Chapter One.
Seven years later.
Sitting in the new Parisian style café in Diagon Alley, Hermione was doing her best to appear interested in the conversation taking place between the two women she was having lunch with. However, listening to Molly Weasley and her daughter, Ginny Potter, discuss the latest family events wasn't providing much of a distraction for Hermione. Instead her mind was elsewhere as she thought about what had been on her mind for the last four weeks, her engagement to her long-time friend and boyfriend of three years, Ron Weasley.
From the moment Hermione had said yes to Ron's proposal and he'd slipped a modest diamond engagement ring on her finger four weeks ago, Hermione had been in turmoil. When Ron had proposed it felt like the natural thing to say yes. She loved him, albeit it not in the same way she'd loved Draco, and she knew they could have a happy, fulfilling life together. However, she didn't expect the engagement to come accompanied by a truck load of guilt. Every time she thought about marrying Ron, Hermione felt her heart clench and she was overwhelmed with the feeling she was betraying Draco.
After Draco's death it had been Harry and Ron who had been there for her and gave her the strength she needed to move on and live her life. When Harry had married Ginny, eighteen months after the war, his priorities obviously changed and it meant Hermione spent more time with Ron. The more time the spent together, the stronger their friendship had grown and things had eventually turned to romance. Hermione couldn't really put her finger on when things had changed between them, but entering into a relationship with Ron had seemed the natural thing to do.
Hermione didn't regret her relationship with Ron, and she did love him, but she was very aware of how different it was to when she was with Draco. Her relationship with Draco had been full of fire and passion, whereas things with Ron were more sedate and mundane. Surprisingly, they didn't even argue as much these days despite being very different people. Hermione suspected Ron often skirted an argument, rather than standing up for his own opinions, which just made her compare him to Draco even more. Draco never would have just rolled over to avoid an argument, if he'd had something to say, he would have said it and they would have dealt with it as a couple.
Hermione had felt initial pangs of guilt when she first got together with Ron, but they were nothing compared with the waves of guilt that had been plaguing her since their engagement. She knew it was stupid to feel as though she was betraying Draco as he was dead, and she knew that he wouldn't have wanted her to live her life all alone. Hermione was actually beginning to wonder if her feelings of betrayal was her subconscious way of letting herself know she wasn't ready to marry Ron. Getting married was rather final, and she was beginning to wonder if she was doing the right thing. Was she just using Draco as an excuse because she was marrying a man nothing like the one she'd once dreamed she would be tying the knot with.
"Hermione." Ginny's snapping fingers brought Hermione out of her thoughts, and she realised she'd zoned out.
"Sorry," Hermione apologised with a smile. "I just got lost in thought."
"What about?" Ginny asked with a mischievous smirk.
"Nothing like that," Hermione replied with a roll of her eyes. She knew Ginny well enough to know her friend's mind had immediately turned naughty.
"I'm sure Hermione was just thinking about the wedding," Molly said, not realising just what her daughter had been implying. "After all, we need to get planning it."
"We've only just gotten engaged, Molly," Hermione protested.
"These things take time to organise, Hermione," Molly replied. "Have you even thought about what sort of wedding you want? Do you want a big, fancy ceremony, or a small, family affair? How much of your muggle roots do you want to incorporate into things? Do you and Ron want to be bonded?"
Hermione's head began to swim with all the questions Molly was throwing at her. To tell the truth, she hadn't given the wedding any real thought. She'd been so consumed thinking about if she was doing the right thing, she hadn't thought far enough ahead to actually picture the actual wedding itself. However, now the ideas were in her head she found she wasn't picturing Ron as the man she walked down the aisle towards. Shaking her head to dispel the images of Draco that were beginning to take shape, Hermione refilled her glass of water.
"I really haven't had time to think about anything like that," She told Molly. "Ron and I will have to discuss it one evening."
"That's a good idea," Molly said with an encouraging nod. "Maybe we should make you a list of things you need to discuss."
"I've got a notebook in my bag," Ginny eagerly offered.
Hermione wondered why Ginny was carrying a notebook around with her, but she didn't actually bother to ask as her redheaded friend whipped it out and placed it on the table in between herself and her mother. Deciding just to let the two women get on with planning a wedding she still wasn't sure was even going to happen, Hermione picked up her water and took a sip.
Settling back in her chair, she glanced around the café as Molly and Ginny got to work. As her gaze flicked past the window, which looked out on a bustling Diagon Alley, Hermione suddenly froze. Standing opposite the café, leaning against a lamppost, was Draco. Not teenage Draco, which was how Hermione always remembered her former boyfriend, but Draco as he would look now at twenty five. Hermione closed her eyes briefly, thinking that when she opened them the vision would be gone. However, when she reopened her eyes, Draco was still standing across the street watching her with his intense grey eyes. Gasping slightly as the vision refused to leave her, the glass she was holding slipped from her hand and smashed when it hit the table, sending water everywhere.
"Hermione," Ginny cried, quickly scooping up the notebook and jumping up before the water trickled across the table and onto her dress.
"Sorry," Hermione apologised, snapping her head around to face the mess she'd just created.
"Are you okay dear?" Molly asked in obvious concern. "You look rather pale."
"I'm fine," Hermione replied, not willing to admit she was seeing visions of a dead man. Turning her head back towards the window, she let out a small sigh of relief when the street opposite the café was deserted.
"What happened?" Ginny asked, moving out of the way as a couple of waiters came over to sort out the mess.
"The glass just slipped," Hermione answered.
"And are you sure you're okay?" Molly checked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."
"I've just got a bit of a headache," Hermione answered, realising as she said it that it was the truth. She hadn't really noticed it before, but her head was starting to pound relentlessly.
"Maybe you should go home and rest," Ginny suggested. "You want to be feeling better for tonight."
Hermione smiled thinly at the reminder that she was due to attend a charity ball with Ron, Harry and Ginny. The charity was connected to the quidditch club Ginny played for and they attended every year. Hermione usually ended up bored out of her brains as the only topic of conversation seemed to revolve around quidditch, something which Hermione was still not interested in.
"Don't worry Gin, I won't miss tonight," Hermione promised. She may find the evening tedious, but Ginny was her friend and she would be there to support her.
"Then go and get some rest," Ginny urged. "Mum and I can finish your wedding list by ourselves."
"And what about our shopping trip?" Hermione asked. The whole reason she'd taken the afternoon off work and was having lunch with Molly and Ginny was so that they could go shopping for Ginny to buy a new outfit for the charity evening.
"I'm sure we can manage on our own," Molly said. "Ginny's right, go and rest, Hermione."
Deciding to take Ginny and Molly up on their advice, Hermione quickly said her goodbyes and hurried out of the café. When she emerged from the café, she headed over to the lamppost where she'd seen Draco standing. Of course there was no sign of him being there as it had all been in her head, but Hermione could have sworn she felt his lingering presence.
"Stop it, you sill cow," She muttered to herself. "He's dead. It's all in your head."
Turning away from the place where she'd seen Draco, Hermione pulled out her wand and apparated back home to her flat. Despite the fact she'd been with Ron for three years and they were now engaged, they didn't live together. Hermione had been adamant she wanted to keep her own space, and Ron hadn't pushed the subject. He'd just settled for them staying over at each other's flats on a semi-regular basis.
After removing her jacket, hanging up her bag and kicking off her shoes, Hermione headed to the kitchen and fixed herself a cup of coffee. Settling down in the front room, Hermione couldn't help but think about what she'd seen at lunch. She often dreamed about Draco, and sometimes he spoke as though he knew what was going on in her life, but she'd never had a vision of him in the middle of the day. It was rather disturbing that her mind would play tricks on her like that, but she thought it could be another indicator of how unsure she was about her engagement. After all, if she was truly happy with Ron, she wouldn't be constantly thinking about her former boyfriend.
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Hermione vowed to put her worries to one side as she entered the charity ball at Ron's side. Even though the evening would be overrun with quidditch talk, she could still try and enjoy herself with her friends. Ron had even mentioned that Ginny had invited Neville and Luna, and Hermione knew neither of them were over obsessed with quidditch, meaning they would hopefully have another topic of conversation.
"Is it just me, or is this bigger than normal?" Hermione whispered to Ron as they entered the ballroom where the evening was being held.
"It is," Ron replied. "The Holyhead Harpies have joined forces with The Appleby Arrows, it's now a joint event for the two teams."
"Great, double the quidditch," Hermione muttered.
"I promise not to talk quidditch the entire time," Ron vowed, giving Hermione a warm smile. "We could talk about the wedding. We need to start making plans."
Hermione nodded at Ron, even though her heart sank at the mention of the wedding. She was hoping for one evening where the wedding wouldn't be mentioned. All she wanted was one evening alone without a mention of her engagement to Ron. She could do without thinking about Draco, not after events of the afternoon.
"Look, there's Harry and Ginny," Ron declared, spotting his sister and best friend across the room.
Hermione and Ron stopped at the bar to get a drink, before they headed over to where Harry and Ginny were chatting with another player on Ginny's team. Harry gave Hermione a peck on the cheek as he greeted the pair, while Ginny introduced them to her teammate, even though they'd met her a few times.
"I hear congratulations are in order," Sophia, Ginny's teammate said with a smile.
"Thank you," Ron replied, pulling Hermione into his side and placing a kiss on the top of her head.
"Have you set the date?"
"Not yet," Hermione replied quickly. It never ceased to amaze her just how much people were interested in her and Ron's life just because they'd helped Harry defeat Voldemort.
After chatting for a bit longer, Ginny's teammate said her goodbyes and headed off. Ginny also quickly excused herself so she could mingle as all the players were expected to do. Left with Harry and Ron, Hermione soon found herself left out of the conversation as they started talking about the upcoming quidditch season.
"I'm going to get another drink," She announced. Ron gave her a half-hearted smile as he barely broke away from his conversation with Harry.
Rolling her eyes, Hermione headed over to the bar, keeping a look out for Neville and Luna. By the time she was served, there was still no sign of the couple, and she was so distracted looking for them, she almost walked into a fellow guest.
"I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention," She said, checking she hadn't spilt wine all over the wizard she'd almost crashed into.
"You should pay attention," The wizard sneered.
Hermione looked up at the wizard with a frown, since she apologised she saw no reason why he should be so rude. When she got a good look at the wizard, she felt she should know him but she couldn't put her finger on where from. He looked to be about her age, with brown hair and he was fairly good looking.
"Are you done staring, Granger?" He snapped.
"Sorry," Hermione apologised, blushing slightly as the implication she was checking the wizard out. "Hold on, you know my name?"
"Doesn't everyone," He replied with an unimpressed snort. "You are the war heroine, Hermione Granger. The Gryffindor Golden Girl."
Hermione winced at the nickname, which she knew stemmed from school. In fact it had been Draco who had given it to her, one time when his friends were around and they were pretending to argue. The only people who'd ever used it were Slytherins, and they all spat it in the same hateful way in which the wizard in front of her said it.
"Nott," Hermione declared, suddenly placing the wizard in front of her. "You're Theo Nott."
"I know who I am," Theo replied with a sneer. "And I know exactly who you are. Now if you'll excuse me, there's people here I actually want to talk to."
As Theo stalked away from her, Hermione was left slightly stunned from their conversation. She'd never really known Theo in school, but he had never seemed as antagonistic as some of his other house mates. In fact Draco had always said he was a really good guy, and he wouldn't judge Hermione. Seemingly Draco had been wrong, and his friend wasn't the good guy he'd always thought. Theo Nott obviously hated her for some reason, and all she could think of was the fact she was a muggleborn and had helped bring down Voldemort.
Pushing aside her conversation with Theo, she returned to Harry and Ron where she discovered a couple of things. Firstly, Theo had just signed for The Appleby Arrows, hence his presence at the ball, and secondly, Luna was ill so her and Neville wouldn't be making an appearance. Without Luna and Neville to break up the quidditch talk, Hermione quickly drowned her wine as she prepared herself for the long evening that lay ahead of her.
