Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Foreword: I wanted to try a genre I have never been done before and this came out.

She Who Holds the Strings

by Romantic Silence

Well below the Burrow was the basement. It wasn't ventured into often as the only member of the Weasley family that had business in there was Molly, the matriarch of the household. It was there that the mother of several war heroes transformed what was once storage space for a myriad of fancy knick-knacks and family heirlooms was now a fully-working potions laboratory where she brewed her batches of various liquids. After all, in a family that had been once full with mostly males, there was bound to be various injuries occurring throughout the years. And having once been a Potions Mistress herself, Molly also had a fondness like all those of her craft to enjoy the fine art of creating substances through various techniques and ingredients.

Molly's ears twitched when she heard the cellar door's rusty hinges groaned as it opened. The creaking sounds made by the stairwell down to her sanctum told the tell-tale signs of someone approaching.

"Molly? Are you down here?" Called out the voice of Hermione Granger, the girl whom she believed would be her future daughter-in-law.

Smiling broadly to herself, Molly answered Hermione's call, "Yes I am dear. Feel free to come down."

The noise of the door closing shut echoed downward along with more footsteps coming closer. The dim light that hung over the ceiling grew brighter with the wave of Molly's wand as Hermione took the last step down from the stairs. The Weasley matriarch eyed Hermione with a critical gaze, mentally chastising the young witch for her choice of attire. Her clothes were hardly befitting a witch. Her rolled up, plaid shirt and simple jean outfit was hardly appropriate for a woman; pants were for men!

Hermione moved in closer, taking in the sigh of various cauldrons with glowing liquids still within them. Atop of the table area where Molly was brewing were various ledges that held quite a number of vials of different potions, some of which were familiar and some that were not to Hermione. As she moved to the side of the elderly witch sitting on a stool stirring a cauldron of some concoction, Hermione took note of a particular flask nearby. She turned her attention back to Molly and settled leaning against the counter, "What are you brewing?"

"Oh, just a batch of Hangover Potions Hermione." Molly replied cheerfully, "I have a good feeling tonight about Ginny's and Harry's date. You could say that I'm anticipating a party we are to throw soon."

Hermione chuckled, "And I assume you need a helping hand to create such a copious amount of that particular remedy?"

"You got me there dear. Would you mind?"

"Of course not Molly." Hermione answered smiling, turning her attention to already prepared pre-brew batch near the other end of the table that Molly had gestured towards. The brunette began the process of creating the simple remedy, its only difficulty being the precise stirring it needed to generate the correct effect. However, Hermione knew that she could easily have done this certain potion recipe in her sleep. The simplicity of the design was nothing compared to the intricate potion making Severus Snape had tasked them to perform during her time in Hogwarts.

As the two witches busied themselves to the easy task, silence was cast over them. For Molly, this was curious as she had seen Hermione to be a rather talkative girl when amongst her friends. Silly me, I am her future mother-in-law, she could very well be nervous. Molly concluded, chuckling embarrassingly within her mind. Not looking away from her work, she casually asked, "How are you and Ronald? Are the two going along well? It has been two years after all."

"Swell, I suppose." Hermione answered truthfully, "Nothing has changed much. It appears we have reached a dead end to our relationship."

"Now dear, don't be silly. You two are wonderful for one another. I'm sure Ron will pop the question sooner or later."

Hermione laughed, mirthlessly at that, but the chilly feel it adopted was lost on the older woman, "You would think that wouldn't you? I suppose it's no surprise."

Molly knitted her brows together, unable to comprehend what Hermione was implying. She turned to the brunette who seemed to have anticipated her action and was now smiling tranquilly at her. Her arm was propped up on the counter as Hermione rested her cheek on her palm. Molly's kindly smile wavered slightly, feeling a bit of discomfort, "What do you mean by that dear?"

"Oh nothing." Hermione waved her hand dismissively and returned her attention back onto her cauldron, "I was just reminiscing about the old days. I think it's just simply beautiful that I found Ron the same time Harry found Ginny. Truly, perfect matches don't you think?"

"I..." Molly hesitantly started, "...of course! I always believe so. Ever since your First Year!"

Hermione hummed in agreement. With a wave of her wand, she finished off the batch and culled the flames beneath it. As she waited for the allotted waiting period to past, Hermione's eyes would settle on the small vial that was sitting on the shelf. Silently, Hermione floated the vial into her hand. The color of the liquid within its glass encasing was a bright red that bordered pink, it emitted no odor, but that was purposeful since a stopper made sure not to release the smell of it. The intelligent witch twirled the vial around her fingers playfully before successfully grasping it.

"Molly?" Hermione beckoned her. As the Weasley matriarch looked her way, Hermione presented the vial to her with a small smile, "Is this the love potion that you used on Arthur?"

The long-time wife of Arthur Weasley widened her eyes as her face turned gobsmacked. As Hermione waited for a response, Molly calmed herself down from her initial surprise. She blushed slightly, expressing herself with a bashful smile, "Oh that old story? Why yes, I did use that, but it's not really a love potion. It's..."

"'The Potion of Requited Attraction'?" Hermione answered for her, "If a person is attracted to an individual of the opposite sex, then this potion will ensure that the recipient of the substance will act upon his or her emotions if it is based upon love."

"Oh? So you have heard of it?"

Hermione nodded, "I've read it in a potions textbook when Professor Slughorn taught at Hogwarts." She held up the vial and wrapped two fingers around the rubber stopper that ensured that no air would flow into it, "It is colored bright red that is a slight shade of pink. It has a wonderfully pleasant aroma of that apples and cider." Hermione pulled the stopper, unleashing a foul, putrid smell that made Molly cringe, "However, there is a similarly looking potion known as 'The Potion of Unrequited Attraction' in which it does the same as 'The Potion of Requited Attraction' but instead of it being based upon the pure emotion of love, it is based upon sexual lust. It smells horrible, but if mixed with food or drink, it will take on the odor of what it is mixed with."

Molly's expression darkened as her eyes narrowed into slits as she glared fiercely at the young witch in front of her. Gone was the matronly image that she had often placed and instead was the face of the woman that had killed Bellatrix Lestrange. Her voice brokered no shred of delightful banter as she asked, "How long have you known?"

That single question broadened Hermione's calm grin. Her back was resting against the counter as she crossed one leg over the other. Her brown eyes glowed golden specks in the dim lighting as she stared back at Molly's intimidating gaze. Her entire posture screamed that she was unafraid as absolute confidence exuded from her. Then, she answered Molly, the flow of her words moving as smooth as silk as she channeled the authority of a queen, "Since the beginning."

In an instant, Molly brought up her wand, pointing at Hermione. As she felt the magic flow through her and about to be shot forth from the tip of her magical conduit, a bolt of red energy struck her in the hand. Her wrist jerked upward as her fingers flung open, she watched in horror as her wand was pulled from her grip and was now in the grasp of the Brightest Witch of the Age. Molly was about to physically charge her when she stopped in her tracks as Hermione's wand was now pointed directly towards her direction; she felt the raw feeling of utter defeat overwhelming her senses when she saw Hermione's icy stare resting upon her.

"Tut tut Molly," Hermione clicked her tongue condescendingly, "We can't have you be doing that. After all, I've been waiting for this chance."

"What chance?" Molly spat venomously as she looked at her captor in the eye. She shivered when she saw the cold indifference that was now Hermione's demeanor.

"Why, to utterly humiliate you and confront you of your insufferable meddling of course!" Hermione confessed delightfully but then she craned her head slightly as she frowned speculatively, "Well, I suppose it's not all your fault. In order for that potion to work, I had to at least had been attracted to Ron at the time of consumption."

The once matronly figure shook with absolute rage, she balled her hands into a fist, allowing her nails to dig into her skin and causing minor bleeding to occur. In an enraged tone, Molly shouted, "You will not be getting away with this!"

"But I shall. No one is at home at the moment. Arthur is at work. Ron and George are at the shop. Bill and Fleur are still in Paris visiting her parents. Ginny is at practice. And Harry, well, he's currently waiting for me back at Grimmauld so that I may help him find the easiest way to break-up with your darling daughter."

"You...!" Molly sputtered, "How cruel can you be? After all this family has done for you!"

"It is for that exact reason that I don't have you arrested by the aurors and tried for your crimes." Hermione retorted as if she was speaking to a child, "I don't blame Ron or Ginny for all this really. They were just unwittingly pulled into all this for Mother Molly has the right to do what she believes is best."

"Ron needed a woman that could push him! He needed someone that could challenge him! Is it so wrong that to want what's best for your child? Surely you can't condemn for that!"

Hermione shook her head, "Of course not. But you have done something unforgivable. You took advantage of Harry and his inadequacies." She then stood up, her wand still pointed at Molly, "But I know you're not the true person behind this. It was Dumbledore was it not?"

Molly bit her lip as she tore away from looking at Hermione. This action only confirmed the truth for Hermione, causing her to smile in absolute triumph. She chuckled, "Ha ha ha. I was correct. It all links back to Dumbledore. Let me guess, he was aware of Harry's lustful infatuation with Ginny and had you brew 'The Potion of Unrequited Attraction' so that he may initiate a relationship with her. Dumbledore relied on Harry's desperate want for a family to play into effect. By being with Ginny, Harry would naively believe he inherited the Weasleys as his adopted brothers and parents.

"But of course, I was the obstacle. I was the only thing standing in the way between that initial goal. So I was given the potion at the beginning of the year to pursue Ron whom I felt a slight attraction to during the summer I was in the Burrow. At first, I fell for its effects, but incidentally, I had brewed the antidote for that potion while I was studying ahead of my studied. You could say it was sheer luck that led me to be aware of what was really happening. By the time I was cured, I knew someone had intentionally drugged me. I never knew why and it would be a long time before I would find out the truth. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

"When I realized what was happening, I kept a careful eye on what I consumed. Interestingly enough, I detected the potion have been fed to Harry. It was then that I noticed that he was somehow beginning to grow more and more infatuated with Ginny. When I witnessed that, I knew what I had to do. I had to get to the bottom of this. But in order to do so, I had to make this unknown person believe I was still under the effects of the potion. And thus, a game began between I and the manipulator."

Hermione reached into her pocket and pulled out a picture. She tossed the picture over to Molly who had quickly picked it up to view it. There on the picture was Harry and Hermione garbed in winter wear smiling at the camera and their arms wrapped around one another. Molly looked back at her Hermione, confused by the meaning of the photograph. Hermione floated the picture back into her hand and explained, "That was taken during the time Harry and I were alone on the Horcrux Hunt. As you can see, Harry and I are quite close aren't we? So close that it often led to our respective 'partners' to worry about their position when it comes to Harry and I."

"For you see, Molly, what I'm trying to tell you is that I have Harry wrapped around my fingers. I've always had, ever since we became friends in First Year. We are the best of friends and nothing can tear us apart. So when I finally figured out that Dumbledore had made an idiotic gamble to let Harry die so that the world can defeat Voldemort, I was a tad bit incensed. But I bet you're wondering, if I knew all this, why strike now?"

"You could say I am curious." Molly admitted, her fear of the younger witch growing the more she went on with her monologue. She was unsure what to make of what Hermione was saying, but most importantly, she was unsure what Hermione was planned to do to her once she was finished talking.

Hermione flicked her wand, binding Molly that she could no longer move. She walked over to the fallen matriarch, patting her gently at the top of the head, "Simply put, I wanted you and Dumbledore to feel like the two of you triumphed. You may not have known that he planned to kill Harry, but I'm certain you believed that Dumbledore wanted to help you set Harry and Ginny up to be long-lasting partners. But little did you or Dumbledore know, I was more than capable of taking back Harry from your clutches.

"With just a word Molly, I could ruin you and your entire family. I am more than capable of making one of the war's greatest heroes to become miserable sacks of dung in the eyes of the public. However, I love your family and somehow, Harry thinks of you as a mother. Everything I am doing now is nothing more than personal gratification. I will rid you of all your memories regarding what you have done so that we can finally lay this incident to rest."

She stood up where she had been kneeling next to the older witch and brandished her wand to the petrified woman. A twisted grin of satisfaction and victory settled over Hermione's profile as the darkened basement was riddled with her malevolent aura. Molly looked on with absolute horror as she tried desperately to move and break free from her spellbound shackles. In front of her was not the passionate and loving person that was Hermione Granger, but instead a deformed version that was filled with sinister intentions.

"A final word Molly," Hermione's said sweetly, "Neither you nor Dumbledore are capable of willing Harry to your whims. Only I, and I alone have the ability to do just that. For I am the sole puppet master of Harry's soul just as he is to mine."

Obliviate.

.

.

.

Molly hobbled her way into the kitchen, humming a tune from one of her favorite Celestina Warbeck's songs. It was almost lunch time and Arthur, along with a few associates of his from work, was bound to arrive for a good hour of merriment and eating before heading straight back to work. Goodness, she loved that man. There was something unbearably sexy about Arthur in his working robes. Molly pushed away those lewd thoughts for now and instead focused on what she should make that would woo her husband's coworkers.

As Molly finally made up her mind what she wanted to cook, an owl flew in through the window. She cocked up an eyebrow as she stared at the unfamiliar bird wondering who it was that sent her a letter. With practiced ease, the Weasley matriarch untied the letter attached to the owl's leg who promptly left since its duty was finished. She removed the wax seal and took out a card that was within the envelope. When Molly read the contents of the card, she let out a huge gasp! Smiling broadly, Molly closed the card and gingerly placed it on the dining table.

"Oh I can't wait to tell Arthur the news! Hermione and Harry are finally getting married! I always knew those two were meant for each other, ever since their First Year!"

Thoughts of how she could help with the wedding floated into mind, but she quickly swatted them away when she realized she still had a task at hand. Her goal returned back to fixing up a scrumptious lunch that would impress Arthur's coworkers. Molly began humming once more as she went about her routine once more. However, she allowed herself to have one last stray thought,

Harry and Hermione! Simply harmony!