Hermione couldn't help but use the past time line Dumbledore's words back against him. "Sir, I believe there was a flaw in your plan."
The twinkle was definitely gone from Dumbledore's eyes. He was not used to people finding flaws in his plans but before he could reply Harry changed topics. "Why didn't you tell me about the prophecy before? In fact you blatantly walked around it after my first year."
"I did plan to tell you when I was sure you were ready, but eleven was much too young."
Hermione asked Harry to show her those memories so she'd know what Dumbledore had said. He closed his eyes and had just started when Hermione spat out "You set Harry up that year, didn't you?" Then realizing what she'd done, she quickly explained. "Harry told me about the conversation you two had. I didn't think of anything about it until now."
"What do you mean Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked.
"When he mentioned Flamel, you told him he had done things properly. What things sir?" Hermione replied. "You meant for him to go after the stone, didn't you? That's why the traps were what they were...but...but," Hermione's mind was racing as pieces fell into place, "you expected Neville to be there as well. He was with us the first time we found Fluffy and you expected him to be there when we did go after the stone. Of course, I bet if I asked Neville how he knew we had planned to go back out that night he wouldn't remember would he?"
Dumbledore face remained set but he did not speak.
"How else did you know he stood up to us that night? Why you felt you had to give him points?" Hermione continued. "But it didn't work as you thought it would, did it? Neville didn't do what you expected him to do. Instead of following, he tried to stop us," Hermione paused when she saw the look on Harry's face. "Devil's snare, Neville was an expert in Herbology even in the first year. That was supposed to be his trap. Flying keys and a broom?" Hermione continued explaining to Harry. "Do you really see Professor Flitwick making a trap designed for a seeker? The Chess set was designed specifically for Ron and the potions for me."
"What about the troll?"
"He couldn't change it since that was Quirrell's trap, but you had already defeated one so why not another? Or he knew Quirrell would deal with it."
"Why?" Harry asked Dumbledore.
Dumbledore shrugged. "You needed confidence and to learn to depend on your friends."
"We could have been killed!"
"Do you really think I flew to London on a broom Harry?" Dumbledore asked. He looked at Hermione. "Fluffy would probably have bitten you between the time you stopped playing the flute and the time you jumped. I prevented it. I was disillusioned in the room, and if you hadn't shown up shortly I would have followed Quirrell. I watched you get through the Devil's snare and the door that needed the flying key. I was very concerned when Ron chose to make you two less powerful offensive chess pieces."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked.
"If he had thought it through, he'd have made Harry the King. The King in a chess game can never be harmed."
"Of course," Hermione replied. "I could have been the queen since they are rarely sacrificed."
"There really should have been no danger to any of you," Dumbledore explained.
"What about the potions?" Harry asked. "Not that I would ever doubt Hermione, but what if I'd drunk a poison?"
"I had the antidote in my robes," Dumbledore replied calmly.
Harry just stared at the Headmaster before asking "Why?" again. He remembered the desperation he had felt in trying to beat Snape to the stone.
Dumbledore didn't answer at first. He just reached for another lemon drop and popped it in his mouth. Finally he replied. "As I said, I wanted to make sure you started developing confidence. I knew that..."
"No sir," Harry cut him off sharply as what he thought the real answer was popped into his mind. "You still weren't positive about my mother's protection in my blood. As you said earlier, you had guessed what happened that night, but you needed to make sure. You knew Voldemort had possessed Quirrell and you set up a controlled confrontation between us didn't you? You had placed so much on a guess that you had to make sure."
Dumbledore's sigh this time was the largest one yet. This interview had not gone the way he had wanted and all of his secrets were crumbling. "You must understand Harry..." He began again.
"No! I think you need to understand sir," Harry replied. "I will not be controlled; I will not be manipulated by you ever again. Now what else have you not told me? If I'm supposed to be the blasted hero of the wizarding world, you're going to tell me everything you know about him, especially how he stayed alive. I supposedly killed him when I was one and he survived, I killed Quirrell, but Voldemort survived...how sir?"
Dumbledore looked at the young man who was glaring defiantly back at him. "And if I don't? You plan to run off to France I guess?"
"Sir, if you don't," Harry started, barely containing his anger. "I'll tell the whole wizarding world the prophecy, tell my friends to leave the country and then send Voldemort a damn owl telling him that I'll leave him alone if he leaves me alone. We can then both be immortal, unless the prophecy is wrong...but then again according to you, it can't be."
Dumbledore sat riveted in his seat; the look of shock not even close to being contained on his face.
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