Disclaimer: I don't own these characters.
Author's note: Okay, brief chapter, which focuses solely on the Golden Trio. A lot happens all at once and I tried to present it in an interesting way. Let me know what you think, as always. Sorry about the wait, and sorry to say that the wait for the next chapter could be a week or more. I have a lot on my plate lately. Well anyway, please, enjoy!
Harry was sitting in the dungeon. Luna was there, as was Olivander and Dobby. He was shackled to a wall and wondering how everything had managed to get so out of hand. He knew it had started when he had the idea to split up. He had no idea it was going to get this bad. Luna moved over next to him and put her arm around his shoulder. She said it would be okay. He envied her optimism. She had an inner strength that he knew would help her to get through this. Dobby was just as optimistic. He had said that now that Harry was here they were sure to escape. Everyone had so much faith in him. He just sat back against the wall and sighed. He had gotten himself into this. All he ever did was make a mess. But this time Ron and Hermione weren't around to clean it up.
* * *
Twelve Hours earlier He had been sitting around the fire watching as Hermione failed yet again to change her shape. She was distraught over the whole thing. Ron motioned for Harry to walk with him away from the fire. Harry patted Hermione on the back and said he would return before following Ron out into the woods. Ron put his hand against the back of his head and sighed.
"She's not going to get it in time is she?" He muttered.
"Honestly?" Harry answered with a pained expression, "No. She isn't. I don't know if she ever will."
"Yeah." Ron kicked the tree, "She's always been the best of us and the one time we need her to outdo us, this happens!" Harry put his finger to his lips to quiet Ron. He didn't need her hearing this, she was having a tough enough time.
"Look." He turned his head back to her, "I think we should split up."
"What? Not this again." Ron shook his head upset, "We're with you till the end, Harry. We're not going to just skate off because it's too hard."
"That's not what I mean." Harry retorted in good nature, "I couldn't do any of this stuff without you two, I get that now." He patted Ron's shoulder reassuringly, "What I mean is, how many people do we really need to gather information?"
"That's actually a pretty good point." Ron rubbed his chin, "But what would the other two do?"
"They would wait at Mr. Lovegood's house for whoever to get back from the hollow." Harry asserted, "We planned to go there next anyway."
"That's true." Ron shrugged, "So who stays and who goes?"
"Well." Harry smiled sheepishly, "I figured I'd go into the town and you two would wait at the Lovegood place."
"Yeah, no offense mate." Ron started, "But that's not going to happen."
"I'm the best Metamorphmagus in the group." He said plainly, "It makes sense."
"To you it does." Ron pointed at him, "And I get it, man. I do. Here's the thing though; You think your job in all of this is to play hero and win the war. Which, I'll admit, is not exactly an absurd assumption."
"Thanks?" Harry quipped.
"But see my job, Hermione's job, in all of this is you, Harry." Ron pressed his finger roughly into Harry's chest, "Watching your back and trying to walk away from this with you is the only reason I fight, Harry. I came out here, to this godforsaken hole because end of the day, I have your back. I always have your back."
"I.." Harry tried to squeak out before Ron interrupted him.
"So no. Absolutely not. You will not roll down to that town alone. You don't walk away from this war, I don't walk away from this war. Get it?" Ron said with no softness.
"I..I.." Harry looked down. Suddenly a warmth filled him. No one had ever said anything like that to him. Him and Ron had always shared a very close friendship, but not one they talked about, "I get it." He smiled.
"I'm going down there." Ron said finally.
"Okay." Harry said, "I'll tell Hermione.
"You do that." Ron said victoriously.
Harry stalked out of the forest and sat down beside Hermione. Ron could see them talking. At first she seemed reluctant, but Harry argued logically and he saw her nod her head slowly. Ron swallowed hard. It hadn't occurred to him until he saw the plan in action the risk he was taking. He hoped it all panned out. He hoped he'd see them again. He walked over and clapped his hands. They looked up as he informed them it was time to get a move on. When they had gathered all of their supplies in Hermione's bag of holding they hugged him and wished him luck. With a loud crack they were gone.
Ron looked down at the town and closed his eyes. He felt his mind go to that place. The hidden cache of information in his mind. Suddenly the changes set in. He kicked off his close and thanked Merlin that no one was around to watch him changing from a naked boy into a house elf. He rummaged for awhile before he found the spare table cloth Hermione had left to act as his clothing. As soon as he was dressed he walked into town.
Since it was a half Muggle town Ron made sure to stick to the shadows until he reached the wizard portion of town. He had rummaged for a time until he had found the ruins of the Smith Manner. He began poking around, but found almost nothing. After several hours he found the diary that the old witch had kept. It didn't tell them much. Ron had finally given up and left for the woods. As soon as he was there he found his clothes and changed back, making sure that his hair remained dark and his freckles were gone. He then apparated to the Lovegood house.
However when he arrived the house stood in tatters. A great battle had taken place there. He could tell. There were scorch marks on the walls that still stood. He began digging frantically through the rubble. He had to find Harry and Hermione. After a few more hours of digging he stumbled on Hermione's leg. It was moving. Thank Merlin was all that ran through his mind. He unburied her. She was shaken. She was frightened. He asked her what has happened.
* * *
Six Hours earlier Harry and Hermione had arrived at the home of Luna's father. He had ushered them in quickly after they had knocked. He made them tea. Hermione had gotten up to look through his library. He asked few questions of the two of them. Harry was getting a weird feeling from Mr. Lovegood. When Hermione returned she had a copy of Beetle Bard under her arm. Harry raised an eyebrow. She explained that she wanted to check her translations. As soon as she drew the book from her bag Mr. Lovegood changed completely.
He regaled them with a story. He told them about the Deathly Hallows. Three magical items of great power granted to three wizard brother's by Death. Harry nodded along and Hermione sat at attention, soaking it in as though it were a lesson at school. The items described where the shroud of invisibility, the elder wand (a seemingly unbeatable wand with a very bloody history), however when the third item was mentioned Harry sat up in attention as well.
The resurrection stone. It hadn't worked for the brother, not in the way he had hoped. But the ability to bring loved ones back from the dead. Harry could wish for nothing more wonderful. The cloak didn't interest him, he already had a reliable invisibility cloak, which turned the head of Mr. Lovegood. Harry was interested in the wand, it would certainly be a great weapon to have against Voldemort, but the stone. The stone was what had him.
Harry had stood up excited. He had a glint in his eye that Hermione remembered. He was the strong confident Harry that she would have followed to her death again. He spoke quickly and lively. He spoke of all manner of plans. He paced the floor boards before he saw something and dashed off. When he returned he had the sorting hat. He asked how Lovegood had gotten it. Lovegood had told them that before he Died Dumbledore had sent it over with Fawks. Hermione looked over and saw the beautiful phoenix perched by the window. She went over and began to pet it.
As she was petting it she noticed Harry rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He muttered something about great need before plunging his hand into the hat. She cocked an eyebrow at him before realizing what he was trying to do. When he withdrew his arm from the brim of the hat he held a long golden sword. The sword of Gryffindor. She marveled at it. She had seen it only once or twice before. She forgot how wonderful and horrible it looked in person.
She asked why Dumbledore had sent it. Lovegood claimed he didn't know. Harry looked over at here, as if to say "I told you I got a weird vibe off this guy." Hermione asked if a note was present. He said there was but that he had been told to destroy it. He confessed that Dumbledore suspected the dark lord was looking into the Deathly Hallows. And if that was a fact that it meant dark times were in store. He said that Dumbledore wanted to make sure that the hat was not in the school in case. When he pressed Lovegood for more information on the items Lovegood fell apart.
He had alerted the Death Eaters of their presence there. He had betrayed them. They had Luna. Harry's heart sank. He began to shout orders and formulate a plan when the building started to come down. He ran over and shoved Hermione and Lovegood under a felled book case. Hermione reached out to him. She tried to convince him to hide. He shook his head and ordered her to come after him. He told her there was only one way to make sure that she and the elder Lovegood got through this alive. As soon as he had said it he was gone. She could hear the fight outside. It sounded as though Harry was doing well. Then suddenly the noises stopped and the house caved in. She was buried alive with no idea how the fight had ended.
It felt like days that she was trapped there. She knew it was only hours. She couldn't move. She couldn't find Lovegood to see if he was okay. She couldn't cast to free herself. It wasn't until Ron had dug them out that she saw the results of the battle. The walls were scorched. There was blood, but not enough for someone to have died. She told Ron what had happened. What Harry had said. Ron closed his eyes and nodded. They would have to find Harry. But how?
Hermione sat thinking before it occurred to her. She told Ron to find her bag and together they dug through the rubble to find her bag. It took awhile, and she was in no condition for the digging but eventually Ron found it. She dug through it and pulled out a little golden coin. She held it up to Ron so he could see it. It was the DA galleons. Ron smiled. That was how they would find Harry. They needed information and they needed back up. They didn't have time to muck around. Voldemort would want Harry dead. They had to get there before that happened. The only advantage they had was that Ron was sure that Voldemort would insist on doing the deed himself. They had to hope that he wasn't nearby. Hermione sent a signal through the galleon before she got a response. The location of the DA. With that they were gone.
* * *
Right now Harry was locked in abasement at Malfoy Manor. He had never been there before, but somehow it was just as he imagined it. Horrible. The others were huddled around him. Waiting. They knew that Harry would be plucked from them and that when he was they might not ever see him again. When the door swung open they all saw Bellatrix LeStrange. Harry smiled slightly when he saw her now slightly crooked nose. His handy work. Then he looked down and saw her hands. In one had was his wand, but when he saw the other a wave of anger washed over him. She had the sword.
Two Death Eaters walked in and unchained him. She signaled for them to follow. They picked up Harry and dragged him off. The dungeon seemed emptier to those remaining. Luna looked at the spot where once one of her best friends had sat. She began to weep as even her optimism was failing to win out. Dobby walked forward and patted her back, but tears were falling from his eyes as well. They worried for the boy-that-lived. They worried for the world, and what this death would mean. They worried for their families and for themselves, but most of all; They worried for Harry.