AN: aaaaaaaand I'm back! I could give you a million excuses, but I'll just sum it all up with life.
I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy with everything going on in the world right now. Figured I owed everyone a chapter, considering most of my followers are probably quarantining at the moment.
DISCLAIMER: Don't own anything!
Part Four: Fwooper
After getting over his initial panic, Sirius refused to let go. Even as Zoya woke Hermione up to take potions, he held onto her. He watched after her potions were down as she relaxed back into him, and her eyes fluttered shut again. When she fell into her potions induced sleep again, he glanced up at Zoya and weighed his options. They were left with much less time than they had planned, and all of their hope was banking on this Stanislav guy. Hermione had been nothing but hopeful, but Sirius was reluctantly doubtful. If Zoya was part of this Russian community then she must know about Stanislav and the prison. He was reluctant to give up any information, but the weight of Hermione in his arms had him thinking that they were out of options.
"Do you know…" he began before pausing to glance back down at Hermione. He looked back up at Zoya with stronger resolve. "Stanislav Voronin," he finished simply.
He watched as the woman's eyes widened before she glanced down at Hermione with a new look in her eyes. After only a moment she asked the question that everyone seemed to be wondering, "What did she do?"
Sirius's lips thinned. "We need to see him. As soon as possible."
Zoya narrowed her eyes and gave him a thoughtful expression. "I will escort you personally." Sirius sighed in relief. "But I will not take you until morning. It is late. We will dine, talk, and then sleep." She stood and brushed her robes off before saying, "And you will tell me everything."
She left no room for arguments, and Sirius felt like he'd felt before. Boxed in.
"For now, I will show you to your rooms, so you can freshen up before dinner." When Sirius didn't move, she waved her hand jerkily. "Come."
Sirius stood easily with Hermione in his arms and followed her through what seemed to be a maze of stone corridors. They passed many people on the way who bowed their heads in respect to Zoya and glanced curiously at the two obvious strangers following her. Hermione didn't shift once in his arms by the time they made it to a corridor full of stone doors. They worked similarly to the entrance to Diagon Alley in that they each required a sequence of taps from a wand to shift the stones and open the room. She opened one before moving down the hall and opening another. Sirius paid close attention to the sequences and committed the both of them to memory.
"Normally, we charm the doors to recognize the occupants magical signature, but I am not sure how long you will be staying. I promise no one will be down here to disturb you." She gestured to the first door she opened. "This one is Hermione's. I had Annika bring some clothes for her because I wasn't sure if she had any. That one down there is yours."
Sirius stood quietly behind her as she seemed to realize something.
"Hermione… will she need my help changing?"
Sirius ignored her and walked quickly to the room she'd indicated to be Hermione's and slowly lowered her onto the large bed in the center of the room. His hand brushed her freed hair away like he'd done just that morning, and he noticed with some relief that her fevered blush had faded to a soft pink.
"Hermione," he said quietly. Hermione shifted and pushed her cheek further into his hand. "Hermione, there's a nice warm shower calling your name." He laughed when her nose wrinkled before she slowly blinked her eyes open.
"Really?" She asked.
"Yes," Zoya's voice said from the door. Hermione's eyes slowly trailed from Sirius's face to Zoya leaning against her doorway.
"Thank you for everything, Zoya."
The woman nodded and watched with her sharp eyes as Sirius led her to the doorway in the corner leading to the bathroom. Sirius stood on the edge and watched as Hermione examined the clothes left on the counter next to the sink.
He forced a smirk on his face and said cheekily, "Need any help with that shower of yours?"
He felt even more relief when she scowled at him and huffed a humorless laugh, "You wish, Sirius Black!"
The quirk in her brow and teasing smile on her face left him smiling as she shut the door in his face.
He was still smiling when he turned back towards the still thoughtful Zoya. They stood in silence for the minute it took Hermione to turn the water on.
"Do you love her?" Zoya asked matter-of-factly. Sirius's eyes widened, and he glanced back at the door.
"She saved my life," he said simply. She looked faintly amused when she shook her head.
"That's not what I asked."
Sirius shook his head and gave the woman a glare. "She's too young, but even if that weren't the case, she's dying. I don't think now is the time to be asking if I love her or not."
Zoya shook her own head slightly and tsked under her breath. "None of those sound like reasons not to love someone to me."
He let out an aggravated sigh and said, "She's family. I love her for what she's done for my godson, for everyone, but loving her for her… well I'm not quite there yet."
Sirius narrowed his eyes when Zoya gave him a humoring smile. "Yet, he says." She pushed herself off the doorway and gave him an appraising look. "I know what Hermione Granger has done for everyone. I've seen the papers and read the books. I imagine she wouldn't be that difficult of a person to love. You shouldn't fight it, Mr. Black."
Sirius rolled his eyes. He was getting tired of people pretending like they knew more about Hermione or their situation than was possible. He crossed his arms over his chest and raised his eyebrows.
"I'll send someone to fetch you two for supper. Then we will discuss Stanislav over some roast." She turned and disappeared back the way she'd come.
"Ah yes. A lovely dinner party topic," Sirius mumbled under his breath. He went to leave the room after her, but then he heard a sound coming from behind the door. Underneath the loud pounding of running water, he could hear Hermione singing softly to herself. She was off tune and her voice was anything but smooth due to her illness, but it made him smile nonetheless.
He considered waiting in Hermione's room until she was out just to make sure she didn't pass out or anything, but then he figured she seemed strong enough before she'd gotten in. Whatever potions they gave her seemed to be working (however temporarily).
As soon as he'd stepped out of Hermione's room, the door shut quite loudly behind him. As much as he was reluctant to admit it, a shower and warm meal sounded like just what he needed.
Hermione couldn't believe she had had a seizure just an hour ago. She hadn't felt as strong as she currently felt standing in the shower, and without even realizing it, she found herself humming a muggle tune she used to sing with her mum in the kitchen.
It wasn't until her fingertips were wrinkled and her skin a warm pink from the heat, that she decided to get out. She paused when her eyes turned to the soft bunch of fabric someone had left on the counter. She put on the underthings quickly before allowing her fingertips to hover over the seemingly scratchy fabric of the blue dress. She pinched the seam of the thick straps and held it up. It looked like it might fall to mid-shin and there were vibrant red and orange flowers embroidered in the bodice. She pulled it on over her head and froze when the thick linen molded to her body and caressed her skin like water. The dulled pins and needles soothed everywhere the fabric touched, and she very nearly cried at the absence of the feeling that hadn't left since they'd first started.
"Brilliant…" she muttered at the obvious charm work.
She swished the skirt of the dress pleasantly against her legs a few more times before sighing. She started wringing out her curls as she observed herself in the mirror. The dress was lovely, and she was thankful she didn't have to worry herself about putting on something appropriate for whatever they were getting themselves into. But she realized, it put a lot of the runes clearly on display.
Hermione jumped when a knock sounded through her room.
"I'm coming in, Hermione!" Sirius's muffled voice echoed through the cave-like room.
She squeaked and adjusted the straps of the dress on her shoulders before stepping out of the steam filled bathroom. Sirius was just opening the door when she slowly padded out on her bare feet. He quickly shut the door behind him before turning towards her with that charming smile that used to have Ginny and herself giggling quite ridiculously behind their hands all those years ago.
"Ready, love?" His eyes flicked over her dress before stopping on her feet. She shifted nervously and laced her fingers in front of her body. She could feel his gaze burning into her skin, intense grey eyes leaving a trail of goosebumps on her body. "Not quite," he whispered.
He glanced around the room before snapping his fingers.
"They've thought of everything," he said with a dry chuckle as he stepped toward a small dresser and picked up the simple grey boots they'd left for her in the corner.
"I have my own shoes," she mumbled half-heartedly, but she still lowered herself onto the edge of the bed pliantly.
Sirius stopped right in front of her with a frown. She opened her mouth to question him, but he reached his free hand out and grabbed the strap of her dress. His two fingers brushed against her collarbone as he rubbed the fabric between the pad of his thumb and his fore-finger. She sucked in a breath and an involuntary shiver made its way down her spine.
He hardly noticed as his brow furrowed in worry.
"Is it not hurting you?" He asked in confusion. Her cheeks erupted in flames when he kneeled in front of her and ran his fingers along the inside fabric at the bottom of her dress in wonder.
"It's…" she cleared her throat and averted her eyes. "...some kind of charm, I believe," she finished breathlessly.
"That's bloody brilliant. How'd they know?" She finally looked back at him to see that his face had returned to a mask of suspicion that he'd been wearing for days now.
She wrinkled her nose. "I'm not sure actually."
Sirius started to put her socks and boots on for her, and her blush immediately faded and her lips twisted into a scowl.
"I can do that myself. I'm not some invalid."
Sirius paused and slowly moved his eyes up so that he was looking up at her through his lashes. His lips turned up into the familiar mischievous smirk. He pulled her laces tight and opened his mouth to say something that would've been offensive, no doubt, but she interrupted him with a loud gasp.
She reached down and snatched up his fingers before trapping them between both of her hands.
"Sirius! I almost forgot! I can't believe I almost forgot! Well, I had a seizure, and then I passed out, and then I passed out again. So I guess it kind of makes sense that I forgot. Oh! And then the amazing shower, and this dress, and then you patronizing me. Oh, but I need to tell you, Sirius!"
Sirius's smirk had turned into a full blown grin at her distracted rambling, and he brought his free hand to her cheek as she talked. Once his palm made contact with her smooth skin, her mouth snapped shut. He gave a light laugh, and brushed his thumb across her bottom lip without much thought.
"You're rambling, kitten," he murmured, and his eyes crinkled in further amusement when he felt her cheeks warm beneath his palm. She moved one of her hand's up to rest over his, trapping it against her cheek, but Sirius wasn't complaining.
She squeezed both his hands briefly and blinked a few times. "Right… What I was trying to say is that Zoya knows Florenti," she finished rather lamely.
Sirius's eyes widened, but before he could say anything on the matter, there was a brief knock on the door.
Sirius's eyes flicked to the door before he finished tying her boots and jumped to his feet. He put on one of his charming smiles, but Hermione's words stuck to the forefront of his mind stubbornly. Just who exactly were they staying with?
With that on his mind, he swung the door open, and his smile dropped into a scowl.
The same huge man who had brought him into the caves in the first place stood in her doorway with a grin on his face.
"What are you doing here?" Sirius tried to keep the growl out of his voice, but he didn't quite manage it. The man's smile faltered, but then returned even brighter.
"Gotov k obedu?"
Sirius's lip curled. "We don't speak Russian, you ponce!" His scowl faltered when he felt Hermione's gentle hands wrap around his bicep, her curls tickling his skin due to how close she was standing. He looked down at her to see her smiling softly at the man.
"Hello, Alexei," she said with a short nod. Sirius turned and watched as the man, Alexei, positively beamed at the small witch.
"Her-moe-nee," he said before his lips twitched downward, and he said something very quickly in his tongue. He paused when he was done and rubbed his chin thoughtfully before his eyes lit up. "Apology," he said with a sheepish smile.
Hermione eyed him for a moment before nodding with another one of her gentle smiles. "Apology accepted." She paused for a moment before saying, "And it's Her-my-oh-nee."
Sirius's scowl returned when he watched the way Alexei's pale cheeks flushed.
"Her-my-nee?"
She tossed her head back and forth, "We'll work on that."
"Why does the git need to apologize?" Sirius asked quietly despite the fact that Alexei didn't seem to know very much english at all. Hermione dug her nails into his bicep, and a low whining sound came out of his mouth before he could stop it.
"Be nice, Sirius," she groused.
She loosened her hold as Alexei started leading them down the corridor in the opposite direction than they came from earlier. Sirius was pleased when she didn't release his arm as they made their way through the magically lit hallway, and when it narrowed, she took a step even closer to him.
He tried to ignore the way she pressed her entire torso to the length of his arm as he leaned down and whispered, "I don't like the way that man looks at you, Hermione."
She looked up at him and their noses were just a few inches apart. She quirked an eyebrow, "And why not?"
Sirius felt something twinge in the bond he'd felt with her, and he couldn't look away from her eyes. "You know why, Hermione."
It was the first time either of them had seriously acknowledged that there was anything happening between them, and it still had been a shrouded comment.
He felt her stiffen against him, and her eyes darted across every contour of his face like she could figure out his exact meaning just by studying him. He watched her caramel eyes glaze over with an expression that might mean that she was feeling all the same things as him, but then she flinched and turned her full attention back to Alexei's back.
"I'm dying, Sirius," she whispered matter-of-factly. Her fingers tightened vaguely on his arm. "I suspect I won't be here much longer."
His eyes moved to the pale runes covering her skin, and that same anger and hopefulness he'd been feeling returned full force.
"Please don't speak that way, Hermione," he whispered in her ear right as the never-ending corridor opened up into what appeared to be a large cavernous dining hall.
People were shuffling in and out of the room, and the loud and joyous atmosphere gave Sirius a crushing flashback to his Hogwarts days. He watched as multiple people turned and followed their trek through the dining hall and called out greetings to the Russian man in front of them.
Right before they followed Alexei through a door branching off the side, Hermione leaned back into Sirius and said quickly, "I don't regret it, Sirius."
His heart beat rapidly in his chest in a way that made him feel like a giddy teenager, but it wasn't quite the same. It was a painful sort of butterfly that felt more like there were vengeful fairies clobbering his insides. It was a careful balancing act between grateful and angry that she had even brought him back in the first place.
"Ah! My guests have arrived," Zoya's strong voice broke his reverie, and his head whipped to the head of the table. This room was far more intimate in comparison, and the table had just three settings. Sirius led the sluggish witch to the setting to the right of Zoya. Once she was sitting, he reluctantly moved to the other setting directly across from her.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Zoya," Hermione said with a gracious smile.
Sirius watched as Alexei bowed to the woman before exiting the room and shutting the door behind him.
Once the door was shut, food magically appeared on all of their plates, and Sirius realized how hungry he truly was. Minding his deeply ingrained manners, Sirius thanked Zoya and then waited for both of the women to start eating before he picked up his utensils.
For a few minutes, they ate in tense silence before Zoya abruptly set her utensils down and gave both of them hard stares.
"Do you know Florenti?" She asked Hermione specifically.
Hermione glanced over at Sirius, and he nodded almost imperceptibly. Hermione set her fork down gently and nodded slowly at Zoya.
"Yes. I work with him at the Ministry." She hesitated a moment before saying, "He's my friend."
Zoya's entire face softened at that, and she gave Hermione a somewhat weak smile. "I grew up with Florenti, but we can discuss this later." Her face shuttered, and she pointed an accusatory finger at Hermione. "You play with dark magic, tsvetok."
Hermione, temporarily forgetting her manners, slammed her hand on the edge of the table and scowled at Zoya. "I know that, and stop calling me flower!"
Zoya smirked for a moment before it dropped into a serious expression. She steadily moved her finger to Sirius. "You're Sirius Black."
He leaned back in his chair and darted his eyes between the two witches. "Correct," he drawled slowly.
Zoya narrowed her eyes. "You were dead," her finger moved to Hermione again, "and she brought you back."
Sirius watched as Hermione straightened her spine and looked defiantly down her nose at Zoya. "I did what I had to do." Zoya clicked her tongue and shook her head.
"No. You did what you wanted to do, and you did it without any care for your own life."
"I don't regret it," she responded immediately.
"You will when I take you to Stanislav, and he tells you just what exactly you have done."
Hermione deflated just slightly, and Sirius balked at the flash of fear he saw in her eyes. "Stanislav… they call him the Bringer of the Dead?"
Zoya reached forward and took a long sip from the goblet of elfin wine in front of her before leaning back in her chair tiredly. One of her fingers reached out and started absently scratching at the wood of the table. "His name is Stanislov Voronin. Florenti and I were in school with him at Koldovsoretz, and he left a few years before we graduated. Before I tell you why he's imprisoned at Adskiye Vorota, I must tell you why he has done what he's done."
Hermione and Sirius were both on the edges of their seats, leaning forward anxiously. It was the first time he had heard the prison called by an actual name, and the way she had said it, had a shiver running down his spine. He subconsciously placed his hand, palm up, on the table in between Hermione and himself.
"Adskiye Vorota… What does that mean?" Hermione asked curiously.
Zoya looked slightly haunted when she said, "The Infernal Gate." She took a moment to seemingly collect herself before she sighed and sat back up. "He was sorted into the Black Court with myself."
At Sirius's confused look Hermione piped in, "Courts are like our houses. The Black Court is the Court of Strength if I'm remembering correctly?"
Zoya nodded.
"Florenti taught me all about it. Quite fascinating actually. He was sorted into the Red Court, correct? Court of Beauty?"
Zoya smirked. "Makes sense, no?"
Hermione snorted before she returned to the topic at hand and said, "Black Court specializes in Defense Against the Dark Arts and magical tools, correct?"
"Yes," she nodded gravely. "To properly defend the Dark Arts, you must know the Dark Arts. You are familiar with this concept, Hermione Granger?"
"Quite." The haunted look returned to Zoya.
"Stanislav… he was seduced by the Dark. He was drawn to the possibility of power one could attain if they wielded it. He had a younger brother in Azure Court though. His name was Kazimir. He was a sweet boy, innocent and good. He depended wholly on Stanislav after their parents passed, and Kazimir kept Stanislav… sane." She ran a hand down her face before taking another large gulp of her wine. "There was an accident a couple years after Stanislav graduated in Kazimir's final year. A terrible, tragic accident. A few boys in their Court were playing with Liquidi Simul Ignus. Trying to master it and wield it out of pure curiosity, and it got out of hand. Kazimir was caught in the crossfire, and it liquified his insides. Florenti was there when it happened, and he had nightmares for months afterwards. He says there was blood oozing from every orifice, and Kazimir's screams could be heard through the entire palace." Sirius watched in horror as Zoya's icy eyes filled with tears for a moment before she gathered herself and blinked them away. "I was in class a few floors above, and even I could hear his screams. They couldn't counter the curse fast enough."
Sirius turned to look at Hermione and saw her shedding horrified tears. She reached for the hand Sirius had rested on the table, and he pressed his thumb against her skin as a small sign of comfort.
"Stanislav had to come retrieve his brother, and he promised vengeance before disappearing with the body. We didn't hear or see anything about him for months, but then when those boys' bodies showed up on school grounds the day of our graduation, just charred remains suspended atop the turrets, everyone knew who'd done it."
Sirius's fingers tightened around Hermione's small hand. This was the man that was supposed to save her life?
"After that, rumors started to spread about the Ural Mountains and Stanislav. That the woods weren't safe anymore. That he haunted them in constant search of all-encompassing power. Wizarding graveyards started being robbed, and he started building his army of Zhivyye Mertvetsy with his brother at the head. He was doing Ancient blood sacrifices to exchange muggle lives for Wizarding ones." She gave Sirius an appraising look before leaning forward and saying, "He brought them all back to life."
Sirius glanced at Hermione and watched as the blood seemed to drain from her face.
"Vernut' mertvykh," Zoya said with a hard look at Hermione.
Both Zoya and Sirius watched as a million thoughts seemed to be running through her mind at once. A trade. A sacrifice.
Her free hand went to cover her eyes weakly, and Sirius's concerns that had been haunting the background of his consciousness the past couple of days surfaced and were confirmed.
Hermione was the sacrifice.
"Hermione…" He whispered weakly.
When she didn't move, not even a millimeter, Zoya tsked and whispered harshly, "Stanislav… I saw him once before he went to Adskiye Vorota. His body… it is covered in these." Sirius watched in horror as the witch traced a rune at the top of Hermione's arm, and Hermione flinched away.
Hermione finally opened her eyes again, and in what appeared to be a desperate need to force the subject off her own ritual, asked quietly, "How did you catch him?"
Zoya kindly took the cue. "My mother was Xenia Vasiliev, and she ruled the Podzemnoye Tsarstvo until the day of my graduation in which I was crowned. The Podzemnoye Tsartvo is similar to your Ministry, and Stanislav was our greatest enemy. His Mertvetsy Soldaty filled the forest. They weren't quite the same as before they died when he brought them back. They were violent, and not quite… how you say… sentient. The only way to kill them was to burn them. I established an order of pozharnyye magi. Fire Mages that went out in the night and hunted the mertvykh. They're still active." She paused and glanced up at Hermione. "Florenti was a pozharnyye magi."
Hermione's eyes widened at that bit of information, but Zoya kept on. Meanwhile, Sirius's mind was reeling. Just how much did Hermione not truly know about Florenti?
"My magi caught him the way many heroes catch enemies." She waved an almost dismissive hand through the air. "Stanislav got arrogant and thought himself invincible to the living. That is how Stanislav ended up in Askiye Vorota."
Sirius for the first time since Zoya had begun this long-winded tale, asked a question. "What reason does Stanislav have to help Hermione?"
Zoya narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't you see? Stanislav will do it because we have the one thing he's always wanted."
Sirius leaned forward with bared teeth and tried to swallow down his impatience. "And what exactly is that?"
Hermione let out a woosh of air and blinked rapidly. She gave Sirius a weary and slightly watery look, "They have Kazimir."
A deadly smirk spread across Zoya's sharp face, "Precisely, Hermione Granger."
Hermione and Sirius were silent the entire walk back to their rooms, and Hermione could feel her burst of energy fading with every step they took. It wasn't until they reached Hermione's door that Sirius's voice cut through the tense air around them.
"You going to be alright alone in there, kitten?" His voice was soft against her ear, as he leaned into her to tap the pattern into the stones. Despite the warmth of the stone labyrinth, she found her body wracked with shivers. Her mind got stuck on the idea of the living dead dwelling somewhere in this castle, awaiting their execution, and she leaned backward into the older wizard.
Her pride wanted her to say yes, but the thought of spending what could possibly be her last night in this world alone, had her hesitating.
"Will you stay with me?" She whispered hesitantly.
She felt his body tense against hers for just a moment before he seemed to melt as he leaned forward to press a soft kiss to the top of her head.
"Of course, Hermione."
She sighed in relief and walked through the open doorway. Sirius left to retrieve his things, and by the time he'd returned, there were four empty potion vials on the bedside table and a bundled Hermione laying directly in the middle of the mattress. He shut the door and quietly muttered a spell to extinguish the lights before climbing in behind her. Hermione didn't allow her body to relax until Sirius had sighed and pulled her flush against his chest.
She took a few deep breaths and slowly turned in his arms so that she was facing him. She could just barely make out his blinking eyes in the near darkness.
She swallowed thickly, knowing that Sirius wasn't going to take what she was about to say well. Drawing on her Gryffindor courage, she started whispering quickly, "I've written letters. They're in a box under my bed at Grimmauld Place, and I need you to deliver them if something goes wrong."
"Hermione…" Sirius's voice came out as a low growl, but she stopped him by pressing her fingers to his lips.
"And if something goes wrong, I need you to make sure Harry doesn't blame himself." She felt tears forming in her eyes, but she forced herself to choke out, "And I need to be sure that you won't blame yourself."
"Please don't do this," he mumbled from behind her fingers, and she shook her head violently.
She leaned forward to press her forehead against his. "And… I need to do this…" She was speaking in between harsh intakes of air, but she steeled her spine and forced herself onward. "Just once… Just in case."
She moved her hand to his cheek, and before he could say anything, she leaned the rest of the way forward and pressed her lips to his.
AN:
Wow I know, kind of a cliffhanger, but do not be alarmed. I have already written half of the next chapter, but decided to split it because it was extremely lengthy.
This chapter was a bitch and a half to write. I had to do a lot of translating and research.
All of my information on the Courts of the Russian Wizarding school came from a post I found on tumblr a while back posted by justdacat
I don't know if they came up with that, or if it is something that is canon, but I thought it was intriguing and it was something I wanted to add to the story. I am obviously taking creative liberties with my backstory, and it took a lot of though, so I hope you guys enjoyed that.
TRANSLATIONS:
Gotov k obedu?: Ready for dinner?
Adskiye Vorota: Infernal Gate
Liquidi Simul Ignus: Liquid Fire
Zhivyye Mertvetsy: Living Dead
Vernut' mertvykh: Bring back the dead
Podzemnoye Tsarstvo: Underground Realm
pozharnyye magi: Fire Mage
Let me know what you guys thought of the chapter. COMING UP NEXT CHAPTER: Hermione finally meets Stanislav!
Thanks for being loyal followers!