A Crown of Thorns

**DISCLAIMER** All characters etc. belong to J.K. Rowling and I am making no money from this. Don’t sue because I’m sure that I don’t have anything that you’d want anyway. The basic plot for the story was a challenge presented by ArienAstera.





A/N - Yay!! I just started posting this morning and already I\'m getting positive feedback, thank you!! I have to warn you that my computer at home has decided to ban me from accessing the internet, so I am going to be confined to updating via the computer at work or at my parent\'s house (ugh). Bear with me, I do not intend on orphaning my story, but the updates may be a little slow coming. Hope you enjoy!!





Chapter One – The Decision



Hermione lay there with her eyes closed, her head was throbbing and every muscle and bone in her body ached. Slowly opening her eyes and sitting upright, she steadied herself against the dizziness and nausea that overtook her. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up, swaying a bit.



“Are you alright, you’ve been asleep for quite a while?”



Hermione jumped, she hadn’t noticed anyone else in the room with her, but she knew that voice.



“Where am I?” she asked as she made her way over to the couch and sunk into the deep cushions.



Lucius Malfoy sneered at her from the chair he was sitting in, “And you’re supposed to be the smart one?”



She glared at him, “Fuck you asshole.”



“Temper, temper.” He chuckled. “Use your brain Miss Granger, where do you think you are?”



She fixed him with an icy stare, “Well you’re here so obviously it can’t be anywhere I’d want to be.”



Malfoy stood to leave, his tone becoming menacing as he snarled at her, “Get yourself cleaned up and dressed, you’ll find that everything you need has been provided. I’ll be back to fetch you in one hour and then you’ll be told everything you need to know.” With that he swept out of the room, locking the door and warding it heavily.



Hermione sighed and laid her head back on the couch rubbing her eyes wearily. The last thing she could really remember was being grabbed by Lucius Malfoy as she walked home from Hogsmeade. How long had she been here? She looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings and her mind began to race. Where was she? Was anyone looking for her? And why did she feel so awful? Her head was pounding as she stood up to make her way over to the window and peered out over the expansive snow covered lawns. Wherever she was, it was undeniably beautiful.



Hermione proceeded to bathe and get dressed, finding a wardrobe full of beautiful clothes and shoes that fit her perfectly. Not knowing where she was going or who she was going to meet, she finally settled on a set of fitted emerald green dress robes accented with cream trim. Realizing that she did not have her wand, she couldn’t cast the usual drying charm on her unruly hair and decided to tie it up loosely with a ribbon. She surveyed her appearance in the full length mirror and satisfied she sat down in one of the chairs in the sitting area to wait for Malfoy.



~~~



‘Where the hell is he?’ Hermione stood up from the chair she had dozed off in and realized that she had been waiting for Malfoy to come get her for over three hours.



Retreating into the bathroom to freshen up she heard the wards being lifted and the door unlock.



“MALFOY!” she shouted angrily from inside the bathroom, “YOU INCONSIDERATE BASTARD, I’VE BEEN SITTING IN HERE FOR OVER THREE HOURS.”



Silence.



She continued shouting at him, her voice dripping with sarcasm, “I WOULD HAVE THOUGHT A SOPHISTICATED PUREBLOOD WIZARD SUCH AS YOURSELF WOULD HAVE BETTER MANNERS THAN TO KEEP A LADY WAITING.”



Still no response.



Continuing on her tirade as she swung the bathroom door open, “But then again I suppose I can’t expect too much from an arrogant, inbred asshole such as -”



Hermione fell silent as she realized that she hadn’t been yelling at Lucius Malfoy. She found herself standing face to face with a somewhat amused looking Lord Voldemort.



He grinned at her, “Please, don’t stop on my account. I find myself thinking quite the same thing about Lucius more often than not.”



Finding her voice and her Gryffindor courage, Hermione narrowed her eyes and snapped back, “Well then maybe you should re-think why you have kept someone as incompetent as him around this long. It doesn’t do your reputation any good to have a bunch of half-wits as your followers.”



Voldemort chuckled, “I believe it safe to say that my reputation is beyond repair. However, Lucius has been a most loyal follower for many years and his influence in certain circles is, shall we say, invaluable.”



“Come Miss Granger, let’s sit. We have much to talk about.” He waved her over to the chairs in front of the fireplace and they sat down opposite one another.



She surveyed the creature in front of her and came to the conclusion that he looked almost human. His nose was flat and his eyes were wide and red and slanted, like a serpent’s. His skin was pale and drawn tight and he was actually quite thin, almost frail looking.



‘One good hex and he looks like he’d be a goner. In this case looks are definitely deceiving.’ She thought, knowing full well that after Dumbledore, Voldemort was one of the most powerful wizards.



“Are you feeling well?” She nodded and he waved his hand. A tray of food appeared and suddenly Hermione found herself to be very hungry. “Please, eat. I’m sure that after two months you’re famished.”



She had been here for two months? Two months? How could that be?



The confusion must have shown on Hermione’s face because Voldemort explained, “You were given a very powerful suspension potion. It allows for one to be put into an almost comatose like state for an extended length of time.”



She hesitated for a moment before helping herself to the wonderful looking food.



He talked while she ate, “I’m sure that you’re wondering why Lucius has brought you here to me,” she nodded again and he continued, “For quite a while now I have been aware that my time here will be coming to an end, for I have spent far too long living off the life force of others and borrowed time is just that, borrowed. When my time does come, I have no intentions on abandoning my followers as they have been, for the most part, loyal to me. They will need someone to lead them once I am gone.”



Hermione stopped chewing and looked at Lord Voldemort.



“Miss Granger, I am sure you are aware of the fact that I am a very powerful wizard. When it is time, I want to bestow my powers upon someone who is worthy of them, someone who has the ability to harness them and master them.”



“What does all of this have to do with me?” she asked, not sure she really wanted to know the answer.



“You are the one that I have chosen, Hermione.”



She nearly choked on the food in her mouth, shaking her head furiously, “Me? Why on earth would I want to be the next leader of your band of idiots?” She fumed at him, “Has it slipped your mind that Harry is my best friend or that the Weasley’s have been like a family to me since my parents died? Not to mention the fact that my loyalties lie with Professor Dumbledore, hell I’m practically a member of the Ord- ” she stopped herself before she let it slip.



“A member of the Order?” he mocked.



Her eyes grew wide at his mention of the Order and he waved his hand dismissively,



“Yes, yes, I know all about your ‘Order of the Phoenix’. In time, you will come to realize that Dumbledore sometimes has a little too much faith in people’s ability to change. Take Mundungus Fletcher for example. Of course at one point in time he felt indebted to Dumbledore, but let’s face it, once a thief always a thief.”



She shook her head in disbelief. Mundungus Fletcher? So, Molly Weasley had been right about not trusting him. Always trust a mother’s instinct.



Voldemort continued, “Speaking of your beloved friends and family, where are they now? Professor Snape has reported to me that Dumbledore and the rest of the Order have decided that ultimately you are expendable. Since they are preparing for the final battle they just couldn’t risk any unnecessary casualties. In short, they have decided that you aren’t worth it.”



Her heart dropped for a second before she remembered that it was all lies. She acted surprised to find out that Professor Snape was a ‘spy’ for the Dark Lord although she had known for quite some time now of his double life. If only Voldemort knew that it was he who was being spied on.



Catching the sadness that flashed in her eyes briefly, Voldemort reached out to pat her hand.



Hermione froze, “Don’t touch me.” She hissed.



He pulled his hand away and looked at her in amusement. She would come around, eventually.



He stood to leave, “Before I leave I feel that I must tell you how much it pains me to think that the people with whom you have fought side by side with for the past few years could abandon you so easily. I assure you that it is truly their loss. Good night, Hermione.”



That night Hermione lay in bed thinking about what Voldemort had said. Knowing her friends and the rest of the members of the Order, she realized that it was highly unlikely that they had given up hope. Surely Professor Snape knew that she was here and was keeping them abreast of the situation. But until the time of her rescue came, Hermoine knew that if she wanted to stay alive, she was going to have to play by Voldemort’s rules.