Timeline Harry Potter - after Order of the Phoenix. Buffy the Vampire Slayer - after Chosen.

Disclaimer None of these characters belong to me. All Harry Potter related characters, settings etc belong to JK Rowling; all BtVS characters etc belong to Joss Whedon.

Hermione was sat in Transfiguration, putting all her concentration into transfiguring a delicate china teacup into a rather attractive carriage clock, when Professor McGonagall tapped her on the shoulder.

"Miss Granger. The Headmaster would like to see you." She indicated the door, where Professor Dumbledore was standing, waiting, with a benevolent smile on his face. Hermione paled for a moment: was this about the incident with Draco Malfoy in the Charms corridor? It couldn't be, she reasoned - that had happened a few days ago, and Malfoy had said nothing. Clearly he didn't want anyone to know about a muggle-born girl getting the better of him. The thought gave Hermione a private satisfaction.

She went to the door, carrying her heavy book bag easily. Harry and Ron watched curiously, but said nothing. Following Dumbledore wordlessly down the corridor, she wondered nervously what he could possibly want, when she hit a stomach-churning thought - her studies weren't up to scratch. Oh dear God, she was going to be thrown out, a disgrace to everyone, a useless witch ...

But Dumbledore wasn't going towards his office. Instead, he led her towards the room at the back of the Great Hall where Harry and the other Triwizard Tournament competitors had gone when their names were pulled from the Goblet of Fire. Hermione forgot her anxiety for a moment, and wondered why Dumbledore had taken her here?

Entering the spacious room, she saw that they were not alone. A group of four people - two women and two men - were sat at the top end of a large table. The Headmaster led Hermione over to join them, drawing two extra seats from thin air with his wand as he did so. She took one and sat down opposite the blonde haired woman with some trepidation, as Dumbledore sat at the head of the table.

"Miss Granger," he addressed her kindly, "as you are aware, your friend Mr Potter had another - dream - in Professor Snape's potions class two days ago."

Hermione nodded dumbly. Harry had gone rushing off to Dumbledore with a panic-stricken look on his face, and later, when he returned would tell neither Ron nor Hermione about his dream.

As if reading her thoughts, Dumbledore continued: "I asked him specifically not to tell yourself or Mr Weasely what the contents of this dream were." He leaned forward and stared intently at Hermione. "Miss Granger, I don't believe in keeping secrets from my students unless absolutely necessary."

She frowned; what had this got to do with her? What Dumbledore said next made her feel as though she had been physically punched.

"Lord Voldemort is after you, Miss Granger."

She stopped breathing for a moment, then Dumbledore continued.

"In Harry's dream, he sensed Lord Voldemort's ... desire to possess your power, his interest in what you ... are."

"What I am?" she managed to ask.

"When I saw what happened with Mr Malfoy and yourself two days ago and after what Harry told me, I contacted my friend here," he said, indicating the oldest of the two men on his right, "to help."

Looking at the guests properly for the first time, Hermione got another jolt. When she looked into the blonde's eyes she felt something. A connection? She stared for a moment longer, then looked away, startled.

The man Professor Dumbledore had indicated spoke now, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose as he did so.

"My name is Rupert Giles, Hermione; do you know what a Vampire Slayer is?"