June 23rd, 1975

When Hermione came to consciousness she felt stares on her. She breathed deeply, trying to calm down her innate sense to fall into defense mode. She reminded herself that regardless of when she was, she knew she was in the home of the Weasley's and they were some of the most trustworthy people she had ever known in her life.

"Mummy, she's up! She's up!" Bill Weasley yelled, running away to go get his mother out of the kitchen.

Molly Weasley rushed into the family room where Hermione had been placed on the couch. Bill returned to his spot on the sofa opposite Hermione right next to Charlie who couldn't stop staring at the girl in complete and utter awe. Hermione sat up and rubbed her head, trying not to panic about the situation she was in again. She needed to say awake, find Harry, and get home.

"I called Minerva McGonagall over. You look Hogwarts aged and I assumed you were a student there," Molly explained to Hermione. "Are you from Hogwarts, dear? Do you need to eat?"

Hermione almost laughed over the quickness in which Mrs. Weasley was trying to shove her cooking onto Hermione.

"I actually just graduated, but thank you for inviting Minerva over. I could really use her help right now."

"What house were you in?" Bill asked before his mother could question Hermione any more. His voice was ripe with suspicion.

"Gryffindor," Hermione responded. Bill jumped off the couch and plopped himself right next to Hermione and hugged her and Charlie crawled off his spot on the sofa and beckoned for Hermione to pick him up. Hermione, not being able to resist the adorable toddler, pulled him up onto her lap. She tried ignoring the fact that it was technically her ex-boyfriend's older brother poised on her life. This is absurd.

"I knew you weren't evil!" Bill exclaimed.

Hermione fought off the urge to explain how the house you were in didn't effect the kind of person you were, but she took she took note of how even Molly looked less stressed after hearing that Hermione had been in the family's long beloved house.

A loud crack was heard from outside, and Molly rushed to the door to let in McGonagall. Hermione listened to the conversation the two were having in hushed voices. She couldn't make out much but heard Hogwarts Graduate and froze as she realized the suspicion Minerva was going to hold the moment she saw Hermione—at this point in time the two had never met one another. Minerva rushed into the room and pointed her wand at the young adult.

"I've never seen this woman in my life," She informed Molly Weasley, who gasped and rushed to grab her youngest son out of Hermione's arms and grabbed Bill's arm to whisk him behind her. Molly's eyes looked betrayed.

Hermione stood up and without knowing what else to say told the truth.

"My name is Hermione Granger. I am a former Hogwarts student. The reason you don't know who I am is because I left Hogwarts in the year 1997 to fight in a war."

"Lemon Drop?" Albus Dumbledore offered the girl. His eyes weren't telling Hermione what he was thinking as he looked at his future student.

Hermione accepted one, feeling as though she were eleven years old again and meeting the powerful wizard for the first time. Which she was, in a way. He folded his hands together and chuckled.

"You can imagine how delicate of a situation this is, Miss. Granger. Your story is compelling but how I am to trust it as truth? You said you were best friends with the son of Lily and James Potter, but as of the last day of this school term, Lily had sent an excellently executed bat-bogey hex at Potter, if I'm permitted to call it such."

Hermione knew the dangers of time travel and she knew that she had probably already given too much away. She had to be careful in what she said. The last thing she wanted to do was to create paradoxes that would impact the future. All she wanted was to be sent home, but she knew she also had to divulge some sort of information that would alert Albus Dumbledore to trust her. She sat for a moment, debating what to tell the most powerful man she had ever known.

"Your brother Aberforth has told me of your past, Professor Dumbledore. I know that Harry Potter loved you deeply. Still loves you despite what we learned about you, Gellert Grindelwald, and your poor sister, Ariana. When you die, you're going to leave me The Tales of Beedle the Bardin your will to me so I can defeat Lord Voldemort. I know that you manipulate those who surround you for the greater good. I know the dark parts of you and yet I'm still here, asking you for help because you're one of the most brilliant wizards I've known in my whole life," Hermione spoke honestly, and gave as much information as she could without feeling as though she was going to cause a gaping hole in the space-time continuum.

Albus gazed at the girl for a long time, silent as he contemplated her words.

His eyes looked angry, upset, and finally solemn. Hermione tried to sit as tall as she possibly could, not wanting Dumbledore to try and belittle her words.

"Miss. Granger, if you don't mind I need to send out a few owls and straighten out your arrangements so we can find a home for you. I ask that you remain in here until I return. Have as many Lemon Drops as you please. Just don't feed them to Fawkes please, he's putting on a little weight."

Hermione looked in the mirror of the infirmary lavatory, inspecting her appearance. She hadn't taken the time to look at herself in quite a long time. Her eyes were tired. She wondered how long the bags under her eyes had been there and suspected it had been long before landing in this new world. Hermione Granger was twenty years old but felt as though she looked much older. Perhaps that was just how she felt on the inside. Hermione's childhood was short-lived, as she had to face so much hardship and trauma at a young age alongside her two best friends. That was what she felt most bitter about when thinking of her days at Hogwarts—not being able to enjoy growing up.

The witch stared at the de-aging potion Albus Dumbledore had informed her to take. While Hermione trusted Dumbledore, she also wouldn't put it past him to put something that would make her forget her old life within the potion, which she promptly questioned him on. He looked surprised to be accused of such a thing, but certainly didn't look innocent. She pressed him more and was told "The potion will revert your appearance by a few years, but all of your memories will still be inside your mind," Hermione continued to stare at the man hard, "I swear by it on Ariana's grave," more emotion in Dumbledore's voice than Hermione had ever heard. Dumbledore had decided that until he was able to find a solution to her present situation, the best option was to de-age her, so as to blend her into society the best that he could for what Hermione presumed would be a short time.

Hermione chugged the potion and watched in the mirror as her body began to change. It was painful as her bones began to shrink. She frowned as her hair became bushier and sighed as the more womanly aspects began to shrink on her body. The twenty year old was gone and replaced by fifteen-year-old Hermione Granger.

Hermione closed her eyes and began thinking about Harry, wondering where he was. She ran through the experience that led her to this moment- the Veil, Davey Gudgeon, Hogwarts, the war, her friends, her parents, her cat. Everything was in tact. She was still Hermione Granger.

A much younger and spry Madame Pomfrey ignored the fact that the girl who walked out the loo looked completely different than the woman who had walked in just a few minutes before. "Headmaster Dumbledore is waiting for you in his office, dear. Do you know the way?"

Hermione nodded her head and began her walk back to the office. What would be waiting in there for her she was not certain. As Hermione walked through the castle she tried to become accustomed to her new, or rather old, body. She felt so much more awkward being in a body she had been pleased to outgrow the first time around.

"Bumblebee," she told the Gargoyle guarding the office, as instructed by the Headmaster to do. She tried to breathe deeply and avoid chewing on her lip with worry as she entered Dumbledore's office.

Walking in she seemingly interrupted a conversation between Albus and a woman aged about fifty, if Hermione had to guess. She looked regal, and was donning a pleasant gown that went a little past her knees. Her bright red hair was wrapped up tightly in an elegant bun and she wore an emerald ring upon her hand that stood out to Hermione, and she couldn't figure out what about the woman seemed so familiar about her. The older woman gazed at the girl with delight.

"Miss. Granger, I would like to introduce you to Mrs. Dorea Potter," Dumbledore informed the witch.

Hermione's eyes were wide with shock as she suddenly connected the older woman's face with her best friend's.

"Dorea has kindly accepted to take you into her home until we figure out how to get you home," his eyes had that infamous twinkle in them once more as he stood up. "I'll let the two of you acquaint yourselves with one another. I need to talk to Horace and come up with an explanation for the urgent de-aging potion I asked of him. Perhaps I can convince him that I was using it for myself," he rubbed at his beard and left the room.

Hermione continued to stare at Dorea in shock. This was most Hermione had been left speechless in the span of a day.

"So where are you from, Hermione?" Dorea asked the witch, remaining upright and somewhat intimidating in her seat.

Hermione opened her mouth to tell Dorea that she was from the future but was frustrated to find, although not completely surprised, to find that the words simply wouldn't come out of her mouth. Dorea smirked.

"I figured he would do this. There was no way Albus Dumbledore would let a time traveller out and about to blabber on about secrets she could have on the old man," Dorea stood up and approached Hermione. She was quite tall and towered over Hermione. She put a hand on each of the young girl's cheeks, "I know the basic information Dumbledore felt I deserved to know," Hermione had a sneaking suspicion that Dorea had forced the information out, "and I know that you are best friends with my grandson. That's enough for me to make you a member of my family." She took the girl's hand and led her to the chair she had been previously sitting in and took the chair next to her.

"By the look on your face, you've never seen me before in my life," She frowned only slightly, "leading me to believe I won't get to be around for much of my grandson's life," Hermione said nothing.

"Oh, well now I'll just have to fill you with enough memories so as to pass them on to him whenever Albus figures out how to get you home."

Hermione couldn't believe how quickly Dorea was taking all of this is stride.

"Will the rest of your family be okay with me staying with all of you?" Hermione asked, hearing her new voice for the first time. She nearly cringed at the how high pitched she sounded. Dorea laughed.

"Charlus doesn't know yet, but I'm sure he won't have an issue with it as he knows how badly I've always wanted a daughter. James will be beyond thrilled to have someone his own age around the house to wreak havoc with. Regardless of how they truly feel about the matter, I usually tend to get what I want in this house—the Slytherin in my always prevails," She told Hermione with a mischievous look in her eyes that Hermione had seen in Harry's quite a few times. "So let's create a story for you."

"A story?" Hermione asked.

"Of course, our family is fairly well known and people wouldn't just believe I've been hiding a daughter all of these years. Let's have some fun with it now, shall we?"

Hermione smiled at Dorea for the first time. She was just lovely.

I would like to keep the name Hermione if that's alright," she told Dorea.

"It's a beautiful name and it would be a shame to not keep it. Granger obviously can't stay though, love. You can't be a Black either because that lineage is far too documented if you ask me. Hermione Potter has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? The potter lineage isn't quite so kept track of and it would be unsurprising for there to be a few members to have been lost contact of in the Muggle-World years ago. "

Hermione laughed as she had never once in her life imagined picking up Harry's last name and could hear the jokes the jokes Harry and Ron would crack over it. Thinking of Harry brought Hermione back to reality and she began to worry over where her best friend was.

"I'm sure Dumbledore will find him, dear."

Hermione looked at the older witch in shock.

"I'm a Black, Hermione. We're quite well known for our legilimency skills. Dumbledore may have a put a strong block on you, but I can tell your missing my grandson, who I assume is lost somewhere, or rather somewhen, just like you.

"What are your parents back home like?" Dorea asked, smiling brightly.

Hermione had tried not thinking of her parents in a while. She knew that after the war there would be a slim chance of finding someone who could successfully bring back their memories of their daughter. Hermione had not spoken to them in over two years and they didn't even remember her existence.

"I had to obliviate them a few years ago in order to protect them. They don't even know who I am," Hermione was surprised she had been allowed to tell Dorea this, but supposed that the knowledge would do nothing to dramatically alter any Voldemort related timelines, which is what Hermione assumed Dumbledore would be most careful in protecting, now that he knew that he was officially defeated in the future.

Dorea wasn't the sort of women to show how she was feeling most of the time, perfecting a mask of cool nonchalance throughout her life. In that moment, however, she looked devastated for the girl sitting in front of her.

"Hermione, I'm sorry for whatever it is you've had to face in your life. I have no idea how long it will take for Dumbledore to figure out how to get you home but as long you live under my guardianship you will be well taken care of and you will have fun even if I have to force it on you. You deserve some carefree time as a young witch and on Merlin's beard I swear you will have just that," She stood up, holding out her hand to the young girl sitting before her.

"Thank you for your kindness," Hermione told Dorea, accepting her hand, still a little dazed over everything that was happening.

"Let's get you home," Dorea told her, walking the two of them to the floo.

"Potter Manner!" The witch shouted, keeping a tight grip on Hermione as the two women left Hogwarts to return to the large estate, where Hermione would meet the rest of her new temporary family.