[Open to Lupin] Knockturn Alley or Diagon Alley

[hermyownee]

[Hermione takes a deep breath and carefully slides her wand into her purse. She glances back at her parent's house one last time then closes her eyes and apparates.

Or at least, that's what she expected to do. Just as she starts swirling, she feels a weird tug, like she's being jerked somewhere else. It reminds her of traveling by portkey. Hermione gasps, her eyes widen as the world around her comes into view. It's probably just been seconds but it felt much longer to her.

She's disoriented, her face pale as she looks around the dark shops, raindrops starting to hit her hair and face. And it only takes her a moment to recognize where she is.]

Knockturn Alley?

[She swallows hard and quickly reaches for her wand inside her purse before starting toward Diagon Alley as fast as she can walk. She'll need to find a safer way to get there since apparating doesn't seem like an option at the moment.

Maybe there's a fireplace she can use at the joke shop.]



(OOC: To avoid that confusion of a bunch of people finding her, I'm opening to one person only but anyone is welcome to reply! I have no preference on who finds her!)

Comments

[wolfymcwolf]

[Remus has only just escaped an encounter with Lucius Malfoy when someone nearly knocks into him in her rush to leave Knockturn. She looks near panicked, never a good sign, and is clearly dressed in muggle clothes.

Not someone who should be drawing attention to herself by nearly running through Knockturn Alley. One of the displaced people, maybe?] You'll catch less attention if you walk at a normal pace.

[He really should be going, he does actually have errands to run before nightfall, but he doesn't feel right leaving just yet.]

[hermyownee]

[Hermione still when someone appears suddenly in front of her.]

I'm so sorry. I-- [She apologizes instantly as she looks up at the man's face. And then her eyes narrow slightly and she cocks her head. He doesn't look quite like himself but she's fairly sure...]

Professor?

[wolfymcwolf]

[Surprisingly, it's not the first time he's been called that, though it was only over a miavi post before. It's even stranger to hear it in person.

She's certainly displaced, then. He shakes his head.] I've had no Professorship, I'm afraid. I take it you've only just arrived here? Perhaps you should take a look at the date.

[He'd grabbed a copy of the Prophet that morning, luckily, so he fishes it out from his pocket, handing it to her. It's a little crinkled, sure, but definitely seems to have been printed that day. September 2, 1980.]

You're not the first person who's called me by that title.

[hermyownee]

[It takes Hermione a moment to process what he's saying. She knows he has to be Professor Lupin but he definitely looks much younger than he did when she last saw him.

She clears her throat and looks down at the newspaper, her eyes widening.]

Nineteen eighty? [She'd be almost one if this was correct. But considering how young he looks...

With a deep breath, she focuses on him again.]

You are Remus Lupin, aren't you?

[wolfymcwolf]

[He nods.] I am. I'm afraid I don't recognize you, though. There's a known phenomena of people appearing from the past or future, and those from the future tend to claim the events of their past to be different from ours.

[He's still trying to parse through his own thoughts on that, himself. Certainly no one he's spoken to seemed malicious or not genuine with what they were saying, and Remus likes to think he has a good sense for when people are lying. The issue is whether that means they're right about what's happening here.] Do you have any family you can contact? Anyone you could stay with? The Ministry's providing housing to the displaced if needed, I've read.

[hermyownee]

Oh. [Different timelines? Could someone messing up with a time turner cause something like this?

She's lost in thought for a moment, then shakes her head slightly]

I'm Hermione Granger. My parents are muggles, I don't know if they'd believe me if I said I'm their one year old daughter from the future... [Even if the idea of checking on her parents sounds nice.]

Is Ron Weasley here? Or Harry Potter?

[wolfymcwolf]

Probably not a good idea, no. I'm almost certain that would be a violation of the Statute. [A muggleborn... definitely should not be walking down Knockturn Alley, then.

Remus' eyebrows loft.] To my knowledge, Ron Weasley is an infant. I don't know of a Harry Potter.

[Now isn't that strange? Harry should be a newborn by now, and Remus should certainly know of him, being best friends with his parents.] The Ministry's requiring the Displaced to register, but you'll have access to housing once you do. [He pauses, almost regretting to bring up the topic at all. Better she know, though, especially when the penalty for not registering is so steep. His words come out a bit more blunt than intended.] I would recommend not mentioning that you're muggleborn while you do that. They may put a stricter curfew on you.

[hermyownee]

[Well, if she's in some version of her past then she certainly shouldn't contact her parents, anyway.]

You don't know James Potter? [That question is almost immediately forgotten, however as her eyes widen a little. Displaced, registration, that sounds off enough, but what he adds after that has her seeing red.

The only reason she manages to control herself is because he's Professor Lupin. Or a version of him, anyway.]

What's wrong with being muggleborn?

[wolfymcwolf]

I know James Potter. [And that line of conversation ends abruptly as she takes his words in the wrong way, and Merlin, there had to have been a way to say that better. Good going, Lupin.

He lifts his hands in a placating gesture.] I didn't mean that how it sounded. Of course there's nothing wrong with it. There's been disappearances for decades now, mostly muggleborns and halfbloods, so the Ministry's enacted a curfew for both... it's been in place for a while.

[He glances meaningfully around them. They are in public, after all, so there's only so much he's willing to volunteer about his own opinion on the matter.] Whatever's causing the disappearances, muggleborns are the main targets, so the Ministry decided a stricter curfew was called for for them. The curfew for people who are displaced is the same as for half-bloods. 6 am to 10 pm. [That's reasonable, right?? Totally reasonable... just annoying sometimes, is all...] I don't actually know if they'll adjust that for displaced muggleborns or not, but I thought it best to tell you that might be the case. It's your prerogative what you do with the information.

[He certainly won't be charging in to tell on her.]

[hermyownee]

[She takes a deep, calming breath and purses her lips into a thin line. None of what he's saying sounds good. Determining people's freedom by blood type sounds exactly like something Voldemort would do.]

How can you be okay with any of this, Prof-- Remus?

[wolfymcwolf]

I understand how it may sound if you're not used to it, but the restrictions on the rest of us have been in place for over a decade now. [And Remus is only, what, twenty?

He grew up with the world being like this. It's normal. He's never lived without a curfew, without the Trace on him.

At any rate, he looks sorry to be telling her any of this.]

I have no intention of reporting you, but if you're caught unregistered, you'll face time in Azkaban. I've heard the process for the Displaced is-- well, about as simple as anything in the Ministry is. [Maybe a little bit of humor will make it seem less Terrible?? Yeah probably not.] I understand why you would be apprehensive, but it's better than the alternative. [Yeah Azkaban is a pretty rough alternative!!] I'm certain they're too busy to make the process overly involved.

[hermyownee]

[Over a decade... which means none of them would have a chance of growing up in a world without ridiculous restrictions. It's no wonder Professor Lupin seems so... complacent about all this.

She tries to smile a little at his weak joke, but it turns into more of a grimace than anything. Azkaban must be even worse in a world like this. But she's not about to register or do anything else until she can understand what, exactly, is going on.]

Thank you. I'll keep that in mind.

Do you know if there are any libraries around here? Or a bookshop-- is Flourish and Blotts still around?

[wolfymcwolf]

[Recent events have him thinking, but he's not sharing those thoughts in public, to just anyone.]

Of course, I don't think they'll ever go out of business. I believe McKinnon's is closer, though.

[It's about equidistant, really, but... he knows the owner. And she's also not the type to turn someone in for choosing not to register.]

You might have better luck there.

[hint hint]

[hermyownee]

McKinnon's. [Hermione echoes the word and nods. She's never heard of if but she catches the hint. And even if this isn't the same Lupin she knows, even if he's clearly not part of the Order, she doesn't think he'd set her up and sent her into a trap.]

Thank you, Remus.

[wolfymcwolf]

[Hard to be a part of something that doesn't exist here yet, sadly.] You're welcome. Be careful, Hermione.

[A beat] The owner, Marlene, is looking to hire, as well, if you're in need of a job here. I can't speak for her, of course, but she may be willing to make-- accommodations. [For a Time Deviant who has no plans of registering, that is.]

[hermyownee]

[She does manage to offer him the hint of a smile there. Because seeing him ask her to be careful reminds her even more of one of her favorite professors at Hogwarts.]

Thank you. I will speak with her.

You be careful, too. [Because if he was bitten in this world, she assumes his life is about as easy as that of a muggle born. But she doesn't want to worry him by bringing that up.]

[wolfymcwolf]

[She's smart, once she knows the current phase of the moon, she'll piece it together whether that's the same or not.

He smiles tiredly, nodding.] If you get your hands on a m.i.a.v.i. pen, I'm not hard to find there. If you need to get back in touch for any reason.

[hermyownee]

[She looks a little worriedly at him, but nods slightly. He doesn't look great and she can't help but wonder what the moon cycle might be. At least he mentioned knowing James, so she knows he has help if he needs it.]

A m.i.a.v.i. pen? Okay... [She wants to ask him what that is, exactly but he doesn't necessarily look like he wants to stick around.]