Life Goes On.
Chapter Two.

A month had passed and Hermione remained in Grimmauld Place, visits from Harry and owls from Ginny her only correspondence with her friends. Other than that her time was taken up with working. She got in early and came home late, anything to save her coming back to the empty dusty house that only served to increase her feelings of loneliness.

I'm thinking of going back to him... She had admitted in her last letter to Ginny, it's just so lonely being here on my own, I may not have been completely happy with Ronald but surely it would be better than this?

She had not seen Ron since the night of their break up and was missing him, or if not him at least the idea of him, she missed the arms around her at night and the hand holding her own while they were out. She had gotten into the habit of seeing him every day and for that to be gone felt strange.

It was these thoughts that fuelled her to write him a note one lonely evening after returning from work and asked him to come to Grimmauld Place so they could talk. He did so the following evening.

They stood alone in the kitchen, an awkward silence expanding in front of them; Hermione peered about quickly searching for anything that could inspire her into speaking.

"Would you like a coffee?" She asked finally and after a nod from Ron flicked her wand at the kettle upon the stove, "Please sit down." She invited and they both did so.

A few minutes passed until the kettle began whistling and with another flick of her wand it poured itself into two awaiting mugs already filled with instant coffee granules, milk and sugar.

"Thanks." Ron mutter as he picked up the mug and took a loud slurp of the hot liquid, making Hermione wince, she had always hated that noise.

"How have you been?" She asked when she realised he was going to offer no form of conversation.

He shrugged that irritating shrug he always did, she sighed, "Look Ron, I feel bad about the way we left things between us, it was wrong of me to leave without resolving things."

Again his only response was a shrug infuriating Hermione. "Anyway, Ronald, all I wanted to say was that I hope that even if we can't be together I would like us to still be friends. Do you think that would be possible?"

"Lonely are you?" He sneered leaving Hermione quite shocked.

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well it's been a month, so I figure the only reason you're talking to me now is that you're lonely."

The bitterness and truthfulness of Ron's words brought tears to Hermione's eyes, she remained mute.

Ron didn't seem to notice and carried on regardless. "And that's not my fault Hermione, it's yours, just because you want to forget what happened in the war and pretend to have a normal life doesn't mean that we can all move on so quickly. I lost a brother remember?"

"Yes Ron I remember, but you seem to have forgotten that I lost both of my parents! So don't you start thinking that you get the monopoly on grief. We all lost people Ron but do you think it honours their memories to use them as an excuse to sit around and do nothing? As much as Fred liked to slack where he could I don't think he would have appreciated his younger brother using his death as a reason to do the same." The high emotion of the topic was bringing anger to her voice and further tears to her eyes, "And it's not the fact that you're not doing anything, it's the fact that every single day you would come to me moaning about it, like you expected me to sort it out for you, I'm tired of looking after you Ron."

"Looking after me?" Ron asked incredulously, "Is that what you've been doing? I was under the impression that you were flouncing off and sorting your life out, forgetting all about me."

"I think I'd like you to leave now Ron," Hermione sighed, burying her head in her hands, "I had hoped that after everything we'd been through that we could have stayed friends, but I guess that you don't want to do that, so there's very little point carrying on for arguments sake."

Wordlessly Ron stood up from the table and left the room, Hermione followed a few seconds later, just in time to see him throw Floo powder into the crackling fire in the dining room and exit through it.

With a sigh she retired to the living room sinking down into one of the armchairs, that hadn't at all gone as she planned, although, she mused with a wry smile, at least she didn't miss him anymore. Grabbing her briefcase, she pulled out a series of folders and set to work reviewing the new policies that were being set on the handling of unicorns.

She was really enjoying her new work she had a range of things to oversee from laws and policies to reprimands for people who ignored said laws. At the moment she was only doing paper work but the job offered her many field opportunities, which her boss had promised would be coming her way very soon.

It wasn't until the clock chimed midnight that she decided to call it a night; work had served its purpose as a method of distraction from the situation between her and Ron. Now, she decided it was time to sleep.

Ron however had no intention of sleeping; he was propped up against the bar of the leaky cauldron downing shot after shot of firewhiskey he had been there for two hours and was very clearly past his limit, finally Tom refused to give him anything other than water and Ron stumbled off his chair and out into the street where the promptly walked straight into Harry.

"Steady on mate," Harry said as he grabbed Ron under the arms, and flinging one of them over his own shoulders served as his friend's support. "Your mum is having kittens; you've been out hours, let's get you home so we can calm her down and sober you up."

"It's all over mate" Ron slurred as they made their way back into the pub to make use of the fireplace, "She don't want me no more."

He gave a sad little hiccup followed by a loud belch.

"Let's get you to bed; I'm sure things will look brighter in the morning." Harry said firmly as they stepped into the green flames.

Even in his drunken stupor Ron didn't believe his best friend's words, it was all over and he had done nothing to help matters by arguing again. Deep down even he knew that Hermione was right, as usual, he added with irritation. Even before these fresh arguments had started they had had problems, but being him he had chosen to ignore them and hoped that they would simply go away. Of course they had not.

And now it seemed that Hermione was out of his life forever, just as she had said to him, it didn't look like there was a chance of them even being friends after the heated words between them.

Hermione awoke early and had enough time to pen a letter to Ginny to get her up to speed on the goings on.

Gin,

I had a moment of weakness last night and asked Ron to come round so we could talk. I suppose part of me was hoping that we'd get back together.

Thankfully your prat of a brother was very rapid in changing my mind; yet again we had an argument.

Somehow I don't see us making amends anytime soon and I think that friendship may me out of the question.

I really wish it hadn't ended up this way, now my parents are gone you Harry and Ron are the only family I've got.

Anyway I must go, some of us have to work for a living.

I hope school is going well and you're not finding seventh year too difficult.

Hope to hear from you soon,

Hermione.

Hermione dropped the letter into the mail room in the Ministry on the way up to her office and got to work for the day. When she got to a desk she found a note had been left for her, in her boss's untidy scrawl she was instructed –

Read up on dragon rights and law

New policies to be put into place and I'm putting you on the case

Do some research you'll need it when you get back after Christmas