Disclaimer: I take credit for this plot and my own characters, but everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.
Note: This is it, guys. I'm half way through chapter eleven right now, but this is the last ready-to-order chapter I have. No we're all going to have to wait to find out what happens, because your guess is as good as mine after this. I'm so glad I've been able to get to here so quickly, though. I've been writing this story since last year because it took me forever to get accepted to the site, and now that it's posted, you guys are eating it up faster than I can write it. Thanks for your wonderful reviews!! After this, I'd appreciate some more of them, though, because I'm going to need your input as to where I should take this.
I'm very proud of this chapter, so please enjoy it!
Chapter Ten
Forgotten Valley
The ringing in Ron's ears told him their jet was attempting to pass through a magical barrier. Gently, he shook Luna awake. With a groan, she sat up and stretched her arms and legs.
"Are we there yet?" She asked sleepily. Ron nodded, then turned to stare out of his window. The high pitch of the barrier was starting to give him a headache. Magic barriers were tricky things. They were used to hide a town or a base, and the ringing could only be heard by magical folk. The only drawback was the enemy would be able to identify the noise and know he was near a settlement protected by ARMED.
The Spell Caster had fixed that problem by inventing chips to place in planes, trains, and automobiles that would identify the vehicle as a friendly one and let it pass through the barrier and into the town. Ron saw flaws in this invention, but had yet to see one of the Spell Caster's contraptions fail, so he forgot about his doubts.
In a matter of seconds, they were through the barrier that cloaked their destination and found themselves staring down at the rolling hills of Forgotten Valley. The sprawling town took Ron's mind back to his school days, when he had spent afternoons with Harry and Hermione in Hogsmede village. At it's entrance was the train station that he and Luna would board in the morning. Past that lay the shops and boarding rooms, the small buisnesses that kept forces like ARMED well stocked, since it had been at least three years since Diagon Alley had been shut down and raided. And then, at the outskirts of the propety, sat the farmlands and the houses of the farmers that tended the fields. They, too, were under the protection of ARMED, but had to have a special license to be allowed their own land and housing and not live in a base like everyone else.
Ron and Luna thanked their pilot for flying them to the Valley, then proceeded to Apparate themselves down to the train station. The witch at the door asked to see their passes. Ron handed her his badge that claimed him as a member of the Few. Her face scrunched up, and as she gave Ron his badge back, her eyes landed on Luna's cloak. Both Luna and Ron looked the see what had caught the attention of the witch: The hilt of Luna's sword was peeking out from it's hiding place beneath the folds of her cloak. Luna placed a protective hand over the hilt and gently readjusted it until it was out of sight. Ron glanced back to the witch. She wore look of combined worry and suspicion on her face. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a Galleon, and said, "Just business, ma'am, but we'd appreciate it if you didn't mention to anyone that we're here."
The witch nodded, scooped up the Galleon, and let the couple pass into the cobblestone streets of Forgotten Valley.
~*~*~*~*~
Luna gasped when she passed through the gates and into the business part of Forgotten Valley. The streets were paved in light brown cobblestone and lined with shops. The buildings were tall and elegant, the architecture a replicated swirl of old world masters. Vibrant flowers flourished from ceramic window boxes, light emanated from intricate cast iron street lamps. People bustled through the narrow streets, happily chatting to each other. Their conversations and the golden lighting from the shops and the lamps combined gave the entire place a warm, friendly feel. It looked like a vintage, London shopping center, not like the biggest magical trading center left in Europe.
So enveloped in the town was Luna that she missed the amused glance Ron shot her way. He reached over and took her hand in his own. Jolted out of her amazement, Luna jumped. She looked down at their intertwined hands, blushed, then looked back up at Ron, willing her eyes to not betray her emotions to him. Ron smiled.
"We'll look less suspicious if we pretend we're a couple," he whispered to her, then began to walk toward a building with a sign that claimed it as a hotel. Luna recovered from her momentary lapse of mindlessness and fell into step next to him, trying not to look flustered. She and Ron were partners. There was no way he would even consider looking at her as something more than that, especially after how their last intimate experience had ended.
Luna rolled her eyes at herself. She had more to worry about that what Ronald thought of her. She wasn't what you'd call pretty, anyway, and definitely not unique. How many women in the world had blonde hair and blue eyes, anyway? She was plain, plain and boring and slightly insane, and she knew it.
She bit her bottom lip, chasing those thoughts from her head. Ron's opinion didn't matter, what she looked like didn't matter. All that mattered was getting Ron and Draco safely out of the clutches of the enemy. There was nothing to do after that. She already knew she wouldn't be making the trip back with them. It was...it was the destiny she had succumbed to. The wheels were set. She had to see the plan through.
Luna gasped when she and Ron set foot in the hotel lobby room. There was no doubt in her mind that Forgotten Valley truly was a magical oasis as soon as she saw that lobby. The room was huge, much bigger than the facade of the building had suggested. The floor was a glistening mahogany ocean for her feet; the walls were painted a deep, crimson red, accentuated with gold trimmings. Silken and velvet divans were strategically placed throughout the room, and people who weren't reclining on them were having lively conversations with the marble busts of wizards and witches who had held a high spot of influence on the magical world during their day.
Probably the most breathtaking piece in the entire lobby was the staircase. Luna was sure that one step alone could've cost enough to feed an entire country for many months. The ivory and gold structure covered nearly the whole floor, rose about one-hundred feet off of the ground, and then swept two ways, each side leading to the second floor. It's balustrade was fashioned from the same chestnut wood that coated the floor, and it was constantly twisting, forming a wooden rose here, or a petrified cherubim there. On either side of the staircase sprung a fountain that emanated beautiful scents and music as well as crystalline water. Situated in front of the whole piece was an immense reception desk as wide as the foot of the staircase itself. Luna counted fifteen witches and wizards working behind it, handing keys and pieces of paper to the lodgers.
Ron chuckled at her captivated face and gently pulled her forward. Five Galleons later, they were ascending the stairs to the suite Ron had checked out for them. It was all Luna could do to not stop and stare as the railing enticed her with visions of flowers and landscapes more beautiful than she had ever witnessed before. Suddenly, the wood changed. Luna found her eyes glued to a scene she knew all too well: A view of snow capped mountains as seen from the most secluded balcony of the tallest tower of an impenetrable fortress. Luna gasped and faltered as she tried to ascend the next stair. She lost her balance as her foot came down on nothing, and she crumpled to the ground. Ron caught her before she hit the step hard and went careening down the flight. Her ankle was twisted under her, but Luna didn't feel a thing. The rail was changing again.
She was vaguely aware of people everywhere stopping to see if she was okay. Ron's voice sounded very far away to her, but she knew he was asking if she was okay, was trying to lift her back to her feet, but they wouldn't support her, her mouth wouldn't form the answers to his questions. Ron gave up and let her collapse on the step, where she sat transfixed as the banister told her the story.
She saw herself rushing into a bloody battle between many people. She recognized both good and bad faces. She watched as her deadly sword cut down enemy after enemy. She was frantically trying to get through, but to where, she wasn't sure.
Suddenly, she was on that horrible balcony again. She looked left, right, and then felt the presence behind her. She spun around, sword at the ready, but she was too late; her opponent's blade was sweeping toward her neck. Luna saw herself open her mouth to scream, but was cut short when a figure came crashing into her assassin. She watched, helpless, as the two locked together at the hilt, broke apart, and came together in a flurry of iron. In the blink of an eye, her enemy slashed with their weapon and sent her savior's blade through one of the slots between the pillars of the balcony. Luna's rescuer didn't miss a beat. Clasped in the hand of her liberator was a wand.
Before an incantation could be uttered, though, the sword of Luna's enemy sank into the soft flesh of her savior. She screamed as her friend's eyes grew wide and they sank to the ground, clutching their stomach. In a flurry of rage, Luna leaped at her adversary, plunging her own blade deep into the arm. She pushed so hard, she felt the assassin's skin surrender and her sword tip protruded out the other side. Her enemy howled in pain and stuck their own blade through Luna's shoulder. They didn't get far. Luna watched as her attacker was engulfed in a green light, and the body slumped to the floor. She wrenched her bleeding shoulder free from the tip of the blade before her foe's lifeless form dragged her down with. Confused, she turned, and her eyes fell upon her wounded rescuer. Her breath caught in her throat, her heart skipped a beat, and her hand faltered to her stomach before she ran to the side of the person who had just saved her life.
In a rush of thought, Luna absorbed what the balustrade was showing her. "No," she whispered as her senses slowly readjusted themselves to the world around her. Ron had returned to her side and was shaking her, asking her if she was okay.
"No," she breathed again. A single tear slid down her cheek as she understood. A light breeze, unnoticed by everyone else in the lobby, caressed her face, confirming the ugly truth. Death was closer than she had thought.
~*~*~*~*~
Ron was worried about Luna. She had refused to tell him what had happened on the staircase half an hour ago. He had held her arm and walked her to their room, and he had been able to sense that she wasn't entirely with him. She sat on the plush bed for about ten minutes before she came to find him in their sitting room. She had smiled and thanked him for helping her, telling him that she must've gone a bit lightheaded when she slipped on the step, but Ron wasn't buying it. After what she had shown him just the other night, though, he wasn't about to push her for answers just yet. But he would certainly keep an eye on her.
Restless, he went to find her. She was unpacking her bag in the bedroom. Ron crossed his arms and stood in the doorway, watching her as she moved about, waiting for her to notice his presense. Lord, she was beautiful...
Luna unbuckled her sword from her waistband and turned to set in on an armchair when she finally noticed Ron. She smiled and gestured to the bed.
"Tell me, Ronald, what are we to do about this predicament?" She asked him in that airy voice of hers that he had become accustomed to.
Ron glanced at the king sized bed. He knew the royal blue sheets were spun from Egyptian cotton, and the cream colored pillows were stuffed with the finest goose down around. After sleeping in a train and a jet for the past two days, that bed called to him, and his muscles begged him to give in.
"What predicament?" He asked Luna in a voice that said he clearly didn't understand.
Luna raised an eyebrow. "The fact that there is only one bed and two of us."
Ron laughed. "Luna, you insult my honor. I may be a fighter, but I'm still a gentleman. You can have the bed. The couch looks just as comfortable."
Luna bit her lip. "As valiant as that sounds, Ronald, I feel as if I should sleep on the couch. This is your mission, and you must be at your breaking point from that Patronus you conjured last night to get rid of those Dem-"
Ron held up a hand as his cell phone began to ring. The Muggle device was quite a handy tool to have around, he had to admit. He detatched it from it's case on his belt loop, then looked back up at Luna.
"Don't try to fight with me. You won't win. Besides, I'm the hero on this mission, not you."
Luna grinned at that and held up her hands in surrender. Ron smiled, than answered his phone.
"Hello?"
"Ron, it's Harry," said the voice on the other line, and the voice on the other line didn't sound well.
"What's wrong?" Ron asked, getting straight to the point.
"They've taken Hermione, Ron. They have Draco and Hermione." Harry confessed, and Ron could hear his friend trying to keep his voice from cracking.
"What? How?!" Ron blurted, his mind racing. How did they get Hermione when Hermione was in the safety of the castle, and the location of the castle was unknown? Did Draco crack?
"I don't know, Ron," Harry admitted. "But you need to bring her back, too. And be careful...I'm afraid all of this may be a trap, and you could be next."
"What's that supposed to...Harry? Harry!" Ron shouted, but the line went dead. "Bugger all," he muttered and went to redial the number, but found that he couldn't get any service.
Trembling with fear and rage, Ron sat down hard on the bed. He buried a hand in his hair, his other one clutching the cell phone. Hermione was gone. They would use her as bait to draw out Harry, or worse, they would use torture her to get information and then attack Harry themselves.
Ron knew Draco hadn't cracked under the pressure of torture. He may have been found, but Draco was stronger in his mind than he was physically, and that was saying a lot. He wouldn't betray the Few or ARMED, no matter how badly they hurt him.
And how had they gotten Hermione in the first place? How had they found Hogwarts if Draco hadn't said anything? No one outside of the Few knew the location! Exasperated, Ron threw the phone across the room and against the wall, where it shattered into pieces.
Luna had been watching this. Hesitantly, she moved toward him. Something was dreadfully wrong, that much she gathered. She placed her hand on his shoulder and knelt down in from of him.
Ron looked up into Luna's face, and when his eyes met hers, he felt the last puzzle piece fall into place in his head. Luna had appeared at the castle from nowhere. How had she known the location? It had changed after the War had began, which meant it had changed since her school days. She had come bearing vital information, and then their top spy gets captured as soon as he sets foot in the fortress she reports against. Dementors find them on the Hogwarts Express, even though the train was heavily cloaked in protection Charms, and Luna knows exactly how to beat them. And then, suddenly, Harry Potter's wife, his one true weakness, is snatched from underneath everyone's noses by the same people who captured Draco and taken to the same place Luna had escaped from. The same place she was taking him.
Ron's face contorted in a mix of betrayal, rage, and disappointment. A sound that seemed to be halfway between a snarl and a scream escaped from his throat. Luna's eyes grew wide and she moved to back away, but Ron was faster and stronger.
Luna's back hit the wall hard, expelling all the air from her lungs. She gasped to breathe, but couldn't force anything into her lungs, not even with her elemental powers. Ron had lifted her clear off of the floor and had her pinned against the wall. His strong hands pressed hard into her arms, and even a good foot off the floor as she was, he still seemed to tower over her.
"WHO ARE YOU WORKING FOR?" He bellowed at her. Luna winced and squirmed to free herself from his grasp, but that only mad him angrier. He slammed her against the wall again.
"I'm working for the Few!" She shouted desperately, and Ron shook her hard.
"DON'T LIE TO ME, LUNA!" He thundered. "You appear out of thin air, our best spy is captured after following your directions, and now Hermione's been taken straight from Hogwarts."
Luna couldn't help it. She gasped. "The took Hermione?" She breathed. Ron roared and threw Luna to the floor. She sprawled across it and moved to get away from him, but he hand her by the wrist and forced her to her feet.
"DON'T PRETEND YOU DON'T KNOW!" He screamed, not caring that there were tears pouring down her face. "Harry trusted you, Luna!" How could she do this to them? "I trusted you! I TRUSTED YOU!"
He lifted her off of the floor and had her back against the wall again. He put his face right up against hers, and made sure she was looking at him. "I trusted you," he whispered dangerously, his own tears now falling from his eyes. "I trusted you, and you betrayed me. you betrayed us all. If anything happens to Hermione, I swear to you, you will pay. Now tell me, who are you working for."
Luna was sobbing now. She wanted to tell him everything, but all she could see in the man before her was her father. She wanted to explain to Ron, but she couldn't concentrate. She wanted Ron to believe her, wanted to believe that he wasn't like Eric, that he was just angry and didn't understand and didn't mean it.
When Luna didn't answer him, Ron slammed her against the wall again in exasperation. He didn't want to hurt her, but he was enraged beyond reason. Luna didn't know that, however. A memory of Eric flashed before her eyes, and she screamed. She turned her head and with all of her strength, ripped her arms out of Ron's. She blasted him with wind and sent him careening into the wall on the other side of the room. Ron slumped against it, then regained his bearing. He went to stand, but Luna was there, reaching for him with her hand. Her caught her around the wrist before she could release more wind on him, but that wasn't her intentions. Her fingers grazed his temples, just enough, and everything went black.