Looking at the stars at unseemly hours of the night had always been one of the few activities Hermione cherished with all her being. It was the delightful reminiscence; the sheer beauty of reliving all those treasured memories deeply buried in her soul, allowing them to wander wild and free in the nocturnal, peaceful solitude; unafraid, dauntless, indomitable.
The delicate scent of the wisterias and jasmine that inhabited her childhood garden.
The sublime, earnest hugs dad gifted her with every single night, hugs that made her feel safe, sheltered, precious.
The sweet, heart-warming hot chocolate mum used to prepare for her with such care and love when sadness made its dreadful appearance.
The warm, delicious feeling of his fingertips drawing nonsensical patters on her back, of his soft lips gently kissing her forehead in the middle of her contented slumber.
"This was a mistake, Miss Granger."
There it was; the perils of remembrance. Unwelcome memories.
The echo of his low, deep, silky voice resonated inside her mind, her consciousness, her heart.
With a grimace, she slowly closed her tired eyes.
Mistake. That was the word he had used. That was the adjective he had chosen. How wrong she had been; how blind, how… Naïve.
Wrapping herself tightly in her favourite blanket, she looked back up to her canopy of stars, emotionally exhausted.
The delicate scent of wisterias and jasmine, the sublime, earnest hugs, the sweet, heart-warming hot chocolate… They were no more. And it was solely her fault.
Hermione shed a single, silent tear; loneliness, guilt, disappointment and embarrassment enveloping her in their familiar embrace. She felt empty. Alone. Completely, utterly alone.
Little she knew about the man who, many miles away, was glancing at the same canopy of stars. Feeling empty. Alone. Completely, utterly alone.