Chapter 28: Preparations
Hermione nervously chewed her bottom lip as she approached the transfiguration classroom. She tried to think over all the possible outcomes of what she was about to do in her head. In reality, it wasn't that big of a deal, but Hermione valued Professor McGonagall's opinon so much, and she didn't want to upset her.
She made her final decision on how to go about saying this: calmly and without too many details. She would absolutely not start crying. The door to the empty classroom was open and Hermione quietly entered. At the end of the room, the door to Minerva McGonagall's office was closed. The bushy haired witch breifly wondered if maybe she was asleep and didn't want to talk to anyone, but then she reminded herself that it was only 6:45.
She knocked on the door quietly, and waited. Hermione could hear a faint, "come in," before she turned the doornob and cracked open the door. She saw the woman finishing up some hasty writing on her desk before she looked up. "Hermione," she seemd slightly surprised, probably having assumed that it was a student asking for help on a transfiguration essay or something, becuase Hermione rarely needed help on anything.
"Hello, Professor," She forced a smile, "I wanted to speak wih you about something"
McGonagall looked at her for a moment before telling her to take a seat. Hermione sat down in the chair across a large desk covered in many organized stacks of paper.
"Is something wrong?" The woman asked, seeing Hermione's fragile expression.
Hermione waited a moment before responding, "Sort of," she noted the confused look her professor was giving her, "I really just want to notify you of something thats going to happen. I was originally going to tell Professor Dumbledore, but he seemed busy, and frankly, I'd like you to know this."
"And what is 'this'?"
"Well, I'm probably going to be leaving soon... Going back to where I belong." She chewed her lip, hoping the woman understood her ambiguous answer so she would not have to say it again.
McGonagall watched the nervous girl for a second, "and is this a choice you have made?"
"No." Hermione answered the question before she had time to even think about it, "There are these... Signs that make me think that I won't be staying here much longer."
"Can you stop this from happening?"
"There is no way I know of," Hermione murmured.
McGongall seemed to pick up on the sensitivity of the subject, "If this does turn out the way you expect it to, know that you will be missed."
Hermione gave her a watery smile, "Thank you, professor."
McGonagall looked at the bushy haired witch fondly, "When I began to see you making friends with certain people at this school, I thought it a strange decision, but I now know that they are the best friends you could have possibly made."
Hermione knew that somewhere in that comment, she was thinking about Hermione's relationship with Sirius. "Thank you," her voice cracked a little.
"I hate to kick you out, dear, but I've got a couple fifth years coming in for detention." The woman said, checking the time.
Hermione nodded, "Thank you, professor." She stood up and headed for the doorway.
"Good luck, Hermione," was the last thing she heard from the woman.
As Hermione left the office of one of her favorite professors, she briefly considered going back and telling her that they would meet again in several years. She really wanted to say that, and make it easier on the woman, but she couldn't say anything more, she had already told Sirius enough, she didn't want to go back home to some alternate universe or something after messing with time.
Hermione hummed to herself as she entered the crowded library of Hogwarts, looking for a quiet place to sit. It was full of students, doing their last minute cramming for the final exams coming up. After a few laps around the winding bookshelves, hermione found an empty corner to sit. She placed her bag over the side of the chair and withdrew a piece of parchment along with her favorite quill.
She stared at the blank parchment for a solid ten minutes before her quill even touched ink. She tried to figure out how to go about doing this. What was one supposed to say in a situation like this? There hadn't been much in the way of time-travel in all those muggle romance movies she had seen.
Finally, she began to write.
Dear Sirius,
I'm really so sorry about all of this. Really. I would do anything to stay here with you if I just knew how. But there's something telling me that I can't stay here; I belong in a different time, even if I would rather be here with you. Anyways, I'm writing this letter so you have something after I'm gone, and so you know how much I love you. Because I do love you. Immensely. I love you more than I ever thought possible. I'll miss you so much. I don't think I could ever go a day without thinking about you. And the others, of course. You Marauders are unforgettable.
I'm really sorry about everything that will happen to you in the future. Things will get bad, Sirius. I hate to leave you at a time like this, but I'm afraid I have no choice. People will get hurt, you'll make both friends and enemies, and it won't be easy. Please just understand that I can't tell you what's going to happen. I know that you'll be angry with me when you realize that I could have prevented certain events from happening, but I can't change the past. Things turn out okay, Sirius, and even when you feel hopeless, remember what you're fighting for.
I don't have much time to write individual letters to everyone, so I hope you'll pass the following along to them:
Tell James and Lily to enjoy what they have. They're wonderful people and deserve all the happiness in the world. They're also some of the bravest people I've ever met.
Tell Remus that for the record, he will never be a monster to me. And that he will always have friends, even when he feels alone and hopeless.
Tell Peter that I hope he finds what he's looking for in the future. I at least hope that it's worth it to him.
I should probably wrap this up soon. So let me tell you once more that I love you. More than anything. I've had so much happiness with you and I'll never forget it. It's been quite a ride, Sirius Black. I'll miss you. And don't worry about me, I'll be okay.
Love, Hermione Jean Granger
P.S. You'll be a wonderful Godfather, even if some people think you're a bit reckless.
Hermione looked over the letter several times before she decided that it was good. She folded it up and gently placed it into a small envelope before packing her stuff up and leaving the library.
