A/N: I can't believe there's over 300 followers on this story! Also, thank you so much for all of your reviews! Sorry for the really long gap between updates, it's over been a year but I will NOT let this story die, it's my baby… I had actually moved to a different country for a study abroad program! It was all very exciting and busy but no worries, I'm back now and I don't plan on abandoning this story. And yes, I realize the last chapter was slow. One of my main goals with this story was relationship building and when I looked at my story outline for what chapter 11 was originally supposed to be it just seemed way out of character considering the stage Hermione is at with the Marauders. I never understood time travel stories where there's an instant relationship, it never feels genuine, but that's just me. But this chapter definitely has more to offer! It was so much fun to write so I hope you enjoy reading it!
Chapter 12 - Hogsmeade Adventures and Halloween Scares
A chill had spread through the castle as November neared and Hogwarts residents could barely remember the strange heatwave that October had started with. The grounds was covered with leaves as the trees started to bare and the grass was slightly less green and had a certain crunch to it. Yet, no one seemed particularly effected by this sudden change in temperature due to the excitement of the first Hogsmeade trip of the year, which would be taking place that Halloween weekend.
Light chatter roused Hermione from her slumber the morning of Halloween. Groggily, she slightly pulled open the scarlet curtains surrounding her bed and peered into sunlit dormitory. The chatter came from Lily's bed and Hermione spotted both Lily and Mary sitting on it and quietly but energetically talking. Usually Mary was the last of the three Gryffindor girls to wake so seeing her up before her intrigued Hermione. What was even more interesting was that both Mary and Lily were already fully dressed and looked like they were ready for the trip into the village.
Swinging her feet over the side of her bed, Hermione pulled her curtains all the way open and stepped down on the wooden floor when Mary looked across the dormitory towards Hermione.
"Sorry, did we wake you?" asked Mary with an apologetic smile.
Hermione yawned and waved her hand dismissing Mary's concern. "It's fine, I should be getting up regardless. What time is it anyway?"
"Nearly 8 o'clock," said Lily with a smile.
Before Hermione could thank her, Mary jumped off of Lily's bed and bounced towards Hermione, taking hold of her shoulders.
"Are you ready for Hogsmeade?!" she said, beaming at Hermione and shaking her shoulders slightly. "And it's also Halloween so we have the feast tonight!"
Amused, Hermione moved Mary's hands off of her shoulders and back to Mary's side as Mary continued to bounce up and down on the heels of her feet. Her excitement was infectious and Hermione couldn't help but feel excited for the trip into Hogsmeade as well.
"Yes, Mary," laughed Hermione. "I'm very excited about Hogsmeade. Maybe not as much as you… but still very excited."
"I just really like Halloween and these weekend trips," defended Mary, crossing her arms, but she was still grinning from ear to ear.
Mary's excitement was one of the things that made her standout to Hermione. There were moments when Mary became very enthusiastic about something and her emotions seemed to magnetize by a hundred. When she was excited, her delight pooled out of her and flooded the entire room, yet, that also held true when Mary was upset. It would not be wise to cross Mary if she were not in a good mood.
Lily stood up from her and walked over next to Mary, she looked as amused as Hermione felt at Mary's display of joy. "Still plan on meeting up with us around lunchtime?" she asked Hermione.
Not long after the Hogsmeade trip had been posted on the Gryffindor notice board, James had wasted no time in corning her and asking her to accompany him, Sirius, Remus, and Peter to Hogsmeade. She had agreed happily but later slightly regretted it when Lily and Mary asked her to attend the trip with them and the group of girls from Hufflepuff that Mary was good friends with. Lily and Mary's discouraged faces had made her feel guilty that night after she told them that James had already asked her, but she had agreed to go with the boys and she had to admit that she was looking forward to going with them. So she had worked it out with everyone that she would spend half the day with the boys and meet up with Lily and Mary for the remainder of the time.
The guilt she felt was odd. There had never been a time in her life where she had to choose between people to hang out with. It had always been her, Harry, and Ron. They were an unbreakable trio. It had never even crossed her mind in her time to have more than one group of friends. Now she had two groups of people wanting to spend time with her.
It was exhausting.
"Of course, I'll probably be tired of the boys by then anyways," smiled Hermione, which would probably be true knowing the kinds of shops they'd want to go to, but she was slightly nervous about spending time with all of the Hufflepuff girls.
"Okay great. We're headed to breakfast, so you can get ready now. See you later!" said Mary and Lily and the two of them exited the dormitory.
Once she was alone, Hermione began to silently dress. It didn't take her long to realize that she never bought any clothes for the colder weather and she would definitely need at least a scarf on her trip into the village.
She wished she had realized it earlier so she could have borrowed something from either Lily or Mary. Upset with herself, Hermione quickly finished dressing in the warmest clothes she could manage and grabbed her bag before leaving the dormitory herself.
Once she stepped foot into the common room, a thought popped into her head that Remus would probably have an extra scarf that he would lend her. She was supposed to meet the boys at breakfast but it was still early so there was a good chance that they were probably getting ready. There would be no harm in her going to their dormitory and asking Remus for a scarf instead of asking at the Great Hall and having to come back up to Gryffindor Tower.
So instead of meeting the boys in the Great Hall for breakfast like they had planned, Hermione walked towards the boys' staircase. She was slightly nervous, she had never been to their dormitory before and she hoped that she wasn't overstepping any boundaries.
It didn't take her long to spot the door with the four boys' names on it. She hesitated slightly before knocking three times. There was the sound of shuffling on the other side of the door and a few moments later it swung open.
"Hermione?"
Standing before her was a surprised and disheveled James Potter. By the looks of him, it appeared that he had just woken up. He was wearing a set of scarlet plaid pajama bottoms with a plain grey t-shirt and his black hair was messier than Hermione had ever seen it. His large rectangular glasses were crooked on his face, like he had just shoved them on in a hurry.
Slightly embarrassed at finding him in pajamas, Hermione willed herself not to turn pink as she stared at James's startled face. She had seen Harry and Ron loads of times in pajamas but, even with James resembling Harry so much, it was strange to walk in on him being so vulnerable.
"Er, hi James," said Hermione after a moment of the two of them just staring at each other. "I just came up here to ask Remus if I could borrow a scarf… it seems I have forgotten to pack mine with me and it's going to be a chilly trip to Hogsmeade today."
James blinked before taking a step back from the door. "Well, you don't have to just stand in the staircase. Come on in, I'll grab you a scarf."
With a small smile, Hermione stepped past him and into the dormitory, the other three boys were nowhere to be seen. The room looked exactly the same as all the other dormitories but it was much messier than Harry, Ron, Neville, Seamus, and Dean's had been and far more decorated. Clothes and a random assortment of items littered the floor and scarlet and gold posters and banners plastered the walls. The room gave off more Gryffindor pride than Hermione had ever seen.
"Sorry about the mess," said James, causing Hermione to stop examining the dormitory and look back at James. "We don't get many visitors in here."
Hermione smirked. "Don't worry I've seen worse. Where are the others?"
James pursed his lips. "Probably at breakfast. The bloody gits left me here! Would you believe the three of them didn't wake me up when they went down to the Great Hall? If your knock on the door hadn't woken me I'd still be asleep…"
James crossed his arms and he angrily looked at nothing in particular. His messy appearance and betrayed look made him a sight to see. Hermione was sure the other boys wouldn't have left him there for the trip but she was far too amused at the way James was behaving to tell him that.
"I actually can believe that," said Hermione trying to suppress a grin at his disheveled appearance. That was when she noticed that not only did James look like he had woken up, his arms and face were also covered in dirt. "Did they also throw dirt on you? You look absolutely filthy…"
The angry look diminished and James looked down at his arms with a look of confusion before he smirked slightly. "Oh that. I had Quidditch practice at the crack of dawn today. I got back about an hour ago, threw on my pajamas, and just passed out on my bed hoping to rest before we went into the village… I didn't even bother to shower," as James said this, he lifted the collar of his T-shirt and bent his neck to smell it and then pulled away quickly with a sour face. Hermione didn't know whether or not to find it funny or repulsive. "Speaking of which, I desperately need to shower but damned will I show up to the Great Hall alone like an idiot. Would you mind waiting for me?"
"Here?" asked Hermione, looking around the dormitory and feeling slightly uncomfortable at the idea of waiting there alone.
"Or I could meet you downstairs, which ever you prefer," said James with an expression that could almost be read as pleading. "I'll be quick I swear. My trunk is over there under my bed, you can grab whatever scarf you'd like from it, I know that there's at least two in there."
Before Hermione could even answer James had run out of the room.
With a sigh, Hermione turned her attention back to examining the dormitory. Asides from all of the Gryffindor items on the walls, the areas around each bed seemed to be personalized. Posters of motorcycles and muggle girls in bikinis were on the walls behind the bed closest to the window. Hermione assumed they were muggles based on the fact that the women were stationary in the picture. This contrasted with the pictures that did move next them, pictures of the four Gryffindor boys. Even without the trunk with his initials on it, Hermione still would have been able to tell that this was Sirius's bed.
Each bed was easily distinguishable by the personal items surrounding it. Hermione noticed that Peter had a chocolate frog card collection that would even put Ron's to shame, and that James must have been a bigger Quidditch fan that both Harry and Ron combined based on his posters and flags behind his bed. His bed was still unmade with traces of dirt on it which made Hermione shake her head at how ridiculous the boys were. Remus had the most books piled next to his bed and what appeared to be chocolate bar wrappings littering his nightstand. But the thing that stood out the most was the calendar that was hanging on the wall besides Remus's bed, one that marked the cycle of the moon.
As Hermione was about to look away she noticed his trunk slightly sticking out from under his bed. She leaned over to get a closer look at the trunk with the boy's name on it when a memory flooded into her head:
"Who d'you reckon he is?" Ron hissed as they sat down and slid the door shut, taking the seats farthest away from the window.
"Professor R. J. Lupin." whispered Hermione at once.
"How'd you know that?"
"It's on his case," she replied, pointing at the luggage rack over the man's head, where there was a small, battered case held together with a large quantity of neatly knotted string. The name Professor R. J. Lupin was stamped across one corner in peeling letters.
The memory of her, Harry, and Ron sitting on the train with a shabby looking stranger seemed so far off and felt like it happened a lifetime ago, not just three years. Well, in her current reality it hadn't even happened yet.
Before she gave herself a headache, she stood all the way up and turned away from the trunk before she did something stupid and cry at the distant memory of her old life. Instead, she crossed the room and headed back towards James's area to get a scarf from his trunk.
She was quick to notice that James's trunk was just as messy as his bed area. Not feeling completely comfortable digging through James's belongings, Hermione thought it would be best to just summon a scarf.
"Accio scarf" she said as she pointed her wand at James's open trunk.
Two hand knit maroon scarves came flying from the trunk, knocking all sorts of clothes and objects out of their way as they landed in Hermione's outstretched hand. That was when she noticed something else that had fallen out of the trunk. To anyone else it would have just appeared to be a piece of spare parchment but Hermione knew better.
Her breath caught as she gently picked up the Marauder's Map as if it were an explosive device and slowly sat down on the edge of James's bed. Unlike the other reminders of her time that she'd come across, it wasn't the memories of the map that made her uneasy; it was something that she had completely overlooked when she arrived there.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," she shakily whispered into the parchment on her lap.
As the ink spread across the map, Hermione's heart hammered in her chest. How could she have been so foolish to forget about the map? It was a dead giveaway that she had been lying since she arrived and she highly doubted that the marauders hadn't used the map in the two months she's been at Hogwarts with them. In fact, she was almost certain James and Sirius had used it on the night of her birthday.
When the ink finished spreading across the map Hermione's heart seemed to stop all together. She blinked and had to make sure she was looking at the right spot because it clearly stated that in the Gryffindor boys' dormitory there was a Hermione Dawson.
It didn't make any sense. The map was never wrong! It should say her name was still Hermione Granger, not Dawson. Hermione Dawson didn't even exist!
A million ideas started to float around in her brain but she couldn't settle on one single theory that would suggest why her name showed up as Hermione Dawson. Maybe since she was a transplant in that time that the map took the name she decided to give herself? Or maybe since Hermione Granger hadn't been born yet the map couldn't locate her; but then why did it say her made up surname?
She didn't have much time to worry about it because at that moment James' dot was headed back towards the dormitory.
Quickly, Hermione whispered "Mischief Managed!" and shoved the map back into James' trunk and closed it. It was perfect timing too because no sooner did she put the map back did the dormitory door swing open. Hermione quickly grabbed the two scarves that she had taken and tried to make herself look busy.
"See, I didn't take too long," said James with a toothy grin. He was already dressed in his day clothes but had a towel wrapped around his head. Even then, strands of his wet, jet black hair were sticking out beneath it, still impossible to tame, "I see you found the scarves. Feel free to use whichever and I'll take the one you don't use, I don't mind."
"Sure," cracked Hermione. She gave a small cough and James looked at her curiously. "Yes… I think I'll go with this one. Thank you James."
Not actually paying attention to which scarf she chose, she held up the scarf in her right hand.
"Are you alright Hermione?" asked James with an eyebrow raised. He slowly pulled the towel off of his head and began to rub it through his hair, making it even messier. "You're acting a bit strange."
Willing herself to not give anything away, Hermione forced a smile. "No no, I'm fine really."
James glanced down at his trunk by Hermione's feet and then looked back up at Hermione as if trying to put all of the clues together but he seemed to give up. With a shrug, he ran his towel through his hair one last time before tossing it past Hermione and onto his already messy bed.
"Right, well are you ready to go?" asked James with a smirk.
"Ready now that I have this," grinned Hermione as she held up James' scarf.
Together, the two of them headed out the boys' dormitory and although she wore a smile on her face, Hermione couldn't help but worry about what she had seen on the map.
.:~*~*~*~*~:.
"Wait until you get to experience Hogsmeade, Hermione," said Sirius, flashing her a grin from across the table.
The Great Hall was already buzzing with excitement once James and Hermione had arrived at breakfast. The trip was everything anyone, who was a third year and up, was talking about. That and the upcoming Hogwarts feast that Hermione had to pretend she had no prior knowledge of. Most of the excitement came from both of these events happening on the same day.
Worrying about the map seemed pointless at this time so she shoved the thought of it towards the back of her head. She would work out an explanation eventually, there had to be a logical reason behind it. But for now she was going to enjoy the day with her friends.
Hermione rolled her eyes but smiled at Sirius's excitement. "Sirius, you know that I went to Hogsmeade a number of times when I spent the summer here. I've already told you that," she said as she took a fork full of scrambled eggs.
Now it was Sirius's turn to roll his eyes at her. "Oh that's different! You have to experience it with the rest of the school! It's far more exciting that way."
Thinking back to her summer alone at Hogwarts, Hermione had to agree. Hogsmeade was a great town to spend time in, and to her it was especially unique due to the fact that it was solely a wizarding community. Yet, over the summer, as she had shopped for clothing and school supplies by herself or just had ventured into the town for something to do, she had felt that the town had lost some of its charm that the school visits had.
"I agree with Sirius. It's much more worthwhile going with the school. I've been there a few times with my parents and it's not really the same," said Remus, echoing the thoughts in Hermione's head.
"Well, I'm looking forward to it," grinned Hermione.
"Look forward to going to Zonko's," said Sirius, taking a bite of his toast. "Best joke shop in all of Great Britain."
"Maybe even the world," followed James.
"I don't know about you guys," said Peter with a gleam in his eyes, "but the best place will be Honeydukes."
"I could certainly use some Honeydukes' chocolate," said Remus with a nod of agreement towards Peter. "But we definitely need to take Hermione to The Three Broomsticks."
There were murmurs of agreement from the other boys and Hermione smirked as she took a sip of her tea.
Suddenly, James' head shot up and snapped in Sirius's direction.
"What is it?" said Sirius, alarm visible in his face. He wasn't the only one, they all seemed to tense up at James' sudden movement.
"I've only just remembered something," said James, looking surprised at everyone's worried faces, "I found it out at Quidditch practice and was going to tell you after my nap but you gits left me and came here instead."
There was a collective sigh as they all relaxed.
"Blimey, mate," said Sirius shaking his head, suppressing a grin. "Don't do that, you had me scared half to death. What did you find out?"
"What on Earth did you think I was going to say?" said James looking bewildered.
"I have no idea, mate, but you looked as if you were ready to fight someone," replied Sirius.
James smirked slightly before giving Sirius an odd look. "Did you know your darling younger brother Regulus is the new Slytherin seeker?"
Sirius, who had just taken a swig of pumpkin juice sputtered and dripped the juice down his front. Remus and Peter stared at James with looks of shock.
Hermione, who had completely forgotten about Regulus due to him never previously being brought up felt a pang of resentment towards the fact that he had never been mentioned to her.
"He's their new seeker?" said Sirius in disbelief.
"You have a brother here?" followed Hermione, who was mad at herself for forgetting that Sirius had a brother at Hogwarts.
Remus crookedly smiled wearily. "I'm not surprised he made the team. He's a favorite amongst the Slytherins. But I am surprised that it took him until his fifth year to actually tryout for the team."
Sirius pursed his lips while cleaning himself up with napkins. "Well he is mister perfect. Not really shocking." He rolled his eyes. "And yes, Hermione. My younger brother Regulus Arcturus Black, the pride of the Black family."
Sirius's attention turned towards the Slytherin table and Hermione followed his gaze.
"That's him there," said Sirius as he pointed across the hall.
Towards the middle of the Slytherin table there was a large group of fifth year Slytherins. It didn't take long for Hermione to realize which one was Regulus. He had the same black hair as Sirius and shared the same dark good looks, but he was slightly less handsome and smaller in stature than his Gryffindor brother.
"Why haven't you mentioned him before this?" asked Hermione curiously.
Sirius's eyes grew darker, causing Hermione to worry. She had never seen Sirius, who was always laughing and cracking jokes, so bothered.
"We aren't close," muttered Sirius under his breath.
Hermione noticed the other Marauders' expressions had all changed around the table, even they knew that it was strange to see Sirius so – well – serious.
"We used to be close as children," continued Sirius when no one else said anything. "Things changed when I came to Hogwarts and was sorted into Gryffindor. Broke my dear old mum's heart to see her first born son not in Slytherin, and in Gryffindor nonetheless!" Sirius's tone became more sarcastic with every word and the other Marauders' expressions went back to normal, clearly having heard the story many times.
But Hermione was captivated. She had heard about Sirius's childhood many times from many different people during her time, and some stories came directly from Sirius, but it was different hearing it from him now, knowing that these memories were so fresh in his mind. It was a raw confessional, unlike the stories that Sirius had so calculated in his head over the years of being away from his family.
"My brother became mummy's favorite after he was sorted into Slytherin like the rest of my family. She doted on him and left me to myself – not that I can complain," said Sirius with a dark smirk. "He's my mother's favorite while I'm the family embarrassment, it wouldn't look great for either of us if I were to hang out with my brother. Not that he is even considered my brother anymore."
"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Hermione. Remus sent her a strange look but Hermione ignored him, she was genuinely curious of the Black brothers relationship.
"Oh, I've been blasted off the Black family tree," said Sirius cheerily, as if he was announcing that he had just been appointed Prefect. "Disowned by the whole lot this summer. Never felt freer!"
Hermione let out a small gasp. She had obviously known this already but seeing Sirius, and how young he still was, amazed her at how someone could throw their sixteen year old child out of the house and disown them, just like that…
"But it's okay Hermione," reassured Sirius. He laughed as he took in her expression of both horror and pity. "No really! It's the best thing to happen to me. Now I live with the Potters, they took me in as their own."
Sirius beamed at Hermione and threw his arm across James's shoulders and James grinned back. "Now we're truly brothers," said James. Hermione felt her heart swell with fondness for the boys in front of her. "Even if you did leave me to rot in the dormitory earlier."
James laughed as Sirius playfully pushed James away from him.
"I can't believe you've never mentioned that either," said Hermione, but she wasn't upset about being left out. If anything she felt as if the boys finally trusted her enough to tell her personal things.
Sirius grinned and shrugged, "It would have been odd for me to just blurt it out in everyday conversation. Like when we're doing our potions essays and I just go 'oh, by the way Hermione, I have a perfect Slytherin brother and I've just been disowned by my family and I'm living with Prongs now.' Bit of a strange way to bring that up, wouldn't you say?"
Peter laughed, "that sure would be something, Padfoot."
"It probably would be a strange thing to just tell someone you just met," smiled Hermione, ignoring Peter. "None of the rest of you have secret siblings here do you?" asked Hermione to the other boys, who all spoke at the same time.
"Nope," said Peter.
"I'm an only child," shrugged Remus
"Not that I know of, but you never truly know, do you?" said James.
Hermione laughed again and shook her head. She took another sip of her morning tea as they continued with their breakfast.
Suddenly, students around them began to stand up and make their way out of the Great Hall, all chatting excitedly, leaving being sulking first and second years.
"I guess it's time to go," smiled Remus as he began to stand up.
"Where should we head to first?" asked Peter as he too stood up.
"Zonko's!" said James and Sirius in unison.
.:~*~*~*~*~:.
The walk to the village had been a pleasant one and Hermione realized that she had made the right decision in asking for a scarf. There was a brisk wind and the sun was hiding away behind the British clouds. But the cold didn't have much of an effect on her as she greatly enjoyed the company of the Marauders.
Sirius seemed keen on giving Hermione the grand tour of Hogsmeade, much to her dismay. James, Remus, and Peter were amused by him at first but after an hour had passed and they realized that Hermione knew the village pretty well, they too began to get annoyed.
True to their words, James and Sirius made the group's first stop Zonko's Joke Shop. There wasn't a single display that the five of them didn't look at, and Hermione had to admit; there were a handful of items that caught her eye. Particularly, there was invisible ink that could only be viewed if the buyer has given someone permission to view it. It was meant so students could send notes to each other in class and not have unwanted eyes see it but Hermione thought it would be a great tool to stop cheating during exams.
"Not everything has to be for school, Hermione," said Sirius, rolling his eyes at her when she brought this up.
"She's right, you know," said Remus, and Hermione smiled at him. "The Ministry could use it for private documents as well."
"Well, hope that no one else is smart enough to use it for that," said James, "or Padfoot may never pass an exam again!"
Watching James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus excitedly make their was through the joke shop was like seeing children given free rein in a candy store for the first time. Which brought them to their second stop; Honeydukes.
Honeydukes was far more crowded than Zonko's had been, especially as it was nearing lunchtime. The gang seemed to split up upon entering the store, all to collect their favorite treats.
Peter immediately walked over to the Chocolate Frog stand, probably to expand on his card collection, James went right to the Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Remus walked to far side of the store to look at the huge arrays of different chocolate bars, while Sirius found himself looking at exploding bonbons and pepper imps.
Not able to hide her own excitement, Hermione ventured into the aisles of the most amazing looking candy. She saw bubblegum that emitted real bubbles as it was chewed, ice cream that was sitting over a flame but never melted, and peppermint toads that actually hopped in your stomach after you ate them. It was also nice to see the excited faces of third years who had never experienced the store before.
Although she didn't have much of a sweet tooth, probably from being raised by two dentists, Hermione managed to let herself buy some beautiful looking sugar quills, but the deluxe kind because she knew they'd last longer.
"Good haul this time," said Peter with a toothy grin as the five of them exited the store and continued down the main path of Hogsmeade carrying bags full of sweets and items from Zonko's. The four boys had enough sweets to last them the year, making Hermione wonder what wizards did for cavities. There must be a spell or potion for them and the boys probably needed it often.
"I'll say!" grinned Sirius, reaching into one of his Honeyduke's bags and plopping a pepper imp into his mouth. Immediately, flames burst from his mouth, managing to catch the end of James's scarf on fire.
Before James even had time to react to the fact that Sirius had set him on fire Remus shouted "Augamenti!" and a small stream of water extinguished James.
"Maybe I should save these for later," said Sirius casually, as if he didn't just set his best friend on fire.
"Careful!" said James, looking slightly bewildered. "My mum knit this scarf."
"Hang on, isn't that also your scarf?" said Peter, as he pointed to the scarf around Hermione's neck.
Instinctively, Hermione put her hand on the scarf, wondering why Peter seemed to care.
"Seems so," said Remus giving both Hermione and James a curious look.
"I managed to forget to pack my scarf with me so James lent me one. You lot would have known if you hadn't abandoned James this morning," said Hermione with a playfully accusational tone. "But that actually reminds me! Can you guys give me a quick second to run into Gladrags Wizardwear so I can buy one for myself? It's right there, so it's not like it's out of our way." She pointed across the path to the clothing store.
"Why don't you just have your mum or dad send yours to you instead of buying a new one?" asked Peter, tilting his head to the side in confusion.
"My old winter wear is getting worn out anyway, it's about time I bought some new things. Plus my mum and dad sent me some spending money for my birthday and this would be the responsible way to spend it," defended Hermione, not wanting to give away that she couldn't have her nonexistent parents send her nonexistent winter items. "I'll be quick I promise. Then we can head to the Three Broomsticks as planned."
"Alright, we'll wait here," said Remus with a smile.
Hermione dashed into the clothing store and quickly bought a hat, gloves, a nice wool scarf, and two warm jumpers. More clothes could wait until the next trip into the village, it would be rude for her to make the boys wait outside.
It took her no more than ten minutes to conclude the shopping trip. The customers inside must have thought she was mad at how fast she was moving but she didn't care as she weaved in and out of the crowded store before returning outside.
"Wow, that's the fastest I've ever seen a girl shop in a clothing store," said Sirius as Hermione came back into the street.
Hermione rolled her eyes at him as James gave Sirius an affronted look and whacked him behind the head.
"Oi! What was that for?" demanded Sirius.
"Your lack of tact," said Remus simply with a small grin on his face as Peter laughed from beside him. James also looked quite pleased with himself for the rest of their walk to the Three Broomsticks.
Warm air greeted Hermione as they pushed open the door to the smoky yet cozy, crowded pub. It was far more crowded than Hermione could ever remember from her time as only a few tables were left unoccupied.
"Ah, and our table is still open!" grinned Sirius. "Follow us, Hermione."
The boys made their way through the crowded pub with Hermione trailing behind them and they found themselves at a snug corner booth close to the bar.
Sirius and James immediately took their seats on one side of the booth and Remus slid into the other side. Hermione followed Remus and sat beside him leaving Peter staring at her awkwardly.
He looked at Remus and then back at Hermione before turning to face James and Sirius.
"Aw come here, Wormtail, we'll make room," grinned James as he shoved Sirius closer to the wall to make a spot for Peter to sit.
"Thanks," mumbled Peter but he still had an off expression on his face.
"Oh, er, sorry, did I take your usual seat, Peter?" asked Hermione. As much as she wasn't very fond of Peter she didn't want to cause a problem between the other boys.
"It's not a problem, Hermione, you didn't know. I guess we're not used to having five of us here," said Remus and he smiled at her crookedly.
"You've never had another person sitting with you guys? I find that hard to believe," said Hermione thinking about how popular the boys seemed to be.
James chuckled. "Well, we've had our fair share of girls with us, mostly Sirius. But he makes them pull up a chair."
Hermione gasped and Sirius snorted. "Sirius! You make your girlfriends pull up a chair instead of making room?"
Sirius flipped his long hair out of his face and grinned cheekily. "It hasn't been that many girls. I wouldn't use the word 'girlfriend' more like-"
"-squeeze of the day," finished James and Peter laughed from beside him.
Hermione just stared and Remus smirked and shook his head. "I'll get the first round of butterbeers," he said.
Hermione started to get up to let him out of the booth when Sirius held up his hand and stopped her.
"Now why should we settle for butterbeers when we can get something stronger," said Sirius, wiggling his eyebrows.
"We can't get anything stronger," reminded Remus. "We're all underage."
Sirius flashed another grin and focused his gaze on Hermione, which immediately made her feel suspicious.
"Hermione here is of age, she could easily order us a round of firewhiskey and bring it back to the table."
James laughed from beside Sirius. "Rosemerta would figure it out if Hermione did that, mate."
"But Rosemerta loves us! I bet she'd let it slide."
"I certainly am not buying you illegal drinks," said Hermione, crossing her arms firmly.
"I'd pay for it of course," said Sirius, giving Hermione his sweetest smile.
"Not going to happen," said Hermione, staring Sirius down.
"Right… so how about some butterbeers?" said James clapping his hands together with a smile.
"A round of butterbeers then?" said a voice from beside Hermione.
She turned and looked up at a smiling girl about in her mid to late twenties. Her first thought was how pretty the girl was. The young woman's face was pleasant to look at and she had curves that would make any boy take a second glance. She had a barmaid's outfit on but what really stood out were the sparkling heels that she had on. It was then that Hermione realized she was staring at a young Madam Rosemerta.
"Ah Rosemerta, darling! We were just talking about you. You look beautiful today," said Sirius, sending her a wink.
Rosemerta chuckled and shook her head. "Charming as ever, Black. I was wonderin' when you lot would make your way to my pub."
"Aw, did you miss us over the summer holiday?" grinned James.
"Don't flatter yourselves too much, boys," said Rosemerta with a wink. "Now who's this?" Rosemerta gestured towards Hermione with a smile. "I see that you've let her sit at the table instead of pulling up a chair! She must be special."
"I'm Hermione Dawson," said Hermione "and this is now the second time I've heard that they make girls pull up a chair instead of actually joining them. You all are awful!" she said as she sent the boys disapproving looks while they grinned back at her.
Sirius laughed. "That's because this booth is meant for us, they were just visiting."
"But you're letting me – Oh!" That's when it resonated in her what Sirius had said. They considered her one of them and part of the group now. They could have pulled up a chair for her and she never would have known that that's how they treated people they didn't think would stick around. Instead, they made room for her. She was truly touched and had no words.
Remus was looking at her with a sparkle in his eyes and he started to laugh, "you seem surprised that we like you. I thought that would have been obvious by now."
Hermione felt almost giddy and couldn't control the smile that was forming on her flushed face.
Rosemerta was still standing there, looking slightly awkward now but still smiling. "I'll be back with your butterbeers."
"Wait!" Sirius almost jumped out of his seat, smacking James in the face in the process, by trying to get Rosemerta's attention. "I would like one firewhiskey as well."
Rosemerta stopped and stared at Sirius before bursting out laughing. "I know full well that you are not of age, Sirius Black!"
Sirius put on his best winning smile. "Rosemerta… come on, my birthday is in three days, can't we just keep this between us?"
Hermione noticed Remus grinning while rolling his eyes as Sirius did a lame circle with his finger while bouncing his eyebrows up and down.
"Fat chance," said Rosemerta with a smirk before walking away, her heels clicking as they hit the wooden floors.
James put his hand on Sirius's shoulder, "next time, Padfoot."
Sirius sighed. "It was worth a shot. But I actually have something very important to tell you guys!"
"Oh? And what would that be?" asked Remus, raising his eyebrow.
"So you know our new Defense professor, Professor Warbeck?" said Sirius.
"Yeah, I like her, I hope she sticks around," said Peter.
"Nah, I bet you a galleon she'll be gone by the end of the year. No one ever lasts more than a year in that position," said James.
"You're on," grinned Peter and the two boys shook hands.
"Listen, listen," said Sirius, and everyone hushed and paid attention. "I think she's related to Celestina Warbeck!"
There was a slight pause before James started laughing. "That singer that my mum listens to?"
"She looks nothing like her except that she's short," said Remus. "And way shorter than Celestina Warbeck, may I add."
"Think about it! How common is the last name Warbeck? They must be related," said Sirius confidently.
"It's a possibility," said Hermione, not really buying it. Their tiny professor had been there for two months now, someone would have found out if they were related by now.
"Well, I'm going to prove it," said Sirius with a mischievous grin, causing Remus, Hermione, and Peter to groan. This would just be another plan of his that would land him in detention.
Hermione knew it would be stupid to ask him what he was planning so she decided to stay quiet.
"I'm going to head to the loo," said Peter after a moment's pause.
"Hurry back, Wormy!" Sirius called out to him as Peter rolled his eyes and walked away.
Soon after Peter left, Rosemerta arrived with their butterbeers and Hermione was grateful to have the warm drink in her hands.
"I can't believe that you are able to order anything from this pub and you still went with a butterbeer, something third years can order! Disgraceful." said Sirius, shaking his head at her.
Pursing her lips, Hermione narrowed her eyes and brought the pint to her lips and took a long sip while staring at Sirius before placing it back down in front of her. "I like it."
Remus laughed as Sirius grinned at her. "Whatever you say, Hermione."
"You know, I've just noticed that you guys haven't called me Dawson in a while," remembered Hermione.
"Would you rather us call you that?" asked James, raising an eyebrow.
"No!" laughed Hermione. "I just thought it was interesting."
"I guess we've just gotten to know you better," said James with a short shrug.
"But you still refer to Lily as 'Evans' when you speak to her, do you not know her well enough to call her by her first name?" asked Hermione curiously and James's face twisted into confusion as he processed this.
"Speaking of the devil," said Sirius, nodding his head in the direction of the door of the pub and all of their heads turned.
A large group of girls from their year and Mary entered the pub led by Lily herself. After a second, Hermione realized that it was the group of Hufflepuffs that Mary and Lily spent so much time with. They were laughing and carrying shopping bags of their own. Luckily enough for them, a large table near the front window had recently opened up and the group of girls headed towards it.
James had gone completely silent as he stared across the pub at Lily.
"Aw, why don't you just talk to her, Prongs," said Sirius, giving his best friend a supportive look. "It's been a month."
"You're right, I should," said James but he didn't look very enthusiastic.
"She's just over there, go on over and say hi," encouraged Hermione. She knew Lily was done snubbing James, all he had to do was make an effort.
"What? Here?" said James looking surprised at Hermione. "In front of everyone?"
"James, are you scared?" asked Remus with a smirk but James just pursed his lips and took a sip of his butterbeer.
"Oh for heaven's sake," said Hermione. "You're being ridiculous!"
Getting to her feet, Hermione walked to the other side of the table and grabbed onto James's sleeve and yanked but he was still resisting, clinging to the table for support. Remus and Sirius watched on in amusement.
"James, come on," said Hermione, giving him a stern look
"No, I've changed my mind, Hermione," said James as he pulled against her grip on him. "I should wait a little longer."
With a sigh, Hermione released his arm and pursed her lips.
But James wasn't paying attention. He was staring at the table at the front of the pub, longingly looking at Lily as she happily chatted to the group of girls.
"James?" said Remus but James didn't seem to hear him.
Hermione coughed to try to get his attention but it didn't work either.
"James…" said Remus a little louder but this time with a smirk.
James' head snapped back to reality and looked around. "Huh?"
"You look a little lost there, Prongs," said Remus grinning at his friend across the table.
"Why don't you just talk to her, James?" said Hermione, crossing back over to her side of the booth and returning to her seat beside Remus.
"She still won't talk to me," mumbled James with a small frown.
Hermione sighed. "I am quite positive that she'll have a warmer reaction to you now. You haven't tried talking to her in ages. I think in her own way she kind of misses you pestering her."
It wasn't a lie, Hermione had caught Lily staring at James when he wasn't looking numerous times. It was as if she missed James bothering her.
"Wow, pestering," said James rolling his eyes. "Thanks, Hermione."
Sirius and Remus laughed and Hermione smiled apologetically. "I didn't mean it that way. Just go talk to her."
"She's never going to like me," said James and he looked so defeated that Hermione had a wild urge to hug him.
"You could always try being her friend first," suggested Hermione gently.
There was a pause as James considered this.
"What if she blows me off in front of the Hufflepuffs?" asked James, looking worried.
"That doesn't seem like the most likely possibility," said Remus looking over at the girls' table, "given the fact that she's headed over here now."
Lily must have just spotted Hermione because she had abandoned her table and was walking towards them, grinning and waving at Hermione.
Almost mechanically, James's hand went through his hair before he started trying to smooth down his clothes.
By the time Lily had reached the table, James looked more of a mess than he did previously.
"Ready, Hermione?" asked Lily with a smile. "The girls are really excited to meet you."
"Yes, I believe I'm about ready," said Hermione. She turned to look back at James and sent him another stern look before kicking him under the table.
"Hey!" exclaimed James in pain, but his mad expression softened when he saw Lily staring at him in confusion. "Oh, right-. Er, hello Eva—Lily."
Hermione could visibly see James gulp as he awkwardly got to his feet and faced her. It was the closest she's seen them next to each other since their fight.
"Hello, James," said Lily, clearly amused.
With a clear of his throat, James finally began talking. "Look, I just want to apologize for what happened at the lake. I get it, I was immature and shouldn't have done that to Snive—Severus."
James almost looked like he was in pain calling Snape by his first name. "I know I should stop hexing Slytherins and landing in detention, and I know that I can be a bother but I can be different. I'll stop asking you out since you clearly would rather date a giant squid," said James, his voice oozing with humility. "But maybe we could be… friends?"
A smile crept across Lily's face and she seemed moved by James's words, and Hermione had to admit that James did sound sincere, and slightly desperate. "Thank you James, that actually means a lot. We can try being friends on one condition."
"Anything," said James, his eyes were wide with surprise that he was even getting this far.
"Just stop hexing students in the hallways because you like it," said Lily. "And that includes Severus. I may not be friends with him anymore but it's still wrong."
Hermione could see James fighting back a retort but to her surprise he bit it back and forced a smile. "Deal."
Lily beamed, clearly impressed. "Wow, thank you, James."
"Since we're all friends again why don't we all eat together at the feast tonight? Mary too, of course," said Remus.
Hermione turned to him and smiled, "that's a great idea!"
"You know what? Sure, why not?" said Lily with a smile to all of them.
At that moment Peter came back to the table and his beady eyes almost popped out of his head at the sight of Lily and James standing next to each other smiling.
"What'd I miss?" he asked and the rest of them laughed.
"Alright Hermione, let's go. And bring your butterbeer!" said Lily smiling. She looked back at the boys. "It was nice to see you all, I guess I'll see you again at the feast tonight."
"Bye Lily," said Remus while Sirius waved and Peter and James just stared in awe.
Hermione grabbed her butterbeer and bags and got up to follow Lily who was crossing the pub. She got a few tables away before turning and looking back at the table. Peter had taken her seat and was chatting happily with the boys. They all seemed engrossed in their conversation but Remus happened to look up and catch Hermione's eye. He grinned and waved in her direction. Smiling, Hermione waved back before turning and continuing to follow Lily.
Lily led Hermione across the crowded pub to a large round table near the windows looking out on Hogsmeade village. At the table sat Mary, beside five Hufflepuff girls that Hermione recognized from class.
"Hey guys," smiled Lily as she approached the table. "You all know Hermione, but I don't think you've all been formally introduced."
"No, we haven't," said a brunette, bespectacled girl with a grin who was sitting next to Mary. Hermione struggled to place her name, whenever she looked at her the name Alexis came to mind but that didn't seem quite right.
Lily laughed. "Well, this is Hermione Dawson. As you know, Hermione transferred here from Beauxbaton this year, you've obviously seen her in class and have heard lots about her from both Mary and myself. Hermione that would be Alexa Wainwright."
Alexa gave a friendly wave and Hermione smiled back at her. She had been close with guessing her name but also felt slightly guilty for not remembering the Hufflepuffs' names.
One by one, Lily named each of the girls. Next to Alexa was a short, dark skinned girl with large brown eyes and a friendly smile whose name was Michelle Pickett. Beside her was a girl named Doris Cassidy who had short black hair, bright eyes, and a mischievous grin. The third girl was Joana Kelley, she was pale with curly orange hair and it didn't surprise Hermione that she spoke with an Irish accent when she greeted her. And the last seat was taken by a thin and pretty blonde girl with green eyes and light freckles covering her nose whose name was Claudia Mahoney.
"You would also meet Sarah Connelly but she ditched us to go on a date. Can you believe it? Her and Jared Muller – you know, the captain of our Quidditch team – are officially an item now," said Doris as Hermione sat in the empty seat next to Mary, Lily sitting on the other side of Hermione.
Mary raised an eyebrow "I didn't know they were official, I thought they were just messing around."
The blonde girl, Claudia laughed. "Doris is ahead of the game apparently, but not too far off. Sarah told us last night in the dormitory that she was going to ask Jared to go steady during their date today. They're probably over at Madam Puddifoot's right now talking about it over some tea."
"Good for them," said Lily with a smile. "It's obvious that they've liked each other for a while."
"Marcus Donner asked me out yesterday," blurted out Mary, who was received with gasps from around the table, excluding Hermione who was sipping her butterbeer, feeling overwhelmed, and having trouble keeping up with who was who.
"What did you say?" asked Joana eagerly, looking excited.
Mary shrugged. "I told him I'd think about it and let him know for the next Hogsmeade trip because I already had plans for today. He should have asked earlier."
"Who's that again?" asked Hermione, feeling quite foolish as she tried to remember all the Hufflepuff girls' names while trying to follow the conversation.
"He's a Ravenclaw boy in our year, he's also the Captain of their Quidditch team," said Michelle kindly with a smile. "I'm going to get us a round of butterbeers, I know you already have one Hermione but would you like anything else?"
"Oh I'm fine, but thank you," said Hermione, slightly taken aback at the girl's friendliness. As Michelle walked away, Hermione began to think about how she had never really had a Hufflepuff friend during her time at school, but she began to think that she wouldn't mind Michelle being her first.
"He's also the boy in our charms class that was constantly the augamenti charm on himself that day it was very hot," said Mary with an amused expression.
"Ah, yes, now I remember him," said Hermione thinking back to the Charms lesson from the beginning of the month.
"And we all saw James and him shooting the spell at each other from across the room as well," grinned Lily and Mary laughed.
"Speaking of James…" began Alexa. "What on earth was that about over there?"
Even though the pub did not have the best lighting, Hermione swore she saw Lily blush at the question.
"You know, I cannot believe it entirely myself but James actually apologized for being an arrogant toe-rag," smiled Lily. "Those weren't exactly his words but it all adds up to the same thing. He wants to be friends. I think he's finally maturing."
"Took him five and a half years," mumbled Mary causing Lily to reach over Hermione and give her a friendly smack on the arm, making Mary grin wider.
Doris gave a heavy sigh. "Everyone is getting together with good-looking Quidditch captains and I can't even get a date this year. First Sarah with Jared, then Mary and Marcus, and now Lily with James…"
"Are you confessing your love for the Slytherin team captain?" giggled Alexa.
"God no!" said Doris, looking aghast.
"Calm down, Doris" laughed Mary. "Marcus and I are not even remotely 'together' in any sense of the word... He asked me to go with him to Hogsmeade today but, as I've said, I already had plans so I told him no."
"And the thought of James and me being together is ridiculous!" said Lily with wide eyes.
Hermione, who had just begun to take a long swig of her butterbeer coughed into her pint upon hearing this. Oh how little Lily knew…
"How 'bout you Hermione, you've been 'ere two months now, any boy catch your fancy?" asked Joana as Hermione tried not to bring attention to herself, obviously failing at her task.
"Oh! Um, I haven't really been looking…" said Hermione truthfully. With her being stuck twenty years in the past, it didn't seem like the right time to be searching for a boyfriend. She didn't know why the question embarrassed her so much but she could feel her face start to burn.
"Just because you haven't been looking doesn't mean you haven't noticed," said Doris with a grin. "Especially when hanging around those Gryffindor boys all the time."
"They're just friends," said Hermione. It was weird to even think of them in that context, especially since she was in the wrong timeline and knew of them in the future.
"But they're all so good-looking! Well, maybe not so much Peter, bless his little soul, but the other three are quite the lookers, especially Sirius," said Doris and she sighed and looked over in the direction of where the boys were sitting.
"Sirius is an arse," said Mary bluntly.
"Why is it that you've always hated him? You never tell," said Claudia and Hermione happened to be mirroring her thoughts as well. She didn't understand the great dislike Mary had for Sirius. Yes, he could be rude, reckless, and an all-around pain in the arse at times but Hermione did see the side of him that was kind and she greatly did enjoy being in his company.
"I have my reasons," was all Mary said in response.
"Well I for one agree with Doris that James, Sirius, and Remus are nice to look at," said Claudia with a shy grin, "but I feel out of the three of them that Remus is actually the best looking. You've spent a lot of time with them Hermione, wouldn't you agree?"
Hermione knew Claudia was trying to be friendly and include her in the conversation but she couldn't help feeling taken aback by the question. She could see where the girls were coming from with James and Sirius. Sirius was devilishly handsome and had rugged charm while James was fit and athletic from Quidditch and his messy hair drove some girls nuts. She had noticed a handful of girls admiring the pair of them down at the lake and it came as no surprise to her, but Remus? She had never put much thought into it.
"Really, Remus?" asked Mary, looking puzzled and saving Hermione from the embarrassment of having to answer. "Not that he's bad looking, and he's the sweetest, but the best looking out of the three of them?"
Claudia blushed and tried to hide a smile. "Oh I don't know. He just seems so strong and he has these big, kind green eyes that look like a puppy's. And he does that weird thing with his smile that is kind of adorable."
The more Claudia spoke the more Hermione could see where she was coming from. Claudia was right, Remus was pretty strong, he had pulled her out of the trick step like she weighed nothing and didn't even seem strained. True, he wasn't traditionally handsome like James or Sirius but he definitely had his charms, like the crooked smile he does when he tries not to laugh or the way his eyes would light up and sparkled when he spoke about something he loves. The combo of his sandy blonde hair and the green eyes was slightly striking too and made him stand out from his dark haired best friends. Unlike James and Sirius, Remus must have been completely oblivious to his subtle handsomeness, and especially oblivious that girls like Claudia, who clearly liked him, thought he was better looking than his friends. Hermione grinned as she imagined what his expression would be like if she told him what Claudia had said, she imagined he would be completely shocked and flustered. Hermione began to think that poor Peter must feel very inadequate surrounded by his friends, but then she pushed that thought aside, Peter wasn't getting any pity from her and also thinking about the Marauders as good looking was making her very uncomfortable.
"I've returned with the drinks!" said Michelle from behind Hermione, cutting the conversation short. She placed a large tray of seven butterbeers down at the center of the table and all the girls made a grab for one as Michelle sat back down between Alexa and Doris. "There's a really long line at the counter, it's as if the entire student body is in this pub right now. Please tell me you aren't all still talking about boys."
"Guilty," grinned Alexa.
Michelle shook her head but was smiling. "You're probably making Hermione think that all we ever talk about is boys," she said shaking her head. She looked at Hermione, "which is not true, by the way, we usually have much less trivial conversations."
"It's true," agreed Lily.
"Boys are not trivial," defended Doris, crossing her arms. "I just really like boys…"
The rest of the girls laughed at this and Doris cracked a smile.
"It just started by explaining why Sarah wasn't 'ere, but we can definitely talk 'bout somethin' else," said Joana.
"How are you adjusting to Hogwarts, Hermione? Do you like it here so far?" asked Michelle, trying to change the subject away from boys, which Hermione greatly appreciated.
"Oh it's great, I really like the classes and the people I've met," said Hermione, grinning.
Michelle was true to her word and the topic of boys never came back up throughout their lunch. Hermione was grateful for Michelle because she had never been good at talking about boys or her feelings towards them, except sometimes with Ginny. It was one of the reasons she had never really gotten along with Pavarti and Lavender during her time, they always spoke about boys, Lavender especially. During her last year during her time, Lavender seemed quite persistent in questioning Hermione about whether or not she was involved with Ron. Even though she did have growing feelings for Ron it really wasn't any of Lavender's business. She wondered why Lavender even cared so much about whether or not she and Ron had a thing.
The rest of her time in The Three Broomsticks was nice as Hermione settled into the group of Hufflepuff girls. They truly were an interesting group, and it was fascinating to see how different they all were from one another. Michelle and Claudia seemed shier than the other three but were always welcoming and trying to get Hermione involved in the conversation. Alexa and Joana liked to crack jokes and made it their mission to get all the girls at the table to laugh. And Doris was the loudest and had no qualms with saying whatever was on her mind, and as annoyingly entertaining it could be, Hermione believed Doris to at least be someone who she could trust, but probably not with her gossip.
They spent a long time in the Three Broomsticks. By the time they finished talking and decided to leave, most of the pub had emptied and what was visible of the sun behind the clouds seemed much lower in the sky. The eight girls headed back into the quaint village and there was a crisp chill in the air that made Hermione pull James's scarf tighter and she considered taking out her new scarf and putting that on as well, it was as if the November chill had come a day early.
The girls questioned Hermione on what she had seen already in the village and came to a conclusion that the boys had given her a pretty good tour, but should have brought her to the abandoned shack at the edge of the village. Hermione knew perfectly well why the boys had glossed over the shrieking shack. Their excuse was that it wasn't very interesting but the girls seemed to think otherwise.
As they stopped at the fence that separated the town from the shack, Michelle walked up from behind Hermione and stood next to her.
"Apparently that shack is haunted," said Michelle. "Some people are starting to call it the Shrieking Shack."
"Is that so?" said Hermione, staring up at the abandoned building, but she could see Michelle nodding out of the corner of her eye.
"Over the past few years residents have heard screams coming from inside it, but the whole building is boarded up, there's no way in or out," said Michelle. "The Fat Friar told us that not even the ghosts venture in there because they're frightened. Some sort of spirit or monster apparently lives in there."
Hermione's heart started to ache to think that the residents thought a monster lived there when in reality it was Remus who had to transform there every full moon, and the next full moon was in just a week. She was sure that Remus knew what the rumors were and she wished she could know what went through his mind when he heard them.
"It's fitting that you're seeing it today since it's Halloween," said Michelle, giving Hermione a smile and a small nudge. Hermione forced a smile back. "Come on, let's head back to the castle for the feast. You're in for a real treat!"
.:~*~*~*~*~:.
The Great Hall was energetic with excitement from the post-Hogsmeade trip and also the incredible food that cluttered the four long tables. Each year Hermione swore the food was better than the last and enjoyed every bite that she took. She was also enjoying the company of her fellow Gryffindors around her.
In Hogsmeade Lily had agreed to join Hermione and the boys at the feast and she had brought Mary along with her as Remus requested. Sirius, James, Lily, and Peter were now sitting across from Hermione at the Gryffindor table while she was sandwiched between Remus and Mary. The dynamic of the group was completely different with all of them there and Hermione realized that today was the first day she had truly been happy since she landed in the past. A part of her felt like she really did belong.
Hermione smiled to herself as she glanced at her friends around the table. It was the first time that year that the entirety of the sixth year Gryffindors were eating dinner together. Not only were they eating together, but they were all actually getting along.
Maybe it had to do with the excitement and happiness that came from their visit into Hogsmeade or the delicious feast but James and Lily were happily chatting like old friends and Mary and Sirius weren't actually bickering for a change. All it took was for Halloween to bring them all together.
And tear them all apart, reminded a small voice in the back of Hermione's head.
All of a sudden Hermione's happiness ended just like that as she looked at the people she had gotten close to over the past two months. Her eyes fell on James and Lily and her breath caught as it dawned on her that in five years from that very moment the two of them would be killed. Her two friends that she had really grown to care for, dead, and nothing she could do about it. Five years from that very night…
Her attention switched to Sirius, who was still happily shoveling food into his mouth next to James. She looked at his bright, young, and handsome face but all she could see was the gaunt looking skeletal like man she had encountered after he had escaped from Azkaban when she was 14. Five years from today and he would walk into the ruins of the Potter's house and see his friends dead, betrayed by another friend before getting blamed himself and spending 12 years imprisoned for it.
Yet another awful thought crossed her mind. Sirius had died the day she was sent to 1976. Had his death happened so suddenly that she had forgotten? Or had she pushed that horrid thought far into the back of her head? It had happened only moments before her life got turned upside down and she had never had time to mourn his death. The Sirius Black in her time was dead and now Harry had no family left. Tears were threatening to spill from her face as she torn her eyes away from Sirius feeling sick to her stomach.
And the betrayer, Peter, was looking young and innocent as he spoke to Mary from across the table. He was the cause of all of this. The Potter's secret keeper and Voldemort's spy. Without him, Lily, James, and Sirius would all be alive, Harry would have a happy loving family, and chances are she never would have been thrown into the past.
Turning to her right, Hermione looked at Mary. She had no knowledge of how Mary's life turned out after all of this. How did she handle the death of James and Lily? Was she even still alive or was she another causality of the first war? Never had Mary ever been mentioned to Hermione in her time and Mary certainly wasn't a member of the Order of the Phoenix. Mary had been a breath of fresh air for Hermione when she was overwhelmed by all of the people she knew when she got here. All Hermione could do was hope that her fate wasn't even half as bad as the fates that Hermione knew about.
And then that left Remus. Oh poor Remus… A boy who never thought he would have a friends or a normal future due to his lycanthropy. Hermione turned to her left and looked at the boy with the sandy hair that as of yet did not have premature greys like it would in the future. He was one of her favorite people in this time period and it hurt so much to think of the life he would soon have. Five years from that moment and he'll have lost four of his closest friends in the entire world and not know why until 12 years later. He'll spend those 12 years blaming the wrong person while being shunned from the wizarding world for being something he had no control over. He was the last person she had seen before she got sent back twenty years and he had been so broken after witnessing the death of his last friend.
"Hermione…?"
The alarm in Remus's voice brought Hermione back from her memory. She hadn't even noticed when Remus had turned to look at her as she stared at him but his eyes were wide with concern. The others around her had gone silent and she could feel hot tears silently moving down her face.
"Hermione, you're shaking…" said Remus in a soft voice.
Hermione looked down at her hands and they were indeed shaking. The rest of the group all stared at her with mixed expressions of shock and concern.
Hermione had never felt so helpless and small at the same time. Panic was rising up through her body, threatening to suffocate her. She felt ashamed at her emotions and quickly looked around before her eyes stopped at the staff table. To her surprise, Dumbledore was looking back at her. He stared down at her with an expression that was unreadable but also somewhat knowing.
"Hermione, what's happened?" asked Remus again in a soft voice, causing Hermione to look back at him. He reached out and gently put his hand on Hermione's shoulder and she involuntarily flinched at his touch. Pain was evident in his eyes as he pulled his hand away.
"I'm sorry," breathed Hermione. "I-I have to go…"
Quickly, Hermione got up from the Gryffindor table and ran from the Great Hall, ignoring the glances and whispers that trailed behind her.
She was thinking fast as she entered the Grand Stair Case, but she had no idea where to go. Her first thought was to go to Dumbledore's office but she couldn't because he was still at the feast.
For an irrational moment Hermione considered using a secret passage to leave Hogwarts' grounds to just get away but in her panic to escape none of the passages were coming to mind.
She couldn't go back to the common room, she needed to be alone and they would obviously find her there. But then again they had the Marauder's Map, they'd be able to find her wherever she went.
Except for one place.
Hermione took off up the stairwell, exhausting herself in the process. She only stopped to wait for the moving stairs, other than that she didn't stop moving until she reached a large stone wall in a corridor on the seventh floor.
I need a place to go to calm down. I need a place to go to be alone with my own thoughts.
A brilliant wooden door appeared before her and Hermione didn't hesitate to rush forward and go into the Room of Requirements.
The room that appeared for her made her literally stop in her tracks as the great wooden door clicked shut behind her.
It was the most beautiful room she had ever seen. The Room of Requirements had created a room that represented anything Hermione could have ever asked for.
It was a decently sized room that was entirely lined with bookshelves. Where the walls were visible she could tell that it was paneled with a beautiful mahogany wood, and the wooden floor was barely to be seen beneath a large decorated scarlet and gold oriental rug at her feet. There was a soft light given from the torches around the room that made the room look as if it were glowing in amber light.
Numerous desks were scattered around the room leaving space in the center for squishy looking couches that faced a roaring warm fireplace that added to the beautifully lit room.
The room was as if she had mixed a library with the Gryffindor common room, two of her favorite and most comforting places.
Memorized, Hermione stepped farther in the room and the warmth of the fire immediately lessened her panic. She took a deep breath and inhaled the rich aroma of scented candles that she just noticed on the desks. The aromas of vanilla, apples, and cinnamon, greeted her senses and reminded her of home.
But that thought of home immediately resurfaced the memory of why she was here in the first place and she felt the tears begin to well up in her eyes again.
She crossed the room and sank into one of the couches by the fire and pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her face in them.
It wasn't fair.
It wasn't fair that these people she had grown to care for, people who were so kind and deserved the best out of life, would all wind up dead or alone. It wasn't fair that she was stuck here in the past and there was nothing she could do to get back home, and yet there nothing she could do to save her friends now that she was here.
Hermione stayed in the room and cried for a while, not knowing what to do, but allowing herself to mourn her friends' premature deaths. She was so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't realized she wasn't alone anymore until she heard a soft cough from behind her.
Shocked that someone had managed to find her hiding spot, her head snapped up and she looked towards the door where Professor Dumbledore was standing, looking at her with a great sense of pity.
"Professor Dumbledore?" croaked Hermione, her voice sore from crying. She quickly tried to wipe the tears from her face but it was useless, he had obviously seen her crying.
He gave her a sad smile as he crossed further into the room until he stood before her in front of the fireplace. "That was quite the display in the Great Hall, Ms. Granger."
Hermione involuntarily flinched at the sound of real name. The use of it sent more pain through her heart and reminded her of how she shouldn't be here.
When she didn't say anything Dumbledore continued. "I'm guessing that being here longer isn't making it easier?"
"Not entirely, sir," said Hermione as she stared back down at her knees and sniffled. "The happier I become here the harder it gets knowing there's nothing I can do."
It was Dumbledore's turn to say nothing and Hermione looked back up at him, desperate for help. "Please, there must be some way for me to change the past. How damaged could the future become if I change something and saved people? I could make a difference!"
The expression that covered the old headmaster's face answered that question for her. He looked deeply troubled and Hermione knew that she shouldn't be implying the awful things that were to happen in the future but she had no one else to talk to about it and was craving for someone to understand.
"You're a brilliant witch, Hermione. Do I even have to answer that for you?" asked Dumbledore sadly.
Hermione closed her eyes and shook her head. "I feel like I am to blame if I don't prevent what could be made preventable."
"How are you to blame for something that has happened even before you got here?" soothed Dumbledore. "Do not burden yourself with sufferings that are out of your control. You know what would happen if you change something, you and others could become unborn and could end up making the future a drastically worse place. Wizards are not meant to meddle with time. These things already happened before you were sent here, and whatever it was must still unfold."
Hermione took a deep breath and nodded. "It's just not fair," she whispered and then gave a dark chuckled before wiping another tear from her eye.
Dumbledore smiled. "Ah, and that is the greatest misfortune of life, that it can be so remarkably unfair, even to the people who have done nothing wrong. But we as people are strong enough and wise enough to be able to move on from the unfairness of the world and find beauty elsewhere."
She didn't know why but his words did somehow make her feel better, but she still felt useless. "I'm guessing you're going to suggest I stay here at Hogwarts if I requested to leave again."
A twinkled appeared in his blue eyes and Dumbledore gave her an amused smile. "I believe you to be strong enough to handle it."
"And if I'm not?"
"Then we'll go from there," said Dumbledore simply. "But you are wise enough to know that sometimes it is best to be alone with one's thoughts than to risk making a situation worse by fighting through the pain and letting it fester. You rightly are a Gryffindor."
It was that last statement that truly resonated with Hermione and cleared her head.
"I think I can do it," said Hermione.
"I know you can," said Dumbledore. "And remember, each passing day is one day closer to the day we figure out a way to send you home, because I will find a way for you to return."
With that, he smiled and started to walk towards the door.
"Sir! Wait!"
Dumbledore stopped and turned back to face Hermione on the couch with a smile. "Yes, Ms. Granger?"
"How did you find me here?"
Another grin spread across his face, but this one was full of mystery. "There aren't many things or places in this castle that I don't know about; even if they aren't marked on a map."
With that last word he sent her the slightest of winks and then it hit her.
"Sir… you weren't the one who altered… d-do you know about the…?"
But she didn't bother finishing the sentence because the truth was written in Dumbledore's eyes. At least that's what she chose to believe because at that moment he gave her one last smile before turning around and walking out of the room, leaving a bewildered Hermione alone once more.
A/N: Wow! This is by far my longest chapter. I've been trying to write this chapter for over a year now here and there while I've been busy so I've had so many ideas for it. I hope you enjoyed it and aren't too angry about my long hiatus from the story. Thanks for sticking with me.
And you've might have noticed that I changed my name to AccioStories, so now my name on here matches my tumblr account! Feel free to message me!
Part of this chapter is quoted from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, chapter 5: "The Dementor".
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