Authors' note: We're sorry for not posting last night. We were both really sleepy and forgot! Here's the update. Please let us know what you think!
Someone told me long ago
There's a calm before the storm,
I know; it's been coming for some time.
When it's over, so they say, it'll rain a sunny day,
I know; Shining down like water.
I want to know, have you ever seen the rain?
I want to know, have you ever seen the rain
Coming down on a sunny day?
(Have You Ever Seen the Rain? By Creedence Clearwater Revival)
Hermione stared out the window, watching the sunrise. What a strange, scary twenty-four hours it had been. She thought about how they'd nearly been caught and how they'd Apparated here. Truth be told, she was so freaked out last night, she honestly had no idea where they actually were.
This certainly wasn't how she thought things would turn out. She'd given up her job, her freedom and everything she knew to stand beside Harry. When had all of this spiralled so far out of control? Her parents were worried sick, and her friendship with Ron was probably damaged irrevocably.
It made her wish for a simpler time when her biggest concerns were whether or not she had the best marks at Hogwarts. She looked over her shoulder at Harry who was sleeping peacefully in the bed. Despite everything that had happened, she knew that she wouldn't do anything differently. She believed in him and she loved him with all her heart. If she was being honest with herself, she had from the start.
Harry snorted in his sleep and turned on his side, his eyes cracking open. He was so used to waking up and being at work by half past five every morning that his body was still on that clock.
Remembering what had gone on the night before; he reached over for Hermione only to find an empty bed.
"I'm over here," she said quietly.
Harry blinked before reaching for his glasses. His contacts had been left behind in New Orleans as well as most of their clothes and everything else. "Why are you up?" he asked with a yawn.
"Couldn't sleep," she said softly. "I borrowed your shirt..."
"It's all right," he said, sliding into his trousers.
"How are you?" she asked suddenly feeling quite shy in front of him.
"I'm all right," Harry answered, sitting down beside her. "You?"
"I'm okay," she replied. "A little sore..."
"Sorry..." he said, thinking she was referring to their activities after they'd arrived in the bayou.
Hermione reached for his hand. "I'm not sorry about that."
"Me either," Harry tucked her hair behind her ear.
Hermione smiled at him and for a long time neither of them spoke.
"So um..." Harry said. "What do you think we should do now?"
Hermione shrugged. "For the first time in my life, I have no bloody idea, Harry."
"Maybe we should just go back," Harry said quietly. "I'll tell them it was all my idea. You won't have to get locked up or anything. I don't want you ruining your life."
Hermione vehemently shook her head. "No, Harry."
"But we can't keep running like this!" Harry exclaimed.
"If we go back, they'll throw us both in Azkaban, Harry," Hermione argued. "They all know what you are to me. They'll know that we ran off together not that you kidnapped me and forced me to go with you. "
"Not if we tell them otherwise," Harry insisted. "I won't let you spend your life locked away because of me."
"I'm not going to lose you," she said stubbornly. "Not now..."
Harry held her close, kissing the top of her head. He knew how stubborn she was and he also knew Hermione would never let him turn himself in.
"I know I'm being selfish," she said softly resting her head on his chest. "But I can't help it."
"Just... what else can we do?" Harry asked. "We need some sort of plan now."
"I think we should call Professor Lupin," Hermione said. "I--I think we can trust him, Harry."
"Hermione he's the lead in the investigation against me," Harry pointed out, although he knew Lupin was just as worried as anyone about where he was.
"It was just a thought," Hermione said quietly.
"It's not as if we have anything else we can do," Harry sighed.
"I hate feeling like this," Hermione said standing up. "I hate feeling so helpless!"
"I do too," Harry leaned against the window. "I hate that we're in so much trouble and that we have nowhere to go."
Hermione sank back down on the bed. "And I can't imagine how Ron's feeling. He loved his father so much, Harry. I wish we could have been there to help him through this."
"I know," Harry agreed. "Even though by all rights, I should be pissed at him... I just can't be."
"When you were off fighting Voldemort, he and I leaned on each other," Hermione said. "I never would have gotten through any of that without him."
"Is that why you two got together?" Harry asked gingerly, not sure if he wanted to know this or not.
"I knew that he fancied me," Hermione said with a slight laugh. "My mum used to tell me that was how boys acted when they liked you; they pulled on your hair or made jokes at your expense. She said that was how some boys expressed their feelings. And then during sixth year, he took up with Lavender---"
"Sixth year was weird for all of us though," Harry said.
"Tell me about it," Hermione said nodding. "And then we decided we wouldn't go back for our seventh year and we spent that entire summer preparing."
"Right," Harry nodded. "You know, I never told anyone this... but I sort of started fancying you during that summer. I never did anything because I knew Ron fancied you as well. I didn't want to stand in his way."
"What?" Hermione asked. "You fancied me then?"
"A little," he confessed. "I didn't really know what to do about it though. It felt different from Cho and Ginny."
"And then I had to go and plant one on you before you left---" Hermione said softly.
"Still ranks as the best kiss of my life," Harry touched her cheek.
"I thought I'd never see you again," Hermione whispered.
Harry looked at her for a moment. "You're right," he finally said.
"Right about what?" she asked.
"Not being able to be separated," Harry replied. "I wouldn't be able to stand it."
Hermione leaned in and kissed him. "Oh, Harry---"
"I love you," He hugged her tightly.
"I love you too," she said.
"I'll do whatever you think is best," Harry said, his nose in her hair. "You've never led me wrong before."
"You didn't always think that," she said softly. "You used to always act first, ask questions later."
"Guess I've grown up a bit," Harry said. "And a certain woman's had a big influence on me."
"Little old me?" Hermione asked teasingly.
"That would be correct," Harry smiled at her. "So if you think we should ring Lupin..."
"Does he have a phone?" Hermione asked.
"We could ring Luna," Harry suggested. "And see if she'll go to him. Maybe she's already with him- didn't she tell you that he's got her telling him everything today?"
Hermione nodded. "He can help us, Harry. He loves you like a son, you know that."
"You promise to be with me the whole time right?" Harry took her hand.
"I'm not going anywhere," she said squeezing his hand.
He nodded. "Let me hold you a little while before we do this?" he asked.
"I can do better than that," Hermione said before kissing him and lying back on the bed.
*** *** ***
At his mother's insistence, Ron went over to his sister's house early in the evening. He'd been moping about lately, alternating between anger at Luna and Lupin to being pissed off about the stagnating case against Harry and Hermione.
Despite his thoughts on what had been happening, Ron had to admit he'd noticed his sister acting strangely and he didn't think it really had anything to do with her pregnancy. He tried to tell himself it was just Luna's thoughts running about in his head but something else kept nagging at him.
Ron knocked at the door. Within seconds, Ginny had swung open the door. When she saw who it was, she frowned.
"Expecting someone else?" Ron asked.
"Of course not," Ginny lied quickly. "What are you doing here?"
"Mum was worried about you," he replied as he held up a plate of food. "Since she's been out of the hospital, she's been cooking up a storm. Thought you'd like a plate of food."
"Oh," Ginny softened a bit. "Thanks Ron."
"No problem," Ron said giving her a slight smile. "We're family, right? Families stick together."
"Sure," Ginny shut the door behind him. "So um... what are you up to these days? Still seeing Loony?"
Ron didn't feel like discussing this with Ginny. "We're not really doing much of anything these days, actually. I've rejoined the team and I'm trying to concentrate on that."
"Guess we're all trying to get on with things," Ginny said, patting her stomach. She was finally starting to show.
"I just keep thinking about how unfair it is," Ron said looking at his sister. "Dad's never going to know your little girl, Ginny."
"I know," Ginny replied as tears welled in her eyes.
"And you were always his favourite," Ron said putting his hand on his sister's arm. "I don't know if it was because you were the only girl or what, but he always had a special place in his heart for you."
"I guess," she said quietly as the now familiar and overwhelming sense of guilt rose up inside her.
"Ginny?" Ron asked gently. "You know you can talk to me about anything right? We were always close growing up..."
"I know that," Ginny wiped her eyes and turned away abruptly.
Ron watched her and couldn't shake the feeling that something more was going on here than met the eye.
"How about you sit down?" Ron offered. "I can get a drink and some silverware for you from the kitchen."
"You don't have to stick around if you're busy," Ginny said quickly.
"I don't have anything else to do," Ron said getting to his feet and shooting his sister a reassuring smile before heading into her kitchen.
Ginny sighed. She wished her brother could take a hint.
She sat down and was just about to unwrap her plate when she heard keys in the door.
"Red," Draco said as he opened the door, in his Christopher disguise. "You wouldn't believe what kind of---"
Ron looked up in surprise. "Who are you?" he asked.
"Uh----um-----" Draco stammered, taken aback to see his fiancée's brother in their flat.
"Chris," Ginny covered quickly. "You remember my brother Ron?"
"Right," Draco recovered. "Yeah---"
Ron held his hand out but gazed suspiciously at the young man. "Nice to meet you." he said.
"What brings you by?" Draco asked shaking Ron's hand.
"I was about to ask you the same thing," Ron shot back.
"Chris has been bringing groceries and things by when I need them," Ginny cut between the two young men. "He's been around for me since Dad... since Dad's been gone."
"And he calls you 'Red'?" Ron asked still gazing at the other man. There was something quite familiar about him, but he couldn't put his finger on what exactly that was.
"Sometimes," Ginny narrowed her eyes. "Why are you asking so many questions Ron?"
Ron shrugged. "Just concerned is all. I'm sure Chris understands."
Ginny opened her mouth to retort when she noticed Draco's hair start to change from brown to blonde. Without another word, she yanked him out of the kitchen and into their bedroom.
"What's wrong, Gin?" Draco asked.
"You!" Ginny said angrily. "I've been worried about you all bloody day! And now you come in and start changing back to yourself in front of my brother!"
"I didn't know he was going to be here!" Draco retorted.
"But how could you not tell me where you were going?" Ginny asked, not realising how loud her voice was.
"Would you keep your voice down?" Draco said putting his hand on her arm.
Ginny yanked her arm away. "Don't you tell me what to do?"
Ron quietly put his ear to his sister's bedroom door.
"It's not my fault he's here!" Draco yelled.
"Draco!" Ginny hissed. "This isn't about Ron being here! You know I need you with me and not running around Diagon Alley!"
Draco glared at her. "I can't sit here and play nursemaid to you all day!"
Ron was so angry at what he was hearing that he nearly broke the door down. MALFOY was living here? His sister was living with Draco fucking Malfoy?
"Where the hell were you then?" Ginny asked.
"Trying to find out how that fucking investigation is going," Draco said. "That Loony Lovegood is working with Lupin now!"
"Shit," Ginny sat down. "Draco..."
"There's no way they're going to figure this out, Red," Draco said sitting down beside her. His tone was much gentler this time.
Ron was thoroughly disgusted as he pulled away from the door. He felt sick to his stomach as he grabbed his cloak and left his sister's flat without so much as a word to her.
At Auror headquarters, Luna was watching as Lupin reamed out two, young Aurors.
"No one authorised your raid on that hotel!" Lupin exclaimed. "You are never, ever to go off like that again!"
"But sir---"
"NO BUTS!" Lupin roared. "You're both on probation and OFF this case!"
Barrett and McDonald made a quick, sheepish retreat from the room.
Lupin couldn't remember the last time he'd been this angry. Those two junior Aurors had disobeyed nearly every rule in the book. He shuddered to think what would have happened if they'd caught Harry.
"Nothing that happens here will show up in the paper," Luna said clearing her throat. "I wouldn't do that, Sir."
"Thank you Luna," Lupin said wearily. "I do appreciate your cooperation in telling me where Harry and Hermione were hiding."
"I'm glad that they managed to get away," Luna said quietly.
Lupin sighed. "I am, but at the same time I'm not," he replied. "I want them to be safe Luna, you know that. But I can't just let my personal feelings get in the way here either."
"It's not so easy for me to keep my personal feelings out of this," Luna said. "In fact--"
Tonks had come inside the room and she looked a little flustered. "Someone needs to see you both."
"Tell them to come back at a later time," Lupin said. "We're busy."
"I think you might want to come," Tonks said. "Really..."
Lupin sighed and got to his feet, followed closely by Luna.
"Ronald," Luna said taken aback.
Ron's face was so red it was nearly indistinguishable from his hair.
"Are you okay?" Luna asked.
"No," Ron said tightly. "I'm really bloody not okay."
"Ron, if you've come here to argue---" Lupin started to say.
Tonks stood between them. "He has something he wants to tell you. Right, Ron?"
"Yeah," Ron muttered. "It's about my sister."
"Why don't we all go back in the interrogation room?" Lupin suggested.
Luna silently followed the two men, sneaking glances at Ron all the way.
"Have you been wondering what's happened to Draco Malfoy?" Ron asked when they were all seated.
Lupin stared at him. "Draco Malfoy? No one's seen or heard from him for years, Ron."
Ron let out a harsh laugh. "That's because he's been living in secret with my sister." he looked straight at Luna. "And going under the persona of Christopher Murphy sometimes."
"Ronald--" Luna gasped.
"Yeah," Ron said bitterly. "She's making fools out of all of us."
Lupin, Luna and Tonks listened as Ron told them everything that had happened that evening at his sister's flat. Luna told Lupin everything she'd managed to learn about "Christopher Murphy" which didn't amount to much.
"I remember seeing him a couple of times during the trial, too," Luna commented.
"Sitting in the back," Ron nodded.
"I can't believe he's been under our noses this entire time," Lupin said shaking his head.
Luna opened her mouth but closed it again as a terrible idea occurred to her. "What if..." she began.
"What?" Tonks urged.
"This may be a long shot," Luna said tentatively as she looked at Ron. "But what if... what if Arthur found out about Draco Malfoy?"
"My dad would have went through the roof," Ron replied.
"Perhaps it's possible that Malfoy had something to do with your father's death," Luna suggested quietly.
She prepared herself for Ron's rage, but to her surprise he nodded. "All the way over here, I thought that, too. He and Ginny were talking about you helping Lupin and how no one would ever 'find out'..."
"Shit," Lupin swore.
"If he killed my father---" Ron said his voice trailing off.
"We'd have to get proof," Lupin said. "I believe you Ron, but your word isn't exactly what everyone else would jump at."
"He's at Ginny's right now," Ron said. "Go arrest him---"
"If he's taking polyjuice then you could hold him until it wears off," Luna said.
"Kingsley and I could bring him in," Tonks said to her husband.
"We'd need to find a reason to bring him in," Lupin said, running his hands through his hair. "Can't bring him in under false pretences either."
Ron groaned. "These laws are pretty fucked up, if you don't mind me saying..."
"I know," Lupin replied.
Luna's mobile began to ring and she nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound.
"Is that Harry?" Ron asked.
"Um..." Luna began nervously. "I'm not sure... I don't know this number."
"Answer it," Ron said, but he didn't sound angry.
"He...hello?" Luna asked shakily.
"Luna, it's me," Harry said.
"Harry..." Luna said quietly.
"Hermione and I were nearly caught last night," Harry said. "We managed to escape..."
"I know," Luna said her eyes trained on Ron's as she spoke. "Are you both okay?"
"We're fine," Harry answered. "Luna... are you with Lupin?"
"I am," Luna replied. "And Ron..."
"Ron's there?" Harry asked, his voice catching.
"Let me speak to him," Ron said holding out his hand.
"He wants to talk to you," Luna said softly into the phone.
Luna could hear Harry say something to Hermione on the other end.
"Okay," Harry finally said.
Luna handed the phone to Ron as Lupin stood up. "He wants to talk to you as well," she said quietly to her former professor.
Lupin nodded and sat back down.
"Ron?" Harry asked.
"Yeah," Ron said.
"How... how are you?" Harry asked awkwardly. "Shite, what a stupid question..."
To say it was bizarre to be talking to his best friend after all this time was an understatement.
"I-I've been better," Ron answered. "Look, Harry--"
"Yeah?" Harry asked, his palm growing sweaty as Hermione held his hand.
"I don't think you did it," Ron said quickly. "Not anymore, anyway."
"You don't?" Harry asked incredulously.
"It looked really bad, mate," Ron said. "And Ginny---"
"I never did anything with her Ron," Harry said.
"I know that now," Ron said quietly. He somehow managed to summon the words to tell his friend about what he'd found out this evening.
"Malfoy?" Harry asked incredulously. "But how--"
"Malfoy?" Hermione echoed. "You've got to be kidding me!"
"I wish I was," Ron said glumly. "How could Ginny do something like this?"
"I... I don't know," Harry rubbed his temple.
Lupin motioned for Ron to hand him the mobile.
"Lupin wants to talk to you," Ron said. "I-I'm sorry, Harry. For everything."
"It's all right Ron," Harry replied.
Ron handed the phone off to Lupin and he looked across the table to see Luna beaming at him.
"That was really lovely," she said softly.
"I'm sorry for what I said to you, too," Ron said. "It was uncalled for and I was a jerk--"
"You were angry," she said as Lupin turned away from them to hear Harry better.
"How can you do that?" he asked her. "I treated you like shite, Luna."
"I was hurt," she shrugged as he sat next to her. "But this isn't all about me Ron. It's not all about you either... and you're hurting."
"I should have listened to you," Ron said softly.
"It's okay," Luna replied. "What's done is done... and now we can concentrate on more important things."
Lupin left the room so he could hear Harry better and Tonks followed him.
Ron put his head in his hands. "How could----how could---"
Luna put a comforting hand on his arm.
Tears were in his eyes when he looked up at her. "How could she have done this? He was our father, Luna! He would have done anything for us!"
"I know," she said in a soothing voice. "I can hardly believe this either."
Ron stood up, unable to sit down anymore. "And I don't even know how I'd begin to tell Mum about this. She's still dealing with Dad and now---"
"Your sister may have had something to do with it," Luna finished quietly.
"Maybe---maybe he put some sort of spell on her," Ron suggested, a hopeful tinge to his voice. "Maybe she doesn't even know what she's done, Luna..."
"Maybe," she said, knowing it probably wasn't true.
Ron looked away. "You don't think he did though, right?"
"I don't know what to think," Luna got up and stood next to him.
"That makes two of us," Ron said quietly. He was trying to hold it all together in front of Luna, but he not doing such a great job. Leaning against the wall, he started to cry.
"Oh Ron," Luna moved forward and hugged him tightly.
Ron broke down in her arms.
Luna's own eyes welled up with tears. "It's going to be all right," she said softly. "Eventually it's going to be all right."
Somehow, the way she said it, made him think that it was possible for things to be okay.
"I-I shouldn't be doing this," he said holding on to her just as tightly.
"I'm still here for you," she replied. "Sometimes you just need to let it all out."
"Luna," he whispered looking into her eyes. "I'm sorry---"
"It's okay," she replied. "I understand."
Ron cupped her face in his hands. "You've been the one constant for me throughout all this."
"I'm glad," she whispered.
"Maybe this isn't the right time to tell you this," Ron began.
"What?" she asked, her breath coming up short.
Ron, who had the habit of putting his foot in his mouth at the most inopportune moments, wanted to get this right. "Somewhere in the middle of all of this, I--I found myself falling in love with you."
Luna's lower lip trembled. "Ronald..."
"And I'm not saying this because I'm feeling bad or anything, I really mean it," Ron said softly touching her cheek.
"You don't know how long I wanted to hear that," she confessed.
"Do you think you could love me back?" Ron asked.
"Silly," Luna's tears spilled over. "I already do."
Ron pressed his lips gently to hers.
Luna felt slightly guilty at kissing him in the middle of everything that was going on around them but she couldn't deny how amazing and right it felt to be there in his arms at that moment.
"I've been so stupid," he said holding her tightly to him.
"You were just catching up," she said, her face buried in his shoulder.
"I love you," he said kissing the top of her head.
"I love you," she answered softly as Lupin came back into the room.
"I'm going to meet with Harry this afternoon," Lupin announced.
"Is it safe for him to come back?" Luna asked anxiously. "Mr. Lupin..."
"I'm going to him," Lupin interjected.
"Wait a minute," Ron said. "What are we going to do about Malfoy? If he killed my father I damn well want him brought in."
"I told you we can't just bring him in," Lupin said gently. "Not on false pretences..."
Ron sighed in frustration. "I can't stand the thought of him walking around free."
"I think we should bring Ginny in for additional questioning," Tonks suggested.
"I can't believe my sister," Ron shook his head. "I just... I can't believe she'd do this. Go along with all this..."
"Maybe she didn't have a choice," Tonks said. "Malfoy could have given her a potion or perhaps..."
"She's pregnant with his baby," Ron said quietly. "It's not Harry's it's Malfoy's."
Tonks gasped.
"Has to be," Ron shuddered. "I'm going to be Malfoy's daughter's uncle. I can't fucking believe it."
"That little girl didn't choose her parents," Luna said putting her hand on Ron's arm.
"I know," Ron replied. "It's just..." he sighed as he ran his hands through his hair. "I can't even believe this."
"I can't imagine what this is like for you," Tonks said. "If there's anything Remus and I can do..."
"Make sure Malfoy pays for this," Ron said quietly.
"If we can get concrete proof," Remus said. "Veritaserum won't work, you know that. We need verifiable proof that he did this."
"And we'll get it," Luna said squeezing Ron's hand.
He nodded, feeling comforted by her confidence and presence. "Thanks Luna."
"I should get ready," Remus said. "I have to set up transport to get to Harry and Hermione and Luna and I still need to go over what evidence we do have so far."
"Right," Luna nodded. "I've been researching Christopher Murphy and now I know why I never was able to find anything on him."
"And didn't you say that your mum saw Draco in your house?" Tonks asked Ron.
"And we didn't believe her," Ron said grimly.
Luna squeezed his hand again. "There's something else, Mr. Lupin. Ginny started acting really strange during our last couple of years at Hogwarts. At first, I thought it was because she was worried about Harry, Ron and Hermione but she'd disappear for hours and she'd miss classes..."
"You think she was meeting Malfoy?" Lupin asked.
"Knowing what we know now, I'd say so," Luna replied.
Lupin wrote something down. "We'll keep that in mind."
Luna stepped away from Ron to retrieve a couple of notebooks from her bag. "This is all that I have so far, Sir."
"Wow," Lupin was impressed. "This is your research?"
"I'm kind of thorough," Luna said shyly.
"I'll say," Lupin replied. "If you ever want a career change you should look into going for a research position here at the Ministry."
"I really like working for my father, but thanks," Luna said smiling at him.
"Of course," Lupin replied, already delving into her notes.
Tonks looked dreamily at her husband. "I love watching him work..."
Ron smiled a bit at Tonks's expression.
"He gets this look on his face like that," Tonks said leaning against the wall. "And then he'll look up at me like that and say something like---"
"Sweetheart, I'm really busy here," Lupin said absently.
"Like that and I'll just melt," Tonks said closing her eyes.
Luna was unable to stop herself from giggling.
"Nymphadora," Lupin said looking properly at her.
"And then he'll do that just to get me out of the room," Tonks said. "I detest that name."
Ron's smile drooped. "I should probably get home and see Mum," he said. "I don't know if I'll tell her about this yet..."
"That'd probably be for the best," Luna said. "Will you tell your brothers then?"
"They might go tear him apart," Ron replied. "Not that I'd mind..."
"Whatever you decide, I'll stand behind you," Luna said.
"Thanks Luna," Ron said gratefully.