"Padfoot, look", a muffled voice reached her ears and she did everything she could not to jump out of bed immediately.

It wasn't so difficult to figure out that Dumbledore's words had finally came true. The Marauders visited Hospital Wing, just as he had predicted. Hermione had no doubt that the voice she heard belonged to James Potter, although she has never heard it before. There was something about its cheerfulness and mischief that made her entirely convinced. She almost couldn't stop herself from opening her eyes and looking right at him. She wondered if he looked anything like Harry did when he was his age. Of course, everyone said that her best friend was the spitting image of his father, but she really wanted to see by herself, if it was true.

"Look, there's a girl in here. I don't think I know her. What about you? You shagged her yet?", James asked again and Hermione really hoped she didn't blush.

It was her best friend's father and he has just asked if Sirius Black had shagged her. How weird was that?

"Nah, I don't think so. I am fairly sure I've never seen her before", the smooth, deep voice answered him, sounding nothing like the Sirius Black she'd known.

His voice was velvety and full of emotions, whereas the one she remembered was quiet and reserved almost at all times. Of course, she couldn't blame him for being a little bit indifferent after spending 12 years in Azkaban. But even in those rare moments when he couldn't hold his emotions inside anymore, he didn't sound so happy and chilled out. No, the Sirius Black she'd known was a ghost compared to his younger version.

"Although if I had seen her before, I'd probably shag her", barking laugh filled the air and this time she flinched visibly.

Did he just say... Merlin, help her. He was so much older than her. Maybe not in this time but technically she shouldn't even be born as of now. How could he say that he'd shag her?! Oh, that's right. He had no clue about any of this.

"Shush, Padfoot, you'll wake her up", hissed James and she heard his steps coming closer towards the bed. "Fuck"

At this exact moment she realized that her forearm was fully visible, just as the scar Bellatrix that gave her. She wanted to cover herself up so badly, so that they wouldn't see it, but she knew she couldn't do it. Instead, she tried to breathe in and out as smoothly as possible.

"Bloody hell, that poor girl", Sirius murmured when he joined James at the foot of her bed and this time his voice was nowhere near as cheerful.

Actually, Hermione knew that he must have been even more disturbed than anyone else would have been, considering that most of his family were blood purists. Hell, his cousin did this to her!

"I'd make all of those bastards suffer so badly, James"

"I know, mate. I'd do it with you. What do you think has happened to her?"

"I have no idea, but it must have been pretty fucked. This scar doesn't look that new, so it's probably cursed"

'Right on point', she thought to herself. 'My whole life is cursed, Sirius'.

"Maybe she's an Auror?"

"Way too young. Even if she's older than she looks, I've never seen her at Hogwarts, so it's not possible", Sirius disagreed and James hummed in response.

Damn, they really were smart. No wonder that Dumbledore ordered her not to talk to them before she was comfortable enough with her story to pull it off effortlessly.

"So why is she here now?"

"No idea, Prongs"

Even though their voices died down, they were still standing near the bed and watching her. This time, she could feel the heat rising up to her cheeks, so she decided to turn around in her sleep, murmuring something incoherent.

"Her hair is really beautiful, though", a chuckle escaped Sirius' mouth and James sighed loudly.

"Seriously?", he asked and another barking laughter cut the air.

"You know I'm always Sirius"

She wanted to smile at their exchange so badly, but somehow she couldn't. They were friends, happy and carefree. They had no idea that in just a couple of years, one of them would be dead and the other sent to Azkaban for something he didn't do. Hermione felt even more determined to fix everything as she simply couldn't stand the thought of their happiness being destroyed once and for all.

"We should go. I'd really like to know who she is and what happened to her, but I feel like she should be left alone for now", James said and sighed again.

"Yeah, probably. Maybe we could ask Dumbledore about her? Or maybe Minnie?"

"They probably won't say a thing, you know them. But I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask. It's not like they will give us a detention. We already have one", he chuckled and Hermione heard his footsteps drift away from her bed.

Sirius however stayed behind and kept looking at her. Finally, he whispered so quietly, that only she could hear it.

"Fingers crossed for you, love. I hope you're going to be okay and whoever did this to you will be punished".

She felt his fingertips caress her temple and then he tugged a strand of her hair behind her ear. In just few seconds, Sirius was gone, but his scent lingered in the air, reminding her of the man she used to know. Leather, mint and a cologne that was his favourite, even after spending 12 years in Azkaban.

If she didn't know any better, she would have never recognized him. The picture of Sirius Black was very clear in her mind, but somehow it didn't fit the person that had just caressed her so tenderly, even though he didn't know a single thing about her. No... Azkaban destroyed him even more than anyone could have thought. And that made her hurt all over.

*** over 2 months later ***

Hermione knew very well that dealing with stress has never been her strong feature. She always felt nauseous, her palms were sweaty and her heart rate was so high that it made her feel really sick. Even after two months of murderous trainings, she still wasn't able to hide her anxiousness when she stood at King's Cross and stared at Hogwarts Express.

Well, the fact that she was completely alone out here was not helping either. She missed her parents who were always there for her, when she boarded the train. There was also no Harry and Ron to greet her and tell her about their holidays. Harry's probably would have been pretty terrible and Ron would just shrug and claim that his were nothing special as well, although Hermione knew that summer holidays at the Burrow were something that was always worth remembering.

She was alone and she had to deal with it. A shaky breath escaped her mouth, as she decided to move forward, dragging her trunk behind her. Even though she knew perfectly well what she was supposed to do with it, she was the new girl. In the eyes of everyone else on the platform, she was a mystery, someone that they've never seen before. It would raise a lot of suspicions if she wasn't completely lost.

Hermione looked around, trying to find anyone who looked nice enough to help her, but everyone was busy saying goodbyes to their close ones and she couldn't bring herself to interrupt them. The fact that she didn't have anyone with her didn't mean that she should try and make this moment miserable for everyone else. No, she would have to just wait until someone came over and helped her out of their own good will.

It turned out that she didn't have to wait that long. A group of three boys entered the platform, immediately catching everyone's attention as they were laughing loudly and walking with such confidence, that Hermione couldn't help but stare at them with her eyes wide open. Her wish from just few months ago has now been fulfilled, as she watched Sirius Black, James Potter and Remus Lupin cross the platform in long strides.

Her gaze immediately travelled to Harry's father, soaking in the image of his younger self. He really did look almost exactly like her best friend, except for the eyes. James' were hazel and warm, while Harry's reminded her of emeralds. He was also quite tall and lean, making him a little more impressive than her best friend. The happiness gleaming in his eyes was something that caught her attention the most. His smile reminded her so much of Harry's that she wanted to cry. Before she actually started to do so, her gaze flickered to the taller boy walking right next to him.

Sirius Black was probably every girl's dream. Clad in black jeans and a leather jacket he definitely stood out, but not in a bad way. Hermione really appreciated every man who didn't wear flared jeans, but young Sirius was so captivating, that she actually thought he would be able to pull off even the most ridiculous outfit on the entire planet. He was simply beautiful. His aristocratic features shined through the curtain of raven hair covering some of his face. And his smile... Sweet Merlin, that dimples would be able to make everyone's knees go weak. Hermione decided that if she looked at him any longer, her thoughts might take her to a very dangerous place, considering the fact that this man was her best friend's god father.

Her eyes switched to the last of the three boys, the tallest and lankiest one. Future professor Lupin looked much younger than he did back in her time. His face didn't carry as much worry lines and his hair was blonde without some grey streaks in it. He also looked much happier and much less tormented. She knew that Hogwarts was always the place he felt the most at home, especially with his friends still there, helping him on every single full moon. He was the only one that she would have recognized within a heartbeat, though. Remus Lupin that walked towards her was almost exactly as she remembered him.

Hermione looked down at her feet, deciding that it would be best if she stopped staring at them. They were headed her way and she was pretty sure that they would recognize her in a blink of an eye. Sirius did mention her hair after all, and those were... very distinctive to say the least. She had to play it safe and appear very lost and unsure, so that they wouldn't think that she was waiting explicitly for them. 'Constant vigilance'¸ she thought and smiled bitterly realizing that she was now as paranoid as Alastor Moody.

"Hey! Hey, you there!", she heard James' voice and looked up, wondering who he was yelling at.

She looked around with confusion and decided that he must have been speaking to her. Her assumption was proved right when the three of them stopped in front of her and grinned like a bunch of Cheshire cats.

"I'm so glad to see you're alright!" James exclaimed and Hermione frowned, pretending that she had no clue what he was talking about.

"Excuse me?, she asked suspiciously. "Have we ever met?"

"Well, yes, although you were... Kind of sleeping at that time", he explained and ruffled his already dishevelled hair.

Hermione wanted to laugh seeing that Harry's father could be almost as awkward as his son, but she remained calm and summoned a purely disturbed look to her face.

"Fuck, James, you can be such a creep sometimes. No wonder Evans keeps turning you down", Sirius said and rolled his eyes. "What that moron tried to say was that we have seen you at the Hospital Wing before the summer holidays"

Hermione was once again surprised at the sound of his voice but now that she had seen his face, she knew it matched perfectly. Velvety and deep, but also very cheerful and full of life. It actually made her smile a little, her whole body relaxing.

"Oh... Yes, that sounds way less creepy", she answered and looked at James who was smiling at her apologetically. "Don't worry though, I've heard weirder things in my life"

Hermione didn't even lie. After all she's been through, James' awkwardness was actually something that seemed familiar and soothing.

"Pardon our manners. I'm Remus Lupin and these two are James Potter and Sirius Black", the third boy spoke up and gestured towards his friends. "And to be clear, they are both morons"

Hermione couldn't help the giggle that escaped her mouth and extended her hand towards Remus.

"It's very nice to meet you. I'm Hermione Granger"

"Hermione. Nice name", Sirius said and gave her a lopsided grin, that somehow looked very flirty.

She was never the one to blush while having conversations with boys, even if they tried to pick her up. Most of them seemed to be idiots and she actually loathed their company. It made her somewhat confident because usually she had been the one intimidating them and not the other way around, which was probably why no one ever tried to win her over. It's not like she wasn't pretty. Hermione knew very well that there were girls that could be described as simply striking, Ginny Weasley being one of them. Miss Granger certainly lacked that wow factor, but her reflection in the mirror was more than acceptable.

This time however, she was very close to blushing and becoming just as awkward as James. Maybe it was the fact that she didn't feel exactly at ease with being complimented by Harry's godfather, or maybe it was just because he looked like a Greek god brought to life by some of the finest artists, no matter how cheesy it sounded.

"Thank you, I suppose", she said, ignoring her thoughts with a silent reminder to thank Moody for his training in concealing emotions, even if she still sucked at it.

"You're welcome, I suppose", Sirius chuckled lightly and winked at her, making her even more uncomfortable.

"Anyway, what are you doing here? You're joining us at Hogwarts?", James asked, looking rather curious and Hermione smiled at him.

"Well, it's not like I enjoy standing like an idiot in the middle of random platforms, watching everyone board the train, you know"

James once again flustered slightly, causing Remus and Sirius to laugh at him.

"I like this one already", young Messer Black purred at her, and swung his arm around her. "C'mon, Hermione, I'll show you around. And you can take her trunk", he ordered James and Remus who didn't look all that happy.

Before they could protest, Sirius steered her away from his friends, leading her to the train. Hermione went along with his actions mostly because she was too surprised to do anything about them. This man... Was it really him? How could someone change this much? 'Oh, yeah... Azkaban would do that to you', she thought gravely and sighed.

"So, why are you here? Apart from the obvious, I mean. You must have went to a different school before, right?", he asked completely unaware of her tension.

Or at least, so it seemed. His voiced was laced with curiosity, but she could have sworn she heard something else too. Something, that sounded a lot like worry.

"I did. But some things happened and... Well, let's say that it was my only choice", she answered as cryptic as she possibly could.

"Ah, you're the mysterious kind. I guess I like that too", he said and turned his face to grin at her.

"I just... I don't really want to talk about that"

His smile faded, as he looked at her carefully. Somehow, it made her even more self-conscious, so she dropped her gaze to hide her insecurity.

"I get it. Sorry for asking", he finally apologized and let go of her, gesturing her to board the train.

She complied and entered the Express, trying to look as curious as she did in her first year. Mere seconds later, Sirius' hand was at the small of her back, pushing her to go forward as the line started to form behind them.

"Our compartment is at the end of the train", he informed her and she nodded her head, speeding up.

There were some students in the corridor and all of them looked at her with interest visible in their eyes. Hermione couldn't really blame them, although she couldn't say it made her comfortable to the least. Being the new girl sucked majorly, especially if she generally hated to be the centre of attention. It was okay when everyone pointed at her saying things like: "Oh, look. That's Hermione Granger, she's the brightest witch of our age", but when it came to anything else, all of the looks made her anxious. She remembered her fourth year and the Yule Ball, where everyone was shocked by her appearance and, more importantly, her date. She was a bookworm after all and he was a world-known Quidditch star. No one could have believed that he actually liked her, although Hermione knew that it truly was the case.

Now, she felt even weirder. Back then, her dress made her feel really pretty and all the looks were filled with appreciation rather than excitement and curiosity bordering on nosiness. It was plain rude, but she could understand why a new face was quite a sight here, especially that she was no eleven year old.

She rushed forward, making Sirius giggle quietly. He matched her tempo with ease and soon they were both taking their places in the compartment at the end of the train.

"Don't like attention very much, huh?", the boy asked her, clearly amused and she sighed in response.

"Not exactly. I just don't like the attention that comes with being a new attraction. I am okay with people noticing me, but I'd prefer if it had something to do with who I am and all that stuff" she said and rolled her eyes, making Sirius chuckle.

"That one you've got to earn", he informed her and plopped down on the seat, sighing contently. "Although it's not so difficult at Hogwarts. All it takes is not being boring and dull and I guarantee that being friends with us makes it impossible to be any of those things"

"Being friends with you?", Hermione asked with her eyebrows raised. "Haven't we just met?"

"Yeah and I told you I already like you", he grinned at her and lied down on the seat, yawning and stretching his arms over his head.

Hermione turned her gaze away and glanced through the window, deciding to leave his comment without an answer. It was weird not seeing Mrs and Mr Weasley waving at her from the platform, but she knew that even if she hadn't been sent back through time, the chances of seeing them ever again were slim. They were probably dead anyway.

A pained sigh escaped her lips, causing Sirius to prop himself on his elbows and look at her closely.

"You okay?", he asked quietly and she gave him a small smile.

"Not really, no. Nothing about this is easy for me", she said and shrugged. "Someone could say that I was given a chance to start over. Except I didn't want to start over. I wanted the life I had already had to work itself out. I didn't want to end up alone and broken. So, no. I'm not okay. How could I be?"

Her explanation was true in some ways, but also said nothing concrete about her past. Judging by the expression on Sirius' face, he was fully aware of that fact and it made him even more curious. Hermione wondered if he was going to respect her privacy or rather decide to satisfy his curiosity. Finally, he looked away and smiled.

"Guess I'll have to work really hard to befriend you, so I can question you more, huh?"

Hermione looked at him with amusement and her eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, good luck with that. I can be really stubborn, you know", she informed him and he chuckled.

"So can I, sweetheart"

Before she could respond, the rest of the Marauders joined them at the compartment, whining about the ever present crowd. Hermione's gaze rested upon the shortest of the three boys that joined them. Seeing Peter Pettigrew made her heart clench, as a wave of memories flooded her brain. The man that she remembered looked nothing like the boy standing before her. Young Peter was plump and cheerful, just like the rest of the boys have been and Hermione had a really hard time believing that this was indeed the same man that betrayed Lily and James, then killed so many people and sent one of his best friends to Azkaban. He looked completely ordinary and that was very unsettling.

"Hermione, I believe you hadn't met our friend Peter here"

She shook her head, not trusting her voice and stood up, extending her hand towards the boy that looked at her with a blush tainting his cheeks.

"Hermione Granger, it's a pleasure to meet you", she smiled, trying to fight the nausea that hit her and watched as young Peter raised his own hand to greet her.

"Peter Pettigrew"

Even his voice didn't sound like the man she knew. For fucks sake, he was just a boy. She couldn't act like a bitch towards him, not if there was still any chance of saving him and leading him back towards the light, no matter how cliché it sounded.

Just as she let go of his hand, he immediately sat down near the door and looked at her with curiosity in his blue, watery eyes. When she smiled at him once again, he blushed even more and pried his gaze away from her.

"So, Hermione. Do you know what House you're going to be in?", Remus asked as he settled into the seat, making himself comfortable.

"Well, not really. Professor Dumbledore wants me to get sorted as everyone else, during the feast. But I've read about the houses in Hogwarts: The history and I think..."

"What?! You've read that book?", James asked looking at her like she had just grown a second head.

"Fuck me. I've been here for five years and I haven't even touched that thing", Sirius laughed loudly and James soon joined him.

"I thought it was brilliant", Hermione answered and furrowed her brows. "For people like me, it's probably the only source of reliable information about the castle"

"People like you?"

Remus' voice was laced with curiosity and Hermione couldn't help but be surprised. She looked at Sirius and James wondering if they had actually seen the scar on her forearm when she had been lying in her hospital bed. The girl could have sworn that they had looked right at it. But why not tell their best friend about it then?

"I'm a Muggleborn", she stated firmly, watching as their expressions changed.

Lupin looked at her with a small smile, while James and Sirius tried to hide their uneasiness. She supposed they couldn't be blamed. Her scars weren't pretty and they were the ultimate proof of the upcoming war that made everyone scared and unsure.

"Oh! Wait till you meet Lily, she's going to be so happy that she's going to have someone to talk to! I'm half-blood and I grew up in a Muggle household, but it still had been very different from being a Muggleborn. She's going to enjoy having someone that will understand her completely", Remus explained and looked at her with a huge grin.

"I guess I'm going to enjoy that too", she said but her smiled was forced.

Lily Evans may have grown up in a Muggle household, but Hermione doubted that the girl would ever be able to understand her. Actually, she was pretty sure that no one could.

"Oi, if you're going to be friends with Evans, maybe you could talk to her about me?", James' voice held so much hope that Hermione couldn't help but smile.

"You fancy her?"

"Fancy... He's completely lost it, love", Sirius laughed and shook his head with compassion. "The minute he's laid his eyes on that redheaded menace, he fell in love..."

His sarcastic tone made Hermione giggle, while she looked at James who seemed truly offended by his best friend's words.

"Yes I did. And I am really proud of it, as at least I'm not being called a man whore"

That had other boys laughing out loud, especially when Sirius rolled his eyes and punched James in the arm.

"I'm not a whore, I have my standards"

"Oh, yes. The girl has to have two legs, two arms, two boobs, two buttocks, one vagina and no penis. The head is irrelevant in that equation, cause Sirius's not into brains", Remus explained to Hermione, causing her to laugh freely, even if she was a little embarrassed.

"Shut up, Moony!", growled Sirius and Hermione looked at Remus with a pretended surprise.

"Moony? Where did that come from?"

Hermione was very curious to see if they would be able to come up with an excuse for his nickname, without actually betraying his secret. The fact that she knew all about it didn't mean that she was going to just outright tell them the true, as there was absolutely no way she could justify her knowledge. Right now, she just have to opt for watching them trying to direct her attention elsewhere.

"Remus here likes to take his dates on long walks in the moonlight. His dates are usually books though, but who cares right?", James said, patting Remus on the back to the boy's great displeasure.

"There's nothing wrong in reading books", Hermione shrugged and sent a sympathetic smile towards the werewolf.

"Then maybe you should go out with him, Hermione!", James proposed with a huge grin and wiggled his eyebrows.

"Could you please shut up?!"

Hermione had rarely seen Remus angry, but this time he certainly looked that way. His face was red and brows furrowed. She thought he looked rather cute, considering the fact that his exasperation was mixed with clear embarrassment which reminded her of his older version so much.

"You really like each other, don't you?", she laughed and the boys looked back at her with grins.

"We're The Marauders, love! Of course we like each other", Sirius said and the others nodded in agreement.

"We're basically brothers"

They certainly acted like it, she had to admit. Even though they were completely different people, they bore such a high resemblance to the Weasley brothers that her eyes started to water and her smile faltered. In an instant, the atmosphere changed and the boys looked at her with worry.

"Everything all right?", Peter asked, surprising her completely.

"Yeah. I just remembered something"

Everyone fell quiet and it definitely wasn't a comfortable silence. Hermione felt really bad for spoiling the mood, but she knew that if they really were going to be friends, they would have to get used to it. This summer she was way too busy and exhausted to be able to cry her eyes out, but now, she had all the time in the world to think and recall the past. There was no way that she was going to just put everything behind her and move on, especially if she was to spend her time with the Marauders, who reminded her about everything she's lost.

The boys must have noticed that she wasn't in the mood for talking anymore, because they left her alone and started to exchange summer stories. Hermione listened to them for a while, trying to soak in as much information as she possibly could, but after the subject changed to Quidditch, she decided that she'd heard enough. Her beaded bag turned out to be useful once again, as it provided her with an interesting book to read. Hermione was really glad that she decided to take her textbooks from the sixth grades with her when she had been packing for her journey with Harry and Ron. It turned out that even in 1976, the list of the textbooks looked pretty much the same and all it took was to charm them not to show their real publication dates.

It made her feel much better to know, that the money that she'd earned working in Honeyduke's in Hogsmeade could be spent on a new wand and robes rather than massive amounts of books. She didn't want to catch more attention than she already did and walking around in clothes from 1998 would certainly do just that. If it wasn't for her delicate situation and the need to keep her past a secret, she would be completely fine with being picked at for wearing weird clothes, as long as it would mean that she wouldn't have to squeeze into this super tight flared jeans that every girl seemed to be wearing.

"Why are you reading a textbook?", Sirius asked her after some time, when they had run out of subjects and James went to sleep.

Judging by the clear amusement in his eyes, he's found her reading material very funny.

"Because I want to?", she answered with a slightly questioning tone, pretending that reading a textbook before the school year had even began, was completely normal.

"Yeah, but why?"

"I like to know things. A lot of things, actually"

Hermione blushed a little and furrowed her brows. Since when was she ashamed of being a bookworm? Her extensive knowledge had saved her ass multiple times and it wasn't as though grades were her only motivator. Sure, she enjoyed being praised by all the professors (except from Snape, of course) but it wasn't a priority, not anymore at least. Hermione knew more than well that there was a life outside Hogwarts, even if for her it turned out to be absolutely shitty.

She shouldn't feel like a child caught red-handed, since there was nothing wrong in studying and knowing things. The amusement visible in the Marauders eyes had her feeling very self-conscious though and she snapped the book shut.

"I also like to know things", Sirius laughed and sent her a very suggestive glance.

'Merlin, does he ever stop flirting?', she thought, looking at him with wonder. 'Probably not. He's Sirius Black, after all'

"Please... No one wants to hear about this things", Remus groaned and looked at Sirius with exasperation.

"Oh, I don't know. Hermione could be interested"

The girl rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Sorry, Sirius, but I think that it's not my area of expertise"

"It's never too late to learn, yeah?"

"It's also never too late to shut your mouth and let others sleep, yeah?", James murmured from underneath his pillow and made everyone chuckle.

"You should have packed during the day, like a normal person. Not my fault that you stayed up half the night, cause you weren't able to find matching socks", Sirius stated with a smirk and Hermione couldn't help but share his expression.

"Matching socks are very important", James defended himself, his head showing up from underneath the pillow as he looked at all of them with an offended stare.

One minute later, he was fast asleep again, his quiet snores making everyone laugh. The rest of the journey went on as smoothly as possible and before she even realized it, Sirius informed her that she needed to change into her school robes. He also offered his help in that matter, although she was pretty sure that he did that only to see her blush like crazy.

When she exited their compartment and turned right in order to find a bathroom, she collided with someone and landed on the floor.

"Watch where you're going", a familiar voice snapped at her and she looked up with annoyance only to find much younger Severus Snape staring at her angrily.

"You were the one storming through the corridor", she answered and pushed herself up, massaging her aching buttock. "Are you alright?"

The surprise was clear in his dark eyes, as he looked at her suspiciously. She raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms on her chest, waiting for his response.

"Yes. You?"

"No irreversible damage", she stated with a smile and shrugged. "What's your name?"

"You're new here?", Snape asked completely ignoring her question and she rolled her eyes in response.

"Well, I must be, since you have never seen me before, right? Hermione Granger, it's nice to meet you, although also a bit painful", she joked, extending her hand towards him.

Snape eyed her hand with a distrustful gaze, as if she was trying to kill him with that polite gesture. Finally, he decided that she was harmless and squeezed her hand lightly.

"Severus Snape"

She must have admit, meeting a young Potions' Professor was a very weird experience, although it was much more pleasurable than meeting Pettigrew. If anyone has told her that she will be talking to him with such ease, she would probably never be able to stop laughing and here she was - chatting with a man that turned out to be a hero, after he almost destroyed everything...

"Well, Severus, I hate to say it, but I have to go change into my robes. I guess I'll see you around then, yeah?"

The boy nodded in response and walked past her without as much a goodbye, the only things missing were his billowing robes. She fought the urge to roll her eyes at this familiar behavior and resumed her search for the bathroom. Minutes later, she was dressed in her robes and headed back to the Marauders' compartment. She tried to ignore all of the glances she earned but it turned out to be really hard, since they've become even more intrusive than before. It didn't take a genius to figure out that she must've been new even before, but the lack of the House emblem on the front of her robe made it even clearer.

When she stepped into the compartment, her whole body was tensed and highly uncomfortable and the boys noticed that almost immediately.

"Hermione, what took you so long? Is everything alright?", James asked with worry shining in his brown eyes and she forced herself to smile at him.

"Yes, sorry. I bumped into someone and we've talked for a while", she explained, hoping that they won't ask questions.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that Snape and the Marauders hated each other. Back in her times, even after years of isolation, they couldn't stand being in the same room, which was often the cause of fights between them. Sirius always looked at him like he wanted to murder the Potions' Professor and Snape snarled every time Black opened his mouth. She figured that their mutual hatred must have gone a long way back, which made mentioning him now a very bad idea.

Though her hopes were not high to begin with, curiosity in Sirius' eyes has diminished them to none at all. When the boy opened his mouth, she instantly knew that she would have to do a lot of explaining, as she had no intentions of lying.

"Oh, who was it?", Sirius asked and Hermione shrugged.

"He said his name was Severus Snape. Do you know him?"

A deadly quiet set in the compartment and Hermione blinked a couple of times, pretending not to understand this weird behavior.

"Guys?"

"We know him, unfortunately. You should stay away from him, love. He's dangerous and completely bonkers", stated Sirius and Hermione furrowed her brows.

"Is he? He certainly didn't look like it. Maybe he wasn't the most pleasant, I'll give you that, but I don't think he'd hurt me"

"Last year he called Lily a Mudblood. And she had been friends with him for a long time. That is, until he found himself new friends, and trust me, you don't want to mess with them", James said clearly angry.

"What are they, serial killers?", she snorted and everyone looked at her with grim expressions.

"Yes, actually. Cause that's what you call soon-to-be Death Eaters"

James' voice was very gloomy and Hermione started to wonder if the Marauders really were so innocent and careless as she originally thought.

"Are you telling me that Severus is one of them?", she asked trying to sound very skeptical, as her eyes traveled from one boy to the other.

"I wouldn't be surprised. He dabbles in Dark Arts and his dueling skills are way above average. Someone must have taught him that, yeah?"

Hermione bit her lower lip, trying to figure out a relatively safe answer, that wouldn't raise any suspicions but would also prevent the boys from snapping at her if she tried to defend Snape. Finally, she sighed and said:

"He didn't look all that dangerous. Maybe he just made a mistake, you know? When he called Lily a Mudblood, I mean"

"No way! All she wanted to do was to defend him and he made her feel like shit", James growled looking enraged and Hermione supposed she couldn't blame him.

She knew that Harry's mother was fiery and full of temper, but still, according to Remus, Harry inherited not only her eyes, but also her kindness. For someone so delicate on the inside, someone who tried to do everything to protect other people, having been called a Mudblood by a friend must have been a blow straight into the heart. It was rather obvious that James would not be able to walk past it as if nothing ever happened.

But why was she defending Snape or rather from who? When she asked that question, the compartment became quiet once again. Hermione raised her eyebrows, expecting someone to answer, but they clearly didn't want to talk about it. She could see the guilt on Remus' face and that was enough for her to figure it out on her own.

She shook her head and turned towards the window, a look full of disapproval painted on her face. Sure, their hatred wasn't a secret. But somehow she still cherished the thought that they were good people, that fought against Lord Voldemort to save the wizarding world from an awful fate. And tormenting Snape didn't really fit into this perfect image of them that her mind has created even before she went back in time. It was much easier to just assume that it was Snape's fault, that their relations looked the way they did, but it was also very unfair, as it turned out.

"Hermione, you have to understand, that Gryffindors and Slytherins don't exactly tolerate each other", James tried to explain after he has noticed her expression.

"What if I'm sorted into Slytherin?", she asked quietly. "I know that it probably won't happen, considering my blood status, but still, what if? Will you hate me then? Call me names, perhaps?"

"Of course not! We're not idiots! There are no chances at all that you're going to be a Slytherin and it's not because of your blood status. You seem like a very kind person, someone who apparently is much like Lily. And the Slytherins are vile, Hermione. You'll know that soon enough", Sirius stated firmly and she looked at him carefully.

He seemed really moved by her question and it proved to her that she was indeed right thinking that they were good people, even in these times. The dark-haired boy looked very offended at her assumption and it made her feel ashamed to the point where she felt blush creeping up her cheeks.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that you're so shallow to just push someone away only because of their House. I just... I'm not really a fan of bullying", she admitted grudgingly causing Sirius to snort.

"We're not bullying Snivellus. He's a creep! Trust me, in a few years we will probably hear a lot of nasty things about him"

"You can't know that! I mean, the fact that you're calling him names and talking about him like he's a piece of trash probably doesn't help him stay on the right path, don't you think? I get all that Gryffindor versus Slytherin thing, but there must be something else that got you lot to hate him so much. I refuse to believe that he was a creep and a Death Eater in making since the beginning of school", she said against her better judgment.

Getting into fight with the Marauders even before the year has officially started was a really bad idea. After all, her main objective was to save them not piss them off. Sure, she didn't need their friendship to change the course of history, but she wanted it.

"He was always a creep. He followed Lily everywhere or kept staring at her all the time, completely bonkers", James shook his head and Hermione furrowed her brows.

"Didn't you say that they had been friends?"

"Yeah, but it always seemed like he wanted a lot more than just friendship. He couldn't understand that him and Lily could never work out", he rolled his eyes and Sirius chuckled loudly.

"You've seen him, Hermione. He's not even near her league"

"Oh, cause that's not shallow at all", she hissed before she could have stopped herself. "Had he ever hurt her before? Had Lily minded his attention?"

Nothing but silence answered her questions and she looked at the Marauders with anger boiling in her eyes. So far it seemed that they started to hate her future Potions' Professor based solemnly on the crush he had. Pure accident decided that Potter started to fancy the same girl, making Severus the creep. Not that bugging the poor girl for five years to go on a date with him wasn't creepy at all.

"You guys... You're unbelievable", she murmured and started to pack her things as the train started to slow down.

Her hands were shaking from all the pent-up emotions rushing through her body and she was pretty sure that they could see it. She couldn't help it, though... The disappointment she was feeling was so strong that she was actually very proud of not bursting into tears. They were Harry's family, Harry's, who would never shame somebody just because they fancied the same girl. Hell, he even managed to be on friendly terms with Cedric Diggory while he was still infatuated with Cho.

'James is not his son', she thought to herself and tried to ignore the stabbing pain in her heart, when she realised how awfully depressing it was. And she would have to live with that knowledge till the end of her miserable, fucked up life.

Hogwarts was as beautiful as it had been the first time she'd laid her eyes on it. She could never forget the sight of this gigantic castle emerging on the horizon filled with billions of stars. It was simply breathtaking and Hermione found herself wishing she could just go back to that precise moment, to relieve it once again.

What she wouldn't give to be able to see the castle without the memories of Battle flooding her brain like a very contagious disease. If she hadn't spent her entire summer inside these rock walls, going back would be almost too hard to endure.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?", a voice asked her and she turned around to find herself face to face with Remus, who looked at her apologetically.

She couldn't blame him, considering the fact that both James and Sirius left the compartment murmuring incoherent goodbyes. If it didn't hurt so much, she would definitely find it ironic, since Sirius was very offended by being called 'shallow' and this word seemed to fit perfectly into this situation.

It wasn't like Hermione couldn't understand their actions though. Being the new girl made her highly uncomfortable but also not exactly entitled to have her own opinions on matters such as James' and Sirius' behaviour, as she didn't know them all that well. Actually, there was no doubt in her mind that Alastor Moody would probably yell at her for an hour straight if he found out about her fight with the Marauders. It was completely unnecessary and put her in a difficult position. She should have kept her thoughts to herself, instead of blabbing her mouth like that.

"Yes, it is. I kind of expected it to be a lot like Beauxbatons, but my former school was nowhere near this incredible", she admitted, pushing her thoughts aside and smiling his way.

Remus took a step forward and put his hand on her shoulder, looking down at her.

"Hermione, I'm really sorry about James and Sirius. They don't really take criticism well, especially if it makes them feel like a pair of idiots that they actually are"

Hermione giggled and waved her hand, dismissing his apologies.

"Well, I can't say that my actions were smart either. I have troubles with keeping my mouth shut and, this time, I should have done it. Even if I was right"

"You were... I used to dislike Severus very much, but now... I kind of feel a little responsible for what he had become. Maybe if we weren't so cruel to him...", he stopped talking for a moment, letting his guilt speak for him. "Anyway, Sirius and James will come around, I'm sure of it. You just embarrassed them and being the kids they are, they decided to run away. They're not exactly the most mature people"

"Yeah, I've noticed", she admitted and smiled, looking up to gaze at the stars. "But they are also good people and it makes me really angry with myself, because they didn't deserve such harshness"

"They probably didn't", murmured Remus and sent her an unsure look.

Hermione smiled in response, making the boy relax visibly as he reciprocated her gesture.

"Well, let's go. The carriages are waiting and you have to get to the castle before the ceremony"

Hermione followed Remus feeling grateful that at least one of the Marauders was acting decent. She has always liked him, as he was one of the sweetest and most caring people she had ever met. He was also really smart and talented, making him a perfect candidate for a teacher. If only Snape has kept his mouth shut, maybe he wouldn't have to quit his job and their defensive skill would be much bigger.

She tried not to show how much pain she felt when they approached the carriages and for the first time in her life, Hermione was able to see the Thestrals. Judging by Remus' worried look, her sadness managed to seep through the peaceful mask she has created. Concealing her emotions was always the hardest part of her training. Moody tried to rattle her every time and she was supposed to control her temper. She found it quite easy when she was just angry, even if her earlier display proved otherwise. But when it came to the feelings she was hiding deep inside her heart... That was when things got very tricky.

"What's wrong?", Remus asked carefully, watching her closely.

"Nothing", she answered, her voice completely hollow. "Let's just go"

Young Messer Lupin was smart enough to keep his mouth shut, something that none of his other friends would have done and she was immensely grateful for that. Silence was all she needed right now, as her memories once again fought to capture her attention. Instead of just letting herself fall apart, she watched as the castle grew bigger and bigger, replacing her sorrow with anxiousness.

She really didn't like the idea of being sorted in front of every student. The Sorting Hat would probably be baffled by her memories and Hermione really feared its reaction. What if she got sorted into Slytherin, despite her heritage? It wasn't common, but it could happen, especially that Salazar Slytherin was known for so much more than just his ideology. And what if Gryffindor would become her House once again? Could she really endure living in the same tower that she shared with her two best friends for such a long time?

Her mind was overwhelmed with all the questions that kept popping into her head and she squeezed her eyelids shut, trying to calm herself. Breathe in, breathe out... Breathe in, breathe out...

Remus must have seen her weird behaviour as he chuckled lightly and patted her shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"Don't worry, Hermione. I'm sure that you're going to be just fine"

"You don't know that", she groaned in response causing Remus to roll his eyes.

"A bunch of eleven year olds can do this and you're chickening out?"

"Yes"

A cheerful laughter escaped his mouth, making her whole body relax. Merlin, how rare it was for him to laugh. After she had realised that all this time ago, she decided to saviour every moment when his defences disappeared and he allowed himself to let go of all this pent-up fear and anxiousness that were his every day companions. And right know he was laughing so effortlessly, so joyfully. How could she be nervous after seeing that?

"Seriously, Hermione. You're going to be just fine", he repeated and this time, she believed him.

They walked through the entrance together and when she has asked him to show her the way, he complied with a warm smile. She tried to look amazed and stressed at the same time, even though the familiar walls managed to calm her even further. Just one month ago they made her feel trapped and depressed, as all she could see were dead bodies lying everywhere, looking at her with their dead eyes. It was Dumbledore who made her see past all of the terrors that took place here. He has been walking with her through every single corridor, talking absolute nonsenses and somehow it helped her remember that this walls meant everything to her. It was her home and she refused to let Voldemort ruin it, as he had done with the rest of her life.

Remus left her with Professor McGonagall who looked much younger than she remembered. She was wearing ruby red robes and Hermione couldn't help but smile at this obvious sign of allegiance. The McGonagall she'd known was much more reserved, but Hermione thought she actually liked the bolder version of her favourite Professor.

"Miss Granger, welcome to Hogwarts", the woman greeted her with a tight smile and Hermione nodded.

"Thank you, Professor"

"I'm afraid that we have to wait here for a while. The boats should arrive any minute now"

Hermione nodded once again and took a deep breath. This was it. In an hour, she will be resorted into her House and her new life will officially begin. As much as it was painful to leave the past behind, she felt as ready as she could to do so. The possibility of her life turning out to be even worse was so slim that she actually started to look forward to the future, even if it made her feel scared and insecure.

The first years arrived shortly after and professor McGonagall started her usual speech, which sounded almost exactly as Hermione had remembered. Apparently, some things wouldn't change, not ever. When the older woman left them for a moment, Hermione felt that everyone started to stare at her with curiosity mixed with fear.

"You're not eleven years old, are you?", a little boy asked her with suspicion and she chuckled in response.

"No, I'm sixteen"

"Then what are you doing here? Did you fail the sorting test so many times?", another voice asked her with panic and Hermione shook her head, trying not to scare this little girl even more.

"No. I am a transfer student, which means that I am as new here as you are", she explained with a warm smile and the girl relaxed instantly.

"Did they kick you out?", the same boy asked her, making Hermione raise her eyebrows in amusement.

"No, I just decided to switch to a different school"

The boy nodded and then he leaned into his friend and whispered:

"I bet they kicked her out"

Hermione giggled once again, but stopped very quickly as McGonagall came back and gestured them to move forward. The Great Hall was as breathtaking as ever, but honestly, she was way too nervous to pay attention. All she could see was the Sorting Hat lying safely on a chair at the top of the few stairs leading to professors' table. Her nervousness got even worse when the whispering started...

"Look, I told you that she's new here"

"What is she doing here?"

"I heard that she's from France"

The students wouldn't shut up and Hermione did everything in her power not to send all of them a couple of murderous stares. She knew that she could pull that off very well, as Harry and Ron often told her she was scary as hell if she wanted to. 'Dangerous thoughts, Herms', she told herself off and tried to fade all of the comments out. Their opinion didn't matter, she was here for a reason and putting an old hat on top of her head was the easiest part of the task lying ahead of her.

The time was passing quicker than she thought it would, as she soon found herself standing alone in the middle of the Great Hall. She looked up to see the Headmaster stand up and raise his hands to quiet everyone down.

"First of all, I'd like to welcome all of you to Hogwarts. As you can see, this year is definitely going to be special, as we have to sort a student that is quite older than eleven years old", he stated and smiled at her from above his half-glasses. "Miss Hermione Granger is a transfer student from France, where she attended Beauxbatons Academy of Magic for five years. She will be joining the sixth years and I can assure you, she's more than prepared to do so. But right now, we have to sort her into her new House. Minerva, if you please"

Professor Dumbledore sat down and allowed Professor McGonagall to resume the Sorting Ceremony. The woman smiled at Hermione once again and urged her to go forward. Mere seconds later, Miss Granger was seated on the chair with the Sorting Hat lying on top of her head.

Hermione expected that the Hat would talk and talk, as it usually did. Instead, her mind was quiet. She moved nervously and looked at professor McGonagall, who didn't seem all that concerned. 'Of course not, no one besides you should be hearing anything', she thought to herself and then she heard the Hat chuckle. Out loud.

Whispers erupted in the Great Hall as no one had ever seen something quite similar and Hermione couldn't help the blush that showed up on her face instantly.

'I must say that I'm baffled, Miss Granger. You clearly have memories of me and of this place, but I've never met you before and I'm never wrong. I can see that you were in Gryffindor. Yes, yes, you fit there very well. Your bravery and loyalty are truly admirable, just as the sacrifices you're willing to make to ensure your friends' safety. But you're also incredibly smart and hungry for knowledge. Yes, it's very difficult to sort you'

Hermione started to feel very anxious. She was sitting on this damn chair for so long that she actually could feel how terribly uncomfortable it was and it did nothing to calm her racing heart.

'I felt good in Gryffindor', she suggested hopefully and the Hat chuckled once again.

'But what about Slytherin, my dear?'

'Sure thing. I'd love to be there. If I had any suicidal thoughts'

'I see. Yes, the Gryffindor suited you well, but I feel like this is not the path you should be taking, girl'

'What?!'

"RAVENCLAW!", the Hat yelled and cheers erupted in Great Hall, leaving Hermione completely stunned.

She was a Ravenclaw. How did that happen?