Harry Potter 1. Alley Cats

Hermione cursed and shivered as the frozen wake of wind from the Quiddich player who had shot past her moments ago seeped under her red and gold scarf. There were only a sprinkling of people in the stands watching the Quiddich tryouts due to either the typical november cold or lack of interest and though the young witch would gladly be elsewhere with them, Ronald bloody Weasley had insisted she come to see if she also thought some meatball on the other team was cheating. Ron was on the far side of the pitch but Hermione wasn't overly interested in what he was doing- not his homework though, she knew that. She considered sneaking away and just going down for breakfast but Ginny had said she would meet her out here so that they could go into Hogsmeade for books and it would be just her luck to leave minutes before Ginny arrived.

She drummed her fingers on the dew dampened wood which made her seat and craned her neck to see if there was any sign of the red head. There wasn't, so she hunkered down into her scarf and waited.

She was about ready to call it quits when she finally noticed Ginny making her way towards her up the steps. She got up from her cold hard seat and stretched her legs, taking one last glance at Ron who was focused on another player before leaving the spectators area down the same stairs which Ginny had climbed up just a moment ago. They talked for a while about their predictions for how well Ron would do as they walked through the castle towards the front entrance and both came to the conclusion he'd probably get Keeper since he always said it was his strong point. Hermione held out her arm- she had passed her apparition test first time and as soon and she could after turning 17 and made good use of it, especially to leave the school grounds while she still could before the Anti-Disapperation Jinx was re-established after it was taken down to aid the evaluation and reconstruction of the school building. Ginny took her arm, and they both disappeared with a small pop. They reappeared seconds later in the high street of Hogsmeade, taking a minute to get their bearings.

"So," the red head said cheerfully, when her head had cleared, "Where first?"

Hermione grinned at her friend. She was glad they had all decided to stay at Hogwarts and complete their schooling. The clean up from the battle was taking weeks, each section of the school being closed off one bit at a time and magically re-assembled whilst the students took their lessons in temporary classrooms, or even outside in some cases. Persuading Harry and Ron to stay had been the hardest, but after being assured that their positions within the ministry were secure either way, she'd finally swayed them. Sometimes though, she got the impression Ron had stayed more for the never ending free food than his exams.

"Well, I thought I'd look for a book on house elves. I want to find out more about them, you know?"

Ginny raised an eyebrow, smirking. "What, like... Anatomically..?"

Hermione shoved her playfully as they walked through the streets towards Tomes and Scrolls. "_No Ginny_, not anatomically. I mean where they came from, their roots, that sort of stuff."

The red head laughed and nodded with a theatric air. "Oh, _roots_, riigght."

Hermione laughed to and quickly gave her the V's. "Im not an elf pervert!" She exclaimed, a little too loudly as a few other students also enjoying their saturday gave them funny looks. Laughing, the two girls walked along along the bustling streets towards their destination.

Tomes and Scrolls was one of the first shops they came across and Hermione wasn't wasting any time- the shop smelled like dust and parchment and years and it was Hermione's kryptonite- once she got anywhere near it she was guaranteed to be lost to the rest of the world for hours until she could pull herself away.

Ginny patted her arm. "Hey, I'm gonna go and see George at Weasley's, I'll be back in a bit, yeah?"

Hermione nodded. "Sure, I'll be in here." she said gesturing vaguely at the door to the old bookshop. Ginny smiled and wondered across the street to her brothers joke shop. George had found it hard to continue the business without Fred, but after so much encouragement from the majority of the students after the war had been won only six months ago, he had decided it was what Fred would have wanted, and re opened within a few weeks in his honour. Despite this, Ginny still liked to keep an eye on him.

Sighing, Hermione pushed open the door or her favourite shop with the tinkle of the bell that let the owner know someone had arrived. The owners wife, Johanna was high above her on one of the many ladders that were employed to reach the top shelves in certain areas, shuffling books into their rightful places.

She glanced down and smiled in familiarity as she noticed Hermione. "Hermione, good to see you- what'll it be today my lovely?" She said as she pushed herself precariously along the shelf to put the last book from under her arm back.

Hermione smiled politely. "I was looking for books on Elves, their culture and history and such." She answered hopefully.

Johanna pointed towards the back right of the shop without hesitation. "You'll find all books of that sort along the back two rows." Hermione followed her point and gave the tiny woman an appreciative look. "Thank you." She said, making her way carefully down the narrow maze of shelves towards the back of the shop.

The deeper into the store she went the warmer it seemed to get and by the time she had found her way to the right shelves and despite the fact that it was early November outside, she found herself unbuttoning her long coat. To her relief a back door had been propped open, probably to air the place out or fight damp and she carried a pile of interesting looking books over to sit by it, enjoying nice cool breeze that tempered the stuffy warmth as she flicked through them. 'Elves: A History' was the first to go on her 'no' pile- it was slightly simple, and she got the idea it was probably more for younger children than older teens. 'Elven Myths and Legends' and 'What You Never Knew About Your House Elf' were also quickly added to the pile on her right for similar reasons. After some consideration she decided that the facts in 'The True Lives Of Elves' were slightly questionable and added that too to the growing pile on her right. The last book in the pile she had brought with her from the Elven section wasn't looking hopeful as she picked it up and heaved it onto her lap. It was older that the others, leather bound and yellowing slightly and the gold calligraphy on the crimson cover was faded and difficult to read at a glance. 'The Ghost Of Elven Past' sounded to her suspiciously like a Dickens novel but nevertheless she opened the book out to a random page and began to read.

_ "...What is interesting to note, however, is that this fact has been seemingly buried even within the Elven community itself over centuries of servitude and obedience to the point where few Elves, let alone people, actually recall it. Why then, we must wonder, has nobody attempted to remind the world of this phenomenon before we forget entirely? It seems ludicrous that no one is aware of the potential of such a powerful gift within their House Elves, but even more so that the Elves know nothing either. Could it be that we have forgotten for a reason? Could it be, that the Elves have spent the last few hundred years wiping this detail from our memories so that The Corvus Effect could become once more their most heavily guarded secret? Maybe this would explain why they so happily serve us, so that they might get close and work their magic on us in our sleep or when our backs are turned..."_

Hermione looked up as Johanna appeared from behind the Centaurs and Minotaurs section.

"Find what you were looking for?" She asked.

Hermione glanced down at the heavy book in the lap. "Well, there is this one book that seems to be quite interesting, 'The Ghost of Elven Past'."

The small woman peered at the book for a moment. "Ah yes, Ratweed's work." She said, almost reverently. "There are some who'd call him mad, genius if you ask me- do you know, when he was eight years old her predicted he would die on the 17th of August from a fever at the age of 97? Right, too he was, died that very day 89 years later of fever. Wonderful man in his day though, loved mythical beasts, elves, dragons, erklings, goblins, pixies, everything. Knew all there was to know about them, especially elves."

Hermione looked thoughtfully down at the pages. "What's the Corvus Effect?" She asked, staring at the words on the paper.

Johanna shrugged as she swapped two books around that had caught her OCD attention. "Couldn't say, but if you'd like the book to find out then consider it a gift, you're quite welcome to have it."

Hermione smiled "Thank you, thats very kind."

Johanna waved her hand. "Not at all, you're mine and Dravid's most loyal customer- speaking of which.." She said as the bell above the door on the other side of the shop rang. She gave Hermione one last smile and then disappeared back through the shelves towards the waiting customer. Hermione found a piece of scrap paper lying on the floor behind her and used it to mark the page of the book before turning and putting the book in her enchanted bigger-on-the-inside bag which was propped up by the open door which led into one of the quieter alley ways, wishing there were more people in the world like tiny Johanna. She glanced up into the empty street whilst she fastened her bag, intending to get up and leave to find Ginny but upon looking back up a split second later jumped a little and froze. Sat motionless as a gargoyle only a few inches from the wooden line that marked the threshold of the property, its large brown eyes unmoving and fixed on the young witch, was a sleek black cat. Its tail was wrapped neatly around its paws and its ears were pricked as it stared at her. There was something unnerving about it that Hermione couldn't put her finger on, something familiar yet something dangerous. She mentally shook herself. How could a little cat be dangerous? But even as she slowly stood, something about the way the cat looked at her made her uneasy.

_Where the bloody hell did you come from_? She thought to herself as she stared back at it.

She broke the cats gaze for a few seconds, looking back over her shoulder to see if anyone inside was seeing the cat too, or if maybe she was imagining it. Seeing no one, she looked back to where the cat had been and blinked in confusion as she saw it had vanished. She leaned out of the door and looked up and down the street for it and saw it padding quickly and quietly down away from the high street and towards the outskirts of the village. Realising she was a lunatic, she found herself speed walking out of the shop and after it.

_This is all going a bit alice in wonderland, now. _She thought to herself in slight exasperation. She chased the cat around several corners until the logical part of her brain started to fire up the warning alarm that even with Voldemort dead and gone, wandering off down back alleys alone when no one knew where you were was still a dangerous pass time. She was very much on edge by the time the cat stopped dead in the middle of the road. It rounded on her like a predator and she looked behind her once more, nervous. She turned back just in time to see the cat hurtling through the air towards her face, claws outstretched and legs poised to grab her. Her reaction was immediate, not thinking for a moment about what she was doing.

"Stupefy!" She half shouted, waving her wand at the cat just in time to save her face from the claws. The cat flew backwards, and to Hermione's shock through several plaster boards that were leaned against the wall opposite with some bricks and a sack of rubble which was probably from a building that had suffered during the war. A cloud of white dust arose, obscuring where the cat had landed from view. Immediately horrified that she might have killed a defenceless, if aggressive cat, Hermione slowly edged towards the gradually clearing chalky dust, still weary that the cat might jump back out at her.

When she saw what lay on the ground however, dead cats suddenly became the least of her worries. She swallowed hard and shook her head. She must be dreaming, she must have fallen asleep pouring over the books in Tomes and Scrolls, she must have. There was no way in hell this woman could still be alive. Her left arm twinged. Bellatrix Lestrange lay on the floor before her in her usual style black dress temporarily stunned but very much alive. Hermione screwed her eyes closed and told herself to wake up as she heard the woman stirring.

_Wake up wake up wake up wake up wake up wake-_

"Well that was slightly rude, muddy."

Hermione opened her eyes and tried to breathe properly through her fear as Bellatrix got to her feet.

"_You_...?"

Bellatrix strolled languidly to block Hermione's only exit and cackled. "Hello muddy, it's been too long." She said cheerily.

Hermione flushed with anger at the nickname but didn't dare voice it. _I'm not getting out of this alive_...

Bellatrix smirked and took a step towards her. "What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?"

"Get away from me you murderous bitch!" Hermione shrieked, veering out of the dark woman's way towards the ally's wall. Bellatrix's face darkened immediately and Hermione instantly regretted saying it.

"How dare you speak to your better like that, filthy mudblood!" The woman growled, closing the distance between them. Hermione pressed herself against the wall and glanced towards her exit, considering running, but the distraction only meant she never saw danger coming as the back of Bellatrix's hand hit her cheek hard. Hermione yelped in a mixture of surprise and pain but refused to raise her hand to stroke the stinging skin and give the other witch the satisfaction, instead blinking away the tears and letting her cheek turn a soft red.

"I asked you a question!" Bellatrix hissed, grabbing Hermione's jaw and forcing her to turn her head and look at her.

"I-" hermione tried to work out what it was Bellatrix wanted to hear and stabbed at apology. "I'm- I'm sorry," She said, closing her eyes very briefly and praying it was the right answer.

Bellatrix narrowed her eyes at her. "Sorry _what_?"

Fortunately for her, Hermione had played this game before with Bellatrix and was more that prepared this time around. "Sorry.. Mistress.." She said through gritted teeth.

Bellatrix let go of her face roughly and grinned slyly. "Oh, muddy remembers how to play!"

"Learned from the best.." Hermione muttered under her breath. _Slap_. Her other cheek began to burn as her face was thrown to the other side by the force behind Bellatrix's blow.

"Don't you dare answer me back!" The woman shouted.

Hermione's eyes filled involuntarily with tears once more and she tried to make her trembling fingers file her wand down out of her sleeve without the other woman noticing.

_If she catches me trying to arm myself she'll kill me without hesitation_.

"Too fucking right I will mudblood, so best not, ay?"

Hermione froze and her pounding heart momentarily stopped as she wondered if she'd been stupid enough to say her thoughts out loud- except she knew she hadn't, which only left one other option.

..._Fuck_.

Bellatrix smirked. "Tut tut. Language muddy." She said disapprovingly.

_Occlumensy. How could I forget that?_

"Because mudbloods are all filthy stupid animals, and you're proof." Bellatrix said in answer to a conclusion that should have been private. "I'll be having that." She added coldly, pointing at Hermione's sleeve. The girl hesitated but sensing another slap she began fumbling in her sleeve for her wand, eventually grasping it and pulling it out. Bellatrix all but ripped it from her grasp and threw it behind her.

"Now, muddy," The woman said, backing out of Hermione's breathing space only to pace back and forward in front of her thoughtfully. "What shall we do about this little... predicament?"

Hermione knew better than to stay silent, and scrambled for an answer. "I- I don't know.." She said, trying hard to keep the fear out of her voice. Bellatrix glared at her and Hermione instantly realised her mistake. "Mistress.." She grudgingly corrected herself before she was hexed. Bellatrix seemed slightly pacified and after another dark look began to pace again.

Desperately, she tried to keep her thoughts to a minimum, something that wasn't easy under the circumstances, and think of a way out of the mess she had landed herself in at the same time. Bellatrix stopped pacing suddenly and the younger witch's eyes snapped back to her face from the floor.

"I wouldn't bother, I can see into that head no matter how hard you try, muddy." A dark smile flickered across her lips and she once again returned to stand far too close for Hermione's liking. "I've seen your thoughts whilst I was sat on you- they weren't totally focused on appropriate matters now were they, muddy?"

Hermione cringed inwardly as she felt herself blushing. She looked away and clutched at her arm as she remembered. Bellatrix cackled in amusement. "How is the arm, by the way?"

Hermione glared at her. They both knew damn well it was scarred beyond the help of anyones healing magic but Bellatrix's. "Just as you left it, mistress.." She said subduedly, resenting herself for saying mistress as fluidly as she had. Where was her Gryffindor courage? Taking a deep breath, the younger witch straightened up a little.

"What do you want from me?" She said with as much fake confidence as she could muster. Bellatrix's forearm was against her throat in an instant and she bored her eyes into Hermione's as she brought her face as close as she could without actually touching her. Something akin to satisfaction registered behind Bellatrix's dark eyes as she heard Hermione's breath catch in her throat and she wondered how far she could push her, how much effort it would take to remind her of the last time they'd been left alone together.

In the softest murmur Bellatrix could manage she pressed her lips against Hermione's ear. "I want to have a little conversation with this one, _girl_ to _girl_." She said, grinning as Hermione choked slightly on thin air. Hermione looked straight ahead as she saw the past, shaking as she felt the ghost of the dagger slowly slice her skin once more.

"You know, we could always do the other arm, muddy." Bellatrix whispered dangerously. The fresh words seemed to jolt Hermione out of it and she panicked, pushing wildly against the other witch in an attempt to push her away but the other witch was deceptively strong and Hermione's shaking limbs didn't stand a chance.

"_Let me go you bitch!_" The younger witch all but screamed as she felt hope drain away. She got the tip of Bellatrix's wand under her chin for her efforts and stopped struggling, breathing heavily as she fought the urge to cry.

Bellatrix looked furious as she pinned the girl to the wall harder. "Wrong move, muddy." She snarled.

_She's going to kill me. This is it._

"Here was me considering being generous and letting you live," The dark witch said, almost wistfully. "And that's how you repay me." Without another word Bellatrix pushed the tip of her wand into Hermione's soft skin and took a deep breath ready to shout the fatal words. Hermione squeezed her eyes closed and said goodbye to her parents and friends as she prepared for the curse to hit her.

"But.."

Hermione opened her eyes a fraction when she heard the word, but still not getting her hopes up.

Bellatrix dragged the tip of her wand down the middle of Hermione's throat slowly. "What could I expect? You _are_ just a mudblood I suppose, aren't you?"

The younger witch got the impression that this was one of those times she was expected to answer. "Yes, mistress.." She said with as little hatred as possible in an attempt to survive.

Bellatrix made a vague noise of consideration. "Tell you what, muddy," She said finally, "You tell me something I want to know, and I'll let you leave in one piece."

Hermione was instantly suspicious. _But what choice do I have?_

"What do you want to know?" She said shakily.

Bellatrix narrowed her eyes.

"Mistress.." Hermione added.

Bellatrix let it go. "Yes or no?" She said, her demeanour like a sheet of ice, ignoring Hermione's question. Hermione didn't see that she had much choice but to say yes, though she wasn't overly sure what she was consenting to. She wasn't stupid enough to say no to the woman.

"Yes... Mistress..."

"Good. Don't fight this."

Hermione didn't have time to wonder what that meant before she felt Bellatrix crash through her defences and burst into her mind. Images flashed past her minds eye as Bellatrix rummaged for whatever she wanted and Hermione began to panic once again as the invading witch strayed towards the area of herself within Hermione's mind. Bellatrix couldn't find out. The younger witch started to bury the subject, throwing random images and memories which might distract Bellatrix at her in quick succession, things Dumbledore had said, secrets of Harrys, anything that might put her off the scent but sensing her desperation Bellatrix only fought harder and quickly overcame her trivial obstacles. To Hermione's silent dread, the department of mysteries was dragged from the pile and all she could do was watch on in horror as the one woman in the whole world Hermione never wanted to witness the event from her perspective scanned through it.

As soon as she was done, Bellatrix pulled out of her mind and stared at her hard. "So it _was_ you." She said, her expression unreadable.

Hermione swallowed hard and looked at the floor.

"_You_ blocked that curse."

Hermione risked looking at the older witch. She could see the cogs turning in her mind.

"If you hadn't blocked that curse, it would have hit me. Sirius would still be alive."

Hermione felt guilt constrict her as she heard Harry's godfather's name but Bellatrix seemed suddenly overjoyed at her discovery. "Well, well, muddy. What would potty and weasel think of that? Protecting me? Getting Sirius killed?"

Hermione suddenly didn't have the strength to deny it. Bellatrix was right.

The darker witch sensed her resignation. "Not even a word to justify yourself?" She said in something close to amazement.

Hermione opened her mouth but nothing came to her and she just sighed heavily.

Bellatrix cackled in the deranged way that she did. "No? Not even any reasons why?"

Hermione turned her face away to escape Bellatrix's eyes. "No mistress." She said, the last word barely audible. Bellatrix turned her face back just as she had done before.

"We're not lying, are we muddy?"

Hermione looked at her helplessly. "I- I.." Not for the first time that day, words failed her.

"I could always find out." Bellatrix growled, pushing teasingly against Hermione's re-established mental barriers. Hermione really didn't want the woman in her head again and she could feel Bellatrix's patience wearing thin.

There are still things in there I don't want her to see. I'll have to tell her the truth...

"I... I didn't _hate_ you..." Hermione hoped with all her might that would be enough.

Bellatrix dug her nails into Hermione's shoulder. "Don't make me resort to slapping it out of you, mudblood, give me a straight answer."

_I guess not._

The young witch flailed for the courage to speak, but her mouth disobeyed, refused to say what was right behind her teeth. _Slap_. Bellatrix hit her harder than she had the first two times as her patience snapped. "Answer me!" She shouted.

Hermione snapped at much the same moment. "I don't know!" She shouted back, momentarily surprising the other woman.

It didn't last, and Bellatrix's patience was all but gone. "Liar! Tell me why I shouldn't kill you, mudblood."

Hermione was about to give up hope when suddenly a reason for Bellatrix not to murder her and leave her in the gutter occurred to her. Unfortunately, Hermione realised that she was totally relying on Draco Malfoy to have been telling the truth to her when they had had a strange 45 minutes of not-quite-friend-but-not-as-enemy-as-usual-ness in the only detention she'd ever received which she had shared with the boy in her second year. But it was that or nothing.

"I killed your husband.." She said, hoping those wouldn't be her last words. Bellatrix was silent for a long while before she spoke. "You killed Rudolphus? Hermione Granger shot a killing curse?"

Hermione shuffled uncomfortably. "No... He was tormenting a girl and I... I fired Sectum Sempra... He bled to death.." She wasn't in anyway proud of herself, but it had been war- Rudolphus had picked his side, and he picked badly.

Bellatrix narrowed her dark eyes. "Murdering my husband is your reason for me to spare you?"

_Oh shit_.. Hermione's heart pounded as she prayed and prayed that Draco had a truthful bone in his body.

"Draco told me you hated him, he said that it was an arranged marriage- I couldn't see you being the sort of person that would allow _anything_ to just be arranged for you, least of all marriage, even back then so I thought he was telling the truth-"

"As amusing as it is listening to you hysterically babble, muddy, you can stop now. Yes, I did hate Rudolphus, I tried to kill him myself a few times, but the dark lord would always stop me." Bellatrix said petulantly, looking at the sky momentarily. She brought her eyes down to Hermione's. "Sectum Sempra.." She mused thoughtfully, "Drawn out _and_ painful, oh _muddy_, we could actually have been _friends_ if you weren't so filthy. No matter. Fine- you killed Rod for me, I'll let you live. This time. " Hermione swallowed hard, not wanting to get up hope too quickly, but as she did, Bellatrix moved away from her slightly.

"You never saw me, I was never here. I'm dead to the rest of the world, I'm not being hunted, and that's how it's going to stay." She snarled. Hermione nodded dumbly.

"Good, then we understand each other." She said, pushing herself away from the wall she was leaning on. "Now get out of my sight." She said pointing to the direction Hermione had come from. Hermione hesitated but then turned and started to walk away as fast as possible, knowing she was damn lucky to be doing so. When she looked back over her shoulder, Bellatrix was already gone. Her heart was pounding as she made her way quickly back through the network of alleyways, relieved that she could remember the way. She passed the back of the bookshop and decided that she should go back through it incase Johanna realised she had never left earlier. She stepped inside and made her way to the front of the shop, happy to be somewhere safe. She passed Johanna as she made for the door.

"Oh, Hermione, sorry dear you were so quiet back there I thought you must have left, your friend came in here looking for you about half an hour ago and I told her I thought you'd gone."

_Shit_.

"Oh its alright, I was just absorbed in a book, you know me." The younger witch said, putting on her best cheery smile. "Though I'd better be off to look for her." She added.

Johanna nodded. "Yes, yes, of course, sorry again."

"Really, it's no problem." Hermione assured her as she opened the door and stepped out into the street.

_Shit, shit, shit._ Hermione thought hopelessly as she crunched over the snow that lined the curbs and into the street. Her first thought was The Three Broomsticks, partly because Ginny might be there, but mainly because she really needed a drink to calm herself down. Her heart sank a little further when she saw her friend wasn't there. She ordered a butterbeer regardless and sat down well away from the windows and other people to calm her nerves.

_Don't panic Hermione, she doesn't want to be found, she'll leave you alone. Just get back to school and by the morning she'll be long gone and it'll all be forgotten._ She told herself. Nevertheless, the young witch could still feel the tip of Bellatrix's wand gracing down her throat with every sip of her drink she took.

* * *

**A/N~ Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, even just a few words 3 **


	2. Darling

When Ginny had finally caught up with her, Hermione was on her fourth butterbeer and not feeling much better for it. She'd feigned a headache and the redhead had walked back to school with her, agreeing that disapperating was probably going to make her head worse and that lots of fresh air might help. The walk back had been quiet but not awkwardly so, Ginny didn't talk much only asking a few questions about the book that Hermione had been so engrossed in that the shop owner assumed she'd left. Hermione felt a little bad about lying to her. But it wasn't like she had a choice- she was lucky to be alive and if she was honest with herself, underneath all of her theorising and assuming, she didn't have a clue as to why Bellatrix hadn't killed her when she'd had such an easy opportunity. For some reason, Hermione found it difficult to believe that the witch had let her go just because she had killed Rudolphus. Just as an act of fairness. No. There had to be more to it that that. Or did there? Bellatrix wasn't the most stable of people, who could really tell what she would or wouldn't do?

By the time Hermione politely told Ron, Harry, Luna and Ginny that she would be skipping the evening meal, she didn't have to fake anything in the headache department. She took a quick shower and fell into bed with damp hair, too preoccupied to care if it was uncomfortable or not. She should have known better than to let herself dream.

* * *

Harry was looking better than he had in a few years. His hair was freshly cut and combed and he was wearing his muggle clothes- a nondescript, olive green T-shirt to bring out his eyes, plain blue jeans and white trainers which were a little worn but were clean and well fitting. For once, there was not a cut or bruise on him. He was the only one in the great hall and the tables were gone, but the floating candles remained and nothing really seemed off to Hermione as she stood watching. Nothing except for the fact that she couldn't hear him. He was quite clearly talking to her, grinning infectiously with his hands were waving along, conducting the orchestra of his sentence and he was looking at her like she should be nodding or smiling back or answering or _something_, but she heard no sounds. She frowned. With the hall so empty his voice should be echoing to twice its usual volume, audible to her even though they stood at opposite ends of the room. But it simply wasn't.

_Oh well._ Hermione thought calmly as she began to walk towards him. _It must just be me. _

With every step towards Harry she took, his face changed. The smile drifted away, the cheer left his eyes, and his features all seemed to darken. By the time Hermione was halfway across the hall, he looked much more like the Harry from recent years. The purple rings beneath his eyes only grew darker, his clothes became torn and his neat hair became out of place and messy and whatever he was saying was no longer light hearted and welcoming.

It only worsened as she got closer, his talking turning to silent shouting and his face becoming even more gaunt again, his skin greying and his eyes dulled but for the anger that fuelled his ranting. He came to resemble Sirius for a moment and Hermione began to sense the alarm bells ringing in the distance. This wasn't right. Where was everybody?

She tried to stop her steady walking as she got within meters of the boy she considered one of her closest friends but found it fruitless, the constant left right action going ahead despite her will. Harry now looked like he was pulling on restraints, his face screwed up in rage, teeth bared as her spat curses and hatred at her, the darkness in his eyes boring into her own. The veins in his arms and neck bulged and he reached out for her with his hands shaped into stiff claws and Hermione struggled to stop walking, turning away and looking desperately behind her for help, her chest heaving as she struggled for breath.

Hands grabbed her shoulders and pushed her with a strength that forced her to buckle to her knees, but when Hermione turned in terror to regard the monster Harry had become, she was met with a different sight altogether.

The dark brown eyes that were inches from her own were considerably softer in comparison to the hatred that had swirled in Harrys green ones. Pale skin and the strange familiarity of the black dress were almost calming but in the background slowly growing louder, Hermione could now hear Harry, even though he was gone from sight. The venom he spewed at her was unlike anything she had ever heard before as he vowed to kill her, to curse her family, called her everything she could think of and more. No matter how hard she tried to see Harry, he always seemed to be directly behind Bellatrix, who had hold of both of her wrists and was pushing her down onto her back on the floor. She struggled absent-mindedly against her, not really paying attention to what the other witch was doing when Harry was being so vile in the background. When it became apparent Bellatrix wasn't going to let up, she gave in and lay down with tears in her eyes as she listened to Harry getting louder and louder. She was staring at the candles above her when suddenly Harry stopped mid-word before picking up, again, mid-word, in what sounded like the same sentence, as if someone had muted him, then turned him back up again. With a feeling of dread, she turned to look at her arm and watched in horror as Bellatrix cut into it in slow motion, drawing a thin stream of blood as she did, but Hermione felt no pain. With each cut, Harry was silenced and Hermione began to will Bellatrix to cut her again to stop the cruel words from reaching her.

Bellatrix's knife-work became faster and more fluid, and Hermione realised she was no longer in the great hall any more, but back on the floor in Malfoy Manor, in her muggle clothes, no sight or sound of Harry anywhere. Bellatrix threw her knife away, and Hermione regarded her arm numbly and read '_DARLING_' which was running with blood and beginning to faintly burn. The pain slowly became more intense until it overtook her and she screamed coarsely. Bellatrix leaned in and whispered to her things she was screaming too loudly to hear and Hermione reached up and threaded the fingers on the hand which wasn't covered in her own blood through the ends of Bellatrix's hair, desperate for something to hold onto as the room spun under her.

"_Hermione_?"

Bellatrix was looking at her seriously.

"_Hermione_?"

Hermione sat up in her bed so fast the blood rushed to her head and she had to squeeze her eyes closed to stop herself from being sick. Ginny was looking at her in a way that ghosted Bellatrix and Hermione averted her eyes.

"Are you alright? You screamed like a tortured animal, scared the living shit out of me. Bad dreams?"

Hermione was still shaken. "Yeah.." She said weakly, clutching at her covers. "Sorry.."

Ginny didn't seem to notice the disturbed look in the other girls eyes- they'd all suffered from nightmares after the battle, it was nothing new. Ginny knew Hermione hated a fuss.

"Your a little late, everyone else went down for breakfast a while ago. I came back up for my wand, I don't know how the hell I managed to leave it behind, I was sure it was in my sleeve- oh," She said suddenly, stooping down to the floor before straightening up and holding her wand up triumphantly, "Found it. Must've fallen out, merlin help me."

Hermione smiled weakly and reached under her pillow for her own wand for reassurance. Her dream was starting to fade, but she liked to keep it on her anyway. She groped around for wand for several seconds before the realisation hit her. Her _wand_. Bellatrix had thrown her wand away yesterday and she'd been too caught up with being alive to think to retrieve it.

_Oh no. No, no, I can't go back there for it. That would be suicide._ Hermione flailed. What the hell could she do now? She needed her wand, she couldn't go to class without it and avoid awkward questions but she couldn't go back for it without risking running into Bellatrix again.

_Either way I can't go to classes_. Hermione thought.

"Ginny?" She called before the Redhead left the room.

"Yeah?" She called back, sticking her head around the door to look at her. "Hermione, you look awful, are you feeling okay?"

Hermione guessed that was as good an excuse as any. "Uh, no.. Not really- could you excuse me from lessons this morning? I'm sure I'll be fine by this afternoon with a little more rest."

Ginny smiled. "Sure, I'll tell Harry and Ron."

Hermione remembered Harry as her reached out to grab her in her nightmare and shuddered a little. "Thanks." She offered weakly.

The second Hermione was alone, she threw herself out of bed and got herself dressed into a knitted black jumper that was slightly too big for her and some dark blue jeans which clung to her legs all the way to her ankles where they disappeared inside her boots. For a long moment Hermione stood by her bed in turmoil. She'd sworn not to tell anyone about Bellatrix and she wasn't sure what she would say to anyone who she did try to tell anyway. She chewed at her lip and considered her options- they weren't abundant. She could either tell someone about yesterday and raise merry hell, or she quietly could go back for her wand herself at the risk of getting either splinched attempting to disapperate without a wand so soon after passing her test, or murdered by Bellatrix who may or may not still be around. With an exhausted sigh, Hermione turned on the spot and left the room with a soft pop.

* * *

Hermione found her wand half covered by a pile of browning leaves a few meters away from where she had last seen Bellatrix. She seemed to remember her father jokingly telling her never to return to the scene of a crime and she had to admit that the butterflies she had were agreeing with him. Finding the alley without cutting through Tomes and Scrolls had been easier than she had thought it would be and with her nerves strung high Hermione had retraced her steps from the day before. She felt better now she had her wand back and for a moment let herself become absorbed in checking it for scratches or damage. To her relief it was still in one piece and as far as scratches went, there didn't seem to be any- at least, none that were new.

_I was wondering how long it would take you to realise_.

Hermione all but threw her wand back in the leaves and her heart momentarily stopped working as the voice invaded her thoughts. She whirled around expecting Bellatrix to be right there behind her, wand drawn but had to blink a few times when she was greeted by nothing. It took Hermione a moment to spot Bellatrix, feline once more sat on a window sill watching her every move.

"My wand- I-" Hermione fumbled with her words as she tried to recall the excuses she'd rehearsed in her head on the way.

_Left it behind?_ Bellatrix offered.

Hermione wasn't keen on the woman's voice being in her mind. "Yeah.." She said cautiously, eyeing the cat. Hermione supposed she must be in a better mood since it hadn't been demanded of her to address her as mistress.

Bellatrix leaped from the window ledge and transformed back to herself in one movement, landing near to Hermione.

"Awfully brave, aren't we?"

"I didn't tell anyone." Hermione breathed, vaguely remembering the Bellatrix in her dream, her eyes and the knife and how soft her hair had been.

Bellatrix ignored what she said. "Been dreaming, muddy?" She asked casually, smirking.

Hermione closed her eyes and grit her teeth in disbelief.

_For fucks sake_. She thought dryly. She couldn't believe she'd been caught out twice- she was meant to be the intelligent one. How many times was it going to take for her to get it in her head that her thoughts were no longer private with Bellatrix around?

"I just want my wand." Hermione said as cooly as she could. She couldn't help but acknowledge the fact that Bellatrix seemed more.. Approachable. Every time she saw the witch she feared her a little less than before. Until she pulled her wand. Or a knife. Hermione shivered.

Bellatrix looked nonplussed and Hermione couldn't decide if she really was just in a good mood or if the other witch knew something she didn't. "I know. I saw."

"As.. An animagus?"

Bellatrix laughed out loud. "Uh, no."

"You walked through Hogsmeade?"

Bellatrix rolled her eyes and leaned against the wall. "No, muddy. I walked through Hogsmeade as the highly practiced metamorphmagus I am." She stated without a trace of modesty.

"But I thought metamorphmagi couldn't change into animals?" Even as Hermione said it, she could see it making sense- it was obviously hereditary, and Nymphadora, whether Bellatrix liked it or not, had been family.

_Not the weak ones. _Bellatrix growled in Hermione's head. Hermione bit her lip to stop herself from arguing.

_Remember who this is. She may have taken her sane pills this morning but shes still Bellatrix. _

"Someones coming." Bellatrix glared daggers at her, interrupting her thoughts. "If you've even _dared_-"

Hermione didn't have time to answer her before footsteps became audible and Bellatrix was a cat again, sat innocently on the window ledge. Hermione must have visibly paled as Harry, Ron and Minerva arrived in the alley way.

_What the fucking hell?!_

"Hermione- there you are, what on earth are you doing?" Minerva's Scottish tones were high.

Hermione didn't have a clue what she was doing.

_Bellatrix, what am I doing? _She demanded_._ The cat stayed silent. _Shit._

"I.. Just.. Found this cat." She said forcing herself to walk over to where Bellatrix cat sat flicking the end of her tail erratically.

"Ginny told me you were in bed, she said you were ill." The woman continued.

Ron chipped in. "Yeah, next thing we know, she went back to pick up an essay that was due in and she said you were stood in your clothes by your bed and then disapperated."

"We were worried, so we accompanied the professor to Hogsmeade to look of you." Harry finished.

"Took bloody ages looking down these alleys." Ron muttered.

All three looked at Hermione expectantly. "I was ill, but then I started to feel better and thought a walk might make me feel better.. And then I saw this cat and... I went to stroke it and it ran away so I followed it.." Hermione was aware how dumb that sounded and as an attempt to back her story up, reached out and gingerly stroked what she couldn't forget was Bellatrix's head. The cat sunk her head down into her neck and flattened her ears against her skull, narrowing her eyes and generally looking like the most grumpy, evil gremlin of a cat Hermione had ever seen. If it had been any other situation, Hermione might have giggled.

Something about Minerva's face had changed. She eyed the cat cautiously. "And does this cat have a name?"

"Not that I know of.." Hermione said slowly.

Minerva didn't look at Hermione's face. "Oh I think you might. I think _I_ do. Ms Lestrange- or should I say Black-" Minerva said coldly. "Let's do this the easy way."

Hermione felt sick and sicker still when she looked around to see Minerva's wand was aimed at her not Bellatrix. Bellatrix didn't move. Harry and Ron were exchanging looks frantically and to her bitter surprise, eventually both followed suit and raised their wands at her too.

"Ms Black. I wont ask you again."

After another few seconds of silence on Bellatrix's end, true to her word, Minerva averted her wand from Hermione's direction for a moment to fire a hex at her. Bellatrix dodged it easily and to Hermione's further dismay took on her human shape once more. Harry shouted something she didn't quite catch and Minerva fired another curse again, this time at Hermione.

Bellatrix stunned Ron and he fell predictably on his ass as Hermione stood frozen, watching her favourite professor and her two best friends as they each turned on her. She watched in dismay as Bellatrix fired the killing curse, which even though it missed Minerva, still seemed to raise the bar a little as Minerva saw 'how it was'. Minerva fired the same curse back, but again it wasn't at Bellatrix. Hermione's world went into slow motion as the curse came at her and she prepared for the second time in as many days to die in a godforsaken alley.

Something grabbed her wrist hard enough to crush it and yanked her sideways in time for her to watch the curse drive itself into the ground before her world twisted and distorted and the nauseating feeling of disapperating made her close her eyes.

* * *

Hermione poked at the small fire in front of her with a damp, mossy stick. She didn't know where she was- the scrubby moorland was plain, unmistakably british, but plain. After her and Bellatrix had apperated here, Hermione had screamed herself hoarse at the other woman, and Bellatrix had done the same back mostly simultaneously before disapperating and leaving her in the middle of nowhere. After two hours of crying like a five year old, she was fairly sure of two things- one, she was likely now a wanted woman and two, Bellatrix probably wasn't coming back.

She shivered under her jumper and sighed heavily. How the hell had it come to this? She wasn't a criminal. She was Hermione, the same Hermione that had just helped save the wizarding world from its doom.

Hermione closed her eyes and tried not to imagine Minerva hitting her with a killing curse.

_They'll come round. They have to. They'll realise it was all a misunderstanding and someone will come and find me, they have to.._

"They wont."

Hermione turned to glare silently at Bellatrix, who was standing a few meters away, a couple of stray curls blowing in her face. She really hadn't expected to see her again. Regardless, Hermione turned back to poking at her little campfire and ignored her. This was entirely her fault.

"Ignore me all you like, muddy, you have nowhere to go."

"That's not my fault." She answered accusingly. She didn't care if the woman was a nutter anymore. _Shes quite welcome to kill me. At least then everyone would know I wasn't on her side or something. _

Bellatrix threw a newspaper in her lap. "I think it might take a bit more than my murdering you, muddy. Though Merlin knows I'm tempted." She snapped.

Hermione stood up and stretched her stiff legs, unfolding the paper to look at the front page.

**HERMIONE GRANGER, RENEGADE, JOINS THE LIST OF MINISTRY OF MAGIC'S MOST WANTED PEOPLE. **

Hermione stared at the paper for a long time, skim reading an article full of quotes and lies about how she had been found 'associating' with 'the infamous Bellatrix Lestrange' and how Harry had always suspected her to be dark and Ron had always questioned her faith blah blah blah.

"None of this is true!" She cried. She couldn't believe her friends would say this. Her teachers. After everything she'd done for them.

"Well whether it is or not, the killing curse was fired at you as much as it was me."

Hermione got up silently whilst trying to think of some defence for her friends. Upon not finding one and having never felt so pathetic in her life stood in the middle of an unknown moor with a convicted murderer, she instead began to cry again. Bellatrix didn't do anything for a moment but watch until suddenly she decided that Hermione Granger was nothing if not exactly how she once was when the world turned on her. With that realisation, Bellatrix took three purposeful steps towards Hermione and wrapped her arms around her tightly. Hermione tried not to think about who's arms she was in as she buried her face against the black curls from her dreams.

_My friends.. _She thought wistfully. Then again, who was it that had tried to kill her, and who was holding her as she cried in the middle of nowhere? She wasn't sure who the enemy was any more.


	3. Scars

**AN- Hey :) I've had a few nice reviews for this fiction so far so I'm glad people are liking it :) Thankyou for reading :)**

* * *

It had been a week since Hermione had stood on the moorland with Bellatrix and as the other witch had predicted, the headlines hadn't gotten any kinder. No one had so much as raised the idea that Hermione was in fact innocent in all of this and by the looks of it, no one would listen if they did. Rita damned Skeeta had made her look more like satan's mistress than a traitor and even Bellatrix had thrown one of her articles into the fire in a fit of annoyance, though Hermione wasn't sure as to why since there was barely any mention of the dark witch. Since then, Bellatrix hadn't gone back to wherever it was she had been getting the wizarding papers from- Hermione hadn't asked- and rarely brought it up in conversation.

They had come to some form of unspoken treaty over the last seven days and moved into one of the smaller manors that were owned by the Black family which was around a mile from the muggle village of Vatersay, the only village on the isle of Vatersay somewhere in the western most edge of the Scottish Hebrides. There was even a house elf there, Imry, small and gently spoken and true to house elf form, thrilled to be once again of service to the Black family.

Hermione had taken to it there, they were a mere hundred meters away from a pretty white sand beach and the scenery was beautiful in its remoteness. There were only about 90 people living on the island and they kept to themselves in the village, rarely coming close to the manor itself despite the island only being about four square miles. They were to the north of the island, the locals to the south, and when the sun went down and the stars came out in their millions unhindered by light pollution it was easy to forget about them altogether and feel like the only person in the world.

Hermione enjoyed sitting on the rugged cliffs and watching the clear waters of the sea swirl around below her whilst Bellatrix spent most of her time inside the house's cosy library reading ancient books or staring at the fire in the hearth.

When Hermione finally came inside from a day thinking about Harry and Ron and whether or not she was likely to see them again on friendly terms, she hadn't noticed Bellatrix asleep on the fractionally overstuffed, typically ornate sofa. She sat down on the sofa opposite the other witch on the side which was beside the fire, pulling her legs up underneath her.

Hermione regarded the woman everyone called crazy as she slept. With every day that Hermione spent with Bellatrix, it became more and more apparent that she wasn't crazy at all. Erratic, yes, but not crazy. She reminded Hermione of herself sometimes and dangerous as she knew it was, she found herself getting strangely... Accustomed to the dark witch. The first time she'd come across her in the alley way behind tomes and scrolls, Hermione had been scared, the time after that weary. By now, what she felt when she was near Bellatrix was something that confused her. It was a mix of calm and familiar, and like an age-old _knowing_. It reminded her of Dumbledore when Harry had shown Hermione his memory of the death. How the old man knew the danger he was in but after all the years he'd seen, it didn't bother him any more. It had almost been a comfort to see that the one constant in his life had returned once again, faithful as ever.

Once Hermione had gotten to grips with the fact that Bellatrix was just one of those constants in her chaotic life that she was by now used to and had persuaded herself that it was normal that there should be at least some degree of familiarity at this point, she'd felt a little easier about the whole situation. Harry had been the same with Voldemort, she'd told herself, and this was just like that. Sort of.

The two hadn't really spoken to one another at any length but Hermione noticed that Bellatrix had gradually stopped calling her mudblood in all of its varied forms and generally didn't seem to be trying to kill her, in fact she was actually quite civil when she wanted to be. Hermione was just grateful she had a place to stay that wasn't another god-awful muggle tent.

The young witch pulled her sleeves up in the warmth and her eyes landed on the scars that practically branded her. The day she'd received them felt a lifetime ago, a different Hermione, a different _Bellatrix_. She sighed and looked back up to Bellatrix, feeling eyes on her. She was right in her instinct and found Bellatrix's dark orbs silently observing her as she stared down at her marred arm.

"Tried everything to get rid of it." Hermione said quietly, more to herself than Bellatrix.

Bellatrix answered regardless. "It wouldn't be there if you'd tried _everything_."

Hermione gave her a look. "Everything within my mudblood abilities, then." She corrected dryly.

Bellatrix pretended to focus her attentions on the wooden floor. After a couple of minutes had gone by, she stood suddenly and drew her wand, holding her free hand out expectantly towards Hermione. Not knowing what the older woman was waiting for her to do, Hermione went with what had worked the last time and proffered her own wand.

"No, Hermione, your arm." Bellatrix said as if she were terribly simple.

Hermione slowly put her wand down. She suddenly didn't trust Bellatrix, although she supposed if the woman wanted her dead she wouldn't be standing waiting for permission as she was. Hermione gingerly raised her arm and Bellatrix caught hold of it, the skin to skin contact making Hermione's heart beat a little faster. Bellatrix was warm, Hermione was always surprised how warm she was when she appeared so cold.

"I am actually human." Bellatrix commented.

Hermione scowled. "Could you at least tell me when you decide to take a trip into my head?"

Bellatrix went as far as to smile faintly. "Where would be the fun in that?"

Hermione didn't push it any further and watched hopefully as Bellatrix turned her attentions to healing. The tip of the former death-eaters wand glowed softly and she traced it over each scarred letter, the warm feeling of healing magic seeping under Hermione's skin. Hermione watched as first the M, then the U, and all the letters after it gradually faded and disappeared. It had been that simple. As soon as she was finished, Bellatrix made to leave, but before she could walk out of reach, Hermione caught hold of the woman's wrist and looked her in the eyes.

"Thank you." She said genuinely.

Bellatrix didn't hold Hermione's gaze for more than a second but nodded slightly in acknowledgement and then left the room without another word. Hermione watched her go and then resumed examining her forearm. It was flawless, not a trace or hint of the scars that had plagued her for nearly a year anywhere.

_Huh, who'd have thought, her healing magic is as strong as her destructive magic._

She was pulled from her thoughts by the soft scuffling sound of tiny bare feet on the floor which announced Imry's arrival. She clung to the door frame, half hiding behind it and looked up at Hermione with large purple eyes as she assessed wether or not she should speak.

Hermione pulled her sleeve down and smiled warmly at the elf, giving her the green light to enter the room. "Hey Imry." She said, watching as the elf shuffled humbly towards her around the end of the sofa.

Imry looked sheepish. "Imry wondered, if it was her place, if there was anything she could do to... Alleviate mistress Bella's distress."

Hermione frowned. "Distress?"

Imry's ears flattened and she wrung her hands, shuffling over to the fire and throwing some more wood on it. "Mistress Bella seemed... Distressed." She said sadly, wiping away soot from her arm onto her raggy house elf clothes.

"Imry remembers, Mistress Bella came to this house often when she was younger. She was most.. Kind." Imry said with some fondness. "But seldom happy."

Hermione found herself slightly more fascinated than she probably should have been. "Before the war?" Hermione asked, trying not to sound like she was prying.

"Oh yes, Mistress Bella was always strong willed, she came to this place to escape her wedding to master Lestrange but Lord Black found her.. Imry remembers the fighting. Imry did not see Mistress Bella very often for many years after that day." Imry shivered despite being so close to the fire. "Mistress Bella returned after her imprisonment for a day or so, and Imry has not seen her at all since then."

Hermione tried to imagine a young Bellatrix being dragged off to some haughty all pure-blood arranged marriage by her own father. She changed the subject a tad, seeing the elf was getting uncomfortable giving so much information up about her mistress.

"You call her mistress Bella," Hermione observed. "Rather than Bellatrix."

Imry smiled and shuffled shyly. "Mistress Bella gave Imry permission for being a good elf." She said simply.

Hermione smiled. "She was different then." She said after a pause.

Imry shrugged a little. "Mistress Bella came here to escape the world and to talk to Imry. She cried alone for hours somedays in her distress, but Imry tried her best to fulfil her duties... Sometimes her temper made it... Difficult.. For Imry to talk to her. She often brought the people she cared about the most here to keep them safe with Imry. Imry still remembers Mistress Andromeda and Mistress Narcissa. Imry supposes in these ways, Mistress Bella has changed very little."

Hermione was about to answer when a thought struck her. "Wait, you said a few minutes ago that she was distressed, I thought you meant angry, do you mean she's crying?"

Imry swallowed nervously. "Imry never meant to decieve.."

"I'm not angry, it's my fault I assumed." Hermione got up to leave and patted the little elf on the head softly as she passed, earning a huge smile. "Thank you Imry." She said as she turned out of the room and started up the stairs which led to the six bedrooms.

Bellatrix's room was opposite the one Hermione was staying in and Hermione found the woman in there with her back to her, staring silently out of a window which was at least twice her height and five times her width. It looked out to sea, and through the thin cover of clouds, you could see the stars in all their glory. The room was lit by one small candle, which didn't give much light but helped to outline the defined edges of furniture one might otherwise have walked into had it not been lit at all.

_This is probably going to be one of those ideas I later come to regret._ Hermione thought as she picked her way across the room to stand by Bellatrix. She only had to take one look at her to know she most definitely had been crying and it was surreal because it was unnatural to see the witch look so vulnerable. Bellatrix spoke before Hermione managed to but didn't turn to face her.

"If you've been talking to Imry, then please don't pay any attention. She means well but it's been a long time since she knew me."

Hermione could hear the strain in her voice. "She doesn't seem to think you've changed." Bellatrix still didn't look at Hermione so the younger witch continued. "She said you came here to escape life whenever you could and that you spent a lot of your time crying alone. And so came to the conclusion you were much the same."

Bellatrix looked at the floor. "Oh." She said simply.

Hermione took her life in her hands. "Why _are_ you crying up here on your own?"

Bellatrix turned away at the question but Hermione so badly wanted her to just open up and tell her what was wrong that she caught hold of the other witches arm and pulled her back gently. Bellatrix's resistance faltered and she finally looked at Hermione with fresh tears in her eyes, biting her lip. The younger witch immediately felt guilty. Bellatrix's hair had fallen across some of her face as she'd turned but Hermione could see now that she hadn't turned away because she didn't want to talk to Hermione, she had turned away desperately trying to compose herself.

"Hermione," the witch said softly, "Don't waste your time on me. Go to bed."

Hermione strode across the room and sat down on the end of Bellatrix's bed.

"Your _own_ bed." Bellatrix amended.

Hermione crossed her arms. "No. Either you hex me to my own room so I know you're back to yourself, or you tell me what's wrong."

"I could just go to bed and leave you sat there." Bellatrix said with the tiniest hint of a smile.

"Fine by me." Hermione said, realising she sounded annoyingly like her father.

Bellatrix took that as a challenge and waved a hand quickly over the little candle flame, the sudden shift in the air snuffing it. Now the room was entirely dark and squinting, Hermione could only see the faintest outline of Bellatrix as she moved towards the side of her bed she slept on but she could see enough to quickly avert her eyes when Bellatrix lost her dress- though luckily for Hermione's sanity not what she had on underneath too- and got into bed.

_I really shouldn't find her as attractive as I do. I really shouldn't have to say that to myself so often, either. Hermione mused to herself. _

"I'll pretend like I never heard that."

Hermione hid her face in her hands and silently screamed in embarrassment at Bellatrix's words. She must have been blushing hard because she could feel the heat radiating from her face.

"_Why_?" Was all Hermione could manage to say.

Bellatrix smirked in the darkness. "Well I wont if you don't want me to."

"I meant why do you always manage to get into my head right when something inappropriate is happening in there? Not that lots of inappropriate things happen in my head that I don't want you to see- oh god.." Hermione gave up when Bellatrix started to laugh from behind her. At least she was laughing and not crying.

Bellatrix gave her an out by changing the subject. "What did Imry say, exactly?"

Hermione leaved sideways against the wall. "That you came here before your wedding, had a huge fight. Took 'people you cared about most' here to keep them safe. She said you came here after Azkaban."

"She remembers that?"

Hermione glanced at Bellatrix. "I guess so."

Bellatrix sighed. "I suppose she would."

"Why?"

"It was... Heavy going getting out of that place so suddenly."

Hermione hadn't thought of that. "Oh.."

There was a silence for a long time before Bellatrix spoke again. "You know, that place wasn't as bad as it could have been. Others had it worse."

Hermione gave her a look. "How?"

Bellatrix shrugged in the dark. "Half of the horror is the dementors and they weren't interested in me."

"They weren't interested?"

"Dementors feed off of happy memories and warmth and cheer, they can only feel a being is near them by there emotions. They barely looked twice at me. Sirius said it was because I had too few emotions to identify my presence by. Others said it was because i had no happy memories. I couldn't say who was right."

Hermione felt a bit sick. "Thats horrible... I'm glad they got rid of the things."

"It wont make any difference if they catch me a second time."

"In what way?"

Bellatrix sat up beside Hermione. "Because I wont be going to Azkaban again. I'll simply be killed."

Hermione tried to reason. "You could.. appeal?"

The older witch laughed with little humour. "Who do you think would listen?"

Hermione watched as Bellatrix pulled her hair around her bare shoulders. "I'd listen. There must be some other people out there who would be curious enough to hear the other side of the story."

Bellatrix left her hair. "Well, you know what curiosity did to the cat."

"Led it around the back of Tomes and Scrolls?" Hermione guessed quietly.

The dark witch laughed softly through her nose. "Maybe. Are you honestly going to sit there all night?"

Hermione tilted her head to one side. "Maybe."

Bellatrix smiled a little but then sighed heavily and turned away. After a few seconds of considering, Hermione tossed caution to the wind and put her arms around Bellatrix's pale neck. Bellatrix didn't move. "Tell me in the morning?" Hermione said hopefully.

The dark witch didn't answer her, only touched the back of the blondes hand lightly, not moving her eyes from their fixed stare into the darkness.

Hermione took that as a maybe and that was good enough for her. She let go of Bellatrix and slipped out of her room, across the corridor and into her own. The room felt colder alone.


	4. Toujours Pur

The next day wasn't as awkward as it could have been, mainly for the impromptu arrival of Narcissa. Bellatrix hadn't been as surprised as Hermione would have expected and considering the blonde had supposedly thought her sister dead for the past several months, nor was she. Narcissa had given Hermione a long look when she'd caught sight of her hesitantly peeking around the front door frame, the youngest Black sister's mouth half open as if she was trying to decide what to say.

"I need a word with you. Alone." She said after a few more seconds delay, her eyes never left Hermione but her words were clearly directed at her sister. Bellatrix didn't really respond, instead leading the other woman from the door step and into the house, giving Hermione a sideways glance as she did.

Hermione wondered if the 'word' Narcissa wanted was really more like six words, and if they were something along the lines of 'what the fuck are you doing?'

_Probably_.

Hermione sighed and after watching the two disappear upstairs followed them into the house, closing the door behind her. She walked down the hallway staring at the dark floorboards as she went. Imry was on her knees at the bottom of the stairs polishing one of the Black family heirlooms, a silver coat of arms set on mahogany, and didn't pay Hermione much mind to the witch as she used the tip of her shoe to push the adjacent library door open.

What felt like a long time ago she would have remembered that she wasn't in her own house and used the door handle, but the longer she stayed with Bellatrix the more alike they seemed to become. Hermione found it was quite a relief to be herself rather than the golden girl the world expected of her, but she realised that after all the years she'd spent immersed in pretending as she'd followed Ron and Harry on their wild goose chase, she didn't really know the person she'd grown to be underneath. She didn't know quite how she did feel about the fact that she could relate so much to a mass murderer, but whatever the it was, it wasn't the least bit guilty.

If anyone had asked her she would have told them that all the things Bellatrix had done were wrong and evil and that she didn't agree with or condone them, probably in a very colourful way to prove her point, but if she was brutally honest with herself, when she thought of Bellatrix's past nothing really sparked in her. It didn't seem to mean anything, let alone bother her. But she probably wouldn't admit it before her life was threatened. Probably.

Restless, she sat down on the edge of the sofa which Bellatrix usually claimed and fiddled with the ends of her hair. Her thoughts wondered to the evening before. It had been... Strange. Bellatrix had done a 180 on her since their encounter in the alley and there was no obvious explanation as to why. She had so many questions. Why did Bellatrix let her live a week ago? Why did she bring her here rather than letting Minerva's curse hit her and saving herself? Why did she get so upset last night and why the sudden shift in her behaviour since they'd been here? Hermione couldn't answer any of them and that wasn't a feeling she enjoyed. She supposed she wasn't going to get anywhere sat on her own going over the same things over and over in her head.

Uneasily, she wondered what Narcissa wanted. She wouldn't necessarily call herself a nosey person but she got the gnawing feeling that whatever Bellatrix was discussing with her sister concerned her and she hated not knowing something when she was involved. She craned her neck towards the open door and bit her lip. Eavesdropping didn't seem like the done thing. Maybe if she just walked past the door and accidentally heard a tiny bit... That wasn't eavesdropping, was it? Walking past the door? Hermione crept, though she didn't know why she was bothering when she was still on the floor below, across the room to the door and looked to her right up the giant staircase. Imry was still sat dutifully polishing and gave Hermione a curious look as the witch slowly started up the staircase. She supposed she must have looked guilty already.

By the time she reached the landing Hermione felt like a child that was sneaking cookies from behind a parents back. She really shouldn't be doing this, Narcissa had made it clear she wanted to talk to Bellatrix on her own.

Despite her moral arguments, Hermione walked as lightly as she could past all of the doors until she heard the distant sound of conversation coming from the last room at the end of the hall. Hermione had never understood the functional point of the room, not that she understood the point of most of the rooms in these huge houses, only that it had yet another fireplace, more old portraits of people Hermione didn't recognise and an overly ornate chaise lounge. Apart from that, there was little else of interest in the room apart from two wide glass doors which opened out onto a stone balcony with a balustrade made of carved snakes wrapped around roman columns. It overlooked the sea which seemed grey with the days drizzle but was probably quite pretty on a nice day. Hermione peeked through the narrow opening the door gave her. She could see both women out on the balcony and tried to focus her hearing on what they were saying.

Narcissa's cold voice was the first she heard clearly. "There's nothing that can be done now, Bella."

Bellatrix sounded like she was getting angry and slightly upset. "What am I supposed to say to her?" Hermione's ears pricked up at that. _I still don't know she means me. _

"You shouldn't be _saying_ anything to her. I don't know _how_ you get yourself into these situations, I really don't." Hermione frowned. Now she was sure they meant her.

"Oh yes, great words from sister of the year, you're not exactly a sterling advert for companionship yourself, Cissy. And anyway that's beside the point."

Hermione could see Narcissa pinching the bridge of her nose. "Bella don't start. This is your mess, you sort it out."

"This isn't _my_ _fault!" _Bellatrix half shouted before she remembered herself and finished in a low hiss.

"Tell that to Mr and Mrs Granger. More to the point, tell their daughter if you care so much for her." Hermione's blood ran cold and she pushed the door open a little more so she could see the women better. _What do my parents have to do with anything? _

"You know what the point to this is, this is a warning to turn herself in and it's only the beginning Cissy, they wont stop. First her parents then it'll be all her friends, her family, everyone she's ever passed on the _street_, you _know_ that. They did the same thing to me. If she stays here they'll carry on killing, if she goes then they'll find both of us and we'll be back in that hell hole, I cant win."

The sound Hermione made when her breath caught in her throat was loud enough to draw attention. Bellatrix saw her first and regarded the younger witch, who stood with her eyes slightly wider than they should be and her lips parted, with a look half way between horror and defeat.

"Hermione-" she started.

"What do you mean, 'keep on killing'?"

Narcissa turned away and resumed pinching the bridge of her nose, her elbows resting on the stone railing.

"Hermione, I'm sorry, the ministry found your parents... You shouldn't have heard it like that..."

Tears began to dribble slowly down the young witch's face. "Who was it?" Hermione said quietly.

Bellatrix frowned. "What-"

"Who killed my parents?" Hermione said through gritted teeth. There was something in her voice Bellatrix hadn't heard before and it made her wary.

"Hermione you need to sit down-"

"_WHO KILLED THEM?!"_ The witch screamed, all the shock turning to rage. She wondered if she looked like Bellatrix did when the older witch lost her temper. Regardless, her parents had never done anything wrong, they'd had no part in this war.

Bellatrix looked at the floor. The drizzle had settled in her hair and it sparkled like crystals as the dull daylight hit it. "Weasley." She said finally. "Him and Potter left school the second you did and and took their places as Aurors. He went out in the early hours of the morning, we don't know if it was ordered or not..."

The young witch turned and strode from the room without another word. Bellatrix called after her and Hermione heard Narcissa telling her to 'leave her to it' before she drew her wand and apperated from the house with an intention she never thought she'd seriously have.

* * *

When Hermione finally returned to the mansion, Narcissa was long gone and dawn lit the sea in hues of red and orange. Bellatrix was sat on the doorstep with her forehead resting on her knees, which were drawn up close to her, her arms wrapped around them tightly. Hermione stopped a few meters away from her and felt a little guilty. She didn't want to think about what she'd done a few hours ago, and right now Bellatrix was her best distraction. Bellatrix looked up suddenly as Hermione continued walking towards her. She didn't look like she'd slept.

"Hermione, where the _hell_ have you been?"

Hermione didn't say anything at first just sat down next to the woman and stared unblinking at the ground in front of her. She felt hollow. "How long have you been sat here?" She asked, not answering Bellatrix's question.

Bellatrix gave her a sideways look. "About 40 minutes. But if you were wondering, yes I've been waiting to see if you were coming back all night."

Hermione would have asked her why but she found herself void of the energy to. Instead, she stayed silent. She swore she could feel the dark rings forming under her eyes and now that her anger had finally subsided, it had left her exhausted.

After a few minutes of not completely uncomfortable silence, Bellatrix turned to look at her. "Never liked the bitch anyway." She said simply. Hermione looked at her from the corner of her eye. She had expected Bellatrix to work out where she'd gone and why, but she had also expected Bellatrix to be angry with her for such a rash move. "And her husband?"

Bellatrix shrugged. "Both the same person to me."

Hermione looked at her more fully. "So you're not going to shove me out of an upstairs window?"

Bellatrix smiled a little. "I've done worse than murder, Hermione, I'm not going to judge. Besides if they find us we're dead anyway, no harm in dragging a few down with us."

Hermione would have cried but whether her tear ducts no longer worked or she just had no tears left to cry, nothing came. Her parents were gone and now she was a murderer and her sole comfort was another murderer who was probably going to be the last person she saw right up until the day the ministry found them and killed them both. She at least had avenged her parents in a roundabout way. Ronald was in for a taste of his own medicine tomorrow. She sighed. She didn't know who she was becoming. She didn't want to think about it, changing the subject.

"Bellatrix?"

"Mm?"

"How did you survive the battle at Hogwarts? I saw you die."

Bellatrix's dark eyes settled on her and she brushed her hair from her face. "There were two of me, the real one and a conjuring, real enough to fight but not as.. Durable."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "You conjured a clone of yourself?"

Bellatrix shook her head. "Not me, Voldemort. It hurt like a bitch."

Hermione thought about that. "So when Mrs Weasley killed you it wasn't actually _you_?" Hermione felt strange saying the woman's name after watching her declare her an evil bitch before falling dead next to her husband.

Bellatrix looked at the sky. The red colour was slowly fading into the palest blue. "No. But I still felt it, I knew we must have been loosing so I left before it was too late."

The young witch nodded and watched the sun rise, feeling a lot better now than she had sat alone in the muggle park for the majority of the night.

Hermione took her wand from her sleeve and turned it over in her hands. "Can I ask another question?"

"Mmm."

"Why did you get so upset when you healed my arm?"

The dark witch smiled sadly. "The curse I used on you was invented by one of my ancient ancestors, intended to carve the family motto onto anyone who 'forgot' themselves and got involved with anyone who wasn't pureblood. I suppose thats why I used it, not really to remind you of who you were but to remind me of who I was. It was used on Andromeda when she was your age after my father caught her in a compromising situation with a half blood boy and it upset her so much I took my life in my hands and went into my fathers head whilst he was sleeping to learn the counter curse to get rid of it. He was the only one who knew it, it was only ever taught to the head of the family." Bellatrix sighed. "It was all just a little ironic."

Hermione considered this, stilling her wand and putting it back up her sleeve. "Why did you need to remind yourself who you were? You weren't... 'Involved' with me.."

"No, but I wanted to be and that was enough to be dangerous." Bellatrix said bluntly.

Hermione couldn't help but stare, slightly open-mouthed at the other witch.

"What?" Bellatrix asked gently, "Theres no point in lying about it, we'll probably be dead soon. Anyway, I spend more time in your head than I do out of it, I know all your secrets you may as well know mine."

Hermione stared for a few more seconds before reaching out, threading her fingers through Bellatrix's hair, leaning in and kissing the other witch as softly as she could. To her vague surprise Bellatrix kissed her back and made no move to break her neck. After a few moments of surrealism, Bellatrix broke away. Hermione looked up at her and felt little butterflies flutter through her when she caught the look in Bellatrix's dark brown eyes. The older witch stood up and held out a hand to Hermione who took it and rose to stand next to her. Bellatrix didn't let go of her hand as she slowly pulled her into the house and up the stairs towards her room.


	5. Bella

**Bellatrix's POV**

Bellatrix had been surprised to find Hermione's muggle house completely unattended by authority, magical or otherwise. It hadn't taken her long to find the place, she had been there before on an assignment from the dark lord with Rudolphus with the slim chance they might catch Hermione off guard, but to no avail. Bellatrix rolled her eyes at the thought of her dead husband.

_He was such a pig. _She thought dryly. She was glad she'd managed to evade ending up in bed with him, even if had meant resorting to violence. Her thoughts turned to Hermione once more.

It had been over 24 hours since Cissy had told her the news. One of Draco's old friends had overheard Ron discussing how he'd killed Mr and Mrs Granger to 'see how the traitorous bitch liked that' in hushed tones with Harry, but the boy hadn't known if it had been ordered by the ministry or not.

Hermione had tracked her parents down after the war to correct their memories and soon after they moved back to their old house which had stood empty since they had left.

The dark witch stood in the doorway of the house and listened intently for any signs of movement within. Apart from the door as it clicked shut behind her and a distant dog barking, Bellatrix heard nothing. Despite the silence, Bellatrix was still cautious.

The house looked like the owners could be back at any moment, there was a pair of blue slippers on the stairs, an assortment of white and red roses stood proudly in a vase on a side table and there were even coats hung on the bannister at the bottom of the stairs. Bellatrix sighed and made her way past them to find Hermione's bedroom.

She'd left the younger woman quietly asleep tangled up in the sheets of her bed and she was hoping to be back before she woke up. She hadn't exactly planned last night, or this morning she supposed, but she didn't regret it like she should for someone of her reputation on the subject. She would just have to wait and see if Hermione did and that was a more unsettling feeling than she would have predicted. She put the thought aside before she got too distracted.

Hermione would probably kill her for coming here but for the last eight days or so the brightest witch of her age had had to wear the same clothes, using magic to clean them every night and Bellatrix didn't have anything in her wardrobes that was going to fit her. Vatersay had no shops which sold clothes as such and she was trying to avoid going there anyway since one of the locals knew who she was from her visits in earlier years. She didn't think he'd tell anyone, and he'd given her newspapers after they'd arrived but she still preferred to stay away. This was the last way she could think of to get Hermione clothes without too high a risk of death.

The stairs creaked a little as Bellatrix made her way up and the witch almost felt sad thinking of Hermione coming back and forth to this same house, going from a muggle to a witch to famous to infamous to a soldier and then back to famous again.

_And after all that, she's got the same outcome waiting for her as I have with everything I've done. Life's a bitch_. Bellatrix surmised. She wasn't sure when she'd developed such a sense of justice.

Hermione's room was dimly lit by the afternoon sun that peeked in through the blinds and Bellatrix went straight to the wardrobe, opening both doors and feeling slightly relieved to see that there were still clothes there which the girl hadn't taken to Hogwarts. She found a bag that looked like it had been left there after the pack for school by Hermione's bed and put as many clothes as she could into it. Hermione's muggle clothes were a lot like what she already had on, mainly made up of dark reds and blues, lots of wooly things and t-shirts which mostly had long sleeves. She zipped the bag up as soon as the wardrobe was empty, taking one last look around the room as she prepared to disapperate. She didn't want to stay any longer than she had to with the muggles about next door.

A photo in a little wooden frame on Hermione's bedside table caught the dark witch's eye and she picked it up to look more closely at it. It was recent, Hermione was in between both her parents, one arm around each and the were all grinning at the camera.

_It doesn't move._ Bellatrix thought to herself. _Bloody weird muggles..._ Though she supposed they had been _Hermione's_ bloody weird muggles. With a sigh and a half-hearted wonder as to whether she was losing what was left of her mind, Bellatrix slipped it into the bag on top of the clothes and disapperated from the bedroom with a crack, leaving the house to stand silently.

* * *

Hermione was very much awake by the time Bellatrix returned to the manor that afternoon. The dark witch found her in the same room she'd slept in, sat at Bellatrix's vanity wrapped in a cream bed sheet and struggling fruitlessly with a little knot in her hair.

"What are you doing?" The older witch asked casually after taking her in.

"I'm brushing my hair, Bellatrix," Hermione replied smoothly, showing no surprise at the witch's sudden appearance. "You should try it sometime." She added, giving Bellatrix a look.

The witch smiled saccharinely and threw the bag she was still holding the short distance into Hermione's lap. "I was referring to your being wrapped in only a sheet."

Hermione peered down at herself. "I only woke up twenty minutes ago. I haven't gotten around to... Finding some of my clothes yet."

Bellatrix had to suppress a smile as she saw some of the images from the night before that went through Hermione's mind.

"We do have an elf for that." She reminded.

Hermione gave her a look. "That would be a bit of an awkward conversation."

Bellatrix shrugged. "Don't converse then, just tell her."

"What and 'Imry help me find my clothes after they were blindly thrown across the room last night' wouldn't be awkward either?"

The dark witch frowned. "Again with the details. Just _tell_ her."

"'Imry, find my clothes.'?" Hermione tried, sounding unsure.

Bellatrix nodded. "What's wrong with that?"

"I don't like to be so... Imperative. Anyway. Where did you go?" The younger witch asked mildly, looking down at the bag with a frown. "Is this my spare Hogwarts bag? Where did you get this?"

Bellatrix looked almost guilty. "Your house." She said cautiously, her tone contradicting the conviction in her walk as she crossed the room to just behind where Hermione sat. She wrenched open a wooden draw on the bottom of the vanity and pulled out a bottle of red wine, setting it down on the floor whilst she shoved the draw back into place and then grabbing it by the neck and placing it on the surface of the vanity with a soft thud.

In truth she was relieved that Hermione was still there and hadn't disappeared forever as soon as she'd woken up. The older witch watched her from the corner of her eye as she called Imry for a glass.

"You went to my house?" The brunette said slowly.

"You needed clothes." Bellatrix mumbled as the small house elf appeared with a pop and shuffled over with the requested glass.

Hermione's response was quiet. "You found my photo.."

Bellatrix took the wine glasses from Imry and stole another look at Hermione who had opened up the bag and was now holding the little picture that the older witch had slipped in on top of her clothes.

"It doesn't move." Was all she could think to say.

Hermione smiled a little. "Muggle picture. Took it in Australia after I found them again."

Bellatrix felt guilty again. "Sorry.."

"It's fine. Thanks for picking it up, though.." Hermione sighed in defeat and dropped the hairbrush onto the vanity with a clatter, the knot still in her hair. The older woman took a quick sip of her wine and then set it aside, picking up the brush.

Hermione immediately looked wary. "Do you know how to use of those?"

Bellatrix gave her a look through the mirror. "Enlighten me as to why wouldn't I know how to use a hairbrush, Hermione?"

Hermione looked from the reflection of Bellatrix's face, to her hair, and back again. "Uh... Well your hair _is_ a little on the.. untamed side. Not that it's not nice like that. It is. Nice. It's just, you know..."

Bellatrix rolled her eyes. "Point made, you can take your foot out of your mouth now."

Hermione blushed.

"If you must know, I lack the patience to deal with my hair very often." She added, narrowing her eyes at the knot which held fast against her tugging. "Although..." She muttered quietly, "Yours doesn't seem much better."

After a few moments, Bellatrix managed to work the knot out of her hair, combing through it a couple of times just to make sure. Hermione studied her nails and tried not to shiver after each little tug the brush caused as it fought through the ends of her hair.

"I wasn't sure you were coming back." Hermione commented truthfully.

"I wasn't sure you'd be here when I did." Bellatrix answered, matching the younger witch's truthful tone as she threw the brush behind her onto the unmade bed.

Hermione stood up with one arm held tightly to her chest in the hopes of keeping her sheet in place. It dipped down to expose most of her back but for the most part it stayed in place.

Bellatrix half wondered why she was bothering. Then again, she supposed it would have been just as weird if the girl had stood up _without_ the sheet.

_Though I think I could have coped. _

Hermione's eyes were brooding when she next rested them on Bellatrix's. "I'm gonna miss them." She said quietly, glancing at the photo where it lay on its side on the vanity.

Bellatrix wasn't familiar with the concept of family unity, she would have happily trampled her mother to wring her fathers neck. Her inexperience made it difficult to empathise, so sympathising would have to do. She wrapped her arms around Hermione's slim frame, forcing the younger woman to let go of the sheet, instead to have it pinned to her by Bellatrix's body.

Hermione didn't protest, resting her forehead against Bellatrix's shoulder comfortably.

The older witch suddenly had a thought. "Hermione?"

Hermione's response was muffled. "Mm?"

"Do you remember that dream you had? About me... Cutting your arm?"

Hermione opened her eyes a little and was met with the sight of Bellatrix's Azkaban tattoo. "Ive had a lot of dreams about you cutting my arm, Bella..."

"I mean th- did you just call me Bella?"

Hermione could have kicked herself. "Sorry, your name is a mouthful... Not that mine isn't."

"I don't mind." Bellatrix reassured, stroking Hermione's bare arm with her thumb.

"Okay then, _Bella_, would this be the time to point out that I let go of the sheet? Because I'm effectively stuck here now, my modesty is at stake."

Bellatrix tried not to let her amusement seep into her voice. "_Modesty_?" She ran the backs of her nails lightly down Hermione's uncovered back. "What _modesty_?"

"What little I have left." Hermione corrected, closing her eyes once more as little shivers ran over her.

The older witch rolled her eyes, then without warning gathered Hermione up akin to how a groom would carry his bride, sheet and all, and carried her to bed, laying her down carefully.

"There you are, dignity intact."

Hermione smirked as she watched Bellatrix retrieve her glass of wine. "Anyway. You never finished your question." She prompted.

Bellatrix took another sip of wine. "I was going to ask if I could see it, that dream." She admitted. "It keeps flashing up in your mind and I can't quite... figure it out."

It was true Hermione had had many dreams of Bellatrix but she knew the one the other woman meant. "If you want."

Bellatrix left her wine again and came to sit by where Hermione still lay. The girl put up no mental fight, despite knowing Bellatrix was breaking into her mind; it didn't bother her anymore, in all honesty it felt strangely nice knowing the eldest Black was there.

The dream was brought up behind her eyes and she watched passively as she had done many times before. When it was over Bellatrix left her head and lay down next to her with a sigh.

"Why 'darling'?" She said eventually.

Hermione shrugged and rolled onto her side to face Bellatrix properly, marginally misjudging how much space she had.

There was only a few inches between them and Hermione's thoughts were immediately and unashamedly in the gutter. She couldn't help how much she wanted her. Bellatrix must still have been peeking at her thoughts because there was little to no hesitation in the way she kissed her, soft lips gracing from her mouth and down the side of her neck. Hermione gasped softly as the other witch bit down gently on the sensitive skin and at the same time let one hand travel down her thigh and under the hitched up sheet that was still clustered around her.

Their lips found each other again and Hermione's quiet whimper was cut off as Bella's finger tips traced lightly over her slit.

The older witch couldn't help but to note how wet the girl was and smiled slightly against Hermione's lips, letting one finger graze over the girls clit teasingly. The brunette inhaled sharply and Bellatrix got the feeling this could definitely be an addiction in the making.

She teased the young witch relatively mercilessly until a death threat was murmured faintly at her through heavy breaths and she decided to give the girl the relief she wanted, letting her fingers reassume their little circles from the night before and watching as Hermione's back arched delicately and her lips parted in a silent moan. She didn't stay silent for long as Bellatrix increased her pace and pressure, her quiet whimpers turning to less quiet moans whilst she sought out Bellatrix's mouth once more. She found it and for a few quiet seconds they kissed before Hermione pulled away as the coil of heat inside her began to take over.

"_Bella_..!" She whispered desperately, her fingers threading through the ends of the other woman's hair and her eyes closed tightly.

Bellatrix didn't at all relent and felt a sense of satisfaction as Hermione came undone next to her, moaning breathily. After a moment of getting her bearings back, Hermione pushed herself forward a little and rested her head against Bellatrix's chest, her breathing still shaky and uneven. The older witch shifted slightly to accommodate her and at the same time felt an overwhelming sense of protectiveness over the young witch, putting her arms around her defensively.

She closed her eyes and let herself fall asleep guarding what felt like the last person who cared about her in the world.


	6. Head Or Heart

**A/N- This is a really short one, but I hope you like it anyway :)**

It was late in the evening when the owl arrived.

Bellatrix had been shut up in the library all day, only speaking when she was spoken to and grudgingly even then. Hermione didn't know what brought those moods on, irregular as they were, and not honestly being in the mood to talk much herself didn't press the matter any further. It wasn't like Bellatrix couldn't handle herself.

In the mean time Hermione had kept herself busy with menial jobs for most of the day and then, when she could find no other room to explore or tidy, she sat outside for the sunset, a good distance from the house, staring out at the sea as the tide slowly crept up on the shore. Her parents had always loved the sea. She had been trying not to think of them since she'd learned of their deaths but it was becoming increasingly difficult. Every time she thought of them she thought of Molly and Arthur and how they fell and how their faces had contorted in rage and hurt and thinly veiled disappointment at her as they died, of Ron and Harry and Ginny and the whole life of friends and people she'd lost in the blink of an eye. Hermione was yet to find a time where this hadn't all been too much and so had kept it bottled up for when she was ready. She wasn't sure how long that would be.

By the time she spotted the bird, it had already pulled its head back, straightened its body and begun flapping its wings in broader motions to slow itself for landing. It dropped the scroll it was carrying beside her before touching down neatly a few inches behind it, tucking its wings snugly into its pale cream frame against the gentle buffeting of the wind and looking at her expectantly.

Hermione's stomach flipped and she swallowed hard. As far as she knew the only person who knew where she was apart from Bellatrix was Narcissa and the youngest Black sister had never once been inclined to write before, preferring to make her visits in person.

The parchment smelled heavily of salt and bore no seal, just a simple string. The young witch tugged at the binding and unfurled the paper, a queasy feeling constricting her lungs. Hermione's eyes scanned the words, written simply in black ink, and felt an overwhelming fear come over her, reading them again, and then again and then dropping the parchment onto the stubby grass and clutching her forehead with both hands, breathing hard.

_Kill her and your name will be absolved. You have one week. Choose your side wisely._

_K._

Hermione felt sick. She had expected Kingsley to find them, for there to be some sort of showdown where she would likely die alongside Bellatrix, forever branded a renegade, but this? She had never seen this coming.

Beside her, it became obvious to the owl that there was no treat nor scrap of food to be had and with a grumpy look, it hopped up onto a rock and launched itself from there into the air, flapping away into the distance as Hermione tried to catch hold of and tie down some of the rampant thoughts which were rioting in her mind.

_They want me to kill her. They want _me_ to _kill_ her. _

Hermione stood up and turned towards the house.

Her head knew this was her chance. Her heart knew she could never take it. But could she? She had the chance to go back to Ginny and Harry and Ron and school, back to being the person she had been both within herself and in the eyes of the whole wizarding world. She had the chance. But at what price? Murdering a woman who by no means was a saint, far from it, but of whom she had become so... Close to, albeit under forced circumstances. The woman who had in her own strange way, even if it had been reluctantly, taken her in and treated her civilly and eventually despite it not ever being spoken about fallen into bed with her a few times and in turn quite a large pit of confusion, too.

Hermione hugged her hoodie around her. Her hair was a mess from the winds and the island was growing cold as the sun began to drown beneath the waves of the Atlantic.

She glanced at the parchment where it lay curled on the grass and immediately looked away.

_I wish they'd just come and killed me_. She thought, wiping tears away from the corners of her eyes.

What made it worse was that she knew there was a time where she wouldn't have even needed to think about it and Bellatrix would have already been dead by now. Why couldn't she just go back to that? What had changed? The woman was still a vicious murderer. Being clinical about it, any death Hermione could offer would probably be nicer that what was waiting for her at the ministry anyway. Hermione sighed. She knew it, but she couldn't allow herself to write Bellatrix off as a lost cause. It wasn't in her nature. The idea of hurting her made Hermione feel sick.

_Besides, if I go and kill her I wouldn't be returning as the old Hermione, I'd be just as guilty as Bellatrix had been, a murderer, and it would be on my conscience for the rest of my life. _

In that way, Hermione supposed, it would be by refusing to kill the older witch that she would ultimately retain her old self. Killing her would turn her into a different person. She clung to that thought. She couldn't kill Bellatrix, not when her parents brought her up better than a backstabber. Then, would it not be backstabbing to my old friends for not killing her after everything we've been through?

It was then it dawned on Hermione. This wasn't about right and wrong. It never had been. There was no right answer.

'_Choose your side wisely_.'

She had been focusing on the killing, on the absolving of her name. But that wasn't the point. They were demanding her final answer. They wanted to see which side she was truely on.

_Who's side am I on? My old friends, who have all the wonderful history behind their names and faces but who cast me out with such hostility without hesitation, or Bellatrix's, who has a dark enough history to make a grown man cry but who had put it aside and helped me when I most needed it? _

That's what it came down to. And then there was the issue of what her and bellatrix even were. She would go as far as saying friends now, maybe not openly, but to herself at least. But friends didn't tend to sleep with one another like they had, did they? Bellatrix had told her herself that she felt something for her.

Hermione didn't know anymore.

_I suppose the main question for now is whether to tell Bellatrix or not._ Hermione bit her lip. If she told the older witch, would she blame Hermione? Would she continue to trust her? Would she just leave?

Hermione didn't want to be alone. She gathered her Gryffindor courage and took a deep breath, picking up the parchment from the ground with a heavy heart. She was going to have to tell Bellatrix some time, might as well do it now and leave no room for the other woman to think she had been really considering it. She looked out to the darkening sea one last time and closed her eyes as she turned towards the house, preparing herself for the worst.

She shrieked when she opened her eyes to find a second, darker pair staring right back at her. Bellatrix didn't say anything as Hermione struggled for words.

"How long have you been standing there?" The younger witch stuttered, her heart pounding.

"Longer than you'd like." Bellatrix said simply.

"Were you... In my head?"

Bellatrix looked away, the wind blowing her hair across her face. Her skin looked paler than usual in the gathering dark and by the other woman's face, Hermione knew the answer to her question was yes. She felt her bravery waver and eventually break under Bellatrix's heavy silence. The woman had seen everything. With that thought driving itself into her heart, Hermione cried. She cried for her parents, she cried for the life she'd lost, and most of all she cried for Bellatrix, who had confused her, comforted her, and now was probably going to kill her.

"I'm sorry." Hermione whispered. The tear tracks on her warm cheeks felt like ice as the cold sea wind graced over them.

Bellatrix stared at her for a long time without saying anything, her face expertly masking her emotions. The younger witch was about to attempt to defend herself further when Bellatrix beat her to it.

"Don't be." she said, defeat lining her words. "It's not your fault. Considering all of your options is only natural."

It wasn't the reply Hermione was expecting, but she certainly wasnt complaining.

"Do whatever you need to..."

Hermione's head snapped up at that. She looked to Bellatrix's face, searching the older womans eyes for the meaning behind what she had said. Some sort of mutual understanding came over her as their eyes met and she tried to pull herself together.

"No." Said the younger witch resolutely, wiping tears away from her face.

Bellatrix looked conflicted. "Hermione-"

"No. I won't." Hermione cut her off. "And if they all show up here in a weeks time, I'll show them the same treatment I showed the Weasleys. I'll kill them, and I'll keep killing them until stop coming. I'll kill them..." Hermione trailed off and instead devoted her efforts to keep herself from crying again, covering her face.

_If they want to make me out as a traitor, then that's what I'll be._ She thought darkly. _I'm not spending my life a murderer surrounded by false friends. _

After a few more moments of considering, Bellatrix looked to the ground briefly and then back to Hermione.

She opened her arms and the younger witch fell against her quietly. She was surprised Bellatrix wasn't angry, although she felt like there was still something the other woman had to say. It wasn't very long until she was proved right.

"I'll have to tell Cissy."

Hermione nodded silently. She hoped the youngest Black didn't hate her.

"Come on. We won't kill anything standing out here in the dark." Bellatrix said softly.

Hermione supposed she was right. The extent of her exhaustion coming over her like a wave, Hermione followed Bellatrix back inside the house in silence and was delighted to find Imry had lit the fires and the house as warmer than it looked from its drab exterior.


	7. Blood, Tears And Fighting

**Hermione****'****s POV**

_Not for the first time in her life, Hermione was woken by a battle cry of 'oh bloody hell!__'_

_The camp was in a state of absolute darkness as she stumbled out of her small muggle tent and tried to get a grasp on what was happening. Ron and Harry were running around like headless chickens, while men she guessed were snatchers, dressed in plain muggle clothes, the whites of their eyes glowing in the darkness, were leaping across the camp firing stunners and curses and the occasional jeer. One of the snatchers fell quickly to Harry, and then another to both boys' joint effort, but it was the third that outwitted them both. _

_The glint of steel caught Hermione's eyes as it flashed green by spell light and then disappeared back into the darkness. The knife wasn't all that big, but the young witch could see it was sharp and well aimed, lethal. The snatcher raised his arm and brought it down hard in an arc, letting the steel fly from his grasp and towards Harry's typically unprotected chest. Pushing herself forwards with one hand, Hermione blasted the knife aside into a useless twist of singed metal with the wand in her other and unthinking, uttered a spell which she'd only ever seen written in a book tucked away right at the back of the restricted section of the library in Hogwarts. She hadn't a clue what it would do, only that it would probably hurt, and that was enough for her. _

_The man was eviscerated where he stood. The three stood in horror as he tried to hold his guts in, but they slipped through his fingers. He fell to his knees, then on his side, and didn't move again._

Her dream still flickered in the shadows of the room as Hermione woke with an uneasy feeling. Bellatrix was gone from beside her. Sitting up, Hermione shrugged the covers off and pulled her fingers back through her hair, wondering what the time was. An ungodly hour in the morning regardless of details, she supposed. It was always the way.

"Imry?" She called, hoping the poor elf hadn't been sleeping. Imry appeared a few seconds later with a small pop beside the bed.

"Yes, miss Hermione." She said dutifully, her long pale ears pinned back and her eyes wide and hopeful.

"Where's Bella?" They young witch said through a yawn.

Imry shuffled. "Imry only knows Mistress Bella went outside, Mistress Bella did not tell Imry where she was going."

Hermione groaned. Why outside? Why couldn't the other woman be inside in the warm somewhere, why did she have to go out at dawn in the freezing cold?

"Hrmpf. Okay. Thank you Imry."

The small elf left by the same pop that had announced her and Hermione was left alone to pull on some jeans and the biggest, thickest jumper she could find in her small collection of possessions. It was the same black jumper she had worn when she'd gone to collect her wand from the alleyway. It all seemed life a life time ago now.

Rolling her eyes to herself Hermione traipsed down the stairs and, spotting Bella's silhouette about a meter away from the cliffs edge as she passed a window, hauled the front door open and braced her self against the biting sea air.

"What _are_ you doing?" Hermione demanded, cross-armed and incredulous when she reached the dark witch who sat absentmindedly on the grass surrounded by hefty leather bound books.

Bellatrix jumped slightly and blinked guiltily in the weak sunlight. "Reading?" She said, sounding to Hermione more like she was guessing than telling.

"Bellatrix, you could do that in the house."

"Yes, but I didn't want to wake you up."

Hermione gave her a long, considering look. She desperately felt like she was missing something. "How- I can't hear you reading. I know I like my books but I'm not quite _that_ attuned to them."

Bellatrix turned her attention back to her books like she was trying to decide their fate. "No, but, I anticipated I might get a little… Agitated during my reading and I didn't want to wake you by mentally shouting abuse because, uh... that does happen."

The younger witch felt like the more Bellatrix said the less she understood about the entire world out of which the other woman had come from. Hermione decided to move on. "What are you reading that poses such a risk to your mood?"

Bellatrix handed her the book from her lap. It was black, heavy and Hermione couldn't keep her surprise from her expression when she turned it over in her hands and read the simple title 'MI7'.

"Muggles?" Hermione asked, somewhere between confusion and fascination. No one could accuse Bella of being predictable.

The older witch shrugged. "I don't think we're getting out of this the conventional way- the conventional way for me that it- so I thought I'd consult the muggles, since you speak so highly of them."

Hermione had always imagined that a rabbit in the headlights would look like what it said on the tin. In fact, it looked more like she did in that moment. The young witch was stunned.

"No pressure." Bellatrix added.

Hermione sighed steadily. "Well, okay, did you find anything?"

Bellatrix made a face. "I don't know." She admitted. "Muggles, it seems, speak a different language. What's a gun?"

Hermione faltered. Maybe it was just her- and she suspected it probably was- but there was something unnervingly innocent about Bellatrix's question. It made her seem like a child. Had Hermione asked her parents the same thing once upon a time, when she was still wearing her bunny rabbit pyjamas and compulsively carrying around her favourite bookmark wherever she went? She supposed she must have. The thought of her parents made her wince.

"Um... it's... it's a muggle weapon, like a long metal tube sort of thing which, when you pull a trigger underneath, explosively propels a bullet or a small metal missile at a target. Usually a person- it can be fatal but it depends on the gun I suppose. There are lots of different types. And where you get shot, obviously getting a hole through the head is a lot worse than your foot or something similar." Hermione could feel herself rambling on as she tried to over crowd her head with details to smother the thoughts of her parents. Bellatrix looked almost impressed.

"But magic could stop a 'bullet'?" She said, searching for something familiar.

Hermione chewed her lip as she thought. "Well… I suppose it _could_ stop a bullet, yes. But a bullet fires so much faster than you could cast a spell, it would be like trying to walk unseen across a room before someone cast lumos. You'd never do it."

Bellatrix seemed to think on this. "You could go to a muggle shop and get some guns and just shoot all the ministry members?" She said brightly.

Hermione didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Bellatrix, we are not doing a _drive-by_ on the ministry of magic."

"What's a drive-by?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Bellatrix, you are the _last_ person I'm going to explain the concept of a drive-by to. You have enough ideas as it is. Besides, you need to be over 21 and have a licence to buy a gun."

Bellatrix was about to suggest an elaborate plan involving Polyjuice potion, a goblin and massive amounts of forgery when a distinct _crack _echoed from somewhere behind them. Both Hermione and Bellatrix turned to look behind them with their wands raised but needn't have bothered as Narcissa's unmistakable form came striding across the grass towards them. She reached them looking, Hermione imagined, similar to how she herself must have looked not long ago, arms folded and lips pursed.

Bellatrix scowled at her from her pile of books. "What are you doing?"

"What am _I_ doing?!" Narcissa exclaimed as she took in the scene in front of her. "What are _you _doing?"

"I live here." Bellatrix retorted dryly.

Narcissa raised an eyebrow. "Oh, the residents allowed you the whole cliff, did they?" She asked pointedly, motioning to the dark house behind them.

Bellatrix smiled sarcastically. "Sometimes, Cissy, I think I like the thought of you more than I like your presence."

Hermione interrupted before Bellatrix got a hexing.

"Can we help you, Narcissa?" She asked, trying not to sound as if she were being short with the woman as fatigue gnawed at her senses.

Narcissa gave her older sister a disapproving look. "I'm starting to wonder." She said, sounding like her son. "But on the off chance my sister hasn't completely left her mind, I came with news."

From her peripherals, Hermione could see Bellatrix pulling her wand out at her sister's last remark and without thinking or looking, Hermione blatantly kicked it as hard as she could right out of the witches hand. It flew up into the air and landed on the grass several meters away and Hermione tried to stay focused of Narcissa's half alarmed half incredulous expression rather than Bellatrix's open-mouthed look of disbelief. The oldest witch was staring at her still semi-raised -now empty- hand as Hermione continued.

"News?" She asked, as if they were in a completely mundane situation.

Narcissa composed herself and glared at her sister. "The ministry is coming here in 48 hours. They aren't taking prisoners."

Hermione glanced at Bellatrix who had gotten up to fetch her wand. "But they sent an owl, they-"

"Lied." Narcissa finished. "Mr Weasley, it would seem, convinced his fellow auror's you wouldn't go though with killing my sister and that it would be much wiser to strike earlier and catch you off guard."

Narcissa delivered this news as if it were some predictable office gossip.

The only thing that Hermione's mind could throw out was 'I can't duel', which Narcissa heard but didn't seem too interested in.

Bellatrix had returned from collecting her wand. "Do you know how many?"

Narcissa shrugged. "Five or six."

Hermione was about to doubt the slim numbers when yet another crack split the night air.

"Oh who now, Rita Skeeta?" Hermione muttered as she drew her wand yet again.

Copying her, Bellatrix glowered at Hermione's comment. "That stupid bitch survived the war?"

"She most certainly did."

Hermione nearly backhanded Narcissa as she spun around in mild alarm.

"Andromeda." Hermione said bluntly, lowering her wand.

"This is getting silly." Bellatrix grumbled.

"Hermione." Andromeda replied, not unkindly, ignoring her older sister.

There was a long silence and Andromeda looked expectantly at Narcissa, who looked… uncomfortable? Hermione wasn't sure.

"Well?" She demanded. "I said not to come here without telling me first."

"Who made you queen?" Bellatrix said sulkily, at the same time Narcissa tried to pull Andromeda away to ask her what she was doing.

"Bella, shut up, Cissy, go away. I want to talk to Hermione."

Hermione's jaw dropped. She had always had it in her head that Andromeda was the quiet one, yet even Bellatrix didn't need telling twice. Both Cissy and Bella huffed and traipsed towards the house without another word.

Hermione watched them go in amazement before returning her eyes to Andromeda. The woman met her gaze.

"I suppose Narcissa told you what Dora found out." She asked. Tonks had been in the hospital for a long time after the final battle and Hermione was glad to hear that it was at least being implied the girl had made a full recovery.

"48 hours." Hermione confirmed, glumly.

Andromeda sighed, looking torn. "I wish I could fight with you." She said genuinely. "But if the ministry got wind, they'd turn on Dora."

"I know." Hermione reassured sympathetically. Having to choose between your daughter and your sisters couldn't be easy.

"I'll try and give as much information as I can though, going on what Dora told me. At least you'll be slightly prepared."

There was a long pause before Hermione couldn't hold back from asking the question that had been nagging at her since Andromeda had arrived.

"Forgive me for asking," She said uneasily, "But I always thought you and your sisters didn't really…" Hermione trailed off.

Andromeda understood nevertheless. "I was disowned by my parents. I've always been in touch with Narcissa, but Bellatrix… Well, if she had spoken with me Voldemort would have found out and it would have been selfish for me to let her risk that, so… we kept up the pretence. For a damned long time." Andromeda looked sadly towards the house. A downstairs window was now lit up. "Sometimes," Andromeda continued, "It was hard reminding myself she didn't mean the things I knew she said. If Narcissa hadn't been there to insist she knew when Bella was lying I think I would have begun to have doubts. Anyway," She said, taking a deep breath. "I wanted to ask you something."

Hermione looked around nervously. "Yeah?"

"Just…" Andromeda looked out across the sea as the sun struggled to make itself known. "You know what you're getting into?"

"A lot of blood, tears and fighting." Hermione confirmed.

Andromeda frowned. "I meant with Bella."

Hermione smirked. "So did I"


	8. Leverage

After her talk with Andromeda, Hermione had helped her carry the books back to the house and met Bellatrix and Narcissa in the library where they'd been sitting waiting for them since Andromeda had ordered them away.

"So," Narcissa said conversationally when the two entered the room, "What now?"

Hermione looked to Bellatrix for help as multiple eyes fell on her.

"Two options, I suppose." Bellatrix surmised, shrugging one shoulder. "Either we stay here and wait for them to arrive and likely die in a ridiculously biased fight or we leave before they get here."

"And wait two weeks until they find us again and then leave and find somewhere else and wait two weeks…" Hermione trailed off pointedly.

"Basically." Bellatrix sighed.

"Neither of those is really an option." Andromeda said, sitting down on the edge of the same sofa Hermione had sat on when Bellatrix had healed her arm.

Hermione felt depressed. "They're the only ones we have." She said, her feeling lighting the words with equal depression to that she felt.

"Maybe." Andromeda frowned. "Hermione, forgive me for bringing it up, but, your parents-"

Bellatrix shot her sister a warning glare over her shoulder as she mentioned the younger witch's mother and father. Hermione dismissed the glare with a look of her own and hoped she could take on what Andromeda said without getting upset with the same manor of confidence.

Andromeda continued. "What actually happened? Narcissa told me- and I'm not saying I doubt her for a second- but she told me that the ministry ordered their deaths in retaliation for your 'turning your back on them', but when I asked Dora about it she said that no such ordered had ever been given and that to the best of her knowledge, your parents were fine. But they're definitely dead, Narcissa searched Draco's memories to be sure of it. So that could mean-"

"That Weasely was never told to go anywhere near them." Bellatrix finished for her sister.

Hermione stood up very suddenly from the table edge she'd slouched against. "That's-" She stopped short. The rest of the room watched her uneasily as they youngest witch seemed to flounder for words, each assuming her to be rightfully upset by this fresh wound. She was in fact thinking in over-time.

"That's… That's _perfect." _

Whether Bellatrix had been inside Hermione's head or was just excelling as the quickest witch in the room, she seemed to understand immediately exactly what Hermione meant. By their bemused faces, her sisters did not.

Hermione explained aloud as she thought it through herself. "Ron wasn't told to kill my parents. He just murdered them to get at me. If the ministry don't know who it was, then we can use that. The minister is desperately trying to restore order to the wizarding world now the war's over- Harry and Ron are their best aurors, their golden poster boys for peace and glory. They already had one fiasco with me, if it were made public that Ron had murdered unarmed muggles at the same time that ex-death eaters are being put in Azkaban for the same thing, well…" Hermione trailed off as realisation dawned on the other two witches.

Andromeda was looking much more optimistic than she had ten minutes ago. "They'd have to put Ron in Azkaban or risk looking hypocritical at a time when there's already a lot of paranoia about how unstable the ministry is. An international embarrassment, whatever comes of it." She said, strangely cheerful.

"So we use it as leverage." Narcissa concluded succinctly. "The ministry leaves you be and no one has to know."

"We only have one problem. We need proof. Irrefutable proof. No one's going to believe our word over his."

Bellatrix was twirling her wand around her fingers absentmindedly. "The only irrefutable proof would be in his memories."

"Or ours." Once again eyes were on Hermione. "If we can lure him here when the other aurors come, and manipulate him- not a difficult job I promise- into confessing, then all we need is our own memories. If his confession in our memories sparked doubt when we showed them, all they would need to do was check _his_ memories and it would all be there.

The room went into a pensive silence and Hermione's mind was on fire. If her and Bellatrix could kill the aurors which accompanied Ron, assuming that they could get Ron there in the first place, restrain him somehow and get him to admit what he did, then this could be exactly what they needed to get out of the mess they were in.

"Bellatrix, which house did this property originally belong to?"

"Black." Bellatrix answered simply.

"So the house will have wards, the same as Lestrange manor?" The name still left a bad taste in Hermione's mouth.

"Yes, I expect so. Though how many and which ones I couldn't say."

Hermione chewed her lip. "Could we find out? We need to know that when they attack the house's defences wont have a chance to kill Ron before we can get to him."

"I could. I can't help you fight so it's the least I can do." Andromeda looked pained as she remembered the situation she was in. She stood up. "There's a book in Grimmauld Place with the houses and all their details. I'll ask Dora to get it."

"I never found a book like that when I was there." Hermione said, knowing full well that she'd combed every book in the property several times over by the time Harry, Ron and herself had left.

"No I should think not; it's under the floorboards. I'll go now, hopefully I'll be back by the end of the day."

Narcissa hummed her agreement. "I need to go, too. Draco know's something's happening, I want to be back before he wakes up or he'll just be more suspicious. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"That's limiting." Bellatrix muttered to herself.

Narcissa chose to ignore her sister.

"I'll see you later." Andromeda said hopefully, and both sisters disappreated to their separate homes.

It was almost midday before Hermione noticed, though it must have been going on for at least two hours. She didn't feel right. She had that bizarre 'after effect' feeling that she always got when Madame Pomfrey had cast some healing spell on her which took effect over a night or a couple of hours. It was like a low-key tingling feeling, and Hermione didn't trust it.

"Bellatrix, what have you done?" Hermione found the older witch in her usual spot in the library.

Bellatrix looked over the top of her her book with her eyebrows raised. "No offence my love but i'm rather tired and thats quite a long story."

Hermione scowled. "You know very well what I mean."

Bellatrix looked around the middle distance with an anodyne expression to show her innocence.

"I feel weird." Hermione prompted.

"Guess what." Bellatrix murmured to herself, her eyes flicking back to the book to hide the amusement in them.

Hermione rolled her eyes and threw herself down next to the dark witch, staring at her demandingly. "Very funny. Now tell me what you've done."

Bellatrix closed the book on her thumb and met Hermione's determined eyes. She took a deep breath as if she was about to reveal the truth to the younger witch, paused, and then with a long exhalation said as genuinely as she could "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."

Hermione narrowed her eyes and considered legilimensy.

"Good luck with that." Bellatrix remarked at Hermione's thoughts, picking her book back up from her lap and opening it.

"You said you'd stay out of my head!"

"Hermione, it was clear on your face, If you insist upon being so obvious thats really not my fault."

Hermione scowled some more before giving in and trying to change the subject. "What are you reading?"

"Ratweed."

Hermione was immediately interested. "I was reading a book by him back in the Tomes and Scrolls, you know, when you went all alice in wonderland on me. It was about house elves, something something Corvus Effect- I can't remember. Johanna gave me the book as a gift but I left it at Hogwa-" Hermione stopped. Bellatrix had put the book back down and was staring at her half amazed.

"What?"

"You found the book on the Corvus Effect?"

"Well it wasn't hard, the different sections are labelled in a library, you know."

Bellatrix looked at the younger witch like she'd just turned iron into gold.

"Yeah, okay, you're kind of creeping me out now."

"What was it called, the book?"

Hermione frowned and tried to remember. It had been some cliché...

"I can't remember, it was something vaguely Christmassy."

"The ghost of elven past?"

Hermione beamed. "Yeah that was it!"

Bellatrix gaped at her. "And the owner just.. Gave it to you?"

"Yeah... Why?"

Bellatrix turned to face her a little more. "Hermione, thats a really rare book! Theres only two of them in existence, one, the original, is kept by the ministry of magic and the other one was- well it used to be in the restricted section of Hogwarts until Rita got caught with it. Then the teachers seemed to think it was too dangerous to be in Hogwarts and we never heard of it again."

Hermione almost laughed. "They kept a three headed dog in that castle, what could possibly be in that book that would make them deem it too dangerous to be in the school?"

Bellatrix shrugged. "Thanks to Dim Rita, I never found out."

Hermione was suddenly struck with a thought. "Bella.. You were in school with Rita Skeeta?"

Something akin to homicidal crossed Bellatrix's expression. "With regret." She muttered. "They had to keep her away from me in the end."

Hermione was almost too afraid to ask. Almost. "Why?"

Bellatrix smirked. "After years of us hexing each other into oblivion they decided that it would be less messy to keep her on the other side of the castle at all times than to let me attempt to pulverise her every time I saw her stupid hair coming down the corridor."

The idea of Rita Skeeta being violently murdered was oddly appealing to Hermione.

"Of course, she was no different back then." Bellatrix continued. "Atrocious at every form of magic other than her ability to create elaborate lies from thin air. So, I tried to mutilate her, she told everyone I was dating my cousin. I threw her from the astronomy tower, she- well she didn't do anything after that actually, she was a bit bruised. But you get the point."

"You threw her off the astronomy tower?!"

Bellatrix laughed, remembering. "Yeah, picked her up and threw her like a pebble." She laughed some more before seeing Hermione's confusion.

"I know you're strong, but what exactly were you taking to be able to throw her like that?"

The two stared at each other in equal confusion for a moment, before realisation dawned on Bellatrix. "Oh, no, she was a beetle. She was an unregistered animagus for about a year. She'd been inexplicably finding out about things, conversations and such for months and it was driving me insane, so in the end I dragged Andromeda and Cissy up to the top of the Astronomy tower so there could be no way she could over hear us. I was about to start a rant on something, homework probably, and I caught sight of her, scuttling along the railing top. Suddenly a lot of things made sense; how she was getting all her information- I knew it was her. So I grabbed hold of her and threw her off the edge as far as I could. She had no real body weight as a beetle to get badly injured so when she changed back she was just very battered and bruised, nothing major. Still." Bellatrix concluded her anecdote with a look of extreme satisfaction.

Hermione gaped. "But she must have told somebody, how were you not expelled?" Bellatrix laughed again. "What could she say? If she told on me they'd know she was an animagus- her secret would be out and there would be no more gossip for her to eaves drop on. Her love for gossip was far greater than even the thought of getting me expelled. It was over for her just after we started out final year, anyway- Peeves caught her mid-change, who made enough noise to attract Filch's cat, who in turn summoned Filch, who told the headmaster."

Hermione leaned back in her seat and tried to picture the scene. Young Bellatrix flinging Reeta-Beetle far off into the distance.

"So you weren't friends then." Hermione concluded.

Bellatrix shook her head. "No. And we still aren't."

"Oh?"

"She vowed just before we left school that she would turn everything I did into 'social suicide' for the rest of my life. After I became a death eater I gave her a taste of her own medicine, killed a couple of her old school accomplices and spread the word that she was next." Bellatrix grinned. "I never bothered going near her but according to Snape she was seeing me in every shadow and stranger for months and months, she even got a dog to guard her at night."

Hermione couldn't help but giggle just a little.

"How did snape know?" She asked.

Bellatrix pulled a face. "Who knows. I paid him off with illegal weeds and roots for his potions, in return he terrorised Rita for me. I used to check his thoughts to make sure he was telling the truth. He always was."

Bellatrix sighed and watched absentmindedly as Imry shuffled about her duties, humming to herself.

"In a bookshop, ay?" The older witch mused aloud. "Seems rather obvious now, if I'd known it would have been that easy to track down I'd have waited until the next Hogsmede trip and gone into Tomes and Scrolls myself."

Hermione found that another strange thought, that once Bellatrix would have been able to just walk into Hogsmede without so much as a sideways glance.

"I wasn't always a death eater, you know."

_"Bellatrix!" _Imry scattered at the unexpected exclamation. "You did not read that from my _face!"_

"You assume I'm there anyway, might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb."

Hermione supposed she was right. "You never answered my question, by the way."

Bellatrix knew which question Hermione was referring to, but asked anyway. "Which question?"

"The one in which I demanded to know what you've done. You've cast something on me I can feel it, _what have you done?" _

Bellatrix put her hands up defensively. "You're paranoid, Hermione, I haven't done anything."

Hermione gave up; Bellatrix wasn't going to budge. She settled back into her seat and considered the situation.

_Here I am, casually talking with Bellatrix Black about books and good times at Hogwarts like I've known her for years. _Hermione frowned. She supposed she had known Bellatrix for years really, in a round about way.

"Does it really bother you so much that I can uphold a conversation without committing culpable homicide or screaming hexes?"

Hermione almost committed culpable homicide herself. _"Seriously?" _She demanded. "Make your mind up, are you reading your book or my head?"

Bellatrix rolled her eyes. "You love it."

"I do not." Hermione retorted indignantly.

"Yes you do, I've been in your head."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the dark witch. "_You_ are… something I'm too nice to say." She mumbled sulkily crossing her arms.

Before Bellatrix could point out that that had never stopped Hermione in the past, Andromeda popped into existence before them holding the biggest book Hermione had ever laid eyes upon and a bunch of hedge flowers.


End file.
