"Darling?" Narcissa called, stepping into the common room.

"Yes mother." He said tiredly. She came over and sat next to him on the couch.

"I didn't mean to be a bother. I just… I wanted…" She took a deep, shaky breath. "I wanted things to be the way our family never was. You didn't get enough love in your childhood, and I blame myself."

"Mum, it wasn't your fault…"

"I could have stopped him when he- I could have done something." As she began to cry silently, Draco's face softened.

"You can't remember anything about the war, or the way he treated you, but you remember what he did to me?"

"Of course! You're my baby, my only son. I remember everything about you. Draco, I don't know who that girl is, but she has made you into the man that I always hoped you would be. I was so afraid you would grow up cold, and hard hearted, I'm just so glad you found love in time. You are in love aren't you?"

"Yes." He said softly.

"Then I'm going to go. You are in good hands with Hermione, treat her well. Write me before graduation?" Draco nodded. He hugged his mother, and kissed her on the cheek.

"Just promise me you will keep going to your check ups at Mungo's." She sighed heavily.

"Fine, if it will make you happy, then I'll go."

"Take care mum." She stood and went to the fireplace.

"I think I'm going to floo home, the muggle way takes far too long." She cupped his face in her hands. "I love you son."

"Love you mum." As swiftly as she came, she was gone, taking with her all her craziness. Trudging upstairs, Draco went into the bedroom and started unbuttoning his shirt. He looked over at the bed and saw Hermione with her back to him sleeping soundly, her lips parted slightly in her shallow breathing. Stripping down to his boxers, he crawled into bed next to her. Feeling the bed depress from his weight, she rolled over and rested her head against his chest, snuggling into him. He pulled her closer and kissed her on the top of her head affectionately. He closed his eyes, and let the end come to a very long day.

The next morning Hermione felt something stir beside her, then she felt the absence of Draco's warmth, and she opened her eyes lazily. She saw Draco trying to slip out of bed without waking her.

"I didn't mean to wake you." He said in a whisper.

"It's okay." She said, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She yawned loudly and stretched. Before he could get all the way out of bed, Hermione grabbed a handful of fabric from his boxers, pulling him back. "You're not going anywhere until you tell me what happened last night." Draco sighed and sat back down on the bed.

"My father died, I told you that." Hermione nodded and he continued. "But before he was sent to rot in Azkaban he destroyed my mum's memory. Being a big supporter of Voldermort, he had the power to wipe out everything completely. She couldn't remember anything. Who she was, where she was, and even remembering simple tasks like walking had become difficult to remember. It was like she was a baby again." Draco paused unsure how to continue. "The only thing they could do was send her to Mungo's, and the showed her pictures everyday, trying to get it to click. She remembers a lot more now, but there are times when she will blank out and forget what she was in the middle of talking about. She knows me now, but for months I was just the stranger who came to visit every Sunday."

Hermione reached out and squeezed his hand. "Draco I'm sorry."

"She can't remember my father, which is probably for the better, but she thinks that she just hit her head or something like that. I can't stand that the bloody bastard is still getting away with murder even after he died." Draco's face hardened and his free hand was clenching into a fist. But he looked over at Hermione who was looking at him with big sympathetic doe eyes and he softened. "I should have told you all this sooner." She shook her head.

"No, no. This is something you had to tell me in your own time. But now I have to ask, is there a secret wife and kids in some far off place that I should know about? Any stage names or undercover careers?" Draco laughed lightly, amused at her attempt to make him feel better.

"No, that's everything." He kissed her gently on the mouth. "I think." She swatted him on the back of the head. "Hey!" Arming himself with a pillow, he backed away from her. "Try that again, I dare you." Hermione picked up a pillow and chucked it, with all her might, at Draco's head. He moved just in time however, and he turned to look beside him where the pillow had fallen.

"Ha! Is that all you've- Ooph" Hermione threw another pillow at his head as he was turned around, but this time she didn't miss.

"Now what was that you were saying Malfoy?" She asked coyly.

"That you are dead meat Granger."

"Only if you can catch me!" She jumped off the bed and tore down the stairs, up the hallway and into the dining room. She could hear Draco close on her heels so she ran faster. Once she got to the table she went to the far side of it and watched Draco come sliding in out of breath. They locked eyes, and Draco started to mirror Hermione's movements. She put her hands on the back of a chair, and so did he. She stepped to the right, he stepped to the right. She moved left, he moved left, neither one blinking. Hermione was unsure how she was going to get herself out of this one. There was only one way out, and right now if she made a run for it he would catch her for sure. She felt something soft and furry brush up against her leg, and out of the corner of her eye she could see a blur of orange. "Crookshanks." She thought. "This could work…" Not breaking their eye contact, she slowly bent down and scooped him up in one hand. "Sorry about this Crookshanks, but you need to take one for the team." Hermione sent Crookshanks flying through the air in Draco's direction, meowing and scratching at the air all the way. Taken by surprised, Draco caught the very disgruntled cat giving Hermione a chance to run. Taking refuge behind the bushy Christmas tree, Hermione stayed as quiet as possible, listening for sounds of Draco coming her way. A minute later, there was still no sound coming from the dining room, so cautiously she stuck her head out around the tree, looking for movement.

Stepping out of her concealed hiding place, she moved away from the tree. Suddenly two strong hands grabbed her waist and picked her up, scaring the daylights out of her and causing her to scream at the top of her lungs.

"Ha! I got you!"

"PUT ME DOWN RIGHT THIS INSTANT DRACO MALFOY!" Laughing, Draco set her down.

"That wasn't funny. You know I don't like being scared like that."

"Oh Mi, you know I was just joking."

"Yeah well, well… just open your present." She said taking a seat on the overstuffed couch. Draco's birthday gift had been hard enough to pick out, so she had assumed the same would be true for Christmas and asked her mum for help. The Granger family had a very old pocket watch, one of a kind that has been passed down generation by generation to the male Grangers'. Hermione being a girl, her mum suggested giving it to Draco. Hermione hoped that he would like it, since it held no magical power and wasn't worth much in material value.

Draco found the small green box under the tree that had a tag with his name written in Hermione's neat, loopy writing. Gently lifting the lid and pushing aside the fluffy cotton, Draco picked up the ticking ancient watch.

"Hermione this is wonderful, thank you." He said earnestly.

"It's a bit of a family heirloom. I know you may not have much of a use for it, but it has a sentimental tie to my family."

"I love it, and I will take good care of it, I promise." He leaned forward across the couch and kissed her on the forehead. She smiled at him, and to herself, mentally congratulating herself on a gift well chosen.

"You're next." Draco said holding to hands behind his back. "Pick one." He told her. She thought for a moment, and then pointed to his protruding left elbow.

"That one." She decided. He smiled, and she thought she must have chosen the right one. Sure enough, he produced a long, thin, black, velvet box and held it out to her. She took it.

"Thank you so much Draco."

"You haven't even opened it yet, how do you know that you're going to like it?"

"I just know." She said excitedly. Slowly lifting the lid, her eyes grew wide, and her smile broader. In front of her was the most dazzling necklace she had ever laid eyes on. It was perfect in its simplicity, a solid gold chain holding a matching gold heart locket that was encrusted with one ruby, and one emerald, one on either side of the heart.

"Turn in over." Draco instructed. Awestruck, she did as he said and her eyes began to tear at the inscription on the back.

" i To the only Gryffindor that can tame the heart of a Slytherin, with all my undying love, Draco. /i " She read aloud. Delicately opening the clasp, she found a picture of her and Draco kissing on one side, and one of them dancing in the other. The smiling pictures waved up at her. "Draco it's so beautiful! I love it so much, I love you so much…" She began to sniffle.

"No, no crying yet. There is one more thing." He pulled his other hand out from behind his back, and grasped in his palm was another black velvet box, but this one was small and i square /i . "Happy Christmas."

Hermione gasped. "Oh please let those be matching earrings." She thought frantically to herself. "I'm only seventeen! I can't get married. Oh my god, oh Merlin no!" Her mind raced as she watched for signs that he was going to pop the question. He sat down beside her and took her hand in his, and then pushed the box toward her.

"Draco no, no the necklace is breathtaking and that alone was way too much, I don't… I mean I only got you that… and I can't possibly accept-"

"Take it." He said gently. She looked uneasily at the box, then back up at Draco, box, Draco, box, Draco, box, Draco, box, Draco, box…

"Hermione if you don't stop that then I will open it for you." He said finally. She awkwardly reached out and took it. Easing it open, she peaked inside, and then snapped it shut again.

"Draco…"

"Hermione Jane Granger…"

"Draco I…"

"I can't marry you." He said. Her head jerked violently to look at him, appalled.

"What?"

"I can't marry you right now, because we are too young and we have our whole lives and careers ahead of us, not to mention the rest of Hogwarts, but I want the entire world to know that you are mine, and mine only for the taking. I am promising, not proposing, that I will love you as long as my heart is still beating. And I promise you, that as long as I am here, I will never let anything or anyone harm you. And I promise to take care of you always, and to love you with every part of my being." He took to box from her hands and opened it, revealing once more the gold band with a circle cut diamond in the center. It was magnificent, but not overly showy. The diamond itself was rather modest, but perfect for Hermione. He removed the ring and took her left hand, sliding the ring onto her finger.

Hermione allowed the tears to flow freely down her hot cheeks and she threw her arms around Draco's neck. "I love you, I love you so much Draco Malfoy." She pulled back far enough to kiss him passionately on the lips. "I will never stop."