~ When Insanity stops ~
Summary: At the end of Hermione's fifth year, she feels depressed about all the stuff that has happened. One morning upon waking up, Hermione finds someone else in bed with her. And that's the only the start of this interesting tale.
Bookish Owls
Editor Baddock Office
Skimming throw the pages before him, he smirk as the young writer seated in one of his office chairs squirms. This is good. Extremely juicy, even down right scandalous in parts. It will make Harry Potter look like a lovesick fool chasing after his best friend who wanted nothing to do with him in her fourth year. Running his finger over some of the words, he slowly lets his finger stop. It will also ruin that mudblood's reputation if any of this is true. Is it true?
"Is this real?" he asks.
"Of course," answers Rita Skeeter smiling evilly. "All of can be verified, Mr. Baddock. Even the marriage license." Laughing Rita relaxes into the chair. "There is more I could write, but I feel that it would be severely scandalous if I added it. Since everyone knows that Harry Potter worships his godfather's crazy wife, it could backfire if it made him publicly speak out about the book."
Finally looking up from her manuscript, he smiles as he offers, "Call me Malcolm, my dear. As for Harry Potter speaking out, that would only serve our interests. So what else could you write about Mrs. Hermione Black that the rest of the wizarding community doesn't know."
Crossing her legs, Rita gives Malcolm her best seductive smile. "Well, several reliable sources has stated that both Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley denounced Hermione as a friend because of her relationship with Sirius Black." At Malcolm's questioning look, Rita continues, "This was of course before they were married. Add to that Weasley's famous tamper getting the better of him. That fight between Sirius Black and Ronald Weasley was even record at the Ministry of Magic."
"Wonderful," sneers Malcolm rubbing his hands together. "I remember that. What did he call her… ah yes, a scarlet woman."
Snorting, Rita corrects him. "No, that's what Molly Weasley called her. Ron, her 'best friend' called her a two timing hussy with an addiction for older men. It took Remus Lupin and Albus Dumbledore to separate them."
"I don't suppose you have pictures?" questions Malcolm with a greedy twinkle in his eye.
"Why yes, I do," snickers Rita as she pulls out a small book. Taking it from her hands, Malcolm opens the book to find several moving photographs of the fight.
"This is wonderful," states Malcolm. "This most go into the book. It's juicy but not scandalous enough."
"Beyond marrying her professor while still at school?" parries Rita slightly angry.
Snarling at her, Malcolm hisses, "Everyone knows that Hermione Granger while young was more mature then the seventh years when she was a first year!"
Gasping at Malcolm's sudden mood swing, Rita clears her throat. "Well, let's see. She broke Harry's heart in her fourth year by dating Viktor Krum instead of him." Pausing when Malcolm waves a dismissing hand. "She played with her best friends against each other for years, until it came to a head in their common room."
"Really," purrs Malcolm interested. "What happened?"
"Ronald Weasley bluntly told Hermione that she was ugly…."
"Who cares about that!" interrupts Malcolm. "There has to be something more racy then a student seducing their professor. The public is going to forgive her, since she helped bring down you-know-who. I want a real scandal, something like she was two timing Harry Potter with his godfather or vice versa!"
Huffing, Rita glares at Malcolm. "She's as clean as a whistle, if you dismiss her marriage…"
"She can't be this clean!" explodes Malcolm. Gesturing wildly. "So what if she married while in school, no one will care because of the war!" Pausing, Malcolm calms himself. Peering over the papers before him, a slow evil smile snakes across his face. He looks overly calm. "When did she meet Black?"
"Sometime during her third year," answers Rita. Looking up, Rita's eyes twinkle in delight. Leaning closer, Rita adds, "No one will be able to refute that fact."
"So who's to say that they weren't physically involved since then?" ponders Malcolm leaning back in his chair.
The Burrow
The Kitchen
"HARRY POTTER!" shouts Molly pointing a
finger at
him. "Don't for one second think I
don't see that muffin in your hands!
Dinner is in three hours!"
"But Mum," whines Ron, while winking at Harry. "He's starving."
Snorting loudly, Molly turns to her daughter-in-law and Tonks. "If you two ladies would watch the food, while I help Gwen with Hermione, I'd greatly appreciate it."
"Sure thing Molly," gently agrees Tonks giving Remus a watchful stare. "I'll make sure that no one eats any more until its time for dinner."
"Go on Mum," reassures Penelope. "We can handle them." Molly gives Penelope a blooming smile before meeting up with Gwen at the stairs. As the two women climb the stairs, Ginny gasps blushing furiously.
"What's up Gin?" asks Charlie noticing his sister's blush.
"Ah," stammers Ginny glancing behind her. "Is Sirius and Hermione in the bathroom?"
"Yeah," strings out Fred looking confounded. "What of it?"
"Oh," gasps Ginny turning bright red.
"Oh boy," softly laughs Harry his green eyes twinkling. "They're finally alone!" Looking around the startled room, Harry smirks. "He's been trying to kiss her all day, and we know what this means."
The Burrow
Bathroom Second Floor
Reluctantly pulling away, the couple gasp for much needed air. Sirius gentle enfolds Hermione in his arms. Her head is resting on his chest. Slowly they untangle their limps from each other. Smiling softly, Hermione repeatedly blinks in a vain attempt to force her mind to focus.
"You still taste the same," mutters Sirius as he lowers his head, placing a long gentle kiss on the crown of her head.
"I should hope so," mutters Hermione tilting her head upwards. Bright blue eyes twinkle down at her. Standing on her tiptoes, Hermione feels Sirius's breath on her cheek.
"I'm going to kiss you again," lowly whispers Sirius
"You better," states HermHHermione before Sirius's lips descend upon hers.
Hogwarts
Dumbledore's Office
Soft flipping of wings was vividly heard in the silence of the room. Coming out of their daze, both Albus and Minerva gasp as Hedwig flies into throw an open window.
"Why hello there," greets Albus as Hedwig hoots in return. Reliving the owl of her burden, Albus stares intently at the letter. As Minerva offers the owl treats he opens the letter. As he quickly reads the contents, Albus starts to hum an upbeat tune.
Raising an eyebrow at his quirky behavior, Minerva notices that his eyes were overly bright and that insistent twinkling had increased dramatically since he got the letter. "What news does Mister Potter have to offer today?" After waiting for a few minutes, Minerva starts to worry when he doesn't answer her. "Albus?"
"She's wake," whispers Dumbledore slightly shaking. "She's awake!"
"Who's awake?" asks Minerva confused. "What in Merlin's name are you talking about?"
"Hermione! Minerva," gushes Dumbledore like an excited schoolboy. "Hermione Granger woke up earlier today. Here," states Dumbledore thrusting the parchment into her hands. "This calls for a celebration!"
Quickly reading the parchment, Minerva gasps happily. "Albus! We're going to a celebration at the Weasley's! We'll be able to see her progress."
The Burrow
Bathroom Second Floor
BANG!
Jumping and gasping, Hermione starts to violently shake in Sirius's arms after the bathroom doors were flung open. Taking several breaths, Hermione feels a tingling sensation going up and down her back. Slowly everything comes back into focus.
"Bloody door!" hisses Molly waving her wand on it. "I swear I'm going to kill those two one of these days."
"Now Molly," gently interrupts Gwen with a nastily look on her face. "You'll get a chance after me."
"Who's in trouble now?" croaks out Hermione low enough that only Sirius hears.
"The twins," mutters Sirius into her hair. "Who else would think to put a sling shot door opener?"
"A what?" asks Hermione as she realizes that Sirius was running his hand up and down her back.
"A sling shot door opener," explains Sirius quietly as to not gain any attention. "Its like the muggles automatic door thing, but this one makes a loud noise when it flies open." Seeing the confusion on her face, Sirius adds, "It wouldn't be a joke if the door did it all the time."
"Oh," whispers Hermione.
"Oh," huffs Molly fuming. "Just wait until I get my hands on them!"
"Ah… Can it wait?" asks Hermione looking over to the two vexed women. "I th..i..nk.." Blinking her eyes, Hermione tries to force the words out of her mouth when she feels something sweep up her legs.
"Shh," comforts Sirius. "You're fine. Gwen, can you run the water?"
"Sure Sirius," answers Gwen moving to turn on the water. "Molly do you have any of the Rosewater Calming Solution, that Severus created?"
"Yes," replies Molly going to the linen closet pulling out a small pink bottle and some fluffy towels. "We normally use the shampoo he created too. It's already on the shelf in the tub."
Hearing slight whimpers coming from Hermione, Sirius nestles her closer to him. "You're fine. This happens when you've gotten a scare. You're fine," soothes Sirius until Hermione relaxes in his arms. "You're going to get a bath, with the help of these two lovely women, while I apparate home and get you some new to wear."
"Oh Sirius would you," gushes Gwen pouring in the Rosewater Calming Solution. "And while you're there can you bring back a comb or a brush?"
"Yes madam," replies Sirius earning a laugh from all three women. "Ok," laughs Sirius nodding for Molly to cover Hermione with a towel. When she was completely covered, Molly mutters a simple spell.
Gasping at the sudden feeling of not having any cloths on but the towel, Hermione tenses up. She relaxes when Sirius doesn't move his hands but keeps them steady. One of his strong hands was her knee holding up her legs, the other hand on her shoulder touching her upper arm thus cradling him to her.
"Is the bath ready?" asks Sirius. When Gwen nods her head, he gently lowers Hermione into the tub. Never once removing the towel. "Alright there love?"
Looking up into his blue eyes, Hermione gradually nods her head. "Now I'm going to head home for some new cloths. I shouldn't be more then a few minutes. If you need me, I'll either be at my house or downstairs."
"That's fine," replies Molly already pulling him out of the way.
The Black Residence
The Kitchen
With a soft pop, Sirius lands in the kitchen. Feeling a slight draft on his back, he glances over his shoulder. Blinking at the site of the front door hanging from its hinges, Sirius growls with frustration. "What the bloody hell!"
Stamping over, Sirius inspects the door. Huffing he pulls out his wand, muttering several charms the door rights itself on the frame. Slamming the door shout, Sirius locks it. Sirius inspects the family room and kitchen for intruders. Who ever did this is going to wish they had never been born!
Spying a lone piece of parchment on the kitchen table, Sirius swipes it up. Barely controlling his temper as he reads the note that the Aurors left for him. Bloody little bitch, she's lucky she's in lockup! Crumpling up the parchment, Sirius clenches his fist tightly. Shaking his head, Sirius takes a deep breath. Dropping the parchment back on the table, his eyes flash dangerously.
"I've had enough of her," growls Sirius as he stomps down the hallway towards his bedroom. Shoving the door open with such force that it bangs loudly in the silence of the house.
The Burrow
The Family Room
Sitting next to Remus, Tonks leans over and kisses him on the cheek. The twins were talking amongst themselves softly. Ginny was glancing at the stairs as if she expected something to suddenly appear there. She must think that the twins rigged a prank upstairs. Harry, Ron, Arthur and Severus were huddled together in the center of the room. Ron's pissed if his face matching his hair is anything to go by.
Raking her gaze over Harry, Tonks notes that his green eyes were flashing violently. Ok, that's two. Looking at Severus, Tonks could easily see two pink patches on his cheeks. Make that three. What's wrong now? It's has to be something big if they're having a conference with Arthur about it.
"She just can't do that!" snaps Ron his temper getting the best of him. "She doesn't have the authority!"
Squeezing Remus's hand, Tonks looks him directly in his eyes before nudging her head towards the four men. With a sigh, Remus gets up and joins them. Tonks watches, as he slowly gets frustrated and angry. I don't want to know. Whatever it is, I don't want to know.
The Burrow
Bathroom Second Floor
Feeling the warm water soothingly running down her back, Hermione relaxes as both her mother and Mrs. Weasley wash her down. They must have done this often to have a route down. Pink splashes of color flood into her cheeks as her eyes dart between her mother and Mrs. Weasley.
"I'm sorry," cries Hermione as her eyes start to fill with water. "I'm sorry."
"What for?" asks Molly in her usual motherly fashion hoping to settle Hermione down.
"For being a pest," softly whines Hermione.
"Now dear," laughs Gwen kissing Hermione on her forehead. "You've always been a pest. So what has brought this on?" Looking at her daughter's face, Gwen understands. "Since the accident, you would usually take showers. But on the rare occasion that you took a bath, either Molly or myself would help you wash."
Wiping hair away from her face, Hermione looks at her mother then Molly. "Was I a problem?"
"Never," dismisses Gwen as Molly chuckles.
"You might not have remembered certain things," answers Molly. "And there were times when everyone thought you had retreated into yourself, but you always seemed to pull yourself out. It was usually by tending to Remus's roses."
Yawning tugs her hair behind her ears. "Then if its not too much trouble, do you think you could cut my hair?"
"Anything you want," answers both Gwen and Molly.
The Black Residence
Sirius and Hermione's Bedroom
Yawning widely, Sirius pulls out his wand. Waving it towards the drawers a fresh pair of underwear and socks pop out. Placing them on the bed, he waves his wand at the closet. A dark gray sweatshirt along with pants float across the room and land on the bed.
"Let's see what am I forgetting?" mutters Sirius as he makes a mental checklist. Snapping his finger he wanders around the room coming to a stop in front of the dresser. Looking down, Sirius smirks as he picks up a small brush. "That's it. I got everything."
Gathering up the fresh clothes he concentrates as he leaves with a small pop.
The Burrow
The Family Room
"I'm telling you," argues Harry. "That we should take care of Rita first then deal with Erin."
"I agree with Harry," adds Ron gesturing wildly. "Rita likes to creates chaos! There's no telling just what that she-devil will make up!"
"Erin is one step away from having Hermione locked up for life," hisses Severus angrily. "I say we deal with her first. Then go after Rita."
Shaking his head, Remus offers, "Perhaps Sirius and Hermione have an idea regarding Rita, but neither of them know about Erin. I agree with Severus, if Erin somehow manages to get Hermione locked up, I wouldn't want to be anywhere near Sirius. As for Rita, she's insignificant."
"Who's insignificant?" asks Sirius as he comes into the burrow. Sirius smirks as he notices that he has shocked Harry, Ron, Remus and Severus into silence. Holding up the clothes in his arms, Sirius calmly asks, "Ginny, would you be a love and take these up to the bathroom?"
"Sure," agrees Ginny quickly. Gathering the cloths from Sirius, Ginny leaves the room in a hurry.
"I didn't mean to frighten her away," mutters Sirius as he watches Ginny leave. Striding over to the group, Sirius softly demands, "What's going on?" Narrowing his eyes when no one answers right away, he places on hand on Remus's shoulder and the other on Severus's. "I repeat," says Sirius as he squeezes his fingers. "What's going on?"
"It's Erin," cracks Ron slightly pale. "She's attempting to have Hermione locked up in St. Mungos."
Releasing both Remus and Severus's shoulders, Sirius sighs. "She can't do that without a guardians signature. Do you know where Erin is right now?
"Yes," answers Remus. "Erin is in lockup."
"Smashing isn't it," growls Sirius.
"How so?" asks Severus as Remus starts to smile.
Gesturing for them to come closer, Sirius starts to out line his plan. "Hermione and I were planning on having Arthur…"
The Burrow
Bathroom Second Floor
Wrapping the warm fluffy towel around her midsection, Hermione covers her mouth as she yawns. Running shaking fingers throw her now short hair; Hermione attempts to look in the mirror.
"Now dear," fusses Molly as she waves her wand cleaning the bathroom. "You look just fine." Molly reaches into one of her pockets, she pulls out a small piece of candy. Offering it to Hermione who gratefully takes it from her.
"If only Sirius would show up," comments Gwen. She watches as her daughter places the hard candy in her mouth, crinkling her nose at its sweetness. Seconds later, Ginny enters the bathroom. "Ah, so he is here."
"Yep," replies Ginny as her gazes takes in Hermione's new look. "He's downstairs talking to the boys. But he wanted me to bring you these." There in Ginny's hands were new cloths for Hermione. "By the way," laughs Ginny. "I love your new look."
"Thanks," whispers Hermione.
The Burrow
The Family Room
"I love it," states Severus with a rather nasty smirk on his face. "Kills two insects with one swoop."
"Severus darling," laughs Gwen from the stairs. "That expression is, Kills two birds with one stone. Now what are you up to?"
"Why would anyone want to kill two birds with one stone?" asks Ron. Gwen doesn't even look at Ron or answer his question.
"Nothing," dismisses Severus as he glares down at Gwen.
"Don't give me that look," softly mutters Gwen. "Exceptionally when we're not at home where I can rip your clothes off and li…"
"Ahhh," groans Harry placing both of his hands over his ears. "Way to much information!"
"Potter," sneers Severus as he winks at Gwen. "You.."
"Can't give us detention," interrupts Ron as he moves away.
"Don't for one minute think I don't know what you're going," comments Gwen giving Severus a pointed stare. "What is going on?"
"Nothing," dismisses Sirius. "We have just finished dealing with Rita and Erin. That's all." Glancing around, Sirius asks, "Where's Hermione?"
"Right here," answers a voice near the stairs. Turning towards the voice, Sirius's smile disappears when his jaw drops. "Do you like it?" asks Hermione rather nervously.
Until Later