Disclaimer: I obviously do not own anything that originally belongs to JK Rowling, Warner Bros., Scholastic, or Bloomsbury Publishing. Anything unfamiliar that you may see, including unfamiliar magical artifacts, spells you've never heard of, et cetera, are most likely my own creation and are in no way associated with the official books or movies.
Some people like to think there is a little niche in the world for everyone to be happy. That there is a happy home for all the people without happiness, and one day life will be truly glorious. If this is the case, why do people die unhappy? Those happy homes must not exist if there are still unhappy people, wars, and disease. The truth is, happy homes don't exist, but the idea of them does. Ideas are what keep the human race moving and innovating, and it's what keeps the candle of hope lit. So maybe there isn't a little niche for everyone, but there is an idea for every person, animal, plant, or other organic source on the planet. With these ideas, we can strive for something better and something happier than what we have.
Hermione Granger was not an ordinary person. Not a normal person on a normal scale, or a weird scale at that. She was often told this by her friends, her family, and even her work colleagues. She had to believe it to be honest; so many things had happened in her life that it was impossible to think she could still live a normal, albeit somewhat mundane, lifestyle. Being the best female friend of Harry Potter proved this, and had proved it so many times before as well. Her school career had always been full of excitement, drama, suspense and even violence. So what was the product of those 7 years? A very weird woman.
At 26, she was a very balanced and organized person. She knew what she wanted, and had known since she was a young girl, and she had achieved it. Or very nearly achieved it. She still had some years to go to complete her official training and become a Professor at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, for yes, she was a witch. Not just a witch, but a brilliant and intelligent witch. She had many certificates, plaques, and awards on her apartment walls to prove that.
However, being the brilliant witch she was, she had to go through a stage where she wasn't brilliant at all. She had called that period of time her lost years, as she'd done absolutely nothing to further herself in Wizarding society, and had known nothing of what to do. The first two years after she had finished her 7th year in Hogwarts, she had completely panicked and lost all hope for herself. She felt as if she'd been kicked in the rear end towards a completely different lifestyle. No one who knew Hermione could say she wasn't independent, but even independence can turn on you. She was suddenly in the 'real world' and needed a 'real job' if she wanted to support herself. Being only 18, she didn't think she could find a job she truly loved, with no experience except for basic schooling. If it hadn't been for her best friends Ronald Weasley and Harry Potter, who knows what would have become of Hermione Granger. And because of those lost years, she was now two years behind in training to become an Arithmancy Professor at Hogwarts. She could have been a working Professor at 23 if she hadn't wasted those two years doing absolutely nothing. But it was good for her, she thought. It was good to have those two years of lost bliss, where she didn't have obligations or aspirations or worries. She had been a relaxed, if not somewhat bummed-out, teenager and had lived one day at a time. In all honesty, she wouldn't take back those lost years if given the chance, because today, the 26 year old Hermione Granger was a bit more laid-back than she would have been without those two years.
As a Professor-in-training, Hermione was required to live near to Hogwarts, if not inside Hogwarts, since she was to attend each Arithmancy class. She had decided she didn't want to live inside of Hogwarts, despite Headmistress McGonagall's protests, because she felt she'd get too nostalgic and side-tracked by being in Hogwarts full-time. Hermione wasn't ashamed to admit how much she missed being a student at Hogwarts, instead of a Professor-in-training. Hogwarts had that enchanting effect on people, taking them back to an innocent and happy time, and eventually overcoming them with nostalgia and depression.
So Hermione lived in the Scottish city of Edinburgh and Apparated to the school each morning. She rather enjoyed the feel of Apparating, as each time it was like the first time. She could still remember the first time she had Apparated in her 6th year, and she also remembered the jealousy on Ron's face. During the summers when school wasn't in session, Hermione lived with Ginny Weasley in London. London was Hermione's true home, and she was a city girl, born and bred. She always missed London terribly during the school year, and also missed Ron, Harry, and the rest of her friends and family. Really, the only people she saw regularly during the school year were Colin Creevey and Padma Patil. Colin was a professional photographer for a prestigious Quidditch magazine, The Quidditch Essential. When he wasn't traveling during the Quidditch season, Colin lived in a comfortable loft four blocks down from Hermione's own apartment. She saw him most during the winter, when Quidditch was played the least. However, sometimes Colin would travel to Australia and America for winter Quidditch season, and photograph for other Quidditch magazines.
Hermione lived with Padma Patil in Edinburgh. It was a rather awkward situation at first, since Hermione had never had much of a relationship with Padma, nor had she liked her much during her 4th year, when she was Ron's date. All animosity was set aside though, when Hermione realized her feelings for Ron were completely platonic, as were his for her. Hermione came into the arrangement of living with Padma when she found herself without a place to stay when she first came to Edinburgh. Padma worked for a medical firm as a research scientist. Her job was fairly complicated, and each time Padma tried to explain the basics to Hermione, Hermione found herself either falling asleep or walking out of the room. Padma was a good friend, if not a best friend, of Hermione's. They'd lived together for almost three years, and couldn't have become closer. Hermione enjoyed having another intelligent witch to converse with about anything at all. Having two boys for friends all her life, she rather missed what it was like to talk about the female aspect of life.
In the summers Padma stayed in Edinburgh but occasionally came to London. Hermione stayed with Ginny, Ron's younger sister by a year, in her town house. Ginny was currently going through her own phase of lost time, having no idea what she wanted to do. She was still a bright, funny, and pleasant witch. She frequently hosted gatherings in her London town house, inviting all of their friends from Hogwarts. Ginny was a crazy girl, Hermione had to admit. She went through boyfriends like Hermione went through books, and there wasn't a day that went by when Ginny was going to a club or having a party or going to someone else's party. It was to be expected though, since all her life she was limited in what she could do and what she could buy. Fred and George, who had long since reached millionaire status thanks to their joke shop enterprises across the continent, continued to support Ginny financially despite her pleas not to. Ginny also had a lousy job that still paid fairly well as a book accountant at Flourish & Blotts. In Hermione's opinion, this job was too slow and boring for Ginny's personality, and Ginny wholeheartedly agreed.
As for the rest of the gang, Hermione couldn't be more thankful that they were all well-off. Harry, scarred by the war and by evil in general, decided to become an Auror, his dream job. He was paid well – too well, thought Hermione – and lived a comfortable lifestyle in a manor estate in Surrey, away from the chaos of London. Ron had tried to become an Auror, but found that all the hard training required just wasn't for him. Instead he played professional Quidditch, after he got his act together and took practice seriously. It had been a struggle, since he had to overcome his Hogwarts Quidditch career and the taunts that came with it. Eventually he became a Chaser, when he realized he was a bad Keeper for a reason, which was … well, he wasn't quite so coordinated. His Chaser abilities bypassed his Keeper skills by far, and the Falmouth Falcons noticed. Ron was originally added to the reserve team, but after months of hard practice, he was a welcome addition to the playing team. Hermione worried about him more than Harry at times, as the Falmouth Falcons were most known for their hard play and violence. It suited Ron well, as his temper was as short as his attention span.
The War, as many must be wondering, was a devastation to both sides, but more so for Voldemort's. Dumbledore's message of 'Love conquers all' had stuck with Harry, and he had used it to his advantage. Hermione hadn't been involved with the fighting, per request of Harry, and at the time she had been furious, but now Hermione could see that Harry had saved her. She could tell Harry was still haunted by the war and the death that had come with it, and she couldn't imagine being in his position. Hermione was not scarred by the fact that she had killed people, because she hadn't killed people. Harry had, he'd killed many Death Eaters, and paid the price for it by doubting himself for months afterwards. He had been so overcome with guilt that Hermione had worried for his life on many occasions. He had withdrawn from society for over a year, until Hermione and Ron convinced him to attend a therapy group session for people affected by the war. These sessions had helped Harry see he wasn't a bad man for killing his enemies, especially if it meant Voldemort was finally gone. This sudden revelation pushed him to pursue his dream of becoming an Auror, and fighting other bouts of evil for a living. Currently he managed his fears well and kept Hermione and Ron close to him, whether it was in person, by owl mail, or by telephone. Hermione had taught Ron to use a telephone, much to his dismay, and they had kept in touch regularly.
So in all, Hermione's life had turned out well so far. She hadn't lost her two best friends during the War, and she had become close to many other people afterwards. She was pursuing her dream of becoming an Arithmancy Professor at a school she loved, and had a healthy balance of work and play in her life. By no means was this a perfect life, however, since everyone was feeling the toll of the War on them, but life could go on. Hermione, the smartest witch of her age, realized she could give back to her Wizarding community without being hurt in the process, and each day she strived to accomplish something, no matter how small. Life often surprises us, and Hermione was going to find this out for only the thousandth time in her life.