It's been a while. Sorry everyone! I'm not going to make any excuses, I've just been lazy and unmotivated.

As per usual, I would like to thank my reviewers for the previous chapter: edwardsoneandonlylove, mermaidlover101, qwertyupzz, Draco-Hermy, Just Your Above Average Malfoy, Strawberry Peaches, Lola Kristy, Prince of Nothing and Anonymous.

I hope to get atleast 50 people to add this to their alerts list and maybe up to 50 reviews :D Fingers crossed my dreams will come true in hopefully 5 chapters!

This chapter is the longest one to date. YAY!

Chapter Seven

The home of Astoria Greengrass was everything I had pictured it to be. Grand and fashionably decorated in the style of the newest trends and with, of course, the finest of materials. It was slightly smaller than I had imagined, but then again, my expectations had been pretty high.

She had left me in the drawing room with a cup of tea and instructions to 'make myself at home' while she went off to find the little girl that was the reason for my presence here. I had to admit, I had never pictured myself sitting inside the home of a Greengrass, or anyone that had supported the other side of the war. We all learn to forgive and forget, do we not?

I heard footsteps from around the corner, and turned my head slightly to the left.

Astoria swept into the room, head held high, her emerald green robes billowing behind her. She sure knew how to make an entrance, even within her own home. She sat down beside me as another figure made her way before us.

She was a small, delicate, tiny little thing. Her ivory skin, coupled with defined features and rosy cheeks made her appear all the more like a fragile porcelain doll. Her long blonde curls were held back by a head band of a similar colour. She wore a pretty cherry- red dress, with a golden belt. I attempted to hide my smile; what would her father say if he saw his only child dressed in Gryffindor colours? Speaking of which, the little girl looked just like her grandmother Narcissa, whom she had been named after. There was no doubting that she was a Malfoy. As I looked closer, I couldn't help but frown. If I remembered correctly, the detailed article within the Daily Prophet had said the youngest Malfoy was over eight years of age. The little girl before me couldn't be any more than five or six. The bold dress highlighted how pale she was, and the belt around her waist showed that she was unhealthily thin.

'Good Evening Miss Granger,' she said softly; her voice was barely audible.

I smiled at the girl, Astoria nodded towards her in approval, and she sat down opposite us.

'Hermione, I would like you to meet my daughter, Ophelia.'

Astoria, like any well-bred aristocrat began the introductions, gesturing towards the little blonde whom was being dwarfed by the chair in which she was seated.

'It's a pleasure to meet you Ophelia,' I told her.

She sent me a toothy grin, and I couldn't help but think how adorable she was when she smiled.

'Well now that you've met her, is there anything you need to know before we discuss the case?' Astoria asked.

I nodded.

'How old exactly is Ophelia?'

'She turned eight two weeks ago, on the 16th of November.'As I processed her answer, I frowned once more. I didn't think the prophet would have made a mistake in reporting her age and now along with the confirmation from Astoria herself, there was no doubt that this little girl was eight years old.

'Is she eating alright? And has she been sick in the past six months?'

'Ophelia has always had quite a small appetite. And as to your second question, she had a bad case of the flu about two months ago.'

I chewed my lip, running through the facts. Not many children had huge appetites, well besides Ron maybe, but I was almost positive he'd been like that his whole life. A bad flu could cause permanent damage in some cases, but that still didn't explain her small size.

'Was she involved in any accidents as an infant? I hate to be blunt Astoria, but I've seen other children her age, and none of them are as small or sickly looking as Ophelia is.' I said, frowning, and unsure whether I should have been so forward.

'Ophelia was born almost two months early, and spent her first year in and out of St. Mungos. Lucius managed to keep this from the press, and she eventually recovered enough for her to stay at home with Draco and myself. She's smaller than most kids her age, but she's completely fine now.'

'That would explain all the other questions I had yet to ask,' I said, nodding in understanding.

There was a small sound from the other side of the room, and I looked up to see the subject of our conversation, having forgotten she was there because she hardly made any noise.

'If you don't mind Astoria, I'd like to speak to Ophelia privately,' I told her, and she agreed, informing us that dinner would be in half an hour and left the room in the same manner she had entered.

'Hello Ophelia.'

She looked up from her hands.

'Hello.'

After hearing about her birth, I felt sorry for the little girl before me. She had spent the first year of her life practically living in a hospital, being poked and prodded by Healers.

'Do you like living with your mother Ophelia?' I began, reading from the list of questions I had written down before flooing here.

She nodded vigorously.

'I love living with mummy, I've never not been with mummy before.'

I quickly grabbed a quill from my bag, and charmed it to write down her answers.

'Where did you live before you moved here?'

'I lived in a very big house, mummy says it's called Malfoy Manor, just like my last name, and grandpa said it was the best house in the whole of the wizarding world.'

I couldn't help but smirk at her words. Trust Lucius Malfoy to drill into his only granddaughter's mind that his home was the best.

'Do you go to school?'

She shook her head.

'Mummy teaches me everything at home.'

'Tell me about your grandparents.'

She tilted her head to one side, as if considering what to say.

A smile lit up upon her face, and she rambled on about how her mummy had taken her to visit her grandparent's graves, and that her mummy looked just like her grandmother.

'What about your other grandparents Ophelia?' I prompted as my quill continued to race across the page, writing down everything that she said.

'I love Grandpa Lucius. I want to have my hair as long as his one day. And I want to be just like Grandma Narcissa when I grow up. She has very pretty jewellery that she lets me play with, but you mustn't tell Mummy or else I might get into trouble.'

I continued asking her questions, about pets, favourite foods and hobbies, about what she did when spending time with her mother. I was amazed by how much could come out of one little mouth. She spoke so quickly, even my quill was having difficulty recording it all. Looking down at my parchment, I realised I had gone through all of the questions except one.

I thought back to what Harry had told me about Malfoy changing, and put that thought aside. I had already chosen Astoria's side, and after hearing Ophelia speak about her mother, I was firm about my decision. But it was my responsibility to ask, and I had no choice but to.

'Ophelia, tell me about your father.'

She looked down at her lap, not saying anything. It was over two minutes before she finally spoke up.

'I haven't seen my Daddy in a very long time.'

Dinner was a quiet affair. Astoria explained that during the six month separation before the divorce, Ophelia had stayed with her, so she hadn't seen her father for nearly eight months. Ophelia had reverted back into a happy state, seemingly unaffected by the fact she had been separated from her father for so long. Maybe she only recognised it when he was mentioned. Though Harry had insisted Malfoy had changed, atleast in attitude towards his daughter, it was not my opinion that mattered in this case. Astoria passed for a good mother, and I had every intention of winning this case, no matter the cost. Though I didn't want to be the type that held grudges, Draco Malfoy, was the last person I could imagine as a loving father.

I had thanked Astoria for dinner, before organinising another meeting, set for two weeks , I hadn't been able to use the Floo Network to leave, as I needed to go back to the office. The Network there had been shut off, just like it was every night after 8pm , and there were anti-Disapparation wards placed all around the building for security. I had not choice but to Apparate a few streets away and walk the rest of the distance. It was dark and cold, and as the wind blew past, I felt chills running down my spine. I pulled my cloak tighter around me.

I was annoyed.

Not a little annoyed, but very annoyed. After I threatened to hex his balls off, Blaise had apologised meekly for the events at last night's dinner, and relayed to me everything that had occurred after I'd had passed out. Astoria was a very conniving woman. I had once admired that. Now it disgusted me. The first court hearing had been set for two months time, so Blaise had convinced me to stop worrying about it, and do other things with my life.

I had just finished up at work, and was leisurely taking a stroll on the street. Who am I kidding? No one leisurely strolls along on the streets, around at ten o'clock at night. Because it was so dark, I could hardly see the path ahead of me, and almost had a heart attack when I bumped into something, or rather, someone. I quickly whipped out my wand, and I heard them do the same.

'Lumos.'

A soft light was emitted from the other figures wand, illuminating their face.

'Malfoy?' I heard them ask.

As I looked closer, I recognised the person I had crashed into. It was my angel.

Dun dun dun. Cliffy. What do you think? :D