Night Corps

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

The assistant librarian lifted her head from her economics textbook to glance at the 14 year old standing at her desk.

"What can I help you with?" she asked as she took off her reading glasses. She was glad to see teenagers in the library. Although, lately, she wasn't liking the disturbing tread among them. All they seem to check out was paranormal books, always about werewolves, witches and the like.

"I'm looking for the latest vampire novel by Annalise Houston. Do you know where I can find it?"

The assistant librarian sighed as she put back on her glasses. "In the newest releases section," she said, going back to her textbook. "On your right, past the classics," she pointed to the girl's right without looking up.

"Thank you very much," the 14 year old said happily as she practically skipped away.

The lower librarian sighed. 'Well, at the very least she reading,' she thought. She lifted her head and put her chin in her hand. It wasn't as if she hated those kind of books. She even slightly appreciated Bram Stoker's works, if only for it's classification as classical works. It's just... she had some bad experiences with that sort of thing.

"Earth to Hermione! Hello!"

Hermione Granger jolted when she saw a hand waving right in her field of vision. She threw an irritated look at the owner of the offending hand.

"Harry, lower your voice. You're in a library," she hissed.

Harry Potter laughed at her. "I see you're still hard at work," he said, shaking his head, "You do realize it's almost 7:00, right?"

"It is?" She looked at the watch on the inside of her wrist. "That's right," she said, smacking her forehead, "We have dinner planned, don't we? I'm always losing track of time these days, what with studying and working and all."

"Hey, you're the one who chose to have a double major," Harry pointed out, "If you chose to have a simple major, i.e. communications, like I did, you'd be done by now."

"Well excuse me for trying to get my degrees in something I love," Hermione said shaking her head and gathering her stuff. "Anyway, you sounded like you had something important to say on the phone."

Harry waved his hand, "It's nothing that can't wait until we get to the restaurant."

"All right. Well, let me clock out and tell my boss I'm about to leave."

"I'll be waiting outside for you." Harry walked towards the library doors.

Just when Hermione finished gathering her stuff she heard an airy yet mature voice behind her.

"Excuse me, I could use your assistance."

It was a voice that she would imagine came from the courtesans in her romance books, the ones she thought no one knew she read. A courtesan who was experienced, but yet knew it was innocence that captured a man's attention. So imagine her look of surprise when she turned around and saw it belong to a rather tall and thin woman. She wasn't pencil-thin, on the contrary, it was a waif kind of thin. She had long pale blonde hair and looked to be in her early 20's.

"Excuse me," the woman repeated, taking off her sunglasses. Hermione could now see that her face was that of someone from the 1920's, at least from what Hermione could see. All and all, what should have been a mish-mash of features, looked almost ethereal to her. In fact, if it weren't from sunglasses and modern clothes she wore, Hermione would thought her to be a fairy or an apparition. She was tempted to reach out and touch her to see if she was real. Hermione shook herself out of her daze.

"Oh yes, what can I help you out with?" Hermione asked, blushing just a little. What was she doing staring at a woman?

"Yes, I'm looking for the, ah, classics section. Could you point me in the right direction?" asked the ethereal woman, as she fiddled with a silver chain around her neck. Hermione was seized with the urge touch her hair or really, any part of her. Hermione had just caught herself before she actually gave in to it, when the woman's necklace charm caught her attention.

The woman smiled, as she saw that her necklace had the librarian's eye.

"You can touch it if you wish," she said, "A lot of people are fascinated by it."

Hermione quickly lifted her head. "Oh, well I couldn't. It's yours," she said.

"It's alright. You're not the first to… wonder about it."

Hermione reached out to touch the necklace. It was quite simple really, a long crystal, milky white in color. As she held it in her hand, it started to warm in her hand. Did the crystal just wink at her?

"Yes, well," said Hermione as she let go of the necklace, "The classics section is to your right." Hermione was kind of eager to get rid of the strange woman that was effecting her so oddly.

"Thank you very much," the woman turned to walk towards the classics before she turned around to send a soft smile to Hermione before walking off.

Hermione quickly gathered her stuff and hightailed out of there, eager to end this ending of an otherwise normal work day.

*******

"It's about time you showed up," Harry said as he saw Hermione stepped out the front door of the library, "What took you so long in there?"

"Sorry, sorry," Hermione said as she slipped on her sweater, "I got a last minute request for help. We should get going if we want a good seat at the pub."

Soon they arrived at pub and got a booth. After they ordered their drinks, Hermione turned to look Harry. "Now what was it you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh, just that Mr. and Mrs. Granger wanted us to come by for Sunday dinner."

Hermione looked at Harry and smiled, "You know, they did say you could called them by their first names. You been with them and me since you were ten."

"I know and I'm grateful, but still, feels a little awkward. I mean your parents didn't have to take me in."

"But, they did, and I, for one, of glad. However," Hermione said, with her head tilted and eyebrow raised. "That can't be the only thing you want to talk about."

"Let's talk about it after we eat, shall we?" Harry picked up his menu and eyed Hermione nervously.

********

"Okay, what is it?" Hermione said after putting down her fork.

Harry nervously looked at her from over the rim of his rum and coke. "Remember, when we were twelve and we got scared by that bulgar that tried to break in?"

Hermione nodded, "Yes, I remember," she said, looking down at her glass of wine.

Hermione did remember that fateful day. It was the first time her parents left her and Harry alone for the evening, as they're were going to see a movie. Harry decided that they too, should watch a movie. Unfortunately, he picked a scary movie. Just as the movie reached it's climax, they heard the front window shatter. When Harry and Hermione went to go investigate, they saw a masked man trying to climb though the window. Hermione, feeling scared at first, was then overcome with another feeling. A feeling of sparks of light and electricity or rather sparkling electricity. When she lifted her hands to cover her face, that feeling leap from her hands and became an unseen force. That force pushed the would-be burglar clear across the street. Hermione put her hands down and she and Harry then looked at each other. After a brief moment, they both silently went for the broom and dustpan to clean up the shards. However, when Harry reached out to touch the window fame, it and the air within it started to glow. Out of curiosity, Harry touched the fame. As if by magic, the air in the frame shimmered and became glass. Soon the window became as it was. Looking sideways at each other, they both exchanged a silent vow to never to talk about the incident aloud ever again.

Hermione looked up from the wine. "And I thought we weren't going to talk about it aloud. Why are you bringing that up now, after all these years, anyway?"

Harry sighed, "Well, I had an incident similar to that."

"Someone tried to break in to our flat?!"

"What? No," Harry said shaking his head.

"Oh," said Hermione, breathing a sigh of relief, "Then, what happened?"

"You remember that you packed my lunch, right?"

"Yes, it was a sandwich."

"The only thing you can make without burning it."

"Hey!"

Harry brushed off her irritation . "Well, anyway, I was about to open my bag to get it out, when I smelled with the pasta heating in the microwave."

"Okay, what's so strange about that?"

"I found myself wanting pasta, instead. However, when I open my bag to get out my sandwich, I got a tingly feeling in my fingertips."

"Go on..."

"I brought out my sandwich and to my surprise, I pull out a bowl of pasta, complete with garlic bread."

Hermione's eyes widened, "Are you sure I didn't give you pasta?" She said hopefully. "I could have."

Harry gave her a look. "You're not that scatter-brained, even when you get caught up studying. Has anything weird happen to you lately?"

Hermione would be damned if she mention the woman that came to her desk at the library or any other incident that's recently. She wasn't going to mention that last night while studying when she reached for one of her books it flew right into her hand. Nope, she was going to pretend none of it happened.

"We should get going," Hermione said, quickly changing the subject.

Harry shook his head as put down some euros on the table to pay for dinner. "You can't turn away from this, you know."

"I can and I will." said Hermione as they walked out the door, "I didn't like dealing with it back then, I still don't now."

Hermione put on her sweater and looked around, "We must have in there longer then I thought. There's no one out here."

She was right, there was no one out there, on the streets nor the sidewalk. No one except for one lone figure, that was shuffling slowly towards them.