Chapter 18

See that turn up ahead? That's the place where love will meet you, with arms so warm it will melt away the winter in an instant. And then, it will be summer for a very long time.

-Lang Leav

Present Time: October 2001

Draco and Hermione knelt across from each other on the sofa, simply looking at each other, the only sound in the room the crackling of the fire. He had his shirt hanging open and she was wearing a mix of her ball gown and pajama bottoms. Draco knew if someone were to see them now, they'd be confused, but he didn't care. It made perfect sense to him.

He felt like they'd traveled miles, both separately and together, to get to where they were now: this place of peace, contentment, and above all else, love. She loved him. He still couldn't believe it.

Hermione placed a hand on the back of Draco's neck and pulled him into a kiss. Their kiss began slowly and tenderly but the intensity increased as she moved both hands to his shoulders, under his shirt, and pressed her tongue into his mouth.

Draco pulled her close as he kissed her back, trying to match every insistent motion and soon, she was pushing his shirt down. He wanted so badly to take her top off too, but kept his hands on her back, rubbing his thumbs along the lace of her dress.

Hermione pulled back and looked at him, giving him an appraising look, all the sadness that was in her eyes earlier, was gone. She ran her nails along the length of his chest, smirking when he shuddered, then she moved her hands down and began undoing his belt.

"What are you doing?" he asked, covering her hands with his.

Hermione smirked again, then swatted his hands away. "Taking off your belt."

"Are you - uh - why?" She'd finished undoing his trousers and had grabbed him through his underwear. He had to bite his lip to stifle a groan.

She leaned forward and grazed her teeth along his neck, then whispered in his ear, "Do you really not know what's going on here?"

"Fuck," he breathed as his cock twitched against her hand.

She pushed his trousers down to his knees and he caught her arms. "Are you - are you sure? You said you wanted to wait."

"I think we've waited long enough."

"Is this because I told you I loved you? Because if I'd known this would happen, I'd have said it much sooner."

She rolled her eyes. "You are a prat."

Draco stood and removed his trousers the rest of the way, then pulled off his socks before resuming his spot on the sofa. He briefly considered moving to the bedroom, but he was hesitant to do anything to break this spell. Plus, there was something poetic about having sex with Hermione for the first time here on the sofa, in the same spot where they'd bared their souls to each other.

Sappy.

Shush.

Draco traced his fingers along the lace neckline of her top until he reached the clasp in the back. He leaned forward and kissed the spot where her neck met her shoulder, then kissed a path upward until he reached her ear, where he stopped to whisper, "You're beautiful."

He removed the clasp behind her neck, then feathered his fingers down her exposed back to the ribbon at the bottom. Once he had that untied, her top fell away to reveal her chest.

"Beautiful," he repeated, leaning forward to kiss the top of each breast. She was biting her lip nervously, so he started kissing her to try to ease her anxiety, cupping one of her breasts in his hand and flicking his thumb across her nipple as he moved his lips with hers.

Draco guided her off the sofa so she was standing in front of him, then began peeling off her pajama bottoms, moving slowly to give her a chance to stop him, but she didn't. He took a moment to admire her as she stood in front of him wearing just a pair of black lacy knickers. Fuck, she was perfect with smooth, tawny skin, marked by the occasional freckle.

He ran his hands along it, stopping to kiss a freckle on her arm and stomach. Her breasts were full and perfect, her nipples taut, and he leaned forward to place a soft kiss on each one. When he looked back up at her, he saw she had her shoulders pulled back and her chin up, in that defiant pose she used when she was scared and trying to act brave.

He moved his hands to her bum and pulled her close, in between his legs, then placed a kiss on the top of her stomach before looking up at her and saying, "You're nervous."

She looked down at him and nodded.

"But it's just me," he said, moving his hands down the back of her legs. "The man who loves you."

Hermione smiled, then took his head in her hands and began playing with his hair. He felt her relax slightly, then moved his hands up to the top of her knickers. He kissed each of her hips before pulling them down. She stepped out of them and he placed his hands on her hips and simply looked at her. "Fucking perfect," he murmured.

Draco could feel her trembling under his touch, but he thought by the look of desire in her eyes that it was more from anticipation, now, than nerves. He leaned forward and kissed her groin and she flinched. Draco looked up and saw she looked nervous again. Okay, so she wasn't used to that. No matter. They'd work up to that.

He reached behind and set up a few pillows, then pulled her onto the sofa and lowered her down onto the makeshift bed. As he climbed on top of her, he thought how earlier, when they'd been sharing about the war, he'd been a nervous wreck and she'd taken control and guided him through it. Now, it was his turn to take the lead.

He began kissing her again and had to employ all his restraint to keep his movements tender and unhurried. What he really wanted to do was tear his pants off and ram into her. He wanted to touch every inch of her at once and explore her body thoroughly. She looked so fucking amazing, he wanted to see how she felt and tasted. But he knew he should ease into things with her.

She'd only ever shagged one person, and it was Weasley, so it had probably been dull and boring. Draco would have to work up to the adventurous stuff. Besides, he didn't want to do any of that tonight. He wanted to savor this and make it memorable for her. Nothing fancy, just the two of them, connecting in this intimate way, after too long spent apart.

Draco pulled back, propping himself up on his hands, and whispered, "Do you remember when we first kissed?"

Hermione nodded, her eyes questioning.

"You said you'd imagined it before. Have you imagined this?"

She blushed. "Yes."

"What did I do at the beginning? Show me what you want."

"Really?" He got the sense no one had ever asked her this sort of question before. Fucking Weasley.

Draco shifted to his side and dragged a finger along her jawline, then moved it down to her chest and circled it around each of her nipples. He smiled when she shivered under his touch. "Show me what you want," he repeated.

Hermione took his hand and moved it down. "Put your fingers inside me," she said, her voice shaking.

Draco slipped his index finger inside her. She was so fucking wet. He could feel himself harden but tried to keep his focus on her. "Like this?"

"Yes," she gasped.

"How many fingers?" he asked, leaning down to kiss her temple.

"Two."

Draco added another finger and twisted his hand, making her squirm. Then, he began pumping his hand, experimenting with the pace until he found the one that made her throw her head onto the pillow and arch her back.

"What else?"

She reached down and grabbed his thumb, then pressed it against her clitoris. Draco began rubbing as he continued to pump his fingers in and out, which earned him a loud moan and a garbled, "Dra-co."

He was completely hard now and wanted to climb back on top of her, shove himself in, and feel her tight walls fluttering around his cock, but he stayed in place. They'd get to that. For now, he was enjoying watching her fall apart under his touch.

"Where was I kissing you?" he asked next, ready to push her closer to the edge.

She dragged his head down to her chest. "My breasts, you were licking and sucking...ah...yesss…"

He'd began sucking on her nipple as he simultaneously flicked his tongue against it and this action combined with how he was fucking her with his hand was driving her completely mad. She was wiggling so much, he had to wrap his other arm around her waist to keep her from falling off the sofa.

"This is where your bossiness pays off," he said, as he moved to her other breast.

"You weren't talking in my fantasy."

Draco couldn't help but laugh. He spent the next several moments unraveling her. She was bucking her hips erratically and he didn't even have to move his hand anymore: she was doing it all herself. He continued to rub her clitoris furiously as he devoured her breasts and soon, she was crying out his name as she came.

She shuttered around his hand and when she tried to rub her clitoris again, she shook her head and pulled his hand away. "Too much," she said with a smile.

Draco laid his head on her chest and looked up at her as she came down from her high. He twirled one of her curls around his finger as he watched the rise and fall of her breasts, saw the light sheen of sweat on her neck and brow, dampening her curls slightly, and marveled at the fact that this witch was his, and he was going to get to do this with her for the rest of his life.

"You're beautiful," he whispered a few minutes later, after her breathing had slowed.

She grabbed his chin, then pulled him up into a deep kiss. "I want you," she muttered against his lips before plunging her tongue into his mouth. She'd never kissed him like this, more with her tongue and teeth than with her lips, and Draco couldn't get enough.

Neither, apparently, could she. She was reaching down as she kissed him, trying to push his pants down. "You didn't get enough?" he asked teasingly when he sat up to take off his underwear.

She simply shook her head as she watched him undress, biting her lip when his cock sprang free of his pants. The next moment, her hands were on him, running her thumb around his tip, which was leaking slightly, then down to wet his shaft before pumping her fist up and down.

Draco laid his head back on the sofa and she took the opportunity to climb into his lap and kiss his neck as she continued to stroke him. She moved with the same swift determination with which she tackled most tasks in her life and as he felt that familiar heat build in his core, he realized that if she didn't stop, he'd come right now in her hand, like a bloody Third Year.

"Hey," he panted, grabbing her elbows and pulling her hands away. "If you don't stop, I'm going to come in your hand like a bloody Third Year."

She let out a laugh.

Shit. Had he just said that out loud? He'd meant to say something smoother, but words were failing him.

Hermione was sitting on his lap with her hands crossed over her chest, which was pushing her breasts up in a fucking fantastic way, when she said teasingly, "I expected better from you."

Draco reached forward and tweaked one of her nipples then, anticipating her squirm, gripped her hips tightly to keep her in place. "Tell me what you want."

"For you to last longer than two minutes," she quipped.

Draco tickled her sides, making her squeal. "What else?"

She leaned forward and kissed his neck, then nipped his earlobe before asking, "Why don't you tell me what you want? How did you imagine it?"

Draco's stomach clenched. Fuck, she was hot. He grabbed her face and kissed her before saying, "No matter how we end up doing it, I can assure you I imagined it that way. But if you're letting me choose…" he let his voice trail off and waited for her nod before continuing. "I want you right here, where I can see you." He moved his hands to her bum and squeezed it.

She reached for him again and took his cock in one hand. Then she lifted her hips and positioned herself just above him. "Like this?" she asked, her voice lower than normal.

Draco nodded, transfixed by the sight of her slowly lowering herself down as she guided him in with her hand. When he was sheathed inside her, they both let out a collective sigh. Then she began to move, rocking her hips slowly at first but it wasn't long before she was bouncing fast on top of him, her hair wild, her breasts bobbing, and her mouth forming a small o.

Draco had never seen anything so beautiful and she felt even more perfect than she looked - tight and smooth and wet. He moved his hands back to her hips and guided her to a slower pace so he could get her closer to her second orgasm before he finished. He kissed her neck roughly while rubbing her clitoris with one hand, keeping his other hand on her hip to control her movements.

Hermione let out a series of incoherent moans. Then Draco moved his mouth down to her breasts and she started moaning even louder. "Dra- Dra- Dra-co," she managed to bite out. "I'm-" She cut off again to let out another delicious cry of pleasure.

Draco took his hand away from her clitoris and leaned back so he could see her as she came undone. He reached out to caress her breasts and stopped moving his hips, preferring to watch her take what she wanted from him. She put her hands on his shoulders and started violently rocking into him, dipping her hips down at the end of each thrust to grind her clitoris against him.

It was so fucking hot and felt absolutely divine, Draco was sure he was going to finish first, the pressure mounting in him with each erratic motion but then, she let out a final cry of ecstasy and collapsed forward, resting her forehead on his shoulder.

Draco started moving his hips again, pushing into her as her orgasm shuddered through her. Then after two, three, four more thrusts, he found his release, groaning out her name as he emptied himself inside her.

He buried his head in her hair, which was damp with sweat now, but he didn't care. He began peppering lazy kisses on her neck. Her usual sweet smell was mixing with the salt from her sweat and it was absolutely perfect. Everything about this was perfect. "Fucking hell," he murmured.

"Yeah," she breathed as she wrapped her arms around him.

Using the limited strength he had left, Draco moved them down so they were lying on the sofa, him with his back pressed against the cushions and her with her back pressed against him. He wrapped his arms around her tightly and resumed kissing her neck.

"We could Extend this," she murmured, waving in the direction of their wands, which were lying next to each other on one of the side tables.

"Maybe you could. I'm knackered."

"Yeah, it's fine. I guess we can clean up and do all that stuff that requires energy later." She turned so she was facing him, then gently pressed her fingertips to his lips. "Was it like you imagined?"

He kissed her fingers. "Better."

"Same." She smiled, then bent down and kissed his collarbone. "I love you."

Draco moved his hands down to her bum and pulled her closer to him. "Are you sure? It wasn't just a ruse to get me into bed?"

"We're not in bed, we're on a sofa," she pointed out. "Plus, I could have shagged you anytime."

Draco used his feet to kick up a blanket that had fallen from the back of the sofa, then reached down to grab it and spread it over them. "Was I that obvious?" he asked when he settled back next to Hermione.

She let out a small laugh as she snaked an arm around him. "Yes."

"But you love it."

"I do."

"You love me," he pressed.

"I do."

Draco placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "Tell me again."

"I love you, Draco."

Present Time: December 2001

It was mid-morning on a Sunday in December and Draco was lying in bed with Hermione. They were both in their underwear, reading a book together. Draco was sitting back on several pillows while Hermione laid against his chest, holding the book up. He was absently stroking her hair as he read, then realized in the middle of the page that he'd had a vision of them doing this very thing months ago. That was back when moments like this with Hermione were closer to a fantasy, than reality.

He remembered fearing, at the time, that she'd suddenly look down and see his Dark Mark, then panic. That fear had been unfounded. Every so often her eyes would land on the remnants of the Mark, but her expression was sad, not scared or disgusted. And occasionally, she'd lean over and kiss one of his scars and the look in her eyes would say, I'm sorry this happened, but I think it was necessary since it got us here, and I love you, bringing him right back to that night after the Halloween Ball.

So, the result was that instead of hiding his scars, as he usually did, Draco kept his shirt off as much as possible (in an attempt to entice Hermione to do the same). It had become a little joke between them.

It hit him sometimes, less often now, but still at least once a day, how different the life he was living now was from anything he'd imagined for himself and how fucking lucky he was to have Hermione.

She tilted her head up to look at him. "Why is this page taking you so long to read?"

"So impatient," he muttered, focusing back on the text. Draco continued reading and when he reached the next paragraph, swore loudly.

"I was wondering when you'd get to that part," Hermione said, clearly amused.

"He's going to die for Darnay?"

"Yes."

"But…shit. I had Carton pegged for a Slytherin. He loves Lucie and now her husband is out of the way, so he can make his move. Then he does something like this? This bloke is a bloody Gryffindor!"

Hermione put the book to the side and glared up at him. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

Draco tightened his arms around her chest, then turned them both, pinning her onto the bed. "Don't be cross with me," he purred as he kissed her neck, rubbing his unshaven jaw into her skin in a way he knew would tickle her. Sure enough, she let out several peals of laughter and squirmed under him.

"I happen to love Gryffindors," he added, then pulled back and smiled at her. "Well, just one Gryffindor, but I love her very, very much."

Hermione smiled as she reached up to run her fingers through his hair. She wasn't trying to get away anymore, so he relaxed his grip on her.

"I was just getting excited because we're finally reading about a Slytherin who's not the villain, but he just turned out to be a closet Gryffindor. He's going to the guillotine for no reason! Who does that?"

"Not for no reason. He loves Lucie and wants her to be happy," she argued.

"So, he actually dies? There's no twist at the end?"

"He dies."

"I would not do that. If you took up with some other bloke, even if you were happier with him, I couldn't sit by and let it happen like that. But, well, maybe that's why he wanted to die," Draco added thoughtfully.

Hermione laughed. "Luckily for you, there's no other wizard for me."

He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Damn, right."

Hermione reached for the book again, then wiggled out of Draco's grasp. "Let's finish this. We only have about twenty pages."

She settled back in Draco's arms and they finished the rest of the book together in silence. "Huh," Draco said at the end.

"What?" Hermione asked, lying the book on the side table, then climbing back into his arms.

"He may be a Slytherin after all."

"Why do you say that?"

"He was a miserable wreck with no prospects, with no one who loved him, and he knew if he stayed alive, he'd spend the whole time pining over Lucie. But by going out this way, he ensured the best possible outcome. Now, she'll name her kids after him and every time people remember him, it will be with fondness. He's leaving a legacy behind, something he couldn't have hoped to do with the way he was going. It's actually pretty cunning."

"I love how you put all the characters we read about in their Hogwarts Houses."

"Yeah?" Draco's ears perked up. He lived for these little moments when she pointed out the things she loved about him.

"Yeah, actually, if I'm being honest, I think I love watching you react to the books we read together more than reading them myself."

"What?! Hermione Granger likes something more than reading?! I need to call the Prophet." He made a move to get out of bed but she grabbed him by the waist, keeping him in place as she laughed.

"Let go of me," he said, trying to push her off him. "This is big news! I must report it!"

Then Hermione, using her own impressive cunning, straddled Draco and began kissing him, which was a surefire way to keep him in place. Draco gave up his attempts to leave the bed and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close as he kissed her back. Soon, they were both so caught up in their embrace that they forgot what they'd been wrestling over. Draco moving his hands down, slipped them under Hermione's knickers, and grabbed her bum as he ground his hips into hers.

"We already did that this morning," she breathed, pulling away to get more air.

"That doesn't mean we can't do it again," he said as he bucked his hips again. "We've proven that multiple times."

"You're insatiable."

"And you're not?"

She just shrugged. "I guess you're just not as irresistible to me, as I am to you."

Draco rolled his eyes. "I'm going to keep that in mind the next time we're in the middle of sex and you're literally begging for more. I'll say, 'Oh, no, Hermione. Remember how you said you didn't find me irresistible? Well, try to resist me now.'"

Hermione laughed. "That punishment seems much harsher than the crime."

She laid down on the bed with him and snuggled in his arms, then said, "You know I was kidding," as she wrapped her arms around him.

Draco propped his head up on a pillow and began twirling one of her curls around his finger as they fell into a comfortable silence. He looked out the window and saw it was still as cloudy as it had been earlier. It didn't look like the sun was going to make an appearance today. Draco didn't mind. This was the sort of weather that made even the most industrious people, like Hermione, want to spend the day in bed, which was fine by him. If it was up to Draco, they'd spend the whole weekend together in bed.

A few weeks ago, he'd started sleeping at Hermione's flat on Friday and Saturday nights so they could spend the weekends together. Saturday was always busy. That's when Hermione did her errands and caught up on any work she'd become behind on during the week. But Sundays were Draco's absolute favorite.

They slept in without any wand alarms to wake them up, snuggled in bed together as they slowly woke up, had sex, moseyed into the kitchen to make breakfast together (which was usually Hermione making breakfast while Draco watched), then returned to bed and held each other as they read, talked, joked, and simply enjoyed each other's company.

Sunday mornings were blissful and never lasted as long as Draco wanted. As if on cue, Hermione lifted her head up and said, "I need to go to the Burrow soon. We can shag once I'm back."

Draco sighed. "She denies my advances, then reminds me that she'll be spending the afternoon with her ex-boyfriend."

"Who are you talking to?"

Draco motioned toward the window, where her hideous cat was dozing on the sill. "Crooks."

She turned to look at the sleeping cat. "I don't think he's listening."

"He's always listening…" Draco said ominously.

"Right," she laughed, "and reporting back to Ron?"

"I'm telling you, they're in league. It's a sort of red-haired club."

Hermione laughed again. "You're impossible. That does remind me though, I wanted to talk to you about Ron."

"Oh, um, no thank you."

She pushed him.

"You're so violent."

"Just listen."

"Fine." Draco shifted so he was sitting up against the headboard with his legs stretched out in front of him. "What do you want to say about Weasley?"

Usually, this beginning to a conversation would incite a feeling of terror in Draco and he'd picture twelve different ways of her breaking up with him to go back to her best friend. Currently, he was feeling slightly nervous, not an all-consuming dread, and had only pictured three scenes of Hermione breaking up with him. Progress.

"What are your plans for the holidays?" she began, sitting up on the bed with her legs crossed in front of her.

"What does this have to do with Weasley?"

"We'll get there."

"Okay…uh…I don't have any big plans. I'll probably have a nice dinner with my mother on Christmas Day and Daphne's going to try to nudge Blaise out of his holiday boycott, so I'll probably get a visit from her when that plan fails."

"Oh, right. When is she doing that again? Christmas or New Year's?"

"New Year's."

"And you don't think it will work?"

"No."

A few weeks ago, Draco had told Daphne the story of Blaise's grandmother's death in their Third Year and how Blaise had been planning to go to Italy to visit his other extended relatives shortly after, during Christmas break, but had been abandoned on the platform at King's Cross Station by his mother. And how ever since, he'd refused to celebrate the holidays and turned the flat he shared with his mother into a pub, likely in an effort to get her attention, which had never worked.

Daphne was determined to address the 'Blaise holiday issue' head-on, but Draco was worried it would be a disaster. He was also worried it would break the peace between Daphne and Blaise and wasn't eager to return to that time when they hadn't been talking to each other.

"Well, that works perfectly," Hermione declared, drawing Draco's attention back to her.

"What?"

"I had a plan," she started, clearly nervous now. That wasn't a good sign.

"A plan?" This wasn't a surprise. Hermione had a plan for everything.

"Just hear me out first, okay?"

"Okay…"

She took a deep breath, then started speaking in a rush. "I want you to come to Australia with me. I want to tell my parents about us and think it will go over a lot better if they can actually meet you. And, uh, I know it's Christmas, so I thought you could get a Portkey back home just for that day, so you can spend it with your mother, and then come back, or just stay in England for the rest of the week, if things are going poorly and, um, I know it's a lot to ask but I've been trying to work things out with your mother – uh, slowly – and um, this would mean a lot, even though it's going to be hard because my parents know about you, from before, and they hate you and, um, yeah."

"Wow. Okay."

"There's more."

"I'm still processing the first thing."

"You can process more than one thing. Right?"

Before Draco could respond, she kept talking, speaking even faster than before. "Then once we're back from Australia, I want you to come with me to Harry and Ginny's New Year's Eve party and officially re-meet all my friends. This is where Ron comes in, by the way, since he'll obviously be there. They all know, of course, but I think it's time for us to come out of hiding and show them how good of a couple we are and how you're not the awful boy they knew from school. You can start, I don't know, trying to mend fences?"

"Mend fences," he repeated.

"Yes. And if Daphne has a problem with the Blaise plan, she can send an owl to Harry's house, or even a house elf, if she wants to get a message to you very quickly, and you can leave to meet her. But I don't think that's going to be as much of a disaster as you think."

Draco's brain was whirling. This was clearly important to her, and she'd even suggested the use of a house elf without flinching, which meant she was desperate for Draco to agree. But he had no idea what to say. His instincts were telling him to run, but he'd learned to stop listening to those, at least around Hermione. He was safe with her and didn't need to jump into survival mode every time he became uncomfortable.

"Okay. Um, is that it?

"No."

No? Bloody hell. What else was there?

Draco took a breath. "Okay. Just tell me the rest."

She closed her eyes before saying, "Theo might come with us to Australia."

"What?! How did that come about?"

"It's a really long story, but I thought it would be good for you to have a friend."

"Then you should have invited Daphne."

"Well, Theo was the one who needed the invitation more. And he's going to ask you for a favor, but I'll let him do that part."

Draco sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You invited him to Australia before you invited me?"

"Sort of. I'm sorry. I was trying to get everything worked out before I asked you, like the Portkey and Harry's approval for the travel, as your Auror, and I was nervous you'd say no and now you're angry and I-"

"It's fine." Draco placed a hand on her leg. "Just breathe, it's fine. I'm not angry."

Hermione placed her hand on top of his and looked down at their hands for a few moments before saying, "Are you ready to stop hiding?"

"No. I like hiding."

She squeezed his hand. "I know."

"But I knew it wasn't going to last forever."

"We'll still have Sunday mornings. Just us."

Draco cocked his head toward the window. "And Crookshanks. The spy."

She smiled. "Just think about it, please. You don't have to agree if you don't feel-"

"I already know my answer."

"You do?" She looked nervous again.

"My answer's yes. I knew it as soon as I got a sense of how important this is to you."

"That's really sweet. Thank you."

"Does this count as your Christmas gift?"

"No."

"Oh, well. It was worth a shot."

Hermione crawled over and wrapped her arms around Draco. "I love you."

Draco bent down to kiss the top of her head. He hoped she'd feel the same way after her parents and friends started weighing in on their relationship.

Give Hermione more credit than that.

Draco sighed and pulled her onto his lap. "I love you, too."

After Hermione left for the Burrow, Draco stopped by the Manor and was surprised to find Theo waiting for him. Then, on second consideration, he knew he shouldn't have been surprised. Hermione had probably sent her Patronus to let him know Draco was heading home and was in a better than normal mood (as he always was on Sunday mornings) and that now would be a good time to ask him for a favor.

Before Draco could wonder about what Theo could possibly need from him, Theo launched right in. "Will you be with me when I tell my mother I'm gay?"

Draco was positive he'd misheard him. "What?"

Theo repeated the question, word for word.

Draco started pacing the sitting room. "Me?"

"Yeah, you. Draco Malfoy."

"Saying 'you' was clear enough," Draco retorted. "I don't understand why you want me there," he explained. They weren't very close. Theo was closest with Hermione. Theo should have asked her to be there, though Draco knew why that would be a bad idea.

"You're the head of one of the most powerful Pureblood families," Theo stated in his usual, bored tone. "It would be good for my mother to see that you, uh, approve of my, uh, situation. You do…right? Hermione said you did."

"I do. I've told you that."

"Okay. You've never told me, not directly. It's been implied, I guess… So…will you be there with me?"

"Are you sure I won't just make things worse? How does your mother feel about me dating a Muggleborn?"

"No one cares about that as much as we thought they would, my mother included. It turns out you're just as rich and powerful after taking up with a Muggleborn as you were before."

"Fucking hypocrites," Draco muttered under his breath, stopping by the window to look outside. It was starting to flurry. When he looked back at Theo, he was sitting in the same spot on the chair, looking blankly at his hands. "I'll be there. If you think it will help. And I do approve."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Theo let out a long sigh, then stood up. "Okay, then. I'll leave you alone."

"Wait," Draco said when Theo was in the doorway.

"Yeah?" Theo asked, turning back to look at Draco.

"Are you really coming to Australia?"

"Oh," Theo seemed to deflate, slightly. "I don't have to. I understand if you want to be alone with Hermione and her parents. It was just some stupid idea she had. I was telling her my holidays were either going to be spent alone with the elves – if my mother decides to return to Germany once I give her the news – or awkwardly tip-toeing around a disapproving mother – if she decides to stay. Hermione was trying to give me a third option, I think."

"You can come."

"What? You don't mind?"

"I'll support you when you talk to your mother and you can, uh, do the same when I meet Hermione's parents."

"Really? Me? Support you?"

Draco shrugged. "Sure." Theo would have been his last choice, if he could have picked someone to come along and give him support, even after Blaise, Potter, and Ginny. But Draco thought he could at least trust Theo not to make the situation any worse.

"Okay." Theo said, trying to look bored again, but Draco could tell he was relieved.

Draco looked back out the window and it was so quiet, he assumed Theo had left. But a minute later, when he looked back into the room, he was surprised to find Theo still standing in the doorway. "You're so fucking lucky," Theo said when he saw Draco looking at him.

Draco knew he wasn't talking about his large estate, his piles of gold, his supportive mother, or the fact that he was straight and didn't have to go through what Theo was going through. Theo was referring to Hermione, the best thing that had ever happened to Draco.

"I know. I think about it every day."

Theo nodded.

"You know, it's not just me who's been lucky to meet her," Draco said in an uncharacteristically kind tone. "She likes you. Like, a lot. So much so that I'm glad you're gay. And I know we joke about her loving everything – even pathetic house elves – but she has more discerning taste than that. She still doesn't like Blaise, for instance."

"No one likes Blaise."

"Blaise does. And Daphne," Draco pointed out.

"Yeah, I'm not going to touch that one," Theo said, laughing darkly. "Anyway, uh, thanks for the almost compliment."

"You're almost welcome," Draco quipped.

Theo shook his head. "This is going to be a really weird trip, isn't it?"

"Absolutely."

"Do you think you and I will…uh…bond?" he asked, his tone disgusted.

Draco scoffed. "Fuck, I hope not."

A/N: Now that Draco and Hermione are solidly together, I just need to round out the back end of the time loop, which will be done primarily in time skips. There are still about 7 more chapters in this story, but it's definitely coming to a close. Boo…