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The Apprentice	By : Nerys Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Hermione/Voldemort Views: 62961 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 8
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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The Apprentice

Chapter Seventeen

The world swirled. It swirled. Hermione felt herself falling - falling long, deep, faster and faster into that dark well which gained no light, ever. It crowded her, consumed her, overtook her, until everything was black and all was silent.

All was silent, dead silent.

‘Will you look at this mess?’ A shrill voice chimed in. ‘Some people think they can fall from the sky wherever they feel like it, and it won’t matter to anyone where they land. EH! You, lying in my House there!’ A stick poked her in the ribs. ‘Leave, unless you belong, this is my spot.’

Hermione opened her eyes. A huge badger glared down at her, poking her in the ribs again with the stick it was holding. ‘Now, what are you waiting for? Can I get an answer already?’

‘I think I fell again,’ she whispered, frowning. What had happened to her now? She’d been fucking Lord Voldemort, and then, everything had started swirling; she had fallen - fallen long and hard. She remembered that much.

‘And…?’ the badger said, tapping its foot impatiently.

‘Am I dead?’

‘Of course not, why should one die merely from falling?’

‘You just said I fell from the sky.’

‘So?’ the badger shrugged.

Hermione glared at the badger. ‘Well, that’s high.’

‘High or not, you’ve landed on my House. I don’t take dead people. Gotta have some standards,’ the badger grumbled.

‘You are just as bad as him.’

‘Who?’

She frowned. ‘I don’t know.’

‘Typical, typical,’ the badger said, waving its fist in the air agitated. ‘Leave it up to them to dump their trash on my front-door; like I have nothing better to do than take their leftovers.’

‘I am not trash,’ Hermione said, glaring. She sat up. Surprisingly, she didn’t seem to have any injuries, even though she had landed in a pile of hard wooden branches. Water flowed on either side of the dam she sat on. She looked up at the huge badger. ‘Can you help me?’

‘With what?’

‘Can you tell me where I am?’

‘Yes.’

‘Which is…?’ Hermione asked, urging the badger on with her hands.

‘On top of my House,’ it said.

Hermione groaned.

‘Everyone has their place,’ an eagle said, flapping its wings as it landed on the shore.

‘Can you tell me where mine is?’ asked Hermione, looking from the newly arrived eagle to the impatient badger.

‘She landed in yours,’ the eagle said to the badger.

‘She came from the sky,’ the badger retorted to the eagle.

‘True,’ the eagle said, looking at Hermione with a sigh. ‘I suppose she could fit, but she doesn’t seem able to fly.’ The eagle walked around Hermione, plucking at the clothes on her back. ‘See, no wings at all. I think she’s yours,’ the eagle stated, nodding its head to the badger in affirmation of that statement.

The badger examined Hermione thoroughly, walking around her and looking her up and down with intense scrutiny. ‘This could be your place,’ it finally decided, grudgingly.

‘No, I don’t think it is,’ Hermione replied doubtfully.

‘If it isn’t, you need to leave,’ the badger said, irritated.

‘But where do I go?’

‘Would answering that get you off of my roof?’ the badger asked.

‘Maybe,’ Hermione responded crafty.

‘Move then,’ it said.

‘Do we have a deal?’

‘Yeah, yeah, now shoo - shoo.’

Hermione moved.

The badger sighed, pulled a stack of wood from his backpack and began making repairs. ‘Home sweet home,’ it muttered when it was ready.

Hermione folded her arms over each other and waited. ‘Well?’ she finally demanded.

The badger looked up from the teapot it had pulled out of the branches.

‘You did promise,’ the eagle reminded.

‘Guess I did,’ the badger conceded. ‘You look like a forest-girl to me.’

‘Thanks,’ Hermione said, relieved she knew where to go.

‘You’re welcome.’

She walked to the trees, accompanied by the waggling eagle. ‘Do you belong in the forest, too?’ she asked.

‘No, I belong in the sky.’

‘Oh,’ Hermione said, disappointed. She liked the eagle.

‘I fly over the forest. It’s a kind of belonging, so you could come with me; it’s your choice,’ the eagle said, sounding hopefully.

Hermione shivered, remembering her fear of heights. ‘No thank you. I prefer solid ground.’

‘It’s your choice,’ the eagle repeated, spreading its wings. ‘Look for the lions and avoid the snakes!’

‘Why?’ shouted Hermione.

‘Snakes are tricky!’ the eagle replied, disappearing into the clouds. ‘They never give you a straightforward reply.’

‘Yeah, because everyone else here does,’ Hermione grumbled, moving into the forest.

She walked a long time without seeing anything or anyone of interest. Finally, she stopped in a clearing and decided to rest on a large fallen tree trunk at the rim of it.

‘Well, hello there,’ a voice hissed smoothly. A long body uncoiled from a branch above her, until a pair of yellow eyes were on eyelevel with hers. ‘What do we have here?’

A forked tongue rapidly touched her nose. Shocked by the sudden move, Hermione backed away and tumbled of the trunk, her legs sticking in the air.

‘Mmmm, not very graceful and a too muddy smell (though that could be badger’s fault – its odour sticks around long); but I do taste deviousness, definitely cunning enough, oh … very ambitious, very ambitious indeed,’ the snake hissed, rocking back and forth pleased.

Hermione scrambled to her feet, covered in leaves and twigs. She attempted to brush of her clothes, but it only ruined them more. The snake laughed exuberantly, swinging on the tree. ‘You really are a lady, aren’t you?’

Hermione’s head snapped up. ‘Do you want me to tie you to that branch?’ she said, threateningly.

The snake’s head backed away, shocked. Its body stilled instantaneously. ‘You dare to threaten me, little girl?’ it hissed quietly, showing of its fangs.

‘Is that supposed to be intimidating?’

‘Ugh, another brave one,’ the snake snarled, disgusted. ‘I despise lions. Do move along.’

It curled its long body back up the tree immediately.

‘Wait a second,’ Hermione said, looking upward. ‘Where am I supposed to go?’

The snake ignored her.

‘Where can I find the lion?’ she asked again, remembering the eagle’s warning about tricky snakes.

Loud growls sounded through the woods and thundering footsteps closed in on her location.

‘Oh great, now it comes here. Why couldn’t you just move along as you were supposed to?’ the snake hissed, annoyed.

‘Snake!’ a voice boomed before the bushes twisted and a huge hairy body jumped through. ‘Snake,’ the lion said, looking around the grounds searchingly. ‘We have a problem.’

‘You always have problems,’ the snake hissed from above.

‘Eagle is attacking,’ the lion said, looking up at the snake.

Shocked, the snake dropped from the tree. ‘Move,’ it said to Hermione.

Hermione jumped to the side and the snake slithered underneath the huge trunk. ‘Thanks for the warning,’ the snake spoke in a hollow echo that called around them.

‘Eh, I need your help,’ the lion said furiously.

‘Ask the girl, she is like you.’

‘Really?’ the lion asked, turning its huge head to Hermione hopefully. ‘You’d help me in battle?’

Hermione frowned. ‘Maybe; why is there a battle?’

‘There always is with eagle, but in battle we prove our worth.’

The snake snorted disparaging underneath the trunk.

‘So you’ll come with me, courageous little one?’

‘More like brainless,’ the snake corrected, sniggering.

‘I didn’t ask your opinion, snake,’ the lion growled. ‘Bravery is the highest quality to strive at.’

‘But why is there a battle?’ Hermione inquired, confused. ‘The eagle seemed nice.’

‘NICE!’ the lion roared.

‘Oh now you did it,’ the snake said underneath its breath.

‘Nice! You cannot be one of mine, calling eagles nice. HAH!’ The lion stormed away.

Hermione blinked, dumbfounded. ‘What did I say wrong?’

The snake’s head popped back up. It looked at her through the leaves surrounding the large tree trunk. ‘You said eagles are nice,’ it said, as if that explained it all.

‘So?’ Hermione said, throwing her hands to the air.

‘Saying eagle is nice, is like saying badger is lazy.’

‘Eagle was nice to me.’

‘Really?’ the snake’s head moved up and down, investigating her with interest. ‘Oh I see. Yes, yes, yes, eagle would like that. I’d avoid eagle if I were you. It’s not good to be near eagle with those qualities. Yes, yes, yes, well, if lion won’t have you, I suppose there is room here to hide. It’s much better for one’s health to avoid eagle altogether. Do come along.’ It slithered back under the trunk fully.

She so was not crawling under there. Did it think she was mental? She’d never get out on time if it attacked her. ‘Eagle said snakes are tricky,’ Hermione said, smirking, folding her arms over each other.

She was not disappointed. It didn’t wait for her to come under the trunk. The snake swirled out from under the tree, halting a few inches in front of her face. ‘Eagle said, eagle said,’ it repeated mockingly, waving its body back and forth. ‘Do you take everything eagles say at face value?’

‘You appear tricky enough to me,’ Hermione retorted. ‘And eagle seemed wise.’

‘Wise? Well, that only shows how much you know. Don’t they teach you kids anything anymore? Wise,’ the snake snarled and shook his head. ‘The standards have surely dropped rapidly since I left.’

‘Why don’t you just get along with each other?’ asked Hermione, confused.

‘Now that’s a badger statement if ever I heard any,’ the snake hissed, disapprovingly. ‘Did you land here head first? Me, getting along with eagles and lions, ha!’

It slithered away. A load roaring sounded in the distance. Something clashed violently. The air shook with thunder; the ground trembled. Snake looked back at her haughtily. ‘Yes, let’s all get along,’ it sneered, laughing. ‘Don’t forget to take wood with you on your way back,’ the snake added sarcastically, and crept back under the trunk. ‘Badger hates idleness. Friends forever, pfffttt… maniacs, the lot of them, maniacs and morons. I like my quiet little place. Who needs friends?’

Dazed, Hermione walked back. Badger had said she belonged in the forest. But snake and lion seemed to disagree. And eagle liked the sky; she hated heights, really hated heights. Before she knew it, she was back where she started.

‘What, you again?’ badger asked, annoyed.

‘Snake said I should go back.’

‘Where is your wood?’

‘Uh, wood? Oh, I forgot. Why are you all fighti-’

‘YOU FORGOT!’ badger blew up in her face. ‘Laziness, laziness, I can’t have lazy people.’

‘I am not lazy,’ Hermione objected. ‘I work hard. I just-just forgot, because of all the fighting and…’

But badger had turned away from her and was packing its bag, mumbling aggravated. ‘I always have to do everything myself. Don’t they know that my dam is keeping the forest alive? The least they could do is let them bring wood, but nooooo… badger will solve it. Badger will do all the work. Badger will pick up all the slack they are too lazy to accomplish. Well, badger is sick of them. All of them. Perhaps badger will let the dam break. Yes, that sounds nice. No more lions and snakes around. No more people falling from the sky. No more disturbances from eagle. Just badger and her tea.’ It tossed in its teapot and cup last, swung its backpack around, and pushed Hermione to the side. ‘You have no business here. Go home, little girl.’

It paced away, halted in the centre of the grass field, threw a cloth around and sat down to have tea. Hermione just stood there, not knowing what to do anymore. Feathers rustled behind her and a small cough sounded. Hermione turned around and saw eagle again. It tilted its head and held out its paw. ‘You may not have wings, but I can carry you,’ the eagle offered.

‘Why did you attack lion?’

The eagle sighed. ‘It’s important for lion to have a fight every now and then. Surely, you know that?’

‘No,’ Hermione said, disagreeing firmly.

‘Well, I’ll show you, just take my paw, and I’ll show you all the knowledge of the world. You have no idea what you are missing. Everything is so clear when you are up there.’ The eagle pointed its wing to the sky, while wiggling its paw to Hermione.

Hermione stared at the offered paw and took a step back. Heights were still not her favourite thing. Besides… ‘How can I trust any of you if you’re all fighting?’

‘Oh we are not fighting, silly. We have disagreements, but we are not fighting. Now, take my paw.’

Hermione took another step back.

‘TAKE MY PAW!’ eagle yelled furiously.

Hermione ran. Eagle flew up and chased her. Claws outstretched, it dove to her. Hermione ducked and covered her head with her arms. A clash sounded above her, followed by loud growling and screeching. Hermione looked up and saw eagle and lion rolling across the grass, fighting with their beak, paws, and mouth. Feathers and fur flew around violently, while badger sipped her tea calmly.

‘Forgot your wood, didn’t you?’ snake hissed angrily, dumping a pile right behind her. ‘I told you to bring wood, but do they ever listen to me? NO! You’d think they know not to upset badger. You’d think they realise the importance of badger’s work. You’d think they’d do everything to prevent a badger tea-brake; but nooooo… let’s have snake solve everything. Snake can fix all their stupidity.’ It began sorting the wood and flicked it to the dam with an irritated wave of its tail.

Absolutely flabbergasted, Hermione hit her head on the ground. She was going mental for sure.

‘Stupid badger and her irresponsible tea-brakes,’ snake muttered. ‘Next time they send us another idiot who doesn’t know their path, lion can do the work. I am done playing mule over and over again, because of clueless individuals. I am a snake; I know my task. It doesn’t involve building dams.’

‘I am not clueless; you lot are crazy,’ Hermione said, scrambling to her feet exasperated, wanting to pull her hair out by its roots.

Snake swirled away from its wood-throwing activities. ‘We are in your head, girlie. Perhaps it is the only place we are crazy,’ snake hissed, advancing upon her threateningly.

Hermione stepped back fearfully.

‘Think you can outrun snake?’ it asked, tilting its head mockingly.

Hermione tried, but it flung to her throat and bit down. ‘Don’t come back until you learn.’

‘Don’t come back until you learn. Don’t come back until you learn. Don’t come back until you learn,’ it echoed inside her head, while she tossed and turned in bed; until she crash-landed on the floor and woke, severely distraught and totally disoriented.

‘If you’re done fighting the inevitable, join me in the same room as before; you need the practise,’ Lord Voldemort said coldly, tossing the necklace to her and walking out the bedroom without another word.

Hermione swallowed and sat up, leaning against the bed. She ran the necklace through her fingers, tilted her head back, closed her eyes and sighed. This was all too confusing to her. Nothing made sense anymore. She needed the world to make sense, to be logical; but she, apparently, was stuck in crazy hell. Yes, that was where she was, crazy hell.

And the worst thing was, there seemed to be no end in sight.

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The Apprentice