Harry Potter 1. Introduction

Hello Readers:)

This is going to be a long story and I am a very busy person. I run my own store and I have a little boy who will be 2 in April so between the two I have no time to my self. So I would like to apologize for the lack of frequent updates right away. I don't want anyone to get their hopes up. I would really appreciate it if you kept up with it though because I have been working on this story for over a year now. I have half of the chapters written but the are complete out of order. I am really getting ahead of myself with posting the intro but I feel like I need this to get me motivated again. I am really invested in this story. Thank you:)

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It was days like this when she wondered why she fell in love with him in the first place. It wasn't as if it happened that long ago. Four years was not nearly enough time to forget why you loved someone. Wasn't marriage supposed to mean "... and they lived happily ever after?" Once the "I do's" & "Til death do us parts" are said, your search for your soul mate should be over.

Two years ago Miss Hermione Granger became Mrs. Hermione Weasley. With the new title came a new life, a new family and a new beginning. Time to start her life with her new husband who she loved more than anything. Ronald Weasley was the perfect balance to her life. He kept her on her toes and things were never boring.

She jumped right into her career right after completing her N.E.W.T.S. She was adapting nicely to life as a curse breaker. She was 3 years strong in her division and kept climbing the ranks. She was one retirement away from becoming Head of her Department at the Ministry.

Her & Ron had moved into their own flat just before the wedding and those first two years of their now four-year long relationship were seemingly perfect. They were happy. Perfectly happy. She had never had a big family of her own. it was just her, her mother and her father. No one else. She was now accepted into a rather large family. Sunday lunches were a priority. She had made the mistake of missing one and she never heard the end of it. You already knew that when Sunday rolled around you weren't going to make plans unless they were early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Sunday afternoon belonged to Molly. Hermione never minded it either. She was such a big part of their lives and Molly loved her as if she were her own. Just as she loved Harry. Hermione would never miss a Sunday lunch ever again.

Then of course there were days like today. Days when she wondered what had happened to the Ronald Weasley that she had so eagerly married two years earlier. If anyone would have told her two years ago that the man she loved, the man she cherished, the man she had married, would turn into the man that she knew today, she would have laughed in their face. The Ronald Weasley she knew certainly was not the one she had agreed to marry. This man was manipulative, unreliable, selfish, a very good liar and a very bad drunk. He never knew how to quit until he was plastered, angry, vulgar and just downright mean. Even then he still didn't quit, he just passed out and slept it off.

There was one good thing that came from days like this, just one. The guilt. The guilt was always the best. It brought on the apologies, the flattery, the gifts, the cards and flowers, and of course the best part... the make-up sex. Boy was the make-up sex worth it.

Days like today really made her think. Was today finally the day? Was today finally the day when she said enough was enough. She would contemplate it over and over again. Then, like always, she would decide against it. She would only leave him if necessary. Unfortunately she hadn't yet found a good enough reason to constitute divorce. If they were simply just a couple Hermione would have left some time ago. She had made a life long commitment to love Ron forever and she would, even if he didn't deserve it, which for the record he definitely did not. There was an 87% chance that tomorrow would bring a pleading Ron to her feet. He would beg for her forgiveness and exploit every soft spot she had for him. That's just what he was good at. A con-artist through and through. How he had become one, she could not tell you. She would cave in and he would win, he always won. Of course there were consequences and of course he would spoil her endlessly but he would still win. There was never more than one reason. The same reason every time. She was completely and helplessly in love with him. As the days, weeks, months and years passed, the reason had become steadily unclear.

Merlin only knew why she stayed with him. Why she put herself through this torture day in and day out. He was the first and only man she had ever been with intimately. He was the only man she had ever fallen in love with. Sometimes when she was upset with him or just fed up in general she would let her mind wander. Not too far of course out of respect. She would wonder what her life would have been like if she had chosen someone else. She needed someone who would treat her the way she deserved. Someone who thought about her before they decided to act. Someone who would rather spend their time with her, not sitting at a different bar every other night surrounded by beautiful strangers. Someone who would bring peace to her hectic life.

Ron loved her, she knew that. Of course he loved her. She was the best thing he had going in his life. When he messed up she was there to pick up the pieces that were left in his wake. Not to mention the nights that he stayed out later than two in the morning. She was the one who kept his transgressions out of the papers. She was the one who did damage control while he was at home sleeping it off. Unfortunately she always had a hard time with it simply because of Rita Skeeter's hatred towards her. Only a few had slipped through the cracks. It only made him look like he partied too hard one night here or there. No one knew what it was really like, just Harry and Ginny and at times George and Charlie. They all did their best at hiding it from the wizarding world. Twice a week was his minimum and thank Merlin he always went some place new. She didn't need him becoming a regular anywhere. Then again if he did she would at least no where he was.

He was headed down a path of self-destruction and it was only a matter of time before she had enough of her husband's behavior. He started making friends with the alcoholics and keeping the company of women she had never even met. She wasn't sure if it was jealousy or disgust that she felt so intensely. It was probably a mixture of both. Somehow he would talk his way out of it and things would be okay between them again. She would go a couple of days with him being sweet and apologetic then it would happen again. She was stuck in a never-ending cycle. As soon as she let her guard down then go and brag about how good he was doing to her friends he would go and mess things up once again.

The worst part was that he was so good at it. So good at breaking promises. So good at letting her know exactly where she stood in his eyes. At best, she was a distant second to the world around him.


	2. Drunk Driver

Today could very well be the day that she would kill her husband. Not the easy wizard way, oh no, she would do it the messy muggle way. Maybe a knife right to the chest. That sounded like the best idea she had all day, of course it was only 7:15 am so she hadn't had that many thoughts to start with.

He treated her as if "I do" meant that she would take anything the man threw at her. He assumed that no matter what, she would be there to pick up all the little pieces he left scattered on the floor. Truth be told, she was tired of cleaning up his messes. That's where she was now, in muggle London cleaning up his mess.

Seven-fifteen in the morning was way to early for her to be inside of a muggle police station waiting for Ron to be released into her care. They handed him over after signing a few documents and then returned his personal belongings to him. How the man ended up in these sort of situations was beyond her.

They caught him red-handed and he was embarrassed. Ronald Weasley rarely ever got caught. This time he had gone and given himself a muggle police record. At five this morning she had to transfigure a few old magnets into photo identification for the both of them. As well as come up with the title and tag information for the car he had stolen and crashed into a fire hydrant with his idiot friends. To top everything off he was above the legal limit of alcohol consumption. They branded her husband a drunk driver. Just lovely.

She kept her calm and smiled at the officer as she walked him outside. The cold February chill stung her cheeks as they walked around the corner towards the alley that they could apparate home from. Hundreds of questions and accusations fluttered through her mind.

When they reached the apparition point she turned to face Ron. He was staring at her as if he was pleading her to tell him everything was alright. She was so frustrated with the person in front of her it took everything in her not to explode at him right there. She knew better. She looked at him daring him to say a word so she could do just that. He handed her his arm and she took it, leaving the alley that she never should have seen in the first place.

When they arrived at home she left him standing in their living room. She laid her bag down on the counter and flung her coat over the kitchen chair. No sense in putting it away when she needed to leave so soon. She had twenty minutes to get ready and there was no way she was skipping a shower.

Ron had a completely different idea, "Say something 'Mione" he said gruffly. They hadn't spoken a word to each other since he had told her that he was on his way to Dean's house for a small get together and would be out past eleven.

She rounded on him, "As I am sure you are painfully aware of Ronald, there is nothing that I can say now that you are going to want to hear. I have twenty minutes to shower and get to work so just go sleep it off and I will see you tonight." She sighed and ran a hand through her curls.

She made her way through their flat to the bathroom. Ron followed and went to their bedroom but before he could turn around and tell her how much he loved her, she had the door to the bathroom shut and the water already running.

She knew he would try to make things right, he always did. She would get some sort of present and things would go back to normal. Right now she didn't care because work sounded a hell of a lot better than dealing with her husband.

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It was busy in the Ministry. Hundreds of memo's, flying overhead on their way to whichever department they were told to go to. Hermione was on her way to a meeting with Kingsley about a case that the Aurors requested her departments coöperation on. All she knew was that the case required the two best Curse Breakers in the department. She knew that meant it was her and Draco Malfoy. There was no one else more qualified. That was fine with her. Draco was incredibly easy to work with.

She was hoping that she would get partnered with Harry as her Auror but she already knew he was on assignment somewhere in France. The next best in the department was Zabini. She had worked with him on few occasions and would prefer him over almost anyone. Harry being the only exception. Blaise was professional and always a proper gentleman. He was funny at times and she found herself always smiling around him. He made the day go by so much faster. Whenever she mentioned his name to Ron he seemed to get awfully mad. He was the "incredibly jealous over nothing" type, so anytime she mentioned another man's name that wasn't directly in their close-knit group of friends Ron tended to explode. It didn't help that Blaise was muscular and tone. Even on his worst days he was a very attractive man.

It was Wednesday so she knew Malfoy wouldn't be at the meeting. He was never at work before noon on a Wednesday. Of course they had never really worked that much together, just a few times here and there. For the most part Curse Breakers only needed assistance from Aurors when out in the field, not other Curse Breakers. Regardless of how little they worked together she was highly aware of how skilled he was at his job. He was absolutely brilliant when it came to the Dark Arts. What better job than to reverse the spells he knew how to cast?

At the beginning she willed herself to not be cruel to him, though she desperately wanted to. It was hard being nice when all he did was tear her down but that was ages ago. She had come to respect him since their childhood. He had let past prejudices go and so had she. It had been over five years since he had been cruel to her. They never really exchanged more than a few 'Hello's' or 'Have a nice day's' but there was never any animosity. She found that being around him was easy when he wasn't sticking his nose where it didn't belong.

So as far as she could tell, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Blaise Zabini and herself would be attending the meeting. She would have to just wait and see who else would show. She walked into the half empty boardroom. Only the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt and Detective Gawain Robards, the Head of the Auror Department were present.

They both stood when she entered the room, "Mrs. Weasley, so nice to see you again. I hope all is well with you and your family." Kingsley smiled brightly at the witch in front of him.

"Yes Minister, it is. How are you?" Hermione asked as she embraced him in a friendly hug.

"Splendid, just splendid. We are just waiting for the others to arrive. Please do sit."

They all took their seats. She pulled out her quill and parchment ready to take notes when Blaise walked in the door alone.

"Ah Mr. Zabini. Good to see you, please take a seat." Robards instructed him. He sat beside Hermione as he also took out his quill and parchment. "Do tell me, why isn't Weasley with you?" he looked rather confused.

"Sir, He did not show up to work today. He owled in this morning saying he wouldn't be in until tomorrow morning." Blaise gave her a questioning look then averted his eyes back to his boss.

"Right. Oh well, he can go over the details with Malfoy tomorrow. Let's get to it then." Det. Robards sighed.

She exchanged a look with Blaise and voiced what they were both thinking, "Excuse me sir, I'm not sure I understood that. Are you putting my husband and Malfoy on a case together?"

Robards looked at her confused, "Yes, that's correct."

Blaise spoke next, "Do you expect them both to survive?"

"Yes Mr Zabini I do. I am sure they are both professional enough to do what we ask of them." and that was that.

Silence filled the room as they got ready to take their notes. It wasn't much of a meeting seeing as how only half of the people needed were in attendance. On the bright side of things it gave them more time together to prepare.

Two hours later and they were fully briefed on the case. It wasn't exactly a high-profile case, just one that required a little more finesse than was usually needed. Detective Beecher who worked in the Department of Mysteries had accidentally stumbled upon some dark artifacts while visiting her brother in Surrey. She had asked for discretion when she had informed the Minisrty. She knew that if leaked to the public, the Daily Prophet would have a field day with the information.

They asked their questions and took even more notes. By the time they had finished it was noon.

"Thank you Mrs. Weasley and Mr. Zabini. We are most assured that you will handle this case with as much delicacy as possible. We would expect nothing less from two of our best employees here at the Ministry." Kingsley concluded the meeting. He left with quick goodbyes with Head Auror Robards trailing close behind.

As soon as their bosses were gone Blaise cast a few charms to give them some privacy. It took Hermione by surprise but she recovered quickly, as far as she was concerned, Blaise was harmless. He wasted no time, he just jumped right in.

"Look, here is how I see this. Something is going on with you and your husband. I'm not sure what it is but I need to now before we get to involved in this case. You know how I work, I'm not going to betray your trust I just need to be prepared. We will be working long hours together and maybe overnight shifts so I need to know what I'm getting myself into."

If that statement had come from anyone else she would have ignored it and told him to mind his own business. Blaise just had a way of making everyone around him feel comfortable. That must be why he did so well with interrogations. He was one of those people you felt like you could tell your life story to without knowing a thing about them.

"It isn't just one thing. It's a series of events that just keep piling up. I'm running out of patience. He has a lot of growing up to do. He just keeps doing things to hurt me and there is only so much one person can handle. He will try to make up for it like he always does and that will be the end of it. There really isn't anything to worry about. I'll let you know if there is. Trust me, I've dealt with so much worse than this." she smiled as convincingly as she could. She really was one to wear her heart on her sleeve.

He smiled back at her and it was brilliant. The man in front of her was very easy to look at. His Auror training had him tone and sculpted rather nicely. He had beautiful eyes and a charming smile to go along with his great personality. It was a wonder the man was still single. She could not understand why Pansy would leave him but that was another story entirely.

Blaise came over to her a placed a hand on her shoulder, "I'm going to tell you the same thing you told me six months ago. If he can't realize that what he has in front of him is the only thing that he will ever need and without it he will surely fail, then he doesn't deserve it in the fist place. You'll find someone who does. Someone who wind spend every day thanking whichever God he chooses that you are in his life," he took her hand and squeezed it then continued, "You are a very wise woman Hermione. Personally, I think that Weasley will never realize what he has but that's not my place. He is my partner most of the time so I know how he is. If you ever need to talk, I'll listen. I'm glad they put us together. We work efficiently together and it's been too long since we have."

He packed up his things then brought down the wards he had placed. With one last smile he left the room.

She respected Blaise. He worked hard to get to the position he was now in at the Ministry. Maybe not as hard as Malfoy did but definitely harder than most. She knew how skilled he was as an Auror and he was almost as thorough as she was at paperwork. Which was such a relief when it came to filing the reports. Until this afternoon she had only ever seen him as nothing more than a co-worker. Now she wondered if maybe Blaise Zabini could be her friend. It was most certainly, food for thought.

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AN: Sorry for the delay. Hopefully it was worth the wait. I'll try to get another chapter up within two weeks. I know that seems too long but that's really the fastest I can go. As it stands now I'm looking at two chapters a month. It sucks and I'm dreadfully sorry.

Also, thank you to the ones that reviewed and the followers :) I appreciate it immensely!


	3. Wednesdays

Draco Malfoy sat in the armchair right outside of Dr. Forbes office. He had been waiting for almost two hours. Last week he was there for seven hours. Today was going to be an easy day. He was irritated but at least he only had another ten minutes to wait.

Draco Malfoy hated Wednesdays. He always ended up taking either a Calming Draught or a Pepper Up Potion before the day was over. On rare occasions he needed a Wide Eye Potion to get through the day, then he would have to use a Sleeping Draught just to go to sleep at night. Wednesdays were never good. He stayed at the doctor's office long hours then went to his job at the Ministry until he couldn't hold his eyes open any longer.

There was only one reason and one reason alone that he even bothered with it at all, for his mother. She was the only thing keeping him in that chair week after week. It wasn't that he didn't care for his father, there would always be a part of him that sought his fathers approval, no matter how much he didn't want it. He couldn't understand how after everything that his father had done and all the mistakes that he had made, his mother just forgave him. Just like that. She was blindly in love with a man who showed no remorse for the wrong he had committed against their family. He had never once apologized, or tried to set things right. They came out of the war by the skin of their teeth and he walked around like somehow everything he had done had been justified. She may hold no contempt towards Lucius but the same could not be said for Draco. Instead of arguing with his mother he sat in that same chair every Wednesday morning. She would just have to understand that showing up was all he was willing to do for his father.

He would show up every Wednesday morning at the Manor where his father would be waiting for him. They would apparate to the doctor's office in London. He would sit in that same chair and wait until the doors opened for him to take his father home. He would put him to bed until next Wednesday. He would have lunch with his mother at various restaurants, muggle and wizarding alike, but never at the Manor and never with his father. No matter how hard his mother would try to convince him to stay around, he never would.

Ironically enough, the man who loathed and despised muggles the way Lucius Malfoy did, he was slowly wasting away from one of their diseases. He had stage two pancreatic cancer. His father's chemotherapy treatments were unbearable for his mother to watch so he stepped in on her behalf. That was the reason he occupied that forsaken chair, for her. It was painful for her and he hated to see her in pain. Truth be told, it only bothered him when the man threw up on him. Otherwise, there was no love loss.

So he sat. Ankle rested on his knee, blank expression, silent and still.

"Mr. Malfoy." a small familiar voice came from behind him as the door to the doctor's office opened off to his left.

Scowling at the proper use of his name he stood and smoothed out the crease in his slate grey dress slacks in one fluid motion. He turned to see Ashley, the nurse that tended to his father after all of his treatments. She had his father in a wheel chair in front of her. His father was never grateful for the anything the young RN did for him. She was always pleasant towards them even though his father never was. In her line of work she was probably used to it. She most likely chalked it up to being the effects that the chemo had on him. Little did she know, that was always his disposition.

He looked barely conscience in his wheelchair. He looked to Ashley and she was shaking her head slowly. He knew what that meant. It hadn't gone well. He thanked her and they were on their way out of the door.

It was bright outside and he had to squint before his eyes adjusted to the sun. He walked his father a block south to a deserted alley so they could disapparate to his childhood home. Just before they disappeared he glanced left in the direction he had just come from. He faintly made out two figures walking in their direction. Both were concentrated on the ground under their feet and hadn't noticed his existence. He knew who they were, there was no mistaking his red hair and tall frame. He would know those brown wavy curls anywhere. The question was , what were Mr and Mrs Weasley doing in Muggle London and why did she look so disappointed and torn down. Trouble in paradise perhaps? How intriguing. He had needed a distraction and it looked as if he had found one.

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Malfoy Manor was quiet. His mother wasn't anywhere to be found as usual. He took his father straight to his quarters and placed him in his bed. Thankfully the man was so out of it he didn't try to talk to Draco. He had no desire at all to talk to the man. Father or not, he could barely stand the sight of him.

He knew what was coming, he knew the odds. He wasn't going to get attached to the man just to have him taken away. Maybe one day he would make his peace but that day was too far in the future for him to see.

He made sure his father was comfortable, then he called for the house elves to take over his care. They knew the routine just as well as Draco did.

He would go find his mother and let her know Lucius was home and he was leaving.

He found Narcissa in the garden staring at the fountain in the courtyard. He only found her out here on few occasions and they are never good ones.

"Mother?" he asked as he approached her.

"Oh Draco. What are we going to do?" she sighed. She had bags under her eyes which meant she forgot her glamour. Today must have been a rough day.

"Are you alright mother?" Draco placed a hand on her shoulder. She was cold to the touch.

"How long have you been out here? You are freezing." he took off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. He summoned a house elf to fetch her a robe.

"I'm doing well I suppose, just thinking too much. As for how long it's been, I can't be sure." she shivered as she answered.

"Let's get you inside." he said as the elf appeared with her robe. He replaced his jacket and led her back towards the Manor.

"I'm fine dear. How is your father?"

"Mother, you aren't fine. You need to worry about yourself, father is taken care of. He has elves watching him and Healers here every other day. Every precaution has been taken. Please take care of yourself. No more standing outside in the middle of winter without your robes." Draco persisted.

"Alright Draco. I'll take care of myself. You know Wednesdays are hard on me." she smiled over at him as convincingly as she could.

They made their way into the Manor's tea room. Narcissa summoned an elf to bring her and Draco tea. Draco cast a warming charm on her for extra measure. Soon they were sipping their tea while he silently watched her.

"You know Draco dear, I'm not as fragile as I seem."

"I know that. Sometimes I just wonder about you, all alone in this big house. It's not healthy."

"I'm not alone. I have your father." she said matter-of-factly.

"No you don't. He is in no place to be a comfort or be of any company to you." he replied.

"He is still here and until he isn't I am not alone. If you feel so strongly about it, you could always move back in." she was starting to get defensive.

Draco stiffened. That would never even be an option and his mother knew that. It was her way of telling him to drop the subject.

"I know you are worried but please don't be. I'm fine. Your father is home and resting now." she smiled again.

"Ok mother. I'm going to leave for work now. If you need anything don't hesitate to ask."

He stood and kissed his mother on the forehead before he made his way to the travel room.

If he wasn't scheduled to work he would have flooed straight to a pub and ordered a firewhiskey. Unfortunately that wasn't an option. He would have to settle for his usual café in London. Today was just going to be one of those days.

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AN: Thanks to all my readers! I love you all :)


	4. Wait

AN: I'm updating rather quickly this time! It's only because this chapter was already written and typed up. Lucky you! Thanks for all the reviews and favorites and follows. It really makes my day, you have no idea. Keep reviewing! Enjoy:)

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The café in the middle of Muggle London that Draco Malfoy was currently sitting in was quite empty for it being only a little after one in the afternoon. He sat quietly at his table for two near the back corner of the shop looking out of the window at the rain as it came down hard. His cup of black coffee was barely touched. His thoughts were still back at the Manor with the image of his father, fragile, bitter and cynical in his bedroom. The man he once adored, once hated and now pitied. It seemed unfair that he would die a Muggle death. Fitting, but still unfair. He had always imagined his father's death as something of his own choosing. Fighting a war or perhaps a duel to the death where someone got the best of him. Maybe even defending some cause. Never did he imagine his father dying slowly of a disease as an old man.

Draco was so lost in his own thoughts he almost missed the cheery voice coming from the blonde waitress trying to pour him another coffee. She was too happy for him so he just waved her off.

As she walked off the woman walking in the door caught his eye. She wore muggle jogging pants with a matching form-fitting jacket. She was drenched from the rain. She must have been out for an afternoon run when the rain started. It was too cold for all that in his opinion but who was he to judge her? He had done enough of that already. Her chocolate curls were wet and flat to her head. Draco watched her as she quickly pulled all of her hair on top of her head and tied it. It was wet so it must have been heavy but she made it look natural. She walked to the counter and ordered her drink. She smiled, paid for her drink then turned to look for a table. After only a few seconds their eyes met. Normally under any other circumstances he wouldn't have let anyone know was watching. He would have adverted his gaze before they established eye contact. This time he just couldn't seem to break the connection. Thankfully the barista handed her what she had ordered so she had to turn away. As she did Draco looked down into his mug and prayed she didn't want to have a casual conversation. He was no good at small talk. As she made her way to his table he knew he would have to down his coffee fast to avoid the conversation as much as possible. It wasn't that he had a problem talking to her, on the contrary, he found that she was the only person who could keep up with his intelligence. He just didn't feel like doing it just yet. He had enough on his mind as it was.

"May I?" she asked.

He gestured to the seat across from him. Hopefully this wouldn't take long.

"Have you been into the office yet?"

"No," he stated flatly still looking into his mug.

"Oh, well there is a memo from the Minister and Head Auror Robards. I took a considerable amount of notes so if you have any questions or want to go over anything with me just let me know. Ron wasn't there this morning either so Zabini has to fill him in as well." she sipped her drink.

Now that had piqued his interest. "Why wasn't Weasley there?" his curiosity getting the best of him, "We all know that I'm unavailable on Wednesday mornings so what's his excuse?"

Hermione's eyes grew big and her cheeks flushed just a bit. She was having a hard time looking him in the eye. She stared into her coffee.

"It's personal." her voice cracked. He had a feeling that she was beating herself up over the whole ordeal.

She never liked to show emotion in front of him. Their relationship was always professional and he liked it that way. The friendliest they had ever gotten was on one occasion where Hermione had defended him to her superiors on a worked related issue. He was crossing a line asking her something personal and he knew it. They had somewhat of an unspoken agreement, if he stayed out of her personal life she would stay out of his. It was that simple. For the most part, its was working well. If they crossed lines and asked the wrong questions they would have to answer ones they didn't want to as well.

He knew exactly where the line was and he was dangerously close to crossing it. He had been fine all this time but now he knew she had secrets. He knew there were things she kept hidden away that he had no business knowing. He knew that if he asked the question he was dying to know the answer to that there would be no going back. He would push until he got what he wanted. That's just how he worked.

He looked at her then, really looked at her. She was biting her bottom lip as she circled the rim of her coffee mug with her index finger. Although she had a beautiful face, her features seemed worn like she hadn't been sleeping. She had circles under her golden brown eyes. Her body language was screaming exhaustion but that could have been from the run she just had. Somehow he highly doubted that. She was always good at putting up so much of a fight, the woman seemed fearless. He wondered if she let anyone see who she really was. Did her husband even know? He decided in that moment that he wanted to find out.

"Does it have to do with why you were at a muggle police station this morning?"

Her eyes grew big as she stopped circling her mug.

That line they had spent so much time avoiding was not only crossed but it was gone.

* * *

"That's also personal Malfoy." she managed to choke out.

She looked into her cup of coffee while she tried to compose herself. She was unaware that anyone was watching her that morning. She didn't want her personal life becoming public and she sure as hell didn't want all of the wizarding world knowing her husband's transgressions.

Here sitting in front of her was an extremely poised, professional man asking her about her most private secrets. If she were honest with herself she was scared out of her mind at what Malfoy could uncover.

Now that she was taking the time to notice, he looked awfully tired. He looked as if the world weighed heavy upon his shoulders. Draco Malfoy never came to work before noon on a Wednesday. He never spoke to anyone that wasn't family, Blaise Zabini or Pansy Parkinson. He didn't let anyone see him in public unless he was out with his mother. He spoke in simple single word responses. Since the war he had never asked her a question that wasn't work related or about the weather, until today.

Malfoy had started something she wasn't exactly sure they were prepared to explore.

Draco did have a tendency to stick his nose where it didn't belong. It did wonders for him when it came to his work but it couldn't be too healthy when it came to relationships. She was sure he asked questions he really wouldn't want the answers to and it would cause more harm then good. He did have a way of pushing buttons that no one else dared to. He would have done well as a Prosecutor or an Auror but unfortunately the Ministry didn't feel right putting an Ex-Death Eater in such a position.

"I'll find out." he challenged.

"What exactly makes you so sure you will?" she countered. She had no doubts in his abilities she just didn't want him to know that, so she went on the defensive at the first sign of a threat.

"Your husband has a way of getting himself in the papers more often than anyone I know." his smirk was starting to appear.

"Yes well, no one believes what's in the Daily Prophet." she was getting flustered. She didn't want Malfoy prying. She tended to get hurt when people started asking too many questions.

"Some people do. Now I don't of course but it isn't all entirely fabricated. There is some truth to the things that are printed. I'm just curious about what you had to do to keep some of the things he's done out of the papers." he eyed her quizzically.

"What do you mean?" her voice came out less controlled than she had hoped. He was making her uncomfortable. She looked up into his grey eyes and for a moment she couldn't breathe. His eyes were remarkable. She was really beginning to wish she hadn't decided to sit with him.

"Pansy just loves to gossip. I've heard the rumors."

She gasped, "Rumors? What rumors? Since when are there rumors?"

She was frantic now. What were people saying about Ron? Were they talking about her as well? Did they know about the alcohol abuse? Did they know things she didn't? Malfoy just stared at her taking her features in. They were analyzing each other. She knew how she must have looked to him. Panicked and scared. He must have known how well he was doing at unnerving her.

He decided to change the subject."I'm assuming that I work with you on this case?" he asked as he turned his attention to his coffee.

Hermione was glad that the interrogation was over but she would find out what he knew at some point. Just not today.

"In a way. You are actually paired with Ron and I'm Zabini's partner. "

Malfoy had kept his cool until that moment.

"Weasley?! Who's brilliant idea was it to partner me with your idiot husband? Do they actually think that he would keep me safe? No, I wouldn't put it past him to just sit back and watch me get hurt! Hell, he'd probably help. What were they thinking?!" Malfoy let his mug crash to the ground. Hermione flinched. All eyes were on them.

"Malfoy calm down. I'm sure he just thought that the both of you were mature enough to work together without letting the past become a problem." she hushed hoping he would lower his voice as well.

"A problem Granger?! Look I have no problem saying hello to _you_. No problem acknowledging _you_ in public. No problem working with _you_ on cases. You are a very intelligent woman and I enjoy working with you. It takes no effort because we work well together. I can sit here and have coffee with _you._ You I have no problem with Granger but when it comes to your husband that is where I draw the line. He has not said one kind thing to me since the war, and now that I think about it I'm pretty sure it's just the opposite. There is no way that our boss can expect this of me."

Draco moved to leave and Hermione's world slowed down.

Malfoy had called her Granger. She hadn't been called that in years and she liked the way it rolled off of his tongue. Maybe old habits died hard.

She did know that he was right. Ron had never been kind to him. As much as she tried to change his mind he couldn't remove his prejudice against the Malfoy's. She wasn't about to try to defend him, Draco had every right to feel the way he did. Ron had a way of making everyone around him miserable even if he wasn't trying.

What she didn't know was how Malfoy saw her. Sure everyone knew she was smart. Almost all of the wizarding world respected her for her part in the war and her intelligence. She was unaware that he felt the same way that others did. She always assumed he tolerated her because he had to.

This conversation was turning into something entirely different then it had started out as.

Malfoy threw his tip on the table and went to walk past her to the exit. She didn't think about it. She didn't over analyze it before it happened as she always did. Oddly enough she didn't even realized it happened until the word was out of her mouth.

She slowly and gingerly reached her hand out as he passed her, her fingers caught in his hand and she exhaled, "Wait."

It was barely above a whisper but when he stopped she knew he heard her. He looked down at their hands then his grey eyes met her golden brown ones. For the second time that day, she couldn't breathe. She searched his eyes looking for something, anything to tell her what was going on in this little coffee shop between the two of them. If he knew, the was no trace of it in those eyes. He was always one to keep himself and his emotions hidden. She briefly wondered if it was only a defense mechanism but decided to file that away for later.

In that moment two things happened. Hermione Weasley realised that she wanted to know everything there was to know about Draco Malfoy. For the first time in his life, Draco Malfoy waited. He went back to his seat, sat down and waited, just because Hermione Weasley had asked him to.


	5. Workaholic

One week. Just one simple work week was all it had been since they had started on the Beecher case and it had already become a complete mess.

Ronald and Draco was constantly at each others throats. It took everything in Hermione not to petrify the both of them and let her and Blaise handle it themselves. Draco would complain about Ron when they saw each other at the office and when she got home she heard the same thing from Ron. It was getting to be rather exhausting. Blaise was keeping her sane but just barely. She couldn't wait for Harry to get back so he could get Ron out of her hair. She needed some peace and quiet.

It would be a bit easier today since it was Wednesday and Draco wouldn't be around until at least noon. That gave her the entire morning to work in peace.

She got settled behind her desk to start her to-do list when someone swung her door open violently. It startled her so much she lost half of her mug of tea onto her stack of new parchment.

Blaise came bounding in the room furiously, "Hermione! I swear to Merlin if you don't get a good grip on that husband of yours it will take you at the very least six months to find his body!"

He was pacing recklessly and Hermione was afraid he would make something explode involuntarily. She had never seen him this upset before.

She waved her wand and did a quick clean up, then locked and sound proofed her office. She walked around to the front of the desk so she could prop herself against it while observing her partners behavior.

"What is going on? What did Ronald do now?" she asked while still watching him.

"He thinks that just because Malfoy gets the morning off that he doesn't have to do any work at all. That would be true if he didn't have us so far behind in paperwork. We have only been working on this case one week! One week! Surely you would think that there was no way we could be so far behind but no, your husband hasn't done one ounce of paperwork since we started the case and I am inches from snapping his neck."

Blaise stopped pacing and threw himself in one of the chairs dejectedly. He put his head in his hands and just sat there.

"Okay, well, Ron has never really done paperwork. Think back to Hogwarts, do you ever remember him handing in homework? Did you finish all of your paperwork? Oh and please don't snap his neck. I've been to entirely too many funerals as it is."

Blaise smiled," Well when you put it that way... and yes, I have finished all of my paperwork he just needs to do his half and it would be done. Robards is breathing down my neck. You must love working with Draco, he's always been so thorough. Can you please talk to him?"

"Who? Draco?" Hermione questioned.

"My thoughts do tend to override my mouth. No, can you talk to your husband for me? I would really appreciate it. I need to be able to work without wanting to kill your husband." Blaise sighed.

"Join the club, Draco is probably only centimeters from snapping his neck. Hey, since you are here can I get you to run through the layout of the house one more time? Since the plan is to do this on Friday I would like to know exactly how we are going in."

"Of course. Just promise that you will talk to your husband for me." he pleaded.

"Alright I promise."

* * *

"Mione is that you?"

Hermione walked into her flat to the sound of her husband's voice.

"Yes, it's me." She put her things down. The apartment was dimly lit with candle light. There were candles lining the walkway into the kitchen. She followed the path and was stunned at the sight before her. There had to be over one hundred candles lit. They were everywhere, in the air, on the table, lining the room and in the window. The table was set with formal place settings and wine chilling to the side. She looked over to her husband who was dressed in his dark denim jeans that she loved and a beige long-sleeved button up. His hair was tousled just a bit and his sleeves were pushed up a quarter length.

"What is all of this?" she asked her anxious husband.

"Do you like it? I hope you're hungry. I went to the Burrow at lunch to get the recipe for the roasted chicken you love so much." he smiled.

"I don't know what to say."

Ron closed the gap between them. He wrapped him arms around her and looked down into her eyes, "Do you know how much I love you?"

"I love you too but that doesn't mean that I'm not still furious at you."

"I know that, but it's a start." he smiled and kissed her.

She smiled as he led her to her seat then took the one opposite her. With a wave of his wand their food appeared in front of them. Silence engulfed them as they ate their dinner.

She could feel her husband staring at her but she refused to let herself look in his direction, it would just go straight to his head. Truthfully she was still too angry at him. He was trying his hardest to make up for his mistake but she wouldn't let it go that easily. Ron got away with too much as it stood.

"So, how was work?" he asked in between bites.

"Actually I'm glad you brought that up." she took a drink of her wine and continued, "Blaise came to see me today."

He sat his fork down, swallowed his food and finished off his glass of wine, "What did he want?"

"Well he came in complaining that you haven't done any of your paperwork then we talked about the raid on Friday."

He shifted,"So why exactly was he complaining to you?" His tone started to change.

"Maybe because I'm your wife."

"Look, it isn't his place to come running to you when he has a problem with me. He shouldn't be telling you things to make you mad at me. If I had wanted you to know I would have told you myself." he was getting red and starting to sound hostile.

"Ron, wouldn't you rather him come to me and have me address the issue instead of reporting you to Robards?"

"He was going to report me?!" he raised his voice.

He was looking more and more agitated as the conversation progressed. He was angrier than Hermione expected him to be.

"Don't yell at me. I don't know if he was going to report you or not, he really doesn't seem like that type. I'm just telling you that its better for you when he comes to me." she looked at him directly and saw his shoulders shaking with what she assumed was anger. He was getting more worked up than necessary.

"Seriously Hermione, you spend more time with Blaise than needed. Don't forget you have a husband to come home to. You let me worry about my job and you worry about yours."

How dare he insinuate such things! She was nowhere even remotely close to being that type of woman. Yes she spent time with Blaise but they were working on a case together for Merlin's sake! He was giving her a headache and she had no intention on fighting with him tonight. She decided to choose her battles and this one didn't make the cut.

"Alright. I was just helping." she sighed.

"Well I don't need your help." he responded sharply as he started eating again.

Hermione dropped her fork and gaped at her oblivious husband. That was the absolutely worst thing he could have possibly said to her in that moment.

"You don't need my help?" she managed to choke out with her mouth going dry.

"No Hermione. I do not need your help I am a big boy, I can take care of myself." his voice dripping with arrogance.

"Okay." she stated. She stood and pushed her chair in.

"Oi, where are you going?" he questioned.

"I'm going back to work to finish the work I left over for tomorrow. If you don't need my help I'm going to go somewhere I can be of use. And before you get any silly notions in your head, Blaise left an hour before I did so no he isn't there. Thank you for dinner, it was lovely."

She was halfway out the door before he called to her,"Thanks for using my words against me, that's really mature."

Without turning around she replied,"Oh you're welcome. Next time you get yourself into trouble please refrain from calling for me. If I'm not needed I would prefer not to be bothered."

She started picking up her things to get ready to floo to work when suddenly strong arms were spinning her around. Ron looked absolutely fierce.

"I did all of this for you, to say I was sorry about the car, and you have the nerve to throw it in my face. It's not my fault you had to ruin tonight by getting into my business." he still had an iron grip on her upper arms.

"We are married. It is our business! If you hadn't said that you didn't need me then I wouldn't have said a word even after you insinuated that what I have with Blaise is anything other than professional. I was ready to drop it then you opened your big mouth."

She tried to shake him off but it was useless. He was stronger than she was from all the Auror training he had.

"You know what, just go. All you want to do is fight, so leave." he let her go and walked away. All the candles disappeared and she was left alone in the dark room.

Of course he would make it all her fault. He was so infuriating sometimes.

She had to finish her work and had planned to return to the office that night anyway but he didn't need to know that.

* * *

When she appeared in the lobby the place was deserted. The front desk receptionist was packing up her things for the evening.

"Have a good night Liz." she said as she was passing the blondes desk.

"Oh Hermione! You startled me. Thank you. Try not to pull another all-nighter." she smiled.

"I'll try. I have at the very least another two hours of work to do so I can't make any promises." she smiled back.

"Good night."

She made her way to her office when she noticed faint sounds coming from Draco's office. Curiosity got the best of her so she walked towards the noise. As she approached she heard Draco's exasperated voice as she listened in, "... I know. I'm sorry that you had to go through that. Today was really rough and I barely got him to his room before he convulsed. He was more rude than normal to Ashley and I had to leave. Do you need me to come there tonight?" Draco sighed.

An older woman's voice responded, "No dear I'll be alright. I just needed to talk to someone."

"Are you sure mother?"

That answered Hermione's question about who the woman was.

"Yes dear. Don't work yourself to hard."

Hermione left and walked to her office. From what she could decipher, Draco's father was causing problems and Mrs. Malfoy was shook up. She would file that information away for later. She still had a headache from Ron.

She shifted through papers and texts as she tried to learn all she could about the Beecher's and their heritage. The words were starting to blur together. She waved her hand and the time appeared, it was quarter past nine and she was exhausted. She started to organize her files and texts so she could pick up where she left off in the morning.

"I think you are a workaholic." the familiar lazy drawl came from a tired looking Draco.

"I think you might be right about that." she wiped her eyes and tried to focus, "You look tired, I think you are right up there with me."

He let a soft chuckle escape his throat, "True. Although I have my reasons for being here so late. I didn't get here until one thirty. I only put in eight hours today. How many are you in for?" He crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame.

"Hmm, well I got here around eight, I left at six to go home then I got back around seven. So, I'm somewhere close to thirteen." she let out a small yawn as she stretched her arms from their stiff position.

"Let me guess, the Weasel wasn't home so you got bored and decided to work?" he smirked.

"Strike one."

His brow furrowed as he looked at her in confusion.

"Oh sorry its a muggle expression. Guess again."

"Oh ok, hmm... you had a fight and decided that coming back to work was easier?"

"Bingo. Oh right, sorry again. Correct." she yawned again.

"You should probably get to bed Granger. We have a lot to cover tomorrow." he spoke just above a whisper.

"I know." she smiled at him.

As he turned to leave she had an idea, "Hey Malfoy?"

"Yes?" he looked back at her.

"Tomorrow before work, do you want to grab some coffee? We may need it." she asked nervously. Unfortunately she had no idea why she was nervous in the first place.

"I'd love to. The same café as before?"

"Yeah that sounds good to me."

"See you at seven."

"Good night." she smiled at him as brightly as she could at that hour.

"Good night Granger." he gave her a small smile as he turned and left the room.

Who knew that asking Draco Malfoy to a simple morning coffee would make her feel so giddy?

* * *

A/N: sorry for any misspelling or any typo's. I typed it up in a hurry. My son's second birthday is tomorrow and I know I'm not going to have much time to do anything for the next week or so. Thank you for understanding!


	6. Coffee

The café that Draco Malfoy now occupied was experiencing its normal weekday morning rush. Plenty of people would come in, order, wait for their beverages and pastries, then leave. There was only a handful of patrons that actually sat and enjoyed their morning.

Draco had noticed that the majority of the population was just too busy to stop and take a breath before their workday started. Everyone was just so wrapped up in their own insignificant lives that there was no time for themselves. Of course he empathized, he too could be accused of such things. Not this morning though, he very well planned on slowing down and taking the time away from his stressful life to partake in the curious distraction better known as Hermione Granger. Dwelling on thoughts of her far surpassed the idea of his sick father.

When she invited him to coffee he gladly welcomed the distraction, not that he would admit that aloud. She was wound up so tight in her own world of problems that she most likely invited him out of a need of a distraction, if only for a few moments. Maybe they both needed the same thing.

Things with his father were progressing badly and he could barely stand his mother's constant over analyzation of the man's state of being. Yes, she was worried about him and rightfully so, but he had the best Healers and Physicians money could buy. Pestering him consistently on the matter was just useless to her cause. There was nothing else that could be done for him that wasn't already taken care of.

"Morning Draco."

He looked up expecting to see brown eyes and brown curls but instead he was met with blue eyes and black hair. Pansy Parkinson was standing in front of him and she looked positively stunning in her long-sleeved knee-length chiffon dress. Her sleek, straight, shoulder length hair was pushed back by her matching sunglasses.

"Morning Pansy. You look lovely as ever. What do I owe the pleasure?" his charm shining through as he offered the chair across from him with a simple wave of his hand.

"Oh cut it out. I stopped becoming affected by your charm in sixth year and you know it," she sat down and took a sip from his coffee, "Ugh! This is disgusting. Anyway, I'm waiting for someone. Care for the company?"

"Sure, although I am also waiting for someone so, when she arrives I'm going to need you to scatter." he smirked.

"Ah. It's a 'she' is it? Tell me Draco, who is this woman you speak of?" her grin was sly at best as she crossed her ankles.

"Just a co-worker Pans."

"Oh sure. You never have morning coffee with just anyone. You pick your company well. Again, who is she?" she narrowed her eyes at him.

"Let's talk about your company shall we? Who are you here to meet?" he leaned into the table and challenged her with his intensity. She might be accustomed to his charm but he could still make her squirm.

As if on cue, Hermione walked into the cafe. If he had to describe her in one word, it would have been nice. She looked nice in her simple black slacks and light grey cashmere sweater. Her hair looked nice pulled back into a loose bun with a few strands left to frame her face. Draco couldn't help but think that she was beautiful. She wasn't beautiful the Pansy was with legs to her neck and a tan that British women only ever dreamed of having. She could put a paper bag on and somehow end up making it look sexy but that's what most models could do. Pansy was gorgeous and made almost every woman she met envy her. That was Pansy, but Granger? She was the everyday, conventional kind of beauty. The kind that if you were out shopping you could pass right by her without noticing but the second you laid eyes on her you didn't want to look away.

Pansy noticed the shift in his demeanor and looked to the entrance. She watched as Hermione made her way to their table.

"Hermione Weasley?! Draco are you nuts? She's married, and a muggleborn and the smartest witch in any room that she walks into, oh Oh and did I mention that she's Harry Potter's best friend?!" Pansy hissed only loud enough for his ears.

"Pansy hush! I told you that we were just co-workers now, scatter." he hissed right back.

"If she is only a co-worker then you won't mind me interrupting for a few minutes." she pasted a fake smile on her lips.

Hermione barely made it to the table before Pansy started in on her with the most insincere sweet voice he had ever heard, "Hermione. It's so good to see you. I'm just waiting for my friend to get here. You don't mind do you?" she smiled brightly.

_Oh, she's good._

"Of course not. It's nice to see you again as well Pansy. How are you?" she asked as she sat in between the pair.

"I'm okay. Lots of work to finish before the deadlines and all."

"Oh that's right. Congratulations on the promotion. Going from head model to running your own fashion line is a great achievement. I can't imagine what a change of pace it must be for you."

Pansy regarded the women for a moment and Draco knew exactly what was going through her mind. Granger was impressed with her and that was impressive all on its own.

"Thank you. Most people don't see it as that much of an achievement. They just see me as the brainless model that gets to design her own outfits now."

"Oh no! Don't let anyone talk about you that way! I have a distant cousin in the muggle fasion industry and he does all the fittings for the models. I've been behind the scenes once or twice so I know how hectic and stressful it is. It takes a lot of dedication to make it to where you have." she took a sip of her coffee.

How did he miss her ordering her coffee?

"I really appreciate that Hermione. Thank you." Pansy went from fake to completely sincere in less than five minutes. That _had_ to be a record.

"So, how long have you two been together?" Pansy asked bluntly.

The look on Hermione's face was priceless. He was sure his would have been as well if hadn't been controlling it. She nearly choked on her drink and had to cough to recover.

"Excuse me?" she managed to breathe out after getting a handle on her lung capacity.

"How long have you and Draco been partners? Draco hadn't brought it up so I wasn't sure." she asked innocently but Draco knew her well enough to that she was trying to shake them up.

"Oh. Well, right now we are working on the same case together but I'm not sure that makes us partners. Blaise is the Auror that I was partnered with."

This time Draco noticed the change in his friend's demeanor. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Blaise walking in the front door.

"Speak of devil." Draco announced Blaise's presence just seconds before he approached the group.

"Hello everyone." he greeted with his brilliant smile, "... wasn't aware I would be seeing all of you this morning. You ready for tomorrow?"

"We will be after today." Draco answered with ease.

"Good to hear. Sorry I'm late Pansy. I'm running behind so if you don't mind, can we walk and talk?"

"Of course," she stood and returned her sunglasses to her eyes, "Hermione, Draco, it's been a pleasure." Pansy said with a little more edge than necessary. She took the arm that Blaise had offered her and walked away.

"That was interesting." Hermione mentioned as they left.

"Yes, it was." but he didn't elaborate. He knew his friends well, or so he thought. He seemed so casual while Pansy was the one with her guard up. That made his curiosity run rampant. The table fell silent and Hermione's fidgeting brought him out of his thoughts.

"Enough about them, how are you Granger? You've worked more and more hours lately." Draco thickly laid on the charm. He had never used it on the former Gryffindor and was unaware of the effects it would cause.

"Oh." she continued fidgeting to his annoyance but at least he knew he could make her nervous. She stared at her cup on the table so hard he thought she was going to shatter it. Merlin knew he had done it one too many times himself. Her brow was furrowed and she had wrinkles on her nose from concentrating so hard. He was about to ask her what was going on inside that head of hers when she sighed. She had obviously come to a decision.

"Which would you prefer, the truth which I assure you is harder to swallow or the fabrication I tell everyone else?"

He waited a moment before answering just to give her the illusion that he was actually thinking it over. He knew full well that he wanted to know the truth, "The truth will do."

"Well, Ron is hardly ever home and what fun is it to stay home alone all night? I'd rather be doing something productive." she confessed. Her shoulders relaxed and her worry lines softened. He silently wondered how many people really knew about her relationship with her husband.

Not that he cared about the Weasel at all, but he needed to get her to talk if she was going to be a suitable distraction. "Where is he? Can't you just go where ever he goes?"

She lowered her head as she answered his question quietly, "I don't know where he goes most times. He just shows up when he deems it necessary."

"And you are okay with that?" he asked incredulously.

"No I'm not Malfoy but, I pick my battles wisely and this isn't one of them."she sighed, the frustration starting to show.

"Well why don't you just tell him that you aren't okay with it. You're Hermione Granger, the world listens to you." he said flippantly.

"Don't pretend to know what it's like to be me. You can't even get my name right. You have no idea what you are talking about." she was irritated but continued, "Let's not talk about my family, I'd rather discuss yours. How is your mother?"

This time Draco had to hold back from choking. She had just turned the tables on him and he wasn't ready in the least. Vague honesty was always the best response when you're put on the spot.

"She is doing well, thank you. Why do you ask?" he looked at her skeptically.

"Well, your father has rarely been seen in public in the last two years. If I'm correct I think it's been three times a year. I won't pretend to know why or even try to guess. What I do know is that it can't be easy on your mother, whatever it is. I just wonder how she is sometimes. We have never been close Malfoy, so I couldn't just stop by with coffee and ask how she is. I have never liked your father and most likely never will but your mother is a different story."

All Draco could do was stare at the witch in front of him. Granger had no reason to care anything at all about his mother, yet here she was, asking about her well-being. True, his mother was having a hard time with his father's illness and true she wasn't as fine as he made her out to be. Hermione didn't know those things but she was still there in front of him asking questions that he didn't want to answer. The woman was full of surprises.

"Don't look at me like that. She did what she had to, to save her son. No matter where her loyalties were in the war she risked everything, her life included, to keep her son safe. She is a lot braver than people give her credit for." Hermione then finished off her cooled coffee.

Draco was at a loss for words. Of course these were things that Draco already knew but hearing them come from her mouth had caught him off guard. He didn't trust himself to speak so they sat in silence until Hermione broke it.

"We should head to work. Long day ahead of us." she smiled brilliantly at him.

Foreign thoughts invaded his mind. Like how incredible she really was and how much the Weasel didn't know just how lucky he was to have a woman like her. There was absolutely no other woman on the planet that would let her husband get away with all he had done. He wondered how much more the redhead had gotten away with and just how long it would take Granger to realize that she deserved better than that.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the delay. The next chapter is finished I just need to type it. It will be out in approx. a week or sooner. Thanks for the patience!


	7. So It's A Game?

Four and a half hours later Draco Malfoy's stomach was screaming at him.

"Granger, it's two o' clock. We need lunch." he set his parchments neatly off to the side and his texts right next to them, then he stood.

He looked over at her and she still had her head buried in her book. The top of her head full of brown wavy curls was the only thing showing. He found himself smiling at the sight of her. It reminded him of their days at Hogwarts.

_Always the bookworm that one was._

That's as far as the trip down memory lane went because if he had gone any further he'd remember the bad along with the good.

He rested his hand on the top of the book she had in her hands and pushed it gently down towards the table. She looked up at him skeptically.

He chuckled at her expression, "Lunch."

"Oh. Right. Okay.. umm, let's go." she stood and started to grab her texts and parchments.

"No, leave your work here. It can wait an hour. Give yourself a break and have lunch with me. Give your mind a rest so you can come back and start with fresh eyes." he smirked. He could charm his way out or into just about anything it seemed.

She sighed and sat everything back down on her desk. "You're right. It's not going anywhere. I can afford an hour. Where are we going?"

They left the office and started to make their way towards the lift. As they waited for it to reach them he stuffed his hands in his pockets and answered, "We can go wherever you would like Granger."

"There is a halfway decent deli next to the café we were in this morning." she suggested.

The lift arrived and they climbed in. "That sounds fine, _although_ I do know a great place you might enjoy. How do you feel about French or Italian?"

"Favorable, but I'm not that hungry." she responded distractedly. He couldn't decide if it was work that had her so wound up or if it were personal.

"I'm just talking about a small bistro with lunch specials. Nothing over the top. Shall we?"

"Sure, that's not a bad idea. I just want to get back to work as soon as possible. We have a lot to cover before tomorrow morning."

"Granger, you can go an hour without working, it won't kill you. You'll be fine."

The lift stopped and they made their way outside.

"If you say so Malfoy." she sighed.

"I do." it amazed him how easy it was to talk to her. He had never had a reason to in the past and now that he had a reason, it was like second nature.

He offered his arm to her and she looked at him skeptically before deciding to take a deep breath and reach for his arm.

* * *

In a moment not only was she in front of a bistro, she was in front of Le Vin de L'assassin Bistrot in Syracuse, Sicily.

She gasped, "Malfoy! I thought we were just going to lunch?"

"We are Granger. What is the point of going somewhere in Britain when we can get the real thing elsewhere." He led her inside the cozy restaurant. They sat down and were given menus right away. Draco smiled at the waiter and ordered what she assumed was drinks.

She smirked, "Well well, you never cease to amaze me. How is it we come to the one place where I can't speak the language?"

"Now I'm the one that's amazed. I found the one thing that Hermione Granger can not do. What would like? I'll order for you." he flashed a rare smile.

Suddenly she realised that Draco was hiding something. Never in the decade or more that she had known him had he ever genuinely smiled at someone unless he had ulterior motives.

That put her in a predicament. She could either call him out on it and watch the smile on his face falter or she could play along to his little game and figure out his motives. From what she knew of him, she knew that he would not stop until he got whatever it was he wanted.

"Surprise me Malfoy." she sat her menu down and folded her hands over top of it deciding to play his game. His smile wavered just a fraction and shock registered in for half a second before disappearing.

"As you wish Granger."

The waiter returned, "Ciao, sei pronto per effettuare l'ordine?"

"Si. Avrò la La tartare di tonno e lei avrà il filetto di salmone al pistacchio grazie."

"E 'tutto, signore?" the waiter flashed a brilliant smile at Draco.

"Sì. Questo è tutto. Grazie." Malfoy nodded.

"Di niente."

As the waiter left Hermione asked, "If you don't mind me asking, where did you learn Italian so fluently?"

"No, of course I don't. Blaise Zabini actually. My father thought it would be lucrative to learn at least four different languages. It comes in handy when running a business." his voice detached and his face impassive.

They were starting in on new territory. He had never mentioned his father, not once. He kept that part of his life hidden away intentionally. He did speak of his mother on few occasions but never his father. She really wanted to expand on the topic but she had no intention of pushing his buttons if she wanted the conversation to stay friendly. She decided to stay on easy topics.

"Do you plan on a business career?" she was careful to keep her voice steady.

He looked at her for what seemed like hours before responding. He seemed to look straight through her and it was highly unnerving, "No. It isn't on my life's goal list but it is something I am prepared for when the time comes. I enjoy my position at the Minisrty. If it were my choice I would stay right where I am in my little office across the hall from yours."

"Why isn't it your choice?" she asked before she could stop herself.

"It's what's expected of me. I have a business degree in both the Magical and Muggle communities."

"Merlin, where do you find the time?"

Draco chuckled. It wasn't a carefree or happy sound, it was strained and filled with exhaustion, "When have you ever seen me with a social life?"

She took a minute to think about it. She had seen him at charity events with his mother or a beautiful pureblood witch on his arm. He was never seen out and about but she had assumed it was because he was good at keeping things private.

"Well... I've seen you at a few charity functions, always with a beautiful woman on your arm." she smiled.

"Ah yes, that is true but again it is something that's required of me. I spent the first year after the war doing all we could to stay out of the papers unless we were donating insanely large amounts of money to various charities and foundations. I'm sure you remember those. Behind closed doors I spent every waking hour studying for the exams to take at a Muggle university. It took me a year to do what Muggles do in four years. After that I applied for the job at the Ministry. I'm pretty sure they took a chance on me just to see me fail but I didn't care. I needed a job that where I could use spells, make potions, learn and create counter curses. At the same time I was taking courses at my father's company. It took all the time I had up until a few months ago. I have everything I need to run a company but like I said I'd rather be right where I am."

The waiter came back with their lunch, "Qui si va. Buon appetito e fatemi sapere se vi serve qualcosa."

"Grazie."

"So you -" Hermione started as the waiter walked away but was cut off.

"Granger, I am not a very giving man. I don't share my life story, I don't let all of England know what goes on behind closed doors. I don't talk about my family or my relationship with them. I don't answer personal questions. I have just told you only things my friends know. I am a very private man and I would like to keep it that way. No more questions, it's my turn."

Neither said anything else so they started eating.

"You have impeccable taste, this is really amazing." she smiled up at him.

"I know, the real thing is always better." he smirked.

The way he said it made her cheeks heat up just a fraction.

They sat in silence enjoying their meal. She stole glances in his direction and every time she did he would already be looking at her with that intense stare she was becoming familiar with. She felt like the man was examining her and she was starting to become highly self-aware.

Draco Malfoy was sitting across from her at their small table for two in a dimly lit, cozy Bistro in the south of Italy. She kept glancing at him while he had already had his eyes trained on her. He ordered her food effortlessly. To any outsider it would seem that they were a couple on a lunch date. Now usually those types of things wouldn't bother her but it wasn't just anyone at the other end of the table, it was Draco Malfoy.

Draco seemed to notice her change in demeanor and started to distract her from her thoughts,"Why exactly did you apply for the position? I never pegged you for the Ministry type, unless of course they were funding any of your endeavors."

Thank Merlin he found something she could focus on long enough to calm her nerves, "That's easy. Just like you already mentioned, I needed something to put my magic to use with. I didn't want to become an Auror simply because I spent enough time fighting during the war and I wanted to see no more of it. I couldn't very well see myself behind a desk doing research the rest of my life either. I had considered being a Professor but there were just too many bad memories there. Being a Curse Breaker gives me the chance to do the research I love but also the opportunity to use spells and counter curse and being able to under stand the way curses work so I can effectively disarm them. I learn something new everyday. On occasion I get to work with Ron and Harry so that's a bonus. Plus there is your friend Blaise who is rapidly becoming a favorite of mine."

Draco still had his eyes on her and when she locked onto them she couldn't look away. Somehow she just knew that those eyes would get her into trouble one day. She couldn't tell if he was trying to tell her something or if he was searching for the answered he wanted.

"Looks like we are on the same page then." he responded and finally looked down at his plate and finished the last of his lunch.

"I suppose we are. Is there any chance you will let me get one last question in?"

"If you must." he waved for her to continue.

"I understand that you are a private man, I have plenty of things that I keep locked behind closed doors, so why tell me those things?"

He was quiet as he chose his next words carefully, "Those things aren't secrets and they are easy to talk about. In all the years I have known you, you have never been the gossip type so I'm sure I can trust that this will stay between us. That's enough about me, it's you I want to talk about."

For a moment she supressed a gasp. Trust? Draco Malfoy had put his trust in her if only for a small conversation. It took her another moment to realise that he was waiting for her to respond.

"What about me? I'm not much of a story." unfortunately her words came out a little less stable than she would have preferred.

"I beg to differ Granger. I am almost positive that there is so much more to learn about you." he flashed a charismatic smile and her whole body tensed.

That's what this was about. He wanted to learn all of her dirty little secrets. Two could play at that game.

Her Gryffindor courage came out of nowhere,"The same could be said about you Malfoy. In fact I'm almost positive that there is more to learn about you."

"Well said." he smirked.

"You know, this really is a nice place. How did you find it?"

"My mother did. Are you trying to change the subject?" he accused her playfully. She wasn't aware Malfoy knew how to be playful.

"Yes I am. You are supposed to take the hint."

"Alright but this is far from over." he said just a bit more seriously than she liked.

"We will just have to see about that Malfoy."

* * *

When she arrived home that evening after a very tiresome thirteen hour day she was ready for a nice hot bath and a long nights sleep. What she was greeted with was nothing of the sort. Her flat was full of people her age drinking and carrying on. Her husband was nowhere to be found but plenty of people she didn't recognize were. Finally she spotted Seamus over by a table that looked like it was set up for some sort of drinking game.

"Finnigan would you like to explain to me what in the name or Merlin is going on in my home?" she yelled as she got closer to him. The music was so loud she could barely hear herself think.

"Hermione!" he grabbed her in a bone crushing hug, "You look like hell. Come have a drink with us."

"No. I would like to know where my husband is and what all this mess is." she demanded answers as soon as he let her go.

"Oi. No need for shouting. I'm pretty sure Ron had a little too much and is now dispensing the contents of his stomach into a toilet. As for the mess, we will clean it up. It's only us guys having some fun seeing as how those two girls over there are lesbians." he started laughing like it was the funniest thing he had ever heard.

"I have a long day tomorrow so start clearing this house out now while I go deal with Ron."

"Are you sure you don't -" he was abruptly cut off by a sharp look from Hermione.

"You really don't want to push this." she was seething.

As she walked towards the bathroom she heard Seamus telling everyone to wrap it up. It was only nine-thirty and they were all drunk.

She reached the bathroom and slammed the door open. On the floor curled up next to the toilet was her husband, completely naked. In a drunken stupor he must have disposed of his clothing. He never liked to have clothes on when he was drunk which was something that always made her uneasy.

"Ronald Weasley!" she yelled.

He jumped halfway out of his skin, "Blimey woman, what was that for?"

Before she had time to respond he was clutching the bowl and retching violently. She couldn't really be certain what prehistoric pterodactyl sounded like but if she had to guess it would sound exactly like her husband throwing the contents of his stomach up. He slowed down and fell back to the floor.

"You do realize that the Beecher raid is tomorrow and you are guarding one of the Curse Breakers right?" she scolded him.

"Of course but who cares if Malfoy gets a few scratches. It will do him some good." he tried to laugh but he ended up over the bowl again.

"I can't believe you! It doesn't matter who it is, you should never let your personal feeling for someone dictate how you do your job." she all but screamed at him.

She left to go find him a sobering potion and then an anti-hangover potion. She was so angry she couldn't see straight. When she reached the living room the only people left were Seamus and one of the girls. She wanted to scream and throw things but she was much more composed than that.

"Hermione. We cleaned mostly everything. Give our regards to your husband. He sure does know how to throw a party." Seamus smiled. Oh she wanted to punch him in the face.

"What exactly possessed you to throw a party on a Thursday? Everyone works tomorrow."

"Not everyone. Most of the people here don't work at the Ministry. I'm pretty sure Ron is the only one who actually has to work tomorrow. I took a personal day because I have things to do so I'm good to sleep in. Everyone here left to go to McLaggen's place."

She looked at him in shock, "Cormac was here?"

"Yeah, you must have missed him. He offered and everyone took him up on it. I was just about to head out with Abby here." she smiled over at his friend.

"Thank you for getting everyone out. I appreciate it." she sighed and ran her hand through her curls.

"No problem beautiful." he hugged her and pressed his lips to her forehead, "Don't worry about Ron, you know how he is."

"Thanks." she smiled half heartedly as she walked them out and closed the door behind them.

She made her way to the bathroom with the vials in her hand but when she got there he was nowhere to be found. He must have made his way to the bedroom.

She walked the few steps it took to get from the bathroom to the bedroom and opened the door. Ron was passed out hanging over the side of the bed with vomit on the floor.

"Seriously?!" she exclaimed before reaching for her wand to scourgify the mess.

She found her pajamas and changed into them. She wasn't even going to bother trying to dress him, he would wake up shivering and seek warmth. She had already gone through this too many times to count.

She climbed into bed and found her way under the covers. She placed her wand on the nightstand and rolled to her side to go to sleep. A few moments passed and she was just about asleep when Ron started to stir. She felt him move and climb under the cover s with her. Next thing she knew he had his half-frozen arm wrapped tightly around her waist and his warm breath in her hair.

"You're beautiful." he whispered.

"Go back to sleep you have a long day tomorrow." she whispered back.

"I love you. You're all mine and no other man can have you. All mine." he breathed the words on her neck and it sent shivers down her spine. He sure did know how to be sweet while drunk. She smiled despite her anger.

"Goodnight Ron."

He was snoring before he could respond.

* * *

I don't know if I liked this chapter very much. I have written and rewritten it and I think I finally got it to a point where I am halfway satisfied with the outcome. Let me know what you think! This is the longest chapter I've done so far! 3,263 words. Sorry for an errors. I spell checked what I could. I'll come back and revise it when I can. I really wanted to get this chapter out as soon as I could. It's been a stressful month. I hope you enjoy! Keep reviewing!


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