"Failure is only an opportunity to start again in a more intelligent way."
Henry Ford
Hermione was in a dark corner of the Knockturn Alley, desperately waiting for a Death Eater. She was under a black cloak, as most people were, even before the Occupation, as that sad time was called.
Hermione had felt bad when that term had started to be picked up. Many were ignorant of Muggle history, but not Hermione, and the term reminded her far too much of the Second World War. She had wanted to believe that it wasn't all over, that they weren't still like the French during that war, but it wasn't. The Death Eaters spent their days patrolling the wizarding lanes, the Ministry posts were filled only with Death Eaters or would-be Death Eaters. The only place that was safe was Hogwarts. And even then. Dumbledore hadn't 'cleaned up' as Hermione would have liked, but she couldn't say anything, she wasn't the headmaster. Showing her displeasure had not been enough as Dumbledore had stuck to his guns.
No member of the Order could move about in the open. Voldemort had not yet placed restrictions on wizarding travel, as he would in the future, but the taboo on his name was already there. Hermione had warned the others, but she was the one who had the hardest time breaking the habit.
They tried to get together often, but they didn't want to do too many magic shows, they didn't know if the Ministry, and therefore Voldemort, could see their magic shows. They were on a mission a lot, but they had no choice.
It had been five months since the world had been thrown into chaos. Five months since Lily had died. Sirius and Remus had moved in with James, to help him. As a result, Hermione and Remus were alone at HQ most of the time.
Hermione had read a news item of the utmost importance in today's Gazette. But she had to check it out first before she could set her plan in motion. So she stood in the Knockturn Alley with a bonnet over her head. When she saw him, she recognised him without difficulty and approached him. She grabbed his arm and moved to a remote part of the Highlands.
Lestrange looked a little lost, but his expression was quickly replaced by hatred when he recognised Hermione.
"You!"
"Crucio"
Hermione knew that Remus was not very comfortable with torture sessions, so she had decided to do it alone.
"Do you know who give your wife something to put in her safe at Gringott's?"
"Go to hell, you know I wouldn't give it up."
And the torture session continued. Hermione knew Voldemort's torture techniques, and she knew exactly what was more bearable than the rest, so she did her best to make Rodolphus Lestrange break as quickly as possible. After several hours, Hermione finally got the answer she was looking for. She altered her memories and healed him, even though she was repulsed by it, she preferred to leave as little trace as possible. She moved back into the misty alley and left him in an alley. It would easily look like a fight, or so she hoped.
She crossed again, half a dozen times to make sure she was alone, and arrived near the Potter house. She passed through the protective barriers after giving a password and walked up the driveway. The two Potters along with Sirius and Remus were all having breakfast, it was still early and they turned around abruptly when they saw Hermione. It wasn't her habit to come and see them, they were the ones who were on their way to HQ. She arrived and placed the Daily Prophet in front of Sirius.
"Right... Why did you put the funeral page in front of me? You know that the people against Voldy are not mentioned."
Hermione showed him the name, and Sirius shrugged.
"Orion's dead. Good. What do I care?"
"I need you to become the new Lord Black."
The three marauders looked at her as if she had just told them that the Earth was flat. It was Harry's cheerful laughter that shook them out of their slumber.
"Harry is right, it's ridiculous. I've been disowned, I remind you."
"You weren't disowned. If you were you couldn't call yourself Sirius Black."
"Then I've been disinherit."
"Burning a piece of wallpaper and being disinherited are two different things. And it was your m-, well Walburga did it, not Orion. From a strictly legal point of view, you're the heir."
"But I hate this family, I have no desire to become Lord, Regulus will do it perfectly well, like any good little pureblood ass-kisser!"
"Why do you need Sirius to be the head of the Blacks?" asked Remus, who knew very well that Helena didn't ask for anything without reason.
"For two things in fact. One, Voldy gets money to carry out his attacks, the Blacks are one of the richest families in the UK. I don't know exactly how things are going with the Malfoy money since Malfoy Sr. died, but if we cut off what he gets from the Blacks, that can only be a good thing."
"And the second?"
"I need something from Bellatrix Lestrange's vault."
"She's dead."
"I know, I was there when Rem killed her, I even got a sliver of her blood on my jumper. I could actually check, it's no different to mine."
"If she's dead, her vault was transferred to her husband's, and even as Lord Black, I wouldn't have access to that vault."
"I know. But it hasn't been done yet. I kindly asked her husband for some information and he finally gave it to me."
"And what is this thing?"
"It can destroy you-know-who."
"You say that every time you and Remi go somewhere! You never say anything about the nature of these things, or even where you're going. Just how many of these 'things' are there?"
"And why does it need to be destroyed? Why does it have to destroy you-know-who?"
As James and Remus argued, Sirius paled more and more. Even though it had been many years since he had touched it, he was still a Black, and knew everything about dark magic by heart.
"Are you alright, Padfoot?"
"He created horcruxes" he said in a white voice.
Helena turned pale, and Sirius realised that he had been telling the truth. Remus and James looked at them, not understanding what Sirius had just said.
"This is what you've been looking for all these years! That's why you were away in Albania for so long, why you were busy on Christmas Eve when we asked you to come with us."
"What are these horcr-thing"
"Horcruxes" Hermione corrected mechanically.
"It's dark magic at its worst. It's a quest for immortality. It's a complex ritual that involves killing someone in cold blood, splitting their soul, and locking it away in an object. You become immortal, but your body is also transformed. You become monstrous. Like you-know-who. How could I not have thought of this before? It's so logical."
"Because no one can imagine such a thing."
"And you think there's this in the Lestrange vault?"
"I'm pretty sure."
The three of them asked her for more information about the horcruxes, and Hermione thought that perhaps it would be better to talk to Remus before telling them more. All she needed to do was say too much and get yelled at like a child, which was entirely possible. So she let the marauders digest what she had just told them and joined Remus, to explain what had just happened.
Surprisingly, he took it rather well, even arguing that he was surprised Sirius hadn't made the connection earlier. So they took the destroyed horcruxes to the marauders and laid them on the coffee table.
"What's all this?"
"The Ravenclaw Diadem. Room on Requirement at Hogwarts, destroyed February 1978. Riddle's diary, Department of Mysteries, destroyed July 1978. Gaunt's ring, Gaunt's house, destroyed in April 1979. Gryffindor ornament, Lurpryadalis tribe, destroyed in September 1979. Slytherin locket, Ireland, destroyed on December 24th 1980."
"This is what we've been doing for years."
"You've managed to find the lost diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw! It disappeared thousands of years ago."
"In fact, it was Voldy who first found it and hid it."
"He really liked the founders, didn't he? All that's missing now is Hufflepuff."
"That's next. The Hufflepuff Cup."
"And you're sure it's in Bellatrix's vault?"
"Yes, I'm sure."
"No, it's not."
"Rem'! I'm sure."
"Well, I'm not. You erased Lestrange's memory. If he finds out, he can change the location of the cup."
Hermione and Remus looked at each other, as if to see which of them would win the 'I'm right' battle. Meanwhile, Sirius was thinking about the implications of whether or not he would become the head of the Black family. He didn't want to, but he wanted to win this war, was this the only way? He had no idea. Why did this bloody family keep ruining his life? James and Remus were still reeling from the revelation of the horcruxes.
"I've never felt such disgust towards anyone. He's so inhuman!" said James, a disgusted expression clearly visible on his face.
"Do you really think so? I think that's what makes him even more human. Other animals don't behave like this and never will. Torture, cold-blooded murder, barbarity, all that is unique to humans. An animal will never kill for its own pleasure. It will kill to defend itself, to feed itself. It will never torture. Voldemort fears death. Like animals, he wants to survive at all costs. But instead of having a survival instinct and cherishing his life, protecting it, he divides his soul and engages in a war in which he is the main leader of the opposing side, the one most wanted to kill. So I don't agree that torturing, raping and killing muggles is 'inhuman' because on the contrary, it's terribly human. Why is it that when something terrible happens, it's necessarily inhuman? Humanity is cold, dark and cruel. I sincerely believe we are the worst species ever created, we've proven that. So yes, despite his greatest haunting, Voldemort's actions make him human."
After Hermione's long tirade, she and Remus left the marauders to talk amongst themselves, having sworn them to secrecy. No one was to know. Sirius knew that the next few hours were going to be full of reflection. He was at a loss, but he hoped that James and Remus would help him see things more clearly.
Hermione, as she had been for the last few months, was dressed in a black cloak that covered her face. Sirius was doing the same beside her. He had finally agreed to Hermione's request, but had sworn that he would give up his title once the war was over.
Goblins were neutral, which could be an advantage or a disadvantage, today it was going to be an advantage. The goblin in charge of the Black family was called and spoke with Sirius.
"Are you sure you want to disown Mrs. Bellatrix Lestrange? You won't be able to go back after this."
"I'm sure of it."
"Well, for damages done to your family, you can have the whole of her personal vault."
Sirius put the Black's signet ring on his finger, which immediately recognized him as its true owner.
"As for Mrs Narcissa Malfoy née Black and Mr. Regulus Black, what do you intend to do?"
"I will deal with them later."
They left for Bellatrix's vault, Hermione felt a twinge of sadness when she saw the dragon she had released with Harry and Ron in the future. It looked just as abused. But she couldn't lose sight of her main goal, to get the Hufflepuff cup back.
When she entered, her gaze went straight to where she had been in the future, but she wasn't there. She started to search the room with Sirius' help, but she didn't seem to be there.
"If you're looking for a cup or a red book, Mr. Lestrange came for them yesterday morning."
They turned abruptly and turned pale.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Yes, I brought him."
"I thought goblins didn't help wizards, they stayed neutral. Why are you telling us this?"
"We don't help wizards, that's true, but that doesn't mean we don't have an opinion. I've seen what that wizard has done to other magical creatures, goblins are no fools, if he keeps this up we'll be the next to be slaughtered."
Hermione sighed, disgusted that she hadn't got the horcrux back. She had hoped that afterwards all they would need was the snake and they would be done, all the horcruxes would be destroyed. But that was not the case, Remus was right, Voldy had protected her back and got her horcrux back.
She searched again, as if she could recover something.
"Sirius, come here."
She handed him the notebook she had found and he began to leaf through it.
"Do you think it could be…" he asked in shock.
"The list of all the Death Eaters. Yes. We'll find out exactly who is and who isn't. We may not have found the horcrux, but we'll have a huge advantage!"
Sirius also found a map of Malfoy Manor and Lestrange Manor, which they could always use. So they left, asking the goblin not to tell Rodolphus Lestrange that Sirius had retrieved his wife's vault.
"I'm sorry. You didn't want to be part of this family again and I made you, for nothing in the end."
"It's not for nothing. And it's not like I'm going to spend my days at the Wizenmagot. It's not really going to have any consequences right now."
They headed down a dark alley and disapparate a few times before landing at HQ, and going to tell the other marauders the bad news.
Gideon Prewett was holding a box full of stuff in his hands, while his brother was sitting on their sofa. It was possible that he was getting a little depressed, after all, they were moving. And each to a different place. Gideon was finally moving in with his girlfriend, and Fabian was staying alone.
"Don't be depressed, it'll be fine! We're almost thirty, it's normal to pull apart! And you'll find someone to move in with."
"You know that's not possible."
"Fab, I know you like her, but you need to move on."
"I don't like her, I love her. I'm madly in love with her, it's a cliché, but it's true! I love her and I can't do anything about it."
"You don't want to do anything. You could have told her about it, as soon as you found out you loved her."
"And what would I have told her? That I thought she was beautiful at first sight? That this is not her true appearance. That I discovered her many talents and became smitten with her? Her talents are Muggle dueling and dark magic. That her life fascinates me? She was tortured and raped."
Gideon sighed, it was true that it wasn't really the right thing to say. But he didn't know what else to do to help Fabian.
"This is not a love affair. You've been obsessed with her for months!"
"I'm not obsessed with her! And it's been years, not months. I just love her. I know her, more than she knows. And I love everything about her, even the things she hates. I love her because she is the way she is. I can't explain it."
"But this love is one-sided, brother, you know that. And if it goes on like this, it will kill you. You can't love a girl like Helena Grace without getting hurt."
"I know you don't like her."
"I don't like her because she hurts you. I have nothing against her other than that. You need to move on. You love her, I know you do, but you don't want to tell her, you need to forget about her. I don't want you to mope when you're alone."
Gideon was silent for a few seconds, not really knowing what to say. His brother was slowly destroying himself, all for the sake of a woman who didn't see him for what he was.
"You know, you two spend a lot of time together. On missions, but not only. Helena doesn't show her feelings much, but she really likes you, she wouldn't stay with you otherwise."
"Hermione," he replied, insisting on her first name, "likes me, as you just said. She's not in love with me. And she's a bloody warrior, we all know she's almost running this war. She's more present for the Order than Dumbledore. She doesn't need any kind of relationship now. She wouldn't even want one. She's been raped, tortured by men. She's still afraid of men, I saw it in her eyes whenever a stranger got too close to her. She is from the future by Merlin, she was in love with our nephew! I will continue to do what I have been doing for years, keep my mouth shut, spend time with her as members of the Order, friends at the end of the day, and everything will be fine. I'll protect her, keep her from dying, and when the war is over, I'll move on."
"You can't say that! You can't plan to sacrifice yourself for this woman!"
"Don't you dare say that you wouldn't sacrifice yourself for Olivia!"
"That's not the point" sighed her brother in a more forgiving voice. "I've been with Olivia for years. And we love each other."
The two brothers stopped talking about Fabian's feelings, but neither had left their positions. Whatever he said, Gideon knew that his brother really loved Helena, he couldn't call her anything else. Hermione was not someone he had known, he only knew Helena, the cold fighter who killed her enemies without a care in the world. Her past, her personal history had played a part in her current character, but Gideon preferred not to think about it, it was easier to hide from her and dislike the witch and forget her weaknesses. But Gideon was living in a utopia. His brother loved Helena so much that he wouldn't hesitate to get himself killed in the witch's place, and that made him sick. No one person should be important enough for his twin to sacrifice himself for him. But Gideon didn't know the future, and he hated that, not knowing. All he knew was that nothing loving would happen between his brother and the Time Traveller. However, he had a hunch, a bad hunch. He had learned to listen to his instincts in Auror school. But for once in his life, Gideon hoped his instincts were wrong.
