Something heavy was on Hermione's chest and she was having trouble catching her breath. She moaned in pain and opened her eyes. It was dark everywhere. "James?" she called out weakly. "James, where are you?" She listened, but couldn't hear anything but an odd creaking sound all around her. Her hands began roaming, trying to feel her surroundings since she could see nothing. She felt a large flat object over her chest. She pushed, but the thing was heavy, too heavy for her to move in her weakened state.
"Somebody," she called out. "Help!"
"Hermione?" a familiar voice answered from the distance.
"Severus," she called out. "Is that you?"
"It's me," he answered. "I'm coming."
She could hear him coming closer and felt the ground below her shifting.
"You're trapped," he said, his voice now directly over her. "I need you to push while I lift."
"Okay," she replied weakly.
"One, two, three!" he said the last word with a grunt as he lifted what turned out to be a large piece of wood from her body.
She felt the pressure on her lungs lessen and she took a deep cleansing breath. It revived her a bit and she was able to stand with Snape's help. "What happened?" she asked.
"I'm not sure," said Snape. "Just as I arrived, the house just seemed to collapse in on itself. I didn't think anyone had survived.
With a horrible rush, the events of the night flooded Hermione's consciousness. She and James had been cornered and defenseless. She remembered reaching out for James and then... She searched her brain for what came next, but she couldn't seem to remember. One minute she was sure she was dead and the next… No matter how she tried she couldn't remember.
While Snape tried to lead her away from the wreckage of James and Lily's home she looked frantically around. "No," she moaned. "James, Lily." The entire second floor had collapsed on part of the first and nothing looked stable. The house groaned, creaked, and cracked as Snape tried to get her away from it. "Remus, Nathaniel," she breathed, her whole body locked in terror. "Nathaniel," she screamed. She tried to break away from Snape, but he held her fast.
"It's too late, Hermione. It's a miracle you lived. I don't see how he could have survived the collapse of the house." Snape uttered the words bluntly.
"No," she screamed, shoving him away with the force of a woman possessed. She began scrambling across the rubble of the Potter's home, screaming for her son. "Nathaniel," she yelled. "Mama's here. I'm coming." She didn't know where her son had been in the house, not that it mattered. With only the quarter moon to guide her it was impossible to see anything beyond a few feet.
"Hermione, we have to get out of here," said Snape, catching up to her. "It won't be long before the Ministry comes."
"Help me," she begged.
"We have to leave," insisted Snape. "The Ministry will arrest us on sight. They'll think you're responsible for this."
"Leave then, coward," she shouted. "I'm not going anywhere without my son or my husband."
"We can't stay," shouted Snape angrily, but Hermione was no longer listening.
She had gotten down on her hands and knees and was sifting through the debris while trying to listen. "Nathaniel," she called out, softly this time. "It's mama. I'm here, but you have to make a noise if I'm going to find you. Help me, baby." Then she heard the faint cry. A moan of happiness escaped her lips. "I'm coming," she whispered. "Keep crying."
She crawled across the rumble, listening hard. The sound seemed to be coming from somewhere above her. She looked up. The entire second floor of the house had settled onto the first floor. Hermione looked back to where Snape had pulled her out. She shook as she realized how impossible it had been to live through the collapse of the house.
The only way to get to her son was to climb. She closed her eyes and prayed silently that the structure would hold. As she carefully climbed, the crying grew clearer. When she finally stood precariously where the roof had been, she began to dig her way back down. "I'm coming," she kept saying over and over. Then she saw a tiny fist shoot up, reaching for her. Her hand closed gently around it. She carefully shifted some more debris until it opened into a hollowed space. In the center of the area was Harry.
She reached down and pulled him out. He was crying. "Harry," she practically laughed. "It's all right." She cradled him in her arms and hope burgeoned in her chest. If the two of them had made it then she knew everyone else had survived too. It would just take her time to dig them all out. She hoped she found James, Sirius, or Remus next. Then they could help her dig out the others.
"Mama," cried Harry. "Mamamama."
"Remus," Hermione yelled. "James, Sirius, Lily, please answer me. Remus!"
She was about to stand and get Harry clear of the house before she continued her search when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. She reached her hand down into the hole Harry had been in and her hand closed around cold flesh. She wrenched her hand back as if she'd been burnt.
"No," she cried. She pulled Harry against her chest and rested her lips against the top of his head. Tears flowed down into his soft black hair. She took a deep breath, trying to steel her resolve, before reaching back down. Using only one hand, she pushed brick and wood, slowly revealing the body of her best friend.
Huge, gulping sobs wracked her body. "Lily, no," she cried softly. She felt paralyzed. Her body shook and all she could do was hold Harry close. When she felt more in control of her emotions, she brushed the hair away from Harry's forehead. She could see the lightening shaped scar, pink and angry against his pale forehead. She ran the pad of her thumb over it, trying to soothe his skin, then she pulled him back against her chest.
Nothing she had done had changed anything. Lily was dead and for all she knew James was too. She had failed. Hermione tipped her head back and a long guttural wail of despair came out of her.
"James!" An agonized scream ripped through the night air. "James! Lily!"
Hermione stood slowly and turned to see Sirius running at the house, his motorbike lying on the grass forgotten.
"Sirius," she mouthed, trying to force sound out of her mouth. "Sirius!"
He turned and stared at her and in the pale moonlight his eyes looked dark and frightening. He lifted his wand and then he saw his Godson. Hermione could see sparks coming from his wand and his hand shook violently.
"You killed them," he shouted. "And now you're trying to kill Harry. Give him to me or I swear I will make your trip into the next world as painful as I can."
Hermione held Harry closer, knowing he was the only thing standing between her and death.
"I didn't kill them," she shouted back.
"You were the secret keeper," he yelled back. "We trusted you. James and Lily trusted you."
"It wasn't me," she cried. "You have to believe me, it wasn't me. I loved them. I tried to save them."
"Your son was in the house," accused Sirius.
"Help me find him," she begged. "Was Remus in the house too?"
Sirius shook his head, his eyes still glowing with barely controlled rage.
"Oh thank, God," she cried, closing her eyes. When she opened them she saw Sirius had moved much closer. She took a few steps back, stumbling as she tried to keep her distance from Sirius. "Sirius, please," she said as she nearly fell. "I swear…" She never got to finish her sentence, strong arms wrapped around her neck and waist and Sirius jumped, wrenching Harry out of her arms.
"Where's Nathaniel?" Remus growled in her ear.
Her hands came up to his forearm, which was wrapped tightly around her neck.
"Where's my son?" he demanded. "Did you get him out of the house before you let Voldemort destroy it?"
"Remus," she gasped. "Can't… breath…"
"Where is he, Hermione?" Remus yelled, tightening his grasp on her neck.
"Remus," called Sirius frantically. "It's James. I found him. He's alive!"
Remus dropped his hold on his wife and she fell to the floor, gasping for breath and coughing. Slowly she picked herself up and followed him. She caught up to them as they were removing the rubble from James' body.
"If James survived then maybe Lily and Nathaniel did too," said Remus hopefully, as he and Sirius lifted James' bruised body from the wreckage of the house. He was alive, but unconscious and his breathing was labored.
"Lily's gone," said Hermione quietly, coming up behind them. "I found her body next to Harry. Where is Harry?" she asked, looking around.
Sirius glared at her. "You did this," he accused.
"No," she said, shaking her head.
Sirius set James down and descended on Hermione. "You did this," he screamed. He grabbed her upper arms and began shaking. "How could you do this to us?"
Hermione's head shook violently back and forth and she tried fighting back, but his anger had made Sirius impossibly strong.
"Sirius," said Remus sharply. "He's hurt bad."
Sirius narrowed his eyes at Hermione and pushed her back. She managed to keep her footing, but panicked when she saw Sirius pointing his wand at her.
"No, wait, don't," she screamed, putting her hands up defensively. Suddenly she found her hands and feet bound and she fell hard on the jagged remains of the house.
Remus didn't even look at her. "Help me find Nathaniel," he begged as he struggled to his feet.
Sirius nodded and held out his hand to help Remus up. "We'll find him. I'm not planning on burying either of my godsons tonight. We'll look for Lily too. She might be lying."
They moved away from Hermione and she was alone in the night. When she was certain they were far enough away that they couldn't hear her, she muttered a counter spell. "Finite Incantatem." The ropes that bound her hands and legs disappeared and she stood shakily.
She made her way quietly to James. His eyes were closed and he was so still, but she could see he was breathing. She brushed a kiss against his forehead. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I tried."
"Lily," he moaned. "Harry."
Hermione drew back in panic. She couldn't stand to hear the desperation in his voice. She began searching around her frantically. "Nathaniel," she called out softly. "Nathaniel?" She listened quietly, but all she could hear was the sounds of Remus and Sirius tearing apart the broken remains of the house, searching for her son.
Then suddenly one of them, she couldn't tell which, yelled out, "over here!" Hermione didn't care what they did to her. She had to help rescue her son. She walked as quickly as she could, trying desperately to keep the house from buckling in on itself.
As she approached she could hear Remus and Sirius talking to each other. She couldn't make out the words, but they sounded highly distressed. "What happened? Did you find him?" she asked, trying to catch her breath.
Sirius did a double take. "How?"
She waved him away. "Did you find him?" she insisted.
"Don't come near him, Hermione," growled Remus. "I mean it."
Hermione felt the physical force of all his hate directed at her. "Remus, it wasn't me," she tried to explain, but he wouldn't listen.
"Our child is somewhere under all this mess thanks to you," he seethed. "Don't tell me it wasn't you." Their eyes locked and Hermione wanted to look away, but she couldn't. "Why?" His voice was full of betrayal and anguish. "Why did you do this? I don't understand. How could…," he trailed off as his voice cracked.
"We've got to get him out," interrupted Sirius, not letting Hermione answer. "This part of the house could go any second." The cracking of wood beneath them was horribly loud. Then it seemed everything went silent except for a small almost imperceptible sound. It was a soft whimpering.
"Shh," Remus hushed everyone. He laid flat on his stomach and pressed his ear down, straining to hear. "Nathaniel?" he called out softly.
In the quiet darkness a tiny voice floated up through the air. "Dada."
Hermione's knees buckled and Remus nearly lost it. He began pulling bricks and wood and throwing them back over his shoulder in a desperate attempt to get to his son.
"Wait," shouted Sirius, grabbing Remus roughly.
"Let me go," he gasped, struggling to break free. "He's down there. He's frightened. I have to get to him."
"We will," Sirius assured him. "But we have to do it carefully. The whole thing could come down on him if we move the wrong thing."
Remus nodded slowly and Sirius released him. "We'll move things one by one, slowly and carefully," said Sirius.
"I'll help," said Hermione quietly.
"No," snapped Remus. "Stay away from him."
"Just stop it," snapped Hermione, finally losing her temper. "He's my son too."
"You lost the right to call him your son," snarled Remus.
"Remus they kidnapped me. It was Bellatrix Lestrange. They used Polyjuice potion," Hermione spit the words out as fast as she could, unable to bear the hate coming from Remus anymore.
But it was as if he didn't hear her. He had shut her out. He wasn't going to believe anything she said. Hermione knew it was pointless to try and reason with him when all of his attention was focused on his son who was calling for him in a small frightened voice. Remus and Sirius began digging. Hermione helped as well and they didn't say anything, but they did keep a careful watch over her. They worked silently for several minutes before Remus thought they had opened a hole big enough for him to fit through.
"I'm going to try and get to him," whispered Remus. He laid flat on his stomach and stuck the top half of his body through the small hole they had created. "I see him," he said triumphantly and he tried wriggling further down. "I'm stuck," he grunted. "Try and move that piece of wood on my left."
Sirius tried, but it was too heavy for him.
"Here, I'll help," said Hermione, moving closer. "Ready?" she asked.
Sirius nodded once and they both heaved.
"I've got him," shouted Remus. As he shouted, the ground beneath them began shifting.
"It's collapsing," shouted Sirius, grabbing hold of Remus and trying to pull him up, but he was stuck. The whole mangled structure seemed to be cracking under their combined weight.
Hermione watched in horror as the house seemed to crumble. "Immobulus!" she shouted, throwing her hands out.
Suddenly everything was still and quiet. Sirius actually stopped trying to pull Remus up and turned and stared at her. "How are you doing that without a wand?" he asked.
"Hurry," she pleaded. "I don't know how long I can hold it."
Sirius turned back around and was finally able to pull Remus up. Hermione was relieved to see Nathaniel in his arms when he turned toward her. He was dirty and crying, but seemed alert. She breathed a heavy sigh of relief and as she did the ground seemed to give way. Sirius pounced. He tackled into Hermione, throwing them both clear of the house as Remus jumped with Nathaniel. They watched as the house gave once last groan and settled into itself.
Hermione pushed Sirius, who had landed inelegantly on top of her, off and immediately moved toward her son and husband. She reached out tentatively and stroked Nathaniel's hair. She locked eyes with Remus and she went to touch his face, but he jerked away. It nearly ripped her heart out.
"We have to help James and Harry," said Sirius quietly. He had retrieved Harry from the soft blanket of grass he had set him down in earlier and was now cradling his godson in his arms. "We have to get them all to St. Mungo's." The quiet band of friends moved slowly, still reeling with the shock of all that had happened.
"Remus," Hermione began quietly.
He looked at her coldly.
"How can you not believe me?" she asked, her voice laced with hurt.
"I don't know what to believe," he replied.
"It wasn't me," she said, but the words sounded hollow. She reached for him, but he stepped back.
"Mama," said Nathaniel softly.
Hermione gasped. No word had ever sounded sweeter to her.
Remus stared down at his son. "He's never said that before," he whispered.
Suddenly all around them was the sound of wizards and witches apparating. There were shouts of horror everywhere. Sirius, Remus, and Hermione found themselves surrounded. A few wizards went immediately to James and lifted him onto a floating stretcher. Everyone seemed to be talking at once, but Remus and Hermione just stared at each other.
"Are you boys okay?" asked Mad-Eye Moody. He had arrived with a group of Aurors and was walking toward them slowly, with his wand out.
"We weren't in the house," said Sirius quietly.
"Where's Lily?" he asked.
Sirius turned and stared at Hermione. She could see his uncertainty for the first time and if she hadn't been so grief stricken she might have felt relieved.
"Lily's dead," said Hermione quietly. "She sacrificed herself for Harry."
"And how would you know that?" asked Moody.
Hermione looked down at her feet. She didn't know where to begin.
"I didn't think you'd have an answer," growled Moody. He stepped forcibly between Hermione and Remus, separating her from the boys, and grabbed her roughly.
"What are you doing?" she gasped.
"You'll have to come with me, girl," said Mad-Eye Moody, gruffly. "Lupin, Black, you take those boys to St. Mungo's with Potter to get checked out."
"Wait, I want to go with my son and husband," protested Hermione.
"Well that's not possible," said Moody angrily. "You're coming directly to Ministry headquarters.
"Wait," said Remus. "Why? Where are you taking her?"
"Sorry Lupin," said Moody, sounding genuinely sorry. "Crouch's orders. There won't be a trial. We knew Dumbledore made her the secret keeper. It's open and shut. She'll be in Azkaban before morning."
"No," gasped Hermione in horror. "You can't."
Remus looked horrified as well. "There might have been a mistake. Maybe they used the Imperius curse. She says she didn't do it."
"She would," said Moody coldly. "You don't want to do this to yourself son. She's not who you thought she was. Black," he said addressing Sirius softly. "Get him out of here."
"Wait, I want to be with Remus," she begged, almost hysterically. "Please don't do this. Please." She turned around, locking eyes with Remus. "Remus, I know you believe me," she shouted as Moody dragged her away. "You know I didn't do this. Remus! Remus!"