Title: Code of the Griffin
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Nothing Specific, general for first few books.
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I do not own Hermione, or Luna, or Ginny, or Cho, or... I would buy them all but I am broke.
Summary: From a war ravaged future, someone is sent back in time to change the course of the war.
The General sat behind his desk going through the paperwork. There was a knock at the door.
"Yes." He said.
The door opened and a Sergeant Major opened the door.
"Sir, the Major and the Agent are here." The Sergeant Major said.
"Show them in."
Two people entered the room, both in their late Forties, the male was dressed in a formal SAS Major's Uniform. The female was dressed in a smart dress suit with an MI6 ID.
"Major. Agent 009." The General said.
"Sir." The Major replied.
"I wanted you opinion on this." The General said, diming the lights and turning on the projector.
The screen showed a satellite thermal recording of an engagement between an assaulting group of twenty and a defending group of nine. The defending troops clearly defeated the attackers.
"Nice tactics for a small team." The Major said. "Get them into the blocking force then when they break cut them down with the heavy weapon."
"If I'm reading it right, those hot blotches are shielding spells. Their sniper is amazing for the shot through the flickering shield." Agent 009 said.
They continued their analysis for another twenty minutes. Finally the Major and the Agent rose to leave.
"I'll inform M." Agent 009 said.
"I'll get back to training the team." The Major said, before pausing. "Sir, they don't know that thermal scans and satellite imaging can defeat their obscuring spells, do they?"
"No." The General replied. "Best kept national secret is that we have had a satellite in Geosync orbit over Hogwarts since the 1980's."
With a final nod the two visitors left.
Everyone waiting had jumped slightly at the shot that had rung out a minute ago. Harry scanned the faces as he waited. Fred, George and Cedric, like himself, were still in their battle gear from the night before and weariness showed on their faces. Dumbledore, Sprout, Flitwick and Snape were also waiting, with the Headmaster trying to hide his frustration that he had been excluded from the interrogation, while Snape looked bored, pissed off and contemptuous all at the same time.
The door to the other room opened. The Grand Marshall, Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey emerged. Both of the adults looked green, while Hermione was calmly cleaning her hands with a rag. The Headmaster had insisted that a teacher be present and Madam Pomfrey had also insisted that a trained Mediwitch be present.
"We got the answer." Hermione said. "Professor McGonagall can brief the staff, my guys go get some rest. Full debrief at sixteen hundred. Dismissed."
In the instant before she turned and left, Harry saw her eyes soften and fill with pain. To his mind it was if the hardened warrior was gone to be replaced by someone who felt almost too strongly. The teachers filed out surrounding the Gryffindor Head of House and Madam Pomfrey went back to her office. The other Order members stayed for a second, turning to Harry.
"You need to go after her." Cedric said to Harry.
"What? Why?" he said, slightly dumbfounded.
"Come on Harry. Even we can tell that she needs someone to talk to." Fred said.
"And you know her better than any of us." George finished.
"She's changed so much, I'm not really sure if that is true." Harry replied.
There were times when she was just like she had been, a bit know-it-all, totally brilliant and full of idealism, other times she was cold, distant and hard, or would look at him in a odd way that welled up emotions he could neither identify nor deal with.
"Get after her, ya git." Fred finally said, pushing him out the door.
It was easy enough to follow Hermione, even with the Saturday morning sparse crowd, a student marching through in jungle BDU's carrying a P90 was a topic of discussion, and no one was about to disrupt the passage of a second, especially with the focused expression that Harry had unknowingly fixed on his face. It was not until he was out of the castle and following Hermione's tracks towards the Forbidden Forest that he realised that no one, even the one or two who had pointed to where Hermione had gone, had recognised him as the Famous Harry Potter.
A little into the Forrest, Harry crouched down checking Hermione's tracks, when he heard a branch break. His P90 instantly came up but he lowered it when it was just a Thestral Calf. He gave the calf a pat on the snout as he walked past and continued with his P90 at the ready. A few minutes later he came to the edge of a pond. Hermione was sitting out on a small, bare spit of land, looking across at a small clearing on the other side. As he approached the clear ground he let out a soft bird call.
"You can come out Harry." Hermione said.
Harry approached and sat down next to Hermione, placing his P90 on the ground. He knew he was supposed to say something, but he could not think of anything to say.
"You almost died here." Hermione said softly after a few minutes. "Right over there. Four weeks from now."
He knew this Hermione, this was the one he had spent the last few years with, mostly. There was sadness in her voice, and a sad smile caressed her lips. It was as if she was mourning the loss of something.
"So, what tried to kill me that time?" he asked, with a wiry smile.
"It was Dementors." Hermione said.
They sat there for the next few hours, Hermione telling the tale of their Third Year, last time around. It was just like old times.
"So they were after you and Harry?" Luna asked.
The Order members were seated in chairs around the briefing room in Hermione's trunk. Ron and Harry were sitting together on one side, Fred and George were together on the other. Neville was sitting in the row in front of Harry and Ron, with the rest scattered around the room, with Hermione at the lectern.
"Affirmative. They either wanted to kill Harry to get in Voldermort's good books or myself because they were insulted that a "Mudblood" was the Head of an Ancient and Noble house."
"Do you think they realise that by the very virtue of being the Head of an Ancient and Noble Magical House it means you aren't a Muggleborn?" Cedric asked.
"Probably not." Hermione admitted.
"They are Death Eaters. Stupidity is a requirement." Ron said.
Laughter broke out around the room.
"Alright Enough." Hermione said. "You all did exceptionally well, except for team two forgetting to announce themselves."
Fred, Ron and Susan all looked embarrassed, George giving his twin a playful nudge with his elbow.
"That aside. I consider you all to have sufficiently completed basic training. Report back here in twenty minutes in full dress uniform. Dismissed."
The Order was lined up in the front of the briefing room, with Hermione facing them. They were all dressed in the red uniforms with yellow trimming. Only Luna, Harry and Cedric's uniforms did not insignia, everyone else's uniforms showed Private Chevrons.
"Congratulations, Private Lovegood." Hermione said, shaking Luna's hand and waving her wand. A Private's insignia appeared on Luna's sleaves.
"Thank you." Luna replied.
Hermione took a step to her right, in front of Harry.
"Congratulations, Corporal Potter." She said, shaking his hand, and giving him his insignia.
"Thank you Ma'am." He replied.
She took another step to the right.
"Congratulations, Sergeant Diggory."
"Thank You, Grand Marshall." Cedric replied, glancing at his Sergeant's stripes.
Hermione did and about face, moved out and across to the middle of the line and turned to face the assembled troops.
"Congratulations everyone. Now fall in."
The squad fell in with Sergeant Diggory and Corporal Potter directly behind Hermione.
"Forward march." Hermione ordered.
Hermione lead the squad out of the trunk and down to the Great Hall where dinner was about to begin. As they entered the Great Hall everything stopped. The hall had been slightly rearranged so the Teacher's table had been moved slightly to the side, and down the front of the hall was a relatively small round table. Hermione led them strait down the central isle. With a nod, she ordered them to the new table before standing behind the podium that Dumbledore uses for his Welcome Feast speeches.
"Attention everyone." She announced. "Yesterday during dinner twenty Death Eaters attempted to infiltrate Hogwarts. They were stopped, but we can not assume this is the only attempt they will make. If you notice anyone unusual around Hogwarts or during a Hogsmeade Weekend please let one of the Order members know. Order member will be wearing this uniform. Thank you."
Hermione joined the rest of the order at their table, and the entire hall broke out into whispers.
TBC….