Misadventures in Time Travel

Chapter 22 Homeward Bound

"Psst… Psst…"

Jamie and Hermy woke up early the next morning by Sirius, who put his finger to his lips and bade them to go downstairs. They sat in comfortable arm chairs.

"You two need to be more discreet! People are wondering about you. They have noticed that you two, even despite what you have gone through this year, are not normal eleven year olds. Sleeping in the same bed!" Sirius admonished.

With fire in her eyes, Hermy replied, "At the moment we really do not care. It is still the only way we can sleep without nightmares. We are almost 30! No one will know unless you, Bill or Lupin tell them! We get that it is abnormal, but we are physically ELEVEN years old."

"Hermy… it will be fine. We will be better, Sirius."

With frustration Sirius got to the point, "I am leaving now to go to the Wizengamot meeting. I have the Black's family seat and need to vote. I love both of you. Remus will meet you at the station."

Sirius left and the other two returned to their individual dorms to get ready for the day. They did not see Neville, sitting on an armchair on the other side of the room, staring at the group with wide opened eyes. He thought to himself; had he heard that right? 30 years old? He could not tell anyone; who knows what might happen if this news got out.

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Hermy ate breakfast, surrounded by friends who managed to keep the worst of the crowds away. Neville and the other Gryffindor first years talked animatedly, attempting and failing, to draw her into their conversation.

Boarding the train brought peace and quiet. Hermy, Jamie and Neville say in a compartment by themselves for the majority of the journey. They spent most of this time in silence. After Neville had drifted off to sleep; Hermy and Jamie sent shy glances at each other.

The hours passed by quickly and the Hogwarts Express arrived at the station. Hermy and Jamie waited for the crowds to abate before disembarking and were greeted with a hug by the smiling Lupin. They Floo'd back to 12 Grimmauld place and were surprised that Sirius had not yet returned.

They waited for Sirius to return. Hermy and Jamie relished the feeling of privacy and retired to the library. They sat on the thick rug in front of the unlit fire and looked anywhere except each other in the eyes.

Jamie broke the silence as he said with a nervous laugh, "Did you know that before I came to Hogwarts, I had a crush on you? I had read so much about you that it just happened."

"You too… The Boy who Lived did have some advantages." Hermy smiled. "You know that that happened this time around as well?"

"Not in the same way. It was different for me. You were so different from the other boys; skinny and quiet. I wanted to get to know you better and help you, but Ron was in the way in so many different ways."

Jamie paused, evaluating the expression on Hermy's face. He saw approval in Hermy's eyes and continued.

"I was nothing but a Know-It-All and you were this amazing boy who had overcome so much and still had the capacity to love. I gave up hope after I saw you pine after Cho and then got involved with Ginny…" Jamie broke his monologue with a sob.

Hermy took his hand and cupped it with her own.

She smiled and reassured him, "I was a self-obsessed and angsty prat! Of course I would not notice a wonderful girl like you… Ron was not the only one jealous about Krum you know."

They sat in silence, holding hands and leaning on each other. They wished that it was cold enough for a fire. It would have made the wonderful mood even better.

"I am glad I like you so much. I do not think that it would be possible to be with anyone else, given our situation."

"It would definitely feel weird!"

They laughed and fell silent for a few moments longer.

Jamie swore loudly and was hit on the head by Hermy.

"What? I just realized something… We are about to go through puberty again… in the wrong bodies!" said Jamie, panicking slightly. "You will get a chest and monthlies."

Hermy stopped. Being in an eleven-year-old body had meant that the physical effects of being in the wrong body had not impacted her too much emotionally; growing up from infanthood as a baby resulted in getting used to it.

In a very unladylike manner, Hermy released a string of swear words learned over the years from the Weasley twins, Bill and Sirius. Jamie punched her gently, and she calmed, resting her head on Jamies shoulder.

It was almost midnight before Sirius arrive back. He was angry and frustrated. He could not find Hermy or Jamie everywhere and was still angry about their attitude earlier in the day. He slammed open the door to the library. The sight of the two cuddling calmed him slightly, but he still needed to vent.

"I am going to get them. I am going to get the lot of them. I am going to reinstate the Marauders and get revenge," he ranted.

Hermy and Jamie were scared. They had seen him angry, but not like this. With hesitation they got up and approached him.

"Sirius? We are sorry for this morning! Please do not kill anyone!" they pleaded.

Sirius looked at them with a dark look on his face. "The bloody morons. The absolute bloody, imbred, idiotic morons just HAD to elect ME as the new BLOODY MINISTER FOR MAGIC."

Thanks for reading this story! I may write a sequel, but at the moment my thoughts seem overly optimistic and very fluffy.