October 10, 1976

Hogwarts Castle, The Great Hall

"Padfoot," James said softly, tapping his friend hard on the shoulder.

Sirius winced. "Merlin, Prongs. Let up a bit, will you?" Sirius followed James' gaze to the entrance of the Great Hall, where several people were arriving to breakfast late. He rolled his eyes and returned to his breakfast, taking a bite of a sausage link. "I've already seen Evans this morning, remember? You nearly assaulted her in the Common Room." He wasn't sure why he was so irritated with his best friend these past few days. It couldn't be James' obsession with Lily Evans- he had been dealing with that since second year.

Maybe it was the confidence with which he had taken care of that small, broken girl three nights ago. Sirius had been slightly jealous of the way James had carried her in his arms and the way she had clung to him as though her life depended on it.

He, Remus, and Peter had stood there like idiots while James played the hero.

"Sirius. Look."

He shifted his eyes to the entrance hall again, more intently this time. There was Snivellus, giving a first year a hard time. Peter, staring wistfully at Mary McDonald. And then, there she was.

The girl from the corridor.

She looked different, Sirius noticed. Good different. She looked like more of a real person in Hogwarts robes, clutching her books to her chest in that Prefect-like way that Moony always did. Her brown hair, instead of being all over the place in wispy flyaways, was neatly pinned back into a ponytail. She looked brighter, more alive—but even from a distance Sirius could tell that she had seen some things that no one should have to.

"I'm going to go introduce myself," he said, standing abruptly and nearly knocking over his breakfast.

"Don't embarrass yourself, mate," James piped up.

"Take her a cup of tea," Remus suggested.

Sirius strode over to the girl, who was making a home for herself and her textbooks at the end of the Gryffindor table. "Hello love," he said brightly, sitting down across from the girl. She looked up, startled, and stared at him, her eyes wide. "I see you're finding your way around the castle alright." She nodded, and he outstretched a hand. "Sirius Orion Black, the third, at your service."

A ghost of a smile passed her lips as she took his hand. "Hermione Granger, the first."

"Where did you come from, Miss Hermione Granger, the first?" he asked, and poured her a cup of tea, at Remus' suggestion, from the pot on the table. "What do you take?"

"Milk and honey, please."

He obliged and passed the mug to her, which she sipped appreciatively. You came from somewhere that isn't normal, because you appeared in the corridor, beaten and bloody with no knowledge of what happened. "I'm a transfer from Beauxbatons," she answered, a little too quickly.

Sirius raised his eyebrows. "We'll tell people that for you, of course, but you should know that my friends and I are the ones that found you. Beauxbatons may be an odd school, but I'm sure that they don't drop their transfers in looking the way you did."

"I appreciate you keeping my secret," she said simply. Sirius shook his head and eyed James, who was winking at him and giving obnoxious thumbs-up's from the other end of the table. He ignored his best friend. "So, why lovely old Hogwarts? Did you hear about the strapping young lads that walked the halls?" He flipped his hair over his shoulder and grinned at her.

"That's another story for another day," she retorted. "Are you a sixth year as well?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"So, you have Potions next as well?"

Sirius nodded. "Double with the Slytherin's. Its as if Minnie is trying to kill us on the first day." At Hermione's raised eyebrows, he continued. "Our Head of House, Professor McGonnagal. She and I have an affair going on outside of classes."

"Somehow, I believe that."

He smirked. This girl had a sense of humor. "Would you like to come meet my friends? I think there's an extra seat over there. If not, I can always kick James to the floor." Hermione glanced in the direction of James and Remus, and he stilled. How did she know who they were?

"No thanks. I need to talk to Professor Dumbledore before class." She finished the tea that he made her, and stood up, packing her books in her bag. She hadn't eaten anything, Sirius noticed. "Good to meet you, Sirius."

"You too," he replied, but she was already walking away, leaving the Great Hall without approaching the Head table.

He returned to his friends, who looked at him expectantly. "I'm in love."

Hermione reached the dungeons after stopping to 'ask directions' twice on the way. She had ignored all the quirks about Hogwarts she had learned in her seven years there—the disappearing stair outside of the Great Hall, Peeves, the ghosts who passed through the walls. She tried to see the castle through the eyes of an outsider. She stared at the enchanted ceiling in mock awe, and acted amazed at the food appearing on the table in front of her.

And the whole Marauders business.

When she had been made crazy by war, it was one thing. But Sirius Black blatantly flirting with her at breakfast that morning? Hermione wasn't sure how much of that she could handle.

It didn't help that Avery's letter was burning a hole in her pocket, and the thin green and silver ring on her finger feeling like a neon sign.

Hermione never thought she would be seeking out a Death Eater to tell her story to. She couldn't believe she was trusting this letter in the first place—but he had known her Amortentia scent. Nobody knew that—aside from the few Gryffindor students that had been in Slughorn's classroom that day during her original sixth year. And he hadn't killed her.

Wouldn't he have killed her, if it wasn't true?

Double Potions with Slytherin was the perfect opportunity to figure out who Avery was, so she could approach him later.

The dungeon was nearly full, aside from a few open seats in the back. There was a group of Slytherin boys directly in front of Slughorn's desk, clearly eager to get his attention. Was one of them Avery? Hermione started toward her normal seat in the middle of the room, but quickly noticed there was already someone sitting there. Red hair gleamed brightly, and Hermione was stopped in her tracks.

Anyone but her…

Stomach churning, Hermione kept her head down and took the seat behind Harry's mother.

"Hi," she said, and Hermione looked up with wide eyes, only to see Harry's eyes staring back at her. "I'm Lily Evans." Lily had a soft voice, a pretty face, and a kind smile.

"I'm Hermione," she replied, forcing herself to smile. Her heart was racing, and she willed herself not to cry. Harry was dead. Carried out in Hagrid's arms—

"You're from Beauxbatons, right? I think you'll be in our dormitory. A new bed just appeared in there this morning." Lily said, picking up her supplies and moving to the seat next to Hermione. "You're the talk of the school today. We don't get new students very often."

Catching her breath, Hermione shrugged and feigned sheepishness. "Well, I appreciate you introducing yourself. Mostly everyone has just stared at me like I have two heads. I've been here nearly three hours, and you're only the second person to talk to me, besides teachers.

"Who was the first?"

Hermione forced herself not to say his name right away. "Some boy with dark hair in his eyes. He tried flirting with me—"

"That'll be Sirius Black," Lily answered. Hermione noticed that Lily said his name with a tinge of disgust. She knew this—Lily hated the Marauders, more than anything, until she and James got together. You can't be thinking these sorts of things, Hermione, she reprimanded herself. The fact that she even walked into Hogwarts this morning could mess up all sorts of things, and not for the better.

"Oh, right. That's him. He's very… eccentric, isn't he?"

The redhead rolled her eyes. "I don't suppose you've met his friends?" Hermione shook her head. "They're all wildly immature. Playing pranks all the time. James Potter—he's the one with the glasses—he's been asking me out twice a day for the past three years. He hasn't seemed to have gotten the hint." Lily turned towards the doorway of the dungeon. "Speak of the devils."

Four boys soon surrounded the tabletop, and Hermione smiled politely. Don't let on that you know them…

"My precious Lily-flower," James said, looking at Lily over the rims of his glasses. He took her hand and kissed it, and she snatched it away. James turned to Hermione, and said, "Hermione, was it? You're looking much better than the last time I saw you. James Potter. Nice to meet you." The brunette couldn't help but notice how drastically different Harry and James were. While Harry would have introduced himself sheepishly, asking loads of questions, James hardly let her get a word in.

"You as well."

Sirius just winked at her.

Remus outstretched his hand, quickly and politely. "My name is Remus. I apologize for my friends' behavior ahead of time. They're gits, more often than not."

It was then that Slughorn entered the classroom, his belly preceding him. "Class, hello! The first class is my favorite of the year- it really sets a precedent, don't you think? I'd like to start off the year by pairing you off into groups—with a bit of inter-house unity." The Gryffindors in the room let out a collective groan, while the Slytherins looked back at the former in disgust. "Ho, ho!" Slughorn exclaimed. "I'll pair you off myself. I'd like you to brew a spot of Amortentia. We're not going to use it, no—but it's just something fun for the first day."

Hermione half expected him to hand out a vial of Felix Felicis for the best potion.

James was paired with Mulciber, Sirius with Malfoy, Lily with Snape, and Hermione with—"Mr. Avery. Why don't you show our new student how we do things at Hogwarts?" Hermione's heart dropped into her stomach. Already? The dark haired boy from the front row turned around, stony faced, and made eye contact with her. She smiled feebly.

"Hi, I'm Hermione," she said, voice shaking, when he approached the table. He's friends with Death Eaters. He's hurt Mary McDonald. He IS a Death Eater.

"Alexandre," he replied curtly. Alexandre Avery. What a normal name.

"Have you ever brewed Amortentia before?" she blurted as he produced a book from his bag. Hermione. Stupid.

He just stared at her. "I can't say I've ever slipped anyone a love potion, no. Have you?"

She felt her cheeks burn bright red. "No, I haven't. But I've brewed it before."

"Hmm."

They added the first few ingredients in silence, and Hermione took on the task of stirring the potion clockwise 73 times. "I haven't seen you around before," Avery regarded her, his chin in his hand. "Professor Slughorn mentioned that you're new, yeah?"

"Today is my first day," Hermione replied. She had memorized this response and practiced it in front of the mirror. "I attended Beauxbatons before this."

"Why Hogwarts? I'm sure the French have a much better education than Britain. I mean, this place is a joke. I'm only going because my father wants me to. I knew half of the OWL spells my first year."

"It's a long story."

"Well, looks like we have time," Avery retorted, eyeing the cauldron. 21, 22, 23…

"My parents died. I was sent to live with my aunt, and she lives closer to Hogwarts. She also preferred Hogwarts. She was a graduate, herself."

"Are your parents Muggles?"

She looked up from the cauldron and narrowed her eyes at him. How dare he ask her that, right in the middle of class? "Does it matter?" she snapped.

He shrugged. "Some would say so. But I guess not." He leaned in and whispered, "don't let my mates hear me say that."

The Amortentia was now turning a distinct golden color, and Hermione was just finishing up her stirring when Avery snatched her hand from the ladle. "What is this?" he hissed, gesturing to the ring. "This is my mother's ring. Why do you have this?" He had his wand out now, pointing directly at her chest.

"I—" Hermione couldn't speak. She hadn't thought about the fact that he might notice the ring—stupid—and she most definitely had not thought about a response if he had noticed.

"Mr. Avery!" Slughorn shouted from across the room. "Put your wand down right now!"

Avery did not comply. "You're creating a scene," Hermione hissed. "If you hex me now, you'll never know." He faltered, but his wand did not move from her chest. "I will tell you, but you need to meet me on the seventh floor tonight at midnight. Opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. It's not something I can tell you in the middle of Potions. The only thing you need to know right now is that I didn't steal it, and if you owl your mother she'll inform you that the ring is still on her finger."

Hermione seriously hoped that Avery's mother was wearing her ring today.

"Now put your wand down, Alexandre."

Avery complied, scowling, and stormed out of the room, the cauldron tipping behind him. Hermione jumped onto her stool, Amortentia soaking her shoes.

Well, that went well.

A/n: Eeeeek! What do you think will happen?