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Hermione sighed quietly as she made a quick note on the file in her hand. Suppressing the urge to roll her eyes, she looked at the young witch on the bed in front of her. "We'll keep you here for a few hours to ensure that you have no remaining damage," Hermione said crisply. "However, I feel reasonably confident that I've completely reversed the mutation and you'll have no further problems."
"Thank you Healer Granger," the teenager muttered morosely.
The women sitting in the chair by the bed looked frazzled and she gave Hermione an embarrassed but apologetic look before glaring at her daughter. Hermione nodded to the mother and daughter before leaving the room and closing the door behind her firmly. "Blithering idiot," she muttered under her breath.
"Sounds like you had a good one," said an amused male voice, making Hermione jump in surprise. She turned to see Draco's amused smirk. He was holding a white paper file under one arm. "What did the blithering idiot do?"
Hermione blushed slightly at the fact that her less than charitable comment had been overheard. "It was a teenager that wanted to become an animagus," Hermione replied. "She thought she'd achieve that the 'easy way' and use a potion."
"Idiot," Draco muttered with a nod of agreement. "What did she try to become?"
Hermione gave an involuntary shudder. "A mermaid," she whispered, indicating that Draco should follow her away from the door.
"Bloody hell," Draco grumbled. "That's not an animal."
"Obviously," she replied, passing him the file in her hands. "She and her friends tried to modify the polyjuice potion. How she managed to get a mermaid's hair is beyond me."
Draco winced as he looked at the file. "So how far did the mutation go?" he asked.
"Enough to nearly kill her," Hermione said with a frown. "Her hands and feet were webbed and she had gills. Her friends were at least clever enough to get her into some water. She was transported here in a bathtub."
Draco snorted. "How the hell did I miss a spectacle like that?"
"You were with that naughty witch from this morning," Hermione answered with a smirk.
It was Draco's turn to shudder then. A pretty witch had entered St. Mungos that morning with a rather embarrassing problem. After checking in, the woman was quickly ushered to a room and a smirking medi-witch had handed the case off to Draco. He'd walked into the room to find the witch was sweating a bit and seemed unable to remain still on the exam table. The woman had allowed her boyfriend to insert a small vibrator into her body before proceeding to have sex with her. He'd stopped rather quickly as the vibrations were overstimulating, but had pushed the vibrator much farther inside. Attempts to retrieve it on their own hadn't gone well.
"Did you hear that she made a pass at me?" Draco asked with wide eyes.
"Nice job," Hermione said with a smirk. "Well, she was very pretty. And at least you know that she's a bit adventurous in the bedroom."
Draco sneered. "Not bloody likely. She was having sex with another wizard shortly before she came in," he said incredulously.
Hermione stepped into the office and sat down, not bothering to suppress her giggles. "Not all men are that fussy about it," she said with a grin.
"Well I... no," Draco said, dropping the files onto the desk. "Not interested. Everything about that was uncomfortable. I got the bloody vibrator out, but I made the process as clinical and bloody awkward as possible. I have no intention of dating one of our lunatic patients, much less shagging them."
"Good to know," said a voice from the doorway. The two healers turned to see Harry leaning against the door frame.
"Seriously, do you not have a job?" Draco asked, folding his arms imperiously.
Harry rolled his eyes, but his smile remained firmly in place. "Very funny," he said lightly. "Finished a bit early today. Thought I'd bring Hermione a coffee." He lifted a styrofoam cup with a lid from a local muggle coffee shop and moved into the office to set it on Hermione's desk, noticing relief flash across her face momentarily. "Would you like some coffee?" he asked Draco politely.
"Thank you, but no," Draco replied dismissively, peering at Harry curiously.
"Thought I'd invite you to dinner," Harry said cheerfully.
Draco cocked one eye brow, glancing at Hermione and then back at Harry. "You're not my type Potter," he drawled.
Harry rolled his eyes again. "Don't be a prat. I'm inviting you to join us at the house for dinner," Harry explained.
Draco smiled slightly. "That would actually be nice," he admitted. "Pansy has been insisting on going out for a drink, and I was looking for a reason to put her off tonight."
Harry snorted. "Oh, she'll love that," he commented with a smirk. "I thought you two were friends."
Draco crossed his arms over his chest and frowned. "She's a bit much," he said, cringing. "She's changed a bit since the war, but..." He shuddered slightly, making Harry and Hermione exchange a curious look. "I'll be there," Draco assured Harry.
"Great!" Harry exclaimed, his happy smile back in place. "I've got to go and get started on dinner, but I'll see you both later." He hurried back out with a hasty wave over his shoulder.
Harry peered into the oven to check on the chicken before turning to watch Hermione with concern. He had asked her to prepare the salad, but was now regretting that decision. Her wand movements seemed a bit clumsy as she used a spell to set one of the knives to cutting some carrots. She managed to complete the spell, but she fumbled her wand and dropped it on the counter. The knife clattered onto the counter noisily, knocking carrots and lettuce to the floor. Hermione sighed in aggravation, but Harry noticed that she didn't pick her wand back up right away.
"Not the way I'd eat a salad," Draco commented from the doorway, surprising them. Harry had been so absorbed with cooking and keeping an eye on Hermione that he hadn't heard anyone come in.
Harry glanced at Hermione and saw that she had picked up her wand and was holding it loosely in one hand. Her face was tense and for a moment, Harry thought she might cry. "Hermione's a little clumsy when she's tired," Harry said lightly, forcing a smile onto his face. "Would you mind prepping the salad?" he asked Draco, quickly preparing a cup of coffee for Hermione.
"Not at all," Draco said, casting a curious look at Hermione. He noted that her cheeks were slightly pink, but chose not to comment. "So, I thought I could put Pansy off," he said hesitantly. "But she wasn't pleased and followed me here."
Pansy Parkinson stepped into the kitchen at that moment, carrying Scorpius. Her black hair was sleek and long. Her features were a bit sharper than they had been in school. Her eyes swept over the kitchen impassively and then she sighed with a dramatic roll of her eyes. "I can't believe you tried to ditch me to hang out with Gryffindors," she commented. She frowned as Scorpius squirmed in her grasp.
Draco glanced up from the perfectly cut carrots and smiled as his son leaned toward Hermione excitedly. "He remembers you," he told Hermione. He watched for a moment as Hermione took Scorpius into her arms and then turned his attention to the tomatoes. "Pansy, behave yourself," he said firmly. "You weren't even invited."
Pansy pouted at him before shifting her gaze to Harry. "Potter won't turn me away," she said confidently. "He's into chivalry and all that nonsense." When Harry looked at her incredulously, she batted her eyelashes at him.
Harry shook his head and laughed, wondering what he'd gotten himself into. "Be nice and I won't toss you out on your arse," Harry said in warning, but he smiled slightly. Pansy smirked, giving him a sassy wink. Harry sighed and then looked over at Hermione with a slight frown. "It's hot in here," he said gently, resting one hand on Hermione's shoulder. "Why don't you go sit down with Scorpius and cool off? We'll be done in a moment." He watched her nod hesitantly and wrap her arms more firmly around the baby before she walked out of the room. Harry's stomach clenched unpleasantly with concern. He glanced at Draco and saw that the blond was staring at him with narrowed eyes.
"What's wrong?" Draco asked sharply, though he kept his voice low.
"Nothing," Harry said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "She's just been really tired. She works too hard and..." He sighed, and rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably. "I'm probably just being over-protective." He glanced at Pansy and hitched on a smile. "We've got wine, butterbeer, firewhiskey... Help yourself to whatever you'd like." He turned away again to finish their dinner.
Harry declared their dinner to be ready a few moments later and began levitating dishes into the dining room while Draco wandered over to peruse the wine selection. "What would Hermione like?" Draco asked.
"Good luck with that," Harry said with a snort, reaching into a cabinet for the firewhiskey. "She doesn't drink often, so none of us can figure out what she likes. So bloody picky. Butterbeer is a pretty safe choice."
Draco glanced at Harry, his lips pursed. He turned back to the wine bottles thoughtfully, peering at the labels. Pansy watched him for a moment before rolling her eyes and walking into the dining room. After a moment, Draco selected a bottle of Moscato. He poured the wine into two wine glasses, and then carefully levitated the glasses into the dining room while he followed carrying the bottle.
Harry took Scorpius from Hermione and set the baby in a high chair that had been used when Teddy was a baby. Harry slid the tray into place in front of Scorpius and grinned when the child squealed, banged his tiny hands on the tray and started babbling. The only word Harry understood was "eat".
Grumbling could be heard from the other room just before Ron stomped into the dining room, tugging his auror robes down his arms. He froze when he saw Pansy sitting at the dining room table and Draco pulling out Hermione's chair for her. Once Hermione sat down, Draco sat beside her, keeping his gaze on Ron.
Ron stared at Pansy for a moment and then turned to look at Harry. "Harry," Ron said in a voice that was suspiciously calm, "why do you have a pug sitting at the table?"
Harry shot Ron a glare, but Pansy spoke up before Harry could. "Potter, I had no idea that you had a weasel for a familiar," Pansy said sweetly. "A bit of a step down from that gorgeous snowy owl you had in school, Love," she added, patting Harry's hand sympathetically.
Ron's face was creased with a scowl and he opened his mouth to snarl at Pansy. "That's enough," Harry said sternly, glaring at Ron. "We're having dinner and I'm not interested in listening to a fight."
"Indeed," Draco said, glaring at Pansy. "Enough."
Pansy sighed and turned to Ron with an impressively polite smile. "How lovely to see you Weasley," she said. "Would you sit next to me?" Ron looked at Pansy for a moment, his lips twitching. Finally, he chuckled and sat down. "No hard feelings?" she asked, batting her eyelashes. "I'll be good."
"I doubt that," Ron said, smirking. He laughed when Pansy just winked at him.
Draco shook his head, handing Hermione one of the wine glasses. He chuckled at the suspicious glance she gave the wine. "Just try it," he chided her. "I have excellent taste."
"That's debatable," Pansy muttered into her tumbler of firewhiskey, smirking at Ron's snort of laughter.
Hermione took a cautious sip from her glass, aware that Draco was watching her expectantly. "Ah," Draco said, sounding smug when she smiled and took another sip. "I thought so."
"It's lovely," Hermione said, setting the glass down. "What is it?"
"Potter was hiding a decent Moscato over there," Draco replied, tasting the wine himself. He shrugged, setting the glass down. "Not my favorite, but I had a feeling you'd like it." He smiled at her, pleased when he noted a faint blush staining her cheeks.
Ron looked at Hermione's blushing face and rolled his eyes. "Malfoy, enough flirting with Hermione," he deadpanned. He smirked when Hermione's breath hitched and she dropped her eyes to her lap. "Let start eating," Ron said, serving himself some of Harry's oven roasted chicken.
Hermione shot a glare at Ron but quickly served herself some salad and passed the bowl to Draco. "I can do both," Draco commented softly, his tone playful. The others had obviously heard this statement, because Pansy snorted with laughter and Ron made a strange choking sound. Harry had jerked his head around to look at Draco so fast that his neck popped. Hermione froze momentarily, her eyes wide with surprise. Then she huffed impatiently and resumed filling her plate. Unperturbed, Draco just grinned and began to serve himself as well.
For a few moments, everyone at the table remained silent as the dug in to their dinner. Even Scorpius was quietly Pansy put an end to the slightly tense silence when she made a little hum of approval around the bite of chicken in her mouth. She swallowed and looked over at Harry. "Very impressive," she said with a nod. "I think you may be part house-elf."
Draco frowned at Pansy. "Could you not?" he asked her impatiently. Glancing at Harry he said "Apologies Potter. That was actually a tacky sort of compliment."
"Then I'll take it as a compliment," Harry said with a shrug. To his surprise, Pansy beamed at him.
"There you go," she said approvingly. "We'll get along just fine, won't we Weasley?" she asked, turning to Ron expectantly.
Ron froze with his fork halfway to his mouth. He lowered the fork slightly and eyed Pansy curiously. "Sure," he said finally.
Pansy took a sip of her firewhiskey and then set it down carefully. "These two are working together," she said gesturing to Draco and Hermione. "You've all made an effort to be friendly with Draco despite the past. Since I'm also his friend, I think it would benefit all of us if I was also on less hostile terms with all of you."
Ron nodded, watching Pansy closely. "We don't put up with anyone mistreating Hermione," he told her sternly.
"Of course," Pansy responded, rolling her eyes. "I'm not an idiot. I can be civil to Granger." She offered a polite nod to Hemione, as if to illustrate her point.
A whimper from Scorpius drew the attention of the adults. "He probably needs to be changed," Draco said, setting his fork down. He moved to stand, but Hermione stopped him.
"I'll take care of it," she said lightly.
Draco snorted. "It's not exactly a glamorous task Granger," he drawled.
"All the same," Hermione replied. "I don't mind." She rose from her seat and walked around the table to lift Scorpius from his seat where he was beginning to cry in earnest. She spoke softly to him as she carried him from the room.
"Ha, I knew it," Pansy hissed once Hermione was gone.
Harry frowned at Pansy in confusion, and saw that she was staring accusingly at Draco. Draco has jerked his gaze to Pansy with narrowed eyes. "What are you on about?" Harry asked.
Pansy smirked, her eyes darting to Harry briefly before settling on Draco again. "Draco Malfoy seems to be rather fond of Granger's backside," Pansy said with a wicked grin.
Ron promptly spat out his drink, spraying the table. Draco back away from the table slightly, scowling at Ron. "What is with you Gryffindors spewing fluids all over everything?" he snapped.
Harry barely contained his laughter enough to wave his wand and vanish the liquid from the table. Pansy was struggling with her laughter as well. "You won't distract me that easily," she assured Draco, giggling. "Your eyes were fixed firmly on her bum." She smirked in triumph at the faint blush that stained Draco's cheeks.
"Are you serious?" Ron demanded, staring at Draco.
"Relax," Harry, said calmly. "It's a stupid thing to get worked up about." He was relieved when Ron nodded shortly and sighed. Harry eyed Draco with a grin. "I have to admit that I find that rather interesting," he commented.
Pansy glanced at the doorway quickly before she leaned forward eagerly. "He wouldn't admit it, but I knew he was attracted to her when we were in school," she told Harry in an excited whisper.
Draco groaned. "You're such a bitch," he muttered, rolling his eyes.
"So, it's true?" Harry asked.
Draco rolled his eyes in aggravation. "Don't be dramatic about it," he snapped. "Everyone found Granger attractive in fourth year at the yule ball."
"Ah the yule ball," Pansy sighed with a grin. "When Granger set down her book and everyone noticed that she has breasts." She winked at Draco playfully, enjoying his grimace of discomfort. Ron and Harry looked as if they couldn't decide whether to laugh or be incredibly embarrassed. After a moment, they settled on both.
"Don't make this awkward," Draco muttered, his shoulders sagging a bit in resignation. He sighed heavily when Harry and Ron continued to choke on their laughter.
"What's going on in here?" Hermione asked carrying a squirming Scorpius.
Harry shot a smirk at Draco and then looked back at Hermione. "We've decided that we quite like Parkinson," he said simply. He grinned when he saw Pansy's smug expression.
Hermione's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"It's true," Ron agreed. "We've been having a laugh at Malfoy's expense." He smirked when Draco glared at him.
Hermione shook her head and set Scorpius back in his seat. He cooed at her happily and she kissed his soft cheek affectionately. "They'll all need to be punished if they don't behave," she told Scorpius cheerfully. "Would you like that?" Scorpius laughed in response, slapping his tray with both of his tiny hands.
Harry eased Hermione's bedroom door open, knocking against the wood gently to alert her to his presence. He'd used a charm set to let him know when she woke up so he could have breakfast ready for her. He smiled as she stretched languidly before meeting his gaze with a sleepy smile. "Good morning," he said, leaning one hip against the door frame. "I've got breakfast made and the coffee is ready."
"You didn't have to do that Harry," she said. "But thank you."
"I'm glad to do it," Harry replied. "What are your plans for the day?"
Hermione sat up in bed and turned to let her legs hang over the side of the bed, frowning slightly. She looked at Harry and smiled. "Pansy would like for me to go to lunch with her," she said. "She says we should get to know each other better. After that I may visit with Molly for a little while."
Harry nodded and smiled, but he gasped when Hermione stood up and her legs instantly buckled under her. She caught herself on the bed and Harry darted forward to help her to sit back down. "Are you alright?" he asked frantically. "Are you hurt?"
Hermione's eyes were wide and anxious, but she shook her head hastily. "I'm alright Harry," she said tightly. "I probably got too warm under my blankets and then I just stood up too quickly." She sighed at Harry's fearful expression. "A brief dizzy spell is nothing to get your wand in a knot over. I'm fine. Why don't you make a cup of coffee while I get dressed?"
Harry nodded reluctantly and walked out of the room, pulling the door closed behind him. Before it could shut completely, he peered back at Hermione through the opening. He watched as she reached into a drawer next to her bed and pulled out a vial of pale yellow potion with trembling hands and quickly drank it's contents, grimacing at the taste. Harry turned away and walked down the hallway toward the kitchen, trying to calm the panicked thoughts that were tumbling around in his head.
Hermione acted as if nothing strange had happened as she joined Harry and Ron for breakfast. Ron noticed Harry's poorly concealed anxiety immediately, but remained silent when he realized the Hermione was brushing off whatever had rattled Harry so badly. Once Hermione had left to run errands before her lunch with Pansy, Ron had turned to Harry expectantly.
"You like you've seen Professor Trelawney naked," Ron said, hoping to draw a laugh from a shockingly pale Harry.
"I think it's getting worse," Harry muttered, slouching in his chair. He clenched his hands into fists to keep them from shaking. "She nearly collapsed getting out of bed. I think she's getting weaker."
Ron frowned, dread settling in his stomach. "What was her excuse this time?" he asked.
"It was hot," Harry replied rolling his eyes. "She got up too quickly and had a dizzy spell. But, she didn't look dizzy." Ron nodded, looking as nauseous as Harry felt.
At work the following Monday morning, Draco was strangely quiet. He'd collected some blood samples and was testing them with a few diagnostic spells. By the time the afternoon arrived, he seemed to have relaxed a bit and was behaving more like himself. Hermione was relieved to hear his sarcastic comments after such a tense morning.
Working with Draco Malfoy was nothing like Hermione had expected it to be. He was still rather arrogant and sarcastic, but he was no longer malicious. In fact, most of his interactions with Hermione could be described as flirtatious. It made their time together enjoyable rather than frustrating. It certainly helped that he was very attractive, though Hermione was determined to think of his treatment of her as merely friendly. Surely it was better that way. However, Draco chose that afternoon to dispel of her of that notion.
"Pansy has grown quite fond of you," Draco commented. He looked up from the parchment he'd been making notes on and looked at Hermione. "She hasn't shut up about it."
Hermione grinned. "I'm glad we spent some time together," she said. She glanced at Draco with a smirk. "She's got some hilarious stories about you."
Draco rolled his eyes but smiled, setting his quill down and walking over to where Hermione sat. She was scanning the pages of a heavy tome, seeking information for a patient under her care. She looked up at Draco, her smile faltering momentarily when she noted how close he was standing. "Wouldn't it be better to hear those stories from the source?" he asked softly. He reached out and tucked one of her stray curls behind her ear. He was delighted to hear her breathing hitch at the gesture.
"Well, I..." Hermione's face flushed in embarrassment as she struggled to think up a coherent response.
"Let me take you to dinner," Draco said smoothly, his gray eyes focused intently on her face.
Hermione blushed and stammered, completely stunned.
She was saved from responding right away when the office door was thrown open by one of he Medi-witches. She took in Hermione's pink face and Draco's close proximity and barely managed to suppress a knowing smirk. "Healer Malfoy, that woman from last week is back," she said hastily. A sly grin crept onto her face as she added "Apparently, her boyfriend was experimenting with toys again." She winked at Hermione and then darted back into the hallway.
Draco groaned and swore under his breath. He looked down at Hermione and brushed his fingertips across her knuckles. "I'll be back," he murmured, enjoying the way she nibbled her lower lip nervously. He left the office feeling rather pleased with himself.
Hermione sat very still for a moment, her lips quirking into a smile. But, then she bit her lip again and stood up, keeping one hand on the back of her chair to steady herself. She needed to stay busy.
By the end of the week, Draco was thoroughly irritated. Hermione had found reasons to avoid addressing the request he'd made for her to have dinner with him. He simply couldn't understand it. He could see that she seemed to enjoy the time they spent working together. He flirted shamelessly, and she seemed to like his attention. He'd even progressed to finding excuses to touch her. She blushed prettily every time, and Draco loved having such an effect on her.
But still she wouldn't accept a date with him. She was always "too busy" or "too tired". Draco wasn't heartbroken over it. The death of his wife was still painful, and he suspected it always would be to some degree. But he wanted to move on, for his son's benefit as much as his own. Hermione was the first woman to spark his interest, and he was keen to explore that. No, Draco was feeling disgruntled over the concept of having been rejected. Or rather, that Hermione had pointedly avoided accepting a date with him.
On Friday evening, he found himself back at Seamus' pub, very near sulking. Pansy sat to his right, flirting with the bartender. On his left, Harry and Ron had just walked up to the bar and ordered drinks
"Seamus did a great job with this place," Harry commented loudly in order to be heard over the music.
"I still can't believe you never bothered to come in here before Hermione's birthday," Ron practically shouted. "You bloody own the place." He chuckled when Malfoy nearly spat out his firewhiskey.
"You own it?" Draco asked incredulously.
"Sort of," Harry said with a shrug. "Seamus wanted to open a pub and partnered up with George who's got a head for business. When they approached me, I put up the galleons to get things going. So, I technically own a third of the company."
"Which is why it's called 'Mischief Managed'," Ron added with a grin.
The name didn't make much since to Draco, but he didn't care much at the moment. He glanced over toward the stage situated on the far right side of the pub where witches and wizards were singing karaoke. He winced at the off-key wailing of one witch that was too inebriated to notice that her companions were laughing hysterically as she stumbled around the stage.
"Stop pouting," Pansy snapped impatiently, drawing Draco's attention. Harry and Ron looked over curiously as well.
"I don't pout," Draco retorted.
"Why are you pouting?" Ron asked curiously.
"I'm not," Draco snarled.
"He is," Pansy told them, ignoring Draco's glare. "He's a little put out because Granger's turned him down for a date." She sighed when Draco growled at her. "Fine," she said, holding both hands up as if in surrender. "She didn't reject you. But only because she's avoided answering you at all," she amended, rolling her eyes.
"Still?" Harry asked, frowning. "I thought she would have given in by now."
Ron stared at Harry in amazement. "You knew?" he asked Harry. "And you're encouraging it?"
Harry made a noise of impatience, rolling his eyes. "He wants to take her on a date," Harry said flatly. "If he's nice to her, I have no issue with it." He looked over at Draco's sour expression. "I still think she's interested," Harry said.
Draco scowled at Harry. "Well, it hardly matters if she's going to ignore the question all together," he drawled irritably. He lifted his tumbler to his lips, just to lower it immediately. "I'm not accustomed to rejection," he said stiffly, sitting up straighter on his bar stool.
Pansy shook her head. "Spare me," she groaned. She glanced at the stage and then turned to the blond with a hopeful expression. "There's a lovely distraction for you," she said, gesturing to the stage pointedly.
Draco peered around Pansy at the stage and shook his head with an amused snort. "I don't enjoy listening to people sing badly," he retorted.
Pansy glared. "That's not what I meant," she replied. She leaned around Draco to fix her eyes on Harry and Ron. "Did you know that this sod is very talented?" she asked, wrinkling her nose as if the compliment was distasteful to her. "He was in a band," she said in a loud whisper.
"You were too you silly bint," Draco snapped, exasperated.
Pansy pulled a face of mock astonishment, fluttering her eyelashes. "That's right," she agreed with wide eyes. "I'd forgotten how talented I am."
"Indeed," Draco deadpanned, turning away from her and swallowing a mouthful of firewhiskey.
Harry leaned toward Draco slightly, eyeing Draco and Pansy with interest. "I didn't know you were in a band," he said. "Are you any good?"
"We're unbelievable," Pansy cut in, pushing Draco aside. Draco scowled irritably while Harry and Ron laughed. "Draco has a gorgeous voice and plays the guitar," Pansy told.
"Guitar?" Ron asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise. "How very... muggle of you."
"It was his way of rebelling," Pansy said, winking at Draco. "His father wanted him to play something respectable like the piano or violin. Lucius thought that guitars are for hooligans."
"And it's not a muggle guitar," Draco argued defensively. "Wizards can play the guitar."
Ron chuckled. "I'm only joking," he assured Draco. "I think it's great. Do you play as well?" he asked Pansy.
Harry smiled to himself, pleased that Ron had made such an effort to be friendly. This more mature, forgiving Ron Weasley had set aside his memories of childhood rivalry and the horrors of war. Fred's death, in addition to many friends, would always haunt him. Pansy and Draco had both been on the side of the war that had caused Fred's death; But there Ron sat, treating them like friends. This was the sort of peace that Harry had always wanted.
Harry was jarred from his thoughts when Ron nudged him hard in the rib cage. Harry blinked and looked around to see his three companions watching him with curious expressions. "Did you hear anything we said?" Pansy asked.
"Sorry," Harry said sheepishly. "I was just thinking that it's great that we could all be friends."
Pansy eyed Harry for a moment. "He's so sentimental," she commented to Draco, as if Harry couldn't hear her. "Do you find that annoying?"
Draco glanced at Harry and then back at Pansy. "Hadn't thought about it," Draco shrugged. His lips twitched in amusement when Harry started grumbling irritably while Ron snorted into his drink.
Pansy grinned and winked at Harry. Harry scowled, but his expression softened when he realized that Draco seemed to no longer be brooding.
AN: Ok, so I'm still leaving you guys in the dark. Sorry. The next chapter will be up fairly soon. Just stick with me here.