Author's Note: Yep, it's been a while since I've posted. Sorry about that. Just finally moved to the new place, and I've been working full time, so it's been a bit difficult to keep writing, and I'm also a bit stuck on Rennervate. I am working on the next chapter of that story now, so it should be up in the next week or so. However, I've had this idea bouncing around in my head for some time now, so I had to put it down. Not the normal 'Hermione didn't kiss Ron' story, I assure you.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
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"The war is long over, you'd best learn to live as it is now, we lost," said Hugur.
"I have spent the last year trying to find you, Hugur," said the man across from him, he was tall and lanky, with a inky black hair and a faded Dark Mark on his forearm, "I hear that you alone have discovered a magic that will allow you to change the past. Was it all a myth?"
"No," the old man replied, "It was no myth, but I can only change very small things of the past, and it is not without extreme danger. The past is not meant to be meddled with, I have found."
"But you can do it," the tall man smiled manically, his voice rising in excitement, "You could stop us from losing, you could kill Harry Potter, or even-"
"I can change small things, Raymond, small actions of one person, like turning left instead of right, or stop them from saying something to another person. Very small things. I cannot stop Harry Potter from possessing the Elder Wand, or walking to his death, or battling The Dark Lord. Those actions are so significant to the past, they are stagnant, impossible to manipulate."
"But some small actions can turn the course of history, can't it? A small action by one of his friends, that could change the whole of it, couldn't it?"
Hugur paused for a moment, "That is possible…" he said thoughtfully.
"We ought to try!" Raymond exclaimed, "To bring The Dark Lord here again, that would make it all worth it."
"Yes, perhaps…"
"Just tell me what you need, and I will see to it that you get it."
Hugur drummed his fingers on the side of his old iron cauldron, "I will need the memories of whose actions we are trying to change, so that I may find a weak point that will change the course of time, and just a teaspoon's worth of their blood."
"I will see to it that you get them," Raymond replied fiercely, "And soon."
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Hermione hummed gently as she walked through the nearly empty streets of Diagon Alley, it was only ever this clear very early in the morning, so she took care to do her shopping then. Even three years after the Final Battle, she still found it difficult to travel anywhere in the wizarding world without being hounded by people asking for autographs, pictures, or even just her stories. She had long grown tired out it.
Has she walked, she gently turned her engagement ring on her finger. It had been just last week that Ron had proposed; she smiled brightly as she thought of what joy a life with him would bring. Sure, he could be maddening at times, but she loved him dearly. She never stopped being grateful that she had decided to kiss him first, on that day that finally brought peace to the world.
She was so lost in her thoughts, that she didn't even notice the tall cloaked man fall into step close behind her, until she heard the faintly whispered spell, "Imperio."
A strong haze fell around her mind, clouding her vision and her focus. She immediately, even in her state of Imperius forced calm, knew what a danger she was in, and fought violently against the spell. She screamed silently in her head as she felt herself turn left suddenly, and walk down a long and narrow alleyway, followed closely by the man who placed her under the spell.
When they reached the end of the alley, her captor forced her to face him, then to sit down on the cold cobblestone ground. He dug into his pocket and pulled out a vial, which he placed into her willing hands.
"Put into this vial every memory you have from the time you reached Hogwarts on the day of the final battle, to the time when The Dark Lord fell."
"No! Hermione, fight this! You must fight this!" she screamed within her own mind, but to no avail. Her body, like a puppet, sprung to do his bidding. She reached into her cloak and drew her wand, then placed it to her temple. Within seconds, the vial he had given her was filled to the brim with bright silver. He took it from her, and slid in gently back into his cloak.
"NO!" Hermione shouted, aloud this time as she finally broke away from the curse. She lurched forward towards the man, wand raised and ready to attack.
But she was too slow, the haze that was still on her mind slowed her reflexes greatly, and before she could even cast a spell, a flash came from the man's wand, and her own clattered to the ground. In the next moment, she was bound tightly by thick black ropes the Death Eater had conjured.
"Why are you doing this?" she grunted, struggling fiercely against her bindings, "We won years ago, there is nothing more for you to gain!"
"That's where you're wrong, Mudblood," a chilling smile crept across the man's face, "I have everything to gain, you see."
He pulled out another vial and a small knife. He sliced the blade quickly across her arm, heedless of her whimper of pain, and began collecting her dripping blood in the vial.
"There is a man who has discovered how to change small things in the past, I'm sure you've heard of him, since the Auror Department is trying very hard to find him before he can do anything dangerous with this knowledge. I found him first. And with your memories, and your blood, we are going to change the course of time," he closed the vial and tucked it away, "The Dark Lord will never have fallen, all because of you, Mudblood. Enjoy this world while you can, because it is all going to change very, very soon. And you won't even remember it."
Before she could speak, or call out for help, the man kicked her roughly in the head, and everything went dark.
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"Excellent choice, Raymond, excellent indeed," Hugur rasped as he resurfaced from watching the memories of Hermione Granger.
"You can do it then?" Raymond asked eagerly
"Oh yes, yes, I can do it," Hugur smiled toothlessly, "There is one point in time, small, weak, seemingly unimportant to the grand scheme of what happened that day, that will change everything."
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"Hang on a moment!" Ron exclaimed, "We've forgotten someone!"
"Who?" Hermione asked, trying to figure out who they could have possibly forgotten, everyone was already here.
"The house-elves, they'll all be down in the kitchen, won't they?"
"You mean we ought to get them fighting?" asked Harry.
Hermione was just about to argue when Ron cut across him sharply, "No, I mean we should tell them to get out. We don't want any more Dobbies, do we? We can't order them to die for us."
Hermione felt a strong surge of affection for him, stronger than she ever had before, but when she was just about to drop her Basilisk fangs and jump into his arms, a strange flash came across her eyes, and stopped her from moving at all. It lasted only a second, and after it was gone she shook her head slightly, trying to remember what she was just about to do.
"You all right, Hermione?" Ron asked, concern thick in his voice.
"Erm… yeah, yeah I'm fine. Just got a little lightheaded there I suppose."
"Right," Harry said seriously, "Let's get out of here so we can get that diadem, alright? We've finally almost got all of them, and thanks to you two we have a way to destroy them."
"Yeah, right," Hermione replied weakly, feeling strongly that something was missing, "Let's go."
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Author's Note: Yes, this is a story about what happened if Hermione had not kissed Ron, but it isn't about relationships or them trying to get together again that are all over the site. This is a much darker take on the story: what really would have happened had she not kissed him at that moment. They say that the world can change at the flap of a Butterfly's wing, so how much would that small moment change the world? You'll find out soon enough.