Disclaimer: Anything you recognize from the Harry Potter books and/or movies is not mine.
A/N: Wow. Twenty-Four chapters already and this story is FINISHED! Can you believe it! I can't believe I've written something this long. I'm equally shocked that I finished it! - it's actually a great feat for me, as I'm usually quite lazy and I have very little potential in finishing anything. ANYTHING. I'd like to apologize for the long wait, and the shortness of this last chapter, but I thought it was a good length in the end. I wont make excuses, as in truth, I was lazy and was too stubborn for my own good to try and get passed the writers block that was holding be back a bit, thus the delay in the chapter. Please forgive me. Plus! There will be an EPILOGUE to this story up soon. Anywho. I've joined writing forces with a friend of mine in real life. Her penname here is Rubber Ducky Loser, and we've already started a story on her account. She writes the plot, rough draft, and storyline, while I write the actual story and fix it up a bit. If you want to read it, go to her profile, or type in Preternatural for the story title and you should find it. Or, just go to my profile and I have the link in there at the end. If you're interested in alternate universe fics, you'd like this, I guarantee. Here's a summary for it:
Harry Potter is sent into a world where he, literally, takes the roll of Neville Longbottom. He has his parents, although they reside in St. Mungo's, lives with Sirius, and is supposedly a klutz. How will Harry cope with this change of events? And what is this about something called Gaia's mirror? And the Tartarus'? How does Draco Malfoy fit into all this? … Is that the Bermuda Triangle? AU, Seventh Year, Adventure/Angst setting. Possible slash, but not likely, and if so, it will be pretty much nonexistent.
Anyways, yeah. Enough said at the moment. Happy Reading! - Min
Thanks Reanne1102, Kaydeek, CrymsonTear, The Insane Imortal Dragon, Holly, ourlittlesecret7, WhiteTwitch, KeLpIeenoch, Nercia Genisis, ilovelobsters, LunaLovegoss, Soelle, LoveForRupertGrint, JerseyPike, lianghwei, Dark-Compassion, witch, Following Padfoot's Pawprints, Rubber Ducky Loser, Serpent91, Evil Cat Hater, longtimefan-firsttimewriter, and Lauren.M.Black for all the wonderful reviews!
Seasons Change
By: xScenex
a.k.a. Min
Chapter Twenty-Four
Just as Hermione pulled away from Remus, efficiently ending the hug, the hospital wing doors opened, revealing a very solemn Dumbledore, Mr. and Mrs. Potter, and Remus' mother, whom promptly ran to Remus and hugged him tightly, mumbling something about the Headmaster not informing her that her son had awoken.
"Ah, Miss Granger, Mr. Lupin. I see you both are awake, " Dumbledore greeted lightly.
"Hello, Headmaster," Hermione said equally lightly. She wasn't looking forward to telling Dumbledore the details of what had happened the day before.
"Good morning, sir," Remus managed to say through his mother's arms.
"How are the two of you feeling?"
Hermione shrugged her shoulders, averting her eyes away from Dumbledore. She felt better physically, but mentally was a different story. She still felt a great pain in her heart from the loss of Severus, and the fact that her shoulders were now burdened with the scar made her feel weary.
She hadn't allowed her mind to rest on the idea of being 'The-Girl-Who-Lived' that much since the whole incident happened, and she wasn't really looking forward to telling Dumbledore the story. As much as she cared for the old man, he would make a big deal about the whole thing. Plus - telling him that Voldemort was gone would cause an uproar.
The Headmaster sent her an unreadable look which she promptly ignored and instead, focused on Remus being fussed over by his mother.
"Oh, Remus, are you hurting anywhere? Do you feel fine? Are you hungry-"
"Mum," Remus smiled at her, "I'm fine. I got plenty of sleep last night, and I feel fine. No, I'm not hungry, and no, I'm not hurting anywhere."
The woman looked unsatisfied by the answer but dropped the fussing and sat down next to him on the bed, holding his hand tightly. To Hermione, she looked as if she were trying to keep herself from saying something else; but what, the girl didn't know.
There was a long stretch of silence, in which Dumbledore took out a bag of Sherbert Lemons and popped one into his mouth. He held the bag out to the occupants of the room, and only Hermione accepted one of the candies.
After another minute of pure quiet, Hermione finally sighed. "I suppose you want answers, Professor?"
The old man made a show of putting the candies back into his pocket before he took a seat in one of the chairs by the bed. "Indeed, that is what I want."
Wincing as memories suddenly invaded her mind, she nodded. "Ask away, then."
Looking at her for a long moment, he said, "Very well. First off, where is Mr. Snape?"
She paled significantly. She hadn't thought that that would be the first question out of Dumbledore's mouth. She opened her mouth, willing herself to answer, but nothing came out. Tears filled her eyes and she wiped at them roughly with one hand. No one said anything, and she had a feeling that, besides Remus, they had all come to the conclusion of what happened.
As she brought her hand down away from her face, she felt fingers entwine with hers. She looked over to see that Remus had moved closer to her, looking saddened. She smiled weakly at him, oblivious to the two adults that stared at them in slight shock.
"I'm very sorry for the loss, Hermione," Dumbledore said softly, placing a hand on her shoulder after prying his eyes away from the teens' hands. "The worst happens to the very best of us. But I don't think his death was in vain."
"I know," Hermione whispered, feeling slightly comforted. "He's in a better place now."
"Too right you are. Death should not be feared, as it is the next great adventure for us all."
She inwardly smiled. He was so predictable. "But he will be missed," she whispered, and the older man nodded his head solemnly.
As Hermione sat there, she once again wondered about the scar on her forehead. Harry's mother had sacrificed herself to save him, but what about Hermione? How had she survived? "He killed him," Hermione said quietly, the words escaping her mouth without her really noticing, "But he didn't sacrifice himself the way she did…? But how…?"
"Miss Granger?"
Hermione snapped out of her stupor, "Yes, sir?"
"What do you mean by 'sacrifice'?"
She paled a bit, but nonetheless, she moved her hair out of the way, revealing the still raw looking scar on her forehead. The Headmaster stared for a long moment, and finally, a dawning look of surprise appeared on his face.
"He's gone?"
Nodding, Hermione brought her knees up to his chest and wrapped her arms around them, despite Remus' attempts to hold her hand. "He's gone, but I don't understand why," she noted distantly. "Only if someone had sacrificed themselves out of love would the ancient spell work."
"And no one else was there to do so?" Isabel asked out of curiosity, not really understanding much of the conversation. "And who's gone?"
Hermione shook her head, "It was just me and Severus…" she trialed off, suddenly remembering something. "That energy… what was it?"
"Energy?"
"Yes," the witch replied, her mind working a mile a minute, "While confronting Voldemort, something happened. The ground shook and suddenly, this energy came out of nowhere and surrounded me. I wasn't sure what to think of it at the time, but it didn't harm me. I kept all the curses and hexes away from me."
Dumbledore looked thoughtful. "By any chance, do you have any idea when this happened?"
She shook her head, "I have no idea."
"Hm," the man stood up and paced around the room a bit, "What was the energy like?"
"Well," Hermione scrunched her face up, trying to remember exactly. "It was… strong. Really powerful, and it seemed… a bit wild."
"Wild?" Isabel asked.
Hermione nodded, "It was as if it weren't tamed - it couldn't be controlled."
"That is very interesting, Hermione," Dumbledore said, stroking his beard. "Would you mind storing that memory away and showing me later?"
Hermione hesitated. Did she really want anyone to see what happened? She felt a bit shaky, "I'll think about it."
Nodding in acceptance, Dumbledore sat up straighter in his chair. After a small stretch of silence, Isabel cleared her throat, bringing attention towards her. She looked over to the Headmaster and asked, "May I?"
Once again, the wizened man nodded, "I believe it is the right time to tell Remus about what happened."
The woman smiled brightly and Hermione noticed that her eyes were glistened with unshed tears. She turned her attention completely on the woman, hoping to get her mind to stop reeling. Remus too, put his attention on his mother.
"Mum?"
"Oh, Remus!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around the russet haired boy again, "It's a miracle! A true miracle!"
"What is, mum?" he asked, gaggling slightly at the vice-like grip around his neck.
"It's gone! Poppy said there's no trace of it left in your system!"
Remus sent Hermione a confused and bewildered look, then looked at Dumbledore. Hermione asked curiously, despite everything else, "What's gone?"
Isabel loosened her grip on Remus and her grin was visible. She laughed, almost as if she couldn't believe what she was about to say, "Remus, dear. Your lycanthropy, it's gone! Gone- last night, when you collapsed, something happened to it!"
Silence.
Remus stared dumbstruck at his mother, as did Hermione. No one said anything, and the only noise was the slight crunching of the Sherbert Lemon that Dumbledore currently ate, and the quiet laughing from Isabel.
"Y-You can't be serious, can you?" Hermione whispered, not believing it. No one had ever been cured of lycanthropy, even in her original time.
"Ask Poppy if you must," she wiped at her eyes. "All tests said that it was gone - completely! Can you believe it?"
Remus continued to gape at the woman in front of him and eventually stuttered out, "No, I can't… are you serious?"
"Completely," she gushed happily, "I wouldn't lie about this. Do you actually think I would do something as cruel as that?"
Remus shook his head and stared at Hermione, "How could it happen, though?"
Hermione sat, wondering the same thing. "What exactly happened last night? No one has told me a thing."
Dumbledore cleared his throat lightly, "I would like to know the same thing. We have not gathered information from your point of view, Mr. Lupin. Could you elaborate for us?"
Remus looked sheepish for a long moment and avoided any eye contact.
"Honey?" Isabel said soothingly. "The Headmaster needs to know - it's the only way to find out what affected your Lycanthropy."
"I was angry and upset," he mumbled. Hermione had to strain her ears to listen. "I was scared for Hermione - I mean, everyone was, weren't they?" he looked around the room and Dumbledore nodded solemnly. He took a deep breath and stared down at his hands, "I felt angry…"
"And?" Isabel urged, staring lovingly at her son.
Remus shifted a bit in his seat and turned his head away from Hermione so that all she could see was the back of his head. "When I began feeling angry… something happened. I don't remember much, but all I know is I felt like I do when… when he comes out every month. After that, I don't remember much, until I woke up…"
Hermione stared at Remus' back, wondering what had happened to him the night before. Was he okay? What could have affected him to where he felt like it was the full moon when it wasn't even close to that time of the month?
She then turned her gaze to Dumbledore, staring quizzically at the old wizard. She could see a twinkle in his eyes, which caused her to wonder even more about what was going on. He obviously understood the story better than she, and Hermione didn't like that one bit. She respected the old wizard, but she knew he wouldn't tell either of the three other people in the room what he thought.
"I see. Well then, I believe it is time for us to get going. Poppy will check the two of you over and give you breakfast, and maybe after that, we will discuss the situations further." He efficiently put the conversation to a close and Hermione knew he knew something. He always did - and she would do her best to find out.
"Professor?" Hermione inquired, feeling a bit weary at the moment. "When we discuss this later, you will tell us everything you know about the situation, wont you?"
The man's eyes twinkled once he realized she had caught onto his plan, "I will tell what is necessary and leave the unneeded information out. There is no use in wasting time and breath on useless facts."
Hermione scowled at him, wanting nothing more than to criticize him about what he had just said. She was beginning to understand why Harry had always been so irritated at the man. He could be such a pain in the arse.
"I'd have to disagree," she told him stiffly. Then her mind suddenly went to something else that was bothering her. Once again, she repeated, "Professor?"
"Yes, Miss Granger?"
"Please have someone get Severus."
Those simple words dampened the mood once more. Hermione's head hung and a few lingering tears fell from her eyes. Remus looked once more unsure of what to do, and a depressed sadness swept over the Headmaster.
"I will do what I can. We will give him a proper burial - it's the least we could do."
Hermione nodded soberly, and Dumbledore got up and walked towards the exit of the room and soon, she saw only the end of his cloak disappearing around the corner of the door and his footsteps echoed though the hall. She shot a glance at Remus and smiled sadly, but encouragingly.
"I take it you and your mother want to talk?"
Isabel sent her a symthetic smile, and nodded as well. "If you don't mind, dear."
"I don't mind at all," she told her serenely and got up off the bed. She hesitated before she walked towards Remus, who in turn seemed unsure of how to handle the situation.
In the end, he stood up and gave her a quick kiss and hugged her. Isabel smiled broadly at the two of them, although they were both oblivious to the action as Hermione turned around after hugging him back to go find a bed further down the room.
She lay down, her mind completely zoning all surrounding sounds out of her mind. She was still exhausted she realized, despite the fact that she had felt quite awake just moments before.
It was that, or she just wanted to go to sleep and forget about her worries for the time being. Either way, she closed her eyes and dozed off, the last thought trailing through her mind being of Remus, and his newfound situation.
Life would never be the same.
"Get out of my way, Black," snarled a steely voice full of annoyance.
"What if I don't?"
"I'll hex you to Hades and back."
Hermione blinked furiously as she woke up, the light from the evening sun flaring through the open window next to her and blinding her momentarily.
She looked around for a moment, trying to pinpoint where the voices were coming from in the room. She couldn't see anyone at the moment, as a bed's curtain hung in the way, but she could distinctively make out the voices. It was Sirius and Lucius.
Oh shit.
"Why are you so insistent to see her? Knowing you, you'll just hex her!" Sirius shouted cruelly.
She heard and irritable sigh, "And why would I do that? Unlike you, I would like to speak to her."
"I have spoken to her!"
"Only out of guilt, I presume."
Hermione hurried out of the bed and walked around the curtains, knowing she must look rather odd in the white hospital pajama's, tangled hair, and various injuries, plus sleep still clouded her features.
"Sirius, leave Lucius alone," she said quietly as she moved closer to them, a yawn escaping her lips.
"Leave him alone? Hermione, he's a Slytherin!"
"So? And you're a Gryffindor. There's no difference," she told him pointedly, but knew that the point didn't go across to him.
"But-"
She groaned outwardly, showing her annoyance, "Sirius! Please!"
He shut his mouth quickly and looked away. "I'll never understand you."
"And I doubt I'd ever understand you," she replied, rolling her eyes but then stared hesitantly at Lucius. "Sirius, would you mind leaving us to talk? Alone?"
He eyed the other boy coolly, "I wont leave you completely alone, but I will go stand outside. If he tries anything, give a shout and I'll be here quicker than that muggle fuc-"
"SIRIUS!"
With a twitch of his lips, Sirius stalked out of the room, efficiently finishing his cursing under his breath.
There was silence for a moment and Hermione played with the cuff of her pajama shirt, noticing for the first time that Remus was no where in sight. She supposed that he was with his mother at the time being.
After a minute, Lucius cleared his throat. "I heard something at lunch today."
Hermione felt her heart sink. "Oh?"
"So he's gone?"
"Voldemort?"
"No, you know who I'm talking about.
The girl winced, "Yes.. I'm so sorry, Lucius."
"Don't be sorry to me. Us Slytherin's look out for ourselves and ourselves only. His loss may be great, but we best not dwell. It's not proper."
Hermione gave a small chuckle. "Though everything will be changing now, some things wont change, will they?"
"I wouldn't count on it," was his amused reply. He swiped at a strand of blonde hair that had fallen into his face and looked around the room for a moment.
"I wouldn't either," she gave him a small smile. "Being the savior of the wizarding world wont be one of those on that list though."
He gave her a look, "I'm glad I'm not you."
"I'm glad you think that," she told him. "I'm not exactly fond of the idea of being praised for something I didn't do."
"What do you mean?"
"It wasn't me that killed Voldemort," she gave him a crooked grin.
"Then who was it?" he inquired curiously. He'd obviously thought she herself had defeated him but he probably didn't know all the details. No one really did, she mused.
She shrugged, telling him she didn't know either. That still nagged at her, but she figured that she'd find out soon enough. She'd pry it out of Dumbledore if she had too, but she wasn't sure if even he would know.
"That's amusing," he told her, thinking deeply. "Are you sure you don't know who it was?"
"Positive," she told him.
"Well," the Slytherin said curtly, "If you ever find out who the person is, tell me as I would like to… thank them."
She felt a broad smile stretch across her face. Lucius thanking someone? That was definitely unusual. She was about to say something to him about it but was interrupted when her stomach let out a loud growl.
"Hungry?"
"Yeah," she looked sheepishly at Lucius. "I haven't eaten… in a while."
"Dinner's about to start," he told her offhandedly.
"Okay, I'll just get changed," she told him before heading off to her previous bed, where a school robe was hanging on the end. She quickly changed into it, her stomach once more protesting with hunger.
Soon, she walked out of the hospital wing with Lucius behind her. Sirius was still waiting outside and he scowled at the other boy when he came into view. He still wouldn't leave Hermione alone with him, so the three of them walked through the school and into the Great Hall.
There's always a first time for everything - and Sirius walking along with a Slytherin was a definite first.
Despite the awed faces of the students when they set eyes on Hermione, they gawked at Sirius and Lucius. It was definitely a picture moment.
The day passed by in a blur of faces and various conversations.
Hermione couldn't recall much by the time night had fallen over the castle, as too much was clouding her mind still.
She hadn't gotten to talk much to Remus, as him and his mother were talking things over about his lycanthropy - or what had been his lycanthropy.
Sirius, James, and Peter tried to comfort Hermione, but she assured them that she would be fine, and eventually, after quite a few uncertain looks, they left her alone in the common room. She now sat at one of the window seats, looking out over the snow covered grounds of Hogwarts and the forbidden forest which was outlined with stars in the winter sky.
She felt as ease, and after the many talks with the people she had come to love in that era, she had finally moved a bit from Severus' death. She wouldn't ever forget it, but she wouldn't let it hold her back from the future.
She signed, wiping at the fogged up window beside her. The day had been long and tedious, people asking her many questions about Voldemort. She knew that the death of the Dark Lord would be published the next day in headline news, and he wasn't looking forward to that.
She wasn't ready for fame - she didn't want it. That's how Harry must have felt. But she would ignore it if need be. She was still the same old Hermione Granger, right?
Smiling a bit, she began thinking about what else would happen in the future. She had to scratch out all her past years, because she knew they would never happen. Time was completely changed - Voldemort was gone and James and Lily would live, as would Sirius and the others. Peter wouldn't turn traitor, and maybe, just maybe, he'd stay loyal to his friends. And then there was Remus.
What would she do now? She knew she loved Remus, and he loved her. They were now officially going out, and she was a bit jittery about that thought, and her heart thumped heavily in her chest as the mere thought of him. She hoped that life would grant a better future for him - with or without her in it.
She leaned back against the wall supporting her from behind and stared up at the dog star.
More thoughts of Remus and the war slowly began creeping into her mind and she realized that, once again, she was at a major changing point in her life. She'd fulfilled the prophecy appointed to her, and successfully ridded of Voldemort with only one casualty.
She'd been in the past for such a short time, but even within those few months, she had accomplished more than she thought to be natural. She'd done a great deed for the world, she told herself.
She sat at the window for a long time, unsure of the actual time. She didn't move until she heard the portrait hole open and she glanced over to see who it was.
Her heart hammered a bit as she met the hazel gaze of the used-to-be werewolf. She smiled warmly at him and he returned the gesture while walking up to her.
Hesitantly, he reached out and pulled her into a gentle but firm hug. She smiled into his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"How are you feeling?" he asked her calmly.
"I'm fine, now, thanks. How about you?"
Remus let go of her and she leaned back against the wall and window. His expression softened, "I'm confused, but happy. This has got to be one of the best years of my life."
Hermione grinned at him, "I take it that you've accepted your Lycanthropy being gone?"
"Yeah," he grinned a bit, excitement bubbling up into his eyes, "But that's not what I was talking about."
Hermione looked at him oddly, "I don't understand then. Aren't you glad it's gone?"
"Of course!" he exclaimed, "But this is the best year of my life because of you!"
She flushed deeply and felt warmth spread through her limbs. She looked outside again, but she didn't really see what lay outside the window.
"You know," she whispered, "I was afraid when I first came here. I didn't think I belonged, and I thought that I wouldn't make it far after I heard the prophecy made about me. But then… then you made it all better. Now I know I can survive out here without my old friends and my family."
There was a length of silence, "I'm glad," Remus whispered back, once again wrapping her into a hug from behind. They both stared out of the window, their reflections looking back at them through the fog.
"This is it," she told him quietly, "the new beginning."
"You ready for it?" Remus asked seriously.
"You bet."
And with those two words, it started. The new beginning, which would lead them all to lives anew from their old paths, and set them on the road to the unknown.
EPILOGUE COMING SOON
A/N: Okay, so this is the ending of this story. I'm rather saddened that I've already finished it, but in a way, I'm a bit glad. I don'g really like how the middle of this chapter was written, and I may go back and edit it later. Also, I have thoughts of writing a sequel. If I do though, it may be a while before I get it out, as I'm starting to work at my job a lot more and I have a few other stories to catch up on.
Before I go, I want to thank all of my faithful readers for reading and I hope you weren't dissapointed in the end. Please stay tuned, as the epilogue will be written soon. Thank you all for all the feedback for this story, and helping me get through it.
Min