CHAPTER EIGHT:

Hermione's POV:

One of the many qualities I love about my sister? Her insight- she knows when to stop pushing, when to stand back and give me space.

After my 'big reveal', which consisted mainly of the one name I tried most not to say, or think, she hugged me, holding me tight with fire in her eyes, and eventually we both dozed off.

I woke up at seven, like I always did- at a young age, my body had decided that sleeping past seven was for the weak, and I'd find my eyes opening like clock-work, barring times of absolute exhaustion, in which I either wouldn't sleep at all, or I'd sleep like the dead.

So awake, and fully aware that going back to sleep wasn't going to be an option, I stood in a cold shower for five minutes, letting the icy water wake me up, chasing away the lingering exhaustion brought on by nightmares and interrupted sleep. After drying off, I dressed in long sleeves, jeans and one of my favourite sweaters. Not the height of fashion, but I was going for comfort right now.

Following that was my morning routine of taming my hair to acceptable levels of curliest, choking down some breakfast that really didn't want to fit in my uneasy stomach, still upset by last night's nightmare, and carefully packed everything that I'd need for my first day at muggle high school. This was accomplished in a minimal amount of time, leaving me curled up on the couch with an open book.

Some time near eight, a yawning, sleepy Bella made her way into the kitchen and poured herself a massive cup of instant coffee. Still dressed in her pajamas with her normally straight hair a messy halo around her head, she slumped down on the couch next to me and drained about half the cup in one large gulp.

"So... still not a morning person?" I asked, amused. When she didn't immediately return my teasing with some of her own, worry twisted my already upset stomach. "Bella, what's wrong?" I demanded, closing my book and shifting around so I was facing her- she didn't look up from her hands, curled around her mug. Was she so distressed from last night that she couldn't even look at me? I wondered, feeling a lead-like weight settle in my chest. I hadn't wanted to tell her, hadn't wanted to show her, but she was my sister, my twin, and she deserved more then my lies.

"It's... it's that vampire who's after me. Victoria." Bella speaks up, her voice soft. For a long, selfish moment I'm beyond glad it isn't me that's upset her, but when she continues talking, that relief soon vanishes, and the lead returns. "She's after me. Alice had a vision last night- Hermione, she's back in Forks." I stiffen, even as my mind starts racing thousands of miles an hour.

I've fought in a War, I faced my first life or death situation at age twelve- I was used to this sort of crap. But Bella? When she told me about what had happened to her at that ballet studio, I wanted to take her away, take her somewhere where I could wrap her up in cotton wool and keep her safe.

Bella was sensitive, emotionally, because that's the type of person she was, and she was fragile, physically, because she's a muggle.

There is nothing bad or wrong about being a muggle- I would always believe this. The problem is the fact they had no defenses against vampires. Although it smells appetizing, the blood of a magical is poisonous to the vile beings who feast on humans. One mouthful is enough to paralyse a vampire, and there are more then enough spells and potions available to deal with the venom. A muggle in the hands of a vampire is akin to a worm in the beak of a bird... or perhaps something more poetic then that, but with the same sentiment- defenceless.

"It's okay, Bella, I'll make sure you stay safe." I promise her, my voice actually shaking with fury, and I fully intend on honouring that promise. That vampire was finished; she had signed her own certificate of execution the moment she'd set my sister in her sights- I was not losing anyone else. Ever. 

My mind raced ahead, planning attacks and defences, ideas being formed and discarded in the space of a handful of heartbeats until I had a plan in place; the first step would be setting up wards to keep vampires out of the house, making sure to key in the Cullens, of course, so they wouldn't find themselves faced with an invisible wall when they tried entering Bella's house.

Second, I was going to ward the hell out of Bella and Charlie. There was only so much magical protection I could give them, and only so long said protection would last under vampire attack, but it would give me time to apparate to their side so I could kill the attacking vampire.

Finally, before we even left the house, I would make Bella a Portkey to wear on her at all times, so if necessary she could disappear in the blink of an eye.

Initial plan in place, I got to my feet, pulling my wand out of my pocket- Charlie had already left earlier that morning, before I'd even woken up, so there was no risk of him seeing anything. Bella stared at me wide-eyed. "What are you doing?" She asked, slightly breathless.

"I'm setting up protection," I told her, as I strode toward the front door, "you might as well get ready for school, this could take me a while." Bella stared at me for a handful of seconds then nodded and downed the rest of her coffee before getting to her feet, and returning to her bedroom to complete her own morning routine.

I spent the next forty minutes applying each and every protection I could think of, first to the house, and then to Bella. The Cullens wouldn't be affected by the wards, but anyone with malignant intent would be. If I could, I'd put the house under fidelius and hide Bella inside until the vampire was ashes, but I knew she'd never agree to that.

The final protection I put into place before we headed off to school was the portkey. Bella picked out a piece of jewellery that she could always wear anywhere, a necklace with a flower charm that I'd given her when we were ten. Concentrating, I tapped it with the tip of my wand, murmuring, "portus!" The necklace glowed blue, momentarily, before fading back to its original silver.

Bella kept touching it, wide-eyed, after I fastened it around her neck. "And all I have to do to make this necklace transport me to anywhere in the world, is to think of the place and say the activation word?" she asks, incredulously.

"Yes, and don't say it by accident." I warn her, "there's only so many people I can obliviate if your necklace starts glowing blue or you disappear into thin air." Bella seemed a lot more relaxed then before, and the cheeky smile she directed at me filled me with relief. 

"Don't tempt me." Bella teased and I gave a playful sigh.

-

Bella's ancient Chevy truck might have originally been red... to be honest, I wouldn't know if that was the honest truth or she was messing me. I certainly couldn't tell by looking at it. The springs in the seats, with their peeling leather covers, were sticking into my butt, driving me crazy. I ended up casting a cushioning charm on the seat, purely because I was seconds away from incendio-ing the beastly thing.

Bella was incredibly amused by my discomfort and annoyance, in the way only a sibling can be. "How can you stand this car?" I ask her, ignoring the hint of a whine in my voice. She shrugs.

"I can't help what I love." I honestly can't help the laugh that escapes me at that.

"True. Your love life speaks for you, in that regard." Bella scowls and slaps me- that was a mistake. The moment she took her hand off the wheel, the truck swerves, and I honest-to-God screamed, grabbing my wand- dammit Bella, I'd survived too much to die in a car accident! Bella let out a scream too, and yanked hard on the steering wheel, swerving us back into the middle of the road. She hit the brakes and we both clutched our chests and panted for a few seconds, trying to slow down our breathing.

Bella raised her face, sheepishly, to meet my glare. "I'm driving." I said, in a voice that left no room for argument. She meekly handed over the keys.

-

With me at the wheel, we reached the school in one piece and in under fifteen minutes, and parked in the empty space next to the Volvo. "No one ever parks next to the Cullens' car," Bella comments, with a slight grin, "They're all too chicken."

"Too true!" A voice I only just recognised without its Irish lilt giggled, and Bella's car door is yanked open by a grinning small red-head.

"Morning Mags," Bella greets the Irish vampire cheerfully, before lowering her voice. "Did you... catch her?" she asked, and a grim shadow fell over Maggie's face.

"No." She said, voice frustrated, Irish accent strengthening, her American facade falling in her annoyance. Her lip curled back from her sharp white teeth, and an instinctive fear threatened to make me shiver. "Emmett got too close to the boundary and one of the wolves attacked him, and of course that got Rose involved, and it near-about devolved into a brawl. It took Carlisle and Jasper's joint efforts to calm everyone down, and by then she'd disappeared." Bella had gone white when Maggie mentioned the wolves, and Edward appears beside Maggie, glaring at her.

"Is it impossible for you to keep your mouth shut?" He asked, icily. Maggie gave him a look that could freeze a desert.

"She asked a question, and I told the truth. I always tell the truth." She said, voice cold.

"Edward, is Jake okay?" Bella interrupts the vampire stare-off, her face strained with worry. Edward sighed.

"The wolves are fine. Nobody got hurt, it was just a misunderstanding. Victoria," the way he spat out her name, like it was poison, made me like him a little more, I had to admit, though certainly not out loud, "was running along the treaty line which made it nearly impossible to grab her. Emmett tried and went sailing over the treaty line, and one of the wolves, Paul, tried to attack him. Carlisle and Jasper calmed things down pretty quickly, but Victoria got away."

Bella slumps back in her seat, and Edward reaches out and runs his thumb along her cheek. "We'll get her, Bella." He says, softly, and she nods, before speaking up in a choked voice.

"I know... I just...I..."

"It's okay, Bella. I know." Edward says, simply, and as they stare at each other, with such love and understanding in their eyes, my chest aches a little, and I feel lonely.

"Haven't you graduated?" I ask Maggie, looking past the love-sick couple, to the curly haired vampire, as a way of distracting myself, more then actual curiosity. "I thought you were posing as Alice's older sister."

"Yes, but only older by eleven months," Maggie explains, cheerily. I nod my head in understanding, and turn to open my door when it opens for me, and a smiling, dark-haired vampire that reminds me of a pixie (the ones from fairy tales, not real life- believe me, I know the difference!) stands before me, looking a touch shy.

Like any and all vampires, she looks gorgeous, but today she seems even more stunning then usual. Her hair is styled in neat curls around her head, and she's dressed in a pair of jeans that hug her slim figure, and a top that seems almost scandalously low-cut, showing off her absolutely perfect curves.

"Alice?" I ask, surprised.

"Hello Hermione," she greets me, in her sweet, bell-like voice, "I was wondering if you wanted me to show you around." She explained, before her shiny white teeth nibble the bottom of her naturally rosy lower lip. I smile at her, touched by her thoughtfulness, and apparent willingness to welcome me into her family.

"Thank you Alice, really, but Bella's already promised me a tour." I tell her, sliding out of the truck, onto the ground, completely missing her dejected expression. Bella's keen eyes apparently don't.

"Actually, I've got to go speak to Mr. Banner," my sister says, an odd look on her face. Her lips twitch into a smile as I look at her, surprised.

"What?" I ask, surprised and a bit annoyed that she was backing out on her promise to me on my first day.

"Yeah, uh, sorry, I forgot, I've got to do, uh, something before class." She says, hitching her backpack over her shoulder, "I'll see you later!" She hurries off, Edward a half-step behind her, and I stare after them, somewhat puzzled.

"She is a terrible liar," I say, turning back to Alice and Maggie. "Do either of you know what that was about?"

Maggie opened her mouth then shut it, a frustrated look on her face. "I'm not going to lie." She muttered, "so I'm going to leave." With that, she bobbed up and kissed my cheek, startling me with the brush of icy lips against my warm cheek, and bouncing off, her over shoulder backpack bobbing with every step.

Even more confused, I turn back to face the beautiful Alice. "I'm used to weird," I tell her, "but that was still strange."

Alice gives a fond smile in the direction they'd all disappeared off in. "I think they're being meddlesome," she says, "but they mean well."

"That didn't make any more sense," I tell her, and she gives a bright laugh. 

"Welcome to Forks, Hermione." I can't help but smile back at her.

"Home to the weird and the wonderful." I say, "would you mind giving me that tour after all?"

"It would be my pleasure," Alice says, and her voice is startlingly sincere as she blinks up at me with her doe eyes, the colour of galleons. She's close enough I can smell the lingering scent of her perfume, something sweet and floral and expensive, as well as the underlining subtle scent that is pure vampire; seductive and alluring, with a hint of danger.

Without even a moment of preamble, she links her arm with mine, icy marble stone pressed against warm, malleable flesh. I freeze for a moment, shocked by the contact, but then relax, allowing it. Bella had told me how friendly Alice was- it made sense for the little vampire to be tactile as well, and I follow her confident lead to the main office.

-

Shelley Cope, a middle-aged woman with graying hair and shrewd eyes, can't seem to help but stare at me as she hands over my schedule, locker number and combination, and slip of pink paper I need to get all my teachers to sign before handing in at the end of the day.

"We've got nearly identical schedules!" Alice beams, as she looks over mine once I've finished examining it. Nothing seems to get the bubbly vampire down, I notice. She hasn't stopped smiling since the car park unlike myself, who is less then happy- stares and whispers have been following me from the car park, to the office, to the corridors I'd walked through to place the books I didn't immediately need in my newly assigned locker.

As someone who's spent her last few months alternatively hiding from the world, to bring thrust in the spotlight, I'm uneasy and uncomfortable with the attention I'm being given.

I sigh, louder then I meant to, as Alice lead the way to the first class of the day, one of the many we appear share- Calculus. "Please tell me not everyone is going to be like this!?!" I beg her quietly and she shoots me a pitying look, not needing me to explain what I mean by 'this'.

"Sorry." She answers, truly looking sorry, and I barely swallow my groan.

"Sweet Morgana," I curse under my breath, "so much for a year with no staring wherever I go." Alice laughs, the sound like bells tolling, attracting even more attention.

"You definitely came to the wrong place then! Here in Forks you're fresh meat, and to add to that you're Bella Swan's twin sister that no one's heard of." She says, before looking at me, curiously. "Why was everyone staring at you at your old school?"

Because I was the best friend of the Chosen One? A member of the Golden Trio? The smartest witch of my age? The (however brief) girlfriend of a world famous Quidditch champion?

(The Mudblood who dared think she was good enough to learn magic?)

"Because I was openly homosexual." I end up telling her, the wistful thought of 'if only' crossing my mind.

"Oh." Alice says, not looking like she knows what to say next.

"I'm proud of who I am. I'm never going to try and hide it." I tell her, and I'm not lying, just not quite using my statement in the right context. I'm proud to be a Muggleborn. I'll never try to hide it, no matter how much I'm discriminated against. I've proved my worth, over and over again. Alice smiles back at me, just outside the classroom.

"That's really amazing." She says, sounding so honest. "Most people choose to appease the masses, standing up for who you are? You are amazing, Hermione." I'm actually startled to realise I'm blushing, and Alice's smile acquires a teasing edge.   "Ready to face the music?" She asks. The red in my cheeks fade as I stare at the closed classroom door. It's only a high school maths class, I chastise myself fiercely- it's not like I'm breaking into the Ministry of Magic, or Gringotts or anything! My stomach ignores my brain, and instead flip-flops.

"No." I admit, even as I push the door open and step into the classroom.