On a side note I kind of left quite a number of characters that were dead in the books alive, I guess I will kill at my own will and see how it unfolds. Enjoy
Harry had slept 5 hours straight. After the second hour Hermione the feeling in her legs had long gone. She slowly had moved from under the pillow and left him asleep on the couch, she placed a silencing charm on the door and proceeded to do some more research.
Harry had awoken bleary eyed to a small crash. Hermione looked up wide eyes, a jumble of books at her feet.
"Gosh Harry I'm sorry! I tried to carry them all at once" She said, bending down to reorganize the paper chaos "it didn't go as planned."
"No worries, how long have I been out?" Harry stretched and rubbed his eyes. His hair a crazier mess than normal, random tufts stuck up in every direction.
"Oh, uhm-" Hermione checked her watch "About five hours now" she replied.
"What? Seriously! Crap I need to get downstairs" He jumped to his feet, grabbing his glasses he rushed out the door attempting meanwhile trying to smooth his bedhead.
Hermione continued to tidy up the library before joining Harry and the rest of the Order downstairs for the meeting. She hoped this meeting they would finally have some new leads on the disappearances of the Revesby's. Voldemort was kidnapping people at a staggering rate, whole families were disappearing every second day or so. The Order had their few insiders, relaying information on the next raids and plans. One of their insiders, Faulkner, had been caught spying in on the Carrows at the Ministry and had been publicly executed in broad daylight, middle of Diagon Alley. It was a dark day for the Order, the leads were few and far between lately. Not every counterraid was successful on the Orders half either.
The books had all been returned to their rightful places, Hermione took one last look around the room and left, making her way downstairs, observing the dark interior that was Grimmauld place. The stairwell was shady, lit every so often by a candle or two. The walls were a dirty brown colour, darkening in the corners, clearly in need of scrub.
Kreacher the House Elf made little effort to restore the 'Noble House of Black'. Instead he spent his time, creeping about muttering insults at Hermione and everyone who passed him by ("Filthy Mudblood" and "What you my mistress say if she saw the filth in her house"). Hermione didn't take it to heart, she pitied the Elf; he was clearly brainwashed. The boys had given up on S.P.E.W many years ago, yet Hermione held it close to her heart. There weren't many opportunities currently to stop and wonder what careers the young Order members would have once the war was over. Currently they were fighters and that was that.
The kitchen downstairs was filled with Order members either sitting at the table or crowding around. There were bowls of food, and she saw Mrs. Weasley bustling through the crowd passing out drinks and snacks. She didn't often join in on the fights, she preferred to be the 'Order Mum', cleaning and cooking and looking after all the members that came to the house. She rarely went back to The Burrow, if only to check on the house and give it a tidy.
Remus looked up as she entered and gave her a smile, he was currently in a discussion with Moody, Arthur and Harry. Ron was staring off into the distance, idly stirring his cup of tea, clearly he had been there a while. There were maps and papers splayed out in front of them covered in arrows and non-descript scribbles. She walked over to the table saying a quick few Hi's to the people she passed. Settling in between Harry and Ron, she gave the lanky red head a nudge in the ribs to move him from his stupor.
"Hey Mione, alright?" He asked.
"Never better" She said giving him a little smile.
Things between them were slightly rocky, their childhood crushes on each other lingered, but the war had gotten in the way. The few kisses they had shared were quick and a slight awkwardness lingered. She had only kissed one other guy in her life, Viktor Krum, so she presumed the awkwardness tended to stay in the beginning stages of a relationship. She was no expert on romance, but Ron was a comfort and she did truly love him, as a friend and hopefully, someday more. Along with her dreams of working for the Ministry (when it finally was in a state of renewal sans Voldemort), she one day hoped of starting her own family. Maybe living in a magical village like Hogsmeade or Little Hangleton, having a beautiful garden and an open kitchen.
She was brought out of her reverie by Moody's sudden outburst.
"Right! We've spent far too much time lazing about! This is war, CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" He boomed. The room suddenly quietened, everyone looking towards him with startled faces.
"Here, Here" Sirius toasted, raising his mug to Moody. Moody gave a short 'Harrumph!' and sat back down. Lupin sat at the end of the table, his posture was rigid and his gaze moved between members.
"Our insider at the Ministry, who will remain anonymous for their own safety, has uncovered a lead."
There were murmurs amongst the crowd. The atmosphere had begun to perk slightly.
"Two days from now, a convoy of Death Eaters will be deployed in West Birmingham, they believe that four magical families reside in the area. So far we are unsure of which household they will be targeting first."
One woman gasped at the location. A few stirred in anger, others looked determined.
"We have already deployed members to the various locations, however we are unable to let the families leave this early into the siege."
"Why not!" Amos called out from the back. He had always been outspoken.
"Why do you think nitwit!" Moody snarled "Voldemort will get wind of their movements. They must stay until the day, no doubt there are Death Eaters waiting out the fronts of their houses as we speak watching their every move"
Amos looked affronted and slouched slightly behind the couple in front, he did not reply.
"On the morning of the raid we will send out groups to each location. Everyone will be posted around the houses keeping watch. Our insider at the Ministry is currently working on making individual unaccounted portkeys that we will be giving to each family. The families will be transported to a secret location and Order Members will be waiting to attack and apprehend."
"And kill them" Moody added on sharply.
"Kill them if necessary, if we can, try and apprehend one or two Death Eaters. Interrogating them would be incredibly beneficial. But ONLY if it is safe to do so." Lupin declared seriously. His brow was furrowed. Hermione looked over at him with respect, he hadn't wanted to be one of the leaders. But with Dumbledore's death he was one of the most level headed. The leadership was getting to him like it was Harry. His sandy hair was speckled with whites and greys, and he had a few more permanent wrinkles gracing his forehead.
"Now onto other news" He continued, his voice raised slightly to regain attention. "We are still unable to locate the whereabouts of Eleanor Revesby. At this stage in the search we have listed her as presumed dead until further notice."
He stared at the room in silence for a short while. Letting the news sink in.
"We have located the body of Glen Darrington, the Medi-Witch has estimated his time of death to be around a week and a half ago. Finally we are still searching for the Thornleigh family from Chelsea who have now been declared missing since Saturday." He looked down at his notes, he hated delivering the news of the missing and dead. But it had to be done.
The atmosphere turned solemn and she saw Harry clench his fist beside her. He was angry, she didn't blame him. The room remained quiet, everyone reflecting on the evening's news. A few sniffles could be heard occasionally.
"Well" Lupin again spoke up "If that is all the news for this evening then this meeting is finished" He stood up quickly, taking his papers with him and headed upstairs. The room filled with chatter again and people began moving around, preparing to leave or staying for Molly's dinner.
The trio looked at each other in silence, Hermione grabbed both of their hands and gave them a squeeze. Harry tilted his head in recognition and Ron gave her a half smile. There had been little good news in days, they could feel their hope fading. They were in real need of some good news, and hopefully soon.
.
The day of the raids had finally arrived, those that were a part of the mission were crowded around the kitchen early in the morning, Molly had made a large breakfast of eggs, bacon and kippers. The room was tense. Not many people ate, only a few were bold enough to hold a conversation.
The stilted breakfast didn't last long before the orders to leave were called. Members apparated to their relative locations in groups of two every ten or so minutes. Hermione and Ron were in one group, Harry was in another. At first Hermione and Ron had chucked a fuss at Lupin and Moody about the separation, but they shut them down fast with stern looks and a short "We need strength spread evenly amongst the groups."
Harry and his group were the first to leave. He gave the two of them hugs before he left to apparate. Ron and Hermione waited at the table until it was their turn.
"You ready?" She mumbled, looking up at Ron. He looked down at her, his freckles standing out on his extra pale face.
"Ready as ever" He replied, his eyes hardening in determination. They apparated with a crack.
The location was just outside of a small village, the house stood alone amongst the fields. Trees shrouded the back yard and cast shadows over the house. The front held a small courtyard with a wilting flower patch.
Ron and Hermione set them self behind a picket fence and cast disillusionment charms on each other. The feeling of eggs cracking and oozing down their bodies left and they were invisible to the world.
"It's quaint" Hermione observed.
"Not really my cup of tea" Ron muttered back.
In the distance they saw the rest of the convey turn up in small groups and move off to their own hiding spots. After an hour everyone was in position, invisible and on alert.
The grass fields swayed in the wind, a bird cawed overhead and the sun beat down upon their backs. A young child suddenly appeared at the top window, he placed his hand on the pane and looked out across the road. Suddenly his mother came up behind him, her face was contorted and she appeared to be scolding the child. He quickly left the window and the house was desolate once again.
"And now we wait" Ron sighed.
Lunch soon passed, the sun slowly carved its path arching across the sky. The temperature began to drop around midafternoon and onto dusk. The sky had turned a light blue, there were pinks and oranges just gracing the horizon. It was beautiful. Hermione wished she had a camera to capture the moment, it wasn't often you had a clear view of a sunset, especially in the city.
The happiness was short lived. For in the distance she spotted two silhouettes walking down the road. Her heart raced in anticipation, so far there were only two. She looked around for the others, but no one was in sight. Was this a trick? Who sends just two Death Eaters to apprehend a family of five?
"Something's not right" She whispered as quietly as she could to Ron, "Don't attack until the others start, they're playing us" He nudged her in response.
The silhouettes were getting closer, it was of two men. One had a slight swagger to his walk, he appeared slightly careless. The other was tall with a broad chest, his hands were in his pockets. He appeared less impressed by his surroundings.
Across the road on of the bushes were another order member was rustled, she cringed at the noise. The footsteps were gradually getting louder, one set heavier than the other. The gravel crunched underfoot, until silence came again. She hadn't noticed closing her eyes, but as she opened them now she stifled a small gasp. The two men were leaning against the fence. They were looking up at the house in silence.
Hermione moved back ever so slightly, from here she could hardly see who they are, and the fading light was not helping at all. The house threw scattered light across the road and illuminated the men's faces, she shuddered when she got a clear view. For above her sat the scarred, malicious face of Fenrir Greyback.
Of all the Death Eater she had come across he was by far the one of the most evil. He didn't kill his victims just using magic, but he let his werewolf instincts take over. Many a member and shockingly a staggering number of children had fallen victim to the cannibalistic nature of Fenrir. The man next to him was definitely a Lestrange, she couldn't tell which brother it was. He was way more relaxed in comparison, he leant against the fence, tapping his foot to a silent metronome.
Lestrange coughed loudly, staring up at the house. There was a ripple in one of the curtains and the silhouette of a person quickly moving out of the way. Greyback moved off the fence and slowly walked towards the house.
"Yoo-hoo!" Lestrange called at the house, his tone jovial. "Come out, come out you festy inferiors!" He sung.
"Shut up" Greyback growled.
"I'm just having a bit of fun, you of all people understand the fun in playing with your food" He persisted.
"Enough of this" Greyback snarled. He lifted his wand and suddenly all the windows in the house shattered, shrapnel flew in every direction, nicking Hermione's cheek. There were screams inside the house. Greyback laughed loudly, his voice was coarse, unnerving.
"Come out and surrender to the Lord! Or you will die" Lestrange jeered, he was still leaning against the fence. A piece of shrapnel had hit his shoulder and a dark stain was slowly spreading.
Greyback walked towards the garden, looking around. He whipped his wand out and began setting random plants on fire. An orange glow bathed the house. He set another bush on fire.
Suddenly there were new screams, the Order Member had fled the bush. His disillusionment charm had lifted and he was yelling Aquamenti,pointing at his pants currently aflame.
"Well, well" Lestrange said "this is a surprise-" He chuckled "NOT! Weren't we just waiting for bumbling inferiors to come to the rescue?" He turned to Greyback.
Greyback was eying the man's burning leg. He merely grunted in response. Greyback walked over to the Member, he was on the ground. Finally managing to put the fire out.
"Cruci-"
"Stupefy!" Roared Lupin.
Greyback fell to the ground. But the effect wasn't long lasting. Lestrange had directed a quick enervate at him and proceeded to attack Lupin. Hermione nudged Ron and the two of them got up, lifting their wands they lifted their own charms and proceeded towards Greyback.
"Lestrange, look who it is. Some of Britain's – most – wanted – scum" he snarled.
The two of them began firing curses are Greyback. He didn't waver and took the two of them on without much hassle. She heard Ron puffing besides her, she was also beginning to feel the exhaustion hit. Spending the day hiding in the sun had left them burnt and dehydrated.
It was the perfect distraction, Hermione was still very suspicious at the limited number of Death Eaters present, another Member had left hiding and was helping the man with the burnt leg, he dragged him out of sight and joined Remus.
It was dark now, the street was illuminated with various curses and the fires still raging around the house. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the lounge room suddenly flash blue. The family had activated the portkey. They were safe, they had escaped without injury. Another successful counterraid.
She was brought out of her momentary lapse by a sharp pain in her abdomen. A dark curse had opened a dark wound and there were dark spidery veins leaving the hole. She cried out in pain, cursing her momentary failure.
"Hermione!" Ron yelled
"Keep fighting!" She screamed back.
Then came the cracks.
The appeared all around them, another ten Death Eaters had arrived. Greyback gave a loud howl in delight. Ron, Lupin, Hermione and four other members crowded together in defense. The Death Eaters began firing. The members fired back. Hermione was fighting two at a time. They snarled as she fired curse after curse. She managed to bypass one of their protegos, a blue curse hit the man straight in the chest and his body convulsed, blood poured out of his eyes, ears, nose and mouth. He died soon after.
Hermione didn't have time to stop and think as another Death Eater took his place. It was a small but evil battle. Two Death Eaters were down and one Order Member had died. Hermione fought furiously, there was not room for doubt, her stomach was aching badly and she had lost quite a bit of blood.
"Hermione" Ron cried out.
"What is it?" She screamed back
"My leg, it's broken"
She moved slowly sideways, trying to get the Death Eaters to move around so she could see where Ron was. He was on the ground, firing spell after spell at the oncoming Death Eaters. There was a shard of bone sticking out of his jeans, blood was oozing everywhere. His face was tinged green and he had broken into a hard sweat. Hermione fueled all her energy into two cutting hexes and propelled them at the Death Eaters, one was hit in the chest and collapsed, the other hit in the leg, stumbling sideways; giving Hermione enough time to rush over where Ron was.
"Kenneth!" Hermione yelled to the nearest Member, panic lacing her voice "Come and apparate Ron out of here. I'll fend off the Death Eaters"
She took on the three Death Eaters, there was a loud crack behind her. She didn't have time for relief. The men were bearing down on her, and she was weakening fast. Over their shoulders she could see Lupin and the remaining Member fighting off three of their own.
"Stupefy!"
"Protego"
"Sectumsempra!"
The curse knocked one man down. Just two more she thought. The Death Eater on the right sent a nasty hex her way, she jumped out of the way. It grazed her right arm. Her nerves twitched in pain and her wand dropped from her hand. She swore in frustration, diving to the ground the get her wand.
Grazing her palms, she slid across the dirt and grabbed her wand. Firing spells in any direction she could reach she rolled over to face her opponents. She gasped as she looked up, a Death Eater was standing above her.
She saw a pair of silver eyes, sharp and piercing behind a mask.
Then everything went dark.
We will get back to Draco next chapter. If you like the story please review. It would be good to know if this story was actually going somewhere or not, and whether anyone was actually reading it or am I posting to an invisible audience.