Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.

A/N: Hello, beautiful people! I was glad to see that you liked the last chapter so much and didn't think it was too cheesy. I hope I'll be able to incorporate more cute moments for our ladies in the future.

I'm sorry that this chapter is on the shorter side, but I didn't have the nerve and patience to cram everything I planned into one chapter. On the flip side that means that the next chapter shouldn't take too long ;)

Side note: I'm reposting this chapter because I wrote "trail" instead of "trial" in the first half of it and now that I know the mistake is there it drives me crazy. Thanks to MilandaAnza for noticing! I'm sorry if you got two e-mails now.

On Monday she poured her heart out. It was the easiest and yet most difficult letter she ever wrote. It started off tame. She thanked Hermione for the wonderful date, enquired how she was doing, how work was, the usual courtesy, but oh then. Then she ran out of mundane things to say and her heart took over the quill in her hand. In the end she confessed that she had fallen for her. Yes, she, Narcissa Malfoy – the known ice queen – told someone she had fallen for them. It is the one thing not to do within these first uncertain weeks of dating and yet she did it. Hermione broke a wall down that night, gave her a taste of what life could be like with her and now, she cannot seem to wait any longer.

Every day she has been expecting a response to her letter. What she got was an official Ministry letter informing her about the time and place of the court hearing against Smith. Hermione sent a note with it, asking to meet in order to prepare for the trial. She has tried so hard to blend out the incident. Just thinking about the trial makes her feel ill, but it is on the horizon and she better be prepared. What only makes it worse is the second letter lying in front of her. It arrived already a couple of days ago. It was from Lucius and to be frank it wasn't exactly a letter, it was a howler. It screamed at her to return to the Manor at once where they would talk about her behavior. A howler. She doesn't know whether to be amused or angry. You send howlers to children, at best, not to a grown woman, your wife. It says clearly what he thinks of her. She hasn't returned, of course, but she considers talking to him. She will file for divorce. She actually found a lawyer, met with her and ordered all the papers to be sent out next week. She feels obligated to tell him in person beforehand. Andromeda told her she doesn't owe him shit – her words – but she feels it is only appropriate after thirty seven years of marriage. And apart from his deal with Smith he never disrespected her. Did he ever love her? She isn't sure. He certainly wasn't a caring and concerned husband, but she doesn't hold it against him. Love is not what pureblood marriages are about and they both knew that going into it. Nevertheless they have always had respect for each other – excluding the last year – and that is how she wants to end this; respectful.

…

She counts the seconds, eyes locked on the door, waiting for it to open. She's sitting on a small leather sofa in Hermione's office, anxiously expecting her arrival. Funnily enough it's not only and primarily the conversation about the upcoming trial that is making her nervous. This is the first time they will see each other after the date. She was sure she was going to get a positive response to her letter, but the woman left her hanging and now she feels insecure all over again. She has never been so honest about her feelings and she fears she might have been just a bit too honest too soon, scaring the witch off.

When Hermione finally enters, she takes a shuddered breath. My God she missed her. She hadn't even realized how much until this moment. It takes some will power to remain seated and not get up to embrace the witch, but Hermione dampens her spirits anyway. She is all business.

"I apologize I'm late, crazy schedule today. So, let's get right into it." Hermione opens up a large file on her lap. "As you know the trial is in three weeks which doesn't leave us much time to prepare or me I should say; you don't really have much to prepare for."

Narcissa tsked. "I don't? I feel like I have a war to prepare for and no idea how to do that."

"Well, if everything goes as I hope and assume it will, you won't have to testify as to the actual course of events."

"What? How come?"

"See, the person who will be asked to testify first will be Smith and his lawyer has signaled that he will testify and plead guilty."

"And you believe that? Why would he plead guilty?", she asks bewildered.

"Because this trial is already a lost case on his part. For one, not only am I your defence, but also your witness. Smith is an old bastard that is well known for corruption, only so far no one was brave enough to file a law suit against him, but I am. I am the Head of Magical Law Enforcement, the Golden Girl, the Brains, war hero. Who do you think they're going to believe? I'd say it'll be me. On top of that, as Head of Department you usually don't take on cases anymore; only the big, prestigious ones at best. So the fact that I'm defending you is a statement in itself. So really, all Smith and his lawyer can do is to try and lessen his sentence and pleading guilty will certainly do that."

Although it sounds that things might turn out in her favor, she sighs. "This case will attract a lot of public attention, won't it?"

"I'm afraid it will", Hermione agrees. "You are a high profile person, so is Smith and so am I. There is no way we can keep this out of the press. I'm sorry."

"Thank you, though, for doing this. With all the work you have to do, now you have to worry about this on top of everything."

"Oh, don't even think about it", Hermione dismisses with a wave of her hand. "It's my pleasure, really. I can't wait to see him go down. Now coming back to the actual hearing, the judge will of course give you the chance to testify as well and if Smith does give an accurate account of the incident, all you would have to do is agree. The judge might still ask you questions as to why you agreed to this deal in the first place, why you changed your mind and how you've been coping since the incident. Do you think you can do that?"

"Yes, of course". Though it is no like it matters whether she can or cannot do that, she will just have to. She feels relieved, however, that she will not have to give a detailed account, say the actual words. That's so difficult. Even Andromeda only knows the general course of events, it was all she could tell.

"Do you have any questions?"

"No, but I need your opinion on a colleague of yours. Do you know Sandra Bernstein? I hired her. I'm filing for divorce."

"You are? Good for you. And yes, I know her. She's tough, excellent in her field. Good choice." Hermione is back with her head in her documents and Narcissa is rather disappointed. She had hoped for more of a reaction to her getting divorced. The woman has been distant the entire time and she wonders why.

"Hermione, look at me. What's going on?"

Hermione does look at her, confused, and suddenly Narcissa fears she will not like how this meeting might end.

"I assume you received my letter, have you not?", she asks.

"I have." Hermione looks away from her again.

Narcissa can tell she doesn't want to discuss this, but she has to know. They have been playing games for too long and now that her heart is in it, she cannot risk losing. "You did not respond, though. Tell me, did I misinterpret things? Was I actually naïve enough to take a courteous gesture for something more?"

The woman tilts her head down, twisting the quill in her hand.

Understanding hits her brutally. "Well. That's that." She gets up, but the woman grabs her wrist strongly, almost painfully, forcing her back down. The grip relaxes and turns into a soft caress. Her heart drops as Hermione takes her hand to kiss it, kisses every finger and whispers I'm sorry against them. Then she leaves and Narcissa is left trembling on the inside. Good God, what a mindfuck this is.