Power and Persecution [1] || Harry Potter x OC x Draco Malfoy

49. Symbols of Friendship

DISCLAIMER

I do not own Harry Potter ... but if I did we would have seen some birthday celebrations of some kind cause like how was there not a single mention of Hermione's bday being celebrated???

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Hermione had to stay in the hospital wing for several weeks.

Luckily, with the lack of students around and Madam Pomfrey's affinity for not asking too many questions, their Polyjuice quest was kept under wraps.

Harry and Ron had told Hermione that they hadn't found out who was behind the attacks, only that it wasn't Malfoy.

It was information that they were grateful to have but not the information they needed.

Not the information Bel needed.

Speaking of the Hufflepuff girl, Harry and Ron hadn't seen her for two weeks, no matter where they looked.

Christmas had now arrived, and the two boys were sat at the Gryffindor table for breakfast.

"Where could she be?" Ron asked through a mouthful of toast, sat in his new sweater that he got from his mother.

"We know where she could be, but if she doesn't want to be found ... we aren't going to find her", Harry replied as he pushed around some eggs and beans on his plate.

It had been a weird couple of weeks without Bel around.

Harry desperately wanted to talk to her. He also had a gift for her this Christmas that he needed to give to her.

But it was starting to look like the next time they would see her would be in class when term restarted in two more weeks.

Hermione had told the two that Bel had been to visit her in the hospital wing a few times.

According to her, she seemed fine. But Hermione hadn't seen the look in Bel's eyes when she left the Slytherin common room.

She looked ... broken.

"It's Christmas ... surely she'll come and find us today?" Ron asked with uncertainty in his voice.

"Maybe", was all Harry replied.

It was Christmas.

Harry and Bel had discussed last year how their Christmas' had been before Hogwarts.

There was no way Harry was going to let her spend the holiday alone again.

"Go and see Hermione in the hospital wing earlier today. Bel might be there. I'll go and search elsewhere at the same time. It'll give us a better chance of finding her", Harry proposed.

"We've searched everywhere. We even harassed that one Hufflepuff first year so that we could get into their common room to look. She can't always be in Dumbledore's office. Hagrid's is always a no go. We can't just wander into the forbidden forest at night to see if she is on duty. Where else is there?" Ron asked.

Harry knew of one more place. A place that no one else knew of. A place where Bel would definitely be.

He had gone to check her clearing once. But it was covered in snow, clearly showing Bel hadn't been there recently.

It was too snowy and cold to keep going there every day. Besides, if he kept returning to the Gryffindor common room freezing cold, Ron would get suspicious.

"I know she has a different bedroom that she uses when school is out. I'll try and find it", Harry chose to reply.

He actually had already tried that. He found it easily because it was where the guest wings were. But it had been locked with a portrait of a small witch who asked for a password.