Hermione Granger was sitting at her desk quietly tapping a pen against the edge of the mahogany. Her hair was polished into a pristine bun that was swept off her neck and up on top of her head. The blazer and skirt she had gotten had been ironed perfectly that morning. It was a typical morning from her. She talked to Ron and Harry as they waited in the long line to clock in to work, and then parted ways with them on the elevator where she got off at the Department of the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and they headed downward with the other Aurors.
She had only been at work about an hour when she began to hear the commotion from outside her office. Being the head of the department, she was swamped with paper work already and assumed it was just another mixed up charm from the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office. Trying to focus on the case at hand she warmed her coffee with her wand as she read, but the commotion was only getting louder.
"On September seventeenth, at midnight there was a scream heard from the house in question. When Magical Law Enforcement finally arrived to find a distraught neighbor standing outside, they were finally able to enter the home after deactivating several wards. They found a hippogriff in the front hall of the mansion. It's throat had been severely cut, but sustained no other injuries. There was no one in the home." Hermione began to pace the office as she chewed her lip and read the case again and again trying to see if she missed any important clues the first time.
She was desperately trying to keep her sanity as she paced back and forth with her file in one hand and her coffee in the other. Finally, when she couldn't take it anymore, she opened her office door to see her department in a mixture of chaos. Scrunching her brow she examined the scene before her in the way that the bookworm always did.
Apparantly, someone thought it would be more than humorous to cast a charm over her department that had it snowing itching powder. Pursing her lips she cast a quick spell to stop it and looked around at her employees. A few quickly sat back down to work when they saw her while others looked embarrassed.
"Honestly. You call yourselves ministry employees and you can't figure out how to uncharm the ceiling. Get back to work." With that the twenty two year old turned on her heel and slammed the door. The employees quickly turned back to their work and Hermione turned back to her troubling case. However, not without first writing a memo and sending it to the heads of each department.
"Whoever thought it was funny to charm my departments ceiling this morning. I assure you it wasn't as cute of a joke as you thought it was going to be. Please refrain from distracting my employees, as they aren't always the brightest. Thank you and have a nice day. – Hermione Granger Head of Department of the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures."
A few memos buzzed above her head when she opened the door to finally head home for the day, but she ignored them and shoved them in her office until tomorrow. They could wait, for now, she just wanted to go home.
It was past closing, and everyone else had already left. Stifling a yawn she apparated to the road that would take her to her flat. She took in the crisp air as she walked and walked slightly faster when she finally reached her door. Pulling out her keys she felt a body behind her and didn't even have the chance to scream when she was pulled back from her door.
"Where's the file Granger?" She was too in shock to register what was happening as a person jerked her to them and held her too roughly.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" She stammered as she tried to get her bearings. The person in front of her was a familiar and extremely hated old schoolmate. "Draco Malfloy. Let me go!" She fought against her restraints and pleaded with the blonde who only shook his head.
"I need that file Granger. The one about the hippogriff. Nothing against you." She shook her head lightly. She had left it at her office. She rarely brought her work home. You could call it her desperate attempt not to be a prude, but it would seem that that decision wasn't helping her this night.
"I don't have it!" She cried out as the person holding her gripped her arm tighter.
"Where is it Granger?"
"In my office." The look on Draco Malfloy's face was unsympathetic as he stepped toward her and smirked. She could smell the peppermint on his breath and the expensive cologne that drenched his suit. Behind him was none other than the Italian Blaise Zabini. Why would two men who had the entire world in money, women, and owned shares in all the major businesses around London want anything to do with getting that file? Unless it was something that would make them look bad… "It's in my office. Look, I'll get it for you." She offered in a desperate attempt to get out of the grip of the sweaty guy holding her.
"Hmm… How do we know you won't be lying?" The darker haired man stepped toward her with an evil glint in those indigo eyes that she wasn't quite sure he had when he was at Hogwarts.
"I promise! Please!" She honestly never thought she would see the day that she was begging Draco Malfloy for anything, nonetheless her life.
She heaved a breath of relief when Draco studied her and the two business partners looked between each other. Finally, the body guard let her go and she straightened herself contemplating as the two partners whispered hushed words in Italian. Taking their moment of indecision she quickly muttered a wandless spell and cast them in darkness.
She stumbled in the thick fog but finally felt like she was far enough away from them that she could apparate safely. With a pop, Hermione landed in Ron's front yard, and wondered when Draco Malfloy got so stupid.
Stumbling up the front steps she banged on the door of the Burrow and practically ran over the twins when they opened the door. "Let me in!" She heaved as she pushed them out of the way. "Ronald! Ron!" She yelled as she walked through the house.
"God Hermione…"
"You're going to wake the whole house!" She ignored the twins as she took the stairs two at a time. Bursting through the door to Ron's room, she ignored the way that he grumbled at her in his sleep and checked the time as she slammed it behind her.
"Ronald, this is no time for sleep. I was outright assaulted tonight!" Hermione's hair was practically standing up from the electricity that was pouring through her as she paced the room. Her eyes were frantic and calculating as she tried to figure out how to word it all. "Draco Malfloy and his little partner Blaise Zabini attacked me on my way home from work today. All over some file about a hippogriff! What do you think that means? Could that mean that it is something they are trying to hide? Who just attacks someone who has nothing to do with the problem?" Her voice was rising by decibles the more she spoke and Ron was staring at her trying to figure out what was going on, but the hazy look in his eyes told her that he didn't really care. "Honestly Ronald, close your mouth you're drooling, and help me figure out a plan! They likely could be waiting at my flat!"
"Hermione… Don't you think you're overreacting a bit… Can't we deal with this in the morning?" Hermione pursed her lips as Ron turned away from her and pulled the covers up, but the older witch was having none of it. Ripping the blankets off him she stood over him in that stance that she got when she meant business. Her hands were on her hips and her eyes were narrowed dangerously. Ron glanced up at her, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, and finally removing himself from the bed. "Fine! Let's go to Harry's…" She smiled in achievement and straightened her posture as she left him to get dressed and headed toward the fireplace.
"Sorry Mate… Hermione is completely mental." Ron offered once that had entered Harry's bedroom and successfully woken him and Ginny. The couple was currently looking at them from the bed with weary eyes laced with confusion.
"What the hell guys?" Ginny's voice was the first to echo through the silence followed by what sounded like 'Get the fuck out' before she rolled back under the covers and went to sleep. Harry rolled his eyes and climbed out of bed pulling on a robe and leading them to the living room.
"So… what's going on?" He asked hazily as Hermione made them all tea.
"I was attacked! I don't understand why it's so hard for you boys to get it through your obnoxiously thick skulls!"
"Why were you leaving work so late in the first place Hermione?"
"So I wouldn't have to bring my work home! That is beside the point! We need to discuss why Draco Malfloy decided to have me assaulted in the middle of the night just to get a file." She trilled on and on as she made the tea while the two boys sunk into the couch and prepared for a long and sleepless night.
"Maybe… he just wants the file. Couldn't you have just given it to him and been done with it?" She was in complete shock at her two best friends. Shouldn't they be defending her honor and sticking up for her and all that jazz?
"You couldn't muster yourselves to sound a little more concerned, could you?" She muttered as she handed them their warm tea.
"Look, we just don't feel like this is something to get too worked up about. They want a file that will be public knowledge once you're done examining it. Just give it to them." She looked at her two best friends with wide disbelieving eyes, before finally convincing herself that maybe they were right, and releasing them to go back to bed.
She was too scared to go back to her apartment so Harry let her stay on their couch. She couldn't help but stay up another hour trying to figure out if the two Presidents of Malfloy-Zabini Industries had ulterior motives. Something just seemed amiss about the situation. She finally slipped to sleep dreaming about pelting things at the blondes face.