Chapter 1

15 March 2005

"Hey, Hermione, do you have a minute?"

Hermione Granger looked up from the file she had been reviewing and smiled brightly at her secretary, Lila.

It had been almost seven years since the war had ended, and two years since she had taken over as Education Secretary of the British Wizarding World. She had returned in the September after the war to get her N.E.W.T.'s, while Harry and Ron had taken a year away from the public eye. It had been a hard decision for her to not join them, but Hermione's logical side had been unable to fathom the idea of remaining without a complete education. After an internship in the MLE offices, she had spent three years flitting between Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and MLE, never really being able to make up her mind on which area she really wanted to focus in on. With Harry and Ron caught up in training in the Auror department, she had felt almost…lost. She hated to admit it, but she had been in a solid group for years, and being left on her own for the first time had left her unsure of her work.

Then, when Minister Kingsley had approached her with the position of Education Secretary, everything had changed. It was something she had never considered, but a position that seemed so obvious for her. She had quickly settled in, started rebuilding Hogwarts, launched several initiatives in conjunction with other departments to provide opportunities to better the education system. She was truly happy with her job, no matter how long it had taken her to get there.

"Yes, what's going on?" she gestured for Lila to come into her office.

"I have a couple of messages for you," Lila said, flipping through her notepad. "Mr. Robards owled saying they want to add a change to the magical creatures curriculum at Hogwarts. Headmistress McGonagall also owled saying she wants to meet with you and Hagrid before the next director's meeting to discuss this agenda item."

"What kind of amendment are we talking about?" Hermione asked.

"He said that they want to review the creatures in the curriculum, and restrict the dangerous ones to in class learning, and only allow other animals in demonstrations."

"And how do they expect the students will learn from a set of pictures? And how will they assure that Hogwarts' curriculum will satisfy the requirements for the students going forward in the field?" Hermione rolled her eyes, and made a note in her meeting file. "Can you please let Professor McGonagall know I'll be visiting her in the morning tomorrow?"

Lila nodded, and made a note to remind herself. "And Mr. Malfoy's office left a message saying that the plans and blueprints have been submitted for review."

"Oh, that's earlier than I expected," Hermione remarked.

"They said they'd like to set up a meeting to go over the plans around three today. Can I confirm you'll be there?"

"That would be great," Hermione smiled. "Thanks, Lila!"

"No problem, Hermione," Lila smiled back and stood up to leave the office. "You are coming with us tonight, right?"

Hermione paused. "Yes?"

"Hermione."

"I said yes!" Hermione protested over Lila's accusatory tone.

"And I know by your tone you really meant no," Lila cocked an eyebrow.

"No, I'll be there," Hermione said.

"Promise?"

"Promise," Hermione said. "Although I really don't know why you're fussing over this-"

"Because you've cancelled three times this month alone."

It was true. Lila and her boyfriend, David, had tried to set Hermione up with David's friend Mark repeatedly, even offering to go on a double date with them, but Hermione had always cancelled for some reason or the other.

She and Ron had given their relationship a shot after the war ended. The long distance, and the very fundamental differences in the two had led to an amicable breakup not soon after. She had ventured into the dating world now and then, but nothing had stuck with her, and she found herself happy in the life she was living. She wasn't averse to the idea of a relationship, but it wasn't something she found herself craving or actively looking for. When it happened, it would happen. And while she appreciated Lila's efforts, she just wasn't interested right now.

But she would go tonight, for Lila's sake. Lila had quickly become one of her closest friends once she had taken over the position as Hermione's assistant. The girl had been two years behind Hermione at Hogwarts, and was incredibly smart. She had come up with multiple ideas that the department had implemented successfully. It hadn't taken any serious effort from either side for the two to hit it off as though they had known each other all their lives.

"I promise I'll be there tonight," Hermione said, trying to keep the begrudging tone in her voice at bay.

"Good," Lila said. "I'll set your calendar reminder for the Malfoy meeting then."

"Thanks, Lila," Hermione said, and picked up her quill to continue her work.

"Oh, and Hermione?" Lila peeked back in after a minute. "Wear something sexy tonight. Don't show up in your work clothes like last time. "

"Got it, Mother," Hermione joked, and shook her head. Yes, she was very glad things had turned out the way they had.

(A/N: Sorry about the formatting previously. I don't know why was malfunctioning because in the preview it was normal. It's fixed now, so hope you enjoy reading it!)