This story is post-war and post-hogwarts. I do not own any of the characters or anything that has to do with Harry Potter. All of that is J.K. Rowling. I simply own the plot. I am a fan that just happens to disagree with most of the canon pairings. In the story there is be Draco/Hermione, Harry/Luna, Ginny/Neville, and Ron/?. I appreciate feedback but please be polite. I understand I am not a perfect writer, but please do not be rude.
"He must be kidding", she said, looking at the stack of files that she found the second she walked into her office. Things were always busy on a Monday but this was just ridiculous. He must be trying to pawn off all his work onto her. Again.
Just as she was about to march over to her boss's office a head poked into her office.
"Is he giving you stacks of work that he doesn't want to do too?" Asked a smooth drawl. Draco Malfoy had changed immensely in the five years since they had both left Hogwarts. He was taller and more muscular. His hair was still an almost white blond but it was kept a little shorter now, in a kind of unkempt look that suited him well.
After the war both of his parents had been put on trial along with him. His father was convicted to life in Azkaban and his mother was stripped of her wand, while he was acquitted due to the fact that he had been raised in an environment that was not exactly healthy. After years of court mandated counseling he no longer held any ideals about blood status and was actually apart of the Ministry's Program to Help Muggleborns transfer funds to Gringotts with less difficulty and to change Wizard currency to Muggle currency. However his full time job was in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, dealing mostly in criminal court cases.
"Of course he is," she replied, exasperated.
"He is retiring at the end of the term, Granger. Don't worry about it too much. I wonder who will take his place?" Malfoy backed out of her office and moved back to his. Since the two had been working together for the last three years they had become easy acquaintances and in the recent months tentative friends.
Hermione Granger had gone back to her last year of school to finish her NEWTs and because she enjoyed the school. She actually still sent funding to expand the library. Hermione had actually matured quite a bit since she left school. She was slender and a decent height at about five and a half feet. She had filled out and could be considered slightly curvy. Her chestnut curls had tamed somewhat. She still had long ringlets that hung nearly to her waist and was often pulled into a ponytail or a large bun. Hermione made enough to live comfortably and had a flat not far from the Ministry in Wizarding London.
With a sigh she sat and got to work. Her main job was dealing with cases of under age magic. It was her job to decide if the offence was accidental, justified, excusable, or punishable. She went through dozens of files a day and it looked like more today because her direct superior was retiring and getting lazy. He often tried to push his work onto her so he could have time to nap. There were about four of them under him and one of them would take his place and at this time it wasn't apparent as to who it would be.
She spent the rest of her morning reading cases and making her decisions. A majority were accidental, a few excusable, one justified, and four that needed to go to Malfoy in order for him to set up court dates for the offenders. Just before lunch Hermione got up and walked into his office to hand him the files.
He was sitting at his desk, so intent on his work that he didn't notice her walk in. His tie was loosened around his neck and his hair was messy from running his hands through it. He was taking notes on what looked like a difficult case. Hermione wondered, not for the first time, what it would be like to run her hands through what looked like silky blond hair. She quickly banished those thoughts and cursed herself. They were barely friends. However, she often imagined what it would be like to be more than that.
Hermione cleared her throat to get Malfoy's attention. He looked up and smiled at her.
"Hello Granger. Lunch already?" She often dropped these types of files off before going to lunch with Harry.
"Yup. What are you working on?" She asked, honestly curious. He wasn't usually this intent on his work.
"They found some Death Eaters hiding in a cave just outside of the city. I'm trying to remember them so I can give the lawyers some ammunition against them," he explained.
"I see. Well if you'd like you could join Harry and me for lunch. We thought we'd go to a new restaurant in Muggle London not far from here," she asked, already knowing the answer.
"Not today. Maybe another time. Astoria wants me to go home for lunch," this reply never failed to make Hermione deflate a little bit.
"Alright. Well see you in about an hour," she smiled and left to meet Harry.
Harry and Hermione arrived at the restaurant just in time to beat the lunch rush and ordered before a flood of people decided to join them in the new establishment. Harry had grown taller and like Malfoy much more muscular. His black hair was still a mess no matter what he did and his green eyes sparkled behind his spectacles. Harry and Hermione had remained fast friends and ate lunch together almost every day. Ron, however, was a different story. After the war he and Hermione had broken up and he had started drinking heavily. He lived in a dump not far from his favorite pub and rarely went anywhere but there. He was started as an Auror like Harry but had eventually been fired because of his drinking. Everyone had tried to get him to stop but for some reason the war had taken more of a toll on him than either Harry or Hermione.
"So how is being the Head of Aurors?" Hermione asked.
"Good. I can't believe I got the promotion. Luna is ecstatic. Though she does a little less jumping around these days," Harry explained smiling widely. Harry and Ginny had broken up after a few months and a few months later had started dating Luna Lovegood, who after two years of dating became Luna Potter. The couple were expecting their first children. Luna was pregnant with triplets. Luna and Harry, both being only children, wanted a large family so it would surprise Hermione if they stopped after three.
"I can imagine. How far along is she now?" Hermione asked, feeling a bit lonely. All of her friends were in relationships. Harry and Luna, with three children on the way, and Ginny and Neville, with one child and another on the way. Even Malfoy was with Astoria and it was expected that they would soon wed. Hermione hadn't been with anyone since Ron. She had been heartbroken when he had left her, saying that he couldn't stand any reminder of the war. After Ron there had been only one man that she had shown any interest in and he was unavailable.
"Five months, but the healer says they probably won't be full term. Since they are triplets they are going to induce her at about eight and a half months," Harry explained around his lunch.
"Well I can't say I blame them. She is rather huge," Hermione giggle before finishing her salad. "Well I'm going to head back to work. Higgins had been pushing his work of onto me again. I have a ton to do," she said laying money on the table to pay for her lunch. Harry gave her a hug and she left to go finish her pile of work, trying not to think of how alone she was. All she had left was her cat.