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Chapter Text

24 June 1995

Screaming was the first sign that the return of the Hogwarts' Triwizard champions was maybe not quite the joyous reunion that the Hogwarts band was attempting to convey with their music. As Amos Diggory sat yelling next to a shell shocked looking Harry, silence fell abruptly across all assembled. Even the less observant members of the crowd caught on quickly as the looks of horror began to emerge on the faces of the viewers in the stands.

Hermione felt her breath catch in her chest and struggled to pull in something deeper than the little gasps she was managing as she truly looked at what was in front of her. Harry was rocking back and forth ever so slightly as he clutched at the older Hufflepuff boy's hand- lips moving quickly as he tried to convey something to the adults that were beginning to surround him where he cowered on the ground. She made note of his posture- curled forward ever so slightly, head lowered just a bit while he looked up at the yelling adults- in an almost floaty distant way as her brain tried to process what was happening in front of her and the rest of the school. It was something that Hermione had noticed early into their friendship; the way that Harry always seemed braced for a blow when he tried to explain himself. 

Cedric looked... well there was no other way to describe him but dead. Even from this distance, she could see how his limbs lay at awkward angles, eyes open wide and staring at the sky while his skin had taken on an almost grey cast. She felt her stomach turn at the sight and swallowed convulsively until the swooping sensation abated and her stomach had made its way back down from where it had tried to lodge in her throat.

It took her less than a minute to spring into action. Before Ron could say anything or even reach out to grab her elbow- something she'd noticed him doing more now that they'd made up from their fight at the Yule ball- she shot off down the steps of the stands. Unfortunately for her, it seemed like most of the student body took that as their sign to begin screaming and panicking as some went down the steps to escape and other rushed up to get further away from whatever hell Harry Potter had managed to bring back from the maze with him. She could vaguely hear Ron shouting her name behind her as she elbowed her way down the stands, nearly losing her footing more times than she wanted to think about while plunging into a yelling frightened mob of children. Her feet hit the grass and she took a moment to orient herself, trying to spot Harry over the surge of adults and students. 

Almost unconsciously, she reached up to squeeze the time turner that hung around her neck, tucked safely beneath her jumper. She'd turned it in at the end of the previous year but years of sneaking into potions cabinets and locked rooms had served her well a few days before when she'd snuck into Professor McGonagall's office to see if her head of house still had the device. Perhaps it had been an overreaction caused by the dread that still seemed to pool in her gut every time she took too deep of a bath after being held under the Great Lake, but something about the upcoming task had made her feel ill at ease enough that she wanted the comfort of the option to go back if things went wrong. Of course it was highly illegal to even consider such a thing but Hermione, despite what everyone seemed to think about her, had never been much of a rule follower when it came to the lives of the people that she loved. Besides, Headmaster Dumbledore hadn't seemed all that concerned when he'd purposely steered them to go back and rescue Sirius Black from dementors the year previously. If there was anything that Hermione had learned over the years at Hogwarts it was that while rules could be important, more often than not they were there to be broken. The key point was to not get caught. It was, perhaps, worryingly Slytherin of her to think that way but if Professor Snape were anything to go by, it wasn't a house completely devoid of goodness.

She panted out a breath of relief as she saw Harry's mop of messy hair being quickly ushered away in the distance. It appeared that Professor Moody had a steadying hand on his arm as he shuffled him up to the castle. The old Auror practically hopped on his prosthetic limb as he moved them at a near run out of the crowd. The sight should have filled her with relief. It should have… but it didn't. Something was off with their Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. It was a laughable thought. Other than Professor Lupin the year before, they tended to lean towards dangerous professors for that class. Even timid Professor Quirrell had had You-Know-Who living on the back of his head.

She nearly stopped in her tracks at the thought. Perhaps she was doing that overreacting thing again or perhaps her intuition, something she had sworn to trust after being petrified by a giant snake her second year, was finally kicking in. Something was not right with Professor Alastor Moody and now he was spiriting Harry away with furtive glances over his shoulder that very much did not match the confident look that she would expect of a veteran of the previous war against You-Know-Who and his followers.

She aimed her pointed elbows with more vicious accuracy as she took off into a sprint after her best friend. If she was wrong she could apologize later but if she was right she didn't want to chance losing sight of Harry in the crowd. They were finally out of the crush and nearly to the castle. Each inhale burned as she struggled to catch up. "Ha- Harry! Professor!" She had to suck in a deep, shuddering breath as the stitch in her side made itself known. "Wait!" This came out a little louder. It made enough sound that Professor Moody turned his head and made eye contact with her as she held out a hand to order them to stop. "Har-" But before she could call for her friend's attention, the professor shot an unknown spell over his shoulder. It wasn't the red of the stunning spell that they had been learning about in class. Nor was it the sickening green of the killing curse that they'd been introduced to earlier in the year with the horrifying spider demonstration. It was a sludgy looking mauve that seemed to fork like lightning as it raced for her.

She tried to duck, dodge, fall, anything to avoid it but felt the burn of it as it struck her in the chest, across her left leg, and into her right wrist. She opened her mouth in a silent scream of pain as she felt her nerve endings light up. Everything seemed to slow as she stared in horror at the man who she now suspected was not actually their professor and he grinned back maniacally with an expression that made her shudder in fear. Then, she felt it, the sand in the time turner fell down the front of her top, the glass shards of the device catching in her skin even as the metal burned and caught against her flesh before sticking and tearing like food in an under-oiled frying pan. Time began to flow forward again, just enough for her to widen her eyes in fear, and then she felt a jerk in her chest as she was pulled away.

Chapter Text

Unknown date

Screaming. It was the first sound that registered as Hermione emerged from the darkness that had enveloped her after being hit by Professor Moody's spell. Though she was almost positive at this point that the man who had been masquerading as their professor was more than likely someone a little less trustworthy than the famed Auror whose face he wore. She wondered, with the dizziness that she usually felt after making a time jump, if she'd been pulled back to the moment when Harry and Cedric had emerged from the maze. The sound of screams certainly matched with what she remembered. But then, it didn't sound quite the same. After they’d emerged from the maze, there had been a cacophony of sound as multiple voices picked up the panicking screams. Followed almost immediately by the shuffling stomps as the students in the stands began their stampede away. Now, Hermione heard only one voice, high and feminine, as she struggled to open her eyes so she could determine where and when she was.

Her mind was rushing as she slowly began to catalogue her body and the pain that swept through it. She felt as if her very blood was on fire and with that realization, she recognized that the screams she was hearing were her own. She tried to clench her jaw, to hold back the wail of pain that continued to push at her throat and she just managed to subdue it into a loud whining groan as she managed to flop just so and shift herself to her side. Spit and quite a bit of blood, if the taste was anything to go by, dripped from her panting lips to the ground as she propped up ever so slightly on a violently shaking elbow. She finally blinked her eyes open to confirm that the texture under her fingers was in fact the grass that she had so recently run across. The sun, which had decidedly not been so high in the sky when she'd last seen it, beat down on her and caused her to slam her eyes shut once more.

"Merlin. What the hell happened to you?” The voice just over her left shoulder was male but sounded young enough to be a student.

Her entire body shook as the curse continued to twine through her blood. Tears dripped down her cheeks as she bit back another scream when the pain surged once more. "Cur-cursed." She managed to grit out between clenched teeth. The effort of that word was enough to make her vision tunnel. "Help. Me."

A moment of silence and then the sound of someone quickly scrambling closer. The feeling of arms attempting to lift her was enough to make her muffle a scream of pain of against the shoulder she felt her cheek press to. The boy cursed and she felt herself bump and jerk in his hold while he ran as best as he could with her in his arms. If she’d been doing anything other than fighting to stay conscious, she likely would have been impressed by not only the strength it took to do but also the speed with which he moved.

She could only hold on, eyes shut tight against the agony surging through her body, as she hoped that she was being taken to the hospital wing. She didn't let herself continue to worry about exactly where or when she was. It took everything in her just to stay conscious and somewhat aware of her surroundings. Based on the sound of feet against stone and the loud exclamations and the chatter of young voices, she could only imagine she was still at Hogwarts.

The voices abruptly cut off as a set of doors opened and shut behind them. The cool of the hospital wing, unfortunately a very familiar constant of her time at school, washed over her as she was deposited less than carefully on one of the beds near the door. The boy's shout for help was almost instantly answered by the welcome voice of Madam Pomfrey.

"What happened?" The stern tone of the usually unflappable school healer was tinged with worry and Hermione felt fear wash over her. Poppy Pomfrey did not show concern when confronted with a medical emergency. She'd barely blinked when faced with Harry's fully deboned arm. She treated the appearance of basilisk-petrified children like it was nothing more than a particularly stubborn case of the sniffles.

It was the tone of uncertainty that forced Hermione to open her eyes once more and she was unable to hold back the gasp at what she saw. Before her stood a much younger looking Madam Pomfrey. While her features were recognizable, the years hadn't yet carved their way into her rounded face. Her hair was still fully dark brown beneath her no nonsense cap that had apparently always been part of her uniform.

Hermione stared but quickly flinched back with a choked scream as Madam Pomfrey laid a quick hand against her forehead to check for fever. "Hurts." She managed to pant out. As another wave of the fire-like pain washed through her, she bit back the pained sounds. It ebbed just a bit and she recognized that she'd need to give some detail of what she'd been hit with if she wanted any chance to survive. God forbid she pass out before she had the chance. "Cursed.” She forced between labored breaths. "Wordless. Lightning shape. Light purple. In my chest, leg, arm." Dizziness was stealing her breath, her vision beginning to blink in and out. "Feels like blood is on fire." As she spoke, Madam Pomfrey visibly straightened, though she couldn't quite banish the look of fear that was creeping into her eyes.

"A dark curse." This was muttered and likely not meant for her ears though Hermione honestly could have told her that. "Mr. Snape, run and get the headmaster. Quick as you can."

Hermione had jolted at the sound of her potions professor's name, confusion surging through her exhausted mind. Her eyes swung, finally, over to look at the boy who had brought her in. Just as she met the gaze of a scared looking young Severus Snape, her eyes rolled back and she fell into a dead faint.

~**~HG~**~

She woke again to quiet whispers. While it wasn't the silence that she had expected, it was a vast improvement to the screaming that she'd become used to over the course of what was beginning to feel like an unending day. At least her body was no longer on fire. Though if she concentrated enough she could feel her blood flowing through her veins, carrying a now cooler temperature than the lava-like heat it had contained before.

The whispers were louder now and though she tried to keep her face still, she could feel her brow twitching as she struggled to keep her eyes closed. "James, you're going to wake her up. Get back over here." From the exasperation in the boy's voice, this was not the first time he had said this.

"You're more likely to wake her with your scolding, Mum.” The second voice, James no doubt, was close enough that she nearly startled up in the bed but just managed to hold still, breath catching ever so slightly. The first voice huffed out a sound of irritation but kept silent at the taunt. James lowered his voice before speaking again. “It’s not like we’re going to bother her. She's dead to the world, Moony."

Moony. Why was that name so important? Her mind, sluggish after everything she had gone through, struggled to match the nickname to the man she could see in the back of her mind. When it clicked, her eyes shot open and locked on a boy who looked remarkably like Harry. Though his wide hazel eyes were a good reminder that he was not her best friend even if they were eerily similar. He gasped and pulled back quickly from where he'd been hovering over her bed, unable to hide his guilty expression. Seems the bravado that he’d leveraged at his friend earlier only held up so much when faced with the unknown witch they’d been discussing.

"Fairly insensitive wording to use seeing as I'm pretty sure I was close to actually dying." The quip didn't land as strongly as she would have liked when her voice rasped and broke on the last word. "Water?"

A beat of silence passed before the room erupted into movement. Hurried footsteps rose from across the room, no doubt to retrieve Madam Pomfrey from her office. James, face bright red, fumbled to grab a water pitcher from one of the nearby beds and hurried to fill a glass. She took the offered drink with a small thank you and took a tiny sip, just enough to clear the dryness from her throat. One never knew with magical healing what could interact with the potions and spells in use. That point was only further proven when Madam Pomfrey came sweeping into the room to gently extricate the cup from her patient’s hand before she could take another sip.

“Not just yet, dear.” The unflappable healer that Hermione had come to know far too well in her last four years of school was firmly back in place. She tried not to breathe an actual sigh of relief but she did feel her shoulders relax ever so slightly as she let herself be guided back into a propped up position. “I must say, you gave us quite a scare.” Hermione obediently leant forward and widened her eyes as Madam Pomfrey peered into them and then promptly presented her wand arm with the practiced ease of a long term patient in the school’s hospital wing. She’d practically spent more time here in second year than she had in a classroom, what with the polyjuice incident and the basilisk petrification. A diagnostic charm washed over her body and silence fell as the results were scrutinized through squinted eyes. “Hmm, looking much better.” 

“That is indeed a good thing to hear.” Hermione jolted a little at the sound of the familiar voice and then felt a wave of relief wash over her as she looked up and met the gaze of Headmaster Dumbledore. “You had us worried Miss…”

Hermione felt a little zap of fear as she realized that she couldn’t use her actual name, not if she wanted to keep this little jaunt back in time a secret. Part of her was still hoping that whatever had occurred was reversible and she could still make her way back home. That nobody had ever travelled forward, only back, was not a thought that she allowed herself to dwell on. If anybody could help her, it would be Professor Dumbledore. She would ask to speak with him privately and then explain everything that had happened. She’d done nothing wrong, after all, it’s not as if she’d wanted to be sent back however many decades she had gone to find herself in school with her professors and the parents of her friends. 

“DuPont,” her mother’s surname fell from her lips far faster than any other lie had ever done. It was something that she could remember easily if she found herself here longer than she’d like and it wasn’t technically too much of a lie. When she’d spend the summers in France with her grandmère, she’d always be introduced as, “Mina DuPont.” She hesitated a moment, not sure if she should adopt a slight accent for her English. She quickly struck the idea down. She’d already spoken with her own accent enough that it would be suspicious to switch it up now. Aware that there were ears on their conversation, she cautiously added, “Are you the headmaster?” Her eyes flicked in Madam Pomfrey’s direction and then, less subtly, over to the bed that she now saw held a pale Remus Lupin flanked by James Potter and another boy who could only be Sirius Black. It must be just after the full moon.

“Well spotted, Miss DuPont.” Professor Dumbledore said with a serious little nod of his head, though his eyes held that trademark twinkle that she’d grown used to in her years at Hogwarts. “I am Hogwarts’ Headmaster Albus Dumbledore.” He turned a calm look to Madam Pomfrey, who was still hovering protectively by Hermione’s bedside. “If you don’t mind Poppy, I’d like to speak with Miss DuPont privately for a moment.”

“Headmaster, she’s been through quite the ordeal-” 

He cut her off with a raised hand and a kind but stern look. “Be that as it may, the more information we can gather, the better chance we have at catching those who sent Miss DuPont to us in such a state.”

It looked like Madam Pomfrey was going to protest further, but Hermione stopped her with a gentle hand to the healer’s wrist. She bit back the small sound of pain that the contact conjured. Though her blood no longer felt as if it were on fire, her skin was still sensitive and over-warm to the touch. “Please, ma’am, I’d like to speak with the headmaster while everything is still fresh in my mind.” 

Madam Pomfrey took a deep breath, eyes searching Hermione's face as if looking for an ounce of exhaustion before finally giving a little nod of assent. "But just a short chat. I know that you're likely feeling better, but you're still recovering. That curse nearly ate through your magic reserves and the only cure for that is rest and time." That last bit was directed at Professor Dumbledore, who gave a grave little nod at the reprimand. "I'll be right over there, should you need anything and then it's straight to sleep with you." Madam Pomfrey fluffed up her pillows, helping her prop up at a more comfortable angle before turning and making her way over to an openly staring Marauder trio. Hermione felt her lips twitch into a small smile. While Madam Pomfrey had always been a fantastic healer, it seemed that she used to be an incredibly doting caretaker at one point. She wondered if that was something that a werewolf student constantly in need of care brought out in her or if years of seeing all of the injuries that school children could acquire had worn it out of her.

Professor Dumbledore flicked his hand ever so slightly and the curtain that usually separated the beds pulled shut to provide some privacy from the rest of the hospital. Another finger flick cut off the rest of the sound in the room. Hermione perked up at the impressive display of magic. She'd always known that Professor Dumbledore was a powerful wizard, it was expected of the man who had defeated Gindelwald, but it was still a treat to see such powerful magic up close. "A silencing charm?" Though the silence from outside of the curtains all but confirmed the answer, she still checked just to be sure.

Professor Dumbledore nodded and though his twinkle was still in place, his eyes sharpened ever so slightly at the look of relief that that confirmation provoked. "It seems, Miss DuPont, that you may have left out some pertinent information during our introductions." 

Chapter Text

"It seems, Miss DuPont, that you may have left out some pertinent information during our introductions." 

Though his tone was level and non-threatening, Hermione was under no illusion that he believed a word out of her mouth. She'd appeared quite suddenly in a place that was famous for its ability to block apparition and unwelcome Portkeys. That Hermione had managed to get through the school ground's extensive wards while fighting for her life against an unknown curse was irregular to put it mildly. Add to that Hermione's clearly out of place clothing and you had quite the threatening mystery.

She took a deep breath and then quickly launched into her story— starting with who she was really was, the year she came from, and what happened to send her back. She was even honest about the stolen time-turner. "But, Professor, you'd understand if you were there. You-Know-Who’s followers have been targeting Harry for years so it seemed like the only thing to do, just in case something happened. And clearly I was right since something did happen!" Throughout her tale, she felt a sharp headache that started as a mild pressure just behind her eyes before blooming into one of those all consuming migraines that often plagued her after a particularly spirited library session. She winced and put a hand to her forehead, fingers trying to massage the ache from her eyelids as she broke eye contact with the headmaster. "I didn't mean to end up here, sir. I just wanted to check on Harry and make sure he was okay. I don't even know when I am."

Silence followed her words and she peeked up from where her fingertips continued to apply gentle pressure to her eyelids. Professor Dumbledore looked deep in thought and more than a little troubled by what she'd just shared. When he caught her staring, he adopted the grandfatherly smile that had so often put her at ease in the past. "I believe you, Miss Granger. However, the fact remains that you are not meant to be in this time. I'd wager you haven't even been born yet." At her questioning look, he added, "It's 1975. 24 June, to be exact.” Hermione must have gone pale as she sank back against her pillows because he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"I won't be born for another four years," she answered the unasked question through partially numb lips. "My parents aren't even married yet." She closed her eyes tight and took a shuddering breath. "Can’t you send me back?" She began to cry at the sad look that accompanied the headmaster's head shake. "But I can't stay here! I need to get back to my life. My parents, Harry, Ron— they need me!" Her voice rose into a near shout by the end.

"Deep breaths, Miss Granger," Professor Dumbledore said quietly as he squeezed her shoulder to try to calm her. It did help a bit as she inhaled a shuddering breath before puffing it out far quicker than was likely advised. "Though I don't believe that there currently exists a way to send you back, I will do my very best to find a way or to find someone who can help. Though in the meantime, I don't think I need to stress the dangers of meddling with time. What you've told me must not be shared with anyone else."

Hermione nodded emphatically, wiping her cheeks and hiccuping ever so slightly as she tried to catch her breath. "Of course, Professor. I would never say a word." She remembered all too clearly the conversation that both Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall had had with her when they’d first entrusted her with a time turner in her third year. Though, at least she wouldn’t have to worry about accidentally running into herself since she didn’t even exist in this time. She tried not to think about it too much, the thought made her head feel even woozier than the current headache did.

The headmaster nodded solemnly. “All the same, I will need a vow from you." When her eyes widened, he continued, "Just to ensure nothing slips accidentally. I imagine some of the faces that you will see will be familiar as parental and authority figures from your time. It is of the upmost importance that we allow time to play out as it must. If you were to— however accidental it may be— let a piece of information slip into a casual conversation, it could be catastrophic." His eyes twinkled at her over the top of his half moon spectacles. "I would hate for the Department of Mysteries to take this into their own hands. They have been known to be, shall we say, a little too overenthusiastic when it comes to neutralizing those who they perceive to be threats.” She knew exactly what he meant by that— obliviations and disappearances only scratched the surface of what would be done to ensure that she kept what she knew of the future to herself. People who meddled with time were not treated kindly if the research that she’d conducted into the matter were any indication.

“Of-of course, Professor.” She tried and failed to hide how thoughts of the shadowy workers in the Department of Mysteries, known simply as Unspeakables, had shaken her. If the headmaster thought that this was the best path forward, then of course she would follow. She trusted Professor Dumbledore, he was head of the school and the highest authority figure at Hogwarts. And, most importantly, Harry trusted him. If Harry, who had spent more time with the headmaster than either she or Ron combined, trusted him then she would put her trust in him as well. That brought her back to the vow. She wasn’t quite sure how this was done in the wizarding world. Was a vow just a magical term for some type of written contract? If so, would something like that even hold up without a guardian present? Hermione knew that the adult age in wizarding Britain was lower at seventeen but surely a magical contract signed by a minor wouldn’t hold up in court. “Do I need to sign something? Would I need a solicitor or legal representation to go over the documents?” 

Professor Dumbledore looked confused for a moment before chuckling at her questions. “No, no, my dear. A wizard’s vow should be all that we require. It is a magically binding promise that we will then seal with our wands.” She’d never heard of such a thing but that wasn’t too surprising since she was a student and likely wouldn’t run into situations that required those types of promises until after school.

“I see... You said that these vows are binding by magic. Do they prevent one from speaking if one were to accidentally break the vow?” She blushed, not wanting her headmaster to think that she distrusted him. “It’s just that I’m muggleborn and I don’t know anything about a wizard’s vow and I want to make sure that I know everything I can so I don’t make a mistake.”

“Ah, I see. Were you by chance a Ravenclaw in your time at Hogwarts, Miss Granger?” The twinkle was back in his eye which Hermione took to be a good sign.

“Gryffindor, actually.” She tried to keep too much pride from her voice but she couldn’t help but puff up a bit when speaking of her house. It was not an unknown fact that Albus Dumbledore had also been a lion during his time at school and he often had a soft spot for the students of his old house. “Though the hat considered Ravenclaw, it said my temperament might be a bit much for my housemates.” She hadn’t been pleased to hear that at the time, thinking it a failing on her part, but after four years in her current house she understood what the hat meant. Though she was a rule follower, she had a temper and could be impulsive at times hence her current predicament.

“Fortune favors the bold, as they say.” Hermione couldn’t hide her smile at his tone of approval and bobbed her head in a little nod. “A wizard’s vow is a spoken vow between two magic users. If there is intent to break the vow, the person would feel pain. Though since you yourself have indicated no desire to speak of the future, there should be no worry of breaking the vow.” 

She wasn't fully able to hide the hesitation that she felt at that idea. While Hermione could at times jump in feet first without looking, that was usually in response to some sort of life threatening situation. For matters that would affect her or her friends long term, she was a planner; something that had often driven both Harry and Ron mad as she double and triple checked her sources before acting. "I- Could I have the night to think it over?" She didn't fancy the idea of pain if she accidentally found herself referencing a movie that had yet to come out or calling someone by their unborn child's name. "Perhaps there's a book I could read?"

Dumbledore's signature twinkle was swiftly fading and after holding her eyes with his own for a few silent moments, disappointment took up residence on his face. "I'm afraid not, Miss Granger. We cannot risk you being here for much longer without precautions in place. If you do not wish to take the vow, I'm afraid our only course of action will be to involve the Ministry. They should be able to either keep you contained from the rest of the population while they look into a way to send you back or perhaps they could plant new memories to integrate you into this time."

"No!" Hermione didn't even try to hide her horror at the thought of either of those fates. To be contained... the word alone brought to mind the haunted look in Sirius Black's eyes the year before. Would they put her in Azkaban? And to have her mind wiped and replaced with false memories made her stomach churn. Who would she be if she wasn't herself? She'd just cease to exist and nobody would ever know what had happened to her. She forced her voice to a gentler tone to imitate a calmness that she didn't feel. "Of course I'll do the vow, Professor. If that's what you think is best?"

"I do believe that in this case, Miss Granger, it is the only path forward. Shall we proceed?"

Seeing no other option, she silently nodded. The headmaster held his left hand out and motioned for her to hold it with her own. "Simply answer with 'I will' for each question of the vow. This is delicate magic, so once we begin, I ask that you continue until the ritual has been finished. Understood?"

Hermione answered in the affirmative and then had to hold in a gasp as his wand twirled in a complex pattern, emitting a golden glow as he began the spell for the vow.

"Hermione Granger, will you keep secret— from all but those who already know— that you have travelled here through time?"

"I will."

“Will you keep your future knowledge of the lead up and fall of Voldemort a secret from all but the two of us?"

"I will."

“Will you freely and without deceit share any future knowledge with me when asked?"

Hermione paused, brow furrowing. Hadn't Dumbledore insisted that she keep all future knowledge to herself going forward? At the sharp squeeze to her hand, she quickly answered in the affirmative.

"And finally, will you conceal the existence and nature of this vow to any who are unaware of your time traveling?"

After her final “I will” the vow was sealed with a flourish and a muttered incantation. Hermione stared with a mix of awe and dread as the golden light that had been wrapped around their joined hands sank into her wrist with a sharp burning pinch. A small part of her worried that she had just made a very bad mistake. She hissed in a pained breath and gently massaged the area until the pain settled back to the low level hum that occupied the rest of her body.

Exhaustion settled quickly and heavily over her and she sagged back into her pillows. Her mind wanted to race and worry about what this would mean for her time here and what that time would even look like. Where would she go with no magical family to take her in? She couldn’t imagine her parents or grandparents comprehending magic, let alone time travel, before the appearance of their own magical child.

"Sir?" Her voice was weaker than she'd like but she pushed on. "Where will I go while you look for a way to send me back? I don't have any family who could take me in and even if I did I can't tell them about when I come from."

"What school year are you currently in, Miss Granger?"

"I was nearly finished with my fourth year. We'd just finished exams. Perhaps I could do some sort of independent study while I'm here? I don't want to fall behind."

“I don’t see why you shouldn’t be allowed to continue your education with the rest of the students at the beginning of the new school year.” At her wide eyed look, he quickly added, “I’m afraid that you will need to re-take your end of year exams so we can place you accordingly. But if that is agreeable, we can have you sorted officially and introduced to the rest of your house.”

She nodded in a daze— overwhelmed by gratitude at the opportunity of continuing her education and at the thought of how much she would need to study to make sure she was caught up on the current curriculum. “That would be wonderful. Thank you.” 

“Now, I believe that I’ve kept you from Madam Pomfrey long enough. I will bid you a good rest and tomorrow, if you are able to do so, we’ll go over the reasoning that will be provided for your appearance here and the need for a transfer to Hogwarts so far into your education. An official house sorting for this time will also be needed.” Her stomach dipped at the thought of being sorted out of the only house that she knew but exhaustion was quick to replace the fear and she simply nodded. 

By the time Madam Pomfrey returned to fuss over her and force a few potions into her, she felt herself slipping into a deep sleep.

~**~HG~**~

Most of the next day passed in a much quieter fashion than the day before. Hermione noticed that the Marauders, including Remus Lupin, were no longer present when she woke in the morning. After a round of diagnostic scans, Madam Pomfrey pronounced her nearly recovered and let her know that if all continued as expected she would be free to leave the next morning. It was moments like this that really made Hermione appreciate the power and swiftness of magical healing. 

While she’d been sleeping, someone had left a stack of notes on the table next to her bed. A quick flip through the pages revealed that they spanned the fourth year curriculum for all the core classes along with Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures, and Arithmancy. She was pleased to see that her chosen electives from the past year were included. There wasn’t a note included with the neat stack of parchment but something about the spiked, slanting handwriting was familiar. She puzzled over it for a few pages before being sucked into her usual study habit of blocking out everything but the information in front of her.

By the time lunch rolled around, Hermione felt secure in the knowledge that she was far overprepared for whatever the exams of 1975 held for her. While the topics in the classes were similar enough, it seemed that the 90s went much further in-depth and in some cases were ahead in the curriculum— as was the case in Arithmancy which was a full year behind where she’d been.

After a bland hospital lunch followed by a solid hour of boredom, she was relieved to find herself being summoned to the headmaster’s office. Though she’d often been a visitor in the Hogwarts infirmary, it didn’t mean that she had much patience for it— too much sitting with too limited mental stimulation unless you had friends who were willing to sneak in reading material or homework.

She had to remind herself to feign confusion on where things were located as she quietly followed the unknown student Madam Pomfrey had tasked to show here the way. She mentally repeated to herself to look around in awe at the familiar stone walls of the school that she'd been attending for the past four years. When she’d been dropped off in front of the headmaster's office, she waited until she was alone before giving the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance the password—  sugar quills— then ascended the stairs.

The headmaster sat, Sorting Hat resting on the desk in front of him. "Ah, Miss Granger. Good to see you up and mobile today. Please sit." She settled into the slightly too soft arm chair in front of his desk and had to fight the urge to fidget as she sank down lower than was strictly comfortable in the squishy chair. "Shall we sort first?" Hermione simply nodded, throat too dry to verbalize her answer. This was it, the moment when the Hat would realize that she wasn't as brave as she'd pretended all of these years. As Professor Dumbledore approached with the Hat, she forced a deep breath and tried to sit up straighter though it made her back ache after laying flat in the uncomfortable hospital bed for days.

The Hat dropped gently onto her head and she was surprised that it didn't slide over her eyes as it had when she was sorted the first time. Though there were times that she still felt new to the magical community, enough years had passed since she was a young scared eleven year old hoping to be put into a house that would help her make friends. She expected to hear the Hat's voice as it searched her mind for which house would be best. It had taken several minutes the first time she'd been sorted. But the Hat was silent and it took only seconds for it to pronounce "Gryffindor!"

Hermione blew out a shocked but relieved breath. She knew that adapting to this time for however long she was here was going to be difficult. But she knew it would be even harder if she was expected to learn a new house dynamic as well. She returned the headmaster's smile with a shaky one of her own when he patted her shoulder in congratulations.

As Professor Dumbledore returned the hat back to the shelf where she assumed it normally sat, she finally spoke up. "You mentioned having a story for me to share with everyone? Did you have anything in mind?"

"I have some ideas but believe it may be easier for you in the long term if you are to stick as close to the truth as possible. Is DuPont a family name?"

"My mother's maiden name. I have... will have a Grandmère DuPont who lives in Giverny and I spent most summers visiting her. I know a little about Beauxbatons from the students who were visiting this year—in 1994."

"Wonderful!" And it truly seemed that he felt that way. He casually rattled off, "And how is your French?" in perfectly accented French.

"I'm fluent but more conversationally than academically," she replied in kind with the slight British accent that her grandmère had always scolded her for. She added in English, "My accent always gives me away, I'm afraid."

"Your parents are English?" At her nod, he continued. "I see no reason that we should change anything about your parentage beyond making your grandmother your paternal grandmother for last name purposes." Several minutes passed as they wove the tale that she would tell:

Mina DuPont was born and raised in England until her parents passed away when she was 9 causing her to move in with her only remaining relative, her grandmère in France. Because she was in France when she turned 11, she attended Beauxbatons instead of Hogwarts. She was visiting her grandmère who was in poor health when the Death Eaters, having heard of her muggleborn status, targeted their house and attacked. Her grandmère was killed and she was hit with an unknown curse that affected not only her but the Portkey that was meant to take her back to the school at the conclusion of her visit. The Portkey was somehow reset to send to Hogwarts which was how she showed up on Hogwarts grounds in the state she was in. Professor Dumbledore and Madame Maxime both agreed that the safest place for her while she healed would be Hogwarts. While the French ministry would do its best to protect her from Voldemort’s followers, it was universally agreed that Albus Dumbledore stood a better chance of keeping an eye on her. And, though she lived in and attended school in France, she was technically still a British citizen and would therefore fall under the care of the British Ministry now that her grandmère was gone.

Hermione thought it a shaky excuse but hoped that any students or teachers looking to poke holes in the story would abstain if only out of respect for the injured orphaned girl who had suddenly found herself in their midst.

"But where will I stay this summer, sir?" She finally asked once everything had been ironed out and they'd sat for a few moments in contemplative silence. "Could I stay at the school?" She tried not to look too hopeful at the thought of having the castle and, most importantly, access to the library all summer long.

The headmaster stroked his beard with a thoughtful look. "I will need to give this some thought. The best thing will be to send you to stay with the family of one of your housemates. It will take some of the mystery away from your status as a new student and will hopefully curb any questions that will arise. I have someone in mind but will need to ensure that they are amenable to a guest this summer."

Hermione tried to hide the droop of her shoulders and simply nodded. Making friends was not a strong suit of hers but hopefully the student he had in mind would be friendly enough to help the both of them.

"I believe Poppy mentioned keeping you overnight and then allowing you out tomorrow." If the headmaster noticed her nerves, he kindly didn't mention it. "I'll let your head of house know that she has a new lion in her house. I trust you know Professor Minerva McGonagall?"

She immediately perked up and grinned. "Yes sir! She was my head of house before." And though the somewhat stern Scottish woman never said so outright, she made it no secret that Hermione was one of her favorite students. Even if this time's Professor McGonagall didn't know her yet, Hermione felt better at the thought of seeing her favorite teacher again.

"Wonderful. Professor McGonagall will collect you in the morning to show you to your common room and introduce you to the rest of your year. Your exams will take place at the beginning of next week. I believe Mr. Snape left his notes for you this morning."

She wasn't able to hide her shock. "Those were from Prof- Er, Snape?" She tried not to grimace at how disrespectful it felt to not refer to him by his title. "That was very kind. I'll have to thank him."

"I take it you know Mr. Snape from your own time?" The headmaster's eyes twinkled with amusement at the conflict on her face.

"He's my Potions professor, sir."

"Ah. Horace did mention that the boy shows quite a lot of promise in that field. I shall keep that in mind." Hermione assumed that Horace must be the current Potions professor and tried not to think about how wrong the class would feel being taught by someone else. "Now, that's quite enough talk of the future for today. I'll let you get back to studying."

Murmuring her thanks one last time at the clear dismissal, Hermione saw herself out and made her way slowly back to the hospital wing, mind buzzing with what her future in the past held.

Chapter Text

An evening spent lightly skimming through the notes that Professor Snape— no matter how hard she tried to remind herself not to refer to him as such in this time, she couldn’t get the image of her stern Potions professor out of her mind when thinking of him— had been kind enough to leave her helped keep the boredom to a minimum. By the time morning came around, Hermione felt as if she’d scream if Madam Pomfrey insisted on any additional time under observation. She nearly leapt from the bed when the healer pronounced her free to go.

Not long after she was freed from her hospital wing prison, Professor McGonagall swept into the room sporting the all too familiar tartan robes and pointed hat that she’d worn in Hermione’s original time. The familiar sight seemed to ease a tension that had crept into her the night before when the headmaster had mentioned her head of house for the first time. Though Professor Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey had both been staples in her time at school, Professor McGonagall had always seemed to go out of her way to make sure that Hermione was comfortable and adapting well at Hogwarts. Judging from the concerned look that the professor wasn’t quite able to hide behind her usual stern demeanor, this time period would be no different.

“Miss DuPont?” At Hermione’s nod, the professor launched into her introduction. “I am Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor house and I will also be your Transfiguration teacher. I’m sure Professor Dumbledore has already talked to you a bit about Hogwarts and what to expect in the next week with your exams?”

“Yes, Professor,” Hermione answered meekly, not wanting to be too obvious at how calming she found hearing her favorite professor’s familiar brogue once more. “He mentioned that I can take my exams for the year next week? The boy who found me, Snape? He left me notes to study.” She mentally congratulated herself for the feigned stumble over the all too familiar name of her Potions professor turned fellow student.

Professor McGonagall hummed her assent, though a thoughtful wrinkle had appeared between her eyebrows at the mention of Severus Snape’s kindness. “Mr. Snape is a Slytherin student in your year. It’s good to see inter-house cooperation between our two houses, I’ll be sure to let his head of house know.” It really was odd to think of the stern man that Hermione had known for the past four years doing something so kind as sharing his notes with the girl who had done nothing more than fall, screaming, into his path one afternoon. She really did need to find and thank him as soon as she could.

They chatted through the particulars of the testing that would occur as well as what classes she would be sitting for. By the time they made it up to Gryffindor tower, Hermione was surprised to find that she was slightly winded from the stairs. While she’d been medically cleared to be up and about, she clearly still needed to build up her physical strength to what it had been before the attack. Professor McGonagall gave the password to the Fat Lady’s portrait—  Tempus Fugit, which Hermione found ironic enough to be eerie given her current situation— and led her newest charge into the nearly empty common room. In all her time at Hogwarts, she didn’t think she’d ever seen the room so quiet during the day as it was that afternoon. 

The group of seven students who had been gathered in the chairs and couches near the fireplace went silent as they noticed the entrance of their head of house with their new housemate in tow. Hermione immediately felt her shoulders tighten as she noticed that the group contained the Marauders and a girl who could only be Harry’s mother, Lily. Of course she remembered them from the hospital wing and knew that she’d be seeing them around the school but she hadn’t quite put together that they were in the same year as her.

As if sensing the tension crashing through her new charge, Professor McGonagall rested a hand on Hermione’s shoulder as she walked her over to the group of teens who were eyeing the new student with enough interest to make Hermione sweat. She was intensely grateful to whichever adult had had the foresight to provide her with a clean, if slightly worn, school uniform. 

Professor McGonagall introduced her to the small group of students in her year. She didn’t go into the details of the story that Hermione and Professor Dumbledore had crafted; simply said that Mina DuPont was previously at Beauxbatons and would be joining their house and continuing her education at Hogwarts. She noticed at one point that James Potter elbowed what could only be a young Peter Pettigrew and leaned over as if to whisper something but froze at the silent glare that their head of house threw his way. Hermione was under no illusion that the rest of the school hadn’t heard of her loud and violent arrival several days earlier. It was a wonder that Madam Pomfrey had managed to keep her tucked away from curious eyes for as long as she had.

Without explicitly stating it, Professor McGonagall assigned Lily to be Hermione’s guide through the end of the year. And then— in a move that any teenager would cringe at, regardless of the decade— their head of house took her leave with the suggestion that they all take some time to chat and get to know one another. Hermione could feel that her face was on fire as the portrait hole closed behind the professor and she found herself alone and face to face with seven incredibly curious teenagers.

A brunette girl who was possibly even shorter than Hermione was the first to speak. “Merlin, your hair.” Hermione’s fists and jaw clenched, ready for the ridicule that always seemed to pop up whenever her cloud of hair first made an appearance. “It’s perfect! How do you get so much volume at the roots?” She felt a little short of breath, the retort that she was readying dying, as she caught the genuine admiration on the other girl’s face. This was a first and she wasn’t quite sure how to act.

“Oh. Th-thank you. Um, it just does that?” She put a self conscious hand to her curls, hoping that the back didn’t look flat after being bed bound for several days. Had she brushed it that morning? Why hadn’t she taken the time to do more than glance in the mirror when putting on the borrowed uniform?

“Mary, let the poor girl sit down before you start trying to play hair salon.” Lily laughed and settled back into her arm chair. In the absence of their professor, the tension from the room seemed to deflate a bit as members of the group slouched or leaned back into their chosen seating.

“Right here, beautiful.” The flush that had started to cool on Hermione’s cheeks came back with a vengeance as she locked eyes with the most beautiful girl that she had ever seen— which after quietly observing Fleur Delacour nearly every day for the past year truly meant something. The blonde beauty patted the seat on the sofa next to her and shot her a wink. A collective, playful groan went up from the group and Hermione’s stomach sank. Was this girl making fun of her?

“Don’t mind Marlene, she has absolutely no filter.” Remus Lupin sounded much younger than he had when he’d been her professor and had a much stronger Welsh accent than Hermione remembered. How had he managed to hide that?

"And she's a terrible flirt," James chimed in, leaning over slightly so his gentle kick actually connected with the girl's shin. "But she's harmless... mostly."

"Hey!" Marlene put a dramatic hand to her chest as if in disbelief at their betrayal. "I'm not that bad. Besides," she shot Hermione a grin, "I only flirt with pretty girls. Not everything that moves, like Black." Hermione felt her heart actually skip a beat at the smile that still graced Marlene's lips and had to resist the urge to shake her head like some cartoon character. She imagined herself looking dazed with heart eyes but quickly snapped out of it. She refused to have a repeat of Lavender Brown in this time period. She could only have so much roommate drama in her life. With that in mind, she carefully lowered herself into the offered seat, shooting Marlene a careful, closed mouth smile.

She was only vaguely aware of Remus's questioning look at Sirius Black who sat close to him in a shared oversized arm chair. Was that jealousy on the young werewolf's face? Surely not. While she hadn’t seen them interact too much— what with the running for her life and then running for Sirius's life, then keeping Harry as alive and unharmed as she could— she was sure that she would have been able to detect if there had been something more between the two of them.

"Come on, Remus. You know I'm a reformed flirt now." She wasn't sure what surprised her more— the loud smacking kiss that Sirius planted on Remus as he threw his arm around his neck in a hug, or the French accent that tinged his words. As if feeling her eyes on him, Sirius turned his grey gaze to her, eyebrows lowering in challenge. "Problem?" There was enough growl to his voice that Hermione was shocked to think that he hadn't yet achieved his animagus form— she remembered hearing that that would be happening in the upcoming school year, if not over the summer.

"You're French?" The question popped out of her mouth before she could stop it. Snickers rose from the tangle of marauders. At some point, Marlene had slipped an arm around the back of the sofa behind Hermione and she felt a careful fingertip brush against one of her curls.

The flush that took over Sirius's face looked too red to be possible when contrasted against his pale skin. "N-no!" At her raised eyebrow, he quickly amended, "Not that there's anything wrong with that. My family only speaks French at home." His words trailed off, as if he weren’t used to being quite so flustered. Hermione had to admit that she was shocked to see the usually confident pureblood at a loss for words. “You don't have an accent!” The statement was phrased almost like an accusation and she noticed that he made a concerted effort to mimic the posh way that James spoke. 

"My father's family is French. My mother is from Hampstead. We lived there until I was nine. My grandmère has always said that my accent is atrocious." The last sentence was spoken in French and Sirius snorted a laugh at the pronouncement, shoulders relaxing from their defensive position. 

Now that she thought of it, Draco Malfoy had had a similar affectation their first year at school, though it hadn’t been quite as strong. Perhaps this was one of those pureblood things that she just didn’t know about. From what she remembered of her brief look into the Black family at the beginning of third year, she knew that they were an old family and that they had some sort of bigoted motto in French. It would make sense that the Malfoys— with their unfortunate last name— likely had similar roots. After all, most pureblood family trees more resembled interlocking family wreaths from what she’d seen so far.

Uncomfortable moment averted, they settled into a game of sorts going around and sharing things about themselves. Questions were thrown around like “Favorite muggle band?” When pressed Hermione threw out a quick “David Bowie”, not sure if her actual favorites from the period like Queen or Fleetwood Mac had seen their popularity rise earlier or later in the decade. Her answer had earned a cheer from Peter, Remus, and Mary— now there was a potential folk band tribute name, if she’d ever heard one— and playful groans from Lily and Marlene. “If I have to hear about Ziggy Stardust one more time, I swear to Merlin I’ll lose it,” Marlene laughed.

Hermione didn’t know why but she was shocked to find out that Lily was an ABBA fan. “Waterloo won Eurovision for a reason, Mina. I’m going to convert you to a fan whether you like it or not!”

Sirius and Marlene began an argument over who was better— Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin— where they constantly switched sides on which was their favorite and somehow ended up more divided than united by the end.

James crossed his arms and with a stubborn set to his jaw, simply said, “The Beatles.” Hermione was doing the mental calculations but was interrupted by a pillow flying past her and into James’s face. 

“Give it up, you sad man. They aren’t getting back together.” Lily’s voice held a teasing lilt and Hermione watched with fascination as James slowly began to turn red even as his eyes took on a dreamy cast. “You have to move on and listen to new music for a change.” With a stubborn set to his jaw, James declared that he was loyal and would wait until his beloved Beatles came to their senses and got back into the studio.

As the group continued to chat, voices overlapping and various candy wrappers flying, Hermione found herself taking what felt like the first full breath since Harry’s name emerged from the Goblet of Fire. It was clear that this group truly seemed to get along, even if Lily and James bickered back and forth over silly thing and Marlene teased Sirius and Remus for getting too cozy in their shared chair. She thought of her own year mates in Gryffindor and tried to remember if they’d ever done anything like this as one big group but came up short. They’d always split off into their own groups— her with Ron and Harry and occasionally Neville when he felt up to breaking the rules, Lavender and Parvati, Dean and Seamus. It felt so lonely compared to this. 

Lily caught her eye and gave her a bright smile that she returned with a careful one of her own. Perhaps she’d be okay while she waited for Professor Dumbledore to find a way to send her back.

~**~HG~**~

The lead up to taking her end of fourth year exams for the second time passed quickly enough. Lily, Remus, and Mary took it upon themselves to be her personal study buddies. Between their shared notes and the ones that Snape had left for her, she felt the most prepared that she’d ever been for her exams. “Sev’s a really nice guy once you get past his shyness,” Lily had declared with a pleased smile and happy little clap upon hearing about his note gifting. Mary simply shook her head when their red headed roommate wasn’t looking and rolled her eyes, mouthing an emphatic, No he’s not.

Mary’s point was only proven when Hermione finally tracked down the elusive Slytherin to thank him for the notes and his role in getting her to the hospital wing. He’d brushed her off with a gruff “Don’t mention it,” that sounded less like an acceptance of thanks and more like a command. He’d been avoiding her since though she made a point to say hello whenever she saw him in the corridors after.

Marlene continued her flirting but had made a point her first night in the dorms to quietly check in with Hermione to make sure she wasn’t making her uncomfortable. Once she had confirmed that her new roommate wasn’t going to run screaming from the room if she kept up her playful teasing, Marlene made it a point to always find a reason to sit next to Hermione or play with her hair or bring her a secret snack in the library when she’d been studying for too long. Hermione was still trying to figure out if Marlene meant anything by her behavior or if she treated everyone like this. After one sleepless night of overthinking, she firmly made herself push the thoughts to the side to continue her studies. She’d worry about the pretty Gryffindor chaser— ironic that that was her Quidditch position, all things considered— next term.

Exams took place over the course of two days and passed quickly and without any shocking twists. Hermione had studied thoroughly and actually felt like she’d done fairly well once she’d set her quill down after the final exam. It had to be the calmest end of year that she’d ever experienced at Hogwarts… well, if you ignored the time travel incident that led up to it.

Clearly she’d jinxed herself by thinking such a thing. She was called into the headmaster’s office a couple of days before the end of term. Once she’d settled in the too soft chair once more and gone through the expected pleasantries— yes she was settling in fine with her new roommates, no exams were not too outside of what she’d been learning in her own time— Professor Dumbledore jumped into what he’d wanted to discuss.

“I’m afraid that I do not have any additional information on how or if it is possible to send you back to your own time, Miss DuPont.” He’d taken to using her alias when it was just the two of them to prevent any unintentional mistakes when he spoke to her outside of his office— not that he ever took the time to speak with her much in her past (future?) or in this time. “Which means that we must ensure that you are placed in an appropriate home for the summer.” Hermione didn’t bother trying to hide her disappointment and simply nodded. “I believe the Evans family would be a good fit.”

“Sir?” Hermione felt her stomach flip at the thought of spending the summer with Harry’s mother. The witch had often been described as brilliant and beautiful when people who had known her had described her to Harry and his friends. And Lily was both of those things but above all she was kind. Hermione had no doubt in her mind that Lily was the one who made sure that she was so seamlessly integrated into the already close friend group that was the fourth year Gryffindors. Lily was the first to check in with a quiet “How are you holding up today?” along with a gentle shoulder squeeze or hug. Lily had even been the one to lend her clothes that weren’t the school uniform when she’d found out that Hermione only had what had been on her person the day that she’d shown up at the school.

She liked Lily. Which made knowing what would happen to her in six years that much harder. There hadn’t been a day when she hadn’t felt like she was walking amongst ghosts. It was hard to reconcile the fact that most of the students who were trying to become her friends would not make it far into their twenties. In the cases of Mary and Marlene, she had no idea what would become of them, only that their names were often whispered in that sad way that people did when speaking of a tragic loss.

“I- I don’t know if I can do that, sir.” She clenched her fists as they shook in her lap. Speaking back to a teacher, especially the headmaster, was not something that she’d ever been comfortable doing. “Can I really not stay here instead? I can stay in the tower if the worry is about me wandering without supervision.”

The headmaster simply watched her with a neutral expression and she felt that same headache that she’d sometimes get when confronted with his twinkling gaze. She quickly averted her eyes and felt some of the pressure ease. “I take it you know Miss Evans from your time?” She nodded. “How? You’ve spoken in the future?”

Hermione didn’t want to answer but the slight burn of the vow that rested within her wrist urged her to do so honestly. “She’s my best friend’s mother. I never had the chance to meet her. She died quite young.” She swiped frustratedly at a tear that was attempting to escape her bottom lashes and glanced up at the headmaster who looked thoughtful.

“Whose mother was she? Your friend Harry’s?” Another nod from her. “And what was his last name?”

“Potter.” The name felt like it was pulled from her now that she was given permission from their vow to speak it. “James’s son.”

Professor Dumbledore’s expression was the carefully pleasant one that he often wore when addressing the student body at the beginning of year feast, though Hermione could see the interest sparkling in his eyes. “You mentioned that Voldemort’s former followers often targeted him in your time. Explain.”

The story poured from her in a rush that she made no effort to slow, wrist twinging uncomfortably whenever she took a moment to breathe. She left nothing out when describing what she knew of Halloween 1981— both the textbook account as well as Sirius’s own recollection— and the years that followed. The headmaster would interrupt her occasionally to skip ahead— he had very little interest in what she knew of the Durselys. He’d also stop her and ask her to expand on some details— Harry’s invisibility cloak seemed to capture his attention for some reason and she wondered if she’d just doomed them to years of not being able to get away with using the magical artifact.

When she was finally done, she felt drained and her head was pounding from speaking so much and from the tears that had started early into her explanation and fell steadily throughout. She closed her eyes and let her face fall in her hands, trying to catch her breath. A bright purple handkerchief with embroidered silver stars silently floated over to her and bumped her fingers until she carefully took it to wipe her eyes and nose.

“I appreciate your sharing this information with me, Miss Granger.” Professor Dumbledore’s voice and gaze were full of compassion. “It seems that my instinct to place you with a non-magical family was correct.” Hermione didn’t have the energy to ask him to explain, simply watched him silently until he did so unprompted. “Not only would a magical family know enough about the current magical politics to want to question you further on a Death Eater sighting in France, you would run the risk of potentially encountering a Legilimens who could discover this information.” At her confused look, he quickly explained what Legilimency— the ability to see someone’s thoughts— was and how Occlumency was a skill that could be used to block such unwanted intrusions. “Until we can ensure that you’re proficient in Occlumency, we cannot risk someone discovering the truth of your time travel.” The shadow of the Department of Mysteries hovered behind his statement. 

“I understand.” Her voice was quiet though she wanted to yell in grief and frustration. An entire summer of getting to know Lily Evans who would die regardless of what Hermione did was not what she had mentally prepared herself for though perhaps she should have.

It was agreed that Hermione’s Occlumency lessons would start at the beginning of next term if Professor Dumbledore had yet to find a way to send her back to her own time. She could only hope that the student free months outside of the castle would give him the space to do so.

Chapter Text

When Lily had learned that her family would be hosting the newest member of Gryffindor house, she’d shrieked loudly enough that Mary had nearly hurt herself bolting up the stairs into their room to make sure her friend wasn’t under attack. She’d found an excited Lily, bouncing on her toes while squeezing Hermione in a hug that threatened to cut off oxygen to her lungs. Marlene had pouted for the better part of the day at the fact that her own family hadn’t been selected to host the mysterious Mina DuPont for the summer. It had taken Hermione revealing that since she was a muggleborn the headmaster had thought that she’d be more comfortable staying in a muggle neighborhood before Marlene sullenly admitted that that made sense.

With nothing but her wand and a change of clothes to her name, Hermione had boarded the train with her new friends and spent an enjoyable— if louder than she was used to— trip back to Kings Cross. Once they disembarked at the station, Severus Snape detached from his own friend group to join them. Lily greeted him with a cheerful, “Sev!” And then launched into an excited explanation about Mina joining them for the summer. “Won’t it be fun? The three of us can spend the entire summer together!”

Snape looked like he would prefer to do literally anything other than that but Hermione noticed that he only smiled tightly and muttered his assent. He really only gave a genuine smile when Lily linked one of her arms through his, though it dimmed somewhat when she did the same with Hermione using her other arm. It was as she was connected in this human chain that Hermione first met Mr. and Mrs. Evans.

The Evans family was so perfectly normal that Hermione couldn’t help but adore them. 

Mrs. Evans was quick to pull Hermione into a tight hug— clearly Lily’s physical affection was a learned trait. Mr. Evans shook her hand and waved off her thanks at allowing her to stay with the family for the summer as if the thought that she’d stay anywhere else had never occurred to any of them.

The family, with the addition of Snape and Hermione, all piled into the family car and departed; Lily wedged happily between the two of them in the backseat. It seemed that Snape was a regular addition to the family as Mrs. Evans asked after the quiet boy's semester and invited him to dinner for the night. During the car ride, she was able to piece together that Lily and Severus were childhood friends and that the two were usually inseparable over breaks. 

Without saying so explicitly, Snape made it very clear that he thought Hermione an unwelcome addition to their regular duo. If Lily picked up on his feelings, she didn't acknowledge them and simply continued to lay out her plans for the three of them. Hermione tried to bite back her smile as she recognized some of Harry in his mother. The poor guy had spent so much of their school years trying to mend the bridge between Ron and Hermione using these same tactics.

It was dinner time by the time they arrived at the Evans’s home and Hermione would have happily gone straight to bed and slept straight through to September. Instead, she let Lily show her to the room that they would be sharing before washing up and heading to the dining room to help set the table.

She’d been braced for the unpleasant aunt that Harry had spoken of upon her first meeting with Petunia Evans, who had opted to stay home rather than make the trek into London. She was shocked to find that— though she was standoff-ish— Petunia was civil when introducing herself even if she did throw a sneer of distaste in Snape’s direction. Clearly there was some history there that neither of them planned to hash out in front of the rest of the Evans family.

Dinner was a polite affair with Lily and her mother providing most of the conversation for the quieter members of the table. Hermione did her best to fully immerse herself into her Mina persona and backstory when careful questions about her past popped up. Again, she found herself grateful that Professor Dumbledore had insisted on staying as close to the truth as possible when questions about her childhood in Hampstead came up. It was easy enough to omit mention of some of the technology that she’d grown up with from her stories as she fondly recounted memories of her childhood. And if her eyes went misty from missing her still alive parents in the future, nobody was rude enough to bring it up.

By the time Snape had taken his leave back to his home and everyone had retired to their own rooms, Hermione felt dead on her feet. She’d grown up an only child in a house with just her mother and father and was used to much quieter evenings after the long trip home from Hogwarts. Someone had set up a camp bed with an absurd number of pillows and blankets to make it comfier than Hermione imagined it would have been otherwise. Wearing her borrowed nightclothes from Lily and with nothing looming on the horizon that she could control, she let herself drift into a deep sleep.

~**~HG~**~

Early into her stay with the Evans family, the days took on a routine of sorts. Wake up, dress, help around the house where she could, tag along with Lily to hang out with Severus— Snape had explicitly not given her permission to use his first name but she’d taken to doing so just to annoy him— then return home for dinner and sleep to start the cycle again the next day. 

Though she’d been aware that her family’s travels during school breaks was not something that all families were able to afford, the privilege she’d grown up with had really been driven home when staying with Lily for the summer. The Evans family home was a well-maintained, if smaller than she was used to, brightly painted house on the edges of Cokeworth. The town itself seemed to have a grey tinge the further one went into the center of it where a dirty looking river cut quite abruptly through the lone park. 

The one time that they’d picked up Severus from his home for the day, she’d seen that his family’s brick home was in such a state of disrepair that she’d thought it the abandoned neighbor of the identical house directly next to it. That day, Severus had been so tightlipped and snippy with Lily that they’d had to cut their visit short. He hadn’t said anything in front of her but he’d pulled Lily to the side just before they’d left and Hermione had noticed that they’d purposefully avoided going back by his house again.

Petunia had been the biggest shock. She’d been quiet the first night they’d been back from school and Hermione had expected that personality to remain. Apparently that silence and standoff attitude only appeared for Severus Snape. Instead, Hermione found that between Petunia and Lily it was nearly impossible to get a word in. If they weren’t catching up on what happened during the school year, they were bickering over everything from favorite actors to who had left the hair in the drain— it was always Lily, as the only redhead in the house it was laughable that she would claim otherwise.

The Evans sisters’s bickering even extended to Hermione’s wardrobe. When she’d left Hogwarts, she’d done so with her second hand school uniform and robes and two sets of underthings— the ones she’d arrived in this time with and another set that Madam Pomfrey had insisted that she keep after her hospital wing stay. At school, Lily and Marlene had let her borrow clothes from them. While Lily had been close to her size, Marlene was taller and seemed to prefer band shirts with ripped collars that looked ridiculous on Hermione’s smaller frame. She was grateful that Lily continued to let her raid her wardrobe into the summer, even if she had never been a dress and skirt girl like her new roommate.

“You can’t just keep wearing the same things over and over again. Besides, Lil’s clothes do nothing for your coloring.” Petunia’s arms were crossed in that way that Hermione had learned meant that she was truly about to go on a rant. “And you can only wash your underclothes so many times before they start falling apart.”

“Pet!” Lily voiced Hermione’s shock at the blunt words. The only solution that she could come up with for the current situation would be for the floor to open and fully swallow her down into the depths of the earth. “You know she lost everything when… when she had to come here.” The Evans family knew the basics of the story Hermione was telling, though none of them truly knew enough about wizarding politics to appreciate the danger that Death Eaters currently posed for all of them.

“You must at least have a bank account or some sort of inheritance.” Though her arms remained crossed, Petunia’s voice was a touch softer as she looked the younger girl up and down.

“My grandmère didn’t believe in banks. She kept all of our money in the house and they burned that when they attacked.” Hermione didn’t have to fake the quiver in her voice. It had only taken one night of not having magic to clean the one of two sets of underwear that she had to realize that her lack of material things was going to be much more difficult than she had begun to realize. She still had faith that she would be sent back to her time— to think otherwise would be more than she could fathom— but a summer with no clothing or clean socks was not something she had taken into account.

“Why not write Headmaster Dumbledore?” Hearing the wizard’s name so easily leave Petunia Evans’s mouth was more shocking than it should have been. “I’m sure they have some sort of fund for underprivileged students that would cover clothing. Otherwise, how would you be able to buy your books and supplies for next year.”

Hermione hadn’t even taken her school supplies into consideration. Would the school cover them for the upcoming year if she found herself stuck beyond the summer? She pushed the thought aside. As someone who had always taken comfort in planning ahead, she was finding that avoiding thinking about her uncertain future was the only comfortable way to cope. “I- I suppose I can reach out and see.” She purposefully avoided meeting Petunia’s eyes. She could practically hear the unspoken Liar that flared in the older girl’s narrowed eyes.

A couple of days passed after their conversation and Hermione thought that the subject had been completely dropped. It wasn’t until an owl woke her one morning by pecking particularly hard at Lily’s bedroom window that she realized that she had been incorrect. Lily, only slightly more able to function in the morning than Hermione, groggily retrieved the letter and then dropped it on her roommate’s head on her way back to bed. “For you.”

Hermione groaned and smacked at the heavy envelope as she sat up. Who would be writing her? The only true friend that she had in this time was the girl who had just flopped face down onto the bed next to hers. “Who?” She rubbed at her bleary eyes, sounding like the owl that had just delivered the missive that she held. She suddenly felt much more awake when she ripped into the envelope to reveal a letter and a thick handful of muggle bills.

Miss DuPont,

I hope this letter finds you well and that you are enjoying a much needed rest. Please find enclosed the next few months’ funds that would have been used for your school wardrobe. As a student falling under the school’s legal guardianship, you will, of course, have a clothing and essentials allowance while attending Hogwarts.

It had not occurred to me that the manner in which you arrived would mean that you would not have the necessary essentials for the summer. Please forgive an old man for forgetting details falling outside of the more familiar sphere of academia. Of course your school books and equipment will be covered as well. Your head of house will contact you by the end of summer to deliver the necessary items.

Please give Miss Petunia Evans my regards and thanks for informing me of this matter. Should you have any questions or concerns, do let me know.

Sincerely,

Headmaster Albus P.W.B. Dumbledore

Hermione was still working through her shock as she read through the long list of titles that followed the headmaster’s name— how did the man remember all of his various names and awards? It seemed that Petunia had called her bluff in a very unexpected way. How had she even known how to contact the headmaster in the first place? She supposed that the Evanses had had to learn how to use owls somehow if they wanted to stay in contact with Lily during the school year. For that matter, how had her own parents learned how to do that in her own time? Perhaps there was some sort of crash course in wizarding correspondence for the parents of muggleborn children that she was unaware of.

She let Lily pull the letter from her hands as she looked down to the handful of notes that she held. A quick count showed that she had just over £300. Though she wasn’t up to date on clothing prices in the current time period, this would have been more than enough to buy some basic pieces for a wardrobe in her own time. 

Lily loosed a shocked little laugh as she read through the headmaster’s letter and then whooped excitedly as she saw how much money Hermione had received with the letter. “Do you know what this means?” She was practically bouncing on her bed, now far more awake than Hermione thought seemly at the current hour. Lily was not deterred by the sleepy glare that answered her question. “We have to go into London to shop!”

“Lily, I cannot overstate how much I do not want to do that.” As if to punctuate that sentence, she rolled over to hide her face in a hair and pillow combination that effectively blotted out the morning light that was annoyingly making its way into the room. “Hey!” She tried in vain to grab at the pillow that had just been yanked from under her head by a now standing Lily Evans. 

“Up! Don’t try to argue with me, Mina DuPont.” The pillow was tossed out of arm’s reach so Lily could settle her fists on her hips, a mock stern look on her face. Hermione was horrified to see her go-to stance against Harry and Ron turned on her. How had she gone so many years without being smacked for employing this same method to get her way? “If I have to hear you sadly scrubbing your underwear in the sink every night for the rest of the summer, it’s going to ruin our school break. This is one of the few carefree times that we’ll have in our young lives. Do you really want to be responsible for taking that away from me?”

Hermione narrowed her eyes even as her face burned with embarrassment. She knew Lily was joking but did she really need to bring up Hermione’s underwear? “Fine! But I’m going to hate every moment.” When Lily cheered, she added, “And I’m going to be so grouchy that you will too.”

“Impossible. We’re going to have so much fun!” Lily stooped to give her a squeeze and a loud kiss on the cheek before getting ready for the now long day that stretched ahead of them.

~**~HG~**~  

Because Lily was the sole member of their planning committee, they of course had to invite Severus Snape on their outing to London. Petunia, who had seemed on the verge of agreeing to go with them on their excursion, swiftly declined upon hearing that fact. When Hermione had quietly taken her to the side to thank her for reaching out to Professor Dumbledore on her behalf, the older girl pretended not to hear. As they headed out, Petunia tugged gently at one of Hermione’s curls. “Buy what you actually want. Don’t let Lily bully you into getting clothes you don’t like.”

By the time they’d all piled onto the bus, Petunia’s warning began to make sense. Lily, for all of her good intensions, was apparently a bit of a Hermione when it came to shopping. Severus had very clearly not been informed that this trip would consist mainly of clothes shopping and seemed to be regretting tagging along. He was all too happy to abandon them for the closest bookstore the minute Lily began eying one of the shops.

Ten minutes into their first store, Hermione decided to make good on her threat to not allow Lily to make clothing shopping a fun daylong activity. Though she stopped just short of hurting her friend’s feelings, she put her foot down about some of the outfits that had been thrust into her arms. While she didn’t mind dressing up from time to time, there was no way that her wardrobe needed five dresses. And if she didn’t get a pair of pants that fit after weeks of school skirts and Lily’s borrowed dresses she was going to lose her mind.

“Lily.” Hermione pulled the outfits from the girl’s arms and carefully took her hands. “I really appreciate you trying to help. You are a wonderful friend and I will most certainly need your help at some point today.” Lily perked up, smile widening before swiftly falling at Hermione’s next words. “But you have to accept that I need to pick some items that I actually like for myself.”

Lily looked like she wanted to argue for a moment before nodding with a sad little sigh. “Fair enough. But I get to pick out your date clothes.” She put back some of the more casual outfits she’d pulled from the rack before delegating herself the clothing holder and taking the pairs of jeans that Hermione had pulled for herself.

Hermione snorted. “Shopping for a non-existent event doesn’t seem like a good use of your time. What do you think about this?” She held up a top that didn’t look egregiously old fashioned to her 90s trained eye.

“Yes, but with these.” She was handed a pair of shorts that would have given her mother heart palpitations. At Hermione’s skeptical look, Lily added in a singsong voice, “Marlene would love them.”

As she usually did whenever the blonde chaser came up, Hermione felt herself go bright red. “Oh?” Her attempt at nonchalance did not translate to her voice which chose to crack on the single syllable. “That’s nice.” She chose to ignore Lily’s smirk when she added the shorts to the pile to try on.

One hour and two stores later, Hermione had her 70s wardrobe sorted and significantly less money than she’d started with. She’d opted to wear one of her new outfits for the remainder of their trip. She never thought that she’d be thrilled to wear bell bottoms but she couldn’t lie that they were comfortable and looked quite nice on her.

Severus had made his way from the bookstore to the record shop further down the street. Her future professor’s obsession with muggle music had been just one of the many surprising things she’d learned about him. Even now, seeing him casually flipping through a stack of new albums while wearing a worn Black Sabbath shirt was bizarre.

“Oh, that’s a good one!” She snatched up the Fleetwood Mac record as he started to flip past it. “This is the one with my favorite song.” She hummed a bit of Rhiannon as she flipped the album cover over to look through the track list. Feeling eyes on her, she glanced over to see Severus staring at her with a strange expression on his face. “What?”

“Sev, any of the new stuff look promising?” Lily wandered over from the bargain section. She bent a bit to get a look at the front of the record that Hermione held. “New group?”

“Apparently they’re DuPont’s favorite.” Hermione felt a cold wave of fear wash through her as she realized her error. Severus pointed to the record release date. “Even though it’s been out for less than a week.”

Lily’s eyebrows knitted as if trying to think if they’d seen or heard of the group before that moment. “You’ve heard of them before, Mina?”

When she hesitated to answer, Severus held a hand out to her and wiggled his fingers in a universal ‘give me’ gesture. “Seven quid,” he finally said when she simply looked at him, dread curling in her stomach. She handed him the money and he went to the front to purchase the record before grabbing her upper arm and pulling her to the back of the store where you could sit and listen to your purchases in one of the rooms. They found an empty one and Severus sat her firmly in one of the chairs, while Lily followed, closing the door behind them and still wearing that same confused look.

It took him a moment to get everything set up and then find the song that she’d mentioned. When the first few notes began to play, Hermione found herself hating the once beloved song. When the song hit the section that she’d been humming, Severus glared at her and she quickly averted her eyes.

“Okay, what’s going on?” Lily was looking between her two friends, confusion morphing to concern as Severus lifted the needle to stop the music.

“That’s a great question, Lily. DuPont, how do you know this new song well enough to be able to hum part of it?”

“It’s Mina,” Hermione muttered stubbornly, even as she scrambled to come up with an excuse. Anything she said now would be flimsy since she’d been so cagey about it all. And the truth was off the table if she didn’t want to trigger the vow she’d made with the headmaster. Severus’s scoff at her insistence gave her the annoyance that she needed to uncurl from where she’d sunk into the chair. “If you’re going to be a dick, you can at least use my first name.” Lily giggled at the uncharacteristic language while Severus continued to glare.

“I knew there was something off about you. How did you make it through the school’s wards without additional damage? And what kind of dark dealings or wizards are you involved with to be cursed like you were?” Severus appeared to be building up steam to ask the dozens of questions that he clearly had about her. Now his dislike of her was beginning to make more sense— he clearly didn’t trust her.

“Sev, that’s not fair at all. You don’t know what Mina had to go through that day.” Lily was now standing protectively between her two friends.

“How would I know? Should I just glean it from thin air? Perhaps read her mind somehow?” Hermione tried not to shudder as he whisper shouted the last bit. Fear of something like that happening was exactly why she’d been sent to Cokeworth for the summer.

“She shouldn’t have to tell you if she doesn’t want to.” Lily crossed her arms. “Mina’s right. You are being a- a dick.” 

Hermione rolled her eyes and loosed a loud sigh before quickly and emotionlessly recounting her made up tale for a nearly tearful Lily and Severus who was rapidly looking regretful at pushing the issue. When she’d finished and was greeted with silence, she pettily asked, “Satisfied?” She found that she was when Severus only gave a little shrug and avoided eye contact, digesting what she’d revealed. She leaned into Lily’s hug, having to hold back the smug smirk she wanted to throw in Severus’s direction as Lily glared at him over the top of her head.

“Still doesn’t explain why you knew that song,” he muttered petulantly. She’d really hoped that he’d forget about the original cause of their fight.

She threw out the first nonsense thought that came to mind. “I have a touch of the Sight.” She cringed internally as the lie escaped. Anyone from her real life would have laughed at the thought that Hermione Granger, lover of logic and books, would have anything approaching the Sight. She could still remember, with great satisfaction, the stupefied look on Professor Trelawney’s face when she’d stormed from her classroom. She’d spent the last year and half avoiding being in the same room as Lavender and Parvati when they began speaking of Divination. It was almost enough to make a girl not want a cup of tea for fear that her roommates will try to read the leaves for some silly extra credit project.

Lily’s eyes widened in excitement while Severus’s trademark sneer began to emerge. “But not for anything serious. It’s usually some sort of pop culture nonsense. It was always a game we’d play at school— is it déjà vu or Mina’s pop culture predictions. Stupid really. Professor Dumbledore thought it would be best to not talk about it. It’s not really a good idea to draw more attention than I already have, you know.”

The excuse when tied to the state she’d been in upon her arrival seemed to be enough for Severus Snape who only nodded with a thoughtful look still on his face. 

“We won’t tell anyone,” Lily promised swiftly. “Right, Sev?” His nod of agreement would have to do. She trusted her time’s Professor Dumbledore who had vouched for Professor Snape. Knowing that the boy in front of her would become a spy to help end Voldemort helped her feel even better about his ability to keep a secret. Of course, she would now have to tell the headmaster that she had a new secret that others were keeping. She wasn’t looking forward to that conversation at all.

Shortly after that, they gathered their things to leave and headed back to the bus. With her false past out in the open, the group felt the lightest that they had all summer. Even Severus was smiling as he told Lily about a new book he’d seen that he thought she’d like. “So, Mina.” Lily stood between her two friends, arms linked with theirs as they waited for the bus. “Any good music we need to keep an ear out for?”

“Oh, Lily,” Hermione began with all the false solemnity that she could muster. “You are absolutely going to love Dancing Queen.”

Chapter Text

“So, do you want to go?” Lily leaned on Hermione’s shoulder, reading the letter that they’d both received via owl just minutes before. “I went last summer and it was so much fun. Her family has a pool!”

With only two weeks left in their break, they had been invited to join their Gryffindor roommates at McKinnon manor until school started back. After their London trip, their summer break had been flying by. The dramatic reveal in the record shop had seemed to soften Severus towards the no longer mysterious Mina DuPont. And— while she still had to remind him to use her first name when referring to her— the two got along much better than they had those tense first weeks of the break. Most afternoons would find the trio piling onto blankets spread out in the park with stacks of books and snacks, like some sort of nomadic book club.

Though she’d tried to limit herself in the last month or so, Hermione had not stopped thinking about Marlene since they’d left school. There was just something about the blonde girl that drew her in. Despite what people thought about the overly bookish Hermione Granger, she was no stranger to crushes over the years. Her first night at Hogwarts in 1991, she had been confronted with one Lavender Brown— another blonde roommate with a much different demeanor than the current girl she couldn’t stop thinking of. 

Lavender had been everything that Hermione had never been— bubbly, fashionable, pretty. It had taken all of ten seconds for Hermione to fall a little bit in love with her. Not that she ever would have told the other girl. Liking a boy was one thing, but a girl? That was a secret that she’d never share. Not even with her mother who she told everything. And so, those first few weeks she’d done everything in her power to try to draw and keep Lavender’s attention. Her hand was always the first up in class. She took care to brush her hair especially vigorously each morning and was horrified when each stroke of the brush only made the nest of her hair bigger and bigger. She hung around the common room and on the edges of conversations, trying to chime in and show that she was not only a good listener but also an excellent conversationalist. In hindsight, there was no way for it to end in anything other than disaster.

The Day of the Troll— as she’d taken to thinking about it when mentally recalling the tale— Hermione had finally learned how Lavender felt about everything. She’d just shown Ron how to properly levitate the feather that he’d been struggling with for the entire class time— honestly, how hard was listening to the professor to learn proper pronunciation?—  and was feeling fairly pleased with herself for being the first to get the spell right. She’d just started packing her bag when she’d heard her roommates chatting behind her.

“Honestly, she’s so annoying.” Lavender didn’t even try to keep her voice down as she and Parvati continued to doodle back and forth on a spare piece of parchment. “Showing up Weasley like that. It’s Levi-O-sa.” She pitched her voice higher and put on an impressively good approximation of Hermione’s accent. In that moment, it felt like Hermione’s stomach had dropped down to relocate somewhere by her feet. “Doesn’t she realize that nobody wants her around? Always hanging on when she hasn’t been invited. And Merlin, that hair!” Both girls giggled. A wave of cold and a tingling in her sinuses was all Hermione allowed herself to feel before shoving the last of her things into her bag and darting out the door. Already on the verge of tears, hearing Ron’s pronouncement about her lack of friends only seconds later had sent her retreating for the rest of the day. 

She and Lavender had never been friends after that. Hermione had forced herself to avoid the girl as much as she could for the rest of the year. Lavender, in a shockingly self-aware moment, had attempted to apologize when she realized that Hermione had overheard the conversation. It was not an apology that Hermione even tried to accept. It hurt less to be angry than heartbroken.

She’d moved on by the time second year started. Professor Lockhart held her attention for the first few months at least. Then Neville for an embarrassing two week stretch when he’d been the only one to respond to her letters the first couple of weeks the summer between second and third year. Professor Lupin had also had the honor of having his name doodled in the margins of her journal while he’d been their professor. The previous summer had been a lesson in avoidance when she found herself blushing and stammering around Ginny Weasley who had no qualms at all about changing clothes in the middle of their shared room during the Quidditch World Cup. And then, of course, Viktor Krum had had most of her attention leading up to and just after the Yule ball. He’d swiftly lost that affection when he’d turned into a half shark and nearly bit her head off when rescuing her from the lake. Fleur Delacour had swiftly been bestowed what Viktor had lost when she’d cooed and fussed over a dripping, shivering Hermione during the second task.

Pretending to not be affected by the Veelas— first at the Quidditch World Cup and then later when the Beauxbaton students arrived with Fleur in their ranks— was significantly harder when confronted daily with someone who held those traits. The fact that Fleur had taken to checking in on both her and Cho most days after the second task hadn’t helped. Fleur’s sister Gabrielle had confided that they’d all been aware of what was happening when they’d been kept underwater which had horrified the older girl. She’d formed a little support group of sorts where they’d gather for tea and snacks during Hogsmeade trips. Those were some of the few bright spots that Hermione could remember from the year.

“Mina.” Hermione snapped out of her thoughts as Lily shook her shoulder with enough force to let her know that this was not the first time that her friend had tried to get her attention. “Daydreaming about the pool already?” Hermione was just barely able to suppress the shudder that wanted to run through her at the thought of water so soon after reflecting on the murky water of the second task.

She hummed her assent and nodded with a little smile. “Sounds fun. But what about Severus? Weren’t we going to all go to Diagon Alley together to buy school supplies?” She felt a flash of guilt at the fact that their friend would be left behind while the two of them went off to stay in a manor for the end of the summer.

Lily quickly waved her concern away. “Oh, he usually visits his Slytherin friends at the end of the year and then we meet up at Diagon for lunch.” Hermione tried not to show her doubt at the idea of Severus hanging around with any friends other than the redhead next to her. Whenever she’d seen him in the halls at school, he’d been alone. But clearly Lily would know better. “So, that’s a yes?”

Trying to feign indifference, she shrugged. “I guess. It’ll be nice to see everyone. And I suppose it might be fun to see a fancy pureblood manor with its own pool.”

Lily laughed and gave a little clap of excitement. “Perfect! I’ll let Marlene know.” And she dashed off to pen a quick reply.

“Uh, Lily,” Hermione called after her friend, a thought suddenly occurring to her. “The McKinnon’s don’t have house elves, do they?”

~**~HG~**~

The McKinnon’s did, in fact, have house elves. While she’d learned a lot about how not to approach house elf rights after the disaster that had been S.P.E.W., that didn’t mean she was comfortable with the idea of magically enforced servitude. It took so much self-restraint to not immediately bring the issue up with Marlene when an elf had promptly popped into existence to take her and Lily’s bags upon their arrival at the manor.

“That was Tinky,” Marlene said with a carefree smile, clearly misinterpreting Hermione’s look of censure as alarm. “You’ve seen house elves, yeah?” At her stiff nod, Marlene continued on in the same cheerful tone, oblivious to the tension that was creeping over the group. “The manor has four. Tinky manages the guest rooms and will be able to answer any questions you two might have while staying here. Berta runs the kitchen. Barny does the work to maintain the grounds and gardens. And Plimmy is our family elf.”

“Oh.” Hermione’s jaw was clenched so tightly around the angry words that she wanted to spit out about the lack of house elf rights that it was shocking that her teeth didn’t creak.

Lily looked between the two girls, clearly remembering the odd look Hermione had worn when asking Lily about the McKinnon family’s house elves the day before. The cheer in her voice sounded so forced that even Marlene paused to really take a look at her guests’ faces. “But they’re paid. Right, Marls?” 

“Of course they are!” Marlene looked shocked that someone would suggest otherwise. “Just because they’ve been with the family for years doesn’t mean they’re forced to stay here. Mother wanted to pay more but Tinky threatened to leave if she did.” She noted the sigh of relief that Hermione loosed once the elves’ employment status was revealed. “What kind of terrible people have you been around to think that we aren’t paying the house elves?”

An image of Lucius Malfoy’s haughty sneer when he’d seen her parents and the Weasleys in Flourish and Blotts flashed through her mind and she unconsciously made a face. “Trust me, it was an entirely involuntary interaction and not one that I ever plan on repeating.” She shot Marlene a timid smile that the other girl returned with a wide one of her own. “Being muggleborn, there are still some things that I have to learn about the magical world, I suppose— house elves being one group. I may have inadvertently insulted some of the elves at school last year.” And she told both girls about S.P.E.W. and the nights she’d stayed up knitting clothing for the school’s elves. Marlene, who had thrown an arm around her shoulders as she led her guests into the house and up to their room, wasn’t quite able to hold back her laughter. Though, she was happy to note that Lily at least seemed to truly understand where her outrage came from as she chimed in her own opinions.

“I think we have some books in the library about house elves and their origins if you’d like to see them while you’re here.”

“A library?” Hermione already felt giddy at the thought of a mini Hogwarts library at her fingertips for the next two weeks. Perhaps they’d have some books on time travel that could be helpful!

“All that time with Lily is making her rub off on you. She reacted the same way last summer.” Though Marlene was teasing, it wasn’t in that way that Hermione had come to associate with actual mocking and she grinned up at the slightly taller girl.

“You’ll love it, Mina!” Lily gushed as they swept into the room that they’d be sharing while they were there. “They have an entire section just for Transfiguration texts.”

Once they’d claimed their beds— Hermione was excited to see that even if she was sharing the room with Lily, she’d have her own real bed instead of the camp bed she’d gotten used to— Marlene steered them outside to where the rest of the girls were already waiting. Blankets were spread out along with a lunch that contained everything from sandwiches to fruit and delicate chocolate pastries.

“Berta really went all out!” Mary exclaimed, lifting a chilled glass of some sort of bright pink juice in greeting as the trio approached the lounging girls. “Hi Lily. Mina. You have to try one of these sandwiches.”

Mary was sitting next to a girl that Hermione hadn’t met yet and she didn’t look familiar enough to be one of parents of the students that she’d grown up with. She held out a careful hand as she settled next to Lily on one of the blankets, Marlene flopping on her other side. “Hello. I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Mina DuPont.”

“Dorcas Meadowes.” The other girl leaned over to give her hand a gentle shake. Hermione thought the girl had the prettiest smile that she’d ever seen— she had the kind of perfect straight teeth that her parents would have raved over. Her eyes quickly scanned Hermione from top to bottom and she couldn’t help but feel relieved that she had worn one of the few dresses that Lily helped her pick out. “So you’re the new girl that Marlene is obsessed with.” The words were spoken like a fact, not a hint of mocking to them.

Though it was warm outside, the flush that swept over Hermione’s face had nothing to do with the temperature. It took every ounce of self-control to not glance in Marlene’s direction as she tried to pretend to misunderstand what was being said. “I suppose it is a bit odd to be transferring so far along into my education. But Gryffindor house seems pretty welcoming. What house are you in?” 

“Slytherin.” Ah. That explained her blunt way of speaking and the way that she was unabashedly watching Hermione to see her reaction. “Our houses have a bit of a rivalry, actually. I don’t imagine you’ve had a chance to see it in action yet.” 

If only she knew how much Hermione had seen of the petty fighting between the two houses in her time at school. “Oh. I imagine Quidditch matches can get competitive if they’re between the house teams.” 

As the only Quidditch player of the group, Marlene was quick to throw in her own thoughts. “Maybe the other houses are when competing for second place but Gryffindor can beat them easily enough.” It was a wonder the girl didn’t flex her muscles to prove her words. Hermione thought she’d quite like it if she did. Dorcas only rolled her eyes, a little smile pulling at her lips.

With Marlene’s interference the slight tension that had been slipping over the group dispersed and they dug into the picnic that had been laid out. Hermione learned that Dorcas was in their year and that she and Marlene had grown up together. Both were from pureblood families so had spent most of their youth going from one function to another with Sirius and James. It was fascinating to hear about these families and events that had previously been hidden knowledge to any not in the group. While the Weasleys were purebloods, they didn’t exactly run in the same circles that were throwing galas. And Neville had revealed that his grandmother had pulled back significantly from most public functions after the end of the war so he didn’t have any firsthand knowledge that he had been able to share.

During dinner, Hermione was finally able to meet the rest of the McKinnon family that resided at the manor— Marlene’s mother and father and her two older brothers. Her parents were polite but withdrawn in that way that Hermione had often seen some of the more wealthy parents of the children she’d gone to school with pre-Hogwarts. Though they asked all of the right questions and seemed to listen to the answers that were given, it was obvious that they were not fully invested in much beyond empty pleasantries and making it through the meal. Marlene’s brothers, David and Patrick, seemed a little more involved in that way that older siblings could be when trying to meddle. Both had graduated from Hogwarts a few years before with David being the older of the two. They were quick to tease their sister and share little embarrassing facts and stories with her friends just for the joy of seeing her get annoyed without being able to do more than shoot them angry looks in front of their parents.

Not having been part of many female friend groups— and certainly not any that had sleepovers with any sort of regularity— Hermione was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to slip into her pajamas for the night before meeting up with the rest of the group for a night of gossip and last minute summer homework questions. Marlene’s room looked like the set of one of those girly teen movies that Hermione had insisted she hated publicly even as she rented them religiously during her summers at home. In short, it was one of the most fun evenings that she spent with a group of friends. She loved Harry and Ron— they were her best friends and she would do anything for them— but two emotionally immature teenage boys were no replacement for a group of girls who actually understood how she was feeling. When the creeping thought that she would miss this group tried to overtake her thoughts that night as she fell asleep in the blanket and pillow pile that they’d created on Marlene’s bedroom floor, she did her best to ignore it.

~**~HG~**~

No one day at McKinnon manor was like the next. One day they’d spend lazy hours laying out by the pool and the next they’d be combing through the manor’s library for a book on charm craft just so Lily could prove a point from an argument that had happened at the beginning of the year. By the end of the first week, Hermione had made herself fully at home in the library whenever she had a free moment. So far, she’d found a couple of very basic textbooks on time travel that were wholly unhelpful due to the fact that she’d read them back before her third year. Both read more like training manuals for how to use a time turner than anything else. She found she could only read so many warnings about the dangers of meddling with time before her stomach began to hurt with guilt and fear about what her presence in this time was doing to her own future. 

The day she found the text on how to become an animagus felt like fate. She’d had an idea of how the process worked but she’d never read an in-depth explanation like the text in the McKinnon’s collection. She read through the book front to back several time over the next two days, committing most of it to memory while also copying down the practical aspects onto parchment for later. Even if she was to go home before the school year began— and she sincerely hoped that would be the case— she could at least start parts of the process that were not too time sensitive. The worst that could happen is she’d have to start over once she returned home. Besides, Harry would be pleased to follow in his father’s steps and he’d most certainly need Hermione’s help to do so. 

As her second week was underway, she received an owl from Professor McGonagall letting her know that she would be meeting up with the group of girls the next day during their trip to Diagon Alley. Hermione tried not to show how relieved she was to be hearing from her her head of house. While she still had some money left over from the headmaster's letter earlier that summer, she didn't have nearly enough to cover the expenses outlined in the school letter everyone in the group had received at the beginning of the week. She calculated that if she was thrifty, she would be able to afford a few new sets of robes as well as some spare uniforms to get her through another year if need be. She'd already seen how hard it was to cycle through only two options when staying with Lily's family and didn't want a repeat once the school year began.

Since the McKinnon's were magical, they were able to Floo directly to the Leaky Cauldron-- something Hermione much preferred to her family’s method of drive to a random alley in London and hope you remember the correct number of taps on the bricks to get into the wizarding community. She'd barely had time to finish brushing off the soot from her outfit when a familiar voice called her name. She smiled in relief as she caught sight of Professor McGonagall who stood just out of the way surrounded by several shopping bags.

The professor looked between the jumble of bags and, after consulting their contents, picked out two to hand over. "Books and supplies are in here as well as your clothing allowance for the month. And potion ingredients are in here. I've shrunk what can be safely altered so you will need someone to reverse that." Here she met Mrs. McKinnon's eyes and the other woman simply nodded her agreement before moving further into the room and away from the conversation. Once it was just the two of them, Professor McGonagall dropped her brisk way of speaking just a little— though her tone was nowhere near as kind or familiar as what she’d used when speaking to Hermione during her own time— and gave her Gryffindor charge a quick look over. "How have you been this summer, Miss DuPont? Settling in okay with the Evans family?"

"Yes, Professor. Lily and I get on very well."

"Good. You will let me know if anything comes up?" Here a look of concern crossed her features. "The headmaster let me know that you were without new clothes for the first half of the summer. I must apologize, Miss DuPont. The thought had slipped my mind but as your head of house I should have ensured you had everything before leaving school for the summer."

"Oh, no, Professor! It's quite alright. Lily leant me clothes. Honestly, it slipped my mind as well or I would have asked." She fibbed a bit not wanting her favorite professor to blame herself for the oversight. In all honesty, as someone who had never had to worry about being provided for by her own family, Hermione was quickly learning that looking out for herself with no built in support system dedicated solely to her was much harder than she’d imagined. It stung as she’d thought that the mothering that she often found herself doing with her own friend group would have prepared her to be much more self-reliant than she actually was. 

"Still. You'll let me know." And the almost maternal kindness that had tinged the professor's words was replaced with the steel that often laced her lectures when she was aware that students weren't paying attention.

"Of course, Professor."

And then, she was dismissed to spend the rest of the day with her friends.

~**~HG~**~

While Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas took off for the bookstore, Mary insisted that she had a store that Hermione simply had to see.

Hermione had learned very quickly that Mary Macdonald did nothing by halves. The girl was a ball of energy just waiting for a project. On anyone else it would be classified as annoying but Mary was so sweet that it tempered the enthusiasm to be more endearing than anything else. Of their group, Mary was the one who would go out of her way to find someone the perfect gift. Or to drop everything she was doing to lend a hand. Hermione hadn’t gone to bed without braided hair since joining the group at the manor. The couple of times that Hermione had offered to braid the other girl’s stick straight hair, Mary had happily handed over the brush and settled in like a contented cat. There was an unspoken agreement among the girls that they would protect Mary at all costs if anyone so much as looked at her with anything less than kindness.

“This is your first time to Diagon Alley, Mina, and we have to make sure that you know all the best places,” the tiny brunette insisted, nearly stomping her foot in impatience as Hermione continued to dig in her heels. “I’m not letting you take this bonding opportunity away from me. You’re going to have fun!” The last sentence was spoken with such insistence that Hermione snorted a little laugh.

“Fine, fine.” She managed to smooth down the smile that the other girl’s antics had pulled out and crossed her arms. “I’ll give you ten minutes.”

Mary cheered. “Oh, it’ll take at least twenty. But you’ll love it!”

Less than five minutes in the store had Hermione reluctantly admitting that she did actually like it. Miss Marigold’s Beauty Boutique had everything from hair supplies to makeup. Hermione had never been one to do more than brush her teeth and hair before heading to classes for the day. But with Mary at her side, that routine was quickly expanded.

“This is really good for your curls and it smells so nice!” Hermione almost dropped the bottle that was shoved into her free hand, dutifully taking a sniff of the contents when Mary looked at her expectantly. It did smell nice. Kind of like the violet candies that her mother used to keep in her handbag.

“Okay, but this is the absolute last thing I can afford for this trip.” So far, Mary had loaded her up with shampoo and conditioner, the hair tonic, face wash, a pressed powder, and a lipstick that was just a touch too bold to wear during the regular school week but would be nice for a Hogsmeade visit.

Once they’d both made their purchases, they left to meet up with the rest of the group. As they tried to decide on where to go next, Dorcas revealed that she needed to purchase a new set of robes for the year so she and Hermione tackled that task while the others continued shopping for school items. 

Dorcas, while nice, was still a bit of a mystery. Hermione knew that Dorcas and Marlene had been friends for most of their lives but there seemed to be a bit of tension between the two of them that she couldn’t quite put her finger on. When she’d asked Lily, her friend had simply shook her head and said, “That’s their story to tell. I’m sure Marlene will tell you if you give her some time.”

She did know that Dorcas had become betrothed earlier that summer but the girl was tightlipped on who it was— nobody in their group knew and the quiet girl wasn’t inclined to share beyond the fact that he was currently a student in Slytherin house. Perhaps that was it. Marlene was upset that her friend refused to share the name of her intended. Though, Hermione had a suspicion it was less Dorcas wanting to keep a secret from her friends and more an act of denial. Hermione wondered if when she came of age Dorcas would find a way out of the engagement. If the other girl opened up enough to confide in her, she would help her.

Robe and uniform shopping was an easy task. The two of them chatted about their upcoming classes. Dorcas also liked to read ahead so had a decent understanding of what their first few months back would look like. And since they had almost identical classes, it was decided that the only thing that made sense would be to form a study group together. The invitation was extended to the rest of the girls when they all reconvened for lunch and was accepted with an enthusiasm that Hermione had always wanted when it came to her peers and academics.

True to Lily’s assurance nearly two weeks ago, they ran into Severus as they made their way to one of the various cafes that dotted the alley. “Sev!” Lily’s enthusiastic greeting nearly drowned out the quiet curse that Dorcas uttered as the boy approached with two other boys around his age— the friends that he’d likely been staying with through the end of the summer.

“Hello, Lily.” Gone was the slightly self-conscious boy who would have grinned happily at his best friend’s excited greeting. Instead, Severus was dressed in robes that bordered on formal— his hair combed back neatly from his face and a neutral expression in place. Lily didn’t seem at all fazed by the practically chilly greeting, continuing to smile as she began to pepper him with questions about how his visit with his friends was going.

A throat cleared as one of the boys— he looked remarkably similar to Sirius which didn’t mean much in pureblood circles where everyone seemed all too happy to marry their cousins— stepped forward to address the rest of their group. “Miss Meadowes. Miss McKinnon.” Hermione tried not to scowl as she noted that Mary— a half-blood— was noticeably snubbed. The girl, to her credit, simply rolled her eyes before digging into her bag to pull out one of the magazines she’d purchased and began to flip through it. “I don’t believe we’ve been introduced to your new classmate.”

Marlene glared, arms crossing as she looked the boy up and down. “What is this ‘Miss’ nonsense, Reggie? You used to cry when Dorcas wouldn’t let you play knights and dragons with us.” The other boy snickered as the first one— Reggie— flushed bright red, composure suddenly unravelling so he appeared exactly like the child pretending to be an adult that he was. “And you weren’t much better, Evan.”

“Stop antagonizing them, Marlene,” Dorcas sighed with an exhaustion borne through years of repeating the same argument. “This is Mina DuPont. She’s transferring from Beauxbatons. Gryffindor, but I don’t hold it against her.” She shot Hermione an unexpected grin that she couldn’t help but return with a small one of her own. “Mina, this is Regulus Black and Evan Rosier. They’re in my house and one year below us.”

Regulus had perked up when he’d heard her last name paired with the name of her previous school. Even Evan looked more attentive as they both scanned her. Probably trying to figure out if we’re somehow related, Hermione thought uncharitably. While she knew little about the Black family, she did recognize the Rosier surname from some of the reading that she’d done on the war. He’d been killed in the early 80s while fighting as a Deatheater.

Now that she knew the he was a Black, she could detect the same accented English that Sirius also spoke with. When he spoke, it was in French. “Are you French, Miss DuPont?” 

“My father was,” she answered back in the same language. “My mother was from England so I grew up in Hampstead before I went off to school.” As both boys shook her hand, it took every ounce of self-control to not taunt them about having tainted their pureblood hands by touching a muggleborn. Marlene seemed to be thinking the same thing as she simply smirked while watching the exchange. 

They exchanged pleasantries while Severus and Lily caught up. Hermione saw that both seemed much more relaxed as they leaned close together, speaking quietly enough that they wouldn’t be overheard. Severus looked more like the boy they’d spent the summer with than the stoic stranger that had originally approached them. 

After hearing about where she’d grown up, Regulus was excited to share that they’d practically been neighbors as his family’s home was in Islington. Hermione distracted him from asking further about her family by asking about landmarks around the area instead. Evan had begun to look suspicious by the third dodged question about her mother’s family— what did you say her maiden name was, Miss DuPont?— when Lily rejoined their group. Severus, clearly having caught the end of the questioning that was happening was quick to say his goodbyes and steer his friends away from their group.

Once they were out of earshot, Mary loosed a dramatic breath. “Well, that could have been less tense.” 

Marlene snorted and threw an arm around Hermione’s shoulders. “Mina handled that beautifully. Most people aren’t able to slip around the family tree recitation like that when meeting a Black.”

Hermione rolled her eyes but allowed herself to lean ever so slightly into Marlene’s side as they made their way up the street. She wasn’t sure if her heart was racing from being face to face with a confirmed future Deatheater or from the girl next to her. The breeze kicked up a bit and she could smell the cinnamon gum that Marlene seemed to constantly be chewing. Okay, maybe it had more to do with the girl next to her and Hermione had zero self-preservation skills after all.

“They’ll find out eventually. I’m not ashamed of my parents or being a muggleborn. But I don’t think broadcasting it is the best thing for me to do right now.”

Dorcas, who had been filled in on the tragic tale of Mina DuPont, looked incredibly grave as she spoke. “Reggie is mostly harmless but steer clear of Evan if you’re on your own. He’s… not a very nice person.” Marlene gave her a little squeeze around the shoulders, not letting go.

The group was silent as they walked past a few more stores. Lily, as expected, was the first to break the silence. “Okay, enough of this grim attitude. We have a couple of hours left before we have to head back. Let’s have lunch and get ice cream!” A collective cheer went up from the group.

Truly, what would they do without Lily Evans?

Chapter Text

It had been over a week since they’d returned to Hogwarts and Professor Dumbledore’s continued silence had Hermione swiftly moving from worried to furious. 

She’d settled into her classes easily enough. Lessons were easier than they had been in the 90s as they tended to skim theory and focus more on the practical side of casting. While memorizing theory had been something that she’d worked hard at— to the point of obsession— she’d found that instinctual magic had come surprisingly easy to her once she got out of her own head. In the 90s, Hermione Granger was known for being clever, an overachiever in all of her subjects, and the first to raise her hand. It was something that had always made her stand out to her professors. 

Now in the 70s while taking classes with many of those same professors, her approach as Mina DuPont was different. There was no part of Hermione that would ever allow herself to do poorly or purposefully fail her classes. She had far too much pride for that. But she did allow herself to perform within what was expected of a student in her year. If the assignment called for a twelve inch essay, that was the amount that she would write. She spent one hour to her usual three when studying and still found herself scoring at the top of the class. Lily now held the honor of that top spot in all but their Defense Against the Dark Arts and Potions classes— held by Remus and Severus respectively. 

Part of her wondered why she’d spent so many years stressing herself out when taking the time to study for a bit while still enjoying life as a teenager was yielding similar results. She knew the lack of permanency in the time was likely making her feel less urgent about her grades as they would not count toward her actual test scores once she returned to her correct decade. She told herself to think of it like an extended study session which helped ease a little of the anxiety that would creep in when she had a paper returned with full marks but no extra credit.

Dorm life in this time was a breeze compared to her original time. Mary, Lily, and Marlene were a dream to live with and they seemed to genuinely like her even as the newness of her began to wear off. She’d hoped that their time together at McKinnon manor had been a true representation of how they’d get along in the dorms and she was not disappointed. Every night felt like an extension of their sleepovers. Though she did find herself missing the sarcastic but funny presence of Dorcas now that they were in Gryffindor Tower and she was in the dungeons in the Slytherin dorm. 

The Slytherin girl had stayed true to her word and after the first full day of classes, she’d approached their little group after dinner to begin their study group. James Potter— who, Hermione had noticed, was never too far away from Lily if he could help it— overheard their plans and invited himself and the rest of his friends to join in as well. “Between all of us, we ought to have at least one person who’s decent at each subject,” he’d reasoned when Lily had scolded him for butting in. She’d just scoffed at his logic but Hermione had seen the little grin he’d tried to hide at getting any sort of reaction from the girl. 

She’d been surprised that the two weren’t already dating after doing some mental calculations for when Harry was supposed to be born. The fact that it was already fifth year and Lily seemed to barely tolerate her future husband didn’t bode well for that happening anytime soon. Something clearly was going to happen in the next couple of years to push them together— Hermione suspected the brewing war likely had more to do with it than anything else. She was also shocked that while Lily was a prefect for their year, Remus— not James— held the other spot for the fifth year Gryffindors. Hadn’t James been Head Boy in their seventh year? Not having the full picture of what was supposed to happen during Harry’s parents’ school year often felt like a tightrope walk of navigating where she was meant to interfere and when she should allow things to play out. More than once, she worried that she’d somehow managed to change something that would irreparably affect the future.

A week into their study group sessions, attendance had already taken a steep dive. She suspected that it would pick up as they got further along in the year and closer to their O.W.L. exams as always seemed the case when it came to library activity. By the beginning of their second week they’d lost Peter, James, Sirius, and Marlene fully from their group. Mary ducked out pretty quickly after that. Once it was down to her, Dorcas, Lily, and Remus they were joined by a couple of new faces. Severus just showed up one day without saying anything and settled in next to Lily like he’d been there from the beginning. He was enough like a wary cat that Hermione didn’t acknowledge him or say much, lest he get spooked and retreat. Not long after that, Regulus Black appeared with a polite greeting and the neatest notes that Hermione had ever seen. When he noticed her staring longingly at them, he offered to share his Ancient Runes notes with her if she helped him with Transfiguration which was an easy agreement for her to make.

They continued that way into the first week of October. Silence from the headmaster was beginning to wear on her. She tried to catch his eye at every meal only to be ignored. On more than one occasion, she’d tried to find him in his office only to be turned away by the gargoyle statue that guarded the entrance. She’d even gone so far as to stand by the stairs leading up to his office in the hopes that she could ambush him on his way to or from his rooms. This resulted in a swift telling off by Professor McGonagall who caught her on the third day of this endeavor just moments before she would have been caught out after curfew. 

“Miss DuPont.” The professor’s tone was one that she used to head off potential troublemaking and not something that Hermione had ever had directed at her. “I trust that you haven’t forgotten your way back to your dorm. You’ve managed to navigate the castle perfectly well on your own for weeks.”

“No, Professor,” Hermione’s voice was more of a timid squeak than she’d like and she nervously fidgeted with the strap of her bag. “I- I was just hoping to speak to Headmaster Dumbledore.” When the stern look didn’t dissipate, she sagged a bit. “He mentioned trying to find out more information about why my family was targeted at the end of last semester.” And there it was, her get out of jail free card. Nothing quite took the wind out of someone’s sails like the tragic tale of Mina DuPont. Hermione would have felt bad if she didn’t need to talk to Professor Dumbledore urgently enough to be willing to use all of the resources available to her.

Nobody would ever be foolish enough to say that Professor McGonagall’s eyes misted over at the reminder but Hermione did notice that her professor had to clear her throat just a bit before speaking. “Yes. Of course.” She seemed to mentally shake herself and was back to her no nonsense attitude quickly enough. “You might consider making an appointment rather than skulking outside of the Headmaster’s office if that is indeed your goal.”

Hermione’s face flamed at the reprimand and the very obvious solution to her problem. How had she not thought to do that herself? Had so many years of sneaking around and doing everything as hard as humanly possible in true Harry and Ron fashion ruined her ability to think critically about simple processes? “Oh. Yes, that- that does make sense. Um,” more fidgeting with her bag strap as she forced herself to admit that she didn’t know something. “How do I do that?” 

The professor let a little sigh out through her nose that sounded suspiciously like a sort of laughter. Hermione chose to believe that she’d misheard it as she refused to believe that Professor McGonagall would do some thing so undignified like laugh at a student. “I will let the Headmaster know that you wish to speak with him and have him contact you with a time. Now, off to your rooms. You are out past curfew and I would hate to see one of my newest lions already losing house points so early into the year.” Hermione allowed herself to be shooed back to the tower, grateful that  no matter the decade, her head of house was still willing to help her.

~**~HG~**~

They were well into the second week of October before Hermione received a note from the Headmaster asking to see her in his office that evening. Classes dragged that day as she kept an eye on the clocks. Had he found a way to send her back to her time? If not, was he on track to do so? He’d had the entire summer to find a solution and she knew that he’d likely been busy using all the resources at his disposal to do so. There was no way he’d risk the future by keeping her in a time where she didn’t belong. Perhaps the reason he’d been avoiding her was because he wanted to make sure everything was in place before letting her know…

“Hey, careful!” Marlene grabbed her wrist before she could tip the porcupine quills she’d been grinding into their shared bubbling cauldron. “You missed one, see.” Still holding her wrist, Marlene used her other hand to pluck the intact quill from the mixture.

It took all of her self control to not put her head down to hide from the curious eyes of the rest of the class. Of all of the lessons to be distracted in, Potions was the one time she should be paying the most attention. Severus, who had glanced up at the commotion, just shook his head with a little scoff before focusing back on the paste he was mixing for the potion he and Lily were working on. No doubt he knew just as well as she did that had she added in that uncrushed quill, the contents of their cauldron would have bubbled over almost immediately. She was just thankful that Professor Slughorn was too busy chatting with one of the Slytherin boys at the front of the class to have noticed the mistake.

“I’m so sorry, Marlene. My mind’s all over the place today.” Even if this was her last day in the 70s, she didn’t want to look completely incompetent in front Marlene McKinnon. Marlene’s flirtations had picked up even more over the past few weeks. Lily had strongly hinted that Hermione should be expecting an invitation to Hogsmeade within the week. A very strong, very loud, part of Hermione was disappointed that it was unlikely that she’d still be around to experience that.

“’S alright. Just be careful, okay?” The accompanying grin made Hermione’s stomach flip hard enough that she jolted slightly. She nodded, hoping that Marlene wasn’t able to hear how hard her heart was beating. 

Remus, sitting at the table next to her, clearly could if his quick glance and quiet snicker was anything to go by. The upcoming full moon was having an obvious effect on him if one knew to look for it— his eyes watered more than usual in the pungent room and he’d taken on a greenish tinge when Professor Slughorn had mentioned the fish component to their potion. Sirius was dutifully tending to all smelly ingredients to spare the other boy’s nose as much as possible.

After seeing that Hermione wasn’t going to dump the bowl into their potion, Marlene released her wrist and began to gently play with Hermione’s curls as she turned her eyes back to the book to make sure they weren’t running up against a time limit between steps. She grabbed a curl and slowly pulled it out until it was nearly straight before letting it spring back into place. Marlene was almost as obsessive about her hair as Mary could be. Though— Hermione had noticed smugly— Marlene tended to gravitate only toward her hair. Mary didn’t discriminate when it came to her beauty stylings. On more than one occasion, Hermione had caught the girl bullying Sirius into sitting still long enough for her to practice a hairstyle on his wild black mane. 

She thought that it must be some sort of unspoken Gryffindor trait— the constant touching. At first, she’d thought that the Weasley family was just like that because they were a large family with limited boundaries. Several years in the Gryffindor common room and a peek into the same room two decades earlier was confirming that it was probably a house thing. Even Harry, after a couple of years of instinctively flinching when someone brushed against him, had begun to initiate hugs or playful shoulder bumps in the past year.

She took a deep breath and forced her wandering thoughts back to their potion. Leaving or not, the last thing she needed to do was blow up the potion lab. Her careful work to fly under the radar of her professors by not doing too well in class would be moot if she became known as a safety hazard.

~**~HG~**~

By the time dinner ended, Hermione had to stop herself from sprinting to Professor Dumbledore’s office. As it was, she had to hide her impatience as her friends questioned why she was skipping their study session. After deflecting their questions, she finally made her way to the Headmaster’s office and entered after smugly delivering the correct password to the skeptical gargoyle who had questioned her return. 

“Ah, Miss DuPont. Please have a seat.” Professor Dumbledore greeted her, the ever present twinkle in his eyes accompanying the little smile he gave her as she entered the room. So he had figured it out! She wondered if she’d be allowed to say goodbye to her friends before going back to her own time or if the headmaster would send her back right now. She wasn’t sure what would be harder but secretly hoped he’d at least let her give Lily one last hug before she had to leave.

“Hello, Professor.” Hermione couldn’t hide her excitement as she settled in the squishy armchair across from his desk, clasping her hands to stop herself from fidgeting. She’d be going home. She’d get to see her parents again. Her friends. And Crookshanks! She’d actively stopped herself from thinking about him too much while waiting to go back. People could understand that she wouldn’t leave them willingly but when she thought about her precious, furry baby it made her heart squeeze painfully. She could only hope that she could go back close enough to when she left that her time away wouldn’t register as the actual months that she’d been gone.

She leaned forward expectantly, waiting to finally hear about how she’d be sent back. She could only imagine the texts and people that the headmaster had been consulting over the summer.

“I imagine you’ve been waiting for this meeting since before the summer. I must apologize for the delay as I wrapped up a few matters that arose in early September.” 

“I understand, sir. I’m just glad to know that I’ll be going home soon.” She put on her most understanding smile; the one that she used with adults who expected her to overlook behavior that they would not tolerate from her. “Do you know how much time will have passed since I left? Can we get it close to the actual day or will months have passed?” She twisted her fingers, unable to hold still any longer. “Actually, I had something to report that maybe you could look into from that night-”

She stopped talking as he abruptly held up a hand, brows furrowing. “Miss DuPont, I believe there’s been a misunderstanding. I have not yet found a way to send you back.” She abruptly went from excitement to feeling like she was going to be sick. “We are starting your Occlumency lessons tonight.”

“Wha- what?” Her voice wobbled as she felt tears begin their ascent up her throat and to her eyes. “But this summer… You said you’d look.” 

If he was anyone other than the Hogwarts Headmaster, the little sigh that escaped him would have been classified as frustrated. But Hermione knew it was likely that he was simply sympathizing with her. This was confirmed when he floated a handkerchief over to her. She plucked it from the air and hid her face in it as she tried to gulp in breaths of air and hold back the tears.

“This summer was not as successful as I would have hoped. Voldemort and his followers were far more active than we anticipated.” He steepled his fingers and observed her over them as she gathered herself enough to look up and meet his eyes. “I’m afraid that you will have to wait a little while longer, Miss DuPont.”

“How much longer?” Her words, while delivered in a quiet voice, held just enough bite that she knew she was pushing what was an acceptable tone when speaking to a teacher.

Something flashed in the old man’s eyes but it was quick enough that Hermione couldn’t quite catch it. When he spoke, his face held none of the warmth that it had when she’d entered the room. “I’d suggest settling in for the school year.” Her lip wobbled and, like the flip of a switch, his sympathetic smile was back. “I know it’s not what you were hoping to hear but we must be realistic with our timelines when working with time, mustn’t we?” 

She could only nod as the realization that she was stuck settled coldly around her shoulders before sinking into her chest and the pit of her stomach. The sensation was close enough to how the Dementors had felt that she distantly thought that she should be a little worried. She closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths, only opening them when the candy dish that sat on the headmaster’s desk bumped her hand. He motioned for her to take one and she popped it into her mouth, shoulders lowering ever so slightly as she rolled the lemon drop over her tongue. She felt a warm sense of calm sweep through her as the candy slowly dissolved and she watched the dish return to its place. 

“Now, before we begin, did anything of note happen over the summer?”

At his question, Hermione found herself speaking rather more openly about that summer’s events than she usually would. Perhaps it was the headmaster’s grandfatherly demeanor or the fact that he was the only person in this time who actually knew who she was and what she’d been through. Whatever it was, Hermione wasn’t able to stop herself from divulging everything from that summer; even down to her overwhelming crush on Marlene. “And Lily said she’s going to ask me to Hogsmeade this week…” She felt her face flame as she trailed off. The second candy that she’d been encouraged to take from the dish while chatting was gone and she tried not to make a face at the strange film it had left behind on her tongue. “I’m sorry. I’ve been rambling and that has nothing to do with what you’ve asked.”

“That’s quite alright, my dear.” The headmaster looked amused, eyes twinkling as he tried not to smile. “Young love in these troubling times is something to be celebrated, not embarrassed by.” 

“I suppose.” Hermione pressed her hands to her warm cheeks, trying to calm herself after speaking so candidly at length. Trying to get back on track, she voiced something that had been worrying her for the last few weeks. “I think Evan Rosier is suspicious of me.” She’d caught him watching her more than once. Even Regulus, who appeared to be fairly good friends with him, had tried to deflect the other boy’s attention away from Hermione on the few occasions when the three were together. It was only a matter of time before both boys found out her actual blood status. Regulus was under the mistaken assumption that she was a half-blood and she wasn’t going to correct him anytime soon. She highly doubted their budding friendship would survive if Sirius’s common room rantings about his bigoted family were anything to go by.

When Professor Dumbledore only appeared confused as to why that was a concern, she quickly added, “He’ll become a Deatheater by the time he graduates. He’s apparently already quite a nasty character.”

“I see.” He sighed with a disappointed look. “I’ll have Horace keep an eye on him for now but I believe it will be in your best interest to avoid him when possible.” She nodded her agreement. “And do try to keep from standing out too much with claims of the Sight if you can.”

She sank down a little at the reprimand. She’d seen the annoyance cross his face when she’d revealed the outlandish lie she’d been forced to tell. “Sev and Lily won’t tell anyone.” All she could do was pray that that was actually true. 

“Hm, let us hope that they will be worthy of that trust.” He let the silence sit for a moment before announcing that they would be using the time until curfew to start her Occlumency lessons. 

Occlumency was the type of instinctive magic that Hermione should have found easy to pick up. She couldn’t, however, shut off her brain long enough to actually attempt to block the Headmaster. He warned her that while she could feel him enter her mind, a good Legilimens would be able to hide that they’d skimmed her thoughts. For the sake of her lessons, he pulled her with him as he shuffled through her memories. He’d start by catching a stray thought and then burrow further back. She found herself in first year hiding under the invisibility cloak with Harry and Ron one moment then spinning her hourglass shaped necklace enough turns to go back far enough to rescue Sirius from the Dementor’s Kiss in the next. 

Try as she might she couldn’t block him and by the time they were finished she felt a headache pounding behind her eyes. She broke eye contact, pressing her palms into her eyelids as hard as she dared, hoping that the pressure would bring some relief.

“I believe that’s all that we have time for tonight.” Though the words were spoken in a soft voice, they felt like shouts to her sore brain. Nodding made it feel like her brain was rattling around in her skull. “You must practice clearing your mind using the techniques that we discussed. Before you fall asleep or first thing in the morning is the best time to try. It is imperative that you keep your knowledge of the future to yourself.” 

She tried not to think about her friends from this time. That future knowledge would literally save their lives if she were able to reveal it despite the vow she’d taken. Her head twinged as she met his eyes again and she felt a chill ripple through her as he added in a stern tone, “You must allow everything to play out as it should. You need to accept that it will happen and that there is nothing that can be done to change it.” 

And with those words of advice, he dismissed her from his office.

Chapter Text

She was holding Marlene McKinnon’s hand. It was the only thought running through Hermione’s brain as they made their way to Hogsmeade. Could Marlene tell that she was nervous? Were her hands sweating in a way that was detectable or was it something only she could feel? Was it possible to die of excitement? Logically, she knew that last thought was silly but in the moment it did feel like her heart was about to beat out of her chest. How was it that Hermione was able to be so put together in most aspects of her life but so hopelessly out of her depth when it came to dating?

Lily had been correct about Marlene’s invitation to Hogsmeade the week before. When Hermione had left the Headmaster’s office, she’d fully planned to spend the rest of the evening brooding over their meeting. Marlene clearly hadn’t sensed her mood and had sprung the question on her almost immediately after Hermione had arrived in the common room. She’d hoped her stuttered acceptance had appeared calm and cool but she caught James and Peter staring and snickering from one of the tables nearby. Either Marlene hadn’t noticed or she was too polite to say anything. She’d simply smiled her beautiful smile and hugged Hermione around the shoulders before pulling her down onto the couch to observe the intense game of Exploding Snap that Mary and Remus were engaged in.

The week that followed had been full of nerves for their first date. It was almost enough to distract Hermione completely from her conversation with Professor Dumbledore— though their continued evening Occlumency lessons ensured that she never truly forgot. Mary had even gone so far as to banish Marlene from their dorm room an hour before their date. Lily had used her prefect privileges and had taken the other girl to the prefects’ bathroom to prepare while Mary had bullied Hermione into letting her dress her and do her hair. 

Marlene looked like she’d stepped straight out of one of the trendy magazines that Petunia had strewn around her room. Her slightly wavy blonde hair was styled in a messy way that spoke of actual effort, fringe falling ever so slightly into her eyes. It was chilly enough that she’d thrown on a scuffed leather jacket that was covered in band pins over her black shirt and fitted jeans. The outfit was simple but so effortlessly cool and quintessentially Marlene. In comparison, Hermione felt a little boring in the short dark grey dress and black legging combo that Mary had put her in. At least she’d been able to finally use the lipstick that she’d bought over the summer. She still struggled to know what was currently fashionable versus completely outdated as all outfits in this time looked like something her parents would have worn. She supposed if she was being accurate, they were currently wearing such outfits at the moment. She just had to trust that her friends wouldn’t let her look completely ridiculous. 

As if sensing that Hermione was drowning in her own thoughts, Marlene swung their linked hands playfully and shot her a grin. “First date with a girl?” Though her voice held a teasing edge, there was a nervousness there that Hermione had yet to see from the taller girl when she nodded. “Regretting it?”

She shook her head before summoning up her Gryffindor courage and admitting quietly, “Just nervous, mostly.”

Marlene slowed, looking confused. “What? Why?” 

“Have you seen you?” Hermione immediately felt her face flush and wished she could take back the words. The fact that Marlene was one of the prettiest people she’d ever seen was not an uncommon sentiment by the rest of their peers but that didn’t mean she needed to admit that aloud. “Er. I mean- um…”

Marlene snorted and dropped her hand long enough to wrap her arm in its usual spot around Hermione’s shoulders. The familiar gesture did a lot to banish a few of the butterflies that were rioting in her stomach. While she’d always been a little nervous around Marlene— perfectly normal when one had a crush— it had never been quite so bad. This was Marlene, after all. Confident, outgoing, beautiful Marlene. And she’d asked Hermione out. 

“So you think I’m pretty?” Marlene’s grin was just shy of cocky. Hermione just looked her up and down from the corner of her eye with raised eyebrows. Everyone thought Marlene was pretty and it wasn’t exactly a secret. She shrugged and stayed silent, not trusting herself to not say something stupid. “I think you’re pretty.”

Hermione scoffed. By no means did she think she was ugly but there were few situations where anyone would say that Hermione was pretty. Smart? Yes. Loyal? Only a few people were close enough to her to think so but those who were knew that she would do anything for her friends. But pretty? She’d only heard that word used to describe her on the night of the Yule Ball. The one night where she’d barely looked herself— hair tamed, wearing makeup and a pretty dress— was the one night she’d ever heard anyone mention her looks in a kind way.

“I’m serious!” Marlene looked indignant. “It’s all anyone talked about that first week.”

“Oh, I’m sure,” Hermione laughed, wrapping her arm around Marlene’s waist to even their gait as they approached the village. “Was it the screams of pain or all of the blood that won the people over?”

“Honestly, it was probably the way that you ordered Snape around.” Hermione tried not to grimace. She was thankful that she had a limited memory of her first few moments in this time. She could just imagine the tone she’d used on poor Severus to get him to actually intercede and take her to the hospital wing. Marlene’s face was uncharacteristically earnest as she as she met Hermione’s eye. “But seriously. I think you’re incredibly pretty.”

“That’s because you never saw my original teeth,” Hermione teased, trying not to focus too much on the fact that they’d come to a stop off to the side of the road to the village. Marlene was doing that thing with one of her curls again— pulling it straight and then letting it bounce back into place. 

Marlene smiled, leaning a little closer to tuck the curl back behind her ear. “There is something to be said about missing each other’s awkward years. You’d understand why the rest of our year is completely undatable if you’d seen them all go through puberty.” She faked a dramatic shudder and Hermione failed to hold back a giggle. She sobered quickly enough as Marlene leaned in a little closer, her breath huffing out in surprise as she realized that she was about to be kissed. Kissed! By Marlene McKinnon! 

“Oh, Merlin! They’re lesbians!” Despite the shrill affect, the voice was familiar and Hermione tried to hold in a groan while Marlene straightened and rolled her eyes, flipping a V in the direction of the bark of laughter that followed. “Well, I’ve never.”

“So says the fruit. Shut it, Black!” Despite her words, Marlene’s tone was good natured. Remus, arm linked with Sirius’s, chuckled while his boyfriend squawked in indignation.

When it looked like nobody was going to come to his defense, he turned puppy eyes on Hermione. There was no way the Marauders weren’t well into the process of becoming animagi with how well he had that look down. “Mina, are you going to let her talk to me like that?”

She tilted her head ever so slightly, eyes sparkling with laughter as she gestured to his face. “You do bear a striking resemblance to the inside of an apple just there.” At his dramatic gasp, she added, “Oh look, there’s the red part as well!”

“I can’t believe Marlene already got her evil man-hating hooks into our sweet, innocent Mina.” His sigh was was just a step away from melodramatic. “Come on, Moony. I can see we aren’t wanted here.” And then, with Remus mouthing a quick apology through his grin, they were off to catch up with the rest of the group.

Though their kiss had been interrupted, the awkward tension from earlier was thoroughly dispersed in a way that only Sirius Black could manage. Laughing at his ridiculousness, the walked with their arms around each other into the village.

Though their initial Hogsmeade kiss had been aborted, Hermione and Marlene spent a fun first date wandering from shop to shop before ending for butterbeer at the Three Broomsticks. Sirius’s antics had pulled Hermione out of her head enough that she’d allowed herself to truly enjoy the time with Marlene. When she noticed Marlene lagging behind the others as they headed back to the castle, she followed suit and allowed herself to be pulled into an alley to be thoroughly snogged. 

~**~HG~**~

After that successful first date, Hermione and Marlene were inseparable. Marlene began actually attending study group— much to Severus Snape’s displeasure— if only to play with Hermione’s hair while pretending to read. And Hermione started going to the Gryffindor Quidditch practices to cheer on her girlfriend— it made her giddy to even think the word in the context of Marlene. She gave herself a solid week of practices before she began to sneak in a book to read when the players weren’t actually in the air. Remus— there to watch Sirius who was one of the team’s beaters— didn’t hide how smug he was when he saw that she was finally following his advice.

Though there were a few pointed looks when they walked hand in hand through the halls or disapproving murmurs made just loud enough for them to hear in the Great Hall, the rest of the student body seemed indifferent to the sight of two girls who were clearly dating. Hermione was certain that they wouldn’t have been nearly so well received in the 90s and tried not to let herself dwell on it. The Gryffindors seemed to be fully immune to reacting to any gender combination of couple. When she’d brought it up, James had joked that the constant sight of Sirius and Remus snogging in the corner of the common room had desensitized them. Remus’s objection to that fact was ignored as the two had been doing just that before they’d heard their names and looked up.

~**~HG~**~

October’s full moon fell on a Monday. Hermione had missed the first full moon of the school year since it had happened over the weekend and it wasn’t uncommon for the boys in their year to sleep in or miss meals as they roamed the grounds on their class-free days. She did not intend to miss the second. 

For her part, she’d begun the animagus process the month before and would at least be finished with the mandrake leaf portion by Monday. She’d very quickly found that keeping the leaf at the roof of her mouth had required more than intent if she didn’t want to swallow the damn thing. Some research had led her to seal it there with a thin, mostly invisible barrier— which was good for her as Marlene would have most certainly had questions as to why her girlfriend had a leaf in her mouth if she’d felt it while they kissed. She still had a way to go before she’d be able to transform but she was glad that she wouldn’t be too far behind the boys. Their nicknames had already made an appearance which would have been enough of a confirmation without their secretive looks and whispers the week before the full moon.

Now that she was looking for it, she could see the exhaustion that weighed on Remus in the lead up to Monday’s moon. He took a little longer to respond to questions and his movements were sluggish. The Remus from her time had taken to using a cane around the full moons but young Remus either didn’t need it yet or refused to be seen with it— she suspected the latter if the limp that he developed around that time was anything to go off of. Even without the cane, one of the Marauders was always quick to subtly lend him help with an arm thrown around his shoulders to hide the fact that he leaned heavily on them when taking the stairs.

Tuesday morning saw her sitting quietly by a sleeping Remus’s bedside in the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey hadn’t seen her slip in shortly as Remus dutifully swallowed his healing potions followed by a small dose of Dreamless Sleep. Knowing that he wouldn’t wake anytime soon after that combination of potions, Hermione carefully took his hand and smoothed her fingers gently over the thick scars where his claws erupted from the nail beds each transformation. 

Adult Remus, while no means a muscle man, seemed so much bigger than the skinny boy laying in the hospital bed. Everything about Remus looked sickly. The bones in his wrists and elbows were prominent, the skin around his eyes bruised looking, the days around the full moon his scars took on an almost purple tinge, even his skin was paler as his summer tan began to fade. “It’s not fair.” Her words were nearly silent as she eased his hand back onto the bed and leaned back to look him over another moment. 

Finally, she loosed a little sigh and dug around in her bag to retrieve the bar of chocolate that she’d brought for him. It was muggle, Cadbury, and had been purchased along with an array of other flavors and sweets with the express purpose of giving Remus something to look forward to post transformation. As an adult, he’d mentioned that muggle chocolate was one of the few things he’d been able to stomach after the full moon when he’d been in school. She slid the bar onto the table next to the bed as the memory floated through her thoughts.

“I was quite lucky to have such kind friends.” It was one of their Hogsmeade weekends at the beginning of fourth year and Remus was visiting them for lunch. Harry had asked how full moons had worked when Remus and his father had been in school which had led to tales of the adventures they’d gotten up to. He’d just mentioned that one of his friends had been the one to supply him with his monthly Cadbury bar of chocolate. “Even when I didn’t know they were looking out for me, they were. I know that now.” Though he’d been speaking to Harry, his eyes had darted to hers before sliding away. He’d always been good to involve her even when Harry and Ron had dominated the conversation.

She wondered who else was supplying the chocolate bars. Even if she couldn’t be here for a long time, she could at least make sure Remus got double the amount of chocolate he originally had. 

As she made her way out of the hospital wing, there was a quiet scuffle near the door as the Marauders snuck in. She kept her head down, letting her hair swing forward to hide her face as she hustled past them; though Sirius just managed to make eye contact with her before she dropped her gaze. Thankfully, he kept quiet and she slipped out of the hospital wing and to the Great Hall for breakfast.

~**~HG~**~

Sirius Black took his birthday very… well, seriously. She’d vaguely recalled that it was at some point in early November; having made a note in her planner when Harry had informed her during the beginning of fourth year. With his birthday taking place on a school day, it was decided that they’d celebrate it over the weekend. Their Hogsmeade visit wouldn’t take place until the end of the month, so it was decided that they’d take over the common room the Saturday before his actual birthday. 

Though James was in charge of the planning for his best friend’s birthday party, he’d somehow managed to rope the rest of the fifth year Gryffindors into helping. Even Lily, who seemed to have nothing but disdain for her future husband, put her animosity aside for the sake of the cause.

“It’s one of the first birthdays of the school year, Mina. This sets the tone for how we’ll celebrate for everyone else.” Hermione had laughed at her incredibly earnest answer to the question of why the group of teens seemed to be treating the party like a class assignment. It was quiet for a few moments as they looked over a list with food and game requests from the rest of the group. Every so often Lily let out a little scoff as she crossed out something James had written. “When’s your birthday? We’ll have to make sure we add you to the rotation.”

Hermione, struggling to read Peter’s handwriting, answered without much thought. “September 19^th.” Lily let out a shriek that was loud enough to make Hermione jump to her feet and pull out her wand. Mary and a startled looking Remus quickly scrambled over from where they’d been working on decorations to see what was wrong. “Lily! What was that for?” Hermione’s voice was a little sharper than necessary once she realized that her friend was just fine and not missing an appendage despite the sound she’d just made.

“We missed your birthday!” It was exclaimed with the same level of dread that one would use to announce a tragic death in the family.

“What?!” Marlene, who’d been at Quidditch practice, had clearly caught Lily’s words as she stumbled in through the portrait hole. She repeated her dismay for James and Sirius as they entered closely behind her. “We missed Mina’s birthday!” 

Sirius let out an impressed whistle. “Wow, McKinnon. Way to drop the ball on that one.”

The two traded their usual quick verbal jabs, before Marlene turned back to Hermione with sad eyes. “Why didn’t you tell us? When is it?” 

Hermione blew out a breath, trying to be patient as she waved away their concern. “It’s September 19^th. It’s really not that big of a deal; I stopped celebrating it when I went to school. With it being so early in the year, my grandmère is usually the only person who remembers… remembered it.” Technically true, though her parents were also included in that small family group who wished her a happy birthday each year.

The group was uncharacteristically quiet; looking at her like they expected her to burst into tears at any moment. “Mina,” Mary inched closer and gently touched the back of her hand. “Please don’t take this the wrong way. Did you… did you not have friends at Beauxbatons?”

“What?” Hermione started laughing. “Of course I did.” When nobody else laughed along, she realized that Mary had been serious and groaned, crossing her arms. “Oh, come on. It’s not an issue. My best friends were boys. They aren’t good at remembering that sort of thing.” James, Remus, and Sirius all made varying sounds of indignation that she purposefully ignored. “And with it being the beginning of the school year, everyone is too busy with classes to keep up with silly things like birthdays.”

“First of all,” Remus raised a finger to indicate the point he was about to make, “Men are more than capable of remembering their friends’ birthdays.” Hermione remembered with a jolt that Remus had, in fact, been one of the few people who had sent her something— a book on spell theory that had just come out that summer— for her birthday at the beginning of fourth year. “Secondly, celebrating your birthday isn’t silly. It’s fun.” Everyone nodded their agreement. Hermione suddenly felt embarrassed at how sad her friendships must seem to this close knit group.

Sirius was staring at her, deep in thought, before finally loosing a breath and clapping his hands together. “We’ll make it a double birthday party.” At her raised brows, he continued. “To make up for missing yours at the beginning of the year. As my present to you, I am sharing my birthday party.” He looked pleased with himself and Hermione huffed out a little laugh of disbelief when he held out his arms as if expecting her to throw herself at him in an embrace or some other overt show of gratitude. Marlene ruined the moment by shoving past him to drape an arm around her girlfriend. He just barely managed to keep his balance. “What the fuck, McKinnon!”

“Go hug your own swot,” she shot back.

“Hey!” Both Hermione and Remus protested and were swiftly ignored as party planning picked back up with an even greater intensity than before.

Hermione watched quietly and leaned into Marlene’s side as Lily began directing them like a general on the battlefield. She caught Sirius’s eye and mouthed her thanks; receiving a small smile in a return.

~**~HG~**~

The party on Saturday was loud and full of laughter. Though it was mainly just their group for the majority of the day, students passing through on the way in and out of their dorms would stop to join in. Lily even managed to sneak Severus and Dorcas in for an hour or so at one point; shouting down Sirius’s protests at the Slytherins’ presence by reminding him that it was Hermione’s party too. They ate snacks, played various games, and listened to a mix of Sirius and Hermione’s favorite music. Though they hadn’t had time to buy her proper presents, everyone managed to pull together some sort of small gift— from a nice quill to a customized O.W.L. study guide— with the promise of something more elaborate to follow for next year. At some point in the evening, someone pulled out a bottle of firewhisky and even prefects Lily and Remus imbibed as they snuck the drink around their little group.

As Hermione fell asleep that night, flushed from the alcohol and Marlene’s birthday kisses, she had to admit that it had been the best birthday she’d ever had.

Chapter Text

It was amazing how quickly the school year seemed to move when one didn’t have to keep a constant eye out for the Boy-Who-Lived and his equally stressful sidekick the Boy-Who-Refused-To-Study. Hermione missed them dearly. On more than one night, she pulled the curtains closed around her bed and cast a silencing charm to hide her tears from her roommates. But she did have to admit that her own studies were much easier to manage with her 1975 friend group. The only one who ever gave her much to worry about was Remus and he couldn’t help that nor did he know that she had become his secret chocolate benefactor.

Despite her questioning him at least once a week during their Occlumency lessons, Professor Dumbledore was tightlipped on what he’d found about sending her back. It had gotten to a point where he’d kindly, but firmly, let her know that he would bring it up when he had more to share. He also strongly hinted that the reason behind his avoidance of the topic had more to do with the sources he was using— Hermione could only assume the headmaster knew an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries— and less to do with an actual lack of knowledge or path forward. Stepping back and staying quiet went against everything Hermione was but she forced herself to try. It had only taken one impatient edge to Professor Dumbledore’s tone when she’d unconsciously pushed her worries to the front of her mind during their lessons to confirm that she’d been correct in doing so.

~**~HG~**~

A flurry of letters followed by excited chatter overtook the Great Hall one morning in late November. While the majority of the recipients of the expensive looking letters appeared to be Slytherins, Hermione noticed that both Marlene and Sirius received messages of their own. 

“Another one?” Marlene’s groan was muffled by the sip of pumpkin juice that she took as she quickly scanned the letter before dropping it back onto the table like it was going to bite her.

“That is the point of an annual celebration, McKinnon. It happens every year.” Sirius didn’t look any more pleased than Marlene as he read over the additional note that had accompanied what Hermione now realized was an invitation of some sort. He sneered at the scrap of parchment before crumpling it and tossing it onto the table. “You act like you’re going to have to do more than socialize for a few minutes before hiding in a corner. You know my mother’s going to insist on showing me and Reggie off for all the guests.” He shuddered and bit into a corner of toast with more force than was strictly necessary.

Marlene just scoffed and then slid the invitation to Hermione who was leaning quite comfortably into her side as she sipped her tea. Hermione’s eyebrows slowly raised as she read over the invitation cordially inviting Marlene McKinnon (and guest) to attend the annual Black family Yule party being held at number 12 Grimmauld Place. She racked her memory but couldn’t remember Sirius ever bringing up his family home in her original time. 

Glancing over at the Slytherin table, Hermione saw that Dorcas and Evan Rosier had also received similar invitations. Severus had not, much to her surprise. She’d assumed that he and Regulus were fairly good friends since they’d spent the end of the summer together but clearly that didn’t translate into a party invitation. Assuming that the invitations would be sent to pureblood families only, she was equally surprised to see that James and Peter had not received their own invitations. 

James caught her confused expression and just shrugged with a self-deprecating smile. “The Potters are ‘blood traitors’.” She could practically hear the air quotes as he rolled his eyes.

“And the Pettigrews are too far removed from the sacred twenty-eight to count.” Peter mumbled around a bite of egg. Unlike James, he looked somewhat embarrassed at the snub.

“Is that some weird British pureblood thing?” Just when Hermione thought she had a decent enough understanding on wizarding culture, they would throw something new at her.

“I’m sure there’s a French one as well,” Sirius barked out a laugh and Hermione realized that the slight French accent he’d had earlier in the year had dulled even further— if she hadn’t known to listen for it, she wouldn’t have noticed. “But yes.”

By the end of breakfast, Marlene and Sirius had managed to inform her that there was, in fact, a pureblood directory of all of the truly “pure” families. The fact that said purebloods continued to exist with limited difficulties from inbreeding hinted that they had to at some point have mixed in muggle blood. Hermione said as much to the agreement of Lily and Sirius— Lily began to wax poetic on genetics while Sirius mentioned that he’d heard rumors of a muggle great-great-someone or other on both his parents’ sides.

“You should go with me.” Hermione, who had been thinking ahead to her Arithmancy class, was jolted out of her thoughts as Marlene nudged her elbow. They’d been in the process of gathering their things to head to class as the late stragglers left the Hall. She must have looked confused because Marlene laughed and dropped a kiss to her cheek. “To the Blacks’ Yule party.”

Hermione snorted, looping her arm through Marlene’s as they made their way towards their classes. “Oh, yes. I’m sure Sirius’s mother would love to host an orphaned muggleborn at her magic Christmas party. She’d probably be scared that I’d try to steal the fancy silver along with her children’s magic.”

“All of the silver we use is fancy.” Sirius popped up on the other side of her and slung an arm around her shoulders, the other around Remus’s waist as he tugged the taller boy along with them. He ignored Marlene’s attempts to push his arm off of her girlfriend, simply poking her in the cheek to annoy her when she slapped at his hand. “And Mother will turn you away at the door if you bring a girl as your guest, McKinnon. Everyone’s straight in the Black family home, even if you aren’t outside of it.” He grimaced and Remus hugged him a little closer with a sympathetic wince.

“You could always take Remus.” The words were out of Hermione’s mouth before she could think better of it. Marlene slowed a little, pulling their four person chain to a stop. How the fifth year group of Gryffindors got anywhere when everyone insisted on latching onto each other was sometimes a mystery. “Actually, that’s probably not a great idea-”

“That’s a brilliant idea!” Sirius, who had been looking paler than usual since the note from his mother, perked up. “McKinnon, you’ll take Moony and I’ll take Mina. We won’t be able to dance together but we can at least drink wine and judge everyone else who’s there from the corner.”

“Dance?” Remus and Hermione echoed one another as Sirius’s words registered. They exchanged a look that they were beginning to perfect. The why-are-we-dating-these-people look, as Hermione had come to think of it. 

Marlene looked thoughtful for a moment before smiling. “It should work. You really are brilliant, Mina.” She ignored Remus’s protests about dancing and grabbed Hermione’s face to plant a short but intense kiss on her lips. Any protest that Hermione may have been thinking about launching died as her cheeks flushed and she smiled back, slightly dazed. “Come on, we’ll be late for class.” Marlene managed to tug her out from under Sirius’s arm and marched them in the direction of Hermione’s Arithmancy class— she’d drop her off there before heading to her own Care of Magical Creatures lesson.

“Why don’t you do that when I kiss you?” There was a pout to Sirius’s voice that clearly indicated he was trying to employ the puppy eyes that he’d begun to perfect. Remus just sighed and muttered something about pushy rich kids as they continued on to class.

~**~HG~**~

Despite their initial protests, Remus and Hermione were slowly coming around to attending the Yule party. Remus was already known to be a half-blood and resigned himself quickly to the snide comments that he’d likely garner. Hermione thought it was good that at least not many people knew he was a werewolf. She could only imagine the reception he’d receive if that information leaked. While some people knew that Hermione was a muggleborn, it wasn’t common knowledge for most of the school. She didn’t hide it if people found out but she wasn’t going to share the information freely either.

“Oh, come on, it’ll be fun.” Marlene was doing her best to get Hermione and Remus excited about the upcoming event. “There will be dancing and food. And so much wine that you can drink until you actually start to have fun.”

Remus just stared at her blankly over the top of his Charms textbook before exchanging The Look with Hermione who was equally unimpressed with the offerings. Hermione sighed and looked back down at her Transfiguration essay.

“Please.” Marlene, now standing behind Hermione’s chair, leaned down to wrap her arms around her shoulders. “It would mean so much to me if you came.” She pushed Hermione’s curls over one shoulder and punctuated the sentence with a kiss to her exposed neck. Hermione was becoming less flustered to all things Marlene but she wasn’t made of stone. She barely bit back the little sigh of satisfaction and cleared her throat, trying to shift away as her cheeks heated.

“Absolutely not,” Lily’s bossy tone was enough to make Marlene step back, hands raised. Their redheaded friend had the exhausted look of someone who was thoroughly over breaking up snogging couples. “I swear, I will take points away if you two start getting handsy down here too.”

“Too?” Sirius, who had been watching with more than a little interest, grunted as Remus’s elbow caught him hard in the side. “I’m being supportive, Moony!” He groaned in pain and leaned back into the couch like he’d caught a hex to the side. “Something you two wouldn’t know about since you’re both so willing to throw me and McKinnon to the wolves.” Remus stiffened and Sirius cursed under his breath before leaning in and muttering something quietly enough that the rest of them couldn’t overhear it.

Hermione sighed and did her best to distract their small gathering from the quiet argument now happening on the couch. “You know I’d go. But I don’t know the first thing about these parties. And I highly doubt that they’d appreciate me showing up under false pretenses.” She tried not shudder thinking of the sneers she’d caught directed at her by the likes of Draco Malfoy on more than one occasion. “Besides, I don’t have anything to wear. All my dresses are muggle and not nearly fancy enough.”

“So you’ll go if we give you a crash course in what to expect and we find a pretty dress during next weekend’s Hogsmeade visit?” Marlene was leaning over her again, playing with her hair. She groaned and stepped back dramatically when Lily made a warning sound and pointed her quill threateningly in their direction. “Yes?”

Hermione rolled her eyes and began to pack up her completed homework. “Yes, okay. I will go if you can get Remus to agree.” They glanced over at the couch where Sirius had someone managed to distract his boyfriend from their argument and was now kissing him in a display that was quickly becoming unsuitable for some of the younger students in the Common Room.

“Looks like Sirius is working on that as we speak.” Marlene wiggled her eyebrows and grinned in that way that still made Hermione’s heart feel like it was going to flip out of her chest.

Trying to look nonchalant as she slipped her bag over her shoulder, Hermione stood and tugged Marlene toward the stairs to the dorms. “Come and see if I have any decent shoes I can wear to the party?” Marlene’s grin widened as she all but ran up the stairs after a laughing Hermione.

“Oh, God. I hope they use a silencing charm,” Lily muttered in defeat.

~**~HG~**~

A week before the party saw their original study group meeting in the library. Marlene, who had re-joined the group briefly when they’d started dating, was at Quidditch practice. Dorcas and Lily were arguing quietly over their Potions notes— neither wanting to consult the actual textbook in their quest to prove that they’d memorized the point correctly. To Hermione’s shock, Severus and Remus were on fairly friendly terms. They’d been cordial when the study group had started despite the clear animosity between the rest of the Marauders and Lily’s best friend. As she watched, Remus smiled and chuckled at something that Severus had scribbled onto the parchment that the two of them were looking over. Interesting…

“Mina?” She startled slightly and tried not to look guilty at being caught watching her friends. Despite being the one to initiate the interaction, Regulus looked nervous as he sidled closer and glanced from her to their occupied study group. When he spoke again, it was in quiet French. Clearly he didn’t want the rest of the group to understand what he had to say. “I heard Evan mention something the other day.” At the sound of Rosier’s name, Dorcas cast a furtive glance in their direction from the corner of her eye but remained involved in whatever conversation she was having with Lily.

“Oh?” Hermione pulled up some of the techniques she’d learned in her Occlumency lessons, trying to keep a blank face as she waited for Regulus to continue speaking. Her heart was pounding and she felt her stomach start to churn. She knew what Regulus was about to say. She’d hoped they’d at least get through the end of the year before the calm of their study bubble burst.

When she met his eyes, she didn’t see the expected disgust, just a confusion that furrowed his brow. He looked so young. Had she and her friends looked like that just the year before? “He said he’d heard that you were… well, a muggleborn.” The last word didn’t have a French translation and was said in English. Everyone at the table paused their conversations to watch what was about to unfold. Regulus didn’t seem to notice and continued on. “I told him that he must be wrong.” When she was silent, he let out a little stressed sound. “Right?”

Her eyes flicked up to meet Severus’s and she saw her own tension reflected in his shoulders. She answered in English, doing her best to keep her tone light. “Would it be a problem if I were?”

“Don’t joke like that, Mina.” His tone was the sharpest she’d ever heard and it took everything in her to not flinch away. She’d managed to fool herself into thinking about Regulus only as Sirius’s bookish little brother. She’d forgotten somewhere along the way that this quiet boy grew up to be one of Voldemort’s youngest Death Eaters.

With that in mind, she drew her Gryffindor courage around herself and refused to back down. “I’m not joking.” Her jaw was set and she refused to drop his gaze as she watched his annoyance turn to confusion and then anger. 

He pushed his chair back so quickly it toppled over with a loud bang. Everyone at the table flinched but he simply snatched up his notes and books, shoving them haphazardly into his bag while he glared at her. She could tell his teeth were clenched hard by the way that the veins in his neck stood out. Then he was gone with an angry swirl of his robes that would have put the future Professor Snape’s billow to shame. If the situation had been any less painful, she would have smiled.

“I don’t think he liked that answer.” Her tone was mild despite the fact that she wanted to cry. While she was used to rejection from bigoted purebloods, she’d thought of Regulus as a friend and really hadn’t expected that reaction. 

Dorcas groaned quietly, pushing the heels of her hands into her eyes. “Of course he didn’t.” When Hermione bristled, she added, “His family is notorious for being awful about anyone not like them.”  She and Severus began to pack up their things, clearly going after their house mate.

“I’ll try to talk to him.” From his tone, Severus made it sound like he’d been asked to complete all twelve trials of Hercules by the end of the day. “Though it might be better coming from you, Meadowes.”

“Yeah, probably.” She stood, wearily pulling her bag over her shoulder, and then stooped over to hug Hermione. “I’m sorry he’s such a little shit.” That startled a laugh out of her and she bumped her forehead gently against Dorcas’s as she hugged her back. “But he’ll come around if you still want to be friends with him.”

Hermione shrugged. “We’ll see. It was a matter of time anyway.” She and Lily exchanged pained smiles, both thinking through the years of nonsense they’d already experienced. 

“Either way, both of you try to avoid walking around alone for a bit.” Severus and Remus exchanged a little nod at the Slytherin boy’s words. Then Severus squeezed her shoulder as he and Dorcas exited the library and made their way to the dungeons to try to attempt damage control.

~**~HG~**~

“I think I’ve got this dance down. If not, it’s too late for me at this point.” Hermione tried to keep the whine from her voice as Marlene tried to pull her up from the Common Room couch where she and Remus were staging their rebellion. Sirius had somehow procured a dusty record with a waltz that had been playing in the background on loop for the past hour.

With only a few days before the Black Yule party, Sirius and Marlene were determined to make sure their dates were able to blend as much as possible into the rest of the party-goers. While Hermione thought it had likely started out as well intentioned, she had a feeling it had become a competition of whose significant other could go the longest without being caught as out of place. If she weren’t so stressed about it happening in a room full of adults who hated her mere existence, she’d find it funny. 

Hermione tugged, trying to pull Marlene down next to her but was thwarted by her girlfriend’s toned Chaser arms. Never had she thought one of her favorite things would be used against her in such a way. “Just one more spin around the floor? For me?” Marlene pouted prettily enough that Hermione almost gave in.

“Stay strong,” Remus urged her, gripping her arm. Sirius and Marlene had initially started out by showing them the steps themselves. At some point it had devolved to them posing Hermione and Remus and directing them to dance around like life sized puppets while James and Peter called their encouragement from the sidelines. It had been fun for exactly one song and quickly lost its charm when Marlene brought out her etiquette training voice and started adjusting their stances. Hermione had very nearly asked if she was mad at her before catching herself. 

“Why don’t we go over family trees again? People will love to talk about that.” Hermione was secure in the fact that she’d memorized most trees back several generations and would not be easily tripped up. She’d also learned everything from the proper way to greet someone down to what spoon to use for dessert if, for some strange reason, the party turned into an unexpected sit down meal. 

With her dress purchased— Sirius had insisted on covering the expense as his early Christmas present to her when they’d all gone into Hogsmeade— and the plan for her to go home with the McKinnons for the first night of the break, she was as ready as she could be. Remus seemed less confident but they were all pretending that that wasn’t true. Hermione knew he’d be just fine once they got there. Being Marlene’s date, all he’d have to do once they got to the party was find a good corner to set up in. Hermione had the sinking feeling that agreeing to go as Sirius’s fake date was going to get her far more attention than she’d want.

“Here, dance with me for a bit and then we’ll take a break.” Marlene surprised her by grabbing her under the arms and popping her up from her spot on the couch. Her cheeks flushed as she very nearly dangled from the other girl’s arms. 

“Oh, hello,” she squeaked, arms going around Marlene’s neck and instinctively letting herself be pulled into the dance. After a few steps, she corrected her stance and looked up to see Marlene grinning with approval. She chewed her lower lip nervously. “Do you think I’ll blend in?”

Marlene reached over to gently tug on one of her curls before tucking it behind her ear. “I think, as the most beautiful girl there, you’ll stand out.” When she could see Hermione opening her mouth to argue, she quickly added, “But it won’t be for something like dancing incorrectly or a social faux pas.”

Hermione just hummed noncommittally and let her cheek drop to rest on Marlene’s shoulder.

~**~HG~**~

The day leading up to the party passed in a blur of sneaky kisses and, for Hermione, quiet moments of panic. The McKinnons had been kind enough to let Hermione stay over for the night between the start of winter break and the party as well as the night of. Professor Dumbledore and a very sweet note from Mrs. Evans had confirmed that she’d be staying with Lily’s family for the rest of the break. She was immensely glad that she’d already bought presents for the family as a thank you for their hospitality over the summer.

Judging by the fact that Hermione and Marlene had been allowed to have completely unchaperoned time together as well as continue the same sleepover setup as earlier in the summer, it was clear that her parents were unaware that Hermione was more than a friend. Even though it went unused, they’d set up a blanket and pillow mound on the floor of Marlene’s room to keep up the illusion. She had a suspicion that her brothers knew. David had made a few pointed remarks about how upset they’d be to see their little sister unhappy. 

She’d been banished to the guest room to get ready a couple of hours before the event. Tinky had even helped her with her hair and makeup. It was like the Yule Ball all over again but without the feeling of being an entertaining side project for her roommates. She still didn’t feel quite right about the treatment of house elves by the witches and wizards as a whole but Tinky was happy to answer her questions. There had only been a couple of awkward moments where the old house elf had pulled the brush too hard through Hermione’s hair when a question came across more offensive than thoughtful. By the time they were done, any anger on Tinky’s part had been soothed. With a pat to the girl’s hand, the elf had promised to leave some resources on house elves that she could borrow over the break.

After Tinky left, she had a few minutes of quiet before she’d be expected to join the McKinnons downstairs before they Flooed over to the Black family’s home. She stood in front of the full length mirror in her room and carefully smoothed her hands over the fabric of her dress. She’d found it amusing that the old fashioned standards of wizarding formal wear hadn’t changed much in the twenty years between her original time and the current year. The top half of the deep burgundy velvet dress was structured enough to nearly be corset-stiff. Thin sleeves that rested just off of her shoulders provided the illusion of modesty despite the daringly low neckline. It all flared out ever so slightly into a full skirt that brushed the ground as she walked. Hermione was just glad that hoop skirts were no longer in fashion despite the somewhat Victorian sensibilities that continued to have a grip on the magical community of Britain. Tinky had refused to alter her curls, simply pulling half of her hair back to keep it from her face and allowing the rest to flow free down her shoulders. Her makeup was minimal. It was the most like her she’d ever looked when dressing up and she wasn’t sure if she liked it or felt completely exposed without the armor of makeup and sleek hair.

Marlene let out a whistle when they finally met out in the hallway, eyes scanning over her appreciatively. “You look beautiful.” Hermione could only stutter her thanks with a somewhat dazed expression. Marlene looked like the pureblood princess that she was. Her shaggy blonde hair had been pulled back into a sleek updo, fringe swept carefully to one side so as not to hide her sparkling blue eyes. Her dress was such a dark green it nearly looked black in certain light. It was a similar style to what Hermione wore but with long fitted sleeves and a sash in the McKinnon family tartan proudly wrapped around her shoulder and pinned with their family crest at the waist.

“You look amazing,” she finally managed as they made their way to the stairs. Marlene smiled, reaching over to squeeze her hand between the fabric of their skirts where it wouldn’t be seen. Hermione did her best to keep her eyes from straying to Marlene too often, sure that her heart was fully reflected on her face and would give them both away.

The whoosh of the Floo was as dizzying as always and she nearly stumbled out of the grate. She and Harry had always struggled with this particular mode of transportation and she knew it was a clear tell that she hadn’t been raised in the magical world. She shook her skirt slightly, pretending to have tripped on the long hem as Marlene took her elbow and helped dust the soot from her dress.

She took a moment to look around what she assumed was the drawing room as the rest of their group joined them in the otherwise empty room. Number 12 Grimmauld Place seemed to live up to its name. The walls were papered in a dark green design that looked vaguely snake-like. Dark hardwood floors were covered in an old expensive looking rug that had begun to go a little threadbare just around the edges. Hermione absently noted that it looked like someone had tried to move an end table to cover the beginnings of a hole in the fabric. There was a dimly lit chandelier hanging almost comically large in the center of the modestly sized room and it seemed the snake motif from the walls had been integrated into the whorls of the metal peeking between the crystals that were beginning to go a little grey from dust. The main source of light that greeted the guests were gaslit lamps lining the walls of the room and down the hallway that Hermione could glimpse through the door. But all of that faded in comparison to the large tapestry located directly across from the fireplace. It took up the entire wall of the room and appeared to contain a full family tree detailing the birth and death dates along with portraits of the Black family. Here and there, members appeared to have been scorched from the tree’s branches— made even more apparent by the bright and clean fabric that surrounded the holes.

“Hideous, isn’t it?” Sirius’s mild tone seemed more fitted to relaying one’s thoughts on the weather. “Reg and I are just there,” he motioned to the bottom left corner of the tree and Hermione’s eyes quickly found them. She was surprised at how subdued her friend was outside of school. Usually he’d have an arm around her shoulders or have picked a fight with Marlene. His restraint was unexpected to her but judging by Marlene’s little smirk, it was how he normally operated at home.

He greeted the McKinnons, complimenting Marlene’s mother on her dress and motioning down the hall to let them know that they could find Lord and Lady Black in the ballroom. Once it was only the three of them left in the room, Remus shuffled in from where he’d clearly been waiting in the hall. Careful pleasantries were exchanged as the four of them kept their eyes and ears open for anyone around who could easily overhear them. Hermione had to admit that the four them made a well dressed group. Sirius had matched the waistcoat over his white shirt to her dress and wore dark grey dress robes over that. She thought that Remus must have borrowed the plain black dress robes that he wore from Sirius as he fidgeted nervously with the cuff of his sleeve. Part of her was glad to see that everyone else looked just as nervous as she felt.

Marlene loosed a little sigh and rolled her shoulders as if to brace herself. “I suppose I should go greet the hosts.” All of the smooth, lazy grace that she usually held herself with was gone; replaced with the rigid shoulders and straight back that Hermione had often seen on the likes of Pansy Parkinson. Hermione watched as she held out a hand until Remus offered his arm to escort her in the direction her family had just gone.

As she stared at their retreating backs, she felt a gentle touch to her lower back and met Sirius’s unusually serious grey gaze. “Hey, it’ll be okay.” She realized then that she’d been white knuckling the skirt of her dress as she tried to calm her nerves. He smiled reassuringly but she couldn’t quite make herself return the gesture.

“What if they find out-”

“They won’t. You’ve studied for this harder than some people study for their O.W.L.s.”

Hermione scowled. “Only because you and Marlene-”

“Anyway!” He grabbed her hand and guided it through his arm. “Nobody will be able to tell. And if they do find out, we’ll just leave.” He shrugged like it was as simple as that. Like he wasn’t the heir to the house throwing the party. “Stick with me. I’ll show you off to my mother— she’ll love that you’re French, by the way— dance a few songs, hide in the corner with McKinnon and Moony, and drink all of the wine that we can get our hands on.” She couldn’t quite squash the reluctant smile that his confidence had conjured. He finally sounded like the Sirius she knew from school.

She blew out a quick breath to brace herself before quickly adopting Marlene’s earlier posture. “Okay. Let’s go.”

~**~HG~**~

At first, everything went surprisingly well. Lady Walburga Black had seemed pleased that her son had taken the party seriously enough to bring a date. When Hermione had introduced herself in French and revealed that she’d been a student at Beauxbatons until recently, she was worried that his mother was going to swoon. She allowed herself to be questioned about everything from her upbringing to her grades; managing to dodge the familial questions with the help of Sirius interrupting them with tiny plates of hors d'oeuvres and glasses of champagne.

They finally escaped only because they promised that Hermione would come to say her goodbyes before she left. Remus and Marlene had managed to find a corner spot that was nearly concealed by an overgrown leafy plant in a large ugly vase. Both were holding two glasses of wine. They each handed one to their partners as they joined them.

Sirius looked like he was just barely holding in laughter. “I think she would have started trying to draw up a betrothal contract if we hadn’t left when we did.”

Hermione snorted, remembering how impressed his mother had looked when she’d mentioned the classes she was taking. “That or adoption papers.” Marlene gently clinked her glass against Hermione’s and they took a sip. “Oh, that’s nice.” She’d begun to feel a little floaty from the champagne but the deep red liquid was sharp and bracing.

“I’m glad one of us is having success. Marlene’s parents hate me.” Remus smiled wryly.

Marlene sighed. “They don’t hate you. They just know that we’re not actually dating and don’t want to put in the effort to get to know you.”

“Ouch.” His mildly offended look dissolved into a laugh when Marlene smacked him on the arm.

“Do they know about Mina?” Sirius looked truly curious as if the thought of introducing his boyfriend to his parents had never occurred to him.

“Of course not. Do you think we’d be standing here if they did?”

“Your brothers know.” Hermione just shrugged at the shocked look on Marlene’s face. “I’ve never been threatened so casually before in my life.” She put a gentle hand on Marlene’s arm when she saw her brows go down, eyes sweeping the room for said brothers. “They just want to make sure you’re happy. I was told that they’d be keeping an eye out to make sure you stayed that way. I think the ‘or else’ was implied.”

“They are so annoying,” her girlfriend huffed but she noticed a little please smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. After a few moments of silence, Marlene sighed loudly and threw back the rest of her drink. “I suppose we should dance a little if we want to keep up this show. Come on Remus.” She dragged him to the floor as a new song started up.

Hermione and Sirius watched them quietly while they finished their drinks. “I’m worried we’ll give your mother the vapours if she sees us out there.”

Sirius smirked, “Not much different than how she usually is so will we really be able to tell?” He laughed when she shoulder bumped him and told him to behave. “I suppose she’ll be worse if we don’t.” He extended a hand to her dramatically and Hermione had to bite back a smile as she took it. “Shall we?”

After one song, Remus and Sirius swapped partners. Though he didn’t run in the same circles as the Black family, Remus knew all of the gossip about the attendees from his father who worked at the ministry. The two of them did their best to keep straight faces as the ridiculous stories paired with the drinks they’d imbibed nearly sent them into a giggle fit. They were still laughing about the bowtruckle mishap that a Mr. Carrow had found himself in, when a throat cleared near them. Remus’s hand tightened on hers just as she turned and met Regulus’s eyes.

“Miss DuPont, may I have the next dance?” The polite expression on his face looked strained as he waited for her answer. Part of her wanted to say no just to be stubborn but a quick glance over his shoulder showed a far too interested Evan Rosier watching them while he danced with Dorcas. She nodded slowly, squeezing Remus’s shoulder as they stepped away from each other.

“I’ll be over here, keeping an eye on things.” His voice was loud enough that Regulus heard it as well. “Let me know if you need anything,” this was directed at her thought he glared at the younger boy as he said it.

She muttered her thanks and then let Regulus pull her into the next dance. She scanned the floor and saw that Sirius and Marlene were watching intently from their spot several couples away. Dorcas appeared to be trying to distract Rosier whose eyes had narrowed the minute she’d taken Regulus’s hand.

“Evan is up to something.” Regulus burst out before she could say anything. She nearly tripped but he kept her upright as he twirled them further away from the boy in question. “He’s been glaring at you all night. You need to be careful.”

“Okay,” she said slowly. “Why would you care what Rosier does? Especially to someone like me?” She wasn’t able to keep the bitter edge out of her voice. She still wasn’t ready to forgive Regulus for how he’d acted in the library. “Isn’t touching me making you feel sick or some other ridiculous bigoted emotion?”

Regulus began to roll his eyes but stopped, clearly remembering where they were. “No. I’m… sorry for how I acted during study group. You… surprised me.” She raised her eyebrows, thoroughly unimpressed with his apology. His shoulders slumped as much as a perfectly raised pureblood could allow them to in public. “I am sorry, Mina.” She let her brows drop and looked up at him thoughtfully before nodding her acceptance. 

“Thank you. For the apology and the warning. I’ll keep an eye out for Rosier-” She groaned as she watched the object of their conversation begin to head their way.

“Regulus.” Evan’s loud voice made the younger boy jolt and he quickly dropped Hermione’s hand as he spun to face his house mate. “Wonderful party.” His voice sounded overly loud as the band quieted between songs. “A bit surprising to see some of the guests that were allowed in, though.”

“Evan,” Regulus’s attempt at a smile came across as more of a grimace. He clapped a hand on his friend’s shoulder and attempted to steer him away. “I was just thinking that I needed to find you. I meant to show you something before we left the school yesterday.”

Evan stood firm, not allowing Regulus to move him from where he stood. He glared at Hermione, though he spoke loudly enough that everyone nearby could hear. “Does your mother know that your brother invited a mudblood to her party?”

Hermione tried to keep her head high as she heard the murmurs pick up around them. The hateful word was repeated as it passed through the room. She could tell that it reached Sirius’s mother by the quiet shriek that echoed across the room.

“And that’s our cue to leave.” Sirius had somehow managed to get to her side and looped an arm around her shoulders. “Great friend you have there, Reg,” he sneered at his little brother before he began to hustle her from the room. She was aware of Marlene and Remus following at a quick pace.

They were nearly to the front door when a man who looked like an older, sterner version of Sirius stepped into their path. “You can’t go out looking like that,” he sighed. He flicked his wand at them and Hermione instinctively flinched. He shot her a sympathetic look and gestured to the now shortened robes that Sirius and Remus wore. They looked less like wizards and more like two boys and their dates coming from some sort of fancy muggle Christmas party. “You’ll blend better now. Here you are.” He shoved a thick looking wallet into Sirius’s hands and pushed him toward the door. “Happy Christmas.”

Sirius grinned and gave a jaunty little wave. “Thanks, Uncle Alphard.” One final flick from the man’s wand as they sped out the door and into the snowy evening had warm shawls wrapping around Marlene and Hermione. 

Their feet had just left the steps leading up to the townhouse when the yelling began. Hermione looked up to see Walburga Black glaring and screaming at her son as the four of them sped off down the sidewalk. Regulus stood behind her, hand on her shoulder as if trying to calm her down. Hermione winced in sympathy and then focused on not tripping over her own shoes.

~**~HG~**~

Once they were several minutes from the house, they slowed to a stop and caught their breath.

“I guess that could have gone worse,” Hermione panted. Marlene snorted then started laughing hard enough that she had to lean against her side to stop herself from toppling over. Hermione grimaced as a thought occurred to her, “Do you think your parents are going to be mad?”

“Nah,” Marlene waved her worry away. “They suspected you were a muggleborn because you stayed with Lily’s family over the summer. They’d offered to have you with us but Dumbledore mentioned that you’d be more comfortable in a ‘familiar environment’. And to be honest,” she shot an apologetic look in Sirius’s direction, “They really don’t like Lady Black.”

“Let them know that our club meets Tuesday evenings at 6 and they are more than welcome to join,” Sirius quipped. 

Remus looked like he didn’t know whether to laugh or scold his boyfriend so settled on a scoffing sort of sigh instead. “Padfoot. I don’t think you should go back tonight. Mam said you’re more than welcome to stay with us for a few days if you’d like over the break.”

“Perfect!” For someone who was essentially unable to return home, Sirius appeared to be taking everything in stride. “But first, we celebrate.” He held up the wallet of muggle money and Marlene cheered.

That night, they raised a toast to Uncle Alphard at every pub they visited. 

Chapter Text

“These really are amazingly clever.” It was their first night back from the winter break and Mary had just pulled out Hermione’s Christmas gift while they unpacked. Technically Mary and Lily were the only ones unpacking. Hermione didn’t have much and had finished quickly enough. Marlene, as  she usually did, would live out of her trunk until she’d worn everything in it and only then would she put the empty trunk away. Mary’s sentiment was echoed by the other two girls in the room. 

With her limited budget, Hermione had had to get creative with her Christmas gifts. She’d gone the more expensive but safe route for the adults— nice, but affordable, bottles of wine for Lily’s and Marlene’s parents— while doing her best to make the most of what she had for the people her age. She bought and enchanted Petunia’s favorite lipstick to last for years; the color would also stick to her lips without smearing. For her Slytherin friends— Regulus included because she’d hoped he’d come around even before the Yule party— she’d knitted socks in green and layered in warming charms to keep them from getting too cold in the dungeon during the winter. James and Sirius had gotten Gryffindor red hats with the same charms for Quidditch practice and a scarf for Peter who often spent his free time helping outside in Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology. Remus had fixed her with a searching look when she’d given him a small container of topical pain relief. She’d found a recipe for the balm in a book in the library and Severus had helped her make it. Professor Slughorn had allowed them to use ingredients from his storage closet when Severus had mentioned wanting to experiment with minor adjustments to the recipe for extra credit. Before Remus could ask, she’d used the weak excuse that he was always writing so much that he might like it for his wrists if they cramped up; in reality she’d seen him rubbing his knees and grimacing once the cold had set it.

But her biggest achievements were the notebooks that she’d gifted her roommates. She’d been inspired by a combination of Tom Riddle’s diary and muggle technology— specifically electronic mail. Owls were too noticeable and took a long time just to send a short message. And note passing would only work if they all happened to be in the same room. She’d used a modified Protean charm to link four notebooks together so they could write to each other whenever they liked. Anything that one of them wrote would appear in the other books. Even if they were only going to use them to pass notes during class while they were still in school, she liked to think that they might be helpful in the years that would follow when the war split them up.

“You could probably patent and sell these, you know.” Lily looked thoughtful as she flipped through the first few pages of her copy; it was already filled with notes from the group. “Do you know if the charm would stretch across continents?” She looked like she was minutes away from pulling out her wand to further inspect the spellwork on the gift.

Hermione hummed thoughtfully. “It should in theory, though I haven’t tested it beyond what we did over the break. I imagine at some point, the spell will need to be refreshed if we don’t run out of pages before that.” She’d tried vanishing text from her test notebooks and had found that the charm didn’t translate that action into the other copies. Until she could do some more research, the notebooks would be single use. “Maybe Professor McGonagall would be open to take a look-”

“Minnie would confiscate these immediately.” Marlene, who had been lounging on her bed sat up and pulled her own notebook closer as if preparing to fight to hold onto it. “She’d probably say we could use them for cheating or something silly like that.” To Hermione’s surprise, the other girls nodded their agreement.

She hadn’t thought of that. Hands on her hips, she sternly said, “You had better not.” 

There was a moment of shocked silence that was quickly broken by Mary’s giggle. “You- You sound just like Lily when you do that.” Marlene snorted out a laugh of her own at the indignant squawk that the redhead let out.

Hermione let herself be yanked down by her girlfriend to sit on the side of her bed. “I do not!” At Lily’s offended look, she added, “I’m much bossier than Lily could ever hope to be. But, honestly, if you use the notebooks to cheat, I’ll-” She broke off with a shriek as Mary hurled a pillow in her direction.  The room quickly devolved into thrown pillows and laughter, the notebooks forgotten for now.

~**~HG~**~

Remus caught her making her monthly chocolate rounds a couple of days after Valentine’s Day. She’d panicked when his eyes had shot open just as she was gently setting the Cadbury bar on the table next to his bed. Thus far, she’d been able to count on the potions that Madam Pomfrey dosed him with to keep him firmly asleep and hadn’t expected this outcome.

They stared at each other; him with slowly narrowing eyes, her with pursed lips as she tried to think of something to say. When it was clear that he wasn’t going to speak first, she half-heartedly tried, “Happy Valentine’s Day?” She would have been annoyed that he had the nerve to cross his arms but she knew that it had been a weak excuse. Maybe it would have landed better if she hadn’t spent all of Valentine’s Day making fun of their overly exuberant peers and all of the noise they made for the made up holiday with an equally amused Marlene. His eyebrows went up and she sighed in defeat. “How are you feeling?”

“You know?” The two quiet words paired with the devastated look on his face made her heart ache. She had never wanted him to feel outed like this. In all honesty, she hadn’t expected to be here long enough to address Remus’s werewolf situation but, if it came up, she had hoped it would have been because he trusted her with the secret and not because she admitted that she’d found out.

She nodded and for a moment he looked like he was going to be sick. “I’m sorry, Remus.” When she reached out a hand to touch his shoulder in comfort, he jerked away so hard that he hissed out in pain.

“Who told you?” She could already see the gears turning in his head as he tried to figure out which of his best friends could be the culprit.

“Nobody!” While she knew that at some point in the not too distant future Remus would be questioning his friends’ loyalty, she didn’t want to contribute to that while he was still in school. He looked at her sharply and she raised her hands as if that alone could stop his suspicions. “I figured it out.” She was glad that that at least was the truth; even if her figuring it out happened twenty years from now. “Your hospital visits matched up with the moon phase and well… I knew someone back home who was in a similar position and it just clicked.” 

The fight appeared to go out of him at that and he sagged back onto his pillows, covering his face with a tired groan. “You really know someone else who’s a…” He trailed off, clearly not wanting to say it outright. She hummed a yes and nodded. The adult Remus that she’d first met and the version of him in front her now did feel different enough that she tried not to feel bad for the lie. “You can’t tell anyone.”

“Of course I wouldn’t.” She couldn’t stop from crossing her arms, knowing that her shock that he’d even have to ask was apparent on her face. “It’s nobody’s business but your own. I wasn’t going to say anything. Even to you. I’m assuming other people do know. Madam Pomfrey and Professor Dumbledore?” 

He nodded. “And McGonagall. Peter, James, Sirius. And you now, I guess.” He looked like he would continue speaking but an intense yawn cut him off.

“You need to get some rest before afternoon classes.” Remus always took at least the morning off after a full moon. She didn’t know how he managed to get up the energy to do much of anything on those days but he’d clearly had enough years dealing with the issue to know when to push and when to take it easy. “I’ve left your candy there for when you wake up. I imagine the other three will be along soon enough.” As if to punctuate her point, they both glanced in the direction of the sound of the opening door to the hospital wing. 

“Yeah, alright. Thanks mum,” he teased, looking a little less distressed than he had earlier in their conversation. She rolled her eyes and reached out to gently tug at his overlong fringe. He quietly added, “Thanks.”

She headed out, walking past an exhausted looking and very confused group of Marauders. 

~**~HG~**~

Hermione wondered how long it would take them to say something and was surprised that it was well over a week before they did. They waited until the usual library study group dispersed before finally approaching her. Her senses had been heightened all week so she’d noticed that there were several people lurking close to their table and had tensed, seeing Remus do the same. It was only after she noticed him relax a bit that she realized who was waiting behind the nearby bookshelf.

She ignored their approach as she finished up the notes she’d been taking for their upcoming Defense test. Remus, she noticed, hadn’t moved from the usual seat he occupied across the table from her. It wasn’t until Peter accidentally bumped into her arm with a mumbled apology that she finally looked up and acknowledged the grim looking group of boys who had gathered at the table. She raised her eyebrows at Remus who simply turned red and rolled his eyes with a little shrug. Clearly he knew what this was about and, while he wasn’t going to stop it, he clearly wasn’t a participant.

“Boys.” She used her swottiest tone, knowing that it had always been enough to either cow Ron and Harry or have them work themselves up into a self righteous fit. James immediately crossed his arms, eyebrows furrowing. Like father like son, apparently. ”Did you need help with your homework?”

Sirius had seated himself next to Remus and threw an arm around the other boy as he leaned back in his chair in a practiced pose of ease. Hermione could see through it immediately, having gotten to know this group well enough over the past school year to ignore the surface level posturing. When the group remained quiet, he let out a long suffering sigh. Hermione thought that if Remus weren’t likely to shove him off the chair, Sirius would have propped his feet up on the table. “We know that you know.” She just stared at him and he lost a little of that false confidence that he’d drawn around himself. “You know, about-” She held up a hand to stop him from saying anything further. She glanced around quickly and then tossed up a quick Muffliato— one of Sev’s recent creations— then motioned for him to go on. “Wait, what was that?” He was sitting up straight now.

“Muffling charm so people can’t hear you say something that we should most certainly not be speaking about so publicly.” When the silence returned, she crossed her arms and mimicked the relaxed pose that Sirius had held earlier. “Go on.” She directed this to Peter and James who were sitting on either side of her.

“Right,” Peter squeaked. “Well the thing is-”

“We know that you know about Moony’s secret.” There was James Potter with all the grace of a charging bull. “And we want you to know that his secret needs to stay, well, secret.” He trailed off, looking embarrassed and a little confused.

She thought about letting them continue but she was finding the situation more irritating than amusing at that point. Shouldn’t they have coordinated what they wanted to say ahead of time? She’d at the very least have gone over some key talking points to make sure they covered what they wanted before blazing in. “So, you’re telling me to keep quiet about what I know? Easy enough. I already told Remus that his business is his to share. I would never expose his secret like that.”

“I told you that this was entirely unnecessary.” Though she didn’t look at him as he said it, she could hear the eye roll in Remus’s voice.

“We barely know her, Remus.” James— sitting up straighter now as he addressed the group— was irritated enough to drop their usual nicknames. “For all we know, she could be reporting back to You-Know-Who!”

Well, that was enough of that. Hermione knew that she was letting her temper win as she felt her hair begin to spark and she slammed her hands on the table to stop the argument that was starting. For all of the fighting that she and Ron did, she was very careful to keep her full temper contained. At sixteen, it was embarrassing to still experience accidental magic when she was angry. She could cover for it in class by bleeding off some of the excess energy with spell casting but it was much harder in the library where wand use was highly discouraged. All the books and study materials in front of them rose a couple of inches into the air. If the heavy table hadn’t been bolted to the floor, it likely would have as well but it simply shook hard enough to dislodge the elbows and hands that had been resting on it.

“Don’t you dare.” She turned the full force of her glare on James and he instinctively tried to move his chair away before he stopped himself. And there was the stubborn chin jut and glare that Hermione had been putting up with for four years. “You don’t know the first thing about me, James Potter. Voldemort may think your family are all blood traitors but at least you have some protection as purebloods.” Everyone at the table flinched as her anger loosened her tongue enough to cause her to be as casual as Harry often was when referring to the madman terrorizing all of them. “You think I’d work with someone who’d happily kill me along with my family?” 

“Mina-” 

“No, that’s enough out of you.” She looked around the table to see that Peter wore a look of fear that was equal to what James now sported. Remus looked nervous but impressed. Sirius, to her surprise, looked positively gleeful as he watched her hair continue to crackle and spark with anger. Perhaps the rumors about the Black family madness weren’t so far off if he thought the situation more exciting than the threat she’d meant it to be. She closed her eyes and took a quick breath before blowing it out slowly. “I’ve known Remus’s secret for months and haven’t said a word to anyone. I wasn’t even going to say anything to him. He just managed to catch me when I was checking in on him.” She met each set of eyes, having to stare Peter down until he actually looked up. “Not to mention the fact that I know your secrets and have kept them to myself as well.”

Sirius, now on the receiving end of her threat, seemed to lose all sense of amusement as he sat forward to lean against the table and glare her down. “What do you mean?”

She just crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, happy to let them spin their wheels for a few moments while she caught her breath and tried to calm down enough to set her hair back to rights. While her hair might be seen as less of a menace in this time, that didn’t mean she wanted to walk around a frizzy, staticky mess. She ignored the questions being thrown at her by a progressively more nervous Sirius Black; digging in her bag to pull out a small hand mirror so she could smooth her hair back into order. She had plans with Marlene for the evening that she intended to keep.

“Like a dog with a bone,” she muttered loud enough for everyone at the table to hear. They froze and she affected a tired sigh. “Though I suppose it’s second nature at this point.” She met Sirius’s wide grey eyes and tried to hide her smile. She didn’t want to overplay her hand, so went off of what she’d be able to tell by scent as she pointed first at Peter and then James. “Mouse? And some sort of herd animal. Horse?”

“Rat,” Peter said faintly. He’d gone so pale that the sudden greenish tint to his skin stood out starkly. “How?”

Hermione rolled her eyes as she began to pack up her bag. “Oh, please. The sudden nicknames and the fact that you were all suddenly barely able to stay awake after the full moon was a dead giveaway.” She kept her voice casual as she added, “And I’m an animagus too.” She ignored James’s petulant whispered ‘Of course she is’. “I could smell it on you just after you changed back.”

“So you’re going to turn us in, is that it?” Once again, James was leading the charge on being loudly incorrect and she had to roll her eyes. Maybe this was why he and Lily weren’t dating yet.

“Why are you expecting the worst of me?” She turned herself in her chair to fully face him. “I haven’t done anything to you or your friends to make you think that I’d do something like that. I know you haven’t known me long and that you’re protective of your friends but I’m not some secret Death Eater.”

Arms crossed, he muttered, “You seemed pretty chummy with two future ones just before we got here.” When she looked confused he clarified, “Snivellus and Reg-”

“My little brother’s name better not be the next thing you say.” Sirius’s voice was just a little too level and calm as he stared down his best friend. “I swear to Merlin, Prongs. We’re not having this conversation again.”

“And Severus is hardly evil incarnate. He’s Lily’s best friend.” When he opened his mouth to argue, she pinned him with a glare. “And he’s my friend as well so watch the name calling.” When he slumped back in his seat, she felt some of the tension leave her shoulders. Honestly, how had she managed to survive four years with only boys as close friends? She was beyond ready to be back in the calming presence of Marlene and the other girls. “What I was going to say is I’d like to join you for the next full moon. I know you must be spending it somewhere near the school together and I want in.”

“Why?” It was the first that Remus had spoken up during the conversation and everyone focused on him as he stared at her intently. “It’s dangerous and exhausting and you gain nothing from it.” He really looked as if he believed that and she felt her eyes water with tears that she pushed back as best as she could.

“Because you’re my friend. And I know for you it’s painful and scary. You should’t have to do it alone.” Remus looked surprised; as if the thought had never occurred to him. The table was quiet for a few minutes and she stood with her now packed bag. “Just think about it and let me know. At the end of the day, it’s your decision, Remus.”

She’d just finished pushing in her chair to leave when she heard his quiet, “Okay.” He returned her grin with a quieter one of his own. “But if it’s too much you don’t have to stay.” Not wanting him to change his mind, she simply nodded.

The rest of the group took that as their cue to pack and leave as well. As they headed back to the tower, Sirius threw the arm that wasn’t holding Remus’s hand around her shoulder. “So, what do you turn into?” 

She smirked, “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

~**~HG~**~

“Oh Merlin, you are adorable,” Sirius cooed at the black cat that was trying to shred his arms as he lifted it to be cradled like a baby. Hermione, the cat in question, batted grumpily at his nose as he scratched behind one of her fluffy ears. She couldn’t control the purr that escaped and wriggled to get away, embarrassed at the cat-like response. 

When she’d first completed her animagus transformation, she’d been somewhat horrified to find herself in cat form. She loved cats— Crookshanks was the best familiar a person could ever hope for— but she couldn’t help but be reminded of her second year when faced with her paws and fluffy tail. Being stuck in a half-cat half-human state when she was thirteen had made her a bit nervous about being able to fully transform back to herself. Her nerves left her once she had a few transformations under her belt. 

That didn’t mean, however, that she wanted Sirius Black to manhandle her on their way to the Whomping Willow. She finally freed herself and quickly reverted back to her human form; hands immediately going to her hips as she faced him. “Stop that!” She could feel that her cheeks were burning as the rest of the group laughed. “If you’re going to carry me down, you need to be respectful. I’m a person, not a real cat!” 

“Sorry.” Sirius held his hands up in surrender, though he was still grinning. “Have you seen yourself as a cat, Mina? You have the biggest, curliest tail.” It appeared that even in cat form she couldn’t escape her hair, though at least the curls were contained to her massive tail; the rest of her sporting long black fur.

“If the two of you are done, we need to get a move on before the moon is up and we can’t get in.” Though his words were firm, James was smiling at their antics. “C’mon Pete, you can hitch a ride with me.” James’s invisibility cloak was too small for all four of them so they’d agreed that it would be best for those who could take smaller forms to do so and be carried down to the Shack where they’d meet Remus. Hermione was still horrified to know that Madam Pomfrey had walked him down just after classes ended. He’d spent hours alone— including dinner— waiting for the rest of them to join him.

“Um,” Peter looked somewhat pale at the mention of transforming now that he’d seen her own animagus form. “Y-you’ve got a handle on the animal instinct side of things, right?” She could tell he was embarrassed to have to ask but that he was also much more concerned about being eaten the moment the two of them were in close quarters under the cloak. She remembered how Crookshanks had tormented Scabbers all through third year before they learned that Ron’s pet rat was, in fact, Peter Pettigrew. With that in mind, part of her wanted to make him nervous. Most of the time she allowed herself to forget about the future that awaited all of her friends from this time; it would be impossible to function otherwise. But moments like these reminded her starkly of the people they would grow up to be.

You’re doing this for Remus. Don’t make it stressful for him by fighting with the rat. With that in mind, she just nodded with a tight smile. “Of course, Peter.” He blew out an anxious little breath with a nod and then quickly transformed into the familiar grey rat from her childhood. He stood on his hind legs next to James and allowed himself to be scooped up and deposited on his friend’s shoulder. She turned to Sirius and narrowed her eyes warningly. “Don’t act weird.”

“I will do my best to ignore the fact that you are an adorable, fluffy cat,” he told her solemnly, though his lips twitched as he tried not smile. 

She huffed out a breath but transformed back and hopped up into his arms. True to his word, he simply held his arms in a cradle for her to settle into while James threw the cloak over all four of them. Their trip down to the Willow and then into the Shrieking Shack was easy enough. When they reached the tree, Peter hopped down and touched the knot at its base to freeze it in place long enough for the rest of them to enter the tunnel, Hermione lagging behind to pretend that she’d never been there before.

When they entered the Shack, Remus was laying on a sofa that looked like it had seen better days. Stuffing was leaking from multiple slashes and the fabric was worn through in places. The rest of the room was fairly empty. A ripped rug that was dusty enough to be nearly grey and several hard wooden chairs that had clearly been clawed at during past full moons. A large cabinet sat empty and leaned precariously against the fall wall. Was this really the best that the school could do? They had enough magic between all of the adults who knew about Remus that surely someone could have created a more comfortable area for him to wait for his transformation each month. His own head of house was their Transfiguration teacher, for Merlin’s sake!

“Alright, Moony?” Sirius sank down on the floor next to the couch, reaching out to gently trace a finger over the hand that Remus had thrown over his face. As she padded closer on her paws, Hermione could see the sweat soaking through his shirt and dampening the hair at his temples. His normally tanned skin looked nearly as grey as the rug.

Their usually well-spoken friend just grunted in response and settled further into the cushions. James and Peter, who had returned to his human form, both greeted the other boy carefully as they settled in the uncomfortable looking chairs while they waited for the moon to rise. Carefully, not wanting to jostle her friend who was most likely in pain, she stayed in cat form and hopped up onto the sofa near his hip.

Remus started, lowering his hand to see what had just joined him on the sofa. “What?” He caught sight of her tail and chuckled. “Mina?” She chirped an affirmative and he grinned despite the strain on his face. “Makes sense.” Carefully, not wanting to put too much pressure on him when he was in pain and about to transform, she crawled a little higher to flop against his side. This time, she let herself purr freely when his hand ran through her fur. Crookshanks had always had a calming effect on her when she was upset or not feeling well. Perhaps she could provide that same comfort to her friend.

“Why does he get to pet you but I can’t?” She lazily opened one eye to take in Sirius’s pout but then closed it with a yawn. When he reached out to scratch at her head, she smacked him in the nose with her paw, careful to keep her claws in. “Moony!”

Remus snorted out a laugh before shifting to sit up. “Children. Behave.” Hermione hopped off the couch and wandered over to James and Peter while Sirius muttered something quietly to Remus. The other boy just smiled and shook his head, giving him a quick peck on the cheek before standing carefully. “Good night,” he announced to their group while Sirius braced him carefully while he shuffled to one of the rooms in the back; Hermione assumed to transform. “See you after moonset.” The group called their own goodbyes as both boys disappeared.

By the time Sirius returned, Peter had returned to rat form and was warily eyeing Hermione from the spot he’d claimed high up on top of the wobbly cabinet. If she hadn’t been a cat, she would have laughed. She’d easily be able to scale to the top and snatch him up if she wanted. 

“Is he okay?” James cast a worried look back to the room where Remus had disappeared. “He looked rough.”

Sirius shrugged, mouth pulled into a thoughtful frown. “It’s probably going to be a rough one. His knee has been bothering him since last month and he refused to tell Pomfrey so he’ll just have to push through it tonight.” His gaze flicked to where Hermione sat near the couch, expression uncommonly serious. “You probably should get up a little higher, Mina. We don’t know how he’ll react to someone new.” She gave a little stretch and then bound over to the cabinet to join Peter at the top. He squeaked in terror until she gently batted him on the head and then settled in to wait for Remus. James laughed at the sight.

The two remaining boys made sure the exit from the Shack was secured and then waited until they all heard the sound of Remus’s transformation before shifting into their animal forms— Sirius into the familiar large black dog and James into a stag that looked so like Harry’s Patronus it made her heart ache. Remus’s shift was the most awful sound Hermione had ever heard. When she’d seen him transform in third year, he’d been an adult. And while the transformation had no doubt been incredibly painful, the wails of pain in his now familiar young voice made her feel sick. She didn’t realize that she’d nearly flattened herself to the top of the cabinet until she felt a cold nose touch her ear. She whipped her head to the side to see Scabbers— no, Peter— shaking but still reaching out a little rat paw to pat one of her own. In her future, she’d often wondered how he’d been sorted into Gryffindor; this man who was so cowardly that he’d sold out a baby and his best friends. She saw a little of that bravery come through as he settled into her side despite the fact that he was clearly terrified of her. 

It was suddenly silent in the other room. The four of them stared at the empty doorway for several minutes before there was movement. With a shuffling limp, Moony made his way into the room and sniffed at the air. Sirius and James both stood perfectly still while they waited for the werewolf to approach them. She saw that Sirius wasn’t able to completely keep his tail from wagging; she’d certainly be calling him out for that after he’d laughed at her purring. When Moony finally huffed his acceptance of the two, Peter scrambled down to sit on Sirius’s shoulder so he could be inspected as well. He’d be less than a mouthful for a werewolf, she thought cynically but was relieved when Remus didn’t eat his friend.

Moony continued to sniff the air, eyes finally finding her at the top of the cabinet. His ears went back and he growled lightly. Hermione shuffled back fast enough that she nearly fell through the crack between the cabinet and the wall. She was positive that she was more dust than fur at that point as she tried not to sneeze while it floated around her. She heard Sirius whine and then after a few moments, he whuffed quietly. She kept her body flat but peeked over the edge of her perch to see Sirius looking up at her, tongue lolling. James tossed his head as if to motion her down to them. She could feel her fur standing up. Had they not just heard the werewolf growl at the sight of her? She shook her head and kept low, eyes going to the werewolf who now stood very still, looking up at her. Did his tail just wag?

The standoff lasted for nearly ten minutes until Sirius finally planted his paws halfway up the cabinet and barked loud enough to startle her into hopping up on all fours. When Moony continued to stare at her curiously, she slowly descended. And though it went against all of her Gryffindor pride, she stayed low to the ground by Sirius’s side; nearly standing under him as he led her back to the group. She froze, eyes wide, as Moony approached and sniffed at her. She barely breathed as his nose pressed against her own and he huffed out a little breath. She was suddenly reminded of her uncharitable thoughts about Peter. While she wasn’t as small as a rat, her cat form would be no match for the large wolf in front of her. The only thing keeping her from fleeing was Sirius’s solid form behind her, blocking her in while she allowed herself to be sniffed over.

After several terrifying moments, Moony seemed to be done with his inspection. A quick lick to her face and a tail wag signaled that all would be fine that night and he turned to focus on his other three friends. It took everything in her not to bolt away or hiss her annoyance at the slobbery acceptance. As it was, she ended up turning to wipe her wet face on one of Sirius’s long forearms. He licked the top of her head in revenge and she ended up batting him across the snout before taking her place back on the sofa.

The rest of the night was less stressful if the way that the rest of the group acted was any indication. As the two bigger animals, James and Sirius entertained Moony as the three of them ran around the Shack, playing some sort of improvised tag. The two canines wrestled, though Hermione saw that even in werewolf form Moony didn’t attempt to bite Sirius. At some point, Peter joined her on the couch, sinking into the soft fur at her side while they watched their friends play. More than once, Sirius tried to pull her into their games but she stayed firmly in loaf pose and did not budge.

When the moon set and Remus had transformed back with pitiful howls this time, everyone was exhausted. The boys helped him dress and settled him on the couch while Hermione gently rubbed the warmth back into his fingers and toes, hands smoothing over the sore knee he’d been favoring. She’d need to make sure to bring some supplies to the Shack next full moon to help with the post-transformation muscle aches. 

They all said their goodbyes— not wanting to get caught by Madam Pomfrey when she came to collect him— and promised to meet him in the hospital wing before breakfast. Cheeks red, he finally had to push Sirius away after their third lingering kiss. Both Peter and James were making over the top kissing sounds at the two of them and Hermione had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. “Okay, Pads, that’s enough. Get out of here before you lot get caught.”

The boys headed to the tunnel, Peter already transformed so he could let them out. Remus caught and squeezed her hand with a little smile. “Thank you, Mina. You’re a good friend.” She had to blink suddenly watery eyes and just nodded. She gave a little squeeze back before waving and then disappearing down the tunnel and back to Hogwarts.

Chapter Text

With Easter break swiftly approaching, Hermione’s prediction of an influx in library patrons came true. Students who had never so much as breathed in the direction of the Hogwarts book collection during the rest of the semester suddenly were spending every waking moment revising for their O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s. It got to the point where they’d had to become more than a little territorial over their study group’s regular table, lest they find themselves relegated to the floor. Regulus, still in his fourth year, had taken it upon himself to be the one to fetch the books, snacks, and whatever else his fifth year friends would require for their hours long study sessions.

For all the stress and frantic energy that Lily and Remus had brought to the group, Hermione had matched and tripled it. She mentally berated herself for falling so far behind in her studies— never mind that she was near the top of the class. Though she had thought her current grades would not affect her future academic record, it had occurred to her that O.W.L.s might follow a different set of rules. If she were to take these exams as Mina DuPont, wouldn’t it be cheating to re-take them as Hermione Granger? She’d have the advantage of having already sat them! And if they were administered by the Ministry, surely they had some way to track who had and hadn’t taken the tests already. Which meant that unless Professor Dumbledore pulled off some miracle, she would be taking her O.W.L.s and those grades would follow her into her future. At least, these were the thoughts that spiraled through her mind each night as she struggled to fall asleep.

So, of course, she had resigned herself to all failing scores and the death of any career that she might have been interested in.

“When did you last leave the library?” Not even the sound of Marlene’s voice was enough to break Hermione’s focus as she flipped through the notecards she and Severus had put together for the group’s Potions studies. Quidditch stopped for no Ministry mandated tests so often Marlene and Sirius had to come and find their more studious other halves and convince them to take a break. Hermione held herself still enough for a peck on the cheek before she lunged to flip through the third year textbook that she hadn’t even picked up since the start of fourth year— this would surely be the reason that she failed her Potions O.W.L. A weather-cold hand pressed under her curls and into her neck as her girlfriend tried to get her attention. “Mina, have you eaten since lunch?”

“Yes?” The lie was not convincing enough to keep Marlene from scoffing and snatching the notecards out of her hands. “Hey! I’m trying to study!” Her hair sparked and crackled as she whirled to glare at her girlfriend. Marlene simply raised an unimpressed eyebrow, one hand on her hip as she tucked the cards into the front of her Quidditch robes.

“You’re done for the day. It’s nearly curfew and all of you look like you’ve been here for hours.” At the mention of the impending end to their night, both Remus and Lily looked up from their own notes. Hermione looked around the little table and saw that they must have lost Regulus to dinner hours ago. Dorcas and Severus appeared to be pointedly ignoring the conversation as they continued to scribble away in their respective textbooks— a sight that had initially made Hermione shudder but had become commonplace for the two Slytherins. 

When her glare didn’t make Marlene back down, Hermione sighed and tried to gently rotate some movement back into her stiff shoulders. “Fine.” She began to pack up her things and the rest of the group followed suit. “But I’m studying when we get to the common room.”

“After you eat something,” Marlene added sweetly as she helped her girlfriend pack the rest of her things. “And you can’t read while you do it. You need to rest your eyes.” Hermione rolled said eyes but simply nodded in reply. How she hadn’t managed to scare off Marlene when she was deep into her study habits, she’d never know. 

“Huh, that’s interesting,” this was muttered so only the two of them could hear and Hermione turned to look at what had caught Marlene’s attention. Severus was smirking at something that Remus had just said as the two gathered their things together. Remus, the taller of the two, stood leaning over the other boy speaking quietly. Severus quickly scribbled something on the spare bit of parchment left on the table and passed it to a now laughing Remus. If Hermione didn’t know any better, she’d take one look at their flushed and smiling faces and suspect that they were flirting.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud bang that had most heads in the library turning in their direction. She looked quickly over her shoulder and saw a furious Sirius Black, hands slammed down on a nearby unoccupied table, glaring at his boyfriend and the boy that he and the rest of his friend group seemed to hate. “Remus.” The word was quiet but firm as he met the other boy’s eyes. Severus had lost the smile that he’d been wearing and was shoving the last of his notecards into his bag. He and Dorcas fled, not sticking around to watch whatever fall out was about to occur.

“Sirius.” Remus’s voice was equally quiet as he slung his bag over his shoulder and raised his eyebrows. Voice still calm, he walked toward and then past his boyfriend. “Quidditch practice go well?” This was thrown over his shoulder as he turned back to see that Sirius still hadn’t moved from his original spot.

“We should go,” Marlene muttered and both Hermione and Lily nodded and grabbed their things to escape. 

They were halfway back to the tower when they heard the angry shouting. “Sorry if I’m more concerned about school than your stupid Quidditch practice. Some of us don’t have old family money to fall back on.” Despite their earlier retreat, the three girls froze as they listened to the fight. 

“Oh, is Snivellus going by ‘School’ now? What an interesting nickname.” 

“I’m allowed to have friends, Sirius! And don’t call him that.”

“I’ve called him that for years. Since when do you stick up for that greasy git?”

“You and James always take things too far with him. You know Peter and I don’t like it and we’ve asked you to stop. We’ve been study partners all year and you didn’t care earlier so what’s changed?”

“I didn’t realize that you two were getting all cozied up in the library during these ‘study sessions’. You were practically drooling on him.”

“Oh, please. Like you haven’t been panting after Mina since the beginning of the school year.” Sudden silence followed that shouted pronouncement. 

Hermione felt her face flame as both Lily and Marlene turned wide eyes on her and she simply shook her head while mirroring their confused expressions. Sirius could be a little touchy feely but he was that way with everyone… wasn’t he? Besides, she was with Marlene so it didn’t matter either way.

“I do not.” But Sirius’s tone was less than convincing.

“You call her ‘kitten’.” She could practically hear Remus’s crossed arms and glare.

“It’s her Marauder name!” 

Marlene looked at her sharply and Hermione grimaced and shrugged. They’d already had this argument between the two of them shortly after the last full moon. 

It had taken Sirius all of one day before he’d decided that she also needed a nickname to match her animagus form. He’d creatively picked Kitten, much to everyone’s immediate dislike and discomfort. And, as with all Marauder names that had come before, it ended up sticking the more Hermione argued against it. She’d been determined to ignore it completely in the hopes that he’d simply stop calling her that but then Marlene had heard. When she’d, understandably, asked why he’d started calling her girlfriend by what sounded like a pet name, Hermione had had to jump in.

She’d revealed the Polyjuice incident from her second year and explained that the nickname was more of a tease from that story than a term of endearment. Thankfully, everyone had been distracted by the tale— either too busy laughing at the mental image of Hermione in a strange half-cat state (James, Marlene, and Sirius) or being impressed that she’d managed to brew such a complex potion at thirteen (Lily and Remus). Marlene— though annoyed that Sirius had heard the tale before her— had believed the story and dropped the issue. Sirius stubbornly refused to drop the nickname. Hermione had taken to calling him cabot in retaliation but he seemed more pleased than annoyed at the French dig.

“It’s you flirting with her, is what it is! And as long as it just stays that way, you know I wouldn’t say anything. So why can’t I be friends with Severus-”

“Because you fancy him and he obviously feels the same way!”

“You fancy Mina.”

“She doesn’t feel that way about me.”

“But if she did, you’d do something about it.” Silence followed and Hermione would have liked nothing more than to sink into the ground as the two girls she was with did their best to avoid eye contact. Remus scoffed but it didn’t do anything to hide the hurt in his voice. “I think that’s all I need to know.”

“We should go,” Lily whispered and grabbed both Hermione and Marlene to tug them back to the common room. The three of them were quiet until they stood just outside of the entrance. “We heard nothing, we say nothing.” The other two nodded and they entered the still bustling common room and up to their dorm.

~**~HG~**~

It became very clear very fast that Sirius Black and Remus Lupin were no longer dating. The day after they’d overheard the boys fighting, both showed up to breakfast separately— Remus looking pale and sad, Sirius with red rimmed eyes and a bad attitude. They sat at separate ends of the table, neither choosing to sit with their usual group of friends. Hermione worriedly watched Remus as he listlessly buttered a piece of toast, took one bite, and then set it back down with a sigh. The rest of the Gryffindor fifth years sat in their usual cluster, looking from one end of the table to the other as if watching some sort of tennis match. 

“What happened?” Having missed the fight that the other girls in the dorm had witnessed, Mary was perhaps the most confused about this development. “Are they arguing?”

“Remus broke up with Sirius,” Peter answered quietly. Judging from the dark shadows under his and James’s eyes, the argument and subsequent breakup had clearly gone on into the night. 

Mary gasped quietly and looked between the boys with this new information. “Oh no! Poor Sirius.”

“Erm, he kind of deserved it,” James said quietly with a grimace while he spooned more sugar into his tea. For him to side against his best friend, Hermione thought it must have gotten pretty bad after she and the girls had gone up for the night. “It was a nasty argument. Sounds like it had been going on for months so I doubt they’ll work it out if they haven’t already.” Both he and Peter glanced in Hermione’s direction before looking away. 

She leaned into Marlene’s side and purposefully looked down at the porridge she was assembling to avoid meeting their eyes. How had she somehow become the other woman in Remus and Sirius’s relationship? It was so beyond anything that she would have ever experienced in her own time that it was nearly laughable. Beside the fact that she had zero control over how other people felt.

“Should we try to talk to them?” Lily was watching Remus with a worried look as he continued to pick at his food. Sirius had both elbows on the table and was cradling his forehead in his hands as he uncharacteristically ignored the food on the table.

Peter shook his head quickly and grabbed at her arm as she began to stand. “No, because that would be ‘taking sides’ apparently. We just have to wait for them to talk to us first.”

Marlene put a possessive arm around Hermione’s waist and pulled her closer on the bench. Confused, Hermione looked up from the honey she’d been slowly adding to her now disgustingly overloaded porridge to catch her girlfriend glaring in Sirius’s direction. He was staring at them both, eyes flicking from Marlene’s challenging stare to Hermione’s confused raised brows. The moment was broken by Remus standing quickly and loudly from the other end of the table before he stormed out with an angry look in his ex’s direction. 

Hermione quickly broke eye contact and could only hope that the hostilities ended sooner rather than later.

~**~HG~**~

With the full moon taking place over Easter break, Remus wouldn’t be returning home. Though things had been tense between the two of them, he hadn’t been outright upset to Hermione’s face. She took this, perhaps somewhat naively, as a good sign. The Evans family had kindly invited Hermione to join them for the break but she politely declined, citing her O.W.L.s studies as her reason for staying behind. In reality, she wanted to be there for Remus and was glad for the excuse. She’d been surprised that not many of their friend group chose to stay during the break. Of the Gryffindor fifth years only she, Remus, and James would be staying. Peter had tried to talk his parents into letting him stay at the school during the break but without being able to explicitly state that he was doing so to help his werewolf friend during the full moon, he didn’t have a very convincing argument to sway them.

Sirius still wasn’t talking to her or most of their group. In truth, he was barely talking to anyone. James was able to pull some conversation out of him but was tightlipped on what they discussed if anybody asked. Apparently the fact that Sirius was going back home for Easter was a shock— he’d never left for anything beyond Christmas or Summer break since coming to Hogwarts. Having met his mother, Hermione completely understood why. When she’d questioned if he’d done it because he was trying to avoid their friend group, Peter revealed that he’d seen Sirius receiving a note from his mother earlier in the week. Clearly he’d been summoned for some reason and was willing to answer it if that meant getting away from the school for a bit.

After all of the bustle and stress around studying for their exams, it was shockingly quiet in the Gryffindor common room once everyone left for the break. Hermione had expected that she, Remus, and James would spend some of the time when they weren’t studying together. She quickly found that she’d miscalculated how forgiving Remus was for whatever unwitting part she’d played in his breakup. While James was nice enough, Remus was actively avoiding her; something that was obvious now that the rest of their friends were no longer there to provide a buffer. Feeling much like she had at the beginning of her Hogwarts career, she kept her head down and stuck to the library to study. If she was too busy with O.W.L. preparation, she could pretend that the silence was something she’d chosen for herself.

“Mina?” James’s quiet voice broke through her study haze in the near silent library and she blinked blearily, looking up from her notes. It was the night before the full moon and she was trying to get in a few extra hours of study to offset the hours they’d spend preparing for the next night. “I just talked to Moony.”

She perked up at that. It was a good sign that they were including her on their full moon plans. Perhaps Remus had thawed towards her and was trying to invite her back into the fold. After all, it wasn’t her fault that Sirius had apparently been carrying a torch for her; she was happily involved with someone else, thank you very much. “Oh, that’s good!” She began to pack up her study materials, feeling lighter than she had in days. “I was just thinking, we should take some first aid supplies down to the Shack before tomorrow night. Some of that pain balm, maybe a wrap if his knee is still bothering him. Or do you think we’ll go down before dinner-” She stopped abruptly when she looked up and saw the grimace on James’s face.

“He, um, he said he wants to make a boys’ night of it.” She could see the gears quickly turning in James’s head as he tried to spin her being uninvited as something that it wasn’t. Clearly Harry didn’t just get his diplomacy from his mother. “So it will just be me and him tomorrow night.”

“Oh.”

“It’s just, with the breakup so fresh-”

“No, no, I understand!” She tried to inject said understanding into her tone and attempted a smile. “It’ll be a tough enough night without adding someone new to the mix.” She lowered herself back into her seat and looked down into her bag, pretending to shuffle the contents around to look for something. “I still have those supplies for you to take down tomorrow. I’ll get them to you in the morning.” She fished out her quill and ink pot again, pulling out a book that she didn’t need so she could appear busy.

“I’m sor-”

“Don’t!” She couldn’t hide the sound of the tears that clogged her throat and leaned her head forward to dig in her bag and avoid making eye contact.

James sighed, clearly uncomfortable. “He’s being a prat. You didn’t do anything wrong.” He squeezed her shoulder— both of which were already positioned nearly up around her ears as if that would hold off the hurt— and she heard him swiftly retreating.

She let out a shuddering breath— pushing her palms into her closed eyes to hold back the tears that were past threatening and fully falling— and quietly answered the empty library, “I know.”

~**~HG~**~

After she gave James the supplies she’d put together for Remus, Hermione retreated to the library until she was sure that she wouldn’t run into either of the boys. After dinner, she settled into the Gryffindor common room for the night. While she would firmly stand by her stance on Divination being nothing but nonsense, something in her felt that it was important that she be able to keep a close watch from Gryffindor tower that night. Even though she was angry with Remus and how he was treating her she still worried about him. His emotions were likely all over the place post-breakup which would likely make the transformation even more difficult than usual. And he could say he was fine all he wanted, but she’d seen him limping all week and knew that his knee was still giving him trouble. She could only hope that James would be able to bully him into some pain salve pre and post moon. Hopefully the Cadbury bar that she’d tucked in the bag wouldn’t be too broken or melted from being carried to and from the Shack.

From the window seat that she’d occupied, she had a clear view of the Whomping Willow. It was easy enough to see that James had joined their friend when the tree’s branches shook violently in agitation before abruptly freezing. It was then just a matter of watching the moon emerge as silence fell over the empty common room. She’d just read for a bit and then make her way up to her empty dorm room. And if she ended up staring more out at the quiet grounds than the pages of her book, nobody would know but her.

She must have fallen asleep at some point because the next thing she knew was the loud sound of the Floo activating followed by a thump and a pained whimper. Heart racing, she scrambled to her feet and rushed over to see a crumpled figure lying half out of the grate. She quickly doused the flames that were just starting to lick at the person’s legs. A groan and the figure twitched to reveal-

“Sirius!” She quickly dropped to her knees next to the boy. As she got closer she could see that his red shirt had clearly started out white. His nose was bleeding and something had slashed at his right eye which was swelled shut. “Oh my god! What happened?” Her hands hovered over his lightly twitching body as she took in his injuries. His wand arm was clearly broken and his one good eye looked overly bright as he tried to focus it on her.

“They blasted me off the damn tapestry.” It took her a moment to realize that his garbled answer was in French. He barked out a laugh which morphed quickly into a cry of pain. “Years of being the family disappointment and all it took was saying no to the Dark Lord. Mother was not happy.” He looked on the verge of passing out. Hermione tried to remember what she’d read about how to handle these types of injuries. It would probably be best to try to keep him conscious until she could get him medical help.

“Your mother’s an evil bitch,” she tried to engage him in conversation— defaulting to French— as she levitated him up off of the ground and began to rush him to the portrait hole. As they exited, she told the shocked Fat Lady to wake Madam Pomfrey. She looked down at Sirius, whose head was lolling as he appeared on the verge of passing out. “Why didn’t your father stop it?”

That woke him enough that he scoffed before grimacing and spitting out a bit of blood. He’d clearly bit his tongue at some point which accounted for the trouble speaking. “The bastard cast the first Crucio.” That would explain the shaking. “Scared the shit out of Reggie.”

For once the staircases were behaving and stayed still while she rushed them down. Not for the first time Hermione wondered if they were somewhat sentient and could adjust based on the situation. “Do we need to go get him?” When he was silent, she pressed a hand gently to Sirius’s still twitching shoulder. She winced when he cried out. “Sorry. Do we need to go get Regulus? Would your parents hurt him?”

He shook his head, a gentle back and forth motion as they reached the doors of the hospital wing. “No. Kreacher took him to his room when he tried to get mother to stop; the little monster won’t let anything happen to his precious Master Reggie.” Hermione imagined he would have liked that to come out more scornful than hurt but the physical pain was clearly taking most of his attention. 

“Madam Pomfrey!” It took only a second before the healer was at their side, taking over and floating a now unconscious Sirius onto one of the beds.

“What happened?” She was already performing several diagnostic spells as Hermione began to recount what happened and what Sirius had shared with her. Mentions of the Cruciatus curse had her pursing her lips and shaking her head. Hermione imagined that she wasn’t supposed to hear the woman’s angrily muttered, “That awful family.”

She was shooed away from the bed while Madam Pomfrey continued her work. By the end of it, Sirius was left with a broken arm, two broken ribs, aftershocks from the Cruciatus, and various spell induced cuts. Thankfully he’d shut his eyes when he’d been hit in the face so his eye was undamaged, if hidden by the swelling. She was allowed to sit back in the chair by his bed once he was settled in and asleep— having been dosed with Skele-Gro and Dreamless Sleep when he’d awakened shortly after Madam Pomfrey finished healing him. Now he lay there, pale and bruised, while snoring softly as he slept. She gently took the hand that wasn’t in a sling and ran her fingers over his in the same soothing pattern that her mother had often used on her when she wasn’t feeling well. Even though they were the same age at that moment, she’d never really realized how young Sirius looked. Knowing that her friends from this time would all go on to be her parents’ age had always made her think of them as a little older. In sleep, he reminded her of how Harry looked during his many hospital stays. It was so hard to imagine that this handsome boy would end up becoming the same disheveled man that they had rescued on Hippogriff back in their third year.

“Miss DuPont, it’s past curfew.” Professor McGonagall’s voice made her jump in her seat and she looked up from where she’d been studying her friend. When Hermione only sniffled and wiped at her now watering eyes, the professor dropped her stern demeanor. “If you’re going to stay, don’t wander around the rest of the castle until morning. Understood?” Hermione nodded and settled back into her chair, still holding Sirius’s hand. 

It was quiet as their head of house inspected the sleeping boy, not quite able to hide the sadness in her eyes. “Mr. Black is going to need his friends now more than ever, Mina.” The sound of her first name was enough of a surprise that she sat up straighter and met Professor McGonagall’s somber gaze. “True friendships can survive all of the petty teenage dramatics of school.” Clearly the fifth years’ drama was not a secret from the staff. “And I do believe that you and your friends possess that type of friendship.” Hermione returned her nod and watched as their professor swept from the hospital, leaving her with quite a bit to think about.

Chapter Text

Once again, Hermione woke from a sleep that she had not meant to fall into to a sound that she did not immediately recognize. This time it was thankfully just the doors to the hospital wing opening and closing, followed by the shuffle of feet. She relaxed when she realized that it was Remus coming up from his night in the Shrieking Shack. Though the beds were all separated by privacy curtains, it was still possible to peek in while passing through the aisle. Clearly something made Remus curious enough to do so on his way by because Hermione heard his steps falter as he walked by.

“Sirius?” His muttered question was quickly shushed by a, no doubt, exhausted Madam Pomfrey. “What happened?”

“Into the bed with you.” The healer’s voice was firm but Hermione noticed that Remus had clearly been put in the bed next to Sirius’s with only the curtain separating the two. “You can talk to Mr. Black when you’re both awake later today.”

“But-”

“Drink.” Despite the command not being directed at her, Hermione couldn’t help but flinch at the no-nonsense tone. 

Remus clearly was used to the stern healer as all he did was murmur a petulant, “Fine.”

Hermione stayed perfectly still, waiting until the sound of the school healer’s steps retreated back into her office. She gave herself another minute just to be sure Madam Pomfrey wasn’t going to return and then stood and carefully pulled back the curtain between the beds. She jumped a bit when she came face to face with a still awake Remus who was already half out of bed on his way to do the same. 

“Jesus, Remus. Sit.” She helped him limp over to the chair that she’d just been occupying. He winced and let out a little pained groan as he folded himself into the seat. They both stiffened and listened for sounds of Madam Pomfrey returning to see what was causing the commotion. When it remained silent, she pulled out her wand and flicked up a quick silencing charm before firmly planting her fists on her hips to confront him. “You’re not supposed to be up and about yet. Especially not on that knee.”

He quickly waved her off, eyes glued to Sirius as he scanned the other boy’s injuries. “Never mind that. What the hell happened? I thought he was home for the break.”

“He was.” She blew out a breath and scrubbed at her still bleary eyes. She felt like she’d been awake for days and her neck hurt from sleeping at an odd angle. “He came through the Floo around midnight. He was already hurt. It sounds like his parents…” He looked at her sharply and she chewed at the inside of her cheek. “I don’t have a full picture of what actually occurred. And I don’t know how much he’d want to share.”

“I think my best friend would want me to know what happened.” His tone wasn’t cruel but she could feel him dismissing her; shutting her out because she was the newcomer to their group.

“You two just broke up-”

“He’s still my best friend. He’ll always be my best friend.” He tore his gaze away long enough to fix her with a hard look. The ‘no matter what’, though unspoken, was loud between the two of them. She took an involuntary step back before firming her spine and clenching her hands into fists. She could think of a good twelve years when that hadn’t strictly been the truth but the threat of the Vow burning in her wrist kept those words locked behind her gritted teeth.

Fine. If he wanted to be that way, she’d meet him where he was at.

“Then you can ask him yourself when he wakes up.” She was annoyed enough that a surge of magic meant that she barely had to wave her wand to rip down the silencing charm from the curtained area. “Call Madam Pomfrey when he wakes. She has questions for him.” But she may as well have been talking to herself for all of the acknowledgment Remus gave her. He’d been quick to take up Sirius’s hand— the same one that she’d been holding for most of the night— and had settled into a still vigil of his own. And for some reason that she couldn’t quite understand, a flash of envy lanced through her chest at that sight before she turned on her heel and fled the hospital wing.

~**~HG~**~

Hermione didn’t even try to pretend that she wasn’t avoiding the three Marauders the day after the full moon. In all honesty, it wasn’t too hard to do as the three stayed holed up in the hospital wing for the entire day. She imagined that James had found out about Sirius when he’d gone down to the hospital wing for his usual post-moon check in on Remus. Though Remus and Sirius had been close while they were dating and from being part of their already tight knit friend group, James and Sirius acted more like brothers than friends. Hermione knew from her own time that Remus may say Sirius was his best friend but James was Sirius’s.

She continued to take her meals alone and study for her O.W.L.s. She couldn’t tell if it was false confidence or true competence on her part that made her feel like she was over prepared for the tests. Perhaps it was the fact that she only had to worry about herself for the first time in years. Her mind allowed her the quiet satisfaction of the feeling for all of a few minutes before she remembered that she was twenty years displaced from her own time, there was a strong possibility that she’d never see her friends again, and some of her friends from this time were completely ignoring her. After that, she allowed herself to rest her forehead on the library table she’d been occupying and try to clear her mind using the Occlumency techniques she had been practicing with the headmaster.

After a solid day of hearing nothing from her housemates and not seeing them at dinner, she woke the next morning determined. If she was going to be ignored, then she would take full advantage of that time to do something new. Her usual mode when lacking a solid friend group was to study in the library. It was usually engaging enough to distract her from feeling lonely. And while there were plenty of things outside of her classes that she would be interested in learning, the thought of going back to the same table with the same pile of books all alone once more wore on her. She’d been spoiled in the last few months with friends who actually knew how to study and could challenge her academically. The thought of returning to her old ways felt intolerable.

With the school so quiet, it would be the perfect time to poke around in areas she usually wouldn’t. Though she’d been vocally against such things in the past— especially in her first year when such explorations led to the discovery of giant three headed dogs— there were so many mysteries that Hogwarts hid within its walls. When she’d first found out that she was a witch, she had two immediate feelings: relief that there was an explanation for why she was the way she was, and determination to learn everything about her new world that she possibly could. That second emotion had led her to read Hogwarts: a History from cover to cover that first night back from Diagon Alley. And then again and again throughout that summer as well as the first few years of her schooling. There was a comfort to the familiarity of the text at this point. And, having now attended the school, she always found something new when she consulted the tome.

With those thoughts in mind, she grabbed her copy— she’d splurged and picked it up second hand from Tomes & Scrolls during one of her Hogsmeade trips. The previous owners of the book—and judging from the difference in handwriting there had been more than a couple— had left notes in the margins. Everything from their own observations to quickly scribbled down homework assignments. Usually Hermione had a strict not writing in books stance. Defacing a clean copy was nearly unthinkable and something that she, Severus, and Dorcas frequently debated. But there was something charming about the years of notes and thoughts that she held in her hands. It was her favorite book through the eyes of other people and a part of her— a surprisingly large part— was tempted to add to it. 

She hesitated for a moment before digging through her school bag and fishing out a muggle style pen that she’d borrowed from Lily. Pen in hand and with a determination to have a better day than the one before, Hermione flipped to a random page in the book and skimmed the contents. It was a detailing of some of the more aged tapestries along with their history. Clearly the previous owners of the book hadn’t cared much about Barnabas the Barmy’s aspiring choreography career as the margins were clean. She tapped the capped pen thoughtfully against the words, took a deep breath, and set out before she could overthink it.

The seventh floor was just as abandoned as the rest had been; a fact for which she was grateful. She stood in front of the tapestry and consulted the text. Barnabas was far too busy dodging the trolls’ clubs as they spun and moved around the fabric to notice a student staring at the scene. With the combination of the text and the artwork, it was easy enough to pretend that she was at an art museum for the day. Mind made up that that’s what she’d do, she stepped back a bit and paced a little as she flipped through the pages of her book. She wanted to find something that would keep her attention for the day. It was so rare that she was able to explore alone that she’d be happy just to poke around some new rooms. 

She noticed something move out of the corner of her eye and whirled, wand going up instinctively as she faced a door. A door that very clearly hadn’t been there just seconds ago. Her brow furrowed as she looked from one end of the hall to the other, as if someone would pop out and admit to pranking her. Hogwarts: a History made no mention of a door across from the tapestry. She scanned the page again, just to be sure. A quick flip through the index had her thumbing through the pages to see if there was any mention of a disappearing door on the seventh floor. She made a mental note to check with Lily or Severus to see if either knew of a spell that would allow someone to more quickly pinpoint information in a book by keyword; maybe the three of them could come up with something if not. As she stood trying to figure out what to do or to summon up enough Gryffindor courage to open the door, it began to fade. She impulsive lunged forward and ended up scraping her knuckles against the blank wall that now greeted her.

She huffed in anger and glared at where the door had been. She knew that she’d seen it. Had she perhaps somehow triggered its appearance? All she’d done was look at the tapestry across the way and… pace! She’d been walking back and forth while flipping through her book; a habit that she’d started as a small child whenever she got excited about something she was reading and hadn’t quite outgrown now in her teens. Okay, so pacing was the first step. She did so, hoping that the door that had just disappeared would come back. On her third lap, she saw it shimmer back into existence and lunged to yank it open before it could fully disappear. She gasped at what it revealed.

There were rows and rows of items stacked to towering heights in the labyrinth hidden inside. She stepped through, almost subconsciously, and the door quietly closed behind her. The room was a combination treasure trove and landfill. Items ranged from tattered textbooks and broken chairs to glittering gems and old fashioned robes. Everything was lit by high placed windows that showed a far sunnier day than what Hermione had remembered seeing from her own room’s window. She imagined that they must have been enchanted much like the Great Hall; only they showed perfect weather to better illuminate the room.

Without giving it much thought, she began to navigate the aisles that the items formed. She passed a large cabinet next to a table that held what appeared to be several broken wands. Stacks and stacks of books lined the ground like path markers. Both empty and full bottles of alcohol as well as prank items looked as if they’d simply been tossed to the floor before being abandoned. Mixed in with the more benign objects were some that made her shiver with unease. The cage she found, containing the skeleton of some poor creature, made her eyes prick with angry tears. A large tome covered in some sort of dark brown stain had the hair raising on her arms when she merely looked at it. 

After a long, but in no way complete, search of the room her eyes caught on a tiara that lay abandoned on a broken desk. Something about the shape and the blue stone was familiar but she couldn’t quite place why. Determined to get a better look, she approached but did not touch it as she leaned closer. A sick wave of malice seemed to emanate from it as she looked over the details of the old headpiece. Despite the shudders of fear that were beginning to slowly overtake her limbs, she found her hand reaching out as if to pick it up. Her fingers were close enough that they were nearly brushing the metal when she snapped out of whatever haze had overtaken her and jerked back. She took several quick steps away, careful to not brush against anything else in the process.

“Stupid. Stupid.” She gave her arm a vicious pinch to try to sharpen the still fuzzy edges of her mind. Flashbacks of Ginny and the diary in second year raced through her mind as she remembered why one shouldn’t touch unknown magical objects. Hermione crossed her arms tightly, gripping her  elbows to keep her fingers from reaching back out or accidentally brushing anything in the room. It would be just her luck if the thing were some sort of sick trap for muggleborns and she ended up joining the caged skeleton from the front of the room.

Some of the shine of the previously undiscovered place had worn off after the nearly disastrous encounter with what Hermione was convinced was a piece of cursed jewelry. There were still areas she wanted to explore in the disappearing room but she would need to do some research on how to scan items for dark magic before she would allow herself to touch anything. She chuckled to herself as she made her way back through the maze objects; she’d need to make a trip to the library today after all. Once she was free of the room, the door closed on its own once more before it disappeared.

As she stood in front of the now blank piece of wall where the door had once been, she impulsively flipped back to the page of Hogwarts: a History that had started the day’s adventure. She fished her pen from her pocket, pulling off the cap with her teeth, and for the first time in her life scribbled in the book she held. “A good place to stroll and think.” And then, after debating with herself on if it was a good idea, she quickly sketched the tiara she’d seen and drew a little “x” next to it. It was doubtful that she’d forget what it looked like, but maybe one day the book would pass out of her hands and she could prevent someone else from making the same mistake that she nearly had.

~**~HG~**~

The same evening that Hermione found the disappearing room, Remus approached her while she was sat in front of the fire reading in the empty Gryffindor common room. Unsurprisingly, she hadn’t seen him, James, or Sirius at dinner.

“Mina.” She thought of giving him a taste of his own medicine and ignoring him. She was close to doing it as she pretended to finish the sentence that she’d been in the middle of when he’d addressed her. Instead, she settled the book onto her lap and slowly turned her head to look at him.

When he continued to stand silently, looking uncomfortable, she sighed impatiently and prompted him with a, “How’s Sirius?”

She ignored the grateful look he gave her at the conversation opener. “He’s better. Madam Pomfrey said the recovery time would have been much longer if you hadn’t brought him in so quickly.” When she remained silent, he continued— Welsh accent thicker in the way that it got when he was nervous. “The Potters came around lunch and took Sirius and James home with them. I guess they’ll be staying there for the rest of the break. Since Sirius’s parents disowned him, I think he’ll end up staying with James for a bit. Which makes sense because I think they’re related on James’s tad’s side.”

Hermione snorted, remembering the giant family tapestry that she’d seen when they’d gone to Grimmauld for the Yule party. “I think all of the purebloods are related to the Blacks on one side or the other. Probably both in some cases.” Remus huffed a laugh at that, flinching a little when he saw her smile quickly drop.

He took a breath and squared his shoulders. “I’m really sorry for how I’ve been acting.” 

“Oh? How have you been acting?” She smoothed her fingers over the pages in her lap, angry enough to not want to immediately forgive him but lonely enough to need to avoid eye contact or she’d accept the apology without question.

“Like a jealous arse. But you didn’t do anything that should have made you a target for that.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Don’t act like you didn’t hear us in the hall a couple of weeks ago. My senses are better than yours even on my worst days.”

“Remus, you know I’m seeing Marlene. In what world would you have ever been threatened by me?” He just shrugged, looking pitiful. She rolled her eyes and snapped her book shut before setting it to the side. “Sit.” He quickly dropped onto the cushions next to her and she crossed her legs, turning to face him on the couch. “Speak.”

“I think you’ve confused me with Padfoot. I am not a dog.” When she only crossed her arms he leaned back with a sigh. “Fine.” He rested his head back on the couch, still speaking quietly even though they were the only ones in the common room. “Our relationship was shaky before you got here. It was just harder to ignore when he was obviously obsessed with you.”

“He’s hardly obsessed with me-”

“He talks about you all the time, Mina. He was more upset than Marlene was when you stopped going to watch Quidditch practice. Every time we planned a prank: ’We should ask Mina what she thinks.’ If you weren’t at a meal or if you were late to class: ‘Wonder where Mina is.’ And you might not have noticed at his family’s party, but he couldn’t stop looking at you in that dress. Don’t get me started on the pet names.” 

She turned her face away, trying to hide the blush that she could feel creeping up toward her hairline. So maybe Sirius had a little crush on her. That was hardly her fault. And it’s not like she returned it because she liked Marlene. She was dating Marlene. People who are dating do not like people who aren’t the person they are dating. She felt practically dizzy by the time she finished working that thought out in her mind. And even if she did think Sirius was handsome and funny and a good friend that didn’t mean that Remus had any right to be angry at her. Because she had decided that she really did not see Sirius romantically at all and even if she did it wouldn’t matter. She’d be back home soon enough so it would be inadvisable to start something with someone that she knew from her own time; Harry’s godfather, no less. And she would not let herself feel sad about that.

“I-”

“Also, I like Sev.” The confession was enough to make her shut her mouth just as she’d been ready to rip into him for interrupting her again. “So, I was maybe feeling a little guilty about that.”

“Does he know?” Remus looked confused so she prompted, “Severus. Does he know that you like him?”

“Oh. Um, no. I don’t think he does and I don’t think he’s into blokes. It doesn’t matter. I’m sure he just puts up with me because we’re study partners.” Hermione wasn’t sure if Severus liked men, women, both, or anyone for that matter. But she’d certainly never seen him emote so positively with anyone else. The smiles that he gave Remus would be considered eyelash flutters on anyone else.

She snorted. “If he didn’t like you, you would know. I spent the summer with him and he was awful until he decided that he would be willing to put up with me for Lily’s sake. You could ask him if he’d be interested in going ou-”

“I’m not doing that!” Remus looked as if he were ready to bolt at the mere thought. When she held up her hands, palm out, trying to calm him down he sank back into his seat. “Besides, it’s bad enough I’d be telling him I’m gay. What if on top of that he also finds out that I’m,” he lowered his voice to a whisper, “a werewolf. It’s better to just stay friends.”

“Remus, I don’t want you to think that I’m being mean when I say this. Everyone in the school knows that you’re gay at this point. Until recently, you and Sirius were constantly attached at the lips.” His face flamed and he covered his eyes with a groan. “I understand your second point, especially while we’re still in school. But I don’t think he’d find out about your… furry little problem if you didn’t want him to. It’s not obvious enough that anyone outside of your roommates or people who know about the condition would know what to look for. And you know your friends would never betray you.” Except Peter a few years from now but she tried not to think about that. “The worst that can happen is he turns you down and stops coming to the study group.”

“Oh, is that all.”

She gently shoved him, careful of the fact that he was still recovering from the moon. “And,” her voice took on a singsong lilt, “the best thing that can happen is he likes you back. You won’t know until you try.” She smirked as she saw his face turn thoughtful at that. She pulled out her secret weapon that tended to work on most people in her house. “I mean, Gryffindors are supposed to be brave so it seems like something that should be manageable for one of us.”

He huffed a laugh. “I know exactly what you’re doing. How do you think I keep James and Sirius in line?”

“Is it working?”

He was quiet for a moment. “Yes.”

She gave a Mary-like clap. “Perfect! I’ll help you plan if you need it.” She squeaked in surprise as he pulled her into a hug. Though part of her had been prepared to return his earlier silent treatment, she couldn’t stop herself from returning the hug with a little squeeze. Though she did quietly say, “If you blame me for something that I didn’t do and treat me like that again, I won’t forgive you so easily.” He pulled back with a somber look on his face and nodded. “Promise?”

He untangled himself from their hug and with an exaggeratedly serious look held out his pinky. When she only laughed, he wiggled the finger with raised brows. “Excuse me, madam. This is a very serious vow.” She took a few seconds to compose herself and gave an over the top little bow before hooking her finger through his. He grinned as they shook, “It’s a promise.”