Hogwarts

November 21, 2006 (cont.)

Hermione only had a few moments before utter chaos surrounded her. Death Eaters came running, pointing wands and screaming things that her mind couldn't comprehend. She felt an odd sense of calm, tilting her head as she watched the soldiers on duty slowly approach her. Everything was a strange blur, the colors a faded monotone.

Until she turned to her right and saw him again. It was like someone snapped their fingers and suddenly the sounds were too loud, the colors too bright. The soldiers on duty were all speaking to each other, trying to figure out what happened. A few of them walked over to Theo and checked on him, and Hermione couldn't help but feel disappointed when she realized he was still alive. She noticed everyone seemed reluctant to come near her, instead circling her and looking warily at the ground. She followed their gaze and saw the scorch marks surrounding her.

It was like the Event again, but on a much smaller scale. She had recognized the feeling though, that same sense of utter hopelessness, and she understood now what Sirius meant when he had referred to the magic as primal and out of her control. Because in a way, in that moment, she was more of a conduit for the magic than the wielder of it.

And for a few moments after, she could feel the humming of that magic and had a sudden realization: the same power that had flowed through her, was what flowed through Hogwarts. She wasn't sure why or how she had come to that conclusion; perhaps it was the familiar hum that she recognized from her time in the castle. Or it may have been the magic itself that somehow sparked the realization.

And then she remembered what had happened to precipitate the use of that magic and felt nauseous. What if she hadn't been able to release it? She had been disarmed, and Theo's size and magical proficiency meant any self-defense was ultimately worthless. She shivered at the thought, her heart racing.

"Hermione!" Millie called out and raced towards her, frowning at the burnt earth surrounding Hermione before standing a foot away. "What happened?"

Hermione opened her mouth to speak and closed it again, her mind caught up in trying to understand why he did it? Did she say or do something to give him the idea she was interested? It seemed so sudden; was there some element to Death Eater culture she was unaware of? She reprimanded herself; she had clearly said no, it didn't matter whether she had given any kind of indication of interest. But he had seemed so calm about it. Like it was a matter of fact that he was entitled to her, and she should be grateful because she was a Mudblood.

She felt sick again. Was this how they all felt here? That because she was Muggleborn, they had certain rights to her? What if it was worse? What if men in this civilization felt entitled to take allwomen at will? She looked at Millie, who seemed genuinely concerned, and hoped that was not the case. And then she thought of Draco; would he have behaved the same if he had not known her before, had they not been on the run together?

Her breathing grew labored as a hundred different thoughts swirled in her mind. "He," Hermione started finally, pointing to where a couple of the soldiers were handling Theo, "attacked me."

Millie frowned. "But why?"

Hermione shook her head, realizing Millie didn't understand, and wasn't sure what to say. At that moment, the soldiers shifted and a figure in black floated towards her.

"You have given these soldiers quite a scare," the Dark Lord said with a slight sneer.

Hermione wasn't quite sure what to say; should she apologize? She was struggling to maintain her façade, but she knew it was critical, perhaps now more than ever. "Theo tried to, erm, he attacked me. My… magic must have responded reflexively. It was an accident."

His sneer turned somehow more menacing, and Hermione instinctually shrank back. He started, "It wasn't accidental, it was old." He looked positively thrilled by this fact.

Hermione had to tamp down her anger. She had almost been raped, and the Dark Lord seemed happy that he could now confirm she had this power?

And then it hit her; he'd been trying to get her to do this since she got here! That was why her 'lessons' consisted of Carrow attacking her endlessly. She couldn't help but wonder if Theo attacked her of his own volition, or if perhaps this had been an order by his leader...

Once more, Draco's warning echoed in her mind — his ramblings about how Theo had been personally meeting with the Dark Lord and bragging about his new status...

"It was, sir?" she asked, her voice weak.

"Yes. You, my girl, seem to have access to the oldest of magics. There are few of us who could recognize it, but it is undeniable. I've felt it only once before."

Hermione assumed he was referring to the Event. "Oh," she responded, blinking. The look the Dark Lord gave her was predatory. She tried to stand up straighter, keep her attention focused on the situation at hand and not show weakness.

"You can stand down," he told the soldiers who nodded and backed away. He returned his gaze to Hermione, giving her a calculated look. "I don't believe it is necessary for you to continue your lessons."

She nodded, a little fearful of what he could possibly want her to do instead.

He continued, "Perhaps you should work on finding this magic outside of... pressing situations." He sneered at her and turned, floating back to Hogwarts.

WIth the soldiers and the Dark Lord gone, she collapsed into Millie, her eyes watering.

"Hermione, what is it?" Millie asked.

Hermione assumed it was obvious and looked at the other woman incredulously, regaining her footing. The pair started towards Millie's house, Hermione desperate to get away from the ring of desolation, but also not looking forward to entering the living room where the attack began.

"Millie... Theo, he uh… he was trying to rape me," Hermione told her, unwilling in this instance to try and downplay or otherwise obfuscate the facts. Millie had, thus far, been kind and seemed like a good person. Of course, prior to this evening, she would have said the same about Theo, with the caveat that perhaps he was a touch prejudiced.

"Oh my goodness," she gasped, and Hermione felt relieved, after being worried for a moment she was going to be told she had no rights. "That's awful – I can't believe he would do that." She shook her head.

"Me neither," Hermione agreed. "I'm quite exhausted. I think I'll just go to sleep." Millie nodded, and Hermione headed straight to her bedroom.

She shut her bedroom door and nearly shouted when she saw a dark shadow by the window, until she recognized him. "What the hell, Draco? What are you doing in here?" she hissed.

Ignoring her outburst, he started, "What happened? I heard you scream and then saw the commotion." He slowly shuffled towards her.

She looked at him and suddenly remembered when they first met — how incredibly naïve he had seemed at the time, almost childish. She had found it endearing, the small things he didn't understand. But was living in this place emotionally stunting? Was the Dark Lord building an army of magically capable people without a proper conscience?

But of course, that was likely exactly what he was doing. He taught a skewed morality, as was clearly written in the Pureblood Manifesto. And for a moment, she felt truly alone amongst Death Eaters.

Draco must have sensed her unease because he frowned. "Are you alright?"

She heaved an uneasy laugh. "Am I alright?" She wanted to scream but didn't want to alert Millie. She was quite certain it was of utmost impropriety for a man to be in her room. "Am I alright?" she whisper yelled at him,

"Hermione," he said softly, putting his hand against her arm. She flinched reflexively and he frowned. "Did someone hurt you?"

She blinked. "Theo. He was here when I came home," she explained, her eyes not quite meeting his. "He uh, seemed to be interested in me. Didn't quite take it well when I told him I wasn'tinterested."

Draco's eyes went wide, and his face burned red. "He tried to force you?" he asked.

Again, the reaction gave her comfort. But then she had to question – was he upset because of Theo's actions or because they were against her? She shook herself, trying to focus on the conversation at hand. "Yes."

"What the fuck, Hermione? What happened?" He seethed, nostrils flared, and Hermione felt like she had been slapped.

"Are you angry at me?" She took a step back, hitting her head against the wall and wincing.

He furrowed his brows and shook his head. "No, sorry. I'm just – angry with the situation. And that you were hurt. I'm sorry."

She nodded and explained, "He tried to kiss me. When I told him I wasn't interested, he tried to force himself. He had me—" she shook her head, trying to focus. She reminded herself he failed and nothing happened.

She swallowed. "He disarmed me. I was able to briefly get away, but he did something to freeze me. He was about to—" she looked at the floor before meeting his gaze once more. "But then it happened again, I just... exploded. When I was next aware, he was far away and the earth around me was scorched. It was like the Event."

"Thank goodness for that," Draco said quietly. "I'm sorry, I should have walked you into the house, or looked into Theo more—"

"What could you have done, Draco? You warned me there was something off about him, and I didn't believe you… I don't blame you," she told him quietly.

"You don't?" he questioned. "You're looking at me like you don't even know me. You're creeping away anytime I come near you. What is it?"

Hermione realized he was right, she had been inadvertently creeping away from him. "It's not about you," she told him a partial truth. She didn't blame him, but the ordeal made her realize just how little she knew about him. Did he have girlfriends when he was younger? What was growing up like for him? Beyond the cute stories of children running around a castle, who was he, really?

"We can go," he told her, "we can go now. Tell Potter and Weasley that it was too much. Hopefully they can figure out more on their end."

She found some comfort in his offer but shook her head. She felt her heart rate calm, the adrenaline finally leaving her system. "We can't. This is bigger than us." He looked ready to argue so she explained, "I believe the magic that I used tonight is the same that flows through Hogwarts. I'm hoping perhaps now that I have a better understanding of how it feels, I'll be better able to find the nexus."

He still looked concerned. "If you change your mind, at any time, just tell me."

"I will." She offered a soft smile.

"I could kill him, you know."

She wasn't sure what exactly he was trying to convey and tilted her head. "Would you feel that way if you didn't care for me?" she asked.

He frowned. "Perhaps I wouldn't feel so strongly but yes, I would feel horrible regardless." He took a levelling breath. "You know that, right?"

She gave a slight nod. "I think so." Her usual refrain: she wanted to think the best of him, she wanted to trust him.

He seemed defeated, hurt, but had the presence of mind not to say anything. "Do you need anything?" he asked. When she shook her head, he continued, "I'll go then."

"Wait." Hermione grabbed his arm, surprising both of them. The idea of him gone, of her all alone in that room, was suddenly more frightening than the idea of him there. "Can you stay. Please?" she begged.

He nodded silently.

The adrenaline gone, she felt utterly exhausted. She shrugged off the robe she had on, leaving it carelessly on the otherwise spotless floor, and crawled into bed. After a minute, she felt a shift to her side, and Draco gently pressed a hand to her shoulder, as if asking for permission.

Hermione felt the last bit of her control fade away as the tears began to stream freely. Draco moved his hand, but she grabbed it, clutching it to her side. He adjusted so that his body was wrapped around hers, his left hand gently brushing her hair. They lay there, silently, as Hermione let herself finally feel everything – not think, or rationalize. She remembered the fear she felt, the utter terror of the moment and how helpless she was.

She wasn't sure how long they lay like that until finally, the tears stopped. She turned to Draco, her face red and eyes puffy. "Thank you."

"Always," he whispered.

London November 24, 2006

(3 days later)

Harry and Ginny walked through King's Cross station; Harry had donned a disguise to avoid unnecessary attention as they searched for the legendary Platform 9 ¾. The London train station had somewhat recovered from the damage inflicted in the dark years between the Event and the founding of the WEA. While many of the railways continued to be damaged beyond repair, the WEA had restored the tracks between London and some of the outlying suburbs and to several other major cities in the UK. While the station lacked the bustle that Harry vaguely recalled from his childhood, there was a certain hopefulness to the utter banality of seeing men and women calmly board a train.

Dumbledore had explained the logistics behind how to get to Platform 9 ¾, and as Harry approached, he found himself quite grateful the two neighboring platforms seemed to be abandoned. He and Ginny held hands and walked up to the column as Dumbledore described; they attempted to push against it but nothing happened.

Harry frowned. "This is it – right?"

Ginny nodded and cocked her head. "Maybe the magic has to be manually renewed? Or it's turned off, perhaps?"

Harry shrugged. He didn't know much about the station; he was vaguely aware there had been a bombing here some time in the early days after the Event. But Dumbledore had (condescendingly) informed them that no simple 'Muggle' bomb could disrupt the magic. "Maybe Dumbledore was wrong?" he suggested.

Ginny frowned and took out the Horcrux detector, holding it towards the column. "Well this is interesting. It doesn't detect a Horcrux, but it does seem to detect a soul."

Harry whipped his head towards her. "What does that mean?"

"Well—" she bit the inside of her cheek "—from what Dumbledore described, I assume that Platform 9 ¾ is actually in this column, just in a slightly different dimension, so this device is still picking up on it. Meaning, there's something still there. Or more likely, someone, but the column trick just isn't working." She pressed her hand against the column again, further demonstrating.

"Alright. So, any ideas?" Harry asked.

Ginny considered. "Well, obviously, there is a way to get there. Someone must have been the first to figure out how to do it. So, what do we know about different dimensions?"

"Not very much." Harry shrugged.

She rolled her eyes. "No, you probably know more than you realize. Think about Sirius's house and how impossibly big that upstairs hall was. That was a different dimension."

"Alright, but just to clarify, just because I may have been in a different dimension doesn't mean that I actually know anything about them." He smiled.

"Noted." She shook her head and re-focused on the column.

"What are you thinking?" Harry asked after a few minutes of silence.

"In the Corps, we're trained to see past glamours and illusions—"

"Like you did at the Ministry!" he interrupted.

"Yes—" she gave him a pointed look "— I want to see if I can leverage a similar technique to see the dimension where the platform is..." she trailed off.

Harry nodded and stood back quietly. After a few more minutes of watching Ginny stare silently at the column, he started walking around, checking if maybe there was something else they missed.

"Ginny," he shouted, staring at a faint shimmer on the opposite side of the column.

She came over and frowned. "What is that?"

He pressed his hand to the odd shimmer but didn't feel anything. "No idea."

She took out her wand and mumbled something before explaining, "It looks like residue from some sort of curse and… something else."

He frowned. "It looks familiar."

"The cloak!" she exclaimed. Harry pulled out the invisibility cloak and Ginny once more whispered into her wand before smiling. "It looks like your cloak uses similar, though not identical magic to what this column uses – or used."

"So?"

"So, I believe that if we're under the cloak, we may have the ability to see the dimension where the platform resides, or perhaps at least the way to get there."

Harry shrugged. "Worth a shot." He draped the cloak over them and peered out expectantly. The world around them shimmered, but there didn't seem to be anything extra-dimensional.

"Oh!" Ginny pointed out, ducking in and out of the cloak. "See that line?"

Harry nodded. "You think if we touch it, perhaps we'll get there?"

Ginny shrugged. "What's the worst that can happen?"

He blinked, frowning. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe we get sucked into some sort of vortex, or get trapped between dimensions, or cursed, or—"

"I get it." Ginny placed her hand over his mouth. "You've really seen too many movies."

The pair cautiously placed their hands on the small line and instantly fell through the column. Once Harry had effectively regained his footing, he noticed the dilapidated state of Platform 9 ¾. The area immediately surrounding where they landed was covered in debris, the sign for the platform itself in pieces. But what really drew his attention was the space 50 meters to their left. The world looked, well – frozen for lack of a better word.

Pieces of debris and what looked like shrapnel hung in the air, as if the explosion from 15 years ago was stuck mid-flight. But the truly odd thing was the two people who were stuck there. They appeared to be frozen in a moment, just out of reach of the debris across the platform from the explosion, their faces trapped in a state of sheer terror. From where Harry stood, he believed it was a boy and a young woman trapped, the latter with her wand out, appearing to be in the process of, or about to, cast a spell.

Harry started walking towards them when Ginny stopped him. "Don't!" she shouted.

"What is it?" Harry frowned. She picked up a piece of debris and threw it in the direction he was headed. Harry watched, wide-eyed, as the shrapnel froze midair.

"I believe it's some variation of a stasis spell, though I've never seen anything like it. Everything in it has been stuck," she explained, biting her lip.

"We can't just leave them." Harry pointed towards the frozen pair. Ginny nodded, and they began cautiously investigating the field; drawing a line to show where the stasis spell was active.

"How long do you think they've been here?" Harry asked.

Ginny shrugged. "I would guess, based on the fact they appear stuck in the blast, since the explosion."

"And no one has bothered to come help?"

"I assume no one could get here. Besides, this platform exclusively goes to Hogsmeade station. If the WEA assumed it was destroyed, there was no incentive to ever come back." Ginny frowned. "I think perhaps a simple Finite would work, but I'm worried that they're caught mid-explosion, so removing the spell could kill them."

"So we need to cancel the spell and pull them out of harm's way?" Harry surmised. "How bad of an explosion will it be?"

"I'm not sure. I'm hoping that the woman who's trapped cast the stasis spell using the energy from the explosion to power the stasis, which would explain how the spell lasted this long. It's the kind of thing we're trained to do in the Corps, take advantage of our surroundings and what not. It would be quite brilliant in this instance: have the bomb power the stasis charm, and then once the bomb is inert, they would be released. Perhaps she underestimated the power of the bomb," Ginny suggested.

"Alright." Harry nodded. "Perhaps I should do the Finite. Then you can summon them, and I'll immediately shield us? That way you can add your shield to mine once we have them here."

Ginny shook her head. "You can't summon a living thing—" she turned her gaze to the woman and boy who were trapped "—but we have a work-around the Corps uses for dealing with Eastern Europeans trying to run the border. I can give it a shot."

Harry nodded.

"Okay," she said, wand raised. "3 – 2 – 1 – NOW."

The second Harry voiced the Finite Incantatem, the scene shifted. The boy was screaming, and the explosion neared the pair. Ginny summoned them, and Harry activated his shield. The boy was still screaming, but the woman quickly recovered.

"Where the hell did you two come from?" she asked.

Ginny activated her shield, and they watched the end of the explosion, safe from harm. Harry thought Ginny's assessment was likely correct; the explosion did not seem all that impressive relative to the disrepair evident throughout the rest of the Platform, suggesting that the witch's spell likely did draw power from the explosion.

"We came from King's Cross," Harry explained, releasing his shield and exhaling. The boy had finally stopped screaming and was now sniffling, grabbing onto the woman, who was giving Harry and Ginny rather wary looks.

Harry asked, "Erm, was it your stasis charm that you were stuck in?"

"Yeh, something I was experimenting with, what with all the fundamentalist terrorists and their Muggle bombs." She looked pretty pleased with herself.

"So – do you have any idea how long you've been down here?" Ginny asked.

"I responded to the call not even an hour ago," she told them, eyeing them with suspicion. "Who are you?"

Harry turned to Ginny briefly before responding, "I'm Harry Potter, and this is Ginny Weasley. Unfortunately, we believe you've been stuck down here for a long time."

The woman darted her eyes between the pair, before raising her wand and responding, "Alright, I don't know what game you're playing at, but Harry Potter is a boy."

Harry furrowed his brows. "You know me?"

"No, I know James and Lily's son, not whatever trick of the light you are." She frowned.

Harry grimaced. "Um. The explosion you are— were in... we believe it happened 15 years ago. We, well, Ginny, figured that the explosion powered your stasis charm, which is why you were stuck for so long."

The woman narrowed her eyes at him, as though she was trying to figure out if this was some kind of trick. Finally, the boy spoke, "Harry?" He had stopped crying and sounded quite confused.

Harry blinked at the boy; he looked like he was maybe 10 or 11, with brown hair and a sort of odd countenance. And then suddenly it clicked. "Neville Longbottom?" Harry's eyes went wide.

"Holy shit," Ginny whispered.

"What?" the woman asked.

"We all thought Neville was dead – it was a rather big deal," Harry said quietly, thinking about all of the stories and myths surrounding Neville's disappearance. The prevailing belief was that it was a Death Eater conspiracy, though this development seemed to make that quite unlikely. "What are you even doing here?"

Neville wrinkled his forehead, staring at Harry. "I was grabbed by some Muggles, they said they needed someone magical to get onto the platform."

"Well, we're glad you're alive," Ginny said before turning to the other woman. "And who are you exactly."

"Call me Tonks," she told them. "I'm a – or was, an Auror."

"Andromeda's daughter?" Harry asked, hit with a vague memory from his youth.

"Indeed," she said, frowning. "It's quite strange to find out you've missed 15 years of the world."

Harry gave her a sympathetic smile. "Well, let's get out of here and we'll explain everything to you."

Chamonix, France

"I'm sorry," Tonks said sympathetically after Harry explained the events that led to his mother's death. The four had portkeyed back to Dumbledore's chateau, and Harry and Ginny were doing their best to give Tonks the highlights of the formation of the WEA and the past 15 years.

"Thank you. It's been 15 years for me since her death, though." Harry smiled. "The WEA was formed shortly after she passed. People finally realized we needed to work together and not fight one another."

"So wizards live with Muggles?" Tonks asked, her eyes betraying her continued disbelief.

"Yes," Harry started. "Though, the term Muggle has gone out of style; people typically refer to them as 'non-magicals'."

"Fascinating." Tonks shook her head. "How does it work, magicals and non-magicals together?"

"Well, there's substantial regulation in place to ensure the safety of everyone. But for the most part, I think it's worked quite well," Harry explained.

"And what happened to you-know-who?" Tonks asked.

"Voldemort?" Ginny clarified, earning two winces from the newcomers.

"Well, shortly after the founding of the WEA, Voldemort said if they were given the land encompassing Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, they would stay out of the WEA and end all terrorist activities," Harry explained.

"And the WEA believed him?" Tonks looked incredulous.

"Well, to be fair, other than a couple of assassination attempts we've tied the Death Eaters to, for the most part they've basically been holed up not bothering anyone," Ginny replied, watching Harry out of the corner of her eye.

"It sounds like we're lucky you guys showed up," Tonks told them thoughtfully,."Thank you."

"Of course." Harry smiled.

"What were you doing there anyways?" Tonks asked curiously.

"We're on a bit of a – mission, you could say. Can't really talk about it," Harry told her.

Tonks' eyes went wide, her gaze settling behind Harry. "Merlin," she murmured.

Harry turned and realized Dumbledore had walked in.

"Nymphadora, it is lovely to see you," Dumbledore said, as if they had plans for tea.

"I can't believe you're alive," she mumbled, gawking.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Indeed. I've been assisting young Harry and Ginny here." Harry couldn't help but roll his eyes at his use of the word assisting. "Although I am curious why they brought you here?"

"We found them on Platform 9 ¾," Harry explained. "They were caught in an explosion. Tonks did some sort of stasis charm, and they've been stuck in it ever since."

Dumbledore smiled. "What a fascinating bit of magic! I am glad you seemed to have learned much, even after Hogwarts closed down."

"Yup," Tonks shifted, "became an Auror and everything."

"Dumbledore, could you do us a favor?" Harry asked. "Could you make them a portkey to London?"

"Of course." Dumbledore nodded.

"Thanks. It should take them here." Harry wrote the address for Central Justice on a conjured piece of paper and handed it to him.

Harry then explained to Tonks, "When you get there, ask for Robards and Fox. Tell them that I sent you. If you have any trouble, ask to speak with Representative Greengrass. They'll help you both find your family and settle in."

"Thank you again." Tonks nodded.

Harry smiled at the pair, feeling a sense of accomplishment. It was one thing to liberate Horcruxes, but to quite literally save two people reminded him of what exactly they were fighting for.