Unofficial Portkey Archive

Chapter 43

-

Hermione laughed at Ron as they ate dinner, he didn't want to let go of Luna, constantly keeping an arm around her shoulder or reaching for her hand. It made eating hard for him but he kept trying.

Hermione noticed how Harry kept throwing glances at Dumbledore's empty chair at the table, waiting for the head minister to address them all with instructions.

"Pork chop?" she asked him, trying to distract him. He turned to face her and smiled kindly, he knew what she was doing. He tilted his head and leaned his forehead to hers. "Potatoes?" she added and smiled. "Maybe some gravy?"

He soothingly kissed her nose before he pulled back again.

"Ron!" he tried to get Ron's attention while he was trying to eat a corn cob with one hand. "Look!" he pointed and Ron looked up and dropped the cob so fast that Hermione also spun around. A whole group of red haired people were hurrying towards them.

Everything became a frenzy of hugs and greetings and Hermione looked confused between the many faces. She still hardly knew the Weasley's and she felt a bit awkward. They sat down at their table. She tried to make out who was who in her head.

"Brilliant, we are starving. We haven't eaten since Austria!" Fred said and reached for Ron's corn cob but Ron slapped his hand away.

"Get your own!"

"Hey!" Fred was about to object but his mother handed him a large serving of food.

"Garlic potatoes!" Arthur almost moaned as he reached for a plate. Hermione noticed the sister, Ginny, throwing them fleeting looks.

"Hey Weasleys," Harry said and they all looked at him while chewing hastily. "I have something to tell you. Hermione and I are married!" he grinned widely and everyone cheered loudly, some louder than others. Hermione blushed as Mrs. Weasley kissed both of their cheeks. Then Molly turned to Ron.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me Ronald," she scolded, but still in a loving way. Ron just shrugged. "And when will you two be married?" she asked Luna and him. Ron choked on his chicken leg.

"Mum…" he said embarrassed and everyone laughed. Luna giggled and kissed his cheek which was now fairly pink.

-

As desserts appeared on the table Hermione felt like she would be sick from all the food. But she just couldn't stop herself, she was not used to food like this. She hadn't eaten this well since her parents were alive and she couldn't help but morbidly think that every meal might be their last. It made her sad.

She was very quiet, not really knowing her place around the loud table. She looked around the Great Hall, everywhere people were laughing and speaking loudly. Some were momentarily looking at the entrance now and then, probably waiting for a loved one to rejoin them. Hermione noticed Professor McGonagall getting some people at a time and then leaving. The others didn't seem to notice it, too busy in their talk but she kept her eyes on the people every time it happened. Where they being given good news, or maybe bad? Were they told what would happen?

She saw her old headmistress search the hall and her eyes landed on Hermione's face. She hurried over to them and Hermione squeezed Harry's hand and he looked up. The table got very quiet as she arrived.

"Dumbledore wants to see you, he can't see all of you at once. Hermione," she lovingly placed a hand on her favorite students shoulder, "Harry, Ron, Sirius, will you come with me now please."

They got up at once and hurried after her.

"Whatever you do," Hermione whispered to Harry as they quickly walked behind the others, "promise that you won't start your whole `Hermione isn't allowed to fight' bit, I can't stand it!"

He puckered his brows but nodded slightly.

Hermione took a deep breath as they entered the office belonging to Albus Dumbledore. She had never been there before.

Dumbledore was behind his desk, writing a letter but looked up as they entered.

"Ah, good. Thank you Minerva!" she left in a hurry as soon as she could, probably getting the next group of people. Everyone looked expectantly at him.

"The war will start the day after tomorrow I believe. I have prepared a fight plan together with Kingsley and Alastor."

"Where are they? And where is Remus?" Sirus interrupted.

"They are in London. We are keeping less than half here, and sending the rest to London, I believe that is where the most fighting will occur. We must take the ministry." Dumbledore rubbed his eyes and he looked absolutely exhausted.

"Where do you need us?" Harry said and took a step closer to the desk.

"I want all of you in London, except you Sirius I want you to help keep Hogwarts and the people here safe. I need you at different posts spread out. I will be in London as well."

Harry's eyes darted to Hermione but she glowered warningly at him and he didn't object.

"We must spread out and remain hidden and then launch a joint attack from all directions."

They all nodded.

"My family?" Ron asked.

"I think they should stay here at Hogwarts, except Bill and Charlie, they haven't arrived yet and they will be very useful in London."

"When will we all leave?" Harry asked.

"Tonight, in a couple of hours. It will be easier to travel to London hidden by night. I don't mean to be short with you, I really don't, but there are so many people I have to speak to. And I have three couples who have asked me to marry them this evening as well." Harry nudged Ron in the ribs but he pretended like he hadn't felt it. "I promise you will receive more information when you reach London.

They turned to leave.

"Harry!" Dumbledore called out. "Can you stay for just a couple more minutes?"

Harry and Hermione's eyes met for a moment and they stared fixedly at each other, they both knew what was coming - in one way or another. Harry let go of Hermione's hand and she had to force herself to leave the room without him. As the door closed behind them she leaned against the stonewall, dreading what would happen behind those doors.

-

Harry felt very watched as Dumbledore gestured for him to take a seat in the chair opposite him. Harry frowned and tried to read Dumbledore's face but he looked very enigmatic.

"I'm not going to London am I?" he asked and sighed.

"No Harry, you're not."

"Is it time for that special mission you have for me?"

Dumbledore nodded in silence and then started running his fingers through his long beard. "I'm ready!" Harry added securely and Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.

"Oh Harry," he spoke tiredly. "You will have the most difficult job of all, and I'm sorry I have to ask this of you. I know now where Voldemort is hidden, I know this battle will leave him fairly alone, and you need to find him… and kill him."

Harry nodded.

"Of course!"

"He has just one guard, one man he trusts to enter his chamber. You are the only one who can get by that guard. But once you are there, once you have gotten to Voldemort, it will be all up to you."

Harry understood, Dumbledore didn't expect him to survive it. But that was okay, he had prepared for this his whole life. He swallowed a lump in his throat and felt a tinge in his stomach… Hermione. How would he tell her?

"I know it is harder for you now, you are a married man after all," Dumbledore said sadly. "But it can only be you Harry."

He didn't understand why, but nodded.

"I'll do it."

"I will be with you as far as I can, and I will fight until they bring me down, I will try to get as many Death Eaters of you as possible, when you leave your meeting with Voldemort. Remember that you will not be alone, everyone is behind you."

"I know that."

Harry started to get up from his chair. "If you don't mind, I'd like to spend every chance I get with my wife now." Dumbledore nodded in agreement.

"Yes, you should."

Before Harry arrived at the exit he turned to Dumbledore.

"Will you do something for me Albus?"

"I will try Harry."

"Rather than trying to get me out safely, will you try and make sure she is safe?"

Dumbledore's eyes sparkled and looked very sad, then he gave Harry a short nod.

-

He wasn't at all surprised when he left the headmasters office and found Ron and Hermione sitting on the stone floor, waiting for him. They both hurried to their feet as he joined them in the corridor.

"What?" Ron demanded.

"I am going on my own mission."

They walked out into the courtyard where Harry told them everything, well almost everything - Dumbledore had told him. Ron had many extra questions but Hermione was silent. She wasn't surprised… they had all made it very clear from the beginning that Harry was a very important part in this war and that he had some special mission to go on. She was prepared, but it still hurt the same.

Ron excused himself and left them alone in the courtyard.

-

"All we ever do is say goodbye," Harry said and took her hands in his. She smiled sadly and looked at his big hands, completely covering hers. "But we'll get through this right?" he asked as a tear dripped from the tip of her nose down on his hand. He let go of her hands and cupped her face with both his hands. They felt very warm and she leaned into the hands.

They wouldn't have a single night together again; they had had their last meal together, just as she feared. This was it, her mind kept repeating. That's all I'll have!

She leaned closer to him and they kissed tenderly. She ran her hands through his hair and then wrapped them tight around his neck. Harry felt her shaking with violent tears while she kissed him but he didn't push her away. Finally she broke the kiss and buried her face in his neck.

"I can't say goodbye again," she whimpered into his neck.

"We won't," he promised and patted the back of her head gently, stroking her hair.

"I'm tired of fighting Harry."

He pulled her back, away from him, and they looked fixedly into each other's eyes.

"I am too."

"It is starting to feel like I'm fighting for a lost cause," she admitted and she felt a bit guilty saying the words

He smiled kindly and stroke her tear stained cheek.

"It's not a lost cause Hermione; we are fighting for freedom, for love, for family and friends. We are fighting for what is right and good…"

She closed her eyes and large tears welled over. She took a deep sigh before she continued;

"They told us our love would ruin it all, and just look at me. Wishing... just wishing silly things."

"Our loved hasn't ruined anything," he sounded stern and she met his eyes again. "Don't say things like that alright, do I wish we could just wave our wand and this would be over, sure. But this is reality."

She nodded and her lip quivered in such a sweet way, he just had to kiss it. "Even in this bloody hell, this awful war, my life is a good life because of you, because of us Hermione…" he whispered and his breath tickled the lip he had just kissed. It made her face tingle. "Don't take that away from me!"

-

It was two o'clock in the morning and Harry, Hermione, Ron, Sirius and Dumbledore were gathered in the courtyard again. Dumbledore and Harry each held on to a broom of their own. Hermione's jaw was clenched hard and she was shaking from the cold.

"So we'll see each other soon," Harry said and tried to sound brave. Sirius and Ron both said their goodbyes and Harry looked at Hermione.

"No goodbyes right?" he smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. She clung hard on to him.

"You're not alone anymore Harry. You have me now; you need to fight beyond revenge and all that... Fight for me, fight to stay alive…" she implored. She had no chance of controlling her tears now; it was as if someone had opened a faucet.

"I will," he promised. He started to pull away but she refused to let go of him. He had to pry her arms away. "I love you," he said sternly and before she could answer he kicked of with Dumbledore. Refusing to look behind him he soared high into the sky, wiping the tears off his face as he flew.

-

"I will kill Bellatrix Lestrange!" Sirius announced determined.

"Yes, I think you will be the best one for the job," Alastor Moody agreed. "Kingsley knows the best ways to get into the ministry, and he has a lot of planted spies in there. You will aim to get to Bellatrix; he will go for Lucius Malfoy."

They were in the basement of a hidden location in London, making all the plans for the oncoming couple of days. Moody turned to Hermione.

"Your old flat is still safe, no Death Eaters have set off the alarms, you should return there. From the window you'll be able to see Fenrir Greyback and Antoin Dolohov walking to the ministry. Dolohov is still a scared coward, and he has Greyback with him at all time, his own guard dog," Alastor laughed at his own joke. "You need to take them out." She nodded and her mind drifted for a moment to the coincidence of getting a flat just above the street where Dolohov walked daily. She knew of course, that nothing Dumbledore arranged was a coincidence - it had been his plan all along!

"But once you have, you need to get out of there at once, everyone around them will see where the spell came from and they'll launch a full attack at you." Mad-Eye quickly added.

"Ron," Kingsley spoke now and Ron sat up a bit more straight, "Rookwood and McNair are two very powerful fighters and generals in this war. It will not be easy to get to them, but we have to eliminate them. They have both been in Europe this whole time but now they have returned."

"Just tell me what to do," Ron urged.

"Good, Lupin will be with you." Kingsley explained, "He'll give you all the details when you meet him. We have to hurry. Daylight will arrive in two hours and we should all leave this basement before then, and reach our hideaway. We have made one-way portkey's for you, they will get you to your hiding places and you won't be able to reach anyone until you get the sign for the battle to start. You have to stay out of sight because if anyone sees you or catches you, we won't be able to help you."

Hermione got to her feet and waited impatiently for her portkey. Her stomach was fluttering with both nerves and impatience. She didn't think about Harry, she couldn't be distracted by that right now.

Ron jokingly pushed his shoulder against her.

"See you in a couple of days," he mumbled.

"Yeah…" she tried to sound hopeful but her attempt failed as she only breathed out the words.

"Friends…" It was Alastor who spoke up as they all stood in a small circle. "No matter what happens, it has been an honor. A true honor…" he swallowed a lump and looked down. Everyone remained silent, unsure what to do when Kingsley finally spoke up.

"We fight for what is right, and we should all remember that. Anything can happen after this night, I personally believe - no, I know - that we will finally restore freedom, justice and vengeance to the world. We will defeat evil!" he yelled the last word and everyone raised the hands holding each other.

There were a few more moments of silence as everyone tried to catch their breaths, thoughts and calm themselves down.

"We'll be fine." Ron whispered in Hermione's ear and squeezed her hand kindly. She blinked hard, looking into his big eyes. She was just about to slightly panic, but she felt calm now. His eyes calmed her… She didn't answer, but blinked once.

"Hermione you're next!" Kingsley called for her. She turned to Ron again and then gave him a quick hug. "

"See you in a couple of days!" he repeated and nodded at her encouragingly.

"In a couple of days," she agreed now.

She met Alastor's gaze and he gave her half a smile, she knew he was very fond of her but he wouldn't tell her to be careful or promise her they would be safe.

She looked at the shoe Kingsley had placed on the table in front of her. Just as she was about to place her hand on it Mad-Eye said:

"Hermione," and she looked up. "Constant-"

"-vigilance!" she finished and smiled. Then she grabbed the shoe and they all disappeared from sight.

As she landed in a crouch on the floor of her small room she immediately noticed that it looked different. The bed was unmade; there were things on the floor ahead of her. She spun around and saw someone hiding in the corner of the room.

"Oh my God," she gasped.

--

Harry looked down from the hill at the stone mansion far below. It was dark outside and he could only see the black outlines of the manor and a few lights shining through a handful windows.

He frowned, the manor might be on the smaller size, but scanning it, looking for weaknesses, he realized that looking for Voldemort would take a long time.

He saw guards walking on the inner side of the large wall surrounding the house.

"Where is he?" he turned and looked up at Dumbledore.

He lifted his thin finger and pointed.

"Do you see the windowless tower?" he asked and Harry nodded. "He's in there."

"Are you sure? Running into a windowless tower… I mean I would be trapped."

"I'm sure."

Harry shivered, the cold air ruffling his hair. He kept his eyes on his mentor, waiting, but not really expecting an explanation.

"When will I do this? Right now?"

"No, we should wait here until daybreak. When you have entered I will give you ten minutes in there, then I start taking down the guards."

Harry looked down at the fort again, so here was his destiny, which was fine with him… but still. He looked back at Dumbledore, still staring at the fort. Didn't he have anything else to say? Harry somehow recognized that look, that very conquered and distraught look. He let it rest. Instead his let his mind drift to his safe place.

Brown eyes, hair that tickled his skin, that smell of her neck, the taste of chocolate on her lips. It kept him calm and warm.

-

Document created with wvWare/wvWare version 1.2.7

-->