Chapter Three

A/N : Hermione in this chapter is walking around and fighting, but this is in her head, but is still real. She's fighting for her life. Hermione to the others doesn't move or wake up.

The dawn of the sixth day had come and everyone was dreading what would happen by the end of it. Harry, Ron and Professor McGonagall were battling with their emotions, but what they were not aware of was that Hermione was in a battle herself.

Hermione was lying on the floor, surrounded by white light. As she began to pull herself slowly to her feet, she realised that she wasn't in the hospital wing in Hogwarts anymore, but in a place which she couldn't recognise to be anything that could possibly exist. She couldn't see anything at all, bar the bright white nothingness that surrounded her. And then she saw.

There in front of her was a piece of parchment. As she picked it up, words appeared across it in red ink. 'Instructions' thought Hermione.

'Hermione Jean Granger,

You have been selected for this task for your strength of will and your determination not to give up on the things that you believe in. However, soon your maxim will be tested.

In front of you are two people. One whom you love and one whom you hate. The task is simple. You choose which one will die.

If you choose the person that you love to die, then you will watch as they are slain by the wand of your enemy.

However, if you choose the person that is your enemy, they will have to be slain by your own wand.

Be warned, Miss Granger, this is not a game. Whomever's time to die is chosen by you, their time will have come in the mortal world as well. Fail to accomplish this task, and the time that will have come will be yours.

Good luck.'

She dropped the piece of parchment to the ground, though before it hit the nothingness below her, it disappeared in a puff of black smoke. The smoke clouded her vision, but when it cleared, she saw that the instructions were true to the letter.

There in front of her stood two people, one dressed in gold and one dressed in black. The one dressed in black was called Fabien, her enemy. He had pushed her best friend Maisie off of an 120ft high cliff when they were in primary school. After Maisie's death, Fabien discovered his magical power and attended Durmstrang Academy, before becoming one of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's inner circle.

The other, the girl dressed in gold was Hermione's nineteen-year-old cousin, Rose. She was certainly the one that she loved. She was the closest person in the world to Hermione, bar her parents, Ginny, Harry and Ron. She was the only one, save for her parents, that had truly accepted that she was magical, without holding it against her.

This task would truly be the hardest thing she would ever have to. One choice : Malicious or Murderer?

A/N : Another cliffhanger, soz.