Semper Fidelis

Chapter 13.3

The Hallowe'en Feast concluded with a spectral rendition of This is Halloween from one of James' favourite movies A Nightmare Before Christmas. He had never clapped so loudly before since the musical treat was so unexpected. Who would have thought that ghosts from the wizarding world would be serenading witches and wizards with a Muggle movie classic? Certainly not him.

It was almost two of the following morning and James, Nate, and Teddy were the only ones left in the Gryffindor common room. Hallowe'en being on a Saturday encouraged the students to stay up far later than usual and it took a couple of hours after the feast for the common room to empty. James had been waiting eagerly to pull out his mirror and talk to his mum. Hallowe'en was always one of their favourite holidays and he had missed her during this celebration.

"Hermione," James whispered into the silver mirror. The mirror turned hazy and a second later his mum's tired but smiling face filled the glass. "Mum! Happy Hallowe'en!" He exclaimed.

On her couch in London while nursing a steaming cup of tea, Hermione smiled widely and greeted her son. "Happy Hallowe'en, love! How was the feast?"

"Amazing! There was so much food and treats and the ghosts sang This is Halloween afterwards. Isn't that hilarious?" James whispered excitedly.

Hermione laughed out loud and sipped her tea. "I would have liked to see that for myself. How are you? How are Nate and Teddy?"

At hearing their names being called from the mirror, Nate and Teddy stood from their game of wizards chess and walked to where James was sat conversing with his mum. Nate smiled shyly at the mirror and greeted Hermione. "Hullo, Ms. Watson! Happy Hallowe'en! And thank you for your help on my potions essay last week - I got a really good mark on it!"

"Not a problem at all sweetheart and a Happy Hallowe'en to you too," Hermione said softly to a blushing Nate. Teddy had to resist rolling his eyes. His cousin had a crush on his best friend's mum. "And Happy Hallowe'en to you too, Teddy," Hermione continued.

"Happy Hallowe'en, Ms. Watson," Teddy said warmly and gave her a huge grin.

After the pleasantries were over, Hermione pulled up the pictures she had taken from that day on her phone. They oohed and ahhed at the picture of the carved pumpkins leading up to the front door and laughed at a picture of her and Rose's Muggle-interpreted witch costumes, pointy black hats included. Hermione regaled them with stories of her night, listing some outstanding costumes she saw and breaking to explain to the two non-Muggle raised boys their meaning. Nate was very interested about the Avatar costume she described and the world behind it.

"There was also this precious little girl who dressed up as the house from Up!" Hermione said with a grin. "Balloons and all. It was spect-"

BANG!

A crash so loud sounded from her side of the mirror that James almost dropped his own mirror from shock. "Mum! Mum, what was that?!" He asked frantically, eyes wide as he looked at Nate and Teddy.

Hermione's face turned serious. She had dropped her tea cup in surprise and it stained the carpet of her living room but she didn't care. She bolted straight up, her right hand finding the wand hidden in the pocket of her jeans.

She looked at the mirror to see the concerned faces of her son and his friends. "Sweethearts, don't be scared. It'll be alright," Hermione whispered.

"Mum, what's going on?!" James asked, his heart beating so fast. The corners of his eyes were filling with tears as he looked at his mum from across the mirror. He could see the living room behind her, and her face was grim and alert and fierce as she looked towards their front door.

Another bang. Another flash.

Hermione grabbed her wand from her jeans. "Fianto duri! Repello inimicum!" She said in an attempt to strengthen the protection charms on her front door.

Someone was trying to break into her home and she had a very good idea who it was. She also knew that the protective spells she had cast would not hold forever. Through the cracks she could see sparks of spells as whomever was on the other side tried to force their way in.

Hermione steeled herself. She had devised a plan if this very thing were to happen. Her main goal was to protect James. That would always be her priority. Even if they found her, she would see to it that they would never find him.

"James, I need to go," Hermione said into the mirror. By now James was shaking and breathing heavily on the other side. "Don't be scared and find Professor McGonagall. Tell her... tell her that they found out. I love you, baby." She cast a longing look at her son before she turned her head away and broke the connection. She laid the mirror on the living room table and pointed her wand.

"Bombarda!" She yelled. The mirror broke into tiny little pieces.

Knowing her time was almost up, she looked around the room and glanced at the many picture frames which hung on the walls or were propped inside their picture frames.

Her eyes filled with tears as she waved her wand in a complex pattern in the air. 

"Absocendere ignem," she recited. Small licks of fire left her wand tip and flew towards the frames on all levels of her home. She watched as the pictures burned around her, hiding the memories that they had captured and leaving no signs of the brown-haired, brown-eyed boy.

BANG! FLASH!

The front door burst open in a fury of smoke, fire, and dust. At least two wizards, big, tall, and fierce, stepped through her doorway with menacing looks. Hermione wasted no time and cast an Expelliarmus in their direction. The burly wizard in the front cast a Protego and her disarming spell bounced off of the shield.

"Expulso! Reducto!" Hermione fired, backing further and further away from the door. Her spells were useless; they simply bounced off the shield as the men filled her living room.

"That's not very nice now is it, Ms. Watson?" A familiar voice said from behind the wizards. A gap parted in between them and Demetre Demos stepped through. Hermione glared at the man and he looked at her unfazed. "I thought you would be more welcoming," he said with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't need to be welcoming if you intended to force your way in, Mr. Demos," Hermione replied acidly. 

Demos' eyes narrowed. "I wouldn't need to be so forceful if you had just done what you were paid to do and not kept secrets from me!"

"I don't know what you are talking about," Hermione said steely. "Confringo!" She cried. Demos immediately said a spell she hadn't heard before and her spell was redirected to the wall of her entryway leaving scorch marks behind.

"Stop playing games with me, girl," Demos sneered. "I know you have it. My men found out you were in Toronto at the same time as the exhibit. Now isn't that a coincidence? We wasted our time and efforts trying to get it from New York but it was a replica," Demos hissed, throwing the word in disgust.    

"Your words mean nothing to me," Hermione said resolutely, her wand remaining raised in front of her. She wouldn't give in, not to this man. This was a secret she would never tell.

Demos glared, seething in rage. "I asked nicely," he said.

The man's wand hand was suddenly moving in complicated motions. He said another spell which was unknown to Hermione and a fierce yellow light emitted from his wand and flew right at her. It was moving too fast and she had no time to dodge. She called up her own Protego Maxima shield but the light pierced the barrier and hit her right at the chest.

Her world turned black.