"Siege" Chapter 2
Title: Siege
Author: missgranger2
Characters: Ron Weasley, Hermione Weasley, Rose and Hugo Weasley, Harry Potter, OFCs
Rating: MA
Word Count: 3475
Chapters: Yes
Completed: No
I would like to thank Brandedfaithfully for her fine beta work. I am sorry it's taken me so long to post the next chapter here! *sighs* It's been a rough few weeks folks!
“Siege” Chapter 2
Ron and Harry reluctantly debriefed Seamus and Archie on where they were in regards to the investigation. Seamus cleared his throat when they were through. “We were told by the director himself to do nothing further until we hear from him.”
“What?!” Ron groaned. “Isn’t he aware that the plan Harry and I came up with can end this once and for all?!”
“I’m just following orders, Ron. He said under no circumstances were we to do anything more than sit here and wait for further orders.” He smiled appreciatively around the room. “And I must say I don’t mind sitting here in the least!”
Harry rubbed his forehead in frustration. “Let’s just get back to headquarters and see what was so bloody important that it couldn’t wait.”
Seamus piped up, “He’s not at headquarters. The director set up some sort of command center in an old abandoned warehouse right smack in the middle of London.” Seamus dug hurriedly in the pockets of his robes. “I got it the address here somewhere. A-ha…” Seamus pulled a crumpled piece of parchment out. “Here it is!” He handed it to Harry who showed it to Ron.
Ron picked his duffle bag off the floor and sighed. “This had better be good.”
~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione aimed her wand at the ceiling right above Boris and Hiram. They weren’t aware of her presence as they were too involved in trying to get through the attic door. “Bloody hell! We did it mate!” Boris yelled in triumph, having rendered the spells Hermione had put in place useless.
A second later a bolt of light hit the spot just above the two intruders. Suddenly a large chunk of the ceiling crashed down upon the two men, completely burying them. Hermione brought her hand down shakily, clutching her chest with the other; she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Very clever, Mrs. Weasley.” Hermione jumped and turned to see three men standing directly behind her. “We were told not to underestimate your abilities and I dare say I’m not disappointed.”
Hermione held her wand out. “Who are you? What do you want?”
The man who spoke had short gray hair combed neatly to the side. He wore expensive robes of deep burgundy satin. “I haven’t introduced myself properly, have I?” He smiled menacingly at her. “My name is Julius Moore. Perhaps your husband has mentioned me?” Hermione shook her head as she held her wand out. He looked past her suddenly and nodded.
Hermione refused to turn around, all her attention focused on the three men before her. She felt something prod her in the back. Julius laughed. “I suggest you drop your wand before Desmond does something horrible to you.” His eyes seemed to sparkle as he continued. “Desmond doesn’t fancy killing his victims. He’d much rather turn you into a blithering idiot the rest of your life or perhaps banish a few limbs.” Hermione breathed heavily, adrenaline fueling her already rapid pulse. She knew there was no way out- they had her surrounded. Praying that they had no knowledge of the children, she quickly formulated a new plan to go quietly and quickly away from the house. Shakily, she dropped her wand to the ground as Desmond grabbed her around the neck from behind and held her against him. He placed his wand at her throat as Julius turned to the two men behind him. “Go and check on Boris and Hiram. The two idiots were only supposed to hold them until we got here.”
The two men stepped around Hermione and knelt down on the floor. One of them turned to Julius. “Boris is dead.” Julius shrugged as he continued to stare at Hermione. “Hiram is hurt pretty badly but he’s alive, sir.”
“Bring him to one of the rooms and tend to him.” He looked around the hallway and back at Hermione, his eyes dark and intrusive. “Where’s your children Mrs. Weasley?”
Hermione’s worse fears stabbed her in the gut. She shook like a leaf and fought to control the urge to look towards the attic. Hoping beyond hope that he’d believe her, Hermione said, “Th-They aren’t here. M-My mother-in-law is keeping them tonight as I…I have to prepare f-for a case I’m presenting M-Monday morning.”
Julius tilted his head slightly, the corners of his mouth just hinting at a smile. “Now Mrs. Weasley you’re not lying to me are you?”
Hermione shook her head, her voice sounding more determined. “I swear on my life that they aren’t here.”
“Hmm.” He studied her face for a moment. “Very well then.” Moore looked up at Desmond. “Take her to the study and hold her there. I’ll be down soon.”
“Yes sir.” As Desmond roughly led her away, she silently pleaded with anyone who would listen that her children wouldn’t be discovered. She also hoped that Hiram didn’t wake up.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Harry and Ron arrived at the warehouse to see dozens of Aurors frantically running about. “What the hell?” Ron frowned and then leaned into Harry. “Something big must have happened to get everyone’s knickers in such a twist.”
A petite, blonde Auror named Frances stopped directly in front of them. “Thank goodness you’re both here! Director Williams needs to see you straight away!”
“What the hell is going on, Frances?” Ron said as Harry and he followed her to where the director had set up his office.
“He’ll explain everything! Just know we’re doing all we can at the moment.”
Both Harry and Ron looked at each other and shrugged before being ushered into the director’s office. They found Director Williams at a desk holding his face in his hands. “Have a seat, boys.” Ron and Harry sat down as the director removed his hands and cleared his throat. “We have a situation.” He picked up a piece of parchment from the desk and held it out to them. “You need to read this.”
Ron took the paper out of his hands and held it so both Harry and he could read it together.
“We have taken several wizard families hostage. You will see their names listed on a separate piece of parchment inside this envelope. We demand the release of the following prisoners from Azkaban: Brandon Knott, Ephram Dolohov, Daniel McNair, Damian McNair and Martin Crabbe. If the prisoners are not released in a timely manner, we will be forced to continuously torture the hostages until our demands are met. If all prisoners are not released by 9:00 AM, we will start killing one hostage every hour.”
I will be in touch.
Julius Moore
“Bloody hell!” Ron threw the parchment down and ran his hand through his hair. “Our informants were way the hell off! Shite!”
“Who are the hostages, sir?”
The director averted his eyes for a moment and then looked back at them. “Apparently Julius directed his men to break into various high ranking officials’ and famous wizards’ homes. There are five families involved- twenty one hostages total.”
“They’re all being held at their homes?” Harry asked. His face grave, the director slowly nodded his head. “What families are we talking about specifically, sir?”
The director cleared his throat for the second time. “Three members of the Wizangamot- the Bethels’, the Greens’ and the Langleys’. One is the family of Joe Pike, the Cannon’s star Seeker- he’s on his way to headquarters from Italy right now.” Williams brought his hands up and began wringing them uncomfortably. His face looked pained.
“Well, who’s the last family, sir?” Harry asked, his voice suddenly laced with worry at how the director was acting.
The director looked at Ron and seemed to struggle to take in a breath. “They’ve taken Hermione and your children hostage, Ron.”
“WHAT?!” Ron and Harry both bolted up.
“We’re doing everything we can Ron. I assure you.”
“You’re telling me that at this very moment my wife and children are being held against their will and probably being…” Ron swallowed hard, unable to get the words out.
“I don’t know, Ron.”
Ron’s face flushed with fury. “What the fucking hell do you mean you don’t know?!”
“They broke through the wards Ron. They’ve put several enchantments upon not only your home but the others as well. I have curse breakers at each home right now but everything they’ve tried hasn’t worked. Several squads of Aurors are positioned around each home waiting for a way in.”
Ron leaned in toward the director, his breath now loud and swift through his nose, jaw clenched. “And exactly how fucking long have you known that my family was taken hostage?!”
“I received an Owl a little before two am.”
Before Harry could stop him, Ron had reached over the desk and grabbed the director by the collar, pulling his face up to his. “You waited a fucking hour to contact me about all this!”
“Ron- don’t!” Harry had put his hand on Ron’s arm as if to make to stop him.
Ron shook him off and lifted the director clear across the desk before throwing him across the wall. Williams landed hard. “You should have contacted me the minute you got that Owl!” Ron began to walk over to where the director lay. Harry reacted quickly as he was fearful that Ron was going to literally beat the living hell out of Williams. He jumped on Ron and tackled him to the ground. “Get the fuck off me Harry!”
“No Ron- not until you get yourself under control!” He began to grimace as Ron struggled beneath him. “Stop it Ron! Think of your wife and children. We need to figure out how to rescue Hermione and the kids!”
With those words, Ron suddenly ceased moving beneath him. His whole body began to shake as he broke down, his face suddenly scrunching up in despair. “I can’t lose them Harry! If any of those bastards touch her or Rosie or Hugo I swear I’ll fucking lose it!”
“We’ll figure it out mate. You need to be strong for them.” Harry could feel his owns eyes growing wet. “Hermione is smart, Ron. And I know she won’t let anything happen to Rosie or Hugo.”
“But if they kill her first…” Ron’s thoughts were obviously leading him down a depressing avenue and dead-ended with a horrible conclusion.
Harry released him, trying to get him focused on the rescue. “Don’t think that way Ron!”
Yet, Ron couldn’t help but to think that way. His family, who he loved more than anything, were in serious danger. Without hesitation, he’d lay his life down in order to save them. Ron thought back to the morning he had last seen them. They had all eaten breakfast together. Rosie had chatted a mile a minute while he had fed the baby, talking about the tea party she was planning on having with Grandpa Weasley.
When he got ready to leave, he gave Hermione a kiss that had lingered a bit longer than normal. It’s almost as if I knew… we knew something was going to happen. Ron shook his head at the memory. He kissed the baby on the forehead and then scooped Rosie up in his arms. She had insisted he take her prized teddy bear with him. Not wanting to hurt his daughter’s feelings, he agreed and hugged her tightly before saying good bye. As soon as he had Flooed to the Ministry, he shrunk it down to the size of a small galleon with his wand and had kept it in his pocket ever since.
Ron hastily pushed his hand into his pocket and pulled out the miniature bear. It had become something more than just a silly idea of his daughter’s. A feeling of pain and despair started to overwhelm him as he stared at it intently. Rosie. Ron covered his face with his hands. “Oh Merlin they’re probably being tortured right now!” Images of Hermione screaming and in severe pain began to fill his mind. He could see his little girl begging for her life and the baby….. “NOOOOOO!”
“Ron! RON!” Tears had begun to fall from his own eyes as he watched Ron fall apart. “You have to…we have to pull ourselves together and figure out what to do.”
Ron nodded his head as he removed his face from his hands. He knew Harry was right. It wasn’t doing Hermione and their children any good falling apart like a bloody poof. He sniffled a few times and took a few deep breaths. “W-We need to g-get over there.”
“We will. But first we need to talk to the director and see if he knows anything else that might be useful.” Harry sighed and looked over at the director who was beginning to stir. “That is if he doesn’t throw your arse in a cell for trying to kill him.”
~*~*~*~*~*~
Hermione sat tied by magical bindings to a chair in her study. Desmond kept a steeling watch on her, forcing the tiny hairs on her arms to stand at attention every once in a while. What is he planning on doing to me? Hermione swallowed hard, her mind whirling with possibilities. At least the kids are safe- thank Merlin. She began to think back to what one of the men had said in the hallway. Boris is dead. Having never taken a life before, she could feel her eyes growing wet. She felt guilty, dirty even. He would have killed you and the children if he had the chance. Hermione sniffled. Still, it doesn’t make it right Hermione. She could hear footsteps coming down the stairs and fear took hold of her heart all over again. Please don’t let them have found the children.
The door creaked open and Julius confidently strode in, a smug look on his face. “Of all the hostages my men took tonight- you are the one that I am most excited over.” He came closer to her, swung his robe to the side and crouched down to meet her face to face. She could feel the heat from his body, but she still got a chill. His breath matched the disgusting look on his face and it took all of Hermione’s courage to keep from wincing when he spoke. “I will take such great pleasure in watching one of the Golden Trio die today.”
Hermione gasped. “You’re a Death Eater?!”
Julius nodded and pulled out his wand with a satisfying grin on his face. He held it up to her neck, twisting and pointing it as if trying to determine the best angle of attack. “Do you know how long I’ve waited to get my revenge on Voldemort’s behalf?” Tears began to fall from her eyes as she shook her head. “I could kill you right now, you know.” He pulled his wand away and stood up straight. “But what’s the fun in that?”
Hermione trembled, afraid to ask and yet unable to stop herself. “W-What are y-you going t-to do to m-me?”
Julius reached over and ran the tip of his wand down the side of her face, down her neck and between her breasts. “I’m going to have so much fun with you.” He continued moving his wand down her stomach and over her thigh and paused. His smile suddenly left his face, replaced with a snarl. He pulled his wand away and backed up a few feet. Hermione’s eyes widened with fear and all breathing ceased. She couldn’t get her lungs to work, they were inflated with terror. He seemed to be going over something in his mind as he nodded a few times and mumbled something to himself. With little warning, he raised his wand up and began muttering spells under his breath.
Hermione screamed as she felt her body being slashed open every time he waved his wand at her. When he finally stopped, Hermione looked down in horror to see that her clothes had been sliced as if by a knife. Blood seeped out from the wounds along her chest, stomach and thighs. It burned as her clothes began to soak up the blood, wrapping her in a grotesque red shroud. Hermione felt the pain, but felt overwhelmed by the heavy thumping in her heart and the realization that as long as it kept beating, she’d keep bleeding.
Julius didn’t seem bothered in the least at what he had just done. He said casually to Desmond, “Take some pictures of our special hostage straight away.” He walked towards the door. “You know where to send it and be swift about it as I don’t want there to be an opening in the barrier for too long.”
As Julius closed the door, Desmond pulled a camera from his robes. Standing directly in front of her, he put the camera up to his eye. “Say cheese, bitch!”
~*~*~*~*~*~
When the director finally came to, he surprised Harry by not reprimanding Ron and instead began explaining why he hadn’t contacted him right away. “I wasn’t sure if it was a real threat at first. I didn’t want to send out the alarm until I knew for certain that he had taken hostages.” He sighed, readjusting his shirt collar. “I also had to take certain families and family members into protective custody. He had originally targeted eight families.” He motioned with his head towards Harry recognizing the question that was obviously on Harry’s mind. “Luckily your wife and children were at a Quidditch match in Chudley. We took them to a safe house straight away until Molly and Arthur came to fetch them.”
Harry took off his glasses and covered his eyes. “Thank Merlin.”
“I am sorry Ron I didn’t contact you sooner but I was trying to get to those families who thankfully weren’t home at the time. I needed to make sure they were safe. We really are doing everything we can to get to the bastards who are holding them all.”
Ron sat stiffly in the chair, overwhelmed by anger, despair and confusion. “You said there was a barrier of some sort around our homes?”
The director nodded.
“Nothing the curse breakers have tried has breached the barrier at all?”
“Nothing. I am completely frustrated as are the curse breakers.” Williams’ attention was drawn to the window where an owl tapped his beak against the glass. The director frowned. “I don’t recognize that owl.” He opened the window and took the large envelope from its leg. Williams opened the envelope and pulled out a photo. A piece of parchment fell out of the envelope as well. He stared at the photo, his mouth wide open. Still clutching the photo, he reached for the parchment with the other and read it.
Harry saw the look of horror in Williams’ eyes. “What is it, Director? Is it from the hostage takers?” Williams nodded and placed the picture on his desk photo side down. “Is it a picture of one of the hostages?” When all Williams did was stare at him dumbly, Harry raised his voice as he asked the question again. “Well, is it a picture of one of the hostages?!”
Williams pointed a shaky finger at Ron. “You don’t need to see this.”
Ron’s eyes went wide with fear. “Why?!” The director shook his head sadly. “If that’s a picture of my wife or children you better fucking hand it over right now!”
“I don’t think…”
“FUCK YOU!” Ron stood up and reached over the desk, snatching up the photo. What he saw made the bile rise up in his throat. Hermione was tied to a chair in their study. She writhed around in the chair, covered in… blood. She looked up suddenly and he could see emotions of pain, fear and sadness playing upon her face. He looked on in horror as the moving picture went through the scenario one more time. Completely sick to his stomach, Ron threw the picture down and mumbled, “…going to be sick.” He placed his hand over his mouth and scurried out of the director’s office while a bewildered Harry looked on.
Harry picked up the photo and gasped in spite of himself. His green eyes blazing, he fixed Williams with a cold stare. “Ron and I are going to fucking kill the bastards!” Harry then grabbed the parchment out of the Director’s hand. It was from Julius.
I took great pleasure in torturing the Mudblood whore myself! Release the prisoners immediately or I fear I may just have to kill her in order for you to fully understand what my men and I are capable of.
Regards,
Julius Moore
He threw the parchment down in disgust. Hearing several tapping sounds, Harry’s eyes were drawn to the window. To his utter horror, there were four other owls, all holding a large envelope. “Bloody hell!”