I'm working on a Christmas one-shot that I hope to have up tomorrow!

Chapter 4

"Rumor has it you have a new best friend," Harry Potter commented as he bit into a turkey sandwich.

Hermione stared at him, ignoring the bowl of pasta in front of her. "And who do they say it is?" she inquired, fearful of his reaction to her friendship with Draco. The look on his face told her he didn't need to answer. "Are you mad?"

Harry shrugged. "Should I be?" he wondered. "Am I being replaced by Malfoy? Is Malfoy your new best friend? Do you like him better than me?"

She laughed and tossed a piece of bread at him. "Stop," she said, trying to control herself. "No, he's not replacing you. How do you replace The Boy Who Lived anyway? No, Malfoy's just...Malfoy. We work together, and I've concluded that he isn't so bad. He's still a prat sometimes, but he's also really nice to me. Mum even likes him."

"And Dad?" Harry wondered.

Sighing, she twirled a few strands of pasta onto her fork. "Dad doesn't like anyone with a Y chromosome," she replied. Harry looked offended, but received only a shrug for his hurt feelings. "Sorry. I know everyone loves Harry Potter, but you shouldn't count Clarence Granger among your adoring fans."

"So, I guess I should give Malfoy a chance too," he suggested.

Hermione grinned. "Keeping your eye on the competition?"

"You said he wasn't the competition."

The front door opened as Harry Potter let himself into the Malfoys' home. "Anybody home?" he called out.

Athena was the first to run to him, giggling as he twirled her in the air. "Shh, Happy," she told him in a whisper. "The baby is sleeping. She's loud when she's awake, so don't wake her up."

Harry kissed her cheek. "I promise I won't," he replied. "Where's Mummy and Daddy?"

"Seeing the doctor," she told him. "Nana's watching us."

"Everything okay?" he asked when Helene appeared. She nodded, but didn't seem convincing. Putting Athena down, he followed Helene to the kitchen. "What's going on?"

She asked that he charm the room against eavesdropping, and only after he did, did Helene speak. "It's a therapist," she told him. "I worry that she's not handling her father's death well."

"Why's Draco with her?" Harry wondered. "You don't think they're going to divorce, do you?"

The look in her brown eyes said she didn't know. It was no secret that Mr. Granger hadn't wanted the pair to marry, but he had come to accept his daughter's decision over the years. "I would hate to think I raised my child to allow other people's feelings to dictate her life," Helene replied. "I witnessed the two of them firsthand from the beginning. He loved her before she loved him, but when she loved him, that was it. There was no changing her mind about Draco."

Harry sighed. "She loves Draco, but I think she loved her father more," he said. "The girls though...she won't do anything to upset them. Athena would be devastated if Draco weren't around."

"She still cries every day when he leaves for work," Helene added. "This isn't something to speculate about though, Harry. Besides, if there were problems, I would know."

It occurred to him then that he now had the inside track. "Anything happens, will you let me know?" he asked. "Hermione has always been a bit...guarded when it comes to their relationship. It's almost like she expects everyone to say 'I told you so' whenever they fight."

"Perhaps that's because you've said that whenever they've fought," Helene pointed out.

Harry blushed. "Not anymore," he mumbled.

"Are you sure it's such a good idea?" Harry wondered. "I mean, he is Malfoy. He was a jerk to you for a very long time, even after he hired you. Are you sure that's a guy you want to call a friend?"

Sighing, she stared down at her food. "Look, I know better than anyone what he was like," she replied. "I also know better than you how different he is. I've really come to like him. In fact, he's bringing me to dinner with his parents this Friday night. And no, he's not leading me to the slaughter. At least, I don't think that's what's happening. He said it was his mother's idea to invite me."

Harry's eyebrows rose and his lunch seemed to be forgotten. "Narcissa Malfoy invited you?" he questioned. "That doesn't seem suspicious to you?"

"She saved your life," Hermione reminded him. "Harry, she risked her life for you. I know that being muggleborn made me less than desirable at one point, but I don't think it's like that anymore."

Extending his hand across the table, he placed it over hers. "I just want to make sure you're being safe," Harry said. "You're my best friend. I don't want to see anything bad happen to you just because you think you've seen something redeeming in Malfoy."

"I have," she insisted, shaking off his hand. "You don't have to like it, Harry, but I plan to be friends with Draco for a long time."

Nodding, he returned his attention to his lunch. "Okay, but don't get mad at me when I say 'I told you so,'" he warned.

Draco and Hermione sat on the front porch, neither eager to enter the house. "Look, um, you know I'd do anything for you," Draco said after several long minutes of silence. "But I don't know that a divorce is something I can do. Maybe I'm being selfish, but I don't want to."

Hermione nodded as she bit her bottom lip. "I know," she murmured. "I don't think it's what I want either. It's just this feeling that I can't shake. That feeling like I let him down."

He draped his arm around her and held her close. "You didn't," he assured her. "I know I wasn't who your father wanted you to marry, but we were able to get past it all. All he wanted was for you to be happy."

Her head rested on his shoulder. "I know," she whispered. "I'm sorry I've been so crazy. I've just never been able to stop seeking his approval."

"Yeah, but look what we've done. You and I were bitter enemies, and you somehow managed to convince me that I can't live without you," he said. "We made two beautiful little girls, and you know your father adored Tiny. I truly believe that he did approve of who you've become."

"Thank you," she murmured, squeezing his knee. "Do me a favor though? Don't ever do anything to make Athena and Clara think that you disapprove of them."

He kissed the top of her head. "I swear I won't."