Chapter 1

Hermione's lab was a complete disaster. Beakers, cauldrons, and loose bits of parchment littered her workspace. Shreds of boomslang skin and leftover bubotuber pus were dried and stuck to the wood of the table. She would probably need a severing charm to get it all off.

She was usually more meticulous than this, but when she was on the cusp of a new breakthrough, cleaning was the last thought on her mind. She had sent all of her assistants home earlier in the evening because they had all been working basically nonstop for the whole week. Hermione had planned to leave with them, but an idea popped into her head just as she was taking off her lab coat and she had to see if it would work.

Now that the potion had been simmering for an hour, it was time to stir. After checking her notes for the fourth time, she was confident that after thirteen counterclockwise stirs the potion would finally turn the cloudy clear she hypothesized.

Hermione held her breath as her ladle finally made the last turn of the cauldron and waited. She barely took a breath in anticipation of what was going to happen.

The potion turned black and began to sizzle, a leak sprung from the bottom of the cauldron as the mixture ate away at the pewter. With a yell of frustration, she threw her ladle across the room where the leftover potion began to dissolve the wallpaper. Without a thought, she banished everything from her workstation, even the smoking cauldron. She would have to buy another one in Diagon Alley tomorrow morning, her fourth one this month.

Groaning in frustration, Hermione tugged on her frizzing curls and attempted to wrangle them back into a bun, but all she managed was a tangled poof on top of her head. She would have to go over her notes again, something was obviously wrong, whether it was in the formula or the ingredients, she had to figure it out. She hadn't felt this hopeless since her time on the run with Harry and Ron during their seventh year, almost eight years ago now.

Quickly, the hopelessness turned to burning anger. Hermione had worked on this potion for weeks now, and still, she was not seeing any results. Growling, she pulled her parchment closer to her face so that her nose was basically skimming her cramped handwriting. She would start from the beginning, looking at every word she had written. There was obviously something wrong, something she had missed, and she was going to find it whether it killed her or not. Hermione did not take failure well. In fact, some would say she saw it as a personal attack.

So far in her adult life, she has passed countless acts and policies protecting those of whom the wizarding world had spent way too long neglecting. Just last year, she was proud to have received her second Order of Merlin for creating the Dobby Fund. A trust that could be accessed by any House-Elf in need. If any House-Elf felt that they were being treated unfairly or abused by their masters, they could take an enchanted article of clothing from a magic vault which would break their servitude magic. That way they were free in the eyes of the law and could seek employment directly at the ministry if they so desired. So far only a few have taken up the offer, but to Hermione, it was a monumental leap in the right direction.

Now, with some free time on her hands, the ministry kind of let her do what she wanted. Otherwise, she would probably be up the butt of every ministry official in her proximity. For the sake of everyone involved, they gave her a laboratory of her own with a staff of assistants. It was certainly keeping Hermione busy. She has been basically locked in here for the last couple of weeks, trying to perfect a new potion that would change the wizarding world for ages to come.

Hermione was just getting to the list of formulas in her pile of notes and pulled a spare bit of parchment from her stack to start rewriting every number and rune to check for mistakes when she heard her office door open. The click of the lock made her back straighten. Only a few people had the key to enter her office, and she doubted they would be back so soon.

"Who's there?" Hermione gasped while pulling her wand from the nest of her hair. She often stuck it there while reading so she wouldn't misplace it. It got stuck in her curls for a moment before she ripped some hair to free it. When she finally had her wand pointed at the intruder, she noticed the familiar raven hair that never laid flat in her doorway. "Merlin, Harry!" She griped. "I nearly hexed you!" She lowered her wand when she noticed that he had a paper bag and coffee cups in his hands, his Auror robes already rumpled and sooty from Flooing into the office. "What are you even doing here?" She asked. "It's the middle of the night?"

Harry took a moment to clear off a corner of her desk, making sure not to disturb the piles of parchment and materials. "Merlin's beard Hermione, don't you know how to do a cleaning charm?" He laughed. "When you didn't come home last night, Ginny told me you were probably working through the night again and told me to bring you breakfast." He magically floated the coffee cup towards Hermione's waiting hand.

"Wait, breakfast?" She questioned, not fully understanding Harry's words.

Harry sighed, "yes, breakfast, Hermione. The meal that people eat in the morning when they are not up all night working." He placed the paper bag on the table and charmed a napkin into more of a table placement.

Hermione rubbed her temples in frustration. She hadn't even realized the night had escaped her.

"What time is it?" She asked.

"I Flooed in at around six thirty this morning. There's a training exercise in Scotland this morning so they called in all the Aurors to take the earliest Portkey." He quietly began munching on a lemon pastry. Ginny had gotten pretty good at baking since her Hogwarts days. She and Molly enjoyed their time after the war in fattening up both Harry, Ron and I. "So I'd say it's maybe a few minutes before seven."

She sighed in resignation. "I better pick up a Pepper-Up potion before the assistants start arriving. I already have a packed schedule of meetings today." Hermione took a long sip of her coffee and let the heat and caffeine settle into her body.

"Hermione," Harry began. "You really ought to give yourself a break. Gin and I barely see you at home anymore and you can't live off of coffee and Pepper-Up potions. When was the last time you even had a full night's sleep?" He asked seriously.

Hermione took a moment to think, "It's Tuesday, right? I had a nice lie in last Thursday after the Werewolf conference was rescheduled."

"Last Thursday, as in the day that you were the guest of honor at St. Mungo's new Magical Creature wing?" Harry asked jovially. Giving her a sarcastic smirk with crumbs all over his mouth.

Hermione pushed that comment away. "Oh please, Harry. That wasn't work, it was basically a party. You were there too." She remembered that night even if Harry and some of his Auror buddies did not. They loved to take advantage of the free drinks the hospital provided for its parties. She had to put a Full Body Bind Hex on him to stop him from making a complete arse of himself in front of the Head Healer.

"Yes, but I didn't have to be up early the next morning to give a lecture on Centaur rights." Harry watched Hermione over his coffee cup, his green eyes giving her a knowing, honest look. "Look, Hermione, I'm not asking you to give up on your projects. I would be a complete idiot if I even tried, but I'm asking you to take a break. We miss you. You live in the same flat as Gin and I and we hardly see you. Ron and Luna said you haven't been over since they came back from their honeymoon."

"Has it - Has it really been that long?" Ron and Luna finally tied the knot after Luna returned from her Swedish adventure looking for a Crumpled-Horn Snorkack. Hermione had spent weeks trying to talk her out of it, but Ron told her to let it go. Luna had told him that she couldn't get married without having seen a live one once in her life. She still didn't know what Ron said in order to convince her that the Rhinoceros in the zoo was some special cross breed, but it worked. They finally returned from their honeymoon the week before Harry's twenty-fourth over two months ago. Time really had gotten away from her lately, this morning only added to that fact.

"Yes. It has. I know you want to change the world, Mione, but we all are worried about you. If you keep this up, you're going to burn yourself out." Harry's eyes met hers again with unrestrained concern. It was hard to have someone look at her like that. Like Hermione was somehow hurting herself by trying to help others. "I'm afraid you're going to show up one day looking like a hag with wild gray hair and a hunch from leaning over to read your books."

Hermione self-consciously rubbed the back of her neck, "I do not have a hunch," she protested weakly. "And that gray hair was completely unrelated to my work. McLaggen somehow got it in his head that it would be a funny prank to release a Demiguise in the Invisibility Department." She rubbed her temples at the memory. "It took us weeks to find it and return it to its breeder. I swear he's worse than all of the Weasley's put together. At least the joke shop has some taste in its mischievousness."

Harry laughed, he had been away on a mission searching for a band Dark Wizards in Romania and had missed the disaster completely. "Yeah, he always was a bit of a tosser, hasn't he?" He chewed thoughtfully, "But seriously, Hermione, you deserve some time away.

Hermione nodded slowly, calculating her response, "I suppose I could take a little time off once I figure out the recipe for this potion." Her words sounded feeble, even to her own ears.

"That's what you said after the House-Elf Act was passed. We both know that once you figure out this project, you'll just move on to the next, and the next." His voice sounded low, tired. It made me want to reach out and squeeze his arm, to let him know I was right here; like old times.

She sighed, "I can't just take a break right now. I'm so close to finding the solution, I can feel it. I just need a few more weeks." Hermione gave her shoulders a quick rub. They were starting to feel sore.

"All I'm asking is for you to take a little holiday. Maybe take a trip. You haven't been to Bill and Fleur's new house, have you? It's quite beautiful and it has a wicked view of the Alps. Ron, Bill, and I went for a quick broom ride around the old castles a couple weeks back and it was amazing." Harry's gaze turned wistful as he finished his pastry. Obviously remembering the wind in his hair as he raced on his Firebolt. Hermione had never felt the need to ride around at breakneck speeds on a piece of wood, but to each their own.

"How about this, I will talk to Kingsley this evening, after my meetings, and if he can spare me for a week, then I will take a break." Hermione must have been more exhausted than she thought if she was giving in to Harry's request so easily.

Harry must've thought the same because he excitedly jumped up from his chair. "Really? You will! That's great, Hermione." He leapt up to wrap her in a big hug. "You could even frame it as going on a research trip, because knowing you, no matter where you go you're going to spend most of your time in the library!" Hermione blushed, Harry did have a point there. "I've got to run, but some of the old gang is getting drinks at the pub after work. After talking to Kingsley you should join."

Harry must've slipped a Agreeability Potion in her coffee because Hermione couldn't stop the smile as she accepted. With a smile and a wave Harry skipped out the door, leaving his wrappers still on the table. Hermione felt a pang of nostalgia from picking up after him during exam weeks. Always making sure that their study area was tidy. Ron was always worse than him, but Harry was often forgetful when his mind was preoccupied by other things. And when they were at Hogwarts something else was always going on to keep his mind from schoolwork.

Hermione's smile wouldn't leave her face as she moved everything to the bin. Maybe she really did need a break. She sniffed herself, or maybe just a quick shower.

She was able to change her outfit from the chest of extra clothes in her office. This wasn't the first time that she had spent the entire night in her laboratory. She also did some cleaning charms on her body and hair until she could go back to the flat she shared with Harry and Ginny. She was just putting her hair back up into a ponytail when her first assistant walked in the door.

"Good morning, Miss Granger." Penelope Wells said as she entered, putting on her white robes. Penny was a recent graduate from Ilvermorny who was looking to work in Britain's potion creation department. She was a great asset to the team. She learned directly under Professor Slughorn before he retired for the second time a few months back. He finally decided he was done teaching after his 111th birthday.

"Good morning, Penny. Would you mind whipping up a Pepper-Up Potion before we get started today? I have to be at a meeting in an hour." Penny gave her a knowing look while she cleared an area for her to work.

"Any headway on the potion you are working on?" She asked as she cut up the Mandrake roots in perfect slices. Her skills with a knife were enough to make you jealous.

Hermione gave a groan that was answer enough. "I had a bit of a brainstorm last night and thought I was on the edge of a breakthrough, but in practice it blew up, quite literally I'm afraid." She indicated the spot on the wallpaper that was still scorched.

Penny nodded understandingly, "I'll take a peek at your notes while you are in your meeting to see if I can find what's wrong."

"Thank you. That would be a big help." Penny finished up the potion in a matter of minutes and handed it to me in a cute transfigured tea cup. Ever since coming to London, she has found a fascination in chinaware. 'They're a lot cuter than mugs.' Was all she said if someone questioned it. Hermione took a sip and was surprised by the taste.

"Did you add spearmint to this?" She asked.

"Yes, I find after an all-nighter, adding spearmint makes the potion last a bit longer." Penny answered with a proud smirk. Hermione liked her because she had a way of presenting her brilliance without it coming off like a brag. Hermione smiled and Penny gave a cheery salute.

"Knock them dead today, boss." She called as Hermione downed the potion and left the lab to start walking to her meeting.

Her lab was situated in the basement Level 4 of the ministry near the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. She argued that because she was involved in so many committees, it would make sense for her office to be within walking distance of the meeting locations. No one really bothered to argue with her, and let her have her way.

Her ministry robes billowed around her, but they did nothing to hide her Muggle trainers she wore on her feet. It was customary for Ministry witches to wear heels or flats, but those weren't practical in her line of work. So trainers it was.

The meeting wouldn't start until 9, but Hermione knew that if she got there early, there might be time to get a member of the Wizengamot alone to give them her ideas on new laws and acts to help magical creatures. She must've made a name for herself while doing this because no one showed up until 2 minutes to the hour. When they all came in, there was barely enough time for pleasantries before Kingsley Shacklebolt took his seat at the head of the table.

"Shall we begin?" He asked as a way of introduction. Resigned, Hermione grabbed her quill and started writing notes as Kingsley's deep voice floated around the small room.