Chapter Thirty
February-2005
Hermione read over the latest letter from her doctor, while there was the odd sentence here and there about her conditions having no treatment, the vast majority of it was simply telling her that if she lost weight, she would be fine.
She crumpled the letter in frustration.
"Vhat is vrong my love?" Viktor said coming in from outside.
His training Quidditch robes were hanging open, showing off his chiselled chest and stomach. He was glistening slightly with sweat from his morning work out and wondering if he would have time to jump Hermione before she needed to go to work.
That was until he saw how upset she was. He knew the cause as soon as he saw the brown envelope that had come to mean either another appointment, or just as often, them cancelling the appointment because she was too heavy, or telling her she was simply too heavy.
"I can't keep doing this." Hermione said, shaking her head.
"Ve don't have to." Viktor said kindly, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "Ve really don't."
Hermione leaned against him, "I… when I was younger… I… I sort of thought that doctors were magical. They fixed whatever was wrong you know… now… they look at me like I'm not even there… like I'm not real. I can't keep doing this."
"Vhat do you vant to do?" Viktor said, trying not to show the pain he was feeling on his face.
He'd always wanted to be a father, to raise children, through all the ups and downs, but it was a dream he was more than willing to give up if it meant he would have his Hermione by his side.
And none of this was her fault.
Hermione thought for a moment, her mind spinning with a million ideas, trying to tie threads together into some sort of pattern.
"Harry's aunt is horrible." she said thoughtfully, after a few minutes.
Viktor looked at her in confusion, "I am not sure I understand my love."
Hermione turned to face him, her bottom pressed against the work surface as he snuggled into her, "When Lily and Harry were attacked, when he was a baby, and James was killed, she said that if she'd been killed as well Harry would have ended up with her sister. That Dumbledore was pushing for Harry to end up with her sister even though she had survived."
"And her sister is not a nice person." Viktor said, still not completely understanding where Hermione was going but trusting her process after all the years they'd spent together.
Hermione nodded, chewing the side of her lip, "Exactly… I'm going to head out for a little while."
"Vait… vhere are you going my love?" Viktor asked, catching her arm as she went past him and pulling her into a hug.
Hermione smiled up at him, leaning up so she could kiss his soft lips, loosing herself in his touch and love for a moment, "I just need to pop to the Ministry and do some research. I'll be back for dinner, I promise."
Viktor grinned, chuckling to himself, "You say that, and yet you alvays seem to get lost in one book or another. It is one of the many things I love so much about you."
Hermione laughed, burying her head in his solid chest, "You know me too well. Have a good day."
"You too, my love." Viktor said, watching her grab her handbag and turn quickly on the spot.
A second later she arrived in the large, and rather grand, atrium of the Ministry. It was ten o'clock, meaning most of the those working for the Ministry had already begun their day and it was quiet as she stepped over to the information desk.
"How can I help you today?" the rather chirpy witch on the desk asked.
"I need to look at some records." Hermione told her, already pulling out her wand ready for inspection, "Regarding parents and magical children, specifically those magical children who have lost their parents."
The witch nodded thoughtfully for a moment, "To be honest, I'd have no clue where that sort of information was kept, let alone if you'd be allowed to access it. How about I get your wand all checked in and then I'll direct you to our information office and hopefully someone up there can help you." she grinned.
"That'll be great. Thank you." Hermione said, returning a small smile to the young witch.
She handed over her wand, looking at it as it went through the strange machine, printing off a small sheet of paper with the details of her wand on. The witch tore off the bit of paper and stuck it on a sharp, copper spike before handing the wand back to Hermione.
"There you go, all sorted. Just let me know when you leave." the witch told her, not that Hermione didn't know the drill already, "If you head over to the lifts, personal information is on the third floor, head down the corridor on your left and it's the fifth or sixth door down. It's all labelled."
Hermione thanked her again before making her way to the lift. It arrived quickly and she was the only one waiting. Within a few minutes she arrived outside the information office and took a deep breath before rapping loudly on the door.
"Get that will you Portman." a gruff, older man's voice sounded.
The door was opened by a younger looking wizard, dressed very smartly in dress robes, his head slicked back making him look like someone from the 1920s.
"Good day ma'am." he said, looking Hermione up and down, "Can I assist you with something today?"
Hermione smiled and nodded, "Yes. I believe so anyway."
"Wonderful." the younger man smiled, "Can I take a quick name, just for our records you understand."
"Hermione Krum." Hermione said, watching the man scribble down her name on a clipboard that hung just inside the door.
"My gods!" the older man said, hurrying over, "Hermione Krum… you wouldn't be Hermione Granger by any chance would you?" he asked.
Hermione nodded slightly, "I was yes, before I was married. I'm Mrs Krum now."
"Well blow me down." the older man smiled, "It is an honour to meet you Mrs Krum, an absolute honour. Portman, do you not realise that this is one of the main reasons we won the war against You-Know-Who?"
Portman looked Hermione up and down for a moment before his eyes grew wide, "Goodness me! I am so sorry Mrs Krum, please accept my apologies. I didn't recognise you there."
Hermione shrugged, really wishing they could get on with the research and have less of the fawning, "Well it was a long time ago that I was in the paper." she said politely, "And I am quite happy with it that way. I have a good little life now and it's a lot more peaceful for sure."
"Of course of course." Portman nodded.
"Carry on with your work Portman." the older wizard said, looking slightly irritated at him, "I shall deal with Mrs Krum's enquiry personally."
Portman looked rather disheartened, "Yes, of course sir. Pleasure to meet you Mrs Krum."
Hermione smiled at him, returning the gesture and following the older wizard into the office.
Inside it was divided into two. One half had been made into two smaller offices by plain, white partitions, with the other half as a larger office, a huge desk clearly positioned to oversee whoever was working at the smaller desks.
"Is there just the two of you that work in this department?" Hermione asked, seeing no trace of filing cabinets or books that could have contained the records she was looking for.
"There's three of us." the older wizard said casually, "But Miss Carter who takes us to three only works two days a week. Please take a seat."
Hermione settled herself in the chair across the desk from the older wizard.
"My name is Mr Thomas Walters, now, how can I help you today Mrs Krum." the older wizard asked her with a smile.
"I… without boring you with all the details of my life currently, I was wondering if I could have a quick look at your records concerning magical children that have lost their parents. Either muggle born or those who had magical parents." Hermione said.
Mr Walters looked at her with confusion, "Why… why on earth would you want to look at such records?"
Hermione took a deep breath, she could feel herself getting emotional but forced herself to remain calm, bursting into tears was not going to help her get the information she needed, "I have a plan, or at least an idea, to set up an adoption service, so that no magical child will have to grow up not understanding magic."
"I see…" Mr Walters said slowly.
"As I'm sure you know, my friend Harry nearly ended up in the care of his aunt. She's a muggle, but more importantly she is… not a very nice person, and almost certainly would have been cruel to him. If not flat out abusive. Not to mention that Vol… You-Know-Who, was raised in an orphanage which undoubtedly had a nasty effect on his mental well being."
Mr Walters looked rather uneasy at the mention of Voldemort's upbringing, "Well… it is certainly a noble cause but who do you think would want to adopt these parent-less children?"
"I would." Hermione said, "For one. And I am one hundred percent sure that there are others who would want to raise a child."
"You are muggle born yourself are you not?" Mr Walters asked.
Hermione nodded, "Yes… I am. Why?"
Mr Walters looked slightly awkwardly at Hermione, "I just… you see… adoption is not really… known, in magical society. Should a child unfortunately loose their parents, or their parents are unable to care for them for whatever reason, family or the god parents will take the child in traditionally."
Fighting the urge to roll her eyes Hermione managed to smile politely at Mr Walters, "Of course. And in an ideal world there would always be a line of family and friends to take in any child who was unlucky enough to loose their parents, but it isn't always the case. I would just like to see how often it does happen that children need a home."
"To see about setting up an adoption service." Mr Walters said, getting it straight in his mind.
"Exactly." Hermione smiled.
"Well, I wont get your hopes up Mrs Krum." Mr Walters said, straightening one of the quills that set ready in the pot on his desk, "Even if I could see the merit in your idea, I am afraid I can't let you have any access to those records. They are strictly confidential you understand."
Hermione's smile faltered, "I'm sorry?"
"It is our job in this office to keep details of families and children safe." Mr Walters told her firmly, "And after the… awful breach from You-Know-Who, back during the last year of the war where my predecessor allowed records to be stolen I vowed that it would never happen again."
"You can't honestly think that I would ever allow the records or any of the information they contained to fall into dangerous hands?" Hermione snapped.
"Of course not, of course not." Mr Walters said soothingly, "I wouldn't dream of you doing such a thing. My point is simply that the rules are very strict for a good reason, and I am afraid that I can't possibly break them, even for you Mrs Krum. I hope you will not think badly of me for it."
Hermione calmed herself and smiled, "Of course not. Forgive me for lashing out."
"No apology needed, I completely understand that emotions can run high." Mr Walters said kindly, "If you would allow me to give you a little advice Mrs Krum, I suggest you stop worrying about children who are grown, like your friend Harry and what might have been, and focus on building your own family."
She forced herself to smile still and nod, not trusting her voice not to break if she commented on the idea of her having her own family, "Could I trouble you for a glass of water before I leave?" she said carefully.
"Of course." Mr Walters said, jumping up, "Are you sure water is enough? I could get you a cup of tea or coffee?"
"Water will be perfect. Thank you." Hermione replied.
"I am sorry I couldn't be of more assistance." Mr Walters said honestly, before leaving the room.
Mr Portman was buried in his work, facing away from Hermione and the main desk. Hermione quickly jumped up and started to look through the draws in the desk.
Many were empty, one was filled with scraps of parchment, broken quills and rubber bands and another with nothing but sweets and chocolate bars.
Finally, third draw on the left, Hermione found a set of keys that clearly belonged to a set of filing cabinets. She snatched them up and shoved them in her handbag before settling herself back on the chair.
Mr Walters returned and handed her the glass of ice cold water. Hermione shared some basic small talk for a few minutes until she had finished the glass of water and she stood to leave.
"I should be getting on." Hermione smiled, "And I'm sure you have a lot to be getting on with. Thank you for your time, Mr Walters."
"My pleasure Mrs Krum." Mr Walters said, guiding her to the door and shutting it behind her.
Hermione walked slightly further down the corridor before pulling the keys out her handbag. She wasn't sure what she would have done if they had been alarmed for leaving the office, she was just thankful that they weren't.
She needed to look at those records, one way or another.