A/N: Hey everyone! This is my first fanfic, so I really hope you enjoy it :D
Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story, it is J.K. Rowling
This is only the beginning, and I will try and update as soon as possible :)
Here goes...
A New Life
Chapter One: A New Colleague
It was one year after the fall of the Dark Lord, and Hermione Granger had just split from her boyfriend of 11 ½ months, Ron Weasley. And to be perfectly honest, things had not ended on peaceful terms, threatening her friendship, not only with Ron, but with Harry and Ginny too. She had really wanted to make the relationship work, but he was too much to handle. He always wanted what she wouldn't give him, which was sex.
As soon as the couple had their first kiss, Ron tried to pressure her into sex. He continued on, but Hermione wasn't ready. She had wanted her first time to be special, and it to be with the perfect person. Ron turned out to be the imperfect person.
'I can't believe that Ron continued to pressure me into sex! Who does he think I am? Lavender Brown? That skank!' Hermione thought to herself as she walked into the Ministry of Magic, to start her usual day at work.
Ever since the war had ended, Hermione had been working in the Ministry of Magic, in the Law section. She had not started as the head of the department, but it was a goal she was inspiring to reach. As of now, she was working as a part of the team, where she looked over all of the laws, and sought out any changes to be made, etc. It was a hard job, but she enjoyed it, and she was hoping to get a few new laws passed that would ensure equal rights for everyone.
As Hermione walked into her office space, she could hear some of the women who she worked with gossiping.
"Have you heard that Draco Malfoy is no longer engaged to Astoria Greengrass? Her family apparently broke of the engagement after Theodore Nott proclaimed his love for her. That's what Rita Skeeter wrote in the article." Said Parvati Patil.
"I heard that the engagement was broken off because of his infidelity with her sister, Daphne." Hannah Abbott rebuked.
Hermione had to interject. It was none of their business, and they all had jobs to do. No matter what, she took her job very seriously, and she was the head of the small team, under only, her boss.
"It is none of your business, and you should all be working." Hermione snapped, while they looked at her dumbly. "So do your work!"
When all of the gossiping had died down, Hermione started her daily work. Today she was looking through a law passed in Voldemort's reign over muggle-born children. This law technically needed to be destroyed, but the Ministry was not at that stage just yet. They were still rebuilding after the war, so Hermione had to find a way to rewrite this law, so it would not be incriminating for anyone. In the end, she hoped that she would be able to make the law to cover and help muggle-borns, instead of trying to kill them. While rewriting this law, Hermione hoped to abolish the term 'mudblood', but she knew that it would be a difficult task to complete.
'If only I could completely change this. Make the term mudblood illegal. Make things easier for those who are like me. But a large portion of the Wizarding World are stuck in their old ways. Maybe if I had stayed with Ron, I would be easily able to change these things. No. I will NOT go running back to him. He never listened to me. He ruined it for himself...'
Hermione was snapped out of her thoughts when the all too familiar ex, and now current girlfriend of Ron Weasley came running in. Lavender Brown. Oh how Hermione hated her with a vengeance, but seeing as she was at work, she supposed she better be civil to the 2 sickle whore.
"Hi Hermione! I have come to give you a message on behalf of Ron. You know, he still doesn't shut up about you. Makes me wonder sometimes why you left him. I really don't know why, he is so great in bed-" said Lavender as Hermione cut her off.
"Lavender, I don't need to know. And the reasons for me leaving Ronald are purely none of your business. And you can tell Ronald that he is a big boy now, and he can come and deliver his own message to me." Hermione snapped.
Lavender turned tomato red with embarrassment. She wasn't used to being talked down to, and in front of a large number of her friends. She gave Hermione the letter and the box before she muttered "Uh, well I need to go now," and hurried out of the room.
Hermione smirked to herself, and went to read the letter from Ron.
Hermione,
I am really sorry about how things ended between us, but I still really don't know what went wrong... [Well you are obviously a blithering idiot Ronald]. I'm also sorry that I sent the note and your stuff with Lavender, but I really couldn't face seeing you right now. It still hurts to think that you don't want me anymore, but I hope we can still be friends.
Anyways, I have packed the last of your stuff that was at my house into the box. I thought it would be rather inappropriate to still have it at mine, especially seeing as I am now with Lavender. I really don't want to have to do this Hermione, but I suppose I have to.
Don't forget to go and visit Mum sometime soon. She misses having you around Hermione. And Ginny too. In fact, everyone at the Burrow misses you. Send Mum an owl when you want to go, and she'll make sure Lavender is no-where near the Burrow, seeing as you don't like her all that much.
I have to go now Hermione. Harry's getting impatient. We're off to see a Quidditich match. The same teams we saw in fourth year. Should be a good match.
Hope to see you soon
Ron
Hermione smiled sadly to herself. This was why she loved Ron, minus the complete idiocracy he possessed. As Fred (rest his soul) and George would say, he was a blithering idiot. But things were not meant to be, much to everybody's disgust.
She placed the letter down on her desk, and started to look through the box of stuff Lavender bought in. In the box, there were the few clothes she had left at his house, some jewellery, a bottle of her favourite perfume, and some photographs of the two of them. This box held many memories. Mainly good memories, but being around the things that she had left at Ron's made her think of the bad times. The times that had began to occur too often for Hermione's liking. The times that had caused the relationship to wither away into what they had now.
While Hermione was away with the fairies, in the old fashioned muggle terms, the girls up the front of the office started giggling and gossiping, as they always did. The loud laughter Parvati brought Hermione back to reality.
'Of course those women are off their work again. I still don't know why they're employed here. They never do any work. But it is not up to me. Though sometimes I wish it was... Oh, I suppose I had better see what all the commotion is about.' Hermione thought as she stood up from her desk.
She did not need to go far as when she stood up, none other than Draco Malfoy walked past. He hadn't changed a bit since she last saw him. The usual smirk, plastered on his face and the dull look in his eyes. It was definitely a wonder as to why he was visiting this sector of the Ministry, but it was none of her business, nor any of the women she worked with.
The chattering and giggling started up again as soon as Draco had walked into the head's office. Hermione only rolled her eyes, and started to walk towards the other women's desks.
"Do you lot ever do any work?" Hermione rudely asked in the middle of their conversation.
"Come on Hermione! Have a little fun, and a little gossip never hurt anyone" Katie Bell teased. "We all want to know why he is in this department, and I am sure you do too."
Hermione had always wondered why she was working in this department, instead of the Quidditich department. But Katie did her job well, when she wasn't gossiping. It was suspected that Katie had joined their team to try and equalise women's quidditch rights, but Hermione never spread or encouraged gossip, and she did not fell that it was her place to ask. Katie was added to their department for a specific reason, which was none of her concern.
"I'm pretty sure any form of gossip hurts people, Katie. It's not wise to be gossiping at work, especially about someone who is on the other side of the door that is ten meters away." Hermione said calmly. It wasn't her place to start a fight.
"Yes, we all know your opinions about gossip Hermione." Said Hannah. "I suppose you actually came down here to tell us to do our work, and not gossip. Despite what you may believe, we do actually do our work. It's called multi-tasking."
"Well maybe, if you didn't act like you never did work, I mightn't have to act like the bad person, constantly telling you to do your work." Hermione snapped, as she got angrier and angrier.
"Are you calling me incompetent Hermione?" Hannah asked.
"Where on earth did you get a stupid idea like that from? Oh I know, your two-sickle whore, Lavender Brown." Hermione spat.
"How dare you insult my friend! Just because she actually gave Ron what he wanted, unlike you doesn't mean you get to slander her." Hannah retorted.
"Then why don't you keep your nose out of my business, and GET BACK TO WORK!" Hermione spat loudly, just as she stormed back to her small office.
'That should keep them quiet. How dare they stick their fucking noses into MY personal business?! I stay out of theirs, so they can bloody well stay out of mine.' Her body language indicated that she was in a foul mood, and she really was fuming inside.
Hermione decided to distract herself from her problems and her team mates by focussing on her task at hand. In order to do that, she had to move the box of memories from the top of her desk to the floor, where hopefully she wouldn't have to face them. Feeling rather lazy, Hermione used magic to do a simple everyday task, which normally she would do, but she really wasn't in the mood. Instead of focussing on her thoughts, she turned to her work, which was the more important part at hand.
Five minutes into her work, the head's door opened, and Draco Malfoy walked out. But he didn't walk very far, until he was uncomfortably standing in her office doorway, looking at Hermione straight in the eye.
"Can I help you Malfoy?" Hermione asked in a dry tone without raising her head. She was too focussed on her work to bother about a slimy little ferret.
"Your head of department has ordered that I am to work with you. Here is the note to prove it if you don't believe me." Draco said uncomfortably before adding "I hope we can overcome our differences Granger."
He walked over to her desk and placed the note down, where she dropped what she was doing in order to pick the new note up.
Ms Granger,
I am sorry about the sudden addition of Draco Malfoy to your small office, but it is essential to our work. As you know, Mr Malfoy was indeed a Death Eater, and due to the lack of crimes committed, his trial was only recently held. He has been sentenced to work in our department until further notice, and it was a requirement of his probation that he was to work with you.
I know that this pairing is not ideal, as I know you have both had differences in the past, but you must put them aside and work together. You have a big assignment coming up, which both of you will need to focus fully on together.
As soon as you receive this letter, you can magically make your office space bigger, and the new furniture for Mr Malfoy will appear.
Oh, and Ms Granger, your outburst in the office under normal circumstances would result in a suspension or a formal apology. But seeing as you are going through a personal tragedy, I will allow it. And from what I heard, you put them in their place.
Once again, thank you Ms Granger
Head of Department.
With that, Hermione's jaw dropped, and Draco Malfoy smirked his usual asshole smirk.
"Hello partner."
A/N: That's the end of Chapter One :D
Just to clear something up, the Head of Hermione's department is to remain anonymous for now...
Please review! It would be a great help :D
