CHAPTER ONE
Summary: After completing her Masters in Potions and Herbology and adopting her godson, Teddy Lupin, in the wake of his Grandmother's death, Hermione decides a change is in order. She packs up their belongings, says goodbye to their loved ones and moves across the pond to La Push, where she meets a handsome man and his strange friends. Rated M for adult themes of bad language, violence and sexual content
Disclaimer: I do not own canon events and characters, they belong to J.K Rowling and Stephenie Meyers. I am not making a profit from writing and posting this fanfic. As for the descriptions of appearances for the Twilight characters, all my research is based on the books and not the movies.
AN: Obviously the time difference for this is an issue, so let's just imagine the Harry Potter time line happened later, to coincide with New Moon/Eclipse – 2005-06, so the characters were born eight years later, 1987-88.
I have also changed a few of the canon events for both Twilight and Harry Potter, as you will see in the coming chapters, for instance, Fred did die, but he wasn't crushed by the wall; he was killed by a vampire.
Also, some may not agree with the speech pattern that I have written for Teddy, especially for his age. Although I do not have children myself, I am a nursery nurse and I work with children under the age of five on a daily basis and I have an understanding of child development for each age group, so I have written what I experience in conversation with children.
And before I forget, let's ignore the eight hour time difference between London and Washington, just to make everything easier, I forgot and didn't realise until I was well into writing.
Wednesday 19th October 2005 - La Push
"Miss Granger, on the behalf of the residents of La Push; thank you for your donation to the community and we hope you find happiness here."
"Thank you, Mr Black."
"Call me Billy," the russet toned man grinned from his wheelchair.
She smiled at him. "Only if you call me Hermione," his grin widened. "If there is anything I can do for your Tribe please don't hesitate to ask. I hope I'm not intruding on..."
He waved her off before she could finish her sentence.
"Of course you're not intruding, you are more than welcome here, you have my number if you need anything," she nodded. "Well then, I better get home, here are the keys."
"Thank you," she said sincerely, he took her hand in both of his and squeezed them, offering a smile. He then turned and wheeled himself down the beach.
"Before I forget, do you happen to know a contractor or someone that can help me fix this place up?"
He turned around. "It just so happens that I do, I'll send them along tomorrow morning for a meeting," Hermione thanked him and watched as he left, before turning to her new house, the keys of which she held in her hands.
It was a fairy large building made entirely of wood, with a small amount of brick used as a support mechanism. The paint had faded over the years, the once bright white was now a murky grey. The porch and steps needed a little fixing with some of the wood having splintered and rotted, a few of the windows needed replacing due to cracks in the glass whilst the rest just needed to see some soapy warm water. The roof needed to be redone; she had seen the water damage inside the house due to the few holes in the roof. The window panes needed a new spruce of paint and the lamps would need to be replaced entirely, due to rust and faulty wiring.
She had fallen in love with the house the moment she saw it. She could imagine what it would look like once it was restored to its former glory, with a little magic she could have it done in no time, but of course, she had to be careful with how much progress she made, therefore she would hire a contractor to not seem too suspicious.
She carefully walked up the steps, skipping the broken ones entirely, before opening the once red door and stepping inside.
She had chosen this particular house for a reason. Yes, her heart was set on it due to its aged beauty, but her mind had also agreed with the decision. The house was the largest in all of the La Push community and right on the seafront. The house had an enormous open planned living room -with a fireplace for flooing- kitchen and dining room, six bedrooms and three baths, a basement which she would convert into a potions lab and a room that with a few Enlargement Charms, could hold her growing collection of books. She would need the space to accommodate her friends and family when they visited her.
Thankfully the inside of the house wasn't too damaged. The ground floor would need the most work, the first floor not as much, the same with the second floor, but still it needed some improvements. As long as the building was structurally sound, she was happy.
The kitchen was the most ready; the sink would need to be replaced, as would most of the cupboard doors, but other than that, it wasn't too bad. She had space to put in a new fridge freezer, washing machine and dryer, an oven, as well as spaces on the large counter top for other Muggle appliances. She had a lovely island and breakfast bar in the middle of the kitchen, it just needed a little paint and it would be good as new.
With a sigh she pulled out the broken glasses frame from her pocket and was whisked away, returning to London.
London
"Are you sure that you want to do this?"
Hermione smiled at her best friend softly.
"Yes, Harry, I want to do this, I need to do this. It's best if we both have a fresh start, somewhere no one knows us, and somewhere we will be safe. I know it's been over a year, but we're all still healing, Death Eaters are still on the run and we're not truly safe yet, where we're going we will be."
"I don't want you to leave, what am I going to do without you?"
She chuckled. "You'll be the best junior auror this side of the world has ever seen," he smiled sadly.
"A lot has happened."
"Yes, it has."
"It's what's best for you both."
"I think it is," she agreed with him, both looking over to the sleeping Teddy Lupin, now eighteen months old.
"When do you leave?" he asked her quietly.
"Tomorrow morning, I have a meeting with a contractor."
"You have a place already?" he said, sounding surprised.
"Yes, it's lovely, big enough for visitors and on the beach too, it just needs a little fixing up, but it's been deemed safe to be habitable."
"This makes it all the more final doesn't it?"
"Yes, Harry, it does, I've already said my goodbyes to The Weasleys and Minerva."
"How did they take it?"
"As you would expect, Minerva was slightly shocked, she wished for me to take an Apprenticeship under her and train to be the new Transfiguration Professor, but she understood. Ginny was upset but happy for me, Bill was supportive as was Charlie when I floo called him earlier on, Percy was indifferent, Arthur was upset but again understanding, George threatened to move in with me," he chuckled at her and shook his head, "Ron went ballistic, as did Molly."
"Everyone thought you were going to marry," he reminded her.
She grimaced. "No thank you, we tried dating and it was more awkward than Severus wearing pink and spouting off rubbish about being in love with unicorns and rainbows," he laughed. "Besides, I don't think I'll ever get married after what happened," she said sadly and he cleared his throat.
"Speaking of Severus, have you told him?"
"Not yet, he's last on my list, he'll be the most difficult, I just have to inform Kingsley and I can leave in the morning."
"I really don't want you to leave, you're my sister," he said sadly.
She leaned over and hugged him tightly. "You'll always be my brother, Harry, we're all each other have, and now we have Teddy too," she whispered.
Ministry of Magic
"Are you sure, Hermione?"
"Yes, Kingsley, Teddy picked it, I gave him a map and he pointed to it," she shrugged.
"Yes, but Forks, Washington?"
"It seems like a nice community, Seattle is only a few hours away so I'll have access to a Wizarding community and there's always Port Angeles. Besides, it's actually La Push."
He sighed. "When I received your letter stating you were moving to Forks, I had Percy pull the files we have on Washington," he pushed a file over to her. "In Forks alone there is a coven of vampires, seven in total," he saw her expression darken instantaneously, she gripped the side of the chair she was sitting in and she gave a frightening growl.
Kingsley gulped. Since the Final Battle and witnessing several of her friends, professors and peers being ripped apart by vampires, she had grown to dislike them, one in particular that she was currently tracking the whereabouts of, so she could repay her in kind. It was why she didn't go to work for the RCMC Department, she wasn't sure she could liaison with them, let alone stand the thought of them.
"I will say in their defence, the file states the vampires are on an animal diet only, they should pose no threat to you," he said softly, knowing immediately what her problem was.
"Even if they did, they'd have to get past my wand first," a smile tugged at his mouth.
"I will inform you that there is also a pack of shape-shifting wolves in La Push, three so far."
"As for the shape-shifters, according to this file, they haven't hurt any Muggles," she spoke calmer now, reading the file.
"An employee of The American Ministry of Magic's RCMC Department was despatched with instructions to observe the wolves. It seems they pose no threat to Muggles, there's some local legends surrounding The Tribe, one of animal warriors protecting their Tribe from cold-ones."
"Vampires?" Hermione raised on eyebrow.
"We believe so; the observer noted that the wolves patrolled the borders of their land every night. After a week he had only witnessed them killing one confirmed vampire that came onto their land, The American Ministry deemed them safe and no longer keep tabs on them, but as with all records, if another shape-shifter emerges, the records will automatically update."
"Do you think the presence of vampires nearby invoked the shape-shifting?"
"It may be possible, I hate to admit it, but I feel the shape-shifters will do you no harm, you'll be residing on their land, so you'll be protected. How did you manage to gain property, they're a closed community, they don't usually let outsiders in?"
"I can't actually remember; it happened so quickly. I was walking down a street, I must've looked lost because this man stopped me and asked if I needed help. We got to talking and he took me to the local diner. I told him I was looking to buy a property and before I knew it, I had bought a house, signed all the papers and donated to the local school to improve their library and gymnasium."
He chuckled at her. "You have a way about you, Hermione, you set people at ease. I'll be sad to see you leave, must you go?"
"I must."
Hogwarts
"Severus?" Hermione shuffled on her feet nervously. "Please say something."
"When do you leave?" he asked her with cold eyes, his face emotionless. She hated seeing him that like.
"Tomorrow morning, everything is set."
"What will you do?"
"Now that I've completed my Masters, I'll be working on my own potions as well as providing potions for any that need them. I already have a contract with St. Helena's Hospital, its gives me more than enough income than I need, that's not including what I'll get from my sales to others, my investments and my reward money from the war."
"You need a license."
"I already applied for one, the paperwork came back yesterday. I have everything that we need. Please understand that I need to do this, things have been hard lately."
He sighed and slowly opened his arms for her. Like a hysterical child, she rushed into his arms and hugged him tightly, tears beginning to fall, out of everyone she loved, she would miss Severus and Harry the most.
Hermione had saved Severus' life during the battle, extracting the venom from his blood stream and rushing him to St. Mungo's. Since that day, they had been close, like father and daughter.
"I have more than enough space, you can visit whenever you like and when you retire, you can come and live with me," she whispered.
"I am needed here," he replied.
"I know, but I can't stay here, please understand that."
"I do, and that's why I give you my blessing."
She cried in both relief and sadness. "Thank you, Severus. We can owl and floo call all the time, I'll likely need your help with a potion or two."
"You're a Potion's Mistress now."
"But I am nowhere near your standard."
"You are fairly close, that comes with age and experience, you've always had potential. A second year brewing Polyjuice in a girl's bathroom," he chuckled lowly and it pulled a laugh out of her.
"May I remind you that I turned myself into a weird cat-human hybrid?"
"May I remind you that you brewed it perfectly? You only got hair from the wrong species, a mistake anyone could make, even I."
"If you say so," she muttered. "I expect a visit at least once a month; I want to hear your complaints about the new generation of dunderheads under your care."
He snorted and she smiled.
Thursday 20th October 2005 - London
"Must you go?"
"Yes, Harry, I must," she smiled and chuckled sadly at his pout.
"I'm sorry that I can't help you with him," Harry looked at Teddy, currently sat on Hermione's hip and tugging on her hair and giggling to himself, changing his hair from a sandy blonde, to a mahogany brown, to black and back again.
"I understand Harry, being an auror isn't exactly an appropriate occupation for a young parent. You deserve to have your freedom, I know you love Teddy, I am able to care for him and honestly, he isn't much hassle."
"You say that now, wait till he gets older," Harry laughed.
"No, he is not getting older, he is staying my Little Teddy Bear for the rest of his life, right Teddy?" Teddy clapped in response and squealed and Hermione nodded.
Harry shook his head at her.
"I'll visit whenever I can."
"Just focus on making this world safe, there's still a few Death Eaters loose that need catching, goodbye, Harry."
"Bye Hermione, Teddy," he gave them a tight hug and stepped back.
Hermione put her beaded bag over her shoulder and pulled out the port key, with a smile to Harry she disappeared.
La Push
She landed in the middle of the open planned space, Teddy was already asleep, magical transportation such as port keying took a lot out of small children.
She moved into the living room and carefully removed her bag, heading up stairs.
She had already been back to the house earlier that morning to set up Teddy's room, it wasn't finished but it would do until she had time to complete it. It was the room next to hers, the second largest in the house. She opened the door to reveal dark wooden flooring and light blue walls. There was a single bed against the right wall and it had charms on the bed, stopping Teddy from rolling out of it and hurting himself, also, he couldn't leave the bed unless someone had hold of him.
It was an extra precaution since Teddy had always been a curious child and now he was walking fairly well, running even better. She placed him on the soft mattress and covered him with the thick blankets.
She placed a spell on the bed to alert her to when Teddy wakes and with a kiss to the head she stood and left the room, heading back down stairs.
She had adopted Teddy a month prior to moving. After the deaths of Remus and Tonks, Teddy was under the care of his Grandmother, Andromeda, with Harry and Hermione stepping in whenever they could, more so Hermione since Harry had been in auror training and his schedule was always erratic.
Unknown to them, Andromeda had been ill, her condition deteriorating by the day. It was a Wizarding form of cancer and she had died from it, Harry and Hermione became Teddy's guardians, a week later, Hermione adopted Teddy.
She would make sure her Godson has the best life he could have, he would be safe, loved and protected.
She loved the little boy upstairs more than she ever thought possible. She smiled at her train of thought as she reached the living room. She picked up her bag and used her wand to remove all of the boxes and shrunken down furniture she had recently bought, still in its packaging.
She used magic to send boxes of her belongings and clothing up to her room, the master suite, and she sent boxes of Teddy's clothing and toys to his room, she would have to go shopping, not only did he not have many belongings, he was growing quickly and anything hardly fit him anymore.
Next she resized her furniture, but left it scattered around the room with the packaging. She moved boxes that said kitchen on, over to the kitchen and used her wand to send some things into their new homes, making it look as though she had been there a while unpacking, instead of arriving only ten minutes ago.
She used her wand to levitate the newly bought double fridge freezer, into place in the kitchen and setting it up, placing spells on it to protect it from magical interference and she removed the food she had bought at the local supermarket that morning, placing them in their rightful places and removing the stasis charms since they were no longer needed. She repeated the process with the silver double door oven and kettle. She had kitchen appliances and utensils scattered about, making the place look untidy with wrappers and newspaper everywhere.
She made her way over to the couch and sat down on the soft white material, the protective cover crinkling under her. She looked around and nodded to herself, she had done a good job of making it look newly moved into.
When she heard a car pull up outside and a car door shut, she stood up, smoothed out her hair and shirt, before clearing her throat and making her way over to the door.
She opened it to reveal a man dressed in simple jeans and a black t-shirt, clinging to his muscled form. He was stood by the truck looking at the house thoughtfully.
She moved away from the door and she could see him better. He was tall, Merlin was he tall. Six-foot-six at least, the muscles that his t-shirt clung to seemed bigger than she thought, he was like a combination of Bill and Charlie, Bill's height -only taller- and Charlie's physique. His skin was russet in colour, practically glowing, his eyes a dark brown and his hair short and black. He gave a whole new meaning to the term, tall, dark and handsome. Hermione wasn't known for being affected by a person's appearance, and that's when she realised she was practically drooling.
She pulled herself together and carefully walked down the stairs, jumping the last three as they were the worst and she landed on the sand with a thud.
It caught his attention and he looked over to her. He stared at her, his eyes wide and mouth hung open.
SPOV
"Hey, Sam, what you got for us this morning?" Jared spoke as he entered Sam's cabin, Paul following behind him, returning from early morning patrols.
Sam shrugged, taking a sip of his coffee. "Billy called, that old house on First Beach, someone's moving in and asked for some help."
"That's dump's liveable?" Jared asked.
"More importantly, who could afford that dump?" Paul said.
Once again Sam shrugged. "Can't be anyone from The Res, I took a look at the listing, not only does the place need some work, it wasn't cheap either, we're talking mid-six figures, even in the state it's in. Billy said they'd pay well for the work done too."
Jared whistled. "It must be though; I can't imagine The Council allowing an outsider to live on the land."
"Billy said something about a donation."
"So the buyer bought The Council's approval?" Paul scowled.
"No, the buyer bought the house and donated afterwards, they heard about the school's lack of resources and wrote a hefty cheque for the library and gym, he said something about them being a firm supporter in education."
"So who is it?"
"Let's go and find out," Sam spoke, putting down his now empty coffee mug.
They left the house, climbed into the truck and Sam drove the short distance to First Beach, the house wasn't far on the beach, so he arrived within twenty minutes. He pulled up outside the house and told Jared and Paul to wait for him in the truck.
They weren't happy but didn't argue with the Alpha.
He stepped out of truck and shut the door, looking around before finally looking up at the house.
It was bigger than he remembered it being and he could see the work that needed to be done to it. Hours would have to go into fixing up the house, but Billy had given his word the buyer could be trusted to pay and so he wasn't worried. He was imagining what the place would look like when it was finished, what it would be like to own a house of that size and value, when he was brought out of his thoughts.
He heard a thud and looked in the direction the noise came from. He couldn't describe what happened next. It was as if his heart had stopped beating, only to pick up but at a much faster pace. His head cleared of all thoughts, particularly of those of his ex-girlfriend, for which he still felt guilty for breaking up with her. His thoughts were replaced with that of the girl, no woman, in front of him.
God, she was the most beautiful being he had ever laid eyes on and she smelled amazing, he couldn't help taking a deep breath as the wind tussled her hair, sending her scent in his direction. It was sweet and fruity, vanilla, strawberries and honey, but there was something else there, something hidden. It calmed him, washing over him in waves.
He felt himself go light headed, was it possible to get drunk on a scent?
His eyes devoured her. She was far shorter than him, were he stood at six-foot-six, she only stood at five-foot-six, he was a whole foot taller than her. Her mahogany coloured hair fell in shiny and sleek ringlets to the middle of her back; they looked soft and spilled over her shoulders, creating a halo of sorts. It was a little windswept and he thought she looked beautiful.
She had flawless ivory skin and her large chocolate brown eyes were doe like and captivating, he had to tear himself away from them in order to continue with his perusal of her. He moved down to her cute button nose and saw a light smattering of freckles and he felt the urge to count them. Next were her pink lips, plump and soft looking and utterly kissable. He moved down to her elegant neck and saw her collar bone slightly peaking out from the few undone buttons on her shirt.
She wore a plaid shirt, red, black and white with a pair of black leggings and red converse on her feet. It was so simple and effortless. Her clothing clung to her in all the right ways, showing off the swell of her breasts and her curves. The best part was, she wasn't wearing a drop of makeup. His mouth had gone dry and he couldn't form a clear thought in his head.
Did he love her?
He realised that he did.