JK Rowling owns Harry Potter. Tristane is mine though.
I hope you enjoy the story.
Chapter Eight
The atmosphere at Hogwarts changed. There was a general mixture of excitement and tension, as Quidditch tryout announcements were being plastered all over the school. For the first time in the school's history, the Headmistress announced that the Quidditch tryout for the four house teams would be held at the same day and same time at the Quidditch pitch. That caused an uproar. McGonagall refused to budge, reasoning that with the tryouts for the four houses being held at the same time, chances for each house to get into trouble of spying each other would be drastically reduced, as each team would be focused on their own selection instead.
That was why Hermione found herself sitting on the stands with the rest of the school. Ginny had flown into her room before the dawn broke (Hermione hoped it would not be a regular occurrence) and unceremoniously dragged the Head Girl out of the bed. Hermione had only managed to grab her jeans and a sweater before she had to cling for dear life when Ginny dumped her on the broom before speeding off to the pitch. Hermione was sure she looked like a banshee and did not even want to think how messy her bushy hair was. She could only sigh as she watched the proceedings below. She could not understand why she must be present at the tryout, considering she had no love for the game and Ginny was busy doing whatever captains were supposed to do anyway.
Someone dropped on the seat to her right, causing the bench to shake slightly. Hermione groaned, wishing for people to just leave her alone. That was the reason for her choosing the furthest bench from the pitch. She did not even have her books to distract her mind. Knowing how Quidditch-obsessed the whole school was, it would take hours before she could peacefully return to her bed.
"You look dazzling and brighter than sunshine."
Hermione sighed. Tristane sounded more and more like her annoying cousin with each passing day.
"Speak for yourself, Pirate," the brunette grumbled.
"I've never been to any tryouts before," Tristane said conversationally. "Plus, I don't have any choice anyway. All of my babysitters intend to try to get on the team."
Down at the pitch was a mess of colours. With red at the left, green at the right, and blue and yellow in between, it somewhat resembled a festival of sorts. Only the first years and a handful of older students sat in the stands. Most of the student body were at the pitch, taking their turns to showcase their abilities to their respective team captains.
"With that noise, it's a miracle the dead hasn't risen yet," Hermione grumbled. She then turned to look at Tristane. The Slytherin, unlike Hermione, looked fresh and ready for the day. The brunette was envious that the Pirates were thoughtful enough to give Tristane time to get ready.
"Do they know you're here with me?"
The Slytherin shrugged.
"They're pretty much focused on Quidditch, Hermione. I'm not sneaking away from the pitch anyway, I'm still here. Just at a different seat from where I was an hour ago," she grinned at the Head Girl.
Hermione sighed.
"As long as they won't launch another panic-fuelled search. You know, Tris, I was looking forward to a peaceful year with Harry, the magnet for trouble, gone from Hogwarts. The gods must have hated me because you're sent to replace him," she told the one-eyed witch with a serious face, but her eyes were full of laughter.
Tristane was embarrassed.
"Oh gods, don't remind me please, Hermione," she groaned. The story of Slytherins panicking and went on a hunt for her spread to the whole school and now people would teasingly ask her 'Does Malfoy know you're here?' whenever she walked around without Draco next to her. Well, a few asked her teasingly. Many asked with malice in their voice.
"So Tristane, you must've been close with Draco since childhood, huh?" Hermione tried to keep her voice sounded casual, not prying.
"I wish, Hermione, I wish." The Slytherin leaned back, eyes watching the figures below darting around the posts. Keepers were being selected. "I never knew I had family other than my father until a few months ago. I grew up with my dad and he passed away in June. He told me to return to England and go to my Aunt's."
Hermione could feel her heart beating faster. Was Tristane lying? If it was true, was it a coincidence? With Voldemort recently gone, and Tristane's father supposedly died not long after, Tristane's timely appearance was highly suspicious.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Tristane," Hermione tried to sound as genuine as possible. Part of her sympathised with the girl, but part of her was cautious. "I don't mean to pry, but what did he die of?"
Tristane shrugged. "Sickness. Sorry, Hermione, I really don't wanna talk about his death."
The brunette nodded. Tristane looked so sad and a bit loss. If the Slytherin was lying, it was a convincing act.
"I understand, Tris," Hermione squeezed the other witch's arm, trying to show comfort. "So how do you find living with the Malfoys?"
The Slytherin cheered slightly with the topic change.
"They've been kind and nice to me. I know they're dark wizards and stuff, but they've never been evil or cruel to me. Except for Draco. He never lets me out of his sight, as you have seen. That's pretty cruel," she grumbled. "Aunt Cissa has been mothering me, as you can guess. She's been baking me cookies, which unfortunately I have only managed to eat a little, courtesy of Ginny. Not that I mind," she added hastily as Hermione chuckled. "I don't know about Uncle Lucius though. He's in jail, which I think you know." Hermione got a little bit uncomfortable with that. "I'm thankful to you though, Hermione. If it not were for you and Harry, Uncle Lucius would get a worse sentence. Honestly, I'm kind of sad for Aunt Cissa and Draco. They're both alone, with no other family to stand with them."
"Well, if Narcissa would reconcile with her sister, that wouldn't be a problem."
Tristane was surprised.
"But I thought Bellatrix Lestrange died?"
Hermione rolled her eyes.
"No, I'm not talking about that deranged lunatic. I'm talking about Andromeda."
"Andromeda Tonks? Our Potions professor? I thought she's just a distant relative by marriage or something?"
The Head Girl narrowed her eyes.
"Andromeda Tonks is Narcissa Malfoy's older sister. They were both Blacks before their respective marriages, Tristane. Andromeda Tonks is your direct aunt."
"Are you sure? Draco had never told me that. He only said that his mother has lost her only sister."
"I'm pretty sure, Tristane. You can ask him later on."
Tristane was silent. She was deep in thought. Hermione took the cue and reverted her gaze to the pitch below.
Either she is an amazing actress, or she truly has no clue about her family, Hermione thought to herself. Something just doesn't add up, though. Why would Narcissa Malfoy welcomed her with open arms if they never knew of each other's existence until this summer? Why is Draco super clingy with Tristane? Who's Tristane father? And did he really die from some "sickness", as she puts it? This is one of the few things I can't refer to books, dammit.
Hermione decided to changed topics to a more neutral ground, and they chatted about their schoolwork. To Hermione's surprise, Tristane had mastered several spells, and more surprisingly, Ginny had been the one teaching and encouraging the girl. The Head Girl could not imagine Ginny having the patience to teach. She decided to teach Tristane a couple more spells, curious to see the Slytherin's progress. The rest of their morning on the stands was spent discussing and learning spells.
The tryout was finally done by lunch time. Unsurprisingly, each captain declared those selected will be announced in their respective common rooms. Hermione rolled her eyes at this, grumbling that 'everybody will know who's in each team anyway, why bother to keep it a secret' which drew gasps from those nearby. The Head Girl knew that somehow, she managed to make a blasphemous comment. Tristane just giggled, not helping her cause at all.
Ginny had opted to go to the common room immediately for the announcement. Nearly all Gryffindors disappeared to their common room, leaving Hermione and a handful of Gryffindors at the Great Hall. The Head Girl preferred to eat, feeling that she had sacrificed enough of her day for such a useless activity. If she could be honest, she wanted to escape eating Draco's cooking. He could only cook breakfast foods and spaghetti. Hermione had had enough of those. While technically she was no required to eat with the Pirates, she did not want to pass the opportunity to be around Tristane, afraid that she would miss out on crucial information. She also suspected that the main reason for Ginny's willingness to eat Draco's food was Narcissa Malfoy's cookies.
For today, the house elves prepared pies and salad. Hermione was over the moon to finally eat something else aside from Draco's standard products. She hungrily gobbled two pies, which drew raised eyebrows on those who were observing her - she was not a small eater, but she did not have a Weasley's bottomless stomach either.
Satisfied with her meal, she trudged the halls and stairs leading to her quarters, absent-mindedly telling off misbehaving students on her way. She had planned on catching up on some studies and finishing some essays, but now it seemed she had to change her plans. She sighed, sometimes wondering whether her friends ever take into account her indifference to Quidditch before dragging her to Quidditch-related events.
There was a beautiful brown owl waiting for her in her room. Hermione did not recognise the owl - it was not a standard Hogwarts owl, and it definitely did not look like part of the Ministry's either. She frowned, hoping it was not a hate mail or some Death Eater in hiding trying to kill her. She mumbled a scanning spell, and, coming up negative, took the mail from the owl, who was giving her an undignified look. Hermione apologised to the bird and gave it some treats.
There was no writing on the envelope, giving no hints of the sender. One hand holding her wand ready, she opened the letter.
Hi Mione,
How have you been doing?
She recognised Harry's scrawl.
I'm so sorry I had not been replying your letters. Auror training is exhausting and I never managed to find the time and energy to give you a decent reply. I'm currently confined to a bed - yesterday we trainees were taught on how to handle and fight dragons. My sleeves got caught on fire and I somehow managed to break my left ankle. I should be fine by tomorrow. On the bright side, I now have the time to write you an overdue letter.
Happy belated birthday, by the way. I did not forget about that, but I just did not have the time to wish you and get you a present. I know, it's not an excuse, and I'm really sorry, Mione. We've been through a lot yet I could not spare five minutes to write you a simple letter. I'm so sorry.
Have you heard from Ron? He's mad at me at the moment. He had been mucking up in training and failing to achieve passing marks, so he quitted. It was a week ago. I heard that he's now helping in the joke shop, which is good for George. The poor bloke is still grieving for his twin, which is highly understandable. I hope Ron can hold his idiocy and support George.
Ron's mad at me for not quitting with him (he's just being irrational, don't yell at him for that). He's also mad at me because we heard through the grape vine that you're currently dating a certain Slytherin Prince. I told Ron that he has screwed up his chances and that you're perfectly within your rights to date whoever you want, including Argus Filch (but for all that is holy and good, please don't date Filch ugh). Ron blew up and started screaming about traitors, disloyalty, yada yada. You know, the usual stuff. I love him like a brother but he can be such a git sometimes. I told Ron that the only reason we won the war was because of you, Mione, and if you think you can trust Draco enough to date him, then we should trust him enough not to be a prat like he was. I know you won't take such decisions lightly, and if he makes you happy, then I am happy. But do let me know if he is being a git - I still want my chance to hex him.
If Ron's being mean to you, just ignore him, alright? He'll come round. Just give him time. He can be an idiot sometimes. But he's still our Ron.
I have applied for leave to meet you and Ginny in Hogsmeade during your first Hogsmeade weekend. My leave is approved, but only for three hours. Let's meet up at the Three Broomsticks at 11am, alright? I wanna give you're your birthday present (I know, it is very late and I'm so sorry). Drag Ginny off the pitch if you need to.
I hope to hear soon from you, Mione. Take care. Send my regards to Ginny.
All my love,
Harry.
Harry's letter put a smile on Hermione's face. She still had her best friend, although it sounded as if Ron was currently not in any speaking mood with her. She sighed. Ron could be the most stubborn-headed mule when he wanted to. She wondered how would their relationship be like had they maintained it? Would it be a relationship filled with emotional roller-coaster and frequent breakups/makeups? That would be draining. Hermione was also irked that Ron felt it was his business to decide who she may or may not date. While she was definitely not dating Draco, she felt that Ron should be happy with whoever that makes her happy, even if it was Draco. If Harry, Draco's arch nemesis since day one, could be happy for her, why could Ron not be the same?
She decided not to waste more time and energy getting angry at her impossible best friend. She quickly wrote a reply to Harry and tied it to the waiting owl. She would need to ask Harry whether the owl was part of the Aurors' or Harry had bought a new one. That reminded her of Hedwig, and she was sad. She shook her head, clearing her mind of any and all sad things. She was not quite ready to face her demons - she wanted to take rest first. One day she would definitely face her demons like a true Gryffindor should. But that day was not today.
The class for Defense Against the Dark Arts for that day had been one of the easiest for the Gryffindors, Neville included. Fleur had tasked them to perform the Patronus charm, which, as it happened, had been mastered by the non-Slytherins in the class. Joining the Dumbledore's Army had proven to be useful time and time again. The Slytherins, as expected, struggled not because of lack of skills, but lack of happy memories. Hermione supposed that growing up being groomed as Voldemort's servants did not leave happy memories at all. She was curious why Tristane, who did not grow up in a dark environment, could not even produce the faintest Patronus. The one-eyed girl looked visibly drained by the end of the lesson, more exhausted than usual.
At the end of the lesson, Fleur asked Hermione and Ginny to stayed behind. Hermione's curiousity increased when Fleur asked them to follow her, not to her office, but to an abandoned classroom at the sixth floor, far from the path any student would take. Well, students who did not happen to search for secure locations for amourous activities.
The abandoned classroom was dusty and full of cobwebs. There were a few desks and a couple of unbroken chairs. Taking cue from Fleur, the Gryffindors swished their wands, cleaning the place.
"Professor Delacour, why are we here?" Hermione asked, coughing from the dust. Fleur had never changed her name. As with Veela traditions, Bill changed his name instead and took Fleur's surname.
"It's Fleur, Hermione. We're not in class." Satisfied that their environment was cleaner, Fleur sat on one of the tables. Hermione opted for the chair, while Ginny copied Fleur.
"They should be here anytime soon."
"Who's coming?" it was Ginny who asked.
Fleur did not have to answer as the door opened. Their two guests had arrived. McGonagall took the chair and sat next to Hermione, while Andromeda, after locking the door behind her, sat on the table. She waved Hermione's offer to switch places.
"We should be able to talk here without interruptions or eavesdroppers. My office, while secure, unfortunately has too many ears," McGonagall explained cryptically.
Hermione frowned.
"Uh, Professor, wouldn't it be better having past Headmasters and Headmistresses of Hogwarts around?" the brunette was confused. She glanced at Ginny who was looking equally confused.
"While Albus's presence is certainly beneficial, I don't want to risk the Slytherin House finding out anything." McGonagall leaned back on her chair. "Phineas and Severus, especially. No matter what, Ms. Black is Phineas' descendant and Severus is overly protective of his Slytherins."
"Before the both of you share whatever you've found, let us start first," Andromeda took the lead. "The Ministry has confirmed that Ms. Black grew up with her father, Altair Black, in Australia." Seeing the panicked look on Hermione's face, Andromedia hastily added, "The Ministry is certain that your parents were never in contact nor ever in their radar, Hermione." The brunette calmed a little, though her face was still full of worry.
"Altair Black was the bastard son of Cygnus Black," Fleur took over. "For some unknown reason, Cygnus had a muggle mistress in Italy and she bore him a son. The Ministry is trying to track down this mistress as we speak. Altair Black, in his teenage years, ran away from home and ended up in Australia. Cygnus kept the whole affair a secret and never told a soul that he had a son. It could not be that he was ashamed of having a muggle mistress - the fact that he left a will with Gringgotts, declaring his son and his son's offspring as heirs to the Black family shows that he was, in fact, proud of his son."
"The question is, why did he keep Altair as a secret? Why did he chose a muggle for his mistress? How did he know Altair, or in this case, Altair's daughter, will return to England?" McGonagall softly spoke.
"Wait, was the muggle a witch?" Ginny asked.
McGonagall shook her head. "She was not a muggleborn, Ms. Weasley. She was a muggle."
Hermione and Ginny exchanged glances. That was a surprise to the both of them. The House of Black was famous for its staunch beliefs in blood purity.
"This keeps on adding more questions instead of answering anything," Hermione remarked.
"Indeed, Hermione," Fleur answered. "Let me ask you both a question: did you notice how exhausted Ms. Black was just now?"
Both students nodded their heads.
"She looked more tired than usual," Ginny observed. "I know that casting spells, for a beginner like her, takes a lot of energy. But just now, either the spell was too tiring, or something else happened. I mean, when I started learning to cast Patronus, it was tiring, but I did not feel half dead."
Fleur nodded. "That was because something else happened in the class. As you both are well aware, I am a Veela. We can manipulate emotions to a certain extent."
Both students nodded their heads again, to show they remembered.
"Now, over the years, I managed to control my thrall for a certain period of time - that's why boys could focus during classes, but they're still dazed outside of classes. It drains my energy too much if I exert control for a whole day. Anyway, just now in class, I set my thrall on Ms. Black. I was trying to see whether I could sense her emotions and get a clue or two."
"Then what happened?" Hermione asked, seeing Fleur stopped.
"At first, my thrall was working on her," Fleur said slowly. "I could sense that Ms. Black was focusing on the lesson at hand. But suddenly, my thrall was thrown back at me. I don't know how to properly explain this, but Ms. Black escaped from my thrall while both being aware and not being aware of it."
"Uh… what?" Ginny was confused.
"I mean," Fleur sounded frustrated, "Ms. Black had no idea I was setting my thrall. But at the same time, she knew what I was doing and threw my thrall back at me. I don't know how to explain it. But that's what happened. What's more, for a tiny moment, she felt really dark. I can't really explain it, and I'm not even sure what happened, but that's what happened."
The room's other four occupants looked worried.
"Dark you say, Professor Delacour?" McGonagall asked.
Fleur nodded to confirm.
"Well, she's a Black. I won't be surprised if Altair learned something from my father and passed it on to Ms. Black," Andromeda observed. "Unfortunately, what you described is unfamiliar to me, Fleur. I'm not sure what that could be."
"The both of you, please take extra precaution. We are facing the Blacks, they're one of the darkest wizarding families," McGonagall pleaded.
Both students promised.
"How's progress from your end?" Andromeda asked.
Hermione glanced at Ginny, who shrugged, signaling the brunette to speak for the both of them.
"Well, Tristane did mention about growing up with her father and never knowing her relatives until this summer," Hermione slowly answered. "I find it weird that in just that short span of time, Dra - uh Malfoy and Tristane are very close, and that the Slytherins are very protective of her. She doesn't seem to hold any magical prowess whatsoever, although she is certainly improving in her wandwork. But any Second Year can easily beat her anytime. She seems pretty naïve and ignorant, for a Slytherin. She is too… harmless to be Sorted there." Hermione pondered for a moment. "She is certainly nice to both Ginny and I, to the point that the rest of Slyterins are sort of tolerating and even being quite friendly with us. Oh, and for some strange reason, Narcissa Malfoy bakes Tristane cookies daily, even with the full knowledge that those cookies are eaten by us."
"Well, by me mostly. But there's no poison or anything like that - we've checked," Ginny hastily added, seeing the shocked looks on the professors' faces.
The three professors frowned and exchanged glances with each other.
"I'm not sure what my dear sister is planning, but I know she definitely will never do that," Andromeda looked worried. "Please be on your guard constantly, I don't like the sound of this."
"Call for us immediately if you sense danger," Fleur added. "That's the reason Andromeda and I are teaching here, remember?"
Both girls promised.
McGonagall rose, assisted by Fleur and Andromeda.
"Ladies, we will keep you updated as soon as we hear news from Kingsley. I want this to be over with quickly, I think you both don't need anymore unnecessary adventures."
That night, Hermione slept fitfully. Her nightmares consisted of her time at Malfoy Manor, but this time instead of Bellatrix torturing her, it was Tristane.
