Chapter 1: Things End
Banquo: To me you speak not. If you can look into the seeds of time and say which grain will grow and which will not, speak, then, to me, who neither beg nor fear your favors nor your hate.
-William Shakespeare's Macbeth, Act 1 Scene 3
June 12th, 1977
"Strange that Peter's ditched us again, right?" Remus asked the group after a long silent moment, "That has to be the fourth time this month."
James chuckled, "Maybe it's that Hufflepuff girl he's been seeing."
Lily seemed like she had been about to make a particularly witty comment, but suddenly halted in her path, green eyes growing wide. James turned to his girlfriend with a concerned expression, "Lily? What's wrong?"
Lily, however, didn't respond to him. Instead, her eyes were fixed several feet ahead of them. The only thing she dared to utter was an astonished, "Oh, Merlin."
oOo
The Battle of Hogwarts
May 2nd, 1998
There was once a brightly burning flame of hope within Hermione; Hope for a victory in this dreadful war. Now, however, it seemed that the flame of hope was threatening to go out, flickering away as the battle raged. Hermione Granger was very aware of the fact that they were losing this battle. She felt sick at the sight of so many dead bodies piled up across the grounds of Hogwarts. A part of her wanted to resign to crying in her mum's shoulder like she had done so many times as a young child. In a pang of sadness, Hermione remembered that her mum and dad were still blissfully unaware of her existence. At least they were enjoying their time in Australia...
As she heard a crash and rumble of a mountain troll smashing through the courtyard, Hermione's thoughts were brought back to the urgent reality. She had to find Harry and Ron, and a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach told her that she would find them at the center of everything: the Great Hall.
Hermione still held her purple beaded bag in her hand. She stuffed it in a pocket of her jeans and withdrew her wand. The girl's feet picked up in a rapid pace, dodging stray curses and chunks of falling rubble. She felt oddly like one of those characters in muggle action movies; a fearless daredevil in a quest to save the world.
But then again, she doubted that there was much a young witch like her could do in the way of saving the world. Voldemort's Death Eaters alone easily outnumbered the remaining students and Order members that were alive.
Hermione was once again too lost in thought to realize that she was being followed until it was too late. A hand gripped down on her arm, calling her name in an unfamiliar voice. Hermione turned at breakneck speed, whisking her wand to point at the face of a strange man. He immediately backed off, releasing her arm and raising his own hands in surrender.
"Hermione, I need to speak to you," He said urgently.
The witch narrowed her eyes, inspecting him closely. She had never seen him before in her life. He was a short, medium build man, looking relatively young. His face was menacing, and immediately lead Hermione to assume that he was a Death Eater of some sort... or maybe one of those vile Snatchers she had come across in the woods...
There was a strange symbol tattooed onto his face, stretching from his brow down to his jaw on the right side of his face. It looked like some ancient rune Hermione had never seen before, stretched out to cover a good portion of his face.
"Who are you?" Her voice was surprisingly brave.
"Who I am isn't important. You need to trust me, Hermione-"
"How do you know my name?" She cut him off harshly.
He slowly moved a hand to the collar of his robes, and began pulling on a chain around his neck. There were two different chains mingling underneath the cotton. She watched in shock as he removed a Time Turner from beneath his robes.
Hermione gasped and sputtered in confused contemplation for a long moment.
"I know you, Hermione," He said cautiously, "This is your Time Turner... you're going to need it... if you don't use it, this battle will be lost. Please trust me," He now spoke in a much more sincere tone, "you're the only hope we have."
Hermione watched him in stunned disbelief. There were so many reasons not to trust him. Why was she even talking to him? She needed to find Harry and Ron...
He must have realized that she wasn't buying it, "Hermione Granger," He spoke again, "My name is Matthew Plait. I'm your friend, and you trusted me with the task of coming here today and delivering this Time Turner to you. It's your Time Turner." He offered it to her, and Hermione saw that there were a few small words engraved onto the side of the device.
Hermione Jean Granger
It was her name. Engraved in a silvery font onto this little mechanism. Hermione didn't know what to say. She lowered her wand and took the Time Turner from him, inspecting it closely.
Matthew - if that even was his name - continued speaking, "We will lose this battle, and when all else fails, you need to use this." He pointed a finger at the device in her hands; similar, yet different to the one she had used in her third year at Hogwarts.
"I don't understand," Hermione murmured, examining his tattooed face.
"Just- please trust me, Hermione," He spoke confidently, "don't hesitate to use this Time Turner when you need it."
He was gone before she could think of anything else to say, his dark hair disappeared into the fighting crowd of people that consumed the Courtyard. Hermione stood in shocked silence for several long minutes.
She doubted that she could trust him at all, but the Time Turner did have her name on it, and they were probably going to lose this battle. She cautiously placed the chain around her neck and tucked the mechanism beneath her shirt. In a rush, Hermione continued on to the Great Hall, nervous for what she would find there.
As she peeked into the cavernous room, Hermione found that her worst fears were becoming reality. There were several Death Eaters within, and Voldemort's figure stood out to her. He stood in the center of the room facing off against Harry. Hermione's stomach plummeted when she made out Harry's exhausted figure. His wand was held up, pointing at Voldemort, who seemed to be taunting the boy-who-lived.
"Oh, Potter," Voldemort's snake-like voice sent shivers down Hermione's spine, "Silly boy. I don't think you realize that your failure is inevitable. You've already been selfish enough to spare the life of your friend." His spidery hand pointed to a slumped over body on the ground. Hermione gasped as she recognized the red hair and broad shoulders that laid limp on the ground.
"RON, NO!"
Hermione's scream echoed through the room as she bolted inside, desperately making her way to the boy.
He couldn't be dead.
"Hermione!"
She barely heard Harry's gasp as she plummeted to Ron's side. She jerked his shoulders over and took in his face. His eyes were closed and there seemed to be blood everywhere. She had to check for a pulse...
"CRUCIO!"
Hermione let out a bloodcurling scream as she felt the tearing pain of the Cruciatus curse. She didn't know how long it lasted for, all she knew was that it hurt more than anything she had ever experienced in her life. She shrieked and convulsed in pain for what felt like several neverending minutes.
When it stopped, Hermione was slumped on the ground beside Ron's body. She could just barely make out the voices of Voldemort and Bellatrix Lestrange. He seemed to be lecturing her on torturing Mudbloods without his permission. Harry was currently struggling against the grip of another masked Death Eater, looking at Hermione with a heartbroken expression.
"Hermione, you need to get out of here!" Harry was desperately yelling to her.
She really wanted to respond to him, or check for Ron's pulse, but her limbs all laid limp at her sides. She could still feel the remnants of the Cruciatus coursing through her nerves.
"So," Voldemort's voice invaded her senses once again, "It looks like you little Mudblood friend has come to rescue you." Chuckling laughter flowed through the Great Hall. Voldemort continued after a moment, "It's a pity that she's going to die as well."
Hermione suddenly felt control return to her. She picked her aching body up off the ground and found that her wand was still clasped firmly in her had. "Stupefy!" She sent the wild stunner at Bellatrix, the closest target she could find.
Bella seemed to expect the simple hex. She blocked it with ease, and before Hermione knew it, the deranged woman was stalking towards her. With a flurry of the woman's wand, Hermione felt a searing pain slice across her arm. She was still disoriented from the earlier cruciatus, but recognized that a powerful Sectumsempra had been cast on her.
Suddenly, the woman repeated it, this time the spell cut across Hermione's abdomen. She fell to the floor once again clutching her stinging wounds.
Bellatrix was letting out a cackling laugh, which seemed to echo menacingly throughout the Hall. "You stupid Mudblood!" She yelled, "Do you think you can defeat us?"
Voldemort was speaking again, but Hermione couldn't really concentrate on the words he was saying. It all blended together into what sounded like a whisper of Parseltongue. The young witch desperately looked for a solution, but the blood loss was getting to her.
"We will lose this battle, and when all else fails, you need to use this."
The idea floated into Hermione's mind like a vivid flashback, and she immediately understood what she had to do. But could she really trust the Time Turner given to her by a complete stranger?
"You're the only hope we have."
Hermione didn't have time to think over every detail. She needed to act on an impulse. With shaking fingers, the girl reached for the chain around her neck, withdrawing a glimmering Time Turner. She eyed her name engraved onto the side, took in a deep breath, and began to turn.
"What are you doing?"
His icy voice halted Hermione's moving fingers. She looked up to him with defiant eyes. Voldemort seemed frozen in place, examining her curiously. She could feel a spark ignite within her. It was a burning flame of crazy hope and true Gryffindor bravery. She slowly stood up from the cold ground, and continued to turn the small device.
He looked alarmed, and took a few steps towards her. She took a cautious step back, and began to feel the magic of her Time Turner take it's effect.
"My lord..." Bellatrix's voice was confused as well.
Suddenly, something seemed to light up in Voldemort's expression, as if he recognized what was going to happen. Hermione looked to Harry, and found him watching her with an indescribable expression. Then she looked to Ron, still unsure if he was even alive.
Voldemort raised his wand and in a flash, sent a strange, silent spell at Hermione. She could barely make out the hand movements as the curse hit her square in the chest. Hermione screamed, feeling the Time Turner shatter in her hands, glass sent everywhere. Her mind was spinning, and she could no longer see anyone around her. It was all turning black, and Hermione felt her body once again hit the ground.
oOo
June 12th, 1977
"Anyways, I asked Marlene to move in with me, but she said no!" Sirius Black relayed the story to his friends in an outraged tone, as if to suggest that his girlfriend not moving in with him immediately after graduation was the most preposterous thing in the world.
"I'm sure you're exaggerating, Sirius," Remus Lupin responded simply, "she must have a good reason to not want to move in with you."
"Did she say why?" Lily Evans asked, her long red hair loosely flowing in the light breeze while she held James' hand.
"Something about spending time with her parents..." Sirius grumbled under his breath stubbornly.
"Well there you go, Sirius," Remus concluded, "it's not just that she wants to avoid you or something."
As the group continued on down the street, Sirius gave up on the conversation, cursing under his breath at his friends and their rationality.
"Strange that Peter's ditched us again, right?" Remus asked the group after a long silent moment, "That has to be the fourth time this month."
James chuckled, "Maybe it's that Hufflepuff girl he's been seeing."
Lily seemed like she had been about to make a particularly witty comment, but suddenly halted in her path, green eyes growing wide. James turned to his girlfriend with a concerned expression, "Lily? What's wrong?"
Lily, however, didn't respond to him. Instead, her eyes were fixed several feet ahead of them. The only thing she dared to utter was an astonished, "Oh, Merlin."
It was a girl, probably around their age. She was laying on the ground unconscious, looking absolutely terrible. She had several large gashes, and blood seemed to be everywhere. She wore dirty, torn muggle clothes, and had a small purple bag falling out of her pocket. There was also a badly damaged wand clenched tightly in her left hand. Lily bent down and inspected the girl further, finding that there seemed to be some sort remnants of a glass object in her hands as well. It had been destroyed though, and shards of glass had scraped and torn all over both her hands.
Sirius gasped, a horrified expression crossing his face as the group examined this young girl. "What the bloody hell?" He murmured.
"We need to get her to St Mungo's." James said, his authoritative tone taking over.
oOo
The Unspeakable entered quickly into the whitewashed hospital room, robes billowing behind him. Healer Robinson stood over the girl, finishing up the many bandages that were being wrapped around her various wounds. Most of her injuries were able to be healed, but a few were slightly more severe, calling for long-term attention.
Remus, Sirius, James and Lily all stood against the wall of the small hospital room, anxiously waiting as Healer Robinson worked. They had wasted no time after finding the girl, taking her immediately to the Hospital. Once there, Healer Robinson had taken over. She was an accomplished woman, obviously knowing what she was doing. Upon their arrival, she had ordered the group of four to follow her into a room and explain the situation. From there, she had called an Unspeakable for this especially peculiar case. None of the others really understood why she needed the help of an Unspeakable, but they weren't going to argue.
"Drake Wyatt," The Unspeakable introduced himself, shaking the hands of Remus, Sirius, James, and Lily, then proceeding to the girl's bedside.
"I've managed to get her into a stable condition," Healer Robinson said, reminding everyone in the room of her vicious healing techniques. She really was a gifted woman. "We just don't know where she's come from, and look at her wand..." She handed Wyatt the wand which had previously been clenched in the girl's hand. The group of friends exchanged confused glances.
Wyatt inspected the wand meticulously, "I've never seen anything like this," He muttered under his breath, casting an exploratory spell over the stick of wood, "What kind of core is this?"
Robinson shrugged her shoulders "That's what I was wondering," It was strange seeing this woman so confused, she had seemed to be so intelligent and collected earlier. "It's like it's from the future or something..." She muttered this under her breath, eyeing the elegant wand.
Wyatt considered the girl for a long moment before saying anything. "Did she have anything else on her?" He questioned.
Healer Robinson's eyes lit up, "yes, she did." The woman handed over a small purple bag, which Wyatt inspected as well.
"Undetectable extension charm," he noted, removing various objects from the purse.
Within, there was a lot of clothing, many books, and even a tent. However, the only thing of any interest to the Unspeakable was a small wallet. He opened it and found something very peculiar: a muggle ID. "It says her name is Hermione Granger," he stated, eyes narrowing slightly as he continued to read the little card. "But..." the man furrowed his brow, worrying all other occupants of the hospital room, "This is odd."
"What?" James asked impatiently. It was the first any of them had spoken in a while. Healer Robinson read the ID over Wyatt's shoulder, and attained the same confused expression.
"It says here that she was born in 1978," Wyatt stated simply, staring at the object in his hands.
"That's not possible," Lily interjected, "it's only 1977 now."
"She can't be born next year," Sirius gave the Unspeakable a disbelieving look, "she's got to be at least seventeen."
Wyatt rubbed his forehead, inspecting the strange girl -Hermione- once again. "I'm going to call some other Unspeakables and run some tests." He left the room in a determined stride, leaving the four recent Hogwarts Graduates alone with Robinson and Hermione.
Healer Robinson seemed overwhelmed. She exhaled deeply, shaking her head at the girl, then turning back to the four friends. "It's nearly two in the morning, you all should go home and get some rest."
"What if she wakes up?" Remus voiced his concern, "We should be here."
"Judging by her injuries and the physical strain she has probably been subject to, she won't wake up for several hours." The Healer took on her authoritative tone, "I insist you kids go get some sleep, she will be in the same place tomorrow morning."
The four friends were reluctant to leave, but did so anyways, hoping that the next morning would bring more truth about this strange girl.
oOo
June 13th, 1977
James, Sirius, Remus, and Lily all ventured in to St Mungo's around nine the next morning in an effort to see Hermione once again. After the previous night they had all gone home worried sick, and more confused than ever.
Healer Robinson was there when they entered the room, looking over some papers and charts. She looked tired, as if she had worked all night.
"Any news?" Lily asked.
"Yes," Robinson looked up at them, "Unspeakable Wyatt and I have come to several conclusions."
"And?" Sirius questioned.
The Healer took a deep breath, "It seems that it is entirely possible that Hermione was born in 1978." The four friends looked at her doubtfully, urging her on, "There are certain tests and spells that allow us to detect if a person has been involved with Time Travel before."
"Time Travel." James stated simply, disbelief etched on his face.
Robinson nodded, "Hermione's test results were off the charts, signifying enormous amounts of time travel."
"No way." Sirius mumbled, "So she's managed to send herself back in time? That still doesn't explain how she got into this condition."
"I don't have an explanation for her injuries, all I know is that somehow, this girl has traveled through time and nearly gotten herself killed as well."
"So she's going to be okay?" Remus asked, speaking up for the first time.
Healer Robinson regarded him closely for a moment, no doubt noting the faint scars that littered his face. She was an expert Healer, and surely knew that he was a Werewolf. "She will need time to heal, but I expect that she will fully recover." The kind woman gave all of them a nice smile.
"I still don't understand how this is possible," Lily muttered, analysing the situation.
"Well, it looks like we're about to find out," Sirius said, pointing to Hermione. She was stirring in the bed, signifying her return to consciousness.
Everyone watched with apprehension as the girl awoke. Hermione opened two brown eyes in a slightly pained expression, wincing as she moved. She appeared to be surprised, and very confused. Nobody spoke for a long time while she examined each person within the room, eyes wavering on Remus, Sirius, James and Lily. She examined herself next, seeing the large bandage across one of her arms, and the little white scars that remained on her hands from the glass.
Remus felt an urge to say something. She looked more than distraught, and they didn't want a panic attack or anything. They still had no idea what had happened to her to put her into this state.
"Hermione?" The werewolf spoke softly, "Are you alright?" It was a stupid question to ask, because obviously she wasn't okay judging by what had happened to her. Never the less, Remus had felt the need to break the silence.
Hermione looked up at Remus, then back at her hands, not speaking.
"Dear," Healer Robinson began speaking in a kind tone, "do you know what happened to you?"
Hermione examined the Healer before her for a long moment, almost as if she wasn't even speaking English. Finally, the girl spoke in a hoarse, uncomfortable voice.
"No... I don't-" She paused nervously, "I can't remember anything."
oOo
AN: I am aware that in canon, Hermione's birthday is in 1979, but for the sake of the plot, bear with me and pretend that her birthday is in 1978.
I do hope you've enjoyed the first chapter. The beginning may be a bit slow, but I think it will turn out well once we get further into the plot. Please let me know what you think, and feel free to ask any questions.
Thanks for reading.