Albus Dumbledore had a real problem on his hands. Hermione. She couldn't be handed over to the ministry who knows what they might do to her. She might know things that would be useful to him. He considered the time laws and then scoffed, if she really was from twenty-two years in the future there was no way she could not impact the time stream.
Apart from die, his brain whispered, you could simply drain her of her mind and be rid of her. The Headmaster shook his head and poured himself a fire whiskey. He couldn't go about killing children. Plus if he killed her he'd have to be rid of Severus too, and while no one knew about Hermione the Snape boy had family, acquaintances. He sniggered at the idea of claiming Severus Snape had friends. No that boy had allies.
Hermione made him edgy. As soon as he'd heard how far ahead she was from his mind had screamed to question her. Nay Interrogate her know everything she knew. But he quelled this urge and let her sleep. After a brief fight with Snape. That boy just rubbed him the wrong way.
Sighing heavily the headmaster drowned his fire whisky and retreated for the night.
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Hermione woke from an uneasy sleep jerking for her wand. Beside her in the dark Severus was shaken awake by her jolting.
"Hermione what?" He began.
"Lumos!"
"Oh Fuck Hermione! Turn that off! What on Earth" Severus had his hands in front of his eyes shielding them from Hermione's bright wand. She lowered it a little.
"You?" She muttered. "Just you? Must have been a dream. Dreaming." She nodded lowering her wand completely but not turning off the light. Severus's eyes adjusted and he lowered his hands.
His head tilted in that way Hermione found adorable. Hermione was shaking, she hopped he couldn't see it; the hospital wing was pitch black other than her wand light.
"Tell me something. Something you haven't told anyone yet. Tell me something new." He spoke so matter o' factly Hermione would almost say he demanded it but she didn't feel ordered. She hesitated. He put his arms behind his head and sprawled out in the bed properly. Hermione heard several of his bones pop and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Before I came I was in a battle." She started. He closed his eyes but she knew he was listening hard. "My two best friends, Harry and Ron, We were on Astronomy Tower facing The Dark Lord. He was at his weakest. He even stumbled up the stairs to us." She took a deep breath to steady herself before speaking again.
FLASHBACKIt surprised her he tripped over the last step. Apparently it took the boys by surprise as well for in their moment of shock a green light had shot into Ron's face. Apparently feeling the War wasn't going in his favor he had decided to just do it. No villainous monologue no witty banter with Harry. Just a trick and a dead Ron. Her mind screamed. Harry really did.
"RON!" Hermione's hair stood up on end. It was pure torture. It made her flash back to their first year when Ron had been knocked form his knight, but even worse. Harry made for his friend losing the battle sense. Hermione and Voldemort did not.
She shot a shield in front of Harry and a green curse at the snake creature former man behind him. He smirked.
"Big Spells for a such a little girl" He taunted throwing a fiery jinx at her. Hermione dodged being hit in the face and the window behind her exploded. "All grown up my Mudblood, Pity you didn't take to Draco, you would have been a wonderful slave." He said. Harry had turned at this point and threw his own curse.
Or rather Expelliarmus, Hermione was always frustrated with Harry's refusal to use anything stronger than a Hammer hex. Voldemort fought the two of them effortlessly. He was certainly weaker than normal but still an exceptional fighter. He had no problem taking the two teenagers at once.
"Heard about your Horcuxes did you?" Harry goaded firing a curse and diving behind a model of Saturn and her moons. Titan exploded inches from his face with the reply.
'Indeed figure that out on your own boy or did the old fool and your mudblood slut tell you that!' He hissed. Hermione wasn't sure making him angry was best but there was no way to tell him that now. "How about my spy did he tell you that? My traitor?" He seemed to get quicker with his anger. Hermione started pulling Harry toward the stairs gently still protecting them with a charm.
"You'd better get a handle on your Slut, Boy, the traitor had her too. Why do you think he would risk everything to save her from me? She's an even bigger slag than you knew" Voldemort laughed.
"News flash we're not together don't you read the papers?" Harry was sweating like a pig and their movement was slow Voldemort's curses shattering Hermione's charm every time it hit. She had to recast quickly to ready for the next one. Flashes to red and green.
Is this really the time Harry? Hermione thought desperately. Her wand hand was getting cramps and she was arching to make their get away.
"Read the papers? Harry my boy!" He smirked. His next two curses were too fast for her and the green light collided with Harry's chest. "I'm the only news worth hearing about." He finished. Hermione didn't know what to do she stop casting what did she do? Harry was the one to finish him, wasn't he?
Before she could make a decision Voldemort collapsed unconscious to the ground. Grabbing Harry's wand she took the stairs two at a time. Seal the tower, was her new plan. Turns out this plan was unnecessary. As she neared the bottom of the spinning tower a rumble shook the ground under her. Hermione tripped and tumbled down the remaining steps into the hall flat on her arse. A snap registered from beneath her. Harry's wand. She left it and began to run. It didn't take long before another rumble and a defining crash shook the castle. Looking out a window she saw nothing. There was no astronomy tower it had fallen into the black lake and was being dragged downward by the squid. There was no way a sleeping man had survived that crash. He was gone. And so were Harry and Ron no funeral for them. NO DON'T THINK ABOUT IT! Sadness almost overwhelmed her adrenaline. Had it she was sure she would have collapsed never to get up. Needing a new plan the sole member of the golden trio decided to go find her potions master.
She didn't even hear the shouts of
"WE DID IT!"
"VICTORY!"
"THE BASTARD'S DEAD!"
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Severus didn't know all the players but he didn't need to, just to hear her speak of Harry and Ron he knew how she loved them. He felt how she didn't really know what to do with their deaths. It was as if she couldn't understand how they had died. In any time it seemed losing a loved one was incomprehensible. This saddened Severus. It wasn't reasonable to think that in the future they'd have stopped all killing or have unraveled why people had to die but that didn't mean he didn't wish with all his heart it were so.
"You tell rubbish stories" He finally spoke. He cracked his eyes. Hermione looked so lost sitting in the bed she might have been but she was far away. Miles away. She likely hadn't even heard him. He rolled onto his side and placed his hand gently on her leg. Her brown eyes cleared and she refocused on him.
She smiled weakly.
"Sorry I'll have a better one for tomorrow." She had heard him.
"It's okay these things take time" He nodded sagely. She didn't respond. "So I wonder how you ended up here on top of me." He waggled his eye brows. Hermione rolled her eyes. Severus had never been a waggler before. In fact he tended to hate those who dared move their eyebrows in anything more than an arch. But she needed it. This girl needed silly. Needed a child. He wasn't a child never had been, but he could try for her. He could move mountains for her. Not sure why I would, but I would, He thought.
" I have no idea how I got here." She shrugged.
"That would be my doing" A voice belonging to neither of them spoke.
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AN: Sorry for cliff hanger but it has to happen. Don't forget to review! And no worries Voldemort's death will be explained a little more later.