Hermione Granger, 1 day for outside business

[cutting_edgex23]

X, after escorting Hermione Granger and Tom Riddle into the office and questioning them very thoroughly, leaves a note for Security.

Hermione attacked Tom because he is Lord Voldemort on her world. He did not see her coming. I do not know if she is okay.

Maybe someone should talk to her. I am not good at it.

--X-23

Comments

[hadyougoing]

A vengeance intern on her lunch break pokes her head through the door to peer down the row of cells.

"Hermione?"

Real friends help you move bodies ... so by that logic, coworkers should at least visit you in prison.

[evercleverest]

To be quite honest, the cells? Aren't too terribly bad.

They're clean and they are so far from the horrors of Azkaban that she can't complain too much.

"Ava!"

She hadn't been expecting anyone to visit.

[hadyougoing]

Ava makes her way fretfully to Hermione's cell, wondering in an absent way whether she's going to freak out Baby. One way to find out!

"Hey," she says, "what happened? I was totally downstairs when this stuff was going on but somehow I missed it ..."

That's what boy drama'll do to you.

[evercleverest]

She lets out a breath.

"I broke two out of three rules of this place because ... well, I suppose I thought I could take care of a situation that would erase an entire war in my world."

... yeah, that didn't happen.

[isaysimplewords]

One look at the note on the noticeboard is enough to send Cal heading to the cells. He's frowning a bit as he goes; Hermione has never struck him as the type to break the rules without reason, and with everything going on back on her world . . .

He smooths the worry out of his face as he approaches her cell, which is bit of an effort; she doesn't exactly look as though she feels whatever she did was worth it.

"Hey," he says, voice gentle, as he leans sideways against the front wall of the cell.

[evercleverest]

Hermione had been curled up a little, her back to one of the walls, arms wrapped around her legs.

Thoughtful. A bit frustrated.

She's glad the cells are nothing like Azkaban, because the terrible things she read about the wizard prison had given her quite the fright after her questioning.

(Not that she showed any of that to X or Mr Riddle.)

But they are still the cells.

At the sound of Cal's voice, she glances up. Her face is streaked with dried tears, but the sight of a friend lifts her spirits tremendously ...

... and makes her all the more ashamed to be seen like this.

"Cal."

[isaysimplewords]

He offers her a small smile as she looks up. It's kind of a combination of hello and I'm not here to judge.

"Are you okay?"

The answer is clear enough, but Cal isn't one to worry about asking obvious questions.

[evercleverest]

Her automatic reflex would be to answer, 'I'm fine' or 'I'll be fine'.

But instead, she admits with all honest truth, "I don't know."

[wheatencrown]

Demeter frowns when she sees the note and walks over to the cells,

"Hermione, child? What happened?"

[evercleverest]

Hermione shakes her head.

She'd been trying not to cry or feel hopeless or stupid all day, but the sight of the goddess Demeter, who reminds her so much of her mum, makes her feel like she'd been a disappointment.

For all her bravery and strength, for thinking she'd absolutely done the right thing, she's now ... confused.

"My lady," she greets, her voice a little hoarse and a little sad. "I - I stunned someone last night and had to deal with the consequences of my action."

[wheatencrown]

"Shh, just Demeter. Why did you stun them?"

Demeter wishes she could hug Hermione, but since she can't, she stands quite close to the door.

[evercleverest]

"He's the darkest wizard my world has ever known," she replies firmly. "I mean - he hasn't become that Lord Voldemort yet. But I know he will. I thought -"

She bites her lip.

"I thought if I stopped him before that ever came about, it'd erase all of that history. Harry would have his parents back. So many people would get their families back."

[gorgonfondness]

Mia would have been surprised by Hermione being in the cells, but she is aware of Tom's could-have-been. Not until much later than most, but she knows

So there's an understanding mother with her baby on one shoulder and a book in her free hand.

"Hi, Hermione."

[evercleverest]

... it's the sight of the baby that makes her eyes well up with tears.

Isn't that why she'd done it? To stop anymore murder and pain and destruction from happening in her world? So that children like Mia's can grow up in a world where they don't have to fear for their lives, or the lives of their family? So that what happened to Harry doesn't have to happen ever again?

Oh, Merlin's Beard - she really ought to get a hold of herself!

"Mia - you've got a - your -"

She gingerly wipes at her eyes.

"He's beautiful."

[gorgonfondness]

Mia smiles a bit.

"Yes, he is, and thank you for saying so, but I didn't exactly come here to introduce you to Cepheus."

She passes the book into the cell and carefully adjust herself so she's cradling Cepheus with both arms.

We wonder when Hermione will notice he's the spitting image of a Malfoy?

"I thought you might like some company and some interesting reading. And I wanted to talk about what happened."

[evercleverest]

She certainly isn't set on noticing much of anything right now. Her mind is still numb from the events of last night. They'll probably be a little numb for a while yet.

Gratefully, she picks up the book, glad to have something else besides her thoughts and her vivid memories to focus her attention on. Her fingers lightly graze the edges of the cover.

"I couldn't ... help myself. I didn't even think it through. I just saw an opportunity and I took it," she starts, her voice soft.

[young_tmriddle]

A white owl flies into the cells. The magical nature of the walls being what they are, the envelope Galatea carries slips through into Hermione's cell. It contains a note from Tom, who has written these types of missives on more than one occasion over the years.

Dear Miss Granger

[evercleverest]

She'd been dozing off into unconsciousness - head down, eyes closed - when the fluttering sound (so familiar) woke her.

Lifting her head, Hermione blinks. She notes the envelope left for her by the edge of her cell. On it is a wax seal with the crest of Slytherin pressed into it.

She has a feeling she knows who it's from ... but for now, she doesn't touch it.