Chapter 9: Missing
Grimmauld Place
July 30: 7:28pm
Remus Lupin struggled through layers of deep sleep. He knew that something had happened and he needed to tell someone. He wracked his brain trying to remember what he had witnessed, but he drew a blank. His head pounded and he groaned.
"Calm down, Remus, you'll be back to normal in a day or two," Poppy Pomfrey reassured the Order member as she ran a new diagnostic spell checking his condition. Remus's increased healing would serve him well, and help him recover much more quickly than many of her other patients. She moved efficiently and handed him a potion vial filled with a thick bluish substance.
"Drink it all down, dear, then get some rest," she instructed her voice brooking no argument. Remus stretched out a trembling hand and took the vial. She helped him steady it, and he drank it all down in one gulp. He grimaced at the taste, and barely had time to hand the vial back to her before he was once again drifting back to sleep.
Poppy Pomfrey placed the empty vial on a nearby table, then turned to her next patient. Molly Weasley lay recovering in the next bed, and Poppy ran another diagnostic on her as well. Nodding at the patient's improved condition, she tucked the blanket closer around the older woman. Molly would be up and about by tomorrow morning. She'd insisted on keeping her in the make shift infirmary at Grimmauld Place because of the woman's head injury, and the difficulty she had with reviving her earlier.
"How is she?" Bill Weasley questioned from where he sat in a nearby chair.
"Quite well, she'll be up and fussing over you and the others by morning, I warrant," Poppy returned with a smile. "Now, how's your arm feeling?" She quickly walked up to the eldest Weasley child and ran another test on his bandaged arm that she insisted he keep in a sling. A severing charm had nearly taken it off, and she certainly didn't want to hamper the knitting of the bone and muscle that would be necessary.
"I'm good, any chance I can get out of here?" Bill shot her a winsome smile, trying to be his most charming.
"Nice try, but no, you'll be here at least overnight as well. I want to make sure everything is progressing nicely before I let you out of my sight," Poppy insisted clearing off a cluttered tabletop and putting things in their place. She appreciated the moment to think of cleaning and replenishing her supplies. After clearing that table, she went on with her check of the remaining patients in the room. She'd sent Hestia Jones and Arthur Weasley on to St. Mungos, unable to do anything more for them.
With a little shake of her head she determined not to focus on them, but on the others she was able to care for and cure. Her other patients had included Fred Weasley, Dedalus Diggle, Jane Ghent, and Oliver Merck. Of them, only Jane and Dedalus occupied the other two beds in the infirmary. Having that many injured Order members all at once had left the matron barely able to keep up with the injured. She'd conscripted both Ginny Weasley and Dobby into helping her deal with the patients, fetching her supplies and taking care of feeding the patients and providing them with water.
The battle at Diagon Alley had lasted for some time, and come at a cost to both life and business. She was anxious to hear the final totals at the meeting later that evening. Originally, she had been wary of joining the Order, but many of her colleagues were members and she knew that with the upcoming battles, they would need someone to heal them. Albus had stopped by briefly just after the battle to check on those he'd sent to Grimmauld, before heading out again to look for others and assess damages. She did not envy him the job of helping to clean things up and figure out how the attack had managed to be so successful for the Death Eaters. Then again, the Ministry was woefully unprepared for a war and it seemed that now that people knew he was back, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was bent on striking out against any who might oppose him.
July 30: 7:56pm
Albus Dumbledore sat down heavily feeling every one of his one hundred fifty plus years. Harry Potter was missing. Last seen entering the fray from the Weasley's shop, no one knew what had happened to him. Harry attended the reading of the will against the headmaster's better judgment. The others insisted it would help the young man reach closure. He had worried about the issue of safety. Then again most of the Order and double the normal contingent of aurors were on hand in the alley. He had taken every precaution possible, while still allowing the young man some freedom. Wanting to review his own recollections of the battle, he stood and approached his pensieve. Thinking about the day, and the battle, he touched his wand tip against his temple and began to extract his memories. Perhaps he'd seen something, and in the heat of the battle, not realized its importance. He added the thoughts and swirled them around, then immersed himself in the battle once more, this time to observe and search for clues as to what happened to Harry.
Grimmauld Place
July 30 - 8:34pm
Hermione curled herself into an overstuffed chair in the Black family library. Her eyes red rimmed, she didn't know what to do. The last time she'd seen Harry, he'd rushed out of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes intent to join the fight. She knew she should have stopped him. Now, Harry was missing. Headmaster Dumbledore hadn't said as much, but he never returned to them, and the Headmaster had asked her where he was, as if he expected Harry to be with she and Ron and the others. Had he been captured? Or perhaps injured and sent to St. Mungos instead of to Grimmauld? So much had happened in the last several hours.
She thought about her parents, grateful that Kingsley had reported back that they were fine. She felt a pang for Ron and Ginny. Ron went with George to check on their father at St. Mungos, while Ginny stayed behind with Fred to make sure he followed Madam Pomfrey's orders. All in all, the Weasley family had taken more than its fair share of injuries with Arthur, Molly, Bill, and Fred all suffering some level of injury. Suddenly the war was hitting home with the young woman. The victims weren't nameless people or even her classmate's families. The Weasley's were like her own family. And Arthur Weasley might not pull through, something she couldn't imagine.
'Please let Harry be alright,' she thought as silent tears rolled down her cheeks. She'd never lost someone close to her. She couldn't imagine being in Ron's position with both his parents injured, and his father critically so. Part of her wished she'd gone with him, but Dumbledore had insisted that the fewer people who went to St. Mungos, the better considering the sheer number of injured sent there earlier. But now it left her waiting, worrying and not knowing what to do.
Grimmauld Place
July 30 - 11:00pm
More than a dozen people crowded into the kitchen at Grimmauld Place. Most of the occupants of the room looked tired, many had eyes rimmed in red from crying, and others just looked dazed. The room was unusually silent preceeding the meeting, and no one had yet objected to the fact that Hermione and Ginny remained in the room. The hearth flared and out stepped Albus Dumbledore, looking decidedly rumpled himself. Oddly enough the room seemed to grow even quieter with the presence of their leader.
"Good evening everyone," Dumbledore greeted quietly taking a seat at the head of the table. "It has been a long and costly day, and I appreciate your dedication for being here." Several heads nodded at that message.
"Several businesses on Diagon Alley suffered major damage, but worse still, thirteen people were killed, and another thirty or more were treated at St. Mungos. Our own Madam Pomfrey treated another nine Order members," he paused here for a moment, "and it pains me to report that Arthur Weasley has passed away." Ginny broke down at this and Hermione put her arms around her and pulled her into a hug. The smaller girl sobbed into her friends shoulder.
"What else?" Moody prodded knowing there had to be something else.
"I have also discovered that two individuals are missing. Nymphadora Tonks and Harry Potter are missing. At this point, it seems most likely that Death Eaters have captured the two, but I have been unable to confirm that theory." The aging headmaster looked grim.
"I saw Tonks fighting near Gringotts at one point," Moody offered hoping to encourage others to speak up as well.
"Harry charged off into the battle from the twins shop right after Mrs. Weasley was injured," Hermione revealed her voice trembling.
"I never noticed Harry in the battle," a newer Order member, Helena Graves stated.
"Tonks was fighting side by side with someone who had their hood raised," Alicia Spinnet threw out, "It could have been Harry."
"Good, is there anything else you remember about the two?"
"One of them was definitely Tonks, she's the only witch I know with pink hair. Whoever she was fighting with was a pretty experienced dueler. I assumed it was another auror with the way they kept taking out death eaters," she added thinking back over what she'd observed. She'd actually paused in the fighting to watch the two for a moment.
"Mr. Potter has proven himself a survivor, but I can't imagine that a Hogwarts' student could be mistaken for an experienced auror," Minerva McGonagall expressed the comment many considered. A murmur of assent passed through the group.
"But it does make sense," Angelina defended her friends comments. "Tonks and Harry disappeared from a battle, and during that battle Tonks was fighting with a partner. Are any other aurors missing?"
"No, Mr. Potter and Miss Tonks are the only ones unaccounted for, I appreciate the information. If any of you have anything else to add now or later, please let me know," Dumbledore thanked them processing this new information. "For now, we shall continue on with our usual assignments, and please, all of you, keep a watch for our missing members." As the group began to disperse, many approached Ginny to offer their condolences. None of the other Weasleys had attended the meeting.
"I am truly sorry, Miss Weasley. Your brothers will be returning soon," Dumbledore informed the still crying girl. Hermione cried with her not knowing what else to say or do.
Unknown
Harry woke with a start jerking upright, hitting his head hard and groaning in pain.
"Owe," Tonks shrieked her hand going to her forehead. She noticed that Harry's nightmares were getting worse, but she wasn't prepared for his sudden movement. Harry stilled at the voice. The last few hours came back to him in a rush. Tonks, he'd hit Tonks.
"Sorry," he breathed embarrassed that she'd witnessed his nightmare and that he'd hit her even if it was accidental. 'At least it's too dark to really see anything,' he thought thinking he must look a mess covered in sweat, his head pounding.
"It's alright," she replied lowering her hand away from her face. "You okay?" She questioned wishing she could see him better.
"I'm fine," he responded automatically. "How long was I asleep?" He said hoping to distract her.
"Not sure, it's nearly impossible to tell time here. I even tried a spell, and it didn't work," she informed him deciding not to hold back on any information. He deserved to know.
"I'll keep watch if you want to get some rest," he offered knowing he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep.
"You should try to get some more rest. You couldn't have been asleep more than a couple of hours," she replied worry creeping into her voice. Harry shifted slightly sitting up straighter.
"I'm good," he answered.
"You're a bad liar," she informed him smiling even though she knew he couldn't see it.
"I'm not lying," he insisted holding his voice steady. 'Please don't push it,' he prayed.
"And I wasn't born yesterday," Tonks countered beginning to wonder why she was pushing so hard.
"Tonks, please, just leave it alone," he decided to request letting out a breath. "I'm not going to be able to go back to sleep right now, so you might as well get some rest." A hand touched his arm then moved along it to his shoulder. Harry didn't know what to think.
"Thank you for being honest with me," she said reassuringly as she gently squeezed his shoulder in an attempt to offer comfort. "If you need to talk about it, I'm here," she added softly.
"Thanks," he replied softly appreciating the gesture.
"Anytime," Tonks responded with feeling. "Wake me in a few hours," she requested recasting her heating charm and adding a cushioning charm to her blanket before settling down to try to sleep.
"Wish I'd thought of that cushioning charm," Harry remarked attempting to lighten the mood. Tonks yawned. She really was tired.
"You'll remember next time," she assured him trying to find a somewhat comfortable position. As Tonks tried to sleep, Harry tried to stay alert listening for any changes in their surroundings. The same eerie stillness from before still enveloped them along with the darkness. He thought about his friends, and hoped they made it home safe. He wished he and Tonks were with them. He sighed and started trying to recall defensive spells he knew to keep himself alert. It wouldn't be smart to drift off into his thoughts and miss a threat to their safety. Tonks trusted him to keep them both safe, and he intended to reward her faith in him.
Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed the update. I fixed the issue with Mundungus appearing as an injured Order member in this chapter, when he technically died in an earlier chapter. Thank you to the reviewers who caught that for me. It's been a long time since I worked with a beta, and I've never worked with one on this story. The handful of edits in this chapter were to bring it more in line with the rest of the story and clear up problems like the one with Dung. Edits were made on November 18, 2012. Reviews are always welcome and enjoyed!
Disclaimer: If I owned the characters I wouldn't be typing out fan fiction stories, I would be publishing more books or sitting back and enjoying my millions. Unfortunately, I do not own them and no money is being made from this story.
