Okay I have taken down the previous chapter and replaced it with this one which I have to say I think is much better. I hope you all enjoy. As always none of these wonderful characters are mine. I make no money off them its just for fun. Expect another chapter in about a month. Maybe sooner 😉
Snoopy
Chapter One
Hermione quietly placed the quill on her small desk and rolled the bit of parchment before sealing it with a protective charm. Hedwig ruffled her feathers indignantly as if she had better places to be on this cool September night.
"There now girl, I'm almost done." She cooed to her gently and petted her soft downy feathers. "You be safe out there now okay?" Hermione smiled lovingly as the large white snow owl stuck out her foot for Hermione to attach the message. She sighed when Hedwig gave her a shameful hoot before flying out the window into the cool night, soaring high into the night's sky. It was a full moon tonight and Hermione gazed upon it pensively before closing the window tightly and shivering from the chill in the air. The Head girl's new textbooks for her 7th year at Hogwarts lay forgotten inside a half-packed trunk beside her bed as her mind wandered, not for the first time that evening, to a raven-haired young wizard with startling green eyes and she sighed heavily. The boy in question was known for many things such as a lightning bolt scar etched across his forehead, which most people associated with heroism and fame. He was the boy who lived and even most of his friends thought of him as being the chosen one who would save them all in the end. Hermione scoffed and shook her head unhappily. To her he was just her best friend whom she missed dreadfully. The last time she saw him he was a skinny boy who had a terrible temper when provoked and a penchant for rule breaking. However, he was also kind, loyal and he was all heart when he protected his friends from harm. Not many people knew the real person underneath the legend, and Hermione counted herself to be one of the few lucky ones. To her he was just Harry and that was enough for her. Or at least it had been before he left. Her brow furrowed in worry once again and her heart ached for the friend that for all intense purposes was lost to her.
He probably won't be back to Hogwarts this year either she thought to herself miserably and hung her head into the palm of her hands as she remembered how things were before he left. The Order of the Phoenix had been shocked and surprised when Dumbledore had told them Harry would not be back to Hogwarts for their 6th year. Of course, there was a little talk about him being so young, but she couldn't believe her ears when even the Weasley's gave in so easily for a 15-year-old boy to just disappear as if he were nothing to them. Hermione remembered being more than a little irritated that there would be no contact whatsoever from Harry and she couldn't understand why he had to be so secluded. When she was told it was for their own safety she had glared repulsively at Dumbledore and for the first time in her young life she doubted the old wizard's knowledge and loyalty to Harry. It sickened her when Dumbledore explained that Harry would be training with old magic that was well beyond what Hogwarts could ever offer. Tears coursed rivers down her cheeks as she insisted that they were stronger together than apart. She had looked to Ron for assurance and his face was as read as a lobster with his fists clenched tightly to his sides, so she knew at last Ron agreed with her. For the entire summer she and Ron had investigated and followed every lead to try and find him before the old Headmaster had visited her at home. It still hurt to recall what he had said so long ago and a stray tear tumbled down her cheek unheeded when she recalled that fateful day.
"Life is difficult Ms. Granger, especially for Harry." He had said sagely. "However, sometimes it leads us to places we didn't want to go until we got there. Harry has accepted this…arrangement and so must you and Mr. Weasley." Hermione had been inconsolable at this point and Dumbledore had not unkindly laid a gentle hand upon her shoulder. "Let him go Hermione." He had said softly. "He will return to you and hopefully he will be better prepared for the next time he meets Voldemort." Something sad in Dumbledore's eyes worried her but she had said nothing. What could she possible say? She and Ron were no closer to finding Harry than when they had first started. She had accepted Dumbledore's words with a heavy heart but from time to time she had to wonder if that had been truly the best course of action. She often looked to the stars hoping against hope that he needed her just as much as she needed him.
It seemed so long ago when 6 frightened teenagers had entered the Department of Mysteries to try and save Sirius. A lot had happened since then and Hermione had changed just as much. Her hair was still brown and curly, but she had matured. Her body now held the soft curves of a young woman and her facial features had become softer and prettier. She had even caught the attention of a couple of boys much to her delight, but nothing much had ever came of it. Her heart was always hoping for Harry's return to think much about romance anyway. Many things had changed for the worse, however. Now with their 7th year looming before them Voldemort had focused all his energy into victimizing many good citizens into joining his regime. The good side was losing and there didn't seem to be a damn thing anyone could do about it.
Voldemort's war had taken its toll on the wizarding world so fully that hundreds of wizarding families had taken refuge in the once small village of Hogsmeade. Now with a large majority of the Hogwarts student body living in Hogsmeade the Hogwarts Express was expected to be filled mostly with muggle born kids and the occasional wizarding child whose family was either too brave or stubborn to leave their homes around muggle England.
Hermione as Head girl was expected to be present on the train to assist the students along with several Aurors from the ministry for protection. It had taken a lot to keep the school open after the fiasco in the Ministry of Magic and there had been meetings, arguments, and conferences with concerned parents about the security of the school. Hogwarts had seemed like a ghost town during her 6th year and the old school's future had been very uncertain. However, this year with so many families living near the castle the number of children returning to Hogwarts seemed to have increased.
Many had died in the last two years during the war and Hermione found it difficult to even check the causality or missing person's list at the new Wizarding Community Services building anymore. Everywhere she went were signs of Death Eaters or war and it made her sick to think of the grip of fear Voldemort seemed to have on the little community. Hermione had moved to a lovely little cottage in Hogsmeade over the summer, leaving her parents to be ensconced within a beautiful little chateau in France. Fleur had been an enormous help to her family with hiding them and she knew she owed her a great deal of gratitude for their safety. The longer this war held on the worse things seemed to be for magic folk and muggles alike.
Hermione's gaze brushed over a small sturdy box that held a wand. Should she take it with her? She thought distractedly. Right before her 16th birthday she had received the wand in a beaten up and partially singed package and had opened it cautiously afraid of what she might find within. Fear had gripped her heart when she laid eyes upon that familiar piece of wood. Why did someone send her Harry's wand? Was he hurt? Was he dead? There were so many whys and so few answers. Dumbledore had only told her that Harry was fine and that if he had sent her his wand then he must not need it now. Hermione nearly pulled her hair out from grief and worry over what had become of her best friend and all the headmaster would do was give her small tidbits of information with that insufferable little twinkle in his eye. She wrote him a letter when Hedwig had brought her his wand because she figured that if Hedwig could deliver things to her then surely, she could send something back. It gave her hope and so she begged Harry for some sort of assurance that he was okay, and even threatened him that she would never write him again if he didn't respond. That was when Hedwig came to stay with Hermione for good. She cried at first but then took it as a silent gesture from Harry that he wanted her to write to him. Perhaps he needed her after all she had thought happily, and it didn't even seem to matter that the correspondence was all one sided. She didn't make it known to anyone (not even Ron) that she was writing him every day because she feared someone would make her stop and she simply couldn't abide by that at all.
Hermione wrote to him faithfully every day and poured her heart into each letter. She wanted him to know that she cared for him and before long a month of writing had turned into a year and it didn't occur to her that she was telling him more than she had ever told anyone. She wrote of her fears and her worries. She wasn't even sure he was getting the letters at first, but Hedwig kept taking them though, so she had to be delivering them somewhere. She wrote about Hogwarts as well as more important things that were happening in their world. She told him about Lupin and Tonks getting married and about Snape's betrayal to Dumbledore. She wrote about school and how she was so worried about her newt classes and if she would be accepted into St. Mungos school for Healers. Sometimes she forgot that Harry was possibly reading her innermost thoughts and passions. It didn't seem to matter that her dreams and desires were being shared with someone she hadn't seen for nearly two years.
Hermione smiled gently to herself and lovingly touched the little box holding the beautifully carved wand that had once been roughly shoved up a troll's nose on her behalf. Using her own magic wand, she whispered nostalgically, "Wingardium Leviosa" and the box gently floated through the air to land neatly beside her newest copy of "Hogwarts: A History" already packed into her trunk. "What do you use to do magic now Mr. Potter?" She whispered quietly to herself. The thought worried her more than she was willing to admit even to herself.
Meanwhile…back at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry
Dumbledore paced back and forth in front of his great fireplace glancing at his pocket watch once….and then twice before he felt a familiar twinge of magical energy crackling through the atmosphere of his office. He smiled calmly before seeing a slim young man with wild black hair appear beside his desk with a loud magical crack. Dumbledore's smile quickly turned into one of joyous amusement as he looked upon the boy he once knew. However; it was no boy who stood before him now smirking with a rebellious attitude that emanated off him like smoke from a fire. He was wearing a pair of faded blue jeans and a black button up shirt which was carelessly unbuttoned to reveal a white t-shirt underneath. The only clue to the boy's identity was a bolt of lightning seemingly carved onto his brow. The young bloke seemed at ill at ease considering the circumstances of his arrival and raised troubled green eyes to his mentor's twinkling ones. Albus gripped the boy's shoulders with his weakened hands and shook him slightly as if he couldn't believe his eyes. Without even being told Albus could feel the fire inside of him and wanted to say something but what could he say? He was no longer on a superior playing field with this boy and there was no need to pretend that he was the teacher of this magical being any longer.
"Thank you for coming Harry. I think this year we may need you more than ever." The old wizard said appreciatively.
"Well…Its not like I've ever been given a choice now has it?" Harry said crossly, and Dumbledore dropped his gaze understanding how difficult it must have been on the young man.
Harry Potter had returned to once again be the savior of the wizarding world. Dumbledore knew the reason for his return, and he understood that the transformation he underwent was destined for one purpose, but it didn't make things any easier. Harry raised fiery green eyes to look around Dumbledore's office and dropped the worn pack he had been carrying onto the floor with a loud plunk. Albus eyed Harry carefully with worried eyes, silently wondering about the quiet young man before him.
Harry was surprised at how obvious Dumbledore was to him now. How did he ever think the man was unreadable? He could feel the worry and uncertainty churning inside him. "You needn't worry," Harry said indifferently as he picked up a small trinket from Dumbledore's desk. "The precious students of Hogwarts are safe from the likes of me."
"Harry, we must be cert—"
"I am in control of it." He stated bluntly turning to look Albus in the eyes, and quietly chuckled which saddened Dumbledore and he heaved a heavy sigh before nodding reluctantly. In that one moment he understood that Harry had changed from the boy he once was into something that no one could have ever expected. Dumbledore rejoiced that this boy might be able to save them, but a small part of him remembered the young Gryffindor as he used to be, and he grieved for the loss.
"Welcome home Harry." Albus gave him a fatherly smile, but Harry merely turned his head away.
"This is the only place I ever wanted to be anyway." He said sadly. Harry's heart hammered inside his chest and he swallowed the fear that had been haunting him since his departure over a year ago. Would Hermione and Ron still want to be his friend? After everything he had been through, he wouldn't blame them if they ran away from him screaming.