The Sortinghat's Mission

Chapter 3

It was certainly a strange feeling walking alongside a younger Dumbledore towards the great hall. He did behave much like the old Dumbledore did, but he looked a great deal younger. The brown hair, she concluded, was what threw her off. She was so used to his long silver hair and beard. This Dumbledore had shoulder length brown hair with a few silver streaks in it, and a beard that only covered his lower face. It was not long enough to put in a tassle. If Dumbledore sensed her eyes on him, he did not say anything about it. He simply led the way towards the great hall. Not that Hermione didn't know the way, but she figured it would indeed be suspicious if she somehow just knew how to get everywhere in a castle she had never, supposedly, been in. So she followed Dumbledore's steps. He led her through the castle, and pointed a little everywhere and explained where certain classrooms were. Hermione nodded and smiled everytime Dumbledore showed her places she already knew of.

At last they stood before the great hall's doors. Dumbledore turned towards her and simply said "Fair warning, the whole school will look at you when we enter".

And then he opened the doors before Hermione had even a second to prepare herself for what was coming.

The sight that hit her was so ravishingly familiar that Hermione felt the need to cry once again. There were no dead bodies scattered around, only thousands of candles floating in midair over the four long tables. The professors was as always sitting at the top of the hall at another long table. The loud noise that filled the great hall abruptly came to an end as every face in the hall turned to look at them. Instead of the noise, murmurs and whispers were heard. She indeed had all the attention to her right now. Hermione blushed. She had never been the center of attention, it had always been Harry. She had just been in the background, providing knowledge from all of her books. Professor Dumbledore started walking towards the top of the hall and Hermione quickly followed, her head bowing down. She swallowed hard. How on earth was she going to pull all this off?

Headmaster Dippet rose to address the students as Hermione and Dumbledore ascended the few stairs up on the podium.

"Dear students, we have a last minute transfer from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic in France. Please welcome miss Bernard." Headmaster Dippet announced with a big smile.

Applause filled the great hall and Hermione felt everyone's eyes on her. Once again whispers raised alongside the students.

"We will now sort you into your new house, miss Bernard, so if you please..." Dippet gestured towards the small stool, the very same one as she had once mounted as an eleven year old small girl.

Hermione swallowed and seated herself on the stool. How very odd it was to do this as a 16 year old. She tried to calm her nerves, she figured she would feel much worse was the calming draught not in her system. She glanced over the hall, from left, her old house was seated in their bright red and gold colors. Beside them were Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw, and lastly Slytherin. As her eyes roamed the Slytherin table she met his gray piercing eyes. He looked at her so intently once again so she startled and averted her eyes quickly.

"Well then miss Bernard, off we go" she hard Dippet's voice as the sorting hat once again was placed on her head and quickly covered her eyes.

Ah, Miss Granger. How good to once again feel your extraordinary mind. I was wondering whether or not my little mission succeeded. I'm glad to see you're alive and well. Welcome to 1943, I hope you will enjoy your stay, considering you won't be able to go back. Maybe you'll even be able to change a thing or two...

Hermione's mind was racing. So the year was 1943. She really had traveled back in time. Tom Riddle really was 16 years old. But could the hat even make her go back in time? She had never come across anything like it in her many books. Was it possible? Was it really? Given she was indeed in the year 1943, then it was 2 more years before Grindelwald was defeated by Dumbledore. And how did the hat even remember her if she really had gone back in time, could it see the future? And how had she even found the sorting hat during the battle? She cursed silently. She just couldn't remember. It was giving her a bad headache.