A Black House
It had taken Tseng a good hour to calm Genesis down; after the tears had subsided, his anger had started to burn. Thankfully, he had kept the fire materia out of his rant.
Had it not of been for his skills as a Turk, and Second in Command at that, he would never have understood the reason behind Genesis’s fury, by the end of his rage, however, Tseng had a pretty good idea of what had happened.
“So, what happens now?” he asked, handing Genesis a cup of tea his rant having ended a few minutes ago.
“Nothing, I have to wait. Either she comes to me or I go to her. But if she comes here, I’m not letting her go back.”
“And if you go back there, you’ll stay? Genesis,” Tseng leant forward, thin, muscular elbows resting on equally thin and muscular knees, “it seems to me that you and Hermione have no say in whether or not you stay or go. If that is the case, then I suggest you just continue as normal. Don’t look at me like that.” Genesis had lowered a glared at the Turk.
“How can I continue living here as normal, when I know that there is a war going on over there?”
“There is a war going on here, too.”
Genesis gave a dark, sarcastic, laugh, “I’ve been fighting in that war for so long that I’d forgotten it was a war.” Genesis looked back over at the Wutai native Turk. “I know I have a duty here, Tseng, but that’s all it is; duty. I want to help Hermione, Harry and Ron with their war.” He needed to get his point across, needed to make Tseng understand.
“I mean, I’m not the nicest of people at the best of times, but… even Sephiroth would be unable to find a fault with the people I’ve just abandoned.”
Tseng looked at him, his own mug of Wutai tea halfway to his mouth. “They were that nice?” Tseng could see in Genesis’s eyes that he had wanted to come back, but he had also wanted to stay.
Heaving a sigh, he put down his mug. “Come on, finish your tea and let’s get you home. I’ll let Seph know you’re back. Go and wait by the car.” Tseng was up and out of the room before Genesis had even drained his luke warm cup of rather well-made tea. Heaving a sigh, he got up out of his chair.
“Seph it’s Tseng. Yeah, he’s here. Yeah I’m bringing him back now… hold on a sec. Genesis?” Tseng’s voice suddenly sounded as though Genesis was under water, he couldn’t breathe… feeling the ground under his knees, Genesis just fell into the blissful peace of darkness.
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Tseng dropped the phone and raced to Genesis’s side, “Genesis! Genesis can you hear me?!” running back to the phone he cut off Sephiroth’s questions. “Get over here, now! And bring Professor Kancheewa, Genesis has collapsed.”
“Understood. Unlock the door, we won’t knock.” The phone line went dead and Tseng turned back to the fallen SOLDIER, and blinked.
“You again…” he breathed for standing in the middle of his living room, looking at someone with a blank look on her face, was Hermione Granger. “What are you looking at? What are you thinking?”
After making Genesis comfortable, Tseng reached for the pen and notepad that he had been using to take note on a recent case, and began to write down the body language and the facial expressions that were playing before him.
To the untrained eye, Hermione’s eyes were blank, void of any emotion, but not to Tseng. Oh no, he could see that her eyes were burning with fear, anger and… recollection of pain?
Humming in thought, Tseng continued to observe until the image disappeared, followed seconds later by Sephiroth entering the apartment with Angeal and Professor Sakura Kancheewa at his heels.
“Who was that, Tseng?” the kind woman asked, Tseng just continued to write before looking her in the eye and telling her that he had Genesis’s confidence not to tell anyone who she was.
He just hoped Sephiroth and Angeal got the hint as well.
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“Obliviate.” Hermione muttered, pointing her wand at Dolohov and wiping all trace of her and her friends from his memory.
“Come on, we’d better go.” Hermione breathed, turning her back away from the scene. She had had a flashback of her parents as she had performed the spell to wipe Dolohov’s memory.
“Are you okay?” Harry asked as the two boys fell into step with her.
“Yeah, I’m fine. It was just painful to do that, that’s all.”
“Because of what you did to your mum and dad?” Ron asked, Hermione just nodded.
An uncomfortable silence followed the three as they apparated from the cafe and into a busy London borough where they wandered through the streets.
Harry suddenly pulled to a stop, causing Hermione and Ron to do the same. “Hermione, your friend is over there by the bus stop.”
Hermione’s gaze shot over to the place he mentioned and saw that it was indeed Other. *“Come this way, all of you, I will lead you to a safe haven.”* The two boys didn’t know whether this was a trap or not, but as Hermione took off at a fast walk they decided to follow them.
*“I apologise for sending Genesis back when I did, but I had no choice.”*
“It’s fine, Other. Thankfully I heal fast. Besides, the last thing he needs is to wrapped up in more than one war. He has his hands full with the one in his dimension.” Hermione took notice that Other was dressed in clothes that she had seen on a muggle teenager that Other had literally walked through earlier.
“Where are we going, Hermione?” Ron asked as Other pulled to a stop in a park.
*“We are here; I believe you all know this place. I leave you now, you are safe here, goodnight to you all.” *
“Other!” the sentient being turned to face Hermione, “tell Genesis that we’re okay, please?”
Other simply smiled and gave a low bow as she vanished.
“Okay, I'll ask again, where are we? I didn’t remember this park…” Ron said exasperated.
Harry frowned. “Grimmauld Place… How did she know to bring us here?” He turned to Hermione as she shrugged.
“No idea. But at least she led us here. Come on.” Every yard or so they were checking for any sign of the enemy, by the time they got to the door of number twelve they were on high alert and the adrenaline was sending out a volt of electricity to anything Hermione touched.
Harry tapped the door and the locked opened.
Harry closed the door behind them after letting Hermione through, suddenly Hermione’s mouth went dry. “Something is off.”
The boys looked at her for a second before several things happening at once; the first was the voice of Mad-Eye calling out to Snape, Harry shouted that they were not Snape, which ended with a Tongue-Tying Curse and the second had Hermione screaming. It was a figure made from the dust on the floor, the figure was of their late Headmaster.
When Hermione screamed, she threw up her hands and covered her head, that movement, coupled with her uncontrolled emotions saw a wall of ice rising from the floor to the ceiling to shield the three of them from the figure.
It didn’t stop it, however, as the ghost came through the ice and only dispersed when Harry shouted at it, “we are not your killers!”
Once certain they were alone, Hermione didn’t want to be left alone, she was afraid. So the boys agreed to stay in one room and use the sleeping bags.
That was when Harry’s scar began to flare up, Harry doubled over in pain and was caught as he fell by his friends.
He explained that he had seen nothing but knew that You-Know-Who was angry with something and was quick to snap at Hermione that yes he did remember that he was supposed to used Occlumency to keep him out of his head, but that sometimes it wasn’t as easy as that.
“I know that, Harry, but I can help you, I have some really effective meditation techniques that my dad taught me when I was little. It’ll help you too, I know it.”
Realising he had snapped for no reason, Harry smiled gently at Hermione and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Thank you, I know I can come to you when I need you. I’m sorry for snapping.”
“It’s okay, we’ve all had a stressful night… ah!” Hermione ducked behind Harry as she saw a silver Patronus in the shape of a weasel soar through the drawing room window and land on the floor.
“Family safe, do not reply, we are being watched.” the voice of Mr. Weasley sounded before it and the Patronus vanished. Ron sank onto the sofa a small whimper escaping his throat as Hermione rushed to his side. She put her arm around his shoulder and pulled him close.
“It’s okay, now, Ron. They’re safe, they’re alive.”
Harry disappeared for a while when Hermione realised he may be heading to bed, so she fished out his toothbrush and when to give it to him.
She knew what had happened to him, of course. she was a telepathic Wiccan, but she also had a better grip on her mind than her friend, she also had a slightly better pain barrier, but only slightly. Thankfully all the twitches and shivers and looks of pain that flashed across her eyes were interpreted by the boys as fear and nerves.
Hermione came back down and saw that Ron was starting to make the beds.
“Here, let me help.” She bent down and took one end whilst Ron took the other.
“I never did ask how your eye was.” Ron said, Hermione blinked, her now free hand reaching up to her right eye and sliding over the scar.
She had hidden it with magic during the wedding, but now, she had forgotten about it completely. It didn't hurt anymore, but it was still scabbed.
“It’s okay, it doesn’t hurt anymore thank goodness. I had actually forgotten all about it until you mentioned it, thanks for asking anyway.”
They smiled at each other for a few minutes before hearing Harry coming back downstairs looking ready to drop from exhaustion.
“Bathroom’s free. Here, I'll help.” Harry took over from Ron who picked up his toothbrush and dashed up the stairs.
After Hermione had finished her turn in the bathroom, the three of them settled down and Hermione fell asleep holding Ron’s hand with one of hers and the Phoenix materia in her free hand.
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Genesis woke with a gasp as he bolted upright. “Hermione, Harry, Ron!”
“Easy, Genesis, you’re okay.” the soothing voice of the Science Department’s most popular person, Professor Sakura Kancheewa reached his ears.
“Professor, what happened to me?” Genesis lay back down, confused.
“What’s the last thing you remember?”
“I was in Tseng’s apartment, he was going to drive me home and so I stood up, the next thing I remember is a burning sensation coursing through my blood, the wound that she had healed, it was the worst, I don’t know if it’s opened again, but I don’t remember anything else.”
“That’s okay-” Genesis stopped listening to her as his eyes wandered to the familiar figure of Brother.
*“Hermione is safe, Genesis. She and her friends were led by Other to a place of sanctuary. Rest well, I shall see you soon.” * Brother vanished as Professor Kancheewa continued to talk, well that was one thing off his mind.
“Genesis? Can you hear me?” Professor Kancheewa waved a hand in front of his eyes, Genesis blinked.
“Forgive me, Professor, I spaced out for a moment there. What did you say?”
Professor Kancheewa frowned, this was not normal for him, “I said that Hollander has asked me to take a couple of samples of your blood for analysis, then, so long as you can walk, you can be cleared and back to work tomorrow. Is that alright by you?”
Genesis gave his best smile to the woman he kept forgetting was known as a Turk in a lab coat. “Yes, Professor, that’s fine.”
The test done Genesis was back on his feet, there was a look in Hollander’s eyes that set Genesis on edge, was something wrong with him? Maybe…
“Ah, Genesis, I’m glad to see you back on your feet.” Turning, Genesis smiled seeing the Director of SOLDIER Lazard Deusericus coming towards him. “You gave us quite a scare.”
“Thank you, Director, I apologise for any worry I have caused, did you want me for something?” Genesis was hoping for a mission to take his mind off of everything.
“Yes, as a matter of fact I have a mission for all three of you, to Wutai.” Genesis blinked.
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Brother vanished from the corner where he had been stood listening to Lazard. He joined his sister in their pocket dimension for a short rest.
“Why did none of them ever say anything to the three of them? Things would have been a lot better…”
“Or things would have happened sooner and we would have no reason to interfere, would we?” His sister interrupted, she was only a few hours older than he was, but she acted as though they were years apart.
“What are you looking at, sister?” he moved to sit at his sister’s side.
“Hermione. Something is wrong with her, she shows more fear than anger, she must find a release soon before she, too, begins to turn on her friends.”
“You never did tell me what you saw in her.”
“In truth I’m still trying to figure that out myself.” Other looked at her brother, who stared back.
“They’re in for a lot of trouble, aren’t they?” Brother was afraid of the answer; he was growing fond of Genesis.
“Yes, I’m afraid they are.” Other stared back through the portal hole that let her watch Hermione and the boys drift off to sleep. “I just hope it doesn’t turn her into something she will never come back from.”