authorsnote: I know this took foreeeever to update I'm sorry, but pls enjoy. I am already loving this fic, but this is a complex one, hence slightly slower updates, my b.

pls fav/follow if you enjoyed, and lemme know your thoughts! love? hate? mildly dislike? tell me!

also, had some questions about this: yes this is a harry/hermione pairing, and that is firm.

songrecs: seven - taylor swift

For a moment they stood just frozen, in awe, his hand still clapped over Hermione's mouth, his own open in shock. They stood silent as the Marauders fled from the scene of whatever prank they had pulled off, wheezing with laughter, as they were unaware two teenagers watched on, eyes wide, and in utter shock.

It was only when they were gone, followed by a furious teacher who looked like a relative of Sprout who soon disappeared from view did Harry drop his hand and manage to shut his jaw.

This was the first time out of some trick, or a mirror or in an apparition form he had seen his Father.

People were right when they said they looked just like one another. The same ruffle to their hair, the same smile, but he had only caught that from a snatched glance. He could see his father held himself with much more assurance, with a crooked smile Harry wasn't even sure how he'd go about achieving, and then of course the eyes, Harry had his mother's eyes.

That thought occurred to him then and he felt his heart stutter a little more … if his father was here, that meant his mother was too.

It was amazing, to see his father, and have the chance to see his mother, to know the parents that had been so cruelly snatched away from him. Harry was almost certain if he hadn't been so shocked by seeing his father, surrounded by his godfather and uncle in all but blood, he would have been in tears.

He was here, with them, he could interact with him, maybe have some sort of relationship … his parents, Remus, Sirius, all the people he'd loved and lost.

Life had been so unfair to him, and maybe by hurling them back further in the past than they'd planned it had thrown him a bone, a bit of good karma, that he now got to see his loved ones, happy and well, just as he had always dreamed they'd be.

Despite his shock he did feel tears bite at his eyes, and he scrubbed them away quickly as he released Hermione. Of course, he wanted nothing more than to march to Gryffindor tower, find his dad and mum and simply stare at them, but he knew he couldn't, no matter how tempting it was.

Instead he turned to Hermione and he could see she was smiling at him, as he did back to her once he caught her grin.

"It's really them" He said, as though needing to state it and his smile grew as Hermione nodded and slipped her hand into his.

"I know" And she did know, that was the thing about Hermione, she often knew what he was feeling when he didn't know himself. Just like when she was blinded by logic, he'd know her feelings deep down. They just knew one another, deeply, and he squeezed her hand as they stepped out of the alcove.

"I…" He pauses, what can he say? Already tears threaten again, this is everything he had ever wanted, to be with them, and yet how can he be? He doesn't know what to say or do.

"I know" She just repeats herself, and yet the words soothe him. That he can trust, Hermione always does know, that he can be sure about.

Hermione is one of the few things now he can be sure about, he knows her, she knows him, that is something to always be sure about.

"What do we do?" She asks then, and he pauses. Sure, Hermione is the one with the knowledge, but he is often the one with the plans. They fit in that way, and then Ron was always the one with the humour, the tension breaker.

Hermione stands to his right, hand clutching his, he glances to his left. He feels Ron's absence, but he knows they did the right thing. Ron has something left in the future they abandoned, he doesn't really have anything, Hermione too.

Here they can have more…he's just not sure how.

"Dumbledore?" He suggests. He still trusts the old wizard, completely. Yes, he made mistakes, yes, a lot of his decisions were questionable, but Harry still felt love for the man, the man who'd guided and lead him. Meeting him at Platform 9 ¾, in some version of the after life feels like a lifetime ago now, though he supposes it is years away now technically.

Ugh, he hates thinking about time travel, he can already feel a headache coming on from it.

"Is it wise to tell anyone?" Hermione asks and he see's her chew down on her lip, a common habit of hers when she is contemplative. He knows when he is in thought he paces, when she is, she bites her lip, it is just there quirks, there way.

They had each learning more about one another's 'ways' during a year on the run than some people learnt about one another in a lifetime. Harry is sure out of all of the people in his life he knows Hermione best, with Ron in a close 2nd.

"You think we should keep it secret?" He asks in confusion, for he hadn't contemplated that. They'd come back for a reason, to save people, how can they do that without warning them?

"Well" Hermione bites her lip again, "Maybe we can tell Dumbledore" She nods then and Harry does too, Dumbledore has his faults, but if he were to trust anyone with this information it is him, "But other than that I think we should be careful, in case it gets to the wrong people"

He understands her meaning immediately, it is another way they are in synch, and something that developed between them during the horcrux hunt; the ability to pick up on what the other means. It had developed naturally, and now sometimes they can speak with few words.

It had annoyed the hell out of Ron and Harry smiles fondly then, he already misses his friend, and he knows Hermione does too, but again, Ron would have volunteered to come along in a second, and he had stuff to leave behind, Harry and Hermione had much, much less to lose.

"Agreed" He says, and she smiles then, he offers her one too.

"Shall we?" He nods, and they make their way.

It was time to see the headmaster again.

"Are you sure this is a good idea actually?" She asked.

They stood in front of Dumbledore's office, the same gnarled, twisted gargoyle in place. Of course, this time they did not know the password, though Harry had suggesting guessing Hermione had stopped him before they could move on.

"I mean… what if he doesn't believe us?" She bit down on her lip. In truth they hadn't really thought this through, they'd realised a chance to go to the past, to maybe, just maybe have an opportunity to fix things, but they hadn't considered … well, they hadn't considered what they'd do if it worked.

She scolded herself internally for that, she always thought of everything! And yet in the haze of the post-war Hogwarts, she had only thought of not living in a world with so much death and destruction, she hadn't thought what to do if they made it to that world.

And it had been a big if! She was surprised the spell had worked in truth, it was complex magic, requiring quite a lot of power, but she knew, Harry had power in spades, fuelled by the Elder Wand and with hers mixed in, as well as their extremely focused intent, she should have realised it would work, and perhaps held off to plan.

And yet, she remembered Harry's smile as he had seen his smile, and her own happiness at seeing Remus and Sirius so happy … it had been worth it, regardless of the jam they were stuck in now.

"He will" Harry said with such certainty, and she admired him for that, she had always admired his ability to be sure in himself, even when others weren't, and so at his determined expression she nodded.

She trusted Harry, with her life, always.

And so, she placed her hand in his, gave it a squeeze, and took a deep breath. She would follow him, always.

"Lemon drops" Harry tried, and she was hardly surprised when the gargoyle immediately sprung to one side. Huh, well at least they knew Dumbledore hadn't been so different in the past. She glanced at Harry then and he grinned at her as she rolled her eyes, smiling at the same time. Well, that should help convince him.

"Ready?" He asked, giving her hand a squeeze this time, and she nodded, as they both turned straight, and made their way up to see Dumbledore.

He was a little nervous in truth, he knew Dumbledore of the present, not the man of the past. He knew the headmaster would believe them, he was sure of it, but that did not quell his nerves.

He was also excited, alongside nervous. Dumbledore's death had been one of the worst for him, for Dumbledore had truly been like a substitute parent, perhaps a grandparent figure. Harry loved him, looked up to him, respected him, his death had been awful, especially as Harry had only been able to watch, crippled, unable to stop it.

He paused just outside the door, took a moment, he needed to act normal, not fall to the urge to hug the man who'd supported him, not now said man had no idea who he was.

"It will be okay Harry" Hermione said with a smile, and Harry nodded. He trusted Hermione, if she said it was going to be okay, it would be.

Thank god she was here with him; he knew he couldn't do it alone.

He had always been close with Hermione, but during their time horcrux hunting together they had grown closer, much closer. Particularly with Ron gone, Hermione had found a special place in his heart that no others kept. She was his best friend, soulmate in almost every sense of the word.

If she said it would be okay, it would be, and so with a nod, he stepped forward and pushed the door open.

The office looked the same, with fewer trinkets, and was a little better organised but it was so familiar that Harry almost believed they'd been transported back into the future. It was nice to see it like this again, but what was better was the man sat behind the desk, sipping a cup of tea, bag of lemon drops in front of him, Fawkes trilling on his perch to the side.

Dumbledore.

It was him, a little younger (though still very bearded), and a little different, but it was Dumbledore all the same. Harry smiled, and went to open his mouth to speak, but of course the old wizard beat them too it.

"Now, I am intrigued as to how you got in when I do not remember giving either of you the password" Dumbledore placed down his tea then, and turned to them, looking over at them over his half moon specs. The sight of those blue eyes near had Harry shaking… this was the man he considered to be a guardian to him, someone he loved, and he had no idea who he was. It was bittersweet, but more the latter, that here Dumbledore was alive.

Harry knew he'd need to accept no one here would know him or Hermione, but also to appreciate that it was worth it, to see them alive and well, it was worth it.

"I must assume then that you found some ingenious way to get past my guard, or perhaps something more interesting? Perhaps you just know of my love of lemon drops?" Dumbledore said with a little smile, as he interlocked his fingers and continued to look over at them, "Please do tell me, I am truly curious, which is rare for me nowadays"

"I…" Harry began, but he couldn't find the words, not easily, not when looking across at the man who had been everything to him before his death, who had been a parent, grandparent, mentor, advisor, general … everything. He was tongue tied.

"We're from the future" He blurted out, and he could practically feel Hermione roll her eyes. Not particularly nuanced nor subtle, but it got the job done he supposed, and they had agreed to tell Dumbledore, still he knew Hermione was rolling her eyes at him.

Of course, Dumbledore just raised an eyebrow, didn't gasp in shock or disbelief, but then that was the man Harry knew, hell he could see the twinkle in the man's eye, and that made him feel a little better, Dumbledore couldn't be shaken, he was a mountain, stone, unshaken.

The past may be different, but some things remained the same.

"How intriguing" The headmaster said, standing from his desk then, his robes a particularly eye watering shade of fuchsia, again some things didn't change. "What year?" He asked, in the tone of a man enquiring about the weather, not what year two time travellers who now stood in his office had come from.

"1998" Hermione spoke up then, "It was May … I think" She nodded then, "Maybe late April" He couldn't remember the month either, the horcrux hunt had blended from days, to weeks, to months, it had been hard to keep track.

"Hmm" Dumbledore said, and walked around the desk to stand in front of them, hands folded, that twinkle still in place, no hint of confusion or disbelief on his features, the man could be impossible to read.

"Did you come back accidently?" Harry felt that better that clearly the headmaster believed them, he didn't question that they had come back, just the details … perhaps this would be simpler than he had worried.

"No"

"Yes"

They speak at the same time and Dumbledore has that amused twinkle in his eye again, Harry hadn't quite realised how much he had missed it until he sees it now.

"Well then" Dumbledore says with a small smile, "It is late, why don't we leave this story until tomorrow?"

Harry nodded, thankful for the reprieve, as does Hermione at his side, squeezes his hand to make sure he agrees. He wants to roll his eyes at her, but he knows she is often his impulse control and so understands the motion.

"I presume you attended this school?" Dumbledore questions, and this time he lets Hermione take over.

"Yes sir" She says with a nod, "We were 6th years" Not true, but also technically their last year at Hogwarts was their 6th he supposes, "Gryffindor"

"Indeed" Dumbledore says, and he seems cheerful to hear it, "I presume only the boldest and bravest would take part in time travel" He can see Hermione blush, as she often does under praise, and he grins, as Dumbledore nods again.

"Now since you know the way to the tower I implore you to go to there" Dumbledore nods, "We have a spare dormitory in every house, just in case, just climb to the 8th floor of the dormitories and you'll find a spare space with several beds, take the boys staircase"

"Meet me here tomorrow at 10 sharp, you both look like you could use the sleep, and then we shall discuss your …situation" He notes, and Harry nods, they could use the rest, and as soon as Dumbledore speaks of sleep he feels as exhausted as he possibly could, all at once.

"Now off you go, the password for the tower is 'Frogs Legs' now get some rest" He shoos them, and Harry nods, as does Hermione, and soon they are leaving the office, and making for Gryffindor tower, as he had many times before.

They continue to hold onto one another.

As pleased Harry is to have this opportunity, he feels a little nervous, though he knows without Hermione by his side he'd be worse. Still, it is an odd opportunity few had, had.

Though, he notes, this is the 2nd time he's travelled through time, both with Hermione, he wonders how many people across history have travelled through time twice, it can't be many.

"Okay, so let's sleep" Hermione speaks, unaware of his nerves, though when she glances at him she smiles and offers him a squeeze, "Then come morning we'll talk through what to tell Dumbledore" She nods, "Because yes we can tell the truth, but lets get the most important facts together" He nods then, she's right, they don't need to blurt out 20 years of the future, just the important stuff.

They reach Gryffindor Tower and repeat the password. Harry is relieved to see once they step inside it is nearly exactly the same.

Same squishy chairs and sofa, red and gold print, same table in the corner, same lion banner on the wall. He can see the chip on the fireplace they'd always speculated about, can see the bookcases that hold older editions of the same textbooks they'd studied, the large window still offers a view to the grounds. He grins then, and when he turns to Hermione she's smiling too.

"Feels like home" He can hear the reverence in his tone, and Hermione nods, her eyes filled with that same emotion.

"Because it is" He squeezes her hand then, and pulls her into a hug, to him it had always been home, but now? Now it is both their homes.

They hold onto one another for a moment, and then they climb the steps to the dormitory. It takes a little while to get to the 8th floor, but once there the dormitory is the same as all the others.

He glances in the trunks at the end of the bed to find basic but thankfully clean clothes, robes, towels, and shoes. He appreciates the forethought, for they are dressed like muggles, dirty ones at that, it is nice to have something to change into.

As always Dumbledore thinks of everything.

"Right" Hermione nods, "I'm going to shower" An ensuite shower set peels off the dormitory, "Then bed" Harry nods, he plans to do the same.

Hermione is quick, and then he goes in and takes even less time. Once he comes back, she's dressed in Gryffindor pyjamas, and has laid a set out for him. Quickly he changes whilst Hermione turns her back, and then they are ready for bed.

"Sleep next to me?" Often during their time in the tent, they had cuddled for warmth, or slept in the same bed just to be close in case something happened. Harry is glad Hermione asked, for if she hadn't, he would have.

They are in a new time, he doesn't want to let her out of his sight, not for a little while, not until this feels normal.

But it is more than that … the idea of sleeping alone, after so long with Hermione curled by his side, it fills him with worry. For himself, for her. He knows its some kind of paranoia perhaps, but sometimes it is healthy to worry, even in Gryffindor Tower bad things can happen, he doesn't want Hermione out of his sight.

And, by asking, he knows Hermione feels the same.

"Of course," She offers him a smile, and then she climbs into bed, and he gets in next to her. The quilt is warm, chasing away some cold in the room, the pillows are thick, and Harry immediately feels as though he could sleep forever.

"Night Harry" She says with a smile, and he nods, a little smile on his face too.

"Night Hermione"

They are asleep before they can say another word, curled into one another, in Gryffindor Tower. It could be 1998, not 20 years earlier.

But it is 20 years earlier, as the two curl around one another, fast asleep, as the night turns to morning, dawn breaks, and a new day in the past begins.

sooo thoughts?

did you enjoy? I hope so! I love, love, love this pairing, but pls remember it is slow burn! our couple is gunna take a while!

also, just a note, theres no ron/dumbledore bashing in this story, will I point out realistic flaws? absolutely! will I hate on them for no reason? absolutely not!

I do hope you enjoyed, fav/follow for updates, review to let me know your thoughts!

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