An; this chapter is just focused on Hermione and Ashley and the whole day they spent getting to know each other.
Chapter 4: The Introductions
Hermione woke suddenly from her restless slumber, taking a deep breath to compose herself. She wished she hadn't as the dust particles, that still clung to the material of her thin duvet, got sucked up and caused the sleepy girl to cough them back out. She didn't need to look around to know where she was, the dust in her throat was enough to remind her.
Hermione sat up in the bed. Once she was in an upright position she clutched her hand gingerly to the back of her neck. The soreness there reminded her she was glad that that was the only night she would be sleeping in this bed.
She didn't bother with the time and decided to revisit the basket of fruit she found yesterday. Sitting down at a chair, a bunch of grapes in her hand, she began to chew on the juicy orbs whilst thinking about who the person 'assigned' to join her on her quest would be. She knew she wouldn't know them personally, but that didn't mean she wouldn't know OF them. Hermione worked in the Ministry and had to constantly liaise with the law enforcement department. But for some reason she doubted that Remus would assign an auror to look after her because of the links to the Minister himself and also without magic an auror is pretty useless. They do learn to dodge and maneouvre but to attack and defend without magic is not an auror's forte.
So what about Muggles? And if it was a Muggle she wouldn't know of them. Would they be MI6? Hardly. SAS? Doubt it. Besides, assigning a Muggle to protect a witch is gonna freak the Muggle out. Completely illogical.
So that leaves...
KNOCK KNOCK
"Hello." came a female voice from the other side of the door.
Hermione went into polite mode and said. "I'm dreadfully sorry but the door is locked and I cannot find a key to unlock it."
"Understood." then came a silence before the voice came again. "Well? Are you going to unlock it?"
"I just told you I can't find the key." Hermione replied.
"You still have your magic don't you? Else why would I be here?"
Hermione thought of an excuse for why she couldn't use her magic. "I've tried already with magic. Else why would I be in here?"
"Well I can't be standing out here all day. Either you blast it open or I kick the door in."
"Don't you think we should show respect to the owners of this place. Kicking doors in or shattering them with spells is not an example of that." Hermione argued.
"I would show them respect if this place had owners. By the looks of the scene downstairs this place hasn't been lived in for at least a year. I had to kick the front door in already so I don't see why I shouldn't kick one more in. Or you could do something for yourself and blast this door open."
"I don't think so." Hermione replied.
"Fine." A second later and the weak door blasted open upon impact of this new person's foot. It was so violently struck that if the person walked forward right after kicking it in, they would've had a face full of wood after the door rebounded closed again. The door however was now 'unlocked' and the newcomer could step inside.
She saw stairs leading up and saw no one greeting her. She sighed and said "If this is how you treat a guest I would hate to be invited to a dinner party of yours."
"I wouldn't host one either. I'm a terrible cook." Hermione said in response. She hadn't greeted this new person at the door because she was scared. This person could be like all the others from the Ministry that would be selling their souls to get to her for her magic. This person of course was sent by Remus himself but no matter how much trust she had for him, she knew he wasn't immune to acts of deceivement. Peter Pettigrew being an example. Yes that was different; Remus, Sirius and Harry's father James had been great friends with Pettigrew for years and the traitor only betrayed the Marauders because he feared Voldemort. He built trust with the Marauders then betrayed them. This was a person she had never met before. She didn't know what she preferred; being betrayed by someone she just met or betrayed by someone she trusted.
But the new girl knew if she wasn't going to greet the newbie then the newbie would have to greet her. She climbed the stairs, deliberately making sure the girl up the stairs knew she was approaching. Once she got to about a head higher than the floor of the attic she did a quick scan of the room, almost missing Hermione who sucked another grape into her mouth. Hermione had not looked towards the stairs once since she heard the new girl approaching. She honestly was confused to why she was acting this rude. Maybe it was because the new girl herself seemed rude but Hermione never thought that she herself could be as childish as to be rude back. It was another example of the change of character Hermione had been rapidly put through these last few months.
"Ooooo, kiwis" the new girl said snatching the green and hairy fruit from the basket at Hermione's feet. Hermione was startled at how this girl happened to sneak up on her so quietly yet quickly. Then Hermione eventually acknowledged what the new girl had done.
"Hey, get your own fr..." She said as she sat back in her chair and snapped her head up to look at the person stealing her food, but stopped, not just mid-sentence but mid-word, at the sight of the new girl. The shoulder length, light brown-haired girl with a red headband with white polka dots and raspberry coloured lips. One hundred percent naturally unblemished skin, and eyes golden brown. The type of eyes that would show that this person was happy even if she lost her delicately trimmed eyebrows and her delicate lips were firmly fixed in a straight line. Her cheeks were blossomed a faint pink over a natural pine coloured canvas. Body slim and muscular with plenty of flex to it. If she wore tight leather or lycra she could be easily identifiable as a female assassin. But this girl wore a white tank-top and mid-thigh length jean shorts. Her legs seemed to stretch several miles before they reached her trainer sock-covered feet in black and white Converse trainers. In the time it took Hermione to draw the appearance of this girl in it felt like she had been sitting there hours but it was only a few seconds. However the new girl still thought this was too long. "Are you gonna stare or are you gonna finish that sentence?" She asked as she took a bite of the kiwi.
She herself was acting cool, calm and collected but in reality she too had been internally shaken by the appearance of Hermione. She hadn't had a good view of her face from the stairs but when Hermione looked up upon her stealing her fruit, she had to stop herself from gasping. Her golden brown hair in a light frizz. Her chocolate brown eyes. The innocent, doesn't-know-she's-beautiful expression. The heart shaped face. The slim body, the guide to being a Greek goddess sculpture. The clothes that timidly hid the envy of all women were as teasing as chaining up a dog and leaving it's food just out of eating range. The only skin visible on her body were her forearms, shins and the top of the white shirt she wore with the top three buttons undone. The gap in her shirt showed the slim neck, windpipe, collarbone and the beginning of her valley. Taking a bite of the kiwi was the only way to snap herself out of her Hermione-trance, and to water her mouth that had run dry. She could also tell Hermione was looking but she couldn't decipher whether she was checking her out or just taking her in to judge her. The way Hermione stopped her outburst immediately upon seeing her indicated that maybe this was gonna get more personal...and more dangerous.
"I'll have you know I only looked at you. I would hardly call it staring. And I would appreciate you asking me to have some fruit if you wanted some, rather than snatching one from my feet." Hermione confronted.
"I'm sorry. I'm just hungry." The new girl replied.
"Still. Ask before you take." Hermione said. "I guess we should introduce ourselves."
"There is no need to introduce yourself to me, everyone knows who you are." The girl mentioned.
"No they don't. They know of me. They don't know who or what or how I am. My name is Hermione Granger, I'm a hard-working and morally sound witch who is in a bit of a nightmare at the moment." The witch replied pointedly.
"My name is Ashley Milanski, I am a carefree and likeable former-witch and I think you need your head examined if you think you have it worse than everyone else." The girl replied acidly.
Hermione scowled and said "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Maybe you consider me blind or dumb. You think I don't notice that you hid yourself in an attic when there is a door that isn't at all hard to open. You lie about having already tried to unlock the door even though it is clear that that door isn't exactly a Gringotts vault. You don't even come to see YOUR protector when she steps through the door. You act all bossy and demanding to me. You think I don't see what you are doing? Playing the victim, that's what you are doing." Ashley told her.
Hermione's scowl deepened and her mouth took sharper intakes of breath after each statement. Then when Ashley finished she exploded.
"Acting the victim?! Acting the victim! I left everyone I care about so I could fix my stupid life! I did that to 'act the victim', seriously?!"
"There you go again. YOUR life is stupid is it. You haven't got fame or reputation no? You don't have a sizeable bank account due to public donations and gratitude about the hero's of the Wizarding World? You don't have your freedom? You don't have your magic? Some people would sell body parts and vital organs to have your life, and you call it stupid." Ashley argued.
"You actually think I even care about fame. It's never been about my reputation. I helped defeat Voldemort because I wanted money? And I wish, I really wish I could give away my magic or that I was affected just like everyone else, but if it cost you your life, would YOU give it up?"
"Have some empathy for the people who didn't have a choice." Ashley seethed back.
Hermione shook her head and smiled sourly. She stood up and took another bunch of grapes from the basket. She examined them and took one. She then took the grape in her teeth and walked to the bed, taking the rest of the bunch with her. Ashley watched her go. Hermione laid down lazily on the bed.
Silence passed for several moments before Hermione finally broke it saying. "I knew this would happen. I would be lumbered with someone bitter about losing her magic and take her frustrations out on me. As if I was selfish. As if I planned this or made this happen. As if I had a choice and I chose to destroy the Wizarding World. What people like you don't understand is I'm just like everyone else. I didn't have a choice and you think I got lucky? You think I'm fortunate? You are the lucky ones. I'm the cursed one. Maybe I am acting the victim. It's because you can talk to people about your problems because they share them, they empathize with you. I can't talk to anyone because they don't understand. Can't understand. Won't understand."
"Is that why you are on the run?" Ashley asked softly. "Because you feel no one understands and everyone is after you."
Hermione chuckled. "Nope. It doesn't even scratch the surface."
Ashley wanted to ask more but she could tell Hermione would've elaborated on her words if she wanted to discuss it.
Ashley took a seat at the seat Hermione left. This was gonna be a long day if the atmosphere was gonna stay like this.
...
An hour past and Hermione was staring at the ceiling thinking whilst Ashley was doing sit ups and stomach twists, her feet under the bed and stuck upright against the bedframe to keep her feet still. Hermione occasionally looked to see her progress but upon sight of sweat in private places and glistening off the skin she looked away again.
Hermione soon began fidgeting her body and eventually turned to Ashley. "Do you know where the toilet is? I haven't been in almost two days."
Ashley stopped her exercises and sat up. She turned to Hermione whilst wiping her brow and flicking her sweat-soaked hair that Hermione revisited again in her head but in slow motion. "Yeah, I used it before coming up. Ground floor and first door you see at the bottom of the stairs."
"Be back in a sec" Hermione said but Ashley got up too. "You don't have to protect me on the way to the toilet."
"No. But I want to get out this dust-coated attic and be comfortable in the actual house." Ashley said.
Hermione hummed in reply. "Come to mention it I could do with some real food, rather than just fruit. If they even have some downstairs."
"Good let's go."
After Hermione did her business she walked into the kitchen and saw Ashley fumbling with the toaster. She had put the bread in the slots and was physically trying to push the bread down into it, doing a better job of destroying the bread rather than toasting it. Hermione walked to her side and pushed the lever on the side of the toaster down. The bread dropped down and stayed there.
"I have to get used to these Muggle devices." Ashley told herself but Hermione still replied.
"I thought you were...MMRS is it?"
"MMDS." Ashley corrected.
"Yeah, so you are a witch who practices defending people the Muggle way yet you NEVER learned Muggle customs. It just doesn't make sense."
"It's a secret defense service. Not Muggle Studies." Ashley said taking milk out the fridge and laying it on the countertop. "Coffee or tea?"
"Tea."
"Sugar?"
"Three."
"Three!"
"And a half. Sweet tooth."
"But didn't you say you were a daughter of dentists? In that interview with Witch Weekly?"
"So? I have a secret sweet tooth."
"Ok" Ashley said grabbing two mugs out the cupboard and putting one teabag in both and putting Hermione's requested teaspoon of sugar amount in one of them and two teaspoons in her own. "As I was saying, the MMDS see it as we learn combat the Muggle way and in defence terms that's all that's important. Learning how to hoover or play a guitar or watch a film is unimportant."
"And do you agree with that? That appreciating what the finer things in life and the things you take for granted is unimportant? Unnecessary?" Hermione asked.
"I have no choice but to appreciate it. If I don't I won't survive this new life will I?" Ashley answered. She took the kettle on the stove, filled it with water and placed it on the stove. "Do you mind lighting this hob up?"
"It's electric." Hermione said just turning the dial up on the side.
"Electric. Wow, this really is a Muggle house." Ashley said as she placed the kettle on the stove.
"You didn't answer my question. Not properly."
"Look, I'm gonna be honest with you OK. Don't get mad at me because you are Muggle-born and your parents are Muggles." Ashley urged the brunette beside her.
"Ok. Go ahead."
Ashley took a breath, wiped the side down with a teatowel and turned away. "I hate Muggles".
Hermione's eyes widened in shock but Ashley stayed casual and wiped the sides down despite there being nothing to clean up. She needed something distracting her so that she could outlast the tongue-lashing she was expecting from Hermione.
"You hate Muggles." Hermione said to make sure she heard right.
"Loathe them"
"Can I ask why?"
"No. Not yet at least."
"What do you mean?"
"I will tell you when I'm more comfortable talking about it. But I hate Muggles."
"For how long?"
"I thought I said no talking about it?"
"But we have to."
"No we don't. It's not important."
"Of course it's important! For my sake, I need you to explain why you hate Muggles."
"For your sake?"
Hermione made the girl look at her by grabbing her arm. "I can't trust someone who hates something so close to me without hearing an explanation. I'm not angry about you hating Muggles but I will get angry if you don't justify why."
Ashley stayed quiet looking into Hermione's eyes. Looking for something in them, anything to show she could trust this girl with this. Ashley was ready to start but the kettle had boiled and she manoeuvred round Hermione and took it off the stove. Hermione would let her off for now, but she will get her justification sooner or later.
...
"You've been exercising all day. Where is your energy?" Hermione said looking up from her book she found. She sat on the settee with her legs tucked underneath her. She had also taken a shower and was wearing a robe she found in one of the rooms upstairs.
Ashley was on the floor once again but it was push ups now and planks. "To tell you the truth...I'm knackered...but...I'm bored... So I'm exercising...to pass the time...Besides...you never heard of...no pain...no gain."
"Yes I've heard of it but the way you're going the only thing you will gain is a torn muscle."
Ashley put her knees down and stood upright on them. "You are welcome to join me."
"I'll pass." Hermione said. "Besides we need to start dinner."
"We? What do you mean we?" Ashley said. "I'm the cook here and you said yourself you are crap at it anyway."
"But with you in charge of the Muggle kitchen appliances the only thing we will be cooking is the kitchen itself." Hermione replied. "So I have to work the oven and whatever other appliances we need."
"Can't we just get takeaway."
"Nice one genius. Do you see me with money, let alone Muggle money?"
"I have some. And there are such things as takeaway in the Magical world you know."
"Oh silly me for not knowing anything about takeaways, maybe because I'm not lazy or negligent of my health." Hermione replied sarcastically.
"Jeez, it's one takeaway. It won't kill you." Ashley replied. "And for god sake can we stop arguing, we have been at each other's throats all day."
"Fine by me" Hermione said sitting back down on the settee. "Are you ordering or am I?"
"Well you don't know what you're ordering yet. Do you want...Elvish or Veela?Or" Ashley asked.
"What's the difference?"
"Elvish food is rich and filling, everything is served in a wine, port or rum broth. Veela is basically french cuisine but lighter, and their desserts are heavenly. I think you would love Veela food." Ashley answered.
"Yeah, if i was Veela."
"It isn't like the food is only edible for Veela or Elves. Chinese food isn't only edible to Chinese people is it?"
"Yeah but we are talking about different species. Elves and Veela are different species."
"I wouldn't suggest it if it wasn't edible would I? Now are you gonna order?"
"I need a menu." Hermione told her.
"You will get one when you summon the takeaway you want." Ashley replied.
"Summon?" Hermione asked.
Yeah. You know, just ask for Veela with your wand and you get a menu. As long as you're within five miles of the restaurant."
"That simple."
"Of course. How do you not know that?" Ashley asked, Hermione gave her a glare. "Oh right. The brightest witch of her generation doesn't care for takeaways. I forgot."
"You don't want us at each other's throat but you're not exactly making it easy for me." Hermione said with an annoyed tone.
"I was only kidding." Ashley said in a sing-songy voice. "Come on, then we can order."
Hermione took out her wand but she didn't cast anything. She sat there just looking at her wand as if she was scared it was going to ping a stunner into her face.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Ashley said impatiently.
Hermione didn't glare at her this time. The gaze she gave her protector had obvious signs of pleading in them.
"Can't we just cook something up?"
"There is nothing to eat really. Especially things that require cooking. I know takeaways aren't your thing but it is just simpler and quicker." Ashley answered.
"There was oven chips. We could have a chip butty each. I'm not that hungry anyway."
Instead of asking the question of 'What is a chip butty?' Ashley delved to the important and concerning thing that she was seeing and had been seeing all day unconsciously.
"Hermione, I have been here eight hours with you. I am here to protect someone who still has use of her magic and if I didn't know that before I came I would think you were just like me." Ashley admitted to her.
"What are you on about?"
Ashley sat beside her on the settee and took the other girl's hand in hers, despite her brain cells screaming at her to back off. Hermione looked up at her and met Ashley's gaze. Ashley battered through the slight quickening of her pulse and the small butterflies in her stomach to ask a question that had her concerned for the stunning girl before her. "Why haven't you been using magic?"
"I haven't needed to." Hermione retracted her gaze from Ashley's face but Ashley wouldn't let her just shrug this off. She took Hermione gently by the chin, fighting to stop herself from doing something to those tempting lips with her own, and made her look at her.
"You can't hide it. I know now. I didn't acknowledge it earlier but I know you haven't performed magic since I've been here. And judging by the fact you stayed in the attic all night without even unlocking the door, let alone leaving the room, tells me that you were like this before I came. Why are you willingly not doing magic?"
Hermione stayed defiant but eventually her facade crumbled and she sighed. "It's because I'm a Gryffindor".
Ashley physically batted her eyelashes in confusion. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"What house were you in Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, still looking miserable.
"I was Gryffindor too. Schooled from nineteen eighty eight to nineteen ninety five." Ashley answered, confused why they were even talking about this.
"Well, this is sort of like one of those scenario questions where you choose different options that tell you whether you are a true Gryffindor or not. Except it's a real life scenario. If you were in Ravenclaw and you were the last person ever to have a fully functioning magical core, they would do something intelligent and logical. Hufflepuffs would do something loyal and fair. Slytherins would embrace the situation and do something horrific."
"Hermione, just cut to the point". Ashley said, her hand now back by her side.
"Well, if you are a Gryffindor then you already have a rough idea why I haven't used my magic." Hermione couldn't bring herself to say why. The same reason, coincidentally, why she couldn't bring herself to use her magic.
Ashley could see where Hermione was going with this, finally. She smiled a little and stated jokingly. "Ah yes, us Gryffindors are a prideful bunch, wouldn't you agree?"
Hermione smiled. "Yes. Especially in my case."
"But there is no real need to be prideful about it. I mean it's not damaging to your pride that you still have your magic. If anything it could fill you with more pride." Ashley assured.
"I don't mean prideful that I can do magic. I mean it's damaging to the pride that I have in my sense of morality. I always looked at myself as a person who works hard and does well but never declared myself superior to anyone or implied that others are inferior to me. Even when I was getting top grades and people like Ron and Neville were doing poorly, I would never say or even thought I was a better person than they were. My 'bossiness' was really my way to encourage everyone else to be better, so that when they did start to do well I wasn't as superior as they thought I was. I wasn't superior to them at all but I learnt that to others, through their eyes, just putting my hand up in class or correcting someone was a message that implied that I was superior to them. No matter how far from the truth that was, they still felt intimidated by my intelligence. I guess that's why the Slytherins hated me so much. They couldn't deal with the fact a person of non-magical blood could sweep the floor with every person in the class, including pure-bloods. They, more than anyone, probably thought that my dedication and excitement for learning was a subliminal message that I looked down at those who were less intelligent than me. Once I learnt that, I started to be less enthusiastic in class and not answer every question. I became silently intelligent, not boastfully intelligent."
"So what's changed?" Ashley asked, hanging on her every word.
"I'm now the only living magical person left on the planet. Just like back in school, people are hating me because they think I'm superior to them. But unlike back at Hogwarts, I can't convince them otherwise. How am I supposed to tell the parents of kids that would and should be going to Hogwarts, the soon-to-be first years, that they won't ever experience the adventure and wonder of a life with magic? How can I tell them that whilst also telling them that I am the only person who can experience that? I'm already being plugged as a person who looks down upon inferior people, and I haven't even used my magic yet. That is why I can't do it. It feels wrong." Hermione explained.
"I completely understand where you are coming from." Ashley told her gently. "But you need to stop feeling sorry for everyone else, and for you. It IS unfair. It IS wrong. It IS the worst thing to ever happen to our world. But what it ISN'T is your fault."
"Whether it is my fault or not, I still don't have the right to use magic when others can't." Hermione said.
"Look. I will admit that I was a bit sour and I also felt resentment towards you. But I quickly changed my mind earlier when we argued in the attic. Hermione, I have taken aboard what you said and I can honestly say that you were wrong."
Hermione frowned but Ashley quickly elaborated. "You were wrong about no one understanding. I can't empathize with you on this, but I can certainly sympathize. You were right too. It is far worse to be you right now, than it is to be me. And of course you would feel victimized and ashamed by it, anyone would've. You didn't do, haven't done anything that anyone else wouldn't have done."
"You are just trying to make me feel better."
"No. It's the truth. Besides, you are thinking that everyone outside this house is after you. But in fact it is fifty-fifty. A lot of people do resent you and want you captured and sacrificed. The rest know you are a war hero, they realise this could've happened to anyone and they don't see the logic in sacrificing someone so inspiring so a few handful of people could get their magic back. But that's not the point. The point is you have to take pride in the priviledge you have, not swallow your pride so you can stay likeable. Like you said, some people hate you already just for having your magic. So it's not the time to get sentimental."
Hermione sighed and continued insisting. "Ashley, I'm just not the type of person to put myself before anyone else."
"You must learn to be that person then. Otherwise you will never survive even with my help." Ashley told her.
Hermione still looked uncomfortable so Ashley got up and went to the door. "Are you coming?"
"Where?"
"To make this...'chip butty'?"
Hermione smiled at her companion and said "Sure. It's probably the only thing I can cook. Chips."
"Oh great. You can teach me." Ashley said as she disappeared around the door. "You can start by telling me what the hell this 'chip butty' is?"
Hermione grinned and laughed inwardly. She had hated this girl an hour ago. Now she could put a bright smile on her face and make Hermione feel good for the first time in a long while.
As she followed her protector into the kitchen, she had one surprising but welcome thought.
Ashley was the only person who had made her truly smile in two months.
An; and then they met. When Hermione met Ashley. They meet and have 'the-love-to-hate' syndrome. But clear signs of attraction in there and obvious chemistry. Ashley is smitten with Hermione but it still isn't fully clear if Hermione's feelings are platonic or something more. Read on when I update next to find out.
Btw if you are like Ashley and thinking 'What's chip butty?' then just basically think of a chip sandwich. Coz that is exactly what it is. Brown sauce on mine pls lol.
See ya soon.
P.S. don't look too far into the magical takeaway business and don't flame me if some anomalies creep in there. It is just a fun gimmick of ordering takeaway food in the magical world.