Anything for Harry: Chapter 11

The Leaky Cauldron was deserted when they flooed in. An overturned table and deserted drinks were evidence enough that those present had left in a hurry. Bill, who had gone through the Floo first was waiting at the back door, wand drawn. Harry met her eyes and they drew their wands. Bill called them to the back door.

The five of them gathered in the back alley, the portal was closed. All had their wands out now, anything could be happening in there but she suspected Voldemort had struck.

Bill looked at them all, "Let's try to stick together. No one goes solo." The last he said looking directly at Harry.

Harry nodded along with the rest of them and edged closer to Hermione.

She took hold of the back of his belt. It probably wouldn't last long but she wanted a physical link to him.

Bill motioned them all off to the sides. Luna joined Harry and Hermione on the far side while Bill and Ron were on the side closer to the Leaky Cauldron. Bill reached out and tapped the pattern in the bricks. He pulled back quickly and crouched.

Diagon alley was in shambles. The air was frosty and filled with screams and a sense of doom. She counted six Death Eaters in the first moment after the passage had opened, then Harry rushed into the alley and she was pulled into the fray, still holding to the back of his belt.

Among the bodies on the street she saw several children and a few uniforms of the Auror's. She had decided earlier that stunning was too good for Death Eaters. The battle at the DoM had taught her that they knew how to revive their comrades. While she didn't want to kill them she had to make them unable to re-join the fight.

After the fake Moody had turned Draco into a ferret she had studied that transformation extensively. Transformation was by far her strongest skill and it seemed to be a very effective combat strategy as the counter was not well known. Hell the spell was not very well known, she had finally gotten Professor McGonagall to reveal it when she could not find reference to it anywhere in the library.

Harry and Ron had each stunned one of the Death Eaters whose back had been to them.

She cast the transformation spell over Harry's shoulder at the closest Death Eater. Reluctantly she released his belt and immediately conjured an unbreakable jar. The Death Eater shrank, not into a ferret but into an earthworm which was then summoned to her and landed in the jar. It was the first time she had used it on a live person. She didn't look away from the fight, the others were moving and casting now though the other Death Eaters were slow to react. Harry, Bill, and Ron had the others stunned in seconds.

Luna took the jar from her and Hermione transformed the stunned Death Eaters into worms which Luna then summoned and caught in the jar.

Harry was moving off to the left, Bill beside him. There had to be Dementors around here, the air was too chilly. Ron and Luna flanked her as she moved further down the alley. The next two Death Eaters had time to turn to them, one cast an Avada Kevadra at Luna, Hermione flicked her wand, "Wingardium Leviosa." One of the large cobblestones met the green beam well before it came close to them. Harry Stupified that one. Hermione transformed him into a worm and Luna summoned it.

Bill was in an intense duel with the other one but Ron snuck a stupefy past the Death Eater. Again Hermione transformed it into a worm and Luna added it to her jar.

Ron called out, "Fred! George!"

The twin's shop was in ruins though they were nowhere to be seen. Ron walked in, stepping over the debris of their sign. Hermione strode along with him, Luna a constant shadow to her left. Hermione glanced at Harry; he nodded and headed down the alley with Bill. She was reluctant to leave his side, even for the few minutes it would take to check the twin's shop.

Fred or George, she could never tell them apart, was lying near the back door of the shop quivering. Ron ran towards him yelling, "Fred!"

He knelt beside his brother and they heard a woman's voice call out from the alley behind the shop, "Cruccio!" Ron collapsed in agony beside Fred.

Hermione apparated to the opposite side of the back alley, the furthest place she could see, facing the direction the curse had come from. A woman with long wild hair stood over the other quivering twin, looking into the shop. She turned towards the small pop Hermione had made and grinned, "Oh, look its Potty's mudblood whore!"

Time slowed, calm came over her, like when she was taking exams and knew without doubt there could be nothing on the test she did not understand fully. This was what she had been training for over the years, not to know everything but, to remove filth like this. She flashed her left hand at Bella, "I've got his ring. He can fuck me anytime he wants. Pity you still seem to be Tom's whore. Must be a bitch getting off after being cruccioed." The words were meant to incent her into making a mistake. Bellatrix had the edge in dueling, Hermione had to outsmart her.

Bella let out a scream at the taunting and strode forward, "Cruccio!" It was then Hermione realized Bellatrix was carrying something. It was wrapped in a cloth and tucked under her robe but Bella kept her left hand on it.

Hermione took one quick step to the side and the curse flew past her.

Bella stopped and screamed at her, "You think you're clever?"

Hermione shook her head, "Clever?" then looked Bella directly in the eyes, "No. I'm bloody brilliant! Bitch!"

Bellatrix tore her eyes away from Hermione and screamed, "Avada Kevadra!"

Hermione flicked her wand, "Wingardium Leviosa." One of the flagstones flew to meet the killing curse. She cast a quick protego to shield herself from the fragments; it had been pretty close to her. Bella hadn't thought of that, she was peppered with fragments of stone. Two cuts opened, one on her wand hand and another across her left cheek. Hermione heard some of the fragments bouncing from the brick walls of the buildings. She tapped her temple with her left index finger. "See? Brains…"

Bella said, "I'll get you in the end."

Hermione replied calmly, "No. You won't." She cast three cutting curses at Bella, in a rough diagonal. She blocked one with a shield charm and dodged the lower one; the higher one cut a deep gash into her right shoulder.

Bellatrix grinned fanatically. "Think you have the guts to kill me? Bitch!"

Hermione smiled grimly and answered the only way she could. "I'm the soul-mate of the boy-who-bloody-lived! He killed your master once and will again!"

Bellatrix cackled, "Oh, I'll torture you, then I'll kill you."

Hermione couldn't believe her luck. Bella was so incensed she wasn't even casting spells. They might as well have been talking over tea. "That reminds me Bella. What happened to that husband of yours? Did master kill him so he could have you all to himself?"

They were slowly circling in the alley, about twenty feet separated them. Where was Luna? Hopefully making sure no one got a jump on her, she couldn't take her attention from Bella.

Bellatrix screeched in a strained voice, "I please my master."

Hermione nodded, "I'm sure you do. Whore!"

"Cruccio!"

Again Hermione sidestepped, this time in the other direction, she didn't want to establish a pattern to her dodging. "Not a pleasant fuck eh? Whore. Does he even give you the dignity of fucking you or does he just jerk off on your quivering, naked body?"

Bellatrix let out a strangled scream, "Avada Kevadra!" The words were barely articulate and the wand was flailing around.

Hermione pulled the dumpster into the path of the curse, though it would have missed her anyway. It punched a huge hole in one side but didn't make it through the trash inside. "I'm curious, does snake-man even have the hardware to jerk off?"

Bella flicked her wand and the dumpster smashed into the back of the twins shop, narrowly missing whichever brother was trying to crawl back inside. Bella was panting heavily, either from anger or the effort of the duel, "I'm going to kill you…mudblood…whore!"

"Tisk tisk. Now you're repeating yourself Bella, can't think and duel at the same time?" Hermione flicked her wand at the dumpster and it skidded across the cobblestones at Bella from the side. She narrowly jumped back out of its path. Hermione was already transfiguring the cobblestone behind her into a bench and Bella fell over it, cracking her head hard on the ground as she did so. Somehow she maintained her hold on the package she was carrying.

Hermione strode forward but Bella wasn't done, she twisted and shot another killing curse at her under the bench, one hand still on the package. Hermione had been ready for that and apparated onto the bench, already casting a reducto, she caught Bella completely by surprise. Her aim was a bit off, she had been planning on hitting her in the middle of the back, and instead she hit the base of Bella's neck. In an explosion of bone and blood Bella's head flew from her body which crumpled, spouting blood.

"See bitch? You won't" Her foe fallen she apparated back across the alley, in case someone else was going to try her now that Bella was dead. Luna was the only one she could see. She stood off to the side of the doorway. Ron, Fred, and George were lying on mattresses inside the storeroom of the destroyed shop. Luna had indeed been watching the fight in the alley carefully. Two more Death Eaters were stunned and tightly bound in heavy iron chains.

Hermione and Luna stared at one another from opposite sides of the alley, then Hermione looked slowly to the left, Luna looking to her left so they covered both sides. When their eyes met again both nodded. Hermione apparated beside Luna neither said a word.

Luna banished the chains, Hermione transformed them into worms, and Luna added them to her now large collection of stunned earthworms. Luna had summoned a top which she screwed back on tightly.

Hermione started walking back towards Diagon Alley and Harry. She had to find him now, he had been gone for too long.

As though summoned he came running around the corner and into the shop, flicking his wand at the debris along the side of the shop, tables and various products of the twins went flying away from the wall. Hermione cleared the wall nearest her, he was looking for something. Then she saw it, Luna beat her to it though. Wormtail was frozen, silver paw and all.

Harry came around the pile and suddenly stopped in front of Hermione looking concerned at her, "You've got blood all over you. Are you hurt?"

She shook her head, "No, it's not mine." Her mouth was dry, "I got her Harry."

"Who?"

She pointed out into the alley, "Bellatrix."

Harry took one step towards the body; Hermione stopped him with a blood spattered hand on his chest. He looked at her then nodded, turning back into the room.

He said, "What happened to them?"

"Ron got hit once with a Cruccio. The twins multiple times, I don't know how many. Bella was playing with them when I found her.

Luna levitated Wormtail up to one of the light fixtures and tied him up by his tail.

Bill came striding into the shop. He looked at her for a long moment but, strode directly to his three brothers. He knelt between the twins and pulled their eyelids up and looked carefully. With a small shake of his head he pulled something from an inner pocket of his robe. He had a handful of change, he selected two of the small ones; knut's. He put one on a twin's chest and touched it with his wand, "Portus." That twin vanished. He repeated the action on the other twin then walked to Ron. After looking at his eyes he started digging in his pockets and said, "Ron will be ok in a few hours." He pulled a chocolate frog package from his robe and put it in Ron's shaking hand. He helped him get it open and only after Ron had taken a bite of the squirming treat did he stand and face them, "I sent them to 's emergency room."

She nodded, Harry was doing the same. She had an inspiration to get Voldemort even madder but would he agree? She turned to Harry, "Can I have Wormtail?"

He looked at her, a pained expression crossed his eyes then he shrugged, she waved her wand in a complicated pattern and Peter transformed from the rat into the former friend of Harry's parents. He fell onto the ground, no longer having a tail to be suspended by. "Ennervate" He struggled to sit up and look around.

Hermione loomed over him; the other three had their wands pointed at Wormtail. "I'm going to let you go home to your master with a message." She pointed her wand into the back alley, "Accio." Bella's bloody head came flying to her. She redirected it into Wormtail's lap. He looked shocked Hermione said, "Tell him it's from the Potters – Wormtail." He looked up at her; she was holding her blood spattered ring towards him. "Remember them Peter? GO!"

His eyes unfocused and he apparated away, bloody head staring accusingly at him from his lap.

She turned back to them, dismissing what she had just done without a thought. She would think about it later, now was the time for action. She pointed her wand towards Diagon Alley, "What happened out there? We found Bella back here torturing the twins. She hit Ron with a Cruccio when he was kneeling over his brother. I started dueling her. Luna got two more while I was fighting her." She looked at Luna, who held up the jar, several of the earthworms were now moving.

Harry said, "We only saw a few Death Eaters, they ran. It looks like there was a huge battle in front of Gringotts. We had to chase them for a bit then we found the Dementors. There were a bloody lot of them. Prongs was able to get them to run off but it took a while."

Bill stepped closer to them, "We have over a hundred dead and injured out there. I saw more Auror's appearing. The first wave got wiped out I think. This was a major attack, looks like it started about ten minutes before we got here."

Her calm was beginning to shatter: in bits and pieces she began to feel her body again. Nothing really hurt, some aches, but her heart was going to rip her apart when she let it feel what she had done tonight. Why hadn't she transfigured Bella? She had the time but the thought had never crossed her mind. That reminded her of the object Bella had been carrying. She said, "Stay here," and walked back to Bella's body.

Luna came into the alley and kept an eye out for anyone.

Harry was again talking to Bill though he glanced to see what she was doing.

In death Bellatrix had finally released the package. It had partially unwrapped revealing a golden chalice. She recognized it as Hufflepuff's cup. Could this be another Horcrux? Yes, it had the same feel as the others. Reluctantly she gathered it up in the cloth, only bloody on one corner. She scourgified that corner and came back into the shop.

Why was Bellatrix carrying this around?

Tonks and another auror walked into the twins shop. Bill was kneeling over Ron, who was now sitting up. "And here I find the rescue party. Harry, Bill, Hermione, Luna? The survivors are saying you stopped all of this."

Harry shrugged. She wanted to talk but her throat was constricting, she was starting to shake. Adrenaline had wreaked havoc and now her body was coming down from it.

Luna pulled her into a chair that hadn't been there before. She put a calming hand on her shoulder. She needed Harry, no you can hold out. This is just withdraw from the stress of dueling Bellatrix: one of the nastiest Death Eaters around, Killer of Sirius, she helped make Neville's parents insane, and hundreds of other incidents. She was already trying to justify taking her first life. She had proved she could and would kill in this war, for Harry. Luna handed her a goblet of water, she drank it greedily.

Tonks looked out into the alley behind the shop and saw the bloody corpse, "Wotcher? Who's that?"

Harry said, "Bellatrix Lestrange."

Tonks looked sharply at him, "You got my aunt?"

He shook his head and pointed at Hermione. "Luna and Hermione can tell you about it, I was off chasing Dementors."

Tonks raised her eyebrow at Hermione, "You out dueled my aunt? Core, she was a terror."

Hermione shrugged, "I out thought her. She was pretty insane from her stay in Azkaban." She put her hand on Luna's, which was back on her shoulder. "Fortunately Luna was watching my back." She lifted her water goblet at the jar of worms Luna had put down on an empty shelf.

Tonks looked at her strange, "Worms?"

Hermione smiled evily, "Transfigured Death Eaters. I figured they couldn't escape that way."

Tonks laughed and then her eyes caught the corpse again. She nodded and stepped into the rear alley, the other Auror with her looked at Hermione with new respect. Tonks called out from the alley, "Blimey, where's her noggin?"

Hermione laughed, it was dry, humorless. "I sent it to Voldemort with Peter, from the Potters."

Tonks looked at her and hurried back into the room. She looked at the ring on her hand, still over Luna's on her shoulder then at Harry who just nodded, "Poor auntie. You know that's gonna make him awfully angry."

Hermione shrugged and reached her hand to Harry. He took it and slipped beside her. She felt Luna's hand rest on her opposite shoulder. Hermione said, "Good. Angry people do stupid things. I want him angry enough to do something really stupid." Harry squeezed her hand.

Tonks looked at the bundle Hermione was carrying. "That's what this was all about? Do you know what it is?"

Hermione flipped open the wrapping revealing the gold chalice. "Yes, this is Helga's cup. At a guess I would say it has been hidden in Gringotts?" She re-wrapped it before looking up at Tonk's astonished face.

Tonks finally managed to control herself. "Could you go into law enforcement? You could solve hundreds of cases in minutes." Tonks sat on the remains of a display table. "Seriously, you had two clues and put all of that together?"

Hermione shook her head, "No. I know what this is. I can't tell you all of it. The Headmaster put Harry, Ron, and I on a mission to find some things precious to Voldemort. This is one of them."

Tonks looked at Harry for a full minute before sighing. "Auntie walked into Gringotts plain as day and headed down to her vault. The goblins notified the Ministry immediately and we dispatched a dozen Auror's to apprehend her. While we were waiting for her to come back from the vault the entire alley filled with Dementors and Death Eaters. In all of the confusion she was able to escape our trap. None of us even saw her come out. I thought she was still inside until I found her body here."

Bill looked up at them; Ron was sitting up beside him, looked very pale but was munching on the chocolate frog. Bill stood, "We should be going."

Harry looked across the street at the ruins of Quality Quidditch supplies, "Yes, my buying spree will have to wait a bit."

Diagon was far from abandoned now, there were witches and wizards wandering up and down the street; many in the uniforms of Aurors or the medical robes of St. Mungo's.

The Auror with Tonks looked at Harry, Hermione had seen that look on thousands of faces before; adoration. He looked at Hermione and she was surprised to see his expression did not change. "We should get a statement from all of you but, I'll just put down that these were captured or killed by wizards or witches unknown." He looked apprehensively at Tonks, "Will that be acceptable Auror Tonks?"

Nymphadora stepped over to him and clapped him on the shoulder, "Good man, Franks." She turned back to them, "I've been telling my partner here that you don't want publicity, of any kind."

Harry took her hand and shook it, "Thanks Tonks." He looked at Ron, "You up to moving?"

Ron nodded his mouth still full of chocolate. He struggled to stand; Bill pulled him to his feet.

Bill looked at them, "Hogsmeade station? We can walk from there I guess."

Harry nodded and Bill side-alonged Ron away.

Hermione stood and drained her water goblet. She turned back to Tonks, "Don't forget those worms there." Tonks nodded, Hermione pulled Luna to her side and apparated to Hogsmeade.

She landed; Bill and Ron were sitting on a bench, Bill looked winded but stood and motioned Luna to sit. Hermione said, "Be right back with Harry." She apparated to the precise spot she had just occupied in the twins shop. Harry slipped beside her, arms going about one another's waists. "Ready?" He nodded and half waved at Tonks and Franks, she took them to Hogsmeade platform.

Bill was waiting with several more bars of chocolate. He silently handed one to her and Harry. Luna was sitting with Ron on the bench eating one of her own. Once he saw they had chocolate in their mouths Bill asked, "You didn't get exhausted by those side-alongs from London?"

She shook her head, her mouth full of chocolate. She felt its relieving affect begin to work on her frayed nerves.

Bill said softly, his back turned to his brother, "Then you're much stronger than I am. You could probably side-along two at once." He dropped it at that and turned back to Ron and Luna who were sitting, talking quietly.

Harry looked into her eyes cautiously. Around bites of chocolate he said, "We need to talk."

She looked pleadingly at him, "Not yet." He wanted an explanation as to what had happened in her duel with Bellatrix. Oh, why had she killed her?

He raised his eyebrows but turned back to the others. "Let's start walking."

Luna stood and helped Ron to his feet. He seemed able to stand on his own but kept having random twitches and shakes. The chocolate did seem to be helping him a lot.

Harry and she were still standing arm in arm, they started walking to the school. This was something new for them, walking in sync; it took a little practice and served to distract her from what she had just done in a back alley of Diagon. Fortunately her legs were about the same length as his, her torso was perhaps two inches shorter. With a brief flare of anger she thought he would probably have been taller but he had been starved for a lot of his early years. As they neared the gates she started trembling, he could feel it. He turned and looked at her. She tried to tell him she would be fine but nothing came out. She felt her legs give way and he caught her. Her eyes closed, Harry was holding her. She was safe.

She woke to Crookshanks nuzzling her arm and Hedwig hooting softly. Where had they come from? Harry's arm was around her shoulders, he gave her a soft squeeze. They were lying down in their bed in the Room of Requirement. How did she know that? It had a feel to it, their bed. Her clothes had been changed, he must have enjoyed that. She was only wearing a long thick shirt; no panties Mr. Potter? She caressed her familiar's head and opened her eyes.

His face looked pale in the soft light. His left hand was rubbing his scar and he looked troubled. He had his knees propped up holding some book, which he wasn't looking at. He flipped the book closed and looked at her, "Hello love. First tell me how you feel? Then I will fill you in on all that has happened while you were sleeping."

He was anxious, something had happened to get him worried while she slept. "Physically I'm good I think. Emotionally I'm about to shatter." She rolled flat onto her back, his arm became her pillow. Crookshanks moved to lay against her other side. She put her right arm over her eyes as the tears started coming, the shirt's long sleeves absorbed them. He turned with her, lying along her side he was pressed hard against her left. His other hand came to rest on her neck and caressed it gently. She couldn't look at him but she had to speak. "I killed someone Harry. I didn't think I was capable of that but I didn't even think of stunning her. Have you ever actually killed someone in all of this?"

He hesitated, was he going to reject her now? Then talked slowly, still thinking as he went, "I thought for a long time that I killed Tom that first night when I was a baby but, the current theory is that his own spell is what killed him right?" She nodded, "Well then there was Quirrell in first year, I hurt him a lot, I certainly tried to kill him but I passed out. Dumbledore told me later that Quirrell had still been alive when he got there, he… well he finished it. So I guess my answer is no, I have never actually killed a person, sixty foot basilisk yes, person no."

Her throat constricted, "I thought so. I had no intention of stunning or capturing her. I did everything I could to make her upset; you should have heard the things I said to her. I was cruel, and then I killed her." She refused to be weak; he needed to know she would do what was necessary to win the war. But she couldn't stop the tears, her lip trembled, she caught it in her teeth and bit down as she often did when thinking.

Harry caressed her cheek with his thumb and kissed her softly. "Thank you, she deserved it. I'm not sure if I could have killed her, even for Sirius. I asked Luna to put her memory of the fight into the Pensieve. She made me promise to tell you that I asked her to. I wanted to see if you had been hurt somehow during it. I watched it three times. Luna got distracted as she was more concerned with preventing someone from surprising you than helping in the fight. I'm sorry if you didn't want me to hear what you said. I think I saw most of the fight. I'm particularly fond of my new title; The-boy-who-bloody-lived."

He was grinning but she couldn't join him, her emotions were too raw. She took a few deep breaths then finally met his eyes. "I think, maybe I loved Sirius more like you did than I thought."

Harry said, "He was great. Wasn't he?"

She nodded, "Yes, he- Hold me?" Sirius had been the first adult wizard to make her feel a part of the community.

Harry rolled almost completely atop her and hugged her gently. She buried her face in his neck and cried for several more minutes. Finally she pulled back and asked softly, "What's the time? What happened? Where did Crooks and Hedwig come from?"

He twisted to look behind himself, "Half past twelve. They were here, in the room, when we came back. Luna said that a familiar knows when it's needed. Bill should be beginning his raid on Riddle manor now."

He hadn't really answered her question. Anxiously she asked, "Ron?"

"Fine, he recovered and went with them. Luna was anxious, she stayed in here and we talked until about eleven." He took a deeper breath, "Voldemort reacted to your present." He touched his scar again. "He attacked me and I had to let Luna into my head. Together we made a mental barrier against him. I'm struggling to maintain it alone. Twenty minutes after we blocked him the pain lessened and then McGonagall came and told us that the Ministry was under attack. As soon as she left Luna said she had to go do something and was going to go to bed."

She said, "It's been an hour since the attack started on the Ministry? And no news on the battle?"

He rubbed her cheek gently, "Nothing."

She shrugged then a sudden thought hit her, Voldemort was on the move. "Harry, we have to go back in time now, it can't wait until your birthday."

He rolled away from her and slipped his arm from under her head. "I'll get Luna, get dressed."

No questions asked. He was off into the common room. She sat up and found her wand on the nightstand beside her.

Crookshanks looked at her accusingly from his back beside her.

Two quick, "Pack's" later everything in the room was neatly sorted into their trunks. She stood and walked to hers. Harry had dressed her in his Quidditch jersey, which was decidedly tight across her chest. She smiled at that, quite comfortable with Potter across her back. She found panties, socks and her jeans neatly packed in the proper places. Her shoes had known to stay outside; she was just lacing them up when Harry came back into the room. Luna was right behind him, still blinking in the bright light.

Harry said, "She was sleeping in her clothes and had already packed."

Luna yawned, "I got the stuff from the common room in my trunk, Pensieve, memories, etcetera."

Hermione said, "Good, you thought of it too?"

Luna nodded, stifling another yawn. "Yes, McGonagall told us the Ministry had been attacked; there was no word as to the outcome of that battle when I went to sleep an hour ago."

Harry said, "Ok what have the geniuses figured out that I haven't? Should we be going to help at the Ministry?"

Hermione said, "After that attack on Diagon the Ministry would have been the next target, maybe it was in reaction to Bella's failure or my present. We'll find out later. What matters though is that Voldemort is coming out into the open. With Dumbledore gone he has nothing to fear but you. We have to get your training done before tomorrow. Hogwarts would be the next target, whether he wins at the Ministry or not. There couldn't be many defenders there at this time of night and he knows there are only a handful of people here."

He asked, "Should we call off the raid on Riddle Manor? It's probably too late for that?"

Luna answered, "No, this is the best time to raid it. If Voldemort has been using it for a base he will not be there tonight. We captured a lot of his Death Eaters, he will have to go himself to guarantee success." She turned to Hermione, "Did he tell you? We destroyed Hufflepuff's cup. If they can find the last Horcrux they should be able to destroy it before they return. By the time we get back to the present Tom could be entirely mortal."

Hermione asked, "Destroy it?"

Harry shrugged, "Ron took Godric's sword. It seemed like a good idea at the time."

She nodded, "Ok, let's go then." She stood and shrunk their trunks. Harry picked up his and pocketed it while she retrieved her own.

Hedwig fluttered onto Harry's left shoulder.

Crookshanks was pawing Hermione's jeans.

Luna scooped the cat up, he did not protest.

Harry asked, "Where are we going to do the actual time traveling?"

She said, "Right here, it will adjust, after all we will require a room when we arrive in the past won't we?"

He held his head, "Merlin I hate it when you talk like that."

Luna asked, "School will be in session 18 months ago."

Hermione said, "I'm aiming for Christmas break, there will only be a handful of students, we can sneak into the passage to Hogsmeade and then apparate from it to my parents house."

Harry nodded, Hermione pulled the chain from around her neck and it stretched to include Luna and Harry. It was around Hedwig's body and Luna held Crookshanks high enough to be included in it. They stepped close, both hugging her.

She got the turner in her hands and carefully began winding it. There were three hoops surrounding the hourglass. The outermost was weeks, middle was days, and the smallest was hours. Counting very carefully as she wound it to what she had calculated would be Christmas break. She had previously figured it out from Harry's birthday, this required three less turns of the week hoop. She held it still and glanced at Luna, she nodded. Hermione looked into Harry's eyes, whatever he needed she would provide. He had faith in her and it was unshakable, she released the time turner and as it spun the world around them went backwards.

The room appeared as it was a moment ago. Hermione pulled the chain from around their necks and it constricted to fit only her once again. Harry was looking around, he said, "Not sure what I expected really but again this is the Room of Requirement."

Hedwig flew to the perch the room had provided a few feet away.

Luna was absently scratching Crookshanks behind his ears. He began purring loudly.

Harry pulled out his trunk and unshrunk it. He got his invisibility cloak out and passed it to her. His head was still inside the trunk. He seemed to be searching in vain for something. The map!

"Look in your photo album from Hagrid." She said.

He froze a second then moved again. A moment later he was standing, holding the Marauders Map and looking at her accusingly.

She felt her cheeks turn hot. "You told me to pack so, everything went where I would put it."

He smiled, "Don't ever change love."

Luna, whom she had forgotten was in the room stepped to Harry's open trunk and pulled out his Weasley sweater and handed it to him. Then she pulled her own trunk out and expanded it.

Crookshanks was deposited on the bed while she pulled out a thick green sweater and put it on.

Harry stood there for a moment watching her and looking confused.

Hermione expanded her own trunk and found her warmest hoodie which she pulled over her head. Without a comment Harry put on his sweater as well. Two minutes later their trunks were re-packed and Harry was unfolding the map.

Hermione unfolded the invisibility cloak and spread it out across her back.

Luna scooped up Crookshanks and stepped under it with her and left a gap for Harry to stand in. Together they moved and covered Harry. They all had to bend over so the cloak reached the floor.

Harry was studying the map as they maneuvered out of the Room of Requirement and headed down the hall. He said, "I think you hit the holidays, the school is deserted."

Luna said, "It's certainly cold enough."

To that Hermione could only agree, her teeth were nearly chattering.

Hedwig was shadowing them in the hall, not landing on them but flying ahead to a convenient statue and waiting there for them to go past her. She had to be following them by sound as they were under the cloak. With Harry looking at the map there was no easy way to carry her. They encountered no one on their way to the statue of the witch with a hump and were soon standing in the passage.

Harry folded the map and stuffed it along with the cloak into the backpack while she and Luna provided light with their wands. Hedwig had landed on his shoulder.

The cold was numbing and together the three of them hurried through the passage.

Hermione barely paused at the edge of Hogwarts grounds and snatched Luna into a quick hug. She said, "Nox." Hermione put her hand on Crookshanks and added him to the Apparition. When Luna put her wand out she concentrated on her bedroom and took them there. They arrived, the clock by her bed read 1:45am. Light from the streetlamps filtered through the closed curtains otherwise it was dark and silent. She told Luna, "Wait here, no magic." She didn't wait for Luna to nod, just thought of the passage in Hogsmeade and took herself back to Harry.

He engulfed her in a hug the moment she appeared and said, "Nox," they were plunged into darkness. "Go!"

Again she put her hand on Hedwig's chest. Hedwig didn't flinch or react to the contact. Hermione switched her concentration back to her own bedroom and pushed them back to Luna. Luna had sat on the bed and was rubbing her legs vigorously.

Hermione said, "The house should be empty. My parents are on a ski trip. I was supposed to join them but went to Grimmauld instead." Harry nodded but Luna looked at her oddly. She would want the details of that later Hermione was sure. "Let me check and get the heat going. No magic."

They both nodded and she hurried out of her room to the thermostat in the hallway. She flipped on the lights, as expected her parents had turned the heat off completely and the house was nearly as cold as outside. She turned the heat on and bumped it up all the way and flipped the lights off, no need to alert the neighbors and went back into her room. Harry had pulled the thick comforter from her bed and beckoned her to join himself and Luna in it.

Crookshanks was in Luna's lap and Hedwig had gone to the perch Hermione had bought for her after second year, by the window.

Hermione snuggled in next to Harry and the three of them sat in the middle of her bed until their teeth stopped chattering. The temperature in the house had gone up by about ten degrees by this time.

Luna said, "We can't stay here for long, the neighbors are too close, they'll notice someone is in a house they believe is empty."

She felt Harry nod beside her. He said, "Well we can't go to Grimmauld, we're already there."

"I've been thinking about this and I think we should go to my uncle's in Cornwall. I can drive us there. We'll call my parents from his place so they won't panic when they see the second car is gone."

Luna asked, "Does he know about magic?"

She bit her lower lip. "I thought for a long time he didn't but yes I'm sure he does. Also he lives on a farm he bought when he retired from the Royal Marines two years ago. No wait, um six months ago. He can help us with the exercise and training." The big question in her head though was how would uncle Charles react to her difference in age and how much would she have to explain.

Harry said, "Let's send Hedwig to your parents with a note, that way they will know immediately. Where did they go skiing?"

Hermione nodded thinking about what to put in the note. "They are in the French Alps, as of this morning. The last they knew though I was going to stay at school to study instead of joining them. Give me a bit to think of what to put in the letter."

Luna said, "So we get into the second, car, you called it, and go to Cornwall? How long will that take?"

Hermione was lost in thought, Harry replied. "A day or so. Are you brining your instrument?"

She shrugged. "Since we are not planning on practicing magic, sure, maybe it will help me relax a bit."

Hermione climbed out of the bed and went to the window seat. She unlatched it and then did the combination on the safe. She pulled the case out and glanced inside. Everything was in order. She re-sealed the case and closed the safe and window seat.

Luna had gotten out of the bed, still holding Crookshanks, and was looking over her shoulder but kept quiet.

Harry had straightened the comforter on her bed and was heading into the hall. He stopped at the thermostat. Hermione went to her desk and wrote the note for her parents. She didn't want to explain much or panic them so it simply said. Come to Uncle Chuck's when you get back. H

She would have a lot of explaining to do when they arrived but that would be best done in person when they could see she looked much older than when they had last seen her. She folded the note and tied it to Hedwig's waiting leg. "My parents are skiing in the French Alps. Deliver this to them when they are alone."

Hedwig gave a hoot and bobbed her head. Harry was already at the window. He opened it and she took off into the night.

He closed the window quickly to cutoff the cold air from outside.

Hermione didn't wait, she took up her violin. Paused and looked at Luna, "This," she held up the case, "is very sensitive to magic. Its voice can be destroyed by magical fields. It's very old and priceless."

Luna said, "Understood. Protect it as one of us."

Hermione smiled and headed out of her room and down the stairs. Harry put his hand on her shoulder when he stumbled. She slowed so they could keep up with her in the near dark of the house. She knew every step quite well but they hadn't ever seen it.

Her keys were on the board in the kitchen. They got into the silver BMW and headed for Cornwall.