Chapter Fourteen
From the moment her mother had left to go and fight whatever it was that was in the forest, Morvin was scared. In fact, she was terrified. All the adults were too busy trying to evacuate or trying to see what was going on outside, that they had completely forgotten about her.
The noises of the screaming centaurs coupled with the roaring of the beast, left her shaken and scared, sitting alone in the corner of the darkened hallway. Even when she tried to cover her ears with her hands, the noise could not be blocked out.
She sat rocking backwards and forwards, her hands covering her ears with her eyes squeezed tightly shut. She didn't want to be there, she wanted her mother back. She wanted to be wrapped up in her mother's loving arms, where she felt safe and protected.
Morvin was so oblivious to what was going on around her that she didn't see the two nasty wizards, or the witch in pink wander up to her. The last thing she was aware of was feeling a shock of pain shoot through her body as darkness engulfed her.
When next she woke, she was alone in a small cage, hidden under the cover of darkness. She reached her hands out to touch the metal bars, and whimpered in pain as she felt her skin burn.
Pulling herself into the middle of the cage, far away from the bars, she hugged her knees tightly to her chest and lay her head on top of them. All she wanted was her mother, where was she? Why hadn't she come for her yet? What if her mother died and she never got the chance to see her again? What if no-one ever came looking for her?
Trying to compose her runaway thoughts and emotions, she calmed herself down enough to remember the last words her mother had said to her. "I must go little Mo, but I promise I will come back to you. Trust me." Her mother had never let her down before and she didn't think she would let her down now. She just had to have trust in her.
That was easier said than done however, as several voices could be heard coming from outside the cage
"And where is your proof that an immortal child exists Dolores?" A male voice demanded.
A small giggle could be heard, a sound that grated on Morvin's nerves, because she knew who that sound belonged too.
"Why she's right here of course?" Dolores Umbridge's recognizable voice said, as she carefully magicked the cover off the cage, revealing the small vampire child to the Wizengamot. They gasped in shock and strained their necks in order to see the child better.
Despite the fact that her eyes were not blood red, she was clearly a vampire child.
"She is an abomination against nature." One wizard yelled, disgust clearly etched in his voice.
"That is why I thought it best to bring her to your attention. When the concern was raised I, of course, had to investigate the claim for myself. And sadly this is what I found." Dolores said, looking rather unsettled and upset. The Wizengamot were playing right into her hands, and soon she would have them where she wanted them.
"Very understandable Dolores. Such things cannot and should not be ignored." The Chief Warlock said in agreement. "This-this thing should not be allowed to roam about our world freely. It is a danger to not only us but to muggles as well. There is a reason why immortal children are illegal. They are unpredictable and a liability. A danger to us all. What say we put this to a vote?" He said, to the resounding 'ayes' of the room.
Feeling a surge of bravery Morvin suddenly shouted,
"My mother will-" But she couldn't finish her sentence as Dolores Umbridge yelled 'quiet' to her, before one of the nasty wizards electrocuted her into silence. She lay whimpering and shaking on the floor of her cage, as pain coursed throughout her body. She was so disoriented that she could no longer focus on the voices around her.
"Mother, who is this girl's mother?" The Chief Warlock asked curiously.
Dolores looked at him with a steady gaze and said,
"Her mother was an unknown female vampire. She put up some resistance when we tried to take the immortal child into custody. Naturally we had to take care of the threat she posed."
The Chief Warlock nodded in agreement then said,
"Understandable and very commendable of you all." He said, towards Dolores and the other two wizards. He then banged his gavel and instantly silence fell onto the room, as he said, "The immortal child is forbidden for a reason. It has been many years since one has been in our custody, so we do not know any information with regards to them. With that in mind, I want you to take a moment to think about your decision. Think about what could happen if we let this thing go back into our society. Think of the danger that it could pose to our people as well as the muggles. Ask yourself this question- do you really want this thing living amongst us?" He said letting his gaze drift around the serious and worried looking faces of the members of the Wizengamot. "The question of the matter is, do we let the immortal child live, or do we rid it from our world. The choice is yours?" He said seriously. "In favor of destroying the immortal child, please raise your hand." He looked around then nodded grimly. "In favor of releasing the child back out into the world, please raise your hand." Again he looked around then said, "And so you have made your choice. The immortal child shall be destroyed. Guard will you please bring down the torch."
Dolores Umbridge had to hide her grin at the Wizengamot's decision. She knew what their decision would be in the end, as they were a group of old fashioned witches and wizards. They didn't like to break from tradition, and so therefore would never have tolerated an immortal child to live amongst them.
But still, once she had heard their decision, excitement coursed through her veins. She had done it, she had gotten her revenge on Hermione Granger and it was so much more satisfying than she could ever have imagined. Her plan had been perfect. The manticore would have done a lot of damage back at Hogwarts, and if it managed to kill any of the traitors, then so much the better in her eyes.
She would later blame the devastation and destruction on Hermione's dragon, after all the manticore would be long gone by then. And if, by some miracle, Hermione and the dragon did survive, then it would be too late. The immortal child would already be destroyed by then, and there would be nothing Hermione could do. Revenge was hers and no-one could take that away from her. No-one.
Hermione's words still hung in the air, as everyone looked on in silence. No-one knew where Morvin was, she was gone.
"Where is she?" Hermione asked again, sounding more desperate this time. As she made her way towards the castle. She needed to find Morvin, she needed to make sure she was all right. She also had to make sure Dolores Umbridge was still in the castle as well. Otherwise who knows what the deranged witch would do to her daughter.
"Hermione stop." Demetri said, grabbing her arm to halt her in her tracks.
She glared at him, with eyes that were frantic with worry.
"I have to find my daughter." She snapped, trying to tug her arm out of Demetri's strong grip.
"I know Hermione and we will find her, but Morvin isn't in the castle." He said, after all he was a specialized tracker. "The witch has gone as well." He said, confirming Hermione's worst fears.
He watched as she visibly shrank back, guilt and anger warring with each other. Finally after a moment, she looked up at him with fire burning in her eyes.
"Then where is she Demetri? Tell me where my daughter is?" She commanded.
He looked around for a moment then sighed, turning an apologetic gaze towards her.
"Hermione I can't pick up her track, I don't know where she is."
At his words Hermione let out a growl of frustration and pulled her arm from his grip. Her eyes were full of fire and determination.
"Then what good is that to me. If you can't help me find Morvin, then I know someone who will." She said, rushing back up to the castle, as her worried friends and family followed closely behind.
They all had a feeling of guilt at the situation. If only they had paid a little more attention to her, then perhaps Dolores Umbridge wouldn't have gotten her grubby little hands on her. They should have been protecting Morvin, they should have been watching her, then perhaps this wouldn't be happening now.
Hermione found the person she was looking for, and marched straight up to her. Caroline Fenton had been the one who told Dolores about Morvin in the first place. Pulling out her wand, Hermione pointed it straight at Caroline's chest, but got no response from the action.
"Where is she? Where is my daughter?" Hermione demanded. She frowned when the other woman didn't blink, she didn't even flinch when Hermione prodded her with the tip of her wand. She just stood frozen on the spot, staring into the distance. "Answer me." Hermione all but yelled, feeling her frustration and anger rise to the surface at Caroline's unresponsive behavior.
"Hermione." Severus whispered calmly, walking up to the two woman as he carefully pulled her wand away. "Stop this behavior at once. You getting angry won't bring Morvin back."
Hermione's eyes softened slightly as she turned to look at Severus. The tension in her body easing slightly.
"Then what will bring her back Severus. Caroline knows something."
Pulling Hermione back a little, Severus moved to stand in her place before taking Hermione's hand in his own.
"Yes I agree; she does know something. But look at her Hermione, does she look right to you?" He asked, trying to talk some sense into her. Hermione was a person of logic, but right now her emotions were clouding her judgement.
She turned to look at Caroline again, before noticing the slightly glazed look of her eyes. How had she missed that sign before? She wondered.
"She's been imperiod." She said quietly. "But how can she help me find Morvin?" Hermione whispered, rubbing her head with her hand.
Severus gave her a soft smile then said,
"Well done Hermione 10 points to Gryffindor." Turning his gaze to the woman who looked so much like Lily, but wasn't, he frowned then said, "I will perform legilimency on her and find out where Dolores has taken Morvin."
"Alright." Hermione agreed as she took a step backwards, allowing Severus all the room he would need to concentrate.
Marcus wrapped his arms protectively around her shoulder, then whispered,
"We will find her Hermione. I promise."
She gave him an unsure smile, before leaning back against him, feeling secure in his embrace.
"I hope so." She whispered, trying to stay positive.
The room fell silent as Severus locked eyes with Caroline. All at once he was in her mind, searching for the information he required. His stomach churned with unease, when he saw her thoughts and plans for seducing him, realizing that she would stop at nothing until she got what she wanted. He saw the image of him kissing Hermione by the lake, and felt the anger that came along with it. He had no idea that she had been watching that night, she had given no outward signs of having witnessed his kiss with Hermione, but knew that was probably part of her plan too. He saw the image of her going to Dolores, and felt her anger and hatred every time she spoke of Hermione.
The next image was the one he had been looking for, he watched as Caroline realized she had made a mistake in going to Dolores, and tried to rectify that mistake by standing up to the other witch. He watched as Dolores mocked and laughed at her before casting the imperius curse on her. Despite the fact that she no longer had the free will to do or say what she wanted, her brain was still in perfectly good working order, therefore she was able to hear everything that was being discussed.
Severus heard everything that he needed to hear, before quickly pulling out of Caroline's mind. They had wasted so much time already, he just hoped that they weren't too late.
"Severus." Hermione whispered from his side.
He was able to school his features before turning to look at her, the last thing he needed or wanted to do was worry her even more than she already was.
"They have taken her before the Wizengamot in the hopes that they will vote to destroy her. We must leave now." He said, his underlying fear clear in his voice.
Her eyes widened with fear and horror at the realization of what he was saying, as her thoughts reflected his. They could be too late.
Not wanting to think of the worst, Hermione cast a quick spell over her clothes, repairing the damage and getting rid of all the dirt. She didn't change them as she wanted them to see her in her full rider's outfit. With the hopes that her appearance could intimidate them.
"Let's go to the Ministry and get my daughter back." She said, with a determination that she didn't even know she was capable of at the moment under the present circumstances.
"Hermione you and Severus get to the Ministry as quickly as you can. I will alert Kingsley and Minerva to what is happening and we will all meet you there. Go, now." Dumbledore said, looking pale and exhausted by the events of the day.
"Thank you Albus." Hermione said, before she and Severus set off towards the apparition point.
Back at the castle Marcus turned towards Demetri then said,
"You must go and find Aro at once. Tell him that there is no time to waste and explain to him that Hermione and Morvin are in danger. He will come. He knows where the Ministry of Magic is because he has been there before. Leave now."
Demetri closed his eyes and thought of the leader of the Volturi. Once he could feel his presence he focused in on him then set off. He was staying close by because he didn't want to be too far from Hermione, which meant things would be made a lot easier for Demetri.
The moment Hermione and Severus reached the apparition point, she instantly took hold of him before apparating them straight to the Ministry foyer, with a loud angry crack.
Startled Ministry employees looked to see who or what had caused such a commotion and when they saw it was Hermione Granger, the feared vampire witch and Severus Snape, the death eater turned spy, the whisperings were quick to start.
Paying no attention to them, Hermione began to walk ahead, followed by Severus who was still dizzy and slightly disorientated at the speed she had apparated them there. But he had no time in which to pull himself together, as he followed Hermione to the dungeons of the Ministry, where the full Wizengamot were voting to end Morvin's life.
The closer Hermione got to the large room, the angrier she became. Her power and magic began to radiate and crackle all around her. She would make Dolores Umbridge pay for this, and Merlin help her if there was a single hair out of place on Morvin's head.
Reaching the large double doors, she took a calming breath before flinging the doors to the room open. The moment she looked around the room, the anger she felt instantly intensified as she saw her daughter, scared and shuddering in a cage as they went to lower a torch to her.
Dolores Umbridge was standing watching, her eyes alight with glee, while the members of the Wizengamot sat watching the proceedings from the safety of their chairs.
Using her vampire speed, Hermione moved to the man with the torch and extinguished it before he even knew she was there. She flicked her wand at him and sent him soaring across the room. Then she turned to glare at everyone else in the room, as she moved to stand protectively in front of the cage her daughter was in.
"Mummy." Morvin's weak voice said, filtering through into Hermione's mind.
"Hush now sweetheart I'm here. Mummy is here." She whispered back, without ever taking her eyes off the members of the Wizengamot, who were now all talking animatedly with each other.
"What is this?" The Chief Warlock asked, looking from Hermione to Dolores Umbridge. "What is going on?" He asked banging his gavel once again to silence the room.
"I have no idea." Dolores said, fear creeping into her voice as she saw how angry and terrifying the vampire witch was.
"You be silent." Hermione yelled pointing her finger at the woman in pink, as magic swirled around her. Dolores shuddered and shrank back, but couldn't get far enough away. "None of you will touch this little girl, she is my daughter and I will not let you harm her." Hermione hissed out.
"B-but she is an immortal child." The Chief Warlock replied, his voice quivering at how fierce Hermione looked.
"I know exactly what and who she is. She is no threat to you or the magical world." Hermione said, sounding a little more composed than she was.
"B-But Dolores said-" The Chief Warlock began to say but was quickly cut off.
"Dolores Umbridge has lied to you all. She is an evil vindictive bitch, and was out to get revenge on me by hurting the people I love." Hermione yelled, once again causing her magic to crackle in the air around her.
"How dare you?" Dolores said, looking outraged as she put her hands on her stocky hips.
Hermione turned to look at her and smiled vindictively as she used Dolores's own words against her.
"Oh I dare." She sneered, before turning her attention back to the Wizengamot. "This woman came to Hogwarts where a wedding was taking place between Charlie Weasley and his partner Phil. The Potters were there, the Malfoys, the whole Weasley family, the Professor's and even the Minister of Magic himself. She and her two goons imperiod a Professor before breaking down the door to the Great Hall. She made her intentions to us very clear." Hermione said, glaring at the woman who was now standing quivering before her. "She trapped us and sent a manticore into the Forbidden Forest, knowing that magic could not be used against it."
The Chief Warlock gasped out loud before looking at Dolores Umbridge with a look of outrage.
"Is this true?" He demanded.
She took a couple of step backwards only to bump into Severus, Albus, Kingsley, Minerva, Marcus and Felix.
"We can vouch that what Hermione speaks of is the truth." Albus said, glaring at the woman standing in front of him. "This woman endangered the lives of others, the body of the manticore is buried in the grounds of Hogwarts for you to see, and we can put our memories into a pensieve for you to see."
The Chief Warlock looked at the group of people, before turning his attention to Kingsley Shacklebolt.
"Minister have you anything to add?" He asked.
Kingsley stepped forward and began to address the whole of the Wizengamot.
"Hermione speaks the truth, this woman unleashed a manticore on unsuspecting witches and wizard, knowing there were innocent children present as well. Her intentions were to kill us, not maim us. Luckily we were able to floo out of the castle, while Hermione and her dragon fought and killed the manticore, along with the centaur tribes who unfortunately lost two of their own. This woman then proceeded to kidnap and lie to you about Morvin, Hermione's daughter, in the hopes that you would sentence her to death."
The Chief Warlock rubbed his chin absentmindedly before asking,
"By why? Why on earth would she go through all of that trouble for?"
"Because during Voldemort's reign," Hermione said, noticing how even now after his death, his name still managed to make people shudder in fear. "Dolores Umbridge had something that I needed, something that I knew would help destroy Voldemort once and for all. A locket belonging to Salazar Slytherin. The locket was a Horcrux, it contained a piece of his soul, which you all know. I had to trick her in order to take it and destroy it, as she was already consumed by its dark magic. She would never have given it to me willingly. Because I took the locket from her, she wanted to take my daughter from me."
At her words Dolores Umbridge screamed and charged towards Hermione, only to be frozen by a spell.
"Liar." She screamed, her face turning red as a manic glint flashed in her eyes. "You stole it from me. You took what was mine. I almost had my revenge, but once again you had to show up like the filthy hybrid you are. You are disgusting and don't belong in our world. You need to be destroyed and I-I nearly done that."
She giggled madly before Minerva walked up to her, her own face filled with anger.
"Shut up you pink toad." Minerva said, then much to the surprise of everyone in the room, she pulled her closed fist back, before punching her in the face. Dolores moaned, as her eyes rolled back in her head. Holding her fist in her hand, Minerva smiled then said, "That felt so good." Before walking back towards the rest of the group. They patted her on the back, as she basked in the glow of finally getting to do something she had been dreaming of doing for years.
"Enough." The Chief Warlock said, rubbing his hand over his temples, suddenly feeling a migraine coming on. "I will have order in my court." He said looking towards the group. "Even though your story may be true, and I do believe it is. That does not take away the fact that this child is an immortal. She does not belong in our world and poses a threat to us."
"No she doesn't." Hermione said, her stomach dropping at his words.
"Yes she does Miss Granger." He said somewhat half-heartedly. "We cannot turn a blind eye to her existence. If we let her go then what does that say to the rest of our world? What if other vampires think it is acceptable to change innocent children, and take advantage of that? Where should the line be drawn? We cannot make it one rule for you, and another rule for others. The world does not work in that way I'm afraid." He sighed heavily then said, "I'm afraid our previous ruling must stand, the immortal child must be destroyed."
"No." Hermione screamed, moving to stand at the cage. "I will not let you kill my daughter." She yelled.
"I'm afraid you have no choice Miss Granger." The Chief Warlock replied, a lump in his throat forming at the obvious love between mother and child.
"Oh but she does." A new silky voice said from the doorway.
There were several loud gasps as everyone turned to see Aro, flanked by Heidi and a grinning Demetri, standing looking tall and imposing. He did not turn to look at Hermione, but rejoiced in feeling her gaze on him. He had missed her terribly but could not think of that now. For now, he had to concentrate on Morvin.
"And who are you?" The Chief Warlock asked, suddenly feeling cold and anxious, as he took in the newcomers vibrant red eyes.
Aro stepped into the room and walked purposely towards an empty chair before sitting down on it elegantly. He crossed his legs and straightened out his cloak, before turning his piercing red eyes onto the members of the Wizengamot.
"My name is Aro Volturi." He smiled, feeling satisfied at the cries of fear he heard. "Ahh by your reaction I can tell that you know who I am. This is my brother Marcus, also known as Hermione's father and Morvin's grandfather." He said with a grin of enjoyment on his face. "He too is also a leader of the Volturi, so you can imagine he hasn't taken very kindly to the way either of his girls has been treated by you." He smiled calmly then continued on with his speech. "Hermione, well she is a very special member of the Volturi and what hurts her, hurts us as well. I can imagine that intelligent people like yourselves know where this is going." He said quirking his eyebrow up. He did not give them the chance to speak however, as he continued on. He was always in his element when delivering speeches. "Kill Morvin and their will be consequences. You will leave us with no choice."
The color instantly drained from the Chief Warlock's face at the underlying threat. The Volturi were powerful and dangerous. They took no prisoners and could easily annihilate the whole wizarding world in a blink of an eye if they so wished.
"What can we do though, we cannot let the immortal child go, too many people know about her."
Aro sat looking bored as he inspected his fingernails, then with a small smile rose to his feet. Using his vampire speed he moved to stand right behind the Chief Warlock, who almost fell off his chair in surprise.
"The answer is easy really. Let Morvin go and all of this will be forgotten. Let her go and I promise to do something unheard of by the Volturi." Aro said, sitting on the edge of the table, looking down at the extremely anxious wizard.
"W-what will you do?" He asked.
Aro unleashed a slow smile as he said,
"Let Morvin go, forget all about this and the Volturi will sign a Peace Treaty with Wizarding Britain. We will become your allies in the face of another Voldemort situation, should one arise. If you still feel that you can't comply, then I will declare War on Wizarding Britain. Morvin was pardoned by me and the Volturi guard, she is one of our own. Kill her and you go against me." He opened his hands out and looked at the Chief Warlock, a boyish smile spreading across his face. "Those are your options. Peace or War? Live or Die? Simple really." With that he moved back to stand next to Marcus, who gave him a small smile.
For the first time since stepping into the room, he stole a glance at Hermione who was looking at him with such awe and respect. Satisfied with her reaction, he then glanced towards the dark wizard, who was standing much too close to her for his liking. The dark wizard scowled at him, and all Aro could do was cock his head to the side and grin at him smugly.
The Chief Warlock looked around at all the members of the Wizengamot. They were silent and didn't seem to know what to say. They would be breaking the rules if they let Morvin go, but at the same time none of them wanted to risk going to War against the Volturi. The other positive was that they would then have allies in the Volturi guard, which could help protect them in the future.
"Before we make up our minds I would like to first get our Ministers counsel, and secondly I would like to understand what exactly you mean, when you say sign a Peace Treaty?" The other members began to murmur in agreement as Kingsley went and joined them in a discussion.
Meanwhile Aro turned to Marcus, giving him his most charming smile.
"Well what do you think brother? Did I do right?" He asked, as Marcus slowly shook his head at him. He could not hide his chuckle however, at his brother's sheer audacity.
"Really, must you be so dramatic?" Marcus chided playfully.
Aro laughed then said,
"Of course, when have you ever known me to be anything but dramatic?"
"Very true." Marcus agreed, with a chuckle.
Heidi, who had been watching the proceedings with a curious fascination, sauntered up to Aro, and placed her perfectly manicured hand on his arm.
"I think you were brilliant." She gushed, even though there was no feelings behind her words. Her eyes were fixed on Hermione, who was standing glaring at her next to the dark wizard.
"Thank you my dear." Aro whispered quietly, before squeezing her hand.
Suddenly there was a loud thud as the Chief Warlock banged his gavel, getting the attention of all the occupants of the room.
"The Wizengamot has spoken to Minister Shacklebolt and he can vouch for Morvin that she is no threat to us. He told us of her diet, her behavior and even her acceptance of the magical world. It is very rare to find someone so young with so much control. But before we can make our final decision, we would like to know what you mean by Peace Treaty. We would also like to know what exactly that would entail for us, if we signed it."
Aro smiled at the group of witches and wizards, flashing them his small, but deadly, pearly white teeth.
"As Hermione is still magical I understand how important this world is to her. I know of the dangers she faced as a muggleborn witch during Voldemort's rise to power. I have been alive for hundreds of years and know that once one Dark Lord is vanquished another is sure to follow behind. Therefore I propose that the Volturi will stay in Volterra as normal, we will not interfere in the magical world, unless you specifically need the help of the guard. We can work together to create laws that are beneficial to us all, such as we can make it illegal for a vampire to change another magical being, if a vampire does you may call on us to hold a trial for them. Likewise a magical being may not destroy a vampire, unless there is reason too." He looked around the room, his face serious as he then said, "Our existence, like yours, relies on secrecy, and on us not exposing ourselves to the human world. We have our own rules and laws to follow, but that doesn't mean we cannot unite and become friends. After all, do we not want the same things? All I ask is that you let Morvin go. Then we can discuss the signing of the Peace Treaty. So what say you?" He asked.
The Chief Warlock looked around the room at all the members. With a small sigh he then said,
"Those in favor of peace and letting the little girl go please raise your hand." He looked at all the hands in the air before turning to look at the guard. "Can you please release the child?"
With a slight nod of his head, the guard walked over to the cage and cast a spell on it, before the lid popped open.
Immediately Hermione went over to Morvin, and picked up her small trembling body. Morvin buried her head in the crook of Hermione's neck and squeezed her eyes shut, as she held onto her mother tightly.
"I am so sorry sweetheart." Hermione said, cupping the back of Morvin's head gently and inhaling the scent of her hair. "I promise to take much better care of you, no-one will ever hurt you again." Tears trickled down Hermione's face and into her daughter's soft curls. Never before had she felt more like a failure than what she did then. Turning to the Chief Warlock, her eyes ablaze with fresh anger, she asked,
"What is to be done with Dolores Umbridge?"
The Chief Warlock looked at the semi-conscious woman with much disgust as he said,
"For putting the lives of Hogwarts Professors and our own Minister in danger. I sentence you to life in Azkaban. And for putting the whole wizarding world in mortal peril I sentence you to the dementors kiss. Guards you may take her and her cohorts away."
"No." Dolores cried out as the guards dragged her out of the room kicking and screaming, followed by the burly wizards and a dazed looking Caroline Fenton. Because she had been under the imperius curse, they couldn't prove how much she had been involved in the plot. So sentenced her to a minimum of one year in Azkaban. Hermione was happy with that, as she knew that in the end Caroline had tried to put a stop to it.
Once the prisoners had been taken away, the small group sat down with the members of the Wizengamot to hash out the plans for the Peace Treaty between the Volturi and Wizarding Britain. But it was Hermione who eventually came up with the best idea.
"Now that Dolores is away you will be needing a new Department Head for the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures. Might I make a suggestion?" She said with a sweet smile.
After that, ideas were formed and plans were made until finally Aro, along with Heidi rose from the table.
"Ladies, gentlemen, I can see that you no longer need me here, so I will take my leave. I will see you all at the celebratory ball in a week's time." He bowed at everyone, before Heidi took his arm and together they left the room.
Feeling annoyed and bereft Hermione rose to her feet and followed the couple out into the hall. They were waiting for the magical elevators when she reached them.
"Aro please, can you spare me a moment." Hermione asked, looking from Aro to the woman on his arm, wondering if they were a couple or not.
He glanced at Heidi then gave a slight nod, as he watched her walk into the elevator by herself, leaving him alone to talk to Hermione.
"Yes mio caro." He asked, enjoying being in such close proximity with her. He could smell her sweet scent and he could hear her odd heart beating in her chest. He had missed her, and standing so close to her now, he craved her very essence. He had promised her that he would keep back, that any decisions made would be made by her, and her alone. He would not force things. Even if it meant that in the end she picked the dark wizard over him. Standing next to her now however, his control was reaching its limit. He needed her like he needed blood to survive.
Hermione gave a slight shudder at the use of his pet name for her. It had been so long since she had last seen him, and yet he was still able to cause her body to respond to him. She could actually feel her body thrum with pleasure, and sing with relief at being so close. But her body also craved more contact with him, and she didn't know if she could give in to that craving. Not after the way he had treated her before.
"Hasn't he just made up for that though, after what he just did in front of the Wizengamot?" A treacherous voice said in her mind.
"Mio caro I'm waiting." He said, amusement dancing in his piercing red eyes.
"What- yes sorry." She said slightly dazed. "I just wanted to thank you for everything that you did in there, for saving Morvin's life and for making a treaty with the magical world. I still can't believe you done that." She said with a genuine warm smile.
He reached his hand out and gently rubbed her shoulder, causing a flame to ignite between them. The sexual tension had not lessened it seemed.
"What I said in there was the truth Hermione. You and Morvin are very special. If they were to hurt you then they would unintentionally be hurting me also. So please, no need to thank me mio caro."
Before she knew what she was doing, Hermione stood up on her tiptoes, and kissed Aro on the lips. It was soft and lingering, but it stoked the fire between them even more.
Feeling a little heady, she stepped away from him trying to get her emotions back under control. With one more 'thank you' to him, she turned on her heels and left, leaving an equally stunned Aro behind.
He smiled triumphantly before taking the magical lift up towards Heidi. Perhaps there was still hope for him and Hermione yet.