Chapter 3

At St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. Hermione Jean Granger was a Healer in high demand. She was well known as one of the best healers St. Mungo's had ever seen.

Hermione wore her lime green robe and her emblem of crossed wand and bone proudly. She was finally a healer. It had been her dream to do something important for a long time. As soon as she had that meeting with McGonagall in 5th year, she had known that's what she was aiming for.

"Ms. Bentley, your wound is healing quite nicely. We're going to give you some potion to prevent infection. Mediwitch Dunn will bring that up sometime today." Said Hermione putting the clipboard back in the tray, and she walked out of the room her high heels making a sharp clip on the tile floor.

"Hello, Emily. Any messages for me?" she asked the blonde welcome witch as she passed.

"Carrie just called, she wants to see you in her office." Emily said looking at a yellow pad of paper.

"When?" Hermione squeaked. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately, squeaking.

"Right now." Emily reads.

"Ah!!" Hermione moaned, "Emily, got to go, I'll meet you for coffee later." She waved her hand to Emily as Hermione hurried to see her boss.

"Mrs. Worley? May I come in?" Hermione knocked on the door of her boss's office.

"Ms. Granger. Please come in." Carrie Worley said, it was a perfectly friendly tone, but to Hermione it sounded ominous.

"Ms. Granger, you may have heard that I'm retiring in a few weeks."

"No, I hadn't heard." Hermione lied, of course she had heard all the healers were in vicious competition for the position Carrie Worley held.

"Well, Ms. Granger, I'm retiring. And I'm strongly considering promoting you to my position. You are one of the brightest young healers I've ever had the pleasure of working with." Hermione's mouth fell open. When she realized how inappropriate she was acting in the presence of her boss, she snapped her mouth shut.

"Do you have anything to say, Ms. Granger?" Carrie said, folding her hands across her desk, and smiling.

"N-no. I don't, except for thank you. Thank you for considering m-me" Hermione stuttered uncharacteristically.

"Now, go continue your shift, but take this application." Carrie said waving her wand and a sheet of parchment appeared in Hermione's hand. Hermione folded it and put the application in the pocket of her robes.

She went to another patient's room, a woman who looked like Hermione had when she had taken the Polyjuice Potion in her 2nd year. Her fur was thinning out on her face, and the eyes were slowing forming back to their regular shape. "Mrs. Connor, you're progressing very nicely." Hermione told her. Mrs. Connor meowed in response.

Hermione walked around, checked on more patients, went through emergency procedures with a heart attack. By now her feet were hurting and she desperately wanted coffee. She still had to check on Becky Bentley, to make sure the medi-witch had delivered the potion, Hermione had prescribed. She came into the room to find a surprising guest sitting right next to the bed. Charlie Weasley.

"Hello, Becky, how are you? Did mediwitch Dunn bring up the prescription?"

Becky Bentley nodded. Somehow the nodding led Hermione to Becky's hand, which was grasping Charlie's in a suspiciously "boyfriend/girlfriend" type of way.

"Great. Now if you'll excuse me, I need some caffeine, immediately." Hermione said, walking out of the room and hurrying up to the Tea Room on the fifth floor.

She purchased some coffee and was happily drinking it, feeling the warmth flow through her. She was finally calm, to think about her possible promotion. She wasn't going to tell a soul, except for her parents.

"Hermione, we have to talk." Hermione gagged on some of her coffee.

"Hey, Charlie." She said once she had settled her coffee. "So, last night…"

"Never happened." He supplied.

"Exactly." She agreed.

"Because I would hate for Becky to find out about us. I've hurt her before, but I don't want to hurt her again." Charlie said, he sounded really sappy. Hermione noted with a slight smile.

"Is she the one?" Hermione asked.

"I think so." Charlie said in reply. "Do you have 'the one?'" yet?

"No. Not anymore." Hermione said wistfully.

"Do tell." Charlie said.

"His name is Michael Desmond, he's the son of my mother's best friend. We've been dancing around each other for years. We finally started dating about a couple of years ago. And I really thought we were happy, but then he leaves. I don't really want to explain why." Charlie pulled a face.

"That's rough."

"I know." Hermione moaned miserably, folding her legs onto her chair. "That was about three weeks ago." She adds on.

"So last night was…"

"My rebound, and Charlie I'm utterly disinterested in you right now."

"Alright." Charlie smiled. "I've got to say goodbye to Becky before I go to work."

"Ok, buhbye." Hermione unintentionally clipped. Charlie made the slightest head movement, waved goodbye and walked out of the Tea Room.

Emily, appeared in the doorway, "hey, whatsup?" she asked Hermione.

"Sorry, I've had a really interesting day." Hermione told Emily apologetically.

"What happened and who was that guy?" Emily gushed. "Let me get coffee, then you will talk." Hermione smiled.

Emily was fresh out of an American school. Salem Academy for Young Witches and Wizards. When Hermione and Emily had first met, Emily had hastily explained her light accent. She was British/American. Her parents had a nasty divorce and lived on separate continents, her mother resided in London, and her father called Salem, Massachusetts, his home.

Emily arrived back at the table with coffee and two chocolate frosted donuts.

"You're a lifesaver." Hermione smiled.

"Who said that one was for you? No I'm totally kidding. Take it." Emily had the tendency to answer questions she asked herself. It was kind of an annoying habit she had, but Hermione was too used to it by now.

"So, Hermione, spill. Who was that guy?" Emily asked taking a bite of donut. "Oh, Boston Crème." She said when vanilla filling slopped out of the donut.

"That was Charlie Weasley." Hermione looked around, "we had a one-night stand last night."

"Really!" Emily gasped "Hermione Granger has one night stands!?" Hermione laughed at Emily's reaction.

"I mean, you are always so level headed and stuff, I can't see you having a one-night stand."

"Me neither."

"So was he good?" Emily prodded, hoping for good gossip.

"Um, he was nice." Hermione was unsure how to answer.

Emily laughed. "Sweetie, they are all nice, well except for some."

"That reminds me, how'd your date go?" Hermione asked.

"He was gorgeous, amazing body, huge package, nice personality. But I wasn't into it."

"…???…"

"I mean, on paper he's the ideal guy, but in bed, I mean, he tried too hard." Emily continued.

Hermione took a sip of her coffee, now lukewarm and not as good. She frowned at the taste, but she saw Carrie walk by and her expression flipped and turned into a smile.

"What's with that smile?" Emily says.

"Emily, I'm swearing you to secrecy."

"Ok, why?"

"Carrie wants to promote me to her position! She gave me an application and everything!!!"

"No fucking way! Hermione that's AWESOME!!" Emily was so happy for Hermione. Hermione stayed silent as she saw Carrie come up behind Emily.

"Ms. Granger, Ms. Garmin what are you still doing here, your shifts ended a while ago." Carrie Worley said from Emily's shoulder.

"We've clocked out." Emily said.

"Ms. Granger? Why are you still clocked in?"

"Oh, shit. I've been here for about half an hour." Hermione said grabbing her donut waving goodbye to Emily and Carrie and running toward the employee break room. Hermione felt so bad about her accidental overtime, she deducted a whole hour from her hours today.

She walked to the Apparition zone in the lobby and Disapparated. She landed in her walk-in closet, her designated spot for when she apparates. Hermione had an anti-Apparition charms. The people would be surprised by the splinching charm she had set up for her unwelcome Apparition visitors.

She kicked off her high heels and walked down to the kitchen. Hermione sat down at her kitchen, she unfolded her application and started filling it out

Name: Hermione Jane Granger, DOB: 19 Sept 79, Qualifications: completed 7 years at Hogwarts, 10 O.W.L.s, two years additional healer training, one year mediwitch, one year healer. References: Minerva McGonagall-, Transfiguration Professor, Hogwarts School; Molly Weasley family friend; Filius Flitwick- Charms Professor, Hogwarts School; Horace Slughorn- Potions Professor, Hogwarts School.

As Hermione looked upon her list of references and her application in general; she felt extremely lonely.

She picked up the telephone. Hermione dialed the number she knew so well and waited for someone to answer "hello."

"Hello. Hello? Is anybody there?" Michael's voice was irritated. "Hermione! Stop calling me!" She hung up.

Hermione felt like crying and slapping herself. Why had she just called Michael? She was rubbing salt in her wounds. Hermione sent an owl to Harry and Ginny's flat.

Ginny, I just fucked up. I called Michael. Hermione couldn't think of what else to write so she signed her name Hermione and sent the letter off to their flat.

Though it was a few minutes, it felt almost instantaneous to Hermione, she heard knocking on the door, "Hermione, it's Ginny." Ginny called through the door. Hermione magicked the door open from where she sat. Ginny rushed in and hugged Hermione.

They sat and ate ice cream, Ben & Jerry's Phish food. Ginny rubbed Hermione's back while they talked. And then Hermione felt asleep on the couch. Ginny laid her down on the couch and went to the loveseat, curled up and went to sleep also.

Author's Notes:

-So this was written before HP 7, stuff in book seven will not change my story.

-I'm never sure how to spell apparation, so it's always spelled differently. Etc.

-sorry if something is inconsistent with another thing, I'm kind of tired, I will most likely fix it later.