CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR FIFTIETH REVIEWER
XcruciatusX
THIS CHAPTER IS DEDICATED TO YOU!
Sirius looked oddly sad on the Hogwarts express. After the Marauders tried and failed to cheer him up several times, he left the compartment muttering to himself with a worried look marring his handsome face.
"What's wrong with him?" Hermione asked the Marauders with a troubled tone.
"No clue," said James with an equally puzzled expression on his visage.
After about an hour, Sirius returned, his look of sadness replaced by an expression of bizarre unease.
Hermione leaned forward, touching Sirius' arm as a comforting gesture (much to Remus' displeasure).
"What's wrong?" she asked gently, peering into his conflicted dark eyes.
Sirius looked up at her.
"My brother's being sorted today. I'm seriously worried that he'll be put in Slytherin. He's a good person at heart, but I'm worried that my parents'," he paused for an oddly cruel and bark-like laugh, "'teachings' may change his fate in the house sorting."
"Sirius," she began. She didn't quite know where to go with this, or how to explain.
"Do you know what house he goes to? Is that knowledge that you are privileged to have?" he asked sharply.
Hermione simply nodded.
"Well, what house is he in then?" he inquired impatiently.
"Sl-Slytherin," she started. Sirius looked horrified.
"I have worse news then that, I'm afraid. He joins V-Voldemort right after school, under your parents' urging. But he changes his mind… too late. He's killed when he backs out."
Sirius looked ready to cry.
"No, no," he said more to himself then Hermione, "No, that's impossible. He's a good person, I know he is!"
Hermione got up; stricken at the grief she had caused Sirius.
Hermione practically ran up and down the corridors of the train, searching for someone who'd know where Regulus was. Frazzled and dazed from the shock of seeing Sirius so upset over his brother, she knew this was something she had to change, something she could prevent. What was more surprising is that Sirius had given her the impression that he loathed his brother in the future. Perhaps he just resented that he was unable to help him. These ponderings were driven out of her head as the thoughts of how upset Sirius was and how she could fix this and add allies to the 'good' side flew in.
She stopped a group of small, nervous people. "Know a Regulus Black?" She asked hurriedly. They shook their heads and she continued throughout the train.
She came upon a compartment with a lone person hunched by the window. His face, uncannily like Sirius', was marred with the same expression the older Black had worn on his face mere minutes ago. He looked lonely, lost, and confused.
She gently opened the door to his compartment and took a seat in front of him.
"Regulus?" she said softly. He looked up and nodded.
"You look so lonely. What's the matter?" She asked kindly.
Hermione thanked the unknown deity's that had given her the mysterious power to make people reveal even their deepest fears, worries, and secrets to her from her very first meeting with them.
"It's the sorting. My parents want me in Slytherin, but I'd really prefer Gryffindor," he said quietly.
"Why does that make you nervous?" She pressed, still maintaining her non-threatening demeanor.
"If I'm in Slytherin, I may not get to see my big brother much, you know, since he got kicked out of my parents house and all," he said, still obviously uneasy, "but if I'm in Gryffindor, then my parents will do to me the same that they did to Sirius." He was shaking like a leaf.
"Regulus," He met her eyes for the first time, "are your parent's really being fair when they give you a choice like that?" He shook his head. "I want you to know that if you're in Gryffindor and you don't want to go back home, Mrs. and Mr. Potter would probably keep you like they're keeping Sirius."
"Oh, I already know that. Sirius gave me a letter from the Potters offering me a place to stay.
"Then is there even a reason to be worried?" She replied, sensing that he was definitely more comfortable with her now.
"What if I get sorted into Slytherin anyway? And I don't know if I can leave my parents, I mean, they keep talking about how they're going to get Siri, what if I'm not there to stop them? When I leave there isn't anybody to keep them from killing Sirius, I'm the only one who would!"
"You can't have that much responsibility, you're eleven! Don't worry, Sirius is a very powerful wizard, and I'll protect him; I'm a very powerful witch." She tapped his head with her wand and said, "Avis". Canaries began circling his head and he smiled tentatively.
"And about maybe being sorted into Slytherin," She said. He nodded attentively. "It is our choices, not our abilities that determine who we are." She tapped his head and the birds disappeared. "Goodbye" she waved at him as she walked out the door, hoping she'd done something right.
She went back to her compartment with the Marauders and sat between Remus and Sirius.
"Siri," she said comfortingly, "I'm really, really sorry for telling you about your brother. But perhaps this time it'll be alright. He told me about the note the Potters sent him, and I think he might come live at the Potters with you." Sirius smiled weakly, and the Marauders settled into a slightly less than comfortable silence.
The Hogwarts Express began to halt much to everyone's pleasure. Sirius and James jumped off while it was still moving, colliding with Hagrid who ruffled their hair playfully and threw them over his shoulder and carried them to the carriages.
Hermione smiled to see Sirius and James having such fun. Remus, Hermione, and Peter got off the train, meeting Sirius and James in the front carriage.
"I am so hungry," said Sirius, licking his lips loudly.
The carriage bounced along in a pleasant manner. Sirius complained so much about his starvation and "thirstation," that James was forced to cast a silencing charm on him much to Sirius' dismay.
The carriage was brought to an abrupt standstill in front of the magnificent castle. Hermione, Remus, Peter, Sirius, and James clambered out and migrated to the castle, much like moths do to a light bulb.
They passed a gaggle of first years that were waiting outside of the great hall. She waved at Regulus, and as she walked past whispered, "Choices" and gave him as small wink.
The Marauders sat down at the Gryffindor table and listened to the Sorting Hat's song. A line of new students filed through the door at the command of Professor McGonagall. She unfurled a long roll of parchment with a snap of her wrist and began reading.
"Allen, Robert" she said curtly, her spectacles flashing in the dim candlelight. A scrawny boy stepped up to the gat, which fell over his eyes. "I swear, I was not that small when I was a first year," muttered James under his breath. Hermione silently laughed, thinking of all the times Harry had said that exact same thing. After a moment, the hat shouted, "Ravenclaw!" The table to the Marauders' right erupted in cheers.
"Azal, Susan" was made into a Hufflepuff.
She Read alphabetically through the list, till she finally got down to "Bawny, Steven", "Belena, Belinda","Bitt, Abby"; at last getting to "Black, Regulus.
She could see Sirius beginning to sweat. She had her fingers crossed under the table, making inventive promises to God as she prayed that Regulus would be sorted into Gryffindor.
After what seemed like years, the hat called out, "Slytherin!"
Tears began to pour down Hermione's face while Sirius began banging his head repeatedly on the wooden table.
"NO! WAIT! I'VE MADE A MISTAKE!" The hat screamed out. Sirius stopped banging his head on the table for a moment to listen.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Sirius' eyes became comically wide as Regulus rushed down the isle to meet his big brother.
After being congratulated many times by Sirius, Remus, James, Peter, and Hermione, Regulus turned to Hermione and quietly thanked her for her advice. Then he turned to James and thanked him and his parents for the offer of a home and accepted it. James was pleased to have another person to play quidditch with and promised to right his parents as soon as possible.
Dumbledore stood up after "Zabini, William" was sorted into Slytherin and announced the beginning of the feast.
Sirius devoured an entire roast chicken in seconds, a feat which the new blood hadn't seen yet. Sirius ended up signing a lot of autographs, mainly of wide-eyed first years in awe of his talent.
After the food was cleared away, Dumbledore made his usual speech about what was forbidden and what wasn't, then dismissed the yawning students to their dormitories.
On the way up to the Fat Lady, Sirius grabbed Hermione's arm and pulled her aside into an empty corridor.
"Hermione, I'd really like to thank you. I don't know what you said to him, but it obviously worked, made something click in his mind. When I asked him to come live at the Potters with me, he just about threw me out of the compartment. What did you say to him?"
"Well, first I asked him what was wrong. He told me that he was nervous about the sorting. I asked him why, and he told me that he was worried that if he was in Slytherin he'd never see or speak to you again. He told me if he was in Gryffindor, his parents would do to him what they did to you. They talk constantly of killing you, apparently, and he thinks he has to stop them. So I told him I'd protect you, because I'm very powerful, and it isn't his responsibility anyway."
"But why'd the hat change its mind? How did my brother get the hat to do that?" he said, quite puzzled.
"Sirius, it is our choices, not our abilities that determine who we are," said Hermione, repeating what she'd told Regulus.
"So, my brother chose Gryffindor?" Sirius said with a laughably bewildered look on his face.
"Only because he was brave enough to tell the hat what he wanted, which means that Gryffindor was the right for him all along," said Hermione wisely.
Without warning, Sirius pulled Hermione into a large hug.
"Thank you so much. I don't know what I'd have done if he'd been put into Slytherin." He said gruffly into her hair.
Remus rounded the corner, feeling slightly sick at the sight of Sirius and Hermione hugging. He gulped down his jealously and called out to them, "Hey, lovebirds, not in the hall!" Hermione jumped and screeched briefly in surprise. She sighed with relief upon realizing that it wasn't Dumbledore. "Remus, you scared me! How dare you?" she replied in mock anger. Remus laughed dryly, trying to hide his obvious envy at Sirius' hug.
Sirius watched Remus closely. I knew it! He thought wisely to himself, his famous father-time look plastered on his face, along with a slightly devilish grin. The Marauders trekked up to Gryffindor tower, Hermione going up to bed immediately, talking about how she needed to get up early the next morning to do a little extra reading before their first classes.
Remus was about to follow James and Peter up the dormitory steps when Sirius stopped him.
"HALT IN THE NAME OF THE LAW!" Sirius shouted. Remus immediately turned around, covetous feelings at Sirius and Hermione's hug still whirling around through his mind.
"What the hell are you talking about, Sirius?" Remus asked tiredly, trying to keep the spite out of his voice.
"Remmy-poo, you and I both know what I'm talking about. You were jealous when you saw me hug Hermione, I know you were," said Sirius astutely, tapping his nose in a desperate and failed attempt to look wise.
Remus' stomach flipped. Not only did Sirius know what he was feeling scarily well, but he had also just called Remus 'Remmy-poo.'
"No, I am not," said Remus, attempting seriousness.
Sirius gave Remus one of those crazy, yet startlingly convincing, "all-knowing" looks.
"I WASN'T" Remus protested loudly.
Sirius tapped his foot impatiently.
Remus looked away from Sirius crossing his arms. "I was in NO WAY jealous of you hugging Hermione." He said stubbornly.
"Then, my sweet Remmy-poo, why is it that when I looked at you after you came upon us, you looked like the sky was falling? Can you give me a logical answer to that, eh? EH? Eh, Remmy, eh?"
Remus said nothing.
"Remus, just so you know, I was only thanking her for helping my brother get into Gryffindor, okay? There was nothing to it, it meant nothing. Even though she is rather pretty…" Sirius goaded, thinking it was sure to work.
"STAY AWAY FROM HER, MAN-WHORE!" Remus screamed without thinking. He immediately clapped his hands over his mouth, gray eyes wide.
"I knew it," said Sirius Smugly, "don't worry, she's yours. You really like her, I'm not about to get all up on my best friends territory, I was just trying to get you to admit it. And I'm not a man-whore; I'm a connoisseur of fine women!"
"No, you don't know anything, she isn't my 'territory' as you so nicely put it, and I was just trying to protect her from your man-whorish ways. Oh, and YES you ARE a man-whore."
Sirius gave a look of deep offense.
"Ok, I'm sorry for calling you a man-whore. Have a Pumpkin Pasty." Remus said, handing over the sweet cake. Remus relished that after six years of knowing Sirius, he had finally perfected the flavorless sedative, extremely glad that that it was so strong that Sirius wouldn't remember the conversation the next morning. Sirius was out like a light. Remus levitated him carefully up the stairs, praying that the tranquilizer would work perfectly as intended.
-In the Girls Dorm-
Hermione was buzzing with her success with Regulus. She changed into some plain white pajamas with little red roses outlining the edges and crawled into bed, wondering how she was going to sleep with the trill and adrenaline from the hat's screech of "Gryffindor!"
Strangely, the second her head hit the pillow she was asleep.
She found herself in a big white room. She felt strangely at peace. Her own voice rang throughout her head echoing in the strange emptiness of the haven. "Good job with Regulus."
"What's going on?" Hermione said, looking around for someone or something that was talking.
She turned three-hundred and sixty degrees only to whirl around and face… herself.
"Who are you?" asked Hermione, very surprised and confused, but determined not to show it on her face. Hermione Granger was not one to reveal weaknesses to potential enemies. Even so, this strange entity did not seem like an enemy to Hermione.
"I'm you," the person in front of her replied.
"I see. Is this…a dream?" Hermione inquired. 'Hermione' nodded.
"Errrr, ok. I want to wake up, now." said Hermione in more of a question then a statement.
'Hermione shook her head with an annoyingly understanding smile on her face.
"Don't you want to see the results of your actions?"
Hermione's mouth dropped open. "What do you mean?"
"You can see the results of your actions. You made Sirius' life a little better, and Harry's life a lot better. Let me show you."
"Hermione was suddenly watching a movie of sorts. Sirius and Regulus ran towards the burnt frame of what appeared to once be Godric's Hollow.
"No," a much older Sirius whimpered, "No, this isn't happening, no."
Someone who seemed to be Regulus kneeled down next to what seemed to be a small lump. "Harry," said Regulus, picking up the baby carefully. He flicked his wand, making some blankets appear, wrapping up the baby. Sirius got up and walked over to a corner where two lifeless figures lay. Hazel and Green eyes stared blankly up into the cloudy night sky, completely lifeless.
Sirius crumpled. Hermione's breath caught in her chest as she watched Sirius' eyes fill as he howled over and over again, "No, please God, this isn't happening! This can't be happening, this is a mistake. Please, no!" Sirius fell silent, and his chest rose raggedly up and down.
Hermione saw Remus apparate and run down to the hideous scene. Remus looked at Sirius, very confused. He then saw the bodies and fell on his knees, unblinking in shock as he looked down at James and Lily.
"Sirius, no. What happened…? You were their Secret Keeper, how could you?" he hissed menacingly, fury filling the void in which two of his best friends had once been. His gray eyes blazed with a fire Hermione never would have thought he possessed.
Sirius looked shocked through his misery. "Remus, please, don't even think that. I wasn't the Secret Keeper, we changed behind closed doors. It was…," He said weakly.
"If it wasn't you then who was it?" he asked warningly.
"Peter."
"You lie!" said Remus, brandishing his wand threateningly.
"Ok, I'll just leave, then. I'm glad we have such a trusting friendship," replied Sirius coldly and cruelly sarcastic.
"Remus, no, he isn't lying!" Said Regulus loudly from several yards away, tending the baby.
Remus tackled Sirius, forgetting entirely about his wand.
"WHAT is the MATTER with you?" He roared in rage, "Don't try and blame your fuck up on poor, innocent Peter!"
Regulus flicked his wand from where he was standing with the baby and strolled over to the once-fighting, now-motionless men.
"Remus, I understand your frustration, anger, and grief. They were my friends too, and they were Sirius friends. Sirius probably understands you more than me; James and Lily were more yours and Sirius' friends than mine. Have you been in contact with Peter lately? How did you find out about the deaths? I'm sure you received an owl from Aberforth Dumbledore, the nearest person to the Potters geographically, as did Sirius and I. Now, tell me Remus, where is Peter? I'm sure he'd be here right now if he wasn't James' and Lily's betrayers. No, Aberforth contacted him as well, but he didn't come because he knew if you did, when you found out he'd be in deep trouble. Tell me, why would Sirius come, he knew you'd come; you and Sirius, and even Peter were James' and Lily's best friends. But I'll bet you a million galleons that Peter would be here right now grieving with you if this whole mess wasn't his fault, if he wasn't a double agent. And frankly, I'm disappointed in you for even thinking Sirius could be responsible for this, he was James' best man for goodness sake!"
Remus and Sirius were taken out of the body bind. Remus' knees buckled and his eyes portrayed the anger at Peter, and then the realization that was what Regulus was undoubtedly true.
"I'm so sorry, mate. I should've believed you, and at the very least listened to your side of the story."
Sirius gave a slow, sad nod of forgiveness, his eyes never leaving Remus'.
They turned back to the bodies.
"I can't believe they're…they're dead."
"Me neither. But we can't grieve for too long, Remus. We have to do something with the bodies for now and be in contact with Albus."
"I'm sure Aberforth already contacted Albus," said Regulus who was gently trying to heal Harry's bleeding forehead.
They looked down at the bodies once more. Remus moved them to a more natural position then they had been crumpled in before, and laid red and gold cloths over them which he had conjured out of midair.
"We should find a place for Harry to stay for now, and then go kill Peter," said Sirius.
Remus nodded.
"I don't think so, Sirius. One, this baby need's a home, and two, that home is NOT with me. They'll get peter, don't worry. Peter isn't exactly the fastest broom in the race, if you get my meaning. Revenge isn't your priority; you need to take care of Harry." Regulus said, pushing the baby into Sirius' arms. "You are this baby's father now. Be responsible, for James and Lily. You are his godfather and surrogate father, after all.
Sirius looked down at the baby. Droplets fell onto the baby's cheeks, but they weren't Harry's. It was Sirius' tears that fell onto Harry's face.
"I can't believe they're gone. I can't believe I'm a father now, in a manner of sense, too. What if I'm not a good father? You know I say this all the time, but he has…he had his mother's eyes." He stared into the baby's now open vibrantly green eyes. "Pa'foo" Harry said, looking up at Sirius in recognition. "Pa'foo?" he asked as if to say "Why are you crying?" Hermione's heart skipped a beat as she watched this heart-wrenching scene.
Suddenly, the screen skipped forward. She saw broken scenes from Harry's life. Harry blowing out candle's on his fifth birthday, Harry and Sirius reading a letter from Hogwarts, Sirius and Remus taking Harry on a trip to Diagon Alley, Harry being waved off by Remus, Regulus, and Sirius, yelling from the speeding Hogwarts express "BYE UNCLE MOONY! BYE REGULUS! BY SIRI!"
The movie cut off, and Hermione looked over at 'Hermione'.
"I didn't do all that, did I?" Hermione asked. 'Hermione' nodded.
Hermione smiled. "Wow. Harry has a lot better life now. He's still a good person, right? Does he still know me and Ron?"
"His personality is inherently good, and you and Ron will always be his friends; nothing can ever change that." 'Hermione' responded.
"How do I know this isn't just a dream?" asked Hermione, pondering this paradox.
"You'll just have to trust me, and for goodness sakes, I'm you, don't you trust yourself!" 'Hermione' replied with a clever smile.
"Will I ever get to see them again, I mean, I love my friends here, but I wish I could see them again, I will, won't I?" thought Hermione aloud.
"You still have things to do Hermione! But don't worry, when you finish, you can go back to your own time. Harry and Ron will notice the changes, and the Marauders will remember you. It'll be alright, you'll be fine."
Hermione contemplated this and grinned.
"Oh, and by the way, good job with Sirius and Severus: the Shrieking Shack incident was a complete mess. Unfortunately, that didn't do much. You know, at heart Severus is a good person, he just needs a bit of urging to make the right choices….pity his parents won't help him with that," said 'Hermione' with a sly smile.
"Is that a hint?" asked Hermione incredulously.
"I'll let you go now. You've completed something great today, but it isn't a time to rest on your laurels. You still have things to do. Enjoy your accomplishments, and then get back to work. Goodbye, I will see you soon, I'm sure." Said 'Hermione, fading, and Hermione knew no more.
Hermione woke at around four in the morning. Unable to get back to sleep, she got up and showered quietly, dressed, and headed down to do some transfiguration notes.
I can't believe that one simple action of talking to Regulus changes so much, Harry has a much better life now, and Sirius doesn't go to prison!
"Good grief, Hermione, how long have you been up?" asked the rest of the marauders who slunk down the stairs at around seven-thirty, observing her tuck away some chapter six transfiguration notes in a folder.
"A few hours," replied Hermione, neatly fitting her textbook and her folder back in her bag.
They walked to the Great Hall slowly.
They took seats in the great hall. Sirius grabbed a muffin and swallowed it viciously. Hermione looked around Remus at Regulus, smiling at him talking with all of his new friends. The mail owls came, and Hermione's eyes grazed her daily paper, she wasn't really reading.
"Oh, bloody hell, no." whispered Sirius.
A bright red envelope fluttered into his toast. Sirius picked it up, his hands quavering as he opened it.
The envelope exploded loudly, Mrs. Black's hideous voice screeching throughout the hall.
"FILTHY BLOOD TRAITOR! HOW DO YOU THINKYOUR FATHER AND I REACTED WHEN WE HEARD ABOUT YOUR SO-CALLED ADOPTION! CRUCIO!" Sirius dived under the table in fright, and after a short silence, his mothers voice returned with a mocking laugh, "YOU ALREADY KNOW, I'M SURE, THAT YOU CAN'T CURSE PEOPLE THROUGH HOWLERS, ALTHOUGH KNOWING YOU, YOU'VE ALREADY DIVED UNDER THE TABLE IN FRIGHT, LIKE YOU USED TO DO AT HOME!" Sirius got up, trembling violently and waving his wand screaming "SILENCIO! SILENCIO!" The howler continued. "AT FIRST WE WERE ANGRY THAT YOU HAD DEFILED THE BLACK FAMILY NAME BY BEING ADOPTED BY BLOOD TRAITORS. BUT AFTER A BIT MORE THOUGHT, WE REALIZED YOU WEREN'T REALLY WORTH OUR ANGER, SO THIS HOWLER IS JUST A FANCY WAY FOR US TO SAY THAT YOUR NAME IS NO LONGER ON THE BEAUTIFUL BLACK FAMILY TAPESTRY, AND THAT WE HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY THAT YOU'VE SPLIT UP THE FAMILY!"
Though it was irrational, Sirius screamed back at the howler "I WAS NOT A PART OF YOUR DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY!"
Hermione, James, and Remus gathered around Sirius who was quivering in fury.
Peter tapped Hermione on the shoulder and squeaked, "Regulus, he has one too!"
Almost everyone in the Great Hall was looking down at the Blacks in a mixture of disbelief and pity, although the Slytherins were smiling and laughing at the predicament of the Blacks.
The Marauders looked over at Regulus, who was shaking worse than Sirius, having just heard the contents of Sirius' howler.
Regulus' hands opened the howler gingerly, his eyes squinted shut as he braced himself for his howler.
"SO, YOU'RE THE NEW GRYFFINDOR, EH? I BET YOU'RE WONDERING HOW WE FOUND OUT SO FAST! I HAVE PEOPLE WATCHING YOU, SO YOU SHOULD PROBABLY WATCH OUT! BACK TO THE TOPIC, NEW GRYFFINDOR. I AM DISSAPPOINTED IN YOU; I THOUGHT YOU WERE THE GOOD SON. BUT I GUESS YOU WERE JUST WEAK, IS THAT WHAT THE HAT WHISPERED IN YOUR EAR BEFORE IT SCREAMED GRYFFINDOR TO THE GREAT HALL! DON'T BOTHER COMING HOME, WE WON'T TAKE YOU BACK! YOU KNOW, YOU'RE NAME DID LOOK QUITE NICE ON THE TAPESTRY. IT IS AN UNFORTUNATE TWIST THAT NOW IT IS BURNT AND CRISPY,MMMM, SHAME, SHAME, SHAME!"
The howler smoldered and the Marauders grabbed Sirius under the arms, supporting his shaking legs as they ventured over to Regulus. Sirius sat down next to Regulus, and every eye in the Great hall followed them, watching them ominously. The area where the Marauders and Blacks were sitting was scarce of people.
Dumbledore walked over to where the Blacks were sitting, trying to calm the brothers down. He motioned to the Marauders to let him through to speak with them. He was allowed passage into the circle which immediately closed around him to prevent unwanted ears from hearing anything.
Regulus' head was down, his eyes staring fixedly at his shoes.
"Sorry, Professor Dumbledore."
"What are you sorry for? You've done nothing wrong." Dumbledore replied, placing a hand on Regulus' shoulder. Regulus recoiled as though Dumbledore had smacked him rather than just put his hand on him.
"Just because I live with that doesn't mean I don't know it's offensive. I should just go be in Slytherin."
Dumbledore removed his hand from Regulus' shoulder, as it was obviously making Regulus rather uncomfortable.
"No, I'm afraid that all decisions made by the hat are final. But why would you want to change anyway?"
Regulus' eyes never left the floor as he replied. "My parents just disturbed the Great Hall because of this! Please, let me go to Slytherin, my Gryffindor-ness is obviously disruptive."
Hermione decided to step in at this moment.
"Regulus, would you really want to change house just because of a Howler? That's exactly what your parents would want. But that isn't fair; they should respect you for who you are, Gryffindor and all. Avis Colora" She tapped his head and colored canaries began circling his head. "I know for a fact that Gryffindor is the right house for you, this is where you're meant to be. Now, you'll be late to your first class if you don't head out soon," she finished, tapping his head. The birds disappeared, and Regulus looked up for the first time, with a small smile playing in his eyes. He grabbed his bag and followed the hordes of people who had decided the Howler situation was getting dull and were heading to class.
"Quite a talent you have there, Miss Granger," said Dumbledore with a twinkle on his voice.
"What do you mean?" asked Hermione, going slightly pink.
Dumbledore gave her a 'Don't be silly' look and replied "You just told Regulus to go on with his life and he did so happily. I try the exact same thing, and he fidgets and asked to be moved into Slytherin. Do not try to deny it; you have a talent with people, Miss Granger."
"Oh, I erm…thanks, but that's not really a talent, I think, it's not as if it's a magical power or something."
Dumbledore's eyes flashed with all-knowing-ness, and they turned to Sirius, who had his jaw set in a rather unattractive scowl. Hermione looked over at Dumbledore, whose eyes clearly said to her "go on!" She knelt next to Sirius who averted her eyes at all costs.
"Was there really any point to sending Regulus and me dual howlers aside from complete humiliation?"
Hermione nodded. "I think you've probably hit the nail smack dab square on the head. But that's ok, because these howlers were merely a sad last attempt to exert their control over you and Regulus. But it won't work, will it? You and Reg will go on with your lives, because that is exactly what they don't want you to do. Do you understand?"
Sirius pondered her words for a few moments, and then grinned. "Yeah, you're right. It isn't worth being upset over." He looked around and noticed that the hall was empty. "We should probably go to transfiguration, now. ONWARD!"
They arrived at transfiguration several minutes later, and were very grateful that no one asked questions.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Despite the fact that it was their first day in classes, teachers had already piled on homework in mammoth proportions.
GAAAAAHHHH! I CAN'T TAKE IT! TOOO MUCH TOOO DOOOOOOO!" whined Sirius loudly, throwing down a stack of books on the common room table, which toppled over on top of him.
Hermione sighed and shook her head.
"Here, first do Transfiguration and Potions, they'll take the longest. Then, practice the spells we learned in charms. It would also help if you'd use your free periods during the day to do homework instead of just sleeping or visiting the kitchens during them," she said as she helped him pick up the large piles of books which had pinned him to the floor.
Peter and James said simultaneously, "Will you tell us what order to do homework in too?"
"James, Peter, you have the same classes as Sirius today. Just do the same thing he's doing, I'll come check it when you're done."
Hermione smiled as Sirius, James, and Peter nodded in appreciation and began writing furiously. Remus and Hermione enjoyed a game of chess, having already completed their homework. Remus won two out of three, and Hermione turned in early after checking over the boy's homework. She was completely exhausted after waking up at four in the morning, and yawned her "good-nights" and "See-you-in-the-mornings" as she dragged herself up the dormitory stairs.
She fell into bed with her clothes on, not bothering to get into any pajamas.
Mmm, so tired. Today could've been worse. Sure, the whole Howler business was a bit sketchy, but it definitely could've been worse. She thought to herself as she slowly lost consciousness. I suppose I'll talk to Severus tomorrow, or at least sometime this week, he's been a bit jumpy lately… was the last thought to shimmy through her exhausted mind before she fell asleep.
Authors Note: Oh good god. I typed this on my laptop, and then had to transfer it to another computer (because my laptop has no internet). This chapter is sixteen pages long, 5607 words. I started re-typing this at two in the morning. It is now six in the morning and I am finally done. I would like to sincerely apologize for the grammatical mistakes that I have made, I'm using spell check, publishing, and then dragging my sorry ass to bed. I'd like to say also that I've worked on this chapter for two weeks, a half hour to two hours a night typing, revising, re-typing, and re-revising. I think this has to do with the fact that I keep having nightmares about my fanfiction turning out to be a bad fanfic filled with clichés, grammatical errors, and chat speak. It is probably not healthy to spend this much time on a fanfic, but I will say this, I am dedicated.
Co-Authors Note: I went to bed long before Olivia did. I am so sorry for the delay it is entirely my fault. But I've been really busy lately, and it takes me an hour per two pages to edit, and I don't have enough time or energy to do that all at once.