Hermione Granger and the Peerless Alchemist (A Matou Shinji Series AU Quest)

[alfheimwanderer]

[X] RUN - carrying the sword - as she makes for the stairs

---

With desperation-granted speed, the girl ran. There was no way - no possible way - she could fight a troll. No way. None at all. It was only luck that the troll had been stunned from its fall and wasn't chasing her already. The moment it recovered - the moment it came after her, whatever lead she managed to acquire would vanish, since...she was small, and it was...

Big. So very big.

3 meters tall at least. Hairy. And its...

Behind her, there was a thump.

Was this it? Was the troll getting up, or--

"AIEEEGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

...the girl froze as an inhuman scream rent the air, horrible in a way she'd ever heard before, as the sword in her hand blazed once more, and despite every one of her instincts telling her not to look back...she did, with three pairs of golden eyes staring back at her from three fierce-looking heads.

Heads filled with razor-sharp teeth, stained red with blood.

'...Cerberus...'

The name came unbidden to her mind - the name of the gatekeeper of the underworld in Greek Myth. She...

She took a step backward...

She...

It took a step forward, its attention seemingly drawn by the light of her sword as it growled menacingly. Was this...was this what had torn apart these people? Was this...

'What do I do? What do I do?'

She thought she remembered something about Orpheus pacifying Cerberus somehow. How had he done it again? Had he beat it, or...?

'Music?

That sounded right. He'd lulled it to sleep with song. That...sounded like something could do. Maybe. Except for one problem.

All she had was a flute, and she had no idea how to play a flute.

What does Hermione do?

[ ] Try playing the flute anyway - how hard could it be
[ ] Sing - she knows a few songs like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
[ ] Scream - maybe someone will come for help
[ ] Drop the sword and run
[ ] Grab a bloody limb and throw it at the dog - then run
[ ] (write-in)

[Daiki]

[x] Try playing the flute anyway - how hard could it be.

[Skull Leader]

[X] Sing - she knows a few songs like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

The flute could work if she knew how to play, best try the easier option first. If nothing else the Flute can be a stick it can go retrieve.

[Cassius]

[X] Sing - she knows a few songs like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

[Daiki]

I think she has a better shot at using the flute than singing, since she's terrified.

Even if the sound isn't the best, the doge is more likely to recognize an instrument playing than following the tune of an unknown girl.

[alfheimwanderer]

[X] Sing - she knows a few songs like Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

---

Then again, did it matter if she didn't know how to play? Orpheus...he hadn't played a flute. He'd sung, with his voice moving the gatekeeper of the underworld, the ferryman of the underworld - and even Hades, the cold-hearted King of Erebus. Maybe...maybe the flute was a trap. Maybe the answer was to just stand her ground and sing.

And so the girl opened her mouth, only...her throat was dry, and the words....the words wouldn't come, as the three-headed monster came closer, closer, closer still.

"T-twinkle..." she began, only for her voice to fail. "Twinkle," she began again, looking up at the vast mastiff. She found herself trembling as its three heads eyed her hungrily. "Twinkle, twinkle..." she managed softly. "Little star. How I wonder...what you are..."

It padded towards her slowly, drool dripping from its bloody maws as the girl just dropped her sword.

"Up above the world so high..." she barely whispered. "Like a dia--"

A lunge.

Mighty jaws snapped shut, tearing her in two, though mercifully, the moment before they touched her, everything went black.

---

When she came to, she was standing in the Defense Classroom, with Draco by her side, his face pale, his hand clutched to his chest.

"I'm...I'm alive...?" he whispered, looking around. "I...you..." he growled, as he noticed Quirrell standing before him. "That...that was the scenario?! What was that?! How is anyone supposed to pass that?!"

Hermione was about to add her voice to Draco's, when Quirrell interrupted them. "You are not," the Professor replied. "Expected to pass, that is," he supplied. "And so the question is not if you pass, but how you fail. Did you manage to escape the original room? What did you choose from your selection of tools? How did you react to danger?" He smiled thinly. "You, Mister Malfoy, did admirably enough. You managed to free yourself of your chains, claim a wand, and fight until you were defeated with spells beyond what most first years would know."

"...I still don't see how Hogwarts would have become infested by inferi," Draco growled. The boy was visibly shaking, as he glared at the Professor. "It's supposed to be the safest place in Britain."

"Heh." The Professor only snorted at the boy's words. "Yes, the Headmaster spins a good tale about how safe Hogwarts is, but I'm sure you, of all people are aware of how dangerous it really is. Your cousin was involved with the Cursed Vault incidents, was she not?"

"...that's true," Draco admitted. "But inferi...? Trolls? None of the Vaults..."

"Who knows?" Quirrell asked eloquently. "Perhaps there are more dangers in the school none have discovered. I could have just as easily given you a scenario where students have been ensnared by self-replicating, cursed ice, which absorbs magic. Would that have been any easier...?"

"...no," the blonde admitted. "You're saying there is something in this school which could turn us all into inferi?!"

Quirrell seemed to pause for a moment, before shaking his head.

"...yes, actually. At least one that I know of, as of the beginning of this year," the man said casually, a statement which caused Hermione to freeze. "You can thank the Headmaster for that particular decision. Don't worry though, as there are a great many defenses for it, like oh...several trolls, even a three-headed dog. One simply hopes it never manages to escape its bonds, hm?"

Hermione's eyes were wide in horror.

What she saw...what she saw...if it got loose...

"You mean..."

"That what you saw in the scenario could be real one day?" the man questioned. "Yes, that's right, but hopefully it never comes to that. After all, I'm sure the Headmaster knew what he was doing when he volunteered to keep the item at Hogwarts."

"...the third floor corridor," Hermione stated, terrible certainty in her voice. "It's hidden somewhere in the Forbidden Corridor."

"Perhaps," the man stated. "But don't go after it, please. First, you would have no idea of how to use it. Second...I don't want to feel guilty for the deaths of students."

"What...what item could--"

"I'll tell you what, Miss Granger. If you and Mister Malfoy can tell me what item is hidden there, I'll give Slytherin ten points apiece, hm?"

"...is it something, dark?" Draco hazarded.

"No, and I'll count that as your guess. Miss Granger, you have until the end of the term to figure out what it was that could twist wizards into inferi, without even killing them first." He chuckled. "I will say, you did better than I expected, and under such terrible conditions, under which most would have panicked. In fact, there are many who never made it out of that first room."

"I--"

"I do apologize for not letting you all know it was a test, but if I had, your reactions would not have been genuine," the man said apologetically. "I needed to know how you would react in a worst-case scenario."

"Professor?" Draco interjected. "Did...did anyone pass?"

"Pass? Oh, you mean as in did anyone escape the inferi-ridden Hogwarts and reach safety?" the Professor clarified.

"Yes."

"Oh, so far, only two groups," the man replied.

"Who?" Draco's voice seemed low, almost feverish.

"Miss Suzuki and Mister Wroxton for one. As for the other, well, Miss Greengrass you know, but her partner--"

"Sokaris," Draco all but hissed.

"Indeed. Sialim Sokaris," the Professor confirmed. "Full of surprises, isn't she?"

If looks could kill, Professor Quirrell would have been reduced to ashes by the force of Draco's glare. Fortunate, or unfortunately, they did not live in such a world, and so the Professor survived and Draco did not get sent to Azkaban for murder.

"I trust you will do better next time, Mister Malfoy?"

"Yes. Yes, I swear it," the blonde said with an intensity that Hermione...had only seen from Matou before.

"Good," the Professor noted, a dark chuckle escaping the man's lips. "Let the hate flow through you...let it make you strong."

"...um, but isn't hate an evil thing, Professor?" Hermione found the nerve to ask.

"Ah, Miss Granger, were you not paying attention in class? There is no such thing as good or evil. There is only power, and those too weak to seek it."

After that, Quirrell dismisses them, but Draco is clearly upset by the news that Sokaris somehow passed. Hermione would like to do something to cheer him up, but doesn't really know what, as curfew is drawing near...

[ ] Sign to him as they walk
[ ] Go to the kitchens - maybe they can find something to eat
[ ] Go back to the Common Room and find someone to talk to
[ ] Let Draco go back alone, and talk to the Professor
[ ] (write-in)

Later that night, in their dorm room, Selina has a question for Hermione: "Of Strength, Wisdom, Intelligence, Constitution, Luck, and Dexterity, what do you value most? And what you do value least?

[ ] (write-in)

[Daiki]

Well, went about as good as I thought.

I assume going to the kitchen will trigger an encounter with Sokaris, so no.

[x] Sign to him as they walk

[x] Intelligence (Most)
[x] Luck (Least)

Felix Felicis free route, screw luck. We make our own path.

[skulkidcachi90]

[x] Sign to him as they walk

[x] Intelligence (Most)
[x] Luck (Least)

[Skull Leader]

[x] Sign to him as they walk

Are you guys really going to curse Hermione with bad luck for the year here? She already has a hard enough time with stuff.

[X] INT (most)
[X] CON (least)

Hermione either do not get into combat or try really hard not to get hit.

[Cassius]

[x] Sign to him as they walk

[alfheimwanderer]

[x] Sign to him as they walk
[x] Intelligence (Most)
[x] Luck (Least)

---

Are you guys really going to curse Hermione with bad luck for the year here? She already has a hard enough time with stuff.

So it seems.

---

Draco and Hermione sign to one another as they walk, with Draco's signing fast and...agitated, if the bushy-haired brunette is any judge of his emotions (which she acknowledges she might not be). Several times, there were signs that she didn't quite recognize, and at other times the boy signed how he would like to "A" "K" the woman of air and darkness (Sokaris, maybe?), but even if the words were unclear, the overall thrust of it certainly was. The blond felt frustrated, so incredibly frustrated at failing at something...a frustration that Hermione herself shared, since it rankled to get thrown into a situation like that, a situation that was raw and...agonizing.

The feeling of beaten eaten alive by a three-headed dog was not something she ever wanted to repeat, and for all that Professor Quirrell mentioned that it was just way to motivate her to perform to the best of her abilities in the future, something about that rang...false.

"...do you want to come with me to the Black family quarters?" Draco asked after a few minutes of frantic signing. "I could use something to eat, and maybe learn how to beat inferi. At the very least...the twins will be a good distraction. They've been working on a living map of Hogwarts, and I want to see if I can find that Sokaris girl on it."

[ ] Agree - it would be a fine idea to visit the Blacks
[ ] Disagree - its late, and they should go back to Slytherin House
[ ] Disagree - maybe they can go for a walk outside?

"So I see," Selina notes. "So value intelligence, but you do not value luck - is that because you believe you can make your own, or because you have always been lucky?" She pauses for a moment. "And if it is the former, what would you make it with, other than your intelligence? Strength of arms? Slight of hand? Your ability to persevere where others cannot? Skill with words? Or being able to see what others do not?"

Aside from intelligence, what is your most valued attribute? Your...

[ ] Charisma
[ ] Strength
[ ] Dexterity.
[ ] Constitution.
[ ] Wisdom.

[Daiki]

[x] Agree - it would be a fine idea to visit the Blacks
[x] Dexterity

[skulkidcachi90]

[x] Agree - it would be a fine idea to visit the Blacks
[x] Dexterity

[alfheimwanderer]

[x] Agree - it would be a fine idea to visit the Blacks
[x] Dexterity

---

It was obviously not the first time that Draco has visited, given that the moment he stepped up to the door, preparing himself to knock, it opened, with the Black twins looking out at their cousin and his companion with eerie expectation.

"Hullo, cousin," the girl - Alkaid - greeted, her pale blue gaze roving over the two of them. "And you are Miss Granger?"

"Y-yes, hello," Hermione replied, with something like a curtsy. "You are Alkaid and Albireo?"

"Yes," the two chorused, with the brunette noting for the first time how one of Albireo's eyes was a bit strange, as if within his blue eyes, there were flecks of gold. "Come in," they said together, stepping aside so Draco and Hermione could do so.

"...just so you know, they're natural legilimens," Draco informed her with a bit of a grimace. "Ordinary children are difficult enough to take care of. These...? They'll run rings around you, if you're not an Occlumens."

"Ah," Hermione voiced. "Good to know."

"Are you?" he asked, some curiosity in his voice. "An Occlumens, that is? Did your...aunt teach you that?"

[ ] Yes (bluff)
[ ] She did not

"I see," Draco replied. "Perhaps you'd like to join me for Occlumency lessons then? My godfather has been helping me with them, since I've been watching his children."

[ ] Agree
[ ] Decline

What will Hermione talk about with Andromeda and Severus Black over dinner?

[ ] Politics
[ ] Religion
[ ] Hogwarts
[ ] Stay quiet, let Draco lead
[ ] (write-in)

[Daiki]

[x] She did not
[x] Agree
[x] Stay quiet, let Draco lead

Let him feel in control, he needs it. It's also probably not a great idea to stir up the conversation when you're the foreign element here.

Occlumency, if only to have the freedom of your thoughts. Kid legilimens will definitely reveal stuff with the worst timing in the world.

[Cassius]

[x] She did not [x] Agree [x] Stay quiet, let Draco lead

[Skull Leader]

[x] She did not
[x] Agree
[x] Stay quiet, let Draco lead

[alfheimwanderer]

[x] She did not
[x] Agree
[x] Stay quiet, let Draco lead

---

As it turned out, conversations at the dinner table in a magical world where children could read minds...weren't actually all that different from those in the life she knew. Children talked about what they learned in school, the parents might share some stories of their day or ask questions of guests. Husbands would compliment wives on their cooking (except that in this case, most of the cooking was done by a house elf, so Hermione didn't know how that would go), and the like.

Through it all, the bushy-haired brunette mostly kept to herself, since she was a stranger here, despite how she'd been accepted as a guest.

Things did get a bit awkward when Draco mentioned proudly that she knew Rune Sign Language, with Lord Black giving her an odd look when he heard this.

"You mentioned your Aunt taught it to you?"

"Yes, she works for the government," Hermione answered, guardedly. "In...foreign affairs, I think?"

"Interesting," Lord Black noted. "She has taught you other things, I expect?"

"Oh yes," Hermione agreed, mentioning how her aunt could be somewhat eccentric minded. "How to break codes, for example. It's all a game of numbers, really."

"...it can seem so," Lord Black vocalized, giving the girl a look. "though I hope your aunt instructed you on the value of secrets? Often codes are there for a reason..."

"I...yes," Hermione licked her lips nervously. "Sometimes a secret being exposed can hurt people, but sometimes its necessary, for the greater good."

"An interesting turn of phrase," the man said evenly. "Tell me, have you heard of a wizard by the name of Gellert Grindelwald?"

"...I...no," Hermione replied, with the man nodding.

"You will," Lord Black answered gravely. "Now, Draco mentioned that you are looking forward to Astronomy?"

"Ah, yes! Very much!"

"Being a Black, I have a certain interest in it myself," Andromeda Black cut in. "What about Astronomy do you like?"

Well, what about it does she like?

[ ] The possibility there might be other worlds out there - with life
[ ] The history of how the stars were used in divination
[ ] The fact that Astronomy is the only discipline that looks beyond this pale blue dot we call home
[ ] Because maybe looking at the heavens could lead to new magical breakthroughs
[ ] (write-in)

The Twins, unsurprisingly, also have a question - one that seems quite innocuous...

"Who is this Sokaris girl cousin Draco doesn't like?"

What comes to mind when Hermione thinks of Sokaris?

[ ] A mysterious girl who she would like to know more about
[ ] A Ravenclaw she has no real interest in
[ ] A rival - someone to aspire to beat
[ ] A beauty who captures attention far better than she...
[ ] (write-in)

[Desann]

[x] The fact that Astronomy is the only discipline that looks beyond this pale blue dot we call home
[x] A mysterious girl who she would like to know more about

[Skull Leader]

[X] Their constant nature in an ever changing world; Connecting generations both past and future by their very presence.

Ok so the sky is not constant without change, but it is basically the same sky since the first of humanity put it foot to the ground. And our descents will look on to that same sky as we do even if the lives they live will be very different. Provided of course that light pollution or normal pollution does not ruin it. Or that ancestors move beyond this point in space where they will see a new arrangement of stars.

I figured that Lady Black might understand or share the awe of it, as her family certainly is connecting its generations with the stars by granting its members the way it does. And while some of the other answers we could pick feel very radical to purebloods in that they suggest throwing away the old to bring in the new, this answer is more a statement that regardless of change their are traditions and constants that will always persist, giving a common ground for all.

Slytherin Hermione certainly needs ambition which is likely change seeking, starting with change for herself and likely growing into change for all. But this view might help balance that trend since she needs to walk a path of the old and new so remembering that which is the same no matter what, might help.

[X] A beauty who captures attention far better than she...

Because I imagine that Draco might stay something amusing her about her looks. As well as it fits an overarcing nature I think this Hermione has in that she seeks a new direction for her life, to be more than she was in her old life.