DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER!!

Normal Life Doesn't Exist

Chapter 1

The next morning, Hermione waited in the kitchen until the girls had collected their stuff. They put their bags onto a chair, walked under the stairs, collected their shoes and put them on easily. Hermione got their coats and helped them into those and then helped them put on their bags.

"Got everything?" she asked, picking up her own coat, putting that on, tucking her scarf under the coat and then putting her handbag over her shoulder.

"Yep." They chorused.

"Let's go then." she said, taking the house keys walking to the door. The girls left the house, stood on the doorstep whilst Hermione locked the house, put the keys in her bag and then took one of girls' hands and they began to walk.

They continued walking for a few more minutes before they reached the school. Wanting only the best for her girls, they were privately educated at a very formal and expensive school, but they still liked it and had fun. Hermione saw them to their class lines, kissed them and got a kiss back, despite their argument the previous day and then bid them goodbye as she saw them safely into the school.

"Feels 2 minutes since they were 5 minutes old instead of 5 years, doesn't it?" asked the voice of one of her parent friends.

"Hiya, Kyle." She said, turning to greet her fellow parent. She'd always admired Kyle. His fiancée had left him 6 years previous, making him the sole carer for their 3 months old daughter Kayleigh and their 4 year old son, Matt. Kayleigh was just over a year older than Jane and Merope but they had many play dates.

"How are you, Hermione?"

"I'm fine. How are you?"

"A little tired, as you are. A single parent of two kids. Nightmare."

"Yeah. I mean, it's worse for you, I don't have to work. Kyle, I've told you - I'm happy to give you money."

"No, Hermione, I've told you. You keep your money."

"Why don't you save money and just let the girls be publicly educated?"

"Why do you want your girls to be taught here?"

"I want the best for them."

"So do I. Look, Claire just made a mistake when she left us but she's going to come back soon anyway."

"Oh, my God. 6 years and you're still defending her?"

"I love her."

"Let her go." Hermione said, taking Kyle's hands and squeezing them. "She left you in the middle of the night, no note, no contact, nothing. She's a bitch who doesn't deserve your time."

Kyle laughed. "That coming from you? You left your husband."

"That was different. He isn't the kind of man I want the girls raised by."

"Why? Is he a murderer or something?" he joked but then he saw Hermione's angry and upset face. "Shit. He is, isn't he?"

"He made mistakes in life."

"Well, Claire did." He said simply, pulling his hands out of hers. "See you later."

--

Hermione was in Diagon Alley. She usually shopped in Muggle stores but she needed a few new books to keep her occupied. She always felt like she was betraying the girls by not telling them that they were witches. But it was hard on her, too, so she thought it balanced out. She hid her magical belongings under her bed in an invisible box that she only got out when the girls were at school.

Just coming out of Flourish & Blott's with a bag of books which she shrunk down to fit in her handbag, she started walking up the street, not looking where she was going. She bumped into a man.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, sir." She said, looking up and seeing a very handsome face.

"Oh, quite alright, miss." He smiled. "Orpheus Bawter." He offered his hand.

"Hermione Granger." She smiled back at him.

A few feet away, a pair of ears perked up at the name. Lucius Malfoy stopped walking and listened intently.

"Well, if I may say, you don't appear a day over 21."

Hermione laughed. "25, actually."

"Well, you look very well for your lack of age."

"This conversation is making me a little uncomfortable, but I'm willing to put up with it if you smile at me like that." She said, smirking and blushing.

He chuckled and finally released her hand, putting his in his pockets. He looked to his left and saw Lucius' turned back and appeared to know he was listening to them. "Surely a beautiful young lady like yourself has met Lucius Malfoy." He said.

Hermione started to panic. Weirded out by his random sentence but also his obvious wish to 'introduce' her to said blonde, she began to stutter. "I c-can't. I-I-I have things to do. I'm v-very busy today."

"It'll only take a second. Lucius!"

Hermione knew that Lucius must be on very good terms to allow Orpheus to call him by his first name in public. The blonde turned around, just in time to see Hermione push Orpheus away from her and run down the street, seemingly unknowing her direction was Knockturn Alley.

Lucius ran after her, his hair flying everywhere through the gentle breeze that was now very powerful as he ran madly through the streets, shouting at Hermione to 'stop' and 'slow down'. She was consumed by fear and panic as she heard him start to gain on her. Turning a sharp corner into the dark shopping streets, she hid just inside of an alleyway as Lucius ran past her. She ran out of the alley, bumping into a man.

"'Ello, darlin'!" he cackled, holding onto her.

"Let me go!" she hissed at him.

Lucius stopped and turned around. Seeing a frightened Hermione in the arms of a known pervert in Knockturn Alley, he shot towards, them, pulling his wand out of the top of his cane. Hermione saw him doing so and pushed the man to the floor, running back towards Diagon Alley.

"Avada Kedavra!" Lucius said, pointing to the man on the floor. A few screams went off and people started running around, making him lose track of where Hermione had gone. "Shit." He mumbled, kicking the dead man's face.

--

Hermione was shaken when she got home and went on autopilot. She walked upstairs, put her books in the box under her bed and then started to clean the house, as was her habit when she was overwhelmed by emotion. When it was 2:50pm, she left the house to collect the girls and then brought them home, almost running with them.

"How was school?" Hermione asked when they were sitting at the kitchen table, reading, as was their habit after school.

"Alright." Merope shrugged.

"Just 'alright'? Jane?"

"It was nice. In French we sung a song."

"Really? What song was it?"

"Frère Jacques."

"Wow." she said, smiling proudly at her little girls. "So, it was a good day."

"Yup." They said. "How was your day, mummy?"

"Well, first off, I took a bath in pure melted chocolate. And then, I won the lottery, and to celebrate; I went swimming in the park fountain with all the ducks. What did you do?"

Jane and Merope looked at each other. They knew that Hermione only played this game when she was very upset. They didn't say anything about it though, knowing she also didn't like to talk about stuff that upset her. "In assembly, Headmaster told us that we were the best students in the school."

"And then the librarian gave us all access passes so we can have whatever books we want."

"And then at lunch, we played 'Stuck in the Mud' with the class and we won a game each."

"That's great. In that case, you're going to get lasagne for tea." The girls smiled at their mum and continued reading. Hermione didn't continue though. She stroked their heads with her hands and let a tear slip out of her eyes. "I'm sorry I'm hiding you from him. But it's what's best. Please forgive me." she whispered.

The girls stopped reading, climbed out of their seats and hugged Hermione. They all cried together and had a small sleep, curled up on the couch.