Learning How to Live Again

Mione, 

     Gods above in all the fucking religions, Hermione hated Mione. Honestly, it was just one less syllable than her actual name. She wanted to just be called Hermione. There was no significance in Mione. It was just lazy. Ron knew it too. Knew how much she hated it. But he always made her, somehow, feel bad about her hatred. 

     I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to come to your graduation. Robard’s scheduled me for a mission, and I’m so close to a promotion. I can feel it. Just one more mission and you’ll be looking at a full-time Auror, not just a backup one. I know you understand because you love me and want what’s best for us. And me becoming a full fledged Auror is exactly what’s best for us. 

You’ll always be my Mione,

Ron

     Hermione crumbled up the letter and lit it on fire. It was always the same excuse. He couldn’t come to any of her events because he was just “one mission away from becoming a full-time Auror”. She was sick of always being put in the backseat when it came to Ronald’s priorities. Hell she wasn’t even in the backseat. She was in the boot. 

     “Whoa, babe!” Ginny exclaimed as she stepped back from the flames in her hands and her wrists. “What the fuck is his excuse this time?” 

     “Five Galleons says it was the same one as all the other times,” Luna muttered under her breath from the chair next to the fire.

     “Pay up, Gin.” Hermione was still fuming but trying to calm herself down before the flames traveled further down her arms. She could not lose control right now. “It was the same fucking excuse.” 

     Ginny, now seated on the couch, let out a frustrated growl and let out a very long stream of curses. Both at her moronic brother and losing a bet. Hermione grinned and that was enough to let her finally regain control and extinguish the magical flames. Her magic had been acting up since Ron left Harry and her while they had been on the run. Throughout those few months, there had just been bursts of accidental magic. After he returned, it began to get worse. And after Malfoy Manor, her wand stopped responding as well as it should. Because of the fact that she could no longer trust her wand, she had mostly been using wandless magic ever since. 

     “Look on the bright side, darling,” Pansy said as she entered the 8th year common room. “You still get to see Harry, Angelina, Katie, and all the rest of the good Weasleys.” 

     “Careful, Pans,” Ginny warned jokingly. “That’s my family you’re talking about.” 

     Pansy threw her a devious smirk as she lightly tossed herself next to the redhead. “Trust me, Carrots, I always know exactly what I’m saying.”

     After at least an hour, the girls’ conversation eventually turned to what their plans were for after graduation. 

     Pansy planned on starting a fashion line and a clothes store with the Greengrass sisters. It would be called Rachat. It was the French word for “Redemption”, which was what this clothing line would be for them. They would sell not only Muggle and Magical designs, but also combine the two. She was going to revolutionize fashion, and she wanted the girls to wear her clothes whenever they could to help get the brand's name out. They were all only too glad to help her. 

     Ginny, to the surprise of no one, was going pro in Quidditch. She had already signed a contract with the Holyhead Harpies and was regularly running training drills to stay in shape. Luna was planning on becoming a Magizoologist and interning under her idol, Newt Scamander. They couldn’t be more proud of her, especially since they knew that Newt never took anyone on anymore. 

     Hermione’s plans floored everyone. She was planning on beginning training to become a Dragon Tamer. Explaining why was the entertaining part for her. After the incident with the Ukrainian Ironbelly, she had developed an extreme fascination for the creatures. Apparently none of her friends had heard of the Gringotts heist which amused Hermione even further. 

     “But then after we escaped from inside the crazy bitch’s vault, we had to face down the damn dragon!” The girls gasped as Hermione continued her story, ever the captive audience. “This poor dragon had been abused, though. You could tell by its scars and even the newer injuries. God the poor girl was chained down and couldn’t escape, and she was trained to expect pain when she heard this awful rattling sound.” 

      Hermione could feel her rage rising up and the memory and saw a look in Luna’s eyes that nearly terrified her. “So I came up with a plan. I told the boys to follow my lead and get on her. Once we were all on, I severed her chains and told her to fly. And she did. She escaped Gringotts.” 

     “And then what happened to her?” Luna asked, panic in her voice. “After you guys left her?” 

     Hermione was about to answer when a deep, familiar rumble spoke up from behind her. “Cinder tried to make her way back to Ukraine. Sadly, she only made it to Germany. Poor girl was so weak and hungry that she only made it there before passing out. The Romanian Reserve sent my team and I out to bring her back. We got her back to full health, and now Cinder lives in Ukraine. Occasionally, she comes back to visit, but she likes to be alone.”

     Ginny and Hermione both instantly perked up at the sound of Charlie Weasley’s voice and shot into his arms with squeals of delight. Ginny wrapped her arms around his waist while Hermione wrapped hers around his chest. Laughing, Charlie wrapped the two in a warm embrace. 

     Hermione pulled away first. “What’re you doing here? Graduation isn’t for another week and family members aren’t allowed without an emergency for another few days.” 

     Ginny pulled away then. “No, she’s got a point. What’s wrong? Is Victoire okay? What about Fred? Did the side effects of the curse come back?” Hermione, recognizing the fear in her best friend’s voice, stepped back from the siblings. This allowed Charlie to grab Ginny’s shoulders and slightly squat down to look her in the eyes. 

     “Breathe, surioara,” he soothed as Ginny’s breathing quickened. “Nothing is wrong, I promise. Minnie just let me come here early if I promised to help Hagrid setting up the ceremony. That’s all.” 

     He pulled his sister into a tight hug, and she slowly began to relax. Hermione discreetly sent a Patronus to Blaise, letting him know what was going on. Ginny had become prone to panic attacks ever since the war when it came to her family’s safety. For all her nonchalance and positive attitude, she was constantly in a state of worry that her family was in danger. But aside from the girls, Charlie, and Blaise, no one else knew about them. 

     Blaise suddenly appeared in the common room entrance. When he saw Ginny’s state, he gently tapped the second eldest Weasley on the shoulder and took his best friend into his arms. “Come on, vita mia, let’s get you cleaned up.” The group watched as Blaise carried her away, affection for the two growing. 

     “They’re still not together?” Charlie was confused. “I could’ve sworn they were almost in a relationship over Christmas Break.”

     “Blaise will kiss her at graduation.” Luna’s voice was distant and her eyes were unfocused. She was using her Sight. “He also bought a house in Wales, so whenever they eventually move in together, she will not have to travel far.” 

     A chorus of “oh thank Merlin” and “fucking finally” and “it’s about time” rang out amongst the group. Those two had been obviously pining after each other for almost the entirety of this school year, and they had all about had it with them not realizing the other person liked them back. 

     Hermione was still wary of Luna Lovegood’s use of the Sight. While she was far more accurate and dependable than Trelawney, Hermione was, as expected, a skeptic. It wasn’t her fault she was logical; that’s just the way she was born. Her own parents were like that as well. Hell, they didn’t even believe she was a witch even with her bursts of accidental magic. Until they went to Diagon Alley and got Hermione her wand, they still believed it was all coincidence. Strange coincidences, but coincidences nonetheless. 

     Of course, Hermione didn’t verbally question Luna’s predictions, however wary of them she might’ve been. No, she just lived her life the way she always had, and if Luna’s predictions happened to come true, then she was pleasantly surprised and gave the witch credit where credit was due. 

     The one thing that Luna predicted for Hermione, however, was the most important one. She had told Hermione that she would one day be a Weasley. At first, Hermione had believed her. Luna had been right so far, but The Sight was not all seeing. It was not set in stone. According to Luna, it was based on probability. And her chances of becoming a Weasley was very high. What caused Hermione to doubt, however, was the fact that she could not see which Weasley. 

     Why couldn’t she see Ron? Ron was the only Weasley who she could (see: would) be with. Ginny was very straight and was perfect with Blaise, Fred was with Katie, George had Angelina, Percy was happily married to a girl named Audrey, Charlie refused to be tied down, and Bill was married to Fleur and they now had little Victoire. Unless there was some random Weasley she had never met, it was guaranteed that she would marry Ron. So why could Luna not see Ron?

     Charlie’s hand on her back had her snapping back to the present. Everyone was splitting up, going to their own rooms. “Still with us, iubito? Or do you need me to catch you up? You looked far away.” 

     “Yes, please.” Hermione flushed a deep shade of red, embarrassed at being caught zoning out. It really was rather rude, but she often did so when she needed to think. “Sorry. I was just thinking about something. What did I miss?” 

     “Basically, we placed bets on who’s going to cry the hardest at graduation, and we made plans for all of us to go to Hogsmeade. Bets are 5 galleons. The Hogsmeade trip will be everyone doing their own thing and meeting up at the Hog’s Head after a few hours. You in?”

     Hermione laughed at her friends’ predictability. Always betting, and always leaving Hogwarts. She couldn’t blame them. There had been very few weekends where Hermione hadn’t left this bloody school. She placed her bet and got dressed to go the the quaint little village with the rest of her people. 

     In the end, Hermione had won the bet. Out of everyone they knew and were close to, Pansy had cried first. Luna, who was never allowed to participate in group bets because of her Sight, had merely smirked as Theo lost his shit next to her. On the bright side, their group sat in the back. That was a great thing about being friends with one of the “Golden Trio”: you can get away with a lot of shit and escape some societal expectations. 

     Luna had been right. As soon as McGonagall had named them the class of 1999 and they all stood in celebration, Blaise had grabbed Ginny by the waist and kissed her deeply. Ginny was all too happy to return the kiss by wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. Mrs. Weasley, unsurprisingly, threw a shit fit. 

     “My daughter?” She exclaimed storming towards them in outrage as she magically split them apart. “My only daughter that I gave birth six times for. Falling for a Death Eater? No, I think not.” She tried to grab Ginny, but Ginny was a helluva lot faster than her mother even on her worst days. When she was upset? She was even faster. 

     “Petrificus totalus!” The spell hit Mrs. Weasley square in the chest. Charlie silently high fived Bill and the twins. All had matching smirks on their faces. This was their little sister who they had each had a hand in raising. They were the ones who had taught her how to play Quidditch. How to curse a man before he could curse you. 

     “No, Mum. He’s not a Death Eater. He is my Blaise. My best friend. The worst thing about him is that he’s a broody bastard. He is kind, loyal, funny, and intelligent. And he would never hurt me or any of our friends. Now leave.”  With that, Ginny turned her back on heel, grabbed Blaise by the wrist, and left the Quidditch field. The rest of them fell into line behind the redhead, not wanting to be the subject of her ire. Even Harry followed her out, knowing what it was like to be on the receiving end of his ex-girlfriend's Bat Bogey Hex. 

     The after party was in Draco’s new bar that had hilariously been named "The Dragon Trove”. Their group got a kick out of it. No matter how much Draco Malfoy had changed, he was still pretty egotistical. At least it was in a charming, good natured way now. But being friends with his fiancée, Tori, got them free drinks once a month, so they gladly went there every Friday since it opened. 

     “To new beginnings!” Hermione cried as she lifted her whiskey into the air. Charlie wrapped an arm around her waist and placed his drink next to hers. 

     “To new friends!” Ginny called, wrapping her arm around Hermione’s shoulders. 

     “To new family!” Pansy corrected. 

     “To a life worth living!” Theo added. 

     “To a life worth living!” They all echoed and threw back their drinks. After everyone had finished, Ginny and Pansy dragged them all onto the dance floor. They laughed, danced, drank, and generally had a good time. Suddenly, Draco decided to change things up and play a slow song. 

     Bill and Fleur, as always, were the first on the dance floor, followed by Fred, Katie, George, and Angelina. Blaise and Ginny followed them not long after. She watched with shock as Pansy pulled a terrified Harry into a dance, and giggled as Luna did the same to an awestruck Theo. Hermione watched with a bittersweet feeling in her chest as all of her friends paired up. She was about to go and order another drink when Charlie offered his hand. 

     “Care to dance, Mia? We haven’t shared one since Yule.” Hermione giggled as she took his hand, and he pulled her into his embrace. 

     “That’s because that was the last time we saw each other in person, Charlie.” His eyes lit up and his lips lifted in a playful smirk. 

     “Really? I could’ve sworn we’ve seen each other since.” He spun her and waited until her other hand was placed back on his shoulder before he spoke again. “Oh wait, now I remember. You just sent me one of your letters with a picture of you in it. Yes, that’s why it seems so recent. I believe it was a picture of you on a broom that Ginny had taken, and you liked it so much that you requested she give you the photo. And you sent it to me because you were so proud of yourself for not falling off.” 

     She grinned up at her best friend. She knew exactly which picture he was talking about. Hermione had been training for weeks to be confident on a broom and a few more just to get down the basic flying skills. She was a fair flyer now, but, Merlin, she had struggled. That day had been the first day she hadn’t almost fallen off her broom at all, and she felt so proud and free. Granted, nothing was more freeing than flying on a dragon, but she digressed. 

     She was about to tell Charlie her plans after Hogwarts when a cold, familiar voice came from behind them. “So do you dance with all guys like that, or just the ones you want to fuck?” 

     She stepped out of Charlie’s grasp and spun to see her boyfriend, Ronald Weasley. “Excuse me?” She was offended at the thinly veiled accusation. “Dancing is dancing, Ronald. I’d dance the same way with Charlie that I would with Malfoy.” 

     “Oi! You wish, Granger!” Said Malfoy called out from where he was dancing with Astoria just a few feet away. 

     “According to Pansy, you were the one doing the wishing, Malfoy,” she threw a wink at him as he swore, causing Tori to laugh. She turned back to Ron. “Like I said, I’d dance the same way with any other Witch or Wizard.” 

     “Hey, Mia, I’m gonna go, okay? I’ve gotta get back to the Reserve anyways.” Charlie squeezed one of her shoulders as he brushed past her, doing the same to his brother. “It was good to see you, little brother. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”

     “It’s fine,” Ronald snapped. “Mione and I are leaving, too.” With that, he grabbed Hermione by the wrist and Apparated them to Grimmauld Place. Hermione never saw Charlie’s confused face at the name “Mione”. Nor did she see his and the rest of her friends’ concerned looks at the way Ron reacted. 

     They knew then and there that Hermione and Ron’s relationship would not be good. It needed to end, preferably before Hermione got hurt. But they all knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she would not leave. She was in too deep, loved Ron too much. Still, they held out hope. But when they received the news that Hermione was going to be a Healer, their hope shattered.