Promise You Won\'t Forget Me

~Chapter 9: Showdown~

"Trying to save him, Hermione?" Blaine didn´t speak very loudly, but somehow every word reached Hermione. Then to her horror, Blaine shrugged and pulled out a pistol.

"Have it your way."

And she fired it.

There was instant pandemonium.

It took Hermione several moments to realize that she wasn´t dead, or even injured. Just as Blaine pulled the trigger, someone had pulled her down under a table, out of harm´s way. The bullet had flown past her and hit someone else.

Monty Grover.

He was dead, lying near Hermione in a pool of blood, an expression of shock printed on his face. Hermione flinched and ducked lower as Blaine fired again. People were screaming and stampeding each other in their attempts to get out of the room. Hermione couldn´t see Harry and Ron in the throng of people, and lost sight of the others.

More shots. More screams. More blood.

There was a horrible noise like that of an animal dying as all of the musicians dumped their instruments in their panicked efforts to get out of the room. Hermione began to panic herself. She couldn´t move, she couldn´t even get up.

"Stop where you are!" squeaked a familiar voice. Oh, no, Jack! Now was not the time to play hero.

Blaine shot him and he fell over with a grunt. Hermione covered her mouth to keep from screaming.

One of Blaine´s stray bullets knocked over an oil lamp. The flames hit the curtain and one corner of the room blazed.

Hermione struggled to right herself, to at least be able to see over the table. Suddenly, as if by magic, the room was empty except for herself, Blaine, and Charles. The doors slammed shut. The fire in the corner started to spread. Hermione stumbled backward, coughing as the smoke filled her lungs.

"The doors are sealed with a spell, Hermione," Blaine said calmly. "This is it."

But Hermione Granger was not born a fool. She wouldn´t give up without a fight no matter how desperate the situation seemed. The fire was the greater danger now, for if she didn´t move soon, she´d find it was too late. But if she moved, Blaine would undoubtedly shoot her.

"Are we going to play hide and seek, Hermione?" Blaine called into the smoke.

Hermione gritted her teeth. She would not let Blaine get to her. She searched desperately for a way out. She was unarmed and not in top physical condition at the moment. Blaine had a gun and a wand. Things did not look so good.

"Quick question, would you prefer to be shot, or die by `the bright green light´?" Blaise asked mockingly.

Suddenly Hermione saw her answer. There was a window that was open a crack. If she could just get to it, and push it open...the piano! It was directly under the window. The trouble was it was also very close to Charles.

Making up her mind quickly, Hermione darted towards it, grateful for the screen of smoke. She sneaked up behind Charles, who was watching Blaine, and grabbed a nearby abandoned tray with which she hit him in the back of the head. However, instead of falling unconscious, as she had expected, she only made him angry.

He turned to grab her, but with a sudden burst of speed she climbed up on top of the piano and kicked him in the nose. Purely by chance his flailing arms caught her ankle. Blaine was screaming obscenities at both of them and fired the gun, but she couldn´t see with the smoke and Charles was holding the wand. Hermione was trying desperately to pull away. She strained towards the window, but Charles, with blood pouring from his nose, was yanking on her leg.

Attempting something quite dangerous, as she was several feet from the ground, she twisted her body until she could grab the window sill. Then she jumped off the piano and used her free leg to kick Charles very sharply in the throat. With a muffled cry of pain he released her and his hands went to his neck. Hermione dangled from the window. She struggled to pull herself up, but she kept slipping.

During this, Blaine had been making her way through the smoke and blazing fire. She attempted to catch hold of Hermione, but failed. She started shrieking in rage.

The heat from the fire filled the hall like helium in a balloon. Hermione was practically drowning in her own sweat and her skin was beginning to scald.

She managed to force the window open and pull herself through. She was suddenly very grateful for having exercised. She dropped down heavily onto the deck and wrenched her ankle. Limping, she looked around desperately for somewhere to hide. There wasn´t anywhere nearby, so she headed around the deck.

Just as she was ready to collapse, two figures passed through the wall in front of her. Dizzy and disoriented from the pain, Hermione shielded her eyes, and thought she was imagining it, but Blaine and Charles, had, in fact, just walked through the wall.

She struggled backward, and without taking her eyes from Blaine, she continued to back up until she hit the railing. She couldn´t go any further, and with a quick look over her shoulder, she knew that jumping over wasn´t an option.

"You are a very clever woman, Hermione," Blaine said pleasantly, stopping a few feet away. "And, it seems, rather difficult to kill. But this is it. This is the end of the line for you. I suppose this mess will take a lot of strong Memory Charms, I really hadn´t intended to carry it this far, you see, but it will all be worth it."

Hermione swallowed. "Why do you want me dead so badly anyway? That´s one thing I haven´t figured out."

Blaine pretended to be surprised. "Only one thing? So you have the rest of the puzzle solved then, do you?"

Watching as Charles inched towards her, Hermione moved away slightly. Blaine waved an impatient hand at him to stop; she was curious to hear what Hermione had to say.

"I haven´t solved all of it," Hermione admitted. "And most of it´s assumption. You´re Death Eaters."

That wasn´t a question, and with a twist of her lips, Blaine lifted her sleeve to reveal the Dark Mark.

"One point for you," she said. "Although, I suppose once I started shooting people it wasn´t a difficult guess. Okay, go on."

"And you´re not American." This was more of a guess than anything else, but Blaine´s accent had begun to slip.

"Right again, Hermione," Blaine nodded, British accent asserting itself. "You´re on a roll."

Hermione ignored her. She was watching Charles who was the unpredictable aspect of this whole charade.

"Voldemort is hiding out in the Bahamas," Hermione continued, watching the O´Malleys for their reactions. "Recuperating. Regaining strength. But when he last encountered Harry, five years ago, Harry destroyed him. Or at least, I assume, that he was reduced to a state he didn´t much like. And the only way to resurrect him, was the same way he did it before. Am I correct?"

"Somewhat. Do go on."

"So you needed Harry Potter. But there was no way to get Harry Potter, as he was well protected in Egypt. Somehow you needed to get him on this cruise." She paused, unsure of her self. Blaine was smirking, and her eyes glittered every time Hermione mentioned Harry. "And this, I assume, was where I came in. I was the bait to capture Harry. How else could you account for the coincidence that we´d happen to be on the same cruise."

But that didn´t even ring true to Hermione. Professor Vector had recommended the cruise, and Hermione doubted the kind Arithmancy Professor was a tool of Voldemort. Unless the Death Eaters found out about her plans and simply took advantage of it.

Blaine was shaking her head. "Oh, Hermione, and you were doing so well up until then. Since you´ll be dead in a few minutes, I see no reason to enlighten you. Go to your grave wondering."

"Oh, come on," Hermione said, steadying herself as the boat rocked. "Don´t you want to brag about your evil plan?"

"Hardly," Blaine replied, raising the pistol to aim at Hermione´s heart. "It never does the evil genius any good. However, I will tell you one thing. You were never part of this. From the beginning, you were a nuisance, which is why I´m going to kill you. You see, Hermione, our `plan´ never involved you. You were an unlucky coincidence."

Hermione´s heart was beating so hard she thought it would leap out of her chest. She was running out of options, and as soon as Blaine killed her, she´d go after Harry and Ron.

"Just tell me one other thing," Hermione asked, trying to buy herself some time. She bit her lip. "Is he really Ron Weasley?"

Blaine lowered the gun and looked at Hermione incredulously. Then she threw back her head and laughed.

"I wouldn´t have imagined it, but it´s true! You really are in love with him! Ah, this is too fabulous. And you want the question answered, is he or isn´t he? Well, Hermione, Ron Carmichael is exactly what we´ve made of him. He is the perfect sacrifice."

Hermione inhaled sharply. "Sacrifice...?"

Blaine smirked. "Oh, and one more thing. I nearly forgot." She took something out of her pocket. "Remember this?"

It was her book necklace, the one Ron had given to her at their graduation from Hogwarts. And it was in the hands of that filthy--

"Give that back to me, Blaine," Hermione said furiously. "Now."

"I do apologize for the mess my husband made. He´s such a klutz. But we couldn´t have you wearing it. Imagine the sensation it would cause."

She raised the gun again. "Goodbye, Hermione."

"BLAINE!"

Her finger on the trigger, she spun around at the shout. Ron was standing there, staring at her as if he had never seen her before. All the blood had drained from his face, and his eyes were opened wide in shock, with his wand clenched tightly in his hand.

Blaine cursed loudly, and attempted to salvage the situation.

"It´s not what it looks like, Ronnie. Oh, damn, where´s my wand?"

Ron took a step away from her. "Funny, I´m sure it´s exactly what it looks like." His voice was strangled. "Blaine, I...I don´t understand. Hermione! Are you all right?"

"I´ve been better," she choked out. "Ron, look out!"

Charles, for all appearances an innocent bystander, had just drawn his wand. He was pointing it in the direction of his wife and Ron.

"Memory charm him, you idiot!" Blaine shrieked. "But don´t kill him!"

The words were forming on his lips, but Ron was faster.

"Expelliarmus!"

The wand went shooting out of his hand and skidded across the deck. Hermione reached for it, but Blaine spun around and aimed the gun at her again.

"Don´t move. Either of you. I´ll shoot you if you go for the gun, Hermione. Charles, go and retrieve it."

But Ron had his wand to Charles´s throat. "I´m sorry about this, Charlie, but stay where you are. I think we have a standoff, Blaine. I suggest you start talking. What the fuck have you done to me?"

Blaine, with her gun still on Hermione, smiled sadly at Ron and shook her head. "Oh, Ronnie, baby, I´m so sorry it´s come to this. You don´t understand. She has to die. She´s getting in the way. Why should you care? You´ve only just met her!"

"You don´t go around killing innocent people, Blaine!" Ron shouted, his voice cracking. "I won´t let you kill her!"

"So you´ll kill me and Charlie instead? Your life long friends?"

Ron looked as if he were being ripped apart. He glanced from Blaine to Hermione and back again. Then he noticed the necklace in Blaine´s hand.

"That necklace," he frowned. "I´ve seen it before."

Blaine became angry. "Well you´ll never see the damned thing again!"

And she pulled her hand back to throw it, but she saw something, and froze. She put her arm down, laughter dancing in her eyes. Hermione turned to look.

Harry.

"Harry, no, get away!" she screamed.

"Looks like the odds have changed," Harry said calmly, although he seemed to be unarmed. "Don´t you think, Blaise?"

For a moment, Hermione thought he had pronounced her name wrong, but then a piece of the puzzle clicked into place, and she summoned the image of a Slytherin from their year. A rather snobby girl with copper hair and piercing blue eyes...

"Blaise?" she gasped. "Blaise Zabini?"

Suddenly, her beauty changed and she resembled a Greek Fury. Her mouth twisted and she spat, "Fuck it all. Stay out of this, Potter. I won´t have you ruining the Dark Lord´s plans."

"But that´s my job, isn´t it? I am the Boy Who Lived, after all." From Harry´s stance and casual manner one would have thought he was conversing about the weather.

"You know nothing, Potter, nothing!" she cried. "This doesn´t concern you!"

Ron was watching the proceedings with an open mouth. "Blaine?"

"No," Harry answered for her. "Blaise Zabini. Formerly of the Slytherin House of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Sorry, Carmichael, but you´ve been living a lie."

"I don´t understand," he said desperately.

"I do." Harry was quiet. "Now, I´m the one Voldemort wants, right, Blaise? So take me to him instead. Leave Hermione and Ron out of this."

She started laughing hysterically. "You fool! You´re all fools! Voldemort doesn´t want the Great Harry Potter! He wants the thing that matters most to The Boy Who Lived! He waited three years to get a hold of it, but by the time he did, you," she said, gesturing towards Harry with her free hand, "and the bitch," pointing to Hermione with the pistol, "went and blew him up! So he waited."

A wave of calm passed over her and her eyes glittered dangerously. "But he´s done waiting. My master will return, more powerful than ever before. Because he has the one thing that Harry Potter would die for to protect. His best friend!"

Hermione gasped. The person in question looked completely bewildered and didn´t know what to do or say. He couldn´t do anything but stare.

"Months of careful planning!" Blaise cried. "I even had to create a damned Portal with the help of that sniveling scientist. Of course you, Hermione, had to go and destroy all of my careful work. But do you remember Francois?´

She did. The man who was killed right in front of her when she had been trapped in Blaise´s Portal. And now she remembered Alexa and Candace, and everything else that happened in the Portal.

"He was a contact. But he botched it, the idiot. He wasn´t supposed to let you on board the ship. So when the moment came along, I grabbed him from his bed, threw him in with you, and killed him!"

Hermione shut her eyes tight, willing this mad murderess to go away. But when she opened her eyes, Harry and Ron were staring at her; they hadn´t known about the Portal.

"And Martin?" she whispered. "The maid?"

"Franklin was a spy, and frankly," she smiled at her own inadvertent pun; Hermione did not, "not a very good one. As for the maid, well, she saw me do it. After that it was only a matter of time."

"And locking me in your Portal?"

"Well, actually, that was Charlie´s idea." She smiled at her husband who hadn´t spoken or moved since Ron jabbed his wand into his neck. "And rather brilliant, I thought. It kept you out of the way, and you should have stayed there. Then, once I got around to it, I would have disposed of you as I wished. I´m still not sure how you got out."

"I assume Captain Jack is dead," Hermione said with her head bowed.

"Possibly," Blaise said as though it really didn´t matter. "He was only a handy tool. Pity you weren´t in bed."

Struggling to find her voice, Hermione said (and with an apologetic look at Ron, who just looked devastated), "None of that explains why you turned Ron into a copy of Harry!"

"Amusement," Blaise said with a shrug. "He was putty in my hands. Well, not physically, which is why outwardly he remained the same. Plus, it´s necessary for the resurrection spell."

For about five seconds there was absolute silence. Then there was a soft voice that spoke up from behind Blaise.

"You lied to me?" Ron asked, with all the pain of the world in his eyes.

"Yes," Blaise said without remorse. "And in a few minutes you won´t remember a thing."

She turned back to Hermione, who, with the sudden flow of unexpected information, was frozen in place.

"Now, to finish you off."

"What about Martin´s body?" she blurted out.

Blaise appeared genuinely surprised. "What on earth are you talking about?"

Harry interrupted. "This has been most enjoyable, Blaise, but why don´t you put down the gun and step away from Hermione? I´m sure Ron would be happy to step away from your husband."

Ron looked up at the sound of his name. His eyes met Harry´s. They burned.

"No." He said it simply, but the one word dripped with venom. "I don´t have a damned clue what´s going on here. But I will not let her get away with it."

"Ron," Harry said quietly, "I´m trying to save Hermione´s life."

"I don´t trust her," Ron said, indicating Blaise. "How do we know she won´t try to shoot Hermione anyway?"

Blaise was watching the exchange. "He does make a good point, you know."

"Shut up," Harry said without looking at her. He was watching Ron. "Come on, Carmichael. Let O´Malley go. Blaise will cooperate, won´t you, Blaise?"

She nodded. "Oh, yes, of course, master. I am happy to obey." She laughed cruelly. "You have to be joking."

"Put the gun down," Harry said again, still watching Ron.

"You know what?" Blaine asked. "I don´t think so."

And aiming at Hermione once more, she fired.

"No! Hermione!" Ron cried, moving toward her. But he was too far away.

Hermione screamed. As trite as it seemed, her life flashed before her eyes. Everything moved in slow motion. She could see the bullet flying toward her, and she closed her eyes. But there was nothing. She opened her eyes just in time to see a shadow cross between her and the bullet. She screamed again.

Ron had been too far away, but Harry hadn´t.

He fell backward into her arms and she stumbled against the railing. Blaise´s laughter filled Hermione´s ears.

Mindless rage filled Ron´s eyes. Something clicked. With barely a thought, seeing him only as an object in his path, he punched Charles in the jaw. Then he went after Blaise. Hermione hardly noticed.

"Harry? Oh, Harry!" she said desperately. Blood was coming from his stomach. She had to get a bandage, she had to stop the blood.

"Hermione?" he said, barely above a whisper.

"Yes, Harry? I´m here." Tears poured down her cheeks. She ripped some of the material from her dress and pressed it to his wound. "Harry, you´ll be all right. I know it."

"I´m sorry," he murmured. "I´m so sorry."

Hermione sobbed. "Sorry for what? For saving my life?"

"For...everything."

He closed his eyes. Hermione thought he had gone and bowed her head, tears still streaming. But he had strength to say one last thing.

"I love you."

"Harry," she cried. "No, oh, please no!"

But he was silent. She fumbled for his pulse. It was faint, barely there and she knew, with a tightening of her heart, that it would fade in moments.

She was so angry. She couldn´t remember ever being this angry. Carefully placing Harry onto the deck, she stood up and headed for Blaise, caring about nothing else but hurting the woman who had done so much damage.

But when Hermione reached her, she found Ron standing over her body. Blaise was dead. She had shot herself. Ron turned to her, with tears in his eyes.

"Hermione?" he asked as if he weren´t sure. Then, cautiously, "Is it really you?"

A flicker of hope filled her. "Ron?"

He bent down and removed the book necklace from Blaise´s stiff fingers. Standing, he held it out to Hermione.

"I...I remember," he said. "I remember Hogwarts."

"Oh," Hermione gasped. She threw her arms around him. "It really is you! I knew it, I knew it all along!"

Ron hugged her tightly. He was back, he was Ron Weasley again. Then he cried out, and Hermione knew he had seen Harry.

Holding her hand, he ran to Harry´s prone form and knelt down. Hermione knelt at his side and buried her face in his shoulder. She sobbed and sobbed, and even when she thought she had no more tears, they kept coming. He pulled her in close.

"I can´t believe it," Ron said distractedly. "No, not after five years. I´ve only just returned and Harry..."

He grasped Hermione tighter and together they mourned their best friend, The Boy Who Lived No More.