Disclaimer: I don not own anything familiar to you or anyone else. Nothing related to Harry Potter is mine, nor will it ever be mine.
Hermione Granger sat on her bed reading her Advanced Charms book when she heard an unusual noise from downstairs. Dog-earring the page she was on, she set the book down next to her and slowly climbed off the bed, moving slowly towards the door with her wand in front of her. Screams met her ears and she picked up her pace, now almost running to find the source of the noise. As she ran down the stairs and into the sitting room, she almost ran into someone before she recognized them and stopped moving.
In front of her stood two Death Eaters, one slightly taller than he other, but both with platinum blonde hair. Their grey eyes danced with amusement as they tortured the muggles in front of them, struggling from the spell placed on them; crucio. Hermione, still in shock, observed the two men in front of her. Lucious Malfoy had changed since the last time she had seen him; wrinkles around his eyes, which now possessed a cold, hollow feeling. His stature was slightly sagging, as if some heavy weight was pushing down on his shoulders, and his arms were shaking from the energy emanating from his wand. Draco, however, looked completely different. His hair had darkened somewhat, to a more dirty blonde, and his skin had a light tan, as if he had spent a lot of time in the sun recently. His eyes were more bluish silver than before, and he stood stiff as a board. But the one thing that shocked Hermione the most, the thing that made her gasp, was the scar that was present on his face. It hadn't been there at the end of last term, unless he used glamour charms on it to keep it hidden. It was a beautiful scar, running from the corner of his left eye to right above the left corner of his lips. She felt compelled to reach out and touch it, but caught herself right before her hand started to move and gave her away. This is Draco Malfoy; he doesn't deserve my sympathy.
A new round of screams from her parents jolted her back to the present; one where she was able to move. Running over in front of them, she started shouting jinxes at the sneering Malfoy's, hoping to distract them from their spell. However, it seemed as though an invisible shield had been erected in front of the two men, because every shot she took at them was deflected at the last second, racing off in a new direction in the house. After a few more minutes, when she had thrown herself to her knees and started to weep, they stopped the curse on her parents. She turned to face them, knowing what was about to happen as she had witnessed it before, and spoke to them in a barely audible whisper. "I love you" was the last thing she would ever say to her parents, before she ear two cries of Avada Kedavara from behind her. The green jets of light whizzed past her head, and she closed her eyes, not being able to watch her parents die.
"Come on, Mudblood. We need to get moving" Lucious spoke, grabbing her by her elbow and pulling her to her feet.
"No! I don't want to go anywhere with you two Death Eaters" She screamed, but it was futile as she couldn't even stand on her own, let alone fight back against these two Dark Wizards.
"Right, now get moving" He responded, pushing her towards Draco who was holding onto a dagger. She gasped at its beauty; emeralds in the hilt, chrome blade; black antique finish. She could only imagine how much something like that would cost when he thrust it into her stomach. She began to
pass out from the los of blood and the recent events, and as Lucious placed his hand on the end behind Draco's, she felt a familiar tug behind her naval, before everything went black.
-o.O-
Waking up slowly, trying to move as little as possible so as not to trigger anymore pain then necessary in her abdomen, Hermione sat up and took in her surroundings. She was lying on a bed furbished with a black comforted with silver threading. A giant "R" rested in the center, around which a serpent was coiled. The walls were painted a charcoal grey color, offsetting the black caret on the floor. The black couch with matching armchairs and silver throw pillows faced the most exquisite fireplace she had ever seen, constructed out of black obsidian. Above it was painted a beautiful family crest, though not one she was familiar with. The right side of the room was lined with doors. Getting up, she noticed the first one contained all the muggle clothing she owned, and then some, all neatly packed into the walk-in closet. The next door over was the same, except it housed the most gorgeous dress robes she had ever laid her eyes on. The third and final door was the bathroom. Only it was larger than her bedroom back home. The floor had sparkling white tiles, while the walls were a light green. The counter top held two sinks, and a shower and toilet were also in the room. A door across the room revealed the largest bath tub she had ever seen in her entire life, and that included the prefects tub.
Walking back into her room, she became aware of someone's presence behind her and spun around, wand at the ready. Soon her stance faltered though, as a sharp pain raked through her abdomen once again. Gasping and clutching her stomach, she felt tears start to trickle down her cheeks. The person in the room with her led her over to the bed and lay her down before lifting up her shirt to reveal the wound. Casting a quick healing charm, Hermione felt the energy seep back into her body at once. Opening her eyes to thank her savior, she came face to face with none other than Draco himself.
"What do you want, Malfoy?" she asked as she felt herself blush. People didn't normally just pull her shirt up whenever they felt like it.
"Is that how we thank our superiors for saving us an immense amount of pain?" He asked smirking, knowing he was in control in the situation and there was nothing she could do about it.
"I wasn't aware there were any superiors in this room" she retorted, smirking his smirk with ease. Shock passed quickly through his eyes, followed by loathing and even a bit of defeat.
"Well, you-"he began, only to be cut off from a woman in the doorway.
"-are absolutely right, isn't she Draco?" the woman asked before coming to sit on the bed next to her. She had black hair that fell straight down her back to half past her shoulders, and the most beautiful baby blue eyes, except for Draco's of course. Her skin was a rich tanned color, and completely natural looking, which it most likely was. She wore a baby blue sundress that matched her eyes, almost as if the color was made to replicate them. Her feet were covered by black flats, and the only jewelry she wore was an engagement ring and wedding band.
"What are you doing here?" Draco asked, though without the malice he spoke to her with.
"I've been sent to retrieve her, as you seemed incompetent to do so yourself? Starting an argument with her Draco probably isn't the best idea, especially on her first day here. She isn't even aware of the circumstance and yet you keep fighting with her as if she was the same Mudblood you went to school with. You need to look past you previous differences and accept her for who she is; otherwise you will be punished and we all know you don't want that to happen." The woman explained as she looked from Hermione to Draco.
"Wait, I thought we were just going to bring the Mudblood here to torture her for information on Potter. You can't seriously be trying to tell me that she really is-"He began, a look understanding forming on his face. "But, she can't be. It's impossible."
"It's only impossible if you believe it to be so. However, as the circumstances are, she is in fact the one we have been searching for over the years. Oh, her father would be so proud of her. Intelligence, beauty, bravery, and loyalty; she truly is her father's daughter." Hermione looked on as the two talked about her as if she wasn't in the room. Who was this man they kept mentioning to be her father? Hadn't she witnessed the death of her parents mere hours ago?
"Could someone please tell me what's going on? And could you stop talking about me like I'm not here?" She asked slightly frustrated. They jumped slightly when she spoke, almost as if they had forgotten she was even really there.
"All will be explained when you come down to the initiation ceremony. Draco, help her get ready. She needs to be bathed and dressed, but first I must remove the glamour charm. Draco, hold her by her arms, this will be a little painful for her and she mustn't move around a lot. On the count of three; ready?" When he grasped her arms she gasped. His hands were freezing! And he was hurting her, holding on so tight. She felt him nod behind her as he had her pulled up against his chest. "One, two, three!"
A pain so horrible, worse than having crucio cast upon you multiple times, spread through her body. It felt as if her pores were on fire, her bones reshaping, and her hair was changing too. Her jaw became smaller, her teeth shrinking, her eyes changing color, and her skin getting tanner. She felt her chest expand, her abs form, her arms getting stronger and her legs more defined than before. All the baby fat she used to have was gone, replaced by muscle. A few minutes later the pain began to subside, and Draco led her into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.
"You need to bathe, Granger. Hurry up; the ceremony starts in thirty minutes. I'll be right outside the door, so no funny business." He closed the door behind him, and she ran over and locked it before turning on the taps in the tub. She might as well take a bath like they said; the water would help soothe her sore muscles. Looking in the mirror for the first time since the transformation, she gasped audibly. Her reflection was an almost exact replica of the woman that was in her room, same shape, skin tone, eyes, and hair. Shrugging off her clothes, she settled herself in the bath and began to wash her hair. It was much easier than the bushy nest that use to occupy the space on top of her skull. No snarls, knots, or curls to get her fingers stuck in.
After fifteen minutes or so, she got out and dried with an emerald green towel from the rack in the corner. She brushed out her hair with a brush that was monogrammed M.R., whoever that was. Pulling on a black dressing robe, she opened the door and came face to face with Draco. "Malfoy, I don't have anything to wear" she stated form in front of him. He pointed to a set of doors on the opposite side of the room, and upon closer inspection, she realized it was the closet full of dress robes. "These are for me?" When he nodded his head she started looking through them in amazement. "But, there's so many. I can't choose just one" She said, holding out three or four of her new favorites.
"It's custom for the ladies of the house to wear either black or blue on the night of the ceremony." He said, coming over and pushing past her into the closet. He came out moments later with the most beautiful dress-robes that Hermione had ever seen. It was corset style, the same color blue as the woman's before, and had black lacework throughout it. The sleeves were off the shoulder, the bottom fluffed out due to the netting underneath, and it was the smoothest silk she had ever touched. He then went over to the armoire she hadn't noticed before and pointed to a few of the drawers "These are where your underclothes are located. It would be wise to choose something in the same blue as the dress". He stated, turning so she could privately rummage through the drawers.
"I'll just go get changed then. In the bathroom, I guess" She mumbled as she scuttled past him, embarrassed that even he knew where her bras and undergarments were when she herself didn't. Once in the room with the door locked again, she pulled off the dressing robe and pulled on the bra and panties she had chosen. She was amazed that they fit perfectly, as if by magic. Smacking herself on the forehead due to her idiocy, she then slowly pulled on the blue dress. It fit snugly, hugging her curves and showing off her chest a little more than she thought was appropriate. Walking over to the vanity between the sinks, she brushed her hair again and marveled at how straight it was by itself. She decided to ask Malfoy if she could have her wand back so she could put some curls into it, it looked too plain with the stunning outfit she wore. She then rummaged through the drawers looking for some make-up. She found a ton in a drawer and pulled it all out. She applied some black eyeliner and mascara, a light pink blush, some smoky eye shadow, and a clear gloss for her lips. She went back out into the bedroom where Malfoy was sitting on one of the couches, and walked over to him.
"You look nice" he finally said after looking her over for a few moments. He pulled out a pair of black stilettos, and helped her put them on. He charmed some nail polish onto her hands and toes, and then stepped back to admire his work.
"Um, Malfoy? Do you think I could have my wand back?" When he looked at her like she was crazy, she hastily continued. "It's just; I wanted to put some curls in my hair. It looks so boring against the beautiful dress." He nodded and handed it to her, and she spelled some curls into her hair. They were loose and only located in the bottom half of her hair, but they had the desired effect. Looking in the floor-length mirror in the room she was stunned at how nice she looked, and the little effort that it took to achieve. "Wow" was all she could manage before returning her focus to Draco.
"Are you ready now? Were going to be late if you don't hurry up" He said, grabbing her hand and opening the door. Dragging her don the hallway, she didn't have much time to focus on her
surroundings. Most of the walls were painted a light crème color, with various doors or tapestries lining the walls. While all the doors were closed, she could hear sounds coming from just beyond them. Some were cries of agony, other screams of pleasure. Gripping Malfoy's hand tighter, she began to feel nauseous. What is this place? She wondered as they stopped abruptly. Crashing into Malfoy, she felt herself blush, but he didn't turn around to tell her off. Instead he began whispering to her while facing whatever was in front of them. Not being able to see past him, as he was at least a foot taller than her, she listened intently.
"They're going to make us split up once we reach the foyer. Males to the left, females to the right. However, they will probably take you straight to your father to be initiated first. He'll instruct you on everything that needs to be said and done, and the pain only lasts a few seconds. After all the inductees are initiated, we'll move into the dining room for the feast. Then, the ball in the main ballroom on the first floor. You'll be expected to sit with the Lord and Lady of the house, being a Lady yourself, and your throne will be the silver one located next to your mothers on the right. You will be presented with your tiara, and expected to dance only when asked. Any questions?" He seemed rushed, as they had started to descend the stairs she now found to be in front of them.
"Just one. Who is my father that you keep speaking of? I thought you and Lucious already killed my parents." She too whispered, trying to move her mouth as little as possible as to not give them away.
"That I cannot tell you. You must find out for yourself. It will be in just a few moments anyway as they are coming this way to get you and take you to him. And don't worry, it's not a bad as it seems." Malfoy now let go of her hand and started walking to he left, while she started to walk toward the right. Three men came toward her and bowed before leading her toward the large double doors straight ahead. She glanced in Malfoy's direction and saw him conversing with a few people she recognized from Hogwarts. Theodore Nott, Blaise Zabini and Adrian Pucey were just a few of them.
As the doors opened the three men stopped and gestured for her to continue into the room. She slowly started walking, taking in the room around her. It was dark, lit only by torches in old rustic holders. The floor was a white marble, her shoes making a clacking sound with every step.