Chapter Text
Chapter 1: The World Won't Stop
The fire was burning brightly in the fireplace as another log was added. Christmas music could be heard playing from the old record player in the corner of the room. There were three stockings hanging on the mantelpiece above the fireplace. There were candles around the room that gave the room a dim, but warm light in the parlor. On the other side of the room, there was a beautiful Christmas tree and a little rabbit ornament hopped from someone’s hand and raced over to a branch, hanging by the little string on its back before it turned into the figurine again.
A little girl around three-years-old with light auburn, curly hair, shining light brown eyes, wearing black Mary-Janes, white tights, a red and green plaid dress, a long sleeved-white shirt was underneath the dress, and she had red bow in her curls was beaming as she sat in the arms of her mother, Hermione. “Are you looking at the pretty lights?” Hermione said softly. The little girl nodded as the lights twinkled on the tree.
Hermione was wearing a pair of black high heels, a red velvet dress that had a black belt around her waist, and her hair was pulled back in a half-ponytail.
A hand reached over and moved over Hermione’s back, a gold wedding band showing on their left hand. The person leaned over and pressed a kiss to her cheek and Hermione smiled softly as her eyes slid closed and she reached up, resting her hand on their cheek, her engagement ring and wedding rings on her own hand.
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WHOOP! WHOOP! WHOOP! The alarm blared loudly in her tiny room. Hermione SHOT up from her bed, gasping for air as she pressed her palm to her forehead. “Get up, Mudblood, it’s another beautiful day,” the Death Eater behind the door said before walking away laughing. Getting up, Hermione reached around in the dark, pulling on the very worn, nearly torn brown boots that were by her bed. She dragged her fingers through her messy curls in the attempt to detangle it a little but she winced as the tangles just wrapped around her fingers.
She grabbed the gray button down shirt that sat on the stool in the corner, pulling it on over what used to be a white tank top. She grabbed the rubber band that sat on the same stool and pulled her hair out of her face as the door swung open. Immediately, with a silent scowl, Hermione forced herself down on her knees in a bowing position. “You’re finally learning, it took you long enough,” the Death Eater commented before he tugged on her ponytail, forcing her head up.
Hermione’s eyes glared up into the eyes of Pansy Parkinson. “Get up,” Pansy snapped, shoving her back. Hermione stumbled, but she pulled herself up. Just as she got to her feet, Pansy swung out and her hand connected to Hermione’s face, making her head jerk. She tasted iron in her mouth and her bottom lip throbbed as it split open. “You’ll be working for Lady Alecto today,” Pansy informed her, “You better get going, she’s not one to be kept waiting.” Pansy flipped her hair over her shoulder and turned around. Hermione followed behind her out of the tiny room.
Making her way through the dark, cold, damp halls, Hermione kept her eyes forward as she followed Pansy through the familiar halls that she was forced to call ‘home’ for the last three years of her life. This was her daily routine, she would be forced to wake up early in the morning, dressed, and was assigned to work for a Death Eater for the next several weeks. Sometimes she was forced to stay in their homes during that time, or she was sent back to her “hole” for the night. Sometimes she was fed every day, sometimes she wasn’t, it depended on the Death Eater. They kept her fed enough to let her live, because as being not only a Mudblood, but the most infamous Mudblood known to the world, killing her would make her a martyr and would cause an uprising.
Over the last five years this was Hermione’s life, she was tortured, beaten, starved, and every other kind of torture that would make even the strongest witches and wizards cower away. Yet, it didn’t break her, normally it would enrage them but she learned very quickly they took enjoyment to see how long it took her before they broke her. What they didn’t know, was they already took everything from her. There was nothing they could do that could be worse than what they had done to her family.
Just remembering her dream made her eyes misty, but she quickly blinked them away as they climbed the stones stairs.
Five Years Ago
Hermione made her way into the kitchen to find Harry and Ron sitting at her table talking quietly. “What are you two prattling on about?” she asked, raising her brow. Both of them looked at her and Harry let out a breath.
“Have you read the ‘Daily Prophet’ yet?” Harry asked.
Ron held up a copy for her and Hermione sat down beside him, taking the paper into her hand. ‘Minister Calls for Emergency Precautions’ it read. Hermione looked at the two of them. “Four more are gone?” she asked. Ron nodded his head slowly. “Who?” she asked.
“Both Astoria and Daphne Greengrass and their families, Cho Chang and her husband, and Dennis Creevy and his fiancé,” Harry replied.
Hermione frowned as she sat back in her seat. “Do you have any leads to what is leading to these disappearances?” she asked.
“We have a few theories, but we can’t really reveal anything,” Harry replied, “Not until we know for sure.”
Hermione nodded in understanding and let out a breath as she pressed her hand to her forehead. “Why does it feel like it had during Voldemort’s time?” she asked.
“It’s because it looks like history is repeating itself somehow,” Harry replied.
“Hermione,” Ron said, making her look over at him, “Harry and I were talking…we think it’d be best if you didn’t come to the Ministry for a few days.”
“Why?” she asked.
Harry rubbed the back of his neck. “We have reason to believe that you are the next target. Whoever is behind these attacks, they are going after blood purities,” he explained. Hermione shook her head slowly.
“When is this going to stop? I thought all of that stopped when we destroyed the Horcruxes and you defeated Voldemort?” she asked.
“It doesn’t mean the problem is solved and you know that,” Harry pointed out.
“What we’re worried about is the fact it’s blood-blended families disappearing,” Ron answered.
Ron reached over and rested his hand over hers. “Mione, we just want to make sure you’re safe,” he assured her. Nodding, she gave his hand a squeeze giving Harry a reassuring smile as he rested his hand over her arm.
“All right, I can do my work from home,” she assured them.
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Hermione was thrown to the floor and she winced as she landed on her knees. “Your turn with the Mudblood,” a voice commented. A hand walked over, grabbing her by the back of her head and yanking her to her feet. She stared into the face of Alecto Carrow, who just smirked at her with the creepiest smile she had ever seen.
“So, this is the famous Hermione Granger,” she sneered.
Alecto seemed to examine her while keeping a tight grip on Hermione’s hair. “I have to admit, I was expecting a little more,” she commented.
“Either pay for the services you have reserved for her or just leave, we have a lot of work to do,” she heard Theodore Nott order.
Alecto rolled her eyes before throwing a sack of money in their direction. She released Hermione’s hair finally. Stepping back, she removed her wand and aimed it at the woman. “Crucio,” she called out in the most conversational manner. The pain ripped through Hermione and she fell to the ground immediately, but she refused to scream. She could hear their laughter, this was their favorite game. They wanted to see if they could make Infamous Hermione Granger to scream in agony. Instead, she twitched around on the floor, her nails digging deeply into her palms that she could feel the skin giving away and the blood on her hands. She stared up at the ceiling and arched her back as Alecto increased the curse.
She finally released the woman from the spell and Hermione was laying on the floor gasping for air and her head staring at the doors to the prison she was held in. Alecto walked over and kicked Hermione in the ribs, forcing her to turn over and hold her stomach. She leaned over and retched but nothing came up. “I’ll have her back by the date given,” Alecto informed them before she grabbed her by her head and yanked her back to her feet. She shoved Hermione towards the door. “Go!” she spat. Hermione stumbled towards the door but she kept moving.
Entering the streets, everything was so dark and it was raining. Hermione nearly slid down the stone steps, but Alecto ended up just shoving her and she landed in the mud below. “Get up and don’t get your muddy clothes on my floor!” Alecto spat before she apparated with Hermione.
They arrived at the Carrow home immediately, it was the next several hours that on and off that Alecto was either torturing her with the Crucio Curse, or at least putting her into “use” and making her clean the floors that in her words Hermione had ‘dirtied and bloodied’ her newly waxed floor.
Hermione’s hands burned as she washed the mud and the blood off the floor using the nearly scalding hot water in the bucket that Alecto had dropped next to her. “Did you really think you could’ve escaped us that easily?” Alecto asked from a chair. Hermione was silent as she continued to wash the floors. “Where are your friends now, Granger?” she taunted her, “Oh…that’s right…the famous Harry Potter and your boyfriend, Weasley, long left the country. They left you behind.” Alecto laughed at her own comment as if she had told a hilarious joke. “Poor little Mudblood, even her own friends abandoned her. All your fault that you will never see your filthy half-blood child ever again. All your fault that that little girl’s daddy was murdered before her very eyes,” Alecto commented.
Hearing those words, made Hermione falter just a little and her hands gripped the brush. “Legilimens,” Alecto called out before Hermione could put up her mind’s shield.
Three Years Ago
Hermione was running through the forest. Her daughter clinging to her as her husband gripped her hand. “We’re almost there,” he assured them quietly, “If we just get over these next two hills, we will reach the portkey.”
“Do you think that’s even safe?” she asked quietly.
“We are out of choices,” he pointed out.
“Mommy, I’m scared,” the little girl whispered.
Hermione hushed her softly, kissing her curls. “Mommy and daddy are right here,” she assured her.
Suddenly, several hooded figure appeared around them. Hermione was pressed up against her husband’s back, their wands out. The Death Eaters drew their own wands. One Death Eater aimed a wand right at her daughter. “If you were smart you would just surrender,” the leader commented. She could hear her husband scoff.
“I think out of the two of us we know who is the smarter one,” he replied.
Hermione swallowed as she pressed up against him even more. She knew what would happen next, they discussed this if this were a possibility. “Take them in,” the leader ordered.
“STUPEFY!” they shouted in return.
Hermione set the little girl down on the ground. “RUN! CELINA! RUN! DON’T LOOK BACK!” Hermione screamed. Immediately the little girl ran through the forest.
“Go with her!” he called out.
“You can’t hold them by yourself!” she answered.
He pushed her after their daughter. “GO! NOW!” he shouted. Hermione looked at him with fear in her eyes, but she did as he ordered and ran as fast as she could after Celina. She looked over her shoulder and everything was in slow motion when she saw the Death Eaters surround him. She ran back in his direction.
“DRACO!” she called out to him.
When she saw the Death Eaters running towards her, she was forced to run away from him. “AVADA KEDAVRA!” she heard one of them shout.
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Hermione fell to the floor gasping for air as Alecto just laughed at her. “Stupid little girl, thinking you could save your blood traitor husband. Look where that got you,” she laughed. Pulling herself back up, Hermione just took the brush and put it back in the hot water, her curls falling from the rubber band and falling over her face like a curtain. What she refused to let Alecto see, were the tears falling from her face and mixing with the soapy water on the floor.