In the Eye of the Storm

It was late when it happened and she was sure they were at least four hours into the quidditch World Cup. The stands were alive with cheering fans all bellowing and clapping. Horns were going off and there was a stomping that seemed to echo out to the players all zooming around in the air. Their mascots were below and there was a lion's roar somewhere in the distance; loud and strong as one of their chasers sunk a brilliant goal into one of the hoops behind Bulgaria's keeper.

Storm was circling high above the pitch, dark eyes narrowed and watching everything; searching desperately for the snitch so they could end this game. It could go either way and she was determined to win not only for their country and their team, but for her best friend who had fallen pregnant and missed out on the opportunity to play along side her. She knew Ginny was watching from the stands, watching with baited breath as her team played their hearts out.

It all seemed to happen so quickly, everything changed in an instant. The game seemed to halt entirely as a silvery wisp of light floated into the middle of the pitch, lingering in mid air until a voice came from it's silvery glow. "The ministry has fallen, they are coming" It spoke and it's voice carried; echoing into the night sky. Mimicking Kingsley's words from years ago, words from a different era entirely.

Storm was confused as she lingered mid air, one hand gripped to the handle of her broom as she scanned the stands around them. There were dark cloaked figures popping up everywhere she looked, and soon the skies were erupting with many different colours as if fireworks were going off all around. It had gone from everything, to nothing, to everything again and the noise was deafening. It was almost too much to take and flashes of the past whizzed past her minds eye, as she angled her broom towards the stands and the sea of red she knew so very well.

A flash of green narrowly missed her as she ducked just in time to avoid the curse that would have simply struck her dead. She hurtled towards the stands crowded with many figures both cloaked and not. Some people were sporting painted faces and various quidditch paraphernalia. There were people wearing Jerseys with her name on it, with different players names on their backs; they had all been here for the same reason. To enjoy a monumental game of quidditch. Monumental it had been indeed, but for all the wrong reasons.

A bolt of green had been sent flying into the air and struck one of their own players who was just in front of her down; dead. His body seemed to dwindle on his broom for a moment as she looked on in shock before it simply slipped off and sped towards the ground. She leaned a little closer to her broom, keeping herself as narrow as she possibly could as she sped on.

Storm was making a beeline for her best friend, for Ginny Weasley and the clan she came along with. She could see them fighting off a hoard of Death Eaters as people all around them began to apparate away. As whisps of black and white smoke began to tangle in the air as Aurors appeared seconds after the first body dropped. To say it was carnage would be a gross understatement. The scenes playing out were scenes from a different time, these things were not for this time. They shouldn't be happening again. But Storm figured the past definitely had a way of repeating itself.

The redhead she had been looking for seemed to be waiting for her, anticipating her entrance as she held her hands up to slow her momentum as Storm had all but lept from her broom still moving through the air. She landed heavily, her weight thrown into Ginny's own as the redhead braced them both expertly. They shared a brief glance of dread, a brief look of pure terror before they were separated again. Storm had turned to see where a piercing scream had come from and had seen a Death eater advancing from somewhere behind them, from the stands that led to their position.

She watched as the masked figure raised their wand and before she could think her own was in the air. She was gesturing wildly, sending a barrage of sparks out before they could even start. Her body worked on muscle memory, drawing from the experience she had gained during the war. It reacted on impulse, defending and deflecting nasty curses sure to render her useless or worse.

People were screaming all around them, and there were fires erupting in the stands all around casting a flickering orange glow around the atmosphere. The sound of wood creaking and crackling; warping under the heat echoed into the night sky illuminated by flame. Another cloaked figure, another blast that shook the stadium. It was as if things were passing in slow motion, it felt as if she was fighting for hours when a hex hit her square in the chest and sent her flying backwards.

Her back collided solidly with a bench and the momentum she gained threw her up again and over it, landing with a huff on her stomach with her robes thrown up and over her head; shrouding her world for a moment. She pushed herself up quickly, ignoring the burning from her groaning ribs struggled back to her feet. Her wand was raised and spells were already passing her lips as she dispatched the figure who had caught her off guard; using the bench she had landed on as a shield of sorts as she crouched her large frame behind it.

The air was thick with smoke now and it had begun to burn her lungs as she heaved in deep breaths in an attempt to keep her cool. This would be over soon; one way or another it was going to end. "Storm! Get out! Get out!" Came Ginny's voice, screamed over the noise of the battle raging on. She whipped around then just in time to see Harry grab the redhead's arm, just in time to see them disappear into thin air and get away; get to safety.

The rest of the Weasley's were disappearing soon after, and she knew that was it. Their side had fallen, the good had lost this battle. The stands were swarming with cloaked figures now, there was a never ending sea of them. They had been caught entirely off guard at one of the biggest events in wizarding history and there was nothing she could do about it.

Another hex hit her as it came through the space Mrs. Weasley had just been standing with Arthur. She stumbled backwards as it impacted, stunned just for a second; just a second too long. A cutting curse tore through her shoulder, and another stunner hit her in the stomach. She wheezed as she doubled over and all the breath left her body as she was caught again by a hex that sent her reeling backwards before her entire world went black.

-x-x-x-x-

Quiet panic welled within her chest as she came to to someone muttering quietly, harshly not far away from where she lay on the cold; hard earth. The smell of smoke no longer lingered in the air and instead a sweetness hit her nostrils as she pulled in a gulp of breath. Her lungs heaving and burning as dark eyes snapped open to stare at the open sky above. Stars were twinkling peacefully, so disarmingly above and she noted then the sounds of rushing water somewhere near by.

She turned her head and pressed her cheek into damp grass that was so refreshing after the heat from the battle. Part of her didn't even want to try to sit up, didn't want to move. Her body burned and her chest throbbed where her heart sat heavy with the lingering thoughts of what had just happened. But her mind was slowly catching up, slowly figuring out she had no idea where she was or how she got out alive.

The quiet muttering caught her attention again, and with a heavy huff she pushed her large frame up, digging her elbows into the solid earth below in order to help sit herself up. Everything was hazy and her head throbbed as she sat herself up, her brain slowly catching up to everything. Dark eyes flicked themselves around the area shrouded almost entirely in dark shadows save for the dim light the stars above shone on them.

Her dumbstruck gaze fell on the last person she had expected to be her saviour and she stared on in disbelief. Her mind whirling and whizzing as she considered the situation, and exactly what had happened to get her here. Considered how drastically the night had changed and the direction it had gone in instead. As she had flown out into the air, into the bellowed screams and cheers from the crowd rooting for an English win for the cup never in a million years would she have known it would end this way.

"Granger?" She voiced dumbly, the sound that came from her lips hoarse and rough. It didn't sound like it belonged to her at all. She watched the shorter witch closely for a moment, looking on in disbelief. There was a rip in her jacket that clung tight to her waist, and she was covered in dust. Her hair looked lighter from the amount of ash that lingered in it but she looked as she always did.

She waited for the brunette she had once known so well to turn, to acknowledge her but it never happened. The witch in question had paused for a moment, she had turned slightly just enough for Storm to make out her profile from over her shoulder and then had resumed her muttering. Moving her wand in such a way that told Storm she was casting some sort of enchantment on the area.

Storm sat there for a moment, the cold seeping in through her damp quidditch robes and into her bones. She sighed deeply as she figured that was as much acknowledgement as she was going to get, and moved to look at her own shoulder still liberally spilling blood from the wound she had sustained. The liquid looked almost black under the dim light from the stars and she raised a shaky hand to press the cape of her robes into the gash in an attempt to stem the flow. She could feel her strong muscles twitching and nerves flickering as she pressed into the wound.

Her short dark hair was slicked back and wet from the late night dew and cold moisture that lingered in the air like a fog. It was summer, and she had no idea why it was so cold.

"What happened?" She questioned again, her tone no better than it had been moments earlier. She moved slowly, wobbling a little as she stood from her position in the grass. Moving to examine their surroundings a little better. Though as she got too close to the perimeter of the area she noticed a slight shimmering in the air and realised immediately what Hermione seemed to be doing.

She noticed a wall of trees surrounding them as if protecting some sort of fortress. They were merely in a clearing of what looked to be some kind of forest. There was a brook babbling not too far away and Storm could hear it's waters lapping at the edge of the shore as it passed by. An owl was hooting, its song soothing yet eerie and the silence that seemed to have fallen in contrast to the Quidditch stadium had her ears ringing almost painfully.

It was almost as if none of it had happened, almost as if she had dreamt the whole thing. This area was so peaceful, it was so serene and calm that it seemed that it couldn't possibly exist in the same world as what had just happened. It couldn't be possible that this world and the chaotic one they had just come from coexisted. But they did, and it had happened. She hadn't got a clue as to why it had, or where it had come from but it had happened.

She figured she wouldn't have a clue, she wouldn't have expected anything of the sort. She was just a quidditch player, all she did was fly about on a broom on the daily. There had been stories in the Prophet, there had been a quietness that had consumed the wizarding world as soon as the first article had been published but she just figured it was scaremongering at it's finest. She had just assumed there had been peace for far too long and someone was just trying to stir the pot.

Storm was lost in her own thoughts, she figured she wouldn't get an answer from the girl who had avoided her for the past ten years and settled with the silence when the brunette turned to her then. Hermione's jaw was set and her neat brows were furrowed. There was a blaze burning behind bright brown eyes visible clearly even in the darkness and Storm knew there was rage bubbling just beneath the surface. Almost instantly she froze as if petrified, as if she were merely a deer caught in the headlights. "What happened?" She prompted again, her breathing shallow as she considered what the answer might be, what the need for protection spells and concealment charms might be.

"They've managed it again haven't they, they've managed to sneak their way in. We knew something was happening, but we were too late in figuring it out. It's just like it was when he was in charge" Came Hermione's voice, tense as she gesticulated wildly, angrily.

"He's not back is he? Surely not?" Storm spoke dumbly as she watched the brunette huff in frustration and pull out a beaded purse she had seen a few times before. The bookworm she had once known had begun to rummage through it aggressively digging for something before she tugged out a rather large looking bundle of fabric that looked curiously like a tent.

"Not him" Hermione bit at her, as if she was the reason this had all happened. Her rage bubbling below the surface spilling over slightly, tangible in the night air. "It's his daughter. He and Bellatrix had a daughter and she is much, much smarter than he ever was" She explained as she threw the bits she had pulled from the bag onto the floor before pointing her wand at it and muttering a spell to get it setting itself up.

"And this isn't common knowledge why?" Storm questioned, though she figured it didn't really matter anymore. The wizarding world was surely in tatters once again and she was confident it wasn't just them setting up similar camps. She guessed there were many who knew it wasn't safe to go home.

"Oh shut up Storm" Hermione hissed at her, her dark eyes narrowed dangerously as she glared at the girl standing struck dumb. Her quidditch cape still held tight to her wounded shoulder. Storm was watching on with wide eyes, watching as if she had no idea what else to say. She didn't know how they ended up there, or where exactly there was. She didn't know why she was with Hermione either. The last thing she knew had happened was she had been hit by multiple curses seemingly all at once and had been knocked out cold as she had fallen and clocked herself on the side of a bench.

"Where are we? And why am I here?" She questioned as she watched the brunette disappear through the flap of the tent now standing proudly before her. She paused for a moment and considered whether or not she might actually want to follow, she considered if she was allowed to follow. For years Hermione had been an expert at avoiding her, or interacting with her as little as possible. She had been brilliant at shutting down their once thriving friendship and never looking back.

Before she knew it Hermione had poked her head out again and dark eyes were once again trained on her in a narrowed glare. "Get in so I can sort your arm out, you're no use out there bleeding all over the shop are you? And since we're stuck together for the foreseeable you might as well be somewhat useful rather than not at all as usual" she ordered sharply, her tone biting and left no room for argument.

"Well you clearly brought me here for a reason so obviously I'm not that useless. Besides, you used to think I had many uses actually" Storm retorted bravely with a snort as she ducked her head to follow the shorter woman into the tent that had opened up into a cavernous space. She wrinkled her nose as the smell of dust and moth eaten linen hit her nose, dark eyes flicking around the place she had never seen before.

"That was before I knew better" Hermione sneered, her lip curled aggressively as she grabbed the taller woman by the hand and yanked her down onto a hard wooden bench she had already perched on the edge of. "If I had left you there you'd have died, and while I'm not really that fond of you I'd rather not have your death on my hands" She quipped easily, uncaringly. "Besides, you saved me during the war at Hogwarts, I couldn't really just leave you"

There was once a time where Storm would cringe at the way Hermione could change in an instant, there was once a time where these sorts of words would have shocked her. But Storm knew there was a mean streak rife within the girl now sat tugging the collar of her quidditch robes down roughly to get a good look at the gash the cutting curse had left. There always had been the ability for Hermione to be cruel to those she didn't like, always. She was just braver now, and unafraid to show it. Though Storm had never thought that cruelty would be directed her way.

She shook her head slightly and ran a hand through her dark hair as it began to fall into her eyes. Even after all this time Hermione's seething stare and pointed words cut her deep, she never really understood what exactly she had done wrong, but figured she never really wanted to ask. She didn't want to set the bookworm off any further and guessed if she ever actually wanted to know, now was most definitely not the time for such conversations. Though it was the first time in years they were alone, the first time in years Hermione had even said more than two words to her.

"They know you're with me Storm, they'll be hunting you too now" She added, her voice a little less aggressive as dark eyes flicked up to fix themselves to Storm's profile for a moment as she dabbed a cloth she had pulled from her bag into the deep wound at Storm's shoulder. Watching the way sharp features twisted up with pain and her squared jaw tensed before Storm could look away entirely.

"So you're being hunted by Death Eaters, and now I am too because they saw you get away with me?" Storm spoke then, voicing the conclusion she had come to. "I'm guessing Harry and Ron are also being hunted, maybe a revenge thing for you guys having a hand in killing off this newest evil cretin's dear old daddy?" She quizzed, her voice mockingly light.

"Clever" Hermione spoke sarcastically, as she moved to rummage once again in the beaded bag she had pulled the tent from. She pulled a roll of bandaged from it and some sort of muggle looking antiseptic bottle. "This is going to sting" She quipped and Storm could have sworn there was a tone of delight to her voice only a second before she poured a clear liquid over the open wound.

A blinding pain shot through her body and her hand went numb as she yanked herself away from the stream. The liquid ran down her chest before Hermione could tip it upright again and her nose stung from the heavily alcoholic smell that hit her square in the face. She yelped and drew in a heavy, seething breath through her nose as her teeth ground together and her jaw locked even tighter. A low growl rumbled up her chest as she shook it off and tried to right herself once again, unwilling to show more weakness to the brunette watching on beside her.

"You enjoyed that" She accused "Don't do that again, just wrap it up I'm fine" She spoke firmly this time.

Truthfully she was exhausted and wanted nothing more than her own bed. She was in pain and still couldn't quite wrap her mind around what had happened not even half an hour before hand.

"You're such a big baby" Hermione stated simply as she began to wrap the bandage around the other woman's arm. Sealing the gash up in the hopes it would stop bleeding soon. Magical injuries such as this one weren't easily healed. They wouldn't respond to magical remedies at all and muggle ones were tedious and long even for those proficient in healing.

"Where are we?" Storm questioned, trying valiantly to distract herself from the burning pain still radiating from her shoulder. The liquid Hermione had used had hurt more than the injury itself and had left her feeling rather ill. She moved slightly to look at the brunette beside her. Dark eyes flicking over tired features to ensure the former bookworm hadn't been injured also.

"We're in the heart of Golloway Forest, I think it'll be easy to hide here and it's the first place I thought of when I considered where we might go" she explained as she tied the bandage off and released Storm entirely. "I thought with your abilities it'd be easy for us to navigate the landscape and we'd have an advantage" She finished as she moved to pull a kettle out of her bag to set over a small hovering flame she had ignited in a stone hearth.

Storm was a shapeshifter. She was the only one known to the wizarding world and differed to the metamorphmagi in a way that all of them were witches and wizards, but all shapeshifters were not. It was inherent for Storm and came without any concentration at all. She was adept at many things and she could simply just exist in the wild unaided. It was as if there was a true animalistic nature just engrained into her and in that sense there was no limit to her ability.

During their last year of Hogwarts when they had spent a lot of time together she had spoken a lot about her love for the forest and any sort of wild atmosphere at all. Hermione had often found she would sneak out one or two nights a week just to explore the forbidden forest. She had expressed how much she wanted to just vanish into it when things got tough and never come back. It was the only place Hermione had thought of when put on the spot, when faced with the unexpected situation of having to get one of her former best friends out of yet another battle.

They had discussed maybe coming here on a trip once their final year was over, a trip they would never take in the end. It was the first place she had thought of as she had gotten to Storm flat out on her back, her face pale and her breathing heavy. It was the only place she thought of as she grabbed the Shifter by the front of her robes and apparated them to the exact spot they had meant to visit all those years ago.

It had been about five years since then, it felt as if it might have been a lifetime ago. It felt like they were in a whole different world entirely since then, since making those plans. It was incredible how things just seemed to change so drastically and never go back to how they were.

As much as she hated the idea of being alone with the shifter she had detested for years, she knew she was actually the best person to be with in such a situation. The best person to end up having to hide with. The most irritating, but undoubtably the most equipped.

They had known something was coming for a while, there had been a tenseness at the ministry for months. There had been whispers, there had been instances that had been so reminiscent of the past that it was almost impossible to believe it was happening again. She had been prepared, the Order had all been prepared. They had all been ready to flee at the drop of a hat, but they had not quite been as prepared as she would have liked them to be.

She had an inkling she knew where she might find the rest of the Weasley's and the rest of the order to boot, but it would take a while to get there. It would take even longer now she was stuck with Storm and her injuries. It would be unsafe to travel by apparation and she was lucky the Shifter hadn't been splinched as they were getting away from the Quidditch arena. It had been a risk she had had to take at the time, but not now. They were safe for a while now.

"So now I'm not bleeding all over the shop, what semi useful thing do you need me to do?" Storm questioned then as she fixed the collar of her robes, pulling it back up. She stood then and moved to look around the area properly. There were some bunk beds to the far side of the tent that looked untouched and a curtain of sorts not far away. There was the table they had been sat at so Hermione could fix her up a bit and the small stone hearth that held the small fire Hermione had created.

"Well, you can keep watch while I sort out something to eat. I put wards up while you were out cold so we should have plenty of warning in case anyone does manage to get anywhere near us" She quipped a little coldly as she once again began rummaging through her bag, pulling out two mugs, some cans, a pan and something that sort of looked like tea bags.

"Right, no problem then" Storm stated simply as she watched the brunette for a moment. She figured that was their conversation done and over with, and guessed if Hermione had her way they would take turns keeping watch and never have to actually talk to each other that way.

She turned to head back through the door of the tent and allowing her eyes to adjust to the change in light as she stepped through and into the darkness. Straightening herself out she rubbed the back of her neck a little awkwardly as she stood struck dumb outside the fabric door. She had no idea how they ended up here or what the hell had happened or where it had come from.

Storm's eyes began to glow a dim yellow as she shifted them to see better in the darkness that had seemed infinite as the night drew on. Pointed ears stood straight up and rotated like satellites as she flopped hard onto the hard floor next to the door of the tent. She figured being out here was actually significantly warmer than being in the presence of the woman who had grown to detest her presence so vehemently.

Her head was still pounding and her ears were still ringing, but that was much better than being dead she supposed. Without a word Hermione appeared with a small bowl filled with what looked like soup and shoved it into her hands before disappearing wordlessly back into the tent, leaving her alone once again. A small, wry smirk tugged at her lips as she considered the fact that this was going to be an interesting situation at least.