A/N: Here's chapter 10. I get to publish it sooner than expected so that's nice for a change. I hope you enjoy it. You know the drill: if there are any mistakes (grammar/spelling), let me know. Please read and review.
Thanks to Angel From Above Is Here for proofreading.
The week before Christmas break went by fast. Everyone – well, almost everyone – was in a festive mood. Especially the marauders.
The entire week students and teachers were caught up in their antics. They would decorate the halls and statues and when the decorations were cleaned up by the teachers, the next day they would be back in place. They sang Christmas songs of which Hermione thought that half of them were made up and they made the statues sing together with them. The thing that caught most students' attention, however, was the fact that at the time and place you least expected mistletoe would appear above two people. For the people watching it was amusing, for those who were caught by it less so.
However, not every student that was caught beneath the mistletoe actually kissed someone. One evening in the common room when James was once again trying to be charming to Lily, Sirius dangled a mistletoe between them. Of course, James was thankful to his best friend for this and looked forward to a kiss with his Lily-flower. Lily, however, not so much. She rolled her eyes and just up and left and went to sit at a table with Marlene.
The marauders didn't mind so much, they just went on to their next victim. Which happened to be Hermione. She was talking with Remus on the couch when suddenly Sirius' voice sounded from behind them.
"Oohh, Moooony," he said in a singsong voice.
"What is it, Pads?"
"Look up," he said with a large grin on his face and a mischievous sparkle in his eyes.
Remus looked up and saw the mistletoe dangling between him and Hermione. His eyes widened a little before he turned to look at Hermione. She was looking at the mistletoe before turning to him. Suddenly, he felt quite embarrassed.
"You don't have to, you know," he said as quickly as he could.
Hermione, however, was used to worse things thanks to spending quite a lot of time with the Weasley twins. So she smiled at him and shrugged. "Rules are rules, no?"
Remus was a little confused, not expecting the answer. Then she started to lean in closer. In the meantime the situation had caught the attention of a few students in the common room, among them Lily and Marlene. Marlene looked absolutely delighted at the fact that she would see them kiss, Lily didn't know what she was feeling but she was waiting in anticipation, if she was honest with herself. James and Sirius' eyes widened and their grins just grew. You might think their faces were about to split in two. Remus, their Moony, was about to be kissed. It wouldn't be his first one but because of the whole werewolf thing he didn't do it much, so they were feeling absolutely ecstatic.
Hermione leant closer and put a hand on Remus' shoulder. Then she gave him a kiss on the cheek.
The tension that had been building in the room immediately deflated. Sirius and James making noises of disappointment.
"Come on. That's cheating, Granger," Sirius said, it almost sounded like a whine.
She turned to look at him and said, "No one said we had to give a kiss on the lips."
"Spoilsport," he said with a small pout. At this James and Peter laughed. Sirius had been outsmarted by Hermione, not that it was uncommon or unusual.
Then Hermione turned back to Remus and said, "I hope you don't mind. I like you but not in that way." She said it with a friendly smile and a sparkle in her eyes.
Remus let out a chuckle which turned into a small laugh. Then he gave her a kiss on the cheek in return and said, "I don't mind at all." They just started laughing.
And just like that the week went on. Then it was the Christmas feast the evening before everyone went home. During the feast suddenly and miraculously the hair of all slytherins turned red and green and the fact that they weren't happy about that was no surprise. Hermione only wondered how the marauders had managed to do it.
Then the feast also passed and everyone went home, which left Hermione on her own at the castle. Well, of course not on her own. There were a few other students but in such a large place it could easily feel as if you were the only one still there.
The first few days passed and nothing special happened. She would read, go to the Great Hall to eat and read some more. Everything that mentioned time travel, which was fairly limited, she would read.
During one of those days she decided that she would pay another visit to Dumbledore. It had been weeks since she last went to see him and she wanted to see if he had made any process since then. If he had, she wanted to make sure she was kept updated on everything. With that in mind she made her way to his office.
Once in front of the gargoyle, however, she realized she didn't know the password. She stood there for a few moments thinking when the door suddenly opened and Professor Gray stepped from the stairs into the corridor.
"Miss Granger," he said. He was surprised to see her there but didn't let it show on his face. "Do you need to see Professor Dumbledore?"
"Yes, there is something I want to ask him."
"Well, if it's that important I think you're allowed to go up." He stepped aside and gestured to the stairs.
"Thank you, Professor Gray." Then she stepped onto the stairs and they led her to Dumbledore's office.
Once at the door, it opened even before she could knock. When she stepped inside she saw Dumbledore sitting behind his desk, studying one of the many trinkets that was placed upon it.
"Aahh, Miss Granger, what can I do for you?"
"Professor, I wanted to ask if you had gotten to know something on how I can go home? Or maybe on how I got here? I know I already asked some time ago but maybe now..." she left her sentence unfinished, afraid of the answer.
"I'm afraid I haven't much to tell you, except the same thing as last time." His voice was soft, calm.
She let out a sigh and looked down.
"I know it feels as if you're here already for a long time but do not forget that it has only been three months since you got here." She looked up, wanting to say something but Dumbledore just continued. "I can understand that three months is a lot if you're not in your own timeline. However, I, too, have my limits in what I can do and the time in which I can do it."
"Yes, of course, I understand and I'm grateful that you even want to help me but –" she paused for a moment, "But it's just so hard. Being here and knowing what is going to happen or what is happening. I don't know anymore."
"I can only imagine what you're going through and I will do my best to help you. But as I have told you already, I cannot make promises as to whether I will be able to help." He looked at her, studying her.
"Of course, I know," she said. And it was true, he had told her that he wouldn't be able to promise her that she could go back to her own timeline. She knew but it didn't make the situation any easier.
"If there is anything you want to talk about, anything at all, you're always welcome." She had gone to see him a couple times and every time she did he had said this. With this one sentence she knew she was being dismissed, that there was nothing more to talk about. At least, not for the moment. However, just like the very first time she had talked to him she couldn't say if he also meant something more, deeper, by it. And if he did, would she be able to tell him the things she knew?
"Thank you, Professor." And with that she left his office, going back to the common room.
A few more days passed and it was Christmas morning. Waking up, she was surprised to see a small stack of gifts at the end of her bed. Of course, she knew who they were from.
She made her way to the end of her bed and started opening the presents one by one. From both Remus and Lily she had gotten a book, both mugglebooks to her delight. From James, Sirius and Peter she had gotten some sweets. Now she had new books to read and enough snacks to last her for a couple of weeks. She was a dentist's daughter after all, of course she would eat sweets in a moderate way. She had done so ever since she was little, her parents always telling her about the sugars the sweets contained.
They were such simple presents, yet she couldn't be happier. She was already happy knowing that they had thought about her even though she had been here for only a couple of months. It also made her feel less guilty – or embarrassed? – about her own simple and small gifts that she had sent them.
She had gotten a quill for both Lily and Remus, though Remus' present was accompanied by a few chocolate bars. And just as the other three boys had sent her sweets, she had gotten them an assortment of sweets of their own .
This may not be her timeline nor the friends with who she grew up but as she looked at the presents in front of her she was grateful that she had them as friends in this time. They reminded her of home, at certain times more than she liked to admit. Sometimes this made it extra difficult to be here and sometimes it made it easier. It was like a two-edged sword.
The rest of the day was spent in bed with one of her new books, eating a little bit of the sweets she had gotten, only leaving Gryffindor Tower to go down for dinner.
The rest of the break was spent as the first few days: reading, going to the Great Hall for meals and more reading. The last few days before the break ended she started reading more at the library instead of in Gryffindor Tower, slowly wanting to get used to the school rhythm again. And apart from getting a dirty look directed her way from Snape at times when she was in the library, those days also passed in a hurry. Before she knew it Gryffindor Tower was once again filled with lots of students and lots of noise. The most prominent cause of the noise being the marauders.
The night everyone got back, the Gryffindor common room was very loud. Everyone talking about how they had spent their break and asking how other's break had been. A lot of them were so caught up in their stories and feeling so excited still that Hermione wondered for a moment if they realized they had classes the next day.
"And the whole break she made these nasty comments." Lily was talking about her break, especially about how nice company her sister had been.
"I can't imagine spending my Christmas break like that," Hermione told her.
"Well, it's nothing I hadn't heard before anyway." She shrugged as she said it. "And what did you do here?"
"Reading, reading and more reading," Hermione said. "By the way thank you for the book, I really liked it."
"You're welcome. And thanks for the quill." Lily gave her a happy smile.
It was a miracle actually that they were sitting there at one of the tables and that the marauders hadn't barged into the conversation yet. However, she couldn't say that she minded all that much. It was nice to have a quiet conversation once in a while.
As it got later more and more students made their way towards their rooms, among them Lily and Hermione. She would have to thank the boys for her presents the next day.
The next day Hermione was talking to Lily when she saw Remus enter the Great Hall. He made his way over to them, sat down, filled his plate and gave them a "Good morning" just before he started eating.
"Good morning," the girls replied simultaneously. It was quiet for a moment before Lily asked, "Where are the others?"
"Still sleeping."
"Didn't you try to wake them? They're gonna be late for class this way," Hermione told him.
"I tried but they're difficult to get out of bed so I just gave up." Then a grin – you could almost say it was a smirk – spread across his face as he said, "It's my new years' present for them, a nice way to start the new semester."
Hermione couldn't help but chuckle. Of course, how could she forget. He may be a more mature than the others but he was still a marauder. Then she said, "Talking about presents, thank you for the book. I really liked it."
"No problem. Thanks for the quill." And after a moment as if he had forgotten something he said, "And the chocolate."
"You're welcome."
Talking, they made their way towards their first class: Transfiguration. And just like Hermione had thought, the marauders were indeed late. This resulted in a stern lecture from McGonagall and a five point deduction each. Yes, a nice way to start the new semester.
When Transfiguration was over they made their way towards the dungeons for Potions.
"Seriously Moony, why didn't you wake us?" James asked.
"I tried but you guys just wouldn't wake up." He said it with a shrug of his shoulders. "It was a nice wake-up call though for you guys," he said with a small grin growing on his face.
"You did not just say that," Sirius said with an incredulous look on his face.
"Yes, I did. And I have no regrets." He looked at them seriously for a moment before all four of them just burst out laughing.
It was when they were waiting for the Professor to let them in that Hermione thanked the remaining three marauders for the sweets she got during Christmas, all of them saying that it was nothing.
When Professor Slughorn had let them in they were told they would be working on brewing a potion called 'Draught of Living Death'. Hermione had already learnt how to brew it in her own timeline and though she had had many difficulties then, she thought she would do at least a little better now than she did then. And she was right.
It hadn't gone so smoothly as she had wanted but she had managed in the end. The only thing that showed that she had had quite a difficult time was her hair which seemed to be five times its original size.
Of course, Sirius couldn't help but tease her a little about it, making puns about her hair and curls and whatnot. However, she let him, not really caring what he said because she had just earned five points because her potion had been one of the best, even with the difficulties she had had to finish it correctly.
The rest of the class, except for a few, also had done very well. Especially, Lily and Snape, though nobody could say they were surprised by that. Those two were known for their skills at brewing potions and Hermione knew just how good Snape was and how much better he would get by the time he would become her Professor.
The rest of the day passed just like most days, with nothing special happening. Classes passed and meals passed and before anyone knew it the first day of classes had finished and everyone could be found somewhere in the Gryffindor common room.
"And how was the Christmas party?" Remus asked James and Sirius.
"Apart from the fact that I had to wear those damned dress robes, it was okay. You know, the same as usual."
"Yeah, a shame you couldn't make it, Moony," James told him.
"Well, it was a little difficult to make it," Remus said, giving the boys a look. The look wasn't lost on Hermione and instantly she knew he either had just gone through a transformation or was about to go through a transformation when the party had been taking place.
Then they turned towards the girls and James said, "Maybe you can attend the party next year. My mom likes it when there are a lot people."
Hermione looked at him for a moment, stunned, not knowing what to say. The other girls, however, didn't have that problem.
"Sure, why not. I'd like to come," Marlene replied. From the girls, she was the most outgoing one so she easily would go to some kind of party or get-together when she got the chance.
"I don't know. I'm probably going to celebrate with Frank and his family." Alice gave an apologetic smile as she said it. She was as sweet and polite as ever.
"Thanks, but I think I'll pass," was Lily's answer. An answer that surprised no one anymore by this point.
Then they turned to look at Hermione, seeing as she hadn't said anything yet. "Uhm, maybe?" It came out more as question than a statement. "But why are we talking about that anyway? Christmas just passed and it's still a year until it comes back around."
"Yeah, but you have to plan those things early," Sirius said seriously as if it was the most important thing ever and everyone should know this. When he saw the look on her face he couldn't help himself and started laughing. "Well, doesn't matter if you don't know yet. As you said there's still time enough," he said with a wide smile on his face.
"You'll come next year though, right Moony?" James and Sirius had turned back to look at Remus.
"Yeah, probably."
"And you too, Wormtail?" James said.
"Yeah, how come you weren't there?" Sirius interjected.
"Mom needed help with the shop, you know. But yeah, I'll come next year."
Hermione couldn't help the quiet uneasiness she felt at that. She knew he was their friend and he had told them that he would spent Christmas with his mother but she also knew what he had done, or what he would do. She couldn't help but think whether what he had said was the real reason why he hadn't gone to the party or if he already was starting to get on the wrong path.
She had read in the Daily Prophet that the attacks from Death Eaters were steadily rising, so she couldn't help but be slightly suspicious, even though he hadn't done or said anything wrong yet. At least, not to her. Not yet anyway. However, it wasn't helping that she didn't know just when Peter had decided to betray his friends.
For now she would just let it go, would try to not think about it. If she had any say in it – and that was quite a big 'if' – she probably wouldn't even be here when everything would play out the way it was supposed to. By then she would already be back in her own timeline. Back to where she belonged.