Hermione finished up some of her paperwork before leaving for the day. She was thankful for Mr. Hen-... Benjamin to show up when he did. It's not that she was not willing to take in a creature in need - as she had done plenty of times before - but her increasing duties at work had her running thin. It had been a few hours since his visit and the Jarvey had not been returned; this thought made her smile. Perhaps there was more than what meets the eye on the rugged gentleman she couldn't yet seem to shake from her pondering mind.
The rain had ceased some time earlier. She knew puddles would plague the pavement outside and decided to keep her heels in good condition, so she apparated out of the Ministry and into her comfortable condo.
She emptied her pockets onto the small side table that sat beside the front door. Her damp peacoat now hung up to dry. She pulled her wand from its hidden pocket at the side of her skirt and aimed it at the turntable. After a simple flick of the wrist, it turned on and started to play the same Billie Holiday hits vinyl she had been listening to the past few weeks. As the lyrics sang "In my solitude, you haunt me with reveries of days gone by", she could feel the stress slip from her shoulders.
Hermione fitted herself into her cozy clothes and ventured to her bedroom to start packing for her weekend getaway. Mostly warmer weather clothes as they spent a lot of time outdoors at the Burrow. She was looking forward to it, so much so that the next few days seemed to go on for an eternity.
As Thursday night rolled around, she began dusting and organizing her condo to leave in tip-top condition so she could come back to a fresh space. Her enchanted bag had been sitting by the door all day. It had everything she could possibly need for a weekend in the snow, rain, and sun; a habit she had yet to get rid of was preparing for the worst. Her friends had picked on her for this, and she would shrug it off as nothing but it did make her feel like a loony.
The sun had established itself into its routine slumber as the moon now cast its magical light through her open windows and balcony doors. She stared out the windows, seeing the Big Ben clocktower looming over the area. Fog had settled over central London and it gave an almost-ominous feeling. Sometimes she did not like being alone. Even as a fact, she still could not bring herself to live with Ronald at the Burrow. He was not the most tidy of people and, while recovering from the stresses of post-war rehabilitation, she found it easier on her mental health to find her own place to live.
She had, of course, reconnected with her parents after the war; but she couldn't bring herself to move back in. What if there were vengeful Death Eaters lurking about, stalking, waiting. Spade between them would be beneficial for both parties, she would tell herself half-convincingly. That was three years ago. Hermione Granger had been on her own since she graduated, and she reminded herself constantly of the perks to it. No more cleaning up after the boys, no arguments over sports. It was quiet, and she could find peace - but only sometimes. Nights like this one, she wished for company. The warm feeling in the belly of being around those who you care for and show they care for you. Thinking of her arrival at the Burrow in the morning had brightened her spirits a bit.
"It's okay if I am alone tonight," she told herself aloud. "I won't be alone tomorrow."
Light leaking into the bright space of Hermione's condominium hit her eyes and began to cause her to tussle in bed. Her body and mind slowly waking up before her eyes started fluttering. When they finally opened - the weight of them still heavy from the deep sleep brought on by the rain that moved in - she peeked at the clock on her bedside table. 7:04 AM. She groaned at the disgusting time. She should have been awake at least half an hour earlier.
She dressed herself in some old clothes, not one of the fancy suits or dresses for her Ministry job. She thought they were cute, but the boys would take the mickey out of her the entire weekend of she showed up in such classy clothes.
Hermione pondered stopping on her way out for coffee at the coffee shop but the idea of even the possibility of running into Benjamin again while she was on her way to stay at her ex-boyfriend's family home gave her a rush of embarrassment. She gave a quick look behind her into her condo one last time before locking the door behind her.
She closed her eyes and focused on the towering Burrow, surrounded by trees and whistles of birds nearby. Within a few moments, she would open her eyes and find herself just outside the garage where the broken Ford Anglia had sat for the last five years, weeds now growing out of the open engine bay.
"'Mione's here!" Her friend Harry Potter called out from inside the house. She could feel the smile creep across her face, causing her lips to part slightly. The door was opened for her as she approached with her bag in hand. The smell of eggs, toast, and warm cinnamon buns filled her nose as she entered; Ron took her bag from her hand as she was pulled into an embrace by Molly.
"Good to see you, dear," her other mother greeted lovingly, her arms warm around Hermione's small body. It was a genuine feeling. She pulled back but kept her hands on the young woman's arms. "You look like you could use some breakfast," she commented, then motioning towards the full table of food.
They all sat at the table, some of their plates had already been dug into. A plate was magically made and floated in front of where Hermione now sat.
"So, what's new?" Ginny asked, glancing towards Hermione as she grabbed another egg from the pile.
Hermione shrugged, adjusting herself a bit in her seat. "Not much, really. We have confiscated some creatures recently. A few have been placed, some are still in holding - it's just awful. A Jarvey was taken into custody today after a bust, but I had a stroke of luck and a new friend offered to care for him straight away." She started shoveling food into her mouth to avoid any unexpected gazes. The words "new" and "friend" used in the same sentence were foreign to Hermione and her friends knew it. She would always explain she simply didn't have the time.
"A new friend? A boy? A boyfriend?" Ginny teased. ("Dear, have you finished?" Molly asked her husband, who nodded before she took his plate and sat it in the seat to be magically washed.) Hermione continued shoveling the grub into her mouth, attempting to avoid the continuous stares from her friends.
"Well?" Ginny continued to poke for an answer.
"Now you just have me curious," Ron commented. He pushed his empty plate in front of him and placed his elbows on the table, hiding half of his face with his hands - attempting to hide a smile, perhaps.
"I think it's lovely you've made a new friend," Mrs. Weasley brushed the young woman's hair as she walked by her and out of sight.
"That's great. Do I know him? Does he work in the Ministry?" Harry asked, not looking up from his nearly empty plate ("Your stomach is going to drive you mad," Ginny whispered to him).
Hermione shook her head with a mouthful of sticky waffle. "Hm-mm". After spending months in the wilderness with the two boys, eating etiquette in front of them had been left on the road.
"O..kay. Do you not want to tell us about it?"
"Are any of you familiar with the Hendrix family?" Hermione quickly inquired, a bit unsure of the reaction to the name.
Arthur sat his Daily Prophet in front of him, being the first to speak. "The Hendrix family happened to be a part of the Order, lest any of you forget that. All of Atticus' boys joined shortly after Harry's run-in at that graveyard. One of their sons, Elisha, passed during the Battle of Hogwarts. They're a lovely family, Hermione. Very intriguing, they live similar to that of Muggles. I'm sure you'd find a few things in common." He pulled his paper back up to his face as if he had never stopped reading it. "Perhaps I'll send an owl. The Anglia is in dire need of more 'mechanical' hands."
Hermione paused for a moment before replying. "I met Mr. and Mrs. Hendrix in Diagon Alley not too long ago. I didn't realize who they were. I remember hearing about his brother, Elisha."
"Who is he?! Whose brother?" Ginny seemed to be getting fidgety in an excited fashion.
"Benjamin!" Hermione yelled comically to her friend, giving her a light shove. "Do you feel better, Ginny? Now that you have a name?"
"Absolutely. Thank you. It only took you ages," the red-headed woman joked to her her friend.
Arthur had risen from his seat and ventured outdoors with a pep in his step for reasons unknown. Ginny stood up to set her and Harry's plates in the sink as she added her input. "I do remember his sister, Hazel. She was sorted into our house during my Fifth year. Quite a lively thing; she was rather comical, actually. The attitude didn't fade when the Carrows took over." She sat back down in her chair. "I didn't even correlate the name, honestly."
Ron and Harry shared a look and shrugged at the two young women. Obviously they were a bit lost.
"Who's Benjamin?" Ron asked.
"He's my new friend, Ronald. I spilled coffee on him at the coffee shop, then I ran into him in Diagon Alley. I went back for more of their produce - it's quite good - and his parents pointed me to the Leaky Cauldron where I caught up with him again. I don't know much about him but," she shrugged, "I've ran into him this many times and he seems to want to get to know me."
"I'm sure he does," Ron attempted to joke but it seemed to fall flat.
Hermione had been used to this for awhile. He could be quite the hypocrite but she had decided a few years prior that it wasn't going to affect her further. Ron and his emotional range of a teaspoon.
After breakfast, the trio ventured up into Ron's old bedroom. It hadn't changed at all since he moved out - it was though he left everything behind and started anew, like many others who went through the horrors of the war.
"Now that we're alone," Harry began, lowering his voice to keep his next words a secret, "I have some exciting news for the both of you." His eyes were so watery and wide that they seemed like at any second they would pop out from their sockets.
"Er, okay, mate. No need to start getting weird, spit it out." Ron told his friend with a voice of curiosity.
"Okay," Harry responded eagerly, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small black, velvet box.
"Oh, Harry..." Hermione breathed out with her hand over her chest.
He opened it and inside was a shiny, rather vintage-looking engagement ring. "It was my mother's," he told the pair of them.
Hermione placed her hands on her friends that were still around the now-closed box. "She's going to love it. She'll say yes."
"Blimey, Harry. We're going to be brothers!" Ron exclaimed aloud, pulling his best friend into a bear hug as Harry shushed the red-haired wizard. "Wait, have you asked Dad?" He questioned with a hint of worry.
"Of course I did, Ron. And I made him promise to not let it loose around the house. I've been cleaning up my place to make room for her things. She thinks I'm just doing a bit of spring cleaning," Harry added confidently.
"We're happy for you; for both of you. Aren't we, Ronald?" Hermione poked Ron in his side. He flinched away from her with a small chuckle.
"Yeah, mate. Real happy. So when d'ya plan on doing it then?"
"I dunno. I haven't planned it all out yet but I know I want it to be special. For her, I mean."
"Honestly," Hermione said, "it's about time, anyways, wouldn't you say?"
Harry let loose a shaky breath. "Yeah, I guess so... Are you sure she's going to say yes?"
"Yes!" Hermione and Ron exclaimed in unison.
Throughout their day, they played a few games of wizard's chess, flew around the lands on their broomsticks, and evicted the gnomes from the garden. Like old times. Some may say they were too old for giddy activities but it kept their spirits high while they all had their own post-war struggles. If it weren't for Hermione bringing up a monthly get-together, they perhaps would not have remained as close as they are.
The sun started to set. A distant crack of thunder startled the trio who sat on the living room floor by the fireplace, another game of chess sitting at their feet.
"Do you think it will always be like this?" Hermione interrogated her friends
"Like what?" Ron asked as one of his pawns moved to a sacrificial position.
"Do you think we'll always make time for each other? Eventually, I'm sure, we will all be so sucked into our careers, our families, our own lives. Do you think anything will change?"
Harry placed his hand on her shoulder, noticing her low gaze and watery eyes. "We're not going anywhere, Hermione. We've been together this long, I can't believe you have to ask. We will always be together."