Hello lovelies!
All of your reviews on the last chapter were absolutely darling, and I want to thank you all for continuing to read (and hopefully enjoy) my story! I am also ecstatic that everyone seemed to like Draco's Slytherin friends, even if Pansy seems to be an acquired taste LOL. Regardless, I hope you like this chapter! I had to change it around quite a bit. In my original plan, Hermione arrived on James's birthday, and Draco wasn't back yet.
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Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, and only the story line and any OC's belong to me.
The witch flexed her stiff fingers, the tips scraping over the cold stone. She tried to move her face, but it was as if her cheek was stuck to the solid surface; she couldn't budge an inch. It had been an age since she'd felt anything solid, anything cold, anything tangible.
The witch's thoughts were sluggish. She pried open her eyes—her eyelids were weighed down and crusted with exhaustion—and tried to take in her surroundings, but she was too tired to properly process anything. Dark, blurry shapes filled her vision.
Eventually, she sagged against the stone floor—fatigue won—and she quietly allowed the dark to swallow her once more. She'd been floating through time and space for a long time, she could float a little longer.
Saturday, April 10th, 1999
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
An unknown, greater force guided Sirius to Hogwarts in the middle of the night. His limbs had twitched with restlessness and he needed to do something. He decided to go see Minnie. Ever since Draco's return, they'd pretty much stopped visiting the older witch.
She must be lonely, Sirius reasoned as he wandered through the Castle. He wasn't paying attention to his surroundings, relying on muscle memory to ferry him towards the Headmistress's office and quarters. He was close to Gryffindor Tower.
Sirius absently hummed a lullaby Dorea used to sing to them whenever they had trouble sleeping. He rounded a corner and halted sharply when he noticed a crumpled figure on the ground in the distance. It was a lengthy corridor, but with his heightened eyesight he saw them with perfect clarity.
It can't be, Sirius thought. His legs awkwardly moved forward, like a young deer learning to walk for the first time. He managed to get control of his limbs and broke into a light jog. As he got closer, he picked up momentum and was sprinting towards her. His muscles groaned in protest at the sudden exertion. He jerked to a stop beside her.
The portraits lining the Corridor had roused to attention at the sound of his boots slapping the stone and were curiously peering at him and his female companion. The buzz of their muted chatter rolled over his eardrums, but he drowned it out until it's white noise in the background.
Sirius took in the explosion of dark curls, the fair skin, Draco's Quidditch Jersey and the faded blue jeans. Her feet were bare. Of course they are, Sirius mused as he reached out to gingerly brush her curls out of the way. Sirius sucked in a harsh breath as he took in her features. She hadn't aged a day.
"I knew she wouldn't, and it should have been obvious after seeing Dray," Sirius muttered to himself.
Hermione looked serene, at peace, a small smile played on her lips. Perhaps she was having a good dream. He hoped so, she'd had her fair share of night terrors.
Sirius rested a hand on her cheek and instantly winced at the contact. She was frightfully cold. He would have been extremely concerned had she not stirred at his touch.
"Hermione?" Sirius prodded gently. The witch's mouth twitched and a miniscule frown appeared. "Mione. Wake up."
Sirius slowly counted to five. "Hermione?" Sirius tried again. He moved his hand to her shoulder and shook her more forcefully. If he stuck to delicate touches, it would be hours before she roused.
The girl's eyes opened albeit sluggardly, her gaze wholly unfocused as her face turned towards him.
"Hermione?" Sirius repeated. Hermione blinked blankly at him, not an ounce of recognition in her eyes.
"Yes?" She croaked out, her voice feeble and gravelly.
"Do you know where you are?" Sirius asked, moving closer so their faces were inches apart. The comforting smell of chamomile and vanilla emanating off of the witch grew stronger every moment. It was unusual that he hadn't noticed her scent before.
Hermione weakly shook her head. "Where?"
"Better question. Do you know when this is?"
"When?" Hermione said. She tried to lift herself up off the ground, but her arms wobbled and she immediately collapsed. Sirius's reflexes kicked in and his hand shot out to cradle her face before it smacked into the stone.
"Careful, you've probably exhausted your magical core," Sirius mumbled. Worry was creeping in. Sirius helped Hermione shift into an upright position, she was turned sideways, his arm around her shoulders, her legs thrown across his lap. She sagged into him.
Draco wasn't this bad when he got back. He was out of it, but not like this, Sirius thought worriedly.
"Sirius," Hermione whispered, her hand rose and her fingers brushed over his cheek. Slowly, awareness and recognition bled into her eyes. Sirius hissed out a laboured breath of gratitude.
"Hello sweetheart," Sirius said. Tears welled up in his eyes and his hand shook as he stroked her face.
"Miss me, Snuffles?" The witch asked, her features splintering into an arrogant smirk. Her eyes fluttered shut.
The casual use of one of his lesser used monikers made emotion rise vociferously in his chest. The nickname was just another example of even when they couldn't remember them, bits and pieces of them still lingered. In a way, they'd always been with them.
"I heard your voice in my head for years, but I had no ruddy idea who it was. I thought the black madness had taken over…but everyone's voices kept me sane in Azkaban." Sirius choked out, his tongue thick in his mouth.
"Glad to be of service," Hermione said, but her smirk faded into a watery smile.
"Of course yours was the bloody loudest."
"Wouldn't have it any other way."
"Whenever I felt like giving up, your voice would shout endless encouragement and it got me through some dark times." Sirius confessed. He curved downward and lightly pressed his forehead to hers. Sirius closed his eyes and drank in the moment.
Hermione was home. She was home and strength was slipstreaming back into her system, her cheeks pinking and her hazel eyes were bright.
"What's the date?" Hermione rasped. "How long have we been gone?"
Sirius's eyes popped open and he grimaced as he searched his brain for today's date. Recently, he'd been focused on the days of the week and what month it was. He mentally counted off the days since Draco got back and after several moments the answer came to him. "It's April tenth."
"Wait, as in months after we left?" Hermione asked. She was fully cognisant now, but Sirius hazarded a guess that her body was still recovering from her trip through the fabric of time and space.
"Seems you overshot your arrival date by a little bit," Sirius shrugged.
"Fuck," Hermione gnawed on her bottom lip. Sirius drew back to look deeply into her eyes. The hazel was sprinkled with warm coppery gems and sparkled with confusion and worry. "Who knows when Draco will get back then."
"No need to worry about that. Draco got back almost a week ago," Sirius hurriedly reassured the witch. Relief emitted from the girl, but she pursed her lips in pensive thought.
"He's back before me? That makes no sense."
"You were fucking around with the natural order of time. Not sure if it would ever make sense. I'm just glad you're finally home," Sirius said. Hermione nodded, her bottom lip caught by her teeth.
"I do have one bone to pick with you," Sirius said, lips twisting wryly.
Hermione's eyebrows rose. "Go on then."
"You got my Godson's firebolt confiscated. You know how difficult it was to get all that sorted? Thankfully, your brilliant beast helped me."
Hermione snorted. "Please, it was a perfectly reasonable reaction at the time. I was a child and I thought a murderer might try and harm my friend."
"I'm hearing a lot of excuses. It was an excellent broom, a gift from a Godfather to his beloved Godson."
"I think you missed the part where I mentioned you were an alleged murderer on the run," Hermione rolled her eyes. "Besides, if we are airing prior grievances, how about that evening in the Shrieking Shack? You really have a knack for the dramatics, you could have easily said that it wasn't you that betrayed James and Lily at the start."
"I wasn't exactly thinking logically at the time, I was desperate to dispose of Peter. I figured I would explain afterwards." Sirius muttered. Hermione shook her head.
A tiny lull occured. Hermione cleared her throat and her voice quivered as she spoke. "Is it terrible that I'm glad Peter suffered a slow death in the end? I'm glad yet—"
"And yet, a part of you can't fully hate him."
"I despise him with everything I have, but…I also love him…because I remember the gentle boy we once knew. I remember things like his delightful hot chocolate."
It had been a long time since Sirius had thought about Peter's hot chocolate or any of his good qualities from when they were adolescents. Of his soft, soothing voice, his fluffy, mousy hair, or the care and love he'd shown to all manner of magical creatures. Not to mention how charming it was that he was absolute rubbish at Herbology.
Sirius's view of Peter was ruined, forever stained by the blood from the night James and Lily died. Lily and James's cold bodies, the muggle carcasses that had exploded and painted the street red.
The hatred Sirius felt for the deceased man ran deeply, but a miniscule part of him would always care about the boy Peter'd once been. The boy he was before the darkness consumed him.
Hermione's lips parted, but any further conversation was interrupted by a hopeful whisper a few feet away. Sirius's head swivelled to the right of the corridor. They'd come from the direction of Gryffindor Tower. The three figures were panting heavily, their shoulders rising and falling harshly, their bewildered gazes locked on Sirius and Hermione.
"Hermione?" Harry said again, hesitantly approaching the pair. Ginny and Ron flanked him on either side, their ginger hair gleaming with copper and gold as the torchlight in the dimly-lit corridor struck the strands.
(Several minutes ago Harry had grabbed Ginny and Ron, and practically heaved them out of their comfortable positions around the fire in the Common Room. "I feel a similar pull to when Draco got back—"
"Which means Mione might be back!" Ron exclaimed.
The trio sprinted out of the Common Room, desperately heading towards the source of the inexplicable pull Harry felt.)
"Harry," Hermione murmured. She tensed in his arms, and horror mounted in her face—it contorted and twisted in pain—as if she realised what seeing Harry truly meant.
"James," Hermione said in the harshest of whispers, fat tears slipped out the corners of her eyes. Harry bounded towards them, his trainers squeaking against the stone when he came to an abrupt halt. Ron and Ginny's approach was much slower.
Harry knelt beside them, and Hermione opened her arms eagerly. As soon as he was within reach she fiercely grabbed his face. "James and Lily."
Harry's eyes blew open. Sirius was trapped in place, but he didn't mind much. Harry's mouth was agape, working soundlessly.
"James and Lily are gone," Hermione said, her hazel eyes piercing Harry's bright green ones. As if it would cement the notion in her head, however Sirius saw the disbelief glistening in her eyes. She couldn't accept that they were gone, and he didn't blame her.
"Hermione," Harry said morosely.
"No wait. I'm not finished. I promised myself that I would set the record straight as soon as I got back. Lily loved your Father. The pair of them were idiots and they danced around each other for years, but they were madly in love. The moment you saw in Severus's memory was just that, a moment.
James Potter was so much fucking more than that memory. He did a foolish thing and I was cross for weeks."
Sirius snorted. He vividly recalled Hermione's cold fury and the silent treatment they had to endure after the incident with Snape. Her disappointment was what stung most.
"But it wasn't who James was—"
"I know Mione," Harry smiled wanly. "Sirius and Remus have been talking about my parents more since you both left, and Draco's been—"
"Draco?" Hermione quirked her brow. "You called him Draco." Wonder punctuated her words.
"That's his name isn't it?" Harry teased even though he knew that wasn't what she meant. As if it wasn't a monumental step in his relationship with the man.
"A lot has clearly happened in our absence,"Hermione said.
"That's an understatement," Ron said, speaking for the first time. Hermione's head snapped in his direction. The witch's lips trembled with melancholic joy.
Hermione'd gained enough strength to stand on her own, and she did so. She crossed over to Ron and flung herself into his arms. He dwarfed her, and he curved around the petite witch and their embrace tightened. Hermione drank in Ron's scent. Sirius and Harry rose, and Sirius threw an arm around his Godson's shoulders.
"Hi Ron," Hermione breathed.
"Took you long enough," Ron said. He buried his face into the side of her neck.
"What am I? Doxie dung? Where's my love and affection?" Ginny snorted, arms folded over her chest. Hermione pulled back enough to peer around Ron at his younger sister.
"Wotcher, Gin," Hermione said, grinning wickedly, her tears drying on her cheeks. Hermione held out a hand, and when Ginny grasped hold she was dragged in between Ron and Hermione. The trio rocked back and forth, and Ginny playfully protested, stating that this wasn't what she meant.
It wasn't the same, it would never be the same but something about that moment felt oddly familiar. It felt like when they were teenagers, and Sirius choked back a happy sob. A bright future laid ahead of them, and Sirius's heart was ablaze as he envisioned it.
Hermione suddenly let out a short string of cuss words and extracted herself from the Weasley siblings. She strode over to Sirius with grim purpose. "If Draco is back then you must have used the potions on Alice and Frank. Did it work?"
Sirius's brow furrowed. "Potions? What potions, Hermione?"
Shock snapped onto her face. "Has no one visited our Potions room yet? Draco's been back almost a week, what's he been doing?"
"He's been a bit preoccupied," Harry admitted sheepishly. "I didn't exactly make it easy for him." An apologetic, remorseful expression bloomed on his face and he pushed closer to Sirius.
"Godric," Hermione huffed. She distractedly tucked her curls behind her ears.
Sirius wracked his brain, trying to figure out what she was talking about. Then, he remembered the mysterious blue potions sitting on the desk in Hermione and Draco's Potions room. Remus was about to investigate them—and the parchment folded beside them—when Sirius turned his attention towards the corkboard that held Lily's note.
Shite, Sirius thought.
"Regardless, we haven't got time to waste. They've been waiting long enough," Hermione stated. She nodded curtly, turned around and hastily headed for Gryffindor Tower.
Sirius, Ron, Harry and Ginny exchanged bewildered glances. Sirius sighed, shrugged and made to follow her. The younger wix gathered their wits and swiftly caught up to him. They were trailing several feet behind Hermione; the witch hadn't looked back once.
"Kitten. Shouldn't we tell the others you're back? Especially Draco and Remus," Sirius called after her.
"It's been months since he saw me," Hermione said in hushed tones to herself. Sirius barely heard her, but he swore the witch began to emit a silvery glow at the mention of Draco's name.
Hermione briefly peered over her shoulder with a crooked smirk and said, "send them a Patronus, tell them on the way!"
"Saying what exactly?" Sirius asked.
"Tell Draco to grab the potions, and let them both know to meet us at St. Mungo's!"
"Okay, but if we're supposed to be going to St. Mungo's…where are you heading exactly?"
"Don't be daft, Sirius. We're going to get Neville. I have a present for him, one I think he'll like very much." The witch quickened her pace, her lengthy curls whipping out behind her. The others jogged to catch up.
It was turning out to be quite the eventful evening. Trust Hermione to find a task as soon as she gets back. An important task, but Sirius doubted she was feeling great.
She might be trying to distract herself, because if she stops she'll have to think about Prongs and Lils, Sirius mused. If that was true, then he hoped Draco was there to help pick up the pieces.
"Only one problem with that, Hermione." Harry shouted. It drew Sirius from his contemplative state.
"And what's that?" Hermione asked baldly.
"Neville went back home for the weekend, and we can't exactly apparate there," Harry explained.
Hermione groaned. Stopping dead in her tracks. She knew as well as Sirius did that the Longbottom's island was unplottable. Just our ruddy luck, Sirius moaned mentally.
Hermione clicked her teeth together, she grabbed her head—the pads of her thumbs pressed into her temples—and she meticulously massaged out her frustration. She was muttering incoherently like a mad woman. Sirius ran his tongue over his back teeth as he watched his friend thoughtfully.
Perhaps I should insist we wait until Neville returns to school on Monday. It would give Hermione time to recover and process everything, Sirius thought. He rubbed his knuckles against the scruff on his cheeks.
After a few moments, Hermione faced them once more. She let out a breathy gasp, lowered her hands. A second later, pounded a fist onto her open palm. "Does Neville still keep Sir Nicholas with him wherever he goes?"
Why do I have a feeling I am not going to like this, Sirius thought in resignation.
"Sir who?" Ron asked.
"Sir Nicholas, the bear Neville always sleeps with," Harry answered. "How is that relevant?" He directed the question at Hermione.
"Does he or doesn't he?" Hermione pressed. She heaved out a frustrated breath.
"He does," Harry replied slowly. He pushed his glasses back on the bridge of his nose, and stared at his friend expectantly.
"Brilliant, then that makes things much easier," Hermione said, her shoulders sagged in relief. Sirius recognised the wild glint in her eye and his stomach did a somersault.
"You have an idea. A mental one if I know you at all," Sirius said, raking a hand through his hair. Some of the shorter strands had escaped his high ponytail and they fell forward onto his forehead.
"Does that mean you intend to go to Longbottom Island?" Ginny asked with a broad yawn, half-heartedly holding a hand over her mouth. The witch was overworked and exhausted between her studies, Quidditch responsibilities, and maintaining her various relationships—both romantic and platonic.
"That's exactly what it means," Sirius answered for Hermione. Hermione shrugged cavalierly in affirmation, as if it was the obvious next step. Reaching any other conclusion would be ludicrous.
"There is the safer option of waiting until he returns on Monday, but I've never had much patience," Hermione said dismissively.
"In that case, this has been brilliant, and I've missed you Hermione…but I'm exhausted. I was on my way to bed when Harry and Ron tumbled into the Common Room," Ginny interjected. Ginny waved a hand over her sage green nightgown to emphasise her point. It cut off right below the knees, it was silky and loose, but it still highlighted her slender figure. The straps were thin and one of them had fallen off her shoulder.
"That's fine, Gin. Sirius and I can go fetch Neville and go to St. Mungo's on our own—"
"No," Ron stepped in. He strode forward a few feet and closed the remaining distance between them and Hermione. "If you think I am leaving your side after I just got you back, you're bloody mental, witch." Ron said firmly.
Hermione let out an exasperated noise. "Ronald—"
"What Ron said. We're coming," Harry confirmed with a light smile. Both boys shot her defiant looks and squared their shoulders. Sirius attempted to smother a radiant grin as he watched Hermione's eyes flick back and forth between the two teenage boys. He failed when she reluctantly heaved out, "fine. You can come."
"Glad that's settled. Good night!" Ginny said loudly, and she clapped her hands together. "Have fun on your adventure, be sure to tell me all about it when you get back." She strolled away, her socks dampening her footfalls. She threw a wave over her shoulder and shortly disappeared from sight.
"Now grab hold," Hermione instructed. She held out her hand. The three wizards exchanged meaningful looks, but did as she asked. Sirius couldn't help but voice a tiny concern.
"You do know we can't apparate there. None of us have ever been there, and even if we had, it's unplottable," Sirius said with narrowed eyes.
They could be lost in the gaps of space forever. Trapped wherever one went when you tried and failed to apparate somewhere unplottable.
"I'm well aware of that," Hermione scoffed, affronted at the insinuation that she wasn't. "I don't have a lot of magic at the moment, so I'm going to have to borrow some from each of you."
"Are you going to give it back?" Ron drawled, his tone buoyant and teasing.
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Okay, enough tongue-wagging. Let's get a move on, shall we?"
Hermione rolled her shoulders back, and the place where their hands were connected heated until it got uncomfortably warm. She was drawing on their magic, using it to fuel whatever she was about to do. The three wizards willingly shared what she required; it flowed like hot, golden rivers from them into her. A fuzzy, electric spark caressed Sirius's skin and caused the hair on his arms to stand up.
"Hopefully this works," Hermione added under her breath.
Sirius was about to ask her exactly what her plan was, but then her eyes fell shut, and she whispered something he couldn't make out. A sharp sucking sensation started in Sirius's navel and twisted his insides. The world rotated on its axis, everything exploded around them. Sirius saw stars shooting across the dark night sky, and then the darkness claimed them.
The quartet was standing in the middle of the corridor one moment, the next they vanished, and the air rippled with charged magic.
There are so many things I am adjusting in Part III as I go. I do have the remaining chapters planned out, but my tentative final number of 248 may change. It may be smaller than that, but I'm not sure yet. Even if it ends up being less chapters, the ones you do get will most likely be longer. There are some one-shot style chapters (that are pure self-indulgence) that I might take out depending on whether they fit in the story or not.
Also, HERMIONE AND HER BOYS ARE BACK TOGETHER. It makes me inexplicably happy. I got misty-eyed cause I recalled that Hermione was beginning to forget what Ron looked like, and now she has him BACK. Of course she also has Harry, but in a way she was connected to him the entire time she was in the past.
Please leave a review and let me know what you think x