Chapter One: Travel
Roads go ever ever on,
Over rock and under tree,
By caves where never sun has shone,
By streams that never find the sea;
Over snow by winter sown,
And through the merry flowers of June,
Over grass and over stone,
And under mountains in the moon.
Roads go ever ever on
Under cloud and under star,
Yet feet that wandering have gone
Turn at last to home afar.
Eyes that fire and sword have seen
And horror in the halls of stone
Look at last on meadows green
And trees and hills they long have known.
J.R.R Tolkien
`Ready?'
Hermione somehow managed to bite her lip in nervous concentration even as she asked Harry the question. He nodded once in reply, determined, and not wanting her to delay any further. They'd spent weeks and weeks researching every element of the plan and preparing for so many eventualities that he was desperate to just get on with it. They stood in a small forest clearing, somewhere in the Brecon Beacons; the early summer sunshine was beginning to beat through the leaves as mid-morning approached. As if in one movement they both reached for the others hand and as they wound their fingers together their eyes met for a brief moment and Harry saw his exact emotions mirrored in the eyes of his best friend: fear, excitement, and hope.
At Hermione's nod the two friends carefully spoke the words of the spell they had created, ancient runes drawn carefully onto their faces and hands. Testing the spell had been impossible as they couldn't know accurate their timings would be, they had to rely on trust in their work and in the work they had referenced.
Harry looked up as he spoke the last words of the incantation and saw the treetops above him begin to sway slightly. It seemed as if he was watching in slow motion as they leaned towards one another and suddenly it was as if the whole world was seen through a fisheye camera lens. His head was suddenly light and there was a weight behind his eyes that seemed to be forcing them to close until he could see only black.
A passing deer paused at the small clearing in the forest as the two teenagers stood so seriously together before they fell in one smooth movement to the ground. The doe gently dipped her head to see them lie on the floor but there was nothing remaining other than the imprints of their shoes on the ground.
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Hermione forced her eyes to open and felt a silent gasp escape her throat as she took in the snow covered forest around her. As her senses returned and her mind focused on the task at hand she glanced to her right to see Harry sitting silently beside her, her hand still held tightly in his, his wide eyes taking in the view surrounding them.
`We did it,' we whispered softly, before turning and grabbing her other hand to pull her to her feet, yelling `we did it!' at the top of his lungs before engulfing her in a hug. Hermione laughed happily to see his joy, and felt tears pricking at the corners of her eyes as she realised they really had done it, they'd gone back in time without the help of a time-turner, and they'd survived.
This was no time to focus on the problems they now had to face, having no idea what time they had travelled to, what the situation was in that time period, the risk of being discovered or of freezing to death in a welsh forest in winter. This was a time to celebrate that for once things seemed to be going their way and after months of research and preparation, they'd got something right.
She hugged him back and they jumped around the forest clearing like mad fans at a cup final, laughing and smiling.
After a few moments of celebration they sat once more, this time huddled closely together around a small jar of blue flames as they transfigured their clothing to suit the weather and planned their next move.
`So, we'll stick with the original plan and complete the changes in our appearances before going to the village and finding somewhere to move into.' Harry nodded his agreement as he began to rifle through the magically enlarged bag beside him to ensure that the paperwork and backup items for their new IDs had safely made the journey with them.
`We can grab a paper on the way into town and confirm the date, then we can finalise the plan and the dates we need to act.'
`Good thinking Harry,' Hermione smiled and looked across at Harry rummaging through the bags concentrating entirely on the task at hand.
There had been a time she had feared for the outcome of their almost ridiculously daring plan, largely due to Harry's dislike for making a long-term plan and his compulsion to jump into situations with both feet. However, the understanding of Voldemort's growing power combined with the shock of Ron's departure had brought about a change in Harry. It was just the two of them now and they had to rely entirely on each other for company and protection. They were a team and nothing could divide them, Harry had grasped upon her crazy idea right from the outset and it had been a blessing in disguise for focussing his attention so entirely on a new goal free of dead ends and cold, wet nights of camping which made him push the thought of the Deathly Hallows to a corner of his mind as they prepared to risk their lives once again as they spiralled backwards through time and space.
They walked in companionable silence through the beautifully still landscape; the only sounds those of nature, and their shoes crunching lightly on the top layer of snow which blanketed the ground. At first glance even Ron would not have recognised the pair due to their recent changes in appearance. Hermione's soft curls now fell only to her chin, her usually freckly face was as smooth and white as porcelain, and her chestnut eyes a beautiful petrol blue. A delicate pair of glasses with plain glass lenses, combined with her simple jeans, white t shirt and long jacket gave the appearance of being several years older than her seventeen years. They had deliberately avoided using many magic too alter their appearance too much and were relying largely on muggle methods as being more secure against charms designed to reveal truth. Harry's hair had grown longer in the months spent searching and researching and this combined with days worth of growth across his chin transformed his face from one of a teenage boy to one of a man. His scar was concealed magically, but protected by his hair falling loosely across his forehead, like Hermione he also wore coloured contact lenses to hide his distinct green eyes, now a warm brown flecked with topaz.
It took under an hour to reach the main footpath through the forest and begin the 45 minute hike back to the local town. They nodded and smiled casually in greeting to the friendly locals as they passed the pub and strolled hand in hand into a newsagent. Harry felt his fingers might break as Hermione squeezed his hand as they took in the date at the head of the newspaper before them. He lightly squeezed her hand back, and seeing her seemingly frozen before him, gently wrapped an arm around her waist, newspaper in the other hand and guided her to the counter where he paid for the paper.
Harry chattered away about nothing of importance as they crossed the street and entered a coffee bar, Hermione had still not said a word since seeing the date. Once guiding her to a small table in a secluded corner of the coffee shop he picked up two large mugs of tea and some cake he hadn't been able to resist at the counter and made his way back to where she was now relaxed in a comfortable looking brown leather sofa. Placing the items on the table he sank onto the sofa beside her and took a large sip of warm tea before twisting in his seat slightly to look at his best friend face on.
She sipped her tea and dipped her finger in the icing of the chocolate cake and tasted it before turning to face him in a mirror image her eyes sparkling as if diamonds were reflected in their deep blue pools.
`We did it,' she breathed, in an echo of their earlier celebration.
`We really did,' he confirmed happily.
`I'm sorry we're earlier than planned Harry, I just couldn't make it any more precise without contravening all the arithmancy rules we were bending to get the charms to work in tandem…' Harry cut her off by gently placing a hand on her arm.
`It's just a few months Hermione, and it means a few extra months to work and it takes some of the pressure off to find them immediately.'
Hermione nodded her agreement and smiled at him again, it seemed as if they were the only two people in the world as they shared what no one else could ever understand. The server behind the counter placed her chin in her hand as she gazed wistfully at them as she bemoaned to her colleague that her Darren never looked at her like that.
Harry and Hermione remained oblivious to the sights and sounds around them as they sat and savoured their tea and cake in the warmth, their gazes frequently returning to those few numbers at the top of a flimsy pile of paper, those numbers which would change the world.
Two years, ten months and four days.
They were two years, ten months and four days in the past.
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