A/N Hello again everyone!

This story is the sequel to Victim of the Fall. Please read that before you embark on this one! If you're one of my treasured readers, then welcome back to the story!

As I've already said, this will be 19 chapters long, so quite a bit shorter than we're used to from me, I think. Also, because of the length, the chapters will be longer.

Hope you all like how it progresses!

xx

Desdemona

1.

THE YEAR AFTER THE FALL

"And if he loves me, why does he leave? Don't say goodbye like you're burying him, 'cause the world is round and he might return."

June 9th, 2001.

The summer dress drifted pleasantly around her ankles as Hermione walked.

She noticed things like that now, how the fabric tickled the tops of her feet, how the sun scalded her bare shoulders slightly, how the smell of Blaise's cologne wafted over her as they strolled side by side down the quiet street. Not everything was nice, it wasn't all perfect, but she felt more disposed to noticing the nice things now. Because, she had realised, in every situation, no matter how awful, there was always something good to see. Even if it was a particularly beautiful shade of green on a particularly pretty leaf that caught her eye in the midst of a crisis.

"You alright?" she asked of her strangely silent companion.

He shrugged noncommittally. "I think today's session will be hard."

"Why's that?"

"Scott said last week that we'd probably be dealing with my social anxiety." Blaise answered, grimacing.

Hermione nodded in understanding. She had quite enough social anxiety to be going on with herself, and had learnt that it was always tough to confront. It was far easier for one to just crawl into a hole, put one's hands over one's ears and pretend none of it was happening. But mind healers didn't let you do that.

She put a hand on Blaise's elbow in an attempt to comfort him. "It'll be alright. You can take it all out in training this afternoon, right?"

"Yep, that's the plan!" he responded, smiling weakly.

The pair reached the now familiar townhouse in the now familiar quiet London street and Hermione turned to Blaise, saying the same thing she said before every session. "Coffee shop after?"

"You know it." he grinned shakily at her.

They walked into the house and sat down in the entrance hall cum waiting room in silence. After a few moments Maya, Hermione's mind healer, called her into a room that led off the waiting room. With a quick smile and wave to Blaise, Hermione entered.

She sat down, slipping off her flats and curling her legs under her as Maya rested a cup of tea in front of her and took a seat herself.

"So what's been happening?" the older woman asked, her chin dropping to lean on her fist as she stared at her client.

Hermione shrugged and said with a confused smile, "Everything and nothing."

"Let's break it down then. What's everything?" Maya urged with an understanding tone.

She took a deep breath, trying to think of a way to summarize the way her life had been progressing lately. "Well, since I moved back into the Burrow last September, things have just been… Alright in a strange way… It's kind of nice. I'd forgotten how much I liked being there, you know? Mum and Dad like it too. They're still staying with the Weasleys, as is Harry and… Even though the house is full to capacity, it never feels crowded. It's just homely… I like living with them all. But I still have that nagging feeling that I was telling you about a couple of weeks ago, that Ron is expecting something of me after everything he did, bringing my parents back. He hasn't said anything, but I can just tell."

Hermione took a few deeps breaths as her rant wound down to an end. She used to feel self conscious talking to Maya, ultra aware of trying to make herself understood clearly, but her mind healer always knew what Hermione was trying to say, even when she herself didn't think she was making any sense at all and stumbled over her words.

"You might be doing some of his thinking for him there, Hermione." said Maya sternly, "Perhaps you should try just trusting him. If he wants something, he will say it. And if he does vocalise it, you can deal with it then. Until that moment though, his thoughts and desires aren't your concern, are they?"

"No. They're not. You're right…" Hermione cast her eyes down to her lap, letting her mind healer's words sink into her thoughts. "I think ultimately, that it's me. I feel obligated to him. And it scares me that he might think I am too."

"So what do you think you might be projecting onto him with these fears? Do you want him to say something?"

Hermione grimaced in frustrated confusion, wishing that she could give a more definitive answer, "No… Well… Yes… I don't know! I still think about him like my partner a bit. And sometimes it feels strange not to hold his hand or kiss him… Sometime I feel like I want to be the one to say something but then… I guess I just feel like I need more time for myself. I'm not ready to confront all of the stuff we'll need to confront if we decided to get back together."

Maya leant forward and seized a random piece of parchment off the coffee table that sat between them, her quill poising over it to write. "And what do you feel you'll need to confront?"

Hermione listed the issues automatically; they had been running through her head for almost two years. "The war and everything that happened. What we went through with Harry. My relationship with…" her breath caught in her throat for a moment, "The romantic encounters I've had outside of Ron."

Maya jotted these things down as she spoke, her eye brow rising over the slip in Hermione's sentence. When she was done, she stood and crossed the distance between them. Suddenly, Hermione found her vision obscured by the piece of parchment as her mind healer held it up in her face, inches from her nose.

"What do you see?" asked Maya.

Hermione eyes struggled to take in the words written on the parchment that listed 'war', 'Harry', then at the bottom, 'Draco'.

It was all too close, Hermione didn't like it. But when she shrank back, Maya only pushed the parchment further into her face.

"What do you see?" the older woman repeated calmly.

"Nothing!" Hermione answered sharply, her heart beginning to beat rapidly.

And just as suddenly as it had come, the piece of parchment was gone. "Exactly." said Maya approvingly, resuming her seat, "You can't see past the restrictions you put up for yourself, Hermione. You must understand that these issues are separate and they belong wholly to you and you alone. Ron has nothing to do with those things. He stands on his own as do your feelings for him. But as long as you keep them close like that, allowing them to obscure your vision of him, of the world, you will see nothing but them wherever you look."

Hermione nodded stiffly, acknowledging the truth behind her mind healer's words. The trick with the parchment was truer than she'd realised. Of course she would not be able to move past her problems if she kept them so close to everything she knew. And associating them with Ron would only do more harm than good.

"Thank you." she said breathlessly, after a moment.

"Did I make you uncomfortable?" asked Maya kindly, noticing Hermione's stiff posture.

"A little. But I understand what you were trying to do."

"Good." said mind healer with a firm nod.

Hermione leant forward, picking up her mug of tea and taking a few soothing sips before she said, "I think you're right though. I feel like I'm making excuses sometimes, about Ron. Because I'm scared and I don't want it all to fuck up."

"And that's alright." Maya smiled warmly, "You're allowed to be scared. Anyone would be. But don't keep trying to justify it with all these theories. Just be scared and leave it at that, yes?"

"Yep. I'll try." Hermione responded, smiling wearily.

Maya grinned at her proudly before she took a deep breath and changed the subject. "So you said everything and nothing. We've had everything, now what's nothing?"

Hermione took a minute to think about her choice of words before she spoke again. "Well, it's just all so still now isn't it? Everything that's happening with me is all internal. I mean, the boys have all gone off to Auror training, Ginny's playing for the Holyhead Harpies, and Isobel's started at the Department of International Magical Cooperation… I just feel kind of left behind. Everything's just so… so… good. And honestly, I don't know how to act anymore. I mean, I feel happy most of the time now, Maya. And that's so fucking foreign to me still that I feel like I must be going mad! It's exhausting!" she laughed wearily.

Maya shrugged and smiled compassionately. "That's post traumatic stress disorder, Hermione. You're hyper-vigilant, waiting for something to go wrong. Try for some acceptance. You're allowed to feel these things! That's the absolute beauty of this wonderful calm you're experiencing in your life right now, isn't it? You're completely free to be as mad as you want, totally at liberty to be confused! You've never been given that opportunity before, whether because of outside influences or simply because you yourself would not allow it. Now is the time to let yourself be as you are, exactly as you are."

"Even when everyone else is doing so brilliantly?" asked Hermione meekly.

"Their experience of their own lives or yours is none of your concern. They might be doing brilliantly, or they may not, but what does it matter? It won't change how you are at all. Shaming yourself for not, as you put it, 'doing brilliantly' is only going to make you feel worse in the end. It's not constructive."

"That makes sense…" Hermione conceded.

"Besides, I think you are doing brilliantly. Choosing to undergo healing is a big step. Not only did you take that step, but you've continued on the path. This is no small feat. You need to have faith that at some point, whether it be in one week or one year, you'll reach a place where you want to move further along the path of your life. And while we're on the subject, I have a question for you. In an ideal world, if you had absolute confidence in yourself, what would you like the next step on the path to be?"

"My career." Hermione answered instantly. It had been playing on her mind recently and in tiny, unguarded moments; she'd even begun to feel a little excited by the prospect of working.

Maya nodded thoughtfully, "Oh? And what would you like that to be?"

"I want to be a lawyer." Hermione said in a rush of breath.

"I think you'd do very well at that." Maya responded, seeming to swell a little with pride. "Do you know where to begin to make this goal a reality? Remember, this is in an ideal world, I do not want you to feel pressured by these questions to move into action…"

Hermione nodded fervently, she had, of course, done the research the moment she'd begun seriously considering the idea. "It's ok. I'm alright with it. I think that I could begin the process now if I chose; it's not something that I particularly fear as such… It's just the beginning of the process that makes me uncomfortable; approaching law firms and asking to be taken on as a protégé."

"Very good. And what fears exactly are holding you back from beginning this process?" Maya asked.

Hermione grimaced. "My NEWT results. They weren't the best…"

"Understandable. But your record prior to your NEWTs was glowing, wasn't it? On top of that, you have your own notoriety to recommend you."

"But I don't want to be given a job based on my fame!" Hermione responded a tad incredulously.

Maya looked baffled, "Why ever not? Your fame comes from your reputation for being the brains that contributed to the downfall of the Dark Lord. That, in and of itself, is an achievement you should be proud of. The lawyers of note in our society are not stupid people, Hermione. They will hire you because they will believe in your ability. An ability that has been advertised not by your grades, but by your actions. Do you have a particular mentor in mind yet?"

Hermione shifted a little uncomfortably. She did have a possible mentor in mind, but the woman she was thinking of was so established and renowned for her work that it was bold and almost ridiculous for Hermione to be even thinking of her. Such a woman would not take on a protégé with so little experience…

"Dawn Fortescue." she mumbled into her tea, hoping that Maya would not laugh. "It's stupid, I know…"

The older woman, of course, did not even chuckle. She merely raised an eye brow, the look on her face impressed. "I do not think that is stupid in the slightest. In fact, I think Dawn would be absolutely happy to take you on."

"You know her?" Hermione asked in awe.

The mind healer nodded, "I do. In fact, she has mentioned you once or twice, expressed hopes that you might enter into law as a career. I would owl her this very minute if I did not know that she will not be taking on any new protégés until late next year. Would you be willing to wait?"

Hermione gaped unattractively. "I… uh… yes… but… She knows who I am?!"

"She does indeed." said Maya, beaming at Hermione's obviously thrilled reaction. "I will bring you up the next time I see her, I'm sure she'll be nothing short of delighted to hire you as her protégé. And in the meantime, you can continue the work on yourself. Consider it preparation."

Hermione couldn't help it. She grinned. "Ok. I will."

They lapsed into a companionable silence as all these new ideas rolled around in Hermione's head.

Hermione Granger, lawyer, protégé of Dawn Fortescue.

She couldn't deny that those words tasted delectable in her mind. With everything that had been happening for the rest of the tovarasi in the past year and all that they were achieving, Hermione had begun getting a niggling feeling in the back of her mind that told her that laying about in the sun at the Burrow, devouring books, wasn't going to work forever. She'd wanted to have some sort of goal, some sort of end game to look forward to. And it seemed this was it.

She would be the first to admit that it had been nice though to just be lazy and free flowing with her life for the past year or so, filling her days with thoughts and conversation rather than worries and difficult tasks.

It had been great even to watch her friends all growing and moving around her. Isobel had of course just started in her new position at the Department of International Magical Cooperation, the glamour of which quite suited the girl quite well. Ginny was doing what she loved most and playing chaser for the Holyhead Harpies. Blaise, Draco, Harry and Ron had all gone off together to join the Aurors, solidifying a tentative friendship between the two Gryffindors and the two Slytherins that only amplified their old Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher's goals through their seventh year. Susan and Padma had begun studying at St Mungos together, Padma to be a healer and Susan to be a mind healer. Luna was off travelling only god knew where, trying to find various completely fictional creatures, sending a letter only once every couple of weeks to update her friends on her wellbeing and whereabouts. Juliet had oddly started working for George at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and seemed perfectly in her element. And Eli was doing something similar to Hermione, but he'd made his plans to start teaching at Hogwarts the very minute a position opened up.

All in all, everyone was doing well. Life was ok.

Hermione glanced at the clock and noted that her time was almost up and she would very soon be expected at the coffee shop by Blaise.

Her feet slid out from under her and dropped to the floor where she proceeded to begin pulling on her shoes. Maya handed her a tightly wound scroll that contained all of the homework she was to do before their next appointment and cleared her throat.

"So." she said after a while before asking Hermione the same question she'd asked her every week for the past year. "Do you want to talk about Draco today?"

Hermione's answer was ready, and it was the same as always. "No. Maybe next week." she answered with a stiff smile.

And then she left.

Blaise was waiting for her when she reached their usual coffee shop, looking casually happy with his legs sprawled out in front of his chair. Hermione slid out one of the metal chairs opposite him and sat down, setting her bag on the table and pulling out the scroll Maya had given her.

"So I guess it wasn't as bad as you thought then?" she asked, smiling.

Blaise sighed contentedly, "No, not really. I don't know what it is, but before every session I always feel so anxious, like something really bad is going to happen. Then I go in and talk to Scott and it only makes things better." he laughed ironically, "My expectations are all over the place."

"I know exactly what you mean!" Hermione grinned knowingly.

A waitress came out of nowhere and set a cup of hot chocolate in front of Hermione and a long black in front of Blaise.

"So, you talked about Draco yet?" he asked with a wry smile once the waitress had left.

Hermione snorted, "What do you think?"

He laughed perceptively and waited a moment for her to continue. When she did not, he rolled his eyes and leant forward, his elbows resting on the streaky table that sat between them. "What's with the hesitation?"

She shrugged, "I just don't want to go there yet."

"Why not? It's been a year since everything happened…"

"I'm well aware of that, Blaise." her tone was a tad sharp but she offered no apology for it. Blaise knew her feelings, he knew that she had not really chosen to open up to anyone about her past love and was unlikely to do so now. She envied him that he had been able to move on past Ginny so quickly. From what she had so far gathered, Blaise's failed relationship had been one of the first things he'd brought up with his mind healer. And now, he never looked back and he seemed better for it.

Blaise held his hands up in submission, "Alright, I'll leave it be." he took a sip of his coffee before saying, "Oh, and by the way, the boys are meeting us here so we can go to training together."

Hermione knew that by 'the boys' he meant Harry, Ron and Draco himself. She sighed resignedly and nodded her acknowledgement.

It hadn't been a conscious thought to stop talking about her emotions around the former death eater, no, it had happened slowly over time as the tovarasi settled into their lives and the reality of her relationships had sunk in properly. She'd nurtured a tiny part inside her heart that still believed, very quietly, that they might get back together, that maybe he might do something to fix all of his past wrongs and give her a chance to fix hers. But the event she'd been waiting for had never happened. He'd been around a lot, drifting in and out of her life as much as the rest of the group. He hadn't been mean or cold, in fact he treated her now with far more respect than he ever had before. But there was no hint of any of his past feelings at all. He was friendly and that was it.

Hermione had accepted the fact that whatever his feelings might have been, and she wasn't intending to do his thinking for him anymore, he didn't have any intention of rekindling what they had. That part of their lives was over.

And the reason, ultimately, that she didn't open up about how much this hurt her was because she had built a nice little cage inside herself in which to house this hurt. To talk about it, to even open her mouth with the intention of speaking her truth, would mean an emotional outburst of such catastrophic intensity that she knew she was not in the position to handle that right then. She wanted to wait until the feelings were less jagged, until they faded a little. And that would happen, just as it did with all feelings, whether they be grief or happiness or love. It may never fade entirely, she knew that, but it would become less poignant eventually.

Until then, she'd deal with it inside herself. She was conscious of her process really, and was taking the advice that Maya offered her on other subjects and applying them to her situation with Draco. She knew deep down that it wasn't entirely healthy to bottle it all up, but she'd still try her best to be healthy about her thinking. And this was the only thing that saved her really, that stopped her completely falling apart. She was finally doing it healthily.

She trusted herself. And that was something different.

Hermione's mind snapped back to the present suddenly when Blaise gave a cry of greeting to someone behind her and stood up from the table. She cast her eyes about the street until she found them, the three boys, striding confidently towards the coffee shop. Blaise moved off to meet them, giving Draco a one armed hug and shaking Harry and Ron's hands.

They made quite the picture, the four of them, all in their training gear, all laughing good naturedly.

Hermione absolutely loved seeing those four boys together like that, all animosity forgotten. They were friends. She could see it in the easiness with which they talked to one another, in the playful pushes, and in the effortless confidence in the way they stood. Harry's hands were forever in his hair, Draco's hung loosely by his sides, Ron's were buried in his pockets and Blaise's gesticulated wildly as he spoke.

The group made towards Hermione as she sat with her legs crossed at the table.

"There's the basket case!" cried Harry to her by way of a greeting.

Hermione chuckled, "Yeah, you can talk!"

Harry grinned and collapsed into a free chair as Ron ruffled her hair before taking a seat beside him. Draco dropped down next to Blaise, smiling nonchalantly at her. She tried to return his smile but felt that perhaps her expression was rather more stiff than his given everything that had just been running through her mind only moments before.

"How was Maya?" asked Ron, gesturing for the waitress to come and take their new orders.

"Good! I have some news actually." she responded, barely containing the smile that was suddenly moving up her face. Sharing her news was a snap decision and she wasn't entirely sure what had brought on the desire to speak about it.

"Oh yeah?" said Harry as the table fell silent and four pairs of eyes turned to look at her.

She nodded and cast her eyes down to her lap bashfully, suddenly embarrassed about telling the boys what had taken place in her mind healer's office. "I'm going to be a lawyer."

"Wow!" exclaimed Ron, his hand landing on her shoulder affectionately. "That's brilliant!"

"Have you found a mentor yet?" asked Blaise eagerly.

"Well… nothing's set in stone. But I'm hoping to work under Dawn Fortescue. Maya knows her and she's going to set it up. She said she's heard of me." she couldn't help the fierce pride she felt lacing through her voice.

Ron and Harry's faces reflected their confusion as Blaise and Draco's fell into unadulterated shock.

"But, Hermione…" said Draco in awe, "That's fucking amazing! Dawn Fortescue! Holy shit!"

"I'm sorry but would someone tell me who the fuck Dawn Fortescue is?" asked Harry with a bemused chuckle.

"Only the most notable wizarding lawyer in the country, maybe even the world!" exclaimed Blaise, his absolute pleasure at Hermione's achievement reflected in his tone.

"When do you start?" Draco urged.

"What's the pay like?" demanded Harry with a laugh.

Hermione held up her hands in a placating gesture in an attempt to ease the group's raucous enthusiasm. "Don't get too excited, she's not taking on anyone new until next year… So I'll have to wait a bit. But yeah! That's the news!"

Hermione giggled as the boys hurled congratulations at her and patted her on the back. Her excitement felt almost uncontainable now that she'd said it aloud, now that she'd told someone. It made it all so much more real. And to see them all so happy for her made her heart glow with warmth.

Once the group had finished their various beverages and had discussed, in detail, Hermione's possible new career choice; the boys went one way to go off to Auror training, while Hermione went the other, keeping an eye out for a secluded alleyway in which to apparate back to the Burrow.

She bounced on her heels as she walked, feeling rather more happy and together since she had allowed herself to laugh with her friends. But she was also exhausted. The sessions with Maya, no matter how eventful or uneventful they were, always made her sleepy. It was her routine now to go home, grab a book and a cup of tea and retreat to her room. The Weasleys had kindly kicked out the ghoul and converted the attic into a bedroom for her. Arthur and Molly remained in their room, Harry and Ginny in hers, Hermione's parents took Percy's old room, while Ron stayed exactly where he was.

Everyone knew to leave Hermione alone when she got home now, not that they feared for her emotional state, they just understood that after her sessions she needed calm and quiet in order to re-collect herself. She appreciated this.

When she arrived back at the Burrow, she found Molly and her mum in full swing preparing what looked like an extravagant dinner.

"What's going on?" asked Hermione as she walked through the door.

"Hello sweetheart." Nina Granger said warmly, abandoning the pot she was stirring in order to peck Hermione on the cheek.

"You guys have been busy…" Hermione chuckled, seeing more and more food piled on the already groaning wooden dining table as she moved further into the kitchen.

"Ginny's organised a tovarasi dinner tonight." said Molly by way of an explanation, sounding a little harried. "Didn't she tell you?"

"It's the first I've heard of it." Hermione shrugged. "Do you want some help?"

Molly smiled warmly and waved her off. "No, no, dear. You go on up to your room, Ginny will be back soon and three chefs is more than enough for this kitchen. I've already made your tea; it's sitting just there on the end table."

Hermione smiled gratefully and, after giving her mother's arm an affectionate squeeze, took up her tea and made her way upstairs. She would tell the rest of the family about her good news later, for right then, she needed her oasis.

Once inside her room, she took three great big breaths. She didn't feel she needed steadying but whatever part of her nerves were frayed, taking in the smell of her room was comfort enough to sooth them.

Hermione had made her room as comfortable as she could with what was available, bringing with her most of the things she'd acquired while living at Flourish and Blotts. The beams that stretched across the high, slanted ceiling were adorned with fairy lights and hanging ornaments, while the entire western wall was taken up by a huge bookcase. On the floor was a collection of Persian rugs, which she'd come to adore since living in Diagon Alley and her bed was large enough to sleep a family of four, just as she liked it.

Living in the attic meant that the size of her room equalled about the size of each of the Burrow's floors. It was almost like having her own flat really. Molly had figured that seeing as Hermione was there most of the time and liked her own space, that it be only right she had a lot of it. And a lot of it she got. The attic was almost bigger than all the rooms in her old flat put together.

She liked it because it made her feel separate from the rest of the house and its occupants. She had her own little world up there, her own tranquil island. But she was also able to go and visit the mainland when she needed to. Unlike Flourish and Blotts, supportive company was only a flight of stairs away now. This way, she got to be alone, but she never had to feel alone.

Hermione shrugged off her dress, letting it fall into a pile at her feet before stepping out of it and her shoes. She made her way over to the bookcase, her bare feet padding across the wooden floor, and pulled out a familiar volume, one that she hadn't read in a while. Not since she'd started greedily coveting fiction anyway.

Bastet's Line felt heavier than she remembered.

She settled down in her bed that sat next to a window, open to let in the summer breeze. The sunlight warmed her skin as she sunk her head into the pillow and propped the book open on her chest.

Hermione woke, hours later, just as dusk was falling on the Burrow, heralded by the singing cicadas. Bastet's Line sat open next to her, her arms curling around it almost protectively. She could hear the sound of many voices drifting up from the garden below and through her open window, carried by a pleasant breeze that made the loose strands of hair around her face dance lazily.

Someone was tapping tentatively on the trap door that led up to her room. She dragged the sheets up to cover her half naked body and grunted in response to the tapping. Whoever it was accurately took this as an invitation to enter.

Hermione lifted her head a little as the trap door creaked open and Ron's face appeared over the rim.

"Sorry, just wanted to let you know that everyone's here." he said casually.

"It's ok. I needed to wake up anyway. Come in." she replied with a yawn and a stretch.

Ron heaved himself up into the room and allowed the trap door to close softly behind him. He approached Hermione's bed, and looked down at her. She stared back up at him sleepily.

They did not exchange any words then, only their eye contact. At first, Hermione was fine with this, until, for some reason, her thoughts changed.

It occurred to her right then, exactly what was happening though she hadn't realised it before. He was there, in her room, next to her bed, looking at her. It sounded like nothing in the context of words, but being there, in that moment, was so much more than that. Something that had seemed at first to be so casual was now not.

"You're so beautiful." he said quietly after the silence that had stretched on for almost too long.

Hermione couldn't reply. She'd been waiting anxiously and with great trepidation for a moment like this for over a year. But now that it was happening it was almost like she couldn't muster the energy to be concerned or panicked. The look in his eyes was so tender, so warm, that to react with anything other than love and peace seemed alien.

Without really thinking, Hermione laughed, a loud giggle that bubbled up her throat and burst from her mouth in one breath. She found the whole situation hilarious, that she was now so contented to hear those words and see that expression on his face when only hours earlier she'd been wringing her hands and fretting over the mere idea of them.

Ron did not seem offended by her laughter, he just grinned happily down at her.

After a moment, she sobered a little, her mind beginning to grasp at things to say in response.

But he anticipated her reaction. "You don't need to say anything. I know that the idea of us scares you. And we don't need to do anything right away. I just needed to say that and it felt like the right time was now."

"What about Claire?" Hermione asked, though it was more for something to say than any real need for closure.

Ron looked momentarily confused. "She's gone back to Australia, you know that…"

"But aren't you two…?" her question did not need finishing. In all the time that had passed since she'd met the girl a year ago, Hermione had never once asked Ron about their relationship. This was partly out of guilt, knowing that she had dabbled in romance with someone else too; and partly out of the fact that she strongly felt like it was none of her business. But now that he'd brought up the word 'relationship' again, it felt right that she knew now.

Ron sank down to sit on the bed next to her, though not touching her. "We were. For a bit. But she always knew how I felt about you and she was ok with that. We talked about it. She was in love with someone else too and what we had was just a means to an end really. She cares about me and I care about her, that's why she wanted to help find Nina and Barry. She's a very decent woman."

Hermione nodded, feeling a little like a weight had been lifted off her chest. Though the confirmation that another woman had touched Ron, likely taken his virginity, made her heart contract a little.

"And what about you and Draco?" Ron asked tightly after a few moments.

She was almost ready to give her usual automated answer to this question before she remembered the conversation she was actually engaged in. Being evasive now would only do more damage.

She took a deep breath, "Well… I'm not going to tell you I feel nothing and it's all over for me, Ron… I really cared about him and I'm still hurt about what happened. But that doesn't really stop anything I might feel for you. In fact, to me, the two issues are wholly separate. I… I love you both. But in very different ways." Ron looked pained at this, and Hermione didn't really know what to say to sooth any bad feelings he might be having. But she ploughed on regardless, "We're never going to happen. I can promise you that. The relationship has ended, it's gone. And even if the feelings haven't, they will in time. I can tell you that I feel less now than I did a year ago."

She realised as she said this, that it was true. She'd been telling herself for months that she'd open up when the feelings were less painful, never noticing that they were losing their jagged edge as time dragged on. This buoyed her a little, especially since there'd been a little part of her that believed she'd suffer forever. And here she finally had the solid evidence that she would not.

Ron took a breath and smiled, "Alright, well, I trust you. So if you say it's nothing to worry about then that's good enough for me."

"So where do we go from here?" Hermione asked tentatively.

"Where would you like to go?" he responded.

"I don't want to share a room yet…"

"Neither do I."

"And I'm not sure we should go announcing it to the world."

Ron chuckled. "No thanks, I don't think I could handle mum's screaming."

"I don't want to start… having sex yet either."

He smiled, "Disappointing but understandable… Can I have a kiss though?"

Hermione felt herself grinning. He was so cheeky. After a moment of quick thought as she tried to decide whether or not she actually wanted to kiss anyone, a voice in the back of her mind said, 'fuck it' and she nodded.

Ron grinned and leant down towards her, the calluses of his fingers tickling her skin as he laid his hand on her cheek. For a moment, his breath was hot on her face, filling her with all those old memories, all the old sensations. The smell of it was so familiar to her that she almost couldn't believe it had been over two years since she'd kissed him.

When their lips finally met after what felt like hours of build up, Hermione experienced an unequivocal and overwhelming feeling of relief, as if she'd been travelling for such a long time and finally, mercifully, she was home.

The garden was crowded when the pair finally descended through the house to join their friends. The entire tovarasi were gathered, as well as most of the Weasleys such as Percy, George and Bill and Fleur. Dean was there, without Luna of course and Hermione was glad that he was acting a part of the tovarasi in his girlfriend's stead. Bo, Isobel's girlfriend, had joined them too, standing slightly off to the side with her hand nestled in the younger girl's fingers.

It was already a merry gathering despite being so early in the evening, but Hermione felt suddenly exposed when she walked out to the garden, bedecked with little lights and sporting three long tables to seat all the guests. After the conversation with Ron, she felt self conscious, as if everyone could tell what had passed. She didn't really know why this bothered her but regardless, she felt like a naughty child who'd been stealing sweets and was scared of getting caught.

Hermione was almost immediately pulled into a conversation with Bo, Isobel and Juliet, the three girls tittering jovially about Isobel's new job. But Hermione was only half listening. The part of her mind that was not occupied by the conversation told her to seek out Draco. And this she did. As the girls talked around her, she spent some time simply watching him, covertly of course, just because she wanted to see what it felt like given everything that had happened that evening.

Strangely, it felt fine, normal. Perhaps even a little better than it had that afternoon.

A part of her hurt, only a tiny part mind you, was disintegrating. She felt like she was turning a corner in a way, that through her acceptance of Ron and the relationship they could have, she was also accepting Draco and the relationship that would never happen.

Draco caught her eye then, and it was the expression on his face that really solidified this feeling in her heart. He smiled, and it was a smile full of friendship and respect. And that was enough for her. That was enough to end it once and for all.

It was Juliet who broke Hermione out of her reverie then when she leant in close to her three companions and asked, "So any idea what this is a about?"

"Huh?" said Hermione as she caught Isobel giving her a wry and knowing smile that made Hermione want to hit her.

"This dinner." explained Juliet, "Why has Ginny called us all here?"

"I thought it was just for the fun of it. We haven't all been together like this in a while…" Hermione shrugged.

"Mmm," Juliet's tone was doubtful, "I thought so too… But now that I'm here, I feel like there might be something more to it. There's a tense kind of vibe."

Isobel snorted playfully, "A vibe, Jules?"

The younger girl giggled, "Shut up! You know what I mean…"

"Well I guess we'll find out soon enough." Bo put in, her eyes drifting over the assembled crowd.

After about half an hour, the group settled down at the tables to eat the sumptuous feast Molly and Nina had prepared. Conversation flowed freely through the air, filling the garden with laughter and chatter.

Hermione sat between Isobel and Blaise who spent most of the meal talking over her about wizarding laws against the importation of foreign wand materials. Again, Hermione wasn't listening. She was seated across from Ron and found that she could not bring herself to look away from him. And he appeared to be having the same problem. Their eyes barely broke contact throughout the duration of the meal.

And Isobel kept giving Hermione those annoying, knowing looks.

It was like she was seeing him in this new light now, like he'd taken on a different shade in his aura. Where her feelings had been all tightness and fear around him before, they were now acceptance and happiness. The realisation hit her then that what she'd really been scared of was the waiting; it was the tension that killed her. She hadn't known what to think of him because he hadn't defined it and that was exactly what Maya had been trying to warn her against all along. She should have allowed herself to just be with her own feelings, not worrying about how he looked at her but accepting that what she felt was what she felt. And she would continue to feel it regardless of his motives, just like it was with Draco.

This was the wonderful acceptance she treasured so much now, the acceptance that only came around every now and then to make her world a little brighter. She couldn't cultivate it all the time, she was only human after all, but it did allow her to see the nicer things around her when it did come along.

Things like the feeling of her dress tickling the tops of her feet, or the sun on her shoulders. Things like the beautiful hum that came from Harry's goblet when he tapped it with his knife a moment later or the way the little lights that peppered the garden glinted off Ginny's red hair when she stood up next to her partner.

Harry took a deep breath, a smile that glowed brightly adorning his face. "Oi oi!" he cried over the chatter crowd of his family and friends, "Pipe down! Ginny and I have something to tell you all…"

Hermione cast her eyes around the table, noticing Ron grinning from ear to ear as he looked up at Harry, and Molly moving to sit on the very edge of her seat, an expression of frantic anticipation on her face.

She turned her head to look back up at Ginny and Harry as the Boy Who Lived wrapped an arm around the younger girl's shoulders and cleared his throat.

Hermione grinned.