AN: Hello, fanfiction and Harry Potter fans. I do not own Harry Potter, but feel free to enjoy this or hate it. If you enjoy it please leave a lovely comment, if you hate it, then leave some constructive criticism, thanks!
Warning! This chapter contains domestic violence!
Can You Take the Jump?
Chapter 7
On her way home from the hospital, she stopped at a street was noticeably less clean than her own neighbourhood; the shrubbery was less groomed and the houses looked smaller, older and worn out. It was clear that this area was poorer than where she lived. She looked up to the street sign: Spinner's End.
In a house at the end of the street, young Severus Snape was living with his mother and his emotionally, mentally and physically abusive father. It was this environment that would drive his thirst for power and eventually cause him to shake hands with the devil and lose everything he loved. She still remembered, as clear as day, an aged Severus Snape, gushing with blood from a venomous bite dying in the Shrieking Shack, demanding to see the eyes of the woman he loved one last time.
Not a nice man, but definitely a good man.
Hermione's absence in Lily's life for the first 5 years allowed her timeline to be relatively unchanged from the original. Lily was still good friends with Severus, meeting him in the same matter as she did in the original timeline. Whenever Severus came over to their house to play, Hermione avoided him as much as possible. She recognized how unnatural her presence in this timeline was, therefore she did as little as possible to change the past in fear of changing the future beyond recognition. Despite her efforts, being Lily's twin sister gave her exposure to Severus Snape. The boy knew of her existence and he knew of her oddities, but they've never shared a proper conversation, just the occasional nod in greeting.
Suddenly the sound of a door swinging open and a man screaming "You get back here, boy!" rang in the afternoon air. Hermione could see a small boy running out of a house less than a block away. He was running full speed in her direction.
Speak of the fucking devil.
Although she was standing right in front of him, he ran right past her. She watched Severus run away frantically until the sound of his oversized shoes hitting the concrete sidewalk were faint. Hermione turned back to the house he came out of to see the older man had already given up and was heading back inside with a belt in his hand.
She knew she should have gone home, minded her business, or at least run after Severus, but before she realized what she was doing, she was running towards the house.
The sound of a trembling woman could be heard before Hermione even stepped foot into the front lawn.
"Tobias, please!" a woman screamed. "I'm sorry! Tobias, my love!"
Her unstable magic—already sensitive from the lack of sleep and the anxiety around her Hogwarts letter—now tremored at the rage that came from hearing the terrified screams of another woman. Her magic became an entity all of its own. She barely touched the front door when it flew off its hinges. She stepped into a scene she'd never witnessed first-hand in her life.
When she was Hermione Granger working at the DMLE, she handled many domestic abuse cases, but she'd only seen the after effects; the victims' bruises and/or the broken bones, sometimes even dead bodies. It was horrifying, of course, but seeing the sight before her gave Hermione a sense of clarity. For the first time in her life, she really understood why Snape had desired power the way he did.
Mrs. Snape was cowering on the floor with her hands together pleading for mercy to the man who was supposed to love her and cherish her.
"Who t'fuck are ya?" the man slurred, his eyes were glazed and his balance wobbled. He was slobbering drunk, and it was only just passed mid-day. "Get t'fuck out of ma house and mind ya fuckin bu'iness. This is family stuff."
Hermione ignored him and knelt next to the scared and confused woman. "Mrs. Snape, are you alright?" She said as gently as she could, but before she could utter another word, the man screamed something incoherent. He grabbed the empty whiskey bottle from the table and shattered it, wildly waving it in Hermione's direction. The sharp edge of the broken glass grazed her cheek and she felt her warm blood trickle down her face.
Mrs. Snape screamed in horror and tried to grab them hem of Hermione's clothes to pull her out of the way.
"I SAID WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU!" Tobias Snape's yellow eyes were nearly bulging out of their sockets and his face was blotchy and red.
After years of fighting monsters and forever dreaming about them, this pathetic excuse of a man didn't even make her flinch. She didn't give a rat's ass about his reasons, or his demons. His pain didn't justify this.
Without thinking, Hermione grabbed the glass waving in front of her face with her bare hands. The pain from the sharp glass cutting into her palm cooled her rage. She grabbed the glass tighter when she felt him try to tug away, the sharp edges sank deeper into her hand causing her blood to drip down her forearm and onto the old rug on the floor.
"That's enough."
"Wha—" Snape's father watched the small child in front of him grip the broken glass bottle tighter. She didn't even grimace from the pain.
"Sleep." Hermione commanded.
Bewitched by her wandless incantation, the Mr. Snape's eyes rolled to the back of his head, his knees buckled underneath him and fell to the floor in a loud and ungraceful slump.
"Tobias!" Eileen Snape screamed when her husband fell to the floor. "What did you do?!"
Hermione was surprised at the amount of anger in her voice. The woman crawled on the floor to her husband and cradled his head as tears streamed down her face. Unable to say anything, Hermione watched with amazement at the love that poured out of the older witch's eyes as she regarded the man who's just beat her to the point where a dark eye was already forming on the left and her lower lip was split open.
"Mom?"
Hermione turned to find the young Severus Snape at the doorstep. His wide eyes observed the scene before him, eyes moving from the shattered door, his unconscious father, his crying mother and Hermione standing in the middle of it all.
"Hermione Evans?"
"Good, you're here." Hermione said. "Go upstairs and pack some of your stuff along with your mom's and bring them downstairs." When Severus Snape didn't move right away, Hermione sighed and got up to stand in front of him. "You're going to spend some time away from home."
"How dare you." Mrs. Snape spat at her. "You think you can walk into someone else's home and dictate what is to be done? You are nothing but a child!"
"What's going on?" Severus asked as he stepped into the house, broken glass crunching under his feet. "Evans, you're bleeding!" He shouted when he noted the crimson liquid dripping down her hand at a fast rate.
"I'm fine. Get your stuff and your mom's and bring it downstairs." Hermione calmly repeated, but she wasn't really talking to Snape, her mind thinking back to the protocol she used to follow when she got a call for a domestic abuse case during her days as the Head of the DMLE. She would usually need a social worker, especially since a child was involved, but there was no social worker she could call right now.
Where would they stay? She needed a place where Mr. Snape couldn't find once he woke up. Her house was out of the question. Once Mr. Snape sobered up, he might remember her face and her resemblance to Lily. He could find out where she lived. That would endanger her family as well as the Snapes.
Hermione's eyes travelled around the house, and saw the answer to her concerns. In the far end corner, she could see a picture of a young Mrs. Snape back when she was still Eileen Prince, a young budding witch attending Hogwarts.
"You dare to ignore me?!" Mrs. Snape screamed at her.
Hermione looked back down at the woman still on the floor. "Ma'am, you need to get up. Mr. Snape is fine, he's just sleeping, but you need to get out of here before he wakes up. He'll be even more angry once he does. "
"I can't leave."
"Yes, you can. And you need to."
When she saw the older woman shake her head, she felt her frustration spike again before pushing it down. Anger will not help this situation.
"Mrs. Snape," she started slowly, "after he wakes, he'll lick his wounded pride, he's going to come after you and your son more drunk and angrier than now. Next time, he might be holding something much more dangerous than a broken glass bottle."
"And who's fault is that?!" she yelled. "It was fine! I could have handled it, the next morning he wakes up and apologizes." She said. Tears streamed down her face.
"Until the next time he drinks."
"You don't know my life or my family! You're just a child! I don't even know who you are! Go back to your parents and leave us!" the older woman spat; immediately defensive.
Hermione wanted to yell back, but she could recognize the tremble in the back of the woman's voice. She reminded Hermione of a dog barking in a corner, baring her teeth knowing it's the only thing she could do in that moment of fear.
"You're right. I don't know you, I don't know your husband, and I definitely don't know how much you two love each other, but I do know your son. I'm Lily Evans's sister. Do you know who she is?" Judging by the blank look on her face, the name didn't ring any bells. "You don't know your son's best friend?"
"Mom?" Severus Snape came down the stairs, struggling to hold 2 large bags full of items he probably deemed important.
Eileen looked at her son, he was small for his age, much shorter than the strange girl beside him. He was far too skinny, with dark circles under his eyes and a gaze filled with worry unfitting for a child. Despite his size, she hadn't realized he'd grown so much. When did he get a friend? When was the last time she celebrated his birthday? How old was her son now? She'd been so consumed by her own depression for far too long to even realize her boy was growing up.
She glanced down at her husband whose head was still resting on her lap, tears streamed down his pained face.
"Mom, are you alright?"
"S-Severus. We're… we're going to leave." She said, and glanced at the girl who gave her an encouraging nod. "We're leaving for a while, so are you sure you packed everything you will need?" she asked, this time with more assurance.
"Where are we going to stay mum?" Severus was fully aware his family had no money and no connections.
"You'll stay with someone you can trust." Hermione responded. "He's a Healer, so he can take a good look at your eye and give you some salve for that lip." Before they could interject, she turned and called out an empty space in the living room. "Pinky!"
With a loud crack, a smartly dressed house elf appeared in the middle of the living room.
"MISSUS! OH MY MISSUS CALLS PINKY! PINKY IS SO HAPPY!" Alphard's personal house elf shouted with glee as his large dark eyes filling with happy tears quickly.
"Pinky!" Hermione raised her hands to try and calm the elf.
"YOUR HAND! OH MISTRESS YOUR HAND!"
At the sight of blood still heavily dripping from Hermione's hand, Pinky immediately ran over to the nearest wall and started banging his head on it so hard that it shook the weak old house.
"No! Pinky stop!" Hermione desperately tried to calm the elf once more with no use. "Pinky! I order you to stop hitting yourself on that wall right now!"
Immediately, the little elf righted himself, but Hermione could still see the bruise slowly forming on the center of Pinky's large forehead.
"Pinky, I need you to take these people and their things to Alphard's Diagon Alley flat, they will be staying there for the time being. After doing that, you'll come back here and take me back to Alphard. You will not speak to him before I've had the opportunity, do you understand?" Hermione asked, still using her 'master' voice.
Pinky responded with a small nod as a small stream of tear fell from the small creature's face.
Hermione knelt next to the elf, "Thank you, Pinky." She gave him a smile, her voice now much softer, and patted the elf's head. With a small jerk of her head towards the two individuals standing awkwardly next to her, she mouthed "Now, go."
Without another word, Pinky held out one of his small wrinkly hands to Eileen and Severus. "Okay let's go, friends of Miss Hermione."
While Eileen was surprised by the appearance of the elf, Severus was completely gobsmacked. He'd read them in books, but it never seen them in real life. It never occurred to him how small and wrinkly house-elves were. There weren't any pictures in the books he'd read, of course, he grew out of picture books a long time ago.
The mother and son duo hesitantly grabbed their luggage in one hand and held the elf's hand in the other.
Crack!
With the family gone, Hermione took the chance to look around. The house itself was poorly maintained, but the things inside were neat and clean. There weren't many pictures on the walls, but she could tell Mrs. Snape had done her best to make their home as homely as possible, despite it being a hell every time Mr. Snape drank.
Hermione walked up to the mantle on top of the fire place, the center of the house. On it weren't any pictures of Severus as a child or any family pictures, things she found in her own home, but medals of honor and military awards.
Hermione glanced down at the man still on the floor, he was a soldier in the Korean War. The same war her father was a part of.
Robert Evans never spoke about his trauma from the war, but the family were made aware of the toll it could take on a man through his dreams, just like herself.
After her 5 years of imprisonment in St. Mungo's, Hermione struggled to get close with most of her family, but Robert Evans was especially difficult. He didn't know how to approach her. As far as Hermione could tell, humor was his most comfortable method of breaking down walls, but with Hermione being so serious, they struggled through long periods of awkwardness. It was the nights of nightmares that brought them together, like kindred spirits of the damaged. They spent hours in each other's company, sitting in the living room until the morning, watching whatever horrible show was on telly that night or going into the garage as he fixed up his old car. Neither of them spoke a word to each other about what their dreams were about, but their presence was often enough.
Hermione looked down at Mr. Snape with pity, and sighed. She grabbed the thin blanket on the sofa and threw it over the sleeping man before turning around to scan around the house to see if there was anything that Snape had missed while he was packing for his mom. She didn't expect a 10 year old boy to know all the necessities of a woman, but to her surprise, he was quite thorough.
He'd planned this before.
It didn't escape her notice that he'd left what most people would take; photos, albums, and jewellery.
When Hermione heard the crack informing her that Pinky had arrived to come pick her up, she made a split-second decision to take the items.
"Over here Pinky."
…
Eileen Snape hadn't been this shocked, in a while. Her husband's beatings were terrifying, but more heartbreaking than shocking, but standing in front of Alphard Black quite a zap to her nervous system. He stood tall and ruggedly handsome as he used to in school. He casually shrugged his Healer robe off and hung it on the coat rack near the entrance.
Perhaps it was the shock that threw all the childhood Pureblood etiquette classes out the window, but the first thing out of her mouth was, "Holy shit, Alphard Black."
His eyes jerked up at the unsuspected greeting. Those grey orbs studied her face, lingering on the black eye and split lip.
"And you're the star chaser of Slytherin. It's been a while Eileen Prince."
Eileen Snape jaw dropped for the nth time. He remembered her name. But he was the Alphard Black, the most popular boy in school, he even had his own fan club, yet he knew who she was?
"I-it's Snape."
Hermione's eyes moved back and forth between the adults, but a hard nudge from Severus forced her attention away from the odd interaction. He jerked his head back, his eyes glowering with curiosity.
"Well, I'll let you two get acquainted. I'll show Sna—Severus to the guestroom." Hermione ushered Severus out of the room and closed the door behind her.
"What happened? Why were you in my house? Who is that? How do you know him? Where's Lily?"
"I was passing by your neighbourhood when you ran right by me. I saw your father wave his belt around angrily, so I went to your house just in case there was trouble." Hermione pointed her thumb behind her towards the wall, "He is a Healer at St. Mungo's Hospital, he's a…family friend. And Lily's still at school."
"He's a Healer at St. Mungo's?"
"You and your mom can stay here until your father gets some help. You're right on top of Diagon Alley, so you'll have plenty of things to see and do so you won't be too bored. You can always ask Alphard to help you leave if you want to visit Lily, but I don't suggest you try to go back to Spinner's End for a while, at least not on your own."
Severus opened his mouth to ask another set of questions running around in his mind, but he closed his mouth. He and Hermione were never friends, but Severus had a feeling she wouldn't talk even if they were close. She didn't seem the type to speak freely, choosing her words with caution. He was also in no position to demand an answer, especially since he's indebted to her after what happened in his house.
Being fraternal twins, Lily and Hermione Evans had clear differences that differentiate them. Lily's hair color was brighter, almost golden or orange depending on the light. She had freckles that scattered across her entire body, like thousands of kisses from the sun, her eyes sparkled like a pair of emerald pendants. She had a large smile that engaged every person who saw it and she spoke with intelligence, wit and excitement and did so often. Severus had an immediate attraction to Lily. As a boy whose life was dark in nature, Lily was like a beacon of light. Her bubbly and bright personality was like bait, luring him in like a fish to the line. Before knowing Lily, he never knew people could smile so often or have such a positive and excited outlook on life. In his small, prison-like existence, she was his window.
Severus met Hermione as a by-product of knowing Lily. Their friendship never occurred, since neither of them really tried or cared to. Actually, for the first three months of his budding friendship with Lily, he never even saw Hermione, always hiding in the corners of the house, at work with Lily's mum, or just "out" with no further explanation as to where 'out' was. When he did finally see her, everything about Hermione Evans were muted in comparison to her twin. Hermione had darker everything; hair color, eyes, smile and even the aura around her.
The only time she piqued his interest was when he saw her reading a very thick book in the sitting room, reading it with ease, smiling as if she understood some sort of inside joke. Curious as to what could make that girl smile like that, he glanced at the title which read; "The Quantum Mechanics of Time Travel". The book looked extremely difficult, with graphs and diagrams he couldn't understand, but by the next time he saw her, she was already on another book, equally as thick and difficult looking.
"You coming?" Hermione asked, motioning him back to the living room.
"Yeah," He followed her out, where they found Alphard treating Mrs. Snape's split lip with some salve.
"Finished with the house tour?" Alphard asked.
Hermione nodded. "I'm going to head out. School should be over, so my sisters will be home soon." She turned to Snape's mother, "if there's anything you need at all, don't hesitate to ask him. He's loaded with money, so it's not a big deal for him to buy a few things for you. Please stay as long as you need to, don't feel burdened and leave early."
"You do realize, this is my house." Alphard chuckled. He turned to Eileen, whom he was treating and placed a small plaster over her lip. "But seriously, she's not wrong, you can stay here as long as you need. I only use this place to sleep, which I do mostly at the hospital anyways, so the place is usually empty. Also, don't bother trying to do any chores as a thank you because I have a house elf who will try to kill himself if you do anything other than enjoy his baked goods and meals, so don't even offer."
Hermione let out a small laugh, knowing there was not even the smallest exaggeration in his words.
"Hermione," Alphard called out to her. "Wait outside. I'll walk you to Leaky. Just give me a moment."
She nodded, waved goodbye to Mrs. Snape and stepped out the door.
With the awkward silence after Hermione's departure, Eileen Snape turned to Alphard with a nervous look on her face. She glanced back at the door where Hermione left, then at Severus who sat on the sofa next to her fidgeting with his fingernails.
"She's a remarkable child."
"More than you know." Alphard chuckled. "It's the not the first time she's gotten herself into some kind of trouble trying to help someone out. Although it's the first time she's brought someone here and the cut on the hand did surprise me. She knows how much I worry if she gets hurt."
"I suppose she's told you about my situation... at home?"
"Enough of it, yes."
Propelled by the need and habit to excuse her husband's actions, the woman was quick to respond. "My Tobias is a good man. Everyone said he was too poor, too old, not good looking enough, but he was my soulmate. Then the war happened. It changed him. A muggle war, perhaps you heard it in the news? The Korean War they called it. When he came back, he was different man." A thoughtful look passed Eileen Snape's face, but she shook her head.
"You don't have to explain it to me. I'm just here to help you, not judge you in any way."
"Th-thank you."
Alphard smiled, "I have to head back to the hospital, but feel free to make yourself at home. I won't be coming home for the rest of the week because I'm on night shift for the next few days, but I might drop by to grab some fresh clothes every once in a while, so don't freak out."
Alphard stood up and stuck his hand out at Severus. "It's nice to meet you—?"
"Severus. Severus Snape."
"It's nice to meet you Severus Snape." Alphard gripped Severus's hand tightly and have him a firm shake.
The older man reached over the coat rack where he hung his Healer's coat and threw it over his broad shoulders.
"The house is warded pretty well, so no one should be able to come in and out except myself, my elf and Hermione, so you don't need to worry about someone somehow coming in. If you need something, don't hesitate to ask Pinky, and…" Alphard pulled out his pocket watch, his eyes widening at the time.
"It's alright, you can just go, we'll figure things out." Eileen reassured. "Thank you, again."
Alphard laughed awkwardly at the gushing gratitude.
"You're welcome."
With the same uncomfortable smile and wave as Hermione, Alphard exited his own flat. He approached the stairs to exit the building, only to be greeted with the 11 year old girl's brow raised in curiosity.
"What?" He asked defensively.
"Nothing." She said, clearly not nothing. She pushed off the wall and started walking down the stairs, into the main street of Diagon Alley.
"What?!" Alphard demanded, running down the stairs to catch up with the child. Hermione's unique colored red hair was easily distinguishable in the crowd, and his long legs easily caught up with her.
"C'mon, tell me." He nudged her playfully. Their relationship was as unique as it got. Hermione was Alphard's only true friend. It was slightly embarrassing to admit, but in his 39 years of life, his best friend was an 11 year old girl, who inconveniently was also his patient and the closest thing to a daughter he'd ever get in his life.
"She's been emotionally, mentally, and physically beaten by her husband for years. She's also married, with a son my age."
"I know that."
"If you know that, don't look at her like that."
"Like what?"
"You have a look; I've seen you do it every time you see someone who interests you."
"I have a look?" Alphard let out a laugh. "Are you sure you're not just confusing it with handsomeness?"
This time, Hermione nudged him hard in the rib.
"Argh!" he clutched his side in pain. "Okay, fine. I deserved that, but I still don't know what look you're referring to."
"Yes, you do," Hermione rolled her eyes at Alphard's ridiculous excuse. "You put on this smoulder and you're extra nice and sweet."
"Hey! I'm always nice and sweet. And even if I did have a look, like you said, it's an interest. There's no reason that the interest has to turn romantic."
"I put Mrs. Snape in your care because I trust you. She's fragile. Coping at best. Don't break my trust please." She waved goodbye as she was about to step into the threshold of the Leaky Cauldron, when Alphard grabbed the hem of her coat.
"Wait," he pulled out a small box from his jacket pocket and placed it into her hand.
"Is this…?"
He nodded, his lips firming into a thin line. "Do you know how hard I argued against this? Just for you to shit all over my efforts by agreeing." He spoke with clear disgust as he stared at the velvet jewellery box.
"I have my reasons." Hermione nodded a thanks as she took the box.
"I trust you too, you know." Alphard told her solemnly, while pulling her into a hug. Hermione nodded, rubbing her nose into his sweater. The familiar scent of Alphard's expensive cologne brought her a level of serenity she hadn't felt since she entered the Snape's household.
"Don't go breaking my trust either, Hermione. Happy birthday."
…
Hermione walked into her house, taking an extra 10 minutes from having to pick up her bike from Snape's neighbourhood before coming back home. She noted her father's prized 1956 Aston Martin on the driveway and not the garage, indicating to her that her father was home early for their birthday celebrations. She walked towards the pair of legs stick out from underneath the car and knocked on the hood.
"How's it going down there?"
A broad-shouldered man in his late 30s rolled out from beneath the car. "Hey Curie." He grinned at her. Her father loved calling her different nicknames after some of the muggle world's greatest minds. He was positive she'd be one of the greats too, one day.
"Marie Curie today? Nice, and a woman scientist this time."
Her father stood up and wrapped her up in a big hug.
"How was my birthday girl's day?"
He wasn't tall or exceptionally good looking, his brown hair was messy from engine oil and he'd missed a line of stubble when shaving this morning, but he had the kindest eyes Hermione had ever seen other than on Harry Potter.
Robert Evans was an accountant, and from what Hermione could tell, he was impressively good. Based on what their mother said, her father used to work for a huge a private equity firm in London, making a shocking amount of money before the war. The young and successful hotshot in the city, was now a middle-aged man in the middle of nowhere for as an accountant for a tiny company. The only thing left to remind him of the glory days was this car and the beautiful Mrs. Robert Evans.
"I went to the hospital, then as I was coming home, I saw something I wanted to talk to you about."
"You wanted to talk to me?" he asked, suddenly serious. Hermione was private, rarely participating in conversations, let alone starting them. "Is it bad? Was it something from the hospital?"
"No no." She reassured. She set her father down on one of his stools, opened up the minifridge and gave him a beer.
"What's going on?" He took the beer hesitantly. "The more you do this, the more nervous I get, you know that right?"
"I wanted to talk to you about something you might be sensitive about, so I'm trying to be tactful and delicate."
"Hermione, just say it. You can talk to me about anything."
"Okay," Hermione nodded, she grabbed a stool and sat across from her father. "I ran into Severus Snape while I was passing by his neighbourhood."
"You were at Spinner's End?" Her father asked, immediately alert. His back straightened at the news and his breathing changed. "Hermione, you can't—"
"Listen first." Hermione stopped her father before he could start rambling. "Like I said, I was just passing by because it's a shortcut from the bus stop to home. But while I was passing, I saw Severus run away from home because his father was being…violent."
"Hermione, please don't tell me you stepped in."
She grimaced at her father's perceptiveness. "I promise I'm not hurt. I just went in to help Snape and his mom."
"That doesn't matter! Do you realize how much danger you put yourself in? He could have a weapon! You could have been seriously hurt!"
"I'm fine! Nothing happened, I promise. This isn't what I wanted to talk to you about."
"There's more?!"
"Mrs. Snape said he changed because of that war, that he wasn't like this before…" The news made her father stop. Hermione watched the sequence of emotions that passed on his father's face, from clarity, understanding, then to darkness and anger.
"It doesn't excuse his actions."
"I agree." Hermione nodded. "But I think he needs help. I was wondering if you could maybe offer that helping hand he requires? I'm not asking you to salvage his marriage, but maybe you can help him save himself from himself."
"Hermione," her father started to shake his head. "I'm not sure if I can—"
"Just think about it, no pressure." Hermione assured. "Also—"
"My goodness, there's more? Did you also wrestle a bear today?"
Hermione smiled, "I want to learn self defense. When I saw Mrs. Snape on the floor like that, looking so helpless. I don't ever want to be in that situation."
"Honey, you won't."
"Can you guarantee that?" Hermione's straight and grim face forced Robert to pause. No, he couldn't guarantee it, even though it killed him to admit it, he couldn't guarantee it at all.
"I'll…I'll talk it through with your mother before I give you an answer."
"Dad, please don't take this as me assuming that one day you'll change and do what Mr. Snape did. This is because I know that not all men are like you. Self defense will be the last resort, you'll always be my first line of defense."
Her father, appeased by her sweet words, smiled once more.
"I'm still going to talk it over with your mom."
…
Dinner was a notable affair where their mother slaved for hours in the kitchen making a grand feast for everyone. There was laughter and conversation that rang through the evening until it was finally time for the real highlight of every birthday: the presents. Their parents handed each sister a beautifully packaged box. This year, Lily would get something from their mother while Hermione got something from their father. The next year, they would switch. Petunia, on the other hand, received one present, signed by both parents.
Not unlike her past life, Hermione's presents were usually books, the odd times it would be chemistry sets or a microscope, but it was always something intellectual based. Lily's presents were much more normal, such as a nice pair of boots, dolls, toys, coloring pencils or crayons, sometimes it was a book, but more often not.
This year, their parents had broken away from the norm. The two boxes, while separately packaged and separately given were the same size and from what Hermione could tell, it was the same weight.
"It's the same." Lily noted, equally confused. "You've never given us the same presents before."
"I know we usually buy presents based on your personalities and preferences, but this year, there's a commonality between the two of you." They mother smiled, encouraging her two girls to open the presents.
Hermione and Lily shared a look before opening their presents. The two opened the boxes to reveal identical writing sets. Magical writing sets, complete with a luxurious feather quill, an expensive crystal ink pot, vials of what were probably expensive and/or magical ink, and rolls of high-quality parchment.
"Wow." Hermione gasped, knowing how much this probably all cost. She gently lifted the quill out of the box, careful not to ruin the beautiful auburn feather, something her parents probably chose on purpose to match her hair. She held the quill in her hand and could tell that it was handmade by an artisan. The weight was nicely balanced, the ink tip was smooth and sharp, the grip was textured. There was no discomfort holding it and the craftmanship was sophisticated. If properly taken care of, this was a quill that could last years, if not decades.
"Do you like it?" Her father and mother watched her eyes, hopefully. "We were told it was the best."
Hermione turned the quill to see the insignia on the underside of the ink tip.
Manu Dextera Dei
It really was the best. It was the same brand of quill that Harry got for her when she was promoted as the Head of the DMLE. While the one Harry got for her was much more expensive with a phoenix feather and gold plating, the fact that her parents went as far as getting her a Manu Dextera Dei just for her 11th birthday made her jaw drop. It was like getting a child a Rolex watch just because they learned to read time.
"Dad, mum…" Hermione gently placed the quill back into the box. "This is too much. You guys must've spent…" She trailed off, unsure what the current rates for this luxury quill would cost at this time but she was sure it was out of her parent's range, especially after buying two.
"This is expensive?" Lily grabbed the quill, not nearly as carefully as her sister did, making Hermione's arm reach out and stop her sister's careless actions.
"Lily." Hermione spoke firmly. "It's really expensive."
Lily paused, then slowly lowered her quill and gently placed it back in the box when she noticed Hermione's seriousness.
"Yes, it was a hefty price, but your mother and I thought it'd be a perfect gift for you two." Mr. Evans told them. "You're going away to Hogwarts this year, spending time away from your dear old mum and dad for the first time."
"We want you to take these pens as a reminder that we, while not physically next to you, will always be there." Mrs. Evans chimed in. "And we want you to know that we hope you make an impact in that strange world of yours, not only with your magic, but with those quills as well. Show them that two muggles from Cokesworth can't be ignored."
Lily let out a small laugh of disbelief, unaware of the prejudice she would face at Hogwarts. "Mum, no one's going to ignore us. We're witches too."
Lily continued to fawn over her pretty present, but Hermione continued to watch her parents' facial expression. The Evans were well aware of the harsh realities of the Magical world. The smile their mother gave wasn't one that spoke reassurance, but of nervousness—unsure whether they should allow or break Lily's blissful ignorance.
"It's time for you twins to exchange your gifts, no?" Their father spoke up, effectively cutting off whatever his wife might say. He clearly thought Lily's child-like innocence (or ignorance, depending on how one viewed it) should be continued.
"Hermione, come on." Lily urged, holding up a present wrapped in a gold ribbon, signed to 'My baby sister' in her best cursive writing.
She pulled out her present for Lily from beneath the table. The long slim box held together with an emerald green bow was immediately taken from her hand and into Lily's.
"It's not a book," Hermione noted when she felt the lightness of the box as she took her present from her sister's hands, albeit much more gently than her.
"Nope!" Lily puffed up her chest, clearly proud of her present.
The two opened their respective presents simultaneously.
In Hermione's box was a box of red mittens, soft and warm to the touch. Hermione picked up the small note inside which read, "To keep your hands warm during your winter morning runs."
When Lily opened her box, the thing that it contained confused her. She wasn't sure what it was. The long slim box contained a leather casing, with a magnetic cap on top. Lily didn't know anything about leather, but it felt soft and sturdy to the touch. The bottom had her initials embedded into it; LKE.
"Uh, thanks?" Lily turned to her sister while she shook the leather casing upside down, wondering if there was something inside.
Hermione smiled at her sister's reaction to the understandably confusing gift.
"It's a wand holster." Hermione explained. "It's magical too, it'll summon your wand into the holster as long as it's in a reasonable distance and nothing is blocking your wand. It's also made to shrink or enlarge to best fit the size of the wand you'll get."
"A wand holster?" Lily asked with wide eyes, clearly happy to receive two presents pertaining to upcoming her magical education. "Thank you so much!" She repeated, this time much more genuinely.
"Thank you for the mittens. I'll wear them everyday." Hermione promised as she slipped her hands in one of the soft mittens and wiggled her fingers in front of her sister's face. "I love them."
…
That night, Hermione lay on her bed, staring at the gifts Alphard had given her for her 11th birthday. They were something she never thought she'd possess, yet here they were glistening in the moonlight, as if taunting her with its beauty.
The diamond bracelet was an archaic magical item, used by equally archaic men to enslave their wives back in the old ages. The stones had the ability to suck up magical energy and the metal was unbreakable by any force. The enchantments woven into this bracelet was far older and stronger than anything taught in Hogwarts or found in most books. This was old magik.
It was a dangerous piece of jewellery, as dangerous as it was expensive. It shackled her magically, limiting her to the bare basics. If her magical reservoir was normally as big as an ocean, with this on, it was as small as a seasonal pond, quick to dry up and leave her as magical as a muggle. All that extra magical energy didn't disappear, it was transferred into a ring, one that would normally be worn by the husband.
Compared to the ostentatious glittering bracelet, the ring was plain. A simple platinum band with no embellishments or jewels. Hermione supposed it was done on purpose. If a thief broke into the night, they wouldn't steal the ring, but they'd certainly steal the bracelet. People would kill the wife for the bracelet, but wouldn't kill the husband for the ring.
"Please don't tell me you're thinking of actually using that." Harry Potter's voice looked at the two pieces of jewellery in her hands with disgust.
Hermione gripped the items tightly, letting the metal and precious stones sink deep into her the skin on her palms.
"It's the only thing that Albus Dumbledore, the rest of the Wizengamot, and I can think of that'll stop a Obscurus." Hermione told him. "The only thing that will stop me if I ever lose control."
"You won't lose control."
"We don't know that." Hermione reprimanded his overconfident answer.
"Hermione," Harry's voice was warning. "There are going to be real Death Eaters at Hogwarts. Not the Draco-Malfoy-kind, I mean actual Death Eaters like Bellatrix, Carrows, Lucius Malfoy. You can't afford to be magically chained."
"I also can't afford to blow up Hogwarts."
"This is a crazy plan. And I'm the one saying it."
Hermione stared at the jewellery set and couldn't help but think the exact same thing.