A/N: Thank you for your reviews, favorites and follows after last chapter! I am so glad that you liked Rabastan's return! Huge thank you to lanamarymack for alpha/beta reading, too! You can find me on tumblr (nauticalparamour) where I post sneak peeks, story updates and answer questions!
Please let me know what you thought of chapter fifty-three and be on the lookout for fifty-four soon!
After the weekend, the four Blacks were sat around the breakfast table, enjoying a feast prepared by Kreacher, despite Hermione's protests that she didn't need much. It seemed that the house elf was happy to have her back, but he showed her his affection in unusual ways. Sirius sulked, remarking that Kreacher hadn't nearly been so happy as when he returned to the family. That throw away quip had set Regulus and Sirius to bickering, as Regulus commented that his return was only out of shame, so Kreacher surely had no reason to be happy.
Orion quickly grew frustrated with their behavior and sent them on their ways with curt instructions. "Regulus, you will speak for me today at the Wizengamot," he ordered, without much explanation."
"What are you doing then?" Sirius asked. Apparently, after what he'd done, sending her to the future, he returned to his usual Auror position.
"Hermione and I have business to attend to," their father answered simply enough.
Sirius had to leave for work as well and followed Regulus to their Floo after grabbing an extra slice of toast for the road.
"Do you mind that he is an Auror?" Hermione asked Orion once they were alone.
"It's beneath him, but it keeps him happy and it keeps him busy, so I cannot complain," her father said with a sigh. "I wish he would have continued with... other endeavors. He obviously had the intelligence for it."
Hermione wondered if Orion had ever mentioned that to his son. She thought that it would probably go a long way with Sirius, even if he wouldn't admit it. It seemed like he would soak up praise from his father like a sponge if any was given.
"I understand that... you had a visitor the other day," Orion said, staring at her over the table. "Regulus said that Sirius brought the Lestrange boy to see you."
She snorted. "I don't know if you can reasonably call him a boy anymore," she quipped. "I think Sirius is feeling the need to make amends with me and I suppose he thought that letting me speak with Rabastan would go a long way."
"Was that wise?" he asked her, his grey eyes heavy on her.
"It was what I wanted," Hermione argued, crossing her arms across her chest.
"Sometimes we have to make sacrifices of what we personally want," he countered.
"It's what's best for the family... to uphold the terms of the betrothal," she said, wondering why he couldn't see it from her perspective. "Listen, if you know something about Rabastan, some reason why he'd be unsuitable for me, then just tell me what it is."
"He is a perfectly capable wizard," Orion said with a sigh. "He's done well for himself. He holds an Arithmancy mastery and is quite impressive when he stands for his father in the Wizengamot."
Hermione was pleased to hear that Rabastan hadn't let her disappearing out from under his nose stop him from doing exactly what he had previously planned. Only, she knew too well what it was like to bury yourself in academic work with the hopes that it would be a distraction so she wouldn't be able to feel.
"Then, don't let Regulus or Sirius get in your head about this," she said, wanting to wave away his concerns. "In any case, Rabastan wants to wait some unspecified amount of time to give me a chance to change my mind. It seems that he is sure I will."
Orion pursed his lips, before he leaned back in his chair. "Maybe he does have some sense," he said, sounding pleased with the turn of events.
"Honestly Father, I wonder why you let them get away with their behavior, trying to stop my betrothal, when they themselves have made no moves to find a match of their own," Hermione said sharply. "How is it that I am the only one left to worry about our family dying with us."
Orion pursed his lips together. "I have been making... arrangements, though I dread the eventual confrontations that I've been putting it off," he explained with a huff. "Any interest in planning weddings died with Walburga."
She swallowed thickly, thinking about her poor mother. Guilt twisted again when she thought about how upset she'd been to go to her robe fitting, when she should have been soaking up every last moment she had with Walburga.
"So, what business do we have today?" Hermione asked, wanting to get the conversation off of Rabastan and weddings before Orion could change his mind or before she was brought to tears. "Is what I'm wearing acceptable?"
"We need to go to the Ministry to get your NEWT scores sorted and to reestablish your identity here. And then, we will need to stop by Gringotts to update your vaults," he explained, before looking her over. "Your attire should be acceptable."
Hermione was nervous for a brief moment, thinking about going out in public for the first time, but she knew it was something that had to happen. Then, she was gripped with a sudden worry. "Oh Salazar," she whispered. "My parents — the Grangers! I need to see them. What must they think? Their daughter just winked out of existence and has been missing for months? What have they been told?"
Orion shifted uncomfortably. "That will necessitate speaking with Dumbledore," he said after a moment. "I don't know what Hogwarts would have shared with them about your circumstances. But, if that is what you want, I will arrange it."
"Please," Hermione begged, her stomach twisting in worry. She hoped that they weren't too concerned about her. "Can't I just apparate to visit them? It's not like I don't know where they live."
"Look at yourself right now, you are no longer the same girl who came to us all those years ago," he warned.
She had still been in the past for two years. Because of the holidays, the last time The Grangers had seen her, she'd been nearly 16, but now she was closer to 20 than the teenager they'd dropped off at the train station. It might be quite the shock. They might not even believe her.
Orion saw the way her shoulders dropped and cleared his throat. "I will write to Dumbledore today, then," he promised. "But, we have appointments and we should not delay."
He stood up from the table and guided her to the parlor, stopping to grab their cloaks so they could Floo over to the Ministry. Upon reaching their destination, they strode through the building with purpose and Hermione was glad to have Orion at her side, because she immediately felt the stares of everyone when they arrived. She knew so little of what people had thought happened to Hermione Black or Hermione Granger.
They went to the Wizarding Examinations Authority. Orion asked Hermione to wait outside of the office while he went in first. She found a bench to sit on and took a moment to people watch. There weren't too many visitors to this part of the Ministry, seeing as exams wouldn't be sat for another nine or so months, but there were enough that Hermione would be entertained.
She listened to the soft rumble of her father's voice on the other side of the oak door, soothing but indistinct, while she watched a pretty redheaded witch chase after a loose memo, off to find its recipient. Then, her mind was captured by a rather short wizard with a massive scar down one side of his face, striding down one of the many halls towards the Auror department. She wondered if Sirius was familiar with him.
But then, she caught the eye of a wizard who was instantly recognizable. His hair had gone a bit darker blond, but she remembered those curls and those cruel eyes the instant they found her. Bernard Rosier looked at her like he'd seen a ghost, shock evident on his face before a slow, mean smirk came over his face.
Hermione felt her blood run cold as he changed course and made to walk towards her. She gripped her wand tightly in her hand, until her knuckles had gone white. Wondering what she should do, Hermione could hear her pulse whooshing away in her ears the closer he got to her. Standing up, intending to call for her father, relief washed over her when the door opened abruptly and she was being called inside.
"Good news," Orion said, once she was safely nestled inside the office. "The Ministry has agreed that you do not need to resit your NEWT examinations, once we verify your identity as Hermione Black at Gringotts."
"That's wonderful," Hermione said, still too nervous about Rosier to be more excited. She blinked, trying to get back into her own head. To be honest, she'd only taken the exams about a week prior, so it wasn't as if she would be hard pressed to take them again.
"Would you like to see your results?" the wizard seated on the other side of the table asked.
"Yes," Hermione agreed, taking the parchment that had been slid across the table towards her. She read over the results, pleased to see that she had passed them all.
"Aren't you happy?" Orion asked, pressing a hand to her shoulder. "Six Outstandings and even Exceeds Expectations in Defense Against the Dark Arts. You've done the best of all my children."
She couldn't help a small smile at that. "Yes," she said after a moment. "I am pleased with the results. I will try not to rub it in Regulus's face too much."
Orion laughed at her quip. "We will make a Charms Mistress of you yet," he said, sounding rather pleased with himself. "Hopefully you can begin your instruction soon."
Hermione felt her heart soar at the possibility of continuing her education, before she remembered that Voldemort was still running around out there, wreaking havoc in the Wizarding world. It didn't feel right for her to study to become a Charms Mistress, acting as though nothing terrible was happening, when her friends' lives were in danger! No, the threat to Voldemort had to be handled first.
"Come along, Hermione," Orion said, taking her arm in his. "Gringotts awaits."
They left the office of the Wizarding Examinations Authority and she was relieved to see that Rosier was not still loitering around. She thought about telling Orion about their interaction — and that he'd certainly recognized her for who she was — only to decide to do it later when they were at home.
Leaving the Ministry, they made their way into Diagon Alley, towards the Wizarding Bank. Hermione could tell that more than a few people were doing a double take to see Orion Black walking with a witch on her arm and a thousand whispers followed in their wake. She blushed, wondering what sort of terrible rumors were going to circulate or if anyone would be able to identify her.
As Hermione Granger, she only had a small vault at Gringotts, seeing as most of her money was still in muggle currency. But, the goblins seemed pleased to see Orion. They were swept into one of the back rooms to discuss her predicament.
Orion explained all the intricacies of her situation with practiced ease, including the details of the family's verified blood magic to prove her identity. The story did not seem so unusual to the goblin, apparently, and all that was needed from her was her wand and a drop of blood, pricked from the pad of her thumb. She pressed it against an identification paper that would be sent to the Ministry.
"Well, Miss Black, welcome to Gringotts," he said, after everything had been accounted for. "She can now access the Black family vault should she desire," he added, looking to Orion for his approval.
"I trust that she will be a good steward of the family's fortune."
"A very vast fortune," the goblin added, looking to her. "Would you like me to update the identification on the vault belonging to Hermione Granger?" he asked, after a moment.
"Yes, please," she answered, her cheeks going hot. It wasn't as if she had many galleons compared to what the Black family had accumulated, but it still felt like a lot to her.
"Should you wish to access the vaults you are entitled to with the Selwyn, Montague or Urquhart family, you would need to have authorization by a male relative of the direct line," he continued, looking at her over a stack of paper.
"Oh, I don't need—"
"Yes, I'm sure that the Black family fortune is more than enough for one witch," the goblin said with a sneer. "And I don't know that the Selwyns or the Montagues would be so eager to claim a descendent of a squib."
"Don't presume to insult her, goblin," Orion snarled at the creature. "See that everything is handled with the Ministry. I don't wish to come back here to tie up loose ends."
He stood from the desk, grabbing Hermione's arm in his. Her breath caught in her throat. She had so rarely seen this side of Orion Black and she was reminded why it was that people listened to him. With danger glittering in his grey eyes, she felt you would have to be a fool to cross him. She was glad to have him on her side — that it was the Blacks who'd claimed her and not some other family.
They returned to Grimmauld Place afterwards, the thunderous sound of their side-along apparition announcing them home. Orion stood awkwardly in the foyer with her, while he waited for Kreacher to appear and take his cloak.
"If you wanted to... reach out to another family, I could help broker things," he said after a moment. "I know that the Montagues have a son around your age."
Again, Hermione thought about Graham Montague and even Grant Urquart who'd been two years ahead of her in Slytherin when she was at school and balked at the idea of telling either of them that they were some sort of cousins. Thinking about the giant Quidditch players, she was almost certain that neither would acknowledge her. How preposterous, to think that she should probably be Hermione Montague if names had never been changed.
"That won't be necessary," she said with a sniff. "Two brothers is really more than enough for me. I don't need anyone else meddling in my life."
Orion gave her a small smile, pleased to hear that she wasn't longing to leave the Black family behind. "Go get some rest before dinner," he ordered softly. "I am sure they will be especially exhausting tonight, curious because I was so cryptic this morning."
Hermione groaned and knew that it was true. She did not need to be told twice to trudge up the staircase to her bedroom on the fourth floor.