Chapter Nine

"We need to talk," Sirius muttered tightly to her as their Friday afternoon Transfiguration lesson came to a close.

Hermione twisted around in her seat to peer at him as she placed her notebook, quill and inkwell into her rucksack. She gave Sirius a quick nod of her head. "Of course."

The entire student body, as well as the professors, had been subdued for the last two days as they struggled to come to terms with the death of Mary MacDonald's family. The message, however, was loud and clear for everyone: Muggle-borns were not welcome in the Wizarding World.

"Did you want us to wait for you, Hermione?" Cera asked as she brushed out creases in her robes; she, Tófa and Ella were standing to the side of Hermione's desk.

Hermione shook her head. "No, that's alright. I'll see you all later." She had a feeling that she needed to have a long chat with Sirius.

"See you later, Padfoot," James said to his friend as he, Remus and Peter slung their rucksacks over their shoulders and left the classroom with the rest of the sixth year students.

Hermione gave Sirius a tight smile. "Where do you want to go?"

Sirius rubbed his face with one hand and grasped Hermione's hand with his other. "Somewhere private," the two of them began to exit the room, "maybe an empty classroom. I can conjure an Impediment Charm so no one can listen in."

Shaking her head, Hermione made a noise of disagreement. "I know a place more private than that."

"Oh really?" Sirius' disbelief was evident in his tone of voice.

Hermione nodded. "Yep." She led them up to the seventh floor and towards the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy.

"There's nothing here, Hermione," Sirius complained.

Hermione shot him a wry grin as she came to a stop in front of the blank wall. She closed her eyes as she thought of what she needed. Somewhere private and cozy to have a conversation with Sirius.

She paced back and forth three times in front of the wall before a heavy oak door suddenly appeared.

"What the fuck?"

Hermione pressed her lips together tightly, hiding her smile as she pulled open the door. "This room isn't on your map," she murmured, leading the way into the Room of Requirement. "I wasn't certain if that was because it's also known as the Come and Go Room and is therefore unplottable, or if it was because you and the other Marauders never realised that it was here."

She took in the room. It looked identical to the Gryffindor common room that she remembered from her own time, complete with the worn brown leather sofa, massive matching chairs and the numerous crimson pillows. "Judging by your reaction, I'm assuming that you never knew that it was here."

Sirius slowly turned around, taking everything in. He shook his head. "I'd no idea." He frowned. "Is this a hidden common room?"

Hermione dropped her rucksack on the floor and sat down on the leather sofa in front of the crackling fire. "No. To find this place, you have to pace in front of the blank wall three times while thinking clearly about what you need." She shrugged. "I needed somewhere safe and private to talk with you." She gestured vaguely around the room. "It gave me the Gryffindor common room that I remembered during my time at Hogwarts." She patted the seat. "Please sit down and ask me what you need to ask."

Sirius quickly did as he was told, the leather creaking slightly as he sat down and reached for her hand, squeezing it gently. "Did you know about Mary's family?"

His voice was quiet, barely heard over the crackling fire.

Hermione shook her head. "No. No one told me that she'd lost her family at the beginning of her sixth year."

Sirius let out the breath that he'd been holding. "Thank you," he whispered. His voice shook slightly. "I'd thought that maybe you felt that she wasn't worth caring about. That her family wasn't worth saving."

"It's complicated," Hermione admitted sadly. "During the preparations to send me back in time, I was repeatedly told that I couldn't save everyone, no matter how much I wanted to." She cleared her throat. "Both Narcissa and Andromeda were adamant about the fact that my focus needed to be on the Black family. Which isn't surprising considering they provided that particular time turner to do it." She peered into Sirius' eyes. "But, Remus and Bill agreed with them as well. Remus even checked the Arithmancy equations himself. It isn't possible to save everyone, Sirius. People will die."

Sirius nodded and rubbed his hand over his face. "Can you… can you tell me who does die?"

Hermione frowned at his question. She turned to face him better. "'Too many people, too many friends', that's what Remus repeated over and over again during our nightly talks."

"Why do so many good people die?"

"Because of ridiculous blood supremacy beliefs from a mental half-blood wizard who took advantage of the fear and ignorance of a fair number of pure-blood families." Hermione shook her head. "You know that most pure-blood families have a difficult time conceiving."

Sirius nodded. "Because of inbreeding," he mumbled.

"Yes. But, you heard your mother this summer. Many of these families believe that Muggle-borns are stealing their magic. They believe that Muggle-borns are the reason why so many families are slowly going extinct."

"And Voldemort takes advantage of those fears," Sirius finished.

Hermione nodded. "He does." She pursed her lips. "I'm certain it's not that simple. But, I believe that's how he convinced people to join him early on. He's obsessed with power, with being the most powerful wizard." She waved a hand vaguely around. "What better way to obtain that power than having ancient Wizarding families at your beck and call."

"What a manipulative and cunning bastard. Bloody Slytherin." Sirius shook his head.

Hermione snorted. "Well he is the Heir of Slytherin. I just think he took it to the extreme because of where he grew up."

Sirius gave her a confused look.

"Tom Riddle grew up in a Muggle orphanage and lived there until he became of age," Hermione murmured. "I believe he was treated quite terribly from the memories that I saw of Dumbledore informing him that he was a wizard." She frowned. "Of course, he was also incredibly cruel, too, even at eleven years old."

"And that makes you… sad?" Sirius couldn't hide his confusion.

Hermione shook her head. "Not exactly. It's just… Riddle's upbringing reminds me a bit of Harry's. Harry was abused by the guardians that Dumbledore placed him with after you were locked up in Azkaban without a trial." She peered worriedly at Sirius, continuing only when he gestured for her to carry on. "I'm quite certain he was beaten although he never said as much. I've seen scars on his back, most likely from a belt. I know that he was also locked in a cupboard under the stairs until he found out that he was a wizard." She swallowed. "Dumbledore ignored this abuse, much like he did with Riddle's own experience at the orphanage when he made him go back during the summer holidays. He then wondered why he had two Dark Lords to deal with rather than just one."

"Voldemort offered Harry a chance to become powerful," Sirius muttered under his breath. "That's just basic human behaviour: wanting to stand up to your abusers, or those who enabled your abuse, once you're strong enough."

Hermione nodded her head in agreement.

There was silence for a few minutes, broken eventually by Sirius. "Can you tell me who else gets killed besides Regulus and I?"

"Sirius–"

Sirius held up a hand to cut off her argument. "Please, Hermione. I need to know."

Sighing, Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose. She warred with whether or not it was a good idea to fill Sirius in on everything.

Peering in Sirius' grey eyes, Hermione reached out to take both of his hands in hers. "I'll tell you some names. But, first you must swear to me that you won't do anything rash."

Sirius nodded adamantly. "I promise."

Hermione shook her head. "No, Sirius. This is important. I'm going to tell you things that will have you seeing red. I need you to swear to me that you'll listen to reason. That you'll listen to me." She sniffed, quickly brushing a stray tear from her cheek. "I can't do this without you. And because of that I will share what I can."

Sirius cleared his throat. "I swear it on my magic that I will listen to you. I swear that I will try my hardest to see reason rather than red, and that I won't do anything rash."

Hermione thought for a moment about where she would begin her explanation. "The summer before my fifth year, Alastor Moody sat myself, Harry and a bunch of Weasley children down in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, the new headquarters of the recently reformed Order of the Phoenix thanks to you, and showed us a photograph of the original Order." She hesitated slightly before plowing on. "Moody liked to tell us tales of Order members who had been killed by Death Eaters. It was like their deaths were honourable because of who killed them. Because of how they'd died."

"Merlin's balls… that's fucked up."

"It is," Hermione nodded in agreement. "But, I didn't realise that then." She gave Sirius a shaky grin. "At the time it just seemed… normal. Inevitable."

"When Harry sided with You-Know-Who, I began to question the way Dumbledore did things." Hermione frowned. "I don't hate him, I swear. No matter how much it may seem like I do. I just think that he's lost sight of what is happening right now because he is too focused on the end game. He has done some truly awful things because of his Greater Good." She searched Sirius' eyes and was pleased to see a hint of understanding in them. "When you and I first met this summer, I mentioned that Narcissa viewed Dumbledore as someone similar to You-Know-Who."

"Yeah… you said Narcissa argued that both Dumbledore and Voldemort were getting children to fight in the war."

"And she's right. They are," Hermione insisted. "The photograph that Moody showed me of the original Order was filled with wizards and witches seventeen, eighteen… maybe nineteen years old, Sirius." She shook her head. "The same can be said about You-Know-who." She cleared her throat. "I know that Mulciber killed Mary's family in order to get his Dark Mark. I'm quite certain Dolohov is marked already given his age." She held up a hand, halting Sirius from responding. "I've already informed Dumbledore about who was most likely involved in the killing of the MacDonald family. He sat in on my meeting with Slughorn to determine my schedule. I told him then." She waved a hand dismissively. "It's up to him what he does with that information. But in all honesty, I doubt he'll do anything."

"Why wouldn't he?"

Hermione raised a brow at the question. "Because he never has before."

"Because of his Greater Good," Sirius muttered.

Hermione nodded. "Because he needs loyal soldiers who want to fight in this war."

Sirius held his head in his hands. "Fuck."

Hermione waited for a few minutes before continuing, "Mary MacDonald was killed shortly after graduation by an unknown Death Eater according to the Remus of my time." She peered sadly at Sirius who was giving her his utmost attention. "The McKinnon family was entirely wiped out during a Death Eater raid in 1981." She paused. "Both Mary and Marlene were in the photograph that Moody showed me. They had both joined the Order right after graduation."

Sirius gave her a curt nod of his head and blinked his tears away. "Who else?"

"So many. Too many." Hermione exhaled slowly. "There was a prophecy told to Dumbledore by a seer who was meeting him for an interview for the Divination teacher post. It said some… things about certain individuals." She paused for a moment, needing to delay the full revelation. "Dumbledore eventually took it to mean either the Longbottom family or the Potters."

Hermione tried to control her shaking hands. "What Dumbledore didn't realise that night was that someone else was listening in on the interview and had heard part of the prophecy being spoken." She searched Sirius' eyes and clasped his hands tightly in hers. "A newly recruited Death Eater."

"Who?"

"Severus Snape."

"WHAT?"

Sirius made to stand up but Hermione held his hands tightly, forcing him to remain in his seat. "He didn't know who the prophecy referred to, Sirius," Hermione insisted quietly. "He didn't hear the whole thing before he was caught spying."

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

Hermione shook her head. "When Snape realised that You-Know-Who believed the prophecy to be about Lily and James and their future child, he came to Dumbledore begging for them to be protected."

"And were they?" Sirius' voice broke.

Hermione nodded. "Dumbledore performed a Fidelius Charm, making you James and Lily's Secret Keeper." She sniffed. "I don't know who the Secret Keeper was for the Longbottom family."

Sirius nodded slowly. "Okay… so… I can do that again. I would lay down my life for James. And Lily."

Hermione gave him a tearful smile. "I know you would. And you did. You truly did."

"But… they were killed anyway."

"They were. You got arrogant and reckless and decided to use yourself as bait." Hermione pressed her lips together to prevent herself from losing her resolve. "Eventually, after a year or so as their Secret Keeper, you convinced James and Lily to switch to a different one. Not one week later they were killed by You-Know-Who."

Sirius was silent in shock.

"According to my Remus, there was a spy in the Order feeding information to You-Know-Who." Hermione wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Remus said that because he was assigned by Dumbledore to infiltrate Werewolf packs and was gone for months at a time, many believed that he was the spy. Including you."

"I wouldn't," Sirius insisted.

"You did. But, you were wrong." Hermione shook her head. "In turn, Remus believed that you were the spy and let you rot in Azkaban for twelve years without a trial. He told me that he refused to see you even after you had sent him letters pleading with him to visit. I-I think your actions last year cemented that distrust between the two of you. You'll need to fix that. It is vital."

Sirius nodded. "I will."

Hermione exhaled deeply, feeling absolutely exhausted.

"Did you find out who the spy actually was?" Sirius asked her after a moment. "The Secret Keeper?"

"I'm here to prevent things from happening," Hermione reminded him. "You must remember that." At Sirius' nod, she continued, "I need to prevent Snape from telling You-Know-Who about the prophecy, or even prevent him from becoming a Death Eater in the first place. But, I don't know if I can do that." She swallowed before pushing on. "I also need to prevent the spy from becoming the spy in the first place. Your mother and father are helping me with that."

"Do they know who it was?" Sirius frowned. "Who it will be?" he corrected.

Hermione nodded. "They do."

"And I'll just have to trust that they'll do something about it?"

"They believe that if they offer aid to a certain family, the individual in question will not run to you-Know-Who for help." Hermione sighed. "You must remember that they're also inviting the Potter family to the Christmas gathering, Sirius. Believe me, your mother and father are taking the threat very seriously. They are doing everything they can to make sure Fleamont and Euphemia don't let James fund Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Sirius furrowed his brow. "Not that I think that it's a bad idea. Dumbledore has his own galleons, he doesn't need James to fund his secret organisation."

"The prophecy stated something about 'thrice defied the Dark Lord'," Hermione gave him a pointed look. "They're trying to prevent James and Lily from joining the Order in the first place."

"But… why would they care?"

"Because James is a leader. He's captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, correct?"

Sirius nodded. "He was made captain last year."

"People listen to him, Sirius," Hermione insisted. "If he says that the entirety of Gryffindor should side with Dumbledore and fight in his Order of the Phoenix, they will. James' leadership and charm will get so many people killed," Hermione's voice broke. "Everyone will die. All of your acquaintances, all of your friends. Everyone."

Sirius swore quietly and held his head in his hands.

Hermione sighed and continued quietly. "Your parents know that you were sent to Azkaban without a trial. Your mother is an accomplished Legilimens and was able to read my mind once. She saw you in prisoner's robes and got… upset." She paused. "That's why she and Orion are working to prevent James from joining the Order. For you."

Sirius nodded, but remained silent. He looked sickly pale.

Hermione waited patiently for his next question.

"Do you know if anything happened to the Longbottoms?" he asked her quietly after a moment. "The other family that the prophecy apparently talked about?"

"Shortly after You-Know-Who fell in 1981, Frank and Alice Longbottom were tortured to insanity by Bellatrix, Rodolphus, Rabastan, and one other." Hermione sniffed. "Their boy, Neville, survived but grew up with his grandmother." She cleared her throat. "Neville was the first friend that I ever had, and I swear to you that I will do anything to make sure he grows up with his parents knowing who he is." She paused. "I'll kill Bellatrix myself if I have to."

"I'll help you," Sirius muttered quietly. "I hate that bitch."

"I know." Hermione couldn't help but chuckle sadly. "You would rant when you had too much Firewhisky about Bellatrix and all the embarrassing things you could remember about her growing up." She sniffed. "You told us that seeing her as human rather than a monster would lead to her defeat."

"And did it?"

Hermione peered down at her hands in her lap. "Bellatrix killed you in the Department of Mysteries in June of 1996." She met Sirius' gaze. "Harry killed her a few months later after he'd joined You-Know-Who. He strung her up by her ankles in the middle of Diagon Alley, reminiscent of a story that you'd told us about. You were five or six years old and her own father strung her up above the dining room table during one of the Black family get-togethers because of something she had said."

"Merlin's balls," Sirius hissed. He rubbed his face.

"My thoughts exactly," Hermione agreed.

The crackle of the fire was the only sound for a few minutes.

"Thank you for filling me in on what happened in your time," Sirius murmured as he scooted closer.

Hermione gave him a teary smile as he slung his arm over her shoulders and tugged her close to his chest. "It feels good to be able to talk with someone about it." She swallowed. "It's not too much though, is it?" She peered up at Sirius.

He grimaced. "It's a lot," he admitted. "But, I can handle it. I want to help you make things right, Hermione."

Hermione hummed as she blinked her eyes closed and snuggled into Sirius' chest.

"How're you going to prevent Snape from…" Sirius paused. "Doing all that?"

Hermione sighed. "I honestly don't know. He's so angry right now. More than I expected him to be, at least." She patted his chest. "He wants to attack you because of what happened last year with Remus. But, I told him that it wasn't Dumbledore who prevented you from being expelled, it was your parents." She cleared her throat. "Mulciber agreed with me and told Severus to back off with his retribution against you." She shrugged. "I don't know if he'll listen though, so you'll need to keep your eyes open."

"I'm not surprised at all." Sirius snorted."Did you know Snape during your time?"

Hermione nodded. "Do you remember when I told you about my nightmare where Dumbledore was killed at the top of the Astronomy Tower?"

"I do."

"Severus was the fourth Death Eater. The one who found me hiding in the alcove." Hermione swallowed. "He saved my life."

"He's still a Death Eater after everything?"

Hermione could feel the disbelief in his tone. "Dumbledore enlisted him as a spy for the Order after he came to him for help. He prevented Snape from being sent to Azkaban after You-Know-Who fell in 1981, and made him the Potions Professor and Head of Slytherin after Slughorn retired."

Sirius tensed. "Dumbledore prevented a known Death Eater, a killer, from being thrown in prison and allowed him to teach children, but permitted me to rot in there without a trial?"

Hermione nodded as she pulled back slightly to peer at Sirius' pained expression. "He did." She swallowed. "You were a foil in his grand plan for the Boy-Who-Lived, and a Black. Only members of the House of Black have enough political prowess to sway Wizarding Britain from listening blindly to Dumbledore. You know this."

"Merlin… what a bastard."

"I'm so sorry." Hermione felt a strong need to apologise for the shit hand that Sirius had been dealt in her time.

"Mother and father won't let that happen," Sirius said after a moment. "That's why they haven't disowned me, right?"

Hermione nodded. "They need to keep you an heir to the House of Black to make sure you're protected from Dumbledore's manipulations for his Greater Good."

"Prongs needs to start wearing his family ring," Sirius said after a moment. "To protect himself from Dumbledore's manipulations as well."

"Yes he does."

"I'll talk to him." Sirius tugged Hermione closer and started running a hand through her curls. He gave her a soft kiss on the top of her head. "We've missed dinner, but do you want to go down to the kitchens for a bite to eat? I don't have an appetite myself, with everything that's happened these last few days, but I will go with you if you need to eat."

Hermione shook her head. "I'm honestly not very hungry."

"What would you like to do?"

Hermione felt her cheeks heat. "Can we just… stay here for the night?" She shyly peered into Sirius' eyes.

He grinned at her blush. "Like a date?"

Hermione nodded, pressing her lips together tightly. "I just want to feel like a normal seventeen year old witch and just… talk throughout the night. Get to know each other more," she admitted quietly.

"Sweetheart," Sirius whispered as he cupped her face gently and brushed his lips against hers. "Of course we can stay here."

...

...

"Did you have a fun time with Sirius last night?" Ella innocently asked as she did her hair in the bathroom mirror.

Blushing as she rigorously brushed her teeth, Hermione bent over and spit in the sink. "I did." She narrowed her eyes at the grin that was beginning to form on Ella's face. "Nothing happened, if that's what you're thinking."

Ella snickered. "I wouldn't blame you if it did, Hermione. Sirius is gorgeous."

Hermione hesitated. "I've never…" she gestured awkwardly, "you know."

Ella raised a brow at her. "There's nothing wrong with that. He's not pressuring you, is he?"

Hermione adamantly shook her head. "No. Not at all."

"Good." Ella's relief was apparent. "I like him. He's always treated me respectfully even though I'm half-blood."

"You must know that Sirius doesn't care about blood status."

"I do. It's something that I will always appreciate about him." Ella gave her a warm smile. "You've snagged a good one."

Hermione nodded as she packed her toothbrush and toothpaste away. "Have you dealt with discrimination because of your blood status?" She wondered just how bad it was in Slytherin House behind closed doors.

Publicly, they promoted a united front, Slytherin House against everyone else. But, she had a feeling that it was a façade given the number of students in Slytherin that she knew would become eventual Death Eaters. She just hadn't seen it during her short time in the House yet.

"I've honestly been treated quite well," Ella reassured her. "Cera and Tófa have seen to that. And Alecto just does as she's told." She cleared her throat. "I don't think the boys in our year are quite as kind though."

Hermione slowly turned to face Ella and frowned. "Wilkes, Avery, Macnair, Carrow and Snape." She paused for a second. "Is Severus not treated well?"

"Not at all. At least he didn't used to be." Ella grimaced. "It's definitely different this year. But, I remember early on he would be hexed in the common room almost every single night because of who his best friend was." She paused. "It was Lily Evans. I'm not sure if you're aware at all. She's the Gryffindor sixth year prefect, a Muggle-born, and most likely future Head Girl. She's bloody brilliant."

"I see." Hermione hesitated. "Are Lily and Severus not friends any longer?" She already knew the answer, but wanted to know what Ella thought.

Ella slowly shook her head. "They had a falling out just after our O.W.L.s. He called her a… he called her a mudblood," she whispered.

"Well," Hermione pursed her lips. "That would definitely put an end to a friendship."

"I agree," Ella stated with relief. "I would've hexed him into oblivion too. Just for good measure."

Hermione huffed with quiet laughter. "I was going to sit outside under the beech tree with Sirius and his friends and try to get some reading done. Did you want to join me?" she asked. "I was going to ask Cera, Tófa and Alecto if they wanted to join me as well. Regulus too, if he's free."

Ella's smile grew on her face. "I'd love to. Alecto probably won't bother joining us, but the other girls will."

...

...

Hermione took in the witches and wizards sitting together underneath the shade of the large beech tree. Alice Fortescue, a plump, sixth year witch with wavy blonde hair, sat between the legs of Frank Longbottom with her eyes closed as she sunbathed in the late summer sun.

Frank was a slim, sixth year student, with poker-straight brown hair and a friendly face. He gave Hermione a charming smile when he noticed her looking at him and his girlfriend.

Dorcas Meadowes, a Black witch with long, curly hair lay on her stomach next to the couple as she read her Defence textbook. A bottle of butterbeer was clutched in her right hand as she tucked her wand into her hair for safe-keeping with her left.

"Who's the Ravenclaw weirdo staring at us?" Sirius muttered to the group, interrupting Hermione's inspection, as he reached into his rucksack to grab two cool bottles of butterbeer and handed them to Cera and Ella.

Hermione looked in the direction he subtly indicated, quickly spotting Barty Crouch Junior standing a fair distance away with his hands on his hips and a scowl on his face.

Regulus coughed as his butterbeer went down the wrong hole. "It's Crouch," he forced out before clearing his throat.

"Bartemius," Sirius mocked under his breath. "He's one of your friends isn't he, Reg?"

Hermione watched as Regulus paled considerably.

"Of course not. What makes you think that?"

Sirius chuckled quietly and gestured to the group. "Reg… you're sitting with a bunch of blood traitors, Muggle-borns, and half-bloods." He gave his brother a pointed look. "No one here gives a shit who you're friends with. Isn't that right ladies?" he asked the amused Slytherin sixth year girls who had joined Hermione.

"He's right Regulus," Cera assured him. "You should be friends with whomever you want to be friends with." She sighed, shaking her head. "I'll never understand why we are only allowed to associate with the families our parents say are appropriate."

"Is it really that big of a deal?" Lily asked her with a frown.

"It is for some families," Frank replied.

Tófa nodded. "Unfortunately it is." She scowled. "I'm probably going to be getting a letter from my father tomorrow telling me not to associate with fools like Potter." Her eyes shone mischievously. "Full offense, Potter."

James shook with laughter. "I'll just kick your arse on the quidditch pitch, Rowle. Then we'll see who the fool is."

"You should invite Crouch over here," Sirius told his brother. "He obviously wants to join you."

Regulus adamantly shook his head. "I don't want to, Sirius." His eyes darted quickly to Hermione before focusing on his brother. "I've ended our… friendship."

"I used to see the two of you studying together in the library occasionally. What happened?" Marlene asked him as she sucked on a fizzing whizzbee. She began to float a few inches off of the ground.

Regulus cleared his throat and focused on the ground. "He hates his father," he muttered quietly before meeting Hermione's gaze. "He hates everything that his father stands for. I-I decided this summer that I didn't want to associate with him any longer."

"His father's the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement," Remus commented with concern.

Regulus nodded. "I know."

"Well now there's a troubling thought," Dorcas muttered under her breath.

Alice snorted. "But, unfortunately not a surprising one given his father. The man is about as kind as a Grindylow."

"Crouch Senior's going to be your boss if you decide to become an Auror, Alice," Frank chastised her. "Be nice."

"He's coming over," Peter warned the group.

The group turned as one to watch Barty Crouch Junior stomp his way towards them.

Hermione unclipped her wand from the holster on her left arm and clutched it tightly in her right hand.

Sirius noticed her reaction and quickly sat up straighter while reaching for his own wand.

"You lying bastard!" Barty bellowed at Regulus. "You told me that your family's reputation was everything to you. But here you are sitting with blood traitors and Mud–"

His face erupted in bat bogeys before he could finish the slur.

Hermione jabbed her wand at him again, hitting him with a non-verbal Laxative Curse. "I suggest you run to the Hospital Wing, Barty, before shit starts shooting out of your arse."

The group sat in silent shock. The only sound was the wet flapping of the bogey wings on Barty's cheeks until his stomach gurgled loudly, causing Hermione to raise a brow at him in challenge.

"She told you to run, Heir Crouch," Ella calmly stated as she reached for a fizzing whizzbee. "I suggest you do as you're told."

Barty stumbled away from the group, clutching his stomach, and hurried towards the castle.

"Non-verbal hexes already," Remus said with admiration and a hint of pride. "You've been reading ahead."

Hermione smiled warmly at Remus as she clipped her wand back in its holster and reached for her bottle of butterbeer. "I had a tutor last year, a mentor really, who insisted that I learn how to cast a few non-verbal spells in my spare time." She peered amusedly at Sirius who was fighting a grin. "He and another tutor of mine were adamant that I learn as much as I could about spellcasting. I think they were both attempting to distract me from my ailing parents."

"The other tutor… was he your Defence tutor?" Sirius asked.

"And Potions." Hermione paused. "He and my mentor worked on a lesson plan together to make sure that I was always busy."

Sirius trembled with silent laughter as he shook his head.

"I recognised the Bat-Bogey Hex, it's one of my favourites for annoying toe-rags," Lily chimed in with a pointed look at Potter. "But, what was the second?"

Hermione grinned mischievously at Lily. "A Laxative Curse. Poor Barty."

The group burst out laughing.

"Poor Barty indeed!" Lily agreed with a mischievous smirk.

"Thank you, Hermione," Regulus said after the group's laughter had quieted down. "For standing up for me, I mean."

"Anytime, Regulus." Hermione nodded. "But, I must admit that it wasn't just you I was standing up for." She focused on Lily. "I'm not a fan of derogatory slurs because of someone's blood status. I think magical folk who use them are just highlighting their ignorance." She shrugged as she peered around at the group. "My family was never one that believed in blood supremacy. I do hope that won't be an issue for anyone here."

Cera and Ella both immediately shook their heads. They stood with her, no matter what.

"What do your parents think of the Granger family's view on blood supremacy?" Tófa asked Sirius.

Sirius leaned over and planted a kiss on the side of Hermione's head as he slung his arm over her shoulders. "Walburga was upset, which wasn't at all a surprise. But, my father seemed alright with it. They both eventually came to an understanding and acceptance of Hermione's beliefs."

"Really?" Tófa couldn't hide her surprise.

"Absolutely," Regulus agreed with his brother's comment before taking a sip of his butterbeer. "Pure-blood families will go extinct if they fail to adapt with the times."

"May I inform my father of this shift within the House of Black?" Tofa asked.

Hermione watched as Sirius and Regulus shared a look with one another, silently communicating.

Sirius sighed after a moment and gave Tófa a cool grin, looking every bit the heir of the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. "Please do. Tell your father that he can address his queries to Lord Black if he has any questions or concerns." He focused on Cera. "The same goes for Lord Greengrass."