Sorry it took forever to update, but here you go to my two reviewers. It was two right? I LOVE YOU GUYS!
So all, we remember where our buddy Hermione was last time, right? I'm so nice for stopping it there, aren't I? Aren't you so glad I'm all cool like that.
Anyways, chapter two, here ya are. BTW check out my other story too. It's all spiffy and stuff.
Hermione stepped into the room, trying to calm her pounding heart. She had almost succeeded, but it picked up again when she saw a face that looked like the Sirius she knew, but it was older, more gaunt and sallow. It made her shiver to see his cold brown eyes, exactly the opposite of Sirius' warm, remorseful, and gentle ones that seemed to hold all the feeling that would fit in his heart, but this man's held no feeling at all.
"Who is this Belletrix?" the man asked, in a cool voice.
"She calls herself Alaira Howard, Ali, she says," Belletrix said in a voice that did not sound very sure. "She seems to know much about us."
"I know very little of you. All that I know is that I am enemy to Albus Dumbledore and I want my revenge. You can put me within reach of him," Hermione hissed. It was directed at the man she knew had to be Scott Black, but she was glaring at Belletrix very intently.
Hermione moved her eyes to Scott Black and stared directly into his eyes though it almost made her shiver to think of those eyes and the cold heart behind them.
"What has he done to you to invoke your anger so, child?" a cold voice said, from a chair facing the fire. A shiver ran up Hermione's spine at the voice she knew must be the dark lord's, but she covered it up expertly.
"I have my reasons, just as you have yours Tom," Hermione said darkly. Scott lunged at me for calling Voldemort Tom.
"Who do you work for?" he shouted at her.
"It's whom do you work for and I work none other than Albus Dumbledore, no one else, you nosey prat. Release me, before I make you release me," Hermione ordered. Scott leapt back, feeling her wand against his stomach. Her fear was now thinly masked, as she backed out of the room, putting up a blue barrier around herself as she went.
"She radiates with power, the same kind of power that flows in my veins. Come dear, you know it's a power that Albus Dumbledore is not great enough to understand," Hermione heard the voice of Voldemort. She began to tremble as she saw him stand. When he turned she let out a quiet gasp.
"NO!" she screamed, the barrier blinking a vibrant red. "I WORK FOR NO ONE BUT ALBUS DUMBLEDORE! HE IS AND ALWAYS WILL REMAIN THE GREATEST WIZARD EVER TO BE BORN!"
"No other way would she get through the barriers of the House of Black, while she is no ally!" Belletrix exclaimed.
Reinforcing the barrier, Hermione turned and bolted as fast as she could towards the door. She practically flew out of it.
"I'll get to you professor!" she exclaimed to herself.
She held out her wand, and in seconds the Night Bus appeared. She backed away from the building, staring at Scott Black as she practically fell into the arms of a young man who was surprised, but steadied her and led her onto the bus.
"Girl... what was you staring at?" the man asked.
Hermione looked at him and muttered, "You'd rather not know, sir."
"All right," he nodded, accepting the answer. He sat her on the nearest bed to the front on the bus, and kept a hand on her shoulder, hoping it would calm her.
"Where are you headed darlin'?" the driver asked, gruffly.
"Uh, Hogwarts, sir," Hermione replied softly.
"Closest we can get you is Hogsmeade, my dear," the driver replied. "Will that be alright?" he asked.
"That's fine. I owe you much more already than you know," Hermione told him.
In fifteen seconds flat they were in Hogsmeade. "The three broomsticks," the driver announced.
"Thank you so much, how much do I owe?" she asked.
"Nothing. We do not consent to let a damsel in distress pay us for our services. It was no trouble at all," the young man told her quickly, gaining a nod from the driver. He led her off the bus and they were both surprised to see the mask of a Death Eater staring back at them when the doors were opened.
"Screw policy Ernie! Get us to Hogwarts!" the young man said, pulling Hermione back inside and just getting her out of the way of a spell.
"OKAY MATT!" Ernie, the driver shouted back, starting the bus quickly
"Why are death eaters after you?" Ernie called as Hermione shrunk back into the corner of the bus, behind his seat.
She didn't know until the instant the death-eater through a curse at her how much this ordeal was tearing her apart with fear. She couldn't help herself from bursting into tears the second her back hit the wall of the bus. She slid down, tears streaming down her face, sobs racking through her chest.
"Oh dear, oh dear," Matt, the young man muttered, staring out the window as they passed trees quickly.
Albus Dumbledore sat in his study when he glanced out the window and saw the dark mark hovering over Hogsmeade. He leapt to his feet and ran out the door, down the stairs that moved with him and out into the hall. "SIRIUS!" he shouted.
"I know! I see it!" a voice called from the floor below.
"Albus!" two more voices shouted.
"It's the night bus!" Sirius called from the bottom of the stairs as the headmaster came with two professors running close behind him.
They ran out the door faster than anyone would have thought the professors capable of, but with Sirius in front. Sure enough as they got out, they saw the night bus waiting at the front doors.
"Professor Dumbledore, I need some help!" a muffled voice called, a male's.
"Who's that?" Minerva McGonagal asked, as they hurried after Sirius, who was the first on the bus.
"Mathew Johnson, graduated two years ago," Albus said, upon seeing him.
When his eyes fell upon the girl shrunk in the shadows, cowering in the corner, and pushing Matt away from him, he did not know what to call her, for he had no idea who she was.
"The Death Eaters are after her. One attacked by the three broomsticks, and when I got her back in safely she went to the corner and refused to move," Matt said, glancing back at the town they had moments-ago left.
Minerva tried to go to her, but she let out a squeaking noise and shuffled away, and did the same with Alberto Spring and Albus.
"Sirius?" Albus glanced at him, hoping he could do something. Sirius was staring at her oddly. He glanced at the forest and people with masks stood there, walking slowly towards them. They were running out of time and had to get her inside the safety of Hogwarts.
Sirius did not rush to her as the others had done. He got on his knees next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder, gently. He slowly placed a hand on her chin and turned her to look at him. Her brown eyes met his and she lunged herself into his arms. He was completely taken by surprise, but wrapped his arm around her nonetheless. He put is other arm beneath her knees and lifted her effortlessly.
He turned back to Albus and nodded to he and the other professors, who hastened off the bus ahead of him, and all three at the same time put up a barrier that stopped the spells that were sent forward when she came into view. Sirius ran her into the castle, Matt right behind him, while Ernie drove away, to get the bus out of the way.
"What's her name?" Sirius asked.
"She didn't tell us," Matt said, shakily, glancing back at the professors, standing at equal intervals they hands up creating a barrier.
"Where'd you pick her up?" Sirius demanded.
"On the streets in London a bad part of London; it was very shabby she was staring back and holding her wand facing the gap between two buildings as if something were there!" Matt snapped back.
"What was the street name?" Sirius shouted.
"Grim something," Matt said, unsure.
"Black Manor," Sirius hissed, cursing under his breath.
"Watch her," Sirius ordered, setting her gently on the ground just inside the door.
He ran out to Albus. "She was at Black Manor Albus. She must have escaped or something, with what that guy says," Sirius shouted, over the shouts of spells and their colliding with the barrier.
"Does she have a name?" Albus asked.
"No, he doesn't know her name," Sirius replied.
"Alright, truce!" he called to the death eaters. "We know you want the girl and you know you're not going to get through our barrier, so just leave!" Albus called to them.
"The girl, so you do not know her?" hissed the unmistakable voice of Voldemort. He walked into view from among his death eaters.
"Why would we?" Sirius demanded.
"When she was trying to get away, all she kept babbling about having to get to you, singing praises to a despicable muggle-loving wizard, implying that your power was more than mine. She actually believes she will be able to defy me, when we all know she will be my servant soon as her ambition for power is so undeniable," Voldemort smirked with his thin white lips.
Matt shouted something, causing Sirius to turn quickly. The girl was walking out of the castle, firmly, biting her lip as tears still tracked down her face.
"I will forever be on Albus Dumbledore's side. I would die before joining you!" the girl shouted. "LUMIONUS TONAMIS!" she screamed, holding her wand, pointed at Voldemort. It hit him and actually threw him back and to the ground. He did not move. The death eaters scurried in fright, grabbing him and running.
The spell took so much out of the girl that she fell to her knees, dropping her wand and seconds later, dropped completely unconscious. It was Alberto, Professor Spring, who caught her in time before she hit the ground.
"Professor, what just happened?" Sirius just asked, thoroughly shaken, his eyes lifting to Albus, who was staring at the girl in shock.
"I do not know," Albus said, incredulously.
"But..." Minerva trailed off. In all her life she had never thought to hear those words from the lips of Albus Dumbledore.
"This is astonishing," Alberto mumbled, his voice raspy. "Sirius lad, I'm not as strong in my old age; lift her up, will you, eh?" Alberto asked. Sirius did as he was told and turned to the castle.
"Get her to the hospital room. I'll examine her myself," Albus stated.
"Matthew, you should really get back to the Night Bus. I'm sorry to say that I will have no information on what just occurred until she awakens, upon which time I will contact Ernie and yourself.
"She's so small and pale, Albus. How can such a frail girl produce a spell that powerful, more powerful than anything you have yet to throw at Voldemort?" the young Professor Minerva McGonagal asked, incredulously.
"I do not know, Minerva; I myself don't understand this," Albus stated, following Sirius glumly into the school, the two other professor directly behind them.
Read and review before I start doin' the snoopy dance and makin' ya'll read and review! Ya, I'm an Idahoan I'll do it you know, shakes fist threateningly, an starts shaking ass. You know you like it. I'M KIDDING!!!
