All characters are property of JK Rowling and I do not make a profit from this story.
Beta: Roman's Sundial
Chapter Three: The Emergency Meeting
Ginny Weasley - Present Day
October 9, 1999
"Seriously, Mum, everyone is here for dinner. Can we just drop it, please?"
"Well what did you expect to happen, Ginevra, when you dyed your hair black? That I would just be accepting of it?" Saturday had arrived and Ginny along with Harry, Ron, Hermione, George, and Percy sat around Molly Weasley's table for dinner.
"Fine, I'm sorry," Ginny told her mother, hoping it would end the conversation. To her annoyance, however, Mrs. Weasley continued her rant.
"What was wrong with red hair? We all have it, and it looks wonderful! What do you think Harry? Don't you agree that Ginny should go back to her natural red?"
Ginny looked at Harry's embarrassed face. "Uh, I would rather not get involved, Mrs. Weasley."
Ginny laughed. "Let it go Mum, who else is coming for dinner?"
Disgruntled, Mrs. Weasley replied, "Charlie couldn't get away of course, so just your father, Bill, Fleur, and Essa."
Ginny watched her brother's head shoot up from the galleon in his hand. "Essa is coming?" Ron asked his mother.
"Well of course, Dear, why wouldn't I invite that sweet girlfriend of yours?" Ginny wondered why Ron seemed upset about that. Was Ron and Essa having problems? At that moment, the four remaining dinner guests walked through the door. Bill, Fleur, and Arthur walked up to Molly and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Essa walked over to Ron. He reluctantly got up and gave her a small kiss before sitting back down.
"Well then," said Mrs. Weasley. "Shall we eat?" Dinner went by as it normally did. Afraid to have her mother bring up her hair again, Ginny decided not to engage in much conversation with her and instead pick up on the little conversations going on around her.
"So leettle Teddy eez doing good zen, Molly?" Fleur asked her mother-in-law.
"Growing fast every day!" Mrs. Weasley smiled.
"Are you sure everything is alright, Ron?" A concerned Essa asked her boyfriend.
"Fine, just hungry."
"Any more thought on new recruits?" Bill asked Harry. Ginny spun around. They were talking about the Order. Ginny had been promised she would be a part of it, but had yet to be allowed to attend a meeting and she was getting frustrated.
"Not much time to be honest," Harry responded. "Luckily, there is not much going on for the Order right now, so it really hasn't been a focus."
"But you do know who you want to induct?" Percy chimed in.
"Well, probably Neville and Luna, they fought alongside us at the battle of Hogwarts. And -" Harry quickly glanced at Ron. "Essa, if you want to."
"Of course I do!" Essa responded. Ron never looked up from his plate.
"And me, Harry," Ginny said.
Harry didn't answer her, instead he turned back to Bill. "Once we find some time, we can rebuild the order, I just don't think it's a priority right now." Ginny stayed quiet, but she was not going to let this go. She fought alongside the Order just like everyone else and deserved to be a part of it. At that moment, Andromeda Tonks burst through the door with little Teddy Lupin in her arms.
"Arthur! Molly! I am so sorry to disturb you!"
"Nonsense Andromeda!" Replied Arthur. "Is everything alright?"
"I'm afraid not! I just received an urgent message from Kingsley. The order is to meet immediately!" Andromeda had recently been inducted into the Order, just before Harry decided to put a halt on new members.
"Let's go!" Harry got up from the table and everyone else started to follow suit.
"Who can watch Teddy?" Andromeda asked.
"Ginny and Essa can," Harry responded. "They aren't in the order."
"But we are supposed to be!" Ginny argued. "If this is urgent we should be there too!"
"Not now!" Harry said sternly. "Stay here with Teddy. We will be back shortly." Ginny opened her mouth to argue, but Harry had already walked out the door, followed by Ron, Hermione, Bill, Fleur, Percy, and George. Essa took Teddy from Andromeda.
"You two stay here with Teddy," Arthur told Essa and Ginny. "We will send word when we can." And just like that, the rest of the adults left, leaving Essa and Ginny to play babysitter.
Harry Potter - Present Day
October 9, 1999
Harry was the first to apparate onto the step of number 12 Grimmauld Place. After the war, Harry, along with the help of Ron and Hermione, reorganized the house of Black and placed new charms on it to use as headquarters once more. It was difficult to be there without his Godfather Sirius, but Harry knew he had to keep going and the house of Black truly was the best place for headquarters to the Order of the Phoenix. It wasn't too long before the order started to file in. First to arrive was Ron, Hermione, George, Percy, Bill, and Fleur. Shortly after arrived Arthur, Molly, and Andromeda. Next to arrive were Hestia Jones, Dedalus Diggle, and Minerva McGonagall. Bringing up the rear were Rubeus Hagrid, Aberforth Dumbledore, Charlie Weasley, Mundungus Fletcher, and the Minister of Magic himself, Kingsley Shacklebolt.
"Minister," Harry said as he shook Kingsley's hand.
"Harry, here I am not your Minister." He looked around at the remaining members. "Thank you all for gathering on such short notice. Charlie, how were you able to get away from Romania so quickly?"
"I had a dragon sighting nearby, luckily I was already in the area," responded Charlie.
Kingsley nodded. "Let us not waste time, then. I've received some disturbing information." All eyes fell on Kingsley. "As you are aware, Pius Thicknesse roams free. He was ousted as Minister but never charged as a Death Eater."
"Which is absurd!" Said Hestia. "We all know he was working with You-Know-Who, and not under the imperius curse!"
Kingsley hesitated and looked at Harry. Harry in turn looked around the room. How much should he tell them? "The Minister and I, uh, Kingsley, decided it were best if one known Death Eater was not obtained. We allowed him to use the excuse of being under the imperius curse so that we would have someone to monitor." Harry explained.
"And monitor closely we did," Kingsley continued. "Based on what we have seen, it is believed that Thicknesse is communicating with another notorious wizard, one that we all thought to be dead but never had any proof of."
"Surely Kingsley, other than He Who Must Not Be Named and Grindelwald, who could there have been?" Minerva asked.
"I'm afraid the latter, Minerva," Kingsley responded.
"Grindelwald?" Harry said. "Grindelwald is dead! I saw Voldemort kill him!"
"Do you recall what spell he used, Harry?"
"Avada Kedavra, of course," responded Harry.
"But are you sure?" Asked Kingsley. "Think back. In your vision, did you clearly hear him say those words?"
Harry thought really hard to the memory of him seeing Voldemort's thoughts. He recalled seeing Voldemort wave his wand but could not remember the exact incantation. Harry looked up at Kingsley and shook his head.
"But surely it was Avada Kedavra, Minister," said Molly. "There are no other killing spells?"
"None that directly and instantly kill, Molly. It is our belief that another spell was used and Grindelwald was not killed that night."
"But I saw him die!" Argued Harry. "Regardless of what spell was used, he was dead! He was not petrified or anything, he died!"
"Harry, no spell can kill you instantly except for Avada Kedavra. Even dangerous spells, like Sectumsempra, still take time before it takes your life," said Hermione.
"Then he must have used Avada Kedavra," said Harry.
Kingsley looked around at everyone else in the room. "As Ms. Granger said, there is no other spell that can instantly kill you except for Avada Kedavra. A witch that works closely with me, Helen Gopshawk, has received intel that there is a spell of similar wording that mimics death, but does not kill the victim."
"Like a decoy spell?" Asked Bill.
"Exactly like a decoy spell!" Replied Kingsley. "It is a spell that is used when one would like others to think that their victim is dead but in fact they are not." There were lots of questions being asked at one time. Kingsley held up his hand. "Helen can answer all of your questions much better than I can. I now ask all of you for your permission to bring her into the Order. I feel she would be of great help and I can ensure you that she is completely trustworthy." There were murmurs of agreement around the room. "Very well," said Kingsley. "I shall return with her momentarily." The remaining order members sat in silence while they waited for their new guest, still stunned at what they had just heard from their Minister.
Hermione Granger - Present Day
October 9, 1999
Hermione's head was spinning. How was Grindelwald alive? What mysterious spell was used? How were they tailing Pius without him knowing? How did Pius come to meet Grindelwald? She had so many questions! It wasn't long before Kingsley arrived with Helen. Hermione watched Harry immediately walk up to her and pull out his wand. There was a process when someone entered the Order. Charms and jinxes were placed so that should the individual ever betray the Order, not only would the Order be notified, but the betrayer's tongue would be glued to the roof of their mouths so that they could not speak about the Order to anyone. It was a similar jinx to what Hermione had casted when trying to protect Dumbledore's Army in her fifth year.
"Hello, everyone!" Helen said, once all the formalities and introductions were complete. "Kingsley told me where he left off, so I guess I'll get right to it. The spell that we believe was used against Grindelwald is a very old one. In fact, it hasn't been seen since the 1800's. Long before that, though, there was a wizard by the name of Serenus Sammonicus who we believe was the first wizard to ever use the spell. It was a spell very popular among the muggles who of course thought it was simply a magic trick. Serenus would use it among them to bring fame and money to his name. He simply would make these muggles look dead then wake them up again, much to the pleasure of the muggle viewers."
"So what happened to the spell?" asked Charlie.
"Well it died out, just like many spells do," replied Helen. "I'm sure you can see the confusion it may have caused. People were being buried alive! The spell removes any trace of life, including a heartbeat, but the victim is not dead. There is no real history of the spell, except that it resurfaced in the 1800's and then died out again when petrificus totalus surfaced and became the spell of choice."
"So why wouldn't You-Know-Who kill Grindelwald? Why would he use this spell?" asked Ron.
"Well, we don't know, nor will we ever, I think, find out why You-Know-Who wouldn't kill him, but.." Helen glanced at Kingsley, who nodded. "We believe certain Death Eaters used it too, probably taught to them by You-Know-Who. We think that the good Death Eaters used it over using avada kedavra, in the hopes that someone would reverse the effects."
"I'm sorry, ze good Death Eaters?" asked Fleur.
"There were some Death Eaters that were forced to do Voldemort's bidding," Harry answered. "They didn't want to kill, but they were forced to."
"Right," said Helen. "And if they had another way instead of Avada Kedavra, we believe they would have used it."
"What is this spell?" Asked Percy.
"It's pronounced Abracadabra," answered Helen.
Hermione raised her eyebrows. "The muggle spell that magicians use?"
"That's exactly it," answered Helen. "And you can see how similar it is to Avada Kedavra. It would be hard for someone standing nearby to notice the difference."
"If it's a muggle spell, how come muggles aren't piling up unconscious everywhere?" Asked Ron.
"You need to have a real wand and know how to use magic in order for the spell to be successful," Helen answered. "Which is why wizards like Serenus were so popular. Because they were really wizards, they could perform the spell correctly, to the amusement of muggles."
Hermione still had so many questions, but before she could ask any of them, George spoke up. "Is it possible that many of ours that fought in the battle of Hogwarts are alive and just unconscious?" Nobody responded right away, they all knew what George was asking.
Hesitantly, Kingsley finally replied. "It is very rare that the spell is used over Avada Kedavra, especially because there really weren't too many good Death Eaters, but yes, it is possible." It was silent for a long time while everyone processed the information.
"We need a plan," Harry finally spoke.
Kingsley nodded. "I assumed you would have one, Mr. Potter."
"Well, there is a lot of information here, and plenty of different things that need to be done."
"The Grindelwald lead must be priority!" Minerva said.
"I agree," said Harry. "Kingsley, you and Helen must look into that further."
"We don't know where he could be at this point, but we checked Nurmengard and it's empty," said Helen.
"I can help too," provided Charlie. "I travel all over the place working with Dragons." Kingsley nodded.
"Great," said Harry. "And you'll keep your watch on Pius?"
"Absolutely," responded Kingsley.
"And the victims of this spell?" Asked George.
"Well, we can't go aroun' diggin' up graves!" Said Hagrid.
"Hagrid's right. What we need is an insider, someone with more information." Harry looked around the room until Ron spoke up.
"Hermione dated a Death Eater, I'm sure she could talk to him, can't you, Hermione?" How dare he, Hermione thought. Ron had some nerve!
"Well, Ms. Granger?" Asked Kingsley. "Are you able to talk to Mr. Malfoy?" How could Hermione say no to the Minister?
"I- alright, but how?"
"Gently," Kingsley responded. "He must not know what we know." Hermione nodded.
"Kingsley, I remember the time of Grindelwald," started Minerva. "If he is back, if we are to take him down, we need more!"
"We can't just let anyone in here," said Harry. "But I've been meaning to recruit Neville and Luna, they were great allies on more than one occasion."
"We should recruit them then," answered Kingsley. "I shall speak to Horace and Pomona," said Minerva.
"And leave it at that for now, I think. We should meet again in a few days. Will you have an update by then, Helen?" asked Harry.
"Our sources say Pius is planning on heading out of town. We will follow him and report back."
"Great, and Hermione?"
Hermione frowned but knew there was nothing she could do. "I'll talk to Draco."
"Alright, stay on guard everyone else. We shall meet back in one week's time."
Hermione Granger - The Past
September 28, 1998
"I'm sorry Ron, but I can't do that." Ron turned around and slammed the boys' dormitory door. Hermione was enraged. She stormed out of the common room and sent a message with her galleon to Draco.
Meet me in the grounds again.
She needed to vent and so she turned to her new friend. That's all Draco was to her, her friend. Ron was such a jealous person so full of hate that he could not wrap his thick head around the fact that they were just friends! Having found no cure to the memory charm that Hermione placed on her parents, she hadn't seen them since the end of her sixth year. The only consolation she had was that they were happy in Australia. Draco's father got sent to Azkaban for life. He not only lost his father, but he had to deal with the knowledge of knowing that his father would be miserable for the rest of his life. Regardless of what Lucius Malfoy did, he was still Draco's father and he was torn up about it. Losing her parents gave her something in common with Draco and they both were able to use a shoulder to lean on. Hermione walked towards the trees by the forbidden forest, where Draco was waiting for her.
"I am so angry!" she yelled.
"What happened?"
"It's Ron! He is so jealous I cannot stand it!"
"Jealous of what?" asked Draco.
"Of us! Does he honestly believe something would ever happen between us? Like come on!" Draco said nothing but allowed Hermione to vent. "I'm sorry that he comes from a perfect family with no problems and no worries and he has the ability to see them whenever he wants! It doesn't work like that for me, or for you, or for Harry! But I'm allowed to talk to Harry. Why? Because he isn't a Slytherin? He is such a hypocrite!"
Draco studied Hermione. "If he drives you crazy so much, why do you stay with him?"
"Because he's my boyfriend!"
"That's a dumb reason. You're supposed to say because you love him or something, but because he's your boyfriend? So change that. Make him not your boyfriend." Hermione stopped for a moment. She did love Ron, so why hadn't she said that? "You know what I think?" Draco went on. "I think you're only with him because there was some chemistry and you decided to try it out. I think that if the right person came around you would leave him."
"I think you need to mind your own business Draco!" Hermione spat.
"Oh come on, Hermione, Krum showed interest, you went to the ball with him. Weasley took interest, you started dating him. I bet if I showed interest, you would start dating me too!"
"I would not!" Hermione argued.
Draco chuckled. "You just need to find the right man, then you won't be arguing with someone everyday."
"Oh and you think the right man is just going to walk right up to me is he?"
"If you give him a chance he will."
"Oh sure," said Hermione. "I'll just stand here in the middle of the night and wait for my Charming Merlin to come flying in and sweep me off my feet!" At that moment, Draco leaned in and kissed her. Hermione was shocked. How did that happen? Why did she let him? Why did she return the kiss?
"Maybe he won't sweep you off your feet, but he will catch you off guard." Draco whispered. Hermione looked into his eyes. A part of her wanted to kiss him again. A part of her wanted to slap him. Before she could decide, she glanced up at the Dark castle and noticed that there was only one window lit up. That window looked awfully close to the position of the Gryffindor's boy's dormitories.