Everything, apart from minor additions here and there, belongs to she who must be deeply respected, JK Rowling. All thanks to her and my computer.
Chpater 1 - Final Return
Hermione met Harry and Ron on Platform 9 and three quarters for their final year. Her parents had taken her to Germany for the holidays so she couldn't meet them at any other time, since she got her school supplies at the very last minute. As she ran through the barrier, she looked around for a familiar face. Harry rushed up to her and hugged her while Ron stood awkwardly beside them. He seemed happy to see her, but he was shy of her, and she was in no doubt as to why.
"Hi, Hermione, how've you been?" Harry asked enthusiastically, "We haven't seen you in ages!"
"Oh, I'm alright," she answered with a smile.
"How was Germany?" Ron asked.
"Oh, it was wonderful," Hermione said excitedly, "They have the most wonderful magical creature zoo there, it was brilliant! I learned so much!"
The boys groaned at her.
"You've got it muddled up, Hermione," Ron said as he picked up her trunk and took it onto the train, "we learn things after term starts, not before."
"Shut up," she said as she glared at him, "Anyway, last year here. Excited?"
"Sad," Harry said, though still smiling.
"Yeah, very sentimental and all that," said Ron offhandedly as he came back off the train, "But we'll never have to Have Snape again!"
"Or Professor Binns," added Harry.
"Or Professor Trelawney" Ron continued.
"And we'll never have to see dear old Draco any more," Harry said thankfully.
"But we'll see Hagrid a lot less," Hermione countered.
"Hello Hermione," Mrs Weasley greeted her, "How was Germany?"
"Wonderful." Hermione grinned
"I'm glad you enjoyed it, dear," Said Mrs Weasley kindly, and then turned to Harry. "Harry, have you seen Ginny? She forgot to take her lunch."
For a moment Hermione wondered why she'd asked Harry and not Ron, then remembered that at the end of last year Harry had summoned up the courage to firstly ask Ron if he'd mind, then actually ask Ginny out. She assumed they'd been spending…a bit of time together.
"She's probably already on the train already, Mrs Weasley" Harry answered, "If you'd like I can give it to her."
"Thank you dear," Mrs Weasley said. Not a moment later the whistle sounded and they all hurried onto the train and waved their goodbyes from the window.
They all sat down, Harry, Ron and Hermione, Crookshanks eyeing Pigwidgeon hungrily, Hedwig sleeping contently.
"I tell you what," Ron said pointedly, "I'll miss the house elves' cooking."
"And cleaning," Harry added.
Hermione wondered when they'd started listing things like that. Had they done it before and she hadn't noticed?
"What do you think our Defence against the Dark arts teacher will be like?" Harry asked.
"Judging from the previous instalments, I'd say out of his mind." Said Ron definitely.
"Or her mind." Hermione corrected.
"Sorry," Ron muttered.
"Do you think it'll be a woman?" Harry asked Hermione.
"I don't know," Hermione shrugged, "But we shouldn't ignore the fact that it could be a woman."
"Ever the feminist crusader," Harry chuckled.
They chatted idly for some time, and then subsided into silence for a little while, engrossed in their own thoughts, until the woman with the food trolley rolled down to their compartment.
"Anything for you lot?" she asked in her normal friendly manner.
"Yes," Harry declared and turned back to them, "As it's our last year on the train to Hogwarts, I'm buying everyone lunch. I'll brook no refusal, so don't even bother," he said sternly, holding his hand up to Hermione and Ron's silent dissent. He literally bought a third of the trolley, much to the attendant's delight.
As they tucked into lunch, Ginny entered after spending some time with friends from her year who were further up the train. Hermione noted the shy smiled Harry exchanged with her and Ron's amusement at their tense adoration. It was this that triggered Hermione to stir the new couple.
"So Ginny, how were your holidays?" she asked with a wink.
"Okay," Ginny sad quietly, trying to hold back a blush, indicating to Hermione that her meaning was understood, though not acknowledged.
"Did Harry spend any time at the Burrow?" Hermione persisted with an innocent expression that fooled no one.
"Practically the whole holidays," Ron said just as pretend-innocently, stuffing a cauldron cake into his mouth, "But strangely enough, most of his time was spent in…someone else's room," he finished with a stare in his sister's direction.
"Really," said Hermione interestedly continuing their little façade, "fancy that!"
Ginny and Harry were now both matching shades of magenta, Harry's forehead slightly shiny with sweat.
"So Harry," Ron asked sarcastically, "did you enjoy your holidays?"
"Stop it both of you!" Ginny pleaded.
"Stop what?" Hermione and Ron said in unison.
"You know exactly what," Harry said diffidently, though just as red as before.
"Oh come on you two, we're just having fun." Ron laughed.
"I wasn't," Hermione said, her nose up in the air.
Hermione and Ron ceased their taunting and the conversation rumbled on as quickly as the train. They changed into their robes at about dusk, Hermione pinning her Head Girl badge carefully to chest. When they reconvened, the other three stared at her.
"You didn't tell us you were Head Girl!" Harry said indignantly.
"Oh, I thought I'd tell you now, but you were too quick."
"You sent us an owl; couldn't you have told us then?" Ron asked.
"I thought I'd tell you in person." Hermione argued. The truth was, she'd forgotten. There wasn't really anyone else to get it, she knew that, but she didn't dare say it. She'd assumed the boys would too.
"We should've guessed, Ron," Harry smiled, "Who else could they give it to? Pansy Parkinson?"
They all laughed and calmed down.
"So who's Head Boy?" Ron asked.
"I don't know," Hermione mused, "Maybe Malfoy convinced bribed the governors into giving it to his precious heir."
At this Harry put his hand in his pocket and shyly withdrew the shining Head Boy badge.
"Hey!" Ron said angrily, "Why didn't you tell me?"
"I wanted to tell you both together. Ginny knew."
"I'll bet she did!" Hermione winked, "I'm sure she came across it in you're pocket at some point in your...ahem, time together." That sent Harry and Ginny back into a fit of blushing, which made Ron laugh, and consequently Hermione laughed.
"Well, we all know now, so let's leave the Head Boy, Head Girl issue alone." Hermione said finally.
"Hey, we're here," Harry said as the train slowed down."
"Must be," Ron said, "Let's go then. For the very last time, Lady and Gentleman. Sorry Ginny, still got another year after this. Ha ha!"
"Leave her alone," Harry said defensively as they moved with the crowd towards the doors.
"Oh look, Ron," Hermione said dramatically, "the valiant knight is defending his damsel in distress! Oh, great sir knight, how truly noble you are!"
Harry blushed to almost purple then and gave Hermione a shut-your-mouth look, while Ron was practically rolling with laughter.
They spilled out to Hogsmeade station and found themselves and empty horseless carriage.
"Last time boys," Hermione sighed, "We'll never do this again."
"Will you be quiet and enjoy the ride? Ginny whined, "If you're so upset about it, enjoy it while you've got it."
"Alright, alright, I'm enjoying it."
It wasn't long before they'd made their way to the castle, up the stairs and into the Great Hall, where Hermione was quick to notice that the Defence against the Dark Arts teacher was yet to arrive.
They sat down at Gryffindor table, saying hello to anyone they hadn't already seen.
"Look," Harry nodded his head toward the Staff table, "No Defence against the Dark Arts teacher."
"I saw," Hermione said as they all looked back in that direction.
"On Salazar Slytherin's bones, what has this school come to?" A drawling voice had snuck up behind them, "Look what we've got for Head Boy and Girl, a half-blood and a Mudblood. Even weasel here would've been better than you, Potter. He's at least got the blood of a real wizard."
Draco Malfoy, as usual accompanied by the ever-present Crabbe and Goyle (who had grown to look like half-trolls) were staring vindictively in their direction.
Hermione saw a vein begin to pulse in Ron's temple, and Harry was balling his fists.
She didn't want to see anyone with a black eye, so she pre-empted the violence with a war of words. Malfoy couldn't beat her at that game.
"Oh dear, Draco," Hermione said patronisingly, "Couldn't your father pay your way to the top? You must really be as bad as your marks say you are. But why didn't you just do something yourself? I'm sure sexual favours wouldn't have gone amiss with grumpy old men like the school governors."
Hermione wasn't sure who looked more shocked, Draco, Ron or Harry.
"You'll regret that, Mudblood!" Draco spat.
"I'm sure," said sharply, "Just like you probably regret having blonde hair when your head is so far up your backside."
Malfoy's eyes glinted dangerously, and his cronies bristled visibly. Hermione was sure they didn't understand what she had said, but were responding to Draco's reactions. Harry, however, spluttered in disbelief and Ron's jaw dropped down to somewhere near his toes.
"Bugger off Malfoy," Hermione said confidently, "you've got no business here."
Malfoy bared his teeth at her then swept away in a manner deeply reminiscent of his father. He had grown to look a lot like his father over the years, his jaw strengthening and his eyes growing more malevolent every day. Crabbe and Goyle tottered along after him like zombies on a lead, much the way their fathers did for Malfoy Senior.
Hermione took her seat, but the boys continued to gape at her.
"Hermione, that was fantastic!" Ron whispered in amazement, sitting down beside her.
"Yeah," Harry said similarly on her other side, "I've never seen him look so…"
"furious?" Hermione prompted.
"Yeah."
By this time everyone was seated and Professor Dumbledore was already standing, waiting for silence. Eventually the conversation simmered down and he began.
"Good evening students, I think we should begin by allowing our new first years in to be sorted." He nodded to Professor McGonagall to open the door, and in streamed the next twenty Hogwarts students.
The sorting proceeded as usual, with the Sorting hat's brand new song, which was applauded and the sorting, which included one of Ron's relatives.
"That's Francis Dafferly," Ron whispered as a nervous looking boy with straw-coloured hair sat on the stool and pulled the Sorting hat on, "he's my cousin on my father's side."
"Hufflepuff!" shouted the Sorting Hat, which made Ron laugh
"Like his three brothers," Ron explained.
"You're also like your three brothers, what's the problem?" Hermione retorted.
"What's with the mouth today, Hermione?" Ron asked, slightly hurt.
The sorting finished and Dumbledore stood up once again to speak. He was smiling warmly and looked around him, exuding an aura of extreme happiness to see every person in the hall.
"Welcome, welcome everyone! I hope you're all ready for another year of learning, and I hope our students in their final year are prepared for the hard year ahead of them. Now, we do have a new addition to the Faculty, however she appears to have lost track of time. For this reason I shall introduce her to you tomorrow at dinner if you do not have a lesson with her before that.
"Now, I must remind you all that the Forbidden Forest is out-of-bounds to all students, and this years' addition to the prohibited items are Cassandra's cauldron bombs and quick-start people pokers. The full list of prohibited items can be checked in Mr Filch's office. Now, I believe we can begin dinner."
Dinner was marvellous as usual. The house elves had outdone themselves this year. There were huge bowls of peas and stacks of shepherd's pies, which were second in size only to the platters of chicken and beef that surrounded them. Somehow they managed to fit in the mouth-watering dessert as well, and were completely stuffed and sleepy by the end.
"There," Ron said lazily as he nodded toward the table, "I'll miss that."
They trotted off to Gryffindor tower and it took no time for Hermione to fall into a deep satisfied sleep.
Hermione was already eating breakfast when Ron and Harry dawdled into the Hall, bleary-eyed and sluggish. It appeared that Harry had spent a good part of the evening with Ginny, who came in some time after him. Hermione could only assume Ron had waited up for him.
"Morning," she chirped happily as she chomped on a piece of toast, her finger still holding her place in the Daily Prophet.
Vague grumbling was the only reply as the boys slid into their seats.
"Wattawegotdismornin?" Ron asked, rubbing sleep out of his eyes.
"It seems we've hit the jackpot. Double potions with the Slytherins." Hermione handed them their timetables. They groaned in unison and practically slid onto the floor in misery.
"Miss Granger, Mister Potter" Professor McGonagall called, "the Headmaster has requested that you see him in his office immediately."
They looked at her, puzzled with no idea what it was about, but they followed obediently. Ron stared after them, just as puzzled as they.
"Professor, what's this about?" Hermione asked curiously.
"Professor Dumbledore will explain you when you speak to him." She replied secretively.
Harry was silent, and Hermione decided to remain so too.
"Acid Pop!" McGonagall announced to the Gargoyle, and it leapt aside and allowed them to pass.
Professor Dumbledore was waiting at the top of the moving staircase.
"Hello, Hermione, Harry" Said Professor Dumbledore pleasantly, "I trust you are both well this morning."
"Fine," Harry replied on Hermione's behalf. She'd never been called to the Headmaster's office. She was far too taken with the array of books and exciting little contraptions littered through the room
"Hermione, would you mind waiting outside while I speak to Harry?"
"Not at all." She said, her eyes still scanning her surroundings as she stepped back onto the staircase.
When she reached the base, she waited patiently, wondering what this was about, and what Harry had been called for. She thought for a moment it was something about being Head Boy and Girl, but then it would've been a meeting together. Perhaps Harry was meeting about Quidditch…but then what was it for her?
It seemed only a few moments before Harry came back down the stairs looking weary. He smiled at her.
"What was that about?" she whispered, hoping Dumbledore couldn't hear.
"Oh, nothing, I'll explain later. D'you want me to wait?" He asked.
"No, Snape will give you detention, go," she advised.
He too, hurried away, and Hermione made her way up the stairs. She walked into the Headmaster's office, where Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk, peering over his glasses.
"I suppose you're wondering why I called you up here." He smiled.
"To be perfectly honest, yes."
"Please, sit down."
Hermione took a seat before Dumbledore's desk as he took his behind it, steepling his fingers below his nose.
"It comes as no surprise to me, Hermione, that regular studies do not quench your thirst for knowledge, and never have. You are a very bright student, and obviously, this is one of the traits that contributed considerably to your election as Head Girl. I have struggled for some time to find something to satisfy you, and hopefully your extra credit assignments from your two previous years were something of a help. However, for this final year at Hogwarts I have managed to invite a…resident Mastermind, shall we say."
"A…Mastermind sir?" Hermione repeated, completely bewildered.
"Yes, she is, without a doubt, the most intelligent person in the country at this point in time. She lives in the Muggle world and visits wizarding world regularly, and she is head of neurology at Oxford University. I often consult her on magical theory, as her knowledge is unparalleled. You will not have come across her name in any books in the Hogwarts library because she invests a great deal of time and energy in concealing herself and her exploits in as many ways as she can manage. However, you may have seen her works in Muggle bookshops and libraries. Her theses are limited to university authorities and so on."
"Excuse me, Professor, but, if you don't mind me asking, what does it have to do with me?"
Dumbledore smiled kindly.
"My dear girl, you are half the reason I managed to hire her. I told her about you. About what you've done at the school…your academic record, your services to the school. She was very interested. She told me that she would come if she would be able to tutor you privately and if she was able to provide a few more pastimes for the other students. She thinks it's a terrible shame we don't put on a musical."
Hermione was digesting the information. What on earth is he telling me this for?
She shook her head confusedly, "alright."
"Perhaps you may recognise her name. Deborah Daniels?"
Hermione gasped.
"Deborah Daniels is going to be my tutor?" Hermione whispered incredulously.
Dumbledore chuckled.
"I assume then you have heard of her."
"Heard of her?" Hermione continued in her shocked whisper, "She's the foremost authority on Neurology and she's also a qualified Botanist, not to mention a Musician and Mathematician. She's a Genius."
"Don't say that to her," Dumbledore warned with a smile on his face, "She hates being called genius."
"Deborah Daniels is going to be my tutor." Hermione repeated, her eyes staring away blankly.
"And Defence against the Dark Arts Professor, and Head of Entertainment." Dumbledore added happily.
"Thankyou professor," Hermione said meaningfully, "I can't think of a better teacher to have here."
"Neither can I, Hermione. Now you'd better go to class, or Professor Snape will give you a detention."
Just as Hermione was lifting herself from her seat, something crashed through the glass dome above Dumbledore's desk and woman in a long leather black coat and strange ragged leather pants landed painfully in a hail of glass. Hermione lept off her seat and ran some distance away, thinking it was someone who'd fallen out of a plane. Dumbledore chuckled and magicked the shards of glass away.
The woman stirred for a moment, then removed a pair of sunglasses that had been hiding her vivid blue eyes and smiled at Dumbledore.
"Am I Late?" The woman asked apologetically.
"Yes," Dumbledore replied, not particularly upset, "You were supposed to be here last night."
"My apologies…urgent surgery and all that."
"May I ask what provoked the rather unorthodox entry ?" Dumbledore inquired politely.
"Decided to challenge myself, Albie," She said, repairing the damage done to the dome, "I put a hurling hex on my broomstick, wanted to see if I could get all the way here without falling off. Rather proud of myself, really. I made it all the way here and the damn thing didn't even buck me off." She turned to look at Hermione with interest. "This must be Hermione Granger. A pleasure to meet you, Hermione, I'm Deborah Daniels." Deborah extended her hand.
Hermione had made that conclusion herself, but she was in shock, barely ably to shake the hand put forward. She had expected someone quite a bit older, not to mention the fact that it was Deborah Daniels.
"Wow…" That was all Hermione could say.
"I'm going to take it as a given that your everyday vocabulary extends somewhat farther than 'wow.'" Deborah was smiling. It was the kind of remark that came from Snape, but not with the same sarcastic, caustic, nasty bite. Hermione gathered her mind together and began to speak.
"Sorry, it's just such an honour to meet you. I read your article in the Medical Observer about the effects of endorphins on the synaptic cleft after brain damage. And I've read about your research into nerve repair by therapeutic cloning. It's just amazing! I can't tell you, I mean, it's just such a privilege for me. I'm really looking forward to this year now…"
By this time she was rambling.
"Calm down, Hermione," Deborah advised with a chuckle, "you'll hyperventilate."
"Deborah, Hermione really must go to class." Dumbledore urged.
"Yes, I suppose she must. It's still a school then, isn't it? Pity, that. Well, then, off you go Hermione, we'll see you in class this afternoon."
Hermione rushed out, blushing. Stupid, stupid, stupid, she chastised herself. She had gone to pieces in front of the smartest witch and wizard in the world. Albus Dumbledore and Deborah Daniels! In all her life she'd never been more embarrassed.
On the bright side, Hogwarts now had a monopoly on authority and intelligence: Albus Dumbledore, one of the wisest and most powerful and wizards in the world. Filius Flitwick, inventor of the 'memoria ostentare' charm, which replayed the memories of the subject to the charmer. Severus Snape, expert potions brewer and nationally internationally renowned inventor of the brainwave potion. Minerva McGonagall, editor of quarterly periodical 'Transfiguration Today.' And the most recent addition, Deborah Daniels, Muggle and witch genius, whether she liked being called that or not. It was surprising that she was the only one who realised how very influential Hogwarts teachers were outside the walls of the school. Nobody else seemed to know or care. To everyone else, teachers were teachers, nothing more. It's really quite a shame, Hermione thought, that wizards don't even care about what is going on around them. That's how they get drawn into problems with characters like Voldemort. No one watches the signs.
Voldemort had not yet been defeated, but Peter Pettigrew had been caught the previous year, as he was trying to kidnap Harry on a Hogsmeade visit. Pettigrew had not counted on the presence of Dumbledore and Remus Lupin, who were present simply by coincidence…and a lucky one at that. Sirius had been exonerated and, as a gesture of good will, was given Order of Merlin, third class. Remus Lupin had also been given the same honour, and everyone at the ceremony was reminded that Dumbledore already had Order of Merlin First class, so there wasn't much else they could give him but a round of applause, which everyone did loudly and appreciatively.
Pettigrew was questioned thoroughly with the aid of veritaserum and then handed over to the Dementors, much to Harry's displeasure, as he wanted to 'kill the smarmy grovelling git with his own bare hands' if Hermione remembered correctly. Nevertheless, he now sat in Azkaban, far beyond recovery.
Hermione had reached the Dungeons before she had known what she was doing. Luckily, it was just then that Snape swooped in and began his class, unaware that Hermione had only just sat down.
"Silence!" He growled, exuding that powerful aura of I-hate-you-all that was characteristically Snape. "Today you will be preparing a translator potion. This potion is used to translate any text into the natural language of the brewer. It is applied to the text with a brush and within thirty seconds the text has been translated to the brewer's native language. There are only three ways in which I have seen this potion ruined in the history of all my teaching, and no doubt Mr Longbottom will demonstrate all three of these and probably find another one to boot. Begin!"
Neville cowered behind his workbench, apparently too scared to even begin. Snape was not in a good mood. He wasn't even in his normal foul mood. He was even worse. He had started insulting Neville even before they had begun work. Must have fallen out of bed this morning, Hermione thought.
"You foolish boy!" Snape was now looming over Neville. He looked almost ready to beat the living daylights out of the trembling wreck. "Get on with your work! It really isn't difficult, not even for that excuse of a brain that is hibernating in your head. Or perhaps," he said with a sneer, "Miss Granger could brew it for you?"
Oh no, she thought bitterly, don't you dare drag me into this. She clenched her teeth, bowed her head and focused on crushing her Blackberries and Cactus needles into a thin paste, her credo of standing up for herself forgotten in the face of Snape's intense cruelty. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Harry and Ron had visibly tensed, also responding to Snape's barrage of insults.
And so went Potions class. Neville did indeed make the three mistakes Snape had foretold, and another one to boot.
"Don't worry, Neville," Harry said bracingly, "If he hadn't been breathing down your neck the entire time you probably would've been fine."
Neville was still holding a cloth soaked in Marcus Meller's All-Purpose De-Sweller to his bright red and blown-up face. A large bubble had risen up and flecked his defective potion into his nose.
"One of these days I'm gonna walk right up to that mongrel and wring his neck out with my bare hands, I will." Ron was seething at Snape as he usually did after Potions.
"Come on, everyone, Defence against the Dark Arts now." Hermione tried to turn their attention elsewhere. "We have a new Professor…Professor Daniels."
"I wonder if she knows how to get rid of evil Potions Professors." Harry mused.
"Professor Snape isn't evil," Hermione reasoned, "He's just…well, he's a bastard."
Harry, Ron and Neville all froze.
"Harry did Hermione just call a teacher a…a bastard?" Ron asked dazedly.
"I…I think she did," Harry replied in the same tone of amazement.
"Come one then," she prompted them, "We don't want to be late."
"Correction," said Ron, "You don't want to be late."
