Story: Why don't you and I

Author: theherbflower

Chapter Eleven: Silver side up.

Playlist: Sing – My chemical romance. Bulletproof heart – My chemical romance. Diary of Jane – Breaking Benjamin. I'd come for you – Nickelback. NaNaNa – My chemical romance. The only hope for me – My chemical romance. Issues – Escape the fate. Learn to fly – foo fighters.

Just one more moment,

that's all that's needed.

Like wounded soldiers,

in need of healing.

The room was stagnant with a sharp silence as the telltale signs of the portus spell wore off me. My stomach leaped back up from my knees and settled somewhere near my throat as I looked up over the sea of horrified faces. As more and more Auror's, Ministry Employee's, and other witches and wizards that had come to the fight filled in, I tried in vain to hold back my shock. No one said anything as we stood in the atrium for the ministry of magic where the apparition wards had been lifted so that survivors could return. Who could say anything in a moment like this? After the ministry and order lost such a major battle in this war. Whether we liked it or not, with Voldemort having the upper hand by taking Azkaban Fortress, we were almost doomed. My breathing slowed as sound came flooding back. People started calling out for loved ones, partners, familiar faces in the sea of people, but I could not move nor could I speak. I looked up around me trying to find a familiar face of my own only to be rewarded with a hurricane of ministry employee's I did not know and no one I knew personally. Then, like a beacon in a sea swept with storm and rage, was a familiar face of my own. Remus Lupin stared back at me with the same sad terrified eyes that I am sure were dawned upon me. Then I flew at him.

The only thing I could perceive was the warm body holding me just as tightly as I was them. I could not feel the warm salty tears stream down my face, or the ones falling into my hair from the person with me. I just held on as the shock of the battle and the meeting with Voldemort himself overtook me and dragged me under like a current in a rushing river. Nothing made sense, I did not know what to do, and I needed to find Sirius. I tried to pull back the tears in my eyes, the fear at the gravity of the situation, and pull the mask I used back on to deal with the situation. Cause someone needed to. However, even though I knew that I needed to do something, I could not. The haunting words that my father had spoken to me only hours before came reeling back at me with a new sadistic tone to his laughter. 'Check' he said. Merlin above we were all doomed, we were hopeless. Like on a boat up a river without a paddle nor wand were we doomed. I needed to find Sirius, I needed to find my uncle, and I needed to get to Dumbledore. Order needed to be taken in the situation, and the Ministry needed to be guarded in case of a double attack.

"What happened? Why were you fighting Voldemort? Are you ok? Do you need to sit?" Remus asked with worry clinging to his voice as he pulled back and stared down at me. "Are you alright Gwendolyn?"

I blinked at him.

"Don't call me that." I felt my eyes narrow comfortably. "He wanted me to join him, wanted me to become a death eater. When I told him no he got really snarky, told me that he would have me killed, and to expect it. Then he vanished."

"Alright." He nodded before shaking his head. "Where's Mad-Eye?"

"Alright? I do not know where my uncle is, what about you! What happened, why do you have a cut on your lip? Have you seen Sirius, or James?"

"You need to calm down Gwen." Remus said holding my shoulders comfortingly. "You need to stop panicking. I am perfectly fine, fought off a fair amount of death eaters. Otherwise, I am in perfect health. I don't know where Sirius is, James was here, but I don't know where he is."

"So then we need to find James." I said pulling away from him. I grabbed his hand with mine and pulled him off to the right towards the fountain in the center of the atrium. We were half way there when we heard a voice behind us call out.

"Moony! Gwen!"

I looked at Remus and in tandem, we both spun around to see James running up to us from the left. He looked beaten and bloody with bruises all over his face and torso, a big gash with crusted blood just above his left eye. He stopped at a dead halt in front of us and just stood there for a moment looking us over and trying to calm his erratic breathing.

"James." I burst out with relief. "Thank the heavens that you're alright." I said before jumping on him and pulling him into tight embrace. "We need to find my Uncle, and I can't find Sirius. Lily's probably freaking out and we need to get order."

"I'm sure that Lily is fine, her and Harry both. I made sure the fedilus charm was still in effect over them. The last time I seen Padfoot we were battling Bellatrix and Malfoy on the right slope of the island. I'm sure he's around here somewhere Gwen, I could hardly tell you and Moony out from the crowd. Just stay calm and do not fret. Moony." He nodded at Remus in an odd way, must be something that the boys developed over the years along with their sing language of sorts.

"I am calm James. But we need to find my uncle or someone so that we can get order about." I said feeling hallow inside. "Can you please go and round up any higher ranking ministry officials." I addressed James before turning to Remus. "Remus what do I do?"

"Well, I am assuming that if there were in fact higher ranking officials, they'd already be here." Remus sighed sadly. "I saw Mad-eye fighting with Lestrange. He fell, but I am sure I seen him fighting again after that."

"Ok." The information slowly processed through my mind. "Alright." I pulled my wand out and held it to my throat.

"Gwen, what are you going to do?" James asked slowly taking a step forward towards me.

"Get order, it's what my uncle would do if he were here." I sighed sadly before speaking up. "Sonorus" I tapped my throat. "Attention!" I barked out calling order to the panicking people huddled in the atrium of the ministry of magic. "Order. Will all head of affairs in this room come up here now!" I barked. "Madame Bones, someone find me Amelia Bones head of magical law enforcement."

"I am here Ackles." The velvety tones of the afore mentioned met my ears. "What is it that you plan to do?"

Madame Bones who was usually cheerful and bright with lovely copper hair and a smile was pale as a ghost, and sick looking. This day could not possibly get any worse.

"I don't know." I shook my head at her. "What do you advise?"

"Who is head of command aside from Alastor in your department?"

"Auror Scrimgeor." I said scanning the room for my superior only to find him nowhere in the folds of the people the room was holding. "He's not here."

"Then who is next in the chain of command?"

"It's…" I stopped as a sudden realization hit me. "It's Sirius. I mean Auror Black. However, he is not here either. That leaves me."

"Right, then what do you propose we do?" she asked wanly.

"We need to secure the ministry, make sure Fudge is alright, and contact Dumbledore." I told them as a half-baked plan formed in my mind. "You go and get some order in your department and see to it that the ministry is secured. Remus go and help Madame Bones round up any stray ministry personnel and get them in the atrium, seal off exits leaving but make sure to let anyone from the ministry in. James follow me to my office, we need to contact Professor Dumbledore."

"Alright. I will send one of my aids to let you know the updates. Come along Lupin." She motioned for Remus to follow. Then they ran out of the room towards Madame Bone's department a floor higher.

"You!" I barked at an Auror to my left named Auror Figgins. "Go and round everyone up and make sure we have everyone in our rankings and if not, write note the name of the missing." The second year Auror ran off towards the rest of the group.

"What do we do now?" James sighed rubbing his face. "What now?"

"Ackles?" a voice called from behind me. I swirled around to find Gideon Prewett standing before me looking in much worse shape than James had when I first seen him with cuts and bruises all over, dried blood caked on his skin.

"Prewett, follow me; you too James."

We hurried out of the main entry of the ministry to the lifts and took the first lift up just as we seen members of the law enforcement squad along with Remus sealing off the ministry and keeping everyone inside the atrium. The lift took us down quickly to the Auror department on level four and let us out. I strode confidently down the deserted halls of the Auror offices towards my uncle's office. The corridors were deserted as we ran almost flying like bullets down the passageways to the Auror department. Time seemed to seep in quickly and numb the pain and fear away only to set in a deep shock that I knew was the only thing that I needed. James was on my left flank panting heavily from his injuries as we ran and Gideon was on my right, hobbling along on his, what looked like broken leg. We came to an abrupt stop at the main entrance to the Auror headquarters and looked around to find anyone there. There was no one, just an empty eerie silence that seemed to engulf the room as thick as fog. I took off running again towards my Uncles office located two halls down. As I reached the room, I thrust my hand into my pocket and pulled out a knife. With a quick half grimace, I sliced my hand open and slammed my hand onto the plaque on the office door that read 'Head Auror, Alastor Moody.' I waited for the magic to work and with a click the office door swung open and I walked inside pulling the two stunned men behind me in with me. I slammed the door shut and locked it quickly.

"It's blood magic. My uncle put it there if there ever were a case where he would be unable to be at the head of command. Gideon, James, give me your right palms."

"What?" Gideon looked at me incredulously. "Why?"

"Because as of this moment I'm going to seal your blood in the door so in the event that I fall, you will be able to operate from within the office." I rolled my eyes.

James grimaced and handed me his palm slowly.

"I trust you Gwen. Here." He grabbed the knife. "I'll do it." Then he slashed his palm and handed the knife to Gideon who looked at me like a fish out of water before slicing his own palm open and looking at me just as expectantly as James was.

"Here." I pointed to a portrait of my grandmother. "Place your palms there. Both of you."

They did as I told them and I whipped my wand out.

"Signa Sanguine." And with a flash of neon purple light, the blood magic did it's work and they're life force was just a sealed within the door as mine was.

"So what now?" Gideon asked stepping back away from the portrait and looking at me for answers. "What the hell do we do?"

"Well." I sighed walking over to my uncles liquor cabinet and pulling a bottle of scotch and a glass of off the top shelf. "I need to get word to Hogwarts."

"I can do that." Gideon smiled sadly. "Then I'll send word."

"Thank you." I nodded at him. "Be careful, don't let those bastards intercept you ok?" I smiled sadly at him.

"I will. As Mad-eye says, constant vigilance."

I grinned at him.

"But first, before you leave, I need to make sure you take a letter to Dumbledore. It's important."

"Does it have anything to do with Voldemort attacking you specifically?" James asked with a raised eyebrow. "Me and Moony both seen you and in fighting behind that bubble thing."

"Yes." I sighed before filling up the glass of scotch and knocking it back. "He wanted me to join sides with him." I shook my head. "I told him no, he got snarky, dissaparated and the battle ended."

"But why would he want you to join him? He knows how openly against his politics you are. Shit, I remember in second year, that one Ravenclaw called you a pureblooded racist after that muggleborn kid pulled your hair and your punched him in the face breaking his nose. Then you broke the kids friends nose for calling you a pureblooded racist and proceeded to tell him that you would rather die than ever believe that shit."

"Well, go figure. It is probably since Peter switched sides he has no one close to you and Lily, needed someone else. He's fucking nuts; I don't know why he thought I'd ever even consider it."

"Padfoot's going to freak." James sighed before sitting down in the chair in front of my uncle's desk. "Absolutely freak."

'No' I thought. 'He is going to freak when I tell him that Voldemort's going to send his best off to kill me.'

"Gideon, take a seat in the other chair, take a minutes rest. Scotch?" I offered both him and James "Liquid confidence always does help."

"Sure." James sighed kicking his legs up. "Now, how come you're not telling us everything?"

"Huh?" I asked shocked that he would draw up that conclusion at all. "I told you everything.

"Liar, Moony told me that Voldemort threatened you so, out with it."

"Fine." I growled filling up three glasses with scotch. "He told me now that I turned down his offer, he'd send out his best to have me killed. I don't take that threat to lightly, s'why I put your dna in the blood seal."

"Yep, Padfoot's going to nut out."

"Not if you don't tell him." I sighed. "I wish I knew where he was."

"Me too kid." James sighed and looked up at Gideon. "So you reckon Fabian's at Hogwarts?"

"Yeah. That was where he said he was going to go so I'm assuming that's where he in fact is." Gideon sighed. "I should head out." He slammed his scotch back and set the glass down on the desk.

"Good luck mate." James told him sincerely. "Gwen do you have a mirror 'round?"

"Uh… no. maybe?" I pulled my uncles desk drawer open and rooted around for a mirror, with luck I found two. "Two actually."

"Awesome, hand 'em here." James directed. He pulled one of his own out of his pocket and tapped it twice. "Disputatio Ambulare." Then he grabbed the two from my hand and handed them back to me. "One for you and for Gideon, just say the name of either me, Moony, Gideon, and err Padfoot, and the counterpart mirror will glow and we can all communicate."

"Sirius?" I looked down at the mirror and demanded. "Sirius!"

Nothing happened.

"Yeah well I already tried to get him in but couldn't. Hopefully his mirror is only not working." James sighed looking sad. "I can't exactly imagine loosing another brother."

"He's fine." I insisted. "I would know if he weren't."

"Right." He sighed and looked up at Gideon. "Again, good luck mate."

"Thanks." Gideon stood up, collected his mirror. "Do you want me to tell Dumbledore what you told James and i?"

"Yes. Word for word. Pensive it if you can, I reckon the headmaster will have one."

"Alright." He nodded at James and I. "I'll go on foot and then apparate to Hogsmeade. I'll mirror you when I get there."

"Good." I nodded at him. "Constant vigilance, Gideon!"

"Right." He smiled crookedly and exited out of the office.

I turned to James who was still sitting in the chair looking rather glum.

"Go check in on Lily and Harry. Report to me as soon as you discern they're safety."

"Alight." James nodded with a sad smile. "Let me know if you hear anything about Padfoot."

"Don't worry." I told him earnestly. "I will. You should apparate in case the floo has been compromised. You too, if you hear anything let me know." I nodded at him. "Or portkey, I guess as head Auror I got that kind of clearance."

"Right." James nodded picking up an odd quill. "I'll have to do it as I'm currently secret keeper for Lily and Harry."

"So then I as acting head of this ministry's Auror department, give you James Theodore Potter permission to use the portus spell."

"Thank you Gwen." He rolled his eyes at me "Please be careful, I am sure that wherever Sirius is, he's just fine."

"I know." I sighed sadly at him. "Will do sir!" I saluted him as he took the quill and made it into a portkey. "Portkey back after you're done."

Then with a flash of blue light, James had portkeyed out of the office. I sighed and poured another glass of scotch.

.scène..end.

Authors Note:

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