Chapter 37: New beginnings

15th of October 1999

The next days were the happiest days of Hermione's life, at least as far as she could remember. There was, of course, a good amount of time the three of them spent in bed together and even though Hermione would never be able to tell, who the first man was she had ever slept with, she could definitely tell with whom she had sex from then on. The new lovers spent a growing amount of time exploring their bodies and by now Hermione knew every freckle and sensitive spot on both of her boyfriends. She knew how to make them moan, what to avoid and how to encourage them with whatever they were doing with her at the time. It was her new favourite thing and she spent as much energy on learning and cataloguing their bodies, as she had on studying whatever topic fascinated her in the past. And those men, they looked at her with so much love and passion, weren't about to stop fascinating her anytime soon. Hermione had the feeling she would never get tired of making love to the two of them and it seemed to be the same the other way around as well. The twins showed her openly everything they knew and patiently endured her fumbling until she had learned how to make them moan, beg for more and come apart with her hands and her mouth. She had quickly learned that she could ask them anything and that there was nothing she needed to be ashamed of.

But their bed activities weren't the only thing that kept her in such a good spirit. When Hermione wasn't busy studying in the library, Fabian and Gideon invited her along to join them for their work and it was during that time, she learned the most. Their patience with her never seemed to tire and they kept explaining everything she wanted to know in detail to her. She realised that it was a very huge advantage, not to have one or two boys as boyfriends that were her age. They most likely wouldn't have had the patience for much more than shagging her, and most likely they wouldn't have had the knowledge to keep up with her or teach her anything new – at least academically. But her twins enjoyed doing just that and Hermione could have burst with happiness.

"Good morning?" Fabian asked her across the breakfast table after she had dreamily stirred her cup of coffee for several minutes.

"The best," she grinned and winked at him. "I never thought I could be as happy as this, not after my first war and even less during the time since I stumbled back into the past. For a while, everything just looked hopeless and suddenly… this is still like a dream to me and sometimes I am afraid to wake up."

"I know the feeling," Gideon said next to her and kissed her temple. "The time after the war was even worse for me, than the days when the Dark Lord was still alive. And after you suddenly appeared in our lives again just to see us as complete strangers…" He shook his head and sighed. "Let us all hope this is not a dream because otherwise, I'll refuse to leave my bed for the foreseeable future."

At that Hermione grinned at him, before she pulled him into a spontaneous kiss. "Doesn't sound like a bad idea at all," she mumbled before she started nibbling at his bottom lip. "Can I keep you company?"

Fabian snorted amusedly on her other side. "I think we created a monster brother," he said before he started slowly kissing her neck. "But I'm as sure as hell not complaining."

ssssssss

They had barely stumbled out of bed again when Fabian alerted them to a pair of visitors at their front door. Hermione's hair was still in a state of total disarray but for the first time in her life, she couldn't have cared less. And so she trotted down the stairs totally unconcernedly and watched Gideon open the front door. When she saw who was in front of the door, she halted her steps halfway down the stairs and stared at them in disbelief, because she hadn't expected those visitors at all.

"Hi, it's Lily Potter. We went to Hogwarts together, but I'm not sure if you remember me," the redhead in front of her boyfriend explained nervously and Hermione could see her shuffle her feet.

"I do," Gideon replied neutrally and inclined his head. "How can I help you? And who's that by your side?"

"Oh sorry," the woman at their door replied hastily. "That's my son, Harry."

"He looks like James," Gideon said calmly. "What can I do for you then? Are you in need of some warding?" Hermione could have sworn that he very well guessed that this might not be the case and it was confirmed by Lily's next words. "We wanted to talk to Hermione Granger. Severus said we'd be able to find her with you."

"Obviously, she's my girlfriend," he said matter-of-factly before he stepped aside. "Come in then. You can sit down together in the living room."

Suddenly Hermione wished she hadn't been as careless with her hair before, but it wasn't to be helped now. And so she slowly walked down the rest of the stairs and stared at the two visitors with an awkward smile. "Hello Mrs Potter, hi Harry," she said before she moved into the living room, where she sat down on the sofa next to Gideon. She was happy he didn't just abandon her in the intention not to intrude into her personal business, because Hermione very much wanted him at her side. Harry and his mother took the armchairs at the sides and looked at them with unmistakable interest.

"So, what can I do for you?" Hermione asked as she couldn't hide her curiosity any longer. The two of them seemed to be grateful that she had opened the conversation.

Lily looked at her with a kind smile, before she looked at her son who nervously cleared his throat. "Right," he said and looked at her with nervous eyes. "I wondered if you'd be willing to share your story with us, Hermione. I know I behaved like a spineless idiot the last time we'd seen each other, but I didn't really expect this reaction from my dad and Uncle Peter. It caught me totally by surprise because usually he's nice with everyone and even though he's a bit odd sometimes, he never behaved like that before." Hermione nodded and looked at her guest with a serious expression. She could feel Gideon's hand at the small of her back and his warmth that seeped through the fabric of her thin sweater soothed her nerves and enabled her to calmly listen to Harry's words.

"I asked him what happened, you know, but he told me a story that almost seemed too hard to believe. Is it true you abducted him and held him in a cage for weeks?" Her former friend stared at her with wide eyes but before Hermione could utter a single word, Gideon said with a smile:

"Actually that was me and my brother - and Severus, to give the man some credit."

Harry looked at her boyfriend in surprise. "But why?" he asked and almost leapt from his chair.

The answer came from the door behind them. "Because otherwise, you'd be an orphan now, Harry, and most likely an only child." It was Fabian, who strolled towards them while levitating a tray with tea and biscuits next to him. It only took him about half a minute to place everything in front of them on the coffee table and get settled on Hermione's other side, from where he slung his arm casually around her waist.

Harry stared at them with furrowed brows and for a moment Hermione found that he looked, like the Auror he also was in that timeline. "Why? What happened there? Peter's such a nice chap, he wouldn't harm a bug in the grass."

Hermione sighed. "Maybe not himself, no, but to save his own skin? Definitely. He was the Secret Keeper of your parents Harry and when he believed that the war was lost for our side, he ran over to the Dark Lord."

Lily stared at her with wide, shocked eyes, but her son still didn't seem convinced. He looked at her with a contemplative expression and tried to evaluate, whether she was telling the truth. Hermione sighed. "I know it is hard to believe, but it's the truth. I can show you part of my memories in the Pensieve if that' what you want."

Her former friend looked at her with wide eyes. "You'd do that?"

She shrugged. "I would if you really want to see them. But I warn you, it's not pretty."

"Can my mum come along, too?" Harry asked her again and Hermione sighed. She didn't really know the woman but if she really wanted to get Harry back into her life, then another ally surely wouldn't hurt. Hermione sighed. "Alright. But we better move this conversation into the study, then. The Pensieve is up there anyway."

Harry nodded eagerly and leapt from his seat. Hermione got up after him and led him to the door. Fabian and Gideon were at her side immediately and put an arm around her waist protectively.

"Are you really alright with this?" Gideon whispered and looked at her uncertainly. "You don't have to do this if you'd rather not."

But Hermione looked at him with a determined glint in her eyes. "I let a young Severus Snape perform Legillimency on me to prove a point. Compared to that, this will be a walk in the park."

Fabian snorted. "At least for you, yeah. I am not so sure about them though."

Fabian was right. When Harry and his mother left their place some hours later, their posture was bowed and their eyes looked somehow haunted. Hermione felt sorry for them but on the other hand, her heart sang, when she remembered the tight hug Harry had pulled her in before they left Prewett house it gave her the feeling that he had done the right thing and that she and Harry could somehow be friends again. That was more then she considered possible a day ago. Whatever relationship she and Harry would build, it would take time, but Hermione was not in a hurry, so she would give him time to digest everything he had learned today. She had done everything to win him back. Now it was his turn.

sssssss

19th of October 1999

It was three days later when there was another group of visitors knocking on their door. Hermione's hair was yet again in a comparable state of disarray but she was beyond caring by now. Gideon had established a mild obsession with her hair and whenever he was near, he buried at least one of his hands in her thick curls and as Hermione loved the feeling of it, she sure as hell wasn't complaining. Sorting her hair out countless times during the day had become a futile task for her and so she simply stopped doing it. Besides, whenever Gideon saw her now, he looked at her with a smug grin on his face.

"Can't say I expected to see you anytime soon," Fabian said at the door, but his back blocked Hermione's view so she wasn't able to tell who was in front of the door. "Did you finally come to your senses then?"

Hermione found his almost cold tone odd but when she padded closer and saw who was standing in front of the door, she almost understood. "Mr Lupin," she said and her eyes trailed to his two companions. "Sirius… and Mr Pettigrew," she greeted them as politely as possible. She would have been happy to see them if it wasn't for the fact, that they had brought the rat along. But she would be damned if she would let them know that from her reaction towards them. Hermione could tell that Fabian was in protective mode, as he took her hand into his and pulled her next to him.

She could tell that his behaviour had an immediate effect on them, as Remus Lupin and Pettigrew started to nervously shuffle their feet. Sirius just looked at them with a wide grin. "I see you still got those two wrapped around your little finger, Hermione," he said and stepped towards her. "Didn't get tired of them, did you?" There was still this roguish glint in his eyes which made him look so much different then the broken man he had been after Azkaban. It was enough to let a little smile break out on her face.

"Never," she said and pressed Fabian's hand. The handsome black-haired wizard just looked at her with a happy smile. "Good for you, Hermione. Would you mind letting us in for a minute? We came to have a little chat if that's alright with you."

Hermione looked at them for a long moment, but finally, she shrugged and stepped aside. "Alright, come in then. You know where the living room is."

Sirius smiled cheerfully and before one of his friends could say something, he had grabbed Remus' hand and pulled him into the right direction. Pettigrew followed them with a sour face and hanging shoulders. Hermione let them all pass and closed the door after them before she trailed after them towards the living room.

This time her guests had placed themselves on the sofa. Remus sat stiffly in the middle with his hands still clasped in Sirius' hands and Peter was on his other side and his eyes trailed the living room like he was looking for an emergency exit. Hermione looked at them for a moment, but before she could decide on a seating arrangement for herself, Fabian pulled her with him to a wingback chair and placed her possessively on his lap. She didn't know if he wanted to make a point with a notorious heart-breaker like Sirius in the house, but in a way, she didn't care. Because right now the gesture made her feel safe and wanted.

"What can we do for you gentlemen?" Fabian asked and even though Hermione wasn't able to see his face, his tone implied that he was looking at them with a serious expression.

Remus sighed. "Harry talked to us," he said and looked at them with tired eyes. "He told us what he has seen in your memories."

Hermione nodded wearily. "And he sent you to talk to us?"

Sirius snorted. "The boy can be a bull-headed fellow but he didn't have to. As soon as I heard his story, I couldn't wait to talk to you. And I dragged those two along."

The corner of her mouth twitched. "Alright, Sirius. I'm listening."

The wizard sighed. "Let's make this short. I am grateful for what you did Hermione, not for Lily and James, but for me. I'm glad that I didn't end up in Azkaban, or dead, or both, and instead found a family" he looked towards Remus "and a group of friends that are loyal at my side." He smiled grimly. "From our perspective, it is hard to believe, that all those things could have happened but as they were a reality for you…" He trailed off. "Anyway, I just wanted to thank you and tell you that I have no hard feelings towards you."

Hermione nodded carefully. "That's… good to know I guess. Thank you for letting me know." Sirius nodded happily before his elbow founds its way into Remus' ribs. The man stiffened for a moment and cast an annoyed look towards his friend before he sighed and said: "I do understand your reasons Hermione, but I still can't help but think, that there might have been a better way for you to handle things. As I told you, Peter is my friend and I would have wished that you put all your cards on the table and let us help him, together."

Hermione sighed, but before she could say something in return the man shook his head at her and continued. "I know those weren't easy times, for any of us and I understand, that you have been under a lot of pressure. Fact is, without you, none of us would be here today and for that, you have my thanks." He swallowed heavily before he looked at his friends. "I am not sure if I'll ever be able to trust you again, Miss Granger, as you have lied to me and I have difficulties in forgiving that. I am not sure if we can ever be friends, but I assure you, that I respect your actions and won't hold them against you."

She blinked for a moment before she nodded. In a way, she understood him, even though his words still hurt. She had always known that her meddling in the past would have consequences and if this was one of the prices she had to pay, she would gladly accept it. It was still better to have him alive and a stranger to her, then to not have him alive at all.

"Thank you, Mr Lupin," she said calmly and nodded. Hermione was just about to get up because for a moment she thought this conversation was finished when the last of her guests cleared his throat and looked at her with haunted, watery eyes. "I also would like to thank you, Miss Granger," Peter Pettigrew said in a small and shaky voice and before Hermione realized what he was doing, the man had gotten up from the sofa and walked in front of her. There he stood and looked at her with frightened but determined eyes. Hermione could help but stiffen in Fabian's lap. "I didn't enjoy being kept a hostage by…him... but I understand that my fate would have been a very different otherwise. Even though my friends do have a hard time believing I would have betrayed them, I do not." He looked back at them with wide eyes, before he focussed his grey eyes on her again. And Hermione looked at him with a careful expression.

"I know that I am not the strongest of characters and the events of the war had me scared beyond my wits. And I can see me doing what you told Harry I would have done. I am glad you prevented me from betraying my only friends and ruining everything that was good and important in my life."

Hermione stared at the small pudgy man in front of her open-mouthed. Was he really just thanking her for keeping him captive? "I… I am glad that you're not holding it against me… Mr Pettigrew," she said carefully and looked at him with a weary expression. She couldn't help it but the man still gave her the creeps. But Peter didn't seem to feel her aversion though and looked at her with a pleased smile.

"Peter," he corrected and offered her his small short-fingered hand. "I want you to call me by my given name, Miss Granger, as I'd like us to be friends from now on." She stared at him with wide, disbelieving eyes but when she saw the small smile on Sirius' face she knew, that the Marauder was totally serious with her. "You seem to be an important figure in Harry's life and I can see that he's important to you, too. I realize that there are some unpleasant memories of one another in the past, for both of us, but I don't want to be scared every time you come for a visit and I hope that you might be tired of blaming me for something that I never had the chance to do." She could see the man's body shaking now and for a moment she felt almost sorry for him. "I am not the same man I was in your past, Miss Granger and I would like the chance to prove it to you. In return, I give you the chance to show that you are not the same cold woman, that visited me years ago in Snape's basement. I want a new beginning Miss Granger – Hermione – and I'd like to be your friend if you'll let me."

For a moment Hermione was struck speechless, as this wasn't at all what she had expected from this visit. Was it even possible that she could trust him, that they could be friends? Could they really let all the bitterness and the distrust behind and make a new beginning?

She sighed inwardly and thought: That's what we fought this war for, after all. She had always wanted a new beginning, a new chance for everybody that had been lost to the war. At this moment she realized that this wasn't just Fabian, Gideon, Sirius, Remus or the Weasley twins, it was Peter Pettigrew, too. He was also a victim of this war, even though she had never seen him like this. But it was true nonetheless.

"I'd very much like to be your friend, Peter," she said honestly, got up and shook his hand. "If you can put the past behind you, so can I. To a new beginning," she said and smiled. And even though this act of forgiveness cost her every bit of determination she had, she knew it was the right thing to do. The war had cost all of them that much and it was finally time to claim something back from it in return. For some of them, it was love and friendship, but for some of them, like Peter, it was compassion and forgiveness, too.

A.N.: That's it guys. I might add an epilogue at a later point if I have an idea, how it could add something to the story. But to be honest with you, I like the note on which this story is ending with this chapter. Yes, I know that there are still some unsolved mysteries, like for example the ominous traitor which is still not found. This is totally intended and I will not answer this question for you. You can make up your own theories and share them with me. In real life, there is not always an answer to everything and I want it to be the same here. Hermione decides to trust Peter and the others even though she doesn't know who ratted them out. Some of you might question this decision, but it's her way to make a clean cut and find happiness.