From the Ashes

01 - A Spark in the Night

When Hermione woke something was different. Maybe it was the fact that the sky was crawling with gloomy black clouds or the chilly breeze coming in from the open window, but something was definitely awry. She threw off the covers and reached for her wand, grasping it tightly. She internally cast Lumos. A small ball of light lit up the tip of her wand, illuminating her room in a soft blue glow.

Hermione glanced at the clock on her bedside table, 4:38 am. She spun around, cautiously taking in every aspect of her room. Nothing was out of place, but the window was wide open. She would never leave the window open in mid-November.

Staying silent she crossed the room. Her curtains flapped rapidly in the wind and the shutters creaked as they braced against the gale. She peered out into the dimly lit street.

Her house was located in the middle of Keystone Crescent, a small road near Kings Cross station in London. The row housing on either side of her was dark and the road in front was empty. Maybe it had been the wind blowing open her window?

No, she would have heard it slam against the outside walls. Whatever it was it could wait till morning. Hermione reached out into the gloomy night and a drop of rain landed on her wrist, the first of many. She pulled the shutters closed tightly and locked them by hand, then for extra measure, with magic.

Hermione curled up into her warm, woollen sheets, clutching tightly onto her wand. Nox. The light at the tip of her wand vanished leaving her in dense darkness. Seconds after the light flickered out, a new light leaked in through her window. It illuminated the night with an eerie green glow. Panicking, Hermione jumped once more from her bed and grabbed her dressing robe. She returned to the window, horror crossing her features. She recognized the symbol writhing above her in the night sky. A skull with a snake tongue flicking within its open jaws.

She hadn't seen the dark mark in over three years. Since Harry had defeated Voldemort. It wasn't possible that Voldemort had risen from the dead again. It had to be a joke or someone conjuring it for the sake of scarring and disrupting daily life. Then again it was almost five in the morning an odd time to conjure a prank dark mark and, at least in her experience, only Death Eaters had the ability to conjure the mark.

Hermione ran into the hallway and down the back stairs into the lane below. As a member of the ministry of magic, it was her duty to find out what was wrong. Feet bare and clad in only a small shift and dressing gown, Hermione made her way toward the source of the mark. Her pace was brisk and as she walked the urgency to reach the source of the disturbance became even stronger.

The mark was floated over a small house, its roof had begun to cave in under the crackling flames that were rapidly spilling out of the upstairs windows.

"Oh fuck." Hermione never swore. "Expecto Patronum!" she said urgently. Hang the statute of secrecy. A silver otter propelled out of her wand and swooped out into the night. The Auror office would be alerted of the disturbance.

"Aguamenti," Water began to spray from Hermione's wand, she stepped toward the house, trying to recall who it belonged to. She focused the water on the closest window, hoping that Gawain Robards would get her message, in the back of her head she wondered if Harry would be sent.

There were three loud cracks a few feet away and then three Aurors appeared beside her. The first to appear was Gawain, he was tall and slightly hunched, he was dressed in black and gold robes and his normally tied back grey hair fell in curls at his shoulders, beside him stood a shorter man with thick black hair and green eyes, he looked tired, worn, and slightly bedraggled as he approached Hermione, Harry, the third had red hair and dense freckles, Ron. Hermione gave him a small glance before ignoring him and setting her sights on Harry.

"What happened here?" Harry asked, withdrawing his wand from his robes, a stream of water cascading from its tip as he attempted to douse the fire.

"I have no idea. I had a hunch that something was off and then I spotted the mark and the fire." Hermione grimaced as she glanced back at the shamble of a house. The roof creaked as one of the major beams was devoured by the flames.

"Any idea who lives here?" Gawain asked he cast a Patronus as well summoning more Aurors to their side. They would not be able to put out the flames without more help.

"Unfortunately no. I didn't think there were any other wizards living in this area," Hermione said.

As more Aurors apparated into the vicinity, Hermione's focus turned toward figuring out whom the house belonged to. She summoned a pair of wellies, something she should have done before leaving her apartment, and once the fire was extinguished, leaving only a light smolder in its wake, made her way into the building following behind Gawain and Harry.

"Careful now," Harry warned, gesturing upward, "The ceilings barely holding on."

The room was tiny, made smaller by the falling in, blackened walls. A small fireplace was situated in the corner and on the mantle several picture frames. Hermione carefully stepped over a smouldering beam and made her way towards it for a closer look at the images. A blonde man stood, arm around a tall lithe woman, between them, stood a straight-backed young man with white-blonde hair and a strained expression. He looked to be around eleven, with a sneering fixed upon his face. Draco Malfoy.

"Harry, come look at this," Hermione said, leaning down to get a better look at the other two frames. One was of Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy, it was clear in this one that Narcissa was pregnant. The third was of Draco standing next to a girl with dark brown plaited hair.

"Is that Malfoy," Harry said, squinting at the photo, a scowl creasing his brow. Like Hermione, he hadn't expected to come across the Malfoy's after the fall of Voldemort.

"Yeah."

"Bloody hell. Was this his house?" Ron said, appearing behind Harry. Hermione ignored his presence and replied to Harry instead.

"His family has been off the map since the war ended. Has the Auror office seen any signs of Death Eater activity?"

"Not a peep," Harry replied. "We've been monitoring all the families who are suspected of being involved in the war but there is no evidence of any resurgence."

" Mind you that mark and those photos do indicate foul play," Gaiwan said from next to the others. "Malfoy's eh? They were pretty powerful during the war. No signs of any bodies."

"Think this was a cover-up?" Harry asked. The Aurors exchanged meaningful looks.

"Sure looks like one," Gaiwan replied, "Weasley, Potter, please escort Ms. Granger back to her home and secure it. We don't want to see any more Dark Marks this evening."