"How did you manage to break the cooker?" laughed Hermione, dancing with her very sheepish wife. "All you were doing was making pancakes."
"You know that recipe has never agreed with me. They're pitiful little pieces of food, not worthy of being prepared by my hand."
"You never speak that way."
"Only when I'm angry." To demonstrate her point, Valkyrie bared her teeth, Hermione breaking into peals of very unattractive laughter. "I'm just not good at cooking. I thought we went over this."
"Yes, we did."
"Then why do you keep making me try?"
"It's very, very amusing watching you try to conquer the stove. How you manage to set water on fire, I will never know."
"Why, you cheeky little minx!" Hermione spun Valkyrie, but accidently stepped on her foot, sending them both tumbling to the floor in a heap of laugher (from Hermione) and vulgar curses (courtesy of Valkyrie). "How long will it take you to grow out of this phase?"
"Hmmm?" They stayed laying on the floor, gazing out the window at the Sakaarian sky. Sure, there were no stars to speak of, but the red and purple hues grew on you after a while.
"The phase where you keep embarrassing me for you own amusement."
"It'll take a while."
"Thought so." Valkyrie reached over and grabbed a bottle of whisky, uncorking it and downing half of it in one gulp. Hermione sighed. Even though she knew that alcohol barely affected Asgardian systems, she still didn't like Valkyrie's drinking habits. But now wasn't the time to address it. Now, they just needed to enjoy being in the moment, gazing at the strangely picturesque trash filled landscape.
It seemed like it could last forever.
The attack came out of nowhere. One minute, they were cruising through space, on their way to Earth. The next minute, the ship was being blown to pieces, the figures from the other ship barging their way in, preaching about how they were being saved, how it was an honour to fall at their hands. Hermione refused to stand down, so she fought. It lasted all of ten seconds before she was hurled aside, roughly landing on her side. She blacked out immediately, not hearing the enraged scream of Valkyrie.
Hermione flopped down onto the couch she'd recently installed, groaning in exasperation. Valkyrie poked her head out of their bedroom door, hair still wet from the shower. "What is it this time?"
Hermione ran her hand through her hair. "Moara Kintari, again. You'd think he'd learn by now. He's a nuisance, that's what he is." Valkyrie sighed in sympathy. The man had been bothering them for years, blaming them for his predicament as a waiter. It was better than a lot of jobs on Sakaar, yet he insisted on constantly trying to assassinate them. It never worked, of course. His attempts were pitiful at best. So pitiful that Valkyrie ended up nicknaming him the 'pathetic trash man,' which only served to enrage him further.
"You're right there. At least he's a source of laugher."
Suddenly, something slammed into the window with a loud bang. Hermione whipped around, just in time to see a circular object plummet back down to the ground. It was clearly a bomb, and a strong one at that. Who would want to…
She got up and wandered over to the window, peering down at the ground, knowing exactly who she was going to see. An extremely frantic Moara was sprinting away from the bomb. The poor man clearly thought it was going to smash through the window. It blew up with a loud 'boom,' debris flying everywhere. Moara shot up from inside the wreckage of a ship, took one look at Hermione and scarpered.
Hermione shook her head in bemusement. Would that man ever learn?
She woke to fire.
There was fire everywhere she looked. It was all Hermione could feel crawling over her skin, making it bubble and blister, the pain worse than even the faint memory of the cruciatus curse. Through the fire, she could see the hulking silhouette of the madman who attacked the ship. A golden gauntlet which held a gleaming gem was on his hand, and Hermione could feel the power radiating off it like an extremely potent drug. Next to her, Valkyrie was hauling herself to her feet, covered in soot, eyes watering from the extreme heat, arms burned and blackened.
"Hermione," she croaked. She was now standing. "Please, come with me. We can leave with the rest of the Asgardians." Her hand was heavily blistered from the flame. Every movement clearly hurt her, if the hisses coming from her were any indication. The pain she was in made Hermione tense up, as she hated seeing Valkyrie with even a scratch.
"I can't get up." Even saying the words hurt her throat. It felt like someone had taken sandpaper and rubbed the inside of her neck. The second she'd woken up, she knew that she wasn't going to make it. This talk was going to be her last.
And it was going to tear her apart.
"Yes, you can." Valkyrie knelt down, tears running thick rivulets through the ruined white markings on her face. "You have to. Goddammit, 'Mione, you have to! I can't leave you behind. I need you!" The pain on her face was unbearable. Hermione felt tears stream down her face. She wasn't going to be able to get up, she knew that. She couldn't move her legs, trapped under a massive piece of ship. Valkyrie needed to leave her behind, there wasn't time to get her out before the refugee ships left the ship.
"And those Asgardians out there need you more. I'm just holding you up. Go to them."
"You never hold me up. I won't leave!" Valkyrie grasped Hermione's shoulder tight, her grip like iron. A clamp. Like she was never going to let go. But she was going to have to. Hermione would make her.
"You will. Listen to me." With what little strength she had, Hermione grabbed Valkyrie's shoulder. She gazed into her wife's watery eyes. "They need you more than I do. I am dying, there is nothing you can do about that. Go, help them. I'm not going to let you stay here with me when you could be out there being a hero for those who need it."
Valkyrie suddenly became wracked with sobs. "I can't leave you! I love you too much! Dammit, Hermione, why have you got such a hero complex?"
"I think I got it from Harry." She laughed weakly at the memory of her old friend. "There's no time, though." Hermione traced Valkyrie cheek, feeling the familiar contours and imperfections that she loved so much.
"There's always time."
"Not today." Gathering her magic, Hermione wrapped it around her hands, touching Valkyrie's chest, choking on her sobs. The heat was almost becoming too much now, the pain increasing to complete and utter agony. She willed herself not to scream out. There were more important things than that, like getting her stubborn wife to safety, to help the others. She had to get her away, using the last of her strength and magic to save her wife from.
Because if she could live, then Hermione would at least die happy.
"No, don't you dare! DON'T YOU DARE!"
"Goodbye, love." The magic pulsed out, sending Valkyrie flying backwards in a shower of dark blue sparks. She barely heard the agonised cry of Valkyrie over her own, desperation racing through her trembling limbs. The pain was like nothing she'd ever felt before, empty and awful, a black hole roaring in her middle and and sucking all her remaining joy and love into it. The face of Valkyrie was seared onto the insides of her eyelids.
Black dots began dancing at the edge of her vision, mingling with the fat, salty tears. She was still crying out, both in pain and absolute heartbreak. She was never going to see Valkyrie again. Then again, she was going to die here, in a mere few minutes. At least she would go out knowing that Valkyrie was safe.
And so, with flames licking at her body, Hermione said, "Love you always, you stupid woman," and let out her last breath, eyes turning glassy, gazing out at the stars through the hole in the roof.
At least the stars were winking down at her in her final moments.
"You know I will always be with you?" Valkyrie comforted a petrified Hermione, who was hyperventilating, hands covering her mouth.
"But what if that happens again? He stabbed you, through the middle! It was sticking out your back! You nearly died."
"But I didn't, that's the important part."
"But you almost…" Hermione began sobbing, then suddenly clutched onto Valkyrie like her life depended on it, hands clasped behind her back, face buried in her shoulder.
"A life of almost is a life of never." With watery eyes, Hermione glanced up at Valkyrie, before wiping them with her hand.
"I guess you're right."
"Just promise me one thing, alright?" asked Valkyrie.
"Yeah?"
"Don't ever send me away."
"Never. Why would you even think that?"
Every year, around this time, Harry Potter felt his heart get heavy. It just a few weeks it would be the six year anniversary of Hermione Granger's disappearance. For six years, she had been gone, and the loss never became any less potent. It just sat there, an ugly beast rearing its head whenever it saw fit, shoving memories of the good times into his mind, along with the regret that he spent more time on his work than with her.
Currently, he was listlessly walking through an ornate hallway, making his way to his office, where he would sit down and look at more papers. They were endless, but a welcome distraction from his grief. Even thoughts of his newly started family weren't enough to take his away from his stupor.
Just as he reached the door, a massive wind picked up behind him. Before he could even turn around, blinding rainbow lights filled the hallway. He whipped out his wand, ready to combat any threat that came from within.
But what he saw, he was not ready for.
The lights disappeared and all that was left was the limp, charred body of a barely recognisable Hermione Granger. Immediately, ignoring the swell of emotions threatening to spill out from inside of him, he rushed forward, already drawing his wand to Disapparate to St. Mungo's. There was not time to lose, not when Hermione was back and looked to be on the brink of death.
He would question how she was back later. Harry bent down to pick her up, but couldn't even get her to budge. Somehow, she was incredibly heavy, despite her lean frame. The mystery would have to wait.
Being incredibly careful, Harry grabbed her hand and turned on his heel, appearing in the foyer of St. Mungo's with a deafening crack.
"Please, I need a Doctor, now!" There was a sudden flurry of movement as a flock medi-wizards surged forward, surrounding Hermione, all with very concerned faces. They whisked her away, leaving Harry standing in the foyer.
She was back. He felt slightly numb, but she was back. He was able to register that, and the fact that she was nearly dead. But if there was one thing for sure, it was that he wasn't going to leave her.
Not now.
So, after my absence, I return, with the first real chapter in over a month. Woohoo? I am quite proud of this. The story really is starting up again, now. Another reason for it being late (apart from my planning) is that I kind of may have rediscovered 'Trollhunters' and accidentally watched all three seasons again. Aw, who am I kidding. It was all intentional. Seriously, though, if you want an amazing show, I highly recommend it.
Thank you to all who have read, favourited, followed and reviewed. And thank you for you patience. I won't make any promises about when the next chapter will be out, as that never goes to plan. I'll try my best, though, I'm still getting back into the swing of things.
Sincerely,
Mariadoria