Chapter Seven

Finally they were leaving. 'Yes!' Hermione thought. As much as Hogwarts was her home, she was ready to let go, at least for a little while. They reached the doors to the exit and in fact, Ron was opening it when a voice sounded over the intercom. The very same intercom that had not been used since Ginny had been attacked back in 2nd year.

"Attention all students" It was McGonagall. "Please report to your common room immediately. Do not go to your rooms. Stay together and keep wands at hand. If you see a rat, kill it. Thank you. That is all".

"Ron…" Hermione stuttered, "Rat? Does she mean…?"

"They never did find Pettigrew after Voldemort was destroyed…" Ron spoke in barley a whisper, the color draining from his face. They turned back to the common room. They wanted to find out what was going on.

Hermione was worried. What had happened? Was Harry OK? Was the rat Pettigrew? With all this running through her mind she barley noticed stopping right in front of the fat lady with Ron. She forgot to walk until Ron spoke, "Hermione, are you coming?"

"Yea… sorry." She stepped into the common room to find McGonagall speaking to all the students. Hermione looked around for Harry but couldn't find him. 'He has to be there' she kept telling herself. But as the minutes rolled by she found panic over taking all emotion. Then, even though the common room was loud and packed with students, McGonagall tried to speak.

"Please, everyone." Quickly finding this not to be working she raised her voice. "QUIET!" The whole room fell silent. "Now…may I begin?" McGonagall looked in Hermione's direction. She saw something in her professors eyes. Something she had also seen in Ron's. Fear.

"Ms. Granger, Mr. Weasly, please come with me."

"Professor" Hermione spoke when she had reached her teacher. "Is it about Harry?"

"Please come with me."

"Please" Ron spoke. His face was white and is pale blue eyes stuck out in his face. All of the Gryffindor common room was watching him. "Harry had never had any family except for the people in this room. Tell them what's happened as well. The truth is never as bad as the rumors. And they'll find out anyway."

"Very well Mr. Weasly." There was a tear in her eye. She looked around the common room, swiped the tear from her face, and then spoke loudly yet mournfully at the same time. "Harry Potter has been taken from us."

'Oh my God, oh my God!' Hermione thought in her head as tears leaked from her eyes. She turned and cried into Ron's chest. She just couldn't bear this. And Ron! Ron was going to loose both his best friends in a coarse of one month. She looked up at his face and silent tears streaked his freckles.

"He's dead!" Hermione heard someone shout! "The boy who lived is dead!"

"NO!" McGonagall suddenly broke the sound of sobs and tears. "He is NOT DEAD! He is alive! But he has been taken by a former servant of Voldemort."

"You mean," Hermione spoke. "He's still alive?"

"Yes Ms. Granger. Peter Pettigrew snuck into the boys lavatory earlier while Harry was in there. While behind him he performed a spell. He left a note saying he would return Potter when we gave him the whereabouts of Voldemort."

"But Professor" Ron said, "Voldemort's gone! We found his body and everything! This isn't like the first time he disappeared."

"I know, Mr. Weasly. As of right now Professor Dumbledore is forming a plan. Pettigrew has never been a strong wizard. He's always followed someone bigger and better then him. With the absence of a body guard we suspect Pettigrew will be very weak. Who knows, Potter may be able to escape on his own…"

Meanwhile… Where Harry is…

Harry couldn't believe what had happened. One minute he was taking a piss, and the next he found him self not able to move his body, but still able to think, being brought by boat to an island. Out of the corner of his eye he saw what looked like a giant fortress on top the island. In fact, it looked like the image Harry had always imagined Azkaban looked like.

"Ah, Potter, your awake." A familiar voice said. He was beginning to regain some of his strength in moving his body. He moved his head and saw Peter Pettigrew sitting right next to him. "Welcome to your new home. Azkaban. You'll live in here, you'll scream in here, and perhaps, no, certainly, you'll die in here. As soon as Dumbledore tells me where The Dark Lord is-".

"He's DEAD, you idiot!" Harry said, now regaining the ability to speak. "I killed him! I used the same curse he used on my parents, and I saw his body! They buried his body! He's GONE!".

"No!" He screeched! Though he didn't seem entirely sure of what he was about to say. "He always feared death. He'd come back as a ghost! Who knows where he is, but he's here, some where. Waiting to give his biddings to someone so they can continue his noble work!"

Suddenly, Harry understood. Hadn't Harry heard Voldemort say before that "There is nothing worse then death". That was what he feared most.

Harry sat in silence after that. He needed to figure out how to escape. And as the fortress grew nearer Harry began replaying the worst memory's of his life. The dementors were there, and he didn't have his wand.

A/N- I know, this one was short again… but don't fret!