Please see Author's Note at end!
Hermione lifted a weary hand to her forehead and wiped away blood and sweat. Her shoulder burned from spellfire, and her right knee protested every time she moved it. Other than that she had survived the battle at Beauxbatons relatively unscathed.
Before they had left the Ministry, she sent George, Ginny, and Seamus ahead to lay traps on the perimeter of the school grounds. Her earlier teams of Aurors had strengthened the anti-apparation charms so they knew Macnair's force would approach on foot. As the rest of Hermione's force waited with anticipation at various points around the palace, she had felt the vibrations through the earth as the explosions were triggered.
That simple bit of preparation had taken out almost half of the attackers which evened the odds somewhat. She had four main groups spread along the edge of the building led by herself, Ron, Charlie, and the most senior Auror left who had proven to not be a traitor. Ron had fought her, demanded that he not leave her side, but she insisted she needed someone she trusted. In the end she had won, but he wasn't pleased.
They came after midnight which she expected. The wait was the worst; the constant edge of worry, not knowing when it would start. When it did, it was almost a relief.
Madame Maxime had only allowed the oldest students to remain and those they left in the interior of the palace in hopes they wouldn't see the fight. The rest of the children had been evacuated through an ancient series of catacombs that ran underneath Beauxbatons. It would be the Aurors' evacuation route as well if necessary.
She lost track of time as she fought, solely focused on who and what was around her.
Macnair's group hadn't expected them to be prepared, that much was obvious. They thought they were going to walk into the school without detection and without witnesses.
Hermione thought she saw Dolohov at one point. She certainly saw that purple curse of his as it cut across the field, but Krum managed to throw a shield charm between it and her just in time. In fact, he had managed to stay by her side throughout the entire fight and had proven to be more than adequate.
Through effort or preparation or maybe just luck she saw what remained of Macnair's force begin to retreat back past the anti-apparation wards in the early pre-dawn hours, and she finally let herself begin to believe they had won this one.
Now, she looked around her and saw others in various states of injury. She knew they would have lost some fighters; the other side's attacks were too vicious for that to not be the case. One of the team leads approached her and she directed him to begin evacuating the wounded to St. Mungo's or to the palace and arrange for Healers to apparate in to care for those too injured to be moved.
Hermione saw Fleur and Bill help Madame Maxine through the damaged front doors of the school, and her knees went weak in relief that they were unharmed. It had been too difficult to keep up with everyone once the fighting had become intense.
She hurried up the steps after them. "Bill!" she called out and he turned expectantly. "Hermione!" he exclaimed and pulled her to him in a fierce hug. "Thank the gods you're alright," he said into her hair. Fleur was next, and she mumbled a similar sentiment in French.
"Have you seen anyone else?" she asked, half frantic and just then saw Molly Weasley emerge from the interior of the building. She gasped in relief when she saw her son, and soon Fleur and Hermione found themselves embraced as well.
Bill turned back to her. "George and Percy I saw just before the end, but other than that..." he trailed off, clearly worried for the rest of his family.
"We'll find them," she promised. "I'm going to go search and I'll let you know..." but he cut her off.
"No. I'm going to come with you. Fleur wants to stay with Madame Maxine and Mum to help set up a triage for the wounded." He turned back to his wife and pressed a hard kiss to her lips before he promised his mother he'd find the rest of their family and followed Hermione and Krum down the steps.
The once finely manicured grounds of Beauxbatons were now littered with debris. In some areas fires still raged and they had to put them out before they could make it through. They came across Percy and Arthur first, who were helping to coordinate with the French ministry for transport of the wounded to the French magical hospital.
"I just saw George and Charlie," Arthur said. "They were trying to find your sister." He tried not to sound worried, but the concern he had for the well-being of his only daughter was obvious.
"Have you seen Ron?" she asked. She had questioned her decision to have him fight away from her several times that night, and now deeply regretted it as she hadn't seen him since she'd sent him off with a fierce hug and his promise that he'd come back alive.
Arthur and Percy both shook their heads and she felt a knot settle in her stomach that she hoped was premature, but the look Bill shot her made her believe they wouldn't be so lucky. "We'll find them Arthur," Hermione said and patted his arm before they continued on their quest.
Their pace quickened and they were delayed by several people who needed to speak to Hermione. Bill had gone on ahead and she turned from the Auror she had been stopped by when she saw his pace quicken.
Without a word to the Auror she picked her way across the field as quickly as she could.
Three red heads were feverishly at work over a large pile of half burned timbers and the remains of a large stone gargoyle that had fallen from the top of a nearby portico.
"It's Ginny," Bill ground out when she reached his side.
"Oh gods!" Hermione exclaimed as she began floating debris off the pile with the others.
"Hermione!" came from across the grounds and her head whipped to the side to see Ron and Luna as they raced towards them. She almost sobbed in relief, but had to turn her attention back to Ginny.
George and Charlie removed one overly large section with Viktor's help and she dropped to her knees when Ginny's face was revealed.
Hermione flattened to her belly and reached a hand into the twist of stone and wood, until she could feel Ginny's cool skin. With fingers that shook, she searched by touch until she found the younger girl's neck and then held her breath until she felt a weak pulse.
"She's alive!" she said in a choked voice and she heard the boys react in relief.
Another large piece was removed and dislodged a chunk of the statue. Her wand flashed and she caught the stone in mid air before it could crush Ginny's legs. "Be careful," she said behind clenched teeth, and floated it to the side.
Hermione looked up and saw that Ron hadn't moved. His face was pale and slack; whereas Luna had immediately begun to help the others, he seemed frozen in place.
Hermione scrambled to her feet and crossed to Ron. She grabbed him by his arms and gave him a shake. "Ron!" she said sharply, but he didn't respond. He just stared at Ginny with a stricken look and with a flash she realized why.
"Oh Gods, Ron, it's not Norway, alright? Ginny's alive and, look, the boys have her uncovered," she said as she saw the last piece being removed.
She reached a hand up to direct his face towards her. "Ron, look at me," she commanded, and slowly he did. "Ginny's alive," she said carefully, and with a great gasp of air he came out of his stupor.
Ron stumbled back a few paces and then bent over to brace his hands on his knees as he sucked in great breaths.
He scrubbed his face once and then looked at her properly. "Is she going to be alright?" he asked.
Hermione looked back over and saw that George had just left, presumably to find a Healer. "I don't know," she answered honestly. "But she's still alive, and that's a good sign," she said with conviction.
He didn't say anything and she wrapped her arms around him. She bit her lip as his hand came up and gripped her injured shoulder, but she didn't protest.
"You alright?" he asked and all she could do was nod.
"Hermione," Luna said suddenly and she turned to see the blonde kneeling next to Ginny with a worried expression.
Hermione pushed off of Ron and went to Luna's side. "What is it?" she asked.
But Luna didn't need to answer. As she looked down, Hermione could see a large gash across Ginny's abdomen, most likely from the cutting curse.
"Damn," she mumbled under her breath, cutting a length of fabric from her robes in an attempt to stop the bleeding. As Hermione pressed the makeshift bandage to the wound, Ginny groaned loudly in pain. Bill dropped to her other side and grabbed her hand with Charlie next to him.
"Hold this," she said to Charlie and slid her hand out from beneath his when he took over for her applying pressure to the wound. With a wave of her wand she performed the few healing spells she knew and hoped it would be enough to staunch the flow until the Healers arrived.
Figures arrived on either side of her and she saw Arthur reach a shaky hand out to brush the hair out of Ginny's face, his own face set in grief.
"Where are the Healers?" Hermione asked, impatient.
"On their way. Percy waited to tell them where to go," George said from her right. She'd never seen him so pale before.
Hermione scrambled to her feet, turned back the way they had come and searched for any sight of Percy or a Healer. When she saw Percy's form she shot red sparks from her wand and went back to the rest of the Weasleys.
"The Healers are here," she said gently. "Give them room to work," she said and laid a hand on both Bill and Charlie's shoulders until they stood up and moved back only as far as necessary.
Ron held Luna's hand tightly and didn't remove his gaze from his sister.
Hermione walked over to George and tugged him away until they were far enough to not be heard. "You need to go get Malfoy," she said in a low voice. He looked at her in shock. "It's what your sister would want," she said with conviction and shoved an emergency portkey into his hand. He nodded once and then took a step back and disappeared.
She waited with the rest until an Auror appeared and pulled her away. With a squeeze to Bill's arm, she walked far enough away to not disturb them, but also be close enough in case she was needed.
The Auror briefed her on the members of Macnair's group they had captured and wanted her direction on how they should deal with them. She had just finished with him when she saw George arrive with Draco Malfoy by his side.
Bill, Charlie, and Ron immediately drew their wands, but she pushed them down and turned on them. "Stop it! I told George to bring him here. If you can't control yourself you can leave," she ordered, and leveled Ron with a glare. "Don't even think about it Ronald Weasley, not right now." Luna had to drag him away.
Malfoy hadn't even looked their direction; he only had eyes for Ginny. He fell to his knees and grabbed her hand in his. "Hey, Red," Hermione heard him say quietly and she was dumbstruck as she watched him gently brush dirt from Ginny's cheek.
She could see it. He truly cared for her, maybe even loved her, and she hoped, for everyone's sake, that he was genuine.
Hermione watched as they began to load Ginny onto a stretcher; Draco didn't let go.
Arthur made his way to where they stood and wiped a shaky hand over his head.
"What did they say?" she asked before he reached them.
"She's going to be alright. She got hit with multiple curses at once; that's what knocked her out, and the cutting curse made her lose a lot of blood, but the bleeding has stopped and they see no reason why she won't wake up in a few hours," he said, relief evident. "They're taking her to the palace. I should go, don't want Molly to be alone when..." His eyes misted and she squeezed his hand in support.
"That's wonderful news," she said, the twist in her stomach loosening. She stepped back while the Weasley brothers crowded around Ginny's stretcher. George and Arthur were going to escort her back, along with Draco, and Hermione was pleased to see Arthur drop a hand on Draco's back as they walked alongside Ginny.
She heard her voice called from across the field, and she lifted a hand to let the Auror know she was on her way. A fallen pillar from a destroyed gazebo blocked her way, and instead of going around, she decided to clamber over it instead. She had forgotten about her injured leg, and when she went to lower it on the other side it gave out on her. Viktor was quick though and caught her before she could land in an undignified heap.
She sucked a breath between her teeth and willed the pain away. Viktor had a grip on her arms, and she allowed him to take her weight as she pushed herself to her feet.
"Thanks," she said, and looked up to give him a half smile.
" `MIONE!" rang out, and she would have recognized the voice anywhere.
With a gasp her head whipped around and she saw him. It was Harry, striding across the grass, whole and awake.
She was not aware as she pulled away from Viktor or as she put one stumbling foot in front of the other. Everything around her had ceased to exist; everything except Harry.
She saw the smile break across his face and then he was closing the gap between them. Her pace increased and she crashed into him. He absorbed her momentum, and had both arms wrapped around her so tight she couldn't breathe, but she didn't care.
One of his hands cradled the back of her head, and she sobbed into his neck as she clutched handfuls of his robes and tried to press herself inside of him. Her toes brushed the ground as he hauled her in even closer, and she could hear his whispered apologies into her hair.
She couldn't have controlled her emotions if she had wanted to. Harry was back and she could finally let it all go. If half the Auror department was watching her have a complete and total breakdown she didn't care.
When she had calmed some she pulled back enough to see his face. Her hands cupped his cheeks. "You're awake," she said with a clogged throat as her eyes studied every inch of him in an effort to confirm that he was really there. He just nodded, and gave her the time she needed.
Without thought, her mouth was on his and she felt his hand slip to the back of her neck as she kissed him. Her stomach flipped and shots of electricity went through her as he took over. She let out a low moan when he pulled back enough to rest his forehead on hers, and they were both breathing hard.
"I missed you," she said in a fierce whisper and buried her face in his neck again as a second wave came over her. She could feel the rumble of his voice beneath her but couldn't make out what he was saying, and when she pulled her head up she realized he had spoken to a nervous Auror who stood only a few feet away.
She slid down so her feet were flat on the ground and scrubbed a hurried hand over her face, most likely only doing more to smear the blood and dirt. She put only the smallest space between her and Harry and left one hand wrapped in a handful of his robes as a way to keep herself connected to him.
"Yes? What do you need?" she asked the Auror, her voice nowhere near normal.
"Sorry, Ma'am," he said and then proceeded to ask her the exact same question the last Auror had. She tried to keep the frustration out of her tone as she gave him the same direction and watched as he tried to leave her as quickly as possible.
"My god, `Mione, I knew you were brilliant, but this..." he said and looked around. "You don't even need me, do you?" he asked with a laugh, but she didn't find it amusing at all and couldn't stop herself from dissolving into tears once more.
"Don't say that!" she said fiercely. "Don't ever say that!" and he pulled her to him once more.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have...It was a stupid thing to say," he said sincerely.
"You don't know. I didn't want this. But I didn't have a choice! And you weren't here, and I didn't know if you ever would be and it was just too hard!" She punctuated this tirade with pounds of her fists on his chest, but they decreased in intensity as she went along until she just clutched at his robes and tried not to collapse.
She was wrung out emotionally and physically, and when she looked up, black spots danced on the edges of her vision. She shook her head sharply and tried to ignore them; she had too much left to do before she could even begin to entertain the idea of rest.
Harry pressed a hard kiss to her temple. "Let's head to the palace. You need to get seen by a Healer, and anyone else that needs to talk to you can do it there." His voice indicated that he wasn't going to be challenged on this and she readily accepted.
They hadn't gone ten feet when a whoop of exuberance caught their attention, and they saw Ron on a bee-line for them. He didn't slow down until just before he reached them, and soon she was being crushed between him and Harry.
She didn't care that it was hard to breathe. Ron pulled away to slap Harry on the back and give him grief about his `nap'. She couldn't help the smile that broke across her face. She had missed them.
"There it is," Harry said softly and took her chin in his hand. "I have a feeling you haven't smiled in quite a while." All she could do was shake her head no.
Their moment was interrupted when she heard a throat cleared behind them. She turned to see Viktor; she had forgotten him completely.
"Yeah, when were you going to tell me that Krum was back?" Harry said in a not so subtle stage whisper that she knew Viktor must have overheard.
Hermione looked at Harry and saw his eyes locked on the Bulgarian. "Behave," she hissed at him.
"Krum," Harry said in a hard voice.
"Harry," Viktor returned, his jaw set.
"It's a long story, Harry, but Viktor's been helping Kingsley for years and he had information for us," Hermione said in a rush, all the awkwardness of standing between the only two men she had ever kissed threatening to overwhelm her.
"That is what I wanted to ask you," Viktor began. "Could I come to the Ministry tomorrow to give you the rest of my statement?" he asked, pointedly ignoring Harry.
"That would be fine, Viktor. And thank you. Really. You didn't have to be here with us," she said sincerely.
"Yes, I did," he replied stiffly, and she stepped away from Harry to press a kiss to Viktor's cheek.
"Thank you," she said again, and he nodded once before heading for the apparation point.
She couldn't read Harry's expression when she turned back to him, and she raised one eyebrow as both warning and challenge to say something.
He wisely stayed silent, although she could see a muscle tick along his jaw line, and she lifted herself on her toes to whisper into it. "You have nothing to worry about." She was glad to see him relax.
"Huh, I never thought about it that way," Ron said out of the blue, and she and Harry looked at him expectantly. "You've got a thing for seekers, don't you?" he added with a wry grin, and she growled at him in response as he ducked out of her oncoming slap.
Harry had a smile on his face and she sighed in exasperation before she laced her fingers between his. They proceeded to make their way to the school. There was hardly anyone left outside; most had been taken away via portkey or moved into the building.
When they stepped into the large main foyer, she could see it had been made into a temporary hospital ward, but the sight struck her and she almost stumbled backwards. The bodies covered in blankets were all too reminiscent of Hogwarts.
Harry's hand clutched hers and she knew he had thought the same.
Chelsea of all people appeared before them, and Hermione reluctantly pulled her hand from Harry's.
"Good to see you, Ma'am," Chelsea said, and her voice betrayed the worry she had obviously felt.
"You as well," Hermione returned.
"The team leads are all accounted for. We've had several Aurors taken to St. Mungo's with serious injuries." She cast her eyes down for a moment. "We've lost two, Ma'am." Hermione's heart dropped.
"Who?" she asked quietly.
"Two of the younger Aurors," Chelsea said, and Hermione held her breath until she said two names that were unfamiliar except for on paper. She felt ashamed that she was relieved Jenny's name wasn't on the list.
"Have the rest of Macnair's men been taken to containment?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, Ma'am, there were four that survived the battle, they..." and then with a jerk her attention went from Hermione to Harry. "Oh, I'm sorry, Sir. I just...you've been gone, and she...and I didn't..."
Hermione's cheeks flushed pink as she realized Chelsea was correct; Harry was back now and she had just been filling in while he was in the hospital. Chelsea should be addressing him instead.
Hermione started to speak, to agree with her when Harry cut her off. "No. I have had only the shortest of briefings, and that was from Hagrid," he said and then took her by the shoulders. "Hermione, this is your department right now; we'll work the rest out later." She could see nothing but certainty and support in his eyes.
"Right," she agreed and squared her shoulders to turn back to Chelsea.
Screeches of `RON! HARRY!' came from the other side of the room and they all turned to see Molly Weasley almost upon them. Soon enough the boys were being dragged away to see the rest of the family and she was left with Chelsea to receive the remainder of the reports uninterrupted.
There wasn't much left to do at Beauxbatons. It would be up to Madame Maxime and the French Ministry to rebuild, and other than ensure everyone was seen to medically, they should be on their way back to their own Ministry soon.
Hermione had decided to stop by the cots of the injured and had made her way through quite a few before she heard a roar of `MALFOY!' and knew it was Harry.
She raced to where Ginny was with her wand drawn and saw Ron of all people holding Harry back. "What is that ferret doing here!" Harry demanded.
Malfoy just stood by Ginny's bedside, hands empty, although there was a small curl of his lip that was all too familiar.
Hermione took over for Ron and had to physically push Harry until Malfoy was out of his sightline.
By the time she had sat him down and explained to him about Ginny and Malfoy he looked like the world had been turned upside down. "Really? Ginny and Malfoy?" he said several times. In the end, however, he did see how Draco could provide them with information, provided he was being truthful.
Harry scrubbed both hands under his glasses and down his face. "We'll deal with that soon enough I suppose."
Ron joined them and they sat in a semblance of a circle as emergency portkeys kept going off around them.
"Do you think they're going to attack again?" Ron asked.
Hermione sighed heavily and leaned into Harry's side. "Yes, of course. But I think they're going to bide their time. We surprised them today. They'll need to regroup, come up with a new plan...But yes, they're going to attack again."
Her words settled around them and neither Harry nor Ron had anything else to add.
"Do you want me to find you a Healer?" Harry asked, and traced the jagged tear in her trouser leg, as if she needed a reminder that she had been hurt.
"I'll get it seen to when we get back," she said decisively. "I mostly just want to get out of here."
With that, they rose to their feet and headed back to where Ginny was about to be sent to St. Mungo's. Hermione made sure she stood in front of Harry, but Draco was fully focused on Ginny and didn't even glance in their direction. After Ginny was gone, Hermione made sure the rest of the operation participants knew what the plans were and then turned to the boys.
Without a word they pivoted as a unit and exited the school. As they stepped onto the wide front portico of Beauxbatons, Harry flanked her on one side and Ron did the same on the other. Without thought, and as she had done all those years ago at Hogwarts, she reached down and took each of their hands. They had won this battle, but the war was not over. She tightened the grip she had on them and knew they had long days ahead; but for the first time since this had begun, she actually believed they would persevere, no matter how long it might take.
End: Part One
A/N: First, I'd like to thank everyone for reading, and reviewing, and favoriting, and following, and sticking with me. This is, by far, the most ambitious project I've ever undertaken and it's turned out so much better than I could have hoped. However, when I had hit approximately 100K words I knew I was no where near the end and had to figure out where to go next. Multiple parts seemed to be the answer. So I hope I am forgiven, those of you who see the `Complete' and are disappointed this is not the true end. There will be a Part Two, however, although not under the title of `War Widow', so you may wish to follow me as an author to make sure you don't miss out.
Thank you again! I hope you've enjoyed Part One, Part Two will begin soon.