September 2027

Today was a day for many milestones. First and foremost, Hermione's one and only daughter had gotten married. She was an absolute vision in white as she walked down the aisle with her father walking beside her. That was milestone number two: getting Ron to walk Sophie down the aisle. Since the engagement was announced Ron had been adamant about forgetting it was happening. It was one of those "If you ignore it, it'll go away" scenarios, but no matter how much he had ignored it, the wedding still stalked his life.

Hermione had been an active participant in planning the wedding, not to mention Draco. Between the two of them and lunches and dinners with the children they had pulled off a modest wedding. Everything had been set in place with ample time with the exception of Ron. He only agreed to be his daughter's escort that morning when he was absolutely sure that there was nothing he could do to stop it.

The third milestone concerned Hermione's friends and family as well as Draco's. They all sat in their seats, mouths poised to object to the union taking place before them, but no one said a word. The final milestone was the fact that everyone stayed for the reception. They could've very well fled the scene after Sophie and Scorpius had said "I do," but they remained, ate, laughed, and drank themselves silly.

Perhaps the drinking was a coping mechanism. Hermione knew that it was for Ron. The moment they had made it to the reception he had taken the first glass of champagne that had floated his way. Hermione frowned at it. Through the introduction of the bridal party, the newlyweds, speeches, cutting of the cake, and several courses of meals, one of Ron's hands always held a glass of intoxication. He was a heavy weight, so the first three glasses had done nothing to him. The fourth and now the fifth, however, were beginning to take their toll.

"You're going to become a sloppy mess if you keep it up." Hermione chided as Ron took a long sip. He stared at her and scoffed before finishing it.

"That'll be the last one. Happy?" Ron questioned. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Yes. Now can you pretend to be? This is your daughter's wedding for Merlin's sake. You don't see anybody else getting on the way you are, do you?"

Ron's eyes flashed dangerously. "Oh, so Malfoy's people are better than me now?"

"That's not what I said." Hermione replied wide-eyed.

"But it's what you meant."

"No, it's not. And I'd appreciate it if you stopped putting words in my mouth."

"Fine," Ron snorted as he childishly crossed his arms. "How about I just stop talking and pretend I don't exist then? I can brood to myself and won't embarrass you in front of the pureblood in-laws."

Hermione let out an exasperated sigh and placed her head in her hands. "Do whatever you want, Ron. Just dance with your daughter when she asks. Alright?"

"Speaking of dancing," came Draco's voice from out of nowhere. "Would you care for one?"

Hermione had been so furious with Ron that she hadn't even realized that Draco had crossed from the unconsciously made "Malfoy" side of the reception hall to hers. He was standing by the table with his hand outstretched for her to take. Ron loudly scoffed in the background. Draco's eyes left Hermione's then and narrowed at her husband. "Got a problem, Weasley?"

Ron scowled. "I've got a list. Want to hear it?"

"Ron, don't." Hermione scolded. "Please?" She added in a nicer tone. He huffed and set his eyes on the table. Huffing, scoffing, sneering… Hermione was sad to know that she had become quite accustomed to all of these actions from him the moment Sophie and Scorpius got engaged. But of course she knew that it wasn't just that that bothered him. He hadn't taken the inadvertent confession of having loved another well, nor the fact that it plagued her life. She had never mentioned Draco's name, nor did Ron ever allude to the fact that he knew it was him she had been talking about. Regardless, Draco had become even more of a sore spot for him than he already had been.

Hermione rose from her seat and followed Draco out onto the middle of the dancing floor. They were silent at first as they took in everything around them before fully taking in each other. Eventually Draco spoke and gestured his head towards one of the tables.

"Weasley wins for being the most pissed off person here."

"Unfortunately, yes." Hermione replied with a frown. "And believe it or not, the wedding is the last thing that he's truly upset over."

"You're kidding." Draco laughed. "What's worse than Weasley's pride and joy marrying a Malfoy?"

Hermione stared at him in the eyes and grew red in the face. "That his wife loves his new son-in-law's father."

Their dancing paused for just a moment as Draco searched Hermione's face. It was her that picked their dance back up so they didn't look anymore awkward than they already did.

"How did he..?"

"Don't ask." Hermione said quickly. "Ron's in a fragile state right now and I can't blame him. All I know is since our children got engaged I've been dealing with a passive aggressive husband. I just want to be happy. Even just for today…"

"Like they are?"

Hermione looked in the direction that Draco motioned to and smiled. It was the bride and groom as they posed for the photographer. "Yes. Absolutely like they are."

"Do you think that's what we would've looked like?" Draco asked as they danced. His eyes were on his son and new daughter-in-law who were laughing at some inside joke. Hermione was still staring at them and she slowly nodded.

"Yes, I think so." Hermione replied. "But they're much better off than we would've been." She stared in his eyes and sighed. "At least our children have at least one person on their side."

Draco agreed and twirled her once as they continued to dance. They moved across the dance floor as though they were the only ones in the room. Truth be told they forgot where they were. They even forgot who they were, just for a moment. For the first time in their lives, they were out in public. No more false pretenses. No more hiding. No more lies. It was the freest either one of them had ever felt. Hermione was only brought back to reality when the song ended as well as her and Draco's dance. They went their separate ways and it was then that she caught sight of Ron's face. It was more than saddened. It was heartbroken.

December 2028

"That was a lovely party wasn't it?" Hermione smiled as she slipped off her coat. Ron, too, took off his coat and hung it in the closet next to the door. He didn't answer her question, however, and merely bent down to take off his shoes. Hermione stared at him as he did so and cleared her throat. "Scorpius really knows how to throw a party, doesn't he? It was the best birthday party Sophie's ever had. She said so."

Ron had taken off his shoes and carried them in his hand as he made his way through the house, leaving Hermione by the door. She was fuming by now and angrily followed him. He was in the bedroom now, sitting on the edge of the bed and stretching. Hermione stood in the doorway with her coat still in her hands.

"I've decided I'm going to cut off most of my hair. Dye it a bright pink. Or perhaps green. Maybe I'll do both."

Ron got up from the bed and began rummaging through the drawers and pulled out his nightwear. Hermione had had enough. She threw her coat onto the ground and stood with her hands on her hips. "Fine, you want to act that way? Go ahead! I'm through caring! But if you're going to be like this every time you're reminded that Sophie is married to a Malfoy, then by all means stop coming to their events! Just know that you won't be hurting me, you'll be hurting Sophie."

Hermione huffed and picked up her coat from the floor and slung it over a chair in the corner of the room. She kicked off her shoes and took off her jewelry. She was about to take off her clothes and switch them for nightwear when Ron's words stopped her dead in her tracks. She paused and stared at him with the most shocked expression.

"What?"

"Are. You. Sleeping. With him?" Ron said again. Hermione shook her head, still in disbelief at what he was asking her.

"No, of course not."

"Have you ever?"

"No, I haven't."

Ron sucked his teeth. "You love the man and you haven't slept with him even once?"

Hermione was angry again and placed her hands back on her hips. "Last I checked I was never married to him, so no, I've never slept with him."

"I don't believe you."

"That's not my problem." Hermione snapped at him. "You asked me a question. I answered it. What you believe has nothing to do with me. It's not my fault you're insecure!"

"Insecure?" Ron repeated. "How do you expect me to feel, Hermione?! You've loved another man for years!"

"I expect you to realize that I'm still here!" Hermione shouted. "I never left you! I loved you. I still love you, and I've always been there. I've always been by your side despite-"

"Loving someone else." Ron finished. Hermione closed her open mouth and stood still. He chuckled then and sat on the bed. "Doesn't sound very good when it's said out loud, now does it?" Ron let out a low groan and rubbed his face with his hands. "I don't understand why we're here, Hermione. Why did you marry me if you felt this way?"

"…If not you, it would've been someone else." Hermione admitted. "And that someone would've never been Draco."

"Why not?"

"You tell me. You're a raving lunatic because I love Draco. Had it been someone else you wouldn't be this upset. You don't know this, but…Draco and I were friends long before Hogwarts. Don't ask me how because that's a long story in itself. But we both knew what our lives would be like if everyone else knew. We stayed apart because we had to. And then we grew up. We fell in love with other people and married them. Had children. Just because I loved him, doesn't mean that I didn't love you too."

"But that's just it, Hermione." Ron said softly as he looked up at her with sad eyes. "I don't want to be a 'too.'"

July 2035

Hermione Flooed over to Malfoy Manor early in the afternoon. She was surprised as she tumbled out of the fireplace not to be stepping into a peaceful home as it often was. Instead the noises of children had filled the Manor and were echoing off the walls.

It didn't take Hermione very long to find Draco. He was where he always was when the grandchildren came to visit: in his study, hiding. When she opened the door he had been reading a book, but then quickly sat it on his lap and tilted his head to feign sleep. Hermione laughed and placed her hands on her hips.

"You're going to have to play with them at least once today."

Draco opened his eyes at the sound of her voice and then smiled. "I already am. Hide and Seek."

Hermione grinned. "Clever. A game to keep the children busy and out of your hair at the same time."

"Well, you know me. I was brought up to be clever and then some." Draco removed the book from his chest and set it on the coffee table. "So, is this a happy visit or a not so happy one?"

Hermione frowned. Her visits to see Draco had been scarce as of late. She would do anything to keep Ron from getting upset, and so that meant less rendezvous with her best friend. She did write him though. It was because of him that she ran through a roll of parchment every other week. Ron never questioned the constant owls. Hermione had gotten a promotion at the Ministry a year ago and now she oversaw other lawyers. Mingled in with Draco's responses were messages from her office, but not as many as she led Ron to believe. The only times now that Hermione ventured from her home to specifically see Draco was when Ron had fallen into one of his moods. By then there was nothing that she could do to assuage his feelings and so, she went to the only other man in her life who could truly make her smile.

"You know that Sophie and Scorpius want to go on a vacation, just the two of them? Well, Ron and I haven't had the children for an extended stay for a while so they asked us to keep them."

"And then your husband went on to bash my son, his marriage to your daughter, and me." Draco said with a roll of his eyes. "He doesn't do this in front of Cassie and Cornelius, does he?"

"No, of course not." Hermione shook her head. "Ron knows better than to take out his frustration on innocent children. Besides, he loves them. It's just that…they, and Scorpius, and Sophie's marriage to him remind him why he's upset."

"So you've said before." Draco reminded. "Truth be told I've never met someone who could hold a grudge for so long."

"He's not wrong for having it."

Draco paused and then slowly nodded. "I agree. But that doesn't give him the right to make your life miserable."

Hermione brought her eyes to him in surprise. "He's not."

"He is." Draco emphasized. "Reminding you day in and day out that you've loved another. Had he loved you properly he'd take the news like a man and move on."

"That's not fair, Draco and you know it." Hermione replied angrily. "How would you feel if I told you that I loved someone else?"

"You already have." Draco snapped quickly. "Countless times. Maybe not with words, but believe me, you've said it. And I took it like a man."

Hermione felt enraged, but she could do nothing about it. The pitter-patter of tiny feet had resounded down the hall along with high-pitched voices and laughing. Hermione and Draco's grandchildren came bursting into the room with wide smiles on their faces.

"Grandma!" Cassie said with glee. "I didn't know you were here!"

"Play hide and seek?" Cornelius asked with puffy, pinch-worthy cheeks.

"I'd love to." Hermione replied gladly. Cassie smiled broadly then and ran into the room to pat her on the leg.

"You're it!"

Cassie ran out of the room then and Cornelius followed. Hermione stared fondly after them before bringing back angry eyes at Draco.

"Sure, you 'took it like a man.' Whatever that means… But you never moved on. Don't go giving advice you yourself can't follow."

Author's note: I remember when I was writing this chapter that I thought it was so riddled with emotion. One of the most striking things for me when writing was Ron's last line. I don't think I could have better explained how he's been feeling about Hermione and Draco any further than just with "I don't want to be a 'too."

I also love Hermione in this –the way that she defends Ron instead of shirking off how he feels. Not to mention how she puts Draco in his place. You've got to admit he was being a bit of a hypocrite.

One more chapter after this guys! I've just got to say thanks in advance because you've been amazing with the support. My new story "Changing Fate" I ended up posting earlier today. Feel free to take a look if you're interested! :)

-WP