A/N: I know Dumbledore's plan is a little wierd...if you're forming a battle plan committee, don't put me on it, I've no idea how to write good action sequences, LOL. Well, at least it was amusing to imagine and write. I know one paragraph is basically a repeat of what I had in last chapter, but I couldn't think of anything to replace it. :(
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Order of Phoenix Flocks Together
Remus sat wearily at his table in number 12 Grimmauld Place. Sirius had willed the house to him. He was deep in discussion with the former members of the Order of Phoenix. Moody, Dumbledore, Tonks, the Weasleys, and even Snape was there. Remus fingered his Valentine ring absently, despairing at the memory it gave him. It had been a few days now since it had happened; she was probably dead. Lucius would kill her in a heartbeat the moment he didn't need her anymore. "Excuse me," Remus said, leaving the room.
He entered Sirius's old room and sat down on the bed, tears forming in his eyes. All those dreams Lucius kept sending him tore him apart. It seemed that whenever he got close to someone in his life, they were killed. His loss of Hermione was especially hard to take. He felt like he'd been given a fresh start in life with her. Now she was gone. Harry was all he had left. He resolved to be the best guardian to him that he could be; there wasn't anything else for him to do now.
He heard the floor creak and he looked up, wiping his eyes. Harry stood there, his eyes wide with concern. "I have some news for you, Remus," he said. "I've found Lucius's hideout. I haven't told the others yet, because I thought you'd want to know first."
Remus stood up, looking grim. "Let's go tell them. We should alert the Ministry so they can arrest them and send them to Azkaban."
"Remus," said Harry, confused that he hadn't mentioned Hermione. (He probably thinks she's dead!) "Hermione is alive. I managed to hear some of their conversation. Lucius is getting frustrated because we aren't giving into his demands. They plan on killing Hermione tomorrow, we need to hurry and make a rescue plan!" Wordlessly Remus ran after Harry, returning to the Order of Phoenix's meeting room. He felt a glimmer of hope. The Order sat in deep discussion, raking their minds for a good plan.
Suddenly Dumbledore spoke up. "I think what would be best is an element of surprise. Snape, could you make us all some Aging Potion? I propose we all become about eleven, and pretend to be first-years. The Death Eaters would think we are incapable of resisting them, and will be taken off guard when we are more than a match for them. Then we'll have the Ministry come, and take the place by storm." He looked around the room for approval.
It was an odd plan, but everyone agreed. Snape soon made enough Aging potion for all of them, and the changes that came over them was rather comical, most of all Dumbledore. They apparated close to where Lucius and his cronies were hiding out, then approached the old building. At first glance, it appeared to be deserted, but they knew better. The 'kids' opened the front door, and boldly stepped inside. Bellatrix stood there, looking quite shocked to see what she thought was first years, striding through her door brazenly like they were her kids or something. "Are you lost, little sheep?" she said in a high-pitched, mocking voice.
Eleven-year-old Dumbledore strode up to her fearlessly. "We want a tour of this house, it looks haunted and cool," he said, trying to sound enthusiastic.
"Do you know who I am, little man?" she said, her tone threatening.
"Yes, you're someone who's going to give us a tour," he insisted. "All my friends want one."
"I have no time for pointless idle play," she snapped.
"Fine, we'll show ourselves around then." He and the others barged past her through the house, searching for Hermione. Bellatrix ran outside to the back of the house, where Lucius and the others were. "A bunch of little brats have come into the house. What are your orders?" she demanded.
"I'll handle it," said Lucius. He motioned a few others to come with him. They must not find Hermione at all costs, but he also didn't want to harm the kids. Their parents were probably around, and would figure out who they were if they started getting violent.
Remus, meanwhile, was searching the basement when he tripped over something and fell down. He got up, dusted himself off, and took a look to see what tripped him. He felt such a rush of joy at the sight he saw, that he nearly fainted. "HERMIONE!" he said joyfully. "SHE'S DOWN HERE!" He heard the pounding of many footsteps over his head.
He rolled her on her side. She was bound and gagged. He used his wand to take her bonds off, and he helped her sit up. She opened her eyes, a sickly pallor whitening her face. She smiled slightly and whispered, "Remus, is that you?"
"Yes, yes it is, Hermione!" he said, beaming. If the situation wasn't so serious, she would have laughed. With the Aging potion, he hadn't hit puberty yet, so his voice was high-pitched. He squeezed her tightly and kissed her. (It feels odd to kiss an eleven-year-old, especially when you know he's really thirty-something) thought Hermione. When they broke apart, Remus said, "We need to get you out of here!"
He pulled her to her feet, and she leaned on him heavily as they walked up the stairs. She hadn't eaten anything since the night in the restaurant. She felt like she would collapse any moment.
Remus, at his reduced age, could barely support her, so he decided to change back to his real age. If he was seen, they'd attack him no matter what. He figured what element of surprise he'd gain wouldn't make much of a difference. He scooped up Hermione into his arms, carrying her the rest of the way. When he entered the room where the front door was, he found that a regular battle was going on. He stepped back and tried not to be seen. The Ministry should be bursting in any minute now; then they'd all be safe. He glanced down at Hermione's left hand, noting that she was still wearing her engagement ring. (I wonder if her parents will ever approve of our marriage) he thought sadly. It would be quite a blow to Hermione if they alienated her. He had only seen them briefly the past few days to inform them of the lack of findings, not really talking much otherwise.
The arrival of the Ministry interrupted his thoughts. Harry led their effort, for the Ministry knew the Death Eaters found him intimidating. They managed to arrest all twenty Death Eaters, and escorted them to the courtroom, where they would be tried immediately for the use of Unforgivable Curses.
Hermione smiled weakly at the sight of the young Order of Phoenix, watching with amusement as each of them transformed back to their normal ages. She hoped Remus wouldn't put her down. She felt too weak to stand. However, this thought didn't even seem to occur to him. He carried her to Dumbledore, awaiting instruction.
"I think you should take her to her parents, Remus. You have much to talk about," he said seriously.
Remus nodded, and turned to Harry. "I'll see you at my place soon," he said, before taking a portkey to the Granger's house. He tried to put her down.
"Don't," said Hermione pleadingly. He obliged her, and continued holding her on the doorstep as he rang the doorbell.
The Grangers yanked opened the door, panting. They'd obviously raced each other there. They beamed and beckoned him inside when they saw Hermione. "You found her!" said Mr. Granger ecstatically. Mrs. Granger appeared no less pleased.
Remus entered their house and gently laid Hermione on the couch. "Hello, Mom and Dad," she rasped.
The Grangers smiled happily. Mrs. Granger got Hermione some water and something to eat. Hermione ate ravenously, her hands shaking with exhaustion. Remus sat there, watching her like a hawk.
"Hermione, I believe I owe you an apology, and you also, Remus," started Mr. Granger, extremely apologetic. "When I heard that you had not only dated, but were engaged to a teacher of yours, I believed that you have made rash, and, I daresay, an uncivilized decision, which angered me considerably, causing me to scold you most harshly. I can see now that I was wrong. Remus, you are one of the bravest men I've ever met. You've shown that you're willing to die for Hermione. I must admit, I had hoped for someone more her age, but you've certainly proven that you're worthy of her. Emma and I have decided to allow you to marry her with our blessing." Emma nodded and smiled her agreement.
Remus smiled back, grateful and relieved, but also quite embarrassed by their compliments. "I can certainly understand your concerns. I had them at the beginning. You're too kind! Harry, I think, is the bravest wizard. Voldemort was far, far worse than Lucius Malfoy. I couldn't have done what he did."
"All the same, we can't thank you enough for rescuing our daughter. We've been worried sick," said Mrs. Granger.
Hermione finished eating, and leaned against Remus in weariness. He wrapped his arm around her in response. When asked if she wanted to rest, she refused, saying that's all she'd been doing, and she wanted to talk.
"I've been wondering," said Mr. Granger curiously. "How did you two start going out?"
Remus and Hermione exchanged glances. Hermione began telling the story, with Remus filling in occasionally. He felt quite embarrassed at first, especially when Hermione told them how down he'd been feeling earlier that year, and Halloween weekend. However, he grew more relaxed as the Grangers laughed and joked in some parts. At the end of it, Remus helped Hermione to her room and helped her unpack. Unexpectedly, an owl came zooming through the window. Remus grabbed the letter and dismissed the owl.
Hermione opened it nervously. It was her NEWTS results. Then she grinned. She'd passed her NEWTS with flying colors! She shared the news with Remus, who was not at all surprised. He soon left her to sleep, and he apparated with a CRACK! back to his own house.
Replies to Reviewers:
sporty12gd4u: You sure are quick to review, thanks:)
Aljinon: Thanks for your three reviews! Thank you, I'm glad you thought it was realistic. Yes, I love long chapters:)
BrennaM: Yes, I hate cliffies! LOL Thanks for your review!
Rane2920072: Was this fast enough for you? ;) Thank you for reviewing!
LupinLover99: Thanks for reviewing twice! Yeah, he has to be at least 33 or so, LOL. Actually, I did name her parents after the actors. To be honest though, it wasn't my idea. I read a Harry/Hermione fanfiction where the author had their names be Emma and Daniel. I thought that was cool so I did that too, to reflect what the pairing was going to be. I don't have AIM, I think I used to have it but it caused computer problems (my computer is VERY fickle). I have MSNIM though. I'll probably be under Cricket or Aelimir. (Cricket is my horse's name)
Tem: LOL! I had a big laugh over "Exonerated Death Eater's Convention"! Yes, I probably didn't explain that very well...the idea was, that they wanted to kidnap Hermione for revenge, since she and Remus had three or four (not sure about Pansy) Death Eater kids expelled, and for blackmail, since they knew she was quite dear to Remus, Harry, Dumbledore, and others, and they might be blackmailed into swaying the Ministry to aquit them or something. The restaurant would have been their first chance to pull it off, and a rather ideal place for them, since no one would be expecting them to do it there. Hmmm...I had Hermione accidentally hit a customer with "Stupefy," and Bellatrix was the one who killed the police officer. Did I misstype it? I'll have to check. Remus driving was one of my earlier ideas, I found it quite, quite amusing, LOL. Thanks for your super long review, I loved it!
slytherinstargazing: I'm glad I had you on the edge of your seat. ;) Thanks for reviewing!
Nevnarial: Thanks for reviewing Nevvy! I'm glad it was suprising:)
Preview of next (last! SOB!) chapter: Suddenly a mighty CRACK! resounded through the room, making both men jump. Hermione appeared before them, a dish in her hands. "I've made you dinner. I figured you two would appreciate that," she said, smiling knowingly.
They grinned back at her. She was right, neither of them was good at cooking, and had resorted to eating things out of ready-make boxes those muggles produced. Harry had insisted on that after he'd endured a couple of Lupin's meals.