A/N: Thank you all so much for the lovely comments! I hope you're enjoying it so far. We're just getting started 😊 I've got a little bit of a longer chapter for you today.

When I awoke, I knew it was just another day, but something felt different. I knew Malfoy had changed, but some of the words he slung at me in our youth were ringing in my head as I readied for work. Deep down I knew I had nothing to prove, but I still let it get to me.

Knowing we were unlikely to be doing field work on our first day together, I dressed much as I had been for the last two weeks. I wasn't fond of wizarding robes as they didn't do much for my shape. Thankfully, muggle fashion was in these days. Digging through my closet I found a black pencil skirt that fell a little above my knees. Its tight fit highlighted my curves and gave me a nice shape.

I grabbed a white dressy, sleeveless top and finished off the outfit with a decorative belt and some black heels. It was far from the shapeless frocks I wore in school. Since my breakup with Ron, my fashion style had improved. Ginny had taken me shopping and I found that the right style of clothing can enhance your shape instead of hide it while still being tasteful. It definitely gave me a confident boost.

Looking in the mirror, I was satisfied with the outfit. My hair was falling in a nice, manageable wave and I decided to leave it down. A quick flick of my wrist and I cast my favorite make up charm which does just enough to enhance my natural features while not being obvious.

My stomach was churning as I grabbed my briefcase and prepared to apparate. I got to my office and settled my things before grabbing a quill and parchment to meet Harry as requested in the small conference room.

I arrived just as Harry did. "You ready for this?"

Straightening my shoulders I said, "As I told you last night, I'm coming at this with an open mind."

Harry was about to respond when the door opened and Malfoy walked in. He was wearing a muggle suit which surprised me, but I tried not to spend too much time appraising him. Harry and I both rose to shake his hand in welcome.

His eyes seemed to stay on mine a moment longer than necessary before he finally broke off and we all sat.

"Well, now that you are both here, we can kick things off." Harry sorted through some parchment and I wondered if he still used a check list when introducing new partners like he did when he first took over the position. "Mr. Malfoy, I want to formally welcome you to the team. This is a little bit of a different situation being as you two already know each other. As discussed in your transfer paperwork, you will be partnered with Miss Granger here." I had to keep from snorting as he tried to maintain his professionalism. "Now, I know there is history between you two which makes this pairing a bit more unique than others. There likely won't be any field work for you this first week unless something gets out of hand. I want the two of you focused on building some trust before I send you off together. I'd like you to have the necessary conversations to do so and also take some time to train together this week. Do either of you have any questions?"

Malfoy and I looked at each other before turning to shake our heads at Harry.

"Good. I don't have any specific things for either of you so just do what you need to do to feel comfortable around each other and come to me if there are any issues. I have high hopes for the two of you and I look forward to seeing your partnership progress."

With that, he took off and left us alone. I continued to sit up straight, but turned my attention to Malfoy. He was staring back at me hesitantly.

I was about to speak when he held up his hand. "Please, allow me to go first. I know I've apologized before and we remained civil during training, but I have had a lot of time to think things through since then and I want to apologize properly. Not just for my crimes seventh year, but before that too. My father was a controlling and abusive beast. Only through intense therapy have I truly been able to understand the damage he did to me as a child and, as a result, the damage I must have caused you. I want to make sure you are aware that my previous thoughts of muggleborns were not my own and I have always admired you. Your intelligence and bravery is unmatched, by anyone of this century at least, and I am honored to be partnered with you."

I was momentarily stunned by the sincerity of his words. "Malfoy, I told you long ago that I appreciate the apology. I don't claim to understand what it was like for you growing up, but I do know that we were just children trying to do the best we could. We're both adults now capable of thinking for ourselves and making our own decisions. I won't hold your past against you if you don't."

He swallowed thickly. "Thank you, Granger." Clearing his throat he added, "Now, what do I need to know around here? I haven't been back in years and I'm a bit out of touch with the team and any active investigations and what not."

I gave him a run down on anything he may have missed. "Do you still know your way around here, or could you use a refresher?"

"I would love a tour actually. I went straight from the training program to France and I'm afraid I never really spent time here."

"Fair enough. Let's go."

I took Malfoy around our floor and showed him the important areas he may need access to. There were plenty of stares to go around as we went and I did my best to ignore them. Malfoy being back and being paired with me would likely be a source of much speculation and gossip. Best to make his presence known and get it over with. People would get used to the idea. I hoped.

We decided to order in for lunch and take it back to the conference room.

"So, what brings you back to London if you don't mind me asking?"

Malfoy swallowed and dabbed his mouth delicately. I nearly laughed. If I asked Ron a question while we were eating, I was likely to get showered with food particles. At the very least Malfoy's manners would be an upgrade.

"I don't mind at all. If this is going to work, we are going to need to be open with one another. I enjoyed my time in France. They have a fascinating wizarding population and I enjoy the culture. It was great to get away to where people didn't recognize me around every turn and either try to convince me Voldemort's cause wasn't dead, or hex me as I walked down the street." His gaze dropped as he said this and I could sense the embarrassment through his honesty. "Anyways, Astoria had moved with me and we were set to fulfill a marriage contract that was set in stone before I was even born."

I interrupted him. "A marriage contract? That's barbaric!"

He chuckled. "You don't have to tell me twice. Though I knew Astoria well and it seemed comfortable to fulfill it. After everything I had been through it was easy to accept another choice that had been made for me at the time rather than waste the little energy I had left on something that seemed so benign. That's another story though. So, Astoria agreed to the marriage and came with me to France but I kept putting off committing to an actual wedding. She was alright with that and just kept planning it bigger and bigger. I didn't think too much of it, with our two families joining it was likely to be a large affair and spending all that time planning it seemed to fit."

He took a moment to take another bite, chew, and swallow as he thought over the next part. "The problem was, through it all we didn't have much of a relationship. I found a fire within myself to really give my career my all. I wanted to make up or balance out what I had done in my youth and it seemed the best way to do so. As a result, I was working quite long hours. Astoria just didn't get it. She was sheltered through much of the war and wasn't working beyond serving a few charities she volunteered here and there for. We had many fights about my job and we never got anywhere with it. I guess at some point she grew to resent that because she began to have an affair."

My eyes snapped to his and he nodded solemnly. "She didn't hide it well and I just ignored the signs at first. Then, about a year ago, I came home and found her with not one, but two men and a woman in our bed after a long day's work, I just couldn't do it after that. We were done. After that whole mess I went through some serious therapy and realized that I wanted to come back home. I put in a transfer request but it was denied due to the department being full but they promised to notify me if anything changed. The request expired after six months and I had just resubmitted it about a month ago so I was thrilled when Potter wrote to say there was an opening. I packed everything up, rented a flat and here I am."

"Wow. That's quite the story. I'm sorry that after everything, life continues to throw you hardships. Hopefully being back here can be the start you were hoping for when you moved initially. Out of curiosity, doesn't your mum still live in the manor? Why did you opt for your own place?"

He nodded in confirmation and glanced briefly at my forearm. "She does and she has done remarkable renovations. You'd hardly recognize it. That has allowed her to stay there and be at peace. For me however, there are too many horrors from my past to ever call that place home." He grasped for a change of subject though I found myself wishing to comfort him instead. "What about you? What's gone on in that life of the wonderful Hermione Granger the last six or so years?"

I wanted to laugh. My life was far from wonderful. "Well, it seems we have a bit in common these days. I too am a workaholic. Though I'm not sure I can blame my drive for Ron cheating on me last year. I think it's more to do with him than me, honestly."

Malfoy nearly spat out his drink. "Weasley was able to call you his for all those years and the bloody tosser cheated on you? He's a bigger idiot than I gave him credit for. I get why Astoria did it. We never had a spark and it was never for love, but I really thought he'd grown up a bit and appreciated what he had."

I was a bit flattered as well as shocked by his words. Never would I have ever expected to hear Malfoy compliment me like that.

"Well, it's been over for more than a year now, but we were still partners. It got worse and worse until we were supposed to do a raid with another team and he just didn't show causing us to cancel the whole thing. My planning was wasted and so was our day of productivity. It was the last straw and Harry finally had enough valid and documented instances to fire him. Sounds like it worked in both of our favors though so despite being disappointed I didn't get to be a part of nabbing those bastards, I'm kind of glad it happened."

He raised a brow. "Merlin, Granger. That sounds awful. Well, I'll make you a promise today. I don't care what goes down or how pissed you are at me for something stupid I said, I will always have your back. If you need me, I'll be there. It's what partners are for."

His words threw me and I was momentarily speechless. "Right back at you Malfoy. Though I rarely say anything stupid." I winked at him to lighten the mood and it worked. His laughter filled the room and we turned to more light hearted topics.