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"Alright, you should be good to go!", Hermione smiled and patted the brace she had just put on the leg of a small muggle girl.

The girl smiled at the prospect of not having to walk with crutches anymore, now that her leg was healed up enough to walk on it.

The girl's mum smiled and said to the girl, "Now what do we say to Dr. Granger?"

"Thank you!", the girl exclaimed.

"You're very welcome, Ellie.", Hermione replied as she walked them out of the exam room, letting Ellie choose a sticker from the box she kept by the front desk, her reward for getting her cast off after six weeks.

The secretary reminded them to follow up with her in a month to see how well the bones were healing and to keep up the good work with physical therapy.

Hermione's office manager, Liza Hartley, announced the end of the work day after Ellie and her mother departed their office.

Hermione Jean Granger sighed, and hung her white lab coat up on the hook near the door.

"We've had a good day…but I am delighted to go home!", Liza exclaimed, standing and stretching before pulling out her wand and tapping it twice against the stack of files on her desk.

The files floated back onto the shelves, arranging themselves appropriately.

Another stack materialized on the desk, they would be Liza's work for the next day.

"Well, I have to go home… busy day tomorrow.", Hermione said as she waved her wand and the waiting room straightened itself up.

The radiology tech, Ian Williams, was waving his wand as well, straightening up the X-ray rooms and the exam rooms.

"Ah yes, you'll be in surgery tomorrow and I'll be seconded to the clinic… fun times…", he stated, summoning his coat to himself, the two women following suit.

"And I'll get some peace and quiet to work on the filing and scheduling. Maybe I'll clean the place from top to bottom, get it really clean!", Liza mused.

"We'd be lost without you, Liza.", came the reply of Hermione's PA, Josh Upland, as he waved his wand and the trash removed itself from the cans and vanished into thin air, "I'll be watching the kids tomorrow."

"It's nice that you're a part time stay at home dad…", Liza said, "Wish my husband would do that every now and again, just until all of the children are old enough to go to school… daycare costs a fortune…"

"Sometimes, I swear Hermione and I are the lucky ones…we aren't tied down like you lot.", Ian commented.

"Not yet.", Liza winked at Hermione, "We all know that Ron'll come around soon enough and then it'll be her turn to get 'tied down'."

Hermione rolled her eyes and shook her head.

Ian barked out a laugh as they left the practice.

"It'll be a cold day in Hell when he proposes. I think I might be married before Weasley comes to his senses…"

"They haven't legalized gay marriage yet, you know!", Josh said.

"Well, parliament hasn't got anything to do with a good old-fashioned magical handfasting, you know, and for your information, I happen to have a hot date tonight with a nice young man from the department of magical law enforcement…I'd like to see some fogey old Wizengamot official keep me from marrying someone I love!", Ian said, "Well, I'm off, I'll see you lot later.", he announced before apparating away.

Josh was next to go, then it was just Liza and Hermione.

"I kind of wish you wouldn't joke about that.", Hermione said lowly as they walked to their cars.

"You not being married? I'm sorry, 'Mione…", Liza sighed, "I know what you told me, but Ian is a horrible gossip and Josh tells Aubrey everything, and you know how she gets with her book club after they've had some Firewhiskey."

Hermione nodded.

Aubrey Upland could be a real gossip factory once she had a few.

"I know, I know…It's just been ages since the War though, I just wish the Golden Trio thing would die already.", Hermione shook her head, "Not every little thing I do has to be made into front page news… you remember how much Rita Skeeter had a field day when I opened up a practice in muggle London instead of going straight to Mungo's?"

"I remember. But I have to admit that it was good for publicity because you're one of the only doctors I know who also treats a lot of witches and wizards as well. That deathly hallows symbol on your cards is a real attractor for magical folk."

"You're right about that. St. Mungo's has been going downhill for a while… did you know I was offered to be the head of the orthopedics department there?", Hermione said.

Liza nodded fervently.

"I still think you should take it… heading the whole department will be a great way to keep so busy that Ron won't even think about proposing…", Liza replied.

"I know. That's why I think I'll do it…", Hermione said, leaning against her old ruby colored Volvo station wagon.

"Really? You'll give up the practice here?"

Hermione laughed.

"Merlin, no… I'm going to do both. I've already signed on with St. Mungo's as their chief of orthopedics. I'll charm my sign the same way the Leaky Cauldron charmed theirs, so that magical people can see it but muggles can't. I'll change my office hours here and maybe back off of the muggle surgery, somewhat, I just know that I'll have to fight with wizards and witches to get them to have surgery instead… We all know that potions and spells can maintain certain joints for a limited period of time, but that a replacement works better in the long term, especially since I'm trying to come up with a hybrid procedure that combines surgery with magic."

"More power to you… but I hear things are pretty bad at St. Mungo's…"

"I know… you remember meeting Luna and Neville at my birthday party last year? Well, Luna was pregnant and some senile healer botched a spell and caused her to miscarry."

"God, that's horrific…", Liza said, shaking her head.

"I'm just hoping I can get people trusting healers again and get them to start trusting doctors."

"And I'm hoping that you can work up the guts to break up with Ron permanently. Molly is a nice woman and all, but she can't keep dropping hints about wanting more grandchildren if you don't want to marry Ron and have his kids…War heroine or not, you won't be truly happy until you live life for yourself, not for other people's expectations of you.", Liza said with a note of finality in her voice, "You cannot keep running away from your conflicts, ignoring them, and still expecting them to resolve in a way that favors you, and that's all I'm going to say about that."

Hermione nodded and opened her car door.

"I'll take that into consideration, thank you, Liza."

"No problem, boss lady.", Liza said with a nod.

Hermione drove home in silence.

It wasn't that she didn't want to get married or have children someday, it was the fact that she felt as though she was expected to get married to Ron Weasley and have his children that made her want to bury her head in the sand.

She and Ron had been off and on again for the past twelve years, and it was really starting to get annoying, especially during their off times.

Molly Weasley would send her a strongly worded letter about how she was wrong for leading Ron on or some other bullshit like that, how hurt he was that she had left him (most often, it was him leaving her, although she had left a couple of times), and then it would be a heartfelt letter from Ron, begging her to come back (now it was always him who asked for her back, however, whether he had been the one to call it quits that time or not).

She couldn't fathom the level of pity she would have to sink to in order to take him back. She would be getting along just fine without him and then he'd give her those stupid pouty, puppy dog eyes, and she'd melt.

Did she love Ron?

Yes. She loved him. She had loved him since their sixth year. Even when he had left her and Harry to be on the run by themselves, she had been pissed, but still, some small part of her had loved him and had understood why he left.

Did she want to spend the rest of her life with him and have his children?

No, she didn't think so.

She wasn't sixteen anymore. She had grown into being her own woman, and her wants and needs had changed as well.

When she and Ron were together and they were acting as friends, it was fun and she was happy, but when they were acting as lovers was when things got rough and confusing.

She just didn't want to hurt anyone or let them down by not living up to expectations.

She unlocked the door to her flat and went inside, glad that it was silent and that Ron didn't live with her.

Crookshanks wound himself around her feet and she bent down to give him a good scratch behind his ears as he purred at her.

Yes, she was far better off by herself.

She kept this thought in her head as she changed out of her work clothes and put them in the laundry before pulling on a pair of sweatpants and a baggy tee shirt. She cooked dinner and started reading a book that she had bought from Flourish & Blotts the other day. She continued reading it throughout the evening, even charming it to levitate and turn the pages when she soaked in her bathtub.

She hummed and pulled on her pajamas after the bath and exited her bathroom to jump in surprise when Ron wrapped her in his arms and kissed her soundly. Her book fell to the floor as her concentration on the charm failed.

"I missed you today, 'Mione…", Ron said, "Sorry I startled you."

"What are you doing here?", she asked, flustered.

Ron chuckled.

"Can't a bloke visit his girlfriend?"

"Well, yes, I suppose, but I was about to go to bed…", Hermione said, jabbing her thumb in the direction of her bedroom door.

"Well, if you're offering, who am I to refuse?", Ron said with a grin and shrugged, lifting her into his arms and carrying her to her bedroom, kissing her neck as she giggled and tried to get free.

"Ron, no…not tonight…"

"Aw, why not?", he said, feigning hurt, but putting her down anyway.

At least he knew when to stop.

"I have surgery tomorrow. I need to sleep so that I can focus on my patients.", she said, "Every Tuesday and Thursday, I'm in surgery, you know that."

Ron shrugged.

"Didn't think it'd interfere with our love life this much, but okay, if you say so…Perhaps some other night, yeah?"

"Sounds good.", Hermione replied, not too keen on following through with that promise.

Ron placed a kiss on her cheek and said goodnight before apparating away.

Hermione sagged against the wall before ambling into her bedroom, summoning her book as she went. She collapsed onto her bed and groaned.

Ron was an enthusiastic lover, sure, but every time they slept together, it left her feeling unfulfilled, although she couldn't really compare the experience to anything else…Ron had been her first and only sexual partner.

Yes. She decided right then and there that she was going to take that position at St. Mungo's, even if it stressed her to the brink of insanity, anything was better than Ron's erratic thrusting and his sloppy kisses.

Surely sex had to be more fulfilling than that.

She wasn't asexual, she still had needs, but there had to be someone out there who could fulfill them better than Ronald Weasley.

Merlin, she hoped he wasn't as good as it got, otherwise all of those erotic novel writers were some bloody liars.

Crookshanks jumped up onto her bed and curled up by her side as she placed her book on the bedside table and waved her wand, her scrubs for tomorrow floating out of her wardrobe and arranging themselves on the stool of her vanity.

"Nox", she said, and the lights went out.

She didn't sleep very well, her dreams were plagued with her in an absolutely ugly wedding dress, being overrun with freckle faced, red haired children, all shouting "MUM!" and Ron being nowhere to be found, only his voice saying things like, "Aren't you glad you gave up your career for this?" and then Molly Weasley appeared at the forefront of her mind. "Can you imagine a more fulfilling purpose in life than having children?" she said, smiling and nodding to the front of Hermione's dress, which was stretched tight over her pregnant body.

Hermione screamed then and she jolted awake with a yelp, soaked in sweat.

It was horrible.

She cried then, not wanting to give up the only relationship she had ever had as an adult, knowing that most other wizards didn't want to be with the golden girl, the war heroine, because she was "Ron's girl", even if they never said it directly to her.

They didn't want to get on Ron's bad side and then have Harry Potter, the Chosen One, responding to negatively to their advances, because Harry's words still had the power to help and hurt people's reputations.

Yes. She would have to find that Gryffindor bravery and dig it out, dust it off, and tell Ron exactly how she was feeling in this relationship, and then hope and pray that the media wouldn't blow it out of proportions and then have it negatively impact her work in bringing hybrid healthcare to the wizarding world.

She groaned and Crookshanks flicked his tail at her.

"I know…I know…It won't do me any good to get this worked up over it.", she murmured, scratching the big ginger cat behind his ears before reaching over and pulling a bottle of Dreamless Sleep potion out of her bedside table drawer and measuring out a small dose of it.

She fell back asleep and didn't wake up until her alarm clock rang.


"Draco, dear!", Narcissa Malfoy called out and waved as she caught sight of her son entering the international arrivals terminal.

"Mum!", he called out, his face cracking into a wide grin as he rushed to embrace her.

"I missed you so much!", Narcissa exclaimed as she pressed a kiss to his cheek before holding him at arm's length from her, taking in the man that her son had grown into.

She had missed seeing him, and had to admit that he looked like his father, but with some marked differences. Draco's grey eyes smiled at her and held a glow that she hadn't seen since he was young, and his face fell into a natural smile much easier than his father's face ever had.

"I missed you too, mum.", Draco said, his voice punctuated by his strange accent.

"Your accent changed…", his mother stated casually as they walked out of the airport.

"Yeah, too much time in Baltimore, I suppose, but that's to be expected…"

"You didn't bring any American traditions or customs with you, did you?", Narcissa teased as they walked over to the parking garages.

"American football is a pretty great sport…I've been to a few Ravens games… I also discovered something truly delicious: steamed crabs and the wonders of Old Bay seasoning…"

Draco went on enthusiastically, telling her how much he had enjoyed learning how to cook and drive and that the music was so much better than the type of music they played on wizard radio.

"I must admit, I will miss being in Maryland. England is great and all, and I definitely missed it here, but the weather is so much nicer over there. The sun actually comes out almost every day…"

"Ah, I knew I spotted a slight tan.", Narcissa said as they got into her Land Rover.

"Mum, you learned how to drive?", Draco asked, "Is this your car?"

"Yes. Andromeda made me learn how to drive, and I have to admit that I enjoy it, so much more than brooms and self-pulling or Thestral-drawn carriages…"

"If father saw you now…", Draco said with a smirk as his mother pulled on a pair of dragon skin driving gloves.

Narcissa rolled her eyes.

"I think he'd bemoan my choice to cut my hair…claim that it wasn't very stylish, but I disagree wholeheartedly. I rather enjoy this pixie style haircut, it is far easier to maintain."

"Oh, if he learned what I've done in the past twelve years, he'd probably spontaneously combust."

"Indeed, he would. Speaking of your father, the Ministry has done away with the dementors at Azkaban."

Draco nodded.

It was about time they did away with those creatures.

"They decided that it was cruel and unusual punishment and that the prisoners should be treated as criminals, but not subjected to torture. Prison reform has been a hot topic here for the past few years, spearheaded by Susan Bones, no less. I'm glad she's following in her aunt's footsteps. She's engineered new spellwork to prevent the use of magic on the premises and has also turned most of Azkaban into a modern prison. It's still on an island in the middle of the sea, still looks the same from the outside, but the inmates are getting counseling, therapy, and healthcare… they've even encouraged some of the inmates to write apology letters to their families.", Narcissa said as they drove through the city to Holland Park, where Draco would be living.

"The mews are just wonderful. I'm so glad you're living here… as opposed to the manor…", Narcissa said as they parked.

"What's wrong with the manor?", Draco asked as he got his belongings from the back of the vehicle.

"I haven't been back there since 1999.", Narcissa admitted, "I moved out and into one of the smaller estates… I live with Andromeda and Teddy now… It works out quite well for all of us. Teddy has his friends around for the most part, he's got space to practice his quidditch, and he's away at Hogwarts for most of the year, so it's mostly just Andromeda and I…"

"So, the manor is empty?", Draco asked as they entered his house and closed the door.

"You understand that I wanted absolutely nothing to do with it after what went on there…", Narcissa said as she wrung her hands and rubbed the toe of her boot on the floor, "I cleaned out your rooms before I left, of course… and along with putting your boxes in here already, I took the liberty of charming the closet in the spare room to be your storage area, put an expansion charm on it so everything would fit... I doubt you'll want most of those things out...you're not fourteen anymore…"

Draco smiled sadly at his mother.

"It's fine, mum. I'm not upset that the manor is empty. I'm glad you were able to move on and I'm happy that you kept my stuff for so long, especially since you didn't even know if I'd ever come back to England."

"I had faith that someday you would return."

"Well, here I am…Come on, I need your input on where everything should go, you always had an eye for interior design…", Draco said, pulling out his wand and motioning for his mother to do the same.

They worked well into the night with unpacking and moving things into their proper places, ordering food when they got hungry.

Draco caught her up on how his years in America had been.

"So, you didn't date at all?", Narcissa asked.

Draco laughed.

"Oh, I dated, I just didn't do it often or make a habit out of it, that's all. I didn't meet anyone I really liked enough to consider being in a serious relationship with, and they were always witches that I met at MACUSA events… Not that I hung on dearly to father's pure-blood ideals or anything, I was just too busy to really go to many muggle bars and nightclubs, that's all. When I wasn't at work, I was asleep or going to the gym, and when I was on vacation, I liked to be alone, just me, nature, and a good book."

"Not to nag, but most of your classmates are married and have children now…", Narcissa said with a smirk, "I'm not trying to get you to settle down right away or at all if you don't want to, but I loved being around to watch Teddy grow up, so I really wouldn't mind it at all if I became a grandmother someday…"

Draco nodded.

"I'll keep that in mind. First, I have to get into my new line of work. I have this week to settle in. Luckily, the GMC has been in close contact with my supervisors at Shock-Trauma since I announced that I was leaving, the fact that I was a resident at Johns Hopkins is nothing to sneeze at either, and they'll work with me during my recertification process. Apparently, St. Mungo's is willing to take me on as a surgeon whether I'm certified to practice here or not, which is probably how they got to the state they're in…"

Narcissa watched, observing her son as he talked at length about the type of healing arts he'd like to practice. He explained how a hybridization of muggle medicine and healing magic was really the most idea way to practice because magic could offer non-addictive methods of pain management while some muggle practices were better suited for detecting diseases and other health problems.

"…you see, you can only take potions so many times before your body becomes accustomed to them, so really, a heart valve replacement could greatly extend the lifespan of a patient and the recovery time could be halved through the use of magic."

Narcissa decided to spend the night at Draco's apartment, and neither of them slept that night; he was still on American time and she was so excited to have her son home again that they talked all night long.

The sun crept up in the east and they had breakfast before Narcissa announced that she should get home.

"Alright, then. I'll probably apparate over there for dinner, if that's okay with you and Andromeda. I assume Teddy is back at Hogwarts now?"

Narcissa nodded.

"I must warn you, however, that your Aunt Andromeda looks a lot like Bellatrix… The resemblance is uncanny, but she is nothing like our sister, she's very nice and actually dresses in colors other than black.", she said, smirking a bit at the end.

"I'll keep that in mind.", Draco replied, kissing his mum on the cheek and waving at her as she departed.

He sighed as he reentered his home.

Everything was where it should be, but he wanted to set up his office space as a place where he could do potions work, and he no longer had most of his magical items, such as a cauldron or potions ingredients, so he would have to go to Diagon Alley.

The thought of going there made him shudder.

What would people do when they saw him walking around free?

He remembered being escorted out of his trial after the verdict had been passed that he was technically innocent and would not be sent to Azkaban for his complacency during the War.

There had been throngs of witches and wizards booing and jeering at him, yelling that he should burn in Hell, demanding that he receive the Kiss for his involvement.

He hoped that things had died down since then.

Squaring his shoulders, he tied his hair back in a low ponytail, pulled on a pair of dark jeans and a grey button-down shirt with a wool coat and a scarf before pulling on a pair of boots and apparating to the Leaky Cauldron.

He kept his eyes down as he walked to the Diagon Alley entrance, tapping the bricks to get in, and striding through the archway when it appeared.

He went right to Gringotts, doing his best to avoid detection, with no such luck. He was recognized almost immediately, could hear his name being whispered in the crowds, but he kept his head down and he ignored the gasps and hard stares of the other patrons as he entered the bank and went up to the goblin in charge, presenting his wand.

"I'd like to make a withdrawal, please.", he said, offering a slight smile to the goblin.

"Welcome back, Mister Malfoy…", the goblin sneered rather loudly, causing a cacophony of whispers to rush through the place.

He'd make the evening edition of the Daily Prophet at this rate.

"It's actually Doctor now…", he quipped back, as he glanced to the slack-jawed crowd of witches and wizards.

Once his withdrawal was completed, he departed Gringotts and went right to the nearest apothecary.

This time, he didn't attempt to hide his identity or keep his head down. He squared his shoulders and held his head high as he walked down the main alley.

As expected, a flash bulb went off in his peripherals.

He didn't even flinch.

He had heard gunshots all the time in Baltimore. He had survived 9/11. Hell, he even watched Voldemort's great ugly snake eat people.

There was little that they could do to faze him now.

He bought his supplies, bought a barn owl, and went to Flourish & Blotts, just to renew his subscription to the Daily Prophet and purchase some stationary.

If he was going to get back to living in the magical community, he might as well go all in.

His last stop was to Madam Malkin's.

This was the shit that would have people talking for days.

"I'd like to purchase Healer robes.", he said with a smile.

The visibly shaken seamstress behind the counter gulped and spoke, "The standard lime green and white?"

Draco shook his head.

If he was going to create a stir and change the magical community, he might as well go all in.

"I was thinking more along the lines of this…", he said, transfiguring his clothes into a perfect match of his Shock-Trauma scrubs, "The pale pink is an absolute must."

Another flash bulb went off.

With a wave of his wand, he was back in his normal clothes.

"I'll also take the standard lime green and white."

"But the full uniform in pink?", asked the witch.

"Yes. I'll choose the embroidery while I'm here. 'Dr. D. Malfoy, MD', in black on the left chest for the white and green, navy blue for the pink. I'll also need the white boots."

"Will that be all?"

"Yes."

After getting measured for the robes, he left the store and waved to the crowd that had amassed there and apparated back to his house.

He named his owl Elise and set her free from his bedroom window before deciding that he needed groceries.

He went to his garage, brought his motorcycle and car back to their full sizes, replaced the gasoline, transfigured his Maryland tags to British ones, and drove off in his car.

His mother still had a taste for the finer things in life, so she had gone with a Land Rover, but he preferred something humbler than all that, so he had gone with a Subaru Forester instead. He had splurged on his motorcycle a bit.

It was a custom 2006 Honda Shadow Aero and he loved it. It had all the thrill of a racing broom but none of the magic, and that was just fine by him.

In America, MACUSA had strict laws concerning broom usage, so his motorcycle had been a way to work around that rule and still get the adrenaline rush he got whenever he was on a broom.

He walked around the local grocery store and bought what he needed before heading home again, just in time for an owl from St. Mungo's to deliver a letter to him.

Dr. Malfoy,

I am delighted to hear you have arrived in one piece and I am so glad that you have taken the position we offered to you as a Healer for general medicine. However, we have reviewed your letters concerning a hybrid practice and you are not the only Healer we are bringing onboard that has expressed this desire to cross muggle medicine with the healing arts. Therefore, the board has decided that you will be the chief of critical care medicine. You will work with all departments, oversee the trainings of many Healers and medi-witches and medi-wizards, or nurses, as you call them in muggle practices, see to it that the candidates hold care to the highest standards, and routinely do rotations in general and specialty surgery.

Many of our new Healers were trained as doctors, nurses, surgeons, and imaging technicians. It is your responsibility, as well as the responsibility of those on your team, to see that the changes made to our medical community will be to the benefit of all who rely on us. It is time for us to move into a new era in care and to regain the trust of the magical community.

Your team is still being formed, but you will have members from all areas of medicine as well as a senior potion's master and a senior spell engineer. Remember, there is no leader of this team, and that was done on purpose, you are all contributing something different to this new era, everyone will bring something new to the table.

I know we agreed to meet in one week, but news travels fast and we just secured our chief of orthopedics, so our team is now complete.

We'll be meeting tomorrow at the main hospital at nine o'clock, just ask the receptionist to point you in the direction of the board meeting.

Hoping you are well,

Frederick Norrington, Healer

St. Mungo's Hospital Chief of Staff & Public Relations

Draco nodded and placed the letter on his desk.

This Norrington bloke seemed to have it all figured out.

To Draco's chagrin, he didn't make the evening edition of the Daily Prophet, but he had a sinking feeling that he would be making the morning edition.


After a long day of surgery, Hermione went home, showered, ate, and fell into her bed.

She rolled over and lazily summoned her mail to her in bed, ripping open a letter from Frederick Norrington, the chief of staff over at Mungo's.

Apparently, he wanted to hold a meeting tomorrow at nine o'clock. He had finally secured his chief of critical care, so it was time to get on track and usher in a new era of medicine, or something like that.

Hermione was excited, but she sent a quick text message to her office team, letting them know that she wouldn't be in until later, but that Josh could handle their patients until she arrived.

She fell asleep shortly after sending the message and slept through the night without a single nightmare.


The next morning dawned and Draco rolled out of his bed, ate, worked out for a bit, and then showered, shaved and got dressed in a nice pair of black trousers, a light gray dress shirt, and his nice dress shoes before deciding to forego wearing a tie, but pulling on a fitted sport coat instead.

He hadn't made the front page of the Daily Prophet, but there was a bit written on him in the society column, both of the photos from yesterday had been used, and it was titled, "Malfoy Heir Returns!".

He didn't bother reading whatever drivel they wrote about him, he just hoped that it wasn't going to be the hot topic that his colleagues would be discussing at the meeting today.

He apparated to the lobby of St. Mungo's at 8:45, his briefcase in hand, his lab coat draped over his arm, his long hair pulled back into a haphazard but still professional-looking bun.

"I'm here for the nine o'clock board meeting.", he said to the receptionist.

"Through there, end of the hall past the emergency department.", she said, not looking up at him from her magazine, jabbing her thumb to the door to her right.

Draco nodded and walked away.

He was halfway down the department and pulling on his lab coat when he heard screams and saw a patient being rushed in with a serious bleed.

Draco dropped his belongings and ran to the patient.


Hermione woke up late that morning, rolling over and shrieking when she saw the time.

She quickly ate a piece of toast and gulped down some tea as she waved her wand around like a madwoman, summoning her scrubs from her practice to her and jumping into them as she twirled her wand and commanded her generally unruly hair back into a French braid.

She charmed her makeup into place and pulled on her Dansko clogs before feeding Crookshanks, grabbing her tote bag, summoning her lab coat to her and apparating into the lobby of St. Mungo's.

She quickly walked towards the emergency department but stopped short when a patient was levitated in by several medi-witches with compound fracture to his right femur, blood rushing all over the place, the patient screaming bloody murder.

Hermione sprang into action, dropped her bags and pushed the doors to the emergency department open.

"I need a gurney!", she shouted.

Christ, that was a lot of blood…

She grabbed gloves and scissors and started cutting the pants away to get to the wound.

There was so much blood.

There was an artery that must've been grazed, probably the femoral artery, but she was focused on determining the extent of the break.

Someone got across from her and the next thing she knew, there was a tourniquet magicked around the upper leg, the time appearing on the closure, and a gloved hand went right into the wound, blood spraying on her before stopping as the other person placed their finger in the artery, effectively providing a plug for the blood loss.

"As many pints of O neg as you can manage, stat!", the person shouted and she glanced up at them, and blanched as she came face to face with Draco Malfoy.

Draco's grey eyes widened as they locked with Hermione's deep brown.

"You.", they both breathed at the same time.