RESURRECTION
Authors note
~Hey All! This is my first fanfic, I'm really kinda nervous about posting it. Umm, just so everyone knows, I am not JK Rowling, and therefore do not hold the copyright to Harry Potter, and do not intend to make money of this story. Now that I've shocked you all with that piece of info,(hardy har) I will say that writing an english accent is far beyond my current abilityJ I pray any British fans will forgive me for this indiscretion. Uhhh….that's all I can think of, except that thoughts are in Italics, and Please review!
Prologue
Bright morning sunshine streamed through the open window of a little white cottage on the outskirts of Hogsmeade. It was a charming little place, surrounded by old-fashioned flowerbeds (gnome free, of course. the mistress of the house was a stickler for neatness) and a cozy wraparound porch that was just right for relaxing on during hot summer evenings.
It was an utterly adorable little place, just perfect for a young couple thinking of an addition to the family, or an older couple content to dandle grandbabies on their knee till the cows came home. Yes, this little cottage was all about Joyous Beginnings and Happily Ever Afters. It was quite ironic that Hermione Granger lived there.
Chapter 1 – In Which We Meet Hermione
Hermione Granger awoke to sunshine streaming brightly on to her bed, as birds twittered madly in the pine tree outside her second story bedroom window. She groaned despondently, longing to stay wrapped in her cocoon of warm bedding forever. How typical of you. She thought to herself. Always wanting the impossible. She threw off her covers and yawned, stretching her hands towards the ceiling as she did. She swung herself off the bed and shivered as her bare feet came in contact with the cold wood of her floors.
Hermione padded over to the mirror and surveyed the image within disinterestedly. She had stopped caring about her appearance years ago. Not as if there was ever much to care about. She snorted in disgust. Skin too pale; face too thin, funny eyebrows, bushy hair, and a WAY too long nose. As if picking up on her thoughts, her reflections nose began lengthening, its eyes crossed, and it started growing warts.
Hermione smiled, remembering how surprised she'd been when it had first done that to her. Harry and Ron had bought the enchantment from the WWW, then creeped into Hermione's dorm one morning to enchant her one good mirror. She'd been furious, and repaid them with some of Weasley's Horribly Itchy Itching Powder in their socks.
She sighed as she headed towards the kitchen after throwing on a green bathrobe. Thinking of Harry and Ron this early was not a good way to start her day. She made herself a cup of tea, chamomile of course, absentmindedly stirring the cold water and tea bag with her wand until it was hot. She sat down on her couch and surveyed the contents of her mantelpiece.
The items were rather odd, but they held great sentimental value to Hermione. Side by side were two hand-knitted sweaters, one plain maroon, and the other green with a yellow dragon adorning it. On top of those lay a pair of battered old eyeglasses, round lenses with a taped up bridge. Two wands lay next to the eyeglasses, looking for all the world like unremarkable sticks to any but a wizard's eye. On top of all of this was a glass case, and above the glass case was a portrait. In it was a boy and a girl, or rather, a young man and a young woman. The young woman was rather serious looking, with a large quantity of bushy brown hair, and a head girl badge on her robe front. The boy next to her had messy black hair and mischievous green eyes, not to mention a lightening bolt like scar on his forehead. He too had a badge pinned on his robe front, but his said Head boy.
"Head boy and girl we were." Hermione remarked to no one in particular. She surveyed the photos surrounding the unmoving portrait, of her, Ron, and Harry, The Weasleys, her parents, Dumbledore, practically everyone important in Hermione's life. And where are they now? She thought bitterly. She leaned back against the red afghan on her couch and shut her eyes, preparing for another bittersweet journey down Memory lane.
"Hermione!" Harry's voice had yelled in the crowded train station. "Over here!" He and Ron were saying goodbye to Mrs. Weasley.
"Goodbye Harry dear." She said, giving him a motherly kiss, "have a good year." "Behave yourself Ron." She tweaked his nose and kissed him as well, to his great embarrassment.
"MUM! Do you really have to do this in public?" Ron hissed. Mrs., Weasley raised an eyebrow and turned to say goodbye to Ginny just as Hermione ran up to Harry and Ron.
"Did you know that as 6th years we have Library access anytime, day or night?" Hermione squealed. " I can't wait!" Ron and Harry rolled their eyes.
"Now we'll never get you out of the Library, Hermione." Ron said. Hermione ignored him, and the three clambered on board the Hogwarts express and stowed their trunks and themselves in their usual compartment.
" So how was your summer Harry?" queried Hermione.
" Well," Harry began. " Dudley has a girlfriend…" He trailed off, looking in amusement at the incredulous expressions on his friend's faces.
" No way!" Hermione exclaimed. " That great lump?!"
"She's an even greater lump than he is." Harry gave his friends a lopsided grin.
"Is that possible?" Ron snorted.
"You should see them, it's absolutely the most disgusting thing you ever saw."
Harry continued. "And Aunt Petunia goes on and on about how brave and chivalrous her ickle Dudders is in front of his girlfriend, its all I can do not to explode with laughter!" Harry collapsed laughing against Hermione's seat.
" Brave?" she said. "The boy who runs out of the room clutching his seat whenever wizards are around?" both Harry and Ron laughed even louder at this. Hermione stared at them for a second before collapsing into a fit of hysterical laughter against Harry. Ron was laughing so hard he had tears streaming down his face. This set Harry and Hermione to laughing even harder, until all three were in a jumbled heap on the floor, holding their aching sides and panting in exhaustion.
Hermione took a sip of her tea and smiled to herself. We were like the bloody three Musketeers. She thought. Inseparable. She sighed again, rose from the couch, set her mug in the sink, glanced at her clock, and went in to her bedroom to get dressed.
Later, when she was appropriately garbed in a plainly cut navy-blue robe and a white muggle blouse, with her recalcitrant brown hair pulled severely back in a tight bun, Hermione grabbed her briefcase and wand and apparated to the outskirts of the Hogwarts grounds. The already hot weather made her glad her robes were relatively light, but they still seemed far too heavy for the hike ahead of her. I could just ride my broom. She shuddered at the thought. At least it's a pretty walk.
It was a very pretty walk. The Forbidden Forest glowed in the early morning sunlight, not at all looking like its usual dark and ominous self. Birds sang in the gardens, and she could hear the gentle burble of the fountains in the main garden off the terrace. And above it all loomed Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The grand old ivy-covered edifice was bathed in the early morning sunlight. It seemed to smile benevolently down on Hermione as she made her way up the stairs to the great hall.
Hermione thought Hogwarts seemed horribly bare without the students. Peaceful, yes, but still bare. Their laughter and chatter was what gave the place its cheerful, homey feel. Hogwarts needed its students to keep it young. Getting sentimental on yourself, Granger? You miss those kids and you know it. Hermione sighed and relented. She did miss her students, missed them fiercely. They're all I have to lavish my thwarted affections on. She thought ruefully. No wonder Minerva named me Gryffindors head last year, all that stored up maternal instinct was the only thing that kept me from going ballistic. She grinned as she thought of some of the tricks that the two Weasleys in Gryffindor had pulled last term. They could give their respective fathers a run for their money. With a start. Hermione realized she had been standing at the door to the Grand hall for several minutes, lost in thought. I'm getting senile. She thought with a wry smile. The minds always the first thing to go.
Hermione made her way through the halls towards the Library, when she was suddenly taken by surprise in a maelstrom of whirling robes and flapping hands that resolved itself into Headmistress McGonagall apparently trying to keep her balance. She spotted Hermione's wand, grabbed it, yelled, "FINITE INCANTATEM!' And abruptly stopped sliding. " Those little rascals." She said mildly. " They stole one of Argus's delayed action polishing spells and souped it up." A wry grin broke out on her weathered face. "Most ingenious, worthy of the next generation of Weasley twins." Hermione laughed.
"Don't let them hear you saying things like that, Minerva, they'll think you've gone mad."
"I suppose I am something of an old tyrant with them." Her eyes sparkled. " But I'm old, and terrorizing students is one of the few pleasures left to me."
"Now you sound like Severus."
"God Forbid! I'll move on before you have a chance to insult me further." With that, the Headmistress departed, leaving Hermione to think that as a student, she never would have guessed that behind the stern face of Minerva McGonagall lurked such a playful sense of humor.
As Minerva moved down the hall, she sighed slightly and looked back for a moment, at the slight, dark figure standing alone in the hall. Hermione Granger, the brightest witch in her year, had certainly had it rough. Nearly all her friends dead in the Final conflict, Hermione herself severely wounded, she had done more than enough. Yet she refused to accept the extremely generous pension and honors awarded her by the Ministry. Instead she started at Hogwarts as the Defense against the dark arts Professor, and 8 years later she was still there, as well as being Head of Gryffindor House, temporary Librarian. (Madam Pince had finally retired and a suitable replacement still hadn't been found.) And a respected Author of several books on arcane subjects.
She always was a Fighter.
Minerva reflected. She puts up the "everything's peachy" façade and refuses to let anyone help her deal with her pain. It's as fresh for her as it was the day after, when we discovered.... But then, she loved them more, and knew them better, than we did. To us, they were the Boy Who Lived and his Faithful sidekick. To her they were Harry and Ron. Minerva's musings were cut abruptly short by a yell from the Library. Minerva rushed there to find Hermione standing ashen-faced in the middle of the restricted section of the Library. "Hermione, what is it?!" Minerva demanded, grabbing hold of Hermione's arms as she did."There's a book gone." Hermione said shakily.
"That's nothing to get all shook up over! What's wrong?"
"Minnie…its DEMON BANISHMENT AND SUMMONING that's gone."
At that, Minerva paled too.
"No…" She said, summoning a chair and falling into it.
"You don't think…." Hermione hedged, fear in her eyes.
"NO!" They both exclaimed at once.
"There's no way they can bring him back without me, I'm the last remaining member of the Triad. They can try till their blue in the face, but the bindings will hold." Hermione said.
"You're absolutely right. There's no need for hysteria. Hermione, I want you to stay here tonight. Set some wards around the restricted section and we will both watch tonight to see if they come back. Meanwhile, I'm going to owl the other Professors and tell them to get back here soon. We're going to need to reset the wards around the castle." With that, Minerva practically flew down the hall towards the Owlerey stairs.
Back in the Library, Hermione Granger stood up slowly, shaking with anger. "You'll not have it." She said. "You hear me? I won't let you have it. You took Harry, Ron, my parents, and the Weasleys. You destroyed my world completely. I won't let you have Hogwarts as well!" with that, Hermione pulled out her wand and began setting up wards.