-THE WORLD YOU THOUGHT YOU LIVED IN-

Hermione looked between Harry and Ron's lifeless bodies." Did I break your heart?" Bellatrix squealed with pleasure. "Too bad" she whispered with a sudden heartless and cruel edge, she whipped out her wand and smirked gleefully then dashed off towards the great hall. DH

The heavy lidded Bellatrix Lestrange was effortlessly spotted in-between the hoard of duelling wizards and witches. She shoved her way through the crowds, sending odd curses and hexes on her way. She sauntered past Yaxley who was in a coarse raging three way duel with George Weasley and Lee Jordan, slashing their wands like swords with sparks flying from their tips.

She then passed Rookwood who was currently being stunned by Aberforth Dumbledore, then Dolohov who was being taken down by the tiny charms professor. She then smoothly rammed Percy Weasley to the floor, trying her best to find her targeted prey, and then she spotted him. He was helping Neville Longbottom take on Fenrir Greyback; she furiously stunned both Neville and Fenrir, leaving Ronald Weasley alone, with only a wand to protect him self.

She smiled wickedly, the hem of her black robes billowing in the slight wind which flowed peacefully through the school grounds. A trembling moment of silence between the two before a single jet of red light shot from Bellatrix's wand, hitting Ron squarely in the chest, he curved into an arch as he sank backwards to the floor, leaving Bellatrix triumphant.

Hermione looked around mortified, surely Ron was just stunned, he wasn't dead. There was movement all around her as she staggered towards Ron's lifeless body, flashes of more spells hurtled in every direction. To Hermione it was meaningless noise, the deflected curses flying past did not matter, nothing mattered, Ron Weasley, her best friend who'd she shared a kiss with only moments ago was dead.

She sunk to her knee's grabbing for Ron's cold hand through her tear filled eyes. She sat for what felt hours before some ones warm hand grasped at her own. She looked up; Harry was staring down at her, grief and sadness etched onto his pale face. He tried his best to smile at her, to reassure her everything was going to be okay, Hermione half-heartedly smiled back.

As Hermione tried her best to get to her feet she suddenly felt Harry's hand go ridged and cold in her own, she looked up at his face, his expression was blank and had no movement what so ever. She let go of his hand and he toppled over, behind him stood Bellatrix Lestrange, screaming the same shrill shriek of triumph she had screeched after killing Ron.

"Did I break your heart?" Bellatrix squealed with pleasure. "Too bad" with a sudden heartless and cruel edge, she whipped out her wand and smirked gleefully then dashed off towards the great hall.

A staggered Hermione was left alone; her best friends were dead, killed by the violent and brutal Bellatrix Lestrange. How could she go on without her boys? Ron and Harry had always been there for her, putting up with her many faults and loving her for who she was.A sensation Hermione had only ever once experienced before boiled up inside her, pure dreaded loathing, she was going to kill her.

She shot to her feet, wand firmly in her hand she sprinted towards the great hall; people were shouting behind her, but she didn't care. The hem of Bellatrix's dress whipped out of sight and Hermione followed.

Hermione continued to sprint past some of her fellow students not even bothering to acknowledge them, she passed Dean, Luna and Ginny all huddled together shouting after her to stop running, she dashed past Neville, Seamus, George and Lee Jordan who then ran after her, then out of the corner of her eye flashed a streak of platinum blonde, Draco Malfoy stood with his parents.

Bellatrix aimed a stunning curse over her shoulder at Hermione, missing and instead hitting Seamus, Hermione resisted the urge to go back and help him. "Going to avenge your little friends?" Bellatrix laughed, waving her hands above her head harshly, only metres away from the great hall's doors.

Hatred rose in Hermione such as she had never known before; she sprinted faster determined to catch up with her and bellowed, "Stupefy!" Bellatrix reacted so fast Hermione barley had time to duck. "Protego!"

They soon reached the great hall and everyone seemed to be watching them, Death Eaters, students, teachers and order of the Phoenix members ceased battle to watch the two women spit insults between each other. "I was and am the Dark Lord's most loyal servant. I learned the dark arts from him, and I know spells of such power that you, pathetic little mudblood, could never hope to-"

"Voldemort's dead you foolish women, Harry killed him" Hermione roared and began to circle the ignorant witch. Bellatrix struck her wand and shrieked, "You dare speak his name? You Filthy Mudblood! The Dark Lord rose once before he can rise once again!"

"Crucio!" Hermione yelled pure hatred clasped to every syllable. Gasps from around the hall sounded, mostly from Hogwarts students and teachers. Bellatrix screamed, the spell had knocked her off her feet, but other wise left her unharmed, she soon leaped to her feet and regained her usual gaunt and callous posture.

"Never used unforigivable curse have you? You need to mean them; you need to really want to cause pain. Righteous anger won't harm me for long" she bellowed. "You're vile" Hermione spat, "You're cruel" she added, "You deserve to pay for all the pain you've caused" Hermione yelled, raising her wand to Bellatrix.

"Do it" Bellatrix whispered, almost as if she wanted Hermione to torture her. She gradually lowered her wand. "You killed my best friends" she whimpered, allowing one faint tear to trickle down her pale cheek. "You drove Neville's parents to insanity, you killed Fred Weasley and Sirius Black, and I don't know anyone who deserves it more than you" Hermione steadily tugged at her shirts sleeve until it fully revealed the words Mudblood which had slowly scabbed over in the past weeks since it had been forever bound to her skin. "Cru-" she began.

A sudden clatter of footsteps rose from behind the Great halls vast doors. The door swung of its hinges and Neville, Luna, Ginny, George, Lee, Dean and Ernie Macmillan burst through the entrance, wands at the ready all pointing towards Bellatrix. Soon followed by the Malfoys, whose wands were at the ready but were pointing towards Hermione.

"Cissy!" Bellatrix shrieked, stumbling over the hem of her dress clearly shocked by her sister's entrance. "Thought you and your cowardly and disloyal family had fled?" she sneered, tossing her wand between her long, pale, out stretched fingers. "Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione shrieked, using Bellatrix's one moment of weakness as an opening, Bella's arms and legs snapped together and she kneeled over backwards, landing with a crash on her back. Most of the hall gasped, as the death eaters fleeted the hall.

Hermione breathed deeply, her wand still hovering over Bellatrix's binded body, unsure of what to do next. The Malfoys slowly lowered their wands one by one, starting with Draco and ending with Lucius. Hermione couldn't hold in the tears that had been threatening to spill since Ron and Harry had died, any longer. She flung her self into Ginny's arms and wept. Bellatrix was right she had broken her heart; she'd killed those who mattered most. Hermione then proceeded to embrace George in a bone breaking hug, then Neville, then Luna until she had no strength left.

The battle had ceased, Voldemort was dead, and Bellatrix was going to be punished for her crimes, she still had Luna, Ginny, George and Neville, yet somehow she was still not utterly happy. She still barred the words Mudblood on her arm, she'd lost her two best friends, she'd almost preformed an unforgivable curse, and she'd lost her parents forever.

Perhaps she'd go look for them someday.

Somehow.