Hello! First, sorry about the wait. Last week was crazy and I didn't have time to update.
Second, thank you for all the reviews. I don't deserve such wonderful readers :)
Enjoy!
The days drifted on, and the three kept focused on their training. Tonks periodically went to work, but she was more concerned with Remus, seeing as he was struggling to get a job, and Teddy, who couldn't be left alone. Hermione often overheard the two talking about how they were going to make ends meet. Remus wanted Tonks to continue to advance in her career, but she knew that he was getting cabin fever from being stuck at home with Teddy.
"Darling, I'm fine staying with Teddy. It doesn't bother me, really," Remus said in hushed tones.
"Remus, I can see the way you look when you think no one can see you," Tonks replied.
"What do you mean?"
"You want to support our family, and it's killing you that you can't find work,"
"I'm supposed to support my family instead of sitting around this house completely useless!"
"You're taking care of your son, that's all that matters,"
Harry stood and closed over the kitchen door then before retaking his seat. They were all tired, and were slowly being worn down. The threats were more frequent and more violent, people were starting to be targeted, and the three heroes knew it was because of them. Hermione felt even more guilt, so much that she had trouble sleeping at nights. She knew that in her attempt to keep Severus out of jail, she was hurting the people around her.
"It's almost time for his transformation, he's getting restless," Harry muttered to her.
"I already have wolfsbane brewing in the room upstairs," Hermione replied absently.
With Harry's permission, Hermione turned the room beside hers into a makeshift potions lab. She spent her time making healing potions as well as wolfsbane for Remus. Brewing helped clear her mind and she spent hours locked away. There were now crates of potions lining the walls because she made the potions at a faster rate than they could be consumed. Sometimes Harry stayed up with her sometimes, until the early hours of the morning making sure she was alright. Hermione sometimes spoke to him, telling him of what thoughts were nearly driving her out of her mind, but most of the time she was too exhausted to even begin to explain to him what was churning in her brain. If Harry wasn't there, sometimes Ron made his way to the room. Things between them were still slightly awkward. Some days, the amount of rage she felt towards him was nearly blinding and she had been known to throw things at him if he entered the room or attempt to hex him. Other days, she complied with his desire to sit in the room with her as she brewed. He stuttered through his words, but most of the time he was silent.
As the days slipped by, Hermione took to leaving the house at night, taking special care to not be seen. From the top step, she usually Apparated to Diagon Alley to stroll the darkened streets for a few hours. Most shops were under construction due to the war, and Hermione liked to survey the progress that was made each passing week.
It wasn't until a few nights later that Hermione was pulled from her brewing by the front door opening. Blinking rapidly, Hermione peered down at the watch Ron had given her in order to keep track of time when brewing, and saw that it was nearly four in the morning.
"Hello?" a voice whispered up the stairs.
Hermione recognized the voice of Arthur Weasley and instantly darted from the room, allowing the door to slam against the wall in her haste. In a few bounds, she was down the stairs and in the long hallway.
"What is it?" Hermione asked the moment her eyes landed on his figure.
"It's time, it's over, the trial,"
"What? When?" she asked, feeling her heart begin to pound.
"Today," he replied pushing her into the kitchen and shutting the door. "Or, technically, it was yesterday,"
"Why didn't the Daily Prophet put out a story about it yet?" she asked.
"The papers haven't gotten wind of it yet, though I know it'll be all over the place tomorrow,"
Hermione's mind was buzzing. She had carefully planned this day out since the moment she thought of the idea of memories, but she could feel her muscles freezing and her mind going blank with half formed thoughts.
"Percy," she babbled.
"What about him?"
"I need to – he and I – I need to talk to him. Immediately,"
Her hands were already grabbing for parchment and quills, ink spattering on the kitchen table as she set to work.
"The judge decided to end the trial because Severus wasn't saying a word," Mr. Weasley told her as she half listened.
"What time," she demanded.
"They resume at eight,"
"Eight?!" Hermione cried. "In the morning?"
"Yes, why would they start at night?"
"We only have four hours!"
With that, she darted from the kitchen and ran up the stairs as fast as she could possibly push her legs. The portrait of Sirius' mother began screeching as she scrambled by it, but Hermione made no move to stop the shrill insults echoing through the house. Her first stop was Harry's room.
"Harry!" she cried, throwing his door open and pouncing on him.
"What! What is it?!" he asked in a panic, throwing his blankets off.
"The trial, it's over, they're going to sentence him!"
Harry immediately set to getting dressed as Hermione ran into the hall.
"What the bloody hell is going on?" Ron asked, appearing from the next room over, just as Tonks poked her head out from the staircase.
"The trial's over, the sentencing is in four hours," Hermione replied gasping for air.
Tonks didn't waste a minute as she ran back up the stairs, calling for her husband. In a few minutes, everyone was seated around the kitchen table, writing letters to all of the people who had supplied them with memories, as well as those who were willing to support Severus, openly. Teddy was becoming upset with all of the commotion, but thankfully Molly arrived with Ginny in tow, looking tired and cranky. Molly was not content with just holding Teddy, so Ginny was given the job as Molly jumped in trying to help. Even in her panic, Hermione could see the dirty looks Ginny was shooting at Harry, who was looking at everything in the room but her.
"What can I do?" Molly asked.
"I need to see Percy, I sent him a note, but he hasn't responded yet,"
"I'm on it," Molly said, before stepping into the fireplace and disappearing in a burst of green flames.
Soon, all of the letters had been sent. The kitchen fell quiet, as everyone looked around at the disaster zone. There were balls of paper littering the table top as well as the floor where people had violently scribbled out their work. Ink stained just about every surface, including everyone's hands. The tension was high in the room and continued to grow when someone mentioned the time, a quarter past six. Hermione brushed a few small owl feathers from her sweater, seeing that feathers were everywhere in the kitchen. Remus set himself to the task of making tea as Ginny returned with a snoring Teddy in her arms. Harry instantly lowered his eyes to the table top.
Just as the tension was becoming nearly unbearable, the fireplace exploded with green, and one by one, the rest of the Weasleys stepped out of the fireplace, packing the kitchen and adding a layer of ash to the disarray of the kitchen.
"Percy," Hermione said, but he held his hand up.
"Mom already explained, but if you would like, we can go over the details again,"
Hermione readily agreed, and was about to leave the room with him until Ron stopped them.
"I'd like to know what's going on," he said, blushing as he spoke up for the first time since the two had fought.
Hermione's eyes flashed over the room, seeing everyone looking at her hoping she would explain things to them. Percy turned to look also, seeming to see the same thing.
"We all know that Hermione is banned from the trial, but she needs to get in there,"
"Yes, we all know that, but what have you got to do with anything?" Ron asked.
"I'm going to cause a distraction for the guard outside the courtroom long enough for Hermione to slip in,"
"You'll get arrested!" Molly cried in a panic.
"It doesn't matter. I've been terrible, to all of you, since I got that stupid job at the Ministry. I never got…I never said a word to Fred before…"
Everyone looked away from Percy as he swallowed deeply.
"I want to do this, for him,"
"I want to do it too," Ron suddenly said.
Hermione shuffled her feet and refused to look at him. She knew he was only doing this to make up for being horrible to her, and Severus, but Hermione knew he still had a small hope that she would change her mind about Severus. She knew that would never happen, and she wished that Ron would understand, and then move on with his life.
"Sure, we still need to get Tonks and Remus in,"
"Can't we just walk in?" Remus asked.
"No," Arthur spoke up. "He's also asked that you two do not attend the trial. He's not allowing anyone in that can potentially help him,"
"Are we all going to have to sneak in?" Harry asked.
"I believe so. If Percy, Ron, and George can created enough distractions, we can all slip in a few at a time,"
They spent the remaining hours finding dark cloaks and walking through the plans until each member was sure of their part. Hermione was a mess of nerves, darting back and forth, making sure that everything was in order. This was it, the day she had been waiting for. Months had gone by, and it all came down to this day. Hermione chewed her nails as she watched the hands of the clock slowly inch by. She couldn't help herself as her eyes constantly drifted to the ring on her finger. She was going to free him, no matter what it took; she was going to get him out of that horrible place. Hermione took a seat at the table, clutching the box that contained the memories she and Harry had collected.
"It's time," Arthur spoke, standing.
Everyone immediately mimicked his movements. Hermione's knees were shaking and her palms went sweaty. She was sure that everyone in the room could hear her heart hammering in her ribcage.
"Half of us will Apparate, the others will use the floo network,"
Remus and Tonks headed towards the fireplace as Hermione, Harry, and Arthur headed to the front door. Ron ran after them as Percy and George followed behind Remus and Tonks. They all squeezed onto the front steps of 12 Grimmauld Place and hung onto each other.
"Everyone ready?" Arthur asked in a cheery voice.
They all nodded numbly before Apparating directly into the Ministry. Instantly they were caught up in the bustle of people attempting to get to work on time. Hermione pulled her hood up and held onto her box even tighter. Mr. Weasley expertly weaved through the throngs of people, and Hermione followed easily, her eyes darting around the large room. She had grown accustomed to the flash of excitement adventure provided for her; being friends with Harry had caused her to grow fond of the feeling. In this case, her sheer panic was in complete control.
Hermione's eyes instantly found the flashing lights of the photographers who were not allowed into the trial. A single guard, with an extremely large build, stood near the front of the door, scrutinizing everyone who entered. Arthur had the three stand off to the side as he easily made his way into the trial.
Hermione could hear every breath that she expelled from her body, hearing it ring in her ears as people buzzed around unknowingly. Percy came strolling through the crowd, and Hermione felt her heart jump into her throat. His eyes met hers briefly, and he gave her a subtle nod.
"Let's go," she whispered to Harry.
The two slowly made their way to the door, as Percy approached the guard, drawing his wand out. Percy fired a shot that struck right above the guard's head, causing him to immediately attack back. The room erupted into screams and shouts as the photographers began snapping pictures of the duel. Hermione and Harry tucked their heads and began heading directly to the door. Easily, they slipped inside.
The room was large, and there Hermione could see the cold faces of the people who would be judging Severus in less than a half hour. There was a single chair in the middle of the room that was empty. Hermione chose her seat, far enough away where Severus wouldn't be able to see her, and Harry joined her a moment later. People were speaking in low whispers, but Hermione couldn't catch any of the words. Kingsley had not yet arrived, and the room slowly began to fill up.
"A lot of people we contacted are here," Harry mentioned.
Hermione nodded, spotting Remus and Tonks huddled together on the bench across the room. She tightened her hands on the box, afraid it would somehow vanish from her grip. A few more minutes, and the room was filled to capacity. It was then that Kingsley entered the chamber from a small door, causing the room's volume to increase.
"Silence!" he snapped before taking his seat.
He was irritated with the crowd, and no doubt tired of the trial. The crowd fell silent.
"Bring out the accused,"