Since the end of the last war, Hermione has tried hard to keep up the façade
she carefully crafted during her years at Hogwarts; the competent, confident
face she presented to the world, both Muggle and Wizarding, while inside
she was dying a little more everyday. Hermione hated the war that took
the lives of her parents and forced her to take the lives of others and
wanted desperately to forget it had ever happened . . . That was why she
enrolled in Oxford.
Her attending Oxford was a dream she and her parents had shared since she
was a little girl sitting on her daddy's knee. He would come home from
the office, smelling of Novocain and with tooth-mold plaster on his tie
more often than not, and tell her about how she could be anything she
wanted to be when she grew up. He'd tell her how, one day, she would be
one of the people changing the world. Harold Granger would never know
how right he was.
The Death Eaters remained active for months following the fateful Battle of
Hogsmeade where Harry finally defeated Lord Voldemort once and for all.
Hermione, being one of Harry Potter's best friends, was an obvious
target for revenge, as was her family. It was a cool night towards the
end of May when Harold and Sarah Granger were attacked in their home.
According to the police report, there didn't appear to be any forced
entry or foul play. There were no toxins in their bodies or any obvious
reasons why two healthy people had dropped dead, still sitting on the
living room sofa. But Hermione knew better. She'd seen the results of
Avada Kedavra too often to not recognize the signs.
Heart-broken and alone, Hermione struggled with the deep depression that
engulfed her following the double funeral. Because of the circumstances,
she was allowed to take her NEWTs early, earning the highest amount in
her graduating class. She was courted by every major University in Britain
and offered full scholarships in any field of her choice. Out of respect
for her parents and in deference to the dreams they held for her, she chose
Oxford and Oxford's Muggle and Magical Law Program.
More than just her home life has changed since Hermione left school. While still
putting the majority of her faith in the books she so adores, Hermione
has learned that there are some things about life that you just can't
learn by reading about them. She's decided to put her rather "forceful"
personality to use and experience anything and everything she can. Even
with a war looming on the horizon, Hermione hasn't curtailed her
enthusiasm for learning and doing.
Hermione tries hard to keep a hold on that close camaraderie she, Harry and Ron
held throughout their years in Hogwarts but feels it slowly slipping away.
For Hermione, Harry and Ron are better than brothers or boy-friends. They are
the two people in the world, other than her deceased parents, who she knows
will always be there... Through failed romances,
stupid quarrels, their little group of three had been tested by fire and
come out stronger for it. But fate and circumstance seemed to be pulling
the three of them in different directions. Ron was off in training for
the Army. And Harry... well, she'd heard that depression and self-loathing
was often a dish best served cold.
In order for the Wizarding world to survive, there would have to be changes.
Hermione keeps that thought in the forefront of her mind as she studies.
Her father had promised her that she would be one of the people who
would change the world. And that's exactly what she means to do. And she
means to start at the top.