A/N: Hey guys! I'm back. Sorry it took a second to figure it out. Had to characterize Astoria a bit more and all that jazz. But! I should be back to semi-regularly posting.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I don't make money from this fic.
October 9, 2008 Wiltshire, England - Malfoy Manor
Draco fell into his bed quietly, to avoid waking Scorpius. He stared up at the ceiling with a grin on his face wider than he'd had in a long time.
It had been two years since he'd been with a woman out in public. It had been eight years since he'd dated anyone other than his Astoria. It felt odd. He played with his wedding band and glanced over at her picture on his nightstand. His eyes roamed over her soft features, and for a moment, he had a pang of guilt.
How could he move on when the woman he'd loved more than life itself was gone? He shook his head, thinking back to one of his most painful memories.
It was near the end of her pregnancy, when she was weakest, palest, but at the same time, it seemed she was fully aware that she wasn't going to make it. She'd pulled Draco close to her one night, just a few days before Scorpius was born, and she murmured affirmations of her love for him in his ear.
"Take care of him, Draco. Take care of our little Scorpius." She said, rubbing her belly.
"We'll take care of him, Tori." Draco murmured, holding her closer. She shook her head.
"I won't be able to, love. I'm afraid the curse… it won't let me." She told him. "I need you to promise me something, though."
"Anything, sweetheart." Draco told her, tears in his eyes.
"I don't want you to be alone for the rest of your life. I want you to take care of our baby, but I want you to move on." She told him, caressing his cheek.
"How?" He asked weakly. "How am I supposed to move on when I still love you?"
"Remember me in here," He told her, pressing a hand to his chest. "And buy her roses."
"R-roses?" He asked, frowning.
"Orange ones. They're a symbol of passion, of friendship and love joining as one. When you find someone, someone you feel can make you happy again … buy her roses for me." She smiled sadly up at him. "As a thank you."
Draco nodded, but he didn't trust his voice to speak. He held her tightly and burying his face in her hair.
She'd died three days later. He'd banned orange roses from the funeral.
Draco sighed, wiping tears from his eyes as he remembered his promise. His date with Hermione had made him the happiest he'd been in about two years. He looked to Astoria's picture again, nodding at it.
"I'll buy her roses for you, Tori. I'll keep my promise." He murmured. He slipped off his wedding band and sat it on the night stand next to her picture. He never took his wedding band off, unless there was a chance he'd lose it. He felt… exposed without it. Naked. Vulnerable. He took a deep breath before he crawled under the covers. "I think she can make me happy, love." He whispered to the empty room. "I think… I can start to move on."
October 13, 2008 London, England - Ministry of Magic
Hermione was half asleep, as was normal for her on a Monday morning before getting her first cup of coffee. Her weekend had been spent mostly at the Leaky, talking to Seamus and flirting with Draco. She'd even taken some of her paperwork, hoping to catch up while still being social.
She smiled to herself, remembering Draco picking on her occasionally. Seamus had tried to distract her every now and again, and he couldn't stop grinning when Draco and Hermione were being cutesy. She shook her head, but she had to admit, it was nice to have friends like that.
She sighed, thinking about Harry. Her best friend, who had sided with Ron in the breakup. She understood why, of course. Ron had gotten to him first, and it was his word against hers. She'd let Harry come to her in his own time, but she certainly wasn't going to beg him to see reason. It wasn't worth the heartache, in her opinion.
She rounded the corner, entering her office to a very strange sight. Her mouth popped open in shock and she had to do a double take. On her desk, in a large crystal vase, was an arrangement of yellow and white roses. She took a small step forward, then closed the distance to read the card placed among the flowers.
"'Thank you for honoring me with your presence Thursday. I'd like to invite you out again at your earliest convenience. I hope you enjoy the flowers. Signed, D. Malfoy.'" She read softly, with a chuckle. "Suppose he's really serious about wooing me, then." She said to herself, setting the card on her desk. The flowers had already made her day.
"Draco Malfoy's sending you flowers now, huh?" Harry asked, leaning against her doorway. He had his arms crossed, and a judgemental look on his face. "That's what you've been getting up to at the Leaky Cauldron?"
Hermione turned around, her eyes wide. "Yes, hello to you, too, Harry." She murmured. "I've been to the Leaky quite a bit, yes, but not just for Draco. Seamus is working there, now, and Hannah and Neville just had their first child. I am still allowed to have friends, aren't I?" She asked, narrowing her eyes and crossing her arms over her chest.
Harry came into the office further, tucking his hands into his pockets. He eyed her up and down. "I dunno, you gonna betray them too like you did Ron?" He asked, his tone suggesting he hadn't forgiven her for whatever Ron said she did to him.
"Betray him?" She asked, her eyebrows shooting up. "How on Earth did I betray him, Harry? I'd love to hear this story."
"He said you'd been distant, and moody. You'd been going to the Leaky, and now I know why. For Draco fucking Malfoy," he said. "You've been cheating on him!"
"I haven't been cheating on him, Harry." Hermione said coldly. "Did you not hear the fucking card? Our first date was Thursday. And it only happened because Seamus was trying to play matchmaker."
"I didn't hear anything about a first date on Thursday," Harry replied just as coldly. "Just that he was honored with your presence."
"Fine, Harry. Believe what you want. I'm done fighting with you." She said, turning away from him. "If you think I'm so horrible, why did you come to my my office, anyway?"
"Well, considering my job literally correlates with yours, I figured I'd have to actually talk to you sometime, Undersecretary." He told her.
"Yes, great job keeping it civil." Hermione rolled her eyes. "If you don't need anything, I'd suggest leaving. Unless you'd like to accuse me of cheating on the man that blacked my eye again? Oh wait, you didn't see that, did you?"
Harry took a step back, surprise crossing his face. "Wait, he gave you a black eye?" He asked, concern crossing over his face.
"Didn't hear that bit, did you?" Hermione asked, looking away. "Yeah. He asked me if I wanted to… play with him one night, and I told him no. It lead to an argument about how I 'didn't take care of his needs' and I told him I wasn't his mother. He slapped me, so hard that I fell into the chair nearby." She said, hugging herself. It wasn't an easy memory to relive, and she hadn't told anyone about it since it happened.
Harry was silent. He didn't know what to say. "No, he didn't— why didn't you tell me, 'Mione?" He asked, frowning.
"Because you and Ginny wouldn't have listened." She said quietly. "You were mad. You didn't want to speak to me, didn't want to see me. He got to you first, and his story was the one you believed. I can't believe you didn't hear the rumors flying around the Ministry, though."
"I heard them, but I was waiting for you to come to me." He sighed. "You shoulda come to me anyways, Hermione. If you had shown up with a black eye at my house, I would have listened. I promise you. That's hard evidence to your story as to whatever shit Ron was spewing."
"Ron was staying with you, Harry." She said weakly. "I didn't exactly want to show up there. He scared me that night. I didn't want to be anywhere near him. And Ginny… I love her, but in her mind, I hurt her brother, and I'm not sure she would have listened, either."
"You could have sent an owl, Hermione," Harry told her. "Ginny was mad because Ron scared the ever living hell out of James and Al. You don't realize how easy it is to sway Gin."
"Harry," Hermione said, sinking down into her chair on the verge of tears. "My fiance had just given me a black eye. You and Ginny had taken his side for weeks." A tear slipped down her cheek. "I thought you hated me."
Harry moved to her, and squatted down in front of her. He took her hands in his own. "I only took his side because you wouldn't tell me yours," he said. "You're my best friend, Hermione, I can't hate you." He reached up and wiped a tear from her cheek. "If I had known Ron hit you… I can promise you he'd be on the street instead of sleeping in my spare bedroom."
"I've missed you so much, Harry." She said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "You can ask Draco, or hell, Seamus. I talk about you all the time. I'm sure I've annoyed them half to death."
Harry hugged her back, "I missed you too, 'Mione. I missed our Thursday lunches." He chuckled. "But Draco Malfoy really?"
"He's been really sweet, Harry. Through all of it. Listened to me bitch about Ron, made sure I didn't over do it when I came in mad. He even told me if I was ever in a bind, there was a room in the Leaky with my name on it, free of charge. He's… not the same." She told him
Harry nodded. "Well, I trust your judgement. Especially with what Neville says," he told her with a small smile. "Listen. Why don't you come 'round for dinner this week? I'll explain everything to Gin. Al misses his favorite aunt anyways."
"You know, I'm not technically his aunt." Hermione said, sadly. "But yeah. Thursday, like usual?" she asked, wiping her eyes.
"As good as," he told her with a grin and wiped a stray tear again. "Thursday is good."
"Suppose I'll have to tell Draco. He got off early last Thursday." she smiled at him. "Thank you for coming to me, Harry."
"Bring him along if he gets off early," Harry shrugged. "It's time we became adults. Have him bring Scorpius." He smiled at her again. "Next time, come to me first though, please."
Hermione blinked at his suggestion, a grin spreading across her face. "I hope there isn't a next time. But if there is, you'll be the first to know, Auror Potter." She smiled.
Harry stood and gave her a salute. "That's Head Auror Potter to you, Undersecretary." He grinned at her.
She rolled her eyes and swatted him away. "Don't you have something official to be doing, or… something?"
"Frankly, I'm supposed to be meeting with the Minister. Dunno if that's gonna happen. He's been held up for the past hour and it doesn't look like any relief soon, so I'm rather bored. We've hit a weird slow period." He said with a smirk.
"Yeah," She said. "I'm… actually debating leaving at lunch." Hermione said, looking down. "It's been an emotional week, and a slow period is the perfect time to take off." She looked over to her vase of flowers, then back to her friend. "I'm glad you're back on my side, Harry."
Harry hit his knuckles on the door frame as he moved to leave her office. "You need some time off." He smiled at her. "It's good to be back. I missed my best friend."
