Author's Note: Hello, loves! First of all, this is not the original author's note. It has been changed as I have edited this story for it's ten-year anniversary. This was originally posted on June 19, 2008. Ten years later, I decided to celebrate my oldest story still on ffn by editing and updating the chapters, as well as finally uploading it to Ao3. Now, while I have gone through and edited each chapter, it has not been revised. Please be aware, this is not my current writing style and I spent a great amount of time giggling over how different my style has changed over the course of ten years. I do hope you enjoy it nonetheless. Thank you for reading! Enjoy!

A super HUGE thank you to starrnobella who beta/alpha read this thing. I enjoyed her comments and helping me fix portions of this that were horribly outdated and just cringe worthy. Any other mistakes or horrible cliches you find are my own! Much love, xxDustNight

Disclaimer: All non-original characters, plot points, and information belong to J.K. Rowling. The story plot and dialogue belong to me. I do not write for profit.

In the Heart of the Storm

Chapter One: The Warning

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Hermione stood staring out her bedroom window. Finally, it was her day off and she got to sleep in for once. She smiled, knowing that it was nearly one in the afternoon. Being an early riser most days to make it to work at St. Mungo's, this was heaven for her. Hermione had been Head Healer in the Emergency Ward for nearly seven years. She loved her job, but sometimes she felt run down. Luckily, her boss was in town and training a new batch of Healer's. He told her she could take a few days off and he would train the newbies so she wouldn't have any more stress on her shoulders. She was thankful for the break and looked forward to getting a few things done around the house.

Suddenly, Hermione's attention was drawn towards the horizon where dark clouds seemed to be gathering. Sure, they were still miles and miles away, but she knew that later that day there would be a Magic Storm. Muggles would call this a Thunderstorm or Electrical storm, but wizards knew what they really were: a condensed and dangerous amount of highly sensitive magic. Hermione frowned at the sky. She hadn't heard anything about a storm today.

Bustling over to her nightstand, she turned on her magic radio. A song by the Weird Sisters was playing so she walked to her closet to find something to wear. She hummed along with the song as she pulled on a pair of blue jeans and a loose fitting maroon t-shirt. She slipped on some flip flops and walked to the bed to make it. Finally, the song ended and the weather came on. Hermione finished with the bed and sat upon it to listen.

'A Magical Storm Warning is in effect for the area until six am tomorrow morning. It should be entering the area early this evening. Please take precaution as this is going to be a severe storm. Try not to use magic or highly intensive spells until it is over. Please do not attempt Apparating or using the Floo Network until it has passed as this could result in Splinching or arriving at the wrong destinations. For more information, stay tuned, and please be careful.'

And, with that said, music began again.

Hermione rubbed her face with her hands and sighed. Of course her day off would have to be a magic free one. Getting up off of the bed she returned to looking out the window. It sure was dark on the horizon. She didn't doubt what the weather man had said. It definitely looked dreadful out there. With another sigh she headed out to the living room.

She stared at her bookshelves. They needed to be reorganized, sure she could do it by hand, but that would take more time than she had. She was afraid to try using her wand so close to a storm so she shrugged her shoulders and walked away. She decided to dust for a while and was almost done when her telephone rang. Putting down her rag and spray, she went into the kitchen to answer it.

"Hello?" she asked and cradled the phone between her ear and her shoulder as she began to make herself some tea.

"Hermione? Hey, it's Ginny. What are you up to?" the redhead asked.

"Oh, nothing really, just cleaning the flat a little." She poured her tea into a mug and sat down at the kitchen table. "What are you calling about?"

Ginny laughed and then said, "I was just calling to see if you wanted to come over for dinner tonight. I heard about the magic storm and I know how much better it is to just get away from the area it's occurring in." To her children she yelled, "Stop pulling her hair right now!"

Hermione sat up straighter. "That sounds great actually. I hadn't even thought of getting out of here for a while. Could I possibly stay the night since it's supposed to last until morning?" She sipped on her tea.

"Oh, of course! That's a splendid idea. I'll fix up one of the guest rooms. Merlin knows we have plenty." Then, Ginny yelled at her children some more.

Hermione shook her head with a smile. "Okay. Well, I'll go and get a bag together and see you a little later."

"Sounds like a plan! See you later!" Ginny ended the call and Hermione stood and placed her phone back in its cradle. She then made her way back to her bedroom. Setting her mug next to the radio that was now listing the area's the storm would affect, she headed to her closet to pack a few things.

She pulled out her overnight bag and began putting items into it. She threw in two pairs of jeans, a jumper, knickers, a bra, a black tank top, and her favorite green, silk pajamas. She then made her way to the loo to get her toiletries. After shoving them in the bag, she set it on the toilet and looked in the mirror.

Attempting a smile, she ran a hand through her curls. She was thirty seven years old, single, and beginning to look it. She sighed and ran the water to wash her face. She'd been single for five years, ever since she broke things off with Ron…

They had been together for nearly fourteen years, but Ron never really wanted to take it to that next level. She'd begged him for the last five years of their relationship to get engaged, even planning a wedding in her head. Then, one day, Ron freaked and told her he had no intentions of ever getting married to her. He was having too much fun with his Quidditch career to even think of taking time off to get married.

Six months after they separated, Ron came to her and explained that he and Luna Lovegood were getting married. She looked at him in utter shock and when she asked why, it was because he finally decided that the married life was the way to go. Nine months later Gabriel Weasley was born.

Hermione dried off her face with a snort and thought to herself, 'Married life was the way to go? Yeah right, he just didn't want his first child born out of wedlock.' She shook her head and sighed, grabbing her make-up bag and heading back to her bedroom.

The storm was moving faster now. Dark clouds billowing out from the west and the smell of rain heavy in the air. She shivered, though it was not cold. Moving from the window she grabbed her empty mug and made her way to the kitchen. She reached the sink just as a rumble of thunder sounded. She jumped slightly. Luckily, she could tell that the storm was still far away. A glance at the wall clock showed it was nearly three thirty.

'Maybe I should call Ginny and head out sooner. The storm seems to be moving faster,' She thought and picked up the telephone. She dialed the number and waited for Ginny to answer. It rang for a while before Hermione realized there would be no answer. 'She's probably at the market. I'll call back in a little.'

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin this time. She walked briskly into the living room and stood behind the door. "Who's there?" she asked.

"It's Malfoy," came the reply.

With a sigh of relief, she opened the door, "Hey, I wasn't expecting you."

"I was just coming to see if you'd heard about this magic storm that's coming." Draco asked and leaned against the doorframe, his blond hair falling about his forehead. He crossed his arms and asked, "Are you getting out of here or sticking around because they're saying it's best to find an alternate location."

She stepped back and allowed him access into the flat. "Ginny called to invite me to dinner and so we decided that I should just spend the night." She smiled at his thoughtfulness, "Do you want some tea? I was thinking of making another cup." She indicated the empty mug sitting on the kitchen counter.

He smiled and his gray eyes lit up. "Tea sounds great. I'm not too fond of storms." They walked through the living room and into the kitchen. Draco took a seat at the table and watched Hermione make the tea.

"So where are you going to wait out the storm?" Hermione asked, plunking down Malfoy's tea and taking a seat herself.

He took a sip before answering, "I think I'm going to the Manor for the night. My parents are out of the country so I can have the entire place to myself. I may even get some reading done." He finished with a smirk.

Hermione nodded her head and grinned. "Sounds like a good plan." There was another rumble of thunder and Hermione frowned. "It sounds like it's getting closer."

Nodding, Malfoy drained the rest of his mug. "I think maybe we should get moving. It's getting rather windy out." He stood and picked up Hermione's mug as well as his and placed them in the sink.

"You're probably right, Malfoy." She stood and grabbed the telephone and dialed her friend. "I'm going to call Ginny and let her know I'm coming early."

"I'll wash these while you do that," Malfoy offered, nodding at the mugs.

Hermione thanked him with a hand on his shoulder as she waited for the line to get picked up. She wandered over to the window and watched as the trees swayed back and forth from the wind. Finally, there was a click as someone picked up the line.

"Hello?" came Ginny's voice.

"Gin, it's Hermione. It's starting to get bad here; is it ok if I come over a little early?" She bit her lower lip nervously as she dark clouds swirled in the sky.

"Of course, I don't want you using magic during the actual storm! Get over here. I just got home from the market. I'll be getting started on dinner shortly."

"Thanks, Ginny. See you soon." Hermione hung up the phone as Malfoy put her now clean drinking mugs in the cupboard. "We better get moving.," she said with a smile. "Thank you for cleaning those."

"It was no bother. Thanks for the tea." They walked to the door together and then Malfoy turned and gave her a genuine smile. "See you around, Granger. Stay safe."

"You too! Bye." She shut the door behind him and went to the bedroom to get her bag so she could floo to Ginny and Harry's. Stopping at her window, she shivered again. It had started to rain and Merlin did it look awful outside. With a wave of her wand, she shut off the radio before retrieving her bag.

Just as she was about to grab some floo powder, she heard a yell from the floor below her. She dropped her bag and pulled her wand from her back pocket where she had put it earlier. Without thinking, she opened the door and walked down the stairs to Malfoy's flat. Hermione tapped on the door, worried for her friend.

"Come in," came Malfoy's voice.

She opened the door and immediately asked, "Is everything okay?" Finding nothing amiss, she her wand away.

Malfoy growled and placed his own overnight bag on the coffee table. "I'm fine but the storm has already affected the area where the Manor is located. There's no way for me to get there now." He sighed and shook his head. "I guess I'm staying here."

Hermione frowned and thought about what options Malfoy had now. On a whim, she decided to ask her next question. "Why don't you come to the Burrow with me? There are plenty of rooms. Since you and Harry have become friends during Auror training, I don't see why there would be a problem." She also knew Ginny wouldn't mind as she was always asking Hermione to bring Malfoy around now that they were friends.

Malfoy thought about the offer for a minute and then picked up his bag. "As long as you're sure Potter and his wife won't mind, it sounds like a good plan to me. Lead the way." With a wave of his wand he sealed up his flat for safe keeping.

"I'm sure it will be fine," she reassured Malfoy as she led the way back upstairs to her flat. When they were inside, she shut the door and Malfoy picked up her overnight bag.

"Thank you," Hermione said as she walked to the fireplace and grabbed a handful of floo powder. She stepped into the hearth and waved him over to join her.

Malfoy stepped into the fireplace with her and linked their arms together so they wouldn't get separated. "You're welcome," he replied, nudging her playfully with his elbow.

Giggling, Hermione threw the powder down and shouted, "The Burrow!"

In a wave of green flames, they were gone. Just as the flames died away, a flash of lightning streaked across the sky outside of Hermione's bedroom window. The storm had arrived and their lives would never be the same.