Thanks for taking the time to read my story. I own nothing. Enjoy!
As time went on, Hermione grew into a beautiful, intelligent woman. When she was young, she spent most of her time with her mother. Talia pampered her with love and affection. Every night before going to bed, Talia would read young Hermione a story while conjuring up floating images to go along with it. Hermione dreamed of having magic just like her mother's when she grew up.
Young Hermione felt her mother's love constantly. She laughed, played, and learned so much through the books and stories. One day, when she was a mere seven years of age, all the love was lost. It all started with a simple, innocent conversation.
"Mommy? Where is my daddy? All of these characters have both a mommy and a daddy. Why do I only have you?" she asked just as her mother finished the story with a picture of the family's happy ending. The image immediately fell and a mask of fury fell onto her mother's face.
"Am I not good enough for you? You ungrateful little child! You only have me because I thought you would love me the way I needed to be loved. You are just like your bastard of a father. Don't you ever ask about him ever again." Talia said as she strode towards the window. "If you will not love me, fine, just don't expect anything in return."
A painfully consistent and lonely routine followed her rage. All the love she felt before was taken away in an instant, leaving her with a cold state of loneliness and sadness. Once in seven days, her mother would come and visit Hermione on her magic broom. The one opening in the tower was high above the ground, and the broom was the only way Hermione knew of to leave the tower. The opening was too high above the ground to try to climb down. She had to wait in fearful anticipation for her mother every week. A hateful glare, one basket of food, hurtful words, and a book was all she ever received. She had pleaded at every visit for an entire year, simply requesting new books; as she had read every book on the bookshelf numerous times. Finally her mother had caved, screaming "fine you worthless bitch, just stop nagging me!"
She kept marks on the walls to remember the days. She had started on her eighth birthday, after she had read there were 365 days in one year. Her mother had forgotten to remove the spell that wished her happy birthday, so every year it sang her a beautiful song. Her mother was there, unfortunately, when the spell went off for her twentieth birthday.
"That's right. Your birthday. I can't believe I forgot… to remove this horrible spell. No one needs to be reminded of the day you came in and ruined my life." Talia said as she mounted the broom and flew away.
"Happy Birthday to me." Hermione sang in a broken whisper. All along her window birds flew in and twittered with her. At least the animals cared for her. It brought a smile to her face even as the tears slowly fell.
One day, months after her twentieth birthday, Hermione sat on her bed wondering what her prince charming would be like. Her mother had just given her another book. It ended with the hero saving the princess by slaying the fearsome dragon.
'My prince charming wouldn't need to save me. We would be equals. He would love books just as much as I do. He would travel to wondrous places, always taking me with him. We would go on adventures together and he would never leave me. He would be fiercely protective and kind hearted. He would love me and only me, and he would be devilishly handsome. If only such a man would come visit me in my isolation.' Hermione thought with a wistful sigh. She was walking towards the opening to gaze outside, when she tripped on a loose floorboard, crashing into her beloved bookcase. Mountains of paper swirled around her as hundreds of books fell around her head. With a sigh she carefully picked up each book and placed it back on the shelf.
One book glowed as soon as her fingers touched it. Reaching down, she opened the brown leather journal to the first page.
'To out darling angel on her eighteenth birthday. No harm will come to you as long as we are together. Embrace the power of your voice and sing with all your heart. Do not be afraid to shine darling. We love you.
Love,
Mummy and Daddy
Tears came to her eyes. Love. Love was something she had been missing for years. And what about her dad? Her dad was never mentioned, apart from the one time she had misspoken. Carefully climbing out of the window of the tower, she scaled the aged bricks to the top of the tower. Her favorite reading spot was on the top of the tower, only a few stones away from the windows ledge. It was very easy for her to climb up to the top, but she only went up on days that she knew her mother would not be home. It was her sanctuary.
Once she was settled she began to read, eager to find out more about her father. She learned about her parents' history, though her mother sounded much different in the book. Her mother had straight, blond hair, but her father described her mother as a goddess with curly brown hair in the journal. It confused her greatly, but their story of romance warmed her heart. He father's words captivated her. She wished she could meet him; he sounded wonderful.
On the very last page, the words were written in a different style. It was the same script as the very first note in the book.
My darling daughter,
You will never know how happy I am to see your beautiful face every morning. I love how you make the same expression as your father when you are thinking too hard. I love how curious you're little brown eyes are when you look at me. I love how your tiny fingers are wrapped tightly around my finger as I write this note to you for your future needs. I write down these words so that you will remember the first song I ever sang to you and feel its power. I will always be with you, and I want you to cherish the power of your voice. Don't hide it my darling, embrace it. My little Hermione Granger, I hope you grow up strong and always feel the love I give to you in this lullaby. I hope you remember me singing your lullaby to you, and know that I love you with all my heart.
Love you always,
Mummy
Hush-a-bye, don't you cry, go to sleep you little baby.
When you wake you shall have all the pretty little horses.
Dapples and greys, pintos and bays, all the pretty little horses.
Way down yonder, in the meadow,
Poor little baby cryin, "mama";
Birds and the butterflies flutter round his eyes,
Poor little baby cryin' "mama".
Hush-a-bye, don't you cry, go to sleep you little baby.
When you wake you shall have all the pretty little horses.
Dapples and greys, pintos and bays, all the pretty little horses.
Draco flew high above the ground, soaring above the abandoned forest on the edge of the Slytherin Kingdom. He scoffed at the thought of his 'home', he would never be returning to it. He knew his parents accepted his curse and still loved him, but he could never go back. Who would want a leader who couldn't stay human for more than a day? Draco was in the process of following in his father father's footsteps on his destiny to rule the Kingdom, when he met Pansy. Pansy Parkinson was his betrothed from birth, but he only met her on his eighteenth birthday. She was a nice enough girl, but he was always opposed to marrying without love. He constantly rejected her until one day she snapped. She cursed him to live a torturously lonely life. By turning him into a Dragon, taking away any chance he had at a normal life. He could still remember their parting words.
"No one but me would love such a monster. Now you'll have to love me Draco," Pansy said with a sinister grin. She had ran towards him, but in his dragon form, he had leapt into the night sky and flew away.
Five years later, Draco had adapted to a life of solitude. A few days the curse was placed upon him, he found that if he focused hard in his mind, he could turn back into human form. Sadly, it only lasted a day. Making a home in an isolated cave near the top of the mountain, Draco had spent his years killing as a dragon and eating as a human. He missed the luxury items of his previous lifestyle, and longed for knife to cut his meat. After a year, he found he could scare others away from him in order to steal necessities for his life.
He had tried for a year to find a witch or wizard to reverse the curse, but no one had even heard of it. Thinking it was a Parkinson secret, he had tried to find her. He searched the outskirts of the kingdom all day in his human form while wearing a hooded cloak. Not even noticing when his skin started to scale over, Draco continued in his search around the marketplace. When the sun had finally set in the sky, his cloak ripped and his body elongated, distorting his human form. Screams rang out from the people around him as they started to run. Frustrated and Hurt, Draco took some of the food and then burned the marketplace to the ground. Hot tears streamed unnoticed from his eyes, as he flew away from the terrorized screams and flames. That was the last time he tried to be discreet. He stopped caring for others, and took what he needed through the use of fear. Their screams had hardened his heart, locking his feelings deep within him.
He started to hoard anything he thought could brighten his day. After five years, he seemed to have anything a man could ever want. He was even richer than his father, but he was becoming increasingly unhappy. Celebrating his twenty fifth birthday on his own, Draco flew out of his cave. He spotted a man riding his horse, and perched on a strong tree nearby to try and get a better look at him. Who would willingly be in such a dangerous and isolated area?
"Do you smell that Ron? It's the smell of adventure, the smell of excitement. We must be getting close to the Dragon's lair. The townspeople said they've seen him flying around here. Once we've slayed him, I'm positive Ginevra will accept my wish to court her. She won't be able to resist such a hero as I will soon be" the knight said to his horse. The knight had black shaggy hair and an annoying voice in Draco's opinion. His horse wasn't much better; it looked like it was struggling to walk with the weight of the knight. The pair looked absolutely pathetic.
"This is my adversary? He looks too incompetent to even wield a sword. The great 'hero' didn't even notice me up here" Draco thought. He was about to swoop in and end his pathetic life when he heard a faint melody off in the distance. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard. He was compelled to follow it, feeling like he was being pulled by an invisible force. Preparing to follow it, he remembered the knight below him. Draco felt an overwhelming sense of possessiveness take over him. If he left this man here, he might also follow the lovely melody! Anger washed his vision in red as he descended upon the knight, slashing through his armor in one swoop. There was blood gushing from where his claws dug into the knight's skin, but he had to make sure he died. Encasing both the knight and the horse in flames, he left to follow the beautiful sound, unaffected by the pain filled screams behind him.
Tracing over the words of the song it brought Hermione back to a memory of a woman rocking her and singing. Granger. She was Hermione Granger. She loved knowing her full name. It made no sense though; the woman from the journal seemed nothing like her mother! She ignored the analysis from her brain and let the memory wash over her. The memory held so much love, and the voice sounded so familiar in her mind. She sang the lullaby aloud in a strong voice; it filled her with an unknown strength and power. She rose to her feet to stand on the edge of the tower, stretching out her arms and letting the power flow through her. Closing her eyes she finished the melody from memory feeling like the woman was singing right beside her.
She opened her eyes to a shocking sight. It wasn't the sight of hundreds of woodland animals huddled around the floor of her tower and the trees surrounding it that stunned her. No, it was the majestic creature flying right in front of her tower that had her frozen on the spot. She had never seen a creature so powerful, and strong but yet… beautiful. A dragon, unlike any she had ever read about. The dragon's body was a silver array of scales shining in the dying rays of the sun. Its eyes were a swirling storm of gray, blue and silver; its undeniable force called to her. The eyes captivated her, and she felt the storm within them had struck her with bolts of electricity. She was not afraid of the creature, just awe stuck. Reaching out to the creature, she tried to move forward, forgetting that she was already on the edge.
As her foot slipped, a scream tore past her lips. She closed her eyes in anticipation of her certain death, but it never came. The dragon had swooped down and caught her mid fall. She lay now in the middle of his clawed paw. He was cradling his paw close to his body as he flew away, and she knew deep in her soul she was not truly in danger. She felt safe in the warmth of the dragon's paw.
As they flew away, she slowly began to drift into a peaceful sleep. In her drowsy state, she chuckled to herself. Her savior was the Dragon, not the fearless knight. A beautiful and majestic creature had stolen her from her isolation, not a prince charming. Either way, the feeling of freedom was wonderful. She just wished she could stay awake long enough to enjoy the journey.
Zacharias was tending to the horses outside when he heard his beloved scream and drop the vase she had been holding. He ran into their home, wondering what could possibly be wrong with her. Yes she was a little more melancholy than normal, singing the special lullaby he hadn't since… since the attack. He has kept near Cecilia, but other than the song nothing was out of the ordinary. When he ran in he saw Cecilia with shards all around the floor and with tears streaming down her face. The strangest part was the joyous smile that stretched across her face.
"Oh Zacharias!" Cecilia said as she ran to him, unaware of the sharp stabs of pain in her feet "She's alive Zacharias! Our Baby's alive!"
He stood frozen on the spot, even as his beloved embraced him, he was too shocked. His baby? His darling girl who had been stolen from him a year into her gorgeous life? He had mourned her death for years.
"Darling are you sure? I could not take the pain of such hope if it's in vain" Zacharias said as he kissed her forehead and gently wiped her tears.
"I am certain Zacharias. She just sang the song I wrote in the book that was meant for her eighteenth birthday. When her eighteenth birthday had passed, I thought all hope was lost, but her voice just compelled me to sing with her. I felt her power my love, it will be dangerous if someone finds her. We have to find her," Cecilia said.
My little girl was alive, and I would find her. Even if I had to start a war, my baby would be found. Of that I was certain.
Thanks for reading. I'm sorry it's been such a long time, but I would just like to thank anyone who's reading. Please Review. I hope I'll be back much sooner next time.
Love,
~Dreaming~
P.S. I had to use this lullaby as it was one of my favorites as a child. The song is "All the Pretty Little Horses" and I imagined Hermione's singing to be similar to Becky Jean Williams' version.