Hermione and the boys were forced into Malfoy Manor, led by snatchers, only for her to be singled out by the lunatic herself, Bellatrix Lestrange. In a fit of what seemed like extreme paranoia after seeing the sword of Gryffindor in possession of one of the snatchers, she ordered Narcissa and Peter to take the boys away to the dungeon. Then, she casted crucio on Hermione, sending excruciating amounts of pain throughout the young witch's body. The feeling of sharp knives that seemed to penetrate not only the joints, but Hermione felt like they were stabbing into the bones. She tried to get the answers that she wanted from the girl.

Hermione pleaded with Bellatrix, promising that she didn't take anything from her vault and that she had no idea what Bellatrix was talking about. They only found it while hiding in the woods. Bellatrix hit her with another crucio, causing her to seize from the pain and anguish as she screamed in agony. In the midst of all the pain, Bellatrix straddled her hips and leaned down into her face, where Hermione was accosted by bad breath and yellow teeth. Bellatrix asked her manic questions once again only to get mumbles of "I didn't do anything" and "I don't know".

The young witch started to drift in and out of consciousness, only to be hurled into a different kind of pain, unlike the crucio. Her flesh was penetrated by something sharp that was now causing her skin to feel like it was both on fire while at the same time having a sharp point scrapping along one of the bones of her forearm. Halfway through the pain, her mind snapped and everything went black.

Hermione woke up in a cold sweat, panting as she clutched her arm to her chest subconsciously. She groaned in frustration. "You would think that with all the different magicks that I've studied, as well as the long hours of therapy over the years, I would have found a way to stop having that nightmare!" She rubbed her face in frustration and stood up from her bed, not wanting to go back to sleep for fear of another nightmare. Hermione decided to go for a run to clear her head before starting her day.

Once in her office, she organized the new memos into two piles: most important and those that can wait for the time being. She buried herself in her work, taking note of what she would need to look into for some of the items that the memos required, when she came across one in particular talking about rumors of a relic that might have belonged to Merlin himself.

There wasn't much to go on as far as what this relic might be, only that strange things were happening in and around Stonehenge. She sent the rest of the memos out to her team, delegating the ones that didn't need her attention so that she could focus more time on this Merlin relic task.

Enthralled with her work, she didn't hear the knock at her door. When her assistant didn't hear an immediate answer, she poked her head into the office and cleared her throat softly to try and get the workaholic alpha's attention. When that didn't work, she stepped fully into the office and loudly cleared her throat, which caused Hermione to jump slightly, gripping her wand without thinking as her assistant held up her hands. Realizing who it was, she put her wand down and looked at her assistant. "I'm sorry Anna, I had a bad night last night, something I can help you with?"

Anna nodded in understanding. "Madame Black is here to see you, what should I tell her?"

Hermione had gone back to her work then snapped her head up at the mention of Narcissa. "Send her in please. Thank you, Anna."

Her assistant nodded and walked back out to her desk and informed Madame Black where Hermione's office was and that she would see her.

Narcissa walked down the small hall to Hermione's office and smiled softly at seeing the perfectly organized space where everything had a place and was neatly kept there. "Hello Ms. Granger, how is your work going this morning?"

Hermione finished up the last bit of her sentence as she breathed in the intoxicating scent that was solely Narcissa before she put down her quill and took in the sight of the gorgeous omega. Fully appreciating the form fitting black robes, perfectly french braided hair where the tail hung over her shoulder, and simple, immaculate makeup. "There seems to be a never ending list of relics that need to be collected so that it can't be used for evil, but I don't think you came here to talk to me about my job. What can I do for you, Madame Black?" She sat back in her chair and indicated to Narcissa that she could sit in the chair opposite of her own meant for guests.

Narcissa elegantly sat down in the chair and smiled softly at the sweet alpha. "I know that we said that we would exchange owls when we were available, but I had some business to attend to here, and I was hoping that you would be available to join me for lunch. Save us both some time in trying to arrange a meeting through owls, at least," she looked at Hermione who was contemplating her offer.

Hermione hummed in thought and casted a tempus charm to check the time and nodded. "I have to say that I appreciate the impromptu visit. I do believe I have time for lunch. Did you have a specific place in mind? Just so I can let my assistant know in case she needs to reach me."

Narcissa shook her head. "I thought that you would know somewhere that wouldn't take you too far away from your job that was in muggle London?" She smiled sweetly at Hermione.

Hermione smiled back. "That depends, tell me what you are in the mood for and I can tell you if there is a place that can accommodate."

Narcissa looked thoughtful for a moment. "I am fine with anywhere as long as they offer adequate tea."

Hermione stood from her chair, grabbed her outer robe from the coat rack on the wall near the door, and put her arm out for Narcissa to take. Narcissa smiled sweetly, slid her hand into the crook of the alpha's elbow, and they both headed out the door, stopping only briefly to let Anna know that she was going out to lunch and that she would be back later.

They arrived at a little tea shop and bistro a few blocks away from the Ministry. They sat at a booth off to the side; the waiter came over to take their drink requests. They gave him their order and looked over the menu to see what was available to eat. Hermione looked it over quickly since she was here often enough to know what was good and decided on something simple to eat. She put her menu down and looked at Narcissa, who had a subtle look of contemplation on her face. "Having difficulty deciding on what to order?" Hermione asked kindly.

Narcissa looked up at Hermione. "Honestly, I have no idea what to order. It all looks fantastic."

Hermione chuckled softly and nodded. "You're not wrong, most of the food here is delicious. No matter what you decide on, it'll be superb."

Narcissa nodded and went back to looking at the menu. After a few more minutes, the waiter came back with their drinks, took their orders, and then left to give them to the kitchen. Both women decided to take sips of their drinks and sighed in happiness.

"I must say, they do make an excellent cup of tea here," Narcissa said.

Hermione nodded in agreement. "One of the best places that I've found with good food and drinks that's close to work, but is not in our world. I'm still not overly interested in going out into the public eye anymore," Hermione sighed as she leaned back into her chair with her drink in hand.

Narcissa nodded in understanding. "I understand. I try not to venture out into public all too often unless I have to because some people are still not all that interested in having me walk around free."

Hermione looked at her in shock. "Well that's just ridiculous considering the key role you played in ending the war. It doesn't help that Rita Skeeter is profiting from her lies with those damn books she wrote as well as all the absurd articles in the Daily Prophet. Talking about what or who I was doing on a weekly basis. She pretty much pushed me to leave England."

Narcissa sighed in understanding. "You're not wrong about Skeeter, though she hasn't done anyone any favors besides herself over the years, but what can we do other than just ignore her and keep out of her sight? Besides, we both know what happened in the war and our roles in it, but not everyone does, dear. I haven't really seen the need to fix it. Honestly, I've found exploring Muggle London to be fascinating. It's been a lot of fun discovering things about muggles that I never knew before," Narcissa's eyes lit up with excitement as she described all the experiences that she had in her explorations, and Hermione just smiled and listened to her with interest, as well as adding a few explanations about muggle things the omega just couldn't understand.

As time went on, they ate their food and talked more about their lives. Hermione eventually checked the time and realized that she needed to go back to work before Anna had a fit about her absence. "Well, Madame Black, if you are available, I would like to continue this conversation over dinner?"

Narcissa smiled and nodded. "I would like that. Owl me the details of a time and location, including what attire I should wear. And if it wouldn't be too much of an imposition, call me Narcissa; I think we're past using formalities, don't you?"

Hermione smiled, flashing her fangs slightly at Narcissa in her excitement. "If you insist, then you should call me Hermione as well."

Narcissa schooled her features quickly so as not to reveal how much the brunette's smile affected her. Hermione stood from her seat and took her hand in hers and kissed the back of her knuckles softly before grabbing her robe, tracked down the waiter, and paid the check as she left for work. Narcissa sat in her seat, a light blush painting her cheeks and a warmth swirling behind her eyes; she blinked her eyes rapidly to subtly clear her mind, and left the restaurant to go home.