George's Research
George felt a frown pull at his lips as he saw the strap of his briefcase unlatched, and without thought, he absently set his plate on the corner of his mother's kitchen hoosier while lunging downward as sure fingers yanked his case open. Frantic blue eyes scanned across his wares and his head snapped around his shoulder to the cluster of persons in the dining and living room. "Shit." Standing, he was already across the kitchen, opening the doorway as his mom reached for the handle.
"Easy George."
"Did you see anyone in the kitchen?"
Molly glared at her son, "Really, George? Everyone's been in the kitchen this afternoon, or they'd not have eaten."
He shook his head, "No, I mean, did you see anyone get into my briefcase?"
At this she looked past him to see his briefcase laid open upon the floor, "No," she breathed as her gaze came back to his and could now detect a hint of panic, "it was closed not even five minutes ago."
"The hasp wasn't." George rebuked. "Did you see anyone by it?"
"No," she answered as he went to move past her, "George, what is it?"
"Nothing," he murmured in reply as he stepped into the dining room as he scanned the room looking for Teddy. He paused at Harry, "Have you seen Teddy?" He asked, hoping his brother-in-law didn't notice his slight panic.
Harry glanced to George, "About ten minutes ago he came giggling out of the kitchen and," he nodded to the living room, "went that way."
George didn't bother to comment as he strode past Harry, Neville and Ron; eyes still searching for the young tike. He stepped through the doorway, and felt his heart ease as he saw Teddy bouncing away from Filius, Pomona, McGonagall and his dad. As Teddy wasn't carrying the small leather pouch.
Weaving his way past Bill and Percy, he felt Charlie catch his leg, and he glanced to his brother and at seeing questioning eyes he merely shook his head, "Later." He stated by way of explaining and his brother released his leg, and he continued on his path to intercept Teddy. Who had veered toward his sister and soon to be in-law, Hermione.
Teddy smiled as he bounced to a stop, and George watched as he lifted a silver string that seemed to catch the light. No, George inwardly breathed as the faintest wisp of the word left his lips as Hermione's gentle voice questioned.
"Where'd you get that pretty string?"
"Meema's kipsun." Teddy proudly stated, "You want it?" He held it out to his aunt.
"I don't want to take it…"
George's heart hammered in his chest as he dodged around Fleur and Luna, "Teddy…" He gently called out, causing Teddy to drop the thread as sandy hair shifted on his head and a smile plastered across his face.
"Uncs George!" He scampered away from Hermione and Ginny, arms out.
Hermione reached out as George took in his nephew's hands to find them empty, as he scooped up the young boy and his gaze jumped to his sister and Hermione was bending over, fingers stretching outward…
"Hermione…" George moved forward, "don't…"
She picked up the thread, and frowned at George's flushed face, "What's the matter, George?"
George breathed a sigh of relief, "Nothing as you must have both ends."
"Both ends?" Hermione repeated as she extended her hand out to Teddy, "Here's your string, Teddy."
"Actually," George went to reach out to take the string, "it's mine." But before he could take it from Hermione, a bright blue flash sparked and lit up his mother's living room. As the light faded, George blinked the stars away as Hermione's face morphed into shape.
"George, what was that?" Hermione questioned, skin still prickling from the powerful magic that had danced across her skin as she fought down a sudden wave of panic.
"A containment spell." Came a response not quite three meters away, from her previous mentor, "Laced in the string Teddy was carrying." Her clipped words slicing across the distance as everyone gazed at the red-headed proprietor.
"It's a research…"
Hermione stood, face becoming stormy, "And how perchance did Teddy happen upon it?"
Ginny reached out, taking Teddy from George's grasp, "Why don't we go to the kitchen, little man?" She said moving away from Hermione and George, but it was McGonagall's question that caused her steps to falter.
"What aspect of a moving containment spell were you interested in, George?"
George swallowed as he met McGonagall's steadfast gaze, "Did Teddy give you a piece of the string?"
Her brow arched, "Rather left it upon my robes, and now it seems to be affixed to my wrist."
Hermione's eyes darted down to her left wrist to see the silver string having become molded along her wrist, "George, what is this?"
"George." Arthur's voice holding a strange edge, "Explain yourself."
"Look, it isn't dangerous." George quickly expounded, "It's a containment spell but instead of it being localized to an area; it's been morphed to contain persons, objects, what not to one another."
Minerva remained seated and unmoving as did Hermione as a flurry of frenzied questions and comments were traded back and forth – until Ron quietly asked the obvious question.
"Where's the counter spell?"
George's ears turned pink, "I just perfected the ancillary containment spell last night and was taking it into London this evening to begin testing counter spells."
"You're telling me that my fiancé is trapped with McGonagall and you can't undo the bloody spell you created?" Ron snapped at his brother.
Hermione blinked the surreal nature of the evening's events from her consciousness and stood, Now is not the time to lose it, she thought at seeing how close Ron was to striking his brother. "Ron, we just need to calm down. It isn't as though the spell incapacitated me or anyone else," she took a steadying breath, "it is a minor inconvenience. One I'm sure…" she lifted her eyes to find Minerva…and felt her words falter at seeing the normally unflappable woman appearing as she had – shocked. "I'm sure…" she restarted as emerald eyes blinked and found hers, and as if realizing where Minerva was, a façade seemed to descend across her features, "we'll find how to nullify by the time Molly brings out dessert."
"What are the base incantations you placed upon the string, George?" Minerva questioned as she stood, fighting her own discomfort over what had happened, as she walked towards the younger Weasley.
"Uhhh…" George moved backward, "let me grab my notes from my bag."
Minerva shifted her trajectory, beginning to follow George but as she passed into the dining room she felt her stomach twist and a bead of sweat break out across her face as Hermione's shaky voice called out, "G..eorge!"
He stopped at the kitchen doorway, glancing over his shoulder and instantly turned back around, reaching out to steady McGonagall. "Here…" He began moving back towards the living room, "you and she…can't be more than the initial distance that separated you both when the spell was activated." He finished explaining as they re-entered the living room.
"We were four perhaps five meters…" Hermione rasped but swallowed the rest of her comment as the nausea lessoned, and Minerva's curt voice directed George.
"Your notes, George."
George glanced from McGonagall to Hermione and ignored the rest of the room, "Right."
The seconds ticked by in eerie silence as everyone waited for George's return, and Minerva chanced a glance to Hermione to see that the younger woman's eyes were fixed upon the doorway waiting for George too, "Would you be willing to join me in the kitchen?"
Hermione's eyes slid to Minerva, "Ahhh…" she immediately understood and stood, "quite." She paused for a heartbeat, "We'll go sort it in the kitchen, and be back shortly." She said with feigned confidence.
"Hermione?" Ron questioned as he came around Harry and placed his arm on her shoulder to halt her movement.
She turned to ask Minerva to wait, but said woman was standing before the door; her back to Hermione, remaining unmoving. "I'm fine. I'm sure George used an elementary confinement spell, which we should be able to easily counter once we know the base incantations." She ran his hand along his jaw, "And if it takes a few extra minutes," she came closer as she edged on her toes, "don't eat my piece of pie." His warm chuckle was lost to her as their lips gently met for a brief moment before she pulled away.
"I'll try not to."
"Liar." She muttered as she turned and moved across the dining room, pausing as she stepped near Minerva, "Thank you for waiting." She stated as Minerva reached forward to open the door.
"Not waiting didn't seem to be a prudent idea." Minerva quipped as she stepped into the kitchen to see Molly drying the last of the dishes.
"Ohhh, I don't need either of your help dears." She set the plate down.
Hermione opened her mouth but found herself unable to reply and momentarily thankful for Minerva's response, "Rather we are assisting George."
Molly turned back to the dish rack, "You didn't answer me earlier George, did you find what you thought was taken?"
"He did." Hermione answered before George had an opportunity causing Molly to turn back to Minerva and Hermione, eyes sweeping over them and at seeing their masked shock and overwhelming concern she spun back to George.
"What in Merlin's beard did you do?!"
George paused in sorting through his notes, "I didn't do, anything mother. Rather Teddy…"
"Don't you dare blame little Teddy!"
"Molly," Minerva strode forward, placing her hand upon her friend's shoulder, "it was an accident."
Concern flared in the elder Weasley's chest, "What type of accident?"
"I laced a silver thread with a recently devised containment spell that encompasses people or objects; however, it keeps the wearers of the thread confined together versus remaining tethered to a specific location."
"Teddy took the string from your bag." Molly quickly piecing the events together.
"Which he undid while playing with it." George said returning to his notes.
"And handed one piece to Hermione," Molly quietly continued at seeing the silver chord around Hermione's wrist as she moved her eyes to Minerva, "and the other to you."
"Here." He stood, breaking the awkward silence that had settled in the kitchen as he stretched out his notes to the two women.
Minerva and Hermione both reached for the piece of parchment, and Hermione nodded to Minerva. "Go ahead. You'll probably have a better idea how to counter it than I."
Minerva's brow quirked as she took the paper with her right hand and withdrew her glasses, flipping them open with her left, "Don't be foolish, Miss…" she adjusted the word from her lips, "Hermione." She easily slid her glasses on, as she held the paper out while stepping closer to Hermione to enable the younger witch to read George's notes too.
"This is…" Hermione finally pulled her gaze from the parchment, a tremble lacing her words as she finished, "way more than a simple containment spell."
"Minerva?" Molly questioned feeling a level of dread pass over her for not only her soon to be daughter-in-law but her son, and her dear friend.
Minerva blinked and folded the parchment in half, "Hermione is accurate, Molly." She cleared her throat, "If you can both excuse Hermione and I; I'd like to discuss a few options with Hermione."
"Hermione…" George began as Molly uttered, "Minerva…"
"Please," Minerva turned to her friend and Molly's son, "give us a few moments." Her voice becoming steely as she uttered the final word, "Alone."
Molly and George quietly moved past Hermione and after a few seconds, the door closed giving the two women a moment of privacy.
The steady tick and tock of Molly's fabled clock the only sign that time was indeed moving forward as both women grappled with George's notes. Until the door to the dining room began to open, "Hermione?" Ron's voice ringing in the air.
"I…" She turned around to see Ron, "need a few minutes with…Minerva," Hermione forced the woman's name from her lips.
"Okay," he glanced past her to see McGonagall moving towards the breakfast nook, "it's just George and Mum came out so I thought you'd already dissolved the spell."
Hermione forced a smile across her face, "George just gave his notes to us, we were going to review them."
He nodded and stepped back, "I'll leave you to it then." He leaned up and kissed her cheek before taking the necessary three steps back and out of the kitchen; leaving them alone once more.
Hermione stared at the back of the door for several seconds before she forced herself to turn around and find Minerva. She was surprised to see the elder witch sitting at the breakfast nook, the folded parchment resting on the table, but her gaze seeming to stare out at the Weasley's gnome garden.
"From what I read, it seems as though George's containment spell is interlaced with braided unicorn hair and another metal that I am unfamiliar with."
"He or rather an alchemist altered the unicorn hair into a phasic strand with the containment spell embedded into the original base material," slowly she turned to meet the younger woman, "once the strand became separated into two pieces, it activated."
"How can we nullify the spell?" Hermione questioned, "As I don't think cutting the thread will work."
Despite herself, Minerva felt a hint of a smile flutter across her lips, "No, I doubt that will be successful. However," she reached up, taking her glasses from her face, "I believe a friend of mine may have some insight and be able to assist us."
"Then you don't know how to…"
"No," Minerva answered Hermione's question before it was finished, "but we'll find a way to counter it."
"You don't think anyone here…?"
"While everyone here are capable witches and wizards, I believe you'd concur that less time being – " her head tipped ever so much to the side as her eyes narrowed, "stuck, as it were, together, would be mutually agreeable?"
A blush instantly spread up Hermione's face as she nodded, "Not that I don't think you are uninteresting and that I don't enjoy spending time with you…"
"I believe we are of similar thoughts," Minerva finished closing the parchment and tucked it, along with glasses into her robes, "and let us leave it at that, shall we?"
Hermione nodded, "I…of course." She joined Minerva in standing, "Before we go, I'm going to say good-bye to Ron. If you can give me…" she paused, sighing. "Actually, I need you…"
Minerva merely motioned to the door, "After you." Minerva uttered and quietly followed the younger woman through the door where upon entry, they were bombarded with questions.
"We are going to see Helena Harrison, the Administrator of St. Mungos and ask for her assistance in rectifying the spell." Minerva stated over the throng of voices, "As it is beyond a simple counter spell to that of a containment spell. George will be joining us," her clipped tone brokering no counter-argument, "and we will of course, keep you abreast of the situation."
Hermione moved through the group with Minerva, motioning Ron to join them as they left the Weasley home. Ron and Hermione walked several steps behind George and a few more behind Minerva as they made their way past the family wards and to the apparition point. George came to stand beside Minerva, both looking away from Hermione and Ron as whispered words of soft reassurances were shared between the young couple, culminating in a brief kiss and hug. "I'll see you this evening." Ron breathed and Hermione merely kissed his cheek in response, not feeling quite so certain as she feigned a smile at her fiancé.
"I'm ready." Hermione stated as she stepped around George and into Minerva and George's vision.
Minerva merely nodded as she stretched out her hands, fingers barely brushing across both George and Hermione's arms a ripple fluttered across the air, the only noise permeating outward as she apparated to the inner sanctum of St. Mungos.
Xoxo