Disclaimer: I don't own HP.

Summary: Hermione inconveniently falls into the Veil in the Department of Mysteries during the summer before her final year. Instead of dying, she finds herself back in time, when the Marauders had lived and thrived. Overused a LOT, but I still like it.

Hermione's POV

"Ugh, my head," I groaned as I wiggled uncomfortably on the mattress I was lying on. I peeked open my eyes but was blinded by strong light. "Ugh, my EYES! It's an attack of the cornea and iris!" I nearly screamed. Where was I? Was I dead? The last thing I had remembered was...it was all too groggy. The pounding in my head was definitely messing with what spilled out of my mouth. "I absolutely hate whoever invented sunlight. Someone stick a fork in their brain and then make Ginny give him the bat boogey hex."

Groaning painfully, I managed to sit up on the bed and opened my eyes to readjust to the light. "Professor Dumbledore? How...I...I saw your body! You, you fell! Y-Yo- Did you hear my comments?" I stuttered, my eyes widening (despite the agonizing pain) fearfully at the old man standing at the foot of my bed. It was Albus Dumbledore alright, in his cheery grey robes and his four foot long beard complete with his twinkling eyes. He seemed amused AT me. Behind him stood another man, who had dark hair, dark eyes, bright grin, with that familiar roarous laugh that I was sometimes annoyed by. Which I still am.

"Sirius? Oh, god, I AM dead," I moaned, putting my face in my hands. "Why did I have to go to the Ministry to get my apparating license? Why was I STUPID enough to go to the Veil to see if Sirius was still there? Why did Barty Crouch Jr. and Malfoy have to raid an attack on the Ministry and push me into it? OMG! What if Harry and Ron NEVER pass their NEWTS?"

"Mione, relax. You're not dead," someone said soothingly. I looked up to see him smirking. "And neither am I. We're in a limbo," he said in a very non-serious tone. I shot up to hug him, but groaned painfully when the room started spinning. "Bad idea, for someone so smart and bright."

"Miss Granger, I know it seems improbable, but this Veil that you and Mr. Black have been talking about, just happens to be some sort of time portal," Dumbledore explained. My jaw dropped as I tried to stay awake.

"What?" I was confused. "But Professor, er..."

"Hermione, you're twenty years in the past," Sirius told me as he knelt down beside my bed. "It's not 1997, it's 1977."

"Are you sure?" I asked hesitantly.

Dumbledore inspected his half moon spectacles, his merry eyes twinkling. "It is, indeed, 1977. Mr. Sirius Black here arrived her in the same way you did over a year ago. He simply fell into my office. Only he had a bottle of chocolate syrup in his backpocket and-"

"Only, I'm not Sirius Black anymore," Sirius interrupted with a pink blush to his cheeks. "I'm known as Professor Orion White." I giggled, and turned away when Sirius gave me a glare. "What's so funny? And don't you say a word about the chocolate syrup!"

"You're a professor!" I exclaimed, almost squealling as I burst into a tiny fit of giggles.

Sirius was indignant. "I may never be good as Moony (hell ya, cuz Professor Dumbledore had to go over everything I missed at the end of last year for me), but everyone thinks I'm funny." He crossed his arms and huffed. I grinned.

"Well Miss Granger, your only option is to stay here for now and become a student," Dumbledore continued, chuckling to himself. "You will be taking on the name as Hermione Granger, like always, and start your seventh year here in Gryffindor, like Mr.White has told me."

Dumbledore left the Hospital Wing soon after and was seen discussing something with Madame Pomfrey at the entrance of the wing.

"I'm pretty sure you want to be Head Girl for your seventh year, right?" Sirius said quickly. I nodded. "Dumbledore reckons that we've almost found a solution. And when he does, it'll just bring us to any time we had left off. Since I never made it back instantly at the end of sixth year, I'll go back with you."

"And it'll be like time never passed for me, or we'll never return at all," I concluded. Then I broke into a grin and seized Harry's godfather by the neck and gave him a bone crushing hug. "You have no idea how much everyone's missed you. Remus is all upset, and Harry is depressed. Not to mention that your cousin Tonks still misses you, when she isn't somewhere snogging Remus," I muttered the last part, and then covered my mouth at the slip up.

"Seriously?" Sirius managed to get away from my death grip and stared at me in wonder. "Who knew; a Metamorphmagus and a werewolf." He shook his head, before offering me a hand up. "Anyway, the Marauders are here in their seventh year too. Say hello to my younger self, it was weird." That sure in hell was blunt.

"WHAT?"

After I had calmed down somewhat, Sirius led me to the common room, where my trunk lay on the ground waiting for me. "Er, after you fell," he explained, puzzled, "this was thrown right after you. Actually, this is the reason why you were unconscious. HA! At least I managed to stay awake in the fall," he bragged, puffing out his chest pompously like Percy. The only difference was that Sirius did this on purpose to look like Percy, and Percy was arrogant and rude by nature (not to mention that Sirius actually had a six pack, unlike Percy, not that I was noticing).

I gave him a glare, before inspecting my trunk happily. "Thank you SO much, Lucius Malfoy," I said dryly, digging through my contents. Earlier that day, before I went to take my apparition test, I had gone shopping in Diagon Alley with Harry and Ron, and had insisted on packing everything into my trunk as I bought them, before waiting last minute to pack the next day. "It's so nice to toss in my luggage for my trip to my supposed death." Sirius gave that name a dark look, before emptying his bag he was carrying of sweets and junk food.

"So, er, nobody's suppose to be here until tonight for the sorting," Sirius announced, setting back into the sofa in front of the fireplace comfortably. "What do you wanna do until then?" He unwrapped a lollipop.

I heaved up my heavy trunk. "First, I gotta put this in my dorm. Um, where IS it gonna be?"

"With Lily Evans and Alice Prewett, soon to be Longbottom, of course," he said nonchantly, biting into a couple chocolate frogs also. "Along with two others. But Lily won't be in your dorm anyway, since she's head girl. Topmost dorm, at the top of the stairs on your side of the tower, at the of the tower, on the-"

"Yes, I get it," I snapped but grinned nonetheless.

When I got upstairs, I set my trunk on my bed and started to unpack. Was this to be my home for the next while? Will I ever see Ron, Harry or my parents ever again? Somehow, I didn't feel too depressed or sad about not seeing them for a while. I'll be alright in this time, as long as Sirius is here...

"Are you freakin' done yet? I wanna head down to the kitchens, and maybe set up a couple pranks on the students before they arrive!" a loud, boisterous shout interrupted my thoughts. I jumped, before putting my wand in my pocket and heading out of the dorm.

"Do you ever shut your yapping?" I muttered to myself as I started to walk down the stairs.

Only there were no stairs. Halfway down, I saw the steps start to melt into one another and form a slide, and I started screaming as I fell and landed on my but, but continued to slide down the Tower. "EEE!!"

"Gotcha!"

Just when I was about to land, I felt myself fall into someone's arms who swung me around. I panted heavily and glared at the dog Animagus. "That was not funny," I told him angrily. "I'm gonna KILL you!"

"Yeah, yeah," he said carelessly, before grabbing my arm and pulling me out through the portrait hole, "let's go to the kitchens! I love being a free man, you know that?" I scowled, part of me wishing he was locked up in a theatre with a chick flick playing.

"Hey, hey hey hey HEY!" I shouted as he led me along all over the castle. We even passed by the portrait of the fruit a couple times. After about twenty minutes of running around in circles, I grew tired. "What's there to be so excited about? And couldn't you do this without me? You know, WITHOUT dragging me along? I'd like to go to the library," I huffed, and he let go just as we stopped in front of the ticklish pears once again.

"Mione, Mione, Mione," he wagged a finger in my face. "You have so much to learn. Libraries are evil. There are goblins in the books, and once opened will come out and eat you and you'll ne-"

"Save it," I said before he could go on. I grinned as we seated ourselves on the tables.

A houseelf came bouncing towards us and left with our requests. "So, do you feel bad about house elves anymore? Not going on with spe-, er, S.P.E.W. anymore, right?" He chuckled nervously as I gave him a glare. He gave a nervous laugh, his beautiful dark brown eyes darting left to right as if I would strike.

I frowned. "Um, no, actually. I created a new club, and every Gryffindor and many Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws have signed up." Why did I feel like I shouldn't have said or thought about something that I did? It was so obvious a second ago.

Sirius downed a goblet of probably firewhiskey, and gave me a questioning glance. "Like what?" He gave me an intense stare and brushed a lock of his hair away from his eyes. His hair was now neatly cut right below his ears, just like in some of the photos I saw of Harry's. He looks a lot healthier now; his skin was now tanned and smooth instead of waxy and unshaven, and he was no longer that skinny either.

I looked down at my goblet of butterbeer, and said, "Werewolves."

Sirius gave a laugh and swung his arm out wildly over my shoulders. "Wow, Moony would be pleased. It figures someone like you could pull all of this off." I had to give a grin. I loved the way he was so outrageous and drastic sometimes, though he DID tend to be reckless. "It's awesome!"

"Why thank you," I mocked, "but I can't say the same for you and being a professor. Nope, I can't imagine it at all." I snickered the last part of it into my goblet.

Siruis gave a huff, before stuffing a pumpkin pastry into my face. "What was that?"

"Nothing."

Half an hour later, we left the kitchens with our stomachs full to find that the Sorting wouldn't begin for another two hours.

"Library," I told him, dragging him with me. Sirius pouted.

"Why do I have to go? I'm the teacher; no STUDENT of mine should be pushing me around," Sirius cried out indignantly. Despite that school hasn't started yet, and Madame Pince wasn't present at the moment, the library was open and I couldn't be more thrilled. Sirius poked my hand, which had a strong grip on Sirius' neck collar. "Can I go? Pretty please?"

"No. You dragged me to the kitchens, and so it's MY turn to drag you somewhere. And I say here."

I made him sit down at the table and I pulled open a book. After only a minute of Sirius' impatient foot tapping, he started to whine. "Can we go now?"

"No." I flipped a page, not paying him any mind.

"Hmmm, now?"

"No."

Three minutes later. "Now?"

"No."

"Will you think about letting the hostage, go?"

"I'll think about it."

"..."

"No."

"Aw, come on!"

I turned another page, irritated that I wasn't through the first chapter yet. "Just let me complete the series about Wendelin the Weird."

Sirius perked up and saw that the book I was reading was quite short. "Deal!" His face fell when I pointed to three other books on the table, each said 'Wendelin the Weird Part 1,2,3, or 4'. He dropped his head on the table, and started to snore.

I tapped his head with a book, and he jerked awake. "Huh? Is it 'ime to go?"

"Nope." I flipped a page just as Sirius let out a groan and his head banged into the table with a very loud THUMP. "Sshh, it's a library. Keep quiet, will you?" I scolded partly with annoyance and amusement.

Two minutes later, Sirius was (attempting to) braiding my hair. Five minutes after that, he braided his own hair out of boredom. Ten minutes after THAT, he was fingering his wand and making pictures in the air out of white smoke.

"Look, Mione! It's a duck!"

I didn't look up from what I was reading, and Sirius sighed boredly.

"Come on, Hermione. Let's go somewhere, do something, something other than this!"

I looked up finally and gave him a smirk. "Alright. Come on."

Sirius turned into a dog and barked happily. I was patted the black dog lovingly. He kept barking and licking my cheek, and I wondered what it would be like if he licked my cheek in human form.

"Huh?" I shook my head, confused. On my right shoulder, there was an Angelic mini-me telling me, "Hermione! You just realised what you just thought about? GASPS" And on my left shoulder there was a Devil mini-me, telling me, "Why, you didn't think of anything at all, Hermione. Nothing at all. -CACKLES EVILLY-."

I shook my head before slamming my book down. "Ok, Padfoot, let's have some 'fun'."

I walked out of the library, followed by a barking Sirius who licked my hand every now and then and jumped up into the air or chased his tail. "Woof woof!!"

I entered the Gryffindor common room once more and Sirius transformed back into a human as I wiped my cheek from dog (?) saliva. "Next time, Sirius, do NOT lick me as much."

"You know you LOVED it," he teased before getting me to sit down beside him. "So, Hermione Granger, master of reading and non-prank or quidditch related person; what do you have in store for us."

"Something."

"Come on! TELL ME! Harry says that when you get evil and mischevious, it's bloody brilliant!"

"Just wait a minute."

"Please?" He pouted and gave me his puppy dog eyes.

I yawned, before pulling something out of my bag. "Reading." I opened the same book I was reading and I heard Siruis slap his forehead in exasperation.

"Why do I even bother?" He rolled his eyes. "You're just like Moony." He sat down on the couch beside me and raged war on my hair.

After a minute, I slapped his hand, but not out of irritation. "What are you doing?"

"Everybody needs great hair! Look at mine! It's absolutely brilliant. Everyone wishes they had hair like me." I plucked a hair out of his head, and he yelped. "Mione, why'd you do that?" I could even HEAR the pouting in his voice as I continued reading.

An hour later, we both walked to the Great Hall to find that most of the students except for the first years were already seated. Sirius gave me a pat on the back before joining the other teachers at the High Table. Well, before I told him to take his braids out. I glanced around nervously to see that everybody here looked just like their own children that were to be here someday as well. At the Slytherin table, I saw a platinum blonde give dirty looks to me. I had changed into my robes earlier, so I guess he knew I was in Gryffindor.

I walked over to the front where Professor McGonagall had beckoned me and stood to face the rest of the students. I felt every single eye on me, especially when the first years marched in. "Attention, students!" she called out. "This year, we have a new student who is to join us. She is in seventh year, and has already been sorted into Gryffindor. May I introduce Hermione Granger!"

I heard a loud applause, smiled and waved around nervously, before I took my seat at the Gryffindor table. Then the transfiguration teacher started to call out names of first years.

"Hello, there," the person who sat next to me greeted cheerfully. I froze, not daring to turn my head to look at the person. The voice sounded so familliar, much like Harry's. "James Potter, at your service. It's absolutely wonderful to meet a gorgeous person like you today."

I snapped out of my entrance and turned to shake James' hand. "Nice to meet you. Hermione."

"I know." James gave me a grin, and I definitely couldn't help but notice that he looked so much like Harry. The only difference was the eyes, which were a dark hazel and the glasses that Harry and James wore. "This is Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin. I bet Peter, another friend, is in the hospital wing because Snivellous hexed him on the train." He wrinkled his nose, and I raised my eyebrow.

"Snivellous?"

"Snape," Sirius answered me from the other side of of the table, and leaned over to give me a look. "Slytherin. You do NOT wanna go messing around with any of them."

My jaw nearly dropped as I realised that this was Sirius. He looked so young and vibrant and full of energy. He gave me a charming smile that made me heart melt and I shook his hand while grinning.

"Nice to meet you."

"Not all of them are bad," the sandy haired guy that James introduced as Remus told Sirius, frowning. "But if you get on their bad side, they'll probably hex you. So it's just best to stay out of their way." He jabbed Sirius when the other guy attempted to steal something from his pocket.

I nodded, before shaking his hand. The seventeen year old Remus Lupin looked so much healthy and better looking, especially before all that trauma he was gonna get in four years. He's been through so much... "I'll do that." Dumbledore had already gotten up and started saying his usual speech.

"And this year, our new Head Girl happens to be Lily Evans, of Gryffindor." A boom of applause exploded as a pretty red head girl smugly stand up at the end of the table and wave. "Also, our Head Boy is also in Gryffindor, and just happens to be James Potter."

I started to clap, but was amazed when both Sirius and Remus jumped up as James stood up and started clapping and whooping madly. I grinned, but it was short lived when I saw that Lily Evans had a frown on her face and was not clapping. I leaned over the table to whisper to Remus just as the food appeared.

"What's with her?" I beckoned to the red head girl, who now appeared to be sulking as a her friend chatted away with her. James pouted when he saw this, and sat down in a huffa nd picked up his fork.

Remus grinned. "James has been going after Lily for years, but it's never worked. She thinks he's a stuck up, arrogant, pain in the arse and can't stand him."

"Still. It's not right not to be happy for someone for something like this," I muttered to myself, but reckoned Remus heard me anyway because of his werewolf abilities.

Remus made a disgusted noise. "Padfoot, can you stop stuffing your face with food?"

I leaned over past James, who was pigging out too but not as much, to see Sirius had a mustache of mashed potatoes. "And chew with your mouth closed too, please," I added, before letting out a giggle. "Er, you've got some mashed potato on your face."

"Where?" I rolled my eyes and glanced up at the high table to see the older Sirius smirking and shaking his head. I tried not to laugh because he was pigging out too, and the Arithmancy teacher at the moment, Professor...Ren Carla, was trying to talk to him unsuccessful. I narrowed my eyes at the blonde woman. She was in her mid thirties, and was smiling unwaveringly at Sirius, who looked bored out of his mind just talking to her and looked like he'd rather eat and fall asleep.

"So, is it all, set?" the younger Sirius asked James and Remus in a low tone.

"What's all set?" I cocked my head and gave him a hard look. Sirius wiped his mouth on a napkin and leaned over across the table.

"I don't know if you've heard from Professor White," he whispered and I tried not to giggle again, "but we three, and Peter of course, have a reputation of being pranksters here at school."

"We're the Marauders," James added quietly, sniggering as he glanced over at the Slytherin table.

"Don't mind them," Remus told me, rolling his eyes at his best friends. "They plotted an elaborate scheme on the Slytherins, probably. I think it's either dung bombs, or , er, a farting charm on them everytime they moved, it would make a sound." I spat out my food into my napkin, laughing.

Sirius placed his hand over his heart and held his head high. "Moony! How can you even DARE to think of us so lowly?"

James nodded and pretended to weep. "We did them BOTH of course!"

I rolled my eyes and started laughing along with the three of them. "When's it to set off?"

Moony sniffed the air, and I could instantly tell you didn't need werewolf abilities to smell this one. I plugged the bridge of my nose, fanning away the air. "Right about now," he relied dryly.

Once the feast was over, I walked with James out of the Great Hall. Sirius had thrown up under the table from all the food he ate and now Remus was trying to help him to the hospital wing. The Slytherins had left the Great Hall all embarassed and definitely with a lot of noise, and Dumbledore managed to remove the smell of the dung bombs. A couple first years actually believed that the stink was caused by Slytherins. "Wow, your friends are so..."

"-out of it?" James gave a laugh. "Don't worry about it. Remus is awesome, and Sirius can be a good friend and person once you get to know him a bit. I'll show you to the common room, since you're new here. Then I gotta go to my own dorm."

I nodded, thinking it was unfair that I was here talking to Prongs the Marauder when Harry deserved all of this. "Thanks." I hope he didn't see that my face had fallen the last few seconds.

When I had gotten upstairs again (the stairs had unmelted), I felt really bad and guilty in my stomach, and couldn't sleep at all that night.

A/N REVIEW!