CHAPTER THIRTY

Summary: Hermione's secret is discovered by The Order of the Phoenix. Before Harry is rescued, she needs to be first. But from who? With the help of Sirius she learns to put the past behind her, and with the help of two Weasleys, they show her a happy future. But Hermione isn't who she thinks she is, what she discovers will change her life for good. Rated M for a reason.

Disclaimer: All original characters and canon events belong to J.K. Rowling. Non-canon events are my own ideas. I am not making any profit from posting this fanfic.

Page count: 11

The Burrow - Friday 1st August 1998

"I've never seen Hermione so pissed," Charlie yelled, as chaos ensured.

The wedding reception had been interrupted by Kingsley's worrying patronus, explaining the fall of The Ministry and barely a minute later, Death Eaters had broken through the wards at The Burrow, and Charlie was right, Hermione was pissed.

As guests fled in fear and desperation and The Order members held their wands in their hands tightly fighting Death Eaters, she stood in the middle of the marquee.

There was a dark and deadly glare on her face, her cheeks had pinked in anger, her nostrils flared and her hair sparked, giving off what looked to be little sparks of lightning. Her hands were clenched into fists by her sides and she breathed heavily.

Hermione was more than pissed, she was furious, she was livid. All of the hard work that had gone into the wedding to give Fleur and Bill a perfect day like she had was ruined. All of their effort and time had been wasted and she couldn't believe they had the gall to interrupt a ceremony of happiness and love.

She could feel her magic raging through her body, building and building and begging to be released. She couldn't remember being so angry, except when Fred and George were attacked. The Weasleys may not have been her mates, but they were still her family and Voldemort had disrespected her by ruining something her family had worked so hard on. Her magic was thrumming inside of her and she hadn't done nearly enough exercising of her magic as she should've done. That made it harder to control her magic.

She took in the sound of the screams of horror and fear, the yells of incantations and insults, the smell of burning as fire tore through The Burrow's grounds and smoke filled the air, dark, thick and heavy. Her family were fighting valiantly and with everything they had, but there were too many Death Eaters, and they would ultimately lose.

Hermione took a deep breath and unclenched her fists. She fished into her robe pockets and pulled out the shrunken down back pack before spinning in a circle, her eyes searching.

"Harry!" she yelled, her eyes landing on him as he crouched behind a fallen table, firing spells over the top of it. His eyes cut to hers and he immediately understood, it was time for him to leave.

Ron was next to him and he gripped the back of his robes before standing and pulling him in Hermione's direction. A Death Eater fired a spell and they had to duck, it slammed into a table and set ablaze.

Hermione knew they weren't going to make it to her and so she lifted her hand showing Harry her intentions and he was ready when she threw the back pack through the air. He caught it and with a small smile in her direction, he grabbed Ron's arm and apparated them away as their mission to destroy Voldemort's soul officially began.

Now that Harry and Ron were safe, she turned her attention back to the chaos happening around her. Her magic wanted free, but before she could let that happen she had to get everyone to safety. Her eyes searched for the most vulnerable of the guests and they landed on Gabrielle, Fleur's little sister who was barely even eleven years old. Hermione's instincts as a soon to be mother kicked in and she knew she had to protect the young child. Hermione fearlessly made her way through the havoc, trying her best not to waddle as she didn't want to give the fact that she was pregnant away and thankfully her robes covered her bump.

She easily deflected ricocheting spells, but it seemed the Death Eaters were trying to avoid her, not wanting to injure The Blue Mage after witnessing what happened to Bellatrix.

"Gabrielle," Hermione said softly, not wanting to frighten the cowering child who hid behind a chair.

"'Ermione," she spoke, recognition and hope in her eyes. Hermione nodded and smiled at her before offering her hand.

"Take me hand, I'll take you somewhere safe and Fleur will collect you."

Without thought Gabrielle reached out and took Hermione's hand. Hermione summoned the air around her and disappeared from the wedding in her tornado. She dropped Gabrielle off at The Malfoy's safe house and quickly returned to The Burrow.

More Death Eaters had arrived and outnumbered The Order three to one. Hermione searched for her family and her anger only flared up when her eyes landed on each one of them.

Charlie seemed to be favouring one leg, the reason why clear as a large gouge was missing and blood poured. Bill had a large cut on his forehead and blood flowed down his face and impaired his vision. Mr Weasley seemed to be bleeding from his shoulder, and Mrs Weasley held a hand to her side and blood covered her fingers. Remus too had a gouge in his leg and was limping, Tonks hair was now jet black, a clear indicator of her anger and she had cuts littering her face and arms. Sirius cradled his left arm to his body and Hermione could almost see the bone sticking out of the skin. She spotted Fleur and her perfect up-do was ruined, some hair was held up and the rest was frizzy. Her once beautiful gown was now covered in blood, dirt and tears and her anger grew. Did they know how much that dress cost! But then her eyes landed on Fred and George and her heart stopped.

They were fighting back to back as Death Eaters surrounded them. Blood had soaked through their white shirts which could clearly be seen as they had abandoned their robes during the reception. George had blood gushing from where his left ear used to be, the work Hermione had done to heal him was undone. Fred had burns littering his forearms, and a cut on his cheek. How dare they hurt her mates!

Her magic had wanted to be free and now it was. The Blue Mage came forward and Hermione was helpless to stop it, not that she wanted to. Whatever was going to happen needed to happen.

She felt the air swirling around her. The wind brushed against her skin comfortingly and it started at her feet, quickly rising until she could no longer be seen as a tornado surrounded her. She pushed it away from her and the tornado split from one, into two, into three, then into four, and it continued until there were enough to protect everyone still fighting.

They moved over to her family and Order members and surrounded them. The Death Eater's curses couldn't reach its targets as they were hidden inside the powerful wind gusts, which quickly swept the magic away until it disintegrated.

The Death Eaters slowly turned to look at her and fear shot through them. Hermione's eyes were no longer chocolate brown, now they were multi-coloured an indication that she was no longer in control, her magic had taken over. Her entire body had lifted off the ground and she was floating in mid air as she glowed, her face impassive and her hair floated around her as if she were in water and sparks flew off her.

Hermione slowly lifted her hand and clicked her fingers.

Several bangs were heard, as if dynamite had been triggered and it was deafening. The tornados that were protecting her family and Order members, suddenly lurched forward and all Death Eaters in the vicinity were ploughed into by the tornados and they were sent flying back in all directions, away from the marquee and those fighting for the light.

The eyes of those that remained flew to Hermione and they widened and stared at her in awe, wonder and a hint of fear.

"Yeah," Fred agreed amused, not all frightened by his wife. "She's pissed."

George snorted at him. "I've haven't seen her that mad since we were attacked," he smirked.

"Death Eaters are idiots," Fred nodded along with his twin.

Hermione slowly lowered to the ground, but her eyes remained the same, she knew that they weren't out of danger yet and Death Eaters were still surrounding the marquee and more were being called.

She made her way to Fred and George and they smiled at her when she reached them and her hands came up to cup their cheeks.

"We're okay," Fred assured her.

Hermione's hand moved away from George to show them the blood covering her hand from the wound on his head.

"Okay, we're a little banged up, but we're going to be okay," George amended with a small smile.

Hermione looked around at her injured family. The Order members were no longer present, they had already left to deal with the Death Eaters on the grounds.

Hermione took a hold of the twins' hands and disappeared from view. They landed at The Malfoy's safe house. Hermione wanted to take them home, but she knew that Gabrielle would need someone with her until she got the rest of the family together. Hermione turned to George and placed her hands on either side of his face and his eyes locked onto hers as she healed his wounds, just as she had the night of the attack. Water flowed from her fingers clearing away the blood and the wound was quickly cauterised, stopping the blood and he smile at her softly.

She then turned to Fred and her attention went to his burns and cuts. Water flowed from her fingers to clean away the blood, and they had already stopped bleeding on their own. She then summoned her ability over fire to remove the heat from the burns to make it painless for Fred, and the wind licked over his burns in a comforting breeze. He smiled at her before they both kissed her and walked towards the cottage that was similar to theirs.

Hermione returned to The Burrow and in pairs, she transported everyone to the safe house, until she was the only one left.

She wore her fury on her face, in her body language, anyone that saw her would testify to that. She slowly made her way out of the marquee and she came to the view of Death Eaters running amuck and destroying anything and everything in their view, as they also fought with Order members.

She let her eyes take in the sight of the burning trees, the destroyed altar and flowers, and her heart clenched when she saw The Burrow, crumbling to the ground as a place filled with memories and love was shattered.

She caught sight of two Death Eaters, only she didn't feel the need to punish them, she would recognise them anywhere, even with their robes and masks. They were Orion and Regulus. They were battling with two Order members but she instantly noticed that they weren't using fatal spells, only ones that would injure and that could easily be healed.

They caught sight of her and with a barely noticeable nod in her direction, they ended their duels with the Order members and apparated away whilst everyone else was distracted.

It was time to end the destruction.

Order members turned around when they felt her magic brush against theirs in warning. They took one look at her before turning on their heels, disappearing to safety and abandoning their duels, leaving only cackling Death Eaters, who had yet to notice her.

She slowly knelt down on the ground and pressed her hands into the grass, focusing her magic, forcing it to flow into the earth beneath her.

Sweat began to form on her brow and she clenched her teeth as her hands dug into the dirt. She could feel a soft buzzing beneath her and slowly it grew more powerful, going from a buzzing, to vibrating, to shaking until she heard a rumble. She opened her eyes as the ground beneath her cracked and a wide split appeared as the ground opened it. The Death Eaters that were caught unaware feel into the crater that had opened up and she heard them scream and yell in fear as they were swallowed up by the earth itself. Those that had noticed escaped, leaving behind their comrades and fellow Death Eaters.

When there was not a Death Eater in sight, she closed up the crater in the earth, leaving behind no evidence of the punishment that had just taken place. She shakily stood up, having what she had just done had taken a lot of her energy and use of her magical core. Summoning the water of the nearby lake she put out the many blazes on the grounds before leaving to her home.

Malfoy Safe House

When she arrived home Hermione quickly collected Orion and Regulus, who had changed out of their Death Eater robes and into their Unspeakable ones, and she took them to the safe house.

They walked up the cobbled stone pathway and entered the cottage, to be met with shouts and the over powering smell of blood. Mrs Malfoy was talking in a corner with Sirius and Fleur was consoling Gabrielle, as everyone else argued.

Hermione tried to get their attention by speaking, louder and louder each time but eventually she got annoyed. When Hermione slammed the door shut, everyone stopped yelling and they turned to look at.

"Oh, so all I have to do to get your attention is slam a door?" she said lightly. "Good to know."

"You owe me an explanation?" Draco scowled, moving forward and stopping in front of her, towering over her. "This is supposed to be my safe house and suddenly it's over run with red-heads."

"We know you love us, Malfoy," Bill snorted and Draco sent a glare in his direction.

"The Ministry of Magic has fallen and The Burrow was attacked during the reception," she said simply. He paled immediately.

"Right, well, stay as long as you need," he muttered, looking embarrassed and she snorted at him.

"Agents Comet and Jugulae, do you mind?" she gestured to everyone. They didn't speak, only nodded and quickly went about healing the injured and dishing out pain potions, though it was mainly Regulus doing the healing and Orion helped where he could.

"Where's Harry and Ron?" Mrs Weasley spoke, looking around in a panic.

"They're safe, I made sure of it."

"But where are they, when are they arriving?"

"They're not."

"What!" she screeched.

"They're not coming here, or back for that matter. Now that The Ministry has fallen and Hogwarts has been infiltrated, it's not safe for them here. Before Dumbledore died he shared with me that Harry has a mission to complete, a mission that can end the war if completed. Although I am not able to go with them, I am still helping them. Trust me when I say they are safe and I wouldn't let anything happen to them. I've been preparing for this for weeks."

"But..."

"Mum, leave it, she's said they're safe, so they're safe," George rubbed at his now healed wound.

"I've never seen you so pissed," Charlie snorted and then winced as Regulus was healing his leg.

"They ruined the wedding reception," she scowled and Draco watched confused as Hermione waddled over to a chair, which Bill quickly exited for her and she smiled at him, before her scowl reappeared. "They ruined all our hard work, everyone put so much into making the wedding perfect and it was destroyed. I spent two bloody hours getting that archway right, do you know how many flowers I grew? And the dress," she gestured to Fleur. "Do you have any idea how much it cost? And they hurt my mates," she scowled and then a sudden look of sadness over took her.

"I'm sorry to say that The Burrow has been destroyed, I did my best to save it, but in the end it was too badly damaged to salvage anything." Sombre looks filled the faces of The Weasleys.

"At least my family is safe," Mrs Weasley smiled with tears in her eyes.

"So, what did you do after you left us here, Kitten?" Sirius asked, walking back over to the group with Mrs Malfoy.

"I warned the remaining Order members to leave and then I took care of things."

"How?" he raised an eyebrow.

"I opened up a crater in the ground and it swallowed up some of the Death Eaters whole, the others that were fast enough escaped, but I got a good few of them." She shrugged, sudden tiredness overtaking her.

She could feel the baby, it was restless and clearly didn't like what they had all just experienced.

"Hermione, are you alright?" Sirius asked worriedly.

"Hmm," she hummed, her eyes drooping and her head dropping onto her chin.

"Hermione!" the room filled with yells of worry and Regulus dropped down in front of her and the twins found themselves kneeling on either side of the chair, holding her hands.

"Shite!" Draco cursed and his mother gasped, when Hermione's robes were unfastened and her stomach was revealed. "She's... She's... She's..."

"Pregnant!" The Weasleys all snapped at Draco, as they all stared at Hermione in worry.

Muggle London

"Ron, watch out!" Harry yelled, he grabbed Ron's robes and pulled him out of the road, just as a bus went past, the horn blazing.

"What the bloody hell was that?" Ron's face bright red.

"A bus lane in the centre of Muggle London," Harry said, looking around the crowd of people as they went their own way and paying no attention to anything but themselves. "We have to get out of here, we should probably change into Muggle clothing too, there are public toilets on the London Underground, it's not far from here." Harry spoke, before pulling a still shocked Ron towards the London Underground and into the bathroom. He fished out some clothes from the back pack for both himself and Ron and they quickly changed.

"Where do we go now?"

Harry sighed. "There's a cafe that I used to visit nearby, we'll go there first before any decisions are made. I found a letter from Hermione we should probably read, the genius that she is likely already has everything figured out."

A ten minute walk through the London Underground led to the cafe Harry had mentioned, they ordered a cup of tea and sat in a booth hidden in the corner of the room.

"So, what does the letter say?" Ron asked when the waitress left their teas on the table and disappeared into the back of cafe.

Harry pulled the letter out of the zip compartment on the front of the back pack, looked around before casting a Silencing Charm and he read the letter aloud.

Harry, Ronald,

I know that what you have to do is hard and I know that Dumbledore, the manipulative old fool that he was, didn't give us much to go on. I am currently researching the possible identities and the hiding places of the objects and how to destroy them and I have been since the end of school.

Don't try to follow any leads on Slytherin's locket, I already have the real locket in my possession.

Harry and Ron looked at each other shocked.

"Bloody hell," Ron whispered.

I am being aided with the research aspect, don't worry, they won't try to get involved and stop you from completing the mission and they won't tell anyone. We are going to try and use the locket to track the others, if it will work, we don't know but it's worth a try.

I have been preparing for this mission since the end of school and in this back pack you will find everything you need to survive on the run.

I have included non-perishable foods that should last you at least a month, even with the way Ronald eats, you shouldn't run out. You will also find a tent with protective wards cast over it, with everything inside, including duvets and pillows for the both of you, wouldn't want you to get cold, now would I?

I am unsure if you will need any money, but to cover all the possibilities, you will find a pouch with both Muggle and Wizarding money, but you should avoid the Wizarding World.

Fred and George have brewed many healing potions, which you will undoubtedly get through in no time at all, I do know you after all. Copies of books from The Black's library are also in the back pack, and all of them will be helpful to you in some way. I have hand written a manual on useful spells and protective wards, including their incantations and wand movements, learn them, memorise them, use them.

There is a map of Britain in the zip compartment, on it there will be several locations marked that will give you a place to lay low and stay off the radar, they are places I have visited before when I was younger and I am sure they are suitable for your safety. You will find photos of each location so that you can visualise your destination and apparate without incidence.

Finally, in the zip compartment inside the back pack you will find a brand new D.A. coin. It is connected to only one other coin, of which is in my possession and I will always have it with me. If you need anything all you have to do is use it and for the love of Merlin, please don't lose it. In exactly one month's time, I will arrange a drop point in which I will leave food and any other supplies that you may need, along with a new D.A coin, as the one you have will become inactive since I made it time sensitive.

I know that neither of us have no idea of where to start, but once I have a lead, you will know. You can also do some research, don't be leaving me to do it all, you lazy sods. I know that we should be doing this together, but due to Dumbledore and Snape not being able to keep their noses out of other people's business, I unfortunately can't be.

I believe in you and I know you can do this. No matter how this mission turns out, I will always be proud of you.

Stay safe, look after each other and be careful.

Good luck, Little Brothers.

Love Hermione.

"Hermione to the rescue," Harry chuckled fondly, putting the letter back into the back pack. He searched it and found both the map and the coin. He unfolded the map and counted twenty-three different locations.

"Where should we head first, do we pick at random or start at the first point on the map?" Harry asked, his eyes scanning the map. When Ron didn't answer he looked up to see Ron looking down at the table with a frown on his face.

"Ron?" he didn't answer. "Ron?" he slowly lifted his head.

"She said 'Little Brothers'"

"Right?"

"She said 'Little Brothers' and not Little Brother."

Realisation hit Harry.

"You are her little brother, she's your sister-in-law."

"But she's never associated me with her family before. She's barely spoken to me in the last two years."

"What do you expect, Ron? You were an arsehole towards her, always putting her down, always making her feel bad about herself and her achievements. Whenever she had any male attention, you went too far and called her names. When she told you she had a date you laughed at her and didn't believe her. When you found out she was dating Fred and George, you locked yourself in your room for the rest of the holidays. The only reason I'm still your friend after the way you treated her is because of her. She convinced me to stay friends with you."

They both fell quiet.

"I was jealous," Ron mumbled.

"I know you were, I've always known you had a thing for her," Harry confessed and Ron looked surprised. "She liked you too, up to a certain point. She got tired of trying to gain your attention and in the end she gave up. You lost her because you ignored her and made fun of her."

"I've been an arsehole," he frowned. "I've treated her worse than even the Slytherins did. She was my friend and when she needed me, I wasn't there for her. I lost her. I need to apologise, don't I?"

"No, you need to grovel. You need to beg for her forgiveness and hope that she believes that you are sincere. It's been two years, it's time to admit that you're wrong."

Ron nodded.

"When did you get so smart?"

"I've been best friends with The Brightest Witch of the Age since I was eleven, it was bound to rub off on me eventually," he snorted.

"She's saved our arses hasn't she?"

"She's been saving our arses since the day we met her, it's the Hermione we know. So, random or first location?"

"Random, if we are being tracked, which we likely are, there will be no pattern to our movements and Voldemort won't be able to predict our next move."

"See?" Harry laughed.

"The Brightest Witch of the Age seems to have rubbed off on me too," he said fondly. "We shouldn't stay in one place too long either."

"We'll head out soon, do you want to pick the camp site?"

Ron shrugged and randomly pointed to a marked location.

"Alright, that's where we'll go." Harry looked up when they saw two men enter the cafe, carrying tool boxes and wearing coveralls. Harry quickly put the map away and slipped the coin into his pocket. He picked up his tea and took a sip, his eyes watching the two men as they stopped at the counter.

There was something about them that set his senses on edge and his instincts were right. He saw the men reach into their pockets and he caught the sight of a wand.

"Ron, move!" Harry yelled, both he and Ron jumped out of their seats and away from the table, just as two spells collided with it and it shattered into pieces, flying around the room.

A duel broke out, the two Death Eaters taking cover behind the counter and Harry and Ron taking cover behind tables and the cafe was destroyed in the process.

"Stupefy," Harry called, missing his target but the spell slammed into the shelf above and the glass jars fell off and hit his target in the head, knocking him unconscious.

"Petrificus Totalus," Ron yelled, the spell slammed through the glass of the counter and caught his target in the chest and he fell to the ground. They both stood up panting and looking around at the mess.

"I'll get the lights," Ron said, pulling out the illuminator Dumbledore had left him, whilst harry closed the blinds.

They both made their way to the Death Eaters, their wands in hand and on their guard.

"That's Rowle," Harry said to Ron, looking down at the hulking blonde. "He was on the Astronomy Tower."

"That's Dolohov, I recognise him from the wanted posters," Ron said, looking at the smaller raven haired man. "What should we do, kill them?"

"No," Harry said.

"Suppose it was them that did Moody."

"It doesn't matter, we're not murderers."

"We can't let them leave, they've seen us."

"We'll wipe their memories. Do you know how to?"

"No, you?"

"No."

Ron groaned. "Where's Hermione when you need her?"

"Heavily pregnant and at The Burrow fighting off Death Eaters," Harry retorted.

"She's needed there," Ron nodded as Harry snorted at him. Harry retrieved the back pack and searched through it until he found the hand written manual of spells and wards.

"She's alphabetised it," Harry chuckled.

"Of course she has," Ron rolled his eyes.

"I've found it, Obliviate, it doesn't look too complicated," Harry said, obviously lying and he looked completely confused.

"We're screwed," Ron sighed.