During the short flight nobody said a word. The men were all bowed with their heads down, each one holding a rosary and silently praying. She had some time to look at each man individually. They were all much younger than Father Paul, most were between twenty and thirty years old. After a while, she noticed some of them had really ugly scars stretching their necks and faces. Scars reminiscent of Bill. These men have met werewolves before. And the neck marks might be vampire marks. How did they go into battle so calm knowing they will be facing a magical animal that would scare even the most competent wizards?
As they approached the ambush spot, suddenly the sound of the helicopter became muffled. She looked at Radebe, who said:
"Silent mode, Miss Granger. The angels we use in England are pretty silent to begin with, it is a heretical country after all. For the last 20 miles, we slow down, and go into stealth mode. Even the civilians don't know we are here."
That made perfect sense. The casual remark that England was a "heretical country" reminded her once again how different the world was for these men. She was fighting for her home, her friends and her world. These men were foreigners in a foreign land, hiding from wizards and muggles alike, fighting a hopeless war. Her thoughts went back to the base, where Harry was drugged unconscious and Ron was recovering from a gunshot wound. The Inquisition was most definitely very dangerous. She would soon see just how dangerous.
The helicopters reached their destination and were hovering over a relatively secluded meadow deep in the middle of a misty forest. She didn't quite understand what was going on when the first two soldiers jumped out. She flinched but then noticed that there were ropes going down from other helicopters and soldiers descending down them. Her confusion was obvious, because Radebe started to explain:
"Landing would be too risky and too slow. I assume you have never done this before, so we are going to do it in pair. Just hold on tight and trust me."
He quickly disconnected the harness that was securing her to the helicopter and reattached it to himself. And then they jumped. She was used to flying, but the speed at which they descended amazed her. Especially considering that no magic was involved.
"All right Miss Granger, team 2 is setting up a tent. It should make the setting realistic. I suggest you sit in front of the tent when you trigger the taboo. We will make a small fire and put a chair next to it. It should make you sufficiently visible that they don't feel threatened. I would suggest you hit the floor the second they come. It is a reasonable reaction and will also make sure you are not caught in any crossfire."
"I can help. I can fight."
"Please Miss Granger. The wand shall be placed in your front right pocket. Do not reach for it. It will only make you a bigger target for the Snatchers. Also, we would prefer to take you back, without having to hunt you half across the world. If, and only if, all of us go down, then use it. And don't use it to fight, just run!"
With that, he set out to the tent that was quickly put up by the other men. She looked in wonder as he affixed a large triangular flag to the top of the tent. The fire in front of the tent was set up almost as fast as magic would. The whole scene could even be said to be pleasant. For Hermione, it brought back memories of camping with her parents. Before her muggle life was taken from her. It was so simple then, gathering wood for the fire. Her mum and her looking while her dad started the fire. All of them huddled around, looking at the night sky, talking, singing and laughing. She loved those trips. Absent-mindedly she sat down on the chair in front of the fire, looking straight at it. Absorbing the sensation of heat and the smell of burning wood. She was lost in her memories for a few minutes and jumped out of the chair when Radebe tapped her on the back.
"We are ready to go Miss Granger. Here.", he placed the wand in her pocket. "We shall hear you when you say the name. It would be perhaps best for you to count down from 3 before.". And with that, he was gone. Running towards the tree line. She looked up and could see the helicopters flying away. She wondered how far will they go. They were remarkably silent. She could see the small red blip from each one, what seemed to her to be at least 2-3 miles away. Well, no point in standing, might as well enjoy the moment. It could be her last.
"3."
She thought back to Ron. He just came back. She was still so angry at him for abandoning them. But the moment he came back, she already knew she would eventually forgive him. She should have done this before going on this suicide mission. Any moment now she will be surrounded by Snatchers, or worse.
"2."
And if she fails, Harry will be dead soon.
"1."
Breathe in. Breathe out.
"Voldemort."