Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. This is all just for pure fun. :)

A/N: I love the concept of this one. I hope you do too! :D

I never expected being a Malfoy wife to be easy.

I never thought it would be so hard either.

***

For the past fifteen years, I have woken up to an empty bed. The first time it happened, I was quite shocked. I wondered if I had done anything to offend him – said anything wrong, dissatisfied him in any way. Why else would he leave me so cold and alone at five o'clock in the morning?

My worries were unfounded, however, for when I went down to breakfast, there he was, sitting calmly at the dining table, a cup of tea in his right hand and the Daily Prophet in the other.

"What happened?" I asked. "You seem to have gotten up so early."

"Nothing, love," he replied with a smile. "This is just the way I am."

"Sure?"

"Yes, quite. Don't worry your pretty little self about it." He got up to give me a tender kiss and I found myself blushing, events from last night still fresh in my mind.

"I love you, Draco," I whispered when our lips parted.

He went back to reading his paper.

***

Ever since the War, my husband has developed a dislike for attention. I found this surprising considering that he had been very vain when we were in school. He was always so cocky, strutting around Hogwarts as if he were Merlin's gift to women. Draco might have been handsome, intelligent, sexy and very wealthy but he could have afforded to be just a little bit more discreet.

"Come on, love. They're at it again!"

I allowed myself to be pulled along as he did his best to free us from another crowd of reporters. I knew he did it for me as much as for himself. He'd always been so protective, never wanting me to be exposed to the same scrutiny that all the other Malfoy couples had to endure over the years.

"They're such pests!" he exclaimed when we were safely in the Manor. "Let's hope none of them got any decent shots! I swear they have no respect for privacy!"

A few days later, I wandered into his study to look for a functioning quill. I spotted a crumpled newspaper in the trash and bent down to pick it up, knowing that Draco did not like to have his things messed with. He read the newspaper regularly and would certainly scold the house elf who had mistakenly thrown his beloved Daily Prophet into the bin.

'The Malfoys – as in love as ever!' the headline read.

***

Draco is a prideful man. Some mistake his cold air for indifference but deep inside, he is really just terribly shy. He'd grown up thinking that he was the best. His parents, Lucius and Narcissa, had somehow drilled it into his head that he was better than everyone else because he was a Malfoy – a pureblood of the highest kind. However, entering Hogwarts proved to be an enlightening and humbling experience. It was there that he discovered the importance of effort and diligence. For that he said he had a certain bushy-haired girl to thank.

"No! No! Don't take her away! No! I love her!"

I have become quite used to his nightmares. I understand that they are a part of his past. Those years were not easy for him. He made a lot of mistakes, all of them he regretted. I'm just glad he's chosen to move forward and leave them behind - except of course on nights like these.

Honestly though, I do not mind so much. It is when he gives me these little glimpses of that lost little boy he once was that I find myself falling in love with him all over again.

"Sssshhh. Quiet down love, I am here. There's nothing to worry about. No one is taking me away."

"Please! Please! No! Don't hurt her! Father…Father! Tell Aunt Bella not to hurt her!"

***

It took him a while to accept it but Draco is a good father.

The first few years of our marriage, it seemed that he was afraid to touch me. It was silly, really. There were contraceptive charms after all. We could have easily made love without the threat of unwanted pregnancy looming over us. Personally, I had wanted a baby as soon as possible. But after telling me his story and his fears about becoming a man, a father like his own had been, I did my best to understand.

Needless to say, I was ecstatic the night he told me that he was finally ready. He had come from a hard day of work at the Ministry and had told me calmly over dinner that a Malfoy heir should be on its way.

We made love that night with more passion that I thought was possible. I'd never been more satisfied.

"What made you finally decide?" I asked as I placed an arm around his bare stomach.

"Oh, well, you know. I realized it was about time. Seems like everyone our age is popping little ones out," he said, shifting slightly. "Even the Weasel is having a kid soon."

***

Draco Malfoy is mostly a quiet man. He keeps to himself and chooses to share his thoughts and feelings with a few select people. I feel blessed to be one of them.

Over the years, we have developed a tradition – one in which we sit down to talk, just talk, every first Sunday of the month. It started when he first began his job at the Ministry. His position's previous occupant was a lazy man. He had left Draco with many loose ends to tie. We rarely saw each other for a while and I found myself missing him more and more. He and I got into a few fights about it until we finally agreed on having our Sunday 'dates'.

"So, I was wondering, do you believe that first love never dies?" I asked him one night.

"Feeling sentimental, aren't we?" he replied with a yawn. "Not very Malfoy of you."

"I just wondered."

"Well, yes, I do actually."

"I think so too…You're mine, you know," I said shyly as I snuggled to him even closer. "Of course, I know I'm your first love too."

I looked up at him then, planning to give him a kiss. His eyes, however, were already closed. He was falling asleep.

***

Like most men, Draco is very sloppy. He tends to leave his things everywhere, expecting either me or one of our house elves to pick up after him. His ways used to annoy me when we were first married but I soon realized that it was useless. Men would be men. Besides, tolerance is a small price to pay for the wonderful life he has given me.

Our son was miles away in Hogwarts and Draco himself had just left for Dublin when I got it into my head to go on a clean-up mission. Even with the house elves rushing about, some of the rooms in the Manor were very messy and untidy. Draco's study was one of them. Its sad state, of course, could not be blamed on the house elves alone.

I was arranging some of the envelopes in his desk drawer when I noticed a small box tucked away in the corner. I picked it up, knowing full well what it held inside.

"Always the planner, love," I whispered with a smile. "Our anniversary's a month away and you've already gone and gotten me something!"

I knew I shouldn't spoil his surprise but curiosity certainly got the better of me. I popped the box open and saw inside one of the most exquisite rings I had ever laid my eyes on. Unlike most of the jewelry Draco had gotten me over the course of our marriage, this one was not encrusted with emeralds and diamonds but with emeralds and rubies.

"Lovely."

I was about to try it on when I noticed the inscription in the band: Forever. DM and HG.

***

I, Astoria Malfoy, always knew I loved my husband more than he loved me.

I never expected, however, that this was because he loved Hermione Granger - Weasley.

***

All of a sudden, it all clicked into place.

A/N: Four D/Hr post-DH fics in two days. Something is seriously wrong with me. Haha. :D Review? :)