There were times - more often than she’d care to admit, in fact - that Hermione found herself wishing that she were more socially inclined.

It was not that she was particularly antisocial, of course; indeed, far from it. The problem was that she simply didn’t hold much value in the usual convivial niceties. Making friends was all very well, after all, but she usually found that she had more important things to do than to sit around and make small talk. Take today, for example. When several of the other nurses had asked her to join them a trip to Hogsmeade, instead of graciously accepting their invitation - as she perhaps should of - Hermione had decided that she simply had to get her paperwork in order, and rather shortly turned them down. Consequently, she had spent a rather dull afternoon trudging through eight years worth of research files, and she was beginning to wonder why she had bothered. Certainly the swaying towers of documents didn’t seem to be receding through her efforts. In fact if anything, they seemed to be growing, and Hermione was already half-convinced that someone had jinxed her desk to make the paper reproduce every time her back was turned.

As a nurse, Hermione did not have an office as such. What she did have was a desk pushed against a wall in the far corner of the Infirmary, and it was here that she was currently sitting, half-buried under a small mountain of medical reports. It was a far cry from the days when she’d had an entire laboratory at her disposal at St.Mungo’s, but beggars could not be choosers. She’d made it comfortable enough, however, and with the help of a potted shrub and an ancient swivel chair, the place was almost beginning to look homely. Still, there were a few remaining boxes to be unpacked in her room - perhaps she’d find a photograph or two to brighten up the walls.

She was just pondering whether a report on fumblebug stings should be filed under Creature-Induced Injury or Venoms and Poisons when she heard a set of haltering footsteps make their way into the Hospital Wing. Thoroughly engrossed with the task at hand, she did not look up, but continued to frown absently down at the document in front of her. If this was another first-year feigning sickness to avoid an Ancient Runes exam, she would not be held accountable for her actions…

“Hello?”

Preoccupied as she was, Hermione failed to recognise the voice immediately. It did, however, spark an echo of familiarity through her brain, and she quickly set her quill aside, craning her neck to peer over the stacks. To her surprise, it was not a student, but a Professor who had interrupted her solitude; a fair haired woman, with the most distinctly blue eyes that Hermione had ever seen. There was something about her face, though…she was certain she’d seen her somewhere before…

“Luna?” Hermione blinked, then suddenly broke into a grin. “Luna!” She rose swiftly from her desk, and, in an uncharacteristic display of affection, promptly swept the blonde up in a fierce hug. “My goodness, you have no idea how good it is to see you!”

She wasn’t joking either. Between work commitments and travelling, Hermione hadn’t seen much of Luna since leaving Hogwarts. They’d kept in touch via owls, of course, and she was still a very keen follower of The Quibbler, but they hadn’t actually met since…well, since before Hermione left for Bulgaria. Had it really been four years? Regardless, it was certainly good to see a friendly face, and Hermione gave her one quick squeeze before pulling apart, still smiling broadly.

“They told me that you had taken up a job here, but I couldn’t quite believe it. You seemed so devoted to The Quibbler.” She waved her over towards the desk, and pulled up another chair so that they could sit. “I’ve been following your articles, by the way. In fact, I suppose you’re at least partly the reason why I chose to come back. I saw your report on Professor McGonagall.” Her face clouded briefly, brow creased into a pensive frown. “I’m glad that The Quibbler chose to print the full details, you know. Nobody else seemed to give her more than a fleeting reference on a back page somewhere. I suppose we have our new headmaster to thank for that.”