Braving the Past

Chapter 36: Homenum Revelio

Howl by Jake Houlsby 

I found this song watching The 100. Great tv show. Makes you want to tear your hair out...

I would definitely recommend it! 

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"Do you think she's alive?" 

Hermione's mind swam as it struggled to return to consciousness.

"Of course she's alive, her chest is moving up and down."

"Should we wake her?"

"She's already missed the first three classes, I don't see the point in bothering her now."

Hermione's eyes shot open.

"I missed three classes?!"

Alice, Mary, and Molly jumped back from the bed where they had been leaning over Hermione's unconscious form.

"Merlin, Hermione, I almost peed!" Molly squealed.

"Sorry," she mumbled, blinking rapidly from the sudden light that flooded her vision. The bright afternoon sun warmed her chilled skin.

As Hermione slowly sat up, Alice let out a gasp. "Hermione, your pillow!"

Hermione touched the side of her head. Dried blood was crusted all down her face where she had been lying on her pillow. What had happened? Hadn't she been planning to see Madam Pomfrey last night?

"What time is it?" Hermione asked groggily, her eyes squinting as a large throb shot through her head.

"It's time for you to go to the hospital wing," Molly said. "And I suppose I shouldn't bother asking why you have blood running down your face, should I?" She and Alice grabbed Hermione by one arm each and helped her down the stairs, Mary following close behind.

"It's about bloody time, Hermione," she heard the familiar voice of Sirius say. "We've been waiting for bloody hours wondering if you were alright, and those bloody stairs wouldn't let us up into the bloody girl's dormitory!"

"As you can see, he's bloody furious," James said in mock anger. His joking smile was wiped off his face the moment he fully took in Hermione's haggard appearance. He rushed forward and swept Hermione up into his arms. "Out of the way, cousins coming through!"

Lily, who had walked in just as Hermione had, folded her arms and bit her lip, looking at the way James cradled Hermione as they made their way out of the common room.

"Not jealous, are we, Evans? You do know we're practically cousins, right?"

"Very funny, James," she said. "I didn't realize you'd hit your head, too."

Peter winced in mock pain at Lily's words, but his witty comeback became distant and garbled in Hermione's mind. She had just realized that she never grabbed the diadem from the Room of Requirement.

The one reason they had gone through so much trouble, and now it was lost somewhere in the sea of junk that had been created. Now how was she supposed to know if this time had been affected?

But surely the fact that the diadem was hidden in that room in the first place was a sign that Voldemort had created that horcrux. Wasn't it?

Hermione was semi-aware that she had been set down onto a hard mattress, and that a wand light was now being shined into her eyes. A nasty liquid was dribbled into her mouth, causing her to hack and spit it out.

"Oh, look, she's still sane," James said once she had finally come to. He wiped his face from the spit Hermione had sent his way.

"That potion wasn't to wake you from your daze, Miss Potter," Madam Pomfrey scolded. "Drink!"