Harry Potter sat at the bar, his right hand around the tall pint glass, his left scratching idly at the hair of his beard under his chin. He was in a muggle bar in North London, his first time back in England since the war had ended.

He looked up to the telly and saw highlights from the past weekend's football flash across the screen. He watched with unseeing eyes for a moment longer before dipping his head back down and taking another long swallow of the dark bitter beer in his glass.

He reached into his pocket pulling out a 20-pound note and placing it on the table before standing and making his way to the exit. He sighed when he saw that the rain had begun in earnest realizing that he hadn't bothered to bring an umbrella with him.

Instead, he slyly snuck his wand from its holster and cast a warming charm upon himself. He reholstered his wand and stuck his hands in his jean pockets, making his way out into the night.

The streets were mostly empty due to the weather and Harry was planning to walk only to the closest inn he could find. He was going to stay in London just until tomorrow so he could make a quick trip to Gringotts, and then he would be on his way again. Out of this country and away from wizards hopefully for the rest of his life.

He felt comfortable enough as his magic staved off most of the cold, but the raindrops still hit him and soon enough he was soaked from his head down to the well-worn leather of his boots. He noticed the light of a nearby inn and started walking more quickly towards it when a voice caused him to turn suddenly, wand in hand, and a curse on his lips.

"Harry Potter?" It said quietly, hopefully.

The curse died on his tongue and his heart twisted. Standing before him was a woman a head and a half shorter than him. She had an umbrella in her hand and brown wavy hair that had frizzed up from the moisture in the air.

Harry's eyes roved over her face, drinking in the sight of her. Her pink lips, her small nose, those brown eyes, still shining with the same intelligence he had last seen a decade ago.

He attempted to speak, but his voice died in his throat. Finally, after a few more seconds he heard his own voice croak out one single word.

"Hermione?"

A/N: An idea that's been pinging around my head. This one will likely be a longer fic at some point soon.