A/N: In the infinite wisdom of Douglas Adams, I present to you...

"Though I don't think," added Deep Thought. "that you're going to like it."
"Doesn't matter!" said Phouchg. "We must know it! Now!"
"Now?" inquired Deep Thought.
"Yes! Now..."
"All right," said the computer, and settled into silence again. The two men fidgeted. The tension was unbearable.
"You're really not going to like it," observed Deep Thought.
"Tell us!"
"All right," said Deep Thought. "The Answer to the Great Question..."
"Yes..!"
"Of Life, the Universe and Everything..." said Deep Thought.
"Yes...!"
"Is..." said Deep Thought, and paused.
"Yes...!"
"Is..."
"Yes...!...?"
"Forty-two," said Deep Thought, with infinite majesty and calm

- Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

...chapter 42

Chapter 42

Present Day

"It is too!" Hermione laughed. She and Regulus were in the Room of Requirement, which had morphed into the Black Family library. They were seated on twin sofa's, separated by a low coffee table laden with an array of snacks.

That first study session had turned into study sessions over breakfast, which had turned into study meet-ups by the Lake, and soon enough, they were meeting three weeks later with no textbooks in sight.

"I refuse to believe your middle name is Lilac." Regulus scoffed, crossing his arms and kicking his feet up onto the coffee table. "There is no way your parents named you Hermione Lilac Granger. It's absurd."

"Says the boy named Regulus Arcturus Black." Hermione smirked victoriously as Regulus deflated.

"Yeah, whatever," he muttered, his lips twitching as he restrained a smile. They fell into a lull, happily silent as Hermione munched on the crisps the room had provided. Regulus gazed about the room casually.

Hermione was making her way onto the second bowl of crisps when Regulus spoke. "I just realised, wasn't it you who summoned the room?"

"Mmhmm," agreed Hermione with a mouthful of crisps.

"I wonder why it turned into the Manor's library then." Regulus mused thoughtfully.

She slowed infinitesimally. "Oh, is that where we are?" She asked casually. "I was wondering about that."

"What did you think about?" Regulus asked curiously. There wasn't any accusation in his tone, but Hermione had to tread carefully. She wasn't sure how Regulus would react to the knowledge of her past, and she had grown to truly enjoy the time she spent with him.

"Oh, I was just wanting somewhere you would feel at home." The answer was honest enough, and hopefully Regulus would believe her enough not to push.

"Hmm," he hummed and fell silent, and Hermione was left to ponder – once again – what was going on inside the mind of the youngest Black brother.

They fell into an easy camaraderie – one which Hermione had been pleasantly surprised to discover right from the outset of their relationship – each lost to their own thoughts as the clock ticked on steadily. Hermione wondered idly about the upcoming 'field test' the Essences had planned. She hadn't managed to get much details about the why they were going to the location, but there had been plenty detail of the what.

It sounded like a simple enough plan, but it was one which hinged on Hermione's ability to wield the Essence of Time with enough force to transport the four of them back through time. It was something she had only managed to achieve with one hanger-on, and even then, she had been incapacitated with exhaustion for several hours afterward as she recuperated. The next day she had almost been late to her breakfast study with Regulus – a fact which he had held over her smugly for a whole week.

She was broken out of her musings by a sigh. There was a shuffle of fabric and Hermione looked over to Regulus. He was looking contemplative as he studied the ceiling, reshuffling his legs to cross the other way.

"What?" Hermione asked bemusedly, her lips twisting into a wry smile. Regulus wasn't often philosophical, but Hermione could recognise the expression he pulled when he was about to be, and she had grown to enjoy his rare moments of philosophy.

Regulus sighed again. "Do you think we'll stay friends after Hogwarts?"

Hermione frowned. They had avoided talking about life after school – what with Hermione graduating at the end of the year, and the war brewing on the horizon. The entire seventh year population, in fact, seemed to be shrouded in a blanket of suspense at their upcoming move into the future. She spoke with forced casualness, "Why wouldn't we? It's not as if I'm going to cease to exist once I graduate."

(It was something she had been worried about, actually, but Chester assured her that her presence in this time was well and truly permanent.)

"I know that." Regulus rolled his eyes. "I just mean with…" He trailed off; the words unsaid hanging heavy between them.

The upcoming war; the tension climbing, sides materialising, disappearances appearing more and more in the Prophet…

Hermione looked at Regulus' worried expression and her gaze softened.

"Of course we will," she told him. He smiled at her happily and moved on to telling her about Slytherin Quidditch practice last Wednesday. Hermione smiled as he rambled on, but internally she was wondering if she had just told Regulus her first lie.

A/N: song rec - Dickheads by Tuka (just trust me on this one)