In the morning twenty four hours after the battle of Hogwarts had ended Hermione woke up feeling a little bit confused about the fact that she was in her bed in Gryffindor Tower and not in a tent. I took her two minutes before she realized that she was not alone in bed because she felt someone breathe in her neck. She immediately remembered what almost had happened last night. They day before she and Ron had left the head's office with Harry after talking to professor Dumbledore's portrait. In the corridor below they had taken different ways. Harry had said something about looking for Ginny and departed for the great hall. Hermione and Ron instead went hand in hand in the opposite direction toward the seventh floor and the Gryffindor common room. The common was empty except from Dennis Creevey who was asleep in a chair in front of the fireplace. He looked like he had been crying. Both Hermione and Ron knew of course why due to the fact that Dennis older brother Colin was one of many students who had died the day before. So quiet as they could they walked to the staircase and up to Ron's and Harry's old dorm. Once inside they had just stared at each other for several moments before Hermione walked over to Ron's bed and lay down on it.

"I'm so tired" she said and looked at Ron who still stood by door. Ron responded to her statement with a nod. "You know, I still can't believe that our horcrux hunt is over and that Voldemort is dead" she continued. Ron nodded again but this time he approached the bed and sat down on the edge. He didn't look at Hermione, instead his gaze went to went to window and sky outside. Hermione decided not to disturb him for the moment, instead she sighed and rolled over to her other side with her face to the wall. She knew that Ron was thinking of his brother Fred who like Colin Creevey had died that day. While she lay there and stared at the wall she started to think of the all people who had died for the good cause and a moment later silent tears fell down her cheeks.

An hour later she was a sleep and didn't notice that Ron lay down next her. Several hours later she woke up to notice that Ron hade wrapped his arms around her. She didn't what to think of it first because it was only hours after their first kiss, but after a moment she decided that it did not matter and she also found that she felt safe for first time for years. A few moments later Ron also woke up and gave her the most beautiful smile she ever had seen. She gave him a smile back. By the look of it he found her smiled just as beautiful. Before she could think a thought more she had tilted closer to him and kissed him. It felt ever better than the last time, because this they had no treat of Voldemort hanging over them. To her slight surprise Ron responded to her kiss. They had continued to kiss for a couple of moments before she felt Ron's hand on her bum. "Oh Ron, we can't do this know" she moaned "it's to early."

"I know, Hermione" Ron whispered in her ear while his hand still remained on her bum. "But I find hard not to do this now but I'm not going to push you on this before you tell me you are ready."

"Thanks, Ron and I love you to" she answered and gave him a smile that made him to kiss her again. They continued to snog for a while and then they fell asleep in each others arms.

Two hours later Hermione woke up being confused about being in bed with Ron. Careful not to wake Ron she got out of the bed and made her way down to the common room. She found it more crowded than it was last time. In one corner she saw Ginny and Harry sitting together. Ginny caught her eye waved her over, so she went over to the them and sunk down on a chair.

"Hey" Ginny said " did you just got out from the boys dorm?"

"Eh" what all Hermione managed to say while she felt herself blush.

"Did you and Ron …?"

"Did what?" said Hermione and blushed even more then a moment before.

"You know …" said the redhead.

"Eh, no" said Hermione and sent Harry a gaze who just smiled at her. "We just did a little bit of snogging, that's all." Harry's smile made her suspect that he and Ginny had done it which made her say " I bet Mrs. Weasley is going to really mad when she find out about you two."

Now it was Ginny's and Harry's time to blush. Hermione found it quite amusing and started giggle which made the couple in front of her blush even more. At that exact moment Ron sat down beside her. "What's so funny?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing really" sad Hermione and fixed her eyes on point in the ceiling because she did not want meet Ron eyes at that moment.

"I must goo to loo" Harry said suddenly and departed but in direction of the portrait hole instead of the toilet. Ginny followed seconds after.

"What's going on?" said Ron with his gaze on Harry's and Ginny's back.

"Oh, Ginny just asked if we had sex" said Hermione with a smile.

"What?!" Ron blurted out. "What did you say?"

"I told him we didn't do it."

"Good said Ron, because if we don't Harry maybe can hold hands his from my sister for while."

"Too late", said Hermione.

"What do mean?" said Ron while his ears started to turn red as they always did was when he was embarrassed or angry as in this case.

"Oh, come on Ron" Hermione wispered. "Don't you remember you wanted to do it with me a little while a go but you didn't do because I said no? Don't you think it's up to Ginny when she wants do that?"

"Eh", said Ron blushing and then he said "He better not hurt my sister again."

After that he said no more on the subject and to Hermione's surprise hi didn't anything about to it to Harry or Ginny when they met up with them later that day in the great hall. She had thought that he would argue much longer about it as he did when Ginny and Harry got together.

The great hall was much less crowded than it was the day before but it still were a lot of people there. All the dead bodies had been carried away and that made Hermione wonder about what had happened with Voldemort's body. She thought she could ask Professor McGonnagal later when she, Ron, Harry and Ginny went over to the Gryffindor table. Once there Ron started to eat like he never seen food before. Hermione smiled at the sight. While she ate a piece of toast she scanned the room and saw that all of the staff was there, except Professor Snape. They all looked happy and sad, happy that the treat from Voldemort and sad for all good people who had died. She also that noted that there was more Slytherins there than she had thought it would be. In the end her gaze to Harry went she saw that he looked exhausted and something else in his face told her that something was bothering him. Hermione decided that she would talk to him later, and not at the Gryffindor table where everybody could listen. Just as they all had finished their meal and was about to leave the great hall a house elf popped in sight and handed Hermione a note and with another popped she was gone. Ginny, Harry and Ron looked at Hermione with interest while she opened and the note. After a couple of seconds she looked up and said "Professor McGonnagal want me at her office at once. I've have no idea what she want from me."

"Well" Harry said, "I don't think it's something serious, maybe she want to know what had happened this last year. I wouldn't surprise me because she already tried to ask me and Ron, but we didn't say anything."

"She did?" Hermione said. "Don't you think she should know?"

"Yes", Harry answered "But I don't feel ready to tell her the hole Horcrux story just jet."

"What horcrux story?" Ginny asked.

" Eh" Harry said "I …"

"You haven't told her?" Ron asked Harry with raised eyebrow. "It's

looks you're going to tell the story anyway, mate. I guess I will see you later then" he said and left the great hall.

Once Ron got of sight Ginny turned to Harry, "I thought we agreed on not keeping secrets from each other" she said in very low voice but it was clear that she was angry.

"Why don't you use the room of requirement?" Hermione said nervously and departed for the head's office. She knew it was best to stay out of the way if Ginny turned out to be anything like her mother.

The stone gargoyle's who used to guard the head's office was still broken so Hermione could go up the stairs to the head's office without using a password. Once she was at the door to the head's office she knocked on the door which second later was followed by a "Come in, Miss Granger." Hermione stepped in and closed the door behind her.

Professor McGonnagal sat behind her desk. She pointed on a chair and Hermione seated herself in front of her.

" If you are going to …" Hermione started.

"No, Miss Granger I'm not going to ask about …"

"But then what?" Hermione asked confused.

" … last year because it's clear he is not ready and I respect his wish in this matter" professor McGonnagal continued as if she had not heard Hermione "After all hi was the one who got rid of Voldemort for us."

"But then what?" Hermione asked again ever more confused.

"The reason I asked you to come up here is that found something in one of professor old books that I thought you might find interesting" she said pushed a very thick and old looking book over to Hermione who took it up. Hermione thought the book must be very old because the letters in title was almost completely gone. As books was something special to Hermione because of all knowledge she could gain from them she couldn't open the book fast enough.

It always had made her sad that Harry and Ron couldn't appreciate books more than they did. In the past there had several times when things could been different if had been little more keen on to take in what they were reading.

Before she opened the front cover she wondered briefly what this book could contain since McGonnagal wanted to show it to her. Because the book seemed so old she opened it more slowly than she wanted to, while McGonnagal and professor Dumdledore watched her with some sort of excitement. On the first page Hermione saw what looked like a author's note about the book. She started to read and when she had read it trough she almost had fell of her chair. Once she had calmed down a little bit she started to flip the pages to confirm the statements on first page and to her astonishment it was true. Hermione couldn't figure out how this was possible at all. It took her couple of minutes for her to get the voice back and say to McGonnagal, "How could this book contain a description of Harry's life and even the events yesterday?"

"I have no idea" said McGonnagal "and that's why I decided to give it to you. I figure you are the best person to solve this mystery."

"I think so to" said professor Dumbledore from his portrait. "That book is a real mystery because I had it for many years and I never found a way to open it. It's seems that Voldemort's death was the key to the book. I also found out with Minerva's help of course you are the book truly belongs to …"

"How come…?" Hermione started eager to know more about the she was holding in her lap.

"To begin with …" McGonnagal interrupted her. "Do you know anything about your family tree, Miss Granger?"

"Not much, but what has my family tree to do with this? I'm a muggle so I can't se what …"

"Oh, so the little know-it-all doesn't know that magic can absent from a family for generations?" said a voice dryly. The voice belonged to Phineas Nigellus a former headmaster at Hogwarts. Hermione looked up at Nigellus with chock in her face. In all her years at Hogwarts and all the books about magic she had read she never had close to realize this. It made her fell a little bit ashamed over herself.

"For your information, Miss Granger I can tell you that your great grandmother actually went to Hogwarts at the time I was the headmaster. The only difference I can see between you two is that she was a Slytherin."

At the last sentence Hermione thought she might fall of the chair for real, while Dumbledore and McGonnagal looked at Nigellus with interest.

"Miss Granger, all Slytherins are not that bad, not in my time anyway" Nigellus continued with a raised eyebrow "I guess you have experience with that Malfoy brat."

Hermione nodded as answer to that. After a moment Hermione said "Can we continue, please."

"As we now can see you don't know much about your family tree so I suggest that you open the last page of the book." Hermione did so and found that there was what looked like several folded papers but as soon she touched it started to glow and seconds later she was holding a large scroll instead of the book. Amazed she rolled it out and saw an enormous family tree. She started at the bottom where she found herself, Ron and Harry. As she followed her line in the tree she found the great grandmother Phineas had told her about. Her name was Natalie Longbottom. At this Hermione looked up and said "So I and Neville are related?" McGonnagal just nodded and Hermione continued to scan the tree. She found names like Bones, Diggory, Kirke, Sloper, and other names she knew of from her years in Hogwarts. In the eight century she found a connection between herself and Harry. Because of previous findings in the tree this didn't surprise her, but it was the name Merlin that surprised her.

"I thought Merlin was a tale" she said. "The muggles think so anyway."

"Yes it's true" Dumbledore said but not in the way muggle talk about him. "For example, the part about King Arthur is not true. It's seems that the muggles altered the real story trough the centuries. As for now the real story about Merlin is for another day."

Hermione continued the tree for one more hour before she decided she had enough. The thanked McGonnagal and Dumbledore for the book and the went to her dorm to put away the book before she met up with Harry, Ginny and Ron.

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