May
It took most of Bella's self-control to not scream in joy as she read the owl her Mother sent her. She was free!!! Father was willing to let her look out for a witch to marry! Sure, he would also keep searching for a husband for her, but his chances of quickly finding a pure-blood wizard that would satisfy his expectations were pretty slim. Bella would have certainly weeks, likely months, possibly years to find herself a better option.
Of course, her first instinct was to tell Hermione and snog her senseless and convince her that Father could be made to accept her. After all, Bella wasn't dumb, she *noticed* Hermione was just as attracted to her as she was to Hermione. And this new situation meant Bella was free to try and make this work!
But then came the cold wave of sobering realism. Father didn't really know how exceptional Hermione was, he wouldn't be willing to wait to see her reach the heights she would no doubt rise to. Sure, her Mother might have managed to convince him to give Bella some freedom, but there was little doubt both her parents saw this as little more than a symbolic gesture. More likely than not, this was just something to make Bella feel better and to give her free hand to initiate something in case a miracle happens and someone like a Noble and rich French witch who happens to prefer women visits Hogwarts. Brilliant but poor witches from Australia were just useful subordinates, not good potential spouses, at least in her Father's eyes. And although Mother still seemed far more willing to focus on the potential any suitor might offer, even if their immediate contributions to the power of House Black might be limited, even she would likely say no to Hermione. Sure, give her a few years and Hermione might be a Hogwarts professor, influencing nearly all of Britain's future witches and wizards, or an influential Ministry employee, but Bella might be married to someone else by then.
Bella's mind rebelled. No. She would not give her Father time to find her a husband. She would rather risk death if it meant a chance to avoid such a marriage and she knew there *was* a way to quickly gain more status for both Hermione and herself in her Father's eyes. Enter the shadow war that was being fought outside Hogwarts, join Hermione on her weekend outings and prove to her Father that some people can make the world a better place, no matter their lineage or family's political power.
And Bella would not waste a single day. Something important was going to happen, because Hermione used her standing with Slughorn to get herself a free Friday in addition to the weekend and left the school about an hour ago. Whatever she was up to was likely important and Bella might find her and join her and contribute. The idea to ask Hermione to let Bella contribute was tempting even before that owl and irresistible after it. Hell, even if Hermione would reject her advances, and Bella *knew* Hermione wanted her, this was a chance for Bella to grow up and make her first steps on a path from being just an exceptional student to being an important witch. And Hermione was such a bookworm that there was a good chance she would have at least one of the books from Bella's personal library in her bag, she tended to haul a few dozen books *everywhere*. And Bella's books had tracer charms on them that *would* work outside Hogwart's wards. So she went to grab herself a broom and when she learned that Andy too had made herself scarce, she simply wished her sister had enough common sense to not do anything stupid while getting snogged.
****
"Are you sure this is something you want to do alone, Hermione?"
Andy's voice was friendly and concerned and inviting.
"You know we would happily let you join us tonight, right?"
There was no sign of dishonesty on Ted's face either and Hermione had no doubts his words hid no double meanings. Would the two love to spend time alone? Absolutely. Would the night give them plenty of opportunity to do things she didn't wish to imagine but they were both old enough to consent to? Sure. But they were friends first and it wasn't like this was their last chance to kiss and maybe more. Of course they would be happy to simply cuddle on a couch if Hermione needed – or simply wanted – their company.
But she was a friend too and she wanted Andy – and Ted too – to be happy. Knowing they were willing to let her join them was enough to keep her happy and she refused to let her selfish side accept their offers.
Besides, she's made her own plans for the night weeks ago, no need to let those go to waste, and there'd be plenty of time to work on some things in stretches when she wouldn't be desperately hoping nothing would go wrong.
"I know, but it will be mostly boredom, occasionally interrupted by moments of excitement and fear. No reason for me to be a third wheel for hours. And yes, Andy, I know you still don't fully trust muggle contraptions and yes, the ones we'll be using tonight might – theoretically – implode. Explode too, I guess. But not in a way that might hurt any of us and I do carry things like dittany anyway."
It might have been a better idea to be less pedantic, given Andy's raised voice.
"Explode? Nobody said anything about us blowing up!"
Hermione sighed and Ted beat her to answering Andy's concerns.
"Honey, I've never seen one do so, and I'm muggleborn. Hermione probably read somewhere it might happen but I never even heard about it actually happening, so you can both calm down."
Calming down probably took Andy even longer as a result of that.
****
The whole situation felt like the beginnings of some secret operation to Bella. Hermione seemed to be inside a muggle hotel, her room shielded by temporary wards, and the most likely explanation was she was waiting for someone. The whole place was one almost nobody would expect a witch in and anyone inside would be easy to Obliviate or dispose of it something went wrong. No time to waste, Hermione's company might arrive at any moment, so best insert herself into it all before they Apparate elsewhere.
The muggle woman behind the reception desk seemed like a good-natured granny, focused on a small box with some crappy muggle moving photo on it when Bella entered. But she immediately turned the sound off and her bespectacled eyes took a good look at Bella before her mouth formed a smile.
"What can I do for you, love?"
Giving diplomacy a chance seemed like the better idea.
"A friend of mine is supposed to be here, do you think I could go see her?"
There was a weird spark of understanding in the woman's eyes, too multi-layered for even Bella to decipher but seemingly benign.
"Thought I recognized that peculiar uniform, are you Hermione's classmate? It is room four, so hurry up and don't worry about propriety, I can guess why you're here today. Don't worry, you're not late."
That was… a bit weird. Did Hermione use some charms on the woman? Was she a part of Hermione's security arrangements? Well, she would soon find out. A single flight of stairs she took three at a time and a few steps and then she knocked.
Nothing at first, which made Bella feel like an idiot, because it was only then that she noticed some muffled male voice from behind the door. But then it was Hermione in a brown velvet dressing gown and that took Bella's brain by surprise. Hermione seemed equally surprised, though, given how her voice sounded.
"Bella?!?"
There was no hostility in that voice, just surprise, disbelief and a touch of worry. And Hermione went on, while Bella's brain finally realized that male voice sounded like muggle radio.
"What are you doing here?!?"
This sure didn't seem like a secret operation anymore. But it didn't seem like an illicit affair either, so Bella pushed her luck a bit.
"Maybe I could explain inside?"
It was a bit worrying, the way Hermione's face switched to scrutiny more intense than Bella ever saw from her, but then came a flash of wandless magic and that male voice switched off and Hermione motioned for Bella to come in.
The place was a cramped muggle joke of a hotel room, with a double bed and the same box with crappy muggle moving photo on it that Bella saw downstairs casting dancing lights onto that bed. The bed not hiding a lover but strewn with various snacks, most from Honeydukes by the looks of it, and a weird mix of parchments and tomes and muggle-looking documents.
"So what brings you here, Bellatrix, on this evening of all things?!?"
Hermione's tone hurt. It wasn't exactly hostile but it was guarded and impatient and made Bella feel Hermione might send her away. Sure, it was a possibility she thought she was ready for, given she went in hoping to join the shadow war she thought Hermione was a part of. But she went in hoping Hermione would be at least understanding of her desire to join, not this dismissive.
"I'm really sorry for surprising you like this, Hermione, but I got an owl from Mother that made me decide I can't waste any more time. I can tell you're spending at least some of your weekends fighting the shadow war that might decide the fates of us all and I need to join. My Father's agreed to let me look for a wife and this is my best chance to make that happen on my terms. And I found you here thanks to a trace on my books."
Hermione's face being as if made of stone was not a good sign and the plain wooden chair she gestured for Bella to sit on felt too far from Hermione's position on the bed. But when she got to her Father's permission, Bella saw Hermione's face finally thaw a bit and some of her worries went away. Sure, the light on Hermione's face dimmed real fast, as if it dawned on her how little actual freedom even the new situation gave Bella, but such a level of understanding and empathy still made Bella a bit happier.
"I have no idea how much time you have now, Hermione, but can we please at least *start* on finding a way I could begin to help? Hopefully with more than-"
A quick gesture towards the tomes and parchments on Hermione's bed.
"-some paperwork."
The wand in Hermione's hand took her by surprise. It was at the ready, dangerous but unmoving, and Bella forced herself to not react, waiting for Hermione to speak. Seconds ticked by and Hermione's eyes seemed trying to pierce into Bella's soul.
"You have no idea what you just walked into, Bella. But the last few months managed to convince me that there's more to you than I feared, so I will give you a choice. You can walk out of here safe and free and I'll even help you avoid your Father marrying you to some wizard. Or you can stay here and learn the truth, but I might have to Obliviate you or even kill you if you can't deal with that truth."
Hearing this put a smile on Bella's face.
"Do you really think I would come here if I wasn't willing to risk death? And even though you might not believe me, I'm not here just for my selfish reasons. I do want to work for the good of wizardkind, whether this helps me find a wife or not."
Hermione's expression slowly turned gentle, with a touch of pity that confused Bella a bit. Was she really so childish compared to a veteran like Hermione, no matter she now almost matched her skills when it came to martial magic alone?
"Like I said, you have no idea what you walked into, Bella. The truth might make you rage in anger, it might make you feel betrayed, it might make you tremble in fear, it might drive you mad. Accepting it might make your Father want you dead, it might make dozens of other people want you dead, it might make you hate yourself and me too. I would even ask for your wand before I'd tell you, Bella, and for your dagger, and for you to close your eyes for a moment and accept some charms. And you'll have to take some Veritaserum later. But you can still just walk out of here. I do trust your common sense enough to let you walk out without me having to ensure your silence about this all."
Her instincts screamed at Bella to do that, because leaving herself so vulnerable went against all her training. But a secret society demanding this from would-be initiates made sense and this was Hermione, who already had the power to destroy her life by revealing the love potion plot against Rodolphus. And because Hermione never actually agreed to the plan, and because the potion simply… appeared on Bella's nightstand… she could maintain plausible deniability for herself, so it wasn't even a case where Bella could take Hermione down in retaliation. No matter what angle Bella looked at this from, the demands seemed kind of sensible, while the warnings confirmed the metaphorical rabbit hole she would be entering was so deep she really wanted to learn those secrets. So she slowly reached for her wand and handed it to Hermione, handle first, and repeated the process with her dagger.
"I've trusted you with my life before, Hermione. I can do it again."
And she closed her eyes. She almost opened them again when she felt a charm hit her, then two more, the second one creating the sensation of some magic coiling around her ankles, then came a minute or two of silence so unnatural it must've been caused by a barrier around her and then she heard Hermione's voice again.
"You can open those eyes, Bella. Don't worry about those charms, that's just insurance in case you… try to do something you shouldn't. And you've been excused from school until Monday, though I've arranged for Andy to meet with us tomorrow, as it might take a long time for you to absorb it all. There will be some rather difficult moments, Bella, but there's one thing I want you to know right now."
The whole situation was getting… weird, but nice. The battle-hardened side of Hermione was still barely beneath the surface, showing itself in occasional small hints. The Hermione that rose to the surface was the compassionate, gentle one, who dared to embrace Bella in front of Andy to make her feel better. They weren't waiting for anyone, this was something else, and Bella had no idea what. Hermione's soft and passionate face did wonders to keep any fears at bay, though.
"This evening is really special, Bella, and I never thought I would have a chance to experience it. This day is one of the most memorable days in this planet's history, even if most of wizardkind knows nothing about it for now. In a hundred years time, or in a thousand, people will still remember the events of this day."
Was this the culmination of some grandiose plan Hermione wouldn't be personally present for but knew about? Something world-wide?
"If you ruin this evening for me, I might never be able to fully forgive you. I wouldn't hate you – but I honestly don't know about fully forgiving you. On the other hand, it might be a good thing you're here now – you might never get a better chance to accept the truth about muggles than you have today."
A flick of Hermione's wand and Bella's head swiveled to the muggle photo box that suddenly began to talk.
"Houston, Eagle. How do you read?"
"Five by, Eagle. We're standing by for your burn report. Over."
"Roger. The burn was on time. The residuals before nulling: minus 0.1, minus 0.3, minus 0.1, x and z nulled to zero. Nulling."
The photo was a dumb one, showing a large room and the backs of several muggles working with some muggle technology. And those low-quality voices seemed to be spouting gibberish.
"Odyssey, Houston. We've lost all data with Eagle. Please have them reacquire on the high gain. Over."
Hermione seemed to be waiting for Bella to absorb what she was seeing but nothing really stood out to Bella and her patience soon ran out.
"Care to explain?"
Another flick of Hermione's wand, this one simply lowering the volume of those muggle voices, and she didn't even try to hide taking a deep breath.
"One of those voices came from a muggle spaceship that's flying around the Moon right now."
Bella's first impulse was anger – to insult her intelligence in this fashion was childish and disgusting – but that rising anger dissipated when Bella saw no signs of amusement or mockery on Hermione's face. Was Hermione being serious?!?
"Are you sure they're telling the truth? Because I really want to say that's impossible, Hermione. Even wizards can't get that high up, not even with bubblehead charms and warming spells and specialty brooms. Nobody's ever managed to Apparate there, or they haven't come back if they did. How could some muggles get there?"
Hermione just sighed.
"I'm sorry to tell you this, Bella, but your knowledge of muggles is about as accurate as Walden's understanding of Advanced Arithmancy. But don't feel too bad about it, you've spent your life surrounded mostly by people who know even less about these things than you do. As for how the muggles got there, they've spent far more on that spaceship than what Hogwarts' whole budget is."
Okay, that last bit made sense when it came to money alone, given muggle numbers. But spending lots of money can't buy an ability.
"I've seen some magical ships, Hermione. No matter how much you'd spend on one, and we're talking custom protective Charms here, you can't take her higher than some fifty thousand feet without extreme danger. Even if muggles can get the money to buy one, and find a traitor willing to fence it to them, they'd die long before reaching the Moon. And muggle flying machines are dangerous and primitive things."
Was it a hint of a sad smile on Hermione's features?
"It is not a magical ship, it is an entirely muggle spaceship. They don't have our powers, Bella, but they're using much better ways of discovering how the universe works than we do, so they can do it even without magic. Today, they'll manage something no wizard or witch ever managed even with our magic. If you ever want to learn what muggles are capable of, today is a great day to try."
The thought was a double-edged one.
"Do you want me to admire them, or fear?"
"Yes."
A second of silence and then Hermione went on.
"Sorry, that was a bad one, but there's truth to it. They do deserve admiration, and you have plenty of reasons to be afraid."
Hermione's voice was still mostly under her control – but it was also showing hints of underlying emotions, a weird mix of elation and trepidation. Bella still had no idea what was going on with the muggle angle.
"Sounds like you've discovered muggles can do way more than build a flying machine that can fly really high – and you want to talk about it. So are you going to tell me we have to find more muggles like Ted to strengthen us, or are we talking about them being so dangerous we better destroy them all?"
Hermione's face went blank, the way a face does when the owner notices a perfect opening and wants to show no clues to their thoughts.
"That's what I want you to tell me."