Punishing Good Deeds

by Veritas-amore

She'd always trusted Draco explicably when he went on cases with female aurors, and whilst Hermione' company had always made her uneasy she'd never really had any reason to doubt his fidelity. Draco/Hermione/Astoria

Title: Punishing Good Deeds

Author: Veritas-amore

Pairing: Draco, Hermione

Rating: T

Note: Unlike many of my other oneshots, I managed to complete this story in one sitting (surprise, surprise!) and not keep it on my desktop for ages, forgetting about it before deciding to complete it. I've been away from the site for a bit (exams and all) but this is something I wrote to pass the time away when I got bored. I had a Rose/Scorpius Christmas oneshot that I wanted to put up but I didn't finish it in time (still isn't finished btw) but when I do finish it, I'll decide whether to post it or leave it until next Christmas. No one betas my story, but I've read it through several times for mistakes, so sorry about that if you find any of my grammatical mistakes. There usually aren't any.

I think I've rambled enough for now; sorry.

Astoria elegantly stepped out of the fireplace into the sophisticated lobby of the restaurant Draco always took her to, careful of her robes not to catch any soot. The maitre d' approached her with a welcoming, familiar smile.

"Miss Greengrass," he politely greeted and Astoria reciprocated the smile and turned for him to slip the robe off her shoulders. "You look quite stunning, tonight."

"Thank you," Astoria replied with a pleased lift of her lips and a playful twinkle in her green eyes, taking a brief glance at the spectacular red dress she had chosen to wear. "I'm glad my attire is to your liking. Has Draco arrived yet?"

"Yes, he's waiting for you at table six."

Astoria nodded in appreciation and stepped through the lobby into the main restaurant, her eyes taking in the familiar, luxurious surroundings and the familiar clientele. She smiled graciously at the faces she knew before her eyes aimed for the table Draco sat at.

The radiant smile she had been wearing slipped off her features and an indignant fire ignited in her chest as she saw a most unsolicited figure sat with Draco. Of all the people she would've least liked to dine with them, Hermione Granger was the most unwelcome. She sat in a tasteful but demure navy dress, talking and laughing in a way that looked much too cosy to Astoria's liking. How many times had she seen Hermione Granger and her boyfriend socialize together, their demeanours always civil and friendly but subtly hinting to a more covert attraction?

Lifting her lips up with a muted, forced smiled she meandered her way through the tables towards their assigned table and the pair sat there, giving Hermione a polite smile when the brunette took notice of her approach. She would not make a scene here she vowed to herself; she would wait until Draco decided to leave and then she would let him have it.

They both stood to greet her. Draco put an arm possessively about her waist and kissed her mouth rather than her cheek in a warm reception. She merely accepted the kiss without response, too piqued about their surprise guest to truly appreciate the gesture.

"You look lovely," he complimented with an indulgent smile. Astoria simply turned to Hermione and made an attempt at amiably shaking her hand.

"It's good to see you," Hermione said before settling back in her seat.

Honestly unable to return the comment, Astoria merely gave her a strained smile and saw with satisfaction as the brunette's features fell a little at her response. Clearly, the coldness behind Astoria's smile had not gone unnoticed.

Draco held out the chair next to his for her and she regally sat down before turning to Hermione. "I had no idea you would be here, Granger," she said, misleadingly innocently surprised. "When Draco suggested we come here, I thought it was going to be just me and him."

A blush touched Hermione's cheek and Astoria was infuriated to notice that the pink tinge only served to enhance the brunette's prettiness, but she replied quite amicably. "I could always leave if my presence causes you any discomfort, Astoria." The emphasis behind her name wasn't purely out of respect, Astoria knew. It was an arrogant way for Hermione to show her that she thought herself better than Astoria by her use of her first name.

Before she had the opportunity to express her greatest wish for Hermione to leave her and her boyfriend be Draco had cut in, giving Astoria a stern look as he said, "I invited you here, Granger; none of this nonsense about leaving, if you please."

To hear that Draco had been the one to invite Hermione to what she thought had been a romantic dinner for her and her alone hurt on a level that had recently become familiar. Astoria couldn't really pinpoint when Hermione had taken such precedence in her life, but certainly the past year with Draco had been more strenuous with Hermione's continued company with her boyfriend.

"So," she said, swallowing the unexpected and sore lump in her throat. "When did you two arrive?"

"I was here half an hour early but Granger came in moments before you," Draco informed her.

"Always punctual, aren't you dear?" she effused sweetly and laid her hand atop Draco's on the table, watching for Hermione's reaction out of the corner of her. Hermione simply turned to glance momentarily at the bar before her eyes set briefly on their touching hands and flickered back up to blink innocently at Astoria.

"That's quite a dress, Astoria," she remarked smoothly.

"Thank you; Draco bought it for me last year. Your dress is quite beautiful as well."

"You think so?" Hermione questioned casually. "I don't usually wear it much; it's quite daring at the back."

And Astoria watched as Hermione turned and showed that the presumably demure dress wasn't half as demure as she'd previously thought. The creamy planes of Hermione's back were left exposed to the small of her back and a delicate chain hung from her shoulder blades to end in a diamond pendant. It was stunning.

"Ah," Draco uttered a small sigh of dawning. "You bought this in Sweden a few months ago. On the McArthur case."

"Under your recommendation, yes," Hermione smiled at Draco as she turned back.

Astoria fought down the torrent of bile that had threatened to rise and prayed to God her eyes weren't as red or wet as she felt. She'd always trusted Draco explicably when he went on cases with female aurors, and whilst Hermione' company had always made her uneasy she'd never really had any reason to doubt his fidelity. But seeing that he went on cases to pick out dresses for his partners was just crushing.

She was spared having to comment as a waiter came and asked for their drinks.

"I'll have a brandy, Hermione a glass of white wine and Astoria," Draco turned to her. "What would you like?"

Blinking back the heat behind her eyes, Astoria slowly requested. "I'll have a martini please."

Three years of dating, countless dates and he still didn't know what drink she preferred before her meal. But he knew Hermione's. Her heart constricted painfully at the fact that he probably didn't know half as much about her as she knew about him. Perhaps he even knew more about Hermione than he knew about her.

"Hager's going to retire," Hermione told Draco with a knowing lift of her lips as she raised her glass to her mouth.

"What?" Draco exclaimed with a slight laugh. "How'd you find out?"

And thus Astoria was effectively cut from the conversation. They were always talking about auror cases and issues in her presence, efficiently managing to bar her from joining in. She was a beauty editor for Witch Weekly; the latest frivolities at the auror headquarters were as comprehensible as pig Latin to her.

So she sat back in her chair and watched the interaction between the two before her. The smiles, the laughs, the subtle teasing, the not-so-subtle innuendo… it hurt that Draco didn't even have the sense to leave out the innuendo in her presence, his so-called girlfriend. She'd confronted Draco about his relationship with Hermione only once and he'd assured her that platonic friendship was as close as he was to Hermione. He may not have lied, or perhaps even he didn't notice the chemistry between them, but Astoria suddenly felt stupid and vapid for believing him.

He and Hermione had a history together, rooted in hate that grew into a partnership before inevitably blooming into what she was sure was nothing short of a romantic relationship. Perhaps there was nothing physical about this relationship yet but she saw it; she saw how attracted they were to each other on each and every level: mentally, emotionally, intellectually, professionally and more than just a little physically.

Draco had been a year above Astoria at Hogwarts and she'd hardly given him a second glance at school. They'd met a few years back at a function the magazine had been sponsoring and they'd gotten along famously for a while before deciding to date. He was handsome, he was an auror, he was a Malfoy… she'd thought herself beyond lucky to have him.

Then she met Hermione a few months into the relationship. The brunette had seemed harmless enough at first, just another one of Draco's colleagues, and Astoria didn't see her much anyway during their first year together. But then Draco's missions with her had increased noticeably and she was at almost every event Draco took her to. Still, she had not seemed like such a threat to his affections back then.

Now however, Astoria knew that she could no longer keep fooling herself.

"Kingsley nominated Harry for Hager's position but Powell also nominated Wilde."

Draco gave a very scornful sneer. "Wilde doesn't stand a chance against the Boy who Lived Twice."

"Oh look, our drinks have come," Astoria noted brusquely and nodded in the direction of the waiter who was making his way towards their table.

"A brandy for Mr Malfoy, white wine for Miss Granger and a Martini for Miss Greengrass," he said as he put each glass before its respective requester. "When you're ready to order dinner, just let me know."

"Oh we won't be ordering dinner, thank you," Astoria said amicably to the waiter who looked taken aback by her bluntness.

"Astoria," Draco chastised gently. "Of course we'll…"

"No, we won't," Astoria repeated firmly, her eyes fixed intently on Draco's irate gaze. "I'm going to have a small talk with you Draco and then I'll be leaving. "Should you so wish to order after my departure then by all means, please do."

The waiter dismissed himself and both Draco and Hermione took to staring questioningly at Astoria who forcefully fixed a smile on her face and asked, "Why don't we finish our drinks before we get to the ugliness?"

Hermione nervously bit her lip. "Maybe I should just leave…" she suggested uneasily.

"No," Draco objected resolutely. Astoria wasn't completely surprised. "Stay, Granger."

But it was the line Astoria had been expecting and wanting from Hermione. "Perhaps you should, Granger. I wouldn't want you to witness yet another trivial lovers' tiff," she advised and didn't bother to keep the cold tone out of her voice.

Hermione gracefully grabbed her bag and got out of her chair, giving Astoria a single, brief glance. Draco also made to get up. "Granger, please stay. I'm sure you can forgive Astoria's rudeness."

"It's all right, Draco; I know when I'm not wanted. Goodnight," Hermione said softly.

And she walked away from the table to the cloak room, her head held high and her back stunning as she moved within the dress. Astoria had never resented Hermione more than in that moment when most eyes in the restaurant roamed to stare at her progress through the room. She and Draco watched her until she could no longer be seen. Then Astoria elegantly raised her glass for a sip before Draco's unavoidable confrontation. And sure enough, he turned back to her with fire glinting in his eyes.

"What was all that about?" he hissed angrily. "You were entirely rude."

"That was me getting rid of Granger for a little talk with you; or can I no longer have dinner with my boyfriend without Hermione Granger sat between us?" Astoria snapped, completely letting go of her reserves about this case.

"You're jealous of Hermione?" Draco deduced disbelievingly, his eyebrows rising incredulously.

"I'm not jealous of her," Astoria muttered mutinously. "But I thought tonight was going to be dinner for just you and me; not a social call for you to string Granger along and chat about the latest developments in your little auror world."

"What's wrong with me bringing Hermione to dinner?" Draco demanded.

"Everything!" Astoria cried loudly enough for the patrons of the nearby table to glance questioningly at them. "Everything," she repeated in a heated whisper after noting the curious looks they were getting. "You want to bring your colleagues to what I presume to be romantic dinner for you and me, you tell me. That's the crux of the situation. But other than that, when was the last time we went out together without Hermione Granger being there? Why is she suddenly such a focal figure in my life when I don't want her to be? Why are you choosing dresses for her on missions?"

"She asked me if I thought it'd look good on her. And surprise, surprise, it does look good on her."

"That's exactly it! You were thinking about it looking good on her so you encouraged her to buy it."

"This is ridiculous, Astoria. And completely off the point. I bought Hermione here in the hope that you two would put aside your silly little differences and get along, for you to make a friend outside of that snobby social circle you worship!"

"You did not bring her here for that, Draco. Don't you dare to lie to me! You bring here to these dinners and take me to events she's going to be at in the hope of making her jealous by overly touching me in every way possible. Because deny it or believe… you want her."

Draco piqued an eyebrow tenaciously. "I do not –"

"You do. We've been together almost three years, Draco, but you still won't even discuss moving in together. Why is that you suppose?"

"Because I'm…"

"Because I'm not the one you want to live with. You probably don't know that I would prefer fish over chicken, don't know what my favourite book is, don't know that I finished school with six NEWTs, don't know what my stance on children is. But you know all those things about Hermione because… because she's the one you want to live with. She's the one you love," she summarized painfully.

"What? No! I bought you a ring, look!"

And he took out a small black velvet box and opened it to reveal a beautiful silver band with an exquisite ruby sandwiched between two smaller diamonds. It was breathtaking. And it was all wrong. "I was going to propose soon," Draco said with a sigh and ran a hand through his hair.

Astoria smiled sadly.

"You don't even know that the only ring I would ever accept is a platinum and diamond solitaire. That ring belongs to Hermione. Not me."

Draco raised her mercurial gaze to her eyes and mumbled helplessly, "but everyone expects us to marry."

"I'm not going to condemn myself to a loveless marriage, Draco. And I wouldn't want that for you either. I see now that Hermione is your partner in more than just a professional way. You've known each other since you were kids, you have a history together, you've spent the best part of the last six years on missions with her, you've saved each others' lives on more than one occasion, you both love to read and are tenacious… I would be a fool to think I could ever compete with her. And I'm certain she feels the same way about you, if not more… three's a crowd, Draco," Astoria sighed.

"So this is goodbye?" he concluded with a poignant note in his voice.

Astoria reached her fingers to snap the box shut and slide it towards Draco. "This is goodbye," she confirmed and stood up as he did the same. "I'm going to miss you, Draco." She kissed his cheek, inhaled his scent one last time for remembrance and raised a hand to straighten out his tie gently. "As for that ring; I think Hermione might give you the 'yes I will marry you' you were expecting from me. Goodbye."

And she walked away from him, saddened but liberated.

Draco nervously took the steps to Hermione's front door and stood on the tiny porch, heart hammering wildly within his chest and hand fisted tightly around the little black box in his pocket. He raised his hand and rapped sharply on the door, wishing for Hermione to open quickly and offer him shelter from the bitter November night.

Moments passed by in silence and Hermione didn't answer. He knocked again.

There was no other place Hermione would go, he was sure. And sure enough, seconds later, Hermione's muffled voice came, only just discernable. "I'm coming; who is it?"

"Er…it's Draco," he replied apprehensively and shuffled his feet as he heard the lock of the door turn before it swung open to reveal the figure in the hallway.

Hermione stood before him with wide, blinking eyes, looking too prettily like a deer caught in headlights. She was still in that dress he adored but her hair had fallen from its previous chignon to tumble around her shoulders in caramel curls and she was barefoot, legs clad in sheer stockings. Held in her arms, almost like a shield, was a grumpy white tabby, glaring poisonously at him.

She looked beautiful.

"Hi," she let out in an idle, soft voice tinged with surprise.

"Hi," Draco repeated in a similar tone.

They stood for several moments simply staring at the other, drinking each other in and would've continued doing so for an infinitely long period if a drop of rain hadn't fallen on Draco's face and he'd looked up to the turbulent sky above. "Can I come in?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," Hermione mumbled and stepped aside for him to enter.

Draco took a discreet deep breath and stepped in, familiarizing himself with the tasteful claret and cream of her hallway walls. He didn't dare venture any further than the hallway and turned round to face Hermione to see that she had closed the door and was gently letting the cat spring out of her arms. It slipped past Draco into what he knew to be the living room as Hermione straightened up and leant against the door, hands behind her back, the curiosity she surveyed him with beyond riveting on her face.

"You finished your talk with Astoria?" she asked evenly, not a trace of resentment in her features or voice at the mention of his recent ex.

"Yeah," was all Draco found himself able to say in answer to that.

"I assume it didn't go down too well if you're here at my house less than an hour after your girlfriend demanded a pretty serious talk with you," Hermione drawled dryly in a tone that he knew was born purely out of having spent so much time with him.

"No," he corrected. "No, it actually went pretty well." He found himself wanting to laugh at the irony and veracity of that comment but thought that particular chuckle was best left for another time. "We broke up."

He studied Hermione intensely to analyse her reaction to that comment but Hermione merely blinked in surprise, lips parting just a little as she muttered after a lengthy silence. "Oh… I'm sorry?" she ventured; the dryness was still in her voice but prudently muted.

"S'alright," he shrugged. "It was actually a pretty enlightening talk."

Hermione piqued an eyebrow and an amused snigger escaped her, a small, sardonic smile on her lips. "Really? In terms of what?"

"Astoria said some interesting things about us," Draco explained, feeling the butterflies begin to take residence in his stomach. His nerves were kicking back in.

When confusion touched Hermione's features – a seldom seen mien – he clarified, "You and me, us."

"Oh?" and this time there was no mistaking the derision behind her voice. But it was largely outweighed by the disbelieving interest also there. "What did she say?"

"She said I invited you to dinner to make you jealous."

"Did you?" Hermione asked coolly, apparently already too astounded by the night's sudden events to feign surprise at Draco's unexpected comment.

"Yes," Draco replied evenly. "She said that I haven't allowed her to move in with me because you're the one I want to live with."

Surprise and a smile that was all eyes and no lips flickered behind Hermione's eyes and made them impossibly brighter. But she managed to echo herself once more in that collected tone. "Do you?"

"Yes. She said I know much more about you than I ever knew about her."

"Do you?"

"Yes. She said I loved you."

Hermione's breath hitched in her throat and she let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. Her heart hammered within the confines of her chest, beating for the confirmation she wanted. Her feet took her a step away from the door in Draco's direction but allowed nothing more, and her mouth parted to breathe a delicate, "Do you?"

"Yes," Draco wasn't hesitant to reply and watched as Hermione's lips lifted into a weak smile and she made to move suddenly towards him, but he spoke up once more, effectively halting her in her progress. "She also said we were the perfect match on every level and…and that this ring is for you and not for her."

The hand that had been fisted in his pocket for the past half hour suddenly emerged to unfold and reveal the little black box in the palm of his hand. He nervously took the few steps between them as Hermione's hand moved to clamp feebly over her mouth, and got down to the floor, bended knee and all, opening the box as he did so.

"Granger," he began with a blithe, expectant smile on his lips. "Will you marry me?"

A soft gasped escaped Hermione's lips as she stared down into his beguilingly sparkling grey eyes and she managed to let out a low, innocent. "Yes."

Letting out a strangled kind of laugh, Draco took her right hand and reverently slipped the ring onto her third finger, smiling up at her bewildered and pleased features. Hermione only spent a moment inspecting the ring on her finger before she gently pulled Draco up to his full height and drew him into her for a slow, heated kiss, her hand curling around his neck and keeping his head in place as her fingers slinked into the smooth tresses of his hair.

Draco fervently responded, the very small part of his mind that was still able to function marvelling at how much more wonderful kissing Hermione Granger in real life was than kissing her in his fantasies. His mouth sprinkled delicate, catching kisses like the ones he dreamed of on her lips, and he heard the same elusive moan of delight he'd always imagined her to make.

A small gasp of want escaped her lips as his hands slithered from around her waist to lovingly trail along her exposed back, revelling in the lukewarm silkiness of her skin. She arched into him and let out a shaky moan of his name and it was him who couldn't stifle his gasp this time. That felt so damn good.

Hermione's hands gently rested on his shoulders as she pulled back enough to touch his nose tenderly with hers and smile at him.

"You proposed to me using my surname?" she asked with failing wryness, hindered by the bewilderment in her voice.

"Your surname's days are numbered now; I want you to enjoy these last few days you have with it," he attempted with a cocky smirk that faltered and fell into its intended smile.

"Days?" Hermione repeated with a disbelieving laugh. "I need more than a few days to plan a wedding, Draco. Besides, we're going to get married without ever dating? Isn't that a little backwards?"

"And since when have we ever done anything the right way round? I don't need to date you to know everything about you; I already know all there is to know about Hermione Granger. Secondly, I don't need to date you to know that you're the one I love and want to grow old with."

Hermione tipped her head back and let out a soft laugh. "You know," she pondered with a grin, "I think that's the most romantic think I've heard from you."

"Oh crap," Draco muttered with faux concern. "We haven't been together five minutes and I'm already spewing romantic phrases."

"Well, we haven't been together five minutes and we're already engaged. Spewing romantic flattery shouldn't come as that big of a surprise."

"It's not just flattery, you know," Draco murmured quietly as he pulled her into a secure hug, feeling her rest her head against his shoulder. Her perfume smelled intoxicating at this proximity. "It's true; I do love you… and I've been thinking of growing old with you everyday since our first mission together."

Hermione's arms tightened around him correspondingly. "I wasn't sure how much longer I could keep seeing you with Astoria… I wanted to tell you that I loved you but you seemed happy with her, so," she trailed off and left the sentence to linger and thrive into many possible endings that were cut short when she pressed a kiss to the side of his neck. "I love you."

It astounded him that those three whispered words somehow managed to stop his heart for a long moment, taking all the life out of that momentarily frozen organ before they blew it back in, but this time, it was partnered with passion and a burning love that soothingly restarted the beating of his heart and had it beating in time to hers.

"I love you too," he said simply into her hair.

He held her for a long time, basking in the idyllic contentment and complete affection that seemed to cloud them in a serene bubble, fleetingly cut off from the outside world and lost in their thoughts.

He could not be more grateful towards Astoria for her understanding and gracefulness in handling this matter. He would miss her certainly, but she had been right; Hermione was the one he loved, and the one he wanted to live with, and the one he knew everything about. And the one who would soon be adopting his surname…

Hermione pulled back once again to look at him, a thoughtful expression upon her features.

"What?" he asked warily, all too aware of what that expression meant.

"Hermione Malfoy…. It sounds funny," she furrowed her brow.

Draco raised an eyebrow in exasperation and watched as Hermione's pseudo frown turned to a laugh.

"You don't like it, I can always ask for that ring back," he threatened half-heartedly.

"I like it, I like it," Hermione quickly assured with a grin before she shyly divulged, "I've liked it ever since we pretended we were a married couple for the Hopkins case… I'm glad we're not pretending now."

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