"Love is our resistance

They'll keep us apart and they

won't stop breaking us down

Hold me

Our lips must always be sealed"

-"Resistance", Muse

The Resistance

Chapter Ten

A/N: Hey there! Sorry for the late update, I've been so busy! Enjoy! (and please continue with your lovely reviews, I love you guys!) Btw: this is the second last chapter of this story, and then I'll be creating a third fic :-)

"Harry!" Hermione suddenly hissed, "look over there."

Subtly, Hermione nodded toward the other entrance to the cemetery. Harry and Ophelia followed their friend's gaze, to find the figure of an old woman, eyeing them with interest.

Ophelia felt a shiver overtake her, and placed her hand, protectively over her baby bump.

"Is she looking at us?" Ophelia whispered. She knew the answer to her question, but hoped that Hermione might lie to her, and tell her that it would all be alright. Ophelia needed to hear that.

The old woman nudged slightly, in the direction of the cobbled street behind her, as if she wanted them to follow her.

Ophelia got to her feet, with difficulty, and brushed the snow off of her knees.

"I think we should follow her," Harry breathed.

"Harry...I don't think-,"

"Hermione, if we don't do this, we may never find the sword. This woman knows something, I can feel it."

Although Ophelia was extremely wary of the hunched figure, she silently agreed that they might have to take this risk. Their search was going nowhere.

Hobbling alongside Harry and Hermione, Ophelia set after the old woman, a feeling of fear deeply embedded in her chest.

As they drew nearer, Harry spoke up.

"Are you Bathilda?" he prompted.

Ophelia supposed he meant Bathilda Baggshot, the famed historian.

The woman neither agreed nor disagreed, but merely encouraged them to follow her further.

They reached a house with a foul smell, and she paused to unlock the door.

The trio exchanged a look, but silently recognized that they needed to follow her.

They entered the house, only to find that the smell was persistent.

"I know it's not just my heightened senses," Ophelia muttered to Hermione, "it smells like rot."

Hermione opened her mouth to respond, but was silenced by a sharp look from Harry.

Under the light of their wands, they could see that the house had certainly been abandoned. Books and various other objects were strewn around the house, lamps were knocked over, and there was a thick layer of dust over all the cabinets.

Ophelia stopped to inspect a book she'd trodden on: Magic Herbs of Northern Ireland. She was almost tempted to open it, when she was perturbed by speckles of what she suspected to be dried blood, and carefully placed the book back on the floor.

"Harry, wait-," Hermione protested, as Harry set off up the stairs, after the old woman.

"It'll be fine," Harry reassured, and disappeared around the corner.

Hermione gulped, and continued to look through the house.

"Hermione," Ophelia spoke softly, "I don't think this woman is...all there."

"She's certainly left her house to ruins," Hermione agreed, perusing the shelves of a wayside bookshelf.

"Look," Hermione muttered, picking up a copy of a large pink volume. Ophelia reached for the other copy.

The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore, it read.

Hermione heaved the cover open, sending out a flurry of dust, and the two began to flip through the pages.

Ophelia rolled her eyes at the propaganda that Rita Skeeter seemed to spew out like a paper mill.

Ophelia had never had a personal connection with Dumbledore, and she certainly had her suspicious. But ever since...that night, she felt a painful sense of guilt and horror when she thought of his lifeless body, falling from the tower.

Work Colleagues

Ophelia frowned as she read the heading of a chapter, toward the middle of the book.

Albus Dumbledore, despite his secrets, managed to make a fair amount of friends throughout his career at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Some say he only managed to procure the job as Transfiguration Professor because Armando Dippet was a family friend of the Dumbledores'...

Ophelia skimmed past a few paragraphs about Dumbeldore's relationships with the professors at Hogwarts, many years ago.

But she managed to find what she was looking for, and dreading.

He had his own heading.

Severus Snape.

Perhaps one of the most complicated relationships of all, aside from his with Potter or Grindewald, was the relationship between the headmaster his most trusted professor. Severus Snape attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from the years 1971-1978, under the reign of Albus Dumbledore.

Did Dumbledore's mysterious ways and connection to the dark arts, intrigue the young Snape? Perhaps. For Snape returned in 1981, to take the position of Potions Professor and Head of Slytherin House. Dumbledore clearly trusted Snape enough to leave him with such a high position.

But the intricacies of what existed between Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape remain unknown to us. Were the two like-minded wizards planning something evil? Was Snape always eager to overthrow his employer?

All we know is that Albus Dumbeldore fell from the Astronomy Tower last June: the result of the murderous Severus Snape's work.

Was Severus Snape an ambitious monster, or possibly a misunderstood soul, who saw Dumbledore for who he really was?

Ophelia felt bile rise in her throat, and, suddenly, found herself throwing the book across the room with as much force as possible, tumbling over some empty bottles.

"Ophelia!" Hermione hissed. But Ophelia's friend held back any other words, reading the pain in Ophelia's face.

Ophelia stubbornly wiped away the tears that were building in her eyes.

"We need to leave," Ophelia decided, with a sniff, "something's not right."

"Harry!?" Hermione called up the stairs, her voice quivering with concern, "HARRY!?"

Hermione grabbed hold of Ophelia's hand, and they slowly made their way up the stairs.

"NO!" Harry screamed.

"Harry, what's going-?" Harry shrieked as a monstrous python snapped at her. She shoved Ophelia and herself against the wall, sliding down and just missing the snake's fangs.

Hermione grabbed Harry, and the trio held tight to each other.

It took all of Ophelia's will to steady her hand, as she rubbed the sterilized cloth against Harry's forearm.

"Wh-What?" Harry snapped awake, sliding out of his cot, "what's going on? We got away?"

Ophelia cooed incoherent reassurances, as she persistently cleaned his wound. But Harry would not be soothed into silence.

"Hermione?"

"Yes, we got out," Hermione whispered, her eyes searing into the floor, "only just."

"What was wrong with me? Was I unconscious?"

Hermione gaped.

"I-I don't know Harry: not quite. You were rolling around and moaning. It was like you were possessed."

Harry turned desperately back to Ophelia, in need of a diagnosis.

Ophelia sighed and shook her head, as she re-bandaged Harry's snake bite.

"It was the horcrux," Ophelia tired to explain, "Hermione had to use a searing charm to get it off you."

Harry sat up and inspected the mark where the locket had lain against his chest.

There was an unsettling silence.

"Well...where to next, then?" Harry huffed.

Hermione moved closer to her friend, and the two began to talk of their plans.

Meanwhile, Ophelia stood, brushed her hands against her dress, and walked over to the fire.

"I'm leaving," she said, to no one in particular.

Harry and Hermione looked up; shocked.

"I can't stay here any longer. The baby could come any week- any day- now."

"We...we knew you couldn't stay with us forever," Hermione admitted, "but...it's so strange to hear it now."

Ophelia felt a fluttering in her chest. Did they finally see her value?

"Where are you going?" Harry inquired, "you could go to the Weasleys. They'd keep you and the baby safe."

Ophelia shook her head.

"I'm going to Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts!" Hermione protested, "but...Snape's there."

"I know," Ophelia practically spat, "but so is my mother. I need this, Hermione. I need to know that things will be okay. Being with my mother might be the closest thing I get to that."

"But...," Hermione trailed off, "after you have the baby...what will you do? Will we see you again?"

Ophelia took a deep breath.

"I don't know."

A/N: Next chapter is an exciting chapter, look forward to it! Also please review!