The new year had begun only a few hours ago, and the Hogwarts golden trio, with Ginny, watched the grounds of the Burrow with apparent happiness. The war had ended some months ago, but there was still the homesickness of people who were there with them laughing and hugging. Those people, they knew, they would never see again.
The look of each one of them, in a certain way, seemed totally lost. Yes, their bodies were there, but their minds traveled far away at that moment. Their souls were visiting their loved ones, people they had lost so long ago.
Suddenly they heard Mrs. Weasley calling them, and all of them rushed into the house to eat something delicious and then to rest. Harry went to the room that had been built for him, while Ron and Hermione headed toward his room. Then the silence settled in the house minutes later, the calm made them sleep in peace, as they had not done for a long time.
The next morning, the woman with bulky brown hair rose early. The sky was still gray and the cold began to shake her body from head to toe. Ginny woke up shortly afterward, after all, she had to leave soon with her mother to solve some problems before going to Hogwarts. Soon after, the two sleepy boys woke up. So, Hermione and the two of them had coffee and decided to go to Diagon Alley.
When they stepped into the best store there - or not so, after so many mini-explosions caused by crazy inventions, however amusing - they openly smiled as they saw the other Weasley inside the store.
- Hey, Ron! Hi, Harry! All right, Mione? said the tall redhead boy cheerfully.
"It's good to see you like this, happy, especially after everything that happened last year, right?" said Ron, not noticing that he was being a goblin as usual.
The older brother tried to smile, but said nothing, ignoring Ronald's comment, as Harry shot the younger redhead with his angry eyes. Then the four of them began to walk by, watching from new and even frightening creatively objects to some strange and extremely colorful potions. They kept looking from side to side all the time, searching something cool to buy.
Then the front door of the store opened softly, and the only one who saw who entered the store was Granger, who opened her eyes wide as she realized who it was.
His blond hair was not as bright as it had been ages ago, his hair even longer than the last time she remembered. And his expression made him look older than he was. She also noticed that, because of the cold, the blonde's lips had a purplish appearance. His walking continued steady and calm, but the brightness of his eyes was no longer the same.
"Good afternoon, Malfoy," said George, staring at the boy.
"Hello, Weasley", the other responded without arrogance, keeping his voice polite, something never seen directed at a Weasley, at least not witnessed by Hermione Granger.
Then his eyes met hers, and at that very moment, the door opened violently, because of the strong wind of that day. Hermione shivered as if a bolt of lightning had fallen on her body, but she recovered soon after, leaving her body fully erect, quite serious.
"It seems that this cold weather will never go away," she whispered to herself, with a worried look that had just taken hold of her face.
- Hello, Granger. - Draco had whispered without any irony or scorn in his voice as he passed by her, and at that moment the corridors seemed too small for the young woman.
The blond man smiled without any mockery or anything of the kind, which froze the Gryffindor spine. Then he turned and went to see some objects in a hallway that was far enough away from her.
Out of nowhere, Harry and Ron appeared beside the brunette, who looked at both and became less tense.
"Oh, where the hell were you?" Hermione asked quietly, but clear enough for them to notice the irritation in her voice.
"What's wrong with her?!", grumbled Ronald to Harry, both confused.
But Harry ignored the situation and laid his eyes on Draco Malfoy, after all, it was not common to see him walking through the Alley in broad daylight. Stranger still, inside that particular store. The Chosen stared at the blonde for some time, until he heard his friends calling him. And in less than a second later, the three of them were apparating in the Burrow.
"What was the weasel doing at a Weasley's store?", Ron asked, feeling uneasy as he paced back and forth, just after they got there.
"I do not know what he was doing there, but it sure was not good. He certainly wasn't there just to shop or to meet some old friends.", Harry replied, rather annoyed.
"How about we forget Malfoy, please?" Please, please, please. Finally, Hermione had said something, putting an end to that conversation quickly.
When Mione heard a movement in the kitchen, she ran to help Molly and Ginny with lunch and smiled while she saw her friends in the garden. Her heart has always quieted when she looked up at Harry and Ron.
Harry and Ron remained silent for a while, each one entertained in its own thinking. However, without realizing it, Ginny came up with a letter that her own owl had left for Harry just a moment ago in the Burrow's kitchen.
The redhead young girl and the eternal Boy-Who-Lived came out into the garden and somehow seemed more worried than they wanted to show. And as they left, Hermione walked into the room, seeing her boyfriend sitting there with a strange expression on his face.
"Mi, I think we must talk, talk about us.", Ronald began, his voice seemed to be choked. And he cast a spell in the garden so no one could hear their conversation.
- You can say whatever you need.
They were staring at each other for a few seconds when Ronald took a deep breath. "Okay, I guess nothing is more the same since you decided to go back to Hogwarts ...", he was whispering as he tried to continue saying something.
Mione was staring at him, deeply absorbed in the words she was listening to.
"Well, to sum it all up, I think we can do something to improve... To save what we have. Or, I do not know ... Who knows...", he tried to keep talking, but he was very anxious and a little bit nervous. "Mione, say something, please."
Hermione suddenly felt the air go missing. She felt the ground fade beneath her feet. Then she closed her eyes and opened them again, plunging into the deep blue that his eyes had transformed. Then she smiled.
- Ok, Ronald. It's ok.
Harry and Ginny had entered the Burrow just before Hermione let a single tear fall. Both seemed genuinely astonished since it was not very common to see Hermione that way. They would suddenly look from her to the redhead, trying to figure out what was going on, until Mione said she needed to sort things out. They tried to persuade her to stay, but they knew she needed some time alone.
Somehow, they knew Ron would sooner or later do some great bullshit. No, they did not understand how, but they had already noticed something was not right with him when he was around the brunette. Besides, they also knew, at that very moment, that her friend needed some time without their presence or Ron's.
She had apparated into a wizard's bar, located in a noble neighborhood of London, which she had thought because it was the same time, a calm and cozy place.
"Please, I need firewhisky, sir." She asked the bartender gently, who answered her promptly.
"Now, who would say that the Hogwarts' know-it-all really drinks firewhisky ...", the drawn voice had identified its owner, and shortly after hearing the last word, she turned to face him.
"What do you want, Malfoy?", she asked coldly to the young man beside her.
She was trying to reproduce in her speech the way the blonde spoke, without making any effort.
Their eyes stayed connected for a few seconds until she looked back at her glass. And closing her eyes gently, she drank all the content that was in her glass a few seconds ago.
Then she looked back at the blonde, looked him up and down, and a smile formed on her lips. The brunette shook her head, as if she was trying to shake off a bad thought, and then sighed with some sadness.
"You look awful, Granger.", said the boy. And the smile on the corner of his lips had been there since she had looked him up and down at him.
"You know, Malfoy, you should be in your Mansion, maybe torturing someone ...", she said it to the blond at her side.
He seemed to ignore her comment and focused on the glass in front of him.
And suddenly the Gryffindor began to present a mysterious expression. Then she turned to the bartender, smiling more than necessary.
"One more dose of firewhisky, please, to close this crap night with a golden key." She was laughing at herself.
Her drink was in her hand, and before she could think, she turned the glass and took it all at once. Then she lifted it, looked at the Malfoy's heir, who held the damn smile at the corner of his lips, bowed ironically to him and then she apparated.
The young man stared at the spot where she was seconds before and laughed. She was crazy, as well as seeming an annoying and drunken know-it-all. So, he apparated to the mansion, tired and irritated. He really needed to have a good evening before returning to Hogwarts.