A/N: Yay, thanks for all the reviews, and for waiting a few extra days for this next chapter. :) We're so glad you guys are enjoying this fic! And sorry, we've been so busy we haven't had time to reply to your reviews, but soon we should have more time. Hope you like this chapter- there isn't as much Ralph in it, but it does set up something very important for the next chapter. :D We won't make you guys wait so long for that one!

Chapter 8

Later that morning, Hermione owled Ginny, deciding that she owed the redhead. She wasn't surprised to receive her friend in her office half an hour later.

"You slept with him?" Ginny squealed as soon as she shut the door. "Hermione, you slept with him?"

Hermione looked confused. "Yes and no," she said, frowning at Ginny. "Yes, we slept together, but no, not in the way you're obviously thinking."

"Oh." Ginny sank down onto a chair, relieved. "I thought you took my advice the wrong way and slept with Draco. That would have been moving rather fast, no matter how irresistible he is."

"He's not irresistible," Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Mrs. Malfoy," Ginny said teasingly. She brandished Hermione's letter. "'Dear Gin, just want you to know that we took your advice and slept together last night. It was great-worked like a charm. Thanks, Hermione.'"

Hermione's face burned. "Sorry, I just dashed that off, I was rather busy." She buried her face in her hands. "It sounds all wrong, doesn't it?"

Ginny sighed and pulled Hermione's hands apart. "It doesn't sound wrong to sleep with your husband, Hermione."

"He's not my husband," Hermione objected angrily. "Well, technically, he is, but he doesn't feel like one. I don't love him."

"I know, you say that every time we talk." Ginny waited for Hermione to calm down. "Are you two friends yet?"

"Define 'friends.'"

"Oh, come off it, Hermione. You're the walking dictionary, you know what a friend is."

Hermione pursed her lips, reluctantly considering Ginny's question. "Well, we haven't killed each other yet. I remember to call him 'Draco' now. And we talk decently sometimes. Other times we don't talk at all." She sighed. "I suppose he's not that bad. I still can't believe I married him."

"You know, sometimes I wonder if that's the problem," Ginny said, frustrated. "You say that you can't believe you married him, you don't love him, you must have gone temporarily insane- you're so negative. You don't love him because you don't want to love him."

"I'd love him if I could-"

"No, I don't think you would," Ginny stood up. "You hate him, and you enjoy hating him. You choose not to love him because you think that would change everything."

Hermione stood up as well. "What do you mean, I think it would change everything? Everything has changed!"

"But you don't want to accept that it has! It changed four years ago-no, more, since you two started going out; you just can't remember it. Hating Draco is the only thing you remember, and that's what you're holding on to. Maybe he's holding onto the same thing! But if you'd stop pitying yourself for being in this position, and try to love him- don't fight it, Hermione, even though I know you'd rather fight the attraction- maybe things will revert back to the normal that you don't remember."

"It's easy for you to say, you're not the one this is happening to!" Hermione turned away, her eyes filling with tears. After several deep breaths, she turned to face Ginny again. "I'm sorry, Gin. It's just- this is just really difficult."

"I understand," Ginny said, giving Hermione a hug. "I'm just trying to help."

"I know." Hermione wiped her eyes and sighed.

"If you remember everything tomorrow, and you remember that you love Draco, won't you feel rather silly about not loving him now? I mean, you'll probably look back and think, how could I not love him," Ginny said. "I think you do love him, Hermione. You're just trying very hard not to."

Hermione shook her head. "If I loved him, I'd know."

They were silent for a few moments, before Ginny cleared her throat. "Fleur and I had an idea, Hermione, if you're willing to try it."

"What is it?" Hermione asked, sitting down again and getting some tissue from her bag.

"We think you and Draco should go out on a date. For some alone time, you know. Ralph can sleep over, you know he loves sleeping over- oops," Ginny said sheepishly, remembering that Hermione didn't know. "I mean, he does love it, and you and Draco can go out. Don't even try falling in love. Just enjoy the evening. Take a break. Learn about each other."

"I'll think about it," Hermione drew a shaky breath. "I'll ask Draco one time. Maybe not now when he's still lacking sleep- I've learned to never tickle a sleepless dragon either."

Ginny chuckled and nodded. "Are you all right now? I'm sorry about earlier, I know this is hard on you. It's a bit frustrating for me too."

"It's fine." Hermione smiled and stood to hug Ginny. "I'll let you know what Draco has to say."

"You do that." Ginny pulled away from their hug and smiled at her friend. "Do you know what you said to us when you first told us you were with Draco? You said that you're Hermione Granger, brightest witch of your age, and that we should trust you to make the right decision. We did trust you, and you did make the right decision. So you should try doing that now, Hermione. You know you wouldn't have married Draco without reason, so try to see what those reasons were."

Hermione chuckled. "Did I actually say that?"

"Something to that effect. It was quite dramatic, really, but who could blame us for reacting strongly? It was big news. You might even have said something like 'I'm Hermione Granger and no one, not even you, Harry Potter, can tell me what to do!'"

"Really? God, I was full of myself. Well, it's different now. I'm Hermione Malfoy, and Ralph can certainly tell me what to do."

--

"I wonder why we ever thought it was going to work," Draco mused one evening. Hermione glanced over at him and closed her book. One thing Hermione had discovered in the few nights that they had shared a bed- Draco loved to talk about things before going to sleep. She sighed and turned off the light, snuggling under the covers.

"Thought what was going to work?"

"Our marriage. Us. I wonder why we thought we would work." He gazed at the ceiling, his hands tucked comfortably behind his head. "What was that defining moment?"

Hermione shrugged and wriggled around, getting comfortable. "Was there a defining moment? Maybe we were never sure, but we were willing to risk it."

"Slytherins are always sure," he murmured. His eyes drifted shut.

"If you kept a journal, you might know the answer to that," she remarked, closing her eyes as well. Hermione had to admit, this was one of her favourite times to spend with him. Just before going to sleep, when he was too sleepy or tired to think of insults, when he just wanted to talk. The first few times she hadn't answered him, wondering if his questions where rhetorical. But after a while she realized that he wanted to discuss things with her. In the past few days Draco had wondered about how he proposed, what Ralph would be like when he grew up, what George forgot when he tested the potion on himself, who would inherit the Burrow, and a multitude of other thoughts.

"I wonder what our wedding was like."

"You saw the pictures."

"I don't mean what it looked like, I mean, what it was like. How did Father and Potter treat each other? Did Mother cry? Was I nervous, or just excited? How did I feel when I saw you walking down the aisle, towards me?"

"I wonder what you used to wonder about when you knew the answers." Her voice was already thick with sleep.

He frowned, although she couldn't see. "Don't you wonder?"

"Sometimes. Goodnight, Draco."

"Goodnight." He turned his head slightly, stealing a glance at her. "Anyway, I bet you looked amazing," he murmured sleepily, closing his eyes.

Hermione smiled.

The next night, Hermione decided to bring up Ginny's idea. Sharing a bedroom- sharing a bed- put things in a different perspective, and Hermione had to admit that aside from helping her and Draco sleep at night, it also made their marriage seem much more real. They were forced to accept that they were indeed married.

"A date?" Draco asked skeptically as they turned down the bed covers and got ready for bed. "She wants us to go on a date?"

Hermione nodded. "I think it's so that we'll get to know each other better. It's sort of like starting over- it'll be our first date all over again."

Draco drummed his fingers thoughtfully before climbing into bed. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt. It might even be fun. Might."

"She said we can leave Ralph with them for the night, he apparently loves sleeping over."

"All right. I doubt it'll make us remember, but it's probably a step in the right direction."

Hermione got into bed and reached for her journal, which she used for bedtime reading. "Ginny seems to have thought about this a lot, actually," she said with a wry smile. "I know she means well, but she does tend to meddle in other people's affairs."

"Not unlike you, actually," Draco couldn't resist adding. Then he looked apologetic. "Well, you're not like that now, but you were before."

His words hurt, but Hermione had to admit that they held a grain of truth. She turned back to her journal. "It's all right."

"So," Draco said, oblivious as always to her wish to read, "is Ginny your confidant?" He had to admit, he didn't exactly trust the redhead not to gossip.

"No, not really." Hermione frowned. "Harry and Ron are still the ones I prefer to talk to. Ginny just… thinks about it more, I suppose. I think she finds it quite romantic, the thought of helping us fall in love again or regain our memories."

"My mum's the same," he sighed. "She doesn't give suggestions like Ginny, but she's forever asking how things are."

"Oh, Merlin, I've forgotten!" She clapped a hand to her forehead. "I should ring my mum. It's been ages since I've spoken to her." She sighed, looking troubled.

"What's wrong with calling her?"

Hermione hesitated. She wasn't sure how much Draco knew. "Memory loss is a touchy subject with my parents. I'm not sure if I'd rather they not know about this. They'd probably have fits if they found out."

Draco stretched out across the bed and yawned lazily. "I heard something about that before, but I thought it was a crazy rumour. What happened?" He opened his eyes and found Hermione sitting tensely, her fingers clenched too tightly on the journal.

"Hey," he said suddenly, sitting up as well. He reached over and gently pried her fingers from the book. "If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine. No need to even think about it." He stretched across her and set the journal down on the bedside table.

Hermione slumped back onto her pillows and closed her eyes. "What happened was the war, and an eighteen year old witch who thought she was doing the right thing."

Draco's eyebrows shot up. "You modified their memories?"

"I changed their identities," she replied fiercely, her hands now clenching tightly on the duvet. "I changed their names, sent them off to Australia, and made them forget they ever had a daughter. I thought I'd spare them the pain and danger."

"But you fixed it, didn't you?"

She gave a mirthless laugh. "I fixed their memories, but that was all I could fix. How do you trust someone who has that much power over you? It's taken time for us to rebuild our relationship, and it's still not the same, but it's much better now than it was a few years ago."

Draco was quiet for a while. "I think you did the right thing."

"I think so too, sometimes. Other times I'm not too sure. I don't think being spared the pain of losing a child is worth forgetting them. I hate that we've forgotten Ralph."

"At least your parents remember you now," Draco pointed out. "Look, stop thinking about it for now. Ring your parents tomorrow, tell them we're all fine and we'll visit soon. But for now, try to sleep."

Hermione nodded and took a deep breath. She forced herself to relax, and then looked at Draco. "Thanks."

He only nodded and waved his wand, extinguishing the lights in the room, leaving them in darkness. They both moved around a bit, getting settled. After a moment, Draco said, "I wonder when we decided to have Ralph. Was it a conscious decision, or did it just… happen?"

Hermione groaned and turned over. "Goodnight."

But while sleep soon claimed Draco, Hermione lay awake. She didn't think she could lie to her parents again, but at the same time, telling them the truth seemed so difficult. Draco's suggestion- an omission of the truth- was a possibility, but who knew how long it would be before they regained their memories? How would her parents feel if they were to find out that she had deliberately left them out of her life again? She sighed and shifted position, brushing her hair out of her face. She had to tell them. But that decision didn't make sleep come any easier.

The next morning Hermione was woken up by a hand shaking her shoulder. "Hermione, it's time for breakfast."

She cracked open an eye and looked up at Draco, who was already completely dressed. He blinked down at her and she groaned, sitting up and running a hand through her tangled curls. "Morning," she mumbled.

"Merlin, Granger, you look horrible," Draco remarked. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"No. I stayed up listening to your snoring," she said crossly, irritated that he just tactlessly had to point out that she wasn't looking her best.

"I don't snore!"

She rolled her eyes and flopped back onto the bed. "I was joking. I did sleep- eventually. I came to the conclusion that I should tell my parents about us." She looked at him seriously. "I can't exclude them again. They should know."

Draco shrugged. "You know them better than I do."

"So you're fine with it?" Hermione asked, amazed that it had been so easy. She had spent half the night wondering how she would convince him to agree.

He looked amused. "Did you expect me to argue?" He chuckled as she nodded sheepishly. "Hermione, I don't contradict you for the sake of contradicting you- well, all right, I do, but not all the time. If you spent hours thinking about it last night, then you must have some pretty solid reasons. And if we spend any more time talking about this, we're both going to be late for work."

Hermione cursed as she leaped out of bed, checking the clock to see if he was right. Draco laughed as he made his way to Ralph's room to check on their son.

At breakfast, Hermione told Ralph about Ginny's sleepover idea. He was delighted.

"I'm not sure when exactly, but shall I tell your Aunt Ginny that you want to?"

"Tonight!"

"Probably not tonight," Hermione said, considering her schedule. "It's Thursday today- maybe tomorrow would be better. We'll see."

"Yay!" Ralph jumped out of his chair. "I'll tell Jeeves," he said, running out of the room.

Hermione watched him go, then checked her watch. "I'll call my parents after work," she told Draco, finishing her tea and standing up. He glanced up from the Prophet and nodded, reaching for his own cup of coffee. "I still haven't figured out how to tell them, actually. I was thinking, Ralph and I could have dinner with them one evening, and I'll tell them then. I think they'll react less strongly if Ralph is around."

"Good point," Draco agreed, carefully folding the newspaper and standing up as well. "And you think they'll react more strongly if I'm there?"

"I'm not sure." She bit her lip. "I'm not sure what sort of relationship you have with my parents. In my journal, I wrote that they like you. But I thought you might rather do something else that night. I mean, I'm sure there are other places you'd rather be, other people you'd rather see." Hermione had no idea what Draco's social life had been like before they had lost their memories, but these days it seemed he never saw his own friends- it was always dinner with her and Ralph, or a day with his parents or the Weasleys. Her journal did mention that Draco sometimes went out with his friends, and she felt guilty that he had had to give that up. "It'll just be awkward and you deserve a break, Draco. You haven't had the chance to meet some of your own friends in ages."

Draco felt surprise, soon followed by admiration, for her consideration. He had avoided seeing his friends, wanting to get his family sorted out first. He didn't realize Hermione had noticed. "But you deserve a break too."

She smiled at him and together they made their way back to their bedroom. "I don't have many other friends to see, aside from Harry and Ron, and I see those two all the time. Besides, you can take a break now, and I'll take one another time."

"So would Wednesday be good?" Draco asked, thinking quickly. If he and Hermione went on a 'date' tomorrow, and spent the rest of the weekend with Ralph, he could use Monday and Tuesday to get some work done and go out on Wednesday with a clear conscience.

"Wednesday would be fine." Hermione disappeared into their bathroom to brush her teeth. Draco grinned to himself, unable to contain his excitement. He felt a twinge of guilt, leaving Hermione to handle her parents alone, but he brushed it off. She had suggested it, after all.

Later that day, in between paperwork, Hermione fire-called Ginny and asked her if Ralph could sleep over the next night. The redhead was, of course, delighted, so at lunch Hermione called Ralph to check on him and to confirm the plans. The last person that she called was Draco, to ask him to book a restaurant. Then she settled back behind her desk and tried to concentrate, banishing images of her impending date with her husband.

Hermione's last task that day was calling her parents. Draco handled Ralph, agreeing to help him colour some drawings, while Hermione nervously went over to the telephone. After two minutes of staring at it, she finally picked up the phone and dialled.

"Hello?" Mrs. Granger picked up on the third ring.

"Hey, Mum, it's me," Hermione tried to mask the nervousness in her voice. "Just calling to ask how you are."

"Oh, hello dear," Mrs. Granger said. "It's Hermione," she said in a softer tone, presumably to Hermione's dad. "Your father and I are fine. He sends his love. How is Ralph?"

"He's fine, rather excited, as usual." Hermione twisted the cord around her fingers, not quite sure what to say. "I was thinking of taking him to visit you one time."

"That would be wonderful!" Mrs. Granger said happily. "I'd love to see him again. We've got things to do this weekend, I'm afraid- we promised we'd go down and visit your Aunt Jo- but perhaps next week?"

"I was thinking of next Wednesday, actually, for dinner."

"Oh dear, we've got tickets for the theatre on Wednesday. Would Thursday be all right?"

"Draco's meeting some friends for dinner on Thursday, but Ralph and I can visit you." Hermione hoped Draco didn't mind postponing his dinner by one night.

Mrs. Granger paused. "So Draco won't be coming? We could try Friday instead."

Hermione was surprised to hear disappointment in her mother's voice. "We can plan another dinner for when Draco's available. There's... something I needed to talk to you about."

"About Draco? Are you two fighting?"

"We always fight, Mum," Hermione let out a small laugh. "Yes, this does concern him. But no, we're not getting a divorce." At least, we're trying not to.

"All right," Mrs. Granger said, sounding doubtful. "So it's something serious, but it can wait until Thursday?"

"Yes. Don't think about it too much, it's not life or death." Hermione suddenly realized that her parents might worry. "It's nothing too horrible," she said, trying to force some cheerfulness into her voice. "In fact, in the near future, we might even laugh about it. Oh never mind, I'm just making things worse. Just- don't worry. Ralph and I will see you on Thursday, we'll probably arrive around 5:30, is that all right?"

They chatted a bit more before saying goodnight, and Hermione went up to join Draco as they tucked Ralph into bed.