Title: Code of the Griffin
Author: Knife Hand
Feedback: Constructive feedback appreciated, flames unappreciated
Spoilers: Nothing Specific, general for first few books.
Rating: R
Disclaimer: I do not own Hermione, or Luna, or Ginny, or Cho, or... I would buy them all but I am broke.
Summary: From a war ravaged future, someone is sent back in time to change the course of the war.
AN: thanks everyone for their reviews. Here are some answers to some of your comments
J.A. Jasper: The Prologue section was ten thousand years in the future, hence all the advanced tech (although I think the tech stagnated for quite a while or it would be much more advanced). Also in regards to your bullets vs. killing curse. I see it as bullets for offence, magic for defence.
StormBrsinger: I called it the finger four formation because that is what Hermione first learned the formation was called and would have been the name she used for it for the rest of her life. As for the 'from the future' issue, Hermione is a genius who uses magic, she would have thought up some way to convince them and if you think about it the magical world would be more open to that kind of thing than the muggle world.
HarmonyLover: Sorry that the three Hermione bit confused you. To explain the three Hermione's are different aspects of Hermione's personality and the room is a representation of her subconscious. Young Hermione Granger is her as a schoolgirl, the way she is in the books, Hermione Potter is her love and marriage to Harry and The Grand Marshall is all her military experience. Hope that clears it up.
JMLuna: No Harry has not been sent back. That comment was just to show his empathy and how he will be haunted by the thought of all Hermione never got to do.
GinnyLover14: The first recorded documentation of glasses being used to aid reading comes from 1289 and the first artistic representation of someone wearing glasses is from 1352 so it not inconceivable for Death to be caught during the Black Death in the 1300's on glasses. Benjamin Franklin invented the Bifocal lenses in the 18th Century.
'In through the nose, out through the mouth. Slow and steady.' Harry thought, concentrating on his breathing as his body moved fluidly on the treadmill at a steady, ground eating pace. George was running at a similar pace on the treadmill next to him. Fred and Cedric were in one of the small class training rooms off of the main Gym with Hermione who was running a debriefing on the small training exercise with the two team leaders.
"And strip. Cut." Neville's voice came across the room.
Harry glanced over, without breaking his rhythm, and watched Susan Bones enact the knife stripping technique on Neville and then the disabling and killing cuts with the wooden practice knife. Luna drifted out of the change room dressed in nothing but a towel as she went over and picked up her kit bag from near the door and went back into the change room. Ron was on the weights machine doing bicep and tricep exercises.
Hermione emerged from the side room with Cedric and Fred following. Harry and George immediately began to dial back their treadmills as Neville and Ron moved to the centre of the gym while Susan headed for the change room to retrieve Luna.
They lined up in front of Hermione in their teams. Fred and Cedric stood directly in front of Hermione. On Fred's left stood George, Harry and Luna, with Susan, Ron and Neville on Cedric's right.
"Congratulations. You have just completed a gruelling close quarters exercise and have all performed exceptionally well. This is the last training session before the Christmas break. Keep up your personal training over the break and when we meet again we will begin firearms exercises. Have a good holiday. Dismissed."
The group snapped to attention and saluted, before about facing and taking one step in unison. Then the group lost all semblance of unity. Ron was the first one heading for the door, mumbling about being hungry, although Harry had to admit that Ron did not eat as much as he once did. Neville was not far behind his redheaded classmate. Luna seemed to float out of the room with a serine smile on her face, at odds in Harry's mind with the cold, calm face he had seen mere hours before. The twins were whispering to each other as they left, and the two Hufflepuffs were also quietly discussing the exercise.
"Coming, Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Huh? Oh yeah." He replied, following his best friend.
Sometimes she reminded him strongly of the girl he had known last year, at others she was someone unrecognisable and slightly scary, and she sometimes would switch between the two. With a slight shake of his head he followed.
"Now if you father has any more questions about the Japanese Corporations, tell him to drop me an owl." Hermione said to the Sixth year Ravenclaw.
The boy nodded and moved down the platform towards the tunnel back to Kings Cross Station. Harry joined her with their trunks and they moved through the milling crowd for the Christmas holiday, the small gap forming around them as the walked. They moved through the tunnel and out into Muggle King's Cross station and the more crushing crowd. In the food court Harry and Hermione met up with three people.
"Harry, I'd like to introduce you to my mother, father and a family friend." Hermione said.
Pleasure to meet you, Mr and Mrs Granger." Harry said formally.
"And you Harry. Hermione has told us so much about you." Peter Granger said, shaking Harry's hand.
Harry then shook Jane Granger's hand and turned to the family friend.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Harry." He said offering his hand to the man, who was looking at him like he had seen a ghost.
"You look so much like James." The man said in awe.
"Harry. This is Lord Sirius Black." Hermione said. "He is your Godfather. He will be staying with us over the holiday."
Hermione watched for a second before closing the door. Harry and Sirius were in the dining room having a long discussion, mostly about Harry's parents.
She moved into the living room and joined her parents.
"How has Sirius been doing?" she asked.
"He's been a bit isolated, living in a safe house. He knows that he has been pardoned but still feels resentment towards the magical community." Peter Granger said.
"He is starting to get more involved in the non-magical community around him." Jane Granger added, earning a nod from Hermione. "How is Harry coping?"
"Coping?" Hermione replied, "He's under pressure. Not only does he have the whole learning magic and dealing with social interactions after having lived with his Aunt and Uncle. Then there's the whole other level with his being famous."
Hermione sighed as she leaned back on the sofa, running her hand through her hair, which had been pulled back into a loose ponytail.
"Firstly for being the Boy Who Lived, and with all the pressure of everyone's expectation that he will kill Voldermort. Then the added level of him being recognised as a Ruling Lord while still at school. All he really wants is just to be normal."
After Hermione trailed off, they sat in silence for a few moments.
"You really love him. Don't you?" Jane Granger said, causing Hermione's head to snap up to look at her mother.
"Is it that obvious?" Hermione asked after a long pause.
"Only to us dear." Peter replied.
"You should tell him." Jane prompted.
Hermione shook her head, fixing both her parents with a stare.
"That can never happen. Not until he decides if he loves me or not." She said.
"Why ever not?" Jane asked.
"Just trust me. If I told him, it would destroy him."
Hermione rose and left the room, leaving her bemused parents behind.
She sat in a darkened room, only illuminated by the images moving on the wall. The long ago memories of events still to come flittered across the wall. The image of Hermione, Harry, Ron, Neville and Luna at their Hogwarts graduation ceremony, as seen from Hermione's perspective was playing when a quiet knock came at the door.
"Come in Sirius." She said.
"How did you know it was me?" the former prisoner said, entering and closing the door behind him.
"Yours are the only unfamiliar footsteps in the house." Hermione replied. "How's Harry?"
"He'll be alright." Sirius said, sitting down on a chair next to Hermione. "He loves hearing stories about his parents."
Hermione did not respond to that, and they both sat in silence for a while.
"When was this?" Sirius said, confused by the image.
"In about four years." She replied.
"Time Travel?" he asked.
"Time Travel." Hermione confirmed. "Did you want to see what his life was like last time?"
"If you don't mind." Sirius replied.
"Would not have offered if I did. Just remember these are memories, so they are from either Harry's or my own perspective. Mostly my own."
"How did you get Harry's memories?"
"They were a gift."
A few scenes whipped by rapidly. Hermione's view of the Troll in the Bathroom in First year, of the trip down the trap door later that year. Harry's view of Hermione Petrified in Second Year. Her view of Harry casting a full Patronus in the other version of Third Year.
"James." Sirius had whispered at that.
Hermione watching Harry take on the Dragon in Fourth Year's Tri Wizard Tournament. Harry's view of Hermione descending the main staircase in her Yule Ball Dress, this one seemed to go in slow motion. Her view of moving into a small apartment with harry after school to save money as they both began work in London. Going together to Fred and Alicia's wedding since they were both going anyway.
Then the scenes began to go slower. The night when the power had gone out in their apartment and they had shared their first kiss. Harry's perspective on the first time he asked Hermione out on a date. Their one year dating anniversary. Hermione's perspective on Harry preposing. The wedding, with Harry in a tux, Ron as best man and Luna as Maid of Honour. Harry's view of Hermione coming down the isle, a long flowing white dress, being given away by her father.
The next scene started with a sunrise over water on a beach, it was from Harry's perspective as you could see Hermione, her back to Harry, her long hair flowing down her back. She was wearing a wrap around skirt, like the ones worn over a bikini, and a straw hat. As she began to turn the scene skipped to the next one, and Sirius noticed the remote in Hermione's hand.
"Ahh. That was from the honeymoon." She said, sheepishly, which was cute on a thirteen year old.
"Right. No problem. How old were you when you took the vows?"
"I was twenty-three, Harry was twenty-two."
Several more scenes played, a condensed version of ten years of married life. Coffee in the morning, holding each other after a long day, birthday parties, anniversaries, all the little joys.
"Of course his life was not all sunshine and roses." Hermione said.
Then the horror reel started. The attack by Voldermort inhabited Qurrel in the Forbidden Forrest. Facing Tom Riddle over Ginny's unconscious body in the Chamber of Secrets, Cederic's death. The finding of Ginny's broken body after it had been missing a year, and the shock realisation that she was better off dead. Neville going down in a fight, taking Bellatrix Le Strange with him. Ron badly hurt in St Mungos. Screaming matches between Harry and Hermione.
A lifetime of battles, blood, pain and abuse, ending with Hermione kneeling over his body, lifeblood flowing through her fingers as they clutched her own abdomen, the grief and paid overwhelming even on a simple projected memory.
"Just before that, I had told him some wonderful news. He would have made a great father." Hermione said, so quietly that Sirius almost did not hear.
"I think you would have made a good mother too." He replied.
"Well, I never got the chance to find out." She said simply. "I needed to tell someone this, but you can never tell Harry any of this."
"Why not? I think it would do him the world of good to know he was loved that well." Sirius said.
"No. It would make him question every feeling he ever had and would make him doubt everything I ever say. For his own good, Harry must never know."
"How do you know I won't tell him?" Sirius asked, a challenging note in his voice.
"Two reasons. One, you love him like a son. Two, because we are identical in one respect."
"And what would that be?"
"I love Harry so much, that I would give him up forever if it meant he would be happy. Just like you did with Lilly when she chose James."
TBC…