Here it is at long last, the new chapter

Sorry it has been delayed in putting up, life got in the way but hopefully this will be enough to appease. Did a bit of research for this and so should be fairly accurate... should be

Happy reading and thank you to everyone who commented much loved, hope you all enjoy.

I don't own HP.

PS - If it's not to much trouble would love to know what you think... :D

"Here we have the great hall – this is where the students go for their meals or if there is an assembly being held."

She pushed open the doors allowing the small child through as she looked over the empty hall and then back to her, like the time before and the countless other places they had already been the little girl didn't say a word, just took in the sight before her with a quiet and calm demeanor that had Minerva both curious and mad at the same time.

Mad because she was still pissed with Albus for foisting the duty off on to her. Didn't he realize she was the deputy, she had plenty of other far more important things to be getting on with and taking a tour with a small child wasn't one of them, curious because of just how she acted, surely a child, one who was admittedly too young to be in the school should have at least taken the experience with some kind of awe and amazement.

The school was practically built on magic for Merlin's sake and yet rather than being excited and full of wonder a child her age should be, she was far to aloof and acted with an indifference that Minerva would only expect to see on a hardened and remorseless criminal.

Of course she didn't doubt the girl to have actually killed someone but the lack of anything coming from her was alarming to say the least and not for the first time did it give her the chills to see the look nothing on her face but had all the hunger and ravenous of a wild wolf in her eyes, a complete juxtaposition to what a small girl that young should have.

It had made her wonder as to where Kingsley had found such a girl as they left and moved up the stairs. They passed a few students in the hall and gave them her patented 'Do you have anything to say' look making them turn away and scurry off down the corridor, the interaction made the smaller girl look from the fleeing students to the woman who had caused such a thing as her chocolate colored eyes flashed silver for the briefest of seconds before resuming their normal shade.

As they reach the second floor a girl in blue and bronze robes stops in front of the teacher as they start to talk leaving the small child to look around. As she does her gaze travels to a closed-door just a few feet down from them as her gaze stays on the door before looking up to read the sign on the front.

It's was a bathroom but judging from the state and the visibly worn sign it's an old one, most likely not in use or is but rarely as she looks on. Her eyes close for a moment as she feels a sense of energy coming from behind the closed-door, its faint – like it's not just a door that's keeping it back but the signatures there nonetheless.

Even with its diluted state whatever it is, is huge… a cold and steely presence that seems to lightly push at her own like it to knows she there, Minerva looks down on finishing her discussion with the Ravenclaw student to see her looking at the closed-door. She sees her eyes closed, her own darting from her to the door as a brow arches in confusion.

Still they had to keep moving and why she was staring at the door she would never know. She may not know the history but she still wasn't going in to a murder scene and so she placed her hand on her shoulder, the little girl opens her eyes and looks at the appendage resting on her before up to the woman.

Minerva had to fight the urge to shudder at the blankness of the gaze before she spoke. "We have to make a stop in my chambers for a moment."

She didn't ask whether it was alright as she hadn't a word from her all the time they had been together, she also didn't care if the little girl wanted to or not even if she didn't verbalize it, she had been dragged from said chambers to in effect babysit her and so with that she gently guided her back to the side of her as they started walking again.

Taking one last look at the door she walks on idly wondering if they actually knew what lay underneath.

She glanced at the other girl who had followed as their gazes met. Both studied each other for a few seconds before the other girl turned away and faced the front she was a little creeped out by her, she could tell but it didn't bother her as she too looked to the front.

Soon they came to the end where the girl spoke quietly as she nodded and took off up the other way, she watched her for a few seconds before Minerva placed her hand on her arm and gently pulled her down another corridor she was getting annoyed at being man handled but clamped down on her anger as they moved.

Soon they went up another smaller set of stairs and on to a corridor that was deserted. They moved to the ever end before turning right as they came to a stop outside a large picture. It was of a Griffon that was lying down but stood on seeing her as it lowered its head and opened the door to let her in.

On stepping through the weird door at her insistence tiny eyes take in the new room behind it as the door shuts behind them. It's a lot smaller than most of the rooms they have been in so far, but has enough space so that it's not to claustrophobic, there's a fire crackling merrily in the grate giving both light and warmth as it washes over them.

The room itself is decorated in both red and gold, giving it a rustic vibe which she senses must have something to do with the names she had heard in passing, it seemed to suit the older woman in a fitting way, noble colors for a prideful sort of woman.

The desk in the corner was littered with papers and scrolls which she currently rooting through – the occasional mumble or word comes slipping out leaving her to carry on her observing she spies a bookshelf on the other side its full to the very top, she gazes at the heavy-looking tomes as her hand itches.

How long had it been since she last read a book? More than a few hours at least but back in the house she had a never-ending supply, without looking at the older woman she moves over to inspect closer, stopping at the shelf she stares at the covers tilting her head slightly so she can read what they say.

There were quite a few Transfiguration which made her think it was a more favored topic for the older woman who was still cussing behind her, some on Charm's some magazines… on Transfiguration. She reaches the lower section and pauses, her gaze lands on some books she had never heard of before and for the first time in a long time is confused.

Her eyes take in the book that looks a little ragged but her fascination peaked and so she pulls it from the shelf and turns to sit down. She opened the first page to see what the words say as they jump out at her in big bold print.

A winter's Tale

By

William Shakespeare

The title was one she had never heard before and so with the premise of a new book she began to read. Minerva had, after long searching, finally found the parchment that contained the mixed up assignment that was Professor Sinstra's she smiled in victory as she snagged the acquired scroll before turning around.

She realized it was far too quiet but that wasn't really nothing, as her guest had been unresponsive since the moment they had been left alone. She looked to the door expecting to see her standing but blinked when she found the archway empty, she looked around and did a double take on seeing her sitting on her sofa.

She eyed her for a moment before her eyes fell to the book in her lap and then to the bookcase where she could see an empty slot. A wave of irritated fury swept over her as she looked at the little girl who had the audacity to go and remove one of her books without permission. She kept her gaze on the girl who had been sucked into the book, and was about to go and scold her for taking what was not hers when she saw her lift her head.

She stopped on seeing the look in her eye as the child stared at her, for a moment none of them did a thing until she turned the book around and showed it to her, Minerva blinked stupidly again after a while to see the open page being shown and mixed with the same irritation she wondered what it was she was showing.

"What is it?"

Predictably she said nothing but shook the book slightly urging her closer as Minerva did was she as silently asked and moved closer, stopping next to her she looked down at the book before looking back to her.

"What do you want me to look at?"

She lifted her hand to point at the name that was in the text and she bent her head to read and saw what it was. "Hermione"

She pulled back. "Is that your name?"

She lifted her head to the child who looked down at the name and stared at it for a couple of seconds before lifting her head up, she was getting sick of the no talking rule she seemed to have but could see that it wasn't from the look in her eyes.

"Ok so what about it…"

What about it? She didn't know but she gazed at the simple jumble of words that formed the name in the book. She liked it, she didn't know why as she had seen countless words every single day making all sorts of words… different names and endless news ones.

But she looked at this one innocent word that wasn't a spell nor was it the name of a poisonous plant or something else she was being told to learn.

She liked it for the simplicity of it just being it.

Very quickly she heard the agitated sigh of the older woman who turned around, she moved back to the desk and picked something up before looking to her,

"Put that back where you found it please."

She slid from the sofa and closed the book before placing back in its home nestled in between more books she had never heard off but yearned to read. Minerva watched as her eyes scanned the rows of Muggle books she had at the bottom and brokered a guess this little girl was all pureblood, it was the only explanation she could think as to how she had never heard of the name before as she moved back to her and they left the chambers.

"We have to go back to the headmaster's office now." She told her before they once more took off down the hall as they set out for the Albus's office. She gave the password to the Gargoyle who moved out of the way for them again under the intense scrutiny of the young girl as they climb the stairs leading back to the room down the tiny corridor.

She didn't knock nor did she need to as the door opened as soon as they neared allowing them entrance as they both returned to the room just as both men turned to see them arrive. Dumbledore being the ever pleasant host greeted them back warmly but Minerva had been around her oldest friend to long to know a front when she saw one.

His smile – warm and welcoming as it was, didn't reach his eyes which she saw held a myriad of emotions, all of which rushed to the surface as he looked at the child in front of him. She could see his bright blue eyes normally twinkling and bright, dimmed a little as he stared at her, what confused her the most was the looks of both extreme sympathy that seemed to shine from all over, followed by the slight narrowing of his eyes as through he was looking for something about her that she wasn't yet privy to.

"How did the tour go? Enjoyable I hope?" He asked the older woman who was staring at him. From his pointed look she tilted her head slightly which set off a silent conversation between them before she eventually nodded. He smiled more widely and looked at Kingsley who had by now stood.

"I'll give your idea some thought and get back to you in a few days if I can" The Auror looked to the old wizard and nodded before glancing at the tiny girl who had unknown to them all moved and was standing next to Fawkes who had flown from his perch and on to the back on one of the chairs.

They all stood in silence watching as she lifted her hand and very gently ran it down his feathered chest. To say they were shocked was something, as the phoenix only ever moved from his stand when he was doing something for the older man or he needed to relocate, but to see him now freely going to her was new.

"Well it appears Mr Fawkes had made himself a new little friend." Albus smiled cheerfully watching the interaction. Minerva looked as the birds eyes closed in pleasure and for a brief second her lip curled into a smile that was neither sardonic nor a grimace. She ran her hand up his chest until she reached his chin, there she used her finger to rub along the feathery patch and smiled when his head lifted and the rumbles in his chest sounded almost like purrs in the silent room.

All too soon it came to an end as Kingsley had to leave and so with one last stroke of his plume feathered head she moved away as the phoenix cawed longingly but stayed on the chair as she reached the other end of the room. The tall African man smiled at her before looking at the two figure heads as he bowed his slightly.

"Albus, Minerva"

They said their goodbyes as he opened the door and with a smile stepped back to allow her to go first. The two inside watched as the door closed before she turned to Albus who was gazing at the door, his face both wistful, slightly amused and grave, with his head slightly marred with worry lines, a cocktail of emotions all of which had her blinking in disbelief as to what would have him thinking such things.

"Albus"

The older man eventually turned from the door to look at her, he saw her expectant look and knew she wouldn't be leaving until he told her what was wrong, he sighed heavily and at once the amused look faded in solemn as he sat down and gestured for her to do the same.

"Who was she Albus, why was she brought here?" He looked up to her, his eyes now losing all the twinkle as she reared back slightly, whatever he had been told must have been serious, maybe her parents had died and she was on her own… if that was the case then why did he need to be informed.

She waited as he took another deep breath. "She was brought here because I fear she would have been dead had she not."

Her face morphed into complete confusion at his words, knowing he hadn't finished she waited for him to continue as he began to tell her just all about the meeting that Kingsley had called that afternoon.

She was crying. She sat in her chambers sitting on her sofa as tears fell from her eyes. After being told all about just how the little girl had come to be in the custody of the Ministry she had fought the urge to cry in his room, when he told her all about the confession of the deatheater scientist before his incarceration in Azkaban, she had never felt so much in such a short space of time.

She had always prided herself on being able to handle her emotions. Showing just what she needed to in order to keep up a professional veneer, strict and fearing when teaching, but just enough so they thought her human… never anything personal or informal when in the presence of students.

It had been her way for well over thirty years, it was her order and how she worked. But here and now in the confines of she chambers she cried more than she ever had for more than five years. It wasn't just extreme sadness that she felt, it was also horror, gut retching sickness and sheer disbelief that someone so young had been through all of that and yet didn't know anything was wrong.

She had sat and listened as he went on to explain how Voldemort wanted an heir, one who would be the perfect creation – one who would be powerful and strong, was to carry on the Slytherin line and unequivocally loyal to him.

'He was said to have been unhappy with her being a girl and not the boy he wanted. But he went ahead with the experiments anyway, to use her as a test subject to see if they were successful and if so would do it again on a male'

Her mouth was as dry as her throat but she found her voice to speak, her words near whispers, "What did he do?"

Albus looked at her slightly uncomfortable – as if his next words were physically going to attack him as he spoke. "He reconstructed his own DNA and used it with another's; one is still unknown to give her powers beyond that of a magical child her age."

Her mouth dropped in horror as her thought went back to the child. How normal she looked yet underneath… she shuddered before looking back to him.

"So when you said his DNA, does that mean he is her father?" The notion was a horrendous one to think of, and one that was completely laughable to say out loud but she never thought a situation like this to happen as he looked down for a moment s if gathering his thought's before nodding lightly.

"In a way… yes he is" She cocked her head; her brow furred a little "What do you mean?"

"Tom was never a normal boy in his own right. The things that came natural to others regarding social aspects didn't appeal to him… like we know he thought love foolish and weak, a thought he took with him all the way through school and after. As far as I know I don't think he ever looked at a woman in that way enough to feel anything."

"So he didn't…" Normally talk of this nature would have had her leaving, her stiff upbringing and words her father said ringing in her ears but she was to stuck on the story as he shook his head.

"According to what Mr Macadam's had told Moody – he employed a Muggle technique called 'In vitro fertilisation'" Her bafflement was clear on her face as he told her that… whatever it was it sounded unnatural and once more her empathy and heart went out to the little girl.

"From what Kingsley has managed to research it was a procedure not currently widely known and only very recently practiced by the non-magical world. It involves the child being created outside of the body in something called a Petri dish and cultured for up to a week before being placed back in the womb."

"Oh god" Her hands came up to her mouth at the news, she was right it was unnatural and something exactly like him as tears threatened to spill.

"In short she's what they call a 'test tube' baby" She was finding it hard to get her breath which he smiled sadly at. He knew just how she felt as his anger and disgust at what Tom had done grew as his own sympathy went out to the small girl. But that wasn't the end of it and with a heavy heart he looked back to her as she shook her head.

"Please don't say there's more." She didn't think she could take anymore he said but as if her legs had gone on strike she couldn't bring herself to leave the chair as he nodded.

"When I said he wanted a child and heir utterly and completely devoted to him. When it came to the in fertilization, he also had them perform what again Kingsley had to look up was called 'Genetic engineering of the human gametes, and zygotes… Gene therapy,"

She shook her head unable to take in what that meant. He sighed and exhaled heavily, "He was able to manipulate her DNA to create the desired traits he wanted."

This was the part he feared would be enough to either break her down into the tears she was desperately trying to keep back or send her from the room.

"As a young boy all the way through his years here, he always hated the fact that his father was a Muggle – he hated the fact that a part of him was defect as he called it and was inferior to his other side... though redeemed by the fact he was related to a founder, he still found weak and he forever hated his Mother for dying, seeing it as the ultimate betrayal to the magic she held though that itself wasn't very much.."

She didn't speak but vaguely nodded letting him know it was ok to carry on. "He didn't want his heir, the one to carry on his work to bear the shame he felt was still tainting him and so just before anything else was done he made sure that the baby got the best of him but without the factors that he so hated about himself."

She went numb in her chair as he told her just what he had done. How he gave the not even fetus all of what he thought was the best of him. Which turned out to be the very thing Dumbledore found himself shaking at, it wasn't just a slight possibility of the small child turning out like him, she was him in everything sense.

"He knew that he got his looks from his father, a fact he hated but worked in his favor as it allowed him to charm, coerce and manipulate others into dong his bidding, he needed his heir to be able to do that and more which was why he looked for a Witch who was able to provide the physical aspects to the child's traits, a search that took him abroad."

Minerva looked at him shocked at that. "So the child's mother isn't from Britain." Albus shook his head. "Apparently he thought that the witches from Wizarding Britain, though exceptional in their pureblood upstanding – where all too closely related and he feared it would bring about negative effects he was trying to disperse so he looked elsewhere for one that wasn't in any way related to any of the families in England."

"So where did he look."

"All over, but eventually found who he was looking for in Greece." Green eyes widened at the information.

"Apparently she was a witch of great power, from a line of family not only pure in blood but also free from the interbreeding which as you know is a problem over here." She nodded knowing it was an issue.

"She was apparently a woman of very immense beauty, highly sort after in her homeland which was why he picked her," Minerva had to agree she could see already that the young girl was stunning now and going to be extremely beautiful as she aged, she could see he was about to say something else and so looked at him.

"There was also another reason he picked her, he had done his research on the woman and of course her family… it turns out that the line she came from – is one of three known in Greece to be directly descended from Sirens."

She sat stunned at the news. The little girl was a Siren? Her mind reeled with the images of her afternoon with the small child, she tried to work out if she could see anything about her now that she knew her parentage but to both her relief and dismay she couldn't.

"She agreed to his offer in exchange for immunity from danger should his revolution of the wizard world take him to her home country, she refused to leave her family though and so had the baby over there."

The older woman had a feeling she knew what was coming next. And from his face her story didn't end well. "Once the child was born he killed the Mother and wiped out her family… he didn't want any emotional ties to mess up his plans and so sought to take away any obstacle that might make his heir weak."

Yet another family destroyed in his tyrannical need for power as he mind flickered briefly to young Harry and how he to lost his parents before returning to the little girl.

The perfect heir indeed; the beauty of her Mother with the overpowering allure of her creature blood – coupled with the magic and trait's that made Lord Voldemort the despot he was, she shivered in her seat silently thanking Kingsley for finding her when he did and that the dark wizard was no more.

"There is also the matter of the third blood type that was found in her system. They don't know as of yet who it came from – he brought it to them personally, saying it would only serve to make her the strongest witch since Morgana herself."

That was where the story came to an end. When Voldemort were taken out and he could do no more harm. To the population he terrorized and to the girl he was using as a lab test. She was breathless when she finally left his office. It was the reason the Auror had come to him that day, he knew he had found Harry a home – as bad as it was he still had more experience with dealing with orphaned children then he did.

He was now trying to think of a home that was both suitable and able to take care of her, but he was finding it hard. If she had just been a normal witch then he might have suggested if the Weasley's would take her, he knew that Molly had been dying for a daughter and though he had recently heard she had one in the form of baby Ginevra, what was another sister.

But with the knowledge she was half creature he was hard pressed to find anywhere or anyone that could look after her, after all there was no one in England with experience with Sirens – none had been sighted in any of Britain's shores since the just before the turn of the century, there were no families remotely linked with any so he was finding it tough.

He had briefly flirted on sending her to France. A lovely chance meeting with Mr Delacour had afforded him the knowledge that his family had come from Veela's - with both his wife and child being part Veela. They if anyone had means to look after someone who was like them in a way, but he feared that like other creatures – Veela's were extremely territorial so had to broker a guess Sirens were more so, it wouldn't do any good to send her there… fights and possibly bloodshed galore.

He sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. Dam Tom for his quest for power and immortality, didn't he realize just what damage he left behind in his wake?

He chuckled dryly, it was Tom of course he didn't and shook his head tiredly before picking up his quill.

Back in her chambers where she was free from prying eyes did she allow herself to breakdown, she thought she had left all what had made her sick back in the war, the tales of horror and depravity had made her pretty thick – skinned and so knew it took a lot to churn her stomach after that.

But he had managed to do that once more. She had to cover her mouth to stop the urge of heaving as she sank onto her sofa and let the tears she felt for the small child, the one who was nothing but a victim in a mad man's dynamism game. The only slight happiness she felt was that he hadn't fully yet finished what he set out to achieve and was stopped before he could do the same to another.

The last few words before she left still sounded harshly in her ears as she closed her eyes.

"He knew that his Mother was besotted by the Muggle she drugged. He had said it was pathetic and so he got rid of the one emotion that he thought was the difference between having a weak-willed heir, and one who would stop at nothing until they had the power he craved."

She looked at him ice filling her veins as she took in his face and saw just how old he looked in the one moment. Everyone knew just how megalomaniacal he was, but what only a few were privy to was what made him like that and her eyes widened once more as the truth was all but said.

"You don't mean… surely he couldn't…" She let out a small strangled gasp at the nodding of his head.

"He has Minerva, he's gotten rid of her capacity for love…both feel it or give it." She let out a self-deprecating laugh, she had not but an hour ago thought the child weird and rude – she hadn't been around children for a long time and so just stereotyped her as like the rest, never for one minute did she think there was a reason for that.

But know she knew and oh how she wished she could take back every snide thought. Her heart clenched uncharacteristically in her chest as she thought back to the small girl, the wicked little gleam she had in her dark eyes that seemed to soak in the castle not for its awe-inspiring effect but for the power and magical aspects it held.

An action that surely Voldemort would have made, a small girl doomed to be exactly like the man who created her, all before she even knew who he was and the atrocity's he had done.

She lowered her eyes to her knees and took a shaky breath. She had no idea just what Kingsley expected Albus to do, she wasn't like Harry, she couldn't just go to his aunts as he had… her family, all of it were dead.

He certainly did make sure he left no ties loose. Her anger for him grew and if he wasn't already dead than she wished he was here so she could kill him painfully and slowly, the child may not know anything was wrong but she did…

On a whim she turned her head and saw the bookcase she was near not so long ago, her eyes roamed the books she seemed to take an interest in and fell to the book she had read without permission she gazed at the spine before flicking her wand as it shot from its place once more and into her hand as she gazed at the title.

"At least she has good taste it literature" She mused, the book itself had been a gift from her father who was an avid Shakespeare fan and it was one of their favourite pastimes. She had hoped it was a tradition to pass on to her own children one day but she was sad to say that day never came to fruition as she flipped open the book.

Idly she turned the pages until she stopped at the page she looked at before. The name sprang out at her and as if being hit the Hogwarts train it dawned on her why the small girl had shown her the book.

It was the name.

'She doesn't have a name she's only ever gone by what they called her'

It didn't occur to her before but now it was as clear as the sky as her grip on her book tightened. Quickly she stood and summoned parchment and a quill before moving to her desk to write a small letter to Kingsley, he had taken the girl back to the Ministry so would have to send it by owl but hopefully he would get it soon.

She may have thought badly of the small girl before but now she wanted to make up for her error of judgement even if she had no idea she was thinking it, and if maybe helping her – even if it was only marginally, by suggesting the name choice. It might help to ease her guilt.

After failing to find an owl and cursing she returned once more to Albus's office and asking if Fawkes might deliver a note she had, the older man turned to his bird who chirped his answer and took the paper from her in his beak before disappearing in a blaze of fire. The older man didn't pry and ask merely gave her a smile as she went on her way and back to her chambers for the night.

She took her tea before deciding to retire for the night as she got changed and slid under the covers; the light went out bathing her in darkness as she closed her eyes.

She could only hope that the little girl did think about the name as she closed her eyes and allowed herself to picture the child in her mind, a small smile crept over her lips as another figure emerged, herself as she stood next to the girl who wore a similar smile and reached up to take her hand.

She called to her using the name from the Shakespeare tale and looked as she turned around; she had chosen to take the name after all.

She let the image play out the smile never fading as it helped her to fall asleep.

Hermione really was a lovely name and one fitting for such a wonderful little child, she just knew it.