Chapter 29
Shock
Hermione tried to scream, but her mouth wasn't working. Her eyes were on the dead bodies before her. For some reason, the thing that was foremost in her mind was she was going to be able to see Thestrals now. Odd, this was the first time she'd seen someone die. Considering how many people she'd known that had actually died…and that this was Harry's…fourth time?
The pointless thoughts pounded in her head. The others seemed frozen around her too. The first person able to break out of the trance was Dudley.
"Mum! Dad!" Dudley scrambled forward on his hands and knees towards his parents. "What…this isn't…"
Bellatrix rolled her eyes and pointed her wand at Dudley, now frantically shaking his father's shoulder. "Too easy. IAvada-/I
"No!" Harry leaped forward and grabbed Bellatrix's wrist, skewing her aim so the wall next to them exploded with brick dust. Both of them fell to the ground, wrestling over the wand. Hermione, now regaining the feeling back in her legs, fumbled for hers, which she had dropped in her shock. It was impossible to see in the darkness. "Accio…" she muttered and the object flew into her hand before she could finish her incantation. Dimly she could hear screams in the background, all along the street. The Muggles had woken up to the nightmare outside.
Bellatrix kicked Harry in the stomach and cried out a incoherent incantation, and suddenly their friend was convulsing all over the ground.
"Harry!" Ron cries and ran forward to drag Harry out of the way, and Bellatrix turned her wand on him, but Hermione cried "Petrificus Totalus!" and the woman was forced to get out of the way. But Lestrange turned her wand on the sky instead "Morsmodre! And the Dark Mark glittered like a homing beacon.
Planplanplan! Hermione's brain screamed as Death Eaters appeared all around them. There were only about four of them….they could take them…Stupefy…
All she had to do was think and the curse was flying out of her mind and through her wand, toward a Death Eater who deflected it with "Protego!"
"Don't kill Potter! The rest of them don't matter!" She wasn't sure if anyone actually said this, or if it was just playing over in her mind from the many times she'd heard it, as her mouth said spells and her hand fired them, her body and mind seemingly disconnected. She had no idea what was going on around her, and it came as a big shock, when suddenly with an "Avada Kedavra!" Lucius Malfoy (where had he come from, anyway?) was standing over Dudley's dead body and saying to a Harry who somehow seemed okay now "Come with us, Potter, or I kill them all!"
And then, more shouted curses, and Ron was tugging on her arm, and all pulling in together, and Hermione knew to Apparate with them, and as she willed herself to safety, and dropped into a clearing, she also knew she had no idea where she was, or what had just happened.
The others were around her, as she had held on tight, and as she sat there stunned, listening to a few of them vomit, Ginny was crying…she realized she couldn't breathe. Ron put his arm around her shoulder as she struggled to do so. She hugged him tightly and began to cry, and he cried too, and it was a long time before she could hear sound again.
"…how is he…of Azakaban…?"
"You haven't been…news, Harry. They've been…months…"
"Never should…gone. God, this is…"
"…happened….can't change it…"
"…too much…"
"Hermione….okay?"
"Yes," she managed to say hoarsely, as Ginny knelt beside her and Ron. Her brain was pounding painfully in her head.
"At least we're alive," Ginny sighed.
"They're not."
"…yeah."
They sat there for a long time before they decided to get some sleep. They set up the tent magically, a huge one like the Quidditch worried up. Harry said he needed to think, and he'd stay outside a little longer. Hermione bunked with Ron, wanting to be near him. She fell asleep pretty quickly, wanting to forget.
When she woke up, Harry was peering down at her and she found she couldn't move. She mouthed soundlessly, and saw Ron awake beside her. Harry ran his fingers through his messy hair, looking sad. Finally he spoke.
"This is stupid…but I just wanted to say goodbye before I went."
It said a lot about how well she knew Harry that she immediately what he meant.
Raven: I will go
with you.
Robin: We won't let them take you!
Starfire:
You need to get back in the safety room! Please!
Raven: I
can't hide from my destiny any longer.
Beast Boy: No!
(Raven turns around and
knocks all of them unconscious with her powers)
Raven:
(softly, ruefully) Goodbye. Be safe.
