-1
Hermione woke up in a dead sweat, breathing heavily. She looked at her surroundings and sighed, Just another bad dream, she thought. Ever since Voldemort had been defeated only a few short months ago, Hermione had been having recurring nightmares of her friends and family dying; her parents, her loved ones in the Order, of Harry, Ron, Ginny, and even of Fred and George. While she had no lost many in the war, the experience did not leave her unscathed – they had all suffered. Sometimes she thought if was just her imagining what could have been, almost reminding her how lucky she was.
Hermione looked at her clock and saw 6:30 AM. She was never going to fall back asleep again at this rate, so she decided to brace herself for another groggy day. She had decided at the end of the war that when Hogwarts was up to par, that she was going to go back to finish her schooling. It wasn't in her nature to leave any task unfinished or any stone unturned. Harry and Ron, the fools they were, decided to forgo their final year and head straight into ministry work, and Kingsley Shacklebolt was happy to oblige. While Hermione was happy for them, she was saddened at the prospect of facing school without them; she pined for the normalcy of the pre-war era in a place that would now hold different memories for her.
She walked downstairs, past her parent's empty bedroom, down the main hallway, into the kitchen. She closed the door. With the war so recently behind her, she had been trying not to think about her parents, whose memories were still gone. She feared what she might find when she went looking for them, and didn't want to disappoint herself or them if things were not the same as they were before. Although, how could they ever be? She was in the middle of making herself an omelette, enjoying cooking the muggle way, when she was interrupted by an incessant tapping on the window.
"Pig? You ridiculous little bird, get in the house." Hermione whispered as she opened the window. The little owl flew wildly into the kitchen, knocking over a bottle of orange juice and landed right on top of Hermione's toast. Hermione groaned and untied the letter from the leg he offered to her while picking at her breakfast.
Hermione,
Let me start by apologizing about Pig. As you can tell, training is not going well. I think after all the time away he learned bad habits from other people and he's too far-gone to train. But on a lighter note, Mum and Dad said I can have you and Harry over for the summer, you know, seeing as it's our last summer before you go back to Hogwarts and Harry and I start training. We're picking up Harry since he doesn't know how to apparate yet. We can pick you up too or you could just come by floo. Is your house connected to the network? We're picking Harry up tomorrow at noon. Let me know if you can.
Love,
Ron
She laughed at Ron's letter, overjoyed at not having to spend her summer entirely alone. She quickly scrawled back:
Ron,
Seeing as how I'm in a big need of my best friends right now - already having withdrawals after spending months with you two - I'd love to come and stay. I'll be arriving by floo, with all of my things. I'll see you tomorrow then.
Love,
Hermione
Hermione tied the letter to Pig's leg, sent him out the window and closed it. Hermione wasn't much in the mood for breakfast anymore. It was one of the mornings where you might be sitting down to eat breakfast or on your way to work but have this feeling in the pit of your stomach that something big was going to happen, even though nothing ever does. She couldn't eat with such an unsettling feeling. She slowly walked upstairs and changed into a pair of yoga pants, some tennis shoes, grabbed her ipod, and walked downstairs. She found a hair tie on the kitchen counter and wrapped her hair in a loose bun. She put her sweatshirt on, and grabbed the bottle of water and the house keys.
Once she was outside, she started jogging. She had begun doing this every day, as it was the only way to clear her head and settle her mind when it was working overtime. The endorphins kicked in almost immediately. She loved the smell of the air after a good rain, and feel of the wind on her sticky face, the burning sensation in her legs. She loved the sound of her tennis shoes on the ground, the only thing moving for miles and miles. She had a special path through the woods that barely anyone ever walked, so she was by herself. This was one time she didn't mind the solitude, and being alone.
Once she got home, she dragged herself upstairs and turned on the shower. She put her ipod away in her room and walked back to the bathroom where steam was billowing out of the doorway. She walked in and closed the door and stood there, watching her reflection condense in the mirror until she was no longer visible, and then got into the shower.
When she got out of the shower, feeling refreshed and in a much better mood, she wrapped herself in a towel while one was on her head and looked for something to wear. The weather was a little warmer, so she decided on a cute pencil skirt that showed off her curves with a cute lacy blouse. She pulled on some of her favorite light tan sandals and then hung her towels up and begin to brush her untamed curls and added a few dabs of different kinds of products. Into her still-wet hair She turned her head upside down and blow-dried her hair. She quickly used a spell to straighten it, and admired the result; this style would last her for a few days and she absolutely loathed having to do her hair. She decided that in order not to deal with Ron and Harry's complaints about going shopping that she would go shopping for an updated wardrobe for school before leaving for Ron's.
Hermione, Ron, and Harry had been awarded ridiculous amounts of money for their "heroism" during the war. Combined with the money that Hermione's parents left behind from their dental practice, Hermione realistically never needed to work again, but she couldn't fathom a life without purpose and drive; she was just too driven not to work. Once at the shopping mall, she spent a few hours shopping before she started to lose steam.
When she was satisfied, she was on her way back to the car when she was looking at a news story on her cellphone when she walked right into somebody. "Oh my –. I am so sorry. That was completely my fault – I was not paying attention to where I was walking," Hermione immediately said while trying to gather her bags.
"Hermione?" she heard the man ask, and hearing the familiar voice, looked up into beautiful blue eyes.
"Fred? What on earth are you doing here?" Hermione asked immediately, smiling brightly at him.
