Lavender, please.

[hermioneee]

Hermione felt just awful. Taking so much time away in a foolish attempt to collect herself, she realized, had really caused more harm than good. At least, she had gotten past the self-destructive mindset that everything was all her fault, and had moved on to being irate with Ron. But, that's not why she felt so terribly

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[lavender_x]

Time had a way of slipping way from Lavender. She was always finding herself running late, scrambling, and forgetting full days at a time. A years worth of traveling had quickly turned into six. Now that she was back she had promised herself she would get her life together. Which, for the most part, she had

[hermioneee]

"Lavender! Thank you," Hermione sniffled a little, the crisp air getting to her, and smiled politely and she stepped past Lavender into the warm home. She noted Lavender's mild bewilderment at her presence. And that was well deserved.

Once Lavender closed the door, Hermione started to remove her plentiful layers, draping things over her arm. She couldn't help but blurt out, "I'm sorry for arriving unannounced, I hope you're not too busy, but I just had to come. And I'm so sorry for not coming sooner." Her face flushed slightly with embarrassment, but she was determined to set things right with her old schoolmate.

[lavender_x]

"Oh no, I understand," she assured her. If anyone understood the need to get away then it was Lavender. She had missed her fair share of major events and lost touch with countless friends. After all, she skipped out on her own brother's wedding reception before the cake was served.

But she had also seen those people come back into her life in the last month. It was heartwarming.

"I was just about to make lunch. Are you hungry?"

[hermioneee]

The truth was that Hermione's mind was so full of different ways to apologize that she had completely forgotten to eat much of anything that day. She knew that her relationships with her female friends were often overshadowed by the amount of mothering that Harry and Ron needed. And while she knew Harry wouldn't let it last forever, Ron out of her life made it much easier to get some much needed girl time. She wondered if she should let Lavender know that she hadn't even spoken to Harry since her arrival.

"Starved, actually. Thank you." Hermione was more than grateful for Lavender's warm reception.

She still felt anxious about bringing up the attack, not sure what kind of mental state she was in. But while newspapers were a valuable resource, she knew it was better to get Lavender's side of the story.

Hermione tried to be delicate to test the waters, "How are you feeling, dear?"