A/N: Hi there. So, I'm not really going to try and get in your good graces again. I know I screwed up. I'm sorry it took so long. But right now I'm uploading the last two chapters and the epilogue so the story is finally complete. Thank you for bearing with me.

IMPORTANT: This chapters has some mild gay themes (kissing). If you're offended by that then please don't read the flashback part after the 'what exactly did you see' comment.

Chapter XVIII

She was so... indescribably happy. Just that. She still felt a bit strained from her coma, but she was slowly coming back to life... and what life it was. She stretched her arms and smiled when her movement caused some stirring next to her. She looked to her left and smiled at the mass of red hair splattered all over the pillow. Snuggling closer to him, she thought about the events of the previous night.

Even though she was still sore from being hospitalized for so long, she didn't care when their innocent kiss was becoming more and more passionate. She didn't care when he pulled her closer, so close she thought they would suddenly merge together, nor when he picked her up and carried to his bedroom while their lips still fought furiously. Not even when he started unceremoniously undressing her and throwing her clothes behind him. She was in heaven. She wanted to feel his muscular body against hers for so long that it hurt... it hurt so much more than her strained muscles, unused joints and sore throat.

There was no place for gentleness there. It was fast and rough. Pure need, lust and want that was growing in them for the last few months. They will have lots of time for gentleness later. Right then all they wanted was to finally free that raw passion they held closed inside them for so long. So they did. Loudly. Hermione never took herself for a screamer... seems she just never had a good reason to scream.

She smiled again at the memory and played with a strand of his ginger hair while he was slowly waking up. When he opened his eyes and saw her face he felt as if he finally was complete. He finally found a person with whom he knew he could spend his life. He was ashamed of his previous flings but he just never found a woman who would suit him, and now it seems he found her. And she was matchless.

Even though everything seemed perfect, Hermione was back to work, good as new, he still couldn't find peace. There was this one thing that just wouldn't stop invading his mind every time he didn't have anything else to think about.

"Fine then! First of all I wanted to make Weasel miserable! Second of all, it would do wonders to my reputation to have helped a muggleborn! That was my target from the very beginning to expand my clientele to halfbloods and muggleborns! I was pretty clear about that when I hired her. And third of all..."

What's your third of all, Malfoy? He couldn't shove this little question out of his thoughts. He still remembered that Malfoy was ready to confess right then, if only... Don't even think that, George. You should be happy she gave some sign right then, you should be happy she's awake and well and stop thinking about the stupid prat. Even though he didn't think of him as a stupid prat anymore. Malfoy has been really civil to him all this time and he helped discover the real criminal. George was thankful, very thankful. Besides Malfoy was fun to watch when he interacted with Harry, who still chose to ignore him, while Malfoy was getting more and more agitated. He even started calling him "Draco" to spite him... George thought Malfoy rather liked Harry calling him "Draco"...

Harry was openly gay... Even if he didn't want to be "openly" gay, he didn't really have a choice after Ginny found out. It was a year after they broke up when she discovered the truth. She still doesn't want to say how exacly did she discover it, and George wasn't really interested. She was furious that day, and so, in an act of revenge for her "lost years" as she called the time she was fawning over him, she told everyone. That's when Harry became "openly" gay, like it or not. They've made amends since then, became better friends than before, Ginny even started to say that she "knew it all along". If she says so...

Draco was just finishing his breakfast when an owl started scratching at his window. He walked over and took a small envelope from it. The owl didn't fly away even after he gave it a snack. Ah... So you're apparently waiting for a reply, fine then. He opened the envelope and read the letter that was inside. A note, rather.

Malfoy,

What's your third of all?

Weasley.

Draco smirked at the letter, and took his quill to write on the back of the note. The owl flew away happily, and Draco finished drinking his tea, smirking to himself.

That slimy bastard! George crumpled the poor piece of paper in his hand and let out an irritated sigh. Why can't he just finish what he started?

Weasley,

Wouldn't you like to know.

Malfoy.

I guess I'm not going to find out anytime soon... He was wrong, very wrong, for he was to find out very soon indeed.

He was in the backroom of the shop as usual, trying to invent something creative. He didn't notice the time so he was very surprised when he heard a "George, I'm home!" from upstairs. Hermione's back from work, I must've spent a good few hours in here...

"I'm coming!" he shouted and started to climb the stairs to their flat. Their flat is how he started to refer to it in his mind, he rather liked it to be honest. Hermione agreed that she should just move in permamently and forget about moving out altogether. When he came in Hermione spun around and grinned at him. "My, my, aren't we happy today, something good happened at work?"

"You wouldn't believe what I saw today!"

"Oh?" George rised an eyebrow.

"Malfoy! With Harry!" Her eyes were glistening and she was getting really excited. He smirked.

"Oh, I see, well, they kind of became better acquainted when you were unconscious... Sooo, that's nothing new, sorry to burst your bubble"

"Hah! Better acquainted? So I guess we've become better acquainted too, if that's what you want to call it" She wainted for some sign of understanding from her but he still looked at her with a puzzled expression. She sighed in exasperation. "You know! Like tongue down your throat acquainted?" Then it finally dawned on him.

"Oooooh!" He smirked again. "Well... I guess I've seen that one coming too..."

"WHAT? How could you've seen THAT one coming? I was really shocked when I saw it!"

"And what exactly did you see?"

She was sitting in her office doing some paperwork when she heard a quiet knock. She looked up and saw Harry standing behind the glass of her office door. She smiled surprised and invited him in.

"Harry! It's so good to see you! What are you doing here?" His visit was very unexpected especially because she saw him almost everyday now that he was back in England, and also because he didn't really have any legal issues to attend to.

"Hello Hermione. I don't really know what I'm doing here myself. Malfoy owled me yesterday saying he has some business to talk about. Very suspicious but I decided to stop by and see what it's all about. I knew you work here so I came to say a quick hello beforehand." Harry gave her a lopsided grin and said "Wish me luck!" Hermione looked puzzled. When Harry left her office she decided to go after him and do some eavesdropping.

The windows of Malfoy's office were covered but she managed to a small hole between the courtains through which she could look inside. Harry was standing and Draco was pacing. She couldn't really hear much from behind the thick glass but it looked as if Draco was trying to get some reaction from Harry again and Harry was just ignoring his insults and smirking. Draco was getting angrier and angrier, he looked as if he was starting to hyperventilate. Is he really that desperate for attention? I guess he misses the old Harry from school, the Harry that never ignored him and always fought back. Draco looked really tense and said something that from the way his mouth moved looked like "Why are you always ignoring me? What do I have to do to get some kind of reaction from you? You're so frustrating, Potter! You're making me so mad!" But Harry said nothing and just shook his head slightly as if he was amused at what was going on in front of his eyes. Hermione thought that Harry really matured since school, and then something really unexpected happened. Her boss took her best friend by his robes and smacked him to the wall, he was breathing heavily and looked ready to kill. He finally gave in to the tension and frustration he was feeling. Harry was pushed against a wall and still did nothing. Hermione was ready to go in and interrupt them before Draco did something he would later regret, but then something even more unexpected happened. He kissed him. And Harry didn't try to free himself much to Hermione's surprise. She knew he was gay of course but seriously, Malfoy? She felt like a peeping Tom for watching them kiss furiously but she was so shocked she just couldn't stop herself. Suddenly they stopped for air and she saw Harry's mouth move. It looked surprisingly like "I have wondered about your preferences for a long time now". Draco looked shocked at his actions and covered his mouth with his hand, contrary to Harry, he looked as if he had never wondered about his preferences before.

Hermione went back to her office still shocked from what she saw. She didn't really have anything against it. Harry was her best friend and during the time she worked with Draco, he kind of became a reluctant friend too. She was just very surprised, because she never thought they would get over their mutual hate for each other.

"I don't really see how you could've seen that one coming since even Draco himself looked surprised"

"I just knew it. I guess now I know what was Malfoy's third of all"

"Third of all?" Hermione looked at him questioningly.

"He said he had three reasons for taking your case. First one - to make Ron miserable, second one - to help a muggleborn because that would serve the purpose he had from the beginning and a third one that he didn't manage to tell because he was interrupted. Now I think it was to have a chance to meet Harry. It doesn't matter why he wanted to meet him, even if he didn't know about his preferences before, I think he just missed Harry's presence. After all, back in the school days, Harry was one of the most prominent figures in his life. Maybe he missed the challenge." Hermione thought that what George was saying really made sense, but one thing he said made her think about something else, something she's long since forgotten.

"Draco once said that Ron knew something he didn't want the public to know. Maybe that was the reason he especially wanted to make Ron miserable, whatever the thing may be..." She pondered.

"I wonder what the not so dear brother of mine found out. And why he didn't tell anyone, after all, he has no loyalty to Malfoy whatsoever so it would be logical for him to blab the secret to everyone if he really did find something interesting." George tried really hard to remember if Ron ever said something about Malfoy that wasn't just insults, but he couldn't.

"I wouldn't put it past the schooldays Draco to have threatened him or even obliviated him..."

"I guess we'll never really know, now that Ron's whereabouts are unknown, and Draco's sure not to say anything about it"

"I guess so..."

What did you see Ron? Do I really have any interest in this now? Not really...

~ End of Chapter XVIII ~