Chapter 3

She couldn't sleep a wink. She tossed and turned in bed as her mind raced a mile a minute. Her alarm clock rang at precisely six and Hermione pried herself off of the mattress.

It was only when she was sitting in bed did she realize that she was still wearing Harry's green jumper.

He apparated them to her flat following her realization in the forest. He sent them straight into her living room since he was one of the few people who could pop past the very strong wards of her front door. He sat her down on the couch he helped her pick when she first moved in, summoned a glass of water from the kitchen, and softly, but firmly, asked her what she remembered.


A few hours ago.

"Hermione," Harry said softly, his voice but a whisper as he laid his palm on top of her knee. "Hermione, what did you remember? Why were we transported to the forest? Why… why do you have my mum's wedding ring?"

Hermione gnawed on her bottom lip, her eyes darting across her living room floor as she avoided looking at him.

It was her stupid idea to make that stupid promise.

She wanted to make him smile after so many awful days in the forest looking for the horcruxes.

She only did it to make him laugh!

She didn't know it was going to… to… do this!

"Hermione," Harry coaxed again. He gently grabbed her chin with his fingers and tilted her head so that she was looking at him. He saw all of the hesitation in her eyes and his brows furrowed in concern. "You can tell me anything, you know," he said with a small smile. "I promise I won't get mad."

She grimaced at his words.

"It was the promise," she said softly.

"Mmhm?" he asked, not quite understanding what she was telling him.

She gulped and looked straight into his eyes.

"You and I… we made a promise. Exactly ten years ago. In the forest," she said, her voice dropping after each word.

She saw the wrinkle between his brows deepen. His eyes turned misty as he tried to grasp the memory.

"We promised each other that… in ten years' time, if both of us aren't in a relationship, then we'll… we'll get married. To each other."

Her words were so soft that he almost didn't hear them.

But he did, and they opened up a floodgate of colourful images from when they were so young.

The wool blanket. The tree trunk to their back. The tent in the distance.

Her warmth. Her scent. Her softness. Always by his side.

Her teasing words which coaxed him to smile.

Her laughter.

Their intertwined fingers as they made a promise to each other with the moon and the stars as their only witness.

Harry's lips parted in a silent gasp as he remembered what happened. His green eyes were wide as saucers and he watched as she bit her lip and shook her head furiously.

"I'm so sorry, Harry," she continued, her words rambling. Her fingers were fighting each other on her lap. "We must have made some sort of magical vow that night… but I didn't know it was going to be like that!"

He swallowed heavily and ran a shaky hand through his curls. "But you're with Lukas… how could this still happen?"

Hermione's eyes turned downcast. "I'm not anymore," she said, her voice pained.

Harry's gaze softened. He gently took hold of one of her hands and squeezed. "I'm sorry," he said. "Do I need to beat him up?"

He surprised a laugh from her and her head lifted from looking at her lap. His fingers tightened around her palm and she smiled a watery smile. Harry could see the sadness behind those usually bright eyes and he felt his throat tighten. Damn that Lukas. He knew there was something he didn't like about him. He tolerated the bloke because Hermione seemed to like him a lot, but Harry knew in his gut that it was wrong.

Lukas didn't deserve her. No one did.

"No, thank you. I took care of it," she replied.

Harry nodded as his thumb stroked soothing patterns on the inside of her palm. "So… what are we going to do now?"

Hermione gnawed on her bottom lip again, her eyes trained on one spot behind his left ear as she thought. After a minute of silence, her eyes cleared and shifted in the darkness to meet Harry's.

"I… I think I need to do some research," she said. "In the Archives, back at the Ministry. There must be a documented case of this. Only once we know what truly happened can we determine how to fix it."

Harry nodded his head. "Okay. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help."

His genuine offer brought a genuine smile to her face. "Oh Harry," Hermione sighed. "Leave this to me. You're busy enough as it is with Quidditch-"

"You're more important than Quidditch," he interjected seriously.

Her heart gave its usual inexplicable flutter at his words. "Leave this to me," she said again, firmer this time. "I may need to tell the girls so they can help with research… but… I think we shouldn't tell anyone else until we figure out what's really going on."

"Alright," Harry agreed.


He gave her a hug. He kissed her forehead. He left her flat around two in the morning and she tried to sleep a wink - honestly, she did - but she was restless. She was developing a strategy on how to break this magical vow (since Hermione was certain it was a magical vow; there was nothing else that could explain the teleportation and the ring and Harry's involvement) while trying to keep the worry from overwhelming her system.

What if she couldn't find anything?

Or, if she did find something, what if the vow turned out to be an unbreakable vow?

Magic was a fickle thing and there were still so many unanswered questions. It was what kept her employed, after all, but the unknown which usually filled her with wonder was now filling her with so much dread.

What would Harry think if she failed?

It was her fault that this happened in the first place.

He would be tied to her unwillingly. They would be - or rather, remain - magically married and that was a lifetime commitment; a one-way ticket to 'til death do us part.

She couldn't bear the idea of Harry resenting her for the rest of their lives because she managed to tie him down against his will.

He had so much hope for the future. He himself said that he wanted a really big family.

To get there, he would logically need to find the woman whom he would fall in love with.

And Hermione knew that wasn't her.

Hermione stood from her bed and headed to the bathroom. She tried to keep all of her worries at bay.

Researching was her job. She made a living in finding answers.

She was good at this. She would be fine.

These little affirmations flashed through her mind as she prepared for her day.

She wouldn't let Harry down.


The Ministry of Magic was bustling with activity when Hermione stepped away from the apparition point. She nodded to many of the Ministry workers she passed by in the atrium who greeted her with a jovial, "Good morning, Ms. Granger!"

She didn't really have an impressive-sounding title, but Hermione reported directly to the Head Unspeakable. She managed a smaller group of Unspeakables on her own and led them in specialized projects. There's a buzz going around the Ministry that the current Head Unspeakable Saul Croaker would be retiring soon and looking to appoint Hermione as his replacement. Therefore, at only twenty-eight-years-old, Hermione Jane Granger was already respected by many of the Ministry staff.

She boarded the lift and smiled tiredly at John, the aged lift operator. He'd been working the same lift ever since she started there and had never missed a single day.

"Hello, Hermione," he said in his warm voice. His bespectacled eyes scrutinized her face and he frowned as he pressed the button for the deepest level of the Ministry of Magic. "You look tired. Are you alright?"

The witch sighed but smiled gratefully when John immediately closed the doors without waiting for more people to get on. "It was just a long night. I hardly got any sleep," she replied.

"I hope you can take it easy today then," John said with sympathy.

She shook her head forlornly. "Unfortunately not. A big research project just suddenly fell on my lap," she said with a grimace.

The bell dinged and the lift doors opened to the Department of Mysteries. John held the door open for her and bowed as Hermione walked out. "Good luck, Hermione!" He called.

She gave him a grateful smile and walked out of the lift. Her heels clicked on the marble floor as she walked the length of the dark hallway from the lobby. The obsidian and onyx bricks which made up the walls made the trek a little more ominous. Tightly closed black doors lined the hallway and the candle chandeliers vaulted on the ceilings gave just enough light for the names on the doors to be read.

She smiled as she walked through the corridor. The Department of Mysteries was made even more mysterious because of the interior decorating choices. She tried to get Croaker to change things up a bit before, but the Head Unspeakable had brushed off her suggestions. She reckoned he liked the dark too much.

She walked past the heavily guarded double doors of the Prophecy Room with a nod to the two security wizards standing outside. She turned the corner and continued her trek down the hall. As she walked, the din of conversation grew louder and louder. She was approaching the busiest part of the Department of Mysteries, a large open space area they called the Sanctum.

The walls rose to a staggering height and met a domed ceiling decorated with stained glass frescoes. They were miles underground, but it looked like light still shone through the glass shards. It was one of the mysteries of the Department of Mysteries for no one knew exactly how it worked.

The large room was where Unspeakables gathered for anything. Immediately she saw Padma and Katie bent over a large tome which laid rest on top of a table. They had coffee mugs in hand as they studied the pages. She saw Katie mumble something to which Padma gave a nod and turned the page.

They seemed to sense that someone was watching them though, so their heads rose simultaneously. Large smiles lit up their faces and they abandoned the book to quickly go to her side.

"Hermione!" Padma half-whispered, half-yelled. She looked excitedly at Hermione's hand wrapped around the strap of her purse and her eyes widened.

"Oh my god. It happened!" Katie whispered excitedly after seeing the ring.

Hermione quickly ushered the two witches into her office since they were already gathering a lot of attention from the other Unspeakables. As soon as she closed the door, she was engulfed in bone-crushing hugs from her friends.

"I knew it!" Padma exclaimed cheerfully. "I knew it! Oh, tell us how he proposed!"

"Did he get down on one knee?" Katie asked. "What did he say?! I wish Susan was here to hear it too!"

They looked at each other oddly when the witch crushed between them remained quiet. They exchanged a glance above Hermione's head before they stepped back to look at her face.

They were stunned at what they saw. It wasn't a face of someone who had just gotten engaged to the love of her life. In fact, it wasn't even a face of someone who looked remotely happy.

Katie looked at Hermione with furrowed brows as she grabbed her hand. "What is it? What's wrong?" she asked. Padma gestured with her head and the two witches led Hermione to the small seating area in her office.

It was when Hermione was sat down did she finally say something. She looked at her two dear friends looking at her with worry and smiled a sad smile.

"Lukas and I are over," she said. Her voice was soft but clear, her face sad but resolute. The girls' eyes widened at her admittance but they remained quiet so she could continue. "He said that there was no passion between us. He broke up with me at dinner last night."

"What a prick," the black haired witch muttered in disgust. Katie nodded in agreement.

"That's not the only thing that happened," Hermione continued. At their curious gazes, she laid her left hand on top of her lap so that the ring was fully visible. "At midnight, while I was in bed trying to sleep, I suddenly found myself transported to a forest where Harry and I camped out while searching for horcruxes."

"What?!" Katie gasped. The blonde witch searched her up and down looking for signs of injury. "Are you okay? What happened?!"

"I'm okay," Hermione reassured with a small smile. "It wasn't just me who was transported there. Harry was as well. It turned out that we made an accidental marriage vow when we promised each other that we will marry if we're both still unattached ten years later."

The silence following her proclamation was deafening. The expressions on their faces were so stunned and in disbelief that Hermione wanted to laugh. Their eyes were wide and their mouths were dropped to their chins. The two stunningly beautiful witches looked as though they've been hit by a Stupefy. It really was such a ludicrous thing to hear but alas, it was her reality.

"You're telling me," Katie began after regaining her composure. "That you and Harry Potter were married last night? Because of a vow that you made ten years ago?!"

Hermione nodded as she bit her bottom lip. "We didn't know it was going to be a magical vow. All those months looking for horcruxes were one of the hardest days of my life. It was after Ron had left too. We were just… joking around, wanting to make each other laugh. We made a promise and… here we are."

"Oh, Hermione," Padma sighed. The Ravenclaw alumni grabbed onto her hand and squeezed. "What does Harry think of all this?"

Hermione looked at the ring on her finger. The light in her office bounced off the large ruby set in the centre making it glimmer. The diamonds surrounding the stone added their own brilliant luminescence as well. It was a beautiful ring, but it did not belong in her hand.

Hermione sighed again. "Shocked, of course. But understanding. Thankfully, he wasn't angry."

"I don't think he could be angry with you," Katie said softly. "And not about this. If I were in his shoes, I would consider myself lucky to find myself married to you."

Her vote of confidence drew a small smile on Hermione's lips.

"Thanks, Katie, but this isn't what he wants," Hermione replied. She said it so matter-of-factly that her friends shared another look. Her tone didn't allow for questions either on how she possibly knew that. "I… I need to break the vow. I told Harry I would."

The black-haired witch gnawed on her bottom lip in thought. "How will you do that? Magical vows are really powerful magic-"

"I know," Hermione said, cutting Padma off. "That's why I need your help. I can't do this on my own. I don't even know where to start looking for an explanation for this."

Katie drew Hermione to her side in a one-armed hug. Padma moved closer so she could join in their embrace. This was such an unusual predicament for their friend. For the almost two decades they've known her, Hermione Granger was always the one to have the answers. She was that steadfast vessel which kept the Golden Trio afloat in dangerous waters. She was the unwavering presence beside the Boy Who Lived turned Man Who Saved. She was Hermione Granger, the brightest witch of their generation.

For her to find herself in a pickle such as this was shocking.

And for it to involve Harry Potter...

"If breaking the vow is really what you want," Katie began slowly, "then we will definitely help you find a way," she said. Padma nodded in agreement. "But… are you sure this is what you both want?"

Hermione removed herself from their embrace and looked at them oddly. Her brown eyes were squinted as she nodded her head resolutely.

"Of course," she said with confidence in her voice. "It makes no sense if he and I stay married. He… he wants a family of his own. It's all he's ever wanted. He needs someone he loves for that."

Katie and Padma looked at their friend. She was staring at one spot on the floor, her brown eyes unwavering. Her face was set in an expression they all knew too well. It was the same expression Hermione Granger used to convince others to see her way.

"He loves you though," Padma said softly.

Hermione let out a small laugh and her head raised. She looked at the two of them with an all-knowing look on her face. There was a small smile on her lips as she shook her head.

"Not in the way that matters," she replied.

Katie and Padma swore they saw a glint of sadness in Hermione's eyes as they left her office that morning.


Micca's Notes: My writing muse is returning slowly and my other fics will be updated soon. =) Thanks for sticking with me! If you want to hang out with me and other Harmony fans, come join the HMS Harmony Discord server! The invite link is: discord dot gg slash zCKXSUs.