A/N: Hello my lovelies! This story has been swimming around in my head for a while but I had no idea how to execute it. Hopefully, it turns out as nice as I pictured it in my head. Happy Reading!


"It is time."

A thundering voice broke Hermione Granger out of her reverie. It had been a week? Thirteen days? She could not keep track after the first four. It wasn't as if she had given up. She had just resigned to the idea that it would not make a difference. It had been her reasoning for a lot of things these days.

She took a few breaths before readying herself for the inevitable. As she got up and walked towards the door, Alastor Moody unlocked the third lock on her door. She waited till she heard the click of the last lock and watched as the heavy metal door opened. She stepped out and instantly felt the wind against her. It had been a while since she had felt anything. They began walking down the long, dark corridor. Moody walked steadily ahead, while Hermione trailed behind apprehensively.

"What is happening? I refuse to go in blind," she asked.

"It's at Hogwarts," Moody replied, clearly tense. "Potter and Weasley went in to get more Basilisk fangs. Sent Johnson too. Small mission…" he trailed off.

Hermione grew visibly anxious, "And?"

"Potter sent a Patronus a while ago. They've been compromised." He didn't say anything more.

"Compromised? Compromised how?" Her voice was growing louder with each syllable.

"They were waiting for him. 'Twas a bloody trap. We've got a rat among us." He narrowed his eyes at her. She looked away, at a loss for words.

A rat? It was impossible. The members of the Order were as loyal as they come. Everyone was fighting for a reason. A good reason. Who would betray them?

"Everyone has been given their missions. You will follow yours. If you put a toe out of line, I will Avada you before you can blink, Hermione." He said with a snarl. It was clear where he still stood with her.

"Understood." She did not say anything after that.

They made their way up to the roof of the ominous building. Moody fished two things out of his pocket. One was a small object wrapped in a handkerchief, a rusted pocket watch. A portkey, she assumed. The other was her wand. She quickly reclaimed her wand from the man and held out her hand to grab the watch. They swept away into nothingness.

The pair arrived at the outskirts of the school compound, somewhere in the Forbidden Forest. She let go of the watch and fell to the ground with a thud. As she got up, he was already walking away. She quickly dusted off her pants and caught up to him. He turned around immediately and motioned for her to crouch down and walk silently.

Death Eaters must be prowling, she thought to herself. They walked half a mile before they heard a rustle in the trees. She instantly separated and hid under some foliage. Her breathing quickened. It would be quite embarrassing if Hermione Granger died five minutes into the end of the war. Scared or not, she had to stay still. She formulated an action plan in her head and observed her surroundings. There was a clear vantage point if she could elevate herself a little higher, but that would compromise her position. To her left, there was a clearing. If someone appeared through there, they would spot her before she could move away. Compromised, again. She looked at last, to her right. There was a covering of heavy shrubbery and thick trunks of trees. If she could move silently towards the covering, she could hide with a good vantage point. She would also have to cast a Disillusionment and Silencing charm before moving. If she used the spells now, it would give away her current location without having a way to move. First, she had to make sure there was no one nearby. The strategy played out in her head like a timeline. If she couldn't find Moody in the next five minutes, she would be going in alone.

Just as she decided this, she saw a flash of brown. She crouched down even further. Another flash of colour, this time a dark orange mop of hair. There were two figures standing a few feet away from her. She stood up to observe between the leaves and let out a big sigh because she realized who they were.

"Bill," she sighed "It's you. I was afraid someone caught Moody"

"Hermione? What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here." Bill Weasley looked visibly perplexed to see her in the middle of the most dangerous location in the English Wizarding World at the moment. "What is she doing here, Moody?"

"It was agreed upon, Bill." She retorted, her annoyance growing. "If I don't fight this then what was the poi-"

"We needed the manpower," Moody said, dismissively. That was the end of that conversation. She wanted to say something more but it would have been futile. No one was there to listen to her. They had bigger problems.

The three of them trudged along to a supposed meeting point, making sure to be on alert, observing their surroundings with keen eyes. It seemed like the Death Eaters had more pressing matters than to be staking out the Forest. She tried to carve out their battle strategy. With her being out of the loop for a while, it was harder to create a clearer picture. There were more assumptions than she liked to have.

They made it all the way to the edge of the Forest, the towers of Hogwarts castle appearing in view. The once empowering beacon of hope now stood as a foreboding premonition. Hermione thought of all the events that occurred in that building. The first time she entered the castle, the sorting, her adventures with Ron and Harry, some unlikely friendships, some unfortunate enemies, their final departure from Hogwarts...all leading up to this very moment.

She did not have time to dwell on the past. She would have all the time to think about this later, when they win. If she were to make out this battle alive, she had to keep a clear head. She had a mission and she would focus on that. Hermione began sorting through all her memories. She could see them clearly, organized as books in sections of a library. The books that gave her hope and sheer willpower were placed at the front entrance - her strong suits. The good books came behind it. She began to walk to the aisle beside it in her mind and placed a long line of books - books of despair. Then she walked all the way to the back and took a large load of dark, heavy books and placed them on a high imaginary shelf. She locked those books and the shelf away in another room - as if to create a room within a room, like the restricted section. Then she came out of the library and closed the doors shut. She imagined adding heavy padlocks and enchantments to the door and then walked away from her mind as if there was nothing behind her.

Moody and Bill directed her away from the castle, towards a part of the Forest that looked eerily dark and abandoned. She realised why. They walked directly into the darkest part of the area, and with a shimmer, her surroundings changed from the Forbidden Forest to a warm makeshift tent. The tent must have been charmed to repel anyone from the outside, she thought.

No sooner had she realized the shift of environment, a warm set of hands wrapped around her neck. She was smothered by a familiar ginger witch, who refused to let go.

"Hermione! How did you get here? We really thought… We-Ron and Harry-thought-" Ginny Weasley was sobbing as the words rolled out into Hermione's ears. Someone was glad to see her.

"I know, Gin. It's okay. I'm alright, really." She didn't know what else to say.

As Ginny let go of her, she looked around and saw a sea of familiar faces. There had to be at least two hundred people here, waiting to fight the Dark Side. Some noticed her arrival and were staring sceptically, while others were too busy with strategy planning and worry to notice. She saw that most of the Order members were here, ready. Tonks and Lupin were huddled in a corner, talking silently. There was the Weasley clan, except for Ron and Bill, to her right. Arthur and Molly looked stricken with worry, while Charlie - who had apparently flown back to Britain - held his mother and comforted her. Fred and George were clearly trying to cheer up their family as everything they said made someone either look up and snicker, or give them a pointed glare. Cho Chang and Luna Lovegood were looking over a chart on the table at the middle of the tent. Beside them were Dean and Seamus, the inseparable duo had made it this far, their brotherhood deepened by the toils of war. There were many others who she had come to know personally over the past two years, whether it be from sharing a room at safe houses or from strategizing with at meetings.

Something they all had in common was the steely determination painted across their faces. This was the moment they had been waiting for. Everything had finally converged, in one way or another, and fallen into their path. Harry Potter would fight You-Know-Who and one way or another, their fates would be decided.

"All right, everyone. We have got word that all the Death Eaters have taken up positions inside the castle, awaiting You-Know-Who's arrival," said Moody, as he stepped into the centre of the room to address the small crowd.

"We know that the entrance through the tunnels has been blocked, according to Ron and Harry. They are taking cover inside the Chamber under the Slytherin washrooms. The front entrance is under heavy guard, as suspected," continued Bill. He stood beside Moody with an air of authority surrounding him.

Hermione knew why the two boys had gone to the Chamber. The Basilisk fangs, their last resort to kill that wretched snake of Voldemort. Had they listened to her when she had mapped it out for them months ago, things would have been very different. They would not have to hide out in that ominous chamber that could only be opened by the very man they set out to fight. It was a dangerous trap they had fallen into. If they get caught… No. Hermione shook off the little thoughts seeping out from the mental library's doorway. Not the time. Her mind was clear and blank. There was nothing foreign to waver her own thoughts.

"Then what is our plan?" said a shrill voice from inside the crowd. The voice belonged to Padma Patil. She looked at them with a mix of earnest hope and confusion.

It was Lupin who answered, "We will have to go in from above and enter through the towers. That's the location with the least guards."

"Yes, Remus. That is the only way for us now. It is imperative that we gain control of the castle. We need to build a solid ground there, and then reconstitute our attack strategy. This Forest is not our best position. We are out in the open and anyone can find us as we step out of this tent." Moody's eye was bobbing in all different directions as he formulated this plan. He was clearly on edge. There was no assurance that this would work.

"We cannot wait around for a sign from Potter. We have to move in as quickly as possible." With that, Moody walked over to Padma and Luna and snatched up the papers in front of them.

He began reading out everyone's missions, "There will be teams of five, approaching each tower from four different directions. You must stay under disillusionment so as to not alert any Death Eaters."

"Keep account of your fellow team members, but do not drag your team members to their deaths. If you have been attacked, find any hiding spot and hide. Alert the house-elves that can be trusted by calling on them, and direct them to apparate you to one of the safe houses. Healers will be waiting there to take care of you..." He continued on with more directions in case of severe injuries.

Then it came to assigning teams to fly into the castle. Moody called out, "Gryffindor Tower. Bill, Fred, Luna, Fletchley, and Corner. You will enter through the north side. Dean, Chang, George, Remus, and Minerva, enter from the west. Tonks, Patil…" The list continued for a long time. This gave Hermione a window to observe her surroundings.

The tent looked very worn out due to constant use. There was a large mountain of supplies piled high, at the back of the tent. Most of them were brooms of varying sizes and qualities. The brooms were part of their third plan. This means Plan A and B has clearly gone down the drain. She moved her eyes over to a large makeshift shelf containing glass bottles of various sizes. They housed a selection of emergency healing potions and ingredients. There were several rolls of bandages and ointments kept below the bottles. Next to the shelf were stacks of parchment. She knew these to be all the plans and strategies they had mapped out over the course of a few weeks. Every small suggestion, every passing thought, jotted down on scraps of parchment. And she knew a considerable amount had Hermione's own hasty handwriting inked into them. She had always been suggesting, whether they took notice of it or not. Her eyes took notice of many other objects, personal and otherwise, belonging to people she had once housed with. There were some robes too.

"...Charlie, Granger, and myself. East side of the Astronomy tower." With the mention of her name, Hermione whipped her head back to focus on her instructions.

She was to enter the Astronomy Tower with Charlie, Moody and two others whose names she forgot to listen to. Of course Moody would put her in his team. He had to keep her close by. He was not going to take any chances.

Moody gave her a sharp look as if to silently say, I'm watching you, Granger. Not a toe out of line.

She gave him a small nod. This was no time to cause infighting. She had to be logical. She was here for one reason and one reason only. Fight in the war, win for the Light Side, and free the Wizarding World from the shackles of You-Know-Who. There was nothing beyond that. She steadied her mind and looked up, ready to fight.

Everyone moved towards the broom pile. They grabbed the first one they could find, not caring for what they got. Bill, Charlie and a couple of others already had brooms in their hand, presumably their own. Hermione picked up an old Firebolt. It looked to have been under heavy before she picked it up. Someone out there must have used this dearly for a long time, she thought. That thought brought a strange satisfaction to her mind. It was similar to looking at a secondhand book at a store and wondering what stories the little bookmarks, tears and stains had to tell.

They all arranged themselves inside the tent. She was at the very end of the line with Arthur and Charlie Weasley, Moody, and Parvati Patil. The Astronomy Tower's east side team was to go last. Arthur, Charlie and Moody were talking in hushed voices, a few feet in front of her. Parvati stood beside her silently, sometimes glancing at her sideways with a pained expression. Eventually, Hermione got tired of the stares and looked at her pointedly.

"What is it, Parvati?" she asked.

"Why are you here, Hermione?" Parvati asked back. Her voice gave away her sadness, confusion, and anger all rolled into one question.

Hermione had been expecting this. She had thought someone would ask her this the minute she entered the tent. She just hadn't imagined it would be Parvati.

"Parvati… I'm here to fight. Just like the rest of you. I'm a member of the Order. I want to see You-Know-Who defeated just as much as you." She said with an edge of exasperation.

When would they start listening to her? She asked herself, although knowing very well the answer.

Certainly not now, you fool. If they haven't been listening to you all this time, why would they now?

Right. That was true. It was at times like these she was grateful for that logical voice in her head. The only anchor to ground her thoughts. She was, however, not a fool. She was smart. She knew what she was doing. She will get this done.

Parvati did not seem convinced by her answer, but she seemed to acknowledge the bigger picture. "I hope so, Hermione. We really have to win. I want to live," she said with a quiet desperation. It was the feeling everyone in this room shared but didn't dare show.

"We will. Harry and Ron know what they're doing. We all have prepared for this. We will win," she promised Parvati. It was easier to assure her and fill her with hope and courage than to spout out the reality of the situation. She did not want to list out all the different ways this could go wrong. It would do no good.

With that, the line started moving. Parvati and Hermione moved towards the entrance of the tent. She could feel her own heart beating at a wildly dangerous pace. If she kept this up, she'd create her own cardiac arrhythmia. She took a few deep breaths and focused her mind.

She envisioned the layout of Hogwarts and drew out the route to the tower in her head. The Astronomy Tower was in a tricky spot. The direct route would be through the owlery, past the bridge, and the courtyard. The Order had mapped out a longer route, circling to the other side of Tower, past the Ravenclaw wing and up to the east side. They would be flying at a high altitude for most of the duration and only descending to reach when the Tower was directly below them.

Hermione knew that the Order would choose this route because it was the safest. This came to Hermione's advantage. Although Hermione had been assigned this task and was brought to this fight to assist the Order, she had other plans.


A few months ago, on her usual reading of Advanced Arithmancy books, Hermione came across the significance of numbers and how the power of certain numbers was higher than others. Certain spells when cast repetitively, a specific number of times would yield a stronger and more powerful result. Similarly, using a specific numerical progression in calculating the weight of potion ingredients can produce a more potent concoction. Hermione was a smart witch. She would not believe this without first checking it herself. So in the secrecy of the night at the safehouses she stayed at, Hermione began to brew potions and cast charms with a touch of Arithmancy.

The potions took a couple of weeks to brew, but the results of the charms she cast were instantaneous. It was like a whole new world was opened to her and ready at her disposal. The spells she cast had new energy surrounding them. When the potions finally came to fruition, she tested them against control potions and saw dramatic results. These new potions could reduce healing time significantly. It would also reduce the amount to be given to those in need, which meant she would have enough for more people. This was a huge breakthrough!

Apart from the potions and spells, she also noticed that there was something else mentioned in the texts. The number seven was an incredibly powerful number. While she had used that very number in calculating the speed of casting a spell, and the grams of Dittany, she also read that seven was a number associated with life and souls.

This led her down a rabbit hole of searching for something that was at the tip of her tongue but she could not spell out. There had to be some connection here… but what?

It took her all of two days to realize what it was she was missing.

Horcruxes.

The life forms that Tom Riddle had successfully split himself into. They had come to realize that there were five Horcruxes, over the course of a year. Only the highest Order members, and Hermione, Ron, and Harry were privy to that information. Since Harry could easily sense the presence of Voldemort's life within the artefacts, he and another Order member would hunt them down and destroy them. So far, they had found and destroyed a ring left behind by Dumbledore, a locket belonging to Salazar Slytherin, and a diary of Tom Riddle's that ended up at the hands of Ginny Weasley, which was the beginning of the hunt. Basilisk fangs from the Chamber of Secrets had first destroyed the diary so they had done the same for the locket and the ring. They had to find two more - a cup of Helga Hufflepuff that Voldemort let slip through his vision by Harry's scar, and that snake, Nagini.

But if these texts and her experiments were right, there could be two more Horcruxes. Couldn't there?

Tom Riddle was as smart as he was evil. If he wanted the safest way to ensure his immortality, he would have probably put his vast knowledge into good use. It had to be.

If they found all five Horcruxes and faced Voldemort, would he die? What was the guarantee?

Hermione did a lot more research over the next few weeks. She read up on any texts she could find. It had to be written somewhere. Since Horcruxes were a dark subject, there was only a passing mention of it in two of the six hundred texts that Hermione pored over. After the six hundred and thirty first text, she jumped with excitement. There it was.

'...the soul of a human is at its most stable and pinnacle form when it is one. The soul when split, as highly inadvisable as it is, becomes weaker counterparts to its original. Strength in number does not signify the strength of the souls. However, souls split in divine numbers of perfection can make the soul stronger.'

This was the proof Hermione needed. She jumped up and darted out. She needed to talk to someone reasonable. It would be the only way to get someone to listen to her and start an expanded search for more Horcruxes. She walked into a bedroom which they had converted into a meeting room and saw ten people looking up and staring back at her. She had just barged into an Order meeting. An Order meeting she was not invited to. They all looked at her curiously.

"Hermione? What is it?" said Harry.

She eyed them all with a hint of hurt for having completely excluded her from important meetings but forced herself to speak.

"I've had a breakthrough. This could help us on many fronts," she said, her voice steady and eyes now filled with excitement. "I have been researching potions and spells through an Arithmancy angle."

Harry raised his eyebrow with interest. Ron looked very confused. Lupin, Moody and Kingsley Shacklebolt looked at her, waiting for her to continue. The rest had also stopped to listen.

"There are certain numbers in wizardry that are stronger than others," she began. "The numbers three and seven have been recorded to have the greatest effect. I recently tested out a repetition of spells with a calculated discharge velocity with these numbers involved and it gave a larger effect. I also added a variation of the measurements of some ingredients in a few potions to accommodate these numbers. The potions also had a stronger effect. I think we could use this to improve our attack tactics."

She waited for someone to give her their thoughts. It was Kingsley who first spoke.

"I suppose we can carry the word about the potions over to the healers and potioneers. But the charms.." he looked at her carefully, "they would not work on a battlefield. There is no time to think or calculate when fighting. We cannot waste precious moments repeating the same spell over and over again, hoping for a marginal effect. And how many can calculate the- the what - the velocity? Of a spell when trying to fight death?"

"But if we train them-" Hermione started.

"Ms Granger, we do not have the time or the resources to train these students for a new way to cast spells. Learning new spells is more advantageous. Thank you, Ms Granger. Is that all?" Kingsley was done speaking to her. She had once again proved to be of no use in his eyes.

The rest of the table looked at her with a mix of disappointment and dismissal. At least, one of her ideas was to be put to good use. That, to her, seemed like a small success.

"There is one more thing." She was, however, not done. She had to say the thing that she originally came to say. "Since seven is believed to be the most powerful number, I believe You-Know-Who has made seven Horcruxes."

This time around, the ten pairs of wide eyes shot up.

"What?" said Harry. He was looking at her with disbelief.

"Hermione, it has been confirmed that there are only five. We have known this for a long time, from trusted sources," spoke Ron, for the first time since she entered the room.

"But the texts say-" she started.

"The texts are not always the facts, Ms Granger. People base their choices on feelings and experiences. We have concrete proof that it is five Horcruxes. I believe your texts would explain that five is also a powerful number?" Kingsley was challenging her to say something back.

"Yes. But…" her bubble of faith, small as it already was, now burst completely. They were not willing to listen. She retreated back to her room, silently continuing her research, knowing with great conviction that what she found out was true. She would not stop the search. She would do it herself if she had to.


Hermione mounted her Firebolt with the ease of an experienced rider. She had been waiting for this mission, for as long as she could remember. Planning had consumed her completely. Not like she had anything better to do while sitting around alone.

She gripped the handle of the broom, waited for her signal, and then flew upwards with great precision. She zoomed straight up to 10,000 feet and steadied herself. She was the first one to arrive at the designated position. Charlie came up beside her, not two seconds later. He looked surprised to find her there first. He was followed by Moody and Arthur. Parvati appeared last. They stood in the position for a few seconds, each in their own thoughts, bracing the inevitable. Then with a final nod, they were off.

Charlie and Moody led the way. They were the first line of defence. Arthur was flying between them, keeping a six feet distance, and Parvati behind them. Hermione positioned herself at the back, flying steadily behind them. They flew around the perimeters of the Forbidden Forest and above the banks of the Black Lake. From their height, it was hard to make out these landmarks as the clouds were thickening the higher they went. Hermione kept an eye on the landmarks she knew were easily identifiable, and used them as launch points to the next position. They were nearing the grounds of Hogwarts when the clouds parted and the Astronomy Tower became clearly visible.

The group descended steadily towards the Tower and Hermione trailed along behind them. As the other four in front of her moved directly into the Tower, Hermione dipped low and entered a different side of the castle - The Ravenclaw Tower. She knew that by the time they noticed her absence, they would not be able to turn back to look for her.

She scouted the tower's windows for any Death Eaters lurking inside. There were none occupying the premises. The designated group that arrived before her had conveniently left the windows open. She angled the broom towards the windows and swooped in gracefully. She stopped at the corner of the room and dismounted, leaving the Firebolt against a wall.

There was no one inside the Ravenclaw common room. Hermione climbed up the stairs and looked into the dormitories. Again, there was nobody inside. She checked the adjacent bathroom and came up empty. She came back down to the common room and before she could turn around to a jet of green light whizzed its way towards her, she heard

Move, Granger!