???
No, hold on!
You mean Nicolas Flamel knows about me too, and you weren't the only one involved-he helped set this up?
If Hermione had merely been surprised before, now she was utterly stunned.
For a moment, she almost wanted to say, If you would have me, sir, I would gladly call you Father.
"However, these two items aren't entirely free," Dumbledore said. "I hope you'll agree to one condition."
Hermione immediately grew wary.
What are you after?
If you dare say anything weird, watch out-I'll Avada you.
Worst case, I'll run back to Marvel and never come back.
Seeing Hermione's wary expression, Dumbledore shook his head slightly.
"It's nothing difficult, don't worry. There will be time to tell you when the moment comes."
After thinking it over, Hermione nodded. "All right. Thank you, Headmaster."
Out of trust in Dumbledore's character, she agreed.
Mostly, though, the alchemy notes and the Philosopher's Stone were simply too tempting.
After a moment's thought, Hermione seemed to suddenly remember something, and an appropriate trace of concern appeared in her eyes.
"If you're giving me the Philosopher's Stone, then Nicolas Flamel..."
Although she knew he was already preparing to die, she still had to put on a little show.
"Don't worry. He's already prepared enough potions for himself to put his affairs in order."
At this, Dumbledore grew somewhat wistful.
He felt both sorrow at parting with an old friend and regret that all life must eventually end.
Hermione fell silent too.
She couldn't help wondering whether, if she knew she was going to die, she would be willing to let go.
She didn't know.
Glancing at the unconscious Harry, Dumbledore said, "It seems you know about the protective magic on Harry."
Hermione nodded. "I've read quite a few books, and Harry has told me a little about what happened back then. If my deductions are correct... this should be a form of ancient magic."
"That's right," Dumbledore said. "It's also the protection his mother, Lily, left him."
"Unfortunately, I've only heard of it myself. I've never witnessed it firsthand." Seemingly noticing what Hermione was thinking, he explained, "Back when she was a student, she could see traces of ancient magic. She seems to have had some extraordinary experiences at Hogwarts."
What a shame... Hermione felt a little disappointed.
After that night, no one at Hogwarts ever saw Quirrell again.
When the Christmas holidays ended, Snape temporarily took over Defense Against the Dark Arts. The students discussed it for a few weeks before the talk gradually died down.
Then came the end of term.
Hogwarts, the Great Hall.
The day for awarding the House Cup had come around once again. Teachers and students gathered in the hall, and the atmosphere was cheerful and lively.
The annual celebration must go on!
Yet Harry had no appetite for the food in front of him.
For him, a miserable school year had finally ended, but worse still, he would have to stay at Uncle Vernon's house until the new term began and experience his family's care.
Without the caring.
He had woken up in the Hospital Wing.
His last memory was of Voldemort's terrifying face.
Although Dumbledore had told him everything had been resolved, it seemed none of it had much to do with him.
At that thought, he couldn't help looking at Hermione beside him.
He wasn't the only one. Most people in the Great Hall were looking at her.
The reason was simple. A few days earlier, Dumbledore had announced that Professor Quirrell had harbored sinister intentions and hidden at Hogwarts to hatch a plot. Harry and his friends had discovered him, and Hermione had defeated him in a Wizard's Duel, causing him to die from magical backlash.
The news instantly shocked the entire school.
Everyone finally understood why Professor Quirrell had disappeared toward the end of his time there.
Even more shocking was that a first-year student had actually defeated Quirrell in a duel!
The Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, no less!
Even for Hermione, the "Witch," that achievement was a little too staggering.
After all, although Quirrell usually seemed meek and timid, he was a fully grown wizard and a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He certainly couldn't have been lacking in ability.
His ability to sneak into Gringotts, steal from it, and escape unharmed was proof enough. By any measure, he should have been someone no first-year wizard could defeat.
Yet Hermione had accomplished precisely that impossibility.
When Harry first heard, he had found it hard to believe too, but he soon accepted the outcome.
It seemed perfectly reasonable. This was the amazing Hermione, after all.
Hermione, meanwhile, wasn't feeling quite so wonderful under all those stares.
With a single announcement, Dumbledore had pushed her straight into the spotlight.
It wasn't that she objected to their admiration, but now she had ended up drawing some of the fire away from Harry.
Once word of this spread, the Death Eaters lurking in the shadows would certainly make a move. Quietly following Harry around and picking up benefits was no longer an option.
Still, remembering the look Voldemort had given her before leaving... it hardly mattered anymore.
The boss himself already remembered her. Why worry about a few underlings plotting in the shadows?
With the Spellbook in hand, she only needed a little time to grow stronger. Even if Voldemort returned to life, she was confident she could make him kneel and sing "Conquest."
Come looking for trouble, and I'll turn every last one of you to ash!
At that thought, Hermione let it go.
Picking up the broomstick beside her, she tapped Ron.
Ron, who was busily devouring a chicken drumstick, turned to look at her.
Hermione had explained his loss of consciousness by saying Quirrell had ambushed him from behind, and he had swallowed that story without a moment's hesitation.
As for why Quirrell hadn't ambushed Harry or Hermione, or why he hadn't used more powerful magic instead of merely knocking Ron out... why worry about all that?
He had simply tagged along with Hermione and Harry and done absolutely nothing the entire time, yet he had still received plenty of admiring looks.
A total win!
Especially from Hermione's roommate, whose name was something like... Lavender Brown. She clearly had quite a favorable impression of him.
"As promised."
Hermione tossed the broomstick onto Ron's lap.
"Th-this is..."
Staring at the brand-new Nimbus 2000 in his hands, Ron was stunned.
Only then did he remember that after he had taken the blame for Hermione, she had promised to give him a broomstick.
He had thought Hermione was just saying it, but she had actually followed through!
What a friend!
Once his excitement subsided, Ron began to hesitate, almost afraid to accept it.
He remembered these things being pretty expensive...
"Don't overthink it. I made it myself. Consider it a practice piece for alchemy," Hermione said casually.
"You know alchemy too?" Ron's eyes widened.
A moment later, he decided that was perfectly normal.
This was the amazing Hermione. Nothing she could do would be surprising.
"Hermione, I love you!"
Delighted at receiving a new broomstick, Ron moved to hug Hermione.
The next second, the tip of a wand pressed straight against his forehead.
Seeing the faint murderous glint in Hermione's eyes, Ron gave an awkward chuckle and obediently sat back down.
A trace of disappointment even flashed in his eyes.
Only once Ron was behaving himself did Hermione slowly lower her wand.
Other considerations aside, Hermione actually admired Ron more than Harry, who was still somewhat timid at this point.
Whatever he was usually like, anyone who dared put his own body on the line at eleven was one seriously tough character.
And in the original story, while they were on the run, Ron had wanted to kill a Death Eater outright after they knocked their attacker unconscious.
His reasoning had suited Hermione's tastes too:
"If we don't kill him now, are we going to wait for him to wake up and kill us?"
Unfortunately, he seemed to have a bit of a crush on her, which was rather troublesome.
Before you continue