Hi guys, I hope you're enjoying the story so far and it's lovely to see that it is starting to get some feedback and reviews. They make all the hard work worth it. I didn't update this story last week but I did put up a one shot called 'Immediate Aftermath' that involves this story. So if you didn't find that maybe go and check it out.
I have sort of mixed feelings about this chapter, it feels a little bit clinical but to me it's important that it happens. I have read other time travel fics and they tend to gloss over the importance of preserving the timeline and the damage Hermione could potentially do by being in the past. So potentially it is a little slow to start but it gets more exciting at the end.
Thank you to everyone who has followed the story and me as a writer. Thank you to everyone who has made this story one of their favourites. And finally thank you to everyone who has taken the time to review, I really do cherish them all.
FebruaryDreams 21: I know that your review was for 'Immediate Aftermath' but thank you and I hope that you continue to enjoy the story and its little add ons.
waterproof88: I really, really hope that this story is epic and that you continue to enjoy it as much as you are right now.
DarkSnow3: I'm glad you're enjoying the interactions between Hermione and the other characters. I feel like her relationship with Mcgonagall is going to be a really important and significant one and I hope that comes across.
AlsethGosia: Thank you so much for your kind words. Wow, what a compliment.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything Harry Potter or any of the characters.
Three days Hermione had been cooped up in the Hogwarts infirmary, Madam Pomfrey had made her stay in bed the entire time while she performed every conceivable spell, test and check on her. It was understandable; she had just hurtled almost thirty years into the past. But did she really have to endure three whole days of utter boredom to be told what she already knew, she was fine for now but that was not guaranteed to last. She had spent the entire three days desperate to find out what was going on and if Professor Mcgonagall had a plan for her yet. She knew in her heart that it was ridiculous to hope that the older witch could have made some headway on sending her home but during the hours she had spent unoccupied in her infirmary bed she had found her mind slipping to the idea of home regularly. Would she ever be able to go home? The questioned troubled her, what was home? Hermione had always felt like Hogwarts was her home, its magical hallways and vaulted ceilings were the image that came to mind when she imagined home. And yet here she sat, in Hogwarts and she could not feel more out of place if she tried. Was it the people that crowded the corridors that made the building her home? Was it her friends and peers that filled her with that feeling of warmth and comfort? Yes, time to allow the mind to be idle was not a good thing for Hermione at all. That was why when Madam Pomfrey had told her she was free to leave she had almost whooped with joy and hugged the matron. She had managed to stop herself just at the last moment.
Hermione was under strict instructions to go to the Headmaster's office as soon as Madam Pomfrey had discharged her, she was not to talk to anyone on the way and she was not to make any detours. So she dutifully trotted as quickly as she could through the, thankfully deserted, hallways heading for the gargoyle that marked the entrance to Dumbledore's office. The thought suddenly struck her. . . Dumbledore. She had not seen the man in over a year and the last time she had was when he was lying dead at the bottom of the Astronomy Tower. Had that really only been a little over a year ago? How could so much happen in such a short space of time? As she stood staring at the blank eyes of the gargoyle she wondered how she was going to face the man that she now knew so much about. She felt dirty all of a sudden, as if she had invaded his privacy in some way by knowing what she did about him now. Thanks to Rita Skeeta she knew all about his family and his life and loves before Hogwarts and details about his personal life she was sure the Professor didn't want any of his students to know. Her Gryffindor courage threatened to drain away and she wanted nothing more that to turn and run back to the sterile safety of the Hospital Wing. But that option was taken away from her when the stone gargoyle leapt aside to reveal a grinning Professor Dumbledore, the mischievous glint that Hermione remembered present in his blue eyes.
"Miss Granger, I could hear you thinking from upstairs." Dumbledore said in his gentle voice as he gestured with his arm for her to precede him up the stairs.
Hermione scampered so quickly on to the staircase that she stumbled on the first step and had to catch herself on the wall. Her cheeks glowed pink as she heard Dumbledore's gravely chuckle behind her. She managed to make it to the top of the spiral staircase with no further incident and entered the headmaster's office hoping to appear more composed than she felt. Her vision first fell on Professor Mcgonagall and a small smile tugged at her lips at the sight of the woman. Then her eyes slid across to the other person already in the room. Sat bolt upright in the chair next to Mcgonagall was a man who looked to be perhaps in his late twenties, he was wearing formal robes and on his lap was a shiny leather briefcase that he held on to so tightly that his knuckles were white. Fear instantly gripped Hermione, she could tell a Ministry employee from a thousand paces.
"Take a seat Hermione." Dumbledore commanded softly as he indicated the empty chair in front of his desk. "And allow me to introduce you to Professor Saul Croaker."
"It's a pleasure to meet you Sir." Hermione greeted the young man. She hadn't recognised him when she had looked at him but after hearing Dumbledore speak his name she could see how he could become the man she met at the Quidditch World Cup. His hair was styled in a similar way and there was a distinctive manner in which he held his mouth.
Dumbledore nodded his approval at Hermione's manners. "Professor Croaker is.."
"An unspeakable." Hermione cut in before she could stop herself. "He works for the Department of Mysteries."
"You really do read a lot don't you Miss Granger?" Professor Mcgonagall said with a chuckle.
Hermione smiled at Mcgonagall "We have crossed paths in my time."
Professor Mcgonagall turned to look at Hermione more fully at this admission. "You have crossed paths with an unspeakable? I have the distinct feeling that I am going to have my hands full when you get here."
Hermione laughed softly. "I'm afraid you might Professor."
"Well I look forward to formally meeting you in the future Hermione." Croaker spoke up for the first time. He had an easy smile and a boyish twinkle in his eye, his demeanour was much less formal than his appearance had led Hermione to believe. "But for now we should probably discuss the present. And please don't call me sir. It makes me feel far too old."
"Professor Croaker is here to talk about the rules regarding your time here." Professor Dumbledore clarified.
"Rules?" Hermione questioned nervously.
"Yes. There are strict rules that must be adhered to when someone becomes removed from the correct timeline." Croaker said as he snapped open his briefcase and began riffling through its contents.
"I'm sorry Professor Croaker. But you say this as though it happens often." Hermione said, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"More often than you would think actually." Croaker chuckled as he looked up over his briefcase for a second. "Only last week the Magical Congress in America had to deal with a displacement. Although, I have studied all of the recorded cases of time travel and no British person has ever travelled from as far in the future as you have. There is a theory amongst intellectuals that at some point in the mid-nineties all of the time turners are destroyed for some reason. But you may have just debunked that theory Hermione."
The young witch couldn't help but smile at Croaker's enthusiasm for his chosen field. It was a quality that she admired and respected. "How do you deal with a..a…"
"Displacement." Croaker offered. "A person who has been displaced from their own timeline."
"Yes. How do you deal with a displacement?" Hermione asked.
"Aha." Croaker shouted triumphantly as he pulled the collection of parchment he had been looking for out of his briefcase. "We will get on to that. But first I need to take some details from you. I need to clarify exactly how you got here. Is that ok?"
Hermione nodded, looking worried. "Of course."
"You don't need to look so scared Hermione. You're not in any trouble…yet" Croaked laughed easily and winked across at the bushy haired witch. The action earned him a death glare from Professor Mcgonagall but he quickly defused her emerging anger with a charming smirk.
"Why don't you stick to the business at hand Mr Croaker?" Professor Mcgonagall ordered stiffly.
"Of course Professor." Croaker nodded, Hermione was in no doubt that this man was an ex pupil of Hogwarts. And probably one who had found himself on the wrong side of the head of Gryffindor one too many times. "So, I have the time turner you used to travel here Miss Granger. Do you recognise it?"
"Yes" Hermione answered as she peered at the little golden gyroscope Professor Croaker was holding up. It had been placed and sealed into what looked like an evidence bag.
Croaker scribbled something onto his parchment. "And could you tell me who the time turner belongs to?"
Hermione's eyes flicked nervously towards Dumbledore who smiled warmly and encouragingly back at her. "It belongs to Professor Mcgonagall."
"That would be Minerva Mcgonagall; Professor of Transfiguration and Head of Gryffindor house at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry?" Croaker asked formally.
"Correct." Hermione nodded as she began nervously picking at the skin around her nails.
Without looking up from his parchment, Croaker ploughed on. "And is that the post Minerva Mcgonagall holds during your time?"
"No." Hermione swallowed and flicked her eyes first to Mcgonagall who seemed to be shifting uncomfortably in her chair and next to Dumbledore who was wearing the knowing look he so often donned. "She is the Headmistress."
Croaker nodded approvingly at this piece of information as he furiously made notes on the parchment. "Could you tell me the nature of your relationship with Minerva Mcgonagall?"
"I'm sorry. The nature of my relationship? I don't understand how this is relevant." Hermione said, her discomfort at being under the spotlight making itself known.
"I think I will field this one Saul, if you don't mind." Professor Dumbledore spoke up for the first time since introducing Croaker to the room. "It is not easy to travel this far through time Miss Granger. We must be able to prove within all reasonable doubt that this was truly an accident. Many powerful witches and wizards have attempted to manipulate time for their own ends. It is a very dangerous game."
"I'm aware of that Professor, which is why the Hour-Reversal Charm was placed upon time turners to ensure that they were all limited to five hours. With this in mind, I don't understand how I was able to travel twenty nine years into the past." Hermione ranted, her voice becoming shrill as she got more upset.
Croaker cleared his throat. "I may be able to answer that. I only know of two ways in which the Hour-Reversal Charm can be nullified. Firstly should the time turner used be unregistered meaning the charm was never placed upon, which we know is not the case here. Secondly if the Ministry were to fall." All eyes turned to Hermione who all of a sudden found her fingernails incredibly interesting. "The Hour-Reversal Charm is a restriction put in place by the authorities to ensure that the time turner's power is not misused. With the ministry gone the time turner's magic would be free to show its full potential."
"Yes…well. That explains a lot." Hermione said cryptically, never breaking her gaze with her finger nails. She knew the danger that was attached to giving too much information away about the future. How one slip of the tongue could change the entire world as she knew it. "Getting back to the question you asked Mr Croaker, Professor Mcgonagall was my transfiguration teacher and then she became a mentor of sorts. Now I would class her as much more than that. You see I lost my parents in horrible circumstances and she is where I turn for advice now, her office in Hogwarts is where I go to feel warmth and comfort and she is who I strive to make proud."
Professor Mcgonagall reached over and squeezed Hermione's hand, trying her best to provide the girl, who was a perfect stranger to her, with some comfort. Yet again the older witch found herself moved by the words of the bushy haired girl in a way that she couldn't quite explain. "I look forward to the day that I become those things for you Miss Granger."
Croaker's line of questioning or more like interrogation went on this way for another half an hour while the Ministry man established exactly what had happened and why. There were many moments where Hermione had felt so uncomfortable that she wanted the floor to open up and swallow her whole. But she knew that there were procedures that needed to be followed and boxes that needed to be ticked. She was astute enough to notice the palpable change in atmosphere in the room as Croaker's questions slowed down and Hermione's story came to end. All three adults before her had begun to make eye contact with her less and less and Mcgonagall in particular looked significantly uncomfortable. Her face had taken on a permanent scowl and she was shifting in her seat with increasing regularity. Hermione almost wanted to scream at them all and demand that they tell her exactly what was going on, that they tell her what they were obviously keeping from her.
"Well Hermione, that's all that I need for my paperwork." Croaker said finally with a half-hearted smile. "But now I'm afraid we must move on to the difficult part."
"The difficult part?" Hermione questioned nervously. Had he thought that this part was easy for her? Having every decision and every conversation she had, had in the twenty-four hours before she arrived here picked apart by this man she didn't even know.
"Yes, there are very strict rules that must be adhered to when a person becomes displaced." Professor Dumbledore began in his soft yet business like tone. Despite the fact that he was being kind Hermione couldn't help but feel angered by the phrase 'strict rules'. What were there strict rules that everyone kept mentioning but refusing to talk about?
Mcgonagall's posture changed suddenly, her back becoming ram rod straight. "Is there any way we can tackle this delicately gentlemen?" she asked in a clipped tone.
Dumbledore smiled warmly. "Of course Minerva, I forget myself sometimes. Why don't you begin to explain to Miss Granger what is happening?"
"Miss Granger." Mcgonagall began, turning her full attention to the younger witch for the first time. "When we spoke in the Hospital Wing you mentioned that you have read a lot around time travel."
"Yes Professor." Hermione answered. "I have had a lot of experience with time travel in my life."
Mcgonagall nodded and seemed to weigh up her next comment. "You also mentioned that you are not aware of a case where a person has successfully been sent forwards in time."
"Professor" Hermione called out as squeezed her eyes shut and tried to block out the ringing that had begun in her ears. She knew what Mcgonagall was building up to, she knew the woman well enough to know when she was attempting to come up with a way to cushion a blow. Her head was spinning and she had the horrendous feeling like she might faint. She took a few deep calming breaths before she carried on. "I can't do this. I can't talk around this topic. I need you to answer my question honestly." She waited for Mcgonagall to nod her agreement to her request. "I'm not going home am I?"
"No. No Miss Granger you are not going home." Mcgonagall said thickly as she tried to swallow back the emotion that flared up inside her at the broken look on Hermione's face. "I am so very, very sorry."
"Hermione." Croaker's voice broke through the haze in her mind as the reality of her current situation began to sink in. "If I can explain a little. It is not impossible for us to send you back to your time. We have found through the years that when we attempt to send those who are displaced back to where they came from we begin to do damage to time itself."
"Like Eloise Mintumble" Hermione said hollowly, her brain and mouth working of their own accord. She didn't care about Eloise Mintumble or time itself for the matter right now. All she really cared about was the fact that she wasn't going to see the people that she loved again. That she was stuck here in a time that she didn't understand with complete strangers.
"Exactly, Eloise died due to hyper-aging and many people were unborn. Not to mention the effect on time itself; Tuesday lasted two and a half days and Thursday merely lasted four hours." Croaker explained. "We cannot risk the damage to time or to your own health should we send you back."
"I understand." Hermione sighed shakily as she fought with all of her resolve to not cry. "What is to become of me now?"
"Miss Granger." Dumbledore spoke up again. "You will stay here with us. Hogwarts has always provided a safe haven for those with nowhere else to turn."
"Thank you Professor." Hermione replied. She hoped that her voice showed some of her gratitude at being allowed to stay at Hogwarts and not just the despair she felt at being someone 'with nowhere else to turn'.
"It is our pleasure. And of course you will be more than welcome to finish your seventh year with us here." Dumbledore smiled and fixed his gaze on the bushy haired witch over the top of his half-moon glasses.
"But Professor, what about the transcripts from my earlier years at Hogwarts? Without those anything I achieve will be unrecognised." Hermione asked earnestly, she wanted desperately to finish her education but she wanted even more desperately to not waste her time.
"Let me worry about the finer details, Miss Granger." Dumbledore answered with a soft smile. "Now should we get down to discussing our plan for you?"
Hermione nodded her head resolutely. "Yes please."
"You are to become Hermione Ross, a transfer student from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic in France. The story will be that you have moved to Hogwarts due to a disagreement with your parents which resulted in you moving in with your distant relative Professor Mcgonagall." Dumbledore explained.
Professor Mcgonagall nodded, picking up on her cue to take over the explanation. "Ross was my mother's maiden name; although her family was not pure blood they were very proud of the fact that they could trace their untainted magical blood through eight generations. When my mother decided to marry a muggle her parents were so furious that they severed all ties with her. But her brother, my uncle, did not agree with his parent's treatment of his sister so in order to distance himself from them he accepted a job within Liechtenstein's Ministry of Magic. Little is known of him after this, which works in our favour."
"So I am to pose as his daughter?" Hermione asked.
"We thought it would be more believable if you were to pose as his granddaughter." Professor Dumbledore clarified.
Hermione nodded her understanding at this. "Did he even have any children?"
"We don't know." Mcgonagall admitted. "But if we don't know, neither does anybody else. This allows us the opportunity to put 'your father' forward as an unspeakable."
"This simple twisting of the truth gives you a get out of jail free card Miss Granger." Dumbledore said in his usual cryptic manner.
"How so Professor?" Hermione enquired.
The grey haired wizard chuckled softly. "Because it means you are simply not allowed to talk about your family."
Croaker nodded his agreement. "The fewer details you can give the better. Be a woman of mystery." He added at the end with a smirk.
"Yes, but do not isolate yourself Hermione." Professor Mcgonagall countered with a stern look thrown at Croaker. "Remember that she must make a life for herself here."
"In deed she must Minerva, I completely agree." Croaker said although his agreement sounded much more like an argument. "But there are strict rules that must be placed on the life that she leads from now on."
"I am not a fool, I understand that." Mcgonagall almost shouted. "But I will not sit idly by and watch your rules diminish the girl's existence."
"My hands are tied and you know that." Croaked returned, his voice beginning to rise as well. "She is here now and she must behave appropriately."
"Oh come on Saul. You forget that I know you of old." Mcgonagall bellowed. "You have never been one to stick to the rules."
"Please." Hermione called before Croaker could respond again. "Don't talk about me as if I am not here."
"I'm sorry Miss Granger." Mcgonagall declared, a look of genuine remorse morphing her features.
"It's ok Professor, I know that it comes from a good place." Hermione nodded. "Now, Mr Croaker I have spent almost the last hour hearing about these strict rules that are to govern my life from now on. Would you like to clarify what they are?"
"Of course Hermione." Croaker replied, although he did not apologise he at least had the good grace to look embarrassed about his behaviour. "We have covered the first stipulation; that you must take on a new identity so that you cause as little damage to the timeline as possible. With that in mind you also must not take on a career in which you invent new things like spells, potions or magical objects. Everything must happen as it did and you must not benefit financially from your time travel. You must not tell anyone that you are from the future; that fact will stay between the four of us and the Department of Mysteries. Even the Minister for Magic will not be privy to information about your true identity. And the final rule is always the most difficult to discuss."
"Please tread carefully with this Saul." Mcgonagall pleaded as her eyes flicked to the bushy haired witch who was now looking distinctly over whelmed.
Croaker sighed and cleared his throat nervously. "Well Hermione, in the interest of preserving the timeline as much as is possible we must request, no demand really that you do not have any of your own children. We cannot risk the disruption that this could cause; we have no idea how much a child that should never exist could change the fate of all of those around it."
"That seems….I'm….I can't really….That is reasonable I suppose Mr Croaker." Hermione stuttered as she attempted to force her emotions down. She hadn't even thought about children yet, she had never been completely sure that she even wanted them. But now that she was told that she couldn't have any no matter what she decided she couldn't seem to force down the utter disappointment she felt. Would she be able to build a life in which the absence of children was never felt or would she spend the rest of her life feeling unfulfilled because she could never become a mother. She thought about the women in her life. On one side of the spectrum was Molly Weasley with her seven children that she lived for on the other was Minerva Mcgonagall who had never had children but had found a way to fill her life to the brim. She wasn't sure which woman she was most similar too, right now she hoped with everything within herself that she could be like Mcgonagall.
Professor Dumbledore stood up from behind his desk. "I think that will do for today. Miss Granger has had more than enough information thrown her way." The wizard turned his full attention towards Hermione. "I'm sure you would be happy to have some space to mull this over."
"Yes please Professor." Hermione almost sighed in relief, she wasn't sure how much longer she could keep the river of tears that were threatening to spill held back.
"I'll show you to your quarters." Mcgonagall offered in a clipped tone as she stood as well and headed for the door seemingly unable to look at Hermione at all.
Hermione's room turned out to be in the teacher's quarters, an area of Hogwarts she had never been before. Dumbledore had thought it was prudent to keep the young witch separate from the general populous for the time being, while the finer details of her story were worked out. She had been allowed out in the evenings to walk the grounds and get some fresh air but other than that she had only really been permitted to leave her room in order to meet with Professor Dumbledore in his office. The first time she had been summoned was to sign paperwork for the Ministry of Magic in which she formally agreed to the terms that had been laid out by Saul Croaker in their earlier meeting. The second time was to receive her school robes and timetable, after much discussion it had been decided that it wasn't sensible for Hermione to continue as a Gryffindor, much to her own and Professor Mcgonagall's disappointment, and the only logical place for her was Ravenclaw. To begin with the idea had made her baulk, she had always been fiercely proud to be a Gryffindor and had never even considered being a part of any other house. But as she had been left to stew on it in her room all day she began to see the logic in it. She would risk coming into contact with too many people from her future in Gryffindor and really she could do worse than Ravenclaw. At least Professor Dumbledore hadn't suggested Slytherin, she wasn't sure if she would survive in those dark, damp dungeons that they call their home.
That was how the following Monday Hermione found herself stood outside of the potions classroom door wearing her school robes which were discomfortingly lined with blue and the still foreign feeling blue and silver striped tie. She stood staring at the heavy wooden door trying to convince herself to knock, but for some reason all of her Gryffindor bravery seemed to have abandoned her now that she was in a different uniform. She took a deep breath; she was five minutes late, a detail which had been suggested by Dumbledore to make it seem as though she was truly new to the castle.
"Just do it." Hermione muttered to herself. "It's not that hard, just knock on the door."
"Talking to yourself in the corridors isn't going to win you many friends new girl." A supercilious female voice called from behind the bushy haired witch making her jump.
Hermione managed to stifle the gasp that threatened to erupt from her mouth at the unexpected interruption to her thoughts. Her head snapped around to look at the person who had just sauntered into the corridor she was occupying. The girl stood a few meters away from her seemingly appraising her. The first thing Hermione noticed was that she was wearing Slytherin robes; her crisp, white shirt was buttoned perfectly to the collar, her green and silver tie was fastened flawlessly and looked as if it had been painstakingly centralised and her shoes were polished to a high shine. Hermione's eyes moved away from the girl's body to look at her face; her perfect uniform seemed to be in total juxtaposition with the unruly black curls the girl had obviously tried to tame into a bun on top of her head with little success as random locks had dropped out around her face and across her forehead. This odd mix didn't seem to take anything away from the girl's beauty though if anything the slight imperfection only enhanced it. Her profile was undoubtedly aristocratic with a perfect slope to her nose, strong jawline and high cheekbones. She could almost look masculine but her full, pouty lips that turned up in the corners into a permanent superior smirk made her look distinctly feminine. Finally Hermione's eyes fluttered up to the girl's; her strong, defined eyebrows drew you into her dark eyes which were beautifully framed by thick black lashes. But it was here. at the girl's eyes, that Hermione's mind began to stall, she recognised this girl. There was something in the glint in her eyes and the way that they narrowed as they attempted to read her that was disquietingly recognisable. And suddenly all of the pieces of the puzzle fit together; the slytherin robes, the mass of black hair and those eyes. She was looking at a much younger, much more beautiful Bellatrix Lestrange or Black as she would have been then.
"Well are you going to go in or are you going to just stare at me all day?" Bellatrix spoke again in a voice a few octaves lower than the childish voice Hermione was used to hearing emanate from the dark haired witch.
Hermione swallowed thickly as an unexplained fear gripped her, it was clear to see that this girl was a million miles away from the insane figure she was to become. "I….Ye…I" she stuttered.
Bellatrix sighed and shook her head. "Move" she demanded as she reached for the handle and swiftly opened the door bumping into Hermione slightly. The jolt seemed to clear the fog in Hermione's mind and she scrambled to follow the other girl into the potions classroom.
"Ahhh, Miss Black. What a pleasure for you to join us." Professor Horace Slughorn called from the front of the classroom causing all of the heads in the room to turn curiously towards the two girls who were stood only inches apart. "And it appears you've brought along a friend."
"Yes Professor." Bellatrix answered with a sweet smile that Hermione could tell from a mile off was fake. "I apologise for being late but you see I was helping our new student find the room. She had gotten terribly lost."
"No I…" Hermione began but was cut off by a sharp elbow to the ribs courtesy of the black haired witch. Both of their heads snapped towards each other in synchronisation; Hermione scowled at the other girl but her look was met by a murderous one from Bellatrix and she quickly decided that it would be wise to pick her battles.
"Wonderful, wonderful." Slughorn beamed, seemingly oblivious to the silent exchange that had taken place. "Your hospitality can cancel out the house points I was going to deduct from Slytherin as a result of you being late. Now, take your seat Miss Black."
"Thank you Professor." Bellatrix returned with another fake smile, she moved away from Hermione towards her seat in the far back corner of the room. Before she sat down she looked once more over her shoulder at the bushy haired witch and threw her a cocky wink and a smirk.
"So, you are my new student?" Professor Slughorn asked rhetorically but Hermione nodded in response anyway. "You are very welcome Miss….?"
"Erm…Ross" Hermione stumbled, her new name not quite rolling off her tongue just yet. "Hermione Ross."
"Wonderful, wonderful." Slughorn repeated with the same inane beaming smile he had sported earlier. "The only seat that we have left is right in the back with Miss Black. But considering she has already made such an effort to assist you I am sure that will be fine. Miss Black is very proficient at Potions she will be able to help you along quite nicely."
Hermione wanted to shake the chubby little man in front of her, was he really so stupid that he didn't see that Bellatrix was manipulating him? Obviously she had always had a knack of making people bend to her will, her methods just become more brutal as she had gotten older. "Of course Professor." She ground out the lie between gritted teeth as she turned and headed for the seat next to Bellatrix. A feeling of dread filled her chest as she realised that she was at risk of having to spend a large amount of time with the person that still haunted her dreams on a regular basis.
Bellatrix looked at Hermione as she approached the desk and rolled her eyes. "Well, Ermross." She mocked. "Let's hope you are better at potions than you are at opening doors."
Thank you so much for reading, I really hope that you enjoyed it.
Let me know what you think through the reviews or PM me any time.
I may not update over the next two weeks because I am going to Disney World, I will try my best to update once while I am on holiday but I can't make any promises.