Love,
Lies, and a Secret
Chapter
10: The Muggleborn
“What to you mean allergic to magic?” Harry asked again,
his voice trembling.
“I don’t know,” Neville explained as he tried to stop the convulsion without magic. “I don’t know. It seems that the Potion worked differently in Hermione.” He took a deep breath, and then looked at Remus. “There’s nothing I can do,” he said, wiping the sweat from his forehead.
“No!” Harry cried in
despair. “You need to do something.
Susan-” He looked pleadingly at the former Hufflepuff.
She shook her head.
“I don’t know how to stop the convulsion…I can’t use any spells… I’m sorry.”
Harry began to pace,
his hands running nervously through his hair. “No… No… I can’t watch her die
like this… No…”
“Neville,” Tonks
spoke quietly, her eyes red, “you said… You said that you can’t help her
because you can’t use any spells on her, right?”
“Yeah…”
“Well, what if we
take her to a Muggle doctor?”
The others looked at
her with dumbstruck expressions across their faces.
“I mean, a Muggle
doctor won’t be able to help what has happened to her because of the Potion but
they will be able to help with the convulsion… I think.”
“Oh! That sounds
like a great idea!” Neville exclaimed. “But…who? I don’t know any Muggle Doc…”
“But I do!” Remus
cried. “I’ll go to his home!”
Harry had never felt
so relieve. Thank Merlin! There was a chance that she would be alright.
“But be quick,
Remus!” Neville cried. “She doesn’t have much time!”
Remus just nodded
and left.
*~*~*~*
“D-don’t you think
they are taking too bloody long?” Harry asked Remus, nervousness evident in his
voice.
He and his former
teacher were sitting in the waiting room of a private Muggle clinic.
“Susan and Mike are
taking care of her, Harry. I trust them,” Remus replied with a small sad smile.
Harry just nodded.
“Er, Remus, how do you know this Mike person? I mean, he is a Muggle-”
“-born. Michael Navy
is a Muggleborn,” Remus explained.
“I don’t understand.
If he is a Wizard, why-”
“Why is he working
with Muggle medicine?”
“Well, yeah.”
Remus smiled sadly.
“He decided to abandon the Wizard Word.” Not waiting for Harry’s reply, Remus
continued, “You see, Mike went to Hogwarts with me, and your parents. He was in
Ravenclaw. He was the Ravenclaw Prefect and used to date your mum’s best
friend, Jane. Jane Adams.”
Harry looked to
Remus in surprise. “I have never heard about this Jane.”
Sighing deeply,
Remus said, “She was murdered by Fenrir a year before
you were born.” Remus closed his eyes briefly, taking a deep breath. In his
mind’s eye, he could still see Jane’s smile, he could still see Mary…
*~*Flashback*~*
Kings Cross
Fifteen-year-old Remus Lupin had just arrived at King’s
Cross Station and was awaiting the arrival of his best friends: James, Sirius,
and Peter. He was wondering if he should pass through the wall to Platform 9 ¾
to wait for them there, or if he should simply wait on the Muggle side of the
Station. It was then that someone bumped into him. It was a teenaged girl. Her
hair was a bit bushy, and her eyes were a beautiful chocolate color.
Remus was never what people would call a “ladies’
man”, like Sirius was. In fact, he was really shy in the aspect, but now, for
the first time in his life, he felt his heart beating a little faster when he
looked at the girl before him.
“Oh! I’m so sorry!” the girl said, blushing.
Remus was about to open his mouth to respond when he
heard a voice behind him.
“Mary!” He turned around and saw Jane Adams, a
Ravenclaw girl, who was the best friend of Lily Evans. She was with her
parents, who were Muggles.
“Jane,” Remus greeted her.
“Hi, Remus!” she replied with a smile. “What are you
doing here alone?”
“Oh, my dad had to work so I went alone. I’m waiting
for the guys,” Remus explained.
“Oh. Did you see Lily?” Jane inquired.
“Not yet.”
“Jane, dear, why don’t you introduce us to your
friend?” her father said gently.
She slapped her own forehead lightly with a hand. “Oh!
How silly of me!”
“Mum, dad, this is Remus Lupin. He’s a fifth year,
like me, but he’s in Gryffindor. Remus, these are my mum and dad. Paul and Anne Adams.”
“Nice to meet you,” they said as each shook hands with
Remus.
“Oh, and of course...this is my baby sister, Mary!”
Jane said smiling broadly, indicating Mary.
Remus turned to Mary, and smiled at her, holding his
hand out to her. “Nice to meet you, Mary.”
She took his hand, and whispered, shyly, “Nice to meet
you, Remus.”
*~*End Flashback*~*
‘But that was the past,’ Remus thought, shaking his head to rid himself of the
memories.
“Jane’s death was
the last straw for Mike. You see, a few months before her death, his family was
tortured and killed by Death Eaters. He was the only one who survived,” Remus
explained, looking grim.
Harry gasped.
“That’s horrible!” he exclaimed.
“That’s why he
decided to stay away from the Wizarding World.”
Harry shook his
head, sadly. “I can’t blame him.”
“Neither can I,” Remus replied heavily.
Harry was about to
say something when Dr. Navy and Susan showed up in the room.
“How is she? Is she
alright?” Harry asked hurriedly, as he stood up from the couch. “I need to see
her!”
“Calm down, my boy!”
Mike Navy said with a tired smile. “Your girlfriend is going to be alright.”
Harry felt so happy
that he didn’t even try to correct Mike’s mistake. Smiling broadly, he turned
to Susan. “Susan?”
She nodded. “She’s
going be fine, Harry.”
“C-Can I see her?”
he asked a little shyly, as a result of his original outburst.
“Yes, of course,”
Dr. Navy said. “She’s sleeping but you can see her.” He turned to Remus. “You
can too, Remus.”
“Thank you, Mike,”
Remus said, and Mike Navy just nodded.
*~*~*~*
“She’s so pale,”
Harry commented to no one in particular as soon as he saw Hermione lying in the
clinic’s bed.
He walked towards
the bed and gently placed his trembling fingers on her cheek. He closed his
eyes briefly, opening them again a moment later, as he sighed deeply.
“She still has the
bruises.”
“I can’t use a
Healing charm on her,” Mike said, “and that’s exactly that I need to talk to
you about.”
“What? What is it?”
Harry asked a bit frantically and turned to Susan. “Is this… you know...about
the Potion?” he whispered the last
part, a little unsure to how much Dr. Mike Navy could know.
“Miss Bones here
told me that Hermione was in contact with some kind of deadly Potion. I’m aware
of its effects, but fortunately she hasn’t lost her magical abilities. I don’t
know why, but that isn’t what concerns me. At least not now,” Mike explained.
“What is it, Mike?”
Remus asked. “Neville, er… Neville Longbottom, the other Healer, had said that
she was allergic to magic,” Remus
explained, informing Dr. Navy of what Neville, who had stayed back at his flat
with Terry, had said.
“Neville? Neville Longbottom?” Mike asked with a smile. “Is
he-?”
Remus nodded. “Yes,
Frank’s son.”
“Right,” Mike replied
a bit sadly. “Well, as I was saying, she didn’t lose her powers but she has
developed some kind of allergy to magic and-”
Harry was about to
say something but Mike put up a hand to make him stop. “This allergy is
temporary; it will only last while she has the Potion in her system. And before
you panic, the Potion will leave her body naturally, with time. However-”
“Oh thank Merlin!”
Harry cried. He couldn’t believe that Hermione was going to be alright.
“However,” Mike continued, “there is a
little inconvenience.”
“What inconvenience?”
Harry asked worriedly.
“She can’t be in a
magical environment during her healing.”
“Oh.” Harry didn’t
know exactly what to say.
“Well, I think this
won’t be a problem,” Remus commented. “She can stay with her parents. They are
Muggles and-”
“But they live in
Mike Navy shook his
head, slightly amused at the young man. “
“Well, if it is the
only way,” Harry replied, defeated.
“It’ll be the best
thing for her, Harry,” Remus said. “Of course we have to talk to Hermione
first, but I think it will be a problem for her. And-” He turned to Mike. “She
must go by Muggle transportation, right?”
Mike nodded. “Yes,
it’s the only way. She will be unable to handle an Apparation or Portkey.”
“And Flooing is out
of question too. Her parents don’t have a Floo network,” agreed Susan.
Harry looked at Hermione
and then at the doctor, suddenly remembering something.
“Er, Dr. Navy,” he
said hesitantly, “they used the Cruciatus on her and-and probably other curses…I mean- what-”
To everyone’s
surprise, Mike gave a hollow laugh. “Well, this is a bit ironic, actually. Yes,
she was tortured by the use of Cruciatus. However, it didn’t affect her
system.”
“What do you mean?”
Remus asked. “She didn’t feel the curse? That’s impossible!”
Mike shook his head.
“No, she felt it, unfortunately.
However, the traces of the curse, those that normally stay in the system after
an attack-” He bit his lip trying to think of an easier way to explain. “What I
mean is the Cruciatus didn’t leave any sequels.”
“H-How?” Harry asked.
“That’s why I said
it is ironic. It was this Potion. You
see, the potion was supposed to reap off the magic, right? Well, it seems,
fortunately, that it didn’t work correctly. However, it did reap off some of the magic of her body, the magic that didn’t
belong to her.”
“The curses,” Harry
concluded.
“Yes, the curses.
The Potion killed any trace of magic that wasn’t hers. In truth, the Potion did save her life. Otherwise, I’ve no
idea how we would heal her without the use of magic.”
“Oh,” Harry managed
to say. The Potion had been Hermione’s doom and salvation.
“Well, if you don’t
have any other questions...” said Mike, looking at his wristwatch, and then
turned to Remus. “Remus, I really have to go home, my in-laws are coming to
dinner. When we arrived, I put some anti-magic wards on the clinic so you don’t
need to worry about that.” He then shook his head. “God, twenty years without
using a wand… oh well…” He sighed, sobering. “I don’t think that will have to
change-”
He looked at
Hermione. “She might have some nightmares.”
“I’ll stay with her,
doctor,” said Susan.
“I will too,”
exclaimed Harry.
“Very
well. If you need
anything, just call me at home.” He took his belongs and was about to leave the
room when Harry called.
“Sir!”
Mike turned around.
“Thank you, sir. Thank
you for saving her life,” Harry said, his eyes bright.
Mike Navy grinned.
“You’re welcome, my boy.” He looked again at the witch lying in the bed. “I
know what’s like to lose someone you love.” He took a deep breath. “Remus,
before I go, may I have a quick word with you?”
“Sure.” Remus turned
to Susan and Harry. “I’ll be right back.”
*~*~*~*
“Everything is
really okay, right?” Remus asked, concerned. Hermione was a special girl and he
cared about her more than he let on to the others. Of course it didn’t mean he
had sexual or romantic feelings for her. No, it was simply an urge to protect
the young brown haired witch; he considered himself to be a bit like an uncle to her.
“Yes, everything is
really okay,” Mike Navy said with a tired
smile. “This girl… Hermione… She seems to be very special...”
“More than you
know,” Remus answered with a sigh. “She’s the most brilliant witch I have ever
seen.” He paused a second, shoving his hands into his pockets. “I feel like I’m
responsible for her, you know? Harry has the Weasleys, me, and all of the Wizarding World...What I am trying to say is,
that all her family is Muggle and-”
Mike put a hand on
Remus’ shoulder. “I understand,” he said. “You feel like you need to look out
for her.”
Remus nodded
slightly.
“She will be fine,”
Mike spoke again. “The most important thing now, is for her to stay away from
magic for a while. I intend to visit her when she is with her parents, to make
sure that everything is fine.” He stopped and bit his lower lip briefly. “I
want to talk with you about something else, too, Remus.”
Remus looked at his
old friend with curiosity. “What is it?”
“You know how I left
this magical a long time ago… I am never
really in contact with the Wizarding World anymore. Yes, I have heard about
Harry Potter’s triumphs against Voldemort. I may live in the Muggle World, but
some things are kind of difficult not to get wind of.” He sighed and then
continued, “I’m really sorry that I didn’t contact you after Mary… and then
Lily and Ja-”
But then Remus held up a hand, making Mike stop speaking. “W-what about Mary?” Remus had always thought that Mary had left the country. James had said so, well not in those many words but... “What about her?”
Mike’s eyes
saddened. “Oh, I thought you knew.”
“Knew? Knew what?”
“Mary died, Remus,”
he said in a regretful tone. “She died, two years after Jane-”
Remus’ body began to
shake, and his heart suddenly felt constricted. “What hap- how?” he managed to
ask, as he let himself fall into a chair.
“I don’t know
exactly- but it seems that it was a car accident,” he explained. “Speaking
honestly, I just know it because it was in the Obituaries, a Muggle paper in
“
Mike nodded,
shifting uncomfortably on his feet. He always thought that Remus had known
about Mary. “I am really sorry Remus...I thought- I thought you knew-”
Remus smiled weakly.
“It’s okay. I-I was just taken by surprise.” He took a deep breath, trying to
pull himself together, as he fought the unbelievable urge to cry. “You said
earlier that you wanted to talk-”
“Oh, yes,” Mike
said, still looking at Remus a little sadly. “It’s just, my oldest daughter,
Julie, she’s ten years old and I think that next year, she will be receiving
her Hogwarts letter.”
Remus smiled
genuinely. “Oh, has she been showing accidental magic?”
“Yeah, it was quite
funny actually. She turned the neighbor’s dog pink.” He laughed a little. “Amy,
my wife always knew about my condition.
It was my choice to leave the Wizarding World, but I am not going to keep my
daughter from knowing of it.”
Remus nodded but
didn’t say anything.
“That’s why I want
to talk with you. Not now, of course. But I want to know everything that had
happened all the years I was away.”
“Of course, Mike.
Let’s just set a date.”
Mike looked again at
his wristwatch. “Oh bloody hell! I’m really late.”
He walked towards
the door, and Remus stood up from the chair and followed him. “I’ll try to be
back at the end of the day. I’ll tell my secretary to cancel of tomorrow’s
patients.” He opened the door, but before stepping out of the clinic, he turned
around, reaching out his hand. “It was good to see you again, Remus.”
Remus took his hand,
shacking it. “Likewise, Mike. And thank you so much
for all that you have done.”
Mike Navy shook his
head lightly. “It was nothing. And tell Harry Potter that his girlfriend will
be alright. No need to worry,” he said before leaving.
“Oh, Hermione
isn’t-” Remus tried to say but Mike was already out of sight.
Sighing, Remus Lupin
closed the door, wondering how the hell they were going to tell Hermione’s real boyfriend, Ron Weasley, about all that had happened.
‘This isn’t going to be pretty.’
***************************************************************************