#harrypotterwrites

Hermione greeted her boss as she walked in for her shift at the local library with a soft smile gracing her face. It was the summer after Voldemort was defeated by Harry and so many lives had been lost. After her, Ron, and Harry helped try to clear up some of the mess, she decided to take a mental health break and come back to her hometown and work at her local library. Harry and Ron decided to stay with the Ministry in London and help track down other death eaters. Part of her wished she would have stayed with them because they were her family, but she missed her parents and while she works out how to get their memories of her back, working in the library in the town where she grew up made her feel close to them.

She had set her bag down in the back and grabbed the first cart of books that needed to be put back and started moving down the rows, returning each book to the correct shelf. The silence was nice. Most of the time, the silence was too much for her, but it was different when she was in a library. She felt at home and safe amongst all the books; like at any moment, she could pick up any book and escape this world for a little while.

She focused in on the title of the book in front of her (Romeo And Juliet) and shook her head just slightly. She had been avoiding Ron’s calls recently. After their kiss, they had both decided that they would give each other some space to truly follow what they felt they needed to do next. She had decided that she was going to go back to Hogwarts in the fall for her seventh year, but both Ron and Harry decided to forego going back to school. She was supportive of them and they were supportive of her but with how busy they knew they’d be over the summer and then another year apart while she finished her schooling, her and Ron felt it best not to get into a relationship as of yet. She didn’t regret anything but he had been calling her more often and she felt as though they were in a relationship, which she couldn’t handle right now. Not with where her mind and mental health was.

She sighed as she put the book back on its shelf before moving forward. She continued along with the books in this row before turning the corner to go on into the next row when the sight of a blonde haired boy stopped her in her tracks. Draco Malfoy. After the war and her time at Malfoy Manor, she no longer felt disgusted at the sight of him, but that didn’t mean she’d ever want to talk to him. His head was lowered slightly as his eyes followed the words on the page. She could see the dark circles under his eyes. They stuck out even more against his pale skin. She wasn’t surprised as the war had taken a toll on all of them. She had seen his hesitation at Hogwarts when Voldemort had called for him. She saw how the only reason he seemed to go to him was because his mother called for him. He seemed just as scared as any other wizard that was there.

She turned to try and walk away before he noticed her when she heard him speak up, “Oh, I’m sorry. I can move if you need to move past.” His voice sounded soft and polite, something he’d never sounded before. She knew the minute he saw her face, he’d change his tone, but she turned to face him anyways, not backing down from a challenge before. She saw his face drop, just for a moment, before it was like a switch in his brain went on and his face became blank.

“Huh.” Is all she said as she walked past him. She wasn’t in the mood to deal with him. Part of the reason she came back was because she needed time away from everything that reminded her of the war and settling back into the muggle world seemed like a good way to do that. She turned down the next aisle, continuing to put the books back from the cart, hoping that he would just leave and she wouldn’t have to deal with him.

“Granger.” She heard behind her, but she continued on as if she hadn’t heard anything. A tap on the shoulder told her that he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon so she flipped around to see what he wanted.

“Can I help you with something?” She said, trying to fein being polite. Her fists were balled up by her sides and she had to consciously release the hold as her nails were digging into her palms. She stretched her hands out subtly by her sides as she looked anywhere but his face.

“Uh, no, but-” He started but she interrupted him.

“Oh, then I must be continuing my work.” She turned to move on, but he spoke up once more.

“Please.” She held her breath for a moment before turning around. She didn’t say anything but gave him a curt nod to show he could continue. “I, uh, wanted to say I was sorry. For everything. The insults. The narcissism. The...I don’t know how to put it all into words, but just all of it. There’s no excuse for it.” He paused. He seemed to be looking for more words to say but Hermione, at this point, needed to find out if he had sought her out.

“Were you following me? I mean, how did you find me?” She felt a tightness in her chest and she didn’t know how she felt about his apology.

“No! I mean, no.” He stepped towards her, but she stepped back pushing the cart forward slightly. Noticing this, Draco stepped back to give her space. “I doubt you’ll believe this but this is a complete coincidence. I’ve been taking some time away from the wizarding world and decided to just drive through the muggle world. After everything, I just felt so lost. Everything I believed, everything I was taught to believe, seemed so wrong. I felt like my entire life was a lie. And I didn’t feel as though I could properly learn to move past my prejudices unless I truly went to learn about those that I had been taught to hate. Seems stupid when I say it out loud.” Draco was no longer looking at Hermione, but rather at his feet. She could tell he definitely had changed because he usually has his chest puffed out, his chin turned up, as though he was better than everyone and everything but the person standing in front of her seemed so unsure of himself.

“It’s not stupid.” She said softly, “but I don’t know what you want from me. Why are you telling me all of this?”

“Because even if I don’t deserve forgiveness, you deserve an apology. As for the rest of the explanation, I guess I just don’t want you to feel as though I’m trying to come after you or something.” He had lifted his head and Hermione studied his face for a moment. He looked tired, but she could see he was telling the truth. There was uncertainty in his eyes and a pleading look as well. She didn’t know if she could forgive him so quickly but she could understand him. Especially since she was working in this library to escape the same way he was. Maybe for different reasons, but the idea was the same. The magical world was too overwhelming, for the both of them. “I, I don’t want to keep you any longer, but thank you for listening, Hermione. I hope you have a good rest of your day. And I’m sorry if any of this...my being here or my apology, brings up any bad feelings or memories for you.” And with that, he turned to walk out.

“You said my name.” Hermione was staring at the back of his head, the shock of hearing her first name come out of his mouth. She’d never heard it before. And he stopped as well. “You’ve never said my name before, but you just said it. As though it was the normal thing to do.”

He turned around, his eyes wide. “I’m so sorry. I- I shouldn’t have. I don’t have the right. I-” She held up a hand, his mouth falling shut quickly.

“It’s okay. Really.” And It was. Hermione didn’t feel anger or anything, except a little bit of hope, from hearing her name come out instead of her last name or anything else. “I have to get back to work, but if you would like to get a drink and talk about anything, Draco, I get off at five.” And she smiled. A genuine smile graced her features.

Draco looked up at her when he heard his name. And seeing her smile, made him just lightly smile. Her smile was gorgeous and he felt hope from seeing it. Maybe, just maybe, he found what he was looking for in this little muggle town. In a library.

The night moved by quickly with conversation seeming to flow easy and endlessly between the two of them. The wine glasses in front of them drained, filled, and then drained again over and over. By the time she glanced up at the clock in the corner, it read midnight. The man across from her leaned back in his chair as she got up and cleared the table, taking both their plates and glasses to the sink. A silence fell over them for once but it was comfortable. Her heart beat as she thought of how they had gotten here, that she was here with him. She turned around to lean against the sink as her brown eyes met his grey ones, although in this light they looked bluer than she had seen them before.

“It’s late. I should get going.” He said softly, but not making any move to get up. His eyes stayed locked on hers. She nodded softly but didn’t say anything. Another couple of minutes of silence followed before he finally stood up. “Thank you for the dinner and the wine. It was delicious. And thank you for allowing me the chance to show you I’ve changed.”

She shook her head, her curls falling from the loose ponytail they had been in for the night. “You don’t have to continue to thank me, y’know.” She watched him as he slowly stalked closer to her. Her heart picked up at the sight and she couldn’t tell if it was from nerves or excitement at who was in front of her. “I’m glad you enjoyed dinner. I had a good time. It was nice to have someone to just talk about everything, and I guess nothing, with.” She let out a soft laugh as he stopped a couple of feet away from her. Her eyes had left his to trace over his throat as he let out a laugh, just taking in every bit of him. His features didn’t seem as sharp as they did when they were kids. His blond hair was no longer slicked back as it always seemed to be. Rather it swayed softly on top of his head. Not necessarily long but longer than it had ever been before.

“If you don’t mind me asking, but how long are you staying here?” He shifted toward the door frame so he could lean his back on it while he glanced sideways at her, studying her.

She glanced down, his eyes starting to weigh on her. “I don’t know really.I was originally planning on going back to Hogwarts to finish my seventh year after this summer, part of me doesn’t know if I’ll ever be able to go back to that world, but I don’t really feel like I fit here either. Not after everything. Plus magic is a part of me, it always will be.”

He watched her studying the ground and he wanted to reach out to her but he didn’t know if that was appropriate yet. “What do your friends think of that?”

At that, she looked back up at him. “I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to them in a bit. They’ve been busy.” She paused before deciding to add, “I think I also feel ashamed that I’m hiding out here rather than spending this time healing with them.” She didn’t know what caused her to admit that to him of all people. He seemed just as surprised as she did at her admission.

“There’s nothing wrong with healing by yourself, y’know.” He replied. Something about the way her face had fallen, the guilt that covered it, made him walk to her and lift her face so her eyes met his once more. “Out of everyone I know, you are the most brilliant person I’ve ever know even when it pissed me off.” A breathy laugh fell from her lips before he continued. “You should never feel guilty for anything. And even being me, I know that Potter and Weasley feel the same and they would never be upset with you for taking this time for yourself.” He let his fingers fall from her face, already missing the feel of her soft skin.

“Why do you care?” She said it so softly that he almost missed it.

“I don’t know.” He didn’t know what it was but something inside him wanted her to be happy and be okay. The same way he hoped he would once be.

She read the sincerity in his face and it scared her but it also thrilled her. She found herself wanting to know the feel of his lips on hers and her glance flickered from his eyes to his lips and back, her tongue flicking out to wet her lips. His eyes narrowed in confusion for just a moment before his eyes widened at his realization at what he was reading on her face.

Desire.

And they both moved forward at the same time, their lips smashing together much harsher than either of them meant to. His tongue ran across her lips as they parted, allowing him access. Her hands shot to his shirt, curling her fists just enough to pull him forward to her as his hands snaked their way around her waist to pull her tighter. It lasted but a couple of minutes before they pulled back, heavy breaths filled the space between them as both their eyes stayed close. Neither of them sure what just happened and unsure of how they really felt about what they did. Her hands were still clutching his shirt and his still rested on her waist.

She opened her eyes to find his still closed. “I’m sorry” he breathed out.

She just lifted herself up on her tippy toes to kiss him softly this time in response. Pulling back this time, she found his eyes open, staring at her in confusion.

“You should never feel guilty for anything.” There was now a mischievous glint in her eyes as a smirk fell on her face and his face soon mirrored hers. “Until next time.”

And with that, she pushed away from him to walk to her bedroom and he took that as a cue to let himself out, but with a promise of seeing her again.

~~~~~~

Neville’s POV

You booked the night train for a reason

So you could sit there in this hurt

Neville was hunched over on the curb; his tie loosened and just hanging around his neck as he unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt. He moved his hand to hover over his chest as he could swear he could feel his heart breaking. The pain seemed so physical and real, he thought maybe he was having a heart attack. He barely had enough time to process what had just happened when the Knight Bus pulled up in front of him. He didn’t even really hear the words the conductor said as he stepped on board. He moved towards the back and laid down on one of the beds as the Knight Bus took off. His mind was still in shock so he barely registered himself responding to the conductor’s question of where he was going. 

Luna’s POV

You had a speech, you're speechless

Love slipped beyond your reaches

And I couldn't give a reason

Luna had arrived back at her flat and just stood and stared at the empty front room. She had bought this back when she first left Hogwarts but she ended up spending so much time at Neville’s that she never really made it a home. It was just a place she stayed sometimes. She moved forward finally toward the room in the back as she thought back to earlier in the evening.

Luna looked around the room. She sighed. Neville had gotten their friends together for Christmas and the party seemed to be in full swing now. She had noticed a couple of whispers and points towards her but she didn’t try to figure out what for. She was used to it. Not much had changed since they had left Hogwarts. She had kept the soft, dreamy smile on her face for the first hour of the party as she greeted her friends; Ginny, Harry, Ron, Hermione, as well as others in their class that she wasn’t as close to. Now that it had been a few hours, she was feeling distant. A tap on her shoulder brought her out of her daze as she turned around.

            “What’re you doing out here, Luna?” Harry didn’t seem concerned, just curious. It caused a small to lift on to her face as she saw him.

            “Just listening to the stars. They sure are talkative tonight.” She looked back up towards the clear, but bright night sky as the moon was full and the stars seemed extra sparkly tonight before turning to look back at Harry. “But let’s go inside and see what our friends have to say.”

            Harry nodded and followed her in as she found her way towards Neville and Ginny. Neville’s smile stretched even farther along his face as he saw her before tapping his glass to get everyone’s attention. He put his hand against her back as everyone turned to look at them.

            “Welcome, everyone. Merry Christmas! It’s lovely that you all made time to come join Luna and I for an evening together. I know we’re all very busy but it means a lot to us. I hope you’ve enjoyed the party so far but I have something I would like to say, or rather do, with all of you here.” Luna didn’t remember Neville telling her about anything extra for the party as he turned towards her. “Luna, you have brought me so much joy these past couple of years and I don’t think I would’ve been able to get through the aftermath of the war without you.” Oh no. Please don’t, is all Luna could think in her head as he continued talking. “With all of our friends here to witness,” he slowly got down on one knee, “I’d like to ask for your hand in marriage and start a new chapter with you.”

            It seemed he had more to say and she glanced around at all the smiling faces, understanding now what the pointing and stares were about. So she stopped him. “Neville,” she started, trying to indicate that he should get up. His face dropped as his eyes narrowed in confusion but he did stand back up, “you’re mistaken. You don’t want this. You don’t want me.”

            Her voice had become a whisper and Neville’s matched her. “Is that what you think? Of course it is. You don’t have to worry about that.” Luna was looking at the ground. “Is this…not what you want?”

            “I’m sorry, but no.” 

Neville’s POV

You told your family for a reason

You couldn't keep it in

Neville’s eyes had fallen shut as he thought back to a month ago when he’d visited his parents in St. Mungo’s. He had been so excited to tell them all about how he truly felt like he had found the one. How he let them know it was Luna, the dreamy girl he had brought in for them to meet the Christmas before. How he was going to propose and how excited he was to share his life with someone the way they had shared theirs together. How he hoped that they were proud of who he was bringing in to be a part of the family as he thought they would be. He had talked to them for over two hours about how he had planned to do it and when he had started to leave, his mother had grabbed his hand, like she usually did, and gave him a chocolate wrapper, but he felt like she had been responding to something he had said and he had thought it was a sign.

Luna’s POV

No crowd of friends applauded

Your hometown skeptics called it 

Luna had began to change out of her beautiful dress as she thought back to how everyone went from being so happy to empty silence and how she never wanted it to be like that.

She had tried to show how bad she felt on her face, but she didn’t think it was working. She looked around the room once more, seeing everyone looking so uncomfortable, and no longer felt as if she should be at the party. She turned and gave Neville one last kiss on the cheek, whispering “I’m really sorry”, and then turning to walk out the door. As she left she heard one of the girls whisper not-so-quietly “That’s what happens when you get involved with Loony.”

I never was ready, so I watch you go

Sometimes you just don't know the answer

'Til someone's on their knees and asks you

Luna let tears fall as she curled up in her bed that night. She loved Neville with all her heart but she didn’t want to marry him. And she couldn’t figure out why. All she knew was she couldn’t say yes. Something had told her to say no and so she did. Neville didn’t deserve someone who couldn’t love him and be at the same place as he was. If he hadn’t tried to propose, she would’ve most likely still been in the relationship, oblivious to the fact that it wasn’t what she wanted, no matter how loved she was by Neville. No matter how much she cared for him.

A YEAR LATER

Neville’s POV

Your mom's ring in your pocket

Her picture in your wallet

Neville sighed as he was once again at the same place he was a year ago. He had gotten to know Hannah very well near the end of his relationship with Luna and after everything that happened last Christmas, Hannah really supported him and soon their friendship grew into a romance. He was very skeptical at first, but he knew this was different. Hannah was always present. When he went this time to see his parents and tell them about it, he left with his mom’s ring. He doesn’t know how he got it, to be honest, but he hesitantly told them all about Hannah, how she made him smile everyday, how she always was up for an adventure with him, how she never seemed distant. How he loved her but hadn’t said it yet. And after his time with them, he received another gum wrapper as usual from his mom, quickly shoving it in his pocket, telling his mom he loved her before leaving. It wasn’t until he got home that when he went back to the gum wrapper, he realized something was wrapped inside. And there was his mom’s ring.

    He took that as a sign and that night told Hannah he loved her. A few months later, he was ready to propose even though they hadn’t been together a full year. This time, though, he was taking Hannah to a dinner, just the two of them. Precautions, one could say, in case she also ends up saying no. He looked around as Hannah walked through the door. Her smile lit up the entire restaurant and he stood up to pull out her chair. Here we go he thought to himself.

Luna’s POV

You won't remember all my

Champagne problems

Christmas came and went the next year and Luna hadn’t seen her friends since the party. She had been painting a lot. Helping her dad find more information for creatures he wanted to share about in The Quibbler each edition. She had spent much time alone which she was okay with. She was learning about herself. It was approaching the new year and Luna was trying to decide what she would do for her next big adventure when she came across the most recent edition of The Daily Prophet. Usually she paid no mind to the paper, but a headline caught her eye.

LONGBOTTOM AND ABBOTT TO WED THIS SPRING

“Today we will be…” Professor Slughorn’s voice faded into the background as Lily heard a “psst” come from behind her. She rolled her eyes knowing exactly who it was. She decided to ignore it and try to focus back in on Slughorn’s instructions, but of course she couldn’t as the attempts to get her attention continued. She turned quickly in her seat and glared at the boy sitting behind her. James Potter and Sirius Black always knew how to get on her nerves. Although she had grown quite close to them ever since she stopped being friends with Severus, they still knew exactly how to get on her nerves.

“Will you two stop it! I’m trying to focus and you are not making it any easier.” She playfully glared at them before turning back towards the front. The muffled laughter that traveled to her ears put a smile on her face. It had been a rough few months for her due to the loss of a close friend but still having to see him around and she had found a lot of support from these boys. She knew that most of their support was probably because they weren’t exactly the biggest fans of said ex-friend but James, at least, had shown some personal growth over the summer and she started feeling as if he may not be as bad as she originally thought he was.

“C’mon Evans!” a not-so-whispered shout came from behind her. “This class is boring!”

“You know if you just give him a pat on the head, he’ll leave you alone, Lily” She glanced behind her just in time to see James smacking Sirius upside the head whilst Sirius kept from doubling over in laughter.

“You’d know all about that, wouldn’t you, Padfoot?” A smirk fell across James face as Sirius bumped James shoulder with his own. She narrowed her eyes as she saw them share some weird silent connection, but wasn’t sure why. She turned to the front just in time to see Professor Slughorn list the ingredients they needed for today’s potion. She got up and walked over to the cabinet to grab what she would need when she was stopped.

“Why don’t you be my partner today, Evans? You know I could use the help to boost my grade in here.” He softly moved her hair off her shoulder as he moved his eyes to look straight into hers.

Not one to turn away, she stared straight back at him as she responded. “What about Sirius, Potter? I thought you two were partners in crime for everything.”

“We are, but Remus is actually in class today and he’s already left me to go bother him instead.” He lifts his thumb up and jerks it over his shoulder to where Sirius and Remus seem to be locked in conversation. “So what do you say? Partners?”

Lily looked around the class once more, her eyes landing on the raven-haired boy watching her and James talk and something inside of her raged. She lifted her head slightly as she brought her attention back to the boy in front of her. “Partners it is. Don’t mess this up for me.”

James laughed as he followed her back to their workspace. “Your hair isn’t the only thing fiery about you. The more I get to know you, the better it gets.”

She glances over at him at the comment. His eyes focused on getting all the ingredients set up. “What do you mean?”

“Please. You don’t think I wouldn’t catch on?” He looks over at her with a laugh at the confusion. “I’m not as oblivious as you seem to think I am. I know part of you is only actually partnering with me to piss him off.” She knew he didn’t need to say his name to know they both knew who was being mentioned. “Don’t worry. I’m not offended. I’ll play along, but you’re going to owe me.”

“Oh really?”

“Really.” His smirk has turned into a goofy grin at this point and she can’t help but smile herself.

“And what am I going to owe you?” She starts cutting up and crushing the ingredients necessary to start pouring them into the cauldron as she waits for what he expects in return.

“How about a date?” She scoffs as this isn’t the first time he’s tried to get her to go on a date with him. “I’m serious.” She stops to look at him for a moment as he continues speaking. “If you say no, then I’ll figure something else out like maybe helping me with homework or something, but why not go on one date with me? I can show you that I’m not as immature as you think I am anymore.”

The goofy grin he had never left his face as he spoke and she truly took a moment to study him. One date can’t be that bad. And she can always say no. She shakes her head softly, letting out a quiet laugh before nodding her head. “Okay. One date.”

He stops with the potion to turn to her properly. “Wait, really? I seriously did not think that was going to work.” She laughed a bit louder at his response. “Don’t worry. You won’t regret this.”