AN: This is so silly. I just wrote the last word to my fifth chapter… (me.) and now, I'm writing my sixth chapter, but it's set TWO FREAKING YEARS LATER. I hope you don't mind. I'll elaborate soon.

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

- So don't sue. -

Dedicated to: The beautiful young man who sends shivers down my spine every time his name pops into my love-clouded brain. And to CharmedHpfanatic, Catherine, Katana47, and Sincerity… all of whom are my very faithful reviewers. :)

Chapter Six: Years After.

Quid novi? (What's new?)

***May 4, 2010***

Another day in the life of Hermione Anne Granger. Another day crossed off on the talking calendar. Another smile on the lips of her sleeping husband. Another cup of coffee made. Another bout of fussing over breakfast. Another day in the life of Hermione Anne Granger.

Hermione knelt beside Draco, tickling his nose with a strand of her tousled hair. "Good morning…" she whispered into his ear, smiling at the way his eyelids fluttered open, revealing a pair of very beautiful, very sleepy grey eyes.

"Morning…" he mumbled, rolling over in the wide, feather bed. Hermione laughed softly and got off the bed, heading to the shower.

Thirty minutes, one shower and several cups of coffee later, Draco was sitting at the breakfast table, wide awake and watching his wife. "Where are you off to now?" he asked, grinning at her, as she dashed through the house. "Raid… Alastor just Communicated…" she gasped breathlessly. Draco raised an eyebrow.

She smiled as she checked her wand, and he raised a hand lazily right before she Disapparated. "Take care… I love you."

Draco glanced up at the clock on the kitchen wall, watched as the hand labeled "Hermione Granger" spun around to stop on "Work." Draco chuckled softly. "I'll be keeping an eye on you, clock. If that hand goes anywhere near 'Mortal Peril', I'll blast you to pieces before I set off to hunt for Hermione."

He knew Hermione's job was dangerous, he knew it all too well. But he had complete faith in her magical ability, and so far, the worst injuries she ever brought home were bruises, an occasional cracked rib or a Trance. Draco stood up and stretched. "She wouldn't have been put in Gryffindor for nothing."

He climbed the stairs up to the bedroom, planning another day of luxuriant laziness. "She's one brave woman…"

~*~

Chanting softly, Hermione traced the line on the ground, careful not to miss a single inch of the cold stone pavement. Behind her, she could hear the indistinct crackling sounds as her fellow Aurors placed up Shielding Charms. She completed the Anti-Disapparating Circle and stood up, sighing. Ginny brushed past her, and smiled weakly. Hermione nodded back, whispering another charm to protect herself and all Aurors within fifteen feet.

Suddenly, a voice inside her head crackled to life, and she stared around nervously. It was Mad-eye, using the Silenced Communication Amulets he had distributed to his best Aurors. In a gruff voice, he ordered the front line to move in.

Hermione closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and blasted the door open. "Flipendo!"

Aurors suddenly dashed past, pushing past Hermione, carrying her along. They immediately spread out inside the home they were raiding, a stately mansion, but, as Hermione thought, half the size of the Malfoy Manor.

Mad-eye's voice crackled at Hermione. "Check the upstairs bedrooms… Malfaya Keene is known to be a late sleeper." Hermione sighed softly. Here goes.

She beckoned to Ginny, who followed her up the stairs, the Silencing Charms muffling their footsteps. Two other Aurors followed closely behind, Harry himself, and a novice, Beatrice. Hermione listened closely to the doors, shook her head at each one, but suddenly stopped at the largest door at the end of the hall.

She glanced behind her, and the three stared back at her. Harry's eyes were glinting again. She nodded. "One, two… three!"

Another Flipendo hex tore the door to pieces, and a high-pitched shriek resounded from inside the room. Hermione rushed in, eyes widening at the sight of the notorious Malfaya Keene. She was obviously very… busy with a man that Hermione had not recognized from family photos… and considering the compromising position they were in, he probably wasn't family at all.

In the blink of an eye, Ginny and Harry had thrown magical ropes around Malfaya, while Hermione performed a charm to stop her from turning into her Animagus, which was a leopard. Hermione whispered the last incantation, ignoring the venomous way Malfaya glared at her.

Another shriek came from behind her, this one oddly familiar. They whirled around to see the man Malfaya had been with holding poor Beatrice in a strangle grip. Hermione raised her wand immediately, but Harry stopped her. "Don't!" Hermione glared at him, at the way his eyes were gleaming angrily. "Hurry! What about Beatrice?!" came Ginny's frantic voice from the bed, where she was holding Malfaya at wand-point.

Half and eternity passed, the muffled shrieks from Malfaya, and the choking sounds from Beatrice filling the large room. Then… "Stupefy!" Harry yelled, his wand pointed straight at the man, who whirled around. Hermione gasped, and Ginny screamed as Beatrice crumpled to the floor, Stunned. The man turned and ran out the door, only to be confronted by another group of Aurors, this time with a mediwizard, who bent over the Stunned Beatrice, shaking his head.

Hermione pushed past the crowd, shaking. She stumbled out into the garden, wiping the back of her eyes with her hand. What's happening to him?

~*~

"You look… sad. Is something wrong?" Draco looked up as Hermione entered the restaurant, making her way to the booth by the window, where he always sat and waited for her.

"Another raid… nothing much…" She sat down in front of him, and a waitress hurried over. "The usual." Hermione ordered, without looking up. The waitress grinned and walked off to the kitchen, the order already written down.

Draco watched her go with mild amusement. "They know us by name here, don't they?" Hermione laughed softly. "Well, we have been meeting here for lunch every day for the past year." Draco reached across the table, taking her hand. "Is that okay with you? You don't… tire of this?"

Hermione looked up in surprise. "Draco! You know, when I walk in that door, tired and aching… and I see you sitting here, with that wistful, far-away look on your face…" Hermione waved her other hand aimlessly. "It just… makes my day." Draco grinned. "Why, thank you."

He leaned across the narrow table, and Hermione closed her eyes, falling into the kiss that melted her bones and made her heart miss a beat. Warmer and more intense it got, they were oblivious to the smiles of the restaurant patrons around them…

"Well, two years certainly haven't thawed you two out!"

Draco jerked away, and Hermione laughed, genuinely this time. "Hello, Ginny." She got up and sat beside Draco on the other end of the booth, leaving the seat free for Ginny, who promptly sat down. Draco raised an eyebrow at her. "How long have you been standing there?"

Ginny shrugged mischievously. "Pretty long… about the span of that kiss." Hermione blushed, but Draco simply kept his eyebrow raised.

Hermione suddenly turned serious, glancing at her Alarm, a cleverly disguised Dark Detector that looked like a simple silver bracelet, but which glowed warm when detecting Dark magic nearby. "My bracelet's getting warm… something happening." She stared around her with an alertness that only Aurors were trained to have. Ginny herself straightened up, glancing furtively around the simple restaurant.

The bracelet glowed hotter and hotter on Hermione's wrist, until… "Gotcha!"

"Damnit!"

"Draco, what in the world are you doing… omigod!"

"Like it?"

"Draco!"

Hermione seized Draco, pulled him into an intense kiss, and Ginny whistled softly. They broke apart, Draco gasping for air, and the brightest of smiles on Hermione's face.

"Look!"

She dangled a necklace in front of Ginny's wide, blue eyes. "Oh, Hermione! It's so pretty!" Hermione studied it, smiling. "Draco here tried to put it into my bag with a Dark Sneaking Spell… but my bracelet gave him away." Draco sighed. "There's no getting past an Auror wife…"

The necklace itself was a thing of beauty, a simple silver chain with a pendant of clear crystal, with swirling silver liquid trapped inside. Hermione had held the small, tear-drop shaped pendant up to the light, her countenance one of pure delight.

"What is it? It's beautiful!" she smiled at him happily. Draco took it from her and hung it around her neck. "It's called a Soul-Keeper." As the pendant came to rest over her heart, it shone suddenly and turned a gentle blue.

"It changes color according to your present disposition." Draco whispered, tucking a stray lock of hair behind Hermione's ear, and Ginny watched in amusement. "Really? So what does blue mean, then?" she asked, picking up the pendant and studying it carefully. "Happiness... peace..." Draco took her hands in his, a smile on his face... Suddenly the pendant glowed a vibrant red. Hermione looked down at it and blushed.

"Really now, Hermione… you do love me…" Draco teased. Ginny leaned across the table. "I've seen one of those before, I think Bill got one from that insanely rich Fleur Delacour. Of course, it was on a more… masculine chain, and it wasn't tear-drop shaped… but a circle…"

Draco fingered the fragile chain gently. "There's one more thing. If you tap it with your wand, and say a certain incantation... it will show you the face of the one whom you truly love." Hermione glanced up at him. "What's the incantation?" Draco shook his head. "Nope, I won't tell you, not yet. Bu it have complete trust in you that it will be my face in that pendant."

Ginny sighed, watching them kiss once more. "No wonder that veela bitch got mad when the pendant showed the face of Bill's last ex."

~*~

The food arrived, and as they dug in, Ginny dropped some bad news. "Hermione, about Beatrice…" Hermione looked up immediately, face serious. "What happened to her?" Ginny shook her head sadly. "The man was injecting a slow poison into her veins as he was choking her, and well… the Stunner that Harry shot at her didn't help."

Draco glanced up as well. "What did Potter do?" "It was a mistake!" Hermione snapped sharply. Draco shrugged and returned to his mashed potatoes. "What happened to Beatrice?" she turned back to Ginny. "She didn't make it. The man is on his way to Azkaban."

"What about Harry?"

"Resigned to paperwork. Moody was furious."

"Oh shit."

That was Draco. He glanced down at the Soul-Keeper, which was turning a dark, dark blue. "Hermione, don't cry, please. It wasn't your fault." He put an arm around the shaken woman. "But it is! If I hadn't listened to Harry, and…" she broke into sobs. "Poor Beatrice!"

Ginny nodded sadly. "I'm sorry this had to happen on your anniversary, Hermione…" The Soul-Keeper caught the light, and Ginny, her eyes suddenly full of questioning. leaned forward.

"Draco… isn't that Soul-Keeper supposed to have your seal on it?" Draco, his eyes suddenly sharp, looked up from Hermione. "What do you mean by that?" Ginny backed away. "Well, Bill's had Fleur's family seal on it, it was a veela surrounded by admirers and… well, I know that Soul-Keepers are supposed to have the giver's seal on them."

Hermione picked up the Soul-Keeper, examining the unmarred surface. "Yes, Draco… where is your seal?" Draco paled slightly. "Never mind that, it's prettier without it."

Ginny glanced at Hermione and shrugged dismissively.

~*~

"Well, the food was delicious. As usual." Hermione laughed dryly. Draco glanced down at her, the tiniest sign of worry on his face. "Are you okay, Hermione?" Hermione smiled up at him distractedly. Ginny had left them after the lunch, Disapparating to her house beside the Burrow. Now, it was vaguely three in the afternoon, and they were strolling by the lake.

"I'm fine. No more raids scheduled today." She laughed again, the same, fake laugh. Draco touched her softly on the cheek, and they stopped walking. "You aren't fine. Something's been bothering you." Draco's eyes darted to the Soul-Keeper, which glowed a faint gray, which meant guilt. Hermione raised a hand to cover it, and in a small voice, spoke.

"It's Harry."

~*~

In half an hour, Hermione was in Draco's arms, sobbing out a story that Draco could only half understand. "He's so… un-Harry! I mean, he would never have done anything as reckless and send that… Stunner towards Beatrice…" Hermione hiccuped, face streaked with tears.

Draco stroked her hair, murmuring softly to her, listening intently. "And then.. he's so… shrewd lately. Harry has always had his own bit of pride…" Draco chuckled grimly. "Don't we know it?"

Hermione continued, the Soul-Keeper glowing a deep, intense dark blue. "But he seems so arrogant, so proud… making foolish decisions and… being so… mean." Draco cupped Hermione's chin, staring into her eyes filled with tears.

"Why?"

Hermione sucked in her breath. "I don't know! He's been like this for the last few months… and…" she broke off and began to cry into Draco's shoulder. Draco patted her distractedly. Wasn't Potter still living with that Berna woman?

~*~

Draco walked down the cobblestones of Godric's Hollow, cloak swishing around him in the cool night air. Back at their apartment, Hermione watched the Tracer's "Draco Malfoy" hand swing onto "traveling." A few minutes later, it swung back over to: "visiting."

Draco casually poked the keyhole with his wand, and it opened slowly. Two figures on the couch immediately sprang apart the moment he entered the room. "That was Dark magic, Draco! I could get you to Azkaban with that!" Harry Potter stood up from the couch, his green eyes glittering angrily. Draco smirked. "Get me into Azkaban? Sure, Potter, how? Through paperwork?" Harry sucked in his breath… rage in every line of his handsome face.

And he Disapparated with a *pop*.

~*~

Hermione frowned as the hand marked "Harry Potter" shuddered, but did not move away from 'home', where it had been for the past month.

"What is Draco up to? I should get this clock fixed…"

~*~

Draco turned towards the couch, where a very pale Berna Guerrero sat, immense distrust in her wide blue eyes. "Hello, Berna. Would you mind making me a cup of tea?" Draco smiled at her. Berna got up, shaking. "Yes, I would mind. Would you mind getting out of my house?!" Draco shrugged slowly. "Not really… but I have come on a very important mission." He laughed softly.

Berna glared at him.

Draco sat down on the couch and looked innocently up at Berna, who stood over him. "I'm not going to hurt you, Berna. Here, catch." He casually tossed her his wand. Berna automatically caught it, surprised. She placed it on the mantelpieceas if it was a very small, but very lethal Blast-Ended Skrewt, and walked over to stand across from Draco.

"What do you want… Malfoy?"

Draco smiled sadly. "Nothing much… I just want to talk. I've just had a very big fight with my wife… and…" he broke off, in his eyes an immeasurable amount of pain. "Well, I just needed someone to talk to…" he gestured at the empty spot where Harry had stood in a minute ago. "I was hoping Potter would listen, but I guess I shouldn't have been so hasty."

Berna's cold blue eyes softened. "What happened between you and Hermione?" She asked, sitting down on the couch, but keeping a respectful distance away from Draco, who was slouched down at the other end. Draco shrugged. "I asked her to stop going to Knockturn Alley so much. I mean, she's an Auror and all, she insists on going down there to scout things out… and well, I was worried about her safety. It just grew and grew… into a big shouting match."

He frowned. "I wish she'd trust me more… she knows all I want is her well-being." He turned towards Berna, who was sitting very still and silent. "What am I supposed to do?" he asked. Berna stared at him for the briefest of eternities, then did something extremely unexpected.

In a blink of an eye, she was standing in front of Draco, her wand pointed directly over his heart, her chest heaving, eyes full of unreadable anger. "I don't need you, Malfoy…" she whispered. Draco glanced down at the wand, and said calmly. "What?"

"I don't need your pity, and I don't need your lies." She pointed towards the door. "Get out. Now." Draco stood up, and peacefully made his way to the door. However, at the doorway, he stopped and turned to her. "Accio wand!" His wand flew across the room and landed in his outstrecthed palm. Grinning, Draco showed Berna his real wand, which had been concealed in his sleeve all along.

"I could have burned out your eyes, Berna." he whispered. "But that would have been a waste. Maybe your heart… I don't know where that brain of yours is leading you, but I'm pretty sure that your heart is pulling you the other way." He fixed her with a piercing silver glare. "You love him."

With that, he turned and was gone.

~*~

Hermione watched the clock spin to 'traveling' and finally to 'home.' "Draco!" She stood up and ran to the hallway, where the aforementioned man was hanging up his cloak. He smiled and swept her into a hug, but his eyes were emotionless. "Hello…"

"What did you find out? What happened to Harry?" she bombarded him with questions as they walked to the kitchen. Draco shrugged. "Berna seems extremely high-strung… she looks extremely tired, but she's very… volatile. She's also very suspicious and wary…" Hermione frowned. "I was talking about Harry!" Draco blinked, and looked at her. "Yes, I believe you were."

~*~

Harry Apparated back to his apartment a few minutes later. Berna rushed to him, arms outstretched. "That horrible Malfoy person! Lying about how he and Hermione…" she fell into his arms, then, smiling softly, reached up and pushed his messy black hair off his forehead. Berna touched her lips to his before hanging up his cloak for him, and Harry walked into the kitchen without a word.

~*~

*** Morning of May 18, 2010 ***

Hermione sighed and stretched in her chair. Rare were the moments like this, when the house was peaceful, with Draco sleeping peacefully upstairs, her morning coffee besid eher, when she could leaf through the morning mail without disturbance.

She glanced up at the clock. "I should really get that fixed…" she murmured to herself. Since the beginning of April, the hand labeled "Harry" had gotten stuck on "home", while Ron's was permanently on "visiting." Draco's seemed to be the only one that worked, as Hermione's was always on "home" as well.

She turned back to her morning mail, expecting nothing too extraordinary, nothing that would make her drop her coffee mug on the floor…

*crash*

Hermione stared at the paper in her hands, unaware of the hot coffee pooling around her bare feet on the kitchen floor. "Omigod…" she whispered.

Appeal for Arrest - Draco Thomason Magnum Malfoy

~*~