*Authors Note*
So I've been playing with this headcannon for over a year now, and I finally got to writing it all out. It flowed with ease so I feel confident in posting it! I have to do actual work for the rest of the day, but I'm glad I got a story out of me! I promise I'm working on my other stories, it's a matter of finding time to sit down and write them! I'll probably work on them tonight! Enjoy.!
Hermione paced nervously in front of the phone. She was waiting for the call that would mark the official changing of her life.
It had been four years since she tracked them down, starting immediately after the end of the war, and two years since she gave up on trying to restore their memories. Hermione had finally accepted that her parents would never be in her life again. Until 5 months ago, when she got a punch in the gut.
The Australian Ministry of Magic had agreed to keep tabs on her parents, and so they did; the owl was a bearer of both joyous and horrific news.
Doctors Timothy and Mary Granger are expecting another child.
Hermione threw up when she read that; not expecting it at all. Her mother was in her late forties, same with her father, it wasn't unheard of women getting pregnant at that age, but Hermione never expected them to want another child.
Strike that, A child. Singular. Hermione was no longer in the picture, she didn't exist in their world.
A healer from St. Mungos who was specialized in magical deliveries explained to Hermione that the likelihood of another child with magical abilities being born after a previous muggleborn was conceived were 75%. The likelihood of Hermione's parents having a magical baby were high.
And that spelled trouble for Hermione.
Most would be simply joyous, not Hermione. She saw the implications. This child would grow up, knowing there was something different about them, and when they turned 11, they would be sent off to school, where they would learn about the wizarding world, and would learn about the attempted genocide in England. There would be a chapter on Hermione Granger. Questions would be asked, connections quickly made, and a heartbreak to follow.
The knowledge of a forgotten sibling would haunt this baby. Never able to tell their parents about the heroic deeds of their big sister, for their parents had forgotten their child. And the truth would confuse them, maybe even break their minds.
The Ministry in Australia had figured out the phones so they could make a long distance call to Hermione, just to tell her the sex and if this baby would be magical.
There was a way to tell if a baby was magical, a quick spell. It would be performed in the infant room of the hospital by a healer disguised as what the muggles call a nurse.
Hermione was dreading the phone call, hoping that it was non-magical, yet craving a relationship with her family.
The phone rang and Hermione dived for it, answering before the second ring.
"This is Hermione Granger," she said cooly.
"Hello Miss Granger, this is Secretary of Muggle Relations Perst Greenback. You have a baby brother, Nathaniel Granger, 9 lbs, 7 ounces, 14 inches. I must inform you, the Tracker spell has been completed, he will be magical."
"Thank you Minister Greenback," Hermione said calmly, trying not to break down.
"You are welcome Miss Granger."
Hermione promptly hung up and fell to the floor, sobbing. Ron found her there the next morning when he stopped by to hear the news. Curled on the floor with a tear stained face, staring at the wall, processing the information as best as she could.
Hermione went through the worst of times during the war, removing her parents' memories, thusly removing herself from their lives, being tortured at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange, watching her friends die, and losing faith in Ron Weasley. She had been betrayed, belittled, beaten, but she never broke.
Now, she was broke.
Over the course of 11 years
The discussion had been fierce between Hermione and the ministries. They were deciding where best to send Nathaniel Granger for schooling. He had begun to show magical abilities at an early age.
Hermione had been kept up to date on every single development for the past 11 years. On her wedding day to Ron, Nathaniel accidentally set the curtains on fire. The following Christmas he made the tree fly, during the birth of her first child, Hermione received an owl mid push informing her that Nathaniel made his nursery teacher blow up like a balloon.
There were other instances of accidental magic, memories were altered again and again.
After much discussion between the ministries and Headmistress McGonagall, it was decided that Nathaniel was to go to Hogwarts. It would create a lesser shock, and Hermione would be able to be on hand to mitigate things when questions were asked.
Then after more discussion, it was determined that there was to be a private meeting between Nathaniel and Hermione right after he would arrive at Hogwarts.
It would be odd delivering a letter to Australia from England via owl. But Headmistress McGonagall would be making a personal visit. And with some prodding from magic, the Grangers would be returning to England before the term started so they could be closer to their son.
Hermione paced back and forth for hours, Rose and Phavian playing together in the background as Hermione fretted. Finally, the fireplace roared and McGonagall stepped through, dusting off her robes.
"Everything went as planned." She said promptly. "Your family will be returning to England in 2 weeks time. I have arranged a meeting between you and your brother at Hogwarts after the feast, so you may properly meet him and introduce yourself. I fashioned it as a mentoring program."
"What did you tell them to explain why he was enrolled in a UK school?" Hermione asked, genuinely curious. Nobody had explained that part to her.
"Why, I told them that Hogwarts was the best, and based on their ancestry, it was the best place for him. He will be out of place for awhile, being used to the Australian ways. Barbarians, the lot of them, but he will adapt and adjust. And with you mentoring him, that will help a lot."
Hermione nodded and began to chew at her fingernails. There was a commotion in the background as Rose began to cry over a toy that Phavian had. Hermione swooped up her daughter and rocked her as she stared at her former professor.
"Honestly Professor, I don't know what to tell him. How do I explain so much to him in so little time? I have lived a completely separate life from him, yet I've always been there. I don't know what to do."
McGonagall sighed, "I don't know what to tell you Miss Granger. This is unprecedented. Nothing like it has ever happened. I say, you right out the reasoning behind the mind wipe, and write out key milestones in your life. Give him the basics, as not to shock him. And you two can get to know each other over the coming months. The British Wizarding War is covered in the first week of History at Hogwarts, I don't want him getting the shock of a lifetime without proper guidance. Be open and honest with him, don't overwhelm him, and let him ask questions. This is a scary situation for him I'm sure. But we will manage. We must persevere."
"In all honesty Professor, I'm afraid."
"Fear is a natural response. But you are a Gryffindor, you face your fears head on and tackle them with bravery. I will be there to help guide you through the process. Now, I must retire. Travels to Australia were exhausting. International Portkey is rough on my old bones."
"Of course Professor, I bid you a good night."
"To you as well."
September 1st, 2013
Hermione paced nervously in Headmistress McGonagall's office. The feast was almost over, which meant it was almost time for the meeting with her little brother. This would be it, all the years of watching from afar were over. Now it was time to be directly involved.
The bell tower rang 8PM, and Hermione took a deep breath. It was time.
About 10 minutes after the feast ended, Headmistress McGonagall lead a small boy of 11, with close cropped curls, a slight overbite, and large ears into her office. The young boy looked at Hermione with intense curiosity.
"Mr. Granger, this is Hermione Granger-Weasley. She needs to talk to you about some matters. I will let you two have your privacy." McGonagall said. She made her exit, leaving the two siblings on their own.
Hermione took a deep breath and motioned for Nathaniel to sit at the armchair that was placed across from the desk. Hermione situated the second one to face him and looked at him intently as she sat down.
She took another deep breath and held out her hand, "Hermione Granger-Weasley, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Nathaniel took her hand, "Nathaniel Granger." He said, his Australian accent thick.
Hermione gave him a forced smile, "We have a lot of things to talk about."
"I know we do. I read about you before coming to Hogwarts. We have a common surname. I know you erased your parents' memories and sent them to Australia during the war, and that you were unsuccessful in restoring them. That's too big of a coincidence for us to not be related. Are you my sister?"
Tears pricked Hermione's eyes as she nodded. "Yeah, I am Nathaniel. You're my little brother. I've watched you grow up from afar all your life. Every milestone, accidental magic incident, report card, I've known all about it. We've known your fate since you were born, and we've planned your life out accordingly up to this point. Of course, Hogwarts is where you make your own choices that affect your life. But I fought to get you here so I could be in your life. You understand that you can never tell mum and dad right? It could break their minds permanently."
"That's a lot for an eleven year old to bear," Nathaniel said quietly.
"I know it is. But sometimes children have to grow up fast, and while it isn't fair of me to ask you to do that, I didn't want you to have the shock of a lifetime finding out on your own, not that you didn't figure it out already. Which I am proud of; it appears that you will be taking after me when it comes to schooling. I sure hope so at least. All the teachers will expect a lot of you because of the example I set for the Granger-Weasley name. My children, your niece and nephew, will be attending Hogwarts with you in a few years. They will look to you as a role model. I'd like for you to meet them soon. In fact, I'd like you to meet all my family."
"When can I do that?"
"Probably over Winter holiday. I figured we could tell our parents that you have a mentor at Hogwarts who invited you over for Christmas supper. It is customary for older muggleborns to mentor younger ones, to acquaint them with the Wizarding World. So it isn't too terribly out of character."
Nathaniel nodded, "How about we cross that bridge when we get there? In the meantime, I would like to hear your personal experiences from the war. I know that you erased mum and dad's memories, I just don't know why."
"Because Voldemort would have killed them without a second thought, so I stashed them away in hiding. Even if he discovered them, he really wouldn't have made the trip all the way to Australia just to kill them personally. I made them disappear. I purposely kept their profiles low in the wizarding world all my life to keep them from being a target. The first thing I read about when I first learned my heritage was about the First Wizarding War. I knew that I had to hide it from mum and dad because they would fear for my safety and pull me from this brand new world that explained so much about myself. It was hard, hiding everything from them. Especially after Voldemort rose to power and the disappearances started again. I toyed with the idea of erasing their memories for years. The summer after my sixth year, I finally worked up the courage to do it, to erase their memories. The Death Eaters were closing in. Within the first 24 hours of erasing their memories, they were off to Australia, safe and sound. I hid them from the Australian ministry as well just so that if there were any Death Eaters that infiltrated that far south, they wouldn't know our parents existence. It was for their own safety. Nathaniel, war is a tough subject. It's a tough situation, and it is especially tough to live through. I was a child through it all, I am still haunted by what I saw and what I did. But I had to do it to protect the ones I love. To ensure a future for all muggleborns. I was a child soldier, a pawn in a game between two great, powerful wizards, who both strove for power. Dumbledore was no saint, even his portrait will admit that; but he did what he felt was right. I regret none of it, I especially don't regret protecting our parents. It was the only way, and I would do it all over again if needed."
Nathaniel sat in silence for a few moments, digesting what she had said.
Hermione felt as if she had gotten off subject a few times, but she felt loads better getting all of that off of her chest.
Nathaniel nodded, "I understand. And I support the decision you made. It was a tough situation, and you did what was best. Honestly, it is going to be so hard keeping this from our parents. Never being able to tell them how amazing you are; what you did to save the wizarding world, what you have accomplished. I know I'm going to have to grow up fast, but I assume a lot of muggleborns are forced to grow up fast. That's okay. I will manage. Thank you for meeting with me and not leaving me in the dark. I appreciate that. I will do what I must to protect our parents. I need a few days to digest all of this, but I would like to meet again with you in a few days or a week so we can talk some more, if that's okay with you."
"That is perfectly fine, I understand completely." Hermione said softly.
Nathaniel forced a smile, stood up, and hugged her, "I'm just glad I'm not going through this alone."
Hermione hugged him back, "I am too."
Course of the next few years
Over the course of the next few years, Hermione and Nathaniel formed a close sibling bond. Nathaniel came over for Christmas Dinner with the Weasley clan his first year, bringing his parents. Everyone went with the charade of pretending to not know them very well. Nobody slipped.
Nathaniel took to being an uncle with ease, practically a second nature.
Hermione, being his mentor, was called on by her parents on occasion to discuss issues with Nathaniel's adjustments. They were more cautious than when Hermione had been in school. Even though their memories had been erased, it seemed that they had lingering emotions about sending their supposed only child off to a fancy boarding school just for magical folks.
Hermione formed a close bond with them, and it was more than she could ever ask for. She missed them terribly.
Her parents never knew her maiden, knowing her only as Mrs. Hermione Weasley. It was better that way.
Nathaniel thrived in school, living up to the Granger legacy. He was top of his class during his time. Always earning high marks, and receiving all O's on his exams.
It was a horribly kept secret that he was Hermione's long lost brother. The press managed to catch wind and put two and two together. But they respected Hermione's privacy/feared what she would do to them (i.e. Rita Skeeter incident made its rounds) if they violated Nathaniel's privacy.
It was a sad secret, but nobody let Mr. and Mrs. Granger know the truth during trips to Diagon Alley.
Nathaniel graduated the top of his class, and went on to be a healer, hoping to someday figure out how to restore his parents minds.
`10 Years After Graduating
Nathaniel was in his study, reviewing notes from a renowned Chinese mind healer, when he thought he found it. He may have found the cure.
He arranged for an international portkey, leaving the next morning to visit the Chinese healer.
The healer thought he could do it, so Nathaniel arranged for his parents to come vacation to China with him for a few days, never knowing it was a trick.
Nathaniel didn't tell Hermione yet, not wanting to get her hopes up.
Against all odds, through a strange, traditional potion and some quick spell work, it worked. And Mr. and Mrs. Granger remembered their daughter. Zero side effects from the meddling with their minds.
Hermione sobbed when she spoke to her parents long distance on the phone from China.
For the first time in years, everything was right in Hermione's world.
~
Authors Note
I genuinely hope you enjoyed this! I enjoyed writing it and I feel loads better now that this plot bunny is out of my head! Thanks for tuning in! Follow me to keep up to date on all my stories!