Summary: After the war Hermione's happily ever after is rudely interrupted and on her intercontinental chase to find the culprit she meets up with the Winchester brothers, only to find there might be more left for her than she ever imagined.

Chapter 6

Hermione started walking down the hall and though the boys couldn't see much of the place they felt slightly bewildered by the magical paper airplanes that made the offices look like Dean had had a hand in the organization of the departments. Though the planes were distracting, Sam noticed that the farther they walked the more Hermione's shoulders tensed and her face pinched a little more with each step. Finally when Sam was concerned that she couldn't look more stressed if she tried they stopped in front of an office door. The placard on the door read:

Assistant Head of Department

Harry J. Potter

Hermione knocked softly on the door and muffled, "Come in," came from inside the room. She opened the door and the boys followed her in. Harry was scribbling something down on a paper and without glancing up said, "Just a moment please."

"Mad-eye would be rolling in his grave to know that the Assistant Head of the Auror department didn't even check to see who was at the door before they invited them in and that little friend or foe spell you have on your doorway is full of loopholes," said Hermione in a dry voice.

Harry's head snapped up, "Hermione! Where have you been? Everyone has been so worried." Harry promptly stood up from his desk and began to walk toward her. He paused midway between the doorway and her, he narrowed his eyes just a tiny bit, "How many turns to save Sirius Black."

Hermione visibly relaxed and smiled, "Three and thank merlin you finally asked a security question, I thought you were getting soft in your old age."

"Well it's not every day your best friend who has been missing for almost a year turns up out of the blue with two men in tow," he said playfully, though there was an undertone of reproach in his words.

"Oh, right. Harry this is Dean and Sam Winchester and this is my best friend Harry Potter. Harry is essentially the assistant head of the police force for Wizarding Britain." The men shook hands, but still all looked rather uncomfortable with each other.

"The Winchester brothers? How did you get mixed up with them?" asked Harry.

"First Kingsley and now you, why do you know about two muggle hunters?" asked Hermione with a hint of suspicion coloring her tone.

"Whoa, Hermione you know better than anyone that the ministry has never been able to track you when you haven't wanted to be found. Nothing has changed on that end." Harry began to fidget slightly as he explained, "You know there aren't very many witches or wizards in America?"

Hermione nodded briskly.

Harry continued, "Well, technically they don't have their own government and they never succeeded from the British Ministry of Magic, so the magical citizen are still British citizens and therefore fall under my jurisdiction, it's fairly complicated. The Winchester brothers happen to do a lot of work in America before I can send out an Auror team, so I've seen their names crop up quite a few times."

The boys glanced at each other with their brows raised. Neither realized how extensively they had been watched. Both were feeling a little bit out of depth in this situation, so they stayed quiet.

Hermione sighed, "Harry, how is there not an office somewhere in America that takes care of this with more efficiency?"

Harry scratched his head, "Well, it's the politics to be honest. It becomes a mess of jurisdiction and communication between the American muggle government and the British magical government with neither wanting to be forth coming in details. If our agents were Americans it might help, but since they are British it normally becomes a gridlock of politics over who gets to deal with what."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well perhaps it's better that there are hunters in America after all then. Come on Harry get your coat, I'm taking you out to lunch."

The four walked through the ministry hallway toward the atrium. Whispers followed the four around. Dean hardly noticed as he was trying not to cringe at the old woman, who looked like a hag that was waving and winking coquettishly at him. He suppressed a shiver as it occurred to him that it was very possible that she was a hag as this was the wizarding world.

Sam, however noticed the stares and whispers that were for the most part not connected to him or Dean but toward the two other members of their group. Very few of the whispers sounded malicious at all. Sam scrunched his brow as he thought, in fact the whispers sounded almost awe filled. In his perusal, he didn't miss the fact that both Harry and Hermione were rigid and steadfastly ignoring the attention. Clearly there was more to the story Hermione had given, either she was more important or more powerful than she had told them.

However, since none of whispers sounded hateful, Sam loosened his stance and gave Hermione a more assessing glance. She hadn't done anything to them yet and it didn't appear she was going to in the near future, she was well respected by those in office and it seemed more of her kind looked up to her judging by the crowds gathering in the hallway. Maybe it was okay to trust her then. He had wanted to from the very start, but had thought it must be some kind of trick or ploy. He fought against his instincts and he had wanted it proved that he could trust her, though he himself didn't know what that would look like.

They ended up in a large foyer with tiled flooring and a large fountain with figures of a wizard, witch, centaur, goblin, and a house elf standing together all looking stately and unified. The fountain had an information placard that Sam and Dean stopped to read:

The Fountain of Magical Unity

Here once stood the Fountain of Magical Brotherhood and briefly the Magic is Might Monument. Though the Fountain of Magical Brotherhood was supposed to be a symbol of harmony between the magical races, it instead depicted the belief that Wizards and Witches were superior to other magical races. It was destroyed in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries in 1996. When He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named covertly took over the ministry, the Magic is Might Monument replaced the damaged Fountain; it was also a symbol of fanatic Pureblood ideology. It was replaced in 1998 by this Fountain which depicts the Magical races standing tall together as a symbol of hope for a future in which the citizens of the magical world do not turn away in distrust or disgust of each other, but work together to achieve a better world.

Donations go to St. Mungo's Hospital for the Magical Maladies and Injuries

Both boys looked at Hermione who was nearly to the other end of the atrium and then at each other, there was no way that she had fought in this battle, she looked entirely too young. She must have joined in later. Dean made a note to ask for her age and possibly her number later. Sam shrugged and as if that was a signal, both boys strode toward Hermione and Harry. With their long strides they made it in no time at all.

When they reached the two, they heard Hermione ask, "The Leaky Cauldron or Three Broomsticks?"

"Three Broomsticks it'll be more private and less… intimidating," said Harry.

"Good point," said Hermione. She then turned to look at the boys. "It's slightly more difficult, but would you both prefer to apparate with me or can Harry take one you?"

Dean glanced at both wizards and answered, "We would prefer to both go with you."

Hermione grinned, "I thought that might be the case." They both stepped forward to link their arms with hers and as soon as all three connected Hermione jumped from the spark that raced through them.

"I have got to stop forgetting about that and look that up soon," Hermione mumbled to herself.

A grin crossed Dean's face, damn it if the nerdiness wasn't adorable on her. Standing this close to her Dean could smell her and he wasn't sure how he had missed this smell the other times he had been near her. She smelled of old parchment, like the pieces that were occasionally found tucked in his father's journal, and conversely of the woods, a mix of earthy tree scents blended with an undercurrent of sweet wildflowers.

Hermione tightened her grip and with a turn on her heal popped out of the Ministry of Magic. Moments later the three of them and Harry popped back into existence right next to a rundown house with torn curtains and random planks of wood falling off.

"What's that house?" Sam asked as he pointed to the building.

Harry and Hermione looked at each other with the same sad half smile. "That's the Shrieking Shack," said Hermione.

"Shrieking Shack? Is it haunted then?" Dean asked.

"No, it never was," sighed Hermione.

Dean was about to ask why it was called the shrieking shack, but Sam pinched his arm before he could. Sam nodded toward the two others and Dean took a good look at them. Harry Potter had a forlorn wistful look on his face and his eyes were glassy and sad. Hermione had traces of that shattered woman she had appeared to be when she broke down in their hotel room yesterday. Dean cursed in his head, damn it he hadn't meant to make her upset again.

Sam gently pulled Hermione along, "You mentioned the Three Broomsticks? Which direction is that in?"

Hermione visibly shook herself out of the state she was in and then let go of the brother's arms only to tug Harry along a small path, shaking him out of his reverie too. "It's this way," she said with a falsely bright note in her voice.

Sam frowned, but followed. Dean just gave her an understanding look behind her back and walked toward them. To be so broken, but continue on was a special kind of strength in his book.

They walked, with Hermione filling them in about Hogsmeade as they walked through the small settlement. Hermione made sure to fill in the history with stories she thought both brothers would like; for Sam she threw in some old history facts and for Dean she filled him in on light skirmishes, though not the one that had taken place in the last war.

They walked until they reached a pub and Harry grabbed the door and ushered them in. "Welcome to the Three Broomsticks, supposedly it's as old as the settlement itself," Harry grinned, cutting off Hermione's history lesson. Hermione glared at Harry, but ruined it by laughing at the end.

The Winchesters walked into the pub; it was warm and a little smokey, but fairly clean and welcoming. They walked over to a small table and sat down. Tension gathered around the table as none of the occupants really knew how to have a conversation with each other.

Hermione stood and stretched a little, "The usual Harry?" At his nod she turned to the Winchesters, "Do you have a preference or would you just like me to order for you?"

"Do they have pie here?" asked Dean.

Hermione let out a small chuckle, "Of course we can order some after lunch." With that the tension broke and there was light conversation throughout the meal.

When they were done Hermione through down some wizarding coins and they walked back through town to apparate back to the Ministry. They parted ways from Harry and walked back towards the Minister's office. Once there Kingsley greeted them and handed Hermione a thick manila envelope. "Everything on the Isle of Drear seems to be the same Hermione, but I had my secretary pull everything we have," said Kingsley.

"Thanks Kingsley, we'll just head out now. I don't know how long that notice-me-not charm that I put on the room is going to work," said Hermione.

"Alright. Goodbye Hermione and make sure to keep in touch once-in-awhile," Kingsley said with an all too knowing look.

"I'll try. Goodbye," she said. With that Hermione handed the boys a pinch of floo powder and ushered them toward the fireplace.

A/N: So, I'm not very pleased with this chapter, which is why it took forever to get out. Please review and if you have any suggestions either on this chapter or ones coming up let me know.

Also, I wanted to clarify this takes place in season two sometime after episode 3: "bloodlust".

Lastly, somethings maybe a little off in my story, because I'm not caught up on Supernatural, I just started watching it and I'm only most of the way through season 3 at the moment.

Please read and review,

BlushinRosie