Chapter 2: A New Job

Hermione's heart was full of hope as she found the tailoring parlor called "Maggie's Tailoring." She'd never seen it in Hogsmeade before but was delighted to have discovered it now. It shared the wall of two other businesses with tall linear grey stone walls and had to be at least 3 stories tall. There were black bay windows with matching stone traveling up and across the entire store with charming flower boxes across the bottom of every one. Something about it felt perfect to her.

A bell chimed as she pushed herself and her trunk through the entrance of the store. It was a charming place with rows of suit jackets hung inside gorgeous wooden cases, and beneath them were rows of folded pants of various colors on similar wooden shelves. For every section of suits, was a track light that lit the suits with a warm glow. On the other side of the store was a large space with multiple mirrors that stood in the shape of a half circle and front of them were black leather step stools. On the opposite side of the store were two velvet blue arm chairs.

The store seemed to be empty until a woman in a green apron stepped out from behind what looked to be the front desk.

"Hi," she said cheerfully. She pushed up the glasses on her nose. "How can I help you? Are you here for a fitting?"

Now there was a pit in Heroine's stomach. "No no, I found your flyer at the train station." Hermione reached into her pocket and took out the folded-up flyer. "I was wondering if the position was still available?"

Suddenly the woman jumped up and down and squealed like an excited child on Christmas Day. "Oh my gosh! I was afraid no one would apply!" She took hold of Hermione's shoulders and pulled her into a welcoming hug. Hermione was surprised at the amount of enthusiasm the woman showed for her filling the position but embraced the woman back, besides, this must have meant the position had not been filled yet.

"Oh! Please excuse me, where are my manners?" She flattened the top of her apron and extended her hand. "I'm Maggie, I'm the owner of the store and this is Maggie's Tailoring!" She gestured to the room and grabbed hold of Hermione's hand. "Let me show you where you'll be staying."

Hermione followed Maggie through another in the corner of the store and up a flight of stairs that creaked with every step. At the top of the staircase was a single small door and across from it one of the large bay windows she saw outside. "This is where you'll be staying!" Maggie threw the small door open and waved Hermione inside.

Hermione entered a decent-sized room with a slanted ceiling on one side. Beneath it was a charming bed on top of a cute metal bed frame with a matching nightstand next to the bed. A blue backless couch was placed against the foot of the metal bed frame. Maggie entered the room behind her and let out a big sigh.

"I can't tell you how thankful I am that you're here! The business has grown so much over the last couple of weeks and I could use the help. We've even been hired by high-end witches and wizards for tailoring services!" Maggie clapped her hands together and left the room, stomping her way back down the wooden staircase. Hermione looked around.

The walls had a baby blue wallpaper with small baby's-breath flowers going from the top of the wall to the bottom in even rows. Beneath a layer of dust were deep ember floorboards. This place sure felt cozy. Across from the bed was another bay window that brought it just the right amount of light. Hermione walked over and looked down onto Hogsmeade village. The streets were flooded with people, some went into one store, others went to another. She was surprised at how empty Maggie's Tailoring seemed to be on a day with so many village visitors.

A giant thud came from the bottom of the stairs. Hermione ran to the door and found Maggie struggling to drag it behind her. "Oh my gosh, you don't have to do that!" Hermione skipped down the stairs and helped Maggie haul it up the stairs and into Hermione's new room. Maggie swiped the sweat from her forehead with a "Phew!"

"Thank you for the help." But Maggie waved Hermione away.

"Please don't worry about it. I should be thanking you for taking the position! Speaking of—Have I thanked you yet?" She laughed and slapped the tops of her knees. Her hair was tied back in a bright yellow handkerchief and two brown coils fell from the sides. Maggie had to be no more than 30 but the supposed hustle and bustle the store's been having have left her with dark circles under her eyes.

"You're too kind Maggie," said Hermione. "But you don't have to thank me. I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity to work here." She smiled as Maggie nodded and headed for the door, but before she made her way back down to the store she stopped at the top of the staircase and said: "If you need any assistance, please let me know. The kitchen is downstairs through a glass door behind the rest of the store, and your room has a bathroom that you can enter through that door." She pointed to an equal-sized door a few feet away from the bay window.

Once Maggie was gone, Hermione opened her trunk and began to unpack her clothes into an old dresser that seemed to have been used and abused over time. It felt strange to unpack the same clothes she had stuffed into the trunk back in Gryffindor's bed chambers. By lunch, she had a new job and a new place to live without giving up the best parts of her life. As she placed each pile into the wooden dresser, she would occasionally peek down into the streets of Hogsmeade, wondering if should could spot anyone she might recognize.

Or maybe a certain red-haired boy.

Maggie showed Hermione the ropes, training her on the opening and closing routine of the store. She mentioned that Hermione's job would primarily be tailoring on the road but in case Maggie couldn't make it into the store in time, she gave Hermione an extra key to the store. She helped Maggie close the store for the evening without seeing a single customer, but she did mention that most of their customers were wealthy witches and wizards to whom Hermione would be delivering tailoring services.

They chatted over dinner and learned the basics about each other, but Hermione left out her reasoning for leaving Hogwarts. She didn't want to taint her first day with Maggie in a depressing mess, and she didn't have any tears left to shed. She'll save them for when she's alone in her bed. She helped clean up after dinner, and after another hundred 'thank you's from Maggie, they retired to their bedrooms. Maggie's bedroom was right off the kitchen, and Hermione made a mental note to be quiet coming down the stairs in the mornings.

That night she lay there staring at the ceiling, occasionally counting each flower on the wallpaper. She wondered what Ron was doing. Did he care that she left? Did he even know? She turned over and rammed her face into the pillow. She had to let it go—she'd left that relationship back at Hogwarts, and as far as she knew Ron no longer wanted to be in it.

Even though she told herself over and over again to try and move on, she couldn't help but cry. The night slipped by as the tears dampened her pillow, and as the sky turned a cobalt blue with a spec of yellow, Hermione finally fell asleep.