Summary and Disclaimer are in the Prologue =)
Author's Notes:
First of all, thank you for your patience. Computer problems have caused this to be so delayed. But, now that I have a working computer, I hope to update fairly regularly.
Secondly, thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! I couldn't believe it when I received over 20 reviews for the Prologue!
I hope you all enjoy Chapter 1 just as much!
Deception – Chapter 1
An audible pop echoed through the street and the failing street lamps flickered in response. The atmosphere was eerie — haunting — there was no life wandering around; no people, no birds, nothing.
It was a dead zone.
The air was thick, stale and still as she took a few tentative steps forward. She had never felt something like this. It was if all existence had ceased.
It sent shivers up her spine as she continued onwards, searching for the house that she wanted, no ... needed ... to see. She felt the small hairs on her arms stand on end as she reached her destination; the burned out remains of the last house on the street.
It was a shell of the building it once had been. The windows had been blown out and their frames were coated in a substantial amount of soot. The finely powdered carbon extended upwards in a sinister rectangle, showing that the resulting fire from the explosion had travelled through the entire residence. It appeared as if it had been left to erode and no attempts at salvaging it had been made.
She shuddered as she gazed at the front door, lying wide open and beckoning for her. The building looked stable enough for her to enter, but the logical half of her mind was telling her to run, while the impulsive half was telling her to investigate. Her Gryffindor bravery won out in the end and she moved towards the entrance, manoeuvring around the broken pieces of wood and glass until she finally stepped inside.
The smell of burnt wood and fabric was overwhelming and she grimaced immediately. However, there was a far more terrifying odour; one that she wished would never grace her nasal passages again.
Death.
It clung to everything.
She made her way through to what she assumed was the sitting room. While it no longer resembled any other similarly styled rooms she had seen in the past, she could make out what was once a large wall covered in several shelves that held the ashes of a million books.
She couldn't stop herself from roaming around the rest of the decaying house; her curiosity getting the better of her. There was not one thing that she could find that was recoverable. When she had seen all she could handle, she walked back to the outside of the crumbling building. It was then she saw it; a hooded figure standing just beyond the small gate to the premises.
Her heart began to beat as fast as a hummingbird's and a thousand thoughts crossed her mind at the same time. Was this black clad individual a friend or a foe?
Whatever it was, it was watching her intently. It did not move an inch from its place on the pavement and as she moved closer, frightened as to whether it was merely binding its time until she was close enough for it to pounce, her breathing heightened and became shallower.
The figure flicked its head slightly, causing the hood to shift and reveal a length of what looked like silky hair, which was as black as the midnight sky. She saw the glitter of what appeared to be its eyes, twinkling underneath the flickering street lights. It was clearly a person, but the questions as to whether its intentions were good or evil still remained.
"Who are you?" she whispered, her voice stuttering slightly as she did so.
The figure snorted before moving ahead, following her down the street as she attempted to make her way back to her Apparition point. "As if I will tell you here, where we can be heard by Merlin knows what."
The voice of this stranger definitely belonged to a male. She made sure that she was facing him at all times; her gaze never left his. "So you are a wizard then?" she asked quietly, expecting no answer. "Do you know what happened here?"
He continued to stalk her. "Yes, I do indeed." She gasped as she brushed along a bush, the thorns catching her jumper, severing it slightly. He stopped his stride, reaching for her arm to inspect the cut that was staining her clothing red. She struggled, trying to break free of his hold. However, his grip tightened as he said, "I mean you no harm, Miss. You need not fear me."
She scoffed, "You suddenly appearing in front a house that is a Wizarding crime scene, watching me, following me, grabbing my arm...I mean honestly, do you not see why I am uncertain of your motives?"
He smirked. "I could say the same thing to you, Miss. Yet, your motives are highly more suspicious than my own." At her horrified and angry glare, he chuckled. "You were inside the said 'Wizarding crime scene', looking for and touching things that you shouldn't have been." He let her go and she took three large steps away from him. "What were you doing in there? What are you doing here? Of all places a pretty young witch such as yourself could be, why Spinner's End?"
"Not that it's any of your business, Sir..." She twirled back to stare directly at him again. It was strange, his eyes were not the same, but they held the same goading expression. "I am here for closure. A friend of mine died here a month ago, and I am yet to accept it. I guess seeing it... seeing the place where he... it's sinking in now."
She heard him sigh and look at the ground before lifting his gaze to hers again. "Listen to me; I am not here to harm you. I am here to assist you, to help you find your way again. You are alone. You are vulnerable. I can protect you."
She stared at the man. She didn't know what it was about him, or his tone of voice. She unexpectedly felt the undeniable urge to trust him. Her instincts were nearly always right. So, when he held out his arm, silently requesting she take hold of him, she wrapped her fingers around his wrist and was pulled into the vortex than was unmistakably Side-Along Apparition.
SSHGSSHGSSHGSSHG
Harry sat on his bed at the Burrow, staring at the note in his hands. He couldn't believe it had been a month already. Hermione had been gone one whole month and Moody hadn't reconsidered his decision, despite his and Ron's constant efforts to persuade him. He had never regretted an action as much as he regretted his idiotically impulsive need to understand that God forsaken letter.
He read the neat hand writing on the parchment one more time. It was his only comfort, no matter how little it actually brought him.
Harry,
No, I haven't forgiven you yet. But, I know how sorry you are.
It will take some time before I can forgive you.
I am only writing this to let you know that I am safe. I have found a place to stay and yes, my belongings arrived securely at the place I requested you send them. I also received your note. Please thank Mrs Weasley for taking care of Crookshanks for me while this whole debacle is happening and thank Remus for promising to keep my parents protected.
No, I'm not going to tell you where I am, because then I could be arrested for something that I did not do. Or, I could be found by Death Eaters... but, even I have to admit, I think I'd take the Death Eaters rather than Azkaban prison.
Anyway, I'm safe and surviving.
Maybe, once this is all over... things can go back to the way they were. But, I have a feeling this has changed everything.
I do miss you all.
Hermione
He thanked whatever deity there was that she was unharmed, before tucking the parchment underneath his pillow and laying back against it.
He wouldn't sleep well again, but he knew he had to try.
SSHGSSHGSSHGSSHG
They reappeared in front of a large Manor, in what she assumed to be the Scottish countryside. A nearby field was full of thistles and heather and there was no other building around them, and didn't seem to be for miles.
"It's beautiful," she murmured, yet her companion heard her words.
"Yes, it is much more picturesque in the daylight however," he replied with a small smile. "This way, follow me."
He guided her along the gravel path and into the building, directing her into a fabulous living area.
"Sit," he said gently, "make yourself comfortable."
She studied him as he removed the cloak that had been shielding him from her proper view. He did have black hair, which bore a striking resemblance to her late friend's own locks. However, his face wasn't as sharp, nor was his nose as prominent. His eyes were a deep chocolate brown, not obsidian black.
"Can I ask you who you are now?" she wondered out loud.
He sneered, teasingly. "My name is Sebastian... Sebastian Sinclair." He lifted a two tumblers and a bottle half full with an amber liquid. He placed them down onto a coffee table in front of her and poured three slugs of the drink into the chiselled glasses. He then took a seat beside the girl and placed a glass into her hand. "You are Hermione Granger... are you not?"
She gripped the tumbler and sipped, feeling the pleasant burn slide down her throat. "I am. How do you know that?"
"I told you, I am here to help you. It is my duty to know who you are." He lifted the glass to his lips before swallowing all of the liquid. "Besides," he said after a moment. "You have been in many headlines in the Daily Prophet, and in many pictures. You are quite easily recognized, dear girl."
She huffed, "I suppose that's true." She gulped the whiskey this time, taking time replace the tumbler back onto the table before asking, "Who sent you? Who knew I'd be on my own?"
He hummed softly and mimicked her last action. "Who said that somebody sent me? Perhaps I am just a... guardian angel?"
She laughed. "A guardian angel?" she stated incredulously. "What kind of guardian angel dresses like a Death Eater?"
His brow furrowed. Hermione suddenly felt very nervous. "I told you, I am here to assist you. My dress sense has nothing to do with this."
"So you are a Death Eater?" she pushed, desperately wanting to know the truth.
"I did not say that!" he hissed. "Nor did I deny it. Enough of this!" He jumped to his feet swiftly before kneeling down in front of her knees. "Does it truly matter at this moment, Hermione? You are safe; you are protected so long as I am here. Suffice it to say... I am a friend of a friend who wished for you to be soundly sheltered."
An eyebrow of her own shot into her hairline. What did that mean?
She was nearing the end of her tether, her temper slowly bubbling to the surface as she replied, "Just answer my question, Sebastian. Are you, or are you not, a Death Eater?"
His head dropped. Clearly she wasn't going to drop this topic until she received a truthful response. "I am... and I am not. You will understand in due course."
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