CHAPTER TWO
Summary: Sent to Volterra in order to negotiate terms of an alliance to end the war, Hermione's life is turned upside down as she is brought into the world of the Volturi, better known as the Vampire Kings. There she is made a part of a new kind of family and a most trusted member of the guard, whether she likes it or not, and surprisingly, she does. Rated M for language, violence and sexual content.
Disclaimer: I do not own canon events and characters, they belong to J.K Rowling and Stepenie Myers. I am not making a profit from writing and posting this fanfic. As for the descriptions of appearances for the Twilight characters, all my research is based on the books and not the movies, but I may have changed a few things regarding Alec's height and age.
Page count: 8
Thursday 23rd April 1998
Alec watched as the girl was brought forward to stand before his Masters. Hidden by the hood of his robes and cloak, he was able to observe her without anyone noticing, including his twin sister who stood beside him.
Her clothing was nothing special, just what he had seen teenagers wearing regularly during the last decade. But, they were covered in tears, dirt, and blood. He could see burns and cuts littering her body, yet he couldn't smell her blood, why was that?
She was pale for a human but human he knew her to be. He could hear the steady beat of her heart. He could smell the strawberry and vanilla scent that lingered around her, yet he couldn't smell her blood, even as he took in her appearance and focused his full attention on her. She had mahogany coloured hair and he could see the unruliness of the curls as they were swept back into a high ponytail. He could see the freckles dotting her button nose, he could count the thick eyelashes that surrounded her eyes but at the angle she stood, he couldn't see the colour of her irises. He could hear each breath that left her pink and plump lips and he could see each delicate brush of her lashes against her cheekbones.
She was rather pretty, he'd come to realise. Nothing like the vampire beauty he and others of his kind were gifted upon transformation, it was more of a natural beauty that most wouldn't notice, that most would overlook.
"Why have you come here, Miss. Granger?" His Master asked and he listened carefully for her answer.
He didn't recognise the name Kingsley Shacklebolt but the name Albus Dumbledore was familiar to him. He had been present during that meeting and if she was there due to him, it meant she was a witch. She was intriguing to him and he didn't know why. Humans didn't catch his attention often. Usually, it was the smell of their blood that drew him to them, the smell of a good meal. But she stood there, in the centre of the room, covered in blood and wounds that hadn't yet healed, and surprisingly, he didn't want to harm her. And he knew it had nothing to do with being unable to smell her blood. Strange, he mused
"No, he didn't prevail. He sacrificed many an innocent life for the war, and in the end, the war was never truly won and the Dark Lord wasn't destroyed, just defeated." She replied and she spoke with a slightly angry tone to her voice, and it seemed to be aimed at Dumbledore, himself. Why did she hate him? As far as he was aware, he was a charming human and people adored him. What had he done to make her hate him?
"Interesting, I believe there is more to this story, please continue." His Master spoke and he listened carefully to every word she spoke. "Why has it taken so long to defeat him?"
"We recently discovered that when the Dark Lord was a teenage boy, still attending Hogwarts, he found a form of magic that had been wiped from existence due to its truly horrific and dark nature. He split his soul into fragments and encased them into objects, giving him immortality."
Immortality without becoming a vampire? Impossible, his mind argued.
"The Dark Lord cannot be killed or destroyed until each object is found and destroyed. We believe there to be six. I have been on a mission this past year, searching for these objects and a way to destroy them."
"And how many have you discovered and destroyed?" Master Aro asked curiously.
"We have discovered the identity of all six of the objects. Three have already been destroyed, one has been retrieved and we are waiting for a way to destroy it. We believe one is hiding within Hogwarts itself, and it's difficult to obtain as the school is now under the control of the Dark Lord and his followers. We believe the final object to be the pet of the Dark Lord, which he has by his side twenty-four-seven. We, ourselves, have a few spies within the ranks of the Dark Lord's army, and they are feeding us information regarding future raids and targets, so we may prevent them."
"And why have you been sent, Miss. Granger, you can't be more than a child yourself?"
Her soft and kind features unexpectedly hardened into something cold and angry before she visibly took a breath, seeming to calm himself.
"I'm not a child; that was taken from me from the age of twelve. I was brought into this war the moment I made friends with Harry Potter, I am one of his friends that I spoke of. I've knowledge and experiences that most eighteen-year-old witches shouldn't have. I've faced dark magical creatures, death, murder, torture and rape. I've faced genocide and bullying, hatred and blood supremacy. I'm not a child, I'm a soldier. I've spent the last seven years keeping Harry Potter alive and trust me, it wasn't easy, he has no sense of self-perseveration or danger, but I stood by him because I believe in him. I know he can defeat the Dark Lord and his army and bring peace to the Wizarding World."
Why did he feel jealous of her obvious love and trust in another man? And he believed every word she spoke to be true. There was confidence in the way she spoke, in the way she moved and presented herself to them, even in the bloody and tattered clothes she was wearing.
He heard Masters Aro and Marcus conversing but he didn't pay mind to their words, he was too busy focusing on the intriguing witch, trying to will her to turn so he could see her eyes.
"Intriguing," his Master muttered, sitting up straight.
Alec's attention went to him briefly, it wasn't often something caught his Masters' attention the way this witch seemed to. He had obviously missed something during their conversation as he'd been too focused on the pretty little witch.
"That is a lovely tale, Miss. Granger."
Alec bit his lip to stifle his chuckle when he saw her clench her hands and he heard her grit her teeth. She had fire. He liked that. Rather than being afraid, she was angry, annoyed.
"Would you mind verifying it?"
She approached the thrones and placed her hand in Master Aro's outstretched one.
"Fascinating," he muttered, staring at the witch in awe, a smile creeping up onto his face.
"What is it, brother?" Master Caius spoke.
"She is immune to my gift," he replied and Alec did a double-take, his eyes swivelling between his Master and the witch and he felt Jane shift beside him. She was immune? That's impossible!
He watched as she took a deep breath and offered him her hand once more.
"Try again," she encouraged.
Could she control it?
Master Aro laughed in delight and stared at the witch in fascination.
"Miss. Granger has spoken the truth. And you've been very busy, haven't you?" He spoke amusedly.
She shrugged in response. "I did what was required of me to protect Harry. He is more than just my best friend, he's my little brother in everything but blood. And if it should come down to it, I would die for him without hesitation."
He didn't know why, but at her words of dying a low snarl ripped from the back of his throat, surprising him. Jane nudged him with her elbow and he turned his head to see her staring at him strangely.
"You don't fear death?" Master Marcus asked.
Her voice sounded tired and soft, as she explained her thoughts on the matter. As she explained how she was gifted her magic and what she had faced during this war of hers.
"I don't fear death," she confirmed. "In all honesty, I have no idea how I am still alive to this day."
Torture? Near-death experiences? Trolls and dementors, mass murderers, travelling back in time, werewolves and frozen in time?
A fierce wave of protectiveness washed over him, something he had never felt so powerful before, not even for his Masters or his twin sister, Jane.
"How long ago was it that you were captured?" Master Caius asked.
"Six days ago. I was rescued and three days later we broke into the Wizarding bank. It has taken me two days to get here, as I ran into some trouble during my journey."
Six days? She had been tortured within an inch of her life and she was standing in front of him, not even a week later?
"You do not fear us," Master Aro stated.
Alec listened to her heartbeat which was steady and even, listening to see if she was telling the truth as she spoke, and she was, she truly didn't fear them.
"No, I don't. I am well aware of what you are capable of, and I know how efficiently you can kill. I have several spells in my armoury that I can use to defend myself against you, as well as several offensive spells that would either kill you, or cause you some serious harm. I have a masking spell over myself, which is why you can't smell my blood, although I'm currently bleeding all over your floor, sorry for that by the way."
He blinked as her magical wand appeared in her hand from seemingly out of nowhere and she waved it, the blood drops disappearing from the stone floor and leaving it clean before her magical wand disappeared from view again.
"And if I can't defend myself against you, then I die. The only downside to my death is that Harry would be distracted and he needs to focus on destroying the Dark Lord."
"Now that we know your story, why is it you have come here?"
"I'm here for the same reason as Dumbledore, to ask for your help in winning the war. The Order of the Phoenix and its members dedicate their lives to protecting the innocent and defeating the Dark Lord, many of our members have been captured or killed during the last year and our numbers are but few. We have Harry, we have a plan, but we need the numbers and we need the allies."
"I don't specifically," she answered, "I would rather keep you out of the battle so that if we were to lose, the Dark Lord wouldn't seek vengeance on your kind. Kingsley has asked that I convince you to aid us, and in return, we'll negotiate terms that the both of us find acceptable."
She wanted to protect them? Why?
"You do not wish to fight beside us?" Master Caius asked.
"I have no hatred for you or your kind. I don't have hatred for any magical creature or being, well, except dementors but those things are from hell itself." He saw her shiver as if just thinking of the creatures put fear in her. "You can't change what you are any more than I can. And you can't help that you require blood to function, just as I can't help that I require food and water to survive. I may have a dislike or hatred for certain individuals, but I don't hate an entire race or species."
She was a curious little thing, he decided. She had no hatred for his kind and she wanted to protect them. It was an oddity, he'd never heard of a magical practitioner wishing to protect his kind, let alone not hating them.
"And why do you need our help, surely you can deal with a few of your kind?"
"We could, if it were only a few, but it's not. We've received word that the Dark Lord has close to a quarter of a thousand in his army, yet the Order have only one hundred, at best. We may be outnumbered but that wouldn't have deterred us, we now know that the Dark Lord has recruited werewolves, giants, no-mad vampires, dementors and acromantula. He has close to two hundred and fifty witches and wizards, and we believe he has five giants, a pack of werewolves with fifty members at least, possibly thirty vampires, countless dementors and an entire hoard of acromantula. Without your help, we have no chance of winning now that magical creatures and beings have been brought into the war. We would be happy with as little of one of your guards. One's better than nothing."
He was curious to know what these creatures were. Giants, vampires, and werewolves were self-explanatory, but what were dementors and acromantulas?
"...Very well, before we deliberate your interesting offer, I have a request to make... The Dark Lord, say his name."
"I'm sorry, Lord Aro, but I can't do that."
"Say it, say Voldemort!" Master Aro demanded.
"No!" The pretty witch called out in panic, surprising the entire room. No one had ever dared to raise their voice to the Masters.
He blinked when she had her magical wand in her hand and there were suddenly four 'cracks' as four scruffy looking men appeared from nowhere.
They surrounded her, circling her and she stood firm and tall, her eyes flickering between the four men. He made to step forward to help, to intervene, but Jane's hand clamped onto his shoulder, preventing him from moving and when he looked to his Master, he shook his head to the few guards in the room, forbidding them from getting involved.
The four men that had arrived suddenly had not been planned, but his Masters wanted to see what the little witch was capable of. They wanted to see how she fought in battle before they made a decision. They needed to know if she was a worthy ally.
"Poppet, how nice to see you again," one of the men greeted as he smirked at her cruelly.
He imagined this man to be the leader of the group.
"I assure you, Scabior, the feelings are not mutual," she hissed angrily, her face hardening and her eyes darkening.
"Poppet, let's not be like that, let's make this easy on the both of us, yeah? Give up and let us take you to Bellatrix, she's awfully upset you escaped, she has many a plan for you."
Bellatrix? Who was this woman and why did his protective instincts flare up stronger at the obvious threat?
"Bellatrix can shove her plans up her Pureblooded arse, and you, you creepy bastard, I want my scarf back."
He blinked, watching as beams of light suddenly began soaring across the room and he witnessed several of the guards present moving out the way as they ricocheted in their direction.
He felt pride sweep through him as she took down one of her opponents and rather quickly before she ducked to the ground and sent several beams of light in retaliation, springing to her feet as a translucent blue dome appeared in front her, the beams of light bouncing off it. He realised in amazement, it was a shield. She stumbled back slightly, likely due to the barrage of beams that had been hitting the shield and he openly stared when she suddenly became invisible, disappearing from view.
"Marvellous," Master Aro muttered in awe.
One of the men was suddenly sent flying across the room, slamming into the stone wall and he collapsed to the floor unconscious. He heard a pained hiss and his eyes landed on the blood that was dripping on the floor.
She was injured! He wanted to kill the bastards for hurting her. He made to step forward again but Jane's grip tightened on his shoulder and she glared at him in warning.
Another translucent blue shield appeared and blocked the beams of light and he heard an intake of breath and the sound of someone slamming into the stone wall, before a groan was heard. She reappeared, no longer being invisible and she pulled herself up from the ground.
A snarl ripped from him as he saw the blood coating her fingers from her head wound, and that half of her t-shirt was soaked through with fresh blood as her left hand cradled her injured side.
She gave a groan but it sounded more like one of annoyance than pain. She took a steady breath before a look of determination entered her eyes and before he knew it, beams of light were flying from her wand so quickly and with such precision, her opponents couldn't do anything but shield against them, and even then some of the beams were breaking through the barriers, placing cuts, burns and lacerations on their bodies.
"Petrificus Totalus," she called confidently and another opponent dropped to the ground, leaving only the man she had spoken to on their arrival.
He saw him smirk and lift his wand but another beam of light left her wand and slammed into the man, sending him flying across the room until he crashed into the wall and fell to the floor unconscious.
"Arsehole," she muttered.
He felt pride fill him as she stood victorious, breathing heavily and panting, injured and bleeding all over the floor, but victorious. Her hair had fallen out of its restraint and surrounded her in a halo of uncontrollable ringlets and she pressed a hand to her side, trying to stem the bleeding, and there was a lot of it, concerning him.
His Master stood from his throne and applauded loudly and Alec knew that smile he sported. That was the look of a man that had found a priceless artefact. He'd seen that smile and expression but few times in his immortal life.
"That is why I refused to say His name. Not because I fear it, but because there is a form of magic that has been placed on his name, anyone who speaks it will find themselves surrounded by snatchers and Death Eaters. It's the reason I was captured in the first place, Harry spoke his name in a fit of rage and I paid the price for it."
She took another breath and sighed.
"Now, is anyone hungry?" She asked lightly.
Did she really just ask that? Did she honestly just offer them a human to snack on? Who was this woman?
"I'm beginning to like this one, brother," Caius spoke amusedly. Caius was the most violent and vindictive of his Masters, so Alec wasn't surprised that she had truly captured his attention after the display of the magical fight.
"Well, I can't exactly allow them to leave. They know my location and The Dark Lord will figure out why I'm here and he'll send someone to bargain for your loyalty. I suppose I could wipe their memories and let them go free, but then that puts them back into the business of capturing innocent people. If you were to feed off them, that makes one less thing for me to worry about."
"You are injured," Master Aro commented.
"I'm fine, I've dealt with worse, at least I'm still standing this time."
"Miss. Granger, we would like to take the time to discuss your offer, in the meantime, I will have someone escort you to a suite so you may rest for the night. In the morning we will give our answer."
"That's very gracious of you, but I already have accommodations," she replied.
"We insist that you spend the night, you will be safe here and I will have someone collect all that you may require."
She appeared to be mulling it over before she nodded in defeat.
"Excellent," his Master said cheerfully. "Alec, please escort our guest to the Rosalinda suite."
He felt a smile pull at his mouth when his Master gave him the task. Usually, he would've been disappointed to have been given such a mundane assignment, but as of now, he was silently thanking his Master. And the Rosalinda suite, that was but a few doors down from his own rooms.
He stepped forward and lowered his hood, a smile pulling at his mouth as he approached her and he saw her eyes glaze over momentarily before she shook her head and looked up at him when he uncharacteristically offered her his hand.
Chocolate brown. Large and doe-like. That was the colour of her eyes, and they were beautiful, just like the rest of her.
She slowly placed her warm hand against his ice-cold skin and he marvelled at the temperature difference. He felt her startle slightly and smirked. So, she had felt it, too? The sudden and unexpected passing of electricity through his body was odd but not unwelcome. He tucked her hand into his elbow and covered it with his own, leading her out of the chamber with the doors opening for them and closing behind them.