A/N: I don't really know what this is, wrote it on the boat. Review what you thought of it. Watch the dates, they change a lot.
Healing Over Time
May 11st 1998
"HARRY!" she screamed pushing through dark figures to get to the boy who'd just fallen to the ground. The green light fading from his chest. She collapsed beside him, "Harry…" She stroked his forehead, staring into his empty emerald eyes. Tears fell onto his pale face, the world blurred in front of her. She tried to pry her fingers into his, "Come on… Come on Harry…" She wanted to say more but sobs were climbing up her throat. Tight arms fell around her.
"Hermione. Come on." She struggled as they tried to pull her away. "He took Voldemort down. Harry's done what he wanted."
"NO!" Was all she managed to scream as she clawed her way free and threw herself over his stone body. That's not what Harry's life was moulded around. He was going to be a great man and live a great life. With her. She'd only managed to grab him a week ago and blurt, "I love you." Before everything came tumbling down… as he did.
May 11st 2001
Hermione Granger. It had been three years since she died inside, now she is living in apartment building in Manhattan, she is a seven hour flight away from the friends she left behind. She's an arm-length away from her boyfriend Keith who lays naked and asleep beside her on their bed. On the bedside table lies their wands beside an alarm clock which is set to go off an hour before Hermione leaves for work at the wizards music station, where she presents the American music channel with a flirty spark. Her companion works at a local bar, he gets them free booze for Friday nights.
She curls up next to him, and laces her fingers through his blonde curls, "Keith…" she kissed his jaw and then kiss lips, "Baby wake up."
He moaned as her tongue ran along his top lip. He blinked, his bright blue eyes focussing on her. He smiled and she felt it against her lips. "So why ever did you wake me up? You know I need my beauty sleep."
"I just wanted a morning kiss."
He smiled at her, "You're horrible to me."
"You know you love me anyway," she murmured in his ear, her lips brushing up against his skin. He shivered.
"Aren't you working today?" he asked.
"Yeah…"
He sighed, "I was hoping to grab lunch together."
"Sorry, love. We'll have a big dinner when you get off work alright?"
"I'm working until two this morning, angel."
"Fuck."
June 12th 1998
Ginny glared at her best friend. "You're leaving." Hermione nodded. She offered no apology. "Where?"
"Far away."
The red head frowned, "What happened to you Hermione? You used to be so warm."
"I've got to get out of here." She turned to the door, pulling it open.
"You're not saying sorry? No goodbyes?" Ginny asked.
Hermione barked out a laugh. "No. I was just going to leave. I don't need anyone's pity parade following me around anymore. You're just lucky you caught me leaving."
"Everyone's going to miss you." Hermione snorted. "We all love you. No matter how much you've changed."
"I'm going Ginny. I'm leaving and your dramatic speech isn't going to change that," she growled, "I've got to get over him some way or another."
"Running? When did you become a coward Hermione?"
Hermione sneered at her, "You have no right to judge me. Yes I am leaving. I am not running. I'm getting on with my life. Something you Weasleys have failed to do."
"He was just like family. You two were engaged. How can you be so willing to forget so soon?"
"He abandoned us Ginny!" Hermione yelled, "He fucking left us! He knew I wouldn't have been able to cope! But he did it anyway!"
"Harry didn't want to be killed!" Ginny returned, "He wanted to live a long happy life with you!"
"Yeah well…. Tough luck for him."
Ginny's face fell, the Hermione she'd grown up with was lost. She's died alongside Harry that day. "No goodbye hug?"
"Don't count on it." Hermione stormed out the flat, throwing the door closed.
July 1st 1998
Hermione walked into the marble building and walked up to the front desk. "Um hey. I'm Hermione Granger. I'm looking for a job."
"Granger?" The woman at the desk raised her eyebrow, "What would you be doing here?"
She clenched her jaw, "Getting a job perhaps."
"Well we need a new presenter…"
"I'll do it."
May 3rd 2001
"Well that's it for today," Hermione said into the glowing mic, "Except I want to give a shout out to my wonderful boyfriend who's birthday is today! Happy Birthday Keith. I love you babe."
The mic stopped glowing. They were off. "Hey misses," her boss strutted out, "That wasn't in the script."
Hermione pouted, "But I didn't get to say it this morning because he was shattered from work."
He slapped her shoulder, "I wish I was twenty-one again. The world's your oyster Hermione, make sure you're doing the right thing."
Her smile fell for a second, "Rightio boss! I've got to get going, Keith's got all his mates around for his big birthday bash! He expects me to be on time this time." She gave a pointed look.
"I told you if you come into work late, you stay behind late!"
"I was hungover!" she cried.
He rolled his eyes, "Scram and have a good night with your boyfriend."
August 5th 1998
Hermione walked into the club, lights flashed and smoke twirled around her ankles. Her work friends grabbed her and brought her to the middle of the dance floor as several men joined them. After half an hour she excused herself and walked up to the bar, "Hey can I get some wine?" She asked the bar tender over the thud of the music. He nodded and poured her a glass. Feeling sparked by the music she began conversation with him. His name was Keith Gregory.
"You know," he said after a while, "I could get us both free drinks on a Friday. If you want to come over to my place…"
"Like a date?" she asked.
He flashed a grin, "Exactly."
"Sounds perfect."
May 3rd 2001
Keith and Hermione danced energetically on the dance floor, spinning and bouncing to the thud and sway of the song. Then it died down a slow one came on. But instead of pulling her in for a close cuddle he dropped to one knee.
"Hermione Jane Granger. Will you marry me?"
"Yes."
November 13th 2005
Hermione placed a hand on her swelled stomach, smiling. The bus came to a halt and she stepped off, she preferred the muggle transport for the quick ride from work to home. A warm smile fell on her face as she looked up and saw light coming out of the window of their apartment. Keith was home.
"Hermione?"
She turned around and froze. Green eyes that made her heart flutter stared into hers, black hair was messy and long and falling in front of the gem eyes, rosy lips opened to gape at her. No… It couldn't be.
"Oh god Hermione. Please just… just do something."
The boy she thought she lost seven years ago, the same boy she thought of every time she woke up. The same boy she pretended to have stopped hurting over, the boy she thought of when getting married to another. That boy. That boy was standing in front of her.
And then he was gone, blown away with the wind. And everything she'd been compressing exploded inside her mind. What had she done? Poor Ginny she didn't deserve it. She missed England. Keith. He was never going to be able to fill Harry's place. She knew it was wrong. So why did she do it? Because he was dead. She took a breath. He was dead.
A hand clamped onto her shoulder, "Hermione, let's get back to the Burrow. Everyone's waiting." She turned around, green eyes sparkled, a rosy smile on his lips. Then he faded.
Was she losing her mind?
"Hermione!" his voice cried in the wind, "Oh god I love you."
People were beginning to stare at her staring blindly everywhere. She pulled herself into reality, placing a hand on her bump. She should stop being so silly. She loved Keith, she could not leave him for a dead person. She continued down the street.
Until someone was walking by her side, "Merlin Hermione-" She tried to ignore him as he took her hand, "I can't bear to see you like this. It's not you." He disappeared but the pressure on her hand remained.
Something wet dropped on her cheek, she looked up as storm clouds rolled over. She needed to get inside and have a lie down. Her child was making her hallucinate.
"Do you never think of me?"
Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest again. He wasn't here. He was dead. She crossed the road, her head full of Harry. She saw a flash of a yellow taxi, something hit her side.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
"Hullo?"
"Is this Keith Gregory?"
"Yes."
"I'm really sorry. You're wife got hit by a taxi-"
"What?"
"He was drunk. Wasn't licenced."
"Is she okay? In hospital? How's our baby?"
"Sir… Sir your wife is dead."
Hermione stared at the boy in front of her, "So I'm dead?" Harry nodded. "And you are too?" He nodded. "But we're ghosts?"
"We both had something we wanted to live for. I wanted to live for you, you wanted to live for... your husband and child."
"I wanted to live for you."
"...But I'm dead."
"You told me to live my life an hour before you died. It's what I've been living for. Why I moved. Why I let myself love someone who wasn't close to your replacement. Why I got married. Why I agreed to having a child. I've been living a life you'd want me to have."
"Where shall we go?" he asked taking her hand, "We have a whole eternity together."
"Hogwarts?"
"Brilliant. We can watch over generations of Weasleys." He leaned forward and placed his lips on hers. Strangely enough they felt perfectly solid against hers. Two ghosts could touch each other it seemed. As she pulled away and stared into translucent emerald eyes she felt healed for the first time in seven years.
I was seasick when I wrote this so the quality isn't great but I can't seem to edit it.