Since I first posted this story a number of reviewers have expressed concern that I am condoning Draco's appalling behaviour. While I do believe that his behaviour arises from his very dysfunctional upbringing, this story was primarily a writing exercise and is not meant to be an example of my idea of a healthy relationship. MM x

This is completely unrelated to any of my current storylines.

I read a story ages ago written entirely in conversation, and thought I'd give it a go. It's a one shot, and the ending is... well you'll see. As always I don't own any of JKR's characters. The long suffering Dr Anderson, however, is entirely my own invention.

Let me know what you think of this bizarre outpouring of my deranged imagination... MM x

Extract from the transcripts of Dr Giles Anderson, magical counselor and relationship specialist...

oooOooo

"... so, Mr Malfoy. You say that you stood on the brink of this perfect relationship – and the only fly in the potion was her blood status?"

"That's right – it sounds so facile when you say it like that but..."

"But...?"

"I was raised by a pure blood bigot, to believe that she was the lowest form of life imaginable. A mudblood for Merlin's sake"

"MR Malfoy!"

"I'm sorry – I don't mean it – I haven't believed that crap for years. But it gets into your bones you know. That it's one's duty to produce a Malfoy heir – a pure blood Malfoy heir, and anything else is a betrayal of everything my family ever stood for."

"Do you believe in what your family stood for? Cruelty, bigotry, elitism."

"No"

"So lets go back to the beginning. You met up with this woman that you had known and secretly admired at school. She's beautiful, fun and blindingly intelligent - and for some reason is willing to forgive you for being utterly vile to her for six years, and give you a second chance. You begin the relationship, which you do your best to keep very very casual. Understandably, this woman, who could do a hell of a lot better in my opinion, tires of being used as your sex toy, and drops you like a hot brick. You renegotiate your relationship into something vaguely resembling normal, and after a few months it is clear that you are completely in love with her, and she with you. Things progress, and you are giving serious consideration to proposing..."

"Um - yes"

"Then you suddenly have this complete panic and what happens next...?"

"I cheated."

"Oh – and she found out?"

"Err yes. I was in New York on business at the time, it was all over the newspapers. "Magic's most eligible bachelor and his new love..."

"Wait a minute. Bachelor? Backup. So you didn't go public with this lady?"

"No"

"Mr Malfoy, can I ask – what are you thinking at this very moment?"

"That I'm glad you're bound by professional codes of ethics"

"Because you don't want the details of your appalling behaviour to get out?"

"No, because I'm pretty certain they're the only thing stopping you punching me on the nose right now."

"You're more astute than you look aren't you? So, let me get this straight. You had a serious romantic relationship with this poor woman, who you hid away like a dirty little secret.? You then effectively end the relationship, by cheating on her, and the first she knows of it is over her cornflakes in the Daily Prophet?"

"When you describe it like that it sounds so... shabby."

"OK Mr Malfoy. How would you describe your behaviour? And believe me, I could think of much worse descriptions than shabby. None of which are suitable for my status as a professional person."

"If you put it like that..."

"The "other woman" what was she like?"

"Does it matter?"

"Humour me..."

"She's an American pure blood. Anastasia Devereaux."

"Wait – the Anastasia Devereaux? Twig thin, empty headed party girl – magically enhanced to within an inch of her life. Famous for alcohol and some very dubious muggle drugs?. How old is she?"

"Twenty four"

"And you've just turned thirty two?"

"Yes. I'm hardly a sugar daddy"

"True. But you are in a relationship with a beautiful, witty, intelligent and professionally successful woman of your own age – who also appears to have the patience of a saint – and you dump her in the most humiliating way possible for a vapid blonde airhead eight years her junior."

"Nearly nine actually – she's older than I am by nearly six months."

"I am assuming that the sex with this Ms Devereaux was incredible?"

"It was good."

"But not incredible?"

"No"

"An indelicate question but I have to ask. Better than the lady with whom you had been in a relationship?"

"...Mr Malfoy?"

"No"

"Ok. So the sex with this Ms Devereaux was – nothing that special. Was it her sparkling wit? Your shared interests?"

"No"

"And you have already described your original – let us call her your partner – girlfriend sounds so trite after a certain age – your original partner as very beautiful, elegant and stylish?"

"Yes"

"So it wasn't Ms Devereaux's outstanding looks that attracted you?"

"No"

"DID you have anything in common with this young woman? I know you to be a great patron of the arts Mr Malfoy, a scholar of ancient magical texts, with a deep interest in literature both magical and muggle. Did Ms Devereaux share these interests?"

"No – she found them boring."

"OK - I give up"

"Pardon?"

"I give up. Explain it to me. What was it about this shallow, empty headed party girl that tempted you to cheat on your partner whom you say that you loved?"

"Because she had no interest in a "relationship". She considered herself way to young to "settle down. Because she was safe..."

"So she was just looking for a good time – essentially arm candy? And therefore, didn't pose any challenge to your deep seated fear of commitment..."

"...Err, yes."

"How long ago did all this come out Mr Malfoy?"

"Just over three months ago."

"So why are you here now?"

"I don't understand"

"Your unfortunate partner has presumably changed her wards and stopped taking your owls. Moved on with her life in fact. You no doubt are still happily hopping back and forth on your adolescent transatlantic booty calls. All appears to be right with your world"

"No"

"Go on..."

"I was an idiot. A complete and unmitigated fool. Anastasia bored me into a coma within a month."

"And...?"

"I want her back – I realise now how empty and meaningless my life is without her."

"Anastasia?"

"No – Hermione..."

"Mr Malfoy, I am a professional counselor, and a wizard, but short of imperio I don't know what to say. What does Hermione think?"

"You can ask – she's in your waiting room."

oooOooo

"Miss Granger"

"Hermione"

"Hermione. Tell me about your relationship with Mr Malfoy"

"Well, we were both part of the Hogwarts eighth years – the ones that went back after the war."

"That must have been hard – having been on opposite sides."

"It never felt like that you know. I felt – sorry for him at first I suppose."

"Go on..."

"Well, everything he'd been brought up to believe in had been destroyed. His father was in Azkaban, and his mother was under house arrest. His childhood home – the Manor, was a wreck, in the hands of the Ministry, and his family were virtually penniless. I don't think that he ever really wanted to get involved with Voldemort in the first place – he was just to scared to say no. His father was a horror you know."

"Really"

"Yes, a vile cruel, manipulative, sadistic piece of... well, you get the picture. Draco and his mother were terrified of him. Coming back to Hogwarts, Draco seemed so – crushed. And most of the other students loathed him."

"Understandable."

"I suppose"

"But you didn't?"

"No – and I don't really know why. It just seemed as though I was seeing the real Draco for the first time, rather than hearing his father every time he opened his mouth. And to be honest – I liked this Draco. As I got to know him better, it was obvious that he was really clever, and snarky and well – funny. And I couldn't deny I found him physically attractive, and he's very charming."

"But you didn't act on it?"

"No. We were both too – damaged – to be more than friends at that stage. And – call me a coward, but it would just have been too difficult."

"Hmm. So what happened after Hogwarts?"

"We didn't see each other for years. I traveled. Worked for charitable agencies in various cities around the world. It was fun and I was very good at it. I was aware of Draco of course. He did an amazing job of reinventing himself. Ridiculously attractive, successful – how he rebuilt the family business I will never know, but he was clearly very astute - intelligent, and ludicrously charming. He always seemed to be in a relationship with someone, but never for very long."

"How did you meet?"

"At a charity reception in New York. Given the amount of charity work he does I'm amazed we didn't meet before. We met, we talked, the spark was instant. We swapped business cards and phone numbers and that was that."

"Go on"

"He contacted me a couple of weeks later when we were both back in London. We had lunch."

"Not dinner?"

"No"

"How did the relationship progress?"

"It didn't – we met for lunch, occasionally a drink in the evening. He rarely introduced me to anyone he knew and if he did it was as his 'friend'. He kept me firmly in my place"

"Was the relationship – physical at this point?"

"Oh yes"

"Oh yes?"

"The sex was – amazing. It seemed as though that was the only time we – connected. Emotionally I mean. But it wasn't really a relationship, just – what's that expression – friends with benefits. I was only too aware that we weren't exclusive – at least Draco wasn't."

"But you were?"

"Yes"

"How did that make you feel?"

"For I while, I didn't mind. I was well aware that Draco had some issues. I was prepared to wait."

"How long did you wait?"

"Two years"

"Oh"

"Yes"

"And then?"

"A girl can only take so much you know. I had enough of being taken for granted by a previous partner"

"Ron Weasley?"

"Yes – how did you...?"

"You're a celebrity Hermione – your private life – well it isn't very private."

"Oh"

"Go on"

"In the end I called his bluff. Told him that I cared for him, but that I was tired of being his sex toy"

"Interesting choice of words..."

"What?"

"Nothing – go on..."

"I said that if and when he was ready for a normal adult relationship to give me a call, until then I was sick of waiting around for an adolescent Lothario"

"Ouch!"

"Mmm yes. He did look a bit shocked. Then I went and licked my wounds in a friends cottage on the coast of North Wales. Miles from anywhere. The perfect place to scream and cry and eat too much ice cream"

"So what happened next?"

"He found me. Two days later. I took him to the cottage once. I'm surprised he managed to apparate there on his own though. He couldn't get in of course. I'd been for a long mopey walk along the beach, and found him shivering like a whippet just outside the wards when I got back. North Wales is pretty cold in February and I'd been gone for hours."

"And ?"

"He told me he was sorry. And that he loved me. And would I please give him a chance to prove it."

"Wow."

"With hindsight I would love to tell you that I told him where to put it. But I didn't"

"Surprising."

"No, I'm embarrassed to admit that I swooned into his arms like the heroine of a very bad novel."

"Understandable. So you took him back. How did that pan out?"

"It was wonderful I've never been so happy. When he's not being an immature little shit, Draco is pretty much everything I was looking for in a partner. Intelligent, intellectually curious, polite, charming, affectionate - even cuddly, once he started to relax into the relationship. We shared so many interests in common and as I said the sex was..."

"Incredible"

"Incredible – yes."

"At what point did you think that it might become serious?"

"Well, for the first six – eight months or so I was careful not to expect too much. Then after that – well I started to let myself hope. When he booked us a romantic weekend in Venice I did wonder..."

"Whether he was going to propose?"

"Yes. It was all set up you know. An evening gondola ride to a restaurant, candlelit dinner, violins..."

"Then what?"

"He disappeared"

"Before the date?"

"No, midway through the main course. He went to the loo and never came back..."

"What!"

"Yes. He did pay the bill before he left though. He may be a coward but Draco is never cheap."

"Did he contact you.?"

"Yes, when I got back to our room his stuff was gone and there was a note on the pillow saying that he'd had to floo to New York for a family emergency, and he would see me back in London."

"How did you feel?"

"How would you feel – don't ask stupid questions"

"I'm a professional counselor Hermione – stupid questions are what I do best."

"Oh yes – fair enough."

"Anyway, go on. You were back in London."

"Yes, about a week later. There it was – all over the bloody Prophet. The wizarding world's most eligible batchelor and his new love. Batchelor. What was I chopped liver? And Anastasia Devereaux of all people. Talk about no fool like an old fool."

"What?"

"Sorry, muggle expression."

"Oh – ok."

"What did you do?"

"He stupidly hadn't changed the wards in his apartment..."

"Oh dear!"

"Err yes. I'm not proud of myself you know. Draco had some very expensive clothes in that wardrobe. Dinner jackets that cost thousands. Must have cost him a fortune to replace... I suppose I was fortunate he didn't press charges."

"Why do you think that was?"

"Well – I would like to think that it was because he felt guilty. I suspect that it was more likely to be because he didn't want to look like an idiot. in the press."

"And you haven't seen him since?"

"Not until today – no. To be honest, I'm still not certain WHY I'm here?"

"Hermione. I know that you are clearly a woman that believes in second and third chances. How do you feel about fourth and fifth chances?"

"I'm not sure what you mean"

"OK. Let me be more direct. You clearly had feelings for Mr Malfoy?"

"Obviously"

"Do you still have feelings for him?"

"Dr Anderson, are you asking whether I would give him another chance?"

"Hypothetically"

"OK Dr Anderson. If you had a sister, and a man treated her the way Draco has treated me, what would you tell her to do...?"

"Do I really need to answer that question. But humour me."

"OK"

"You love him don't you?"

"Hermione?"

"There's a box of tissues on the table to your left. Can I get you a cup of tea."

"Thank you"

"Better?"

"Yes, thank you again..."

"OK – I'm going to ask you one more question, then I'll bring Draco back in."

"Last question. Have you got used to life without him. Or is there still a gap in your life."

"I miss him. It all just seems – well – less. Without him. So I suppose the answer to your question is yes – I'm a fool, but it seems I do believe in fourth or fifth chances."

The Beginning...

ox0xo