Chapter One.

4 Years Earlier

Ministry, London, England

Two members of the former Golden Trio were talking in the Ministry lifts coming up from level two. It was past eight and definitely time for a good meal and dinner. After finally defeating Voldemort, Harry had been offered a position as an Auror, but he'd turned it down to train to be an Unspeakable. No one but he knew what he did down there and it was nice to have a part of himself that the Daily Prophet couldn't pick apart. Ron had taken the position in the Auror department and had moved up in the ranks for his hard work and dedication to the law. He wasn't looking to become Moody or anything, just good at his job.

These days the boys had their loves, Harry had Ginny and finally, Ron had Lavender. Ron had been with Lavender for over a year after he and Hermione decided their love was purely platonic and sibling like. Harry and Ginny of course had been together since her final year at Hogwarts, but things were going downhill. Harry thought they needed more excitement and something new, Ginny thought everything was fine the way it was. Their differing opinions were giving Harry the idea that maybe there was something more out there for him.

"Harry, I promise you, Ginny is the right person. You just need to spend a few days apart." Ron was trying to convince his best friend of ten years that he was right in deciding to propose.

"I know she's the right person, but sometimes I wonder if there isn't more out there. You reckon we need time apart? Maybe see other people for a bit?" Harry was so unsure he didn't know if he should even go through with asking her that night.

"I think we'd better ask for Hermione's opinion. You know how she is with girl's feelings."

Harry sighed, this was going to be harder than he thought, he did need a woman's opinion though, and Hermione was definitely his best bet. The question was trying to find her. Hermione had finished her N.E. at Hogwarts and had gone on to study to be a Healer which took two extra years of training at St. Mungo's. After that she'd been taken on by a wizarding hospital in Paris, and that kept her busy enough. Healer's hours were so unpredictable; they almost never found time to simply be in friendly company.

Finally stepping off the lifts into the Atrium, the boys headed to the many fireplaces lined along the walls.

"Alright well, I'll go home and see if she's in her flat, if not we'll just put this proposing thing off 'til tomorrow." Harry decided.

"Sure thing, mate." Ron was just glad at least a partial decision had been made.

Xxxx

Hospital para Enfermedades y Heridas Magicas
(Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Barcelona, Spain)

Hermione had just spent hours researching a cure for a wizard with heart disease, and as there were no cures for that magically she'd had to resort to muggle surgery. At first the patient had been skeptical about trying something so primitive, but after hearing that magic could be used to prevent any further infection and scarring he'd accepted. Especially after Hermione had explained that he only had about a year left of life.

So with a feeling of accomplishment and also a bit of disappointment with the magical world at having overlooked such disease, Hermione went home to her flat. It was perfect for her, it was small but clean and had a tourist's view overlooking La Porte de Barcelona, she could even see the ships from her balcony window. Only small adjustments had to be made when she moved, like enlarging the fireplace to allow her friends and even family to visit, and of course the small wards to protect her tiny home.

Hermione loved Barcelona, the people, the tourists, the language, and especially the history. Everything about the city interested her ever curious mind; she was never bored and still hadn't seen everything after a year of living in the City of Dreams.

She hadn't met anyone either. However it wasn't for lack of trying, a few men had asked her out on dates, but they were all boring. They liked her because she was pretty and because she had a good job. They were the type to either dream big and not go anywhere, or dream of only making her happy which was just too much, in her opinion, especially if they hadn't known each other very long. Perhaps she was just too hard on the male sex, she knew she was picky, but who wasn't?

In her experience, men were just too immature.

These thoughts carried her all the way home, through two sexy smiles from Frenchmen, and a wave from the old doorman whom she loved dearly.

Entering her flat, she went right to her comfy white sofa and sighed, three letters on her coffee table and it looked as though a fire call was coming through. Please don't let it be the hospital! Then one of her favorite faces came through.

"Hiya, Hermione!"

"Ron! It's been ages. How are you?" It had been two weeks since she'd last seen him and in her opinion too long.

"I know it, I'm sorry, but I'm really good, Lav and I have been looking at houses. Anyway, I'm here to warn you." Hermione laughed.

"About what, Lav on a jealous rage again?" That only happened when they spent too much time together, so she wasn't too worried. Ron laughed as well.

"No, but Harry's on his way over to his flat and is going to call you."

"Really? Are we going to make a trio of it then?"

"I'm really going to try, but mum's insisting on dinner tonight, you're invited of course."

"Late dinner isn't it. Well what's so important?"

"It's about Gin."

"Oh, that could get nasty." The flames turned bright green once again. "Oh, there's another call coming through, I'll tell you how it goes."

"Alright." Just as quickly Harry's face replaced Ron's.

"Hermione!" Harry had the look on his face of deep anxiety, which she knew could only come from one thing, Ginerva Weasley, the woman that stole Harry's heart nearly 2 years ago.

"Harry! What a wonderful surprise! How are you?" It had been another two weeks without seeing Harry as well and Hermione was starting to think she was a work-a-holic.

"I'm fine, love, I just have to talk to you. May I come through?"

She beckoned Harry in, hurrying to get the tea tray settled so they could relax.

"So, let me get right to it. Ginny, well, erm, I'm planning to ask Ginny to marry me." He said this all very fast, so fast in fact that Hermione almost didn't catch it all. When she finally caught on, she noticed that the happy go-lucky face you usually get when a man is planning to propose was missing. In truth he looked rather stressed out about it.

"Oh that's wonderful! Uh, isn't it?" Hermione tried.

"Oh, well, yes, of course. It's just, things haven't been going well. Well, they have, it's the same thing as always. I wake up and she has breakfast ready, eggs, bacon and toast, every day. The same old kiss on the cheek, and then off to work, and home again where there is always left-over's from Mrs. Weasley. Then we make love, but only on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and even then it's not even fun anymore. We don't go out, we don't see friends. It's all so…. Typical." He looked so dejected, as if he'd never been so stuck.

"Oh, Harry. Have you talked to her about it?" Hermione reached out to touch his hand. "What does Ron say?"

"I've talked to her, and she doesn't seem to think anything is wrong. Nothing is really wrong, it's just so boring, and it's all one-sided." He sighed, "Ron reckons we need some time apart and I agree, to an extent. He also said I should talk to you about it."

"Right, well. Can you wait a few days? I can talk to the Ministry here and see if there is a short training session in the 'Departamento de Misterios'" At Harry's blank look she clarified. "The department of Mysteries, the Barcelona Division. Their training classes are in both English and Spanish. It'll give you an excuse to get away for a while since it'll be closed door training sessions, you'll only get weekends off and you can bunk here if you need to. You don't have to tell Ginny that if you don't need to, we aren't that close so she won't come here."

"Hermione, that's great. That just might work. New people, new environment, new place, its perfect. I'll just tell Ginny, it'll be like a trial time." The hopeful look on his face gave Hermione the push she needed to really help him.

Xxxx

Two days later

Hermione walked into the Ministry towards the bulletin board that was magically shuffling its papers that hung on the wall by varying importance. Almost immediately she spotted one that could help her friend.

El 7 de Abril

Para los meses entre Abril 10 y Julio 10

Departamento de Misterios
(Department of Mysteries)

Los que no hablan
(To the Unspeakables)

Hay un sesion de entreniamento
(There is a new training session)

Se comienzo en Abril para
tres meses un tecnologico Nuevo
va hacer examines.

(Starting in April
for three months a new
technology will be tested.)

Hermione pulled out her mirror that Harry had given her and Ron after the Final Battle, just in case. These mirrors worked as magical walkie-talkies with a visual output. So cool in Hermione's opinion.

"Harry, pick up." Hermione said into the glass.

"Hey, how's the search going?" Harry responded.

"So far, so good, check this out." She faced the mirror towards the flyer. "I've already made a copy of it, so you can show Gin, later."

"Wow! That works perfectly. Can you go ahead and sign me up? Just put my name and ID number, which is 46197084." Hermione did so, and Harry promised to tell Ginny at dinner, which would be at the Burrow again. Hermione turned around absentmindedly walking towards the hospital as she put her mirror away. Unfortunately she hadn't noticed where she was going and bumped into a wall.

"Merlin's pants." She grumbled.

"You should really pay attention more, Miss Granger." A deep, familiar voice said. Hermione looked up at the wall and saw that it wasn't a wall at all, but a very solid blonde haired, gray eyed, Draco Malfoy.

"Ah, Malfoy, you just seem to appear wherever I go, don't you? Can't get enough of the Mudblood I take it?" Hermione said rather rudely.

"You really shouldn't use language like that. I hear it's disrespectful." He said with a smile and he walked away without so much as a pat on the head.

"What was he playing at?"Hermione said to herself as she watched him disappear into the crowd of people around the flyer.

Xxxx

Later that day, Hermione arrived at the Burrow for dinner. She was late by about twenty minutes.

"Hello everyone! Sorry, I'm so late; I had an amazing case today." She said as she kissed everyone hello. Then she noted how Ginny's face seemed gray and tense and Harry's anxious smile. Apparently he'd decided to drop the bomb. Ginny rounded on Hermione as she took her seat across from Fred.

"Did you know about this? About how he wants to spend three months apart? In a supposed 'training' session for his department?" With each word, Ginny's face grew redder, it almost rivaled her crimson locks and each word dripped with accusations. Fortunately, Hermione had a plan.

"Well, to be honest I did know. I found out about this session and I told him, it's an amazing opportunity." Hermione said, handing her a copy of the flyer. "It also has the sign-up sheet on the side, so you can see everyone he'll be working with." Hermione had purposely taken out the names of well-known female Unspeakables, so that Ginny would be less suspicious. In fact, in looking at all the data, Ginny looked positively speechless.

"B-but Harry said he wouldn't be able to see me for the entire time he was there." She looked up at Hermione daring her to contradict him.

"Well, he won't that's true. Most Unspeakable training is usually closed-door. You know how his work is, it's really against Ministry protocol to let their trainees go about town getting drunk and spilling all their hard-kept secrets. Now even though we know that our Harry wouldn't do that, they won't make any exceptions for just him, even if he is the Boy-Who-Lived." Hermione laughed, trying to alleviate the tension between the three of them. Everyone else had their own conversations going. Harry sat, looking at his best friend hoping that she had everything lined up.

Since Hogwarts, Hermione was always the one to cover their arses, from homework to spell work to Voldemort, and even though two years had passed since his defeat Hermione's place in the friendship had not changed. Not that she minded, she rarely noticed nowadays, it became a habit she couldn't break.

"Well, if it's such a wonderful opportunity, I guess I can't stop you." With these words, Harry's face lit up.

"Ginny there's something else." Hermione knew what he was going to say and she purposely tuned him out until Ginny stormed out of the dining room stomping like an insolent teenager. Hermione sighed.

"I'll go." She said and she followed the girl up the stairs to her former bedroom. She entered and closed the door behind her.

"He wants to take a break." Ginny sobbed. "I waited for him for six years before he noticed me, six years! Now, now he wants to take a break. What do I do? What if some girl takes him away?"

"Gin, you have to be patient. Maybe him being gone will help you see what else is out there."

"I know what else is out there, I don't want it, I want him. I've always wanted him." She seemed inconsolable.

"Sometimes if you love someone you have to let them go. The tighter you hold on to them the farther they want to be. If you agree to the break, maybe he'll realize what he has right in front of him. After six years, three months can't possibly be that much." Hermione was pushing it, but she'd always been persuasive. Praying this would help, she smiled when her friend wiped her tears and straightened her shoulders.

"You know what? You're right; I can't just wait around here like some helpless female. What kind of woman does that? Let him go, he'll be back." This scared Hermione a little, but maybe it would lead them all in the right direction.

"That's my girl."

"It's too bad Harry will be stuck with all those men, a whole bunch of Slytherins."

"What makes you say that?" Hermione asked she hadn't looked at all the names, just the female ones.

"He'll be with Pansy Parkinson, Greg Goyle and Draco Malfoy."

"Malfoy? Uh-oh. I didn't catch that one." At first this seemed like a golden opportunity, but now she wasn't at all sure this was a good idea. Harry and Malfoy together was NOT a pairing meant to inspire peace.

Draco Malfoy just seemed to pop up everywhere these days. Who knew he was an Unspeakable?