Chimera

Chapter 31

Hermione arrived at her new office early on Monday morning. The department was covered in Christmas decorations, and her office was no exception. Fairy-lights and tinsel were strung across the ceiling, and a small Christmas tree sat on a table in the corner. It was draped in red and gold baubles, with tiny, fake presents underneath.

A small stack of envelopes were waiting on her desk. Hermione smiled as she recognised Harry's messy handwriting on the top one. It was a garishly decorated card with 'CONGRATULATIONS' on the front in giant letters.

Good luck on your first day!

Love, Harry

Hermione grinned and worked through the pile. Ginny and Teddy also sent her a card each. Teddy had painstakingly traced over his name in crayon. Under a card from Mr Singh, Hermione found an envelope with handwriting she didn't recognise.

Inside was an elegant note with gold lettering. It was very different from the styles her friends chose. Curious, Hermione flipped it open.

Dear Ms Granger,

Congratulations on your promotion! Best of luck on your first day.

Kind regards,
Astoria

A stab of guilt twisted in Hermione's stomach. All weekend she had been pushing aside thoughts of the other witch. It was then that Hermione realised Draco hadn't sent her anything, although the rest of their department did.

"Don't really think he's the card-sending type," Hermione muttered, lining the cards up on her windowsill. She nudged Astoria's behind Ellie's. "That's probably a bit too sentimental for him."

A sharp knock snapped Hermione back to the office. A wizard stood in the doorway, smiling nervously at her. His cheeks flushed a pale pink as Hermione focused her attention on him. He looked a couple of years older than Hermione, with black hair styled into spikes.

"Miss Granger? I'm Nate Huáng, I'm your assistant."

"Please, call me Hermione," she said, shaking his hand.

"Here's the messages that came in for you over the weekend," Nate said briskly. He passed her a pile of parchment rolls. "Your reports are on the desk, and you have a meeting with Mrs Hussain at 10."

Hermione nodded, glancing through the messages. None of them were urgent. She liked that they were throwing her straight into work. It was a little nerve-wracking, but she needed the distraction. Besides, she hated being coddled.

"What do you think of the decorations?" Nate asked, smiling like a small child. "I did it all myself. Me and my family normally go to China for the holidays, so this is my first Christmas in the UK and I wanted to enjoy its full effect!"

"It's very festive!" Hermione said. "I especially like all the Gryffindor colours."

"You noticed! Yes! I'm so excited!" Nate cleared his throat and visibly composed himself. "I mean, can I get you anything? Tea, coffee?"

"Tea would be great, thank you," Hermione smiled. His enthusiasm was contagious. "Milk, no sugar, please."

Nate nodded and hurried off. Hermione dropped the messages onto her desk and leafed through the reports.

At the sound of footsteps, Hermione looked up with a sarcastic comment on her lips. Her smirk faded when she saw it was Nate. He carefully placed a steaming mug on the desk and left her office.

"You don't share an office anymore," Hermione reminded herself, quietly.

Hermione still jumped whenever someone walked past. Every time she would find herself thinking it was Draco, slinking into their shared office with a sharp remark and teasing sneer. The disappointment soured her mood.

She was so busy, Hermione worked through lunch. She didn't even realised it until she stood up to ask Nate something. Her vision went blurry and a wave of dizziness swept over her. The clock showed it was mid-afternoon.

"Idiot," she scolded herself, sinking back onto her chair until the wooziness passed.

Hermione dug through her purse for her tub of pasta. She tapped the lid with her wand and waited for it to finish reheating. Her hand crept towards the report she'd been reading, but she forced herself to focus on eating first. It was surprising how quickly she fell back into bad habits without Harry to drag her out for lunch, or Draco to nag her into leaving the office.