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On The Horizon

Prologue:

In an English city, in a very calm and pleasant house lived a young woman who had once been the envy and sometimes enemy of many wizards and witches. She had graduated with top scores on her N.E.W.T.S and in fact had rivaled and out-scored several of her professors, though some were quite unlikely to admit such defeat. She chose, rather after spending some time as a teacher in pre-wizarding schools for witches and wizards, that she preferred a simpler life. Not that she never used magic or had given up her witch status, she had simply chosen to live in a less populated city and live a life in the semblance of both lives. After all, she had been born a muggle( non-magic folk) and therefore it had always seemed a bit simpler for her to just accept her life as a fairly modern witch who could utilize the skills she had learned in her childhood. It had been a month since she had left Scotland for Hogsmeade.

She had met her husband in Scotland, a lovely little place in Caithness where her family had visited since she was a child. She remembered him every summer when the lush mountains were in the distance and her bicycle was like an airplane flying her off to any location at a whim. she remembered, as well, being extremely crushed when he had married and had a child.

During her school years their families had vacationed together a few times, but then it wasn't anything more than a simple school girl's crush, at that time she rather thought he looked too much like her former DADA professor, Gilderoy lockhart (whom she had feigned over like a nun at a Full Monty show).It was odd the way their parents got on, as if Hermione's parents understood the magical world better than she and Wallace's parents the muggle world. Wallace had always seemed far too old for her, though she had always loved older men and had never really dated anyone her age. It was during her last year at Hogwarts when their families had vacationed in Madrid that she saw him as something more than a amiable guy, she saw that he was intelligent and kind, and most importantly, he didn't expect her to be more than she was at present.

That was also the year after his wife had died at the hands of Voldemort. Things between she and Wallace changed significantly over a short time. He had confessed his adoration for her after Christmas dinner, under a full moon and naked stars. With his profession, he had given her a ring, a silver and gold ring with remarkable obsidian stone that held a deep red and black color. Her eyes had watered a bit and her mind instantly remembered their younger days when she taught him all about her favorite minerals and stones; how she had believed obsidian to be one of the most beautiful stones she had ever seen because of it's changing colors and strength against weathering and metamorphism.

With the ring, he had wanted to show her his feelings were strong and that he was committed to a future with her. Upon her return to school, she remembered her closest friends were skeptical of this new beau because they, neither of them, had ever heard of Wallace Stuart. They finished their exams and said their good-byes before she left them to go to Wallace and began their life together as she finished her papers and he continued his research with the historical aspects of wizardry.

She wanted to get to know his son better as well since she was to become his mother after all. In September, when she turned nineteen, they married at Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore presiding. Harry and Ron were his witness, as well as his brother William. She had chosen Ginny Weasley ( the soon to be Ginevra Thomas), her Aunt Charlotte, and Minerva McGonagall as hers. Henry, Wallace's son was their sponsor. After their honeymoon, they returned to the Caithness and began a modest life filled with passion in their hearts and minds.

It was only five years later that Wallace suffered a terrible stroke and with the complications passed away before their sixth anniversary. It was then that Hermione and Henry moved to Hogsmeade, that only having been one month prior. She had decided that now her immediate schooling was finished, she wanted to continue Wallace's research and also maintain the small little bookstore she and Wallace had bought before his death. It was meant mostly for wizards, though a wandering muggle could've stumbled upon it if they had really looked for the building. She enjoyed her quiet solitude. With no relations within distance, Hermione felt for once in her life completely independent. Aside from the monthly visits from Harry and more frequently Ron, she hardly met or entertained many people and Henry would be starting his second year of school at Hogwart's school of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Her bookstore afforded her the companionship she needed because many of her customers were very friendly and often came to check in on her especially when they learned that she had recently become a widow. Life for one Hermione Granger Stuart had become quite comfortable. Then of course it was all going to change.

Chapter 1: The Neighbors

Hermione and Wallace had searched for months for the house that Hermione now resided in with Henry. It had been a very warm, yet very rainy March day when they stumbled across the house after looking at one further down the road. She had noticed it's rather odd bricks and commented to Wallace that she believed the house would be perfect for them. He, oddly being the more sensible one, wanted to make sure the insides were as exciting and irregular as the outside. Much to his surprise, the inside of the house was exactly what they were looking for. It was spacious with four bedrooms, a study, two living rooms (The second was to be Hermione's office), two very nice bathrooms and a completed basement that seemed perfect for storage for their books and all of Henry's old toys and some new ones.

Wallace had wanted to make sure Hermione truly liked the house because he wanted her to be settled and because he knew stability was something she craved. When they signed for the house and then bought the bookstore, Wallace was certain Hermione would be taken care of and that she would be truly happy in their adventure. It was then that he had his stroke; he characteristically called Hermione from his office and told her he wouldn't be home for dinner, which was fairly often and then kept his promise. Of course he had no idea he wouldn't be going home ever again.

At first, preceding his death, Hermione waited to move into the house afraid that she would live in the home and then she realized it had been Wallace's plan for her to live in the house and run the bookstore. He had obviously wanted to keep her busy. She also had to take care of Henry and that became an everyday battle considering he had lost both of his parents before age twelve. Upon moving all of their belongings from Caithness, Hermione started organizing the house the way she wanted, but soon realized that she wouldn't be able to fill the house with the belongings she and Wallace had acquired, so she decided to turn her fourth bedroom into her office and leave plenty of guest space for when her friends and Henry's came to stay.

She had invited Harry and Ron to come to stay, but almost wished to remain somewhat alone; solitude had been a very good companion since her husband's death. She loved having Henry around to brighten her days when al she could think of was the lonliness of living without her husband. She would miss Henry's loud singing in the showers at breakfast when he went back to school, but she knew he would find comfort among his friends.

After a week or so at number 10 Sedna Station, Hermione decided it was time to visit her neighbors, though she only had two and both were in a gross distance from her house. It was still time to get acquainted, even if the people were complete codgers for not welcoming her in the first place. She set out that morning with a basket of goodies she had baked and went to the first very large and foreboding manor and knocked lightly on the over-sized front door. Seconds later, a small elf came to the door and Hermione realized that wizards must live in the home to have an elf.

"Gooday, Miss, is you wishing to see my master." The tiny elf said, holding its head up high.

"I live at number ten and I wanted to let your, Master, know that I had moved in and was renovating the book store on Gentry Corner." The little elf smiled at Hermione and stepped back to let her in. The house was immaculate and immediately in her view were fine paintings and a rather large, black-carpeted staircase that seemed to go on for ages.

"Wait here, Miss, I will be getting my master." The elf replied bowing slightly towards Hermione and walked quickly away from the room. As she stood and waited, she noticed a painting that struck her immediately, it was a Vermeer, though not one that she had seen before and she had seen all of them, or so she believed.

The lighting and situation were so obviously Vermeer that she had to take several glances just to make sure she wasn't seeing something that wasn't apparent. While lost in thought, the resident of the home studied the young woman. ' In her early twenties, light brown hair, very short' he thought to himself before tearing her away from the painting. He cleared his thought and moved a bit of hair from his face before reaching out to tap her shoulder.

"A Vermeer from his late life." The resident said, his voice bringing memories of old to Hermione's mind.

"I do not recall this painting in his collection, how did you come by it, Sir?" She asked, keeping her eyes on the painting.

"An heirloom, I suppose. It's always been here and I am rather fond of it now." She could remember his voice so clearly in her mind and yet she couldn't place it immediately and that made her afraid to face him. Gryffindor courage be damned.

"I only ask because I have several of his paintings myself and have never heard of or seen this one." She stepped forward slightly and let her eyes travel the young man and woman sitting together at the table by the window.

"It's called, "The Man and His Wife", he painted it his last year of life, but that is all I know of it." Hermione put her hands at her side and turned to face the man who would be her neighbor and then completely knew the voice from her adolescence. It was Severus Snape her former potions professor.

"Perhaps I should stop dawdling and get to the point of my being here. I moved into number 10 recently and wanted to acquaint myself with the people in this neighborhood." She met his eyes and saw something she wasn't expecting. The weariness she had remembered was disappearing and the mouth that once could only seem to sneer was pleasant with a small grin.

"Yes, I believe your husband came by previously to make sure I wasn't offended by the hedges he wanted to remove." Severus replied.

"I will be getting to those hedges soon. The rooms seem to be getting settled and the outside will have my attention soon enough." She fidgeted with her wedding band, now on her right hand in response to her mourning. It wasn't as if this man, who could've cared less about her as a child, would know that Wallace had died.

"Well, I should be getting back home. I do hope you will come to the bookstore. It will be ready in a week and we will be having some kind of bakery treats and of course tea." She turned back to the painting, wanted to take it in slowly and draw it herself as soon as she returned home.

"Thank you for your visit, Madam Stuart." "I would prefer it if you called me Hermione, as we are neighbors and old acquaintances." She walked as swiftly as she could and headed directly for his door. The man had changed in the years she had been away from school, but in her mind, Severus Snape would always be her snarky potions professor who ridiculed her and rejected her from his apprenticeship. Of course, Wallace wouldn't have known that this man, who he had asked about the hedges, was her former professor. He hadn't been at their wedding because he had left the school after her seventh year so he wouldn't teach Henry either. Wallace couldn't have known.

That night, after starting with the hedge and accomplishing next to nothing, Hermione settled into books of her family history; especially those concerning her mother's family, as those were the ones that connected her to Vermeer. She had transcripts of his selling's and prints of all of his paintings, yet could not find, The Man and his Wife.

She set all of her work aside and moved into her very empty bedroom. Upon scanning the room, she saw only a king-sized bed, a chair with two pillows in it, and a very solemn mirror. A bedroom should be a sanctuary, but Hermione felt anything but safe or guarded by her room. Without crookshanks or Wallace, the room seemed completely empty. With that, she resolved to go to Diagon Alley and purchase a new familiar. That next morning, with Henry at her side, Hermione apparated to Diagon Alley. Henry had been excited to go to Diagon Alley, as he hadn't been able to do many pleasurable things with getting the bookstore ready.

"We should get a cat, Mum. Crookshanks was fun and I have missed him." Hermione smiled at the blonde boy and ruffled his hair. It was sad that he was almost her height. He would grow to be very tall like Wallace; after all he already resembled him so closely that Hermione had to blink on several occasions.

"We'll look for a cat, Henry, but no cat will ever replace Crookshanks. Besides, I kind of wanted to buy you something to take back to Hogwarts. Dad was so busy last year that we didn't get to but you anything." She noted the saddened look in Henry's eyes when she mentioned Wallace, but understood that losing a parent was something you couldn't get over in years, little alone a month. She understood his pain; after all she had lost her father as well.

"Thanks Mum that would be really great." They walked in silence through Diagon Alley until they reached Eeylop's Owl Emporium where she hoped Henry would chose an owl so that they could correspond easily.