Part Three: Affection

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author.

A/N – This story is non-HBP or DH compliant and can therefore be considered AU. For the purpose of this story, Bill is neither engaged to Fleur nor is he part werewolf. He might have been dating the blonde for a short time, but won't be getting a mention.

Many thanks and hugs to WriterMerrin for her beta skills and encouragement.

--

All of the preparations for the China expedition had already been made.

After all, Hermione was, if nothing else, organized and efficient. Her Portkey was booked to leave at six in the evening on Monday, which was still two days away. It was Saturday morning, and she was both excited to be finally heading to the dig site, while anxious because she would be leaving behind the man that she had come to admire quite a lot during her time working for Gringotts.

Her research there would probably keep her away for months at a time, so she would hardly ever be seeing any of her friends or family. Over the past month, she had become so used to seeing Harry, Ginny and the Weasleys all of the time that she was going to find it hard going back to seeing them sporadically. Her chest especially ached at the thought of not seeing Bill until Christmas. It was only the beginning of October, and the Christmas break seemed so far away.

Huffing out a breath, Hermione decided enough was enough for that day. She would not spend her last weekend in London moping around her house feeling sorry for herself. Grabbing a set of turquoise robes from her cupboard, she threw them on, fastening them with the silver clasp over her jeans and sweater, and Apparated from her house to the gates of Hogwarts. She hadn't been there since the Potter wedding, and even then, she hadn't really caught up with Minerva due to her busy schedule as Maid of Honor.

She trudged along the path, staring at the brown, red, yellow and orange leaves that were scattered all over the grounds. It was truly her favourite season, just for the colours of it alone. She arrived at the castle after ten minutes and walked through the main doors, closing them behind her to keep the wind from blowing leaves inside and making a mess for Filch, or a poor student with detention to clean.

'Hermione!' a familiar voice yelled from just ahead of her.

She looked up at the stairs and saw that Neville was standing right on the top step. He quickly made his way down them and enfolded her in a tight hug. If only one good thing had come from the end of the war against Voldemort, it was that Neville had lost most of his shyness, and his confidence in himself had grown a substantial amount. He was, after all, the one who had finally avenged his parents on the event of slaying Bellatrix Lestrange. Smiling, she patted his back, then took a small step away from him as their hug ended.

'It's so good to see you, Neville,' Hermione said honestly.

'It's good to see you again too,' he replied. 'If you haven't eaten, breakfast is still on in the Great Hall. I was just heading there, so if you join me, we can catch up for a while.'

'That actually sounds really nice, Nev,' she replied, beaming at him and allowing him to escort her on his arm into the Great Hall.

They walked along the outside edge of the hall past the Hufflepuff table, but even from there, Hermione could see all of her old professors smiling at her. It was almost like coming home again. The pair took a seat towards the middle, where the staff who were already there moved to accommodate them so that everyone could ask questions to their prized former student. Albus Dumbledore saluted her with his goblet of morning pumpkin juice and a twinkle of his eyes as most of the other staff fawned over her.

It was no wonder people were starting to feel like she was a favourite. Even half as much attention as she was receiving at Hogwarts would cause anyone pause. She thought just about the only one who hadn't given her much more notice than a nod of his head was Snape, who continued to partake of his morning meal. Minerva McGonagall had left her seat and practically assaulted her with a tight embrace.

'It's so good to see you, my dear,' she said excitedly. 'I know now isn't the ideal location to try and catch up better, so why don't you come by my office after breakfast?'

'Of course I will,' she replied before her old Head of House returned to her seat, and the rest of the staff continued to badger her with questions about her life.

After breakfast was over and the bewildered students started to clear out of the hall, Hermione hugged Neville goodbye and walked with Minerva back up to the fourth floor. Once safely ensconced in one of the two comfy armchairs by the fire, Hermione closed her eyes for a moment and relaxed. It had been a long time since she had been interrogated like that, and it left her feeling overwhelmed.

'Those other ninnys don't know when to stop asking questions,' the Deputy Headmistress said as she placed an order for a tea tray with the kitchens, and a moment later, it appeared on the coffee table in front of the two armchairs.

'It was a little overwhelming,' she admitted. 'It seems that overwhelming is becoming a part of my routine these days though.'

'Oh? How do you mean?' Minerva asked as she began to prepare a cup of tea for herself.

'Ah, well things at Gringotts have been very... well to be honest, the other staff in my office have been a little hostile towards me since I returned for Harry and Ginny's wedding,' Hermione replied with a heavy sigh, leaning forwards to get her own cup of tea.

'Oh my,' Minerva exclaimed. 'What could be the reason?'

'Oh, I know the reason. I had a bit of a confrontation with Marietta Edgecombe the other day, actually. She let me know exactly what she and the other staff thought was going on,' the younger witch answered. 'Apparently everyone there feels that I didn't earn my place through honest means, and that I was somehow using my friendship status with both the Weasleys and Harry to my advantage. And on top of that, she accused me of being overly friendly with the boss.'

'You with William? Well, I suppose I could see something promising there, but I'm certain with the way Gringotts politics works that any relationship could not possibly have an effect on your position.'

Hermione smiled. 'That is what Bill said, actually, when I tried to discourage him from talking to me while we were at work,' she said. 'Things are a little complicated with him, at the moment.'

'And are those complications to do with your purported relationship with him?' Minerva inquired, taking a sip of her tea.

'I tried so hard to fight it, but it seems Bill was a lot more interested in pursuing me than I originally thought possible. And just as I was getting used to his persistence, he has decided to back off,' she replied, sipping her own tea.

'I see. Yes, you seem to be confused about this, and I understand why you would be. I've known William since he was just a boy, and he was always such a charming, lovely young thing. He hasn't changed a bit. Sometimes he lets his feelings get the better of him, and I suppose you were the recipient of his persistence,' the older woman mused. 'The last time he had strong feelings for a witch, it was just the same as this – he pursued her at first, but when he came to feel something more than simple attraction, he stopped badgering the girl, and as a result, she slipped through his fingers.'

'I think I am falling for him, Minerva,' Hermione said quietly. 'And I am just about to leave for China. I have the worst possible timing. I won't even get a chance to properly reassure him that I want his attention.'

'Just because you are going away, doesn't mean you can't tell him that you have feelings for him,' Minerva said wisely.

Hermione smiled sadly at her. But it did mean that she couldn't say anything to him. It wasn't fair to Bill if she were to confess her feelings to him, only to leave him straight away to go overseas. It wasn't fair to her either. After finishing her tea, she bid Minerva goodbye and left the castle. Stopping by Hagrid's on the way back to the gates, she visited with the man for a brief time before heading home. On arriving back at her house, she curled up on the chaise in her study with a throw rug and a book.

She would spend her second-last evening in London enjoying one of her favourite pastimes.

--

Monday morning arrived much too soon.

Hermione had woken that morning slowly, stretching herself out and looking to her nightstand to see that it was only eight o'clock. She had so much getting to sleep the night before that she had been forced to take a Dreamless Sleep Potion. All of the belongings that she was taking with her had been packed into trunks and already sent straight to the place where she'd be staying the day before. All that was left was for her to dress and go about her day before her Portkey that evening.

After she had gotten out of bed, showered, and dressed, Hermione pottered about her house. She had some toast and tea for breakfast. Later she went out to her small back garden to check that her garden shed and makeshift potions laboratory were secured with anti-theft and locking charms. Finally, when there was nothing left to do at her house, she grabbed her travelling robes and secured her property before Apparating to Godric's Hollow.

She walked from the park across the road over to Harry and Ginny's house and up their front path, which was lined on both sides with the petunias that the younger woman had planted. Pressing the door bell, she stepped back to wait. A moment later, a female voice yelled from somewhere in the house, and the door flung open to reveal the redhead in the doorway.

'Hermione! Oh, I thought I wouldn't get to see you before you left,' Ginny exclaimed, throwing her arms around her and hugging her tightly.

'Well, here I am. I'll be leaving for the Ministry straight from here when I've got twenty minutes until my Portkey leaves,' Hermione answered. 'I hope you don't mind a visit while I wait.'

'Not at all! I look forward to your visits,' the younger witch replied. 'I am going to miss you while you're away. And I'm not the only one. Harry, Mum, Dad, Ron and especially Bill will be sad to see you go too.'

Hermione laughed softly. 'I will miss you all so much; it's just that, this is really important to me. And a few months is hardly a long time. You'll see – I will be back before you know it,' she said, trying to convince Ginny while convincing herself of the same.

'I hope so,' Ginny replied. 'You know, now that I've had a few years to establish my career, work and do some things for myself, Harry and I have decided that we're ready to settle down and begin making a family together.'

Hermione followed Ginny through the door and into the sitting room where they sat down on the lounger together.

'So, you and Harry are thinking about children already?'

'Yes, well I know we've only been married for a few weeks, but we've been a couple ever since Hogwarts. We've had plenty of time together with just the two if us,' the younger woman explained. 'But Harry never got the chance to have a real family of his own before, and I want to give him that while we're young enough to enjoy it. After all, when our kids have grown up and moved on, we'll have time to be a couple again.'

'That's very thoughtful of you to do that for him,' Hermione said with a smile. 'I know he's always wanted a family of his own to love.'

'Yes, and that's exactly why I decided to go off my contraceptives this week. I don't want to waste any time – it will take a few weeks for the long-term effects of it to wear off and we'll be able to conceive.'

'I'm happy for you.'

Ginny smiled at her and reached over to grasp her hands. 'So tell me, how are things going between you and my brother? I assume, as I haven't heard anything from my mother about it, that you two haven't come to an agreement of any sort yet,' she said.

Hermione winced. She had hoped that this wouldn't come up, especially as she was leaving in just a few hours. 'It's still as complicated as it ever was,' she answered. 'He started off all cocky and like he was really interested, but the last time we spoke, he apologized for practically forcing himself on me and walked away.'

'He was here on the weekend, you know,' Ginny said. 'He's crazy about you – I could tell. I heard him talking to Harry when they thought I was cleaning up in the kitchen.'

'Ginny, you know I might even be in love with him a little bit, but at the moment, because of this China expedition, I just can't do anything about it,' Hermione said quietly, looking down at their joined hands. 'If there is still something there later, we might get a chance to do something about it.'

A little while later, they had some lunch, and Harry arrived home from work shortly before she was due to leave for the Ministry. Hermione was sad to leave her friends, but at twenty to six, she Apparated from the park across from their home, straight to the main foyer of the Ministry before making her way to the Portkey Office. Along the way, she bumped into her former adversary, Luna's husband, and Harry's partner in the Aurors' division, Draco Malfoy. They paused for a moment to exchange greetings as he was on his way out. Continuing onwards, she thought about her trip. Christmas was not so long away, and she had been away from her friends and family for longer than three months before. Why did she feel so morose? This trip was something she had spent planning and anticipating for months in advance, even while she was still on her last overseas trip.

When she reached the office, she went inside and was told to take a seat by the woman sitting at the front desk.

'It won't be long,' she informed Hermione. 'They'll just finish up with the current Portkey and walk you through the safety procedures before you can go.'

Hermione nodded and sat to the side with the numerous others that were waiting for their Portkeys that night. A few minutes later, she heard her name called out, and she got up to follow the receptionist through to the Portal Room. She was just passing by the door when she heard her name being called out again from behind her. Spinning around, hair whipping the side of her face with the suddenness of her movement, she saw Bill standing in the doorway, panting and looking a little disheveled.

'Bill?' she asked, slightly confused.

He walked over to her and grasped one of her hands in his. 'I came to see you off,' he said, still slightly out of breath. He must have run to catch her.

'Thank you, I suppose,' she said. 'My Portkey is now.'

'I know,' he murmured.

He pulled her slightly closer to him and dropped her hands to cup her face between his palms. Leaning into her, he pressed his lips to hers, kissing her with such tenderness that she swore she could feel her heart breaking. After a few moments, he broke the kiss, brushing the pad of his thumb across her cheekbone lightly.

'I'll see you at Christmas then,' he told her with a small, but dazzling, smile.

'See you then,' she agreed, lifting up her hand to a lock of hair that had escaped the elastic tying the rest back. She tucked it behind his ear and leaned up to kiss his cheek.

Without another word, she turned around and continued to follow the receptionist into the next room.

--

Hermione looked out at the ruins before her.

Amazing was the only word that she could think of that described her view. Looking down below the treetops, she saw the dig and all of the witches and wizards that were busily and carefully digging up the ruins. She had been there one week already, and it continued to amaze her how similar Muggle Archaeology and the Wizarding technique was. Very little magic could be used there because of the delicacy of all the old buildings and the occasional treasures that they found along the way.

One of her favourite things about being in the country so far was wearing the translation amulet, but also having the opportunity to learn Mandarin. She could speak German, French, Latin and Spanish fluently, but until then, she'd never thought to learn an Eastern Language before. She was sharing a flat with another lady from Crete in the town nearest, which was still three Apparation points away, which was near a local school that taught Chinese to foreigners.

At night, when most of the others would go to the town hall and have social drinks and get to know one another, Hermione had signed up for the night class at the school and intended to spend most nights learning. She smiled. It was so typical of her to want to spend her time hitting the books instead of getting to know her fellow researchers better.

A few times already since she had been there, some of the male researchers and Archaeologists had tried to flirt with her. They had been dashing and full of charm and flattering compliments, but she had been too distracted by thoughts of home to pay them any mind. Her parting kiss with Bill was still fresh and at the forefront of her mind whenever she was not distracted with her work. She knew that at some point over the last few months, she must have fallen in love with him.

Sighing heavily, she walked down the path towards the marquee that had been set up for the researchers. Her desk was set up the closest to the dig, and because she had used it so little in the week that she'd been there, it was covered in a thin layer of dust. She had left her books and papers under the tent and gone down to the dig, getting quite filthy every day, sifting through sand and dirt and dust.

'Good morning, Master Granger!' a young man greeted from further along the path.

'Good morning, Mr. Gardener,' she responded in kind.

'Are you going to be coming down to the dig again today, or will you be up at the tent with the other researchers?' he asked.

Hermione smiled. Adam Gardener was a very young, enthusiastic man from London who was studying Ancient Runes at the Wizarding College. She too had studied an accelerated Arithmancy and Ancient Runes double degree there for two years and afterwards had been an Apprentice with Professor Vector for a year. While a lot of the other researchers preferred to stay up the hill under the marquee, studying the finds, Hermione preferred a more hands-on approach. She wanted to be there when they discovered the Ancient texts that she had heard about and been waiting to be found for as long as she could remember.

'I'll see you down there then!' Adam called out as he rushed off ahead.

Hermione nodded and waved him on, heading over to the tent to drop off her things at her desk before putting on a wide-brimmed hat and continuing down the path. She arrived at a nice spot near a window that they were slowly brushing hardened red clay out of. Picking up a small chisel and hammer, she picked up where she'd left from the day before, delicately chipping away at the red dirt, using a brush to get it out of the way whenever it built up too much.

She wore enough of the red clay away that she was soon able to see ancient granite along the sill, carved beautifully with snakes and vines. She didn't bother breaking for lunch in the middle of the day with the others as she was too focused on getting the window totally un-sealed by the end of the day. By the time that the sun was setting at around five o'clock, she had made her way through, and looking through the small opening, could just barely make out some large shapes in the pitch black room.

'Master Granger, it's time for us to leave for the day,' one of the other Archaeologists called from the top of the hill.

She looked around to see that she was the only one remaining at the dig. Packing up her tools, she walked back up to the marquee, collected her briefcase and began the trek back up to the top of the hill. The mystery of what lay in the room beyond the window would have to wait until daybreak.

--

To be continued.