Title: The Beginning of the End (11)
Author: Procella Nox noctis
Category: Drama
Sub Category: Mystery
Summary: Summer brake had been his favourite time of year. Until he had to spend it with Hermione Granger. And that was just the beginning of the story.
Sneak-peek:Everybody, besides Pansy and Ron, gathered up around Hermione, who was now holding her head in pain.
"Wine again, Hermione?" Blaise joked as he supported her from falling.
"Shut up." she tried to say, but it got out more like a: "Sheatup."
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and unfortunately never will. No money is being made out of this story, which is a pity, it's really good. I own Jonathan Dester, though.A/N: We will sadly have to say good bye to Hermione's T-shirts until the Hogsmeade visits, because she can't wear them in school. Classes will actually start this chapter! I'm a bit nervous with Snape's class, I don't have any ideas of Potions, so if you can't recognize a potion, I invented it! Just so you should know!
Eleven: When The Claws Come Out
Monday, 4th of September soon came by, and so the classes started. Hermione and Blaise had remarkably distanced themselves, each going with their own friends. So while Blaise had spent his Sunday with Draco, Pansy and Millicent thinking about the upcoming war, and Blaise updated his friends on the latest news about his sorcerer blood; Hermione had spent hers in the company of her friends, explaining how come she was a pureblood, and a sorcerer.
Needless to say, Harry, Ron and Ginny were surprised to say the least, and Neville had fainted when Hermione made a glass explode with her mind to demonstrate, but in the end they understood, were thrilled and had all sworn secrecy, even Luna who had joined at the last moment, and believed every word Hermione had said.
That Monday, only one thought crossed the Head Girl and Slytherin Prefect's mind: There were only a few days left before their Initiation.
Hermione got up slowly, almost painfully, out of her bed. The head ache was back. It was almost as if someone was trying to get into her mind, and they used a drilling machine to open it up.
She went to the Prefect's bathroom, took a shower and got dressed in her Hogwarts uniform. Then she went to Ron and Ernie's room to wake up her lazy friend, and together they went to the Gryffindor tower to get their other friends.
Half an hour later, Hermione was busy playing with her food, while listening to Harry talk about Quidditch. She quietly asked herself if all the Quidditch Captains were as fanatics as Wood and Harry. Shrugging, she took a look at the Great Hall.
The Gryffindor table was always the noisiest, but today half of the people were just eating quietly. Hermione figured it was because of the shadow of the war upon Hogwarts that they were like this.
The Ravenclaw table was the same as usual. Hermione nodded to Terry, the Head Boy, as he lifted his eyes to look at her. Half of the Ravenclaws were reading some notes, and the other half were chatting. Luna, of course, was busy staring of into space.
The Hufflepuff table was the same as the Ravenclaw table. Hermione waved to Hannah Abbot and Susan Bones, who were chatting quietly, looking over the Daily Prophet.
The Slytherin table was in its usual foul mood. Pansy had a sullen face, and stared at her food as if trying to kill it. Millicent was looking preoccupied at Pansy's mood and Draco wasn't there at all. Hermione noticed that neither was Blaise. She decided she needed to ask what was going on. If not as their friend, then as Head Girl
"They aren't there. How strange." Ginny's voice brought her attention towards the Gryffindor table.
"Who aren't where, Gin?" she asked the redhead girl.
"Zabini and Malfoy. Must be wondering off somewhere. Strange, isn't it?"
"Yeah. Well, I'll see them in classes anyway." Hermione shrugged, but couldn't help but feel preoccupied.
"Hey, look, schedules are here!" Ron said, as the owls dropped the envelopes on their laps.
"What did you chose, Hermione?" Harry asked as he opened his own schedule.
"Arithmancy, DADA, Potions, Transfiguration and Charms. And of course there's the Fighting class that's obligatory."
"Decided what you're going to be yet?" Ginny asked looking over her schedule.
"A Curse Breaker. I owled Bill this summer to ask him what I should choose for that job, and he said I must know Arithmancy, Transfiguration, Charms and DADA. That only left me with one class free, so I decided to take Potions."
"So we have you in all our classes, besides Herbology. Nice." Harry smiled. Last year, Harry had decided to be an Auror, so he started studying more for Potions and started ignoring Snape's insults, which led him to passing the finals with a B.
"Well, I'm having Care of Magical Creatures instead of Herbology, so we'll see each other only in four classes." In their sixth year Ron had decided that what he really wanted to do was to bread dragons with Charlie in Rumania, so he dropped Herbology and taken COMC. Mrs. Weasley had thrown a fit, of course, but she had calmed down when Ron promised not to let his hair grow longer than chin-lenght.
"I'm still having doubts over what to do, but I've taken some classes so that no matter what I chose, at least I'll have a chance. Besides, I still have another year left." Ginny answered.
"We better be off now, we have Transfiguration in five minutes, and I don't like a mad McGonagall." Neville smiled, picking up his books. From all her friends, Hermione was most proud of Nevilles decision to become an Auror to avenge his parents.
They were walking towards the Transfiguration class, when they heard a fight in a secluded hallway. Hermione, Ron and Ginny immediately put on their badges, while the others took out their wands.
The culprit of the commotion was Jonathan Dester, a seventh year Ravenclaw and the Slytherin Four. Hermione looked at the five persons, and studied their face. Draco and Blaise looked murderous. Pansy had the same blanc expression, but you could see traces of tears trying to get out and Millicent was desperately trying to hold both boys down from tearing Dester's neck, while the Gryffindor held a smug expression on his face.
"What's going on here?" Ron shouted, driving their attention to him.
"None of you business, Weasley. Now get lost before you get into trouble." Draco spat at him, but to Hermione's eye she could see there was something grave going on indeed.
"As Prefects it would be our business." Ginny spat back at Malfoy.
"Blaise?" Hermione looked at the dark haired boy as he shook his head telling her to leave.
Harry and Neville still had their wands out and were watching Jonathan intently.
"Dester?" Harry finally asked the boy.
Jonathan smirked. "Not your business, but if you're dieing to know, I was trying to be nice to her for once, and her goonies came down to threaten me." He said looking at Pansy.
"Be nice? You were almost raping her, you freaking jerk." Draco shouted, leaving the hallway in silence.
Hermione's expression tightened. She remembered what Pansy had told her about the Death Eaters abuses.
"I was only trying to ask her out, but the whore—"
SLAP!
The present people were all looking at a red and angry Hermione, who had her hand lifted, ready to slap the Ravenclaw again.
"Bastard!" she hissed.
Dester looked up at her with disgust in his eyes. He looked almost murderous. Hermione didn't even flinch.
"This isn't over, Mudblood." he spat. Everyone gasped.
"You bet your fucking ass it isn't." she looked him in the eye, unfazed.
"You'll be sorry. You'll regret the day you stood up to that Slytherin garbage."
SLAP!
"Insult them again, and I'll use my want." She hissed at the boy.
The boy nodded to her, never loosing his glare, and left. Everybody, besides Pansy and Ron, gathered up around Hermione, who was now holding her head in pain.
"Wine again, Hermione?" Blaise joked as he supported her from falling.
"Shut up." she tried to say, but it got out more like a: "Sheatup."
Meanwhile, Ron had went to see if Pansy was alright, seeing as she hadn't moved from her spot.
"You alright, Parkinson?" he looked at her.
The blonde lifted her head, and Ron could see tears spilling out of them. "No." she whispered before collapsing into his arms, crying. Ron stiffened up for a few seconds, and then embraced her back in comfort.
"Boy, Granger, when your claws come out, the come out for good." Draco looked at the Head Girl in gratitude, which was proven by the fact that he now called her Granger instead of the usual Beaver.
"My slapping routine's a bit rusty, I haven't used it since third year."
"Yes well, don't consider me your exercise target." He smiled back at her.
Hermione was still trying to make her head ache go away, when Blaise's arm rested on her back, and he whispered in her ear: "We need to talk later." Hermione looked up at him to see his turquoise eyes filled with worry, so she nodded.
"We should be heading for class, or McGonagall'll have our neck." Ron said joining the group wit Pansy by his side, still crying softly.
"We better. Come on." Harry looked at everybody and turned around, leading the way to their class.
Ginny said her goodbyes and left for her Charms lesson. Hermione was following Ron, Blaise, Harry and Draco, who were talking about the newest teacher, when Pansy and Millicent joined her side.
"Thank you." Pansy whispered to the Gryffindor.
Hermione smiled at her and nodded.
"Hermione, just so you know. I think you've just won Draco's friendship." Millicent smiled at her.
"I know. I've figured it out. How are you feeling?" she looked at Pansy.
The blonde smiled weakly.
"She's feeling better, especially after she's had Weasley act as her crying pillow." Millicent whispered.
"Very funny. He was merely there and willing to help. But anyway, is he single?" the Slytherin asked Hermione before they entered Transfiguration class.
"I don't know. Why don't you ask him?" she smiled at her and went to sit beside Neville.
Transfiguration class had some students from Ravenclaws, including Dester, three Hufflepuffs, namely Hannah, Susan and Ernie, and of course the Slytherin Four and Theodore Nott, and Harry, Hermione, Ron and Neville from Gryffindor.
As she sat next to Neville in the first line as always, Hermione felt two pair of eyes on her. One was Dester's, who was glaring at her for all she was worth, and the other was Blaise, who was looking from her to Dester.
McGonagall entered the class that day, noticing a very tense atmosphere between some of her students. She decided to let that pass, hoping that it would settle down eventually. How very wrong she was.
That night, Hermione was lying on her bed, looking at the ceiling she had enchanted to replay the night's sky, and thought about what Blaise had told her at lunch time.
He had dragged her into a empty classroom. When they were there Hermione looked at him, and he looked back at her, concerned. Then after a few moments, he hugged her.
"I missed you a bit these days." He whispered into her hair. She shivered.
"It's only been two days. I didn't know you couldn't live without me."
"It was quiet without you yelling into my ear each morning." He replied, referring to the times when she woke him up like that at her house.
"I can still do that, you know?"
"I don't think Millicent will like it."
"Probably strangle me this time, the girl."
"Hermione, I'm worried about what happened today."
"You mean with Dester?"
"I think he's a Death Eater."
Hermione stiffened into his arms, then pulled away.
"I can take care of myself."
"I know, but—"
"Blaise, please don't go motherly on me now. You know I can take care of myself."
"Just promise me that until you're Initiated, you'll keep an eye out for Dester, okay?"
"Promised." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and left the classroom.
That night, Hermione couldn't sleep. What if Dester really was a Death Eater? That would explain why he wanted to abuse Pansy. Poor girl. She had been so cold all this time, and now her whole façade was crumbling down on her.
Hermione considered the fact that Jonathan Dester, a student that had joined Hogwarts last year, after being thrown out of Durmstang, could as well be a Death Eater, but could as well not be.
She stood up from her bed and went to the bathroom. When she returned to her room she was met by a cloud of smoke. She tried to get to the door, but it was locked. She started choking on the black smoke in her room. The smell was becoming clearer now. One thought crossed her mind before she collapsed on the floor: "Fire."
E/N: My god, what a huge Cliff-hanger!!! I'm such a cruel bitch, I know. Just so you should know, Dester is an OC. His role was first going to go to Seamus Finnegan, but I changed my mind in the last moment, remembering Seamus wasn't believable as a D.E. seeing as in the 5th book he didn't even believe Voldie was alive. So I created a bad guy! Ph3ar me! But anyway, did you like it? Also, reviewers: Thank you.
BIG NOTE: every once in a while, my mother decides to go a bit LUcius Malfoy on me, meaning very strict, meaning she forbids me to turn on the computer for a day. So if I'm not updating the next day, that's probably why. Not to worry, though, my mom is more terrible when she's like Molly Weasley, but I'm not taking her there. She usually calms down after a while, or a day if I'm lucky. Thought you should know. Read all the notes from this chapter, they are important!