Fade Into You

Chapter 21 - England vs Australia

"You're very quiet today."

"I'm worried, about going back to work," Hermione admits.

"You mean you're worried about seeing him again," Draco corrects.

Hermione shoots him an irritated look, "You can say his name, Draco. In fact, you should, it sounds far less ominous. Yes, I am worried about seeing Harry today but I am also nervous about going back to work after two weeks to present something that could be the greatest sporting moment our country has ever experienced!"

Draco smiles slightly, "So you're only a little bit stressed then."

She tries not to smile as she hits him softly, "Shut up."

Draco catches her arm before it can hit him. He pulls her towards him and looks her in the eye, "You have nothing to be nervous about. You are the great Hermione Granger, the best radio presenter of our generation. You're going to be brilliant, love."

"Thank you," Hermione says softly, reaching up to kiss him.

Draco leans into her embrace and deepens the kiss. It is the most intimate things have been since they had tentatively gotten back together 2 weeks ago. He pulls away and murmurs, "I love you."

Hermione smiles at him, "I know."

Something akin to disappointment flits across Draco's face. He pulls back slightly and sighs, "You haven't said it back yet."

"I can't," Hermione frowns, "It's too soon."

"It's simple Hermione," Draco says, his eyes piercing into her, "You either love me or you don't."

"No, it's not that simple," Hermione says as she turns away from him to look into the mirror. She is supposed to be getting ready for the show after all, "I can't pretend that nothing ever happened. I can't just go back to normal like you can."

"I thought we said we would put it behind us," Draco says.

"Putting it behind us isn't the same as forgetting it ever happened," Hermione says sharply, she turns to face him, "I need a little more time to come to terms with it, all of it."

"How much more time?" Draco asks, his eyes searching hers.

"More than 2 weeks," Hermione says with a slight frown, "We can't expect to fix months of mistakes in 2 weeks, Draco."

Draco nods, "Maybe you do need time Hermione. But I don't, I still love you and for me, that's enough to fix any mistake. Maybe that's stupid and naïve of me but that's how I feel and I need to know that you feel the same. I won't go on with another charade; I won't carry on pretending like we did the first time. The only way this marriage is going to last is if we both love each other. So you think about that, okay?"

"Okay," Hermione whispers as Draco sweeps out of the room.

"Hermione!"

Hermione smiles broadly at the younger woman, "Hey Chelsea."

Chelsea hugs Hermione tightly, "It's so great to have you back."

Hermione takes her seat next to Chelsea in the studio, "It's great to be back, the apparition wasn't exactly fun but I'm so glad to be back at work."

"You look great," Chelsea says, her eyes surveying Hermione, "For someone who nearly died a few weeks ago."

"The wonders of healing potions and spells," Hermione jokes, "The headaches haven't stopped yet but the healers did say that it could take months for me to feel 100% back to normal."

Chelsea nods thoughtfully, "Well I have to apologise to you if I'm honest. I never actually realised how hard this job was until I had to do it without you. You have no idea how relieved I am that you're back for the final."

"I watched the re-runs," Hermione says with a fond smile, "You did great on your own, you and Oliver."

Chelsea shoots Hermione a sheepish grin, "You cottoned on to that one then?"

"I could feel the chemistry from across the world," Hermione says with an amused smile, "And I had plenty of time to read the gossip columns in the Prophet while I was lying on my sick bed."

Chelsea laughs, "Well it's true. It was kind of because of you that we got together actually…I visited you in St. Mungo's, did your daughter tell you?"

Hermione shakes her head, "No, you came all the way from Australia to visit me?"

Chelsea catches her eye, "You're the first real friend I've made in this business and I was worried about you. I spent that whole night writing with Ollie and one thing led to another…it's only been a couple of weeks but it already feels like the most normal relationship I've been in, ever."

Hermione smiles brightly, "I'm so pleased for you Chels, even if there is a huge age gap."

Chelsea bites her lip, "Yeah…what's 18 years in the scheme of things though?"

Hermione would normally judge but in this case, she doesn't. She is far too pleased that both Chelsea and Oliver have found someone to make them happy. Oliver has bounced around women for years and Chelsea has only dated idiots. The age gap seems fairly unimportant somehow, especially in the wizarding world where people live to 100+. Chelsea is right, in the scheme of things, 18 years isn't very much at all.

"Hermione?"

Hermione pulls herself out of her reverie and focuses on Chelsea, "Sorry?"

"I just asked if you had seen Harry yet," Chelsea asks the older woman.

Hermione shakes her head, "No, he only got out of Lake View last night and I just arrived in Australia this morning. He isn't going to be in the studio today, is he?"

"No," Chelsea replies, "He'll be at the pitch with Oliver. You should be able to avoid him, unless he corners you at the hotel tonight."

"Which I wouldn't put past him," Hermione sighs.

"Is it true that he was the one that put you in hospital?" Chelsea asks tentatively.

Hermione nods, "He didn't mean it, he can't control his magic when he's angry and drunk. It just comes out like an explosion…I dropped all of the charges because I didn't want him spending time in jail but needless to say, I learned my lesson."

"You and Harry won't get back together again," Chelsea realises.

"And he will really have to fight if he wants to see Cassie," Hermione adds in an undertone, "Draco and I have put so many measures in place to prevent him ever getting custody. I don't want her alone with him until I can completely trust him."

"I don't envision that happening anytime soon," Chelsea says.

"No, neither do I," Hermione says pointedly.

Chelsea gives her a sympathetic smile and glances at the timer on the wall in front of them. They have under a minute until they go live and Hermione feels more nervous than she has in a long time.

"Can you take my first lines and open the show up today, Chelsea?" Hermione asks quickly as the light flashes amber.

Chelsea smiles comfortingly at Hermione as the light flashes green, "Good evening and welcome to QWC Weekly with Hermione Granger and myself, Chelsea Clifton. Tonight we are covering a game that has the potential to be historic. For the first time since 1974, England have made it to the final and this year they are up against a serious challenge – Australia."

Hermione smiles at the recording wall and continues, "Joining us on the sofa tonight to talk about this amazing match as it unfolds are two amazing British players who have sadly been knocked out of the competition. We have Lorna McDonald, Scotland's star chaser and Ewan Crilly, Ireland's youngest seeker in over a decade."

The door at the back of the studio opens and the two players in question step into the studio. Lorna is in her mid-20's with long auburn hair that has been left down for once, due to the nature of her job it is almost always pulled up into a messy bun. Ewan is younger, he is tall and gangly and slim, the atypical build of a seeker. He has dark brown hair and grey eyes, he's so young he still has acne.

"We have 10 minutes until the quaffle is thrown," Chelsea says as she glances at the clock behind them, "Which is just enough time to introduce our guests properly. The first question I have to ask though Ewan is, how young are you?"

Ewan laughs, "17."

"17?" Hermione asks in disbelief, "And you're the seeker for your home nation? That's a big deal."

Ewan nods as a grin spreads across his face, "It's a pretty scary responsibility but I think we did really well getting as far as we did."

"It's the furthest Ireland have gotten since they made the final in 1994," Chelsea says, "And with the strength of the competition this year, I'd say that's something to be proud of."

"I'm proud of it," Ewan says cheerfully, "I know I'm only a kid in a world where there are a lot of players who are far better than me but getting to compete in this tournament was actually a dream come true and I think in four years time, Ireland will be in the final again."

Hermione chuckles, "Big dreams Ewan, I admire you for that."

Ewan just laughs as Hermione talks to their second guest, "You must feel pretty similar Lorna, Scotland are making one hell of a comeback."

Lorna nods and smiles, "All thanks to Viktor Krum, he is a fantastic coach and we really are so lucky to have him. I can't believe how well we did this year, I mean considering the fact that we don't normally qualify."

Hermione agrees, "From not qualifying to managing to beat Germany, a team ranked well above you, is an amazing achievement."

"I do think we could have gone further," Lorna admits, "Unfortunately for us because of the way the rankings worked out, our second match of the tournament was against England and we knew we didn't stand a chance before the game even started. I think if it hadn't been for that unlucky draw, we would have gotten further."

"So you expect to do great things in four years time then?" Chelsea cuts in.

Lorna nods eagerly, "Oh yeah, definitely. In four years time it could be an Ireland vs Scotland final for all anyone knows."

Ewan laughs and nods, "That would definitely be interesting."

Hermione glances at the clock on the wall, "It certainly would be. But for now, we go live to Sydney where the final is about to get underway."

The projector charm creates an image on the wall behind them. The Quidditch pitch materialises, the game is about to begin. The English and Australian teams face each other, the referee in the centre waiting to throw the quaffle.

"The quaffle is thrown," Chelsea says as all chairs in the studio are turned to watch the game, "England takes possession and the game is underway!"

"Harry! What is wrong with you?"

Harry pulls himself out of his reverie to look at his Godson, "What?"

Teddy shakes his head incredulously, "England are winning the final of the bloody QWC and you aren't even paying attention!"

Harry looks half-heartedly at the score board. England are winning. The game is 40 minutes in and the score currently stands at 140-120 to England. He wants to pretend to be excited by that but in truth, he's never been so uninterested in Quidditch.

"Sorry Teddy, I'm just not in the best place right now."

"Because you tried to get back together with the love of your life and you screwed it up," Teddy says matter of factly.

Harry shoots him a dark look, "Teddy, you don't know the half of it."

"I might be a teenager Harry but I'm not stupid," Teddy says matter of factly, "You love Hermione and you probably always will. Like full on Snape loving your Mother to the point of creepy obsession forever. I mean people can try to set you up and make you happy but whatever, you'd rather be grumpy and alone forever because that makes sense."

Harry opens his mouth to scold the boy but he doesn't get a chance. Teddy simply holds up his hand up and continues, "So you got back together, something bad happened that you and Gran won't tell me about, Hermione ended up in hospital and you ended up in the loony bin. While you were in there she probably got back together with her ex from what the papers say and now you're bitter and twisted and angry. Sum it up?"

Harry glares at his Godson, "It's not that simple Teddy and I can't explain it all to you, not yet anyway."

"Well then forget about it!" Teddy exclaims, "We are in a private box watching England play the best Quidditch match ever! We might well see them win for the first time in over 20 years! Forget about your stupid girl problems and enjoy the match!"

Harry smiles slightly at Teddy's passion. He turns away from the blue haired boy to look at the pitch, "Alright, what have I missed?"

"England's chasers are bloody amazing," Teddy says, "They're scoring goals like it's the easiest thing ever. Australia are so close too though, I mean one goal could literally swing this match one way or the other. We just really need Bell to catch the snitch while England are still in the lead."

"Where is he anyway?" Harry asks as his eyes search the pitch. He enjoys watching the seeker, he supposes it is because that had been his role for so long.

"Up there by the west stand," Teddy says, pointing towards the seeker.

Harry sees him surveying the ground below him and completely misses England scoring another goal. Teddy jumps up and shouts, "Come on England!"

Harry finds himself grinning at his Godson and as he lets himself enjoy the game, he can feel himself slowly forgetting about his Hermione problems.

"And that's half-time!"

"Well," Hermione says as she looks to Chelsea and their two guests, Lorna and Ewan, "This is shaping up to be a good match."

"I would never have pegged England to win," Lorna admits, "Australia seemed to be the better team throughout the whole tournament but this is a thrilling match."

"It's so close," Ewan agrees, "If Bell catches the snitch when play resumes, England have won."

"For the first time in 20 years at that," Chelsea adds.

"It will be a huge sporting achievement," Hermione says, nodding her agreement, "Shall we get the down low from the match then Chelsea?"

"Yes," Chelsea smiles, "Let's go to Oliver first, he's with a few of the star players in the break room."

The projector charm activates and Oliver appears on the wall behind them. He smiles broadly, "Hi Chelsea, welcome back Hermione. I am indeed in the break room where I've just managed to grab England's star player at the moment, Rosaline Kemp, the chaser who scored over half of the amazing goals we have witnessed so far today."

Rosaline Kemp laughs. She looks to be in her early 20's, her hair is sweaty and sticking to her face but her cheeks are pink as she smiles brightly, "Just doing my job."

"You are doing an excellent job of it," Oliver says, "I mean this entire game has us all on the edge of our seats. It's so close."

"It's a lot closer than we thought it would be," Rosaline admits, "We were kind of worried Australia would wipe us out and the match would be over before we even got to break for half-time."

"Australia are the higher ranking team," Oliver says, "A lot of us thought that Australia would win the cup for certain this year but England are certainly in with a chance."

"If Adrian can just catch that snitch, we've done it," Rosaline says, "It's definitely possible and that's exciting."

"It certainly is," Oliver agrees as he beckons over Adrian Bell, "Adrian, we were just talking about you. All it takes is for the snitch to be caught now and the game is won, regardless of who catches it. Are you biding your time waiting for England to be further in the lead or have you just not seen the snitch yet?"

Adrian, who looks like a teenager, laughs, "I wish I could say I've got some grand strategy but I don't. I'm struggling a little bit with the light here in Australia. The sun is strong and I've been squinting a lot, it's much harder to see the snitch under those conditions."

"I remember from my pro days," Oliver agrees, "In warmer countries the sun glinting off something as small as a watch can distract you."

"Everything shiny that the sun glints off it, looks like the snitch," Adrian nods, "So it's far harder but assuming I can see that snitch before Australia's seeker, I know that I'll catch it. I'm faster than him."

"We're all keeping our fingers crossed," Oliver assures him, "This match is proving to be one of the most thrilling of recent years. Good luck to you both and thank you for speaking to me."

They both smile and walk away from Oliver. He turns back to the projection charm and says, "That's the inside knowledge from the England team for you, back to Chelsea and Hermione in the studio."

The projection charm ends and Hermione says, "I think Oliver is right, this is a close fought match and it could still swing either way."

"It really does depend on that snitch," Ewan says, "And I completely sympathise with Adrian. Trying to see a tiny golden ball in a country like Australia in July, the sun is beating down at an unbearable temperature and it does make visibility difficult."

Chelsea nods, "Well that just goes to show, it's all to play for. We could be reporting a historic win for England in the next half an hour or mourning a close loss. For now, let's go to Harry who has the statistics for today's game."

The projection charm kicks in again and Hermione's stomach churns as Harry appears on the wall behind them. He looks much the same as he always has done, apart from the bags underneath his eyes.

His smile doesn't reach his eyes as he says, "Hi Chelsea, hi Hermione. It's been a thrilling game, that's for sure. My Godson and I have been enjoying it as much as Oliver from the sounds of things. He's right, it's definitely a close match but here's the statistics to show you just how close."

Hermione swallows the lump in her throat and forces herself to watch calmly as Harry stands with the empty Quidditch pitch behind him, "As far as possession of the quaffle goes it doesn't get much more even. England have been in possession of the quaffle for 55% of the match as opposed to Australia's 45%. It hasn't made much difference in terms of the goal scoring though, both teams have been fairly evenly matched."

"Just going to interrupt you there Harry," Chelsea says politely, "England have been attempting to score far more than Australia which probably explains their possession."

Harry nods, "That's a good point Chelsea. Australia's keeper has let in 16 goals, but he has also saved 21 goals. That's a total of 37 attempted goals on behalf of England's chasers. On the other hand, England have let in 14 goals and saved 16, a total of 30 attempted goals on behalf of Australia's chasers."

"Which implies that Australia have a better keeper in Stuart Peterson," Hermione says, she has to be a part of the conversation even if that means talking to Harry.

"That can't be argued," Harry agrees, "But England's keeper, David Flint, is doing a great job against a team that are proving to be a tough opposition."

"The star player so far is clearly Rosaline Kemp though," Chelsea says.

Harry nods once more, "Definitely. Kemp is England's top scorer having scored 8 out of England's 16 goals. Josephine Baldwin has scored 5 goals and Richard Button has only scored 3 goals so there is no denying that Kemp is crucial to England in this game."

"What about Australia?" Hermione asks, "In previous games, they have been far more consistent than England. All of their chasers are of the same standard, the English team's chasers tend to be rather hit and miss."

"Yes, without Kemp, England would be struggling," Harry says, "Whereas Australia have three very good chasers, none of them are carrying the match on their own. Adelaide Taylor is the top scorer with 5 goals but Jamie Hussey has scored 4 goals and Harrison Gillespie has scored 3, it's far more even."

"What do we know about snitch sightings?" Chelsea asks, "We've been discussing the fact that the snitch is crucial in determining the result of the game."

"It is," Harry agrees, "I mean England or Australia could both fall behind quite significantly and still win if the snitch was caught. But it is so close, I don't envision that happening unless we have a major injury so that means that the only way this can be won is if one team catches the snitch. As far as sightings go, Australia's seeker has had two and Adrian Bell has had one so again, fairly even."

The light in the studio flashes amber so Chelsea smiles and says, "Thanks for that Harry. We are just about to go back to the game as play resumes with the score standing at 160-140 to England. It's all to play for as the quaffle is tossed and Australia take possession!"

"NO!"

Draco jumps and looks forward. Cassie and Scorpius have both jumped out of their seats and are holding their heads in their hands.

"What did I miss?"

"Dad!" Scorpius exclaims, "How could you miss that?"

"I hope she's okay!" Cassie says as she stands with her hands against the glass. They are in a private box, very far away from the one that Harry is sharing with Teddy, "She fell off the broom."

"The magic bouncy charm thing caught her," Scorpius says matter of factly, "Look, she's moving."

"Who got injured?" Draco asks, standing up to survey the pitch.

"Rosaline Kemp!" Cassie despairs, "How are we going to win without her? She's our star player! She scores all of our goals!"

"I'm sure the sub will be just as good," Draco says as they await the announcement.

"Rosaline Kemp regrettably informs us that she must retire due to injury. Joseph Kennedy is substituted in her place."

"No!" Cassie and Scorpius exclaim.

Draco feels so out of touch as he raises an eyebrow at them, "And that's bad because?"

"Because he sucks, Dad!" Scorpius says, "He hardly ever scores."

"England are doomed," Cassie agrees miserably as she flops back onto her seat.

Play resumes and the atmosphere feels remarkably different. Draco pats Cassie on the shoulder, "All hope is not lost you know. Just when you think things are looking like they can never improve, something great could happen and all of a sudden everything feels better again."

Cassie narrows her eyes at him as if she knows that he is talking about her Mother. Draco is waiting for a hug or some profound thank you. Instead he gets, "Whatever Dad."

He finds himself smiling slightly as Cassie looks out towards the pitch once more. The teenage years are coming, he finds himself thinking.

"We're fuc-"

"Teddy!"

"Fudged," Teddy compromises as his Godfather stares at him sternly.

"Screwed would have done," Harry points out.

"Screwed isn't a strong enough word," Teddy complains, "Australia have not only caught up with us, they've overtaken us. Bloody Kennedy is bloody useless! I could do better than him! I mean look at that score!"

Harry doesn't even have the heart to tell Teddy off. The game had been so promising until the loss of Rosaline Kemp. The score currently sits at England – 200. Australia – 230."

"We need a miracle now if we stand a chance of winning," Harry agrees grudgingly.

Down below the whistle is blown and a timeout is called. Harry and Teddy both frown down at the pitch, "No one is injured and the weather hasn't turned. Why are they scheduling a time out?"

Harry shakes his head, "No idea," he admits, "But it looks like Kennedy is going in."

"Maybe they're subbing him again," Teddy says hopefully.

Harry nods thoughtfully as an announcement echoes throughout the pitch, "England have made the decision to bench Joseph Kennedy and substitute in the Assistant Coach for the team, Ginny Weasley."

"Aunt Ginny!" Teddy exclaims, jumping to his feet, "Aunt Gin is getting subbed in!"

Harry stands up too to watch Ginny walk onto the pitch with her broom in hand. The English fans in the crowd go absolutely wild, Ginny is a fan favourite and always has been.

Harry grins, "I think the miracle I was hoping for just materialised," he says cheerfully.

"Oh my gosh Dad, I love her!"

Draco chuckles at his daughter, "Your Mum's friend, Ginny?"

"She is amazing," Cassie says as she stands with her face so close to the glass that her breath is leaving it foggy in places, "She is the best Harpies player that there is and she's so pretty and confident and awesome. I want to be like her so badly when I'm grown up."

Draco smiles fondly at his daughter. When he thinks about it, Ginny is a great role model for young girls and as far as Weasley's go, he's always gotten on quite well with her.

"She's going to score again!" Scorpius says as he jumps up and down, "She is, she is!"

"YES!" Cassie roars, "220-240 Dad! England are catching! Ginny Weasley is our secret weapon!"

Draco smiles to himself at that. Ginny Weasley and her powerful bat bogey hexes have always been someone's secret weapon. He wonders briefly if Hermione regrets losing touch with her friend. He knows that she will be watching her proudly today, regardless of the fact that they only see each other for birthdays, Christmas, weddings and funerals these days.

"Dad! Daddy look!" Cassie shouts excitedly, she grabs Draco's hand and pulls him to the front of the box, "Look, Bell has seen the snitch!"

Draco finds himself getting totally into the game as he watches Bell shoot towards their box.

"DAD!" Scorpius says, "The snitch is right there!"

The snitch is glittering right in front of their stand and Bell is speeding towards them with Australia's seeker on his ass. The English fans are going crazy and the stadium is filled with cheers and roars all of a sudden.

"Come on!" Draco finds himself shouting as he keeps his hand gripped tightly in Cassie's, "Come on Bell! Come on England!"

Bell skids to a halt, barely avoiding hitting their box. He catches the snitch in one fluid movement and lifts it triumphantly into the air.

"YES!" All three Malfoy's shout.

Draco lets himself be carried by the emotion and the adrenaline. He picks Cassie up in one arm and Scorpius in the other and pulls them both close to him as they all cheer and shout. He finds himself grinning from ear to ear and thanking his lucky stars that he has been blessed with such a wonderful family.

The adrenaline rush takes a while to die down. Hermione and Chelsea are both buzzing about the fact that England have actually bloody well won the QWC for the first time in 20 years when they leave the studio.

They walk to the hotel arm in arm and talk animatedly about the game like two old friends. They are still chatting away 20 minutes later when they walk into the reception of the hotel where they are greeted by Hermione's family.

"Mum!" Cassie exclaims.

"Mum, did you see it?" Scorpius shouts as they skid to a halt by her side.

"I saw it!" Hermione says, scooping Scorpius into her arms and pulling Cassie to her side, "Wasn't it fantastic?"

"It was amazing," Cassie says with wide eyes, "I love Ginny Weasley, I just want to be her."

"She is phenomenal," Hermione agrees, "Did Dad enjoy the game?"

Cassie giggles and Scorpius nods eagerly, "He was shouting."

"And dancing," Cassie says.

"Dad was dancing?" Hermione asks.

"I got a little carried away with the victory," Draco says as he reaches the family.

Hermione looks up at him. She smiles when she sees the sheepish look in his eyes and the pink tinge to his cheeks. She wants nothing more than to pull him into the family hug and kiss him but she can't, not in front of the cameras and more to the point, the children.

"Uh-huh?"

Draco simply nods and looks at her with complete devotion in his eyes.

Hermione has to pull her eyes away from his. She glances at Chelsea who gives her a knowing look and sees Oliver approaching from the doors of the reception.

"We bloody well did it!" Oliver says the moment he reaches Chelsea.

Before Chelsea can respond, Oliver has picked her up, kissed her and spun her around. Scorpius makes a face and Cassie grins, "Mum, that's so romantic!"

The cameras begin to click and the press descend on Chelsea and Oliver. Chelsea pulls back from the kiss with pink cheeks and rolls her eyes, "Way to let the cat out of the bag Ollie."

Oliver has the decency to look sheepish as he says, "Uh…sorry?"

Hermione laughs and steers the kids towards the restaurant, "Come on, let's go and have some dinner."

"Is Dad coming too?" Scorpius asks as Draco automatically follows them.

Hermione knows she is sending out mixed messages to the children but she really wants Draco to eat with them. She nods, "Of course he is, we need to have a family meal to celebrate on this historic day! Don't we?"

Cassie and Scorpius look thrilled as they step into the restaurant as a family.

Hermione is quiet over dinner. She watches Cassie and Scorpius tell her all about their favourite parts of the game. She watches Draco smile and laugh as he interacts with the children. She watches and listens and finds herself falling in love with Draco all over again.

The urge to kiss him grows stronger as he talks animatedly about the game and teases the children. All of a sudden he is the man she knows and loves, all traces of his campaign are gone and she can actually forget that it happened, just for a while.

Once they have finished eating it is clear that the kids are exhausted. Draco smiles and tells Hermione that he will take them back to the hotel room and get them settled.

Hermione kisses Cassie and Scorpius on the cheek and says goodnight. They will all be heading home to England for good the following morning and in truth, Hermione can't wait to be rid of the travelling once and for all.

The family go their separate ways when they reach the floor where all of the cast and crew for the show are sleeping. Draco continues up a floor and Hermione heads to her own room with plans to have a glass of wine to try and calm herself down. There is no way she can sleep right now on an adrenaline rush like this one.

However, she is barely in the room when a knock sounds at the door. She knows it can't be Draco because there is no way he will have settled the children yet. Her stomach churns as she realises that it is probably Harry. She seriously thinks about ignoring it as the knocking gets louder, she knows that she has to face him at some point though. She knows it will be easier to do it sooner rather than later, so she opens the door.

"I know I'm probably the last person you want to see right now," Harry says quickly, "But I need to talk to you."

Hermione simply nods and takes a step back.

Harry walks tentatively into the room and jumps when the door shuts with a snap behind him. Hermione sits on the edge of the sofa and looks at him expectantly.

He wrings his hands and clears his throat, "I wasn't going to come and see you tonight…I didn't want to."

Hermione narrows her eyes at him, "Why did you?"

Harry shakes his head, "I have no right to be here…not after what I did. You nearly died and that was because of me and I…do you know what? I fucking hate myself for that."

Hermione swallows hard as tears well up in Harry's eyes. He paces the room and runs his hands through his hair, "The thing is I know I shouldn't be here but I didn't know who else to talk to and I ended up on your doorstep like I always do…like I always have done. I don't want it to be like this Hermione, I don't want to want you so badly."

"Harry-"

"Let me finish," Harry says tearfully, "I don't want you to be the one Hermione but…you always have been."

Hermione's voice comes out quieter than she wants, "Harry," she croaks, "I can't do this anymore."

She sees the hope drain out of his eyes but she has to continue, "I can't put myself through this again. I have tried so many times to forgive you. I have spent so long hoping that this time you will get better, that this time things will be different and they never are. All you do is let me down and hurt me-"

"Hermione-"

She holds up her hand and echoes his earlier words, "Let me finish."

Harry swallows and nods. He is no longer bothering to hide the fresh tears falling from his eyes.

Hermione continues, "And I'm hurting you too. This is the second time you have come out of hospital to find me with Draco and I think that's telling us something. This whole mess somehow managed to make everything clear for me. I nearly died but I didn't and I think that was a sign that you and I are never going to work. Everything that happened reminded me of why I love Draco, the whole disaster brought us back together and Draco…he's better for me than you are."

"I know."

Hermione pauses. She has expected him to fight her on that one. The resigned 'I know' that just slipped out of his mouth has completely thrown her.

Harry seizes her silence, "He makes you a better person, he's a good husband, he's a good father. I would never have been a good husband and I would have been as much of a failure to Cassie as I was to Teddy. His Grandmother frequently reminds him not to rely on me, imagine if my daughter had been told that by her Mother. She was far happier growing up away from me, with you and Draco."

It is the first time Hermione can recall Harry calling Draco by his first name. She swallows and nods, "She was."

"I know you won't let me see her," Harry says, "And I know I screwed up any chance for us. I can't fix that but I can try my best to get better for Cassie."

"It will take a long time for me to trust you," Hermione warns him.

"I know," Harry says, "But I'll keep trying until you do. I'll get better, I'll win your trust back and when the time is right for Cassie to know the truth, I'll be there."

He is being so mature about the entire situation and it really is throwing Hermione. She simply nods and says, "Okay."

"And I'm saying goodbye to you this time," Harry adds as he backs away towards the door, "For good. I need to let you go and move on with my life, I just wish it hadn't taken me so long to realise that."

Hermione doesn't know what to say so she remains silent.

"Goodbye Hermione," Harry says with a note of finality.

"Goodbye Harry," Hermione says softly.

He grabs the door handle and pulls the door open. Hermione watches him leave and breathes a sigh of relief when the door clicks shut behind him. Somehow she feels like she finally has closure. She can finally feel a weight lifting off of her chest as she realises that she has finally let go too, it took Harry letting her go for Hermione to truly let go of him too.

She smiles to herself and allows herself to believe that things truly will get better.

Hermione opens the door, ready to make her way upstairs to the room that Draco is sharing with their two children. She gets a shock when she sees Draco standing in front of the door, his hand raised to knock at it.

She bites her lip to hide her grin, "I was just going to come and see you."

Draco smiles, "I beat you," he says as she pulls the door open fully to allow him to walk into the room.

Hermione shuts the door behind him and turns around, "How are the kids?"

"Fast asleep," Draco chuckles, "The adrenaline rush was great until it wore out."

Hermione laughs too, "You really enjoyed yourself today, didn't you?"

Draco smiles radiantly at her, "Was it that obvious?"

Hermione nods, "You looked so carefree today when you were talking about the match and the kids…I…honestly Draco, I think I will always remember today as the day that I fell in love with you all over again."

Draco's eyes meet hers and surprise shines in them, "I thought you weren't ready to say it."

"I wasn't this morning," Hermione admits, "But it is amazing how 24 hours can change your perspective on a lot of things. After everything that has happened I have finally let go of Harry and I think he has let go of me too. All that happened showed me just how much I love you, it taught me how lucky I am to have you and the moment I walked into the reception and saw you and the kids…I just thought to myself, Merlin I love that man."

Draco's smile truly reaches his eyes. They shine with happiness as he steps towards her and captures her lips in a kiss. Hermione doesn't see it coming but she isn't surprised either as she allows herself to melt into the kiss. They have tentatively been back together for the past two weeks but they haven't been intimate. Part of that was because of Hermione's recovery and another part of it was related to the betrayals that had occurred on both of their parts.

Somehow that all felt forgotten now. Everything just felt familiar and right, the scent of Draco's expensive cologne invades Hermione's nostrils as he leaves butterfly kisses on her neck. She throws her head back and rests it against the wall as a warm feeling envelopes her. Draco lifts her with ease and she wraps her legs around him like it is second nature. He carries her to the bed and throws the curtains shut with one flick of his wrist.

Hermione chuckles and looks up into his eyes. Those grey eyes are intimidating when he is angry and they are a stormy ocean when he is upset. But when he is happy they sparkle and almost look blue. She keeps her gaze locked on his as she reaches up and places her hand on the side of his cheek.

"I love you so much," He murmurs, his eyes fluttering shut as he claims her lips once more.

Hermione can only mumble a similar response as she melts into him once more.

TBC :)