[Thanks for reading! Sorry for the slow update...this chapter gave me trouble. As soon as I added Jack Harkness, he took over and tried to give this fic an M rating, so I had go back and edit a lot out. :-) xo -HITW]

Chapter 19

"I have to admit, I'm feeling a little let down. I mean, your message… 'Jack, I need you'…way to be a tease, Doctor."

"Will you do it?"

"Of course. Just tell me when and where, and I'll die for you."

"It's not for me…it's for my friends."

"Same thing."

The Doctor hugged Jack Harkness, quickly, roughly. "Thank you."

Jack smiled. "Your new face…it's…"

"Less human?"

"More alien? More serious, for sure."

"Everyone has to grow up eventually."

Jack smirked. "Ah, you know that's a flagrant lie!"

The Doctor playfully pushed Jack towards the door of the TARDIS. They proceeded to Dumbledore's office, where the atmosphere was still tense in the wake of Harry's emotional outburst. The Doctor cleared his throat and said, "This is my friend Jack, who is immune to all forms of death."

"It's true!" Jack said cheerfully. "Hi, everyone!"

"Hello. Um…how is that possible?" asked Harry.

"Jack is a fixed point. Due to some very odd circumstances, every time he dies, he comes back to life," said the Doctor.

"Like you?"

"Not quite. I will eventually run out of energy and die for good. This is only my eleventh regeneration. Jack has come back to life…how many times?"

"Thousands…hundreds of thousands. Millions…billions? More than I can count, anyway," Jack said.

"You just said fixed points are bad for our timeline," said Hermione.

The Doctor scratched his head. "I did, didn't I? Jack is different. He's a free-floating fixed point. Fixed points aren't supposed to be people."

"Okay…right…don't think about it," said Ron.

"Ah, this is the moment when you started to catch on," said Rory.

After introductions were made, they filled Jack in on the details of the plan. "Seems simple enough," he said. "I just hope I've got the acting chops."

Harry faced Dumbledore. "Sir…would you mind terribly…not dying?"

Albus slowly opened and closed his blackened hand. After long contemplation he said, "For you, Harry, I will endure."

Harry breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to the Doctor and said, "All right, let's get the horcruxes."

Ron and Hermione stood up. "We're coming along," said Ron. "We helped the first…er…future time, and we want to help now."

"And it just so happens that I've brewed up a lot of Polyjuice potion, in case we still need to sneak into the Ministry and Gringotts. I had a feeling we might need it," said Hermione.

They both looked at the Doctor, as if for permission. "Oh, all right. Allons-y!" cried the Doctor.

"Aw, I never thought I'd hear you say that again," said Jack, also rising from his chair. "Count me in…you never know when you might need me."

Jack winked. The Doctor scoffed, then smiled. "Headmaster, will you come along?"

"Someone has to watch the school!" he said, eyes twinkling.

And someone has to remain to protect what's left of the Wizarding World from Voldemort, if we fail, thought the Doctor.

Dumbledore continued, "While you're away, however brief that may seem to me, I'll endeavor to find and destroy Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem…that is, if nobody has any objections?"

"Please do…and thank you, sir," said Harry.

"Good luck, all of you."

They gathered a few potions and magical implements, and then filed into the TARDIS. "Since we're not sure when Mundungus Fletcher lifted the locket from Grimmauld Place, let's go there first to check," said Harry.

They were soon standing in front of a row of houses, and the Doctor was squinting. "There's an eleven…and there's a thirteen-"

He leapt back slightly as eleven and thirteen began to move apart, and another building bloomed between them. He shouted with glee, "Fantastic! But don't people notice that?"

"It's been charmed to be invisible to Muggles. Only trusted wizards can see it," said Hermione.

She suddenly frowned, and then turned to Harry. "How do you really know for sure that Snape is on our side?"

"It's in the scroll. Do you think I'd lie to myself about that?"

"Of course not. Sorry. It's just…in the scroll you didn't say what convinced you."

"He showed me his memories today. He's definitely on our side."

"But…why is he on our side? Why risk his life for you, so many times?"

"He loved my mother."

Harry blushed a little as he said this, but Hermione's expression was solemn and receptive. "He really did?"

"From the time they were children, and he still does. He joined the Death Eaters in a stupid attempt to impress her. It was –obviously– a huge mistake, and it ruined his life."

"He showed you all that, before he taught you how to Occlude?"

"Well, yeah."

"Harry, what if you hadn't been able to learn it? If Voldemort invaded your mind again, he would know for sure that Snape is a traitor."

"Oh. You're right. I did learn it, though. I guess we're protecting each other now."

"Last question, I swear."

"Sure."

"How did you learn it this time, when it was impossible for you last year?"

"I think because part of Voldemort's soul is in me, I can't shut him out the usual way…y'know, with mental discipline. It was Professor Snape's idea that I should try to Occlude with love, instead…and it worked. I can protect my thoughts by surrounding them with positive feelings. Think about it…I survived the killing curse because of my mum's love, and I destroyed Quirrell just by touching him, using the same power. Tom Riddle doesn't understand love. He's never had real friends, or anyone he cared about, except himself…and look what he's done to himself. Our best weapon against him is love."

He looked at Hermione, and could tell that she had about a million more questions, but she just squeezed his shoulder for a moment, and then smiled. They entered 12 Grimmauld Place. The house was silent and dark; none of the members of the Order of the Phoenix were present at the moment. They went directly to Kreacher's cupboard. The house elf was not inside, and neither was the locket, much to their dismay. "Damn, that bugger moves fast," said Ron.

The ceiling made a creaking noise. Harry bolted upstairs, the others close behind. He burst into a murky room to find Mundungus Fletcher standing on the bed, half-cowering against the wall as the house elf approached him menacingly. Catching sight of Harry, the man in tatty robes drew himself up to full height and froze. "Filthy thief!" cried Kreacher, bony hands curled in fury.

"It's okay, Kreacher," said Harry, stepping forward.

"Cough it up, Dung," said Ron.

"I dunno what the elf is on about…I'm allowed to be here, it's our headquarters, innit," said Mundungus.

"I know you've been stealing things since Sirius died," said Harry. "He left me everything. So, you've been stealing from me. I'm willing to overlook what's already missing if you'll hand over a certain item. A locket, marked with an 'S'."

"Oh…you mean this?" said the man, pulling the necklace from his pocket. "Someone'd chucked in the bin…thought it wouldn't matter if I-"

"Liar," said Kreacher, swiping it from his outstretched hand and clutching it to his chest. Relieved, Harry approached the house elf and knelt down so they were at eye level. "Regulus ordered you to destroy that."

The house elf looked into his eyes, amazed. "Kreacher couldn't do it. Tried everything."

"Bring it to Hogwarts right away, and go directly to Dumbledore. He has the means to destroy it. If you want to do it yourself, ask him. I'm sure he'll allow it. Wait for us there."

Kreacher looked baffled, but nodded. "Thank you, Harry Potter."

He bowed slightly, and then vanished. "That was very kind of you, Harry, considering his part in Sirius' death," said Hermione.

"Sirius would probably be alive if he'd been kind to Kreacher. Besides…his death…it was mostly my fault. I shouldn't have fallen for that false vision. If I could've just calmed down and learned Occlumency last year, seen past my anger and mistrust of Snape-"

"Look, it's nobody's fault except You-Know-Who's. He's the one with the evil plans," said Ron.

Harry sighed and said, "Let's focus on Helga Hufflepuff's cup. Bellatrix is wanted for the Death Eater attack on the Ministry, and would be arrested on sight. So impersonating her is out."

"Only for now. The Death Eaters take over the Ministry next year. We can go there in the TARDIS," said Rory.

"Oh. Yeah, of course. Still getting used to this. Let's go on the same day as in the scroll…May 1, 1998, I think it was…just to make sure we don't run into the real Bellatrix. Hopefully that part of the timeline hasn't changed."

"But…we need her hair. We only got the hair because that bitch was hurting Hermione," said Ron.

Hermione shuddered, remembering the description in the scroll of the torture she'd endured. The Doctor looked at her pained expression, and suddenly made a connection. "Maybe she dropped a hair on M's clothes."

They all darted from the room, down the stairs, and back to the TARDIS. After he was sure that they were gone, a bewildered Mundungus climbed down from the bed and began to examine a pair of silver candlesticks on the mantle.

The Doctor carefully unfolded M's discarded clothes and spread them out on the floor of the wardrobe, and began to sweep them with the sonic in slow careful passes. Harry, Hermione, Ron, Amy, and Rory all waited in anxious silence, while Jack looked confused. "Whose clothes are these again?"

"M's. Let's see…blood…grass…sweat –hair—my hair, sorry. Dirt…soot…biscuit crumbs…"

"Who is M?"

"New companion."

The Doctor carefully lifted a long, black hair from the hood of M's torn sweatshirt. "Magical, human, female," he said.

"M? Or this Bellatrix chick?"

"M isn't a…chick."

"Oh. And where is he?"

"Asleep in my bed. Let's put this somewhere for safekeeping."

Jack walked swiftly down the hallway and snuck a peek into the Doctor's bedroom. There was indeed a man sleeping in the Doctor's bed, and from what he could see, he was young and attractive. After taking a few deep breaths, he turned and rejoined the group as they headed towards the control room. Amy took one look at Jack's expression and pulled the Doctor aside. "You have to clear up the confusion."

"Confusion?" asked the Doctor, raising an eyebrow.

"About the presence of a person in your bed."

"What's there to be confused about that?"

Amy's eyes widened incredulously. "Things that people do in beds. Sleep…read…"

"Eat breakfast?"

"Yes. And what else?"

"Have pillow fights, tell stories, play Scrabble-"

"Tell Jack you're not…dating M."

"That's silly."

"Just tell him. He's furiously jealous. You must realize he adores you."

"Right. Right, human feelings. Always tricky."

The Doctor caught up to Jack and slapped him gently on the shoulder. "So…um…just so you know…I'm not dating M."

"It's none of my business."

The Doctor squinted. "Okay, but I'm not. He passed out in there and I thought it best to let him sleep. Don't want you to get the wrong idea."

"What wrong idea would that be? That you're capable of having a sexual relationship with someone? Or that if that someone happened to be male, it wouldn't be me?"

"I…I don't know."

The Time Lord blushed. He hadn't felt this awkward since Amy had tried to rip his clothes off in her bedroom a few years back. Jack smirked at him. "It's amazing. You're so old, and such a child sometimes. Where'd you find him, anyway?"

"I think I should let him tell that story, when he wakes up."

Jack had spent enough time with the Doctor to know when he was withholding information, but he didn't push. "Fair enough."

They parked the TARDIS on May 1, 1998, in an inconspicuous neighborhood of muggle London. "Remember, there's a Taboo curse on Voldemort's name in the future. We don't know when exactly that was put into effect. Don't let's say it, for safety's sake," said Hermione.

Harry Apparated with his invisibility cloak to Diagon Alley, where he grabbed a few newspapers and eavesdropped a bit, then returned. "I'm still Undesirable #1," he said.

"That's hardly accurate," Jack said quietly.

"Jack, don't," said the Doctor.

Jack sighed and rolled his eyes. Harry adjusted his glasses and continued, "So…I guess we go ahead with the plan."

Hermione put on a gothic dress that the Doctor had in his wardrobe, and drank the Polyjuice potion. Within seconds, she transformed. Ron and Harry gasped. "What? Is it terrible?" she asked.

She lifted a hand mirror and saw the face of Narcissa Malfoy. "Wrong witch," groaned Ron.

"Oh no," she said, eyes brimming with tears.

"This could still work," said Harry. "Narcissa and Bellatrix are sisters…I bet the Lestrange vault isn't far from the Malfoy's. We continue with the plan, Imperius whatever goblin brings us down there, and have him lead us to the Lestrange vault instead. In a way, it's better…since Narcissa isn't such a raving psycho, it should be easier to pretend to be her."

"Well, I'm going to need a nicer frock," said Hermione. "Oh, but what if they ask for identification?"

"I've got something for that," said the Doctor, reaching into his jacket pocket.

Soon, they were all dressed in an odd array of clothing calculated to make them look like Death Eaters. Though a group this large was more suspicious, nobody could be persuaded to stay behind. They disguised Ron with a few charms, and Harry drank a Polyjuice potion to assume the form of M, though he stayed under the cloak for added protection.

They Apparated to an obscure side street off of Diagon Alley. Once Rory and Amy's nausea from traveling in such a manner had passed, they all approached Gringotts with an affectation of pure confidence. They received a lot of sidelong glances as they walked through the front hall up to the reception desk, but the goblin took one look at the psychic paper and ushered them swiftly to a cart.

They had no trouble using the Imperius curse on the goblin, and were ready with the Shield Charm as they passed under the Thief's Downfall, diverting the stream of water. Once inside the Lestrange vault, they even found the cup with ease, and retrieved it without disturbing any of the charmed objects. Though it was tempting to free the blind dragon on their way out, they agreed that it was too risky. "After this is over, we are coming back here and releasing that poor creature," said Hermione, angrily.

Soon they were back in the TARDIS, returned to their normal appearances. "I can't believe how easy that was. Usually our plans go to hell," said Ron. "It's almost unfair to You-Know-Who, since we know the future and everything."

Hermione glared at him. He hastily added, "Joking."

"I know," said Harry, smiling. "But what I'm trying to figure out is how we can bring an object from the future to the past. I mean…won't there be two versions of it?"

Everyone looked at the Doctor. 'There's only one cup. They'll just sort of overlap a bit."

Hermione frowned. "But if we destroy the one we just stole form the vault in 1998, what will happen to Helga Hufflepuff's cup that's inside the vault in 1996, when we couldn't get at it? Because if it's still a horcrux, isn't that a problem? Aren't we just creating an extra horcrux?"

"No, there's only one cup, one horcrux. It's just making a funny detour though time, and hanging out in two different places at once. When it's destroyed, it's destroyed at that moment, even if it's also not destroyed at that moment, at least as far as one can tell without observing it."

"Excuse me, what?"

"Everything, Hermione…absolutely everything is in a state of quantum fluctuation-"

"It'll work," said Amy. "Because it'll work."

When they entered Dumbledore's office, they found the wizard calmly sitting at his desk, upon which lay the charred-looking remains of a diadem and a locket. A very pleased-looking Kreacher was setting out tea on a table. "You were gone for nearly an hour this time. I trust all went well?" asked the Headmaster.

"Surprisingly, yes," said Harry, showing him the golden cup.

A spike of pain shot through his scar. He immediately flooded his thoughts with feelings of love for his friends and his intense desire to protect them. The coldness that was trying to invade his mind seemed to recoil in shock for a moment, then attacked again with renewed force. Though Harry felt his scar burning, he also felt absolute confidence in his ability to Occlude. Shielding his thoughts meant shielding his friends from harm, and that was something he could focus on with natural ease. So, when a sensation of panic hit, he instantly recognized it as Voldemort's and not his own. Instinctually, he pressed forward, and got a quick glimpse of the other's mind, before the link was abruptly terminated.

Harry blinked, then rubbed the ache out of his scar. "He's been torturing Ollivander again, about the Elder Wand. He wants it so badly, and he's sure you've got it, Dumbledore, sir. He expects to get it tomorrow."

Dumbledore's expression was somber. "I'd hoped that Draco was sincere. Perhaps there's still a chance…"

"I'm sure everything will work out okay, as long as we plan it out carefully. But before we do anything else, it's time we got rid of this cup."

Dumbledore handed him the sword of Gryffindor. Harry passed it to Ron and said, "You should do it."

Harry placed the cup on the floor, and everyone stepped back. Ron glanced nervously at Hermione, who nodded encouragingly. He took a deep breath and swung the sword at the cup with all his might. It split in two, and an enormous plume of black smoke exploded out of it, accompanied by an almost inhuman scream. Ron placed the blackened cup next to the other destroyed horcruxes, and lay the sword down. Hermione hugged him and said, "Good job."

Ron blushed. Things had felt different between he and Hermione ever since the Doctor's comment about marriage. He supposed that the eccentric alien could've been lying, or trying to be funny or provocative, but Ron was secretly as thrilled as he was nervous. He had loved Hermione for some time, but was afraid to make a move, for fear of rejection. It was still hard for him to accept that she could possibly prefer him to Harry. Maybe he just hadn't been paying attention before, but now he was reading into her every small gesture, and racking his mind for signals he'd missed. Girls could be so subtle, and he knew he wasn't the brightest.

Hermione had been consciously in love with Ron for quite a while longer than she would ever admit, but this summer at the Burrow had given her feelings special clarity. She'd realized beyond a doubt that she wanted to become a member of his family. So, when the Doctor said they would be married, she felt that it was true, even if half the time it made no sense; the one thing in her life that denied logical reasoning. He was immature and could be insensitive. He certainly wasn't her intellectual equal. Yet, he had a big heart, a warm and humble nature, and a charm she couldn't deny. She knew they would be together when it was right, and didn't mind waiting for him to sort out his feelings. Boys had such a slow learning curve, and she knew she wasn't easy to read.

Each suddenly became aware of holding the other's hand.