NOTICE:

I do not own any aspect of Harry Potter -the universe, place names, titles, or characters, nor anything else having to do with HP. The plot of this fan fiction is, however, mine. Harry Potter/Harry Potter universe and all aspects are owned by J.K. Rowling.

INTRO:

The war was over.

Voldemort was dead.

The Boy Who Lived was victorious.

The Death Eaters were beaten and broken, slowly being rounded up across the globe to be tried for their crimes.

The world -both magical and Muggle- was settling back into its normal ebb and flow, yet the Golden Trio were lost as to what that meant for them.

Harry and Ron were beginning their careers as Aurors for the Ministry.

Soon it would be time for Hermione to return to Hogwarts, where she had decided to finish her last year of schooling before going on.

Everything was different.

Everything had changed.

It was a new world.

But the question was: Who were they within it?

CHAPTER ONE:

The three friends all sat in a circle on the floor of Ron's bedroom up at the top of The Burrow, the hum of voices carrying up to them from the gathering going on below.

Hermione knew it was a party, being held in their honor, and in honor of Fred all those who fought and died to bring about the downfall of the Dark Lord. She also knew she should be downstairs, somberly greeting those who came to pay their respects, but she couldn't find it in herself to face it. She still couldn't fully believe that the War was over, that it had indeed been a month since that one fateful day. The day that everything changed.

A full month of funerals, speeches, and attempts at recovery. She still slept with her wand in her hand and her bag packed. She didn't honestly know if it would ever stop, the worrying, the looking over her shoulder...

Adjusting to the reality that the war was over was harder than Hermione had ever thought it would be. The Order and the Ministry were still busy, working to undo all the damage done by Voldemort and Umbridge, but things were looking better as each day passed. There were also small pockets of resistance still, Death Eaters who didn't want to be thrown into Azkaban, as well as a few fringe groups who wanted to make power plays, but the fighting was, for the most part, done. It was time to go back to every day life.

Kingsley had just told her that afternoon, in fact, that it was now safe enough for her to go find her parents and reverse the False Memory Charm she had set over them. He had already worked out an Auror escort for her, and gotten someone from the Portkey Office to set up an international portkey for her, set for the following day. Harry and Ron had come in while Kingsley was explaining the arrangements to her, and she had asked them to accompany her. Both had said yes without a second thought, which helped to calm the bubble of panic in Hermione's stomach. Kingsley had agreed on the express condition that Harry remain under the Invisibility Cloak the entire time, which Harry agreed to. As soon as Kingsley had left for the Ministry again, the trio had gone upstairs to begin packing. Ginny had joined them for a while, helping Hermione fold the boys' clothes and discussing their plans for school in the fall, before heading back down to help her mother prepare for the party. Hermione had decided to go back to Hogwarts, rather than take the cushy job she had been offered at the Ministry. She wanted to finish her magical education, but more than that, she was desperately searching for some normalcy. Some form of familiar structure. Something to keep her busy while her head caught up with reality. She was just hoping the school would still hold the same calming allure it had held for her before the war...

Hermione sat alone in the compartment aboard the Hogwarts Express, the lantern lights casting their soft glow over the familiar upholstery as the train sped towards Hogsmead Station. Ginny and Luna had been sitting with her earlier in the day, but had since gone off to do search the train for Nargles together, which left Hermione alone, staring out the window and thinking back on the past four months. It was amazing it had been such a short time since what was now known as The Battle of Hogwarts. There was even talk of a memorial holiday...

So much had happened: all the funerals, the trip to Australia that reunited with her parents, being made Head Girl by Professor McGonagall, and of course, things with Ron were moving along. More quickly than she liked, in fact.

The seven years of denial seemed to have taken their toll on Ron, and the pendulum had swung forcefully to the other side. He was showing a very physically needy side that Hermione wasn't entirely sure she liked, nor appreciated. Yes, she loved the feeling in the pit of her stomach when they kissed, however, she wasn't sure she liked the fact that that was all Ron seemed to want from her anymore. She needed more than just physical attraction in a relationship, and she wasn't receiving that from him. He also was showing a wonton disregard for Hermione's boundaries. So much so that she told him before she left for school that she wanted to take a break from their relationship so she could focus on the year ahead. He had tried to play it off as insignificant, but Hermione could tell that it had stung.

After they had fought at The Burrow on Harry's birthday, Ron had all but avoided her, aside from an awkward hug at the station that morning before Hermione told him of her decision. Ginny had been busy all summer with Harry, but she couldn't help but notice her brother's indifference that morning, so once on the train, she had cornered Hermione, giving her an empathetic hug. She and Hermione had then spent the better part of the train ride talking, discussing Ron and his relational shortcomings. Luna joined in after a while, the three girls bought Chocolate Frogs and Pumpkin Pasties off the witch pushing the food trolley, and somehow the conversation took a turn and ended with uncontrollable giggling and impersonations of Ron eating a chicken leg.

Even her Head Girl duties had improved her outlook on the year ahead. All the Prefects had greeted her with smiles -the Slytherins had given her curt nods. Despite the fact that it seemed a Head Boy hadn't been appointed, which threw her for a moment, they all seemed to respect her authority, and she delivered her beginning of the year speech with aplomb before sending them off on their rounds to monitor activity on the train.

All these things had greatly lifted Hermione's spirits. She had spent the whole day, relaxing, catching up with old friends, and not having to worry about a war or a moody, hormonal teenage boy. It was a great improvement on previous years, although she did feel a pang that her best friends -well, one of them- weren't there with her. It was going to be an odd year without Harry and Ron, however things were too complicated with the latter at the moment to miss him as much as she should.

Her musings were cut short by the deceleration of the train and the squeal of the breaks being applied as they began to pull up to the station platform. Hermione pulled herself to her feet and attempted to brush the wrinkles from her school uniform as she opened the compartment door to take a look up and down the corridor. Ginny and Luna were nowhere to be seen, so she grabbed her bag and cloak and disembarked, assuming she would wander into them on the platform, and if not there, she would certainly see them in the Great Hall.