Hermione didn't even get a glimpse of the planet they had beamed on. Of course, this wasn't the most important thing right now, but they shoved her through endless white corridors with not a single window, and it made her feel sad. Captain Kirk had told her that Brisbane 21 was a planet mainly used for recreation. There were endless beaches and the climate was mild. Families booked their vacations and couples their honeymoons on Brisbane 21. It had sounded like heaven, but for unknown reasons, Hermione wasn't to see it. She gulped. Crying wouldn't help at all, Hermione reminded herself.
Finally, they went around another corner where a group of six people was already expecting them. Although they were dressed more casually, they also wore belt holsters.
"Thank you, Philippe," a woman in a long dark coat said. "I will take over here."
The leader of Hermione's group nodded.
"No problems so far, Madam." He gave Hermione a push which had her stumbling forward. Really, was that necessary?
The woman raised her eyebrows.
"That's enough, Philippe. Dismissed."
Hermione didn't turn around to watch her guards leave. Instead, she looked the woman over who had been addressed as "Madam". She had a silent authority about her, but also something weirdly familiar.
"Miss Granger?" The woman said and pointed at a glass door to her left. Behind it were rows and rows of desks, armed people running around and deskjockeys carrying files from one place to another. All in all, the police office looked like out of a movie. Shit.
"After you."
Hermione grabbed for the door handle, but the door swooshed open automatically. Oh yes, she always forgot that.
She went through the door, and while she went, the whole surrounding changed. A cold wind brushed her. Suddenly the entrance behind her was a huge and made of marble. A staircase led up from the middle of the hall, long-robed people were chatting, paper planes were bombing through the air and the clock hanging from the ceiling two floors above them had several watch hands, pointing at the most recent news and developments. Everything had the typical old-school style which Hermione hadn't even realized she had missed. It felt like coming home. Hermione gaped. Tears and misery were forgotten.
The woman entered after her and smiled. Then she did a most graceful pirouette.
"I'm Magnifica York. Welcome to the Wizarding Embassy of Brisbane 21. I'm awfully sorry we had to fetch you like that. Please, follow me."
The other two men and three women friendly bade them goodbye. Their holsters had disappeared and although they didn't wear robes, they had this certain wizard-ish vibe. Hermione's heart rate normalized. Things had gotten from rather desperate to something infinitely better. She hurried to be able to keep up with Mrs. York.
They went to an elevator, of course. Like on the Enterprise, it didn't just go up and down, but in every direction.
"Time is a tricky thing," Mrs. York randomly said as they were walking along another corridor. While the walls on Brisbane 21 had been clinically white, the wizards had kept their love for wood, warm colors and moving paintings.
"As soon as you arrived, we knew who you are. Files appeared and history changed. But time is also very vulnerable, nothing is written in stone. That means, on the other hand, we didn't know. So, that's my office, come in. Tea?"
"Yes, please," Hermione croaked and sat down on the offered chair. Mrs. York produced her wand from a pocket in her jacket and flicked it a few times. Tea and scones appeared on the table. Hermione readily made herself a cup - she needed that for her nerves.
"Why did you arrest me if you already knew me?" She wanted to know.
Mrs. York shook her head.
"That's not exactly how it works. The alarm you set off is meant to detect unregistered witches and wizards. It is based on your magical signature. Since you're from – when? – 1999? 2002? Oh, I keep losing track of it. Nevermind. You're from the past, which means that of course, you're not registered. We didn't know you were coming until ten minutes ago, and there wasn't enough time to plan something different. I am truly sorry about how Philippe treated you. They belong to the regular law-enforcement agency on Brisbane 21, and thought you were a criminal."
Well, the crew of the Enterprise most certainly thought that she was a criminal, too, Hermione thought. That dampened her enthusiasm. She would probably never see them again, but… she had liked them. And now she would stay in their memories as someone who had lied to them, or worse. Captain Kirk had been the first to recognize the alarm for what it was, and he had rightfully concluded that Hermione, the only one of their group whom he hadn't known for years, had to be the reason. What he had asked made a lot more sense now.
But they were wizards! They could help her, and maybe she would be home sooner than she had thought!
"So, will you help me to get back in my time, then?" Hermione asked. "It's been longer than a week now, and I don't want my friends to worry." If they even worried, a small voice in her head said. Hermione was annoyed that she even thought like that. Harry was her best friend, and even though he was married to Ginny, they spent a lot of time together. Ron… was Ron. Okay, better not think about it.
The woman tsked. "My dear Hermione, didn't you work in the Department of Mysteries? Time is a funny thing. Of course we can send you back, but I'm not sure we should. Even the wizarding world has to evolve with time, although it always takes us a little bit longer, don't you think? We have so much more opportunities now, but that doesn't mean we should take them."
It took Hermione a moment to digest the woman's words, but then, irritation rushed through her.
"That means you have the means to send me back in time, but you don't want to?!" She knew she was unreasonably loud, but she couldn't help being angry. "I'm stranded here! I don't know anyone! I mean I know a few people of the Enterprise, but I don't belong there, and now they probably think I am a Klingon spy or something!"
"Of course!" Mrs. York smiled at her. "Or, on the other hand, no. I will send you back, eventually, that is, if you wish for it."
Hermione groaned. Why, oh why couldn't wizards be straightforward for once? Before she could continue her rant, Mrs. York spoke again.
"Time is relative. It doesn't matter how long you are in the future, we can send you back to any moment you like. I would recommend the day when you disappeared, but if you want to see yourself grow up, we can send you back to 1980? 1970? When were you born again? But on the other hand, that would require a lot of paper work. Meddling with time is not a good thing. That's still one of the rules. So, what have I been talking about? Oh yes, the reason why you are really here…."
"Why do you say eventually? And why shouldn't I want to?" Hermione calmly forced herself to ask when it seemed as if the woman lost track of what she wanted to say. It reminded her that witches were frustrating. She had missed home so much she almost had forgotten that. Her hands twitched. "And why are you allowed to decide this, anyway?"
The witch sighed.
"Because, eventually, you will be back in your time. But there's something which tells us that you may spend a little more time in the future than you would like to at the moment, and I hate to meddle with fate. I'm the Head of the Department of Mysteries, by the way. That gives me the authority. Your work brought a break-through in the Arithmancy of time – at least for those who understand it… oh well, maybe I shouldn't have said that."
Hermione just stared at her. Thousands of thoughts rushed through her head. Everything was going too fast! She would stay longer here? Her work would be appreciated in the future? And then, out of all the babbling, her brain filtered out the relevant information. Merlin help, she had been so dumb. Of course they were able drop her in her time, in the exact same moment she had disappeared. Her worry and confusion had influenced her ability to think logically. For Morgana's sake, she had worked with time and it hadn't occurred to her! Even if she spent a month, or a year here, it didn't matter, because the same time didn't automatically pass in her time. She would just go back, on the same day, and her friends wouldn't even notice. Hermione took a deep, calming breath. She wouldn't rush into this without giving it a proper thought. Magnifica York was eccentric, but not her enemy. Hermione had to hold herself together, and approach matters reasonably.
"I am sorry I yelled at you, Mrs. York," was the first thing she said after a long silence. "I am still overwhelmed by everything. Please, what indicates that my stay has to take longer?"
The woman regarded her. After a few seconds, she smiled again. She reminded Hermione a little bit of Luna, which was disconcerting.
"No offence taken, Miss Granger. Please, call me Magnifica. Well… we introduced a new system to keep track of all the prophecies. The human race, and with it the wizarding society, expanded all over the universe, and there were problems with delivering prophecies to the concerning persons. Of course, the old system was kind of impracticable even on Earth alone. Today's seers wear little microphones, and whenever they fall in a trance, the devices record what has been spoken. Once or twice a month the seers go to the nearest wizarding embassy and the records are saved, duplicated and sent to every wizarding embassy in the universe. Long story short, we received a prophecy relating to you. It was spoken only two weeks ago."
Oh my. Prophecies all over again. Hermione sighed.
"What does it say?" she asked.
"I don't know," Magnifica answered. "No one is to hear it except for the person it is about. However, it has been recorded in our time, and not in yours, which would strange, except if it was about your time here."
The woman took a glass cube from the shelf on the wall.
"This is it. If you want to hear it, tap your wand on it."
Did she really want to know? Hermione asked herself. But what if she walked out of the room without knowing what it was about? Would the prophecy never come true, or would it come true and Hermione would be unprepared? Oh, she knew why she had hated divination in school.
Well, Hermione Granger wasn't a quitter, and she never ran away. So she held up her wand and tapped on the cube. A deep voice spoke. Hermione was surprised to hear that it was male.
"The warrior is tired, but there is still one battle ahead of her. If she is to save the one she cares most about, she has to continue her journey through the universe. Oh crap, I did it again, did I?" The man asked. After a short pause, he added: "Whomever that concerns, good luck."
Hermione just sat and stared at the thing. "That's it?"
She hadn't known what to expect, but it was a pretty short prophecy. "That was… clear. I mean it tells me exactly what to do." Not that she liked it, though.
"You don't have to do anything," Magnifica said. "It's only a prophecy. If you want, I can send you back home now."
Hermione glared at her. The one she cared most for was definitely Harry.
"I don't see a choice here," she said angrily. "Oh god, that's another reason why I hate them. They only give you the illusion of choice! It obviously says that in order to save a very dear person – in my case that would be Harry Potter, does this name ring a bell? – I need to stay on the Enterprise. Just great. I mean, I can't let him die, can I? Or worse!"
Hermione huffed. She took a sip of tea.
"That means that I have to stay for a while," she said slowly, realizing what the prophecy meant for her. "Find out what I can do or learn something that will help him back home." How did the future influence the past? Was there an influence? Or wouldn't it matter at all as long as she learned the one thing that would protect Harry?
"For how long do you think it has to be? And how do I ever get home, then?" Hermione asked.
Magnifica nodded. "I'm sorry. I truly am. Well… the Enterprise will reach Earth again in about five months. I think that will do."
Hermione morosely stared at her tea.
"Five more months… I really need to find an occupation. The last week was tiring enough. Is there someone on Earth who is able to send me back in time? And how do I even get on the Enterprise? You let me have kidnapped in front of the captain, his first commander and the chief medical officer!"
"Um, about that…" Magnifica grimaced. "I can get you a paper for the passage. Something that says "Really Important Secret Mission"… We have contact to Starfleet command. If I tell Admiral Simovs about the prophecy, he will understand. I will also give you a personal letter for my sister, who works for the MACUSA. She is able to send you back in time. About your crew… should I obliviate them?"
"No!" Hermione protested immediately. "Don't hurt their brains."
"Well then… You will have to think of something."
"Great," Hermione sighed. They said nothing for a while, contemplating the situation, until Magnifica York clapped her hands.
"Better get going, then! First of all, you have to get registered. We'll give you wonderful new papers, passports and such, and you'll never have problems like that again. Hermione Granger, it is?"
"Hermione Jean Granger," Hermione automatically corrected. Although no one ever called her like that anymore, Hermione's middle name reminded her of her youth and her parents. Those memories were precious to her.
"Very well. If you would follow me… but…"
The woman stood in the middle of the room and looked Hermione up and down. Hermione didn't know what this was about now. Suddenly Magnifica York seemed nearly shy.
"Um… may I have an autograph? You know, we learnt about you in Magical History…"
That was too much. All the tension Hermione had bottled up evaporated. Hermione burst out laughing. First an autograph, then.
oOoOoOo
AN: Thank you for your feedback:
lilnudger82: Bones flirting is really hilarious... and adorable :D
Jellybean: Well, just look what happens ;)
twztdwildcat: I wish there were more stories with a McCoy/Hermione pairing, but it seems I have to write them myself^^ Anyway, I'm glad you enjoy it!
carryon: Here's the next chapter - no more cliffhanger.
nostalgiakills: Just a precaution...
peachx89: Thank you :)
Emma3mikan, and guest :)