Ashes of Armageddon

Severus found himself laughing softly.



“Miss Granger, you never fail to surprise me. You mean to tell me that the last epic battle between good and evil will take place... in your kitchen? And what precisely are we going to do? Invite Harry Potter for a coffee, try to talk some sense into him, and if that fails, duel him? Against the Elder Wand?”



She gave him a resentful glance. “I said I had a plan. I didn\'t say it was a good one. Do you have a better idea?”



He thought about it for a few minutes. His years of being Dumbledore\'s agent aside, he was a scholar, a duelist, a spy, but not a tactician by any means.



“Alright,” he said finally. “At least this is a familiar territory for you. You are in control here. This is just about the only advantage you have. We will need to magically secure every window, every crack in the walls, ceiling, floors, and every door. Shut down the Floo to all incoming traffic. Since Harry is familiar with your house very well, I strongly recommend changing the layout as much as possible to throw him off, without confusing yourselves.”



Hermione and Ron were listening, hanging on to his every word.



“We are still more vulnerable here than mice with our tails caught in a trap,” Severus said bluntly. “We will need a plan of retreat, in case the duel does not go well.”



Hermione opened her mouth to argue, but Ron shook his head slightly, and she made no protest, but still managed to dart one defiant glare at all of them.



“Do not forget,” Severus said very sharply. “The law is not on your side. Since you have chosen to become criminals, you should make plans accordingly.”



Hermione winced noticeably at his words. “We are not...” she started saying, but Severus cut her off.



“You most certainly are,” Severus insisted softly. “Harry is playing the game very well. So far, he hasn\'t done anything that is actually illegal. All he did, really, is cause a bit of damage to his own property. You three, on the other hand, are guilty of a property crime, assault on George Weasley, and possession of an illegal substance. Not to mention, conspiracy to commit a coup.”



Hermione\'s expression changed to misery. “We are as good as dead, aren\'t we?” she whispered abjectly.



Ron placed his hand on her shoulder.



“No. It will be fine,” he told her. “I\'ll fortify the house. I will also modify the wards on it. We\'ll be able to Disapparate, or depart by port-key, but nobody will be able to enter.”



“Good,” Hermione said with renewed hope, and glanced at Severus briefly. “I\'ve got a spare wand. I tried getting as close an approximation from Mr. Ollivander\'s shop as I could to your old wand,” she told Severus. “Dragon Heartstring and Ebony, right?”



He found himself smiling very slightly. “Correct.”



She handed him the wand, and he tried it. It worked beautifully, he realized in wonder; and he spent several minutes casting random spells, amazed at how much he had missed the simple sensation of magic flowing through him, being channeled into a burst of action.



Hermione was watching him with delight. “I think it likes you.”



He agreed readily; and simply put, probably for the first time since his awakening from the coma, he had felt fully awake and alive.



“Maybe we should get some sleep,” she murmured softly. “It\'ll do us good.”



“I disagree,” Ron said flatly. “We have too much work to do. Hermione, you still have some of your Renalert potion?”



“What\'s that?” Severus asked, instantly curious.



“My personal creation,” Hermione said sheepishly. “It acts as a self-perpetuating Rennervate spell, and more. It keeps you completely alert and refreshed for about three days. But then...”



Ron laughed quietly. “She was taking it while working on her dissertation,” he told Severus. “After she\'d finished it, she spent a good week in bed. But, according to her, it was well worth it.”



“I got published, didn\'t I? So it was well-worth it,” she said haughtily. “Alright. Let\'s take some. I agree, we really do not have much time to waste.”



She disappeared into the kitchen, fussed slightly, brought out four vials out of the kitchen, and handed them out



“Cheers!” Ron said dramatically, lifting his vial with his arm half-extended towards his friends.



“Cheers!” Hermione and Neille snickered quietly.



Severs rolled his eyes, but nodded, too; the four vials clanged together cheerfully, and the four conspirators drank together. The potion started working immediately, and Severus had to admit, it was extremely effective. He was fully alert, and his mind was focused.



Ron and Neville departed to secure the house. Hermione\'s face acquired a cautiously hopeful expression.



“I have got something else,” she told Severus in a hushed whisper. “Come with me.”



He followed her into the kitchen, and she pulled out a small, inconspicuous box from one of the cupboard shelves.



“I understand that the spells embedded in your brand will punish for running away with physical pain that is quite severe,” she said evenly. “The punishment is activated by the owner, at will, whenever he discovers the transgression.”



Severus nodded. “Mr. Potter did mention that, I quote, it will make Cruciatus feel like petting,” he said dryly. “Which will make me rather ineffective in a duel, I imagine.”



She smiled triumphantly. “Take a look at this.” She opened the little box, and handed him a small, sealed flask. He brought it to his face and sniffed. Even with the seal in place, he could tell what it was.



“It is pure Ocean Poppy Pod extract, is it not?” he demanded. “How pure?”



“Ninety-seven percent pure,” she said proudly.



“Are you out of your mind, you wretched girl, keeping a substance like that at home?” He snapped at her. “It\'s highly illegal in most of the wizarding world, and extremely habit-forming, and....”



“Shhh!” she hissed at him, waving her hands at him. “No need to shout about it.” She took the flask away from him. “I know what it is, and I know the drawbacks. It only works for two hours at a time, and the withdrawal isn\'t exactly pleasant... and it even reduces your body\'s natural pain tolerance for weeks afterwards. But... as far as immediate pain-killing properties go, it is unprecedented. It\'s the only thing that can counteract Cruciatus effectively. I think, if need be, you\'ll still be able to duel.”



He nodded, admitting grudgingly that she had a good point.



For the next two hours, they worked separately. Hermione was helping Ron and Neville to secure the house, and Severus pulled a manual on port-key configuration from one of the bookshelves, and went to work, putting his new wand to good use. She looked at him quizzically when she noticed that the port-key was nearing completion.



“If we retreat, we will have to split up,” Severus said. “You three will need to Disapparate together, and come up with a backup plan. The port-key I am setting up for myself will buy me some time, even with the tracking spells.”



“Explain,” she asked.



“It is based on the Monte-Carlo randomization algorithm. Simply put, it selects a random location, and transports the bearer there. The process can be repeated indefinitely. Harry will still be able to access my tracking spells, but by the time he and his team make it to the location, I will be gone to a new one, just as random.”



“Brilliant,” she whispered quietly.



“What\'s next?” Ron asked. Severus looked up, to realize in surprise that both Ron and Neville were staring at him expectantly, waiting for direction.



“You need to ensure that nothing can be held hostage against you,” Severus said firmly. “Where\'s Hugo?”



“With my parents for now,” Hermione said. “What do you propose?”



“Send him to a safer place,” Severus said. “Do you have any ideas?”



Ron nodded. “I brought a port-key from Beauxbâtons with me, just in case we needed to go back in a hurry...”



“Good,” Severus said. “Send him off, at once. Don\'t wait until morning. Let him stay with Rubeus Hagrid; I suspect that he and Olympe are sufficiently far away from Harry Potter as not to be influenced by him at this time.”



Hermione smiled slightly. “Ron, Neville... why don\'t you go and get Hugo, and send him off... when you come back, we\'ll go over the plans again.”



Ron and Neville departed promptly, while Severus worked on completing the port-key. Half an hour later, the port-key was finished, but Ron and Neville were not back yet. Hermione began to fidget in her chair.



“What is taking them so long?” she murmured nervously. “My parents\' house is less than half a block away...”



Severus placed the completed port-key on the kitchen table. Then, he stood up, and took the first dose of the Ocean Poppy Pod extract, and noted the time.



Just then, a loud, irritating ringing noise echoed through the house. Severus nearly jumped, startled, only to realize that it was coming from a Muggle telephone.



“Must be my parents,” Hermione murmured. “Wanting to know why were are taking Hugo back in the middle of the night.”



She walked to the phone and answered it.



Severus followed her, and watched.



“No,” she said into the phone. “No, honestly... mom... Ron and I aren\'t fighting... Yes, I\'d tell you.”



A moment later, the receiver slipped out of her hand, dropping to the floor. Hermione issued a muffled scream, and covered her mouth with her hand.



“We were too late,” she whispered bitterly. “It\'s too late...”



Severus took a deep breath, as the familiar feeling of dread began to overtake him.



“What happened?” he asked softly. “Hermione?”



“Harry has Hugo,” she whispered.



“Why would your parents release Hugo to Harry Potter without confirming with you first?” Severus snapped.



She was shaking her head in despair. “They didn\'t know it was Harry... or whoever... My mother just said... Ron showed up to pick up Hugo... two hours after I had picked him tonight!”



“Polyjuice,” Severus muttered. “Damn it all.”



She made a mad dash for the door, but Severus intercepted her, and stopped her, covering her mouth with his hand.



“Shhh,” he said. “Careful now. Let\'s take a look first, before running out.”



Together, they crept to the window, and looked through the blinds. A faint, shimmering wall of magical energy glowed around the perimeter of the house, completely encircling it.



“We can\'t leave,” she murmured with dread. “We are trapped. And ... they have Hugo... and probably Neville and Ron, too!” She was breathing rapidly, as if in an attempt to refrain from sobbing.



Just then, a burst of flame shimmered in the Floo, indicating a firecall coming in. She glanced at it with dread.



“I suggest you take the call,” Severus said softly. “I think we both know who wants to talk to us.”



... To Be Continued....