A/N: So so sorry for posting this a week later than planned but life happened and I was so busy I just didn't have the time. My schedule should be a little less hectic from now on though so I'll try to go back to my schedule of posting every four weeks. I'm sorry I left you hanging with a cliffhanger last time and I hope this chapter satisfies everyone with how it plays out.

Thank you for all the reviews and the follows and favourites, I'm so so happy and grateful!

Enjoy ^^

"Marlene, you first," the professor told her. She stepped forward, prepared for what would come her way. "The rest of you in a line. You know the drill."

After Marlene it was Alice's turn, then Kevin and so on and on. Some of the students' biggest fears had changed since the last time they had done this during Halloween last year. It probably had to do with the fact that they realized there was real danger lurking outside the school walls, that their friends and family could be in real danger. It could also be because something had happened back home. Maybe both.

And finally it was their turn.

James' fear hadn't changed. He was still deadly afraid that Lily would die, that he would lose her. The loss now even worse because they had gotten so close, because they were together, because she was his girlfriend. Lily wasn't shocked like last year, expecting it. And instead of not paying much mind to it like last time, she comforted him when he came up to her, assuring him that she wouldn't go anywhere.

Peter's fear hadn't changed either, still afraid his friends would turn against him, saying that he wasn't good enough to hang around with them, that they just tolerated him. It was a little sad to see. After all the years they spent together, all the pranks, all the reassurance, he still felt that way.

Sirius' fear had changed. Where last time his biggest fear was that his little brother would join Voldemort's ranks, now his biggest fear was that he would lose Hermione. Not in the way James feared losing Lily. He didn't see Hermione's body lying dead on the floor. No, he was afraid she would just disappear, leave without saying a word, without leaving any trace whatsoever, like she had never been there in the first place. Like he hadn't meant anything to her.

Hermione's breath caught in her throat, her heart breaking a little. He was afraid she would disappear out of nowhere. Before she had known that she had to stay here that could have easily happened. He hit so close to home and he didn't even know. That made it even worse.

When he made his way to the back of the line she gave him a brief hug. "You know I'm not going anywhere, right?"

He looked at her but his eyes held something sad in them. "I know."

Remus' fear hadn't changed either. He was still afraid of the full moon. Afraid of the beast he became then. Afraid he would hurt someone, turn someone, kill someone. All this just from a simple full moon. She could understand though. Especially after the incident that happened the previous year.

And finally it was her turn.

She wasn't ready. Whereas she would feel confident in doing something – charms, DADA, transfiguration, it didn't matter what it was – she didn't feel that way now. She was tired, exhausted. She had no energy left, her limbs feeling heavy.

Last night she had gone to Dumbledore once again, giving another couple of her memories. She wanted him to have them as fast as she could give them. He needed to know as much as possible, needing the info to help the Order. He needed it to plan, to counterattack, to take precautions. She didn't want to risk anything.

But last night had been rough. Really rough. It had drained her and she was still recovering.

The last memory the brunette had given him was one of her fourth year. The year of the Triwizard Tournament. The year Cedric died. And his death was the last memory she gave him the previous night.

She could still see it clearly. She was sitting in the stands, waiting like everyone else. Then suddenly Harry appeared with Cedric in his arms. But Cedric wasn't moving. He was dead. He had been killed by Voldemort. The loss of a fellow student, the sadness and devastation radiating from Harry and Cedric's father, the chaos that ensued, she could all still see it in the front of her mind. Could still feel it.

The emotions lingering from that memory, the exhaustion, the secrecy towards her friends… Hermione wasn't ready. She didn't even know what her fear would be right now, couldn't anticipate anything. She had to be prepared for anything and maybe that was a little more than she could handle right now.

She stepped forward, wand at the ready, at least trying to feel prepared.

It took a few moments until the boggart took on some kind of shape. And when it did her heart stopped and sped up at the same time, a sinking feeling settling in her chest. In front of her was none other than Bellatrix Lestrange. Not the young witch she had confronted twice since she got here but the one from her previous timeline. This Bellatrix was older, her hair wild, her teeth kind of yellow, her skin pale, a feral upturn of her lips, a crazy look in her eyes. It was exactly how she remembered her from their fight in the Department of Mysteries.

"You're still alive? They didn't kill you? Good-for-nothing peasants. All of them. Can't even kill some children." She had been regarding the brunette as she said this, slowly taking a step as if she was closing in on her prey, biding her time.

Then Bellatrix looked behind Hermione and locked eyes with Sirius, her very own cousin. A cackle filled the air. "He's still alive? I thought I had killed him."

Hermione was rooted to her spot. She wasn't ready. She knew what would come, but she wasn't ready. She was exhausted, couldn't think properly. It felt too real.

"Well, I suppose the only thing I can do is kill him again. Wouldn't you agree?" she addressed the brunette. "But not before I torture him a little of course. I still want to have my fun." And with a cackle, crazy and gleeful, she sent the cruciatus curse towards Sirius.

Hermione wasn't thinking. She didn't use the curse to get rid of the boggart. Instead she just jumped in front of Sirius, taking the curse, her instincts taking over. She fell to the ground, spasming a little before lying there motionless.

Panic was the only thing that followed. Professor Gray got rid of the boggart while Lily and the marauders immediately made their way towards the brunette.

"Mione. Hey, Mione!"

"Mr Black, take her to the hospital wing right now."

He didn't need to be told twice. He lifted her of the ground and just ran towards the hospital wing. He only left her side when Madam Pomfrey shooed him out, needing to tend to the young witch.

After the DADA class the others joined him in the hospital wing, waiting for her to wake up.

"How is she?" Lily asked.

"It isn't as bad as we thought. Madam Pomfrey said that because the curse was fired by a boggart it wasn't even half the power of what it could be. She'll be fine. At least that's what she said." He sounded tired, worried.

"What happened back there?" James asked.

"I have no idea."

"Who was that even? Bellatrix?" Peter asked.

"Yeah, there is no way I wouldn't recognize her. No matter how crazy she looks she can't be mistaken for anyone else."

"But why did she look like that?" Remus asked.

"I have no idea."

"Lily?"

"I don't know. She didn't look like that when she confronted Hermione in Diagon Alley."

"And what was she even thinking?! Just jumping in front of a curse like that? Why didn't she just get rid of the fucking boggart?!" Sirius was worried, anxious. She would disappear, come back exhausted, wouldn't tell him anything and now this. What was going on? What was she thinking? "I told you she looked tired. I told you. She wouldn't have done this if she was in her right mind."

There was silence for a few moments. "What did that boggart mean when she said 'I thought I had killed him' and 'kill him again'?" Remus asked them.

"I don't know. That doesn't make any sense."

"And when she said that Hermione was still alive? Did something bad happen back at home? Before she came here? It's not possible that she went through something so bad that she was almost killed, right? Right?" Lily asked them worriedly.

Sirius looked down. She hadn't given him any details but she had told him that something bad had happened, that death eaters had been involved. But could he tell his friends? She had told him that in confidence.

But look at what happened. They deserved to know. They were her friends and they were worried. Yes, they deserved to know. "Something happened back home," he told them.

"She told you?"

"What happened?"

He let out a sigh. "She didn't give me any details. She only said that it was something bad. That what happened – whatever it was – was the reason she came here."

"What about the killing part? Did she say something about that?"

He shook his head. "She only told me there were death eaters involved. She didn't want to tell me anything more."

Quiet returned for a moment. Lily took a seat, her legs feeling a little weak. They let it all sink in for a moment before she asked, "Why didn't she ever tell us about that?"

"How should I know? I haven't even known for that long. She only told me during the Christmas party."

"I thought she had finally opened up and then this happens. Apparently there are still a lot of things we don't know."

"Apparently," Sirius echoed.

"Maybe she has a reason for keeping this from us," Remus tried to explain. "Maybe it's still too difficult to talk about. Or maybe she just wanted to forget about it."

Maybe. Maybe that was the case, maybe not. The fact remains that Hermione had been keeping things from them. Still was. And Sirius didn't know why. Was it because she didn't want to talk about it? Was it because she still didn't trust them completely? He didn't know. But he was determent to find out, no matter how long it took.