*Draco's POV*

He watched as she closed her eyes and fell asleep almost instantly. Should he leave, or wait a few minutes for her to go into a deeper sleep. He didn't want her to wake up alone, not after she asked him to stay. Yawning, he shifted into a more comfortable position. He'd wait just a couple minutes and then he would leave. He'd just rest his eyes until then.

He woke up the next morning, and the first thing he saw was her staring at him with her dark brown eyes and a small smile.

"I must've fallen asleep…" He mumbled, looking away, embarrassed to have fallen asleep.

"It's okay. I don't mind." Hermione smiled at him. "Draco, Harry scheduled an appointment for me to see a therapist today. Would you mind coming with me? Harry has work, and I don't want to ask him to miss it."

"Not a problem. I'm going to get ready for breakfast." He smiled, and rushed out, still flustered over accidently sleeping in the room with her.

*Hermione's POV*

As soon as she heard his footsteps walking away she started laughing. She laughed harder than she had for years. She couldn't believe how awkward he had acted about the entire situation.

When she went downstairs into the dining room, and sat beside Draco. "Thank you for coming with me today." She said, fiddling with her food.

"It's not a problem." Draco assured her. "Is it with a muggle?" He inquired.

"He's a Squib. That way, he knows about magic and the war. Otherwise I couldn't explain what actually caused my emotional turmoil." She explained.

They arrived at the therapist's office. Hermione didn't have to wait long to be taken back into his office. After some pleasantries, she started telling her story. When the incident at Malfoy Manor came up, she paused before continuing.

"The worst of it was definitely the one at Malfoy Manor. Bellatrix tortured me… Harry and Ron don't even know everything that happened. Draco's the only one. He was there. They made him watch…"

"This is the same Draco who you're currently living with, correct?" He clarified.

"Yes, but not at the manor. He bought a different place." She assured him.

"Does staying with him make you feel vulnerable? He knows thinks no one else knows after all."

"It actually helps." Hermione admitted. "Unlike Harry and Ron, he never asks about it. He's just there for me and lets me talk if I need to. Being around him helps me. It makes me feel different, in a good way."

"Hermione, you're not falling for Draco, are you?" He asked tentatively.

"What? No. I mean- it's not like it would be bad if I was." She smiled slightly. "He is really nice to me and is amazingly supportive."

"Good. If he rejected you or if you two started dating and broke up, it could destroy any progress you've made in healing from your past." He nodded, "That's it for today. Same time next week?"

"Sure. See you then," Hermione said and stood up.

"Hermione, I want you to try and visit with some of your old friends before I see you next week." He said, shaking her hand before opening the door for her.

"I'll try."

*Draco's POV*

He'd spent the last hour chatting with the receptionist, rather than face boredom for that time while Hermione was with her therapist. He had to be careful about what he said, since she was a muggle.

"Draco?" Hermione asked.

"Hey." He turned, smiling at her. "How did it go?"

"It went well." She said and started towards the door. "I'm ready to go home though." He nodded at the receptionist and then followed behind her. "Also, later in the week, would you be willing to go to the Weasley's for dinner with me?"

Draco stopped for a second. "You want me to go to the Weasley's? After everything my family did to theirs?" He asked, surprised.

"They'll forgive you. I just want to have you there in case I break down while I'm there. Please?" She asked, turning to him and smiling softly. After a moment he nodded.

"I'll be there for you." He said and continued walking. "Hermione, did you tell him about… well you know…"

"No. Maybe next week," She shook her head. "I don't want to talk about it yet. I can't talk about it. I've ignored it for years. I can't just start talking about it right away."

"You don't have to. I completely understand." He said, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her close. "I'm still sorry that it happened."

"You didn't do it. It was her." She was fighting tears at this point. "Let's just go home." She murmured, letting Draco pull her out of sight of the muggles and apparating them back home. Hermione felt raw from their talk. Just thinking about what had happened left her feeling vulnerable and made it hard for her to function for several hours. So for several hours, she sat in the living room, staring at the bookshelves.

A few days later, Hermione was getting ready to go to the Weasley's house for the first time since the few days after the war.

"Hermione?" Draco knocked on the door. "Are you okay?" She opened the door and let him in.

"I'm okay. Just a bit nervous about seeing everybody." She explained. "The day I left, we were visiting the Weasley's. Teddy was there too."

"It'll be alright." Draco promised.

When they arrived a few minutes later, everyone was happy to see her. None of them mentioned her leaving during the middle of dinner years ago or the incident that led to her being back in their lives. They mostly made small talk about their kids and what they had been doing since the war while Hermione listened.

*Draco's POV*

Draco spent the entire time listening closely so he could steer the conversation away from certain subjects if he needed to. However, Harry must have talked to them all beforehand, because he didn't have to. They just talked about light subjects and themselves as Hermione listened to them. The others had also gotten sitters so it was just the adults, so it was nice to not have to worry about kids saying the wrong thing. The evening progressed nicely and she seemed to be having a nice time catching up. Shortly before they left, Potter took him to the side.

"How's she doing?" He asked quietly.

"She's doing well. She has another appointment with the therapist later this week. Thanks for finding her one that knows about our world, it makes the situation easier to talk about." Draco said. "This was actually his idea."

"Well, I'm glad he suggested it." Harry said, smiling. "Hermione seems to be enjoying herself."

He nodded. "She does. It's good for her to be with her family again."

"Well, not all of her family. There are all the kids who aren't here."

"Maybe another time." Draco said.

"Ready to go?" Hermione asked, smiling at the two of them.

"Sure, let me grab our coats." He said and stood up.

*Hermione's POV*

She sat down by Harry while Draco went to get their coats. "Thank you, Harry. For everything."

"Of course. Is it helping, staying with Malfoy?" He asked.

"It helps a lot, having him there. Whenever I want to, I stop because he's there." She said as Draco came back.

"Good." Harry nodded and went to go find Ginny.

"Let's go." He smiled and handed the jacket to her.

"Did you visit with your friends?" Her therapist asked a few days later.

"I did. It was really nice to see them again." Hermione said with a smile.

"Good. Are you ready to tell me about the thing Harry and Ron don't know?" He asked.

She froze, biting her lip. "Yes. But I need to tell you the whole story."

"Well, we have an hour." He nodded at her.

"When Bellatrix was torturing me. It was horrible. Physically, it was the worst pain I had ever felt."

"Just physically?"

"What happened next was the worst emotional pain he had ever been in." Hermione replied. "It felt like she'd been torturing me for hours, but it was only a few minutes. It was so painful, I screamed out something I shouldn't have…"

"Information about your 'mission'?" He prodded.

"No. It was something personal. Something I should have told Harry and Ron, especially Ron, before that day." Hermione started to cry. "I shouldn't have told her. It's my fault." She curled up in a ball, crying. "I need Draco."

"It's okay. You're okay." He said firmly.

"I need him!" She yelled.

Draco must have heard her, because moments later he pushed open the door. He pulled her into his arms, ignoring the protesting receptionist behind him.

"I told her I was pregnant." Hermione spoke just loud enough for her therapist to hear her, before going back to crying against Draco's chest.