Just a Stranger
Summary: A SS/ HG Fic. What if Hermione makes a deadly choice? The consequences ripple thoughout the magical world. Can anyone save her or their world?
An: This story has obvious Catholic or religious overtones. While I understand that not everyone is catholic, it's also at the same time not preachy. I hope. In addition I have no beta reader. So I am apologizing now for all my errors.
One Week Later ….
The Leaky Caldron
London
Sitting in a darken corner, an intensely beautiful blonde man watches the crowd with precise eyes. His disgust rapidly shows plainly in his face. He sneers as he lens back in his chair, ever so watchful of the crowed.
"I'm telling you," shouts an irate man. "Muggleborns, aren't supposed to be that powerful!"
"It's shouldn't be possible," argues another man. "For the dead to return to the living."
"Mudblood!" spits a woman. "That mudblood was more powerful! How in Merlin's name can that be?"
"It shouldn't be," cries an old woman. "If all mudbloods are as powerful, we're doomed!"
"The dead need to go back to being dead!" shouts an old man.
"Yes!" chants the crowd. "The dead need to be dead!"
"Down with all mudbloods!"
Alters his position in his chair, the man nods his head silently greeting his guest. Snorting, he fruitlessly gestures to rapidly homicidal crowd. Twisting his rakes his fathomless icily gray eyes over her.
"Lambs to the slaughter," he sneers.
"Celebrating already," softly reprimands the woman. "I remember the last time you did that." Hearing his sharp intake of breath, she adds, "I do recall it didn't turn out quite well as you expected."
St. Mary's Church
Inside the Cathedral
"And now let us pray on to the lord," orders a pompous man.
Listening with a half ear as the man drones on about faith and hope, Severus resists the urge to pull out his wand and use a silencing spell. How in Merlin's name do these muggles stand listening to this man?
"And also with you," chants everyone in the building. Waiting for the man to come down from his podium, Severus stands stiffly behind the Potter family. At lest the Weasley's weren't here to cause a commotion. I can't believe that even the fleabag behaved himself. Feeling a gentle hand on his arm, Severus turns to see Lily smiling up at him.
"The priest will meet with us in fifteen minutes," softly mutters Lily. "The Weasley's will be joining us outside along with the Malfoy's."
Taking one last look around the empty place, Severus states, "I'll wait for you outside."
"I think that's a good idea," mutters Lily, nodding her head approvingly.
Turning on his heal, Severus strides out of the building into the blinding sunlight. Spying several flaming red heads with two platinum blondes, Severus stalks over to the group. Turning a steely eye on everyone until they settle down, Severus notes that everyone was slightly uneasy.
Twenty minutes later the church doors slam open as Harry and James Potter stalk out, followed closely by Lily and an equally irate Sirius. Raising an eyebrow, Severus silently questions what they were upset.
"Of all the imbeciles in the world," hisses Harry.
"What a load of cadswap," shouts James.
"What a pompous twit," swears Sirius.
"Boys!" admonishes both Lily and Molly at the same time.
Seconds later the priest comes bounding out of the church racing towards them. Gripping his wand, Severus sneers coldly as he approaches. Watching in satisfaction as the priest instantly becomes apprehensive.
"Mum look," hisses Fred.
A sharp tug on his arm pulls him away from the annoying priest. Stumbling a bit, Severus climbs into a bus. This is just perfect! Here I am, a great wizard standing on a muggle bus. A muggle bus!
St. Mary's Church
Bus Stop
Hastily pointing his wand at everyone that he didn't recognize, Auror Jones notices that the group he is assigned to board a long muggle traveling device. Smirking, he dashes towards it. Glancing up into the windows, he notices that it's full of passengers. Bloody hell! I'm going to need a team when I get on that thing.
On the Bus
"Why am I on this insipid contraption," demands Severus glaring coldly at Molly Weasley as he is forced down the aisle. Molly flushes under Severus's gaze, helplessly gesturing to the curb where Ministry officials were obliterating everyone in sight
"It's either on the bus or in St. Mungo's," states George as he points out Auror Jones.
Stupid fools! What do they think a bunch of muggles are going to do? Grumbling, Severus stalks to the nearest seat and gracefully sits down. The doors slam shout and the bus pulls away from the curb.
"Damn Ministry," heatly swears Sirius. "I'm surprised they didn't apporate right onto the bus."
"Sirius!" hisses Lily pointing to a lone passenger on the bus. Waiting a minute or two, Lily slowly exhales. "Why?"
"Has some thingie on," observes James as he peers at her closer.
"It's a walkman," answers Harry.
"A what?" sneers Lucius as he rakes his eyes over the seats of the bus. Sighing heavily, Harry attempts to explain what a walkman is to the group. After explaining it several times to Mister Weasley, Harry promised to get him his own walkman as he goes to sit next to Ron in the rear of the bus.
"Folks," states the bus driver. "If you could have a seat, please." Quickly the adults take a seat.
"Well, what did the priest have to say?" questions Lucius.
"Oh… nothing much," gruffly states James looking upset. "He just said that the cross was a religious relic. Started mumbling that Hermione opened a gateway to heaven only to send herself to hell."
"What?" gasps Severus looking extremely shocked. "Did he at least have any good news?" There has to be good news somewhere in this mess.
"Only that the church will be happy to take the cross from us," growls Sirius. "He won't even suggest anything to help her."
"Smashing," hisses both Fred and George as they move away from the adults. The group falls silent, each dealing with their own thoughts.
Flopping down in their seats so hard that they startled the unaware passenger. Seeing the shocked look on her face, they mutter a quick, "Sorry."
Rear of the Bus
Harry and Ron's Point of View
Sighing heavily, Harry looks out the window. Blinking Harry nudges Ron, and then points to the window. "Wow, did it get so dark," exclaims Harry.
"It's been dark for a while," offers the silent passenger. "You only just noticed it."
"Oh," huffs Harry.
"It helps to talk about it," states the passenger turning her soft baby blue eyes to Harry. "Sometimes, it's easier to talk to a stranger." Pointing her finger towards the cross in Harry's hands, "The Celtic cross of Catherine."
"Hey," mutters Ron. "How did you know?"
"A hobby of mine," laughs the passenger giving Ron a gentle smile. "Call me Hope. And you are?"
"I'm Ron Weasley and this," says Ron while pointing to Harry. "Is Harry Potter. That's Draco Malfoy sitting next to my sister, Ginny. The other two red heads are my twin brothers, Fred and George. My parents and his are up front talking to Professor Snape and Malfoy senior."
"Nice to meet you," replies Hope as she offers her hand to them. "Now, from what I can gather, you're wizards," holding up her hands to prevent boundless questions. "And Ginny there is a witch. The robes kind of gave it away. That and the bright green with pink outfits."
"Cool," mutters Harry looking relieved. Turning towards her, Harry was monetarily shocked at the teenager's sloppy appearance. Her hair was six different shades of purple that was haphazardly put into an irregular ponytail and her mismatched cloths could put any wizard to shame.
"So what has everyone so glum?" asks Hope.
"Well," reluctantly starts Ron. "You see our best friend, Hermione. She opened a gate with this cross-thingy. She somehow…ah… returned things that were…. ah…hmm… lost, yeah lost, some lost a long time ago, yeah."
"But in the process," adds Harry. "She lost herself."
"Hmm," mutters Hope. "What caused her to even want to open this gate in the first place?"
"She lost something important herself," answers Harry carefully.
"But by returning what was lost, she lost herself," reverberates Hope. "Wasn't she already lost? Or did you not notice? Or was she so clever, that there were no signs?"
"Well, she was sad," offers Harry. "But that is only normal."
"Yes, sadness is normal," agrees Hope. "But when sadness fades into darkness. There are signs and when those signs are not heeded, that's when people will go to desperate lengths. And loved ones are left behind to pick up the pieces."
"Yeah," sighs Harry looking even more down.
Middle to Back of the Bus
Draco and Ginny's Point of View
Putting her head on Draco's shoulder, Ginny struggles not to break down into tears. Reaching over, Ginny intertwines her fingers with Draco's.
"I can't believe that she's gone," whispers Ginny. "I don't know what I would do without you."
"I just can't believe that there is nothing we can do," mutters Draco feeling lost. "At lest I have you." Moving his arm, Draco maneuvers it behind Ginny. As he's moving his arm, he accidentally touches the stranger on her shoulder. "Oh, I'm sorry." "That's alright," laughs the little curly black haired girl. Her face was radiating her joy at them. "Love is a precious thing. Hold onto it tightly."Looking at each other, both Ginny and Draco in union say, "I plan on it."
"The course of true love is never smooth," comments the girl as she wiggles her little pointer finger at them.
"But well worth it," states Draco as he gives Ginny a loving smile. "If I had to go throw it all again, I would. Just so that I can hold her."
"What about you?" ask the girl as she points to Ginny.
"I would too," states Ginny in a clear voice. Snuggling closer to Draco, Ginny whispers, "I wish Hermione was here to witness this."
"Same here love," whispers Draco. "Same here." Both Ginny and Draco give the little a warm smile as she bounces around in her seat, humming a catching up beat song.
Middle to Front of the Bus
Fred and George's Point of View
"Mischievousness," comments a voice. Startled, both Fred and George look up. "That's what I think of when I look at the two of you sitting there together. Mischievousness."
Looking over to the old woman that they had startled, both Fred and George give her a small smile.
"You probably drive your poor mother crazy," laughs the old woman. Swaying as the bus makes a turn; both Fred and George abruptly get up to steady the old woman. "But everyone needs a laugh or two. Laughter is important, it helps those that are depressed."
"Yeah," agrees Fred as he shares a look with George. Both of them knew that they letHermione down by not bring some laughter into her life.
Laying a worn hand on either of their cheeks, the old woman graces them with an understanding smile. "I think you have angles that dance upon your shoulders," whispers the old woman. "And they keep you safe from harm. Don't worry my sons."
Removing her hands, the woman moves slowly towards the front of the bus. Fred and George reach up, touching the cheek same cheek the old woman did.
Front of the BusWhere the Adults are
"I'm telling you," growls Sirius. "There has to be something we can do."
"But what?" snaps Arthur. "We have been through this with the ministry. They're not willing to rescue her, or allow us to rescue her. Dumbledore, for all of his muggle loving ways, is not willing to help."
"It's not like time-turners cost just a few galleons," sneers Lucius. "And the ministry is keeping an extra sharp eye on them."
"Poor Hermione," whispers Lily. "May god bless her."
"Bless her?" huffs Sirius in agitation. "How about sending her back to us!"
"It apparently doesn't work that way," huffs James. "The priest said something about freewill."
"How would he know?" snaps Molly. "You, yourself said he was full of codswap! There has to be something we can do. Someone who knows something about this!"
"Maybe, we should visit more of these priest people," suggests Lucius. "One of them must have some knowledge."
"Yeah but who?" sneers Severus. "So far we have continuously run into dead ends!"
"Are you suggesting that we stop?" shouts Sirius.
"No!" snaps Severus. "You flee-bag! I'm not."
"Try the Vatican," calmly states a preppy looking woman. "They are said to be the leading authority."
"The Vatican," recites Arthur. "They're the leading authority."
"Oh," gasps Lily. "I should have remembered. But Arthur, how did you know that?" questions Lily. At her questioning gaze, Arthur just shrugs his shoulders.
"Ok, we'll talk to this Vatican," agrees Lucius. "Where would we find him?"
"The Vatican is a place, not a person," explains Lily. "And it's in Italy. I think?"
"Italy?" gasps Molly looking shocked. "We're going to need a place to stay. How are we going to afford this?"
"What makes you think these Vatican's will even see us?" sneers Severus. "Just seeing the local priest was hard enough."
"True," agrees James. "These priest people are hard to get a hold of."
"What are you suggesting Potter?" softly questions Lucius. "We make an appointment with them?"
"You're missing the point," whispers the preppy woman.
"You're missing the point!" argues Sirius adamantly.
"What point?" snaps Molly. "The leading authority is someplace in Italy."
"The point is, we have a place to start," reasons the woman.
"We have a place to start," calmly states Severus.
Pinching her nose, as the adults start to argue amongst themselves again. Taking a deep breath, she smirks at the group before her. Two lonely men sitting on one side, while the rest of the group was cluttered together. Things need to change and change they shall.
"What the hell do you know about love?" demands Sirius almost jumping up from his seat. Severus's pale cheeks now had a pinkish hue to them. "That's what I thought Sniv…"
"Enough," demands the woman.
"Who are you?" starts James until he realizes that the person speaking wasn't with the group.
"I am Faith. That's more then enough," she angrily states. "Instead of working together to solve this problem, you're ripping each other to shreds." Seeing several open their mouths to defend themselves, she glowers at them. "Be silent!" Each person feels the weight of her stare, as she looks them over.
"Molly," softly Faith, address the woman. "You're family is fine. You should worry less about them. Arthur, focus more on the task at hand, and less on the muggle trinkets."
"Hey, you leave him alone," defends James.
"Mister Potter, you need to decided what you're going to do. Along with you, Misses Potter."
"What does that mean?" demands Lily.
"It means, that you need to choose between being here and your son..."
"What? What about Harry?" demands Sirius alarmed. "He's fine."
"The gate that Hermione opened, wasn't meant to be opened," states Faith as she stands up. At lest not yet. Not by a mortal.
"So that means what exactly?" softly demands Severus. "Are you saying Hermione's sacrifice was in vain?"
"She choose to make that sacrifice," states Faith as she starts to walk towards the front of the bus. "The question is, are you? Are you willing to make the same sacrifice?"
"You mean," huffs Sirius looking upset. "James and Lily have to go back to being dead. I have to go back into the Veil."
"Something like that," agrees Faith. "Yes," answers Faith as she gently touches his shoulder. "But, you should know better then most never to give up." Lily and James,stare at one another before slowly nodding their heads in silent agreement. The three friends shared a bittersweet moment.
"Don't you worry," offers Molly. "I'll look after him as if he's one of my own."
"Severus," whispers Faith. "What makes you think that love has past you by?" Seeing the shock on his face, Faith shakes her head. "It never ceases to amaze me. Love comes at it's own time, it knows no bounds, no shame and no regret."
Moving on, Faith lingers near Lucius for a few seconds. Patting his hand, Faith gives him a fawn smile. "The next time we meet, I have this feeling that we'll be having a very long discussion young man."
Rear of the Bus
Harry and Ron's Point of View
"Well boys," states Hope. "This is my stop." Getting up, Hope gives them an encouraging smile. "I wish you luck."
Middle to Front of the Bus
Fred and George's Point of View
"Oh dears," whispers the old woman as she hastily gathers up her bags. "I'm going to miss my stop!"
"Here let us help you," offer both Fred and George as they help the woman to her feet.
"I'll say it again, mischievousness," laughs the woman. "But suck good boys." Taking her bags from them, she proceeds down the aisle.
Middle to Back of the Bus
Draco and Ginny's Point of View
"My stop! My stop!" shouts the little girl as she bounces off her seat. "Hold the press! I got to get off!"
"Hey take it easy there," comments Draco as he glances out his window. Seeing the rundown street the girl was getting off on, he starts to apprehensive. "Are you sure this is your stop? It doesn't look all that safe."
"Don't worry," smiles the little girl as she waves good-bye. "Where I go, I don't go alone. Never alone."
Front of the Bus
Where the Adults are
Stepping onto the steps, she turns back towards the group her smile slides off her face. In a loud clear voice she states, "Let's see if you can get it right this time."
Stepping off the bus, the doors make a loud startling booming noise as the bus pulls away from the curb. Swaying of the bus forces the group to grip their seats. Turns start to get sharper; everyone can feel that the bus is starting to speed up.
"Hey bus driver!" shouts Harry. "Slow down!" Hitting a rather nasty bump, everyone is thrown out of their seat.
"Hey!" shouts Fred as George shouts, "Take it easy!"
"Slow down!" shrieks Ginny. "You're going to fast!"
"We're going to hit someone!" comments James.
"We need to take control of the bus," states Severus as he attempts to make his way forwards. "Bloody hell! Where is the bus driver? Can anyone drive this contraption?"
"Forget driving it!" snaps Lucius. "Grab the kids and let's apparate off this thing!"
"Fred! George!" shouts Molly. "Grab your siblings and go!" Watching her children embrace each other, Molly's worst fears come to life as she watches her twins look at her with fear in their eyes. "Go!" The bus lurches and bounces upwards loading with a heavy thud.
"We can't!" shouts Fred scared. "There seems to be an anti-apparation spell on the bus!"
Rushing towards her children, Molly gathers them close to her. Arthur's arms encircle her. Lily, James and Sirius have Harry between them. Draco was between Severus and his father. Each group offers words of comfort; everyone was gathered in the back of the bus.
"Brace for impact!" warns George seconds before everything becomes a blanket a dark pain.
Until Later
