Only two chapters left after this! I think tomorrow I'll begin posting the other story I've been working on. Also, for those of you who are interested, I finished posting The Victors' Return.

Chapter 19
Their sleeping arrangement had been tentative at first. Oftentimes, Draco fell asleep in their bed after a late night of talking or helping Hermione with the laundry. Some nights, he returned to the sofa when a particularly bad nightmare plagued him. Most nights, though, he climbed into bed fresh from the shower and wrapped his arms around his wife. Before whispering good night, he would kiss her.

He often awoke earlier than she, and watched her as she slept. Around her neck, she still wore his wedding ring, and he fingered it gently. A brief flash passed before his eyes, and he shut them tightly to hold onto it. But all he saw was a brief glimpse of Hermione in a white dress as she walked down the aisle. It was simple and elegant, and instead of a veil, a band of small white flowers was woven into her hair. She smiled at him just as the vision ended. Opening his eyes, he saw that Hermione was awake and smiling at him.

"Morning," she said softly.

"You seemed restless last night," he commented, tucking a curl behind her ear. "Did you get much sleep?"

She shrugged. "A bit," she said through a yawn. "He was kicking a lot last night."

His hand lovingly stroked her stomach. "You still think it'll be a boy?" he wondered.

"Doubting your ability to guess the genders of our children?" she inquired with a very Malfoy-like smirk on her lips.

"Hardly," he scoffed. "When have I ever been wrong? About anything."

Laughing, she rolled onto her left side so her back was to him. Her shoulders shook with mirth and tears began to form in her eyes. Getting her giggles under control, she turned back to him and said, "I can think of...ten times just off the top of my head when you've been wrong."

"Prove it," he challenged, laughing along with her.

"The time you suggested that Ana's diaper didn't really need to be changed every time she soiled it," she said.

Rolling his eyes, he replied, "Pick something I can actually remember."

She seemed deep in thought, staring off to a space beyond their bed. She wracked her brain for a memory they shared. Finally, she said, "You once said you were a better Seeker than Harry. And we both know just how often he proved you wrong."

"Fine," he replied. "I'll give you that one. Now can we stop listing all the horrible things about me?"

Her hand smoothed over his fabric covered chest. "It's not a horrible thing," she told him. "You were just a bit...self-confident. Harry wasn't much better though. Six years of bragging about being the greatest Seeker Hogwarts had ever seen. He was a nightmare after every win."

Draco chuckled. "You weren't much better, as I recall," he said with a grin.

"Yes, me - Hogwarts' Quidditch champion," she retorted as she rolled her eyes.

"I meant with your need to prove that you were smarter than the rest of us," he replied. "You never really needed to. We all knew you were the best in the class. Or maybe you weren't showing off. Maybe you just wanted us to notice you."

Hermione tried to pull back, but his arms held her close. Instead, she rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. "You noticed, but never in a good way," she muttered.

Sitting up, he leaned over her and kissed her softly. "I notice now," he told her. "And it's definitely in a good way."

She caressed his cheek. "I wish you remembered more," she said sadly.

"Me too," he agreed. "Some things are coming back though. Little things like where you keep that gold necklace that belongs to your mother. I don't think I've seen it since I woke up, but I know that you keep it wrapped in tissue paper at the bottom of your jewelry box. I also know that you have a brooch shaped like a kitten that your grandmother gave you when you were five, and you once said you'd give it to Ana on her fifth birthday. But I wish I could remember the bigger stuff."

"Those aren't unimportant things," she assured him. "And you're right, I haven't told you about either of them since you came home. It's a good sign, sweetheart, a really good sign."

He laid back down beside her, and Hermione turned to face him. "But what if I only ever remember these little things?" he wondered.

"One more week and the potion will be completed," she said, trying to sound hopeful. "Everything will come back to you then."

"I just want it to come back before this little guy gets here," he replied. His hand skimmed over her stomach and he felt his baby kick. Even after months of being home, he was still awed by the life inside of her. "Did you ever say that you'd never have kids?"

"I did," she replied. "I first decided after fourth year when Voldemort returned. I swore I would never bring children into a world as corrupt as ours was. Even after it ended, I was still afraid that it could happen again."

"You told me that a few months after we became friends," he realized. He sat up with a puzzled look on his face as he tried to piece together the memory. "No, just after we started dating. We were in the bookshop, and they had a huge display of pregnancy books. And you looked at it and declared that you would never have children. What changed your mind?"

Hermione sat up beside him and pulled his arm back around her. "You," she replied simply. "Us being together, things changed in our world. It was more peaceful. People were more accepting of relationships like ours."

"That's what Blaise meant when he said our marriage changed the wizarding world," Draco interjected.

She nodded. "After you proposed, you told me you wanted a family," she continued. "Then you told me again how badly you wanted kids after we got married. It wasn't until our first anniversary that I gave in to trying. It was the day the last of the Death Eaters were caught."

Turning to her, Draco reached out and touched the ring hanging from her neck once more. She reached around and unhooked the clasp. He let go to allow her to slip it off the chain. Then she took his left hand and pushed the ring onto his finger. "Do you think you could happy with me for the rest of your life?" she asked.

He leaned forward to kiss her. "That's another thing I was wrong about. Saying I'd never marry someone like you," he said, before deepening the kiss.