Chapter 9: Vendettas
~Just before the airstrike~
Second Defensive Line- Artillery and Mortars
Surviving soldiers and Ministry personnel were frantically retreating behind the artillery and mortar crews, who were doing their best to hold off the enemy tanks.
"They're all over the place! They got fucking tanks!" exclaimed one Muggle soldier, who had lost an arm and was in shock. He was carried away by his battle brothers, obviously heading into the medical tents just beyond the artillery.
155mm shells from British AS-90s were hammering the enemy positions. But the T-72s managed to disable multiple units.
"We're displacing. It's getting too hairy out here!" Said one crew leader as he saw several other AS-90s get disabled.
RPGs, heavy machine gun fire from PKMs and HK-21s and the notorious Reductor Curses were clattering the armour of one AS-90 some forty meters west of the American mortar pits. The crew wasted no time in scanning for targets.
"T-72 advancing up the tree line!"
"Range! 100 meters!"
The AS-90 crew was swiftly loading its 155 mm shell into the gun. One of the crew members was suppressing the enemy using the FN-MAG attached to the self-propelled gun.
"COME ON LADS!" shouted a crewman.
"ON TARGET!"
"FIRE!"
The AS-90 fired off its 155 mm shell, hitting the T-72 straight on its hull. The tank stopped, it seemed that they disabled the vehicle or at least knocked the crew out. In any case, it wasn't moving.
"Armour neutralized in Sector 3." Spoke a British crewman on his handset.
Just fifty meters from the main artillery units, several muggles, Aurors and Hitwizards were firing off small arms, Shield Charms and Cutting Charms in order to defend the retreat.
A muggle soldier took cover behind a tree, frantically reloading his L85A1. Once loaded, he took aim at an advancing Death Eater.
*click
"Fucking Christ." The soldier breathed out disbelievingly as the rifle jammed. He hit the dirt as the Death Eater fired off an orange spell.
"COME ON OUT, LITTLE PIGGY! LEMME GIVE YA A LOVE TAP!" The deranged Death Eater cackled as he fired off more violent spells, each growing darker than the other.
The soldier, now separated from the main group, dropped his rifle and switched to his sidearm. He took on a crouching position and popped off one round onto the Death Eater, hitting him square in the chest.
"AAAAAH!" The Death Eater screamed, alerting the prowling mercenaries.
Mercenaries fired their AK-47s and MP5s on the soldier.
"Damn!" He exclaimed as he crawled his way out of the kill zone. Once he reached a small clearing the soldier ran as quickly as he could, desperate to find the nearest friendly unit.
A slight distance away from the soldier's near-death experience, an Auror saw a Death Eater hurl an Entrail-Expelling curse at one of his men, nearly hitting him.
He turned to the Death Eater and casted, "RELASHIO!"
The Death Eater failed to react fast enough and was suddenly grasping his throat, choking in his blood.
He heard several Death Eaters cast 'Incarcerous' on a muggle soldier several meters from his right. The soldier's desperate pleas for help were muffled by the twigs and dirt and the combined power of the spells crushed him with a squelch.
Angered, the Auror screamed 'Incendio' and 'Reducto' on the two Death Eaters, killing them and causing bits of flesh to rain down on the forest floor.
Another Auror avoided a Killing Curse and fired back his own Impedimenta Jinx onto a Death Eater.
"PROTEGO!" A Hitwizard casted against heavy gunfire from a Russian PKM. Its 7.62x54R rimmed ammunition pounding the shield like massive fingers on a dome.
"WE NEED TO LEAVE! NOW!" Bellowed the Hitwizard as he saw a Junior Auror get hit by a Killing Curse.
The Aurors and Hitwizards were facing increasing opposition and lack of cover. The Lead Auror, sensing that further stay would mean sure death, swiftly made a decision.
He fired off the Incendio spell several times, burning the mercenary PKM gunner and several Death Eaters.
"GAAAAAAH!"
"HEEELP!" The enemy screamed in pain.
"GO! I'LL COVER!" The Lead Auror barked at his men.
They were initially hesitant, refusing to budge if it meant abandoning their leader. They had no other choice when he bellowed impatiently, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU STARING AT ME FOR? FUCKING MOVE!"
His men ran as if they were escaping from Filch's cat. The Lead Auror hoped that they would reach safety in time as he held the enemy at bay.
"COME ON! IS THAT ALL YOU'VE GOT!" He shouted at them as he fired several Reductor Curses at the Death Eaters. A muggle HK-21 opened fire and hit him in the stomach. He crawled behind a rock and fired another Cutting Charm at an advancing Death Eater. As the muggle reloaded his weapon, the Auror took this chance, left the rock and shouted, "EXPELLIARMUS!" The weapon flew out of the mercenary's hands. The bloodied Auror sneered while clutching his stomach; he was coughing up a lot of blood. The Auror prepared to fire a Blasting Hex at him when he was finally hit by a Death Eater's Reductor Curse.
~Meanwhile in the American mortar pits~
"HANGING!"
"FIRE!"
The mortar launched an 81mm round onto the entrenched enemy some 100 meters from their position.
It was a direct hit.
"GODDAMN! Get another one up!" screamed a soldier.
"HANGING!"
"FIRE!"
The mortar teams maintained a steady stream of rounds before their field commanders sent a transmission.
"Redleg, Redleg, cease fire. Cease fire, over!"
"Tangos are falling back into the Forest. Over."
"Maintain eyes on the perimeter. We cannot let them slip right through the lines!" A voice was heard from a wispy like mamba Patronus as it passed through the mortar pits.
The mortar crews were panting as they finally stopped lobbing rounds onto the enemy.
"How's our ammo?" Asked the lead mortar man.
The crewmen checked their crates and brought up two empty cases. "We're pretty much running low on everything, Sarge." Said one of the Privates.
This was not good at all, the Sergeant thought wryly.
Meanwhile: Two kilometres north of the Second Defensive Line
Private Simmons was still crawling on his stomach while being burdened by pounds of gear and an unconscious soldier. He had no idea how long he had been moving about like a worm; the Forest cover was thick enough that it would still give the impression of eternal darkness. Spellfire, gunfire, tanks, enemy chatter and artillery echoed all over the place, but he could tell from the remains of various bunkers and emplacements that the Allies have been pushed back even further.
The young private was wheezing and sweating profusely. He couldn't keep this up anymore, he needed to find a place to stop.
He had been dragging his kit and unconscious comrade for a while now, and he still had no visual on any friendly unit in the area.
In his mind, he was panicking. What if they were the only ones left?
"No. Arty and mortars are probably still up. I just have to keep moving." He told himself.
His comrade, Martinez, groaned. He shifted his attention to his friend.
"Martinez. It's me, Simmons! I'm getting you outta here just hang on." He whispered to him frantically as Martinez went silent once again.
After confirming that the wounded man was still alive, he crawled for a few more meters until he reached a small crater. Sighing in relief, he dragged them both inside the crater, finally able to sit upright. He situated Martinez next to him in an upright sitting position.
Once that was done, he inhaled and exhaled a few times and took stock of his inventory and surroundings.
He had a LAW and his service pistol. He was good on ammo for his sidearm but his buddy's equipment was gone. Their BDUs were torn to shreds, helmets peppered with holes and their arms were covered in blood, wood and shrapnel.
All in all, it wasn't a good sight.
Simmons looked around the crater and saw nothing but charred bodies; they were most likely sitting in a recently destroyed bunker.
The artillery was close enough to be heard but he couldn't see any actual friendlies.
'At least I'm halfway to the second line' he thought dryly.
With a renewed sense of motivation, he scrounged for whatever he could find to fix his arm. Thankfully their aid kits were in good condition, so he began to administer first aid.
After what seemed like twenty minutes, he bandaged his wound up. It would have to hold until they reached friendly lines. He turned to his friend and clumsily patched him up too.
In the silence, he heard some mutterings coming from the direction of the fighting. Simmons suddenly stopped, his breathing shallow as he saw at least a dozen figures closing in on his position. They were moving fast and they looked like they were—
"No." he muttered disbelievingly.
They were in American BDUs, holding American weapons and were following a guy in a cloak. The cloaked figure looked awfully familiar. But he had no time to identify the man; if they knew that he and Martinez were still alive, they would kill them both.
On the other hand, he was stunned by the possibility that they were the infiltrators.
Slowly, he hugged Martinez to him and pretended to be dead. A minute passed until they were a couple of meters away from the crater. He kept his eyes closed, but listened in to the voices.
"Twenty more meters until we reach the evac point, sir." Spoke the first voice in a heavy accent.
'Fucking Russians.' Simmons thought angrily.
There was no reply from his supposed Commander. Once they were a few meters from the right side of the crater, the Commander snarled. Simmons then listened closely, he sounded familiar.
"I was told that this assault would not be necessary! WHY DID IT PUSH THROUGH? All we had to do was neutralize the Alpha target covertly!" the man finished his tirade.
Another voice replied, seemingly unperturbed by the commander's outburst. "It is best if we save this discussion for another time, Mr. Snape. Bring it up with your Master. As far as we are concerned, the mission was a success and the School is now vulnerable." The voice finished.
'Fuck. It seems the School was attacked too.' Simmons thought grimly. He went over what he just heard.
Snape. That was the commander's name. He rocked his head over all the briefings they had ever since they were deployed to the School; there was a Hogwarts Professor named Snape. It could be him. Who was this Alpha target they were talking about?
He cut short his musings as Snape spoke once more, "This isn't over, swine. YOU, WITH THE RADIO DEVICE!"
Shuffling of feet was heard. Snape then gave out his order, "Tell all our forces to withdraw immediately. While we made our escape, I overheard Muggle commanders calling in 'air support.' I may be magical, but even I can tell that it does not bode well for all of us here." He drawled.
The radioman grunted his assent and began relaying the transmission to the units advancing onto the school.
"Все единицы. Это Медведь. Снять со счета."
The transmission was met by brief silence. Then, "Понял. Теперь отступаю."
Once Snape was satisfied, he growled to his men, "Let's move."
Simmons let out a huge breath as the group fled the scene. He pondered over all the information he just gathered.
The enemy had just struck them hard. The School was probably in disarray, they succeeded in eliminating the so-called Alpha target and Snape was working for the magical equivalent of Hitler.
'What a fucking month' he muttered to himself.
He recalled that Snape ordered the withdrawal of all their forces from the area because of muggle air support. That means the entire Forest was going to be barbecued to hell and back once those fast-movers arrive.
Simmons had to move fast or else he'll be torched by his own guys. He dropped his LAW from his kit and tried lifting Martinez up to his feet.
"Come on, man. Get up. We got to get out of here before the cavalry napes the damn place!" He tried to shake his unconscious friend awake.
"Fuck." He muttered. With no other recourse, he decided to limp his way to Hogwarts while carrying Martinez. The young private stood up gingerly, careful to watch for the retreating enemy and was about to try to lift Martinez up when he heard hooves from his left.
He struggled to bring out his sidearm and instead fell on his bum, making him wince in pain. His eyes were blurry as he saw a horse-like figure materialize before him. He had a bow and arrow, he looked like one of those mythical creatures in his Greek mythology books, only that this one seemed real.
The creature approached Simmons, who was panting and tried staying away from him. The private put his palm over his sidearm.
"That would be unnecessary, boy." The creature spoke to him softly.
This stunned Simmons. "Y-you could talk?" He spluttered.
The creature simply smiled at him and said, "Yes, among other things. I am a centaur. I go by the name, Firenze." The centaur then bowed in greeting.
Simmons was too shocked to do anything. But then remembered that this place was magical.
He cleared his throat and readied to reply when Firenze cut him off. "You are in need of aid. Mars has seen it fit to allow the humans to fight in the Forest. As much as I loathe to admit it, this was all foretold by the stars and we cannot diverge from destiny itself. Come, child. I shall bring you to the School. The Forest will not be here to protect you any longer." He offered his hand to the grimy and battered Simmons, who grabbed it hesitantly.
The centaur smiled at his acceptance. He lifted and placed the wounded Simmons onto his back and plopped the unconscious Martinez in front of the young private, his body hanging on like a drunk rider. The centaur then faced the direction of the fighting but has since ground to a halt.
"Just a heads up. The enemy is withdrawing back to where they came from, which is basically behind us, and I can see some of their tanks and infantry up ahead." Simmons told Firenze drowsily. He was getting tired all of a sudden.
Firenze did not mind this. "Do not fret, dear child. The stars have not yet foretold your deaths. Now, I would ask that you simply allow me to lead you to safety. Sleep, for now." He spoke to Simmons in a voice reminding the young American of his grandfather giving him some hot cocoa for bedtime.
Simmons' attention wavered as he felt the fatigue setting in. Firenze galloped away towards Hogwarts.
'It must be the centaur magic' was Simmons' last thoughts before sleep claimed him.
HOGWARTS HOSPITAL WING- Hours after the Battle
There was daylight seeping through the windows by the time Private Simmons came to. He grimaced as he tried to rub his eyes with his right arm, which had been healing from shrapnel wounds.
He inhaled deeply as he tried to sit his groggy-self against the bed's headboard. After blinking a few times, he saw the Hospital Wing filled with wounded patients and visitors, presumably family and friends of some students.
He observed many beds separated by white curtains. Simmons sobered at the sight of many soldiers, Ministry personnel and several students laying on these beds; a considerable number were scarred to the point of non-recognition.
The young soldier's eyes popped wide open once he remembered his battle brother.
"Martinez." He said as he scanned for his comrade among the beds.
"I wouldn't move around if I were you, young man." Spoke a stern voice from Simmons' left. He quickly turned to the source of the voice and relaxed as he saw the school Matron, Madam Pomfrey, pushing a cart of various substances and a smoking cauldron.
She stopped by his bed and casted a diagnostic spell over him and pushed into his palm several potions. Simmons stared at the potions tentatively and his questioning gaze was met with a hard look.
"These potions will accelerate the healing process and are best taken immediately after waking up. I will give you your final assessment after you take these potions and then you can be on your way." She finished primly.
Simmons gulped, and slowly put the small bottle on his lips and drank it. It tasted awful and he nearly vomited its contents but kept it in after he was given another hard glare by the Matron. He gasped after swallowing the first potion and several more potions later, the Matron hummed in satisfaction and casted another diagnostic spell on Simmons.
"You'll be all right, soldier. You can leave once breakfast starts, which is at 0700H. If you'll excuse me." The Matron made to move on to the next two beds where a group of people were huddled around the patient, when he reached for Madam Pomfrey's arm.
"What are you-"
"I'm sorry, Ma'am. But…. do you know if a Private David Martinez was admitted here? We were brought together by a Centaur named, uh, damn I forgot." He finished exasperatingly.
The Matron's eyes softened in a look he remembered his mother giving him when she told him his grandfather passed away.
'Goddamn it.'
Madam Pomfrey may have sensed his feelings and she gently peeled his hand away from her arm and said, "The Centaur, Professor Firenze, indeed brought you and another man into this Wing. The soldier died of his wounds after multiple attempts to resuscitate him."
Simmons stayed silent, unblinking and numb.
"His body was carried out by your comrades an hour ago. I wish…this should never have happened to you." The matron's voice shook and she turned away slightly and stared at him again with slightly puffy eyes.
"I'm sorry, lad." She told him sadly and left his side to attend to the next few beds.
Simmons made no attempt to move from his spot as he processed the news. He had lost one of his platoon mates and the closest friend he had in this Contingent. He hadn't been in the army for too long and they had been warned that they will lose people they care about while out in the field.
He laid down, clenched and unclenched his fists and simply stared at the ceiling; lost in his thoughts. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't shed any tears for his friend.
As the young muggle struggled to mourn, the Boy-Who-Lived sat up on his bed surrounded by familiar faces. He too, was struggling to mourn the death of a dear friend, his Mentor.
He was prescribed several healing potions by Madam Pomfrey and after taking them, she told him that he could leave by breakfast time. The Matron then left him to speak with his friends.
Once the adults left Harry's bedside, his five friends surrounded him. They were silent after last night's events. Dumbledore had been confirmed dead after his body fell from the Astronomy Tower. The School was in disbelief at the death of Hogwarts' Greatest Protector and the Leader of the Light. Many were now wondering if Hogwarts would ever be safe; the faculty and staff were discussing whether to keep the School open and there were rumours that the Muggle Contingent would be withdrawn from the School and be deployed elsewhere in Britain, effectively ending their mission in Hogwarts.
The nauseous feeling that a victory had been achieved by Voldemort in Hogwarts was exacerbated by Harry's discovery that the Locket was faked. He revealed this to his friends, who were stunned. Harry and Dumbledore had gone into that cave for nothing. Someone called R.A.B. had stolen the real horcrux with the intent to destroy it. With another wild goose chase on the table, Harry felt hopeless.
He chided himself over his attitude; he cannot afford to be a whimpering schoolboy, Harry realized. Dumbledore wouldn't want his sacrifice to be in vain just because of one setback. He set his jaw and looked at his friends in the eye, surprised at his sudden change in mood.
"Let's go to the Room of Requirement. We need to figure out our steps going forward." He told them all decisively.
His friends were slightly jolted by his announcement but they muttered their agreements.
"All right, Harry. I'll go down the kitchens and grab us some breakfast, you lot go on ahead." Ron announced.
Harry nodded and gingerly stood from his bed and was assisted by Ginny. Together, the sextet made their way out of the Hospital Wing.
Room of Requirement
They all gathered around in a circle in front of the fireplace. The room had been modelled after the Gryffindor Common Room.
A heavy silence hung over the air. Neville broke it first.
"H-Harry. Luna and I…..we found the diadem."
At this, Harry perked up, the fire in his eyes returning.
"Where is it Nev?"
Hermione, who had been sniffling these past few hours, raised her beaded bag.
Harry felt uplifted, but he needed to know from Neville and Luna.
"Is- is it real? It's not faked?" He asked them both desperately.
Luna looked at Harry, no pretence in her gaze. "It's real. Neville and I were nearly ensnared by its defences. It wanted us to put it on our heads." She finished grimly.
Harry shuddered at this, he looked at Ginny, remembering how the Diary took control of her soul and nearly draining her life-force.
The mood was suddenly lighter after Harry learned of the diadem in their possession. Ron and Ginny then told him about the Fangs.
"We've got enough to kill one twice over, mate." Ron told him.
"Hermione's bag is practically an endless pit." Ginny added.
Hermione blushed and also said, "I managed to secure the Fangs in a separate container, that way the venom won't taint any other belongings."
Harry looked at his friends and was glad for the progress they had made. In fact, they could destroy one horcrux right now, if they wanted. But in the back of his mind, he was disappointed in himself. He failed in his part of the mission and Dumbledore was dead.
Ginny noticed him looking down again and held his chin to face her. She stared into his green eyes, almost devoid of life and said, "Don't. Don't blame yourself. You gave everything you had to protect Dumbledore and at least we know where to look for the Locket. If not for you and Dumbledore in that Cave, this Hunt would have gone on far longer. You did not fail, Harry." She finished her speech, gazing at him with a fierceness he had only seen on the Quidditch Pitch or even when duelling.
"Thank you. All of you." He croaked out.
His friends chuckled but grew silent once more.
"Where do we go from here?" Ron asked.
The friends looked at Harry. He clasped his hands under his chin, thinking hard. This won't be one of their usual adventures the last five years. An added complication was the Trace; if they all decided to go on the Hunt right now, it would leave only Hermione as the only one who isn't underage. It would also mean forgoing at least one year of their education in Hogwarts.
Harry swore under his breath. He asked for the Room to give him a board and some chalk. He stood up and began listing down all the things they need.
"All right, we've already got Dumbledore's books on horcruxes and other advanced magic. But it wouldn't hurt to bring our O.W.L. and N.E.W.T.-level books with us." Harry then noticed his friends looking at each other warily, knowing full well the implications of the Hunt.
Hermione then said, "You're right. Ginny and Luna especially haven't taken their OWLs yet."
"Yeah. There isn't even a guarantee that the School will stay open. The Ministry and the Muggles would probably be even busy with dealing with the shite that's going on in the country." Ginny added grimly.
Harry nodded at this. It's true, Voldemort's forces have probably made some moves outside Hogwarts. This made him bring up the issue of the Trace.
"How are we going to deal with the Trace? Won't they track us since we're underage?"
His friends pondered this. Neville then spoke up, "I think I read somewhere that the Trace would only tell us that magic is being used in a magical house, but it won't identify the caster. So long as we're inside or within the vicinity of a magical house, we won't receive letters or alerts from the authorities." He finished and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
The friends were surprised at this. They didn't realize this before.
"I even read that the Trace's effects would be negated by the presence of magical adults. I don't know, it's still a rather confusing thing. Daddy tried to dissect me for any spells from a Trace, he never really found out." Luna added.
"Wait, how come kids don't get expelled if they use magic on the Express?" Ron asked.
"Maybe it's because the Express is a part of Hogwarts or an extension of the school?" Hermione suggested.
The discussions of the Trace was giving Harry a massive headache. But then he had an idea. He thought over Neville's answer on the Trace and like a light bulb, it came to him.
"We could use a magical house as a base of operations. That way, we can practice and study magic without triggering the Trace. At the same time, if we do decide to hunt for Horcruxes, we'll have a place to fall back on."
Hermione interrupted him, "Harry it would be too risky. Having a base of operations is a splendid idea. But the risk of getting tracked after using magic outside that base is too great. What-what if we decided to hole up in that base for at least a year? We can hone our skills, study the horcruxes…." Hermione trailed off after the rest looked between her and Harry.
"One year is too long. By the time we've already reached NEWT-level, Voldemort would have already won." He told her somewhat harshly.
"I know. I know. I just have no way around the damn Trace! If only your birthdays arrived sooner." Hermione exclaimed.
The friends were still thinking of ways on how to bypass the bloody Trace.
"In the meantime, let's list down the possible places we can hole up." Harry announced.
After almost ten minutes, the following were enumerated:
The Burrow
Luna's place
Neville's house
Grimmauld Place
Hogwarts
Aunt Muriel's
Shell Cottage
"We can't risk our families. Mum and Dad won't let us leave their sights if we stayed in any of the Weasley homes." Ron said.
"Damn. Ron's got a point, Harry. I don't think we can handle bringing horcruxes into the Burrow." Ginny told him.
"No, no. I agree with you both. I wouldn't want to involve your families, Luna's and Neville's too, in this Hunt. It's one thing to fight Voldemort, it's another to actively seek his means to live forever." Harry supplied.
Harry crossed out five locations, leaving behind Grimmauld Place and finally Hogwarts.
They grew silent at the two suggestions.
"Erm, what's Grimmauld Place?" asked Neville, who was not aware of Sirius' childhood home, same with Luna.
Harry, Ginny, Ron and Hermione sobered at seeing the name. Harry answered Neville. "It belonged to my late godfather, Sirius Black."
Neville was shocked at this revelation. "Blimey, Harry. I'm sorry for prying-"he was cut off by Harry.
"No. It's fine Nev. You and Luna need to know this."
Neville jerkily nodded.
"All right, Grimmauld Place is pretty safe. It's also under the Fidelius." Harry said.
"Who was the Secret Keeper?" Ginny asked.
"Was it Moody, or-"
"It was Dumbledore." Hermione said at last.
The room suddenly chilled.
Harry was dumbstruck. He turned to Hermione, "How did you know?"
Hermione was red in the face and quietly said, "I overheard Mr. Weasley talking about the Fidelius for Grimmauld Place. Dumbledore's name slipped in when they were discussing with McGonagall and Moody about a new location for Order Headquarters; he said that everyone whom Dumbledore shared the secret with was now secret keeper of Grimmauld Place." She finished.
Harry pondered this and groaned, "That means more chances for Death Eaters to find Grimmauld, especially now that we know Snape is working for Voldemort."
All six of them swore loudly at this revelation.
Harry paced in front of them as he tried to figure out their next move. That only left Hogwarts as the viable option. But even then, it would be tedious to Apparate and there would be too many witnesses around them. Plus, Hogwarts was a large target for Voldemort's forces.
He looked at his friends and they were also sporting similar expressions of frustration.
Harry pushed on. He did not let this hinder him.
"Well, let's move on to some other things. What about books on horcruxes? Did Dumbledore leave anything from his library?" He asked them.
"I believe Professor Dumbledore would be more than happy to lend us his books on the subject. He did give us special lessons." Luna said airily.
The friends resolved to go to Dumbledore's Office immediately after this meeting.
After taking care of the food rations, tent and clothing issues, the next was the topic on how to further protect their families from any sort of connection to the Hunt.
Ron and Ginny acknowledged it would be difficult to hide the truth from their parents. In addition to the fact that they were underage, their mother would definitely try to keep them hidden from the world until they turned forty. However, they said they'll figure this out once they go back to the Burrow.
Neville and Luna resolved not to speak of the Hunt with their families. For Neville, he believed his grandmother would not mind much; it would definitely improve her opinion of him if she knew that her grandson had been off on an adventure with Harry Potter. Luna figured that if she were to tell her father it was an expedition to find the nesting place of a Bumbling Humdinger, he would not mind her extended absence. Though the Quibbler will lack its usual distributor.
Hermione's was more difficult. Her parents were muggles, and they were under the greatest danger should Voldemort find out about their daughter's involvement in the Horcrux Hunt.
Hermione, she was being uncharacteristically silent on this. This was concerning to all of them.
Ginny tentatively touched her shoulder, "Hermione?"
They grew concerned and slightly horrified as Hermione began sobbing. She hugged Ron and cried into his shirt.
"I-I w-was t-th-thinking of c-cas-casting a Mem-memory charm on them, m-make them forget they had a daughter a-and have them moved out of the country!" she finished.
Her friends were horrified at this plan. They were too stunned to move; they were shocked at the lengths Hermione would go to protect the secret of the Hunt. It was Ron who chose to shoot down her plan. He tilted her face up to his and he stared into her teary eyes.
"You listen to me, Hermione Granger, you brilliant witch. No one is going to Memory Charm anyone. I'll ask Mum and Dad or any of the Order members to put your parents under a Fidelius somewhere. It can be an Order safehouse, there are loads last I heard. I do not want you to mess with your parents' minds like that. Imagine what that could to them, love? It would destroy them."
The witch in front of him continued to cry. He held her even tighter and whispered so that the next one was between them alone.
"Please Hermione, let the Order help. I'll convince them any way I can." Ron implored Hermione, his blue eyes glistening with his own tears.
Hermione was still wracked in sobs, "Oh Ron." She choked out as Ron continued to hold her.
The other four were saddened by this. Voldemort's war was already tearing at their hearts. Harry was especially feeling a surge of guilt; he was now second-guessing himself on bringing them along with him. But he stopped that train of thought: his friends were willing to do this with him. To hunt for the Horcruxes alone would be a slap to their faces and would mean a blatant disregard of their commitment to the cause. He needed to trust them since Dumbledore had his reasons for making them a part of the Hunt.
He didn't realize he was already tearing up, so he wiped across his face roughly.
"We'll seek the Order's help. Ron's right. No one is manipulating the memories of their families. Let me be clear, we don't know how long this mission will take. It could take months, years, our whole lives." At this, the others paled. "But we do know this, Voldemort has made seven. We've destroyed two, found another one and have an idea on where the fake one is. That means we need four more and the bastard dies."
He took a breath, seeing his friends' faces harden in resolve.
"We'll probably die doing this you know. I know it's a lot to ask, but if you back out now, I won't blame you." He told them all, waiting for anyone to speak. Ron scoffed.
"Fat chance, mate. You're stuck with us."
"I-I'm going with you, Harry." Spoke Hermione, whose voice was muffled by Ron's soaked shirt.
"You'll need all the help you can get, Harry. The Wrackspurts are especially dangerous when you're by your lonesome." Luna told him serenely.
"You can't find all these horcruxes by yourself, Harry. I'm with you." Neville said in a rare tone of decisiveness.
Ginny was silent, she had her eyes closed.
Harry stepped closer to her, he could smell that flowery scent he loved so much.
"Gin. I'll understand-"he was cut off by her blazing look and determined gaze
"No. This is one fight you're not keeping me locked away from, Potter. Where you go, I go." She finished, blushing to the roots of her hair but keeping her eyes locked on to his.
Harry blinked and realized that he never truly appreciated the dedication she had towards him. His eyes softened and he hugged her to him and she hugged him just as tightly. He looked at his friends, all ready to face the challenge ahead.
He could not wish for a better group.
"All right. Let's head to Dumbledore's Office and grab those books. But before we go, let's try our hand at destroying a horcrux." Harry told them as he and Ginny relinquished their hold on each other.
What should have been an atmosphere of trepidation was instead one of excitement, anticipation and also trepidation. Harry felt the evil tainting the diadem as it was taken out of the beaded bag. He can hear snippets of Parseltongue, seducing him with its allure. He managed to fight off the temptation and can see that his friends were also getting uncomfortable with the diadem's noises.
The room transformed itself into a massive space, the Gryffindor aesthetic replaced by concrete walls and a lit centre. The sextet surrounded the horcrux which was gingerly placed in the middle of the room. Each person held a Basilisk Fang.
Harry looked at Luna and Neville, "do you guys want to destroy the diadem?" he asked them softly.
Neville and Luna looked at each other, as if silently communicating with another. Finally, they decided that Luna will destroy it.
Luna steeled herself as she neared the dark object, the noises getting louder and louder as she closed in on it.
"Whatever you do, don't listen to what it's saying to you. Stab it with the Fang once you get close." Harry instructed her, mindful of the horcrux' effects.
Luna nodded and slowly approached the diadem. It felt like it was calling to her.
"Luna, my darling. Don't you want to see Mummy again? Mama loves you. She wants only the best for you, Luna dear."
"STAB IT LUNA!" Harry bellowed over the mist.
Luna lifted the Fang over the diadem, hesitating to strike.
"LUNA! DO IT NOW!" Neville shouted.
"Luna dear. Mama loves you. Come to me, darling. Come to me."
Luna shuddered and closed her eyes. As she opened them, she saw her mother. She was the most beautiful thing she had ever laid eyes on. It brought tears to her eyes as she saw the ethereal figure before her. It was reaching out to her.
"Mummy." Luna breathed out.
The figure beckoned her with her slender fingers, her bright smile, her bluish eyes, her blonde silky hair flowing.
"Mummy is here, Luna. Daddy will be here soon." The figure spoke smoothly.
Luna nearly held its hand, until she stopped, confusing the figure.
"I-Mummy died when I was young. You're not her." A tearful Luna told the figure.
The figure snarled and its features contorted into reptilian slits, realizing that the girl no longer fell for her tricks.
"THEN DIE!" The figure struck at Luna, who dodged it. The way to the horcrux was clear. A redheaded witch in the distance was wide-eyed and screamed to the high heavens at her.
"LUNA! YOU'RE CLEAR! STAB IT NOW!"
Luna ran up to the diadem, lifted her Fang up the air and struck the diadem hard.
The figure howled a demonic scream as black clouds emanated from the destroyed diadem. Once it grew up to the ceiling, it was quickly sucked back into the cracks of the diadem and a shockwave pushed the sextet away from the centre.
Luckily the Room had cushions on the walls to absorb their impact.
As the group recovered, they were shocked to find Luna sobbing.
"Luna!" Neville exclaimed as he rushed towards her. The others also surrounded her.
Neville held Luna tightly as she sobbed into his shirt. Hermione stared at the remains of the diadem and held it before Harry.
Harry took it tentatively and looked at his friends before him.
There was no going back now. The Hunt was on.
"Four more to go." He breathed.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
References:
Grimmauld Place secret-keeper- wiki/12_Grimmauld_Place
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 6: The Ghoul in Pajamas
The Trace discussions (the answer by a Quora user named CJ Lee provided a really good explanation- What-is-the-trace-in-Harry-Potter
The Trace was a really difficult part. To this day I'm still a bit confused hehe. Thanks for all the reviews, follows and favourites. Stay safe.