CHAPTER TEN

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

Sunday 26th April 1998

"What do you wish to ask?" Demetri spoke, jarring Hermione from her thoughts.

The running water of the nearby stream filled her ears, the soft grass below her cushioned her body and was cool against the exposed skin of her arms and neck and the cool breeze tingled her skin and tussled her hair. She dragged her eyes away from the constellations shining brightly in the clear night sky and turned her head towards Demetri who sat a short distance away from her.

"What?"

"What do you wish to ask, Hermione?" He repeated. Her brow furrowed in confusion. "I know there's something bothering you," he smirked when her frown turned into a scowl and she turned her scowl to the left where Alec was perched after hearing his chuckle. Where Demetri sat on the ground, Alec sat on a tree stump.

She sighed in defeat and she heard the deep chuckling of both vampires.

"I was curious," she admitted, turning her eyes back to the starry night sky above her.

They were currently in Andorra, only five more apparition points before she was able to get them safely to the Order's headquarters. It was currently ten o'clock at night in Andorra, yet to them, it was still early afternoon as they'd been travelling between different countries since yesterday morning.

"Yes?" Demetri questioned.

She removed her clasped hands from her stomach and moved them behind her head, cushioning it, unaware that as her t-shirt rode up her stomach to reveal more of her ivory skin, two pairs of blood-red eyes locked on the movement.

"Why have you been sent to aid in the war? I've heard rumours that the guards of the Volturi are all gifted in different ways, so I'm curious as to why you've been told to help, when there are other members of the Guard that they could send in your place."

"We volunteered," Alec offered.

Her eyes darted to him. "Why would you do that?" Her brow furrowed.

His eyes flickered to Demetri's, she noticed but didn't comment as his eyes landed back on her and his expression softened.

"It is not often that are asked to enter a world which we are forbidden from being a part of. It is not often we are shown kindness, even good-natured teasing, from a member of your magical community. We wanted to see what your world has to offer, why you are willing to sacrifice your life and responsibilities to protect a world which has shown you no kindness or loyalty in return."

She got the feeling he wasn't telling her the exact truth but she had no right to question his motives when he'd willingly volunteered to fight for the Order.

She had no idea that they weren't fighting for the Order, for her friends and family, or even for her world. They were fighting for her and only for her.

"And Aro just let you leave?"

"He was in agreement that we accompany you, he believes we are best suited to aid you."

"What are your gifts?" She asked, pushing herself into a sitting position, her eyes boring into his, alight with curiosity and intrigue.

Demetri chuckled from her right but she kept her eyes on Alec. He was surprised that she held his gaze, most didn't dare to look at him as they were afraid of him. Somehow he knew that her knowing his gift wouldn't change the way she thought of him. She wouldn't fear him and he didn't doubt she ever would.

"In simple terms, I have the ability to numb the senses of any person I focus on."

Her eyes widened slightly. "All of the senses?" She questioned, sounding amazed and he felt amusement and pride swirl through him at her reaction.

"Yes," he nodded, "Sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch."

"That's amazing," she whispered in breathless awe. A smirk pulled at his mouth and Demetri rolled his eyes. "How does it work? Does it prevent your person of focus from moving?"

"Essentially, yes, it does. It leaves them defenceless and open to attack."

"And are you only able to focus on one person at a time?"

"No, I can focus my attention on as many as eight persons; I've never had the opportunity to test my ability further."

"Wow," she muttered. "That is extremely helpful," she commented.

Demetri held in a snigger when Alec all but preened under her praise and she turned her eyes to him, holding his gaze.

"I'm a tracker, the best in the world," he shrugged casually.

"How does your gift work?" She asked him, unintentionally moving closer to him, which he, of course, noticed and was more than happy to see.

"I can hear the tenor of a person's thoughts in their mind by simply coming into contact with them. Once that happens, I can track them anywhere in the world, there are no distance limitations. I can follow them around the world until I catch up with them. I have not yet met anyone that is immune to my gift."

"So, if we win the war and Death Eaters flee, as long as you've come in to contact with them, you can find them and lead us to them so they can be captured."

"Yes," he nodded and she smiled. "But that is not my only skill."

"You have more than one gift?" Her head tilted in a confused manner that was adorable.

"No, tracking is my true gift. I am over one-thousand-years-old and for that reason, I am one of the best fighters the Volturi has, other than Felix, of course. Assuming your magical people are still human with human tendencies, I can neutralise possibly twenty targets in less than sixty seconds."

Her eyes widened and he held in a chuckle.

She blinked before nodding. "We're still human, although we have ways of defending ourselves against your kind."

"So I've seen," Alec interrupted dryly, smirking at her.

She flinched, bringing her hand up to her throat before frowning and then shaking her head, pulling out of her thoughts and missing the ultra-quick glare Demetri sent Alec.

"Witches and wizards are slightly different to muggles. Due to evolution and the need to better defend ourselves against your kind, we have evolved to have better reflexes; our reaction times are slightly better than muggles. We are taught to recognise and defend against your kind from the young age of thirteen, possibly younger depending on the school curriculum." They looked surprised by what she revealed. "If you are to be of the most help, I think it would be that you aid with the dealings of the no-mad vampires. As I mentioned before, we believe there to be at least thirty and you have an advantage over us. Are all vampires expected to abide by your laws?"

"Yes, no matter the continent or coven, the laws still stand. Punishment for breaking the laws will result in death or being confined to the Volturi coven until the sentence given has passed. We have members that are still with us, serving their time for breaking the laws four centuries ago, even longer, in fact, and they have another five centuries -possibly longer- until they have completed their punishment."

"Bloody hell," she muttered, making them chuckle. "And I thought our punishments were harsh." A thoughtful frown appeared on her face. "You said you haven't yet met a person that is immune to your gifts?" She questioned.

"Yes," they both answered with identical arched eyebrows.

"Will your gifts work on me?"

"Yes."

"I'm curious, can we try?" They both glanced each other uncertainly. "Will your gifts result in my harm?"

"No, they are physically painless and harmless," Demetri confirmed.

"Great, so let's try," she grinned. "Who wants to go first?"

"Why do you want to do this?" Alec questioned.

"Why not?" She threw back with a shrug. "Besides, I want to see how your gift will affect me, so I know what the Death Eaters will feel and how they will be defenceless against you."

"Logical reasoning," he agreed.

He held his hands out and she watched in wonder as a shimmering hazy mist began to flow around him, slowly making its way towards her and she noticed that in the gentle breeze the mist didn't falter. Was it immune to physical interference?

The mist moved closer and closer until it surrounded her in a bubble, she reached out her hand to touch it and she shivered as an ice-cold wave washed over her, but otherwise, she didn't feel any different.

She lifted her gaze, seeing the stunned expressions of both vampires, their mouths parted and eyes wide, the most emotion she had seen out of both of them.

"I don't feel any differently," she told them with a slight frown.

"That's not possible," Alec muttered softly. Demetri slowly nodded his head in agreement.

Alec called the mist back to him and lowered his hands, still staring at her.

She turned her attention to Demetri. He cleared his throat.

"Hide anywhere you wish to in this country, I'll be able to find you in less than an hour."

Her eyes widened in excitement before she darted to her feet and with her wand in hand, she turned on the spot and disappeared from view, leaving a 'crack' behind her.

"She is immune to my gift," Alec frowned in confusion but there was a prideful twinkle in his eyes. "Since my turning, I have never met anyone that is immune to my gift."

"I wonder why that is," Demetri mused.

"Do you think she could be immune to your tracking of her?"

"We're about to find out," he answered, standing and disappearing into the cluster of trees.

~000~000~000~

It had been an hour and a half since Hermione had hidden away from Demetri. An hour and a half of waiting for him to find her. She hadn't apparated far, no more than a mile from where they'd been conversing, and yet, she'd seen no sign of him. She was sat down on the ground, leaning back against a tree and debating whether or not to give up on their little experiment and apparate back to the stream.

They'd only stopped to allow Hermione the chance to have a spot of lunch and to rest during apparition points, and now they were an hour and a half behind schedule. She sighed and made to stand when she saw him step into view.

She held herself still; to make things a little more difficult she was hidden under a Disillusionment Charm, as she wanted to see if he truly could find her. It seemed he was having some difficultly as there was a confused frown marring his features and his eyes swept the area carefully.

He sighed before he took a deep breath, breathing in the scents around him and his eyes suddenly snapped in her direction. He slowly approached her, stopping not far in front of her tree and she stood, cancelling the charm, coming into his view and his eyes widened slightly.

"I've been sat here for an hour and a half, my arse is numb," she told him with a slight scowl.

He snorted at her words and then a frown appeared. She didn't know what possessed her to do it but she stood on her tiptoes and reached up and with a finger, she smoothed out the creases in his forehead. His entire body seemed to relax and his face softened at her touch, his eyes watching her face intently.

"Don't frown, it doesn't suit you," she told him, pulling her hand back and he instantly felt the loss of her gentle and warm touch against his ice-cold, marble skin. "Now, were you able to track me?"

He shook his head. "No, I wasn't able to track you using my gift, I only found you through scent."

"That's interesting," she thought, biting her lip absentmindedly and her eyes looking down at the ground in thought, unaware of how his eyes were locked onto her mouth, watching the movement and imagining that it was his teeth that were nibbling at her lip.

"How does your ability work again?" She asked, looking back up at him.

"When I come into contact with a person, I get a read on the tenor of their mind. It's unique to every individual, just as scent or fingerprints. No one has the same scent, they may smell similar to humans but to a vampire, there are always differences."

She nibbled at her lip in thought.

"Okay, I think I might know why you couldn't track me," she nodded to herself, releasing her lip from her teeth. "Let's try this again."

Unknown to him, she lowered her Occlumency shields, she locked her eyes on his and then she turned on her heel, disappearing from view and leaving a 'crack' behind her.

~000~000~000~

She lounged against a tree half a mile from her previous location and much to her surprise, she didn't have to wait long as Demetri appeared before her within five minutes of her leaving.

"I don't understand," he shook his head, once again a frown appeared.

Unable to stop herself, she reached up and smoothed out the frown with her finger, his face softened.

"Don't be making frowning a habit, my arms will ache from having to reach up all the time," she teased lightly and his mouth twitched.

He rather liked her touching him and he wasn't going to stop himself from doing something he knew would make her reach out for him.

"Let's get back to Alec, we'll see if his gift will now work on me and then I'll explain afterwards."

She held her hand out to him expectantly and he took it. It was strange to him that she touched him so freely, without fear. Nor did she complain of his ice-cold skin, sucking the heat from her own skin.

She apparated them back to the stream and Alec turned his attention away from watching the ripples in the water, arching an eyebrow at the confused frown marring Demetri's face. Hermione sighed and reached up, smoothing out his frown once again before moving away from him, missing the arrogant look he sent Alec's way.

"Were you able to find her?" He questioned curiously as Hermione took a seat on the ground and fiddled with her wand between her fingers.

"The first time, I was unable to track her through my gift, I had to rely on scent and it took me ninety minutes to find her." Alec looked to Hermione surprised, but once again, pride was twinkling in his eyes.

"The first time?" He picked up on.

"Yes, we tried again, I was able to track her through my gift within five minutes."

Alec looked to Hermione confused, mirroring Demetri's expression.

"Alec, is your ability similar to Demetri's in the sense that it requires mental focus? You say your ability doesn't cause physical pain or injury, so it isn't a physical manifestation, correct? Which means that you don't physically affect your targets, rather you mentally affect them? You make them believe they have lost their senses, when they actually haven't, kind of like a mental block?"

He blinked in surprise. "Yes," he admitted.

"I thought so," she grinned triumphantly. "Try using your gift again," she encouraged. "This time I suspect it will be a successful attempt."

He blinked once more before raising his hands and the shimmering mist made its way towards her, and then everything went black. She couldn't see, she couldn't hear, she couldn't smell. She tried to move her body but couldn't. She was numb to it all. She was vulnerable to attack and panic began to set in.

All of a sudden, her senses returned and she fell forward, catching herself on her hands before her face hit the ground. She was breathing heavily as she bowed her head and relished in her returned senses, vowing to never again take them for granted.

A cold hand against her shoulder drew her attention and she looked up to see Alec kneeling before her, his angelic features looking both pained and guilty, whilst Demetri was kneeled beside her, a concerned look crossing his handsome face and it was his hand that rested on her shoulder.

"I'm fine," she breathed out, forcing her rapidly beating heart to calm and for her breathing to return to normal. When that was done, she sat up straight, pushing her hands off the ground and clasping them in her lap. "That was not a pleasant experience, and now I know that your gifts might just be what wins us the war," she held his gaze, seeing that his expression was beginning to calm and soften.

Demetri squeezed her shoulder gently.

"How were you immune to our gifts during the first trial, but not the second?" He asked, changing the subject.

"You were also immune to Lord Aro's," Alec added.

"I'm not special," she told them, seeming to understand their wonder at her inability to be affected by their gifts. "There are other magical folk that are able to do the same as I, some even better. One man, in particular, is a master at it and has been for close to two decades. At one point in time, he discovered that I was trying to teach myself this ability and Dumbledore asked him to work with me. I'm fairly competent at it but I haven't yet mastered it."

"What is this ability?" Alec asked curiously.

"There are several forms of Mind Magic in existence, two, in particular, are known as Legilimency and Occlumency. Legilimency is the magical ability to force yourself into another's mind, to read and observe their thoughts, memories and feelings." Their eyes widened, looking between each other. "It is a very difficult and rare skill to learn, especially to master it to the point were your target doesn't even know you're doing it, as it is usually quite painful when forced upon you. In order to be a successful Legilimens, you have to be able to break down a person's mental barriers, you need to be an incredibly strong-willed person and you must remain in eye contact with your target. I suppose it's similar to Aro's ability, only you don't need physical contact in order to do it. Occlumency is the opposite. It is the ability to produce a series of mental walls and barriers to defend and protect against Legilimency and other outside influences. It is exceptionally hard to learn, even more so than Legilimency and some magical folk may dabble in the art, but there aren't many Master Occlumens, I believe there is to be no more than twenty to exist. I am an Occlumens, albeit a fairly decent one, yet I haven't mastered the art of it. I am immune to your gifts as they revolve around the mind, and mine is protected from outside influences due to my mental block being firmly in place."

They blinked in surprise.

"It worked the second time," Demetri reminded her.

"Yes, it did," she agreed. "On the second trial, I lowered my mental shields meaning they were no longer in place and I was vulnerable to your attack. As far as I'm aware, there are no members of the other side that are accomplished Occlumens, so your gifts will be effective against them. The only one that will be immune is the Dark Lord; he's a Master Legilimens and Occlumens and has been since he was a teenager, back in the 1940s. He's an incredibly intelligent and powerful man, that's why he's so dangerous."

She looked up at the night sky and sighed.

"We've been here too long, if we hurry, I can hopefully get us to headquarters without having to stop for the night, I miss my bed."

She rose to her feet and they followed her movements, instantly taking her hands in theirs when she held them out to them.