Hermione led the way back to the dancefloor via the bar with Vivienne in tow.
As they made their way, unseen, through the crowd, Hermione wondered if the advice she had given this young girl was productive. If she decided to follow through, she would ruin Ron's life.
Ron had been so many things to Hermione in her life. Friend, confidant, boyfriend, lover, husband, father to her children. Yes, he had become complacent in all of that, allowing his efforts in their marriage to slide and seeking comfort elsewhere, but it was this moment where Hermione realised, he was still Ron Weasley, the boy who had dirt on his nose on the train on the first day of their first year. The same Ron who defended her against, primarily, Malfoy throughout school. The same Ron who laid beside her during the war, whispering promises into the night, holding her hand as she wept in fear for their lives.
"Can you give me a minute?" Hermione asked Vivienne as she stopped.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, I think I need to have a conversation with Ron. You know, set the record straight. I should have told him about my new relationship. It was unfair of me to urge you to break it off with him" she said.
"I suppose you're right" she said, taking a seat at a nearby table.
Hermione looked over to the crowd and saw Malfoy chatting with someone but looking her way. She gestured for him to come over and he did.
"Vivienne and I have had a bit of a heart to heart in the bathroom" Hermione said as he snaked his arm around her waist. "And I think I need to have a talk with Ron" she added.
"You and Ron have history, that's fine. I'll keep this one company" he said.
At this, Hermione haltered, fearing for a moment that leaving her new boyfriend with the woman her husband cheated on her with, wasn't such a good idea.
Malfoy leant to her, kissing her on the cheek and paused to whisper in her ear, "I like them my own age don't worry", resulting in a smile from Hermione.
She turned and left, heading towards the VIP section to find Ron. True to form he was sitting in a corner with a sour look on his face, drinking.
When she approached, he looked at her expectantly.
"Can we talk?" she asked.
He gestured for her to sit.
"Somewhere private?" she added.
He smiled, a smile she knew well when they used to sneak off in their 20s.
"Merlin Ron, I actually mean, I want to talk… you have a girlfriend" she said as she led him to a quiet area of the bar.
She found a spot that wasn't out of sight, but where the loud music had not penetrated that significantly, and sat down at an abandoned table.
"What is this all about Hermione?" he asked.
"Firstly, I want to apologise to you. I should have told you about Malfoy and I" she said.
"Still calling him Malfoy?" Ron asked.
Hermione pondered this for a moment before realising that she had never actually called him by his name. Odd. She would have to think about that some other time.
"To you yes" she said.
"Why him?" Ron asked after a pause.
"What do you mean?" she said.
"Look at you Hermione. You could have moved on with anybody, but you chose the one person who made everyone's life hell in school" he said.
"That's exactly why Ron. It was in school. He's changed" she said.
"That's what he says. Until he makes you fall for him and has you joining his dark…" Ron began.
"Stop" Hermione interrupted. "Its been 17 years since the battle. That's a long time Ron, and he's changed. He fights for muggle rights now, he devoted his entire career to it. He is actually a really nice guy" she said.
"So… he changed. Woop-de-doo. Still doesn't explain, why him?" Ron said.
"I don't know Ron. Why Vivienne?" she asked.
"Because she was there" he said.
"Exactly. Because Malfoy was there, and you weren't. Because he took the time to talk to me after a year and a half of me being lonely. Because he was nice to me." she said, holding back strange tears that threatened to betray her strength in this moment.
"I was nice to you" he said.
"Once upon a time you were. Yes", she said.
"Then I wasn't" he said.
"I know" she said.
"Hermione, I'm sorry" he said.
"What about Vivienne? Are you sorry to her?" Hermione asked.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"You cheated on her, with me. You were rude, drunk and possessive, of me at the game. She is really upset by that Ron" she said.
"You've been talking to her?" he asked.
"I have" she said.
"What did you tell her?" he asked.
"Only the truth. That we had a happy life once. That she ruined everything and that we slept together a couple of months back" Hermione said.
"You told her that?" he asked.
"That we slept together? She asked. And I answered truthfully" she said.
At this, Ron stood up and ran his hand through his hair. Hermione recognised this as a sign of Ron freaking out.
"Why would you do that Hermione? You will ruin everything" he cried out.
"No Ron, YOU ruined everything. WE had everything once. All you had to do was tell me you didn't love me. There was no need to lie, cheat and manipulate me into staying for another 2 years all while you were still with her. She told me everything Ron" Hermione said.
"I NEVER stopped loving you Hermione! He yelled.
"Sure felt like it" she responded. "How can you love someone and treat them like that?" she asked.
"I was bored. I was trapped in a life that was only getting more and more boring. I needed something more. I needed excitement. We nothing to look forward to Hermione. Nothing to do next. I was drowning in the rut that we had found ourselves in" he said, finally saying all the things she needed to hear. The why.
"You could have just told me Ron. Things could have changed. We could have changed. We could have done other things. We could have gone places. The kids are going to Hogwarts, we could have packed up and travelled the world" she said.
"So, lets do it then" he said, sitting beside her.
"What?" she asked, shifting in her seat so he wasn't touching her.
"Come on Hermione, me and you, lets get back together. We'll be a family again, you me and the kids. We'll make the most of the rest of the summer and then when they go off to Hogwarts, we'll both sell up, pack a bag and leave. Travel to America. You always wanted to, remember?" he said, sounding excited.
"Ron…" she began, feeling sad that he was laying this all out there. She had to tell him no, but it had to be kind. He was pouring his heart out to her. "I can't do that" she said.
"You can't travel?" he asked.
"I mean, I don't want to" she said.
"Why?" he asked.
"Because I'm with Malfoy… Draco. I'm with Draco now" she said. "And you're with Vivienne" she added.
"I think she's going to leave me" he said.
"I think she might" Hermione said.
"What do I do then?" he asked. "Now I'll have no one" he added.
"That's not true. You still have your friends, your family. You can talk to Vivienne, try and make her understand?" Hermione said.
"She's young Hermione, even if I can get her to stay now, do you think she'll want me in 5 years when I'm about to be 40 and she's still in her 20s?" he asked.
"You never know, Ron. Be brave. That's what relationships are about. You're putting your feelings, your heart, your trust in another person, that they wont stomp all over them. You've done that to Vivienne tonight. You know?" she asked.
"I know" he said.
"So why are you here, asking me to go away with you? Ask her. Apologise to her. Me and you are good now Ron. If you want Vivienne, make her see that. If not, put her out of her misery now, before its too late" Hermione said, standing up and turning to walk away.
"Thanks Hermione" he said.
She just shrugged and headed towards where she had left Draco and Vivienne.
It certainly felt strange to Hermione to say his name, even in her head. He had always been Malfoy to her, but now they had declared their feelings to one another, it felt strange to call him by the name she had called him when she would declare her hatred for him.
She reached the spot where she had left them and found them deep in conversation about muggles. She would have to ask him what they were chatting about later, because as soon as she approached, they stopped.
"So, what happened?" Vivienne asked her, eyes wide.
"Ron loves you; I can tell. I get the feeling that if you forgive him, this one last time, he will make you happy" Hermione said.
"But the things you said in the bathroom…" she started.
"Were wrong. Those things were based on anger. Now I know the truth, from Ron's own mouth. Give him one last chance. He knows how badly he messed up and he wants to make it up to you" Hermione said.
"ATTENTION… ATTENTION…" came a booming disembodied voice that made everyone look around.
"That's Ron's voice" Vivienne said, turning in every direction.
Hermione turned and saw Ron walking towards them and held her breath. She instinctively stepped in front of Draco.
"I KNOW I'VE BEEN AN ASS AND THAT IS WHY I'M DOING THIS" Ron's voice continued as he reached where they stood.
"I'VE HURT YOU MORE THAN YOU DESERVE AND I WANT THIS OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE IT UP TO YOU" He continued, standing in front of where Hermione and Vivienne stood side by side.
At first, Hermione thought he was talking to her. He initially looked in her direction, but as he spoke, he stood directly in front of Vivienne and talked directly to her.
"I KNOW I DON'T DESERVE IT, BUT I WANT YOU TO FORGIVE ME…. VIVIENNE…" he said, bending one knee and placing it on the ground before pulling a diamond ring out of his pocket, "WILL YOU MARRY ME?" he finished.
The whole place was silent. Even the music had stopped. Every eye in the club was on Ron and Vivienne as she stared at him with wide eyes.
Hermione backed away, desperate to distance herself from what was about to happen. She had no way of predicting which way this would all go, but she certainly didn't want to be around for the aftermath if it went badly.
"Yes" came a small voice, almost a whisper into the dark, before it was followed by cheers from the whole club.
The couple were lost in crowds of well-wishers and people who wanted to congratulate the couple. Hermione took Draco by the hand and led him away.
"Wow, didn't see that coming, did you?" he asked.
"You know what, I sort of didn't" she said, wondering why he would propose to her only minutes after begging Hermione to come back to him.
"You know the best thing about this?" Malfoy said after she had been silent for a minute.
"What's that?" she asked.
"Now he has no need to carry on like a raging lunatic when he sees us together" Draco said.
"Do you know what he said to me just before?" she asked.
"What did he say?" Draco asked.
"He asked me to go back to him. To be a family with him and the kids till they go to school and then he wanted to travel with me" she said.
"He was afraid" Draco said.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"He finally realised that you were no longer an option for him. Until now, you've been available to him, should he have wanted to come back to you…" he said.
"Wait…." Hermione interjected.
"In his mind, I mean. Not in reality. In his mind, you've been just pining for him, waiting for him to come back to you to be a family again. As soon as he saw you with me it was like it sparked some fear in him that made him go all crazy and want to go back to what was safe" Draco said.
"So, you're saying… I have always been Ron's safe option? And now that I'm not, he freaked out" she asked.
"Absolutely"
"So you're a psychologist now too?" she asked, smiling.
"No, I just see it from his perspective, I guess. Now that you're completely not an option, it only makes sense that he asked her to marry him. Now she can't leave him" he said.
"Well, she can" Hermione said.
"But she won't" Draco said.
"Why do you think that?" she asked.
"Look at her. She's smiling from ear to ear. She's completely forgiven him and now she has everything she ever wanted" he said.
"Hmm, you're probably right" Hermione said.
"Are you upset?" Draco asked, sensing some kind of hesitation from Hermione.
"Upset? No. It's just… I don't know actually. Imagine if I had agreed to take Ron back? If I had sat with him over in that corner and said yes to his request to be a family again. But not two minutes later, he's on bended knee for someone else? I just don't understand, that's all" she said.
Draco sighed and moved closer to Hermione, cupping her face in his hand.
"He's just a frightened man, that's all" Draco said.
"Are you?" Hermione asked.
"Frightened?"
"Yes"
"I'm terrified" he answered.
"Of what?" she asked.
"Of how I feel about you. Admitting it, not only to you but to myself. Now that it's out there, it's a little scary. The things you could do to me now…" he said.
"I would never…" she said.
"I know you wouldn't… But if something were to happen…" he said.
"Because of what happened to Astoria?" she asked.
"That is probably why, yes. I have only loved a few people in my life Granger. Two of those were taken from me, one before I could even meet her" he said.
"I promise, nothing will happen to me" she said.
"You can't promise that" he said.
"I can try?" she answered.
Draco just looked into her eyes, staring at her for what could have been hours, but was more likely to be a few seconds. He leant forward and kissed her in a way he had never kissed her before. Gone was the urgency and passion that most of their kisses had consisted of previously, but it didn't make it less of a kiss. In fact, it made it more. She felt all of his words in that moment. She felt his desperation, his fear, his hunger for something more. In that moment, she wanted to give him all of that. She wanted him to feel safe and loved in her arms, to feel like she wouldn't leave him, not if she could help it.
"I love you" she said for the second time that night after the kiss ended. And she meant it.
"I love you too" he said, kissing her on the forehead.
"Do you want to go?" she asked.
"If you do" he said.
She took him by the hand and led him towards the disapparation point.
"Don't you want to say goodbye to Ginny?" he asked.
Hermione looked over to where Ginny was dancing with Harry.
"No, she's having fun" Hermione said.
"So are we" Draco said to her.
"Not yet we aren't, but we will be" Hermione said, arriving at the empty queue to disapparate.
"Is that so?" he asked, taking her by the hand.
"Yep" she answered.
"So, my place or yours?" he asked, causing Hermione's smile to falter. "My apartment, I meant" he said.
"The Manor…?" she asked.
"Is gone. Sold" he said.
"I'm sorry, what? When?" she asked.
"So my place it is?" he asked.
"Yes, but I want to know" she said.
"You will" he said, pulling her with him into oblivion.