Stay With Me

Chapter 11

They all speak at once.

"The Wand." Ron was the only one to say that.

"The Cloak." Hermione said.

"The Stone." Was Harry's response.

They glance at each other, amused. "You're supposed to say the Cloak, but who wants to spend all day being invisible. Dead boring if you ask me. But an unbeatable wand!" Ron told Hermione who rolled her eyes at him.

"Its owner grew drunk with power and was murdered."

"Yeah, but imagine what a short wicked life you'd lead."

"Why the Stone, Harry?"

"Well, you could bring people back, couldn't you? Olivia. Mad-Eye. Dumbledore. Sirius. Anybody."

"But according to the story they don't want to come back. It's all rubbish anyway. There's no such thing as the Deathly Hallows." Hermione told Harry gently.

"But I have one. The Invisibility Cloak my father left me."

"There have always been Cloaks --" Hermione when to say, but Ron cut her off.

"Not like Harry's. I've seen a fair few. Dad used to bring home the ones the Ministry confiscated from petty thieves and the like. They always got holes or tears. Harry's is different. It's perfect." Ron told Hermione.

"And I think I've actually held the Resurrection Stone in my hands, that night in Dumbledore's office when he showed me the ring he'd destroyed, the Horcrux. It had a symbol on it. Now I think it was the mark of the Hallows." The three stood silently when Lovegood returned.

"Mr. Lovegood. Thank you, sir --" Hermione went to say, but Ron interrupted.

"You forgot the water."

"The water?" Xenophilius asked, totally forgetting that he want into to get some water for the tea.

"For the tea." Hermione told him quietly.

"Did, didn't I? How silly of me."

"No matter, sir. We really ought- Sir?" Hermione and the rest looked at the older man.

"You're my only hope. They were angry, you see, about what I'd been writing, so they took her. They took my Luna..."He eyes found Harry. "But it's really you they want..."

"Who took her, sir?" Hermione eyed the printing press. A copy of the Quibbler lied stuck under a roller.

She reached out, pulled it free, the ink streaking over the cover, over Harry's face and the blazing headline: UNDESIRABLE NUMBER #1 AND #2. "Him. Surely you call him You-Know-Who. But his real name of course is... Voldemort."

"Nooooooooo!" Instantly, out the window, figures on broomsticks appeared in the sky, jetting directly toward the house.

As Harry, Ron and Hermione hit the floor, ropes of light ricochet off the windowsill.

The printing press exploded, raining Quibblers everywhere, like a flock of doves, smoking with flames. Lovegood waved madly from the window.

"Stop! I've got him --" Lovegood was blasted off his feet by a Stunning Spell, so great the chain around his neck flew across the room and settled at Harry's feet.

Harry glanced down, watching the symbol of the Deathly Hallows dissolve like mercury, then looked up to see Lovegood streak out the door.

"Ron! Harry! Take my hand!" Hermione yelled as Harry almost got hit with a spell.

Harry and Ron began to crawl on their knees toward Hermione when another volley of spells ricochet about the room and struck the Gurdyroot teapot.

As Hermione watched, it flew into the air, tumbling end over end toward the Erumpent Horn. Harry's hand closed on hers, Ron reached out and the teapot struck the Erumpent Horn.