Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters.
Chapter Nineteen
Hermione's Past
As soon as the spell hit her a wave of images came to her mind and filled her head with memories, so much so that some pain had built up in her head that had eventually caused her to lose consciousness. Ron, of course, caught her, and held her in his arms, hoping she would take some kind of comfort in that, knowing she always had when she was awake. As Hermione sat there the images seemed to run together as if she was in a lucid dream.
O
It was odd how the memories that returned to her also seemed to highlight memories that she had not thought of in detail in a long time. Take her memories of the incidents that happened at her primary school. She remembered the day when she was laughed at for having 'beaver teeth' when suddenly the teeth of the boy teasing her had started to grow before their very eyes. She thought this was very odd, especially since she had been thinking that it would be nice if he knew what it was like to have 'funny teeth' and then it happened. She had tried to convince herself that it was just a coincidence, but she was never quite able to do it. Then, there was the other time a few weeks later when someone had made fun of her because of her extremely bushy hair. The teasing was so bad that she was on the verge of tears, wishing that the girl would just stop talking already. Immediately after that thought the girl was silenced, and even though the girl was moving her mouth and it was obvious she was still trying to talk, no sounds came out.
Now being the top student in her class like she was, she could no longer think that these occurrences were merely coincidental, and that weird things seemed to happen to people when she was angry or scared. By an early age she realized that she was different than her peers. She could do things that others couldn't. She had tried to find out what made her so different, looking in all the books she could get her hands on to explain it. However, even after reading book after book, she couldn't find out the meaning behind this, though the longer it took to solve this mystery the more she wanted to.
It was over the summer before her final year of primary school that she finally came up with the theory that whatever the explanation was for her differences was hidden somehow. She also resolved to find some kind of control of the gift (as she called the strange feeling to herself) so that no one could tell she was different. She knew that it was too late for her primary school since all of her peers thought she was a freak especially after the 'mute incident', but soon she was going to be starting secondary school and she wanted to make a better impression there.
So, when she was picked on the first day of school by a girl that she would almost have considered a friend and she felt the buildup of emotions along with the strange feeling, she used logic to keep herself in check. She had learned that if she tried to force control over the strange feeling, it only made things worse, and the energy would burst out of her causing havoc. However, if she kept a level head, she would have enough strength to stop anything from happening and that was exactly what she did. She was proud of herself for controlling her gift, and when she got home, she told her mum all about it (noticing her mum was nervously proud of her), but this was not the start of the school year she had been hoping for.
As her memories moved on to her eleventh birthday, she realized that she had probably been subconsciously repressing her earlier memories, keeping her mind from focusing too much on these memories that made it clear she was not normal. She became so use to her repression that even when she had learned about magic, she hadn't applied it to herself. Hermione's memories of her eleventh birthday had always been a little hazy as she remembered staying home from school that day and just being with her parents. She hadn't even remembered doing anything special … now, however, it was like a veil was being pulled away and the details of that day came into focus like they never could before.
She woke up early that morning, feeling the excited nerves she always got on her birthday, she couldn't wait to start her day. She quickly got dressed and made her way to the kitchen to get breakfast. She was glad to see that her parents were already up, and they wished her happy birthday. Her mum handed her a plate with a full English breakfast on it and Hermione smiled, appreciating her mum's effort in making their traditional birthday breakfast.
"Am I not going to school today?" Hermione asked when it was nearly the time they would leave but her parents hadn't seemed to be ready to go. She hadn't realized that it was this late because she was talking happily with her dad, but once she noticed the time, she couldn't ignore it.
"Actually, we got a letter yesterday telling us that someone from a special secondary school was going to stop by to talk to you," her dad said frowning.
"Really," Hermione said excitedly, but was a little wary at the tone her dad was using and then she furrowed her eyebrow. "But what about your patients, don't you have appointments today." It was the middle of the week after all, and they always had a regularly busy schedule.
"Actually, our schedule cleared out yesterday," her dad said shaking his head, looking uncomfortable. "It was the weirdest thing, we never had so many cancellations in one day. Not to mention the few times we tried to fill in the droped appointments with people on the waiting list we were unable to make an appointment. Once we got the letter in the mail at the office, we decided that we would just take the day off. Of course, Laureen will still be in the office if there is any kind of emergency and to handle the calls, but your mother and I will be home all day. Since it's your birthday, we thought we might go out to lunch or to a museum after this visit."
"I'd like that," Hermione responded to the last thing her dad said, but she was a little wary about how her parent's schedule seemed to clear up (and her dad obviously had the same feeling judging by his expression).
"Honestly, I'm rather pleased that our schedule cleared up, it's not every day that one turns eleven, after all," her mum smiled, and Hermione couldn't help returning the smile feeling excited about her birthday again. Instead of asking questions about the special school that her parents mentioned, Hermione decided to continue her conversation with her dad.
It was about half an hour later that the doorbell rang, and Hermione started to really feel some nervous anticipation about this meeting. She had no idea what was going to happen, but she sensed her life was about to change with this meeting. All of the Grangers got up and as her dad went to answer the door, Hermione and her mum settled in the couch in the living room, though they could hear her dad open the door.
"Hello, I'm Professor McGonagall," they could hear the stern voice say, "I hope you received my letter informing you I would like to talk to Hermione Granger."
"Yes, we received your letter yesterday, please come inside," her dad said.
"Thank you," the stern voice replied as a strict-looking woman entered the room. She had a stern face, giving the impression that you would have to be crazy to mess with her, and there seemed to be a sense of power emanating from her. However, when Professor McGonagall turned to look at Hermione, she gave a small smile and held out her hand, making Hermione feel a little better. "Miss Granger, it's nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too, Professor," Hermione answered and then offered, "would you like any tea or refreshments?"
"No, but thank you," Professor McGonagall replied with another small smile.
Hermione thought that she might have impressed McGonagall by being well behaved and was pleased with herself.
"I'm here today to tell you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts, to explain what kind of specialized school Hogwarts is, and about the community that you now belong to," Professor McGonagall said briskly.
"I don't understand," Hermione said frowning, how could she be accepted to this school if she had never heard of it? And community … how could being accepted to a certain school make her belong to a new community?
"Hermione, you are a witch," Professor McGonagall said bluntly and waited a moment for an outburst, however the Grangers all seemed to have been rendered speechless so she continued her explanation (knowing the interruption would come at some point). "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a school where you will learn how to control the magic you have."
"You can't be serious … magic … it can't be real!" her mum said looking paled about what she was hearing as she turned from McGonagall to looking at her daughter and then husband. "This can't be real."
"It does not make sense," her dad said agreeing with her mum and shaking his head.
"Actually, I think it finally makes sense," Hermione said, thinking about what she had come to terms with over the summer. Of course, she wouldn't be able to find any information about this if it could be hidden by magic. Not to mention when she thought about everything that had happened around her, the one word, magic, seemed to explain everything. Then she turned back to Professor McGonagall, "I assume that the magical community wants to be kept secret from the normal world."
"Very preceptive Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall smile was more genuine this time. "Yes, since 1692 and the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy was officially established, the wizarding world was kept secret from the Muggle world."
"Muggle world?" Hermione repeated with a frown.
"Muggles are non-magical people," McGonagall said, "you are a Muggle-born, which is a witch or wizard that is born to Muggle parents."
"Is that something common, I mean Muggle born witches … er … and wizards?" Hermione asked, wondering if there were a lot of children out there like her, knowing that they really were different but not knowing why.
"There are usually at least one or two Muggle-borns every year at Hogwarts," McGonagall answered, "however, it just depends on how many Muggles manifest enough magic to be considered witches or wizards."
"Manifest enough magic … so are there Muggles that have magic that isn't enough to be considered a witch?" Hermione asked as she gathered that was what was just said, and McGonagall nodded her head. "How do you know when the Muggles manifest enough magic?"
"The Quill of Acceptance writes in the Book of Acceptance the name of every child in Britian and Ireland as soon as they show the appropriate amount of magic," McGonagall said, "it's a completely impartial judge."
"Does that mean there are wizards that are born without magic?" Hermione asked thoughtfully.
"Yes, there are, and as I think you have surmised, the book and quill were partly created to prevent magical parents from adding their child's name if the child doesn't have enough magic that is necessary to go to Hogwarts. The other main reason is of course to so we can find the Muggle-born children that are out there."
"Does that mean that you know about Muggle-born witches as soon they perform magic?" Hermione frowned, "then why didn't someone come and tell me about magic when that happened? I've known there was something different about me for a while now."
"First of all, the Book of Acceptance is in Hogwarts and only the Headmaster Dumbledore or myself, as I'm Deputy Headmistress have access to the book, and therefore the only ones that know that. Unfortunately, due to the Statute of Secrecy we are not permitted to inform Muggle-borns before they turn eleven, or in the case that they are born between July 16th through August 31st, they are informed by July 15th of the year of their eleventh birthday so they would be notified about Hogwarts and the magical community before the start of the school year that always begins on September 1st."
"So, I supposed I'll know about Hogwarts for almost a year before I go there," Hermione mused feeling lucky and unlucky that she would have to wait so long before she gets to go to school. "Is there anywhere that I can learn more about magic? About the community and the history … about everything!?"
"Diagon Alley is the place to go, for all the supplies you would need to go to Hogwarts can be found there. I will be giving you letter that will contain directions about how to get to Diagon Alley. It can be difficult to get in the first time, especially since Muggles are unable to see the entrance so you have to follow the directions closely." McGonagall explained. "I would recommend that you talk to someone at Flourish and Blotts, which is the bookstore, as they would know how best to get more information. Luckily, it shouldn't be too busy this time of year, so I believe they will be more willing to help you."
"Excuse me, but I have to ask you a few questions before we get too carried away," her dad said, his voice strained as he tried to stay polite, but he was clearly upset. Hermione gasped at the statement and more worrisome the tone he was using, and she turned to look at him. Her parents had not said a word as she asked questions and she had thought they were just shocked, but maybe it was something else.
"I am here to answer any question you may have," McGonagall said, her tone becoming brisker, as she was becoming almost familiar after answering all of the girl's intelligent questions. "I know that it must be difficult for you to learn about magic, and I hope I can ease your mind."
"First of all, I want to know more about the relationship between Muggles and magic folks," her dad stated. "You seemed to gloss over that, but I imagine that it must be a complicated one if magic was hidden away."
"Yes, the relationship between the wizarding world and the Muggle one has been very complicated," McGonagall agreed with a sad expression. "Before the Statute of Secrecy was instated there were plenty of examples of Muggles hunting witches, as well wizards hunting Muggles. The wizarding community believed that if they had separated themselves from the Muggle world that this persecution (on both sides) would stop, but there have still been problems over the years."
"And do magical folks, the ones that have always been magical, do they accept Muggle-borns?" her dad asked next.
"That is an even more complicated question," McGonagall sighed. "Purebloods are witches and wizards that do not have known Muggle or Muggle-born members in their families. Though there are hardly any truly Pureblood families anymore, most reclaim their blood purity statis once all of their grandparents are all magical. As you could probably tell from what I just said, there is a lot of prejudice about blood purity and yes there are several families that believe that Muggle-borns are inferior to themselves. There is no truth to that as every witch and wizard is different, and it doesn't matter what their parentage is. Some of my most extraordinary students have been Muggle-born and there have been several that are hardly acceptable. The same came be said about purebloods and half-bloods … the blood status has nothing to do with magical ability."
"But clearly it matters to the status the person has in your community," her dad stated. "Will Hermione be treated as a second-class citizen?"
"I wish that I could tell you that blood purity doesn't matter, as it truly should not, but I won't lie to you," McGonagall sighed. "Things have gotten better over the centuries, especially in the last nine years, but there are still a lot of purebloods that hold to their old ideals."
"What do you mean when you said, especially in the last nine years?" her dad asked the next pointed question.
"There was a wizarding war that ended at that time," McGonagall answered with another sigh, she could tell that this conversation was taking a bad turn, but she knew that she had to answer the question honestly. She then told the Grangers a brief history of what happened in the war, starting with the Muggle attacks that would then move into attacking Muggle-born and blood traitors. The more she explained the more she could see the effect this was having on the older Grangers, and she didn't like what she was seeing.
"So, you're telling me there was a very bloody war just nine years ago, all about wizards thinking they were better than Muggles and Muggle-borns and I'm supposed to not worry about that anymore," her dad said incredulously. "That I'm supposed to just let my daughter be involved in that world were clearly she will be in danger."
"First of all, it wasn't all wizards that believed that, and the ones that did were the ones that lost the war, things have gotten better …" McGonagall started to explain, trying to control her temper but this perhaps wasn't the best way to calm the situation down.
"I highly doubt that all of the underlining issue of the war have been resolved after the fighting stopped," her dad said thinking about the wars he had known about and knew they issue were never solved easily (or ever). "Can You guarantee that she will be safe if she goes to that school of yours? That she won't be judged or in more danger because of what she is … where she comes from?"
"Of course, I can't guarantee that there are no dangers in the wizarding world, and some of them might involve bigotry," McGonagall started but was interrupted before she could continue.
"Then I don't want her going to that school," her dad tone had a note of finality to it. "Besides, I'm sure that Hermione will be accepted to all the top schools in the country, she doesn't need to learn these things."
"But Dad, I want to go there … I want to go to Hogwarts," Hermione spoke up, she had been a little scared when she listened to McGonagall describe the war but that was nothing to what she felt hearing her dad say these words. She had just found out what she was and that there was a whole new world for her to learn about and immersed herself into. She wanted to learn about magic and more importantly how to use it correctly.
"Hermione, you have such a bright future, why would you want to risk all of that so you can learn magic tricks?" her dad asked.
"I'm sure it's more than just tricks, Dad," Hermione said rolling her eyes. "And I could still have a bright future in the wizarding world …."
"You heard what she said, it will be more difficult for you just because of where you came from," her dad said pointedly.
"It might be more difficult, but I'm sure your daughter will be able to overcome any of these challenges," McGonagall said. "I have been doing this for a very long time and I must say that Hermione is one of the brightest witches I've had the chance to meet, I expect that she could be anything she wanted to be in the wizarding world."
McGonagall was giving her a smile after those words and Hermione couldn't help but return it. However, when she turned to her parents, hoping the words might have loosened their expression, she could see it hadn't helped at all.
"And all she would have to do is risk her life," her dad said pointedly.
"It would be risking her life more if she doesn't go to Hogwarts and learns how to control her magic," McGonagall said, knowing that she had to get this point across, because it was very true. "Magic can be very dangerous if it is left unchecked to manifest."
"But Hermione already has control over her gift … er … magic," her mum said thoughtfully, "didn't you tell me that you were able to stop the strange feeling from taking over?"
Hermione opened her mouth to answer that, but she didn't know what to say. It was true that she had controlled the strange feeling the last time it came up, and she was pretty sure that she could do that in the future too if things ever came up again. However, this argument seemed to be the best chance for her to be allowed to go to Hogwarts and that's what she really wanted to do. Besides, even if she knew things wouldn't explode out of her, that didn't mean she could really control the magic.
"Not to mention, you are exaggerating the danger that Hermione would be in," McGonagall went on before Hermione could say anything. "There might be some risk at Hogwarts, and there might be prejudice, but you can hardly say that doesn't exist in the Muggle world too, and that she wouldn't be faced with similar issues."
"But at least at the 'Muggle' school there will be stability," her dad said. "Your world just went through a major war, it seems, and you are still dealing with the aftermath of it. I don't want my daughter caught in the middle of that!"
"Dad, please …" Hermione said, she was starting to breathe heavily, she knew the tone in his voice well, it was the tone he used when his mind was made up and he wasn't going to change it. "I promise I'll be safe … I'll study for Muggle school too … but please, let me go to Hogwarts."
"Hermione, do you have any idea how important you are to me?" her dad asked, this time his voice was softer, and he was looking a lot more vulnerable than he had been a second ago. "You're my world and I can't lose you."
"You won't lose me, Daddy," Hermione said pleading, "but I know that this is where I'm supposed to be … I belong in the wizarding world."
Both her parents flinched at those words, their expressions hard to read, but she could see the pain in their eyes.
"I'm sorry Hermione," her dad said.
At that Hermione started to cry. She couldn't help it, she had never wanted to do something more than she did right now, and her parents were stopping her. She couldn't believe it. Her mum came to try to comfort her, but she backed away, she didn't want that from her now, she was too angry and upset to take comfort from her parents. She could feel the strange power build in her, her emotions were on the fritz, and she didn't think that she could find the control she would need to stop herself, but she had to. She pulled her legs to her chest and hugged herself closing her eyes and trying to gather her calm.
She stayed like that for five minutes as her parents and McGonagall sat there watching her, all looking worried about her, until her mum turned to McGonagall and asked, "isn't there something you can do to help her?"
"No, not that I know of," McGonagall said with a touch of annoyance in her voice, but her eyes were filled with concern.
"Why the hell did you have to come here and fill her head with all of this nonsense?" her dad asked.
"She has a right to know what she is," McGonagall snapped back heatedly. "And she already said she had an understanding that she was different."
"It would have been better is she never had her head filled with all of this," her dad said. "Look at what all this has done to her!"
"It isn't the fact that she's a witch that has done this to her …" McGonagall said starting to grit her teeth.
"Can you make her forget?" her mum asked, a thoughtful look on her face as she watched her daughter that was still hugging herself. "I think that it might be healthier for her if she didn't remember all that's happened today."
"That's appalling, you want me to erase her memory!" McGonagall said shaking her head.
"So, you can do it," her dad said frowning as he looked at his daughter too.
"No!" Hermione sobbed. "I don't want to forget!"
"Sweetie, don't you think it would be easier for you if you didn't have to worry about this other world?" her mum said.
"No," Hermione said not knowing how to explain to her parents how it felt to finally know who she was, why she was so different than everyone else. Yes, she was devastated at the moment because she wouldn't be allowed to go to Hogwarts, and learning more about the world didn't seem likely anytime soon, but she didn't want to forget anything. Couldn't they see this … see how much she wanted this?
"Hermione, if you forget about all this, you could live your life in peace … none of this will be hanging over you," her dad said. "You can go to your school and never have to worry about any of this."
"Please Hermione, just forget this nonsense," her mum said, and her parents shared a wary glance, the same glance she had seen them share every time something odd happened around her, or she mentioned something she had done.
Hermione just stared at her parents at that, and her heart seemed to be beating extremely fast, for it was this moment that she realized what they were really saying. They were not only afraid of this world, but they were afraid of her as well. So afraid of what she would become when she went to this other world that they wanted her to forget that it even existed. They loved her, they wanted her to be safe, but the thing that was driving this decision more than anything was fear. They didn't want her to embrace this part of her. They couldn't accept her, at least not all of her.
It was a devastating realization, even worse than the one a few minutes ago when she found out she couldn't go to Hogwarts. How was she supposed to carry on like this knowing that her parents couldn't truly accept her for all she was? She closed her eyes and more silent tears streamed down her face. And then she turned to McGonagall, who was glaring at her parents, looking beside herself with anger and said, "Can I speak to you alone for a moment?"
"I don't know if that's a good idea," her dad said in trepidation.
"It'll be okay, Dad," Hermione said looking at him with emotionless eyes.
"All right," her dad said, nodding his head and leaving the room with his wife.
"Miss Granger, I just have to say that I would never erase your memory no matter what they say," McGonagall said glaring at the doorway that her parents had just walked through. "It is their right to decide whether or not you should go to Hogwarts, however they can't control what you remember."
"But I need to forget," Hermione said in a small voice.
"What?" McGonagall's head snapped towards her, looking shock that Hermione would say that after what she had argued a few minutes ago.
"I can't … this memory … they …" Hermione stuttered not knowing how to say this, not wanting to have to voice this. "They can't accept me …" she added and her words were cutting her like a knife.
"Hermione …" McGonagall started to say looking grave.
"They want me to be the girl I am without magic," Hermione said her eyes going wide, and forcing herself to say all this, she had to say this just this once and then she could forget. "They want me to go to school, get good grades, have a bright future, forget about this magic nonsense … to be the perfect daughter, even if that means I have to forget about who I really am …"
"Hermione …" McGonagall tried to interrupt again her voice filled with concern.
"And I can't do that, I can't do any of that if I remember," Hermione said starting to shake, and then looked imploringly at McGonagall. "How can I do any of that when I feel like this … when I already know that I can't really be myself when I am in front of them?"
"Hermione, you need to talk to your parents," McGonagall said kindly. "Trust me, I know what its like to have a parent that doesn't understand or completely accept the wizarding world, but it's important you talk to them."
"I can't …" Hermione said looking away from the older woman as more tears fall down her face. "They don't understand … and I can't tell them …" she couldn't even stand to think this right now. If she talked to them and she still felt this way everything would be so much worse.
"You must understand, Hermione," McGonagall tried to explain, "that even if I do erase your memories, I can't erase the feelings you have now. It probably won't be as strong as it is now, but you will always have to live with this feeling, and it will affect you greatly if you don't remember why you feel this way."
"That would be preferable to this," Hermione muttered to herself and then said louder, "I just want this all to go away … perhaps if I was able to go to Hogwarts it would be different, but I can't do that. And living here, knowing this … I don't think I could do it. Please Professor McGonagall."
McGonagall sighed as she looked at the frantic girl. "If you're sure."
"I am," Hermione sighed, already looking relieved. "I just have one more request."
"I'm listening," McGonagall said.
"If we should ever meet again …" Hermione said pausing there. She knew herself too well to think that she would never find out the truth about magic, though she had a feeling that she was going to be squashing those tendencies for a while after today, but someday she was sure she would know this truth. "Please make sure I understand how bad this memory is."
"I'll make sure I warn you," McGonagall agreed. "Though, I for one will be waiting for that day … until we meet again."
"Me too." Hermione tried to smile, even though her feelings were mixed about what was about to happen. The truth was she wanted her older self to find out about the magical world but would prefer it if she never have to know what happened with her parents today. "It was nice meeting you, Professor McGonagall."
"You too, Miss Granger," McGonagall said and pointed her wand at the girl, concentrating for a minute and said, "Obliviate."
O
Hermione slowly opened her eyes. Her head was still pounding slightly but it started to fade as the images began to recede, and she noticed that she was a lot more comfortable than she should have been.
"Mione, are you okay?" Ron asked softly as he held her in his arms.
"No," Hermione sobbed as she wrapped her arms around Ron and tears came to her eyes. That memory had just explained the last thirteen years of her life, at least the part of it that concerned her parents (and her issues with other authority figures). This was why she had always done whatever her parents said, regardless of how she felt. This was why she was always so stressed over making sure everything was perfect for her parents. This was why she felt it was never good enough and that she had to keep trying harder.
"Shh… Mione, I've got you," Ron whispered and tried to sooth her but she just started crying harder.
As Ron wrapped his arms tighter around her waist she realized how much this had affected her life. She had almost lost Ron because of her fear that her parents might not accept him. She felt sick about that thought, because she couldn't imagine her life without him now, and how she had almost thrown it away for something that she may never truly have. But here he was, holding her, comforting her, despite her wavering faith in him, in them, and she never felt happier than this moment that she had chosen him. And that she had done this before she had ever known about these memories, because nothing had colored the decision there except for her honestly loving him, knowing that he was the most important person in her life.
"Ron … they …" Hermione started but Ron shook his head.
"You don't have to saying anything, Professor McGonagall has been kind enough to fill me in on what happened," Ron said his eyes were boring into her and she could see understanding there. Hermione nodded her head, glad that he knew and that she didn't have to tell him what happened before she rested her head back on Ron's chest, taking another few moments to gather herself.
"I have to see them," Hermione said her voice was hollow as she felt emotionally drained.
"I have something to say first, Miss Granger," McGonagall said and Hermione nodded her head for her to continue, it seemed the memory had done one good thing, she found that she wasn't afraid of McGonagall anymore … in fact she kind of liked her. "On your parents' behalf, they were quite right in thinking this world was dangerous for you. It was much more so than I would ever have imagined. You might have been hurt or killed in the war that had started a few years after I met you."
"Yes, I can see that," Hermione furrowed her eyebrows. "And I know that I would have been involved in the war, I wouldn't have just stood by."
"Yeah, that's true," Ron agreed smiling at her, but he couldn't completely control the chill that ran through him at the thought of her in the war. "You were angry enough just reading about the war propaganda that the Death Eater had while trying to gain power."
"But that doesn't change what they did," Hermione said looking at McGonagall. "I'm not the person I'm supposed to be, and I'm not the person I could have been if I was allowed to remember what I am. I'm the good little girl who always did what she was told," she ended bitterly.
McGonagall frowned at that, she was hoping the girl could be more understanding about this, but she could see why Hermione was so upset. "I'm sorry for the hand I played in what happened to you. Sometimes I feel as if I had handled the whole situation wrong and that I could have found a better conclusion than erasing your memories."
"No, at that point it was the right thing to do," Hermione said. "I don't know what I would have become with that knowledge, and I don't want to," she trailed off as she imagined herself as a rebellious teenager, doing anything she wanted because nothing really mattered anyways or perhaps, she would have been even more neurotic than she was … to the extent that she had no mind of her own. "I think I need to see my parents now … Ron can you take me?"
"Er … I don't know Mione, don't you want to cool down a little before you talk to them?" Ron asked uncomfortably, he knew that she could be irrationally stubborn when she was really upset about something, which she clearly was right now.
"No, I need to get this over and done with," Hermione said there were no more tears in her eyes, and she looked determined.
"Fine, I suppose, but what are we going to do about Harry?" Ron asked in hopes that this would stall her some.
"Professor McGonagall, could you tell Harry what happened here and where we went?" Hermione requested.
"Certainly," McGonagall said, she actually thought in the long run it would do the girl some good to confront her parents about everything that happened right now. Though, it would probably make this already tough day harder on her, there was something to say about venting your emotions that help one recover quicker. "And what would you like me to tell Mr. Potter?"
Hermione furrowed her eyebrows for a second before she said, "you can tell him everything," she wanted him to know everything, and it would have been difficult to be the one to tell him herself.
"As you wish," McGonagall said, her eyes softening. She could already see how close this girl was to Ron and how much influence she had on him (and vice versa). If she had anywhere near this amount of influence on Harry (which judging by the few minutes McGonagall had seen them together she thought the girl just might) it would be great. "On another note, Miss Granger, feel free to contact me if and when you are ready to learn more about our world. I may be busy at the moment, but I would love to discuss more about your education … to figure out a way to teach you some of our basic skills."
"I would like that," Hermione said, her eyes brightening a considerable amount at the promise and gave McGonagall a genuine smile (the first one she had given the older woman that day).
"I'm pretty sure she'll catch on fast enough, we already have a library started at our flat and she's at Harry's magical bookcase reading everything she can get her hands on," Ron laughed.
"Well, everything I read was really fascinating," Hermione said, glad that she could feel some of her excitement over the prospect of learning something new. "But now I'll be able to start reading the books with actual spells in them, and not just history and theory."
"See," Ron smirked at Hermione first and then turned to McGonagall, "she'll be knocking down your door in no time, eager to learn."
"Ronald," Hermione groaned feeling her cheeks heat up, but she knew that he was just trying to distract her, and she loved him for that. She then turned to the older woman, whose lips were thinned in amusement, and said, "Thank you for everything, Professor McGonagall."
"You're welcome," McGonagall answered, and the couple left the office.
A/N: So this chapter was different than my original fic, because I changed the time that Hermione was informed she was a witch. In the original fic, she got her letter on July 14, 1991 but in this fic she was informed on her 11th birthday September 19, 1990. This is mainly because as far as I can tell by what I read, Muggle-borns are informed on their 11th birthday, which I didn't know at the time I first wrote this fic. The other thing that I changed from my original fic was that McGonagall had taken Hermione to Diagon Alley to get her supplies and I really don't think that was realistic. The reason I did that the first time was because I had already written the chapter for a story that I knew I was never going to finish and thought I could just use that material.