Author's Note: For those who like longer chapters, this is twice the length of my usual. Thanks to my beta, Arnel, as she found several glaring errors in this chapter. Thanks for reading. MNF
Chapter 22:
Urgency
"Filius, do you have the information for Sirius' hotel?" Augusta asked as she walked into the library. "There has been some sort of accident at the Ministry, and Amy has been sent to St Mungo's in serious condition."
"I don't know. Perhaps the staff knows how to reach them?" Filius suggested.
"I wish he had house-elves, rather than a human staff, as they'd find him immediately."
"Excuse me," Hermione said, getting up from the chair she had been quietly reading in. "Harry left me with something, so I could talk with him." She pulled a small tortoiseshell compact from her pocket and opened it. "I solemnly swearI want to speak with Harry Potter." The mirror surface clouded over, and a moment later, the clouds swirled and then dissipated to reveal Harry's face.
"Hermione, hi," he said softly. "I'm glad you called." Harry had a goofy smile on his face. Hermione sighed, happy to see him but sad she'd need to share the information she'd just heard.
"Harry, it's not a social call. Is Sirius with you? Madame Longbottom needs to speak with him," she explained.
"Oh, er, yeah, hold on," Harry said before his face disappeared and he relayed Hermione's message verbatim. She then saw the sky and what she suspected was a palm tree before Sirius' face appeared.
"Hello, Hermione, may I speak with Madame Longbottom, please?" Sirius said in a tight tone.
"Er, yes, of course," the girl said before handing over the mirror.
"Hello, Sirius," Augusta said, "I'm sorry to interrupt your holiday, but I just received an owl stating there was an emergency at the Ministry. Unfortunately, Amy has been taken to hospital in serious condition."
"I just spoke with her, not thirty minutes ago," Sirius said absently. "Er, we'll head to the Portkey office and start back immediately."
"I'm going to go to the Ministry; I'll have Neville accompany me. I'll see if perhaps Filius would be willing to go to St Mungo's and check on Amy's condition. The girls are at the Abbott's house, and I don't want to upset Susan until we know more."
"Yes, that's a good plan. I'll have Harry contact Hermione as soon as we know when we will arrive. Given the circumstances, it will likely be at Heathrow rather than the Ministry itself," Sirius said.
"Excellent," Augusta said. "Chin up, Sirius, at least until you know more."
"Right," he said. "Marauder out." The mirror went dark, and she handed it back to Hermione.
"Well, you heard my suggestion, Filius. Are you willing to go to the hospital?"
"Of course," he said. "I'll owl Minerva and let her know what's going on. Miss Granger, would you like to accompany me?"
"I think it might make more sense for me to stay here and act as an information centre instead. I'll alert the staff that dinner might need to be held or served in shifts tonight," the girl answered while standing.
"One question before you go," Filius said. "Do you know if Harry did the Charms work on that mirror?"
"No, or at least not entirely himself," she said. "Mr Black and Mr Potter made a set while they were in school. Apparently, they were for talking when they weren't in the same detention." Augusta shook her head while Filius looked intrigued.
"Brilliant," he said brightly. The two adults left the room, and Hermione suddenly felt very alone. Without classes, while Harry was gone, Seamus was spending the week at home with his parents. They'd agreed after the holidays, he could move in, which made him incredibly happy. Susan and Hannah had gone to Hannah's house, and the Weasleys were all at their house helping their mother with the fall cleaning.
Hermione had enjoyed spending time with Neville and his gran, especially since Madame Longbottom was full of interesting historical information. None of it had to do with the Goblin Wars. The three had spent hours sitting in the beautiful winter garden built between two of the greenhouses, talking about different periods of Longbottom family history. Neville especially liked when they discussed his parents, and he'd shared with Hermione about their fate. Now, however, she was truly alone in the house, and it made her feel more uncomfortable than she could have imagined.
She went to the kitchens and explained the situation as best as she could, and everyone was quite agreeable that dinner could be reheated as needed. The chef suggested that Hermione head upstairs and be served momentarily, but Hermione turned it around and asked if she could dine with them, as eating alone at a table meant for twelve would be upsetting. They welcomed the girl and regaled her with stories of when Arcturus was alive. The man was a curmudgeon, but they loved him anyway.
The mirror in her pocket buzzed just after pudding, and she excused herself to speak with Harry.
"Hi, where are you?" she asked.
"New York," he answered. "When we arrived at the Ministry offices, a scheduled Portkey was leaving in twelve minutes from their transportation hub. Sirius rushed and got us tickets, and we only just made it on time. It was not a pleasant ride, and I will never again complain about going from the Dog House to the Ministry."
"I'm glad you've made it so far," Hermione said. "Everyone is worried, but I don't have any more information than when we first talked."
"It's okay; Professor McGonagall has a mirror, which I didn't know about so that she can keep in touch with Sirius, even if she's staying at Hogwarts. She calmed him down that Amy is in stable condition, but she was with Arthur and Bill Weasley, and they're not doing well."
"Heavens, I wonder if they know what's happening there? Should I Floo call them?"
"No, she would go over when she ended with Pater."
"That's good," Hermione said, sounding as if it were anything but. She began pulling on a thread hanging off her tee-shirt, and it unravelled the hem a bit. She distractedly tucked it back under the shirt and made a mental note to hem it tonight.
"Hermione," Harry said softly. "I've really missed you. I was, er," Harry groaned before he started talking again. "I was going to do this when we got home, but I'm doing it now because I need to know." It all came out in a rush with one breath. "Will you go to the movies with me sometime? Remus said he'd drive the two of us, and then we could get some dinner, maybe?" It took Hermione a moment to process what he'd just said.
"Harry, are you asking me on a date?"
"Er, I am." It sounded more like a question rather than a statement, but it made Hermione's smile wider.
"Yes, I'd like that."
"Oh, well, that's grand. When we get back, we can figure it out." Harry was nodding the entire time he was speaking.
"Why did you ask me now, I mean, with everything else going on?"
"Well, if it's all going tits-up, I wanted to make sure I'd asked you. I've been thinking about it for a while, and well, I'll explain it all when we get there. Remus is calling me over; maybe he has news. We're leaving here at three, which is nine at home. The Portkey takes three minutes, and then I don't know if we'll come home or go straight to Amy or what. Remus might bring me home, but Sirius is going spare worrying about her."
"I don't blame him," Hermione said. "It's hard to see the person you love hurt. I have experience at it."
"I need to go; see you in a few hours," Harry said in a rush before he blanked the mirror. It was only thirty-four minutes later, when he was going over every detail of his conversation, that Harry realized what the last thing Hermione said meant.
ITWAU ITWAU ITWAU
St. Mungo's was quiet when the gents arrived. Sirius had tried to send Harry home, but he wasn't sure who was there, so he wanted to stay with his pater. Remus went along to ensure neither had an emotional breakdown.
"Excuse me, I'm here to see Amelia Bones," Sirius asked the welcome witch just inside from the Floo fireplaces. "Can you tell me what room she's in?"
"She's in three-oh-eight," the woman said. "Trauma ward."
"Thank you," Sirius said as he headed toward the lifts. Harry hadn't seen much of the hospital, thank Merlin, but from what he could tell, it wasn't all that different from a Muggle hospital. He'd toured one with his class when he was eight. He did notice that there were fewer pill dispensers and more potion phials around.
Arriving at Amy's room, Sirius went in to find Minerva sitting with her. While the Hogwarts Headmistress was dozing, the gents' entry immediately awoke her. She stood and gave Sirius a firm hug, which surprised Harry, but he didn't say anything.
"What do we know?" Sirius asked her gravely.
"Amy has three broken ribs, although they should be healed by morning. She also had a hairline fracture of the skull, but I was assured that it had already sealed at about ten-thirty. There is a bruise on her brain and a very slight bleed, which is why she's in a potion-induced sleep. There is also a severe sprain of her wand hand; apparently, she attempted to shield herself, Arthur and Bill. Finally, there was a rather ugly wound on her leg, but it has been taken care of, and with further treatments, it won't be visible in a few days.
"Susan has been here and is back at the Abbott house. Given the chaos, I told the girls to wait until Tuesday before coming back to the house for classes. I hope that is alright."
"It's fine," Sirius said. "What do you know about the Weasleys?"
"They did not fare as well as Amy, I'm afraid. There was no way to save the lower half of Arthur's left leg, and it's been amputated just below his knee. Eventually, they will be able to fit him with a prosthetic leg –"
"Better than the one Mad-Eye has, I hope," Harry said. "I'll pay anything to help him."
"That's kind of you, Harry," Remus said, "but Alastor's leg is his choice. I'm sure that wizarding medicine can give him something more suitable."
"Oh, er, good."
"I'm sure Arthur will be touched by your generosity," Minerva said. "Young William has been temporarily blinded by the blast. He was the only one among the group who did not have a wand – he was to be fitted in the next round. He's also in a potion-induced sleep to help him recover. Molly and Ginny are with them right now. Filius was here, but he returned to the manor so that Hermione wasn't alone. I am not sure where Neville and Augusta are, although I assume they are back at the manor."
"Thank you for everything you've done," Sirius said, kissing her cheek before taking the chair next to Amy, grasping her good hand, and pressing his lips against it.
"Why don't we go check that Molly doesn't need anything and then head back to the manor?" Remus suggested. "Minerva, please come home with us and get a good rest before heading back to Hogwarts in the morning."
"Yes, that sounds sensible."
"Pater, I'm going with Remus," Harry said to his godfather, "We'll be back in the morning," Harry said to his godfather. "I'll bring you something to eat."
"I'm sorry we had to cut our holiday short," Sirius said, but Harry wrapped his arm around his father's shoulders.
"I don't blame you for anything," Harry said quietly. "Given how much you love Amy and how I know you want to marry her, she will be like a mum to me someday. I'm glad we're here." Sirius turned his head to look at Harry.
"Thank you."
With the other three gone, Sirius expanded the chair he was in so he could put his feet up and shift it so he was sitting next to Amy's bed. Her hand, it seemed small and cold to him, was held between his two. He'd never noticed how delicate it was when he had been holding it before; now, he realized just how tiny it truly was.
"I'm here, Luv, and I'm going to take care of you," he said softly so that even someone in the room would not have heard him. "You can't scare me like this; we aren't teens anymore. My heart couldn't take the worry I felt the whole way home from California. You see, you're it for me, and I've known that since before everything that happened after James and Lily's deaths. I was planning to ask you that Christmas, but…I never had the chance.
"I had begun thinking about children, yes, our children. I never thought I wanted them until Harry came along. Of course, I didn't want just any child; I wanted a baby that had your soft brown hair and delicate features. It would have helped with the angularness of my face – the Black family produces a particularly distinctive face. I could just see it, a little girl with brown curls and a cute button nose. Maybe she'd have my grey eyes, maybe your golden-green.
"We can still have children; we aren't that old. Mum Potter was nearing eighty when she had James. Then again, James was a spoilt git, so we'd need to keep that in check. You've done well with Susan, so I'm sure we could raise a child to know they are loved but still be compassionate. What wonderful older siblings our baby would have in Harry and Susan. We'd make a right family; we would.
"You need to get better, darling, as I can do a great many things, and money can buy much of what I can't, but I cannot have our baby. First things first, however, is that you need to get better so that I can marry you. The wedding can be anything you want, and anywhere you want. I just want to know you're always going to be with me," he said and then settled down to rest, his face near hers.
ITWAU ITWAU ITWAU
Harry was up with the sun the next morning, which surprised him as he was expecting the time zone change to affect him more. Eventually, it would hit him, but at least when it did, he had a potion he could take to clear up the jetlag. Not expecting anyone other than Remus to be up yet, he was pleased to find Hermione in the breakfast room with his uncle.
"Hi," he said in a tone he didn't recognize as it was higher than usual by a significant magnitude. "Er, sorry about that. Morning frog in my throat." Hermione had giggled at the falsetto greeting.
"Hello, Harry, welcome back. I assumed you'd be getting up early to go to the hospital, and I thought I'd accompany you back. Madame Longbottom will take Neville to the Ministry today to oversee the cleanup and assist Assistant Minister Shacklebolt. I didn't relish another day at home, alone." Harry pulled out a chair and sat down, piling toast on his plate and reaching for sausages and fruit. Hermione had been happy to see Harry eating more and at regular intervals. She knew he'd generally starved during the summers, and then it took months for him to stretch his stomach again to consume enough to stop the weight loss.
"I'll be glad of your company," Harry said. "With the Weasleys in hospital too, I'm sure there will be enough chairs for us to sit in."
"Speaking of the Weasleys, I will head out to their place to make sure the boys haven't burned it down overnight. I'll check that they're fed and then do some cleaning charms so that Molly doesn't come home to a disaster," Remus said. "She still doesn't have a wand."
"You could take her one of mine," Harry suggested. "I don't need both of them."
"Harry, your wands are particularly specialized, and I'm not certain they'd work for anyone else. I'll go and see what I can do, there are also a few wands left with Amy and Augusta from when the fitters were here. I'll take her one of those.
"That makes more sense," Harry said. He looked at Hermione nervously, and she looked at him the same way. While they both had food on their plates, neither was eating, but instead sipping their tea and looking at each other uncomfortably. Remus, picking up on the tension, excused himself. While he'd not eaten enough, he was going to the Weasleys to cook for them, so he'd just have a bit of whatever he cooked there
The two teens in the breakfast room said nothing, smiled, and sipped tea before Hermione finally broke the tension. "This is silly, Harry."
"I agree," Harry said. "It's not like we're different people or anything. We've just decided to go on a date to see if we like each other as more than friends, right?"
"I suspect we can already answer that question if we thought about it. At least I can," Hermione said. Harry was crestfallen.
"Oh, well, er, it won't change things between us, will it? I hope we can still be friends. Besides Neville, you're the only good friend I have."
"Harry, I want to be more than friends," she said before leaning over and quickly pecking his lips. After looking stunned for a few seconds, Harry smiled brightly.
"Oh, er, great!"
"Why do you always assume that things will turn out bad?" she asked.
"Honestly, with my life, I find it's better to go with being disappointed and then get pleasantly surprised."
"So, why don't you tell me about your wands and the state trip, and then we can be off. I'm sure Sirius will be glad to see you."
ITWAU ITWAU ITWAU
Remus's arrival at the Weasley house could not have been better timed, as the kitchen was filling with smoke as he knocked on the door. He was surprised when Charlie answered.
"Remus, hi, Mum isn't here right now. She's still with Dad."
"I know; I came to make sure your brothers didn't burn the house down," he said as he entered when Charlie moved aside. "I have a wand."
"Thank Merlin, I don't know how to make toast without one. We have a few we use to keep the dragons under control, but the preserve sent to Japan for general use ones, and they need to stay with whoever has the shift," Charlie explained.
"Well, let's see about getting the four of you fed and then I'll go with whoever is taking over for your mum," the werewolf said as he found the half loaf of bread and a dozen eggs. "Eggy Soldiers or Cheesy scramble and toast and jam?"
"Eggy Soldiers!" Charlie, Fred, and George called out; only then did Remus realize Ron wasn't there.
"Where's Ron?" Remus asked as he put water into the pot he found on the drying rack.
"Still asleep," Charlie said. "I'll go get him."
"I wouldn't do that –"
"—if you know what's good for you."
"Ron has been a prat –"
"—since school let out." The twins answered, finishing one another's sentences.
"Well, I'm here, and he eats now, or he doesn't eat. I plan on going to hospital as soon as we've eaten. Mum needs to come home to a clean and quiet house so she and Ginny can get a nap," Charlie said, and he trudged up to Ron's room. A moment later, there was a yelp, a crash and two sets of thuds on the stair treads. "Do not come out until you don't stink!" A slam of the door and some grumbling were heard. When the eldest redhead in the house came back to the kitchen, the others looked at him, surprised. "Ron is in the shower. He should be here by the time we're ready to eat."
Forty minutes later, Charlie, Remus and Ron used the Floo to go to the hospital and get the report on Arthur and Bill. Unfortunately, Bill was still asleep, but the staff seemed optimistic. Molly and Ginny returned home to a clean house (which shocked Molly), and the twins prepared to serve tea and drop scones, which Remus had quickly made and put in the oven for the boys to take out, when the chime rang.
ITWAU ITWAU ITWAU
Later that morning at the Ministry for Magic, Augusta Longbottom and her grandson were surveying the work on the Atrium. It was a good thing that the first set of wands had gone to Ministry employees, regardless of what department they were in, as the enchantments had recently been renewed on every inch of the building, which kept the damage to a minimum and only on the main level of the building. If the suicide bomber had carried out their plan a month earlier, every floor would have succumbed to some damage. It might have brought about the toppling of the government as well.
Kingsley had slipped seamlessly into the role of his boss and was able to approve the expenditure of gold to make things right. He knew the budget couldn't take it, but they'd find a way to keep payroll going. He'd forgo his own pay packet to ensure every lower-level employee got theirs.
"Rufus, what can you tell me about the woman who carried out this terroristic attack?" King asked when he, Augusta and Neville and Rufus Scrimgeour sat down mid-morning.
"Are you sure we should be speaking in front of the boy?" the man replied, looking disdainfully at Neville.
"Neville is here as a future Lord and my heir," Augusta said firmly. "He has been helping me throughout this crisis, and he will continue to do so. Now, please proceed." Rufus wasn't going to argue with the formidable woman, so he continued.
"Even before the wands disappeared, we've been having problems with a group of minor purebloods," the man explained.
"What do you mean 'minor purebloods'?" Kingsley asked.
"They are purebloods, but the families aren't ennobled nor rich," he explained. "Most of this group, who as far as the Aurors know has not named themselves, are people too young to have been alive when He-Who-Must—"
"Really, Rufus, you're the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," Augusta chastised. "Certainly, you should be able to use the man's name. Call him Voldemort or better yet, Tom Riddle, his human name."
"How do you know that?"
"Harry," Neville said.
"Yes, well, they're too young to either have been alive when V-Voldemort had his reign of terror or grew up with stories of the might of the Death Eaters. We've had several of them in to be interviewed over the last eighteen months, but most of what they're charged with is petty crime.
"The bomber was a girl named Leigh Cornfoot, aged twenty. Her uncle is Stephen Cornfoot, the solicitor. Her sister married into the Lestrange family, the main branch, and moved to France. Her parents are dead. We've sent word to the French Ministry to alert the sister about Leigh's death."
"Should we be expecting more events like yesterday?" Kingsley asked.
"I suspect there will be more until we understand exactly who this group is," the DMLE chief said sadly.
