The morning came and the group sat round the hearth, where a small purple fire was burning brightly. Hermione and Ron, Fred and George, Angelina Johnson and a woman named Harriet Drinkwater. Ron suddenly noticed that Hermione was staring into the fire.
‘What’s the matter?’
‘Nothing. I just remember what day it was.’
‘And?’
’31st July, Harry’s birthday. He would have been twenty-four’ she looked at Ron.
Ron looked at the floor.
‘We all miss him, even now.’
They sat in silence for several second.
‘Time to go,’ said Fred, quietly.

They set out in a sombre mood. They’d been hunting Death Eaters for three years now, operating pretty much on their own. The Ministry was so full of spies that it was impossible to know who to trust. This had been brought home with devastating effect when Ron’s father had been killed by one of his own staff nearly two years ago. They’d been living on the move for nearly all that time, shifting from place to place in search of information. They were also being hunted. It turned out that their activities had caught the attention of Voldermort. Mainly due to the large number of Death Eaters they’d either captured or killed over the years. They could no longer afford to drop their guard for a second, and the strain was beginning to tell. They all looked gaunt, and tired, with large purple blotches under their eyes. As they slowly trudged down the deserted path they started to wake from the daze they were in. Four figures Apparated on the path ahead of them. Ron spotted them, ‘Death Eaters.’ They turned to see four more behind.
‘Scatter,’ called George.
The group immediately split into pairs and disappeared in different directions. Ron and Hermione shot into the forest on their left. They ran as fast as they could, ducking branches, rounding trees. They didn’t look back. Suddenly four more Death Eaters appeared on their left and started after them. The two of them ran, and ran, for what seemed an eternity. They could hear spells hitting the floor and the trees around them, hear the voices behind them chanting curses. They took out their wands and began casting spells wildly over their shoulders. They broke into a clearing and were almost across it when Hermione stood in a rabbit hole. She lost balance and tumbled to the floor in a heap. Ron immediately stopped, dropping to the floor beside her, but with his eye scanning the tree line behind them.
‘Are you all right?’
‘I’ve hurt my ankle, it might be broken.’
‘Hold on,’ Ron waved his wand, ‘how’s that?’
‘Stiff, but better.’
Looking up they saw four Death Eaters closing in on them.
‘Nowhere to go this time, Wesley,’ said one of the Death Eaters.
He removed his hood to reveal his face. It was Draco Malfoy.
‘I’ve been waiting a long time to catch up with you. You’ve both been very naughty, causing quite a stir. Lord Voldermort ordered your deaths personally, you should be honoured.’
‘Shut up, Malfoy. You’ll never succeed, even if you kill us, they’re plenty more ready to take up the fight.’
‘Yes, but killing you will still be fun.’
He raised his wand. Suddenly there was a small pop and a figure Apparated between Ron and Hermione, and the Death Eaters. Ron and Hermione couldn’t see who it was, all they could see was their back, but the Death Eaters could see, and Malfoy’s mouth dropped open.
‘N–N–No. It can’t be,’ stuttered Malfoy.
One of the Death Eaters raised his wand, but before he could cast anything, the newly appeared figure muttered a curse and waved his wand. The Death Eater fell to the ground – dead. Malfoy turned and ran. Without any hesitation, the figure in front of Hermione and Ron let out two more spells, binding the last two Death Eaters in thick, strong looking ropes and gagging their mouths. Sure that Malfoy had gone, the figure turned to Ron and Hermione. Despite the changes time had made, the robes that hide most of his body, and the new glasses, they knew instantly who it was. Harry Potter stood before them. They sat gob smacked as Harry walked over to them and knelt down.
‘Are you all right?’
Ron and Hermione were still lost for words. Harry smiled at the sight of their faces. The dirt and the shabby robes couldn’t hide the beauty of the woman that Hermione had become. She was lean, almost delicate, but a fire burnt behind he eyes. Ron, still tall, with his shock of red hair, had filled out to a powerful figure of a man. He looked haggard and weary, but he was still full of fight.
‘Yes, it’s me. I’m still alive, I didn’t die like you all think I did.’
‘Harry, it’s really you, you’re alive.’
‘Yes Ron, it’s really me. Now, are you both all right.’
Tears cascaded down Hermione’s face, she had to fight to see and to hold off the sobs that had taken over her whole body. She dove forward and flung her arms around Harry, holding on with all her might, as it Harry would disappear if she let go. Harry put his arms around her. Ron shuffled over and embraced both of them. After a few minutes the three of them slowly let go.
‘But how?’ heaved Hermione, finally managing to stem the flow of tears.
‘We’ve little time, I’ll explain on the way.’

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