A/N: some ppl are asking whether or not I'm sending Draco back to the past and the answer is a definite yes. lol. sorry, I'm just working my way up to that :P but soon I promise just stay tuned.

I go through each day
Hoping for something
some little sign
Showing me something
Now that you're here
I realize
I see my future in your eyes
Oh my darling
I see my future in your eyes

"I See My Future in Your Eyes" –Southside Johnny

The Perfect Life

Chapter 9 – Who killed Lucius Malfoy?

Draco was smiling. It was a little unnatural to see him grinning like a fool so early in the morning, since he was usually so grouchy at the break of dawn. But then again, nothing has been predictable up to this point. It was as if he woke up one day to find his entire world upside down (which he kinda did). And what's more is he loved it. He loved every little thing about this new life of his; he wouldn't trade it for anything. Well, save maybe for Weasley and Potter…

He leaned his head up on his palm, resting on his side while still in bed watching Hermione sleep. She's cute when she sleeps, he decided, smirking like he held a secret in her smile. He contemplated in his mind whether to wake her up or not. But he didn't have to wait for long. Slowly, her eyes opened, never realizing until then how much he desired to look upon them.

They were different somehow, her eyes, from any other ones he's ever seen. Most would probably describe them as brown. But to him, it was more like chestnut, swimming in a sea of dark, dark chocolate with the barest hint of golden speck. It's difficult to pinpoint, really, what makes them shine like that. And if you looked hard enough, you could see her personality in them. It's remarkable, eyes as unique as hers. He found himself wondering how blind he'd been before.

"Hey there," she said sleepily, blinking herself awake. "What time is it?" She stretched and yawned, waiting for him to reply. But he didn't. He just kept right on staring, in spite of himself, and smiling all the while.

She looked up at him suspiciously, a playful grin on her lips as well.

"Were you watching me sleep?"

"Yes ma'am."

She snorted and laughed. "You're a riot you know that?" Jokingly hitting his arm, she squirmed to sit up. But Draco didn't move. He was still watching her intently, almost unable to avert his eyes elsewhere.

Hermione noticed this and glanced back, looking as if she was thinking of something.

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Look at me like it's the first time you've really seen me."

Draco felt suddenly nervous. He hadn't had this feeling since that night on their anniversary. It was like a nervous anxiety or something to that effect. But pretty soon it had swept away, as Rina and Jon-Jon ran in unexpectedly and began jumping on the bed. Hermione sighed and gave her husband a knowing look. That was their cue. She stood up to head for the bathroom. He climbed out of bed as well to head down to the kitchen and grabbed a baby bottle. After warming up the milk inside with his wand, he entered the nursery to place the bottle facing down by Andy's open mouth. Andy welcomed it with a gurgling smile.

He went back down to the kitchen to find her making a pot of coffee. He smirked mischievously before sneaking up from behind and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You are so hot when you make coffee," he nuzzled against her ear. She laughed and shook her head, turning around to face him. She slid her thin arms around his neck as both rested their foreheads against the other, swaying back and forth to the non existent music around them.

It was a stupid feeling really. The feeling of needing and wanting. Wanting to stay like this forever. Draco felt silly for wanting it so, like it was something love-sick girls were assumed to want; not him. Not the supposed Death Eater. He was meant kill muggles, raised in the right hand of the Dark Lord to help rule over all the other inferior beings beneath him. But right now, he'd much rather be a muggle than the future Death Eater if it meant a life with Hermione.

Some part of him wondered if he will ever go back; back to his luxurious life of fake smiles and hidden intentions. The inevitable reality. But the other part told that sensible voice to shut up. He didn't want to go back. He didn't want to be the rich, spoiled, obnoxious monster Lucius brought him up to be. He wanted to be something more. And he had Hermione to thank for that. Just being around her made him want to be a better person. It didn't make any sense to him at all; Draco couldn't even explain it himself. But he knew, all his life he's been waiting for something to come along, and this was it. He could see it in her eyes, the answer he's been looking for to the unspoken question always lurking in the shadows of his mind.

He took in her scent, sending those uncontrollable goose bumps down his arm, the familiar sweet smell of strawberries tingling his senses. Though he lived a dark life before, he thought, maybe he'd done something right to deserve this.

Suddenly they were interrupted by the sound of the backdoor sliding open.

"Great news. I've got great news!" Sean barged into the kitchen without knocking but fell flush when he realized what he just walked in on. "Oh, sorry," he apologized, shyly turning his head away like he walked in on an R-rated movie. "Didn't mean to interrupt."

Hermione giggled and separated herself from Draco.

"It's alright Sean. So what is this big news?"

He turned back around, still blushing. "I got in. I just got the owl this morning." He held up a letter triumphantly.

"That's brilliant," Hermione said, fixing herself a cup of coffee. "Congratulations!"

Draco, however, cocked a brow. "Got in where exactly?"

"I'm going to be an intern for the Ministry…in Muggle studies."

Draco frowned. If he didn't know any better, he'd say this kid was a lot like that Weasley Sr. The sound of Hermione's voice broke through his thoughts.

"This calls for a celebration. We should invite the Weasleys and Harry for dinner tonight. It'll be great!"

Draco cleared his throat and whispered in Hermione's ear. "Um, I don't know if that's such a good idea. I mean, I was hoping to just spend a quiet evening together, you know."

She smiled. "Oh, don't worry darling. It's just a small little dinner with friends. How bad could it be?"

Later that evening, Draco walked downstairs from his nap to find 20 to 30 redheads milling around casually, two thirds of them being loud, ankle-biting children and the rest—Draco supposed—were Ron, his siblings, and their better halves. The children were mad; running and screaming, throwing stuff and putting things in their mouth…it was like the first time he saw them, only now he wasn't in such shock. In fact he hardly felt anything at all, like it was the norm to see these little monsters trash his house.

He shrugged to himself and went on to look for his wife. Instead he found Jon-Jon playing with his wand.

"No, son, daddy's wand is not a toy," he took the wand from him and pocketed it. "Do you know where mommy is?" He pointed a finger to the backyard. "Thanks." He automatically kissed him on the top of his head, but he hadn't been aware of it until he left the little boy's side.

Draco was about half way down the hallway when something slammed into him. All he heard was a loud "Oof!" before he felt the stinging pain on his spine from the blow to the wall. Before he knew it, he was pushed into the coat closet only a few feet from where he was tackled, a room so dark and musty it was hard to breathe let alone see the person inches from his face. Desperately, he pulled his wand out and yelled "Lumos". Draco's face was stark white by the glowing green eyes staring intently at him.

"Potter! What the fuck are you doing?" Draco was nervous and shaking, despite his hard expression and the steel gaze he held.

"I won't let you do it Draco," Harry whispered, inching his face so close Draco had the urge to pull away instantly. "I won't let you hurt Hermione."

Draco continued staring at him like he was a madman.

"I don't know what the bloody hell you're on, Potter. But if you don't get the hell off of me, one of us is going home with only one grapefruit."

Harry glared for a minute longer, sizing him up, maybe even contemplating whether Draco was being serious or not, before finally stepping back to allow them both some personal space. But he was still watching him.

"I'm not going to let you cheat on her."

Suddenly he remembered. The girl, the Spanish girl…Tina, was it? Or Tessa?

"…Hermione is a great person, an amazing woman. She's been my best friend for years and I'll be damned if I let you break her heart now." Draco was slowly shaking his head but Harry continued on babbling. "You are the luckiest bloke alive to even be with her and now you're gonna muck it up like the stupid prat you are just coz some dirty-"

"Potter-"

"-cheap slag wants a quick romp in the sack-"

"Potter!" Harry then shut his mouth, though still enraged. "I didn't cheat on Hermione, nor do I ever plan to."

"Bollocks! I saw you with Teresa in-"

"What you saw was nothing!" He sighed. "I didn't do anything with her. I love Hermione and I would never, ever hurt her intentionally." Harry eyed him skeptically, silently judging whether his words were just bullshit. But Draco kept a straight face, looking from grey eyes to green, the seriousness of his words sinking in. "I'd kill myself first."

Harry released his collar at last. Then out of nowhere, he started laughing. Slightly frightened, Draco backed up against the wall.

"Um, Potter?"

"You know for a second there, you really had me believing you were being unfaithful," Harry laughed, slapping him on the arm. "That was a good one." Harry left the coat closet still in hysterical fits. Draco stood frozen, wondering what the hell that was about. He shook his head and ignored the fact that Potter had finally snapped, and continued on finding Hermione.

He spotted her at last, talking to some women he was sure looked familiar.

"Draco!" she called happily, waving for him to come forward. The other four women turned around as well. It was then he realized they were the Weasley wives and Ginny.

"Um Hermione, why didn't you wake me when they got here?" he asked as he stood next to her.

"Oh, I'm sorry honey. I wanted to but Jon-Jon wouldn't let me. He said you looked like you were dreaming of heaven." She smiled innocently.

"Aw, that's so cute," Ginny cooed.

"That Jon-Jon is so adorable," Monica added to the smiling women gathered around her nodding.

Draco ignored them, but couldn't help smiling a little. He turned back to his wife. "Hermione, you know heaven doesn't compare to you," he whispered into her neck, meaning it only for her ears.

"Aww!" all the women chorused together.

"I wish Ron would say things like that to me," Luna pouted.

"Please! The only romantic thing Fred's ever said to me is the occasional 'pull my finger'," Angelina grumbled abrasively, shaking her head. The rest of the women giggled.

"Hey Herm, before I forget, you've got to show me those pictures you took on the trip last weekend," Ginny reminded.

"Ooh, pictures! I want to see them too," the rest of them squealed.

Hermione thought for a minute. "I've got them upstairs. Draco, do you mind-"

"Not at all, babe." He turned back to the wives. "Ladies, if you'll excuse me." Draco made his way to retreat back down the hallway. Behind his turned back, he could still hear the females babble.

"You are so lucky Hermione."

"She's right. I wish I snatched him up for myself when I had the chance."

"You mean back at Hogwarts? Ha! Ron would've gone ballistic! I don't think he'd have liked the idea of Draco with his baby sister."

"Well it's not as if Draco is the same ferret we knew back then."

"That's true. I never would've thought he had it in him until I saw what he did for Ron. Ron owes him his entire life."

By this time, Draco was already halfway up the stairs so he didn't hear the rest of that conversation. But he was a little curious. Weasley owes me his life? When he reached their bedroom, he began filing through the drawers and scanning across papers he found on the desks. Hermione hadn't exactly been specific where these pictures were. Finally he decided to check the closet. On the upper shelf above the hangers he found boxes. As he tried to pull one down, more boxes, books, and parchment came crashing on top of his head.

Draco grumbled and rubbed the tender spot on his forehead where a bruise was soon to form. He crouched down to pick up the fallen items, his eyes quickly skimming over everything. And that's when something caught his eye: a newspaper article. In fact, there was lots of it. He looked at one in particular.

Its headline read:

Malfoy Feud: Father versus Son

Draco frowned as he read on.

'While everyone in the wizarding world struggles to pick sides in the
upcoming war that most say will determine the fate of our
future, it seems that young Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius, has alrea-
dy chosen a side; and it isn't beside He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.
There are already reports slandering the Malfoy name even after
Lucius' most recent release from Azkaban.'

Draco gulped audibly. Father was released from Azkaban? When he found out Lucius died, he'd automatically assumed it happened in prison. Then he remembered what Pansy had told him.

"If I remember correctly, weren't you there when he was killed?"

He was there. Draco had supposedly witnessed his father's murder. No, not just death. Murder. Someone had intentionally killed Lucius Malfoy in his presence. But what did that mean? Did it mean Draco himself had been a part of his demise or had he been trying to fend off the attackers?

His eyes trailed to the next clip of newspaper article, one with a heading that read:

Father-Son War Continues In Their Home

Beneath it was a stolen shot of Draco and Lucius arguing in the library of the Manor. The picture had been taken from outside through a window, the photographer obviously was hiding in the nearby shrubbery.

'Behind closed doors, the internal war between the Malfoy
men continues. It seems Draco Malfoy's recent loyalty
switch has turned many heads, especially that of his power-
hungry father, Lucius. In an earlier exclusive, it has been
revealed by the Daily Prophet's most reliable source the
reason for the young Malfoy's change of mind. It appears
the Hogwarts Head Boy has been letting his heart control
his actions as of late.

'The source has been quoted to say, "Draco Malfoy's fallen
in love…whatever that means. He turned his back on his
friends and spat on his father's love just to ogle at that mud-
blood bitch. All he ever does is hold her hand. It's sick!"
Draco's girlfriend, Hermione Granger, a muggleborn and
fellow Head Girl alongside Draco, is also a longtime friend
of Harry Potter's…'

Draco's fists were clenched. If someone ever had the nerve to say these things to say his face, he'd probably have lost it right then and there. But somewhere in his mind, he already knew who this 'source' was, and was now seriously regretting he even considered him a friend in the past.

He flipped to the next article clip.

Family Battles End on the Fields

'Lucius Malfoy, alleged Death Eater, was killed on the 12th of July by his
only son and heir, Draco Malfoy.'

Draco stiffened. But he couldn't stop reading. It's too late now.

'It has been reported that Lucius had originally cornered Ms. Granger
and had planned to torture her before eventually murdering her, until
Ronald Weasley (fellow classmate and her ex-beau) fended him off
to rescue Ms. Granger. Unfortunately for Mr. Weasley, his wand had
been knocked from his hand, leaving him utterly defenseless from the
advancing Lucius.

'"He had a mad look in his eyes," Ginny Weasley, sister of Ron,
sobbed mercilessly, as she had seen the entire scenario bleeding half
to death on the ground not too far away. "I knew he was going to kill him
…right in front of me." Ginny paused in attempt to subside her crying.
"There was nothing I could do. There was nothing Ron could do. We
were both lying on the cold earth helpless and silently praying to be
saved. Then Draco came."

'Right as Lucius had pointed his wand and yelled a curse into the
night air, Draco had jumped in front of Weasley, the curse instead
stunning Malfoy Jr. in the leg. In a midst of fury and defense, he
counter-cursed his father into his death. More details of the war
on page 3, and a list of the names of soldiers whose names shall
always be remembered in honor of the Light.'

Draco was trembling.

He couldn't believe it. It just wasn't possible. But it was there, written in black and white. It was he who had killed Lucius. It was he who had saved Weasley. He's the reason Lucius was dead. He murdered his own father.

To the left of the article was a large photograph of him, taking up almost half the page. He was crying, like he was in pain. From physical or emotional pain, he wasn't too sure. Yet it seemed to be more the latter, as Hermione stood beside the crouched form of Draco, hugging and holding him like a bruised child. The Draco in the picture looked to be at lost, eyes hiding from the faces of others, hands shaking with dripping red blood, and cheeks smudged with dirt and flushed from the tears. After several moments, he was still and allowed Hermione's arms to fully wrap themselves around him. Closing his eyes, he embraced her back, holding onto her so tightly it was apparent he wasn't prepared to let go anytime soon.

Draco was now shaking his head. This was impossible. He wasn't a murderer. Especially not to Lucius. Sure, the man was a prick and certainly had mental issues, but he wouldn't kill him. He didn't even have it in him to kill Potter if he were given the opportunity.

Suddenly he felt a figure standing over his knelt body on the floor. Draco sucked in a sharp breath as he turned around.

His grey eyes were met by stinging blue ones, a look of sorry in them, instead of the usual patronizing gaze they held.

"You know, Malfoy," Ron began, taking a few short steps forward. He was looking down, almost as if he was embarrassed. "Not a day goes by that I don't think about…what happened on the Fields."

He looked up to meet Draco's stoic face but turned away again when he caught sight of the miserable Draco and Hermione holding each other in the article photo. He took a deep breath, wishing the pain to go away before Draco could sense it. When the feeling didn't immediately vanish, he hid his face under his long bangs and continued on talking.

"I can't even imagine how it'd feel like to know you killed your own father…" He coughed uncomfortably. "Even if he was the scum of the earth."

Draco wanted to say something. He tried; he parted his lips but nothing came out. His whole mouth was dry from the words, the questions he wanted to get out. But even if he had the strength to talk at the moment, he was at a lost for what he'd say.

What could he say? He supposedly saved Weasley's life, the same person he'd hated, loathed, and teased for years. Then again, the same could be said for Hermione.

"Um, Malfoy," he looked up this time, regardless of the mist formed in the corners of his pupils. "I don't think I've ever properly thanked you." Ron smiled slightly, but more at his feet rather than anything else. He rubbed his neck to ease his own tension and patted Draco on the shoulder, though a little rigid and awkward, still friendly. Then that was it. Ron turned on his heel and left, without another word and just left. He never actually said the words "thank you" but he didn't need to. It was more like an unspoken agreement and Draco understood it clearly.

He let a small smile on the corner of his mouth, allowing the newspaper article to be forgotten and fall from his hands.

Author's Note: I'm sorry, I feel like I should apologize. This chapter isn't as good as I planned it out to be, and frankly, I was too caught up with other stories I've been reading that I completely neglected this one. But on a brighter note, at least I've tied up some loose ends. If some of you recall, I never explained why Lucius died or why exactly Ron hired him even though they don't see eye to eye (I think it was in chapter 3 when I brought that up). Anyway, probably one more chapter to go til Draco goes back to his own time. And a big thanks for reading my lame-ass story :)