Unofficial Portkey Archive

Chapter 31-The Long Goodbye

Harry and Hermione were still sleeping on the couch in their little hideaway when Arthur Weasley came to the door. He was there with Ginny and Draco to try and coax the two lovebirds to join them in the Weasley quarters Sunday night for dinner.

"Harry…Hermione…are you there?" Asked Arthur. The first time he called there was no answer but both Hermione and Harry scurried to the door by the time he finished calling the first time.

"Harry, do I look okay? I don't want to look like we've been doing something we shouldn't have, even though we haven't. My hair?" Hermione asked in a nervous whisper.

"You're fine except for the giant hickey on your neck. It looks like a skin-sucking vampire got you." Hermione was horrified and started to look for a mirror. "Hermione, I'm joking." Hermione slapped him across the shoulder. "Ouch."

"We're here, just a second." Just as Harry started to open the door Hermione pulled his shirt out of the back of his pants making him look pretty messy. She giggled.

"Come on in." Harry looked left then right down the hall. "Quick, you guys." Mr. Weasley had stepped through very quickly but Ginny and Draco were taking their time.

"Hermione, we'd like it if you and Harry would come to dinner with us in our quarters tomorrow night. Dobby is setting up a private feast for us tomorrow." Ginny said. "Dad wanted to come because he wanted to see the now famous Potter/Granger hideout. You know with the muggle stuff--like your walkman and your full size stereo."

Mr. Weasley was a kind man and a little bit of an "electronics geek" as he had learned in his job. He loved the stereo and the speakers were "cool" according to him. Ginny and Draco giggled a little as Mr. Weasley put on the headphones and rocked his head back and forth to the music. "The worlds oldest wizard teenager," said Ginny softly as they all giggled. Her father was one great guy and she knew it.

Harry looked at Hermione and they nodded to each other. "Mr. Weasley we'd love to come to dinner tomorrow night."

"Great. Great. I will tell Molly. Thanks for letting me look at your bitchin' stereo. Did I say that right?" No one could keep a straight face. The laughter was so infectious that Arthur had to laugh at himself. Not only was he trying to hard to be cool, he was just a couple of years too old to carry it off without it being funny.

"Yeah, Mr. Weasley you said right." Harry said mockingly.

"Just don't say it again while I'm around. Okay, Dad?" Ginny was red from laughing so hard.

They left quietly. Hermione looked at Harry. "That's why we miss Ron. He's so much like his Dad. As bloody goofy as he can be, he is funny." Harry said.

Harry walked back over to the stereo and unplugged the headphones so they could hear through the speakers again after hitting the A-B switch. "Harry, you've turned into a bit of an "electronics geek" yourself." Said Hermione.

Harry laughed. "You like the History of Magic and I like big loud amplifiers, so unless you want to start a big argument as to which is more important…."

"No, no, you win. The History of Magic is less fun than the music, even if I like it." Hermione said with a nod.

"See, I told you you'd see it my way some day." Harry said with a confident smile.

Harry turned to change the CD. While he had his back turned, Hermione picked up one of the pillows off the sofa and tossed it at Harry. It was perfect timing. It hit him in the side of the head just as he was turning back toward Hermione. "I told you so, huh?" Hermione laughed. "I told you once that you had a butt whipping coming too. And, that would be today." She grabbed the other pillow as she said it and heaved it harder this time hitting Harry across the bridge of his nose, but not knocking his glasses off.

Hermione dove behind the couch to try to get away as Harry came around with the pillows. One in each hand, he started chasing her swinging the pillows wildly trying to hit her in the backside or wherever he could reach. Hermione proved to be too quick. She got to the two smaller pillows on the chair at the other side of the room and tossed them again hitting Harry in the chest and the place no man ever wants to be hit. Harry went down like a lead balloon.

Hermione laughed and ran toward him. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry." Just as she got there she realized he was faking. He hit her with both pillows tackled her to the bearskin rug. This time he was going to do the butt-kicking. "Ooooh, you faker." Hermione screamed in mock anger. Harry pounded her with the pillows until she finally got one of them back and started to retaliate. Then Harry realized playing fair was causing him to get the butt-kicking. He decided that a wrestling match would be better.

They wrestled on the rug for a few minutes. Each of them was breathless from their little game. They lay down next to one another panting and smiling. "I love just goofing around with you, Hermione. It is just fun being with you. It doesn't matter what we do."

"I know. I never thought in a million years that having a boyfriend who was my best friend could be so much fun." Hermione kissed him on the forehead and lay back staring at the ceiling. Harry did likewise.

"Harry, what happens if Voldemort and his cronies take the bait and are successful in stealing it? Doesn't that mean we get caught? What happens then?" Hermione asked as she stared upwards.

"Hermione, I will never let them take you alive as long as I'm alive. If I have to, I'll kill you myself to save you the suffering." Harry said with a straight face.

She turned her head toward Harry. "That's it! That's your plan! Kill me so I don't suffer!" As she started to get louder, she saw Harry smile. "Oh, you evil mean…." She stopped. "Truthfully, Harry."

"Hermione, I have to have faith that there is a plan we don't know. Remember we were told to do the best we can with what information we have. They reminded us of several spells that can help us to get free. We know some from our Dumbledore's Army days plus those we should have used instead of the curses. I have to trust them. Even Snape has a role and I have to trust him against my better judgment." Harry tried to make sense out of it. Of course there was a great chance that for a few minutes they could be in the clutches of one of Voldemort's men. They'd been told that. But they had to stall for a few minutes if that happened. Someone would be there even if they didn't see them.

"I want to believe, but I just don't feel happy about being that close to Azkaban. What happens if we go in? I mean what if they don't come to get us?" Hermione was truly upset about this scenario.

"I don't know, but I am sure they thought of that too. Hermione, I know this is scary, but stop 'what-iffing' you'll drive yourself…and me, I might add…mad before we have to worry about those things. We bring up stuff like that early on Monday when they prepare us for the mock sentencing with Minister of Magic Fudge." Harry smiled and continued, "Let's talk about or do something a little more pleasing."

He rolled toward her and gave her a kiss. She responded well and they spent the rest of the afternoon and evening snogging and goofing off listening to music.

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The next evening was difficult for everyone. No one knew what anyone else knew about the plan. It was difficult to make small talk about anything concerning tomorrow's or yesterday's events.

Luna was the first to find something that everyone was excited about. "Okay, listen to this. The first thing I'm going to do when I see Ron…I'm going to get him some of that pumpkin pie and pumpkin juice. Then I'm going to hug the life out of him. He won't want to hug first…he'll be hungry. That always took precedence." Luna laughed hard and so did everyone else. Everyone knew she was exaggerating, because they all knew Ron must be waiting more to see her than any other thing or food in the world.

"I'm not going to hug him at all. I want my money, because the Chuddley Cannons are losing their behinds. He promised me that they'd be great, so I bet on them while we were in Diagon Alley this summer. He'd better pay up too." Harry added.

Each one in turn told a funny story about Ron. Everyone's spirits were lifted with each one. In the backs of their minds, this could be a wake or it could be the eve (or close to it) of a great reunion. Draco finally spoke up. "I'm going to make sure I get my royalties for writing "Weasley is our King". That brought the greatest laughter of all. Because if he did, Ron probably wouldn't know that Draco was nearly one of the family. The look on Ron's face would be precious.

"So, are you ready for the big day tomorrow?" Molly Weasley asked.

"Ready as we'll ever be, I suppose." Hermione replied. It was a strange question. Hermione and Harry already knew they'd be sent to Azkaban, but apparently no one knew except for Draco. He had been sent out after they were told that.

"I heard that there will be a report in the news about it tomorrow. None of us know what it will say." Luna said with a prying smile.

"Neither do we," said Harry honestly. They'd only the results not the official reason that would set the plan in motion.

"Come on. Don't tell me they left you in the dark too." Ginny said with a deep sigh. "I can't take this."

"Well, there will be a Wizengamot trial won't there?" I don't know lied Hermione. "Like Harry said we only know that there is to be some announcement tomorrow in the papers based on the interviews of Lupin and Snape by the press yesterday." She tried to make it as believable as possible without giving it away.

"Professor McGonagall said that you could be sent to Azkaban awaiting a trial. Have you heard that?" Asked Luna.

"That is what we've heard." Finally, thought Harry, a part where I can answer truthfully.

Harry looked at Hermione and back at Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley. "Thank you for your hospitality tonight. This is an amazing dinner." They had eaten a dinner that consisted of roast duck, roast chicken, potatoes, vegetables and some of the best chocolate moose they had ever eaten. "I hope we have some more like these when Ron gets back."

"Hear! Hear!" Everyone raised their glasses in an impromptu toast.

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Everyone had a better time by the end of the night than they expected. They knew that Monday would not be a good day for their get together so they were all pleased to have spent a night of laughing and joking. Each person said their own little prayer for Ron's safe return and for a good outcome for Harry and Hermione. The little party ended at a respectable 10 PM

The following morning was a train-wreck. The Quibbler and The Daily Prophet arrived before dawn. The press release was verbatim in each newspaper as written below.

Two hours after the delivery of the newspapers, Harry and Hermione were taken from their hideaway to Gryffindor tower.

Snape and Professor Dumbledore arrived shortly after they'd been taken to Gryffindor tower. "I must inform you of the decree of the Minister of Magic." Dumbledore read the entire decree written on formal Ministry parchments. "I regret to inform you that you will kept in the dungeons until transport tomorrow morning at 10 AM."

Harry and Hermione were shocked. They had been told to expect strange things, but shackles and the dungeons were a little too realistic for their liking. They realized that they had no choice but to follow the orders that Lupin had given them. Make this believable. Everyone must think that they were going to be star-crossed lovers separated and banished to prison.

What Harry and Hermione didn't know was that everything from here on was realistic. They would spend the next 22 hours in separate cells with shackles. They would not be allowed any more special treatment. They could not risk anyone sensing a trap with freshly showered students being taken to prison when they'd reportedly spent the weekend in the dungeons.

They were marched out of Gryffindor in front of all Hogwarts' students still living at school during the holidays. The press was there with camera's flashing everywhere. They were now officially prisoners awaiting transfer. They could feel the tension and it had a strange effect on them. They could feel the solemn stares of their fellow Gryffindors. They could see the tears on Padma, Parvati, and Lavender's faces. The Weasley's stood their mortified. Outside of those present in Dumbledore's quarters and those given assignments since, no one knew the full plan except Dumbledore, Lupin and Snape. Lupin would not be available. Tonight began the full moon.

As they passed the largest gathering of students, Harry put the clincher on it. "Hermione, we'll be freed. I love you. I'll will come get you!"

"I love you too, Harry," were the last words they would be allowed to say to each other for the next 22 hours.

Dumbledore stood in front of the gathering crowd. "This is truly one of the saddest days in Hogwarts' history. But it reminds us of the need to remain open-minded and not allow our emotions drive us to do the terrible things they've done. Good people can make bad choices. Don't be like them."

The plan was now gathering full steam. If the reports from Hogwarts did not convince Voldemort and the Death Eaters that they were truly en route to their doorstep nothing would. Snape smiled as he looked at Harry and Hermione being escorted down the stairs toward the dungeons. Their heads disappeared below the rows of steps on the staircase.