Hi everyone! I'm back, and with the sequel I know many of you have been waiting for. It's taken a long time, and I am sorry. But I hope you like it. Please Rate&Review. It means a lot to me. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, the plot, or anything to do with the Harry Potter universe. Please accept this disclaimer for the whole story. I don't want to own anything. I just do this for fun.

The crooked streets of Diagon Alley were filled with the buzz and hum of new and returning students. Walking peacefully down the crowded lane, Hermione Granger made her way to the tiny bookshop at the end of the alley.

Nestled between a parchment store and the apothecary, Hermione was always filled with a warm sensation in her chest whenever the store came into view. The dream of owning her own bookstore had always been in the back of her mind, and after the stressful years of the war, it was just what she had needed to cope with the losses and sudden lift of anxiety.

She unlocked the door and went about setting out the most common textbooks, which she knew would be in high demand for the new school year.

She set about straightening the shelves and listened as the bell above the door rang.

"Hello." she called out.

A young mother and her even younger son stood in the middle of the walk way, looking both scared and excited.

"First year?" Hermione asked.

"Yes. We've never done this before. But my son Jordan is very excited to be starting school. I only wish his father could have been here to see it." the mother said.

"Your husband was in the war?" Hermione asked politely.

"He was at the Battle of Twisted Wands!" the boy proudly spoke up.

Hermione nodded, and smiled at the boy's devotion to his father. She went around the store helping the new student as older students arrived. The store was a flurry of activity as Hermione helped dozens of children and teenagers to find their books.

Late in the afternoon the store died down, and Hermione was free to clean up the shelves. This was her favorite part, knowing that the books needed to be tidied because someone had been looking at them. She was working in the back of the store when she heard the bell ring once more.

"Hello." she called out.

There was no answer. Hermione started making her way to the front of the store but stopped when she saw someone on the other side of the bookshelf. She looked through the books and met a pair of blue eyes.

A small fountain of hope began to rise in her chest, the same fountain that began every time she saw that particular shade of blue. She lifted her eyes to look for the telltale blond hair, but the color was a rich brown.

She felt her spirits drop. Hermione had looked for him everywhere, hoping that one day he would return. The war was over now, and she had not seen his name on any of the Death Lists that were in circulation. She began walking around the bookshelf when she heard her name.

"Hermione."

Hermione looked up into those cloudy blue eyes, and knew it was him. He looked different now; older, but still handsome. The small fountain of hope burst and a flood of emotions tore through her chest. She threw herself into his arms.

"Draco."

Hermione could not believe that after all this time, he had simply strolled into her bookstore, so calmly. So matter of fact. She wanted to hit him, and kiss him, and yell at him, and pinch him just to see if he was real.

"Where have you been?" she asked.

He just laughed and told her that she would have to wait to hear that story. He grabbed her hand and brought it up to his face to kiss when he saw it.

A pretty little diamond ring on her finger, the finger right between her middle finger and her pinky.

He raised his eyes to hers and saw her smile falter.

"I'm sorry." she said.

"You were always saying that, if I recall correctly. So, when did u tie the knot?"

"A year ago. We met in school, fell in love. I thought you were dead." she explained.

"No, don't worry about it. I told you not to wait for me. And I meant it. I'm glad that you're happy."

"Oh, Draco. I thought I was happy. But I also thought you were dead. I don't know how I feel anymore."

He looked into her eyes, and could the pools of tears gathering in her sight. He pulled her into his body and hugged her.

"What are we going to do?" she asked.

"Well, I don't know. When do you get off work?"

"Why?"

"So I can take you to dinner, and we can talk about it then." he said.

"Now. I get off work right now."

Hermione walked to the front desk and gathered her belongings and followed Draco out the front door. She locked the store up, and they apparated together to a nearby restaurant.

Hermione couldn't help but watch Draco as they waited to be seated. From the way he looked over his shoulder every now and then to the new scars on his hands. She could tell that he had been in a very bad situation since he had left Hogwarts.

Hermione knew the stories of the terrifying battles that had been fought all over the world. She knew that a lot of Aurors had gone undercover to try to leak information the ministry. Hermione had known several Aurors who had lost their lives while undercover. The dangers that presented themselves had been too great to allow Ron to go undercover. And Hermione knew how useless he had felt not being able to do that part of the job. However, seeing how skittish and cautious Draco now was made Hermione glad that her best friend was spared.

She reached out and took a hold of Draco's hand, feeling him immediately relax with her gesture. They were finally seated and waited for a waiter to get their drink orders before they began to talk.

Hermione looked over the rim of her glass to the man before her. For surely he was a man now, having lost all the innocence his face had had back in Hogwarts. They hadn't spoken to each other since leaving the bookstore.

"Draco. Where have you been?" she asked.

"I've been working." He said. Like he had gone off to become a lawyer or a dentist.

" The day I left I followed your advice. I went to Dumbledore and asked him for help. I didn't want to tell you, because I didn't want you to put you in danger. I've been working behind the scenes during the entire war. And now that it's all finally over I've been released from duty."

"Draco. The war ended a year and a half ago. What have you been doing since then?"

"I was in deep Hermione. I wasn't straddling the line Hermione. I crossed it, running head first into what I can only describe as the darkest nightmare I've ever been witness to. I didn't know if I could face you. I felt sure that you would sense some horrible change in me and never want to speak to me again."

She shook her head and reached for his hand. She felt tears welling in her eyes at the terrible things he must have seen. Draco was raised in the Malfoy Manor, and had seen things that most Aurors would never see before he even left for Hogwarts. The horrors of the war were far worse than the reporters had said.

"How could you think that? I loved you Draco. I never stopped loving you. I would have understood if you were different. Why did you wait so long?"

"I had things that needed to get sorted out Hermione. I lived in the inner circle of trust for well over five years. I had an entire life to break down and clean up. I didn't want to see you until I knew that my past wouldn't come back."

Hermione noticed Draco's eyes focus on something behind her. She turned in her chair and saw her husband standing behind her.

"Hello dear. Who's this?" he asked.

"Jason, this is Draco Malfoy. We went to school together. Draco, this is my husband Jason Miles." Hermione introduced the two men.

"Apparently I forgot to take your own past into consideration, Hermione." Draco replied.