Chapter 13 – New Beginnings and Unfortunate Endings
An: I do not own Harry Potter. This is a reminder that this story is AU after the sixth book. Happy reading. Primus makes a bold move in this chapter.
3 months later
Harry had been placed in an accelerated Auror programme to allow him to catch up to the current graduating class. There were many nights that he came home too tired to eat and both Ginny and Luna brought food to his room and threatened to force feed him if he didn't eat. He was sure it was because of them he had been able to remain physically strong throughout his training. What he had found challenging was not the physical nature of the job, he had learned a lot about dark magic and countering dark magic during the war, no it was the potions and antidotes. Every time a field test involved a potion he was reminded of Snape's taunting during his years at Hogwarts.
He passed Concealment and Disguise, Stealth and Tracking, Magical Beasts, and Dark magic identification with flying colours. He barely scraped by on Potions and Antidotes and Magical Plants. He knew he definitely earned his graduation and it was not handed to him because of his name.
After he passed all of his tests, he had a week's break before the official graduation ceremony. He decided to visit Godric's Hollow. After the war he had wanted nothing to do with the place and he made the decision to sell it. Mrs. Weasley had tried to warn him that it was a brash decision and that he needed to take some time before he made any financial decisions but he didn't listen. He contacted a magical realtor and listed the property for sale in the Daily Prophet. There were not many interested buyers because of the history. Not only had his parents been killed there but the house had housed one of Voldemort's horcruxes. The battle to retrieve it had been the very battle in which they lost Moody.
After a month of being on the market, a young couple requested information about the price. They were now starting out in life, both having lost their homes and families during the war. The witch was pregnant, due in two months and they couldn't stay in their cramped one bedroom apartment any more. They needed somewhere bigger to live and raise their child but they didn't have the galleons available to purchase anything big. They were willing to look past the morbid history. Harry sold it to them with one request that his parent's graves remain untouched.
The couple had renovated the outside of the house so it looked like a modern home. The lawn and garden were well manicured. There was a not a weed in sight, not even a garden gnome. Mrs. Weasley would want to know their secret. A peek through the window revealed several play sets for children. Godric's Hollow seemed like a happy place. He was pleased to know that he was actually helping the couple. No one appeared to be home so he circled around to the back where his parents' graves were located. He was stunned to discover that the couple had built a beautiful tomb for his parents. A lump formed in his throat and he angrily brushed a few stray tears aside. They had done something that Harry as their son should have done.
He opened the white marble door to the tomb and walked inside. The couple had managed to get a picture of both his mom and dad and hung them over the grave stones. He collapsed on his knees in front of the pictures. He hadn't meant to start talking but he did. He started at his first memory and it all came tumbling out. He told them about living with the Dursleys, his admission to Hogwatrs, the war and his travels. By the time he was finished he realised the light was fading. He picked himself up off the floor and dusted his robes off.
When he stepped out of the tomb he was surprised to find three children playing in the yard with their parents. The kids stopped and looked up at him curiously.
"Welcome back to Godric's Hollow. We were wondering when you would come to see them," the wife admitted.
"Mama who is that?" a young girl with two blonde pigtails asked the witch.
She bent down next to her daughter, "That is an old friend, who graciously sold us this house at a tenth of what this property should have cost."
The girl wrinkled her brow and Harry knew she didn't understand.
"You were in the tomb," the older boy observed.
"Yes," Harry said turning to look back at the tomb, "Thank you for that."
"We wanted to find a way to thank you. The home we have been able to build here means a lot to use. We are very grateful that you sold it to us. My mom always taught me to thank the people in my life that do great things for me. You weren't around and we thought it would be a great way to pay tribute to your family. It was the least we could do," the witch said shrugging.
"It's perfect," Harry admitted. He looked up into the sky and saw the stars coming out. "I should let you get back to what you were doing."
"We were just about to go inside and have dinner would you like to join us?" the wizard asked.
"No thank you. I've disrupted your evening activities enough," Harry said starting to walk to the front of the house.
"Mr. Potter," the wizard called, "You are free to visit them whenever you need to."
"Thanks. I'll keep that in mind," Harry said shoving his hands in pockets.
As he lay in bed that evening, the witch's words reverberated through him. He knew he had a lot to thank his best friends for. In the last seven years he had more than expressed his thanks to Ron for all the times Ron saved his butt. His one regret was that he had yet to thank Hermione.
In the three months since their return, Ron had been debating what to do with his life. He worked in both of this brother's joke shops and while it had been fun, it was not what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. He wanted to find his own path in life. Like Harry, he too found himself at his father's grave but he wasn't alone. Luna was already there laying a wreath of some strange flower over it. She picked up the previous wreath with wilted flowers.
"Can't you charm them to stay fresh?" Ron asked.
Luna turned her clear blue eyes on him before looking back at the grave, "I like the muggle way of honouring the dead."
"Do you come out here often?" Ron asked shoving his hands in his pockets.
"Every week," Luna admitted while she picked at the dead wreath.
Ron wasn't sure what to say next. He knew Luna suffered over the death of his father. "What was his funeral like?"
"I don't know. I never came. I was too distraught over what happened. If you want to know you'll have to ask your mother or brothers. Both Hermione and I stayed away. I think we spent the day in the Manor. I had never been there before but it was strangely comforting. I had been wary of Draco but Hermione seemed to know that he would understand my pain," Luna said sadly.
"Did he?" Ron asked curiously.
"He did," Luna said. "It was how we connected and became friends."
"I thought you and Hermione befriended him at the same time?" Ron stated.
"No Hermione had been his friend for a couple of years before I entered the equation. He offered me a comfort that no one else could. An understanding of what it felt like to be used and to inadvertently set in motion events that killed people."
Ron didn't know what possessed him but he moved forward and placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. She turned her sad gaze away from the grave and looked up at him, a tear trailing down the side of her cheek.
"I don't blame you and you shouldn't blame yourself either. The actions that led to my father's death weren't your actions. They were the actions of a deranged wizard," Ron said bringing his other hand up to brush the tear away from her face.
"But..." Luna protested.
"No stop that, Luna. I travelled with Harry for seven years. In the beginning I watched him beat himself up. Ginny and I tried to help him but in the end the only person that could help Harry was himself. He needed to decide to let it go and live and he did. It was a beautiful moment and that moment has led us here. It's time for you to let it go," Ron said dropping both of his hands to link his hands through hers. "We're all here for you."
Luna broke the hold he had on her hands and hugged him. He felt her tears soaking his undershirt but he didn't care. He let the blonde cry it out.
"I'm sorry I spoilt your time with your dad," she said wiping the tears away from her face.
"You didn't spoil anything. I've been coming here trying to figure out what to do with my life. My brothers are all occupied, jobs, wives, children, mom has moved on with your dad ironically. I can see now that he's been good for her. I understand that he's not a replacement for my dad, just a new companion," Ron explained to her.
"Have you figured out what you want to do yet?" she asked.
Ron shrugged, "I talk to him," he said inclining his head towards his father's grave marker, "He doesn't answer anything I say which I think is a good thing. I mostly explain to him about all the muggle devices he had questions about."
"You know Ron, there's a lot of curiosity about the muggle world. Why don't you harness that? Luna suggested.
"How?" Ron asked.
Luna shrugged, "Muggle adventure tours for wizards?"
Ron smiled at her, "That's a great idea!"
Ginny finished up the last touches on her article for the Daily Prophet and submitted it to her editor before quickly gathering up her stuff to prepare for the rest of the night. She had been hired a month ago to work as a fashion/style/advice reporter for paper. The editor had liked her proposal to improve the image and popularity of the Prophet, as the paper had lost quite a number of readers over the years. Tonight, Harry would be receiving his formal appointment as an Auror after completing the last three months of training, so not only will she be there as family, she would also be writing about the event.
Besides her professional life, Ginny actively worked on her family life. She started by getting to know her many nieces and nephews. She had to admit she adored every single one and she had already gone on several shopping trips for them. She was sure Nathalie was going to be a heartbreaker much the way her mother was. Even though she was one eight Veela she already had a small following of boys. Her younger brother, Thomas, had his mother's looks as well. Jonathan though was the spitting image of Bill. Gerd and Forge were just as incorrigible as their father's. The babies, Cole and Elliot, weren't as much fun as the older kids. Her favourites were the twins! She loved spending time with Michael and Mikaela and because Charlie and Samantha were always busy, she got to spend a lot of time with them. Her brothers complained that she was spoiling their children but she said it was her privilege as their only Weasley aunt. The family was set to expand too. Both Alicia and Penelope were pregnant. Her mother was buzzing with energy ready to welcome her new grands in a few months.
Living at Malfoy Manor had been nothing like what she had expected. She was actually enjoying it and had been prone to referring to the place as home. Officially, the wizarding world had been told that they were living in an apartment in London. Only family and the Order knew where they really were. Quite a few witches at work had been trying to pry the information from her. Mainly, they were interested in Harry and if he was still single. There were, one or two that did ask about Ron but Ginny shut them all down with style.
Draco wasn't around much, though she had a few embarrassing moments where she saw him half-dressed coming from the pool at the back of the Manor. She had to admit he had the perfect chest but the smirk he threw her when he caught her looking was completely annoying. It wasn't her fault that his chest was on display for all to see. When his girlfriend came over, everyone avoided them as the Order didn't want his current fling to know what was going on in the Manor. From the little glimpses she got of his girlfriend, she concluded that she was a galleon grabbing witch and she was strangely disappointed in Draco's taste. She discovered her mother abhorred the girlfriend and had been itching to teach her a lesson on how a witch should treat her wizard. Natalie was tolerated because of her connections in the underworld and the boost in gave Draco's businesses. The Order had caught on to a few dastardly plots early because of the connection.
Ginny also enjoyed the fact that Luna lived in the Manor with her. Having spent the last seven years with Ron and Harry, it felt nice to have a female housemate. They would sit down at nights after Luna got back from the Quibbler and do their hair or nails or just talk. Hermione would occasionally come over and they would give her a much needed make over. Seamus was out of St. Mungos and Hermione seemed to be on the job 24/7. She pitied poor Seamus and she wondered how he kept up with the witch.
Her relationship with Neville was going fantastic. She didn't think she had ever had such a successful relationship. He just made it easy. She loved surprising him at Hogwarts. There were nights that she had spent out there just talking to him. He respected her opinion on matters and often let her have her way. They had once been caught snogging in a broom closet by the current Headgirl of Hogwarts. The poor girl had fainted on the spot and Ginny had to take her to the hospital wing. Needless to say Professor Flitwick wasn't too happy with his teacher and former student's reckless behaviour.
After the Auror graduation, her next big assignment was The Minister of Magic's annual ball at the Ministry. She couldn't wait to dress up as it had been ages since she had been able to wear formal dress robes. She had been looking forward to this event since her editor handed her the two tickets. Marietta Edgecomb had been very upset that Ginny had gotten the assignment over her. Ginny and been subtly trying to find out who her co-worker's source was but the girl had iron-clad lips which was quite contrary to what the little sneak did in Hogwarts. Maybe Hermione's jinx taught the girl a lesson about keeping secrets a secret.
Ginny took one last look at her desk to make sure everything was in order before she headed out. She would be meeting her mother and family in the Ministry Atrium twenty minutes before the graduation ceremony was to start. Unfortunately, Neville couldn't come as he had a late herbology class to teach to his NEWT students but she was sure she would have a good time anyway.
Auror Graduation
Hermione clapped and hollered loudly as Harry received his official Auror robes. She was seated next to Seamus in the current Aurors section. Despite the fact that she didn't want him to choose this as a career, she couldn't help but beam with pride as the Minister of Magic congratulated him on his appointment.
His first assignment would be security detail at the Minister's annual ball the next day. The new recruits were really needed and there were a lot of requests by senior Aurors to have Harry Potter as their partner. She already had Seamus and she would not drop him in favour of her raven-haired friend. She didn't envy Kingsley with having to make this decision. Whatever he did, he risked upsetting quite a bit of people with the appointment of Harry's partner.
The Minister naturally made a show of posing with Harry for pictures and even tried to get a picture with her, Harry and Ron. She was surprised with how easy her friends accepted the Minister's request and later found out that they had learned a long time ago that no matter where they went, politicians would always be politicians. Harry soon got pulled away for photos with his graduating class and Ron left to attack the buffet.
She decided to make her way around the room to catch up with persons she hadn't seen in a long time. Luna was there representing the Quibbler and was interviewing members of the graduating class. She spotted Draco in the back, his arm around Natalie's waist as they spoke with other prominent members of the business community. Hermione took a minute to study the couple. Natalie's tall lean figure, long flowing blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes were what had originally attracted Draco to her. It was her connections to the wizarding black market and possible link to Primus that kept their relationship going. She had a little spat with Spellfire a few years ago and she didn't feel like repeating that so she made sure she stayed as far away from them as possible.
She had just settled into a conversation with a member of the Wizengamut when Seamus pinched her side and she turned to face him.
"What do you think of that witch over there?" He said pointing to a brunette witch in violet robes.
"Excuse me just one moment sir," she said to the wizard she was talking to before she turned angrily to Seamus, "She's married to the Minister's cousin," she sneered. Did he really interrupt her conversation just for him to get her opinion on witches again?
"Really, why are all the good witches taken?" he whined.
"Luna's available," Hermione chirped turning back with an apologetic smile to the wizard she had been talking to.
"For the last time Hermione, it would never work," Seamus replied. "We are just too different."
Hermione turned to face him, "You could always try my muggle friend?" she suggested.
Seamus glared at her.
"Oh grow up Seamus!" Hermione said turning back to the other wizard who had taken the opportunity to disappear.
When she turned back to Seamus to yell at him for ruining her conversation, he was gone but she spotted Mrs. Weasley gathering her children and grandchildren for a picture. Alarm bells went off in her head. She had done that once before and vowed she would never sit through a Weasley family picture again. It was time to leave if she wanted to avoid getting caught up in that mess.
She ducked behind a tall wizard when Molly looked her way. She caught Draco smirking at her. One day, he would be able to live in the light again and Hermione was going to make sure he experienced a Weasley family picture. Using the wizard as a shield to cover her, she was able to make it out of the room unseen. She knew if she went back to her desk, Molly would send someone there to look for her so she needed to leave the building. The Manor wouldn't be safe so she decided she would pay a visit with Cole and see what he was up to. Perhaps they could go down to that bar close to his office and have a few drinks.
Harry was stuck between Fred and George while he waited for Luna to find Hermione. Mrs. Weasley insisted that everyone must be in the family picture. After five minutes, Luna returned without Hermione.
"Smart witch!" Fred commented.
"She always gets away from this torture," George commented. "We should learn from her."
"Torture?" Harry questioned.
"It's now beginning young grasshopper," Fred said placing his hand on Harry's shoulder.
"Enjoy!" George mocked.
45 minutes later Harry was fed up of being squashed, sat upon and stepped on. He had held so many different positions and been moved around so much he was ready to scream at Molly. The picture was never perfect. Someone was not looking at the camera, someone, namely Fred or George, was making obscene gestures, one of the children wasn't in the right spot, the heights were all wrong, they should line up according to age then they shouldn't. She could not make up her mind and for a picture that moved, Harry didn't see what the problem was because eventually everyone would have looked at the camera at one point. There was hope that the torture was ending soon though because the roast that Mrs. Weasley left cooking for the celebratory dinner would be finished in five minutes and Mrs. Weasley never burnt her food.
By the time they disbursed most of the Aurors and guests had left. Kinglsey however was still there with an envelope in his hand. He called Harry over and handed him the envelope.
"This is your Auror partner. Report for duty 8am tomorrow to discuss the security detail for the Minister. Now get a good night's rest," Kinsley said. "You're going to need it."
In a flash, Kingsley was gone and he was staring at the plain white envelope with his name neatly written on the front of the envelope.
"Think you got Hermione?" Ron asked hopefully appearing at his side.
"I would think by now, you would know Hermione well enough to know she would not leave Seamus hanging," the raven-haired wizard told his best friend.
"Yes but this was not her decision and Kingsley is capable of anything," Ron pointed out.
"There's only one way to know mate," Harry said holding up the white envelope.
"On three," Ron asked.
"Yeah,"
" One,"
" Two,"
" Three,"
Harry stared at the name on the paper and laughed. Ron grabbed the paper from him and quickly read the writing on it.
"Tonks!" Ron said in surprise.
"I guess that rumour about nobody wanting to be her partner was true," Harry replied.
"Ron, Harry, you coming?" Ginny called out from the exit.
"Yeah," Harry called out.
"I sure hope the picture madness does not continue," Ron said. "Mom's ten times worse than she used to be."
"I for one am taking a page out of Hermione's book and using my stealth training to disappear," Harry said.
Ron stomach growled in protest as he stood in front of the dining table. Everyone had come back to the Burrow to celebrate Harry's graduation with a fancy dinner. The roast, the first thing Ron was going to load his plate with, was in the centre of the table with lots of other dishes around it. He was more than ready to dig in but his mother had declared that they were waiting on Draco and Hermione. In the background his brothers were doing an impression of him at the graduation. The bloody gits had eased dropped when the Minister's niece asked Ron to accompany her to the Minister's Ball tomorrow. Ginny, his little traitor of a sister, was laughing hysterically at the twins' interpretation of Ron accepting the invitation. Even Luna was cracking a smile. Where was the loyalty?
The fire roared to life and Hermione emerged from the flames. She stumbled a bit as she came out of the fire and Harry caught her. Ron noticed a moment pass between them that ended with Harry frowning.
"Finally!" Charlie declared.
Hermione rolled her eyes at him, "I'm not that late. I'm sure Molly just finished putting the last dish on the table." She made her way over to greet everyone and Ron noticed that Luna frowned as soon as Hermione moved on to someone else.
"She did that two minutes ago," Fred stated.
"That's two minutes of eating you've taken from us," George complained.
The fire roared to life again and Draco emerged from the fire.
"Let's eat!" Ron stated.
"Alright," Molly said, "Everyone to the table!"
Ron of course didn't have far to go and sat down in the middle of the table closest to the roast until a throat cleared behind him. Ron ignored it and started reaching for the roast when his mother slapped his hand away.
"Ow," Ron groaned pulling his hand back.
"The guest of honour gets the first cut of the roast," Molly instructed. "And you're in the wrong seat."
"What?" Ron asked stupefied.
"That's my seat," Penelope said. "There's an order to how we sit. You're down there with Harry and Draco."
"I have to sit next to Draco?" Ron stated horrified.
"I know, poor Draco," Penelope teased. "Now get up. My baby's hungry," she said rubbing her growing tummy. When Ron didn't move quickly enough, Penelope stated tapping her wand over his head.
Ron held his hands up to protect himself, "Ok, ok, I'm moving."
He grudgingly sat between Harry and a smirking Draco. Mrs. Weasley started serving the roast, the first slice going to Harry while the rest of the girls started passing around the side dishes and filling their husband and their plates. The kids had been fed earlier and put to bed.
"It's not that funny," Ron spat at Draco.
"Actually it kind of was," Hermione butted in. She was sitting on the other side of Draco. Luna was on the other side of Harry with Ginny next to her.
Ron saw Draco's lips move but he didn't hear what he said. All he knew was that Hermione's face turned red with anger and she dragged him away from the table.
"Go Draco!" Bill said proudly.
Arianne frowned, "I'm kind of on Hermione's side."
"Yeah, me too," Katie said.
"Go Hermione," Samantha toasted to which the other ladies around the table except Luna and Ginny followed.
"I'm lost," Ron admitted.
"Dearest little brother," Fred said.
"You are always lost," George finished.
"You obviously didn't notice the hickey on Hermione's neck," Charles said.
"The two hickeys!" Fred and George chorused at the same time. Ron noticed Charles seemed to recoil at the news.
"She was trying to hide it though. She pulled the collar of her robes up high," Bill added.
"She would have been better off using a concealment charm," Arianne pointed out.
"Kind of hard to do magic when you've been drinking," Harry commented but Ron recognised the sharp edge to his voice.
"Ok Mr. Auror," Alicia sat forward with a challenging looks. "If you noticed all of that, then who gave Hermione the hickeys."
Ron looked between Harry and Alicia. A smug look settled onto Harry's face before he answered, "Cole."
Ron furrowed his brows. Who the hell was Cole?
The twins whistled and the girls looked shocked.
"You're going to make an excellent Auror Harry. How did you figure it out?" Bill asked.
"The cologne," Luna said knowingly.
Harry nodded.
"Ok can someone please explain what's going on?" Ron asked.
Molly took pity on her youngest son and decided to explain to him, "Draco thinks Cole is a crooked agent but Hermione doesn't."
"Cole's crooked!" Harry said sitting up straight.
"That certainly peeked your interest," Bill commented.
"If he's crooked then that means the entire muggle/wizard operation is compromised," Harry said seriously.
"That's what Draco's been arguing but he has no proof and Hermione won't do anything without solid proof," Percy said speaking for the first time.
"Then we'll get some proof," Harry said.
"You agree with Draco?" Sol asked curiously.
"I know Draco's had her back for the last six years. Who better to smell a rat than a Malfoy," Harry said.
Ron chuckled, "He would certainly know how to recognise his own species."
When everyone around the table glared at him, Ron sank lower into his chair. He was saved the lecture by the return of Hermione and Draco. Whatever their disagreement had been it appeared that they had come to some sort of resolution between them because there was zero sign of tension there. If only he had known how to do that when they were dating!
Minister's Ball
The grand ballroom of the Ministry was beautifully decorated with floating white candles and white and black streamers soaring through the air that occasionally intertwined with each other. A huge crystal chandelier the size of a small cottage hung from the centre of the high ceiling filtering the light into beautiful little rainbows throughout the rectangular room. A small square dance floor was located in the middle under the chandelier. There were dozens of small round tables around the dance floor that were being used to rest glasses and plates full of appetizers. Against one of the long walls was a buffet and against the opposite one was a display of all the good work the Minister had accomplished over the last year. The end of the room that was opposite the entrance, displayed an elaborate fountain made of many basins at different elevations that had water jumping from one basin to another. The jumping water would change colour and shape periodically.
Any person that considered themselves important found a way to attend this event. Of course invitations were not easy to come by so very innovative methods were used to gain invitations. The actual invitations themselves were made by the Ministry's strongest wizards and witches and had various levels of spell and copy protection on them. It was also rumoured that the unspeakables also used new magic on the invites to ensure there were no crashers. St. Mungos hated this time of year because the emergency department was filled with wizards that had serious injuries from trying to duplicate the spells to create their own invitation.
There was a list of standard names that were invited every year such as the heads of various departments in the Ministry, headmaster of Hogwarts, members of the Wizengamot, important magical families such as the Malfoy's and one reporter from each of the media houses. The Minister was also allowed a personal list of invitees. This list usually consisted of outstanding wizard and witches from the previous year as well as his family. The year England won the Quidditch World Cup, the Minister invited the entire team to the event.
This year was not any different to the previous years. There were a few new faces that had made headlines during the year but other than that it was the same. Just below the Minister's grand display of his work, Ginny was blushing furiously as her mother talked with Neville about marriage and more grandchildren. Ginny had bought Neville as her guest and her mother had come with Sol, as his guest since the Quibbler was now a recognised newspaper. Ginny had just about had enough of her mother's rant though.
"Mother! Nev and I just started dating. Please don't marry us off yet! Besides, I think you have enough grandchildren to last you a little while," the youngest Weasley protested to her mother.
"Don't be preposterous Ginny! When you're a grandmother you will understand. You can never have enough grandchildren," Molly Weasley retorted.
Ginny spied Sol heading towards them and she gave him a pleading look.
"Molly, Ruby Bullstrode thinks her grandchildren are going to be excellent wizards and that Rufus will fly away leaving Danny and Edward in his wake," he said with a wink directed at Ginny. As predicted Molly immediately sought out Ruby in the ballroom to let her know that her grandchildren were going to be very skilled wizards as well.
"Thank you so much," Ginny said grateful for the reprieve she had gotten.
"It's fine. Just have fun tonight," he told them as he left in the direction Molly had gone.
Ginny turned to Neville to apologise about her mother but Neville insisted that it was fine and that his grandmother behaved in a similar way. It only proved how much Molly liked him and he was happy that he was being accepted into the family. He had been most hesitant about Ron's reaction and even Harry's considering Ginny's history with him but they seemed to have accepted him and Neville was hoping to take his relationship with Ginny to the next level. He slipped his hand around her waist and pulled her into his arms.
"Let's dance," he whispered in her ear causing a shiver to go down her back.
Not trusting her voice Ginny nodded and let him lead her off to wherever it was he wanted to go.
Not all persons were there to enjoy themselves though. Hermione walked slowly around the ball looking for anything out of place. Most of the Aurors were there with a few on duty in the office in case something happened elsewhere. She was not surprised to find Ron camped out by the buffet table, at least it was the safest place in the room. She knew Tonks was around somewhere and Harry was surrounded by witches requesting his personal protection. Hermione decided that it was time to move Harry to a position outside, where it would, more than likely, be safer for him and he could also do his job without being harassed. As she moved through the crowd, she overheard a snippet of conversation that caused her to stop.
"Your plan worked! And here you were worried you would not become the next Mrs. Malfoy," a red head witch said. Hermione recognised her as Harriet Breakwater, first cousin to Natalie.
"How did you get passed the contraceptive potion?" a brunette asked curiously. That was Nora Tellier, a French witch that was married to an English Wizard.
"Oh it was difficult. I had to slowly sneak small samples of the potion out every night and I had to pay quite a bit to get it analyzed properly to find a counter potion. I even had some herbs added that would boost fertility to ensure my success," Natalie Spellfire boasted to her friends.
"How far along are you?" Harriet asked.
"Almost three months, I wanted to wait for the first trimester to finish before I made the usual announcements," Natalie said proudly. "I'm thinking a full page spread in the Daily Prophet should work. Perhaps I'll even invite that Ginny Weasley to come and interview me. Rub it in their poor faces," she declared cackling loudly at the end.
"How did Draco take it?" Nora asked curiously.
"I haven't told him yet," Natalie admitted a bit hesitantly.
"You haven't told him yet!?" both of the witches gossiping with her said at the same time.
"Tonight, I'll tell him and by tomorrow my new contact address will be Malfoy Manor," she boasted.
Hermione had drawn her wand ready to hex the witch into the next century for the pain she was about to cause Draco but the room broke out in screams as the expensive chandelier came crashing into the middle of the dance floor. Hermione was barely able to put a blocking shield around her to prevent the flying crystals and pieces of the chandelier from hitting her.
A quick survey of the room revealed hooded figures emerging from the charmed fountains on the opposite end. The guests on that side of the room were already unconscious on the floor. Different colour spells were flying between the intruders and the Aurors and Hermione found it difficult to ignore the cries for help from the wizards caught under the chandelier as she made her way towards the Minister's bodyguards. The priority would be to evacuate the Minister, then secure the site, then helped the injured.
As Hermione tried to make it to the Minsiter she realised that the room was not emptying out fast enough. Turning to the entrance she was a rather large piece of the chandelier blocking the exit. Hermione had no clue how it got there but it needed to be moved immediately. A red spell flew past her and she was forced to refocus on the intruders. The Minister's bodyguards were holding off five hooded figures, who were using guests as shields, to advance safely towards the buffet. The buffet tables had been charmed to absorb spells and protect anyone that hid behind it. It was one of the safety measures that the Aurors put in place in case something like this happened. The bodyguards had obviously implemented the plan to fall back to that area with the Minister in case they were locked in the room.
Hermione ducked behind the main body of the chandelier as a stunner came flying past her. It was difficult to reach to the Minister and with the guests being used as shields, it was difficult to neutralise the threat. She soon felt a presence to her right and caught sight of a mop of messy raven hair and a pair of concerned emerald eyes giving her a quick look over for injuries. She couldn't explain it but her body felt completely safe knowing he was next to her and despite the chaos all around them, she knew she would be alright. This was a feeling she hadn't experienced since Hogwarts.
The wall behind the Minister started to rumble and Hermione immediately realised what was going to happen. They knew the plan was to fall back to the buffet table and they were going to take the Minister from behind the table.
She turned quickly to Harry, "Clear the entrance. I'll work with the Aurors to get the Minister out now."
Harry nodded and he headed towards the door where there was a thick crowd of panicked wizards. Hermione started firing spells at the intruder when she noticed Ron cowering behind the table with his date.
"Ron, grab the Minister and move! We'll cover you," she shouted.
Without thinking twice Ron grabbed one of the Minister's hand and started heading for the door. Harry had been unable to get the chandelier to move and had resorted to blasting two holes on either side of the entranceway to get everyone out. The Aurors tried to form a defensive line to keep the intruders on the opposite side of the room to allow the Minister and all of the guests to escape. Hermione levitated one of the buffet tables and placed it across the room to provide protection for their line. Once The Minister was out the door, the hooded figures retreated to the same fountains that they had emerged from. The wall behind the buffet tables collapsed but whoever was there was gone.
Kinglsey immediately took control of the situation and started delivering orders. One team was assigned to secure the fountains and take them for examination. Another team was ordered to investigate the destroyed wall. Tonks was assigned to get assistance from St. Mungos, Harry was told to get rid of the chandelier in the middle of the room and Hermione, with her extensive knowledge of healing spells had to deal with the injured immediately.
Harry glanced at Hermione with a questioning look, which she immediately understood, 'how do I get rid of this thing?'.
"Harry, levitate it, shrink it and put it with the fountains to be examined," Hermione said as she rushed off towards the unconscious guests by the fountains while Harry shrunk the chandelier.
Once the chandelier was dealt with Harry started helping the wizards trapped underneath it. He recognised Draco's platinum blonde hair first. His foot had been caught under the chandelier and his ankle appeared to be broken. Their eyes locked and images of Hermione, Molly, Sol and Ginny flooded his mind. Harry had been totally unprepared for the legilimens spell and hadn't realised that Draco even knew how to cast it. He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised that Draco knew the spell but casting it wordlessly and subtly was definitely a shock. Harry did not make any attempt to use Occlumency to block him because he understood what he was asking. Harry immediately pulled up the memory of Hermione telling him what to do with the chandelier but he realised he had no clue where Ginny, Molly and Sol were and he tried to think of a big question mark in his head. Draco seemed to have understood and started searching the room. A slender witch pushed Harry aside and headed straight to Draco.
"Draco, sweety are you ok?"
"I'm fine Natalie. Let's leave these bumbling idiots to clean things up," he said as he tried to stand and pretended to be uninterested in the whole situation but his calculating eyes never stopped searching the room. Draco leaned on her and started hopping out but stopped in front of Harry.
"You tell that idiot boss of yours that he'll have to pay to fix my foot," he held his nose up in the air and continued on his way but was stopped by another Auror trying to question him about the incident. He couldn't help but smile when he heard Draco tell off the poor Auror. No one could ever guess that he worked for the order.
Harry continued helping the injured as there had been quite a few persons dancing and the amount injured was piling up. Many medics had arrived and Hermione summarised all that had happened. Wizards were being levitated to apparition points outside, so the room was slowly being cleared of the injured. In the centre of the room only a few unconscious persons remained as Medics franticly worked to heal everyone.
Harry recognised two of the unconscious figures on the floor as Neville and Ginny. Neville was turned face down covering most of Ginny, as it appeared he tried to shelter her with his body. He called out to Hermione who was trying to calm a frantic Mrs. Weasley. Molly shouted for her baby and came storming over. Hermione was barely able to stop Molly from pulling Ginny to her, in case she injured Ginny further. She shouted for some of the medics to come and help. With Molly restrained, Hermione gently reached her hand under Neville's neck to check for a pulse. Her face went white and she looked up at Harry with sad eyes.
"He's dead."
An: Thanks for reading. Happy New Year!