And if we dream - Draco Malfoy/ OC

Chapter 32 - Transporting Harry Potter

Summary: Like some magnetic force, like some unbreakable bond she was drawn back to him again and again. And now, staying away was an inconceivable notion. "Always." she murmured, one hand finding his, the other tangling into his platinum hair, "Always."

-….-

Don't forget that by adding Avery to the story I have had to take some liberties and change a few bits around!

Enjoy the chapter!

-….-

"Don't think I don't know what you and your friends are up to!" Her mother had screamed after her as she had left her house earlier that day, personal effects shrunk down into a bag, a charm Hermione had shown her.

"I don't know what you're talking about." she had told the deatheater who had bore her before leaving for good without turning back. Avery hoped she would never have to face her mother again. Avery found herself surprised that her mother hadn't hexed her, not when she packed or when she left.

She had found her way to Matilda's home, her home away from Hogwarts really, and she still stuck to the same story, "I don't know what you're talking about." she said again when Matilda questioned her leaving mentioning Harry and the dark lord.

Matilda accepted it begrudgingly though as they sat down for tea, a final meal together for who knew how long.

"I know you can't or wont tell me what's going on Ave," Matilda said softly, "But I want you to promise me that you'll be careful!"

"I promise I'll try Matilda." Avery agreed.

"That's all I can ask for isn't it."

"I think so."

"I wish you would just go back to Hogwarts like the other students."

"So do I. But you know I can't Matilda, I can't let Harry and the others do this without me, we're all in this together." Avery smiled gently and reached out to her old nannys hand, she grasped it, "I know you'll be worried, but I promise I will come back to you when this is all over, when we've found the - done what we need to do. I'll come to you in France."

"You'd better! It wont be hard to find me I'll be-"

"No! Don't tell me! If I don't know then nobody else can hear it from me." Avery cried, "I can't risk anyone finding you Matilda."

-...-

Avery has stepped out of the room when Matilda floo'd to her French destination, so as not to hear anything she could later be forced to relay or that could be found in her memories. Knowing that Matilda was in France was dangerous enough. There was nothing to say that Matilda was in any immediate danger but she could be just by association and Avery was not willing to risk the woman who had been like a mother to her for years of her life.

Tears still wet her cheeks and froze in the cold air, it had felt like she was saying goodbye for good, because she wasn't sure what would come next, she wasn't sure what would happen once they found the Horcruxes, if they even found them, but she highly doubted that even with every Horcrux destroyed Voldemort or his followers would just lay down and die.

His followers, Avery felt a sharp pang in her gut, Draco was one of them now, had been for a long while.

She had done really well not to think about Draco, lest the heartache become too much again. It been a gnawing ache that seemed to take over her entire body since Draco had let the deatheaters into the school and left with them, since Dumbledore had been killed.

But today wasn't the day to wallow as she had been, today was an important day, hugely important.

"Ave?" Hermione's voice broke into her thoughts "Are you okay?"

"No." she replied immediately, focusing on her friend who also looked worse for wear, she hadn't seen Hermione since they had left Hogwarts not long after the headmasters death, their only communication coded letters by owl, "Is it done?" she asked.

"Yes." Hermione sighed, "They've been obliviated, they have no idea I ever existed."

Avery pulled her friend into a hug, "It's for the best Herm."

"I know. Is Matilda gone?"

"Yes, I don't know where." Ave answered.

"Good. We should get to Privet Drive, everybody is meeting there." Hermione said, all business again.

"Do you think this will work?" Avery cringed, just thinking about what was going to happen.

"It has to."

They apparated to Privet drive and were met with chaos. A large crowd gathered in front of Harry's relatives home. Avery found a smile breaking out across her face as they noticed the new arrivals. The twins swept them up in bone crushing hugs, Ron following close behind, Arthur, Fluer, Lupin and even Mad Eye greeted them. Avery found herself introduced to Bill Weasley, a dead ringer for his siblings, bar the scar on his face. The small rat like man known as Mundungas stood back from the crowd and ignored the girls arrival. Kingsley Shacklebolt gave a smooth nod but nothing more.

"We're all here then!" Hagrid boomed pulling the girls into a fierce embrace, "Let's go and get Harry!"

The group crowded towards the door and vaguely wondered how they must look to any Muggle passerbys, a rag tag group if ever there were one!

Hagrid knocked and the door opened immediately as if Harry had been waiting there for just that, and perhaps he had been.

"Hello Harry!" Hagrid greeted in his usual manner even as Ron pushed past him to embrace his friend, Hermione and then Avery followed close behind, joining in the embrace, Avery pressed a kiss to Harry's cheek and felt happiness well up in her. These three were her family, her best friends and she hadn't realized just how much she had missed them all. "You're looking fit!" Hagrid said even as Moody pushed through the door effectively breaking up the foursomes reunion with a grumbled, "Yeah he's bloody gorgeous, now lets get him undercover before somebody tries to murder him."

"Evening." Harry said flatly and Avery laughed, some things never changed.

They trailed through the hallway, bereft of anything that had made this place even a semblance of a home to Harry Potter, Avery didn't spare a glace to the tiny cupboard under the stairs, she knew well of Harry's treatment at the hands of his awful muggle family. It would be nice to get him away from the empty place that had been a personal hell for the chosen one.

She did however, note the garish striped wallpaper and heavy curtains in the gutted living room, they had been cruel and had bad taste it seemed. She wondered how Harry felt, to be leaving here for good.

Avery watched Harry greet the others from her place against the wall, seeing his shock at Kingsley's decision to protect him over the priminister and at Bills explanation of his scarred face. The visible shudder when Greyback's name was mentioned. She wondered again just why this gentle boy had to be in the middle of this and could already see his reaction when Mad Eye told him of their plan.

"Where's Tonks?" Harry asked Lupin.

"Well Harry," He began, chest puffing out proudly. "We have some news- she couldn't be here because-"

"Yeah, yeah!" Mad Eye growled, "We can have a lovely catch up later! We've got to get the hell out of here!" Mad Eye's haste seemed to catch on and the group quieted as a sense of urgency fell on them all, "Harry- you're still underage which means the trace is still on you." Mad Eye explained the trace and ultimately the plan, producing the polyjuice potion that Avery knew was coming but still dreaded, she sometimes thought she could still taste it from second year.

Harry's refusal was obvious to all who knew him even Hermione making a sarcastic quip that she knew he would take it well. Though eventually the group won out, Harry being massively outnumbered. Hermione ripped hair from Harrys head and deposited it into the potion vial. Almost as one the group, those who were to transform anyway stepped forward, George, Mundungas, Fleur, Ron, Hermione and herself. One by one they swallowed the vile potion and Avery felt herself gag as it slid down her throat, she felt her self shrink a little first, strange she hadn't realized she was that much taller than her friend.

Avery laughed a little hysterically as she glanced around the room to see so many Harrys and the twins exclaimed, "Wow! We're identical!"

"This is strange." She muttered to Hermione who she knew stood next to her. It was rather odd to see Harry wearing Fleurs dress and tights and Hermione's feminine jacket. She almost wished she could see what Harry looked like in her own dress and leggings. The absurdity of the situation escalated when they all had to change into the same clothing, technically it wasn't her undressing in front of her friends and former teachers so she had no qualms in immediately removing her clothes and shrinking them down pocket sized to take with her, she was wearing her favourite bra for Merlin's sake.

"We'll be paring off." Mad Eye explained, "Each Potter with a protector." The real Harry immediately tried to protest but was silenced by someone else, possibly Hermione. "Mundungas, you're with me, I wanna keep an eye on ya. Harry-" he rolled his good eye when everyone, in character responded, "The real Harry, you'll be leaving with Hagrid."

Avery smiled as Hagrid told Harry, "I bought you here when you were nought but a babe, it seems fitting that I would take you away now."

"Yes, yes it's very touching." Mad Eye interrupted, "now lets get a move on."

They exited the house, the same rag tag group from before plus one and split off into pairs. Mundungas and Moody, Arthur and George, Fred and Ron, Bill and Fleur, Hagrid and Harry and Hermione and Shacklebolt.

"Looks like you're with me Greeny." Lupin smiled from beside her.

"It's my honor, sir." Avery replied climbing onto her broom.

"Head for the Burrows, we'll rendezvous there!" Mad Eye called, "On the count of three! One!"

Avery braced herself, ready to kick off.

"Two!" She glanced back at Harry sitting stiffly in Hagrids side cart and shot him a reassuring smile, knowing how it would look on her new face as she had seen him do it many a time before.

"Three!"

They shot off in rows as if it had been rehearsed, each pair taking off into a different direction. She flew closely next to Lupin, a small grin alighting on her face, unable to separate the thrill of flying with the gravity of their current mission.

In a blink however, everything changed, masked figures followed close on their tail and Avery realized that it was just as Mad Eye had expected, someone knew and had sent the Death eaters their way. Each separate figure was almost indistinguishable from the others in the foggy gloom in which they flew. Each face masked, some obviously taller or shorter or wider or slimmer but almost impossible to tell apart in the speed and adrenaline. Avery spared a small prayer that Draco was not amongst their masked pursuers.

An unheard hex whooshed by Avery's head, so close she thought she could feel it move through her hair, "Confringo!" she cried, aiming her wand in the general direction it had come from unable to fully aim with the speed that that journeyed. She could see Lupin next to her wand raised, also shooting spells that she could not hear over the roaring wind in her ears. A small explosion sounded behind her and she watched one of their followers spiral downwards signaling she had hit her mark.

Green flashes and spirals of light flashed close by, the Death eaters were using the killing curse and Avery was not surprised. She wondered if her mother pursued her now, or whom she thought was Harry Potter, aiming the killing curse at her only daughters transformed head.

Avery didn't want to die up here, not in the air alone and not so young, she was determined to make it to the Burrow, whichever direction that was now. She trusted Lupin to find the way once they had outrun or defeated their enemies. She hoped the others were faring well against their own faction of attackers.

Spell after spell was shot behind them and one by one their attackers fell back and they continued to move on, Avery knew they could not ignore the final death eater that followed them and risk being found at the burrow with the real Harry Potter so they pulled off to the side even as the familiar route to the Burrow came into view. Over the grassy fields they flew, deliberately ignoring the small burrow, moving further away in the distance, warm light just visible through the windows.

We'll get back there, Avery thought, We just have to lose the tail first!

Avery raised her wand to scream another curse when a white hot pain immediately lanced through her entire body, as if hundreds of burning knives pierced her skin and stayed there. She cried out and thought I'm dead, it was the killing curse, this is it, I'm dead.

Even as the thought entered her mind she realized she was wrong, the killing curse caused immediate death, this was different, this was prolonged pain, lancing through every muscle and limb, it must be the cruciatus curse, it seemed exactly how Harry had described it.

She thought she heard Lupin call her name but before she could respond felt a hard jolt as her broom crashed into his own. The curse stopped almost immediately, the pain halting as if it had never been there, the only sign that it had was the lingering ache everywhere. They spiraled towards the ground in a tangle of limbs and splintered wood. Lupin shouted something, Avery couldn't hear what and they were wrenched apart Avery shooting backwards with force, each free to move and maneuver their wands now, before she could make her pain addled mind think of a suitable spell Avery hit the ground, miraculously still rolling from the momentum of their fall. Within seconds she had rolled to a stop and raised her wand again. She noticed two things, the first was that their masked shadow had pulled to a halt and no longer seemed to be attacking and secondly that Lupin was still freefalling without uttering a single spell to protect himself.

Avery thought quickly and shouted, "Aresto Momentum!"

Lupin immediately slowed in the air and continued downwards as would a feather rather than a free falling heavy mass.

He dropped to the ground with a small thud and a sigh of relief and said, "I dropped my wand when we collided. Thank you."

"I'm sorry Sir, I didn't mean to get hit."

"You did a good job Avery." Only then did Avery glance up to the sky to see that the Death eater had turned away, flying off in a swirl o f black cape and wind ruffled red hair. Mother, Avery thought with disdain, It was you.

"You're you again," Lupin explained, "The potion wore off up there, when you were hit I believe. They're only goal is to gain Harry Potter, what happens to us in inconsequential."

"We should get to the Burrow." Avery said, immediately worried about the others.

"If you would be so kind as to Accio my wand before hand?"

Avery did and within seconds the wand had returned to it's owner. They apparated to the fields just in front of the Burrow, in almost the exact place that Avery had been confronted by Greyback and Bellatrix.

They ran towards the house at full speed, trudging through the wet grounds, Lupin to his wife and Avery to see if her friends had arrived safely. Molly burst from the Burrow, screeching and pulling both into a tight hug, "You're only the second group back."

"Is Harry here?" Avery asked, hugging Ginny. She pushed into the Burrow even as the younger girl nodded and pulled her bespeckled friend into a tight hug, "Harry! I'm so glad you're here."

"You too Ave." Avery smiled warmly at Hargrid and was pulled into a crushing hug just as Lupin and Arthur pushed through the door, a version of Harry hanging limply between them, "Put him down there!" Molly cried even as the Harry began to change back into George.

George had been partnered with his father after all.

Lupin immediately whirled around and pinned Harry to the fireplace, wand at his neck, "What creature sat in the corner the first time Harry Potter visited my office in Hogwarts?"

"Are you mad?" Harry cried.

"What creature?" Lupin roared.

"A grindelow!" Harry shouted.

Avery swallowed , waiting, Lupin released Harry and sighed.

"What just happened?" Avery asked

"We've been betrayed," Lupin spoke, "Voldemort knew you were being moved tonight, I had to make sure you weren't an imposter."

George groaned in pain from the couch, drawing the attention of his parents again.

More landed outside and Avery followed closely behind Lupin and Harry to see whom, Shacklebolt and Hermione stood in the grass, the latter shocked at Lupin pulling his wand on them, Shacklebolt had pulled his too and asked, "The last words Albus Dumbledore spoke to the pair of us?"

Lupin smiled, albeit a little sadly and replied, "Harry is the best hope we have, trust him."

Once the stand off had ended Harry and Avery leapt forward to pull Hermione close, glad she had made it safely. Bill and Fleur followed next and before Avery could blink Fred and Ron came stumbling towards them. The three friends greeted the ginger warmly with relieved hugs and kisses, "Is everyone okay?" Harry asked them looking them all over, everyone was bruised and cut but nobody was too worse for wear.

Hermione nodded, "I almost got splinched but I'm fine."

"I did get crucioed" Avery intoned, "But I'm also fine, at least I will be after a few days of not moving and constantly sleeping. Also I think it may have been my mum."

"I'm okay." Ron said simply, "Are you?"

"Hedwig's dead." Harry said sadly, Avery squeezed him a little tighter. "I think she gave us away."

"I'm sorry Harry." Hermione spoke.

"Where's George?" Fred asked, surveying the group, when no one was quick to answer he ran towards the Burrow at full speed, the others following close behind. As they crowded into the burrow they left room for the red headed family to crowd around their injured sibling. Fred crouched down to his twins level and teary eyed asked, "How you feeling Georgie?"

"Saint like." The twin mumbled, Avery frowned, was the boy delirious?

"Come again?"

"Saint like." George grinned, "I'm holy. I'm holy Fred, get it?"

"He's fine." Arthur deadpanned.

"The whole wide spectrum of ear related humor and you go for 'I'm holy'? That's pathetic." Fred groused.

"Reckon I'm still better looking than you." George shot back without missing a beat.

Avery chuckled and soon everybody was grinning or laughing. The twins could always lighten the mood. Soon though Bill stepped forward, paler than usual, his scars standing out starker against the white, "Mad Eye is dead." he stated.

Silence fell upon the shack, "Mundungus took one look at Voldemort and dissaperated." Bill continued to explain, "He just left him."

"That bastard!" some shouted

"Poor Moody." Someone else said.

-...-

Later that evening, after Molly had cleaned her sons wounds as only a caring mother could, made everyone tea and done what she could for the various maladies that plagued the other members of the group, including the chronic ache that seemed to rest deep in Avery's bones, the group sat quietly with their tea and coffees, reflecting on the past night.

Harry was safe, but it was clear to see that he was not at all happy that people had been injured for him and was even less so that Mad Eye had been killed. Harry took everything to be his fault and could not seem to fathom that everybody that had taken part was of age and fully volunteered. It was their choice to fight and die, not for Harry but for the Wizarding world and what would become of it if Voldemort were allowed to prosper.

Avery hoped Harry would understand that one day, she had no doubt that there would be many more injuries and Merlin forbid, deaths before the end.

"Avery?" Tonks' voice interrupted her internal musings, she glanced up from where she sat on the sofa, in between Fred and George, her head cushioned on the latter's shoulder, the uninjured side of course.

Tonks had arrived not long after they had all gathered again, running straight to embrace her husband. "Yes Tonks?" Avery tried to smile in exhaustion but settled for a sort of tired twitch instead.

"I just wanted to say thank you, for saving my husband."

"You saved Lupin?" George asked.

"Well done Greeny." Fred said.

"Did you Avery?" Hermione asked from where she sat with Ginny and Ron on the floor.

"No I-" Avery tried to make a straight sentence, "He would have been fine."

"I would have fallen to my death." Lupin spoke from somewhere behind her, she didn't have the energy to turn around to see where, "You were brilliant tonight Avery, you all were. You were all heroes."

"And you're all clearly exhausted, you should get some rest, we have a busy few days ahead of us."

"Another battle?" Ron yawned only half joking.

"Non!" A French accent squealed, more and more like Molly every day, "My wedding."

"Our wedding dear!" Bill called from the kitchen.

Avery grinned against George's shoulder, the injured twin already snoring loudly beneath her cheek.

-...-

What do you think?

I had to somehow fit Avery into the plan to take Harry to safety so removed Tonks cause she's pregnant at this point I believe and it seemed like an unnecessary risk to let her be there, especially considering George was splinched and Mad eye killed! So ave and not Tonks!

Thanks for reading! More up soon.