Ron spent the next two days in the shed with George, working on projects for the shop. Hermione wasn't concerned. She would have loved to be spending time with him but at the same time, she needed, desperately, to spend more time with Rose. Which she did.
By Sunday afternoon, the extended Weasley family began arriving for the fortnightly dinner. Hermione sat politely and made small talk, noticing Victoire suspiciously eyeing every piece of magic that was performed around her and every now and then Hermione would attempt to redirect her, or subtly stop the magic from occurring in the first place.
She thought it odd that someone from two incredible magical families could potentially be a squib. There was definitely Veela in her, as she was a beautiful child.
Hermione shrugged to herself and reminded herself that it wasn't really her business. She settled into a conversation with the group about work and about her struggles leaving Rose at home. But everyone seemed to agree – Hermione looked happier.
Through dinner, the conversation was on Hermione and Ron. 'What had he done to make her so happy?', 'how did he manage to get Hermione so bubbly' and 'how is it living at The Burrow?'. Hermione was slightly offended. Had she been someone who had previously appeared miserable all the time? And why did it have to be Ron's doing? And living at the Burrow had been the greatest idea so far, yet she felt judged.
Hermione helped Ginny bathe little James so the two of them could have time to talk alone.
"Do you think I'm just a miserable sod?" Hermione asked her.
"What? No way" Ginny answered.
"Not anymore you mean?" she asked.
"Hermione, you weren't exactly the happiest person in Britain but you were never miserable… were you?" she asked.
"No, Ginny, Merlin. I'm feeling more like myself now I'm back at the ministry, but I haven't ever been immensely unhappy" she defended herself.
"Ok, ok…" she said, pulling the squirming infant out of the bath.
"But Ginny… Is that how everyone sees me?" she asked.
"Well, sort of, yeah" Ginny responded.
"Perfect" she sighed, following Ginny into her old bedroom.
"It wasn't always like that, you just sort of kept to yourself" Ginny said.
"I think… maybe I was unhappy. Maybe I still am. But I have purpose in my life again" she said.
"Rose…?" Ginny began.
"Beyond Rose, Gin. It's amazing being a mother, but I have always aspired for more" she said.
"Golden trio, brightest witch of your age… there's no holding you down, is there?" Ginny asked with a smile.
"Merlin, I'll not live that down, will I?" she asked.
"Probably not" Ginny answered, and they both laughed.
"How horrid is it to be considered the brightest witch of my age? I just think… and we've spoken about this so many times, but it is so stupid. I don't think I'm that bright, I just apply myself" she said, frustrated with the nickname she has put up with for years.
The name had only ever led to her forcing herself to overachieve and push herself harder to live up to peoples expectations. It was hardly worth it.
They sat in Ginny's old room talking while Ginny nursed James. Rose was downstairs playing with her cousins, now at an age where she seemed interesting to other children. It was nice to sit and feel young and free again. To just talk about life and work as though they were 20 again.
Hermione went to bed that night feeling lighter than before. She didn't realise how badly she missed Ginny until they sat down and really talked. She didn't tell her about Malfoy, nor would she ever. She knew for a fact that just that one incidence alone would have her kicked out, ostracised, and hated forever. But there was no going back. There was no changing what happened. She cheated and she would forever be hiding it.
Work was starting to become interesting and Hermione was finding herself enjoying it, settling in and feeling at home. She was confident that she at least knew the ins and outs of the role, of not the particulars of each portion, but enough to get going.
She accompanied Angsley to inter-departmental meetings to discuss any legal issues that may have arisen in the last week and she was thrilled to be having loads of opportunity to have input.
When they arrived on the forth floor, her heart almost stopped. How could she forget that Malfoy was now running the DCRMC? They walked up the corridor and greeted the assistant, Hermione receiving a sweet smile from her.
"Hi Missy, how are things around here without me?" she asked.
"Oh, right you are Miss Granger, you lead this department didn't you?" Angsley asked.
"I did" she answered.
"Things are going well Hermione. We all miss you but Mr Malfoy is a good boss" she said.
"That's great to hear" Hermione answered.
There was an awkward silence in the room before the door to Malfoy's office opened.
"Come on in Mr Angsley, Miss Granger" he said.
Hermione cringed at how awkward she felt. This would be excruciating.
The conversation went on far longer than many of the others. Malfoy and Angsley appeared to have found some common interests and Hermione seemed to sit there, silent almost the whole time, till they realised that they were there to work and not to talk quidditch and potions.
While Hermione could talk of potions until the sun set, quidditch bored her to tears and she had had enough after an hour or so.
At the end of the meeting, they all shook hands and agreed that, once Hermione takes over, weekly meetings were vitally important to ensure their departments could collaborate. Malfoy lingered perhaps a fraction of a moment longer on Hermione's hand than was professionally appropriate, however, Angsley took no notice. He was busy looking at Hermione's succulents she left behind from her time here.
"Lovely little plants they are" he said.
"They were Miss Granger's. I thought they added a certain something to the office" he said.
"Well, they certainly put a little life into the Slytherin style of this office" Angsley said.
"It is quite…. Green, isn't it" Hermione said.
"And black" Angsley said, eyeing the leather couch. Hermione followed his gaze to the armchair that she had, whilst there, transfigured into suede. She smiled to herself, wondering why he hadn't felt to change it back. The matte fabric stood out against the shiny leather like a sort thumb.
"Well, we ought to return to the office. Plenty of reports to write about our meetings today, Angsley" she said. "Although, I can't imagine fitting an hour of quidditch in the report for the DCRMC will be appropriate" she muttered.
As they left, she turned and looked to Malfoy who was sitting on the edge of his desk, facing the door with a smirk on his face. His hands were gripping the edge of the desk either side of him and his feet were crossed. He looked quite relaxed.
"I have personal business on a lower floor, I'll see you in the office later" Angsley said.
"Right" she said, as he got in one lift and she made her way into another.
It didn't take long to go up two floors, and Hermione was back in the office in no time. She looked around and thought about how she may style it. It was large enough so that she could have a full size board meeting table in there, plus a huge desk and comfy seating area. She envisioned what it could look like, maroons and golds or perhaps striking white with dark grained wood? The dark wood made her think of the black of Malfoy's office and she thought how green, silver and black would look in this office, then shook her head thinking better of it. No, her style was different. She would have white and gold with light wood. There was a meeting room down the hall so she considered having a quite room installed. The idea of having somewhere to escape to, with a comfy couch and some books was ever so tempting.
The end of the week arrived before she knew it and by Friday afternoon, she was working in Angsley's absence. He had been leaving her to it more and more and she was grateful for it. It had given her a chance to get into the role with him there, but not dump her in it with no support. Now she was feeling confident.
"Hey Granger, you coming to the party tonight?" came the voice of one of her colleagues as everyone was preparing to leave for the day.
"Party?" she asked, genuinely curious and sort of eager to let her hair down with her co-workers.
"Yeah, its not technically ministry approved but mostly everyone is going" he said.
Hermione initially felt left out. How could there have been a party organised and she not be invited? She felt sick at the fact that, one, people were intentionally leaving her out to ostracise her, or two, no one wanted the person who was, technically, their boss, at a party with them.
"Of course I'd like to go" she said, hoping not to sound too eager.
"Great" he said, writing down the details on a piece of parchment that he tore from a stack he was carrying.
She hesitated in her office for a while, waiting till the corridor was empty before leaving. The party was at 7, so she had plenty of time to go to the burrow, convince Ron to accompany her, get ready and go.
That wasn't quite how it happened, however.
When she got to the Burrow, Ron was there, having finished early. He had absolutely no interest in attending what he called a "ministry workers party" and said that if she wanted to go, she ought to go alone.
In a huff, she went to their room to get ready and took out her phone, ready to text Malfoy and see if he too had received a last minute invite. Upon opening it, she saw a message that had been sent just after the meeting that they both attended in his office.
"I really need to look at my texts more often" she muttered to herself as she selected his name with the press of a button.
DM – 'You in that skirt Granger, I could have bent you over my desk and fucked you till you clenched on my dick and screamed my name'
Hermione was instantly flustered. She knew that he might have appreciated the skirt she wore that day, but he didn't really seem to notice. She knew he watched her leave, but she didn't notice him look at her in that way.
She didn't know what to say. Her mind was blank.
"See, not the brightest witch at all thank you" she muttered to herself.
HG – I like your offer. There's a non-ministry ministry party tonight. Are you going?
DM – If you are
HG – I'm getting ready now
She didn't receive a reply back, so she deleted the messages and continued getting ready. The dress she wore was not the shortest one she owned, but it was quite short, so she paired it with some stockings and boots. She wore a leather jacket and her hair out, not bothering to put it into waves. Somehow, throughout her early 20s, her hair had stopped being a thing of annoyance and she had learnt how to work with it, as opposed to against it.
She looked herself over in the mirror before heading downstairs and towards the floo.
"Hermione, you look smashing, you heading out?" George asked. She went red. She had thought that George's behaviour wouldn't affect her as much as it used to, what, with her more recent actions proving to have been far more extreme than the kiss she shared with George.
"There's a party. Some ministry workers are going. Let their hair down kind of thing" she said.
"That why your hair is teased like a fucking hooker?" Ron asked.
"Ronald!" Shouted Molly from the kitchen.
"Ron, don't speak to me like that in front of your family, its embarrassing" Hermione said in a low voice.
"No, Ron you prick, don't speak to her like that at all!" George said, standing and coming to Hermione's defence.
"Oh so you're all suddenly on her side are you?" Ron asked.
"No, moron, we're on the side of whoever isn't a complete twat" George said.
"George, that's enough of that language" Molly said, entering the loungeroom with Rose on her hip. Hermione made her way to her and took her daughter from her, hugging her tightly and kissing her.
"Mummy will be back later ok honey?" she cooed.
Rose just looked at her mum and turned and put her arms out to George.
"Come on, come to unkie JoJo" Geroge said, playing on the fact that most of his nieces and nephews couldn't say George.
He took Rose and left the room, leaving Hermione alone with Ron and Molly.
"Now, I don't know whats gotten into you two, but it needs to end now" Molly said.
"I'm sorry Molly, it wont happen again" Hermione said, wondering for a moment why on Merlin's green earth she was the one apologising. She hadn't done anything.
Ron simply glared at his partner, making Hermione feel like she was absolutely about two feet tall and completely made of glass. She would shatter if he kept it up.
"Right, well…" Molly said, looking between the two and heading back to the kitchen.
"Ron, you need to stop this. You said things would change and here you are, acting like… Like… Like a teenager again" she said.
"Just go. Go out with your new friends and your new dress and your teased hair. Just don't expect me to want anything to do with you when you get home and you're drunk and say 'Ron touch me here, touch me there'" he said, causing Hermione to slap him hard across the face.
"Don't you dare make fun of me in that moment" she said through gritted teeth. He opened his mouth to speak and she put a finger up. "Do not speak to me. Tomorrow, we will have a good long conversation about our relationship Ron Weasley because where I'm standing, there is nothing keeping me here" she said, turning on her heel and heading for the door. "Good night Molly" she called as she left the Burrow.
She stormed up the dirt path towards the boundary line. She wanted nothing more than to turn back and hex Ron till he was black and blue, but that was not going to happen. She was going to go to this party and she would enjoy herself.
AN - I decided on an epilogue for the end. I started writing some but it got too fluffy. The epilogue looks much better. Another 10 or so chapters. I hope to post them all in the next 2 days.