CHAPTER ONE

Summary: What if Hermione was given a second chance to save the world? What if Lily Potter wasn't the one to protect Harry from the Killing Curse? It's the time of the First War and Voldemort is on the rise, but that soon changes with the arrival a young witch that is hell-bent on destroying him, no matter what it may cost her in the process. Rated M for a reason!

Disclaimer: I do not own canon events or characters, they belong to J.K Rowling. I'm not making money from this writing or posting this either.

This fic does contain Dumbledore bashing.

This may have potential triggers for child abuse so read with precaution.

Fan cast - /James Potter – Aaron Taylor Johnson. / /Sirius Black – Ben Barnes. / /Remus Lupin – Andrew Garfield. / /Prewett Twins – Simon Woods./ /Lily Evans – Karen Gillian./

Page count: 10

Hogwarts – Saturday 2nd May 1998

Remus and Tonks were dead. Fred was dead. Percy was dead. Luna Lovegood was dead. Seamus was dead. Snape was dead.

Voldemort was dead.

Harry was dead.

The war had been won but at the cost of many. All Hermione could remember was the clash of two spells and all fighting stopped to watch the outcome of the war. That was it. It all came down to that one spell. But who would win?

The answer...Hermione wasn't sure.

It was a victory for the light as Voldemort crumpled to the floor and turned into ash that was swept away in the wind. But for Hermione, it was a loss. Her best friend, her little brother, the only family she had left...Fell to the floor.

Movement surrounded her as Death Eaters fled, as they were being captured and as the wounded were being tended to. Hermione could barely remember moving, but in her lap, she cradled the head of a lifeless Harry Potter. He had already died once and this time there were no signs of him coming back.

She screamed her anguish and people approached her to take Harry away from her. She put up wards around them, barricading herself and Harry inside. She could faintly hear people yelling at her, trying to get her attention but not wanting to hear any of it, just wanting to be left alone, she cast a Silencing Charm around herself, blocking all sound out.

She cried until there were no more tears left to fall and when she finally looked up the sun had long since risen. There was no one outside the wards, she figured they'd given up and would wait until she had no choice but to lower the wards. The courtyard was free from the littered bodies of the dead and injured. All that was left was the rubble of the broken castle, of the school that had been home to her and Harry, that had been their salvation. It had been their protection from their abusive families.

Hermione looked down at her right wrist to see that the once beautiful golden band that wrapped around her wrist in an intricate pattern of roses and vines, now looked to have been burned with scorch marks marring the design and disfiguring it. She looked to Harry's right wrist to see the same.

That was the only thing she had left tying her to Harry and it was gone.

Only those who were extremely intelligent and educated on the bonds of magic would know what those matching marks meant. They meant a sibling bond.

Flashback to 1995...

Hermione had been reading in the library one day in her fifth year when she came across a textbook that spoke of the different bonds that could be found in the Wizarding World. They ranged from friendship to love to business. She'd come to realise the book was from the restricted section and had been left on the table and with her curiosity having got the better of her and wanting to know more about the magic that was performed in order to make the bonds possible, she read the entire book, front to back in just four days.

That's when she came across the sibling bond and she instantly thought of Harry. They'd both been having a bad start to the school year and she thought that the information she had learned would cheer him up.

She immediately took the book to Harry and had him read the passage as they sat in the stairway of the Astronomy Tower together. When Harry looked up at her he had a large grin on his face and hope shone in his eyes. It was the complete opposite of the anger and frustration that he usually wore on his face as of late. Especially after the return of Voldemort, the dementor attack, almost getting expelled from school, being banned from Quidditch and the formation of the D.A.

"Let's do it," he said with a wide smile.

"Seriously?" She questioned in surprise.

He nodded. "Let's make it official. Brother and sister like we've always been. We're all each other has," he replied and that was all it took to convince her.

So, three days later on a Saturday night during the full moon, Hermione and Harry were in the Room of Requirement and they sat on a rug on either side of a small wooden coffee table. On the table sat a potion Hermione had made two days prior, a small bowl, a candle in each of the four corners of the table and some parchment and a self-inking quill.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Hermione asked.

"More than anything," Harry replied.

"Okay, let's do this." She took a deep breath and then she spoke. "He is my brother but not of blood, he does things I wish I could. We've been like siblings since the day we met, and I will forever be in his debt. So take his life and meld it with mine, so together we may share a bloodline. Now siblings we are and siblings we will be, together we will stand for all eternity." She lit two candles with her wand, two diagonally across from each other.

Harry then took a deep breath and spoke, "She is my sister but not of blood, she does things I wish I could. We've been like siblings since the day we met, and I will forever be in her debt. So take her life and meld it with mine, so together we may share a bloodline. Now siblings we are and siblings we will be, together we will stand for all eternity." Harry lit the two remaining candles with his wand.

When he moved his wand back to the table the flames burned a beautiful purple. Hermione then took a silver ring from her pocket and put it into the bowl; for the ritual to work, you had to sacrifice something of great value to you. Hermione had chosen a ring that belonged to her grandmother and she had carried it with her every day since she was a child, long before she'd discovered she was a witch.

Harry removed a head boy badge from his own pocket and placed it into the bowl beside her ring. It had belonged to his father and Remus had given it to him in his third year, it was one of the few things he had left of his father and certainly something of tremendous value. The fact he was willing to sacrifice it for her had tears welling in her eyes.

Calming herself, Hermione reached for the potion vial, took a small sip and then poured some into the bowl and she handed the potion to Harry, who did the same and then put the potion off to the side.

Hermione picked up the parchment and ripped it in half and with the quill, she wrote her name on one half of the parchment and rolled it up before handing Harry the other half and the quill and he did the same. When he had rolled up his parchment, they both lifted it to one of the candles and set it alight, dropping the flaming parchment paper in the bowl.

Reaching out across the table, they took hold of each other's hands, clasping them tightly and together they spoke,

"Fratres sumus, fratres sumus, et sta super. Simul et proteget Dominus habitatores terrae."

The flames grew larger, hotter, brighter, and the bowl made a hissing sound. There was a loud bang and the candles were blown out, plunging the room into darkness and the smell of smoke was hard to ignore. Hermione asked the room for windows and light, and although it was night out, the full moon high in the sky, the windows showed the scene of a hot summer's day, allowing natural lighting to flow into the room.

She let go of Harry's hand and she caught the sight of a glimmer, looking down to her right wrist, her eyes widened at the sight of the golden band that seemed to be made entirely of roses, ivy and vines twining together beautifully, and in the centre of the band she had a symbol. It was a sun and a crescent moon. Hermione looked up to see Harry beaming widely at his own band and his eyes moved to her.

"It worked," he said in joyous disbelief. She'd never seen him happier.

"It did," she smiled in agreement and then she looked into the bowl to see two necklaces that most certainly hadn't been there before.

One necklace was gold with a sun pendant, the other was silver with a crescent moon and the two pendants were combined and glowing. Hermione pulled them apart, the necklaces separated into two and the pendants stopped glowing.

She handed the sun pendant necklace to Harry and she put on the crescent moon pendant necklace and he did the same, tucking his under his t-shirt.

"We have a war to win," he said.

"And we will win. We have the power of the sun and moon on our side," Hermione spoke softly, but confidently.

Present time...

Hermione gripped her necklace tightly she felt a new wave of agony and sadness hit her, the chain biting into her skin as she tugged at it.

"Siblings we are and siblings we will be. Together we will stand for all eternity," Hermione whispered, her eyes fluttering closed and her head bowing.

There was a sudden and blinding flash of light that surrounded her and Hermione had to shield her eyes against it. Slowly, she opened them when she felt the light dull and she lifted her head. There was a woman dressed in a white flowing dress and floating in the air surrounded by an ethereal looking light. She looked familiar; Hermione could remember seeing her before. She had kind features, shoulder-length red hair...and her eyes...her eyes...were Harry's.

"Lily Potter," Hermione said in disbelief, recognising the woman as being Harry's mother from the photos she'd seen of her.

Lily smiled kindly at Hermione. "And you, My Dear, are Hermione Granger. I've been watching you for quite some time. I owe a great deal of gratitude to you; you've taken care of my son very well."

"He's dead, obviously not well enough," she said quietly, her eyes lowering to the ground shamefully, guilty.

"That is why I'm here." Hermione's head snapped up to look at her. "It was never supposed to end this way. So many dead, so many innocent lives destroyed. This was not the future that I had been shown, and for that, I'm truly sorry. There is a way, Dear, a way for you to have a second chance."

"How?" She asked quickly.

"You must understand, should you take the opportunity that I am offering you, you will never be able to return, this life as you know it will have never existed. Only you will have the memories of this war."

"I don't care; if there's a way to change everything I want to do it, I have to do it."

"Always so selfless," she smiled. "You will be sent back to the time of the First War. It will be your responsibility to lead everyone out of the darkness that is to come and into the peace, into the future I've seen."

"What of future events? Time's not supposed to be messed with."

"In this case, you will not be messing with time; you'll be changing it completely and for the better. You may share with those you deem necessary of your true self. You may share the facts of the future and you may keep with you the items which you have in that clever, little bag of yours. You may keep momentums from the future; when you're sent back they will be protected along with you. It doesn't matter what you divulge as this future will no longer exist, it will be changed as soon as you leave this timeline. I assure you, no harm can be done to the timeline," Lily said kindly.

"Can I stop people from dying?"

"That I cannot answer for certain; some are destined to die and cannot be saved, whereas others died without purpose. You can try and save lives, but if they were meant to die there is nothing you can do for them. Even changing time won't stop death from claiming its victims."

"And spells and potions? I can think of several that won't have yet been invented but may be useful given the circumstances."

"You will still be able to cast them and make the potions, so long as you are careful and don't take credit. And to make the story more believable take this."

A blinding flash of light burst before her eyes and then something floated down and landed delicately in Hermione's cupped hands.

"Dumbledore's time-turner?" She questioned in surprise. "I lost it during the hunt."

"I retrieved it for you; if there is one thing that will prove you are from the future it will be Albus' time turner."

"I promise I won't let him use Harry this time. The war will be long over before Harry is old enough to be manipulated."

"I know you won't, Hermione. That's why you're the perfect witch for the job."

"Thank you for giving me the opportunity to set things right. If anyone should ask, do I tell them that you're the one to have sent me back?"

"No, that is to be kept secret, just between me and you. Now, are you ready?"

"Just a minute," Hermione muttered, putting her wand in her back pocket, the time turner in her beaded bag and then she leaned down and kissed Harry's cooling forehead. "We'll meet again, Harry, I won't let anyone hurt you this time," she whispered in promise.

She slipped her hands to his neck and removed his necklace before she slipped it over her own head and tucked it under her t-shirt to sit with her above her own. Lily smiled at the gesture.

"Now I'm ready."

"Be on your guard, I'm sorry to say I'm not entirely sure where I'm sending you. All I am certain of is the year, 1981," she said, and then everything went black.

~000~000~000~

Godric's Hollow – Saturday 31st October 1981

Hermione woke up on the cold, damp floor; she sat up quickly and hugged herself as the chilly night air hit her, making goosebumps appear over her skin. She wasn't wearing a coat and she had no way of protecting herself from the cold, as she wearing the same clothes she had been during the Final Battle. White trainers that were covered in mud and bloodstains, blue jeans that had rips in and were covered in mud and bloodstains, a white t-shirt top that had rips and was covered in blood and a white thin hooded jacket that had plenty of rips in and was also covered in blood. She was a walking blood pool.

She was sure she looked a right mess, too. She knew she had cuts on her face, stomach, arms and legs and that's not even counting the bruises or scars from previous battles over the years. Her hair was mattered and half held back from her face with a bobble that had half her hair hanging out and her hands were covered in blood and mud, too. The most disturbing part was she didn't know whose blood it was. She was positive some of it was hers and she knew some of it to be Harry's, but the rest she couldn't be sure. During the respite periods Voldemort gave them, when she wasn't off looking for Harry or destroying a Horcrux, she was helping cover the bodies of the dead and healing the injured.

She pulled herself up onto her feet and wobbled as she slowly gained her equilibrium. Her eyes searched her environment, seeing that she looked to be in a small backyard of a cottage-like house. She could see faint lights flickering and her curiosity getting the better of her, she climbed up onto the fence for a better look. The street on the other side was decorated with lights, banners, streamers and pumpkins that held lit candles. She jumped back down onto the ground when something hit her.

1981. Pumpkins and candles. October. Halloween. Cottage.

"She didn't," Hermione whispered disbelievingly.

She knew where she was! She spun on her heel, turning to face the house once more when shouts, bangs and glass shattering sounded, disturbing the otherwise silence of the night.

"She did," she muttered to herself.

Rushing forward as the noises continued, Hermione pulled her wand from her back pocket. Upon reaching the door, it was locked and she cast every charm she knew but it was useless.

"Bombarda Maxima," she muttered, her wand aimed at the door and it was blasted open, right off its hinges and landing on the ground. "Note to self, don't piss about with Unlocking Charms," she murmured as she ran through the doorway, being mindful not to trip over the debris

Darting through the kitchen, she noted the mess of items on the ground and a rather large hole in the wall, but she ignored and soon entering the living room, a very familiar head of black messy hair being the first thing she saw. Her breath caught, she knew by the timeline that it wasn't Harry so the only other person it could possibly be was his father, James Potter.

She remembered Lily's words. 'You can try and save lives, but if they were meant to die there is nothing you can do to save them.'

But she could try.

She felt eyes watching her and looking off to the side, she saw Peter Pettigrew. An immediate and intense hatred bubbled up within her, reminding her exactly why she'd decided to accept Lily's offer. To right the wrongs that had been done. To ensure a better future. To save those she loved. Pettigrew most certainly wasn't on her list of people worth saving.

He raised his wand to her. "Who are you?" He asked, rather bravely considering how much of a snivelling coward he was and time hadn't changed that.

"Your capturer," she smiled sweetly.

He laughed nervously and then shot a spell off. Not only did the colouring seem off, leading her to believe he'd miscast it, but it bounced off the corner of the wall next to Hermione and hit a small table, shattering it to pieces.

Hermione felt her mouth twitch. 'As useless as ever,' she thought.

Hermione raised her own wand and aimed it right at his heart and briefly being distracted by glass shattering and Pettigrew took his chance, transformed into a rat and scurried off. She wasn't worried; she knew exactly where he'd be and she'd take care of him later.

The next words she heard had her spinning on her heel and running towards James.

"Avada Kedavra!"

"Impedimenta," she said, her wand pointed at James' legs. The spell worked perfectly, tripping him over and he fell forward towards the ground, the Killing Curse whizzed straight over his head and past Hermione who was lucky enough to have ducked the Unforgivable, too.

At the sound of her voice and her clear interruption to his plans that evening, Voldemort's eyes landed on her, gazing at her intensely.

He didn't look like he had in her time, but he didn't look completely human either. His eyes were a blood-red colour, his skin pale and waxy and he looked at her with an evil smile pulling at his mouth, his eyes carefully trailing her form and seeing her messy hair and bloody, torn clothing.

James pulled himself to his feet, blocking Voldemort from her gaze with his taller frame, and also appearing as though he wasn't aware of her presence or the fact she'd just saved his life.

"Sectumsempra," Voldemort spoke smoothly, his wand held gently in his hand.

Hermione knew that spell, she knew the damage it could and would do, but she also knew there was no possible way James Potter would know and he wouldn't be able to defend against it properly.

"Protego," James yelled at the same time as Hermione called, "Protego Totalum," her wand gripped tightly in her hand and aimed directly in James' direction, it helping to cover and protect his frame a lot more suitably than his own shield.

At the sound of her voice, James was made aware of her presence and he turned to look over his shoulder, his eyes widening slightly at the sight of her, a young, bloodied woman, casting one of the most powerful shields known to wizardkind.

The spell hit the shield and although it prevented the Sectumsempra from harming him, the nasty curse hit the shield with such a force, James was thrown back into a wall, landing on the ground in an unconscious heap. Voldemort kept his eyes on Hermione as he lazily flicked his wand and part of the wall began to fall towards James. Thinking quickly, Hermione pointed her wand and cast a spell that would slow down the descent of the wall so it wouldn't cause too much damage. She just hoped she had succeeded in saving James Potter. Then Harry would never have to live with the horrid Dursleys or face such treatment and neglect under their care.

"I have never seen you before," Voldemort spoke in a confusingly smooth and charming tone that she hadn't expected him capable of. "Who are you?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Hermione said, gripping her wand tightly and being especially mindful not to take her eyes away from him, needing to be aware of his every movement.

"I am Lord Voldemort," he said, his anger simmering in his eyes.

"Don't you mean Riddle Junior?" She taunted.

His eyes hardened. "How do you know me?"

"I know a lot about you, including your dirty little secret. How would your precious Purebloods feel if they were to discover your true parentage, Half-blood?"

The look that overtook his eyes Hermione could only describe as fury, a look that promised agony and death and so much more, so much worse.

"I demand you tell me who you are?" He hissed.

"You can demand all you want; I'm not going to be sharing anything with you," she replied, slowly inching her way towards the staircase where she could hear a baby crying from the floor above. Unfortunately for her, she hadn't been as subtle as she'd thought and Voldemort had noticed, understanding she'd been distracting him with her words in an attempt to get to the staircase and up to Harry.

"Trying to protect the child, are we? Well, it seems I have some business to attend to, I'll deal with you later," he smiled cruelly, a terribly shiver crawling down Hermione's spine.

He threw a non-verbal spell her way and she blocked it, but the force at which it hit her shield caused her to stumble backwards, and he took the opportunity to hit her with a second non-verbal and unidentifiable spell, it hitting her directly in the chest and she collapsed to the floor an ungraceful heap.

"I will know who you are," he said as he stepped over her body, the darkness taking over her.

~000~000~000~

Hermione woke in an uncomfortable position, her body aching terribly and too loud shouts filling the otherwise silence of the room.

"Where's James? Who the fuck is that?"

She'd know that voice anywhere.

Her eyes flew open and she pushed her body up from the ground, immediately regretting it as not only did she go light-headed, but a sudden wave of nausea hit her, too, bile rising in the back of her throat, a pained sound leaving her lips unbidden. She screwed her eyes shut tightly, lifting her heavy and aching arm, her hand touched the back of her head, gently probing for injuries and when she brought her hand in front of her face and opened her eyes, blood coated her fingers. A groan of pained annoyance sounded from her, drawing the attention of those in the room.

"Who are you?"

She raised her head, her eyes locking on a young Sirius Black and he currently had his wand aimed directly at her, a look of fury and worry etched on his face.

She wobbled to her feet and gripped the wall for balance before taking a few deep breaths and pushed herself away from the wall until she stood without a brace or crutch to keep her upright. He looked far younger than he did in her time; his jet black hair fell to just above his shoulders in soft waves, his face was free of wrinkles and stubble and his grey eyes filled with more emotion than she could decipher. He carried himself differently, though it was a subtle change, barely even noticeable and he didn't look haunted from the years spent in Azkaban after being wrongly imprisoned. He looked exhausted and furious, but healthy. Hermione realised that the man she once saw as an Uncle was very handsome and the thought surprised her.

She could see his eyes surveying her, taking in the sight of her injuries, her torn and dirty clothing and the bloodstains on her clothing and skin. It was obvious this wasn't the first battle she'd been in that night as a lot of the blood looked fresh but dried. She slowly crouched down to pick up her wand and he gripped his wand tighter.

"I asked you a fucking question," he said coldly.

Hermione couldn't stop it, she rolled her eyes. "Always with the swearing," she muttered. "Some things never change." She rose to her full height with her wand in her grasp and she turned it around so the tip was pointing at her, not him. A sign she meant no harm. "I'm not here to hurt anyone, I'm here to help."

"I've heard that before," he sneered. It looked so foreign on his face, especially with it aimed at her.

"I'm not here to hurt you or the Potters. I'm here as a protector. Here," she held out her wand and he watched her carefully. "Take it; you know a witch's wand is like her left arm. To show I mean you no harm, take my wand."

He slowly reached out in case it was a trap and took it from her hand, slipping it into his back pocket and out of her reach.

"Who are you?" He repeated the question for the umpteenth time that night, though this time without the sneer but a guarded look held on his face.

"My name is Hermione Granger."

"I don't know that name," he replied.

"I'm a Muggleborn," she explained.

The sound of the cries of a child pulled her attention, her eyes darting away from Sirius and over to the friendly half-giant who gently cradled the upset child, her own eyes swimming with tears at seeing her best friend, her little brother, alive.

"I can't believe he's alive. I can't believe you're alive," she whispered to herself, Sirius obviously hearing and he narrowed his eyes at her words. Before he could speak Hermione beat him to it. "Where's James? Is he at the hospital?"

"We can't find him," Sirius spoke. Hermione's eyes widened in response.

Darting forward and past Sirius, she grabbed her wand from his back pocket, his eyes widening at how fast she'd moved. Assuming that she'd intended to harm Harry, he levelled his wand at her back, a spell on the tip of his tongue to take her out, but she didn't go anywhere near Harry, rather, she stopped before a pile of rubble.

"Evanesco," she said clearly and the rubble disappeared, leaving behind James Potter's crumpled form. Sirius rushed forward, knocking into her as he ran to his best friend's aid.

Hermione looked to baby Harry, overjoyed that he was alive and uninjured, that he was safe and cared for. Happy she'd succeeded in saving at least one life that evening...Then everything went black and she fainted.