A Change Of Scenery

A/N: Thanks to all my fabulous followers! I'm glad you've been leaving me little love notes here and there. Just the epilogue left! xx

Disclaimer: JKR owns Harry Potter, not me. I'm making no money from this story.

Chapter 9

Hermione silently packed her things. She was careful not to wake the sleeping man in her bed. Pausing, she glanced at him. Viktor snored in his sleep, which she found to be adorable.

Last night had been one of the greatest nights her life. The two of them had made slow, sensual love three times before falling into a comfortable sleep.

But it was time for her to go.

It was with a heavy heart that she made the decision to leave without saying goodbye. She didn't want to say goodbye because that made it all sound so… permanent.

So she left a note on her pillow for when Viktor would wake up.

After finishing packing her things, Hermione gently placed a kiss to his forehead. "Thank you, Viktor, for everything."

Biting her lip to keep herself from sobbing, she held tightly to the book waiting for it to activate. The book glowed before swiftly taking her away.

Two days had passed since she had left Viktor. She hadn't heard from him, which didn't surprise her. She had broken his heart in the process, just as she had broken her own.

"Hermione?"

Looking up from her paperwork, she saw Harry and Ron in the doorway. They both smiled at her.

She tried to smile but failed. Without warning, she burst into tears. Throwing her arms around Harry, she shook as he held her.

"Mione, what's wrong?" Ron asked, rubbing her back gently.

"I miss him," she sobbed. "I miss him so much!"

Harry grimaced. "Hermione, why don't you sit down and tell us what happened."

Nodding, the three of them took a seat. Hermione explained how she had fallen in love with Viktor, despite only being there for a short amount of time. She was afraid things would be awkward with Ron, but he was more than happy for her. It seemed that after word of their breakup had gotten around, Susan Bones had immediately owled Ron for a date. Susan had apparently been pining after Ron for quite some time.

"Why don't you write Krum then, if you miss him so badly?" Ron asked, looking confused. "There's no reason your relationship should end because you came home."

"But a relationship like this would never work!" Hermione protested.

Harry abruptly stood. "I'll be back," he said, swiftly leaving the office.

"Hermione, I can tell you're miserable," Ron said bluntly. "And I don't like it. We broke up so you could find passion with someone… and you did! So why are you letting it go?"

"Because it just wouldn't work," she replied sadly. "I thought if I left like I did, things would be easier…"

"But you're wrong," Ron insisted. "You should owl Krum. I'm sure he's hurt that you left without an answer."

"Excuse me, Hermione, would you mind coming to speak with me in my office for a moment?" Kingsley Shacklebolt asked from the office door.

"Kingsley, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked, standing quickly.

"A little birdie told me that you were looking to transfer to the Bulgarian Ministry… I thought we could go to our office and talk about it," he said with a knowing smile.

Behind him was Harry, who was grinning wildly.

"All right," Hermione said, nodding. Kingsley nodded, turning to walk down the hall.

"Harry, you didn't have to do that," Hermione chastised him.

Harry shrugged. "I knew you'd be too afraid to do it yourself."

"You deserve to be happy, Hermione," Ron said with a grin. "Just don't forget about us over here!"

She hugged Ron tightly. "Thank you, Ron." She gave him a brief kiss on the cheek.

Turning to Harry, she hugged him as well. "Thanks, Harry."

"Now go on, go after what really makes you happy," he said with a smile.

Smiling at her two best friends, Hermione made her way to the Minister's office.