A/N: It's been way too long and I'm sorry! Hopefully this update makes up for it? By the way, try to catch myMean Girls reference.

Chapter 8

"Hermione!" Hermione spun around to see the owner of the shrill voice right behind her. Alice stood, beaming genuinely. Although Alice was originally quite the happy person, Hermione could tell that this smile showed true happiness. The former girl grabbed Hermione's hand and began jumping in place. "Come on, Hermione! We're graduating today! Aren't you happy?" The entire senior class was currently standing outside in their yellow robes, anxiously waiting to be called in for the graduation ceremony.

Hermione smiled amusedly. "Sure Alice." Alice beamed once again.

"Anyways, we're having a party tonight. You should come! No, wait, scratch that. You will come." Hermione opened her mouth to retort but Alice interrupted. "No, there is no room for discussion. We'll go dress shopping after school."

Hermione shook her head and sighed. "Alice, I-," Suddenly, the doors to the gymnasium opened and the students began filing in, leaving Hermione unable to object.


"When we were five, they asked us what we wanted to be when we grew up. Our answers were things like astronaut, president, or in my case… princess. When we were ten, they asked again and we answered - rock star, cowboy, or in my case, gold medalist. But now that we've grown up, they want a serious answer. Well, how 'bout this: who the hell knows?

This isn't the time to make hard and fast decisions; it's time to make mistakes. Take the wrong train and get stuck somewhere. Fall in love - a lot. Major in philosophy 'cause there's no way to make a career out of that. Change your mind. Then change it again, because nothing is permanent.

So make as many mistakes as you can. That way, someday, when they ask again what we want to be… we won't have to guess. We'll know." The crowd erupted into applause as Jessica stepped off of the stage. Hermione smiled as the students all threw their caps into the air, cheering all the while. Although she probably shouldn't, she sometimes wishes she was not a witch. She wished to be naïve again, enough to achieve all of those things in Jessica's speech. She wanted to take the wrong train and get stuck somewhere. Live a normal enough life in order to fall in love – a lot. Hermione wanted to major in philosophy, business, anything. She wanted to be anything, anyone other than herself sometimes. However, at the end of the day, Hermione will always be the war heroine and sometimes, that's perfectly okay.


"Get in Hermione; we're going shopping." Alice was currently driving Rosalie's red convertible, said girl looking particularly annoyed in the passenger seat. Hermione was contemplating her choices at the moment. Maybe I should make a run for it, Hermione thought. She scanned her surroundings to look for the best route. While sighing, Rosalie exited the car and dragged Hermione towards it. Opening the back door, she pushed Hermione in and crawled in after her.

"Let's go."

Alice nodded before stepping on the gas pedal with full force. In obedience, the car lurched forward. Although the speed felt like nothing to the vampires, Hermione pretended to have recovered from her shock to keep up her act as a human. Soon enough, the group passed a sign on the highway signaling their nearing to Port Angeles.


Hermione looked around with caution, her war instincts already kicking in. Having never been to Port Angeles before, she made sure to memorize every street, curve, and crevice that she came in contact with. The three were currently approaching an expensive looking store with bright light emitting from its windows. "Um, is it really necessary to go to such an extravagant store when we're only shopping for a casual party?" Alice turned to look at Hermione while still walking.

"Oh Hermione, just because it's casual doesn't mean we can't look casually fabulous." Hermione rolled her eyes and smiled at her typical Alice-like sentence.

Upon entering the shop, an elegant woman with a thick French accent began bombarding both Alice and Rosalie with kisses on each cheek. "Oh Alice, Rosalie, how lovely it is to see you again! What brings you here?"

"Aimée, we've missed you." Rosalie replied while smiling.

"We've come with our friend Hermione to find her a casual dress." Alice said, gesturing to Hermione at her right. Rosalie laughed when she called Hermione their friend but quieted under Alice's glare. Almost automatically, the French woman whipped her head towards Hermione. Without introducing herself, she spun on her heel and began pointing at dresses around her, shouting orders at her assistants in French. After only five minutes of dress collecting, all of the dresses were piled upon Hermione and she was pushed into a dressing room.

"Try them on, sweetie." Aimée stated from the other side of the dressing room door. Hermione sighed. This is going to be a long day.


"Hermione, that one's perfect! We have to buy this one!" From hearing Alice's words, Hermione was about to drop to her knees and kiss the ground. They had been at the shop for about four hours while trying on dresses and now only had an hour left until the party. If she weren't a vampire, Hermione would've fallen asleep right on the dressing room floor. However, Hermione had to admit that this dress really was the best out of all that she had tried on. The top of the dress was a sheer white blouse which led to a blue high-low skirt of lace when reaching the waist. Hermione was given gold heels and accessories to match.

"Aimée, you are amazing! Thank you so much. How much will this be?" Aimée crossed her arms and glared at Alice jokingly.

"Now, now, what type of friend would I be if I made you pay? No charge!" Aimée replied while arranging Hermione's hair into a sleek half up-half down hairstyle. "Anyways, Hermione must look pretty for this guy she likes."

Hermione spun around quickly and raised her eyebrows. "Oh, I think you're mistaken. I don't like-,"

"No, no, no, Aimée is never mistaken. You like a boy, my friend. I can see it in your eyes. Good luck." After winking conspicuously at Hermione, she left with her assistants in tow leaving two very curious Cullens and an embarrassed Hermione.


Hermione walked into the Cullen home, not knowing what to do. Surrounding her were her classmates partying to no end. Alice and Rosalie have already parted, going their own ways and leaving Hermione alone. Suddenly, a warm arm wrapped itself around her shoulders. Looking to her left, she saw Mike smiling down at her with a drink in hand. "Hey Hermione, you made it!" Hermione smiled awkwardly at him while nodding. "You know, I always thought the Cullens would have a weird ass house, probably because they're weird too, you know?" Hermione had not been paying attention and was currently looking out the window, longing to leave. However, Mike slid his arm, which was around her shoulders, around her waist, catching her attention. Mike pulled her in, close enough for Hermione to smell his breath which smelled suspiciously of alcohol. "Let's dance." He attempted to pull her with him towards the DJ but before he could, Hermione pulled away.

"Um, I have to go to the bathroom." With that, Hermione quickly retreated to a quiet hallway with little people. She briskly entered the nearest room and shut the door, locking it afterwards. Hermione turned away from the door and was met with a beautiful sight. In front of her were shelves upon shelves of books covering all four walls except for the door and a window opposite it. In the middle of the room was a neatly organized desk, leading Hermione to believe that this was a study of some sort. She smiled and sniffed the air. The room smelled greatly of ink and paper, a scent she could never have enough of. Bringing her index finger to a random shelf, she began walking, trailing her finger across the books' binds. There were first editions, rare books, never before seen ones; there seemed to be no end. Suddenly, Hermione stopped, her index finger left on one book which was now the focus of her attention. She cautiously pulled it out and analyzed its cover. This book had felt different, stranger than the others. Upon opening it, Hermione was met with a cloud of dust and a name written in fine script. Aro. Hermione's eyes widened in shock. She knew exactly who Aro was and knew of his role as leader of the Volturi. Curious to see the book's contents, Hermione quickly opened it to a random page. The book was, in fact, a journal.

"Her power is amazing; a pain so strong and the beholder so bold that no victim can withstand their wrath. Jane will be a staple in our guard, it is already so obvious. Her brother is of great use as well with the power to cut off anyone's senses. Together, they will make the Volturi even more feared and powerful than ever before. Although their powers remain only illusory, it can and will defeat anyone." Hermione shut the book and quickly placed it back in its original spot. She knew of Aro, Marcus, and Caius of the Volturi but the others were still unknown to her. Having read about two vampires in the Volturi with such great power, Hermione could not help but worry. She worried that, if confronted by them, she will suffer under their powers. Shaking the thoughts from her mind, she walked to the door and left the room, wishing to get as far as possible from the journal.

Hermione returned to the party which had yet to die down. Suddenly, the scent of wolf invaded her senses. Looking behind her, she saw Jacob smiling, Jared and Quil flanking his left and right side. He began walking towards her.

"Hey, Hermione."

"Hey, Jacob." Hermione replied while smiling and then turned to the two boys behind him. "Hey Jared, Quil." The two nodded in reply and then went their own way, whistling awkwardly and pretending to be busy. Hermione quirked an eyebrow at Jacob. "What's up with them?"

Jacob scratched his neck nervously and looked at Hermione before reaching into his pocket and retrieving something she was unable to see. He took Hermione's hand and placed his hand within hers. She felt a small, woodsy-smelling object hit her hand, followed by a chain. When taking away his hands, Hermione could see that Jacob had left a bracelet in hers. Upon closer inspection, she realized that the object on the chain was a wooden carving of a wolf. Hermione laughed and looked to a happy looking Jacob. "I, uh, I made this for you; graduation present. I hope you like it."

Hermione smiled warmly and nodded. "It's wonderful. Thank you, Jacob." Suddenly, as if it were clockwork, a slow song began playing throughout the house. Couples around the two began intertwining, swaying to the beat of the music. Hermione and Jacob looked at each other awkwardly before bursting into quiet laughter. Jacob held out his hand gentlemanly. "Shall we?" Hermione took his hand and together, they led themselves to the main room where most people were dancing. Jacob placed his hands on Hermione's waist and Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck. Both began to sway at the song's rhythm in the typical, middle-school "I-don't-know-how-to-dance" fashion, causing Hermione to smile amusedly. She laid her head calmly into Jacob's chest, surprising him greatly before he eased into the stance and moved in closer. After dancing for a while, Jacob leaned into Hermione's ear. Hermione had her eyes closed and felt the tickle that came with Jacob's breath. "Hermione." He said in his deep voice.

"Hm?" She replied with her eyes still closed, sighing in content. There was a pause before Jacob spoke again, as if he was contemplating whether he should speak or not.

"Go on a date with me."

Hermione sighed again while smiling. She was so calm in that moment that she had barely registered what Jacob had said. "Yes." Jacob stilled, ruining the swaying rhythm they had been maintaining. Hermione, confused, looked up at Jacob and was surprised to see a face-splitting grin on his face. "Jacob, are you alright?" Suddenly, his arms wrapped themselves around her and soon enough, Jacob was lifting her up into the air. Hermione frowned. "Jacob?" Jacob froze, noticing her frown, before putting her down. However, the ear-to-ear grin was still there.

"You said yes." Jacob practically jumped in place before a very confused Hermione. "You said yes!" Once again, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Hermione tightly, hugging her. If she had the necessity to breathe, Hermione was sure she would be unconscious at the moment. Letting her go, Jacob looked at her with so much warmth. "I'll pick you up at 7, this Friday. I know this restaurant in Port Angeles. You'll love it!" Hermione looked at Jacob's smiling face in shock. Did he ask me out? Although she was skeptical about dating Jacob, Hermione could not let herself reject Jacob, and this frightened her greatly. Suddenly, Jacob's smile disappeared from his face and a grim look now replaced it. "I have to go." Hermione turned to see Jacob walking in the direction where Alice and Bella were conversing on the staircase. Soon, Jacob, Quil, and Jared were now a part of the group. Hermione used her vampire hearing to eavesdrop on the conversation.

"Alice, what'd you see?" Bella inquired to a dazed looking Alice. Upon observing Alice, Hermione could tell that she had just awoken from one of her visions.

"The decisions been made." Alice replied worriedly. The group and Hermione all frowned.

"What's going on?" Jacob interrupted. Without answering his question, Bella continued.

"They're not going to Seattle." She whispered.

Alice shook her head before looking away. A second later, she looked at the group below her seriously. "No. They're coming here." Hermione frowned once again. What is happening?


"They'll be here in three weeks." Alice said to the group gathered within Carlisle's study. The wolves, Cullens, and Bella were all oblivious to Hermione listening to their interaction from outside of the door.

"This could turn into a blood bath." Carlisle told everyone. This made Hermione frown even more. She did not know what the cause to all this commotion was, but she did know that if there was to be a "blood bath", she was going to find out what it was.

"I didn't see anyone I recognized." Alice replied while shaking her head. She then paused before continuing. "Maybe one.

Edward frowned. "I know his face. He's a local. Riley Biers." Hermione nearly growled, almost giving herself away but she caught herself in time. She thought she had taught him a lesson when she killed those two newborns. Apparently, he had not taken the warning seriously. "He didn't start this. Victoria is toying with him. She's using him to get to us, and she's coming soon." Hermione's eyebrows furrowed. There was that name again: Victoria.

Silence reigned in the room before Alice interrupted with shocking news. "They were passing around Bella's scent; her red blouse."

Jasper placed an arm around Alice's shoulder. "With the wolves, we have a slight advantage. The newborns won't even know they exist. However, that still doesn't mean we are guaranteed an easy win. We must train, harder than before." Hermione heard the swish of their clothes as everyone nodded in agreement and knew the conversation was over. She quickly left for her home, not wanting to get caught.


Hermione sat at the piano, multiple thoughts running through her head. She did not know what to do with the new occurrence which was quite surprising as she always knew what to do. She knew that simply asking the Cullens or even the wolves was simply out of the question. It also did not help that this subject was not one she could research. Hermione knew that, without any other choice, the only thing left for her to do is have Jacob trust her enough to tell her. Hermione sighed. "That is easier said than done."


"Rise and shine!" Hermione exclaimed while ripping open the curtains of Jacob's bedroom. The pack snickered as the half-naked Jacob lay in his too-small bed, squinting at the sun shining upon his face.

"What?" He said groggily, pulling the covers up to his face. The pack was currently gathered in Jacob's bedroom, waiting for him to get up.

Hermione smirked before pulling the blanket away from him and leaving him in only boxer shorts. She tried not to pay much attention to his shirtless self and cleared her throat. "Wake up! You've got some cleaning to do." Jacob's eyes widened and he shot up upon realizing that Hermione was in the room. He looked around to see the entire pack laughing at the sight of him. Paul, Sam, and Jared all had mops, brooms, and cleaning supplies in hand.

"Hermione!" He yelled while trying and failing to cover himself up. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Oh calm down. I've already seen more than needed. Now hurry up and shower." Jacob blushed and quickly nodded before running into the bathroom.

Hermione laughed before sighing. "That idiot."


"I welcome you to my humble abode." Hermione said before mock bowing. Everyone was currently standing in the living room, the pack gaping at the sight of her home. Hermione had changed her home's wards to allow the pack to enter, finding them trustworthy enough.

"Humble my ass." Paul whispered not so quietly. Seth nodded in agreement.

"Yeah Hermione! Your house is huge!" He stated with the excitement of a child holding their first toy. "Hey, what do you say about becoming roomies, eh?" Jacob growled causing Seth to lift his hands up in surrender. "On second thought, never mind."

"Um, Hermione. You don't actually expect us to clean your entire house, do you?" Sam asked with an eyebrow raised.

It was now Hermione's turn to raise an eyebrow. "Of course I do. You lost the bet so now you must pay the consequences. Oh by the way, the pool needs cleaning too." Silence entered the room and everyone stood still. Hermione crossed her arms. "Well, chop, chop. This house won't clean itself." Jacob, Sam, Jared, and Paul all dispersed to separate areas of the home with their respective cleaning supplies. Smiling, she turned to the group who did not need to clean. "You all can just do whatever while I cook."

Leah frowned. "I'll help you Hermione. You shouldn't cook for so many people alone."

Hermione's eyes widened and she quickly rattled her mind for an excuse. "No, no, no. You're the guest. I can't have you cook. Anyways, I can only cook when I am alone. It's a strange thing." With that, she pushed a confused Leah to the couch where the other boys were watching TV and rushed to the kitchen. After checking that there was no one approaching, Hermione retrieved her wand from her sleeve and casted a charm upon the kitchen appliances. In seconds, they began bustling about the kitchen. The pans and pot laid themselves on the stove, beginning to cook multiple dishes at once. The oven heated itself, random objects flying in. The refrigerator was opening and closing repeatedly as if it were a replaying record. Hermione knew shifters ate more than a normal human would so she purposely had the appliances make more food than one would think they need. Seeing the successful work occurring without her, Hermione exited the kitchen.

Upon entering the living room, she was met with quite a sight. The entire pack was outside cannon balling, wrestling, diving, and just about everything else you can do within a swimming pool. Hermione rolled her eyes and laughed at the fact that everyone, except Leah, was shirtless. Do they even own more than two pairs of shirts? Hermione thought to herself. She exited through the back door and neared the pool. The pack, being shape shifters, heard Hermione approaching and stopped all motion. She stood with arms crossed while staring down at the group. "Really? I'm gone for two minutes and this happens?" The pack simultaneously grinned up at her. Hermione couldn't help but feel like their mother at that moment. Suddenly, Jacob lifted himself out of the pool and brought himself to Hermione's side. Hermione fought the urge to habitually gulp. Shirtless Jacob was one thing, but shirtless and wet Jacob was another. Hermione was so immersed in her thoughts that she didn't realize Jacob's arm moving towards her and soon enough, she was tumbling into the water. With the splash that came with her hitting the water, the pack erupted into cheers. Hermione, who had no need to breathe as a vampire, decided to play her own prank as well. Instead of emerging immediately from the water as one would, she stayed below and closed her eyes. Hermione could hear the commotion from above the water.

"What the heck. Why isn't she coming up?" Seth's prepubescent voice sounded. Hermione heard a splash to her right and felt herself rocking, indicating that a rather large figure had entered the water. An arm wrapped itself around her waist and Hermione could feel that they were rising. Suddenly, the warm summer's air surrounded itself her.

"Hermione! Hermione, can you hear me?" Jacob yelled frantically at Hermione who was now placed on the ground. Hermione made sure not to breathe. "She's not breathing!" There was shuffling and murmurs beside her.

"What do we do?" Seth asked worriedly. He looked to Sam, the Alpha of the pack. Sam, in all seriousness, looked at Jacob.

"Perform CPR on her." Hermione was torn between bursting into laughter and shrieking like a little girl. She heard Jacob gulp beside her.

"O-okay." Jacob gently plugged Hermione's nose and began nearing her face. If it were capable, her heart would have beaten right out of her chest. She was also glad that she was incapable of blushing.

When there was about half of an inch left between them, Jacob hesitated. Hermione took this moment to end her façade. She opened her eyes to see that Jacob's were closed and for some reason, this made her nervous. Before this could go any further, however, she spoke. "Boo." Jacob's eyes widened and he quickly shuffled away from Hermione, falling on his butt in the process. Hermione smirked. "That's what you get."

"B-but, you weren't breathing." Jacob stuttered, still shocked.

Hermione shrugged. "I'm good at holding my breath." She looked around to see everyone gaping, similar to how they were when first seeing her house. Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh quit looking at me like I have two heads." Suddenly, Jacob leaned forward and brought Hermione into a tight hug.

"Don't ever do that to me again." Hermione went stiff in his arms, unsure if she should hug back or not.

Hermione cleared her throat. "Well, I should check on the food." With that, she arose from her sitting position, making Jacob let go of her in the process. "Don't follow me in." She said, noticing that the group had made a move to follow her. "I can never cook with all of you breathing down my neck." Hermione walked towards the house's door and entered.

"Wait, Hermione! You're dripping into the house!" Jared exclaimed. Hermione looked down to see a puddle of water forming at her shoes. Hermione turned and smirked at them.

"It's all right. You're my maids. You can just clean it tomorrow." Hermione laughed as the "maids" groaned and the others snickered. Hermione entered the dining room to find a feast on the table. Hermione was surprised and knowing that she has seen dinner at Hogwarts before, this was quite the feat. The dining table was able to seat twelve people yet the food was practically overflowing. Hermione was sure that every color known to man was on the table at the moment. Snapping out of her reverie, she hurried to the pack before the food became cold. "Food's ready!" She returned to the dining room and not a moment later, the stomping of feet could be heard. Upon entering the dining room, the pack's eyes widened and practically glazed over. Leah, being the only sensible one of the group, rolled her eyes and sat down on the nearest chair. The scraping of her chair seemed to be the trigger and the boys fought each other for their seats but left the one next to Hermione, who was at the center, for Jacob. Once everyone was seated, they looked to the witch. She raised an eyebrow, "Aren't you going to eat?" They all grinned and began digging into their food. Hermione still could not fathom the fact that so much could enter their stomachs so quickly.

"Hermione." Seth called, causing the attention to land on him. "Please marry me." Everyone, except for Jacob, burst into laughter. The others just left Jacob to growl to himself.

"In your dreams." Hermione replied while grinning.


"I think it's time for us to go." Sam said authoritatively. The pack groaned.

"Aw, come on Sam. Stop being such a joy kill." Jared replied while throwing a carrot stick at Quil's face. The others nodded in agreement.

Sam looked down at them sternly. "We have to go. We scheduled to meet with the Cullens." All shenanigans stopped at that moment and the pack members became serious. Simultaneously, they arose from their chairs before turning to Hermione.

"Thanks for the dinner. It was great." Jacob said before hugging Hermione who had also risen. He then leaned in towards Hermione's ear as he had done at the night of the party. "Friday, 7o'clock; don't forget." Hermione looked up to Jacob and smiled while nodding. The pack looked on at this interaction confusedly. Hermione knew that they had heard what Jacob said and they were probably holding in their questions. Nonetheless, they restrained from asking and left peacefully.

Hermione shut the door behind Jacob and walked back to the dining room. The place looked atrocious. Napkins were laying on the ground, multiple plates were piled above one another, and some food found its way to the carpet. Hermione rolled her eyes before taking out her wand and casting a simple cleaning spell. She quickly dried the water from the pool that had puddled on the floor as well. Hermione was just about to cast an odor removing charm to remove the scent of food when a large crackling sound, similar to a fire, erupted in the living room. Hermione stilled her movements and her eyes widened. Only one thing could possibly make such a sound. The Floo. Did Dolohov find me? Hermione quietly tiptoed towards the living room, making sure to make no sound. When reaching the corner, Hermione whipped around it at vampire speed and quickly cast body binding spells on the intruder. "Bloody hell." Hermione furrowed her eyebrows. That voice sounded much too familiar. She looked at the victims hit by her spells and her eyes widened.

"Harry! Ron!" Hermione cried as she rushed to help them from their binds. Upon further inspection, Hermione realized that Ginny, Luna, and Draco were also in the room, all still bound from her attack. Hermione frowned before asking, "What the bloody hell are you all doing here?"

Ginny coughed, catching Hermione's attention. She grinned at Hermione and replied. "Surprise!"


A/N: Did you find the Mean Girls reference? If so, then I love you. If not, then… IT'S OK. YOU'RE STILL COOL.