Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. I don't make money from this fic.
July 31, 1981 Godric's Hollow, England - Potter House
It was Harry's first birthday, and Hermione was busy helping Lily finish dinner while the Sirius and James played with Harry and entertained the guests. Frank and Alice had brought Neville over to play with Harry and the two boys hit it off straight away.
Hermione had just pulled the cake out of the oven, setting it aside to cool, when there was a knock at the door. Hermione glanced over at Lily, frowning. Her friend looked equally concerned and both women made their way into the sitting room, which had gone deathly quiet. Even the two small boys could tell something was wrong.
James had moved to check who was outside, Sirius, Remus, and Frank standing in front of the boys, their wands drawn. James frowned, but waved them down.
"It's Dumbledore. Regulus and Snape are with him, too." He said, moving to the door. The men lowered their wands as the two wizards entered the house. The two Dark wizards had been to the house once previously, but it was still a little unnerving for Hermione to see Snape there.
"So sorry to intrude on such a special day," Dumbledore said, greeting them. "But there are a few rather urgent matters that have come to light. I apologize for not sending a patronus, I was in a bit of a rush." he said.
"Don't worry about it, sir, you just gave us a bit of a scare." James said as Dumbledore strode further into the sitting room.
"Please, make yourself at home. Dinner's nearly done." Lily said with a smile.
"You're too kind, Lily." Dumbledore smiled, taking a seat in an armchair. Harry looked up at the tall man with wide eyes. "Hello there, Harry." he said kindly, "Happy Birthday."
The little boy giggled and pushed himself onto all fours, crawling over to the tall man and pulling himself up by clutching handfuls of Dumbledore's robes. The old wizard chuckled, reaching down and scooping him up. He plopped the chubby baby down on his lap and Harry promptly began to play with Dumbledore's beard.
Hermione smiled at the exchange, but noticed Snape and Regulus had moved to a corner next to Peter. Snape looked uncomfortable and shifted his weight, avoiding eye contact. Regulus was pale and looked like he might be ill.
"As I was saying, there are a few pressing matters to attend to. It really is quite the stroke of luck that you're all in the same place today. I'll just jump right in then, I've found another horcrux." Dumbledore said.
"You have?" Hermione gasped. It had been two months since she told Dumbledore of her vision, and little to nothing had come of it.
"Indeed, I've located the signet ring which once belonged to Marvolo Riddle." Dumbledore said. "I didn't bring it with me, as I knew at the very least Harry would be present, and I certainly wouldn't want him exposed to that sort of Dark magic. It is safe, hidden away with the locket."
"So that leaves the Diary, the Cup, and the Diadem." Hermione said, with a sigh.
"And that is why I needed to speak with you all. Severus has recently gotten word," Dumbledore nodded to Snape, "That Voldemort has been making preparations for open war. I believe the time has come for us to plan our capture of the horcruxes."
"Sir," Sirius asked, a frown creasing his brow, "Did we ever figure out a way destroy them? If we gather them with no way to destroy them, like you said before, it'd be pointless."
"Very good, Sirius." He said, "I have a theory. A highly probable theory, but I'd prefer to not divulge it just yet. The less you lot know of the entire plan, the better. The threat of torture as a means of getting information is real, I'm afraid."
"So then," James said, taking a seat and leaning forward. "How are we going to do this?"
"The Diary, as far as we know, is still hidden in the Nott's home. The Cup, Severus has confirmed to be hidden in the Lestrange home, and the Diadem, according to Hermione's vision, the Diadem is hidden at Hogwarts. I think the best course of action would be to have Hermione and Sirius lead the search for the Diadem. I'd like Severus to lead the search for the Cup, and Regulus, the Diary."
"Headmaster," Severus said, his voice raspy. "How are we going to accomplish that? The Dark Lord never leaves the Diary unattended, if he's not there, there are always guards stationed outside. And Bellatrix is much the same, she always keeps a close eye on the Cup."
"That," Dumbledore said, a twinkle in his eye, "Is where James, Lily, Frank, and Alice come in. We will draw the attention of Lord Voldemort by luring him away from his hiding place, then we will divide and conquer."
"What about Harry?" Lily asked, "And Neville?"
"Of course, the boys will be safely out of the picture. Perhaps your mother can take Neville and flee, Frank?" Dumbledore asked.
"I can take Harry." Remus said, looking to James and Lily. "We'll go north. There's a quiet place in Appleby where we can lay low for a few days." James nodded at his friend, placing a hand on Lily's shoulder.
"We're supposed to use our friends as bait?" Sirius asked. Hermione had known that would be the next obstacle; getting Sirius to agree.
"Pads, it's alright. We've not been able to help fight for nearly two years. If this is how we end it-" James and Frank shared a look. Frank nodded, reaching over to grab Alice's hand. "We'll do it."
"They won't be alone, Sirius." Dumbledore said. "We will have others, waiting in the wings. This will be the final battle."
Sirius looked over to Hermione, his face screwed up with several emotions at once.
"It will be okay, Sirius. I think this is our best bet." She said, comfortingly.
"Alright," Sirius sighed. "But I'll be right there, fighting beside you."
"Of course you will be," James smiled. "I'd expect nothing less."
"Then it's decided." Dumbledore said, with a nod. "Severus will keep us up to date on the movements of Voldemort, and we will prepare for an offensive attack on our own time."
"There is one more thing that we need to address, sir." Regulus said, his voice tense.
"Ah, yes, you are correct, Mr. Black. Severus, I believe since the orders were yours, you should have the floor for this bit." Dumbledore told him.
"I was summoned by the Dark Lord this morning," Snape began, his deep voice clear, though he was looking at the floor. "And ordered to deliver a message to one of my old acquaintances from school. He said, 'The one known as Wormtail, bring him to me. I'd like to have a chat with him.'"
"I'm sure he would," James spat. "But what of it? We're obviously not going to send Peter to Voldemort in gift wrapping!"
"No, I'm going, James." he said, not looking at James, but at Snape.
"You're what?" James asked, looking between the two men.
"I have to go," Peter sighed. "When we were in school, there were meetings on the train to and from school. That's where I disappeared to; I'd find the trolley to cover it up, but the meetings are why it took me forever to find you. They, after we left school, I kept up with some of my contacts. Regulus and I have been the closest, but there are others, Avery and Wilkes, that I've kept up with as well. I've even met with the Dark Lord on occasion."
"Why?" Sirius asked, looking him over.
"Intel." Peter said. "When Hermione found me sneaking back to the compartment from the meeting, I knew I had to set my priorities in order. But I couldn't just drop my Death Eater contacts. That would be stupid. So I let them believe I rode the fence. None of them knew I was in the Order, and Voldemort asked me several times why I didn't fight with him. I had to explain that I was laying low so that my Order friends didn't expect anything. He bought it, thankfully. But it's been useful. It's kept the Death Eaters off my trail. And helped me to feed them false information, along with Reg."
"So then what does he want of you now?" Lily asked.
"My guess is information. He knows who my friends are. I'll go meet with him, and tell him a tale. I'll lead him along like I have before, and that will be the end of it." He said, but the color drained from his face, and his hands shook.
"I don't want you to go alone." Hermione said suddenly.
"I won't be alone. I'll have Severus." Peter said, smiling nervously at her.
Hermione had a bad feeling in her cut. She suddenly felt light-headed and she swayed on the spot for a moment. Sirius noticed, moving over to her quickly to support her.
"I have a feeling-" She murmured. "Peter, I want to go with you."
"What?" Sirius asked. Everyone in the room turned and looked at her like she'd grown a second head.
"I'll go under the Cloak. I just have this feeling in my gut. I need to be there." she said, putting a hand to her head.
"Dumbledore, what do you think?" James asked, his face an unreadable mask.
"I trust her judgement." Dumbledore said, "Though I urge you to be cautious, Hermione."
"If you're going, so am I." Sirius said.
"No." Hermione said, turning and putting a hand on his chest. "Sirius, I don't know why, but I need to be there. But I need you to stay safe. I need you to fight with Lily and James if something happens to me. I need you to protect Harry." Sirius looked her over, studying her face with sad grey eyes. He sighed, then nodded, kissing her on the forehead.
"But be careful." He said, then glanced over to Peter. "Both of you. I can't lose you."
Hermione nodded, burying her face in his chest and wrapping her arms around him. He held her tightly for a few moments, before Lily spoke up.
"Well, you lot aren't going anywhere until after dinner." She said. Hermione smiled, looking over at Peter who did the same. Leave it to Lily to try and bring some shred of normality to a stressful situation.
"Come on, Lils, let's finish the cake." Hermione said, detangling herself from Sirius with a kiss.
"I love you." He murmured before she pulled away.
"I love you, too." Hermione said, giving his arm a gentle squeeze before she headed back to the kitchen.
Later That Night, Falmouth, England - Nott Residence
The Nott house was as fairly large, if old, three-story home with ivy sprawling upward along the front. Hermione, under James's invisibility cloak, walked quietly just behind Severus and Peter towards the old house along the cobblestone drive. She looked up at the impressive structure and saw a man looking down on them for a moment from the third floor, before he turned away. Hermione stuck close to Peter as they approached the doorway, not wanting to get shut out of the house by not being quick enough.
The door creaked open and a house elf waved them in, bowing low. Hermione squeezed through the door after Peter just in time.
"Master Nott will take his guests in the drawing room." the house elf squeaked. "If you will follow me?"
The men followed the elf and Hermione trailed behind, entering the room after Peter and finding a corner to stand in hopefully out of the way.
"Master will be will you shortly." the house elf said, bowing low again.
"Cough once." Severus said, barely audible, and Hermione did, letting the two men know that she was in front of them, off to the left. She'd be able to watch them carefully. Neither man sat as they waited for Voldemort, and before long, they both perked up as they heard footsteps leading to the room.
"Ah, Severus! Glad to see you've brought our little friend! Very good, very good." Lord Voldemort said, striding purposefully into the room.
"Good evening, my Lord." Severus greeted, bowing his head.
"Yes, a good evening indeed!" He agreed, "Especially if young Peter here can give me what I want."
"I will most certainly try, my Lord." Peter said, and Hermione could hear the nervousness in his voice.
"Oh, there's no room for trying here, Peter. You see, when I want something, I get it. There is no exceptions. I get what I want, or the person who denies me… well, they'll get theirs, too." He said, taking out his wand and toying with it. Hermione repressed a shudder.
"Yes, my Lord." Peter said. Hermione could see the sweat pooling on his face and pitied him.
"Now, then. I believe you are familiar with James Potter and Sirius Black? You were friends in school, I believe. Even had these cute little nicknames for each other. Wormtail. Padfoot. Prongs. Yes, I know all about that. It seems that now, they've joined Dumbledore's little group and have gone underground. But I think you may know where they are, might you?"
"I'm sorry, my Lord, I've been trying to track them down myself for months. I've seen them a few times, but they always come to me." He said. Hermione was surprised how well the man lied under pressure.
"Always? Hm, such a pity. I might have believed you if I didn't have Mulciber tailing you for the past month. So where are they, Peter? Godric's Hollow? Rye? Or perhaps Upper Flagley, you've been visiting there, quite frequently. It would line up with Black's assessments, as well."
"I don't know where they live, my Lord. I've been visiting family quite a bit. Have a sick uncle in Godric's Hollow. My mother lives in Rye." Voldemort flicked his wand in Peter's direction, almost casually, sending him the floor screaming in pain.
"Don't lie to me, boy. I know your mother is dead. So how about we try this again? Tell me where Sirius and Hermione Black and James and Lily Potter live, or I will kill you where you stand."
Hermione stifled a cry as she watched her friend being tortured. She looked away from him, at Snape, and saw Snape's wand drop from his sleeve. With a small flick of his wrist, Hermione was petrified, the victim of a nonverbal Full Body-Bind Curse. Hermione panicked for a moment before she saw why he'd done it; Peter was laughing.
"I'm not afraid of death," He said, getting to his feet. "I know how it feels to be loved. Dying is better than living a life without love. After all, the last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."
"SILENCE." Voldemort roared, flicking his wand at Peter again, violently. Peter screamed, his back arching, but he did not fall. The pain passed, and he leaned forward, hands on his thighs, panting.
"Last chance, you pathetic excuse for a wizard. You give me the information I need, and you walk free. You don't, and you die alone, for nothing."
"I'm never alone." Peter said. "And I'm sorry to break it to you, Tom, but you're going to have to kill me. I'd rather die than betray my friends." Hermione noticed Peter wasn't looking at Voldemort, but rather over his shoulder, directly at her. She felt herself start to cry as she realized what was going to happen. "And my friend's would do the same for me."
Hermione's mind suddenly raced back to her third year, to the Shrieking Shack and the first time she'd ever met Peter and Sirius.
"You don't understand," whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"
"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Black. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!
"You know nothing of friendship or love, Tom. And that will be your downfall. Oh, and one last thing." Peter said, standing up straight and looking Voldemort in the eyes. "Never underestimate a Potter. It'll be the last thing you ever do."
Hermione's tears flowed freely as she saw Voldemort raise his wand again. She watched through blurry eyes as the flash of green hit Peter square in the chest, and he fell forward.
"Clean this up, Severus, and you are dismissed. Keep an ear to the ground, as always." She heard Voldemort say, before leaving. Severus replied softly, but Hermione didn't hear it. She was vaguely aware of Voldemort leaving the room, but it wasn't until she nearly fell on her face that she realized the curse had been reversed. She watched as Severus levitated Peter's body, and she moved to his side quickly.
"Stay close." He muttered, barely audible. And she did. She stuck to his side all the way to the apparition point. She took his arm, not trusting herself to apparate in the mental state she was in, and she felt a familiar squeezing sensation, before landing before the Potter house in Godric's Hollow. Sirius must have been watching for them, for he opened the door mere seconds after their arrival.
"Oh no." He murmured, as Hermione let the cloak slide off, rushing to him. "Peter?" He asked, and Hermione knew he was hoping one of his best friends was merely unconscious.
"He's gone," Hermione sobbed. "I told you he wouldn't betray us, and he didn't."
Sirius stared in disbelief at the body that Severus had set down in the grass a few feet away. Hermione heard the others stirring inside and prepared herself for the onslaught of emotion she was about to face, but she couldn't get one thought out of her head.
She'd watched Voldemort kill one of her best friends in cold blood. Now, this was personal. Now, she would see him burn.