Summary: Magic exists. Who can doubt it, when there are rainbows and wildflowers, the music of the wind and the silence of the stars? Anyone who has loved has been touched by magic. It is such a simple and such an extraordinary part of the lives we live.


Disclaimer: I don't own the characters and some things like the wolf came from a book by Nora Roberts.

As a woman, she preferred a quiet life, and was often alone without the pain of loneliness.

As a witch, she accepted her gift, and never forgot the responsibility it entailed.

Perhaps she yearned, as mortals and others have yearned since the beginning, for a true and abiding love. For she knew better than most that there was no power, no enchantment, no sorcery, greater than the gift of an open and accepting heart.

She had watched as her two best friends found love and she had been truly happy for them. But after the weddings and all that followed she couldn't bear to stay in the wizarding world. Yes she still did little jobs for the ministry and never had and would never give up magic, but she just couldn't live there anymore. She had made it through the war and still she had stayed but Harry and Ron's weddings had been it for her. She knew she would never settle down with someone, not after him. Hermione knew she had to let him go but she also knew that she couldn't, as he and Dumbledore used to say, they were tied together. How, she had never known, no matter what one did to make the other leave they always came back to each other. After the war when everything was back to semi order, they graced the cover of every magazine and paper. The wizarding world couldn't get enough of them, their love had been refered to as the happy version of Romeo and Juliet for those of the witches and wizards who knew muggle stories. She had always hated being put out in front of everybody but he would always tell her to bask in it. That it was proof that their love was the greatest and that they would always be together. "But look at me now," Hermione thought to herself. He had just fell of the face of the earth, no trace, not a word to Hermione or anyone else. People said he had been killed for betraying Voldemort but Hermione knew he was still alive, she had a gut feeling she would know if he died. All she knew was that the love must not have been so great for him because he had left her and she just couldn't take being in the wizarding world because he was so often metioned even though he had left 3 years ago. So she moved to the outskirts of a little town on the coast of England. She was miles from town, as she had wished; her house was a stone cottage. It was a little big but she loved the space, where others would go mad from the lonely empty space she loved it.

The house was two stories, not huge but it wasn't small either. Vines climbed up the walls giving it the look that it had been around for a very long time. Hermione loved it, and it showed in how she cared for it. There was two gardens one that consumed the back yard. It seemed to come out of the back wall of the house, and stretched all the way to the forest behind the house. There were all types of flowers, everyday flowers, exotic flowers and all manner in between. But one type of flower ruled all.

The roses.

Hermione loved them, not just because they were beautiful but because she had always been drawn to them if it could be said that way. She had every type of rose imaginable plus ones that had stemmed from magic. In the front yard another garden took reign. This one was simpler it consisted of small delicate flowers and bushes not trees and growing vines like the back yard. She also grew herbs; ever since she had moved here she had taken up cooking and loved to experiment. She also used cooking to heal, she grew herbs and not all her flowers were just there, some could be used to ease pain or her clear the mind. It was her specialty.

Every evening Hermione would take a run, her route consisted of leaving the house running through the trail that lead to the cliffs and then she would rest for about fifteen minutes and then run back. Today Hermione decided to stay and watch the sunset. Hermione sat with her feet dangling off the edge of the cliff, the spray of the waves hitting the rocks below cooled her hot skin. She watched as the sun hit the horizon and the sky burst into flame. This was her favorite time of day all the bold colors and the day just cooling off enchanted her. Lost in her own thoughts Hermione didn't hear the soft footfalls of paws. She stood and looked around and, deciding to head home she turned to the trail and stopped. There at the beginning of the trail sat a wolf, he was black as sin with grey-blue eyes that seemed to be studying her. The look seemed so human that Hermione had to smile. She wasn't afraid and decided to take a chance.

"Here boy, I won't hurt you." Hermione reassured it as she slowly moved closer. "Merlin, you're gorgeous aren't you?" She was standing directly in front of him now. She sat on the ground waiting on him to take the final step. As he moved forward Hermione held her breath. He came up and sniffed her hand, then as if fighting with his thoughts he stepped back. "It's ok, I won't hurt you, trust me. I could use a friend." She laughed, then as if saying "oh what the hell." He shrugged, it was the only way to describe his movement, and began to nuzzle her hand. He allowed Hermione to pet him and walked back with her to her house. When they got there Hermione looked down at him.

"If you wait here I'll get you some food." She went up the back steps and onto the porch, she turned, he had followed her up the path and was sitting at the base of the steps. She went inside and put some leftovers on a plate and walked back out. The wolf was gone but she left the food on the porch in case he came back.

Hermione awoke screaming. Another nightmare, she had been having them since he had left. They always started out the same, at the war. Hermione would watch as everyone of her friends were killed again and again each night in her dream. But that wasn't the worst part, the part she always woke screaming from was after the war, when he left. She would always hear him saying he didn't love her and never would not anymore.

Hermione was snapped out of her thoughts when her bedroom door creaked open and in stepped the wolf. Hermione jumped despite the fact she knew he wouldn't hurt her. She got out of bed and grabbed her robe from her bedpost, she walked to the wolf and stopped.

"Now, how did you get in? hmmm?" Hermione walked out of her room and down the stairs to the kitchen. Hermione felt a slight breeze coming from the back door which was standing wide open. "Well i guess i didn't shut it all the way before I went to bed." She turned around to see the wolf standing behind her. She left the door open and went and grabbed some leftovers and put them on a plate and sat it in front of the wolf. "You hungry boy?"

The wolf sat down and began to eat. Hermione soon found herself talking to the wolf, telling him about Harry and Ginny, and Ron and Lavander. She told him about meaningless things but she couldn't help but feel like he was listinging to her. When he was done she got up and walked to the back door, "You going to leave?" but he wasn't there she left the door open and headed back upstairs. When she got to her room she walked inside to find the wolf laying at the foot of her bed as if he slept there all the time.

Hermione shrugged and hung her robe back on the bedpost and crawled into bed. Soon the darkness took her and for the rest of the night Hermione slept a deep and dreamless sleep.

The wolf ran through the forest his thoughts were on the woman he had ran into earlier. He shouldn't have stayed, hell he should have left her at the trail. Even as he thought it he knew he couldn't, they were tied together.

He ran and ran only to come to an adrupt halt at the cliffs. He sat for a while just staring out over the water. Then just as quick as he stopped he was running again. He came apon a cabin with all its lights on as if it knew he were coming. The wolf bounded up the steps to the back door.

And there the wolf became a man.

AN: Ok i don't know how this is going to turn out. I know it was short but i'm just starting and i wanted to kinda give a lil background on why Hermione wasn't in the wizarding world. Next chapter hopefully will be long idk though...please review and tell me what you think..any suggestions?? tell me they are welcome...much love 3 3 3