The two hooded men picked up their pace, almost at a full run towards the school. Upon reaching the front doors, Draco Malfoy and Ron Weasley lowered their hoods, opened the doors, and the three went inside, shoulder-to-shoulder, all the way to Dumbledore's office. Draco knew the password, being a prefect.
"Cauldron Cake!" Draco said urgently. As soon as the gargoyle leapt aside, they started into his office.
"Ahh, Ms. Granger. Mr. Malfoy. Mr. Weasley. So nice of you to drop by. Now what do I owe this pleasure?"
"Let me tell it," whispered Hermione to the other two. "This may take a while. . .
"Professor, today, as you know, was a Hogsmeade visit. I arranged to meet Draco in the Three Broomsticks to have a butterbeer and have a talk. But there was one person there I hadn't counted on. Lucius Malfoy, Draco's father."
"Indeed. Continue," replied Dumbledore, anxious to get the story out.
"Yes. Well, he wanted me to take him to Harry. As you know, Voldemort has been after Harry, and he decided recently, according to Lucius, that, due to the amount of protection surrounding Harry, he would have to go through Harry's friends. I knew the consequences of my actions, and I stalled to avoid the unevitable. I could never give Harry. . .not even to save myself.
"Then two men came along. They were wearing long black hoods. Their names were Crabbe and Goyle. They took me to. . .to the Shrieking Shack." Hermione's voice began to waver as she thought of the sheer terror she had faced upon not knowing who her captors were.
"We went up to. . .to a bedroom at the top. There were two more men, sitting in chairs facing a fireplace. The head one dismissed Crabbe and Goyle, and began speaking to me. He told me that we needed to get to Harry as soon as we could."
"Yes. . .Harry is here. Harry?" Dumbledore replied. Harry materialized from thin air, hidden behind the Invisibility Cloak just behind Dumbledore's desk. "You see, Mr. Malfoy here told Mr. Potter that Hermione was in grave danger, and Mr. Potter fetched Mr. Weasley, which was most wise, as Ms. Granger has escaped peril. But Mr. Potter came to me immediately, just after dispatching Mr. Weasley. He has been here ever since, in my protection, in case he was in great danger, as it appears he may have been had it not been for Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Weasley's quick thinking. I trust that you used the tunnel under the Shrieking Shack to return to Hogwarts?"
The three nodded. "Nothing gets by Dumbledore," thought Hermione.
"Now all we have to do is provide protection for Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley. Mr. Potter has already taken this potion, which will protect him against Dark witches and wizards. With this potion, he will be invisible to anyone who wishes to harm him will be unable to see him. I have prepared this potion for Ms. Granger and Mr. Weasley. But you must come in once a week to take the potion so that it does not wear off."
Hermione and Ron took the beakers sitting on Dumbledore's desk. They were filled with a green liquid. They drank it simultaniously. To Hermione, it tasted like a very good Granny Smith Apple.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione returned to their common room shortly after Ron and Hermione took their potion.
"I'm going to bed," said Harry. "You two need to talk, and I need to sleep."
"Shit," thought Hermione. "What do I do now?" The thought of being alone in a room with Ron scared her, because when Harry was there, making conversation was easy. But when it was only her and Ron, it was impossible.