EDIT PLEASE READ: A/N Hey guys, so after receiving some not so friendly reviews on some spelling and grammar mistakes I decided to add a little heads up here: I'M NOT ENGLISH. I am Dutch, so English is NOT my native language which may result in some mistakes here and there. I only had a beta for my 1st and 6th chapter, who does happen to be a native english speaker. Instead of getting reviews on the story itself I'm receiving reviews on minor spelling and grammar mistakes. It's allright by me if you want to help me, because I do appreciate it but please try to phrase it a little nicer sometimes, because after all I'm a person with feelings too. In the future please PM me about the mistakes, and if you can't sleep because of it and think you can do it better maybe volunteer as a Beta, that would save us both a lot of trouble. Thanks! - Dewi
Hey guys! This is my first Dramione fanfic so I hope you like it! Please leave me a comment about what you think so far!
It's just a little beginning to start the story up and introduce the situation. Have fun reading!
1.
Hermione looked down at the picture and smiled. It was a muggle picture taken a few months after the Second Wizarding War, and it contained three smiling faces. Ron's arm was around her waist, and Harry's around her shoulders. Three smiling faces. Who knew that a few months later it would all go spiraling down?
She put the picture back in one of her drawers, pushing it as far back as she possibly could. Don't stay in the past, Hermione. Move forward.
It's what she told herself almost every day. Who knew it would be so hard to live by such a mantra?
The sun had just come up, and in just a few hours the streets would be swarming with people. If she looked out of her window she could see the muggle street with all sorts of people on their way to work. A deep breath escaped her, as she walked over to the mirror adorning her wall. The person staring back at her was frowning with messy hair framing her face. She tried to use her wand to tame her hair, but it would have been easier convincing Hagrid that dragons aren't pets.
Settling for a hairdo that was just about acceptable, she grabbed her purse.
She stepped outside of her little apartment and the sun hit her face. With her heels clicking on the pavement, she felt stronger with each step. When she reached the employee entrance of the Ministry, she felt her heart pound. Into the toilet she went, and when she got out she ran for the elevator.
Why did she bother trying to be in time, when she knew that Ron would probably be the last one to arrive? After a few minutes in the elevator stuck next to some man holding a box with questionable content, she finally got to the floor she was supposed to be at. 'Department of Magical Law Enforcement' the elevator voice called.
She took a deep breath and stepped out, her head held high. There was silence as she made her way to the appointed room, the only sound she clearly heard was her heels against the tiles.
With a shaking hand she opened the door that read 'Mrs. Kohl, Divorce Attorney'.
She was greeted by a middle aged lady, with dirty blonde hair and small lines around her eyes. "Mrs. Granger! Good to see you, it must be a difficult day for you,'' she said sympathetically while shaking her hand firmly. Hermione gave her a small smile and sat down. ''Well, there have certainly been better days,'' she replied. Waiting for Ronald to arrive, she took a quick look at the small office.
There were little to no personal items in the room whatsoever, except for a small picture frame behind her desk which held a picture of Mrs. Kohl and… Hermione had to look somewhere else to keep herself from laughing.
It was a magical picture of Mrs. Kohl with some man, probably a colleague at a business gathering, and the colleague in the picture was trying his very best to keep Mrs. Kohl at an arm's length away from him.
At about 10 minutes past the original meeting time, Ron came bursting in breathing heavily as if he had just run a marathon. Mrs. Kohl stood up, offering him his hand and greeting him with an enthusiastic grin ''Good morning! Have a seat, glad you could make it.'' He stared blankly at her hand for a moment, eventually shaking it before sitting down on the chair next to Hermione.
It felt familiar and strange to be so close to him again, and it made her experience very mixed emotions. ''Well,'' Mrs. Kohl began, handing each of them a pen and a copy of the same document. ''Read it through carefully, and then I will hand you the official paper for you to sign.'' Hermione did as she was told, trying to calm her nerves. When she was done she looked to her left, and Ron was still reading. She sighed and gave the paper back, and not long after her Ron did the same.
She dare not look at him anymore, afraid she'd chicken out. With a shaking hand she signed the forms. And then Ron signed them, and suddenly he wasn't her husband anymore.
She looked up at him, the words that Mrs. Kohl spoke going in one ear and out the other, with blue eyes staring back at her. They were the eyes of a stranger. Mrs. Kohl dismissed them with a few kind words and a firm handshake, and like that they were outside again. Ron was about to walk away, but Hermione called out for him. ''Ronald,'' she said, and he stopped, slowly turning his head around.
There was a distant look in his eyes, as if she had betrayed him. ''I didn't want it to go like this,'' she said softly. ''I really loved you.'' He just nodded and then turned around again and left. She stood there for Merlin knows how long… When her wits finally returned to her, she made sure to get out of there as fast as she could. Her hands balled into fists in an effort to contain the rage inside of her.
When she finally got out of the Ministry, she took a deep breath to calm herself. How dare he ignore me like that, like he is the only victim in this? Merlin… It was too early on the day to drink, so she decided to go to Diagon Alley to kill some time, maybe buy some new books to get her mind off things. She took the tube to get to the Leaky Caldron, and walked straight through, ignoring the barkeeper offering a drink to 'The smart Potter friend!'.
The moment she stepped onto the street, she regretted her decision. There were people whispering everywhere. She could pick up some things like 'That's the Hermione Granger! The one who married that Weasley, no- the other Weasley!' 'Didn't she get divorced?' 'I heard she is horrible in person..'
She tried to block it all out, and it was all she could do not to put her hands over her ears.
When she finally reached Flourish and Blotts, she hurried inside, ready to bury her face into one of the books. The moment she was surrounded by books, her heartbeat slowed and she started scanning the titles, one by one. A book about the several uses of unicorn hair piqued her curiosity, when suddenly she heard an all too familiar voice behind her. 'Didn't expect to run into you, Granger.' Startled, Hermione turned around, only to look right in the face of Draco Malfoy, a face she had wished not to see ever again.
He hadn't changed a bit; he still had this unmistakable air of superiority about his, although he did seem a little more insecure than he used to. ''Why not? You know I love books. I remember you making a comment about that at every chance you got,'' she retorted.
A slow smirk spread across his face, watching her with curious grey eyes. 'I see you haven't lost your sharp wit after being with Weasel for so long,' He noted. She rolled her eyes and shot him a glare. She really wasn't in the mood to talk about Ronald... Especially with him. 'Why did you bother greeting me anyway when all you are going to do is prove how little you've changed since we were kids?' He immediately stiffened, his eyebrows drooping in a frown. 'I have changed remarkably Granger, but you wouldn't know since you are too busy paying attention to yourself,' he replied coldly.
She puffed her chest up, ready to say something back, but she decided otherwise. Instead she let out a deep sigh and put the book back in its place, walking right past him. 'It's been a pleasure, Malfoy.' She left the store, probably leaving a very baffled Malfoy behind. 'And hopefully I'll never have to see you again,' she muttered under her breath.