Beauty From Pain

Chapter One

'But it's mine,' she thought with a small smile. Clutching the key a little tighter, she let out a heavy breath and tried to shake herself of her jitters.

It felt like a movie moment, sliding the key into the lock of her first shop and opening the door to new possibilities. Inspirational music playing in the background, and a wise voice narrating, and...

The key was jammed.

She huffed in frustration and jiggled the lock. The key wouldn't budge, the lock wouldn't turn. She swore she could see flecks of rust falling from the handle as she tried to force the lock to release her key. The door groaned, as if laughing at her weak attempts to gain entry. For such a seemingly ramshackle slab of wood it was being surprisingly resilient.

She grabbed the key with both hands, braced one foot against the door, and grumbled lowly, "Give me back my key, evil door. You're interrupting. My. Moment." She punctuated her last sentence with sharp tugs until the key finally slid free. She raised it triumphantly in the air. "Ha! Take that, evil door."

Glancing around furtively, she remembered she was in the middle of the Alley and blushed lightly in embarrassment. She glared at the door as though it were to blame for its lack of cooperation and whipped out her wand. The magic raced up her arm causing her fingertips to tingle and a wave of pleasure to dance down her spine. It had been too long, the magic felt like a reunion under her skin. Her unlocking spell snapped through her vine wood wand like a crack of lightning and effortlessly released the troublesome lock.

Oh how she had missed magic.

Sighing blissfully and gripping her wand tight, she tentatively entered the shop and immediately went into a coughing fit from the pounds of dust that entered her lungs.

"Dear Merlin," she wheezed out and blinked rapidly to try and dispel her tears.

When she was finally able to see properly, she looked around and sighed. She certainly had her work cut out for her.

The building looked as though it had been abandoned longer than she had been alive. Paint was coming off the walls in sheets, at least she hoped it was paint and not the walls themselves. As she walked further inside, her steps caused layers of dust to rise up around her. The balls of dust on the floor were big enough to pay rent. She closed her eyes for a long moment to try and remind herself to see past the grime, past the endless list of repairs, and to see the future the building was capable of. She had handled worse.

Opening her eyes, a small smile began to make its way onto her face. She could see it.

The counter, the office, and the artwork. She could see the customers and hear the faint buzzing of working equipment. A laugh bubbled up from her chest until it finally broke free, a carefree sound she hadn't made in a long time. A laugh full of excitement and hope.

If the shop didn't manage to kill her first, as it had been trying to do all morning, then she would finally be able to take steps towards the future. A good future. A future she, and only she, was in control of. She could feel her excitement bubbling under her skin and hoped from foot to foot, a wide grin filling her face.

"This place is just full of charm, isn't it?"

Whipping around to face her visitors, Hermione's grin nearly split her cheeks.

Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood stood in her doorway.

She barreled towards them and nearly knocked them over with the weight of her hug. The sound of their laughter echoed in her ears and made her heart swell.

"Oh I've missed you both so much!"

"We've missed you too, Hermione." Luna brushed her thumb against Hermione's cheeks and wiped away the tears she hadn't known she was crying. "Three years is far too long."