She.gazed.at.Harry..
.And.now.Rookwood.s.told.Voldemort.how.to.get.the.weapon?..
.I.didn.t.hear.all.the.conversation,.but.that.s.what.it.sounded.like,..said.Harry.
.
.Rookwood.used.to.work.there….maybe.Voldemort.ll.send.Rookwood.to.do.it?..
Hermione.nodded,.apparently.still.lost.in.thought..Then,.quite.abruptly,.she.said,..But.you.shouldn.t.have.seen.this.at.all,.Harry...
.What?..he.said,.taken.aback..
.You.re.supposed.to.be.learning.how.to.close.your.mind.to.this.sort.of.thing,..said.Hermione,.suddenly.stern..
.I.know.I.am,..said.Harry...But.‐..
.Well,.I.think.we.should.just.try.and.forget.what.you.saw,..said.Hermione.firmly.
.
.And.you.ought.to.put.in.a.bit.more.effort.on.your.Occlumency.from.now.on...
Harry.was.so.angry.with.her.he.did.not.talk.to.her.for.the.rest.of.the.day,.which.proved.to.be.another.bad.one..When.people.were.not.discussing.the.escaped.Death.Eaters.in.the.corridors,.they.were.laughing.at.Gryffindor.s.abysmal.performance.in.their.match.against.Hufflepuff;.the.Slytherins.were.singing.Weasley.is.our.King..so.loudly.and.frequently.that.by.sundown.Filch.had.banned.it.from.the.corridors.out.of.sheer.irritation..
The.week.did.not.improve.as.it.progressed..Harry.received.two.more..D.s.in.Potions;.he.was.still.on.tenterhooks.that.Hagrid.might.get.the.sack;.and.he.couldn.t.stop.himself.dwelling.on.the.dream.in.which.he.had.been.Voldemort.‐
.though.he.didn.t.bring.it.up.with.Ron.and.Hermione.again;.he.didn.t.want.another.telling‐off.from.Hermione..He.wished.very.much.that.he.could.have.talked.to.Sirius.about.it,.but.that.was.out.of.the.question,.so.he.tried.to.push.the.matter.to.the.back.of.his.mind..
Unfortunately,.the.back.of.his.mind.was.no.longer.the.secure.place.it.had.once.been..
.Get.up,.Potter...
A.couple.of.weeks.after.his.dream.of.Rookwood,.Harry.was.to.be.found,.yet.again,.kneeling.on.the.floor.of.Snape.s.office,.trying.to.clear.his.head..He.had.just.been.forced,.yet.again,.to.relive.a.stream.of.very.early.memories.he.had.not.even.realised.he.still.had,.most.of.them.concerning.humiliations.Dudley.and.his.gang.had.inflicted.upon.him.in.primary.school..
That.last.memory,..said.Snape...What.was.it?..
.I.don.t.know,..said.Harry,.getting.wearily.to.his.feet..He.was.finding.it.increasingly.difficult.to.disentangle.separate.memories.from.the.rush.of.images.and.sound.that.Snape.kept.caling.forth...You.mean.the.one.where.my.cousin.tried.to.make.me.stand.in.the.toilet?..
.No,..said.Snape.softly...I.mean.the.one.with.a.man.kneeling.in.the.middle.of.a.darkened.room…..
.It.s….nothing,..said.Harry..
Snape.s.dark.eyes.bored.into.Harry.s..Remembering.what.Snape.had.said.about.eye.contact.being.crucial.to.Legilimency,.Harry.blinked.and.looked.away..
.How.do.that.man.and.that.room.come.to.be.inside.your.head,.Potter?..said.Snape..
.It.‐..said.Harry,.looking.everywhere.but.at.Snape,..it.was.‐just.a.dream.I.had...
.A.dream?..repeated.Snape..
There.was.a.pause.during.which.Harry.stared.fixedly.at.a.large.dead.frog.suspended.in.a.jar.of.purple.liquid..