Hey guys! I am so, SO excited about this chapter! I really had a lot of fun writing it, most of the stuff in here actually wasnt in the outline i have written for this story, but as I was writing it i thought they were good add ins that kind of helped the story a bit! also i feel like this chapter is where things kind of start to 'begin' and im SO ready for it
But anyways, thank you so much to everyone that has favorited, followed, or commented on this story! I really appreciate it! this story has just hit 100 follows and im super exited about that so thank you all so much!
Without further ado, here you go, I hope you enjoy!
Hermione didn't wake again until a few days later. The time travel, innumerable injuries, and weight of her situation and decision took a toll on both her body and mind. Once she finally woke, she begrudgingly spent the final days of August lying in her hospital bed taking various potions under the orders of Madame Pomfrey.
With plenty of spare time to think about her presence in the past, Hermione went over every single possible option she could think of and eventually concluded that for the time being, she could not try to change anything. As painful as it was, everything that was to happen needed to happen for the eventual defeat of Voldemort.
And so, on August 30, Hermione lay in her hospital bed yet again, replaying her options in her mind trying to find something she may have missed when she was interrupted by the gentle creaking of the hospital wing door.
She glanced up to see Dumbledore, draped in midnight blue robes, walking towards her. As she sat cross-legged on her bed she felt a bubble of excitement rise up in her chest, she assumed one that was caused by new company and the possibility that he may have found a solution to her problem.
After some brief small talk about her quick recovery, Hermione finally asked the question that was on the tip of her tongue.
"Have you found anything that could get me back to my time?" She asked hopefully.
Dumbledore paused a minute before answering, the expression behind his eyes unreadable.
"I have done some research," he said as Hermione listened on tensely, "however, I have been unable to find any information regarding the spell that sent you here."
And with those words Hermione's heart dropped, the hope for the immediate return to her time vanished and everything seemed to still. If Dumbledore couldn't find a solution, Hermione doubted the existence of one.
"I know that isn't what you wanted to hear, Miss Granger." He continued in her silence. "But perhaps, there is a reason for this."
When Hermione glanced back up at him, she decided that now was as good a time as ever to tell Dumbledore her decision on the matter.
"I've actually decided that during my time here, I cannot change the timeline in any way." She said surely. She knew that Dumbledore was curious, so at his raised eyebrows she said vaguely, "The events of this time are very intricate, even the small changes I've considered have the potential to severely damage the future."
Dumbledore looked intrigued, but Hermione knew that any more information than that would be too much to give him.
As she sat there looking back into Dumbledore's seemingly all knowing eyes, she once again doubted her decision. Here she was, looking in the face of one of the greatest wizards to ever exist, struggling to come to terms with her situation.
For now, she was stuck here. What if she never got home? What if she never saw Harry or Ron again? What if she spends all this time here purposefully lets people suffer and die, for nothing. If she can never find her way back to her time the timeline would be altered anyways. If she can't find her way back home, would the Hermione born in 1980 cease to exist? Would Harry go through Hogwarts not knowing her? Would he be able to defeat the Dark Lord without her help?
"Very well then," Dumbledore said as Hermione fought to grasp her new reality. "Given that you will remain in this era for an indeterminable amount of time, I think that it best you continue your education where you left off."
"Excuse me?" Hermione asked shocked.
"You mentioned the other day that you were about to return to Hogwarts. I don't see any reason that must change."
Hermione looked back at him with wide eyes. "But Professor, I've decided not to change anything. Surely, my attendance at Hogwarts will do something."
"Ah my dear, you forget what I have told you the other day. Time is essentially a loop. It is very likely the time period you came from existed because you returned. This has all happened already."
At Hermione's lack of a response, he continued. "The choice is, of course, yours my dear. However, do not deny this opportunity simply because you fear the changes you may make. Time will only change if you try to change it."
Hermione eventually agreed that continuing her education was her best option. Although they would both continue to research her situation, finishing school and completing her NEWTs was the best backup plan she could think of.
They decided that Hermione would arrive at Hogwarts under the pretense of a transfer student from Durmstrang. The pair figured that Durmstrang, with its heavy focus on the Dark Arts, would be the best cover for Hermione's extensive knowledge on that branch of magic and her advanced defense capabilities.
Soon enough Dumbledore left and Hermione was once again alone to ponder her decision. She did her best to focus on the trip to Diagon Alley she would be taking the following day to receive her school supplies and some time appropriate clothes, however, she couldn't stop the feeling of dread from rising up in her chest.
Stepping into Diagon Alley the next day was a surreal feeling.
Things were somehow, simultaneously, completely different yet exactly the same as they were in time she left. The street was filled with people of all ages and sizes shopping and laughing and having fun, yet she quickly picked up on the very slight tension in the air. She knew that feeling well. It felt like it did her fifth year. Everyone knew there was a war coming, but there was still time to enjoy life before the reality of it hit. In only a few short years the full of the war would break out, just like it did in her time.
Hermione crossed the street, dodging a kid chasing after a scurrying frog as she went. She chuckled under her breath as she was reminded of a young, first year Neville. She quickly decided that her first stops would be Flourish and Bolts and the Apothecary to get the school shopping out of the way, then Sugarplum's Sweet Shop and finally Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.
Hermione swiftly picked out her books, thankful that the shop had not changed much in the two decades since she had last been there. She was also interested to see that the course material had not changed much either. The books were, of course, more closely related to this time period, however, the material covered was very much the same, if not slightly behind the material in her time.
Even though Hermione had not actually attended school for her seventh year, she thoroughly taught herself all the material she missed during her year on the run. She hoped these assumptions were accurate, as she wouldn't mind an easier course load this year to allow for more time to do research.
As she dropped some galleons and sickles onto the counter she was grateful Dumbledore supplied her with some money for her shopping. Hermione felt weird about taking it at first, but he insisted, saying that it was really the Ministry's money anyways. But as she noticed textbooks and supplies were still pricey in this time she was very thankful the Ministry helped her out.
She then quickly stopped by the Apothecary gathering a plethora of potions ingredients, many of which she didn't specifically need, but purchased for her own curiosity on the subject. Then she spent way more time than necessary in Sugarplum's Sweets Shop. It never was as good as Honeydukes, so she decided to only pick up a few items to hold her over until she could get to Hogsmeade. She settled on a couple boxes of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, a few sugar quills, and some plain chocolate bars.
Hermione strolled out of the sweet shop carefully picking beans out of the box and popping them into her mouth as she walked down the street. Sweets were always able to make her feel better. Despite her parents being dentists, her sweet tooth has always been untamable.
She approached Madam Malkin's Robes as she closed up her box of beans and put it into her bag with the rest of her new items. Hermione pulled open the front door of the shop and a bell rang over her head. A funny muggle tradition she was surprised to discover many wizards practiced as well.
She strode past the section of the store that was geared towards Hogwarts uniform robes, deciding that the robes she already had would suffice and walked straight towards the back where the casual robes were located. Hermione strolled leisurely through the shelves, eying the prints and patterns of the clothing, occasionally reaching out to feel the material.
Hermione knew the 70's had an entirely different sense of style in the muggle world, but she didn't anticipate it being so different in the magical world as well. The racks were filled with all sorts of patterns and bright colors. Hermione went through nearly every row without finding a single robe she would be willing to be seen in. As she approached the last couple rows she heard a giggling behind the rack.
"Look at this one," a mirthful voice said, "I could totally picture Alice wearing this."
Brushing off the voice Hermione rounded the corner into the final row that housed the patrons of the giggles.
She couldn't help but spare a glance at the two girls down the aisle, smiling faintly as she did so. A beautiful, blonde haired girl with striking blue eyes held up a violet set of robes speckled with pink stars and a matching cape. Her eyes shined with laughter as she looked down at the other girl. Her shorter friend stood leaning against the back wall, hands clutching her stomach as she laughed. Her dark curly hair pulled up into a knot on the top of her head as her eyes sparkled under the lights.
Hermione turned back to the rack in front of her, mindful not to stare too long. As she listened to the girls continued laughter her heart was filled with pain. She couldn't remember the last time she heard laughter so full and genuine. She flicked through the rack, only half looking at the clothing in front of her. She knew she wasn't likely to find something here, but the pure joy radiating from the two girls was almost mesmerizing. They seemed so comfortable, so happy. Hermione would give nearly anything to feel that way again. To be like that with Harry and Ron just one more time.
"Come on Marls." The other girl finally said, "I know her style is… questionable… but I would hope she had more sense than that."
Hermione let out a light chuckle under her breath as she continued to listen in on the other girl's conversation.
The gentle chime of the bell above the door ran yet again as Hermione heard someone walking swiftly through the shop.
"Marlene! Dorcas!" A voice called from across the store, "Are you two in here!?"
Hermione froze in her absent-minded searching of the robes. Marlene and Dorcas. She knew those names. She racked her brain to place the faces and names to a story. Her mind flashed back to all the late nights sitting in the kitchen with Sirius listening to him talk about this very time, when it hit her. Marlene was Marlene McKinnon. Dorcas was Dorcas Meadowes. And the other girl mentioned, Alice, must've been Alice Prewett, soon to be Alice Longbottom.
Marlene and Dorcas were sent into another round of laughter as Hermione quickly decided that she didn't particularly need any new robes and swiftly left the shop.
She sprinted down the front steps and walked down Diagon Alley yet again, much more somber than she was before. She let her feet carry her as she thought back to Sirius once more. In the rare occasions Sirius would tell stories, it was even rarer that he would talk to her about the women in his year, but Hermione knew she remembered hearing their names.
As she entered the Leaky Cauldron and sat down for a drink Hermione was able to recall exactly where she heard their names for the first time. It wasn't from Sirius, but from Harry. Harry was the one who heard it from Sirius, not her. It happened their fifth year when Harry had been given a photograph of the old Order of the Phoenix. Hermione knew the picture well. After Sirius died she made a copy of the original and kept it with her.
So, Hermione reached down into her beaded bag, arm in up to her shoulder as her fingers felt around through files and drawers where she knew the picture to be. She eventually pulled out a manila folder filled with newspaper clippings and old photographs and searched through it until she found the picture in question.
Hermione stared down at the familiar faces of Sirius and Remus and even James and Lily Potter, and then she let her eyes wander further down the photograph. Her eyes met Frank and Alice Longbottom and then the faces of the two girls smiling in the shop. Marlene had her arm slung lightly over the shoulders of the smaller girl as they both sent wide grins at the camera. Hermione briefly wondered how the two of them managed to be so happy.
Hermione quickly finished the rest of her butterbeer, put the photograph back into her folder and shoved it down into her beaded bag before heading out the back of the Leaky Cauldron. She decided that she had enough of the magical world today, so she tapped on the bricks of the back wall and stepped into muggle London.
Hermione smiled again as old cars drove on the streets, people walked by in flared bell-bottoms with rainbow tops and rock T's and leather pants. As she continued her search for more time appropriate clothing there really was no better place for her to go, than a muggle thrift shop.
She walked aimlessly down the street she knew well in her time, observing the changes. Some restaurants and pubs and shops were the same, while others were completely new, all of the churches she remembered were still there, but despite the differences, the architecture of nearly everything was the same, making it seem like London really hadn't changed that much at all.
She walked past an old bookshop she remembered visiting with her parents and smiled to herself. As she rounded a corner she found yet another familiar store. An old thrift store she used to window shop in. She always loved the little store, but found that her sense of style was a bit too conservative for many of the clothes it held. But now, 20 years in the past, Hermione decided that the 70's were a better time than any for more adventurous clothing choices.
And so Hermione entered the surprisingly large shop and began perusing the racks for clothes her size. After doing a bit of digging, Hermione eventually strode up to the counter with multiple pairs of pants both bell bottoms and skinny, various old concert and band T's, more disco-like, flowy sleeved shirts and sweaters with various jackets to layer on top. She found shoes in her size, wedges, converse, sandals, and boots, and a few pieces of modest jewelry, belts and scarves she thought were cute.
As she put her items down on the counter she realized exactly how much she picked up, but hey, she was starting a completely new life here. Besides, Dumbledore gave her a fair amount of money, both muggle and magic, he wouldn't have given it to her if he didn't want her to use it. Plus the prices at this store always were shockingly low for such high quality items.
Hermione hobbled out of the store, arms full of bags and searched for an empty alley to duck into. She eventually found one and shrunk all her purchases and put them into her beaded bag before strolling out onto the street. She found a quaint little coffee shop a bit further down the road and sat for a bite before her return to Hogwarts.
She enjoyed a latte, panini, and croissant as she watched the sunset over London. She remembered the sun setting over the lake she used to go to with her parents, the sun setting over the Hogwarts grounds, and the sun setting all those nights she spent in hiding. If there's one thing she knew it was that sunsets were beautiful no matter what time you were in.
As she sipped on her coffee watching the sun go down she began to prepare herself to be sorted again tomorrow. Thinking that this might be the last peaceful day she would have for a very long time.
Hermione stood waiting behind a crowd of incoming first years as Minerva McGonagall gave her customary welcome to Hogwarts speech. Having heard the speech before, Hermione observed the new first years. Most appeared fearful or nervous at the prospect of the sorting, while some managed to mask their emotions and a few others looked excited.
Hermione did her best to cover her nerves, they were after all not caused by the sorting, she had no doubt where she would go, but rather by the events she feared would follow. Regardless, it did not do well to show fear, especially in front of such a large, divided group.
So she stood there, shoulders back and head high, a cool, relaxed expression on her face. Eventually Professor McGonagall's welcome speech ended and she led the line of first years and Hermione into the Great Hall.
Whether she liked it or not, if there was one thing Hermione was used to it was being the center of attention. So she shrugged off the whispers that filled the Great Hall and staring gazes with ease as she turned to face the rest of the student body. Besides, she did understand their interest; after all, Hogwarts wasn't known to accept transfer students. Hermione briefly wondered if she was the first.
She waited patiently, watching the first years get sorted as their new housemates cheered.
"And finally, Miss Hermione Granger of Durmstrang." Professor McGonagall said with a faint smile at Hermione as the whispers picked up once again and she took a seat on the stool. While the sorting hat did not feel as large as it did the first time, it still fell below her eyes and Hermione was secretly thankful to be partially hidden from the many hard stares.
"Well, well, well, what have we here?" The raspy, ancient voice of the sorting hat rang through her head. "This is rather unusual isn't it?"
Hermione forgot briefly how odd it sounded for her head to be filled with a voice other than her own. She couldn't help but compare the feeling to that of a horcrux, but even then it was her own voice she heard, not the voice of another.
"You have traveled here with a purpose. I see it best to place you where that purpose will be best fulfilled. It just so happens that I would have placed you there even without this mission you've been sent on." The hat conceded.
Hermione chose not to question how the hat seemed to know of her circumstance. After spending seven years in the wizarding world she came to terms with the fact that some things were simply, all knowing. Things like the hat and horcruxes seemed to know all, while other items seemed to know all in regards to a specific area, like the Mirror of Erised, the Weasley Clock, the Marauders Map…
"But Sir," Hermione thought, "My purpose? My being here doesn't really have a purpose."
The hat gave a low chuckle, "Miss Granger, just because the most obvious answer doesn't fit, that does not mean there aren't other solutions."
Hermione's mind began reeling, a feeling she was getting rather used to.
"This new period of time seems daunting to you, understandably so. However, your presence here is of the utmost importance. Regardless of the path you decide to take, your presence will have an impact that cannot be replicated. You mustn't shy away from this life. This time."
"But what if I slip up? What if I change things for the worst?" She couldn't help but wonder.
"You have the mind of a Ravenclaw, something that is both a blessing and a curse. You will need that intelligence and wit for what is to come. You would not survive without it. But don't let it get in the way. Use it to your advantage. But do not let your active mind fill you with discouragement."
Hermione remembered her first year when the hat considered placing her in Ravenclaw, she supposed some things would never change.
"The Slytherin in you will be vital to your purpose as well." The hat continued, that was certainly something Hermione had not heard before. "Your ambition and drive is not something to be underestimated. But ultimately, it will be your Hufflepuff loyalty that will send you home."
"Send me home? You mean I will get back to my time?" She asked the hat eagerly.
"It is possible." The hat said simply. "Despite the fierce presence of all the houses in you, this journey, your mission, is one only few can tackle with the courage and grace you have so far exhibited. In this next period of your life you will practice much courage, strength, and confidence. Regardless of your downfalls, you will continue to come back with vigor and power. And for that I place you in -GRYFFINDOR!"
The Great Hall erupted into cheering and clapping, breaking Hermione out of her conversation with the hat and reminding her once again that she was not in fact alone. The hat was pulled off her head before she could ask another question and she opened her eyes to the excited student body.
Hermione stood up with grace, encouraged by the fact that after all these years the hat did not change its mind about her placement Gryffindor. Although she already knew it wouldn't, the reassurance was nice. Sending a small smile at Professor McGonagall and receiving a proud one in return, Hermione began her stride to the Gryffindor table.
As Hermione's eyes roamed the familiar house filled with unfamiliar faces her heart clenched as she met the excited expressions of three far too familiar teenage boys. All three stood up to cheer her on, as the hazel eyed version of her best friend waved her over to their seats.
Not wanting to be so rude on her 'first' day, Hermione sent the boys a small smile and walked in their direction. She was going to have to get used to this eventually, right?
James Potter slid a shorter, slightly thicker boy down the bench to make room. Hermione easily stepped into the newly cleared space and sat down.
Professor Dumbledore gave the final words to his start of the year speech and with a clap of his hands the tables were filled with food.
"So, Hermione, is it? It's nice to officially meet you, I'm James Potter." The figure on her left said with a wide grin. "That, across from you, is my dear friend Remmie."
"It's Remus." The boy cut in with a soft smile as he extended his hand across the table, "It's nice to meet you."
Hermione met his strong but kind handshake and she marveled at the fact that even as a boy, Remus was so filled with tact.
"My name is Sirius Black, m'lady, it's a pleasure to meet you." The boy next to Remus said as he grabbed her hand out of the air and planted a soft kiss on her knuckles. Hermione masked her surprise as she gazed back at him. She always knew Sirius was a flirt in his younger years, but she didn't imagine it was this bad.
Before she could say anything in response, James leaned in and said in mock whisper, "Don't mind him much, he's a down right dog, you'll never meet a bigger flirt in your life."
"Hey! I resent that!" Sirius shouted, all traces of the former charm and chivalry gone from his face as his mouth slid into a pout and his eyes shone with mischief. "At least my flirting has been known to pan out, some of us haven't-"
"Well anyways!" James cut him off before he could finish, "Now that you've met Sirius and Remus, this here on my left is the last of our group, Mr. Peter Pettigrew."
Hermione knew this moment was coming but still she could not stop the sinking in her stomach. Unable to meet his gaze, she simply stared at the space between his eyes, praying he couldn't tell the difference as he mumbled a quiet greeting.
"So, Dumbledore mentioned you're a transfer from Durmstrang? Why did you decide to switch schools?" Remus asked while piling heaps of steak, potatoes and greens onto his plate. His words and tone were innocent, but Hermione recognized suspicion when she saw it. Quite frankly, she couldn't blame him. Transfer students were unheard of, at least he was tactful in his questioning.
"It was a tough decision to make, really." Hermione said while loading up her own plate, attempting to sound casual. "But Hogwarts had a few NEWT level classes I wanted to take that Durmstrang didn't offer."
Remus gave an interested look but James, trying to push off any thoughts of classes, simply said, "Well Hermione, we are happy to have you here with us this last year, and if you ever need anything we would be happy to help." He finished with a charming smile.
"Thank you, I really appreciate that." Hermione said, marveling at his kindness and maturity? Certainly not something she expected of him based on the stories she had heard.
"So, what's it like here?" Hermione asked, already knowing the answer but desperate to fill the air with a conversation they could carry without her participation.
And like magic, James went off on a ramble, with some factual interjections and mentions of professors from Remus, excited interruptions from Sirius about houses and Quidditch and an occasional squeak or two from Peter. Hermione took this opportunity to enjoy her food and to actually look at the people around her.
Her gaze easily slid up to the current speaker, James, as she put a forkful of sweet potato into her mouth. She was once again astounded by the similarities between him and Harry. He was attractive just as Harry was, only James seemed a tad more built than Harry and Hermione knew from her first walk to the table that he was taller too. His nose was also a bit flatter on the bridge, his glasses were rectangular instead of round, and of course, his eyes were his own hazel, instead of Lily's green. Those however, were the only noticeable differences in appearances and even they took her a minute to pinpoint.
She let her gaze move past James and onto the slightly pudgy boy next to him, allowing herself to finally look at him. He had a round face with glossy blue eyes and mousy brown hair. Hermione was interested yet disgusted to note that he wasn't necessarily ugly. He wasn't attractive by any means, but Hermione couldn't find much physical resemblance to the rat-like man she knew from her own time.
As if he felt her gaze, the boy turned his head and met her eyes. And that's when the resemblance sunk in. As she looked back into his shining blue eyes she saw a faux innocence as his lips pulled up into a shy smile. He was probably already working with the Death Eaters at this time. Or at least he was thinking of it. Hermione tore her gaze away, unable to look into the eyes of the traitor any longer.
Instead she now focused her attention on the boy sitting across from her. Remus Lupin. She always had so much respect for the man and now here he was as a young boy, and that respect did not waver one bit. He was currently engaged in an animated story with James and Hermione watched as his murky green eyes shone with excitement and crinkled with laughter. Hermione had never seen him like this. She had seen slivers of Sirius' youth in his older self, but Remus never let this side through.
She was also interested to note that her old, schoolgirl crush on "Professor Lupin" wasn't completely unbacked. Remus was a rather handsome guy, he was a bit slimmer than James, but he wasn't wiry, his face was defined and his hair fell into his eyes nicely. Hermione wondered why she didn't hear many stories of him dating in his younger years.
She shifted her head slightly to her left to observe the last member of the group, only to find silver eyes already staring back at her. At the raise of her eyebrow, the final boy simply winked and turned away from her to make his own interjection in the tales of James and Remus.
Hermione was unsurprised by his confidence, but still she couldn't help the slight hitch in her breath once she finally got a look of young Sirius Black. She was, of course, well aware of the good looks of older Sirius Black, but seeing him now as a young man was so much worse. He had the same chiseled features older Sirius did, only now his silky hair was shoulder length and slightly swept back, his complexion wrinkle free and his eyes shone with life and laughter. He was easily the most attractive boy she had ever seen.
Looking down so as not to appear like she was staring Hermione shoved her fork through a piece of chicken before putting it into her mouth. This was weird. She concluded. She knows so much about these people, who they are, their secrets, what they will do, who they will become, how they will die…
"Besides, Evans and I are going to make the best Head Boy and Girl this school has ever seen. Isn't that right Evans?" Hermione heard James practically shout from next to her.
Hermione watched as a beautiful, auburn haired girl a little ways down the table shook her head at James with shining emerald eyes before turning back to her conversation. Following the girl's line of sight, Hermione saw the two young ladies from the robe shop along with a fourth girl sporting a dark pixie cut that Hermione presumed to be Alice. She watched as the girls conversed joyfully.
This was not going to be easy.
Mind racing, Hermione repeated what she had told herself a dozen times already. Be nice and civil. But don't get close. Don't make friends. That would only make it so much harder.
Repeating her new mantra in her head, be nice and civil but don't make friends, Hermione finished the rest of her meal quietly listening and nodding to the stories of the boys, before making her way to the Gryffindor common room with the crowd. James and Lily led the group and introduced the password.
As she made it up the steps to the girl's dorm she took a detour into the bathrooms to shower.
As she turned on the steaming water and ran her hands through her curled hair she heard the other girls entering, completing their nightly routine, and then leaving. She took her time letting the burning water roll down her body releasing much of the tension in her muscles.
Once Hermione was certain that the other girls must be in bed, she turned off the tap and patted herself dry. With one glance down at her scarred body, Hermione pulled on a pair of Ron's old joggers. She then reached down into her beaded bag and pulled out a fresh ace bandage before carefully wrapping her forearm, ignoring the slight, familiar stinging. Once she was done she ran a brush through her hair, before putting some gel into it and magicing it dry. She pulled one of Harry's old hoodies over her head and finally left the bathroom.
Hermione had slept in her boy's clothes every night since the end of the war and that certainly wasn't something she was going to stop now.
Hermione crept into her room, pleased to see that as she expected, the light was off and all the others were already in bed. She found her bed, the only empty one, and crawled under the covers after closing the curtains around her.
Quickly, she put up some light protective wards and silencing charms before lighting her wand. Once again reaching into her beaded bag she pulled out a picture of her, Harry, and Ron taken at Grimmauld Place the Christmas of their fifth year.
The picture was taken Christmas day; the trio sat on a sofa in the living room. Hermione in the middle, Ron on her right and Harry on her left, all three all three donning that year's Weasley sweater. The photo began with Hermione laughing at something Fred and George were doing over the shoulder of the cameraman, Ron looked at Hermione with a confused expression before he too caught sight of the activities behind the photograph. Harry glanced briefly in that direction before smiling at his two friends and throwing an arm over Hermione's shoulder laughing.
This was one of Hermione's favorite pictures of the three of them, because for that moment, no matter how brief or fleeting, all three of them were genuinely happy.
Soon. Hermione thought. I'll come back to you soon.
"How long do you think it took for her to get sorted? Maybe five? Six minutes?" James Potter asked after the four Gryffindor boys tumbled into their dormitory and shut the door.
"That sounds about right. Five or six minutes." Remus agreed.
"I wonder why it took so long?" James continued.
Remus let out a sigh, "Maybe it's because she's older? You know, she's obviously already more experienced than first years, so I'm sure her personality is a bit more complex."
"I mean, yeah, but five or six minutes? That's still a bit excessive don't you think?"
"There's something off about her." Sirius said bluntly.
Remus raised his eyebrows at his friend as James simply turned to face him.
"What do you mean there's something off about her?" Peter asked nervously.
"Sirius, we don't know anything-" Remus began but was soon cut off.
"Come on, just think about it." Sirius said before looking straight at Peter. "We met her before today. That day we went to Diagon Alley, the day you weren't able to come, we met her then, only we didn't really meet her."
At his friends' dramatics, Peter glanced briefly at the other two boys, hoping they would be more blunt than Sirius. At their lack of a reaction, he finally asked, "What do you mean, you met her but you didn't really meet her?"
"We were walking to the Leaky Cauldron when the air seemed to open up right in front of us and then out of nowhere she fell onto the ground. All bloodied, bruised and unconscious. She woke up for a split second, called James, Harry, and then said to get Hogwarts and the Order."
At Peter's interested gaze Sirius continued.
"So we did as she asked, we went to Hogwarts and got Dumbledore and Poppy, they took her to the Hospital Wing and Poppy healed her. We went in another time to see her, and she looked shocked to see us and fainted at the sight of Dumbledore."
"What do you think happened to her?" Peter asked.
"Well," Remus said with a clear of his throat, "She was obviously attacked by something."
"I think it's more than just that." Sirius said, "I think that something is very off about her."
"Come on, Sirius, don't you think that's a little dramatic?" James finally cut in.
"Think about it! Think about everything. She fell into the middle of Diagon Alley looking like she'd just come out of a war, mistook you for some guy named Harry not once, but twice, looked at Remus and I like she knew us and was shocked to see us, mentioned what we can only assume to be the Order of the Phoenix. You know, the secret wizarding organization that only those who are either in it or fighting against it know about. And then, despite that looked absolutely horrified and fainted at the sight of Dumbledore? None of that is exactly normal." Sirius finally finished.
"Ok I admit, her vibes do seem a little bit off…" Remus said quietly.
"A little bit off? Remus have you actually looked at her?" Sirius was practically shouting now. "Her eyes are fucking hard! The same kind of hard I see in my mother, in my cousin. She's seen stuff, she's done stuff, I can tell! I know that look."
"Okay that's enough!" James shouted at his friend. "Look, I agree, something about her seems unusual, but who are we to say exactly what it is before actually giving her a chance?"
At Sirius' look of protest he continued, "Stop. Sirius. I don't want to hear anything more about this until we know something is wrong. The entire reason we are all friends is because we were able to look past the surface of those initial judgments. You two of all people should be able to recognize the importance of that."
Remus looked down at his feet as he mulled over what James was saying. He was right. Remus knew it. Sirius on the other hand just continued to stare at his best friend.
"I know her situation is weird, but we need to at least give her a chance. I'm not saying that we need to trust her, but no matter what her situation is, immediately discounting her will do us more harm than good." He finished, pleased that he seemed to calm his two friends for now.
As Sirius Black took off his shirt and put on his pajama bottoms he mulled over his best friend's words. Perhaps he was right, who was he to judge? But still he couldn't shake the feeling that something weird was going on. But little did he know that in the bed immediately next to him, Peter Pettigrew lay awake, thinking the exact same thing.