Invisible Scars
Thank you, my faithful and loyal reviewers. I am so honored that you want this to continue, but I really do feel that I have to wrap things up. Maybe, somewhere along the line I will write a continuation to this, but for now, I feel the story has come to its logical (and planned out) conclusion. If I continued it now, I would be freewheeling with it, and I don't usually like to write that way. Anyway, please keep an eye out for me. I would love to carry all of you over to another story that I already have running about in my head…and in the meantime, feel free to check out my other listed story, Anywhere but in Between. Warning, it's long. 24 chapters to be exact, but at least you won't be mad at me for not continuing this! It'll keep you busy until I can get my other story down!
Alie: I like reviews period. I don't mind if they are short or long, as long as they are honest and sincere. So don't fret, my friend. I cherish every word.
Mist: Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I immediately went to my book and checked things out. It actually gave me an idea for another story (the one I mentioned above). I figure all of the things they cleaned out had to go somewhere, and a cute, very short ficcie started dancing around in the noggin. I appreciate the heads up and thank you for your attention to details on my behalf.
As for everyone else…I really wish I could respond to each of you in turn, but that would take about 100 pages on its own. What I want each of you to know is this. I read every word you have to say and take it to heart. If I could reach through my computer and hug you all, I would in a second. That's how important you have all become to this whole process. Thank you for making my days that much brighter.
By the way, it came to my attention that I have not once included a disclaimer for this so here it goes: I do not own anything. If I did, I wouldn't be charging shampoo at Target.
On with the show…
Chapter 10 – A Hero's Worth
"It's that simple, is it?" growled Moody, glaring pointedly at Regulus. "All we've had to do is ask all this time?"
"No, that wouldn't have worked," Regulus replied evenly. "I have to be the one to ask for it because I'm the one who asked her to keep it hidden."
Hermione was watching Regulus closely, desperately searching his face for any clues as to his true allegiance. Trusting a former Death Eater had gotten the one person she'd thought was untouchable killed. They couldn't afford to be wrong about Regulus. Not now, when so much was at stake.
"Well then," she said into the silence of the room. "What do you say we go out there and begin clearing things up?" Regulus turned his dark gaze onto her, and she was taken aback again by the boyish appearance of his face. He certainly reminded her of Sirius, but he'd been aptly named. She had never been able to see Sirius as a young boy. Regulus, on the other hand, emitted youth from every pore, despite his currently haggard state.
"If my mother sees me with any of you, she will consider me a blood traitor as well, and will never reveal what she is hiding," he explained in a calm voice. "For I asked her to keep the horcrux safe as a favor to the Dark Lord."
"I just bet you did," barked Moody, taking a threatening step toward Regulus. Lupin stepped in between them, holding his hand up to Moody to ward him off.
"Alastor, we must keep our wits about us now, more than ever," he said in a level voice, although his eyes were flashing dangerously. "I want to get to the bottom of this, and we can't do that without him, no matter how much we might not like it."
"Then what do you suggest?" Harry piped up, speaking for the first time in long minutes. "How do we let him go out there alone?"
"We don't," Lupin said, rubbing his jawbone. "He will not leave our sight the entire time we have him here."
Ron, who had been leaning up against the desk with his arms folded across his chest, looked up suddenly at Harry. "Where's your invisibility cloak at, Harry?" he asked.
Comprehension flooded into Harry's eyes and he turned to Lupin. "If I can go back to Privet Drive and get my stuff, one of you can be under the cloak when Regulus gets the horcrux."
"Leave it to us, Harry," Moody said, nodding toward Dawlish and Williamson. "I can't stay here with this…with him any longer anyway." He nodded his head toward Regulus, who simply stood there with the same blank expression on his tired face.
"It's with my other things, in my old room," Harry said. "If you wouldn't mind, could you bring my trunks along as well? That way, I won't have to go back at all." He looked decidedly happy at the thought of not having to see the Dursleys again, even if it was just to gather his belongings and leave.
Moody nodded, and the three men left quickly. As soon as they were out of the room, Regulus seemed to visibly relax. His shoulders fell and his entire body appeared as if it would give out at any moment. Lupin immediately reached for his wand, pointing it directly at Regulus' heart.
"Don't think that you're safe here with just me," Lupin said, his voice sounding more dangerous and steely than Hermione had ever heard it. "And if you do somehow manage to drop me, they are more than adept at disposing of you quite quickly."
Regulus' face never wavered. He looked neither scared nor calculating. In Hermione's opinion, he simply looked tired. "I have no intention of 'dropping' any of you," he said quietly. "As I've told you before, and I'm sure I will have to tell you many times to come, I am no friend of Voldemort's."
Ginny, who had been unflinchingly silent the entire time, pushed away from the wall and came to stand directly in front of him. Harry put a hand out to stop her, but she walked past it. "You seem like a very smart man, so I don't think it is coming as much of a shock that we don't trust you."
Regulus considered her carefully for a long moment, his dark eyes not wavering from hers. "It is not."
"Then I would suggest you convince us, as best you can, why we should believe you," she said, her posture indicating that she was not in the least afraid of him.
"Once I show you the horcrux and we destroy it, there will be no more doubt in any of your minds," Regulus said. Hermione saw his knees give out a bit, and despite the imminent threat he posed, she couldn't help herself. She retrieved a chair from behind the large desk and moved it so he could sit.
His eyes flashed to hers briefly, and she caught the look of gratitude mixed with utter shock in their dark depths. It was almost as if he had never had someone extend an act of kindness to him before.
As he sank into the chair, Lupin said, "I wouldn't attach your innocence to an object, Regulus. You could destroy it simply to gain our trust."
"No, he couldn't," said Harry, stepping forward to stand beside Ginny. "Dumbledore explained the importance of the horcruxes to me last year. They serve as protective hosts to Voldemort's soul. If Regulus was still working for Voldemort, he would never be able to destroy a piece of his master's soul. Without all of the horcruxes, Voldemort is incomplete, and will never regain his full strength."
"But Harry, didn't you say that the diary and the ring were already destroyed?" Hermione questioned. It was one thing to be kind, but another to go into anything blind. "If they're already destroyed, what is one more? Wouldn't it be the best thing to do to prove himself to us?"
Harry considered her question. His face was drawn and pale, and she could tell that this was already having an overwhelming effect on him. It was as if the entire weight of their task was now being fully disclosed to him, and Hermione thought briefly that she should procure a chair for him as well.
"There is one other that is destroyed," Regulus said, cutting off whatever response Harry was struggling to come up with. "Slytherin's locket. I destroyed it a year ago."
"Oh, right," Ron said sarcastically. "Of course you did."
"I found your note," Harry said, seeming to come to himself. "At the bottom of the goblet Dumbledore and I found in the caves." Suddenly, an impassioned look blazed across Harry's features, and he charged forward, grabbing the front of Regulus' robes. "Dumbledore was weakened for nothing!" he yelled. "He had to drink out of the goblet, and it was all for nothing! That's the reason he didn't have the strength to fight off your buddies when they cornered him. That's the reason he died!"
The room drained of all air and energy after Harry's voice had died out. Everyone stood completely still, not yet having come to terms with Dumbledore's passing. Hermione's chest began aching as it always did when she thought of Dumbledore's burial ceremony and she looked over to Ron, who had a fiercely controlled expression on his face as he glared at Regulus.
When Hermione turned to Regulus, she was completely amazed by what she saw. His face was contorted in such a look of pain that she could barely stand to look at him. His eyes were wet at the corners, and his lips were drawn together so tightly that they had almost disappeared. Harry must have been just as confused as she was, for he released the front of Regulus' robes and took a step back.
"You have absolutely no cause to believe me," Regulus said, in a voice so quiet and raw that Hermione's chest constricted again. "But I never meant for that to happen. Dumbledore was an amazing man that had given me the benefit of the doubt when everyone I cared about turned their backs on me."
Harry ran a frustrated hand through his untidy hair. "We're going in circles here," he said dejectedly. "I am not any more or less convinced of anything than I was when Ron first told me of your letter."
Lupin nodded in agreement. "I think what we need now, before we have the luxury of physical proof, is a full explanation of how all of this started, Regulus. Maybe it will clear up some questions I know we all have."
"I don't even know where to begin," Regulus said, looking thoroughly overwhelmed. His eyes flashed back and forth between them all as they stood before him, almost like inquisitors in a trial.
"I find the beginning is more often than not a valid place," Lupin said, and Hermione could sense her old professor's own frustrations in his biting tone.
Regulus sighed heavily, the action looking as if it took a great deal of strength that he simply did not possess. He looked unbelievably fragile and small as his shoulders rolled forward and his head drooped like a man already convicted and sentenced.
"Very well then. As you already know, I was raised in this…house." He looked around him with a coldness in his eyes that left no doubt about what type of childhood could possibly be had in the dark and lonely residence. "Sirius was a good big brother, always making time for me and letting me tag along even when I knew he didn't really want me around. My parents were always busy holding meetings or going off to functions with people we were never allowed to meet. Sirius once told me, when I was very, very young, that they were not good people, but I was only a little boy. I depended on them for everything, and I didn't have the luxury of rebelling at the age of two."
He tried straightening his shoulders, but the ropes binding him kept him in a hunched position. "Sirius and my parents began fighting on a regular basis after his first year at Hogwarts. Whenever he'd return from school, he'd lock himself away in his room and he wouldn't come out for days. I would try to sneak in and see him, but my parents told me that Sirius didn't want to be my brother any longer. They told me that he didn't care for me, that he never had, and that he had friends at school that were now his family."
Lupin's hands folded into tight fists, but other than that, he didn't move a muscle as Regulus continued with his story. "Those were the worst years of my life…well, until I made the most horrible decision I've ever made…but I was only nine when my brother left our home for good. He went to stay at your grandparents' house, I believe," he said to Harry, who nodded almost imperceptibly. "My parents were furious, of course, and decided that he was no longer to be mentioned or even acknowledged as part of our family. For years they had been feeding me lies about Sirius and how much he hated me. They told me that he left home because of me and that I wasn't worthy of being a Black either. They were disappointed because I had no ambitions and told me daily that I would amount to nothing. Although I did everything I could to prove my worth to them, after a while, I began to believe them. I didn't really have a choice. Sirius, the one person who I thought loved me, had abandoned me without so much as a backwards glance.
I was lonely and unwanted, and when I was accepted to Hogwarts, I thought things would change for me. When I got there, however, I was placed in Slytherin. Sirius was out of school by then, but I could visually picture the look of disappointment and disgust on his face as I made my way to the Slytherin table." Here, he paused and looked up at each of them. "It was very similar to the look on your faces now."
Hermione attempted to erase the horrified look off her face, and tried to remind herself that to stereotype the houses within Hogwarts because of a few examples was not a wise thing to do. Sure, most dark witches and wizards came from the Slytherin house, but she was sure that there were just as many that were simply ambitious and focused on creating a bright future for themselves. Hadn't Harry told them once that the hat had wanted to sort him into Slytherin?
"My school years were just as lonely as my childhood had been. It seems that everyone remembered my brother and his presence was very much alive at the school even in his absence. My professors expected nothing but perfection from me, and were sorely disappointed when I fell short of their expectations. I was in danger of failing my first year, and when I returned home, my parents' told me if I didn't make something of myself next term they would give me over to an aunt and uncle who would be able to 'put up with me.'" He paused again, taking another steadying breath before continuing. Hermione almost didn't want him to. If he was lying, it was the best, most well-crafted lie she'd ever heard, and it was making her heart ache to hear the pain in his voice and see it etched in his features as he recalled the worst times of his life.
"I began my second year in utter fear that they would follow through with their threat. I began asking the older boys in my house for extra help with lessons, and many of them saw the opportunity to mold a young, impressionable boy in their own images with their warped beliefs." He shrugged here, his face looking more care-worn than it had all night. His straggly, chestnut hair fell into his face as he bowed it in embarrassment.
"It's at this point in my story that I must begin taking responsibility. I felt accepted and needed for the first time in my life, and I began to excel past all of my classmates under their tutelage. I was so obsessed by my newfound success, in fact, that when those boys had completed seventh year and moved on, I took up their role in the Slytherin house. I felt the overwhelming desire to pass on what I'd learned, and when I left Hogwarts, I was approached by those who had 'trained' me while I was in school. They told me that I was needed…that I was chosen because of my abilities."
Regulus' shoulders, instead of sagging even further at this point, suddenly straightened as best they could. A fierce look crossed his face, erasing all traces of defeat from the boyish features. "If I had known what I was really being recruited for, I would have never gone along. We met privately over the course of a month, in which they spoke of their leader and his plans. Once I was brought to the Death Eater's meeting place and met Voldemort, there was no turning back. I was given orders and told if I didn't follow them I would be dead before morning."
There was a beat after he finished speaking in which everyone waited to see if he would continue. Hermione looked at the others, to see if any of them had been swayed in the least by what Regulus had confessed. Harry looked as if he desperately wanted to believe him, but she didn't know whether that was because Regulus was his best chance at getting to Voldemort or because he actually believed him. Lupin was quietly observing Regulus closely, as he had been the entire evening. Ginny wore an expression similar to Lupin's as she considered Regulus from her vantage point directly in front of him.
When Hermione looked to Ron, she saw him still sitting with his arms folded across his chest, a mixture of empathy and wariness on his face. She understood the look immediately. Ron had grown up in the shadow of his brothers and wanted nothing more than to prove himself as an individual and be outstanding in his own right. Out of anyone in the room, Ron had the most cause to believe Regulus and the reasons for his actions.
"What was it you were asked to do?" Hermione asked, not able to keep her curiosity at bay.
Regulus swung his gaze to Harry and when he spoke, his voice was barely audible.
"Voldemort ordered me to kill James and Lily Potter."
Hermione saw Harry's face go so white that she was afraid he'd pass out on the spot. His fists balled up at his sides, and he took a step toward Regulus as if he would be able to kill him with his bare hands. She stepped forward quickly and laid a hand on Harry's arm.
"He didn't do it, Harry. Voldemort killed your parents," she pointed out desperately, trying to calm him down. Harry turned to her and stared at her with blank eyes. She was afraid he hadn't really heard her, so she continued. "It makes sense. Voldemort was only concerned with killing you. He would have wanted someone else to go after your parents."
"It's true," Regulus said, imploring Harry to believe him with his eyes. "He asked me to come along with him that night, but I chose to flee. I could never commit murder. I may have veered into dark magic at school, but I could never take another person's life. It's why he ordered me killed. I don't think I would have survived a month if you hadn't survived his curse. He would have been powerful enough to see through all of my cloaking spells and protections and he would have found me eventually. I knew that something must have gone terribly wrong for him when I found myself alive after a few weeks. I was able to obliterate the memory of the Death Eater he sent after me, and I planted new information within him speaking to my murder."
"Why did Sirius think you were dead?" Lupin asked, joining the conversation at last. "He was utterly convinced of it."
"I believe my brother fell for one of my more ingenious tricks," Regulus said, without a trace of a smile. "Word of my death spread about the country and I suppose with what little use he had for me already, he didn't really care to check into it. Besides, he was put in Azkaban shortly after, wasn't he?"
"That's right! He was, and you could have prevented that!" Harry bellowed, finding his anger again. "Yet you let him rot in there when you knew all along who had killed my parents!"
"Harry, what could I have done?" Regulus replied desperately. "Voldemort was gone…destroyed by you, and even my brother's friends believed him to be the murderer." He spared a glance at Lupin, who was looking rather drawn and exhausted by this point. "No one would have believed me if I went around saying that it was Voldemort who had done it. I would have exposed myself, and the information I had on Voldemort's horcruxes would have died along with me."
Harry looked around the room at them, beseeching each of them to say something that would clarify it all and make him believe, once and for all, if this was real or not. Hermione simply stared back at him, not knowing what to do or say in the slightest.
"I need a minute to think," Harry said, and without anything further, turned and walked out of the drawing room. Hermione looked at Ron, who watched Harry's flight from the room with a concerned expression on his face. Moments later, he pushed away from the desk and followed Harry out of the room.
Hermione and Ginny went after them, finding them in a small alcove off to the side of the main hall. Harry was leaning back against the wall, his eyes closed. Ron was standing off to his side, his hands shoved in his pockets and his gaze on the floor near his trainers.
Ginny didn't say a word as she went to Harry and slid her hand into his. He opened his eyes and stared at her for a long moment. He seemed to understand Ginny's stand on the matter, and nodded his head slightly. Then he turned his attention to Ron and Hermione.
"What do you think?" he asked simply, searching their faces for the answer.
Hermione sighed and pushed her hair behind her ears. "I don't think anyone can make up a story like that," she said. "It all makes sense in its own way, too. But the call is yours to make."
Harry nodded again and turned to Ron. "Just tell me I'm not crazy for believing him."
Ron shook his head. "Well, if you're crazy, then I am, too," he said. Harry sighed, closing his eyes briefly again before opening them with a clarity and resolve that Hermione hadn't seen since the night started.
"Okay," Harry said. "I guess that's that. Besides, what's the worst that could happen? If he's lying, and it's all a game to lead me to Voldemort, so what? Seeing as how I'll have to face him sooner or later, what do we have to lose?"
They all got very quiet for a long moment, each lost in their own thoughts. Hermione moved closer to Ron's side, needing the comfort of his nearness very badly at this point. His arm moved around her waist and settled on her hip, making her wonder again just how it was that he knew exactly what she needed, when she needed it.
The front door opened then, and they looked up to see Moody, Dawlish and Williamson striding into the hall.
"Where is he?" Dawlish asked, spotting them in the corner. "Did something happen?"
"No, everything's fine," Harry said, coming forward to meet them. "Did you get my stuff?" Dawlish pointed to a small box that Williamson was carrying.
"Shrunk it all down so it would travel better," he explained, then shot Harry an odd look. "Your family is quite interesting, Mr. Potter."
Harry almost cracked a smile then, but Hermione could sense that he was impatient to find out once and for all if there was in fact a horcrux hidden behind the portrait. "Well, let's get on with things," he said, walking back to the drawing room.
Hermione entered just as he was pulling his invisibility cloak out of the trunk. He turned to Lupin and offered it to him. Lupin shook his head. "She needs to see me leave. She knows I live here."
Harry looked around and realized that Mrs. Black had seen each of them in the hallway within the last few minutes. They would all have to leave through the front door so she would assume Regulus was alone. That didn't leave anyone to watch him from under the cloak.
"Wait a minute, is Tonks here?" Harry asked Lupin, who nodded.
"Yes, I think she's in her room," he replied. Realization dawned on his face and he disappeared with a pop. Seconds later, he materialized again, with Tonks at his side.
"I told you I don't want to be in the same room as him," Tonks spat, glaring at Regulus.
"We need you to hide under the cloak and monitor him while he retrieves something from behind the portrait," Lupin explained gently, touching her arm. "I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't need you to do this."
Her eyes grew soft as she stared back at him, and a moment later, she grabbed the invisibility cloak out of Harry's hands. "Fine," she said.
The rest of them made a big show of leaving the house, and once they were outside, Lupin pointed to a place where they could walk and be virtually invisible to the neighbors on all sides. Hermione felt Ron guide her as they walked, and despite the seriousness of the situation, she smiled. Ron was turning out to be so extremely attentive that it almost made her unnerved. She was trying desperately to reconcile the two versions of Ron she had in her head at this point. Most of the thoughtless, inconsiderate things he'd ever done or said to her were disappearing as if they'd never even existed in the first place, leaving her only with the things he had done that had proved, all along, that he cared about her.
"What?" he asked, shooting a glance at her out of the corner of his eye.
"What?" she asked in return. He stopped walking and put his hands on her upper arms.
"You have the strangest look on your face," he explained. "Sort of like you're trying to work something out, but not having any luck."
Hermione looked around her, and noticed that Harry and Ginny were engaged in their own private conversation – although Lupin, Moody, Dawlish and Williamson were hovering just close enough to make sure they were all protected. Ginny was nodding at something Harry was saying, but the look of anxiousness on her face told Hermione that she was struggling with whatever it was.
"I'm fine," Hermione said, smiling at him. "Really. I was just thinking over some stuff, and I got a bit sidetracked."
Ron sighed. "I was thinking over some stuff too," he said weakly. "I realized today that I'm going to have to tell my mother about us leaving soon. If Harry is ready to trust Regulus, and Regulus knows where the horcruxes are, I think our little excursion is going to start sooner than we thought."
Hermione brought her hands up and rested them against his chest. The strong, even heartbeat she felt under her palms comforted her in ways that she had never experienced before. "You'll be fine. Your father said he'd help you talk to her, didn't he?"
Ron nodded, and she grinned at him. "And if all else fails, you could always get her drunk."
His laugh echoed around them as they stood in the shadows of a larger house down the street. Lupin looked over to them, then his gaze snapped to the sky above where Number 12 would be if they could see it. There was a thin line of blue smoke spiraling into the air, and Lupin straightened his shoulders.
"Alright then," he announced. "That's Tonks' signal. They're finished."
When they reentered the house, they all cast furtive glances at the portrait of Mrs. Black, who was grinning wickedly down at them.
Harry scowled openly at it, then grabbed Ginny's hand and moved quickly past as if the portrait didn't even exist.
"YOU'RE TOO LATE!" Mrs. Black screamed, the full fury of her voice bouncing off the walls around them. Hermione had forgotten how truly chilling the woman's screeching was, and closed her eyes against the sound. "THE DARK LORD WILL SOON BE WHOLE AGAIN, AND ALL WHO OPPOSE HIM WILL RIGHTFULLY DIE! MY SON WAS JUST HERE, AND HE WILL SEE TO IT THAT YOU VILE, DISGUSTING CREATURES FALL AT THE FEET OF THE GREATEST WIZARD THAT EVER LIVED!"
Ginny had to tug on Harry to get him to start moving again, and Ron hustled Hermione into the drawing room as quickly as he could. Lupin followed, but Moody and the others stayed behind to see if they could get the portrait to go silent once again. Hermione caught a brief glimpse of her concerned parents rushing into the hall before Lupin closed the door on the horrible sounds.
Regulus was standing in the middle of the room, now free from his bonds. Tonks, who was still glaring at him heatedly, had her wand pointed at his chest. In his arms, Regulus was cradling an object that glinted in the low light of the room.
"Everything go alright?" Lupin asked, crossing to Tonks and placing an arm around her waist. Tonks' eyes didn't waver from her cousin as she nodded her head slowly.
Harry stepped forward then. "Well, what was behind the portrait?" he asked, staring Regulus down across the mere inches that separated them.
Regulus extended the object toward Harry, the merest trace of the boyish look Hermione assumed he'd carried with him his whole life returning to his gaunt face.
"Helga Hufflepuff's cup," he said simply, placing the object into Harry's waiting hands.
Harry turned the cup over in his hands, searching it with eyes that Hermione knew had become more world-weary than they should have been for a seventeen year old.
"Is it the real deal?" Ron asked. Harry nodded slowly, passing it to Lupin.
"I think so," he said, watching Lupin turn it over in much the same way he had. "I've seen it before, and it looks exactly the same."
"How on earth have you seen this before?" Lupin asked.
"Dumbledore took me back into Tom Riddle's past, and I saw this cup in one of his memories," Harry explained. "An old witch had it as part of a collection, along with the locket from Slytherin."
Regulus smiled then, catching Hermione off guard. His resemblance to his brother tripled when he smiled, and when she looked to Harry, she knew she wasn't the only one who thought so.
"The locket was destroyed a while ago," Regulus said, then pointed to the cup. "And now another piece can be destroyed tonight."
"How?" asked Harry, shaking off the memories of his godfather. "Is there a spell or an enchantment or something?"
"No. The means to destroy the horcruxes are much less complicated than the means to create them."
"I drove a Basilisk fang into the diary," said Harry. "But that was poisoned."
"It doesn't matter," Regulus asserted, shaking his head. "I know it seems contrived, but horcruxes are merely objects. They hold no magical powers, and therefore may be disposed of in the most normal of ways. A bit anti-climactic, but it is the truth."
Ron's eyes flitted to the fireplace, and he reached out for the cup. Lupin handed it to him, and they all watched as Ron placed the cup in Harry's hands once again.
"Go for it, mate," he said, nodding toward the flames that were rising out of the grate in a peaceful wave.
Harry hesitated only a second before he tossed it into the fire. It took a long moment for the cup to begin melting into a liquid gold, but it did happen. They all stood around the fireplace, watching the golden cup disappear slowly under the intense heat of the red-hot flames.
Hermione turned away from the fire to watch Regulus' face closely. His eyes were pinned on the bright flames, the intense light reflecting in his dark eyes. There was a calm, peaceful look of triumph on his face as he watched the very last of the gold slip over one of the logs.
If Hermione hadn't believed him after his story, she believed him now. He looked positively relieved that another piece of Voldemort was going up in smoke.
"That's three," he said quietly, a small smile playing across his face.
"Actually, that's four," said Harry. "Dumbledore destroyed Riddle's ring last year. That leaves two that we have to find."
"I thought you said there were seven," said Ron, his brows furrowed in confusion. "That would leave three, wouldn't it?"
Harry looked uncomfortable as he stood facing Ron. Hermione waited, her breath caught somewhere in her throat at the look on Harry's face.
"What is it, Harry?" she asked, unable to push past the feeling of dread that had just leapt into her chest. Harry cleared his throat and opened his mouth, but his eyes averted to the floor and he remained silent.
"There are only two more horcruxes to be found," said Regulus, his voice soft but the intent of the words reverberated around the room with the same power as if he'd shouted them. "The last piece of Voldemort's soul remains within himself."
Ginny's hand, which had still been resting in Harry's suddenly slipped from his grasp. "So even if you find the other two, you'll still have to face him?" she asked in a tense voice. "I just assumed that once the horcruxes were destroyed, he would simply vanish…"
"Dumbledore said that even if we destroyed all the horcruxes, Voldemort will still be powerful enough to face me as a competent enemy," Harry said quietly. Hermione swallowed hard against the lump in her throat. She had to admit to herself that she had thought along the same lines as Ginny. She had thought that without the horcruxes – the pieces of his very soul – Voldemort would turn to dust or something like that and Harry would be spared the final confrontation of having to meet him face to face.
"But if we find the other two, he will be decidedly weaker than he would be with them," Regulus said, his low voice breaking the silence that followed Harry's confession. Harry turned to Regulus with an unreadable look on his face.
"We?" he asked. Regulus nodded silently, the full meaning of his statement being absorbed by everyone in the room. Lupin suddenly strode forward and stood between Harry and Regulus.
"No. I won't allow it," he said, his voice sternly obstinate. "Even if your intentions are honest, I should be the one going with them. If Voldemort finds out you're alive, he has as much reason to want to hunt you down and kill you as he does Harry, and with the two of you out there together he'll stop at nothing to find you."
"You must allow me to make up for the mistakes I've made in the past," Regulus argued in a quiet voice. "I have been witness to Voldemort's favorite haunts…the places he considers sacred to him for various reasons. I think I have a good idea where we can start looking for the fifth horcrux."
"Then tell me and I'll take them there," Lupin argued, not willing to give up that easily. "I have my own reasons for wanting to go, and you can't take that away from me, either."
"My life has been destroyed by Voldemort, as has Harry's. We share at least that in common," said Regulus, his tone never wavering.
"My life has been destroyed, too!" shouted Lupin. "I've lost my best friends and the chance to ever see them again! I was unable to protect the people who loved Harry most in the world. I can't lose him, too!"
The room stretched under the silence that sprung up around them as the two men stared each other down. Harry was looking at Lupin with a tightly controlled expression on his face, and Hermione felt the sting of tears behind her eyes as she considered Harry closely. He had always wondered where Lupin fit into his life, and here he was, showing Harry exactly how much he cared for the son of his best friends.
Harry stepped out from behind Lupin. "I'm going to need to ask you to stay here," he said quietly to Lupin, who opened his mouth as if to argue his point further. "No," Harry cut him off, continuing quickly. "I need you here for so many reasons, but most importantly, I don't trust anyone else to watch out for the Weasleys. They're going to need all the friends they can get, and they'll be worried about Ron constantly. They care about you, and you'll be able to be there for them when we can't." His eyes slid to Ginny, who was staring down at the ground in an intense effort on her part not to cry. He looked back to Lupin, and stared hard at him. "Do you understand?"
Lupin's gaze also flickered to Ginny quickly before returning to Harry. He looked thoroughly defeated, but obviously understood Harry's meaning. "Yes," he said quietly – so quietly in fact that Hermione had to strain to hear him.
Harry turned to Regulus then, who was watching the entire scene with sad eyes. It was apparent to Hermione that he did not wish to come with them as some egotistical boost or a way to settle a personal vendetta. He simply felt that he could truly help, and if Hermione didn't miss her guess, he was more than willing to sacrifice himself for the cause.
"Well, when do we start?" asked Harry, his own voice now sounding strained and very, very tired.
"Would you be ready to go tomorrow?" asked Regulus after a long, heavy pause.
Ginny made a sound of protest and quickly left the room, her long hair flying behind her as she whipped around the doorframe. Tonks' face fell as she watched her go, then she touched Lupin's shoulder gently and went after her.
Harry's shoulders slumped for a moment, and Hermione went to his side immediately. She put a hand on his elbow, trying to convey with her touch all of the strength she possessed…which at this point she feared wasn't very much.
Ron joined them and stood on the other side of Harry. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets – which Hermione knew he only did when he was trying to hide how nervous he was. It didn't matter, though. With him standing there, Harry seemed to come to himself a bit and he straightened his shoulders.
"Can we meet you here after supper?" he asked Regulus in a low voice. "We have some things to take care of before we get started."
Regulus nodded sadly, his eyes conveying his empathy and a bit of regret as well. Hermione wondered what it would have been like for Harry if he had to go off on this without anyone to say goodbye to or to miss him and wait for his safe return. She felt even worse for Regulus than she already did, and she tried smiling at him in what she hoped was a thankful way.
"Very well, then," said Regulus in a final tone. He turned to Lupin and gestured toward the material that had been used to cover his face earlier. "I would like to rest now, if that's alright. Any room you can spare will suffice."
Lupin stared hard at Regulus as he handed him the sack. "The only room that isn't occupied is your brother's," he said. "It's yours if you want it."
"My brother's?" Regulus asked, the shock evident on his face. Lupin nodded, and Regulus' eyes grew suspiciously bright. "No, I don't think that he would want me there. The couch in the study will do just fine."
He placed the sack over his head and stood completely still, waiting for Lupin to guide him out of the room. Lupin watched Regulus for a long moment before turning to them with an unreadable look on his face.
"I'd suggest you all get home, now. You have quite a bit to do before tomorrow," he said.
Hermione went and opened the door for him. "I have a favor to ask you before you go," she said, as he took hold of Regulus' elbow. "I'm going to say goodbye to my parents tonight, and I think it would be easier for us all if they weren't here tomorrow night. Is it possible to let them go somewhere?"
Lupin nodded, completely understanding Hermione's situation. "I'll ask Moody and the others to take them into town for a while," he said.
"Thanks," said Hermione quietly, afraid her emotions would get the better of her. She moved aside so Lupin and Regulus could get by, and turned to the boys. Her eyes connected with Ron's immediately, and she could tell by the look on his face that he wanted to be there for her when she said goodbye to her parents, but understood why he couldn't. He gave her an encouraging smile, which she tried to return and failed.
"I'll only be a few minutes," she said in a weak, shaky voice. "Go find Ginny and I'll meet you back here in ten minutes."
Harry nodded and left the room in a hurry, as if he'd been waiting for the moment he could go and see if Ginny was alright. When he had cleared the room, Ron strode up to her and wordlessly engulfed her in his arms.
She leaned into him and breathed deeply, drawing strength simply from his presence. "I'm so afraid I'll break down completely in front of them," she whispered. "I don't want to make them more upset then they'll already be, but this could very well be the last time…"
"Don't even say it," Ron interrupted, holding her even tighter. "I mean it. We're going to be fine, so you don't have to say goodbye to them. Tell them you love them, and that you'll see them soon. End of story."
"Ron," she said, pulling away from him enough to see his face. "I know we don't want to think that way, but that doesn't stop the reality of what we're facing. I can't tell them I'll see them soon. I don't know when I'll see them again."
Ron considered her words, but he shook his head all the same. "You will see them soon. We can apparate home for a quick Christmas visit. That's the brilliance of apparating. Anywhere in the world in seconds."
She wanted to tell him how unlikely that was. She wanted to tell him that she highly doubted if they would simply apparate home if they were in the middle of a dark castle, searching the rooms for the elusive horcruxes, to share some Christmas pudding and open a few presents.
But she didn't. She saw how important the idea was to him, and she wanted to give him that little piece of hope. So instead, she tilted her face up to him and pulled his mouth down to meet hers.
"I'll be back soon," she said, releasing him and walking toward the door.
"Hermione," he called out before she could disappear through it. She turned to face him again and saw the look of hope grow in his eyes.
"You will see them again. I'm going to make sure of it," he said so emphatically, so passionately, that the small ray of hope she herself had been clinging to expanded in her body so that it filled her up momentarily. She found herself, for the first time in weeks, dreaming of a future that could possibly happen.
His gaze held hers so steadily that her heart felt as if it was going to burst. In this very moment, she felt herself falling under a spell that had nothing to do with magic. She would be safe because he would be there to protect her, as he always had. She believed him when he said they would be alright.
She believed him because she loved him.
Okay, so this will be one more chapter! Tried to make it an even 10, but the characters just don't like to cooperate with me. For instance, Regulus wasn't supposed to give you his life history, but once he started, I couldn't stop him. Sorry!
Also, this was a very talkie chapter, and I apologize for that as well, not much action. However, as in all literature, there has to be a lull before the denouement…things have to calm down before the finale to give people a chance to recharge and gear up for the ending…that includes me, probably most of all!
The final chapter will be very angsty in the beginning with lots of heart to hearts, so it might not come out for a while. I want to get the conversations right, and it takes time to let them talk to each other in my head…(no, I'm not crazy – or am I?)
I just want to take this opportunity to thank you all again for your support and encouragement. I had so much fun writing this for you all. I hope this finds you all happy, healthy and safe.
snoopygubs