Chapter 30
"What's wrong with Hermione?" Sirius said running back into the room.
Helen shuffled nervously from one foot to the other.
"I can't explain it, it's really something you need to see. Something all of you need to see." Helen said eyeing the group.
"What's the matter" Sirius pressed.
"Please just come to my house, I will explain, or rather, it will be explained, I'm not sure I understand myself, of course this could be really common with you lot for all I know, it's all news to me though" Helen ranted.
"It's ok Helen we'll come with you now, we will sort out whatever is the matter." Lily said kindly collecting her coat from the rack in the hall.
The rest of the group followed suit and collected their coats. Harry was bundled up and put into the pram for the short familiar trip down the road to Helens house.
James helped Lily get the pram up the front steps as Regulus, Remus and Sirius followed behind, while Helen opened the front door.
The house was eerily quite, which was quite unusual for a house which was home to a toddler. They shuffled into the lounge and one by one stopped in their tracks, the ones behind colliding with the ones in front and then shuffling to the side so they could see what the hold up was, then freezing in place themselves.
Sat on the sofa quietly peering up at the assembled and quite frankly gobsmacked group in front of them, was two women.
"I don't understand" Lily was the first to speak.
"Well this is my sister Louisa" Helen started. "Lily and Regulus have met her already" Helen continued, as Lily and Regulus nodded "And this is.."
"Hermione." Sirius whispered.
"It really is you, but you're younger than I remember, how are you younger" Regulus said as he pushed his way to the front.
Lily stepped forward and ran over to the young women on the sofa and pulled her into a hug.
"Thank you" Lily whispered. Tears in her eyes.
"Err, please don't thank me, I'm not who you think I am" Hermione said quietly.
"You saved us all" James said.
"No please you don't understand, I'm not the one who saved you." Hermione protested
"You are from the future. Yes?" Sirius said
""Well yes but…"
"Wait you know she's from the future?" Helen said
""Well yes.." Lily said
"Did you know she is my daughter? she said she was my daughter?" Helen continued
'Err yes we did know that." James said rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.
"How did you know?" Helen questioned.
"It's rather complicated, you see" James started
"It can't be more complicated than the story I've just been told believe you me," Helen scoffed.
"I can explain" Hermione said "I can explain everything" there were tears in her eyes as she turned to Louisa and took a deep breath.
"Well I've already heard this once so I'm going to go and sit with Hermione, err the little one." Helen said briskly before leaving the room.
"I think she is a bit upset, but she will come around, it's alot t take in all at once you see, were not used to all this magic yet. She'll get there. Might as well make yourselves comfortable" Richard said gesturing to the seats around the comfortable room.
Silence descended as the assembled group sat themselves down around the room and waited for someone to explain.
"Right well, I will start then." Hermione said moving to the middle of the room.
"Like I said before, I am Hermione, but I'm not the one you think I am."
Taking a deep breath she continued.
"My name is Hermione Granger-Black my birth parents are Helen and Richard Granger, but I was raised by my Aunt Louisa and her husband… Regulus Black from the age of 2."
Chaos ensued, the assembled group shot to their feet nearly as one, as shouts echoed around the crowded room.
Hermione waited patiently for the noise to die down, this was the reaction she had prepared herself for, as she looked around the room she noticed Regulus was watching her intently, she was please to see a familiar face, even if he was so much younger than the father figure she know grown up with.
After a while all eyes fell upon Hermione again, waiting for answers. One by one the group re took their seats.
"That's what I meant when I said I wasn't the Hermione you think I am. if you are willing to listen, I will tell you my story." Hermione said.
"I think we are all ready for you to continue dear." Richard said kindly. This was after all the second time he would have to hear this twisted tale.
"Right, thank you, sir, err Rich.. err.. thank you." Hermione stuttered. Feeling this level of anxiety was unusual for her, but the situation was unique.
" As I was saying, I was raised by my Aunt and Uncle, in America, I attended Llvermorny, and had a happy life, a little over two years ago, on my sixteenth birthday my Dad, er uncle, er Regulus sat me down along with Harry and told me about my birth parents and Harry's and how they were friends. He told me about how my older self from a different timeline had come back in time and saved him from dying in a cave, and how using that Hermione's knowledge of the future altered the timeline."
"You grew up with Harry?" Lily asked "where were we?"
Tears gathered in Hermione's eyes as she spoke again.
"You died, you all died, in different ways than Hermione from the other future knew about. About a month before my 17th birthday, my parents, that is, my Aunt and Uncle and Harry died. Harry had wanted to see where he was born, so Mum and Dad brought him to London for his birthday. People attacked them, Death eaters I think they call themselves, and they died." Hermione said with tears streaming down her face.
Louisa got up from her seat and put her arm around the younger woman.
"I'm sorry, where was I" Hermione said clearing her throat of her emotion.
Hermione looked around the room at the grief stricken faces around her.
"I wasn't sure what happened until a goblin appeared in my kitchen to let me know that all of my parents and brothers property was now mine and gave me 2 keys. I was shocked when he informed me I would have to make my way to Gringotts in London to claim my property and sign some paperwork. I had never really got involved with money before, so I had no idea why I had to go to London rather than just the local Gringotts. But I went with the Goblin there and then. I was lead to the Potter vault and the Black Vault. In the Black vault I found the trunk that my father had told me about, he said he lived in it. I recognised it straight away, so I shrank it put it in my pocket and left. While I was in London I tried to do some investigating to find out what happened to my parents, but I got no answers for the Ministry of Magic, I was sure my parents deaths were being covered up. I went home but I was alone I the world. For a while I wanted to join my parents and brother in death, but I couldn't do it."
Taking a deep breath, Hermione looked around the room.
"In my grief I had forgotten about the trunk, but I came across it while I was looking for some school work, I hadn't even re sized it, after re sizing it I decided to take a look inside. I found all of the things my father had kept, the other Hermione's original timeline, along with notes you had made." Hermione said gesturing to Regulus.
"I found the book, the one with the original spell in it. Along with an account of your encounter with Hermione. When you said she disappeared because the timeline had been changed, I knew I had to do the same thing. I knew I needed to make things right. I spent a while researching what happened to all of you, I have it all written down. And then I did the spell and here we are." Hermione finished.
"But how are you here, why didn't you disappear like.. err the other Hermione. This is going to get confusing." Sirius said.
"Well I am rather good at modifying spells and things, so I modified the original spell." Hermione said slightly smugly.
"How did you accomplish that?" Remus asked
"I have that written down too." Hermione smirked.
"Can you tell us what happened to us?" James asked quietly
"Are you sure you want to know?" Hermione asked gently.
"Yes I'm sure" James said looking around the room at the rest of the group who was nodding as well.
"Well ok then."
A/N: Let me know what you think :)
