Hermione Granger was upset. Angry. Emotionally Overwrought. Seething, yes,
that's a good description of what she was. Her hands were clenched at her
side, and her usually smiling cinnamon eyes were narrowed with a righteous
anger. She glared dangerously around the large white room, the air about
her crackling with fury. Why, you may ask yourself, is Hermione so mad?
You would be too, if you were dead.
Yes, dead. As in not living anymore. Gone, finito, finished, never to breathe again. That sort of thing. Anyway, we must get back to our story.
"What the HELL do you MEAN!?" Her voice shook with emotion.
"I mean, Miss Granger, that you are no longer among the living."
"Don't feed me that line of BULL! I'm standing here, as are you! I cannot be DEAD! It's not humanly possible!" Hermione ranted on indignantly, to the cowering woman in front of her. "I AM NOT DEAD!!!"
"I assure you, Miss Granger, that you are, indeed, dead. Remember pushing Messrs Potter and Weasley out of the way of the last curse? Well, that was your undoing."
"NO! This isn't happening, this IS NOT happening. It's just a dream." Hermione retreated a little away from the woman, who quirked an eyebrow at her. "I'm in a coma. I'm lying in the Hospital Wing, in a coma, so I'm dreaming. I saw While You Were Sleeping! I know that you dream while you're in a coma. My body is having a reaction to this, that's all. I AM NOT DEAD!"
"But-"
"NO, shut UP, you horrid excuse for a-"
"MISS GRANGER! Calm yourself!" The woman drew herself up to her full height. "YOU ARE DEAD! End of story. Now, if you will please step this way."
Hermione stared at the woman, her jaw dropped in amazement. "But-" A flash of something reeled across her memory, causing her to stagger.
"HERMIONE!" Harry yelled, his voice strained with grief as the girl in
question dove in front of him, knocking him neatly out of the way of
the killing curse meant for him alone. Ron fell sideways, as
Hermione's body landed on him with a thud. The two boys looked at
their friend with a mixture of disbelief and anger.
"Why?" Harry asked quietly, brushing a lock of her chestnut hair from
her face. "Why did you do that?"
She smiled softly, her body growing colder. "Because. . . Harry
Potter, Ronald Weasley, I could not survive if something were to
happen to you two."
"But-"
"No time for regrets." She continued to smile, even as the light of
life faded from her cinnamon eyes.
The woman looked at her, her large blue eyes soft and understanding. "Memories are painful, even if they are of a happy death. Here. . . come with me, child. We have many things to attend. We need your help, now more than ever before."
Hermione looked at the woman, confusion and pain written across her face. "I'm dead, how can I help anyone?"
"You may be dead, but you're not impotent, my dear. All Witches and Wizards serve a purpose in the afterlife. It's the only way to keep the world from going insane. See, I assume you've heard of Guardian Angels, am I correct?"
Hermione nodded, "But what has that to do with me?"
"Well, Miss Granger, that IS what dead Witches and Wizards are, until they acclimatize and no longer feel the need to be in contact with the living world. Merlin still IS a Guardian. He feels he can do so much good that way. You may know his charge, you did save his life."
"Harry?!"
"No. . . sorry to disappoint. Ronald Weasley is Merlin's charge. That's why the boy has never suffered terribly so, and manages to scrape by in all the situations. Explosive, that one."
"Merlin, THE Merlin, is RON'S Guardian Angel?!" Hermione stood there, mouth agape. "But-" *Wow * She thought, her eyes widening, *Well, now he can't complain to Harry about being second best. His Guardian Angel is MERLIN! *
"Well, it seems that Merlin has an affinity for the boy's family, seeing as they ARE his descendents. Merlin told me that he sees a lot of himself in the boy. Especially his loyalty to his friends, though, yours was much stronger."
"That's hard to believe. What about Harry though?" Something about the woman was familiar to Hermione. It was disconcerting and comforting at the same time.
"Mister Potter? Well, he has an entourage on standby, one Angel isn't enough for that boy. I tell you, the Fates have it out for him! Honestly! The kid is a walking time bomb."
Hermione laughed, if it was a little hysterical, the woman pretended not to notice, opting instead to see the laughter as a good sign. "So, what about me? Who WAS my Guardian Angel?"
"Me, of course. I'm not the greeting party, y'know." The woman looked affronted.
"Wow, so thanks, I guess, for helping me out." Hermione replied, then narrowed her eyes. Where had she SEEN this woman before. "Is that why you're so familiar?"
"You mean you don't recognize me? And after all I'd done for the Wizarding world! Of all the ungrateful. . .I'm Morgana."
"The Morgana?"
"Yes THE Morgana. Don't let history fool you. Trust me, Mordred didn't turn out how I'd planned. I'm not a psycho, I promise. I was just highly dedicated to the work I was doing."
Hermione grinned, "That's why you're so familiar. You were part of my favorite Myths collection, but they certainly didn't describe you as blonde."
"Oh, this. It's just the color of the week. I get tired of all the darkness and such. I'm not really the doom and gloom type. Though, they way those muggles would recognize me!"
"What about the founders."
"Hermione, I do believe we have things to do. I have to set you up an account, and introduce you to your new charge. Now, the only bad thing about this is that no one can see you, excepting your charge, should you decide to appear to him or her. Other than that, it's fine."
"Do I get wings?!"
"No." When Hermione's face fell, Morgana laughed. "Look, you do get something better." She pulled out a three little stones.
"That's better than wings?"
"Yep, see." Morgana stacked the stones atop each other, and the air began to whistle with power. The stones, naturally blue in color, turned a vivid golden red.
"Gryffindor Colors!" Hermione exclaimed as she oohed and awed over the stones.
"Well yes, Godric Gryffindor created these beauties, thus negating the need for the wings, and doing us all a HUGE favor. You have no clue how hard it is to get stains out of your feathers."
Hermione laughed, "So, what exactly do the stones do?"
"All you have to do is state your destination, or the name or your charge, and you appear there, or at their side."
"Wow, that is SO cool!"
"Curb your enthusiasm. Now, if you will follow me. . . please." Morgana indicated a door that appeared in the room.
"Uh, sure. Is this heaven, by the way?"
"No, this is. . . hell."
"What?!" Hermione goggled, her knees growing weak, "But-"
Morgana laughed merrily. "Sorry," She wiped tears from her eyes. "Some afterlife humor."
"That wasn't funny." Hermione stated, crossing her arms.
"This is a branch of heaven, not the real thing just yet. You see, being a Guardian Angel is a full time job. Oh, and you get really sweet powers to go with it."
"Hmmm. . .I have a question, do you ever get more than one charge?"
"Indubitably, if you are such as I. See, while you were my charge, there was another, also. A colonialist, I do believe. An American girl, about your age. She too, died. But she died of. . . a rare illness. Very sad. Not too long before you, too. You'll meet her. Her name is Elizabeth, she's just settling into the Guardianship, so it will be nice for you two. I believe you are going to be sharing a dorm-"
"Angels sleep?"
"No, but they do like to rest and restore their Light."
"So, I take it you all don't have the bunny?"
"What are you talking about?" Morgana eyed the girl as if she had gone mad. Hermione smirked.
"Sorry, earth humor. Still stuck in that mode, I guess." *The bunny * She snorted, holding back her giggles. *Energizer Batteries, they keep going, and going, and going, and going- *
"Hermione!"
"Yes?" Hermione was shaken out of her thoughts.
"I said, if you will wait here, I will retrieve the files, so you may see who your charge is."
"Okay, but it's not like I have forever." Hermione cringed at the pun, *I've hung out with the Twins wa-a-ay too long! * A twinge of sadness spread over her. *I'll never get to hang out with them again! *
After what seemed like hours, Morgana returned, a smirk on her face. This girl was going to be in for a nasty shock.
"Well, it seems one of our Angels up and retired in the middle of his duty, so you, my dear, will be taking up the slack." She handed Hermione a thick manila folder, with a name blazoned across it in bold black.
Hermione nearly dropped the stack, her heart plummeting and her stomach clenching. "NO WAY. I'm OUT, I REFUSE."
"Funny thing about first positions. You can't refuse them."
Hermione shook her head, her eyes narrowing. "I WILL NOT!" She dropped the folder as if it had bitten her. "I REFUSE!" She hissed, and stalked away.
The folder landed on the floor with a soft thud, light catching the black print. Morgana allowed her eyes to roam the front of it again, as she stifled a chuckle. *Poor Girl, I would have never saddled her with that snarky bastard. Severus Snape, your life is about to become a living hell! *
A/N: Don't forget to RR. I hope you like it. To all my other fans, I'm sorry about Double Trouble, I hit a snag, but I WILL have the next chapter up TOMORROW!
Love,
~Me~
You would be too, if you were dead.
Yes, dead. As in not living anymore. Gone, finito, finished, never to breathe again. That sort of thing. Anyway, we must get back to our story.
"What the HELL do you MEAN!?" Her voice shook with emotion.
"I mean, Miss Granger, that you are no longer among the living."
"Don't feed me that line of BULL! I'm standing here, as are you! I cannot be DEAD! It's not humanly possible!" Hermione ranted on indignantly, to the cowering woman in front of her. "I AM NOT DEAD!!!"
"I assure you, Miss Granger, that you are, indeed, dead. Remember pushing Messrs Potter and Weasley out of the way of the last curse? Well, that was your undoing."
"NO! This isn't happening, this IS NOT happening. It's just a dream." Hermione retreated a little away from the woman, who quirked an eyebrow at her. "I'm in a coma. I'm lying in the Hospital Wing, in a coma, so I'm dreaming. I saw While You Were Sleeping! I know that you dream while you're in a coma. My body is having a reaction to this, that's all. I AM NOT DEAD!"
"But-"
"NO, shut UP, you horrid excuse for a-"
"MISS GRANGER! Calm yourself!" The woman drew herself up to her full height. "YOU ARE DEAD! End of story. Now, if you will please step this way."
Hermione stared at the woman, her jaw dropped in amazement. "But-" A flash of something reeled across her memory, causing her to stagger.
"HERMIONE!" Harry yelled, his voice strained with grief as the girl in
question dove in front of him, knocking him neatly out of the way of
the killing curse meant for him alone. Ron fell sideways, as
Hermione's body landed on him with a thud. The two boys looked at
their friend with a mixture of disbelief and anger.
"Why?" Harry asked quietly, brushing a lock of her chestnut hair from
her face. "Why did you do that?"
She smiled softly, her body growing colder. "Because. . . Harry
Potter, Ronald Weasley, I could not survive if something were to
happen to you two."
"But-"
"No time for regrets." She continued to smile, even as the light of
life faded from her cinnamon eyes.
The woman looked at her, her large blue eyes soft and understanding. "Memories are painful, even if they are of a happy death. Here. . . come with me, child. We have many things to attend. We need your help, now more than ever before."
Hermione looked at the woman, confusion and pain written across her face. "I'm dead, how can I help anyone?"
"You may be dead, but you're not impotent, my dear. All Witches and Wizards serve a purpose in the afterlife. It's the only way to keep the world from going insane. See, I assume you've heard of Guardian Angels, am I correct?"
Hermione nodded, "But what has that to do with me?"
"Well, Miss Granger, that IS what dead Witches and Wizards are, until they acclimatize and no longer feel the need to be in contact with the living world. Merlin still IS a Guardian. He feels he can do so much good that way. You may know his charge, you did save his life."
"Harry?!"
"No. . . sorry to disappoint. Ronald Weasley is Merlin's charge. That's why the boy has never suffered terribly so, and manages to scrape by in all the situations. Explosive, that one."
"Merlin, THE Merlin, is RON'S Guardian Angel?!" Hermione stood there, mouth agape. "But-" *Wow * She thought, her eyes widening, *Well, now he can't complain to Harry about being second best. His Guardian Angel is MERLIN! *
"Well, it seems that Merlin has an affinity for the boy's family, seeing as they ARE his descendents. Merlin told me that he sees a lot of himself in the boy. Especially his loyalty to his friends, though, yours was much stronger."
"That's hard to believe. What about Harry though?" Something about the woman was familiar to Hermione. It was disconcerting and comforting at the same time.
"Mister Potter? Well, he has an entourage on standby, one Angel isn't enough for that boy. I tell you, the Fates have it out for him! Honestly! The kid is a walking time bomb."
Hermione laughed, if it was a little hysterical, the woman pretended not to notice, opting instead to see the laughter as a good sign. "So, what about me? Who WAS my Guardian Angel?"
"Me, of course. I'm not the greeting party, y'know." The woman looked affronted.
"Wow, so thanks, I guess, for helping me out." Hermione replied, then narrowed her eyes. Where had she SEEN this woman before. "Is that why you're so familiar?"
"You mean you don't recognize me? And after all I'd done for the Wizarding world! Of all the ungrateful. . .I'm Morgana."
"The Morgana?"
"Yes THE Morgana. Don't let history fool you. Trust me, Mordred didn't turn out how I'd planned. I'm not a psycho, I promise. I was just highly dedicated to the work I was doing."
Hermione grinned, "That's why you're so familiar. You were part of my favorite Myths collection, but they certainly didn't describe you as blonde."
"Oh, this. It's just the color of the week. I get tired of all the darkness and such. I'm not really the doom and gloom type. Though, they way those muggles would recognize me!"
"What about the founders."
"Hermione, I do believe we have things to do. I have to set you up an account, and introduce you to your new charge. Now, the only bad thing about this is that no one can see you, excepting your charge, should you decide to appear to him or her. Other than that, it's fine."
"Do I get wings?!"
"No." When Hermione's face fell, Morgana laughed. "Look, you do get something better." She pulled out a three little stones.
"That's better than wings?"
"Yep, see." Morgana stacked the stones atop each other, and the air began to whistle with power. The stones, naturally blue in color, turned a vivid golden red.
"Gryffindor Colors!" Hermione exclaimed as she oohed and awed over the stones.
"Well yes, Godric Gryffindor created these beauties, thus negating the need for the wings, and doing us all a HUGE favor. You have no clue how hard it is to get stains out of your feathers."
Hermione laughed, "So, what exactly do the stones do?"
"All you have to do is state your destination, or the name or your charge, and you appear there, or at their side."
"Wow, that is SO cool!"
"Curb your enthusiasm. Now, if you will follow me. . . please." Morgana indicated a door that appeared in the room.
"Uh, sure. Is this heaven, by the way?"
"No, this is. . . hell."
"What?!" Hermione goggled, her knees growing weak, "But-"
Morgana laughed merrily. "Sorry," She wiped tears from her eyes. "Some afterlife humor."
"That wasn't funny." Hermione stated, crossing her arms.
"This is a branch of heaven, not the real thing just yet. You see, being a Guardian Angel is a full time job. Oh, and you get really sweet powers to go with it."
"Hmmm. . .I have a question, do you ever get more than one charge?"
"Indubitably, if you are such as I. See, while you were my charge, there was another, also. A colonialist, I do believe. An American girl, about your age. She too, died. But she died of. . . a rare illness. Very sad. Not too long before you, too. You'll meet her. Her name is Elizabeth, she's just settling into the Guardianship, so it will be nice for you two. I believe you are going to be sharing a dorm-"
"Angels sleep?"
"No, but they do like to rest and restore their Light."
"So, I take it you all don't have the bunny?"
"What are you talking about?" Morgana eyed the girl as if she had gone mad. Hermione smirked.
"Sorry, earth humor. Still stuck in that mode, I guess." *The bunny * She snorted, holding back her giggles. *Energizer Batteries, they keep going, and going, and going, and going- *
"Hermione!"
"Yes?" Hermione was shaken out of her thoughts.
"I said, if you will wait here, I will retrieve the files, so you may see who your charge is."
"Okay, but it's not like I have forever." Hermione cringed at the pun, *I've hung out with the Twins wa-a-ay too long! * A twinge of sadness spread over her. *I'll never get to hang out with them again! *
After what seemed like hours, Morgana returned, a smirk on her face. This girl was going to be in for a nasty shock.
"Well, it seems one of our Angels up and retired in the middle of his duty, so you, my dear, will be taking up the slack." She handed Hermione a thick manila folder, with a name blazoned across it in bold black.
Hermione nearly dropped the stack, her heart plummeting and her stomach clenching. "NO WAY. I'm OUT, I REFUSE."
"Funny thing about first positions. You can't refuse them."
Hermione shook her head, her eyes narrowing. "I WILL NOT!" She dropped the folder as if it had bitten her. "I REFUSE!" She hissed, and stalked away.
The folder landed on the floor with a soft thud, light catching the black print. Morgana allowed her eyes to roam the front of it again, as she stifled a chuckle. *Poor Girl, I would have never saddled her with that snarky bastard. Severus Snape, your life is about to become a living hell! *
A/N: Don't forget to RR. I hope you like it. To all my other fans, I'm sorry about Double Trouble, I hit a snag, but I WILL have the next chapter up TOMORROW!
Love,
~Me~