A/N: This story's going to be darker than the stuff I usually write. But there will be chapters that aren't so dark. Just giving you fair warning before you read...
Setting: Harry's seventh year at Hogwarts. Despite the events that ocurred during the previous year, Harry returns to Hogwarts along with his friends in order to prepare for the upcoming battle against Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Assume that Draco and Severus are evil, despite any evidence from books 1-6 that may prove otherwise.
Warnings: Eventual femmeslash, a good deal of violence, serious angst among other things.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything associated with Harry Potter nor do I claim to own anything associated with Harry Potter. The characters belong to J.K. Rowling, I just like using them as puppets...
"When did Harry say he was going to be back?" Ginny asked, impatiently for the umpteenth time as the two girls climbed through the portrait hole and walked into the Gryffindor common room.
"I dunno, Gin, they only left a couple hours ago," Hermione sighed and tossed her hair with a free hand. "I'm sure they'll be back soon."
Harry, ever the determined hero, had chosen to return to Hogwarts during his seventh year to offer protection to his fellow students and to attempt to discover the locations of the remaining horcruxes before Voldemort had the chance to reclaim them. Lately, Ron and Harry had taken to going out for hours, sometimes days, at a time to follow up on leads they received as to the locations of prospective horcruxes. So far, most of them had led to dead ends, but the latest tip seemed most promising: an artifact from the home of Tom Riddle, Sr. that had been squirreled away by Voldemort's most loyal Death Eaters. The tip came from Severus Snape himself in order to reduce his prison sentence.
The School was more like a hostel than an educational facility. Instead of hosting a myriad of classes, the focus of the building shifted to housing displaced students who lost their families in attacks comissioned by the Death Eaters or simply had no place else to be. Though most of the Weasley family continued to reside at the Burrow, Ron and Ginny remained at Hogwarts to help Harry in any way possible.
"I wish he'd stop treating me like I'm still a scared, defenseless eleven-year-old girl," Ginny muttered as they ascended the staircase towards Hermione's separate Head Girl room. "I can defend myself now, I should be helping him right now," she insisted in a whiney voice that made Hermione cringe.
"Look, I'm sure he's just trying to protect you," she said as she opened the door, ushering Ginny inside.
"Yeah, that's what he said when he broke up with me last year," Ginny replied, deadpanned. She took a seat on the edge of Hermione's bed and pulled a scarlet pillow to her chest, resting her head on it as she sighed loudly. Hermione opened her mouth to speak but she was cut off as Ginny continued, "Not like I minded much anyway, he's not my type, but the way he chose to break it off was less than subtle."
Hermione nodded and took a seat next to Ginny. "Men are stupid," she concluded and Ginny reaffirmed her conclusion with a curt nod. The solemn moment was interrupted as the two girls immediately broke out laughing. Hermione leaned her head on Ginny's shoulder, surprised that the other girl did not immediately pull away. "You smell nice," Hermione said, closing her eyes as she relaxed into the nape of Ginny's neck.
Ginny chuckled, "What would Ron say if he walked in right now?"
Oh, I could think of a few things, none of them particularly pleasant, Hermione thought as she pictured Ron spouting out a series of expletives. She grinned, "Screw him. We're not together anymore." She had ended their relationship the week before but could not think of a solid reason for her decision other than his bad breath and tactless advances.
She nodded, approvingly, "I was going to suggest that you leave him anyway, he cheated on you with Lavender." Ginny adjusted her position on the bed forcing Hermione to lift her head from her shoulder. The younger girl reclined against the headboard, pulling Hermione into her arms. "So, who do you have your sights set on now?" she asked with an inquisitive grin.
Hermione shrugged the question off. "No one, really," she said while trying to conceal a blush. This is definitely not a good time to tell her...
Ginny's arms snaked around Hermione's waist causing the older girl to shiver inaudibly. "Come on, Hermione, there has to be someone."
She tilted her head from side to side in an attempt to articulate an answer. She opened her mouth to speak as a loud "thump" resounded through the dormitory, causing Ginny to quickly pull away.
Oblivious to the sound, Hermione looked up at her, concerned, "What is it?"
Ginny's eyes were focused on the door, ears straining to hear the sound again. "Didn't you hear that?" she asked quickly, rising from her position on the bed. Catching the crestfallen look that had crossed her friend's face, she added, "I'm going to go take a look, make sure everything's alright... I'm sorry."
Hermione nodded and said quietly as Ginny neared the door, "You know, it's probably an idiot first-year testing out some of Fred and George's latest...inventions." Ginny nodded, rolling her eyes knowingly as she stepped through the doorway, silently shutting the door behind her. "Damn it," she muttered to herself once she was sure Ginny was out of earshot. She raised a hand to massage her brow which had tightened with frustration. Every single time I try to get close to her, there's always some interruption. I have to accept the fact that I've got no chance with her, that's why she's avoiding me like this all of the time...
A cry from the common room pulled her roughly from her thoughts. What in the bleeding hell do they think they're doing down there? She sat perched on the edge of the bed, deciding whether or not to address the situation.
Another cry, louder this time. Even through the thick oak door that closed her room off from the common room below her, she could make out the words, "Help, please!" The last coherent thought to pass through her mind before she bolted for the door of her room was, Oh, no...Ginny.
She ran down the stairs, not caring whether she tripped over a few steps on the way. Coming to a halt at the edge of the last step, Hermione froze in shock, completely unprepared for the scene that awaited her in the Gryffindor common room. Death Eaters. At least half a dozen of them, positioned at different locations of the room, robes billowing in a nonexistent wind. How did they...
Then she saw the bodies. Half of Gryffindor house laid strewn about the common room, motionless corpses with fear still plastered across their motionless faces. The body closest to her, a second-year she recognized from breakfast the morning before, was physically untouched and could be easily mistaken for a live person if his chest had been moving up and down. Others were not as lucky. Lavender Brown's limp body was draped over the side of a chair, face and arms covered in blood. On the floor beneath her was the body of her friend Parvati and it was clear that one must have watched the other die. She fought to choke back the gag reflex threatening to overcome her body by placing a hand to her mouth.
Her mind finally began to function again as her eyes darted around the rest of the room, panicking, looking to the faces of the dead bodies and silently praying that she would not see Ginny's lifeless eyes staring back at her. She breathed a sigh of relief: Ginny was nowhere to be found.
One of the Death Eaters heard her stifled gasp and turned towards her, a mask concealing their identity. "Miss Granger, how nice of you to grace us with your presence," the voice, clearly a woman's, snappped through her mask.
Hermione's breath caught in her throat. "Bellatrix Lestrange," she gasped, barely audibly.
A/N: Goddamn cliffhangers. There's more to come. Much, much more. Everything will eventually be explained in later chapters. Reviews are much appreciated. : )