CHAPTER 2

"What ….When…" Ron stumbled as he stared at Draco like he had sprouted three heads.

Draco simply raised his eyebrow at the Weasley's obvious and slightly annoying reaction to his return. What did he expect that Draco would stay hidden forever? Wouldn't he love that?

"Yes , Weasel , I am back , in the flesh as you can see…" Draco drawled as he glanced quickly to Hermione, only to see she was avoiding his eyes.

"Why are you back Malfoy?" Ron snapped.

"Ron!" Hermione scolded.

"What?" he called back a little aggressively.

Hermione felt rather ashamed at how rude Ron was behaving. Sure Malfoy had been a pain in the butt back in school, and to an extend people could call them enemies. But that was seven years ago! Had they not grown up from then?

Hermione gentle tugged at Ron's arm, in an attempt to get the red head's attention away from the Malfoy's. Knowing the infamous Weasley temper was about to make an appearance, she decided it was time to leave.

"Well, we should go now," she said and she pulled a little harder on Ron's sleeve but he was not moving, "it was a pleasure meeting you Scorpius." Hermione finished as she smiled at the boy.

Ron's attention snapped back to her at the mention of Malfoy's son and turned to see her smiling at an exact replica of Draco.

"You …you have a son?!" Ron exclaimed, "Who would want to procreate with you?" Ron sneered. That was harsh, even for Ron.

Hermione gasped and Draco tensed at the attack on his son.

"Leave my son out of this Weasley if you know what's good for you." Draco countered. He was not having any of this. Who did the weasel think he was picking a fight with him, in front of his son no less! Scorpius looked at his father in surprise, he had never in his three years heard his father raise his voice, or speak in that cold, menacing manner he had just used towards the 'Weasley man'. Draco looked down to his son and felt a small piece of his heart break at the look his son threw back at him. The look if confusion and slight fear was laced in the young Malfoy's sliver orbs. Clearly not much had changed in the 7 years he had been gone.

Draco suppressed the urge to sigh, this was the very reason he left London in the first place. Ron flushed red at Draco's threat but before he could say anything more, Draco picked up his son and continued walking down the busy streets, not before throwing Hermione a small. Scorpius looked over his fathers shoulder and waved her goodbye.

She smiled lightly before turning her attention back to Ron who stood next to her still red in the face.

"Was that really necessary Ron?", She asked, her eyebrows raised.

"What? …What did I do?"

Oh Ron … the ever clueless, she thought as the pair made their way down Diagon Alley.

Ron's bad mood stayed with them, as they made their way to the coffee shop, that Hermione was originally headed for. It was a charming little place that Ginny had discovered not long after the war, and had since then become tradition that they would meet every other weekend or so to catch up. Today the boys were in tow and Hermione was already regretting asking Ron to join them.

They entered and immediately picked up Ginny and Harry sitting near the far end of the shop, out of prying eyes.

"Ginny! Harry!" Hermione called out as they hugged each other and took their seats at the table. Ginny and Harry were married a year after the war ended and had never been happier. Though the public were always interested to see how the Chosen One was doing these days, the attention had some what died down, thankfully.

They had moved into Grimmauld Place shortly after being married (but not after an intense spring clean – Weasley style, that had restored most of the glory to the former Black house). Only a year after they had been married, James Sirius was born. But it was their youngest Albus Severus that looked most like Harry, down to the green eyes.

James was an even mixture if both Ginny and Harry, thankfully though, he had inherited Harry's jet black hair. True to his namesake James was handful, a true prankster in the making. That was encouraged, much to Ginny's displeasure, by her brothers Fred and George Weasley.

Ginny and Harry had name both Hermione and Ron as godparents to James and Albus. A small part of Ginny hoped that it would act as a catalyst in bringing her brother and women she thought he was meant to be with together.

And for a while it worked. Hermione and Ron had dated for a while after the war, then broke up and then got back together to give it one more try and so far it had been great.

But if Hermione had to admit she felt that something was missing, she couldn't figure what that was yet. She often saw herself the same sort of future Ginny had with harry for herself. But lately she wasn't sure it was with Ron.

She loved Ron and there was no denying that. He was a handful and could be beyond clueless and times but love is blind right?

Something had changed in the past year. They weren't the same but she highly doubted Ron noticed. He didn't notice much these days, but she learnt to accept that.

Pushing her doubts to the back of her mind and looking at the happy couple she noticed the lack of two troublesome boys at the table.

"Gin, where's James and Al?" she asked. Harry and Ron were talking about their latest case. Both Harry and Ron were Aurors. And bloody good one at that.

"Oh we dropped them of at the Burrow, mum was complaining about not getting anytime to spend with the grandsons. Mind you I don't know how she does it, what with Bill and Fleur's one and George and Angelina's two as well." Ginny laughed as she sipped her tea.

Hermione laughed with her, yes it was a mystery as to how Molly Weasley managed with all those kids under one roof. Ginny and Hermione continued talking and Ginny managed to bring up the topic of the annual Ministry Gala. It pained Hermione to think she's need to go dress shopping in a few short weeks, but Ginny looked giddy with excitement. It was just as Ginny was explaining that she had seen the perfect dress for Hermione that Ron interrupted in a somewhat harsh voice.

"You'll never guess who we ran into on our way here", he said as he leaned forward on the table, as if it were a ministry secret. Hermione suppressed the urge to roll her eyes.

"Who?" Ginny inquired

"Malfoy" he said darkly.

"…wait like dra-"

"Yes Draco Malfoy!"

"He's back?" Harry asked mildly interested. He of course knew that the young Malfoy had left for Paris seven years ago. His return was however news to him.

"Yep… with a son" Ron finished.

"He's married?" Ginny asked and Hermione noted she seemed slightly disappointed. Hermione looked at her and she just shrugged her shoulders

"What? …oh come one 'Mione!" she exclaimed at the look she got, "you have to admit he's rather good looking, it's such a shame he's taken."

They both laughed at the shocked and horrified expressions on harry and Ron's face.

"Good looking my foot" he scoffed, "point is Gin, he's back and that can't be a bad thing".

"Oh Ronald! Stop it! He's barely been back in London for five minutes and you already think he's up to something!" Hermione cried out as she swatted his shoulder.

"You don't know he's not", he argued back, "you forget he's a Death Eater."

"Was a Death Eater Ron …was ...Past tense, he's not anymore." She countered, "So just stop this nonsense. No Ron!" she said as he was about to argue back.

With that conversation clearly over, Ron just glowered in his seat as Hermione and Ginny continued talking with occasional inputs from Harry.

The rest of the afternoon was spent with the four friends catching up and the return of the Malfoys was not mentioned again.

But the unspoken return of the Malfoy's didn't last long.