Miraculously, the assistant position was still open when Hermione brought her embarrassingly short CV to Flourish and Blotts the next day. Even more miraculously, she got the job. Her new boss, whose name she learned was Sabine, was the great-great-granddaughter of Ignatious Blotts, the cofounder of the book store. She was meticulous and got to the point—not a fan of small talking or lollygagging. But Hermione didn't mind, it was nice to finally feel productive. Plus, Sabine didn't seem to know or care about Hermione's past. For the first time in a while, Hermione was finally treated like a normal person.
Ron was incredibly supportive when Hermione shared the news of her new job. Though she could see that he was slightly disappointed she hadn't included him in her planning. Regardless, he made her go out to celebrate, buying celebratory drinks and making sure she was nice and tired for her first day.
It was now the end of August, and Hermione felt like she was starting to get the hang of things. The school rush kept her busy, but thankfully, the anonymity of being a bookkeeper kept her from being recognised too often. Somehow, the Prophet hadn't found out about her new job, and it was rare that someone figured out who she was. She loved the solitude and near-invisibility. When they weren't busy, she regularly found herself in a corner of the store reading book descriptions and finding new ones to purchase (with an employee discount!).
With her discounted books, they had finally cracked Mrs Blacks portrait curse and were able to remove her painting. They gave it to Kreacher, who readily took it to the attic room he had taken over. Now, Hermione was in need of a new problem to fix with the magic of books.
As today was exactly a week before the Hogwarts term started, Diagon Alley was packed with last-minute shoppers. Hermione was constantly busy, helping students find their school books and reorganising shelves that had been messed with.
She was doing just that, when the bell over the front door jingled, announcing new customers. Hermione looked up from her task and saw a mother and daughter pair wearing clothes that could only be described as especially muggle. Noting that they may need help, she meandered her way to the front of the shop and offered her assistance.
"Hello," she said brightly, "is there anything I can help you with?"
"Erm–yes," the mother said, "Gracie is starting her first term at Hogwarts next week, and we need to get her books."
"Congratulations," Hermione said to Gracie, who smiled shyly back at her. "The first-year books are over here," she motioned for them to follow her to a corner of the store. Hermione began filling a bag with the required books and then handed the very full bag to Gracie.
"Woah," Gracie said, covering her mouth after she did in embarrassment.
"Isn't it great?", Hermione exclaimed. "The bag is enchanted so that it isn't heavy."
Gracie nodded her head vigorously and her mum smiled with trepidation.
"Those are all of your required books," Hermione said. "If you'd like, we also have educational books which cover Hogwarts and the magical world."
"Are we that obvious?", the mum joked.
Hermione smiled. "My parents are muggles," Hermione said. "Everything was new to me back then, too."
The mother's shoulders relaxed at this statement and she allowed Hermione to lead them to the Introduction to Magic section. The mother introduced herself as Shirley and began to tell Hermione the harrowing tale of finding out that her only daughter was a witch. McGonagall had visited them to tell them the news. A new initiative, which Hermione had learned from Shirley, was that all muggle families were welcome to visit Hogwarts. There was to be a tour for muggle parents the day before students arrived, and all parents would have special days in which they could visit their children. Hermione was pleasantly surprised at this news and guessed it had to do with fear that lingered after the war. She was sure that McGonagall would want to reassure the parents of Hogwarts' safety, and by including the parents, she likely would.
When they arrived at the intended section, Hermione began passing them book after book, periodically interjecting with her thoughts—my mum said this one helped her immensely, this one is great when it comes to learning about other magical beings, this one—she paused, wrapping the book in her arms for a moment—taught me so much about Hogwarts. It was my favourite. She handed the shining new copy of Hogwarts, a History to Gracie.
She checked them out, not charging them for books she recommended, she instead offered them as a gift from one muggle-born to another. Shirley tried to resist her generosity but eventually gave in. Hermione told them that they could stop by if they had any more questions. When they left, Hermione found that she couldn't wipe the grin from her face.
For the first time in a long time, Hermione was hit with joyful memories of her parents. They had been anxious upon entering Diagon Alley for the first time. But, Hermione's anxiety soon vanished as she saw the new world for the first time. Looking back, she's sure that her parents were still worried, but they didn't show it. Instead, they supported her excitement and she had one of her favourite school shopping days. Not only did they spend hours in Flourish And Blotts, but they also got ice cream (a rare treat for Hermione) and purchased her wand. If she hadn't believed in magic before, the magic of that day convinced her. It was these happy memories that kept her going as a group of rampant children overtook the store.
Hermione was on her lunch break, extremely tired and hungry, and almost skipping on her way to meet Ron at the Leaky. Despite the rush of unruly children, she was still riding the high of her interaction with Gracie and Shirley. They had brought out something in her which she hadn't felt in a while. She felt youthful and excited, mirroring how she felt when she first entered this world. The interaction had helped her to remember all of the great things about being a witch, instead of dwelling on the negative—something that she had been doing a lot of recently. She didn't make it into the front door, however, as she was stopped by the mother and daughter pair, who were eating on the patio outside of the pub.
"Hello again," Hermione greeted. "How's your shopping going?", she asked, pleased to see that Gracie was only partially paying attention, her nose deep in a book.
"Good," Shirley said, and then after a pause: "a bit overwhelming," she said with a weak smile.
"I understand," Hermione said. "There's so much to see, so much to learn."
Shirley nodded her head. "I just can't believe this is all real," she half-whispered. "Not just wizards and witches but mermaids and werewolf and all sorts."
"It is remarkable," Hermione smiled. "Though it becomes normal eventually."
"Really?", Shirley asked sceptically.
"Well, for the most part," Hermione laughed. "What are you reading?", she asked Gracie, who barely seemed to notice her presence.
"Sorry," Shirley apologised, "since we sat down she hasn't been able to put her books down. That's how we learned about mermaids and werewolves, through her book. Gracie," the mom said in a stern yet kind tone, "show–I'm so sorry," she interjected, "I've forgotten your name."
"You've had a lot on your plate," Hermione said as she waved her off. "My name is Hermione."
Gracie was thrown out of her intense concentration and stared up at Hermione.
"You're Hermione Granger?", Gracie half-questioned, half-stated.
"Erm—yes," Hermione said, surprised that the muggle-born knew who she was.
"This Hermione Granger?", Grace asked as she brought her book to Hermione's face, pointing at a picture of Hermione with Harry and Ron.
"Oh," Hermione exclaimed, taken aback by seeing her photo in the book. "Which book is this?", she asked curiously.
Grace closed the book and read the title. "It's Hogwarts, A History," she said.
Hermione tilted her head in confusion. Hogwarts, A History, didn't have her in it. How could it? She looked at the cover of her beloved book and saw that it was slightly different. The author wasn't just Bathilda Bagshot, as another author was listed under Updated By:. She had noticed it was a new copy when she handed it to Gracie, but she had no idea that it was that new.
"Can I see this?", Hermione asked Gracie, who handed her the book. She scanned the table of contents and found there were new chapters. One was titled Controversial Hires, which is where Gracie likely learned about werewolves at Hogwarts. The other was entitled The Battle of Hogwarts.
She flipped to the first page of the last chapter and saw that it held the picture Gracie had shown her. Looking closer, she could see that it was a picture taken of the trio right after the battle. The description below it read: The Golden Trio; Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, and Hermione Granger, who were instrumental in the takedown of Lord Voldemort and his followers.
She didn't need to read further and handed the book back to Gracie.
"I didn't know that was in there," Hermione said. "I wasn't aware that it was updated."
Gracie didn't seem perturbed by Hermione's realisation. "Did you really do all that?", she asked. "Was there really a battle at Hogwarts?"
Hermione wasn't sure what to say and looked at Shirley to gauge her reaction.
"Headmistress McGonagall told us there was a war," the mum said stoically. "Though she assured us that it is much safer now."
Hermione nodded her head. "Yes, it's a lot safer." She turned to Gracie. "There was a battle at Hogwarts, but any child and anyone not wanting to fight got out safely. It was very scary, but it's over now."
Gracie looked as if she was processing what Hermione said. After a beat, she asked: "did you really ride a dragon?"
Hermione laughed, glad to move away from the morbid topic. "Yes," she smiled. "I wouldn't recommend it."
Gracie smiled back at her. At that moment they were interrupted.
"Hey," it was Ron, who had just found his lunch date.
"Hi," Hermione said, she went to introduce him. "This is–,"
"Ronald Weasley," Gracie finished, grinning widely at her newfound knowledge.
"That's right," Hermione said, then to Ron she added: "apparently we are in the newest edition of Hogwarts, A History."
"Is that right?", Ron asked, as surprised as she was.
Gracies mum thanked Hermione for her time and let her get back to her day, but before Hermione obliged she gave the family her phone number (or at least Grimmauld Places') and told them to call if they ever needed anything.
On their way into the pub, Ron leaned down and whispered something in Hermione's ear.
"Well, I guess you can retire now," he said.
What?", Hermione asked.
"You're in Hogwarts, A History, I doubt anything could top that. At least not for 11-year-old Hermione," he joked.
Hermione smiled back, in a way Ron was completely right; Hogwarts, A History used to stand for everything Hermione couldn't truly believe; a magical school, with its magical buildings and the magical people in it. She made sure to memorise it, to learn it back to front, in an attempt to be normal—to show that she was just like everyone else who had grown up with that knowledge. But, in her heart of hearts, she knew she wasn't—she would never be the same as purebloods and halfbloods. It was an unattainable goal. But maybe she was wrong. For now she was a part of that book, and it's magic, and she would be for all eternity.