By: Mortania Faythe Hottersander
-
A/N: Thank you to all reviewers, notwritten, emofariee666, and hermione snape. Also. Spoiler notice for the sixth book if you haven't read it-if you need to-do it before the 7th book comes out! Also, biscuits in England are cookies I believe.
Disclaimer: Once again, I own nothing but Olivia and the plot. I apologize for any misspellings or grammatical errors. If you see any that need to be corrected please, by all means, let me know. The wonderful world of Harry Potter I am borrowing from Mrs. JK Rowling a brilliant woman.
-
Last chapter:
"No, Ronald this is my real mother. You've seen my aunt and uncle. But this is my actual biological mother. According to mum & dad. Hermione answered back and then continued to pull the journal out of the package. She flipped to the last page and saw the names written there, when she read the name of her father-she closed the book in a hurry and stood from the table. "Excuse me, I have something I need to do." She proceeded to walk to the head table where Headmistress McGonagall was seated.
-------------------------------------
Chapter 1: Gifts & Explanations
-------------------------------------
After Hermione had read the line her mother had written on the very last line the penmanship stuck in her mind along with her father's name. There were so many questions that she had...so many answers she wished for. It was a good thing she had her biological mother's journal to answer at least some of her questions. So, as she made her way forward to McGongall she compiled a list in her mind that she hoped to ask.
Minerva McGonagall was sitting in her new seat at the Head Table watching all her students that had choosen to return to Hogwarts. After the death of Albus Dumbledore, Minerva had faced a dilemma, whether or not to keep Hogwarts running for the students that wanted to go. Although class numbers had shrank, it was still adiment she felt that she keep the school running for those who wanted to learn. Trying to keep her mind off of things she also had been dwelling on past students. Namely, Olivia Gray. She knew that Olivia had a daughter, but she didn't know where she was. She also knew that the daughter of Olivia would be seventeen this year-Another reason she kept the school running-in case she came back. Lost in thought, she hadn't noticed how long the Head Girl had been standing in front of her.
"My apologies, Miss Granger. May I help you?" Minerva asked kindly while looking over her spectacles.
"Professor-Headmistress...erm, I was sent this today." She held out the photograph of her rightful mother to the Headmistress. "And I was told to see you."
Professor Minerva McGonagall's eyes widened the size of a sickle when she saw the smiling and waving figure of Olivia Gray as she had last known her. There was no way...but she looked up at the Head Girl, her prized student and muttered something under her breath. "Great Merlin, you're Livy Gray's daughter..."
"Excuse me?" Hermione asked trying to get a better answer.
"Well, I should have put two and two together, who else would spend time in the library and researching things of importance other than her daughter..." Minerva kept on muttering.
"Professor?" Hermione questioned, "Can you be a bit less unlike Professor Dumbledore at the moment?"
Minerva looked at Hermione square in the eyes now, "My apologies, Miss Granger. It appears that you and I need to speak later today if you would meet me in my office before lunch. Happy Birthday, dear." And with that, Minerva McGongall handed the photograph back to Hermione and stood from the table.
The morning classes went by rather quickly and all the Professors notices that the Head Girl wasn't quite with them. She seemed as though she was lost in more thought that usual. An hour before lunch, Hermione took the journal and photograph with the letter to the Headmistress' office. When she knocked on the door, Minerva yelled for her to enter.
"Prof-Head-ugh...what do I call you?" Hermione seemed a bit more flustered than she normally would be in a regular occasion.
"Call me Minerva, dear. Afterall, we are both adults at the moment, and I realize you are respectful, but I find that I think of you as a relative rather than a student. So, please, come in and have a seat. I also must apologize for this morning, my crazy mumbling...it's just you took me by surprise." Minerva explained briefly as Hermione made her way to a soft chair with a table sitting by it with biscuits on it.
"So, can you tell me anything? That's about my real mum?" Hermione questioned her head of house and Headmistress.
"Ah, but of course I can dear. Your mother was a very bright witch, Hermione. She was a muggleborn, and yet the epitimy of a Ravenclaw if we ever saw one. In fact, if we had to find the photo of a true one, your mother's photograph would be the one we would pin on it." Minerva smiled and then continued, "Your mother's real name was of course Olivia Hermione Gray but she preferred to be called Livy. She was a quiet girl with a kind demeanor, fuled by a love of human life. She never made fun of anyone and took any insult with the grace of a cultured woman." Minerva paused, "Would you like tea? I am absolutely parched."
"Yes, please. With lemon."
"Very well, now where was I?" Minerva asked after a glass of tea appeared on the tables.
"Her love of human life and the grace of a cultured woman." Hermione answered.
"Ah, yes. When she was here, she was friends with a fellow muggleborn witch in Gryffindor-Lily Evans. Or, as you are more familiar with her, Lily Potter. Lily and Livy were inseperable up until Lily and James started dating and then graduated. So, Livy began devoting her time to studying books in the library which they graduated her 4th year. Words and knowledge became her best friends and she cherished all the information which passed under her finger. She confided in me the last year she was here, and I helped her figure out what she wanted to do with her life-she was on the way to becoming a healer. She had been working with Madam Pomfrey in the infirmary and we had been paying her steadily since her fifth year for the assistance and internship she was under. However, she never made it to be a healer due to the fact that her life was cut too short. She died shortly after giving birth." Minerva paused to take a drink of her tea then she continued. "You would have gotten along with her beautifully, Hermione. She left a few things in my possession before leaving the school."
"Why did she leave them with you?" Hermione asked quietly. "Why not leave them with my mum, Karen."
"Because, dear child, some things that are magical are left for magical beings to handle rather than muggles. And if I do recall, she didn't want you to know your heritage until you were seventeen because in her opinion, magic was something to be taken care of."
It felt as though Hermione was standing in a room full of cold water with shards of ice prickling her skin. She was so cold and had a million questions but she just couldn't find the words, so she asked the one thing that took little words. "What did she leave me?"
"Well, there are quite a few things, really." Minerva answered while reaching in a drawer of her desk and pulling out a black velvet box. "Starting with this." She handed the box back over to it's rightful owner after seventeen years. She watched as Hermione opened the box and found a silver house key with a piece of paper and an address of a home in London.
"She left me a home?" Hermione asked confused.
"Yes, and I think that the home has several of her things in it." Minerva paused, "She wanted you to be able to get things that she would get for you if she were here."
"After seventeen years, don't you think that I'll have a lot of cleaning to do?" Hermione asked.
"As I said, books became your mother's best friend, Miss Granger-Which means undoubtably she had set a cleaning charm on the house for it to remain immaculately clean.
"What else did she leave you?" Hermione asked while looking at the key and putting it in her pocket.
"Well, over there in that cabinet, there's a pensive that your mother used...and here's another key-this one to a Grigotts account." She handed it to Hermione. "The vault number is on the key." Minerva sighed. "Something that's been bothering me since your mother approached me seventeen years ago, Hermione...who is your father?"
Hermione took a deep breath and looked down at the journal, a painful expression on her face, "That's something that's going to come out at the appropriate time, but right now, it's not it...Thank you Professor...for everything."
"You're welcome, Hermione." Minerva McGongall stood as her prized student walked out of the office with a bit of a new walk and a downcast sort of attitude. The portrait of Albus Dumbledore was behind Minerva and it spoke to her.
"She'll tell you in time, Minerva." Was the only thing the painting had to offer. Minerva nodded and walked out of the office closing the door behind her.