CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
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
They had stopped at three different stations in search of banoffee muffins, but Hermione was out of look as none of them sold them. She was currently sat in the passenger's side for the first time since meeting The Winchesters. Sam had sprawled himself across the back seat, reading another book Hermione had given him about the history of Wizarding Europe, whilst Dean drove, chuckling every now and then at Hermione's scowl and childishly crossed arms.
"It's not funny, you said we'd get banoffee muffins," she frowned.
"Yes, I did say that, just because we haven't found some yet, doesn't mean that I've given up. I promised you banoffee muffins and we'll get you banoffee muffins." She continued to scowl and Sam snorted in amusement. "Besides, we should be arriving at that woman's house in ten minutes," he said, and Hermione sat up taller and looked out the window, waiting for the house to come into view. And it did.
"Do you want us to come in with you?" Dean asked her, parking the car by the curb.
"No, I shouldn't be too long," she said, before steeling her emotions and climbing out of the car, walking down the drive and knocking on the door.
She didn't have to wait long for the door to be opened and for a surprised Ms. Binns to be stood on the other side.
"Miss. Granger?"
Hermione was glad to see that she looked far better than the last time she had seen her, she didn't look to be exhausted, colour had returned to her cheeks and her eyes weren't swollen or red.
"Hello, Ms. Binns," she said politely.
"Won't you come in?" She asked, standing back to allow Hermione entrance into the house and she led her to the kitchen, both taking seats at the table when Hermione declined the offered beverage.
"Ms. Binns, when I last saw you I made a promise that I would catch those responsible for taking your son's life." She could see her eyes beginning to water. "I'm here now to inform you that those responsible have been captured. With the help of some truly brave witches and wizards who work for the magical police department, there was a battle in which we took down the headquarters for the faction of the other side. Several died in battle, a few are comatosed, some are severely injured and still in hospital but will face trial when they are released, and the rest are currently being prepared to stand trial, but the evidence we have is great and none of them will be getting off lightly. I suspect the sentence will be between fifteen years and life, and believe me, Ms. Binns, if I was given the sentence these people are, I would rather choose death, as our magical prisons are guarded by truly dark creatures that instil fear in every member of the Wizarding World."
"They're dead?" She whispered, her tears spilling out of her eyes.
"They're either dead or standing trial, they will not get away with what they've done and they will be punished. Your son will get justice."
She doubled over on herself, sobbing loudly and Hermione reached out to touch her shoulder comfortingly. Ms. Binns latched onto the contact and grabbed a hold of Hermione's forearm.
"It's over, and the world is a safer place for Henry to grow and learn," Hermione whispered, and her sobs grew louder.
~000~000~000~
Hermione stepped out of the house, wiping away her own tears and she felt emotionally wiped out as she made her way to the car and climbed back into the passenger's side.
"How'd it go?" Sam asked her.
"It went," she replied looking out of the window. "Let's go, I've done what I needed to do, now we need to get to Bobby's so he can yell at me." They both chuckled at her and Dean started the ignition and they continued on their journey.
They had been driving for over an hour and Hermione had been unusually quiet, Dean kept stealing glances at her, frowning at the differences he saw in her. She had been staring out of the window the entirety of the drive; she was slumped in the seat and with her head pressed against the window, looking tired and defeated.
"Are you okay?" Dean spoke, making her jump in surprise as his voice rose over the music currently being played, The Rolling Stones, she noted. She looked behind her to see that Sam had dozed off whilst reading, his head laying at an odd angle that would surely hurt when he woke.
She ran her hand over her face and sighed. "Yes, it just got to me a lot more than I thought it would, I'll be fine after I've eaten." She sat up straight when her eyes caught the large building they would soon be passing and she turned to Dean. "Pull over in the car park would you?"
"Parking lot," he corrected and she rolled her eyes at him. After a further five minutes, he did pull into the car park and turned off the ignition.
"So why are we stopping at Walmart?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"You promised me banoffee muffins and Walmart practically sell everything, so they should sell banoffee muffins. Besides, I need to restock on supplies so that I can bake when I feel like it, and no doubt I'll be cooking dinner for everyone when we get to Bobby's and he'll have no food in."
He simply shrugged, before turning around and hitting Sam across the knee until he jerked awake and scowled at him.
"What the hell was that for? Why are we at Walmart?" He asked confused.
"Because I need some supplies and it's not often I get the chance to restock from a place such as this," Hermione explained, before she grabbed her beaded bag, hid her wand from view and she stepped out of the car with both Winchesters reluctantly following after her.
Hermione retrieved a small trolley and entered through the automatic doors, her eyes widening at just how big the building was. She took off like a small child in a sweet shop and darted through the aisles, with a speed that had The Winchester brothers surprised, amused and scrambling to keep up with her.
"No way, twelve wash cloths for a dollar," she turned to them both amazed and they snorted at her excitement.
"Do you need that many?"
"No, probably not, but it's a bargain and I'll likely find a use for them otherwise I'll have spare." She deposited several into her trolley, totalling five dollars and continued down the aisle. "Towels, great, I need some new towels," she beamed, picking up several and depositing them in the trolley, too.
She continued making her way around the shop, talking to herself and making exclamations of joy, while the brothers followed behind her amused.
"Hey, Sam, do me a favour and get me two more trolleys."
"Shopping carts," Dean corrected.
"I'm British, they are shopping trolleys and they are staying that way," she replied, her attention didn't waver from scanning the shower gel and soap options.
"Do you even need wash products?" Sam asked her.
"I do actually," she confirmed, "And with these prices, I can buy them in bulk so that I won't have to keep restocking my supplies," she said, finding the soap and shower gel that she preferred to use and picking up several, placing them into her trolley, and when Sam returned from doing as she had asked, she forced Dean to push one empty trolley, and Sam the other.
They followed her as she made her way down every aisle and when she reached the dairy aisle, she picked up two three litre milks.
"What's the point in buying milk, it'll expire in a few days?" Dean said.
"Not with magic, I can keep things from expiring for a couple of weeks, depending on the strength of the spell and the food. Uncooked fish and raw meat usually lasts about a week, cooked fish and meat double that, cooked meals can last a few days, depending on what it is, and surprisingly, dairy products can last about two and a half weeks." She didn't look at them as she picked up some cheese, moving onto the yoghurts. "So, what do you fancy for dinner on this lovely evening?"They both shrugged and she sighed and rolled her eyes, walking off. "Well I have a craving for mash potato, so how about a British classic of bangers and mash?"
"What?" They both asked confused.
"Sausages slowly cooked in gravy in the oven, served with creamy mash potato and vegetables."
"Oh, okay, sounds great," Sam spoke and she beamed at him, making a mental note to pick up the ingredients on her way around the shop.
They continued walking down the aisles for a further thirty minutes, Hermione having filled up all three of the trolleys and she disappeared to retrieve another, when she spotted the baked goods and to her utter relief, she found banoffee muffins.
She practically squealed in joy and filled the trolley with the remaining six boxes on the shelves and made her way back to the brothers with a bounce in her step, and she found them exactly where she'd left them in the frozen section.
"Why are you looking so happy?" Dean asked her amused, noticing the gleam in her eyes.
"I found banoffee muffins," she grinned. They looked down to the trolley.
"Did you get enough?" He asked with a smirk.
"No, I got what was left on the shelves, otherwise I would've gotten more, I love banoffee muffins," she spoke with a little frown. "Anyway, what should we have for desert?"
"Pie," Dean said, before Sam could get a word in and Hermione could blink.
"I like your thinking," she nodded in approval. "I'll tell you what, I'll go and get the ingredients for the pie and you and Sam can go to the fruit and vegetable section, and select the filling for the pie."
"Anything I want?"
"Anything you want," she confirmed. He spun the trolley around and grabbed Sam by the collar, pulling him down the aisle with him so fast, that Hermione couldn't help laugh.
She quickly found what she needed and made her way to the brothers, though it was difficult trying to control two trolleys and so when she checked to make sure no one was around, she touched the tip of her wand to both trolleys and with a whispered spell, she had them pushing themselves, she just held onto them to keep up appearances.
When she reached them, she found them bickering over the filling for the pie, Sam wanting apple whilst Dean wanted blueberry.
"Just get what you want, if I have to I'll bake two pies; I have more than enough ingredients to do so."
They both turned to her, surprised to see her since they hadn't noticed her arrive due to their distraction of arguing. They then turned and each grabbed the fruit they wanted for the filling and placed them in the trolley.
"Right then, I think that's everything," she spoke with a frown of concentration on her face. "Bread, dairy, eggs, flour, sugar, wash products, cereal, fruit and vegetables, sausages, potatoes," she listed off whilst counting on her fingers. "Anything else?"
"Why are you asking us? You're the one that wanted to stop here," Dean reminded her.
"I think that's everything then," she spoke, turning her trolleys and heading to the checkout and the brothers followed her. It took twenty minutes to have everything packed into bags and for Hermione to pay, and they carried the bags to the car and placed them in the back seat.
"Are you sure you're done?" Dean asked her with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes, I think so."
"Thank God," he muttered, pulling away from the place where he'd been forced to spend close to two hours shopping. He didn't want to experience it again.
Hermione fell quiet as she summoned her report that she hadn't yet finished and she got herself comfortable, turning her attention to the words in front of her, while Sam returned to reading and Dean hummed along to the music.
~000~000~000~
Hermione looked up and sighed in relief when she saw that they were pulling into the salvage yard belonging to Bobby. Not only was her neck aching from looking down at the paperwork on her lap, her hand hurting from writing and she had a headache, too, but most importantly, she was starving.
She packed everything away and stepped out of the car, noting that Bobby was already making his way towards them. She stayed back and prepared herself for a telling off, whilst the brothers stepped forward to greet the man they considered to be a second father. She stepped forward when the brothers made their way into the house leaving her alone with Bobby.
"Idjit," he spoke, slapping her upside the head and she scowled at him, rubbing at the sore spot on her head.
"What was that for?" She griped.
"You know exactly what that was for, Missy."
"At least I didn't die this time," she responded and her reply earned her another slap upside the head.
"Will you stop hitting me?" She scowled at him.
"When you stop being stupid I will."
"Can I have my hug now or are you going to insult me further?"
"Both," he responded and Hermione rolled her eyes and she pulled Bobby into a hug, noting how he stiffened slightly, before relaxing.
"It's good to see you again, Bobby, and I'm sorry for worrying you."
"I wasn't worried," he denied, pulling back from her and she chucked at him. "So, you mentioned a ritual, did you figure it out?"
"No, I was wrong, there was no ritual involved."
He looked at her with a knowing gaze. "You're lying," he stated.
"I'm not," she denied.
"Yes, you are, but seeing as you're denying it, there must be a reason why you don't want to discuss it and so I won't bring it up again."
"If I was lying and you were right, I would say thank you, but seeing as I'm not, all I have to say is help me with these bags so I can make a start on dinner." He rose an eyebrow at her but did help her to carry the bags she handed to him, into the kitchen. "Did Ricky arrive?" She asked him.
"Yeah, that bird of yours is strange, he wouldn't stop pecking at the refrigerator until I opened it and he stole a cookie and flew off. The last I saw of him he was flying around the salvage yard."
Hermione sighed. "That bloody owl is going on a diet," she muttered.
Bobby snorted in amusement and then disappeared, leaving Hermione alone and she immediately set to work on preparing dinner.
~000~000~000~
Everyone had eaten their dinner, including both pies Hermione had baked and they had went their separate ways, Bobby and Sam disappearing into a room beside the living room, Dean upstairs and Hermione went outside, heading into the maze of cars, sitting down on the dusty ground and leaning back against a car whilst looking up at the sky in the warm spring evening.
She contemplated whether or not to take Dean up on his offer of joining him and his brother, on travelling the US and taking on cases. She knew he had a point; if she went with them, not only would they both be doing their jobs, but the brothers could be educated on her world and the magical creatures that inhabits it, and she could learn more about the things they dealt with, seemingly Gods, demons and spirits that were unlike the ones she had grown up knowing. It was an excellent opportunity to build bridges between Hunters and her world, preventing possible future killings of true born witches and wizards and magically protected creatures.
She liked Sam, and she had quickly come to think of him as a friend, a good friend and she trusted him. He was eager to learn and he had the same desire for knowledge that she did. She knew Bobby from before meeting The Winchesters after underestimating the number of vampires she'd been tracking and he'd helped her and even saved her life at one point, but she had grown closer to Bobby in the few days she had actually spent with him.
Then there was Castiel. Castiel was an important part of her life and he had been since she was a child. He helped her through her transition into the Wizarding World, even if he didn't understand it himself; he had just as much knowledge and experience as she'd had at that point. But she knew The Winchesters were important to him, and she thought it odd that she had somehow found her way into their lives. Then there was Harry and everyone else back in England.
She missed her family, of course she did, but she had meant what she said. She couldn't go back, not yet. She wasn't needed there and everyone was happy whether she was in their lives or not. Her presence didn't affect their everyday decisions; her lack of a presence didn't devastate them. She knew they missed her and loved her, of course she did, but they all had their own lives and families, and other than being the fun Aunt and Godmother, she didn't really factor into their lives as she once used to. They had gotten used to her not being there all the time and she was happier where she was now.
At one point in the past, she had debated moving to the US entirely and transferring to The American Ministry of Magic, but that meant leaving her post and department behind, and The American Ministry didn't have the department she headed up as it was newly created less than ten years ago, and despite her brushing it off when it was mentioned, it had been created solely for her to put her skills and knowledge to use. Transferring meant leaving the job that she absolutely loved behind, as well as reducing the need to return home for meetings, trials and family obligations down to only family obligations.
And that just left Dean. Dean Winchester. The man that was so handsome it was bloody irritating. The man that affected her in ways she thought odd. She felt comfortable around him, more comfortable than she had ever felt around anyone, bar Harry of course. He understood her sense of humour, were some thought her to be strange or sometimes even a bit of a bitch, he seemed to understand and he gave as much as he got. When she teased people, some may have considered it to be nagging, but Dean saw the funny side, either teasing her or insulting her in a way that she knew he didn't mean it. She had gotten a lot more sleep than she was used to, seeing as she was lucky to get three hours before, now she felt more rested and refreshed, and it was always after Dean Winchester had been nearby.
He didn't pity her, he didn't idolise her, he didn't make insulting comments when she suddenly went off on a rant about something that had been brought up and she was passionate about. And after the first few days when he was wary around her, maybe even hateful, he treated her like a regular human being. Not a war heroine, not a child genius, not a celebrity, just a normal person. And he'd started to take an interest in learning about her world, listening when she spoke to Sam and answered his questions, even if he didn't know she knew, since he was usually doing something else to make it look as though he were busy, which he wasn't.
But then what would she do if she did go with them, if the strange pull she felt towards Dean turned into something more and then things didn't work out? What would she do then? Would she be able to look at him every day? Would she be able to stand seeing him flirt with other women? Would they be able to get along, or would she have to leave?
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair in frustration.
"There you are."
She turned her head and looked over her shoulder to see Dean walking towards her and he stopped, looking down at her with his hands in his pockets.
"What are you doing?"
"Just thinking," she shrugged.
"So you're not busy, great, let's go." He held his hand out and pulled her to her feet.
"Where are we going exactly?" She asked as she followed him through the maze of broken cars and when he turned right, he suddenly stopped and she almost bumped into him in surprise.
She looked around to see a large area free of cars; it actually had grass and some trees, rather than the dry, dusty ground she was used to seeing. Then she noticed six empty cans lined up on a table.
He pulled a gun out of his waist band and handed it to her. She looked down at it in surprise and noticed it to be a standard police weapon, a Beretta 92.
"Okay, and why have you given me this?"
"See those cans?" She nodded at him. "Hit them," he instructed.
"I'm sorry?"
"Hit those cans."
"Why?"
"You wanted me to teach you how to defend yourself without magic," he reminded her. "We have some time on our hands, so I thought we'd start with weapons first and see how you do with that, before moving onto hand to hand combat. So shoot those cans, I'll be impressed if you hit one." He smirked at her in challenge and her eyes hardened.
She hated it when people assumed things about her.
"From here?" She asked, indicating to where she was currently stood, approximately twenty feet from the table.
"You can go closer if you want."
Her reply was to scowl at him, before lifting the gun and taking her aim, firing off six shots without stopping.
"The Beretta is good, but I prefer a Glock 19 due to its durability, accuracy and versatility as well as being easy to conceal due to its smaller size," she said.
She handed the gun back to him. He started at her speechless; she'd hit all six of the cans and they now lay on the floor with a bullet hole in them.
"I don't understand; how did you do that?"
She smirked at him and crossed her arms smugly. "I wasn't joking when I told that female officer my parents were in the military." He gawked at her. "My father was ten years older than my mother and before he became a dentist, he served in the British Army for twelve years. He met my mother when she did a residency at the same dentists as him. Much to my mother's chagrin, my father taught me how to fire my first gun when I was eight years old, and he continued teaching me up until I was eleven and then I went away to Hogwarts. We never got around to self-defence, though he was glad that I was able to defend myself with magic, if the time called for it." He continued to stare at her. "My aim has always been good due that fact, particularly with my spells, as I learned at a young age to take into account the wind conditions, which may throw off the direction and trajectory of my spells, so I know how to alter my delivery to better hit my target in all weathers, something most witches and wizards aren't able to do."
"You can fire a gun?" He said slowly.
"I can," she replied amused at his confused frown.
"You hit all six cans?"
"I did," she confirmed. "I'm not too shabby with knives either. I once told my mother that when I got older I wanted to join the circus as a knife juggler, you should've seen the look on her face, I thought she was going to faint," she chuckled fondly.
Something inside Dean changed and she saw it happen. His green eyes lost that confused and dazed look, only to darken and be replaced by lust. He stood taller, his body looking tense, as though he was restraining himself from doing something. The corners of his mouth quirked and he took a step forward.
Hermione took a step back and she felt her cheeks heat up as Dean's eyes held her gaze, a predatory look on his face.
Before Hermione could do anything, her eyes fluttered closed as Dean's mouth crashed down onto hers.