AU. Dramione 8th year.
McGonagall puts in place "Therapy Sessions" where each student is assigned with another student to these sessions. However, due to a magical wall between them, the students don't know who they have these sessions with. Hermio...
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It felt strange being back in what Hermione last saw as a battlefield. Before the war, it was the only place she could call home, but she could hardly call it that after everything. Even though most parts of Hogwarts had been restored, it has been scarred and did not reflect the same light it once had.
Hermione had arrived a couple of hours ago and settled in her new dorm room. A new dorm section was built next to the quidditch pitch to accommodate eighth-year students. Every house had its own separate building, and students were allowed to choose whether they wanted a single room or a shared room and were able to select their roommate.
Even though Hermione was delighted at the idea of having her own room since she loved having her personal space without distractions after Ron had left their tent while the war was going on, it had taken a significant toll on her. She started having major abandonment issues and struggles to sleep by herself, so she ended up rooming with Ginny.
Even though Ginny was a year below her, she was able to skip both sixth and seventh years due to her outstanding war efforts. Hermione could've also easily lived up to her 'Golden Girl' status and skipped eighth year, but she refused and thought it wouldn't be unfair to others. Harry and Ron, however, were determined to skip their eighth years and start to train to become Aurors until Hermione convinced them otherwise by telling them that it would be better for them to take a break and have a chill year than immediately start to go into work. They were exhausted from the war, and she believed that overworking themselves would only cause more harm than good.
She was glad that Crookshanks seemed to like the new dorms. The cat had already found her spot on the chair next to the window. Hermione puffed her pillows up, lay on her bed, and looked around the room. It was nice that the dorm room's interior was more modern compared to her old room. It felt like a fresh start. Speaking about a fresh start, she looked at the clock; it was already five past four and McGonagall was going to give a welcome speech in ten minutes; she quickly got dressed and yelled at Ginny, who was in the shower, to be quick.
After Ginny was done, they started walking to the castle, and Hermione felt a bit anxious seeing her comrades' faces. After the war, she hadn't seen anyone besides Harry, the Weasley's, Luna and Neville. So she didn't know what to expect when entering the Great Hall. One part of her wanted everyone to be as cheerful as they were before the war, but the other found comfort in the possibility of seeing many miserable.
There were so many deaths, and most students had lost someone or several people in their lives due to the war. She tried not to overthink, but it was very challenging for her.
As they neared the Great Hall, Neville popped right beside them, "Hey," he said, and Hermione flinched. War PTSD was very prevalent in her life, and she flinched at most things or sudden movements.
