This is my first attempt at writing fanfiction. I hope you enjoy. I own nothing all characters belong to their respective authors.
Quick note: This fic is completely AU I have aged some characters to fit better with this story.
Chapter One
15 July 1999
Time seemed to drag while I was waiting in the arrival lounge. I'd been here for an hour now just waiting. I see other people waiting for their loved ones to arrive, the clock on the far wall says it's 7 in the morning, then there are people starting to pour though the gates, I catch a glimpse of him through the throws of people that have now bombarded the gate to get to their loved one. He see me, walking toward me my eyes suddenly fill with tears, he still looks the same, tall dark haired well there seems to be more grey in his hair these days. He looks at me and I see his eyes are also filled with unshed tears, walking towards each other more quickly now as he reaches me he pulls me into him and I hug him fiercely, letting my tears fall as I do, I feel his own tears wetting the top of my hair.
"I'm so sorry Little One, I'm sorry I couldn't get here sooner." My Uncle Charlie whispered into my hair soothingly, trying his best to console me.
Slowly my tears subsided, and breathing becoming slow sniffles instead of the long deep breathes that it was.
"It's okay Uncle Charlie you're here now, I'm so glad you're here, everything seems to be sorted, the service is being held at 11 this morning." I managed to hiccup out to him.
"Okay. Okay that leaves us a couple of hours to have some breakfast and sort ourselves out." His voice is steadier now.
"You're staying at the house with me, aren't you Uncle Charlie." I can hear the pleading tone my voice has taken on.
"Sure am Little One, no better place I'm sure of it." He replies, once again pulling in for a hug.
15 July 1999 Granger House 1.30pm (the wake)
I'm so glad my Uncle Charlie arrived, although he has never been the emotional talk about your feelings kind of guy, but today he has been my rock, the best source of support for me.
Today we held the funeral of both my mum Jean Isabella Granger nee Swan and my dad Brian Louis Granger. The Ministry help me to restore the memories of my mum and dad after the war, many angry words had been said and feelings hurt about secrets kept. But after everything had been said and done as a family we all went to talk to a professional, with the help from the mindhealer we were able to reconcile and share more with each other than ever before. Talking to someone I was also able to help heal myself, sorting through my own shit that had happened to me during the war. During the war I had been tortured, seen so much death and had suffered with starvation, I wasn't sleeping or eating properly, I would not leave the house and I wasn't talking or meeting with my friends, I just didn't know how to live.
I still visit the mindhealer occasionally, but only to ensure that I have not regressed back into my former self, but to be honest I don't want to be that Hermione from a year ago, too scared to do things, too scared to have fun or friends to scared to live, I have no intention to be her ever again. Five nights ago my mum and dad were out celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary, they had had dinner and seen a show. However on their way home their car had been struck when another car had crossed the centreline, Uncle Charlie had read the report, the driver of the other car had been under the influence of drugs, everyone involved had been killed, my parents, the other driver and his pregnant wife. A horribly sad event all round.
My Uncle Charlie is my mum's younger brother, they were both born and raised in Forks, Washington in the United States. I sat on the couch in the lounge with Harry and Ron listening to Uncle Charlie as he told us about mum in her youth. How she loved to play in the rain, hiking in the woods and terrorising him and his friends, we all laughed at that last one.
"You're just like Jeanie Little One when she was your age, did ya know that, she loved learning new things and she loved to read anything and everything, I think all you Swan girls are like that, cause my Bells is too." He said quietly.
"Mum was beautiful wasn't she?" I mumble as I gently finger the photo of her at 18 off to Washington State University, her arms wrapped around a goofy 14 yrs. old Uncle Charlie smooching his cheeks.
"You look so much like her Little One, but yeah she was a looker, I remember lots of guys use to chase around after her, even some of my friends which was really weird, but your mum was one determined lady, she wanted more of a life that what forks had to offer, so off to University she went and completed her degree." He told me. "She loved to swim, she was always swimming when the weather let her, which was hardly ever, but she did love it, she was always off in her car to First beach, you remember First beach don't ya Little One?" I bobbed my head up and down. "She meet your dad on that beach Little One, she once told me how one day she was just walking along the beach and she saw Brian gazing out into the ocean, he turned and couldn't take his eyes off her, she had never seen him before and wandered if he was lost, she went to see if he was alright and her told her when he looked at her that he was taking in the beautiful scenery. I gagged when she told I thought it was so corny. But they did end up spending the rest of the day together talking you know getting to know each other and the rest as they say is history. It's kind of a beautiful now thinking about don't you think?" "I do Uncle Charlie I really do."
People started to move towards my Uncle and I offering us their condolences once more as they started to leave, the last to leave of course was the Weasley family every one of them giving us giant hugs and wet kisses before leaving through the floo. Harry however insisted on staying to help me sort all my parents belongings it was going to be an epic task to be sure.
