Hello everyone! This is my first fanfiction in the Harry Potter category and will be an eventual pairing of Hermione Granger and Viktor Krum. I do not own the Harry Potter series and all rights are reserved to the wonderful J.K. Rowling. Thanks for taking your time to read to this and I look forward to your feedback.
Time Forgotten
Chapter 1:
Hermione pushed the remainder of her finished papers into the appropriate slots before giving her empty desk one last look. She had worked here behind this small desk in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures since the end of the war and passing her N.E. . She had accomplished so much from behind this desk, yet the time had come for her to leave. Progress demands a steady hand, and Hermione Granger was proud to see it through… even if that diligence was now requiring her to step out of the comfort zone of her office. Slinging her messenger bag over her shoulder and picking up the box that held all of her books and photos that had once decorated her small office, Hermione began the long walk towards the entrance as she recalled what brought her there in the first place. Kingsley, her superior in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, had called her to his office yesterday after she had submitted yet another proposal for house elf welfare requirements. As usual, he hadn't wasted time in getting to the point.
"Miss Granger, we both know that I don't have the resources to bring your proposal into action right now. Even if I could get the right people's attention to get the ball rolling, I haven't the time to see it through with the number of cases flooding the aurors."
"With all due respect sir, these issues need to be addressed. The house elves are only the beginning of the project proposals I have submitted for your consideration. Surely there must be something I can do to help you move them along to the right people?" Kingsley stopped and thought about it for a few moments as a plan began to form in his head.
"Miss Granger, did you really score straight O's on the N.E. ?" Not understanding why Kingsley would ask some such a question out of the blue, Hermione scrunched her nose up in surprise.
"Yes sir. I also passed the mediwitch exam, the concealment and disguise exam, stealth and tracking exam, and pretty much any other wizarding exam out there. Granted I only scored an exceeding expectations on the defense against the dark arts n.e.w.t…."
"I know that Potter and Weasley have called upon you to assist them with their work before... I want to offer you a deal. Currently, I have a case that requires some undercover work and have no one well suited to do it. I know under normal circumstances you oversee the Department for the Regulation of Magical Creatures, but if you took the case, I can guarantee your introduction to some of the high profile members of the legislative body. Should you befriend them, they could easily assist you in moving any of your proposals forward. I would get the intelligence auror I need for a case and you would make connections to call upon once you finish the case. It would be a win, win situation." Hermione frowned as Kingsley paced behind his desk running all of the variables mentally. Yes, his plan would work if only she would agree. According to Lupin, she had outright rejected the offer to become an auror at least twice before though.
"What about my job at the Department for the Regulation of Magical Creatures? I can't just up and leave them so suddenly." Kingsley felt ecstatic that she was considering his offer. Granted he could have pushed her proposal through to the legislature, but without any political backing it was bound to fail. Her ideas had merit, but to make them reality, she needed to step out from behind her desk. Politics requires networking to see ideas to fruition.
"You will need to resign from your post temporarily as you work the case. I will ensure that your work will be seen to in your absence and that you can reclaim your post, should you still want it, afterwards." Hermione thought over his offer as Kingsley sat down behind his desk. He could see the metaphorical gears turning in her pretty head. Weighing the risks with the possible gains, Hermione saw no alternative. She could stay at her post raising her fist against the wall or she could take a chance at progress. Even if she failed, her post would be there to return to. Did she really want to spend another few years sending up proposals that were ignored?
"I accept your offer," she said quietly as she folded her hands demurely across her lap. Her piercing brown eyes focused on Kingsley as he nodded. He opened up a desk drawer and pulled out a file. Tossing it on the desk in front of her, Hermione picked it up and opened it before her. Images of famous Quidditch players greeted her and she felt herself swallow in sudden nervousness as memories assaulted her.
The only professional Quidditch player she knew personally had been her date to the Yule Ball and her penpal up until their brief encounter at Bill and Fleur's wedding. As they had shared a single dance at the wedding, Hermione had explained how she could no longer keep writing to him. It was too dangerous with how things were going and she didn't want to put him in harm's way. Viktor had frowned at her as he pulled her closer. He asked her to come away with him, to simply leave the war behind and return with him to Bulgaria. Apologizing to him, she had stepped out of his embrace and gave him a small regretful smile. She couldn't leave Harry and Ron to fight alone. The tense moment between them was broken when Kingsley's patronus landed on the dance floor and chaos erupted as death eaters attacked. As Viktor reached out for her, Hermione had slipped away with her boys and disapparated without a second glance. They hadn't talked since, though she had heard rumors that he had become a skilled auror in Bulgaria during the war and had settled back into Quidditch once the league begun again.
"I'm not sure how much you follow Quidditch, but there is a major tournament beginning up in Scotland in a few days' time. We have reason to believe that the tournament is being used as a cover for a magical creature slave ring. Your task will be to infiltrate the ring, discover where the creatures are being held, and figure out the heads of the operation so we can bring them down. The tournament officials are bringing on several mediwitches for the tournament so I will make arrangements to get you in. I trust that you can make yourself unrecognizable and hold your cover without any assistance. You can still choose to not accept if you aren't comfortable Hermione. I won't think any less of you," Kingsley said quietly as he saw her brow furrow as she read over the packet.
"When do I start?" Closing the file, she tucked it under her arm. She would have to closely read over everything later before burning it all, as per auror procedure.
"I'll have your resignation papers in place by tomorrow morning. Clear your desk tomorrow and go home. I will send my patronus with additional details by night fall."
Hermione felt the wards close behind her as she started walking towards the stairs. The smell of dinner cooking from the kitchen and the faint blare of Irish rock music from upstairs told her that both of the boys were home. Despite both of them having girlfriends, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had shared a flat together since the end of the war. They always seemed to feel more at ease living together, even if the threat of death eater attacks had become minimalized. Ginny and Harry had made their relationship official during all of the press coverage at the end of the war, but Harry had yet to pop the question. The boy who lived and took down Voldemort was surprisingly more scared of marriage than the dark arts. On the other hand, Ron took advantage of his fame to be with a different woman each night and as such was rarely home. Last she had heard he was back with Lavendar Brown in an open relationship. Hermione didn't like the limelight and when she was forced to be in it, she would promote her causes. It didn't take long for the media to get the message and leave her alone. With all of the scandal between Harry and Ron, there was no need to bother with the brains behind the Golden trio.
"'Ello Hermione, how was work today," Harry called from the kitchen. He stirred the pot of boiling marinara before tossing the strained noodles into it.
"Work was good. Thanks for asking. How was your day," she called back over her shoulder as she carried the box up the stairs.
"Swell. We finally caught up to that group of trolls that had been harassing the Muggle community west of here. Dinner is ready. Would you mind calling Ron down?" Opening up the door to her room, Hermione set the box on top of her full sized bed in the center of the room. Towers of books and parchment made the room a labyrinth to navigate, but Hermione felt at home in the mess. The bookshelves that lined every bit of wall space possible were crammed with books. The boys liked to joke that she simply lived in her own personal library. Closing the door to her room, she went to knock on Ron's door. The music cut off and Hermione called in that dinner was ready before walking back downstairs.
The three of them sat around the table enjoying the meal that Harry had prepared. Cooking without magic was a hobby that Harry had picked up after the war, one that he shared with Hermione when their schedules allowed it. When Harry and Ron were gone on auror duties, Hermione would see them seldom, but it was always lively when they were home.
"So how long will you be home before you have to leave for the next mission," Hermione asked as she finished clearing her plate. Reaching for the chocolate pudding, she neatly dodged Ron's attempt to get to it first. He would have voiced his complaint if his mouth hadn't already been stuffed with garlic bread.
"Kingsley has Ron heading over to Romania in a day or two to meet up with his brother. Apparently, they think some of our British death eaters might be hiding out there so he's going to investigate those claims. I'm going to be working some domestic cases here in town for the next few weeks so I will be home in the evenings. I might even take a few days off to go up to Scotland with Ginny for the European Quidditch Invitational. You know how she gets about the Harpies."
"Oh," Hermione said as she thought about her own imminent travels. Kingsley had explicitly told her to tell no one about her assignment or temporary position change, but she couldn't just leave them in the dark. It would be better to tell them what she could now than have to explain later after being missing for several weeks. If this case was even going to take several weeks. For all she knew about Quidditch, it could be several months. "Well I will be leaving soon for a business trip up north. I probably won't be around much."
"What another one of those house elves rights protests," Ron joked with a sneer. Hermione frowned at him and rolled her eyes. She knew just the way to throw his interest.
"No, Ronald. I got invited to a conference of sorts. I'm not even sure how long I will need to stay yet since I don't know if the frost giants can come down with the weather they have been having. The centaurs will surely be there as well as the mer people, but how we are going to sort the arrangements so all of the delegates will be comfortable I'm not sure yet. And the acromantulas-"
"No need to talk about it 'Mione. You always go on and on about these things," Ron interrupted her. She could see his mind thinking back to the giant acromantulas he and Harry had faced while she was petrified in their second year. Hiding her smile with her napkin, she excused herself to do the dishes. The thumping on the stairs shortly later and the resume of the music upstairs told her that Harry had traded dishes night with Ron. Bringing in the last of the dishes and putting away the leftovers, Harry tried to continue the conversation.
"It sounds like you will have quite the assortment of magical creatures. Has the ministry taken enough precautions to keep you safe?"
"Of course, of course," Hermione murmured as she quickly worked through the flatware, "I'm sure it will be over in no time and I can submit my report back to Kingsley on the matter."
"Do you think Ginny would be surprised if I got her tickets to the Holyhead Harpies vs. Vratsa Vultures matches?"
"Matches? I thought in tournaments they played one match and the loser was eliminated?"
"Oh no 'Mione. The European Invitational is a best of seven matches tournament. It will take several months to go through all of the teams and announce the finalists competing for the European Quidditch Cup." Harry finished cleaning the counter tops as Hermione finished the dishes. She felt her mouth pull into a firm line as she realized how long she was going to be gone unless she took care of the ring quick. Kingsley probably had a replacement mediwitch for when she was ready to pull out with the necessary information. Harry noticed the sudden tension around her as she put the last dish in the rack and turned off the water. Before he could ask what was really going on with her, she seemed to startle at something she saw in the living room. Excusing herself before he could get a word out, he saw her scoop up a patronus and run to her room. Shrugging it off as that time of the month for the single girl, Harry headed to his room to polish his broom stick.