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At three in the morning, Harry Potter and his lovely bride slept peacefully in their bed at 12 Grimmauld Place as per usual. The last thing they expected
was to suddenly hear the sounds of an owl fluttering at their window.
"I'll get it," said Ginny sleepily, and she padded over to the window to let the creature in. Without hesitation, it flew straight over to Harry and extended
its leg with a most urgent air.
"I'd swear this owl was in a real hurry," Harry commented as he removed the letter. "I wonder who it's from. I've never seen--"
When his face fell and he stopped talking in order to read, Ginny came to stand at his heels. "What is it, Harry?" she wanted to know.
"She's alive, Gin!" Harry shouted with joy. "Hermione is still alive!"
"What? Who is that from?"
"It's from Lucius," he said. "He says Hermione's in some real trouble and he needs us right away. Get dressed, will you? We've got to save Hermione!"
"All right," she grumbled. "You don't have to take my head off. Tell me what's happening."
"I don't know, we won't know until we meet with Lucius," he said as he scrambled for clothes as well. "He's waiting in the Forbidden Forest. Apparently
he doesn't want to be seen."
"Do you think they'll come?" asked Egremon worriedly.
"Oh yes, the Potters will come," Lucius reassured him. "I have complete faith in them."
"Malfoy, you git, where are you?" came Harry's voice from somewhere in the darkness. "This place is so bloody dark it's ridiculous. Can't I use my wand long
enough to find you?"
"No wands, Potter, like I said," Lucius called softly. "I'm over here."
Harry and Ginny broke through the trees and rushed up to the two men who waited for them.
"Tell me everything," Harry insisted, his breath coming in small gasps from running. He wiped at his mouth and face, which were wet from perspiration.
"There's not a whole lot to tell," Lucius said. "Hermione has been kidnapped by a demonic follower of the Dark Lord, who is now a demon himself, and he's given
me one week to conjure a way to bring him back, or else she's history. It doesn't get more cut and dried than that."
"That sounds like a really bad horror flick," Harry mentioned as he cast him a skeptical look.
"Really, Potter, do you think that I'd go to all the bother of bringing you out here like this if it were not true? I'd have simply invited you over for tea or
something if nothing was amiss."
"Well, the last thing I'd heard prior to recent events was that you'd become a Scottish Earl and the next thing we knew, the two of you were supposedly dead,"
Harry pointed out. "That's a far cry from demons and Dark Lords."
"Potter, are you going to stand there and refute my words all night, or are we going to devise some kind of a plan?" Lucius asked, his pain and desperation
now obvious in his voice.
"You sound worried enough," he conceded. "Well, there's no point in planning in the woods. Let's pop on over to our house and we can think over a spot of tea."
"There's a good lad," Egremon chimed in.
"Oh yes, I'd forgotten that introductions are in order," Lucius said. "This is Harry, and here is his new wife, Ginny."
"The boy who lived, right here in front of me," said Egremon with a tinge of awe. "I never would have thought I'd see this day."
"Yeah, I get that a lot," Harry told him as Egremon moved aside his hair to look at his scar. "Come on then, we're wasting time."
"Yes, of course," he answered as he dropped his hand to take Harry's. They all Apparated away with a soft pop, appearing again inside the parlor of the Potter
home.
"So, how do we get Hermione out of there?" Lucius said almost as soon as a cup of tea was in his hand. Ginny excused herself to get a little more sleep while
the others had their talk.
"I've been thinking about that," said Harry. "Now hear me out on this. I know that we all want her back, but let's say that we actually give Voldemort what
he wants? You said he's a huge demon right now, yes? But if we make him into a human again, he'll be vulnerable. Maybe if you do what he asks, and bring me
along for the part where he takes blood from his enemy, we could kill him again once he's human."
"That might actually work," Egremon said as he rubbed his chin.
"That is the most insane thing I've ever heard," Lucius protested. "Don't you realize how powerful he is, Potter? You only killed him last time over a
technicality with that elder wand belonging to you instead of Snape. You don't have any tricks left up your sleeves this time."
"I've got his wand," Harry mentioned smugly.
"You do?" Lucius gasped. "Do you know how many Death Eaters have been looking for that thing?"
"Quite a few, I'd imagine," Harry chuckled. "So when he's human again, I will offer him the wand in exchange for you and Hermione's freedom. You two leave,
and then I will kill him again."
"Just like that, Potter?" Lucius scoffed. "You'll be unarmed, you foolish boy, and Voldemort knows he cannot use his wand against you while your own wand
remains loyal to you. Why would he simply let us go?"
"Because all this time he's wanted me dead," Harry pointed out. "He'll believe he's about to get his wish. And of course the wand will not be inside the cave
with us. It will be here, right beside my own. I believe he will want to duel, not just kill me outright. And most likely he will also believe once I'm dead
he can easily find you and Hermione again."
"You've got that right, at least," said Lucius dryly.
"Don't worry about a thing, Mr. Malfoy," Harry said. "You just do your part, and I'll do mine."
"This should be an interesting week," said Egremon as he sipped at his tea. "Very interesting indeed."
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