Prologue
My name was not always Hermione Granger. It was the name I took, the name I was forced to become, but in my heart I would always be Hemera Gervasio.
I spent the first half of my life in Italy, Rome to be specific, with my loving and occasionally overbearing family. In Italy, all of the magical families are split into five dinastias, or clans: the Drago, the Lupo, the Volpe, the Serpe, and the Fenice. The Fenice is the most powerful Dinastia, and the Gervasio have been at its head from its birth. We are considered the most powerful family in Italy and are respected around the world for our magical prowess.
My father, Basilio, became Padrone, or Master, of the Fenice when I was ten due to my grandfather's murder. My mother, Hera, was the Comandante, the Commander – the general of our own personal army. My oldest sibling and brother, Alexiares, trained to become the next Padrone. My sister, Eirenne, the second oldest, trained to become a Soldato, a soldier – the most likely one to take our mother's place when she was ready to retire. I trained to be a Sacerdotessa.
The Sacerdotessa are fifteen extremely powerful women, three in each dinastia, trained to access the energy of magic and all living creatures. They do not use wands, but their minds. The Quindici, the Fifteen choose their apprentices by hand when the child is five years old. I was chosen by Riccarda, the strongest and the leader of the Quindici– a Fenice through and through. She picked me because she believed I had the potential to be the greatest Sacerdotessa ever seen, and she was right. It was training that usually took twenty years, but it only took me until I was fourteen to become a master. Once my training was over, I became an adult. I was expected to contribute to my dinastia and the community at large on my own until Riccarda saw fit to retire, but I was never given the opportunity.
The Dinastias have a history of fighting amongst themselves, but no Dinastias fought more than the Fenice and the Serpe. My grandfather was killed by them, and so I spent my formative years fighting a war. It never reached my doors and I mistakenly believed that our stronghold was untouchable. But when I was nearly fifteen we were betrayed by one of my father's councilors. The Serpe broke into our strongholds with one purpose: to capture me and turn me against my family for their own purposes.
In the heat of battle, Riccarda apparated me away, illegally crossing boarders to get me to her long time friend, a man by the name of Albus Dumbledore. He agreed to hide me until it was safe to go back to my family. But it never seemed to be safe again. The Serpe had been joined by the Lupo and neither of the other Dinastias were willing to help. On Christmas day I got word that my parents were dead and my siblings had taken their places. They needed me to stay safe and hidden. They ordered me to stay safe and hidden, and I couldn't go against a direct order. So I stayed in England. We agreed that I would take the name Hermione Granger and use a wand so no one would know who I was. I became close friends with Harry Potter and Ron Weasely, two boys from my house. Dumbledore informed me of the true evils of Voldemort, which had only been a name I rolled my eyes at before, and agreed to let me help the Order of the Phoenix in any way I could. I wasn't surprised he did. He could use a power like me.
My first year at Hogwarts was dwarfed by the TriWizard Tournament and trying to keep Harry alive. An atrocious woman named Umbridge was at the school my second year, and I hated her like I had never hated any single person in my life. I helped Harry start Dumbledore's Army and get rid of the awful hag. I spent that summer with Harry and the rest, pretending my "muggle parents" didn't care. Sixth year was full of hormones: Ron was annoying, Harry worrisome, and Cormac McLaggen the worst person on the earth. After Dumbledore died, Ron and I agreed to go with Harry to get the horcruxes. By the time the war was over, I just wanted to go home. But it seemed like I would never be able to go back.