Forbidden Magic 60

Forbidden Magic 60

Chapter 60 - Prelude

Xenophilius tried to speak, but all that came out was a whimper. He dropped the plates he was holding on the floor and they made a loud crashing sound that made Ron, Ginny and Hermione all jump. Harry, however, stood his ground as he peered into the silvery blue that reminded him so much of Luna.

“Where is she? I don’t think she’s been here in weeks,” Harry said snarling, “Her clothes are gone, her bed looks like it hasn’t been slept in for weeks! Where is she? Tell me!”

“I-I” he tried to muster sound but nothing came to his mouth as the printing press gave a large bang and began to print the Quibbler. Hundreds of them lined the floor and Hermione bent over to pick one up off the floor.

She took out her wand at this moment and held it up to him, “Harry…”

He turned around and grabbed the magazine out of Hermione’s hands and his anger flared.

“So, going for a new story huh?” he stated coldly. “What is the meaning of this? You were on my side! Why this?! Did you send an owl over to them? Did you?!”

“They took her,” he said finally. “I had no choice. They took her because of what I was printing in the magazines. I don’t know where she is or what they are doing to her. But they might give her back to me if I—“

“Hand Harry over for her?” Hermione had to finish for him. She gripped her wand more tightly in her hand as Ginny came to her side with her own wand drawn.

“Please,” he said but Ginny hissed at him, “No deal!”

“Get out of our way,” Ron pushed him finally, “We’re getting the hell out of here.”

“No,” Harry stated, “Luna’s… missing because of me.”

“Harry!” Hermione shouted at him, “Have you lost your mind?! We can go save her! I don’t think you should give in.”

“They will be here soon,” he said, “I have to save my Luna. I can’t lose her, you don’t understand.”

“I can’t lose her either,” Harry started.

Ron, who was trying to get past Xenophilius, froze in place when he noticed broomsticks falling past the windows of the strange house. “Oh hell!” he yelled.

In the chaos, Ginny and Hermione were both looking out the windows as the masked figures were landing in the front yard. Harry noticed Xenophilius pull out his own wand and he screamed, “GET DOWN!”

Ginny turned her head around in a split second and shoved her lover to the floor as Ron jumped down behind the kitchen table. The stunning spell flew from his wand and hit the horn. It blew up most of the living room causing a horrible mess of paper, wood and objects.

All four of them were half way under the rubble as Hermione got herself up on her feet. Torn parchment flew past her head as she searched in the rubble for a sign of Ginny.

Ginny lifted herself up and brushed off the rubble from her body. “Bloody hell,” she uttered as she raised her wand once again. The ceiling had fallen blocking the top of the staircase. The door downstairs was thrown open with a loud crash as voices filled the room.

Hermione, who was covered in dust, grabbed Ginny as the two hid behind some of the rubble. “There was no need to hurry,” a voice rang out, “this lunatic has nothing!”

A painful scream rang out afterwards. “No Potter here! Keep looking! If you lied Lovegood,” another voice said, “We can’t keep coming out here for a wise tale.” There was another scream of pain as the man speaking went on, “Remember when you wanted to trade us some bloody headdress for her? Laughable Lovegood!”

Another scream of pain followed by, “Please stop! He is here! I beg you!”

“There’s a bunch of shit blocking the stairs,” a strong voice said, “If we even try to clean this up the whole place is going to come down around our ears!”

“Shut up,” the manly voice said, “you better not be lying you piece of filth.”

“I am telling you that he is upstairs,” a scared Xenophilius said.

“Homenum revelio,” said a voice at the very foot of the stairs, “Come out come out wherever you are Potter! That is, if you are here!”

Hermione let out a gasp as she and Ginny ran towards Harry and pushed him down to the floor. “Someone’s up there alright,” the voice at the foot of the stairs stated.

“Ron?” Ginny was digging for her brother and finally found him with his arms over his head. “Ginny?” he whispered back. She reached her hand into the rubble and pulled him out as Hermione rushed over with the cloak. “Put this on,” she urged.

“Me? But Harry needs—“ Ron tried to protest but Hermione pulled it over his head. “Do it!” she whispered sharply.

“Ginny, Harry do you trust me?” she asked them.

They both nodded in unison.

“Good,” she whispered, “hold on to my shoulders, both of you.”

“What about me?” Ron whispered.

“Get in front of me. NOW!”

The printing press was blocking them in and Xenophilius was trying to hover it up with a charm. “Here we go,” Hermione smiled, “hold on for your life… Any second now!”

His face appeared finally and Hermione had her wand pointed, “Obliviate!” Then she switched her wand to the floor underneath them, “Deprimo!”

A large gapping whole appeared in the center of the floor as all four of them fell through. Hermione could feel the hands on her shoulder’s digging into her skin but she held back the pain. So much rubble fell over head and onto their bodies as they crashed down on two death eaters below and in all this mess Ginny felt a rush of cold over her entire body. Hermione held Ginny close by as Ron and Harry disappeared.

“Protego Totalum… Salvio Hexia…” were just a few of the spells Hermione casted as she ran in circles around them.

“That little bastard,” Ron muttered as he panted on the grass. He took off the cloak and handed it to Harry who held on to it tightly.

“You are a genius,” Ginny said with a grin as wide as the sky, “A complete genius. I can’t believe that we are alive and sitting here on this grass right now!”

“No kidding,” Ron echoed the praise, “Thank you Hermione.”

Hermione wasn’t really listening to their words of praise. Her body was still trembling and her mind still racing. “Cave Inimicum! Didn’t I say that thing was an Erumpent horn? Didn’t I say that? Oh for the love of Merlin! Now his house is in pieces! Blown completely!” She yelled as she fell over. Her legs could no longer hold her body up.

“Pfft,” Ron uttered, “Serves him right.”

“Luna,” was all Harry said, “I understand why he did it. I was ready to give myself up.”

“No,” Hermione groaned, “I just hope that they do not kill him. I made them take a glimpse of Harry before we left so they don’t think the poor man is lying.”

“Poor man! Bah!” Ron waved his arm, “Hermione, why did you hide me though?”

“Ronald, if they find out anymore ties to Harry what do you think they will do to your family, as for Ginny, I placed a charm on her to make her invisible slightly.”

“So that was the cold I felt,” she stated.

“Yes,” Hermione nodded her head. Ron scratched his head, “Alright then but what about your parents?”

Hermione’s eyes glistened with tears and Ginny felt the rush of sadness. “They’re in Australia Ron,” she answered for her. They should be fine because they, well they don’t know anything.”

“Brilliant,” Ron said with a smile, “you are a genius just like Ginny said.”

Hermione’s mood did not brighten even with all them praising her yet again. Ginny read her like a book and added, “Hermione I think we would be truly lost without you. You are the strong link in our chain and we love and thank you for it.”

She beamed if only for a moment until her mind traced back to Luna. Harry had not said a word because she knew his mind was on Luna. She couldn’t bear to think what she would be feeling if she knew Ginny was locked away and there was no way to get to her.

“Where do you think Luna is?” Harry asked finally.

“Well, I hope that she is still alive like they seem to say she is—“ Ron began.

“Please don’t say that Ron,” Hermione covered her ears, “Don’t say that please. She has to be alive, she just has to be.”

“Luna is tough,” Harry said looking sullen all the same.

“But I think they are sticking people like her in Azkaban,” Ron said sadly, “Not many make it through and—“

Once again Ron was cut off. “She’s tough, she’ll make it,” Harry said, “I just have to find her.”

“Harry,” Ginny looked at him, “What about the horcruxes? Ending this?”

“I can do that while I look for her,” Harry said, “I have to. I know she’s tough but I can’t take knowing she’s locked up somewhere.”

They were silent for a moment before they decided to set up a tent and once inside Hermione’s body was put to rest and the white dust finally taken off of her. Ginny sat down near her and wrapped her arms around her. A thought popped into her head.

“That damn story was a lie,” she said suddenly making the other three look at her.

“Um, no, it can’t be,” Ron stated.

“The Deathly Hallows Ronald,” Hermione stated, “He might have made the whole thing up.”

“I don’t think so. When you are under stress, oh man, is it hard to think. I learned that with the snatchers. It’s easy to be Stan when I know Stan but I couldn’t make up a whole new person.”

“I think he told us a lie to keep us talking, but not that it matters,” she said grimly, “Even if he was being honest, that was biggest load of nonsense and such a waste of time. It was Godric’s Hallow all over again!”

“Hang on a minute,” Ginny stated, “The Chamber of Secrets was supposed to be myth and well, that’s real isn’t it?!”

“But the Deathly Hallows cannot EXIST!” Hermione exclaimed as she drew herself away from Ginny.

“You keep saying that,” interjected Ron, “but Harry’s got one, doesn’t he?”

“That is nothing more than a story,” she said firmly, “it’s just a tale about people being scared of Death. If it were as simple as hiding under the cloak then we wouldn’t need anything else.”

“I don’t know,” Harry said as if the conversation had taken him from deep rooted thoughts, “we could use a wand that wins everything.”

“Unbeatable,” Ginny sighed.

“There is no such thing!”

“But you said that there were –“ Ginny tried to speak but Hermione held up her hand. “All right, even you had the wand and the cloak, explain to me the stone! No magic can raise the dead and that’s final!”

“When my wand connected with Vo- I mean, You-Know-Who’s wand, I saw my mum, dad and even Cedric…”

“They weren’t really back from the dead. Those are pale imitations,” she groaned, “Nothing can bring the dead to life.”

“But the girl in the story was there. She didn’t really come back per say, but she was there and she spoke to him. She even lived with him for a while.”

Hermione’s head was twisting with thoughts as he uttered those words. Has he gone mental? A worried look appeared on her face and Ginny’s as well. She was beginning to wonder what his obsession with death was.

As if noted the concerned faces, he quickly said, “So about Peverell, you don’t know anything about him?”

“Afraid not,” Hermione sighed. She was, however, very relieved with the sudden change in conversation. Ginny shifted in her seat as she drank tea that Ron had made.

“I… I looked him up after I saw the mark on the grave; if he did something great I’m sure he would be in a text book. The only place I can recall seeing that name was in Nature’s Nobility: A Wizard Genealogy,” she explained.

Ginny’s eyebrows raised along with her brother’s. They must have been thinking the same thing because they both said, “Why were you reading that and where did you even get it?”

“I borrowed it from Kreacher,” she sighed, “Anyway; it lists all of these pure-blood families that are now extinct down the male line. The Peverells were one of them, the earliest to disappear to be exact.”

“Marvolo Gaunt!” Harry shouted suddenly causing the other three to jump. “Pardon me?” Hermione questioned him.

“Marvolo Gaunt! You-Know-Who’s grandfather said that he was the decendent of the Peverells.”

“How do you know that?” Hermione pressed him again.

“The lessons that Dumbledore gave me, I saw the memory of some bloke from the ministry, anyway, listen! The ring that became a horcrux, he had it. And He was showing it off and he said that it had the coat of arms on it of the Peverell family.”

“Did you get a good look at it?” she asked him sharply.

“It had something on it but I can’t remember but what if it was the Hallows!”

“Excuse me?”

“Wow!” Ginny and Ron exclaimed.

Hermione shot them both a glare as she turned her body back to Harry, “This is insane! It can’t be Harry!”

“Why not? The man had no books and he would never read to his kids either! The idiot wouldn’t know what it was. All he cared about was being pure-blooded!” Harry said getting up to his feet.

“That is very interesting Harry but it is irrational!” Hermione said.

“It’s the stone, don’t you see?” Harry walked up to Hermione who was sitting in her chair. She looked up at him with narrowed eyes.

“Impossible,” she stated. Ginny rolled her eyes, “why? Why is it impossible? Because you didn’t see it in a bloody book?”

Hermione nearly leapt from her chair to go confront Ginny but she held it in. “Do you think it would still work Harry?”

“Work? Are you listening to yourself? How can something work if it doesn’t exist?!” Hermione now really did leap out of her chair. “You are all trying to fit everything in to this stupid story that isn’t even real!”

“Fit it all in?” Harry shouted, “What the hell are you talking about? It fits in on its own. Can’t you see? Can’t you open your mind?!”

“A minute ago you were telling me that you weren’t sure what you saw but you swore it’s the Hallow’s sign?!”

“Where do you think it is now?” Ginny asked getting up to her feet.

There was utter silence for moments on end as everyone looked at Harry. He was running his hands over the cloak and finally shouted, “The cloak is mine because I am a descendant.”

“What?” Hermione asked him.

“That letter you gave me, it was from my mother telling me everything I needed to know about the cloak and Dumbledore. That cloak was my father’s,” Harry told them, “He had the thought that it was a Hallow! Don’t you get it?”

Ginny thought back to the letter that was given to Dumbledore and Hermione’s mind was on the letter that Dumbledore gave Grindelwald. “I—“ Hermione said. “The—“ Ginny tried to say at the same time.

The redhead coughed and the older of the two said, “I can’t be sure he was looking for the hallows.”

“The symbol though Hermione, in the letter, oh,” she stopped as she looked at Harry who sighed. He nodded, “I saw it. They both used the symbol and I think they both wanted it. In love or not, they both had a common ground on that and they both believed.”

Something fell to the floor as all four of them stared down to the floor. It was the snitch. “The gifts,” Harry breathed. “Ginny, the glasses?”

“Huh?” she looked at him, “Oh yes, I have them.”

She took them out. “I don’t know what these are for just yet but all of these gifts have something to do with the hallows and one of the hallows is so big that it needed two clues! The wand, I know it.”

“So what are you saying?” Ron asked.

“I don’t know yet, but I will soon,” Harry said looking down at the snitch. Hermione’s brain clicked onto to something even though she wasn’t sure if she believed it.

“The glasses might have something on them and the stone, if it does exist, must be in the snitch,” she said, “the book was given to me to help us uncover the story. All of these things are important, even Ron’s gift. Wait…”

Hermione shook her head and it caused her bushy hair to move about with a mind of its own. “Ron get out the Deluminator and Ginny take out his glasses from their case.”

They did as they were told and the two siblings put them close together and a blue light came out it hit the glasses and caused a blue light to shine out into the distance. Nothing more, at this moment, happened. They both sighed putting away the objects.

“Well, that was useful,” Hermione sighed.

“It was pointing somewhere,” Harry told her, “He is after the wand, I have two of the Hallows and he has no idea what the Hallows are. He just thinks the wand is old and powerful. He never heard the story, he has no idea.”

Hermione was now overly annoyed with Harry. “If this was real, why didn’t he tell you?”

“Because I have to do this on my own, Hermione, he is telling us but he’s making us find it,” he answered her.

“Do you believe this?” she turned to Ron and Ginny who were looking at each other.

“I—“ Ginny couldn’t say it. She was so nervous to say yes, but Ron said something instead.

“I think we need to get rid of those Horcruxes and then perhaps we can worry about the Hallows,” he said.

“Thank you, not all I wanted to hear, but good enough,” Hermione said, “I’ll take the damn first watch then.”

She walked out of the tent huffing under her breath as Ginny stood still in the tent.