Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to J.K. Rowling

My father once said, "It doesn't matter what you have. What matters is what you don't have. What you don't have can either make you or destroy you."

My father was quite philosophical if anyone took the time to notice.

~~

Draco leaned back on his chair, rapidly tapping his quill on the large sheet of parchment before him. The seemingly endless tattoo of sound stemmed from the uneasy thoughts plaguing his mind.

He checked his watch and saw that it was just nine thirty. He had been in his office for half an hour and already he couldn't concentrate at the important tasks at hand.

Designing brooms had been Draco Malfoy's pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It had been a childhood diversion for him—that and customary losses against Gryffindor wore him down to wondering what the hell was wrong—but once push came to shove, it was all he could boast of.

Quite ingenuous if one took the time to think about it. Not that it was easy work, mind you. It required extensive knowledge in Maths and Physics and of course Draco knew none of that. He worked by trial and error, testing his designs himself. All he had in his pocket were dumb luck and a shiteload of guts, and apparently—that was all he needed to succeed. That and other people's money, of course.

The intercom on his desk gave a short, obtrusive buzz followed by the voice of Abigail Woodrow, his secretary.

"Mr. Malfoy? Mr. Lafferty is here. The, er… younger Mr. Lafferty. He wants to talk to you. He says it's urgent."

Draco expelled a wary sigh. When it came to Mr. Lafferty it was always urgent, however, never important. "Send him in."

A few moments later a man in his early twenties strolled into Draco's office. His gait and easy smile spoke of his inherent confidence. His stature and poise were lent by his upbringing. By his floppy brown hair, it as obvious that he was in dire need of a haircut.

Liam Lafferty was the product of roots very similar to that of Draco Malfoy. Impeccable blood. Filthy rich. Cultured to the very core. A life to die for.

"What do you need, Liam?" Draco asked curtly, pushing his chair away from his desk.

"I want to see it."

"Then go to Production."

"I did. They won't let me see it."

Dealing with Liam was like dealing with a seven-year-old. Or better yet, a young Draco Malfoy. His immaturity could drain the patience out of a saint. Many times, Draco regretted his decision of taking David Lafferty's money and the conditions set therein. However, at that point in Draco's life, there had been no other way. He had runaway right after Hogwarts, right before the war ended. Alone and without money with him, resources were horribly lacking. He had to take what he could and when it was offered.

As David Lafferty, Liam's father, had stipulated, he would give Draco the money on one condition.

Keep an eye on his sons.

It had seemed like a good idea at that time. Great, even. Easy enough that it almost felt like stealing. However, Draco had never heard of the infamy of the Lafferty brothers. And Draco thought that he was a handful in his youth. The home-schooled siblings proved to be a little too excited upon being set loose into the real world.

"Listen, Liam," Draco said in clipped tones, his hands slowly curling into tight fists. "The launching of the new model will be on Friday. Perhaps, you can pull the reins on your enthusiasm and wait until then."

Liam wrinkled his nose, his disdain for the suggestion immensely blatant. "Listen, Malfoy. My father put good money into your little venture. A lot of money, now that I think about it. Now, I strongly suggest that you hand me a sample of that 'new model' right now and we'll forget this ever happened."

Liam was a dolt. If he could make money out of his stupidity he would be the richest man in the world.

But as it were, for all of David Lafferty's hope that some of Draco's ambition would rub off his sons—it was all for naught. Although Daniel was showing some interest in the business, all Liam wanted was a corner office he could lure women into with the promise of promotions. Which, ironically, he wasn't eligible to hand out like sweets.

"Oh, all right…" Draco scratched his head. "How about I don't tell your father that tiny 'incident' I had to take care of at that Muggle club the other night because of you? And then we can forget that you never came into my office and talked out of your arse a whole damned lot."

That was enough to duly chastise the young Lafferty.

He didn't know what Hermione saw in him. And no "serious lapse in judgment" could ever justify such a mistake. Draco smiled at the thought of Hermione.

A short cough reminded him that he wasn't alone. Unfortunately.

"Okay, Liam," he told the younger man tiredly. "We have finished our lesson. What have learned today? Never blackmail a man who has more shite on you that you do on him. Great. Thank you. Goodbye." Draco gestured at the door.

Liam ignored his dismissal and sat down in one of the armchairs in front of Draco's desk. "So you and Hermione, huh?" he said with a wink, which made Draco realise that nothing he had just said had entered Liam Lafferty's brain. "Shagging like bunnies yet?"

Shagging like bunnies?

Merlin, will the rodent references never stop?

"No, Liam. We are not shagging like bunnies. Hermione and I are just…" Draco left off uneasily.

"Just what? Just friends?"

"Why do you say that like it's something disgusting?" Draco carefully overlooking the fact that he might be getting a touch defense. Or overly defensive. "And yes, we're just friends."

"Wow…" Liam said softly, obviously baffled that such a relationship between a woman and a man existed. "Friends." He gave a low whistle and leaned back comfortably in the plush armchair, unaware that at that moment someone wanted to hex him out of the room. "But that Hermione… she's something else. I have to tell you, she had the smoothest skin… And there was this spot just above her…"

Draco had had enough. He did not want to hear about Hermione skin. He did not want to hear about her… her… spot. Draco inwardly flinched at the mere mention of Liam's frolicking about with Hermione. It was too uncomfortable. Hermione was his friend, for Merlin's sake. It was just plain disgusting hearing such stories being said with such zeal.

"Liam?" Draco said sternly, his eyes ablaze, his quill crushed in his fist.

"Yeah, Draco?"

"Door. Use it. Now."

~~

My father and organization were married to each other. I think it might have made my mother jealous on more than one occasion. But that's the sort of person my father was.

He valued having things in their place. And he had a place for everything.

~~

Draco muttered a curse under his breath as he picked up the pace. His shoes clipped the cold pavement as he tried to keep from running towards his destination. He was already half an hour late and he knew that there would be hell to pay once he finally arrived.

And there she was.

"You're late," Hermione scolded, though an easy smile graced her features. "Remind me to hex you later."

"Later?"

Hermione grabbed his arm and they set off at furious pace down the park path they knew by heart. The autumn winds lashed against their bright faces, giving their cheeks a pink tinge.

"Yes, because I have a schedule, mister and you must respect that. I shall have to squeeze in hexing you between buying a present for Tim and picking up my dry cleaning."

"I forgot about that." Draco groaned in annoyance. He pulled on Hermione's hand a little to keep her from tripping over her own feet. "As fun as I think it would be to see you fall flat on your face, I think we should slow down."

"Schedule. Sacred!" Draco looked on amusedly as Hermione tried to make some sort of threat with her tiny fist. "All right, you win. But if we do not complete the sacred schedule then you will have to buy dinner."

"I always buy dinner."

"Right, and I'd like to keep it that way."

Three months had come and gone. Such a short while between now and then, but it was enough to create a concrete enough relationship wherein two people felt as comfortable as they did. Sure, it was odd. Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger pursuing a friendship? He would have hexed the privates off anyone who would have suggested such a preposterous idea had they still been in the confines of Hogwarts.

However… they were no longer in Hogwarts. And the war was behind them now. All the bindings, trappings and obstacles that could have kept from engaging in such a "taboo" relationship have been torn down and for the most part, simply ignored.

"What were you groaning on about Tim? You forgot to get him a present?" Hermione brushed a riot of curls away from her face before continuing. "Well, we can share, if you're that upset about it."

Draco shook his head and frowned. "The launching of new broom is on Friday," he explained. "I had only just realised that Tim's birthday party's on the same night."

"Well, you can just stop by, Draco. I don't think it matters if you're late." She turned to him and gave him a small wink. "You know that Tim fancies you. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you weren't on time so long as you got there eventually."

"As much as Tim's a great guy, the feeling just isn't mutual," Draco replied, the uneasiness evident. "And I won't be able to make it at all. I have to be there the entire night."

"Oh."

He knew her well enough to know that she was disappointed, no matter how valiantly she tried to hide it.

"But you will come, though?" He said, taking her hand and slipping it into the bend of his arm. "To the launching, I mean."

Draco watched as she pursued her lips in contemplation. "I don't know… I mean, the idea of brooms and flying?" Hermione visibly shuddered at the thought.

"It's open bar."

"Ooh. Tim's party—male stripper."

Draco shot her a mock look of forlorn. "Draco Malfoy loses again," he said in his most petulant tones. "You wound me with your fiendishness."

Hermione grinned cheekily up at him as they turned at the corner and happened upon a street market. "Fiendishness. Big word, Malfoy, think you can handle talking for the rest of the day?"

He was about to answer with an equally cutting remark when she pulled on his hand and he found himself running—he, Draco Malfoy, running—towards colourful stands selling wares ranging from clothes, blankets, to the bathroom sink.

They stopped in front of a hat stand and Hermione picked up a large, velvet blue hat and placed it atop Draco's head. "And they said you couldn't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear."

"Hey, hey, hey… no more taking potshots against the defenseless." Draco took the ridiculous thing off his head and frowned. "Now, if they had this in orange…"

Hermione opened her mouth and let out a shrill laughter and Draco quickly clamped his hand over her mouth. "Hermione, shut up. We'll get arrested for disturbing the peace."

"Draco," she whispered when she finally removed his hand from her mouth and leaned up on her tiptoes. "If they knew us, then they'd also know that we've been disturbing the peace for a while now."

Draco bit back a laugh of his own. After which, he promptly bought the hat.

Hours later found the two of them—presents and dry cleaning in tow—in small café in a nondescript part of Diagon Alley. And Draco was staring at Hermione in total amazement.

"I swear to the powers above, Hermione Granger, that if you eat me out of house and home, I will move in with you," he warned ominously. "And I'll always leave the toilet seat up."

She rolled her eyes and put down the menu. "Yes, because living with Liam and Daniel is such a dream come true."

"Your judiciousness is blinding."

"That's because I'm the Queen of All Thing Reasonable."

"Says the girl who slept with Liam Lafferty."

"Touché."

Draco laughed and leaned back in his somewhat uncomfortable seat. It was obvious that the piece of furniture was chosen on the basis of aesthetics rather than functionality. Thus, it fit in quite well with its quaint décor, though his posture was in the process of commencing a revolt.

"Guess who I saw on the cover of Witch Weekly?"

Uh oh…

"Ronald Weasley."

Draco wrinkled his forehead. "Conversations I have with you about Ronald Weasley are never—"

"Pleasant, I know," Hermione finished hastily.

"And let it be known that the unpleasantness is never my doing."

She gave a good growl before biting out an answer. "It is known, Malfoy." She sighed and placed her hands on the table before plopping her chin on top of them. "I'm over him. Very much so. It's been a year, after all. But seriously… sometimes I wonder how I was ever engaged to that man."

Approximately a year ago, Hermione Granger was happily engaged to Ronald Weasley. Approximately nine months ago, she wasn't. As far as Draco knew, it hadn't sent her into some sort of morbid deep depression, though it had made her sad. Years at Hogwarts had their numerous arguments pegged as some twisted form of sexual tension. Little did they know that years after, the sexual tension would die down and the arguments would still be there.

"Well, he's famous now. Star Quidditch Player. Etc, etc, etc…" Draco made rolling hand gestures that didn't seem much appreciated.

"Funny."

"What?"

Hermione tilted her head to the side and regarded Draco in silence for a moment. "I've always imagined you on the cover of that blasted magazine."

"I, er…" Draco gave an odd little laugh. "I was actually. Once. And I'd really rather not talk about it."

"Ooh. I knew it. They have no taste whatsoever."

~~

In the twenty-seven years of my life, the one thing that I've truly learned is that although things never go the way you want to them to… it always seems to work out in the end.

Or perhaps, that's just because I'm lucky.

My mother once said, "Keep a smile in your pocket and you'll never be poor." She might have been humouring me then, now that I think about it. Considering that I had, at that time, just lost the two galleons my father gave me. Of course, that doesn't have anything to do with being lucky…

But that is neither here nor there. Although, nothing ever is…

Author's Notes:

This was supposed to be uploaded with a day earlier, but I was preoccupied with reading *cough*smut*cough* And I'm flying sans beta . So I'm pretty undecided if I like this chapter or not. It feels sloppy. Meh.

This Chapter: Yes, there's a time shift. I hope I didn't lose anyone on that. But this story isn't the "falling in love in six days" kind of thing. I am evil. I like drawing things out until they get annoying. I'm trying to deal with falling in love as realistically as possible. And as much Draco are meant for each other, they have too much history to be falling into bed right away.

Liam Lafferty. I don't know what I was thinking when I had created him. He sort of presents a parallel to Draco Malfoy… a Draco Malfoy with his life not so drastically altered. I thought it would be interesting to have a juxtapose them and compare the vast differences. I don't want you to hate him, but if you do, be my guest. Just dislike him a little, and be rest assured that he won't present any sort of hindrance to Draco and Hermione.

Ron. Ron, Ron, Ron. I like Ron. But I prefer him out of the picture. So, if you were counting on more Ron, I'm very sorry to disappoint, as I will be providing you with very little Ron entertainment. But to be democratic I'll have you choose: somewhat absentee Ron or asexual Ron? Rest assured (as well) that he will pose no threat to Draco and Hermione.

And finally, Draco and Hermione. Yes, the whole point of this chapter is to reiterate the FRIENDS part. And I think I've reiterated that enough. Be rest assured (yet again) that they won't remain that way forever.

Next Chapter: A scene that explains why this is R-rated. However, it might not be the scene you've been expecting. If you want to throw something at me, make it snowballs because we don't get snow here and it's been a while since I've last seen snow. Harry Potter.

Note about "Steep": I've decided to pull "Steep" from ff.net. This isn't one of those "You haven't been reviewing it enough so there" threats because I absolutely loathe those. I'm reediting all the chapters and I'll repost them with the added chapters. However, I probably won't upload it until after I've finished with this fic. So, if you've been waiting for it… I'm sorry but you'll have to wait for it a little longer. Sorry ^^;;; But it'll be worth it, I promise.

THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS ^___^ PLEASE GIVE ME MORE

Pathetic much? I know I am. Hee ^__^ And I'm very unapologetic for that.