This chapter is dedicated to gravity01 for pointing out a very stupid mistake that I managed to somehow make. How? I don't know. But Draco Malfoy is definitely not a bachelor in this story. FIXED AS OF DECEMBER 16th/11.
Chapter Nineteen: Three Weeks Later
THE DAILY PROPHET
WAR HERO REUNITED WITH SON
It was just this past weekend when Hermione Weasley, war hero and best friend to Head Auror Harry Potter, was once again reunited with her son, Hugo Weasley. After an unfortunate kidnapping and a terrible ordeal, the once terrified mother has once again been put to ease, as have four other families thanks to the dynamic duo of Mr. Draco Malfoy and the aforementioned Harry Potter.
Daily Prophet's top breaking news reporter Beatrice Sacket was able to get an interview with the unfortunate mother.
/
"How does it feel to be reunited with your son, Mrs. Weasley?" the reporter asked.
Hermione smiled stiffly, not sure why she had let Harry persuade her into doing this. He had said that it would be rather good for the press, to show the world that she and Hugo were coping. It was all she could do not to pull Hugo to her tighter and bolt from the room completely. Instead, she forced herself to relax her shoulders, appear at ease, and give no inclination of her discomfort. She wanted this to go well just as much as everyone else.
"I'm very relieved, as you can probably imagine," Hermione responded, stroking Hugo's hair. Hugo didn't move, didn't give any indication that he was aware of the motherly gesture. But Hermione had become used to this in the past few weeks and she understood. "We were put through quite the ordeal."
The reporter nodded, scribbling something down. "What will you do now that this is all over?" The reporter smiled.
Hermione knew that the woman was only trying to be nice and comforting, but she really didn't want to be here. After all, she'd only had three weeks with her son all to herself, and that had been periodically punctuated with Aurors coming in to question them, healers, tests, diagnostics, testimonies... It had all been exhausting for both Hugo and her. But Hugo hadn't given any inclination that he minded as much as his mother so clearly did.
In all honesty, she didn't know how to respond to the woman's question. She didn't really know what she wanted to do with her life now that everything was over. She knew she needed change, knew that Hugo definitely needed something more than what their lives had been. She just didn't know what that would be yet.
"I'm not sure to be honest. But I do know that I won't be returning to my post at the Ministry of Magic. It hasn't been conducive to the life I want to lead with my son." Hermione softly kissed Hugo's dark hair. He leaned against her, showing for the first time that he was actually paying attention to what was going on around him. "And I plan to spend all of my time with my son." Hugo held her hand and she was able to put on her first genuine smile.
The reporter seemed touched by the display of affection between the mother and son. Who wouldn't be moved by such a sweet picture? Hermione didn't blame her. She felt like crying herself. Even though it was all over, she couldn't help but feel remorse for what her son had been through. She knew that Hugo would never be the same, she would never be the same. All they could do now was try their best to move past it.
"What can you say about the involvement of Mr. Malfoy?" the reporter asked once she had gathered her wits about her.
A puzzled look spread over Hermione's face. "What about it?"
"Well...My information says that you two have quite a history."
"We were not on friendly terms in school, yes," Hermione confirmed. "We were different people then, though. I'm not sure how this pertains to your question."
"How has your relationship with Mr. Malfoy affected the time you spent together during the course of the investigation?" the woman asked. It was clear she was digging for a story, which was her job after all, but Hermione didn't know if there was a story to tell.
Yes, the last couple of weeks had been a rollercoaster of activity and a whirlwind of emotion. Malfoy had tossed her up and down, not that she'd been any better. Could it really have been only a few short weeks ago that she'd collapsed on his office floor? So much had happened since then, yet there was so much left to be said. She hadn't seen Malfoy for the past few weeks, didn't know where he was or what he was doing. She had no idea when she'd see him again.
That was the thing, though. She knew she wanted to see him again. Desperately. If only just to thank him for all he'd done for her and Hugo, or something along the lines. Because he had done the world for her, even though he didn't have to. He had almost died and still hadn't given up. She'd never seen that kind of dedication in a man and it was really attractive.
It was too bad he was already married.
Shaking her head clear of the direction her thoughts were venturing towards, Hermione glanced up at the waiting reporter. "There isn't much to say there. He was kind and polite the entire time we spent together." Hermione shrugged.
That was close enough to the truth. He had been kind and polite. He'd also been evil and hotly passionate. He'd been something she hadn't even known she was looking for all this time. He'd been gentle when she'd needed it, a distraction when she'd craved it. He'd been goddamn attractive, that was for sure.
But that wasn't appropriate to say to the media.
"Then he did not go against you for your blood status?" the reporter prodded.
Hermione's blood boiled at the question. There they were again. Blood status – the one thing that just wouldn't go away in this society. Hermione didn't understand what the fascination with it was. Malfoy had clearly gotten over it so why was everyone intent on making him seem like the bad guy? He wasn't the Death Eater brat he'd been back at school and he definitely was nothing like the bully she'd endured for six years. He'd grown up and moved on. Wizarding Britain seriously needed to do the same.
"You know, I'm rather disappointed and disgusted in you and whatever establishment you're working for," Hermione said, her voice cold. The reporter's eyes widened. "Instead of celebrating the fact that Mr. Malfoy worked tirelessly day and night to restore my son to me, you're intent on making him seem like a discriminating bastard."
"That's was not-"
"Grow up! Malfoy clearly has. He's done so much for our society, brought in so many criminals to face justice, and you lot still want to paint him in a corner for things he had been forced to do in the past!" Hermione was seething and the reporter was clearly scared. "Malfoy is an upstanding individual and I will stand by whatever he does wholeheartedly. I suggest you refrain from asking such derogatory questions in the future."
And with that, Hermione picked Hugo up into her arms and left the room. The interview was clearly over. She wasn't going to take part in any type of Malfoy bashing, not after everything they'd gone through! She realized that she'd probably overreacted, but she was still dealing with the stress and indecision. There was no way she was going to live down whatever the idiot reporter was going to publish.
Hopefully, it wouldn't be too bad.
/
Mrs. Hermione Weasley reports wanting to leave her post at the Ministry of Magic and a preference to be called "Ms. Granger" once more , news that shocked many of our staff here at the Daily Prophet. As our readers are aware, we have been tracking Mrs. Weasley's career and personal life for the past half decade since the untimely demise of Ronald Weasley.
Beyond quickly climbing the ranks at her post in the Ministry of Magic, Mrs. Weasley has never once expressed the wish to revert back to her maiden name. We can only assume that this means she has moved past the death of her husband and back into the market of lucky single males.
We have it on good source that Ms. Granger expresses a deep affinity and liking in Mr. Draco Malfoy, expert wizarding criminologist and dark wizard tracker. An anonymous source reports Ms. Granger's obvious lust and adoration of Britain's most eligible bachelor. Beatrice Sacket reports the pair have grown close together over the course of the disappearance of Ms. Granger's son, who has thankfully been restored to his mother's hands.
What this means for Mr. Malfoy's happy marriage is too soon to decipher. We have never been given any indication to this date that the Malfoy power couple may just be walking towards the flames, but who can resist the charms of Hermione Granger? Only speculations can be made. However, Astoria Malfoy's reluctance to approach the press might just be quite telling.
Rachel Madoras Skeeter.
/
THE DAILY PROPHET
MALFOY RETURNS TO PUBLIC EYE
The elusive Draco Malfoy has finally descended from his cloud of fine debauchery and elegance to grant the Daily Prophet a well sought out interview. After several dozen owls and personal visits, the Lord Malfoy finally sat down with Daily Prophet's head reporter Beatrice Sacket last evening to discuss his last case and his relationship with the also elusive Hermione Granger/Weasley. Ms. Granger was not available to confirm the facts of this article before publishing.
Mr. Malfoy appeared as suave and elegant as always expected of Britain's most sought after man, donning Malkin's newest fall collection. Despite his famous bad-boy attitude, we have it here on good hand that Mr. Malfoy appeared to be worse for wear. Surprisingly, rumours have quoted Mr. Malfoy saying he had sustained extensive injuries over the course of his last investigation and has not been sleeping well since.
The Ministry has been decidedly tight lipped about the investigation of the supposed kidnapping of one Hugo Weasley. No information has been released to the press or general public as of yet. No representative or source from either the Ministry or the Auror department has stepped forward to explain the finer (or any) details of the investigation, besides Auror Potter's statement to the Prophet that Hugo Weasley has been found, restored, and that the investigation has been closed.
Lord Malfoy's interview is our first insight into what might have actually happened.
/
"Mr. Malfoy?" a woman called to him, startling him out of his thoughts. He almost growled at her, barely managing to restrain himself. He didn't know who the woman was, but he already didn't like her. Not that that was anything new. He didn't like anyone these days. He hoped his glare was menacing enough to scare the timid cat away, but she didn't budge despite looking like she wanted to bolt from there.
When she showed no sign of leaving him the hell alone or backing down to his creepy arse glare, he finally sighed. "Yes?" he asked her curtly, hoping she'd take the hint and leave him the fuck alone. He really wasn't having a good day. Or week. Year, really, if you wanted to get into that much detail...
"I'm...I'm Beatrice Sacket, from the Daily Prophet? You...um, I was informed that this was a good time for us to do the interview? That you agreed to..." She seemed like she wanted to cry. He felt relieved at this, almost. Perhaps the interview wouldn't last too long and she wouldn't ask annoying questions. At least he hoped.
But fuck, he'd completely forgotten about agreeing to do the interview. Potter had come to his house last night and had basically demanded that he agree to do this. Draco didn't really understand what the big fucking deal was or why Potter cared about the press on this case so much, but he hadn't had enough energy to argue with the son of a bitch.
Potter could be really fucking insistent when he wanted to be.
Draco just took it as part of the penance he had to pay. For the past three weeks, all that Draco had been doing was sleeping and going to the Auror department to deal with the fucking paperwork. God damn bloody paperwork! It was endless! And all of the other Ministry departments he had to appease – it was positively fucking painful. This entire past week had been a hellish nightmare, especially.
His life was a waking nightmare during the day, yes, but also during the night, where images would haunt him in his sleep. Sometimes he'd see his mother taking her own life. Sometimes he'd see his father – his body slumped and soulless.
Draco had gone to Azkaban to confirm what Lovegood had told him. The fucker hadn't been lying. His father was really a breathing corpse.
Draco hadn't felt anything at the discovery. Hadn't felt sad, afraid, or remorse. One could say he was in shock – he did have a lot of processing to do with all that he had gone through, after all. His life was essentially in shambles and his career was a farce. This little incident would just have to join the bloody long line to be dealt with in his overly tired mind. Nevertheless, the image of his lifeless father slumped against his prison cell wall haunted his mind when he was asleep.
But by far the most haunting image, the issue that was plaguing his mind day and night, was the psycho's face as he had sliced him, draining him of his magic, the sword cheering Draco on in his head. The act had felt so sinful, so dirty, and so impure, that Draco thought his soul might have ripped apart a little bit. He had fainted from the shock and impending exhaustion and had slept forever, afterwards just staring at his bedroom wall blankly for hours.
Then Potter had come to fetch him.
Apparently, draining someone of their magic was against the law and extremely fucking dark magic. Potter hadn't condemned him for what he had done, hadn't really commented about it at all. All he had done was take Draco to the Ministry to deal with the mountains of paperwork and legal barriers so that Draco wouldn't be charged with a life sentence and carted after to Azkaban.
But Draco knew he didn't deserve Potter's help, not that he didn't appreciate it. He was grateful and actually thought of Potter as a mate now for all the trouble the man had gone to for him. The matter still remained the same though. Draco had done the most unholy of deeds. It was almost worse than murder, stripping someone's magic away from them, their life essence! If only Lovegood had been aware of Draco's sword. He wouldn't have resorted to kidnapping to achieve his means.
Draco knew he was no better than the psychopath. They were one in the same.
"Mr. Malfoy?" he heard the woman call him again, snapping him out of his thoughts once more.
He stood up, a little disoriented. He had the tendency to lapse into deep thought regardless of the presence of others. This hadn't been the first time either. Ever since Lovegood had bashed his head in against the floor repeatedly, his head hadn't been quite right. Draco just hoped the damage wasn't permanent. One could never tell these things.
"Right this way," Draco said, walking away before the reporter even knew what was going on. He had no affinity for the press and all those that worked for them. Journalists could kiss his arse, really, for all the crap they were publishing these days. As he reached Potter's office, opening the door and entering without even knocking, he felt the reporter's eyes bore into his back. "I hope this doesn't last too long."
"Just a few standard questions..." the reporter muttered. What was her name again? It didn't matter.
It was already well past ten in the evening and most of the Aurors had already retired for the night. Potter was still there, though, working diligently on something at his desk. "Right, Potter," he interrupted. Harry didn't even look up. "Get the fuck out. We have to do that goddamn fucking interview."
This time Harry did look up with a sceptical expression on his face. "And why should I vacate my office, Malfoy?" Harry asked, pushing his glasses further up his nose in a severe way. At least, a poor attempt to be severe. Draco could see the amusement in his eyes.
How the man could always find something bright in his life, Draco had no idea. He himself had never had that kind of privilege. It had always been dark for him ever since the beginning.
Draco put on his best smirk. "Because you're my little bitch, aren't you? Run along to your wife. She owled me three times already this week!"
Harry's eyes widened when he took in the time and with a muttered curse, he was up and hurriedly packing up this things. He really was whipped. Ginny had definitely put him in his place. He wished he had that kind of relationship with someone... Well, not the whipped part, obviously. But the effort of someone caring would be nice once in a while. No one had ever cared enough about him in the past.
That was the thing with Slytherin's. They were a selfish lot.
When Potter left, he slumped down on his couch, not even bothering to offer the reporter a seat. He wasn't thrilled to be here. He'd rather be home, sleeping off his injuries, even if that meant seeing another nightmare. He was exhausted, even though he was sleeping at least twelve hours a day, eighteen on some if Potter let him get away with it.
"What can you tell me about your most recent investigation?" the reporter began, her voice as timid as it had always been. Draco wanted to scoff. That was not how interviews were supposed to be conducted. She really wasn't going to last long in this business. Politicians would chew her up and spit her out!
"What would you like to know?" he countered.
To his surprise, she had an immediate answer. "Can you confirm that Hugo Weasley was, in fact, kidnapped?" Her tone was suddenly much more bold, way more sure of herself. That was more like it.
"Yes," he said, his expression deadpan.
"And the Auror department managed to discover the identity of the kidnapper?" she ventured.
"Yes." His expression didn't waver – cool, icy boredom.
"Can you...disclose the identity?"
"Xenophilius Lovegood," he responded without even thinking about it.
Shit! Was he allowed to disclose that kind of information? He couldn't remember exactly what Potter had told him to discuss with the reporter in the interview, but he was sure that he wasn't supposed to reveal the psycho's identity. They had wanted to protect the little girl they had rescued, the blonde girl whose name he had already forgotten while dealing with the aftermath of her fucking grandfather.
The reporter seemed stunned into silence for a moment, not knowing how to respond. Draco didn't blame her. It was a farfetched story to anyone else, he supposed. Xenophilius Lovegood, editor of the Quibbler, who had reportedly died a few years back. Kidnapper? Definitely not! Psychopathic murderer? You've got to be kidding me. The man was just a little loopy, not dark arts material.
Not to mention he was supposed to be fucking dead.
It was the perfect disguise, he supposed, having that kind of good standing reputation. And Draco knew how the public would react to this news. They wouldn't believe it at first and when Potter would support it, they'd all go bat shit crazy and riot for a few days before it would die down.
And then the Lovegood name would have no respect attached to it any longer.
Despite having come so far after the war, despite having erased his name of sins, a lot of people still associated Draco with the blond brat who let Death Eaters into Hogwarts. He knew exactly how the Lovegoods would feel. His name had never gotten fully restored. There were still people in the street that would spit at his feet when he walked by. Not that Draco cared. Draco just understood.
"Is he not...dead?" the reporter tentatively questioned. She probably doubted his sanity, and just as well. He didn't really have all that much sanity left anyway, not with everything that had happened to him all these days. It was all just building up and threatening to collapse at any second. He probably would collapse at any second if this interview were to continue much longer. "I mean, he was reported dead in an accident a few years ago. Is that not right?"
"Yep. Faked it, obviously. He awaits trial in a few weeks time before the full Wizengamot and a full statement should be issued by the Ministry about the proceedings before then," he said in that same bored tone. Draco had lost complete interest in the woman. She seemed too stupid to last here. He wanted to be the one to chew her up and spit her out. If only she would leave! "Any more questions?"
"How did you manage to track...Mr. Lovegood down?"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Are you deaf? I just said that the Ministry is going to issue a statement about the investigation before the trail."
The girl visibly cringed and Draco felt some kind of sick satisfaction within him. Maybe she'd just end the interview here. He'd done enough damage as it was. Potter was probably going to sharpen his blade and murder him tomorrow when he read the Daily Prophet. Draco was in the habit of mucking things up lately, though, so he figured Potter would probably be used to it by now.
"What can you tell me about the relationship between yourself and Ms. Granger?"
Draco raised a brow. So they had come to that, had they? He wondered what Hermione had told the press, if she had even given an interview. If he knew Potter as well as he thought he did, Potter had probably forced Hermione to give the interview, just like he'd forced Draco to sit through this one. Potter and his obsession with good press... fucking bastard!
"What about it?" he asked, his tone not changing. He even added a little hint of impatience, as if he was annoyed with her for wasting his time. Which, truthfully, she really was.
"What can you say about the rumours that you two are romantically involved?" she said, getting straight to the point. Either she had figured out that he wasn't in the mood for bullshit, or she was a completely inept reporter, asking such direct and offensive questions like that. Draco was thinking it was more of the second option than anything else.
"Are you bloody daft?" he asked, standing up and glaring at her just the right amount. "I'm fucking married, you idiot!" He didn't want to think about the implications of what she'd just asked him. He knew there was no hope for him in that department. It made him a little sad to think about.
And with that he left the room, leaving her there in a blushing mess.
/
Reports have it that Mr. Malfoy will be taking an extended vacation to spend time with his son, Scorpius Malfoy. He has not specified when he will be returning to work and what we can expect from him in the future.
For more information on the trail of Xenophilius Lovegood, please turn to page seven.
Rachel Madoras Skeeter
/
THE DAILY PROPHET
LOVEGOOD SENTENCED TO DEMENTOR'S KISS
Xenophilius Lovegood was sentenced to the dementor's kiss this morning before the Wizengamont after a lengthy six hour trial. Lovegood was charged with kidnapping, murder, and the extensive use of dark arts, with the full list of charges remaining undisclosed due to the graphic nature of the crimes.
Present at the trial as witnesses were both Hugo Weasley accompanied by his mother Hermione Granger, and Draco Malfoy, and four children whose names have as of yet been undisclosed. While the trial was not open for public viewing, both Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger report being satisfied with the proceedings.
Head Auror Potter, who was also present at the trial as a witness, gave the testimony that sealed Lovegood's fate to the hands of the Dementors. Lovegood will be administered the kiss on an undetermined date, with no chance of having a last request or to be visited one last time by family or friends. The Wizengamont determined that it would be a safety hazard for the public, as Lovegood poses as societal threat.
With the nature of this trial being so dark, it is understandable why it would not be open for public viewing. However, can we really determine whether Lovegood deserved to be given such a harsh sentence? Without a public trial, can the Wizarding world really say Lovegood got what was coming to him?
Some readers express the fear that his sentence was much too harsh –
Draco immediately stopped reading, thrusting the four copies of newspapers away from him. He leaned forward, resting his head in his arms atop his office desk. The wood was cold against his cheeks and he realized he missed this, the perfect polished oak desk. He'd chosen it himself after his first successful mission all those years ago.
It had been when Astoria and he had still been somewhat happy in their marriage. Well, at least they'd tolerated each other. It had been before Scorpius had been born. It had been before he'd known his entire career had been built on lies! Before his life had been tainted by loneliness and misery. Definitely before scotch and firewhisky had become permanent features of his daily routine.
It had been much before Hermione.
But he really tried not to think about that. He really didn't want to dwell on the fact that it had been more than three weeks since he'd last talked to her. Sure, he'd briefly seen her at the trial when she'd come in with the tiny malnourished boy to help him through his testimony, which had been gruesome. He'd seen her from a distance in the Atrium, but had been gone before he could even think about approaching her.
He tried not to take it personally. She was probably all busy and stuff, serving her last few days at the Ministry before she quit. He glanced at the article that had been published with her interview. At least some of it hadn't been complete bullshit and lies. She actually was quitting her job, probably to spend time with her son now that he was alive and well enough. Draco wondered what she'd do with her life now, how she'd feed herself and her son. Surely she had it all worked out. Granger was a smart cookie.
But fuck! Three weeks!
He really didn't know why he even cared. It wasn't like she owed him anything at all. Sure, a thank you would be nice. Or a see you around. Anything! He felt like she'd left him in the dark without even saying goodbye. He deserved a goodbye, didn't he?
Three weeks!
He glanced towards the newspaper articles again and sighed. He supposed if some of it were true, then she had defended his name. Never mind that people thought he was having an affair with her now because of it. It still felt nice that she thought he was a changed person, even if he hadn't changed for the good.
No, he definitely hadn't. If she had any idea how much he had changed for the worse, she'd probably run away and never come back, probably file a restraining order, and flee continents. Oh, and Potter would kill him for that, of course. It was a moot point, because he hadn't seen her for three weeks, and probably would never see her again. Not like how he wanted to, anyways. Ministry functions would never be the same, at the very least. That was a plus, right?
He sighed again, louder this time. Yes, he had changed. He now had the magic of a very powerful psychopath flowing through his veins and fusing itself into his body. Draco had more power than he had ever imagined. Sure, he'd been a pretty good wizard before, but now? He could execute spells without thinking about it. His wandless magic had grown exponentially.
Draco was insanely powerful, but he didn't care for it. He hadn't asked for it. He'd just... he'd given into the pressure. He hadn't known that it would be like this, that he'd have turned Lovegood into a squib. It was partially why Potter had made sure the trial was not available for public viewing, so that no one would be able to question exactly why Lovegood wasn't able to conduct magic.
Potter had saved his arse, yes. Draco definitely owed him.
Draco was startled out of his thoughts by a knock on his door. That was rather weird. No one was supposed to know he was here. He had given his secretary a few weeks off, since Draco didn't expect to be back at work any time soon. So who could it possibly be? He hadn't told anyone he was going to be here. At least, he didn't think he had. He considered ignoring the knock for a moment.
When he heard the tentative knock again for a second time, he sighed. Nothing was going to come easy to him anymore, was it? He'd just have to continually drag himself through everything now. But that was fine. It was probably part of the large penance he had to pay. He might as well resign himself to his fate early.
"Come in," he said in an empty tone, not even bothering to look up at who was disturbing him as he continued emptying his desk.
"I hope you're not giving up Dark Wizard Hunting for good, Draco."
His head snapped up at the voice. Whatever he had been expecting, it certainly hadn't been that. His heart immediately started to speed up at the sight of her while hoping that nothing gave away his true reaction to her presence in his office. She'd only stepped out of that fire place about a month ago, hadn't she?
"Fancy seeing you here, Granger." He didn't stop emptying his desk, just to give his hands something to do so that she wouldn't notice the shaking. When he looked up, he realized she had a sad small smile on her face. "Is there something you needed?"
She opened her mouth, just staring at him for a moment, contemplating what she wanted to say. "I... I brought a few things for Scorpius," she finally managed to spit out. He couldn't help the disappointment from blooming in his chest at the words. She stepped forwards and put a black leather bag on his desk. "They're just books he said he was interested in, a few toys, and such..." she trailed off.
He tried his best not to look up at her. If he did, he'd certainly betray all of the turmoil going on inside his head. He didn't know exactly what he felt for her, but he knew that she didn't feel anything for him in return. Hell, he was surprised that she was even here after all this time.
"And I wanted to say thank you." He looked up at her in surprise. "For everything. I...I couldn't even put in words how much you've done for us, for me and Hugo..."
He raised his hand to stop her. "Then don't. It's really not necessary. Just doing my job." A strange silence filled the space between them. He didn't know what to say and apparently neither did she. It was freaking awkward. "Thanks for the gifts... for Scorpius," he said, eventually, just to have something to say. He almost wanted to slap himself for not coming up with anything better.
She smiled at him again and he realized that she was really quite pretty when she smiled. "Don't mention it. My pleasure."
"How'd you know I was here, anyways?" he questioned, feeling better now that the awkwardness had passed.
"Harry," she supplied, easily.
"Ah, fucking Potter..." he muttered to himself. She only smiled wider.
"I'll let you get back to...packing. Thank you, again, Draco. See you around," she said, before making her way to the door.
At first he just watched her slowly retreating back, not understanding what was happening. Why was she leaving now? Had she just come to say goodbye forever? He might've just been imagining the easy likeableness between them.
Whatever it was, he was starved for company.
Perhaps that was what made him act the way he had. Or maybe it was on instinct. Perhaps he had finally reconciled with the fact that he actually liked Hermione and didn't want her to walk away anymore. He'd given up on a lot in his life already, had messed up quite a few things. His life was a sham, but at least he knew he'd always have his inner Granger monologue going on.
Whatever the reason, he didn't anticipate his eagerness of going after her. "Hey, Hermione!" he called to her just before she stepped outside his outer office door. She looked back, confusion on her face. "Want to get some dinner sometime?"
Her responding smile was brilliant and he realized that he'd actually missed her these past three weeks, especially her smell on his pillows. She nodded in assent and waved before apparating off and leaving him to pack up his office alone with a half smile on his face for the rest of the afternoon.