Like many years before The Burrow was a continued stage for mass chaos for the entire Weasley clan even more so with the addition of Harry and Hermione. Mrs. Weasley was currently slaving away in the kitchen making sure that everyone under her roof was properly fed for the day, like always she was making two of the inhabitant's something to eat for the train ride to Hogwarts, despite any objections they might have had. Both girls would be quite occupied helping first years along and doing anything else associated with their prefect and head girl duties. For Hermione that surely meant wrangling Malfoy into actually doing anything.

Mr. Weasley and Percy had both requested the morning off, it was after all Ginny's final year and subsequently, she would be the last of the Weasley's to attend Hogwarts. They both were sitting at the dining room table reading through the Daily Prophet. Images of Ron, Hermione, Harry, and even Malfoy were all over the front page, propaganda of course. The insufferable Rita Skeeter, unluckily protected by press laws, for the time being, had spun a tale of the love-struck quartet who were brawling over the affections of war heroine, Hermione Jean Granger. How she continued to break Harry Potter's heart, how Ronald Weasley, always the sidekick, had been deceived by her scandalous ways and how she now pined after the Death Eater, Draco Malfoy. Fiction would always be more appealing than the truth.

George had holed himself upstairs for the morning, something about how he wanted to make sure that two of the three best girls in his life, Molly always being the first, needed to go to school to showcase some of his newer products that would be available at his grand opening shop in Hogsmeade around Halloween. George had thrown himself into work the moment the war was over, and he'd kept busy, not bothering for barely a moments rest. Eventually, he'd calm down and there would be a fallout but Ron would be there to catch him.

The couples had chosen to spend some time to themselves, apart for obvious reasons. What they did in their spare time was their own business, but luckily not obviously so to the adults in the house. Harry and Ginny had been intimate for quite some time now, although Ron chose to ignore that fact altogether. Hermione had suspected that Ginny's parents knew but were content with the narrative that their daughter would save herself until marriage. George knew, of course, bugged the shit out of them about using silencing spells, even if they thought they were alone. Hermione and Ron, however, were basking in the early stages of first love, at least the more intimate parts. Ginny could tell by the silly grin constantly plastered on Ron's face and if Harry had noticed he had the decency to not bring it up, at least to her. Although she was positive he understood the underlying message of Ron's not so secret Gryffindor common room.

Hermione had never considered herself an intimate creature. Sure, there was Victor Krum and a date with McGlaggen but neither were serious enough to proceed with something more. She'd always found her studies and her dates with destiny with Harry to hold more importance than relationships. Had she wished that Ron would have taken their relationship to any level beyond friendship? Of course. She had expected him to after saying her name after the unfortunate poisoning in sixth year, but he had no recollection of the matter. Now, however, that they had been wrapped in the throws of passion for days she wanted to hex herself and Ron for waiting for so long.

She liked sex and the thought that this would be the last time that she would have any form of intimacy unless she chose to attend to herself until Christmas was rather disappointing. So she found herself constantly withering under Ron any moment that she could spare. The night before pouring well into dawn had been full of tender touches and words, tears had been shed and then kissed away filled with the indescribable pleasure of skin on skin.

"You could just stay..." Ron breathed in a final attempt to sway her from her studies as he glided into her.

Her head flew back and her hands tangled into his hair leaving him to take advantage of the exposed skin on her neck, "They say absence makes the heart grow fonder," she hissed between her teeth as she rolled her hips to meet his thrust.

"Just imagine this, every day though, no absence needed for," he had to pause and growl into her skin as she snaked her leg around his waist allowing him to bury further inside of her, "Bloody hell, Mione..." he moaned his thoughts now focused on her and her ministrations.

"You were saying?" she purred, wrapping her other leg around his waist.

He merely shook his head and haunched up on his knees driving into her relentlessly. She relished in the way his cock filled her, sending waves of pleasure throughout her body that she never thought possible. Her fingers clung to his sheets and she had to admire the vision of pure ecstasy that washed over his face.

"So tight," he groaned, bending over to capture her lips with his.

She had to break their kiss the moment she felt her core tighten, "Ron, Ron...I'm close, right there, oh yes, fuck..." she screamed as he quickened his pace, running his thumb over her clit. A loud moan echoed through the room as she found her release and she was thankful that they had put up a number of silencing spells.

He cried out her name as he collapsed on top of her. She honestly wasn't sure if she could make it four months without him inside of her, around her, just everything encompassing her wizard. The possibility of staying wavering at the back of her mind. They would have to have secret rendezvous during her trips to Hogsmeade if auror training allowed for it.

He rolled off of her and they both laid there, their labored breathing being the only thing that could be heard as they came down from their euphoria. Hermione knew she would never give up her schooling but Ron was making it incredibly hard to leave without too much of her emotions rolling out.

"I'm going to miss you." he finally said, turning on his side to face her, "Luckily we'll both be busy for a while, the time will pass quickly," he reassured her, pressing his palm to her face.

She turned to face him nuzzling her head into his hand, "It will fly by. Plus we can always owl each other...oh which reminds me!" she exclaimed shooting up from the bed and rummaging through her bag, "I have something for you, I made one for Harry as well and a separate one for him and Ginny," she continued as she picked through the stack of books that were piled neatly in her beaded bag.

"Ah!" she said with a look of triumph as she glided back over to Ron, handing him the red cloth bound book.

He took the book and examined it, flipping through the pages, "Erm...thanks." he said the mild sense of disappointment in the fact that she had gotten him a diary evident in his voice.

Hermione let out a soft chuckle, "I didn't get you any old diary, Ronald. It's been charmed, I got the idea partially from Riddles Diary and also from Harry's mirror. We're going to be extremely busy and owling every day is just going to get exhausting, not just for us but for the owls too. I mean, we can still owl, but this way we can keep in touch more often." she rambled.

"Okay..." he replied, oblivious to what she was actually meaning, sometimes he could be dense.

She rolled her eyes, "If you write in the book it will send the message directly to mine. We can communicate whenever we want to." she clarified.

Ron examined the book once more, "Wow Hermione, this really is something. I mean you didn't have to create a Horcrux to do this, right?" he joked.

She took slight offense at the implication that she would ever commit such a heinous crime, but if she were anyone else it probably wouldn't have been out of the realm of possibilities. She swatted his arm lightly, "Of course not Ronald! It did require some of your blood though." she grinned before getting up to find her clothes, "We should probably head down. Your mum would find it suspicious if you're not at the table gobbling down breakfast."

Nodding he set the book aside and began to rummage through his drawers for a shirt, "Remind me never to get on your bad side again." he informed her shaking his head.

After a hot shower, Hermione headed down first floating her trunk to the bottom of the stairs, the smell of bacon and eggs wafted through the air and her stomach let out a very audible growl.

"Ron keeping you busy?" the familiar voice of George Weasley whispered into her ear.

She jumped unaware that he had been following her down, "Preparations for school have me exhausted." she insisted, dodging his question.

"Already having those late night study sessions?" he joked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

She glared at him, knowing exactly what he was trying to get her to admit.

"Don't give me that look Miss Granger, if you don't want to get caught try to be a little more inconspicuous when you sneak back down to your room." he grinned, clearly very satisfied with the look of shock that was etched across her face, "Don't try and fool a master prankster who has snuck around the burrow for nearly twenty years," he informed her, "I know all the inside intel," he grinned cheekily, "but if you would like to barter for silence I could work something out." He examined his nails feigning interest.

Hermione crossed her arms, "What makes you think I want to barter?" she snapped.

At this his eyebrow shot up, "I don't think my father would mind but could you see my mother's face if she were to find out you de-virginized her little boy?"

"You wouldn't," she hissed, her eyes narrowing, but the thought of Molly trying to give them a sex talk or proposing marriage terrified her to no end. It was something she didn't want to have to deal with right before she went back to school.

"But I would," he grinned mischievously, "but not if you agreed to take some new Weasley products to Hogwarts with you, the ones that mum doesn't need to know about," he informed her pulling a fairly large box from behind his back, how she hadn't noticed it before she'd never figure out.

She hesitantly reached out and grabbed the box from him, purposely keeping it at arm's length in case something inside decided to explode or jump out and attack, "Relax, this is all pretty calm stuff," he went to open the box but Mrs. Weasley's voice boomed throughout the house,

"Breakfast is ready! Everyone come down now or we're going to be late!"

George quickly shoved the box towards Hermione and bounded towards the kitchen before she could object. She shook her head and shoved the box Into her trunk, she'd pass it off to Seamus or Dean, either one of them would probably appreciate the items more.

"C'mon Hermione, otherwise Ron's going to beat us to the table and we won't be sent off with a proper breakfast," Ginny warned pulling her along.

Breakfast had been rather uneventful, to say the least. Mrs. Weasley was rather dwelling in her feelings that the last of her children would be attending Hogwarts, every once in a while a light sniffle could be heard at the end of the table and it continued on this way until they were all standing in front of the Hogwarts Express.

There was a reason that none of them had ventured out into the real world during the last few months. The stares and flashing lights and people running up to them were rather bothersome but she smiled as did Harry and signed things that people asked, shook hands when greeted, she was not enjoying this one bit but Ron definitely was. He was enthusiastically chatting away with a few reporters that she had guessed were from the Daily Prophet.

Luckily enough for her, Molly had pulled Hermione into a hug that could have easily rivaled that of Hagrid, "Now I know you will be busy with your duties and everything else but do keep an eye on Ginny, won't you dear? Quidditch captain and prefect duties will occupy most of her time. She keeps on saying it's not fair that Ron doesn't have to come back and I don't want her to lose sight of her studies," the older woman urged.

Hermione hugged her back, "Don't worry if Harry and Ron couldn't get out of studying neither will she," she assured her as she went to go say goodbye to Harry and Ron.

Before she knew it her eyes had begun to water the actuality that her best friends wouldn't be coming with her setting in. She quickly wrapped her arms around them both, "Write me. Every day." she instructed.

Harry and Ron's arms snaked around her, rubbing her back affectionately, "Well, maybe we'll try for once a week," Harry laughed.

"Or every two weeks," Ron amended.

She shook her head laughing, "You never change," she pulled them in tighter relishing in their warmth, "Use those books I gave you, and Harry, make sure to use the right one. I don't want to read something you meant to send to Ginny," she warned him.

Reluctantly Harry pulled away first, "We'll write, tell you all about auror training. Keep us in the loop with everyone too." He said wrapping his arms around her once more before leaving her and Ron to say their goodbyes.

Hermione watched as Harry drug Ginny away from Mrs. Weasley while dodging some of his fans. She had no doubt in her mind that Harry and Ginny were endgame but she couldn't help but wonder how the distance was going to affect their current relationship. They had broken up before the war had started, Ginny understood why, but she had never thought it was fair, especially how Harry had made that decision for her. They both seemed to fall back into a familiar rhythm right after the battle at Hogwarts though. This time around they knew when they'd once again be reunited and there were no threats of war or death.

She looked at Ron who was staring affectionately down at her. She wondered if they'd pull off the long distance relationship thing. Hermione had never done an actual relationship before so this had all been somewhat foreign to her. She supposed it would be the same if they weren't a couple though, they would write and meet up at Hogsmeade when their schedules allowed. They could most definitely do it.

"It'll be fine Mione, once you get back in the swing of school you'll be so busy that you'll be relieved that Harry and I aren't there to make your life harder," he smiled.

She shook her head, "I suppose you're right I mean, I'm going to have my hands full with making sure the rest of the student population is in check that I wouldn't have had time for either of you anyway."

"That's the spirit," he said bending down to see her off properly.

She inhaled his scent, toothpaste, parchment, and grass and memorized the softness of his lips as they brushed against hers. This kiss wasn't needy or full of lust like it had been earlier that morning it was absolutely sensual. She could have stayed like this for a million more years but they were forced apart when the faint sounds of catcalls and whistles echoed throughout the platform. Her cheeks were burning but both her and Ron giggled at their audiences applause.


The day that Draco had been dreading was upon him. Train rides, sorting ceremonies, directing everyone to where they were supposed to go, all of it seemed so menial and quite frankly no amount of time would prepare him for this last year at Hogwarts. He let out a loud groan as the sun seeped through the cracks in his curtain and pulled his duvet over his face burying his entire body further into the mattress.

He could simply say he refused to go. It would violate his agreement with the ministry but Azkaban would probably be more inviting rather than to face everyone who he would be spending the next year with. He could also pack a bag, gather all the gold in his vault and go on the run, he would have to color his hair and start dressing more like a common riffraff but he could probably pull it off.

Who was he kidding? Draco Malfoy anything but a blonde and dress like a muggle? He was pushing it.

Begrudgingly he pulled the covers off of himself and headed for the shower. It was still early but he had practically begged Andromeda as well as the Aurors to let them head to the train early. His aunt wasn't fooled by his excuse that he and Theo both needed to secure their compartment in order to help all of the first years with their luggage but the Aurors seemed to buy it. After the last incident, it was obvious that they wanted little to nothing to do with the likes of Malfoy Manor.

Draco really just didn't want to face anyone. He knew when the station started to fill up that the whispers and fights would break loose. If the incident in Diagon Alley proved anything it was that they, especially him, would not be welcomed back to Hogwarts with open arms. Then when McGonagall announced his position as head boy all Hell would break loose. There would be looks and name calling, possibly even food being thrown. He wasn't ready for that either. Maybe he should have taken Andromeda's advice and just declined the position. He had only kept it because he liked being in a position of power. People were less likely to try and curse him being head boy. He had wondered if this was the reasoning behind his new title but he doubted the new Headmistress would confirm his suspicions.

After he had showered and made himself presentable he made his way downstairs for the last family breakfast he would have until holiday. His mother was thoroughly upset that she wouldn't be able to accompany him to the train for his final year and if his father had felt the same way he hadn't vocalized it yet. It's not as if they would be welcome either, so this was them being spared the humiliation and unflattering stories drenched across the Daily Prophet.

Surprisingly breakfast had been a quiet affair. Lucius hadn't bothered to come down to eat which rather surprised Draco, even if he didn't like the situation he had figured that his mother would drag him down to say goodbye. Narcissa didn't gush over him like he was afraid she would, "Boys, no matter what happens, no matter who berates you, remember you are Draco Malfoy and Theodore Nott and no one and no event will change that." She reminded them.

He wished he had her confidence. It was easy enough to say but he had always been affected by what others said and this time he didn't have a leg to stand on.

"Neither of you are idiots," Andromeda chimed in, "Watch your backs but keep them regal. Nothing pisses someone off more than being nonchalant. You don't have to make friends," she added. Draco was grateful that she had to endure a fallout and probably from a worse angle than his. Purebloods could be ruthless when betrayed...the lot he would be dealing with had more honor than using unforgivables. To an extent, she could relate and it gave him a sense of comfort he hadn't had.

"She's right," his mother said clearing her throat, "We know your circumstances and Potter vouched for you, that's more than enough to prove that there is more to you than what they know."

Again, her words weren't as comforting as he would have liked. Potter might have made it his mission to clear the Malfoy name to an extent but even his word wouldn't erase their history. The wizarding world had already made their assumptions, about him, his mother, Snape, anyone that was on the other side of the war. People were cruel, he would know, up until recently he'd never been on the receiving end of that cruelty. Even if he hadn't been in great standing with the rest of the Death Eaters, he was still the person who let them into the castle, the one who couldn't kill Dumbledore.

"That won't change a single thing," Andromeda cut in. Her words echoing his fears, "People are going to be angry, can you blame them? It's going to be up to you to show them who you are. Whether or not they choose to accept you is clearly on them if you so choose to act accordingly," she informed him, sipping on her tea, "You're going to have to put in the effort though, you can't go gallivanting about Hogwarts like you have here." She exchanged a glance with his mother.

She didn't come out and say it but his attitude with everyone in the Manor had been in rather poor taste. Old habits died hard but it wasn't as if he had put any real effort into righting any of his wrongs he had been content in his ways and despite anyone's efforts he didn't want pity, or at least what he assumed had been pity.

Draco gave her a silent nod before he became occupied with his toast. If she had anything else to say she masked it by attending to Teddy.

When it was time to leave his mother kissed his cheek and whispered her goodbyes, apologizing for his father's absence in the process. She reminded him to stay strong and waited until Theo and Andromeda had busied themselves by the gates before she wrapped her arms around him and told him how much she loved him.

If Andromeda or Theo had noticed the exchange they didn't say a word until they made it to the station. It was 9 o'clock on the dot when the walked through the barrier and it only took them a matter of minutes to load their trunks and find a compartment near the end of the train. Teddy was busy examining everything but Andromeda looked elsewhere.

"Theo, would you be a dear and take Teddy to the trolly?" Andromeda asked him handing him some sickles, "He doesn't need a lot, that should be enough."

He shook his head, "No problem, it's my treat. Why have all the Nott fortune if not to keep pissing my father off from the grave?" he joked sweeping Teddy up and bounding down the platform.

As far as Draco knew he had never seen Theo with the boy, but apparently there were a lot of things he missed.

"I hope you took my words at breakfast to heart," she said glancing at him, "Do you know why I decided to stay in the Manor?"

He looked at her, "I figured it was to spy on us," he shrugged, "I mean you couldn't have been around us by choice."

She let out a small chuckle, "You would be surprised," she sighed, looking longingly at the train, "I'm scared to go home," she admitted, "It smells like them. Time is cruel and should have stopped the moment my husband's name was announced as one of the deceased on Potterwatch."

Draco stared at her, unable to grasp at her words. Of all the things he had assumed he had never thought that was the reason as to why she had put up with them for months.

"Your mother knew...she's too much of a lady to bring it up though. She invited me, you know? I think some of it was her wanting to make amends after so long but she knew I didn't want to be there any more than I had to. Your mother is a strong woman and if any of her went to you I hope it is that strength," she turned to him, "You remind me of me when I was your age. I was arrogant and thought the world should have folded at my feet. I found something at Hogwarts though that gave me purpose that made me throw away what I thought I wanted. I think if given the chance you'll find something as well...it might not be at Hogwarts but it's a start. No matter what you think, you're not a lost cause."

Draco felt himself swell with something close to gratitude and then it was quickly replaced with self-loathing. He had been nothing but despicable to her the entire time she had stayed at the Manor and now here she was telling him that she believed in him, "Thank you," he said quietly, knowing that no apology could make up for his ignorance. He realized that at least she had been rather consistent these past few months, in fact, if Theo hadn't been at the Manor he probably would have spent most of his time with his nephew and Andromeda. If anything he would miss her honesty.

She smiled at him, "By the way, I've taken a position at Hogwarts," Draco just stared at her, "So that means you need to make sure you don't put my faith to shame," she informed him before walking off towards Theo and Teddy who was now holding a large bag full of sweets.