CHAPTER TEN
Summary: Nine years after the war, Hermione's the Head of the Auror Department that specialises in dealing with Magical Creatures and fugitive Death Eaters that are loose in the Muggle World. With the fugitive Death Eaters no longer hiding in Britain, she's tracking rogue Death Eaters in the United States, which leads her to The Winchester brothers. The Witch and The Hunters are a dynamic trio that no creature, being or beast wishes to mess with, Magical or Supernatural. Hermione/Dean pairing. Rated M for a reason.
Disclaimer: I don't own original canon characters or events, just those that I create myself. Everything belongs to J.K Rowling and the creators of Supernatural. I am not making a profit posting this fanfic.
Page count: 9
"Right, I want breakfast, anyone else?" Hermione asked as she was ensuring that everything was packed away into her beaded bag.
She was dressed in a simple pair of blue skinny jeans, black boots, a black tank top and a pale pink long-sleeved cardigan that fell to her knees. She threw her hair up on top of her head and secured it with her wand, keeping it within reach but out of sight.
"Now you're speaking my language," Dean commented, picking up his duffle bag.
"I'll check out and meet you at the car, I think we've got everything we can from here, we'll plan our next steps over breakfast," she said and they nodded in agreement.
Sam and Dean headed to the Impala and Hermione to the front desk where she checked out and assured the blushing teenager behind the counter -and she had once again scolded him for trying to look down her shirt- that she didn't want a refund for the remaining two days she paid for, and then she handed in the keys and left to the car with a laugh.
"What's got you cackling like the Wicked Witch of the West?"
Hermione scowled. "I do not cackle."
"You're a witch, witches cackle," Dean shrugged.
"No, they don't," she protested, but a memory of Bellatrix Lestrange flittered through her mind and she amended her response. "Alright, some mentally challenged witches cackle, but most don't, including me."
"What had you laughing?" Sam questioned, breaking the tension and rolling his eyes at their bickering.
"I caught the kid trying to look down my shirt again," she grinned and he chuckled at her.
"Come on, let's go find somewhere to eat, I'm starving and I need caffeine to get me through the day," Dean spoke.
It didn't take them long to find a cosy looking diner and they headed inside and took seats at a booth covered in red leather.
"Good morning, I'm Kelly, your server, what can I get for you?"
The short blonde with brown eyes asked in a bored voice. She wore white trainers with a pink waitresses outfit and a white apron, a note pad held in her hand and a pen poised and ready to take notes. Hermione didn't think she could look any more bored if she tried.
Sam ordered French toast and coffee, Dean ordered coffee and the greasiest thing on the menu and when it came to Hermione's turn to order, she had to gain the attention of the waitress first, as she was too busy staring at Dean, of who didn't seem to notice or if he did, didn't seem to care.
"Hi, Kelly was it? I'll have a cup of tea and pancakes, I'll take some chocolate sauce, strawberries, oh, and whipped cream, and I can't forget the syrup. You know what, I'll take some bacon and eggs, too."
Sam and Dean stared at her before snorting and Kelly left with a pout in Dean's direction, since he hadn't paid her any attention other than to order his breakfast.
"So, next steps?" Sam prompted.
"They're not here," Hermione spoke. "If they were nearby I would've gotten a reading on my wand, it's sensitive to dark magic having been around it most of my life," she shrugged. "It's best we leave and head to a different destination." A thoughtful look crossed her face. "After we're done here, we should head to a petrol station..."
"Gas station," Dean cut her off.
"Whatever, Winchester," Hermione rolled her eyes. "We should head there so I can pick up a map, I've tried plotting the deaths on a map to see if there's a pattern but as far as I could tell there wasn't, but I think I might've just thought of something that might help."
"What?" Sam asked.
"A way to track them, to find out where they're heading and maybe we can get there first and set a trap for them." They looked at her approvingly.
Breakfast arrived and they all ate quickly and before they left, Hermione headed to the counter and pleaded with the elderly woman behind the counter to sell her some tea bags. After five minutes of begging, the woman gave in, though Hermione suspected she was doing it just to get rid of her. With a bag of tea bags, she left the diner a happy woman.
"What's in the bag?" Sam asked, turning in his seat to look at her over his shoulder.
"Tea bags," she shrugged.
"Why?"
"I'm British, do you have any idea how hard it is to find a decent cup of tea in this country?" She replied and he chuckled at her before turning back around to face the front.
When they reached the station, Dean put more fuel into the tank and Hermione went through the shop. She wasn't sure how long they would be on the road for and so she stocked up. She bought a map and a pack of marker pens, some fruit for Sam, a few sandwiches, a pack of cupcakes for herself, a pie for Dean, water and juice and a bag filled to the top with sweets and chocolate. It surprised her how much she knew about the brothers in such little time, such as their preferences for food.
She headed back to the car and Hermione placed the bulging bags of supplies in the back with her, before taking a marker and opening up the map and laying it out on the bonnet of the car.
"Hey, get that off Baby," Dean ordered with a threatening glance.
"Sorry, Patrick, I forgot that no one touches Baby," she rolled her eyes and Sam snorted at her. Hermione took off her cardigan and placed it on the car, putting the map on top of it. "There, now Baby won't get any marks or scratches," she said, and she took the cap off the marker before beginning to mark off the location of the murders on the map. It took her a few minutes but she did it. "Can you see it?" She asked, stepping back and giving them a better view of the crosses on the map, seemingly in random places.
"No, there's no pattern, how are we supposed to know where they're going?" Dean frowned.
"There is a pattern," she grinned. "It hit me this morning; there was something I hadn't tried."
"So what's the pattern because all I see is a bunch of crosses?"
Her grin widened before she went back to the map and carefully joined the crosses together, like a dot-to-dot puzzle. When she was done she stepped back and they both frowned at what they saw.
"That looks familiar," Dean tilted his head to the side.
"It should, you've seen it before on the victims."
"It almost looks like that tattoo, just without the skull. The snake is even curled in on itself in the same way."
"Yes, it's the dark mark. The emblem of Voldemort, not to mention the snake is the emblem of Slytherin, and Voldemort was his heir. This is definitely the work of Death Eaters. The victims may have been chosen at random, a crime of opportunity, but the locations were most certainly planned."
"So where's their destination?"
"If you look, I've joined up the dots, but there's one place missing."
"Cleveland, Tennessee," Sam whistled. "That's a long drive."
"Hmm," Hermione hummed. "Just over fifteen hundred miles, I believe. If my calculations are correct it'll take around twenty-two hours to get there. We'll be passing through a few States, it's best if we spend the night in a motel, there's no point in driving through the night, exhaustion's not your friend when heading into battle and trust me, it will be a battle."
"What makes you say that?" Sam asked.
"It's the last point on the map, their final destination. They've killed twenty-seven people in total, three victims in each of the States. They're completing a ritual, for what I can't be sure, but this is most certainly human sacrifice. If Cleveland is their last stop, they'll be killing three more people to complete the ritual, this means that their headquarters is likely there as well. We'll have to be careful," she sighed. "This is going to be a pain in the arse," she groaned.
"How are we going to get there before them, they have a head start on us?"
"True, but I know these people. They would rather die than set foot on muggle public transport and they would never rent a car, seeing as they detest them and they can't drive. They can't port-key because you have to have approval for use from the Ministry beforehand and they can be tracked. Apparition can also be tracked, but as I said before, you have to have visited the destination before or at least be able to visualise it. Flooing is also out, that just leaves flying. They wouldn't risk being caught flying during the day, so they'll travel at night. Even flying will take hours and they'll need to stop regularly to rest and sleep, which slows them down. We might not get there before them, but we'll still get there no more than a few hours after them which is still better than being days behind," she explained. "Right then, let's get going, it's going to be a long drive and I bought supplies."
"Supplies?" Sam raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, pie for Dean, cupcakes for me, fruit for you, I also bought sandwiches, drinks, chocolate and plenty of sugary goodness," she answered. They blinked in surprise at the sheer amount of food she'd purchased.
"I've never met a woman that eats as much as you," Dean spoke with his head tilted to the side, a smirk on his lips.
"Are you calling me fat?" She glared at him.
"No," he answered immediately, paling slightly and Hermione huffed.
"You better not be, I am not fat, if you grew up with the Weasleys and the Weasley Matriarch, who practically shoves food down your throat the minute you step through the door, then you'd have a big appetite, too. Besides, you think I eat a lot, you should see Ginny, she can out-eat all of her brothers, well, except Ronald, he just devours anything edible in sight," she shrugged. "Actually, he's more like a goat, I once saw him eat a piece of paper and a dandelion because his older brother convinced him it was a muggle delicacy, idiot," she rolled her eyes. She turned and hopped into the car, getting comfortable in the back seat.
"Man, you were so scared of her," Sam teased through a laugh.
"Shut it, Sammy," he growled before jumping in the car. Sam had to run to the car before Dean drove off without him.
~000~000~000~
"I'm bored," Sam whined childishly.
"It's only been an hour," Dean muttered, Hermione sniggered.
"Here, Sam." Hermione dug around in her beaded bag and pulled out a book, handing it to him.
"Laws of Conduct When Dealing with Muggles," he read before looking back at her.
"That book explains wizarding laws and governing contact with muggles, how we work together, what we are and aren't able to do, how we must treat muggles and the use of magic on muggles," she explained. "It's proof that my kind, trueborn witches and wizards, don't want to harm muggles, we want to live peacefully."
"How is that possible if magic isn't allowed to be known?"
"That's where it gets complicated, the existence of magic is known to some muggles, like the parents, siblings and carers of Muggleborns, it's known to Squibs and spouses and it's known to powerful and influential members of the Muggle World."
"Such as?" Dean asked, looking at her through the rearview mirror.
"The British Prime Minister, the President of the United States, the Queen of England, the Russian President, the Pope, basically people along those lines. Our Ministries work in conjunction with these people to protect the secret of magic and if there was ever a problem. Such as Sirius Black, when he escaped from prison, the British Muggle Government were alerted and they put out an alert, stating that he was a dangerous mass murderer, though they never mentioned anything to do with magic, just that he was considered to be armed," she shrugged. "Of course it was a load of bullshit, Sirius suffered a great injustice, he was an innocent man that was framed and he didn't even get a trial. He died with the world thinking he was a traitor and a murderer. When the war ended Harry and I made sure that he was exonerated and the world knew him for who he truly was. He was a hero and he received an Order of Merlin: Third Class."
"A what?"
"An award given for tremendous acts towards the Wizarding World."
"Did you get one?" Dean asked.
"No, I got an Order of Merlin: First Class, the most prestigious and coveted award."
"What is it exactly?"
"It's basically the magical equivalent to a Medal of Honour."
The car swerved as Dean turned to look at her in shock, Sam yelled out in panic and fright and Dean turned and got the car back in their lane before he crashed.
"You have a Medal of Honour? Seriously?"
"Hmm," she hummed.
"Holy shit," he muttered in awe.
"Anyway, read that book, Sam, it might help you to understand my people better." Hermione sat back comfortably. "Hey, turn the volume up, would you? I quite like this song," Hermione said with her eyes closed.
"You like The Rolling Stones?" Dean looked at her through the rearview mirror.
"Yep, You Can't Always Get What You Want is one of my favourites. Actually, their album Let It Bleed is one of my favourites all together," she shrugged.
"Sammy's reading, he gets bitchy if I disturb him," he said apologetically.
"I've got you covered." She sat up and waved her wand over Sam who had his head stuck in the book she'd given him, so he didn't notice. "There you go, I've placed a Silencing Charm around him, he won't be able to hear anything and therefore we can't disturb him."
"Alright," he replied, reaching over and turning the dial until the music was blasting loudly, the speakers almost buzzing in displeasure.
Hermione smiled and sat back, she kicked off her boots and pulled her legs up onto the seat, crossing them and she let her head flop back with her eyes closed. The small and relaxed smile didn't leave her face and she kept her eyes closed the entire time; she had fallen asleep.
Every so often Dean's eyes would flicker up to the mirror to look at Hermione, Sam had no idea why he couldn't hear anything though he guessed Hermione had something to do with it. He was thankful, this way he could read in peace and Dean could listen to his music, everyone was happy. But just because he couldn't hear didn't mean he couldn't see, and he could definitely see Dean watching Hermione through the rearview mirror. He smirked to himself and shook his head, going back to the book.
~000~000~000~
Dean pulled into a gas station for a bathroom break, Sam had fallen asleep, his forehead pressed to the window and the book left open on his lap.
Hermione had moved in her sleep, she was now laying down on her side facing the front, her hands were pillowed under her head and her legs pulled up into her chest. He reached over and shook her shoulder, in hindsight he shouldn't have done it since he ended up with a wand pressed into his throat.
"Whoa, Flash, it's only me," Dean said surprised.
Her eyes were glazed over and her breathing laboured, she blinked and seemed to come back to herself. "Sorry," she muttered, pulling her wand away from him.
He shrugged. "Don't worry about it, nice reflexes by the way," he said calmly, though on the inside he'd almost shit himself; that look in her eyes had been scary as hell, and he'd been there for forty years!
"I've pulled into a gas station for a bathroom break," he told her.
"Right, thanks for waking me," she muttered, not looking at him.
She pulled on her boots before flicking her wand at Sam, removing the Silencing Charm and she woke him up. He jumped and banged his head against the window, causing Dean to smirk and Hermione to giggle. They all left the car and went to the bathroom and not ten minutes later they were back on the road.
"I hate public toilets, infection distributors are what they should be called," she shivered. They snorted at her. "I'm being serious, do you have any idea of how many Cleaning Charms I cast before I went anywhere near the stall?"
"They are disgusting," Sam grimaced.
"Right, Sammy, get back to your book, I plan to listen to some Black Sabbath," Dean spoke.
"What about Hermione?"
"I like Black Sabbath," she shrugged.
"Of course you do," Sam muttered, causing Dean to smirk.
"Face it, Sammy, you're outnumbered."
"Whatever," he muttered childishly.
Hermione pulled her wand and cast a Silencing Charm around Sam and she gave Dean a nod to let him know it was done, in response he turned up the volume and they both sat in silence, listening to the music as it blasted through the speakers.
An hour later Dean reached over to turn down the volume and Hermione opened her eyes to see Dean pulling a phone out of his jacket pocket, Hermione cancelled the Silencing Charm around Sam and he looked up from his book at the sound of a ringing phone.
"It's Bobby, get it for me?"
He passed it back and Hermione flipped the phone open and cleared her throat. "Hello, this is Patrick Swayze's phone, unfortunately, he can't come to the phone right now due to his unnatural obsession with Baby, but, I, his personal assistant, the Wicked Witch of the West, would be glad to take a message and pass it along when he's finished getting Baby out of the corner."
Dean scowled at her through the mirror and Sam burst out laughing.
"I'm glad to see you haven't killed each other yet, Missy," Bobby's gruff voice came through the speaker.
"I have no idea what you're talking about Bobby, Sam's a delight, I'm awesome and Dean spends his time making lovey-dovey eyes at the car. Why would we kill each other?"
"Very funny," he mumbled. "How's the case going?"
"One of the last victims was a Muggleborn wizard," she sighed, "The other two muggles. Everything's exactly the same as the other victims. I believe I've found a pattern, we're on our way to Cleveland, Tennessee as we speak."
"That's a long trip."
"Hmm, don't worry, I got us covered. I've got more food and confectionary to feed a small army, I've got my personal library in my beaded bag to keep Sam amused and I've been placing Silencing Charms around Sam so Dean can play his music as loud as he wants without causing arguments."
"And you, how are you doing, Missy?"
She sighed. "Fine, Bobby, just fine."
"You're lying to me, I know exactly what happens when you sleep; I've witnessed it."
"It was alright last night, I kind of passed out drunk, I've had a couple of mishaps though, scared the life out of them."
"Know the feeling," he muttered.
"Anyway, I believe that Cleveland is where we'll find what we're looking for, I have a theory that my suspects are planning to carry out a ritual, a ritual that requires thirty victims in total, but they have to be killed in threes."
"What ritual?"
"I don't know," she frowned, "I'm going to do some research before we reach Cleveland, we've still got eighteen hours of driving left, not including when we stop at a motel for the night."
"Alright, Missy, keep me posted and try not to kill Dean."
"No promises, Bobby," she chuckled. "He insinuated that I was fat."
He sighed. "Idjit," he muttered. "Put Dean on for me, Missy."
"Hang on," she passed the phone forward. "He wants to speak to you."
"Yeah, Bobby?" Dean frowned as Bobby spoke, but neither Hermione nor Sam could hear what Bobby was saying. "Okay, bye, Bobby." He snapped the phone shut and put it in the glove compartment.
"So?" Sam asked.
"So?" Dean echoed.
"What did he say?" Sam huffed.
"He just told me that he's tracking a case of suspicious deaths, a case for when we're done with this one."
"Alright," Sam shrugged his shoulders and went back to his book and Hermione re-cast the Silencing Charm for him.
"What did he really say?" Hermione asked him.
Dean locked eyes with her in the rearview mirror. "Exactly that," he replied.
"You're lying,"
"Not,"
"Are,"
"Not,"
"Are,"
"Witch!"
"Prat!"
"Demon!"
"Wanker!"
"Bitch!"
"Twat!"
"Cult leader!"
"Knobhead!"
Dean burst out laughing. "This isn't working; I can't do this with you and your completely British insults."
"You're just jealous I have a wider vocabulary than you," she said arrogantly, folding her arms over her chest and lifting her chin.
"Whatever you say, Sweetheart," he smirked at her and she rolled her eyes.
"Oh, Def Leppard, turn it up."
Dean shook his head, she was amusing; he would give her that.