Author's note: This short story is set two and a half years after the Final Battle of Hogwarts, in 'Harry Potter And The Lycanthrope Legacy'. During Harry's 8th year at Hogwarts, he, Ron, Hermione, and Luna all took a walk on the wild side...
Hermione And The Dementor Dilemma
The two figures were clad in dark ragged cloaks that billowed behind them as they floated through the night-shrouded woods. In the near-distance, to their right where the trees came to an end, the streetlights of a village provided some dim illumination that was reflected in a small pool, situated just before the newcomers. No light, however, penetrated the spaces beneath the raised cowls of the Dementors.
The creatures stopped and slowly craned their necks left and right, seeing nothing except the thick carpet of fallen leaves at the bases of the surrounding trees.
"Pot-ter… Wease-ley… You cannot hide forever!" one of the Dementors rasped. "We can make it quick for you…"
"Aww… Do we have to?" the second wraith whispered to its companion. "I hate to rush my meals. It gives me indigestion…"
"Silence!" The first Dementor glided onwards through the woods, and the other one meekly followed in its wake. "They cannot be far…"
A minute passed. The hooting of an owl broke the silence that had been left in the wake of the ghastly stalkers. A bat flew by, searching for insects to feed on.
"Do you really think they meant us?" a dreamy, Irish-accented voice called out from underneath one pile of leaves.
Hermione sat upright, scattering the leaves and foliage she had brushed over her prone form. Rising up next to her was the blonde-haired, wide silver-eyed young witch called Luna. Both of them were dressed in their pyjamas and dressing gowns.
Hermione couldn't quite remember how they both got here, but she reasoned that they must have both fled into the woods that were directly in-between their rural homes – having been hunted by the Dementors.
Good job there were no Muggles about, she thought, wondering what they would have thought about seeing them in this situation, in the middle of the night…
"Well, yes – Luna!" Hermione huffed, responding to her friend's question. "Harry and Ron are away on business – so the Dementors meant us. After all, we are collectively Mrs Potter and Mrs Weasley, now!"
"Yes. Strange… I soon got used to becoming a werewolf, and being part of our pack – but even after a month or so from the wedding, I'm still having to remember I have a married surname." Luna smiled serenely at Hermione. She reached inside her dressing gown pocket and pulled out a pocket of sweets. "Do you fancy a sherbet lemon?"
Hermione's mouth dropped open. "Luna! This is no time for sweets! We are being chased by a pair of Dementors. Foul beings that won't give up hunting you down! Should they corner us, they will drain us of everything we have…"
"You know, Harry and I were having that same problem with the Tax Revenue people last week," Luna announced, as she put the sherbet lemons away. "But we just had to prove that we were married, and they went away happy."
"Oh, for Merlin's sake! You know Dementors are far more deadly than that!" Hermione jumped up and helped Luna to her feet. "We've got to get away from here, and shake them off…"
"Too late. They're back," Luna declared sadly.
Hermione spun round, and gulped. The two Dementors had indeed returned, and were floating a few feet up in the air above them. She began to shiver and the misty coldness the wraiths emanated began to affect her. Grabbing Luna's hand, the tawny-haired witch took a few steps back, to break free of the localised, chilling sensation.
The Dementors inched downwards, maintaining the distance between themselves and their prey.
"Pot-ter… Wease-ley… You cannot escape us!"
"W…ww…wait! How come you can talk?" Hermione spluttered. Her heart thumped madly, as she strove to conquer her fear. Both her and Luna had now pulled out their wands, and had non-verbally invoked the Lumos spell, so that their wands provided some light to see by.
"That is immaterial!" Came the reply. "We have come to…"
"I'm too young to die!" Hermione's voice was shrill. She caught sight of Luna's slightly-frowning expression. "Er… I mean to say, we're too young to die! Please come back another night. When… When we have more unhappy memories for you to feed upon. Only that might… That might take…"
"Another fifty years?" Luna helpfully suggested.
"YES! Come back for us fifty years from now – when we've finally bored with our husbands and our lives. Probably," Hermione put to the Dementors.
"That is NOT acceptable!" the nearest fiend hissed. "We will feed on you tonight. And…"
"We don't have the ring, you know!" Luna suddenly declared.
"What…!" the second Dementor hissed. The light from the wands of the witches failed to reveal anything within its cowl – and so the creature could not fail but give the quirky ex-Ravenclaw pupil a blank look.
"We do not know where the ring is," Luna calmly elaborated. "Nor do we know what happened to your horses. I'm sorry that you seem to have lost them – and I hope they are all right. Hmm… Do you still ride horses – or have you got those winged monsters now…?"
"Um, Luna," Hermione whispered. "These are Dementors – not Rin…"
"Enough of this malarkey!" The first creature clenched a gloved fist at them. "In return for the defeat of The Dark Lord, and his successor – The Dark Lady – we have come to suck your souls!"
"Really?" Luna seemed maddingly sanguine under the circumstances, thought Hermione. "Did you bring your straws? I'm not sure about my friend, but there's rather more to me than meets the eye. So my wonderful husband tells me, anyway. I might prove too much for you to swallow…"
"We do not need STRAWS!" The second wraith swam in the air towards Luna, and grabbed the Dementor tormentor by the throat, startling her. "Now! Any…last words – little witch – before we…feast?"
The first Dementor, who struck Hermione as the more intelligent of the two, slapped a black gloved hand in despair against the side of its cowl, roughly where its forehead would be.
"Idiot! Do NOT ask HER that…!" it seethed under its breath.
With a show of strength, Luna suddenly pulled the second Dementor's hand off her throat and held it tight.
"Oww!" it protested.
"Any last words? Well, yes – you really need to get a better tailor, you know. Your clothes are a mess…" Luna trailed off, and her silver-grey eyes widened with a new thought. "Actually, I have a question for you two."
"A question…?" the creatures rasped simultaneously.
"Yes – I seem to recall the ex-Minister for Magic - Cornelius Fudge, of course – saying you lot were breeding, after you fell into Voldemort's service… How do you Dementors breed?"
Hermione's jaw went slack. She found she couldn't focus enough on drawing upon a happy memory, in order to produce her Patronus to fight off the Dementors. Instead, her mind boggled at the implications of Luna's question.
"Well, I… I couldn't say. Ah-hem, I mean…I shouldn't say." The shrouded being managed to pull out of Luna's grasp. It coughed sheepishly.
"Let me show you, little witch," the boss Dementor hissed.
"Oh no…" Hermione whispered. Her face turned pale.
"Imagine the scenario. My husband asks to spend an early night with me…," the fiend began.
"Oh? You are a girl Dementor?" Luna tilted her head, in interest.
"Indeed… Anyway, I tell my husband: 'Not tonight, dear. I have a splitting headache'."
And with that, there was the rending sound of fabric tearing. Suddenly, the Dementor's cowl had split, to accommodate two unseen heads. Seconds later, the creature's cloak had developed a rip from top to bottom. Soon, there were two Dementors present where there had been one – each the size of the original. They both gave a mocking laugh.
The Dementor nearest to Mrs Potter reached out with its hands to grab her again…
"Luna – use your Patronus!" Hermione yelled.
Luna's frightened expression did not last long. Instead, she frowned, and responded, "No need, Hermione. Not on this one, anyway!" Luna lifted her wand and called out, "Riddikulus!"
There was a flash of light which engulfed the Dementor. It shrieked. Standing in its place, as the flash faded away, was an animated rubber chicken whose head reached as high as Luna's knees. It squawked in protest – then raced off, stumbling a couple of times over its too-large feet.
Hermione blinked in disbelief, then a laugh escaped her lips. She collapsed upon her knees, caught in a fit of giggles. Luna kept her composure, but looked pleased with herself.
"Hahaha…! A boggart! It was a boggart…," the young Mrs Weasley managed to say.
"But WE are not!" the remaining Dementors spat. They split up – one floated towards Luna, whilst the other swirled menacingly around Hermione, whose laughter suddenly died.
"Ohh…! Luna…?"
"I'm afraid these two are Dementors, Hermione!" Luna now looked worried. "Even when that other one grabbed me, I could not feel any sensation of coldness. That, plus its verbal slip, told me it was an imposter. But this pair are making me feel somewhat chilly…"
"Me too!" Hermione raised her wand. "Come on, Luna! Patronus! Think happy thoughts. Remember your wedding to Harry!"
Hermione herself pictured the day – the dual-wedding ceremony – when she became the blushing, but beaming, Mrs Weasley; and Luna fulfilled her dream by tying the knot with a smartly-dressed, proud, Harry Potter.
"Expecto Patronum!" she yelled, as the Dementor circling her began to draw upon her energies…
But instead of the silvery otter bursting from the wand tip to defend her, Hermione's eyes widened as a little glowing mouse emerged. It dropped to the earth, landing on its head, then – finding its feet – scratched itself behind the ear.
Hermione and the mouse looked at each other.
"Oi! What have you done with my otter!" she suddenly shrieked.
Meanwhile, Luna had cast forth her Patronus – but again, normal service had been disrupted. Luna's unicorn was now posing as a silver-white tabby cat. Instead of attacking the Dementors swirling around the witches, the cat gave a hungry expression as it spied the mouse. Then it leapt after it.
With a 'squeak!' of panic, the mouse ran off, pursued by the feline hunter.
"Ooh…!" Luna sounded disappointed.
The Dementors gave a gloating laugh.
"We hung back just long enough for you to realise your impotence… Your wands have been sabotaged in advance of our coming!" one of the creatures cackled. "Now, we shall dine on you both!"
"Agghh! Luna – try another spell!" Hermione screamed.
But nothing Hermione or Luna did seemed to work. Stunning spells, jets of fire and water, hexes – even Killing Curses – just zipped through the horrors. The two young witches screamed as the Dementors began to draw out their very souls. Hermione felt a dank sensation of coldness engulfing every bone, every nerve, and each individual cell in her body.
"Luna! I can't fight it…," she yelled. "This is the end of us! I…aaaggghhh! I'm proud to call you my friend, Luna…! You're the sister I never had!"
"Thanks, Hermione…" Luna gasped in her agony. "But there's still - eek - hope! One last trick…we can try." She grimaced painfully, and tried to concentrate. Seconds later, Luna's form began to charge. Kicking off her bunny slippers, Mrs Potter's nightgown and moon-and-stars patterned pyjamas shimmered out of sight, as her smooth skin sprouted animal fur.
Within moments, Luna had transformed into her grey-and-white wolf form. Snarling, she sprang for the Dementor that was leeching her life-force. However, the former Azkaban guard merely turned transparent. The she-werewolf sailed through the lingering image of the Dementor, and ended up crashing into the nearest tree. With an indignant look, Luna got back up upon her paws, twitching her dented nose.
"Run, Luna!" Hermione panicked. Something inside of her snapped. Dropping her useless wand, she went into a spasm on the ground, as her own wolf forced itself to the surface of her being. Bones twisted, muscles stretched and tightened. She snarled out her anger and defiance towards the Dementors – and then, in a matter of moments, her clothes had merged with her, giving way to her thick brown pelt. Catching the Dementor feeding off her before it could pull off the same trick its companion had upon Luna, Hermione's forepaw slashed at her assailant's gloved hand.
"Yaagghh!" it yelled, snatching back its arm towards its faceless cowl. There was the sound of sucking. "You hurt my little finger!" it protested, as it backed away.
Hermione snarled, as her nose and jaw pushed out to form her muzzle. Lupine ears twitching, she turned to face the other Dementor – then she froze, in horror.
Luna's energies were visibly being drawn out of her by the cloaked menace. With a wailing howl, the grey-and-white she-wolf arched her body, then crashed to the ground – her wide amber eyes now frozen and locked with Hermione's. Within a matter of seconds, she had reverted back to her clothed, human form.
"H…h…h," she stuttered.
Oh god! She's trying to call out for Harry! Hermione reasoned to herself.
"H…h…Her..mai…on…ney…," Luna whispered, then she fell silent.
Her friend sucked in her breath, stunned.
The feeding Dementor pulled back and gave a loud 'burp'. It held a gloved hand to where its mouth would have been.
"Oops! Pardon me," it announced, with a rasping laugh. "She tasted…different."
No! Luna…!
Giving vent to a furious, soul-splitting howl, Hermione pounced and brought her friend's executioner to the ground, before slashing and tearing away with her claws and fangs.
The Dementor beneath her screamed as she made mincemeat of it, tearing its cloak into pieces – but suddenly its kindred had seized the Hermione-wolf from behind. Oddly enough, it was shaking her shoulders. It must still have been feeding upon her soul, though, for Hermione's head was now reeling. The whole scene went out of focus, as she lost consciousness…
*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*
…or rather she gained consciousness. A voice reached her ears. Its tone was urgent.
"…'Mione, wake up! Stop biting the pillow! And get your nails out of it! It's not a scratching post! You'll be ripping it, next."
"Uh… Uh? Ron?" Hermione opened her eyes, and the image of her husband, already dressed for the day, became clearer. He looked worried.
"Well, of course, Hermione! Were you expecting Santa Claus coming early? You've been chasing rabbits as a wolf, in your sleep again – haven't you?"
A confused Hermione slowly propped herself up, and rubbed her bleary eyes. She looked around the bedroom. They were at their house in the countryside. The date was… She glanced at the calendar clock upon her bedside cabinet. Yes, it was the last week in August. The new term at Hogwarts would soon see them back at work there.
"Umm, how long…?" she croaked.
Ron's voice softened. "I've been up for the last hour, 'Mione. You've overslept. Was..? Was it a nightmare…?"
"Yes… It was…horrid! Thanks for waking me up, Ronald" Hermione reached up and grabbed hold of her surprised husband, before kissing him passionately on the lips.
*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*
Within the hour, a dressed and fully-alert Hermione Weasley apparated a short distance from the Potter household. She looked up at the late summer sky. There were some clouds, but the day held the promise of warm sunshine…
She walked up to the front door of the house, and rapped the lion head knocker. Moments later, a casually-dressed Harry Potter, still munching on a round of toast, opened up the door.
"Oh hi, Hermione! How are you?"
"Not so bad…, now." She muttered the last word. "I wanted to speak with Luna – if that's all right."
"Sure – she's out weeding the garden. Pass on through the house. I'll finish my breakfast." Harry invited his friend in.
Once in the large garden, Hermione approached Luna, who was humming happily to herself as she finished her weeding. Getting up from the ground, Luna brushed the dirt from her patchwork quilted garden dress – then realigned her straw hat, which was decorated with a rather large sunflower.
Hermione coughed. "Luna…"
"Oh! Hello there, Hermione. I was too lost in my thoughts to hear you coming!" Luna smiled pleasantly. "Would you like some Gurdyroot tea? Or maybe some of my homemade Skyberry cordial…?"
"Ohh… Just come here!" Hermione sighed.
The whites of Luna's wide eyes suddenly grew larger – taken aback, as her visitor sprung forward and squeezed the younger witch in a fierce hug. But she hugged Hermione back in kind, nevertheless. As one devoted friend to another.
*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*
Minutes later, sat around the ornaments and shrubbery that formed the rock garden arrangement, Hermione finished reciting all she could remember of her nightmare involving them and the Dementors. And the Boggart.
"Well, I'm glad we're both alive in the world of the awake!" Luna announced, after a pause.
"Me, too," Hermione retorted. Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Maybe it was something that I ate… Last night, I mean. We and our boys were at our place, for tea, you'll remember…"
"Oh dear…" Luna's voice was apologetic.
"What?"
"The Wild Mushroom quiche that I made and brought along. Harry and I have tried it before, with no problems. But you sampled it for the first time, last night…"
"We all ate it…"
Luna nodded. "The mushrooms came from the nearby woods. Perhaps the local gnomes objected to me coming back to pick so many of them. You must have eaten a spellbound mushroom." She fell silent for a moment, then spoke again. "So that's why you were so glad to see me! You really thought the Dementor had taken my soul! And in the dream…you said that I am the sister you never had…"
"Er, yes I did, Luna." Hermione felt a tad embarrassed. "But it's true!" Not just because we are pack sisters. I do appreciate you for who you are. Your peculiarities and all. If you died… Well, you know now how I would feel…"
"Thank you, Hermione!" Luna beamed and looked up directly into the other witch's eyes. "You used to be closed-minded – but you really are a much better person than what I first took you for! And you should know, I would be devastated if you or Ron perished. Harry too, of course…" She trailed off, then continued speaking. Her voice, of course, was still dreamy-sounding. But her expression was solemn and serious. "I would lay down my life to defend Harry, or Ron - or you, Hermione."
"And I would do the same for you three guys," Hermione replied without hesitation. She held out her hand. "Shall we pledge on it, Luna? Friends and pack sisters, who will be there for each other – no matter what? For life!"
Luna nodded eagerly. She smiled and firmly shook Hermione's hand.
"Pledge accepted, my sister. We will be friends for life! I won't even take offence if you never ate my mushrooms again!"
Hermione beamed happily. She doubted that she would ever have a nightmare as weird as that one, again. But just to be sure…
""Next time you pick wild mushrooms, Luna, just find a wood without gnomes…," she muttered, smiling.
THE END!