35

A week passed by very quickly. Too quickly for their liking. They had spent it holding DA meetings almost every other evening with all students in sixth year and above. Some of the younger seemed a trifle excited by the sudden change, but those in Harry's year were all grave and solemn faces for they understood the gravity of what might be coming. Their sole focus was defensive magic; any jinxes and curses that would be useful in repelling the Death Eaters that they, privately, knew would descend upon the castle. Kathryn had also given everyone a stern talk on how they should conduct themselves, should they find themselves in a combat situation.

"A Death Eater will not discriminate between a member of the Order of the Phoenix and a child." She told them plainly. "They will not care that you are young. You are standing between them and their goal and must therefore be removed. Even if you pose no threat and are merely defending yourself or others, they will still aim to kill." Harry did not like how well she seemed to understand the Death Eaters, but he knew she was right.

"If you are anything below seventh year, do not consider engaging a Death Eater. Help members of the Order by all means, but do not engage them directly. There may be some, Pius Thicknesse for example; who you will probably be able to take on. Other than that, just defend yourself and those younger than you."

"What if there's no one else around?"

"You defend yourself and run. Try not to go round alone; stay in groups, then the odds are better in a confrontation." She explained.

"Who is the most dangerous?"

"Apart from Voldemort," she replied dryly, "well, Bellatrix Lestrange delights in causing pain, as does Antonin Dolohov." Neville's jaw twitched at the mention of Bellatrix's name. "Greyback is supremely dangerous because of what he can do to you if he bites you. Even if he is not transformed, he can still leave you permanently scarred. The Carrows are fond of torture too, they pride themselves on it."

"Anyone else?"

"Lucius Malfoy." She answered without hesitation. "He can inflict great pain, and is very good at doing so." Harry noted that her voice went slightly hollow for a moment, her eyes looking somewhat distant. "So do not even approach him," she shook her head, "but that's just me being selfish as I want to get the chance of hexing the hell out of him first!"

They also, along with Neville, plumbed the depths of the Room of Requirement. Of everyone that used it, Neville seemed to be the one that really understood the room. Kathryn, of course, did not let on how she had put the Room to extensive use over the course of the past two years.

"It's about closing all the loopholes." He said to them as he paced around the room. "And knowing what you can ask for."

"Like you can't ask for food!" Hermione said brightly.

"Yeah," Neville nodded feverishly, "but if you ask for food, look what happens." He gestured to where a passageway appeared in the wall, hidden behind a picture frame.

"Where does it lead?" Ron asked, peering down into the dark.

"The Hog's Head!" Neville replied with a grin. "Aberforth's great, always good to give you food if you need it."

"How on earth did you find this?" Hermione asked in awe.

"In seventh year, when you lot weren't here. I was hiding from a bunch of Slytherins with some of the DA lot. I mean, it was havoc because Umbridge came back and the Slytherins were allowed to run rampant again. We stayed in here for days and, when we wanted food, that passage appeared. The door can open in different places too so you could get out and avoid people that might be waiting on the other side of the seventh floor."

"Neville," Hermione breathed, "you're brilliant."

"Not really," Neville bowed his head and looked at the floor, "it's just trial and error really."

"But this is the way we can get students out of the school!" Hermione exclaimed. "Through the Hogs Head."

"And it's a way for the Order to get in." Kathryn reminded her.

"More to the point," Hermione said later that day as they sat at a secluded edge of the lake, "we still need to find the last Horcrux, apart from Nagini, that is."

"Yeah." Harry sighed. "I'm sure it's at Hogwarts, I mean, it makes sense for him to have hidden something here."

"How could he though?" Ron groaned. "He hasn't been back to the castle since he left."

"But he has!" realisation struck Kathryn like a bolt of lightning. "When he came to ask Dumbledore for a job!"

"I'm going to the library!" Hermione jumped up. "If he was trying to use things that had belonged to the Founders then there has to be something in there!" she dashed off without another word.

"I do not want to be around the day the library fails Hermione!" Ron laughed, stretching himself out to bask in the sun.

"Me either!" Harry chuckled, trying to ignore the prickling in his scar. He could see the telltale signs on Kathryn's face and knew that hers was prickling too. They were getting close.

"Nice to see you decided to join us!" Ron said to Hermione at dinner two days later. She flopped down into her seat with an exhausted sigh, her face slightly pale and her eyes ringed by dark circles. "Had enough of the library then?" Hermione had hardly been out of library since they had spoken on the lake.

"I have gone through every book they have about the Founders," she sighed, "even previous, older editions of Hogwarts: A History."

"You look it." Kathryn commented, sipping her tea. Hermione had breakfasted before them for the past days and had never been seen at mealtimes.

"That's beside the point." Hermione waved the comment away, piling her plate high with roast beef and mashed potatoes. "I found loads of references to objects belonging to the Founders."

"Such as?" Ron asked, digging into his sausages.

"Well, there is the Sorting Hat, obviously, which belonged to Godric Gryffindor."

"But there is no way that could be a Horcrux." Harry shook his head. "Dumbledore would've known."

"I wasn't going to say it was," Hermione snapped, the long time spent between the library shelves obviously having worn her out, "in fact, I don't think You-Know-Who used anything of Gryffindor's."

"It would be a bit odd if he did I suppose." Kathryn commented. "Using something that belonged to a person that stands for everything he condemns."

"I did, however, find something that might be a worthy candidate." She gave a small smile, Harry quickly casting the Muffiliato charm to make sure that they weren't overheard. "Ravenclaw's Diadem!"

"Ravenclaw's what?" Ron asked in a nonplussed tone.

"Her diadem," Kathryn repeated, "it's a tiara."

"Oh, right."

"The thing is," Hermione went on, "it's lost."

"What do you mean lost?"

"It just vanishes, after the death of Rowena Ravenclaw there is no mention of it. It is, after that point, referred to as the Lost Diadem of Ravenclaw."

"I think 'lost' is a pretty good condition for Voldemort wanting to make it a Horcrux." Harry concluded glumly. "He would've wanted the satisfaction of finding it."

"The only problem is," Kathryn sighed, "finding where he hid it. I mean, there must be thousands of places in Hogwarts that you can conceal something." On that depressing note, they removed the Muffiliato charm and finished their dinner in silence.

They retired fairly early, like they had done most of that week; living by the mantra of sleep as often as you can. They did not want to be caught exhausted when the time eventually came. However, both Harry and Kathryn found their dreams dogged by Voldemort. Tossing and turning in bed, their scars screaming in pain, they saw the locket, the cup and the ring. They felt his anger and, more importantly, his fear. They both bolted awake, breathing hard, but the vision did not end. Their scars burst with pain at his fury; he had no idea whether they were safe. He would go to the cave first, that would take longest, and then the house. Hogwarts could be last, the diadem was safe there. With another flash of blinding pain, the vision ended and they were left bent double on the floor.

Hermione thankfully, was the only one awoken by the sound of Kathryn thudding to the floor. She had grown used to listening carefully in the night for sounds of her friend in distress.

"Harry." She heard Kathryn gasp before she pulled herself to her feet and stumbled out the door. Hermione, not caring if she woke anyone else, sprang out of bed and followed her down the stairs into the common room. They were soon joined by Harry and Ron, and sat down before the last embers of the fire to hear what they had seen.

"He knows." Harry said in a hoarse voice. "Or he will do soon."

"What was it?" Hermione asked; a note of fear quite evident in her voice.

"He's gone to the cave, to check on his Horcrux." Kathryn answered quietly. "And naturally he's going to find it gone.

"And presents us with a problem." Hermione concluded. "We have to find that last one."

"He let that slip though!" Harry told them excitedly. "The Diadem is the last Horcrux and it is at Hogwarts." Kathryn grinned wildly and, with a wave of her wand, their invisibility cloaks zoomed into their hands.

"And we're going to find it." She tossed Harry his cloak and pulled hers around her shoulders. With another wave of her wand, she sent her Patronus off through the corridors.

"Where did you send that?" Ron asked.

"To Luna, I'll bet you anything that there is a statue or something of Ravenclaw in their common room. I'll bet you more that she is wearing her diadem." Springing to their feet, the four of them got beneath both cloaks and set off as fast as they could towards Ravenclaw common room.

It was there that Luna stood, obviously having received her message.

"What's wrong?" she asked as they appeared from beneath the cloaks.

"Is there a picture of Ravenclaw in here?" Hermione asked. "Wearing her diadem?"

"Over there." In the niche to where Luna was pointing stood a tall, marble statue of Rowena Ravenclaw. On her head sat a delicate tiara, not unlike the one Fleur had worn at her wedding. Walking across the dark blue, star spangled carpet, Harry and Kathryn stood on the marble plinth so that they could just make out the inscription along the base of the diadem.

'Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure', it read.

Another image rose into Harry's mind, that of an ugly warlock with a wig and an old battered tiara upon his head. He knew exactly where the diadem was and the shock hit him harder than a shot of Firewhisky.

"I know where it is!" he exclaimed in the quiet. "Thanks Luna!" he hugged her before swinging his cloak back about his shoulders and making for the door.

"No problem." Luna shrugged.

"Luna," Kathryn said quickly before she went back up to her dormitory, "it might be a good idea to get dressed. Things might happen sooner than expected." Luna nodded in understanding and hurried back up the stairs.

"How do you know where it is, Harry?" Hermione asked in a hushed tone as they walked through the silent corridors.

"I'll tell you when we get there." Harry replied as they made their way to a very familiar corridor. Soon enough, they were standing outside the entrance to the Room of Requirement.

"He thought only he could get in here, he didn't have the foresight to think that others could!" Harry proclaimed as they faced the blank wall.

"So how come Dumbledore didn't find it hidden here?" Ron asked as Harry paced back and forth three times.

"Dumbledore was a good student in his time; he didn't stray out of the dormitory at night like we've done." Harry explained. "He hasn't worked out the Room's secret." Hermione gasped in wonder as they walked into the room full of hidden things.

"There must be hundreds of years' worth of stuff in here!"

"I've had to hide some things in my time!" Harry said with a laugh, looking for the old cabinet. "I found it when I was hiding the Prince's, well, Snape's old potions book."

"And I hid some Basilisk fangs in here too." Kathryn added. "After we realised that they could destroy Horcruxes."

"Here!" Harry cried out from a little further down the row of unsavoury objects. The tiara was slightly tarnished from the years spent in the room, but that did not diminish its beauty.

"It's a shame he put his filthy soul in something so beautiful, and so precious." Kathryn sighed.

"Only the best will do, remember?" Ron remarked. "Who gets the honour?"

"I think it's Kathryn's turn," Hermione said, "after all, we've all had the pleasure."

"Thanks, I'll be back in a moment." She dashed off back to an urn she had pointed out earlier. She was back within a minute, weighing a large Basilisk fang in her hand. Her scar prickled as she took the diadem from Hermione's hands but she forced all thoughts of Voldemort out of her mind as she laid it upon the stone floor.

"This is for my mum and dad." She said, revenge burning in her eyes, before she drove the sharp fang into the delicately wrought metal. There was a long, guttural cry as the piece of Voldemort's soul was destroyed, the tiara melting and shrivelling as it did so. Eventually, the noise stopped and all that was left was the shrivelled piece of tarnished metal that was now no bigger than a bracelet. Picking it up, Kathryn could see that the inscription was still visible. Feeling slightly guilty for destroying something of such historical importance, she slipped it onto her wrist and laid the Basilisk fang back down on a cluttered table.

"Wow." She breathed. "Only one more to go."

"Where the real fun begins." Ron muttered darkly as they walked out of the door. Kathryn's scar began to prickle again as they walked back to their common room and, from the look on Harry's face, she could tell that he felt it too. Trying to ignore the mounting pain, she concentrated on getting back to Gryffindor tower. It was mere feet away from the portrait of the Fat Lady that the pain reached fever pitch and they could not fail to cry out.

Anger beyond what they would've believed possible filled their bodies, as if it was trying to corrupt their very souls. Through the white hot pain they saw an empty stone basin. His secret was no longer safe; the one at Hogwarts was no longer safe. He could wait no longer, he had to act now. He had to go to Hogwarts, but no, he had to check the other one first.

As abruptly as it had started, everything vanished and they were left lying on the cold stone floor, a terrified Ron and Hermione gazing down upon them.

"What was it?" Hermione asked in a shaky voice.

"He knows." Harry replied in a hoarse voice, pulling himself to his feet. Kathryn followed suit, straightening her glasses.

"Oh God!" Hermione gasped, clapping a hand to her mouth.

"Definitely not good." Ron agreed.

"We have to get everyone out." Kathryn said quietly. "He'll be here soon." Waving her wand, her Patronus blossomed from the end and streaked off down the corridor. "I've sent that to Dumbledore."

There was another bout of blinding pain as they saw an empty box. The next thing they saw was a long, pale finger touching the coiling black Dark Mark of a small, rat-faced man. There was another blinding flash of pain and they saw hooded and masked figures begin to appear all around Voldemort.

"He's summoned them." Kathryn spoke quietly, wondering what Snape would do when he felt the Mark burn.

Within minutes they were joined by Dumbledore as well as Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick and Sprout.

"What happened?" McGonagall asked in a frightened, yet calm, tone.

"He's on his way." Kathryn said simply. "He knows our secret." She said particularly to Dumbledore.

"We must evacuate the school." Dumbledore said calmly. "Bring your houses down to the Great Hall in twenty minutes." His voice seemed to instil calm into them all. "All those under-age must leave for their own safety but all those who are of age, and who wish to, may stay and fight."

"What of defences?" Professor Sprout asked.

"Fillius," Dumbledore addressed the diminutive Charms Professor, "I trust you will do all you can." Flitwick nodded and immediately began waving his wand.

"As for you, Pomona," Dumbledore turned to Sprout, "I trust that you have some useful plants tucked away in your greenhouses."

"I'll use everything I can." She nodded. "I doubt they'll like Venomous Tentacula much."

"Minerva, if you would do the honours." Dumbledore motioned to McGonagall who nodded.

"Piertotum locomotor!" she cried, waving her wand with a flourish. All around them, the shining suits of armour jumped off their plinths and stood rigidly to attention.

"Wow." They heard Ron breathe.

"Hogwarts is threatened!" she cried. "Man the boundaries, protect the students, do your duty to the school!" the statues turned as one and ran down the corridor. They could tell from the thundering noise that all the others throughout the school were doing the same.

"I will see you in the Great Hall in twenty minutes." The Heads of House nodded and made to leave.

"Severus," Dumbledore called back to the Potions Master who turned to look at him with his dark eyes, "you know what to do." Without uttering a word, Snape nodded and disappeared down the corridor.

"I guess we'd better change." Kathryn tugged aimlessly at her pyjamas. "What do you wear when you're going to fight the most evil wizard of all time?" she asked them with a look of mock seriousness.

"I'd say a full suit of armour, working on past experience. Maybe we could borrow one?" Ron laughed as they sprinted the length of the corridor to their common room where McGonagall was already beginning to rouse the Gryffindors. "But jeans have served us well in the past so I'd say those!" she and Hermione laughed as they headed to their deserted dormitory.

"Dress warmly and bring nothing save your wands." McGonagall's voice echoed through the dormitories.

She and Hermione followed Ron's advice to a tee. Admittedly, Hermione was probably more practical than Kathryn; pulling on a comfortable pair of jeans, well-worn trainers, a plain top and a dark jumper. Kathryn, once Hermione had gone back downstairs, pulled on her favourite pair of black jeans as they were the darkest pair she owned and then withdrew, from the bottom of her trunk, one final box from Quality Quidditch Supplies. Harry and the others had questioned her on the need for five pieces of armour when she would probably only play four matches but she had given the excuse of needing a backup piece. This was definitely one of the dearest objects she had ever purchased from Quality Quidditch Supplies; costing her over 200 Galleons for the single piece thanks to the considerable expense of acquiring the material required. She pulled it on, disguising it with a soft black top with long sleeves. After pulling on a pair of sturdy boots and draping a black cloak over her shoulders she joined her friends back in the common room.

"You do realise that you give the phrase 'dressed to kill' a whole new meaning." Harry commented with a smile as she strode towards them.

"Well, it's not my fault that these are the darkest clothes I own and, if I pull the hood up," she did thus and turned her back on them, "who do I resemble?"

"I think that Death Eaters will know better than to accept a figure in a dark cloak as one of their own." Hermione gave Kathryn's disguise a sceptical glance as she turned back to face them.

"It may buy us the second we need to get away though." She wagged a finger at Hermione. "Don't be so apprehensive, it could work. And I have my invisibility cloak underneath it just in case." She had never told them, but when she'd had that cloak made, she had modelled it on the one she had seen Lucius wear with his tooled leather armour the last time they had met as enemies. It had the appearance of being heavy but was actually very fluid, giving maximum mobility for duelling.

"I guess we'll find out soon enough." Harry commented, watching as the younger students, some looking quite terrified, appeared in the common room. Some however, like Ginny, Neville, Dean and Seamus, appeared also dressed for a fight.

"Hang on!" Hermione had her eyes fixed on a spot just above the pocket of Kathryn's jeans. "What's that?" she pointed out a few dangling pieces of leather that were protruding from beneath her top.

"Nothing." Kathryn hastily yanked her top further down to cover them.

"That's not nothing." Hermione reached out her hand to touch them. Kathryn, however, turned just before she could and her hand ended up skimming over her stomach. "What have you got on under there?" Hermione gave a small gasp as Kathryn raised her top with a sigh.

"Happy now?" she asked as the three of them stared at her abdomen in shock.

"What is that?" Harry asked, running his hand over the material.

"Hungarian Horntail dragon hide." She explained, lifting her top up further to reveal the black, scaly material beneath.

"But that's really rare!" Hermione gasped. "Its trade is strictly controlled by the Ministry of Magic. It must have cost a fortune."

"Yeah. Hopefully it'll turn out to be one of the best things I've ever bought. I mean, it probably won't make much difference but I thought that it couldn't hurt to try."

"Well, dragon hide is really tough to get past with spells; they just bounce off." Hermione, as usual, sounded like she'd swallowed the textbook.

"Voldemort killed our parents, I intend on surviving long enough to kill him."

Harry glanced at his watch. "We'd better be going." The other Gryffindors were being led out of the portrait hole by Professor McGonagall who, in the brief time, had changed into something rather more appropriate than her tartan dressing gown.

"Let's go." Kathryn nodded decisively, leading the way through the portrait hole, bringing up the tail end of the Gryffindor group.

"Dean, Seamus," Harry called to the pair who were following McGonagall along with them, "get to the Room of Requirement and ask for everything Neville told you to." He explained. "We need someone there for when people start coming through." The boys nodded and ran off in the opposite direction. Speeding up, the four of them, joined by Ginny and Neville, overtook the large group of Gryffindors and worked their way down to the Great Hall through the many concealed passages.

The corridors were busy as they walked towards the Great Hall. None of them spoke; all contemplating what they were about to do, what they were about to face. Kathryn's stomach was churning; she knew that it wouldn't be as simple as it seemed. Voldemort was sure to want to face them alone, but she was worried for those he would remove in order to get to them, and what instruments he would bring with him to do said removing.