Last chapter:
At exactly 12:00, the portkey activated and three people suddenly appeared in the middle of the Weasleys living room.
Charlie looked much the same as he always had, with broad shoulders and long hair tied back. Ron had filled out into his body a couple of years ago, and he copied Charlies hairstyle. He must not have shaved in awhile, since there was a healthy amount of stubble growing around his mouth and down his neck. He looked pretty roguish, and Hermione thought he wore the look well.
The third person was a bit taller than Ron, but shorter than Charlie. His build was lean but muscular, his hair was short and a bit messy. His face was clean, and his jaw was set. It took Hermione a couple of moments to recognize him, but when she did, her eyes widened, and she realized the rest of the room was silent.
Everyone was staring at the third man, eyes wide and a couple of mouths agape.
There, in the center of the Weasley living room, stood Draco Malfoy.
Chapter 2:
Bill moved first. He stood up smiling and walked over to the trio, grabbing Charlie and giving him a loose hug and clap on the back. The initial shock wore off, and everyone got up to greet the newly arrived trio.
Hermione and Harry hung back, casting confused and worried glances at each other. Mrs. Weasley had all but lunged at Malfoy, and had pushed him into the kitchen, presumably to force food down his throat before he left. The Weasley family followed behind her, leaving only Ron, Hermione and Harry in the room.
"Hey mate! Good to see you!" Ron exclaimed as he clapped Harry on the back.
"Yeah, good to see you too" Harry responded a bit hesitantly.
Ron turned to Hermione with a smile on his face. "'Mione" he said, before engulfing her in a tight hug and kissing her on the cheek.
Hermione responded in kind before pulling back with a frown.
"Ron….what the bloody hell!" She exclaimed quietly, not wanting to be overheard by the others in the next room.
Ron stepped back from her and looked at his two friends, wearing a guilty smile and scratching the back of his head.
"I'm sorry. I suppose I should explain. He's really not that bad. Still a bit of a tosser, but" he said pausing, "a more tolerable tosser?"
Harry and Hermione looked at each other, then back at Ron. Both wearing very confused expressions.
Ron sighed, "listen, I'll explain everything later this evening, I promise. But for now, we better get in there before mum either chokes Malfoy, or Ginny hexes him."
Ron walked into the kitchen. Hermione and Harry slowly followed after him. "I wouldn't be opposed to either of those happening" Harry whispered to Hermione, causing her to giggle softly.
Upon walking into the kitchen, Hermione was surprised to find the Weasleys all gathered around the table chatting loudly, with Malfoy sitting in between Charlie and George. He looked completely out of place with his platinum hair in a sea of red. Molly had placed a large plate full of food in front of him and he was staring at it wearily.
When Harry and Hermione walked in smiling, he looked up and locked eyes with her. It was only for a moment, but Hermione could have sworn she saw fear flash in his eyes. He gave her a small, tight lipped smile and went back to staring wearily at his plate before George clapped him on the back.
"Eat up, Malfoy. Otherwise mum will shove it down your throat."
Malfoy looked at him in horror, and the other Weasley's all laughed.
"She won't really do that" he asked hesitantly back, "will she?"
George laughed loudly and shook his head. "I've seen her break out a funnel and stick it in Harry's mouth. Granted, this was after the final battle, so Harry was looking a bit guant."
Harry and Hermione sat down at the table, directly across from Malfoy and George.
"Can we not talk about that moment. If it wasn't for Ginny, I think she would have actually poured food down the funnel."
Everyone laughed at that, though Malfoy still looked horrified.
"Oh hush, you lot!" Molly said as she walked into the room, floating trays behind her. "The three of you showed up looking like you hadn't eaten or bathed in days!" She looked pointedly at Ron, Harry and Hermione as she lowered the rest of the food onto the table.
Ron rolled his eyes and began piling food onto his plate, "yeah, that's because we hadn't."
Mrs. Weasley shook her head. "Enough talk. Let's eat so that I can kick you all out of my home. Merlin knows I love my children, but the abuse I take…"
"You know we jest, mum. Look at Ron, he's ecstatic to be home again." Bill said on a laugh.
Everyone turned to look at Ron, who currently had his mouth stuffed and was about to take another bite of his sandwich. He looked up and glared at everyone, before opening his mouth to speak.
"Don't you dare say a word, Ronald! Close your mouth and finish chewing first." Molly interrupted him. Ron threw her a glare and kept quiet, finishing what was in his mouth.
The group sat around the table, talking and laughing for an hour. Harry and Hermione kept a side eye on Malfoy the entire time, noticing that he seemed to have an easy friendship with Charlie, and George would bud into their conversation from time to time.
Shortly after lunch was finished, Malfoy stood up and turned to Arthur and Molly, bowing and thanking them for the food, but insisting that he must be going.
Terribly sorry, he couldn't stay longer. Yes, he did eat enough. No, he really couldn't take any leftovers. Yes, he will be back again, as himself, Ron, and Charlie would all be going back to Romania with another portkey.
With a final goodbye and a short nod to Harry and Hermione, Malfoy disapparated on the spot.
Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny said their goodbyes soon after. The four deciding to return to their homes to get ready before going out that evening.
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The four friends met at the Leaky Caldron later that night for drinks. They were gathered around a table, laughing and reminiscing. Hearing Ron tell stories of the Hungarian Horntail he's in charge of.
"I'm not kidding! The first time I met her, she nearly melted my face off! I was lucky Charlie was there to tackle me to the ground in time. That would have been a long time in the medical ward." He said, shaking his head and taking a sip of his firewhiskey.
"You seem a much more capable trainer now, mate." Harry said, grinning and elbowing Ginny discreetly.
Ginny tried to hide her snicker behind her wine glass.
Hermione rolled her eyes at the pair. "Don't listen to them, Ron. You've become an excellent trainer, and the dragons seem to love you."
"Thanks 'Mione." He smiled at her affectionately. "How have things been here? I rarely talk to you anymore."
"Hold on, now. While we're on the subject of dragons" Ginny said in a rush. "What the bloody hell is going on with Malfoy?"
Hermione and Harry nodded and the three of them looked at Ron with questioning eyes. Ron scratched the back of his head.
"Like I said, he's really not a bad bloke. I mean, yes, when he first arrived to the camp I was not happy about it. Nearly threw a fit. We mostly ignored each other for the first month. But he was assigned to my team, so I had to speak with him at some point."
Ron got a faraway look in his eye as he told the story. The other three friends watched and listened with rapt attention.
"We fought everyday. Never got physical, but there was a lot of yelling. Pissed off the team leaders, that's for sure. They got so sick of us, they sent him and I on a mission to retrieve abandoned dragon eggs. We got reports of some poachers in a nearby town. Turns out, what were thought to be abandoned eggs, were not actually abandoned."
Ron paused to take a sip of his drink and looked at the other three in turn. Hermione hadn't touched her food, and he could tell she was listening intently. She was staring into his eyes, golden brown meeting icy blue, and her stare never wavered.
Harry was already half way through his second drink, which was no surprise. He had taken up drinking after the war ended, and while it wasn't anything to be overly worried about, Ron knew he would have to talk to his friend about it sometime soon.
Ginny didn't seem like she cared about the story much. She was busy nursing her wine and snacking on bread. But Ron knew that was just how she appeared. Inwardly, Ginny was paying rapt attention. She wasn't looking at him, but her eyes hadn't moved beyond the table in front of her.
He knew he should have told them sooner. It was a weird situation, even for him. Draco Malfoy making a sudden reappearance in his life, after not seeing him for years. He should have told them when he finally decided that Malfoy was an agreeable bloke, that he had become a quick confidant. And he definitely should have told them when Malfoy confided in him one drunken night, when the pair of them spilled their thoughts and their fears. But he didn't. He couldn't. And he wasn't entirely sure why.
He took a breath and continued with his story. "We'd been out in the wilderness for two weeks. Barely talking to each other. We had an unspoken agreement to stay silent through the mission unless it was required to speak. It had rained the night before, and we finally managed to climb up to the cave where the dragon eggs were supposed to be. Except, there were no eggs. But there was a bloody huge dragon and her new born babes.
"A female Ukrainian Ironbelly was at the back of the cave. She knew we were there, and we knew that she knew. So we ran. Got the hell right out of that cave, nearly leapt off the mountain. She followed us out. Malfoy was behind me, and when she spit out her fireball, he tackled me to the ground just in time and rolled us off the edge. I saw that fire hit the rock right where my head had been a second ago."
"So, he saved you?" Harry asked incredulously.
Ron nodded. "Sure did. Had a few broken bones, mind you, but we lived. She didn't chase us after that. Luckily we packed some skele-grow in our kits, otherwise we would have been pretty screwed hiking back to camp. Your undetectable extension charm really helped us out, 'Mione."
Hermione smiled, proud that Ron had remembered something she taught him.
"Wow, I'm surprised. So you two have what, been best friends since?" Ginny asked her brother, truly curious.
Ron chugged down the rest of his drink and shrugged "Mmm yeah, pretty much."
"Well, given that he did save you, I suppose we have to be civil to the bloke now." Harry sighed.
"I'm willing to be nice if he is." Said Hermione, crossing her arms. "But if he puts one toe out of line, I will hex him."
Ron chuckled, "I don't doubt you will. Anyways, I should get going." Standing up, Ron placed a few sickles on the table. "I'm exhausted. I'll see you lot tomorrow?"
Harry shrugged and finished his drink "Probably. Gin and I will be hanging out at home if you two want to come over?"
"I have some work to do, but I'll try after." Hermione said as she stood, grabbing her purse and tossing a couple extra coins on the table.
The other three groaned. "You work too hard, Hermione." Ginny said, kissing her friend on the cheek.
Hermione smiled and after kissing her friends goodbye, apparated into her living room.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
That week flew by. Hermione was in meetings all week, and had hung out with her friends nearly everyday. She missed seeing Ron, but she also missed her alone time. When Saturday finally came, she was perfectly content to lounge around until she had to go to Hogwarts for tea with Minerva.
She flooed into the Headmistress's office, not at all surprised to see Minerva standing there waiting for her.
"Ah, Ms. Granger. Right on time, as always."
Hermione smirked. "Good to see you, Minerva. How have you been?"
"Well enough. I'm losing my energy as I get older, but the children are much better behaved than you all were."
Hermione laughed at that. "Sorry, I can only imagine what it was like to teach us. I realize now how awful we really were."
Minerva led them towards her desk, where the elves had already set out tea and scones. "I won't say your class didn't give me many grey hairs, but I loved all of you. Yes, even the Slytherins" Minerva said upon seeing Hermione about to speak. She began pouring tea for the two of them. "I always consider my students to be my children while they're under my care. But your year holds a special place in my heart. Childhood was not kind to any of you." She emphasized "any", giving a stern look to Hermione.
Hermione looked at her hands in her lap, with a sad smile. "No, I know it wasn't. I wished I realized that the Slytherins had as hard a time as we did back when I was still in school."
Minerva took a sip of her tea and put it softly back on the saucer before speaking. "Rather than discuss depressing matters, I invited you hear because I wanted to inform you of the ministry ball."
Hermione looked up curiously. "I was told that it was to be held here. Has there been a change?"
Minerva gestured to the cup in front of Hermione, indicating for her to drink. She waited until Hermione took a sip before she continued. "No, it will be held here. However, I find myself growing too old and tired to plan a ministry event. And the other professors aren't getting any younger. I wonder if I could ask a favor of you, Ms. Granger."
Hermione looked at her old professor with a curious look. "If you're going to ask me to help plan the event, I would be delighted. However, I don't think I'll be able to do it alone in the next few weeks. I'm very busy at work an-"
Minerva raised her hand to silence her. "I would not ask you to do this alone. Yes, I was going to ask you to help plan, but that was not the favor."
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, preparing herself for Hermione's possible reaction to her request.
"I have already asked another to assist you in the planning. I just ask that you two get along."
Hermione was confused. Get along? She tries to be nice to everyone, who could Minerva be worried she won't get along with?
Before Hermione could voice these questions, Minerva stood from the table and went to the door. She looked back at Hermione as she slowly opened it, revealing a tall figure with his back turned. He turned to look at her upon hearing the door opening, and his eye instantly found hers.
Hermione took a sharp breath and stood quickly. For the second time in a week, she was staring directly at Draco Malfoy.
After not seeing the man since his trial in which she spoke for him, she had now seen him twice. That was two times too much, Hermione thought.
He took a step into the room, and turned to Minerva. "Thank you, Headmistress." Turning back to Hermione, he nodded in greeting. "Granger."
"Malfoy" she replied with a nod.
"Mr. Malfoy, please take a seat. We have a few things to discuss if you both will agree to work together on planning the event."
Malfoy glided past Hermione and sat in the chair to her left, Hermione sat back down. Her spine was straight and her hands clasped together in her lap. She knew she could handle Malfoy, especially with the Headmistress across the table, but it didn't make her any more comfortable sitting near him.
Minerva sat back down at her desk and poured another cup of tea, handing it to Malfoy before speaking again.
"Now, I know you two have your differences, but given that you were both the top of your class, I believe you'll be able to set aside those differences and work together to make the ball a success." She looked at the pair from over her glasses, reminiscent of the way Dumbledore used to.
"Wait a moment, why is Malfoy to be involved? He doesn't work for the ministry."
"Actually Granger, starting Monday, I'll be an auror."
Hermione's head snapped to look at the man next to her with wide eyes. "Really? But you just started dragon taming…"
Malfoy looked at her out of the corner of his eye and smirked into his cup. "That was part of my training. I do believe the ministry sent me to train with dragons in the hopes that one of them would kill me."
Hermione looked at Minerva quickly and then back to Malfoy. "I'm sure that's not true."
Malfoy placed his cup back on the saucer and to the table, turning fully towards Hermione. "The Wizengamot may have ruled that I was a free man, Granger. But rest assured that does not mean they want a Death Eater in their auror ranks."
"The ministry is full of vengeful people, Ms. Granger." Minerva chimed in, drawing their attention back to the matter at hand. "You are well aware. But whether Mr. Malfoy was sent there to die is moot. He is very much alive, and has officially passed his training. Now," she whisked her desk clear with her wand, "we have much to discuss."
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An hour later, Hermione and Malfoy walked side by side through Hogwarts, making their way towards the gates. The Headmistress had to make a floo call, and shooed the pair of them out of her office. They've been walking together for the past five minutes, neither of them saying a word.
She was very uncomfortable. Yes, she knew Ron had said that he had changed, that he was an alright bloke. But it didn't make her feel much more confident when they were the only two people in the halls.
It wasn't long before they heard haunted laughing coming from one of the corridors. They looked at each other in fear, both knowing exactly who was coming towards them.
"Peeves" they breathed in unison.
Knowing all too well how the poltergeist was sure to humiliate the next person he came across, Hermione turned and was about to run in the opposite direction. A hand grabbed her arm, preventing her from making an escape. She turned sharply and narrowed her eyes at Malfoy.
"Let go before he finds us."
"You'll never be able to outrun him. He'll hear your footsteps."
"So what, we just sit and wait for him to find us?" She whispered harshly.
Malfoy narrowed his eyes at her for a second before turning around and dragging her to the far wall, where a curtain hung against a window.
He shoved her behind the curtain and followed right behind her. He drew the curtain closed and pushed her further against the wall. Her back was against the window and she could feel the cold seep into her skin. But moving forward would put her right up against Malfoy and that would be so much worse. She shivered slightly.
Malfoy saw her shiver and sighed quietly. Putting his arm around her waist, he felt her stiffen as he pulled her away from the window and closer against his body. The top of her head came up to his chin, and he was able to look down at her with a guarded expression.
She looked up at him with narrowed eyes and whispered, "What do you think you are doing! Let me-"
But before she could say more, they heard Peeves maniacal laugh on the other side of the curtain.
Hermione's eyes widened slightly and Malfoy put a finger to his lips, informing her to stay silent.
Oh Merlin, this was terrible. She did not want to be in this position. She couldn't make a sound for fear of Peeves discovering them, but she certainly did not want to be pressed up against Draco Malfoy, of all people. Then again, she thought, it could be worse. I could be pressed against Cormac McLaggen. Or Pansy Parkinson. Or Goyle. Gross. Okay, yes. It could be worse.
She pursed her lips and looked at Malfoy from underneath her eyelashes. He was staring straight ahead, his face still guarded. Once they no longer heard Peeves laughter, he released her and opened the curtain for her to walkthrough.
She stepped out and brushed imaginary lint from her clothing, not wanting to meet his eye.
Draco glanced at her and started making his way back to the gates, hearing her rush to catch up to his long strides.
They continued in silence, and he couldn't bear it any longer. Taking a breath, he steeled his courage and began, "Listen, Granger. I know we've never gotten along and I'm well aware of how you feel about me," Hearing her snort he rolled his eyes. "but I didn't come this far just to disappoint the ministry. I would greatly appreciate if you can forget the fact you hate me and work with me to make this ball a success."
They had reached the doors to the castle. He pushed them open, allowing her to go first. They made their way through the courtyard and down the slope before she stopped and turned towards him.
"Very well. I don't want to disappoint the ministry either. I will work with you, Malfoy, but you must agree to be civil. I will agree to the same."
She stuck her hand out towards him, looking him straight in the eye with a determined face.
He stared back as he took her hand in his, grasping it firmly. "Deal."
She smiled brightly before turning her back to him and continued making her way to the bottom of the slope.
Draco was stunned. He'd never seen her smile that brightly. Well, yes, he had. But it was never directed at him before. He made to follow after her before she turned back around and called out to him.
"Oh, and Malfoy."
He looked up at her.
"I don't hate you. I just don't like you."
She smirked and waved before disapparating on the spot.
She didn't see the stunned expression on the mans face, nor the relieved smile that came quickly after.