Wednesday and Thursday, September 20, 2001 (Very early in the morning)

Pansy brought Hermione to a hotel room she had booked for the night, having spent Hermione's birthday treating herself to a shopping trip in Paris despite having just visited as part of Astoria's engagement celebration. Hermione had floo'd to some of the European cities as part of the engagement tour but Astoria's parents were blissfully left unaware that their little girl consorted with that kind and Hermione had no problem abiding by that ignorance if it made her friends life easier.

Now, Hermione donned the tiny black lace piece Pansy had picked for her and let out a low whistle. Ever since she had let Pansy and Narcissa in and gave them free reign of her closet, she had gained an appreciation for quality pieces like this dress. Pansy had been all about gold detailing back when they first became friends which Hermione strongly opposed, but delicate lace detailing and a good pair of heels were common grounds the girls could always retreat to.

That, and politics.

"My father has been quite uncomfortable since Draco was released, which is perfectly fine with me because it's translated to his being nicer to Ron, which makes them both uncomfortable which is more fun to watch than it should be," Pansy explained as she used her wand to curl Hermione's hair.

Hermione was deliberating between two pairs of earrings she had narrowed down to and made a little 'hmm' noise, aware Perneus Parkinson was terrified that his daughter – the brilliant woman Hermione had befriended almost immediately after House affiliations became irrelevant – might fall back into the arms of her one-time boyfriend and long-time best friend.

After the war had ended and Perneus came to terms with the fact that he would never have a son, he took a good look at his daughter. While his wife moaned on and on that Pansy lacked the proper motivation needed to find a good husband, Perneus found a killer politician in need of guidance. He took her in and found her a position as a Wizengamot aide, walked her through the family vaults and explained all their earnings, and officially named her as his heir. She had her own personal portfolio and vaults, which she had to her father's immense pride grown by a respectable 40% in two years through smart investments.

In twenty years she would take his Wizengamot seat, but she wasn't waiting until then.

When she started dating Ron, Perneus thought it was purely for the optics; the woman who had offered up Harry Potter to the Dark Lord now dating said savior's best friend. When he found out his daughter had legitimately fallen for the impoverished pureblood, he hemmed and he hawed. All of his work to build Pansy up into the son he never had, ruined! Then one night Ron admitted over a man's only nightcap that while it is a bit of a radical lefty position, he would be happy to stay at home and raise the children. Pansy was a woman with drive and he wouldn't stop her from ruling the world. Hell, with five older brothers, he also wouldn't oppose to giving one of their imaginary, someday children the Parkinson name.

Perneus nearly wrote up the betrothal contract for the two then and there.

"We had a very long talk about his treatment of Draco in court," Pansy went on, switching from the left side of Hermione's head to the right, "And set him straight. Draco and I are as likely to get back together as you and Ron are." Pansy said, laughing when Hermione unwittingly made a sour face.

"I know far too much about your sex life to condone this conversation continuing in any capacity," Hermione muttered, opting for the sapphire earrings and grabbing the black clutch Pansy had at some point stolen from her bedroom.

"Come on, let's go."

Pansy had chosen a club the two had been two a few times before in Paris. It was Luna's dyed head of pink hair that caught their attention first, drawing them to the table occupied by her, both Greengrass sisters, Padma Patil, and several of the women Hermione and Pansy knew through their dealings at the Ministry, from administrative services to diplomatic relations to legal affairs.

Pansy was using Hermione's birthday as a front for some negotiation or other, but Hermione supported her entirely and ordered them both a glass of wine while Pansy made the requisite hellos on the far side of the table.

Hermione spent most of the night with her, Daphne, Astoria, and Padma only chiming in with the others when Pansy would include her for some thing or another. By around midnight the ministry types left, and Pansy returned her full attention to the remaining girls.

"Finally. Now let's get this witch wrecked."

. . . . .

All the while that was happening, Draco watched a football match with Ron and Harry. Ron had made it his personal mission to instruct Draco on the rules of the sport but Harry had informed Draco on their way into the stadium that Ron's grasp was fairly loose, and so it began that every time Ron explained what was happening wrongly, Harry would drink and so Draco would drink. By the twenty minute mark, both wizards were giggling whenever Ron said 'balls', and the rest of the night was spent with Ron trying to catch up and all three men erupting into loud cheers whenever it seemed something had happened.

They were too far gone by the end of the night, so Harry suggested flooing home from a local pub that had an open connection. They ended up in the library where Draco collapsed onto a sofa. Harry only made it as far as a few feet down the hall from the library door before he found a square of carpet that looked extra inviting and crumped against the wall to doze off into a sound sleep.

It was like that that Hermione found Draco around two in the morning as she stumbled in through the same grate, her makeup largely faded from a night out and her curls lacking their earlier bounce. Her calm disposition ruined, her face grew hot as she became suddenly enraged with the blond on the couch.

"Why did you give me the bracelet?" Hermione demanded, her voice much higher than necessary as she shook Draco awake. He jumped immediately, not much of a heavy sleeper, and rubbed at his tingling face while he tried to make sense of what the witch was going on about.

"The bracelet!" she yelled again when he didn't have an immediate answer, shoving said birthday gift under his nose.

"Pansy recognized it and said she had a similar one at home, said you had spent hours picking just four charms for hers that you even liked but mine has six. Why would you do all of this…" and at this point Hermione fell forward onto her knees, tired and losing her will to fight, "do all of this for me?"

Draco rested his elbows on his knees and hid his face in his hands, trying to make sense of the situation he'd woken up to. Hermione was clearly drunk, if not evident from her random tirade than by her lack of volume control, and clearly mad at him.

"You give me this bracelet and tell me that we're friends but you couldn't stand me when we were children. You were the first of a very long list of people who were cruel to me and made me question whether or not I even deserved magic," Hermione whispered, visibly on the brink of tears. She had been walking on eggshells for weeks, waiting for them to collide or for their tentative peace to crumble around them and their old animosity to resume.

"You don't get to just decide for yourself that we're friends."

Draco gulped and looked up at the witch but she wasn't as angry looking as she had been once she realized Draco was asleep in the library. She looked wounded and broken and Draco figured this was what he got for not saying something sooner.

"I've needed to apologize to you for weeks now for how I treated you when we were kids. I know that. I've just been… avoiding it, honestly, because I couldn't figure out how. I would have just mucked it up," Draco said, reaching a hand out and grabbing Hermione's as she wiped at her nose, her eyes fulled tears she refused to cry.

"I don't give a fuck, Draco! I deserved to hear it anyways!" Hermione shouted, again losing control of her volume.

Draco slipped off the couch to kneel in front of Hermione, who had a single tear working its way along her nose. He wrapped his arms around her, having learned over weeks of living with her, that she preferred physical interaction.

"I'm sorry for hurting you when we were young. I was the worst person you knew for years and I never apologized for how horrid I was, even after you saved me. But I don't think I made the decision by myself to be friends with you, so I hope you don't make the decision by yourself to end our friendship. I'll be better in the future, I promise."

Hermione sniffled and nodded, resting her head on Draco's shoulder and calming down as she listened to him breathing. When it became clear one of them was going to fall asleep sitting that way, Draco tugged her until they were both standing and walked her to her room. She gave him a smile and a nod, answering the question he didn't quite ask in the library, and went into her room.

Draco walked into his room feeling lighter than he had in days.