Sacrifice

"I've checked the perimeter," Ron said on his return. He was panting for breath and had a blackened arm and face. "There's no escape - the windows, back door and roof are all sealed, looks like an Impeturbable. We can't even blast our way out, I tried that and Alohomora too."

Hermione's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She turned to Ron and said in a horrified voice, "I've deciphered those runes and she's absolutely right. There is no way out of this house unless one of us dies."

"But there must be something we can do ..."

"Come on, Ron, let's both look around."

Staying close together, they scoured the house, opening all cupboard doors, trying every window, pulling out every drawer and looking under both of the beds.

"Oh, it's no use. There's no telephone, no radio, no computer - nothing we can use to communicate with the outside world," complained Hermione.

"Yeah, and the only bird here is some cold chicken in a tin. We haven't even got an owl to send a message," Ron agreed miserably. "And even if we had one, I doubt it could get out."

"This looks bad, really really bad, Ron," said Hermione despairingly. "We're going to die this time, aren't we?"

"It can't be that bad, we'll think of something," replied Ron, pulling Hermione into a hug. "Things have looked pretty grim before. Remember when we were outnumbered by Death Eaters at the Ministry?"

"Yes, but Harry was there too, and in any case we were rescued by the Order and Dumbledore. There's no one to help us this time."

"That's a fair point, but I've complete confidence in you. She picked the wrong person to imprison by runes - if anyone can get us out, Hermione Granger can."

"Oh Ron, I'm touched by your faith in me, I just wish I was as confident. Actually I'm feeling a bit woozy after those drinks and I can't think straight at the moment. Let's try to get some sleep and make a fresh start in the morning."

"That's a good idea," he replied. "But what if it's a trick, what if she returns with some Death Eater pals?"

"I don't think so; I believe Beryl meant what she said. But just in case, let's set up some wards around the door and windows."

They quickly went about setting alarm spells and trip jinxes near all doors and windows so that they would be alerted if anyone else moved around inside the house. Then they took turns in standing guard whilst the other used the bathroom.

"I'll take the bedroom nearer the front door," offered Ron.

"If you're sure then."

"Goodnight, Hermione."

"Hey, Ron, wait," called Hermione as Ron turned away towards his bedroom. She grabbed his arm and stood on tiptoe to kiss him. "Thanks for this evening. I'm sure we can work something out. Goodnight, Ron."

~ o ~ o ~

Ten minutes later Ron was just dozing off when the door to his bedroom burst open. Instinctively he rolled over and grabbed his wand.

"Ron? Ron, are you still awake?"

"Well, I am now. What's the matter, Hermione? Beryl hasn't come back, has she?"

"Ron, I'm really scared. I know we've been in dangerous situations before, but we've always had Harry or Ginny or someone with us. Now it's just us and I can't see any way out of this one."

"Hermione," replied Ron softly as he swung his long legs off the bed and stood up. "It's not just us - you and me, we're a great team."

Hermione crossed the room and flung her arms around his waist, pressing her head against his chest. Ron put one arm around her shoulder and caressed her hair with the other. Then he kissed her tenderly on the forehead.

"Come on, Hermione. I've been in plenty of tricky chess games where it looked like I was a goner, but I always found a way out."

"You mean like at the end of our first year when you played McGonagall's giant chess set?"

"Yes, that's a good example."

"No, Ron, that's not a good example at all!" Hermione retorted, stamping her foot angrily. "You had to sacrifice yourself so that Harry could go on. I'm not going to let you do that this time, I'd rather -"

"OK, OK, so maybe that wasn't such a great example," cowered Ron. "I'm sorry, Hermione. Come on, let's get some sleep, we can figure this one out in the morning."

"Alright then. Er, Ron?"

"Yes?"

"Would you mind if I stayed in here with you? I don't fancy sleeping on my own in a strange room tonight."

"Sounds good to me, I'd like that too. I'll get some blankets and make a bed on the fl-"

"No, Ron, please don't. I rather think I need to snuggle up with you tonight."

Ron's eyes widened.

"Just sleeping, mind you, nothing more. We're going to have a tough day tomorrow."

~ o ~ o ~

The next morning Hermione was woken by the alluring aroma of hot toast. Her head felt fuzzy inside and she was looking forward to a warm shower followed by a leisurely Weasley breakfast. On opening her eyes she suddenly remembered what had happened the night before. She looked around the unfamiliar bedroom for Ron, but there was no sign of him apart from his bag on the floor. Her head seemed to clear instantly and she leaped out of bed, snatched up her wand and ran out of the room.

"I hope he hasn't gone and done anything stupid," she muttered to herself quietly.

"No, he hasn't," came a voice from the kitchen, "or at least, I hope not."

Hermione peered into the kitchen, where Ron had obviously just finished preparing breakfast. There was a large tray with bowls of cornflakes, slices of toast and a pot of tea.

"Come and get some breakfast, I'm starving. I wanted to wait for you, but I can't hang on much longer."

"OK, just a minute, I need the loo first."

Hermione disappeared into the bathroom whilst Ron carried the tray to the table in the lounge. He sat down and looked longingly at the food in front of him. His hand was just straying towards a cornflake when Hermione emerged.

"Great, let's get started then," he urged.

"Not yet, I've got to check those runes again. After all, I might have missed something last night."

"Hermione, can't you do that later? I'm hungry. And it's not like we're going anywhere in a hurry."

"Thanks a lot for reminding me, Ron. I can't believe you let me sleep so long, we need to start work on this problem right away."

Hermione ran to the front door and, much to Ron's annoyance, spent at least ten minutes examining the engraved runes. Then she sighed deeply, turned around and trudged back towards where Ron was sitting.

"It's no good, we really are trapped. Oh Ron, what can we do? My head hurts and I feel terrible."

Ron patted the chair beside him. "I suggest you'll feel better if you eat something, that always works for me. Let's sit here and look out over the ocean."

"I'm not sure I can eat at all, I'm so nervous. My stomach seems to be filled with bubbles and I don't think it's because of last night's dinner."

"Well, maybe that's not a bad thing. I checked all the cupboards and there's only enough food for a few days."

Hermione scanned the toast that was piled high on the tray. "Ron! We can't just eat up all the food like this. Oh well, now you've made it, I suppose you might as well enjoy your last decent breakfast ..."

"But I always have a big breakfast! I need it. Mum says -"

"Your mother isn't here, Ronald, I am! And I say we need to eat as little as possible if we're to stay alive long enough to figure out a method of escape."

"I suppose so. Well, what are we going to do then, any ideas?"

"Not at the moment. Let's just sit here quietly and think about it ..."

~ o ~ o ~

But, over the following days, it became clear that Beryl had seemingly thought of everything. Even the brightest witch and the best tactician of their generation were unable to devise a method of escaping the deadly trap.

To Ron's alarm, Hermione had found an old quill and a scrap of paper, upon which she wrote out a scheme for rationing their meals. She had calculated that, with a great deal of self-control and conservation of energy, their food could be made to last about twenty days.

Hermione started and finished every day by inspecting the runes around the front door, but she always came to the same conclusion - no escape. Most of their time was spent sitting quietly and contemplating the ever-changing ocean, or one of them watched the other pace up and down fruitlessly. Now and then they bickered over something trivial, only to make it up with kisses and cuddles. Although they had plenty of time to discuss their future, neither of them could summon the enthusiasm to do so; it was as if they felt betrayed because the need to have that discussion was what had actually lured them to the cottage. Did they even have a future together beyond the next few days?

Occasionally one of them would have an idea, but each time it ended in disappointment ......

~ o ~ o ~

"Hermione! I've got it! Remember the Triwizard Tournament? In the first task, Harry summoned his broom from Gryffindor Tower. What if we try summoning something from far away, maybe someone will see it and follow it here."

"I'm not sure how far we could summon an object, but it's worth a try ..."

"Let's start with something nearby, something that we can actually see."

Ron glanced out of the window, raised his wand and cried out, "Accio seagull!"

A glowing yellow patch appeared on the large window, then slowly faded. A large seagull soared calmly past the cottage, unaware of its starring role in a failed experiment.

"If the situation wasn't so serious, that would be funny, Ron. Accio seagull - really!" chortled Hermione.

~ o ~ o ~

"Ron! What about a Patronus? Harry showed me how the Order used them to communicate with each other. If we can conjure a Patronus, maybe we can send it for help."

"Great idea, Hermione! Do you think you can do it? I still haven't really got past the silvery blur stage myself and I don't think these hunger pangs are helping."

Hermione drew her wand and reached for Ron with her other hand. As he held her, she closed her eyes and smiled broadly.

"Expecto Patronum!" she called out clearly.

A shining silver otter sprang from her wand and headed directly towards the hallway. As it reached the front door, it appeared to sniff the door suspiciously. Then the otter turned to Hermione and Ron with an almost apologetic look before dissolving back into a mist and fading away.

~ o ~ o ~

"I hate being hungry, it's the worst feeling in the world."

"Yes, Ron, it's a pity there isn't a way of conjuring food. We're OK for water - anyone can do Aguamenti - but food ..."

"Well, in our sixth year you did manage to conjure those canaries before anyone else could."

"You're right, I'd forgotten that."

"I haven't, I think I've still got some scars. Those bloody birds took great chunks out of my nose. I fancy some revenge - if you conjure some more, can we eat them?"

"No, Ron, it doesn't work like that. What was it McGonagall said? 'Organic artefacts are only transient.' In other words, conjured food would not last and would not have any nutritional value. Our meals at Hogwarts were prepared by enslaved House-Elves and then transferred magically to our plates, they weren't created out of thin air."

"Oh well, I suppose there wouldn't be much meat on a canary anyway."

~ o ~ o ~

"It's a pity one of us isn't a flea Animagus like Rita Skeeter. Then maybe we could find some tiny crack to escape through."

"Rita is a beetle, Ron, not a flea. And I'm not sure even that would work, the whole cottage seems to be sealed against us."

"Maybe you should just kill me then, get it over and done with."

"No, Ron, no! I could never kill you and it's not a joking matter. Could you really stand there and murder me in cold blood?"

"No, of course not, not even if it means starving to death. And, you know, for a Weasley that's got to be the worst way to go."

~ o ~ o ~

After eight days and with only one book to read - Hogwarts, A History (of course) - Hermione was becoming increasingly frustrated and irritable. Ron was irritable nearly all the time; even Hermione had to admit that his clothes were beginning to look a little looser and that he really must have been hungry.

Hermione was examining the runes as usual before bedtime when Ron heard her give a sharp gasp. He rushed to the front door.

"You look a little faint, Hermione. Are you OK?"

"Oh Ron, I - I think I may have found the solution," she replied in a shaky voice. "It's not ideal, and it's a very long shot anyway, but it could be the only possible way out."

"You're a genius! I knew you could do it!"

Ron threw his arms around her and kissed her passionately. "So what's the answer then?" he continued.

"Well, I'm not sure how to tell you. It's a bit ... difficult ... awkward ..."

"So you are going to kill me after all?" he responded, suddenly looking very worried.

"Not exactly, although it will require hard work and certainly isn't guaranteed to succeed. Come with me, Ron, this may take some time ..."

~ o ~ o ~

Nearly two weeks later, Ron and Hermione were sitting at the kitchen table in The Burrow. Arthur, Molly, Ginny and Harry watched as Ron stuffed yet another slice of cake into his mouth and concluded his story.

"Mwhhh ... and so we managed to escape and then we flew all the way back here."

"You poor dears, no wonder you were worn out and starving hungry. In fact I don't think I've ever seen Hermione eat so much," exclaimed Molly. Her eyes were filled with tears as she rose from her seat and hugged Ron and then Hermione for approximately the tenth time that hour.

"But you still haven't explained exactly how you got away. What happened to all those locking Charms?" asked Ginny.

Harry squeezed her hand and interjected, "Yes, and why didn't you just apparate straight back here after you escaped?"

Ron blushed to the tips of his ears. "Er, I think I'd better let Hermione tell you that bit," he said croakily.

Hermione also looked a little flushed, but sat up straight with a determined look. Based on his many years of experience, Harry knew that she was about to explain something complicated.

"Well, on my final examination of the runes, I concentrated on the sealing spell. I reckoned that if we could undo that Singleton Charm, then the others might be weakened sufficiently for us to break the combination. Unfortunately, that charm did indeed prove to be unbreakable."

"So how did you do it then?" asked Molly.

Hermione continued, "It was then that I discovered the tiny but vital mistake - instead of a Singleton Charm, the writer had actually inscribed the runes for an almost identical charm, one that would have precisely the same effect under most circumstances."

"Interesting," commented Arthur, "what charm could do that?"

"It was a Parity Charm," stated Hermione, sitting back in her chair.

There was silence for a moment as everyone puzzled these statements. Then Arthur said in a thoughtful voice, "Ah, I think I've heard of that. So maybe it would unlock not only if there was one person in the cottage, but also if there was any odd number of people?"

"That's correct," replied Hermione very quietly.

Harry looked baffled. "I still don't get it - there were only the two of you in there and nobody else could have found you, could they?" he asked.

The others nodded in puzzled agreement and once again the only sound in the kitchen was the patient ticking of the clock on the wall.

The silence was broken abruptly by a wild shriek from Ginny. Her bright brown eyes were gleaming and her face was almost as red as her hair as she exclaimed, "Hermione, you aren't ... you didn't ... ?"

Hermione nodded, "I'm afraid we had to, it was the only way out."

"Oh, wow! So that means ... I'm going to be an auntie?"

"Yes, Ginny, I rather think it does. Congratulations," replied Hermione with an enigmatic smile.