A/N: The Marauders, you said? Will do.
Chapter XXXIV: Enter the Malfoys
Soon enough, events turned their focus back on the Order. Visibly worried, Demetris had made his way back to headquarters with Avery in tow, and demanded to speak to Harry immediately. Even the restrictions on Avery were lifted and his memories promptly returned, as Lestrange's ultimatum called for drastic actions to be taken.
"So, you see, I have no choice," he said at the end of the short narrative, "I have to betray either you or Bellatrix. To be honest, it's not even a choice at this point."
Harry's expression showed the tension he was feeling. "We have the spells, yes," he affirmed, "and if you give them to Lestrange, our entire cause dies. I suppose the decision lies with you, not me."
"Harry," Demetris looked at him, a bit affronted. "I would never betray the Order."
"I know," the younger wizard nodded. "Then you only have one option."
"I'll break with Lestrange tomorrow - she does need to know," Demetris said with conviction. "I've been working against her for a long time. It's about time I made my lack of loyalty to her clear."
Harry perceived the old man with admiration. Honour was a quality that had accompanied him all his life.
"What about you, Avery?" he turned to the second Death Eater.
"What about me?"
"What are you going to do?" Harry clarified for him forcefully.
He remained silent for a moment, and then looked up at the raven-haired wizard. "Join the Order of the Phoenix. I'm done with the Dark side."
His voice almost shook.
"Good plan," Harry complimented him. "I'll be right back."
He rose and left the living room, only to return several minutes later with Ron in tow. The redhead was nodding appreciatively and positively beamed when his eyes turned to Avery.
"What you will need to do," Harry explained, "is lay an oath that you will protect the secret of the Order, or the consequence is death."
Demetris looked on to Avery. "I have already done that, and lived to be a hundred and twenty. Your turn, Jonathan."
Avery's demeanour betrayed the nervousness he was feeling inside. This single act would cement his loyalty forever - to him, it was unbelievable, even shocking, that after so many years spent in the balance on the Dark Side, he would be fighting for the cause he had opposed his entire life.
"This is a form of the binding charm," Ron explained to Avery. "I can do it much better than Harry, so I have been chosen as its caster."
"Are you ready for this?" Harry asked him one more time, so as to kill any remaining doubts.
"I am," Avery told him coolly. "If I betray you, you will know, and as far as we all know, I'm interested to come out of this alive."
"Alright then," Ron said. "Harry, you serve as the other party in the bond, and I'll be the bonder."
Harry nodded, and stepping up to Ron, he kneeled on the carpet. Avery came and kneeled opposite him, while Ron stood between them. The two men clasped hands, and Ron placed his wand above the handshake.
"Repeat after me," he instructed. "I solemnly swear - "
"I solemnly swear - "Avery echoed him.
" - to uphold and protect the secret of life the Order of the Phoenix guards- "
" - to uphold and protect the secret of life the Order of the Phoenix guards- "
" - from detection and evil intent."
" - from detection and evil intent."
"I promise - "
"I promise - "
" - to guard this secret -"
" - to guard this secret - "
" - with my life."
" - with my life."
The golden strings extended from Ron's wand and enclosed the clasped hands. They glowed brighter and brighter, assuring and solidifying the precious vow.
"Welcome to the Order," Harry said when the light died down completely. "Now you're bound for life."
Avery dispatched his hand from Harry's, and stood up. "I guess I am," he replied, sounding as if trying to convince his own self of the fact first.
Right then, another thought struck the Order's newest member. "And what about Lestrange? What do we tell her?"
"We tell her nothing," Demetris told him immediately. "For we're not going back."
Avery seemed to realize that that's where their situation was headed. "She'll do everything she can to kill us."
"I know," the old man said. "Welcome to the Order."
And quite the welcome it was - the uncertainty of death. Such a heart-warming thought.
On the bright side, Lestrange had lost three of her most valuable operatives for a significant setback, and while they did not know what else she had at her disposal, the thought still cheered Avery up a bit. Nott would have definitely approved.
"Right then, onto the next order of business," Harry interrupted the lull in the conversation. "Start bringing back those we need."
"Hermione and Luna have been ready for a while," Ron noted.
"Let's proceed at one per day," Harry said. "Just so we don't overwork them too much."
"I am not worried about Hermione," Ron told him, "it's Luna I'm not sure about. One resurrection could do her in for a few days."
"Fine then," his best friend took worry into account. "We'll let her perform the spell first. When we see how she reacts, then we decide when to bring the others back to life."
"Sounds good," Ron nodded. "Is Madam Pomfrey to arrive soon?"
The words were barely out of his mouth, when there was a knock on the door. "Good job, mate. Punctual as always."
Harry went to admit the expected visitor, while Ron, followed by Avery, proceeded to see the two women central to the entire ritual.
The resurrections were to be held in the backyard, just as previously. Hermione and Luna sat together in expectation, while the Order was assembling around them. Harry came out last with Madam Pomfrey, who seemed more jittery and on edge than she usually was.
"I'm just saying, there is a good chance it can be fatal, given the amount of exertion required," she was explaining to Harry in undertones. "I'm worried about Luna, especially. Hermione may be heavily taxed, but she will recover, I expect."
"We have to take the risk, Poppy," Harry said with a hint of impatience. "You'll be here to watch over them."
"I know, I know," her voice was still shaky. "I will."
The atmosphere was palpable with the tension. It was agreed that Luna would be the first to perform the spell, followed immediately by Hermione. Harry was quite aware both could be incapacitated indefinitely, but time was of the essence.
Ron took the last few minutes before Luna performed the dangerous spell to give encouragement to his partner in life. "You'll do fine, honey. Just relax, don't panic, and if anything happens, we'll be right beside you."
He whispered those and other words to her, until she stopped him. "I appreciate it, love. Now, please, let me do this."
Ron nodded, and stepped aside to stand next to Harry. "Hope for the best, mate."
"Will do," said the other and focused in on Luna more intently.
Hermione also watched the younger witch with unhidden worry, as she closed her eyes, and began to describe the wand pattern in the air, while chanting the spell over and over again.
"Enoevarv odaedeht morfesir, Draco Malfoy" Luna's expression tensed with the weight of the spell, but she seemed to be holding up all right. Madam Pomfrey, sitting on the sidelines, appeared anything but comfortable with the proceedings.
The aforementioned wizard's body was sprawled, preserved magically, in front of Luna. She raised a hand, and placed it on the corpse's cold forehead, still chanting the incantation and Draco's name.
Soon enough, the results of her efforts began to be seen. An electrical storm suddenly covered the sky, the wind picked up once more and heavy drops began to fall on the ground. Unmoved, the Order stood in the worsening meteorological conditions and watched on impatiently. Luna was visibly straining under the effort required to keep the spell going, and Madam Pomfrey's uneasiness was growing in parallel.
"Almost there," Harry kept repeating under his breath.
A lightning strike, strong enough to illuminate the entire surroundings hit the ground right next to the body of the fallen, and once it vanished a fraction of a second later, the anticipated result came to fruition. Draco opened his eyes and shot up from the ground. Inhaling deeply, he looked around wildly, uncoordinated and confused.
Remus and Tonks were designated to accommodate the new old members, and as such, they rushed forward to help Draco up and inside the house.
"Put him to sleep," Harry reminded them when they passed him. Disoriented and seemingly fraught with exhaustion, Draco needed the offered support.
Luna only managed to turn around and see Draco being carried in, before she swayed on the spot, and collapsed on the ground herself. As if jumping off a spring, Ron shot towards her with Madam Pomfrey in tow, and skidded on his knees by her side.
"Luna!" he exclaimed, shaking her by the shoulder. "Talk to me!"
Madam Pomfrey also kneeled down opposite Ron, and immediately hovered her wand over Luna, investigating for possible injuries.
"Calm yourself, Mr. Weasley," she said after a few minutes to a very worried Ron. "She will be fine. Several days rest should set her straight."
"Are you sure?" he asked feverishly.
"Yes. However, she should not attempt another resurrection for at least two weeks. And when she does, I need to be present, because I fear the same may happen."
"Maybe it is better if she doesn't do them at all," Ron was still excited.
"Ideally, I would rather not see her strain herself so much," the mediwitch agreed. "But she is capable. Certainly a taxing effort for her, but she can survive it with the necessary assistance."
Ron seemed to have made peace with the fact, even if he was not happy about it. "Fine then," he said. "She will stay the course until we bring everyone back."
"I'll take her inside," Madam Pomfrey told him.
Harry came up to take the mediwitch's place next to Ron. "She'll be alright, mate. Trust me."
"I don't know, Harry," the redhead was still uncertain. "I mean, we still have Ginny, your parents and Sirius to bring back...we only have so much time, and Hermione could not possible handle everything."
"What did Pomfrey say about Luna?" Harry asked him.
"Two weeks until she can do another resurrection. And then she'll be out again."
"Well then, a month should be sufficient. I don't think Lestrange will make a major move for a while at least. Gives us time to recover and reorganize. With so many missions recently..."
"Ha, mate, you've barely gone out in the field," Ron told him with a hint of irony.
"So says you," his best friend countered. "Maintain secrecy, remember? And besides, most of the work has been done by our newly minted members..."
"That's true," Ron agreed. "Not that we could do much else than bide our time."
"Let's talk about this later, and go see that Hermione is alright when she's through with bringing Ginny back."
Hermione's task was considered more dangerous than Luna's, simply for the fact that resurrecting another caster would invariably exert Hermione more than she had been by any form of magic up until then.
The two of them approached Hermione, who was visibly nervous, even more so than Luna.
"Harry!"
"Hey, you," he kneeled down next to her. "How do you feel?"
"Not good," she admitted. "I've memorized the entire spell, its history, the wandwork and incantations front to back and back to front, but I just don't know. I mean, there are so many aspects of it that could go wrong and end in disaster, and Ginny is depending on me, and not just Ginny, but the Order - "
Harry put a finger on her lips to end her rant. "I believe you will do just fine," he told her with confidence that he could even admit to himself that he felt. "Don't worry. Everything will go right."
Her eyes still betrayed uneasiness to Harry. In a final attempt to allay her fears, he put a hand on her chin, turned her head towards him, and planted a soft kiss on her lips. "You'll be alright, Mione."
That seemed to work - she smiled. "I think so."
"Let's do it then," Harry squeezed her shoulder reassuringly. "Ginny will be here in no time."
He stepped back, but then Ron took him aside. "Mate, I thought we were going to keep the resurrection to one at a time. We have to have at least one caster available."
"No worries. That will be the case when Ginny comes back," Harry explained. "We'll give her a few days, and by two weeks end, everyone will only have to perform only one resurrection."
Ron considered the explanation for a moment. "Works for me."
"Alright then."
Ginny's body was also placed in front of Hermione, just as Draco's was before with Luna. She took one long look at her friend, and concentrated on the spell casting.
""Enoevarv odaedeht morfesir, Ginny Malfoy!" on her own turn, Hermione chanted the spell over and over, describing the intricate wand movements with precision. The tension that Luna was subjected to earlier was not present in Hermione. She seemed much more methodical and calm in her approach.
The same storm as before gathered, but was characterized by a much stronger rain and powerful lighting strikes.
Much in the same way, Ginny stood up quite suddenly, and this time, Ron and Madam Pomfrey were ready to take her into the house. Wet, confused, and uncertain, Ginny even started crying for some reason as she was being led inside.
Hermione, for her resistance to the effort demanded by the magic involved, looked exhausted. Harry approached her, embraced her, and helped her rise to her feet.
"You did well," he told her. "Time to relax for a while."
Hermione nodded. "I'm happy," she said, he words somewhat blurred. "Just want to sleep now."
"Definitely," Harry replied promptly. "I'll help you to bed."
The sky was beginning to clear, with the traces of the recent storm progressively disappearing. There was certainly hope - at last, the prospects for the Order were looking up with the return of their most valuable members.
A/N Marauders coming up next...
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