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!

Can You Take the Jump?

Chapter 26

On the day of the semi-finals, Hermione woke up deeply unrested. She hadn't been able to sleep since finding out about Alphard's terminal illness. It wasn't like she slept well before, it was normal for her to wake up several times a night from night terrors and nightmares, but lately, she couldn't fall asleep at all.

She needed to push through; everything was nearly over. She had risen through the ranks with shocking ease and sure fast efficiency and today were the semi-finals and finals. The six students that would participate in today's matches were 1) Sirius Black and Cameron Tanner, 2) Lily Evans and James Potter, and 3) Anton Mulciber and Hermione Evans.

"Going somewhere Mudblood?"

Travers and his lackeys surrounded her by the entrance of the Great Hall where the day's duels would take place. Mulciber was noticeably absent, probably already in the Great Hall, getting ready for a duel he hoped wouldn't happen.

Hermione slowly back up to the wall so that she wouldn't have to defend 360° and quickly took out her wand and clenched it tightly in her hand.

"Yeah," she spoke in a much more casual tone than she was feeling. "I'm heading over to the Great Hall to win a competition all of you lost. Didn't some of you lose to me? Sorry, I can't keep count because I've won so many."

"Grab her."

God bless her father for teaching his daughters self-defense. Even with her sleep-deprived mind, she easily ducked out of the way as one of the boys ran forward to tackle her. She kicked him on the side, toppling him into the Slytherins on her right.

Just as she was about to throw a slicing hex to his feet, she paused. They were trying to get her disqualified for dueling outside of the competition!

Her hesitation made her vulnerable. Two burly boys, who could have been Crabbe and Goyle's cousins, threw a hefty punch to her face then grabbed her, one around her waist and the other her arm. She could taste blood in her mouth, but she had no time to be concerned as she saw Travers approaching her. She quickly kicked the knee of the person holding her around the waist which effectively made him let go, but also made her mid-drift wide open for any other attacks. Before she could do anything about Crabbe 2.0 holding her arm, Travers swung a hook to her right side.

The impact unexpectantly winded her.

Travers's punches were never that heavy. He was wearing gloves but beneath it was something far too sturdy to be flesh and bones. There was a sharp pain in her ribs that radiated from the point of contact.

"Ah!" She let out a strangled cry when Travers punched her once more. She could feel and hear a 'crack' indicating her ribs finally giving out, breaking from the secondary impact.

Blurred with tears of pain, she looked up just to catch his eyes once more before Travers set himself up for another punch.

Hermione grabbed the tie of the Crabbe lookalike with her free arm and pulled him in front of her. The boys collided with each other, effectively saving Hermione from a third, and possibly organ damaging, punch. She used both arms to push the boys back, toppling them both over as they tripped on each other's feet.

She grimaced, gripping her broken ribs, and taking shallow breaths of pain.

In that distracted moment, the boy she kicked earlier rubbed the ringing out of his ears and cast a knockback curse that hit her shoulder.

Well cast and at a close distance, it felt like someone had swung a sledgehammer to her right shoulder.

"AH!" She cried as she fell back. The boys gathered around her smirking at their victory. She needed to do something fast.

She couldn't do magic—or could she? All she had to do was make sure her wand wasn't the thing that caused the magic. Wandless magic left no trail and casting it was unimaginable for a 15-year-old muggleborn student.

She purposely dropped her wand to the floor and pretended to raise her hands up in surrender. Her magical core twisted and turned, excited at the call for uninhibited magic.

"What is going on here?"

Hermione's concentration snapped. Travers's arm froze at the voice, the rest of the Slytherins jumped back.

In the two years since she last saw him, the Hogwarts graduate hadn't changed much. His blond hair was longer and neatly tied back. He wore expensive black robes that probably cost more than Hermione's entire wardrobe, but fit him perfectly, which accentuated his stiff posture while he stared at the group. Lucius Malfoy stood several feet from the small Slytherin crowd with someone hiding slightly behind him. He raised a perfectly arched brow and impatiently waited for someone to answer.

"Merlin, Malfoy. You nearly gave us a heart attack." Travers laughed, looking relieved that he wasn't caught by one of the professors. "We're just teaching this Mudblood a lesson. Want to join?"

Malfoy's eyes caught hers. If that man thought he was going to see desperation and pitifulness, then he was sorely mistaken. She was handling the situation.

"Mr. Travers, I'm here on behalf of my father as a member of the Hogwarts Board of Governors. I will advise you to make your way to the Great Hall quickly."

"But—" Travers opened his mouth, probably to voice a protest, but was quickly silenced by one of Malfoy's notorious stares. Like the petulant child he was, Travers stormed off toward the Great Hall taking his posse with him, but not before muttering "Mudblood whore" to her as he left.

When the group of Slytherins disappeared around the corner, Hermione gripped the stone wall to attempt to stand, but with much of her mobility injured, it was incredibly difficult.

"You should go to the Hospital Wing." The blonde drawled.

"And get disqualified? No thanks."

"You are hurt."

"As if you care." She turned to glare at him, only to catch a glimpse of the person behind him. "Regulus Black?"

The Sirius Mini-Me stared down at her with practiced ease, something he hadn't been able to do back in first year when she first saw him.

"He was the one who told me this was even happening," Malfoy explained.

"I see," Hermione said, not really listening anymore. She used her left arm to pull the hem of her shirt to expose a nasty bruise already forming on her side. She could hear Malfoy and Black sputter and briskly turn on the spot; whether it was for her privacy or simply shocked by her indecency, she didn't know or care. She trailed her fingers along her ribs to find where they'd cracked.

"What are you doing, disrobing like that in public?" Malfoy asked scandalized by her behavior.

"I'm…I'm looking for my cracked ribs and… and checki-ing for other injuries." She stuttered as she felt around her body, grimacing through pain. "As you can tell, I don't… have a lot of time t-to run to the clos-sest loo."

"Such undignified behavior from a lady!"

"I'm shocked you think I'm a la—dy." Her voice jumped when she found the cracked ribs. Hermione grabbed her wand and tried to angle her body better to aim the incantation correctly but cried out when her body couldn't move in that direction.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake." Malfoy muttered, "Regulus go ahead. I'll be there soon."

"What are you—"

"Go." He commanded.

Regulus ran to the Great Hall, and Malfoy turned to the muggleborn that haunted his days and nights. She'd gotten prettier, even with the bruises and split lip if it was possible. She was taller and her body had matured.

"It's fine, I'll do it." Hermione refused his touch, which hurt Lucius more than he wanted to admit.

"You can't and you know it. Stop being stubborn and stop struggling. It'll be over quickly." He barked as he crouched down to the floor to get a better angle of her ribs. He reached out and touched her purpling skin. She was impossibly smooth and soft. He watched it goosepimple from his touch. He smiled knowing that his touch gave her a reaction. Of course, it wasn't something she could control, but he thought it was fair since he couldn't control himself around her either.

"Episkey." He cast. With a snap and gasp of pain, the broken rib righted itself inside her and mended. He should have released her, but everything about her was forbidden, making her more tempting.

It'd been years since they last saw each other. She was even more alluring than he remembered. Staring at her skin, feeling its warmth, and smelling her scent made his instincts take over. Slowly moving forward, Lucius pressed his lips gently on the bruise.

Hermione froze.

As soon as it was there, it was gone. The feeling of the warm lips disappeared as Lucius stood up and pulled her shirt down for her.

"Don't win." He told her, then swiftly walked away, not allowing Hermione to even react to what just happened.

…

One large dueling stage occupied the Great Hall. By the time Hermione snuck into the area where the semi-finalists stood, Dumbledore was midway into his speech congratulating everyone who had reached their current stage and to the rest for their participation.

She took her spot next to Sirius but continued to stare at Lucius, who took a seat at the judges' table, which was where the staff usually had their meals.

"Cutting it pretty close, don't you think?" Sirius asked, cutting off her concentration to Malfoy.

Hermione turned to look at him, but he wasn't looking at her, keeping his eyes ahead at Alphard who was welcoming everyone who came to participate and watch the last matches of the year. His normally happy-go-lucky mask was gone and replacing it was a dark and brooding Sirius. There seemed to be a permanent frown on his face and there were deep dark circles under his eyes.

He looked like shit, but he looked better than she did without the glamour charm, "You look better than I expected."

"Thanks?" He snorted. "That's rich coming from you, considering you look—" Sirius stopped when he turned to her. His jaw started to become unhinged as he scanned her face.

She'd forgotten to cover her bruises and split lip.

"Who did this?" Sirius asked as he tried to get a proper look. She turned her head away and avoided eye contact.

"I'm fine."

"Evans, who did…" Sirius stopped when he saw Hermione's apathetic face. "For fuck's sake. Fine, I won't ask. I have a pretty good idea who did it anyway."

"We will now start the semi-final matches for the Dueling Championship! Sirius Black and Cameron Tanner, please come up to the dueling stage." Dumbledore announced.

"Wish him luck!" He told her as he ran up the stage.

"Don't get cocky!" She shouted after Sirius.

Hermione didn't pay much attention to the match.

Whoops were heard all around when Sirius finally took Tanner down. It had taken him much longer than anticipated but judging by the lack of sweat and strain on Sirius's face, he'd played with his opponent rather than taking Tanner down immediately. He stepped off the stage and managed to give her an arrogant smile, but it didn't reach his eyes.

Hermione knew that Sirius was struggling with Alphard's illness. She'd made several attempts to reach out, but her letters returned unopened. Whatever method he was using to cope, he didn't want her to be a part of it.

Sirius placed a finger under her chin and directed her face towards him. "Look at me."

"Wha—"

Sirius gently used his ring finger and applied some type of paste on her bruises.

"Ah!" She flinched but kept her face in place as much as possible. On a different clean finger, he dabbed some ointment on the cut of her lip.

"Thank you."

They looked up at each other, only just noticing how close the others' face was, but neither of them moved back. Sirius used his large hands and hold her smaller ones. He was warming them for her, just like he had done the day they found out about Alphard's terminal illness.

Neither of them even noticed when Lily took the stage for her duel with James.

"Was it Travers?" He asked quietly, whispering into her ear so that they would communicate over the loud shouts of the audience.

She nodded.

"I think he wanted to disqualify me by forcing me to duel outside of the competition."

Sirius shook his head and sighed, resting his forehead on hers. "Why did you make this bet, Hermione?"

It hadn't been the first time someone's asked her that question, but answering Sirius felt harder. She didn't want to lie to him, but the truth was difficult to explain. How could she tell him that she was doing this for Alphard? Alphard might have been like family to her, but to Sirius, he was family. By saying she felt the need to make Alphard proud seemed like she was inserting herself as an important presence in Alphard's life, more so than Sirius himself.

"Hm?" Sirius prompted.

"Al…Alphard wanted me to do better in school, my parents wanted me to do better in school and Lily wanted me to do better."

"So you're putting in all this effort, but none of it's for yourself?"

"Not nothing. I got to beat them." Hermione smirked, looking in the direction of Travers and his group in the crowd. "I kicked them off their high horses and winning told them that I'm tired of their shit."

"Why not do it before? Why wait until now?"

Because Alphard was dying. This entire ridiculous bet was to show Alphard that he wasn't leaving behind the helpless little girl she was when they first met; an infant so out of control of her own power that she erupted into a magical ball of destruction. She wanted him to rest in peace. He deserved that much.

"Better late than never?" Hermione let out a chuckle. She knew that her win would attract attention to herself but trying to hide and do nothing had attracted attention anyway. "I'm telling them that I'm not going to be their punching bag any longer."

Sirius smirked at her determination.

"James Potter? Is James Potter not here?" The announcer called out. "Mr. Potter?"

Hermione and Sirius looked around to look for the spectacled boy who'd been in the Great Hall only moments before.

Lily stood on the podium searching for her dueling partner, but even from where she was standing, he could not be seen.

"Oh, James." Hermione shook her head when she realized what was going on. "He's forfeiting."

"Fucking hell," Sirius whispered. "I thought I might do something stupid like this, but I didn't think he'd go through with it."

"Lily's going to be pissed. She wanted to win because she deserved it, not like this."

"James Potter, disqualified! Lily Evans will move onto the next round!"

"You're next." Sirius looked down at the battered girl with concern. "You sure you'll be alright?" He asked.

"Yeah, don't worry. This will be easy."

Hermione and Mulciber stepped up to the dueling stage with cold indifference. Slytherin vs. Slytherin. Bully vs. Bullied.

Everyone who had been in Hogwarts long enough knew the animosity between these two, they waited in bated breath as they stood in front of each other.

"Let's skip the bow. Neither of you are going to do it, right?" Frank Longbottom asked. Their silence confirmed his suspicion.

"Keep it clean, guys. And remember, no maiming and no Unforgivables."

The second a red spark came out of the tip of Frank's wand. Mulciber shot a powerful stunner her way, but Hermione had predicted this. She broke from her form and crouched to the floor, keeping her foot firmly on the floor and her eyes on him. She pushed off the ground like those sprinters she saw on her parents' television and dashed towards him with jarring speed.

Honestly, she didn't have a plan. All she knew was that she's wanted to hit him really hard, just once. Her personal payback for all the blows she'd been dealt from this boy.

Panicked by her speed towards him, her opponent threw spell after spell, but Hermione dodged them with ease and blocked those that couldn't be dodged. The idiot didn't even think to erect a Protego spell around him.

Like an unstoppable bull raging towards him, he used his arms to cover his face as he cowered at her charge. Hermione used this as an opportunity, she changed her fist to protrude her middle knuckle forward and threw her best hook into Mulciber's right armpit. Her targeted punch hit his nerve plexus causing his wand arm to drop as if it had no bones.

His wand clattered to the floor.

Through his pained tears, Mulciber stared at his wand in shock. Whatever strategy he anticipated from her, physical force had not been one of them. He quickly tried to reach for his wand, but Hermione kicked it out of his way, off the podium. Mulciber would have to use wandless magic to summon it back, but Hermione knew from experience that he didn't have advanced skills, despite being a decent duelist.

He turned to her, enraged by her tactics, ready to use his superior physical strength to simply overpower her, but he froze when he was met with her wand.

There was the logical choice of just ending it here, but she was not such a generous person.

"Flipendo." The knockback jinx threw Mulciber back, causing him to tumble. He tried to gain his footing once more, but with his wand arm still numb from her expertly thrown punch, he staggered trying to reorient himself.

"Parvus confringo!" Hermione sent a smaller version of the blasting curse right to his face. The thin bones in his nose were crushed.

"Ah!" Blood streamed down his nostrils and his eyes teared up once more, disorienting him.

Hermione threw a simple binding spell and kicked his feet from out beneath him. Mulciber's heavy body slammed into the floor once more. Hermione rolled him to his back and pressed her heel into his solar plexus.

"Hermione, do you feel this soft spot here?" Her father used her hand to push against a spot at the bottom of his sternum and at the top of the abdomen. "This is where you hit if you want to kick the wind out of someone, okay?"

Mulciber struggled in his binds to push her off, which only caused her to press down harder. He was struggling to breathe.

Frank Longbottom stood on the sidelines counting down. If Mulciber did not stand and counter, it would be Hermione's win.

"5! 4!"

"Concede, Anton." Hermione whispered to him.

"3! 2! 1! Hermione Evans wins!"

The bell rang loud and clear for everyone in the Great Hall to hear, but no one cheered, too shocked by Hermione's duel to speak. All of Hermione's duels to this point were boring. Effective and sufficient to earn her a win, but never…this.

Hermione bent down to stroke Mulciber's red and blubbering face with her index finger. It was almost seductive in how gentle and teasing it was.

"My. Bitch."

…

"The three winners of the semi-finals will each have two chances to duel. The four judges, myself included," Alphard pointed to the judges' table consisting of Albus Dumbledore, Alastor Moody, and Lucius Malfoy, "will grade the performance out of 5. If you win the match, an automatic 5 points will be given, totaling a maximum point score of 25 for each match. We will add the score for the two matches, and the person who has the highest total score will be this year's champion."

After two rounds of rock-paper-scissors, Lily and Sirius were to duel first, which gave Hermione the chance to apply some ice on the injuries she attained from Travers's punches. The bones that had mended were still soft and sore and the physical movements she made during her duel with Mulciber only aggravated the pain.

She sat down next to the main dueling stage while she transfigured a book in her bag to a bag of ice then gently placed the ice on her ribs and covered the icepack with her robes.

Even with the ice against her skin, she was reminded of the warmth of Malfoy's lips. The spot of contact radiated with an odd and lingering heat. For a brief moment, she'd forgotten about the truly shocking event due to her duel, but…she'd been kissed. By Lucius Malfoy! Why did he do it? What was his plan? To distract her from the matches in hope that she would lose? What could he possibly gain from that?

"Don't win." He told her. But instead of a threat, it sounded more like a warning of sorts.

Lily and Sirius took center stage, bowing to each other. The two had gotten quite close over the years thanks to Lily's friendship with James and Sirius's friendship with her, so it made sense when they were initially hesitant to fire any attacks. They cast entry-level charms and transfiguration spells to test each other's reaction and speed. Lily was far more creative, but Sirius was speedier and had a deadly aim.

Sirius was the first to fire an attack, a simple leg-locker curse that Lily easily deflected, but the tone of the duel immediately changed. Both opponents became serious as they searched for weaknesses and targetable spots.

Lily's talent in charms came in handy, she used everything from first year levitation charms to NEWT level reductor curses that forced Sirius to jump around the stage like a dancing leprechaun. It was smart of her to keep firing attacks because she could easily be overpowered if Sirius were to throw a spell due to her lack of physical fitness. While her protego was strong, the shield charm wasn't infallible. Lily simply couldn't dodge or sustain long duels as Sirius could.

Sirius bided his time, being patient, although it wasn't his nature. He threw a few spells of his own, but he made a decisive move when he threw a silencing charm, right as Lily needed to resurrect a new shield.

Suddenly silenced and yet not thoroughly trained in non-verbal spells, Lily's onslaught came to an abrupt stop. With no magical shield and no attacks, Lily was completely vulnerable.

The duel ended when Sirius swept Lily off her feet with a Levicorpus. After the buzzer rang, Sirius helped Lily back to her. Despite a small pout on her lips, she took his hand and the two respectfully bowed as the bell rang Sirius's victory.

Sirius Black: 5+5+3+4+2=19 points

Lily Evans: 0+5+3+4+2=14 points

The spectating Gryffindors booed when Malfoy held up the lowest score of 2 both times.

"Next, Lily Evans and Hermione Evans."

The two stepped on the tall stage, and for the first time, her sister caught a proper glimpse of Hermione's face. "What happened to you?" she gasped.

"I'm fine."

"Bow to your opponent." Flitwick, the referee for this match, demanded. The two bowed down respectably. "Get into your stances."

Lucius may have hastily mended her ribs, but Hermione's shoulder was definitely mangled. She overdid it with the punch she threw on Mulciber. Her fingers tingled, not in an excited-good way, but in a nerve-damaged manner. Her right hand was now useless. She could barely lift her arm, let alone duel with it. She rolled her wand to her left hand, flipping her usual stance to the opposite.

Dueling with her non-dominant hand was a tactic she's never used in this timeline, but something she had often resorted to as Hermione Granger. It was a gamble to use it now, but with her injury, the probability that she'll lose with her right arm was higher than the left.

"Duel!"

The sisters watched each other. They assessed each other's stance, looking for strengths and weaknesses. With a serious look on her face, Hermione realized how intimidating her twin sister could be as an opponent. Her intelligent eyes glowed with determination, reminding her of Harry when he would look down at his opponent and Harry was the best duelist she'd ever seen.

"What are you waiting for? Is it possible you're going easy on me because I'm your sister?" Lily asked, breaking their silence.

"No chance in Hell. I have a bet with the Slytherins. Plus, I want to win."

"Good, I was going to be disappointed if you went easy on me."

Lily was the first to fire a spell and they danced. Spells of almost every color flew back and forth between the two of them, but neither landed a shot. Lily was quick to notice her pained right side, realizing why she'd changed her stance. If she was concerned, she hid it well.

"Agumenti!" A powerful wide jet of water spewed from Hermione's wand, forcing Lily to jump out of the way, breaking her stance for the first time. Even in mid-dodge, Lily threw a flipendo in Hermione's direction, forcing her to stop her jet of water to deflect the spell. In terms of stamina, normally, Hermione was far superior, but she was starting to break a sweat from the pain on her side as it grew worse by the second.

Just as Lily stepped forward to send a spell in Hermione's direction, she stepped into a large puddle.

"Levicorpus!"

"Glacius!"

They shouted almost at the exact same time.

Without giving herself the chance to see if her spell landed, Hermione instinctively moved out of the way to avoid Lily's spell, but it tagged the hem of her robes. The magical ropes yanked her up from the hem of her robes. Unprepared for the sudden jerk, her arms flailed in the air stretching the entire right side.

"AH!" She cried out as her injured right side stretched in a way that should not for its condition. At the same time, Lily's arse slammed onto the floor. Hermione's Freezing charm had caught the shoe that stepped into the puddle and now was freezing his bottom and hands to the stage as well, effectively immobilizing her.

Hermione could see stars in her vision. She was pretty sure her ribs had broken once more from a shitty mending job and her shoulder was immobile. She could barely breathe, but even in the haze of pain, she quickly shimmied out of her robes and dropped back to the floor. She didn't have time to grimace, she didn't have time to regain proper focus, she needed to just rely on her instincts and run with it.

She clutched her side and made her way over to Lily, melting the ice as she walked towards her. She finally leaned over and pulled the wand out of her frozen hand and stepped off the stage as the buzzer sounded her victory.

Lily Evans: 0+5+3+4+5=17 points Total:31 points

Hermione Evans: 5+5+4+5+0=19 points

Hermione turned to Lucius Malfoy sitting at the judging table, holding up a 0. Apparently, what he meant by "don't win" was, "I'm going to make sure you don't win."

"You might not make it." Harry noted. "It might be easier to quit."

"Next, Sirius Black and Hermione Evans." McGonagall called up to the stage.

Hermione looked up at her best friend. "Since when did we quit because it was easier?"

She made her way up to the stage. McGonagall was standing there and gave her a discrete nod of encouragement, but immediately noticed the shortness of her breathe, paleness of her skin, and the cold sweats breaking on her forehead.

"Miss Evans, are you alright? You don't look too well."

"I'm fine." Hermione quickly responded. "Let's get this over with, you ready Black?" She asked Sirius who just arrived on the stage. He nodded but wore the same worried look on his face. She bowed to her opponent, and he paid her the same respect.

They made their way over to his end of the stage and waited for the duel to start, but McGonagall looked torn.

"Both opponents are ready Professor," Hermione told McGonagall. "Please start the match."

"Miss Evans," McGonagall spoke softly, "tell me what's wrong. At least do that, so that I can prepare to help you after the match is over."

"You'll let me duel?"

McGonagall pressed her lip together like she wanted to say no, but she looked into Hermione's determined eyes. "Yes, but only if you tell me exactly what's wrong."

"I have an improperly mended rib and my shoulder is mangled, leaving my right arm effectively useless."

"Professor, is she alright? Is it even possible for her to duel in her condition?" Sirius asked from his end of the stage.

"Why would you come to this match if you're hurt? For this ridiculous bet? I'll stop the bet from happening, just quit the match."

"It's not because of the bet, I promise professor. I just…" Hermione looked across the stage, at the judges' table where Alphard watched concernedly. "I just want to win, this one time."

"I—"

"You promised."

McGonagall was left torn as she watched Hermione get into position. Sweat dripped down the side of her face and down her jawline. She could see the unsteadiness of her footing and her rapid blinking to overcome the dizziness. Her breathing resembled hyperventilating like she was having a panic attack. This wasn't as simple as a broken rib, something else was wrong. Hermione was either lying or she was so hopped up on adrenaline that she didn't notice herself.

"You promised." Hermione insisted again.

The Deputy Headmistress clenched her jaw tightly and stepped away.

"Ready? Duel!"

Hermione didn't know if Sirius had a plan or if he was just being reckless, but he started firing spell after spell as soon as the sparks erupted from McGonagall's wand. Some were more powerful than others while some were just simple tickling charms.

Every blow on Hermione's expansive shield made the pain even worse to bear. Holding the shield itself had become difficult. Sirius was moving closer, forcing her to be on the defensive, similar to how she'd won all her duels in the past. The longer she prolonged this, the less advantageous it would be for her, her vision was blurring and nausea was threatening to break her form.

Something was wrong.

She needed to end this quickly. A rapid plan formed in her head, but she needed Sirius to stop attacking, just for a split second, a second for him to lose his concentration.

With Sirius only a few steps away from her, she glanced at her surroundings in search of something to help her. Lucius Malfoy's platinum blonde hair was like a bloody honing signal in the sea of black and brown heads in the corner of her eyes. The proverbial light bulb went off in her head, an idea that would certainly throw Sirius off his game.

Hermione maintained her shield to the best of her abilities, but it was cracking and waning, just like her concentration. She was seeing three of Sirius and she was pretty sure she couldn't feel her right arm, but she held on until she was near the edge of the stage and her opponent was a foot away. She waited for the right moment in between his spells. With no foreseeable cause, she suddenly dropped the blue barrier and pulled Sirius towards her by the collar of his shirt to kiss him right on the lips.

It was an incredible sense of déjà vu.

His lips were slightly chapped, probably from the winter winds drying them out, but they were warm and cushioning. Even though much time had passed since their first and last kiss, the feeling it brought to her chest was exactly the same.

He was warm, like a fireplace in the center of a home, warming everyone and everything up.

Hermione could feel Sirius's entire body stiffen at the shocking contact, just as she predicted. She pulled him close with both hands on his collar for leverage, then used her entire body weight to pull him to the ground. Falling onto her back, she tucked her legs to her chest, in between her body and Sirius's, then used them to push him up and over her head with all the remaining strength she had. Sirius swung over her via momentum and strength, like a rainbow over her head.

With a slam, Sirius's feet and back landed beyond the boundary line, and his head lay just a few inches away from hers.

"Sirius Black, out! Hermione Evans, win." McGonagall announced as the buzzer sounded Sirius's foul.

…

Lucius's legs jerked forward at the kiss but managed to remain seated by gripping the edge of the table until his knuckles turned white.

She had kissed him, on the mouth, with no hesitation. And for what? This measly competition? Why did this silly little thing matter so much that she would resort to such methods to win? He could remember the stone face she gave him when he kissed her, there was no blush, not even a slacked jaw. Perhaps she was used to using her body to get things she wanted.

Slut. Filthy mudblood.

The buzzer sounded announcing her victory, but she remained on the floor panting. It was Black who rolled around, lying on his stomach, to face her with that same startled expression. He was mouthing something to her that Lucius couldn't make out, but he didn't like the lack of distance between their two faces. They looked intimate and comfortable.

She was nodding at whatever he was saying, but what made him really see red was when she let out a small laugh at the end and accepted his hand when he pulled her up.

"Mr. Malfoy, we require your score." Dumbledore interrupted his internal fuming.

"I think we need to discuss the legitimacy of her victory. Her usage of…nonmagical tactics during the duel was unethical and it completely disregarded the etiquette of Wizarding dueling." Lucius spat out as he watched Black help her off the stage. She was practically hanging all over him.

"While I do think it was unusual, it wouldn't say it was unethical. She used nonmagical tactics on Mr. Mulciber as well, but no one raised concern. His arm is working perfectly well now, though I suspect his ego is the only thing that is permanently damaged. The kiss's purpose...was a distraction and it worked quite well. I don't see why we need to reconsider."

Lucius almost rolled his eyes at Dumbledore's assessment. A typical answer from the old geezer.

"Alastor? What do you think?" Dumbledore asked. "Has Miss Evans violated any of the extensive rules we've placed?"

Before either judge could hear Moody's gruff voice, the crowd gasped.

"Evans? EVANS? HERMIONE?!" Black's voice bellowed.

Before anyone had the chance to react, Alphard Black pushed into the crowd and scooped up the small girl as if she weighed nothing, and ran out the door.

"That girl's been protecting her right side and clutching it in pain before her matches even began. That girl's capable of magic that could have ended the matches in a single blow, but she held back. She deserves the win, Mr. Malfoy. That is my opinion." Moody remarked as he glanced at Lucius's score. He proceeded to step down from the table leaving his score on the table; his first and only perfect score.

Sirius Black: 0+5+4+5+5= 19 points Total: 38 points

Hermione Evans: 5+5+5+5+0= 20 points Total: 39 points

Hermione Evans, by one point, was the winner of the 1975 Dueling Championship.

…

Hermione opened her eyes to the sound of winds blowing against the windows. The hospital wing was dark, but with the sun setting so early during the winter, the lack of light outside the windows wasn't an accurate representation of the time.

She looked to her bedside table. Blood replenishing potion, Healing potion, bruise paste, and Dittany. She reached over and grabbed the glass of water that Pomfrey had placed. She gulped it down quickly, washing the staleness of her mouth away.

Pomfrey's heels clicked on the floor, approaching Hermione's sickbed.

"You're up."

"Did I win?"

An exasperated sigh escaped Madame Pomfrey's lips. "No time for that now, Miss Evans. You need rest. Your kidney was ruptured, you shouldn't have even competed."

She blinked, her kidney was news to her but explained the pain, sweating, and nausea she was feeling. "Pomfrey. Did. I. Win?"

"You won, my dear. Even though the head of the Board of Governors refused to give you anything above a zero."

Hermione sank further into the bed, her entire body relaxing into the crisp white sheets at the news.

"Good, rest. You were internally bleeding for nearly a full hour by the time Professor Black brought you in."

"I'm surprised he didn't insist on treating me himself."

"He did, so I asked him if he was insulting my skills and expertise because I was younger and a woman, to which he responded with a strangled no." Hermione chuckled weakly at Pomfrey's accurate description.

"You know, I knew him, back in Healer's Academy. Well, everyone knew him. He was brilliant and handsome, but as a Healer, I admired him less. He was far too detached, so I felt like he never cared about the patients as he should. Until 15 years ago."

Pomfrey watched her, trying to gauge her reaction, but Hermione refused to give her one. The school healer didn't know the exact relationship between the two, but whatever it was, it was significant.

"Thank you for making him a good man." Pomfrey thanked, despite her lack of response.

"No, it isn't the job of another to make someone a good person. It's a self-made achievement. Professor Black simply matured into what he has always been."

…

When Lucius opened the doors of the Hospital Wing, he was met with a stern school nurse, who looked at him with what he could only assume was anger and disappointment.

"She's resting Mr. Malfoy. I'm afraid she isn't allowed any visitors. Even if they're from the Board of Governors."

"Madame Pomfrey, the child needs to be spoken to."

"And I'm telling you she is in no state."

"She actively dueled for 45 minutes, and now she can't even talk?"

"Yes, as a certified Healer, that is what I'm telling you."

"Madam—"

"It's fine. Just let him in, he's not going to go away."

Her hair was loose from its ponytail, making it look like red ripples of water were falling from her head down to her waist. Even in sickness, Hermione Evans was a vision to look at. Seeing her again made his lips burn and his fingers tingle from the memories of his kiss earlier in the day. Her soft skin felt like butter under his lips and fingers, with a hint of sweetness.

"Hermione, you should not be out of bed!"

"I'm fine Pomfrey, you and I both know I could walk out of this Hospital Wing right now with no issues."

"We can't possibly know that. You were internally bleeding for 45 minutes. Do you not understand the gravity of the injury you received?"

"10 minutes and you can kick him out."

"5 minutes."

"Pomfrey—"

"3 minutes."

"Alright." She put her hands up in surrender. "Alright."

Pomfrey rushed to her side and pushed her arm down. "Three minutes." She warned them with a glare, then turned and went inside her office.

Hermione looked up expectantly at the blond, but he simply stared back with an intense gaze.

"If you don't think she's timing you, you're dead wrong, so you better start talking fast and make your point."

"You made another bet?"

She looked confused as to what he was talking about, then it clicked.

"Oh, Mulciber." She nodded. "What do you mean by 'another'? I never made a bet with you. I made a deal with you." She corrected

"Why did you make it?"

She shrugged. "Because I knew I would win, and I did, no thanks to someone's stingy scores."

The jab struck him hard, but he maintained a neutral face. "You shouldn't have made the bet in the first place."

"I don't have to explain myself to you, so if that's all you wanted to talk about, you can leave."

He balled his hands in a tight fist, trying to control his anger towards her audacity to him, a Pureblood elite.

"What do you get out this bet?"

A sly smirk formed on Hermione's lips, "He's gonna be my bitch."

Lucius looked horrified. "That's your winnings? You want him?"

Hermione frowned, "No!" She recoiled in disgust. "Oh fuck! Merlin no! Jesus Malfoy, what do you take me for? I was just going to gloat for a while, and then tell him to leave me and my sister the hell alone."

Her bloody sister again, Lucius rolled his eyes. "Does your sister know no defense whatsoever that you need to step in every time? That's what professors are for. She has a wand of her own, doesn't she? What about you? Who takes care of you?" He blurted out.

Hermione's eyes widened a fraction at the uncharacteristic outburst. She didn't say anything for a few seconds and just watched as the redness traveled up his neck and into his ears. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but quickly closed it again.

"Why are you here, Malfoy?"

Lucius frowned. Why was he here? He didn't know, all he knew was that he was angry. Why was she making these stupid bets? Why wasn't she asking about his kiss? Why did she kiss Sirius Black? What had they whispered about after the match, causing her to laugh?

Why had she placed first?

Lucius suppressed a shiver that traveled down his spine. He will want only the best, now Lucius was in a position where he had to tell the demonic man about the girl in front of him.

"You shouldn't have won."

Hermione's brow raised, "Yeah, you've mentioned that. Is it because I'm a Mudblood?"

"No! Because—" He clamped his mouth shut, there were things that were acceptable to blurt out and there were things that were forbidden. He might have lost his mind by thinking of Hermione Evans with anything but contempt, but he wasn't crazy enough to reveal to her that the Dark Lord was recruiting the best and brightest to fight as his soldiers.

Hermione watched the boy through his internal struggle, looking tormented while he fought the urge to tell her something he probably shouldn't. She quietly glanced at his left forearm, knowing what was inked into his skin beneath his sleeves.

"Is it him?"

Lucius became a fish out of water. He knew Hermione knew things about Voldemort that she shouldn't know, but now he was wondering if the Death Eaters had a mole. How could she know?

The sound of Pomfrey's heels clicked out of her office and towards her sickbed.

Instead of answering, Lucius grabbed a piece of parchment and rummaged through his robes for a quill. He wrote something down, then made a small cut on his thumb with his wand and pressed his bloody thumb against the paper.

He shoved the small note into Hermione's hands, "In case you…just in case of something. Anything."

Without another word, he turned and left, leaving Hermione completely flabbergasted with his actions.

She looked down at the note. The blood was still wet, leaving red stains on Hermione's palm where her hands touched the parchment. Above the bloody print was an area code, most likely for floo. She recognized the first few numbers from her days as the Head of the DMLE.

Wiltshire.

Lucius Malfoy had just given her access to Malfoy Manor.

…