Chapter 1 : time has passed
Crockery clankings and a neverending brouhaha surrounded the everlasting Golden Trio as they were sitting at a table in a popular pub. They were enjoying a cup of butterbeer, like almost every month, talking about this and that. Today, they felt like remembering what had happened since the War had ended.
« You know, I wasn't even surprised when you decided to go back to Hogwarts, it was so much like you. » Harry said, half laughing.
Hermione smiled, thinking about her eighth year at the famous Witchcraft and Wizardry School. She had decided to go because, even though she was conscious she probably knew many more spells than most usual seventh year students, she also knew that there were many things thad she had lacked the time to study during their journey, like ancient runes, potions or the magical creatures' cares. She had promised to her now lost parents that she would make sure to work hard on every classes, and even though they could no longer remember her nor her promise, she definitly wanted to keep it. And, also, she needed some time to overcome the trauma from the War, and thus she wanted to be as busy as possible so as not to dwell in the dreadful memories of deaths, tortures and failures. She didn't tell them about that, but she was sure at least Harry had understood.
« Well, there were still so many things I needed to learn there, I could not turn down the generous offer of Professor MacGonagall. » She replied.
Ron laughed « Yeah, right, YOU had still many things to learn ! You, of all witches ! I bet you'll never feel satisfied with what you already know. It's a wonder why you did not become a librarian in the biggest library of the magical world there, you would always have had something new to discover right ? »
As he kept laughing, she rolled her eyes, half amused, and half exasperated. Yeah, Ron never really understood her taste for knowledge, and often mocked her for that, although he still respected it. When they tried living together, he would give her time to read and learn, but constantly sounded bored as hell when she would talk about what she'd just learned. In the end, all they would talk about was their therapy they attended together with Harry and other students who faught at Hogwarts. They remained a couple all summer, and half of her eighth year, but eventually, when the therapy came to an end, and they were better, they realized they didn't really feel like lovers anymore. Of course, they still were close friends, and even after breaking up, they did not turn too cold on each other.
« Books » she replied « can't teach you everything. I needed to practice things. Plus, after these seven chaotic years with you two (she insisted on the chaotic part), I figured I would get bored sitting on a chair all day, only waving my wand to bring books back to their shelves and shushing people every now and then. »
And so, after her last school year, she decided to apply at the ministry. Of course, she was welcomed there as a hero, and many different roles were suggested to her. At first, they offered her to work at the Department of Mysteries, either in the room of brains (for they knew her taste for knowledge and thought she would enjoy studying human thoughts) or in the time room (for they of course knew she had gained the right to have a time-turner in her third year and she used it for study purpose only, or so they thought). Both were indeed interesting, but Hermione turned down the offers politely, as she felt more attracted to justice, especially regarding magical creatures and international relationships. She was taken to the new minister himself to discuss this, and after an hour of talking, nodding and scratching his head, a new department had been created, one that established a link between the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and the Department of International Magical Cooperation : the Deparment of International Cooperation and Justice for Magical Beings. In her Department, they would try to set up new internationally shared laws regarding all magical creatures, be them partially human or not. It took quite some time to organise this new institution (creating a new area within the Ministry, drawing the line between this Department and the three related ones, recruiting members and establishing contact with other countries' Ministries), a whole year in fact, but she did not complain she was well aware that she had been lucky to be given such an opportunity, no matter how long it would take to finalise it.
« And you did right. I mean, just look at how far you've led your Department, you have done an amazing job these past two years. You can be proud of you. »
« Thanks Harry. » She smiled at the both of them. Even though she knew they did not always understood why some causes seemed so important to her (like the giants' rights), they still supported her in her work, and that was very precious to her.