As it slowly swung open, the old gate groaned in protest. They were almost halfway to the door when a crack of apparition echoed off the stone walls of the manor. Ominous black smoke whipped out from the apparition, disappearing almost instantly. Four separate Protegos slammed into place around the two men in the middle of the back garden in rapid succession, with a final shield settling in front of her a moment later. A silver mask glinted in the early afternoon sunlight. Images that fueled Hermione’s nightmares, slammed into the front of her brain as panic stole the breath from her lungs. 