Disclaimers: Please refer to chapter one for full disclaimer write-up.
When Living is No Longer EnoughChapter Thirty
Hermione awoke to sunlight streaming through her window. That of course wouldn't have been a big deal except that this particular ray of light had stubbornly settled directly in her eyes. "Argh," she groaned, rolling over and pulling the pillow over her face and dolefully wishing for nothing more than just to sleep in and be left alone. 'Alone?' she thought hazily before sitting straight up in the bed. 'I don't have to be alone anymore. I can go home today!'
Tossing the covers aside, she enthusiastically leaped out of the bed and began hurriedly dressing, determined to make the remainder of her stay with the Saunton's as short as possible. It's not that she was overly afraid of them and Emily's mother had turned out to be a great asset but Hermione had decided that her days of impersonating others was definitely coming to an end. If she wanted to live someone else's life than it would just have to be done via the pages of a good book.
Pulling Emily's trunk out of the closet, she hastily packed her belongings. Clothing and books rapidly disappeared into the depths of the costly leather baggage. "I've forgotten something," she muttered and walked into the bathroom to take one final look around when her gaze fell on the bottle of polyjuice potion that was still disguised as a shampoo bottle. 'That's all I need," she thought derisively. 'Let someone get a hold of that and this entire masquerade would be over before I could say Quidditch.' Grabbing the bottle, she tossed it into the trunk and closed the lid before reducing the piece of luggage. With one final look around the cheery bedroom she picked up the trunk and quickly tucked it into the oversized pocket of her robes. 'I should be back at Hogwarts before I'll need another dose,' she thought to herself remembering that her last dose of polyjuice had been imbibed a mere two hours prior to waking up.
Entering the dining room she noticed that the house-elves had already prepared breakfast. Wonderful aromas filled the air and as her nostrils inhaled the scent of bacon, eggs and various other traditional breakfast fares, her stomach began to make indiscriminate noises in a not so subtle attempt to let her know that it was hungry. 'Yes I know. Food was invented for a reason' she silently told her demanding stomach as she pulled out a chair and took her seat at the dining table. While dinner the previous evening had been more than plentiful, Hermione had been quite nervous and had barely touched a fraction of the food that had been placed before her. Now that Voldemort and the rest of his merry Death Eaters had left, she could concentrate on eating a normal sized breakfast.
"Good morning dear," Mrs. Saunton greeted at the appearance of her 'daughter' into the room. "I trust you slept well?"
"Yes mum," she answered, giving the woman a small smile. "I suppose I was a little more tired than I realized," she said to both Mr. and Mrs. Saunton in an effort to apologize for her late arrival.
"Don't worry about it," her mother said waving her hand in a dismissive gesture. "You had a big evening last night with meeting the Dark Lord and all of our guests. I would expect that you would be somewhat tired considering how long the festivities lasted. Besides, had you not made an appearance soon then I would have awakened you. After all, we need to get you back to Hogwarts today so that you may finish that report for class."
"Back to Hogwarts?" Edgar Saunton asked in surprise. "Why would she be returning to Hogwarts so soon?"
Internal alarm bells began ringing inside the Gryffindor's head as she listened to Edgar Saunton's words. Somehow the alarm bells of a four-alarm fire seemed fitting as her temper blazed into life. 'Don't tell me he's going to decide to play the doting father and want to spend quality time together NOW!' a voice inside her head shouted angrily.
She didn't get any further with her internal monologue when Mitty cautiously crept into the dining room and placed a small package next to the fuming witch. "What's this?" she asked the house-elf in surprise.
"Mitty is not knowing what is in the box Miss Emily," the elf stuttered nervously. "An owl was just delivering the package to the Manor and Miss Emily's name was written on it. Mitty is not looking in Miss Emily's personal business. Mitty is a good house-elf and she is not putting her nose where it doesn't belong."
"Thank you Mitty," Hermione replied to the elf and watched in consternation while the little creature hurriedly made her way out of the room. 'Will these elves ever lighten up?' she wondered. Turning her attention back to the package she looked for any signs as to the identity of the sender. No markings other than her name appeared on the box and the handwriting was not one that she was familiar with. That of course cancelled out the possibility that it could be from one of her friends at Hogwarts as she was familiar with the potions master's broad script, Dumbledore's elegant writing, and both Harry and Ron's scribbling that barely met the definition of the word.
Looking over to Christina Saunton she delicately shrugged her shoulders, silently letting the woman know that she didn't have a clue as to what might lay inside the small box. Reaching to pull off the paper and end the great mystery, Hermione was surprised when Mrs. Saunton's hand covered her own in an effort to still her movements.
"Careful Emily," the woman admonished quietly. "You don't know who might have sent it." And with those words, the woman whipped out her wand and cast a few spells over the plainly wrapped box. Nodding her head at the results of her incantations, she placed her wand back in her pocket. "You may continue now dear. The package seems safe enough."
Hermione eyed the parcel a little warily and pulled the paper off to reveal a small box covered in deep green velvet. Lifting the lid, she gasped as she inspected the contents of the unexpected package. Nestled inside the folds of fabric that lined the box was one of the most exquisite perfume bottles she had ever seen. The glass looked to be hand blown and most probably an antique. The coloring was one of the deepest colors of jade she had ever seen and small serpents were etched into the pattern to form a perfect, unbroken circle. The rim and lid of the bottle were made from what looked to be platinum and the atomizer itself was covered in the finest strands of silk that matched the coloring of the bottle to perfection.
"Oh" she gasped, gently lifting the bottle from its bed of fabric. "It's absolutely exquisite!"
"Indeed it is," Mrs. Saunton agreed with a small frown. "Who sent it?"
I don't know. I didn't see a… Oh wait, here's a card," she said noticing a small folded piece of parchment lying on the table. "It must have fallen out when I pulled the paper off."
Hermione opened the note and almost recoiled in horror. Luckily, memory won out over instinct and she managed to turn her outcry into something that resembled a gasp of surprise rather than the loathing that it actually was. Her role as Emily Saunton did not leave room for such mistakes.
"Well?" Christina and Edgar Saunton demanded expectantly.
"Um, here" Hermione answered, handing the note to the older woman.
Christina read the words that were delicately scripted onto the parchment and her eyebrows nearly rose to her hairline, so surprised was she by the content. Wrenching her gaze from the note, she looked over to her 'daughter' and stared in astonishment.
"Well woman," Mr. Saunton bellowed at his wife, "What does it say?"
"I don't believe it," she sputtered, her voice losing a bit of its customary refined tones. Shaking her head as if trying to make sense of everything, she simply laid the note on the table for her husband to see.
Edgar Saunton shook his head in irritation and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'bloody dramatic women' but leaned over to read the parchment that was spread out before him.
My Dearest Emily,
This is but a mere token to express my delight in our conversation last evening. Naturally, this can be nothing more than a poor substitute to that which you held dear and have now lost. However it is my hope that you will still find favor in such a small gesture and consider it fondly. I look forward to your impending initiation.
Lord Voldemort
Emily's father picked the note up and turned it over as if expecting to see something else written on the parchment. Silence blanketed the room as its occupants awaited his reaction. Casting a shrewd glance at his daughter, he held her gaze momentarily before finally allowing his face to relax in a large smile. It was the only time Hermione had seen the man smile and she wasn't certain if she should prepare for the worst or not. Merlin knew she didn't want to have to endure another 'friendly' bout of Crucio again.
"It seems that you listened after all girl," the man cackled in his booming voice. "A gift from the Dark Lord himself. I don't think I've ever heard of such a thing!"
"It is unprecedented," Mrs. Saunton agreed cautiously. "Well Edgar, our daughter has obviously ingratiated herself with the Dark Lord far more than we could have hoped for and now I would say that it is time for her to return to Hogwarts so that she can concentrate on her studies. She only has a little over a month left before graduation and I'm certain that you want her to perform well on her NEWT's."
"NEWT's," the man grumbled. "Bloody pain in the arse is all this testing. The girl already has her future planned so what does it matter? She will join the Dark Lord's ranks and find some wealthy pureblooded wizard to settle down with. What more could she want?"
Hermione nearly choked on her eggs as she listened to Edgar Saunton recite his expectations for Emily's future. 'Of all the egotistical, self-serving bastards,' she thought in disgust wondering why Christina Saunton stayed with such a callous, overbearing oaf of a wizard.
"Now dear," Mrs. Saunton began in a placating tone of voice, "I know that Emily's future is pretty well set however you wouldn't want your associates thinking that you raised a child of inferior intelligence now would you? And if the Dark Lord has taken some sort of interest in Emily then you would not want to give him any reason to find her wanting in any way. Is that not so?"
"Hmmm, I suppose not" he agreed thoughtfully. "Very well, put the little piece of baggage on the Hogwart's Express and let her return to that sorry excuse for a school. What with all the mindless mudbloods and half bloods walking around that bloody castle, it's no wonder that she's one of the top students in her class. However, if you think it's that important she return early then so be it."
Upon hearing those particular words, Hermione sat her fork down on the table and willed herself to stay calm. 'Mudbloods, half bloods, sorry excuse for a school?' she thought angrily. 'What a bigoted, prejudiced, sorry excuse for a human being! Emily is fortunate to be attending such a fine educational institution as Hogwarts and if I have my way, she won't be returning to the pathetic excuse of a subservient life you have in mind for her you narrow-minded, snake-faced bastard! Oh I have a mind to hex you to Hell and believe me there would be no bringing you back!'
Her musings of retaliation were cut short by a firm hand being placed on her shoulder. "I knew you would understand dear," Mrs. Saunton soothed her husband and at the same time subtly increased the pressure on Hermione's shoulder ever so slightly, sending an unspoken message to the young woman to remain calm. "However, I thought that it would be a nice treat for Emily if she and I were to apparate into Hogsmeade and do a little shopping first. She hasn't had any new dress robes in a while and we wouldn't want it to be said that we send our daughter off to school looking like some poor relation now would we? After we are finished with our shopping then I will take her to Hogwarts and apparate back here to the Manor."
"You're going to Hogsmeade?" he asked irritably.
"Of course dear. Oh… did you want to come with us?" she questioned with an innocent smile.
"Me? Shopping with you two? You'd probably have me spending all day in some blasted women's lingerie shop!" he grumbled and shoved another bite of food into his already overstuffed mouth. "No, you two go by yourselves but I expect you back by early evening. The Barton's mentioned something about stopping by this evening for drinks."
"I will be back no later than five o'clock if that is agreeable to you?" she replied.
"Fine," he spat and Hermione nearly recoiled in disgust as a half chewed piece of egg shot from his mouth to land on the morning edition of the Daily Prophet. Wiping the food off with an impatient gesture, he picked up the wizarding newspaper and promptly began reading. It was a clear indication that he was finished conversing with the women.
"Come dear," she told her 'daughter' as she ushered the young woman out of the dining room. "We have things to do."
Hermione allowed herself to be led out of the room while she thought over the exchange she had just witnessed between Emily's parents. Christina Saunton obviously controlled her husband more than most people would believe and certainly more than Edgar Saunton would ever admit to. Considering the man's arrogance, he probably would never imagine that such a thing were possible, especially by a mere woman. 'Merlin,' she thought as she enlarged her trunk and placed Voldemort's unexpected and unwelcome gift inside, 'are all Death Eater families this manipulative?'
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Half an hour later, mother and 'daughter' found themselves walking along the streets of Hogsmeade. As much as Hermione hated the foul taste of the polyjuice potion, she had to admit that it did allow her the luxury of roaming freely through the wizarding town. A luxury she hadn't enjoyed in quite a while. To think that she was able to do so now, courtesy of a Death Eater's wife and impending initiate, was nothing short of ironic.
"I was hoping that you would indulge me for a while so that I might pick up a few things for Emily," Christina said quietly, casting a cautious glance around to be certain that no one could overhear their conversation.
"Of course," Hermione agreed readily even though she truly hated clothes shopping. There was just something so tedious about trying on one outfit after another. "I'm certain that she would enjoy that considering everything that she's been through lately."
"Yes," the woman agreed sadly. "I still can't believe that she tried to take her own life."
"She honestly felt there was no other way. Hopefully we can figure out some sort of solution to all of this by the time she graduates," the charms professor said looking longingly into the window of Flourish and Blotts as they passed by.
"Let's hope that we can," Mrs. Saunton agreed, coming to a full halt as they reached the shop of Madame Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.
Nearly two hours later the women emerged from the witch's shop, their arms laden with bags of clothing that not only consisted of dress robes for the upcoming graduation dance but several casual robes as well. New shoes, jewelry and make-up completed their purchases. The duo had just stopped in front Honeydukes, the local sweets shop, and was absorbed in the display when Mrs. Saunton let out a quiet cry of surprise.
"Hermione," she whispered and a trace of panic could be heard in her voice. "Do you have brown eyes?"
"What?" the witch asked in confusion.
"Hurry up and answer the question. Are your eyes normally brown?" she said frantically.
"Well yes but why?" the Gryffindor asked, wondering if too much shopping might have contributed to the woman's strange behavior. 'Merlin knows it has done nothing for mine' she thought sourly.
"I think the polyjuice potion is wearing off. Your eyes are now brown. Emily's eyes are blue," she whispered.
"Oh no!" Hermione whispered back, her eyes wide with fear as she thought about all of the people milling around the crowded street and the pending threat of exposure. "The potion is in my trunk which is reduced in my pocket. I didn't think we would be here long enough for me to need another dose."
"That's not the only problem we have," the older woman informed her and pointed to the display window. Hermione looked into the window's reflection and was aghast to see the haughty form of Lucius Malfoy walking toward them.
"Oh Merlin no!" she whispered, her voice now as frantic as Christina Saunton's. "If he sees me I'm as good as dead."
"Believe me when I say that you will be in good company because I doubt that he would show mercy and spare either Emily or myself," the woman muttered. "Hurry and go into Honeydukes. Run to the bathroom, take your potion and then buy several types of sweets. I'll pretend to be surprised by his presence and make your excuses. Go!"
Hermione didn't have to be told twice and without a backwards glance, she rushed into the shop to carry out the other woman's plan.
"Christina, what an unexpected surprise," a cultured voice sounded directly behind her.
Turning around to face the owner of the voice, she gave a smile that could be described as nothing less than a perfect combination of surprise and coyness wrapped up into one deceitfully Slytherin greeting. "Why Lucius, what a surprise indeed. Unexpected but hopefully not unpleasant?" she purred, holding out her hand for the familiar kiss with which Malfoy Sr. usually bestowed upon the wives of his associates.
"How could it be anything other than pleasant?" he replied, his lips lingering just a moment to long against the soft flesh of her hand. Allowing her hand to slip casually from his vice-like grip, he raised one side of his mouth just enough to form a confident smile that made the woman's skin crawl. "Was that your daughter I saw with you?"
"What?" she laughed lightly, playing the girl's presence off as if it was of no importance. "Why yes it was. I thought that I'd treat Emily to an impromptu shopping spree before returning her to Hogwarts."
"Return to Hogwarts? But I was under the impression that she would remain with you for the entire holiday?"
"Usually she would," Mrs. Saunton agreed politely, "however she has been terribly distressed over her NEWT's and while her father and I are confident that she'll have no problems passing them, she seems determined to think otherwise."
"I see," Malfoy Sr. said with a polite smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Of course she also mentioned something about an essay she has to have completed for her first day back. I think it was in potions… or did she say charms?" the woman asked as if debating what her 'daughter' had told her. "No, I'm sure she said potions because she mentioned something about her potion's professor allowing her access to the restricted section to complete her research."
Christina looked up at Lucius with a polite but controlled smile on her face and was secretly delighted to see his facial muscles momentarily twitch and harden into a mask of distaste and loathing as he heard the words 'potions' and 'potions professor'. Obviously Snape had done something to really anger Voldemort's second in command and while treason would be something that he wouldn't look favorably on, she had a feeling that the reason for his dislike of the dark haired Slytherin went much deeper than the information to which she had thus far been privy to. She momentarily wondered if the source of that anger might have something to do with Hermione Granger however she quickly dismissed that idea. Lucius Malfoy was definitely one of the most ardent believers of pureblood supremacy that the wizarding world had ever spawned and though the thought of a relationship between a pureblooded wizard and a muggle born witch would disturb him, it wouldn't cause that particular reaction in a man who made a point of presenting such a nonchalant façade to the world.
"Yes, well we wouldn't want her to fail in her assignments now would we?" he said stiffly. "Ah here is the object of our discussion now. Good morning Emily. How did you enjoy your visit with our Lord last evening?"
Hermione's hands were filled with several brightly colored sweets bags covered in animated advertisements of wizards and witches happily waving at the world while enjoying a multitude of Honeyduke's sweets. As a result, the young witch was spared the necessity of shaking the wizard's hand. She nearly laughed aloud as an older muggle tune suddenly popped into her mind. 'He's a cold hearted snake. Look into his eyes….'
'How fitting,' she thought looking at the fair-haired wizard standing before her. The man practically oozed oil from every pore of his body. 'He's a regular walking oil slick. I bet he'd have a heart attack if he had so much as an inkling as to who I really am!'
Deciding that it was in her best interest to answer his question she bowed her head slightly and allowed herself to give, what she hoped to be, an enthusiastic smile. "I enjoyed our visit very much Mr. Malfoy. The Dark Lord was most charming."
"Charming?" he questioned, obviously surprised by her choice of words. Most people would neither want nor dare to describe the Dark Lord in such a manner!
"Yes sir," she agreed and prayed that she wouldn't be struck dead from telling such bold-faced lies. "He was very polite and gracious and his gift was so thoughtful. Not to mention a complete surprise."
"Gift?" he asked looking to Christina Saunton for clarification. 'Whatever is the child babbling about now?' he wondered as his innate dislike of children threatened to break free. 'The Dark Lord does not give gifts, unless you consider an unforeseen bout of Crucio as such.'
"Yes," Mrs. Saunton answered a bit smugly. "It seems that Emily had a bottle of perfume with her last evening that was unfortunately broken during her time in the ballroom. Our Lord was thoughtful enough to replace it with one of the most exquisite perfume bottles I have ever had the privilege of seeing. It was filled with a most unusual fragrance also. Quite exotic wasn't it Emily?"
"Yes mum, as if it came directly from the Orient itself," Hermione agreed.
"I see," Lucius said, although it was obvious to both women that he clearly did not. "Well, I'm afraid that I have several matters that require my attention so I will take my leave of you. Good luck with your studies Emily." And with that he quickly turned from the women and walked off in the opposite direction wondering what the Dark Lord was up to this time.
"Do you think he saw me before I took the polyjuice again?" Hermione asked anxiously once he was out of earshot.
"No," Christina answered quietly, mindful to keep their conversation from being overheard. "And I'm certain that I derailed whatever thoughts he may have had when I mentioned that you needed to return to Hogwarts to complete a potions essay."
"Oh yes, I'm sure he absolutely loved that!" she laughed. "Considering how he feels about Severus."
"Yes and speaking of Severus," Christina said slyly, seeing her opportunity to ask questions, "Why is Lucius Malfoy so angry with him? And please don't insult my intelligence by saying it's because he betrayed the Dark Lord. I know there's more to the situation than that and I would also be willing to bet that it goes deeper than a dislike for you as well."
"You mean because I'm a muggle born?" Hermione asked although it was more a statement than a question.
"Yes," she answered and then stopped to look at the young woman, a small speck of compassion showing in her eyes. "I don't hold your heritage against you," she said softly and laid a hand on Hermione's shoulder in a gesture of support. "You may be a muggle born but you've done more to assist my daughter than anyone else has ever thought of, purebloods included, and for that you've earned not only my thanks but also my respect."
Hermione looked at the older woman for a moment and fought back the tears that threatened to fall. While Christina Saunton wasn't as openly prejudiced as her husband and some of the other purebloods within Voldemort's ranks, it was painfully obvious that she still held stock in the traditional beliefs. For her to make such comments was truly a compliment. A compliment that the young muggle born witch would long remember.
"Thank you," she replied and then considered the other woman's question. "I can't tell you too much about the situation between Malfoy and Severus as it really isn't my story to tell. I can tell you that Lucius Malfoy blames Severus for the death of his son and as a result has basically vowed to destroy him by any means necessary. That's why he attacked my parents and that's why he polyjuiced some poor girl to look like me. As you heard at the party, he tortured the girl and sent the pensieve to Severus in the hopes that it would anger him enough to confront Malfoy."
"A definite trap," Christina muttered. "Why didn't it work?"
"That's Severus' story to tell Mrs. Saunton so you would have to ask him. Suffice it to say, I'm just thankful that he didn't apparate to Malfoy Manor or he might not be with us now," she said and a visible shudder wracked her body as she thought about that night.
"Speaking of apparition," the older woman replied, knowing that she would not obtain any more information from the young woman standing before her. "Let's get you back to Hogwarts before any more unexpected surprises happen today. Thank goodness Emily passed her apparition test over the Christmas holidays. It would have been awful for you to go through all of this only to have me splinch us as in the end."
Hermione merely gave a nervous laugh and nodded her head in agreement even though she was fairly certain that the woman was joking. Christina Saunton just didn't strike her as the type of person that would do anything poorly, whether it was casting a spell or joint apparition. Seconds later, emptiness occupied the space where the two witches had previously stood as they apparated to the gates of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
TBC
Author's Note: 'Cold Hearted Snake' is a tune from the 1980's by Paula Abdul that reminds me of Slytherins. From what I've seen I'm not the only one as I think I've seen it mentioned in a few other fics. Of course, several other songs do the same thing but hopefully I won't find the need to bore you with that information throughout the remainder of the story G. Your response to the last chapter was amazing and I enjoyed all of your reviews. Please be sure to leave a review before you leave and let me know what you thought of the chapter.
Happy Easter!
~Jules