QUESTIONS OF THE PAST
Hermione walked down the sidewalk of Diagon Alley and stopped for a minute to look at the new brooms on display at the store window. Harry would love the new brooms, she was sure of it! Too bad she couldn't just call to tell him about it. They hadn't spoken in a year. She sighed deeply and her eyes filled with unexpected tears. She put her hand against the cool glass as a tear rolled silently down her cheek.
Today was the anniversary of her break-up with Ron. Ever since that day, she had not really seen any of their friends. They all blamed her for Ron's suffering. They only had his side of the story and she had never bothered to correct them, even if that meant losing everyone that was important to her. Especially Harry. If they did not know her by now, what was the point of setting them straight?
She was still so angry with Ron. She had missed an entire year of her friend's lives. They had moved on like nothing had happened and she had moved on alone. Being one of the top and most sought after healers at St. Mungos kept her pretty busy. The rest of the time she spent on the book she was writing or visiting her parents. The only person that had stayed in contact with her was Neville, and no one knew about that. Neville had gotten so good at Herbology that he had eventually opened his own store and was very successful. He helped Hermione on the side finding rare plants for her potions. He was also dating Ginny, and if she found out about their work relationship, there would be hell to pay.
The only other person she saw on a regular basis was professor McGonagall. Since she had helped Hermione so much through out the years, they had formed a friendship based on mutual respect and trust. She was the only person that knew what had happened, since Hermione had shown up at Hogwarts after the break-up. Minerva McGonagall had been the headmistress at the school since the passing of Professor Dumbledore. Hermione had spent the night in her private quarters and, over cups of tea spiked with fire whiskey, she had told her former teacher and mentor what had happened. She had stayed with Minerva for several weeks until she had found a flat close to St. Mungos and had moved out on her own for the first time in her life.
And so Hermione moved on, day after day, and tried not to think about how lonely she was. If she was honest with herself, she would admit that she missed Harry the most. Ron had been away a lot due to his quiddish games, and Harry had kept her company during that time. They had all shared a flat until the breakup.
Harry was now one of the most decorated Aurors of all time. After the war, there had been a time when she feared he would not recover completely. He had been badly hurt and had been in St. Mungos for over six months recovering from his many injuries. Her injuries had been vast, as well as Ron's, but they had been out much sooner. Harry's injuries had mostly come from Voldemort and his recovery had been hampered by a magic so dark, there had been no potions available at the time to contra rest them.
And so her quest to become a healer had begun. She was not called the smartest witch of her time for nothing. She had stayed by Harry's side the entire time. She had watched in vain as the healers tried potion after potion to cure him and nothing much changed. It was then that she'd decided to become more involved and started making potions herself, giving them to Harry when no one was around. Neville helped a great deal, and little by little Harry started to improve to the surprise of his team of healers.
Professor McGonagall had found out that Hermione had been the one behind Harry's improvement and had smoothened the path for Hermione to begin her studies to become a healer. She had helped Neville continue his Herbology studies as well.
What hurt the most was that Harry had chosen to believe Ron's side of the story about the break-up and had turned his back on her. She took a handkerchief out of her bag and dabbed at the corner of her eyes. She took a deep breath and walked away from the window and the memories of the past. It would do her no good to keep remembering things that still hurt her so deeply. Maybe it was time she took a vacation and went away for a few days.
Across the street, Harry stood behind a tree and watched Hermione walk away. His heart had skipped a beat when he had seen her, as it always did. She had seemed so sad, and by the look of things, she had been crying while she looked at the brooms on display. Hermione hated flying as Harry well knew, which only meant that she had been thinking about Ron and himself and that was probably the cause of her tears.
He couldn't believe that it had already been a year since he had last spoken to her. And as far as he knew, she hadn't kept in touch with any of their friends since the breakup. Ron got sourly and touchy when she was mentioned. Ginny bristled. Luna, who was now dating Ron, didn't say much. And Neville didn't even mention her, since he knew it would irritate Ginny. As for himself, he had no idea why he had let so much time go by without trying to find her to make things right.
They had all been through so much together since they had met some twelve years ago that now it seemed silly to him that so much time had passed and no one had been able to reach out to her. Everyone had taken Ron's side and she had stepped back and had not defended herself once. She had said her dignity was above all. So they only had Ron's side of the story, and if Harry was totally honest with himself, it didn't make much sense.
All they knew about the breakup was that Hermione had gone to surprise Ron while he was playing a game against the Bulgarian team. She had come back with her eyes swollen from crying and a sadness that everyone had been able to see. She didn't come out of her room for two days and Harry had heard her crying on several occasions. It had broken his heart just to hear her, especially at night when she thought no one would hear her. But the locking charms she had put on her door had been unbreakable and they had all tried in vain to get her to open the door. Then Harry had come home to see she had packed her bags and was going to move out. He tried to question her then, but she had moved out without a word of explanation to anyone.
Since Viktor Krum was still playing for the Bulgarian team, they had all assumed something had happened between Hermione and Viktor and Ron had found out. They had questioned Ron about it when he had come back a few days later and learned that she had left. He had acted strange, but went along with the story. He had never given any details and no one had asked. Since Hermione had moved out, they had all assumed Ron was telling the truth.
It was not the first time they had broken up, but Ron always managed to convince her to take him back. However, this time had been different, Hermione had never moved out before. Their relationship hadn't lasted more than two years and most of that time they had spent fighting over everything or Ron had been away. Everyone had been surprised that they had lasted so long. Harry had never understood how they could be together and fight so much. When Ron was away playing, there was no fighting in the house. They could sit in the living room or the library for hours just talking, reading and helping each other out with their work cases. But the minute Ron walked in the door, it turned into total chaos. Those times, Harry would go into his room or out, since he got tired of hearing them bicker.
"Why don't you go after her?" a familiar voice said behind him. He turned around startled by the voice since he hadn't heard her approaching.
"Professor McGonagall," he said. "What a surprise to see you here."
"I needed some things from Diagon Alley and took a break from the school. Once in a while I like to step out to clear my thoughts." She looked down the street and noticed that Hermione was getting farther away from them. She looked at Harry again. "Why not go after her?"
"Who are you talking about, professor?" he asked trying to play innocent.
"You know good and well who, Harry. I cannot believe that a friendship that endured so much and came out strong at the end of that horrible war can now be broken apart by something no one is even sure of."
Harry looked at her curiously. "What do you mean by that?"
"Have you ever bothered to ask Hermione her side of the story?"
"I tried, but she wouldn't say a word, professor. She just left and we all assumed that Ron was telling the truth," he finished and lowered his eyes from her penetrating ones. Even as he said it, it sounded lame.
She shook her head sadly. "You all just assumed she was the one at fault because she left? No one ever wondered why she was so different and distraught when she came back? If something really happened between her and Viktor, how come you've never seem them together since that time?" she asked fiercely. "Potter, you surprise me. After so many years of friendship, after enduring so much pain and horror, you're willing to let things go without knowing the full truth."
Harry looked down the street and noticed Hermione was now seated at a café having a cup of tea. He was wondering, and not for the first time, if there was more to the story after all. He knew how close Hermione and the professor had been for years. From what she was saying now, she knew more about the breakup than anyone else. "Do you know something we don't?" he asked her.
"It's not my place to say." When she noticed the frown on his face she decided to continue. "But I will say this, Potter; no one should be blamed without being given a chance to defend themselves first. She was as loyal a friend as you'll ever find. Even when she didn't agree with your ideas, she went along with you. Not once did she turn her back on you. Why don't you think about that for a change?" she said briskly. She was glad to see the shocked look on his face. Good, she thought, maybe I'm getting through his thick skull after all.
He had the decency of looking embarrassed. "You're right professor. I think I've made one of the worst mistakes of my life," he finished sadly.
"I would have to agree with you there. But the best thing about some mistakes is that you get to correct them. Good day to you, Mr. Potter," she said and walked away. He didn't see the smile that illuminated her face.
Harry stayed where he was for a minute longer and thought about what professor McGonagall had said. There was something he didn't know and he was about to find out. He started walking down the street heading in Hermione's direction. She would not be able to spot him, since her back was to him. It was time to confront the past once and for all. He had missed her dearly over the past year and was not willing to let more time go by without at least trying to hear her side of the story.
As he approached, Harry felt his nerves falter. He took a deep breath as he stood by her. She still hadn't noticed him.
"Hello, Mione," he said softly.
She was so startled to hear his voice that she choked on the sip of tea she had just taken. She put the cup down and started coughing madly. Harry immediately patted her on the back until she stopped. Then he just stood there looking at her.
"Harry," she said, her voice a little rough by all of her coughing.
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