Finding Home

Chapter 5

So this is what she meant when she said I had such a reason to live. This changes everything. I no longer feel desolate. Now I feel like myself, a fighter. I have to be quick, I have to leave. I have to do it now.

After penning a short note to Ginny and Harry, I used a disillusionment spell to make my way to the nearest floo. They’ll arrive shortly to let me know they’ve kept an eye on Crookshanks and for me to not worry about anything right now. My friends would clamor around me and be nothing short of supportive but he is here. Draco. And I can’t think of him without hurting and I’m not allowed to hurt like that anymore. After sixteen years of living in my magical universe the time had come for me to go back to the muggle world.

I’ve always loved Gringotts. Its breathtaking, pristine. Walking through the lobby feels like being alone in a museum. You just know that all the intricate details serve a purpose and were put in their place by design. Even the goblins that run the bank are beautiful in their own unique and snarky way. They were more than grateful to help me clean out my account. After the incident with the dragon escaping through the glass ceiling they were more than a little guarded whenever I had to stop by, which I did as minimally as possible.

“Good, luck with all your future endeavors Miss Hermione Granger.” Good luck indeed. And with the departing words of the relieved goblin, I flooed home.

My old home. The home I loved my mother and father in. The one I spent Christmases and summers in. It still smelled like her perfume and his cigars. Though they were gone. First to Australia, then Amsterdam. Somewhere along the way I lost them. But they never gave up this house. I could hide out here for the time being. Maybe America would be a good place to go. It would be easy to forge some documents. Easy enough to get a job. That’s what I’ll do. Tomorrow I will research and I will find my new place, but tonight I will rest and drink chocolate milk and contemplate how drastically my life has changed in twenty-four hours.

                                                ~Ginny’s POV~

“What do you mean she’s gone!? Her vanishing from a hospital is not an option Harry James Potter!” I am never letting these people make decisions for us as a group again. I swear, Ron is an idiot, Harry is just so blindingly hopeful and Lavender is totally spineless. “Ginny she’ll be fine.” “Ginny we all need to go home and rest” “Hermione is in St. Mungo’s, what could happen?” Had they not met her? Do they not understand who Hermione Jean Granger is? Did they not think someone should be there when the healer told her she was pregnant?

Harry&Ginny

Don’t worry, I’m fine. I truly am. But I don’t want to be found. I’m doing this because this is what is best for me and the baby. I need to be able to start over and be in the best emotional state I can be for this child. This isn’t just about myself and Draco. As much as we may love our lives, I just need to not be reminded of the war and the past for a little while. I promise to keep in touch.

I love you all so much.

Hermione

I couldn’t help the tears falling as I read my best friends letter. It felt like the room temperature just dropped ten degrees and I suddenly had an ashy taste in my mouth.

“See, she’s fine.” Harry spoke to me softly, out of fear at another outburst.

Sitting in Hermione’s living room, we just couldn’t believe it. She just disappeared. Not that any of us really blamed her. As we passed her letter around the four of us, we just knew that we would miss her. We didn’t really know what else to do in the moment, besides sit in her apartment, curse Malfoy and hope we got the chance to be in her life again.

-POP-

“Oi! What are you doing here?” Ron yelled as he stood to unceremoniously greet Draco.

Thinking about it, maybe I should have given a better response considering he just popped into her living room with the four of us crying and sitting around looking morose but when he asked “What happened?” The only thing I could get out was “She’s gone.”

I had never seen a man react in such a way. Watching his six foot frame crumble while he broke down and sobbed was more than I could take. And then I realized, he must have heard from Pansy.