A/N: This is a post-Hogwarts tale surrounding Hermione. I hope you enjoy the story! I welcome any and all comments and reviews and I will reply to each. I would like to sincerely thank Felicity Danvers for her invaluable time and tireless efforts as my beta reader for this story. If you do enjoy this story, it's because she helped make it better.

As always and forever… JKR owns Harry Potter, but I am grateful to be able to play in a small corner of that sandbox.

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Chapter 1 – Aftermath

Harry was laid out on his old dorm room bed. He was too tired to take off his dirty and bloodied clothes or to even clean himself. He just wanted to sleep. He didn't want to dream of all the trials and horrors he had experienced in his 17 years of life. He wanted a long and dreamless sleep.

However, every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was the now still faces of Fred, Lupin, Tonks, Lavender Brown, and so many others who had died because of Voldemort.

"No," he thought, "They died because I was here and they wanted to help me. Because I couldn't find all the Horcruxes fast enough."

His scrunched his eyes together at the images flashing before him. He tried to think of other people or happier events, but those faces kept coming back, and even more, memories were surfacing. Hedwig's dead body falling after taking the killing curse, meant for him. His mind raced with the events of the last seven years speeding through his mind. Quirrell leaping at him in front of the Mirror of Erised trying to kill him. The agonizing pain of the basilisk fang stabbing into his arm and the burning pain of its venom as it coursed through his veins. Cedric's lifeless eyes looking at him in the graveyard. Dumbledore's body falling from the tower.

He gasped and his eyes sprang open in shock and fear. He leaped out of bed, his body now full of adrenaline. He twisted around the room as if looking for the source of his visions, but there was only him in that quiet room. He clasped his hands to the sides of his head. There were too many voices and images in his head and he moaned out loud with the pain of them flooding into his mind.

Even more images and memories inundated his mind…

Hogwarts destroyed…

Grimmauld Place nearly destroyed…

Hogsmeade nearly wiped out…

Sirius falling through the veil…

Snape bleeding to death in front of him…

So many people. So many places. Destroyed or dead because of him.

"Too much," he hissed almost as if he was in pain, "This is just too much." He fell to his knees and started sobbing in sorrow and pain. He had done this. This was all his fault. He brought himself under control and wiped the tears from his face as he looked out the window to the grounds below.

"Never again," he whispered to himself. He knew what he had to do, "Never again will I do this to anyone else. This is all my fault."

He straightened up and said louder in a solemn voice as he made himself a promise, "I can't be here anymore. Never again."

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Hermione was bone tired. The last nine months, no that's not right… the last seven years were finally catching up to her as she entered the old room she had as a prefect. She shed her clothes, which were beyond salvaging, and climbed into her old bed. The softness of the bed seemed almost like Heaven to her after spending nine months sleeping on a thin mattress on a cot in a tent. It took almost all of her effort to pull the covers over her and she let out a huge sigh of exhaustion. She laid in the bed, listening to the silence around her and was just about to succumb to sleep when she thought she heard a muffled groan. Her eyes slowly opened, almost unwillingly, as she tried to bring herself awake and then localize the sound.

She reasoned it must have come from the boy's dorm, where Harry was. There was no one else in the Gryffindor Tower aside from her and Harry. She suddenly felt a wave of panic and dread. Her adrenaline returned panicked energy into her body as she practically leaped out of bed. She quickly put her clothes on and headed out the door and down the steps. Halfway down she thought she heard a pop coming from where Harry's room was. She rushed down the last few stairs and stopped in front of the closed door.

She leaned close and didn't hear any sounds. She knocked on the door, "Harry?"

Silence.

She knocked again, louder, "Harry?!"

Silence.

"Hermione? What's wrong?"

Hermione turned to see Ron coming up the steps with Ginny, Neville, and Luna.

"It's Harry," she said with her voice starting to rise in panic and concern, "I thought I heard something."

The others gave her a curious look and she returned to pound on the door, "Harry?! Are you okay?!"

Silence.

Hermione pulled out her wand, twisted the knob and found it was locked. Her blood went cold.

"Alohamora!" she shouted and rushed into the room. She looked around in utter disbelief, "Harry?" she whispered.

Harry Potter was nowhere to be seen.