CHAPTER THIRTEEN

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: 7

Friday 1st May 1998

The last week had been a blur; Order members came and went, those that stayed had their own tasks and responsibilities that needed to be completed, they planned the best they could, thinking up strategies and contingency plan after contingency plan in case something should go wrong.

Those heavily involved in the planning were Hermione, Ron, the twins, Kingsley and Remus. Hermione for her logical mind, Ron for his strategic mind, –after all, there was no denying he was undefeated at Wizard's Chess- the twins for their creativity and ingenious when it came to thinking outside the box, Kingsley as he was the head of the Order and Remus, having fought in the first war. Harry attended to give his opinion as it all revolved around him, but most of the time he simply agreed with what the others suggested and planned, sitting back and listening.

When Hermione wasn't helping with the battle plans, she was in her makeshift potions lab which had once been a spare bedroom. It consisted of a few workbenches with cauldrons sat atop whilst she prepared ingredients and brewed healing potions. The expected number of injured was high and Madame Pomphrey wouldn't have the supplies to provide the care that the wounded would need and so Hermione was planning ahead.

Alec and Demetri would sit in the room, silently observing as she focused all of her attention on the bubbling concoctions and preparing the strange ingredients, some of which, even made them pull a face whilst she didn't bat an eyelash. They didn't complain of the smells in the room, they seemed content to watch her work, occasionally asking questions regarding the ingredients she was using or the potions she was brewing, leaving them impressed as they had no idea how far the Wizarding World had come in the last six centuries, particularly with their healing capabilities.

When she wasn't brewing potions, she spent time with the still-healing Tonks and her adorable Godson, Teddy. With Tonks still recovering, she was placed on bed rest and forbidden from leaving her room; she was, of course, furious and staring at the same four walls was driving her insane but seeing Remus' desperate and anxious behaviour, she'd agreed to do comply, if only because of their vampire guests. Although Remus was civil towards Alec and Demetri, he would never and could never trust them, especially with Moony fighting for control so he could kill them for being in his territory where his healing mate and newborn cub were residing. Hermione knew it wasn't easy for him and she appreciated his actions and behaviour.

And when Hermione wasn't doing those things, she was with Alec and Demetri, giving them a history lesson on the Wizarding World and the wars that had taken place. She told them of the known Death Eaters, of their personalities and what they knew of them, so they were better prepared. She did the same with the giants, werewolves and much to their utter horror, acromantula and dementors. Alec seemed to dislike the acromantulas the most which amused Hermione. After their history and magical creature lessons, she spent time with them outdoors in the fields surrounding the house, showing them a variety of spells they should avoid, particularly those of Fire Magic, which they determined she was rather proficient at casting. She did what she could to prepare them for joining the war; it wasn't fair for them to go in all but blind no matter their skills, experience or abilities.

During the night, Hermione would go to bed with Demetri and Alec reading through more of the books she'd left out for them, giving them a selection to choose from. She would take a Dreamless Sleep Potion and catch Alec and Demetri eyeing her wearily as she downed it.

Alec and Demetri didn't really interact with anyone but Hermione. They were present during their planning sessions and they gave their opinions and suggestions when Hermione asked, they answered questions when asked and they were polite and civil to even those that openly showed their hatred of them. Hermione had hexed several Order members over the last week for trying to harm Alec and Demetri, and after the first couple of days, they soon realised that she hadn't been joking about them being under her protection.

They spent most of their time with Hermione, which everyone had noticed and some were confused by their behaviour towards her, and others didn't like it. Where they were polite and civil with everyone else, with Hermione they were something else entirely. They spoke to her softly. They smiled at her. They touched her freely. They followed her around, flanking her as if they were her bodyguards, protecting her. Their behaviour was not only strange but worrying; however, no one mentioned it, not anymore.

In return, Hermione spent most of her time with them and they weren't fond of the way she treated the two vampires. She was open with them, she answered any and all questions they asked her. She didn't lie to them, she often smiled at them, a true Hermione smile where her eyes lit up and her nose crinkled. Not the fake smile they had all become accustomed to. She teased them, she laughed at them. She wasn't afraid of them. She bloody well slept with them in her room, she locked and silenced it every night, and if anything were to happen, they wouldn't know until the magic wore off. They had tried to break through the wards on her room but had been unsuccessful.

Hermione had always been a completely brilliant witch, more powerful than the average witch even as a youngster, yet when she reached her magical maturity, her magic seemed to have increased tenfold, making her protective wards very difficult to crack, it was the reason they had been so well hidden during their time on the run. They had considered getting Bill to break them but soon decided against it, for if Hermione knew what they'd been doing, she most certainly wouldn't be happy. And an unhappy Hermione was a terrifying thought.

They had tried to voice their concerns but it fell on deaf ears with Hermione either waving off their worries, laughing at them, or looking at them as if they'd been dropped on their heads as babies one too many times. So, for the most part, they observed and they didn't comment.

Well, Ron did, which always resulted with him being red in the face, Hermione looking murderous, her wand hand twitching and the two vampires flanking Hermione looking far too pleased with the situation. They looked at her affectionately, proudly. During these times, the room would be vacated quickly to prevent anyone from being hit with ricocheting spells should they start flying.

And it was after another argument between Hermione and Ron when she stormed out of the house and into the fields, Alec and Demetri following her and Harry keeping Ron back, knowing that she needed time away from him to get her emotions under control so she didn't hex him beyond the point of no return.

"He's a charming fellow," Alec commented dryly.

She turned on the spot and glared at him, seeing his teasing smile and Demetri looked far too amused with the situation. Seeing their smiles, she felt herself relax. The tension and anger leaving her and she sighed tiredly.

"Yes, he is," she agreed. "As I've said before, he's hot-headed and he has the emotional range of a bloody teaspoon." They snorted at her.

She looked up at the sky, seeing that it was beginning to darken and that meant they were less than twenty-four hours away from forcing the Final Battle. Win or lose, it would be over.

Fear washed over her, she could lose everyone she loved.

She shook her head and squashed down the fear; she couldn't let fear rule her. If she did she would be distracted. She needed to be on top form.

She took a deep breath and then held her hands out which Alec and Demetri took in an instant.

"Where are we going?" Demetri asked knowingly.

"To find you dinner," she said lightly.

Their eyes widened slightly; it amazed them how she spoke of their feeding requirements without so much as batting an eyelash.

~000~000~000~

"Where are we?"

"The Forest of Dean, this is one of the locations we hid out at during our time on the run," she explained. "There are no humans around for miles, so there's no risk of hurting anyone you're not meant to. The hiking tracks are on the other side of the forest, so even if humans were to be around, they are still miles out," she shrugged. "All you have to do is say the Dark Lord's name and they will appear. Is two hours enough time?" She asked and they nodded, still surprised by how she was so blasé regarding the circumstances. "Alright, I'll meet you here in exactly two hours."

~000~000~000~

Two hours later, the sharp crack of Hermione arriving at the forest echoed through the night, it was silent except for a few birds that had been startled by her entrance and they squawked as they took flight.

She sent out a silent apology as she surveyed her surroundings. The ground was disturbed with broken twigs and branches, hell, there were even a couple of trees that looked to have been smashed to the ground, but otherwise, there was no blood in sight and there were no bodies.

Her eyes caught sight of a familiar shape on the ground and she moved over to it and picked it up, feeling the dark pulse of magic from within the wand. It was fully intact and it didn't take kindly to her holding it. The bloody thing sent an electric shock through her!

She yelped and dropped it to the floor, glaring at it and holding her hand to her chest protectively. She heard chuckling and turned her gaze, narrowing her eyes as Demetri and Alec stepped out of the shadows and into the moonlight.

There wasn't a hair out of place, the muggle clothing they wore was free of rumples and creases and there was no sign of blood, which she'd been expecting. She can't imagine drinking blood being a clean task. Her eyes locked with theirs, they were the brightest red she'd ever seen and although the meaning behind the colour should frighten and disgust her, it didn't. They were beautiful, like rubies sparkling in the sunlight. She was partial to the colour red. She shook her head and pulled her gaze from them before they could think she was strange for staring at them.

"It's not funny, the bloody wand tried to electrocute me," she protested and their chuckles rang through the silence of the forest as she glared at them, unimpressed.

She caught sight of Demetri holding several other wands and she blinked, forgetting the pain in her hand and her annoyance.

"Why do you have wands?" She asked.

"We thought they might be of some use to you," he replied. She blinked in surprise. "You said you were defenceless without your wand, so if you had a spare, it would be unexpected."

"Yes, you're right, that is extremely helpful, the only problem being each wand is unique, it is said no two are the same and if they are it's incredibly rare. Wands are very specific, they are loyal to only their intended witch or wizard. My wand, in particular, it was made over a century ago, thousands of witches and wizards have touched it before I found it, or it found me, I should say."

"You won't be able to use them?" Alec frowned, looking disappointed that their idea was of no use to her.

"Not necessarily," she bit her lip in thought, trying to think of the best way to describe it. "Some wands' allegiance can be won if you won it during a duel and you defeated the owner. But still, they will never truly be yours and they will never truly be loyal to you. For that reason, this makes spell casting unpredictable as the wand may not be able to channel the magic you want it to. Over time, if you continue practising you may have a backup wand, but it could take years. I already have a second wand."

"You do?" They chorused.

"Yes, before I was rescued from the enemy camp, I was able to get my hands on the wand of Bellatrix Lestrange and Harry was able to get the wands of Narcissa and Draco Malfoy. Bellatrix is the right hand of the Dark Lord, and we discovered that she had one of his immortal objects hidden away in her bank vault at Gringotts. Gringotts is impenetrable, the security being so advanced it makes it so, as well as the magic surrounding the building dating back to the time of its foundation. Using the PolyJuice Potion, I turned myself into Bellatrix and with her wand, I was able to break into her bank vault, we got the object and we were double-crossed by a goblin that aided us in getting into the building. We unexpectedly escaped on the back of the blind dragon that tried to flay us alive and then eat us."

They stared in surprise and her lip twitched in amusement.

"Bellatrix's wand has been used for nothing but dark magic and therefore, every time I try to cast a spell that isn't dark in nature, I'm having difficulty. It's a battle of wills, at the moment, we're even in score." They snorted at her. "The qualities of a wand differ depending on their makings; their length, the wood, the core, the wand crafter themselves. Each factor affects the wand. For example, wands that contain a unicorn hair core are very difficult to turn to the dark arts as unicorns are one of the purest magical creatures to exist. It's said that if you are to slay a creature of such innocence, that you are to be cursed for the rest of your life in a state that is neither living nor dead."

"A dragon heartstring core is the most susceptible to being turned to the dark arts. Although they are known to produce powerful wands and flamboyant spells and due to their temperamental nature, they are also prone to accidents. Now, a phoenix feather core is a very rare substance to have in a wand. They are known to produce powerful magics and to act of its own accord in times of trouble. Since a phoenix is one of the most independent and detached magical creatures to exist, it's extremely hard for a person to win the wand's allegiance and it's a rare occurrence for that to happen. I know, it's a lot to take in," she said, seeing their confused but intrigued expressions. "How many do you have?"

"Nine," Alec answered.

She let out a slow whistle of appreciation. "You've been busy," she commented with a light laugh.

"We thought about what you said, we tried to take as many out as we could. We had to summon them more than once." Demetri responded and she raised an eyebrow in response. "Their blood, it was... Strange," he grimaced.

"That's likely due to the dark aura surrounding them. It seeps into their very soul, their body and their bloodstream."

"We couldn't stomach much of it, so we tried with several others, some weren't as bad as others, but in general, they were all awful."

She made a humming sound.

"I don't suppose you took out any Death Eaters, did you?"

"There were three wearing skull masks, the other six looked as though they hadn't bathed in weeks."

"Three Death Eaters and six snatchers, all in the space of a couple of hours, consider me impressed, boys."

~000~000~000~

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN!?"

"Last time I checked, Ronald, you're not my mother. I'm of age and I'm older than you. You are not my keeper, so keep your nose out of my business," she snapped. She was getting tired of the arguing. He seemed to go out of his way to antagonize her.

"Hermione, you've been gone for an hour, we were just worried," Harry spoke softly.

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling Alec and Demetri move closer to her.

"Alright, look, Alec and Demetri are able to go a few weeks without needing to feed... Don't start, Ronald, they need blood, we need food and water, get over it!" She snapped at him, unaware of the occupants flittering into the room after hearing their voices. "They had fed before coming here and they were able to go another two weeks without needing to feed again, yet they need to be at their strongest for the battle tomorrow and for that, they need to feed."

"How can you condone this?!" Mrs. Weasley shrieked and Hermione turned her head, her expression completely fed up. She was tired of this argument being rehashed, it was pointless.

"The same way you provide food and water so your children may survive," she replied, her voice taking an icy chill. "We need food and water, they need blood. You need to get over your prejudice, you're no better than those that follow Him." Mrs. Weasley gasped in outrage but Hermione had meant what she'd said and she wasn't taking it back. "I took Alec and Demetri to a secure location, and rather than feeding on innocent muggles, they said the Taboo." Everyone blinked at them. "They took down nine of his followers, three Death Eaters and six snatchers. That's nine less in His army that we have to fight against, and," she took the wands from Demetri and threw them in a pile on the floor for everyone to see. "They ensured they didn't suffer any pain, they were given a quick death and ensured their wands weren't damaged. They kept them for us, as they believed it was unfair that you would be defenceless if you were to lose your wand in a duel. They could've destroyed them yet they kept them as a thoughtful gesture they thought you would appreciate. If you're not going to show them the respect they have earned, nor the kindness, then I'm ashamed to be affiliated with the lot of you." She let her words hang in the air. "I'm going to bed, you may fight amongst yourselves over the wands they acquired for you."

She stormed off, heading up the stairs and to her bedroom. When the door closed behind Alec, she threw up locking and silencing wards and threw herself onto the bed.

"You didn't have to do that, Hermione," Demetri's voice interrupted her silent fuming.

She sat up and turned her attention to them as they took seats on the chairs.

"Yes, I did. The way they are treating you is only slightly better than the way I am treated by the other side. You cannot help what you are or what you are forced to do to survive and if they can't see that, they're as bad as Him and his followers. I won't stand for you being disrespected," she vowed before she stood and silently stalked to her bathroom, leaving behind their stunned and awed expressions.