The Chimes After Midnight
She didn't know what to say. No she didn't have anything to say. She was finally finding herself after the war, after Ron made her feel like nothing.
"No you are not going to kill him Ron." She stepped in front of Draco and drew her wand. "You need to accept that this is my decision."
"But..."
"No buts, this is my life Ron and I'm sick of the fact that we keep fighting and that you keep on making things worse."
There was a look in his eyes almost like realisation. "Hermione, I'm sorry, I just wanted to make sure you were happy, I feel protective over you, I've known you for years and you have always been my friend, I can let you go."
"I know." She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. "You need to speak to Ginny and to Harry. You will always be my friend Ron."
"I just want to make sure you are safe."
"I am and this is my choice." She took a step back. "I'm always going to care about you."
He smiled at her sadly and she smiled back.
Suddenly there was a loud chime coming from the clock tower and then ten smaller chimes. It was eleven o'clock. She looked over to the door to the great hall, could see all of the giant snowflakes and she realised what was familiar. There were snowflakes with twelve branches dotted around too. It was a twelve branched snowflakes on the pice of paper that the Ravenclaw boy had given to them. She covered her mouth with her now shaking hand. It was now, twelve branches like numbers of a clock.
"The anti-apparition wards. The runes." She turned to Draco.
"What do you mean?" He replied, a worried look on his face.
"The anti-apparition wards are going to be taken down at midnight, it's all going to happen at midnight, and..."
"What?"
"The basilisk, he is going to release the basilisk."
Draco came over and placed his hands on her shoulders. "How can you be sure?"
"The snowflake drawings all over the pice of paper, he has been planning this for weeks, we should have done something sooner."
She turned her head towards the staircase.
"We have to get everyone out." Draco said, Ron listening intently to their every word.
"There isn't time, you and Ron need to warn the teachers, teleport everyone out as soon as possible."
"Where will you go?"
She pulled herself from his grasp. "I...don't come and find me until every one else is out."
She made to leave towards the staircase but before she could Draco grabbed her by the hand and pulled her into an embrace.
"Come back to me." He whispered.
"I promise." She broke away from him, and immediately headed towards the stairs, not looking back.
She had to find the Basilisk before it was too late, otherwise it would kill everyone. She knew that chances were she would never see Draco or anyone again, that she would die within the next hour but if it would allow him to live then it was worth it. She ran her thumb over the signet ring he had given her, the engraved letter M comforting her.
She had studied the was Voldemort thought, how he acted and she knew exactly where he would hide a basilisk. The chamber of secrets.
She found herself running along a corridor on second floor. She didn't know what she was going to do once she got there but she just had to stop it before it's too late. She sprinted into the girls lavatory and stood facing the sink and stared down at the snake. She had only ever heard Ron speak the 'open' command in parceltoung so she tried her best to remember it and spoke it to the small engraving of the snake.
She was surprised as the sinks started to clunk and the column broke apart leaving the familiar tunnel she had gone down only a few months ago. She took a deep breath and jumped down the tunnel, sliding through the tubes for what felt like ages until she landed into a pile of bones.
She got to her feet and brushed herself off. She only had her wand. Maybe there was a way that she could blind it with a stinging jinx she thought but then questioned how she would even get that close to it without it killing her with its sight.
She looked down at all of the animal bones wondering if this was going to be her fate when suddenly there was a slight glint that caught her eye. She watched as the sword of Godric Gryffindor appeared as if from nothing at her feet.
She started down at the sword, the silver metal glistening in the moonlight from the cave opening above. She picked it up and felt it's weight in her hand, she felt more confident as though the sword was a brother in arms rather than some enchanted metal. She continued to walk further into the tunnel, rubble on the floor from when Harry was there in his second year. The further she walked the darker it got and the sword became an increasing comfort at her side.
It wasn't long until she found herself face to face with the door covered in snakes once again. She took a deep breath and conjured a long pice of fabric. She lifted the fabric to her face and tied it around her eyes so she could see nothing. She thought back to the book she had bought with Pansy and the spell to use echolocation. She held out her wand.
"videte per sonus." She whispered and suddenly there was a bright light in her vision then everything went back to darkness. She took a step closer to the door and as she did the sound of her step echoed through the chamber and consequently white lines appeared across her vision outlining the walls, the rubble and the door. She could see everything.
Now she just had to open the door and face the basilisk, at least now she wouldn't die as soon as she saw it's eyes.
She spoke her parcel tongue and watched through the echolocation as the door opened and the largest snake she had ever seen slithered into view in the distance.