TW: Spoiler-y, so today's warning is at the end :)
As August ran out, and the beginning of term approached, Hermione found herself feeling more and more excited. Their group had plans to meet in the Leaky Cauldron the day before the start of term. Then they were all going to stay with Sirius, Hermione, and James for the night and head for the Hogwarts Express together. For their final year.
She hadn't seen Remus since the start of summer, and she was a massive bundle of nerves by the time the big day arrived.
"Is this a dark book thing?" Sirius asked warily, as Hermione absently stared out the window.
Hermione jumped. "No! I'm not even touching that awful thing today." She shuddered, pushing away thoughts of its words and its taint. "Today is a day for good things only."
"I'll second that!" James said gleefully as he bounced into the room. He was just as excited and nervous about seeing Lily as Hermione was about seeing Remus.
Sirius rolled his eyes and poured himself his third coffee of the day. "You lot are grossing me out."
Hermione just grinned back at him, her stomach aflutter with butterflies or possibly frogs. She glanced at the clock. 11:30.
Sirius followed her gaze. "Oh thank Merlin! Let's go!"
They apparated to the Leaky Cauldron. "Hey, Tom," Hermione said, earning a smile from the still-old barman. "There'll be 7 of us today."
"Right this way, Miss Hermione."
By the time they reached their table, Mel and Tracey had joined them. Hermione couldn't tell how James was feeling, but her own stomach was in absolute knots as she scanned the busy bar for her boyfriend. Boyfriend. Boyfriend. And then there he was, and for a horrific moment she thought she might throw up all over her untouched menu. Get it together, Hermione, she thought angrily to herself, if you can face down Death Eaters, you can face your own stupid boyfriend.
"Hey Hermione," Remus said quietly. His gaze was intense, but everything else about him was extremely reserved, almost withdrawn.
Hermione smiled in a way she hoped was reassuring, but was probably just shy. "Hey Remus."
He slipped into the seat next to her. "Good summer?"
Hermione thought it over. They'd spoken often, but not about anything serious, and it was clear to Hermione that they'd both been a little vague when it came to the events of their summers.
She thought of the Death Eater attacks she'd responded to with the Order. She thought of laughing with Sirius and James. She thought of her eager anticipation every time an owl showed up in the window. She thought of the deaths and the victories. She thought of the nightmares that haunted her sleep, and the way she had to force herself not to fly into a panic when someone apparated into her vicinity. She thought of the deeply dark book she'd been carefully digging through and shivered. "It's been…"
She was saved having to answer by a familiar redhead appearing at the end of their table. James immediately leapt from his seat and pulled Lily into a searing kiss. There was zero sense of shyness or reservation in either of them as they greeted each other for the first time in weeks.
Sirius smirked. "I wonder what their letters were about."
Everyone laughed and Tracey catcalled. Lily and James finally pulled away from one another and took their seats, hand-in-hand. Lily's face was red, but her gaze was defiant. James' face was pure, unadulterated happiness.
Hermione smiled all the way into her heart. "They're so perfect together," she whispered.
Remus laughed. "I'm surprised to say that I agree." He raised his voice so everyone could hear. "We all thought the Lily and James train would be a total wreck… if it ever managed to happen."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, mate," James said. But it was clear that absolutely nothing could interfere with his happiness.
Banter and small talk rose up between them then, and Remus tentatively slipped his hand into Hermione's beneath the table. She flashed him a smile, and slowly felt her nerves easing.
Towards the end of lunch, James turned to Mel. "What about you, chatty Kathy?" he asked. "How's your summer been?"
Hermione winced. Mel had said almost nothing all lunch. The girls had all been carefully steering the conversation away from her, worried for their friend, but of course… James.
"Oh, you know, nothing special," Mel mumbled.
Finally even the boys realized something was up. James opened his mouth for a follow-up of some sort and Lily elbowed him sharply. "Shut up, James," she muttered. James opened his mouth again.
"Let's get out of here, eh?" Tracey said, standing abruptly.
Hermione released Remus' hand and once they'd paid, the girls left together, arm in arm, with the boys not far behind.
"We're here whenever you're ready to talk," Hermione said softly.
"Anytime," Lily added.
Tracey nodded solemnly. "When you're ready."
Mel smiled gently, and there were unshed tears in her eyes. "Thanks, you guys," she whispered.
There was a friendly silence then as they stepped out into Diagon Alley. "Soo," Lily said, "Shall we—"
Tracey groaned. "Don't say books. I refuse to start this shopping trip with books."
The girls laughed. "We don't really need much besides books anymore," Hermione pointed out. "Let's get them out of the way, and then we can go do something fun."
Tracey groaned again, but allowed herself to be led to Flourish & Blotts nonetheless.
The street was so eerily familiar. Minus the lack of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Her heart panged. Fred and George were due next April. She couldn't wait to see them grow up, and yet…
Lily nudged her. "You okay?"
"Yeah," Hermione said. "Just… missing people."
Lily fixed her with watery eyes. "I'm so sorry, Hermione, I can't even imagine what that must be like."
"Don't you start crying," Hermione warned with a smile, "Or I'll start too."
"Ugh, and then we'll all be standing outside a damned bookstore, crying our eyes out," Tracey pointed out. "Which is pretty much the most depressing thing I can imagine. Let's just get the bloody hell inside and buy our books."
Mel chuckled. "Well that's something I thought I'd never hear Tracey say."
The all looked at each other and then dissolved into nonsensical laughter. Tension-breaking laughter. They laughed like their lives, like their sanity, depended on it. They laughed so hard they had to lean on each other to keep standing.
Their laughter was finally beginning to ease, when James approached them cautiously. "Er… something funny, ladies?"
They girls turned to face the wary-looking boys, and immediately burst into laughter again.
Finally they came back up for air, feeling a zillion times better than they had ten minutes ago.
"Well, books then?" Lily asked calmly.
"Yep," Hermione replied.
And the girls stepped into the shop, followed by the bewildered trio of boys.
Buying books for seventh year was a bit more complicated than first, as they all had different classes, some with multiple required texts. Hermione stashed each of their sets of books into her Mary Poppins bag. When they were finally done, they stepped out into the bright, crowded street with a sigh of relief.
"Thank Merlin that's over," Tracey said. "I think I need some ice cream. Are whiskey floats a thing?"
Hermione laughed. "Fortescue's then?"
There was a general round of assent and they started toward Florean Fortescue's when a series of pops and cracks broke out up and down the street.
"Get back in the store!" Hermione hissed. Her friends froze, but there was no lull. Flashes of light immediately began flying through the air. The full street of shoppers was momentarily frozen like her friends, and then screams began erupting. "In the store!" Hermione screamed, shoving Sirius and Remus back toward the bookstore.
Together they stumbled through the doors, Hermione ushered everyone nearby in with them, then slammed the doors shut behind her. In a series of fast, silent flashes, she sealed and warded the doors, then sent off two Patronuses - one to Albus and one to Alastor. She paused and took a deep, steadying breath. Her hands were trembling. She forced herself not to look out the windows.
When she turned to face her friends, she saw every customer in the crowded store staring at her, wild-eyed. She took another breath, centering herself. "Anyone who can apparate should do so now," she said calmly. "Mr. Flourish? If you'd be so kind as to escort everyone else to your Floo?"
Flourish gave a jerky nod and then gestured for his Flooing patrons to follow him as he hurried toward the back of the store.
Customers were just beginning to comply when Alastor and the Prewetts appeared, shortly followed by Emmeline, all geared up, obscuro'ed, and ready to go. Something inside of Hermione immediately shifted. It was a good thing, like clicking into "action mode." She felt cool confidence replace her tightly restrained fear. The tremble left her fingers.
"Albus is deploying," Alastor said. "Teams are arriving as we speak. Let's move."
Hermione nodded and turned to her friends, feeling her energy sync up with her teammates, pieces of a puzzle clicking together. "Get home," she said gently. "I'll be there soon." Then she started for the door.
"No bloody way!" the Marauders said together, moving to follow her.
Alastor stepped forward then, imposing and dangerous, in full Auror mode, intimidating even without being able to clearly see the glare he was leveling at them. "You heard the lady. We don't have time to waste arguing. I'm an Auror, boys, and I'm ordering you all home. This war will not end today; you'll get your chance. This. Is. Not. It."
"Come on, guys," Tracey said softly, her gaze on Mel's terrified face, on the hint of defiance in Lily's eyes. "Let's go. There will be other fights."
Hermione shot them an apologetic glance, hoping against hope that they would just go, and then her team moved out, and she went with them.
Death Eaters had been in the street for about two minutes. Three tops. Bodies littered the ground - mostly civilian.
"Oi, Mione," Gideon hissed. She glanced toward him as he cast the spell to obscure her features.
"Shit. Thanks."
And then they were in it.
Order members were arriving, but there were at least forty Death Eaters throughout Diagon Alley. Some lashed their spells at the people who hadn't made it into a store. Killing. Torturing. Playing. Others pummeled the doors of nearby shops, a riot of magic that pounded into, and then through the warded doors and windows… bursting inside, or filling the shops with fire and smoke and spellfire.
Hermione's team moved as one through the fray. A protego between a cloaked enemy and his target, a stupefy flying into the back of a Death Eater setting fire to Eeylops. An aguamenti putting out a flaming civilian.
Hermione was now a master at putting aside the stinging knowledge that her friends were hiding beneath some of these masks. At least while she was in the fray.
The screams of a young family, cornered near Florean's, summoned them next. A group of four Death Eaters was taking turns casting crucio on the father while a set of twins - young, probably just starting at Hogwarts this year - and their mother looked desperately on.
Tears streaked down the woman's cheeks as she begged and pleaded with the Death Eaters. "Please. Stop. Please, just let my boys go. Please-"
A cackle rose in response, and Hermione immediately knew who the four were. Hermione would know that cackle anywhere. Bella, and, she assumed, the Lestranges and Barty Crouch Jr. The tag team that would one day torture Alice and Frank out of their minds. She couldn't possibly know it was them, not for certain. But their number was four. She knew.
Anger simmered through the sickness in her stomach. "Bellatrix!" she shouted, drawing the woman's attention. Bella's wandwork faltered for a moment as she whirled around, her eyes flashing fury even past her mask. The father slumped to the ground, and Hermione's team swept into action.
Bella didn't mess around. Her spells started out vicious as Hermione took her on. Hermione could sort of sense where her team was, even as she focused all her consciousness on Bella. Gideon went to the family to help them get to safety. The others paired off with the remaining Death Eaters. Hermione wasn't worried for any of them. Her team was made up of strong fighters, all powerful and smart; she released their fights and focused on her own.
Spells flew from Bella's wand in quick succession, most of them non-verbal. Hermione's heart was pounding - but in the best of ways. Her mind was calm, centered, clear. Adrenaline flooded her system, making her powerful and clear-headed. The thrill of the fight infected her, and she felt a grim smile slip onto her face. Hermione cast a protego just in time to deflect a purple spell at the same time as Bella followed with a rapid Sectumsempra.
Hermione's mind stumbled for a fraction of a second. Oh Severus, she thought sadly, bitterly, as she dodged out of the way just in time to catch the curse down her left arm instead of across her throat. She gritted her teeth against the pain as invisible knives sliced through her flesh with horrific ease. She slashed her wand out, her spell crashing into Bella's sickly red crucio, fizzling it out.
Bella shrieked with glee. With purest pleasure. "I know who you are," she taunted.
Hermione stayed calm, answering the taunt with a stupefy that Bella deflected easily. Only Aurors could legally kill their opponents; not Order members. The knowledge chafed surprisingly as she stared down the wand of the woman who had killed Sirius, had tortured the Longbottoms, had committed untold atrocities with delight.
"You're the Belanger whore," Bella sang, "I saw you come out the bookstore."
"Fuck," Hermione cursed under her breath. How many had seen her? Just Bella? Even Bella alone was enough if Hermione didn't stop her. She didn't have time to think about it. Instead she responded with an onslaught of spells that had Bella's eyes widening in surprise. Hermione threw everything non-lethal that she could think of. Even stupid things like tarantallagra. Finally she caught Bella with a rictusempra.
As she followed it with a stupefy, that Bella still somehow deflected, Hermione glanced to see that Rabastan and Crouch Jr were subdued. Rodolphus was nowhere to be seen. Her team was moving to new targets, but she could sense their awareness on her, making sure she had Bella covered.
"Finite!" Bella shrieked. There was fury in her face - over the indignation of the tickle jinx or over Rabastan losing, Hermione couldn't say. "If you're going to play it like a third year bug, I'll squash you like a third year bug."
Bella raised her wand. "Avada—" Bella gasped and grabbed her forearm, shrieking her impotent fury. "This isn't over, you little brat," she hissed. She deflected every stupefy Hermione sent her way as she rushed to Rabastan and Crouch and apparated away with them.
Hermione looked at the street around her. The Death Eaters were gone. All of them. The mayhem had ended. All that remained was the fallout. The tear-streaked faces. The screaming children. The burning and damaged buildings. The wreckage. The dead. Around her, Order members were apparating the injured away to Saint Mungo's, were putting out fires, but Hermione spun dizzily.
And then Alastor was there, tearing away her blood-soaked sleeve. He cast a series of healing spells, getting visibly more and more frustrated. "What in Merlin's name did the bitch hit you with?"
Hermione didn't bother answering.
"Well, let's get you to Headquarters. Poppy will have to figure this mess out." He looked toward a point somewhere behind her. Her mind was feeling fuzzy, slippery. There was something funny about everything that was happening. She thought there might be a weird smile on her face. "Gideon, get this fool girl to Poppy. I've got to finish up here."
Everything went black.
Hermione awoke on a couch in Headquarters, Poppy tutting beside her. "How long have I been asleep?" Hermione asked, as she jerked up to sitting.
"Not hardly long enough!" Poppy muttered.
"About 5 minutes, Mione," Gideon said soothingly. "just relax and let the woman figure out how to fix you."
Hermione groaned as it all came back. Damn you, Severus. She had a mad urge to send him a Howler. She could just picture it, popping up and setting off in the midst of a shocked Voldemort and all his asshole Death Eaters. A bubble of laughter escaped her, and she quickly clapped her hands to her mouth to stifle the sound.
Gideon eyed her worriedly. "Is she, er- alright?"
Poppy just rolled her eyes. "Blood loss can make a person loopy. The blood replenisher I gave her is already doing its magic. She'll be fine in no time if I can just figure out what thrice-cursed spell did this."
Hermione forced herself back to composure. "Something new," she said. "I don't know if you can heal it. The counter curse is complicated, from what I hear, and I don't know it. I think we'll have to do this the Muggle way and hope for the best."
Poppy scowled deeply. "Do I want to know how you know this?"
Hermione shrugged, cringing immediately against the answering pain. "Probably not. Just sew me up and send me home. If anything weird happens, I'll come back," she promised. "Honestly," she added at Poppy's stern frown.
The woman sighed. "How barbaric. Well, let's get you a pain potion, then, and get this over with."
It was nonetheless an altogether unpleasant experience. If Severus and I ever end up being friends again, I will definitely make him pay.
"Alright," Poppy said skeptically. "I suppose you can go. Take a pain potion with you, just in case. And this salve to prevent infection."
Hermione offered the woman a tired smile. "Thanks, Poppy."
"Yes, yes. Now get a move on. I've other people to see to!"
Hermione smiled in a way that was almost a laugh and dragged herself to her feet.
"Here," Gideon said. He stepped forward and wrapped Hermione's uninjured arm over his shoulders. "I've got you." All of her teammates had been to her home (and each other's) in anticipation of moments such as these.
He apparated them right into the living room… where everyone was congregated, waiting for her return.
She forced herself to face them, afraid of how angry they might be with her. Their gazes were all on her, identical looks of shock on their faces. She fidgeted uncomfortably. "I'm… I'm sorry about-"
"Oh shut up!" Lily shrieked, launching herself over the back of the couch to pull her into a tight embrace.
Hermione forced herself not to hiss at the pain.
"We were so worried," she whispered.
Hermione could hear the restrained tears in Lily's voice, could see the tears of relief streaking down Mel's cheeks. "Hey, I'm okay, alright? I'm safe. You're safe. We're all safe."
"You're not that alright," Gideon pointed out. "Let's get you sitting."
"Fair," Hermione conceded.
"You're hurt?" Remus' eyes flashed protectively.
"She's been hurt worse before, and she'll be hurt worse again, make no mistake," Gideon said firmly. Hermione felt immense gratitude for her teammate. "But our Hermione is a lioness. I appreciate you'll do it anyway, but you should know that she's not the sort of person you need to worry about."
Sirius and James were uncharacteristically silent. She knew they were angry. Her first mission had led to a big fight towards the beginning of summer. They'd wanted to come. Been furious that she was leaving them behind. She knew that they were mostly just worried about her. But also that they really did want to fight. That they felt helpless and she was standing in their way of feeling strong. She'd hidden her missions from them whenever she could since. They only knew about two, including that first one.
Today she had sent them home like children.
"And as to that," Gideon continued, leading Hermione to a seat between the girls, "I want to say that I really appreciate you lot coming back here. I know that was a hard choice - especially for so many Gryffindors. I've heard how Mione talks about you. How proud she is of you. I heard the way she fought to get you lot into the Order-"
"Yeah?" James interrupted. "Then why did we get sent home like a bunch of naughty children by Alastor fucking Moody?"
Gideon rubbed his tired eyes with irritation. "To keep Hermione safe," he said calmly. "To keep our team safe. Cohesive. We would've been fucked if Hermione had been out there worrying about you lot instead of focusing on Bella."
"Bella?" Sirius' gaze snapped to hers. To her bandaged arm.
"I'm okay, Sirius," Hermione said softly. "I promise. I just wish she hadn't bloody gotten away."
"Hey, we saved those people, Mione," Gideon said firmly. "That's what matters most."
"This is all very touching," James said loudly, "but explain to me again how Hermione's so proud of us, but doesn't trust us well enough to not be a wreck with us in battle."
Hermione sighed and forced herself to sit up straighter. To make it clear that she was taking him seriously. "You haven't trained for this, James," she said. "You're beginning to. By next summer, I hope you'll be ready. I hope you'll be able to work as a team. A unit that can move through the Death Eaters as a single force. That you will have faced chaos and learned to stay focused. That you'll be able to walk into battle and know what to do. Instinctively. My team is good -"
"The best," Gideon cut in, without a trace of arrogance. "We're the best team. The first to be sent in. The last to leave. We are water, flowing together. Mione knows what it is to be a powerful unit, and she know what it is to not be. She's seen the deaths that come when someone doesn't have that. She's seen the way the chaos can envelop them. She wants you to live. Not just fight well."
There was a tense silence.
Then, "The best team, eh?" Tracey said, eyeing Gideon with speculative appreciation.
He winked back, "I'll have to show you sometime."
Hermione laughed weakly. That blood replenishing potion was taking its sweet time. "Alright, Romeo. Get home. Check on Molly. Let her see that you're safe."
Gideon groaned. "Like that diabolical clock hasn't already told her."
Hermione laughed again. "See you soon. Give Molly my love."
He saluted, gave a cursory nod to her friends, shot a cheeky wink in Tracey's direction, and apparated away.
There was another long silence. "You're really okay, Hermione?" Mel asked quietly.
"I will be. If this damned blood replenishing potion ever fulfills its promise."
"Why aren't you healed?" Sirius said. His gaze was dark. He was going to have to stop taking moral responsibility for his family's fucked-up-ness one of these days.
"It's a cursed wound. I dodged the worst of it, and caught the rest. Madam Pomfrey had to stitch it up the Muggle way."
"But you'll be okay?" Remus asked warily. There was a distance, a hesitance. He felt weird about her, about seeing her as a warrior.
Tears pricked at her eyes. She blinked furiously. "Yeah, I'll be okay."
Lily noticed her sadness, and, as the best friend ever, pulled her gently to her feet. "Come on then, let's get you up to bed."
"Thanks, Lily," Hermione whispered. Usually she was alone for this part. It felt strange not to be. Vulnerable. But also sort of nice.
Tracey shot the boys a look that made it clear they weren't allowed to argue, and together the girls retreated upstairs.
.
.
.
TW: Hints at Mel's ongoing grief. Battle - torture, background deaths, injury.