Chapter Eight
((Hey all, I don't own Harry Potter! Just to let you know! And sorry about not posting for so long! Again, the grandparent's old piece of junk computer wouldn't let me! Now! Onto the chapter!))
~*~
The doors to the Great Hall burst open and Ron Weasley ran into the large room, a piece of parchment clutched tightly in his hand. The other leaders of the Order all looked curiously at him as he panted to a stop beside Dumbledore. He slammed the piece of parchment onto the table
"I've figured out our escape route"
He said simply, pointing his wand at the parchment and muttering a spell. Immediately the 3-D images of two castles appeared. Hogwarts and Voldemort's castle. Ron pointed at Voldemort's castle.
"Since we're all walking or whatever to London, I can't give us a good entrance, but an exit we can do. Well, I said if worse came to worse we could apparate from the river. I would say just open a portal, but there aren't enough wizards and witches that can open them to fit such a large amount of people through, fast. We will have a few open for people who can't apparate, or the magical creatures that obviously would need an escape. But, you say, where on earth would we apparate? Well, the wards at Hogwarts cannot be let down, because then Voldemort could send his extra death eaters charging in here.but what about the wards just around the lake? I mean, you know the death eaters will try and come here, but seriously, none of them are going to try and apparate into the lake. If we take the wards off we can safely apparate onto the grounds. If we apparated somewhere else, well, you never know how split up we would be. And if we don't win this battle, we'll need to regroup fast."
Ron stared proudly around at everyone in the room, all of them seemed impressed. Dumbledore smiled slightly
"Brilliant plan Mr. Weasley, absolutely brilliant. Now that we have an escape plan, this meeting is over. Remus, Ron.I have a favor to ask of you"
Remus approached Dumbledore, stopping beside Ron and looking at the old man, his eyes confused. Everyone else poured out of the hall, leaving the three wizards alone.
"There are a few groups from around Europe waiting outside our gates.would you be so kind as to let them in and bring them here?"
Ron glanced at Remus, and they both nodded. Dumbledore beamed
"Lovely, but go quickly please, we don't want them standing out there for too long"
Ron rolled his eyes and started off towards the door, Remus in tow. Once outside Ron turned into the large.black.unicorn he always became. He stooped down slightly and Remus careful mounted him
"You know, I've never been good at riding horses, they're always really scared of me because they can sense what I am"
Ron turned his head back towards Remus, his horn coming dangerously close to the werewolf's side. He let out a soft winnie and Remus laced his hands through Ron's mane. Rearing back Ron took off full blast across the grounds. Remus let out a strangled yell and clutched the running horse's mane tighter. Wind whipped through his hair as they moved and Remus felt as though he were flying. The pounding of Ron's hooves echoed throughout the grounds. As they neared the gates both Ron and Remus could make out a small mass of witches and wizards waiting outside. Ron slid to halt directly in front of the gates and many people gasped. Remus slid off and opened the gates quickly. At least a hundred able wizards and witches poured in, followed by about twenty children and a few elderly people. Remus smiled kindly, but Ron didn't change from his form. Closing the gates, Remus spoke
"Welcome to Hogwarts, if you'll follow me, I'll take you to Dumbledore"
Remus re-mounted the dark unicorn and began leading everyone across the open grounds. A young girl sprinted up next to Remus as they were passing the lake
"Excuse me?"
She said meekly. Remus looked down at her and smiled
"Yes?"
"Well, I just wanted to ask a question"
Remus nodded and the girl continued
"Aren't all unicorns white?"
Remus chuckled, and Ron slowed slightly
"Well, most are, just not this one. He's a very smart and special unicorn.you want to ride him?"
Ron grunted in disapproval, but the girl nodded happily and Remus slid off and put the girl on top.
"Hold tightly to his mane and tell him where or what you want to do"
The girl giggled happily and leaned close to Ron's ear
"Run!"
She said, still smiling widely. Ron look at Remus, waited a moment so the girl could get a better hold and he took off running. She shrieked in delight as they moved passed all the others towards the castle. She was much easier to carry than Remus was.due to the fact that she was much smaller. He loped up the stairs and entered the great hall. Dumbledore looked up as he trotted over and smiled
"Ah, hello there.I see you've met Ron"
The girl rolled off Ron's back, hitting the floor with a thud.
"He's beautiful.but what kind of name for a unicorn is Ron?"
Dumbledore chuckled and knelt down beside her
"Well.it's not just a name for a unicorn"
Ron was shaking his head behind the girl and quickly turned around, running back outside. Remus was still walking in front, now surrounded by children, begging for a ride. Ron had half a mind to turn around and gallop back to the castle.but Remus was already beckoning him forward.a sinister smile on his face.
~*~
"Percy?!"
Ginny shrieked, throwing herself to the side, already panting heavily in shock. The solid form of her dead brother was kneeling beside the tree, a weary smile on his face
"Hello Gin"
He said softly. He didn't approach her.which Ginny was glad for, as she probably would have run away had he moved forward. Swallowing a lump in her throat and blinking tears out of her eyes she got shakily to her knees
"What.you.are.aren't.dead?"
She couldn't get out a coherent sentence, and Percy seemed to realize that. Standing up, he leaned gently against the tree, his somewhat dead eyes glowing with pain.
"This is a very intelligent invention of Professor Dumbledore's.if a tombstone is put in this grave yard; an echo.a memory of the person is brought with it. With memories and feelings from his or her past life. I'm no ghost.I can't leave this grave yard.but everyone here knows everything that is occurring in the world. Professor Dumbledore makes frequent visits to explain situations to family members, or just curious witches and wizards form the past. I talk to him quite a bit.I was very relieved when he told me you were safe"
Ginny was barely aware of the tears pouring down her quickly paling face.
"Why didn't he tell anyone about the grave yard?"
Percy shook his head sadly
"If everyone knew about this place, too many people would spend too much time here. Only you and Bill know of this place.out of our family of course"
After a few deep breaths Ginny charged forward, moving to throw her arms around the memory of her brother, but he held his hands up to stop her.
"You can't touch me.I'm not solid, although I look it.I'm a memory, remember?"
Ginny let out a sob, burying her face in her hands
"I'm so sorry Percy, for everything I've ever done to hurt you.for everything I've ever done wrong."
Percy smiled sadly.she was almost his age.well the age he died at. Shaking his head he distanced himself from her
"I wouldn't change a thing.now come here.there's someone I think you'd want to meet"
He led Ginny around the Potter's graves towards the other end of the iron gate that over-looked the front end of the school.though Ginny, and surely not too many other people, had never noticed it. Two people were standing side by side behind the gate, watching as a large group of people and a black unicorn crossed the grounds. Ginny recognized them immediately, even before they turned and looked at her. The man had messy black hair, glasses, and hazel eyes.and the woman, fiery red curls and sharp emerald green eyes. They both smiled at her
"Another of your family Percy? Lovely"
Lily Potter said, stepping forward and extending her hand
"I'm Lily"
She said kindly. Ginny stared down at her hand for a moment.finally Lily blushed
"Oh, right"
She muttered, pulling her hand back. Ginny smiled
"Ginny Weasley"
She whispered. Lily grinned
"Oh, I've heard so much about you."
She said, her eyes lighting up
"Dumbledore told us you saw Harry not to long ago.how is he?"
Ginny smiled sadly
"He doesn't know about this place either, does he?"
"No.Dumbledore thought it better to wait until Harry had less on his plate.he was afraid Harry would spend all him time here"
Lily whispered gently
"Which wouldn't have bothered me"
"James!"
"Well, I never told Dumbledore I agreed with his decision"
Ginny couldn't help but giggled
"Well, he's off saving the world, doing what he does best"
James chuckled
"That's my boy"
Lily frowned
"Dumbledore told us about the attack on London"
She said. Ginny glanced at Percy who was nodding solemnly
"Yeah.but I think we'll be fine. Dumbledore wouldn't have suggested it if there wasn't a chance we could win"
James raised his eyebrows
"You're taking this well then?"
Ginny shrugged
"Well, if you fear something that will inevitably come.it won't help you, will it? Plus, we've got Harry and Dumbledore.we can't loose"
Ginny really didn't believe that.but why worry her own brother and Harry's parents about it? James was beaming proudly and Lily looked impressed.Percy just looked shocked
"You're a smart girl Ginny.Percy, you've obviously got a sister with brains.and what about Ron? Your brother that was really close to Harry.how's he taking it?"
James asked, looking interested. Ginny smiled
"Ron is willing to do just about anything to get Harry and Hermione back. He'd fight Voldemort himself if he thought he could get his friends and family back by doing it.that's him there."
She pointed at the unicorn running across the grounds. Lily and James looked around and grinned
"Ah yes.we always watched them out here with Remus on the full moon.your brother has done so much for Remus"
Lily said, watching as her old friend doubled over in laughter when one of the children gave Ron's sides a violent kick. Ginny giggled
"Well.Remus is like a second father to him."
James smiled sadly
"I'm sure that makes Remus happy.he always wanted to be a father.when Harry was a baby he could Remus Papa Moony.Remus used to tear up every time he said it.we used to tease him about it.but now I understand why he loved it so much"
Ginny nodded
"In Harry's third year."
She began. The amount of interest that appeared on both Lily and James' faces nearly broke Ginny's heart. Sighing quietly she continued
"Remus really helped him out.and then when we found out about who Sirius really was.well Harry was finally getting someone he could call family. Course it just gave him someone else to defend. He and Snape used to get into arguments all the time in potions over you Mr. Potter"
James' eyes widened
"What?"
"Yeah.Snape would say you were.I don't know, arrogant or something and Harry would just rage at him.he was always loosing points for snapping in potions.those two were always going at it. But then, off scenes they always worked tirelessly to save each other. In Harry's seventh year they stopped fighting.no one really knows why.just after one detention they were civil to each other. Everyone just thinks that Harry said something that made Snape see.made him understand.guess we'll find out eventually."
She shrugged. James and Lily were hanging on her every word
"Tell us more about Harry"
James prodded. Ginny smiled slightly.they were his parents after all, thy deserved to know everything..
~*~
Hermione yawned, closing her eyes and lying down. They were currently hidden behind a dumpster in a small town. There was a house across the street that Draco wanted to get to, but the main street was over run with death eaters. He'd made Hermione turn into a wolf, seeing as they'd look less suspicious if he was carrying a wolf than a blind human in ragged robes. Supposedly that would just scream 'CAMP ESCAPEE'. Suddenly she felt Draco lift her from the ground
"The street is empty, I'm going to walk across.don't make any noise"
He whispered. Hermione rolled her eyes.making sure to point out that she wasn't stupid as soon as they were safe. She really hoped the house they were going to wasn't one that held death eaters.but Draco seemed rather confident.so she hadn't said anything. She felt him start to walk.it wasn't rushed, so she knew all was going well. A few seconds later she heard him knock on the door.then someone open it.
"Draco?!"
Came a very shocked voice. They were ushered inside and Draco put Hermione down
"Go ahead and change"
He said calmly. In flash her body changed and she was standing shakily on her feet. Someone on her right gasped
"Hermione!?"
Hermione smiled weakly, but said nothing
"Don't you recognize me?"
"She's blind.got hit by a curse while escaping from camp.it requires a level nine or ten witch or wizard.don't happen to have one on hand do you?"
Whoever was in the room with them smacked Draco who let out a weak grunt of pain
"Ow"
"Hermione.it's Parvati"
"PARVATI?!"
Hermione shrieked, a grin appearing on her face. Parvati hugged her tightly
"I'm so glad you're alright! But what are you doing here? Why aren't you with the resistance?"
"We're heading that way.but we needed to stop, neither of us have had a real meal for the longest time.nor a shower. Hermione has been wearing the same robes for who knows how long. We need a little help. But we can't stay very long; we've got death eaters following us"
Hermione assumed Parvati nodded
"Alright then, Draco there's a bathroom right down the hall on the left, I'll bring you some of my husband's robes"
"You're married?"
Hermione asked dreamily as Parvati led her away from Draco. They reached the stairs and Parvati helped her up them
"Yes, for three years now.William is a wonderful wizard. We've been planning on leaving for Hogwarts.and we'd go with you, but I think he's waiting until his younger sister can get here before we leave"
The turned right and headed down a hall
"So we'll probably see you at Hogwarts in a few weeks"
Hermione grinned
"That would be good"
They stopped and Parvati opened a door, then sat Hermione down on what she guessed was the toilet. The sound of running water filled her ears
"Do you think you can get in and do everything yourself or do you need me?"
"I'll be fine Parvati, thanks"
Parvati giggled quietly
"Alright. The bottle closest to the wall is shampoo, the next one is conditioner, the next one is shower gel, then the soap. I'll go get a pair of robes and other things for you. They'll be beside the towel just on the counter, ok?"
Hermione nodded and waited till the door closed. She immediately stood and shed her clothes, stepping into the shower. After quite a number of mistakes she finally managed to get everything done. 45 minutes after she initially got in she was standing in front of the counter, dressed in the robes Parvati had left for her. She ran her hands over the counter, finally finding something that felt like a hair tie. She ran the brush through her hair a few times then pulled in back into a pony tail on the top her head. She picked up the ball of rags that was he old robes and tossed them in what she hoped was the bin beside the toilet. She felt her way towards the door and threw it open, shuffling down the hall and to the stairs. Not daring to go down them alone, she spoke
"Parvati? Draco?"
~*~
Draco had to stop himself from staying in the shower for hours. He shortened urge to 30 minutes. Parvati had tossed in a pair of green robes some time while he was showering. He dressed in them and altered the size with his wand. After combing his hair, he left the bathroom, smiling slightly when he found Parvati sitting in the living room rolling up a piece of parchment. She pointed her wand at it and banished it. She looked up at him as he entered
"Much better.here"
She handed him a large plate of food
"I've already backed as much as I could and shrank it. There's a backpack by the door that you can take along, I-"
"Parvati? Draco?"
Hermione's voice echoed from upstairs and Draco turned and made his way to the bottom of the stair well. He looked up and his jaw fell open. Hermione was wearing a pair of casual blue work robes, but compared to how she looked before, she was gorgeous. He loped up the stairs and took her arm
"Enjoy your shower?"
He asked, grinning. She nodded
"I could have stayed in there for hours, but I had a feeling you would have thought I'd drowned if I was in there to much longer"
Draco chuckled
"You're probably right"
He led her down the stairs and into the living room. Parvati stood, summoning the back pack to her. She handed it to Draco
"Do you want to stay the night?"
She asked hopefully. Draco shook his head
"I wish we could, but we need to leave, being here only puts you in danger.don't tell anyone we were here, alright?"
Parvati nodded, handing Hermione a plate of food, which she nearly inhaled.
"Go out the back, if you go right, about a mile down you can circle the town without any problems. From there it's about a days walk to the coast."
Draco noticed the tears in Parvati's eyes
"Be careful you two"
She hugged Draco, then Hermione, before leading them towards the back.
"There's a change of cloths in there bag as well.they aren't robes, just in case, you know, you are somewhere where it would be easier without them.good luck"
Draco nodded; grabbed Hermione's hand and they left the house, disappearing behind the tree's seconds later.
~*~
"Bloody forest"
Sirius growled as he ripped his robes out of another thorn bush. Strangely he seemed to be having worse luck with the underbrush than the other two. Snape hadn't said much since they had left Dumbledore's office. Just a few words.mostly telling Sirius to shut up. Harry was slightly worried about him, but said nothing, knowing how hard it must have been for him to leave Sininstra in the office. Blowing another bush out of his way Sirius glared at him
"Could you be any louder?"
He snapped. Harry grinned, aiming his wand at the bush that was currently attached to Sirius' robes
"Yes.plus, no need to worry, no death eater in their right mind would come in here.God only knows what horrible things have made home in their forest"
He blew the bush to pieces and Sirius flinched
"I wasn't worried about death eaters you idiot.I was worried about the foul things in here that might decide they want lunch!"
They finally broke through into a clearing and Sirius dropped to the ground
"I would like to rest.please"
He growled, massaging his feet and healing the hundreds of scratches on his shins. Harry rolled his eyes
"Wimp"
A sudden rustle from behind Harry made him spin around, drawing his sword and pointing his wand towards the noise. Sirius and Snape raised their wands as well.
"What was that?"
Snape whispered, trying to see into the shadows. No other sounds followed for a moment and Sirius opened his mouth to make a remark when the rustle came again.and again, and again. Harry was breathing hard as a huge shadowy figure loomed into sight. He was about to shout a curse when the figure spoke
"Lower your weapons.we are friends"
Harry did not lower his wand or his sword and the figure finally stepped into the small amount of light that reached the forest floor. It was a centaur.and from the looks of it there were two more behind it.
"We mean you no harm.our meeting was written in the stars"
Raising his eyebrows Harry lowered his sword and his wand, motioning for the other two to do so as well. The centaur gave a small bow
"I'm Roan"
He said. He had a black horse body, tanned skin, black shaggy hair and bright blue eyes. He then motioned to the two centaurs behind him
"This is Aramis"
He pointed to the blonde on his right with a palomino colored body
"And Kahz"
The other centaur had a chestnut body, fair skin and messy brown hair that fell over his large gray eyes. Harry smiled weakly
"This is Severus"
He pointed at Snape
"And Sirius.I'm-"
"We know who you are Lionheart"
Roan said in an almost misty voice. Harry glanced at Sirius who looked slightly confused
"Pardon?"
"Your stories are known by all magical creatures and wizard folk in these parts.you defy the dark lord, you break open the prisons with only your two counterparts.you're triumphs are greatly celebrated.there isn't much to celebrate these days. You are known throughout these woods, and others, as Lionheart"
Harry swallowed nervously
"Oh.er"
"We know of the fight that is to take place at the Dark Lords home.and that you are going to help. We wish to help.many of these inhabitants of the forest do. We've been waiting for you to venture in here.we'd hoped you could help us"
Harry glanced at Snape who nodded
"Alright then.we'll get you to Hogwarts.gather anyone who wants to help"
Roan nodded and he disappeared back into the shadows, Kahz and Aramis following closely. Harry turned to Snape who was now talking to Sirius
"Well, I hope there aren't too many people in the great hall.the last thing we need is someone trying to come back through"
Sirius said. Snape sighed
"There shouldn't be to many.I think we were just a little unlucky the last time"
He said. Harry nodded, turning back around as more centaurs began to emerge from the forest. Two sphinx's came out with them, along with about five unicorns.Harry hadn't even known they knew what was going on. Nodding to Severus, he turned back to the animals.
"If you walk through this portal it will take you to Hogwarts.approach the first person you see and say Harry Potter sent you and that you want to help fight the Dark Lord, alright?"
Roan, who was in the front, nodded. Harry beckoned the group forward as Severus opened the portal
"You first then"
He said, motioning Roan through the portal. The animals formed a line, and within ten minutes, Kahz was disappearing through the portal, and no one had tried to come back. With a flick of his wand, Snape closed off the portal from the other end and they waited. Harry peered through the portal and could distantly see Dumbledore and Mcgonagall talking to Roan. He smiled and turned back to the others.
"Shall we?"
((Thank you all! Sorry it took so long, I've been really busy the past few weeks! I promise to get the next chapter up as soon as I can! PLEASE REVIEW! I NEED MORE REVIEWS!!! *Grins* Thanks once again!))
((Hey all, I don't own Harry Potter! Just to let you know! And sorry about not posting for so long! Again, the grandparent's old piece of junk computer wouldn't let me! Now! Onto the chapter!))
~*~
The doors to the Great Hall burst open and Ron Weasley ran into the large room, a piece of parchment clutched tightly in his hand. The other leaders of the Order all looked curiously at him as he panted to a stop beside Dumbledore. He slammed the piece of parchment onto the table
"I've figured out our escape route"
He said simply, pointing his wand at the parchment and muttering a spell. Immediately the 3-D images of two castles appeared. Hogwarts and Voldemort's castle. Ron pointed at Voldemort's castle.
"Since we're all walking or whatever to London, I can't give us a good entrance, but an exit we can do. Well, I said if worse came to worse we could apparate from the river. I would say just open a portal, but there aren't enough wizards and witches that can open them to fit such a large amount of people through, fast. We will have a few open for people who can't apparate, or the magical creatures that obviously would need an escape. But, you say, where on earth would we apparate? Well, the wards at Hogwarts cannot be let down, because then Voldemort could send his extra death eaters charging in here.but what about the wards just around the lake? I mean, you know the death eaters will try and come here, but seriously, none of them are going to try and apparate into the lake. If we take the wards off we can safely apparate onto the grounds. If we apparated somewhere else, well, you never know how split up we would be. And if we don't win this battle, we'll need to regroup fast."
Ron stared proudly around at everyone in the room, all of them seemed impressed. Dumbledore smiled slightly
"Brilliant plan Mr. Weasley, absolutely brilliant. Now that we have an escape plan, this meeting is over. Remus, Ron.I have a favor to ask of you"
Remus approached Dumbledore, stopping beside Ron and looking at the old man, his eyes confused. Everyone else poured out of the hall, leaving the three wizards alone.
"There are a few groups from around Europe waiting outside our gates.would you be so kind as to let them in and bring them here?"
Ron glanced at Remus, and they both nodded. Dumbledore beamed
"Lovely, but go quickly please, we don't want them standing out there for too long"
Ron rolled his eyes and started off towards the door, Remus in tow. Once outside Ron turned into the large.black.unicorn he always became. He stooped down slightly and Remus careful mounted him
"You know, I've never been good at riding horses, they're always really scared of me because they can sense what I am"
Ron turned his head back towards Remus, his horn coming dangerously close to the werewolf's side. He let out a soft winnie and Remus laced his hands through Ron's mane. Rearing back Ron took off full blast across the grounds. Remus let out a strangled yell and clutched the running horse's mane tighter. Wind whipped through his hair as they moved and Remus felt as though he were flying. The pounding of Ron's hooves echoed throughout the grounds. As they neared the gates both Ron and Remus could make out a small mass of witches and wizards waiting outside. Ron slid to halt directly in front of the gates and many people gasped. Remus slid off and opened the gates quickly. At least a hundred able wizards and witches poured in, followed by about twenty children and a few elderly people. Remus smiled kindly, but Ron didn't change from his form. Closing the gates, Remus spoke
"Welcome to Hogwarts, if you'll follow me, I'll take you to Dumbledore"
Remus re-mounted the dark unicorn and began leading everyone across the open grounds. A young girl sprinted up next to Remus as they were passing the lake
"Excuse me?"
She said meekly. Remus looked down at her and smiled
"Yes?"
"Well, I just wanted to ask a question"
Remus nodded and the girl continued
"Aren't all unicorns white?"
Remus chuckled, and Ron slowed slightly
"Well, most are, just not this one. He's a very smart and special unicorn.you want to ride him?"
Ron grunted in disapproval, but the girl nodded happily and Remus slid off and put the girl on top.
"Hold tightly to his mane and tell him where or what you want to do"
The girl giggled happily and leaned close to Ron's ear
"Run!"
She said, still smiling widely. Ron look at Remus, waited a moment so the girl could get a better hold and he took off running. She shrieked in delight as they moved passed all the others towards the castle. She was much easier to carry than Remus was.due to the fact that she was much smaller. He loped up the stairs and entered the great hall. Dumbledore looked up as he trotted over and smiled
"Ah, hello there.I see you've met Ron"
The girl rolled off Ron's back, hitting the floor with a thud.
"He's beautiful.but what kind of name for a unicorn is Ron?"
Dumbledore chuckled and knelt down beside her
"Well.it's not just a name for a unicorn"
Ron was shaking his head behind the girl and quickly turned around, running back outside. Remus was still walking in front, now surrounded by children, begging for a ride. Ron had half a mind to turn around and gallop back to the castle.but Remus was already beckoning him forward.a sinister smile on his face.
~*~
"Percy?!"
Ginny shrieked, throwing herself to the side, already panting heavily in shock. The solid form of her dead brother was kneeling beside the tree, a weary smile on his face
"Hello Gin"
He said softly. He didn't approach her.which Ginny was glad for, as she probably would have run away had he moved forward. Swallowing a lump in her throat and blinking tears out of her eyes she got shakily to her knees
"What.you.are.aren't.dead?"
She couldn't get out a coherent sentence, and Percy seemed to realize that. Standing up, he leaned gently against the tree, his somewhat dead eyes glowing with pain.
"This is a very intelligent invention of Professor Dumbledore's.if a tombstone is put in this grave yard; an echo.a memory of the person is brought with it. With memories and feelings from his or her past life. I'm no ghost.I can't leave this grave yard.but everyone here knows everything that is occurring in the world. Professor Dumbledore makes frequent visits to explain situations to family members, or just curious witches and wizards form the past. I talk to him quite a bit.I was very relieved when he told me you were safe"
Ginny was barely aware of the tears pouring down her quickly paling face.
"Why didn't he tell anyone about the grave yard?"
Percy shook his head sadly
"If everyone knew about this place, too many people would spend too much time here. Only you and Bill know of this place.out of our family of course"
After a few deep breaths Ginny charged forward, moving to throw her arms around the memory of her brother, but he held his hands up to stop her.
"You can't touch me.I'm not solid, although I look it.I'm a memory, remember?"
Ginny let out a sob, burying her face in her hands
"I'm so sorry Percy, for everything I've ever done to hurt you.for everything I've ever done wrong."
Percy smiled sadly.she was almost his age.well the age he died at. Shaking his head he distanced himself from her
"I wouldn't change a thing.now come here.there's someone I think you'd want to meet"
He led Ginny around the Potter's graves towards the other end of the iron gate that over-looked the front end of the school.though Ginny, and surely not too many other people, had never noticed it. Two people were standing side by side behind the gate, watching as a large group of people and a black unicorn crossed the grounds. Ginny recognized them immediately, even before they turned and looked at her. The man had messy black hair, glasses, and hazel eyes.and the woman, fiery red curls and sharp emerald green eyes. They both smiled at her
"Another of your family Percy? Lovely"
Lily Potter said, stepping forward and extending her hand
"I'm Lily"
She said kindly. Ginny stared down at her hand for a moment.finally Lily blushed
"Oh, right"
She muttered, pulling her hand back. Ginny smiled
"Ginny Weasley"
She whispered. Lily grinned
"Oh, I've heard so much about you."
She said, her eyes lighting up
"Dumbledore told us you saw Harry not to long ago.how is he?"
Ginny smiled sadly
"He doesn't know about this place either, does he?"
"No.Dumbledore thought it better to wait until Harry had less on his plate.he was afraid Harry would spend all him time here"
Lily whispered gently
"Which wouldn't have bothered me"
"James!"
"Well, I never told Dumbledore I agreed with his decision"
Ginny couldn't help but giggled
"Well, he's off saving the world, doing what he does best"
James chuckled
"That's my boy"
Lily frowned
"Dumbledore told us about the attack on London"
She said. Ginny glanced at Percy who was nodding solemnly
"Yeah.but I think we'll be fine. Dumbledore wouldn't have suggested it if there wasn't a chance we could win"
James raised his eyebrows
"You're taking this well then?"
Ginny shrugged
"Well, if you fear something that will inevitably come.it won't help you, will it? Plus, we've got Harry and Dumbledore.we can't loose"
Ginny really didn't believe that.but why worry her own brother and Harry's parents about it? James was beaming proudly and Lily looked impressed.Percy just looked shocked
"You're a smart girl Ginny.Percy, you've obviously got a sister with brains.and what about Ron? Your brother that was really close to Harry.how's he taking it?"
James asked, looking interested. Ginny smiled
"Ron is willing to do just about anything to get Harry and Hermione back. He'd fight Voldemort himself if he thought he could get his friends and family back by doing it.that's him there."
She pointed at the unicorn running across the grounds. Lily and James looked around and grinned
"Ah yes.we always watched them out here with Remus on the full moon.your brother has done so much for Remus"
Lily said, watching as her old friend doubled over in laughter when one of the children gave Ron's sides a violent kick. Ginny giggled
"Well.Remus is like a second father to him."
James smiled sadly
"I'm sure that makes Remus happy.he always wanted to be a father.when Harry was a baby he could Remus Papa Moony.Remus used to tear up every time he said it.we used to tease him about it.but now I understand why he loved it so much"
Ginny nodded
"In Harry's third year."
She began. The amount of interest that appeared on both Lily and James' faces nearly broke Ginny's heart. Sighing quietly she continued
"Remus really helped him out.and then when we found out about who Sirius really was.well Harry was finally getting someone he could call family. Course it just gave him someone else to defend. He and Snape used to get into arguments all the time in potions over you Mr. Potter"
James' eyes widened
"What?"
"Yeah.Snape would say you were.I don't know, arrogant or something and Harry would just rage at him.he was always loosing points for snapping in potions.those two were always going at it. But then, off scenes they always worked tirelessly to save each other. In Harry's seventh year they stopped fighting.no one really knows why.just after one detention they were civil to each other. Everyone just thinks that Harry said something that made Snape see.made him understand.guess we'll find out eventually."
She shrugged. James and Lily were hanging on her every word
"Tell us more about Harry"
James prodded. Ginny smiled slightly.they were his parents after all, thy deserved to know everything..
~*~
Hermione yawned, closing her eyes and lying down. They were currently hidden behind a dumpster in a small town. There was a house across the street that Draco wanted to get to, but the main street was over run with death eaters. He'd made Hermione turn into a wolf, seeing as they'd look less suspicious if he was carrying a wolf than a blind human in ragged robes. Supposedly that would just scream 'CAMP ESCAPEE'. Suddenly she felt Draco lift her from the ground
"The street is empty, I'm going to walk across.don't make any noise"
He whispered. Hermione rolled her eyes.making sure to point out that she wasn't stupid as soon as they were safe. She really hoped the house they were going to wasn't one that held death eaters.but Draco seemed rather confident.so she hadn't said anything. She felt him start to walk.it wasn't rushed, so she knew all was going well. A few seconds later she heard him knock on the door.then someone open it.
"Draco?!"
Came a very shocked voice. They were ushered inside and Draco put Hermione down
"Go ahead and change"
He said calmly. In flash her body changed and she was standing shakily on her feet. Someone on her right gasped
"Hermione!?"
Hermione smiled weakly, but said nothing
"Don't you recognize me?"
"She's blind.got hit by a curse while escaping from camp.it requires a level nine or ten witch or wizard.don't happen to have one on hand do you?"
Whoever was in the room with them smacked Draco who let out a weak grunt of pain
"Ow"
"Hermione.it's Parvati"
"PARVATI?!"
Hermione shrieked, a grin appearing on her face. Parvati hugged her tightly
"I'm so glad you're alright! But what are you doing here? Why aren't you with the resistance?"
"We're heading that way.but we needed to stop, neither of us have had a real meal for the longest time.nor a shower. Hermione has been wearing the same robes for who knows how long. We need a little help. But we can't stay very long; we've got death eaters following us"
Hermione assumed Parvati nodded
"Alright then, Draco there's a bathroom right down the hall on the left, I'll bring you some of my husband's robes"
"You're married?"
Hermione asked dreamily as Parvati led her away from Draco. They reached the stairs and Parvati helped her up them
"Yes, for three years now.William is a wonderful wizard. We've been planning on leaving for Hogwarts.and we'd go with you, but I think he's waiting until his younger sister can get here before we leave"
The turned right and headed down a hall
"So we'll probably see you at Hogwarts in a few weeks"
Hermione grinned
"That would be good"
They stopped and Parvati opened a door, then sat Hermione down on what she guessed was the toilet. The sound of running water filled her ears
"Do you think you can get in and do everything yourself or do you need me?"
"I'll be fine Parvati, thanks"
Parvati giggled quietly
"Alright. The bottle closest to the wall is shampoo, the next one is conditioner, the next one is shower gel, then the soap. I'll go get a pair of robes and other things for you. They'll be beside the towel just on the counter, ok?"
Hermione nodded and waited till the door closed. She immediately stood and shed her clothes, stepping into the shower. After quite a number of mistakes she finally managed to get everything done. 45 minutes after she initially got in she was standing in front of the counter, dressed in the robes Parvati had left for her. She ran her hands over the counter, finally finding something that felt like a hair tie. She ran the brush through her hair a few times then pulled in back into a pony tail on the top her head. She picked up the ball of rags that was he old robes and tossed them in what she hoped was the bin beside the toilet. She felt her way towards the door and threw it open, shuffling down the hall and to the stairs. Not daring to go down them alone, she spoke
"Parvati? Draco?"
~*~
Draco had to stop himself from staying in the shower for hours. He shortened urge to 30 minutes. Parvati had tossed in a pair of green robes some time while he was showering. He dressed in them and altered the size with his wand. After combing his hair, he left the bathroom, smiling slightly when he found Parvati sitting in the living room rolling up a piece of parchment. She pointed her wand at it and banished it. She looked up at him as he entered
"Much better.here"
She handed him a large plate of food
"I've already backed as much as I could and shrank it. There's a backpack by the door that you can take along, I-"
"Parvati? Draco?"
Hermione's voice echoed from upstairs and Draco turned and made his way to the bottom of the stair well. He looked up and his jaw fell open. Hermione was wearing a pair of casual blue work robes, but compared to how she looked before, she was gorgeous. He loped up the stairs and took her arm
"Enjoy your shower?"
He asked, grinning. She nodded
"I could have stayed in there for hours, but I had a feeling you would have thought I'd drowned if I was in there to much longer"
Draco chuckled
"You're probably right"
He led her down the stairs and into the living room. Parvati stood, summoning the back pack to her. She handed it to Draco
"Do you want to stay the night?"
She asked hopefully. Draco shook his head
"I wish we could, but we need to leave, being here only puts you in danger.don't tell anyone we were here, alright?"
Parvati nodded, handing Hermione a plate of food, which she nearly inhaled.
"Go out the back, if you go right, about a mile down you can circle the town without any problems. From there it's about a days walk to the coast."
Draco noticed the tears in Parvati's eyes
"Be careful you two"
She hugged Draco, then Hermione, before leading them towards the back.
"There's a change of cloths in there bag as well.they aren't robes, just in case, you know, you are somewhere where it would be easier without them.good luck"
Draco nodded; grabbed Hermione's hand and they left the house, disappearing behind the tree's seconds later.
~*~
"Bloody forest"
Sirius growled as he ripped his robes out of another thorn bush. Strangely he seemed to be having worse luck with the underbrush than the other two. Snape hadn't said much since they had left Dumbledore's office. Just a few words.mostly telling Sirius to shut up. Harry was slightly worried about him, but said nothing, knowing how hard it must have been for him to leave Sininstra in the office. Blowing another bush out of his way Sirius glared at him
"Could you be any louder?"
He snapped. Harry grinned, aiming his wand at the bush that was currently attached to Sirius' robes
"Yes.plus, no need to worry, no death eater in their right mind would come in here.God only knows what horrible things have made home in their forest"
He blew the bush to pieces and Sirius flinched
"I wasn't worried about death eaters you idiot.I was worried about the foul things in here that might decide they want lunch!"
They finally broke through into a clearing and Sirius dropped to the ground
"I would like to rest.please"
He growled, massaging his feet and healing the hundreds of scratches on his shins. Harry rolled his eyes
"Wimp"
A sudden rustle from behind Harry made him spin around, drawing his sword and pointing his wand towards the noise. Sirius and Snape raised their wands as well.
"What was that?"
Snape whispered, trying to see into the shadows. No other sounds followed for a moment and Sirius opened his mouth to make a remark when the rustle came again.and again, and again. Harry was breathing hard as a huge shadowy figure loomed into sight. He was about to shout a curse when the figure spoke
"Lower your weapons.we are friends"
Harry did not lower his wand or his sword and the figure finally stepped into the small amount of light that reached the forest floor. It was a centaur.and from the looks of it there were two more behind it.
"We mean you no harm.our meeting was written in the stars"
Raising his eyebrows Harry lowered his sword and his wand, motioning for the other two to do so as well. The centaur gave a small bow
"I'm Roan"
He said. He had a black horse body, tanned skin, black shaggy hair and bright blue eyes. He then motioned to the two centaurs behind him
"This is Aramis"
He pointed to the blonde on his right with a palomino colored body
"And Kahz"
The other centaur had a chestnut body, fair skin and messy brown hair that fell over his large gray eyes. Harry smiled weakly
"This is Severus"
He pointed at Snape
"And Sirius.I'm-"
"We know who you are Lionheart"
Roan said in an almost misty voice. Harry glanced at Sirius who looked slightly confused
"Pardon?"
"Your stories are known by all magical creatures and wizard folk in these parts.you defy the dark lord, you break open the prisons with only your two counterparts.you're triumphs are greatly celebrated.there isn't much to celebrate these days. You are known throughout these woods, and others, as Lionheart"
Harry swallowed nervously
"Oh.er"
"We know of the fight that is to take place at the Dark Lords home.and that you are going to help. We wish to help.many of these inhabitants of the forest do. We've been waiting for you to venture in here.we'd hoped you could help us"
Harry glanced at Snape who nodded
"Alright then.we'll get you to Hogwarts.gather anyone who wants to help"
Roan nodded and he disappeared back into the shadows, Kahz and Aramis following closely. Harry turned to Snape who was now talking to Sirius
"Well, I hope there aren't too many people in the great hall.the last thing we need is someone trying to come back through"
Sirius said. Snape sighed
"There shouldn't be to many.I think we were just a little unlucky the last time"
He said. Harry nodded, turning back around as more centaurs began to emerge from the forest. Two sphinx's came out with them, along with about five unicorns.Harry hadn't even known they knew what was going on. Nodding to Severus, he turned back to the animals.
"If you walk through this portal it will take you to Hogwarts.approach the first person you see and say Harry Potter sent you and that you want to help fight the Dark Lord, alright?"
Roan, who was in the front, nodded. Harry beckoned the group forward as Severus opened the portal
"You first then"
He said, motioning Roan through the portal. The animals formed a line, and within ten minutes, Kahz was disappearing through the portal, and no one had tried to come back. With a flick of his wand, Snape closed off the portal from the other end and they waited. Harry peered through the portal and could distantly see Dumbledore and Mcgonagall talking to Roan. He smiled and turned back to the others.
"Shall we?"
((Thank you all! Sorry it took so long, I've been really busy the past few weeks! I promise to get the next chapter up as soon as I can! PLEASE REVIEW! I NEED MORE REVIEWS!!! *Grins* Thanks once again!))
