The Kidnapping

Chapter Six

The Burrow

The Burrow was silent, perhaps for the first time since the Weasleys had moved there. Bill, Charlie, and Percy were gone, of course, but the four younger children had always been able to make up for their absence. Not today. Not since the letter had come from Hogwarts late last night.

Fred and George, who were usually in the shed they had purchased and set up in the yard to work on their joke-shop's products, had spent most of the day sitting despondently in the kitchen. Ron was outside, skulking around and kicking things, while Ginny hadn't emerged from her room. Mr Weasley had been at work, coming back half an hour ago, while Mrs Weasley had spent the day aimlessly cleaning in disorganized fits and spurts; the Burrow was in a worse state of disarray than normal.

Mrs Weasley picked up the letter again and read it, imagining in vain that its contents had changed somehow since she had last read it over.

To the Weasley family,

I write this letter to you now bringing grave news. Albus feels that you must know of this before any official announcements are made by the Ministry.

Harry Potter has been kidnapped by forces unknown. It happened early this evening. Although we have some information, there is not much we can say about the case. We do know for certain that it was not Death Eater activity.

We are also informing Miss Granger of these events, and are making arrangements to have her brought back to England immediately if that is her desire. I would at this point like to tell you, Mr Ronald Weasley, that under no circumstances are you or Miss Granger to go off on your own in an attempt to rescue Mr Potter. The Death Eaters will be involved, and Mr Potter's kidnappers are extremely dangerous.

This is a sad day for us at Hogwarts, and perhaps for the wizarding world at large. We will be ready to answer whatever questions you have.

My personal and heartfelt condolences,

Minerva McGonagall

"Oh, the poor thing!" Mrs Weasley said, breaking into fresh tears. "He's had enough to deal with this summer, and then this happens!"

Ron wandered in, his face red with sullen anger. "I can't believe she's saying I can't do anything to help," he muttered to himself. "As if I haven't done enough dangerous stuff with Harry..."

As he stepped into the living room, thinking of punching a few cushions as hard as he could, the fire suddenly roared to life, turning green. Ron stumbled back, aghast, until a single form burst out of the flames, which died away instantly, and hurtled into him.

"RON!" Hermione's voice shouted and Ron fell to the floor as she hugged him fiercely, sobbing onto his shoulder. Ron went from sulking to terrified in a heartbeat.

"H-Hermione, it's... it'll be okay..." he muttered unconvincingly, not quite sure how to dislodge her. He glanced around with panic written on his face, looking for help. He gave her a tentative pat on the back, as if touching her the wrong way was going to make her bite. Ron was the first to admit he didn't know much about comforting people. After all, that had always been Mum's department.

Speaking of which, he thought thankfully to himself as Mrs Weasley swept down on the two of them and stole Hermione away, almost crushing her in that trademark hug of mothers, the one that reassures anyone on the other end, no matter how despondent, that it will all turn out all right. Ron caught himself tearing up, and blinked hurriedly, brushing his eyes with the back of his hand. Mustn't look like a little kid in front of Ginny or Hermione, he thought to himself.

"Oh, Ron," Hermione sobbed again, and, having been released by Mrs Weasley she charged back over and fell over him, knocking the two of them into the living room couch. Ron felt stirrings of panic again. He looked up at the others, who were coming in to see what was going on.

"Harry's gone, and we don't know who did it or what they want," Hermione went on. Ron thought this was all quite out of character for Hermione... until he remembered the way she had gone on when he and Harry had been fighting before the First Task.

"Er... I - we'll think of something, Hermione," Ron said in a valiant attempt to sound comforting. He wasn't quite certain it was working.

"Oh, what's this," Mr Weasley said softly. He took Hermione's arms and scooped her up in a paternal hug reserved for sons under the age of eight and daughters from birth till death. "Come here, you." His voice was full of that quiet tenderness that men only bring out when their lovely queens and little princesses are distraught.

Despite being intimidated by Hermione's behaviour, Ron was very glad to see her. For starters, if the two of them were going to mount a rescue, Hermione was probably going to be the brains of the operation. Secondly, Ron was immensely relieved to have Hermione around where he could keep an eye on her instead of traipsing around Europe. And thirdly, Ron had to admit he had been thinking an awful lot about Hermione's being in Bulgaria with Krum. Suffice to say, he hadn't approved.

A few hours later, after the excitement had died down, Ron was once again moping outside when Hermione came out, brisk and business-like.

"You got the same sort of letter from Professor McGonagall as I did, didn't you?" she asked him.

"The one saying we can't do anything to help?" Ron asked dully.

"Of course," Hermione replied. "But she should know better than to expect us to follow those instructions," she continued matter-of-factly. "I certainly plan on doing something to help find Harry."

Ron looked up at her in surprise. Hermione was usually the last person to propose going against a teacher's edicts.

"The only problem is that we don't know what happened," Hermione went on smoothly. "We'll have to do some digging around to get the details of the investigation. I think we know someone who can help us out."

"You don't mean Rita Skeeter, do you?" Ron asked suspiciously.

"I mean to owl her tonight," Hermione replied. "After all the lies she spouted last year, the least she can do to make up for it is to help us. Besides, if she refuses..." she trailed off menacingly.

"What will you do if she refuses?" a new voice asked from behind them. Ron and Hermione jumped around in shock, which quickly transformed into delight at the sight of Remus Lupin and a large, shaggy black dog who could only be Sirius.

"Professor Lupin!" they both shouted in unison, and Hermione gave him and Sirius a hug

"Please, I'm not a teacher anymore, call me Remus," Lupin said kindly. His voice turned slightly more serious. "And what were you planning on doing if Rita Skeeter doesn't help you?"

Hermione looked slightly guilty. "She's an unregistered Animagus, like Snuffles here," she explained. "She turns into a beetle. That's how she learned all those nasty things she reported in her stories last school year when she wasn't allowed on Hogwarts grounds."

"Well, isn't that interesting?" Remus said. "And I hope you weren't planning on making use of her to help you get on with an impromptu rescue operation, were you?"

"If we were, what of it?" Ron asked defiantly, his face going a little pink. Hermione put her hands to her hips.

Remus smiled and stepped back. "Methinks, Padfoot, that they mean business," he said to Sirius. His smile widened. "Good thing we were going to invite them along."

Ron's scowl evaporated instantly. "Really?" he asked excitedly.

Remus shrugged. "Dumbledore is of the opinion that it would be fruitless to tell the two of you that you couldn't do anything to help. Can we go back inside? Padfoot would like to have a word, and we've had a rather busy day, so we'd like to get in out of the sun and have something to drink."

As the four of them headed for the door of the Burrow, Lupin fixed the dog with an incredulous gaze.

"You're letting them call you Snuffles?"

= = = = =

"You know, Molly, the only place in all of Britain with better food than your house has got to be Hogwarts," Sirius Black said approvingly as he patted his stomach. He was sitting at the Weasley dinner table, sipping scotch with Lupin and Mr Weasley as the dishes were busily cleaning themselves in the sink. Fred, George, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione were still there, but they had to content themselves with tea: Mr Weasley didn't open up his extremely limited scotch reserves to just anyone. Mrs Weasley was bustling around the kitchen.

Mrs Weasley blushed slightly at the compliment. "Oh, well, I do try my best," she managed, flustered but obviously pleased.

"It looks like a nice night outside," Hermione commented, gazing out the window. She sighed. "I wonder if Harry's all right."

"He ought to be," Lupin said. "Dumbledore told us that the man who kidnapped him told Vernon Dursley that he would be returning Harry unharmed if all went well.

"Speaking of Harry," he went on smoothly, "Sirius and I didn't make a purely social call. Dumbledore is putting together a team to find Harry. We're part of it. So is Severus. Dumbledore wants Ron and Hermione to come along as well."

Mrs Weasley's countenance darkened. "Absolutely not!" she said, crossing her arms and facing him angrily. Her lips pursed. "They're too young to be getting involved in this sort of nonsense!"

Hermione and Ron scrambled out of their chairs, defiant expressions on their faces. "We'll go after him anyway!" Ron shot back, his face reddening. "You'll have to lock us up 'till school starts to keep us from going!"

Ginny shot to her feet. "Why can't I help?" she asked angrily. Fred and George looked like they were going to get up as well, but a warning glance from Mrs Weasley kept them in their chairs.

Black sighed and stood. "I didn't like the idea any better, Molly," he said placatingly. "But Ron and Hermione are right. They'd just go looking for him on their own. They'll be safer if they go with us."

Mrs Weasley's frown suggested she still disapproved of the idea.

"Never mind the dangers they've faced at much younger ages," Lupin remarked, smiling. "Remember the Philosopher's Stone and the Chamber of Secrets?"

"In any case, we can't bring too many of you along," Sirius said. "I'm sorry, Ginny, but we can't draw too much attention to ourselves. I know you want to help, but when it comes down to the wire, Ron and Hermione have much more experience being in dangerous spots with Harry."

"Fine!" Ginny spat, and thundered upstairs, her face almost as red as her trademark Weasley hair.

As Ginny's very audible progress up to her bedroom died away after the door slammed shut, Lupin sat up, frowning. "Did you hear that?" he asked.

"How couldn't we?" Mrs Weasley asked, still frowning. "She made enough noise to wake the dead."

"No," Lupin whispered, his eyes darting around as he pulled out his wand and stood up without making a sound. "It came from outside. By the shed."

The room went deathly quiet. Hermione, who was closest to the window, sidled away from it and closed it as quietly as she could. Lupin nodded and winked at her when she managed to avoid making any noise.

"Get on the floor," Lupin mouthed to the others as Sirius transformed into his dog form. They all carefully knelt down and lay on the floor, their wands out and ready, as Lupin and Sirius stalked out to the doorway. Lupin turned out the all the lights on the ground floor with a flick of his wand, and opened the door with only the slightest creak. Sirius slipped out, the padding of his paws muffling the sound as he went down the few wooden steps to the ground. Lupin kept watch, peering outside for any hint of activity. He carefully knelt down to minimize his exposure to anyone outside.

The tension lay thick and heavy in the air, and several fearful glances were exchanged in the kitchen as the minutes passed. Then there was the sound of a scuffle. They could barely hear Sirius shout something, incomprehensible due to distance, the intervening walls, and the noise. But the sharp, surprised girl's cry was clear and unequivocal.

Green sparks shot out from the end of Sirius' wand, and Lupin could see him approaching in murky darkness. He flicked his wand again and the lights turned on. "It's all right," he called into the kitchen. Everyone was soon on their feet.

Sirius marched in, his face set in a deep scowl, and he had the intruder by her wand arm, twisted around so she couldn't use it. Hermione gasped. "Cho!" she exclaimed.

Cho was a mess. Her clothes were stained with dirt and grass, and her hair was dishevelled, with bits of twigs and leaves stuck in it. Slung around her left arm was a backpack, and her right arm was pinned to her back. Sirius gave her a shove into the kitchen, and she looked from him to the others in terrified confusion.

"But it's... he's... I don't..." she stammered out.

"Don't worry, dear," Mrs Weasley said, bustling over and starting to fuss over Cho. "Sirius is an innocent man, otherwise he wouldn't be here. Oh, you poor dear, look at you, you must have trudged cross-country a fair bit."

"Miss Chang, a pleasant surprise to see you," Lupin said, smiling. "Though it does beg the question: why are you here?"

Cho looked down, her face colouring with shame. "I-I ran away from home," she muttered.

"That's apparent," Sirius growled, returning to the table and swigging down the rest of his scotch in a single go. It was an unwise move. He went into a coughing fit, his face going as red as his hosts' hair.

Mrs Weasley fixed him with an arch, reproachful look.

"She's in full 'mothering' mode now," Fred muttered to Hermione. "Best not to get in her way." Hermione almost giggled, but she was still too concerned about Cho to find the twin's quip amusing.

"And why did you run away from home?" Lupin asked in that same kindly tone.

Cho collected herself before answering, squaring her shoulders and looking him straight in the eyes. "I wanted to meet Ron and Hermione. And help them go after Harry. If my parents knew about it, they'd have tried to stop me. So I left a note and managed to sneak out of my bedroom without them noticing."

Mrs Weasley tutted as she inspected Cho for cuts and bruises. "Dear me, you look like you haven't slept a wink. Look at those bags under your eyes."

"I couldn't sleep, not after..." Cho broke off, and blinked to clear away the tears that were threatening to fall.

"Very clever of you, Miss Chang," Lupin commented. "You have certainly proved why you're in Ravenclaw. You deduced, quite correctly, that Hermione would come here upon hearing the news of Harry's abduction, and you also deduced that she and Ron might plan to go off on their own to do something about it."

"And that's where this stops," Sirius broke in. "I'm uncomfortable enough with bringing you two along," he gestured at Ron and Hermione. "There's no way I'm letting you come."

"Try and stop me," Cho said icily, her eyes twinkling with anger and determination. "You weren't there! You didn't see it happen! You weren't taken from your home by those... those things and used as a hostage to make Harry do what they wanted!"

She balled her hands into fists, and took a deep breath, and was able to barely maintain her composure. "They came on Monday at one in the morning. We thought they were Death Eaters at first." Her voice took on a didactic tone, as if she was distancing herself from the story she was telling. "Father and Mother were so scared... I thought we were all going to die. The creatures had swords, and they nearly used them on us. The old wizard told us what was happening, what they wanted me for. Father was angry... he was almost about to try and stop them. But he didn't, because the old man threatened to kill me.

"They took me into an enchanted Muggle automobile. I was terrified. I think the creatures had something to do with it, it was like being around Dementors, only they didn't draw away my happy thoughts and memories. But I was paralyzed with fear. They kept me all day, and during the evening we went to Harry's relatives. Two of the monsters stayed behind to keep my parents from doing anything. The old man, a witch in her twenties, and three other creatures went in the car.

"The three monsters led the way, and broke down the door. The woman put a sack over my head so Harry wouldn't recognize me. Once they had Harry and his relatives at their mercy, they took the sack off my head. Harry surrendered after he saw me."

At this point, Cho could no longer hold herself together, and tears began sliding freely down her cheek to fall to the kitchen floor. Mrs Weasley gave her shoulder a comforting squeeze.

"Oh, God, I think he was thinking of Cedric when he looked at me," Cho said, breaking down completely. Mrs Weasley drew her into a firm hug. Lupin's face was inscrutable. Sirius had his face in his hands. Mr Weasley had bowed his head, while the twins, Ron, and Hermione all looked at Cho with mixed expressions of shock and sympathy. Ginny had quietly crept down after hearing the brief tussle outside earlier, and was staring wide-eyed at the Burrow's unexpected guest.

After a few minutes, Mrs Weasley wiped Cho's face dry with a tea towel. "There, there," she said softly. Cho went on to finish her tale:

"After Harry gave in, we went back to the car. The monsters turned aside to confront somebody; I think it was Professor Dumbledore. We returned to my house, and the witch brought me inside. She and the two creatures left after that. That was around nine last night. After a sleepless night, I decided I had to do something to make it up to Harry. But I knew Mother and Father wouldn't hear of it, so I left on my own at eight this morning, after finishing breakfast."

Sirius stood up again and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Well, you've convinced me," he said softly, looking her straight in the eye, his expression one of admiration and respect. "If you want to help, we'll take you. We'll owl your parents tomorrow morning before we go to Hogwarts to hear from Dumbledore and let them know you're safe."

Cho smiled weakly. "Thank you," she said in a very grateful tone.

"Now, let's get you cleaned up," Mrs Weasley said briskly. "And you'll need to be put up somewhere for the night. You're not going anywhere without a good night's sleep!"