Disclaimer: see other chapters.

AN: call me a masochist for continuing with this trainwreck, but i just can't not finish a story cause i hate it when other people do that so i will finish this and be done with it. it has a few more chapters left in it so it won't be too much longer. thank you to anyone for reading this. i think it lost something along the way. oh well.

Chapter 10: Death

Everyone was on edge for the next few days except Draco and Cooper. They seemed unperturbed by the events unfolding before them. Hermione was sitting in the library trying desperately to read up on spells that she had neglected. Lately she had slowly turned to her books for help like she had done in her past. She realized that no matter how hard she had tried to suppress the magic within her, she was caught up in it again. Hermione also allowed herself to think about Ron and her parents again. She was lost in her thoughts when she suddenly heard the door to the Headquarters open. She rushed out, leaving her books where they were.

At the entrance she saw Tonks surrounded by the Order Members. She felt a swell of happiness that the girl had gotten away. They were worried that she might not get away before the Ceremony to tell them the information.

She wouldn't tell them anything until everyone was seated in their usual seats, then she began, "Well, the Ceremony will take place this Saturday at midnight. It will be held at their headquarters. I was unable to find out where the other Keepers who won't be at the meeting are being kept."

"Do they expect you to be there?" Cooper asked.

"No, I found out the information, then said I would be visiting a relative before they told me officially. They didn't seem to care. I don't think they really like me all that much." Tonks responded.

"Well, that gives us three days to prepare for the Ceremony." McGonagall said.
They spent the rest of the meeting discussing tactics and how to go about infiltrating the Keeper's Headquarters without Tonks. She had the password but newcomers weren't being accepted, what with the Ceremony, and the guards at the entrance knew everyone's face. They finally decided that only two people would enter the Ceremony using invisibility cloaks and the rest would be disillusioned. A few would stay outside in case they tried to exit before the spell was cast. It was still undecided who would face the Zeichen.

Everything was progressing fine the few days before the Ceremony. The Order was relearning old spells and maneuvers for the fight with the Keepers in case the spell went wrong. Hermione, Harry, McGonagall, and Snape were perfecting the spell that they would use on the Keepers when there was a loud commotion from the front hall. The four all looked at each other, and then bolted from the room. Draco and Cooper were surrounded by several people, looking worried.

"Who are you?" she asked as menacingly as she could with her wand pointed at them.

"Hermione, put your wand down. You can't hurt them, they are too powerful." Cooper said without looking at her.

"But--"

"You're that guy…that Charles guy. But I thought you were good." Harry exclaimed. "You said you were peaceful. Why are you trying to hurt them?" He was very angry now and was trying very hard to keep his temper in check.

"Harry." The name was said from one of the men surrounding the pair. The voice was very calm, yet steady. It held the strength to command attention without being overly so. The man was in his early forties and all his years showed on his face. He had long brown hair and his eyes were amble pools of understanding. "I'm Gabe."

That was all Harry needed to hear to trust this man. He knew he had his best interests at heart but still needed to know why. "But why are you trying to hurt them?"

"They told you too much. Their emotions got in the way of the task at hand and may have jeopardized several people." The way in which he spoke sent shock waves through the room, and caused everyone to feel the trustworthiness of this man. It was no wonder that Harry needed this Guide.

"No, we found it out for ourselves. It wasn't too much. Please." Harry had tears in his eyes now. He didn't know what was going to happen now, but he knew it wouldn't be good.

"I'm sorry." Gabe's eyes held compassion and obviously hurt at seeing the pain in the young boy's eyes.

"Wait, who are you people?" Hermione and all the rest of the people were confused at the new turn of events. She looked to Harry, then to Draco, then finally to Cooper for answers. For being as smart as she was, she couldn't fathom what these men wanted with them.

"We're Guides, Hermione. I know you know what we are, because you always know. I'm sorry that I couldn't tell you before but it wasn't time yet. You still needed to be guided." Cooper tried to console his charge but was failing miserably. She always had been able to find the answers before, but now they didn't seem to make sense.

"You were my Guide…were…were you ever my real friend or was I just a job?" Hermione asked with the air of someone trying to contain the hurt in her voice.

"No, you were first and foremost my friend. That's why I botched this operation. I was to remain emotionless, give advice, but let you use it at your will. But you see I couldn't. I couldn't see you hurt anymore. And then I met all your friends and I couldn't see them hurt. You see, I'm not a Guide by birth, but became one to help you as a witch. So, I'm human and feel pain along with everyone else." Cooper was trying to get to Hermione to comfort her, to hold her, to help her. But he was restrained. He was always restrained, even from the start. She was younger, he was older. She was a witch, he was a muggle. She was a charge, he was a Guide. He was tired of barriers; all he ever wanted to do was help her, shelter her from the world.

She looked imploringly at Charles, instinctively knowing that he was the one in charge. "What's going to happen to them?"

He replied stiffly, "They will be taken away. Draco will continue his training with a different Guide, and Cooper will be given a new charge. You will have no memory of either of them."

"NO! Please. If you must take them away, then please at least leave us our memories." Hermione was clutching at the older man's cloak, tears leaking from her eyes, leaving trails on her face.

"I'm sorry, my dear. But that is what must be done. There is no other way."

"No. I refuse to accept this. You seem powerful enough, can't you change the rules, just this once. Please." She was no longer simply asking Charles but all the Guides there.

"Look, I have been a Guide for all my life and I have guided many people. These two have suffered more and lost more people than anyone. If you are to take two additional friends, then I suggest you at least grant them this one wish." This came from McGonagall. She was looking sternly into the eyes of the head Guide. Hermione and Harry whipped around to stare at their ex-teacher. "Well, obviously all teachers are Guides, but we don't have one charge, but a group."

Charles stood deep in thought, weighing the outcomes of each scenario and nodded his head once at the conclusion of his thoughts. "Minerva, you have always given your views on things with the most objective view point and I have taken your thoughts into consideration. Obviously, these two must be taken away, but I will allow their memories to stay."

After Charles said this, Hermione broke down completely. Too many emotions were running through her body. She was devastated that once again she would lose two friends, but was happy that she would be able to remember them. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into the eyes of Cooper. He smiled down at her in understanding. She pulled him down to floor in a bone crushing hug. "Please don't leave me. I can't go on if you leave me. I need you."

He smoothed her hair and whispered words of comfort into her ears, "Shh, I'll never fully leave you. You will have all the wonderful memories of us. And you have pictures and little reminders. So you see, I won't be gone, not really. Sure I won't be there in person, but I'll be there in spirit. And I'll always look after you, you won't know it, or see me, but I'll be there, making sure you're alright. And you'll have a new Guide. They'll keep you safe and help you find yourself, just as I have done. It's not goodbye, not really…Please stop crying." Cooper held her a moment longer, then released her. He stepped away before she could make another grab for him.

Draco stepped up and gave her a quick hug. He was obviously trying to keep his tears at bay. "Well, Granger I guess this is it. I never thought I would ever be your friend and yet here I am, not wanting to go. I know you'll do great. You always were the smart one in the bunch." He turned and walked towards the wall. He faded into it without another word. The other Guides left too, until it was just Cooper. He gave her one last smile and he too faded into the wall to Hermione's screams of, "NO! PLEASE! I NEED YOU! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME!" He screams were muffled into Harry's shirt as he engulfed her in a hug. Her tears clouded her vision until she had to shut her eyes to block out the image. She clung to his shirt, not noticing the small water droplets falling into her hair. All Hermione knew was the pain, the unending pain that was currently entrenched in her heart.

The pair stayed that way for quite some time, until McGonagall gently steered them to the kitchen for tea. Once everyone had a cuppa, she spoke in a strangled voice, "I know we are all hurting, but we must press on. This is not a time for weakness. We must take the information that they gave us to do the job they wanted us to do. Not pressing our advantage when we have it only tarnishes their memories." Hermione sat in stunned silence; she knew the transfiguration teacher was right, but she didn't want to do anything. She wanted to be left alone.

The next day dawned bright and early. Today was the day that the Keepers were going to be extinguished. Hermione pulled on her clothes in a mechanical fashion and walked towards the kitchen without ever thinking. Her hair was a mess and she hadn't bothered to brush her teeth. Her clothes were wrinkled and mismatched due to her inability to think.

Entering the kitchen she sat next to Harry who was eating a slice of toast and nothing else. This reminded Hermione of when they were at Hogwarts the day before a Quiddich match. Harry and Ron rarely ate anything due to nerves. 'At least he's learned to eat before a major event,' she thought not realizing she had. Her brain seemed to be detached from her body. Mrs. Weasley came by with a plate of food but she declined, reaching instead for the tea kettle.

After grabbing her tea, she left the kitchen to wander the house by herself. She felt so alone, so empty. The night before she had cried herself to sleep, but today she was hollow. She was tired of crying; she had been crying for five years and all she wanted was to feel whole again. Just when she was beginning to believe in life, in love again, her hopes were once again dashed.

Hermione was in the library sitting on the couch, holding her cup but not really feeling it. She stared at the room around her without really seeing. The couch was old and dilapidated. It had numerous holes in it, but it seemed to fit her mood. A sad girl on a sad couch in sad excuse of a house. Harry crept into the room and walked over to her. She didn't even register his presence until he spoke, "I know it hurts."

She shrugged her shoulders to acknowledge that she had heard him. Harry ran around the couch to face her. "You told me when you came back that you left because I never talked to you about Ron." She lifted her eyes to his, trying to understand where he was going with this. "I remember you two always did fight, even in the beginning, especially in the beginning. In retrospect, it was because of a fight that we actually became friends with you…Remember that night in first year when we snuck out to steal the Sorcerer's Stone…and you performed the petrificus totalus charm on Neville. He was so shocked." Harry was looking at something only he could see with tears in his eyes. "You always were so much smarter than us. Ron was always asking you for help on the homework. If it weren't for you, he probably would have failed every course." Here he smirked at the memory. "Even when you tried to teach us lessons about responsibility, you always gave in, in the end." By this time, Hermione was being hugged by Harry as she cried softly into his shirt. "…Gods, I miss him so much…You told me before you hated to see me as an empty shell, well I'm going to tell you the same thing. Please I still need you here. I know the pain that comes with losing with someone…Hell, I think I would be scared if I were you. Every one of my friends seems to either die or disappear." They both chuckled, in that way that people do when they don't really want to but can't help it, so it comes out more of a strangled cry. "Listen, why don't we work on that spell, and keep busy. When all this is over, we'll grab a box of tissues, lots of chocolate ice cream, and we'll talk about who ever you want. If you want to talk until we're as old as Dumbledore was, we'll do it. We just have to keep going."

Hermione looked at Harry into his green eyes, and asked, "Harry James Potter, when did you become so smart?"

"Hermione Jane Granger, I've always been this smart. I just hid it very well." They erupted into giggles, before helping each other up off the couch. They exited the library, side by side, the way they always were.

"Oh good, we were going to send in a search party soon." Ginny said as they entered the kitchen.

"Yes well, I only came out due to the promise of chocolate ice cream." Hermione replied. Several pairs of eyes turned to look at Harry, wondering why he had made such a heinous promise.

"What? You can think of anything better?" He joked before sitting next to his girlfriend. "But seriously, do we have a finalized game plan for tonight?"

"Well, since we are…" Tonks looked at Hermione before going on. "…two members short, we changed some positions around, but nothing that concerns you. You and Hermione are the two that are going to face the Zeichen, while McGonagall and Snape initiate the spell. We'll be waiting for your signal before setting it off. That's about it. I'm going to stay here with Shacklebolt and Moody in case we're needed as a second front. Lupin, Fred and George are going to be outside, while Ginny will go in with the other two, in case they are spotted and need some cover."

Now that everyone knew the plan, they all went upstairs to sleep for the next several hours as the Ceremony would take place at midnight.

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