Four years, ladies and gentlemen readers.
Today marks four years since I posted the very first chapter of Specialist Potter, so I thought it fitting that I post this side story/sequel on the anniversary.
I felt that Hermione's tale as it relates to this story simply couldn't go unwritten as it had so much potential. There was so much of it, that if I had written it into Specialist Potter, it would not even have been finished now, nearly seven months after its completion date.
Obviously, spoilers for Specialist Potter abound in this story (starting from Chapter 53 of that onwards), so I highly recommend reading that first.
Ready? Let's go!
Darkness completely surrounded her, trapping her within it as she wandered aimlessly.
"Hello?" Hermione called out. "Is there anyone there?"
After hearing no answer, she sighed.
"It feels as if I've been in here for ages," she spoke, feeling frustrated. "I need to get out of here. Wherever here is. I'm not exactly sure of that..."
Memories began to assault her.
She had been on the Hogwarts Express with Ron, Neville, Ginny, Luna...
Then came the horrible screams.
High pitched screams of pain and terror filled her ears.
"No..." Hermione clapped her hands over her ears. "Not again!" she cried, tears beginning to fall from her eyes.
The more the protested was the more that the horrifying images became clearer.
Bloodied bodies of children, their faces forever frozen in terror; the Hogwarts Express a smouldering wreck of its former self...
She found herself watching as a bystander; watching the very moment when she and her friends had begun fighting for their lives, the images blurring together and overwhelming her, forcing her to her knees as she cried, begging for it all to stop-
"Hermione... Hermione, sweetheart, snap out if it!"
Through all the chaos, she heard a vaguely familiar voice calling out to her.
The voice grew louder and more persistent.
"Hermione, come!"
Hermione fought to focus on the voice calling out to her, instead of the sounds of carnage around her, the latter growing mute as she forced herself to her feet and began to walk again.
After a while, the images around her faded to black and a single, silvery door appeared in front of her, glowing in the darkness.
"Come on, Hermione. Open the door."
Hermione reached out for the doorknob, hesitant.
Taking a deep breath, she grabbed it, opening the door and stepping into what looked like a library.
"What?" Hermione was puzzled. "How did I get here? Where is here?"
"You're still fighting, sweetheart. That's why you're here. This is your 'in-between'."
The voice she had heard from before came from behind a bookshelf. "It's good to see you again, my darling daughter. I really do wish that it could have been under better circumstances, though."
It clicked at that moment exactly whose voice she was hearing.
"Mum?"
A woman stepped out from behind a bookshelf, speaking with the same voice as earlier.
"Yes, Hermione. It's me." she smiled at her daughter. "And in case you're wondering, this place took the form of a library, since it's one of the places where you are most comfortable."
"But... but... but you're... does that mean that I'm dead too?" Hermione felt horribly disappointed. There was still so much that she wanted to do with her life!
"You're not dead yet although it's a close thing. From what we saw on the other side, your body is currently fighting very hard to keep itself... to keep you alive."
"I want to live, but what do I really have to go back to?" Hermione asked. "You and Dad are dead, I had the lawyers sell off our home and your dental practice, I'm done with my magical education and if Voldemort was so bold as to launch an attack like that on the train... he must be in the process of solidifying his hold on Magical Britain right now!"
"You have your friends to go back to, for one. I really didn't think you would be the type to just give up, Hermione Jean. You never were," the older Granger noted wryly.
"You're right," Hermione agreed. "Things aren't over yet. Harry needs me! His new friends and training aside, he'll still need all the help he can get to fight Voldemort!"
"There is the Hermione that I know!" Dr Granger chuckled.
"What about Dad? Why isn't he here too?" Hermione asked.
"One greeter at a time, darling, that's the rule. He said to remind you that he still loves you very much, even from the other side. He also said to remind you to remain strong, fight for what you believe in and use that amazing intelligence of yours for good!"
Hermione smiled weakly as her mother hugged her tightly and kissed her lightly on the forehead.
"Thanks, Mum. Make sure to tell Dad that I love and miss him too."
Dr Granger smiled back as she stepped back a bit to get a good look at her daughter.
"It's time for you to make your choice, darling." she inclined her head towards two doors that had formed behind her. "The left door will take you on to the next life. The right door... you will be going back to more pain and more loss; however, you will be able to continue living your life, shaping it to be what you want it to be. Going back to those who need you now more than ever."
"The choice is obvious then, isn't it?"
Hermione paused, then nodded. "I guess it is. No, I know that it is."
She stood up straighter as she walked towards her chosen door.
Just as she turned the doorknob, she heard her mother's voice calling out to her: "Your father and I do not want to see you back here for many more years, do you hear me, Hermione?"
As she stepped through the door,Hermione chuckled.
Even in death, her mum was being a typical mum.
As soon as Hermione started to open her eyes, she felt as if the Hogwarts Express had crashed straight into her.
She ached all over and when she tried to move her hand, it refused to co-operate.
She blinked, her eyes blinded by the bright lights and groaned.
Hermione could hear voices around her, but none of them were clear, all sounding mushed together, leaving her unable to distinguish the words.
She could sense that the activity surrounding her seemed to increase however, as it all sounded more urgent than it had before.
She felt something touch her arm and a tingling sensation spread through it and continued through her body, before everything faded away again.
The next time she awoke, although she was still very much in pain, she was also much more aware of her surroundings than she had been before.
She realised where she was; in a room at St Mungo's.
Oh. So she had survived, after all.
There was something else to add to her list of near death experiences- which were increasing at an alarming rate...
Looking around the room, she noticed a dark haired figure sitting some distance away, fiddling with an old magazine, although clearly not reading it.
"Harry?" she managed to croak out, her voice sounding quite unlike her own.
"Hermione?" Harry nearly tossed aside the magazine and moved over to her so quickly, it appeared as if he had Apparated. "Hermione, you're awake again, thank goodness! The Healers said it was touch and go and you weren't awake much the last time-"
"Slow down, Harry. I'm not going anywhere," Hermione chuckled, but immediately regretted it as he chest began to hurt.
"Are you okay? Do you need any more painkiller potions?" Harry asked her, looking ready to dart out the door and grab the nearest Healer.
"No, no. Stay. Please."
Harry nodded, before going for the chair he'd been sitting in earlier and pulling it up closer to her bed.
"I'm here. I'm not going anywhere unless you want me to." he promised her.
"What happened? No... don't answer that. I know what happened... how long was I out?" she asked, almost not wanting to know the answer.
"It's been a few days. After the Death Eaters attacked the Hogwarts Express, they brought most of the survivors here. Though some of them didn't survive for very long after they arrived..." Harry said.
"I... I told the Healers about Crookshanks when... I got here, before I passed out..." Hermione wheezed a bit as she spoke.
"I got him, don't worry." Harry reassured her. "He's at The Burrow, safe and sound. I got here when they were sorting out personal effects and claimed him and your other things on your behalf. They know me and they know that I'm your best friend obviously, so they let me take your things. I'm afraid your wand is lost, though."
If she could have, Hermione would have waved him off impatiently. "Wands can be replaced. That doesn't matter. What about Ron, Ginny, Neville, Luna? How are they doing?"
At this, Harry's face fell and Hermione's heart nearly stopped.
"Harry... what happened?" she asked, not sure if she wanted to know the answer. "Did one of them die?"
Harry looked down at his feet and refused to look her in the eye.
"Harry... who did we lose?" she asked softly.
"I'm so sorry that I couldn't get to save him on time..." Harry spoke just as softly, his voice quivering slightly.
A dreadful feeling started building in her stomach, as if she would throw up.
"Was it Ron..?" She dared to hope, but then Harry confirmed her worst fear by nodding and the world seemed to fall out from beneath her-
"She said there would be more loss, but Ron?" Hermione's voice quavered.
Harry looked briefly puzzled at her use of the word she, but he quickly shook it off as he put his hand on top of hers. "I know. We always thought that if any of us were to die, it would be me..."
She and Ron had finally begun dating after all these years (simultaneously making and breaking people's pockets as they betted on the outcome of their relationship to her annoyance and Ron's amusement), only for it to end like this...
"Harry, can you leave please? I need... I need to be alone for a bit..." she fought back the tears threatening to fall.
Harry looked as if he didn't want to leave her, but he nodded.
"I... I can come back tomorrow, if you like. I need to go back to The Burrow and be other places, sort things out, you know?" Harry smiled sadly.
"I understand, Harry. Go on..." Hermione smiled weakly.
Harry leaned down to give her a light hug, before leaving the room.
It was only after he had been gone for several minutes that she let herself cry.
The next few days flew by in a blur.
She had still been too unwell to attend Ron's... funeral in person, so Harry had set up something with the technology he had brought back with him from Magix so that she could be there virtually, even from her hospital bed.
It was also from there that she said her piece about Ron's effect on her own life, drawing many attendees to tears.
Voldemort had seized the Ministry of Magic building and was closing in on several important Wizarding institutions, so she and Harry had decided that she would leave St Mungo's as soon as she was able, which was today.
She was still sore all over and liable to nausea, bouts of dizziness and flashes of pain, but she would be okay in the long run, most of the damage to her having been done by flying debris rather than curse damage.
"Are you ready?" Harry asked her as soon as he stepped into the room.
Hermione nodded.
"I'm ready, Harry. I need to get out of here, get better and keep on fighting." she vowed. "I promised that I would."
Harry nodded.
"Alright then." Harry took the few possessions she had with her and shrunk them for travel, before putting them into his pocket.
One hand around her shoulder and another hand with his wand outstretched, he created a portal and guided her through it.
Actually seeing Ron's grave had been a shock to her system.
Harry had left her alone to have her own little talk with Ron as he stood some distance away, wand in hand, just in case.
"I'll miss you so much, Ron," she sniffled. "I know I can be strong and I know that time heals, but... I never expected any of us to actually die, you know?" she laughed without humour.
"I guess I was rather silly about that, wasn't I? He would have targeted any of us three for obvious reasons..."
She wanted to say more, but she couldn't seem to find the right words.
Instead, she took the wreath that Harry had conjured for her and laid it gently above where his head would be.
Getting up slowly, she turned and walked back to Harry.
"We can leave now." Hermione took a calming breath. "I've said what I can."
Harry nodded, conjuring up another portal to take them back to The Burrow.
She and Harry sat in the room that she shared with Ginny at The Burrow, the other girl somewhere downstairs with her mother.
"It feels so awkward being here without Ron, you know?" Hermione voiced her thoughts. "Ever since the troll incident during our first Halloween at Hogwarts..."
"An odd way to start a friendship, but yes..." Harry chuckled. "It's been the three of us for a long time..."
"But with everything that's happened over the past few days..." Hermione sighed, looking down at her feet and clenching her fists. "I feel so weak, feeling like this. Normally, I feel so strong, but now... How do you deal with this sort of thing, Harry?" she looked back up, looking her best friend in the eye.
"Sheer determination, I suppose. I'm not exactly the best person to talk to about handling feelings well..." Harry shrugged.
Hermione giggled, before they fell back into an uncomfortable silence.
"So... Ron's gone..." she finally broke the silence.
"Yes. Yes he is." Harry said.
"My parents are also gone..." Hermione continued.
"Unfortunately..." Harry nodded.
"There's one last Horcrux out there..."
"Also rather unfortunate..."
"I've finished my magical education and there's nothing really left for me here..." Hermione sighed sadly.
"Not to mention it not being safe here now, especially for you and other Muggle Borns. It's already obvious that things aren't safe for me..." Harry shrugged.
"What the bloody hell am I supposed to do with my life then?" Hermione asked.
"You'll find something. You could go abroad and live in either their Magical or Muggle communities. You did well at school and made a name for yourself there. I'm sure that you could-"
"It's not just that, Harry. I've lost a lot that I've cared about. My parents, my boyfriend, other friends... I honestly don't know how you dealt with all of what you've been through. I'd have gone spare by now if I were you..." Hermione admitted.
"I..." Harry fell silent once again as she watched him, apparently falling into deep thought.
She glanced back down at her fidgeting hands.
"Hermione?"
Harry's tone made her sit up straighter, wincing from a flash of pain in her side as she did.
"Yes, Harry?" she looked back at him.
"How would you like to go back to Tir Nan Og with me?"