Disclaimer: Harry Potter, associated characters and setting belong to JK Rowling and whoever she chooses to share the rights with, which does not include me. This is for entertainment purposes only, with no copyright infringement intended, or profit made.

Chapter 10: Devastation

WARNING: Possible triggers. Violence, rape aftermath.

Professor Snape did attend a Monday meeting in the Chamber of Secrets. He spent a long while poking the slowly mummifying remains of the basilisk, although he moved back for a moment when Harry warned him about stray basilisk venom.

He had brought a broom, so he got to descend in a dignified manner. He didn't scoff too hard when Luna squealed her way down the shaft. He did scoff when the Weasley twins did so.

There was toast and updates from the twins (about products), Winky (about mice and rodent feed levels), and Hermione (about everything, including not turning Snape into a mouse again). Luna rounded up the media, and asked for ideas of how best to plant stories. Hermione offered to send a summery of the Bogeyman and Sack man legends to Rita, to be printed under the heading of why no one should believe the rumors, since legends are mythical.

Snape nodded. "While most people will see that as a valid attempt, most magical being also know that legends can be based on a reality."

Luna smiled. "Hermione, your cloak is so lovely and tattered and bloody, would you consider a picture with the pouch on your hip. I think a few charms to blur the film, and to shadow about the cloak, so really people only see it... Well, you've become a mythical creature, and the Quibbler would be glad to put you on the front page."

Harry asked "do we have a camera? And do we know the film fudging charms?"

Fred chimed in. "George and I have a great camera we use to shoot adverts. We can break in for a photo shoot whenever."

Luna smiled. "I know the film fudging charms. Daddy taught me, since people don't always believe things if it looks like it was too easy to get. Shadowing everything but the cloak will be harder."

Snape, who was fidgeting with his still unexplained toast, spoke up. "I can do the shadows, fading Miss Granger without fading the cloak. It's a standard stealth charm."

Hermione smiled. "Lets do that Friday night, then, if that works, We can shoot down here, or in the Room. It'll give me time to make sure my cloak is bloody enough."

Luna looked shocked. "Oh, Hermione, we couldn't do that, that'd be faking it. You've earned the other blood and tatters."

After the toast meeting, there was practice, and Neville trying to turn Fred into a mouse. He did get whiskers at one point. At anther point, Neville managed to summon Fred to the jar, without transforming him. Fred discovered that removing one's hand from being stuck in an unbreakable jar was harder then he though. Winky solved his issue by buttering his hand with the leftover toast butter.

Hermione spent half and hour going over notes on the mouse spell with Professor Snape. He transformed and jarred Ginny on his first try, although his spell was blue. After a revisit of the runic addition, and untransforming Ginny, he managed to cast it.

.o.o.

"Damn this radio. Is it working?" Snape sounded even more annoyed then his usual self.

"Professor?" Hermione responded

"One of you get yourself down here to the potions lab. I need to plant a location to apparate to with legilimency. You all are going on a rescue mission, now."

Harry's voice came up strong. "I'm close, I'll get the location. Meet the rest of you at the usual departure location."

Snape voice was blank, hiding all emotion. "I'll warn you guys now, it's gong to be bad."

"Sir, will you be able to come along?" Harry was running, from the sound of his voice.

"I can't be seen."

"I'm in the workshop. Spare cloak coming up." Hermione offered.

"Grab a medical kit, too." Harry dropped into his crisis leadership role.

"I've got one, as does Neville and Fred." Hermione was always prepared.

"Anything else?" Harry asked, still running.

"Luna, make up something, should anyone ask."

Luna's lilting voice come out strong over the radio. "I took you all out to look for Blibbering Humdingers under the moonlight. Their psychic energy suggests they should be common to the northwest of the Quiddich Pitch."

"Right, that's our story, people, remember it if confronted by a teacher."

Snape's voice came over the radio. "Time to departure? and where am I meeting you?"

"We leave from the Shrieking Shack. And no more then two more minutes, unless someone's running slow."

Fred's voice came up."George has to stay. Only one of us disappearing can be explained. Both of us gone at once unexpectedly means our staff asks awkward questions."

"Neville's assigned as a Shielder, then."

"Where in the line do we put Snape?"

"At an end. We haven't trained him in dodging while maintaining formation." Harry said the last of this while Snape was climbing up through the trap door.

"Dodging while in formation?" Snape asked via voice, rather then radio.

"We have to be close to Hermione to protect her, and make it look like the hexes are coming from her. We're all invisible. It means we have to know where each other are, while still being able to dodge."

Snape shook his head, trying to clear it. "Look into my eyes, I'll give you the destination."

Fred had appeared behind them, in an area marked 'keep clear' with chalk. "Can you do a few more of us? We'd get there faster with more people apparating."

After getting Snape's location from him, Fred asked "Also, who are we rescuing?"

Snape took a deep breath. "Tonks. We're rescuing Tonks. "

"Shit, let's go." Hermione swore as she pulled away from Snape's gaze, then grabbed Ginny to take her side along.

.o.o.

The sight that greeted the teens and their professor as they worked their way in through the woods wasn't pretty. They could hear and smell the torture before they got there. The Death Eaters had lit the clearing with torches, the flickering light and laughter over the screams giving it a party like atmosphere. A few of the Death Eaters were standing off at the edges talking, or healing one another. There was a cluster in the center, standing over a figure on the ground. She was still screaming, although her throat sounded raw. At least three of the central Death Eaters had their robes off, and pants undone.

Snape's voice came soft over the radio. "How do we do this?"

Harry spoke, steel in his voice. "From most aware to least aware. 'Mione, keep yourself invisible. Hexers, count off and each figure out your top three targets. Snape, start from your end. Ginny, from your end, middles, as we fall in order. 'Mione, get the ones within reach of her."

Neville spoke "Shielders ready."

Harry spoke again. "Three, two, one, GO!" There was a sweep of red through the clearing. "And, Go!" They all stunned again. This time a few of their targets dodged, and started trying to find a target to return fire towards. Hermione started hexing constantly, getting anyone within two meters of Tonks. Luckily, they focused on the immediate threat.

"Shoot when you can!" Harry ordered, and the firefight began. Neville and Fred were blocking the potshots the Death Eaters were taking, shooting blind into the dark at disillusioned fighters.

"Move forward. 'Mione, Ginny, get her, before someone even thinks the word hostage."

The group moved forward, Fred with his offhand on Snape's back, helping him sweep in at the right speed. Snape re-stunned figures on the ground as he stepped over them, a tactic that the other boys picked up.

One masked figure, robe-less and partially dressed, stood over Tonks and refused to yield. He shielded and dodged. Snape recognized him. "That's Nott. Watch for daggers."

Just as he finished saying it, Nott leaned to reach into the top of his boot. It was more of a threat then the rescuers were willing to put up with.. He took four stunners simultaneously. His limp body flew five meters into a torch. When one of the Death Eaters turned to put out the fire climbing his clothes, Snape took the moment to stun the shieldless rescuer.

Ginny stopped when the line reached Tonks.

Hermione spoke calmly over the radio."Lets get the rest, before the bastards try to leave. Left to right, Green-as-able and red. Fast as you can."

Snape, Harry, Hermione, and Ron overpowerd, confused, and terrified the remaining Death Eaters. The last one standing was half bandaged. He'd already taken a cutting curse earlier in the night. Harry waited a beat, watching him panic and realized their own anti apparition wards were still up, then stunned him.

.o.o.

Rescuing Tonks was grizzly work. Ginny stood by her, offering a hand should she want it, but allowing her space. When they'd first gotten there, Ginny had tried to help her up, and Tonks flinched away, then screamed in pain from moving. Ginny murmured constantly about how it was over, now, and she was with friends, now, and they were going to help her. Hermione stood by Ginny, taking care not to let Tonks feel surrounded, with her hood down. She was casting diagnostic spells, and stasis spells. She couldn't fix most of it, but she could stop the active bleeding and further damage.

Snape took down the wards, so they'd be able to move out when they needed.

Harry, Ron, and Fred, and Neville were dealing with the Death Eaters. The stunned were last. The injured, of which there were more then a few, simply had their wounds cauterized before they became mice. There were more wounds then Harry would have expected. Tonks hadn't gone down easy. It wasn't until Snape pointed out their shields had been reflecting that they realized just why so many of them had been hit with cutting or bashing curses.

Snape watched over the boys. While they muttered about mousehood being too good for the Death Eaters, all of them did make it into a jar. Some of the jars might have been shaken a little harder, but no one guaranteed normal prisoners a gentle handling. And a mouse that bites can expect a response. Harry dropped Nott, then had to summon him back into his jar. He didn't manage to pick up too much speed, but he likely got a concussion from hitting the back of the jar.

There were two Death Eaters that weren't alive to turn. They'd taken reflected reductos, by the look of it, on top of Tonks' spells. Harry asked Snape to turn them into beetles. Leaving behind no answers was part of the plan, and he didn't want to interrupt Hermione to ask if bloody bodies were acceptable intimidation tactics. Harry figured they could always leave them elsewhere, but since all their victims were supposed to be dead, and they disappeared, beetles were produced and pocketed.

After ten minutes of Ginny's quiet murmuring, Tonks went from flinching at every move to clinging to her. Hermione wrapped her in Fred's winter cloak.

"Okay, Tonks, now you get to decide. Auror Healers, St. Mungos, or Order base with Madam Pomfrey?" Hermione didn't want to decide this for Tonks. She wanted her to feel in control.

"... Don't care." Tonks was holding on to Ginny like a lifeline.

"Were you on a mission?" Ginny asked quietly.

Tonks looked up and shook her head, reacting for the first time other the the flinching. "No. Grocery Shopping."

"Lets take you to St. Mungo's, then." Ginny suggested.

"Fine."

Hermione looked into Tonks' eyes. "If we go into St. Mungos' it's public. Ginny can't be seen there, and I'll need to have my hood up. Will you be okay with that?"

Tonks took a deep breath, then let it out slowly, thinking. "Can we warn them ahead of time. I don't want a huge bustle and shouted questions."

"I can do that." Hermione nodded. "I'm going to put my hood up. Do you want to hold onto me while we apperate? I can take you side-along."

"Someday, I'm going to ask you a million questions."

"Someday, we'll answer them. Right now, you work on breathing, and standing."

Hermione apparated them to an ally three blocks from St. Mungos. It wasn't on official apparition point, so it'd be quiet. From there, she enchanted parchment note. 'Attention, Trauma. Patent coming in, in shock, flinching from attack. Requesting quiet entrance, female Healers Accompanied by red cloak.' She tapped the note again, and it folded into an owl and fluttered off doggedly towards the hospital.

"Let give them a few minutes to read that, then walk in."

"Sure, so long as I can keep leaning..."

"If you want to get off your feet, I can figure out levitating a stretcher..."

"I want to walk. I will walk, dammit."

"I'd object, but I think I got all your wounds solidly stopped up."

"Thanks, Hermione. I... I don't..."

"Tonks, let's talk when you're healed, over hot chocolate. In the meantime, try not to say my name towards the little red ridding hood outfit."

"Gotcha, Little Red."

Hermione's wand beeped. "Well, someone's unfolded the note. Let's pop over and get you taken care of."

Hermione apparated them into the hospital's main entrance. Standing by, off to the left, were two women in healers robes. One was holding the owl by its beak, as the paper fluttered halfheartedly. Hermione led Tonks over to them, nodded, and waited. It took Tonks two deep breaths, by she transferred her grip over to the healer with the note, then nodded. As Hermione turned and left, the healers started talking gently behind her. "At whatever speed you can manage, we're going to take this life up to five. Will you be okay in the lift if it's just us?"

.o.o.

Hermione apparated back, through three national parks, to the blood soaked clearing. Harry looked up. "She...?"

"She's in good hands."

"All the mice are off. We decided not to split into groups tonight. We waited for you."

"Thanks. Anything need to be done before we go back?"

"No. Once we leave, Professor Snape will wait a bit, then happen on the site."

Professor Snape nodded. "I was delayed brewing for the hospital wing."

"Take care."

"As your professor, and a veteran, might I proscribe you all a quiet night, together, with hot chocolate?"

Harry nodded. "And toast, and chocolate biscuits. We'll do that. And like she said, take care."

.o.o.

Hermione snuck into the boys dorm to wake up Harry at 2 am. His curtains were open. He wasn't sleeping. Hermione lowered her disillusionment hood and poked his foot, then tilted her head at the door. He joined her, mostly dressed, on the landing a moment later.

"I can't sleep, you weren't sleeping. Want to see if we can tired ourselves out with a walk?"

"Sure. Disillusioned?"

"Might as well. Got the map?"

"Sure. Are we looking out for people?"

"Check and see if any of the team is pacing or anything."

"Mind if I wait until we're down the stairs to to that? Reading and high spiral staircases don't combine well."

"Safety first."

"No one's moving. The entire castle looks dead... except Mrs. Norris, who's searching the astronomy tower."

They walked in silence, invisible to the portraits and each other. It was quiet enough that they could hear each other's footprints, and know that they weren't alone, but they didn't have to talk. They walked in companionable silence for hours.

Around 5 am, they heard another set of feet. Harry pulled Hermione to the side by her cloak, and they stood, breathing quietly. Harry pulled out his map, thinking that every scrap of paper on cloth would give them away. When he saw the name, he sighed in relief.

"I hope you've been well since we parted, Professor Snape?"

Harry rustled to give him warning before he took his hood down. It doesn't do to surprise a spy.

"I've been fine. I likely got more sleep then you and your companion." Snape's head appeared, floating, to look over towards where he'd last heard Hermione's steps.

"It's me, Sir."

"Ah, Miss Granger."

Hermione pulled down her hood, to join the other two floating heads in the hall. "I take it your report was fast, then, Sir?"

"It was. I told Him that I'd been running late due to hospital wing potion requirements, what with idiot dunderheads injuring themselves repeatedly. I told Him it appeared, when I got to the location, that the party had already moved on, and had mostly cleaned up after itself, although there was the tang of blood still."

"He was OK with that?"

"He assumed they'd been and gone in the time it took me to brew the anti-venom for Hagrid's class."

"He wasn't upset you were late?"

Snapped looked down at Hermione. "Don't worry about me. I am not a cause. And no, He wasn't upset with me. He explained that tonight was about boosting the morale of the new recruits, since they've been running nervous. Since I've been around the block, and spend most of my time safe in these walls, I was not the audience for tonight..."

Harry winced. "You mean..."

Hermione interrupted, aghast. "You mean what happened to Tonks was because of us?"

"No, you two. Tonks was attacked because she was an Auror and a woman who had the courage to fight back. She was attacked because Dumbledore let her into his not so secret Order. She was attacked because her mother was a pureblood who married a muggle born. She was attacked because she got into the habit of shopping at the same time every week, and she wore headphones so she couldn't hear people approaching. She wore muggle clothes and used muggle slang. She was not attacked because of you. Because of you and your team, there were twenty five less people in that clearing tonight. It could have been worse. It would have been worse. It has been worse. You lot are making it better."

Harry nodded. Hermione wasn't quiet to that point yet. "But, if it was to boost morale..."

"If it wasn't to boost morale, it would have been to celebrate, or for Nott's half birthday. They're Death Eaters, Hermione. There's a reason I don't object at all to turning them into mice and not treating their self inflicted wounds perfectly. They're evil. The more of them there are together, the less human and more evil they get."

Hermione nodded.

Professor Snape looked at both of them. "I'm glad you weren't out walking alone. Now go to bed."

NA Depressing, but done, and necessary for realism.

The chapters are starting to sneak up longer and longer, as I get used to posting, and get into the pacing of the story. This chapter, without the first scene was done and partially edited when I posted chapter 9, but it didn't feel right. Comments / concerns on chapter length are welcomed. (All criticism is, really, as it will only help me get better. )

Thanks for reading.