The elves were clearing away the last of the dinner dishes when Lord Nott cleared his throat. Hermione, Tom, and Cantankerus all turned their attention to the scion of the Nott family.
"I heard one of the Clearwater twins ran away this past year." Lord Nott arched an eyebrow.
Glancing nervously at Hermione, Cantankerus glanced away quickly.
"Well," Tom smirked. "That depends on your operating definition of running away."
"What did you kids do?" Lord Nott smiled. He was intrigued; his son couldn't keep eye contact with the witch and Tom looked like the cat that ate the canary.
"They did nothing." Giving him her most sultry look, Hermione's magic danced beneath her skin. "I merely performed a blood ritual in a dark meadow."
Lord Nott's eyes lit up. "How did it go?"
"I now understand why you made me train my body." Hermione held up her right hand and wisps of dark magic twined around her fingers. "This branch of magic will tear you apart just as easily as you can bend it to your will."
"She's fucking terrifying." Cantankerus muttered.
Tom's eyes shined brightly. "No, she's magnificent."
"Maybe for you." Cantankerus swallowed. "But she scared all of us."
"So you admit it." Lord Nott smirked.
"Admit what, father?" Cantankerus frowned.
Lord Nott placed his chin on his steepled fingers. "That a mudblood is better than you."
Hermione blushed at his praise, while his son flushed in embarrassment.
"You should have seen her, sir." Tom grinned.
Taking a sip of his wine, Lord Nott smiled at the witch. "I have no doubt you were magnificent. And the power I can sense, how did Dumbledore not notice?"
"I can hide it." Hermione smirked, holding up her hand. The dark wisps slowly drained of color until they shone brightly. Closing her hand into a fist, the magic seeped into her skin.
"Lord Nott," Tom respectfully stated. "How is Miss Granger able to do that?"
The elder wizard stroked his chin in thought. "It would appear that she has a grasp on both light and dark magic. I would recommend studying both equally, my dear."
"I plan to, sir. I see no reason to ignore one aspect of magic just because you don't like it." Hermione grinned.
Tom smirked. "What about Divination?"
"Unless you are a seer, that branch is completely useless." Hermione growled. "And you know if you're a see by a very young age. Why Hogwarts insists on teaching that class is beyond me."
"You're very passionate about this." Lord Nott hid a smile behind his wine glass.
Hermione's eyes danced with mirth. "No, Lord Nott, I'm passionate about everything."
Barefoot, standing outside, Hermione looked up at the starry sky. Cantakerus' mother had returned from a trip to Paris and she didn't know if she could keep herself under control around that vial woman. Her magic whispered to her, things she could do to Lady Nott; things that would make what she did to Mabel seem tame.
Light footfalls sounded behind her and Hermione smiled, she only knew of one person who walked that gracefully.
"What are you doing out here, Mia?" Tom asked, stopping next to her.
Hermione shrugged. "I needed to get some air. I don't think Lord Nott would appreciate it if I killed his wife."
"I don't think he would mind." Tom shrugged, fiddling with the ring on his finger. "He let me kill her after all, gave me this ring first."
"You killed her without me?" Hermione coolly asked, grabbing Tom's hand. She paused, and ran her finger over the ring. "Tom, what is this?"
"This, is a Horcrux." Tom sneered.
Hermione licked her lips. "You killed that horrible woman, and made yourself immortal?"
"I did."
"You bad boy." Hermione giggled. "There are other ways to stay immortal, you know."
"But they are so much more dangerous." Tom tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
Dancing away from him, Hermione grinned. "You have no idea. The Nott library is full of books on dark magic that have been banned for centuries."
"I know."
"That spell I did with Mabel." Hermione sauntered toward him. "The spell that had all of you followers pissing their pants." She poked his chest. "That was a spell for immortality."
"Did it work?" Tom breathed.
Hermione chuckled darkly. "I would be dead if it didn't. There were so many things that could have gone wrong. I needed an unwilling sacrifice that had dishonored me, I needed willing servants to stand in awe and fear of what I was doing, and I needed an equal who worshipped the ground I walk on."
"I do not worship anything." Tom growled.
"Not yet." Hermione slowly smiled. "But, apparently, you will."
"I thought you didn't believe in prophecy."
"Some things are more powerful than prophecy, my Lord." Hermione smirked at him, before heading back to the manor.
"And what is that?" Tom called after her.
Pausing, Hermione looked over her shoulder. "Why, elemental blood magic of course."
A/N: I already have an idea for the next chapter, so a warning: there will be demons in the next chapter! And possible more exploration of dark magic…