As the four cousins sat eating their breakfast on Halloween morning, Vilandra couldn't help but go over the conversation she'd had with Hagrid in her mind. It had been close to a month ago, but ever since he'd made her talk, she hadn't been able to stop thinking about their conversation. Every time she had a minute to herself, she would return to the conversation, and the more she thought about it, the more she realized that Hagrid was right.
She didn't want anyone to help her. She'd forgotten how to let people help her when her father left. Her mother needed her to be strong, so she hadn't really had enough time to express her emotions. She'd had to hide them from her mother, and that was an admirable strength for an eight year old. Losing Ron and finding out she was pregnant on the same day couldn't have been easy for her mother, and she knew then that she couldn't depend on Hermione anymore.
Of course, her mother was still supportive. She didn't shut herself out of her children's lives, but it wasn't really the same. Vilandra always felt worried when she had a problem and wanted to talk to her mother about it. She always had to be so careful, and it felt like she was walking on eggshells. So, one day, she'd decided to stop talking to her mother about her problems. She decided perhaps it was best if she kept everything to herself until her mother got better. The problem was, her mother never did get better. And so, Vilandra never had, either.
Eventually, she found herself always helping Chaim when he was upset, and then when Sterling was born, she spent most of her time taking care of him. She knew why her mother was so distant from Sterling. She loved him dearly, and she never let him think she didn't, but she could see the pain in Hermione's eyes every time she looked at him. Sterling looked so much like Ron it was hard not to think of him when looking at Sterling.
And so, because of that one, fateful night, Vilandra had found herself forced into being an adult. She still acted very much like a child—even now at fifteen, with her pranks and her jokes—but inside, she never truly was a child. Leroux had somewhat noticed on the night the twins had returned in tears, but he could never understand the extent of what she'd gone through to know just how different she was from the Fifth year Gryffindor he believed her to be. It seemed the only people who ever knew how she truly felt were the professors—and Malfoy.
And it was as she thought of Malfoy that she looked up to see what he was doing. The Slytherin boy stood at the head of the Hufflepuff table with his cronies, teasing a First year. The boy was trying hard to ignore him, but Malfoy was obviously hitting some nerves, because soon afterwards, he began to scream and try to attack Malfoy. Gregson and Rogers were holding him away from Malfoy until a Sixth year Ravenclaw girl stormed up to them. She began hollering at Malfoy and his two cronies and they ran off, terrified at the girl's fury. They'd obviously not realized the First year had a very protective older sister, and as she hugged her little brother, Vilandra looked back down into her plate.
"How Vilandra of her." Vilandra looked up confused as Leroux spoke. He was looking over his shoulder at the two behind him, and then turned back to her. "It's something you would do for Chaim or Sterling." She merely shrugged.
"Siblings can pretend to hate each other for a long time, but they're there when it counts." Rhett snorted.
"Yeah, right. Every time Talak pulls a prank on mum, he blames me."
"Yes, but then it means you get the credit for my ingenuity." Talak insisted back, smirking. Vilandra ignored them as she pushed all of her pieces of egg to one side of her plate, and then back across to the other side.
"I've heard of playing with your food before, but people aren't usually so organized when they do it." Leroux insisted. Rhett laughed.
"She really is aunt Hermione's daughter, huh?" He asked. She looked up to see Malfoy and his posse taking their seats at the Slytherin table again, glancing worriedly at the Ravenclaw girl who hadn't noticed them return.
"Ever notice how Salai's name almost sounds like 'sly'?" She inquired randomly. She'd been thinking about Malfoy a lot lately, and it seemed it was starting to take its toll on her.
"Who hasn't?" Leroux asked as he shoved a particularly huge bite of pancakes into his mouth.
"I almost think they planned it. One's name sounds like 'sly', and the other's has the word 'shark' in it." Rhett nodded his head in the direction of Malfoy's fourteen-year-old sister, a girl who looked almost exactly like him with the same platinum blonde hair, her eyes sea-blue instead of grey like his.
"I think Sharka's a nice name." Vilandra insisted, continuing to move her eggs on her plate.
"Too bad it doesn't match the personality." Talak commented, since all of them knew Sharka was about as nice as Salai.
"Except when it comes to Rhett." Vilandra grinned at her cousin and the two boys also turned to him, smirking.
"Shut up." He mumbled, looking down into his plate.
"Well, excluding Rhett, they're both insanely evil." Talak insisted.
"What do you expect, they're Malfoys." Leroux reminded them, throwing his fork loudly onto his plate. "Why are we talking about them again? Since when do we care?"
"We don't." Vilandra shoved her plate away and rested her chin on her hands, sighing. She didn't feel like going to Potions, then again she never felt like going to Potions. The reason she felt like going even less that day was because it was Halloween, and Snape threw detentions and loss of points at them like fire on Halloween.
Because it was the official day of pranks, the four never did anything on Halloween, but that didn't stop Snape from suspecting them. He figured the one time he let his guard down they would pull something, and they planned to. In Seventh year. They still had a long way to go before getting there.
Rhett let out a sigh as he reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a Ton Tongue Toffee, staring at it.
"What do you suppose would happen if we threw one of these into a Swelling Potion?" He inquired. Talak stared at the Toffee for a long while, chewing his food slowly.
"I suppose we could find out, seeing as how we're doing that today. Why Snape thinks we need to do it is beyond my comprehension. We learned that potion in Second year, why on earth would he think we'd forgotten it?"
"Too true, it's way too much fun." Leroux grinned. He let out a deep sigh as he closed his eyes, recalling the summer after second year when he'd poured the potion over Tyr's dinner plate. The then-five year old had shrieked in terror when his food was suddenly expanded to double its original size. Alicia had been absolutely livid, but Fred had been too hysterical with laughter to say anything. Leroux suspected his father approved, even though Tyr had ended up eating mushy food for close to two months.
Getting back into the conversation, he realized Vilandra was dissuading the twins from finding out what would happen.
"Oh, come on, Lonnie! Why not?" Rhett pouted.
"We're not supposed to pull pranks on Halloween, it's too normal; and we, gentlemen, are far from normal." She insisted, looking between the three boys.
"Too right." Lexa laughed as she walked behind the twins and sat down, Jase right beside her.
"They may be right, Lexa, but let's not dissuade them from pulling a nasty prank on Snape. Got anything planned?" Jase asked, a mischievous glint in her hazel eyes. All three boys turned to Vilandra and began pouting and whimpering. She rolled her eyes.
"Oh, fine. As if you need to use all those theatrics to convince me. All one of you had to do was say please one more time and I would've insisted on doing something bigger." The three boys laughed and high-fived, excited about their plan. Given it wasn't one of their better ones—certainly would never top Leroux and Vilandra flooding the dungeons, although they didn't really know what could at this point—but it was a plan against Snape, nonetheless.
The four had already discussed how hard it would be to top the flooding of the dungeons prank. They'd wanted to leave Hogwarts at the end of their Seventh year with the best prank ever, but since the flooding of the dungeons, the twins were slightly jealous that it would probably be the prank everyone would ever remember, and they'd had nothing to do with it.
Soon, the four had finished their breakfast and slowly made their way to Snape's dungeon. They talked excitedly about how interesting it would feel to finally do a prank on Halloween, but Leroux insisted it wouldn't be anywhere near as gratifying as when they finally did a prank on April Fool's day—they hadn't done one on that day yet, either, waiting for Seventh year.
As they all filed into their Potions class, the four waited excitedly to brew their Potion and try out the Ton Tongue Toffee. Of course, they knew they'd have to get their Potions perfectly right, and Leroux seemed to be the only one who didn't always screw up. That—and the fact that he'd brewed one before to use on Tyr—was why the other three didn't pay too much attention to what they were doing, much too interested to be sure that Leroux's potion was right.
Snape tsk-tsked as he walked around the room, stopping in front of Talak's and letting out a bark of laughter at the colour brewing before him. Talak didn't care, but he was itching for Snape to leave so he could check Leroux's again. As Snape passed in front of Rhett's, he smirked viciously, moving on to Leroux. He let out a simple grunt as he passed, which confirmed to the four that his potion was right, and then proceeded to sneer at Vilandra's potion. Once he'd turned back to head to the front of the room, Rhett passed the Ton Tongue Toffee to Leroux, who then dropped it into his potion. The result was instantaneous. Leroux and Vilandra were thrown backwards as the Toffee expanded, breaking the cauldron and knocking the two off their chairs. Not a drop of the potion remained, and the Toffee had grown so large it was actually bigger than their table, one end of it actually stretching across onto the twins' table.
The twins were roaring with laughter as Leroux and Vilandra struggled to suppress their own. Snape rushed to the back of the class angrily, glaring at the four Gryffindors.
"I expected something like this from you four today!" He growled at them.
"No you didn't!" Leroux insisted, finally laughing. He and Vilandra had tried suppressing it, hoping the twins would as well so that they could blame it on someone else. But as soon as the twins let out their first burst of laughter, Vilandra and Leroux saw no point in attempting to hold back theirs.
"We never pull pranks on Halloween. You had no idea this was coming." Vilandra added quickly before Snape could reply. He opened his mouth, but they were saved another few hours of detention by a loud voice echoing through the halls.
"All students return to your dormitories. All students please return immediately to your dormitories. Go as quickly and calmly as possible. Avoid all windows, if possible, and do not go outside. This is not a matter to take lightly, there are dragons on the way. Return to your dormitories immediately." The four shared a look as chairs emptied faster than when the bell rang. Everyone rushed out the door, hurrying back to their respective dormitories. The Gryffindors raced through the halls quickly, occasionally joining another group of Gryffindors. Their dormitory was the furthest, and the older students were hurrying up the younger ones, ensuring no one was going to go off and try to play hero. Kei was running behind her four cousins, keeping an eye on them for she knew they enjoyed the chaos to pull pranks. They were, however, not idiots. If dragons were on their way, they were not about to go outside and attempt to play Quidditch. As they turned another corner, Professor Lupin was running towards them.
"No need to panic! Nothing to worry about! It's all right, don't panic!" He hurried past them. The four shared a look. If there was anything to panic about, it was a professor running through the corridors telling them that there was nothing to panic about.
They continued onward hurriedly, wanting to get to Gryffindor tower as soon as possible. As soon as they hit their Common Room, they all saw McGonnagall there, casting enchantments on the windows.
"No one is to go to their rooms." She was saying over the worried chatter. "Everyone is to remain in the Common Room, away from the windows. I've enchanted them, but there is no guarantee the enchantment will work against the dragons." She hurried towards the portrait hole as she spoke. "Prefects, ensure everyone remains in the Common Room and away from the windows." She disappeared through the portrait hole and the whispered chatter exploded as people began to panic.
"Why don't you think she wants us in the rooms?" Leroux asked as he sat down on the floor against one of the walls furthest from the windows.
"Probably didn't have time to go around enchanting all the windows." Vilandra shrugged, falling down beside him. The twins also joined them on the floor and they sat in silence, the only four in the Common Room not speaking. Chaim suddenly flew in through the portrait hole, followed by a few other First years, and scanned the room. The second his eyes fell on Vilandra, he bolted to her, Alca close behind. He skid to the ground and hugged her tightly. Although she was stunned, she did not show it, and hugged him back.
"I'm scared." He whispered. She rubbed his back soothingly.
"I know, sweetie. I'm scared, too."
"No you're not." Alca insisted, shoving herself between the twins and grabbing one of their arms with each of her own. "You're sitting there, not doing anything. Your eyes don't even look afraid!"
"Just because I don't look afraid doesn't mean I'm not." Vilandra insisted, still rubbing her brother's back.
"Should we be going home?" Chaim asked. "This is the second attack, I think we should be going home."
"No, it'll be okay." Leroux insisted. "The professors will have it all under control in no time."
"Brings us back to the question of the year." They all turned to Rhett as he spoke. "Why is the King of Darkness attacking a school?" The others fell silent. Vilandra didn't want to discuss their theories in front of her brother and Alca. She didn't want to worry them. Kei appeared before them a few minutes later, bending down in front of Alca who still clutched Rhett and Talak's arms desperately.
"You okay?" She shook her head.
"No, I'm not okay! You said Hogwarts was fun!"
"It is fun." Kei insisted. "They're just—"
"We're having a bad year." Leroux cut in. "We should be thankful we aren't our parents. When they were around, they had it worse." Screaming erupted from the other side of the Common Room as a dragon slammed into the tower, rocking it violently. Two girls scurried towards their room and Kei jumped to her feet, running towards them, screaming at them to stay in the Common Room. Chaim's hold on Vilandra tightened as the tower continued to rock, the younger kids screaming, the older kids looking around worriedly.
"Of course, we have to be the only ones in a dormitory that can fall over!" Talak spat bitterly. Alca let out a whimper and Rhett leaned across behind her to cuff him upside the head. He let out a startled yelp and turned to glare at his brother. The rocking of the tower continued, the noise outside reverberating through the Common Room. Jase and Lexa came hurriedly across the Common Room, sitting down with the six cousins. Kei was still off yelling at the two girls who'd attempted to run to their rooms.
"Talak, can we talk?" Lexa asked him.
"Of course."
"Not here." He turned to Rhett confused, and Rhett just shrugged.
"Uh, okay. Sure." Alca let go of Talak's arm and clutched Rhett's tightly as Talak stood up. Lexa led the way to the portrait hole and Talak glanced nervously over his shoulder.
"It's safer out there, anyway. At least we won't be in a tower that can topple over." Lexa insisted as she walked through the portrait hole, Talak following. As they walked down the corridor, they heard the Fat Lady calling to them, saying they'd be in a lot of trouble if they were caught. Talak wished he'd been able to bring the invisibility cloak, or the Marauder's map—just in case.
Jase motioned for Talak to stop and then began to pace back and forth in front of a wall. Looking around, Talak recognized where they were. They were in the corridor where the Room of Requirement was located. After having walked in front of the wall three times, Jase finally opened a door and motioned Talak to follow her in. He did, closing the door behind himself, and looking around. He was confused to see the room looked exactly like one of the dorm rooms, only it contained one bed instead of five. He frowned, walking forward slowly.
"What's going on?" He asked as he stopped in front of the bed. He heard no reply, so he spun around. The second he did, grey eyes were staring hungrily into his. "Lexa?" He asked confused, taking a step back.
"I've always found you irresistible, Potter." She said to him with a smile. He was shoved viciously onto the bed, landing awkwardly on his back, his elbows propped. He opened his mouth stunned, but couldn't speak as Lexa climbed on top of him, straddling him. Finally, finding his voice, he spoke.
"Really?" Lexa ripped open his button-down uniform shirt and buttons flew across the room. He stared down at his shirt, stunned. "Me?" He chocked out before looking back up at Lexa. She merely grinned and leaned down, drawing circles on his chest with her index finger.
"I'm sure you've noticed me staring, Potter. You probably just didn't know why. Men, always so thick." Talak's mind was unusually empty. He usually always had comebacks when girls said things like this because Vilandra said them all the time. In this case, however, he was struggling to even understand what she was saying!
"Me?" He chocked out again. Lexa giggled.
"Of course you, Talak. I didn't drag Rhett or Leroux in here, did I?" Talak didn't reply, still staring at Lexa. He didn't understand. How could she possibly like him! There were much better-looking guys out there, like Salai Malfoy. Yeah, you just answered your own question, Talak thought, almost rolling his eyes. Between a butt-ugly bloke and Malfoy, any Gryffindor girl would've gone for the butt-ugly bloke.
"Why me?" Talak asked in a chocked whisper. Lexa merely giggled again before leaning down and brushing her lips against his. He was so caught off-guard he nearly gasped. She pulled back, grinning down at him.
"First kiss?" She asked. He said nothing, too embarrassed to answer. "S'all right, me too." She leaned down again and began snogging him, her hands on either side of his face. At first, it was slightly awkward, but soon it became more fluid and Talak closed his eyes, putting his hand on the back of Lexa's head to deepen the kiss. A few seconds later, she pulled away again, grinning down at him.
"Never knew you tasted so good, Potter."
"Guess we're both surprised, Johnson." He grinned back and she leaned down again.
-----
"Where do you think those two have gone off to?" Rhett asked as he flicked a piece of dirt off his trousers. "They've been gone for quite a while." The dragon attack seemed to have ended, but no one dared move until McGonnagall returned, so they all stayed sitting in the Common Room, waiting patiently for the all-clear.
"Think we ought to report them?" Vilandra asked, Chaim no longer hugging her, but clutching her arm tightly. Alca was doing the same to Rhett.
"That's not very nice." Leroux shot in. Vilandra rolled her eyes at him.
"I'm talking about reporting them out of concern, not for fun." Vilandra insisted.
"I'm sure they're fine." Jase said, a small smile tugging at her lips. Rhett and Leroux shared a look and Vilandra lifted an eyebrow, but none of them said anything. The portrait hole swung open and McGonnagall came in, looking slightly dishevelled, but otherwise fine.
"Attention, please." She called over the noise in the Common Room, and it died down immediately. "All classes today have been cancelled, and you are not to leave the dormitory until dinner. It is safe to return to your rooms, but I advise you steer clear of the windows for the next few hours. I will see all of you at dinner." She hurried back out the portrait hole and everyone ran for their respective rooms, obviously finding more comfort around their belongings and friends than in a large room of people they hardly knew. The only ones who didn't depart from the Common Room were the three cousins and Jase.
They moved to the sofas and sat waiting for their two friends to return. They sat in relative silence for a long while, Leroux watching Jase and then looking away when she turned to look at him. After a few long minutes of silence, Jase finally spoke.
"You know something I never understood?" They all shook their heads. "How come none of you are on the Gryffindor Quidditch team? I mean, all of your parents were, and all of them were brilliant. Why wouldn't you want to continue with the family tradition?" Leroux turned to Vilandra.
"Would you like to explain, or should I?"
"By all means, Mr. Weasley. Knock yourself out." Vilandra replied as Rhett rolled his eyes. Leroux turned back to Jase.
"If I ever played, I'd want to be a Chaser or a Beater." He began. "If you're a Chaser, you have an important job, but it's not really crucial as long as you keep the Quaffle away from the other team, and you have a good Seeker. If you're a Beater, it's even better because then you don't have to worry about the Quaffle and just concentrate on keeping the Bludgers from bashing your head in—or the heads of your teammates, if you care enough. Being Keeper and Seeker are just—too demanding. If you don't catch the Snitch, you feel like you're not that great of a Seeker, and you'll always feel like you let the team down because you're the person who should've won it. Same thing with being a Keeper; if the other team manages to score so many points that even if your team catches the Snitch they still lose, you feel ashamed. Keeper and Seeker are the two worst positions you could ever want. Seeing as how Rhett and Talak are Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny's kids, and both of them were amazing Seekers, you can be sure they don't feel the need to embarrass themselves by being horrible at it. As for Vilandra—" He cut himself off before saying Ron's name. "She's the daughter of a Keeper, and she's terrible with hand-eye coordination, so we can be sure she'd be shoving her father's reputation into the mud. As for me, I see no reason in joining a team where I can't cause chaos and disorder with three of my best mates, no matter how good I am with a Bludger bat."
"We play it at home, though, with dad." Rhett informed. "Great fun. Of course, Talak always gets in trouble when he hits me over the head with a Bludger bat, but it's all in good fun." Vilandra smirked at him, cocking an eyebrow as she crossed her legs, her hands on the two armrests of the armchair she sat in.
"Perhaps it has to do with the fact that you broke Talak's nose when you were kids, hm?"
"Quiet, it was an accident!" Rhett insisted, crossing his arms and pouting, much like a small child would.
"Not the way I remember it." Leroux insisted, smirking at Rhett.
"Why? What happened?" Jase asked interested, sitting up straighter. Rhett opened his mouth to say nothing, but Leroux had beat him to it, and began to explain that fateful day.
"Well, when we were around eight or nine, the four of us were outside playing Quidditch with uncle Harry and uncle—" He cut off again, almost having said Ron's name a second time. He knew that Rhett must've cringed every time he said his father's name, but they were fairly certain he was still alive. Vilandra's dad was as good as dead for all they knew. "Well, with the adults." He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "We had real Bludgers and a Snitch and everything. It was great fun. I did this really cool move on my broom that—"
"Back to the point." Vilandra interrupted, giving Leroux a small smirk that would've done Malfoy proud. "Rhett and Talak were on opposite teams, both playing Seeker. I was a Chaser, and Leroux was Batter. After a few minutes, the game had ended with Talak catching the Snitch. You know men and their egos, right?"
"Hey!" Rhett and Leroux exclaimed insulted.
"Oh, hush. What happened next?" Jase insisted, waving her hand at the boys to quiet them.
"Well, I was sulking just like Rhett about our loss—"
"I wasn't sulking!" Rhett interjected.
"—when he came up beside me." Leroux continued, ignoring the interruption. "He wrenched the bat from my hand, and as Talak flew past with the Snitch, he swung it into his face, sending Talak flying off his broom. Talak would've been even more injured had he not been so close to the ground."
"And to top it off, Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry spent the next three hours looking for the Snitch he'd let go of." Vilandra inputted. "As soon as the game had ended, they'd removed the charm that stopped it from flying too far from the posts, so it took them ages to find it again."
"You're not very nice." Jase insisted with a fake-scowl, turning to Rhett.
"He gets his revenge now, doesn't he?" Rhett insisted, crossing his arms.
"Rhett's never been allowed to be Beater since then." Leroux finished. Jase snorted.
"And with good reason!"
"Well excuse me!" Rhett rolled his eyes, just as the portrait hole swung open. They all turned to see Talak and Lexa returning. Talak's hair was sticking up more than usual, and his shirt was completely open, exposing his chest.
"What happened to your shirt, mate?" Leroux asked startled. He looked down at it, as if not even realizing anything was wrong with it.
"Oh, it uh—it got caught on a suit of armour as we were running from McGonnagall. It popped off all the buttons." His eyes flickered towards Lexa who said nothing, standing innocently at his side. Talak scanned the four faces before him and stopped on Jase as she motioned the side of her mouth. Talak hastily wiped the side of his mouth, noticing pink on his shirtsleeve as he let his hand fall back to his side. He silently wondered why Lexa had worn lipstick at all if she'd been planning this excursion for weeks, like she'd told him she had.
"Well, that was exciting, wasn't it?" Lexa asked, falling down on the couch beside Rhett. Talak walked slowly towards his room to get a new shirt, the three cousins looking back and forth between Talak and Lexa.
"Depends on whether we're talking about the same thing, doesn't it?" Vilandra grinned.
"How do girls always know!" Talak hollered from the stairs before entering the room.
"Know what? What happened?" Rhett asked confused as he and Leroux looked back and forth between Jase, Lexa and Vilandra, all three of whom were grinning.
-----
"But sir, Harry needs my help!" Hermione insisted angrily, beginning to lose her temper.
"I've told you before, we haven't got enough Aurors to allow you to go off and find Mr. Potter. His fate his most regrettable, but—"
"Regrettable!" Hermione hollered angrily. Cornelius Fudge recoiled in his seat, the intensity in Hermione's brown eyes worrying. "After all he's done for you! He defeated Voldemort, he defeated Malfoy, he even got rid of Umbridge and then helped you get your job back!"
"Only because he hated Scrimgeour!" Fudge insisted annoyed.
"You owe him your life and your job, you ungrateful—"
"Are you sure you want to finish that sentence?" Fudge demanded.
"As a matter of fact, yes, I am sure, you ungrateful swine!" Fudge glowered down at her angrily.
"Mrs. Weasley," He said with a sigh. Hermione grimaced at this. Everyone else still called her 'Ms. Granger'. Fudge was the only one who didn't. "You must understand that we have limited resources at the moment. We have hardly enough Aurors to spare for Hogwarts, and more are being sent every day due to the attacks." Hermione's face paled.
"Attacks?" She asked. She'd been so engrossed in finding out how to help Harry that she hadn't been paying attention to the King of Darkness' current events. News of the attacks on the school made Hermione's stomach flip over. "What happened at Hogwarts?"
"Nothing to worry about, we hear it's all under con—"
"What happened!" She hollered angrily. Fudge jumped, clearly ruffled by her anger, and answered immediately.
"A month ago, a Chimera found its way into the school. We are told it was work of a Death Eater which—if I'm not mistaken—was found by your daughter and her three cousins." Hermione's stomach flipped over a second time, a tight knot beginning to form in her stomach.
"Are they okay?" She asked.
"They're quite all right. No one was harmed during the Chimera incident, either. But not a day ago, dragons were seen attacking the school." The knot in Hermione's stomach doubled. "I've discussed the closure of the school with Dumbledore, but he won't hear of it. He insists that the school is the safest place for the students."
"It is." Hermione said without hesitation. "No matter how dangerous it is in there, one can be sure it's worse out here."
"Perhaps, but there are more students to look out for in the school and only a few teachers to do so. At home, parents can keep a closer eye on their children, and it usually makes them feel better when their children are close at hand during dangerous times."
"Even if every single parent sends for their children to come home, I guarantee that the Weasleys and Potters will not call for their children to return. I'm fairly sure anyone else at Hogwarts during Voldemort's time won't call their children back, either. That is the safest place on the planet, no matter what anyone says." Fudge knew better than to argue. Hermione had gone through a lot in that school with Dumbledore as the headmaster, and he'd helped her, Ron and Harry survive through many different dangerous situations. He'd faked his own death to save Harry's life once, so Fudge wasn't surprised to see the loyalty in Hermione. No one would've been.
"Dumbledore is not going to close the school as of yet, of that I can assure you, but many parents are calling their children home. They believe it to be safer, and with you as an Auror, your children would be much safer at home, with you."
"You have me working around the clock, how in Merlin's name do you expect me to be able to watch my own children?" Hermione hissed. "I'd rather they stay with Dumbledore. As I've said before, he is the only person other than myself that I trust to protect my children, nieces and nephews. Now I believe we were talking about Harry." Fudge let out a sigh.
"Mrs. Weasley, I have said this to you over and over again. We cannot spare you to go off and find Mr. Potter. We need you here. We've having enough problems with him as it is. He's been killing people all over Britain, and word has spread that he's got supporters in other countries! This could turn in a Wizard World War! I cannot allow you to go after Harry, I'm sorry."
"You let me go," Hermione said threateningly. "Or I quit, and go anyway." Fudge stared at her, stunned.
"You wouldn't dare." He whispered.
"Oh, I would." Hermione insisted. "If you don't allow me to go off to find Harry, I'll quit and go off by myself." Fudge stared at her. "I'm not asking for backup, I'm not asking for permission. I'm telling you. I'm going. It's whether you want me to go as a Ministry official, or on my own accord." Fudge sat in his chair, silent for a long time. He finally let out a long sigh.
"It appears I have no choice, Mrs. Weasley." He grumbled. "But good luck finding him. I'm surprised Mr. Potter even found him. We knew he had contacts, but we had no idea how good they were." Hermione said nothing. She'd never told Fudge she knew where the King of Darkness was. She'd told him she'd heard a rumour of his whereabouts and told them to Harry.
"I'll find him, don't you worry." Hermione turned on her heel and hurried from the room. She rushed up to her office and pulled out three pieces of parchment, sitting down hurriedly. She wrote quickly, but put a lot of thought into what she wrote. Having finished the first parchment, she pushed it aside and began writing on the next one. Soon, she'd written on all three parchments, all three beginning with the names of one of her children. She rolled up the parchments for Vilandra and Chaim and tied them to a brown barn owl that she used regularly to send mail. She then rolled up the last letter for Sterling and tied it to Ron's old owl, Pigwidgeon. The two took flight quickly, disappearing into the sky, as if aware of how important these letters were to Hermione. She knew Vilandra would suspect something big was about to happen, but Hermione would be long gone before her daughter ever replied.
Hermione pulled on her travelling cloak and ensured her wand was tucked safely in her robe pocket. She flew down the stairs, everyone watching her go in silence. They all knew what she was going to do, and all of them pitied her. No one should have to go and face their husband and best friend because he'd turned evil. No one deserved that.
Hermione disapparated from the ministry, apparating quickly back to her home. She threw open one of the closets near the door and fumbled around for one of her old brooms. She hated flying, but it was the only way she knew of to get to her destination. Finally finding one, she headed for the door, but paused as she passed the hall table, family photos perched atop it. Her eyes fell on a picture of her three children, smiling brightly while wearing fancy clothes. It had been a birthday present for Hermione. Feeling guilt in her heart at leaving them, she wrenched open the frame and folded the picture, tucking it safely in another pocket of her robes. With that done, she exited the house, locking the door behind her.
She climbed onto her broom and rose into the air, flying into the sky and heading for the King of Darkness' stronghold. She knew where it was. She'd known ever since the day Ron left her. He sent her one letter every year, always containing the same message.
Hermione,
Join me in this chosen path. It is my destiny, as it is yours to be forever by my side. Come to me. I am residing in the forest marked by the death of Voldemort. You know what I mean.
Forever yours,
The King of Darkness.
For the first time in seven years, Hermione finally headed for that fateful place. Tears streamed down her face at the realization of what she would have to do once faced with her husband again. She knew the only way she would be able to go through with this would be to repeat that the man she was going to face was not her husband. Her husband had died the day he walked out her front door, and never returned.