Chapter Thirty Five: Do Memories Remain?
By the time two in the morning finally rolled around, Harry and Hermione were the only ones left in the Gryffindor common room. Dean had been the last to go up to bed about an hour ago, though Ginny had wanted to stay up anyway. It was only after needlessly extracting a promise from both those still on the couch to tell her everything did she agree to leave.
Wordlessly, as the clock above the fireplace chimed softly twice, the two pulled themselves up off the comfortable couch. It had been a very long two weeks since Ron and Luna's kidnapping, and both felt exhausted almost full time now. However, that was the last thing on their minds just then.
The Fat Lady didn't even see them as they darted down the corridor after slipping out. By the time she was fully awake, they were already down their third passageway. After navigating the castle for so long after curfew, Harry had no problem leading Hermione passed first Filch himself, then Mrs. Norris, and finally even Peeves - who was singing about dumping the caretaker's cat into a toilet and flushing.
If the time had been different, then Harry would have seriously considered offering to assist the meedling poltergeist.
"Voldemort," Hermione whispered as she reached the large stone gargoyle guarding the Headmaster's office. He had told them both the password earlier in the day when he told them the time, so neither were surprised when it sprung silently to life and spun aside to reveal the long twisting staircase behind it.
"That didn't feel quite right," Harry said softly as they climbed the stairs. "I don't know what it was, but something about sneaking through the castle felt off to me."
"Well, we do technically have permission this time," Hermione pointed out. "Even if that wouldn't have helped us if Filch caught us, as we couldn't tell him." Glancing over to him as she picked up the pot that held the floo powder, she saw the look in his eyes. It had nothing to do with permission, and everything to do with the third member of their trio that usually snuck out with them.
She put the pot down and held out her arms to him. After being enveloped in his embrace, she relaxed against him for a minute before their heard Fawkes chirp curiously from behind them. Turning, they both saw a baby bird sitting in his cage.
"Burning day must have been recently," Harry explained at Hermione's questioning glance. She nodded her understanding - she should have come up with that on her own and she knew it - before picking up the pot again.
"I'll go first," she whispered, turning to the flames. "Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place," she said firmly, throwing a handful of powder into the flames and stepping in as they turned a vibrant green.
Although Harry had no great desire to use the floo network, he knew he didn't have much choice in the matter this time. Dumbledore couldn't exactly have left an active portkey to Headquarters lying around, even if it was in his office.
Repeating Hermione's words, he stepped into the flames as well, tucking his elbows in as he started to spin around rapidly. When he fell out of the fireplace on the other side, he was very thankful that, for once, he didn't fall flat on his face. This was due only to the fact that Hermione caught him before he could, but that didn't really matter.
"Are you ready?" she asked him in a whisper. They could hear voices coming from downstairs (Harry hadn't noticed beforehand that they were actually in a small room on the second floor with a fireplace... he hadn't known there was even a fireplace on the second floor...), and so they were keeping quiet before heading down.
"I think I should be asking you that," he whispered, putting on a hand on both her shoulders. "I mean, it was a bit worse for you, right?" She nodded and held him again. "Don't worry. They already know the basics of what happened... this is just to get all the facts. You know how important that is."
"I know," she said with a smile up to him. "And so long as you'll sit next to me, I'll be fine."
"Dumbledore himself couldn't make me sit anywhere else," he promised with a grin as they separated. Before either could say anything else, they heard a whoosh from the fireplace and they stepped aside to let Tonks step - to their surprise - gracefully from within.
"Wotcher, you two," she said with a grin as she dusted the soot off her Auror robes. "Ready for tonight?"
"As ready as we'll ever be," Harry said with a nod, putting an arm around Hermione. "Has anyone found anything yet? Any idea where..."
"We'll find out downstairs," Tonks promised. "Dumbledore has summoned the entire Order tonight, so we'll have everyone around to give any insight we have."
"Everyone? I thought someone from the Order was staying at the castle, just in case..."
"Er, right," Tonks said, looking away from them. "Forgot about that. I think Hagrid and McGonagall are staying... but we'll find out downstairs."
*Let's see what we can hear first,* Hermione purred softly to Harry, who nodded his agreement. She then looked to Tonks again, who appeared either not have noticed or not understood why Hermione had just purred. "We'd like to see if we can hear what's being said in there now, before they know we're here."
"Fine by me," she said with a broad smile. "You two work well together, by the way."
Both nodded their thanks and pulled open the door. This only proved Harry's theory - last time he had been in his home, this had been a bathroom, and before that, he could have sworn that it was simply a closet. He'd have to remember to ask Dumbledore about it at a later date. That night simply wasn't the time.
The three paused just outside the door at the sound of raised voices. In particular, a single raised voice that both Harry and Hermione knew easily, and weren't looking forward to hearing. "They're children, Albus!" Molly Weasley was shouting. "They shouldn't be brought into a war!"
Although they had heard her voice such things before, they hadn't expected to hear it that night as well. After all, her youngest son was directly involved, even if no one had wanted it to be so.
"She has a point," a voice neither Harry nor Hermione recognised said a little softer. "They don't need to know some of what we've been doing. You've told us how impetuous a few of your students can be - and Potter's on the top of that list! If he were to hear about what you've got us guarding this time..."
"Gilive Haron," Tonks whispered. "A newer recruit to the Order, he's an Auror whose been around a bit longer than I have. You saw him once, Hermione... just after everything that happened over the summer."
Hermione's mind pinpointed the Auror who had stepped out of the ruins of Harry's old house quickly enough. He had seemed a bit more open at the time, at least, she had thought he did. Of course, she wasn't exactly focused on that back then.
"I quite agree." The sound of Dumbledore's voice caught them all off guard, especially saying that he agreed with those against them being there that night. It had been his idea, after all! "I agree. If I had my wish, then no student of Hogwarts would ever come to harm, nor would they ever be involved in a war - especially a war as terrible as the one with Voldemort."
"Then why..." Mrs. Weasley started, only to be cut off by the Headmaster as he continued.
"My greatest wish for my students if for them to live happy, carefree lives. If I had my way, none of them would even know the name Voldemort - or even know of a dark wizard most call You-Know-Who." They could hear his sigh through the door as he pushed back the chair he must have been sitting in. "However, that wish was never one to be granted, I can realise that."
"What?" came the startled reply from the matriarch of the Weasley household. "Why not? Surely we could..."
"It was never our intention for the young Mr. Weasley and his Miss. Lovegood to be taken from us, Molly," Dumbledore said kindly. "Nor was it ever our intention to allow Harry to be thrown into the Tri-Wizard tournament... or countless other mishaps."
"We don't bring them to the war," the older voice of Mad-Eye Moody said softly.
"The war brings itself to them," Kingsley finished at the same time as Tonks breathed the words herself.
"Precisely," Dumbledore said. "And that is why..."
"Are you three planning on standing out here all night, or shall we all just go inside?"
Tonks spun around as she drew her wand so fast that she knocked over the coat rack behind her. As she fired off a stunner blindly, whoever it had been behind them vanished, allowing the small table in the hallway that had been stacked with papers to be blown apart.
"I hardly think that was necessary, Nymphadora." The three turned in surprise to find Talisien leaning against the wall. "I am, after all, on your side."
"Sorry," Tonks said with a shrug. "You startled me, and around here, that usually means..."
"Stun first, and ask questions once safety is assured," Talisien finished for her. "Yes, I am aware. I believe that everyone within the room now knows that we are here. Shall we?" he suggested, striding forward to open the door for the three of them and himself.
Inside the study, Harry's first thought was that it was a lot bigger than he remembered it. Normally, it couldn't have held thirty to fourty people uncomfortably, but now there were easily that many, and there was still room for more. Hermione pulled up a chair to the table that everyone was sitting around, and Harry sat next to her right away.
They knew a few of those around the table, to be sure. Dumbledore was directly across from them, and Moody and Lupin were next to him. Aside from them, they knew that Kingsley was there too, and found him easily enough. He was sitting next to Arthur Weasley, who was with his wife, his two eldest sons and the twins. Percy, however, was nowhere to be seen.
Snape was on the other side of Dumbledore and had a large vial of a clear liquid sitting in front of him. To their great surprise, they saw Rita Skeeter standing in one corner, but she barely even looked in their direction - much to their relief. Beyond that, they knew Tonks who was sitting next to them, and Talisien who was standing in another corner, hidden within his cloak as usual. They didn't recognise anyone else, though Hermione vaguely knew who Gilive was, but she couldn't seem to pick him out.
Before anyone could say anything else, Fawkes suddenly appeared in the middle of the table in flames. When the flames died down, the phoenix was looking a little older than he had been earlier that night, and flew over to perch on Dumbledore's shoulder.
"I'd say that means everyone who is coming is here," he explained, turning to Snape. "Severus, if you would..."
"Certainly, Headmaster," he said curtly, pulling out a dropper from his robes and taking the cork off the vial in front of him. "Everyone is to put a single drop of this on their tongue to swallow," he said, not looking at anyone as he spoke. "No more, or you will spill your innermost secrets without even being asked."
"Veritaserum?" Hermione couldn't help but ask.
"To assure all within this room speak the truth," Dumbledore said softly. "We are all aware of what can happen when one person lies - just as we are all aware how easy it can be to do so."
It took about twenty minutes for the dropper to circulate around the room (it had to be refilled twice, which only slowed things down). Once that had happened, it was Talisien who spoke up next.
"So, this is a truth serum, then?"
"Indeed, Wanderer," Snape sneered back. "One that is impossible to break through. I began brewing it myself the night of the last full moon."
"Impossible?" Talisien asked. "Then why can I tell you that my name is Severus Snape, and I am the Divination professor at Hogwarts, as my potions making ability is sub par at best?"
Everyone was deadly silent suddenly, surprised by the elf's words. Aside from the known fact that one couldn't break the hold of the most powerful truth serum ever created, no one had spoken about Snape so openly in such a demeaning manour for quite some time.
"You didn't state it as a fact, but rather asked it as a question," Hermione offered after a minute of stunned silence. As everyone looked to her, her cheeks turned red quite quickly, as though she were embarrassed to be the centre of attention. "It's all I could come up with," she said in an even softer voice.
"Indeed I did," Talisien said as he pulled his hood down, ignoring those who were surprised by the deep scars on his left cheek. "However, such a thing holds no bonds over me anyway. My name is Severus Snape," he said clearly. After a moment, he shrugged. "It appears that I can still say what I wish without worry."
"Albus, this cannot be allowed to stand!" someone from further down the table said fiercely. "If he can break through veritaserum, how can we trust him?"
Talisien suddenly vanished from sight, only to reappear behind the speaker. "You have little choice in the matter," he said simply. "Believe me, for if I wasn't trustworthy, I wouldn't still be standing here. I'd be destroying you."
Before anyone could shout out at his rash comment, Dumbledore stood quickly. "Talisien, please," he said calmly. "You know better than to spread mistrust..."
"Yes, I do Albus," he said with a nod, flitting out of sight and appearing in the corner again. "However, I felt it prudent to point out the flaw in the serum nonetheless. If I can break it, who is to say others can't as well?"
"Others do not have elven blood within their veins."
Talisien again flitted out of sight, this time to end up next to the fireplace that Harry had previous thought as one of the only two in the house. Before he could say anything, however, Mad-Eye Moody stood up quite quickly, his wand drawn. "If you don't stop apparating around in here, then I'm going to have to curse you!" he said fiercely. "Such a thing is traceable, you know!"
"If I was apparating, you'd know it," Talisien said calmly, ignoring the wand pointing at him. "As it is, I am not. I am simply moving at slightly less than near instantaneous speeds," he explained. "I am sorry to have upset you... I am used to moving around at all times. It throws off anyone watching me, and keeps me ready in case of an emergency."
"Constant Vigilance?" Harry couldn't help but ask, causing both Moody and Talisien to look to him sharply before - to his surprise - Moody broke out into a grin. With his grizzled features, it looked more like a grimace, but Harry understood that that was what he was trying to do.
"You've got the right idea, Potter."
*He's talking about small teleportations,* Hermione purred in an undertone to Harry, so no one would notice the odd sound in amongst the large amount of people. *Long distance teleportation is difficult and draining, and you have to be intimately aquainted with the terrain. Three steps to the side, however, is a bit easier, but would take years of practice so you didn't end up getting a rock stuck in a part of you because you misstepped...*
*He's probably had a good thousand years of practice,* Harry purred back before falling silent again.
It was quite a bit later when everyone finally settled down again so the meeting could actually take place. Harry had thought he'd be a bit more excited to be taking part in an Order of the Phoenix meeting, especially after having been denied the right so often in the past. However, he felt nothing of the sort - instead, he felt a dread... a cold, hard dread that was clinging to him like a parasite.
"Miss. Granger... Hermione," Dumbledore said calmly once everyone had taken a seat. "We'd like to hear from you what happened two weeks ago in Hogsmeade, if you would..."
"I'd start there, sir," she said with a weak smile. "But it might make more sense to start before that, when we found out that something was going to happen."
"Very well," he said, holding up a hand to keep everyone else silent from asking questions. "You may proceed."
Hermione fumbled for Harry's hand beneath the table. He clasped hers with a calm that he in no way truly felt, weaving his fingers in with hers as he gave her a soft squeeze to encourage her.
"It all started the night that Harry finally perfected something," she started, looking to Dumbledore for some clue as to how to cover that topic. He nodded, and she understood that everyone in the Order knew about his training. "In his animagus form, he was out on the grounds of Hogwarts getting used to it when he found out that Snape was emerging from the castle."
"Given that it was late at night, I thought something was strange," Harry took over. "So, curious as I often am, I set about trying to find out what was going on. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that he had met with Antonin Dolohov at the edge of the Forbidden Forest, where they spoke at great length about a plan that was being put into action. We now know that the plan was to take place in Hogsmeade, but at the time, I wasn't sure. We figured it was either Hogsmeade or the Forbidden Forest itself, given how Dolohov asked Snape to keep Talisien away from the trip at all costs."
"A fact that I, conveniently enough, had no control over," Snape pointed out when several members looked to him.
"It sounded like Snape was trying to learn more about the plan, but Dolohov kept the secret pretty well," Harry added, looking back to Hermione again. He was quite pleased that no one had corrected him in calling Snape without the Professor in front, and oddly enough, that put him at ease a little.
"Harry then told the rest DA about it," Hermione took over again when he nodded to her. "We worked out a plan - Ron was the one behind it in the end, he's really good with tactics..." she trailed off as the impact of that statement hit her hard. After a moment of silence, she took a deep breath and kept going. "Anyway, the long and the short of it is this: half of us where to go to Hogsmeade, and the other half stay in the castle to watch over things there."
"I was given a coin by the Headmaster, so I could be alerted if I wasn't around when whatever it was to happened finally took place," Talisien spoke up then. "Severus spoke to Albus the night he found out about it, by the way."
"In Hogsmeade, we split up further into two teams of four. Later, I found out that the other team - consisting of Dean Thomas, Cho Chang, Terry Boot and Julia Carmichael - split up into twos to keep an eye out at both ends of the town while Ron, Luna, Hermione and I wandered all over, acting as normal as possible."
"We hardly need a blow-by-blow account of your activities in Hogsmeade," Snape said curtly, motioning with a hand to speed things along. While a few people did glare at him for his comments, Harry nodded discretely to Hermione, suggesting that she might as well listen.
"We stopped in front of the Shrieking Shack, where Ron told Luna about our adventures in third year," Hermione explained. "As we turned to leave, her new robes got caught on the fence and went over the cliff."
"I volunteered to climb down after them," Harry admitted in a soft voice. "Although I obviously regret that now..."
"It wasn't your fault," Hermione said quickly, turning to him as though he were the only one in the room suddenly. "This was well planned on their part - even if you had been around, they probably figured it would have been the best time to strike."
"I know," he said softly. "But still, I can't help but wonder..."
"What ifs will only trap you in the past, Harry," Talisien offered quietly when no one else spoke up. "It does not due to dwell on what if. It is better to think about what is still to come, and deal with it as necessary."
When Harry finally nodded, Hermione went on again. "We were watching Harry as he climbed down to retrieve Luna's robes. When he was about halfway up again, we were caught by surprise as eight Death Eaters suddenly apparated around us. Before we could even react, they had stunned and bound Ron and Luna, and Lucius Malfoy had put me under the Cruciatus Curse."
"You were put under that?" Mrs. Weasley said suddenly, standing quickly. "My word... you poor thing! Is there anything..."
"It was two weeks ago, Molly," Mr. Weasley reminded her softly. "Anything that could have been done to help her has already happened, don't worry."
"During this time," Harry said, taking over again. "I was climbing back up the cliff. When I heard shouting and then Hermione's scream, I panicked. I tried to get my galleon so I could alert any of the DA who were close by - as well as Talisien - but I had left it in my cloak pocket, which I had taken off and left at the top of the cliff. Well, despite having just been told earlier that one couldn't summon clothing, I did it anyway, and the cloak was on my back the next moment, and I was activating the coin."
"One property of the cloaks, Harry, is to always be there when you need them the most," Talisien explained. "I didn't tell you earlier, as I felt it would be obvious when the time came for it to be necessary."
Harry nodded his thanks and looked around the room again before going on. Everyone was hanging off his and Hermione's words. "I transformed into my animal and flew to the top of the cliff, rather than take the time to climb. I figured that it really didn't matter about keeping it a secret right then - my friends were in danger, and I wasn't just going to sit back and do nothing!"
"Were you seen?" Dumbledore asked intently, interrupting him before he could go on.
"I don't think so," Harry admitted. "They all seemed too intent on torturing Hermione to pay any attention to the cliff itself. I managed to stun two without them even noticing before things took a turn again." He closed his eyes to keep going, not wanting to see their reactions to the rest of the tale as he knew it. "The rest surrounded me then, but I managed to protect myself from the first onslaught of spells with a modified Protego," he explained, looking directly at Snape as he said this. "I failed to notice someone reviving the two that I had stunned, though, and they blew me off the side of the cliff again, following that attack with a stunner. I really don't know how I survived the fall, to be honest."
"That would be my fault," Hermione pointed out. "I was up by that time, but couldn't really stop what was happening. Instead, when I saw what they had done to Harry, I rushed to the edge of the cliff to slow his decent. It wasn't what I should have done tactically, but I wasn't about to let Harry fall to his death. I managed that before any of the Death Eaters tried to do anything to me. Malfoy wanted to put me under the curse for a third time..."
"Third time? I thought you were only under it once before," Tonks said, peering around Harry to Hermione.
"No, I was put under twice. First time was before Harry was up, the second time was as he was starting his attacks. The second was a lot shorter, but it was still painful..." She took a deep breath to try and wash herself of such memories before going on again. "He was going to curse me again, but Bellatrix LeStrange put it on him instead, saying that he was wasting time. As odd as it sounds, I'm actually thankful that he was - otherwise, they would have stunned and bound me right off as well, and then I'd have been taken too. Anyway, he then tried to stun me, but instead, it sent me over the cliff, where I landed gently next to Harry before passing out."
Everyone but Talisien looked surprised at this, and he stepped forward again to speak, though he didn't flit out of sight this time - perhaps out of consideration of those gathered, or perhaps for a different reason. "That would be thanks to the charm on her wrist in the form of a bracelet. It was originally in the possession of the elves, but Harry was given it near the beginning of the school year, and he gave it to her as a gift, thereby sealing the charms. They keep her safe from kidnapping, essentially, though I won't get into just what else they can do here. It isn't relevant."
"So what happened then?" Kingsley asked, sitting forward at the table. "If both Harry and Hermione were out of it, then how were any of the Death Eaters stopped? I understood that six were put away due to this already."
"If by put away, you mean buried in the ground, then yes," Talisien explained. "Though even that would be pushing it, as I incinerated them afterwards. I arrived just as Hermione was sent over the cliff. I cut down six of them, and managed to catch the woman LeStrange in the arm before she vanished, taking Miss Lovegood with her. Malfoy took Mr. Weasley, but I did manage to steal his cloak from him before he did so - meaning we have Malfoy's cloak to go through for any clues," he added, tossing the black fabric onto the table. No one was quite sure where he had pulled it out from, but it didn't really matter.
"By cut down, you mean a cutting spell?"
"No," Talisien said flatly. "I mean I pulled out my sword and cleaved them in half."
Silence met his words for a few minutes before Dumbledore sat forward again. "Very well. Does anyone have any questions about what happened, then, or shall we go on?"
"If you were watching them, Talisien, why did it take so long to get there?" Mrs. Weasley asked pointedly. "I thought you were supposed to protect them, wasn't that what was said?"
"Indeed," Talisien said softly. "And no ones regrets that as much as I. When I felt the coin activate - I wasn't following them directly, as I didn't know if they were targets or if something else was - I had to find them first. I was on the other side of the town entirely. Although I made good time in finding them, it wasn't enough, I'm afraid." He then bowed his head, looking at the floor. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Weasley. I know how you must feel... but the Order is doing everything it can to rescue your child."
"How can you possibly know how I feel?" she shouted back before anyone could stop her. "My youngest son has been kidnapped by You-Know-Who!"
"My eldest daughter was killed years ago in a war!" Talisien snapped back. "So don't speak to me about what I don't understand, when it's you who doesn't comprehend just how dangerous this all is! And for your sake, I ask the forest spirits to ensure that you never do!" He then whirled around and was gone in an instant. The door opened and slammed shut without anyone really being able to see it move, but they knew that he was gone this time for good.
Silence met his exit for several minutes until Harry sat forward again. "Professor Dumbledore... what's being done to find Ron and Luna?"
"We are doing everything we can to find them," Dumbledore replied softly. "I only wish we had more that we could tell you right now... unfortunately, we don't know. Severus is trying to determine it, but every time he has been summoned, it has been to a different place that he does not recognise, and he had not seen either captive since it occurred."
"I suspect the Dark Lord does not want to let me know in case Albus questions me on the matter. He does not realise how skilled an Occulmens I truly am," Snape said, his voice not full of pride for once at such a statement. If Harry and Hermione didn't know any better, they'd have thought he actually sounded... concerned.
"But we're sure they're still alive?"
"For one simple reason, yes," Dumbledore said calmly, looking over to the Weasley's presence as though encouraging them to explain.
"Ron's hand is in the Mortal Peril position," Mr. Weasley explained as he stood up to address everyone. "It had not yet turned to the deceased point, so we know he's still alive... just in trouble. Serious trouble."
"And before you ask," Snape said, the sneer back to his voice. "I have no idea what the Dark Lord wants them for, but he has said he needed them, as they are both underaged purebloods. I am trying to figure out why that is so important."
"It doesn't have anything to do with whatever it is you're guarding, does it?" Harry asked, looking directly at the Headmaster and ignoring the shocked looks and words from those others in the room. "I believe you promised me the truth on my birthday, sir," he added in an undertone that he was sure was heard by everyone in the room anyway.
"Indeed I did, Harry," Dumbledore sighed. "Indeed I did. I wish I could tell you, too. I am unaware of just how he could possibly use either of your friends - we are guarding various wizarding households, as well as numerous rooms of the Department of Mysteries. Rooms that I am sure you are aware of. The main concern at this stage is the time room."
"Albus, they don't need to be aware of that!"
"I do not intend on breaking my word to Harry," he returned calmly. "I will not lose his trust again. It means too much to me."
"More than it probably should," Snape muttered. "He is just an attention-seeking student, after all. Takes after his father in that regard..."
"Enough, Severus. I have told you my thoughts and wishes in regards to your comments like that," Dumbledore warned. "No more."
Snape didn't reply, but he did nod - though he looked like he'd have rather drunk a beaker of undiluted bubotuber puss.
After a bit more small talk at the meeting, Tonks suggested quietly to Hermione that she might want to have a talk with her parents while they were in the same house. This was quite well timed, actually, as Lupin came over and asked Harry if he could have a word in private. After promising to join Hermione with her parents shortly, he agreed with Lupin and the two left to head to the kitchen for whatever Lupin wanted to talk about.
Once in the kitchens, Harry found piles of food on the table and every available counter space as well. It would have taken hours or days for most people to cook that much food, which lead him to only one logical conclusion.
"Where is he?"
"What?" Lupin asked, startled by the chill in Harry's voice suddenly.
"Kreacher?" Harry demanded. "Where is he?"
Lupin sat down hard on one of the wooden chairs that was next to the table and pushed aside one of the plates of food - Harry vaguely noticed that they might have been a form of masher tubers, but he didn't really care, given how torn his godfather looked suddenly. "Now Harry, I have to make sure you know that I'm not proud of it..."
Of all the things he had expected, that wasn't one of them, he had to admit. "Not proud of it?" Harry asked in surprise. "He's still around, doing what he's always done?"
"No."
Harry stared at Lupin for a minute or two before he noticed how horrible he was looking suddenly. "You're going to have to give me more than a `no,' Remus," Harry said softly, pulling up another chair to sit next to the werewolf.
"Do you know what day it was, six days after Sirius died?" Lupin asked in a whisper. Obviously knowing that Harry had no idea, he went on right away. "It was the night of a full moon, Harry. And I didn't take my Wolfsbane potion - don't get me wrong, Dumbledore sends me a batch every month... but I refused it for once. I wanted to go mad... it made it easier..."
A very vivid image of a house elf being mauled by an out-of-control werewolf assailed Harry's senses, and he choked back the sudden taste of vomit that was trying to force its way up his throat. He decided then that he wouldn't tell Hermione what had become of the miserable little creature that had betrayed Sirius.
"Been busy in the kitchen lately, then?" Harry asked, a smile on his face as he tried to joke with Lupin. "Looks like this would have taken days to cook... why didn't you tell me you knew how?"
"This was almost all Mrs. Weasley, though Hermione's father tends to help out from time to time as well - he says it helps him feel connected still, even when they aren't being told as much as they might like." Lupin sighed as he looked up to Harry and met his gaze again. "I think I'm glad I hadn't eaten much recently, being involved in so many different projects for Dumbledore, and can take time to enjoy a lot of this food in the morning. Otherwise, we'd be overrun before much longer. I'm hoping members of the Order take a lot with them, too - that should help some. Be a shame for it to go bad..."
"Ron would say it was a terrible waste, letting food spoil," Harry whispered, his mind returning to the real reason he and Hermione had left Hogwarts that night for the meeting. "What was it you wanted anyway, Remus?"
The sudden transformation from tired and worried to stern and strict was remarkable as Lupin sat up to stare at him. "Now Harry, you and I both know you've managed to inherit your father's dangerous streak for breaking the rules," he explained. "But this time... this time, I need you to give me your word that you aren't going to do something rash and run off to try and rescue your friends."
"I don't intend to," Harry said easily with a shrug. "If I go rushing off, I fully intend to have thought things through and come up with several back up plans, just in case they are necessary."
"No, I don't think you understand, Harry..."
"No, you don't understand!" Harry replied, standing up from his chair as it shot away from him, crashing into the wall next to the fireplace. "I am not going to sit back and do nothing! This is a war, in case you've forgotten that, and I'm a rather large part of it already!"
"And I'm telling you that that is exactly what you shouldn't do!" Lupin replied, standing up as well, though his chair didn't seem to develop a tendency to fly like Harry's had. "You can't bring yourself to Voldemort, it's what he wants!"
"Then he's going to be in for a shock, isn't he?" Harry asked. "Because I'm not some scared eleven year old anymore!" He turned and stormed towards the door to the kitchen, intent on going upstairs to join Hermione and her parents for a few minutes until they had to return to the school. "Oh, and I think someone should be watching Snape these days, too. He's acting even odder than usual. Wanna know what I mean? Then ask him!"
Part of him felt bad for storming out on his godfather, especially given his words only a minute ago about them being involved in a war. Wars meant people died, and he didn't want the last thing he did with someone to be yelling at them. The rest of him was just plain angry at the man for trying to keep him from doing anything to help!
With a sigh, he turned back and stuck his head into the kitchen. "Look, I know you only meant the best by not wanting me to go galavanting off, but you can rest assured that if I do do something, I'll know what I'm getting into this time. Fool me once, shame on you... fool me twice, shame on me."
It was with that statement that he again turned, only this time he vaulted up the stairs and went down the long corridor - his house was still deceptively big, even to him - and stopped next to the bedroom that he knew the Grangers had taken residence in. Although he heard voices on the inside, he didn't want to eavesdrop on anything, so he knocked right away.
Hermione enveloped him in a warm embrace the moment he stepped into the room. To his surprise, however, this was followed by a hug from her mother, and then a warm handshake - all he figured he could really even ask for - from her father as well.
"What's wrong, Harry?" she asked right away. He couldn't help but smile at that - she could read him so effectively again, and he loved that fact.
"Nothing and everything," he replied with a shrug. "Nothing that can be solved, and everything that's going on these days," he continued.
"So Professor Lupin told you not to do anything to try and find Ron and Luna, then?"
"Yeah," he admitted. "I told him that I'd think before acting, but I'm not about to simply sit around doing nothing, either."
He must have been more riled up than he thought, because Hermione's hands were on both his cheeks suddenly, imploring him to look to her directly. Rather than simply succumb to such a thing, he leaned in and kissed her gently, warmly on the lips before pulling away again.
"Remus has your best interests at heart, Harry," Jane offered.
"But we have those at heart, as well as knowing our Hermione better than Remus knows you," Mike added. "We were just talking about the same thing."
Harry waited for them to continue, and they didn't let him down. "Last time you left Hogwarts and tried to save someone, you were all very lucky, all things considered," Jane said softly. "We know not everyone was, but overall, you were extremely lucky."
He looked over to Hermione, and was startled to see tears brimming in her rich brown eyes. "They want us to be smart and lucky, if we ever try anything like that again."
"I will do everything in my power to keep your daughter safe," Harry vowed, nodding thankfully to both of them as he held Hermione again. The feeling was just so right, and it didn't matter to him at all that her parents were right there.
"We know you will, son," Mike said warmly, standing up from the bed where he had sat down next to his wife a minute earlier. "We know you will. Just like we know she'll be doing the same for you."
He nodded to him again and closed his eyes as he breathed in deeply. It had been a very long since he had been so calm, so happy. Just being in the room with only Hermione and her parents was doing wonders for him.
"So, we hear you mastered your animagus form, Harry," Jane said as she, too, stood from the bed. "We've seen our Mia do hers a lot now - not that we're used to it by any means, but it is remarkable to see. Is there any chance you'd be willing to show us yours?"
Harry would never stop thanking whoever was willing to listen to his prayers that not all muggles were as spiteful and hate filled as his uncle, aunt, and cousin when it came to magics, witches, and wizards. Without a word, he stepped away from Hermione and closed his eyes. Although such a detail wasn't necessary to change, it felt a bit better that way, and didn't make him lose his balance at all - eyes opened, the change was so fast that he was sometimes left feeling a little dizzy.
"Oh, wow!" Mike exclaimed, making Harry open his eyes and turn his great feline head towards the man. "You are an impressive looking animal, aren't you?"
"Thanks," Harry returned with a sneeze. He then cursed lightly to himself for the fact that he still hadn't kicked the habit of trying to chuckle or laugh as a lyra. That said, he sneezed again at the shocked looks on both of Hermione's parents' faces at hearing him talk. "What?" he asked, despite the fact that he knew anyway.
"An animal talking English?"
"Si vous voulez, je peut parles Français? Osoraku japaniizu? Hollands? Español?"
*Harry, stop teasing my parents,* Hermione hissed at him softly before he could list any other language. When he looked over to her and grinned, her eyes went wide and she shook her head. "Oh no you don't!" she said strictly, but Harry ignored her as he looked back to her parents.
"Yes, I can talk - and those were French, Japanese, Dutch, and Spanish, by the way. But Hermione can talk too - she can talk kneazle, when she's in form or not," he explained. "It's part of being a magical animal, I suppose. Lyra's talk any language, though - animal or human or otherwise, apparently."
"You can talk like an animal?" Jane asked in surprise, turning to Hermione who, for her part, had turned pink all of a sudden. "Really?"
*Yes,* she mewed in a loud enough voice for both her parents to hear. *I can talk like a cat.*
"She said she can talk like a cat," Harry translated for them, despite the fact that it was rather obvious that she was about to do just that anyway.
*Prat.*
"Now, now, Hermione. Not in front of your parents..." he said with a grin as he changed back into himself again easily enough. At her look of indignation, he held up his hands quickly. "Sorry!" he said in a rushed voice. "I was just trying to get you to smile again."
"What's there to smile about, especially tonight?" she retorted. "It is almost five in the morning, after all. We'll be asleep until noon at least!"
"With permission from Dumbledore," Harry pointed out. "Besides, we did hear something good today."
"And what's that?"
"We know they're both alive still... and by the sounds of it, they will be for quite some time," he said softly. He didn't question her need for another hug, and took her into his arms easily.
"I love you," she whispered to him, paying attention to only him again, despite her parents being there.
"I know," he promised her, holding her a little closer and a little tighter. "Merlin, I know."
------------------
It was almost sunrise by the time everyone started getting ready to leave Grimmauld Place to return to Hogwarts again. Hermione's parents were sleeping, and Remus was just heading off to his room as well to get as much shut eye as he could before the day actually started.
After getting a bite to eat in the kitchen - which was certainly no hard task - Harry and Hermione started up the stairs. However, Harry caught sight of someone just as they started up that he wanted to talk to, and urged Hermione to go ahead of him, promising that he'd catch up by the fireplace. Although confused by the request, she nodded and climbed the steps slowly, her exhaustion evident.
For his part, Harry pulled back into an alcove that he assumed was normally used for cloaks or something - he hadn't noticed it before, really - so it would be less likely he'd be spotted. From his vantage point, he had a perfect view and could hear what was being said easily between his favourite and least favourite professors at Hogwarts.
"They tell me that you are something of a spy, Severus," Talisien said calmly. He had his hood back up now, and seemed more distant than he had during the part of the meeting he was actually present for.
"Indeed, elf," Snape sneered in return. "Something I'm sure even you can grasp the concept of, and understand why my role is so important."
"Your role is nothing," Talisien spat back. "Nothing, if you can't tell us a single bit of information to help! You told me I had to be in Hogsmeade that day, so you've got to know more than what you've said!" he said fiercely. Although nothing was evident from his angle, Harry was sure that the Wanderer had a hand out towards Snape, as though threatening him.
"You think so, do you?" Snape asked in mock surprise. "It never occurred to you that I was trapped under the veritiserum just like everyone else, did it?" He then shook his head and made to walk away from the conversation. "You weren't even there, so don't question me on things you can't have heard."
"Just because you didn't see me doesn't mean I wasn't there!"
"Mad Eye would have spotted you!"
"Not," Talisien seethed quietly, taking a step closer to Snape, looking much more terrifying that Harry could ever remember seeing the elf. "If I had completely hidden my magical trail, and continuously moved around." He then took a deep breath and stepped back. "I'm giving you one more chance to tell me what you know."
"And what will you do if I refuse?"
"Kill you and take your place," Talisien said easily. "Magics to conceal one's identity aren't that complicated after decades of study. I bet I can get your image in about a day, though acting like a slimy git has never been my strong point!"
"I'd like to see you try..."
In a movement faster than Harry's eyes could follow, Talisien had leapt backwards and Snape had apparently been pushed to the side. Where he had been standing, a long black arrow was quivering in the wooden, the feathered fletchings still recovering from their assault against the bow that must have been used.
"If I had not pushed you aside with my own magics, Severus, you would have been killed by my arrow. Understand how serious I am now?"
"I don't bow down to pressure, Talisien. I fight against the Dark Lord every day with my will - what makes you think your threats could possibly scare me?"
"No?" Talisien asked. "Bodily harm doesn't worry you, then? Alright... I know that you are keeping something from us all, Severus. With a word to Albus, he'd know too, and then where would you stand? Was that even veritiserum you fed us earlier, or just water?"
"I do not care for all these questions, so-called Wanderer," Snape said, lifting his head again as he stood and dusted off his robes. "And I don't have to answer to you anyway. If you must know, ask Dumbledore. He has as many suspicions as I do about what the Dark Lord is after. And mine are probably less accurate, given how He doesn't want me to know the plans, in case Dumbledore `learns' of my spying."
"Very well," Talisien said, apparently satisfied by the answer, though Harry certainly wouldn't have been. "I have one request of you, then."
"And why should I bow down to this... request?"
"Because... you might find yourself in need of someone with skills of my... caliber," Talisien said slowly. "And if you will heed this request, I will consider heeding one of yours later."
"You'll do something for me if I do something for you?"
"Within reason, yes."
Snape seemed to seriously be considering this offer, which surprised Harry. He hadn't figured the potion's master would ever be willing to stoop to asking for help from anyone, for any reason. "What is your request?"
"If you find out anything that is important and has a definite date on it, I must insist that you tell someone who has the ability and nerve to act upon it," Talisien explained. "Inaction will destroy the light in this war if you do not."
"Tell someone who will act?" Talisien nodded, and Snape sighed as though in deep thought. "Very well, Wanderer. I will heed this request... just make sure you are willing to heed mine."
"You have something already, then?"
Snape nodded, and pulled out a roll of parchment from his robes. "This is a list of ingredients I would like to have in my storehouses. Unfortunately, many of them are rare, impossible to find, or illegal to bring into the country from afar. I would like this list fulfilled, and the contents in my storehouse by the end of the year."
Talisien unrolled the parchment and appeared to read it from top to bottom before rolling it up again and tucking it into his own cloak. "Very well. Uphold your end, and you will see all these and more," Talisien promised. Snape didn't have a chance to say anything else before the elf suddenly disappeared.
It was only after Snape stopped looking around as though searching for Talisien did Harry step out from the alcove and move towards him quickly, hoping he wouldn't leave. To his surprise, the Potion's Master turned to face him as he approached.
"I am very busy, Potter, and more than a little tired. I do not need to deal with any of your tripe today..." he started, turning to walk away.
"I was going to thank you for that tip with the Protego shielding charm," Harry explained. "But now I don't think I'll bother."
"Too arrogant to offer even a word of thanks, when you know you would have failed faster without such amendments?"
"No, I just know when someone would accept thanks, and when they'd rather just throw it back in my face," Harry said with a shrug, turning back to the stairs. "Oh, and Professor? I don't intend to do anything rash, but I do intend on rescuing my friends. Just so you are aware of that."
He didn't stick around to wait for Snape's reaction before bounding up the stairs again to meet up with Hermione by the fireplace. "Just wanted to say thanks to Snape," Harry explained softly, noticing how tired she looked and not wanting to do anything too rash to wake her completely. She looked ready to fall asleep practically standing up, after all. "Not that he accepted it."
"Of course he didn't," Hermione said with a yawn. "Too proud for his own good. Going to get himself killed that way, too."
No more words were exchanged between the two before they made their way to the fire and used the floo network to return to Hogwarts. After nodding to Fawkes - who was almost fully grown again now - they started to make their way back to the Gryffindor common room, and more accurately, their bed.
Although daylight was starting to crest over the horizon, Harry didn't care as he pulled the curtains shut around them and cast the silencing and locking charms to keep their privacy. Hermione was already lying down with her eyes closed, not bothering to change, and he thought that looked like an excellent idea.
Once settled, he couldn't seem to shut off his brain, though. Thoughts of Ron and Luna... or more likely, thoughts of what was probably being done to Ron and Luna kept surfacing in his mind, as did the conversation between Talisien and Snape that he had watched not long ago.
"Can't sleep either?" Hermione whispered to him after almost an hour of lying in their bed curled up together. He looked down to her in surprise - he had figured she was asleep, but then again, he hadn't really been paying attention to her breathing patterns, and so he simply shook his head. "Well, let's go see Madame Pomfrey. I'm sure she's got more potion brewed up for those who can't sleep at night."
The thick blue liquid was one that both Harry and Hermione had some experience with in the past couple of weeks. Though normally never given to one under the age of fourty five, apparently Dumbledore had spoken to the Healer about the two of them, and they were granted special permission. The potion acted like a fatigue inhibitor, tricking their body into believing it had just had eight hours of sleep, while leaving the mind knowing otherwise. It was usually used within apothecaries for tedious potions that literally took days of brewing without stopping.
Unfortunately enough, the Liquid Sleep was one such potion...
Anyway, after both downing the stuff that felt like sand going down their throats, neither replied to Madame Pomfrey's warnings about abusing the potion and it not making up for a real night's rest. Once they had finally left the Hospital wing, Hermione told Harry that she was going to try and take her mind off things with her Arithmancy essay due at the end of the year.
"Hey Dean," Harry called to the sixth year Gryffindor as he entered the hall. The boy was standing in front of him almost instantly, as though awaiting orders. This thought brought both a touch of pride and more than a little worry to Harry's mind - both of which he pushed aside for the time being. "Could you gather your team and meet me outside the main entrance?"
"Something come up?" Dean asked at once. "You know where they are?"
Harry closed his eyes and shook his head as he turned to leave without eating breakfast. He doubted he could keep food down right then anyway. With his eyes closed still, the only reason he didn't run right into Ginny was because she caught him first, causing him to leap back and draw his wand as though suddenly threatened.
Although every eye in the Great Hall was instantly on him, for once he decided that it simply didn't matter, and he returned his wand to his belt. "Sorry," he mumbled to her. "I'm a little on edge."
"You aren't alone there."
Harry nodded and took a step passed her, but then thought better of it and stopped next to her. "Can you grab Kailyn and Colin, and meet me outside? Dean's team is already coming... and I have to talk to each of you."
"Will you tell me what you learned last night?"
"I can tell you now in front of everyone if you'd like, so that tells you how much I found out," he said with a sigh. Her brown eyes darkened instantly, the hope fading from them quickly. "But if something is discovered, I think I'll be one of the first told."
"What?" Ginny asked, startled by that proclamation. "Why?"
"Just call it a theory... based on my past and, as Hermione so aptly put it, my `saving-people' thing," he explained. For once, he held no malice in his voice when he described himself thus, but the youngest Weasley didn't have a chance to ask anything else as Harry had already started walking away again.
The cool late February air felt refreshing on his face, and he stopped on the steps leading out of the castle, letting the sensation wash over him. It was still the same... the one thing that hadn't changed in the full time he had been at Hogwarts. The wind was still cool, and he still enjoyed the feeling of it tickling his senses. The bite of cold was a reminder that he was still alive, even if he didn't feel like it at times recently.
"Hermione not with you for once?" Harry turned quickly to find Cho walking down the steps ahead of Dean, Susan, and Parvati. "Something wrong?" If he was startled by her apparent concern, he said nothing of it before turning around to face the grounds again.
"He asked for you guys too, huh?" Colin's voice sounded behind Harry, and he knew that the seven people he had asked to come meet him were there. He didn't have to turn around to know that Susan and Parvati were the furthest away on the top steps still, or to know that Ginny, Kailyn, Cho, and Dean were almost right beside him now.
"I did," Harry admitted, finally turning to face the crowd. "And I'll give you all a choice now - we can do this one on one, or as a group. How do you all prefer?"
"What are we doing, exactly?" Parvati asked calmly as she started down the steps as well, pulling her cloak tighter around her lithe frame. Unlike Harry, she wasn't fond of the cold.
"I'm going to attempt to talk each of you out of the DA," Harry explained in an oddly calm voice. "Because there will be a time later this year when I intend to leave the school to fight... and anyone in the DA will be asked to help." He took a breath, closed his eyes again, and turned back towards the lake. "And I only want you to stay if you seriously want to help... because I'm not going to force anyone to come along with me."
"You're joking," Ginny said, her voice higher and tighter than usual. When he didn't respond at all, she put a hand on his shoulder to try and force him to look at her, but he shrugged her off and was three steps further down without any warning. She took a step closer and repeated herself before saying anything else. "You can't be serious... we all know what we're in for, Harry! And you can't talk us out of it. If it means going off to fight Death Eaters, or even Voldemort himself, then we're in for the long haul."
"Why?" Harry asked simply in a quiet voice.
"Ron's my brother, and you're as good as one!" she shouted back. "And I'm not about to..."
"Alright," Harry cut her off with another quiet word. "Ginny... you can stay. And you can help me... again."
"If you think you're just taking Ginny out of the lot of us, you are mistaken, mate!" Dean said, stepping down until he was level with Ginny. "I'm coming too, because it's the right thing to do. No one said it would be easy, or even fun... but this is a war, and I'll be cursing myself down to bloody hell if I just sit back and do nothing about it."
"A need to prove oneself isn't a reason."
"I'm not proving myself to anyone!" Dean spat back. "I'm in the DA to protect my family! To protect my friends! To protect those I care about, those I love!"
Harry's shoulders seemed to sag slightly before he nodded. "Fine. You can stay too."
"And he's not going without me," Cho said fiercely. "I need to fight in this war, and you bloody well know why!"
"Vengeance is the surest way to a quick death," Harry said calmly. "I'm sorry, Cho."
"This isn't about vengeance, Harry," Cho whispered. "It's about preventing it from happening again, to anyone else. Enough people have died in this war... and it's about time we all stepped up to protect those who can't protect themselves."
Harry didn't reply at all for a full minute before he finally nodded, and Cho stepped down silently to stand next to Dean.
"Do you know why I joined the DA last year, Harry?" Susan asked from near the top step still. She obviously didn't expect an answer - which was probably just as well - as she kept going right away. "I joined for a lot of reasons. I joined because I hated that Umbridge toad. I joined because I wanted to learn how to defend myself. I joined because I wanted to learn how to defend others."
"Great," Harry said. "Glad to be of service. If that's all, though..."
"It is not all!" Susan interrupted him before he could finish his thought. "The main reason I joined... the real reason that I wanted to be a part of the group that was looking to you as a leader is because I believe." She paused for a few seconds to let that sink in before going on. "I believe in the light. I believe in fighting against evil - the epic battles between good and evil. I believe in our side... and know that no war is won by one person alone, be he a young infant or a nearly grown wizard, or even someone as powerful as Dumbledore. I joined to help, Harry... because I want others to have the same choice to make later on, when it's their turn to step up to the plate."
"I'm not a fool, Harry," Susan finished softly. "I'm behind you, because I believe you stand a chance where everyone else has failed in the past. And I want to help give you that chance, no matter the cost."
"Even at your own life?" Harry asked, an edge to his voice suddenly.
"If that's what it takes... then yes," Susan said softly. "I'd be much happier living a long, healthy life than kicking it before the end of this year... but I'd be much worse off if I wasn't willing to put my life on the line so others wouldn't have to."
"You'd have made a fine Gryffindor, with courage like that," Colin pointed out.
"She makes a better Hufflepuff," Harry whispered. "With loyalty about all else..." He didn't say his answer to the unasked question, but simply nodded. Although no one had said anything about it at all, she also made her way down to a couple of steps above Harry to stand next to Ginny, Dean, and Cho.
Harry's ears - though they were nowhere near as good as Hermione's - picked up the soft sound of metal being dragged across a sheath, and knew Kailyn had stepped down to get a bit closer, though still not on the lower rank just yet, and had drawn her short swords. "I have lived with stories and tales about fighting the darkness," she explained. "And you might think I'm too young for this... but I hardly think measuring my age by human standards makes sense, given that I've seen more moons than all of you," she added. "Truth is, I'm scared. I'm scared half to death of fighting this Dark Lord... I've heard tales and had nightmares of other Dark Lords for more than fifteen years - that I remember, anyway - and this one sounds like he ranks up there with the best of them."
"Wait a minute!" Dean said, drawing his wand and pointing it at Kailyn suddenly. Cho mirrored his action, as did Susan, though Ginny kept her eyes on Harry instead. "What's with all the talk about the `Dark Lord?' Only Death Eaters call him that, right Harry?"
"Even Snape can't call him anything else," Harry admitted.
"It's called showing proper respect," Kailyn said. Before anyone could respond to that, she had dropped both her weapons onto the stone steps, causing them to clatter down a couple of steps before coming to a rest just before the line of four students beneath her.
"Respect? Voldemort?" Ginny asked, incredulous at her admission.
"Yes," Kailyn said calmly. "There's a large difference between respect and admiration. I hold none of the second for any who turned dark... for I've seen some of what the light can do. One cannot argue, however, that Voldemort is a great Dark Lord. Terrible, evil, kills at will... there's not much more to look for in a Dark Lord save killing babies and drinking unicorn blood."
"He's tried to do both," Harry cut in softly.
"He's also tried to attack my home," Kailyn added. "And that is one thing I cannot just sit back and ignore. You should know by now, Harry, that it is nearly impossible for one of the Oak line to do that."
Harry sighed and nodded. "Fine."
Kailyn then nodded in return and walked down to join the others on the second step above Harry. As she passed over her dropped swords, both vanished completely again - meaning she had sheathed them without anyone even seeing her move to do so.
Colin and Parvati shared a quick look, and Parvati motioned to the younger Gryffindor to speak before she did. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, despite knowing that the gesture would surely be missed by Harry anyway. "I'm fighting for love," he said softly and calmly. "Love of my family - from my youngest brother all the way up to Denis, to my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and anyone else I'm not thinking of right now. Love of my friends, who I'd stand by until the day Merlin brings Arthur back from Avalon, if that's what it takes to protect them. Love of life, as without that, this war has already been lost. And..."
"Colin?" Harry interrupted the younger boy, who stopped talking instantly. "I'm glad you outgrew carrying your camera around everywhere, because it would be a lot harder to handle you being in the group if you were still always using it."
Despite the tense situation, Colin couldn't help but grin as he stepped down and stopped next to Ginny, putting an arm around her shoulder before looking back up to Parvati, and then down to Harry again.
"Nobody here knows what it's like to be a twin, do they?" the sixth year Gryffindor girl asked defiantly. "Even Ginny, who has twin brothers, wouldn't know what it's like. Having a twin is a cross between your best dream where everything goes right and your worst nightmare, where everything is stripped from you. It's a dream, because, no matter what's going on, you always have each other to talk to, if no one else. It's a nightmare because of the worry... I hate worrying."
"I don't think..." Dean started, but Harry shook his head lightly, and he stopped speaking instantly, letting Parvati continue.
"Worrying about Padma is like worrying about myself... but it means so much more. I know she wants to be a part of this to protect me, but that's just the reason I need you to let me in, Harry," Parvati said urgently. "We have always protected each other, and can't stop now. You've said it yourself... V-V-V-Vold..." She tried to speak the name, but couldn't get anymore out. "He's out there, and one day, he'll come for us. I can't let that happen. Even if we both have to sneak into meetings and tag along in the shadows behind you, we'll both be a part of the DA. Believe me, if you thought Fred and George were good at getting around unseen, wait until you see us."
An image of Fred and George hovering around the Marauder's Map made Harry smile to himself and shake his head. "I seriously doubt that," he admitted. "I would know you were there," he added before turning around to face them all. "And I'd rather you be next to the rest of us so we can all help than have you hiding in the background but still tagging along - you'd be no help there, and probably in more danger."
Parvati stepped down until she was next to the others, and Harry stood tall on the step two down from them. "Thanks."
"Don't thank me yet," Harry said solemnly, looking to each for a moment before going onto the next. "Thank me if you live through it all." He then stepped up and passed them, returning to the castle. "I'll talk to everyone else between classes tomorrow," he added. "So please don't mention this to any of them."
Although he had said it as a request, the seven students who were standing on the steps of Hogwarts knew that it wasn't. Instead, it was one last thing... a test of trust. A test that none of them were willing to fail. They waited without words for the large metal double doors to bang shut before climbing the steps together to return to the castle silently.
------------------------
It was probably very fortunate that it was a Sunday, given how neither Harry nor Hermione had any intention of going to class that day anyway. The Order meeting had really taken a lot out of them, and adding that to a complete lack of sleep save for the Liquid Sleep, which didn't really count, meant that they were mostly out of energy anyway.
However, when Hermione suggested to Harry during lunch that they go see Hagrid, he brightened almost instantly at the idea. They really had been neglecting him again that year, and Harry owed so much to the half giant.
Neither noticed that the temperature had taken a biting dive as they stepped outside, wrapped in their dark green cloaks. Although they weren't entirely sure even still why Talisien had felt it necessary to give them the garments, they weren't about to complain about it, either.
"'Lo `Arry... `lo `Ermione..." Hagrid sounded tired too, and they skipped knocking on the door thanks to his voice calling to them from around back. "Care for a cuppa?"
"Not right now thanks, Hagrid," Hermione said pleasantly as they walked around to find him. They both froze the moment they came around the large hut, not having expected to find their friend in the state he was in.
Aside from only wearing a pair of slacks, he had more than a few cuts and scraps running along his upper body that made little sense until he started moving again. Apparently, he was cutting wood... or rather, breaking wood, only he wasn't very good at it without a tool, and kept getting cut on the sharper edges.
Beyond that, however, his eyes were large, red, and puffy, and there were the telltale tear stains down his large cheeks. As soon as he finished with the piece of wood he was working on, he turned and rushed towards them, pulling them both into a near bone-crushing hug. "Ow're ya holding up with e'ery thing?"
"We could be better," Harry admitted once they were set down again. "But..."
"Yeah. Know what ya mean," Hagrid said softly, sitting down hard across from them. They took up seats on a couple of logs that looked like they had been prepared as benches, and Hagrid sighed. "Was hopin fer a year where ya'll could just `ave fun tagether..."
"You weren't alone in that wish, Hagrid," Harry said.
"We'd all like a quiet year by now," Hermione added. "But it's not up to us yet."
"Yeah... I know..." Hagrid said, looking behind him. They followed his gaze and found Rozan lying in the pumpkin patch, where the snow still hadn't touched. As though noticing their glances, Hagrid spoke up again. "Don't know why, but ain't a nip a cold o'er there this year. Like its stuck in summer fore'er there."
Harry suddenly had a flash as he remembered seeing Ron and Luna curled up together in that patch not that long ago... or maybe it was a long time ago now. He wasn't sure. "I know," Harry replied, though he doubted such a thing was really necessary.
"Hagrid... How's your brother doing?" Hermione asked tentatively after a moment. She was a bit scared that he might suggest going to visit him, but was hoping he had better sense than that.
"Oh, Grawpy's doing great," Hagrid said, cheering up suddenly. "He had a blast with that Malfoy, he did," Hagrid added.
"I had forgotten all about that!" Harry admitted, looking to Hermione quickly and then back to Hagrid again. "How'd that go?"
"Well, ya both know how much of a coward that Malfoy is, right?" Hagrid asked, though it was obvious he wasn't really asking at all. "Anyways, he didn't wanna come inta tha forest wit me, but I reminded `im that he didn't hava choice, so we went in. When he saw old Grawpy... he fainted dead away!"
"Malfoy?" Harry asked, surprised. "Fainted dead away?"
"Yup," Hagrid said with a chuckle. "Then Grawpy... well, he picked up Malfoy by an ankle and held him up to his nose, like he wuz tryin ta figure out what he was - see, there's been oders who came down fer detention this year who I brought out ta meet him, and they were all good and friendly like. So when Malfoy..."
"I wish I could have seen that," Harry sighed, looking to Hermione, who appeared to be struggling at concealing a grin of her own. "Oh, come on now, `Mione. You said that if I hadn't cursed him, you'd've slapped him again, right? You can't tell me you feel bad for him!"
"I don't," she finally admitted, breaking into a grin of her own. "Serves him right!"
"You, `Ermione?" Hagrid said in amusement. "You'da slapped `im? Wait, `old on... whada ya mean, again?"
"Oh, well," Harry started, but Hermione cut him off quickly with a glare. He let out a little eep of his own this time and decided it best to let her tell the story.
"It was during Beaky's trial," she explained quickly. "He was being such a... well, he was being himself, I guess, and said something about how you'd probably snuff it yourself after the hippogryff was executed," she said. "He also called you lazy, I think, or something... I can't remember exactly, but he was gloating about how his accident was hurting you, and I couldn't stand it, so..."
When she died down, Hagrid looked to Harry, and he grinned as he brought his two hands together in a loud clap, finishing the tale. To both Harry and Hermione's surprise, Hagrid let out a loud guffaw, and doubled over in more, quieter laughter. Once he finally looked up, there were tears running down his cheeks again, though this time the tears were those of laughter.
"I wish I'da seen that," Hagrid managed. "Woulda almost made up fer tha near heart attack the bugger gave me with Beaky..."
"He misses you, by the way," Harry said after a moment. "Buckbeak. He asked me to say hi, and that you're always welcome to come by to spend a bit of time with him."
"Beaky said that?" Hagrid asked in surprise, looking to Harry. A broad grin passed over the half giant's face, and he nodded. "I'll come by as soon as I can over tha summer ta speak wit him. Sooner, if we meet again, fer tha... well, ya both know what I mean, right?"
"Yes, Hagrid," Hermione said quickly to keep him from saying anything else in the open like they were. "Don't worry. So what happened with Malfoy after your brother picked him up?"
Hagrid, still smiling thankfully, nodded. "Right, right, well he didn't wake up while we wuz out there, given me time ta play a game er two with Grawpy... he ain't bad at wizard's chess, actually. Musta played back... well, back where he came from, ya know?"
"Ron'll have to play him sometime, then," Harry said automatically before catching himself. Hagrid's smile vanished in an instant, as did Hermione's, and he felt the weariness of the day and everything that was going on catching up to him quickly.
"Any chance we could have a bit of a lie down here?" Hermione asked Hagrid, standing slowly and stretching. "We're both pretty knackered."
"I don't know if I've got room in my hut er not," Hagrid admitted, standing up to his massive height and looked towards it. "Unless ya don't mind sharing my sitting chair," he added. "Dumbledore got it fer me this summer... great man, Dumbledore... the chair's nice and comfortable, padded... he's been given me lessons, books too. Just to train me in magic again..." He then stopped suddenly. "Er... I shouldn'a told ya that..."
"It's alright, Hagrid," Harry reassured him. "We aren't going to tell anyone. But actually, we were thinking of sleeping outside, down by Rozan," he added after glancing to Hermione. "We've got something to show you anyway, if you don't mind..."
"Yer animagi forms?" Hagrid asked with a grin. "I wuz told bout em, but I ain't seen em yet. Sure, I can even keep watch o'er ya as ya sleep, sound good?"
They both nodded, and Harry looked to Hermione carefully. Without words, they both changed in an instant and at the same time, and both sneezed at almost the same time at Hagrid's exclamation at seeing it happen, and seeing them as animals.
Once Harry had had a short talk with Hagrid about lyras - at least, as he understood them, being part one himself, now - he padded over to a patch of sunlight in the warm summer area and curled up in the green grass beneath him. Hermione joined him, nuzzling in just beneath his front legs, so he was protecting her from all sides, much like a mother cat might curl around a kitten. They had actually slept like that in their bed before, too, as another method of getting used to their forms, so it wasn't anything new to either of them.
To Hagrid, however... he went inside quickly to get a dry handkerchief before sitting down next to his hut to watch over the two students as they slept away the afternoon. He didn't even question the small nightingale that landed on Harry's shoulder, nor the large bear dog that laid down a few feet away from them to sleep as well.
---------------------
Author's Note: I had a few people question the fact that Harry and Hermione didn't do too well in the battle
against the Death Eaters (and yes, I'm being polite in that assessment). I just wanted to mention that I do have a
reason for it - several, in fact - so don't worry. If you think you know the reason, or more than one reason, feel
free to mention it, but I just wanted to make it clear that it was on purpose, and not just me taking a shortcut to end
things quickly.
Trust me, the next time they face off against Death Eaters will be much more drawn out, a lot more action, and
they'll be powerfully successful - for the most part.
Two Death Eaters will be killed, for example.
.
Until the sun sets upon a broken world…
The Shadows
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