Love Lost, Not Forgotten

Harry sat back against the sofa staring at his former professor. The older man had a book in his hands and seemed to be mouthing the words as he read, throughout the entire memory he had been holding onto to Hermione to keep her from collapsing, especially when her mother did just that. Turning his head towards his friend he tried to gauge her mind frame but she too was staring helplessly at the older man.

“Professor … do you think my father tricked her?”

Remus looked up and closed the book sighing softly, “I’m not sure, Elliot Granger is a gentleman. We met him once before he took your mother away … James and I did. He was kind, we asked about Grace and well … he said he thought he was doing what was best. Thought the man who got her pregnant didn’t want her so when she lost her memories he told her the first thing that came to mind.”

The older man leaned forward and touched Hermione’s hand softly, “I think he did care for your mother, honestly cared.” Hermione nodded dumbly before looking at Harry, “I should probably go home. Make sure everything is still in one piece … they’ve been arguing since the spell was lifted.”

Remus watched her stand and leave the room before looking at Harry, he too was watching her leave and looked at his former professor, “Was Mum always like that? Scaring house elves and ordering people around?”

The older wizard shook his head, “No, Lily was kind to all creatures … but she knew when the line was drawn and when she had to cross it. As for ordering us around … well she kind of picked that up when I did whatever it was she asked.”

Harry laughed and nodded, sure he was worried about Hermione and how she was taking all of this in he still couldn’t help but feel a slight swell in his chest, it was the first time he’d seen a real memory of his mother. She had been a bit of a spit fire, and yet at the same time he’d gotten to see the caring woman he figured she would have been.

Sirius Black was normally a very thin man, hallow in the cheeks, and his hair was as shaggy as any dog’s his entire life. When he stepped out of the bathroom he looked like a new man, a few spells here and there and he didn’t even resemble himself. Smiling a bit he smacked his freshly shaven jaw and started towards the stairs when he saw Hermione come out of the library. He of course knew everything, the fact that he was her father … that the man who raised her tricked his Grace into marrying him (or so Sirius liked to delude himself into thinking).

Walking up behind the brunette, Sirius put his arm around her shoulder and squeezed tightly, “It’ll be okay Hermione … everything will be alright.”

Brandy colored eyes turned up to look at him and without warning he fell to the ground. Hermione stood above him her face red with anger and her fist clenched next to her chest. She had punched him.

“What … what was that for?!”

“Why didn’t you tell me?! You knew for years, since the first day I met you and you said nothing!”

Sirius stood up and stared at the girl in front of him, it was almost like having a flashback only her voice was a higher pitch. “I thought you knew, you came and saved me from the Dementors! I didn’t know until you called me Sirius.” He stepped forward and watched her step back, “Please, Hermione, you have to understand. When I figured it out, that you didn’t know, I couldn’t hurt you like that. You wouldn’t have believed me anyway now would you?”

Hermione looked at Sirius as he stood before her, he certainly didn’t look like the man she’d seen only a few minutes ago. It looked as if years had been taken off of him; she suddenly saw the missing pieces of the puzzle she and her mother had tried to solve for years. Where did her nose come from? Why were their eyes different shapes? Why didn’t she have any of her father’s attributes?

She did. She had plenty of her father’s attributes; she was just looking at the wrong man.

A noise to the side alerted the two in the hall that someone had heard them. Both eyes turned towards the library door where Harry and Remus stood watching, Sirius looked from his godson and best friend to the small witch but she was gone. Frowning he started to after her, “Sirius … wait,” he turned and looked at Harry only to see him shake his head, “She’s got a lot of thinking to do. She needs her space and time.”

Granger Home, four hours later

Hermione had ran down the stairs and locked herself in the kitchen with Molly. The older woman didn’t say much to her if she said anything at all Hermione wouldn’t have noticed. The peace was comforting, Ron had gone out to help Fred and George with the joke shop, Ginny was already there waiting to be relieved so she could come back to Grimmauld place and be with Harry … all Hermione wanted to do was curl up and sleep.

It was times like these she always wanted her mother.
Now she wasn’t positive who her mother was.

After two hours in the peaceful quiet kitchen Hermione had excused herself and flooed home. Stepping out of the hearth she looked around her, everything was in its place, nothing was broken, and it almost seemed perfect. Except for one thing, her mother was laying on the couch in the sitting room alone.

“Mum,” she said softly as she walked across the once pristine white carpet—she was leaving sooty footprints behind. Grace looked up from her magazine and smiled, “Hello sweetheart, Elliot went out with a few friends. I was waiting for you before I ordered anything for take-away.”

Hermione looked at the woman on the couch, she was still the same—save for the blond highlights in her hair—long hair, it waved now instead of curled like Hermione’s, she was long legged, still beautiful even in her daughter’s eyes. It took a few moments but everything seemed to break as it did at Grimmauld place and the petite witch launched herself from the chair onto her mother. Clinging to her middle she cried into her t-shirt.

Grace was startled by the outburst but she knew at some point it was going to come, they always did when her daughter pent up her emotions. Moving carefully she came to a sitting position and pulled Hermione into her lap cradling her as if she were a baby again, “There, there, dear … tell Mummy all the nasty things they said. Now I can actually do something about it.”

Hermione looked up from between her fingers and saw the familiar face of her mother, she was trying to make her laugh. Shaking her head she sniffled, “That isn’t it. Why did you do it? Why did you obliviate yourself? If you knew that I was a pure blood why did you let me go through all of that tort-”

“Hermione Jean, I did no such thing. I didn’t know who I was. Had I known that we were who we are I never would have let you go through that. That silly ole Ferret boy you told me about would have been plenty kind to you, we Trimbles may not be noble but you’ve got Black blood in you as well.” Hearing the would-be-comforting statement only made Hermione cry even harder.

Grace sighed and rocked her seventeen year old daughter and made a few shushing sounds, “Hermione … I love you. That’s all that matters, if you want to keep your name as Hermione Granger that is fine, if you want to continue to say that Elliot is your father do so. He raised you as his own. Sweetheart, the man—by all means but blood—is your father. I won’t take that away from you.” She stroked the girl’s hair and continued to rock on the couch.

“Now, I’m going to go order some Chinese take-away. You and I are having a movie marathon like we used to when you came home from Hogwarts, no magic talk. No talk of Sirius Black or Hogwarts … tonight is about you and me, agreed?”

Hermione again looked up at her mother, this time the face was expectant of an answer instead of a giggle, “But if I think of questions?”

“You can write them down and I’ll answer them tomorrow. Sound fair?”

Hermione nodded smiling again, “Yes ma’am. I’ll go find the movies.”

“Good, and pick me out a few Johnny Depp ones while you’re at it!” Grace’s voice followed upstairs and finally Hermione let out a giggle.