Disclaimer: Again, these characters are not mine, save for Jane Avery. The Epilogue would be so different if I owned them. Imagine the possibilities…

Chapter Four:

3rd August 2004

This time around, Jane was sorting through the confectionary section. She inspected every single bag of chocolates for their expiration date and arranged them according to which ones would expire first. Hermione Granger, who doesn't usually do her shopping this early, walked towards Jane with her basket full of junk food. She was still in her office wear- a formal black pencil skirt, deep crimson blouse and black kitten heels. Her hair was tamed (sort of) into a half up-do by a simple black barrette. Draco Malfoy was right behind her, pushing a trolley, which was also filled with snacks. He hasn't changed into more casual clothes either, if the black blazer he wore was any indication. Even with his loosened silver tie, he looked every bit like a man with authority.

"You two are early," Jane observed.

"We're having a movie night with friends," Hermione grinned. She selected a pack of Oreos and tossed it into Malfoy's trolley.

"No, it's a movie night with your friends, Granger," he rolled his eyes.

"They're your friends now, too, Malfoy," she replied. Jane raised an eyebrow at the sudden use of Draco's surname.

"What on earth happened during the weekend?" Jane asked. Draco kept muttering about 'bloody Gryffindors' and 'Potty's gang' under his breath, which earned him a glare from Hermione.

"They were…" Hermione paused, searching for the proper word to use for her friends' reactions upon arriving at the party with Draco in tow. "Shocked, to say the least. Ron already complained to Harry that I've befriended Draco, so, in turn, his wife also knew about it. The rest of the guests were pretty surprised."

"Loony actually seemed to be fine with me being there," Draco reached for a pack of Freddos. "Shall I get these, Granger?"

"Yeah, Neville loves those," she said. "And if you want Luna to fully accept you as a friend, you might want to call her with her given name from now on."

"It's a term of endearment, much like how I still call you Granger from time to time," he teased. She scoffed at that.

"He didn't do anything stupid during the dinner, thank goodness," Hermione addressed Jane. "It took a lot of self-control for him to keep his wicked tongue at bay. Although, he took great pleasure in the fact that the second we arrived together, Ron's face turned purple."

"I thought the Weasel was going to choke," Draco laughed.

"Neville had to take him outside," Hermione shook her head disbelievingly. "Get more Freddos, we owe him." Draco obliged the request and took an entire box of the treats.

"We were asked so many questions," she groaned. "They all knew how and why I ended things with Ron. Because of things that happened during our school days, they always saw Draco as an arrogant, cocky, lying-"

"We get the picture," Draco interrupted.

"But he proved himself by the end of the night," she smiled at Draco. "They all knew he abandoned his old ways."

"Which is why I'm getting dragged into the Potty Gang," he cringed. "Maybe I should've insulted them more."

"Shut up, Draco," Hermione punched his arm playfully. "Oh, are those Jaffa cakes?"

She walked away purposefully, with a spring in her step. Malfoy walked at a much slower pace, his eyes running over the sweets displayed on the shelves. Jane stopped arranging the Snickers bars for a moment, calling for his attention. Hermione was engrossed in the far end of the aisle, carefully selecting Jaffa cake tins.

"You better grow some balls and ask her out soon," Jane hissed. "She's a remarkable woman, and if you think she's always going to be there, she's not. Before you know it, another bloke will swoop in and steal her from right under your nose," she kept talking, ignoring Draco's futile attempts to defend himself. "Why are you so scared of telling her you're interested?"

"Is it that obvious?" he asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"Not to her, it isn't," Jane shook her head. "But I've noticed the way you smile at her. Heck, from the way you look at her, it's a wonder how the girl hasn't sensed the love waves you keep sending her way." His cheeks turned pink.

"I had a crush on her, way back during our boarding school days," he confessed. "My parents would never approve of it, so I tried to build a gap between us by insulting her. More than a decade later, she reached out to me, despite all the wrong I did towards her and her friends. I don't want that to go down the drain because I'm interested in her. I'll take what I can get."

"Bullshit," Jane declared. "Take a leap of faith, will you, Malfoy?"

Hermione was on her way back to them with three tins of Jaffa cakes in her hands. She dumped the cans into the trolley, right on top of the packets of crisps they bought.

"Luna loves these," Hermione organised the items precariously scattered around the cart. "I hope the pregnancy didn't change her taste buds, because I'm not a big fan of..."

The other two were looking at her intently, which caused her to trail off. Jane none too gently nudged Draco, who hurriedly placed his hands on the trolley and began to move forward.

"Thanks, Jane, we'll see you next week!" he called over his shoulder. He turned the aisle and disappeared from view, leaving the two girls dumbstruck.

"What was that about?" Hermione asked Jane.

"You might want to ask him yourself," she replied ambiguously, and turned back to the shelves.

"Granger," Draco's head popped from around the corner. "We have an hour and a bit before they start arriving, let's go."

"Alright, I'm coming," Hermione replied. "Bye, Jane."

Hermione rummaged around her purse as she walked to Draco, which gave him the liberty to let his emotions be displayed on his face. He looked at her with fondness, and a small smile tugged at his lips. When Hermione reached his side, his smile grew into a full grin as he yanked on a wayward curl which framed her face. She laughed at his gesture and pushed him towards the direction of their trolley. Any outsider would think that the two were more than friends. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, Jane knew the bitter truth and silently laughed at Draco's feeble attempts at flirting. He's whipped- more whipped than the cream in Tesco's pies.


17th August 2004

A week before, Jane grilled Draco about the status of his relationship with Hermione. He fumbled with his words, and the younger woman was actually tempted to reach up and smack his head. If he doesn't get his act together, she warned him, she would personally ensure the delivery of purple peonies and hyacinths to her home, with a card signed off with his name.

When she saw Draco walk by with Hermione from her post as cashier yet again, she raised both of her eyebrows, conveying a question only the blondes understood. He smirked at her in response and held his phone up in the air. She wasn't sure what to make of that.

"Hello, Jane," Hermione greeted her cheerfully. She transferred her items from her basket to the conveyor belt.

"Hi, Hermione," Jane scanned a jar of strawberry jam. "How was your week?"

"Nothing eventful happened, really," she shrugged. "The movie night went by without a hitch, though, right, Draco?"

"Hmm?" he looked up from his mobile, obviously not paying attention to the two ladies. Hermione rolled her eyes at him and turned to Jane when he went back to texting without uttering a word.

"He's been like this all night," she said. "Hands and eyes glued to the screen, oblivious to his surroundings."

"Look!" she held up a plastic bag filled with red apples. "He even bought red apples. He always gets the green ones," she set it down and shook her head at the blonde man. Jane's lips twitched in amusement.

Draco excused himself from the two and went outside to answer a phone call. Hermione's eyes followed his every movement, annoyance evident in their depths. She already paid for her groceries by the time Draco came back. The entire time he was outside, Hermione recounted the amount of times he has been elusive during the week, and how he chose to forgo their weekly 'friendly lunch' at the deli they frequented.

"Granger," Draco called for her attention.

"What?" she snapped.

"Are you free for dinner on the twentieth?" Draco said. His voice was steady, and no hesitation was laced in it. Jane grinned widely, overjoyed that he finally, finally decided to ask Hermione out.

"Do you want me to accompany you to a gathering of some sort?" she asked, her irritation bubbling underneath the question. Draco blinked. Once. Twice. Jane buried her face into her hands out of frustration.

"I have a table reserved for two at Hibiscus on the twentieth," he replied. "I would love it if you could join me."

"Draco," she smiled tightly at him. "Why don't you take your mother instead? I know getting a table there is nearly impossible, and it would be nice for you to have some mother-son time. You haven't really treated her out for quite a while now."

"Really, Granger?" he pinched the bridge of his nose with his left hand, while his right hand rested on his hip. Hermione's brows knitted together, and her eyes darted back and forth the two blondes.

"Yes…" she hesitated. "I heard they serve fabulous food, I'm sure your mum would love it."

"For the love of- fuck- Hermione," Draco tilted his chin downwards and took one of Hermione's hands into his. "I'm asking you out on a date. Just us two, with the intentions of knowing if there can be more than friendship between us."

"Oh," she breathed. Her cheeks were flaming red, and she subtly squeezed Malfoy's hand. "Of course. I would love to," she grinned.

"Finally," Jane cried. The couple jumped slightly, having forgotten that she was there. "Do you know how long I have waited for this moment? How many times I told him to suck it up and ask you out? And you two are supposed to be the adults!" The brunette laughed at Jane's minor breakdown.

"That's why I've been preoccupied the whole week, Granger," he explained. "I pulled a few strings to get us a table."

"You really didn't have to," she said cheerfully. "But it's a sign that you put a lot of effort into our first date. I appreciate it."

"I'm glad to hear that," he said, still holding her hand. Both of them had silly grins on their faces, unable to conceal the happiness they felt.

"You kids have fun and tell me all about it when I see you next," Jane said. "Now get out and enjoy each other's company."

"Alright, we're going, madam," Draco said as he carried some bags with his free hand. The rest were handled by Hermione, and Jane smirked at their intertwined hands. Neither was willing to let go, which was understandable, because it took them more than a decade to reach this point. True, there were many other events which factored into the delay, but it was time that they could never recover.

"Thank you, Jane, really," he said. "This is happening because of your nosiness."

"Who would I be if I didn't put my nose into other people's business all the time?" she winked. With another friendly wave, the two left.

Jane slumped against her seat, lightly shaking her head at the surrealism of it all. Mission accomplished- somewhat. She sincerely hoped that Draco wouldn't do anything to jeopardise his chances with Hermione, be it from his arrogance, stubbornness, or past fears. Hermione was willing to move on from their past, and Jane knew that it would be difficult for Draco to do so alone. She sighed. It was going to be a long week.


A/n: How happy are you guys that he finally, FINALLY, asked her out? Stubborn Draco. Thank you for your reviews, follows, and favourites! Please, do drop a review to let me know what you think. I love reading reviews, and I will always reply if there's an option. So for the Guests, leave your email, if you want! Oh, and if you have twitter, my username is jelliekookie I'm on it 24/7 ;D x, Jellie