Hi everyone. I'm going to pretend that the angry reviews just mean you care about these characters haha. Let's just all enjoy the ride and not hate Hermione too much... she's dying guys. Be cool.

As always, JKR created everything, I'm just borrowing it for my own evil purposes…

Chapter Fourteen

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Draco stared down at his tumbler, numbly watching as the yellow liquid swirled around the few melting ice cubes at the bottom of the glass. The house was quiet, almost eerie, and for the first time ever he wished he'd just stayed at the office. The last hint of sunlight disappeared down below the horizon as the temperature plummeted, heralding the coming of Autumn. The rapidly cooling air was only adding to his feeling of listlessness and misery, chilling him to his bones.

Because after living with Hermione and Sophie these last few months, it just didn't seem right here without them. Nothing was right anymore. He had grown accustomed to hearing their laughter and chattering around the house, feeling the little girl throw herself into his arms after a long day at work, drawing out a gentle smile from Hermione with some menial comment, which never failed to spark something warm inside him, or even just moments spent in silent companionship.

It had been two days since the 'incident' and Draco was still in a state of shock about what had happened. It didn't make sense to him. The numb haze of alcohol had helped dull the initial pain, twisting it into a kind of righteous anger, but that had only lasted until the following morning when he'd woken up and remembered his heart was very much still broken.

Draining the last of his firewhiskey, Draco stumbled to his feet. He had to close his eyes for a second as the dizziness swept through him, but pulled himself together and summoned a glass of water. Maybe he'd overdone it. That morning he'd received an owl from his corporate payroll manager saying that Hermione had officially resigned from her position at work and they needed to hire a replacement. He'd asked the poor man to repeat himself about three times before he accepted what he was hearing. Then he'd hung up the phone and proceeded to slam his fist against a wall. As if leaving him wasn't enough, now she was even leaving the company.

I guess she's got all the money she needs now, he'd thought bitterly, wondering whether she'd quit because she had no need for an income now or whether it was because she couldn't bear to be around him anymore, not even in a professional capacity.

Did I really read the situation so wrong?

He'd asked himself this same question over and over again the last two days, and still couldn't find the answer. That night at the bed and breakfast everything had seemed so…

What? Loving? Passionate? Genuine?

But then she'd claimed she didn't want to be in a real marriage with him, that they'd just been 'caught up in their roles' and they should go their separate ways sooner rather than later.

Draco wasn't buying it. There was something else going on here, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out what it was. And having a head muddled with alcohol wasn't helping either. Everything was just a confused, jumbled mess in his head and all he could focus on was the stinging pain in his chest that told him he missed her desperately. He missed both of them.

Draco became aware of a wet sensation on his cheeks and lifted his hand to discover that he'd been crying pitifully into his tumbler for the past twenty minutes.

Pull yourself together, he cursed, slamming down the glass on the side table and staggering over towards the staircase. He was in desperate need of a shave and wallowing in misery wasn't going to help him win her back.

And he would win her back. He'd prove to her that he wasn't just some former enemy turned friend, merely paying her to be his wife. He'd show her that he was sincere in his feelings and that she didn't need to be afraid of him. What if she'd just been through so much after the death of Krum that she was scared to let someone else get close?

At that moment, with one foot poised over the bottom step, Draco heard a slight muffled squeal coming from upstairs followed by a laugh and a thump. He froze and blinked in surprise. The rooms were all empty and he was supposedly home alone. And it wasn't like one of the house elves to make such a sound. Draco's breath caught in his throat as he wondered if maybe…maybe…

Racing up the stairs, heart pounding, he approached the sound of chattering coming from Sophie's old room.

It couldn't be-

Were they back? Had they come back to him? He pushed the door slightly ajar and peered into the room. And sure enough there was little Sophie Granger, sitting on the bed and cradling one of her kittens in her dainty, careful hands. The other one was huddled on her lap. They'd packed and left in such a hurry that the sight of her caused a clenching in his stomach. He hadn't even really had a chance to say goodbye. And of course they'd left the kittens behind; Lavender's apartment was clearly too small to accommodate the little creatures so he'd assigned a house elf to feed and play with them, determined to return them to their rightful owner one day.

Draco couldn't help but smile sadly as he watched the scene before him. Sophie was wearing her favourite yellow tights and her bumblebee jumper and she was grinning happily as she spoke to her two kittens in a hushed voice.

"I hope you've both been good for Draco. Has he given you plenty of milk? Has he brushed your fur before bed every night?"

Draco ran his hand through his blond hair, closing his eyes for a moment as he enjoyed the gentle rattle of the girl's voice. He'd missed the constant hum of her enthusiastic chatter these last two days and it soothed something inside him. Then he opened his eyes, cursing himself. She couldn't see him like this. He was drunk!

With a sluggish flick of his wand, Draco summoned a sober-up potion, draining it hurriedly and trying desperately to smooth down his hair. The hair on his face was cleaned even more easily with a simple shaving charm, and he really hoped his eyes weren't too red and bloodshot.

Feeling slightly more human now, Draco pushed the door open wider, taking a step into the room and clearing his throat. Sophie had just placed the kitten back down on the bed and she whirled around to look at who'd entered. With a high-pitched shriek she launched herself at him.

"Draco!"

With the force of a freight train, the little girl threw herself into his outstretched arms. Draco picked her up with a grin and spun her around, before letting her perch on his hip as they wrapped their arms around each other. She gripped his neck tightly and buried her head in his shoulder.

"I missed you Draco!" she told him in a small voice, her voice muffled by his shirt. He drew back so that she would lift her head and gave her an affectionate smile.

"I missed you too, bug."

"Nobody else tells bedtime stories like you do," she informed him, a little pout forming on her mouth as she continued to nestle into him.

"And nobody gives the best hugs like you do," he replied, making her giggle and hug him even harder as if to prove his point. Eventually he put her down when one of the kittens gave an envious little mewl.

"Have you been taking care of Shadow and Chess?" she demanded, putting her hands on her hips in a bossy but endearing way.

"Of course," he answered quickly, "they've had plenty of milk every day. And last night they even got some sardines for dinner!"

"Really?" she asked with wide eyes.

"Yep. They gobbled them all up and then demanded more by pawing at my face while I slept!"

Sophie let out an adorable guffaw of laughter.

"That's funny!" she declared, turning to give the kittens a congratulatory pat.

"So…er… where's your mother?" Draco finally asked with a nervous stammer, his mouth going dry as he tried to look casual about it and probably failed.

"She's in her room packing some things she forgot," the little girl replied, her voice turning soft and meek. She paused before looking up at Draco with an expression so sad it caused a stab of pain to his gut. "Draco, did you and mummy fight? Is that why we had to leave?"

"Um… no, no we didn't fight…"

"Then do we really have to go? Do you not want us anymore? If I promise to be extra good can we stay?"

Draco stared at the girl in horror, completely uncertain as to how he should answer her questions.

"Oh Sophie," he sighed, kneeling down and running his hand over her soft wavy hair, "That's not it at all! It's not you. You haven't done anything wrong, sweetie. Your mummy and I just have some adult problems to sort out. We've both…we both just…"

He didn't really know how to finish that sentence, especially as he didn't quite know the answers himself. Luckily he didn't have to finish the thought, as they were interrupted by a quiet voice calling her name.

"Sophie?"

The sound of Hermione behind him and the awareness that she was so close made Draco shudder all over as his mind flew into a panic. Slowly he rose to his feet and turned to face her.

"Hermione," he whispered, drinking in the sight of her. She looked tired, with dark rings under her eyes and her curls were messier than usual. But she was still beautiful to him. The very sight of her was tying his insides up in knots.

"Come here, Sophie," she called, holding out her hand for her little girl and beckoning her over, "it's time to go."

"Wait-" he began, looking between the two of them in alarm, "you don't have to go just yet, not on my account."

"Can't we stay, mummy? I want to play with the kitties and with Draco some more!" Sophie pleaded, jumping up and down as her loose curls bounced around her shoulders.

"Not today, sweetie," Hermione told her softly, reaching down to grab the little girl's bag and packing a couple of items that she must have gotten from the house elves, "now come on."

Sophie stomped her foot, her face turning sour as she glared at her mother. With no warning she leapt up and over the bed, hiding herself on the other side near the window.

"No, I don't want to go!" she yelled.

Hermione shot him a sideways glance filled with awkwardness and quickly made her way around the bed to where Sophie had barricaded herself.

"Now is not the time, Sophie. I'm sure Draco is very busy with work and we need to get home."

"But this is our home."

Hermione knelt down, her expression regretful as she took her daughter gently by the shoulders.

"I told you, sweetie, we're moving to a new home soon. One with a huge garden and magic vegetables growing all around it, with lots of nooks and crannies and places to play hide and seek."

Sophie stared at her solemnly for a moment, her expression nothing short of miserable as she considered her mother's words.

"Is Draco coming too?"

His heart clenched as he watched Hermione tuck a strand of hair behind her daughter's ear.

"No, he's not," she said at last, her voice a bit choked, "Draco is going to stay here. We're not… we're not going to be married anymore."

Sophie sniffed, her wide brown eyes filling with tears as she turned her face up towards the ceiling.

"But I want to stay with Draco!"

The little girl was crying in earnest now and Draco didn't think he could bear it. He felt like his heart was breaking into a thousand tiny shards. He swallowed the painful lump in his throat and watched as Hermione closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them she brushed her daughter's tears away with gentle fingers and tried to force a smile on her face.

"I know, sweetie. But remember what I said last night? You need to be a big girl for me."

But this only made Sophie cry harder and soon she was wailing as she stood there, hands balled up at her sides and her chin pointed upwards. Draco took a hesitant step forwards but wasn't sure what he was supposed to do or say. Watching the little girl cry was like a knife to his chest. But it wasn't his place to step in and comfort her. Although it seemed as though Hermione was at a loss herself. Her eyes had turned red and were swimming with unshed tears as well.

Unable to take any more, he turned his head away, eyes pricking as he looked at the wall next to him, letting out a shaky breath and feeling helpless. This whole situation was so messed up for all three of them.

Eventually Sophie's wailing dimmed and turned to mere sniffling once more. She pushed past her mother and ran towards him and in the end Draco acted without thinking. He swept the girl up into his arms and held her close, rocking her from side to side.

"It's alright, sweetie. I'm going to take really good care of Chess and Shadow for you and you can come back here and visit them any time you like. Okay?"

"I don't want to go!" she whined pitifully into his shoulder, sounding as weak as one of her kittens.

"Where's my brave little girl who rode her bicycle so fast all by herself?" Draco asked her, leaning back and giving her an encouraging smile. After all, he might not like that they were leaving any more than she did, but it wasn't fair to Sophie for him to start behaving emotionally or letting her see the cracks in her mother's failed relationship, "Where did that brave girl go, huh? It's okay to be sad, sweetie, because I know it just means you'll miss me. And you know what? I'll miss you too! But you've gotta keep your chin up so that you have lots of fun stories to tell me next time you see me."

Sophie pouted sullenly, finally nodding her head in resignation as he let her back down onto her feet. She clung to his left leg for a little while longer, wiping her cheeks and staring up at him with those big brown eyes she'd inherited from her mother. Swallowing hard, he blinked and looked up at the woman in question over the top of her daughter's head. She looked terrible and was staring at them with a stricken expression. As he watched, she licked her lips and mouthed the word 'thank you' at him so Sophie wouldn't see. Before he could say anything in reply to her, he felt a tugging at his pant leg and looked down at Sophie. Her bottom lip was quivering and her eyes were all red and puffy.

"Draco?"

"Yes sweetie?" he asked when she paused for a moment.

"I love you."

Her voice was small but clear. And after she said it she buried her head against him again, sniffing back more tears. Draco's whole body trembled for a moment as a sharp ache took hold of his heart and wouldn't let it go. He almost choked on the words as he looked down at the little girl, forcing a smile onto his face when really he wanted to cry.

"I love you too, bug."

…

…

When Theo found him later, Draco was sitting on the very same bedroom floor; his back leaning against Sophie's bed with his legs sprawled out in front of him. The two kittens had finally stopped pawing playfully at him and were now curled up into two little balls on his lap. He wished he could sleep so easily. He was too emotionally drained to even want to get drunk and numb his sorrows. Losing himself in fire whiskey might have comforted him earlier, but now it just seemed hollow and not worth the headache in the morning. So instead he just sat there, staring at the yellow wall ahead of him and wondering where it all went wrong. Even the sound of Theo calling out his name as he searched the house didn't inspire any movement or reaction.

"Errrr hi," his friend finally greeted him when he peered his head around the open door, "I've been looking all over for you, didn't you hear me calling?"

"I'm not really in the mood for company, Theo," Draco murmured tiredly. But that didn't deter his friend, who came over and perched himself on a child-sized chair that was far too small for him, his knees sticking out awkwardly.

"You look like hell, mate!"

"Thanks," he replied dryly, before they both fell into an awkward sort of silence. The other wizard broke it eventually, raising one dark brow questioningly.

"So… you gonna tell me what happened?"

Draco rubbed his hands over his face, groaning.

"I'm really not in the mood to talk about it, Theo."

"Oh come on! You're sitting in a child's bedroom covered in- are they kittens? - with bloodshot eyes and what appears to be a few days of stubble, looking like your world just came crashing down. Spill the beans."

Draco leaned his head back, closing his eyes for a moment before he directed a miserable gaze towards his friend.

"They left," he muttered, but when the other wizard still looked confused, Draco elaborated, "Hermione and Sophie. They left. They moved out."

Theo contemplated him with a frown, as if he was working something out in his head.

"You told me your mother had been emancipated from house arrest by the Wizengamot, right? So she can't be re-tried or re-sentenced?"

"Yeh, so?"

"So you don't need to pretend anymore. It doesn't matter if your divorce is splashed all over the Prophet. Narcissa is safe from being prosecuted again; it wouldn't be legal. You and Hermione can go your separate ways without any repercussions from the Ministry."

Draco was silent for a while, one hand absent-mindedly stroking Shadow's fur.

"That's true," he admitted after a while, "but…but she…I thought…"

He trailed off, not really sure how to explain what he was feeling. Luckily the expression on his friend's face was all too perceptive.

"But you fell in love with her," the wizard concluded, as if it were already obvious. Draco nodded sullenly in confirmation.

"Maybe I always was," he mumbled, scowling at the wall opposite and wishing there was something he could do to rid himself of this terrible ache in his chest. His friend pondered him for a brief pause, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"But that's not all," Theo guessed in a shrewd tone, "something else happened, didn't it?"

Draco sighed. At school he had always been so proud of his conquests, always eager to 'kiss and tell' as if that somehow made him more of a man. Now it just felt strange speaking about intimate details with another wizard. But this was Theo. This was his best friend. And Theo had never once judged him or made him feel truly ashamed of himself, even if he could sometimes play the fool or mock him unabashedly.

"We kind of…" he stammered a bit, not sure what to say, "we had an… encounter of sorts."

Theo gasped a little bit too dramatically.

"You shagged her?"

Draco cringed at the phrase. It seemed so paltry and so crude at the same time.

"I wouldn't quite put it that way… but yes."

Theo looked at him appraisingly.

"Wow. You broke your drought! How long had it been again?"

"Uhhh…about three years…"

"Merlin's saggy balls, Draco. You must have gone off like a firecracker after all that time," Theo snorted, shaking his head in disbelief. Draco grimaced, his expression rueful as he remembered what had gone down that night.

"It wasn't my finest work. Don't get me wrong, it was by far the best shag of my life… but I didn't exactly prove my sexual prowess or show any kind of endurance."

Theo chuckled again, looking bemused.

"Interesting. Looks like Granger's got you all hot and bothered!"

"You could say that," he agreed, thinking how strange this conversation was. But then it all came crashing down on him. Because not only had he acted like a clumsy oaf in bed, but his inability to control himself had practically driven her away from him. Of course, he knew logically that Hermione hadn't merely left him because of some poorly executed, rushed shag, but it sure didn't make him any less mortified. Maybe if he'd treated her right and taken it slowly he wouldn't have scared her off. It was no coincidence that she'd suddenly cut ties with him the day after they'd fallen into bed together. Theo obviously noticed his suddenly sober mood, as his friend sighed loudly.

"So I take it there won't be a repeat performance?" the other wizard asked him.

"Not likely, no," he answered in a low voice, his voice a little hoarse as he admitted this.

"Was she not as into it, then?"

"She was! I mean…I thought she was, but when I woke up she was gone. And when I finally got a chance to speak with her… she said it'd been a mistake and we should just follow the plan."

"Did you actually tell her you love her?"

Draco exhaled with a choked laugh and nodded, remembering how he'd blurted it out in a sleepy daze into the nape of her neck.

There was a long pause then, during which Theo just stared at the ground between them with a puzzled frown, as though he were trying to work something out. After a while he cocked his head to one side and regarded Draco with something doubtful in his eyes.

"There's something fishy going on here," his friend murmured, tapping one finger against his chin.

"Fishy?" Draco repeated sceptically, his shoulders still slumped in defeat.

"Yeh. I mean, think about it! You obviously love each other, and yet she still wants to go through with your contract? Why?"

"Well maybe she doesn't feel the same way about me," he answered through gritted teeth, feeling the sting of his own words as he said them.

"Don't be ridiculous. She's a Gryffindor. You and I both know we can read the lot of them like a bloody book. Its written all over her face."

Draco shrugged, not willing to admit that he'd genuinely allowed himself to get his hopes up. He thought he'd come to know her pretty damn well, and he'd been so certain that his feelings were mutual. Theo shook his head, shifting his small chair closer to Draco as he got carried away with his thoughts.

"Nope, not buying it. I've seen the two of you together, remember? If she doesn't have feelings for you too then I'm the long lost son of Dolores Umbridge. Trust me. She likes you. Maybe even loves you."

"She has a funny way of showing it," he muttered, but Theo just rolled his eyes.

"I'm telling you, Draco, something's going on!"

"What makes you so sure?" he demanded tiredly.

"Look, I saw your witch two nights ago when I was at Lav's apartment-"

Draco blinked and stared at his friend, trying to absorb what he'd just said.

"What were you doing at Lavender Brown's apartment?"

"We're dating."

"You're what?" he shouted. But Theo just waved a hand dismissively.

"It's a long story. Not important right now. Focus!"

"Okay…" Draco's head spun with this new information but he held back any further questions, storing them all for later.

"Anyway, the two of them had clearly been having some kind of big emotional conversation. The whole evening Lav kept bursting into tears. Then she got extremely drunk and fell asleep on me. My shirt was soaked with drool. So my point is, Hermione is clearly messed up about this whole divorce situation just as much as you are! Which begs the question - why."

"I don't know!" Draco groaned, dragging his hands through his hair in frustration, "she had all these reasons for us not being together but none of them sounded…right to me. She just wants her money as intended and to go our separate ways."

"Then why get so upset?"

Draco lifted his hands in the air.

"No idea. Maybe she was just sad because Sophie had become so attached to the house and to…to…to me," he was barely able to finish that last bit, remembering the terrible sight of the little girl crying and begging to stay. Or afterwards when she told him she loved him.

"Bullshit. I'm not buying it."

"Well that's great, Theo, but that still leaves me in the same position. A miserable old soon-to-be-divorcee with a broken heart. And there's not a damn thing I can do about it. I can't just persuade her to love me back."

Theo shook his head sadly, his face still scrunched up deep in thought.

"You know…I think we need significantly more hard liquor for this conversation," he stated eventually, and Draco snorted.

"No thanks. I've drowned my sorrows plenty already this week."

Theo rolled his eyes and leapt to his feet, brushing imaginary creases from his trousers.

"Well I'm going to go help myself to a glass. Maybe a bottle! You don't mind if I raid your very impressive scotch collection, do you?"

"Go ahead," Draco waved him away with a dry chuckle, watching as his friend bounded from the room at top speed. With a long sigh, Draco leaned his head back to fall on Sophie's bed, closing his eyes and wondering whether it was a blessing or a curse that Theo was here. He supposed it was good to get things off his chest.

Then his thoughts turned to what his friend had actually been saying and he frowned, opening his eyes again to blink up at the ceiling in confusion. Theo did raise a good point. Why was Hermione so upset when she'd seemed to be fairly composed the other day? She'd listed her reasons for not entering into a relationship quite calmly and had followed through without even a hint of regret. But Theo had seen her acting like an emotional wreck at her friend's place? It didn't make sense.

With a shuddering breath he allowed his mind to drift back to the night almost a week ago at the Bed and Breakfast. The sight of her drenched in rain, her big brown eyes wide and filled with longing. The way she'd looked at him…

Dear god he could live off that one look alone.

He'd never wanted anything as bad as he'd wanted to touch her that night. He could still feel the sensation of her fingernails gripping onto his shoulders and the sound of her breathy whispers in his ear, urging him on.

Draco shook his head with a frown. He knew that his memories weren't some false recreation of his own desperate desires. He just knew it. But he didn't know were this left him.

Faintly Draco became aware of a vibrating sensation against the floor, humming up through his legs. He blinked in confusion, swivelling his head around. He sifted through the blanket draped on the floor behind him, noticing a glint of silver peeking out from under the bed. Grabbing the device, which was still vibrating, he instantly recognised it as Hermione's muggle mobile telephone. She must have left it here when she came to pick up her things. There was a small screen on the front flashing white with a name on it.

St. Mungo's – Dr Seeley.

Draco's brow furrowed in a frown as he stared down at the device. Why was she getting a call from the hospital? It was obviously a regular doctor, because she'd listed their actual name as the contact. Was it Sophie's paediatrician perhaps? Was something wrong with the little girl?

Knowing he probably shouldn't, but consumed with curiosity, Draco flipped the phone open, answering it with a hesitant voice.

"He…hello?"

"Oh hello! Is this Mrs Malfoy's phone?

"Yes, it is. I'm her… husband. She…er… she left her phone at home by accident today."

"Oh Mr Malfoy! Excellent. I'm a half-blood but it's been a while since I've used muggle technology. I thought maybe I'd put in the wrong number."

Draco shook his head in confusion.

"No this is the right number. But is there something wrong? Is Hermione alright?" he asked.

"Oh yes. It's not an emergency, dear. Your wife just needs to come in and pick up her new treatment, which is ready earlier than expected. We fast-tracked the brewing process due to her unique circumstances."

Draco froze, not even noticing when one of the kittens grasped onto him with its sharp little claws. All he could concentrate on was one word circling on repeat in his head.

Treatment… what treatment?

…

…

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Terrible cliff-hanger. That's so mean. I'm very sorry. Please leave revieeeews!