MCA #6- Wednesday morning

[smartestone]

Hermione had stayed in Fandom because she wanted to research things from an outside perspective. If people were disappearing from home and they had no idea those people had ever existed, then it was smarter to stay here where she would remember and could get enough detail to maybe find out what was going on. So she wrote letters and tried to namedrop people to get a reaction. She checked books. She tried to find online evidence of people existing. She checked over the Prophet from day to day to look for changes. And the things she found terrified her, but she kept looking, because that was what she did. She got the information, and got it to he who fixed things.

She hadn't gotten much rest last night, going over some notes and fueling herself with coffee like that was a substitute for actual sleep. This morning she'd simply moved herself over to the sofa, going over information while idly stroking Crookshanks' fur. At least he seemed relaxed.


[For a call, but if you want to knock before that, now's your chance.]

Comments

[he-lived.livejournal.com]

It had taken him forever for him to find a telephone -- payphones were getting scarcer by the day, even in Muggle London. And then, with Ron nervously babbling in his ear about why he would even use a fellytone when he'd already sent a letter, Harry did his best to recall the number that would reach Hermione.

He hoped he got it right. He knew he had to get it right, because he could see from here that St. Paul's Cathedral wasn't sticking up into the skyline where it should, anymore.

[smartestone]

It was a sign of how involved in what she was doing she was that she simply picked up her wand and said, "Accio phone," rather than actually getting up. When the phone was in hand, she picked up and said distractedly, "This is Hermione."

She probably only didn't answer 'Granger residence' because it was just her.

[he-lived.livejournal.com]

"It's Harry," he said, with about as much preamble. "Hermione, where are you? Still in Fandom? Because you need to stay put -- something bad is happening. Like, dark magic bad. Things are disappearing. People are. Neville was sitting in the Leaky Cauldron with us one moment and then he was just gone, and he didn't Apparate, Hermione. He didn't control that at all."

[smartestone]

That got her to sit up straight and put everything down immediately. "I'm in Fandom," she said, feeling something cold and heavy settle in the pit of her stomach. "It's... it's happening all over, Harry. People's entire worlds are disappearing. I've been researching."

Which sounded completely feeble now. It did, when another of your friends suddenly didn't exist anymore. But that was what she did.

[he-lived.livejournal.com]

"Have you found anything?" Because if there was anyone who could actually get answers out of a library at a time like this, it was the girl who'd figured out basilisks with a book at the age of twelve.

[smartestone]

"...No," she admitted after a long pause. "But we will. In the meantime, you shouldn't be there. You and Ron and Ginny and everyone need to get to Fandom."

[he-lived.livejournal.com]

"Already tried that," Harry replied, shaking his head and ignoring a tightening in his stomach. "We're not even sure where Ginny went -- Apparition's working wonky on this end, and I even thought about finding us a portal but you said they're acting funny, right?"

[smartestone]

"They're not exactly reliable right now," Hermione said. "But if you can get one out, at least you won't be there."

Which didn't solve the Ginny problem, and she knew that meant it wouldn't happen.

[he-lived.livejournal.com]

"I can't just leave and get stuck somewhere else," Harry pointed out, pausing as Ron swatted at his arm to point towards what looked like a black cloud. And very suddenly, half their street was gone. "I have to go. Don't come. Stay there."

He knew she wouldn't, but he couldn't tell her to come into this, either.

[smartestone]

"No, Harry, listen to me. Just get out of there," she insisted, sounding really pretty desperate, because she was. "Do whatever you have to do."

[he-lived.livejournal.com]

"We have to find Ginny, and then we will," Harry promised, watching the cloud over his shoulder. "Hermione, it's getting bad, I have to -- "

And then there was a click, and Harry (http://www.payphone-directory.org/sounds/wav/bell/disconnected.wav) wasn't speaking anymore.

"We're sorry, you have reached a number that has been disconnected...."

[smartestone]

"Harry? Harry!" Not that standing up and yelling at a recording did any good.

Hermione hung up, and she sort of felt the phone drop from her hand, but that didn't worry her right now. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't. She had to do something. It felt like hours as she stood there deciding what to do when in fact it was only seconds.

She had to go back.

It was stupid and she knew it. If there were problems, she shouldn't be there. When Harry Potter told you something was too dangerous, maybe you should think about that. But she had to know. She had to see if she could find him, or Ron, or Ginny. Maybe it was just Harry that had... She couldn't even think the word gone. She was a Gryffindor; doing brave but incredibly reckless things was practically a requirement.

After those seconds, she went to the kitchen to make sure Crookshanks had food, and told him very seriously, "I'm coming back with them if I can, but I will be back," like he understood.

And then she did the stupidest thing she would ever do, and Apparated out.

Just in time to have never existed.