Happy Monday! I really hope you all are still reading this story. =)
Enormous thank yous to everyone who Followed and Favorited this past week. You all are wonderful. And of course to my amazing reviews; GhostWriter1864, Calimocho, Rejected Morgenstern, Jeb59, abishop47, Raven that flies at night, xXMizz Alec VolturiXx, and StormWhitch19851... YOU GUYS ROCK! You all keep me motivated and I love each and every one of you.
Ghosty: I had the idea of something crazy like this happening for a while, and I wanted to introduce some of the other people of this time period so that the isolation of Hogwarts didn't get too boring. I always knew Bella was the one who sent the wolves, so I wanted to throw her in there so she could gloat. I originally thought that the whole group would meet Voldy, but I didn't like the idea of putting Lily at risk... so that's how all that came into play. Just fyi.
Here is 34...
Hermione and Sirius had fought Voldemort and earned a small victory against the darkness; but at what cost?
Hermione turned to Mr. Dervish. His body was limp, lifeless and his face was contorted in an expression of pure terror. Hermione had not distracted Bellatrix quickly enough; she had completed the killing curse on the old man before Hermione had even uttered the first syllable of her own spell.
She then turned her eyes to Sirius. He was breathing, that fact did comfort her. But he had been subjected to the Cruciatus Curse by a very proficient witch.
Hermione stared at the spot against the wall; while lost in her on mind, it could have been seconds, minutes or hours that passed before the reinforcements arrived.
A smile crept across Hermione's lips as she took in the features of the man who was now kneeing beside her. He was handsome, with copper hair and watery blue eyes but his downturned mouth hindered his attractiveness. "You look like Fred," Hermione was confused by her own words; they seemed sluggish and the voice sounded detached and very unlike her own.
The man ignored her comment and patted Hermione down her arms, sides and back; he was looking for blatant injuries.
"She's in shock I think, but she looks fine otherwise." Fabian Prewett called over to his twin brother Gideon.
"Well that makes four out of five then. This poor old bloke is gone; killing curse," Gideon guessed.
"Can you figure out what Alice and Frank were hit with? Maybe we can revive them. I don't think we can cart all of this lot back up to Hogwarts ourselves." Fabian shuffled over to Frank and slapped his cheeks lightly. "Oi! Frankie!"
"Rennervate," Hermione mumbled still facing the wall she had blasted Voldemort into. She was minutely proud to find a small crack right where Voldemort had made contact with the drywall.
"What's that?" Gideon squatted down in front of Hermione, forcing her to break her gaze with the wall, "What did you say?"
Hermione blinked her eyes rapidly and they refocused on the man opposite of her. She took in his familiar features and then glanced over her shoulder at the other ginger haired man; she realized they were twins and actually did share a striking resemblance to Fred and George. "It... they were hit with a simple stunning spell. Rennervate will revive Alice and Frank."
Fabian waved his wand quickly over his two fellow Order members, and they began to stir. "Well, that's a relief. What's your name girl?"
Hermione wasn't sure which brother had asked, but she turned her attention back to the man directly in front of her and answered, "Mia McGonagall."
"Bloody hell, it's Minerva's niece. We really need to get them back up to the castle 'Bian." He wrapped his strong hands around Hermione's arms and lifted her to her feet, "Can you stand on your own?"
Hermione nodded; her awareness was slowly returning, but with it came a trickling of panic and guilt that her mind had been blocking from her consciousness. She had to play this carefully and keep herself together until they returned to the castle.
Alice and Frank were finally standing and taking in their surroundings. They asked Hermione what had happened after they were knocked out, but at first she couldn't find the words to explain.
"Blondie?" Sirius's muttering voice seemed to clear out some of the fog in her mind.
Hermione's brain shifted into autopilot and recounted the events of the night to the four Order members. She told them everything that had happened with Voldemort and Bellatrix, but her mind was quick to edit out the issues of Hermione's true identity and replace it with a brief but believable explanation that Voldemort's obsession with her was due to her tie to McGonagall.
The entire time Hermione spoke, her eyes remained locked on Sirius. He looked pale, there were small half-moon cuts on the palms of his hands where his fingernails had cut through the skin, and it looked like he had a few bruises on the side of his face from knocking into the floor from the cursed seizures.
But Sirius was conscious and holding her gaze.
Sirius listened to the story that Hermione told and nodded to Fabian when he looked at him for confirmation. Sirius didn't actually remember many details of the confrontation, but he trusted Hermione's words completely. He did have to actively try to not smirk when Hermione spoke her one small lie.
Thanks to Bellatrix, he didn't have a lot of clear memories of the night. When he looked at Hermione's numb reactions, he began to feel guilty that he had the luxury of pushing most of the fuzzy imagines out of his mind.
"Alright, Black. Your turn to test your legs," Fabian assisted Sirius in sitting up and slung the boy's arm over his shoulder. The two males stood a bit shakily and Fabian released his hold on Sirius' back to allow a true assessment of stability.
Sirius took a hesitant step forward; he let his arm fall away from the redhead man's shoulder and tried to take another step. Sirius's left side seemed weaker than his right though and his knee buckled beneath him.
Hermione rushed forward and gripped her arms around Sirius's waist and held fast. She locked her knees to try to stabilize them both.
"I… I'm so sorry, Sirius," Hermione voice caught in her throat.
Sirius arms tightened around her as she spoke, "It will take more than that to get rid of me, Love."
When Alice and Frank were stable enough to walk on their own, the group of six left the collapsing house and began making their way up to Hogwarts. Alice and Frank lead the group down the streets of Hogsmeade wands out and ready for any surprises that could be lurking. Sirius was supported by Gideon on his left and Hermione on his right, while Fabian brought up the rear of the group.
They passed no one as they walked.
When they finally reached the huge doors of the castle; McGonagall was safeguarding the entrance with two of the gigantic stone guards flanking her. Her shoulders sagged with relief as Hermione came into view; but she remained in place blocking their entrance into the castle.
"Gideon, Fabian; you have three nephews by your sister Molly. What are their names?"
"Full names or nicknames, Minerva?" Fabian chuckled from the back of the group.
The professor almost rolled her eyes at the comment. She was certain from the snarky response they weren't impostors but, "Please, humor me."
"Bill, Charlie and Percy. But that's actually a trick question now, Molly and Arthur are expecting twins in April. Then there will be five boys running around that house," Gideon shook his head as he smiled.
"Yea, we might need a new security question. I'm not sure I can keep up with all the nephews if Molly continues to have babies at this rate," Fabian wrinkled his forehead in mocking concern.
Minerva ignored the comment and turned her attention to Frank and Alice, "You told me something in confidence last meeting. Would you mind repeating it now?"
Alice blushed so wildly, she looked like a tomato. Frank laughed lightheartedly and took her hand, "We're engaged. Alice just refuses to wear the ring while she's still in training."
A genuine smile crossed McGonagall's lips.
She turned to Hermione and Sirius, "Where did you two meet?"
"The hospital wing," Sirius and Hermione answered in unison.
"And where will you be going now, with no stops or breaks or exceedingly long shortcuts in between?"
Sirius and Hermione glanced at each other and tried not to smirk, "The hospital wing."
"Good, Poppy is waiting for you. Go." McGonagall's words were harsh, but she kissed the side of Hermione's head quickly before nudging the two students toward the corridor that led to Madame Pomfrey.
Minerva explained to the other Order members that she had accounted for all the students and had all the common rooms sealed from the outside by the Heads of Houses. The Prefects had been left in charge and were instructed to keep everyone calm and in bed if possible.
"I only animated the Stone Guards because I didn't feel comfortable with Professor Dumbledore being gone." McGonagall straightened her robes nervously, "The headmaster absent from Hogwarts the same night there is an attack on Hogsmeade. I was afraid it was… Voldemort. But no Dark Mark tonight, thankfully." The professor sighed a bit and clasped her hands in front of her as she began to walk the perimeter of the castle with Fabian. She sent the other three around the castle in the opposite direction.
"Well, actually Minerva… it was Voldemort. He had Bellatrix Lestrange with him apparently and she killed Dervish on the Dark Lord's order. I've sent word by patronus to Moody for clean-up and informing next of kin." Fabian reported in a somber tone.
"And what of the Dark Mark? Voldemort never overlooks an opportunity to spread his fear and hatred."
"Ah, that lapse in his usual fear mongering was due to your lovely niece actually," Fabian's voice was almost elated as he spoke about Hermione. He decided to retell the proceedings of the night. He tried to focus on the possessiveness of the two students and two order members who survived the attack, due in great part to the amazing actions of the girl that addressed Minerva as 'Aunt.'
Hermione had a little trouble getting Sirius down the hallway; she wasn't as sturdy a support system without Gideon to assist her.
Sirius drifted toward an alcove and forced Hermione to stop and take a rest from holding him up, "Just let me lean here for a minute, Blondie. We both need a few seconds rest."
Hermione shrugged her shoulders, "We promised no breaks though."
Sirius took her hand and tugged Hermione toward him; he knew that she was trying to keep all of her emotions in check. He wrapped his arms around Hermione and held her tight.
"You deserve a break. If McGonagall asks, you can blame me."
They stood there for a few minutes, just holding onto each other. No words were required.
They had survived a potentially fatal encounter together... again.
"We should get you to Poppy, she needs to make sure you're alright." Hermione returned to her spot under Sirius's arm and pulled the Marauder along the corridor until they reached the hallway of the hospital wing.
Madame Pomfrey was there waiting and ran to meet them when she noticed Sirius and Hermione struggling halfway down the hall.
They deposited Sirius on the closest cot and Poppy immediately began waving her wand over him. Madame Pomfrey conducted every diagnostic spell she had available to her. She sighed with relief as the last spell came back negative for internal injuries.
"Looks like it was just a lot of bruises and some superficial wounds," Poppy handed Sirius a small vial of something green and glared at the boy until he finished every last drop. The potion made Sirius' insides a bit warm; the side of his face and his left leg began to burn a bit. But after the burning sensation dissipated, any pain that had been present was gone too. Poppy also mended the skin on Sirius's palms, just for good measure.
"I would prefer to keep you here; but Professor McGonagall has asked that all students be secured in their respective houses." Madame Pomfrey didn't seem to agree with this order, but she did seem a bit concerned about the extent of the security measures.
"Wait, you have to look Blondie over as well," Sirius sat up and was pleasantly surprised that he only felt a little soreness as he moved now.
Hermione glared at her boyfriend, "I'm fine."
"I know you are, but please just let Poppy check you?" Sirius gave her a sad smile, almost looking like a begging puppy.
Hermione continued to glower at a spot two feet in front of her as she laid down and allowed Madame Pomfrey to conduct the same diagnostic spells over herself. They all came back negative, but Poppy didn't look as relieved when the tests were complete this time.
Madame Pomfrey had seen the look in Hermione's eyes before. She had seen that look many times on people who had survived traumatic events. Poppy was fearful that the young witch was going to have a psychotic episode or breakdown. Madame Pomfry hoped she was wrong, but she went a collected a small dose of purple potion from the cupboard anyway.
Hermione knew what the potion was, and she didn't want it, "I don't need a sleeping drought. I'm fine. I just… I just need to… I need…" But Hermione realized that she didn't know what she needed.
And that scared her more than Voldemort had.
The blonde witch sat up and gripped the bed sheets with such force that her knuckles were turning white. Sirius was at her side in milliseconds; the sound of his voice whispering in her ear seemed to calm the witch down enough that Hermione released the thin sheet and her breathing returned to normal intervals.
Sirius took the purple potion from Madame Pomfrey and forced Hermione to stand up so that they could be escorted back to Gryffindor tower by the nurse. He tucked Hermione under his arm and kissed her forehead several times before they arrived in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady.
Professor Rollin stood in front of the portrait; since McGonagall was acting Headmistress while Dumbledore was away, the muggle studies professor was protecting the Gryffindor House. She spoke the password and then performed a silent spell to unlock the doorway.
The chatter in the common room fell silent immediately.
Every eye turned to the portrait hole and stared at Hermione and Sirius as they entered the room. Hermione turned her body into Sirius's side and hid herself, "I can't face this right now, Sirius."
Sirius halted Lily's approach with a shake of his head and silently steered Hermione and himself toward the staircase to the boys' dormitories and ascended the stairs. When they got to the seventh year dorms, Hermione went straight to Sirius' bed and sat down. She appeared so lost it pained Sirius to look on her.
To Sirius's relief only the other Marauders followed them into the room.
"Lily had to stay down in the common room; crowd control." James informed Sirius as he looked his 'brother' up and down, "You all right?"
"No, but I will be." Sirius glanced at Hermione, as if to say 'I'm not sure about her though.' Remus was gingerly holding Hermione's hand and trying to call her attention. She gazed into the distance and continued to insist that she was 'fine.'
"What happened, Sirius?" Peter looked anxious and absolutely terrified.
Sirius crossed his arms and shook his head, "I'm not... I can't really recall the details. I'm not excited by the idea of Mia reliving the moment in her current state. But there were Deatheaters." Sirius motioned to Hermione, "She fought them off… Poppy said she's in shock. I want… I need to keep an eye on her. Are you all alright if she stays here tonight?"
Peter and James nodded their heads a bit absentmindedly; they were still trying to process the reality of Deatheaters in Hogsmeade.
"Um… I'm going to go tell Lily. We'll tell the rest of the students… something… something to keep them pacified and will make them leave you both alone. Wormtail, Mooney; I think we're going to need your help with this one." James rounded up the other Marauders and left the dorm room.
Remus was reluctant to leave, but he had at least coaxed Hermione into returning a hug and a brief moment of eye contact before he left.
Sirius took off his jacket and shoes and dropped them on the floor by his trunk. His jeans wouldn't be comfortable to sleep in, but right now his comfort wasn't the most important thing.
He knelt in front of Hermione and removed her shoes and placed them neatly next to the bed. Sirius then helped her take off her jacket and told her to place her jewelry on the side table.
Hermione followed the instruction with no words of complaint or protest until Sirius held out the little stoppered bottle of sleeping drought. "No… Sirius, please don't… I can't…"
"Why not?" Sirius's voice was gentle. He tucked a strand of Hermione's hair behind her ear and forced her to meet his gaze. "It will calm you down; help you sleep."
"But it's fake, it's a lie! I'll sleep perfectly fine… but then what? I'll wake up to the same gut-wrenching pain and guilt I'm feeling now." Hermione felt the dam that her consciousness had erected finally give way and succumb to the cracks that had been spreading. "I got a man KILLED!"
Sirius sat down on the bed and scooped her up into his arms. "No. Voldemort would have killed that man whether we were there or not. Don't let his mind games break you."
"You were put under an Unforgivable because of me."
Sirius snorted, "No. That was because of Bellatrix. Don't you dare take responsibility for her acts of insanity."
Hermione shook her head and tried to control her inconsolable crying. She looked at Sirius and put her hands over his face, "I… I'm so… sorry."
"Stop it, Hermione," Sirius's voice came out harsher then he had intended. His expression softened and he held up the sleeping drought again. "You'll feel better after a good night's rest. And I'll be right here when you wake up."
Sirius uncorked the vial and handed it over to Hermione's shaky hands. He forced them both to stand so that he could pull down the covers of his bed; he had Hermione sit down before she swallowed the potion.
Hermione laid down and curled her legs up slightly as her eyelids began to grow heavy. Sirius walked around the four post bed and closed all the curtains and performed some quick silencing charms in case Hermione still had nightmares. He climbed into the other side of the bed and pulled the blanket up to Hermione's chin.
A smile slipped across Sirius's lips as he thought about the fact that he had gotten his girlfriend into his bed; but the reveling was short lived as he noticed that Hermione's body was still trembling. He settled down and wrapped his arms around her slight frame and tucked her body against his protectively. Hermione responded almost instantaneously to his embrace and her body became calm and still.
Sirius kissed Hermione's hair and soon joined her in sleep.
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Misha
Ps. Go check out my other stories too: 'Begin Again,' 'Life as Demigods' and 'Penelope Jackson: The Lightning Thief.'