Red String

By: Karma's Slave

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, this is written for purely entertainment.

Alternate universe: Canon –Divergence

One-shot

Author's note: This is an idea, I have been wanting to get out of my head for sometime aswell as some others.

Hermione sighed as she looked at the documents that had been sent to her via owl to her some days ago. They were not relevant to her work so it shouldn't have needed her immediate attention but they did.

Not that her actual work would suffer for her distraction, given who she is.

"Stupid Ronald" she muttered as she could feel her eyes sting at the tears starting to form but they had yet to fall down her face.

Hermione had thought that she and Ron had come to an understanding and that they were going to try and rekindle their relationship as husband and wife as their children were recently sent off to Hogwarts for their new school year.

But clearly Ronald made other arrangements as she stared at the divorce papers that openly mocked her with its existence. Hermione should have known better once Lavender Brown was back into the picture with her new revealed status as a werewolf.

But Hermione couldn't blame Lavender for her martial problems, not really as she and Ron always had issues in their romantic relationship some of those issues stemming from their friendship. Even before Brown's reappearance into not only their friend circle but also their family circle as Lavender was attacked by Fenrir Greyback back in the second war. Remus along with his wife Dora, had taken Lavender in to help with her new status as they were technically pack mates, once again because of Fenrir Greyback.

It made Hermione feel like her sixth year self all over again and she certainly didn't like that feeling. She'd seen the way her husband looked at Brown when she entered the burrow the day Lavender reentered their lives. Hermione couldn't stomach the fact that her husband didn't look at her like that and this time no love potion was involved. Hermione wiping away the tears before they could fall, she couldn't let her coworkers see her it would invite questions that Hermione wasn't ready to answer yet.

Hermione was glad that Lavender survived, really she is. No Ronald Weasley did not cheat on her with his ex-girlfriend, honestly it be easier if he had but he didn't. Ron gets to remain the good guy in this scenario. Truth be told it made muggle-born witch a little more madder at him.

Despite all that she'd been through as she grew up fighting a war, failure still seemed to remain one of her biggest fears. After all was any person okay with admitting they had a failing marriage. In the wizarding world it almost seemed rare to dissolve a marriage but it still happened not as much in the Muggle world, mind you.

Oh Merlin, she needed a smoke (not that she did smoke) and a shot maybe two or even three…okay maybe a whole bottle of fire whiskey to herself, just to calm her nerves and all of her emotions especially the anger that was being held back at Ronald for owling the divorce papers without at least talking to her but Ron being Ron. Honestly Ron's well-meaning naivety was a double edged sword that Hermione was constantly hit with.

Something that Hermione was unfortunately used too.

'Why did she marry him again?' She asked herself in her mind, the reason it should be was because she loved him but once again Hermione couldn't admit her love for Ron wasn't like what Ginny and Harry have or even Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and certainly not like what couples Fleur and Bill and Remus and Dora had.

Hermione was jealous not that she'd admit it out loud nor should she be comparing them but she couldn't help it. Long ago Hermione even thought it would improve when Rose and Hugo came into the picture, it didn't however her kids were her heart. Failed marriage or not. "Oh" Hermione said as she now recalled as to why she married Ron, because he was safe for her, familiar plus when everything war related was over…The realization hit the muggle-born witch hard. She had settled for Ron.

Merlin she needed a drink, Hermione let out a small chuckle at the thought of fire whiskey, she wondered if he had survived the battle at the Ministry, What would be Sirius's reaction to her indulging in his coping mechanisms. As a then fifteen year old logically she knew why he did it but now as adult, she understands why he couldn't stop, just the wanting to be numb, not being able to think of the losses, betrayals and missing out on raising Harry.

She really gets it now.

She missed when he would tease her with nickname Kitten. That summer she spent at his childhood home, granted their tempers got the best of them when it came to the Black family house elf, Kreacher. Oh Merlin did she regret saying that he deserved his fate for how he treated Kreacher, the moment it came out of her mouth. Hermione was taken back by the behavior considering fourth year with Winky and Mr. Crouch Senior. But Hermione felt worse when Harry eventually opened up about Sirius and mentioned in passing a not so pleasant childhood. A fact that should have been obvious to someone so smart like herself. She apologized to Harry in that moment.

Hermione really needed to get out of her office. She didn't dare look again to her desk. She couldn't stare at those damn papers hurt her. It wasn't till she looked to her hands on her left ring finger was an opaque red string around her finger. "What in the…" she said softly, she had certainly not casted with her wand or was in a proper mindset for wandless magic but here she was with a mysterious string around her finger. Her brain was telling her to go to library at once and research this as much as she could but her heart was simply telling her to follow it.

Her eyes shifting to her right hand, seeing a faint broken pink string sat behind her wedding rings

While her mind gotten her through the darkest moments of her life, Hermione was also just tired of listening to it. All the time.

Sirius once said "What's life without a little risk" to which made her think 'what would Sirius do?' Hermione muttering a "Fuck it" stood up from her office chair and simply let the opaque string lead her to whichever destination it had in mind.

Hermione quickly noted that no one else, that only she could see the mysterious string around her finger at least it wouldn't bring unwanted attention to her. Hermione certainly wasn't looking forward to seeing Rita Skeeter pry into her marriage.

As she further walked in the Ministry halls no one had stopped her for mere chit-chat…at least not yet until the prophet gets news of her failed marriage. The thought merely distracting her.

The string then tugged at her finger as if it were now a sense of urgency. So the brunette put a little more speed into her step. It wasn't like anyone was going to stop her with her questions not with her security clearances as well her status as a war hero.

Having yet not noticed the opaque string was looking slightly darker.

Hermione had her wand at the ready as she realized it was taking her to where the veil was located. Hermione couldn't bring herself to stop, her heart kept telling her to go while her old instincts wanted to her to go into survival mode.

Hermione simply took a deep sharp breathe of air into her body calm her nerves. It's just her and some scattered employees working around the department of mysteries.

Taking another breathe. She stepped into the chamber where she was greeted by the sight of man on his hands and knees. Hermione knew this man

Her brown eyes widening at the sight of this man who hasn't been seen since 1996. She momentarily stopped breathing when she looked down to her hand to see the now bold red string on her finger.

Where the end of that string was tethered to a revived Sirius Black.

Hermione really wants, no needs that fire whiskey now.