A/N: Hey people. Thanks for the reviews. I am nervous about this chapter as it was completed days ago and I've sat here just looking at it. In this story Hermione is more worldly. Though, one should expect that given that she is now in her early twenties. Enjoy..or not..or somewhat..

Disclaimer: And no I don't own anything.

Conquered by no enemy

Set a definite limit to your desires

~Horace~

Six Years Later.

Hermione sat ruffling through stacks of parchment in her office. She was slightly stressed about her job as a recovery agent for the department on Lost Magical relics. It was her fifth year in the job and she had just been promoted to become the head of the department. This meant she could choose which recovery missions she went on. Though she could never really see herself delegating jobs she would never do herself. Unlike her some of the other agents had families and there were a few who had partners.

She learnt quickly in her first year of the job a relationship would not last long. Ronald found that out the hard way. She had tried to end it before they unintentionally hurt one another but he held on to her. Even when she spent six months abroad he still insisted that they stay together. But Hermione had had enough of trying to pretend that she reciprocated the feelings Ron felt for her.

It was not long after they split up Ron started seeing Lavender Brown. Hermione was not surprised they were a far better suited couple than Ron and her. And as for herself, she never had a relationship after him. As she kept her sexual relations casual, she also made very sure that whoever she was sleeping with was a muggle. She preferred that whoever it was that was seeing her, never knew who she really was. Whether it was male or female Hermione did not care. She came to accept her sexual orientation of being bisexual after a lustful affair she had with another woman three years ago.

And that is more than likely the reason why she was good at what she done. There was no partner at home nagging about being neglected. There were no children demanding attention all the time. She was free to work a lot harder than anyone else in her department. And she did for five years.

And she also will take the new role in her stride knowing the Kinsgley would be fine with the choices she made.

He had to be fine with it after she had risked her life more than once to keep the world of magic safe or to keep it still a secret from muggles. The last mission she was nearly raped had it not been for her wand.

The ministry created the department after the war, to hunt down any relics relating to magic. Kingsley Shaklebolt wanted to stomp out anything that could cause another war. He approached Hermione shortly after the fall of Voldemort and offered her a position within the new department. The young witch agreed only after she went back to Hogwarts to finish her education.

Kinglsley had explained to her that her line of profession would include travel and she could be abroad for months on end. She did not hesitate at the offer. In fact she welcomed it. Unlike Ron, she could not handle the fame of being a war hero. She couldn't walk around Diagon Alley without being hounded by people. As soon as she would sit down in the Leaky Cauldron to enjoy a night with her friends people would approach them. They all wanted to talk about the war. About how victorious the light had been.

Hermione just wanted to live. Not forget about the war. But just leave it where it was, in the past. So as a way to avoid the publicity she rented a flat in muggle London. She hardly if ever met in public with Harry and Ginny or even with Ron and Lavender. She just kept to herself, not wanting to draw any unwanted attention.

She finally found the parchment she was after.

"Got you." She murmured quietly looking down at her final count on what happened on her last case.

Two weeks earlier she had just arrived back from Bosnia searching for the last known timer turner. There were only two known in the world. One Minerva McGonagall had and the other belonged to an old pureblood wizard, who got in contact with Kingsley to inform him that it went missing and he did not know how long it had been gone for. In a panic Kingsley sent Hermione to Bosnia to find it. A time turner in the wrong hands can be dangerous.

Hermione searched all over Bosnia for nearly two months and found nothing. All her sources had been exhausted. She did not know where to look.

That was until late one night in her hotel room as she read the Daily Prophet. It clicked. She only went on a hunch. But that was better than listening to the geriatric wizard who lost the damn thing in the first place.

The next morning she went through the muggle side of Sarajevo and found an interesting article about Slobodan Milosevic in a public library. As the librarian translated the text, Hermione discovered a recent photo of the white haired President, with a time turner in his hand.

She rushed back to her room and sent an owl to Kingsley informing him of the danger in which the time turner could be in the hands of the pro Serbian.

He immediately sent reinforcements of a team of Aurors to her aid.

Together they searched through Slobodan Milosevic's house only to find the time turner locked in a safe in his office. The Aurors giggled at how easy it was to open the muggle contraption.

However, Hermione did not find it funny when she was caught by pro Serbian troops on a muggle street and taken to one of the camps. What she saw there was more brutal compared to the war she had fought in six years earlier. But she was lucky that they never removed her wand when they snatched her off the side of the street.

Other than the little delay with the muggle war in Bosnia, the task was successful. Hermione now faced writing the report to send to the minister.

She spent the morning writing as fast as her hand would allow her. The report was slowly coming together until a loud knock echoed through her office.

"Miss Granger."

Hermione looked up to see her new assistant Imelda standing at the door.

"Yes Imelda." She said while still writing.

"There is a rather impatient person here to see you." The middle aged witch said.

Hermione frowned. No one visited her at work.

"Apparently it is important."

"Well we can't keep them waiting." Hermione joked.

Imelda rolled her eyes. "No royalty commands the utmost attention."

Hermione shook her head and laughed. She had only known Imelda for two days Hermione liked her. She was helpful and polite. And she did not hound Hermione about the war.

She had gone back to writing when she heard footsteps stop in her office.

"Please take a seat." She said head still down while she finished her sentence.

After a moment or so she put her quell down. She looked up to meet a haughty gaze she had not seen in a while.

"Mrs Malfoy." Hermione said surprised at her visitor.

"Miss Granger." Narcissa replied.

The blonde was surprised to see the third of the golden trio. She had not expected to be meeting with her. Though, the Gryffindor did look well, she was not the young girl who stared at her after the war. This muggle born had grown up. No longer was she a bushy hair girl. Now she was a woman. Softer curls tied back into a ponytail. Sun kissed skin. Smouldering brown eyes. Hermione Granger was a very attractive woman.

"What brings you here?" Hermione asked interrupting Narcissa's thoughts.

"I am in the possession of various magical relics." Narcissa began. "And I no longer want any of it. I heard that this was the department to go to."

Hermione laced her fingers together and rested them on her desk.

"These relics I presume are of the Dark Arts?" Hermione asked.

Narcissa threw her a cold look. She did not answer the question.

"Mrs Malfoy, thank you for wanting to turn in any relics that you may have." Hermione said slowly.

Hermione saw how quickly Narcissa's eyes narrowed; she nearly smiled if it was not for the older witch's cold demeanour. This would be the easiest case she would probably ever get. Perhaps it was because there was no chase to get the prize. No late nights mulling and researching over the object. No long days chasing dead ends. No danger unless Malfoy still lived in Malfoy Manor. If she were to take this case, it would be the first that she hadn't had to travel for.

The idea seemed appealing to Hermione. The benefits in this case were not only in the ministry, Narcissa Malfoy but with her as well. After coming off two months on a mission in Eastern Europe Hermione was beginning to burn out. She had been working nonstop for five years. Perhaps it was time she took a not so important case.

"I will be available tomorrow to inspect what you have." Hermione finished.

"There are a lot of items, so be prepared." The blonde said. "And be at Malfoy Manor no later than ten-thirty and no earlier than ten o'clock in the morning."

Hermione nodded.

Narcissa stood to leave. She did not want to. For some pathetic reason she wanted to stay with the Granger girl. Seeing her brought back the moment they had in the Great Hall after the war.

It's those eyes Narcissa concluded. When she looked into those brown orbs she fell into them, getting lost within its depths. She was only lucky that she caught the end of what this muggleborn was saying. Or else the Granger girl would have witnessed a very dazed Narcissa Malfoy. And the pureblood did not want that.

"Good day Mrs Malfoy." Hermione murmured softly.

Narcissa nodded and turned on her heel to leave.

Hermione stood at the door of Malfoy Manor. She was slightly nervous she had not been there since Bellatrix had tortured her. The house from the outside still looked the same. Cold. She took a deep breath before knocking on the door. She was older now, she could handle it. Being in that dreary house was nothing compared to the massacre she witnessed in Bosnia, and that was a muggle execution not just a couple of flying spells. She reminded herself to keep calm.

As the door slowly opened Narcissa felt the breath in her throat get stuck there. She found it near impossible to breathe once the door was fully open. The young Gryffindor surprisingly was not dressed in wizard attire. Not even robes. A black tank top clung to her. Green khaki pants hung loosely on her hips. Her wild curly hair tamed and tied in a bun. The bookworm was fit Narcissa observed. That line of profession must require a lot of physical movement. The blonde thought.

"Hello Mrs Malfoy." Hermione said.

"Miss Granger." Narcissa whispered. "Please come through."

Narcissa quietly led Hermione up the large stair case and through many hallways before they reached a stop.

Narcissa opened a large door and stepped inside the room.

Hermione followed the blonde into the room and glanced around.

"Everything you need is on that table." Narcissa said pointing into the middle of the room.

Hermione dragged her eyes away from the bookshelves stack to the ceiling around them. She stared at the table in front of two antique arm chairs that were close to a fire place.

"I shall leave you to it." Narcissa said turning for the doorway.

"Mrs Malfoy wait." Hermione called after the blonde woman. "Please stay. I might need your assistance as to what I'm about to look at."

"Very well." Narcissa said and smirked once Hermione walked toward the table.

Hermione picked up a strange object she thought would not be given to the Ministry. She examined the necklace. Two silver snakes entwined each other. One snake with emerald green eyes, the other with red ruby.

Hermione turned the snakes over and inspected the script engraved into it. It read Nulli expungabilis hosti.

"Conquered by no enemy." Hermione translated.

She looked up to find Narcissa sitting in a large arm chair by a fire place set on the side of the room. The older witch was looking at her oddly.

"What is the purpose of this necklace?" She asked.

"That has been in the Malfoy family for many generations." Narcissa began. "I do not know of its true origin nor do I know how old it really is. Its purpose is to protect its holder."

Hermione frowned.

"And you want to give this to the Ministry because?" She asked looking at the harmless necklace.

"Because it's very dangerous." Narcissa snapped. "Whoever is wearing it becomes invincible. No magic can even touch him or her. It is more effective than a shield, while it protects one it also drains the power of the attacker."

"Then it's a good thing your husband never wore it." Hermione muttered looking back down at the table.

"Excuse me." Narcissa said coldly.

Too late to pretend she hadn't said anything, Hermione thought.

"Did I stutter Mrs Malfoy?" Hermione raised her gaze to the older witch who looked like she was about to attack her.

"Given your background I wouldn't be surprised with your shortcomings." Narcissa threw back at Hermione.

Hermione smirked. Being a muggleborn no longer bothered her when it came to the receiving end of spiteful remarks. She knew that was the only thing Narcissa thought would annoy her.

The older woman would probably be classed as a classic beauty. Hermione thought. Long blonde hair, pale ivory skin, hypnotic blue eyes and very succulent red lips. What Hermione thought of this woman and her beauty she would rather keep in the back chambers of her mind. Even if the pureblood appearance was still very much youthful, for no wrinkles marred her face, Hermione tried not to stare at her. Even if she wore an expensive cut dress to emphasis her full breasts and slim waist line, Hermione dared herself not to groan out aloud.

"Then you are not the only one." Hermione murmured.

Narcissa had to remind herself to control her breathing. The Granger girl knew how to stir her. She was content to just sit and watch in fascination as the young witch examine the relics she had. She was even content to answer any questions the young Gryffindor had to ask. But having a sparring of words was not what she had expected. The member of the golden trio was incorrigible even more so when she had the tenacity to smirk.

Meanwhile, Hermione had put the necklace down on the table when a black book caught her attention. It had no title its face was bear. Hermione scanned the pages. Half of the text was written in Hieroglyphs and the other half in Latin. She caught the gist of what the book was about and frowned.

"That is also a danger if the wrong hands get a hold of it." Narcissa said sarcastically.

"Why do you have a book about a muggle Egyptian Pharaoh?" Hermione asked.

"The story in that book is not only about Hatshepsut. It is also about Senmut." Narcissa said dryly. "They were lovers who could have untied both the muggle and magical civilisations at the time."

"Senmut was her servant. The only person she favoured highly." Hermione argued. "Though there were speculations of an affair, even their own stone masons drew about it in her mortuary temple in Del El Bahari."

And it was true as far as Hermione knew. Hatshepsut was from the 19th Dynasty in ancient Egypt. She was only meant to be Queen Regent until her younger brother Thutmoses ll became of age. However, she did not. Being Queen was not enough for that woman. There were still depictions of her establishing a trade expedition to Punt, there were others of her leading the Egyptian army into war. And there were even some depicting her crowning herself as a Pharaoh. But apparently there was more to this ancient Pharaoh then Hermione thought.

"I see you have read the muggle history behind this woman." Narcissa murmured. "Not all of it is true. Centuries before Merlin himself, there was magic. Senmut was a wizard who belonged to the most ancient royal magical family. The family's ancestry went right back to ancient Suma."

Hermione watched and listened while Narcissa explained to her the meaning behind that untitled book. She learnt that even back then Senmut's family did not want him married to Hatshepsut. It was not because she was a muggle either, rather the fact that she would be the only muggle who would know about magic. The family wanted to keep the magic hidden. But they could not stop Senmut from having a child to Hatshepsut. And that's when it became dangerous for Hatshepsut to carry a baby of magical ability and have no idea about it. Senmut's family eventually accepted Hatshepsut, as his partner.

Hermione raised her eyebrows when Narcissa admitted that the Malfoy family descended from Senmut's and Hatshepsut's daughter. A half blood.

After Narcissa had finish speaking she watched as Hermione leant the palms of her hands onto the table and look up at her.

"How did the Malfoy family get this book?" Hermione asked.

Narcissa raised her eyebrow.

"I have no idea." Narcissa flicked her wand to erupt the flames in the fire place. "I have only just discovered it."

"I'll take it to Kingsley and see if there is any real danger in it." Hermione said meeting eyes with Narcissa. "If there isn't I will return it to you.'

Narcissa shook her head.

"I want the ministry to keep it." Narcissa said oddly as she saw the young witch lift her arms up and push her chest forward.

While Hermione watched the pureblood she had a feeling that Narcissa was not handing over any of the relics for the greater good. Especially after that book, Hermione would be lying if she thought Narcissa wasn't doing it to put shame on to Lucius. And what better way to do it than by letting the entire ministry know how hypocritical the Malfoy family had been during the war.

The pair spent the remainder of the day going through some of the objects on the table. Hermione would pick out one and Narcissa would explain what its purpose was. Also going into the history of the objects she knew. Without knowing they no longer threw bitter words at each other. They spoke in more softer tones. Narcissa even moved off her chair and stood only inches away from Hermione.

Hermione was beginning to feel a little flushed. The close proximity in which the blonde stood was dangerous. Even her perfume was spell binding. The blonde carried a soft scent of jasmine. Hermione wanted to throw her on the table and take her right there and then. But what her mind wanted was different to what she actually done.

"I must leave for today Mrs Malfoy." Hermione said turning to the blonde. "But I can come back tomorrow if that is fine with you. I won't take anything until we have finished."

Narcissa looked at Hermione disappointed that their meeting had hurriedly come to an end. But she did welcome the thought of seeing the muggle born again.

"Certainly." Narcissa said. "There are many more things you can have."

What about you? Hermione said in her head.

Narcissa lead Hermione to the door. They were both quiet before Hermione said. "Until tomorrow."

Narcissa nodded. "Until then."

A/N: Hope that wasn't so bad.

Here's some facts pertaining to the story.

Del El Bahari is now known as Luxor.

Hatshepsut was the only crowned female Pharaoh in ancient Egypt. Nefertiti and Cleopatra were only queens. There are still depictions today of the ceremony. Senmut was her servant who was rumoured to be much more than that. She also did have a daughter.

Stone masons had 'graffiti' the inner walls of Hatshepsut's mortuary temple in Luxor. The graffiti was interesting depictions of Hatshepsut and Senmut in various sexual acts.

Slobodan Milosevic is now dead. He past while on trial for crimes against humanity at the Hague.

Suma is also known as Mesopotamia which is currently now Iran and Iraq.