•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

Despite not knowing where they were going, Deanna could only be glad and grateful that they managed to escape. They went higher and higher, all of them clinging tight to the creature who was enjoying his freedom of flying after being locked in for a long time. Behind her, Harry was silent, Ron was swearing endlessly while Hermione was sobbing. She could understand them. It was a crazy experience after all.

"We did really well." Deanna said to them in an encouraging tone. "We're close to the end so let's just hold on a little."

Thankfully, Ron and Hermione stopped after that and smiled along with Harry. That was right. They already had 4 Horcruxes. Though they didn't have a way to destroy them anymore, they were trying to be optimistic and think that they would be able to finish this mission soon.

Tons of questions and thoughts were also running through Deanna's mind. When Voldemort found out about what happened, he would know they were looking for Horcruxes. And the goblins too... They would get tortured or killed for what happened. That meant this entire journey would get a lot harder once he knew.

"We're dropping!" Ron yelled when the dragon started diving down a little. Deanna felt bad for him since he was all locked up then. She hoped that the dragon would finally savor his freedom and reunite with his friends. The sun slipped lower in the sky that was turning indigo.

"I say we jump!" Harry shouted out when the dragon flew lower and lower and closer to one of the lakes.

"When?" Hermione asked loudly while the dragon was now closer to the surface of the lake.

"Now!"

At Harry's shout, the group jumped off the dragon and plummeted into the freezing lake. Deanna quickly kicked off to the surface and emerged, panting and looking around for her friends. The dragon did not seem to notice anything, already 50 feet away from them. They immediately swam towards the opposite shore, shivering from the cold lake, and after struggling through the reeds and mud, they finally flopped onto slippery grass, sodden and exhausted.

All of them coughed and shuddered once they got there. Ron and Hermione collapsed onto the floor while Harry stood up and started casting the usual protective spells around them. Deanna who was lying down on the ground brought her wand out to help him from where she was. When they were all done, Harry joined them on the floor, feeling just as exhausted as them.

"Love? Come here." Hermione called out to Deanna who noticed Hermione's singed clothes and that the burns on her face and arms were slowly disappearing from the Essence of Dittany. Deanna now became aware as well of her many injuries and went near Hermione who dabbed the essence of dittany on her wounds.

"Thank you, love." Deanna said through her winces. Once done, Hermione handed the bottle of dittany to Harry and then pulled out four bottles of pumpkin juice from Shell Cottage and clean, dry robes for all of them. They changed their clothes and gulped down the juice.

"Well, on the upside," said Ron finally, "we got the Horcrux. On the downside – "

"– no sword," said Harry through gritted teeth.

"No sword," repeated Ron.

"That double-crossing little scab..." Harry pulled the Horcrux from the pocket of the wet jacket he had just taken off and set it down on the grass in front of them.

"At least we can't wear it this time, that'd look a bit weird hanging around our necks," said Ron.

Hermione looked at the sky where the dragon's figure slowly disappeared from sight. "What'll happen to it, do you think?" she asked, "Will it be alright?"

"You sound like Hagrid," said Ron, "It's a dragon, Hermione, it can look after itself. It's us we need to worry about."

"What do you mean?" asked Hermione.

"Mione..." Deanna spoke in a soft voice. "As much as I too am worried about the dragon, but I think they might have noticed we broke into Gringotts."

All four of them started to laugh, and once started, it was difficult to stop. Deanna and Hermione leaned against each other and Ron and Harry lay back on the grass as they all laughed.

"What are we going to do, though?" said Hermione finally, hiccupping herself back to seriousness. "He'll know, won't he? You-Know-Who will know we know about his Horcruxes!"

"Maybe they'll be too scared to tell him!" said Ron hopefully, "Maybe they'll cover up –"

Suddenly then, Deanna felt her head ache once more and then, she saw her surroundings change. She was sitting down in a dimly lit room and she saw Voldemort in the middle while a semicircle of wizards faced him and a small figure was at his feet.

"What did you say to me?" His voice was high and cold, but Deanna knew he was furious and afraid because he may not accept it yet but he already knew. The goblin was trembling, unable to meet the red eyes high above his.

"Say it again!" murmured Voldemort. "Say it again!"

"M-my Lord," stammered the goblin, its black eyes wide with terror, "m-my Lord... we t-tried to st-stop them... Im-impostors, my Lord... broke – broke into the – into the Lestranges' vault..."

"Impostors? What impostors? I thought Gringotts had ways of revealing impostors? Who were they?"

"It was... it was... the P-Potter b-boy, the L-Lady Dumbledore and the t-two accomplices..."

"And they took?" he said, his voice rising, "Tell me! What did they take?"

"A... a s-small golden c-cup m-my Lord..."

The scream of rage, of denial left Voldemort's mouth, and Deanna clasped her hand over her mouth as she felt the familiar pain every time Voldemort killed someone. She knew that he was going crazy at the thought that they discovered his secret. The Elder Wand slashed through the air and green light erupted through the room; the kneeling goblin rolled over dead; the watching wizards scattered before him, terrified. Bellatrix and Lucius Malfoy ran for the door, and those who were left were slain for bringing him this news.

Alone amongst the dead he stomped up and down. Dumbledore... He was the root of this. But Voldemort was stuck on the thought... How could he not have felt it? Well, he didn't feel it when the diary was destroyed since he had no body then, but the rest of the Horcruxes... Were they safe?

Then, they passed before him in vision... His vision that flashed through Deanna's mind – where he hid his remaining treasures. The lake where he hid the locket, the Gaunt shack where he hid the ring and finally, Hogwarts... But the Gaunt shack and the orphanage. Surely, Dumbledore knew about it.

He became calmer now at the thought. The Horcrux he stowed in Hogwarts was somewhere he alone knew of, in the deepest secrets of that place. And Nagini, who must remain close to him, is to be protected at all times. So, Voldemort made a decision. He must redouble the protection around each of his Horcruxes.

His Horcrux at Hogwarts was safe. It was impossible for them to get into the castle without detection, but he still needed to warn Snape. Voldemort decided to visit the Gaunt shack first with Nagini, and he called out to the snake in Parseltongue. Nagini slithered to him like a long shadow and...

Deanna's eyes fluttered open, and she was met by Hermione's worried gaze while Ron was with Harry. "Are you alright, Deanna?"

"Y-Yes." Deanna sat up and exchanged looks with Harry, knowing they saw the same thing. She stood up and stared at the cup of Hufflepuff lying in the grass. "He knows. He knows about the Horcruxes."

"And he's going to check where the others are." Harry stood up as well. "The last one is at Hogwarts. I knew it. I knew it."

"What?" Ron gaped at them.

"But what did you see?" Hermione asked them in a worried tone. "How did you know?"

"I saw him find out about the cup, I – I was in his head, he's..." Harry explained to them. "He's seriously angry, and scared too, he can't understand how we knew, and now he's going to check the others are safe, the ring first. He thinks the Hogwarts one is safest, because Snape's there, because it'll be so hard not to be seen getting in. I think he'll check that one last, but he could still be there within hours –"

"Did you see where in Hogwarts it is?" asked Ron, now scrambling to his feet too.

"No, he was concentrating on warning Snape, he didn't think about exactly where it is -"

"Wait, wait!" Hermione cut Harry off as Deanna picked up the Cup of Hufflepuff, Ron started readying and Harry pulled out the Invisibility Cloak again. "We can't just go, we haven't got a plan, we need to –"

"Mione, love, we need to move now." Deanna told her in a firm yet soft voice. They were all exhausted, but they couldn't rest now. "If he realizes the ring and the locket are gone and moves the Horcrux in Hogwarts, it's over for us."

Hermione's eyes softened at that, knowing they had a point. "But how are we going to get in?"

"We can try getting to Hog's Head." Deanna suggested. "I know some people there who can help us."

"Okay then. We'll go to Hogsmeade," said Harry, "and try getting to Hog's Head once we see what the protection around the school's like. Get under the Cloak, Hermione, I want to stick together this time."

"But we don't really fit – "

"It'll be dark, no one's going to notice our feet."

So, Hermione walked forward and took her place beside Deanna, the four of them cramped under the cloak. She took the Hufflepuff's hand in hers and gave it a squeeze, smiling when Deanna intertwined their fingers. The sky was now rapidly darkening with the quick passing of time. Harry pulled the Cloak down as far as it would go, and together, holding each other tight, they turned on the spot into the crushing darkness.

As soon as their feet touched the road, Deanna was achingly reminded of being here with Dumbledore and Harry almost a year ago. How they rushed to Hogwarts that ultimately led to... Enough.

Suddenly, not a second had passed after they landed, it happened. The air was filled with the sound of a scream that sounded like Voldemort's when he realized the cup was stolen, and she knew their appearance had caused it.

The door of the Three Broomsticks burst open and a dozen cloaked and hooded Death Eaters dashed into the streets, their wands aloft. Deanna saw Harry seizing Ron's wrist as he raised his wand. There were too many of them, and even attempting a spell would give away their position.

One of the Death Eaters raised his wand, and the scream stopped, still echoing around the distant mountains. "Accio Cloak!" roared one of the Death Eaters. Harry held the cloak tight around them, but it made no attempt to escape. The Summoning Charm had not worked on it.

"Not under your wrapper, then, Potter?" yelled the Death Eater who had tried the charm and then to his fellows. "Spread now. He's here. And make sure to find the Lady as well."

Six of the Death Eaters ran toward them, and Deanna, Harry, Ron and Hermione backed as quickly as possible down the nearest side street, and the Death Eaters missed them by inches. They waited in the darkness, listening to the footsteps running up and down, beams of light flying along the street from the Death Eaters' searching wands.

"Let's just leave!" Hermione whispered. "Disapparate now!"

"Great idea," said Ron.

Before Deanna or Harry could reply, a Death Eater shouted, "We know you are here, Potter, Lady Dumbledore, and there's no getting away! We'll find you!"

"They were ready for us," whispered Harry. "They set up that spell to tell them we'd come. I reckon they've done something to keep us here, trap us – "

"What about dementors?" called another Death Eater. "Let'em have free rein, they'd find them quick enough!"

"What about the Lady? And the Dark Lord wants Potter dead by no hands but his – "

"'an dementors won't kill him! The Dark Lord wants Potter's life, nor his soul. He'll be easier to kill if he's been Kissed first! About the Lady... well, I'm sure she won't get Kissed."

There were noises of agreement. Dread filled Deanna: To repel dementors they would have to produce Patronuses, which would give them away immediately.

"We're going to have to try to Disapparate now!" Hermione whispered.

But right at that moment, there was the unnatural cold being spread over the street. The light was sucked from the environment to the stars, and they were surrounded by darkness. Deanna felt Hermione take hold of her arm and together, they turned on the spot. The air seemed to have become solid though, and they could not Disapparate. The Death Eaters had cast their charms well.

"It's no use. Let's try making our way to Hog's Head. It should be somewhere near here." Deanna whispered to them, and they agreed. They retreated down the side street, groping their way along the wall and trying not to make the sound despite the cold that was biting deeper and deeper into their flesh.

Then, around the corner, gliding noiselessly, came dementors, ten or more of them, visibly darker than the surroundings with their black cloaks. Deanna knew they could sense they were there because they were coming closer and quicker and the Hufflepuff quickly raised her wand, not wanting to even think of the Dementor's Kiss.

"Don't. Let me do it." Harry whispered to them, and they nodded in agreement as they all put down their wands except for Harry. "Expecto Patronum!" The silver stag charged and made the Dementors scatter.

There was a triumphant yell from somewhere out of sight. "It's him, down there, down there, I saw his Patronus! A stag!"

The Dementors have retreated, the stars were popping out again and the footsteps of the Death Eaters were becoming louder; but before any of them could decide what to do, there was a grinding of bolts nearby, a door opened on the left-side of the narrow street, and a rough and familiar voice said, "Little Ari, in here, quick!"

Deanna obeyed without hesitation, the four of them hurried through the open doorway. A grin made its way onto Deanna's face. Her uncle... Aberforth wanted to hug his niece at that moment, but he knew they weren't safe yet and so he muttered, "Upstairs, keep the Cloak on, keep quiet!"

As Aberforth passed them on his way into the street and slammed the door behind him, the others finally realized they were in the grubby bar of Hog's Head Inn that was home to Deanna.

"Come, follow me." Deanna whispered to them as she led them behind the counter and through a second doorway which led to a trickery wooden staircase. The stairs opened into the sitting room with the carpet and a small fireplace, above which hung the large oil painting of Deanna's aunt who gazed at where she knew Deanna was with a smile before she turned back to the windows.

The four of them, still wearing the Invisibility Cloak, hurried towards the window and looked down. Aberforth was the only one not wearing a hood. "So what? So what? You send dementors down my street, I'll send a Patronus back at'em! I'm not having'em near me, I've told you that. I'm not having it!"

"That wasn't your Patronus," said a Death Eater. "That was a stag. It was Potter's!"

"Stag!" roared the barman, and he pulled out a wand. "Stag! You idiot – Expecto Patronum!"

Deanna couldn't help but grin when she saw the horned and huge goat. Head down, it charged toward the High Street, and out of sight.

"That's not what I saw," said the Death Eater, though he sounded less certain..

"Curfew's been broken, you heard the noise," one of his companions told Aberforth. "Someone was out on the streets against regulations – "

"If I want to put my cat out, I will, and be damned to your curfew!"

"You set off the Caterwauling Charm?"

"What if I did? Going to cart me off to Azkaban? Kill me for sticking my nose out my own front door? Do it, then, if you want to! But I hope for your sakes you haven't pressed your little Dark Marks, and summoned him. He's not going to like being called here, for me and my old cat, is he, now?"

"Don't worry about us." said one of the Death Eaters, "Worry about yourself, breaking curfew!"

"And where will you lot traffic potions and poisons when my pub's closed down? What will happen to your little sidelines then?"

"Are you threatening – "

"I keep my mouth shut, it's why you come here, isn't it?"

"I still say I saw a stag Patronus!" shouted the first Death Eater.

"Stag?" roared Aberforth. "It's a goat, idiot!"

"All right, we made a mistake," said the second Death Eater. "Break curfew again and we won't be so lenient!"

The Death Eaters strode back towards the High Street. Hermione sighed in relief and wove out from under the Cloak to sit down on the chair. Harry drew the curtains then pulled the Cloak off himself, Deanna and Ron once he heard the sound of the door being rebolted and footsteps climbing up the stairs.

"Aunt Ari." Deanna smiled at the portrait and made her way towards it.

"I missed you dearly, Dee." Ariana greeted her back cheerfully, confusing Hermione, Harry and Ron. But before they could say anything, Aberforth had already entered the room.

"Uncle Ab." Deanna's eyes softened at him.

"Little Ari." The grumpy look on Aberforth's face was replaced with a soft smile as he hugged his niece tight, finally being reunited again after months. The three friends could only stare at the two and the portrait, wondering what was happening.

Once they pulled away, Deanna saw how confused they were and blushed, forgetting to introduce them to each other. "Mione, Ron, Harry, these are my Aunt Ariana and Uncle Aberforth. Uncle Ab, Aunt Ari, these are Mione, Ron and Harry."

"Nice to meet you." Hermione greeted them first with a nervous smile. Of course, this was Deanna's family. She couldn't stop feeling nervous. Harry and Ron followed after her in greeting them, earning a smile from Ariana and the usual blank face from Aberforth who had an uncanny resemblance to Dumbledore now that the trio saw him. Well, they didn't show it but the Dumbledore siblings were glad to finally meet Hermione, the girl who made their niece happier than chocolate milk and hotdogs could.

"What were you thinking, coming here?" Aberforth asked them in a gruff manner, frowning at Deanna.

"Thank you," said Harry. "We can't thank you enough. You saved our lives!"

The barman grunted, but behind his spectacles, Deanna could see that he was relieved. Relieved to see Deanna alive and well after worrying for her for months.

Harry approached Aberforth and remembered something that he had been wondering about for a long time. "It's your eye I've been seeing in the mirror."

There was a silence in the room. Harry and Aberforth looked at each other. "You sent Dobby."

Aberforth nodded in response. "Last time I heard, he was with the Lupin-Black's. Wished he could've stayed here, but it was too dangerous for him. I liked that elf."

"How did you get this?" Harry asked, walking across to Sirius's mirror.

"Bought it from Dung 'bout a year ago," said Aberforth. "Albus told me what it was. Been trying to keep an eye out for you."

Ron gasped. "The silver doe," he said excitedly, "Was that you too?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Aberforth.

"Someone sent a doe Patronus to us!"

"Brains like that, you could be a Death Eater, son. Haven't I just prove my Patronus is a goat?"

"Oh," said Ron, "Yeah... well, I'm hungry!" he added defensively as his stomach gave an enormous rumble.

"I got food," said Aberforth, and he sloped out of the room, reappearing moments later with a large loaf of bread, some cheese, a pewter jug of mead and a separate plate of hotdogs and a glass of chocolate milk for Deanna. He set the food upon a small table in front of the fire. After giving their thanks, they ate and drank, and for a while, there was only the sound of chewing.

Once they finished, Deanna looked around for a while and hesitated before asking what she needed to ask. "Where's Fawkes, Uncle Ab?"

Aberforth and Ariana exchanged glances before they looked into Deanna's eyes, and they knew. By the look in her eyes, she already knew of her fate. Of what she needed to do. And they felt their hearts break for the nth time because Deanna still looked so determined to do what she needed. Just like her father.

"He's been waiting." Aberforth answered, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. "Give him a call."

Deanna didn't have to be a genius to know that Aberforth and Ariana knew of what was going to happen to her. They had been there since the beginning, and they knew of the prophecy. It must have been painful for them to know what was going to happen yet try to act normal. So, she sent them a smile. A reassuring smile that meant that everything will be okay in the end. That she will be okay in the end.

"Fawkesy." Deanna called out in a soft voice, and in just a moment, a flash of fire appeared in the room, and the phoenix appeared with a cry, immediately setting down on Deanna's shoulder and nuzzling the girl. "Oh, I missed you too, Fawkes."

Aberforth looked at the two with a soft gaze before turning serious again. "Right then. We need to think of the best way to get you out of here. Can't be done by night, you heard what happens if anyone moves outdoors during darkness: Caterwauling Charm's set off, they'll be onto you like bowtruckles on doxy eggs. I don't reckon I'll be able to pass of a stag as a goat a second time. Wait for daybreak when curfew lifts, then you can put your Cloak back on and set out on foot. Get right out of Hogsmeade, up into the mountains, and you'll be able to Disapparate there or take off with Fawkes. Might see Hagrid. He's been hiding in a cave up there with Grawp ever since they tried to arrest him."

"We're not leaving," said Harry. "We need to get into Hogwarts."

"Don't be stupid, boy," said Aberforth.

"We've got to," said Harry.

"What you've got to do," said Aberforth, leaning forward, "is to get as far from here as from here as you can."

Deanna, Hermione, Ariana and Ron stayed silent, letting the two talk to each other. Aberforth already knew that they were going to continue with their plans no matter what he said, but it was still worth the try right? It was still worth it to try and save his niece from her impending doom.

"You don't understand. There isn't much time. We've got to get into the castle. Dumbledore – I mean, your brother – wanted us – "

"My brother Albus wanted a lot of things," said Aberforth, cutting Harry off, "and people had a habit of getting hurt while he was carrying out his grand plans. You get away from this school, Potter, and out of the country if you can. Forget my brother and his clever schemes. He's gone where none of this can hurt him, and you don't owe him anything."

"You don't understand." said Harry again.

"Oh, don't I? said Aberforth quietly. "You don't think I understood my own brother? Think you know Albus better than I did?"

"I didn't mean that," said Harry. "It's... he left us a job."

"Did he now?" said Aberforth. "Nice job, I hope? Pleasant? Easy? Sort of thing you'd expect an unqualified wizard kid to be able to do without overstretching themselves?"

Ron gave a rather grim laugh. Hermione was looking strained. Deanna was only staring at Aberforth. She understood where he was coming from, but still...

"I-it's not easy, no," said Harry. "But I've got to – "

"Got to? Why got to? He's dead, isn't he?" said Aberforth roughly. "Let it go, boy, before you follow him! Save yourself!"

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I – " Harry stuttered for a moment before speaking in a defensive tone. "But you're fighting too, you're in the Order of the Phoenix - "

"I was," said Aberforth. "The Order of the Phoenix is finished. You-Know-Who's won, it's over, and anyone who's pretending different's kidding themselves. It'll never be safe for you here, Potter, he wants you too badly. So go abroad, go into hiding, save yourself. Best take these two with you. They'll be in danger long as they live now everyone knows they've been working with you." He jerked a thumb at Ron and Hermione.

"And you." Aberforth looked at Deanna with pleading in his eyes, hoping she would listen to him this time. "Go home. Save yourself. It's too dangerous for you so just stop now and go. Live your life and leave behind the job your father has given you. Please, Deanna. Please live the life you were robbed of and be happy."

Deanna could only smile though, the three Dumbledores in the room knowing that Deanna was set on her decision no matter what they said. She was going to sacrifice herself and be their salvation.

"You do know I'm as stubborn as you, Uncle Ab." Deanna let out a chuckle before standing up with Fawkes. "I'll just get something from my room, and when I come back, let's go."

Seeing Harry, Ron and Hermione nod and Aberforth and Ariana sigh, Deanna continued on her way up the stairs and smiled reminiscently at the room she called home. She missed this place, and this might be the last time she would ever be in here again.

And so, Deanna lay down on her bed a while, just thinking about everything. About her father, her uncle and aunt, the people they've lost, her friends, her life, Voldemort, Hermione and her fate. She was meant to be the salvation, she was meant to die. Deanna felt bad, having to leave without even letting anyone else except Aberforth and Ariana know of her fate. But she hoped she would be forgiven anyways for she couldn't muster the courage to tell them what was going to happen to her. It was going to hurt them all in the end, but they would understand that Deanna did it all for them.

She was going to die. That was what she was going to do no matter what. But she didn't want to die without doing anything for them. So, Deanna took out pieces of paper and a quill and ink from her drawer and started writing. If she was going to leave this world without telling anybody else, the least she could do was write them letters that they could read after her death. Her last words that could hopefully ease the pain in their hearts a little.

Especially the heart of Hermione, the person she knew who would be the most heartbroken after this. Deanna placed Hermione's letter inside an envelope with a smile. She hoped this would be enough...

"Fawkesy, when the time comes, I'll give you a call, okay?" Deanna said in a soft and sad voice, making the phoenix let out a sad cry before he nuzzled Deanna's cheek while the Dumbledore started writing all her feelings and thoughts. He would never leave Deanna's side and be there for her no matter what. It was the two of them until the end, the phoenixes that would finish this battle.

Aberforth stared at the door Deanna had just gone through before letting out a sigh and looking back at Harry, Ron and Hermione. "I knew my brother, Potter. He learned secrecy at our mother's knee. Secrets and lies, that's how we grew up, and Albus... he was a natural."

"Professor Dumbledore cared about Deanna and Harry, very much," said Hermione in a low voice.

He glanced back at the portrait of Ariana before staring back at the trio who could see the resemblance of Dumbledore's striking gaze to his. "Did he now? Funny thing how many of the people my brother cared about very much ended up in a worse state than if he'd left 'em well alone."

"What do you mean?" asked Hermione breathlessly.

"Never you mind," said Aberforth.

"But that's a really serious thing to say!" said Hermione. "Are you – are you talking about your sister?"

Aberforth stared at her, realizing Hermione was just as brilliant as Deanna said she was. He glanced at Ariana who sent him a nod and a smile before burst into speech.

"When my sister was six years old, she was attacked, by three Muggle boys. They'd seen her doing magic, spying through the back garden hedge: She was a kid, she couldn't control it, no witch or wizard can at that age. What they saw, scared them, I expect. They forced their way through the hedge, and when she couldn't show them the trick, they got a bit carried away trying to stop the little freak doing it."

Hermione's eyes were huge in the firelight; Ron looked slightly sick. Aberforth stood up, tall as Albus, and suddenly terrible in his anger and the intensity of his pain.

"It destroyed her, what they did: She was never right again. She wouldn't use magic, but she couldn't get rid of it; it turned inward and drove her mad, it exploded out of her when she couldn't control it, and at times she was strange and dangerous. But mostly she was sweet and scared and harmless.

"And my father went after the bastards that did it," said Aberforth, "and attacked them. And they locked him up in Azkaban for it. He never said why he'd done it, because the Ministry had known what Ariana had become, she'd have been locked up in St. Mungo's for good. They'd have seen her as a serious threat to the International Statute of Secrecy, unbalanced like she was, with magic exploding out of her at moments when she couldn't keep it in any longer.

"We had to keep her safe and quiet. We moved house, put it about she was ill, and my mother looked after her, and tried to keep her calm and happy. I was her favourite," he said with a small smile at Ariana's portrait. "Not Albus, he was always up in his bedroom when he was home, reading his books and counting his prizes, keeping up with his correspondence with "the most notable magical names of the day." He didn't want to be bothered with her. She liked me best. I could get her to eat when she wouldn't do it for my mother, I could calm her down, when she was in one of her rages, and when she was quiet, she used to help me feed the goats.

"Then, when she was fourteen... See, I wasn't there." said Aberforth. "If I'd been there, I could have calmed her down. She had one of her rages, and my mother wasn't as young as she was, and... it was an accident. Ariana couldn't control it. But my mother was killed."

Hermione's heart dropped when she heard that. The Dumbledores had gone through so much, even back then. Deanna too... Hearing everything just made Hermione want to care for Deanna more and protect her as much as she could.

"So that put a stop to Albus's trip round the world with little Doge. The pair of 'em came home for my mother's funeral and then Doge went off on his own, and Albus settled down as head of the family. Ha!" Aberforth spat into the fire. "I'd have looked after her, I told him so, I didn't care about school, I'd have stayed home and done it. He told me I had to finish my education and he'd take over from my mother. Bit of a comedown for Mr. Brilliant, there's no prizes for looking after your half-mad sister, stopping her blowing up the house every other day. But he did all right for a few weeks... till he came."

And now a positively dangerous look crept over Aberforth's face. "Grindelwald. And at last, my brother had an equal to talk to someone just as bright and talented he was. And looking after Ariana took a backseat then, while they were hatching all their plans for a new Wizarding order and looking for Hallows, and whatever else it was they were so interested in. Grand plans for the benefit of all Wizardkind, and if one young girl neglected, what did that matter, when Albus was working for the greater good?

"But after a few weeks of it, I'd had enough, I had. It was nearly time for me to go back to Hogwarts, so I told 'em, both of 'em, face-to-face, like I am to you, now," and Aberforth looked downward at them. "I told him, you'd better give it up now. You can't move her, she's in no fit state, you can't take her with you, wherever it is you're planning to go, when you're making your clever speeches, trying to whip yourselves up a following. He didn't like that."

"Grindelwald didn't like that at all. He got angry. He told me what a stupid little boy I was, trying to stand in the way of him and my brilliant brother. Didn't I understand, my poor sister wouldn't have to be hidden once they'd changed the world, and led the wizards out of hiding, and taught the Muggles their place?

"And there was an argument, and I pulled my wand, and he pulled out his, and I had the Cruciatus Curse used on me by my brother's best friend – and Albus was trying to stop him, and then all three of us were dueling, and the flashing lights and the bangs set her off, she couldn't stand it – "

The color was draining from Aberforth's face as though he had suffered a mortal wound. " – and I think she wanted to help, but she didn't really know what she was doing, and I don't know which of us did it, it could have been any of us - and she was dead." His voice broke on the last word and he dropped down into the nearest chair.

Hermione was crying before she knew it, her heart aching endlessly as she stared at Ariana who was looking at her brother with pain in her eyes. She wanted to give him a hug but she couldn't. She wasn't alive anymore.

"I'm so... I'm so sorry," Hermione whispered.

"Gone," croaked Aberforth. "Gone forever."

He wiped his nose on hiss cuff and cleared his throat. " 'Course, Grindelwald scarpered. He had a bit of a track record already, back in his own country, and he didn't want Ariana set to his account too. And Albus was free, wasn't he? Free of the burden of his sister, free to become the greatest wizard of the – "

"He was never free," said Harry.

"I beg your pardon?" said Aberforth.

"Never," said Harry. "The night that your brother died, he drank a potion that drove him out of his mind. He started screaming, pleading with someone who wasn't there. 'Don't hurt them, please... hurt me instead. Don't let it be her.'"

Ron and Hermione were staring at Harry. He and Deanna had never gone into details about what had happened on the island on the lake.

"He thought he was back there with you and Grindelwald, I know he did," said Harry, remembering Dumbledore whispering, pleading. "He thought he was watching Grindelwald hurting you and Ariana. It was torture to him, if you'd seen him then, you wouldn't say he was free. He didn't want it to be her, he didn't want her to die."

Aberforth had a lost look in his eyes. He understood Harry's words, but the part about not wanting it to be her... He knew Dumbledore was referring to his niece. After a long pause he said. "How can you be sure, Potter, that my brother wasn't more interested in the greater good than in you? How can you be sure you aren't dispensable, just like my little sister? If he could sacrifice his daughter and his sister for the greater good, then how can you be sure you aren't going to be his next sacrifice?"

"I don't believe it. Dumbledore loved Deanna and Harry," said Hermione. She witnessed how Dumbledore and Deanna were as a father-daughter duo. She didn't like how he was making Dumbledore seem like a bad man only because of his choices when he was younger. Hermione knew Professor Dumbledore was a good man.

"Why didn't he tell them to hide, then?" Aberforth shot back. "Why didn't he say to them, 'Take care of yourself, here's how to survive'?"

"Because we are the only ones who can fight this war." Deanna suddenly said, making them all jump in surprise at her sudden arrival. She had a smile on her face and stepped closer to her uncle, staring him right in the eyes with a fire burning. The fire of determination to save the world.

"You're seventeen, Deanna." Aberforth said in a firm tone.

"We're of age, and we're going to continue fighting this war." Deanna held his hand and squeezed it. "I know that you haven't given up despite everything you are saying. I know you haven't forgiven him for the longest time because of what he had done and the secrets he continued to keep. But I know now. I am a Dumbledore, the heir of the phoenixes, who will follow her destiny to end this war. We're going to take this to the end even if it means we have to die. Nothing's going to change that."

Aberforth's eyes filled with tears at that, and Deanna hugged him tight and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Please help us get into Hogwarts, Uncle Ab. Or if you can't just let us stay for the night. I need to finish this."

"Oh, love." The old man could only hug his niece tight, knowing he had no choice but to agree, and wiped his tears before looking at Ariana who was smiling sadly at them. "You know what to do."

Ariana looked at Deanna who sent her a smile before she turned and walked away into a long tunnel painted behind her. The Hufflepuff smiled, seeing that they put her plan into action.

"Er – what – ?" began Ron, all three Gryffindors confused.

"There's only one way in now," said Aberforth. "You must know they've got all the old secret passageways covered at both ends, dementors all around the boundary walls, regular patrols inside the school from what my sources tell me. The place has never been so heavily guarded. How you expect to do anything once you get inside it, with Snape in charge and the Carrows as his deputies... well, that's your lookout, isn't it? You say you're prepared to die."

"But what..." said Hermione, frowning at Ariana's picture.

A tiny white dot reappeared at the end of the painted tunnel, and now Ariana was walking back toward them, growing bigger and bigger as she came. But there was somebody else with her now, someone taller than she was, who was limping along, looking excited.

His hair was longer than ever. He appeared and torn. Larger and larger, the two figures grew, until only their heads and shoulders filled the portrait. Then the whole thing swang forward on the wall like a little door, and the entrance to a real tunnel was revealed.

And out of it, his hair overgrown, his face cut, his robes ripped, clambered the real Neville Longbottom, who gave a roar of delight, leapt down from the mantelpiece and yelled. "I knew you'd come! I knew it!"

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