Chapter One

It was a foggy, chilly evening during winter. She watched briefly through the window as the soft snow fell gently on the ground. The window was slowly getting frosted all over. She loved snow, even if it was cold and unpleasant to a few people. Somehow, it brought her joy.

The love of books also never changed in Hermione's life. She was, as always, really passionate about her beloved books.

In a quick wave, the brunette swished her wand and the thick, brown leathery book hovered over and was gently put back in place in the shelf. Perfect. She then muttered the warming charm a couple more times, trying to reduce the cold air.

Hermione sighed, turning around to view the entire library. The scent of the books and freshly bought parchments filled her, causing her lips to curve into a small smile. She had just finished reading 'Hogwarts: A History' again for the umpteenth time. She just couldn't get enough of the book. She was standing in the library named 'The Blibbering Library' which Luna Lovegood started a few months ago. Hermione loved coming over to the library, even if the name didn't seem to make much sense to her. She would read different books and help Luna whenever she got time.

It had been two years since her best friend, Harry Potter, had defeated the Dark Lord for once and for all on the grounds of Hogwarts. The Battle of Hogwarts was the most devastating battle of the war, taking countless lives. Both innocents and Death Eaters. So many people lost their loved ones, including her. Fred, Tonks, Remus and her own parents.

It wasn't easy to just get over the deaths, it never was. It took a good amount of time to move on with everyone's lives. Even so, nothing felt the same as before.

After the battle, Hermione had gone back to Hogwarts to continue her studies further, obviously. However, Harry along with Ron decided to accept the offer from Kingsley and started their Auror training. She missed the two boys dearly during her time in Hogwarts — but the three of them wrote letters to each other very often. She studied diligently and passed with flying colours in her NEWTs. After completing her studies, she gladly accepted the offer to work in the Department of Magical Law and Enforcement. Finally, for once, she could pay full attention to her work without having to worry about Voldemort chasing them.

Hermione checked her watch and saw that it was already 6:03 pm. She put her important parchments and a few books she had borrowed back in her bag. She hastily put up her mess of curls in a bun, pushing back the loose strands of hair behind her ear. She was just about to go looking for Luna to tell her she was leaving, just when she appeared in front of her.

"Oh, Luna, good to find you right here. I really should-"

"Hi, Hermione." She greeted with an angelic smile. "I see you have reorganised the books. I'm really happy to have your support, thank you." She said, randomly staring into the distance, the smile not fading.

Hermione smiled in return. She noticed that Luna was holding a magazine, the Quibbler, of course. As always, she was reading it upside down — Merlin knows how she does it. The blonde witch also had a strange necklace around her neck, which was made up of bottle caps. Whatever she was like, she was an amazing friend for sure.

"I was hoping you could look after the library for an hour more, Hermione. Neville's having a bit of trouble. I reckon it's the Wrackspurts' doing." She said, looking a bit lost.

Hermione knew that she couldn't say no, so she agreed anyway. "Yes, of course." She said, smiling weakly. Luna thanked her once again and then walked out the library merrily, disapparating shortly.

Hermione plopped down on a nearby seat. She had wanted to leave early that time but a hour more wouldn't do any harm. No one would most probably come to the library during the last hour before the library closes. So she grabbed a book from a shelf and started reading once again.

It had been almost half an hour since she had started reading. No one came anymore, just as she expected. Just then, she heard the door to the library open with a creak. She shut her book and put it back into the shelf, her eyes fixed on the strange man had just entered the library. She watched curiously as he stood there for about one minute. He was wearing a black cloak, black suit underneath and a black hood covering his entire face. There was something suspicious about the person.

"Uh, may I help you with something, sir?" She offered but received no response in return.

He just continued strolling by the bookshelves. Hermione was tempted to bring out her wand but decided not to for the moment. She stood up from her seat and followed him.

"Which book are you looking for, sir?" She asked straight away. Again, no response.

She continued staring at him with a frown when suddenly, he turned to face her. She didn't realise that the two of them had gotten awfully close by mistake — she could almost get a whiff of peppermint and apples. She swore that she smelled that somewhere before. Her eyes widened at that and she backed away to maintain an appropriate distance between the two.

"Well?"

"I will find it out by myself." He spoke evenly.

Hermione stayed silent, just studying his swift movements here to there until he finally found a book of his preference. He kept flipping the pages as if he was looking for a specific chapter. After a few minutes, she saw him leave the library without another word.

That didn't well quite well, she thought. Something obviously seemed strange about the person, even though she almost felt like she had met him somewhere before.

Pushing back those thoughts to the back of her mind, Hermione bid Luna goodbye when she returned and left the library as well.