What Comes After

What had her life come to? What had she done to deserve this?

Those were just some of the thoughts that were passing through her head, at the time, as she nervously paced in the holding cell at the Ministry.

Everything will be fine. They'll understand....hopefully. If they don't, then Harry can get you out of this. And if he can't, then there's always Kings.

She could find no faults in her own logic but, even so, her nerves went unquelled. Thus, to prevent her own feinting, she sat on the lone chair in the room: head down in her hands, gut sinking, and attempting to decrease both her breathing and heart so she wouldn't continue to like she was running a marathon.

I did what I had to do....we all did. How was she supposed to know that both her actions, and how she revealed them, would come back to bite her so spectacularly. 

The actions in question being those of obliviating her own parents. She could remember it as if it was yesterday, despite the actions being done a year and a half ago. 

It was a sunny day, not cold, but not too hot. She was in the living room watching an episode of the Twilight Zone, 'And When The Sky Was Opened', with her folks. That show had been her parents' favorite since before she was born and it was always family tradition to watch an episode of it at 9 am on Sundays while the nearby families were at church. She kept glancing at them throughout the show, working up the the ability to speak. Finally, she interjected that she needed to tell them something important, but would bring them some coffee.

She got up, heart sinking, and headed to the kitchen.

If they only knew...the sky has opened.

She returned promptly with a pitcher and three empty mugs. She sat each of them on a coaster which was on top of the living room tabled and topped them off. Both her parents grabbed their mugs, inhaling the scent of the coffee, and then, as they sat back straight, turned their attention to her.

"What was it that was so important that you needed to tell us, dear?

Her mom had always been the direct one of the pair. Normally, she appreciated her bluntness, but this time all she could do was gulp and stutter.

"I.....I......I....I love you both...", she paused, "...and I will miss you so much"

The look on their faces was utter befuddlement.

"I don't..." her father began, but then her mother interjected.

"Miss us? I believe you are mistaken dear, we are not going anywhere."

She looked at them, her gaze shifting from one to the other, before solemnly sighing.

It's now or never.

With all her courage she stated sadly, "Yes...you are."

Then, with a muttered curse, and a flash of her wand, the world has she knew it had fundamentally changed. She had become a real-life extra to the show that was still playing in the background. Every trace of her presence in the home vanished in an instant-like it never existed. She had performed a mental checklist. Pictures...gone. Awards...gone. Home...gone. The most damning loss, though, was the recognition in her parents' eyes.

She took the time to create her alibi. The show was turned off with one hand, via remote, for it to no longer on to make a mockery of her life. She also pulled a pair of plane tickets and a brochure for Queensland out of her jacket pocket with the other. She had just sat the remote back down on the table when...

"What happened? Who are you?"

I'll have to get used to being a stranger.

I apologize Ma'am. My name is Mia Granier. I'm an uh... your travel agent. Yourself, your husband, and I were just outside discussing your upcoming move to Australia. You must be really excited about it because, despite it not being too hot, you both feinted. I brought you both inside since you had invited me in for coffee anyways, but you were still in a daze that you seem to be coming out of now. 

"Oh...oh....right. Yes, our travel agent. What were we discussing again?"

"Just your departure date, in two days time, and where you'll be heading. Queensland is beautiful this time of year, as you can see from this brochure."

Mrs. WIlkins accepted the brochure given to her.

"But wait...what about everything else we still have to?"

"Don't worry, Mrs. Wilkins, everything is being handled. All that is left for you to do is to pack your luggage and move."

And she had handled... everything.

The Dentistry was legally disbanded with some assets liquidated to pay the hired employees' severance pay. The rest went back into her parents' savings. All finances had been transferred under their new aliases, with the exception of some cash to payoff their remaining utilities before they're cut-off. All forms of food/trash would be magically vanished. All furniture would be shrunken down, put in a weightlessly charmed bag, and transferred to their newly purchased home in Australia via a contact at the Australian Ministry of Magic. 

The only thing she had decided not to do was sell the house they had lived in, for two reasons. One, if the Death Eaters decided to come looking for them at the place of residence, then she would hope that they would just assume that they are there (because of it still being in their name) and burn the place down, thus decreasing the likelihood that they will look for her parents elsewhere. Furthermore, should she ever be fortunate enough to restore their memories, then she wanted them to have a home to return to in England. That was a pipe dream though...

and she knew it.

She pulled herself out of her mental stupor.

"I know that the packing will still take some time, so thank you for the coffee, but I will leave you to it now Mrs. Wilkins. However, if anything happens then do not hesitate to call me."

She handed her a card that read:

Mia Granier                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Travel Agent

XXX-XXX-XXXX

And with that, she left her: former home, parents, and old life altogether. Her senses were heightened, walking back up memory lane, so much that the sound of her footsteps as she walked away were vivid and clear and...

were they getting louder? It certainly sounds like it.

All of a sudden the sounds stopped. She lowered her hands from their current position, holding her face, and looked up only to be met with Harry's emerald eyes.

"Hermione, what happened?"

She folded her hands around his in a plea.

"I've made a mistake Harry..... a terrible mistake."