Author's Note: It has been such a long time since I've updated, and I'm sorry. I've been really busy with a new job as well as writing a novel (I'm 55K words in so far, wish me luck!) Also, my muse for this story was kind of dying out. I was feeling kind of discouraged for some reason. But I have returned, and I really do want to continue this story.

Update: This is the final chapter. It may be continued, perhaps with a sequel, but for now, this is it. Thank you so much for reading! :)

The Librarian

Chapter Eight: To a New Life

"I'm nervous," Hermione said. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. It felt familiar, like a welcoming grasp of reality. "Harry, I'm nervous."

Harry squeezed her hand back. "I know," he said. "Everything will be fine."

"But what if it isn't fine?" she asked.

"Hermione."

"Alright, sorry."

They were standing outside of Ron's flat, and Hermione felt as though this was a huge mistake. She didn't know what to say or how to tie this all together. All she knew was that she and Harry really wanted to make a better future and move on, and the only way to do that was to talk to Ron. As much as Hermione wanted to step away from her situation with Ron, he was still involved in this, and according to Harry, he had learned to become more mature. She would never be able to move on completely from this stage in her life without talking to Ron.

But none of this attempt at reassurance actually made her feel any less nervous. She was practically shaking.

"I'll start talking first, okay?" Harry said. "Will that make you feel better?"

Hermione nodded and took a deep breath. She knocked on the door to his flat - God, it felt so strange to know that Ron had finally moved out of the Burrow - and silently prayed. She wanted this to work. Hermione didn't love Ron, but she did want to pick up the scraps of what they had had before attraction got in the way. Yes, they had been somewhat attracted to each other, but she had learned that sometimes that just wouldn't be good enough. Cooperation and compassion were needed, and their relationship lacked extremely in both of those departments.

"Who is it?" Ron's unmistakable voice called out from the other side of the door.

"Oh, God," Hermione whispered. "Harry, maybe I'm not ready..."

She had a feeling that this talk would end up being less about all three of them and more about her and Ron. Hermione and Harry had their talks, they had their initial moment for getting things out of the way. And now it was Ron's turn.

"It's me," Harry said firmly. He looked over at her. "Look, I won't force you to do this if you're not comfortable, and here's your window of opportunity to leave now..."

"Prove it," Ron's muffled voice demanded. "What's my Patronus?"

"A Jack Russel terrier. I taught you the Patronus Charm in our fifth year in the DA," Harry answered. He looked back at Hermione. "Are you sure about this?"

"Alright, then," Ron said.

Hermione heard the shuffle of Ron's footsteps from beyond the front door. She felt an undeniable twist of her stomach and felt like she was going to puke.

"Well, I'll need to do this eventually," Hermione said finally.

Harry paused to take another glance at her, making sure that she was serious about this. When he looked like he was satisfied with her confirmation, he added, "Ron, I've got Hermione with me."

Ron's footsteps ceased. Hermione gave Harry's hand another firm squeeze. She knew that nothing horrible could happen when Harry was at her side. He wouldn't let Ron shout at her or insult her or do anything out of hand while she was around. And that simple little thought made her feel much more at ease. Harry was here, and that was the most comforting thought that anyone could ever give her.

"You're fucking joking," Ron said. "You're out of your mind. Are you drunk? Having hallucinations about seeing Hermione again?"

"No, she's here. Open the door and see for yourself," Harry replied, knocking on the door once more.

"You're mental," he said.

The door swung open, and there he was, Hermione's ex standing in the doorway, staring at her with disbelieving eyes. He opened his mouth, and then closed it again. One hand rubbed his right eye and continued to stare at her.

"Hermione?" he asked, as though waiting for her reply to see if she was actually real.

"Hi," she said nervously.

Ron's eyes finally broke away from her and drifted down to Harry's and Hermione's intertwined hands. For once, though, he did not make a comment or raise his eyebrows... however his eyes did linger for longer than was probably appropriate.

"This is... this is quite on a short notice," Ron commented.

"Yeah. Sorry about that," Harry said, shrugging. He peered into Ron's flat. "Let us in, won't you? It's not summer anymore."

"What? Oh, right. Yeah. Come in."

Ron stepped aside and gave them more than enough room to enter the foyer. He shut the door behind them and performed a few security charms before turning back to face them.

"Er, how've you been lately, Hermione?"

"I've been alright," she said. "And you?"

"Same," he said with a nod. "I got a flat," he added lamely, pointing to the ceiling.

"I see. It's very nice," Hermione said softly. "That's good of you, you know. Moving into a new place and all."

Ron smiled, looking rather proud of himself to get this sort of recognition for moving out of the Burrow.

Standing next to Ron, Harry put his hands in his pockets and cleared his throat.

"Hermione wanted to see you, Ron," he said lowly. "She wanted all of us to talk and try to settle some things. So, I suppose she's vicariously taking the advice that you gave me, and is trying to make a better future rather than reconstruct the past."

Hermione just nodded silently because she wasn't sure of what else to add to what Harry had said. He'd stated it all perfectly.

"Oh," Ron said. He coughed. "Let's have a seat, then."

The three of them walked over into his small living room. Harry and Hermione sat on one couch while Ron sat on a small sofa. Hermione still couldn't believe that Ron was living on his own. And what was more was that the flat was tidy and pleasing to the eye. There was a small fireplace in the room that was gently spitting up dancing flames. This place was certainly different from Harry's living quarters, which, from her most recent visit there had had a drunken Harry and broken Firewhiskey bottles.

Both setups of these two places were indirectly caused by her, but they couldn't be more opposite: Ron could live without her. Harry could not.

Ron missed her, of course. He would always miss her. But what he was missing was the sweet little kisses and the jokes that he'd tell her and their attraction.

In Harry's case... well, without Hermione, he would miss so much more. To Harry, it was never the cute little things that he'd miss. It was the way she'd comforted him and been there for him, and the way that she showed him that it's possible to love and to be loved. Those things were irreplaceable.

"Harry told me about how you came back to work at Hogwarts, and then you two started talking again," Ron said. He didn't sound bitter. He was just stating a fact.

Hermione nodded. "Yes. I had spent a lot of time running away, trying to avoid everyone. I thought that it was for the best. And it was, for a little while. But it got so -"

"Lonely," Ron finished for her.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "Lonely. I left for many reasons, and you know all of them. And I stick to most of them right now. You did some horrible things to me, Ron, some of them being unforgivable, even to this day."

Ron leaned back in his chair and twisted his hands together. "I thought that this was about moving forward, not lagging on past memories."

"She's getting there," Harry immediately interjected. "Let her speak."

Ron nodded. "Alright. Sorry. Continue, Hermione."

She looked at Harry and said, "Thank you," before moving on. She felt a twinge of anger towards Ron again, and they'd only been in the same room for less than five minutes.

"Anyway," she said, trying to remain calm and collective, "I know that some things, however, can be forgiven. And you're not the one completely at fault. I was being stupid by just running off with no clear explanation or notice. I could have at least done you some justice and officially settled things before taking off, to at least give you a peace of mind. I'm sorry for taking off like that. That honestly is not the way I wanted it... I just overreacted and wanted nothing more than to leave. I let my emotions run wild without setting things straight and making a more official good-bye. It wasn't fair to you, and it wasn't fair to Harry. And I'm sorry."

Hermione saw Harry nod and knew that he had already forgiven her. He was so dedicated to moving forward that she knew he would forgive her for something like this. She was so incredibly grateful for that.

Ron nodded, too. "That's alright," he said.

And once he forgave her, Hermione knew what she had to do.

"Harry, could you give us a minute, please?" Hermione asked politely.

Harry didn't look confused or ask any questions. He stood up and said, "Sure." And within a moment, he was out of the room. Hermione watched him leave and kept her eyes on the doorway through which he had left.

"Hermione?" Ron asked gently.

Hermione looked over at Ron. She saw the way that he was looking at her, and it no longer gave her butterflies. This man had insulted her and disrespected her to the point where she hated herself when they were in a relationship.

"Ron, I know that you still have feelings for me," she said bluntly. "I know that after what I've put you through, that they might not be as strong as they were before, but I know that they're still there."

"And you're here to tell me that I have no chance," Ron said, nodding. "I know. I knew that the moment you walked out on me that we were never going to work. Even before then... our relationship was in jeopardy. I had a feeling."

Months before Hermione actually left, the two of them had fought like crazy. They'd stopped being intimate altogether, and any night that they tried to spend together would end up with Ron leaving Hermione's flat or Hermione storming off and not returning for days. Even in this moment, Hermione could not remember the last time she'd truly felt mutual pleasure. Perhaps she had never really felt it at all.

"I did have a crush on you when we were teenagers. I thought you were funny and I knew that you cared about me," Hermione said gently. "But God, Ron, a relationship needs more than just butterflies in people's stomaches and a few fits of laughter. It needs so much more than that. I need so much more than that. You never realized it. I needed someone who would respect me and show me that they love me."

"I did love you," Ron said quietly.

"Ron, please -"

"Did you love me?"

Hermione looked down at her knees. Did she love him, at one point in her life? And if she did, would she tell him? Did Ron even deserve an answer to this sort of question?

"Maybe I did, in the beginning," she said. "But Ron, I don't have those feelings for you anymore. I left mostly because of how you made me feel, and I couldn't take it anymore. I just wanted an escape from it all."

"But that didn't mean that you had to leave -"

"No, Ron. You don't understand. You don't know what it's like to feel so unwanted that you just completely leave your entire life behind," Hermione said.

And at the words that she spoke herself, she felt herself tearing up. Unwanted. That was the word that so perfectly fit how she had felt when she left. The person she thought she loved had not given her the proper respect, and the one person who she thought she could feel wanted with had loved someone else.

"I'm sorry," Ron said. "I know that you'll never be able to fully, truly forgive me, but I'm sorry. The moment you left, I knew that it was my fault for letting you go. I had my chance, and I blew it. I tried to make the best of it by making myself become a better person. I've been promoted at work, I've moved out of the Burrow, I've tried to make a name for myself at the Ministry, I'm supporting myself. I'm growing and attempting to at least make some things in my life right."

"And I'm glad that you've straightened things out," Hermione said. "Honestly, as a friend, I can say that I'm very proud of you. I give you a lot of credit for that."

"But I'll never win you back," Ron said sadly. He frowned.

That was the thing: It wasn't about winning. Ron would always see it as that. He'd see Hermione's feelings as a game that he needed to win. And Harry didn't see it that way. He would never see it that way. He truly cared about her, and was broken when she wasn't there. Nobody would be that distraught from someone who they had thought was only a prize.

"I'm sorry, Ron," Hermione said. She took a deep breath. "But I love someone else."

There was a long moment where Ron stared at Hermione, almost daring her to contradict what she had just said. She could see how these words were affecting him, how they sunk into his skin.

"So, you love him?" he asked in a near whisper for confirmation.

Hermione nodded at once. She didn't want to hesitate or worry anymore. She wanted to be open about this. It was about time that everyone was open about how they felt. It would have saved a lot of pain and trouble in the first place.

"Yes, I do," she replied.

Ron looked over at the doorway that Harry had exited through. "Does he know?"

"No."

She, too, looked at that same doorway, and sighed.

"Do you think that he loves you, too?"

Hermione then smiled for the first time that day.

"What do you think?" she asked, tilting her head. She wasn't be sarcastic; she wanted an honest answer.

Ron paused. "After you left, Harry was different. He wasn't just sad, or angry, but he was just different. He didn't have an official alcohol problem; he'd just drink away his sorrows when he thought about you too much once in a while. God, he had changed so much. I never really saw him genuinely smile for two years. He just wasn't the same bloke that he was when you were still around. Harry thought that he was never going to see you again, and that's what really killed him. He told me that he thought that you didn't love him, and that he hated himself for it."

Hermione curled her knees to her chest and hid her face from Ron. Her eyes began to water.

"So, you want my answer? I think that Harry loves you more than he even realizes," Ron said.

She wondered how difficult that was for Ron to say. And she appreciated his answer.

"Thank you," she said. And it wasn't just for his reply. "And thank you, Ron, for taking care of him when I didn't."

. . .

"You guys talked for a long time," Harry said. He opened the door for Hermione and she nodded in thanks before walking through the doorway. "Was everything alright?"

"Yeah, it was fine," Hermione said. She looked up at him and saw him smile when she had reassured him. Ron's description of Harry when she had left was not gone from her mind. She had a lot running through her mind, actually, and it was starting to get confusing, because she knew that she really did love Harry.

Part of her reason for leaving was because she thought that he didn't love her back. But she was willing to believe Ron, and it was very much possible that Harry loved her back.

"Harry?" she asked.

She walked into the small living room of his quarters and took off her jacket. She was wearing a blue dress that Luna had bought her a year ago, with long sleeves and material that flowed past her knees. Even though the garment wasn't revealing at all, Hermione saw the way Harry's eyes were glued to her body for a moment, and she felt heat rush to her cheeks.

"Yeah?" he said, turning to walk into his small kitchen. "Oh, wait, do you want something to drink?"

"Just pumpkin juice will be fine, please," she said.

"Anything for you, darling," Harry said cheerily.

Hermione laughed and felt that familiar rush of heat to her cheeks. What was she, sixteen?

There was a small crash sounding in the kitchen, and Harry screamed, "Oh, damn, there go my bloody leftovers... Right, what were you going to say, Hermione?"

"Er... well, I wanted to talk to you about Ginny, actually."

"Ginny?" Harry asked. "Ginny Weasley?"

"The very same," Hermione said. "What other Ginny do we know of?"

She heard the refrigerator door shut and moments later, Harry was carrying too glasses of pumpkin juice.

"Why do you want to talk about Ginny?" Harry asked, handing over her glass.

Hermione took it and stared at it. "Well, I was talking to Ron today about how I don't have feelings for him anymore," she began, "and I was wondering if you still had feelings for Ginny."

Harry took a sip of his pumpkin juice, appearing to be deep in thought.

"I mean," Hermione said quickly, practically stammering over her words, "if you don't want to talk about her, then that's - that's completely fine. Totally fine. I'm - I'm fine with that."

He shook his head. "No, no, that's alright. I don't have feelings for her anymore. She left me to further her career. We had different destinations in life and figured that we just wouldn't fit together."

"Oh," Hermione said. She took a sip of her pumpkin juice. "So that's it, then? You're just over her?"

"Well, I was also too busy missing you after you left," Harry said, shrugging. "I think I just didn't have enough room to miss her, with you being gone." There was that empty look in his eyes again, that look that he always got when he talked about the two years he went through after Hermione had left.

Hermione's stomach dropped.

"Harry, again, I'm so sorry, I -"

"Don't apologize," he said at once, shaking his head. "I was just being stupid. I wish I had told you how much you mean to me, but I guess I didn't realize it until I lost you."

She stared at him, trying to come to grasp with reality. Her heart was racing and her cheeks were flushed.

"I guess that the both of us just can't do well without the other," she said, winking at him.

Hermione then raised her glass and watched as a grin spread across Harry's face. Harry raised his glass, too.

"Here's to a new life," she said, nudging his arm, "where we just can't live without each other."

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong, Hermione. That isn't a new life," he told her. "It's been that way since we've met."