Ridiculous, Hermione told herself sternly. Out of the question. Not possible. One of those crazy notions that come in the middle of the night. She clenched a fist and pummeled it repeatedly into the mattress next to her.
Harry is dead. I gave the eulogy at his funeral! He can't be alive! And if he were alive, he wouldn't have needed to hide! He'd have been hailed as a hero!
Which, declared a second voice in her mind, might well have been sufficient reason for him to leave. He'd always hated his fame.
Hermione shook her head angrily, willing the second voice to be silent, and tried to return to her previous logical process. Well, it does appear that Ted is protecting Clayman the same way Harry protected Sirius. But there are other reasons, other possible relationships, besides godfather and godson. It doesn't mean Jacob Clayman –
"Jacob" and "James" are the same name in different languages, objected the second voice again. A potter is a man who works in clay.
That's my point! If Harry were alive, and he were in hiding, he wouldn't choose such an obvious alias!
Given that he once chose "Vernon Dudley" as an alias? Sure he would.
But he would have let us know he was alive! If he contacted Teddy Lupin, he would certainly have contacted me!
Unless he had no choice.
Stop it! STOP IT!
Hermione swung her legs out of bed, startling Bottlebrush, and seized random bits of clothing from her dresser. "I'll show you," she said aloud. "I'll prove it to you – I'll prove he's dead. Then you'll believe me…" She froze in mid-motion, then continued to dress while muttering, "I'm talking to myself. I'm having an argument with myself. Oh, Merlin, this can't be good…"