Only You (Hiatus)

Two

“Ladies and gentlemen, we will soon be landing at Dublin Airport. Please make sure your chair is in the upright position, all trays and blinds are up, and your seatbelt is securely fastened. We hope you had a pleasant flight, and thank you for flying with Ryanair.”
Hermione set her tray back up and fastened her seatbelt before looking out the window at the city below.
This was it. A new start.

The landing was surprisingly smooth, and it didn’t take Hermione long to get through the airport. It helped that all of her belongings were inside her small beaded bag, so she didn’t need to stop and collect luggage.

As soon as she reached the arrivals area, she made her way to the currency exchange. While she had enough sterling left in her Muggle bank account to afford getting to Dublin, she needed euros if she was going to last. Thankfully, she had thought to get all the paperwork sorted at Gringotts before travelling over.

As she approached the exchange desk, she noticed it was unoccupied. Sighing, she moved closer and looked to see if there was a bell or anything she could ring. There were two. One she was sure must be glamoured, as it read Wizarding Exchange.

Taking a deep breath, she pressed the bell, almost expecting to be sucked through time and space to the Irish Ministry of Magic. To her surprise, all that happened was a woman emerging from the back room.
“Wizarding exchange. My name is Ruth. How can I help you today?” the woman greeted her with a cheery smile.
Hermione couldn’t help but smile back. “Hello. I need to exchange some money from my vault into euros, please.”
Ruth nodded and began typing on her computer. “From your accent, I’m guessing the vault will be in Gringotts, correct?”
“Yes. I have the paperwork here to verify everything,” Hermione said as she reached into her bag.
“Well, if you’re just here for a visit, I’ll only need some ID. However, if you wish to transfer the whole lot to a wizarding Irish bank, then you’ll need to set up an appointment to speak with a representative of the bank,” Ruth explained with a smile. “I can help you with that if you wish.”
“That’s alright. I have an appointment with them tomorrow morning,” Hermione reassured her as she passed over her ID.
“I’m impressed. I rarely meet a witch this organised when moving here,” Ruth chuckled softly before looking at the ID. “So how much will you need to exchange for the evening, Ms. Granger?”
“I think I’ll need about €1,000 to start off with,” Hermione admitted with a frown, adding, “I’m apartment hunting after the meeting, and it looks like it may be harder than I thought.”
Ruth nodded. “It’s a nightmare in Dublin. Even the wizarding part is struggling, and we deal with actual gold,” she chuckled, making Hermione laugh as well. “But you know where I hear is very reasonable?” Ruth continued as she typed. “Galway. And it’s beautiful over there. Perfect for anyone looking for a fresh start.”
She gave Hermione a small, knowing smile.
Hermione stared at her in shock, her mouth opening and closing twice as she tried to formulate a response. “How did you know?”
Ruth blushed slightly. “I get a feeling about these things. I come from a family of seers, but my gift manifested differently. Instead of seeing, I get gut feelings, and after learning to trust them, I found they were never wrong.”
She turned and handed Hermione an envelope. “Here you go.”
Hermione nodded, a little uneasy, and took the envelope. “Thank you.”
She tucked the money into her bag and waved goodbye, turning to walk away when Ruth stopped her.
“I’m sorry. I get that this is a little unnerving,” Ruth said when Hermione turned back, surprised. “But please think about it. I just have a feeling you’re supposed to go to Galway.”
She paused, frowning slightly. “If you feel the need to know more, my mother works in George’s Street Arcade. She has a clothing store there. She can tell you where, and maybe even why. I’m sorry I can’t get further details from a gut feeling, but just tell her Ruth sent you and she’ll help you, Ms. Granger.”
With that, Ruth nodded and disappeared back into the back room, leaving Hermione alone with her thoughts.

Hermione headed straight to her hotel, feeling drained from a day of filling out and gathering essential paperwork, travelling, and, although the flight hadn’t been very long, exhaustion still clung to her. The exchange desk incident had shaken her slightly.
No seer of any kind had ever had a feeling or vision about her before. She had always said Divination was total rubbish, but for Ruth to know she was looking for a fresh start unsettled her. There were many reasons someone might move countries. It wasn’t always about starting over. Then again, maybe it had simply been a guess.

Entering her hotel room, Hermione sighed, dropping her bag on the single bed before letting herself fall back onto the double. It had been a long day, and it was only 5:00 p.m.

Hermione woke the next morning at 8:00 a.m. Her appointment at the Ministry was scheduled for 10:15 sharp.
After getting up, she pulled her hair into a neat bun, applied a minimal amount of eyeshadow and lipstick, and dressed in a white blouse, black pencil skirt, black pumps, and a black blazer before heading downstairs for breakfast.

She walked into the Ministry at exactly 10:00 a.m., following the signs to the Goldleaf Clover Bank representatives’ offices. It didn’t take long to find the right place, and she checked in with the receptionist before taking a seat.
At precisely 10:15, the door across the hall opened and a woman’s voice called out, “Hermione Granger.”
Hermione stood and followed the voice into the office, the door closing behind her as she moved to sit in the chair opposite the desk. She glanced around in confusion when she didn’t see anyone else in the room, but as soon as she sat down, a small red-haired woman appeared silently on the stool behind the desk. A file rested in her hands, her head already bent over it.
“Good morning, Ms. Granger. I understand you wish to move your entire vault from Gringotts to Goldleaf Clover. You also stated that you plan to gradually transfer these funds into a Muggle bank as soon as you find one you trust.”
The woman raised her eyes for the first time, and Hermione gasped in surprise. The small woman chuckled.
“Never saw a leprechaun before, I take it?”
Hermione shook her head, blushing. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—”
“Don’t worry about it. I find it quite amusing,” she said, setting the file down. “I didn’t even need this. I read it before you came in. I was just having some fun.”
Hermione laughed softly in surprise. “I feel like I should have known. The clues were all there, really.”
“Well, now that I’ve had my fun, I’ll actually do my job,” the woman laughed. “First, let me introduce myself. Clover Goldleaf.”
Her eyes twinkled slightly before she added, “The twenty-second.”
Hermione shook the outstretched hand. “Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Goldleaf.”
“Call me Clover. Ms. Goldleaf is my grandmother,” Clover said, turning to her computer. “Alright then, Ms. Granger. I can assure you that your money will be very safe with Goldleaf Clover Bank. We’ve been operating since 1452, and that old goblin Gringott learned only half of his tricks from our founder, Jig Goldleaf.”
She winked. “The old man named the place after his betrothed. Anyway,” she continued, returning to her notes, “I know you’re considering using a Muggle bank. If you really want to do that, I can’t stop you, but I can advise against it.”
“At Goldleaf, your vault will be far more secure. Your money is kept in physical form, not computerised like Muggle banks, and we offer an ATM card that converts your wizarding funds into euros when used. Many witches and wizards who remove themselves from the wizarding world still use our services for security.”
She looked up, eyes glinting. “I can give you a tour if you’d like, but there will be no chance of anyone robbing this bank.”
Hermione blushed as Clover continued, clearly amused. “Yes, we know how you robbed Gringotts. Considering the reason behind it, and the fact that all the goblins involved were later slaughtered anyway, we won’t be holding that against you. Besides, we don’t use dragons or any creatures the way the goblins did.”
Hermione nodded, still flushed. “I appreciate that. I don’t think I’ll need a tour, but perhaps I’ll leave my money with you. You have physical branches in several places, correct?”
“All major magical towns,” Clover confirmed. “Your vault will also be assigned a personal secretary you can contact at any time, similar to the English house-elves.”
She checked the computer. “Your VPS will be Thistle Gumdrop. I think you’ll like her. She’s rather cheerful, which is why I assigned her to your vault as soon as the paperwork came through.”
Hermione nodded, slightly uncertain, but willing to give it a chance.

The rest of the meeting went smoothly. Hermione was given her vault keys, assured that everything would be transferred by the end of the day, and informed that Thistle would be available starting the next morning.
With that, Hermione left the Ministry to begin her apartment hunt.
Maybe today was going to go far better than she’d thought.