"Don't Stop Believing"
Chapter 08
August 09, 2004
"Harry, dear, you have a message for you on your bed," Molly said, as Harry walked into the kitchen. The had just finished the discussion of the horcruxes and the smells of Mrs. Weasley's cooking filled the air so Harry wandered into the kitchen.
"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, as he reached out to grab a piece of meat while her back was turned.
"I see that Harry," Molly said without turning around. Harry smiled and walked out of the kitchen and up to his room. Laying on his pillow was a purple envelope. Harry opened it and realized it was Mr. Gregorovich's response from a few days ago.
Dear Mr. Potter,
I am terribly sorry for taking so long to get back to you. I've been horribly busy since Mr. Ollivader's disappearance. I would be happy to have a look at the wand you mentioned. Around tomorrow at noon? It's a Saturday so my shop will be closing early.
William Gregorovich
Harry thought for a moment before sending back a letter stating that noon would be fine. There was a knock on his door and then Hermione stepped in.
"Harry, I've phoned my parents and asked them to see about the cabin," Hermione said with a worried look on her face.
"Well? What did they say?" Harry asked.
"My father called the realtor and he said the cabin had already been sold. It went through this morning," Hermione said. Harry's eyes widened quickly but he recovered from his shock before Hermione said anything.
"We have to go. Now," Harry said, as he threw on his robe.
"Go tell Ginny and Ron that we are leaving," Harry said while searching for something in his trunk.
"Harry...how is Ginny going to get there?" Hermione asked.
"I...bloody hell. Hermoine what are we going to do? She'll throw a horrendous fit," Harry said stopping to look at Hermione.
"I could just get Ron and we could leave. Now. Ginny's in the garden, so we could get past her," Hermoine said. She hated not including Ginny but she knew the urgency. Voldemort would know that someone was moving into the cabin. The cup wouldn't be there much longer.
"Fine. Meet me at the end of the road in five minutes," Harry said, as he grabbed his wand and a the newspaper Ron had given him.
Five minutes later, the three were standing at the end of the road.
"Be careful and keep your eyes open," Harry said. They nodded and within seconds they were standing in a field. The cabin looked like it was going to fall apart. Harry wondered if they were at the right spot but his question was answered by the sign in the yard that said Sold.
It had gotten dark outside and the lights were off in the cabin. Harry looked around before muttering a spell. His wand lit up and Ron and Hermione did the same.
The door was locked, but Hermione quickly performed Alohomora and they were inside. She turned back and muttered a few charms that were supposed to prevent someone else from entering. It was completely dark except for the light emitting from the wands. Even with poor lighting, they could tell that the inside was much more cared for. The furniture was a black but there was bright yellow rug on the floor. The cabin had what appeared to be a small kitchen, a living room, and two bedrooms. Harry went into the first bedroom and began to look around. He looked in the closet and in dressers. He was walking out of the room when his leg slammed into a bedpost.
"Bloody bedpost," Harry said, but he heard something moving behind him and he turned around quickly to see another door had appeared on the other side of the room. He called for Ron and Hermione who came rushing in. They were covered in dust from the boxes that had been looking through.
"Where did this come from?" Ron said, running his hands over the door.
"I slammed my leg into that bloody bedpost and it-,"Harry said, but stopped. The door was gone.
"Where did it go?" Ron said running his hand over the now solid wall.
"Wait a minute," Harry said thinking.
"Bloody bedpost," Harry said and the door reappeared. Ron let out a small laugh.
"Someone's a genius. That has to be the most oddest thing to bring up a door," Hermione said.
"Harry how did you know?" Ron said as Harry shrugged.
"I just walked into the damn thing," Harry said, as he reached to open the door.
He tugged for a moment, but he couldn't open it. After many failed attempts, Harry decided he was wasting time.
"Expoldere portus!" The door did nothing.
"It looks as though you can make the door show up, but you can't open it," Hermione said with a look of disappointment.
There was a crash outside and all three jumped. Harry walked over to a window and pulled the curtain back slightly. He saw the masks and quickly turned to Ron and Hermione.
"We can apparate or we can stay and fight. I'm leaving this up to you two. I'm fighting," Harry said, as he stood with his wand out. Ron and Hermoine nodded but neither moved.
"It looks to be about six or seven of them. They're in a circle," Harry said, as he pulled the curtain back once more.
"We need to get in that room now. Think Hermione," Ron said, as he put out the light on his wand.
"I don't know if Voldemort or Helga Hufflepuff put this door here," Hermione said panicking.
"What do we know about Hufflepuff?" Ron said, as he saw Harry tense up.
"The Sorting Hat said...wait. She placed her hand on the door.
"True and unafraid of toil," Hermione said. The door disappeared and they rushed into it.
"Bloody bedpost," Harry said and the door was suddenly back. Harry prayed the couldn't see the door. Voldemort would know where it was.
"Lumos," Hermione said. Sitting in a corner was a table with a golden cup sitting on it. There was a crash on the other side of the wall. Ron jumped towards the cup but Hermione stopped him and stepped forward. She walked up to the cup and grabbed it. The moment she did she went pale, but she pulled one final time and the cup came loose. She fell back onto the floor and Ron was at her side.
"We've got to get her out Harry," Ron said,as he held a very pale and still Hermione in his arms.
"She can't apparate alone. Move Ron," Harry said. "Grab the cup and apparate back to Potter Manor."
Ron slowly reached for the cup and when it didn't faze him, he held on tight and was gone.
Harry pulled Hermione into his arms and stood up. He said a silent prayer and closed his eyes. They were both standing in the Potter home. Madame Pomfrey came through the floor moments later and was taking Hermione's vitals.
"I called Madame Pom - Harry, she can't die," Ron said, holding onto the rail of the stairs. The cup was sitting beside him. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came running into the room and were followed by Ginny and the other boys.
"Hermione!" Ginny gasped as she collapsed next to her on the floor.
"We have to get her back to St. Mungo's," Madame Pomfrey said quickly.
"I can-," Harry began but Mr. Weasley cut him off.
"Harry you can't. It takes so much out of you and you've already done it once," Arthur said, as he picked Hermione up. They were gone in seconds.
Harry hung his head and walked outside. The door slammed behind him. He walked along the path.
"DAMMIT!" Harry screamed as he clutched the fence. The tears started rolling down his cheeks before he could think to stop them. Not Hermione...she can't be dead, Harry thought as he collapsed to his knees. He sat there crying until the sun began to come up.
When he walked back into the house, he noticed it was quiet. The cup was gone. He panicked and worried that Hermione's injured and possible death might have been in vain.
He went into the kitchen and saw Fred sitting at the table drinking tea. He got up and fixed Harry a cup and set it on the table in front of him. Harry sat down and sipped the tea. Fred sat back down and stared out the window.
"Mum and Dad are with Hermione. Ginny was hysterical. She's upstairs in the bed. Ron refuses to leave the hospital. The cup is in the vauly downstairs," Fred said without looking away. Harry saw his eyes were red and puffy. He had been crying.
"I never meant for her to get hurt," Harry said looking down at his tea.
"This is not your fault Harry. She knew the possibilities. Maybe more than you and Ron," Fred said looking at Harry who had pushed his tea away and was forcing back more tears. She could not be gone.