The tea grew cold on the table in front of them. They sat in a semi-circle in a living room. A long silence stretched out before Kat broke it. Pointing at Hermione, she mumbled, "So you're a witch," then at Sirius, "And you're a wizard. And those sticks were magic wands." She felt surreally calm, though she felt she'd lost her mind. "Why didn't you tell me before?"
The witch shook her head. "We're not supposed to. There are rules and laws. We could go to jail. If it wasn't for the prisoners escaping, we wouldn't have been forced to. You're not supposed to know anything. In fact—"
The older girl scrambled behind Sirius. In the short time she's come to know him, she seems to have made an unfortunate habit out of it. She spoke from behind him, only risking her hand to point accusingly at her. "Woah, ok, calm down with pointing the magical wand in my face, Agent K. You need to put down the weapon and take a step back. I won't tell anyone so you don't have to kill me or whatever. I definitely will not look into the light."
"I think you have me confused with a human shield, Daring," Sirius lightly pointed out.
Hermione groaned and spoke as if there wasn't a Muggle in the room. "The Ministry will send us to Azkaban if we don't Obliviate her. We'll wake her up when it's over. It's for the best."
"I am right here!" She didn't know what Obliviate means but she didn't like the sound of it. It was too close to the word obliterate for comfort.
He ignored Kat too. "I very much doubt the Ministry will send a war hero to Azkaban, not when they owe you everything. It's dangerous right now. They were looking for you in particular since you're one of the Golden Trio. Why not wait until they round up all the prisoners and then Obliviate her?"
"Still right here! Still not feeling warm and fuzzy about this Obliviate thing!" Everything else he said made no sense to her. Hermione is a war hero? How is that possible? The girl is barely 20.
Either way, he seemed to have mollified the witch into putting her wand down on the table. Taking the opportunity, Kat rolled forward and snatched Hermione's wand. She pointed it at the girl. "Now, you're going to listen up and listen up real well. No one is going to Obliviate me or the witch gets it." Hermione rolled her eyes and Sirius seemed to be fighting back a grin. "What's so funny?"
"You're not a witch. You need magic to use that, love."
She shifted awkwardly in her defensive stance, both hands unyielding on the wand, glancing between the two. She almost considered putting the wand down and crying but she had a feeling tears wouldn't stop them from following through on that plan. Twin rushes of adrenaline and fear coursed through her, forcing her into action. Kat made as if to put the wand down but instead flipped the table to make a run for it.
Her feet practically flew through the corridor before she escaped the way she came in. She ran like her life depended on it, which it kind of did. She was going to have to tell her mother to have a strong talk with Uncle Jon about Obliviating family. All in all, this was the worst vacation ever.
She didn't know how far she got. Her lungs were on fire and she regretted not going to the gym more often. When she finally did slow down, she found she was hopelessly lost. Kat gripped the wand like a lifeline. The streets seemed busier around here. It was oddly comforting considering how there was supposed to be prisoner escapees running around. She blended in with the crowd despite the very visible wand. There was a pub on the corner. For a manic moment she thought about going in and drinking. The absurdity.
Her feet brought her to the door of the establishment but she never got the chance to open it.
No, the door burst open to reveal two extremely angry men continuing a fight. One of them had a broken bottle in his hand. While the other man managed to dodge, she wasn't as lucky.
She staggered backwards, clutching her abdomen with both hands. The wand was getting soaked in her blood but she was too shocked to feel anything. Her knees went weak, unable to support her, and she fell backwards. The two bastards that were in the fight took notice and fled.
A crowd formed around her like she was a spectacle to behold. Judging by the flow of blood and depth of the wound, the glass shards probably sliced through muscle and hit the gastrointestinal tract. A slow death if she didn't get help immediately. Pressure, she had to apply pressure. She had to slow her rabid heartbeat or she'll bleed out faster. Somehow that was impossible to control. A hysterical laugh left her throat as tears leaked down her face. How ironic that for all the magic she learned about tonight, it will be a bar fight that'll put her in an early grave.
"Kat! Kat!" She opened her eyes. It was Hermione. She seemed upset. Sirius stood with his chest heaving beside her. He had a look she'd never seen on anyone before. Well, at least the girl won't have to worry about her spilling her secret.
"I have to tell you, 'Mione, I don't think I like England." Her smile trembled on her lips. "Tell my parents I'm sorry for running the cat over and blaming it on the neighbor. It was an accident. Well, at least they can't kill me now..." A halfhearted laugh was caught in her throat. "Tell them I love them, ok?" Tears welled up in the other girl's eyes.
"Tell them yourself." In a quick smooth motion, Sirius crouched down. He pulled wand out and pointed at her abdomen. "Vulnera Sanetur, Vulnera Sanetur, Vulnera Sanetur."
Blood stopped seeping through her fingers. Somehow the wound seemed to be healing. After a long, agonizing minute, she pulled her shaking hand away to see that all that was left were a smattering of small scars. Kat sat up slowly, experimentally. She was ok. Relief filled her. Tears blinded her with a vengeance. She threw her arms around him, nearly throwing him off balance, and sobbed into his chest. Only a quiet, "Thank you, thank you," escaping her lips. He stroked her frizzy hair in comforting gesture.
Murmurs joined astonished whispers to make a sea of hushed talk from the crowd around them. Hermione's expression was grim. She picked up her bloodied wand and gestured around at the crowd. A cry of "Obliviate!" resonated from her. The crowd seemed stunned. "Quickly, let's go." She grabbed onto both of them and Apparated back to the building they started in. The three collectively fell to the floor.
A few moments after she disentangled herself from the wizard, Kat moved to sit by the fireplace, knees drawn up to her chest. Her eyes remained fixed on the ashes.
"What did you do to them, Hermione?"
The girl took her place beside her. "I erased their memories."
"And that's what you're going to do to me? After those guys are arrested?"
The silence was answer enough. She nodded miserably, hiding her face in her knees. It wasn't a death sentence, at least. She didn't like it but she owed them her life. She felt a soft touch on her shoulder and gave Hermione a weak smile.
If she wasn't going to remember this anyway, she might as well indulge her curiosity. "So you're a war hero?"