Sorry about the delay. I had to work on my own real-life romance story. It's not as cute as the one I'm writing, but I'm enjoying myself.
There was some confusion as to where Ron and Hermione are headed. In a chapter long ago (chapter 9?), I introduced three new school. Still water from Montana led by Headmaster Gabriel, Salem from Massachusetts , led by Headmaster Corey and Bourbon Street Academy led by Headmaster Campion. I had hinted at the fact that the BSA was Voldemort friendly, and now they have Harry and Ginny. Ron and Hermione are going after them. I hope this clear up some of the confusion.
"I can't believe this!" Ron exclaimed, throwing his arms up in frustration. "That old bastard led us straight to a brick wall!"
After leaving Mathias' apartment, Ron and Hermione had followed the map that the old man had drawn. Like the old man, the map was very scattered. It had led them up and down Bourbon Street, in and out of cramped cafes and finally to a thick, brick wall behind a children's library. They had received many strange looks from pedestrians who saw them wandering.
"He was pulling our leg." Ron spat. "He had no idea where the Academy was." He kicked an old soda can and watched as it rolled down the alley.
Hermione shook her head slowly. "He seemed so sincere." she said slowly. "I really thought he knew."
Ron was fuming. He knew that time was running out for Ginny and Harry. They didn't have time to be going on wild good chases orchestrated by a senile wizard. He leaned against the brick wall that the map had led them to and slid down until he sat on the dirty ground. The wall was covered in graffiti of all kinds. "Damn it!" he yelled.
Hermione bent over to drag a finger along Ron's jaw line, but stopped before she reached him. She stared unblinkingly at the wall by Ron's head.
"What is it, Hermione?" Ron asked.
Hermione was quiet for a moment, but she finally said, "Look!" She pointed at the wall directly next to Ron's head.
Ron pushed himself off of the wall and turned to where she was pointing. An inch from where his head had been was a small Dark Mark drawn in black paint. It was a little hard to make out, but the skull and snake was clear enough. "Whoa.." Ron said.
Hermione turned to him and smiled. "Mathias wasn't lying!" she said and leaned over to examine the mark. She ran her fingers along it. "It's not magical. I can't feel anything."
Ron walked up next to Hermione and looked at the mark with her. "What do we do?"
Hermione didn't answer. She pushed against the Dark Mark and jumped back when it sunk into the wall with a dry, scraping sound. Ron heard a click from with in the wall.
Next to them, a sewer grate slid slowly open. Inside, they could only see thick darkness.
Hermione walked up to the edge of the whole and saw that metal stairs descended into the earth. They leveled out after about twenty feet and continued out of sight. "I think we've found the Bourbon Street Academy."
Ron slid in next to her and kissed her lightly on the cheek. He could feel the magic through their skin during the contact. "You're a genius."
Hermione shrugged nonchalantly. "Of course I am."
Ron smiled and said, "Stay here." He moved to the first step when Hermione stopped him.
"You're not leaving me." she said sternly. It definitely wasn't a question.
Ron shook his head. "I'm just going to check out the tunnel. I'll be back."
Hermione nodded nervously and Ron descended slowly down the steel staircase.
He followed the stairs down. At the end there was a long tunnel that led for about fifty feet to a steel door. He motioned to Hermione to follow him. When she caught up, she pulled out her wand. "Lumos!" she whispered.
The tunnel filled with the pale light emanating from the end of Hermione's wand.
"Look at this." Hermione said when she reached the end of the stairs.
Ron looked to where she motioned and saw that there was another Dark Mark painted into the wall. He reached forward and pushed on the symbol. He could here the mechanism that controlled the sewer grate jump in to motion. Above them, the sewer grate slid back into position. The only remaining light came from Hermione's wand.
Ron motioned to the steel door with a jab of his chin. They both walked slowly until they stood directly in front of it.
"What should we do, knock?" Ron asked sarcastically.
"I doubt it."
"How did you guys get into the Sentinel compound?"
"We used the side door."
Ron snorted. "I think this is the only way in."
"We should be quiet, at least." Hermione whispered.
Ron thought about the Death Eaters holding his little sister and he felt a wave of anger crash over him. "No time." he muttered and threw his shoulder into the door.
It was a true testament to how powerful Ron had become when the door nearly bent in half when Ron hit it. He had hit it low, and the upper half of the door had come off of its hinges and folded down on top of him.
The sound of the impact echoed up and down the tunnel.
Ron removed himself from the door and turned to Hermione with a self-satisfied smile on his face.
Hermione stared at the door, amazed at how easily he had broken it. She glanced inside and saw that there were no sentries posted nearby.
Hermione sighed irritably. "Well, that's one way to do things." she said testily.
Ron shrugged sheepishly. "We don't have time to tiptoe around."
He found himself in a long hallway, lit by strange glowing spheres that hung from the ceiling. At the opposite end of the hallway, stood another doorway. He turned back to Hermione. "We need to find Harry and Ginny."
Hermione came to stand next to him. "I can't imagine this place is very big. It being underneath the city, and all."
"Let's go through the door." Ron said, motioning to the steel portal at the end of the tunnel.
Hermione nodded and they began walking down the tunnel. They had only taken a few steps when the door opened. Ron grabbed Hermione around the waist and leaped back out the door.
They hid next to the doorway with their backs against the stone wall. Ron held his breath when he heard the sounds of footsteps come close.
"I heard something.", came a muffled voice from within the hallway. "Some sort of banging noise."
"I didn't hear a damn thing." A second voice said. "I think you've gone craz-" the voice cut off suddenly. "Holy shit. Look at the door!"
Ron looked down at Hermione. (On three.) he told her mentally.
She nodded and pulled her wand out of her pocket.
(One.)
"What the hell could have done this?" the first voice called out. "The door's four inches of steel. It would take a bulldozer to knock it down!"
(Two.)
"We have to report this." the second voice said. "Something might have gotten in."
"Yeah. Let's go."
(Three.)
Ron moved faster than Hermione's eyes could follow. He leaped inside the hallway and struck the first Death Eater in the head. The man's eyes widened and he slumped to the ground.
Hermione ran to the door and thrust her wand into the hallway. "Pasio Farenhete!" she screamed.
The second Death Eater, who had been pulled out his wand at the sight of Ron. fell to the ground clutching his hand and screaming. As a result of Hermione's spell, his wand had heated up to about a thousand degrees, burning the flesh off of his palm.
Ron turned from the first Death Eater and bent down to the second. He grabbed the man by the neck of his black robes and easily lifted him off of his feet. He planted him into the wall and hissed, "Where are they?"
The man's eyes widened in fear, but he managed to mumble, "I don't know who you're talking about."
"Don't play dumb." Ron whispered. "Where are they holding Potter?"
The man's brave front dissolved and he began to sob. "I can't tell you!" he screamed. "They'll kill me!"
Hermione snorted. "I suggest you worry about one thing at a time. If you don't tell us where they are, we'll kill you."
Them man's eyes flickered over to the steel door that Ron had destroyed with his bare hands. He seemed to realize what had happened, because his eyes widened and he looked at Ron with fear. "OK, I'll talk."
Ron released his hold and the man slumped to the ground. He cradled his charred hand in his lap and looked up at Ron. "They're being held in one of the cell on the second floor."
"How may Death Eaters are in there?" Hermione asked, keeping her eyes on the opened door at the end of the hallway.
The man shrugged. "About ten." he said with a smug look on his face.
Ron looked to Hermione. "We can handle ten."
Hermione nodded and the man's eyes widened. "You infants may have gotten the jump on the two of us, but if you go in there, you'll be killed. Painfully."
Ron glared at the man. "You let us worry about that, serpent."
"Your friends are as good as dead. They're being heavily guarded and there are more Death Eaters coming as we speak. The Dark Lord himself is coming to confront his most hated enemy. Potter's death will be very horrible and we Death Eater will rejoice and-"
Ron cut off the man's fanatical speech with a punch to the head. The man's eyes glazed over and he fell to the ground, unconscious.
(Voldemort, coming here?) he asked Hermione mentally. (We need to move quickly.)
Hermione nodded and the two walked down the dark tunnel cautiously.
***
Harry was awoken by loud crashing noise. He opened his eyes and remembered where he was. His body ached dully as he remembered the pain he had felt when he had been subjected to four Cruciatus Curses at once.
He looked around and saw Ginny sleeping with her back against one of the metal walls. Harry reached over and shook her awake. Her eyes opened and she looked at Harry with joy. "Harry! I was afraid you'd never wake up. How do you feel?"
Harry shrugged. "A little sore." He pushed himself to his feet. "I think something's happening outside. I heard something."
He walked to the door and put his door to it. He could hear muffled screaming and the sounds of small explosions. "Sounds like the Death Eaters are having a little trouble."
Ginny pushed herself to her feet. "Do you think someone's here to rescue us?"
Harry shrugged. "Don't get your hopes up. It might just be Voldemort using these Yankee Death Eaters for target practice."
Harry had meant for that last statement to be a joke, but Ginny's face paled. "Do you think Voldemort is here?"
Harry shrugged again and put his ear back to the door. He heard the sounds of running as someone came to a stop in front of their cell.
"What are you doing here?" a dry voice asked from in front of the cell. "Get back down stairs and deal with this disturbance!"
A second voice answered. "We can't stop them, Master Campion!" the voice sniveled. "The boy is a red haired demon! We can't stop him! Our magic melts when it touches him!"
"I can't believe that ten Death Eaters can't stop one boy!" Campion growled.
"He's not alone, Master! Th-There is a girl with him."
"A girl?" Campion asked dryly.
"Y-Yes, My Lord. Her magic is powerful. She uses spells that I, myself, could not cast. Powerful spells!"
Harry turned back to Ginny. "Ron and Hermione are here!" he said in a awed voice.
Ginny's eyes widened. "What?!"
Harry shrugged. "They're here! And they're giving the Death Eaters a hell of a time, by the sound of things."
"Do you think they can get us out?" Ginny asked softly, as if fearing the answer.
"I don't know." Harry whispered.
Ginny ran forward and hugged Harry tightly. Harry hugged her back, but when he felt something hard in Ginny's shirt he released her. "What is that?" he asked.
Ginny gasped. "God, I almost forgot. Look!" she said as he reached into her shirt.
She pulled out a long piece of wood. It was Harry's wand.
Harry sputtered. "How? How did you get this?"
Ginny smiled. "When you were pounding Silas, he dropped this. I grabbed it and when the Death Eaters came, they didn't think to search me."
Harry hugged Ginny tightly and kissed the top of her head. "You're the best, Gin!"
He grabbed the wand and turned back to the door, waiting for whatever through it.
There was some confusion as to where Ron and Hermione are headed. In a chapter long ago (chapter 9?), I introduced three new school. Still water from Montana led by Headmaster Gabriel, Salem from Massachusetts , led by Headmaster Corey and Bourbon Street Academy led by Headmaster Campion. I had hinted at the fact that the BSA was Voldemort friendly, and now they have Harry and Ginny. Ron and Hermione are going after them. I hope this clear up some of the confusion.
"I can't believe this!" Ron exclaimed, throwing his arms up in frustration. "That old bastard led us straight to a brick wall!"
After leaving Mathias' apartment, Ron and Hermione had followed the map that the old man had drawn. Like the old man, the map was very scattered. It had led them up and down Bourbon Street, in and out of cramped cafes and finally to a thick, brick wall behind a children's library. They had received many strange looks from pedestrians who saw them wandering.
"He was pulling our leg." Ron spat. "He had no idea where the Academy was." He kicked an old soda can and watched as it rolled down the alley.
Hermione shook her head slowly. "He seemed so sincere." she said slowly. "I really thought he knew."
Ron was fuming. He knew that time was running out for Ginny and Harry. They didn't have time to be going on wild good chases orchestrated by a senile wizard. He leaned against the brick wall that the map had led them to and slid down until he sat on the dirty ground. The wall was covered in graffiti of all kinds. "Damn it!" he yelled.
Hermione bent over to drag a finger along Ron's jaw line, but stopped before she reached him. She stared unblinkingly at the wall by Ron's head.
"What is it, Hermione?" Ron asked.
Hermione was quiet for a moment, but she finally said, "Look!" She pointed at the wall directly next to Ron's head.
Ron pushed himself off of the wall and turned to where she was pointing. An inch from where his head had been was a small Dark Mark drawn in black paint. It was a little hard to make out, but the skull and snake was clear enough. "Whoa.." Ron said.
Hermione turned to him and smiled. "Mathias wasn't lying!" she said and leaned over to examine the mark. She ran her fingers along it. "It's not magical. I can't feel anything."
Ron walked up next to Hermione and looked at the mark with her. "What do we do?"
Hermione didn't answer. She pushed against the Dark Mark and jumped back when it sunk into the wall with a dry, scraping sound. Ron heard a click from with in the wall.
Next to them, a sewer grate slid slowly open. Inside, they could only see thick darkness.
Hermione walked up to the edge of the whole and saw that metal stairs descended into the earth. They leveled out after about twenty feet and continued out of sight. "I think we've found the Bourbon Street Academy."
Ron slid in next to her and kissed her lightly on the cheek. He could feel the magic through their skin during the contact. "You're a genius."
Hermione shrugged nonchalantly. "Of course I am."
Ron smiled and said, "Stay here." He moved to the first step when Hermione stopped him.
"You're not leaving me." she said sternly. It definitely wasn't a question.
Ron shook his head. "I'm just going to check out the tunnel. I'll be back."
Hermione nodded nervously and Ron descended slowly down the steel staircase.
He followed the stairs down. At the end there was a long tunnel that led for about fifty feet to a steel door. He motioned to Hermione to follow him. When she caught up, she pulled out her wand. "Lumos!" she whispered.
The tunnel filled with the pale light emanating from the end of Hermione's wand.
"Look at this." Hermione said when she reached the end of the stairs.
Ron looked to where she motioned and saw that there was another Dark Mark painted into the wall. He reached forward and pushed on the symbol. He could here the mechanism that controlled the sewer grate jump in to motion. Above them, the sewer grate slid back into position. The only remaining light came from Hermione's wand.
Ron motioned to the steel door with a jab of his chin. They both walked slowly until they stood directly in front of it.
"What should we do, knock?" Ron asked sarcastically.
"I doubt it."
"How did you guys get into the Sentinel compound?"
"We used the side door."
Ron snorted. "I think this is the only way in."
"We should be quiet, at least." Hermione whispered.
Ron thought about the Death Eaters holding his little sister and he felt a wave of anger crash over him. "No time." he muttered and threw his shoulder into the door.
It was a true testament to how powerful Ron had become when the door nearly bent in half when Ron hit it. He had hit it low, and the upper half of the door had come off of its hinges and folded down on top of him.
The sound of the impact echoed up and down the tunnel.
Ron removed himself from the door and turned to Hermione with a self-satisfied smile on his face.
Hermione stared at the door, amazed at how easily he had broken it. She glanced inside and saw that there were no sentries posted nearby.
Hermione sighed irritably. "Well, that's one way to do things." she said testily.
Ron shrugged sheepishly. "We don't have time to tiptoe around."
He found himself in a long hallway, lit by strange glowing spheres that hung from the ceiling. At the opposite end of the hallway, stood another doorway. He turned back to Hermione. "We need to find Harry and Ginny."
Hermione came to stand next to him. "I can't imagine this place is very big. It being underneath the city, and all."
"Let's go through the door." Ron said, motioning to the steel portal at the end of the tunnel.
Hermione nodded and they began walking down the tunnel. They had only taken a few steps when the door opened. Ron grabbed Hermione around the waist and leaped back out the door.
They hid next to the doorway with their backs against the stone wall. Ron held his breath when he heard the sounds of footsteps come close.
"I heard something.", came a muffled voice from within the hallway. "Some sort of banging noise."
"I didn't hear a damn thing." A second voice said. "I think you've gone craz-" the voice cut off suddenly. "Holy shit. Look at the door!"
Ron looked down at Hermione. (On three.) he told her mentally.
She nodded and pulled her wand out of her pocket.
(One.)
"What the hell could have done this?" the first voice called out. "The door's four inches of steel. It would take a bulldozer to knock it down!"
(Two.)
"We have to report this." the second voice said. "Something might have gotten in."
"Yeah. Let's go."
(Three.)
Ron moved faster than Hermione's eyes could follow. He leaped inside the hallway and struck the first Death Eater in the head. The man's eyes widened and he slumped to the ground.
Hermione ran to the door and thrust her wand into the hallway. "Pasio Farenhete!" she screamed.
The second Death Eater, who had been pulled out his wand at the sight of Ron. fell to the ground clutching his hand and screaming. As a result of Hermione's spell, his wand had heated up to about a thousand degrees, burning the flesh off of his palm.
Ron turned from the first Death Eater and bent down to the second. He grabbed the man by the neck of his black robes and easily lifted him off of his feet. He planted him into the wall and hissed, "Where are they?"
The man's eyes widened in fear, but he managed to mumble, "I don't know who you're talking about."
"Don't play dumb." Ron whispered. "Where are they holding Potter?"
The man's brave front dissolved and he began to sob. "I can't tell you!" he screamed. "They'll kill me!"
Hermione snorted. "I suggest you worry about one thing at a time. If you don't tell us where they are, we'll kill you."
Them man's eyes flickered over to the steel door that Ron had destroyed with his bare hands. He seemed to realize what had happened, because his eyes widened and he looked at Ron with fear. "OK, I'll talk."
Ron released his hold and the man slumped to the ground. He cradled his charred hand in his lap and looked up at Ron. "They're being held in one of the cell on the second floor."
"How may Death Eaters are in there?" Hermione asked, keeping her eyes on the opened door at the end of the hallway.
The man shrugged. "About ten." he said with a smug look on his face.
Ron looked to Hermione. "We can handle ten."
Hermione nodded and the man's eyes widened. "You infants may have gotten the jump on the two of us, but if you go in there, you'll be killed. Painfully."
Ron glared at the man. "You let us worry about that, serpent."
"Your friends are as good as dead. They're being heavily guarded and there are more Death Eaters coming as we speak. The Dark Lord himself is coming to confront his most hated enemy. Potter's death will be very horrible and we Death Eater will rejoice and-"
Ron cut off the man's fanatical speech with a punch to the head. The man's eyes glazed over and he fell to the ground, unconscious.
(Voldemort, coming here?) he asked Hermione mentally. (We need to move quickly.)
Hermione nodded and the two walked down the dark tunnel cautiously.
***
Harry was awoken by loud crashing noise. He opened his eyes and remembered where he was. His body ached dully as he remembered the pain he had felt when he had been subjected to four Cruciatus Curses at once.
He looked around and saw Ginny sleeping with her back against one of the metal walls. Harry reached over and shook her awake. Her eyes opened and she looked at Harry with joy. "Harry! I was afraid you'd never wake up. How do you feel?"
Harry shrugged. "A little sore." He pushed himself to his feet. "I think something's happening outside. I heard something."
He walked to the door and put his door to it. He could hear muffled screaming and the sounds of small explosions. "Sounds like the Death Eaters are having a little trouble."
Ginny pushed herself to her feet. "Do you think someone's here to rescue us?"
Harry shrugged. "Don't get your hopes up. It might just be Voldemort using these Yankee Death Eaters for target practice."
Harry had meant for that last statement to be a joke, but Ginny's face paled. "Do you think Voldemort is here?"
Harry shrugged again and put his ear back to the door. He heard the sounds of running as someone came to a stop in front of their cell.
"What are you doing here?" a dry voice asked from in front of the cell. "Get back down stairs and deal with this disturbance!"
A second voice answered. "We can't stop them, Master Campion!" the voice sniveled. "The boy is a red haired demon! We can't stop him! Our magic melts when it touches him!"
"I can't believe that ten Death Eaters can't stop one boy!" Campion growled.
"He's not alone, Master! Th-There is a girl with him."
"A girl?" Campion asked dryly.
"Y-Yes, My Lord. Her magic is powerful. She uses spells that I, myself, could not cast. Powerful spells!"
Harry turned back to Ginny. "Ron and Hermione are here!" he said in a awed voice.
Ginny's eyes widened. "What?!"
Harry shrugged. "They're here! And they're giving the Death Eaters a hell of a time, by the sound of things."
"Do you think they can get us out?" Ginny asked softly, as if fearing the answer.
"I don't know." Harry whispered.
Ginny ran forward and hugged Harry tightly. Harry hugged her back, but when he felt something hard in Ginny's shirt he released her. "What is that?" he asked.
Ginny gasped. "God, I almost forgot. Look!" she said as he reached into her shirt.
She pulled out a long piece of wood. It was Harry's wand.
Harry sputtered. "How? How did you get this?"
Ginny smiled. "When you were pounding Silas, he dropped this. I grabbed it and when the Death Eaters came, they didn't think to search me."
Harry hugged Ginny tightly and kissed the top of her head. "You're the best, Gin!"
He grabbed the wand and turned back to the door, waiting for whatever through it.