Summer Writing Series Challenge (July 15)
Challenge: Harry/Hermione travel somewhere together
Title: The Family Nobody Knew
Word Count: 1,054
"There are a few options open to you, Harry," Moody said gruffly in the security of the room his family had been moved to. "We can put you in a low security cell in Azkaban..."
"Harry won't be going to Azkaban, Moody!" Hermione growled from her bed. Both of the babies began to cry at her tone of voice and she shushed them gently in an attempt to quiet the twins.
"That would ruin his career, you know that!" Molly said from a chair she'd moved into. Percy was sound asleep in her lap and she was gently stroking the young boy's hair.
"There are more options than that," Remus said reassuringly, "Azkaban isn't as dangerous for wizards as it used to be."
"What are the other options?" Harry asked quietly. He was carrying a sleeping Lily in his arms as he slowly paced the room. "I can't leave Hermione and the children alone, not after what's happened."
"Will a pensieve showing be enough to keep this from falling on Harry's shoulders?" Hermione asked excitedly. "I'll submit to one if it'll help..."
"Not this time, the Ministry would still find your testimony biased due to your closeness," Kingsley said in his baritone voice. He shook his head, deep in thought. "We could place them in the wizard protection program..."
"That won't help anybody," Harry said with a snort. "Secret keeping not withstanding..."
"That was an isolated incident with your parents, Harry," Remus said sadly as he took a seat. "But I understand your worries..."
"What about the rest of my family?" Molly asked quietly. "I can't lose anyone else..." Tears began to well in her eyes at the thought and she looked sadly down at Percy.
"We've taken the precaution of notifying the others," Moody said with as soft a smile as his deformed face could produce. "Bill and Charlie are on the lookout and every member has an emergency portkey that will take them to safety."
Harry laid the sleeping Lily on one of the beds and relieved Hermione of his new son. Smiling gently at the small bundle and kissing his forehead. He looked longingly at his wife, making eye contact and with an unseen message passed, she nodded.
"I'm tired of chasing dark wizards day in and day out," Harry said with a sigh. "Hermione and I have talked about this since Ron... Well, since that night and I think I need to protect my family more than anything right now."
"You're resigning?" Kingsley asked, taken aback. Harry nodded and pulled a small bag from his pocket.
"Here're my things, you'll see everything accounted for is there." He said, straightening as he handed the parcel to his former boss.
"But the cases you're working on... The attack on your wife?" The tall man said incredulously.
"Ernie can handle the cases and as for what Malfoy did to Hermione, I'll be with her now instead of spending months away from home." He looked to Hermione then to Lily with a sad look in his eyes. "I've been away for too long, Kingsley, my place is with my family now, not in the Sudan or in South America tracking down ghosts."
There was a stunned silence where only the twins' yawns could be heard. Harry traded babies with his wife after the one he'd been carrying fell asleep and he kissed Hermione as he stood.
"Well, we're going to have to find a place for you to lie low until this debacle blows over," Moody said solemnly. "We're going to have our hands full after the Prophet hits the newsstands tomorrow."
Harry continued his pacing, lips pursed deep in thought, and looked to each member of his family. "Remus, we can use pensieve testimony as sufficient grounds to capture and interrogate suspected Death Eaters, can we not?"
"The law was almost repealed the other day but it's still in the books," Remus said with a grin as the idea began to take root in his mind.
"We've had to go with voice matching because of the masks in previous cases, that's how we caught the Lestrange family," Moody said with a chuckle, rubbing subconsciously at a scar on his face. "That was a tough fight."
"There's a problem with this plan," Kingsley said with a grumble, "The witnesses usually ended up dead within a matter of days..."
"Part of my research was on the Fidelius charm," Hermione said quietly, cottoning onto the plan that Harry had nudged into fruition. "I haven't shared my findings, nor have I written them down yet..."
"What is it?" Remus asked with interest.
"There wouldn't be a need for a secret keeper," Hermione said quietly, "and it acts as if everybody else had a strong memory charm placed on them, forgetting that the secreted person or item actually existed..."
"Will it work on groups, if they're all together?" Harry asked excitedly.
"What would happen to a pensieve testimony if nobody thought the person existed?" Molly asked curiously.
"Pensieve records cannot be fabricated," Dumbledore said from the doorway. "The Wizengamot would have to take it as the truth, regardless if the person exists or not."
"Do you have the portkey, Albus?" Hermione asked from her bed, shifting, with Harry's help, into a sitting position.
"Everything is in order," The old wizard said with a sad smile. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
"You can't leave us," Molly said tearfully as she set Percy on the bed next to Lily. She rushed over to Harry and pulled him into a hug.
"I'm sorry, Mum, Percy has to come with us, he's in danger too," Harry said as he hugged his adopted mother tightly.
Harry handed the baby to Hermione and gently woke the two children. "It's time for us to go," he said quietly. "Go on and say goodbye to everyone. The children did as they were told and the small family grasped the old bicycle tire that was offered them.
"You'll have the testimonies tomorrow," Harry said grimly. He took one last look around the room and was suddenly pulled forward in a roar of colors and a whirl of wind. They arrived in a dark corridor where the lights flickered on at their arrival.
"Welcome to Gryffindor Castle," Harry said after everyone had regained their bearings.