AN: Time travel is not an area I'm well-versed in or claim to understand at all. Honestly, the entire idea just confuses me. I've never written anything other than poems, either. I'm not sure why I've chosen to undertake what's going to be a huge struggle for me, but I hope you enjoy.


"Wait," said Bellatrix sharply. "All except. . . . except for the Mudblood."

Greyback gave a grunt of pleasure.

"No!" shouted Ron. "You can have me, keep me!"

Bellatrix hit him across the face: the blow echoed around the room.

"If she dies under questioning, I'll take you next," she said.

"Blood traitor is next to Mudblood in my book. Take them downstairs, Greyback, and make sure they are secure, but do nothing more to them—yet."

"You're lying, filthy Mudblood, and I know it! You have been inside my vault at Gringotts! Tell the truth, tell the truth!"

"What else did you take, what else? ANSWER ME! CRUCIO!"

"How did you get into my vault?" Bellatrix screamed.

"Did that dirty little goblin in the cellar help you?"

"We only met him tonight!" Hermione sobbed. "We've never been inside your vault. . . . It isn't the real sword! It's a copy, just a copy!"

"A copy?" screeched Bellatrix. "Oh, a likely story!"

"But we can find out easily!" came Lucius's voice. "Draco, fetch the goblin, he can tell us whether the sword is real or not!"

Bellatrix cast the torturing spell on Hermione again, and with it came her screams.

"Well?" Bellatrix said to Griphook. "Is it the true sword?"

Harry waited, holding his breath, fighting against the prickling of his scar.

"No," said Griphook. "It is a fake."

"Are you sure?" panted Bellatrix. "Quite sure?"

"Yes," said the goblin.

Relief broke across her face, all tension drained from it.

"Good," she said, and with a casual flick of her wand she slashed another deep cut into the goblin's face, and he dropped with a yell at her feet. She kicked him aside. "And now," she said in a voice that burst with triumph, "we call the Dark Lord!"


Hermione awoke, sweat pouring down her face. Trembling, she wiped the sweat off her brow and tried to steady her breathing once more. The nightmares were slowing, though they did happen more often than she'd care to admit. Glancing at the clock, she groaned. It was only four o'clock. Outside, the sky was still dark.

Hermione sighed, stretching. Today was the first anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts. Everyone was planning on going to the school this afternoon for the memorial service. Hermione, however, was expected to be in her former transfiguration professor's office just shy of four hours. Getting up, she began her morning ritual.

Between her incredibly busy job in the Department for the Care and Relations with Magical Creatures and the time she donated to fixing Hogwarts, she was exhausted. It seemed, however, that more tired she became, the more nightmares she'd have. It was not uncommon for her to be up and moving before the sunrise.

After the war, Hermione had grown considerably. Physically, her hair had settled, no longer being the frizzy mane it once was. She had begun gaining weight again, though she was still several pounds lighter than she needed to be. She knew she'd become more stubborn, and much more blunt. She hadn't the time to waste on tiptoeing around her colleagues and friends, and she had come to be respected because of it. Her long, rambling tirades - though a talent she'd had in her youth - had become increasingly longer and more quickly spoken.

Throwing on her jeans, a pink tank top, a blue long-sleeved cardigan, and her tennis shoes, Hermione apparated from her apartment to Hogsmeade. She saw the thestral waiting for her, and smiled. She climbed into the carriage, her ponytail swinging around her neck, made her way into the castle, and to the headmistress' office.

"Password?" the gargoyle on the left requested.

"Trust is our greatest strength," Hermione replied. For all her faults, McGonagall was wonderfully optimistic.

Walking into the office, she and Headmistress McGonagall greeted one another. Gesturing for her to sit, McGonagall inquired as to how she is.

"Well, to be honest, Minerva, I'm so sick of everything. It's been a year since the war ended, and everyone is still on edge. Harry and I still have nightmares, and it seems as though everyone is fighting amongst each other. People are becoming more involved with one another again, and not necessarily for the better. The other day I was at lunch and saw some students ganging up on a child I know to be a Slytherin - honestly, she couldn't have been much older than twelve. Not nearly old enough to have been a Death Eater, and I'm fairly certain her parents weren't. And oh, don't even get me started on work. The werewolf packs have been threatening an uprise, the goblins are threatening a rebellion, vampires are quietly denying any attempts for treaties... and to top it all off, even though Kinsley is doing a fantastic job, he's meeting opposition from every turn. People are saying it's too much too soon, but the ministry had fallen and is currently failing. There's no solid foundation for us to rebuild. Honestly, I'm frightened we won't be able to pull this off."

Taking a deep breath, Hermione leaned back into her chair. She looked miserable. She straightened as soon as she heard Professor Dumbledore's portrait speak.

"This is why she must, Minerva."

Huffing, McGonagall replied, "I know, but she's only a child! She's been through more than the entire Order has, and she's barely of age!"

"Excuse me, but... what must I do?"

McGonogall turned, and sighed. It was almost a sigh of defeat. "Miss Granger... Hermione. Hogwarts has spoken to me. She knows the path the wizarding world is currently on will destroy it. She has requested one student be sacrificed to change the timeline."

"I'm sorry, Minerva, but what do you mean by... 'change the timeline'?"

"What she means, child, is time travel."

Hermione was startled. A woman's voice had spoken, but McGonagall's mouth had never moved.

"Yes, I've spoken to you, my dear. You are the one I must send back. Think about it, child. You can stop this war from ever happening. I know what Albus told you, many years ago. 'It is a dangerous thing to meddle with time.' You will not, however. The future will be undetermined as soon as I send you back. This current timeline will cease to exist. You will have the knowledge needed to destroy Tom Riddle. You can stop this war from happening. You will be free to change the future. Should you make it far enough to reach the point where you would have been born, your birth will be replaced by that of another child. You will have been given life from this eradiated timeline. You will be free to fall in love, to live your life... you can stop the tragedies from happening.".

Hermione knew that that wasn't entirely true. By preventing one tragedy, she could cause a separate tragedy to be created - such as wiping out the birth of one of her best friends, for example. However, she also knew that the way the current events were going, they would cease to exist after all of this. The wizarding world could be wiped out.

"I can save Lily and James. I can stop Sirius going to Azkaban. I can let Harry live a happy life..."

At that, she realized her mind was made up. "When do I leave?"

"I know you want to gather your belongings and money. When you return you will leave."

Getting up, Hermione makes to leave. She tells Minerva what's going on, and returns to the apartment she shares with Harry. Ron had lived with them before he married Lavender, and Harry was moving out soon to live with Ginny. She notices a note pinned to her bedroom door, written in Harry's untidy scrawl.

"Andromeda decided to begin clearing out Remus and Tonks' apartment. Apparently, they were in the middle of a divorce. She's deeply upset. I'll bring Teddy home with me after the memorial today."

Hermione filed that away for analysis later - she had always had a bit of a crush on Remus, though that had disappeared once she found out he was married.

Heading into her room, she grabs her new bag. She had thrown away her former beaded bag, as the memories it held were far too gruesome. She had placed the same undetectable extension charm on this new one, however, and was quite pleased with it. Opening it up, she decided to dump every magical book she owned into it. She knew she wouldn't be able to remember everything, so rather than taking the time to figure out what ones she needed, she just grabbed them all. She'd burn the ones she wouldn't need later.

She also decided she had better pack some clothes, though she knew she'd have to shop in that time in order to blend in better. She packed only jeans and t-shirts. There was one she knew she probably shouldn't take, but she couldn't just let it go. It had been a gift from Fred and George for her 17th birthday, just after her sixth year had started. It was long-sleeved and red, with the words "Gryffindor Princess" written on the front in gold.

She kept her ring. Not long after the war had ended, the golden trio had decided to get something to remember their friendship by. It has a purple stone in the center, set firmly in the white gold band. On the inside it says "We are only as strong as we are united." As it was during the time when Ron and Lavender had just gotten back together, he had insisted on a purple stone. Harry had insisted on the engraving, and Hermione had insisted the band be white gold. Remembering how silver was the biggest way to kill werewolves, silver left a bad taste in her mouth. After realizing that, the boys had agreed.

For the purposes of explanations she knows she'll have to do, she grabs a picture of the Original Order, the DA, and the Current Order. Looking around her, she decided that she might as well take Harry's marauder's map and invisibility cloak. As soon as she disappeared, so would the timeline, and his need for them. She can't shake the feeling of guilt she has, though.

Apparating to Gringotts, she removes all of her money from the vault - to the suspicion of the goblins. She had quite a large amount, as the ministry had offered the remaining Order members compensation money after the battle.

With a heavy heart, she returns to hogwarts, and is greeted by Minerva placing a locket around her neck.

"This is a family heirloom. In it, I've placed a note with information only I and Albus will know. Give it to one of us when you arrive."

Nodding, Hermione glances around the room and catches Dumbledore's eyes in his portrait. "Good luck, Miss Granger."

McGonagall gives her one last hug. "Hermione... I've always considered you to be like a daughter to me. I know you'll do well, but please be careful."

Crying, Hermione opens her mouth to respond, before the voice in her head begins to speak to her again.

"It is time to leave, child. You must be in the Great Hall. My power is strongest there, as it was the most untouched."

As Hermione sets off to the Great Hall, Hogwarts continues speaking to her. "You will be sent back to April 8th, 1977. It will be during the Easter holidays. I will send you to the Potter Manor, headquarters for the Order of the Phoenix. You must say the incantation and let my magic pull you. It is 'praeteritum nisi futurum'.

Repeating the incantation, Hermione feels a sharp tug before the voice rings out one last time.

"Good luck, my dear."