Alright. I know that it's been a bit of a downer the last few chapters, so...well, you'll just have to read, won't you? He, he. Evil. :P
Hermione quickly ran her fingers through her mussed hair as she walked down to the kitchens. She wanted to look a little bit presentable for the others. She had pride and no way would she let the Order see her hesitation.
She pulled her hair back into a pony tail and pushed the door open. What she saw made her stop in her tracks. Remus, Tonks, the Weasley family, and a few others that had been at the wedding surrounded the table. Their clothes were covered with dirt, smoke, burns, and, in some cases, blood. They all looked ragged and worn; as if they wouldn't be able to stand up without support.
Harry and Ron were talking to Remus and Tonks in low voices. Harry had his hand in Ginny's and Ron's arm was wrapped around Lavender's waist as she sat next to him. They all stopped talking when she came in. "Hermione," Harry said, standing up. He looked happier than when he had left her.
Hermione raised a quizzical eyebrow as he came up and smiled. "What's got you so happy?" she asked.
"We have another secret weapon to finish this war." He was practically buzzing with the news. At his words, the rest of the Order smiled through their haggard appearance.
This confused Hermione even more. "Alright," she said. "I'll bite. What's this secret weapon?"
Harry looked at Kreacher and nodded. The house elf walked over to a door and opened it. Hermione looked past her excited friend and her mouth dropped open as she saw what was behind the door.
"Mom! Dad!" she squealed, running up to them. She threw her arms around them and grinned as they held her close. She breathed in their familiar scent and relaxed about 100 fold. She pulled back and stared up at them. Their smiles were weak, but full of love. "What are you doing here?" she asked.
Narcissa hugged Hermione again. "We're so glad to see you, darling." She pulled back, keeping her hands on her shoulders. "It's a long story."
"But, short version," Lucius said, giving Hermione his own one armed hug, "is that we're now with the Order of the Phoenix. We're on the side that wants the Dark Lord destroyed."
Hermione sighed in relief, but paused. She looked around them and then around the kitchen. She turned back to her parents. "Where's Draco?" she asked, slightly afraid of the answer. "Isn't he with you?"
Lucius and Narcissa exchanged a look. "He'll be here shortly," he said.
"There's just a few things he needs to work out...back at the Manor." Narcissa finished, as if afraid of what her daughter might do.
Hermione paled. "He's at the Manor?" she said slowly. "With those Death Eaters? He's there alone?" She began to panic inside.
Narcissa captured Hermione's face between her hands. "Breathe, darling," she said calmly. "He'll be here soon. Don't worry about him. He can take care of himself."
She stared into her mother's eyes. "Then why are you shaking?" she asked softly.
The older woman smiled a bit wider. "Because I could really do with a cup of tea," she said.
Hermione smiled and nodded. "I'll get some started." She turned and started to make tea for everyone present. It kept her mind off of the danger Draco was probably in about now. It took her maybe 20 minutes to get everyone settled with a hot cup of tea. By that time, everyone had been bandaged up and was waiting for the next stage of planning.
"Alright," Harry said, taking charge of the situation. "We're going to end this war. Tomorrow, we'll attack Malfoy Manor and destroy Voldemort." He motioned to Narcissa, Lucius, and Hermione. "At the moment, we have three people who know the property inside and out. We'll use their knowledge to form an attack plan." The group nodded in understanding. Harry leaned forward and rested his hands on the table. "This is going to be dangerous," he said, slowly meeting everyone's gaze. "Many will die, but most of them will be those foul Death Eaters and their precious 'Lord'. We will fight, and we will win. With each spell we cast, they will fall until it is only Voldemort and us. He shall be taken down. When we win, we will save the Wizarding World. We will be heros."
Ron banged his fist on the table and let out a proud, "Yeah!" A few others around the table joined him in that yell, but Hermione just smiled. Harry had come a long way from the confused eleven year old she'd first met. Now, he was a leader.
Remus waved his wand and a scale replica of Malfoy Manor appeared on the table. Everyone scrunched up to view the model. Lucius pointed to the front gates. "The gates and the wards around the Manor are the first things you'll have to get through. Narcissa and I can take them down, but an alarm goes off when this happened. It will take half a second for the alarm to go off and about 2 minutes before the Death Eaters attack. The Dark-Voldemort has his followers on alert at all times." The slip was almost unnoticed, but Hermione knew it would take a while until Lucius would be able to say the name without fighting his Death Eater side.
Narcissa waved to the back of the Manor. "There's a forest surrounding the Manor, though the wards cut off at the edge. If forces are placed here," she pointed to a spot near the east side, "and here," she pointed to the west corner, "Then the entrance can easily be executed in about 2 and a half minutes. Just as the Death Eaters are coming out of the house. I suggest having your strongest magic wielders be in the back, as it's the weakest point. Most of the guard will be posted towards the front of the Manor, mostly to be keeping an eye out for suspicious activity. Only a few select, no more than 5 people, should approach the gate. That will be me, Lucius, Hermione, Ron, and Harry."
There was a stunned pause. Narcissa didn't look, or act, anything like a strategist, but she'd just set down an attack plan that Voldemort would be proud of. Hermione was even shocked. "Wow," she said. "I never knew you were so...sneaky, Mom."
Narcissa smiled. "You don't think your father would marry an air head, would you, dear?"
Hermione smiled. It was nice to have her family back.
"Who will make up the attack from the back?" Harry asked.
Remus chimed up, then. "We'll want the magical creatures to attack straight from the back," he said. "It'll push the enemy toward the front of the house and, with the others coming from the side, we'll be able to squeeze them together for a better attack. The battle should end quickly after that." He looked up and stared at Harry, who met his gaze head on. "You just worry about destroying Voldemort. That is your number one concern, Harry. Leave the rest of the battle to us."
He nodded. "I'll do my best to end this quickly," he said.
Hermione looked at the model and envisioned the battle. With their forces positioned and everything, it was quiet possible that they would win. "I have one question," she said. Everyone turned to her, their eyes and ears waiting for what she had to say.
"What's that?" Remus asked.
"When the wards are disabled, how will the forces know to move?" she asked.
There was a silent pause as everyone considered this. The pause extended for a few minutes until Lavender snapped her fingers. "We'll have a signal," she said. "One that only we know." She turned to Hermione. "Like the coins you charmed for when we were first starting up Dumbledore's Army."
"You did that?" Lucius said. He looked...impressed. Proud. So did Narcissa.
She squeezed her hand. "I always knew you were a bright witch," she said.
Harry smiled. "That she is," he said before turning to the others. "We'll use the coins. The groups will have a leader. That leader, along with an extra person, will hold a coin that will turn hot when the attack is to start. The moment their coin warms, they attack. No ifs, ands, or buts. Got it?" The table nodded. "Good. Now, we need to get in touch with the other members of the Order, as well as the magical creatures who are joining us, heck, even call in the others from Hogwarts. We need to get them together by the end of the day. I'll have Kreacher keep the floo network open and secure." He smiled to everyone around the table. "You've had a long night. Get some rest and freshen up. You'll need all your strength for tomorrow."
The chairs were pushed back and people slowly began to exit the room. Some members leaned on each other and others just staggered a bit. Harry stayed with Ron, Ginny, and Remus to plan farther ahead. Hermione turned to her parents and smiled. "I'm glad you're here," she admitted.
"We're glad you're safe," Narcissa said, stroking Hermione's cheek. "And I'm so sorry we had to push you away. It really pained us."
Hermione placed her hand over her mother's. "I know, Mom," she said. "I understand."
They shared a smile.
BOOM!
The whole room jumped to their feet, wands drawn as they looked at the figure who had noisily shown up in the room. They were laying face down on the kitchen table and groaned. The robes on their body were shredded, but it didn't seem that they were hurt.
"Ow! Merlin, that hurt," the figure said, shaking their head and sitting up.
Hermione lunged forward when she saw who it was, and wrapped her arms around his neck. The person was stunned. She pulled back and smacked his arm.
"God, Draco! Don't you ever use your brain? What was the big idea, giving everyone a heart attack with that entrance? You're so stupid sometimes!" Hermione ranted, smacking him in the chest, arms, and shoulders until she wound down. She panted and glared at him for a few moments.
He smiled that charming smile. "I'm not dead," he said.
She stared at him, then started to giggle. It turned into a chuckle, then into full blown laughter. She laughed so hard that tears began to form in her eyes. Everyone stared at her for a moment in complete confusion. Except Draco. He only smirked and ruffled her hair.
She reached up and captured his wrist so he couldn't escape. Hermione leaned forward, wove her fingers into his blond white hair, and pressed her lips to his. It wasn't a sisterly kiss. Oh, no. Not even close. It was a kiss that clearly stated her non-sisterly feelings. To say it took everyone by surprise...would be an understatement.
Hermione pulled back and said, "For that, I am truly grateful." She turned on her heel and left the room, leaving the remaining occupants to stare after her in bewilderment, confusion, happiness, and pride.
Alright! Bring on the reviews. How about that last scene, huh? My weird inspiration (aka Bob, the imaginary gerbil), is the one to be credited/blamed. Hope you all liked it. (Didn't I say this would be a happy chapter?) ;)