Ron and Hermione has a much easier time sneaking back into Hogwarts than even they had suspected. Hermione has been more reluctant than normal to let Ron go back up into the boy dormitory and Ron had enjoyed it far more than he should have. So, as he opened the door back to the sixth years' dorm, he had a huge smile on his face that was mirrored in all the others. Even Harry seemed a bit more chipper than usual.
"Just what put you in such a good mood?" Ron asked with a frown dumping his bag onto his bed.
Harry jumped at the tone in his voice, but managed to reply, "Just had a good night is all."
"Better not have been too good a night with my little sister, you prat," Ron answered half in jest and half in earnest.
Harry relaxed as he heard the teasing tone, but even under that he could still hear the warning Ron felt obligated to give him, "You know that I would never..."
Ron held up his hand to forestall Harry, "I know mate, I just had to say it."
Harry nodded and they both paused for a minute, neither really wanting to discuss the details of their previous night's escapades. Finally, Harry rose and slapped Ron on the back, "Well I don't know about you, but I'm starved. Let's go eat."
Hermione twisted her hands in her lap as she looked at Ginny and Lavender, "We need to have the circle meet tonight."
"Why tonight?" Ginny asked curiously.
"I want to try using the Circle to start making a new potion. It will take a while to get it right, so I want to start as soon as possible."
"Okay, Hermione. Do you want me to tell everyone else?" Ginny asked.
Hermione nodded and then turned to Lavender, "You know I think Divination is rubbish, but can you do a reading this afternoon to see if you can see any trouble?"
Lavender nodded, "I'll go cleanse my cards and then meditate to get my mind in the right state. Come to think of it, I'll get Susan to do one as well. It can't hurt for both of us to do them."
Both Ginny and Lavender got up and headed down stairs to get started. Hermione reached into her nightstand and pulled out one of the sweets she kept there for when she was going to skip dinner. Then she pulled the Old magic tome from her book bag and opened it to a well-marked page. She paused for a moment before starting to read and looked out the window, "Forgive me Ron, but it's for your own good."
For the next several hours Hermione scratched and discarded several diagrams pausing only to flip open the book. Finally, she was satisfied with the outcome. Closing the book, she carefully placed the parchment into her bag and then reach over to open one of the nightstand drawers. Reaching into the drawer she pulled out the necklace Ron had given her at the beginning of the year. It seemed so long ago and it saddened her to think she was going to use two of his gifts for such a purpose. Nevertheless, her resolve never wavered.
The link the necklace helps to form will make the spell stronger.
With a frown, she placed the necklace around her neck and felt the comforting warmth that let her know Ron was safe.
Noticing it was almost time for dinner, Hermione headed down to the common room to find Harry and Ron. Harry was easy enough to find. He was sitting in front of the fire, flirting shamelessly with Ginny, "Shall we go down to dinner?"
Harry and Ginny looked up at her, "Sure, I'm feeling a bit hungry myself," Ginny answered.
"We should wait for Ron though," Hermione noted.
Harry and Ginny looked at each other and Harry whispered, "Ron had to go to one of his meetings."
Hermione paled but managed to keep her voice steady, "Did he say when he would be back?"
Harry just shook his head and mirrored Hermione's concern.
From the moment Fury had gotten the summons to Castle Galliard, a feeling of dread had settled over him. Normally important Order events were planned well in advance and, as such, the emergency method was not needed to gather everyone. Today though, he had been thinking of nothing more than spending a bit of time with Hermione and a bit of time playing Quidditch the championship was a mere two weeks away and Ron was determined to win. That all changed when the call came and he had gotten to the Chapter House as quickly as possible. Val had beaten him there, but knew nothing more than he did.
A group of older knights stood off in one corner of the great hall and after a few minutes of heated discussion, Talon broke free from the group and motioned for quiet. As Ron looked at him, he seemed worried, but still spoke as strong as he ever had, "We have gathered a piece of extraordinary information about a large meeting of Death Eaters which will commence in a few hours. This will be our first opportunity to truly damage the growing Death Eater network and we will have the chance lay our hands on several senior members who might be persuaded to give us the information we desire."
Talon paused and the room erupted in nervous chatter. He raised his hand for silence, but had to clear his throat loudly to get everyone's attention again. "We will be making a massive strike against the enemy. As such, we will be using every Knight team we have at our disposal. We will need to hit the Death Eaters fast and hard. When we get everyone their assignments you will need to memorize them and then destroy that paper so if you are captured you can't give the plan away. This will be the largest undertaking the Order has ever mounted so attention to detail is critical. Now go to your rooms and wait for your assignments to be delivered."
"That's it?" a voice nearby commented as Talon walked back to the group of men.
"Hush, we'll find out what we need to know," another answered back in reply.
Fury looked down at Val and saw that she had heard the same thing. She shrugged and moved towards the doors with Fury following close behind. They made their way to Fury's room through the throngs of people attempting to move about the Chapter House. Everyone seemed to sense the same enormity of what was planned. Once they were clear of the swirling mass of bodies, Fury looked at Val and could see concerned etched on her face.
Is she worried about committing all of our force on the attack and not keeping a reserve?
Ron stayed quiet about his concerns as they walked through the Halls. No one spoke to them as they passed, the mood seemed almost pensive as the Chapter followed Talon's directive. As soon as the door to his room was closed behind them, Val turned to face him with a scowl, "Has Talon gone mad? If this doesn't go just right we could be in a huge mess with a force this size. The logistics of it must be staggering alone."
Fury nodded silently not surprised that she had noticed the same thing, "I just wish we knew more of what was happening."
Val shrugged as she plopped down in the only chair in the room, "And now my favorite part—the waiting."
Fury did not follow suit, but instead began pacing the room, as he pondered the possible scenarios. A short time later, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Fury called, instantly on the alert.
The door opened and a page, no older that a Hogwarts firsty, came in and silently handed Ron an envelope. Then with an envious look on his face the page called out, "Good Luck!" as he left the room with a bow.
Fury tore open the envelope and looked inside. He withdrew a single sheet of parchment and read it quickly. Then passed it over to Val who scanned the page and then glanced up at Fury in shock, "So we're going in with the main attack force? Are they mad or deperate?"
"It certainly looks that way," Fury replied. "They have made arrangements knowing we can't apparate yet. We will portkey to the attack group and each of us is getting their own portkey as a back up in the event we get separated."
Val threw the paper into the fire, "That's going to a lot of trouble to get the two of us to the fight, isn't it?"
Fury nodded and resumed pacing, "They must really need this attack to be overwhelming. Talon has got to be worried about numbers to go to all of that trouble."
"We need information," Val replied. "Numbers, location, everything is supposition at this point."
Fury didn't reply, but continued pacing as he let his mind race with the possibilities. Then one thought occurred to him, "What if this is a trap?"
Val blinked with surprise, "I am sure Tallon would have done an extremely thorough examination before directing our entire Chapter into an engagement of this size."
"Right, of course," Fury nodded, but still couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong with the situation.
Val only nodded and watched Fury pace for a time. At length she rose to her feet and motioned for Fury to stop, "We're not going to figure this out tonight. We should try and get some rest before we go. We have several hours still correct?"
"Yep we should. You want to just crash here or go back to your room?"
Val raised an eyebrow at Fury and smiled, "I said get some rest, Fury."
Fury blushed, though he knew Val was only teasing, "This bed is big enough for two and you know as well as I do that nothing is going to happen even if it were the smallest bed in the world."
Val laughed and then nodded, "If it's all the same to you, I'll stay here. Let's just not mention this to Granger."
Fury only nodded and chuckled himself, "Agreed." He stretched out on a small slice of the bed as Val took the other side and soon both of them were tossing in semi-conscious sleep.
What seemed like only a few minutes later, there was a knock on the door and a high pitched voice called out, "Thirty minutes to muster!"
Val sat up quickly and chuckled at Fury looking around bleary eyed and running his hand through his hair, "I bet Granger isn't looking forward to seeing that every morning."
Fury tossed a pillow at Val, "Speak for yourself."
Dinner was the normal weekend affair, their group having gathered before them. Lavendar, Parvati, Dean and Seamus, Neville, Luna and Susan were all talking together as they entered the Hall. They made room for the three of them, but it was Susan that motioned for Hermione to sit next to her.
"You know, I think I like our emphasis on mixing with other houses," Seamus said aloud. "Even that Zabini character isn't so bad."
"You mean, Daphne Greengrass, more like," Dean snickered. "Speaking of, where is she? I see Zabini over there, but not her and they are stuck together at the hip."
Susan and Hermione looked over to where Blaise sat surrounded by Gavin and a number of the other Slytherins. He noticed their look, and nodded once in acknowledgement before turning back to the others."
"She must have eaten earlier," Harry suggested. "So, how was everyone's evening?"
As the group turned their attentions once more, Susan looked over to Hermione, "What is going on?"
"Excuse me?" Hermione asked. "What did you find out with your readings?"
"The Fool reversed," Lavendar answered. "We both did it and came out with the same."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Hermione asked surprised.
"You should tell us. You're worried about Ron," Susan supplied.
"Five of Cups," Lavendar supplied.
"You're up to something and it does not look like it has a good ending," Susan continued.
"Ace of Swords, reversed, caution when trying to use power to gain an ending. There will be obstacles that are unknown," Lavender continued.
Hermione looked from one to the other, exacerbated with the two of them speaking in code, "What is the Fool reversed?"
"The final outcome of whatever it is you intend to do," Susan replied. "Hermione, the cards warn of caution. The Fool reversed represents a faulty choice or a bad decision."
Hermione looked from one to the other, "I should never have asked you to do a reading. It's all rubbish. Everything will work just as I planned." She ignored the girls sitting beside her and touched the necklace again, Ron was worried, and she felt it.
Susan watched her friend and frowned. Lavendar seemed to agree. Neither had mentioned what Susan had seen in the cards for Ron. The Wheel of Fortune reversed, something bad was about to happen to Ron and Susan couldn't help but expect that Hermione knew about it. Ginny most certainly had when they had told her.
Susan chanced a glance back over to the Slytherin table and caught Blaise's eye. He signaled he would meet her out in the Hall and she nodded, for some reason she wanted to be near someone that made her feel safe. The cards had scared her, but Ginny had told them to remain silent. They had all recognized that Hermione was becoming more and more desperate to control the inevitable and Ginny most of all worried what that could mean or what lengths she would go.
Hermione watched Susan leave the table, obviously unhappy with her, but she would apologize later. Right now, she had to focus on finishing the spell before something else could go wrong or what they saw could possibly come true.
Blaise met Susan at the end of the Hall, and Hermione watched the proud Slytherin hold the door open for the Hufflepuff, it seems they had all had a good night.
Fury and Val headed to the meeting chamber and quickly gathered their assigned Portkeys. As soon as they did they lined up and went over their instructions on final times and other Knight teams did the same all around them. The noise slowly wound down as the attack time drew closer. Finally Talon stood in front of all of them and smiled. "In just a few moments we will begin the largest operation the Order has ever undertaken. It is a credit to all of you that we are attempting such a huge effort. If we all do our part we can strike a huge blow to the Death Eaters abilities to organize and recruit new members."
Talon paused to look out over he assembled teams "Everyone get to your places. We leave in five minutes,"
A fierce scramble ensued as teams moved into their spots and prepared to Apparate.
Talon strode over to Fury and Val. "Since you two have to Portkey in I want you to do so exactly one minute after we all apparate. We you do I want you to act as my wingmen and stay with me at all times unless I tell you otherwise."
Fury and Val both nodded and then silence descended on the room. A minute later dozens of popping sounds erupted all over the room and then Fury and Val were alone in the cavernous hall. Fury looked at Val as both of them silently counted out the sixty second before they were supposed to activate the Portkey.
"Ready?" Fury asked.
Val nodded and then Fury felt the tugging sensation in the pit of his stomach. Just when he thought he couldn't bear it anymore it vanished and he found himself looking Val as the room came into focus.
"Over here you two."
Val and Fury ran over to where Talon seemed to be looking at something in his hand. When Fury got over to his side he saw him holding a small mirror and in it he could see someone else face in it.
Talon looked worried and Fury started to ask why when Talon started talking to himself. "They were supposed to be meeting in the dungeons. If they are there and they aren't on the first floor where are they?"
Talon walked a few feet and then looked into the mirror again "Jinx, do you see anything out there?"
Talon gazed into the mirror and waited but no response came. "Jinx, what's going on out there? Can you hear me?"
Fury looked at Val who looked very uncomfortable and then back to Talon. "Talon I think maybe we need to get everyone to fall back to here and regroup."
Talon looked at Fury and then shook his head "He have them trapped, now we just have to find them,"
Fury wanted to comment about not having someone trapped if you didn't know where they were but he was prevented by the blood curdling scream that issued from the mirror Talon was holding and then a moment later the mirror shattered.
A moment later the sounds of a furious spell battle erupted from down one of the side corridors and Talon ran that way with Fury and Val hot on his heels.
A compelling voice rose above the din of the battle and even from a distance Ron could recognize the sultry tones he had heard once before on the Hogwarts grounds. Bellatrix Lestrange was leading the enemy forces and Fury didn't like it one little bit.
Hermione and Ginny met in the Common Room and using Harry's Invisibility Cloak left for the Circle. Ron's nervousness had dissipated a while ago and right now Hermione was almost certain that he was sleeping.
Ginny seemed pensive as they walked outside, but Hermione's own concerns were weighing down on her. Would Ginny hate her after this was all said and done? Would she see why Hermione was taking such a drastic action?
"What did you think of Lavender and Susan's predictions?" Hermione asked of a sudden as she spied the other girls climbing the hill nearby.
Ginny looked towards her with some trepidation, "They said you are about to make a mistake."
Hermione looked to the other girl, "Do you think that is true?"
Ginny paused, uncertain of how to respond, "Hermione, you've been acting very strangely and secretive as of late, even for you. Are you sure you know what you are doing?"
Hermione nodded, "I know what I am doing. Divination is silly rubbish."
"Silly rubbish," Ginny echoed. "You're wearing the necklace Ron gave you, right? The one that tells you how he is."
"Sure," Hermione replied. "Why do you ask?"
"No reason," Ginny replied looking to the older girl. "Let's just get this over with."
"Ginny," Hermione stopped her, sensing something was different about her, but she was not able to place what. "What did you and Harry end up doing last night?"
Ginny blinked with surprise and then blushed at the unexpected question, "Nothing."
Hermione looked with some curiosity as the girl walked away towards Luna, leaving Hermione alone.
The girls filed into their positions and looked towards her, expectant and Hermione fought her own sense of dread. She wasn't making a mistake. She had to do this, for Ron. This was all for Ron.
Hermione began by once again calling the corners, she was serving as both North and Center. As the power of the Circle filled her once more, she was amazed at the strength she felt. If anything, it seemed each use brought more strength to their group. Hermione felt the individual presences of the girls about her, but even as each one was distinct they tended to blend together into one swirling mass of power.
The wind kicked up blowing their hair about their faces making Hermione wonder if the other girls could hear her over the rush in her ears.
"Our Circle is sacred. We place upon ourselves a spell of secrecy that we will not repeat that which occurs here outside of ourselves. We protect ourselves and our knowledge," she called out to the Circle.
"We protect the North," Hermione continued.
"The South," Ginny responded.
"The East," Susan added.
Luna finished, "And the West."
"That none shall know what has passed outside our Circle," Hermione finished as Center.
"We commit ourselves to the Circle," the women repeated. Hermione heard their voices more in her mind than above the sound of the wind. She felt their presence and she felt their concern. However, above that she heard the sincerity. The spell that bound them altogether strengthened even more. But amidst the confusion, Ginny, Susan and Lavendar all still had their doubts. It was a darkness that Hermione recognized, but could not help. The others were surprised, but undaunted as they had all committed and Hermione was determined to see this through to the end. They would not speak of what she was about to do.
"We place a spell of binding on one that has lost control. We call upon the power of the Cauldron and of the link between to hold him that he will follow our will. The warrior will return in safety, whether it be by his will or our will alone."
"By the powers of the North, that logic will rule him," Hermione continued reciting Daphne's line.
"By the passions of the South, that the warrior will be calmed," Ginny's voice called out.
"That the strength of the East overpower him," Susan continued.
"That the innocence of the warrior be not destroyed," Luna finished.
"We bind the warrior through the link to obey us. To obey the will of that which he is bound," Hermione continued reciting from her revised spell.
"We bind the warrior; he shall obey," Hermione continued once again from the north.
"We bind the warrior, with our love to repay," Ginny recited.
"We bind the warrior, with bonds of pure strength," Susan continued.
"We bind the warrior, his purity and safety to retain," Luna finished.
"We bind him, that our Circle will be maintained," they finished as one. The necklace about Hermione's neck heated to the point where she was sure that she would be burned, but then it subsided and the wind died down. As the link between them began to diminish Hermione recognized that three of them knew what she had done, the others were only confused as to its purpose. Full dark had fallen and six females faced her in various states of anger or concern.
Fury and Val headed to the meeting chamber and quickly gathered their assigned Portkeys. Afterwards, they lined up and went over their instructions one final time with the other Knight teams all around them. The noise slowly wound down as the attack time drew closer.
Finally, Talon stood in front of all of them and smiled, "In just a few moments we will begin the largest operation the Order has ever undertaken. It is a credit to all of you that we are attempting such a huge effort. If we all do our part we can strike a huge blow to the Death Eaters abilities to organize and recruit new members."
Talon paused to look out over he assembled teams, "Everyone get to your places. We leave in five minutes."
A fierce scramble ensued as teams moved into their spots and prepared to Apparate.
Talon strode over to Fury and Val, "Since you two have to Portkey in, I want you to do so exactly one minute after we all apparate. I want you to act as my wingmen and stay with me at all times, unless I tell you otherwise."
Fury and Val both nodded and then silence descended on the room. A minute later dozens of popping sounds erupted and then Fury and Val were alone in the cavernous hall. Fury looked at Val as both of them silently counted out the sixty seconds before they were supposed to activate the Portkey.
"Ready?" Fury asked.
Val nodded and then Fury felt the tugging sensation in the pit of his stomach. Just when he thought he couldn't bear it anymore it vanished and he found himself looking Val as the room came into focus.
"Over here you two," Talon's voice beckoned them over.
Val and Fury ran over to where Talon seemed to be looking at something in his hand. When Fury got over to his side, he saw him holding a small mirror and in it he could see someone else's face in it.
Talon looked worried and Fury started to ask why, when Talon started talking to himself, "They were supposed to be meeting in the dungeons. If they aren't there and they aren't on the first floor where are they?"
Talon walked a few feet and then looked into the mirror again, "Jinx, do you see anything out there?"
Talon gazed into the mirror and waited but no response came, "Jinx, what's going on out there? Can you hear me?"
Fury looked at Val who looked very uncomfortable and then back to Talon, "Talon I think maybe we need to get everyone to fall back here and regroup."
Talon looked at Fury and then shook his head, "We have them trapped, now we just have to find them."
Fury wanted to comment about not having someone trapped if you didn't know where they were, but he was prevented by the blood curdling scream that issued from the mirror Talon was holding. A moment later, the mirror shattered.
The sounds of a furious spell battle erupted from down one of the side corridors and Talon ran that way with Fury and Val hot on his heels.
A compelling voice rose above the din of the battle and even from a distance Ron could recognize the sultry tones he had heard once before on the Hogwarts grounds. Bellatrix Lestrange was leading the enemy forces and Fury didn't like it one little bit.
The blast shook the entire building and several Order member where thrown backwards from the passageway. Before Fury could get his bearings, Death eaters started to move through the cloud of dust thrown into the air and began to throw curses at the rest of the Knights.
Val had conjured a shield before any of the spells could hit home and Fury managed to take out the lead Death Eater with a simply, "Stupefy."
Talon lead them back in the room while Fury moved behind one of the ornate columns and set himself. Seeing multiple Death Eaters now in the great room he focused his anger and shouted "Fuarte Manus!" He felt the force build and then burst from his wand with a roar. The boiling mass of heat churned towards the Death Eaters and Fury was certain that it was going to devastate them.
Then a cool voice lifted above the noise, "Protego Luminarious!" and a glowing silver shield positioned itself in front of the Death Eaters. The ball of heat from Fury's wand slammed into the shield with a high pitched crackling sound and Fury was certain that the shield would break when the mass of heat shuddered and winked out of existence.
Fury dodged a curse and then screamed in anger as Talon was struck with the killing curse. As he moved to his left he heard the unmistakable voice of Dolohov sneer, "Diffindo" and Ron turned to see Val's chest erupt in a fountain of blood.
Fury scrambled to Val's side and fumbled at the belt of her robes. With a twist, he activated her Portkey and she vanished in an instant. Then he rolled to his right over the spot where Val had just been and reached for his Portkey only to find it missing.
Fury swore and dove again bring his wand up, "Diffindo!" he yelled and one of the Death Eaters dropped to the ground clutching his throat. Taking a chance and not moving, he brought his wand around and used the cutting curse again to rip open the chest of the closest Death Eater. He crouched to move again, when lancing pain shot through his body and he knew vaguely that he was screaming but he couldn't really tell what.
Still he managed point his wand in a random direction and scream, "Fuarte Manus!" once more. This time his screams were joined with several others as heat and flame seemed to wash over the entire room. As he lay on the floor gasping and trying to stay conscious, the last thing he heard before passing out was the soft sound of laughter and an admiring voice say almost tenderly, "Well done."
"Do you want to tell me what that was about?" Ginny screeched, as she approached from the otherside of the circle. "Did we just do what I think we did?"
Hermione looked at the young red head and realized that she had better separate Ginny from the others before more people ended up angry.
"Ginny, let's go for a walk and let me explain," she tried in a vain hope to head off the girl's anger.
"Hermione," Susan stood beside her, a frown creasing her face. Susan, who never got upset at anyone, was also voicing her displeasure. "I thought you trusted us."
"She loves him," Luna's voice piped up to Hermione's defense.
"You didn't listen to us," Lavender added. "The Fool reversed, we told you. We warned you."
Hermione shook her head, "It's done now. What do you want me to say? Do any of you truly believe he was giving me an option with this?"
"You should have told us," Susan replied.
"You shouldn't have done it. He trusts you. You ought to do the same for him," Ginny added.
"After what he's done? How many times has he been in the hospital this year? Even since Christmas? How many foolish escapades can I ignore? How many times can one person survive?" she argued.
"We have to stop this," Ginny snapped. "You need to tell Ron, Hermione, instead of making this decision for him."
A sudden sharp pain through the necklace stopped her before she could reply. Hermione fell to her knees, her eyes filling instantly with tears. Something was wrong.
"Ron," she gasped as Susan hauled her to her feet.
"We need to get her back to your Common Room," Susan ignored her and looked towards Ginny. "You can continue to yell at her later, but if I'm right we can shatter that necklace of hers and break the link. Does that satisfy you?"
Ginny nodded once, sharply.
Susan though only muttered, "Wheel of Fortune, reversed. . . where is Ron? We must find him. He's in danger."
The seven girls managed to get Hermione back to the castle, but instead of returning to the Common Room, they chose the Room of Requirement. As Susan paced outside the door, her thoughts turned back to Neville and Blaise. They needed the group together and they needed it fast. Something large was happening and Susan could not help but worry that they were all too late.
At last, the door opened to find a cheery fire and couches for the girls. Leaving Hermione with Luna and the rest, Ginny and Susan walked away from the others.
"Where is Ron?" Susan demanded.
"He's been gone since breakfast," Ginny replied. "Daphne as well."
Susan saw an inkwell nearby and taking the rolled piece of parchment from her pocket, she scrawled a note to Blaise, "Get Harry and Neville and meet us in the Room of Requirement. We need you."
Ginny watched as the blond girl flipped the paper over and waited before the words reappeared in an elegant man's hand, "Very well."
Susan glanced at Ginny as she stuffed the paper back into her robes, "Let's get the others out of here and once the boys arrive you all have some explaining to do."
Lavendar, Parvati and Padma left them at Susan's suggestion and the four girls sat down upon the couches. Luna sitting with Hermione, holding her hand. Ginny and Susan sat opposite and definitely no one was happy.
"What do you feel?" Ginny asked. "What's going on?"
Hermione shook her head, her eyes welling with tears, "It's over. I can't feel him anymore."
"What does that mean?" Susan asked.
"That he's unconscious, in deep sleep, or dead," Hermione replied her face growing even paler.
"I'm sure he just hit his head," Luna tried comforting her. "You know how rough boys can play."
Ginny and Hermione looked to each other, they hadn't mentioned anything of Ron's other activities, and it was better left that way for now.
The door swung open to reveal Blaise, Harry and Neville entering the room. "Did you know that Blaise has found a way into the Gryffindor tower?" Neville asked as he walked up behind Luna and dropped a kiss on the top of her hair. "He just about scared me to death!"
Harry moved around the couch and took one look at the girls' faces, "What's going on here?"
Blaise walked around the other side and Susan stood and smiled at him, "I'm sorry about this."
He shook his head and looked around the room, "I'm with Potter. What's the problem?"
"Blaise," Hermione answered looking up to the dark Slytherin, "Have you heard from Daphne today?"
"No," Blaise replied.
"Something's gone wrong," Hermione told him and looked to Harry. "I was wearing the necklace Ron gave me today and I felt it. He's been hurt and now," she took a deep breath, "I don't feel anything."
Ginny opened her mouth to try to reply, but no sound came out. "Hermione!" she growled as dawning crossed her face. Hermione had bound them to silence other than with other members of the Circle in regards to the spell.
"Remember the reading I told you about?" Susan asked Blaise turning back to him. "I think it happened. We need to find him."
"Dumbledore," Harry answered. "We need to tell Dumbledore. He'd have the most connections."
"Why isn't Ron on the grounds and where's Daphne?" Luna asked. "Are they somewhere together?"
The room grew quiet, but it was Harry that replied, "Yes, Luna. They were together."
"Look, Hermione," Harry said rising to his feet. "Why don't you and I go find Dumbledore. The rest of you, go back to the Common Rooms. There isn't anything we can do now, and we'll let you know when we find something."
"Blaise, did you want to come with us?" Hermione asked as she moved to her feet. Giving her something to do other than worry about Ron and her spell was a blessing in itself.
"No," Blaise replied, "I will take Susan back to her Common Room and then meet you back at Dumbledore's."
Dumbledore knew nothing more than any of the others, but as Hermione explained about the necklace and Susan's predictions he promised to look into it for them and would let them and Blaise know as soon as he had heard anything. Left with no other options, Harry and Hermione returned to the Common Room to find Ginny, Neville, and Luna all waiting for them.
"Nothing?" Ginny asked as they came in through the porthole.
"Not a thing," Harry added glumly sitting down next to her and throwing an arm over her shoulders.
Hermione stood looking at her friends and realized that she had had enough. "Look, I'm going to go to bed. I'll see you all in the morning."
Harry looked at her, "Are you going to be alright? We'll sit up with you for awhile if you want."
Hermione looked from one couple to the next. The last thing she wanted was to sit here and miss Ron with them. She just wanted to be alone, without the reminders. She trusted that Dumbledore would alert them is something happened and the necklace would let her know even before that. She had the fastest alert possible. The necklace would let her know long before Dumbledore would if things were OK, and if they weren't… she couldn't face that and she would be happy to wait to find out the bad news.
"No, I just want some sleep. Wake me if you hear something?" Hermione asked suddenly surprised, but she found she was tired.
"Sure," Harry agreed.
Hermione nodded and walked back up the stairs to the sixth year girl's dormitory. She went through her normal routine, brushed her hair, brushed her teeth and flossed, put on her pajamas and even got into bed, but when it was time to close her eyes—she couldn't. She spent that night staring at the top of her canopy and remembering, every second of every moment she had ever spent with him, every fight, every kiss, every nice thing he had ever done for her. She cried at one point or another, realizing later that her pillow was wet, but all she could do was think back on this year, on him, and how much she loved him.
The first rays of dawn found Hermione out of bed and dressed, with still no word from Dumbledore and nothing from the necklace to let her know he was OK. Hermione snuck upstairs and peered into the fifth year dorms to find Ginny's bed empty. Not surprised, Hermione went back down the stairs and found the Common Room empty. Restless, she kept going heading towards the Great Hall and hoping for breakfast soon. She picked up Ron's book to do more research, the familiar weight comforting to her, but she knew she wouldn't open it.
Reaching the Great Hall, she was surprised to come across Blaise coming up out of the dungeons and walking with long strides.
"Blaise!" Hermione called after the tall Slytherin. "What are you doing up?"
Blaise spun around and looked at her with some surprise, "They brought Daphne back. She's in the infirmary."
He kept walking and Hermione fell into step beside him, hopeful for the first time since the night before. Blaise said nothing to her, but kept walking until they reached the infirmary. He pushed open the door and allowed her to enter first. In the morning light only one bed was occupied and Hermione could see the blond hair and pale face and the bandages along her arms.
Blaise walked up to the foot of her bed, his cold face unreadable, but Daphne had to have heard our footsteps. She opened her eyes slowly and raised one hand out to Blaise, "Have they found him? They wouldn't tell me a thing."
Blaise held her hand, "Daphne, they only sent you back. No one has said a word about Ron."
Daphne looked from Blaise back over to Hermione, "It was awful. It was a trap, but one for us. I got hit and Ron got me out of there. I thought he was right behind me…"
She took a deep breath and let go of Blaise's hand, "Hermione, I don't know what to say."
Hermione stood there silent as the Slytherin opened her eyes once more. Hermione stopped feeling anything. Just looking at Daphne was enough to rip her heart to shreds, but instead, Hermione moved around the other side of Daphne's bed and pulled up a chair.
"He'll be fine. You know Ron. I'm sure he'll be back soon," Hermione spoke the words realizing that it was foolish to worry another person. "We'll just wait here until we get word."
Daphne opened her eyes once more and looked at Hermione closely, as if judging if she was telling the truth. She must have passed, because Daphne eventually settled down and went back to sleep. Blaise pulled up another chair and stayed, running a hand through his dark curls and staring out the window.
Left to her own thoughts, Hermione opened her book and began reading, waiting for signs of Ron and strangely comforted in the presence of the two Slytherins.
After an hour, Madame Pince had come to check on Daphne, but otherwise the Infirmary was silent. A large black owl flew up to the window and tapped on the pane looking to enter.
Blaise got up and let the owl enter where it promptly flew over to Hermione and dropped a parchment in her lap before flying back out the window. Blaise looked at her oddly, but Hermione shrugged removing the black ribbon and unrolling the paper.
If you want him back, meet me out behind the Quiddich pitch and come alone. –B.L.
Hermione jumped up and ran out of the Hospital wing without saying a word. Her mind was racing and though she felt certain she knew who B.L. was, it didn't pay to jump to conclusions. In her haste to reach Ron she passed dozens of students all of whom were shocked to see a Gryffindor prefect running through the halls as if she were being chased.
Hermione flew out of the door and started up the hill towards the pitch as fast as her feet could carry her. In the back of her mind she wondered if she should have gone to Professor Dumbledore's office, but instantly discarded it as too risky. In a few moments she had reached the Pitch and was heading to the back closest to the forest. Logically, she knew that it was the most likely location intended by the Death Eater.
When she reached the eaves of the forest she halted and looked around. Seeing nothing for a moment she felt a sense of panic rise up in her.
What if she was too late? What if Bellatrix had already left? Why couldn't she feel Ron?
Hermione clenched her fists and willed he self to stop thinking such thoughts, when I cool clear voice broke the silence, "So you came, little girl. That was very brave of you."
Hermione turned to see Bellatrix step out of the forest ten or so feet from where Hermione had been standing. The Death Eater seemed much calmer than the last time Hermione had seen her in the Department of Mysteries. For some reason this made her seem much more dangerous than before.
"You are a quite impressive little girl for a Mudblood," Bellatrix drawled.
"Where is Ron?" Hermione demanded ignoring her snide comments.
"Oh, you will see him soon enough, but before I return him to you I wanted to let you know I have become quite fond of your Ron."
The words sent a chill through Hermione and she struggled to understand exactly what Bellatrix was getting at.
"He is quite brave and he comes from a fine pure blood family. Once he has worked out the infatutation with Muggles, I'm certain he will see the value in maintaining the old ways. He already has a great respect for tradition."
"Ron won't ever get over his Muggle infatuation, if I have anything to say about it," Hermione sneered back at Bellatrix.
"Really?" Bellatrix smiled, "Because I am quite a skilled Legillimans, little girl, and I have seen just how childish you relationship has been. He will be more than glad to have the attentions of a woman."
Hermione paled at that.
Did this wicked BITCH think she would stand by and let her take Ron from her?
"Why did you want to see me here, you harpy?" Hermione spit out through clenched teeth.
"He needs a healer and I can't very well take him to St. Mungo's, now can I?" Bellatrix laughed.
"How badly is he hurt?" Hermione asked as worry coursed through her.
"He will live with the right treatments," Bellatrix flicked her wand and a shadow rose from the forest.
When Ron's body settled at Hermione's feet, she gasped in horror. He was covered in bruises and several wounds on his face and torso. When she glanced in dismay at Bellatrix she was stunned to see the barest hint of regret on the older witch's face.
"The Dark Lord wanted him to be taught a lesson for his defiance."
Hermione leaned down and saw that he still was breathing, "I've got to get him to the Hospital wing."
Bellatrix nodded "Go then, and see to him. Then leave our world if you value your life."
Hermione looked up to respond, but Bellatrix had already vanished and Hermione had no time to waste looking for her.