Dumbledore merely stared. Stared at Hermione, and stared at Draco. He was shocked. The Headmaster was never shocked,
"Miss Granger?" Dumbledore said.
"I believe I have a lot explaining to do."
"Yes, you do. Please take a seat. You too Mr Malfoy." Hermione and Draco took a seat. She sat for a moment, not sure where she should start. How she wanted to tell the Headmaster everything, the complete truth. But she couldn't do that, at least not with Malfoy sitting there. That was probably the reason he was there, to make sure she didn't foul Voldemort's plan.
"Well, sir. I'm not sure where I should start. There's so much to explain..." Her eyes were cast upon the floor beneath her feet.
"Begin wherever you feel comfortable."
"Well, there really isn't anything comfortable about it. I guess I should be straightforward. I'm not Hermione Granger. I am Desdemona Hermione Riddle Voldemort. Or Lady Desdemona Hermione Riddle Voldemort according to Voldemort." Once again, the Headmaster merely stared. Shock was again evident on his face.
"What?"
"I am the daughter of Tom Riddle, The Dark Lord, Voldemort, whatever you want to call him. I am his offspring and his heiress. "
"How is this possible?"
"Well it really does make sense when you think about it. I'm the most intelligent and powerful witch to ever come to Hogwarts in well over a century, not unlike Voldemort. I was adopted by Muggles after his downfall when he met Harry. My mother died giving birth to me. I ended up in a Muggle orphanage. Voldemort recently discovered that his long lost daughter is me, so he had me taken from the castle and brought to his manor where he told me that I am his daughter and that I am to come to his manor every weekend to spend time with him. He sent be back here, and no I don't know how he does it, and he wants me to be resorted. I went to my common room as soon as I returned and found Malfoy and told him what happened and he brought me here, to you." The room was silent after Hermione ceased her rambling. It was a while before the Headmaster finally spoke.
"How was it that you weren't sorted into Slytherin?"
"Well... I asked the hat not to place me there, like Harry did. I heard it was the bad house, and I didn't want to be in there. So it put me in Gryffindor."
"This is a very delicate matter we have on our hands. I cannot deny Voldemort's request for you to be at his manor every weekend. Since you are of wizarding decent then he is your legal guardian and I cannot deny his wishes concerning you. Because you are his daughter, the Ministry and myself cannot force you to give us any information concerning him, his whereabouts, or anyone he is involved with." His eyes quickly passed over Draco before returning to Hermione. "Because of your ancestry, I am going to place you into the Slytherin house. It will also be the safest place for you. By the end of the week the school will know of the reason you disappeared, and I do not think very many of the students will be... happy... with this news." He turned to Draco again. "Mr Malfoy, it is now your duty to be sure Miss Granger adjusts to the Slytherin house." Draco nodded and the Headmaster's gaze returned to Hermione. "Since actually schooling has not begun, it should not be to hard for you to adjust to the schedule. You still have over a half and hour before classes begin. I suggest to let Mr Potter and Mr Weasley know of your safe return. Both of them were out of their minds with worry." Hermione and Draco both knew that was there dismissal. The Headmaster probably wanted to call Snape in to find out what he knew of the situation.
******************************************************************************
"Well, that wasn't near as hard as I expected it to be," Hermione said after she and Draco stepped out of the Headmaster's stairwell and headed towards the Slytherin common room.
"You did really well, better than I expected you to. I didn't even have to say a word. I was sure you were going to fuck up on some part of that tangent."
"Hey, I'm a good liar!"
"You're proud of that?"
"No! Of course not! I was just pointing out that I can do my part in this scheme. I don't need anyone there to babysit me."
"I know you can do this; that's not the issue. The issue is whether or not you're actually going to do it. After all, you have been scrambling around with Potter and Weasley trying to defeat the Lord for about six years." Hermione's eyes dropped to the floor. "You can't do that anymore. They are going to try to 'save' you, and they will expect you to try to kill your father."
"I know. I'm going to explain to them that I can't do that anymore. I'm at a different standpoint now, they will understand."
"What is your standpoint now?"
"I'm not sure. But I'll let you know when I am."
"How do you plan on telling them what happened?"
"I don't know yet," Hermione sighed. "Harry and Ron are probably going bloody nuts right now. After I get them calmed down, I'll tell them the story and see where it goes from there. Hopefully it wont be a complete disaster. They are so over dramatic sometimes."
"Of course their reactions are going to be OVER dramatic, because after all, this is only a SMALL bump in the road," Draco said as he rolled his eyes.
"Well Mr. Sarcastic, I only meant that they will probably go off on how they will save me from Voldemort and you and all the rest of the evil Death Eaters and then I'm going to have to tell them that there isn't any saving to be done. Then I'll have to explain to them why I wont be joining them on any of their 'kill Voldemort' adventures." She groaned. "This is going to be an enormous mess."
"Potter will piss all over himself, and Weasley will rupture a blood vessel in his brain. Blood and urine are usually considered messy when they are all over the floor." Hermione laughed. She couldn't help it. He was right, Harry would be too shocked to really do anything, and Ron would immediately want to kill someone.
"You know them pretty well, don't you?"
"Why wouldn't I? I've been dealing with them for six years now. 'Know thy enemy.'" Hermione smiled and shook her head.
"What ever you say, Death Eater." They had reached the deeper part of the dungeons and Draco stopped in front of a wall. He stood for a moment, then the stone disappeared, leaving a doorway behind.
"As you wish My Lady," Draco said with his infamous smirk as he mock- bowed her inside.
******************************************************************************
Harry and Ron were sitting in the farthest corner of the library. It was the place they usually sat when researching things the other students shouldn't know they were researching.
"Do you think it's true, what she said?" Ron asked. Harry dropped his gaze to the table.
"I think so. She has no reason to lie about anything. And if she was going to lie to cover up where she really was, that would be the last lie she would ever use. It would be pointless and cause a lot more trouble then even the truth."
"What are we going to do?"
"We're going to sit here 'til Mione comes, then we are going to get a VERY long explanation."
******************************************************************************
There were only two responses from the many people sitting inside the Slytherin common room. Well over half of the students bowed when they saw Hermione step through the doorway. The rest of them just stared as though they were incredibly confused. Then again, they probably were. It was some fifth year girl that finally broke the silence.
"What the hell is the Gryffindor Whore doing in OUR common room?"
Not even a second later she was hit with curses from every single person who had bowed. It ranged from a simple binding curse to some sort of dark curse that seemed to melt her lips together, as though they had acid spilled on them. Whatever it was, it looked very painful.
Draco knelt down by the girl. She was currently lying on the ground, trying to scream. He lifted his wand from its place inside his robes, and wordlessly countered all of the spells.
"Thank you so much," she said to his as she sat up. Draco stood up, then pointed his wand at her.
He only spoke one word. "Crucio."
The girls screams began immediately. She wouldn't stop screaming as she convulsed on the floor. It felt as though hours had passed, hours filled with the never ending pain-filled screams. Hermione was sure that someone was going to tell him to stop, tell him that the screams were maddening. But they didn't; they just stood and watched. All of them, even those who weren't Death Eaters. She couldn't take it anymore. She was going to go insane.
"DRACO STOP!" Hermione yelled, as she held her hands over her ears, her eyes squeezed shut. The screams stopped. She looked up to find Draco staring at the girl on the ground. She was dead! Her chest was moving, barely, but it was moving. She wasn't dead, she had passed out.
Draco looked up from the girl's body. "Nobody will ever call the daughter of the Dark Lord a Gryffindor Whore, or any other derogatory name ever again. If I hear that you have, your fate will be the same as hers." He kicked the girl's head when he said "hers." " Lady Desdemona Hermione Riddle Voldemort is your superior now, so you will treat her accordingly. Any problems that she has with anyone will be resolved by me."
"Miss Granger?" Dumbledore said.
"I believe I have a lot explaining to do."
"Yes, you do. Please take a seat. You too Mr Malfoy." Hermione and Draco took a seat. She sat for a moment, not sure where she should start. How she wanted to tell the Headmaster everything, the complete truth. But she couldn't do that, at least not with Malfoy sitting there. That was probably the reason he was there, to make sure she didn't foul Voldemort's plan.
"Well, sir. I'm not sure where I should start. There's so much to explain..." Her eyes were cast upon the floor beneath her feet.
"Begin wherever you feel comfortable."
"Well, there really isn't anything comfortable about it. I guess I should be straightforward. I'm not Hermione Granger. I am Desdemona Hermione Riddle Voldemort. Or Lady Desdemona Hermione Riddle Voldemort according to Voldemort." Once again, the Headmaster merely stared. Shock was again evident on his face.
"What?"
"I am the daughter of Tom Riddle, The Dark Lord, Voldemort, whatever you want to call him. I am his offspring and his heiress. "
"How is this possible?"
"Well it really does make sense when you think about it. I'm the most intelligent and powerful witch to ever come to Hogwarts in well over a century, not unlike Voldemort. I was adopted by Muggles after his downfall when he met Harry. My mother died giving birth to me. I ended up in a Muggle orphanage. Voldemort recently discovered that his long lost daughter is me, so he had me taken from the castle and brought to his manor where he told me that I am his daughter and that I am to come to his manor every weekend to spend time with him. He sent be back here, and no I don't know how he does it, and he wants me to be resorted. I went to my common room as soon as I returned and found Malfoy and told him what happened and he brought me here, to you." The room was silent after Hermione ceased her rambling. It was a while before the Headmaster finally spoke.
"How was it that you weren't sorted into Slytherin?"
"Well... I asked the hat not to place me there, like Harry did. I heard it was the bad house, and I didn't want to be in there. So it put me in Gryffindor."
"This is a very delicate matter we have on our hands. I cannot deny Voldemort's request for you to be at his manor every weekend. Since you are of wizarding decent then he is your legal guardian and I cannot deny his wishes concerning you. Because you are his daughter, the Ministry and myself cannot force you to give us any information concerning him, his whereabouts, or anyone he is involved with." His eyes quickly passed over Draco before returning to Hermione. "Because of your ancestry, I am going to place you into the Slytherin house. It will also be the safest place for you. By the end of the week the school will know of the reason you disappeared, and I do not think very many of the students will be... happy... with this news." He turned to Draco again. "Mr Malfoy, it is now your duty to be sure Miss Granger adjusts to the Slytherin house." Draco nodded and the Headmaster's gaze returned to Hermione. "Since actually schooling has not begun, it should not be to hard for you to adjust to the schedule. You still have over a half and hour before classes begin. I suggest to let Mr Potter and Mr Weasley know of your safe return. Both of them were out of their minds with worry." Hermione and Draco both knew that was there dismissal. The Headmaster probably wanted to call Snape in to find out what he knew of the situation.
******************************************************************************
"Well, that wasn't near as hard as I expected it to be," Hermione said after she and Draco stepped out of the Headmaster's stairwell and headed towards the Slytherin common room.
"You did really well, better than I expected you to. I didn't even have to say a word. I was sure you were going to fuck up on some part of that tangent."
"Hey, I'm a good liar!"
"You're proud of that?"
"No! Of course not! I was just pointing out that I can do my part in this scheme. I don't need anyone there to babysit me."
"I know you can do this; that's not the issue. The issue is whether or not you're actually going to do it. After all, you have been scrambling around with Potter and Weasley trying to defeat the Lord for about six years." Hermione's eyes dropped to the floor. "You can't do that anymore. They are going to try to 'save' you, and they will expect you to try to kill your father."
"I know. I'm going to explain to them that I can't do that anymore. I'm at a different standpoint now, they will understand."
"What is your standpoint now?"
"I'm not sure. But I'll let you know when I am."
"How do you plan on telling them what happened?"
"I don't know yet," Hermione sighed. "Harry and Ron are probably going bloody nuts right now. After I get them calmed down, I'll tell them the story and see where it goes from there. Hopefully it wont be a complete disaster. They are so over dramatic sometimes."
"Of course their reactions are going to be OVER dramatic, because after all, this is only a SMALL bump in the road," Draco said as he rolled his eyes.
"Well Mr. Sarcastic, I only meant that they will probably go off on how they will save me from Voldemort and you and all the rest of the evil Death Eaters and then I'm going to have to tell them that there isn't any saving to be done. Then I'll have to explain to them why I wont be joining them on any of their 'kill Voldemort' adventures." She groaned. "This is going to be an enormous mess."
"Potter will piss all over himself, and Weasley will rupture a blood vessel in his brain. Blood and urine are usually considered messy when they are all over the floor." Hermione laughed. She couldn't help it. He was right, Harry would be too shocked to really do anything, and Ron would immediately want to kill someone.
"You know them pretty well, don't you?"
"Why wouldn't I? I've been dealing with them for six years now. 'Know thy enemy.'" Hermione smiled and shook her head.
"What ever you say, Death Eater." They had reached the deeper part of the dungeons and Draco stopped in front of a wall. He stood for a moment, then the stone disappeared, leaving a doorway behind.
"As you wish My Lady," Draco said with his infamous smirk as he mock- bowed her inside.
******************************************************************************
Harry and Ron were sitting in the farthest corner of the library. It was the place they usually sat when researching things the other students shouldn't know they were researching.
"Do you think it's true, what she said?" Ron asked. Harry dropped his gaze to the table.
"I think so. She has no reason to lie about anything. And if she was going to lie to cover up where she really was, that would be the last lie she would ever use. It would be pointless and cause a lot more trouble then even the truth."
"What are we going to do?"
"We're going to sit here 'til Mione comes, then we are going to get a VERY long explanation."
******************************************************************************
There were only two responses from the many people sitting inside the Slytherin common room. Well over half of the students bowed when they saw Hermione step through the doorway. The rest of them just stared as though they were incredibly confused. Then again, they probably were. It was some fifth year girl that finally broke the silence.
"What the hell is the Gryffindor Whore doing in OUR common room?"
Not even a second later she was hit with curses from every single person who had bowed. It ranged from a simple binding curse to some sort of dark curse that seemed to melt her lips together, as though they had acid spilled on them. Whatever it was, it looked very painful.
Draco knelt down by the girl. She was currently lying on the ground, trying to scream. He lifted his wand from its place inside his robes, and wordlessly countered all of the spells.
"Thank you so much," she said to his as she sat up. Draco stood up, then pointed his wand at her.
He only spoke one word. "Crucio."
The girls screams began immediately. She wouldn't stop screaming as she convulsed on the floor. It felt as though hours had passed, hours filled with the never ending pain-filled screams. Hermione was sure that someone was going to tell him to stop, tell him that the screams were maddening. But they didn't; they just stood and watched. All of them, even those who weren't Death Eaters. She couldn't take it anymore. She was going to go insane.
"DRACO STOP!" Hermione yelled, as she held her hands over her ears, her eyes squeezed shut. The screams stopped. She looked up to find Draco staring at the girl on the ground. She was dead! Her chest was moving, barely, but it was moving. She wasn't dead, she had passed out.
Draco looked up from the girl's body. "Nobody will ever call the daughter of the Dark Lord a Gryffindor Whore, or any other derogatory name ever again. If I hear that you have, your fate will be the same as hers." He kicked the girl's head when he said "hers." " Lady Desdemona Hermione Riddle Voldemort is your superior now, so you will treat her accordingly. Any problems that she has with anyone will be resolved by me."