Chapter 1
Disclaimer: Not mine, I'm just playing with them. The disclaimer here applies to all chapters. This story was inspired by the Wiktt plot bunny Snape's Wheels. I urge you to look at pictures as you read. The cafe is based on the Clockhouse pub in London (although I've never been there). And the car is definitely worth a look. Otherwise, enjoy!
She first saw him on her birthday, September 19th. Hermione wasn't sure who 'he' was, exactly, but she had her suspicions and she knew Four Things. One, she knew he looked an awful lot like Severus Snape. But then Two, she also knew that Snape was dead, so it had to be someone else. On top of that, Three, she knew they had never found a body and Four, whenever she tried to think about 'him' later on, she could never pin down exactly what he looked like. In Hermione's mind, points Three and Four rather negated point Two.
Later on, Hermione was ashamed to say that she actually hadn't given him much notice on September 19th. She was far too caught up in her fury and revenge planning on account of being stood up (on her own birthday no less!) by Harry and Ron. 'I forgot' only works so many times and it certainly won't work when feebly apologizing for missing a best friend's birthday (although Hermione was certainly beginning to wonder about the 'friend' part, having already given up on the 'best' two years ago).
Deep in her heart, or into a glass of wine, Hermione knew that they were all barely friends now. The first crack appeared when Hermione refused to work with them in the world of Quidditch. She didn't even know why they expected her to join them there to begin with. 'You can get a job in publicity or be our manager!' they had said while informing her of their plans. 'It'll be just like school.' Oh yes, because she had such fun mothering them and taking care of them. Just because it was in her nature to watch out for those she cared about did not mean that she actually liked doing so. Hermione didn't even have to reflect on their offer before giving them an emphatic No. She could remember the stress and headache of the last seven years well enough and had no desire to continue it, thank you very much, even if Voldemort wasn't around to compound problems.
So now, for better or worse, she was separated from her friends. Hermione never said anything to Harry or Ron about it, and neither did they to her, but everyone knew that they were going their own ways. Harry and Ron into easy living, fame, and girls and Hermione into...well, she didn't really know.
It was for this precise reason that this mystery man was so appealing. He hadn't even said anything to her. She was standing in the rain (which was an insult to injury on her letdown of a birthday), about to completely give up on Harry and Ron and apparate home when he stepped out of a door next to a little café down the street. Turning hopefully in the event that it was Ron or Harry, Hermione looked in his direction. He saw her and stopped briefly, dark eyes flashing as he saw her droop in disappointment. Giving the smallest of nods with something that almost spoke of sympathy in his eyes, he turned and walked towards his car, which, Hermione noted, was a beautiful black 1974 Cadillac Eldorado.
After Hermione had arrived home and settled in with spiked hot chocolate, a blanket, and Crookshanks in her coziest armchair, she had started to reflect on the man, her birthday, her friends, and her life. Somehow her illusions of contentedness had been torn away by the brief sight of that man, and Hermione realized with a start that she was not at all where she expected to be in her life. Her birthday was bloody awful (apart from the hot chocolate), her friends were off having grand adventures (probably grand sex, as well), and her life was more boring than a curling competition on telly.
Hermione sighed and scratched Crookshanks behind the ears. 'I need to find my mystery man Crooks.' She smiled to herself. 'Look at that, I've already claimed him as mine and I can't even remember what he looks like. Leastways I won't forget his car. 'S'probably the best way to find him. How many '74 Cadillac Eldorados can there be?'
Hermione quickly discovered the next day that there were more black '74 Cadillac Eldorados than she had originally presumed. Since she worked in the MoM as a liaison with the muggle world, she could get a hold of some documents that were not available to the public, namely vehicle registration papers. Privately justifying it to herself as 'only a quick peek' and 'won't do any harm', she copied the relevant information and returned them without anyone being the wiser.
Deciding to take a rare half-day ('I'm sorry, Kingsley, I really must take care of my mum. She's horribly ill and my dad's away on a business trip.'), Hermione contained her excitement just enough to apparate home.
An hour after she settled in, though, she realized her mistake. How could she possibly find his name if she didn't remember what he looked like? Hermione slumped back in her chair, momentarily disheartened.
'I'm a bloody idiot, Crooks! I got so excited about his car I didn't think of anything else and now I'm stuck here with sheets of paper that lead me nowhere and would certainly incriminate me should anyone find out about this.' She absent-mindedly scratched Crookshanks head. 'I suppose I'll go back to that café, see if he shows up at the place next door. I'm not waiting around for him to find me.' Crookshanks purred in agreement.
Half an hour later, Hermione was sitting outside said café in what she considered her best spy gear: dark wash jeans, a black cashmere sweater, stylish flats that she could run in if necessary, and sunglasses, even though it was still quite cloudy from the storm the previous night.
An hour and a half later, Hermione was just about to give up and go home. No one had gone in or out through the door she had sworn to have seem him leave through. She was even beginning to doubt the existence of the door. Sighing and reaching into her pocket to pay for her tea and sandwich, a sudden honk disrupted her thoughts as she involuntarily turned to look in the direction of the sound. There, parked on the other side of the street, was the black cadillac.
'Of all the...!' Hermione blinked and squinted across the way. She murmured, 'No, it can't be. I was watching both directions, I would have seen it...'
'No, you wouldn't have. You only see it now because I want you to. As you have no other pressing engagements, will you join me, Miss Granger?'
A/N: I hope you enjoyed the first installment! Please read and review. I am American, but I am attempting to be as British as possible (this includes the quotation marks). If there are any mistakes, I would be very grateful if they were pointed out so I could fix them.