Finding Heather

Year 7 Chapter 8

Author's Notes: I took some liberties with the interior of the tent. Also, figure that most of the rest of the stuff that Ron shouted at Harry during the book he also shouts at Heather, but I skipped it so as not to copy too directly from the book.

Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling, and not to me. I'm just borrowing him.

Chapter Eight

 They wouldn't be able to go back to Grimmauld Place, Hermione explained to Heather as they sat in the tent that afternoon, Ron still unconscious from splinching himself during their hurried escape. Yaxley had grabbed hold of her and had followed along until he was inside the Fidelius Charm, thereby giving him the secret. It was a serious blow. As creepy as the old house had been, it had started to feel like the closest thing they had to safety, like a home.

 They were camping in the woods where the Quidditch World Cup had been held, in the same tent that the boys had used for that night. Hermione had borrowed it from Mr. Weasley before they had fled the Burrow. It still smelled like cats, wistfully reminding Heather of Mrs. Figg's house growing up.

 As they talked, Hermione filled Heather in on what had happened to them when they had been separated. She had gone on to Umbridge's office and entered under the cloak. When it was clear the locket wasn't there, she had set off to find Ron. By luck, they had met in a lift, with him dripping cold water everywhere. Deciding it was best to leave now and return another day, they had set off for the courtrooms which was where they met up with Heather.

 The robes Heather had been wearing that morning had been returned to the beaded bag and she had changed into a jumper and jeans. On each side of the tent were bunks which could be hidden behind movable curtains, much like those in the Hogwarts Hospital Wing. Heather and Hermione had stashed their bags on one side, laying Ron in a bunk on the other side. Though there wasn't going to be much privacy between the three of them living like this, both girls still preferred to be able to change unseen by the boy in their midst. Within days each side of the tent was called the Girl's or Boy's dormitories, respectively. In a way it reminded Heather of her old haven in the Room of Requirement.

 Ron woke several hours later. His color had improved slightly, but he was still very weak. Both Heather and Hermione set to work finding what they could for dinner, no food had been brought along as they had all assumed they were returning to Grimmauld Place. In the end it was a very unsatisfying dinner of rubbery mushrooms that Heather only finished so as not to upset Hermione.

 After dinner, each of them in turn tried to open the locket, but to no avail. Disgruntled, Heather settled the ice-cold chain around her neck, a sense of foreboding descending in her as the locket rested on her chest. There was no way she was going to leave it just lying around where they could lose it. Heather took the first watch even though her eyes were heavy with lack of sleep the night before. As she sat there, she suddenly found herself standing over an old man, Gregorovitch. Voldemort had found him. Through her connection with him, she watched Gregorovitch running down a corridor and bursting into a room, just as a blonde-haired boy grinned, shot a spell, and jumped from the window.

 The next day they moved camp twice, both times erasing any sign of their presence before apparating away. At their first stop Heather had attempted to visit a nearby muggle town to buy food, but had been chased away be Dementors. When she had tried to conjure her patronus, the doe wouldn't appear. Returning to the tent empty handed did little to improve anyone's mood. It wasn't until Hermione realized that it must be Heather's continued wearing of the locket that had prevented her from casting the spell, and had taken it upon herself to take a turn wearing it, that Heather felt better. They spent that night in a lonely field, having absconded with food from a nearby farmhouse, surreptitiously leaving money behind to cover the unknown farmer's loss.