CHAPTER NINETEEN
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
Sunday 3rd May 1998
Demetri was startled from watching the tiny blue bundle sleeping, when Hermione started screaming in her sleep. Alec was beside the bed instantly and Demetri removed his finger from the surprisingly tight grip of the little human.
Teddy wriggled about restlessly when he did so and he gripped back on to Demetri's finger, calming the moment he did so. He frowned, pulling his finger back and Teddy wriggled again. Demetri grabbed Alec's hand and offered it to the child despite Alec's less than pleased expression, even as Teddy took the offer and wrapped his small hand around Alec's finger, once again calming in his sleep.
Demetri climbed onto the bed behind Hermione and pulled her to him, wrapping her up in his arms and running a hand through her hair and down her back comfortingly as he made soothing sounds against her ear. Her screams slowly died down into cries until she settled down once more, yet he didn't release his hold on her.
It wasn't long later when Hermione was woken by Teddy crying. She stiffened when she realised that she wasn't currently pressed against the mattress, but a hard body. A hand was running through her curls and she sighed, relaxing into the touch. She loved to have her hair played with and it was something her mother used to do for her.
An ice-cold kiss was placed to her forehead and she looked up, meeting the blood-red eyes of Demetri.
"Nightmare?" She questioned quietly.
"Nightmare," he confirmed.
She closed her eyes and sighed.
"Thank you," she told him softly before moving away from him, summoning a bottle and the milk formula and quickly preparing Teddy's bottle.
When it was done, she picked him up and supported his weight and she fed the child exactly the way Tonks had shown her to. Once Teddy finished his bottle, she burped him and laid him back down and he soon fell asleep, latching onto her finger, as well as Alec's.
He didn't look pleased by it but it brought a half-smile to Hermione's mouth and so he allowed it. Demetri stayed behind her on the bed, holding her free hand as she slept. She was woken three more times that night, not by her nightmares but by Teddy.
When the sun streamed through the windows of her bedroom, she became aware of the knocking on her bedroom door as the silencing and locking wards had long since worn off.
"Hermione? Are you okay?" Harry's voice questioned sadly.
"HERMIONE! OPEN THE BLOODY DOOR!" Ron's voice boomed.
She ignored them both, focusing her attention on the child that was wriggling in her arms.
"Are you hungry?" Demetri asked her softly. She shook her head, yet he heard the grumbling sounds of her stomach. "Hermione, you need to eat," he told her. "Do you not want to face the others?" She nodded. "That's understandable given the circumstances, I will retrieve your breakfast and Alec will stay with you, okay?" She nodded again but during this exchange, she hadn't taken her eyes away from Teddy.
Demetri opened the door and quickly closed it behind him, causing the two teens to take a step backwards and their words were silenced.
"She doesn't want to see anyone right now," Demetri told them.
Ron narrowed his eyes. "You don't know what she wants," he spat.
"I know she doesn't want to see anyone right now, she's not in the right frame of mind to converse with anyone. Her sole attention is on her Godson, ensuring he is fed and healthy. When she feels she is ready, then she will let you know."
"She's not the only one affected by this," Ron replied angrily, his face beginning to flush red.
"No, she's not. But she is the one that was tortured for three days and she didn't have time to properly recuperate or process it. She is the one that lost her parents and she found their mangled bodies. She is the one that lost the man she saw as a father figure, as well as two good friends, and she has taken on the responsibility of raising and caring for a newborn child."
"What d'you mean a father figure?" Harry frowned, nudging Ron to prevent him from responding.
"The werewolf, she led us to believe she saw him as an Uncle but it's my belief their relationship was much deeper than that. I have come to the conclusion she saw him as a father and he as a daughter."
Harry's eyes widened in realisation. "That makes sense," he whispered quietly. "Remus has always been kind and protective over us, but more so Hermione, and he stayed with her at her safe house after her parents' deaths."
"So you understand that she needs time alone?" Demetri clarified.
"Yes," Harry nodded, once again nudging Ron to keep him quiet. "We'll leave her be for today but I'm coming back in the morning and I will continue to do so until she's ready to see me."
"Thank you, don't push her, she has a child in there that needs more attention than you do."
He stepped around them and descended the stairs, ignoring the looks the present Weasleys sent him as he found his way around the kitchen and took food that was scattered about the table, as well as a cup of tea and returning upstairs, shutting the door behind himself and he was aware as Hermione once again, erected silencing and locking wards around the room.
He put the plate of food and a cup of tea on the bedside table and took the wriggling child from Hermione, allowing her to eat her breakfast. It was clear to him as she ate, that she was hungry and he knew she would be; she hadn't eaten since before they left for the battle the night before.
She ate in silence but kept her eyes on Teddy as he fell asleep in Demetri's arms.
She didn't speak for the rest of the day, nor did she leave the room, not that she had to since she had her en-suite bathroom. Demetri and Alec busied themselves with reading the books Hermione had provided them and watching Hermione with Teddy. When lunch arrived, Demetri left the room once more to head down to the kitchen to retrieve some food for Hermione and taking it back up to her and he would hold Teddy as she ate. When it came to dinner, he repeated the process of collecting food for Hermione and bringing it back up to her, holding Teddy as she ate.
When Teddy had been bathed, changed, fed and burped, he was put to sleep and Alec and Demetri watched over him as she showered and prepared for bed. She fell asleep with Teddy's finger latched onto hers, and when her nightmares woke her, she was being held by Demetri and Alec's finger was held by the sleeping child beside her. After that she was woken several times during the night to feed the child before she woke to the morning sun.
~000~000~000~
Sunday 10th May 1998
Over the last week the routine of the day between Hermione, Alec and Demetri repeated itself without fail. Hermione refused to leave her bedroom and so Demetri and Alec would take turns in retrieving her food, in which Mrs. Weasley had prepared since she and her family had yet to leave, even though the property was no longer the headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. Demetri would hold Teddy whilst she ate and they would watch as she tended to the child, or read their books, expanding their knowledge on the Wizarding World.
At night they would watch over the child as she showered and readied for bed and whilst she slept with the child latched onto her finger, Demetri would calm her from her nightmares and Alec would allow the child to hold his finger to replace Demetri's. Hermione would wake to feed the child several times during the night before waking for the day and the routine would repeat itself.
It was clear to them that she was grieving and that she would need time to sort through her thoughts and feelings. She was quiet, she barely spoke and she only answered questions with one-word answers or with a nod or shake of her head. She was only eating because Alec and Demetri retrieved the food for her, otherwise, they suspected she would starve herself due to her grief. All of her attention was on her Godson and she only put him down when he was sleeping, otherwise, she always held him.
During the time she went into the bathroom to shower, her cries of sadness and anguish would fill their ears, leaving them heartbroken for their mate. For the fact they couldn't take away her pain and make everything better for her. But they knew she needed to feel the grief so she could move past it.
She hadn't left her bedroom in the last week, nor had she even tried to interact with anyone other than Teddy, Alec or Demetri, and they knew the only reason the Weasleys were still there was because they were waiting for Hermione to resurface, and Alec had the suspicion the Weasley Matriarch was planning to use Hermione's grief to her advantage and convince Hermione to hand over Teddy's guardianship to her, not that either vampire would allow it.
They listened to the knocks and bangs on the door, to the shouts, yells, and sad comments, of which Hermione never answered and each time it was someone different. It wasn't just Harry and Ron, but Bill had come once, Ginny a few times, even Percy came by and the twins came by a couple of times, but they, in particular, didn't question Hermione.
They just sat outside the door, retelling stories from their childhood which Alec and Demetri had to admit, not only brought a small smile to Hermione's face but even made them chuckle a time or two as well. And out of all the Weasleys, they had come to the conclusion that the twins were the best of the bunch.
It was a week later when it was the twins that knocked on the door but rather than retelling an event from their childhood, they spoke of something that caught Hermione's attention instantly.
"Hermione," one of the twins said softly. "It's Remus', Tonks' and Andy's funeral today."
"We're leaving in an hour if you wish to attend, you know the place," the other twin spoke before they heard the footsteps on the stairs.
Tears began to silently fall from Hermione's eyes as she screwed them shut tightly and held Teddy to her. They watched as her breathing became heavier and sobs wracked her small frame, and after fifteen minutes, she calmed herself. It was half an hour later when she stood up and walked over to Demetri and he stood, knowing that she was about to deposit her Godson into his arms.
She disappeared into the bathroom and they heard the running water in the sink before something flew across the room and into the bathroom. When Hermione emerged fifteen minutes later, she was dressed in black flats, a black long-sleeved dress that fit her frame perfectly, and she had her hair up in an elegant bun. She put on some black robes and slipped her wand and beaded bag into her robe pockets.
They kept their eyes on her but remained silent and Demetri placed her Godson back into her arms and for the first time in a week, she left the confinement of her bedroom.
They headed out of the house which had been empty, meaning everyone had already left, and Alec took her hand as Demetri wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she apparated them away.
~000~000~000~
As she walked out of the cluster of trees and into the clearing, she could see the sun shining down on the lake that was on the Lupins' property. Since Kingsley and Bill had aided in creating the wards around the land, they were able to temporarily alter them so that others that didn't have access through the wards would be able to attend the funeral.
Hermione could see that all of the Order members were present, including a few of the professors from Hogwarts and some of her friends. As she walked towards the gathered crowd, she was instantly aware of the sad eyes that turned to her, as well as the surprised eyes of those that saw not only the child in her arms, but the two vampires that were stood by her side protectively, and apparently, comforting her with their touch.
She didn't speak as she made her way to the front of the crowd, coming to stand beside Harry and the Weasleys. He smiled at her sadly but didn't speak, seeming to know that it wasn't what she wanted. Now that Hermione had arrived, the funeral began. She silently cried as she listened to the words of Kingsley as he was the one to carry out the ceremony.
She silently cried as she listened to many of the attendees speak about Remus, Tonks and Andromeda. She silently cried as everyone lifted the lit wands in the air as a sign of respect and love. And she silently cried as the three caskets were lowered to the ground and Teddy slept peacefully, unaware that he would never see his parents again.
The caskets were covered with dirt, sealing them in the ground forever, and the others left the property, likely to attend another funeral since there had been many that had fallen during the battle.
Hermione stayed, as did Alec and Demetri and Harry but they gave her some space as she silently stared at the three headstones. Hermione turned and Demetri stepped forward, taking Teddy and holding him to his chest as she moved to kneel down in-between the graves of Remus and Tonks, her hands pressed against each headstone.
"I miss you," she started quietly, "I miss you so much and I hate that I've lost you, too. I don't know how I'm going to cope with you not being here but I promise, I will not let any harm come to Teddy. I will love him more than is thought to be possible. I will raise him to be a wonderful wizard, with the kindness and understanding of his father, with the courage and resourcefulness of his mother, and with the drive and generosity of his Grandmother. I don't know what I'm doing but I promise you all of these, and I promise that Teddy is my number one priority and I will never let anything threaten his safety. I do so swear it on my magic, on my blood and on my honour as a witch."
Harry gasped as the golden glow swallowed her up until she could no longer be seen, and then it faded and she entered their view once more.
"She just enacted the rites of the old times, a vow on not only her magic but her blood and life force," Harry said quietly to the two vampires, who were staring at her; that was the most she had spoken since they returned to the house after the battle a week ago.
She stayed by the gravestones for several minutes more before moving onto Andromeda's and after a few whispered words, she stood and walked over to them, wiping away her tears.
Alec and Demetri immediately noticed a difference in her. She didn't look as dazed or unresponsive, and although she still looked heartbroken, there was clearly a difference in her. Whatever she had done helped her to relinquish some of the grieve she had been feeling.
She stopped in front of Harry and they stared at each other silently before she launched herself forward and wrapped herself around him tightly and she cried into his shoulder. Harry, for his part, held her against him, rocking them slightly and muttering to her whilst the vampires pretended not to feel jealous.
They stayed that way for a long while until Hermione's cries died down and she pulled back from him, wiping her nose on her robe sleeve.
"I'm sorry, Harry," she apologised.
"I understand that you needed time alone, and that you need to take care of Teddy," he told her softly. "Don't worry about the rest of us, we're doing as well as can be expected."
"How's the search going for the escapees?"
"Honestly, not well," he admitted, "In the last week they've only managed to capture two and they were hiding in the Forbidden Forest."
Hermione frowned. "How many are there?" she asked.
"By Kingsley's count, forty-nine and six of those are inner circle members."
"We can't be having that," she bit her lip before she looked up and caught the gaze of Demetri. "Demetri?" She spoke, and with that simple call of his name, he seemed to understand what it was she was asking of him.
"We are to return to Volterra in one week's time," he reminded her softly, letting her know that if she were to be telling her friends of her leaving and the deal she made, she had better do it soon, and she still had things she needed to get in order. "But, for the following week, I will spend every moment possible helping to track those that escaped capture."
"Thank you," she said softly. "The others may not appreciate it but I do," she replied.
He knew that she was referring not only to his aiding in tracking fugitives but also to his actions over the previous week. He gave her a soft smile and she turned her eyes to Alec and he nodded with a smile of his own, letting her know that he understood those words were meant for him also.
"Alec will come with me, we'll leave you and your friend alone for a little while, and we'll find Shacklebolt and get straight on with the task," Demetri said, approaching her and depositing Teddy back into her arms. She smiled at them both and then they were gone in the blink of an eye.
"They're rather protective of you," Harry commented, a strange tone to his voice.
Hermione shrugged. "I've earned their trust and respect. They protected me when I was in Volterra and I've been protecting them since we arrived in England. They're actually rather kind when you get to know them, just because their hearts don't beat doesn't mean they don't have them, because they do," she told him, and he blinked in surprise at her words, especially since they were said with fondness.
She looked down at the slumbering baby in her arms.
"Do I have to worry about Molly?"
He sighed. "Yes, you do, as far I'm aware, she's been trying to convince Kingsley to break the bond of guardianship between you and Teddy."
"Then she's an idiot, the bond is more powerful than usual."
"How so?" He tipped his head.
"Because it was done on their death beds. As far as I can tell, Remus uttered the activation code before he died, as did Tonks, and so did Andy, I was there when she said it. Teddy is magically bonded to me as not only my Godchild but my son, too. I am, effectively, his mother, albeit adopted mother, and nothing can take that away from me, especially not an overbearing housewife. She needs to worry about her own kids rather than trying to steal mine."
Harry blinked in surprise at her words and then cleared his throat.
"Whose funeral is next?" She asked quietly.
"Flitwick's and Sprout's if you want to go."
She nodded before she took his hand and he side-alonged them to the outskirts of Hogwarts grounds, preparing to pay their respects to yet more casualties of the war.