Disclaimer: I am not J.k. Rowling, so I do not own Harry Potter, any of his friends, his awesome school, or anything else like that. Which is a pity, because I know several gentlemen that I would happily lock up somewhere.

/

Harry Potter looked lazily through letters he had received from numerous witches and wizards all over the world. He had been doing this for days, and it was getting old.

Three long years had passed since the demise of Lord Voldemort and the Battle of Hogwarts. Harry had lost friends and gained friends. He had grown into a man the people of the wizarding world were proud of. So, why wasn't he?

His scar no longer hurt, and he wasn't sure it ever would. But, a thought had been tormenting Harry late at night as he laid in bed.

A squib had sent Harry a letter through his office mail claiming to have seen a man that looked just like Voldemort, or Tom Riddle. After that there had been more and more sightings and they had been all over the wizarding world. Barcelona, Hawaii, Brazil, Portugal, India, and the list just went on and on.

It was possible that there was a fanatic of Voldemort's left and they had had plastic reconstruction done to look very similar to him when he wasn't so... Reptilian. But there had been small purchases made in each of the cities made, and the name always given was Tom Riddle. The unfortunate thing, was that Tom Riddle mysteriously disappeared without a trace after every purchase. As if by magic.

And the things he was buying made absolutely no sense. Most were nicknacks or paintings. It was almost as if he were building a house, but surely someone would have noticed a house being constructed, or refurbished. A house wasn't that hard to miss... Unless there was a secret keeper. Which meant the fidelius charm.

Harry would need to call for reinforcements. Experts in the ways of the Dark Lord known as Voldemort. Harry hoped that this was a fluke, but he would need the help just to be sure.

"Lavender," he called from his office door at the Ministry.

"Yes," Lavender called back from her desk at the Secretary's Station.

"Get Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape in my office by this afternoon!"

"What is this urgent matter, Potter," Severus Snape asked from across Harry, who sat quietly at his desk. Harry's feet were propped up on the edge of his desk and his arms rested on his chest as he thought.

"You are aware of the recent Riddle sightings, are you not," Harry asked casually. Seeing Ron walk in with Lucius, he gestured for them to take a seat in his two remaining chairs. Swinging his hand towards the door, he listened until it clicked to a close, and he heard the bolting of the lock.

Lucius looked from Snape to Harry in mild confusion. "I thought we were here of our own free wills. Not to be treated like convicts."

"I admit that you two have been very cooperative with the Aurors since the ending of the war, so I will ask again, are you two aware of the Riddle sightings?"

"I had assumed that they were hoaxes," Snape said, leaning back into his chair.

"I believe that they aren't," Harry said quietly.

"And why is that," Lucius asked as he toyed with the snakehead on his walking stick.

"Because, there is a pattern to his sightings. Usually someplace warm, and he tends to go to crowded cities. I believe he is back, but what he is doing is beyond me."

"Then I suggest you let us see the papers, boy," Snape sneered.

"Severus, be nice," Lucius said in an amused tone.

"That's what you're here for, Lucius."

Lucius chuckled as he began to look through the stack of papers Harry handed him. "He has fine taste in furniture. Egyptian cotton, very nice. Silken sheets... A chaise from Greece... Bed from Belgium... Hm... It seems like he's preparing a... House."

"That's my thought on the matter," Harry said.

"But, why would Voldemort want a house? Homes are for families," Ron said.

"It is possible that this 'Tom Riddle' is merely some doppelganger that is on his way to matrimonial bliss," Snape said.

"But what if it isn't," Harry replied.

Lucius and Severus looked at each other before Lucius turned back to him. "We are willing to help in whatever way we can, but you need to tell us what it is you want us to do first. We do both have businesses and other jobs that we must see to before we go all over Hell and damnation looking for a man that might be the Dark Lord," Lucius said very seriously.

Snape nodded his head in agreement.

"I want to get a full team together and investigate each place he visits."

"That's a bit superfluous isn't it," Snape asked with an arched brow. "This man could not be the Dark Lord."

"But he could be."

"Why are you so anxious about this fellow, Potter?"

"A feeling," Harry said weakly.

Lucius looked up towards the ceiling and shook his head from side to side.

"Get your team, and we'll investigate," Severus said drawing the eye of all in the room. "He's shit with occlumency, so it would not hurt to at least look into, and if this is the Dark Lord somehow miraculously brought back to life, there will already be a team set to destroy him."

"That's a great idea," Harry said with a smile towards Snape.

Snape looked flustered for a moment, and turned to Lucius, "Does that suit you?"

"Of course, friend. It's not like I have anything better to do."

"You're just going for the women," Severus said.

"You are correct in your assumption," Lucius replied with a rakish smile.

"Alright, is there anyone you want to be on the team," Harry asked.

"Draco could be a valuable asset," Lucius said, "And I'm not just saying that because he is my son."

"He was on my list already," Harry said with a nod.

"Oh, very good then. I can think of no others to bring but your group of friends that you brought with you everywhere."

"Longbottom could take some time from his training with Pomona," Snape said.

"Ginny's season just ended," Ron said.

"Luna is available if she's in the country," Harry said lightly.

"So that only leaves..." Snape asked.

"Hermione," Ron and Harry said at the same time Lucius and Snape had said, "Granger."

"Yes," Harry said sadly. "I'm not sure if I could convince her to help us."

"Ginny could I'm sure," Ron said, "And maybe even Luna. We'll never know unless we try."

Snape frowned, "As unhappy as I am to say this, and trust me I am, I agree with... Weasley." He had said it as if it left a bad taste in his mouth.

"She was a great help to you," Lucius said stroking his chin.

"She was the brains," Snape added.

"And anything else we lacked," Ron said. "I think it's worth a try, mate. Who knows? Maybe these three years have mellowed her out some."

"Unlikely," Snape and Lucius said dryly.

Two years later...

Hermione Granger woke up in a cold sweat. She had started to have the dreams again. The dreams of his cold hands sliding along her skin. His soft voice a hot whisper in her ear. It was nights like this that she found no rest. The sun had barely begun to rise.

With a sigh, Hermione slid from her empty bed and walked to her bathroom. Turning on the faucet for her large claw-footed tub, Hermione turned and looked at herself in the mirror. She looked tired. That didn't surprise her, she had been having these dreams for a week at the very least.

Hermione reached out and touched the mirror. Her reflection frowned back at her. And that wasn't the only thing frowning at her. With a gasp she turned away from the mirror. Feeling herself beginning to hyperventilate, Hermione reasoned that she hadn't seen what she thought in the mirror. She was exhausted and prone to hallucinations.

Glancing over her shoulder she sighed with relief when she didn't see him in her mirror. "You're just going mad, Hermione, perfectly normal for a healthy twenty-two year old," she said unconvincingly to her reflection.

When the tub was full she turned off the water and slowly slid into the warmth of the water. Submerging all of her body under the water, she laid there and tried to relax.

"You look thin," she heard him say in her ear.

Hermione opened her mouth to scream, but forgot that she was in the tub and began to sputter from lack of oxygen. Hanging over the side of the tub, Hermione gasped for breath as she sobbed. "Just leave me alone," she begged, "Please, just leave me alone."

"Are you sure this is the neighborhood Granger lives in," Snape asked leaning against one of the cars that the Ministry had supplied.

"Yes," Harry said looking through the phone book. "Odd... I can't find her under Granger."

"She might have changed her name when she went into hiding, Potter," Snape sneered.

"Severus," Lucius chided from his place on Snape's right. "Oh, is that a little muggleborn I see?" Lucius pointed with his chin towards a street sign a couple of blocks away.

Snape turned and watched the girl jogging down the block. "It's a bit early for a jog," he commented.

"And a bit too foggy for my liking," Harry said. Harry turned and watched the woman as she ran closer to them. "I can't tell if that's her or not."

"Of course not, her hair is up. We're looking for a bushy haired girl, not the woman that she's become," Snape said.

The girl turned and began to run the other direction.

"That's her," they said together.

Harry pulled out his cellular phone and called Ron. "We found her," he said.

"Oh? How are you sure that it's her?"

"Her bum is one of a kind, mate," Harry said before ending the call.

Hermione left her home early in the morning and began her usual morning jog. Fog covered the earth this morning, just like she liked it. Placing her headphones over her ears she jogged to Paula Cole's "This Fire" album.

Jogging down her usual route, she waved to several of her neighbours, muggles, and said her good mornings to the paperboy. Hermione had never thought she'd be happy living a muggle life, but she was. Well... As happy as she could be. She'd lost her last wand in the war, and after that had refused to get another.

Stopping for a light, she hopped in place to keep her adrenaline going. She needed a rush, and this was the only way to get it right now. She could always go and find some poor sod to sleep with, but she wasn't in the mood to dine and dash.

Hermione had left London not long after the war. Her parents were missing in action, and she had no desire to keep their house, so she sold it, and everything in it she could. With the money she packed up the few possessions she had and moved to a very small muggle city far away from the wizarding world that she loved.

It wasn't a decision that she regretted, but sometimes she wished she had thought it through more. She'd abandoned any hopes of rebuilding the friendships that she had lost from the war, and had abandoned any hopes of new relationships.

Stopping at a sign to allow cars to pass, Hermione noticed a car with three men standing outside of it further down the street. One had light hair, and the other two had dark. Hermione narrowed her eyes in consternation and decided to end the jog early this morning. Turning swiftly she began to jog the other direction, but kept the car in her peripheral vision. Seeing the three men slide back into the car, she knew that they were following her.

No, it could be a coincidence, she thought to herself. But as the car slowly followed her along the street she began to think a coincidence was more and more unlikely. Stopping in her run, she waited until the car was almost completely behind her to turn and froze when she realized who the driver was. Harry Potter was staring straight at her.

Hermione pivoted on her heel and sprinted down the sidewalk as fast as she could.

"She knows," Snape said from the back seat.

"How could she? She barely saw us," Lucius said.

"This is Hermione Granger, the 'brightest witch of her age' we're talking about, Lucius. She knows."

Harry watched as Hermione slowed her jogging and finally came to an abrupt stop. Slowing the car down, he drove until he was almost next to her before she turned and froze. "Shit," he swore as she took off like a gazelle.

"Well, she certainly can run, can't she? Speed up, my boy," Lucius said thumping the dashboard with the head of his walking stick.

Harry increased the speed of the car and watched as she bolted across the street and ran out in front of a car. "Hermione," he bellowed, and then sighed with relief when the car was able to swerve around her. "You idiot!"

"Potter, let me out before you get her killed. Or worse, us." Snape growled when Harry didn't slow down and opened the back door of the car.

"Severus," Lucius gasped.

Snape propelled himself out of the car and ran after her. He may have gotten older, but his stamina was still good, and he was in excellent shape. Seeing Hermione ignoring yet another car, he sped up to her as quickly as he could and launched himself at her, using his mass to push her out of the way of the vehicle.

"Way to go, Severus," Lucius called from the car.

Hermione panted underneath Snape and tried to squirm away from him.

"I just saved your life, you twit, the very least you could do is say thank you," he growled. When she tried to squirm away again, he rested more of his weight on her. "You've gotten a little fuller, haven't you," he asked casually.

"Oh," Hermione screeched and brought her knee up to his groin. Tossing him off of her she ran off again.

"You're welcome," he grumbled leaning over to soothe the ache in his balls.

"Severus, are you alright," Lucius asked from above him.

"She's got a very good knee on her," Severus groaned slowly getting up, "Where's Potter?"

"Driving after her. I put a tracer on her while you had her pinned. The Severus I know would never have let a woman slip away from him, especially in that position."

"He would have if she tried to break his nuts."

Lucius winced and wrapped an arm around Severus' shoulders. "Let's go find Potter."

Hermione ran like she had never run before. She ran faster than she had in the forest to avoid the snatchers. She ran even faster than the night that she ran away from Malfoy Manor and Voldemort himself had gone to search for her.

Harry, Lucius, and Snape being here could only mean one thing. They wanted her to go back, but she had sworn to herself that she would never return. No matter how much she wanted to. She was safer that way... She was.

Running into her house, she closed the door and leaned against it gasping for breath. Crumpling to the floor she sobbed tears that she hadn't allowed herself to shed. Tears that should have fallen years ago.

Quickly drying her tears, she rose and turned towards the door when she heard a light knock.

"Miss Granger, I'd like a moment of your time," Lucius Malfoy said courteously through the door.

Hermione panted and pressed her head against the wood.

"I can hear you crying, so open the door," he said gently.

Hermione gathered herself as much as she could, and opened the door enough to peek through. She saw Harry and Snape behind him. She sighed and opened the door further, and that was when she saw a red haired man in her yard. With a growl she slammed the door in Lucius' face.

"No need to be rude, Miss Granger you could have just let me in," he huffed indignantly.

"Get off my property," she hissed.

"All I... We... Well... We want is a moment of your time. After that you can slam the door in our faces to your heart's content."

Hermione sighed hearing a softer knock.

"Hermione," Ginny called through the door. "Can you hear me?"

Hermione ignored her.

"If our friendship ever meant anything to you you will open this door and let us come in. Ron will keep his mouth shut, I can guarantee it."

Hermione huffed and started to lightly bang her head against the door.

"Stop hitting your head on the door," Snape growled.

Hermione stuck her tongue out at him.

"I know you did that, Granger," he said dryly.

With a sigh, Hermione opened her door, "How many of you are there?"

"Nine."

Hermione sighed and opened her door. "Hold on one moment... I have a... Guest," she said and turned to walk to her couch. "Brian... Brian... Giant mass of muscle on my couch!"

"What," the man sleeping on her couch grumbled.

"Your wife is on the way," Hermione said to him.

"I don't want to go back," he yawned.

"Yes, you do," she replied patiently, "Now, get up."

Brian rose from the couch and turned towards the opened front door seeing a large group of people staring at him.

"Wow," Ginny murmured. "Your wife is a lucky woman."

Brian smiled at Ginny, "You know I keep telling her that."

"Brian," Hermione hissed.

"What?"

"Your wife is on the way," Hermione repeated.

Brian sighed, "Do you think she'll forgive me this time?"

"I wouldn't," Hermione said dryly.

"But the game was on."

"She's your wife."

Brian sighed in defeat, and then looked down at himself. "Why am I naked?"

"You strip teased for me last night."

"I did not," he said as if he were scandalized.

"Brian, I have company," Hermione said.

"Well I can see that," he said quietly, "Is this something I need to worry about?"

"No, just go get your things-" Hermione turned towards the window that showed her yard. "Oh, look, Brian, Jessica's here."

"Hermione, is Brian still here," Jessica asked trying to squeeze her way past everyone in the doorway.

"Yep. His clothes are in the dryer."

"Okay, thanks," Jessica said before walking around the group of people and into the laundry room.

"What do I do," Brian asked Hermione helplessly.

"Grovel," she said dryly.

"Grovel?"

"Grovel!"

Brian sighed and walked around the group of people into the room where his wife had gone. "Jessie... Honey-" he said and closed the door.

Hermione was absolutely still until she heard the sound of Jessica's squeal and knew that everything would be alright. "Tea," she asked looking at her company.

Everyone slowly nodded.

Hermione began to fix several batches of tea on her stove, and left to go into her laundry room to get a couple more chairs for in the kitchen.

When Jessica squealed in surprise, Hermione could be heard saying, "It's my house! Go do that at your own!"

Brian laughed before closing the door again.

"You're a sick man," Hermione cried to the door.

"You love it," he called back.

Hermione carried in several more chairs and set them out for everyone. "I'm sorry I don't have anything better..." she said slowly.

"These are fine," Harry said.

"How have you been," Ginny asked.

"Fine," Hermione replied curtly, and poured the tea into several different pitchers and brought out her good china for them.

"We don't want to cause any trouble, Granger," Draco said to her.

"It's fine. It never gets used anyway," she said. "I'm making breakfast, is anyone hungry?" After everyone said no or shook their head, she turned and began to make herself some instant oatmeal in her microwave. Climbing up onto her counter she opened her top cabinet and pulled out boxes of tea biscuits.

She misjudged the space under her foot and as she turned she began to fall only to be caught in the arms of a man. Opening her eyes, her brown ones met a set of very familiar blue and she growled, "Put. Me. Down."

Ron very quickly released her and moved away.

"Is everything okay, Hermione," Brian called from the laundry room, "I heard a thud."

"Everything's fine," Hermione said sweetly, "I'm as happy as could be." She finished the sentence glaring at Ron.

"If you're sure," Brian said uncertainly.

"I'm quite sure," she called and heard the door close. Frowning she turned towards the laundry room and walked down the hall. "You know you can go and pleasure her brains out at your house right?"

"We don't have this dryer," he replied.

"Ugh, you bloody pervert," she hollered.

"You love me anyway," he called.

"Unfortunately," Hermione grumbled walking back into the kitchen to get out her oatmeal. Hermione grabbed the pitchers of tea and set them on the table and set down trays with cream and sugar, and placed a box of the biscuits in front of them.

"Brothers," Ginny sighed.

"Tell me about it," Hermione groaned.

"That explains the... Teasing," Lucius commented lightly.

"I didn't know you had a brother," Harry commented.

"He was grown when I went to Hogwarts," Hermione said with a shrug, "He's from my mother's first marriage, so his last name is different. He comes here to crash when he and Jessica have fights." Hermione climbed back up onto the counter and opened a cabinet that held a treasure trove of sweets.

Tossing a box of danishes towards Ron, Hermione grabbed another and hopped off of her counter. "Bro, I'll give you a box of my danishes if you leave my house in the next two minutes."

"Deal," Brian groaned.

"Sounds like you're done anyway," Hermione grumbled leaving the container on the table near her sofa. "I left them on the table."

"Thank you," he called in between pants.

"I'm buying you a new dryer for Christmas."

"My birthday is closer."

"Whichever," she grumbled.

Moving back into the kitchen she moved to sit on the counter near where she had placed her oatmeal, but Ron was in the way. Like usual. "Move," she barked.

Ron hopped out of the way, and watched her as she sat on her counter.

"Someone talk," Hermione said.

"Is it safe to with Brian-"

"Bye, Sis," Brian said walking in to give her a hug. "I love you. Call me later if you need to. You look awful, by the way, have you not been sleeping again?"

"I've been sleeping fine," she growled. "Although, I think you just deflated my ego."

"Aw, you're still a beauty, though. Let's do dinner this week?"

"Sure," Hermione said weakly.

"Do I need to take you to the doctor again," he asked with a frown.

"No, Brian, I'm fine. Really," she said with a small smile.

He looked completely unconvinced, but nodded after a moment. "I love you, Sis."

"Love you too," Hermione said patting him on the head, "Now, take your sweets and get out of my house."

"Yes, ma'am," he saluted.

When he turned Hermione kicked his butt to help get him out of the kitchen faster.

"Bye, sweetie, thanks again," Jessica said.

"Anytime... Oh! His gun and stuff is in my room..."

"Just bring it by later if you get the chance, sweetie. Behave now," Jessica teased with a wink.

"Not funny," Hermione drawled.

"First time I've seen so many men in this house," she said looking around. "You're not... Sweetie... You're not out of money are you?"

"Oh goddess," Hermione groaned. Sliding off the counter she turned Jessica and and ushered her towards the door. "I'd really love to catch up, Jess, I really would, but these are friends of mine from London, and they've come a long way to see me, so I'd like to give them my full attention. I will call you or Brian if anything at all happens.

"But, as I've said they came a long way, and I haven't even talked to them in five years, so we have plenty to catch up on. Now, I will call you later on about dinner this week, and call me after your doctors appointments, and let me know if I need to babysit the kids for you, okay? Okay," Hermione said cheerfully and slammed the door in Jessica's face.

Releasing a sigh, Hermione walked back into her kitchen and saw that her oatmeal was steaming. She had expected it to be cold. She shot an accusing glare towards Ron who looked away.

"Thank you," she muttered walking by him and pouring brown sugar into her oatmeal. She toed off her shoes and socks and sat on her counter looking at Harry. "I take it you're in charge?"

"Naturally," Snape said.

"What's going on in your world?"

"It's your world too," Ron said pointedly.

Hermione ignored him. "What's going on?"

Harry looked at her for a moment before talking, "Have you been using the account at Gringotts for Tom Riddle?"

Hermione blinked in surprise. "I should think not. As you can see by looking around you, I am far from rich and can barely survive by the skin of my teeth each month."

"So no?"

"Obviously," she hissed. Lucius and Severus shared a look which didn't go unnoticed by her. "Why are you asking?"

"Have you seen anyone that looks like Tom Riddle or Voldemort in the last five years?"

Hermione's eyebrows rose, "Since he's dead I would assume no..."

"We have reason to believe he isn't dead," Lucius said slowly.

Hermione turned her head to look out of the window. "Why is that," she asked with a thick swallow.

"Numerous sightings, his bank accounts are being used, and his name as well. Tom Riddle, not Voldemort."

"Sightings?"

"Yes," Harry said passing a folder to Neville, who handed it to Ron, who slid it along the counter.

Hermione snatched the folder from Ron's fingertips and opened it. "This can't be some fanatic with reconstructive surgery," she asked flipping through several of the sheets.

"I don't believe so. I have a... Feeling."

"Oh, and those have been so useful to us in the past," she snarled, pausing at a particular picture. The man in the photo was staring directly at the camera. "I have no idea what Voldemort looked like before he was... Remodeled, so I can't help you with a Riddle impersonator."

"Remodeled? What an eloquent way of explaining his rebirth," Snape said with an arched brow.

Hermione shrugged her shoulders and tossed the folder back to Harry. "I have explained that I am no help in this matter."

"Ah, but you are," Ron said from her right.

Hermione turned to him slowly. "Open your mouth one more time, and I'm dumping my oatmeal all over your groin," she growled.

Ron frowned and moved away from her.

"What are you expecting me to do?"

"I would like you to help us investigate, and make sure this is just a hoax," Harry said looking from her to Ron. Lots of unanswered questions there.

"Why? What makes me so useful to your 'investigation'," she asked. Looking at everyone in the room who either stared at her (Lucius and Snape) or looked away (everyone else), and reality began to sink in. "Ah, the true reason for your visit. Of course no one would want to actually know how I've been doing, oh no, everyone just wants me because I was a good lay to Voldemort."

Ron stomped angrily out of the kitchen, out of the house, and slammed the front door closed after him.

"Well, I feel better," Hermione said with an insincere smile.

Luna looked around cheerfully. "I should go make sure that no Pixiesnips devour Ron in his angry bellowing. They are attracted to noise, you know."

"No, I had no idea," Hermione said with a real smile towards Luna as she left the room. "Maybe you should go with her, Neville. Ron likes to get rough with girls when he's in a rage, if I remember correctly," Hermione said with a knowing look in her eye.

Neville frowned and followed Luna out.

Hermione hopped off the counter and snagged the chair that Luna had been sitting in, turned it to face her, and straddled the chair. "So, you want me to be the bait for a trap and see if he comes lurking out of the shadows?"

"That's a nicer way than I would have put it, but yes," Lucius said.

"Oh, I'm quite sure," she said, "And I should do this for you... Why?"

Harry looked at her in surprise. "You could help catch him before he tries to conquer the world again."

Hermione laughed, "I don't care about all of that. I liked where I was just fine for the last war, so who am I to stop him if he wants another?"

Ginny gasped.

"Granger, you can't mean that," Draco asked.

"Wholeheartedly," she said with a smirk.

Lucius frowned at her, and stroked his chin as he thought.

But Snape stared at her. Her occlumency was terrible, and he knew that. He could easily see through her if she were lying. Good thing she wasn't.

Harry stared at her with his mouth dropped open.

Hermione playfully rolled her eyes and leaned forward to place her hand under his chin. "We don't want you catching flies, do we," she asked with a smirk.

"What happened to you," Ginny asked with furrowed brows.

"I dealt the hand I was given, and grew up like I was meant to."

"Being a muggle," Harry hollered in disbelief.

"Mudblood, love, or have you forgotten?"

"Were you really this dark before the war?"

"No. Selling myself to live changed a few things in my character, forgive me if that displeases you." Hermione rose and walked to her sink to wash the uneaten oatmeal out of the sink. She wasn't hungry. She was never hungry anymore. As soon as the dreams had started she took them as a sign of her finally becoming a loon and began to inwardly shut down.

Snape sighed from behind her, and Hermione suddenly felt a shift in the air. Turning she saw that Snape now stood directly behind her.

"I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, Granger," he said before grabbing her chin in a big warm hand.

Hermione swung her hand out to slap him and grunted when he easily caught it and held it above her head. When her other one went for him he caught it and held both wrist in one hand against the counter. When he pressed his pelvis against hers, she purred, "Oh, I always hoped I'd get this close to you."

Snape met her eyes with an annoyed glare. "Legilimens," he growled.

Hermione was temporarily annoyed at the invasion of her privacy, but this was Severus Snape they were talking about. He'd probably been reading her mind since they were driving down the street in the car.

She saw flashes of her nights in the arms of the Dark Lord. No one cared about her during that time. They hadn't wanted her to be captured, but after she had they only pitied her for being his 'play thing'. They didn't know how far her relationship with Voldemort had gone.

"What do you think it will be," he asked her one night, his nails slowly trailed along her stomach.

"I hope it's a girl. I've always wanted a daughter," she sighed in pleasure.

He had smirked at her. "We shall have to see, won't we, princess?"

Princess. That had been his pet name for her. It was joke because of her title "The Princess of Gryffindor" amongst his Death Eaters. Of course their children in Slytherin had called her that first.

Hermione had never asked him for much. She saw to whatever duties he asked of her without question or hesitation. She had been the perfect wife. Which was what she had been. That had been their secret. Like their daughter.

When the time of the battle at Hogwarts came, she had been pregnant with their child and he refused to allow her to fight for 'fear for her safety'. Fear for his heir and nothing else. She hadn't meant anything to him.

He had married her so that no children she bore him would be bastards. It was necessary.He hadn't done it because he harboured feelings for her. He did it for the status of his children. Hermione assumed that was noble in its own way. He had never been claimed by his father after all.

"Push, Sis," she heard Brian say to her, "Come on, you can do it!"

"I'm going to kill you when this is over," Hermione screamed at him.

"That's it... That's... Is that the... I feel funny," her brother mumbled before fainting at the sight of the baby's crowning.

"Congratulations, miss," the nurse said after Hermione let loose one last groan, and the wail of her new baby was heard. "It's a girl!"

Hermione waited until her daughter was placed on her chest and held her close. "It looks like I was right, my Lord," she whispered.

Hermione was curious what Snape thought watching all of this. All she was missing was a bowl of popcorn and she'd be set.

"Hermione, baby, you have to wake up for me. Come on, Sis, wake up!"

Hermione laid limply on the floor of her bathroom. She was pale, and wasn't moving. She had tried to kill herself for the second time since she'd been unable to keep Persephone. She hadn't had enough money to feed herself, let alone her daughter, and she had refused to be supported by her brother. She and Persephone weren't his burdens to bear.

"Hermione, please! Please," Brian cried out. He started to pump her chest and breathe oxygen into her lungs, but Hermione hadn't wanted to live. Her daughter was better off without her. Everyone was better off without her.

"Live," she heard in her ear, and the voice wasn't her brothers. "Live for Persephone," he said.

"And now we come to the end of the film," Hermione muttered. "Fascinating to watch, wasn't it?"

Snape pulled out of her mind in shock. "Granger," he said.

"Don't," she hissed.

"Severus, what did you see? Anything useful," Lucius asked.

"Don't," Hermione demanded.

"Merlin," Snape whispered.

"Get off of me," she growled. She waited a moment before realising that Snape obviously hadn't heard her, and wiggled her hips to put her legs in between them. With a strength that defied her size, she pushed her legs out until he was leaning on the counter behind him.

With an enraged growl, she ran into her room and rushed into her bathroom to lean against the wall across from her mirror.

"What's wrong, princess," she heard him ask.

With a small scream she flung her arm out at the mirror and had to cover her face when the mirror exploded. Panting softly, she begged for this to be a nightmare. That she would wake up from, and see that she had fallen asleep in the tub again.

Hermione crumpled to floor on her hands and knees and bowed her head to the floor desperate for oxygen.

That was the moment the phone rang. Most of the wizards in her house had probably never seen one, so they wouldn't pick it up. But Harry definitely did, and she was surprised that he didn't.

The answering machine clicked on. "Hi, you've reached the answering machine of Hermione. I'm probably out, so leave a message and I'll call you back," she heard the answering machine say.

Then she heard the urgent, "Mama?"

/

Sorry if that seems like a cliffie... It's suppose to be. I've been very nervous about posting this story. Several of the chapters are already written. If you liked it could you please review? If I get... Let's say 10 reviews by Friday I'll post chapter 2. If I get them sooner I'll post it then. :)