Hey! Do you guys still remember me? ;) You probably don't, it's been so long since I have put something up. This is my final month of school and I've been pretty busy. Only two more finals and 3 more days left! Yay! This chapter is dedicated to the marvelous mad-hatted-rabbit who was one of the first people to support my stories :)
Hope you like this next chapter -Annemarie
Hermione thanked the muggle coffee vendor, her cold fingers warming as they curled around her disposable paper cup. She strode through the streets of Marseille, suddenly thankful that Peter had been kind enough to explain the route down to the Ministry, and glanced around before crossing the street. Casually, Hermione turned around and leaned against the wall. To anyone who walked by, it would look like the young woman was just resting and enjoying her cup of coffee. Not a single person even glanced at her as she melted through the wall.
Hermione shook herself, a shudder coursing through her as the strange feeling of something passing through her started to wear off, her hands brushing her blouse as if trying to get whatever had come over off. Quickly vanishing her now empty cup of coffee, Hermione slowed down and took in the sights of the French wizarding world, a luxury she hadn't been able to appreciate when she first came to the Ministry. The path was paved with cobblestones, giving the entire place a comfortable feeling, with what looked like multiple shops down the sides of a path leading to the left. Another path, to the right, had a sign floating above it, which she assumed led to the Ministry.
Following the witches and wizards dressed in Ministry robes, Hermione, copying the people around her, stepped on a large flat stone, one of many that littered what seemed to be an empty field. Feeling slightly ridiculous, Hermione tapped her toe against the grass around her, before turning in a circle on the stone. Hermione's ears popped as she was sucked into an invisible tube, a feeling similar to apparation coming over her.
Staggering slightly when her feet hit solid ground, Hermione scowled slightly when a stern looking women slammed into her shoulder and walked off without saying anything. She stifled a giggle at similarities between the woman and Professor McGonagall, a smile lingering on her face as she remembered her favourite professor.
Hermione glanced around, slowly starting to walk forwards with the crowd of people leaving the places where they had landed. The streets outside the oak doors of the Ministry were bustling, filled with witches and wizards hurrying to work in the early hours of the morning, the scene reminding Hermione of Diagon Alley. Hermione pursed her thin lips at the thought of home and dragged her eyes away from the street and onto the cafe Peter had told her to go to. Eyes wandering appreciatively over the old style quiet of the cafe, Hermione settled herself into a corner with a window facing the path, closing her eyes and resting her head against the wooden back of her bench, gentle strains of some old French love song floating through the almost empty cafe. A bell rang melodically inside the shop from somewhere, a customer entering the shop with light footsteps.
The thud of a something against wood startled Hermione, though it was a dull noise. Her brown eyes flew open and focused quickly onto the blonde man who was sliding into the bench across from her, hand flying to where her wand lay beside her instinctively. A ray of morning light fell on him, making his white-blond hair look almost gold. For a fleeting moment, his grey eyes flickered up to catch her cautious stare and she flushed, breaking their contact and looking down to the table, letting go of her wand but keeping it close to her. Malfoy just continued on, stirring two sugars into his tea before carefully placing the plastic disposable lid on top and join Hermione in her tense silence.
After a few minutes of unbroken quiet, Hermione finally looked up, only to find that Malfoy had leaned back against the wood bench he was on and closed his eyes, occasionally taking a sip of his tea. Hermione took the time to look over him, observing the changes that had happened to him since the final battle. He no longer slicked back his hair, instead leaving it in with what she assumed was a normal tousled state. His hair had darkened slightly, though not enough to be called a regular blonde, still a nearly white color. Malfoy was no longer the lanky boy he had been in Hogwarts, now more filled out and taller.
Hermione started when he opened his eyes and grabbed the folder he had put down before. He just seemed to ignore her sudden movement, opening the folder which Hermione now recognized as the case folder. Hermione glared at the table, wishing she hadn't flinched. She let her eyes drift, following the path of people outside through the window distractedly as she attempted to regain her composure.
"So, Granger, if you've finished ogling me when you thought I wasn't looking," Hermione flushed at his drawled words, heat blooming through her, "I've decided that if this partnership is going to work out, we'd better put some rules down now. For instance, you can attempt not to look at me as if I'm going to whip out my wand and murder everyone on this street." Malfoy said this quietly, and Hermione flushed once more and nodded, before reaching over and grabbing his case folder. When Malfoy made no signs of stopping her, Hermione slid the folder over and scanned what little information the French Aurors had managed to find on the case, pointedly ignoring the conversation on rules Malfoy had started to talk about.
When she finally looked up, she froze, Malfoy's eyes piercing her own, his long fingers steepled together and pressed to his lips. Hermione shook it off quickly, hating the feeling of being so fragile and quiet around him.
She was Hermione Granger, damn it. She'd fought Voldemort, obliviated her parents to protect them, brewed a Polyjuice potion in her second year successfully and went Horcrux hunting to save the Wizarding world. She could get through working with her childhood bully. Who happened to be an Ex-Death Eater.
Clearing her throat, Hermione straightened up and stared at Malfoy, a thrill flowing through as he did the same.
"Alright Malfoy. I won't stare at you like that, as long as you refrain from saying anything that could offend me or my blood. There are no longer rules like there were in Hogwarts and I will start a fight, and I will win. And to add onto that, you will work with me, not against me and I will work with you." Hermione drummed her fingers on the table unconsciously, "I won't give if I won't get anything in return. Are you alright with that?"
Malfoy cocked his head, his light hair falling in front of his eyes before he smiled a little. Hermione's eyes widened slightly, never having seen Malfoy smile a proper smile, let alone one directed at her, the filthy Mudblood. He looked rather different, his smile taking away the cold, emotionless quality he kept on. It was almost… nice.
"What?" Hermione asked, mentally checking herself for anything that could be making him smile like that.
"Nothing. Nothing really." Malfoy said unconvincingly, pulling himself forward and crossing his arms, before nodding his agreement at her terms.
"I wasn't planning on not working with you. Unless you don't plan on working with me properly?" He raised an eyebrow, an aristocratic look coming over his face. Hermione snorted.
"Malfoy, I know things have changed since Hogwarts but when have I ever not done what I was supposed to do?" Seeing him open his mouth, Hermione raised her hand to stop him. "Never mind. But you get my point."
He still had that annoying smile on his stupid face.
Hermione breathed out a slow sigh, tensing when he reached out towards her, before relaxing when she realised that he was stealing back his folder.
Seeing the frown that flashed across his face when he looked at his folder, Hermione got down to business, the case setting her mind back to where it was supposed to be.
"My team has the exact same information as yours. I was given the notion that you had extra information. Have you found anything else other than this?" Hermione questioned, sitting back against her chair.
Malfoy copied her actions, shaking his head.
"We've managed to find new leads, though they aren't strong ones, " he admitted, biting his lip and a hand through his hair, messing it up even more than it already was, giving him a look as if he had just gotten out of bed. The shadows under his eyes didn't help much.
Hermione huffed, relating to the tired man in front of her. His group was quite good with solving their cases, beating her own by just two minutes in terms of closing a case and she could understand the frustration of this one being so drawn-out.
"It's the same with us," Hermione breathed out, running a hand over her face, careful not to smudge what little makeup she had on. "There's gotta be something. Let's go over what happened since this all started, hm?
Draco nodded slightly, crossing his lean arms. "The rate of Muggle disappearances and deaths have increased, along with muggle-born witches and wizards. A group called Mangemort claims responsibility, saying that they do it to weed out those who do not "belong". At the moment, only those of authority and families of victims are aware of them. Their name means Death Eater in French so it is suspected that they are new and old followers of the Dark Lord. We'd been tracking them for more than half a year before the British Ministry joined in the search." Malfoy recited perfectly, without hesitation, then exhaled. "And that's all we know."
Hermione clenched her jaw, stray hairs escaping the messy bun she had put her hair into.
"We will solve this case." she said determinedly.
She stared hard at Malfoy before putting out her hand for Malfoy to shake.
"Partners?" she asked forcefully, narrowing her eyes slightly, all the while ignoring how her heart was beating a much faster rhythm than normal. For a moment he looked at her in confusion and just when she started to feel awkward and put down her hand did he reach out a hand clasping her own firmly but briefly before letting go.
"We better get to the Ministry and get to work after I see to one of my Aurors, Granger. I promised him that I would meet with him in fifteen minutes and I'd rather not be late." Malfoy said, standing up and stretching his long legs out. Hermione followed suit, clenching her fist as waves of warmth spread from where he touched her and wordlessly, the two left the cafe and pushed past the throng of people hurrying about. Malfoy held open the door for Hermione and she must have let her surprise shine through because gestured for her to go inside. Hermione pretended not to see him roll his eyes.
Malfoy guided her through the Ministry, occasionally greeting someone and engaging in a short conversation before moving on. Hermione couldn't help but feel impressed at his smooth, quick French. What little French she had learned since the last time she had been to France had slipped away from her memory, but from what she understood Malfoy was exceptionally good at picking up languages.
Placing his hand on her arm to steady her as she stumbled over someone's bag, Malfoy nodded at a couple of men once they were inside the elevator and pressed the button for Level 2. Hermione couldn't help but loosen up once he finally dropped his hand from her back, a strange sensation remaining. The group stood in relative silence until Malfoy and Hermione reached their floor. As they walked through the department and headed for Malfoy's office, Hermione hid a smile at his emerald green door. Some things never change. Casting a look at him, Hermione felt the need to say something to break the quiet.
"This is going to be one hell of a case with the both of us working together, huh Malfoy?" she blurted out, her voice echoing strangely throughout the empty hallway, and she couldn't help but feel small as he towered over her small frame. She stood up straight, nearly on her toes in the heels she was wearing, in a failed attempt to feel taller than her shorter-than-average height.
He looked at her for a second, eyes tracing her flushed face before flashing her another almost imperceptible smile and unlocking his door.
"Indeed it will, Granger, indeed it will."
Thanks for reading! Next chapter coming soon.