The Boy Who Kept Dying

Chapter 16 (Death joins the party)

A/N: Not my story! Original avalible on ao3

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Just after Christmas Day, Harry stood dejectedly inside a heavily warded grove within a forest somewhere in England, he wasn't even sure where he was at this point. A deceptively small tent was behind him and an equally dejected Hermione Granger and a limping Ron Weasley emerged from it. Hermione wrapped her arms around Harry's shoulders causing him to breathe in a sharp breath of pain. "Sorry," Hermione said but didn't pull away.

Harry touched his split lip with a wince as Hermione took in his black eye. "I'm fine 'Mione. How are you and Ron?"

Hermione pulled back as he inspected the small cuts and bruises on his friend. Ron just waved him off when he came over. "It looks worse than it is I'm sure, mate," Ron tried to laugh but only succeeded in a dark chuckle and a glare to his still-bleeding leg.

"Do we still have any more Dittany, 'Mione?" Harry asked as he knelt to take in Ron's leg, who was now heavily leaning on Hermione's shoulder.

"No, we ran out after taking care of Ron's shoulder when I splinched him," she sighed as she lowered her boyfriend to the ground instead of holding him up. "I'm sorry."

Harry scoffed. "You have nothing to apologize for! If it wasn't for you even thinking to bring it, we'd have been lost well before now. And, if you think you're apologizing for splinching Ron, then I would like to remind you, we'd all be dead if you hadn't apparated us out of there."

"It's just disheartening that we've only succeeded in staying alive. We haven't actually done anything," Hermione now ran her fingers through Ron's hair which definitely needed a cut soon. "Plus, we lost the fang. How're we supposed to take out the last Horcrux if we do manage to find it."

"Don't forget that you're now missing a wand as well, mate," Ron added on to the pity party.

They had been wandering around the forests and hiding from snatchers for months. Since they had left the Burrow in August, the trio had succeeded in finding and rescuing several of their classmates and muggleborns who were on the run to safety at Grimmauld Place, which had been set up as a safe house with a much healthier Kreature and Andromeda Tonks's husband Ted in charge of running things there. The trio refused to stay as they continued to find those who needed to be ushered to safety, and they wanted to keep looking for the last Horcrux (besides Nagini).

Harry looked with lost eyes out into the woods. "We've gotten a lot of people to safety; I wouldn't call that nothing. However, I know how you're feeling. I wish we could end all this," he said sadly. "I think it's time to get some help."

"From who?" Hermione agreed, but everyone they knew who could help was either in hiding or at Hogwarts, which was under the control of the Carrows. They didn't even have a means to get a message to anyone since Hedwig hadn't survived Harry's escape from Privet Drive and Pig had been left at Grimmauld Place to be used for emergencies.

Harry pulled a small whistle out of his pocket. "There's something I haven't been very straightforward about with the two of you," Harry nervously played with the whistle in his hands. "It was for a good reason, but I still hope you can forgive me. I just don't know how you're going to take it. And I didn't tell you before...well, for the same reason, and that I would sound completely barmy."

"I think we've been through enough together at this point for us to go on a little faith," Ron said, struggling to stand. "I know we've all had our arguments and shouting matches since we've been cooped up together, but after fighting off Death Eaters, Snatchers, and that bloody huge snake yesterday, I don't think anything you tell us will break apart this family. If you haven't figured it out in the last seven years, we're in this together to the end."