Moonrise || Harry Potter Twilight Crossover || FanFiction

Chapter Twenty-Six: Hermione's POV

"Alice," I say, in a voice I'm proud doesn't shake. "I'm ready."

For nearly an hour we talk. Well, I talk, mostly. I tell her about Hogwarts, about the different classes, the people... and then I tell her about Voldemort, about the War, touching on it as briefly as possible, not going into any major detail, just telling her he was a very powerful wizard with very powerful followers. Alice picks up on my reluctance to talk about this particular part of my past, and doesn't press, for which I am grateful.

When I finally finish, Alice shakes her head, looking shocked. "I knew you were hiding something- something big, but... never in a million years did I think it would be something like this." She admits and I nod, a short laugh that's only slightly a sob escaping me. "So every time you use magic... does that happen? Do you pass out?" she asks and I shake my head, and look down at my hands.

"In the Magical World, there is Light magic and Dark magic." I explain to her, not able to look her in the eye. "Fiendfyre... it's Dark magic. Very Dark magic. I would have never have used it, but my magic reacted instinctively to the threat. I was very lucky I managed to put out the flames- if I'd lost control, they could have easily burned Forks to the ground." Alice stares at me, wide-eyed, then her gaze flits down to my forearm.

She reaches out, gently, and the tip of an ice-cold finger traces the pearly, raised scar tissue. "What... what does 'mudblood; mean?" she asked, softly. I flinch at the word, coming from her mouth, sounding so unbelievably wrong in her voice.

"It means dirty blood." I can't help the bitterness in my voice as I tell her this, "it's a derogatory term for Muggleborn witches and wizards. People with no magical blood in their family tree." Alice frowns.

"Is that a bad thing?" I give a short, harsh laugh that sounds a touch unhinged even to my own ears.

"Many older Wizarding families place great emphasis on blood purity and reject association with Muggles and Muggleborns, both of whom they consider greatly inferior to themselves."

"Why was it done to you?" Alice asks. I close my eyes again, not wanting to see her reaction to what I'm about to say next.

"I was tortured for information, and while I was been given a breather, my torturer decided it'd be fun to carve my 'station' into my arm." Alice freezes beside me, her entire body going stiff, a vampire's reaction to stress.

"Why were you tortured?" I open my eyes and look at my girlfriend through a veil of tears.

"Please... can I explain that part later? I just... I came here, to Forks, because I needed to get away from everything. I didn't tell you because I wanted a fresh start. I wanted you to get to know Hermione Granger-Swan the student, not the War heroine."

"War heroine?" Alice squeaks, before she visibly takes a few calming breaths, inhaling and exhaling oxygen she doesn't actually require. "Okay. Okay, I understand. We can... we can talk about that later." She says. I let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Alice." I tell her, and she bends over and kisses the scars along my forearm.

"You are beautiful, Hermione." She tells me, and I give her a shaky smile.

"Thank you, Alice."

-

"So, the witch is out of the bag." Bella states as I walk into the living room with Alice hovering anxiously beside me.

"First, that was awful, Bella, second- she took it better then I expected." I say, before turning and smiling warmly at Alice. She smiles back and stands on her tiptoes to kiss my nose.

"I did, now sit down before you give me a heart attack. I'm expecting you to collapse any second." She informs me, and I give a weak laugh, but sit down beside Bella, who's lounging back on the couch, absently watching the cooking channel, trying to disguise the fact that she'd been waiting anxiously for the outcome of my talk with Alice.