Once they'd made the decision to leave school with Hermione over Easter, the holidays couldn't come quick enough for Blaise and Theo. When they'd first informed Dumbledore of their plans, he'd been a bit wary, but when the two Slytherins had made it clear that they were sticking with Hermione and Lyra no matter what, he'd relented and agreed they could stay at Order headquarters. Aside from Dumbledore the only other person who know of the plan was Harry.
Blaise and Theo were pleased to see that Harry had finally stepped up to the mark and was supporting Hermione. In the last few weeks he'd been a constant presence in the head dorms, and they knew how much it meant to Hermione to have the support of the people she was closest to. They just hoped Harry would continue to be supportive when Ron was around again as the redhead still didn't seem ready to accept things the way they were.
In order to let the other Slytherins think Theo was still planning on going home, he'd packed his bag accordingly the last night of term. He and Blaise then had breakfast with the other Slytherins, but when the others made to go back down to the dungeons, Blaise and Theo headed towards the main staircase.
"Where are you two going?" Daphne demanded.
"I'm going to say goodbye to Hermione and Lyra," Theo said. "I'll see you lot on the train."
"Whatever," Pansy sneered. "Make the most of the mudblood when you can, you'll not be seeing her much longer. The Dark Lord will take you in hand."
"Yeah, yeah, Pans, whatever you say," Theo retorted as he headed upstairs with Blaise.
When the two Slytherins arrived in the head dorms, they weren't surprised to find Harry was already with his friend. Hermione's stuff was packed and next to the fire so they could leave once the Hogwarts Express had left. Hopefully the train would have left before the other Slytherins even realised Theo wasn't on board.
"Are you ready to go?" Harry asked the two Slytherins. He was also heading to Grimmauld Place with Hermione and the Slytherins, although he would be back after the holidays.
"Yeah, we just need to pack," Blaise answered. "We couldn't do it before in case anyone caught onto what we were doing."
"How quick can you pack?" Harry asked.
"As long as it takes to wave a wand," Theo replied with a laugh. "Seriously, we'll just grab everything and shove it in our trunks. We can sort it when we're settled."
"Yeah, we've just got to hope that no-one notices Theo isn't on the train before it leaves Hogsmeade," Blaise said.
"I can't see them missing me before then," Theo said. "Until the train leaves and I don't show up, they won't know I'm not there. By that time it will be too late for them to raise the alarm. They'll just have to wait until they get to London."
"And by that time, we'll be in hiding with Hermione and Lyra," Blaise added.
"It can't come soon enough," Hermione said. "I can't wait to get out of here."
"We'll be gone soon enough," Harry reassured Hermione, wrapping his arm around her. "In a few hours, you and Lyra will be safe."
"If only Draco was safe," Hermione sighed. "I wish we knew how he was holding up."
"Maybe Snape can go and see him over the holidays," Theo suggested.
"Maybe," Hermione said.
Wandering over to the window, she looked out to where she could just make out the steam coming from the Hogwarts Express. While the boys chatted on behind her, Hermione watched the train until it began to move. The second she spotted the train moving, she turned round to face the boys with a small smile on her face.
"It's going," she announced.
"That's our cue to leave," Theo said. "We'll be back in less than ten minutes."
"We'll start moving Hermione and Lyra's things through to headquarters," Harry said. "But we won't leave properly until you two return."
While Hermione kept an eye on Lyra, Harry began to ferry her stuff to Order headquarters. After the first trip, he returned with Sirius and together the two wizards moved everything back to Grimmauld Place.
"Thanks for this Sirius," Hermione said. "Are you sure you don't mind us all intruding?"
"It'll be nice to have company," Sirius answered. "Besides, it might cheer Remus up. He does nothing but mope around in his room, even the twins haven't been able to lighten his mood."
"Won't having us around just make things worse?" Hermione asked nervously. The last thing she wanted to do was cause Remus more pain, and she feared having her and Lyra around might remind him of how Tonks lost her life.
"No," Sirius said with a shake of his head. "The only time I've seen him smile in months was when I told him you and Lyra were coming to stay. I honestly think having the pair of you around will do him good."
"I hope so," Hermione replied, just as the door opened and Theo and Blaise entered with their trunks and bags.
"Is this everyone?" Sirius questioned Hermione.
"Yeah, this is everyone," Hermione confirmed.
"Thanks for having us," Blaise said, shaking Sirius's hand. "We appreciate it."
"We all appreciate what you've been doing for Hermione," Sirius returned. "It's good to know she's had support these last few months."
"And it's going to continue for as long as she needs us," Theo said.
Sirius nodded his approval, as he began shepherding everyone through to his house. Once everyone was safely in Grimmauld Place, he sent a message to Dumbledore, letting him know things had ran smoothly. He then followed the other back to his house and set about welcoming Hermione and the Slytherins to his house.
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"He's not on board," Pansy announced, flouncing back into the compartment where her friends were re-grouping.
It wasn't until the Hogwarts Express had pulled out of Hogsmeade that the Slytherins had realised Theo hadn't joined them. Of course, they thought he was just sulking in another compartment, but they'd searched the train and found no sign of him.
"We couldn't find him either," Crabbe added.
"Maybe he missed the train," Goyle suggested.
"Yeah, on purpose," Pansy snarled. "I bet he lingered up in the head dorms so he would miss the train."
"He's going to regret it," Daphne remarked. "The Dark Lord will be furious. I wouldn't put it past him to go up to Hogwarts and get him himself."
"Now that would be fun," Pansy cackled. "It would serve Theo right for siding with the mudblood."
"Not a wise move," Daphne agreed. "Luckily we all know where our loyalties lie."
Everyone nodded in agreement as the group settled down to enjoy their train ride back to London, each of them wondering just what would happen to Theo now he'd disobeyed an order that had clearly come from The Dark Lord himself.
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Hermione was surprised by how easy everyone settled into Grimmauld Place. Blaise and Theo had instantly hit it off with the twins, so Hermione wasn't worried about any tension in the house. Lyra had also seemed to settle quite nicely in the room Sirius had sorted for Hermione and her daughter. Hermione was hoping the fact she was going to be around full time would be beneficial for Lyra, and that her daughter would find it easier at Grimmauld Place than she had at Hogwarts.
After spending the morning getting settled into her room, Hermione ventured downstairs with Lyra to see what was going on. There was no sign of the twins, or Blaise and Theo, but Harry was sitting having a cup of tea with Sirius and Remus. Hermione could see at a glance how worn Remus looked, but he managed to give her a weak smile as she entered the kitchen.
"Hello, Hermione."
"Remus." Hermione smiled back at the werewolf. "How are you?"
"Coping," Remus replied as Sirius got up to make a cup of tea for Hermione. "And how are you?"
"Coping," Hermione answered with a wry smile as she sat down next to the wizard who'd done so much for her, Draco and Lyra. "I hope you don't mind us all intruding."
"It'll be nice to have people around," Remus said, reaching out and stroking Lyra's fine blonde hair. "Can I hold her?"
"Of course," Hermione said as she passed her daughter over to Remus.
Lyra instantly cuddled into Remus, clearly recognising his scent from when he was around her before. Hermione took her cup of tea from Sirius as she watched the interaction between her daughter and former Professor. Remus looked as though a weight had been lifted off his shoulders as he snuggled up with the young girl.
"The Weasleys will be over for dinner tonight," Harry told Hermione. "In fact, Ron and Ginny might turn up sometime this afternoon."
"That's handy, they can help me in the library," Hermione replied. "Especially if someone is willing to look after Lyra."
"Leave her with us," Sirius said, leaning over and pulling faces at the baby, making her giggle happily.
Hermione looked to Remus and he gave her a reassuring nod. "We'll be fine," he told her. "We're all here to help you, Hermione."
"Thanks, I appreciate it."
"So, what are you wanting to do in the library?" Harry asked. "I know you like books, but this sounds more than scoping out what reading material Sirius has to offer."
"I want to know more about the diadem of wisdom," Hermione answered. "The more I read, the more convinced I am that it's what we're looking for. However, I really think we need to find a picture. How are we ever supposed to find it without a picture?"
"What's this about a diadem?" Sirius asked with a puzzled frown.
Hermione suddenly worried if she'd said something she shouldn't, given she didn't know what various members of the Order knew about Voldemort's Horcruxes, but Harry gave her a reassuring smile. He then completely dismissed her worries, by telling Sirius and Remus all about their search for something belonging to Rowena Ravenclaw. Hermione still wasn't sure how much the two older wizards knew, but it was clear they knew enough to know they needed to find and destroy these magical object before they could defeat Voldemort.
"I wish I could help Hermione, but I have no idea if I have anything helpful in the library," Sirius said regretfully. "This won't surprise you, but I was never a big reader in my youth."
"I never would have guessed," Hermione chuckled. "Don't worry, I'd rather look through what you have myself anyway. If I'm lucky I might find myself some interesting books to read."
"And by interesting she means, old and dusty," Harry joked.
Hermione chuckled at Harry's joke, feeling at ease for the first time in months. Of course she was still worried about Draco and what he was going through, but it felt good to be at Grimmauld Place. In fact, she couldn't help but think that she should have made the switch when Draco had first been forced onto the dark. But then again, if she had, she might not have Blaise and Theo, and she valued the pair far too much at this point to think about having to cope without them.
Luckily for Hermione, she didn't have to cope without the two Slytherins and they soon made their presence felt along with the twins. After whipping up sandwiches for everyone, Hermione and the boys headed into the library, while Sirius and Remus took Lyra into the front room for the afternoon. Hermione was amazed by how at ease Lyra was with Sirius and Remus, but she still made them promise to call if she got restless.
"So what are we looking for again?" Fred asked as Harry filled them in on what they were doing.
"I want a picture of the diadem of wisdom, belonging to Rowena Ravenclaw," Hermione replied. "Also more information about it would be good."
"We're on it," George called as he and Fred disappeared into the dusty stacks.
Finding a few books for herself, Hermione settled down at the large table to read. Within ten minutes, everyone had returned with some books to scour. The six of them were all sitting reading when Ginny poked her head into the room.
"Room for a little one?" she asked with a grin.
"Ginny." Hermione jumped up and embraced the red-headed witch. "We've missed you."
"I've missed you too," Ginny replied. "And Lyra, but I've already had a quick cuddle off her. Although, I practically had to prise her out of Sirius's arms. Who knew he was such a fan of children?"
"I think Lyra's won over a few hearts," Hermione said with a smile. There was no doubt her daughter had a legion of fans, and she knew she never had to worry about people helping her out with Lyra.
"That's because she's adorable," Blaise said.
"Yeah, Fred and I can't wait to get to know her," George said with a grin as Ginny joined them at the table.
"No Ron?" Hermione asked, looking towards the door in case her other best friend was going to make an appearance.
Ginny shook her head. "Sorry, he's still being a git."
"What else is new?" Fred snorted. "He's been nothing but a pain in the arse for the last few weeks."
"Is this because of the whole act of pretending George is dead?" Theo asked.
"Yeah, he's not happy about it," George answered. "Although what it's got to do with him, I have no idea. I'm the one the world think they've lost. I'm the one in hiding. Not that I mind," he added, smiling at Hermione. "It's worth it, if it's helping Malfoy."
"He says, thank you by the way," Hermione said. "He was amazed that you would do this for him."
"You've spoken to him?" Fred asked in surprise.
"We send brief letters via Tipsy, Narcissa's personal elf," Hermione explained. "It's risky, but it's better than nothing. Last I heard, Voldemort's backed of a bit as he thinks Draco is starting to deliver on his darkness. But it won't last, sooner or later, he'll be forced to do something else."
"Well then, let's get cracking and find this diadem," Harry said. "The sooner we can find some information about it, the sooner we can find it and work out if Voldemort ever had it in his possession. Then all we have to do is track it down, and destroy it. Then on to the final confrontation."
"You make it sound so simple, Harry," Hermione said with a sigh.
She wished getting rid of Voldemort would be as easy as Harry had made it sound, but she knew they still had a long road ahead of them. It would be months before they were ready to face off with Voldemort for the final time, and that was if things went well and they hit no more hitches. A worst case scenario could see the war drag on for years, and all Hermione could do was hope and pray it didn't come to that. She didn't think she could cope with being separated from Draco for years, and she certainly didn't want Lyra growing up without her Daddy around.