Chapter 3
I raced upstairs the second I got in the door to my new home. It felt odd referring to this house as a home, over the last few years I'd learned to appreciate how much the people made the abode rather than the building. Whether we had been in Grimmauld Place, The Burrow or even that grimy tent I was always home with Harry and Ron.
I flung my bedroom door open while simultaneously flicking my wand to draw the curtains. Turning my wand across the room I removed any trace of the last eight years of my life into one giant trunk which I locked with a number of questionable curses. There was no way I could let the vampires anywhere near any evidence of my own civilisation and if I knew anything about vampires I'd be getting a 'covert' visit into my room sometime in the not so distant future.
Out of breath I lay on the bed and settled into a few hours of ward construction, but I knew deep down I couldn't make them too strong. It was an odd fact, in my opinion, that vampires could sense magic, not that they knew what it was or anything, it just attracted them, comforted them. I imagine it had the same effect that the allure of the vampiric beauty had on muggles.
There's nothing more powerful than immersing yourself in magic. It was very easy to dream a lifetime away by just basking in it. That's why when my sister stormed into my room several hours later I wasn't surprised to see the light skies turned into twilight through a crack in the curtains. I heaved a shy of regret, this is truly the hour the demons owned the earth.
"Where do you get off embarrassing me like that? If you wanted him so bad for yourself you could have just said. Making up tales like that, you really are as weird as I thought you were," Eva yelled as she stormed around my room. I didn't even react, it was natural for any wizard to feel grieved to enter the real world after unwinding in their magic, or so I told myself. "Well? What do you have to say for yourself?" she added after she had reeled in her anger long enough to annunciate once more.
"I never told tales," I replied distantly staring at the peak of darkness visible though the curtains. I never should have come here.
"You are an absolute bitch," she spat out before running from the room slamming the door on the way. I heard the angry tears in her voice, but I couldn't bring myself to care. Slowly I peeled my, now sweaty from concentration, clothes off my body until I'm just in my underwear. Walking over to the mirror I stared at the sight in morbid fascination. The scar labeling me as a mudblood stood out from my pale skin along with the backlash of an explosive curse that had caught Fred and I off guard.
I shuddered at the thought and crawled under the covers forgoing pyjamas. Shooting a locking charm at the door I decided I'd had enough excitement for the day and drifted into a fretful sleep at barely six o'clock. Charlie woke me up a few hours later, trying to get me to come down for dinner obviously sensing something was wrong, I did my best to chase away his worries through the door before drifting off again. Flashes of red plagued my night with no relief.
Eva knocked on my door the next morning, probably to let me know she was done with the shower, I couldn't be completely sure as no words were exchanged. Still a knock was more then I was expecting. The agitated night had made me beyond jittery. I showered and got dressed at a lethargic rate, that is until I heard the truck's horn outside. Stupid silent treatment. I raced to the truck with my books in record time.
"I'm only driving you because dad told me to," she told me stiffly as she pulled away from the house. I wondered briefly if that was true, but I didn't dare use occlumency knowing how much of an invasion of someone's privacy that can be.
The car ride was silent and I hid a grin at how ridiculous this whole situation was. Eventually we reached the school and I headed to class alone, thinking most of the day would be spent alone as well, which I was growing to detest less and less.
The day passed slowly with every one of my senses on high alert. I couldn't stop myself from jumping at every sudden noise or grazing touch. Lunch was well deserved when it finally arrived and I spent a good few minutes routing through my locker to lessen the time I had to spend in the lunch room. A hand pulled at my shoulder and before I was fully conscious of what I was doing I had them slammed into the locker with my forearm digging into their throat. It was Eva.
I dropped my hand unaware of what had come over me. Shock was plastered all over Eva's face and I knew from the drop in the noise level of the corridor a few people had noticed my outburst. I looked down at my shaking hands ashamed.
"Good one Hermione," Eva voiced loudly. "You got me," she laughed shakily and knocked her fist against my arm. In that moment I knew she was playing the crowd, whether it was because she didn't want her world to know she had a freak of a sister or because she saw the pain in my eyes I didn't know all I knew was that it worked. The noise level returned to normal and people dismissed the altercation as playful banter.
I flexed my hands a few times to get the shaking under control and shut my locker. Not meeting Evas' eyes I headed in the direction of the cafeteria, she dutifully fell into step beside me.
"I came to tell you I forgive you and you can sit by us if you want," she commented lightly ignoring the whole ordeal that just happened. I just couldn't understand why I was this jumpy.
"That's very big of you," I replied not able to keep the playful sarcasm out of my voice.
"You really were trying to warn me weren't you?" She questioned lowly to keep prying ears out of the conversation. I turned towards her and we lock eyes, apparently my expression is enough to prove my honesty to her. "Then why did you go home with him?" She asked bemused. I scoff comically.
"As if, who told you that?" I asked with an honest laugh.
"Well Jessica told me that Tyler said-" I stopped her before I heard just how convoluted the rumour mill at Forks High School was.
"Get a better source," I suggested sending her a small smile.
"I think I just got one," she commented with a indicative grin towards me.
"Nope I'm staying as far away from trouble as I can possibly be," I joked to lighten the mood. The two of us sat at the usual table and I noted the Jessica was a little disappointed at seeing me once again take my place between Mike and Eva. I sent her a cheerful smile that Eva picked up on just to irritate her a bit further.
Just as I was about to stand with Eva to access today's selection of mush the wind was knocked out of me suddenly and I fell back into my seat with a solid thump.
"Hermione," I heard a voice call to me from the table but the relief to my senses is too much. It was as if all the tension that had built up during the day was suddenly ejected from my system. Then it hit me like a tonne of bricks. It wasn't me that was irritated, it was my wards. Standing suddenly I turn in the direction of the vampires intent in carnage. Why had they spent so long at my home and why? Eva grabbed my arm before I could go and ask them just that.
"What's wrong?" She questioned worry evident in her brown eyes.
"Nothing," I responded irritation plain in my voice. "I just realised something was all."
Just then the cafeteria door swung open and in walked someone I honestly never expected to see out here. Then the pieces slowly fall into place. My wand is in my hand before I take another breath.
"What the fuck are you doing here," I called to him, not caring who heard. He walked closer to me before deciding to reply. I raised my wand arm threateningly and noticed from behind him the bronze haired Cullen stand. My opponent raised his hands in a sign of defeat but I didn't trust him for even a minute. That's when I notice the document in his hand, it had the official ministry emblem on it.
"May we discuss this in perhaps a more secluded environment," his high and mighty accent grated my nerves even after all that time. His bleach blond hair was perfectly in place as per usual.
I looked around me and noticed the cafeteria's entire occupants watching us as if we were a Christmas display. Some day I'd get to be a normal student, I sighed barely believing that thought myself. I motioned for him to lead the way not wanting to turn my back on him. Just when we are exiting the cafeteria two of the vampires get up and follow us out.
"Back off," I said bluntly.
"It's a free country," the bronze haired Cullen commented. I heard Draco laugh mockingly from in front of us.
"Being all friendly with the enemy now?" He called back to us never once dropping his pace as he headed to the front of the school. I followed him not satisfying him with a response until we were on the steps out of the school which were quite deserted. I extended my hand for the papers.
"What do you think you're playing with showing up to my school like this?" I asked him as he dropped them in my hands.
"I waited at the address Scarhead gave me but you didn't show up for ages so I tracked you down here," he answered watching my expression as I read through the paperwork. The two vampires were just staring at us a few metres away.
"Harry sent you here?" I demanded in disbelief. Draco just sighed in aggravation gesticulating towards the documents. Reading through them my jaws dropped in shock.
"You can't be serious?" I questioned him in incredulity and unable to control myself I let out a startled bark of a laugh.
"I already have three signatures on there now all I need is yours," he commented as if we were discussing the weather. I shove the papers towards him forcefully.
"And how did you threaten, cajole or bribe those three? Must have been expensive," I said bitterly. He grunted in an undignified manor, well for a Malfoy anyhow. Then I scanned through the names properly, all were death eaters in captivity, including his own father. "You need an actual order member, that's why your here." I added more to myself then him.
"You know I saved the three of your lives," he declared shoving the papers back in my direction.
"More like you were too fucking scared you'd piss yourself if Voldemort came a knocking, so Ron and Harry already said no so you said you'd try your luck with me?" I scoffed at his flinch at the name. "Voldemort, Voldemort, Voldemort," I screamed in his face. "You should be proud after all it was saying that name that got us into your fucking house in the first place." I laced my tone with bitterness and all my reserved anger. "A full fucking pardon, are you joking " I asked actually thinking he might be deranged.
"I never-," he started but I gave him no room to convince me.
"Never what? Watch you're deranged aunt torture me? Never hunt in the room of requirement for the one thing that could have ended the war? Never know about a plot to kill my friends and I and do nothing? Never orchestrate a plan to murder a man I fondly considered my own grandfather? " I demanded rhetorically watching his irritation grow. "Believe me I am going to make sure I'll be in a front row seat ensuring you go down for all the crimes you committed, unlike your father I knew you and your mother won't be going to Azkaban but I can tell you most solemnly all of the Malfoy money is going straight back to help the world you helped tear down," I warned his seriously. He sent me one last glare before walking down the steps. He paused not looking back at me.
"I never wanted him back," he commented before stalking away into the tree line not waiting for a response.
I suddenly lost all my fight and dropped to sit on the concrete steps before letting loose a frustrated groan. I vowed to make tomorrow a normal day. Bronze hair and his friend dropped to sit next to me. I suddenly noticed how scarred his friends face was.
"Cullens," I greeted exhausted.
"Edward and Jasper please," the bronze haired vampire greeted politely.
"What was that?" Jasper asked with a tinge of a southern accent.
"That was a friends not so subtle reminder that I'm needed in Britain," I replied casually.
"That's was a friend of yours?" Edward asked surprise evident in his voice.
"No but the man who sent him is," I answered easily. Deciding I'd shared enough with the Cullens I stood and headed back into the school with them on my heels. We separated when we entered the cafeteria when I headed to my sister to make excuses and they to their 'family' to report back the odd events that had just taken place.
"Ex," I said to the table as if that explained everything.
"All the way from England?" Eva asked astonished.
"A very passionate Ex," I added not wanting to delve too deeply into the subject, after all a web of lies only ever ended up entangling the deceiver in the long run.
"What did you say to him?" Jessica asked. I sighed knowing now my artificial romantic history would be spread around the school.
"To leave me alone, some guys just can't take a hint," I donned a false gossipy smile that made most of the occupants of the table giggle. With regret I noticed Eva dubious at my words.
"You know if you really want I'm sure your dad could run him out of town," a girl I'd hardly heard speak added, Angela I thought her name was.
"That's a sweet thought but I sent him packing," I replied with a kind smile.
"Did you hear about our visit to La Push Hermione?" Mike called out.
"No actually," I replied glad for the change of subject.
"It's in two weeks time," Eva told me with a smile. "We're all heading out there, the guys for the surfing and us girls for the toned locals," she added the last part with a wink getting a chuckle from the table.
"Well then I'm definitely in," I joked along lucky to have gotten away so easily for my display earlier.
Eventually the bell rang and we all hurried off to class after a very eventful lunch. I found myself oddly not dreading biology like I thought I would be. He was already there when I arrived; he looked up at me when I sat down.
"An Ex, that's the best you had?" He asked with a grin.
"Shut it it's not like I had much time to prepare," I replied but I couldn't keep the slight smile off my face.
"Might want to take a pass on La Push," He added casually.
"What? Why?" I asked bemused.
"I seem to remember a particular rant about you not wanting to 'know the secrets of this miserable town'," he imitated my voice for that last part. I glared at him and then it clicked.
"There are more of you?" I asked in awe, never having heard of such a big cover besides the Volturi.
"Nope," he asked enjoying knowing something I didn't.
"Go on, spill it," I told him, my patience wearing thin.
"Oh but i wouldn't want to include you in the secrets of this miserable town," he replied quoting me once more.
"You're evil," I told him.
"You only figured this out now?" He asked with a grin and I laughed out loud but stopped suddenly realising I was joking with a vampire.
"This is a bizarre day," I said to myself.
A.N Hey there, thanks for the reviews if I get ten for this chapter I might be tempted to post again tomorrow :P and just a shout out someone asked why I hadn't named Eva 'Bella', it's because I didn't want to let ye know quite yet who would be following Bella's footsteps. Someone also asked why Hermione was so fierce in regards to the vampire community and that's kind of why she came to Forks, because she'd lost the part of herself that used to care so much about equality and all that's left in its place is apathy and now she's trying to get it back piece by piece.
