War Toll
Summery:
After an uneventful seventh year Hermione goes missing, or better, into hiding, three years later Ron, Harry and Ginny are rescued in an attack on Diagon Ally, when their rescuer turns out to be a transformed Hermione how will they react and even better how will Severus react when he meets the changed woman.
Chapter 1: rescuer
Three years ago Hermione Granger disappeared, and for three years four people had been searching for her high and low, three of these people where working together searching every were but always one step behind the elusive female. One person worked alone his reason for finding her very different from theirs; he had to find her to protect her.
When he had returned to the dark lord the night of Dumbledore's death he had neglected to mention that the Draco boy was still alive, as far as the dark lord knew the boy had died trying to kill the old man, just as they had planned it. Unfortunately secrets were not kept from the dark lord, and when Voldemort learned of the mans deceit the potions master had be severely punished. On deaths door he had returned to the order quite certain they would kill him but he had to at least warn them of the dark lord's plan. No one listened the only reason he was even allowed alive was on the pleading of the safe Malfoy boy who had explained everything Severus had done for him.
In the end no one learned of the plan and a year passed, Severus was given his job back as the potions master simply to keep him out of the way, he didn't object to this. Though he was a bit more lenient now he still kept up his harsh appearance, years of wearing the mask of the villain he had become rather attached to the façade.
As for the others the group of three that searched for the bushy haired girl for simple mined reasons, reasons of friendship, and for one, love. The red haired boy had taken six years to realize that her cared for her, and when he finally told her she had been kind yet cruel in telling him she cared for another. Yet he still looked for her, maybe in this time she had realized that she loved him after all wasn't their a saying 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'? that was certainly the case for him. Each day as the years passed had been torture on his soul the idea that she might be with the one she had spoke of, done things that he dreamed of doing with her, with some blond good looking macho man… though in reality he should have realized that she didn't go for that type of guy, she was much to sensible for that.
Once again the three of then were sitting in the leaky cauldron their recent lead on the woman's whereabouts was two months cold and they were back where they had started, no where. The youngest and only female Weasly child settled against a dark haired mans chest now twenty years old he smiled weakly settling his arm around her fragile shoulders.
"Harry what if she doesn't want to be found, three years of searching you would think if she wanted us to find her we would have by now." A fist slammed down on the table and both looked up startled Ron's face seething with anger
"Don't be so stupid Ginny she would never be like that!" he said loudly all sound in the tavern/inn stopped and looked at them Ron sat back down his face beet red
"S-she wouldn't do that to us, we are her friends after all." He muttered weakly Ginny nodded
"Yes we are but what if she needs time to her self, what if something happened that we don't know about and she's just trying to handle it on her own?" she offered a bit more gently this time so as not get her brother so angry again Harry nodded his agreement, he knew of Ron's feelings, in fact many people had said that Ron and Hermione should have hooked up years ago, simply because they were constantly at each others throats.
The three stood not long after that, Ginny and Harry were shopping for rings, he had recently proposed and her eager acceptance had not been a surprise to anyone. Ron on the other hand had nothing to do so he was tagging along hoping to check our his brothers store and see how things were going on the home front. Harry and Ron had moved in together in a flat in London as both had landed jobs as Aurors in training.
Once out in the open Ginny smiled and took a few steps ahead and twirled around to walk backwards, despite the bad things that were going on everyone was trying to go back to normal less and less deaths had been reported and death eater activity had been lessening the three and several others knew that he was probably biding his time but for now they could live in the pleasant day dream that nothing was wrong.
In an instant the peace was shattered, screams filled the air and spells were flying, in a flash Ginny, Ron, and Harry were standing back to back surrounded by death eaters wands out three against and easy thirty
"You will come with us Harry Potter." On man said firmly the boy just turned man frowned
"Oh yah and what makes you think I'm going to do something stupid like that?" he demanded, the death eater chuckled
"The fact that if you don't we will kill your two companions right in front of you." He said Harry froze. They would do it he knew but why hadn't they already?
"I can see your mind working; the dark lord wishes that anyone who was with you not be harmed if you cooperated." He said Harry's mind swam he could let Ron, or Ginny get hurt slowly he lowered his wand
"That's a good boy no-"
"IDIOT!" the yell rang through the air and a show covered them every one looked up surprised something dressed in blue dropped right between Harry and the death eater, before any one could register what was happening the figures wand was out and blasts of light blue light was shooting at random death eaters turning them in to crystal statues.
"Wh-what is this reinforcements!" the leader said backing away forgetting he was a wizard just long enough for the figure to stand
"You're a fool I'm just me." She said simply with another blast he to was crystallized and unmoving Harry, Ron, and Ginny were speechless as they gazed at the back of the girl
"They'll be sending more people after us. Grab on to me and don't let go for the world." She said simply holding her arm back, the three nodded and grabbed it with out hesitation, in an instant they all felt the unique pressure of apperating.
As soon as their feet hit solid ground the three friends pulled away from this strange woman
"Th-thanks for you help." Ginny said getting her voice back first the sudden attack and even more sudden appearance of this strange woman had really knocked her off her feet, same went for the boys. The woman turned and they collectively gasped her hair was shorter and strain and her once brown eyes were now a sea green and gold, but it was her.
"Hermione!" they gasped in unison she grinned not that small smile of their book loving friend but the grin of a strong and independent woman
"Yep it's me, how do you like the new look?" she asked her accent was different her British tone over taken by American notes. She was wearing a pair of light blue hip hugger jeans over which was a white cloth with light blue tones she a blue top on with a single piece of stomach armor tied to her middle. Her face had thinned out a little as had her waist and she had developed classy curves and a strong stature.
"Hermione what happened to you?" Ginny asked, again the first person to find her voice
"After the accident the end of sixth year I decided I had to become stronger then I was, but I had to finish my studies so I stayed at school and then I went of to become stronger, I learned so many new spells, I hadn't meant to take so long but was less and less news about Voldemort was getting to me I assumed he had backed off for a little while, I ended up staying in the States linger then I meant to." She said with a chuckle Ginny was gapping at her and Harry was shaking his head in disbelief but Ron was just standing there his face blank as he looked at the girl
"Ron? What's wrong?" she was talking her voice crashing into him a voice he had been longing to hear. In a swift movement he had her in his arms one hand around her middle the other buried in her hair
"God Hermione… How could you? Just do that to us… I've been so worried." He managed she froze up in his arms not pulling away but not returning the embrace.
"I already told you I had to get stronger this was the only way I saw that would work." She said softly
"What happened to your eyes?" Ginny asked Hermione pulled away from Ron
"I'll tell you everything once we get inside." She said softly their attention was turned from her to their surrounding, the house behind her was rather large but looked like it was about to fall apart at any moment
"How is that thing still standing!" Ron asked confused she smiled
"My magic, simple preservation spell really, the inside looks much nicer, and it's warmer." She said with a nod the area around the was on of the rockiest cliffs a beach below them stretched in both directions as far as the eye could see
"It beautiful here!" Ginny exclaimed Harry nodded Hermione was already heading inside. The three followed their transformed friend she led them through clean and well kept halls, it seemed as if the building had once been a very nice hotel before someone had died on the cliffs and it had been labeled unsafe.
"These are your rooms I'm just down the hall in the managers old room I have plenty of food, kitchen is at the other end of the hall, your welcome to explore and I set a charm to that if you fall off the cliff you'll be transported right back up here, try not to fall off the cliff." She said simply handing them three keys.
"Um Hermione, why do we need rooms?" Ron asked tentatively
"Because that attack on the ally was only one of several the cropped up this month, the reason I didn't get in contact with you sooner is because of that." She paused
"You three are targets of their attacks but you were moving around so much that made it difficult for them to get to you." Harry raised an eye brow
"Hermione how do you know this?" he asked she smiled
"One of them told me, I made him spill all the information he had be fore I spilled his guts." She said Ginny gasped
"You killed someone?" Hermione frowned
"It's a war, kill or be killed right now, if I hadn't he would have killed me, I know this because I was going to just turn him over to the ministry he attacked me and I killed him." She said simply as if killing a man were nothing to her she turned and left her friends standing dumbfounded before their doors, what had happed to their sweet book loving Hermione?