AN: I just have to say Thank You so much to everyone who has been reading this. The amount of follows and favorites and super nice reviews has been so much more than I had expected. You guys are awesome! I only have one more chapter pre-done so any ideas for the future of this story are always welcome! Let me know what you would like to see!

Again, I own nothing but the story line.

Hermione had practically run home from the library after seeing those photos. All she could think about was getting home behind her wards and hopefully flooing Harry. She locked her home up tight behind her and made sure to triple check that all wards around it were up and working before going to her fireplace. She had had it connected once she heard of the death in the town just as a precaution, call it paranoia if you want, but after years of being around Harry she had learned it was better to be too cautious than not cautious enough. She threw the powder into the fireplace and yelled "Potter Manor!" she waited a moment and yelled Harry's name a few times to the empty room she was looking into. Harry and Ginny had moved into Potter Manor after the war had ended and were hoping to start their own family soon. Eventually he walked into the room looking quite confused to see Hermione's face in the flames.

"Mione? What's going on? Everything alright over there?"

"No Harry it's really not…. There was a murder in town the other day and a couple guys are here investigating. They came to ask me about some local legends and the symbols at the scene… Most were runic in origin and then they showed me another picture..." Hermione took a deep breath "Harry, one was the symbol of the Hallows, and the other…. It was the dark mark Harry, I'm sure of it. It was crudely drawn or tattooed or something onto the girls arm."

"… That doesn't make any sense… why the mark of the Hallows? The dark mark could be from some of the escaped death eaters I suppose… Hermione, if that's true you need to be extra cautious until you figure out what's going on. Who are these men that are investigating?" Harry asked her going into full Auror mode.

"Sam and Dean… something, I don't even know their last names. I think they may be hunters Harry. I mean, a mysterious death, asking about local history and legends, and now the symbols? They have to be." She reasoned to herself. After all they didn't look like any FBI agents she could imagine. Shit, hunters weren't exactly known to be a witch's biggest fan.

Hermione had encountered some hunters in her travels after leaving England, they hadn't loved that she was a witch until she had explained there was a huge difference between her type of magic and the witches that hunters were used to. Even after her explanation her relationship with most hunters was strained at the best of times, they simply gave each other a wide berth. Hopefully that bit of information about different types of witches had spread through the hunting community a bit. She had a feeling she was going to have a hard time explaining this all to the two boys without them instantly wanting to kill her just for being what she was the moment they heard the word witch.

"Well if they are hunters be careful how you approach all this Mione. They aren't known to be the think first shoot later types. Usually they just shoot... I'll go to the ministry and look into any death eater factions that may have gone to that area after the war and get back to you. Be safe over there by yourself okay? We'll come visit you soon."

Hermione pulled her head out of the fireplace and tried to calm herself down. Having her wand with her again now that she was home was helping but she knew she wouldn't be able to fully relax until Harry got back to her and the hunters didn't try and kill her after hearing about witches and wizards. Sighing she made some tea to calm her nerves, and oh just fantastic, now the shakes that were starting, ever since the cruciatus curse was used on her in the war for so long she had the occasional tremor she couldn't control. She grabbed her newest copy of Hogwarts: A History, which included a section about the war and the golden trio, and then she sat herself down and hoped like hell the boys would give her a fair chance to explain herself instead of just shooting her on the spot.

Dean, who had left the library shortly after Hermione's dramatic exit, went to get the results of Joanna's autopsy. The weird symbol on the girls arm had been permanently etched in and she had puncture marks behind her ears, missing a specific piece of her brain. Dean's thoughts, and Sam's once he was filled in, instantly went to a Kitsune, but that didn't explain any of the symbols or why her body was found where or how it was. Maybe it was just a dumping ground? But the body was obviously laid out that way on purpose, and why draw symbols? None of this was making any sense.

Dean rubbed his face and sighed, this case was giving him a major headache. The boys had met up at their hotel to compare notes before meeting Hermione. They still had a whole lot of Jack and Shit to go on. He needed more pie, maybe a burger, and definitely a beer. Sam and Dean headed for the diner to get some lunch and noticed that same waitress, Siobhan, was working, she approached their table eyeing them both.

"Hey guys, what can I get for you?" she asked, snapping her gum.

"Sammy'll have a salad, I'll need a burger and fries, oh, and pie."

Sam gave him the bitch face for ordering for him while Dean just ignored it. Instead going over what they knew about Hermione in his head, which really wasn't much.

Once she brought the food out Dean asked Siobhan if she knew much about Hermione. He just couldn't figure her out. When the waitress gave him a funny look and began to question him he used upsetting her as a reason for being curious.

"Well, she's kind of an odd girl. Moved here about six months ago from somewhere in England, Apparently after traveling all over trying to get over something awful is the rumor I heard. Got a nasty scar on her arm she refuses to talk about, nobody really knows what happened to her…. She's young but seems loaded, bought herself one of the nicest houses around here just for her and her cat. Oh! She gets owls showing up at her house all hours of the day for some reason. Miones also, like, super super smart too. Like genius or something."

"Wow, Okay thank you, that's super helpful." Sam spoke up since Dean was still processing the rapid speed Siobhan had given them all the information in.

"No prob." She said and went to her other tables.

Dean scarfed down his pie, processing the information she told them. He realised that they didn't actually know where this Hermione lived.

"Excuse me Siobhan?" He called her over.

"Yeah?"

"Can you tell me where Hermione's house is? She told us to come by later and were not actually sure where she lives."

"Oh, Sure! She's in one of the big houses over on Walden. Just look for the big brick colonial house with the two chimneys and a wrap around. You really can't miss it."

Dean drove the Impala over to the area Siobhan had told them to go to. He felt so out of place, this was obviously a money neighborhood and he so did not blend in. Sam pointed out the one that was most likely Hermione's and Dean pulled up to the house.

He got out of the car and gave a low whistle. Siobhan hadn't been kidding about the "obviously loaded" comment.

"Nice place" he commented on the way up to the door.

They stood on the porch for a moment before knocking on the front door not entirely sure what to expect after that morning. Hermione opened it a few seconds later looking a little more stressed than earlier, holding tea and a book. Dean couldn't help but snicker, she just looked so… English.

"Please come in." she said leading them into a sitting room. "Can I get you anything?"

"We're good thanks" Sam said answering for both of them. Really they just wanted to know what the hell was happening in this town.

Hermione sat in her wingback with her legs folded underneath her, fidgeting with her tea cup nervously. Taking a deep breath she forced herself to confront this.

"Before we start I think perhaps a proper introduction is in order. I'm Hermione Granger, and you're not FBI are you? You're hunters." she said diving right in.

Stunned silence met her question from the two boys.

"I met a hunter in my travels before I settled here. A man named Bobby Singer, we had a nice long chat about witches and the different kinds of magic there are." She said casually as though she was just discussing the weather.

"You know Bobby?!" Dean nearly yelled looking gobsmacked.

"I do."

"Well shit… um, I'm Dean Winchester and this is my brother Sammy. You're right, we're not FBI, we're hunters."

Hermione stood up and paced the front of the fireplace. She had heard of them from Bobby. He talked of them like they were his son's, Dean in particular she knew had a hatred for witches. She wasn't sure if it would be safe to reveal herself now. She paced a few more seconds working herself up, the shakes getting worse thanks to stress, before getting an idea.

Dean and Sam just sat uncomfortable and extremely on edge in the home of this stranger who obviously knew way more than they did. And apparently Bobby too.

"I think before we continue, perhaps a phone call to Mr. Singer is in order." Hermione said before turning and grabbing the phone not giving the brothers much chance to say anything, Dean just looked at Sam eyebrows raised in a what the hell is happening type of face.

"Maybe this way you won't kill me before I can even say anything." She muttered to herself just quiet enough that the boys wouldn't hear. Bobby had latched onto Hermione as a new source for cases that were unexplainable even in their world of the supernatural. Witchcraft, the natural kind not the deal-with-a-demon kind, was a whole new world and a possible new threat that Bobby felt was his responsibility to learn all about.

"Hi Mr. Singer? It's Hermione Granger calling." Sam and Dean heard her say, Dean almost laughed when he heard Bobby tell her 'stop calling me Mr. Singer dammit I told ya, it's Bobby. Just Bobby.'

"Right, Bobby, well I have the Winchester brothers here at my home, I thought it might be best to allow you to explain some things to them before I tell them about everything. They may be more receptive to hearing it from you I believe." She hoped like hell Bobby would be able to help, if anyone could make the boys listen he could.

'Oh Balls… Alright put 'em on." He sighed.

"Thank you."

Hermione turned and nervously handed the phone to the Winchester brothers with a tentative smile. Sam took it and immediately hit speakerphone and Dean started "Hey Bobby."

"Boys. It's good to hear from ya. Now listen here. Hermione is a good person no matter what you find out, If I find out you do something stupid I'm gonna kick both your asses. Got it?"

"Yes, Bobby." They answered in unison looking slightly worried, this was just getting weirder and weirder by the minute. What was up with Hermione that she had to be vouched for by Bobby?

"Now Dean, you especially need to listen to this, I know how pig headed you get… Witches are not just limited to the one kind we know of." He started "There's the ones who have sold their souls obviously, like we're used to but then there are also Wiccans who are connected to the earth's power, and then.. Boys, there's a third kind. These witches are born with a power inside them, all their own, no deals and no demons, no innate evil. They for the most part are good people but with a little extra kick to them."

"What the shit Bobby! You're trying to tell me that not all witches are evil bitches? Why haven't we ever met one? I don't believe you, this is ridiculous." Dean exploded looking livid.

"You have now." Hermione interrupted.

Dean was instantly up out of his seat, gun pulled. "Sonofabitch!"

Hermione just calmly stood and looked at him. "I'm not evil you know. Bobby just told you this."

"Dean!" Sam yelled still holding the phone. "Calm down! Bobby just vouched for her doesn't that count for anything? Maybe we should hear her out? If she's evil you can shoot her later."

"Balls! Dean! You Idjit! You pulled a gun didn't you?! Put it away, it won't do you no good anyhow." Bobby grumped from the other end of the phone.

Dean wavered but didn't lower his weapon. Getting impatient, and frankly tired of having a gun on her, Hermione calmly waved her hand and Dean's gun went flying towards her. She caught it and set it aside. Wandless magic really was a neat trick.

"Sam! Dean! Just listen to the girl's story before you go shootin' things and bein' jackasses." Bobby was yelling from the phone.

Sam and Dean stood and looked at each other for a moment. Dean was breathing hard and looked ready to either run away or punch something at any moment. "Fine! But if she kills us Bobby I'm coming back to haunt your ass. She just stole my gun!" he yelled sounding slightly petulant.

Hermione took the phone back and looked at the boys. Sam was eyeing her nervously and Dean still looked angry.

"Thanks Bobby, I'll talk to you later okay? Take care."

She let out a breath she hadn't realised she had been holding and nervously looked at the boys before she began, not entirely sure she wasn't about to be tackled and killed any time now. "Um... I guess maybe I'll start at the beginning?" getting zero response but a glare from dean she continued,

"My name is Hermione Jean Granger and I was born in London. Both my parents were normal people, dentists, we lived in the suburbs like a typical family. When I was eleven I got a letter inviting me to Hogwarts. This is a school of witchcraft and wizardry, meant to teach young people born with magic how to control it and master it. My parents thought it was just a prank, until a woman showed up to our house and explained. In England we have an entire wizarding world which is hidden from non-magical people. We have our own government, banks, jobs, everything. Many magical folk avoid the non-magical world actually. "

Neither Dean or Sam missed the way she always use the past tense when referring to her parents, or the fact that she had seemed to be shaking since they arrived.

"You've gotta be shitting me. You want me to believe that you guys have an entire fricken world hidden somewhere over there? This is ridiculous." Dean protested.

Calmly Hermione just ignored him and went on to explain the years she spent at Hogwarts, her magic, her power, and eventually she got to the wizarding war.

"A few years ago, a truly evil wizard came back to his full power in our world. He believed in blood purity, and me being a muggleborn or someone born to non-magical parents, I was a huge target. It didn't help that one of my best friends is Harry Potter, the only person Voldemort had ever failed to kill. After our sixth year off school we went on the run for a long time, hiding, and hunting the Horcruxes. Horcruxes were objects that contained a piece of Voldemort's soul, the man was so insane and afraid of death he literally tore his soul apart in order to prevent himself from being killed. One night we were captured and taken to Malfoy Manor where a follower of Voldemort stole my wand and proceeded to torture me." She looked at the boys who had finally sat back down and seemed to be listening. She showed them her arm. The word Mudblood crudely carved into her skin, still looking almost fresh years later, was enough to make even them cringe. Hermione said all this in an almost aloof and clinical way, as if she had detached herself from the memories, She stopped for a second tracing the word on her arm lost in thought.

"We ended up finally defeating Voldemort and once our side won the war and began to rebuild our world I left, I needed time away from the reminders of loss and death, and there was not much left tying me to England. I traveled for some time, which is when I encountered your friend Bobby who had been hunting some Arachnes and got in over his head, and then I ended up here."

Sam had decided pretty much right after talking to Bobby that Hermione was not an evil person, however after hearing her story he felt almost a connection. He was also a freak, getting visions thanks to yellow eyes, and had tried to run away from the supernatural as well. Dean still wasn't entirely sure of her, his hatred of witches was deeply engrained, but with some more convincing from Sam did agree that she seemed to be on their side, at least for now.

"Fine. I believe you. Can I have my gun back though? I feel naked." He whined.

"Try and shoot me and it won't go well." Hermione warned handing it back to him, her hair crackled with electricity from pent up energy being so on edge all day. Dean's eyes widened and he, for once in his life, stayed quiet just nodding.

For Hermione, she was trusting Bobby's information on the Winchesters and hoped they would prove to be useful should there turn out to be death eaters responsible for the murder. She wasn't prepared to deal with this herself and, in Bobby's words, the Winchesters were damn good hunters. She braced herself for the inevitable barrage of questions she knew were coming about her getting spooked by the symbols.