at minor punishments. Students' lives were at risk and he was talking about meaningless detentions and point deductions. Apparently, the headmaster had noticed her discomfort as well.

"You seem to have something you would like to say, Miss Granger."

"Two students have almost died this year, Headmaster," she blurted. "Harry has been telling you for months that Draco may be behind these attacks and I've just provided you tangible proof that Harry was right to be suspicious of Draco. At the very least you have enough proof to expel Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe but it sounds like you are looking for any reason not to do so."

"How can I tie Mr. Crabbe and Mr. Goyle's actions to those instances, Miss Granger?" he replied calmly. "As I recall you had to spend a week in the hospital wing due to an accident with polyjuice potion a few years ago. Should you have been expelled?"

Hermione's blood boiled. "So you are comparing my actions at the time to Draco Malfoy?" she asked indignantly. Her voice was much louder than she had intended.

"Miss Granger," he said in a placating voice in an effort to calm her. His condescension only served to anger her more.

"Do you know what Draco said when the first message about the Chamber of Secrets appeared?" she asked as calmly as she could manage. "You're next, mudbloods. Those were his exact words. He was excited at the prospect of muggleborns being murdered. Is that who you are comparing me to?"

"Draco Malfoy was twelve years old when he said that and they were just words...the words of a boy," Dumbledore countered. "I can't punish him now based on something he said four years ago. People can grow and mature beyond their childish beliefs."

She had heard enough. Dumbledore was one of the smartest and most intuitive people she had ever known and he was willfully ignoring facts and didn't trust her or Harry with the truth of the situation. After everything Harry had been through...everything that he had accomplished...it was infuriating. She couldn't hold her tongue. "From what I've seen Draco has only become more awful since then. And you don't seem to care."

For the first time since they had begun their discussion, she saw a flash of emotion on the headmaster's face.

They were interrupted as a nearby portrait joined the conversation. "Professor Sprout is on her way with Mr. Malfoy, Albus. They should be here in a few minutes."

He nodded in acknowledgment at the portrait as he composed himself and stood. "I thank you for your efforts today, Miss Granger. I will take it from here," he informed as he gestured for her to leave. She was being dismissed but she wasn't done having her say.

"What are you going to do?" she asked angrily. Part of her could not believe she was talking to the headmaster this way and the other part couldn't believe it had taken this long for her to demand actual answers from the man.

"As I said, I will investigate the matter and assign punishments accordingly based on the evidence I have. I must ask that you trust me," he said kindly.

All the mistakes and things the headmaster had purposely or inadvertently missed over the years hit Hermione in a rush and she couldn't hold her tongue.

"You asked Ron and me to trust you last year and we listened. It was a disaster," she continued, not wanting to let him off the hook.

It was if she had struck Dumbledore with a physical blow as his face fell and he sagged back into his chair. "You are right....I made many errors in judgment last term. I can only tell you what I have told Harry. I am truly sorry for my part in what happened to Sirius and what I needlessly put Harry through. But the past is the past...we need to move on...that is all any of us can do."

"That isn't all you can do!" she countered. "Harry feels so guilty about last year but he is actually trying to be better. You're just sitting back and repeating the same mistakes all over again! You aren't stupid...you know Draco is up to something and I've just given you more proof! Why aren't you doing anything?"

The silence grew as Dumbledore refused to respond and Hermione realized what needed to be done. It was a bit mind-boggling how quickly things had escalated but her path forward and who deserved her trust and loyalty was clear. She needed to stop wasting time focusing on pointless things and putting her blind faith in people that refused to act. She carefully unpinned the prefect badge from her chest and placed it on the headmaster's desk.

"Miss Granger-"

"Do I need to inform Professor McGonagall that I have resigned?" she interrupted. She was done wasting time on being polite and respectful.

"I will inform her of your decision," Dumbledore replied. He sounded so tired.

As she started to descend the steps she was stopped by the headmaster. "What are you going to do, Miss Granger?"

She wanted to tell him that she was going to apologize to Harry and admit that she had been wrong. That she now realized that the headmaster may not necessarily have their best interests at heart and he couldn't be relied on to protect them. But she wanted to talk to Harry before they shared anything else with the man.

"That's none of your business, sir," she replied before quickly exiting the room.

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As she reached the bottom of the steps she spotted Professor Sprout escorting a panicked and angry Draco Malfoy down the hall. Her first instinct was to walk the other way and avoid a confrontation but changed her mind. Sitting back and avoiding conflict hadn't worked and she was tired of it. Harry would never have turned the other way.

Draco spotted her as she came closer and stared...doing his best to convey his anger. She stared right back.

"We'll stop you," she hissed as she passed the pair, drawing a curious stare from Professor Sprout.

Once she was out of eyeshot she reached into her pocket for the map, wanting to track Harry down as quickly as possible. Her hand brushed against her mirror and realized it had warmed with a message. It was from Ron.

Where are you and what is going on?

She quickly tapped back a response.

I will explain everything as soon as I can but I need to find Harry first.

As she moved to stow the mirror away it annoyingly warmed once again. Ron's insistence on knowing what was happening was understandable but ill timed. She needed to find Harry.

She was all set to forcefully repeat to Ron that her explanation would have to wait before gasping at his reply.

Harry is in the bed next to mine.