Shadows

The next day, Hermione tiredly got ready to leave for the Burrow. She had barely slept the night before. Whenever she closed her eyes, the man's eyes and lips haunted her.

She shuffled through her closet, not really paying much attention to what she was grasping. There was going to be a meeting of the Order, and she dreaded finding out where it was being held.

Hermione had pulled out rich green summer robes, she absentmindedly stripped and pulled the robes over her head. Glancing at herself in the mirror, she paused and looked at her arms. She sighed and pulled the robes off her thin body, tossing them carelessly onto the bed.

She rummaged through her closet again, looking more carefully. She pulled out two robes, both with long sloping sleeves. She glanced at herself in the mirror, holding up one robe then the other before placing them both on the bed.

She focused on the reflection in the mirror. Her once chubby body had become stick thin, her ribs showing through the shallow skin. Her torso had faded scars, some straight, some jagged. Her eyes moved down to her black panties, clinging to her like a second skin. She refused to look at her legs and instead brought her eyes to her bust. Unlike the rest of her body, her chest hadn't shrunk with her malnourishment, her bosom fit nicely into her black C cup and nothing she had tried had changed it.

She sighed, and reached again for the robes on the bed, her eyes catching sight of the purple and red lines on her arms. She grasped the black robes and held them up to her, her already pale face turning almost invisible. She moaned in despair and dropped the garment on the bed. Looking once more in the mirror, she reached for the second robe.

She pulled on the deep brown robes which her parents had given her too many Christmas ago to remember, claiming they brought out the color in her eyes. She had used to smile when she remembered that Christmas, her mother's happy laugh when Hermione opened the box which held the robes. But they were gone now, along with so many others.

She looked at herself in the mirror one last time, doing a quick inspection. Over the years her bushy hair had flattened, so she now had a head-full of tightly wound curls which she had left loose and disheveled. Satisfied that her appearance didn't give anything away, she Disapparated, heading to the Burrow.

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When Hermione appeared in the kitchen with a 'pop', Mrs. Weasley stepped out of the way with obvious years of practice.

"Hermione, my dear, how are you holding up?" Hermione had barely gotten her feet on the ground before she was smothered into Mrs. Weasley's warm arms.

Hermione mumbled incoherent words into Mrs. Weasley's robes, and returned the hug awkwardly. When she was released, she heard a pair of feet thundering down the stairs.

"Hermione!" She turned and saw a red comet shoot at her, and she almost got knocked off her feet as Ron embraced her tightly. She squeezed him back quickly and pulled away, looking up at him. She stepped away, shocked when she noticed his hair.

"Ron..." she said softly. Ron looked at her in a confused manner for a couple seconds, but laughed when he realized what she was talking about. His face turned red.

"You don't like it?" he said, patting his hair worriedly.

"It looks like Bill's." She said softly. Ron nodded solemnly and placed an arm over her shoulders. Ginny came out of the living room and smiled at her.

Hermione's lips turned upward in a forced smile, "Did you get home alright, Gin?" She asked, pulling away from Ron.

"Yeah," Ginny glanced over at her mother before moving closer to Hermione and whispering, "Mum was as angry as a howler when I wasn't back by curfew though." Hermione looked at her in astonishment and Ginny fought to hold back a giggle.

"How are all your studies going?" Ron suddenly asked.

Hermione glanced at him and then Ginny. "Well, I finally decided what I'm going to major in." She stood looking at them in a dazed manor.

Finally Ron opened his mouth, "Well?"

"Well what?"

"What have you decided?" Ron said, with an audible sigh.

Hermione looked at him in surprise, "Oh! I'm majoring in potions."

Ron's mouth fell open, and Ginny looked between the two, then started laughing.

"Look at his face!" She shrieked, her eyes watering.

Ron continued to stare at Hermione. Finally she sighed, "What is it Ron?"

He closed his mouth, and opened it again, but no words came out. Finally, he croaked out, "Potions?"

Hermione's gaze never left his as she spoke, "Yes Ron, potions. You don't approve?" 'oh, I forgot, I don't care.' the voice in her head announced.

He shook his head, "How could anyone like potions after Snape?"

Hermione gave an exasperated sigh, "Ron, just because you and Harry disliked Snape," Ginny coughed, and Hermione rephrased, "just because you dislike Snape doesn't mean that the rest of us do. He led us to Voldemort Ron. He risked his life to save Harry's, he was a double spy, and he's brilliant." Ron stared at her as if she were mad.

"You're off your rocker to think that that greasy git was brilliant. Hermione, what's wrong with you?" She scowled at Ron and she left him to let it sink in, Ginny following soon after.

When they had reached the living room, Hermione turned to Ginny, "Where's the meeting being held?"

"Grimmauld Place." Ginny said, examining a fingernail. Hermione gave an inward moan, and plopped ungracefully down on the plaid couch. She stayed there till Mr. Weasley found her and explained that they needed to travel by Floo powder. Hermione let him ramble on, already having heard the speech multiple times before. When he extended his hand to help her up, she took it and let him pull her up.

Standing in front of the fire, she took a pinch of the powder and threw it in, turning the tangerine flames emerald. "Twelve Grimmauld Place," she said clearly, stepping into the fire. As she stepped out into Harry's living room, her heart started pounding wildly. Standing not twenty feet away, with his back to her was a man in black robes. Moving slowly forward, she approached him tentatively, but five feet away she heard the fire whoosh and Ginny call to her. The man in front of her turned around and her breath caught in her throat.

"Yes Miss Granger?" he said with a sneer.

"P..p..professor?" she stuttered, taken by surprise. "I'm sorry sir; I didn't realize it was you," she continued truthfully.

The man smirked at her again, "Of course, just a little misunderstanding on your part. I would have thought you could come up with a better excuse than that, Miss Granger."

Ron appeared in the fire, and gingerly stepped out. Spotting Hermione, he rushed over to her. "Excuse us, Professor Snape. I need to talk to Hermione for a moment." As her pulled her away Hermione yanked her arm out of his grasp and looked at him.

"You needed to speak to me?" she asked, her eyes glinting.

"Yeah," Ron said, standing straighter, "just because you're taking potions at the university does not mean that you have to go around conversing with him." he said exasperated, and adding as an afterthought, "the dirty bat."

Hermione sighed looking at Ron and was about to snap at him when she heard, "Hermione!" She turned to see Harry walking towards her, smiling deeply.

"Harry." She exclaimed and gripped him tightly when he embraced her, "how are you?" Harry pulled away and looked at her, his face revealing that he saw something he didn't like. Hermione pulled away.

"We can catch up later Harry," she said moving away from him.

"Is every one here?" he asked, looking around. Hermione noticed the room was close to being filled. Around her she saw the Weasleys, Harry, Snape, Tonks, and others, but her eyes stopped on a figure in the corner of the room. He had a lean body and pale blonde hair falling past his shoulders. Hermione gasped softly when she realized who it was.

Before she could say anything, Harry started speaking, "Some of you have heard that this is a meeting, others a party. It matters not to me, for it is a party, as well as a meeting. We are here to restore old friendships and to make new ones." The members of the Order murmured, some in agreement, others in confusion.

"Our newest member has joined only today, although he has been working silently with us all along." Harry motioned towards the corner, holding out his hand. The young man stepped forward and grasped Harry's hand in his own. Ron started to cry out in outrage, but Ginny kicked him in the shins and he shut up.

"Draco Malfoy." Snape's cool drawl cut through the silence like a knife.