Chapitre 32: Saved from the villain
Before her second trip to Australia, this time accompanied by Snape, Hermione Almost-Weasley finally decided to visit her parents' house, where she hadn't been since the victory over Voldemort. She needed to grab some of her things and tidy up the house before her parents returned. Although the house had been sealed by the Muggle police, the seals were easily removed with a simple Alohomora.
However, she barely had time to rummage through her wardrobe when the sound of a siren and screeching tires filled the air. Police cars had arrived in response to an alarm, and the darkness outside her room was illuminated by flashing blue lights, revealing police officers running toward the house. In seconds, a tactical unit surrounded the building and blocked all exits.
Not wanting to deal with the Muggle authorities at that moment, Hermione had no choice but to Apparate away. She didn't tell Snape about this—it was her personal business.
In Australia, Snape, as usual, paid no heed to Hermione's requests, despite her insistence that he hand over the tracking amulet and teach her how to use it. She had to resign herself to patiently waiting while he determined the location of her parents. The amulet indicated that her parents were somewhere north of Canberra. Hermione and Snape traveled by Muggle transport, going from town to town along the coast until they reached Brisbane. There, the amulet's direction suddenly shifted, meaning her parents were nearby.
They wandered around the city, checking the amulet's signal, until they ended up in front of a large building, which turned out to be the local prison.
"What did I tell you, Granger?" Snape commented with his usual sarcasm as they read the plaque at the entrance.
"How could they imprison people who have done nothing wrong?!" Hermione gasped, horrified.
"Granger, these people attracted the police's attention," Snape sighed wearily. "The police checked their documents and found they came out of nowhere. They couldn't explain themselves. Where do you think they'd end up after that?"
"But we'll explain everything to the police and get my parents out, right?" Hermione asked hopefully, looking at the potions master.
"And how exactly do you imagine that, Granger? We walk in there and tell them you're a witch who erased your parents' memories of yourself and now want to restore them? Granger, under Muggle law, I can't even testify that you're telling the truth because I didn't witness it. And let's not forget the Statute of Secrecy."
"So what do we do?"
"First, we need to figure out why your parents were brought here and why they're being held."
"Right," Hermione brightened. "I'll tell them these are my parents, that they've been missing, and that I'm looking for them. They can verify this—my parents are known in Britain. They have a private dental practice."
This was news to Snape, something Hermione had neglected to mention earlier.
"What did you say, Granger? They just left behind a private business and disappeared?"
"What else was I supposed to do?"
"It doesn't matter now. We won't get them out of here legally anyway."
"But they should be released—they're not guilty of anything!" Hermione exclaimed, glaring at Snape as if he was the one keeping her parents in prison.
"Try proving that to the police!" Snape barked irritably at her.
"And I will!"
"Then do it without me—I'll wait here!"
"And I will!"
Hermione spun on her heel and marched into the building while Snape stayed outside. He watched her retreating figure, radiating indignation, shrugged, and smirked. It was easier to let her do things her way and then pull her out of trouble later than to try convincing her why she shouldn't.
In the lobby, Hermione looked around and spotted a security desk—a glass booth with a turnstile controlled by a guard. She approached the window and asked how she could speak with the prison warden.
"What's your business with him, miss?" the guard asked.
"I need to talk to him about two people," she replied. "They're being held here, but they've done nothing wrong."
"Innocent people don't end up in prison, miss."
"There's been a mistake—I can prove it."
"Can you provide any information about the inmates?"
Hermione nodded. The guard scrutinized her carefully.
"You need to go to the police, not here." He quickly scribbled down the address of the police station on a slip of paper. "Tell me their names, and I'll check if they're in our system."
"Whose?" she asked, confused.
"The people you're here for. I'll check if they're here and what they're serving time for."
"Wilkins," Hermione said, her throat tight with anxiety. The guard pulled up the inmate list on his console and began searching.
"They're not listed in our facility," he said after a moment.
"What do you mean they're not here? They must be!" Hermione panicked. "Check again, you might've missed them!"
"No, they're not here," he confirmed after a second look. "Take this address and make your inquiries there."
A dejected Hermione took the slip of paper and stepped outside to meet Snape.
"They said they're not here," she reported, meeting his disapproving look. "Here's the address for the police."
Snape glanced briefly at the slip and then checked the amulet.
"They're around here somewhere," he said, nodding toward the prison.
"Maybe they work here?" Hermione suggested.
"Possibly," Snape agreed reluctantly, still not convinced things had gone smoothly. "Let's head to that address and see what we can find out."
"But..." Hermione glanced back at the door she had just exited.
"Do you want to go back and ask if the people you're looking for are employed here, after just searching for them as criminals? Go ahead, Granger, be my guest!"
At the police station, both Hermione and Snape were directed to an officer willing to listen to them. Of course, before being granted entry, their identification was checked, they were scanned for weapons, and their bags were taken for storage. Hermione spoke, presenting a pre-rehearsed story about her missing parents. The officer listened without interrupting, only occasionally casting a suspicious glance at Snape, whose sullen expression made him look far from a law-abiding citizen. With each sentence Hermione uttered, the officer's expression grew more serious.
When she finished, the officer asked them to wait for a moment and pressed a button. A uniformed officer entered, and the first officer gave him a case number to retrieve. Shortly after, a file was placed in front of him, and he began reviewing it carefully, occasionally glancing at Hermione and back at the papers, as if comparing her to something in the file.
"Miss Granger, I'd very much like to know what really brought you here and why you haven't told us a single word of truth," he said in an official tone.
"What do you mean I haven't?" Hermione turned crimson. "I *am* looking for my parents!"
"And the rest? Your explanations for why you haven't mentioned your parents in a year are far from convincing."
"But I told you—I had to study!"
"When children lose their parents, they drop everything and start searching for them, Miss Granger."
"I didn't find out right away... and then I couldn't...," Hermione muttered, blushing even more.
"This is a very strange story, Miss Granger. And highly suspicious." The officer frowned as he sifted through the papers. "First, we found two visitors at the airport who remained there, asking everyone if this was Australia. People answered that it was, but they soon started asking again. We had to hospitalize them in the prison's medical wing, open a case, and start an investigation. They were carrying expertly forged documents under the name Wilkins and believed themselves to be the Wilkinses, but we took their photos, sent a request to Britain, and found out their real surname is Granger. It seems they were subjected to a powerful psychotropic drug, which partially drove them mad."
"Drove them mad..." Hermione turned deathly pale.
"Partially, Miss Granger. They can take care of themselves, but they don't remember a significant part of their past and are in a panic at the thought of being anywhere other than Australia. The nurses make sure to visit them several times a day and tell them they're in Australia to prevent a hysterical breakdown. And, Miss Granger, they don't remember their daughter at all or anything connected to her. Unfortunately, our doctors were unable to restore their memory."
"They... they will remember... I'll help them, and they will remember."
"Miss Granger, they are already very ill people without your interference. We cannot expose the victims to such a risk. Moreover, and this is the most important thing..." The policeman's stern gaze fixed on Hermione. "You are not their daughter."
"What do you mean, not their daughter? I have a passport!"
"Miss Granger, this girl went missing and is currently listed as such; no one has seen her in recent years. We found her photos—there are some from the primary school she attended and in group pictures of the Granger family with acquaintances. We also found a photo album from the Grangers' trip to France, which Mrs. Granger gave to a friend. The latest pictures show the girl, almost thirteen years old. You resemble her, but you cannot be her. Her front teeth were completely different."
As Hermione processed the fact that she had indeed spent very little time with her parents in recent years and hadn't been photographed with them, three guards entered the room, summoned by the panic button under the desk.
"Miss Granger, Mr. Snape, you are both detained until the circumstances of this case are clarified," the head of the office informed them and ordered the guards, "Take the detainees away while I prepare the arrest warrants."
Dazed and shocked, Hermione didn't resist. She would have obediently gone to the holding cell if not for Snape, who had suspected something was wrong as soon as the policeman had been reviewing the file. Ready for such an outcome, he drew his wand, which had been disguised with anti-Muggle charms, and within a fraction of a second cast a group Stunning Spell. When everyone collapsed to the floor, he grabbed Hermione and Apparated with her to an alley not far from the prison. There, he lifted the spell, and Hermione came to.
"Granger, we don't have much time," he said as she blinked. "We're going to see your parents now. Your job is to follow me, not get in my way, and keep quiet, even if you really want to say something. For example, if you think I'm wrong—otherwise, I'll cast Silencio on you. I'll tell you when and what you can say. Is that clear?"
Hermione weakly nodded. Snape entered the administrative building of the prison and started by placing the guard on duty under the Imperius Curse. Hermione flinched but stayed silent.
"Take us to the prison hospital," Snape commanded the guard. The guard obediently let him and Hermione through the turnstile and led them along.
In the courtyard, a senior staff member called out to him, asking why he wasn't at his post. The guard, with a glazed look, responded that he had been given orders from above, but the staff member demanded to know who was replacing him at the post.
"Stupefy. Obliviate." Snape lowered his wand, and they continued on. They reached the hospital building without incident, but it was necessary to find out where Hermione's parents were being held. Snape sent the guard back to his post and placed the on-duty nurse under the Imperius Curse. A few minutes later, she led them to the room.
The Grangers were there, looking well. Seeing the nurse, they smiled.
"We're in Australia, right?" Hermione's mother asked.
"Of course, in Australia," the nurse smiled back kindly.
"Leave the room," Snape ordered, and the nurse complied.
"Dad! Mum!" Hermione exclaimed, forgetting his command.
"Who are you, young lady?" her mother frowned.
"I'm Hermione, your daughter! Everything will be fine, Mum, I'm going to get you out of here!"
"Get us out? Where to?"
"Home, Mum! Mr. Snape will help you remember me, and we'll go back to Britain!"
"Young lady, you want to take us out of Australia?" Hermione's mother recoiled in horror. "That's impossible! We have to stay in Australia, or we'll die!"
"You must be some kind of con artist, trying to lure us out of Australia," Mrs. Granger's voice trembled, her face contorted, and suddenly she screamed at the top of her lungs, "Aaaah! Help! We're being kidnapped!"
"Silencio. Incarcerous," Snape quickly muttered, pointing his wand at her. He did the same to Hermione's father. "Granger, remove your suggestion about Australia. If you can't, at least give them a different order."
From the corridor came the sound of approaching footsteps. Snape glanced out the door.
"Stupefy. Obliviate." He turned back. "Granger, are you done yet?"
"Almost," Hermione sobbed. "Almost."
Her wand shook in her hand, her tongue wouldn't obey. She barely managed to utter the phrase that the danger was over and her parents no longer needed to stay in Australia. Snape called the nurse, still standing motionless in the corridor, and ordered her not to let anyone into the room. Then he approached the Grangers, looked each one in the eyes, frowned irritably, and looked again, this time with a Legilimens spell.
"Just as I thought," he muttered, lowering his wand. "If their memories had survived like with Obliviate, I could have unlocked them. But they've been erased completely; there's nothing to restore."
"What do you mean, nothing?" Hermione's voice was barely audible.
"The memories are gone. Once something is erased, it cannot be recovered."
"So what now?"
"They're your parents, Granger. You decide, but be quick— the guards will be here soon."
"I'll take them home..." she trailed off mid-sentence. "Oh..."
"What is it?"
"Our house is sealed by the police."
"You knew that and didn't warn me?" Snape gritted his teeth. "So, your parents' business is closed, their accounts frozen due to their incapacity. Do you have anywhere to hide them from the British authorities?"
"The Burrow..." she mumbled.
"In that shack, even pigs wouldn't be housed. And you'd need the owners' consent as well. Granger, do you have Mrs. Weasley's consent?"
"But she's kind, and Arthur too... I'm going to marry Ron soon anyway. They can't abandon my parents!" she said, to which Snape responded with a skeptical snort. "Yes, I need to ask. I'll come back. Will you give me the amulet?"
Voices and the sound of many running footsteps echoed from the corridor.
"Now is not the time for arguments, Granger!" Snape quickly released the Grangers from the binding spells, grabbed Hermione by the elbow, and Apparated with her to the Australian embassy.
L’AVIS DES CRÉATEURS 
mzorokek
mzorokek Hi all! If you want to support me and read previously unreleased chapters, then I will be glad to see you on my patreon - my nickname there is Aetern1tas.
I also look forward to seeing you on the pages of the new story about Harry Potter "Vice versa", a boy who was not very happy about the magical world that was waiting for him.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
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