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“I SAID SPEAK! WHERE DID YOU GET THE SWORD?”
Another scream pierced the air, sounding akin to a beast wounded. Was that her? She couldn’t remember anymore. Peering through blurry eyes, she saw the black figure raising their hand once again before slashing it back down.
She felt so cold, all warmth dripping out from her veins and onto the marble floor. Feeling the weight shift off of her, she looked up towards the ceiling with blank eyes, tears falling down her temples.
The hysterical laughter in the air drifted into silence, the last manic words following her into the darkness, “FILTHY MUDBLOOD!”
“YOU FREAK!”
She let out a yelp as she was thrown harshly into the wall, grabbing on desperately to the bricks so she wouldn’t fall onto the ground. Looking up, she saw Fiona’s older brother, he was a couple years older than her. But besides that, he was much bigger, and could easily break some bones if she wasn’t careful.
Righting her satchel, she tried to keep her head down, “I’m sorry if I-“
“OH SHUT THE HELL UP! I KNOW WHAT YOU DID TO MY LITTLE SISTER, YOU DEMON!”
Trying not to wince, she quickly stammered up her defense, “I-I didn’t do anything to her!” Bad move, as the last thing she saw was his fist swinging back.
As she slammed into the ground, she let out a sob, holding her eye in pain. She heard him step closer, her body stiffening.
“Let that be a warning, freak. Go back home to hell where you belong.”
Something wet hit her leg. Attempting to see, she felt her chest clench as she saw it was his spit. Peering up, she saw him already walking away, his buddies going to his side to congratulate him.
Breathing heavily, she rubbed furiously at her burning eye, her heart racing to the point that she could only hear the blood pulsing in her ears.
“TEACHER! OWENS LEG! I-IT’S-“
Pushing herself up, she swatted the spit off her leg, walking off in the opposite direction.
She hated this place.
“Ms. Granger, you have turned into such an exceptional student.”
Hermione tried her best not to seem cocky, smiling politely at Headmaster Dumbledore. Of course, she was exceptional. She belonged here. They would soon see it too.
“Especially for a muggleborn student, you’ve really grasped onto the material here.”
Why did he have to mention her blood? Wasn’t Dumbledore supposed to be blind to that sort of thing? Or so he claimed, it seemed.
“However- I’ve noticed your magic may pose a threat in the future.”
Her eyes widened at that, parting her lips in surprise, “I’m sorry?” She wasn’t apologizing, but attempting to make him correct himself. He couldn’t have possibly meant to say it like that.
“You mustn’t allow your emotions to drive you so. I’ve seen many witches and wizards taken down the wrong path that way. And from what I’ve heard, you nearly hurt your classmates within the ministry with that explosion.”
“I-“ She stood up, staring at him in outrage, “If I hadn’t done that, Dolohov would have done much worse damage! I saved them!”
He raised his hand and motioned for her to stand down, staring at her as if she was a petulant child, “You may see it like that, but Lovegood suffered a burn from it.”
“A burn?” She whispered in a raspy tone, her collar still burning from where Dolohov’s cursed blade cut her.
“Yes. You need to be much more careful. I advise you perhaps look into some magical assistants. They make them disguised as jewelry, and it’ll help contain unwanted magic.” His eyes twinkled with that damn cunning gleam that she despised.
Sparing a bitter laugh, she responded, “A magical assistant? You want to put a collar on me and nullify my magic?”
He shook his head, smiling kindly at her like the grandfather persona he tried to convince others he was, “No, only some. Just the dangerous part of it. Until you’re capable of controlling it. It’s for the greater good, Ms. Granger.”
Gritting her teeth, she looked around the office to look at the portraits of former headmaster’s. Not one dared to look her in the eye.
“I understand Headmaster, I’ll take better care.”
“Good, Ms. Granger. I’m so glad you understand.”
“She isn’t the same Harry, y’know, since we got back.”
“Well blimey, Ron, give her a chance. It’s almost like she was tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange!”
“I know! Alright!? But still, we need her to get it together.”
Smiling bitterly, Hermione took slow and quiet steps to the mirror in her room. Taking a deep breath, she dropped the towel, allowing it to fall onto the floor. Dear god, she really was a sight, wasn’t she? Bellatrix took her time to carve every part of her body. It made her wonder if she was naked in Malfoy Manor, did Draco Malfoy see her tits?
Glancing down at them, she winced as she noticed the deep bruises and cuts along them. Maybe it would be best if he didn’t see them. Not that she exactly cared.
Sighing, she raised her arm up to her sight, scoffing as she saw the crude carving in her arm. Of course, what did she expect? For Bellatrix to write it in cursive?
“ENOUGH RON! WE ARE NOT GOING TO FORCE HERMIONE UNTIL SHE’S READY!”
“OH SURE, LET’S BABY HER! THIS IS A WAR HARRY. WE ALL HAVE TO GO THROUGH SOMETHING!”
“AND YOU THINK SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO GO THROUGH THAT!?”
Baring her teeth in annoyance, she turned away from the mirror, stomping over to the door. Swinging it open, she narrowed her eyes dangerously at the pair, “Do you two ever shut up!? I don’t think Hogwarts heard you enough from here!”
As they turned to look at her, their eyes widened before they quickly covered their faces in embarrassment.
“MERLIN’S SAKE WOMAN, PUT ON SOME CLOTHES!”
“M-Mione, maybe you should..umm.. close the door?”
Reaching behind the door, she snatched up Fleur’s robe, slipping it on before moving past them, “Ron’s right, I’m a big girl. We can’t just stop here, we need to keep moving.”
As she walked off, both boys felt something cold in the air. Something didn’t feel right. Hermione didn’t seem right.
“Ah, Miss Granger.”
She stared at the portrait with disdain, her brown eyes dull, “Headmaster Dumbledore.”
She turned away from those damn twinkling eyes, reaching into the drawers once again to search for the diadem.
“Why are you so upset, Ms. Granger? Have you thought of it? Why you burn with such destructive rage, fighting with the darkness within?”
Slamming her hands down on the desk, she allowed there to be a moment of silence before huffing, “Even now, you mock me? Are we sure you should be the one speaking about darkness within?”
“I do not know of what you speak, Ms. Granger. Please elaborate for me, dear.”
Biting her cheek, she forced herself to go back digging through the drawers. She was sure Professor Snape would have moved the horcrux here under Voldemort’s orders.
“A calm mind comes to calm solutions.”
She ignored him, moving over to the cabinets next. Most of it was warded, but she had spent so long studying how to break wards, it was nothing to her now.
“Desperation comes at a time where one realizes everything they’ve done so far has failed.”
She slammed the cabinet shut, whipping around to face him, “Will you just shut the fuck up?! You think you’re so wise and mysterious, holding your head above everyone else like a self-righteous cunt! You’re no better than half of these purebloods with your double-ended words. Real mature, treating a Mudblood like she’s a beast who has to be tamed!”
He parted his lips to speak, but she gave him no chance, her voice raising higher, “NO! You don’t get to speak a fucking word! You treat everyone like a puppet in your own little game! Harry, Sirius, Me. Hell, even Tom Riddle! If you actually treated him like a proper child rather than pushing your own fears and expectations, we wouldn’t be here, cleaning up YOUR fucking mess!”
She let out a broken laugh as she saw the kind expression leave, replaced by a glare, “Oh there he is! The real puppetmaster! No! The real dark lord! What’s the matter? You didn’t get as much joy beating your boyfriend, so you had to create a whole new Dark Wizard!? I bet you loved the attention. The people looking up to you. The power you held. The fact that you ruined yet ANOTHER orphan’s life by taking away the one man who would have loved him in place of his parents! You’re the monster here, not me, and not Tom Riddle!”
With a flick of her fingers, she set the desk into a mess of flames. Dumbledore let out a choked noise in surprise. Stepping closer to his portrait, she smiled politely, “You were so worried about me burning up with my rage? Let me allow you to feel the first flames.”
With that she walked out, calling out, “Go back home to hell where you belong.”
Hermione Granger was a force of nature, that was a fact that Draco Malfoy knew very well. But the day she stepped out onto the courtyard, he could feel a presence of power that he had never felt before.
Her eyes were locked on one person alone. She kept a steady pace, flicking her wand and throwing off anyone who got in her way. Bellatrix was her target, and no one was going to stop her from getting her revenge.
But when the fight came to a close, she didn’t give Bellatrix any last words. Instead she just watched the witch's fall, the fire reflecting from her dark eyes. That was the day his whole image of her changed.
Hermione Granger wasn’t a clever witch, she was a violent and dangerous war goddess.
He had thought she would be ashamed of her scars as she laid in bed with him, but instead she wore them with pride. It was addictive, she was like a drug that he couldn’t get enough of. He would worship her till the ends of earth. There was no other witch that could match to her.
Hearing her laughter, he turned on his side to face her, “What’s so funny?” He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, pulling himself up beside her to read the paper she was holding. As his eyes skimmed over the page, he furrowed his brows, “I don’t get it. Why is the Prophet talking about the fire in the Headmaster’s office again? It was a war, a lot of things were on fire.”
She turned to him with a knowing smile, her eyes twinkling with mirth, “They say they found the source of the fire.” He hummed, disinterested as he laid back on the pillow. What did he care about a fire?
Feeling the weight shift off the mattress, he rolled over to grasp at thin air as she headed to the bathroom. Groaning out in displeasure, “Where in merlin could you be going at this time?”
“Well, I can’t be late to the hearing, can I?”
That prompted his curiosity to read the rest of the story, his eyes skimming over the paper as she left. After a moment of silence, he busted into laughter before jumping off the bed and chasing after her, “There’s no way you’re going without me!”
Laying abandoned on the bed, the paper’s last words were as read,
'Due to the newly formed evidence, The Minister of Magic, Hermione Granger-Malfoy will be brought in for questioning.'