Prologue
This day had been horrible. Not only was it hot, but there had been a breakout from Azkaban for the second time in four months. Which meant that security would have to be checked, reorganized, and reformed. It meant more work for her to do. Not only that she had gotten a fire-call from her son's primary school saying that he was misbehaving and that they would like to have a meeting with her and her husband. Then to make matters worse, the one thing that she had been looking foreword to all week long had been cancelled and would have to be rescheduled. Who knew when they would both have the chance, well mostly when she would have the chance.
Hermione Weasley-Granger, though she preferred to go by just Granger, had a very hectic and somewhat unhappy life. Having married Ron right after the war due to the fact that she was three months pregnant had probably been when things started to go down hill. At the time she had loved Ron, but things had changed since then. She had grown up she was no longer an 18 year old girl in love for the very first time. She was a grown woman who knew what she wanted and knew that she no longer really loved her husband in the way that she was suppose to.
In fact she had known it for awhile, probably for around four years now she had known. It had been after their third and final child was born that she realized it. She had been sitting there in the hospital bed looking down at her newborn baby. It was a girl, the second girl to have been born to the Weasley family. She unlike her two older brothers had no red hair, but was graced with her mother's own light brown coloring. Her eyes had been blue at the moment, but would eventually they would grow into the brownish blue, combining the eye color of both her parents.
Looking down at her daughter, she felt the love that she had felt for her first two children, yet stronger. As she had been looking down at her, Ron and their two sons had came into the room. Looking up at him, Hermione had realized that she didn't have the same feeling as she had when looking at her children. No it had been more of a hollowed out feeling, where something use to lie and was now just gone. She was sure that she still cared for him in some ways, but it was not like it uses to be, not like how she felt for Riley.
Riley was her assistant and had been ever since she had started working at a high paid position in the Ministry of Magic. Riley had been her third one at the time. Hermione had fired the first two with in a matter of weeks. She had found the first two to be too incompetent to be her assistant. Riley had been her gift from Merlin. Riley had understood the need for lists and organization. That schedules in fact important to making things run smoothly.
It had started out innocent enough. They became friends rather quickly and soon had lunch together on the weekends when they had time. She could talk to Riley about anything, things that she couldn't talk to Harry and Ginny about for fear that they might tell Ron. At first it had been real nice to have friends outside of the little circle of people that she had known for most of her life. Then the lunches on the weekend had turned into twice a week and then three times. Then sometimes dinners that went on for hours with stimulating conversations. Ron always wanted to know what could keep her so late, but Hermione would only say it was work and leave it at that. Ron would just nod his head, not really wanting to talk about her work. He said it was rather boring and didn't understand how she could work for so many hours and not go crazy.
Things started to go further a year after Riley became Hermione's assistant. It started out with 'accidental' hand touching and other such things that show that you like the person as more then just a friend. Hermione had liked the attention. She and Ron had stopped acting like a sweet nice couple ages ago. This was something new and wonderful, it made her feel more alive, even more so then when she had been fighting in the war. A few little presents on her desk, signed in Riley's handwriting but saying it was from a 'Not So Secret Admirer.' It was wonderful.
Then they had started things that weren't so innocent. Like slight pecks on the cheek that lasted longer then they should. A kiss on the lips, a kiss on several places. Then came the first time that they had slept together at Riley's place. Afterwards Hermione was amazed at how guilt free she felt. When she came to this realization it became all the more easier to be with Riley. Then when Riley had told her those three special words, Hermione knew with certainty that she felt the same thing and couldn't help but say it back. It had all been so perfect. But as we know things won't last forever.
Riley wanted more from her. Hermione just wasn't so sure that she could give more then she already had. She wasn't sure if she could divorce Ron. She didn't love him true, but he was Ron. He was the father of her children, the man that she had spent most of her life with. He had been her best friend, was she really ready to let him go. Sure she was unhappy, but there was still some good times. Ron was a great father. He took little Remus, Gabriel, and even their little girl, Rose to the quidditch games. He had taught them to fly, well not Rose, he thinks she's too young. He did all the great father like things with them.
Then there were the kids to think about. They were still so young how would they handle a divorce between their parents. She had heard a lot about how some of her friends children had reacted to there own divorces and not all of it had been favorable. How could she even risk the possibility of hurting them like that? Little Remus would soon be starting Hogwarts next year and he would be leaving home. Then what if she added a divorce to that. What kind of mother would she be?
Even with all those things adding up in her mind telling her she should stay with Ron, she still doubted. Hermione constantly thought about what her life would be like if she were with Riley. When she thought about it, she knew it was what she really wanted. Riley was the one that she saw herself growing older with, not Ron. Riley was the one that she wanted to wake up to every morning.
She was faced with a very difficult decision and she didn't know what to do. Hermione desperately needed somebody to confide in. The only one that she could trust to help her out on the matter despite the fact that they also happened to be friends with Ron was Harry. He was the person that knew her best after Riley, he might even know her better then Ron. So she would talk to Harry and then she would be able to decide weather or not she should stay with Ron, the father of her children, or Riley, the person that she loved.
Author's Note: I really shouldn't be starting another story, but oh well. So what do you think of the story? Do you like, do you hate, and criticism is welcome as well.
Also I would like to know your opinion on Riley. I didn't use any gender oriented words, at least I hope I didn't and I would like to know your opinion on weather or not Riley should be a girl or guy. Originally I was going to make it a girl, but then I thought, maybe I'll just ask the reviewers and see what they thought. If you guys think guy that's okay too, I have some ideas either way. So review and tell me what you think.