Title: War Within a Breath
Author: Muddgutts
Rating: PG-13 (for strong language)
Ships: H/Hr
Summary: Following the events in OoTP the gang from the DoM must live a life in hiding. They are constantly on the run from Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Voldemort will stop at nothing to finish the 'Potter' problem that keeps plaguing him. No place is safe now for Harry and the gang as they are forced to move from one hiding place to the next all summer long. As the danger increases so does the tension between the kids when cabin fever sets in, and Harry and Ron clash in the argument that could rip the trio apart for good.
AN: I would like to thank everyone that gave me input for this story, and helping me realize the growing tension between Harry and Ron's friendship. No story is complete with out a good beta and I'm lucky enough to have a great one. Thank you very much AnneU. You've helped me so much, I don't think I could do it with out you.
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Chapter 1
"Harry, wake up."
"Harry . . . wake up." The voice called out again this time with a little shake on his shoulder. Through the haze of sleep a dim light filled the damp room. His body ached and his left arm was still not fully awake yet so it would send little tingling shocks up to the shoulder when he pushed himself upright. Harry reached into his coat and grabbed his glasses, "Tonks? Wha. . .what time is it?"
Tonks moved her wand closer to herself and kneeled next to his bed, "Listen Harry, we have to get moving. This place isn't safe anymore."
Harry flopped back down on the bed with a groan, "Come . . .on, we just got here yesterday, and now we have to leave already? This better not be another one of Moody's drills, or I'm going to transfigure his leg into a toothpick." He looked up to her waiting for a laugh that never came.
Tonks looked very serious and stood up, igniting the oil lamp on the nightstand. "Harry, we don't have a lot of time to screw around. We have to meet Kingsley and Remus downstairs in ten minutes. Now move, all of you." Her last was stated very loudly causing Neville and Ron to wake.
"What's going on?" Neville said seating up in his cot. Ron just flopped over, pulling the covers over his head.
Tonks walked over to the closet and pulled out their bags and threw them into the middle of the room. "Up NOW! You have five minutes to get your gear and be ready to move."
Harry watched her for a minute curiously. She hadn't act like this for weeks, and his stomach dropped remembering the last time they were all awakened in the middle of the night to move to a new safe house, almost two weeks ago
They were all holed up in an old barn, somewhere near York. Everything was fine until suddenly from out of the cool night sky Tonks and Remus came swooping in on brooms demanding they all get into the air and leave. They tried not to panic and grab all their belongings, but Hermione started hyperventilating when she realized she didn't have a broom. So Harry did the only thing he could, he pulled her onto his broom and took off. After some cursing and punching Hermione calmed herself when she looked back over Harry's shoulder to the old barn. Not more then two minutes after they all left a large group of DeathEaters appeared in front of the building. The images of the barn burning high into the night sky still plagued her dreams.
Harry leapt from his bed and started throwing all his schoolbooks and clothes into his backpack. He looked around the room for anything he might have missed, and noticed Neville was doing the same, but Ron still hadn't gotten out of bed. He gave his bed a swift kick. "Hey Ron! Get up or you'll be staying here, mate."
Harry didn't stick around to see if Ron had gotten the hint because he was right on Tonks' heels out the door. They moved down the hallway quickly to the only other door. Tonks turned around and gave Harry a push backwards stopping him from running into the room."Um Harry, maybe I should go in first, huh."
At first Harry was confused. Knowing that time was of the essence all he wanted to do was get in there and help Hermione with all her books; that would no doubt delay them leaving on time. Then as he saw the smile Tonks was giving him it dawned on him that the girls might not be properly dressed. He blushed and leaned against the wall. "Oh...right. "
Tonks swept through the doorway into the room, wand high in the air lighting the way. "Raise and shine ladies, it's time to get up," she ordered. From outside the room Harry could hear them all starting to come to life. He slipped his arms into the straps of his backpack and tightened them down. He paced around in a small circle checking his pockets.
"Wand, check. Money, check. Photos?" His fingers ran the length of his jean pockets then up to his shirt pocket, and he let out a deep sigh of relief as the hard edges of the old pictures revealed themselves. Withdrawing them he moved to the light from the doorway and held the pictures out in front of him. When all of this insanity had started in the first week of summer he removed two pictures from his photo album; those had to stay behind with all other unnecessary baggage. One photo was now was very old and worn now; it was from his parents' wedding day. His mother, father and Sirius waved to him with great smiles of joy. The other was of Ron, Hermione, and himself from first year. He smiled as they all pushed and shoved each other into a rather messy group hug.
The bedroom door swung open and Tonks strolled out into the hall. "Harry, I'm going to seal the back door and the rear windows. Make sure everyone is at the front door and ready to move as soon as Remus shows up with the car. OK?"
"Car? What car?"
"Kingsley, umm, borrowed one from the Ministry depot tonight. Best not to think about it too much, Harry. Just get a move on, will you," Tonks finished as she walked swiftly down the hallway. Harry shrugged, dismissing the information, jammed the pictures into his back pocket, knocked hard on the door once and pushed it open.
Ginny nearly slammed into him as she ran from the bathroom carrying all their toiletries. "Watch it Harry!" Luna held open her bag and Ginny dumped all of it inside. Hermione was busy throwing back the covers of her bed looking for something. All of them, boys and girls it would now seem had taken to sleeping in their clothes in case of an emergency like this.
Harry didn't bother to ask permission as he moved over to her nightstand and grabbed her backpack off the floor. With great speed he cleared the room of all books, parchment, quills, and clothing. Hermione didn't even notice this as she was currently trying to reach something that had fallen between the wall and the bed.
"Oh come on, just a little . . . bit closer," she said thrusting her hand again into the narrow space. Harry watched her for a moment with a smile. She looked so much older now compared to the picture he had of her from first year. Her body had matured in all the right places, she was just as tall as he was now, and to be honest he found himself staring at her a little too much lately. She was very striking now, at least to him, and he supposed to Ron as well but Ron would never say it, bloody coward. Harry grabbed hold of the bed frame and gave it a hard jerk, sliding it away from the wall.
Hermione let out a short, "Oh," in surprise and then saw Harry standing next to the bed. He smiled down at her. "Come on, hurry now. I have all of your books and papers," he said, throwing her backpack over his other shoulder. She retrieved the lost item from behind the bed and sat up; it was her daily planner. The small black book looked ready to burst at the seams, there were so many pieces of multicolor paper sticking out from inside, and the clip looked broken and was held closed with a rubber band.
"Thank you . . . Harry," she said through a long yawn, covering her mouth with one hand. "I didn't get a lot of sleep, sorry."
Watching her yawn made him yawn as well and he extended his hand to her. Grabbing it firmly she stood up, but swayed on sleepy legs and leaned against him resting her head on his chest. Harry looked around the room and Ginny was staring at them now with raised eyebrows.
"When did you go to sleep last night, Hermione?" Ginny asked.
Hermione straightened herself a bit and rubbed her eyes. "Well, about a hour ago I think."
Harry just rolled his eyes to this. It was no surprise really. "Let me guess, Potions essay right?"
Hermione stepped back now and frowned at him, "Yeah, that's right. At least mine's done now. Bet you haven't even started yours, and don't even think you're copying mine. I told you to start it a week ago." Harry opened his mouth to say he wasn't planning on copying her when Ron popped into the doorway.
He gave the room a quick survey and settled on Harry with both his and Hermione's backpacks and frowned. "Typical . . . Hey you left your broom back there." Harry's eyes narrowed when he heard the word 'typical' from Ron. Just what the hell was that supposed to mean?
Ron walked up to them and handed the Firebolt over to Harry. "Well it looks like your hands are full, so I guess you're riding with me tonight, Hermione," he said, looking just a little too happy about this too.
"Ohh no more flying please," Hermione moaned, "I'm too tired to even think about getting on a broom."
Harry just grinned at them both. "We're not flying. Kingsley is bringing a car for us."
"What? A car? Where did he get a car?" Ron asked as his smile faded.
Harry just shrugged. "I don't know. Tonks said he got it from the Ministry and that he and Professor Lupin will be here any minute." Ron huffed and turned quickly towards the door looking rather defeated.
Hermione looked back at Harry questioningly. "What's his problem?"
Harry was about to answer when the ground suddenly shuddered.
"What was that?" Ginny asked. Then it happened again and this time it was a bit longer and louder.
Out of instinct or fear Hermione stepped closer to Harry. "What's making that noise?" she asked. He wasn't sure about the noise, but one thing was sure. He didn't plan on sticking around long enough to find out.
"Come on let's get out of here!"
The girls and Harry made it to the door and ran straight into Neville.
"What going on? Why is the ground shaking?" Neville asked looking rather pale.
Ron was down the hall by the front door and called for them to come look. "Quick come here. What's that?"
Everyone crowded near the front door. Just out past the driveway were large pine trees that pierced high into the cloudless night. The trees swayed violently as the ground rumbled again. Hermione let out a little whimper and clung to Harry's arm, "That . . . that sounds like . . ."
"Gwarp," Harry finished, "but-bigger!"
Ron grabbed Harry by the shoulder and spun him around. "Gwarp! You mean Hagrid's half brother and full Giant?"
Neville swallowed a big gulp of air, "A GIANT!" Everyone pulled out their wands and started to back away from the front door now.
Through the glass panes of the door they watched as the ground shook and a large group of trees fell onto the front lawn, and high into the sky the shape of a head could be clearly seen against the black night. Harry's jaw almost hit the floor as the nearly 25-feet-high giant stepped into the moonlight. The closest Harry could describe the giant was that he looked like a grotesquely oversized Norseman, like some Viking right out of his history books, with a white vest made of wolf pelts, a long loincloth of deerskin, and straps of leather wrapped around his feet and hands. His knuckles alone were the size of boulders, and his feet bigger than Uncle Vernon's car, and as he broke into the clearing between the house and tree line a single figure could be seen as well. It was Antonin Dolohov. Harry would never forget his form even under his masked face, and cloaked body. He had nearly killed his best friend, his Hermione!
Harry's blood boiled and his fingers tightened around the end of his wand thinking of the best curse to use on the Death Eater. He ducked down out of view of the glass, and pulled Hermione down with him, "Get down all of you! Don't let him see you!" At Harry's command, everyone dropped down to the corner of the wall and the floor, making them as small as possible. Ginny doused the lantern and everyone moved in close, waiting.
"Who's out there? Who did you see?" Ginny asked. Harry furrowed his brow thinking of all the implications of Dolohov being free from Azkaban. Ron started lifting his head high to take a look, but Harry yanked him down hard to the floor.
"I told you to stay down! There's a Death Eater out there controlling that giant!"
Ron shrugged free of his grip. "Get off! If you would've said that before I wouldn't have had to look! Would I, smart ass?"
Harry grit his teeth biting back the anger. "I don't have time to cover every detail with you. Just keep you're damn head down! Got it?"
Ron rolled his eyes and flopped down between Luna and Neville, "Right, Commander!" Hermione had heard enough and was fed up. "That's it, you two cut it out right now." She turned back to Harry. "So what are we going to do now? We can't stay here and where's Tonks?"
From outside Dolohov's voice could clearly be heard as he yelled to the giant. He spoke in a foreign tongue none of them knew. It sounded like he was egging the giant on, encouraging him to continue his rampage. Even down low to the floor Harry could see as the giant reached down and picked up a tree trunk as a club and turned back towards the house.
"Harry! Come on we have to leave!" Hermione pleaded, clutching Harry's arm. "Please, it's not worth it."
Facing her with anger in his eyes he wanted to yell at her, 'Not worth it? This man almost killed you! He should be in jail!' But when he saw the fear in her eyes he couldn't speak, and only nodded. Ron was edging backwards away from the door now and Harry got an idea. "Ok let's make for the back door. Ron, lead the way."
Ron shot him the dirtiest look he'd ever gotten from him. "Me! Why do I have to go first?"
Harry wanted to just punch Ron now for being such a jerk. "Because I'm the 'commander,' remember," he said sarcastically. Ron snarled at him.
Ginny pushed Ron out of the way and started moving. "Oh for heaven's sake, you two are imposable! Get out of the way, you big baby." She moved down the hallway swiftly in a low crawl. Luna grabbed the lantern, falling in behind Ginny, with Neville close behind. Ron was practically pushing Neville up the hall he was so eager to get away now.
Harry took one quick look through the glass and saw the giant had moving to the house, and was swinging the tree trunk mightily above his head. Without warning Harry grabbed Hermione and pushing them both to the floor hard. "Everyone get down!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.
Down the hallway, the rooms where they'd all been sleeping not more then fifteen minutes ago exploded in a crash of timber and stone. Glass and wood panels flew everywhere, and they were enveloped in a cloud of dust and debris. Over the screams of Ginny and Luna Harry could hear the small house's foundation groan and break.
"Is everyone ok?" he asked. He heard them reply that they were fine, but he couldn't see them through the thick layer of dust covering his glasses. Ron was screaming to Ginny, "Go . . . Go before we're all squashed to death!"
Harry looked down to see if Hermione was okay too and met her wide eyes and red cheeks. She was flat on her back and he was on top of her like a shield. "Are you okay, Hermione? I didn't hurt you, did I?"
She inhaled a deep breath causing her chest to press firmly against his weight. "No, you didn't hurt me...thank you, Harry," she finished, looking away, and her cheeks and ears burned bright red. Harry wasn't a total fool as to not notice either their position or her lack of protest to it, but there was really no time to think about it at the moment either. With one quick contraction of his body, Harry sprung to his feet pulling Hermione up with him.
The air cleared a bit and the enormous tree trunk started to slide out from under the wreckage of the house, no doubt to finish off the crumbling structure. The door at the end of the hall open with a sudden crash as a Death Eater went flying out through it. His body hit the floor with a mighty thud and he slid to a halt right in front of Ginny. She gave him a little tap with her foot to see if he was awake, but there was no response. In the kitchen doorway Tonks was standing with her wand in one hand and another unconscious Death Eater in the other.
"Hurry up! Out this way," she called to the puzzled teens. No one needed a further invitation then as everyone pushed their way into the room. Another Death Eater lay in the middle of the remains of the kitchen table, which had been smashed to bits. The window in the back door was also broken and it looked as if the Death Eaters had entered the house that way, until they ran into Tonks. Harry had only seen Tonks fight once, in the Department of Mysteries, and even then he was impressed with her power. She was a brilliant Auror and the proof was now spread across the kitchen floor in the form of three unconscious Death Eaters.
Tonks pushed Neville and Ginny toward the broken back door with purpose. "Come on! Stop gawking and move. Do you want to be a pancake?" She started to usher them all towards the doorway and stopped momentarily to visually check over Harry. She gave him a quick pat on the shoulder, "You all right, Harry?" As Ron passed with Luna through the doorway he couldn't help notice this little exchange between the two and swore under his breath, but Luna just pulled him along as she broke into a run towards an old lawn shed by the driveway.
As Tonks, Harry and Hermione ran clear of the house a loud primal roar echoed through the night. Harry took one final look over his shoulder and watched as the hulking trunk of the tree came crashing into what remained of the house. Everyone dove for cover as shards of wood and glass flew through the air showering the area with rubble.
The giant grunted and stomped his great feet through the wreckage as he watched his intended victims fleeing the house, and in one mighty stride he stepped over the house towards them. Hermione pulled Harry backwards as he showered the giant in spells. He sent three quick stunning spells that bounced harmless off the giant's chest. Hermione shrieked into Harry's ear, "It's no good Harry! We have to run come on!" Seeing the futility of his efforts he turned to see where Tonks was, but she wasn't near him anymore.
The rest of the group was at the shed now and screaming for Harry and Hermione to run as a giant closed in for the kill. Running as fast as their tired legs could carry them Harry and Hermione made a break for the small lawn shed, which really wasn't any cover from the giant, but they ran anyway. Where else could they go, it looked hopeless. Harry tugged on Hermione's arm as they ran. A flash of red light from a spell passed just over his head, and Hermione pushed Harry to the left as they ran. He heard Hermione scream out a spell from behind him. Then another flash of light passed by them and crashed into the grass in front of them. Harry turned and saw Dolohov not far behind them near the house sending spells at them.
"That's it! I've had just about enough of you!" he said as he skidded to a halt swinging Hermione behind him.
Hermione looked at him with fear in her eyes. "Harry! What are you going?" He pulled her down low and pointed his wand at Dolohov sending spell after spell at him, which the Death Eater dodged easily using the wreckage as cover.
"Distract him! Levitate some of that debris around him so I can get a clear shot on him!" Harry yelled.
Trying not to think about the lumbering giant bearing down on them, Hermione started levitating a large piece of ceiling beam in to the air. It hung in mid-air for a minute before it swooped towards Dolohov's back. She moved the wood in a poking fashion at him, like some giant fork. While he jumped from side to side trying not to be crushed Harry focused his aim and screamed, "Incarcerous!" Ropes flew out of his wand and bound Dolohov to the crumbling structure.
With a loud pop Tonks appeared next to Hermione and with a quick wave of her wand summoned Dolohov's wand to her hand. There was a loud whistling sound in the air and suddenly with out warning Tonks and Hermione were both pulled down to the ground with Harry spread across them protectively. Before they even got a word out, a dark blur passed overhead. Only as the shape retreated into the sky was it clear that it was the enormous hand of the giant who was now looming over them. In their little duel with Dolohov they had forgotten why they were running in the first place, and now it was too late . . .he had them trapped!
Ron and Neville watched in horror as the giant closed the distance on Harry and Hermione and was ready to strike. Ron's mouth flopped open and closed for a second before he could think. Ginny shook Ron's arm fiercely screaming, "Do something!" When he didn't answer her she turned to Neville and dragged him out of the shed with her. "Come on we have to distract him!"
Neville's eyes flicked from his friends who were about to be crushed and then to Ginny. With determination in his eyes and in his voice he said, "Bright spells! Anything flashy, just get his attention!" Ginny gave him a quick nodded and blasted a spark spell into the air. It was just an enough to light the backyard between the house and the woods, but it was bright.
They started saddle skipping to the right as they unleashed spell after spell at the towering giant. Through the flashes they watched the giant's right arm swung down to snatch their friends up, when a piercing white light flooded the area and distracted the monster from hitting his target.
The loud honking of a car horn echoed off the trees and filled their souls with hope as a black Ministry car streaked into view. Harry pushed himself upright and smiled as the car skidded to a halt and Remus Lupin jumped out of the front seat, wand in hand. He pulled open the backdoor for Ron, Luna, Neville, and Ginny to get in.
"Where's Harry?" Lupin asked.
"Over there!" Ginny pointed.
"Bugger!" was all he got out before he Disapparated over to Tonks.
With a very ungraceful crack he Apparated right between Tonks and Hermione. "Tonks! Grab Hermione." Then he grabbed Harry and Disapparated back to the car and shoved him inside. Harry slammed into Ron on the seat, and a moment later Hermione was pushed in next to him. Ginny, Neville, and Luna where in the seats in front of them and helped pull Tonks into the center of the floor on top of everyone's legs and shut the door. Through the back window they watched as the destroyed house and the enraged giant faded from view, and they uttered a collective sigh of relief.
After about a quarter hour and several uncomfortable bumps later things were starting to become very cramped inside the backseat of the car. Ron tried desperately to shift his legs out from under Tonks, who shot him a dark look. "Listen Ron if you want to touch my bum then go ahead and try it, but stop twitching your feet around down there."
"Well I can't help it if I'm the tallest one here," he whined, looking around the backseat at everyone. The back of the car did have two seats facing each other, but with seven people and their backpacks it yielded little space for someone of his size. Neville, Luna, and Ginny sat in the seats facing forwards with their bags on their laps. Ron, Harry, and Hermione sat in the seats facing backwards with Tonks lying in the middle of the floor.
Hermione took a quick look around and solved the problem in a second. "Okay, all of you stack the bags over there against the door." She now took a hunched-over standing position and motioned for Ron to slide over. "Ron, move all the way down the seat and let Tonks get in there." He did and Tonks gratefully got up off the floor onto the seat. Harry slid over to give her room, and noticed a small problem.
"Umm Hermione," he said, "where are you going to sit? You shifted yourself out of a seat."
"Oh," she replied and furrowed her brow in thought. She chewed on her lip working out a possible seating arrangement for the number of people. "It's okay, I'll just sit here on the..." she said, but was cut off when the car hit a rather nasty pump. Hermione bounced into the air and hit her head on the roof, which sent her into the seat in front of her, right on to Harry's lap. He instinctively caught her as she fell.
"Oh, Hermione, are you okay?"
She squinted her eyes as she rubbed the bump on her head, "Ouch, sssss. . . that smarts oh." Harry just cradled her there in his arms getting accustomed to her position. He couldn't help it but he wanted to smile. After everything that just happened to them, all he could think about was how soft and tender Hermione's touch was to him, simple human contact to let him know that he was not alone in this nightmare of a life he was caught in. She was real, then and there, and not just a memory or a photograph. He was sure now that there was more to life then just pain and misery, and as he turned his head and stared out the window at the night sky it dawned on him.
"She can relate to me. She has always understood me. Not even Ron knows me like she does," and he smiled.
Hermione couldn't see his face from her seat on his lap, but tried to face him anyway. "Harry, if I'm too heavy I can move, it's no big deal. I don't mind sitting on the floor."
She tried to get up off him, but his grip around her tightened, and she stopped. He whispered in her ear through her bushy brown hair, "Please, don't go . . .it's okay really." Hermione could feel his breath on her neck and it sent shivers down her spine, and she leaned into his embrace a little more. She was lost in thought for awhile thinking of everything that just happened and how relaxing it was to be with Harry like this. Tonks broke Hermione's train of thought as she gave her a little poke in her leg.
"Hmm?" was all she could muster as the car came back into view. Tonks' smile was mischievous and her eyes blinked slowly and deliberately as if to say, 'Enjoying yourself?' Hermione didn't have anything to say and continued to look Tonks in the eyes and her own lip curled upwards a bit too. Tonks gave her a knowing little pat on the leg and reached into her cloak and withdraw a wand. "I have a present for you, Hermione."
"I have a wand already, but thanks anyway."
"Ah but this wand is the rightful property of our Death Eater friend Antonin Dolohov," Tonks said coolly, handing the wand over to Hermione. She bounced it between her hands thinking of what to do with it, but Harry's voice was low and strong and carried from behind her.
"Break it."
Now she did manage to turn around and face him. His expression was blank and his piercing green eyes didn't flinch as he spoke. "Do it Hermione. Break the wand, and put your fears of him behind you." Hermione looked around the car at everyone.
Ginny beamed at her, Luna gave her a simple nod, and Neville smiled at her making a breaking motion with his hands. Ron's expression was unreadable. There was something else behind his exterior as he said, "Go ahead, and break it already. You know you want to."
Tonks looked on at her with a warm smile and her head tilted to the side a bit. "Go on Hermione, nothing bad will happen."
When Hermione turned back to Harry he took her hands in his and placed them on either end of the wand in her hands and said, "You've earned it, Hermione. He can't hurt you anymore." Her breath shuddered and her grip tightened. Gritting her teeth and sucking in a deep breath she mustered all of her strength and cracked the wand in two. Little particles of the core burst into the air free from their wooden prison, and drifted through the car slowly. A loud chorus of Hooray's filled the car and everyone started laughing, and Lupin tuned the radio to some classic rock station, and everyone was chatting again as if it was morning tea and everything was normal again.
Hermione's chest hitched and her head sagged to her chest. An overwhelming feeling of relief flooded through her. She leaned into Harry's chest and let out a small sob, and his hand rubbed her back. "It's okay, rest now. It's over." Hermione's eyes drifted closed and she pushed all her complicated thoughts into the back of her mind.
Harry and Hermione both fell asleep bouncing around in the back seat of the car as it raced through the night, speeding them to another safe house and another day closer to returning to Hogwarts.