Chapter 32: Interceptions
Disclaimer: This story was made without any intention of profiting from it. Only the original characters and the plot are mine. The rest of it belongs to JKR.
A/N: Here's the next chapter. I'm sorry for the delay but I had a bit of writer's block for a while. Still, it's here. Enjoy and please review.
Chapter 38: Hogsmeade again
The night after Hermione's birthday was the first meeting of the Dueling Club. After a discussion with Professor Shacklebolt, Harry decided the members of the club needed some tactical and group training to give them some advantage over the Death Eaters anytime an attack happened.
To keep this knowledge a secret, he, Hermione, Ginny and Rose came up with a magical oath for the members to take. He made sure the oath was approved by the Headmaster, Deputy Headmistress and Professor Shacklebolt so that none of the members would object to it.
That proved unnecessary since all the old members agreed to take the oath without hesitation. There were some new members who were a bit hesitant to take such a binding oath but they finally agreed. Harry asked Ron and Hermione to start the new students on the Shield charm. For the old members, Harry had them review a few of the spells learned the previous year.
At the end of the meeting, Professor Shacklebolt told Harry he was very impressed with the students. He now knew why they had managed to hold off the Death Eaters during the attack on the carriage. He agreed on the proposed schedule of Friday nights and Sunday mornings for the Dueling Club meetings.
On Saturday, the Gryffindor Quidditch team had another practice. Ron planned more practices over the next two weeks to prepare the team for the first game of the season in the second weekend of November where they would face Ravenclaw. He had to make sure the three female Chasers worked well together. He also needed to have the reserve players practice in case one of the regulars got severely injured or knocked unconscious during a game to need replacing.
Hermione was again in the stands, watching the team practice while reading a textbook, this time the sixth year Charms textbook. She watched as Rose, Ginny and Katie went through a complicated maneuver that allowed Ginny to score against Ron.
Ginny flew over to Rose to share a high five with the taller redhead as Ron shouted "Well done, Ginny!" Rose said something to her best friend before glancing up higher. Hermione followed her gaze to spot Harry who had a wide grin on his face. Hermione shook her head on seeing this since it was obvious he had been watching his girlfriend/soul mate. That meant he hadn't been concentrating on the task Ron had set him on for this practice session which was facing off against Sharon Green, the Gryffindor reserve Seeker in looking for the Snitch to give some experience to the second year girl.
Looking around, Hermione saw that Sharon had already spotted the Snitch and was giving chase to the elusive golden winged ball. It seemed Rose had seen the same thing, since she shouted something at Harry which wasn't complimentary to her brother's Seeking skills. Harry groaned audibly and quickly tore off after Sharon and the Snitch. Unfortunately, Sharon caught it before Harry had gotten within ten feet of her. Doubly unfortunately for him, Ron had noticed and the redhead boy flew toward his best friend, presumably to tear a strip out of Harry's hide.
Hermione shook her head at the language her boyfriend was using as he shouted at Harry to pay attention to the Snitch and not his girlfriend. A few minutes later, Ron had Ginny, Katie and Rose land to give Ti, Maggie and Demelza a chance to practice. The reserve Chasers weren't as synchronized as the three main ones but they were already good.
After a few more minutes of watching them, Hermione turned her attention back to her book. As she read about the difficulty of some healing charms, she felt the presence of someone else beside her. Looking up, she was surprised to see Draco Malfoy sitting beside her, watching the Gryffindor reserves, in particular his brother.
"He's really a good flyer, isn't he?" Draco asked, not taking his eyes off Ti. "I never knew he flew so well before last year when he played in that game against Ravenclaw."
Hermione watched him for a few seconds before replying, "Yeah, Ti's very good. You would have known about his flying skill if you had been a better brother to him."
Draco shrugged his shoulders, "Yeah, yeah, I know. Cousin Sirius already told me something like that when my mother and I were staying with them. Look, Granger, uh…Hermione, what's past is past. I'm trying to make up for it, okay?"
"All right…Draco," Hermione said, "I hope you are doing it for the right reasons, 'cause if Harry and the rest of Ti's friends find out this is some twisted scheme of you or your father, it may get messy."
Draco turned to her, a wounded look in her eyes, "Oh, you wound me, Hermione," he said, "You guys are still suspicious of me after I voluntarily helped my mother get away from Father?"
"I'm just warning you, Draco," Hermione said. What else she wanted to say was drowned by a shout.
"Oi, Malfoy!" Ron's voice crashed on them in an ear-splitting volume, "Get the hell out of here!"
Hermione looked up to see Ron glaring at them, still hovering on his broom. Behind him, the team seemed to still be in the midst of practice with Melinda Pipper now playing Keeper. Luckily for Ron, Ti had not noticed Draco there or he would have gotten mad at Ron.
"Well, better go," Draco said, "See you around, Hermione. By the way, you're looking quite pretty today." He moved off quickly, leaving Hermione speechless.
Ron landing beside her broke Hermione out of her shock. "Hermione," Ron whined, "Why the hell did you let Malfoy spy on us? How long has he been there?"
"Oh, calm down, Ronald," Hermione said, "He was just watching Ti fly."
"Are you nutters, Hermione?" Ron asked, "How can I calm down when old ferret face probably saw all those plays we were practicing?"
"Ron!" Hermione said, "Don't call him that. It's vulgar. His name is Draco."
"Oh, on first name basis with him already, are you?" Ron asked.
"It's only common courtesy, Ron," Hermione said, "He's been courteous and respectful to me since we got back to Hogwarts. I really think we should give him a chance to be friends with us, for Ti's sake."
"A chance to be friends with Malfoy?" Ron asked, "More likely a chance to backstab us, all for the sake of his little brother who could be doing the same thing to us." He looked up at the sky, looking at Ti, who was passing the Quaffle around with Maggie and Demelza. "How do we know Malfoy hadn't turned him against us while he was staying with him and Sirius?"
"How can you think that, Ron?" Hermione said, "He's right up there, playing as part of our team."
"Then he might be pretending to enjoy being with us," Ron said, "For all we know, he's already told Malfoy all we've been doing, like the animagus training and probably even the wandless and wordless magic."
"That's it, Ron," Hermione said, "I don't want to hear anymore of your paranoid delusions. I'm leaving." She got up and left the stands.
Ron watched her go with a sigh. He just didn't like her talking to Malfoy. Even if he was a Death Eater in the making, Malfoy was more handsome and richer than he was. Ron was afraid Hermione might come to like Malfoy better.
Ron sighed again. He'll find a way to make it up to her. The first visit to Hogsmeade was coming up in three weeks time. Most of the village had been rebuilt after the attack several months ago, including the Three Broomsticks.
He was sure going around with him would cheer her up. He just had to plan it well. This time, he'd have something special for her. With that thought in his mind banishing his earlier insecurity over Malfoy, Ron mounted his broom and headed back up into the air, just as Melinda let Demelza score.
"Oi!" Ron shouted, "What the hell are you doing, Mel? That's one of the oldest tricks. You shouldn't have fallen for that."
So, with his concern over his reserve team counterpart filling his mind, Ron's focus shifted to his favorite game and his thoughts on the Hogsmeade weekend were thrown to the back of his mind.
Rose awoke with a start. She was lying in her bed, on top of the covers. After a moment of wondering why she wasn't under the covers, she remembered what she had been planning to do the night before and groaned.
She had intended to meditate and go Astral walking but being tired from both Quidditch practice and doing the large amount of homework the professors insisted on giving the fifth years in preparation for their O.W.L.s, she had been exhausted and promptly fallen asleep as soon as she sat in her bed. She just hoped that nothing bad happened last night that she could have prevented by seeing it on her Astral walk.
She glanced at her bedside table where her watch was. She took a look at the luminous face and saw that it was five in the morning. It had been ten when she had climbed on her bed. That meant she had been asleep for about seven hours.
She still felt a bit tired in spite of that which wasn't surprising since she'd been doing her Astral thing every night for the past month. This meant she had been going to sleep at two or three in the morning. Since she and the rest of the New Marauders were getting up at six for their morning run and martial arts sessions, it meant she was getting only three or four hours of sleep a day. So, the previous night's rest only helped her a bit.
Still, Rose thought it was worth it. She had managed to catch three attacks on Muggle villages and warned her father, passing them off as visions. So far, James had accepted her word and was grateful for the warnings.
Rose sighed and got up, heading for the loo. Looking in the mirror, she saw that her eyes were red and had sagging eyebags underneath them. Her cheeks were also paler than usual and her hair hung limply with its dark red color a bit dimmed. In other words, she looked awful, most likely from her lack of sleep.
Rose hurried to shower before Ginny got up. If anyone would notice how bad she looked, it would be her best friend. If Ginny found out, Harry would know almost immediately due to the bond they shared. Then her father would find out and then her Astral walks would be over. She needed to do them since it was the only way she'd be able to help in the war against Voldemort.
Once she was showered, she cast several Glamour charms she had read in a book on Witching grooming. They gave her cheeks a healthy glow and banished the redness of her eyes and the eyebags. She managed to brush her hair to remove the tangles and cast another charm to bring out its redness. She then dressed in a pair of jogging pants and a t-shirt showing the Holyhead Harpies. Once she was done, she went down to the common room to await her brother and their friends.
It was twenty minutes later before any of them came down to the common room. By then, Rose had fallen asleep on the couch in front of the fireplace.
Neville smirked at the sight that greeted him when he came down the stairs to meet the rest of his friends for their morning run and martial arts session. Rose was sprawled on the couch in front of the fireplace, fast asleep. She looked so beautiful. For the nth time he thanked Merlin, God, Fate or whoever was responsible for letting him be with her.
Neville padded silently over to her and leaned down. He pressed his lips gently on hers. After a few seconds, he felt her return the kiss then her hands wrapped around his waist and pulled him closer to her. They continued to kiss until they felt the need for air. Pulling back, they rested their foreheads together.
"Good morning," Neville whispered.
"It sure is whenever I can wake up to that," Rose whispered back.
Neville sat down on the floor in front of the couch as he said, "I fully agree with that," he said, "Why'd you fall asleep on the couch, Rose? I thought you'd be used to waking up this early already."
Rose shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know, Nev. I guess I'm a bit tired from studying."
Neville frowned, "Are you sure? It wasn't that late when you went up to bed last night."
"Look, maybe I read a bit while in bed before going to sleep," Rose said, "What's the big deal? It's my first time to fall asleep waiting for everyone to get down here for our run."
"Yes, that's true," Neville said, "But I've noticed you looking sleepier than usual this last week. Have you been having trouble sleeping? You're not having nightmares from your visions, are you?"
Rose shook her head, "No, I'm not. I'm not having trouble sleeping. I'm just stressed out from all the work the professors are giving us for O.W.L.s."
Before Neville could reply, they heard footsteps and voices from both stairs. A few second later, Harry and Ron came down the boys' stairs while Hermione, Maggie and Ginny appeared at the foot of the girls' stairs, all talking amongst themselves.
Rose quickly got up to join the other three girls. Neville shook his head, puzzled by her behavior. He'd have to watch her more closely.
James sat back in his chair in the Minister for Magic's office. It was already the middle of October and things were getting worse in the war. The Muggle world had suffered from many disasters, both large and small over the past month and a half. Just in the last week, the collapse of a bridge in Essex in the middle of the day and the collision of two trains had led to the deaths of dozens of Muggles.
Thankfully, Wizarding Britain had not seen that level of attention from the Death Eaters after the attack on the student carriages outside Hogwarts' grounds. True, there had been a few attacks on wizards and witches but most of them had been against individual families. The couple of times larger communities had been attacked, the Aurors had managed to intervene, thanks again to Rose's warnings from visions she had had.
Strangely enough, he hadn't heard any mention from Harry about the visions. He hadn't asked Harry if Rose had told him about them the few times he had talked to his son through the communication mirrors. Maybe the next time they talked, he'd mention it to Harry.
Meanwhile, he had to plan out how to provide security for the first Hogsmeade visit on Saturday. He didn't want to allow it but Dumbledore had insisted on letting the students to enjoy themselves inspite of the war. James just hoped the Death Eaters would not take the opportunity to sow some chaos.
"Mind if I sit beside you, Granger, I mean, Hermione?" someone asked the bushy-haired Gryffindor, "There's hardly anywhere else to sit."
Hermione looked up and was startled to see Draco Malfoy behind her, his arms full of books and parchment and alone. She looked around and saw that what he had said was true. The library was full of people, which wasn't unusual for a Tuesday evening. Most of the seats were taken though a few seats near the back of the library were still unoccupied. Not wanting to be rude, she said, "Sure, go ahead, Draco."
"Thanks," he sat down beside her. The blonde Slytherin arranged the books and writing material around him and began to work on an essay.
When he didn't say anything else, Hermione turned her attention back to the essay she had been writing. However, every few minutes, she glanced at him then looked back down to her work.
Finally, Draco put his quill down and said, "All right Granger, out with it. Is there something wrong?"
"What do you mean, Malfoy?" Hermione asked, her eyes narrowing.
"Well, you've been looking at me every five minutes for the past half hour," Draco said, "I'm starting to wonder if I've done something to offend you."
"Oh, believe me, Malfoy," Hermione said, "Over the past five years you've done a lot to offend me and my friends. But that's not why I've been glancing at you. I was just wondering why you'd consent to sit beside me. I can see a few more empty seats around other tables. Why'd you decide to seat here, considering I'm Muggleborn or as you once put it, 'a mudblood'?"
Draco sighed, "Does it matter? I just want to finish these essays for McGonagall, Flitwick and Snape. This chair was the first empty one I spotted so I decided to sit here."
"I don't believe that, Draco," Hermione said, "Just last year, you sat in another table rather than sit beside me."
Draco sighed again, "Look, Granger…Hermione, maybe I'm tired of spouting all the things my father taught me. I guess that after talking with Ti and Cousin Sirius, I've come to the conclusion that maybe all that pureblood supremacy stuff isn't right. Okay?'
Hermione looked at him carefully, trying to judge if he was telling the truth. Deciding to take a chance, she said, "All right, Draco, that's very good. You'll see you made the right decision."
"I hope so," Draco said. "My father is going to want to kill me when he finds out."
On an impulse, Hermione took hold of one of Draco's hands and gave it a squeeze before saying, "Don't worry, you're safe here. We'll be there to help you if that happens."
"Thanks," Draco said, "So, where are Potter and Weasley?"
Hermione grimaced, "Quidditch practice."
Draco smirked, "I see. All right, sorry for asking. I know you're not too fond of it."
They continued working side by side in silence after that. Another hour later, Hermione finished her last essay and packed her things. She then turned to Malfoy, "I'm going to head back to Gryffindor Tower, Draco. It's almost curfew anyway."
"All right, Hermione," Draco said, "I have to get back down to our common room myself. Um, Hermione, uh, I was wondering, it's the first Hogsmeade visit this Saturday. Would you like to go with me?"
Hermione was surprised; almost shocked that he had asked her. She was tempted to accept his offer since Ron had not asked her yet, probably assuming that they'd go together since they were dating. Even then, Hermione would have liked it if he had given her the courtesy of asking. It didn't help Hermione's mood that Harry had asked Ginny and Neville had asked Rose right after Dumbledore had announced it two weeks ago.
Despite that, Hermione was willing to give Ron the chance to ask her plus she didn't want to have a row with him over that. So, she shook her head and said, "I'm sorry, Draco, but I can't. I'll probably go with Ron since he is my boyfriend though the prat hasn't asked me yet about going."
Draco looked disappointed but nodded, "I understand, Hermione. I guess I'll just see you there."
"Sure thing," Hermione said, "See you, Draco." She shouldered her book bag and left the library.
Luckily for Ron, he did ask Hermione the next day if she'd go with him to Hogsmeade on Saturday. She wondered if Harry had reminded Ron to ask her. Well, all that mattered to her was that he had asked her.
So three days later, Ron and Hermione patiently waited in line as Filch inspected every student heading for Hogsmeade. Behind them were Harry, Ginny, Neville and Rose. To Hermione, Rose looked a bit pale but didn't bring it up, thinking it might be due to the heavy workload the fifth years were getting for the O.W.L.s. This outing should bring some color back into her cheeks.
Ten minutes later, with Filch's reluctant approval obtained, the six Gryffindors were walking down the road leading to the village. They noticed immediately that there were many Aurors around, standing guard along the path.
"It's a good thing your Dad is Minister, Harry," Ron said quietly, "Otherwise, I doubt we'd have this much security even after the attack on the carriages."
Harry merely nodded. He vaguely recognized some of the Aurors. "Well, we're almost there," he finally said as they passed Hogsmeade station and could see the village ahead of them, "It's great to see the village almost back to normal. Where shall we go first?"
"Honeyduke's, of course," Ron said, "I need to get some Chocolate frogs and licorice wands."
Everyone agreed, even (reluctantly) Hermione so they set off for the sweets store. They saw Luna Lovegood walking down the street with Colin Creevey holding hands. They knew that the two had been sitting together in the classes shared by the fifth year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws and were occasionally seen talking elsewhere on the grounds of the castle, obviously striking up a friendship. But the sight of them now was definite proof that more than friendship was going on between the two.
"Well, that I can't understand," Ron said, looking puzzled, "What would a nice kid like Creevey be doing dating Looney Lovegood? Ouch, Ginny! What the hell was that for?" He had just gotten a slap on the back of his head from his sister.
"Don't call her that, Ron," Ginny said, "It's rude. Don't forget that she's been my friend for quite a while. I think it's cute, seeing them dating."
"Cute?" Ron asked, bewildered, "It's downright disturbing. Did you see the look on Creevey's face? It's like he's in awe of her."
"Well, I did hear Colin mention how amazed he was of Luna last year in the tournament," Rose said, "I think he was impressed by her performance."
"That's true," Hermione said then she frowned, "But that's not all he's impressed with. I think they've been having long talks and it seems he believes a lot of those stories about those creatures her father chases after. He asked me about them and seemed disappointed when I told him I don't think they're real."
"What!" Ron said, "How naïve can someone be? I know he's Muggleborn but come on, he can't take what she and her father say seriously, can he?"
"I don't know, Ron," Rose said, "I guess it would take a Muggleborn to believe the existence of something like the Crumple-horned Snorkack."
"I don't think so, Rose," Ron said, "Hermione's Muggleborn and she doesn't believe any of that which isn't surprising since she is one of the, if not the smartest witch of our generation."
Hermione was initially stunned by Ron's statement but once she had recovered, proceeded to kiss him right there on the street. Ron eagerly returned the kiss and things started getting a bit heated.
"All right, you two," Ginny said after a few uncomfortable seconds staring at the couple, "Cut it out. I don't want to loose my appetite."
Ron and Hermione separated reluctantly and resumed walking though they had their arms wrapped around each other. They followed the others into Honeydukes.
The morning passed with the six friends having fun together. When lunchtime came, they headed for the Three Broomsticks. According to James, the pub had been reinforced with several strengthening spells to protect it in case of future attacks. It would take a lot of powerful spells to damage it now.
When they arrived, they found it packed with students. They saw Ti with Romilda Vane and a few of her friends at one table. Maggie Longbottom and Dennis Creevey were at another table, talking animatedly.
"Hey, Neville," Ron said, as they took their seats in a table at the back, "Isn't your sister a bit young to be on a date?"
Neville shrugged his shoulders, "It's all right, Ron. Dennis is a good kid. I don't think they'll be snogging yet."
"Good for you, Nev," Harry said, "I doubt she'd like you being an overprotective older brother like Ron was." He ignored Ron's glare as he added, "Plus, I think my dear girlfriend and sister have taught her the Bat-bogey hex. You wouldn't care to feel that."
Neville shuddered, "Thanks for the warning."
Rose glanced over at the fourth year Gryffindors. "I really wish Ti would wise up. I was in the girls' lavatory on the second floor yesterday and heard Romilda talking with her friends. It seems she's with Ti because she hopes he'll inherit some of his family's fortune or even part of the Blacks'. She doesn't really care for him."
"You haven't told him, have you?" Harry asked.
"Are you kidding?" Rose said, "And have a repeat of last year? No thanks, I want to remain friends with him. Anyway, Romilda is nothing like his father or even Draco so he's in no danger. I think he can find someone else better than her down the road. I doubt he'll end up marrying that flirt."
Madam Rosemerta came up at that moment with their orders, cutting their conversation as they turned their attention to their food. Once they were done, they decided to separate for some 'couple time'.
Harry and Ginny headed for the woods at the end of town while Rose and Neville headed for Gladrags. Hermione and Ron, meanwhile, headed for the Little Menagerie.
Rose examined the robes in her hand. It was in a new style imported from Paris. The front was in a v-shape that would undoubtedly expose more cleavage than any of the school robes. She contemplated the reaction she could get from the professors if she wore them to class, causing her to smile. She then sighed as she thought of the reaction she'd get from Neville if he saw her in them.
She glanced over to her boyfriend who was seated near the front of the store, fidgeting in his seat. It was obvious he didn't feel comfortable in the store, probably because he was a bloke. Still, he gallantly came inside with her even if he didn't want to and she loved him for that.
Wait a minute, did she really think that? Rose sighed. She had not considered it before but maybe her crush on Neville was evolving into something more. She'd noticed he was watching her more closely after that morning she had fallen asleep in the common room and she wasn't even annoyed at him for it. She was actually quite touched by his concern, something she wouldn't be with her brother if he had done the same thing.
Rose turned away from Neville and held the robes up to her as she stifled a yawn. Merlin, she did feel a bit sleepy and some of her muscles were a bit achy but she didn't want to ruin their outing today by wanting to go back to the castle this early. She'd seen where Harry and Ginny were headed and had an idea what they would be up to in the woods. She wanted some time snogging Neville in a secluded spot outside of Hogwarts.
Suddenly, she felt her vision shift. She was no longer in Gladrags but in a wooded area. She saw a dozen people in black robes and skull masks gathered together. Just beyond them was Hogsmeade with many figures in school robes walking around. She looked at the sky and saw that the sun was midway down in the sky.
She heard a high-pitched, raspy voice say, "Good, they are unaware of our presence." Turning around, she stifled a scream at the sight of the bald, snake-faced pale unmasked figure. Voldemort was there. "Lucius, are our men in position?" he asked.
One of the masked wizards answered, "Yes, my Lord. The ones Polyjuiced into the Aurors we captured are ready."
"Good, we attack now," the evil wizard said. "Remember, Potter is mine."
Rose gasped as she came out of the vision. She found herself on the ground, cradled in Neville's arms.
"Rose, are you all right?" Neville whispered, "Did you faint or the other thing?"
Rose realized he meant if she had had a vision. "The other thing," she replied, sitting up. She felt a wave of dizziness and lay back down again. "Whoa, that wasn't good."
"Rest a minute," Neville said.
"We don't have time," she said, "The Death Eaters are in the woods outside the village, about to attack."
"What?" Neville asked, "Are you sure it's now?"
"Yes!" Rose almost screamed, "I saw students wandering around the village. Neville, V-Voldemort's here. He's after Harry. We need to warn everyone."
Neville helped her to her feet. She swayed a bit but managed to stay upright. Just then, they heard a loud bang from outside.
"Oh no," Rose said, "It's started. Come on, we'd better find Harry and Ginny."
The two teens tore out of the door and headed for the woods behind the store.
Hermione wandered around the Little Menagerie, looking at the various knick-knacks on display, Ron following behind her. The various objects fascinated her with their minor enchantments like the brush that gently disentangled hair or the small statue of a unicorn that actually pranced around on command. She filed a number of them into her mind as possible Christmas gifts. Hopefully, they'd have another Hogsmeade weekend before the Christmas break so she could come back.
She walked over to a new display case near the counter. It had a selection of jewelry, mostly necklaces, bracelets and brooches set with semiprecious gems. A card in the case declared that minor protection spells could be placed on them for a small additional fee. That interested Hermione. With the war on, any kind of protection would be worth the price.
"Uh, 'Mione?" Ron's voice suddenly intruded into her thoughts, "I need to use the bathroom. I have to go back to the Three Broomsticks for that. Can you wait for me here?"
"I'm actually done looking, Ron," Hermione said, "Why don't we meet at Scrivenshafts? I need to get a few new quills anyway."
"All right," Ron said, "I'll see you in a bit."
They exited the Little Menagerie together then separated ways in the street. The street was not as crowded now with students. Hermione entered Scrivenshafts and started looking at the quills on display.
A voice suddenly said, "Fancy meeting you here, Hermione. Where's Weasley?"
She looked up to see Draco Malfoy smiling at her. "Oh, hi, Draco," she replied, returning his smile, "Ron had to go to the loo. I'm meeting him here."
"Oh, okay," Draco said, "For a minute, I thought you'd found out the truth about your birthday party and ditched him."
Hermione's eyes narrowed, "What are you talking about, Malfoy?"
"Well, I found out that Weasley almost forgot your birthday due to his obsession with Quidditch and your team," Draco said, "If Potter hadn't reminded him of the date, you might not have had that party."
"How do you know that?" Hermione asked.
"Oh, I have my ways," Draco said, "Anyway, I do hand it to Weasley for making up for that almost blunder."
"I really thought you were changing, Malfoy," Hermione said, "But I guess you're still the same git we've known since first year. It's a pity Ti's wasting his time being nice to you. Excuse me, but I'm leaving." She walked toward the door but Draco firmly grabbed her arm.
"Wait!" Draco said. He let go of her arm when she glared at him. "Look, I'm sorry," he said, looking down, "I just wanted to let you know that you can do so much better than Weasley."
"What do you mean by better, Malfoy?" Hermione asked, still glaring at him, "If you mean richer and more handsome, I can do without that. That's not my style."
"No!" Draco said, "I mean, someone who'll pay attention to you, not forgetting your birthday because of Quidditch, show you how important you are to them and not just someone to snog."
Hermione's face softened. "Draco, I appreciate your concern but I'm happy with Ron. Sure, he sometimes is a git and has the emotional range of a tablespoon but he has qualities I really like in him."
"Like what?" Draco asked challengingly, his arms crossing over his chest.
"Like loyalty to his friends, willingness to stand up for what is right no matter the consequences and some really cute freckles," Hermione said, giggling at the last part. She sighed and continued, "Look, Draco, I really appreciate what you said but I'd rather we be friends. Okay?" She extended her hand.
Draco looked at her hand for a moment and shook his head before taking her hand and shaking it. Just as they withdrew their hands, they heard a series of explosions from outside. Alarmed, Hermione noticed that they were the only students left in the store. Rushing to a window, she saw smoke coming from Dervish and Banges.
She felt Draco come up beside her and turned to him. "The village is under attack, probably by Death Eates," she said. "Did you know anything about this, Malfoy?" Her voice had a hard edge to it.
"N-no," Draco answered shakily, his face turning paler than usual, "I swear, I know nothing."
"All right, Draco," Hermione said, "I believe you. I just had to make sure." She drew her wand and moved to the door, keeping low. She kept an eye on Malfoy just in case. Opening the door slightly, she peeked outside. The streets were empty but she saw the flashes of spells over near the Madam Puddifoot's.
"I think the Aurors have engaged the Death Eaters," Hermione said. "We've got to get out of here and head back to the castle."
"No!" Draco said, "I think we should stay here until the Aurors come by. We'll be safer here."
"No, we won't," Hermione said, "Didn't you hear those explosions? They're using blasting spells. A few on this building could collapse it. Do you want to be trapped here? After what you said about your father not approving your recent actions, I'd think you wouldn't want to be captured either."
"Oh, all right," Draco said, "You've convince me. How do we get to the castle without getting caught?"
"We just have to be careful," Hermione said, "Now, follow me and keep low like this." She assumed a crouched position and went out the door, not caring if Draco followed her or not. She wondered where her friends were, especially Ron. She hoped they weren't pinned down nearby.
Ginny laughed as Harry chased her through the trees. The weather was already turning cold and the leaves were starting to turn orange and red. The run through the woods served to warm them up a bit, but not as much as the activity they were anticipating in.
Harry finally got hold of an arm and pulled Ginny up against a tree, trapping her between his arms. "Ah, my beauty," Harry said in his best pirate voice, "Now I've got ya. Ya can't escape from Bluebeard the pirate."
"Oh, kind sir," Ginny answered in a falsely quavering voice, "Please, be gentle with me."
"That I will," Harry said softly in his normal voice as he closed the distance between them and captured her lips with his.
They wrapped their arms around each other as they continued to kiss, tongues now clashing. They soon sank down to the ground with Harry underneath, their hands wandering around each other's bodies. They broke apart several minutes later, gasping for air.
"I love you," Harry said both verbally and in their minds as he looked deeply into Ginny's eyes.
Ginny smiled and said, "I love you, too." Then she again proceeded to kiss him as her hands ran through his hair. She moaned into his mouth as his hands passed through her hand and down her sides.
Suddenly, several loud explosions rang through the air, startling them. They drew apart and quickly stood up, wands already in their hands. Looking southeast toward the village, they were alarmed to see several columns of smoke.
"Great, not again," Harry muttered mentally. Then, he felt a slight stabbing pain in his scar.
"Harry, what is it?" Ginny asked, "You suddenly tensed."
Harry sighed before speaking, "My scar suddenly started to hurt. I think he's here, Gin."
"Voldemort?" she asked, alarm and panic going through her, "He's here?"
Harry nodded, a grim expression forming on his face, "Yeah, I think so."
"Then we better get back to the castle," Ginny said.
"No, Ginny," Harry said, "If he's here, he's probably looking for me. He'll kill anyone else he comes across. Merlin, the others are probably still there. I'd better find them."
"No, we'd better find them," Ginny said, "Harry, we're going in there together. Don't you dare try making me leave. I know that's what you'd want me to do. Remember, we're stronger together than apart."
Harry sighed, "All right, Gin. Come on then, let's go get into trouble."
Ginny smirked as she gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "Good boy," she told him.
They then set off, keeping low and moving from tree to tree. The sun was already halfway between the horizon and the highest point. They could see the back of Zonko's through the trees. Beyond, there were flashes of spells being used lighting up the sky.
Just as they cleared the trees, Harry heard faint steps over to their right. Pulling Ginny back behind a tree, he peered around the trunk. Two figures in Auror's robes came out of the trees thirty feet from them. Harry recognized them as two of the Aurors he'd previously met, Timothy Smythe and Robert Jennings.
When the two men came up to ten feet away, Harry whispered, "Smythe, Jennings, over here. It's Harry."
The two Aurors turned in their direction, wands raised. Harry was momentarily surprised when they didn't lower their wands but pointed straight at him and Ginny. But he didn't hesitate further.
"Stupefy!" he and Ginny both shouted. The reddish spells hit their targets unerringly and threw them a dozen feet right into the back wall of Zonko's.
Just as they slowly moved forward to examine the two stunned men, they heard further footsteps. Turning, they found themselves pointing their wands at Rose and Neville. The other two teens lowered their wands. Rose ran up and grabbed Harry in a tight hug which he returned with the same fervor.
"Oh, Harry, I'm so glad you're all right," Rose said, drawing back. Harry was a bit surprised to see tears hovering in her eyes. "I was so worried. I had another v-vision just before the attack started. Harry, he's here. Voldemort is here and he's looking for you."
"What else is new?" Harry muttered. "Is that what's got you worried?"
"Not just that, Harry," Neville spoke up, "She heard Voldemort say that some of the Aurors are actually Polyjuiced Death Eaters."
Harry's eyes widened as he said, "That explains why these two were about to attack us." He went up to the two men and said, "Accio flasks!"
Two flasks flew into his hand. He opened one and smelled it, drawing back at the smell. "That is quite gross. Well, we'd better tie them up." He pointed his wand at them and said, "Incarcerous Maxima!" Ropes wound around both men, effectively trapping them.
Ginny retrieved their wands and snapped them. "There, that way they can't fight even if someone frees them."
"Good," Harry said, "That's two we don't have to worry about. Wait a minute, we'd better contact Dad and make sure he's aware of the situation." He took out his mirror and said into it, "James Potter."
The surface of the mirror smoked a bit then cleared after a couple of seconds to show the elder Potter.
"Oh, Harry," James said, "Thank Merlin you're all right. What about Rose? I've just been informed about the attack on Hogsmeade."
"Rose is all right, Dad," Harry said, "She's here with me, so are Ginny and Neville. Dad, are you sending more Aurors over? You'd better warn them that some of the ones here have been captured and replaced by Death Eaters under Polyjuice."
James' face paled, "That's bad, Harry. Sirius is just going over with three squads. They'll have to stun all the ones there just in case. All right, Harry. You lot better head back to the castle."
"We can't, Dad," Harry said, "Hermione and Ron are still out there as well as Neville's sister, Maggie. We need to find them. Dad, Voldemort's here."
James paled even further, "Harry, that's even more a reason for you to get back to the castle. You're not ready to face him yet."
"I can't leave, Dad," Harry said, "Not until my friends are safe. I'm sorry, I just can't. You better get those men here quickly. Over and out." With that, James' face disappeared from the mirror."
Harry looked up to his friends. They looked back at him with determination in their eyes, even Ginny. Harry nodded, "Come on, we have to find the others."