CHAPTER 15: ONE LAST CHANCE
Jimmy O'Bannon's eyelids flickered open. His consciousness emerged from the world of sleep. That's when he felt something draped on his body. What the hell . . .?
He glanced down. Elation filled his insides. His heart started up a drum beat.
Tonks lay on top of him, dozing peacefully, her head resting against his bare chest.
A smile spread across his face. Memories burst into his mind. His body tingled as he remembered every feel and sensation of . . .
Sex! I had sex! I friggin' had sex! With Tonks!
His smile threatened to consume his entire face. He lifted his right arm and gave a short fist pump.
Tonks moaned, her cheek rubbing against his chest. O'Bannon stiffened as her eyes open.
"Hey." He slid his hand under the blanket and down Tonks' bare back.
"Good morning." She gave him a lazy smile.
O'Bannon rolled his tongue in his mouth, trying to figure out what to say next. It should be something . . . meaningful? Heartfelt?
"Um . . . so, was it good for you?"
He closed his eyes and grimaced. I can't believe I said that. Friggin' idiot.
Tonks folded her arms on his chest and rested her chin on her right wrist. "You were okay, for a first timer."
The corners of O'Bannon's mouth twitched. He thought he'd done better than okay. Way better.
"Uh . . . sorry. I mean, I did my best, you know."
Tonks chuckled. She came forward and kissed him on the chin. "It's amazing how fragile a man's ego is."
O'Bannon gave her a half-hearted frown. He tickled her sides. Tonks yelped with laughter. He took the opportunity to roll her onto her back.
"It's amazing how an ass-kicking auror can be so ticklish." O'Bannon laughed along with her before giving her a long kiss.
Tonks moaned when their lips parted. She stroked his cheek with two fingers. "I'm really glad this happened."
"Me too."
They kissed again.
"Tonks. Can I ask you something?"
"I think after everything we did you earned that right." She gave him that patented wry grin that made her look even hotter.
O'Bannon played with a strand of her sunset red hair. "I've always been curious. What made you want to be an auror?"
"Well, you can thank Professor Dumbledore for that."
"Really?"
"Yup. It was my Sixth Year here. One day I was on my way to Transfiguration when I saw four Slytherin arseholes using a Levitation Spell on this First Year. They were flinging the poor little boy around the hall, bouncing him off the walls. I told them to stop, they told me to bugger off."
"And that's when you kicked their asses, right?"
"Jimmy, there were four Slytherins, and I was just a clumsy little Hufflepuff." Tonks' wry grin grew wider. "I got three of them before the last one hit me with an Exploding Boil Hex."
"Eew."
"Eew is right. But before he could do anything else, Filch showed up. After he did his customary bit of yelling and accusing us of being the most horrid witches and wizards that ever trod the earth, he sent us to Professor Dumbledore's office. He took off fifty points from each of the Slytherins, gave them two weeks detention and sent them on their way."
"And you?"
"I pleaded my case, told Dumbledore I only hexed them to help out the First Year. The boy backed up my story, and Dumbledore awarded Hufflepuff twenty points. After he sent the boy on his way he asked me if I ever gave any thought to becoming an auror after graduation. I never did, to be honest. Besides, Hufflepuff's not the house for courage and daring. Gryffindor is. They're the ones better suited to be aurors. I even said so to Dumbledore. But he said that cherishing hard work and fairness does not negate courage from one's soul. Then he ran down a list of Hufflepuffs who went on to be great aurors."
Tonks grinned like she was reminiscing. "Professor Dumbledore saw something in me that day. Something I never even saw myself. I figured if he thought I could become an auror, then maybe I'd better give it a whirl. Besides, every time I thought about helping that First Year, it just made me feel . . . good. Like I'd done something important. Something that mattered. That I did what I did because it was right."
O'Bannon untangled his fingers from the lock of Tonks' hair he'd been fiddling with and slowly ran an index finger up and down her cheek. "So back at Salem, when we first met, and you listened to some of my theories about the 'bad vibes' going on, you kept saying I'd make a good auror. You weren't just saying that to make me feel good, were you?"
"You proved how smart you are, and from all the stories Fred and George and Ginny told about you, I knew you were tough and a natural leader. You're an excellent candidate for an auror."
O'Bannon shifted his gaze away from Tonks. Visions spooled through his head, of him battling dark wizards. Maybe he could . . .
Just one problem there, Jimmy Boy.
"That would be something to consider." He looked back at Tonks. "Especially since I have no idea what I want to do after graduation, which is three months away. Of course, it's probably a moot point anyway. Who knows if any of us are going to make it out alive when those . . ."
Tonks gently pressed her middle and index fingers against O'Bannon's lips. "Jimmy. Let's not talk about . . . that. Let's just . . . let's just have this moment. Let's have something really wonderful before . . ."
He held his breath, staring into Tonks' pleading eyes. She knew what the future likely held for her, for them. The realization had also sunken in with him. He couldn't see how any of them would survive a battle with hundreds of Death Eaters and dark creatures from America, along with You-Know-Who's home grown forces. But before the coming darkness consumed him, he could at least have one last moment of happiness with a strong, beautiful woman like Nymphadora Tonks.
They kissed. She wrapped her arms around him. He slid his lips across her cheek and down her neck. Tonks moaned as he kissed her on the shoulder and down to her . . .
"Yo, Jimmy! Get up! We got -"
O'Bannon quickly rolled on his side just as the curtain snapped open. His wide eyes met the even wider eyes of Jared Diaz, who stood in the entrance. Right behind him were Rosa Infante and Artimus Rand, both with mouths agape.
"Dude, what the hell!" O'Bannon nearly screeched. Tonks, meantime, had pulled the blanket up to her shoulders.
"Whoa!" Jared responded breathlessly. "Jimmy."
"Hey! There some reason for bursting in here like this?" O'Bannon clenched his teeth.
"Oh. Um . . . uh, yeah. Um, Harry and his crew are here. They say they have a plan to contact the Order of the Phoenix."
Jared's words chased his anger and embarrassment away. For a moment, he couldn't move. Harry found a way to get the message out? Could they do it? Did they still have a last chance to avoid a bloodbath?
"We'll be right out." He was about to throw off the blanket and get dressed, until he noticed Jared still standing in the entrance, clutching the curtain, his eyes locked on him and Tonks in the cot.
"Dude!"
"Oh yeah. Sorry, man."
Jared drew the curtain shut.
"Perfect friggin' timing," O'Bannon grumbled.
"C'mon." Tonks slapped him the arm. "Funtime's over. We've got work to do."
She cast the blanket aside and sprang out of bed. O'Bannon tried to move, but found himself captivated by Tonks' trim, naked body. Desire overwhelmed him. He wanted her again, so bad he felt he'd explode.
It's not friggin' fair. Couldn't they have just a few more minutes before . . .
"Oi!" Tonks snapped her fingers in front of him. "Quit ogling me and get a move on. We've got a nation to save."
That snapped him out of his stupor . . . somewhat. O'Bannon forced himself out of bed and got dressed. He grimaced as he stared at the bulge in his pants, praying no one outside would notice.
Only if they've all gouged out their own eyes.
Chewing on the inside of his cheek, he hesitated for a moment, then drew back the curtain and exited his bedroom.
He swallowed as he scanned the Room of Requirement. Along with Rosa, Jared and Artimus, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and the Weasley twins were also there. O'Bannon heard footsteps behind him and glanced over his shoulder. Tonks stepped out of the bedroom, now in her mousy guise of Katerina Ponce.
He turned back to the others. Most of them stood in absolute shock. Jared smiled and nodded at him. Fred and George wore the biggest Cheshire Cat grins he'd ever seen.
Neck veins bulging, he glanced down at his waist. Please go down. Please go down.
"So, you have a plan?" Tonks asked.
"Um, yeah." Harry answered, his astonished gaze flickering between O'Bannon to Tonks. "Yeah, I do. We just need to wait for the rest of the D.A."
They gathered some cushions and spread them out in a circle on the floor. O'Bannon forced himself to think of anything other than him and Tonks having sex. Hockey, baseball, Quidditch, the droning, monotone voice of Professor Binns. Fred and George didn't help any, sidling up to him and grinning.
"You and Tonks!" Fred whispered, his voice filled with admiration. "Blimey, mate, how'd you do that? She's what, four, five years older than you?"
"May I have the privilege of worshipping at your feet, oh stud of studs?" George grasped his shoulder.
O'Bannon groaned, wishing they'd shut up and go away. Unlike most guys, he never felt the need to brag about intimate moments between him and girls.
There's a reason it's called 'personal.'
He finally managed to "settle things down" on the hormonal front as D.A. members filed into the room.
"You guys get past the aurors okay?" he asked.
"Actually," Angelina Johnson replied, "they haven't been harassing us for the most part."
"Yeah." George nodded. "I think those clowns are starting to believe you're not in Hogwarts anymore. Umbridge has a few of them searching for more secret passages into and out of the school. Figures you lot must have slipped out that way."
"Still, those aurors don't appear to be letting their guard down," Hermione warned. "So neither should we."
As soon as everyone took a seat, Jared leaned forward anxiously. "Okay, Harry. So what's . . . man, what are we up to now, Plan H to alert Headmaster Dumbledore?"
"I can Floo someone who can get a message to him."
Whispers of disbelief went up from the group.
"Um, Harry." O'Bannon raised his hand. "There is a reason our Headmistress sent us to England instead Flooing you guys about the Longathian Tunnel. It's because the Ministry is monitoring the Floo Network."
"Yes, I know. But I just realized there is one fireplace we can use that the Ministry won't be monitoring."
"Where's that?" asked Hannah Abbott.
"Professor Umbridge's office."
Again, more incredulous whispering came from the D.A. members.
"Oh." Sarcasm dripped from Michael Corner's voice. "I'm sure if we ask nicely, Toadface'll just let us right in to Floo whoever we want."
Ron glowered at the Ravenclaw boy as Harry spoke. "There is a way we can do it, but we're going to need everyone's help."
"Will we get in trouble?" Worry spread across Zacharias Smith's face.
O'Bannon rolled his eyes. He also noticed Fred, George and Ginny giving the dipstick exasperated looks.
Even Harry scrunched his face in annoyance. Still he kept his tone even. "If we get caught, we will."
Smith bit his lower lip. "Then maybe we should rethink this."
"Maybe . . ." Rosa's eyes narrowed. "You should hear what Harry's plan is before you decide to wet your pants."
Smith's face reddened, but he kept his mouth shut.
Harry glanced around at the group before going on. "The biggest problem we have are the aurors patrolling Hogwarts. But there is a way we can get past them and into Umbridge's office. That's by throwing the whole school into a panic."
"How do we do that?" asked Susan Bones.
"Fred, George and Lee have that worked out."
The three boys smiled mischievously. Fred, with a twinkle in his eye, said, "We can sneak into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom and let loose some things that are sure to cause a grand commotion."
"Like what?" Terry Boot inquired.
"Oh, just some things prior Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers left behind." George waggled his eyebrows. "Like that tosser Lockhart's Cornish pixies."
"And the boggart Professor Lupin used a couple years ago."
"Oi! Don't forget my little contribution." Lee Jordan produced a jar from beneath his robes. Little creatures that resembled a cross between an ant and a crayfish with two needle-like appendages protruding from their heads skittered around the inside.
"Lee?" Hermione gasped. "Are those . . ."
"Yup." He nodded and smiled. "Kirpalas. I was saving these little guys for the next Quidditch match. Set them loose in the Slytherin stands. But given our current predicament, I figured they're needed more now."
"But . . . but . . ." Hermione stammered. "Kirpalas are some of the most aggressive insects in the wizarding world. And they're dangerous!"
"They are not." Lee gave her a dismissive wave. "They bite you, you feel like your entire body's on fire, and that's it. They're not fatal, and you know it, Hermione."
She scowled, her head trembling. "Creatures like that aren't allowed to be kept by students."
"Well, you can take points away from us later." Fred sounded a bit annoyed. "But for now, the more chaos we can spread, the better. And these little buggers will definitely help with that."
"And that's not all," George chimed in. "We've got loads of dungbombs, Fanged Frisbees, mini vomit fountains and Whizzing Web Spitters. Enough for everyone."
"Just what are we supposed to do with them?" Justin Finch-Fletchley's face crinkled in a quizzical way.
"We want you to cram them up your arse, dance around and sing a medley of Weird Sisters songs." Fred shook his head and looked to the ceiling before returning his gaze to Justin. "We want you to use them, you pillock."
"The more confusion, the better," said George. "Those aurors won't know what to tackle first."
"And imagine what'll happen when Peeves gets involved." Fred grinned.
"Peeves?" Padma Patil drew her head back in surprise. "How did you convince him to go along?"
"We didn't. But once he sees all the chaos going on, he'll definitely want to join in."
"All that's bound to create more confusion than Umbridge and the aurors can handle," Harry said. "We should have no trouble sneaking into her office."
"Aren't you forgetting something?" Ginny raised her hand. "Like the two aurors and two security trolls Toadface has guarding her office."
"Damn, isn't that a little excessive?" Jared wondered aloud.
"Well after you and Jimmy attacked Umbridge," Hermione explained, "we've heard rumors that she's convinced you want to assassinate her."
O'Bannon slapped his brow and shook his head. First Fudge and his cronies labeled him a foreign mercenary. Now he was an assassin?
Have these morons abandoned all sense of reality?
Hermione continued. "So she put together her own little security force."
"But one of those aurors follows her around whenever she leaves her office," Harry noted. "So it'll only be one auror and two security trolls to get past."
"We can always stun the auror." Rosa said it like it was no big deal. "So long as we can surprise him."
"Stunning Spells won't work on trolls." Hermione turned toward Rosa. "Like giants, their constitution is much greater than humans. You could cast a dozen Stunning Spells on one and it won't go down."
Rosa snorted and gave her a dismissive wave. "Who needs Stunning Spells? When we were younger, Jared and I always explored troll caves near our homes. And we always made sure to bring along oranges or grapefruit."
"What, you fed them?" Colin Creevey shot her an astonished look.
"No. We had the fruit in see-through bags. If we encountered a troll, we just swung the bag over our heads. And we chanted a bunch of nonsensical words. The big galoots probably thought we were cursing them."
"Yeah." Jared nodded. "I'll tell ya, as big and clumsy as they are, they can sure run fast when they're scared."
"Too bad we don't have any oranges or grapefruit handy." Katie Bell frowned.
"Don't worry about it," said Rosa. "It's not the fruit so much as the color. Trolls don't like bright colors. I can always transfigure my shoes from black to yellow and wave them over my head. It'll work just as well."
"I doubt it."
Rosa's brow furrowed as she stared at Hermione. "Why's that?"
The brainy Gryffindor huffed and folded her arms. "Well, you won't be going up against trolls who live in caves. These are security trolls. Specially trained by the Ministry of Magic."
"Which means they're only a tad smarter than your average troll, which is to damn with faint praise."
"They're not going to be fooled by simple tricks like their untamed cousins. We need to find a more reliable way of dealing with them."
"My way will work," Rosa spoke each word deliberately.
"I'm not convinced." Hermione matched her tone.
"How many trolls have you encountered in your life?"
"One, actually."
"One?" Rosa tone left no doubt she wasn't impressed. "Well Jared and I have encountered way more than one. So I think that makes us more knowledgeable about trolls than you."
Hermione's shoulders slowly rose as she sucked in an angry breath. Her face tightened and her eyes narrowed. Ron and Ginny, who sat on either side of her, edged back on their cushions. Like O'Bannon, they could sense an eruption building. Hermione always struck him as someone who took great offense at another student declaring he or she knew more about anything than her.
"Okay, how about this?" O'Bannon shifted his gaze between the two girls. "Let's go with Rosa's plan first, and if that doesn't work, then Hermione can come up with Plan B. Fair enough?"
"This isn't about fairness." Hermione whipped her head toward him. "It's about coming up with an actual strategy instead of some childish trick."
"Well it can't be too childish if it saved our asses every single time we tried it." Rosa glared at Hermione.
"What we're doing is too important to rely on . . ."
"Guys, enough!" Harry chopped his hand through the air. "We only have about an hour before breakfast ends, and that's when we need to do this. When everyone's in the corridors on their way to class. So we really don't have time for you two to argue. Now since Rosa has a lot of experience dealing with trolls we'll go with her plan. All right?"
Rosa nodded and shot Hermione a brief, triumphant smile. The bushy-haired girl's face reddened. O'Bannon couldn't tell who received the more intense death stare from Hermione, Rosa or Harry.
"Well, now that we're all friends again." Fred smiled at both girls. "Let's run down the plan. We'll wait till five minutes before first bell. Everyone should be in the corridors by then. That's when we'll let loose the boggart, the pixies and the Kirpalas. When everyone starts yelling and screaming," he gazed at the rest of the D.A., "that's when you lot let loose with the dungbombs, vomit fountains and the rest of our stuff."
"We're gonna turn this school into a bloody madhouse." George beamed and turned to his twin. The two high-fived.
"And what if we get caught?"
O'Bannon sighed. Naturally Captain Buzzkill, a.k.a. Zacharias Smith, had to throw in his worthless two cents.
"You do realize we are aiding four Americans wanted by the Ministry for who knows how many crimes."
"That's rubbish!" Fred blurted. "Jimmy and his friends aren't criminals."
"They are in the eyes of the Ministry. And if they catch us helping them, detention will be the least of our worries. They could expel us. Maybe chuck us into Azkaban. Have you thought about that?"
O'Bannon scowled at Smith. Thankfully no one here seemed to like the little dipstick, so his worrying would likely fall on deaf ears.
"Smith does have a point, you know."
O'Bannon froze. He forced himself to rotate his head until his eyes locked on Marietta Edgecombe. She sat on her cushion next to Cho Chang, wringing her hands.
"This . . . this is serious stuff we're talking about. And my mum works for Ministry. How will it look if I get caught helping to start a riot at Hogwarts?"
"Marietta's right." Hannah Abbott's cheek twitched nervously. "I don't know about anyone else, but I don't want to get expelled, or go to Azkaban."
O'Bannon's eyes swept over the D.A. members. His lungs seized when he saw Padma Patil stare at her folded hands. The color drained from Dennis Creevey's face. Anxiety radiated from two of his former Triad teammates, Anthony Goldstein and Justin Finch-Fletchley.
"It's one thing to just tell someone to deliver a message," Smith went on. "It's quite another to throw an entire school into a panic. We need to come up with another way to do this . . ."
"There is no other way!" O'Bannon shot to his feet.
Smith opened his mouth to protest. O'Bannon glared at him, teeth bared. The jagoff closed his mouth and swallowed, looking away from him.
O'Bannon balled his fists, taking in the entire group. "Okay, you're scared of getting caught and going to Azkaban. Fine! So am I. But what's even scarier to me is You-Know-Who doubling the size of his army like that." He snapped his fingers. "If he gets those reinforcements from the U.S., going to Azkaban is gonna be the least of our worries. Yeah, Harry's plan is risky, but right now it's all we've got. The clock is ticking. If my school's headmistress and her forces haven't found the Longathian Tunnel already, then it's possible by the end of the day this country'll see an explosion in the Death Eater, werewolf, vampire and Wendigo populations. Anyone here want that?"
No one spoke or raised a hand.
"Hermione. Why did you guys form the D.A.?"
"Because Umbridge wouldn't teach us the spells we needed to learn to fight V-Voldemort and his allies."
"Mm-hmm." O'Bannon nodded. "And how long have you been practicing to do that?"
"About four months."
"Well, practice is over, and it's time to do it for real." He again addressed the entire room. "Remember what Headmaster Dumbledore said to us at Cedric Diggory's memorial?"
He paused when he noticed Cho Chang's jaw quiver. When the girl didn't start crying, O'Bannon continued. "He told us to remember Cedric when the time comes for us to choose between what's easy and what's right. Well that time's now. Because if we act like that dumbass Cornelius Fudge and do nothing, a lot more people are gonna wind up like Cedric Diggory."
He took a quick breath. "So choose. Are you in, or are out?"
Immediately Harry, Hermione and the Weasleys stood. The rest of the Gryffindor contingent followed mere moments later. O'Bannon couldn't help but smile as a surge of pride for his old House swept through him.
Cho got up the same time as the Gryffindors.
"We're with you, Jimmy." Michael Corner nodded as he rose with Terry Boot and Anthony Goldstein.
"Hear, Hear!" Ernie MacMillan raised a fist as he stood.
Hannah bolted up next to him, followed by Susan Bones, Justin Finch-Fletchley and Padma Patil. Zacharias Smith looked around at the D.A., gazed at the floor for a few moments, then grumbled and got to his feet. O'Bannon frowned a bit. He would not have been disappointed if Smith had decided to sit on the sidelines. Actually, he would have preferred it. Guys like Smith had a talent for wrecking teams because of their crappy attitude. Considering what was on the line, they couldn't afford to have this team wrecked.
All eyes then turned to Luna Lovegood, who still sat on her cushion staring blankly into space. A full minute passed before Luna's head jerked from side to side.
"Hmm? Oh yes. Wonderful speech, Jimmy. Of course I'm with you. Sorry for not getting up, but this cushion is so comfortable. I hope you don't mind."
A few students chuckled. Others rolled their eyes. O'Bannon let the whole thing pass, chalking it up to Luna being Luna.
He caught sight of Tonks, who grinned and winked at him. Another wave of confidence rushed through him. He gave her a brief smile before turning back to the rest of the group.
"All right, gang. Let's do this. And remember, if Harry's plan doesn't pan out, we'll have to resort to my plan, and trust me we don't want to go there."
"What's your plan, Jimmy?" Ernie asked.
"Stand on the parapets, wait for those dark creatures and Death Eaters to show up, and do the wizarding world's version of the Alamo."
Everyone gave him perplexed looks.
"Basically, a heroic last stand where most, if not all of us, get killed."
Ernie grimaced. "I think I like Harry's plan better."
O'Bannon nodded. "So do I."
TO BE CONTINUED