A/N: Yay! I finally finished this chapter! *Does happy dance* Sorry it took so long. Any way I have two notes that I want to say:
- Natosha is sixteen.
- Eilonwy is eleven.
Disclaimer: J.K.R. owns the stuff you recognize. I own the stuff you don't. For the ownership of certain names, please see the chapter they first appeared in.
Hermione lay on the ground; she couldn't remember what happened, she thought for a moment.
And remembered.
She opened her eyes.
And shut them very quickly. This isn't happening. This is NOT happening. For the brief moment her eyes had been open she saw what had terrified her so badly she had fainted.
The Dark Mark, every wizard's worst nightmare.
And she knew.
She knew her mother was dead. She knew her aunt and uncle were dead. She knew her cousin was dead. Her life had just shattered.
"Oh, Hermione!" Lirael was crying.
"I already know there're dead," Hermione said in a distant voice, opening her eyes, "Excuse me, I need to go see professor Dumbledore."
"Wha… Oh, Hermione, what's going on? I'm scared."
"Death Eaters, and possibly Lord Voldemort himself, have just kill everyone in that house." Hermione said, gesturing toward her once happy home.
She stood up, followed by Lirael, and walked into the house. They both went up to Hermione's bedroom. She went to her trunk and grabbed a sack of gallons (she already had her wand). She then grabbed Lirael's hand and once again they apperated this time appearing just outside the castle gates at Hogwarts. She began to run toward the castle.
"Hermione! Wait! Where are we?"
"At Hogwarts. Come on, there's not much time!" They began running again and arrived at Hogwarts in a few minutes time and Hermione banged on the doors. For a few minutes no one came, but then she heard sounds on the other side of the door and Professor McGonagall stood before them looking rather shocked.
"H-Hermione? W-what are you doing here?" Her favorite professor said.
"Voldemort just killed my mother, aunt, uncle and cousin. I thought I should alert you, there will be muggle police there soon. By the way, this is my cousin Lirael. Lirael, this is professor McGonagall, she's the deputy headmistress." Hermione said this slowly, clearly, and without a faint hint of emotion.
Professor McGonagall blinked. Twice. "Oh… Hermione I'm so sorry! I'll go tell professor Dumbledore and he can alert the ministry, please go wait in the common room, the password is Great Wizards. With that she rushed off muttering, "By Merlin's beard."
"Follow me please." Hermione said to Lirael. They walked through the castle and up the stairs. They stopped before a picture of the fat lady and Hermione said in that unnatural voice, "Great Wizards" the portrait swung open and she stepped through, followed closely by Lirael. In the common room all activity stopped. Ron, who was playing exploding snap, just held the cards and got his fingers burned, Harry's jaw dropped, Ginny Weasley yelped, and Natosha stepped forward from beside Harry.
Hermione spoke in the deadest tone any had ever heard her speak in, "Hello everyone, this is my cousin Lirael. Ron you might want to put those cards down. Harry close your mouth, hi Ginny, oh, by the way, my mother, aunt, uncle and cousin are dead."
Everyone stood there silently for a few moments before they all started talking at once, Natosha stepped forward and said in a harsh tone, "Is your mother the one you get your looks from?" Harry turned and stepped out of the common room.
Hermione snapped.
She took a deep breath and took a step toward Natosha.
In a split second Hermione's fist connected with Natosha's eye.
Everyone fell silent once more. Hermione dropped her hand, turned toward Lirael, and said, "That, is Natosha Blaine."
Natosha starred at Hermione, burst into tears, and fled to her dormitory.
When she had left everyone stood up and cheered.
"Hermione what happened are you all right?" Ginny said worriedly
"I'm fine. Will you go down to the kitchens and get some tea?"
"Yes." With that Ginny left. Ron said,
"Hermione! God, I'm so sorry."
He ran over to Hermione and tried to hug her. "No Ron, Help Lirael, she's more distraught then I am." Ron led Lirael to a chair by the fire and tried to comfort her. Hermione walked calmly up the stairs to the seventh year girls' dormitory. She pulled a mattress off someone's bed, stood it against the wall and started hitting it as hard as she could. She then collapsed on the floor and cried, but this time she wasn't crying for herself. Or Harry. She was crying for her mother. For Edward. For her aunt and uncle. For Lirael. Life is so short. If only she had paid attention to the feeling she had had this morning. Was it only this morning? It felt like ten years had passed. She wasn't the same Hermione who rolled out of bed this morning. She had aged, but in a way that couldn't be measured. She was Hermione, yet she was someone else, someone with strength, some who wouldn't cry for herself. She would cry, but not for herself, never again for herself.
She heard knock on the door.
Ginny walked into Hermione's room in holding a tray with a tea pot, four tea cups, cucumber sandwiches, and a plate of fudge. "Don't worry it's not Hagrid's fudge, it's left over from dinner last night." She then took in the mattress with a dent in it and Hermione crumpled on the floor. She set the tray on a bed and knelt beside Hermione. Hermione was in trouble, mentally, not physically. Something was wrong. She was distant, Ginny barely saw her any more, Eilonwy a first year she'd befriended had come up to Ginny one evening and asked if she knew what was wrong with Hermione. Ginny could only shake her head.
"Hermione I brought tea."
"Thanks." Hermione said with out looking up. And then, "Ginny, what makes your life worth living?"
She was taken aback by the question. Was Hermione suicidal? "Oh Hermione, I don't know, everything about it. I have my family, my friends, Colin, we finally have money."
"I have no family, except Lirael."
"What about your dad?"
"He's as good as dead. You and Ron are my only friends."
"What about Harry?"
"Harry, HA! I'm about as close to Harry as I am to Draco Malfoy."
"I thought you liked him. Harry I mean, not Malfoy."
"I didn't just like Harry, I loved him. I still do. I probably always will. I've just given up on him. Pulse, something eventually happens to every one of my friends and family. My dad left, my mom's dead, Parviti was killed last year after we started hanging out together, when I was eight the girl living next door was hit by lighting and is still in a coma. So I don't want Harry getting any closer to me, I guess Natosha was a blessing in a way."
Just then there was a knock on the door and a fifth year prefect named Lilisa said, "Hermione, Dumbledore wants to see you and your cousin. Stat."
"Okay."
Hermione rose and followed Lilisa out the door. Ginny sat there for a minute thinking. Hermione was in more trouble then I'd thought. I have to talk to Ron.
Harry was standing near the stair to the boys' dormitories with Natosha leaning on him. He wished he could throw up. But of course, he couldn't. Just then Hermione walked in towing a beautiful brunet behind her. Of all the people he expected to see Hermione was not one of them.
She looked like hell. And there was something about her that he couldn't place. Natosha stepped away from him.
Hermione said, in a voice that sent chills down his spin, "Hello everyone, this is my cousin Lirael. Ron you might want to put those cards down. Harry close your mouth," Here he shut his mouth, "Hi Ginny, by the way, my mother, aunt, uncle and cousin are dead."
Everyone was silent. Harry was fighting the spell harder then he ever had before. If he said something rude or unkind now, Hermione would never forgive him. Natosha then stepped forward and said, "Is your mother the one you get your looks from?" Harry turned on his heel and left the room. He wouldn't be able to hold out much longer.
He walked toward the library; maybe he could give Hermione a clue about the spell he was under. He hoped it would be a while before Natosha came looking for him.
The spell was starting to take over his mind. He could probably hold out a few more months, but by then Voldemort would have killed him.
"Ms. Granger, is there anything I can do to help?" Professor Dumbledore said from behind his desk.
She and Lirael sat before him, Hermione staring strait ahead, Lirael looking down at her hands.
"Not that I know of, sir." She replied.
"Alright then on to the matter of Ms. McPherson. Hermione are you aware of the laws which apply in this situation?"
"No sir."
"Relax Ms. Granger, Well first of all, 3 exceptions apply to the law that does not allow muggle perform magic. Number 1, if a witch or wizard marries a muggle; number 2, if a muggle is forced to live in the wizarding world; number 3, if special circumstances surround the case. I believe in this case numbers 2 and 3 would apply. Ms. McPherson cannot return to muggle life if Voldemort is looking for her. If you wish Ms. McPherson, there is a spell that can give powers to those with none."
At this Lirael looked up sharply and looked the headmaster in the eye for the first time. She looked as if someone had handed her a sack of Gallons and set her lose in Honeydukes. "Really sir?" Was all see could manage.
"No need to decide right now. You have until the end of Christmas break."
"But I've all ready made up my mind. I'll do it." Lirael said this firmly and without hesitation.
"Right then, now let me see, we shall do the spell around seven on the 29th. Hermione the spell needs five or six people to take power from, will you gather Mr. Weasley, Ms. Weasley, Mr. Potter and Mr. Malfoy in the Great Hall by 6:45 that day?"
"Harry? You want Harry?"
"Why yes, he is one of the most powerful wizards in school." This reaction surprised him greatly; he had thought her objection would be to Draco, not Harry.
"Fine."
"You may go now."
And with that they left. Hermione was still fuming.
Dear Lavender,
Hermione's parents were attacked by Death Eaters
yesterday. You can guess what happened. She showed up at school that afternoon,
and brought her muggle cousin Lirael with her.
You'll never guess what she did next!
She punched Natosha! You should see her eye (Natosha's,
not Hermione's), it's black! Hermione lost 20 house points, but no one cares,
it was worth it seeing Natosha get punched.
The Christmas Ball is tomorrow night. I hope you don't
mind if I take Lirael. She doesn't know any one except me and Hermione. Don't
worry, you're still number 1 in my heart. Hermione says she's not going
and of course Harry's going with Natosha. What does he see in her anyway?
I hope you're having a good holiday!
Love forever,
Ron
P.S. XOXOXOXOXO
Hermione sat in the library reading, kind of. She had left Lirael in the common room with a stack of books to read. Hermione has been on the same page for 45 minutes. Every time she tried to read she thought of Harry, and every time she thought of Harry mentally kicked herself saying, STOP THINKING ABOUT GOD DAMNED HARRY! GET BACK TO WORK! Of course, then she'd start to read again. She had been doing this for the last 45 minutes.
Someone walked up behind her, reached down, and grabbed the book out of her hands.
"Ron!" She yelled as she spun around.
It, however, was not Ron.
She was staring up into the bright, turquoise blue eyes of Terry Boot. He was a fairly hand some Ravenclaw seventh year he was also one of the smartest Ravenclaws. His hair was chocolate brown and wavy. He wasn't as tall as Harry, being about 5'9, but he was still tall. "T-Terry?"
"Hermione you appear to be in need of some assistance, you've been on the same since I came in."
"I'm just preoccupied."
"Yeah… I'm sorry about you mom."
"Thanks."
"Hey, are you going to the ball tonight?"
"I might, no ones asked me though."
"Well I'll ask you then. Hermione… do you have a middle name?"
"Well," she said giggling, "that's for me to know and you to find out."
"Alright then, as I was saying," in very formal tones he said, "Hermione Granger, will you do me the honor of accompanying me to the Christmas ball that is being held to night?"
Laughing, she matched his tone, "Terry Boot, I would very much enjoy having you escort me to the ball. How about 7 o'clock at the Kelven the Righteous statue."
"Seven it is. G'bye." With that he bent over and kissed her on the cheek. She blushed.
"Bye."
A/n: What color robes should everyone where to the ball? Tell me in your review.
Thanks:
Redsuncloud, niffler, nikki, mara, fran, Draco's Lil Angel,
fire*child, AMB3R, jenni_ellen12.
Dracona- see top.
