A/N: Well here I am starting a new story when I have no right to ;) I got attacked by this particular plot bunny one morning and it's been weighing heavily in my head ever since.
When you're done, please leave a review!
This story is for Ambir, Ryan and Jen, who suffered through helping me think of the title. Mwah!! Loff you guys!!!!
Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter and Co, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction for free would I?
Hermione Granger set her eagle feather quill down and rubbed her weary eyes. A glance at the clock on her desk told her it was half past seven, and time to go home.
"What in the world are you still doing here?" a voice at her door made her look up and smile.
"I'm about to leave, I promise." Hermione grinned at Ernie MacMillan, one of her co-workers and good friends. "I just had to finish up this report so that Cho has it in the morning." With one flick of her wand, the parchments collected together in a neat pile and Hermione placed it in a tray in on her desk. No sooner did her fingers leave the parchments than they disappeared, and reappeared upstairs in Cho's office.
"You're overworking again." Ernie wagged his finger at her.
"Well you know me, always reading and compiling." Hermione smiled outwardly. "The ever working Gryffindor spirit."
Ernie smiled back. "Just promise me you'll get some rest soon." He said.
"Promise." Hermione replied, her grin genuine this time. He waved and continued on down the corridor. She watched him go and then waved her wand, sending the books she had been using back onto the shelf and the spare parchment back in her drawer. She dropped a copy of her report into her leather case and pulled her cloak over her shoulders, fastening it securely. Locking her office door behind her, Hermione set off down the corridor.
"You're still here?" Millicent Bulstrode sneered as Hermione entered the front office.
"Just leaving." Hermione replied coolly, ignoring Millicent's snide tone. She went over to the box on the wall and slid her wand inside.
"Clocking out, seven thirty five." A voice replied from the box. Hermione slipped her wand into her bag. "Why are you back?"
"None of your business." Millicent snapped, pulling something from the drawer and putting it in her purse. She brushed past Hermione, making sure to shove the smaller girl with her shoulder. "You lock up."
Hermione rolled her eyes as she watched her go. She and Millicent had never gotten along, due largely to the fact that she held a higher, better paying position in Cho's company. She muttered the spell that would lock the office door, then turned and left the building, pulling her cloak tighter around her as the cool wind whipped around her.
"Herm-own-ninny." A familiar Bulgarian accent made her stop in her tracks.
"Viktor." Hermione closed her eyes a moment. She turned on her heel and regarded him. "What are you doing here?"
"I haff come to ask you for dinner." Viktor said.
"You've come to ask me for dinner?" Hermione repeated, wincing at his broken English.
"Vell, I would enjoy if you vould accompany me."
"Viktor…." Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to keep her temper from flaring. "I'm sorry, but no."
"Vy not?" he asked, following her as she began to walk away.
"Because I'm not interested in you, Viktor." Hermione tried to say it as politely as possible. "Look, I told you that summer I came to visit you in Bulgaria that we were only friends, that's how it always was and always will be."
"But I really like you." Viktor continued to follow her. "Vy can't we work anything out?" he put a restraining hand on her arm.
"Because!" Hermione snapped as she turned around, her hair flying out behind her. "I don't think of you that way, I never have, you're in your late twenties and you've been fixated on me ever since my fourth year of Hogwarts. I've had enough!" she was finally ready to snap. "I don't want you anywhere near me. Stay away!" the last words came out through clenched teeth.
Viktor didn't follow her this time, instead, staring after her as she disappeared down the alley. "You can run now Herm-own-ninny, but I will haff you someday."
She walked quickly down the street, clutching her case tightly in her hand. All she wanted to do was get home, have a nice cup of tea, put her feet up and forget about what had just happened with Viktor. "Blasted wind." Hermione muttered as it blew her cloak out behind her. A sudden sound made her stop in her tracks and whip around. "Hello? Viktor?" she called out cautiously; ready to run if a dark shape came at her. When nothing but the wind answered her, she turned back around and began walking again, this time quicker.
The person grinned sinisterly as Hermione sped up her pace. Sneaking back out from behind a clump of bushes, they resumed walking behind her. Cold hatred pulsed through their veins like blood, despising her more and more with each step they took. Perfect, beautiful Hermione Granger, who everyone loved, who everyone admired.
'You won't be so admired when I'm finished with you.' The person thought to themselves. They watched again as she went up the steps to her flat, opening and closing the door behind her. Narrowing their eyes, they settled back, to wait for just the right time.
Hermione placed a locking spell on her door like she did every night, then placed her leather case on the table in her small foyer. Her cloak went on the hook next to the mirror, her shoes underneath. Her bedroom was down the short hallway, the other two rooms being the bathroom and a guest room. Hermione shed her work clothing, stepping into a more comfortable choice of beige pyjama trousers and a white camisole, tying her wild bushy locks back in a messy bun. Moving into the kitchen, she set her kettle on the counter and a swish and flick later, her tea was steaming in a mug.
"Time to relax." Hermione said, carrying it into her living room. She sat down in a squashy, comfortable chair and put her feet up. Closing her eyes, she took a long sip and sighed.
Ring! There was a pause. Ring! Ring! Hermione groaned. "Harry!!!" she said as she set her mug down. When she installed the Muggle phone in her flat, she charmed it so each friend or family member of hers had a different ring so she'd know who it was. "Hallo Harry." She spoke with a touch of annoyance in her voice.
"Hi Hermione." Harry replied. His voice sounded a bit subdued, she noticed.
"What's the matter?" Hermione asked perceptively, feeling bad for the way she answered.
He sighed and was silent a moment. "Liz and I broke up."
"What?" Hermione asked, suddenly wide eyed in shock. Everyone thought that Harry and his girlfriend of a year would be getting married someday.
"We broke up tonight." Harry said.
"Harry I'm sorry!" she said, walking back into her living room and collapsing in the chair. "What happened?"
"Well, I came home today early to surprise her since our anniversary is… was….in two days… turns out she was celebrating something else, with someone else… in our bed."
"That…bitch!" Hermione was suddenly furious. "How dare she?" She could feel Harry smile at her indignation. "Who… who was it?"
"I don't know." He answered. "Someone from her work, I guess. He hightailed it out of here pretty quick, and then she and I screamed at each other for a good half hour before she grabbed some clothes and left."
"Why?" Hermione asked. "I mean Harry; you're like the devoted boyfriend that all girls dream about, not cheat on." He was silent. "Harry, tell me." She pressed.
"Well, the one thing I could make out during our screaming match was that she was tired of sleeping in my bed when I so obviously wanted someone else to be in there with me." Harry knew it was no use trying to keep something from Hermione, she could sniff it out like search dogs.
"What? Who?" she asked.
"I don't know." Harry said quickly, and Hermione knew he was hiding something, but chose not to pursue it. He'd had enough grief for one night. "But I managed to do a nice number on the bed after she was gone. Had to go out and replace it so I'd have somewhere to sleep."
Hermione bit her lower lip. "Harry I am so sorry."
"It's not your fault, Hermione." He replied. "I just needed to talk to you….you're like a voice of reason for me."
She smiled at this. "I'm just the logical one."
"Thank goodness one of us is." Harry said. "I figured I would feel better after giving you a call."
"Do you?"
"Sort of. I'm sure it'll sink in again tomorrow and I'll be depressed for a good few weeks."
"Want me to come over?" Hermione offered.
"No… you take the rest of your evening and relax." Harry said. "Working late again tonight?"
"Yes. How did you know?" She asked, twisting an escaped lock of hair with her index finger.
"I tried ringing you at six, but no answer. Was Cho keeping you late again?"
"Well, she asked me to have a report done for her by the end of the week. I figured if I stayed late tonight I would get it finished a few days early." Hermione replied.
"I still sometimes have a hard time believing Cho runs a research company." Harry said. "I mean, when we knew her at Hogwarts, she was so athletic, I thought for sure she'd be playing professional Quidditch."
"People certainly can change." Hermione agreed. "She's good to work for though, very fair, and she doesn't make horrible demands on us." Harry and Hermione talked late into the evening, she was surprised when she looked up and saw it was nearly midnight. "Harry I've got to go."
"I didn't realise it was so late!" Harry was apologetic. "I'm sorry for talking your ear off all night."
"It's all right Harry." Hermione replied, taking her empty mug into the kitchen. "I'm glad I was able to keep your mind off everything."
"Thanks." Harry said. "Listen, any chance you'd be willing to join me for dinner tomorrow evening then? I have reservations that I won't be using otherwise…"
"Long as you're buying, I'm there." Hermione joked.
She could hear his grin. "All right, I'll come by your place at eight."
"See you then." Hermione agreed. "Love you."
"Love you too." Harry said, and hung up.
Hermione replaced the cordless phone on the wall and closed her eyes. She felt horrible for Harry, and was still seething at the nerve of that woman. How anyone could treat someone like Harry so callously was beyond her. Hermione was normally a calm, even tempered person but certain situations, especially ones where one of 'her boys' were hurt, and she could be quite terrifying to deal with. A loud and sudden clap of thunder made her jump from her thoughts.
"I hate storms." She muttered, turning the kitchen light out and heading down the hall to her bedroom. Placing her wand on the nightstand, she turned off the lamp and pulled the soft flannel covers over her body. Hermione hoped to fall asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, but the impending storm made it difficult. She wished now she'd insisted on going to Harry's, then she could have just stayed there on his sofa.
After spending a half hour tossing and turning, she tried counting house elves, breathing deeply and steadily, but nothing worked. An hour after that, Hermione finally managed to fall into a light slumber as the thunder and lightning started moving away, leaving only a soft steady rain behind.
CRREEEEAAAAKKKK. Hermione jerked back up at the sound, her heart thumping against her ribs. Hugging the sheets tight against her body, she stayed completely still, training her ears keenly. The sound came again, accompanied by a muffled thump that made chills run up and down her spine.
'There's someone in my flat!!!' the thought frightened her even more. She moved her arm slowly out from under the covers and grabbed for her wand, but in her panic it slipped and rolled off underneath her bed.
"Fuck!" Hermione swore softly. Forcing herself to remain calm, she slipped out of bed and crept quietly across the room, pressing her ear to the door. For a few minutes all she heard was silence, and then a loud thump against her door made her jump back and stifle a scream. As she reached for the knob to lock the door, it began to twist. Hermione leapt forward and held on with all her strength, whoever it was on the other side was strong. After a few minutes of struggling, she managed to turn it and get it locked, making the person on the other side bang on the wooden frame.
"Leave me alone!!!" she screamed, backing away from the door, tears springing into her eyes. She dove back down on the side of the bed, reaching underneath blindly for her wand. Her fingers brushed it, but in her state of near hysteria, she wound up rolling it further under the bed and completely out of reach. Another short scream escaped from her throat as her prowler began punching at the door, making the wood split. Her breath came quicker as she scrambled back towards the closet, hoping that the attacker would leave.
No such luck. Whoever it was, wasn't giving up. Hermione pulled the sliding door almost shut, leaving a tiny crack open so she could see. Two hands had successfully broke through the bedroom door; all she could see were black arms, the hands with black gloves on. She whimpered and pushed herself into the corner, pulling some of her clothing across, shielding her from view.
"Fucking bitch…" a voice came from the hallway as the person used one of their hands to unlock the door, then step inside. Hermione trembled violently; the person's head was covered with a baggy black mask that matched the rest of their clothing.
'Sweet Merlin please let them not find me, please…' Hermione prayed silently. She had never been more terrified than she was right now. The person stalked around her room, tearing the covers off her bed, swearing under their breath as they searched for her. She stifled a cry as the person over turned the bed, smashing and throwing things off her dresser in frustration. "Please… just leave…" Hermione whispered almost noiselessly.
The person growled, anger mounting. "Mine…" they picked up a glass vase and threw it at the closet door.
Hermione couldn't help it, she screamed as it shattered. Within two strides, the person crossed the room and yanked the door open so hard it nearly left the frame.
"NO!" Hermione screamed as her arm was pulled so hard it nearly became disjointed. She was dragged across the floor and thrown against the wall roughly. "Who are you? What do you want?"
"I want you." The person said, pointing a wand at her. "Stupefy!"
The last thing Hermione remembered was a blinding white light rushing towards her, then darkness.
*** *** *** *** *** ***
Cracks of weak light filtered through the boarded up windows of the ramshackle house. Hermione groaned, her bed felt unusually uncomfortable and she had a horribly splitting headache.
"Unnhhhhh…" she tried to turn on her side and curl up, but she found that she couldn't. Hermione's eyes opened wide as she suddenly remembered what had happened. "Oh Merlin…" she muttered, trying not to slip into a total panic. Gently moving her arms, she discovered they were tied to the top of the bed she was lying on; her legs were also bound at the bottom. She dug her fingers into the ropes, and realised that the knots weren't tied tightly. Hermione managed to loosen the bindings around her wrists, and then pulled her hands free and feverishly worked on her ankles, all the while listening carefully for any footsteps that would mean her attacker returning.
Once she managed to free herself completely she immediately ran over to the single window and tried to pull off the boards covering it. Unfortunately, they were nailed on tightly and nothing she could do would make them budge.
"Shit!" she swore quietly. Hermione wasn't the type of person to use profanities often, but the whole situation called for it. She crossed the room to the door, which was locked as well. Closing her eyes, she calmed herself down before she started screaming aloud and attracting unwanted attention. Returning to the bed, she sat down and folded her arms over her chest, there was a cold draft blowing through cracks in the old wood and all she had on was her camisole and flimsy trousers.
Hermione's body was telling her that she had been unconscious, possibly for more than one night. Her stomach was growling pitifully, wanting food she didn't have. A sudden thought raced through her mind.
"I can apparate!" Hope surged through her as she focused on getting out. She performed the usual apparition concentration and when she opened her eyes, she was completely dismayed to find herself still in the room. A few more unsuccessful tries had her admitting that whoever had taken her must have set up apparition wards.
Hermione spent the rest of the daylight hours pacing around the room, trying to think of ways to escape or how to notify someone of her whereabouts. As the last rays of sunshine fell, loud scraping and thumping outside the room indicated that her kidnapper was returning. She flew to the bed and had just managed to get her hands in the loops when the door was opened.
It was dusky in the room now, so it was hard for her to make out a clear shape of the person. The black mask was firmly in place, along with the black robes and gloves they had been wearing before.
"How long have I been here." She wasn't asking, but demanding answers.
"Two days." She was surprised how the person answered immediately. Her brain went to work right away, trying to place the voice and/or mannerisms.
"Don't think you'll figure out who I am." The person read her mind. "I've used a spell to disguise my voice. And don't try Apparating, I've surrounded this room with wards, you won't be able to go anywhere."
"What do you want with me?" Hermione once again demanded.
The figure stood in silence. "You'll find out in due time what I want with you."
"Tell me now!" Hermione ordered. "I'm not fucking playing games with you!"
"You'll do what I say!!!" the person said in a rage. They reached up into the arm of their robe and brandished something long and shiny.
A knife.
Hermione gulped back her biting words. It looked like one of those knives she'd seen in Muggle horror movies, although having it so near her was even scarier than anything she'd seen in those films. She pressed her lips together, not taking her eyes off it for a second.
The person moved to the side of the bed and Hermione jerked her body away. "Don't touch me!"
SLAP! Her head turned away sharply as a large red mark appeared on her cheek. "Not a word out of you." The bed springs screeched in complaint as the person lowered themselves next to her. The cold blade of the knife was then pressed against her abdomen, and she whimpered in fright.
"I'm going to tell you a story…" the person began. "About a girl who thought she was so perfect, so above everyone." The knife began travelling its way under her shirt. "Hermione Granger thought so much of herself that she refused to give people the time of day unless they were as smart as her." A ripping sound filled the room as the knife cut apart her camisole. "One day she was taken right out of her own home." The person pulled the shirt away from her body as they took the knife down her front again. "If only she knew that if she had only treated a particular person with the attention they deserve, she wouldn't find herself in such a predicament." They trailed the knife back over her abdomen as Hermione trembled violently.
"I don't know who you're talking about." She whispered. "Please, don't kill me…" tears leaked from her eyes.
"Too late." The smug voice said. "You'll die slowly, so I can watch the blood drain from your body." Hermione tried to shake her head, but found the knife pressed against her neck. They brought their head down close to hers. "I want to watch your eyes as you die, as your life slips away…"
"No… please…" she could only protest weakly now. "Please, I won't tell anyone I swear I won't."
"Shut up!" the person screamed. "It's time to go, Hermione…." The blade pressed harder against her skin and a sharp pain accompanied this time. She felt something warm start to trickle down her neck and realised in that instant if she wanted to live, she was going to have to act.
"NO!" she screamed, and pulled her arm from one of the loops. She punched the person as hard as she could and they went flying back, the knife skittering across the floor. Not wasting a moment, she yanked her other arm and legs from the bonds and delivered a swift kick between the person's legs.
"AHHHH BITCH!" they cried, hunched over in pain. Hermione took her chance and ran across the room out the door, slamming it behind her, and flew down a narrow flight of stairs.
"Front door…" she gasped to herself as she fell down the last few steps.
"I'M GOING TO FUCKING RIP YOU APART!" the person literally roared, crashing through the door. Hermione screamed again and ran to the right, entering a tiny kitchen. She saw a door across the room and clawed at the handle with one hand while pressing her fingers to her wound with the other. She managed to get the door open and stumbled outside, the cold air biting at her exposed skin.
"Got….to…get…out…of here…" Hermione gasped, streaking across the yard. A tall wire fence surrounded the property; she searched it frantically for some sort of gate.
"No way I'm letting you go now!" the person was holding themselves up in the door frame, a wand pointed directly at her. "Stupefy!"
Hermione ducked the spell by a hairs width, and continued her near hysterical search. In her panicked mind, one thought suddenly came through clear.
"Apparate." She said to herself as yet another spell came flying her way. The person had said they only put wards on the room she was in. "I'll go to the Ministry building!"
"AVADA KEDAVRA!" the figure screamed, furious to the point of no return. Hermione's eyes opened wide as the green light sped towards her.
"NO!" She screamed as she closed her eyes and concentrated on the white stone steps of the Ministry of Magic. The green light continued to rush forward and Hermione disappeared as it hit the fence behind her.
A/N: Woo! Didn't think Hermione was going to make it there for a second or two. I'm trying my hand at a bit of violent action so that I'll be better prepared for some upcoming scenes of Shadows.
Please leave a review and let me know what you think of this so far! I am not sure yet when I will be updating, I wasn't even going to write this for awhile due to the large workload I have right now with school.
Art of Seduction and Shadows will be on their way soon! Once my schedule calms down I'll have more time to write and get new chapters out to you guys!