Escape
Godric's Hollow was one of those silent villages you never hear about. Located in the West Country of England, it held no more than about a hundred houses and a handful of stores. The village was inhabited by only a handful of families, and like in most communities, everyone knew everyone.
That was why when suddenly two young teenagers were standing in front of the war memorial, long-time resident Gary Wright knew they did not belong. The geriatric got on his feet, and walked over to them intent to give them a stern talking to.
"Ow be, young uns? Isn't it it a school day?" He looked at the two, a boy of about twelve or thirteen and a girl about the same age. Despite it being October and cold having seeped in, neither was wearing a coat of a kind, and upon further inspection he realised the boy was wearing some kind of pyjamas, and not even shoes. The girl was wearing some kind of school uniform he didn't recognise.
The kids had stiffened upon his approach, and the boy instinctively had put the girl behind him, protecting her with his body to the best of his possibility.
"Oi, where's your clothes boy? How did you get here?"
The boy scrambled in his clothes and took out some kind of wooden stick, but the girl put her hand on his arm, and pushed it down. Gary looked on, bewildered a bit.
"Please sir, I'm sorry, but we aren't doing anything wrong," the girl started hesitatingly. "We'll be going soon, won't we Harry?" The last was directed at the boy she was holding on to, of course.
"Are you on a school trip? Where's your teacher?" Gary asked again, and took a step closer. Instantly, the boy raised his arm again, and the last thing Gary saw was a red flash leave the stick, before he collapsed.
–-
"Harry!" Hermione bit at her friend, as she watched him stun the old man. "He was just concerned! How could you!"
Harry looked back at her, and Hermione realised he was afraid. "I... I'm sorry Hermione. Where are we?"
"How should I know? All I know is that you asked me to trust you, took my hand, and suddenly we were here, wherever here is. Judging by the man's accent I'd say we're in Cornwall or Devon in some village. Hang on, let me take a closer look." The young witch looked around the village square they were at, and saw a war memorial a little away from them. "Maybe that has some information Harry."
As they walked closer to it, suddenly the war memorial changed: it no longer listed the forty-odd soldiers that had fallen in both World Wars, but now became a statue of a family. A father and mother were sitting, the mother cradling a child in her arms. "In remembrance of James and Lily Potter, heroes of the Wizarding War," read Hermione out loud. Behind her, Harry let out a gasp that sounded painful. "Oh Harry!" Hermione rushed into the arms of her friend, and hugged him tightly.
Harry was feeling overwhelmed. Here he was at a statue of his parents — and himself as a baby, something he hadn't even known existed. And just as he was coming to the realisation that this must have been his last real home town, his best friend rushed in for one of her patented hugs... making him acutely aware that Hermione not only had definitely entered puberty, but so had he, judging by the sudden tight feeling in his pants he got as he realised that the small bumps being pressed into his chest must be her –
"He... Hermione?" Harry stammered, "You can let go now. I know where we are. And we have to get out of here, right away."
Hermione let go of Harry, but not before she realised that he had been hugging her back — a first — and that something had been pressing against her lower stomach as they hugged — another first. With a sudden realisation, she let go of him, and took a few steps back. A part of her was overjoyed that she had had such a reaction on him, and a light smile escaped her otherwise tightly controlled emotions and showed on her face.
Harry took her hand, and dragged her towards the end of the square, towards one of the village's streets. Luckily no one else seemed to be out and about, Hermione thought as they rushed past the snoring old man that had confronted them earlier. Harry rushed to the end of the street, where the line of houses gave way to a bare field... a field that changed to show a ruined cottage, left open to the elements all these years. Upon reaching the gate, Harry stopped running, letting Hermione catch her breath.
"This is it "Mione," Harry said in a small voice. "This is where I would have grown up if it hadn't been for Dumbledore."
Hermione looked at the ruin. Most of the cottage was still standing, except for the second floor, where the right side had been almost completely blown away. She realised that was where Voldemort probably met his end when he tried to curse Harry all those years ago.
"I wonder why nobody's ever rebuilt it?" she whispered. Somehow speaking out loud felt like defiling a sacred place here.
"Maybe it's like when you get cursed with Dark Magic, and it was not possible," speculated Harry, taking a step towards the gate.
"Harry, you can't go in there!" Hermione bit at him, "You don't know if it's safe, and — oh Harry, look!"
Harry touching the gate must have triggered some spell, as a sign rose up out of the ground in front of them like a flower suddenly giving bloom. It held golden letters which proclaimed this to be the house where Lily and James had been killed, and that it had been left as a monument, invisible to Muggles. All around it were scribbled notes and graffiti, some by people leaving their name,s many others thanking the Potters, some wishing Harry well.
"It's vandalism to defile the sign," said Hermione in an indignant tone.
"I'm okay with it," said Harry, "at least someone remembers. But why didn't they even tell me this existed? I mean, I remember now, but –"
Hermione suddenly realised what he had said earlier. "Harry, what do you mean "if it hadn't been for Dumbledore"? Don't you mean, "if it hadn't been for Voldemort?""
Harry let out a pained laugh. "Voldemort? Oh Hermione, how naïve you are."
Hermione looked like she wanted to say something, annoyance visible on her face, but Harry didn't let her.
"Who was responsible for the safety of my parents? Dumbledore. Who decided not to use lethal action against Voldemort during the war? Dumbledore. Who was the one man who knew Thomas Riddle as a child better than anyone, and could have stopped him before he became a Dark Lord? Dumbledore. No "Mione, I do know who to blame," Harry replied with a half mad laugh, and stepped through the gate to enter the ruined cottage. Hermione scrambled to follow.
"Look at this damage," he pointed out the ruined furniture, and destroyed paintings in the cottage once they'd both entered. "Did Voldemort do all this? No, that was the Ministry after my parents were murdered. Apparently nobody even thought of securing my family property. And tell me Hermione Granger, who is the real head of our government, the one man all Ministers have to listen to?"
"Easy, that is the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot," replied Hermione in her "school" voice.
"Ten points to Gryffindor," Harry grinned, sitting down on the mossy ruined sofa. Hermione looked on with distaste. "And who was the Chief Warlock in 1981? Little hint, the last election of one was in the 1950s."
"Dumbledo –" Hermione began, "Harry, you're being silly. You can't just blame him for everything. He is the Leader of the Light after all!"
Harry gave her a look of disbelief. "Right, a self-given title and that explains everything." He took a deep breath, and closed his eyes briefly, then smiled at his friend. "Sorry Hermione, I didn't mean to be such a jerk just now. It's just, I know. No, I should say, I remember."
Hermione wrinkled her nose, then took out her wand and cast "Scourgify" at the sofa, cleaning it mostly, then sat down next to her friend. "Apology accepted Harry," she said with a light smile. "Now, what do you mean, you remember?"
"I apologise for the pain in advance," Harry said, as he took out his wand and trained it on her. "Finite Ultima."
A bright light left his wand and hit Hermione in the forehead. Her eyes rolled back, and Harry scrambed to catch her before she fell.
–-
Hermione was hurrying back to her Common Room with Penelope Clearwater in chase, she had found the monster in the Chamber of Secrets, a Basilisk! She had ripped out the page of the book detailing the big snake — she'd apologise to the stern librarian later and hope she could explain it without losing library access — and now had to get back to Harry right away. He'd know what to do. She was ignoring Penelope as she told her to wait up, until she reached another corner. Penelope caught up with her, and took her by the shoulder.
"Granger, be careful! You know the corridors aren't safe," she chastised the younger witch.
"It's fine Ms Clearwater, we can look through the mirror first," Hermione replied, and took out her handmirror. Both girls looked in it... and saw two huge yellow eyes, petrifying them immediately.
Hermione was fully aware, even if she could not reply to anyone, or move her body at all. She was quickly found and brought to the hospital wing, where Harry was the first to visit her. Her best friend stayed with her until Madam Pomfrey ushered him out.
The following day Ron Weasley was the first to visit. At first Hermione felt touched that he thought of her, she did not really see him as a close friend and only hung out with him because Harry did, and some vague recollection that Ron had rescued her from the troll with Harry. But the relief quickly turned to horror as she felt him touch her budding breasts over her clothes. Hermione wanted to scream as Ron groped her, and was praying for anyone to help her as the red-headed git began to left her shirt, no doubt to get a better look.
Then out of nowhere Harry showed up, and Ron was thrown away. Lying there unable to move she appreciated that Harry covered her with a blanket to protect her modesty before he started to explain things to Madam Pomfrey... only for Dumbledore to come in and Obliviate them all.
The scene shifted.
–-
"Harry, you're a great wizard, you know," Hermione declared to her friend as she hugged him. They had reached the end of the Third Corridor gauntlet together.
"I'm not as good as you," Harry replied in an embarrassed voice.
Hermione let go. "Me! Books! And cleverness! There are more important things — friendship and bravery and — and love," she added with a blush, then kissed him on the cheek. "Harry, please be careful?"
"I promise," said Harry. "I like you a lot Hermione. If... if we survive this, will you be my girlfriend?"
"Yes Harry, now go safe the world," Hermione beamed back at him.
As she was going back to pick up the baggage — erm Ron — from the Chess Room, she was met by Dumbledore. "Professor! You have to hurry, Harry he's, and I'm, and we –"
"Easy girl, calm down," Dumbledore smiled genially at her, his eyes twinkling. Hermione felt a tickle in her mind, as the last few minutes seemed to replay before her. "Oh no, that won't do. My girl, you didn't declare your love for him, and certainly didn't kiss him. Obliviate."
The scene shifted.
–-
Hermione was crying hysterically in the girls bathroom, having a nice little pity party. After that mean stupid fat walking stomach had insulted her in front of the entire class she had rushed here, skipping all other classes and even lunch. Her life was over, everyone hated her, and no matter how much she did her best in class even the teachers did not appreciate her. So a good long cry was just what she needed. She had told off the girls coming to talk her into coming to the feast, didn't they understand she needed some alone time? After a long bout of crying she would feel better, and maybe then could face them again.
She heard the door open, and something heavy and smelly come in. "Go away Bullstrode," she yelled, thinking it was probably the ogre-like Slytherin girl again. Bullstrode was not popular even in her own House, and apparently was the only other person to sometimes use this bathroom.
But it wasn't a classmate... it was a full-grown troll. As it backed her into a corner and was preparing to kill her she thought her life was literally over, but then Harry appeared out of nowhere, and killed the troll.
Shortly after the teachers appeared, and as Hermione was telling them Harry had saved her, and that she was only there because Ron had been bullying her, she found that Dumbledore was not willing to listen. He Obliviated them all.
–-
Hermione woke up with a splitting headache, but found she was resting quietly on someone's lap. She looked up, and as chocolate brown eyes met azure green, a wide smile appeared on her face. "The answer is still yes, Harry."
"Hermione, you're all right!" Harry looked down with relief. "I'm sorry, the answer to what is 'yes'?"
"Yes I'll be your girlfriend Harry Potter. Now kiss me."
Harry bent his head down and as their lips met, they heard a gruff voice from the door. "Found you at last. Now hand over your wands, and nobody needs to get hurt."
