(a/n:) Hi hello! Thank you so much for coming to read this fic! This was something that I wrote an entire lifetime ago as a Dramione story, but it wasn't working (and the fandom certainly let me know) so after some time away from it I've re-vamped the entire thing and it will be a Theo x Hermione. There will be some background Drarry, so prepare yourselves for that as well. I hope you like it - I'm currently looking for a beta, I want to make sure that the story flows alright, has proper grammar, and doesn't completely suck, if I'm being honest. The chapters are a little on the short side as well. I welcome all of your thoughts and comments, and please feel free to come find me on Tumblr! Thank you again for reading!

BAM!

Hermione slammed her open palm flat onto her desk in her cubicle within the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and muttered a few colorful curse words under her breath.

At that same moment, Anthony Goldstein shot up from his chair, scrambling for his wand, only to realize that it was his partner's temper that had roused him from his dream including the Patil twins and a can of muggle whipped cream, and not in fact, an actual emergency.

"Granger," he said with a grin "if you stare at that report any harder, we'll both be cleaning up ashes. You know how unstable your magic gets when you're frustrated. Come on, pack up your things and I'll escort you to the Floos."

"I'm trying to find a way to smooth over the fact that your parolee broke down the wards at the Louvre, Goldstein" she said his name in a sneer "The Louvre! Or have you forgotten all about the fifty muggles he traumatized with his antics. One man had a forty minute conversation with a live sphynx. And my magic is not unstable you wanker." Hermione huffed as Anthony chuckled and reached for her hand.

"Hermy, love, my point is that it's two in the morning and this can't be fixed with your sheer power of will. They were ancient wards to begin with, the French and British Ministries don't exactly get along, and once that one has his mind set, I don't think even the Minister himself could undo the ensuing mischief. So how's about we stop with the death glares at the innocent little papers, and head home?"

If Anthony had bothered to actually look at Hermione during his condescending diatribe, he would have noticed that the "death glares" she was sending at her desk were now trained directly in between his stupid, dreamy, ocean-blue eyes. He also would have noticed the tell-tale flush of pure fury creeping up her neck as she readied to rip her hand from his clutches. Had he been paying attention, Anthony would have noticed these things. He did not, however, because Anthony Goldstein was a very stupid man.

"DON'T call me "love", Anthony. You don't get to. Not anymore." Hermione hid her hands underneath her desk so that he couldn't see the sparks crackling from her fingertips due to her surge of hostile emotions towards his person. Her magic really wasn't unstable, it just surged a little when she saw blinding white in fury, the arsehole.

"Are you still on about that? It done and over, and we agreed to let bygones be bygones for work's sake. And besides, you were the one who –"

SMACK!

The second resounding silence fell around the echo of Hermione Granger's hand connecting with a solid surface as an angry red mark appeared on Anthony Goldstein's flawless left cheek.

"How dare you?" she seethed, " 'That' was four days ago! And the 'that' that I'm referring to, in case you've forgotten, is the 'that' that I walked in on between you and Lavender Brown. IN OUR BED!" With a final slam of folders on her desk, Hermione grabbed her cloak and headed for the door. "And YOU decided to let bygones be bygones at work! I filed for a partner change!" She nearly screamed as she slammed the door – shattering glass being the only response she received from the office.

Well that was a good a way as any to let him know about the switch. Hermione thought as she pressed her forehead against the cool steel doors of the lift. She was loathe to admit it, but Sheep Shit Goldstein (as Ginny had fondly nicknamed him) was right about more than a few things. It was Hermione who had wanted to keep their relationship quiet, so as not to lose out on a partnership forged over a year of training and three years of working side by side in the field. Anthony was smart, even by Ravenclaw standards, and was cool in a crisis, which complimented Hermione's more emotional approach quite well. That didn't stop Hermione from referring to Anthony as her boyfriend to her family, or even from moving in with him hoping for a sparkly something to adorn her left hand as the year came to a close. It was not, however, the ending of their relationship that had truly upset Hermione. Nor that he had cheated on her. What had truly been the reason for Hermione's near-hysterics was the look of pure and unadulterated smug success on Lavender's face as Hermione was instantly transported to sixteen years old in the Gryffindor common room as Lavender sank her claws into another important man in Hermione's life.

"And I fucking hate being called 'Hermy'" she muttered as she stepped out of the Floo and into the flat she now shared with Ginny Weasley and Pansy Parkinson.

"Who the hell calls you Hermy-oh. And how is Sheep Shit?" Ginny grinned as she poked her head over the bannister from the loft.

"That is a vile nickname." Pansy's voice rang through the apartment as she stepped out of Ginny's bedroom.

"One he worked hard for." Hermione snarked "I've spent the last seven hours trying to smooth over relations with the French Ministry thanks to your silver and green blooded brother in arms. I need ice cream." she whinged, quite spectacularly for a war-hero.

"Smooth the what - Hermy, my little petunia, all you need to do is owl home once in awhile and you will have all of your problems solved. " Pansy said, all too smugly for Hermione's liking.

"They let a sphynx near a muggle Pansy! And he..."

"…is now set up in quite the digs, and won't be a problem for your bushy little head to worry about tomorrow" she said in a sing-song voice with a condescending head pat.

"You are utterly ridiculous." Hermione finally huffed, admitting defeat. She would never say it out loud, but she rather liked that Ginny and Pansy had become friends, and eventually roommates. After Harry and Draco had gotten together, both girls had gone into a bit of a tailspin - finding solace in each other and their short lived hatred of Seekers.

"Honey, you pronounced adorable wrong." Hermione rolled her eyes, but was quickly distracted by a bark of laughter coming from her living room. He's not here. He is NOT in my living room. This is NOT happening. Hermione poked her head around the corner, and was furious, but not at all surprised, to see the Italian portion of her problematic day sitting in her reading chair by the window.

"Evening, Granger!" Blaise Zabini snickered as he finished his drink.

"Did I fail to mention that Blaise showed up here in a panic after the Louvre?" Pansy said in an even tone, ever the picture of innocence as she handed Hermione some ice cream in a dish.

This better be chocolate, she thought to herself before pointing the spoon at Blaise. "You, are a menace. Get out of my chair."

"Granger, you mean to tell me, one of your oldest and dearest friends," Hermione snorted in response "that I must leave this humble abode? That's absolutely ludicrous!" Blaise threw his hands up as he followed Hermione as she stomped through the flat to her bedroom.

"Honey," she said sarcastically "you pronounced logical wrong."

Blaise growled at her now closed bedroom door and began to frantically pantomime to Pansy and Ginny from across the flat, much to the duo's amusement.

"Blaise, I can hear you waving your arms around like a lunatic." Hermione huffed as she opened the door. "I don't know what kind of oldest and dearest friends you have, but mine don't make me do an entire day's worth of work, with my ex-boyfriend for no reason."

Looking wounded, Hermione was certain that she heard Blaise mutter something along the lines of I had a reason. Glaring at him once more, she picked up her ice cream bowl and headed directly for her chair.

"Blaise, I'll warn you now that I'm about to start a rousing and detailed account of the fight I've just had with Goldstein. There will be tears, and probably some snot, so…"

"Alright, alright." Blaise said, swooping in to kiss Hermione on her head, and to steal a spoonful of ice cream. "I know when I'm not wanted. I'd say I was sorry for all of the work you did today, but I figured a clean break from...what do we call him? Sheep Shit? was for the best. Besides, I've a friend who seems to have a vested interest in the work you do. Wanted to see what your response time looked like." he said, waggling his eyebrows.

"Any friend of yours is an annoyance of mine, Blaise, you know that! Why didn't you just say something?" she said, smacking his hand as he went for her spoon a second time.

With a salute and his lips pursed into an air kiss Blaise descended the stairs of the loft, only to be met with a fiery red-head with hands on her hips. "What exactly, was that?" Ginny hissed. "You practically told her he was asking about her!"

Hushing her, and reaching around her to the door handle he said, "She needs to be ready for it, Gin. He wants to see her. She owes him that, I'd think."

"She owes him nothing Blaise, you don't even believe that. Why work so hard so that they'll potentially run into each other?" she narrowed her eyes into slits as he pushed her to the side.

"Because...because he's Theo, Ginny. That's reason enough." he said, closing the door behind him with a soft click.