Chapter Text
She breathed in the salt air as it settled around her. It weighed heavily on her shoulders while she stood still. She could feel the mist dampening her hair, before it eventually produced a small droplet that tracked down the side of her face as she stared out into the sea. It would be time soon enough for her to cross it, but the thought of what was waiting for her caused a shiver down her spine that had nothing to do with the cool air.
It had been nine years since she had stepped foot in England. Hermione Granger hardly felt like the same person that had desperately fled from the land that had laid idle witness to her darkest experiences. She knew logically that she was stronger now than she had been when she left; that she had come a long way in overcoming the demons that haunted her. But no matter what reassurances she told herself, her stomach turned.
She clutched a now slightly soggy letter in her left hand. The ink had begun to run. It would have been so much easier had she not opened the damned thing. But what was done was done, and no matter what how desperately she may want to, she could not go back in time and incendio the blasted letter the second the owl had come into view.
She sighed and turned her back to the ocean. With practiced steps, she climbed up the rocky coastline to the grass field that stretched to the tall pine trees that stood about 50 yards away. Hermione followed a flagstone path that lead to a one story shingled cottage situated against the tree-line.
She pressed the wooden door open to reveal a rather large living room. It was cosy. The ceiling was exposed; two large wooden support beams ran perpendicular to the front of the house. The room was outfitted with worn furniture that implied regular use. Several plush armchairs were slightly stained. Throughout the room laid a great number of books of varying sizes; some were as thick as they were wide, while others looked as though they only contained a handful of pages.
As she walked through the room Hermione absentmindedly flicked her wand, causing a nearby abandoned mug of tea to fly to the already filled sink. She paused for a moment in front of the brick fireplace. She reached up to the stone mantel and took a pinch of floo powder from a bowl placed on the corner of the surface. Taking a deep breath, she dropped the powder into the lit fire.
“The burrow, England” she said in a shaky voice.
She crouched down and pushed her head into the green flame.
“Hello?”
As her eyes adjusted to the change in scenery, she could just make out the faint pattering of footsteps in the next room. Soon enough, a man his mid twenties came charging through. He was tall with unkempt red hair that fell just past his ears.
“‘Mione? Is that you?”
“Hullo Ron” She gave him a watery smile.
“Merlin, it’s good to see you,” He spoke as he walked until he was standing directly in front of the fireplace. “how long has it been? A year? How are you? What have you been up to?”
“Ron? Who is it?” Another redhead, this time an exceedingly pregnant woman, came into view. “Hermione?” The woman’s jaw dropped.
“Ginny!” Hermione’s eyes widened at the sight of the woman’s stomach. “I didn’t realize you were this far along”
“8 months. Bugger should be popping out any day now. Never mind that, are you alright? Why haven’t you called lately?”
“I just called you the other week.”
“Hermione that was last summer.”
Hermione looked at the two in shock. “Surely it couldn’t have been that long.” She said weakly.
“It was on my birthday.”
“Oh.” Surprise flicked across her face before she remembered why she was calling in the first place. It swiftly returned to an anxious expression. “I’m sorry, I guess I didn’t realize it had been that long. I’ve been doing some intense-“
“Research, we know. I’m not mad, Hermione. I just miss you. I want you to be a part of James’ and this guys’ life.” Ginny said as she rubbed her stomach.
“I know, I just- I just haven’t thought going back would be good for me. But I got a letter from Shacklebolt today. He wants me to come on for a research project the Department of Mysteries is conducting.”
“That’s brilliant!” Ron blurted before being smacked in the arm by Ginny.
“Do you want to do it?”
“I- I’m not sure to be honest. I mean it’s a fascinating project, I can’t tell you much, of course, but suffice to say what I’d be doing would be groundbreaking. In fact, from what I can gather it could pave the way for a whole new-“
There was a knock on her cottage door.
“One second!” She turned her head slightly to call out to the visitor, before hurriedly whispering to the Weasleys, “I have to go. Would it be alright if I came to visit on Wednesday? Shacklebolt wants to talk in person.”
“Of course! It’ll be brilliant, I can’t wait.” Ron said.
Hermione gave the pair a tight smile before yanking her head out of the fireplace. She walked quickly to the door, her right hand staying in her pocket, firmly gripping her wand. Cautiously, she pulled it open. She let the grip loosen when she saw who was on the other side.
A young woman faced her. She had long, rather thin brown hair that reached well past her shoulders. She wore a navy red sox hat, a zipped black mid thigh length raincoat, and dark loose jeans that were tucked into a pair of L.L Bean boots. The woman was leaning on one arm that was propped up against the doorframe with an unimpressed expression on her face.
“You wouldn’t happen to know the time wouldja?”
Hermione gave her a confused look before slapping the palm of her hand to her forehead.
“Coffee. Shit. I’m so sorry Anne. I got a letter from home and completely forgot. Let me grab my bag and we can go.” She turned around and picked up a black purse from a large couch with sunken cushions.
“From home? You mean England?”
“Yes, one of my old,” she paused a moment, “colleagues reached out about conducting research over there.”
The pair walked towards a beat up old pickup that was parked in the dirt driveway.
“So you’d be going back?”
“If I accept it, yes.”
Anne cast Hermione a worried look. “Are you sure you’re ready for that?”
“No, not at all.”
Anne opened the door and slid into the drivers seat. They sat in silence as she reversed out of the narrow drive and onto the paved road. It was only few minutes before they pulled in front of a run-down diner.