FlooJacked!

By: CNJ

PG-13

5: Plans and Journeys

Harry:

I had a very fitful night full of bizarre dreams, some of them nightmares. I had one really bad one of coming into the Great Hall and finding dead bodies scattered all over. With a high-sounding little howl, I jolted awake. 1:35, the clock on the wall read.

My stomach was tight, my scar was hurting, and my throat was dry, so I decided to head down for a cup of tea. Shakily, I got out of bed and slipped out of the dorms and down to the back passageway to the kitchens.

I saw a shadow, a tall one moving along the hall and froze. I peered at it and I could see blond hair...Malfoy, I thought. He was apparently headed somewhere.

I waited until he was out of sight, then continued to the kitchen and made my tea. I sat sipping it until I felt calmer. I thought my trip back upstairs would be peaceful, but my luck ran out and as I was headed back up, Malfoy came sliding up after me.

"So...Potter, on another busybody mission for your Gryffindor cronies?" he sneered.

"No, I just went for some tea, not that it's any of your business," I snapped back. I waited for him to continue on up, but he stopped and peered at me. "What...are you doing some skulk job for your yes-men?"

"None of your business either, Potter!" Malfoy glared. "Soo, are you still mooning over your disappeared friends? They're not coming back, you know. Voldemort and his allies have them and they are the ones in power. So, you might as well give up pining away for Weasel-face and the others."

"Oh, I'm not pining away," I said with more confidence than I actually felt. "Dumbledore and McGonagall will see to it that they come back alive." I started to stalk away, but Malfoy followed me.

"Don't you get it?" Malfoy laughed bitterly. "This is the downfall of the impure bloods! My father's right when he says the purebloods will rise again."

"Your father landed himself in jail with his "work", Malfoy…" I stated the obvious.

"He won't be there much longer once Voldemort has his say! They'll set things straight and straighten out of corruption in this world! And if you don't watch your back, you'll be next on their hit list, Pottle-four-eyes! For all we know, their hostages may be dead as I speak. A war is coming and many more will be wiped out before we're done. Think you'll have the so-called Gryffindor guts to be brave enough for Voldemort and his followers?"

"Get lost, Malfoy..." I barked.

"What the matter, can't face the truth, so you're running away?" Malfoy kept after me all the way up the stairs. "Wheeere's your couuurage this time?" he singsonged mockingly.

Shut up, shut up and fuck off, I thought, feeling the anger that always welled up inside of me around Malfoy. God, I can't stand that bastard! He just gloats over others' pain.

"I wonder how you're going to face You-Know-Who again since you've turned wimpier than ever," Malfoy jeered on stridently. "Don't think I haven't noticed how you've been afraid to go much anywhere alone since Cedric croaked..."

"Malfoy, will you shut up and get away from me!" I turned and narrowed my eyes.

"Suppose I don't?" Malfoy lifted a lip and stepped even closer.

"You've said enough..." I said this softly, but my voice trembled. "God, Malfoy, when was the last time you ever had any courtesy or feelings?"

I really didn't mean for that last sentence to come out, but somehow it did. I looked right into his pointy pale face with its even straight features and those cold mocking gray eyes and tried to make myself believe that those eyes had some depth in them.

I wondered how badly Lucius Malfoy had poisoned his soul; was it possible that Malfoy really had no conscience? Did he have any idea how he related to others?

"God, Potted Scarred Mess..." Malfoy laughed in a mocking snarl. "Don't you haave any courtesy or feeelings?" he mimicked. "How low are you getting now, to beg me to show my deeear feeeelings?"

"Just what do you expect out of this life?" I asked still quietly. "Do you really hope that your so-called purebloods will kill anyone who isn't a so-called pureblood and live happily ever after? Do you honestly harbor that delusion? Are you really as insane as Voldemort, who by the way, is not a so-called pureblood...his mum was a muggle...she died when he was young, so he never knew her well...he never had her love. If that's who you're aspiring to be like, I really feel sorry for you."

Malfoy just stared at me for the longest time. Although he quickly covered it up, I could tell that what I'd said had taken him off guard and even startled him a bit.

Finally, he just pulled his face into his usual sneer and spat out, "Hey, Potter, you're really not worth wasting my time getting into some deep psycho discussion on life's purposes...and God, I don't need the likes of you feeling sorry for me!"

He finally stalked off and left me alone. I let out my breath and continued to my dorm, shaking all over. I couldn't stop shivering as I crawled into bed, my teeth rattling, my heart pounding.

Thinking back now, I'd startled myself as well as Malfoy by my comments. I really did pity Malfoy; I knew, much as I detested him, he was one unhappy person. I didn't go back to sleep for the rest of the night and watched the blackness fade into a gray, then a pale blue of early morning.

Luna:

"If we get lucky, they won't find us up here," I whispered to the others. "They'll think we've escaped."

We hadn't, but we'd managed to find a trap door over the small storage-like facility we were being held and had managed to climb up onto the high beams. It was a tight squash, but we all fit. The death eaters were down below, having barged in and were peering around.

"Oh, hell, if they've escaped..." one of them muttered.

"How can they, the doors are triply-guarded and have security spells," Peter Pettigrew protested. "They're someplace around here, probably in some closet or behind those muggle shelves somewhere."

"If Lord Voldemort hears about this, he'll be on our necks, Wormtail," another death eater snarled. "You know how badly Voldemort wants to avenge the capture of several of his death eaters including Lucius Malfoy."

"He will," Peter nodded. "Just as I'd hoped to get Potter's arse. It's really too bad Potter wasn't with them; our Lord would have been pleased."

"Wormtail, can you think outside your tiny bubble of a brain to outside your little petty personal concerns?" another death eater I'd heard called Jaywode bellowed as they spread out over the room. "This is a matter of restoring order and morality to the wizard world. Decency being restored and purified..." His voice faded out as he headed out to a hallway.

"So, what's next now that we're up here?" Ron hissed once all of them had left the room, closing the door and locking it. We looked around, unsure of what to do next.

"It looks..." Parvati told us. "As if we're stuck here until we can find some hidden escape."

Harry:

I finished an essay I'd been working on by the end of that weekend. It was for History of Magic and part of it was to attempt to place our family or ancestors' roots in that history. I'd found out that many of my ancestors on both of my late parents' sides came from Ireland in the 1830's fleeing the Great Potato Famine.

I'd also learned that there had been a lot of bad luck such of poverty, depression, and suicide in both the Potter and the Evans trees. I'd found out by an old friend of Aunt Miranda's that my maternal grandfather had committed suicide and it had devastated my mum and grandmother. So much needless suffering of innocent people, I thought sadly.

Dear Professor Binns, I wrote.

I must add this note to my essay explaining perhaps why some of my sentences end abruptly while others seem to meander in all directions. It's not intentional, but it's a subconscious reaction to some very painful things I've found out about my ancestors.

I am full of fear at this dark time, not only for my own sanity, but for Hogwarts and the rest of the London Magical Community as well. I do hope that you will not pity my ancestors or me, but there is a history of depression in my family and I've been suffering from it the past year and a half. I see a counselor and have made some progress, but I still have a way to go.

It's never easy for me to discuss what is going on deep inside of me and for all of my life, I've sought and sought the answers as to why I often feel different from most others. Is it really a destiny for all of us? Or are our lives really haphazard? I am almost afraid of either answer.

You say that we should seek and build our paths to our goals, but enjoy the journey there. I do have my goals…to graduate next year…to go to university…to become and auror, class B, the best one I can hope to be…to rid the world, both magical and possible muggle of injustice…to make the world a safer better place.

But the journey to my first goal hasn't been very enjoyable. I have had my happy moments here and there, but it's been interspersed with painful discoveries and my own emotional demons from events in my past that I find too hard to discuss ever.

I do hope you can try to understand what I'm saying here. Few people truly understand many things I say and very few people really know me; I really don't know myself well at all and I don't know if I ever will. If you attempt to understand, thank you.

Sincerely, Harry Potter

I attached the note to the front page of my essay and waited until most of the others had filed out of Professor Binns' class turning in their essays. I then walked up and handed in my essay…with the letter. "Please…read the letter first," I whispered. "It says something telling…" I cleared my throat. "…about my essay. "I…hope you don't mind."

Professor Binns nodded and started to read it right there. I started to leave, but for some odd reason paused in the doorway as he read. I have this class right before lunch, so I don't have to rush to the next class just yet. He must be a fast reader because he looked up and sort of smiled.

"Tough year?" he asked softly. I nodded.

"I've heard about the prophecy and your role in it."

I nodded, feeling my throat tighten painfully. Oh, dear, I thought. The warning signs of tears were coming fast and I knew I'd better leave, get someplace private so I wouldn't start blubbering right there in front of Professor Binns.

"I wonder if…" I quavered. "…it's part of destiny…or just chance."

"Hard to say…" Professor Binns pondered. "Deep question…not surprising from you since you have always stuck me as unusually mature for your age." I nodded again. He then reached out and touched my hand. "Is there anything I can do? I know some of your friends are missing."

"Not really…" I got out in a keening voice before I made my escape and darted to the nearest bathroom.

It happened to be Moaning Myrtle's. I just hoped she wasn't loping about. I ran into a booth and sobbed softly, feeling the pain come fresh all over again.

Would my life's journeys every really be enjoyable? I wondered miserably. Did anyone have a really enjoyable road getting to his or her goals? I suspected some people really did.

But then I thought about some people who still seemed to be struggling along the road of this thing called life…Professor Snape, for one…he does seem less miserable this year and maybe it's because he got some of the pain in his life out.

Perhaps goals and things to reach for made painful journeys more endurable along with good friends. I know if I didn't have my friends or definite goals, I'd have given up long ago and probably wouldn't be alive now.

Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall seem further along and I think are more at peace with life. Maybe because they'd gone through more than any of us and had triumphed over whatever pain they'd had.

Wiping away my tears, I sat up and just hoped I could do the same…starting with carrying on with the rest of the Young Order in our rescue of our classmates. I slowly got up and washed my face in the sink, letting the cold water flow over my tear-streaked miserable-looking face. Whatever came, I'd press on with my journey.

Dumbledore called a meeting with the Young and Main Order mid-week. When my friends and I arrived in the meeting room, there were several Phoenix aurors with the Main Order.

Also, there were several others we didn't know. Professor McGonagall introduced them as Phoenix Ministry members, the part of the Ministry that is working to oust the corrupt members of the Senior Ministry. We made plans at this meeting to meet here tomorrow after classes let out, then using a Portkey, we'd apparate to Grimmauld Place.

Several of the Main Order, including most of the parents and guardians, would stay at Hogwarts and watch over the students. Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore would alternate between Hogwarts and Grimmauld Place, then on Friday, if all went all right, we'd move onto Murdock Storage while most of the Phoenix aurors and Ministry members would pounce on the other death eaters.

"It's a given that hell will break loose in other places once word gets out that the students have been freed," Mad Eye Moody put in. "We'll need our people every place we can."

"Your plan is a good one," Professor Tonks told us. "Time is running out and it will be risky, but we'll do it. Let's all now wish each other good luck and I'll see all of you here tomorrow."

Battle reaches Ministry; Minister Fudge and several other Ministry members flee from office, the Daily Prophet told us the next morning at breakfast.

"Oh, dear…" I muttered fearfully. Looking around at my friends and our other classmates, I could see many worried expressions. Talking became louder and I could see Malfoy and his cronies smirking.

"I knew that stupid half-wit Minister would be out soon!" Malfoy crowed.

"They're going to need as many phoenix aurors and ministry there as quickly as possible," Ginny told us.

Hermione, Neville, Ginny, and I leaned close and read on. Sure enough, death eaters had stormed the Ministry and Phoenix aurors and ministry members had rushed over to keep them at bay. Fudge had been cited for removal from office early this morning for embezzlement, knowingly accepting bribes, and lying to Parliament.

He'd fled once he'd heard about the death eaters approach without warning the others. They were helping the remaining Ministry members escape, but it appeared to be an uphill battle. Already several on both sides had been either wounded or killed.

Professor Dumbledore ninged his glass with a spoon.

"As most of you know, Fudge is now out of office," he announced. "The alternate Ministry members and aurors are attempting to put a makeshift Minister and officers in to keep the London magical community from falling into anarchy. Hogwarts is well-guarded as several of our aurors are guarding the school and we have our security spells in place."

Several professors, including myself, will be attending to matters at the Ministry and away from school in alternating schedules, but several of us will be here for you students. In addition, the Young Order students are excused from all classes for tomorrow for meeting and planning the next step of this war." With that, he sat and breakfast continued.

"Good luck at all of us…" Hermione muttered.

Across the Great Hall, I caught Malfoy staring in my direction, his slate gray eyes cold. Once I met eyes with him, he quirked his eyebrows in that arrogant twitch and twisted his lip into that all-too familiar sneer.

I attempted to keep my face expressionless, but I don't think I succeeded because I felt worry lines wrinkle my forehead. Glancing at Ginny and Hermione on either side of me, I could see their eyes were wide in worry.

Harry:

By early the next evening all of us…the Main Order and the Young Order had gathered at Grimmauld Place. Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore alternated between Hogwarts and Grimmauld Place for a couple of hours, then finally Dumbledore stayed while McGonagall went back to Hogwarts to hold things down at school.

The Weasley parents hugged Hermione, Ginny, Neville and me as soon as they arrived. I felt their angst and wished that I could reassure them that their son would be all right. Molly and I looked at each other intently with our eyes a bit teary. But we bit back our tears…there would be time for them later.

"Gather 'round and let's eat, keep our spirits up!" Moody called.

Bit by bit, we straggled into the large circular kitchen and ate, even though most of us weren't hungry. I know I wasn't.

I could see that Fred and George weren't hungry either and they looked pale, unusually somber and withdrawn. I saw tears in Fred's eyes several times. Ginny must have seen them too because she reached out and touched Fred's hand at one point.

Arabella:

It was good to see dear Harry again. The boy looked strained and dark circles ringed his eyes, but he also appeared composed. I've heard that Ron Weasley and Luna Lovegood are two of his good friends, so I was not at all surprised that Harry was deeply affected by this floo-jacking.

I remember how shocked I'd been to find out how awful those muggles he'd had to stay with truly are. His cousin had become ill when they encountered dementors last summer.

Harry had saved his cousin from them and since Harry is very thin and not very strong, I'd had to help Harry carry Dudley home. Instead of being grateful to poor Harry, Petunia and Vernon had launched into a tirade of abuse on the boy.

I was one of the Main Order members who'd watched the Dursley house that Harry grew up in for years. Because Harry never appeared with mysterious injuries or had any behavioral problems, none of us in the Order had any idea of what Harry was enduring in that house.

Harry has always been a quiet boy; I remember even when he was a little boy, he was so quiet. I'd enjoyed babysitting him then; he was never any trouble and was so mature beyond his age. It was almost as if he were a miniature adult.

Now I knew why…it was largely because the Dursleys are very immature and he's basically had to be the mini-adult in that dysfunctional house for ten years.

The Main and Young Order spent most of dinner planning for tomorrow. The Young Order shared their discovery of Murdock Storage with us along their part of the plan.

Passing around the parchments, we slowly nodded. This plan sounded solid. They'd obviously been doing a lot of preparation even in their despair.

It was an odd dinner…everyone spoke quietly, yet there was the clatter of plans. Looking around, I could see that many of the students looked either pale or had circles under their eyes. My heart went out to them; in many ways, this war has been so much harder on them than us adults.

If only I could hasten time and have this war be over and be able to reassure them that all would be well…but none of us could, so we had to make due with what we had and endure the next forty-eight or so hours.

Snape:

We wound up splitting into various groups after our dinner and I found myself between Harry Potter and Professor Tonks. Lavender Brown and Neville were there also and we seated ourselves around a fire. As I listened to Professor Tonks talk about our plan and the Main Order's role, I subtly studied Harry's profile as Harry gazed into the fire.

How much like Lily he is, I thought. I hadn't realized this until this year. Up until last year, I'd thought he was a repeat of James Potter. Painful as it is to admit, James targeted me for bullying, which left me with many bitter memories of James and his clique, the Marauders. I'd foolishly assumed upon meeting Harry that he'd be just like James, arrogant and a bully. But I'd been proven wrong.

"…if they track us, we'll need auror backup…" Tonks finished. "One to get us out and two to get the floo jacked out without harm." Harry shuddered a bit and he looked at each of us, his heavy brows twitching.

Lavender reached out and held his hand a minute and he gave her a grateful look. I also found myself giving Harry a reassuring soft smile.

Harry's pain from depression had brought me face to face with my own painful youth…in his face and in Lily's face, I'd seen the same pain that I'd so often felt and had tried so hard to bury. It was Nymphadora Tonks who had verbalized it for me…for all three of us.

I had never known Lily very well; we had been in the same class mostly and just passed like two ships in the night…until the night she saved my life from a suicide attempt. I caught a glimpse into her quiet, serious soul then.

It had been very brief and we'd gone back to being casual passing ships again with me drifting at the edges of the Slytherin crony groups while Lily had retreated back to her friends…Alice Longbottom and Xiomara Hooch were her two closest friends, with occasional gatherings with Molly Weasley and another girl, Amelia whose last name I can't recall right now.

Reflecting on this group now, in some ways, they reminded me of Harry and his five close friends. If only Alice and Lily were here now, I thought sadly. They'd be so proud of their sons.

"Your mother saved me, Harry…" I blurted out.

Harry's thick eyebrows rose in surprise and he looked at me intently for a long minute.

"A large part of her lives on in you, you know…" I continued. "I was also depressed in my youth…Lily pulled me back from the brink…we were never close and never really knew each other well, but she saved me anyway…"

"I'm not really surprised…" Harry said softly. "…that she saved you…she always had a deep caring for others, even if she didn't know the person well. What I am surprised is that you know my emotional state for most of this year…"

"I sensed it…I pick up a lot that few others realize…" I told him.

Lily's son…the pine green eyes so solemn behind the thick glasses, gazed at me with the same expression Lily often wore in her youth.

"I also saw much of myself as I saw Mr. Malfoy bully you…my own past that I tried to keep hidden, came back unbidden."

Harry's eyes shadowed abruptly and he broke the gaze, his cheeks reddening.

"Harry…it would have come out sooner or later…you've no reason for guilty feelings now…" I gently touched his slender shoulder.

"I never meant…" Harry started, then looked up.

I once again smiled to reassure him that there were no more hard feelings between us and that I especially did not blame him for the unfortunate pensieve incident in his fifth year. Silently, we forgave each other for our past misunderstandings.

"In a way, Harry, you saved me also…" I whispered.

"Thank you…" Harry whispered back. "Not only for now, but for everything you've done…and have taught my friends and me over the years."

Harry peered over at Neville and Lavender and they slowly came over and patted Snape's hand.

Tonks smiled softly, watching our exchange. I knew it pleased her to see Harry and I reach this new beginning and to see me reach this breakthrough with all of my students.

Molly:

I was so glad to have the Main Order here again. Arthur and I held hands often as we drank our tea. I could hardly bear to think of my beloved son in the hands of those death eaters going thru Merlin knows what.

"I feel as if time isn't going fast enough," I told the others, which included Arthur, Sybill Trelawney, and Mad-Eye Moody. We were silent for a long minute, lost in our thoughts and worries.

"Me either…" Sybill added. She peered into her teacup. "I also have gotten many mixed messages from the leaves and stars…they indicate that many will die, but cannot tell me just who…but one will die saving another…"

"I'd rather not find out just who…" I quavered, feeling tears hit close.

"Ahhh-hemmm…" Mad-Eye clinked his cup down. "Have you heard any news on Percy?" Mad-Eye inquired gently, peering at us. Arthur and I looked at each other and shook our heads in mutual despair.

We'd found out a few months ago that Percy had been spotted in a clandestine meeting with Pettigrew and Lestrange. Also, there was an incident at Hogwarts last November where Percy had been seen near the Great Forest during a Care Of Magical Creatures class, lurking about on his broom. Harry had been in that class and he and Hermione had seen Percy on the broom.

The students had been studying sentinel crows back then and Harry's had mysteriously turned into a serpent and nearly bit him. Harry had been so frightened he'd almost fainted and had fallen off his broom into the lake and Hagrid had had to levitate him out and bring him to the hospital wing. By then, Percy had disappeared.

"Our thoughts are with you both," Sybill reached out and touched our clasped hands, peering at us through her thick glasses. We nodded silently. It's so hard to imagine that one of our own could be responsible for part of this terror on the London magical community.

Ginny:

Hermione, the Patil twins, Cho, and I sat in the near east guest room by the fire as we softly talked. We talked about our plan for tomorrow, but occasionally drifted to other topics.

"I do hope the death eaters don't get to Hogwarts," Cho told us. "Even with the security spells in place, it would be so scary for the students there."

"Yeah…" I put in and sipped her tea.

"Professor McGonagall's good at keeping everyone mostly calm in these situations," Hermione added. "And there are backup aurors and phoenix ministry members there also. I'm so glad Fudge is out of office."

Grimmauld Place was alive with activity and soft conversations in almost every room, but at the same time, it was quiet, quiet as air before a storm. Everything felt muted and unreal.

We heard a sound by the door and looked up to see Fred standing there. His face was splotchy red, telling us that he'd been crying.

"Come in…" I waved to him encouragingly. He did and sat with us. "Bad, isn't it?" I asked softly. Fred nodded, tears still in his eyes. I put a hand on his arm. There were no words to express our pain over our endangered brother.

Ron, bubbly and dramatic as he is, has been in many ways the rock of our family and had always, in his own way looked out for all of us. He also kept us going with his dramatic flourish and his sense of humor. It's just too unbearable for any of us to think of having to live without that.

Lupin:

Arabella continued on the tale of last summer and what had happened with the dementors. "…and I was thinking, What the fuck…? Harry was clutching his cousin for dear life and shaking like a leaf. I helped him carry Dudley over to the house on Privet Drive. Those parents of Dudley's…you'd think they'd be grateful, since Harry not only risked his own life, but his standing at Hogwarts and the wrath of the Ministry."

But they weren't, the fools. Vernon launched into an awful tirade of abuse on the poor boy…and Petunia just hung back and kept widening her eyes and acting like Harry was some creature from the black swamp. Poor boy…no wonder Harry's been so down for most of this year. I'm glad to know that he's away from those awful people and back home with us in our world. It's good to see Miranda back with us again also."

"That is very much like Lily and Petunia of long ago…" Rose Longbottom, Neville's gran and Frank Longbottom's mum put in.

"What…?" We all turned toward her.

"Long ago…when Alice and Lily were students…" Rose stirred her tea and took a sip. "Alice and Xiomara were spending the night at the Evans shortly before their fourth year began…the three of them had gone to get their supplies and had come back home…they had unloaded their things upstairs and were in the basement studying a spell or some sort. Xiomara and Alice were checking something in an adjacent room.

"Lily's parents had gone out for a spell. Petunia, who sounds like she hasn't changed a bit from what you're describing, Arabella, came charging down the stairs, screaming something dreadful at Lily…I don't know what all, but it was hideous."

Lily tried to defend herself; Alice and Xiomara tried to pull Petunia off, but Petunia nearly pummeled the poor girl senseless…much the same way I suspect that Dudley pounded Harry…Alice told me that the entire house suddenly turned cold and dark and the dementors appeared surrounding the basement. Petunia shrank back and nearly went mad, but Lily saved her from them using the spell the students all learn in their third year."

"So that explains Petunia's wild-eyed look when I took Harry and Dudley to the house…" Arabella nodded. "Petunia's thick head does remember those horrid creatures.

"No one forgets them…" Rose told us. "But back then just like last summer, Petunia wasn't one whit grateful and tried to blame Lily and claim that she brought them on…fortunately, their parents had more sense than her and didn't buy Petunia's story."

"That was the year Riddle experimented with the dementors hoping he could get them under his control," I put in. "He could then use them to terrorize both muggle and magical communities…that same academic year was the massacre at the Village Tea and Riddle made his power known widely."

"The magical world sure did change that year…" Arabella twirled her spoon around her saucer. "So many young people in danger…"

Dumbledore sighed. "I never should have left Harry with the Dursleys…if only we'd planned better, none of this would have happened and Harry would have been spared so much pain at too young an age. Last summer, I was burdened with tremendous guilt and was listless for a week. It was Professor Tonks who jolted me to life again with new plans for exposing the corruption in the Ministry and forming the Young Order and capturing the death eaters."

"Let's hope this last leg of our plan works," I put in.

None of us had realized what Harry has been through and probably we never will fully realize the extent of what Harry endured, especially since Harry is a very reserved, reticent boy.

"Let's hope our students of the future won't have to endure what Alice, Harry, Neville, Frank, and many others have during this entire mad time. Then this madness in our community can begin to end once and for all," I added.

All of us nodded silently in agreement.

Harry:

It was around midnight when we drifted to bed in groups. We'd need to be up early tomorrow to put our plan in action. It had been a long, strange, yet interesting evening.

Hermione, Ginny, Neville, and I fell into cots in one bedroom. All around us, we could hear others brushing teeth, falling into beds, cots, sleeping sacks and couches.

Several Main Order members poked their heads in to tell us goodnight, including the Weasleys, Tonks, Dumbledore, and Snape. Then we were on our own, laying silently in our cots, thoughts tumbling through all of our heads.

"Harry…?" Neville's voice floated over.

"Yeah…" I mumbled.

"Do you ever think about our mums back at Hogwarts…what their friendship must have been like?" Neville asked.

"Sometimes…" I admitted. Neville rarely talks about his parents. "I wonder if they played Exploding Snap and things of that sort. I've heard that they and Madame Hooch went through many of the same experiences we did growing up."

I'd been happy to learn through the grapevine that Madame Hooch had also been a good friend of both of our mums.

Madame Hooch taught us in our first year to fly and she coaches Quidditch and is very busy, so neither Neville nor I have had a real chance to sit down with her and talk about our mums and all. I suppose one day we will…hopefully before we graduate.

"That also explains why she is especially affected by this…" I cleared my throat. "Floo-jacking…"

"Why…?" Neville turned.

"Perhaps knowing that you and I are friends…" I went on. "Our mums were friends much like you and I…with Ron and Luna being our friends also…perhaps since she's lost two of her dear friends and seeing this perhaps brings back painful reminders for her…Oh, Merlin…"

"I always suspected that our group is much like our mums and Madame Hooch's group was…" Neville added thoughtfully.

"Molly has mentioned that she and another girl, Amelia sometimes hung about with them also," I added. "I can't remember Amelia's last name at the moment, but I think Amelia was about a year or so ahead of our mums…sort of like our group grew as we got older."

"So, you both started off as the trio…" Neville concluded.

"Hmmm…?" I was a bit puzzled, but then it fell into place. Oh.

"In your first few years, you, Ron, and Hermione were the trio…just like our mums and Xiomara had been a trio their first few years…then both groups expanded over the years."

"Hey, you're right…" I whispered. "I just hope…all of us can get through this safely…"

"Me too…" Neville's voice grew sleepy and I knew he was drifting off.

I could feel the thickness of our thoughts in the dark air, the thoughts of not only Neville and me, but also all of us…the entire Main and Young Order.

I just hoped time had made all of us stronger than we'd been in the past. A tinge of fear spreading over me, I nodded off into an uneasy sleep, sinking into dreams about Mum and Alice Longbottom and Madame Hooch as youths, then their worlds being shattered by the madness that still haunted us today.

If only I could be sure our Order could end this cycle of madness before it splinters more innocent lives.