Five Years Later
It had been the right choice, Draco knew. It was by no means the easy choice, no. The easy choice would have been to go running back to her the second he was released from Azkaban. He could have answered her first letter with a time and a place so they could meet. But instead he'd ignored everything she'd sent, much to his mother's dismay, and burnt the letters. He hadn't wanted to force Granger to deal with a broken man. She was better off without him, for the time being. But now, a year after his release, he missed Granger more than ever. He missed her smile, and her laugh, and the way he could so easily lose her to a book when they were in the common room. He missed her, but he knew that he couldn't go near her. Draco had heard the rumors; he knew that Granger was back with Weasley, and going near her would only hurt. At least he knew Granger was happy. That was the only thing that mattered; that Granger was happy.
It had been six months since he'd bought a flat in a wizarding district of London. He would have been fine with living at home for a while longer but one day, about three months after being released, he'd discovered Granger and an aunt he'd never met having tea in the sitting room. Luckily they hadn't seen him, but he'd freaked out and started looking for his own place to live. It had hurt his mother deeply, he knew, but it had actually helped him quite a bit.
Today, exactly one year after being released, was the first time he'd decided to venture into Diagon Alley. He was looking for a job, maybe at Gringotts, because while he could live off his family's money he didn't want to and he was bored with his day to day activities. That was the main reason, though he also wanted to start his own small library at his flat, so he needed to go to Flourish and Blotts. It would be a short trip because he didn't want to risk seeing anyone he might know. Draco had no interest in any polite, strained conversation that could happen.
Running a nervous hand through his already disheveled hair, Draco stepped into his fireplace and calmly stated, "Diagon Alley,". The hair was part of an attempt to hide from those he might know. Everyone expected a well put together man, and he was sure looking normal would help him hide. Draco was nervous enough just to go to Diagon Alley; he didn't need his past to be brought back up.
He stepped out of the fireplace at the Leaky Cauldron and quickly exited into Diagon Alley. The excursion, he thought, could only last an hour at most. Staying any longer would make him paranoid and nervous and then his day would be ruined. He'd had enough ruined days to last a lifetime and he couldn't handle any more. Nor could he handle a lot of things, but that was beside the point.
Draco went to Gringotts first and found that they were actually looking for workers, so there was a chance for him there. After collecting a few galleons from his vault and awkwardly thanking the goblin who'd helped him, he began his trip to Flourish and Blotts. It was an enjoyable walk, as no one spared him a glance, and he ended up near the store when a familiar face actually ran into him. "Oh, shit, sorry-Wait, Malfoy?"
He blinked and frowned as Terry Boot took a step backwards. "I didn't intend to run into you," Draco said.
"It was all me, you know," Boot said, shrugging. "Wow, Malfoy, what's it been-five years? It's great to see you again,"
Draco was surprised at the words, as Boot had never liked him very much so there was no real reason it would be good to see him. "Uh, right. You too, Boot,"
"So where are you headed? Is today packed full of errands for you? It is for me; my fiancée's having me fun around to get things for the wedding,"
"I'm just going to Flourish and Blotts; today's not busy at all," Draco muttered. After a slight hesitation he added, "Congratulations on getting married,"
"Thanks Malfoy. You know I just saw Hermione walking into Flourish and Blotts not too long ago. Are you two here together?"
"G-Granger?" Draco asked, startled. "No, we're not,"
"But you two were-Oh. Sorry about that,"
"It doesn't matter," Draco said, feeling shaky. Granger was here? Why did she have to choose today to come to Diagon Alley? He briefly considered leaving before he remembered that he really did need some books. "I'll see you later then," Draco said, walking off before Boot had the chance to reply.
Draco hurried into the apothecary after the interaction. He'd already decided to avoid the book store for at least twenty minutes in the hope that Granger would leave and he would be left alone for the rest of his day. He would do anything to avoid being seen by Granger, as she would most likely try to say something to him, and if he saw her Draco was sure he wouldn't react appropriately. He never would, especially not if that damn rumor was true like he expected it to be. Weasley had to have gotten over whatever he'd been going through since the battle; it had been five years. And Weasley was probably better for her anyway. Draco had never even said her name; Weasley said it all the time. Then again, saying her name felt odd. She'd always just been Granger to him and thinking of her as anything else would freak him out.
His twenty minute stay in the apothecary was incredibly boring, as he just browsed shelves of unpleasant potion ingredients that he didn't need. The entire time the worker was staring at him as if he was going to start stealing things. He didn't plan on doing that; he would never chance going back to Azkaban. That place was just like hell and he didn't need a second trip. Draco ended up buying a small amount of beetle eyes on his way out just so the girl behind the counter would stop looking at him suspiciously.
By the time he walked into Flourish and Blotts he could tell that the small store was nearly empty. Draco could hear chatter near the back of the store so he stayed near the front and carefully studied the store's selection on Charms books. It was still his favorite subject and he was more than willing to learn more about it. Which, Draco realized, had to be a trait he'd picked up from Granger, but it was a decent trait to have. Draco selected two books before moving on to a different section and trying to pick out a decent book from there as well.
He'd selected two more before all of the books were pushed out of his arms and his body was crushed in a hug. He actually jumped before the person clinging to him began to laugh. "It's you!" a girl said happily. "It's actually you-I can't believe you're here!"
Though it sounded much older than the last time he'd heard it, Draco knew he would recognize that voice anywhere. "Elizabeth?" he asked, his eyes widening.
She stepped away and smacked his arm. "Of course you idiot. Why didn't you ever reply to my letters?"
"I-"
"You know what, never mind; I don't care. I'm just happy to see you're still alive and not dead like I've been fearing for the past year,"
Draco nodded slightly and continued to stare at Elizabeth. She'd grown a lot in the five years he hadn't seen her, and it was hard to adjust to. She had to be going into her seventh year, which made Draco feel older than he actually was, and he hoped that her past years had been good. "You're older," he stated stupidly.
"Obviously," she said, rolling her eyes. "Time didn't stop while you were away,"
"I realize that," he said, his eyes narrowing. She only laughed and grabbed his hand, pulling her to where he could hear a silly argument. "What are you-"
"I'm with Jacob. He's going to want to see you, though he'll probably be pissed because you didn't reply to him either," she explained. "I left him with Hermione; she's helping me pick out advanced Transfiguration books because my professor said I have pure talent in that area,"
Draco immediately stopped moving and Elizabeth stumbled. "I have to go,"
"But-"
"Elizabeth, I really do have to leave. It's-"
"Elizabeth?" a deep voice called. Draco had trouble believing that was Jacob, the small, frightened Ravenclaw he'd met, but he didn't know what other man would be calling for the girl next to him. "Honestly, Elizabeth, you've got to quit running off all the time; you're going to give me a-" he stopped as he walked to where they standing and Draco held back a sigh.
"So I found something," Elizabeth said casually. "Someone, actually, that I know you miss, so if you could stop correcting me on my behavior that would be great,"
"You can't be serious," Jacob said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "After five years you just show up here? And what, expect us to forgive you? I get you didn't have a choice for the first four, but you bloody well had a choice for the last one and you just abandoned us,"
"Jacob I-" Draco tried, but he didn't get very far as the look on Jacob's face made him stop.
"And you put Hermione through hell, don't you realize? She was so damn excited when you were getting out and she wrote you a letter asking to meet and you never responded. And then when we tried you cut us out too!"
"Look, I was just doing what I thought was-"
"Best?" Jacob asked coldly. "You're not an idiot, I know you're not, so how could that possibly be best?"
"Jacob, dear, please calm down," Elizabeth said, walking over and grabbing his hand. Draco stared at them with a raised eyebrow as Elizabeth kissed Jacob's cheek. Elizabeth glanced at him again and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you missed that," she muttered.
"So you two are, what, dating now?" Draco asked.
"Well we did spend a lot of time together once we started that group. And really it's thanks to you; if you hadn't brought him to us back in first year-"
"I don't really need the details," Draco muttered. "Look, I'm sorry, alright? I'm sorry that I didn't respond and I'll write to you soon, okay? But I have to leave,"
"Why?" Jacob asked, slightly put out by his words.
"I just-I really can't see-"
He was interrupted by a cold voice that Draco absolutely dreaded hearing. "Me," Granger said angrily. "He wants to avoid seeing me. If you really want to leave that badly, Malfoy, then go right ahead. We won't stop you,"
"Hermione what are you doing? It's been a year and you're just-" Elizabeth asked, her voice beginning to sound a bit panicked.
"That's the point. It's been a year and he still doesn't want to see any of us. It was by chance, wasn't it Malfoy?" The sound of his surname coming from her lips made him flinch horribly, and he knew he couldn't play it off as something else. There was a heavy silence in which Draco strongly considered turning around and running, but then he'd have to look at Granger and he wasn't sure he could handle that. "Are you even going to look at me?" she asked in a quiet voice that sounded incredibly different from the one she'd just used.
Draco stood still for another second before he slowly turned around to face her. She looked just like the Granger he remembered, though more rested. Her eyes seemed sad though, and her lips were pressed into a thin line as she frowned at him. "I'm looking at you," he said quietly, his eyes dropping from her face to her hands. Her arms were folded across her chest so he could only see the one, but a faint memory of holding it made him wince. He missed those days, when he could just grab her hand. But he couldn't do that now, not after everything that had happened.
"Jacob, Elizabeth, could we have a minute?" Granger asked, looking at them over his shoulder. There was a quiet sound of assessment before Draco heard their footsteps. "Why?"
"Why what?"
She rolled her eyes and there was a small tug at the corner of her lips that made Draco positive that she'd almost smiled. "Why on earth did you refuse to see me?" He was silent for a moment as he tried to figure out what to say to her. The smart thing was to go along like he wanted nothing to do for her. She would be angry but it would be easier for him to walk away. If he acted as he truly wanted and tried to beg for her forgiveness then it would simply embarrass him and Granger would probably laugh in his face. "I think I deserve a reason. In your trial I-It was in the Daily Prophet, what you shouted. I think I love her. What happened to that?"
"Will you promise not to be mad?"
"Of course not,"
Draco sighed and nodded; he knew he couldn't ask anything of her. "In the beginning, when I got out, I wasn't quite right. I wasn't myself,"
"I didn't expect you to be yourself. I wanted to help,"
"I didn't want to make you deal with that," he said, his voice hardening slightly. She had to listen and understand what he was trying to say or they wouldn't be able to move. "Granger, I-"
"It's been six years and you still can't say my name?"
"Granger-"
"Malfoy," she said mockingly.
"Granger-"
"Malfoy," she repeated, raising an eyebrow. "I don't see the big deal. You could kiss me but you can't do something as simple as saying my name?"
"You've always been Granger to me, it's weird to think of you as anything else. But fine-Hermione," he said, noticing that he quite enjoyed saying her name as well. Granger blinked, as if she hadn't actually expected him to say it and she'd just wanted to pick a fight. "Either way, I'd heard the rumors and I knew that going near you was a bad idea. It's not that I didn't want to, Granger, I just... I couldn't, because I refuse to interfere with your life,"
She was silent for a moment, before realization dawned in her eyes. "What rumor?" she asked, her voice sounding oddly serious after the slightly playful tone she'd taken on while trying to get him to say her name.
"The one about you and Weasley. I know it's true, I know you're back together. I'm... happy for you, Granger, really. If you're happy then I'm happy too,"
Granger stared at him before beginning to laugh. "You're an idiot," she stated. "You're a bloody idiot, Draco Malfoy,"
"No I'm-"
"Ron and I are friends," she said. "Nothing more, nothing less. I told you it would happen again someday. Tell me, Draco, where did you hear this rumor?"
"It was in the Daily Prophet a while ago; there were pictures of you two together and-"
"Honestly, they're just rumors. Ron set them straight a while ago; why do you think there haven't been any lately? He had to make them go away, his actual girlfriend was furious when she saw them,"
"Weasley has a-"
"A girlfriend, yes,"
"Who's-"
"Who's not me,"
"So I-"
"You've been an idiot. We've established that. Did you really believe that you were doing the right thing? That this was making me happy? I've been switching between anger and hurt as prominent emotions for the past year because I didn't understand. And you know how much I hate not understanding things,"
He just stared at her with wide eyes. He couldn't understand why he'd believed a stupid rumor and stayed away from her for so long. He didn't understand why he hadn't listened to his mother when she'd tried to tell him the same thing, but hearing it from Granger herself made it completely true. "I-"
"Did you mean it?" she interrupted quietly. "What you said at your trial; did you mean it?"
He hesitated slightly before nodding. "I hadn't really thought about it much before then," he admitted quietly. "But when I knew that you were hurt and I wasn't going to get to see you it came out and I... I knew it was true, Granger,"
"And now?"
"And now what?"
"How do you feel now?"
"I don't-" he started, watching Granger's face fall immediately. "I don't just think anymore," he finished quietly.
There was a tense moment where Draco was sure Granger was just going to laugh at him. But then she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him, and Draco knew that he was wrong. It took a second before he realized that he should actually kiss him back, which made Granger smile. "I've missed you. So much, Draco, I've missed you so much,"
"I thought I told you not to-"
"Believe me I did not just sit around and wait for you," she said, rolling her eyes and taking a step away from him. "I tried dating-which was awful, no one could keep up with me-and I got I job. I've worked hard; I haven't just waited for you to come back,"
"Good," he said, fighting back a smile of his own. "Could you-Could you tell me everything that's happened these past few years? My mother tried but I was never one for listening. I think I'll find you much more interesting,"
Granger smiled and grabbed his hand, leading him out of Flourish and Blotts without the books they'd each intended on buying. Jacob and Elizabeth had waved at them on their way out, but Draco barely got the chance to wave back before Granger gave him a little push towards the Leaky Cauldron.
They sat at a table that Draco was almost positive was the same table they'd sat at when they'd met at Christmas in their last year at Hogwarts. Granger ordered them both a glass of firewhiskey, something that surprised Draco, before she got right down to telling the story of the past five years.
She explained how his mother and his aunt had finally gotten back into contact. She'd explained that it was rough at first for them both, but now they spent a lot of time together and they tended to have tea and invite Granger at least once a month. Granger even threw in the fact that Teddy Lupin adored his great aunt and constantly talked about how he wanted to meet Draco because, as Granger put it, he had to be just as good as Aunt Narcissa.
Granger had then moved on to her own father, explaining that he was very irritated with Draco but would still like to meet him. She told him about how her father had finally gotten back to normal after everything that had happened and that he'd grown quite close with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Who were, she explained, thrilled about the birth of their first grandchild Victoire.
Potter was the next on her list of stories. She explained how he'd married Ginny Weasley and they'd both convinced Granger to be a bridesmaid, which she hadn't been thrilled about. But she'd still enjoyed the wedding. She even mentioned that she suspected Ginny Weasley was pregnant, but no announcement had been made. Next she went on to talk about Weasley and how they'd made up when she'd woken up in St. Mungo's after the attack on Diagon Alley. Apparently he had a very serious girlfriend named Jane who Granger was very fond of and she was convinced that Weasley would be proposing soon.
She went on to talk about the younger students he'd grown close to and how some, like Jacob, had left Hogwarts the previous year and how the rest were entering their final year in September. She explained that from the letters she'd received from them all and Professor McGonagall, the program they'd proposed had worked amazingly well. Jacob had been made a delegate in his final year, which had surprised no one, and he'd even gotten the courage to ask out Elizabeth. Apparently he'd kept up the most contact with her and half of his letters, once he hit his fifth year, were about Elizabeth and how much he was starting to like her. It had been nearly a year now and they were still happy together.
Her finally story was of herself, and what she'd been up to in the past five years. She had a job in the ministry and was quite proud of herself, which made Draco proud as well. She told him that the nightmares she'd experienced had slowly gone away and she was pretty much back to normal. Granger explained how poorly the few dates she'd tried to take had gone, which made Draco excited as well. He knew he shouldn't have been excited about how badly those dates had gone, but he was pleased that he was able to have another chance with her. Which, from the sound of it, was something that Granger wanted as well.
At the end of her story, Granger offered him a small smile before she sighed slightly. "I should go," she said quietly. "I promised my father I'd come by for dinner tonight and he's been touchy about me getting there on time after what happened in Diagon Alley the day of your trial," she explained.
"I hope you enjoy your dinner Granger," he said, forgetting himself for a moment and offering her a small, genuine smile.
She stared at him in surprise before quickly kissing him again. "You know that's the first time you've smiled at me,"
"Is it?"
"Yes," she said, rolling her eyes. "And I'd rather not... I don't really feel like separating for you right now, so why don't you just come along?"
"Are you serious?"
"Of course I am," she said. "I'd like to give us a shot, Draco. Well, another one I guess. So what do you say? Do you think we can manage that?"
"It's been five years, Granger, how can you be sure you still want this with me?"
"Because it's been five years, Draco," she answered easily. "I've had five years to think about you and what I feel about you, and I feel just as strongly as I did before you were sent to Azkaban. If it's okay with you, I'd like to give this a real shot. We don't have anything to worry about now,"
"If that's what you want," he nodded.
"You don't have to sound so excited, you know. Tone it down a bit," she joked, smiling at him again.
"That would make me happier than you can understand, Granger," he said softly.
The simple words made her kiss him again. They were also how he found himself standing at the front door of her childhood home, wondering how he'd gotten there from when he was a young boy raised to hate people like her. But Draco was happy that his opinions had changed. Because as that door opened and Granger's father reached for his hand, Draco felt happier than he ever had before. This was where he wanted to be; this was where he needed to be. And he wouldn't have it any other way.
The End