xxxx.
we were amateurs at war – part ii
(Mars by Sleeping at Last)
__________
March 5, 1979
Being Head Girl had its perks and Hermione Pettigrew had put them to good use.
Hermione, as usual, had cooped herself in the library to study for the NEWTs. Her Ravenclaw classmates had opted to ditch her today, bemoaning their exhaustion, and Hermione merely gave them an apologetic smile, knowing full well she'd started becoming crazy obsessed with studying again.
And, as usual, Hermione had lost track of time and when she glanced at her wristwatch, it was already past curfew.
She took her precious time fixing her things and sauntering out of the library. Filch wouldn't dare give her detention because she could always use the excuse that she was Patrolling. The professors would of course commend her for her dedication in catching any rule breakers at night. She was slightly abusing her powers and she knew it. She could already imagine the Marauders mercilessly teasing her for using her badge as an excuse to spend more time in the library. But, with Dumbledore forbidding her from meddling with Order business, Hermione really didn't have any other choice but to study just to distract herself from the chaos outside Hogwarts.
She truly was enjoying studying, but Hermione honestly wished for the school-year to end. She had other important things to focus on, such as her horcrux hunt and the war. The Daily Prophet still boasted increasing attacks from the Death Eaters. Peter had kept his promise and religiously wrote to her about things happening outside the school, but even he had been quite vague, apologising that some things were too confidential and risky to write on parchment. But he'd reassured her they were all fine, that they were trying their best to fight for their cause, and had begged her not to put herself in harm's way just to put their minds at ease.
Her trek towards the Head's Dormitory had been filled with these thoughts. She distractedly searched different alcoves, too, just to catch any lurking students around, but blessedly, she hadn't caught any rule breakers at all.
But such relief was short-lived when the hairs on her neck prickled. Someone was watching her and with her war-heightened senses, Hermione tightly clutched her wand and whipped around in search of a person. She warily eyed the portraits, trying to see if the sensation of being watched was their doing, but all the portraits in that corridor were already asleep.
Suspiciously asleep, if she were being honest with herself.
Still, she couldn't dispel the ominous feeling. Alarm bells went off in her head, a tiny voice urging her to run back to the safety confines of her dormitory.
'It's just a student playing a prank on you,' she firmly told herself just to lessen the nervousness.
Hermione's eyes swept throughout the corridor one last time. Convinced that she was just conjuring things in her mind after a very tiring day, she took a deep breath and continued her journey back to the Head's Dormitory.
But then, a soft shriek slipped out of her mouth when she saw a student standing on the opposite side of the corridor. His tongue flicked across his lips as a small smirk grew on his face, undoubtedly amused at how she'd almost jumped an inch or two in fright.
"Crouch," she growled. "You're out of bed. It's already past curfew. Twenty points from Slytherin."
He wasn't even bothered by her punishment, eyes painstakingly travelling from her head to toe, an indecipherable look on his face.
Hermione tried to dispel the urge to shiver, once again remembering his older counterpart and how he was the reason why Harry Potter was brought to the graveyard in Little Hangleton. Hermione's fingers flexed, itching to grip the rough handle of her wand.
She shouldn't underestimate this wizard. He was still marvellously young, twenty years away from the Death Eater who'd been able to singlehandedly overpower a renowned, seasoned Auror, but the way his dark brown eyes flickered in the dark meant he was already unforgiving.
The Ravenclaw stiffened when he started to languidly shrink the distance between them. His footsteps were loud against the cobblestone floor, his gaze not leaving Hermione's form. He flicked his tongue over his lips once more as a feral grin grew on his face.
"Pettigrew," he coolly greeted, drawing to a halt just a few meters away from Hermione.
She fought the urge to shrink away from his intense gaze, but didn't stop herself from slowly slipping her right hand inside her robe pocket. His eyes briefly glanced at her hidden hand before looking back in her eyes, thinly-veiled amusement in them. "There's no need to unleash your scary powers tonight, Pettigrew," he drawled.
Her hand tightly wrapped around her wand. "You're out of bed," she slowly repeated. "Get back to your dormitory now, Crouch, or I'll be forced to give you detention."
Crouch quirked an eyebrow. "If you want to threaten, Pettigrew, you have to mean it," he pointed out.
In a matter of seconds, her wand tip was pressed directly underneath Crouch's chin. It gave her some grim satisfaction to see that his eyes had widened a bit at her sudden action, but Crouch immediately schooled his emotions behind a carefully crafted mask. "Perhaps, I didn't make myself clear," she hissed. "Get back to your dormitory, Crouch."
He coolly looked down at her and menacingly flicked his tongue out of his lips. "With that brilliant head of yours and your undoubted magical prowess, did you know you can do great things, Hermione Pettigrew?" he whispered, voice dangerously low. "Pity you hang out with the wrong sort of people." He hissed when she dug the tip of her wand deeper into his skin. "You could offer so much more in a new world – a better world – where glory and power will reign supreme."
Bile rose into her throat, remembering the sickening words she'd read on the unsigned letter she'd received a few days ago. "What do you want?" she hissed.
His brown eyes turned steely. "I think you know what I want," he deliberately drawled. "What he wants."
"I didn't know Death Eaters were still actively recruiting those who'd clearly refused to join their idiotic cause."
"A bold accusation," he sniped.
Hermione held her head higher, her heart thudding wildly inside her chest. She knew she was treading in dangerous waters, but the fact that he'd cornered her in this suspiciously deserted corridor just to recruit her, drew out the war heroine in her. "I know I'm not wrong," she spat.
His lips curled into a cold sneer. "You can't prove anything, Pettigrew," he taunted.
Her grip on her wand tightened, her knuckles now already turning white. "Actually, I can," she said.
Before he could even blink, she gave her wand a mighty slash. Crouch expelled a surprised yelp when he flew into the wall, pinned into place by an invisible force. He bared his teeth, eyes wide with panic, when Hermione determinedly yanked his left sleeve up. The familiar Dark Mark glinted menacingly and the Head Girl swallowed a forming lump, steadfastly meeting Crouch's eyes.
He'd grown furious and frantic, reminiscent of the crazed Death Eater who'd proudly proclaimed his loyalty to the Dark Lord. Regulus had shown the same reaction too, when she'd forcefully pulled his sleeve up to show his own tattoo, but unlike Regulus, there was no clear remorse in Crouch's face.
"What have you done?" she breathed out, tears unwittingly filling her eyes. He was also just a boy, barely an adult in this world and it sickened Hermione, sickened her so much how he was too brainwashed in believing that receiving this mark was the highest honour he could ever dream of receiving.
"You bloody fucking bitch," he snarled, thrashing wildly against the invisible hold of her spell. Hermione distractedly wondered how none of the professors or even Filch had arrived when he'd been making such a loud ruckus. "You just wait. You just wait. I'm going to kill you. You might have caught the Dark Lord's fancy because how could he not like you? Brightest witch of her age with the blood of a respectable family coursing through your veins! But I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I killed you."
She shivered at his threats, so full of hatred and disgust. "Shut up," she snarled, pointing her wand at him once more.
A maniacal laugh escaped from his lips. "Or you'll what? Hex me with your infamous Bat-Bogey Hex, Pettigrew?" he drawled. His eyes dangerously flashed as he ducked his head, his tongue once again flitting out. "You are nothing against the Dark Lord. A mere bug he could squash with the heel of his shoe. Refusing to join his cause is a huge mistake, Pettigrew." His grin turned ominous. "You just wait. Something big will happen. Don't say I didn't warn you."
"What do you mean?" she demanded, daring to take a few steps closer.
But Crouch merely gave her a crazed grin.
"What do you mean?" she ground out once more, her voice a tad shrill as panic coursed through her veins.
Such was her focus on Crouch that it was already too late when she felt a wand poking against her back.
"Make one wrong move and you'll regret it, Hermione Pettigrew."
Hermione recognised the soft baritone of Evan Rosier, his threat loud and clear. Blood rushed through her ears as her senses heightened. Although Crouch was pinned against the wall, she was still outnumbered.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Hermione pressed her lips together tightly. Judging from the triumphant grin on Crouch's face, he truly believed they had the upper hand. But one thing these oblivious boys didn't know was that she used to be Hermione Granger, One-Third of the Golden Trio and a brilliant War Heroine.
They had made a terrible mistake of underestimating her.
Adrenaline now coursed through her veins as she quickly rammed her pointy elbow into Rosier's chest. He grunted in pain and Hermione took that opportunity to dance away from his wand tip. She then deftly flicked her wand and muttered a soft 'Expelliarmus'. The Slytherin's wand soared in the air and she caught it in her hand. With another mighty slash, she sent a Stunning Spell towards Rosier.
The spell she'd used to pin Crouch against the wall had worn off after she had been distracted by Rosier. Crouch had his wand in his hand already, ready to hurtle a spell she didn't doubt would be dark, but Hermione was faster and stunned him too.
Deafening silence followed her quick attack except from her heavy breathing. For a moment, Hermione composed herself and tried to think of a plan.
It was still a wonder why they hadn't been discovered after causing such a ruckus. Now that she properly thought about it, though, Hermione had an inkling these Slytherins had actually meant to corner her tonight and may have placed various spells around this corridor so they wouldn't be disturbed.
The adrenaline was slowly waning and now all Hermione could feel was raw fear and panic. 'No, no, not yet,' she harshly told herself, flicking her wand again. The unconscious students levitated and as Hermione turned on her heel, they trailed behind her.
She directed them inside an empty classroom before depositing them on the ground. Hermione went to Crouch first and pressed her wand tip against his temple, murmuring a soft and precise 'Obliviate'. She meant to erase their memories of their encounter; it wouldn't do Hermione any good if they'd remembered what had transpired.
Hermione instilled a fake memory, of both Slytherins getting caught by Filch in this very room for wandering the walls past curfew.
She did the same to Rosier and after making sure they'd wake up after a few more minutes, Hermione slipped out of the room and broke into a run.
-ooo-
When Sev's grumpy, albeit friendly, face greeted her, Hermione immediately flew into his arms and quietly sobbed against his shoulder. Her best friend had grown still at her surprising action, but had started to pat her back for comfort.
"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" he hissed, although the worry laced in his voice was unmistakable. Hermione merely tightened her hold around him and with a soft sigh, Sev pulled her inside his bedchambers and closed the door behind them.
It took her a few minutes before she had finally composed herself and pulled away from Sev. Her cheeks bloomed red, embarrassed by her sudden display of emotion, especially to her best friend who was notoriously uncomfortable with such emotions. "I'm sorry I barged in without telling you beforehand," she said, noisily sniffing and haphazardly wiping her tears away.
Sev wordlessly pointed for her to sit on a squashy armchair near his blazing fireplace and sauntered towards his small coffee table to prepare her some tea.
As Hermione approached the armchair, she finally realised this was the first time she'd been in Sev's small office at Hogwarts. This was of course different from Professor Snape's own quarters, since Slughorn still occupied that room. Despite her tears, though, a small smile graced her tearstained face. The room still screamed Lily, with white lilies decorating the windowsill and the small coffee table. His office walls were painted with handsome ecru and the pieces of furniture were cosy enough to be comfortable.
"This room's Lily-fied too," she softly pointed out as she finally plopped down on the chair. She almost melted in her seat, the armchair impossibly soft and comfortable.
Sev snorted and extended a teacup at her direction. "She wanted to make sure I was comfortable even when I'm not with her," he said, taking a seat across from Hermione.
"But you still go home to Spinner's End?"
"Of course," he coolly said. "It is my home after all."
Her smile returned to her face, fondly remembering the times when Sev would point out that Hogwarts was his only home. Now that Lily was living with him, his childhood home had been flipped from floor to ceiling and now trumped whatever comfort Hogwarts had brought to him.
"Will you tell me now what the bloody hell you are doing here?" he asked once more, his dark eyes steadfastly piercing Hermione. "It's almost midnight, Hermione. I know you're Head Girl, but a student like you shouldn't be lurking around past curfew."
Her smile fell, reminded of her small skirmish with the Slytherins prior to barging into Sev's quarters. She quietly took a sip from her tea first to soothe her nerves, before slowly starting. "I had an encounter a while ago."
Sev's lips magnetised into a deep frown. "A little elaboration would help, Pettigrew," he said.
The cold fear she'd felt when Crouch spouted ominous words crept back into her heart. "A few days ago," she deliberately started, "I received a letter. It wasn't signed, but it was an invitation."
She threw him a meaningful glance, which prompted his face to darken in anger and he showed genuine worry for her. "You knew he'd try and recruit me whether you like it or not, Sev," she said, a wry smile cracking on her face. "How could he not? Brightest witch of my age with the blood of a respectable family coursing through my veins."
"You should have told someone. Me," he insisted, his worry for her now overshadowing whatever other emotions he was feeling right now.
"I wasn't worried about it at first," she explained. "James and the others had received the same letter before and they refused to join. As far as I know, Voldemort didn't try to recruit them again. I didn't want to worry anyone by telling them he'd tried to recruit me too."
He flinched at the name, his frown drawing deeper. "But something happened today," he drawled. He pointedly stared at her tearstained cheeks.
She slowly nodded her head. "Like I said, I had an encounter," she continued. Hermione slumped forward, suddenly feeling bone-deep tired, and wiped away the stray tears from her face. "It was... Crouch and Rosier." Her eyes landed back on Sev when he took a deep, shuddering breath, his face now paler. "Suffice to say, I can now confirm that they're Death Eaters."
"What did they do?" he demanded, the expression on his face thunderous. "Did they hurt you? Those bastards! How dare they—"
"I'm fine, Sev," she appeased, her heart warming at how overprotective he had become. "I handled them myself. They may be Death Eaters but they're... they're new recruits."
"What did they do?" he asked again, his voice now softer and uncharacteristically gentle.
Hermione wearily rubbed the bridge of her nose and leaned back in the comfortable armchair. "Crouch tried to recruit me again," she whispered. "He said, with my brains and magical prowess, I could bring great things to the world Voldemort wanted."
"Can you please stop saying his name?"
"It's just that, Sev," she ground out. "It's just a name."
He groaned and stared at her in exasperation. "Hermione..."
Tears filled her eyes once more, but her gaze was firm. "He's getting desperate. I know he is," she continued. "I knew coming back to Hogwarts was a bad idea, especially now the pinnacle is approaching. I should be out there, searching for his remaining horcrux. I should be out there, destroying all of his goddamn horcruxes and defeating him once and for all. I shouldn't be here, Sev. I should... I should..."
He was immediately out of his seat and beside Hermione, tightly clasping her hands in his as his dark eyes clouded with earnest worry. She broke down into quiet sobs and threw her arms around Sev, drawing as much comfort from him as he could provide.
"I-I'm sorry," she murmured. "It has been a tiring night."
"We should tell Dumbledore," he then said. "Those bastards cannot stay here at Hogwarts!"
Hermione took a deep breath and slightly pulled away from him. "I will tell the Headmaster, but I think I already know what he'll do," she said. "If the ministry discovers there are Death Eaters in Hogwarts, the Wizarding World will go berserk and Voldemort might be forced to have a wide-scale premature attack. The resistance cannot afford that yet, not when the horcruxes aren't destroyed. It will be too risky and everything I've been trying hard to do will be put to waste."
"You mean to say you'll agree to let those dangerous Death Eaters walk through the corridors in Hogwarts and risk the chance of crossing paths with them again?" Sev had grown furious once again, but Hermione squeezed his arm to mollify him.
"Voldemort wouldn't dare to instigate an attack in Hogwarts," she firmly said. "He couldn't afford that yet. He's still recruiting, Sev. Meaning his army isn't complete yet. He might be a madman, but he's a brilliant strategist."
"Dumbledore won't allow this," he insisted.
Hermione wryly smiled. "His intentions may be righteous, but Dumbledore's a strategist too, Sev," she said. "I've worked alongside him as Hermione Granger. He's willing to risk a few innocent casualties for the cause. Trust me."
He looked deeply disturbed by her words.
"But, I'm sure he'll still do whatever it takes to protect Hogwarts," she continued. "I made sure Crouch and Rosier don't remember what happened tonight." She grew worried as she remembered Crouch's words. "But... but I fear for the following days. Crouch said something; he told me I should be prepared. Something big is going to happen."
Hermione fearfully met Sev's equally terrified dark eyes. "I just hope it won't be too soon."
__________
June 30, 1979
Something was horribly wrong.
Her eyes were swimming with tears at the end of her graduation speech, as she smiled sadly at her fellow seventh years. She kept on scanning everywhere just to forever memorise their faces, in case things didn't work out in this timeline either.
But then, when her eyes landed on Regulus, all the Slytherin did was stare blankly at her.
Hermione guessed it must be because he was flanked by Orion and Walburga Black. With his Pureblood, bigoted parents accompanying him, Regulus must continue to keep up appearances. It didn't help that Sirius was somewhere amongst the crowd, boisterously attracting attention whilst interacting with Hermione's family and their friends.
She would have brushed that strange behaviour away, but as her eyes continued to sweep amongst the crowd, she noted that some of her classmates – mostly Slytherins and a few Ravenclaws – were acting very strangely. Troublesome expressions were settled on their faces and Hermione had a very bad feeling about it.
Her eyes caught Peter's as she descended the dais. His brows were furrowed in worry, noting the panic-stricken look on her face. "Something's wrong," she mouthed.
Peter's eyes grew steely, his blue eyes now scanning the crowd. His wand was now tightly clutched in his hand, and he slowly raised it as if poised to attack. Beside him, James noticed Peter's sudden change in behaviour. When he looked at Peter, askance, her brother merely jutted his chin towards Hermione. James' expression turned grim at seeing her face.
Hermione sought for Crouch's face amongst the crowd and gave him her darkest glare. This was all his fault. The night they'd cornered her still bothered her, even when Dumbledore reassured her he—and by extension, Regulus— would keep an eye on him and Rosier. As she'd guessed, Dumbledore didn't alert the authorities about the existence of Death Eaters in Hogwarts. Hermione even had this inkling that Dumbledore had always known, if not for the lack of surprise on his face when she'd narrated the encounter she'd had with the Slytherins.
She had been on her toes since that day, surreptitiously eyeing the two Slytherins for any suspicious activity. She'd caught Regulus glaring at her one too many times, wordlessly relaying that she was being very suspicious herself, but Crouch's threat hadn't put her at ease. She knew Dumbledore had appointed Regulus to keep an eye on the two, as he never went anywhere in Hogwarts without them anymore, but Hermione still couldn't stop herself from seeking them out.
She was thoroughly distracted for the rest of the ceremony. Her actions by then were mechanical, clapping when needed and pasting a small smile when addressed. Dumbledore had said another farewell speech and stripped them of their House Colours. Unlike last year, there was no grand firework display nor any kinds of ruckus instigated by infamous pranksters. In fact, Hermione could feel the other guests were on edge, clear anticipation on their faces.
But from what?
The whole ceremony had ended without much of a hitch. Hermione kindly smiled at her classmates as they congratulated her, pulled her into group hugs, and cajoled her to pose with them in photographs. By the time she'd reached Peter and her family, she was flustered and tired.
"What do you mean something's wrong?" he whispered for only her to hear.
Hermione lightly smiled when Sirius and Remus loudly proclaimed how proud they were, and Anya was already listing down all the food she'd prepared for Hermione's graduation feast back home.
"Never mind that," she murmured under her breath. She smiled reassuringly at James when she caught his eyes. "I was wrong." She craned her neck in search of Regulus once more, but said heir was huddled close to his family, his back facing Hermione.
Her family and friends trekked towards the awaiting thestral-drawn carriages. With every step she took, Hermione's troubled heart eased. She mentally cursed Crouch again, believing that his bothersome words had ruined a supposedly happy day for Hermione.
She smiled sweetly at James when he held her hand and helped her climb into the carriage. He did the same with Anya before climbing in with them. Peter, Remus, and Sirius soon followed and as they settled inside, Hermione's bemused eyes twinkled at how ridiculously cramped they were. Sirius, easily the tallest of them all, was hunched over and had succeed in annoying Remus and James by draping his legs over their laps.
"What do you plan on doing now that you're a graduate?" Remus asked, briefly throwing a glare at Sirius.
With the horcrux hunt and the war, Hermione honestly had no idea what she would do with her future. It seemed a tad silly for her to think way ahead of time, when the future was still uncertain. Hermione Granger had already planned a lot of things in her life and look at where she was now.
So, unsure how she would answer his question, Hermione shrugged half-heartedly.
"I think," Sirius declared, "Kitten might be a brilliant Auror."
Hermione grimaced at the same time as Anya did.
"Think about it!" James gushed, obviously delighted at Sirius' suggestion. "You're bloody brilliant with a wand, Hermione. Very disciplined too. Moody would love you. I'm sure of it."
"Much as I appreciate your compliment," Hermione said, nose still wrinkled, "I don't think being an Auror is for me." She'd been through enough battles to last her and her alternate selves a lifetime. Truth be told, Hermione wanted a quiet job for a change, one that would still challenge her brain but put her heart at ease.
"And thank Merlin for that," Anya sighed, prompting her daughter to grin and reach out for her hand.
"Lily and Snape didn't come to your graduation?" Peter then asked, a frown on his face.
Hermione sadly smiled and shook her head. "Lily's swamped with Unspeakable training while Sev's with Slughorn today for a Potion symposium," she said. She fondly remembered Lily's long letter, lamenting how she felt horrible for missing her graduation. Hermione had reassured the redhead that she'd meet up with her and Sev soon, just to catch up and talk about their lives so far.
Conversations from then were benign, with the Marauders mostly doing the talking. James and Sirius, the usually boisterous ones, were loudly recounting a disastrous mission they'd had. Peter occasionally interjected to add to their tale, and Hermione was just content that she was with people she cared for the most. Being cooped up in Hogwarts without any idea as to what the true state of the Wizarding World really was, was mighty frustrating for Hermione. At least, with school now out of the way, she could fully focus her attention on bringing Voldemort down.
Soon, they reached the outskirts of Hogwarts' grounds. They all jumped out of the carriage, the other families of the graduates following behind. Hermione took that moment to gaze at Hogwarts in all its glory, a small, sad smile slipping onto her face.
"I'm going to miss you," she breathed out. She then glanced at her hand, which was already being incessantly pulled by James.
"Come on," he urged, his smile wide and blinding. "Anya has prepared a meal that could feed the entire future generation."
Anya softly laughed, having overheard James's words. "That is not true, young man, and you know it," she said.
"Of course, Anya, I was just joking," he retorted with a goofy grin. When Anya looked away and hooked her arm around Peter's, James looked back at Hermione and mouthed 'I'm not really joking'. Hermione snorted and squeezed his hand, allowing him to pull her behind the others.
At the same time, Hermione distractedly heard numerous pops. She craned her neck to watch families eagerly Disapparating as soon as they'd crossed out of Hogwarts' territory. She really, truly wanted to brush off their strange behaviour but then, she was reminded of Crouch's ominous words again. It didn't help that the families who had Disapparated almost immediately, were the students who had been acting strangely during graduation.
She tugged James' hand to keep him in place.
"What's wrong?" he asked, knitting his eyebrows in confusion.
Hermione wildly looked around in search of Regulus. A brief flash of silver caught her attention and her blood immediately ran cold when she met Regulus' mercurial eyes, raw fear and guilt in them. Beside him, Walburga spat words against his ear. Regulus tightly clenched his jaw and disappeared with a 'pop'.
Her gaze instantly swept back towards her boyfriend when a hiss slipped pass James' lips. His hand was pressed against his chest, a green glow peeking underneath his collar "What's wrong?" she echoed back. She saw how Peter had considerably paled too and had stopped walking all together, his hand also pressed against his chest, this time a reddish glow underneath. His blue eyes met hers, a grim line on his face.
"What's going on?" Sirius asked, glancing from Peter to James with worry in his eyes.
Before either her brother or James could answer, an incantation she wished to never hear again boomed throughout the crowd.
"MORSMORDRE!"
Ominous green bathed the quaint little town of Hogsmeade. Terrified screams escaped from the other wizards and witches while Peter pushed Anya towards Hermione. "Go!" he exclaimed, eyes wide with fear and panic. "Apparate!"
Hermione had gone very still, her terrified eyes trained intently on the snake slithering out from the skull in the sky. Anya had grabbed onto her arm and had tried to Apparate away, but her eyes widened and her face turned pale. "They've placed Anti-Apparition wards," Anya faintly cried.
Those within earshot grew horrified and tried to run back towards Hogwarts and its promised protection, but a barrier had been erected between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade. Many tried to desperately crack the barrier but this was in vain.
A soft shriek escaped from Hermione's lips when the nearby shop – Scrinvenshaft's – exploded with a resounding bang. Sirius had erected a protective shield around their small group to stop hurtling debris from hitting and injuring them. At the same time, a flurry of silver-masked Death Eaters swarmed into the disturbed town, menacingly throwing dark spells and destroying nearby shops. Hermione's blood ran cold, panic now climbing up from the pit of her stomach, but the adrenaline that rushed through her whole body awakened her nerves. With her war-heightened senses, she pulled out her wand and keenly glanced in all directions, focusing on those who'd try to hurt them. Beside her, Anya had her wand out too, but her mother's hand was shaking terribly, obvious terror on her face.
"We have to alert Dumbledore!" Remus shouted over the growing ruckus.
James firmly nodded his head, took a deep breath and boomed a loud, "Expecto Patronum!" Blinding white light shot out from his wand tip and formed a great stag. "Tell Dumbledore there's an attack in Hogsmeade. Go!"
His Patronus galloped away, blessedly able to pass through whatever barrier the Death Eaters had placed between Hogwarts and the town currently being attacked by Death Eaters.
Hermione glanced back at the Death Eaters, mentally counting them to be at least ten in number or more. Aurors who had been guests at the graduation determinedly strode to the forefront; Peter was already loudly yelling for the civilians to back away and to search for a hiding place.
"Hermione," Anya fearfully said, her death grip around Hermione's right arm already stinging. "We must go."
Truly, she wanted to hide. Her memories as Hermione Granger, running away from danger and fighting by sending precise spells, resurfaced in her mind and almost stole her breath away. The fear she'd felt paralysed her whole, and Hermione knew she was starting to shake.
This was the very same reason why she and Harry had tried to run away. And now, now she was back, standing against these people who'd made her life a living hell, and Hermione didn't know what to do.
Tears prickled her eyes as she darkly glared at the ominous Dark Mark in the sky. The green reminded her of her Harry, determined and brave, despite all of the atrocities and trials around him. The desire to make this place a better world for the future generation, for Harry, surged through ever part of her body, overpowering whatever paralysing fear she had experienced a while ago.
"Go hide with the others, Mum," she tightly whispered.
"Hermione—"
She cracked a weak grin, already pushing her mother towards the clambering crowd. "I will be okay. I promise," she vowed.
Tears were already tumbling down Anya's eyes, already noting the stubborn resolution on her daughter's face. "Let me fight with you then, sweetheart," she softly said.
Hermione's watery eyes widened in horror. "But Mum—"
Whatever she was going to say was drowned by another booming voice. She watched as a silver light shot out from one of the Death Eaters wands, effectively placing a barrier that would separate them from the numerous barrage of multi-coloured spells cast by the Aurors and those who'd chosen to stay and fight.
One of the Death Eaters proudly strode forwards, his wand tip pointed against his neck. "I speak now, directly to those who wish to enter a New Age, where the purest of blood will reign supreme." The spells had ceased, all of them wide-eyed as the Death Eater continued to speak. Hermione tried to decipher his voice, but it was distorted. "The Dark Lord will be merciful to all those who will pledge allegiance."
Deafening silence met his proud proclamation. No one dared move; not even the Death Eaters.
His words rang in Hermione's ears, growing wild and deafening until it was all she could hear. She remembered Crouch's words again, his threat so harsh and ominous it had taken residence in Hermione's brain for the past few days.
This was his warning, and Hermione felt so stupid for brushing it off. Telling Dumbledore wasn't enough because now, the Death Eaters, with magical abilities she knew weren't subpar, had trapped them inside Hogsmeade. The menacing glint from their masks promised they would be unforgiving, and Hermione had this horrible guilt in the pit of her stomach, mentally berating herself for not being more persistent in warning Dumbledore.
'Dumbledore!' she thought, snapping her head over her shoulder to see if James' Patronus was able to relay the message already. There were still wizards and witches trying to break down the barrier erected, hurtling numerous spells, but Hermione couldn't see any sign of Dumbledore, or any of the Hogwarts professors at all.
Her attention was brought back to the Death Eaters when a deafening crack resounded in the whole town. Soon, it was followed by a great shatter as the protective shield they'd placed between them and the others was successfully removed by one of the Aurors. Different explosions of light flashed before her eyes as a battle broke out.
For a moment, Hermione stood wide-eyed and terrified in the middle of the town. People ran past her, almost knocking her over onto the stone floor, and yet, Hermione couldn't force her legs to move. Her breathing had turned shallow, great pants of billowing air escaping from her lips. The Death Eaters were steadily advancing, shooting various spells at the crowd with abandon. The crashing of windows and explosion of debris was soon mingled with terrified screams from the civilians as they desperately waved their wands, protecting themselves from spells so dark they had never heard of them before.
Dirk Creswell's pale face swam into Hermione's vision, his hold on her shoulders tight and almost painful. He was shouting a bunch of words that didn't make sense. Hermione slowly knitted her eyebrows, deciphering his garbled words. And then, Dirk dove onto the ground with Hermione pinned underneath him.
"PETTIGREW, SNAP OUT OF IT!" he hollered as a green light grazed over his dark brown hair.
Hermione took in a deep breath, shaken from her initial paralysing fear, and vigorously nodded her head. She then pushed him away as she immediately scrambled back onto her feet, hurtling a well-aimed Slicing Charm towards the Death Eater who'd almost killed them with the Avada. A surprised shriek escaped from his mouth and Hermione watched with grim satisfaction as huge gashes tore his robes open, blood dripping down and painting the ground dark red.
With her head now solely focused on the battle happening in front of her, Hermione's blue eyes swept around the foray. Terrified, she realised her family and friends were nowhere to be found. When had Anya vanished from her side? Where were the others? The flashing spells were blinding and the smoke and dust from various exploded establishments blanketed the whole town in a thick, suffocating fog. It was difficult to see and Hermione had to rely on her other senses, just in case she had to protect herself and attack an enemy.
Hermione forced her feet to start moving, furiously hurtling spells towards any glinting silver that caught her eye.
She stumbled over various debris, even fallen bodies, which she prayed weren't Anya, Peter or James, and continued running.
"Going somewhere, Missy?"
Hermione's blood ran cold. Despite the distorted voice, the inflection and the cackle was unmistakably Bellatrix Lestrange. The witch sent her a violet-coloured spell that was strangely reminiscent of the one Dolohov had sent her back at the Department of Mysteries. Hermione side-stepped it with practiced ease, eternally grateful she'd had her duelling sessions with Regulus as it now proved useful.
Bella growled at how she'd effortlessly dodged her spell, sending a barrage of spells in lightning speed soon after. Hermione produced a powerful protective barrier around herself and it took unimaginable strength to keep the shield erected.
Bella was growing unmerciful, her spells growing darker and more deadly as her frustration heightened. Hermione made a split-second decision to barrel roll on the ground, choosing to be momentarily vulnerable without her shield.
"Feisty, feisty," the Death Eater hissed. "Why don't you join us, little girl? The Dark Lord will take care of you."
A dark scowl appeared on Hermione's face. "Never! SECTUSEMPRA!" she boomed, still pressed close to the ground, and almost screamed at how it missed Bella's form. The Death Eater laughed at her expense and stalked closer, her silver mask becoming more menacing with every step she took.
Hermione took a deep, shuddering breath, calmed her haywire nerves, and surreptitiously pointed her wand at her. 'Expelliarmus!' she thought with such determination, such clarity, and it gave her a brief sense of triumph when she caught Bellatrix off guard. Her wand flew away from her hand and Hermione immediately jumped onto her feet, deftly catching it mid-air.
Then, without blinking, she gave Bella her darkest glare and broke her wand into two. Bellatrix shrieked bloody murder and tried to tackle her, but she suddenly toppled down, face first on the ground.
Hermione's eyes widened in surprise, meeting gleaming hazel across the foray. James looked thunderous and terrified at the same time. His robes were half-ripped and one of the lenses in his glasses was cracked. He sported a busted lip and there was a huge gash on his cheek. But other than those small wounds and his state of disarray, he looked marvellously well.
"Hermione!" he choked out. "Are you okay? Fuck. Are you? Are you hurt?"
Tears filled her eyes, feeling relief, fear and other various emotions all at the same time. "I'm fine!" she reassured, already slashing her wand to hex an advancing Death Eater behind James. "Fight! Go! I'm fine!"
James looked hesitant, but a sudden explosion separated her from him. Hermione started to run around, praying to all the cosmic powers above that the people she cared about would be safe.
Hermione wasn't sure for how long the battle had been raging. All she knew was that she had to fight fight fight until her body was raw and aching. She'd blessedly caught up with Anya after fighting a lone Death Eater. Her mother looked glorious with her voluminous hair and harsh wand-waving. It had disoriented Hermione a bit how her sweet mother could look absolutely terrifying, but then again, this was Anastasia Selwyn. Her temper could bring a whole house down. The fear in Anya's eyes was unmistakable, though, and Hermione hurried forwards to help her mother.
"Hermione!" she cried, flying into Hermione's arms and expelling a few sobs. "Oh, sweetheart. You're okay. I was so worried. You were—"
Both witches flinched as a deafening crack resounded throughout the battlefield. Hermione watched, wide-eyed, as the protective barrier the Death Eaters had erected between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade was destroyed.
"ENOUGH!" a booming voice commanded. The dust cleared and Albus Dumbledore came, his face hardened with a certain fierceness. Behind him, the Hogwarts Professors stood, flicking their wrists in various directions to help with the fight. A few of the Order members were there too, noting Moody and Kingsley among the new batch of people.
One Death Eater caught Hermione's eye and his wand raised upward. He snarled a spell and there was a shimmer overhead. Then, one-by-one, the Death Eaters started to Apparate away.
"Don't let them get away!" Moody snarled, running forward together with the Aurors behind him. He was able to tackle one Death Eater, who was now thrashing wildly on the ground.
More pops were heard as the civilians caught in the crossfire hastily left. Hermione searched around, trying to see how many casualties were left from the battle, but then, her vision was obscured by sandy hair.
"Are you all right?" Peter asked, wide-eyed.
"Yes, Peter," she feebly replied, squeezing him to reassure him.
Peter pulled away and also drew Anya into a hug, their mother already a sobbing mess as she clung to her brother.
"PETTIGREW!"
The whole family snapped their necks towards Moody's direction. "Just the boy," he corrected, his blue eyes turning steely. "What are you doing there? Scour the perimeter! We need to make sure there are no lurking Death Eaters around."
"Y-yes, sir," Peter said, reluctantly pulling himself away from Anya and Hermione.
Moody's eyes flashed. "What was that, Pettigrew?" he gruffly asked.
"Yes, sir!" he repeated, this time with incredible firmness. With one last look at his family, he Disapparated to follow his orders.
"As for you two," he said, his voice mellowing, "I think it's best if you return to Hogwarts. There's a makeshift infirmary in the Great Hall. You should get those injuries of yours checked."
"Thank you, Alastor," Anya faintly said, already grabbing onto Hermione's hand to tug her towards the direction of the school.
Hermione blindly followed Anya, occasionally squeezing her mother's hand just to convince herself they were both safe and very much alive.
Before they crossed over the threshold between Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, an anguished cry caught their attention. Both Anya and Hermione stopped walking to look at the source, only to see a witch – a mother – bent over a boy with empty eyes staring heavenward.
The brunette thickly swallowed, recognising him as Elias Somerhaulder, a student newly graduated from Gryffindor. She remembered he was one of Dirk Cresswell's close friends, often accompanying him when Hermione held her tutoring sessions in the Head's Dormitory.
Anya started to silently cry once more, heart going out to the poor mother. Tears also swam in Hermione's vision, imagining the dead boy, bearing faces of people she had come to love in this world.
Hermione steeled herself and tightly closed her eyes.
No one was going to die under Voldemort's mercy again. No one. She would make sure of it.