Epilogue

Draco was pacing in his office. He knew what Ron had said. He had been coerced into an affair. He was one of the Golden Trio. A Salazar forsaken war hero. They had a twenty year marriage and two children. And what was Draco? A bloody ex death eater with parents whose names would one day be used to scare small children?

He had no delusions about where he stood. Oh she would break it to him gently of course. And assure him he would always be her best friend blah blah blah. And he would live only because his son would need to have at least one living parent.

"So what you are saying is I slept with Rita Skeeter?"

"Yep." She ended the past "p" with a popping sound relishing it, It may not have been his fault exactly, but she was still going to relish this, because as Draco would say, fuck him, she couldn't believe she was blushing to think that even.

"You don't have to enjoy this Mione, I was being controlled." Ron pouted.

"Oh, I think I do. You let my home go to ruins, you alienated my children and blamed me and you have been a colossal ass. And all because I wanted to take flying lessons to surprise you for your bloody birthday. And not once have I heard a real apology from you. Friends since eleven and I don't even get a sincere apology. Have I left anything out?"

"No. You are right. Even without being controlled I didn't do anything to fix it. I just… we had not exactly been doing well in a long time, and Malfoy is… well, everything I am not. He made you laugh and you looked at each other in ways we hadn't in years. Like you actually LIKED each other. And we seemed to barely tolerate each other on good days. I couldn't see any reason for you not to have an affair with him. Hell, I might have slept with him myself if the offer was on the table." They both laughed. "Are you at least happy with him?"

"Very, odd as that might sound. It is like the cracks in our souls joined together to form a hinge, where our cracks just…" she looked at him sadly.

"Made bigger cracks?" he offered.

"Something like that." She smiled at him. "You need to find someone who does that for you Ron. And I want us to be friends again. I miss you, I miss us, the three of us."

He nodded. "I would really like that."

They hugged and she went to find her fiancé, his secretary, an incredibly attractive woman named Angie that she would have been terribly jealous of if she had not met the woman's equally attractive wife waved her in.

She was surprised to find Draco looking tense. His eyes immediately went to her hands. "Sweetheart? Is everything OK? Did a meeting go bad today?" she immediately went around his desk to sit in his lap. His arms went around her reflexively but she noticed he did not really relax. "Draco, what is it, you are starting to scare me."

"How... how did things go with the Weasel?"

"Well enough… I was a little mean… I did enjoy rubbing his nose in the idea that he was sleeping with Rita Skeeter but I remembered what you said you know" she whispered in case Angie could hear her "fuck him" and then she blushed" he smiled a little at that.

"And then?"

"Then I told him exactly how I felt. How no matter that he was controlled in to sleeping with her nothing excused the fact that he never even really apologized. I think I deserved at least that after the length of time we had been friends. And he admitted he was jealous of our friendship because his and my relationship had been, well, not good to say the least for years. If it had not been an affair it would have been something. We could not have gone on much longer the way we were. It sounds awful, but it was really for the best. I was more angry about the veritaserum than the affair."

He looked at her a long time feeling relief beginning but he had to be sure "So you are… you are not going back to him?"

"Draco, is that what this is about? No, I am not going back to him. I love you and nothing is going to change that. I told Ron that the cracks in our souls have joined together to act like a hinge. I would rather have that open door with you than just bigger cracks with someone else."

The relief finally washed over him and telling Angie he was taking the day off he scooped up his fiancé to take her home and show her just how relieved he was.

Fred and George had decided exactly how they would break the news to their mother who they knew should be the first they would summon the rest of the family after.

Fred walked into the burrow first.

"Oh, hello George dear, would you like a sandwhich?"

"I'm not George, I'm Fred," said the man. "Honestly, woman,

you call yourself our mother? Can't you tell I'm Fred? You would think the two ears and much better wit would have given it away!"

"Sorry, Fred, dear I….." she dropped her wand and her hand flew to her mouth as George walked in to stand next to his twin.

It was almost an hour before she could compose herself enough to summon the rest of the family for a full reunion.

The day after the big family reunion Harry had a long conversation with Ron. Hermione's floo was not accepting calls. Harry James Potter went back to his home where there were blissfully no children to resume his very good day, the one that had been interrupted so rudely over a year ago.