The Gathering of the Wands
"You're right, that is strange, have you known this to happen before?" Mr. Diggory asked.
"No, sir, not since I've been here," Derrick replied. "Of course, I haven't been here very long, so I suppose at some point in the past it may have happened."
"Mr. Diggory, can you please tell us what's going on?" Hermione asked. "The suspense is killing us, what's with all the drama?"
Derrick looked at her and smiled. "Sorry, Miss Granger," he said with a flirtatious grin, "it's just I've found something a bit peculiar. I'm not trying to keep you in suspense."
"Well," said Harry gruffly, moving his arm around Hermione's waist, "can you tell us what it is or are you going to stand there all day flirting with my girlfriend?"
Hermione turned around abruptly to face him. "Harry!" she exclaimed in a harsh whisper. "I can't believe you just said that. He's not doing anything wrong, let's just find out what we need to know and get out of here, okay?"
"Believe what you want to believe Hermione, but the guys flirting and I'm tired of it already. Do you see a reason why we can't just have the answer? It's not like they're doing anything about this strange problem. They're just looking at the damn papers."
"Harry just relax, we'll find out in a minute, it won't do any of us any good to get worked up about it," she said. She turned around to look at Mr. Diggory and Derrick and saw that Derrick's eyes kept flashing in their direction. When she caught his eye he smiled. She turned quickly back to Harry, "Okay, maybe he is flirting a little, but we only have to be here for a short time and then we'll never have to see him again. Just relax until then, all right?" She leaned closer to whisper in his ear, "Besides, you know you're the only one for me."
Harry smiled. "All right, but I'm not going to pretend it's okay," he warned.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "I really wouldn't expect you too, Harry," she said exasperatedly. Men, she thought.
She turned around to face Mr. Diggory and Derrick and was surprised to find that they were watching them.
"Are you ready, Miss Granger?" Mr. Diggory asked.
"Yes, sorry," she replied, blushing slightly.
"It would appear as though an attempt was made to clear the wands, however…"
"Wait a minute," Harry interrupted, "an attempt was made? What do you mean by an attempt? Does that mean they weren't cleared?"
"If you'll give me a minute, Harry, I will explain it to you," Mr. Diggory replied.
"Yes, sir. Sorry," Harry said quickly.
"Now, as I was saying, an attempt was made to clear the wands but…" he paused to look at them, "and this is where it gets strange…" he warned, "nothing came from them. It was as though the wands had never been used."
"But they were used," Hermione said as a wave of panic washed over her. "They were used just a few weeks ago…at the battle. There has to be something wrong. Something's not right. How many times did they try?"
"According to the records here each wand was tried five times, when they didn't produce any spells they were placed back in their containers and put away," Derrick replied.
"So where are they now?" Harry asked.
"They're here. Back behind the wall," he answered, gesturing at the black wall behind them.
"Can we see them?" Harry asked.
Derrick looked at Mr. Diggory who nodded.
"All right. Let me find `em I'll be back shortly," he said, looking directly at Hermione.
"I can't wait until we can get out of here," she whispered fiercely, her eyes following the path Derrick had taken behind the wall. "I don't like the way he keeps looking at me."
Harry laughed.
"What's so funny?" she asked, mildly annoyed that he was laughing at her.
"It's just that…" he said through his laughter, "you're expression…I don't know…it was just funny. Not too mention," he said as his laughter began to subside, "the fact that I told you so."
Hermione tilted her head and smirked at him.
"So what do you think it means, Mr. Diggory?" Hermione asked, trying to divert Harry's attention away from the fact that he was right.
He looked at her and shook his head. "I don't know, Miss Granger. It is quite unusual. Like Derrick, I haven't been in the department long, but it's not anything I've heard of. I can't imagine why a wand wouldn't reproduce its last spells. It's very strange. Quite intriguing, if you ask me."
Harry and Hermione nodded together and turned their attention back to the wall to watch for Derrick. It was several minutes before he reappeared and Harry was standing there with a nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach. Something, a memory maybe … something, was yearning to be released and he couldn't quite wrap his mind around what it could possibly be.
"Here they are," Derrick said as he rounded the corner. "Sorry it took so long, they weren't stored where the others were. Someone put them in a bin labeled `unexplainable'. I didn't even know that bin existed," he added off-handedly.
Harry and Hermione both reached out for them. They were stored in a long, clear cylinder with a label reading the name of the wizard and where the wand was located.
Hermione held Draco's…
DRACO MALFOY
CLEARING, NE SIDE
FINAL BATTLEFIELD
She read the label and looked over at the two wands Harry held…MILLICENT BULLSTRODE and CHO CHANG. She looked at Harry and saw that tears had formed in his eyes and she began to cry. She didn't cry loudly, there were no wails or loud sobs; she wept softly for them, slow, silent tears full of despair…and yet, there was also hope. If people such as Draco Malfoy and Millicent Bullstrode…bullies, mean and spiteful kids who'd grown up in the evil shadow of their parents, could change and make the ultimate sacrifice for the side of good, then there was still hope for the wizarding world, the thought of that made her smile. She took Millicent's wand from Harry and held it in her hand with Draco's. She brought the tip of the wands up to rest against her forehead and whispered, "Thank you."
Harry's tears didn't come until he heard her whisper. Draco and Millicent had done so much more for her and his heart ached, knowing that she'd never get the opportunity to thank them like she wanted to.
Harry's attention was taken from Hermione when he caught part of the conversation between Mr. Diggory and Derrick. "…two more in the bin. They were found in the area where um…you know…where the um…people disappeared, not far from where those three were found. No one knows who they belonged to. Apparently Mr. Ollivander hadn't sold the wands. Seeing as how his followers vanished with him, there were no bodies found with the wands."
Harry smiled inwardly at the thought that Derrick was still too afraid to call Voldemort by his name.
"So you're telling me we have five wands that we can't officially clear?" Mr. Diggory asked. "Why was I not made aware of this before? Seeing as how it's a bit unusual, don't you think I should've been told, Mr. Whimple?"
Harry sniggered, Whimple? That's perfect!
He straightened up quickly when he saw Mr. Diggory and Derrick looking at him. He looked at Hermione, her head was down but he could see the smile she was trying so hard to hide and he couldn't help but smile too.
"Well?" Mr. Diggory asked, returning his attention back to a now red-faced Derrick who was glancing back and forth between Harry and Hermione.
He righted himself to face Mr. Diggory. "Yes…yes, sir," he stammered. "But…"
"Not now, Mr. Whimple. Your excuses can wait. I want a report on my desk explaining to me who handled the wands, created the reports, and," he looked pointedly at him, "I want to know who created that damn bin that made them so difficult to find."
"Yes, sir," Derrick said quickly. "What do you want to do about the other two wands?"
"Bring them to us," Harry said without thinking. "If…you know…that's all right with Mr. Diggory."
Mr. Diggory nodded. "Yes, Derrick, bring them here to Mr. Potter," he said.
"Very well," Derrick muttered before he turned to retrieve the wands.
When he got around the corner Mr. Diggory began to chuckle.
Harry and Hermione looked at him as though he'd gone crazy. "Are you all right, sir?" Hermione asked carefully, as she tried to fight the laugh he was causing in her.
"I'm fine, just fine," he managed. "Serves him right you know?"
Harry shook his head. "What does?" he asked curiously, also trying to fight the laughter that threatened him.
"Having to write that report," he said matter-of-factly. He looked at their expressions, he could tell that Hermione thought it was a bit unfair that Derrick had to write the report when he hadn't even known the bin was there and he hadn't been the one to test the wands. Mr. Diggory waved his hand as if to say `forget it' before he spoke, "Oh, I know he didn't have anything to do with it, but to flirt with another man's girlfriend, especially in the workplace, shoot…" he said more seriously, "the boy should feel lucky that reports all he has to do."
Harry laughed and looked at Hermione who was blushing furiously. "I think it's great Hermione," he said, laughing. "And he's right you know, he should feel lucky that's all he has to do because if it were up to me he'd…"
Harry stopped abruptly when he heard Derrick clear his throat behind him. "Here are those wands, Mr. Potter," he said brusquely.
Harry turned around quickly. "Oh…" he said, slightly embarrassed himself, "um…thanks."
Derrick looked at Mr. Diggory. "Is that it sir?"
"Yes, Derrick," Mr. Diggory said with a nod. "That's it. You can return to work now."
"Thank you," he said with as much dignity as he could muster. He looked at both Harry and Hermione and said, "It was very nice to meet you both. Good luck with whatever it is you're doing."
"Thank you, Derrick," Hermione said gratefully. "It was very nice to meet you too."
"Uh…yeah…thanks," Harry stammered.
Derrick had to fight the temptation to roll his eyes and he turned around quickly, anxious to get away and to lose himself in his work.
"So what's next?" Mr. Diggory asked.
"I don't know," Harry replied, looking at the wands. "There's something…a feeling…" he paused, not understanding it enough himself to go further.
"I know, Harry," Hermione said. "I feel it too. But it's weird because I can't place what it is. It's like a nagging feeling, like I've forgotten something."
"Yeah," Harry replied. "That's exactly how I feel."
Hermione looked at the wands he held in his hands. "Harry," she said cautiously, not sure that what she was about to request was a good idea or not, "let me have Cho's wand."
Harry looked at her like she'd gone insane. "I don't think that's such a good idea, Hermione," he said apprehensively. "The journal is bad enough, I don't even want to think what'll happen if I hand you her wand."
"It's okay, Harry," she said quietly. "Just hand it to me."
Reluctantly Harry handed her the wand. She wanted to laugh at his expression. "You look like it's about to explode or something, Harry, just relax, I told you it would be fine." She took the wand in her hand and studied the label; so much like Draco's. Without taking her eyes from Cho's wand she handed Harry Draco and Millicent's. She didn't know what she expected to happen, but she held on to it with both hands and stared fervently at it hoping to find an answer. Suddenly her expression went blank and she dropped down to the floor, still holding tightly to the wand she started to speak,
"The one who suffers the most must set free that which cannot find its way. Find the answers. They shall lead you to where the journey ends and all hearts shall be free to live again."
Harry stared in wonder. The feeling that he'd been forgetting something was now gone as he realized that was the key to what they needed to do…and the reason why nothing had come from the wands when they tried to clear them.
Mr. Diggory looked from one to the other trying to understand what was happening. Harry gave him a look and held up a finger to tell him `just one minute'. They both stood there helplessly, watching Hermione as she sat on the floor and stared unseeingly at the wand in her hands.
Cautiously Harry approached her and gently touched her shoulder. "Hermione?" he said softly.
She turned her head and looked at him, her eyes vacant.
"Hermione, are you all right?" he asked, feeling stupid. He could see by her eyes that she wasn't all right but the question found it's way out of his mouth anyway before he could stop it.
She blinked rapidly a few times and he saw just a tiny spark of life return to her eyes. "I'm fine, Harry. Why?" she said calmly.
Harry looked relieved. "You sort of zoned out there for a minute, I was just checking up on you, that's all."
"Oh," she said, "okay." Her voice sounded distant and Harry could not shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.
He tried to look into her eyes but she wouldn't let him. He eyed her suspiciously. "Are you sure you're all right?" he asked again, his concern growing rapidly.
Hermione laughed hollowly. "I told you I was, silly. Please stop asking me that. I was fine a minute ago and I'm fine now," she said as she stood up and smacked him lightly on the shoulder. "So what's next? Have you figured it out yet?"
"Uh…yeah…"Harry said slowly, "I think so. Thanks to you. You don't remember?"
"Remember what, Harry? I swear sometimes you can be so frustrating talking in circles like that. Why don't you just tell me what you're talking about?" she said with a sigh.
Oh crap! He thought. This is something totally new…how the hell do I handle this one? Stay calm, that's it. Just stay calm, pretend like nothing's wrong. Just tell her what you have to do and just stay calm…and run like hell if she tries to take that wand out of the container!
"Thanks a lot!" he muttered to himself.
"What's that Harry?" Hermione asked.
"What? Huh? Oh…nothing," he stammered. He hadn't realized he'd spoken that last part out loud. "It's nothing."
"So, are you going to tell me what's next or are we going to stand here all day?" She looked around the room as though she hadn't yet seen it. "It is rather nice here, you know? I suppose we could stay here if you wanted to."
"Hermione? You haven't been talking to Luna recently have you? I mean I know I haven't seen any letters, but…well…you seem to be acting an awful lot like her right now."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Hermione asked him, puzzled.
Harry shook his head. "Nothing," he said. "Just forget it."
Hermione shrugged her shoulders. "Already forgotten," she said in that same faraway voice.
Harry jumped when Mr. Diggory placed his hand on his shoulder; he'd forgotten the older man was there. "Harry, I know I'm stating the obvious here, but even I can see that things aren't right. I think you need to tell her what's next so you can move on," he said softly.
Harry nodded. "I know," Harry replied just as softly, "but I've never seen her like this. I have to say, I'm a little worried about what's going to happen next."
Mr. Diggory nodded and squeezed Harry's shoulder in encouragement. He nodded his head in Hermione's direction as if to say, "go on."
Harry took a deep breath and walked toward her. Sometime during his brief conversation with Mr. Diggory Hermione had drifted to the area of the room where the ceiling appeared to be at it's highest. When he got to her side she glanced at him quickly then turned her gaze to the ceiling above. "Isn't it beautiful Harry? It's just like that night under the stars, isn't it?"
Harry looked up at the ceiling and saw only infinite blackness. It might look like nighttime up there, but it was definitely a starless night. "Yes, Hermione, it's beautiful," he replied quietly. He grabbed her hand and gently pulled her toward him. When she was almost facing him he spoke, "Are you ready to go, Hermione?" he asked. "I think we need to take the wands back to the battlefield."
Still avoiding a direct gaze she asked, "The battlefield? Why the battlefield?"
"Hermione, why won't you look at me?" he questioned, even more unnerved then he thought possible.
"I am looking at you, Harry," she replied, though she appeared to be looking at his nose when she said it.
"Fine," he said a little more irritably than he'd intended. "Do you remember my dream? The voice that spoke to me?"
She nodded. "Yes, what about it?"
"Well, that voice said, `The one who suffers the most must set free that which cannot find its way'. They couldn't clear the wands because the one that suffers the most has to do it," he exclaimed.
"Oh, I see," Hermione said in that same voice with no trace of excitement anywhere to be found. "So you have to do it. That makes sense," she said nodding her head.
"Well, yeah," he said, "I suppose so. But we need to get to the battlefield first. I don't think we can do it from here. I think we have to do it where it happened. That's why I saw that place in my dream."
"Okay, Harry," she said flatly, "let's go. I'll follow you."
"I don't want you to follow me, Hermione, I want you to stand beside me," he replied.
She placed her hand on his cheek, still looking at his nose, and replied, "Oh Harry, that's so sweet. I'll stand beside you then, just like you said." She leaned forward to kiss him and before he could comprehend what was happening he jerked away at the coldness of her lips against his. "Oh Harry, you don't have to be embarrassed. Mr. Diggory knows we're in love," she said glancing in Mr. Diggory's direction and smiling.
Harry thought it smart to take advantage of the excuse she'd given him. "Yeah…well…it is a place of business and all…" he stammered.
"Okay, Harry, I'll let you get away with it this time but I expect a real kiss when we get out of here."
Thinking quickly he replied, "I'll tell you what, Hermione. When this is all over how about I provide you with a lifetime of kisses?"
"A lifetime," she reaffirmed, "I like the sound of that."
Harry breathed a deep sigh of relief and touched his lips with his fingers. He wasn't sure he'd be able to handle another kiss like that one and he hoped he'd bought himself enough time to finish this. He transferred the wands he held to his other hand so he could take her cold hand in his before they walked back to Mr. Diggory.
When they were close enough Mr. Diggory asked, "So, you got it worked out then?"
Harry nodded. "I think so. We need to take these wands if that's all right," he said, trying to make it sound as though Mr. Diggory had a choice in the matter.
"I'll tell you what…" Mr. Diggory said looking anxiously at Hermione before returning his gaze to Harry. He shrugged his shoulder and tilted his head, trying to get Harry to move away from Hermione who was once again staring off into the darkened ceiling. Harry took the hint and let go of her hand. "I'll be right back," he whispered near her ear. She nodded and continued to stare into the nothingness above them.
"What is it?" Harry asked curiously when they were far enough away from her.
"I'll tell you what, I'll let you take the wands on the condition that you let me have the journal as soon as it's possible," he said conspiratorially.
Harry thought about it for a moment then agreed. "I don't see any reason why we'll need it after this. There's a lot of painful stuff in there that I don't care to ever see again. Hermione might want to read it though…" he paused, "…and I just realized…"
"What?" Mr. Diggory said when Harry paused again.
"We never read the last entry. I wonder if she wrote it right before she cursed Hermione," he said wonderingly. He looked at Mr. Diggory. "Yeah, you can have the book as soon as I can get it to you, just let me at least read the final entry."
"All right, Mr. Potter," he said congenially, "you can take the wands."
"Thank you, sir," Harry replied gratefully. "Do you want them brought back when we're done?"
"That would be nice," he answered. "If for some reason you can't however, you must let me know the disposition of them. We can't very well have wands out there that are unaccounted for now, can we? At least not ones we know about," he added quickly.
"All right, I'll let you know," Harry replied, now in a hurry to get going. "Thanks for all your help. I'm really glad we got to talk."
"Yeah, me too, Harry," he replied, "I feel much better about things now. For that I want to thank you as well. Thanks for your honesty and for trusting me when I gave you no reason to."
Harry held his hand out and Mr. Diggory took it in a firm handshake. Both men smiled and Mr. Diggory clapped him on the shoulder. "Take it easy out there," he said. "Good luck."
"Thanks," Harry replied. "We will…and, we could use all the luck we can get!" he added quickly.
Harry turned away to join Hermione. He frowned when he saw that she was still clutching Cho's wand tightly in her hand. "Can I take that for you, Hermione?" he asked seemingly innocently.
She looked at the wand she held and his outstretched hand before answering, "Oh no, Harry. I've got it. You're already carrying four plus your own. Besides, I kind of like carrying it."
Reluctantly he conceded, afraid of what she might do if he didn't. "All right, Hermione. Are you ready to go?"
"Oh, we're leaving?" she said in a surprised voice. "Tell me again where we're going."
Harry did a double-take. "We're going to the battlefield, Hermione," he said roughly, "and right now I don't care if you're ready to go or not, we're leaving."
"Okay, Harry, let's go," she replied as if he hadn't just practically bitten her head off.
Harry turned around to look at Mr. Diggory once more. "Thanks again," he called out before he grabbed Hermione's hand and pulled her toward the door.
"Good luck," Mr. Diggory said quietly as he watched them leave. He then turned around to find one Derrick Whimple who had a lot of explaining to do.
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Harry and Hermione made it out of the Ministry in record time. Surprisingly, they hadn't been stopped by anyone along the way. It was the first time that Harry noticed the obvious lack of attention they were getting. I wonder what's going on? Deciding that for now it was best to take advantage of it, he began walking toward the dumpster where Hermione had apparated to earlier in the day.
Judging by the position of the sun it was now late afternoon. That meant there were only a few hours of daylight remaining and he didn't want to be in that place when it got too dark.
"Hermione, we really need to get there, are you sure you're all right? Can you apparate?" he asked anxiously.
"How many times do I have to tell you that I'm fine Harry? Why won't you just believe me?" she nearly whined. "Of course I can apparate. I apparated here, didn't I?"
"Yes, Hermione, you did, but you were feeling better than," he said, trying to avoid telling her that she really didn't look so good right now. "You know if you don't feel up to it we can find another way to get there. It'll take longer, but at least you'll be all right when we get there."
"But I told you I'm fine Harry." She closed her eyes and Harry heard the distinct `pop' of her apparating.
"Shit," he cursed. He thought about where he needed to go and apparated; fearful of finding only half a Hermione when he got there.
He apparated to the spot on the knoll where he, Ron, and Hermione had stood during the final showdown with Voldemort. He stopped short when he turned and the image of Hermione falling again and again flashed through his mind. He could see it clearly and although he knew she was with him, the pain was no less intense then the night it happened. Keep it together Harry, he told himself.
Looking around he noticed that Hermione was nowhere to be found. "She should have apparated right here," he said aloud, worried about whether or not she'd made it. "I wasn't that far behind her."
"HERMIONE!" he shouted frantically. When she didn't reply he began walking around, not knowing where to go but trying desperately to see beyond the trees. "HERMIONE!" he yelled again, louder.
"Think Harry, think!" he reprimanded himself. He walked quickly back to the knoll and tried feverishly to remember his dream and the direction the unknown force had pulled him in to find Cho, Draco and Millicent. He looked around frantically. "Where was I facing? Which way was I looking? I'll never know which way I have to go if I can't remember the direction where I started."
Calm down, Harry, Hermione's voice told him serenely. Calm down and you'll find your way. Her voice brought an immeasurable amount of comfort to him and he sighed deeply. After a few deep calming breaths he looked up to the sky trying to remember some of the lessons he'd learned in astronomy. He closed his eyes and pictured the scene exactly as it had been in dream, minus the bodies that had long since been removed from the field, he concentrated on the position of the moon as it reflected off the open field, where he was standing in relation to the stars; anything and everything that might help. With his eyes closed, he gave himself up to the images from his dream and his natural instinct, to the bond that connected him with Hermione. His body turned as his subconscious mind pointed him in the right direction. "That way," he said softly as he opened his eyes.
Immediately he knew that some part of Hermione would be through the trees straight in front of him and he took off running faster than he ever had. Please let her be all right, please let her be all right…
As he neared the trees he shouted again, "HERMIONE!"
He stopped suddenly when he heard a sound that he knew was not a part of the forest. He listened intently and followed the sound. As he neared the source he stopped again. Someone's crying, he realized. Quickening his pace he came to the clearing he'd seen in his dream. Lying on the ground in what he somehow knew to be the spot where Cho had died, was Hermione. Her cries broke the stillness of the late afternoon quiet and he moved slowly toward her.
"Hermione?" he said timidly.
She looked up at him with that same vacant expression she'd had in the Department of Mysteries, only this time there were tears in her eyes that almost masked it.
He didn't want to ask her if she was all right…he was too scared of the answer. Instead, he asked her something else, something seemingly irrelevant, and yet…
"Hermione?" he tried again. He heard a soft, "Hmm?" from her so he went on. "Hermione, how did you get here so quickly? I wasn't far behind you but I didn't see you come this way. I was looking all over for you."
Hermione sat up slowly and tried to dry her eyes before she spoke. She took a couple of deep breaths and tried to look at him but found she couldn't. Instead, she looked at the ground around his feet. "How do you think I got here?" she asked. Harry knelt down beside her and shook his head, "I don't know," he said softly, suddenly fearful of her next words. "I apparated here Harry because this is the last place I was standing."
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A/N: Okay…you may or may not hate me now. I'm not sure which…but I'm heading straight into the next chapter now, so don't be too angry!
There is very little left to this part of the story and one or two more chapters should get us there. What happens after that remains to be seen……………………………….
Happy Friday! Have a fantastic weekend.
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