Hermione appeared to the front step of the Potters' house. She knocked, and didn't have to wait; Harry answered the door right away, apparently eager to get Hermione's help.
"I'm so glad you made it," Harry said as he shut the door behind her, as they made their way into the small sitting room.
Ginny stood in the far doorway, wand up, aimed at Hermione. Before Hermione could go for her own wand, Ginny cast Expelliarmus, disarming Hermione.
It was then she saw Mrs. Molly Weasley in a small chair in the corner of the room. Her wand up, trained on Harry - the woman has cast an Unforgivable on her own son-in-law.
"But why?" Hermione couldn't fathom.
"But why?" Mrs. Weasley mimicked back, soaked in acidic sarcasm. "Ronald Weasley. You remember him? He helped save the wizarding world? He was your husband, and you left him. For the Devil, no less!"
Hermione shivered. The look in Molly's eyes was one she had seen before. It was a look of a fanatic, of a woman who couldn't see reason. Hermione saw eyes like that when she was tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange.
Hermione quickly turned, her hands on the door knob, pulling the door from the frame.
"Stupefy!" Was the last thing Hermione heard from Ginny, as her face rushed towards the door.
Lucifer has just turned his key fob over to the valet when he felt it. He felt her fear, and then the ache - the empty feeling of being ripped from her. Something was wrong and he knew it.
Instead of going into the lobby, he jogged down the street; his aching feeling got worse. He stopped, turned, and ran the other way, passing the hotel and beyond. The ache lessened, ever so slightly. He despised resorting to playing hot and cold, but he knew something was wrong, and this was the only way he was going to find Hermione.
It was dusk and Lucifer was running, occasionally backtracking to turn down a street he had passed. Once it was dark, he could fly, and do this much easier; he had tried going high enough not to be seen, but the ache was so grey, he couldn't make heads or tails of small changes he needed to make to correct his course.
"It shouldn't be this easy to sneak up on you," Maze said, now running alongside Lucifer.
"It's precisely why I called you. Right now, all I can be is a compass. But Hell help whoever did this, once I get her to safety. Millennia later, but I finally understand why my Father enjoyed smiting people."
He stopped to turn down an alley. He was walking now. Maze had one of her knives out, and was prowling, more than she was walking.
"This place is weird," she said to Lucifer.
"It's because this area caters to wizards and witches, even though it's just an ordinary street."
"How do they get away with that?"
"Humans see what they want to see. You and I see what's there, we know better. Wait . . . " he backed up a few steps, and stepped forward again, and back and forth again.
"This is the place." It was the service door to an old inn. The place looked like it was abandoned for a while, by both Muggles and magical beings.
Maze had the door opened rather quickly, despite being locked, and without a sound, too. Lucifer wondered what kind of spells they might encounter, but had to push on, for Hermione's sake.
"It smells funny in here," Maze whispered as they crept through the ground floor rooms, clearing each space methodically, making sure they wouldn't get surprised from behind.
"It's residual magic," Lucifer replied.
Maze gave Lucifer a look that said how do you know?
"There's a smell too faint for humans, or even witches and wizards to smell, but it's there. And each person's scent is different."
"Oh, like B.O.?" Maze offered.
Lucifer rolled his eyes, "If that helps to understand, yes, like B.O.," they proceeded to creep up to the first floor.
They cleared the first floor, Lucifer knew they were closer because the pain in his chest was lessening, and Maze noting that the smell was a bit stronger.
"None of that is her magic though. I know her scent."
Maze raised her eyebrows suggestively at Lucifer.
Lucifer shook his head and sighed, before proceeding up to the second floor.
They didn't need their noses to figure out they were on the right floor: the lights were on in a room down the hall and they could hear people talking. Lucifer recognized Ginny's voice, but didn't recognize another woman's voice nor a man's, though he knew it wasn't Harry.
Maze stealthily made her way down the hall, to flank the door from the far side. Lucifer stood next to the other door on the near side. They hadn't planned anything at this point, so Lucifer figured he would truly 'wing' it. Lucifer appeared now as The Devil - red, leathery skin; large, bat wings; horns. Maze, too, let her true, demonic face show - half her face decayed away, leaving gore and bone.
Barging into the room, Maze led the way. With a charge, she was able to tackle some old woman, and knocked the wand out of her hand. Lucifer swatted at Ginny's outstretched arm, disarming her from her wand, and more than likely, breaking a few bones in her hand.
Ginny crumpled to the floor, cradling her broken hand in her good one. Maze kneeled on the back of the loud, orange woman. Lucifer and the unverified man faced each other.
"You must be Ron," Lucifer bellowed, relishing this whole moment.
Ron, stood, wand pressed against Hermione's temple, as she sat bound and gagged in a chair.
"You're a bloody freak! Why would she pick you over me?" Ron, egotistical as ever, yelled at Lucifer.
"Well, Ronald, I am the King of Hell." With that, Lucifer transformed back into his topless, angelic self - tall, dark, and handsome, with wings.
Ron looked him over from head to toe. The trim, dark hair and five o'clock shadow on a strong jawline. The broad shoulders, and six-pack abs, balanced with an impressive set of snow-white wings.
"Okay. But she was mine. You can't take her from me!"
Ever the petulant child, Ron's whining was practically crying.
"You abandoned her Ron. You cheated on her, over and over. You abused her trust, and after more chances than you deserve, she left you." As Lucifer's message hit with each word, Ron's arm grew more and more slack. It was at that point that Maze had snuck being him and grabbed the wand from him.
Lucifer stepped forward and ripped apart the rope that bound her with his bare hands.
She pulled the gag from her mouth as Lucifer tore apart the ropes on her legs, freeing her from the chair. Hermione sprang into Lucifer, knocking him off-balance and sending them both to the floor. Their kiss was passionate, though short lived.
"How could you do this to my son?" Molly cried out.
"How could I do this? How could I? That's really rich. But you'll get your wish Molly, Ron will live closer to home. He'll have to move back to The Burrow once the divorce is finalized and the house is sold. Isn't it what you've always wanted, actually?" Hermione said to mock Molly, with no small amount of acid and condescension.
"Ginny, how could do this?" Hermione wanted to understand.
"He's my brother! And you left him for the Devil? You're a pair of freaks. I hope you're happy together."
Hermione's phone took this inconvenient time to ring, despite being in Molly's sweater pocket.
Maze grabbed the phone out of the pocket, scaring Molly, which made Maze smile. She passed the phone to Hermione.
"Harry? Are you okay? . . . no, I understand . . . trust me, I understand . . . yeah . . . okay . . . I'll talk to them tomorrow . . . yes, I'll come down in person. Okay, stay safe . . . goodnight."
Lucifer put his arm around Hermione's shoulders, as Maze zip tied the Weasleys' hands behind their backs.
"What did Harry say?" Lucifer asked Hermione.
"When he recovered from being under the Imperious curse - where someone else controls everything you do - he called the aurors. They are on their way here. I have to go to the Ministry of Magic tomorrow to give a statement. But the Weasleys may end up in Azkaban at the end of this," Hermione smiled, Molly blanched, Ron grimaced, and Ginny started to cry.
Lucifer didn't follow half of what she said, but he figured he could ask later, since it seemed to be good for Hermione and bad for her attackers.
Maze reluctantly handed the Weasleys over to the aurors when they arrived. Lucifer stayed with Hermione, his arm around her, while she told the aurors of her plans to come in in the morning.
"Let's get out of here," Lucifer offered.
Hermione apparated them to her place, where she was greeted by an anxious Crookshanks. She picked him up and the three of them made themselves comfortable on the sofa, each of them lying on the other.
Lucifer reached in front of Hermione and handed her his phone.
"Your mobile number, now."
Hermione programmed her number into his phone, and then immediately called her phone.
She wiggled, getting her phone from her jeans pocket while Lucifer had a leg draped over her. She looked at her phone to make sure his number showed up and then ended the call. She programmed the missed number into her phone, and once saved, tossed the two phones onto the coffee table, then reclined against Lucifer's chest, closing her eyes.
"That was one crazy wizarding family," Lucifer offered, as he played with a strand of Hermione's hair.
"I wish that was all that passed for crazy." Hermione let the rest of the explanation go unsaid. She had gone over the war with him before, it wasn't necessary. Plus being taken and held captive brought back a lot of trauma. She wasn't in the mood for anything but a hot bath and sleep.
Lucifer massaged Hermione's feet while she soaked in the tub. Hermione smiled at him, his dark eyes offered her comfort.
She abruptly sat up straighter. "I just realized you still don't have a shirt on. Come to think of it, why were you topless to begin with?"
"Devil wings, or angel wings for that matter, don't do well with shirts. It's why they stay hidden so often. I'd go broke if I had to replace my Tom Ford shirts daily. Let alone replacing suit jackets."
"I'm sure I can help with that," she began to chew in her bottom lip. "I know, I can charm the backs of your shirts, and jackets, so that celestial things can pass through, but for the terrestrial, it's just like regular fabric."
"Tom Ford is not 'regular' fabric."
Hermione pulled her legs in, sitting up in the tub, and gave Lucifer a cross look.
Lucifer put his hands up in mock-surrender. "But I get your point." He stood and offered her a hand to help her up and out of the tub. "You don't have to, but if you could, that would be lovely."
Lucifer was not sure if this was real, or when and if the other shoe would drop. It was hard for all of this to be real, for his father to actually bring this kind of joy into his life. He had been given so much, throughout history, with it just to be taken away again, he was afraid to believe it.
"You coming to bed?" Hermione asked, bringing Lucifer back from his distraction.
She was under the covers, looking for Lucifer to join her. While it was approaching dawn, after the events of last night, they were exhausted and ready to collapse.
"What happens now?" Lucifer asked.
"Sleep, I hope."
He gave her an exasperated look, "You know what I mean."
Hermione sat up straighter. "I don't know, but I know I want to be with you."
Lucifer smiled and climbed into bed, leaning over to kiss Hermione.