Disclaimer: We have officially moved to JKR land.
A/N: Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews. Sarah, you did not come off in a bad way, so don't worry! We know you're all wondering why Snape is being such an ass . . . don't worry . . . all will be revealed in due time. Once again, it's late and we're too tired to check spelling and grammar. For now, enjoy the next chapter!
It was nearing dusk when The Hogwarts Expressed pulled into the station. Amongst the bustle of excited students, Taryn and Jordan managed to collect their trunks and depart the platform in one piece. Feeling slightly uneasy in their muggle garb, the two made their way to the front of Kings Cross Station. Standing in the middle of the vast hall, they glanced all about them, not quite sure what -- or whom -- to look for.
"Follow me." Taryn instructed her confused brother, starting off toward the exit. Jordan eyed her warily.
"You know as much about this place as I do." He stated, not moving an inch. "Why should I follow you?"
"Because I'm older and wiser." Taryn scoffed, folding her arms over her chest."I have a sense for these things." Jordan rolled his eyes and started walking toward a bench.
"Well you go look." He called back to his agitated sister. Sitting down on the bench next to an elderly gentleman, he smirked. "And I'll sit here and wait."
"Women." The old man grinned, looking down at Jordan. "Can't seem to sit still." Jordan laughed, watching Taryn as she ran frantically through the station.
"I know." He agreed, shaking his head. "They have way too much energy for their own good."
"And they always seem to think they know what their doing." The old man added, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. "Women's intuition, they call it."
"PMS is what I call it." Jordan snorted back a laugh. The old man looked down at him appreciatively. "Can't keep up with my sister a majority of the time." He added, pointing at Taryn. "That's her, over there talking to that old woman."
"That's my wife."
"Oh." Jordan looked at his lap, sheepishly. The old man laughed, patting him on the back.
"It's all right. I took no offense." The two watched as Taryn and the old woman made her way to their bench. "Besides, they seem to be getting on all right." Jordan nodded, straining to hear the conversation the ever quickly approaching women were conducting.
"Men!" He heard the old woman exclaim as she patted Taryn on the shoulder. "Too lazy to do what they're told."
"Too lazy to do anything, for that matter." Taryn grinned, pushing her cart along in front of her. The old woman nodded in agreement, coming to a stop in front of her elderly husband.
"Finally made yourself a friend, have you?" The old woman smirked, glancing back and forth between her husband and Jordan.
"Yes dear." He smiled and patted Jordan's hand. "This station is the best place to meet people." Jordan laughed, standing to shake the woman's hand.
"Nice to meet you." He murmured, offering her his seat.
"I'm sorry, young man." The elderly man frowned at Jordan. "I didn't catch your name . . . "
"Oh!" Jordan blinked, looking at Taryn. She nodded curtly, confirming that it was all right to divulge the information. "I'm Jordan, and this is my sister, Taryn." He answered, pointing to his right.
"Oh my!" The woman exclaimed, placing her hand over her heart. She moved to stand in front of him, placing her hand on his cheek. Tears formed on her eyelids. "Look at you!" Jordan eyed her strangely as she moved to stand in front of Taryn. "Oh!" she exclaimed once more, pulling the startle teen into a warm embrace.
"You're scaring them Janny." The man laughed, noticing the frightened look on Taryn's face.
"Oh you shoosh." 'Janny' waved off her husband, pulling back to study the two teens. After a moment of silence, she smiled widely. "We're your grandparents!"
"I know." Jordan said, grinning from ear to ear. His grandfather, Thomas Granger, raised his eyebrows.
"How?"
"I have good instincts when it comes to these things." Taryn smacked him upside the head.
"You do not."
"You mean," Jan cut them off, looking at her husband. "You two met already and were just messing with us?" Shaking her head, she tsked, "Men!"
"Instincts." Jordan continued, leaning against a nearby wall. "You have 'em. I have 'em." Shrugging, he added, "It's genetic!"
"No use arguing with the women, boy." Tom stood, placing an arm around his wife's waist. "They'll rip you to sheds." The two guys started laughing, receiving reproachfully looks from the women. Jan took this moment to whap Tom upside the head with her rather large purse.
"Old goat!" she laughed, kissing him on the cheek. Looking excited, she motioned for the teens to gather their trunks together. "You have all your belongings?"
"Leave them alone, Jan."
"Hush." Taryn and Jordan laughed, nodding at their grandmother. She smiled warmly. "Well, come along then!"
~*~
The drive to the Granger residence in Surrey was rather short; however, Taryn and Jordan found themselves enthralled with the British countryside. The automobile they were riding in was even more fascinating. They'd heard stories about them, including Uncle Ron and Uncle Harry's trip in the flying For Anglia.
"Does the car fly?" Jordan blurted out as they drove through the crowded streets of London.
"No dear." Jan chuckled, glancing at Jordan in the rearview mirror. "Haven't you ever been in a car before?"
"They've lived at Hogwarts all their lives." Tom furrowed his eyebrows. "How could they have?"
"Well, I would expect Hermione to bring her children out into the world every so often." Jan explained, staring out the window. Tom sighed, keeping his gaze fixed on the road before him.
"She's a busy woman, you know." He spoke aloud, though it was evident to everyone that he was making the excuse for his own piece of mind. The two teens in the backseat shuddered visibly. It was a line they knew all to well; though this time it was being applied to their mother, and not their father. An odd silence fell within the vehicle.
Finally, they pulled into the driveway of a large Victorian house.
"Wow." Taryn murmured and she stepped out of the car. "It's beautiful."
"Hey Tare!" Jordan exclaimed, grinning madly. "They have snow here!" Taryn rolled her eyes, turning to address her brother.
"We have snow at Hogwarts too . . . " She wasn't able to finish; however, because at that moment, a large, wet snowball pelted her in the face. Jordan was laughing hysterically, while Jan and Tom watched on in amusement. Taryn growled, lunging her body at her brother, tackling him to the ground. Once he was down, she began shoving his face in the snow, drowning out his muffled protests.
"If you kids are done fighting, we can go inside and make some hot chocolate." Jan called from her place on the doorstep. The teens stopped abruptly, looking up just in time to see Tom pelt his wife with a snowball. She laughed, taking some off her face and rubbing it on his nose. "Go get the bags." She told him, entering the house.
"Taryn, you go on inside and help your grandmother with the refreshments." Tom smiled at his granddaughter as he opened the trunk of the car. "Jordan can help me with the bags." Taryn nodded, heading inside the house while Jordan moved to stand beside his grandfather.
"This would be so much easier if I could use my wand." Jordan muttered, dragging both trunks behind him. Tom was following, two duffle bags slung over his shoulder.
"What was that, Sport?"
"Who?" Tom laughed at Jordan's confusion, pushing past him to open the door. Jordan stepped inside the house to the amazing smell of chocolate and cinnamon. Tom beckoned Jordan to follow him up the stairs, where he showed his grandson where they'd be sleeping.
Jordan's room was a deep shade of yellow, shining gold in the sunlight. A four-poster canopy bed sat in the middle of the room, with a large cherry armoire to the side. Tom dropped the duffle bag on the bed, while Jordan deposited his trunk at the foot of it.
Moving onto Taryn's room, Jordan noticed it was much the same; aside from the color, which was a rich shade of navy blue. They deposited her belongings and then trooped down the stairs and into the spacious kitchen. Jan and Taryn were sitting on stools at the island; four steaming mugs placed beside a tray of cinnamon rolls.
"Yummy!" Jordan exclaimed, claiming one of the stools and grabbing for a roll. Taryn slapped his hand away.
"Where are your manners?" She frowned, sipping from her mug.
"Sorry." Jordan mumbled, taking the napkin Jan was offering. After everyone else had served themselves, Jordan took a roll and bit into it, savoring its wonderful taste. "Mish ish ohhhh ooghd." He murmured with a full mouth.
"They don't understand humble mumble 'mymouthisfulloffood' language." Taryn scolded, taking a bite out of her own roll. Tom and Jan laughed.
"Of course we do!" Jan exclaimed. "Your mother used to do it all the time!"
"Yep. No matter how much we reprimanded her for it." Tom agreed, sipping his hot chocolate. Jordan looked doubtful.
"But Mum is so clean and orderly," he smirked, "and polite!" Taryn laughed, rolling her eyes at her brother's antics.
"Sure, she is now." Jan set down her mug, leaning against the table. "But when she was younger we had a lot of trouble with her." Tom nodded, standing behind his wife now, with his hands set on her shoulders.
"We couldn't get her to eat when she was supposed to, we couldn't get her to have manners, to bathe, and even brush her teeth!" he explained, getting a faraway look in his eyes. He seemed to be remembering a forgotten past. "And WE'RE dentists!"
"Of course, she straightened up once she got into school." Jan smiled wistfully. Taryn and Jordan watched their grandparents with wry amusement. Jan was the first to snap out of it. She was smiling at Jordan, holding back the tears. "It's amazing, how much you remind us of her."
An eery silence filled the room, the second that day. It made Taryn uneasy, but the words had touched some place deep in Jordan's heart. Tom finally dared to break the silence.
"How's your father?" He inquired, an attempt at making polite conversation; though by the looks of it, it wasn't his favorite subject. Jordan was stone-faced.
"Who?" he asked, feigning confusion. Taryn rolled her eyes; something she did often, which Jordan always teased her about. 'You're going to go permanently cross-eyed someday.' He would say, but she always shrugged him off.
"Well, it's getting late." Jan interrupted, moving to pile the dishes in the sink. "Why don't you two head up to bed for the night?" Taryn nodded, giving her grandparents each a quick hug and peck on the cheek.
"G'night Gramma Jan, g'night Grampy Tom." She said as she made her way up the stairs. Jordan mimicked her actions, soon following behind. However, when he got to the top of the stairs, it was Taryn's room he went in, not his own.
When he entered, she was sitting on her bed, staring at the floor.
"What's wrong, Tare?" he asked, sitting beside her.
"Nothing." She smiled up at him. "Just thinking about how wonderful they are." She stood, opening her trunk and retrieving her pj's. "And how wonderful it is to finally be here."
"I know what you mean." Jordan sighed, closing his eyes and Taryn changed. "It was so difficult to imagine a world beyond Hogwarts . . . "
"And now that we're here . . . " Taryn trailed off, sitting once again on the bed.
"It will be hard to go back." Jordan finished for her. Taryn nodded in agreement, climbing beneath the blankets. Jordan stood, kissing his sister on her forehead. "G'night Tare."
"G'night J." she replied between a yawn. Jordan turned off the light, shutting the door behind him. Entering his room, he changed into his night cloths and climbed under the covers. Laying in the dark with his eyes open, he thought about everything that had happened that day.
"And now that we're here . . . " he whispered to himself, eyes falling closed, "I don't want to go back." He drifted off to sleep seconds later.
Outside his door, Jan and Tom stood together, holding onto one another.
"Pleasant dreams, young one." Jan whispered, closing his door.
~*~
~*~
Janice and Thomas Granger: Old . . . Hermione's parents. Muggle Retired Dentists.
A/N: Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews. Sarah, you did not come off in a bad way, so don't worry! We know you're all wondering why Snape is being such an ass . . . don't worry . . . all will be revealed in due time. Once again, it's late and we're too tired to check spelling and grammar. For now, enjoy the next chapter!
It was nearing dusk when The Hogwarts Expressed pulled into the station. Amongst the bustle of excited students, Taryn and Jordan managed to collect their trunks and depart the platform in one piece. Feeling slightly uneasy in their muggle garb, the two made their way to the front of Kings Cross Station. Standing in the middle of the vast hall, they glanced all about them, not quite sure what -- or whom -- to look for.
"Follow me." Taryn instructed her confused brother, starting off toward the exit. Jordan eyed her warily.
"You know as much about this place as I do." He stated, not moving an inch. "Why should I follow you?"
"Because I'm older and wiser." Taryn scoffed, folding her arms over her chest."I have a sense for these things." Jordan rolled his eyes and started walking toward a bench.
"Well you go look." He called back to his agitated sister. Sitting down on the bench next to an elderly gentleman, he smirked. "And I'll sit here and wait."
"Women." The old man grinned, looking down at Jordan. "Can't seem to sit still." Jordan laughed, watching Taryn as she ran frantically through the station.
"I know." He agreed, shaking his head. "They have way too much energy for their own good."
"And they always seem to think they know what their doing." The old man added, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. "Women's intuition, they call it."
"PMS is what I call it." Jordan snorted back a laugh. The old man looked down at him appreciatively. "Can't keep up with my sister a majority of the time." He added, pointing at Taryn. "That's her, over there talking to that old woman."
"That's my wife."
"Oh." Jordan looked at his lap, sheepishly. The old man laughed, patting him on the back.
"It's all right. I took no offense." The two watched as Taryn and the old woman made her way to their bench. "Besides, they seem to be getting on all right." Jordan nodded, straining to hear the conversation the ever quickly approaching women were conducting.
"Men!" He heard the old woman exclaim as she patted Taryn on the shoulder. "Too lazy to do what they're told."
"Too lazy to do anything, for that matter." Taryn grinned, pushing her cart along in front of her. The old woman nodded in agreement, coming to a stop in front of her elderly husband.
"Finally made yourself a friend, have you?" The old woman smirked, glancing back and forth between her husband and Jordan.
"Yes dear." He smiled and patted Jordan's hand. "This station is the best place to meet people." Jordan laughed, standing to shake the woman's hand.
"Nice to meet you." He murmured, offering her his seat.
"I'm sorry, young man." The elderly man frowned at Jordan. "I didn't catch your name . . . "
"Oh!" Jordan blinked, looking at Taryn. She nodded curtly, confirming that it was all right to divulge the information. "I'm Jordan, and this is my sister, Taryn." He answered, pointing to his right.
"Oh my!" The woman exclaimed, placing her hand over her heart. She moved to stand in front of him, placing her hand on his cheek. Tears formed on her eyelids. "Look at you!" Jordan eyed her strangely as she moved to stand in front of Taryn. "Oh!" she exclaimed once more, pulling the startle teen into a warm embrace.
"You're scaring them Janny." The man laughed, noticing the frightened look on Taryn's face.
"Oh you shoosh." 'Janny' waved off her husband, pulling back to study the two teens. After a moment of silence, she smiled widely. "We're your grandparents!"
"I know." Jordan said, grinning from ear to ear. His grandfather, Thomas Granger, raised his eyebrows.
"How?"
"I have good instincts when it comes to these things." Taryn smacked him upside the head.
"You do not."
"You mean," Jan cut them off, looking at her husband. "You two met already and were just messing with us?" Shaking her head, she tsked, "Men!"
"Instincts." Jordan continued, leaning against a nearby wall. "You have 'em. I have 'em." Shrugging, he added, "It's genetic!"
"No use arguing with the women, boy." Tom stood, placing an arm around his wife's waist. "They'll rip you to sheds." The two guys started laughing, receiving reproachfully looks from the women. Jan took this moment to whap Tom upside the head with her rather large purse.
"Old goat!" she laughed, kissing him on the cheek. Looking excited, she motioned for the teens to gather their trunks together. "You have all your belongings?"
"Leave them alone, Jan."
"Hush." Taryn and Jordan laughed, nodding at their grandmother. She smiled warmly. "Well, come along then!"
~*~
The drive to the Granger residence in Surrey was rather short; however, Taryn and Jordan found themselves enthralled with the British countryside. The automobile they were riding in was even more fascinating. They'd heard stories about them, including Uncle Ron and Uncle Harry's trip in the flying For Anglia.
"Does the car fly?" Jordan blurted out as they drove through the crowded streets of London.
"No dear." Jan chuckled, glancing at Jordan in the rearview mirror. "Haven't you ever been in a car before?"
"They've lived at Hogwarts all their lives." Tom furrowed his eyebrows. "How could they have?"
"Well, I would expect Hermione to bring her children out into the world every so often." Jan explained, staring out the window. Tom sighed, keeping his gaze fixed on the road before him.
"She's a busy woman, you know." He spoke aloud, though it was evident to everyone that he was making the excuse for his own piece of mind. The two teens in the backseat shuddered visibly. It was a line they knew all to well; though this time it was being applied to their mother, and not their father. An odd silence fell within the vehicle.
Finally, they pulled into the driveway of a large Victorian house.
"Wow." Taryn murmured and she stepped out of the car. "It's beautiful."
"Hey Tare!" Jordan exclaimed, grinning madly. "They have snow here!" Taryn rolled her eyes, turning to address her brother.
"We have snow at Hogwarts too . . . " She wasn't able to finish; however, because at that moment, a large, wet snowball pelted her in the face. Jordan was laughing hysterically, while Jan and Tom watched on in amusement. Taryn growled, lunging her body at her brother, tackling him to the ground. Once he was down, she began shoving his face in the snow, drowning out his muffled protests.
"If you kids are done fighting, we can go inside and make some hot chocolate." Jan called from her place on the doorstep. The teens stopped abruptly, looking up just in time to see Tom pelt his wife with a snowball. She laughed, taking some off her face and rubbing it on his nose. "Go get the bags." She told him, entering the house.
"Taryn, you go on inside and help your grandmother with the refreshments." Tom smiled at his granddaughter as he opened the trunk of the car. "Jordan can help me with the bags." Taryn nodded, heading inside the house while Jordan moved to stand beside his grandfather.
"This would be so much easier if I could use my wand." Jordan muttered, dragging both trunks behind him. Tom was following, two duffle bags slung over his shoulder.
"What was that, Sport?"
"Who?" Tom laughed at Jordan's confusion, pushing past him to open the door. Jordan stepped inside the house to the amazing smell of chocolate and cinnamon. Tom beckoned Jordan to follow him up the stairs, where he showed his grandson where they'd be sleeping.
Jordan's room was a deep shade of yellow, shining gold in the sunlight. A four-poster canopy bed sat in the middle of the room, with a large cherry armoire to the side. Tom dropped the duffle bag on the bed, while Jordan deposited his trunk at the foot of it.
Moving onto Taryn's room, Jordan noticed it was much the same; aside from the color, which was a rich shade of navy blue. They deposited her belongings and then trooped down the stairs and into the spacious kitchen. Jan and Taryn were sitting on stools at the island; four steaming mugs placed beside a tray of cinnamon rolls.
"Yummy!" Jordan exclaimed, claiming one of the stools and grabbing for a roll. Taryn slapped his hand away.
"Where are your manners?" She frowned, sipping from her mug.
"Sorry." Jordan mumbled, taking the napkin Jan was offering. After everyone else had served themselves, Jordan took a roll and bit into it, savoring its wonderful taste. "Mish ish ohhhh ooghd." He murmured with a full mouth.
"They don't understand humble mumble 'mymouthisfulloffood' language." Taryn scolded, taking a bite out of her own roll. Tom and Jan laughed.
"Of course we do!" Jan exclaimed. "Your mother used to do it all the time!"
"Yep. No matter how much we reprimanded her for it." Tom agreed, sipping his hot chocolate. Jordan looked doubtful.
"But Mum is so clean and orderly," he smirked, "and polite!" Taryn laughed, rolling her eyes at her brother's antics.
"Sure, she is now." Jan set down her mug, leaning against the table. "But when she was younger we had a lot of trouble with her." Tom nodded, standing behind his wife now, with his hands set on her shoulders.
"We couldn't get her to eat when she was supposed to, we couldn't get her to have manners, to bathe, and even brush her teeth!" he explained, getting a faraway look in his eyes. He seemed to be remembering a forgotten past. "And WE'RE dentists!"
"Of course, she straightened up once she got into school." Jan smiled wistfully. Taryn and Jordan watched their grandparents with wry amusement. Jan was the first to snap out of it. She was smiling at Jordan, holding back the tears. "It's amazing, how much you remind us of her."
An eery silence filled the room, the second that day. It made Taryn uneasy, but the words had touched some place deep in Jordan's heart. Tom finally dared to break the silence.
"How's your father?" He inquired, an attempt at making polite conversation; though by the looks of it, it wasn't his favorite subject. Jordan was stone-faced.
"Who?" he asked, feigning confusion. Taryn rolled her eyes; something she did often, which Jordan always teased her about. 'You're going to go permanently cross-eyed someday.' He would say, but she always shrugged him off.
"Well, it's getting late." Jan interrupted, moving to pile the dishes in the sink. "Why don't you two head up to bed for the night?" Taryn nodded, giving her grandparents each a quick hug and peck on the cheek.
"G'night Gramma Jan, g'night Grampy Tom." She said as she made her way up the stairs. Jordan mimicked her actions, soon following behind. However, when he got to the top of the stairs, it was Taryn's room he went in, not his own.
When he entered, she was sitting on her bed, staring at the floor.
"What's wrong, Tare?" he asked, sitting beside her.
"Nothing." She smiled up at him. "Just thinking about how wonderful they are." She stood, opening her trunk and retrieving her pj's. "And how wonderful it is to finally be here."
"I know what you mean." Jordan sighed, closing his eyes and Taryn changed. "It was so difficult to imagine a world beyond Hogwarts . . . "
"And now that we're here . . . " Taryn trailed off, sitting once again on the bed.
"It will be hard to go back." Jordan finished for her. Taryn nodded in agreement, climbing beneath the blankets. Jordan stood, kissing his sister on her forehead. "G'night Tare."
"G'night J." she replied between a yawn. Jordan turned off the light, shutting the door behind him. Entering his room, he changed into his night cloths and climbed under the covers. Laying in the dark with his eyes open, he thought about everything that had happened that day.
"And now that we're here . . . " he whispered to himself, eyes falling closed, "I don't want to go back." He drifted off to sleep seconds later.
Outside his door, Jan and Tom stood together, holding onto one another.
"Pleasant dreams, young one." Jan whispered, closing his door.
~*~
~*~
Janice and Thomas Granger: Old . . . Hermione's parents. Muggle Retired Dentists.