Hermione

Hermione? Harry urgently called, Hermione?

He immediately opened his eyes and the light of the brightly lit office enveloped his senses; causing him to blink rapidly until the two blurred images of Tonks and Professor McGonagall came into focus. He started to rub his slightly throbbing temples as McGonagall began to speak, "What happened, Mister Potter?"

His hands ceased and dropped to his side, "I lost the connection."

"Well, that was obvious," Tonks said, earning confused looks from the two other occupants in the office. "When you opened your eyes, they shot open, causing you to temporarily blind yourself." She explained.

McGonagall stared at Tonks disapprovingly, "Did Miss Granger have any idea where she was?"

"She had an idea . . ." Harry explained, "but wasn't completely sure of it."

"And . . ." McGonagall pressed on.

"She thinks she's being held at Malfoy Manor."

Tonks rubbed her chin in thought as McGonagall spoke, "Since that is only an idea of where she is, we need a way to pinpoint her exact location."

"The only question is . . . how?" Harry said.

Tonks abruptly removed her hand from her hand and visibly straightened up, "We could scry."

Harry and McGonagall turned to face her and let out a simultaneous, "What?"

"Scry. It's an old method used by witches and wizards to find another." Tonks explained smoothly.

McGonagall furrowed her brow, "I have never heard of it before."

"The technique was lost ages ago . . . even before your time, Minnie." Tonks said.

McGonagall scowled, "Then how do you know about it, Nymph—"

"Don't call me that." Tonks said with a scowl to match hers, "I know about it because us Aurors use it in special cases."

Sensing the tension, Harry spoke up, "Is there anything specific we need?"

Tonks's expression softened as she looked at Harry, "Quite a few things, actually. We would need a map of the wizarding world, a small crystal, and some sort of identification for Hermione."

Harry furrowed his brows, "What sorts of identification?"

"Well . . . some common forms are blood, locks of hair . . . just something connected to her body in some way." Tonks said.

Harry nodded his head; "I think she has a hair brush in our bathroom."

"That'll work." She turned to McGonagall expectantly, "Minnie?"

"I am sure that there are some crystals and a map in my office."

Tonks smiled appreciatively, "Great. We'll all meet in Harry and Hermione's common room in ten minutes with the supplies."

Harry got up and out of his chair, but before he could leave he asked Tonks, "Won't you guys need my password to get in?"

McGonagall smiled, "I was with you when Miss Granger set the password, and Professor Tonks will wait for me at the entrance to your room."

Harry nodded and they all left to go to their separate ways.

Hermione opened her eyes slowly to find herself staring up at the ceiling. When she wiggled around of her back, she found that the lumpy mattress wasn't supporting her back that she had become accustomed too. Instead, she felt a solid table of some sort supporting her.

Feeling around the table, she propped herself up on her elbows and started to look around the room. She was startled to find herself surrounded by about a dozen cloaked figures. Hermione furrowed her brows, "Where am I . . . what's going o—"

"Whom were you speaking with." One of the figures in the crowd asked.

Hermione's eyes widened, how did whey know? "I wasn't talking to anyone."

"Yes you were, it was clear that you were using Legilimency." Another figure said.

Hermione straightened her posture, "No I wasn't."

"Don't lie." a familiar snivially voice remarked.

Wait a minute, Hermione thought, I know that voice. "Professor?" she called out to the crowd, "Professor Snape?"

A figure moved forward, through the crowd until it was right in front of her face. The figure pulled the hood that was covering its face off to reveal a mop of greasy black hair and emotionless black eyes. He raised his eyebrows, "You're lying."

"No, I'm not."

"You forget, Miss Granger, that it was I who taught Potter the skills of Occlumency and Legilimency. You also fail to remember, that I, myself, am also rather skilled at the art. You are lying."

"I said I wasn't using Legilimency." Hermione said.

Snape looked at her with a distant look in his eyes. Hermione knew what he was trying to do and put up her guards. She too was rather skilled at Occlumency, so she let her guard up, only revealing that she wasn't using Legilimency.

"You see? I am telling the truth." She told him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"But you were communicating with Potter last night." He said, mirroring her raised eyebrow and smirk.

Hermione leaned forward slightly and looked him in the eye, "Prove it."

Snape just kept on smirking, "You talked to Potter. Though I do not know how."

"So its true." Piped a voice towards the back of the crowd, "I say we just kill her now."

"No." Snape said, "You know what the Dark Lord said. She stays alive until the child is born . . . but after, she is all ours." Hermione gulped, "Besides, she does not know where she is being held. So she poses no threat to us."

The group nodded their heads in agreement, some hesitantly. As they started to leave the room, Snape spoke up again, "Buts just to be safe . . . guard the door to her room."

When the room was empty, Hermione swung her legs over the table, only to be grabbed by the collar by Snape and dragged to her room.

Oh, Harry . . . please hurry.

The six pairs of eyes watched as the tiny crystal moved across the board, dangling from the thin string being held by Tonks. As the crystal moved about the map, you could scarcely see about three chestnut hairs moving along with it.

Breaking the tense silence, Harry spoke, "Explain to me again, how is this going to work?"

Tonks rolled her eyes, "For the tenth time, the crystal will be drawn to the place Hermione is being kept."

"How will we know?"

"The crystal will act as a muggle magnet and stick to the place where she is at."

"How long does it usually take?"

"Not long." Tonks said.

"It's been twenty minutes." Harry said agitatedly.

"Then it shou—" Tonks's eyes were immediately drawn to the map, Harry's and McGonagall's following. They all were looking at the same place.

"Malfoy Manor." Harry said, smiling.

"Seems as though Miss Granger's observations were correct." McGonagall said.

"Now what do we do?" Harry looked at Tonks.

"We go to Malfoy Manor." Tonks said, "and bring Hermione back home."

Harry nodded and went upstairs to get ready. He pulled on an old jumper and slipped into his trainers, running down the stairs with amazing speed.

Tonks smiled teasingly, "Forty-five seconds, not bad Harry."

Harry smiled back appreciatively, "Now lets go get Hermione."

The three nodded simultaneously at each other before following Tonks's lead out of the castle. "How do you propose we get there?" McGonagall asked.

Tonks winked and held out her right hand. Within seconds her broomstick came hurtling towards her, and she mounted it, motioning for Harry and McGonagall to follow.

As Hermione paced in her room, she felt strangely alone; she wanted to talk to Harry, but she didn't know how. For once in her life, Hermione didn't know what to do. She sat down on her bed.

Furrowing her brow, she was overcome with an overpowering urge to touch her stomach. She placed her two hands on her slightly bulging stomach and felt herself smile. I'm not alone. I have my baby . . . our baby.

"I can't believe I'm doing this," she said to herself. Sighing, she started to rub her stomach and sing,

"Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby

Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true

Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where troubles melt like lemondrops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then, oh why can't I?
Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the clouds are far behind me
Where troubles melt like lemondrops
Away above the chimney tops
That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over the rainbow
Bluebirds fly
Birds fly over the rainbow
Why then, oh why can't I?

If happy little bluebirds fly
Beyond the rainbow
Why, oh why can't I?
"

She smiled as she finished the lullaby that her mother used to sing to her. She felt strangely at ease . . . peaceful . . . and not alone.

"Shut up in there!" she heard a voice say on the other side of the door. "Some of us are trying not to puke."

Hermione rolled her eyes and continued to rub her stomach. Letting her eyes close, she thought of what life would be like if Harry rescued her. She would marry him, of course, and have their child. They would move to the country and raise their family, away from the hands of evil. She felt strangely at ease with herself when she was daydreaming of the future. But there was that one word that could alter her dreams.

If. If and only if Harry rescued her would her fantasy come true. Come on Harry . . . she thought to herself, I need—we need you.

She lay down on her bed and stared up at the ceiling, hoping and praying that he would come soon. She was starved and wanted to be held again. A single tear dropped down her cheek, and she hastily wiped it again. Trust her to over-exaggerate the situation. Or was it hormones?

Either way, she wanted to be in Harry's arms again. Kiss him again. Just hear his voice again would please her. And when she was done with that she would tell him. No hesitation. No procrastinating. She would tell him she was pregnant and they would make their happily ever after. After Voldermort was dead, anyways.

She let herself fall asleep daydreaming again.

She was in a chair, her legs spread out and people in black masks surrounding her. She felt an excruciating pain in her abdomen, and she felt like she was going to be sick. She looked up to see Lord Voldermort himself standing over her body.

He smiled at her, "You're crowning, Miss Granger."

"I'm—" she suddenly realized where she was at. She was in labor. In a dungeon, about to give birth to her and Harry's child. But that wasn't the only problem . . . where was Harry?

"Where's Harry?" she asked.

Voldermort laughed, "Dead, of course."

Hermione felt an enormous amount of pain well up inside her. And it wasn't just the contraction. She felt tears well up in her eyes. He was dead? He couldn't be. He should be by her side while she gave birth to their child.

"D-dead?" she stuttered.

He smirked, "Couldn't grasp the fact that he was going to have a half-breed. He ran, and I killed him five minutes later."

Hermione's eyes widened, "It's m-my fault?"

"Of course it is. Who else's fault would it be?"

Hermione felt another contraction pass through her. This one the most painful one of all, and the inside of her stomach felt like it was going to tear in two.

"I'm going to have to ask you to push, Miss Granger." He said to her.

She shook her head, "Not without Harry."

"Your Harry is dead, so I suggest if you don't want to join him . . . then you push!"

Hermione felt the baby crowning and started to obey. The sooner the pain was gone, the better. She pushed and pushed until she heard a loud cry coming from beneath her. Tears welled up in her eyes as she saw pale hands cut the umbilical cord that connected her to her child.

She saw a tuff of black hair when Lord Voldermort picked up her child. She smiled; he looked just like Harry. "Can I hold my child?"

Voldermort laughed, "My dear, we have no further use for you . . . you will never see your child again after this moment."

"What?"

"We have no further use for you, only," —he looked at the baby— "You son."

"Son?" Hermione asked, "I have a son?"

"Correction, Miss Granger, I have a son."

"What?"

Voldermort waved his free hand, "Kill her."

"What? NO! HARRY!" she screamed. She saw Death Eaters surround her, "HARRY!"

A green light was shot at her and she opened her eyes.

When she opened her eyes, she saw she was in her quarters. It was just a dream. Just a dream, she reminded herself. She jerked her head; she thought she heard something . . .

BAM!