All right, this is my first fan fiction ever written in English. Brazilian Portuguese is my mother language, and this is a challenge for me.
I don't have a betta, so please be patient with me if/when you see mistakes. I'm trying hard, promise. I welcome bettas and constructive reviews regarding the story and writing.
Thank you for reading, I hope you'll enjoy!
Central Park shone by that summer Saturday. People gave up on lying at the grass to enjoy the heat; it was now way too much. Looking for the generous shadows the trees would provide, drinking litters of water and fruit ice cream, the general wonder was how abnormally hot that afternoon was.
A group of people did not care, though. Their gathering was already finishing, friends hugging happy goodbyes after their reunion. It had been a very successful afternoon where the children presented their capoeira round, teenagers played music to the public and adults sold paintings and shirts and distributed pamphlets to make themselves known. The "Our Sunset Park" organization did that every month to gather money for their project.
When the integrants of the group were almost entirely gone, Valerie Cooper collected the huge purse containing the unsold shirts, waved her goodbye and turned around to leave, a big smile on her face and a little sweat on her forehead and temples. Her huge, curly bushy hair didn't help her a lot on that heat.
"That's her, right there!"
"I can see her, thank you very much. Go now."
Frowning at the man by her side, Hermione Granger stood from the bench she had been sitting, observing the group, and walked towards the other woman. A few feet away, she blond one with the big pack stopped dead on her tracks.
"Hermione?", she asked looking at the other one
Hermione smiled as largely as the other one had been a few moments ago.
"Surprise!"
"What happened?", she asked still not smiling "Something happened, what is it, why are you here?", Valerie babbled when Hermione grew closer
"It's all right", said Hermione, "Nothing happened! I'm in town and I decided to surprise you, that's all!"
"Oh my God, Mione!", Valerie said touching her face and finally smiling "I can't believe it! My baby!"
They hugged tightly and Hermione laughed wholeheartedly "Not a baby anymore, Val".
"Oh, I know that pretty damn well. Look at you!", she said letting her go and letting the pack fall to the ground while holding Hermione's hands
"Well, look at you, too!", said Hermione, "Every time I see you, you're even more stunning. I missed you so much, Val, it's really good to see you."
"Me too, baby. I'm very happy with this surprise, but you don't fool me. What the hell are you doing in New York? Are Jane and Roger here?", she asked looking around
"No, they're in Australia, actually."
"And who are those men standing right there watching us? Are they with you, some of your kind?"
Hermione looked briefly at the same direction "Yes, they are. I don't know how I forget how perceptive you are".
"I practically helped to raise you, Mione, you should be unimpressed that I know you so well".
"You're right. We need to talk. They are with me and yes, they are of 'my kind'", Hermione said gesturing quotes. "Can we go somewhere private?"
"Let's go to my place".
When Hermione walked with Valerie without even looking at the two men around, she asked if they were not going to be introduced. "Later", Hermione answered, and Valerie did not ask any more questions. She led Hermione to the subway station, noticing there were followed by the men, and half an hour later they were entering the housing complex Valerie lived in. Hermione and the men entered right after her. When she turned the key to lock the door, the ever-frowning man with straight black her grew closer and gestured his wand – Valerie knew what that was, she had seen Hermione's before – towards the door and it clicked closed.
"I'd offer you some coffee but it's too damn hot today. I'll serve you some very cold water", Valerie said looking weirdly at them, "Especially you with that coat", she gestured in the same man's direction.
Hermione followed Valerie to the very small kitchen to help with the glasses and they returned quickly.
"Please sit", she said resting the glasses and the water bottle on the coffee table.
They sat down and help themselves to the water. Hermione dried the sweat from her forehead and spoke up, "Valerie, let me introduce you. William Weasley and Severus Snape."
The red haired young man with a scar on his face reached out to Valerie, "Call me Bill. We apologize for showing up with no notice at all".
"I'll quickly accept the apologies if you'd only tell me now what is going on" she said smiling and shaking his hand. The other man made no movement in her direction.
"Val, you remember all the stories I have always told you about me and the wizarding world. I never told you all the facts, too much have happened in the past years. I told you briefly about the entire crisis we had".
"You did, no details. Some crazy asshole trying to rule and kill who were not pure bloods".
"Yes, that. Well, the crazy asshole is dead. There were lots of years of war and a huge battle in the end, and we finally won".
"Wait, 'we'? You included?" Valerie asked looking from Hermione to the two men
"Yes, we. I was part of it, just like Bill and professor Snape were".
"You told me you were involved. But I always thought it was only because you're a witch and it's a small community as you said. Didn't know how involved you were, you fought a war!"
"Yes, and Hermione was a very important part of the victory", said the red haired man
"Oh", mumbled Valerie. "It's over now?"
"Well…" Hermione glanced at the two men "The madman is dead".
"Oh no. You didn't say it is over".
"It's not over."
Valerie could have jumped up to the sound of that voice. She stared at the black haired man with her mouth a little open. What a damn powerful voice.
"Even though the 'madman' believed in his victory and in his eternal life, he left his ground prepared to any situation. He left an heir".
"Oh, I see. Right when you thought everything was over, the motherfucker dead, someone else showed up to try and keep it going", Valerie said to the velvet voiced man and looked again at Hermione, "Kinda like neo-Nazi lunatics".
"Exactly", Hermione answered and looked at the two men "I told you she understands things quickly".
"Yep, I do, but not everything. I still don't know why you are here. No offense, honey, I'm very happy to see you, but what do I have to do with this?"
"The thing is, Val… I was one of the responsible for Voldemort's death, the 'end' of his cause, the imprisonment of so many people… Along with the main responsible for that, my friend Happy Potter, I am among the three main targets of this neo-Voldemort movement. Professor Snape is too, and I promise I will tell you every single detail about this war, it's just too much to say now. But in the present, this is the situation: they want to get to me."
"Oh no, baby, you're in danger all over again. Can't you just hide?"
"I could, and that's partially what I'm doing, as well as the other Order members. But there's more to it", she continued ignoring the doubt look on Valerie's face by the mention of 'the Order', "We're not the only ones in danger".
Valerie looked into Hermione's eyes for a few seconds, glanced at Bill and Snape and looked at her again before speaking "Hermione, why am I in danger?"
The young woman looked nervous and tried to look for words, but it was that rich deep voice that explained "They found out Miss Granger's family history and all about you, Miss Cooper, and they have solid plans to catch and imprison you to make Miss Granger and her friends go and try to rescue you".
"Which we obviously would do, and they know that. They want to kidnap you, Valerie, and that's why we are here… Before them".
Valerie stood in silence, chewing the inside of her lips, eyes a little too open, staring at the three people for a few moments before finding her voice again. "Well, that's not good", she said matter-of-factedly
"Not at all, Val", said Hermione, "They are vicious people, truly dangerous, and we could not know about this plan and do nothing. You're gonna have to come with us into hiding".
"I'm gonna have to do into hiding?", Valerie repeated incredulously before getting up from the couch and pacing behind it "So suddenly I find out that a bunch of lunatics from the other side of the ocean want to catch me to make my baby cousin try to rescue me so they can get finally to kill her and because of that I have to hide God knows until when leaving my whole life, by work, my friends, my boyfriend, the community, just say bye-bye to the children e fly away and oh my God!"
Hermione got up from the chair and stood in front of Valerie "Val, breathe, calm down. I know it's horrible, but this is so much better than if we didn't know. We can protect you and it probably won't be for that long. The current problem is still at the beginning and we do have a good advantage. Before you know things might be over and you'll be back. But for now, please Val, listen to us. Nothing will work out if you're caught or killed. Please."
Taking a deep breath, Valerie nodded and let Hermione take her back to the couch, where she sat by her side.
"How…" Valerie started again "How do you know their plans?"
"We have information from the inside of this new organization", Bill Weasley answered "Someone we know we can trust. He told us they chose you for being the most… Vulnerable person available."
"I'm vulnerable", Valerie said calmly
"Yes", Hermione answered, "You're a muggle. And you are my cousin".
Valerie swallowed painfully looking down at her lap, regaining control over herself. Her unlikely visitors just sat in silence respecting that they had just thrown a bomb into her arms and that she needed time. Without looking at no one, she leaned to the coffee table, filled a glass with water and drank it down on one breath. Resting the glass once again, she finally found her voice one more time.
"I can't leave straight away. I have an important work going on, and if I disappear out of thin air people will get suspicious. Besides, if the bad guys get here to take me and find out that I just left, they won't think it's just a coincidence. They will know that you people knew about it somehow and that there might be a traitor among them. I have to come up with a story and have some time to organize it and then it will be believable".
"How long do you think you're gonna need?", Hermione asked
"Well, I guess it doesn't depend just on me. When are the neo-Nazi gonna come for me?"
The red haired wizard answered "Sometime in the beginning of next month. That gives us about three weeks, not more than that".
"Ok. I'll think about something."
"In the meantime,", the velvet voiced man spoke up "You can't remain unprotected. The Order had already decide on your guard.", he said ever frowning, one leg crossed over the other knee and his fingertips held together in front of him, "We will stay in rounds, constantly, until you have it all prepared to go with us."
"You're staying?", Valerie asked looking at Severus Snape
"Yes", he said in a not-so pleased tone
"Are you, Mione?"
"I cannot.", she answered with an apologetic look on her face, "They gave me other duties there, and only the Advanced Guards from the Order take care of that kind of business".
Valerie tried to asked something about this last statement, but preferred to close her eyes and shake her head rapidly saying "I'm not even gonna ask".
"I know it's too much information", said Hermione "I'll fill acquaint you with all the details when you get to London with us. Until then, please be calm and focus on creating this story for you future absence. I'll be there when you arrive and you'll see, everything is gonna be fine", she said taking Valerie's hand in hers.
During the rest of the afternoon, Hermione and Valerie tried to catch up a little with each other, while the two men sat patiently at a distance. Bill would look curiously through the window, at the people in the patio two stores down, kids riding bikes, old ladies sitting together at benches, cars passing by at a distance, or curiously looking at the home appliances, refrigerator, microwave, and coffee machine. Severus preferred to sit in a chair by the door a burry his nose on a book. By the evening, Hermione helped her older cousin prepare dinner, something simple, and the four of them sat together to eat, mostly in silence. Valerie felt better now, the news sinking slowly in and a few ideas already passing through her mind.
After dinner, Hermione announced that she had to go back to London. Her part there was done. Bill Weasley would be taking her, for she was somewhat insecure to Apparate from such a long distance, and Professor Snape would remain at the apartment to take over the first round of vigilance. Uncomfortable with the chosen words to describe the situation, Valerie hugged Hermione tightly, shook hands with Bill and thanked them. Hermione held Bill's arm and they swirled on their spot before disappearing. Valerie blinked confused for a few moments.
"I guess I should get used to see that kind of things", she said to herself in the living room.
The black haired man with the magnificent voice was sitting again in the same chair, the book open and looking at Valerie. He lowered the book a few inches when the said "Carry on with your things and don't mind me. I'll be here all night".
Valerie stared at him for a moment, half expecting him to say or do something. That was a strange fellow. She entered the kitchen in silence and did the dishes, trying to think rationally about her day. Knowing about the magical world her cousin had been living in for the last eight years was one thing; being involved in it, having her life protected by witches and wizards and having a dark, strange, weirdly handsome wizard standing in her living room for her protection, well that was an entire different thing. Severus Snape was in the exact same position when she left the kitchen and went directly to her bedroom. A moment later she returned with a pillow and a bed sheet in hands.
"I only have one bedroom", she said placing them on the couch, "so I hope you'll be comfortable here."
The man looked at her from above the book for a second before returning to it "I don't have any intention to sleep".
"Ever?" she said giggling
He frowned and didn't answer, looking again at the book.
"All right, then, very nice talking to you. G'night."