Hello All! I hope you're doing well and enjoying the story so far. It's been interesting writing it in a countdown format as that's not the usual way people write fics, but I think it works well for this one. At least, I hope it does. I'm trying the build up the tension slowly until we get to "0 Days Before". As always, any and all feedback is welcome. I love reading comments, and I wish there was a way to respond more directly to them. I guess through these author's notes would be the most effective way.
BlessMyHart: I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far! I'm really enjoying writing it! This is a warfic and I want to make sure that some of the horrors of the previous war are shown before we jump into more bad things happening. I always thought that the war was too neatly dealt with, including in other fics, so I wanted to make sure that mine was different that way. Nobody is immune to the effects of war.
395 Days Before
For the first time in months, all of Hermione's friends were together in one room. It had taken a lot of work but she had managed to wrangle everyone into her flat and it felt like all the stress from classes and life in general had just melted into the floor. She felt recharged being around these people that she loved so dearly.
"... and I caught the snitch before anyone realized it was in play!" Ginny exclaimed.
The redhead was practically glowing from all the attention. She looked more toned than ever before, and it was obvious that this had been the correct career choice. The slight jealousy emanating from Ron was a source of humor for the group. It was obvious that he was proud of his sister but he also wanted achievements of his own to talk about rather than just listening.
"Tell us about how Auror training is going," Neville requested.
"Ron can tell you all about it. He's top of the class after all," Harry said.
The rest of the group turned to their redheaded friend, mouths slightly agape. Ron blushed and shrugged in an attempt at nonchalance. "Well I don't think I'm really at the top of the class. I've just been finding the stuff we're learning kinda easy. Harry's doing good too, aren't you mate?"
"I'll drink to that," Ginny laughed and raised her shot of firewhiskey to the air.
Hermione glanced over at Luna who was sitting next to Harry. This was possibly the first time that their eccentric friend looked nervous. It was no secret that she was allergic to alcohol which was a source of grief for the girl based on the letters she sent to Hermione. She had said that it made her feel like she was unable to properly grow up because she would never experience this with her friends.
"Hey Luna," Hermione called. "Let's go make some tea. I don't feel like alcohol right now."
Luna gave her friend a grateful smile and got up. They walked into the kitchen and began to grab the necessary components for making a good cuppa. Luna had always been an Earl Grey kind of girl, enjoying the intricacies of a seemingly simple drink. Hermione was the adventurous one and found herself drawn more to spiced chais and oolongs.
"What are you having?" Luna asked.
"I was just going to have a basic chai; nothing to fancy for me today," Hermione replied.
Luna held up the carton of lactose-free milk. "Any milk for you?"
"I'm not a huge fan of it in my teas. I like them just as."
The girls waited in comfortable silence for the water to boil and then again for their teas to brew. The smell of bergamot oil mixing with cinnamon and cardamom made for an intoxicating aroma. Luna's eyes lit up. "We should start our own tea company."
Hermione considered the idea. "It would be a lot of work but I think we could do well together."
"We could make blends like Earl Grey Chai. I'm sure it would be our most popular one!"
"No doubt."
Luna frequently came up with ideas for businesses of projects she wanted to start but soon forgot about them. It was easier to humor her than try to argue against the idea. Since the war had ended, her relationship with reality had become significantly more strained. She was still the group's quirky friend but it sometimes seemed like her odd behaviour was a mask for something more sinister locked away inside.
385 Days Before
Hermione had several exams to deal with and she was not coping well. Ginny's repeated attempts and getting her out of her room and into the real world had been thwarted each time because Hermione doubted taking time away from studying was going to be conducive to progress. Instead, she had avoided showering and maintaining her hair for several days and barely ate. Ron and Harry had also expressed concern but they had been taken away by another assignment.
There was a two week break before exams where no classes occurred. This meant that Hermione was alone with her own thoughts and the idea she would fail kept plaguing her. The anxiety was there regardless of the fact that she had the best marks in all classes or that she was generally used in demonstrations with professors because of how well she was performing. Part of the stress was because of the looming grade requirement for becoming a lawyer. The college marked things on a scale of one-to-five and all grades needed to be four and a half points or higher. Hogwarts had never had this system so it was stressful being dumped into it. Based on what she heard from classmates, other wizarding schools employed this point system.
"You look like you need something a lot stronger than the tea I brought you."
Hermione lifted her head with great effort and was surprised to find Neville standing in front of her. She remembered that he was permitted within her wards and mentally kicked herself for not blocking those off. On his face was a sweet smile and in his hands a to-go cup from Mink.
"I wasn't sure what you wanted so I brought Earl Grey," He said. "No milk though."
Hermione gratefully took the cup and lifted the lid, inhaling the familiar warmth. "Thank you so much, Neville. You're so sweet."
"I try."
"You're welcome to sit if you can find space. Sorry I look so horrid."
Neville shrugged and began to clear a space for himself to sit down. "You never look horrible, Mione. Quite the opposite in fact."
Hermione gave him a smile before diving back to her textbook. She knew a large portion of the exams would have extensive essay questions and those were causing her the most grief. "What if I fail all my exams, Neville?"
"You won't fail."
"How is your studying going? Oh why am I even asking, you're going to do amazingly since herbology comes so naturally to you."
Neville laughed and the deep sound off it caught Hermione off guard. She sometimes forgot that they were now all men and women. "Mione, you're going to do just fine. You've always done well on tests. Why are these so scary now."
"Because becoming a wizarding lawyer means that I need to have perfect marks and my exams are going to be mostly essay based which is so subjective and if the professors don't like my writing then I'll never become a lawyer and then I'll never get to help those who are being exploited and then I will-"
"Shh, Hermione, shh. You are going to do just fine. Wasn't it just a few days ago when we were having lunch in the dining hall that you said several professors had commented on how well you're doing? Or how about how honoured you are that they use you for demonstrations?"
Hermione opened her mouth to protest but Neville held out his hand in a "stop" motion. He pointed to the to-go cup of tea and mimed drinking before indicating back to the textbook in front of Hermione. She did exactly what he had wordlessly told her to do in the exact same order. There was something so soothing about Neville's presence. Nothing ever seemed to phase him and he always smelled like the earth and plants he worked with. It was in this way that the two spent most of the day together.
367 Days Before
Hermione's studying was beginning to take a noticeable toll on her. Neville had stopped by several more times since his initial visit; always armed with a to-go cup of tea and some soothing words. He had forced her to stop studying at various times in order to get her to do basic human daily necessities. Sometimes he would cook something for her while other times he dragged her out for a quick lunch at a nearby cafe. He would also close her textbooks and keep them away from her until she took a shower and brushed her teeth.
Today Hermione knew she was going to be alone and had no idea what to do with herself. Her eyes burned from looking at page after page of transparently thin paper. The words had begun swimming together and various events were indistinguishable from each other. It was time to take a break even if a begrudging one.
It was a good day to visit Molly, Hermione decided. She hadn't seen her second mum in a few weeks and was dearly missing her. She brought a book of international creationism stories to read aloud that Molly would certainly enjoy. Sometimes it felt ridiculous to treat a catatonic person as if nothing had changed but Hermione shoved the thoughts away. The mediwitch overseeing recovery had said that Molly could still hear everything and it would be beneficial to recovery to speak with her as normal.
St. Mungo's was busy yet again and it seemed that there were even more people than normal. The cover page of a Daily Prophet left on the receptionist desk gave Hermione the answer as to why. The headline read "Six Aurors Found Dead: Death Eater Reformation To Blame" and a wave of relief hit Hermione along with the horror of six lost lives because she knew Ron and Harry had been safely at home rather than on that assignment. The increased volume of people in the hospital would have been caused by other non-fatal casualties of the incident.
In order to not obstruct anybody's access, Hermione moved on to Molly's floor. Yet again she saw Draco Malfoy coming out of the same room. He shut the door behind him with a firm sound and glared at her.
"I'm not sure why they keep the shells alive. Wastes resources," he said as casually as if he were to talk about the weather.
Hermione gaped at him but eventually found her words again. "How can you say something so horrible? They're people too! They may very well recover but by euthanizing them the chance of that is removed."
"But what's better in the end? Saying goodbye and living with the pain of death or living with this hollow emptiness that can never be filled and hoping to some God that perhaps things will change but they never do."
"How would you know?"
"I know more than you'll ever know about it." Draco gave her his classic serpentine smirk before walking off. The heels of his designer shoes made clicking sounds as he walked.
Hermione was left feeling angry and confused at the exchange that had just happened.
363 Days before
The exchange between herself and Draco kept replaying in her head at the most inopportune moments. She could be studying, taking a shower, cooking, or just trying to fall asleep and then his words would ring through her mind. "I'm not sure why they keep the shells alive" over and over again. But then the painful realization that his comment about living with a hollow emptiness held more truth than she wanted to deal with hit. It always hit her like a powerful spell, leaving her feeling as if she were drowning.
Studying was proving unproductive as Draco's words kept repeating themselves in her mind. Instead, Hermione picked up the Daily Prophet that had arrived earlier. The cover page detailed another Death Eater attack. Seven Aurors were dead and her heart caught in her throat. Ron and Harry had been on this mission and none of the bodies had been identified. Suddenly, the war that seemed over long ago came rushing back. All these reformation attacks that seemed like a distant reality now felt tangible and like the tendrils of fear and death could reach out and grab hold of her.
Immediately Hermione crossed over to her fireplace and threw floo powder down. She decided to check in on Harry first because Ron was likely to be over there. They liked to spend time together outside of missions where they could talk privately.
To her relief, Harry was sitting at the kitchen table eating something while Ron stood at the sink, staring out the window. Hermione took the chance to watch the boys she had grown up with. Harry had started to fill out and look more like his father every day. Many witches fawned over the idea of Harry Potter and how great he must be in bed, but Hermione still saw him as that awkward little boy on the train. Looking at Ron, however, caused a twinge in her heart. She knew him as the boy she had first loved and the first to break her heart. He was her first kiss. All that was in the past since they had realized that they were truly better off as friends. This candid moment broke her heart because she knew it could never last.
Harry somehow noticed the fireplace had been activated and jumped up from his chair. "Mione! Hey!"
"Hey Harry! Hey Ron!"
Ron turned around and looked lost, as if he had no idea who Hermione was.
"How are you?" Harry asked.
Hermione shrugged. "I'm alright. How are you? I heard about the mission…"
"Mione's true intentions come through. We're fine as you can see. Just a little bruised up from an explosion -"
Before Harry could continue, Ron walked out of the kitchen and into some other room. Harry got up and followed him. Even though there had been humor in her best friend's voice, Hermione knew that it was hollow. Something had happened on that mission that the boys were keeping from her. Actually just Harry was keeping it from her considering Ron had not even acknowledged that she was flooing them in the first place.
After several long moments, Hermione decided that the boys were not coming back and ended the floo session. She was worried about what had happened but decided not to press for now. She would get them in person where they would not run away. Running to grab a pen and parchment, Hermione wrote a message asking Ron and Harry to meet with her in two days for coffee. She rushed off to the nearest owling centre to send it off before mailing was closed for the day.