Chapter 5

The morning sun shone through Hermione's bedroom window. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around her bedroom, taking it in. The night before she hadn't taken the time to really get a good look, only changing into a pair of pajamas that Mrs. Weasley had sent her and climbed into her queen sized bed.

There was a tall mirror on the left side of the room in the corner near the windows. Beside that was her dresser on which she had laid her regular clothes. To the right side there was a door to her bathroom and at the foot of her bed there was a large wooden chest.

She still was not sure if the windows in this room and her living area were real or if they were enchanted to look out over the black lake, but the sunlight coming through the glass was warm and made the room feel comfortable and inviting. Hermione snuggled deeper into the blankets, giving herself the excuse of youth to stay there as long as possible.

Once the sun had almost reached its peak, Hermione finally let the nagging part of her brain pull her out of bed. She walked to the dresser and put on her day-clothes, giving them a quick cleaning charm and deciding she would buy more in Diagon Alley today.

Hermione quietly left her chambers, followed the corridor past the library, and went downstairs toward the Great Hall for lunch where she saw a small table placed in the middle of the hall. All of the house tables had been moved to the outer walls. She had spent supper last night at this same table with McGonagall, Dumbledore, Binns, and a fourth teacher who she did not recognize, but had spent the entire meal shoveling food into his mouth without even looking her way. She was thankful that, this time, it seemed to be just her and Professor Binns. The ghost professor didn't eat, just hovered over his chair napping. Hermione wondered if he had even left the spot overnight.

She sat down and began her meal which consisted of a spread of different types of sandwiches, fruits, and vegetables. Hermione had just started on her second grilled ham and cheese when McGonagall came through the door with a tight-lipped expression, holding an envelope and a small purple bag. She walked up beside Hermione and held out both objects.

"This is your school letter and shopping list for the coming term and a small allowance from the school. Professor Dumbledore said to spend what you would like at your discretion and if there was any left, you may keep it. I was to be your escort to Diagon Alley today but a matter has come up which needs my attention. Rubeus Hagrid has agreed to take you. He will be waiting in the entrance hall in an hour." With that, McGonagall turned on her heel and walked out the way she had come. Hermione was still getting the feeling she would have to prove herself to get in the woman's good graces and earn her trust.

Hermione finished her meal and then just wandered the castle until the time she was expected in the entrance hall. She had missed these halls so much over the past year, but even now it wasn't the same. Her friends weren't here. Actually, they weren't even born yet. And for the first time, she worried that she may not ever get back to her timeline.

Harry and Ron are capable of handling themselves, she thought, even if she was not as sure about Ron as she was Harry. All she could do for now was do what she did best- research in the library and come up with a solution.

Hermione checked the time with a quick tempus charm and, realizing she still had about 15 minutes left, she started to make her way back to the entrance hall. Once there, she sat on the bottom of a staircase and took out her shopping list for the year. Most of these books were the same as her 6th year, though she would not be buying the divination book. She would have to speak with McGonagall to take that off her schedule.

Hermione's list had a few NEWT level courses which she had passed easily with Outstandings the first time. She was, however, excited to retake Potions. She had done well her 6th year, but with Harry having the notes written in the margins, he had done better. She was looking forward to being the top of class again, especially since it was Slughorn teaching and he would hopefully be using the same curriculum.

Not that she was competitive or anything.

Hagrid pushed open the front doors at almost exactly 1:00pm. He walked over to where Hermione was sitting, pouring over her list and cleared his throat, "Are yeh ready to be headin' off then? Lots to buy now, an' not a lot of time before we will be needin' to head back. I'm Hagrid, by the way. Hermione is it?"

Hermione looked up and met his kind eyes. Hagrid looked as if he had never changed. Still wearing the same moleskin coat with a million pockets and carrying the same pink umbrella by his side. Hermione couldn't help herself. She stood up and hugged Hagrid's waist and cried for a moment. Hagrid awkwardly patted her back with his large palm and looked around the corridor as if he were looking for help.

Hermione backed off and wiped her tears, "Sorry, you just remind me of someone I haven't seen in a very long time."

Hagrid pulled a handkerchief the size of a pillowcase from one of his many pockets and handed it to the crying girl. "It's fine. No need to cry about it. We all have people we are missin', eh?"

Hermione nodded and handed back the cloth. "Thanks." She motioned to the front doors that were still slightly open. "We best be off then. Are we going to take the train into London?"

"Nah, Professor Dumbledore has set up a portkey in tha' Hog's Head down in Hogsmeade. It's two-way, but we'll need to get back to it by 6 o'clock or it'll disappear on us. We best be goin' then."

Hermione let Hagrid lead the way out the doors and down to the small village. Once they reached the entrance to the Hog's Head, Hagrid paused and looked down at Hermione with a grim look in his eyes. "Best to be watching yerself once we get into town, eh? There are a lot of folk around these days causin' trouble and people endin' up missin'. No runnin' off too far."

Hermione answered with a nod and they pushed their way into the building. The owner waved at Hagrid and then pointed to a table near the bar where an old black fedora was sitting. Hagrid pulled out a pocket watch and looked at the time, "The portkey is active now, so we best be off. This will take us to a room in tha' Leaky Cauldron. Are ya ready?"

Hermione nodded again and answered "Yes." They both took hold of the fedora at the same time and immediately Hermione felt the familiar pull at her navel that she had come to associate with a portkey. After about 3 seconds, she and Hagrid landed in an empty and very dusty room.

"I hate travelin' like that," Hagrid exclaimed while he leaned against a wall. "If you don' mind, I'm goin' to take a second before we get movin'."

Hermione gave a small chuckle and reached into her pocket to take out her shopping list again. They would only need to visit a few shops for her school supplies, but she would also be needing to visit Madame Malkin's and a general shop for shampoo and things. Hermione pulled out the small purple bag that contained her allowance and realized there was much more than she was expecting. She pulled out about 25 galleons which would more than cover her school supplies and spare clothes. Dumbledore was being more than generous.

Only a few minutes passed before Hagrid was upright again and they went downstairs. Hagrid gave a hearty hello to everyone they passed and soon they were in the back, through the brick wall, and onto the main road.

"Hagrid, I think I'm going to look into the secondhand bookshop first if that is okay?" Hermione didn't see a reason to spend her money on all new books when she wasn't planning on finishing the year out. "And after that we can go to Madame Malkin's and the cauldron shop."

Hagrid nodded, "I'll just be followin' you around. You get wha' you'll be needin' an' we'll be off. That shop is next to tha' ice cream parlor so I might just be lettin' you go in alone if tha's ok. Not a lot of room between the bookshelves."

Once they arrived at the secondhand shop, Hagrid waved her off and said he would meet her back in about 15 minutes outside. Hermione pushed her way in and glanced around. She grabbed a basket off of a windowsill near the door and went off in the direction of the school books. Hermione was thankful they came a month before the start of term as there were plenty of books available.

Hermione was only signed up for four classes this term- once she dropped Divination of course. She took a copy of advanced transfiguration and advanced potion-making, and looked around a bit before finding Confronting the Faceless for defense and the Grade 6 version of Standard Book of Spells.

Noting she had some time left, Hermione decided to look around. Wandering up and down the shelves, she aimlessly was looking at the titles before one stood out to her. Menhir Magik, The Mystery Around Ancient Standing Stones.

Hermione quickly took the book off the shelf and looked at the front cover. It was an old book, the pages were yellow and she could tell it hadn't been read in years. Flipping through the pages it looked to be a book with general information about standing stones and the possibilities of what they could do and why they were placed where they were. There were only about 150 pages, but to Hermione, it was a starting place. She placed the book in her basket with the others.

After finding this book in a happy accident, Hermione continued to look through the shelves, now on a hunt for more. The problem being, she didn't know exactly what she was looking for.

Running out of time and a bit discouraged, she went to the front of the shop to pay for her books. The wizard at the desk kindly smiled at her, "Did you find everything you were looking for, dear?"

"Yes, but I was wondering if you have any more books about standing stones? I think I may do a project on them for one of my classes this term but all I found was this one," Hermione answered, pointing to the old book.

The wizard frowned slightly, looking at the book, "No, I don't think we do. Though, if you leave your name, I will be happy to send you a notice if we get anything in. I'm assuming you're headed to Hogwarts this year? I can send the notice that way."

Hermione happily wrote her name down, paid for all of her books, and left the shop, seeing Hagrid enjoying his ice cream on a stone bench outside the parlor next door. Hermione started to walk that way when a young wizard quickly turned out of the alley between the shops and knocked her over. Hermione's books went flying.

"Sorry," the boy said with his head down as he quickly got up from the ground and picked up a couple books.

Hermione gathered the other books and was about to answer that there was no problem but when she saw his face she just stood there and stared at him. A very young Severus Snape was holding out her books with an annoyed grimace, waiting for her to take them, his black eyes staring back into hers.

Thankfully Hagrid walked up at that moment and took the books from Snape. "Better be watching where yer off to Mr. Snape. It's mighty crowded here today."

Snape nodded at Hagrid and walked off as quickly as he came in the direction of the Apothecary. Hermione's eyes followed him until he disappeared into the crowd. Hagrid broke her concentration, "That'll be one o' yer classmates this year, Hermione. Best not to be consorting with him though. He seems to make a bit o' trouble every year." Hagrid handed the school books back off to her. "Did yeh find all the books you'll be needin'?"

Hermione answered in the affirmative and they started off toward Madame Malkin's. She gave one more glance back to where Snape had disappeared but there wasn't even a hint of where he had gone. This might actually turn out to be an interesting year, Hermione thought as she realized she would also be Harry's parent's year.

Hagrid followed Hermione around to different shops and vendors until it was close to 5:30pm. He announced the time and, with their arms full of bags, they headed back to the Leaky Cauldron. Hermione shrunk down all of her new things, enlarged her purple bag, and packed it all away for the trip back to the school.

They took the fedora-portkey back to Hogsmeade and made the trek to the castle where Hagrid left her once again in the entrance hall. "You can visit me any time you'll be needin' anything, alright?" Hagrid said his goodbyes and went back out onto the grounds.

Hermione headed to her rooms to unpack and rest for a bit before supper. She made a mental note to make a password to her door as she opened it into the living area and started to unpack her bag. She placed all the books on a small shelf on the desk under the windows and then put away all of her clothes in her bedroom. She took all her toiletries into the bathroom and put them away before finally coming back into the common area.

She took the book on standing stones back off the shelf, settled into one of the plush armchairs, and started reading. Even as she tried to concentrate, she couldn't forget how Severus Snape's dark eyes bore into her own. She just knew she would be seeing them in her sleep tonight.