Chapter 14 – What Now? Part One

Sirius paced the room for thirty minutes before he let his instincts take over. I'll Floo Remus – he won't mind checking to make sure she's okay for me, he thought. Once again he was faced with hating his lack of sight. Mere seconds after he Floo-called, Remus showed up and listened as Sirius told him where Hermione had gone. Sirius yelled a quick word of thanks as Remus Disapparated to the village to check the shop and see what was taking Hermione so long. It was only ten minutes later when Sirius heard the loud pop announcing Remus's return.

"Sirius, I checked the store and they said she'd left twenty minutes ago after purchasing the wine. One of the clerks thought they saw her go into the alley, but they didn't pay it any mind. Where else would she have gone?" Remus asked, concern and panic overtaking him as well now.

"I…Remus, I don't know where she would have gone. I don't think she would have gotten cold feet so late and left – but she could have. I mean, she's missing and I can't even help to find her. Why would she want to stay with me?" Sirius railed, his words rushed and rambling.

Remus reached for Sirius and shook him gently. "Sirius, calm down and tell me what's going on. Did you two have a fight or something? Why would she leave you without a word?"

Sirius took a deep breath and groped for the chair near him and sank into it. "We were going to announce it when we got back. We got married last night, Moony. I thought everything was fine, but I'm afraid if something didn't happen to her, maybe she panicked and just...left."

"Sirius, let's concentrate on making sure she's okay. There's no point in imagining something like that. I'm going to Floo Harry and Ron; they'll help me start looking around for her. I'll pop back to Grimmauld Place and grab those bags of Protean-charmed coins; that way if she shows up back here, you can let us know."

"Remus, please hurry. If I'm wrong, then she could be in some kind of trouble. I don't know what I'd do without her." Sirius nearly started to tear up just thinking about all the possibilities. "Oh, and Remus – please don't tell Harry and Ron we got married. Let's keep it between us until we find out what's going on."

Remus clapped him on the shoulder and left to get the coins and gather Harry and Ron for a search.

Molly put the finishing touches on the letter, happy that the quill she had charmed turned out the perfect writing style – exactly like Hermione's. After the letter was complete, she tied it to the leg of the express owl that had been waiting ten minutes already and sent it on its way. With that errand done, she looked at Hermione, who was currently asleep on the couch in the hotel room. When Molly had Obliviated Hermione, she had quickly followed up by pouring a powerful sleeping draught down her throat while her eyes still had a glazed look, preventing her from questioning anything until they reached Molly's planned destination.

Paris, France.

Molly had it all worked out. As soon as Hermione awoke, she would make sure her plan succeeded.

Remus had just arrived with a worried Harry and Ron when the owl tapped on the window. Before Harry and Ron could even comment on the elopement, Remus let the owl in and confirmed that it was from Hermione. Sirius asked Harry and Ron to give him and Remus a moment, promising to holler for them if they were needed. They exchanged concerned looks with Remus and headed outside to wait. "Read it out to me, Remus, please," said Sirius ever so quietly, almost faint with fear.

Remus looked at Sirius as he sat down across from him. Clearing his throat, he read the letter out loud, his voice starting to waver a bit as its meaning became clear to all of them.

Sirius,

I really don't know what to say except I'm sorry. There I was, buying wine for dinner, when everything kind of hit me. We were married, and only moments before we'd been talking about having children, like it was nothing that serious. But I'm only nineteen, and I can't have children just yet. I want to continue my education…I want to live a little before I settle down. I'm so very sorry to do this to you. I still care for you deeply, I love you. But you must admit it will be better for me to go to university and start a career before I settle down. I would only grow to resent you if I missed out on all of it. So for the sake of the love we share, please respect my decision even if you can't forgive me for it. I will be on the continent, so at least the distance between us will help us move on. I do hope you move on; there's someone out there for you who will be ready as I cannot be. I'm sorry.

Hermione

Sirius's face fell as he listened. He heard the words, but he didn't want to believe them. Hermione's not the type to get scared and just run away, he thought to himself, hardly breathing. Remus and Sirius just sat there for a while, both of them thinking about Hermione and wondering what would happen now. It was only after Harry quietly knocked on the door that Remus went outside to explain what he could. Keeping his word, Remus only told them part of the truth. He explained that Hermione had broken things off with Sirius and decided to attend university abroad. After they quietly left, Remus went back inside to find Sirius sitting still, his sightless eyes staring at nothing. "Is there anything I can do for you, Sirius?" Remus asked him hesitantly.

"Help me get home. I want to leave this place," Sirius answered stiffly. Remus grabbed hold of his arm and together they Apparated away from the manor that held the last good memories, and the worst, of Sirius and Hermione.

When Hermione woke up she looked around, her head spinning, to see a strange room. She started when she turned to see Molly Weasley sitting across from her and addressing her. "Hermione, dear, you're awake finally. How are you feeling, dear? Can I get you anything? Something to eat or drink? I'm sure you could do with some nourishment after your ordeal…."

Hermione stared at her blankly before asking the obvious. "What happened to me? Where are we, Mrs. Weasley? Where are Harry and Ron?"

Mrs. Weasley fixed a worried look on her face and walked over and put her arm around Hermione, who was starting to panic. "Calm down, Hermione. You just had a little accident. Harry and Ron are at the Auror Academy, of course. You're in France, dear. Don't you remember anything? What's the last thing you remember?" Molly asked, her worry real, wondering how well she'd cast the spell.

Hermione's brow creased as she tried to think what the last thing was that she could remember. "The last thing I remember is our graduation from Hogwarts and the end of the war. I think I went to some sort of party, but I…the details…they escape me," she said. She started to cry quietly, wondering what had happened to her.

"Hermione, that was months ago. You attended an end of school party with the boys at Grimmauld Place. Since then you've been working on potions while you decided where you wanted to go to school. You arrived here a few days ago, after you decided to go to medi-wizard school in Paris. As I understand it, the maid found you unconscious. From the look of things you were trying your hand at some of the potions that were going to be in your first few lessons, and the cauldron exploded and knocked you unconscious, dear. The maid Flooed me right away since I was listed on the room bill as one of your emergency contacts, and I helped them sort out the mess after the Healer confirmed you were unconscious but would be fine. I must admit I was nearly ready to drag the Healer back since you've been asleep for twenty-four hours."

Hermione quietly sniffled, wondering what could have come over her. She believed herself very capable at potions and had never made such a mistake. And the fact that there were several months of her life that she couldn't remember concerned her greatly. "I wonder if I'll get my memories back – that worries me. Are you sure the Healer said I'd be fine? I must have been hurt badly if I can't remember the last few months," Hermione said.

"I'll certainly owl the Healer and ask him, but if you ask me a bit of routine ought to set things right again. If you think you're up to it, the Headmistress owled and said your dorm room was finally ready. In fact, I've taken the liberty of sending your things on. You can start your classes tomorrow," Molly said, pulling the copy of Hermione's school schedule closer for her to look at. Sure enough, Hermione picked up the letter and read her schedule aloud, her worry fading with the excitement of the classes she was going to take.

Monday: 10 am – 2pm/History of Medi-Wizardry

Tuesday: 9 am – 1 pm/Potions 101 * 2:30 pm – 4:30 pm/Herbology 101

Wednesday: 10 am – 2pm/Basics of Physiology

Thursday: 9am – 1pm/Psychology 101 * 2:30pm – 4:30pm/Patient Care and Protocol

Friday: 10 am – 2pm/Magical Diagnosis

2nd and 4th Saturday of every month: Interning and Observation at Hôpital de Pitié (Mercy Hospital)

Hermione smiled for the first time that night as she finished reading her schedule and asked to see her books, promising not to work on potions again until she was actually in class. Before she left to go to her new dorm room, Hermione asked for the address where Ron and Harry were training. Molly told her that at the moment they were doing some intensive training where there was a communication black-out for all friends and family. She hurried to explain that this was common for such training and assured Hermione that she would get word to the boys to write her as soon as they were free to. Hermione seemed to think it was odd, but thanked Mrs. Weasley.

That night, after helping Hermione settle into her dorm room, Molly pulled out the quill again to write another letter before heading home. This one was to Harry and Ron.

Dear Harry and Ron,

I guess by now you might have heard that I'm away at school. I do hope you're not angry with me for breaking things off with Sirius, but it was just something I felt I had to do. I would never have forgiven myself if I'd resented him later on for not continuing my education. I'm not going to tell you where I am, 'cause I think I need some time and space to myself. Please forgive me; I know this might hurt or confuse you, my two best friends. I pray you understand and accept my request for a bit of distance while I move on with things. I'm happily settled into my new dorm, and I start my classes in the morning. I promise to write you soon. I ask that you please just not mention the thing between Sirius and me. Ever. If you're willing to promise me this, please send a reply with this owl. He'll be able to find me here. Sorry for any worry or upset I've caused you. I hope your Auror Training is going well.

Yours, Hermione

Satisfied that this letter would keep the boys from overreacting, Molly sent the letter by another express owl and then returned home for a very late supper.

Over the next few days Remus took off work and stayed close to Sirius. Sirius hardly spoke a word to Remus, instead throwing himself into a new routine with a vengeance. He started to learn how to clean and cook for himself, which was a very hard thing for someone who was blind. Anything, he thought, to keep thoughts of Hermione at bay. Remus had dared to speak her name once and got the door slammed in his face for it. After accepting that Sirius needed time, Remus kept a close eye on him while trying not to be obvious about it. By the end of the week Remus was forced to go back to work when Sirius yelled at him, exclaiming, "I'm not a bloody infant. She left me – so what? Why don't you go back to work and leave me the bloody hell alone!"

Remus felt defeated and extremely angry. He resolved to spend his spare time figuring out which school Hermione was at so he could visit her. Yes, she and Sirius had married a bit too soon, but something about the way she'd left Sirius did not sit well with Remus.

Hermione, meanwhile, threw herself into her new studies with wild abandon. She made several new friends; including her dorm mate Elizabeth Andrews, an American witch who had graduated from the Salem Witch's Institute the year before. Hermione was so caught up in her new life that she hardly wondered why her memories hadn't returned yet. From the bit of research she'd done in her spare time, she found that amnesia was not uncommon in such potions accidents. Considering some of the gruesome effects that could have taken place, she considered amnesia an acceptable side effect. As school life grew to be the norm again, Hermione found herself living a whole new life.

It was only once in a while when she would wake up with a cold sweat that she wondered what she could possible have forgotten that made her feel so upset. Promising herself to write to Harry and Ron soon, she went back to sleep. Days turned into weeks, weeks into months…

To Be Continued…

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this update… Part two of this chapter will be up soon. Please remember to read and review! *Hugs*