A/N: Twilighternproud, I understand your feelings for Draco, but maybe this will go some way towards redeeming him? Also, don't forget Hermione's just been through something terrible and her self-esteem is at a pretty low ebb so she's not always going to make the best choices. As always thank you to everyone reading. I'm really glad you're sticking with it. Dx

Hermione had been considering what to do ever since Draco left that morning. Guilt was eating her up at having allowed him to stay when she should have forced him to go home to his wife. While she desperately wanted to accept his explanation of why he hadn't told her about his marriage, for some reason she wasn't quite able to. She knew it was eminently possible that he really had thought she knew all about it; after all Harry knew and he wasn't exactly the world's biggest socialite. But there was something, and Hermione knew it had something to do with the Draco of old, which meant she couldn't quite put out of her brain the fact that the boy she knew at school would have been happy to deceive her to achieve his own ends.

By rights, she should have thrown him out as soon as he had explained — giving him the opportunity to explain in the first place was more than she had needed to do, but instead, she had let him stay and then had stupidly let him back into her bed. It was the overwhelming need for Draco to tell her the truth about his feelings for her coupled with the intense desire she felt every time she saw him that made her do exactly what she had sworn to herself she wouldn't do and give in to him, Hermione thought as she dried her hair. But now he was gone, now that his handsome face and protectively playful manner weren't around to distract her from the issue, Hermione decided she needed to end things between them for good.

It was clear from the way she had acted last night that she was never going to be able to tell Draco to his face. Her resolve crumbled so quickly when she was with him that her only option was to run away. It was cowardice, pure and simple, but surely she could be forgiven for that when she wasn't fully recovered from what Michael had done to her. Draco was playing on her insecurities, and the only way she could be sure of stopping him was to not be anywhere near him. But how was she going to achieve it? When Draco had left, with one of his blistering kisses that made her toes curl, he had told her he was going to talk to his wife after work and he would see her afterwards. Hermione had been too weak to refuse him and now, unless she could think of a way round it, she would be following the pattern of the previous day with only Draco's word that he was going to do as he said and get a divorce.

Hermione considered the problem all the way to work and also through a dull section meeting into which she had little input. By the time she emerged from the meeting she knew what she had to do. She was going to have to move. It was a rather drastic and disappointing conclusion considering how much she liked her flat, but Hermione knew she had no choice. Draco wouldn't leave her alone, last night had proved that, so she had no choice but to make sure she wasn't there when he called. She considered for a while whether a few days of this would be sufficient to stop him in his tracks, but Hermione suspected that based on what happened between them every time they saw each other it probably wouldn't be. The only way to guarantee her peace of mind was to move elsewhere completely, somewhere Draco couldn't find her.

But where could she go? Moving to a new flat wasn't going to be as easy as snapping her fingers, but she couldn't risk another night with Draco without losing all her self-esteem. For a while she considered this instead of the piece of work she was supposed to be doing, and she came to the conclusion that she needed her friends' help. She now definitely didn't want them to know about Draco and what they had done. She was still too busy living down the shame of what had happened with Michael to admit she had rushed headlong into a relationship with a married man just because of some stupid hormones, but she would have to tell them something in order to gain their help.

Fortunately, thinking of Michael gave her the excuse she needed. Hermione knew that Harry would be the hardest of her friends to convince. He was less impetuous than Ron and more likely to question why she needed to leave her flat when Michael had never been there. What she needed to do was work on Ron first. If she could get him to believe her and get his backing and help, Harry would automatically follow.

Having spent all morning fretting about the situation, Hermione looked suitably worried when she met Ron for lunch. He was quick to spot her distress, although in usual fashion he tried to jolly her out of it by ignoring it.

'Hey, Hermione, it's great to have you back.' He gave her a great big hug to go with his grin. 'Let's go and get some lunch and we can catch up.'

Hermione gave him a wan smile but didn't say anything.

Ron looked at her worriedly. 'Are you all right? You are okay to be back at work, aren't you?'

Hermione nodded but looked upset.

'Hey, what's the matter?'

Hermione wasn't faking the pain she felt as she looked at Ron and she could feel tears ready to erupt at any moment.

'Hold me, please,' she whispered to her friend.

Immediately, Ron pulled her back into his arms, holding her tightly as Hermione burst into tears, the comforting feeling of her friend the final trigger to her misery.

'What on earth's the matter, Hermione?' Ron asked urgently, his stomach sinking as all sorts of terrible scenarios ran through his mind one after another.

It was several minutes before Hermione managed to calm down enough to speak, and even then it came out as more of a wet, guttural whisper than anything like her normal voice.

'I need to move, and I need to leave today.'

Ron loosened his grasp, still holding her arms as he pulled back to look at her anxiously.

'Why? What's happened?'

Hermione sniffed and pulled a tissue from her pocket, wiping tears that still leaked from her eyes. She looked unhappily at Ron as she told him, 'I can't settle at home. The place is freaking me out.' Ron frowned and she added,' I know it's really stupid because Michael is in prison and there's no way he can get me . . . but I'm scared, Ron. I just can't stay there any longer. I don't feel comfortable. I need to go somewhere else, somewhere away from everything that's happened.'

Ron stared worriedly at her. 'Do you want to go to the canteen or would you prefer to go somewhere else to talk?'

Hermione shook her head. 'Can we grab a sandwich and go and sit in the park? I feel like I'm being watched here.'

'Let's go to the Whitehall Café and get something to take away,' Ron said, mentioning one of their favourite Muggle lunch venues.

Hermione nodded and slipped her arm through Ron's as they headed for the exit.

Fifteen minutes later they were sitting on a park bench in Embankment Gardens. Ron wolfed his way through his chicken, bacon and avocado bap as Hermione told him the same things she had told Harry — although this time she omitted to mention Draco. Her sandwich was still wrapped and untouched on her lap. She wasn't able to eat as she felt sick.

'Wow, I can understand why you're scared after everything that happened to you,' Ron said sympathetically. He wiped his mouth with a napkin before taking a swig from his bottle of Coke. 'But I don't understand why you want to leave the flat. Michael's in prison and he wasn't working with anyone else, was he, so you should be perfectly safe.'

'But that's the problem, I don't feel safe,' Hermione replied tersely. 'It doesn't matter that Michael's in Azkaban, I just don't feel comfortable there. Maybe I'll get over it eventually but in the meantime I feel trapped and scared and it's beginning to drive me mad.'

Ron looked at her interestedly so she elaborated. 'For instance, the other day I took a shower and I went to open the window to let the steam out and I couldn't do it. I had a massive panic attack, not even so much that Michael or someone else would be outside waiting to get me — I knew that wasn't going to happen — but I was terrified I would be seen, that someone would realise I was at home and would come to get me.

'It's stupid and irrational, I know, but I was almost sick and the feeling of terror was absolutely real. I'm scared to leave the flat and I'm scared to stay in it, even though I know it isn't likely I'm scared that Michael will escape from prison. But if he did, the flat is the first place he'd go to try to find me. I know it is because that's the first place I'd go, and I know I didn't tell him the address but I bet he still knows it because he did all that stuff with my personnel records.'

Hermione could feel herself getting a little hysterical so she stopped speaking and breathed deeply to calm herself. She dug in her handbag for another tissue to blow her nose and dab at her eyes, which were threatening to leak again. Ron looked astonished at her outburst.

'Hermione, I'm so sorry I didn't come to see you before. I've just been so busy with work,' he said quietly. 'I feel really guilty for leaving you to have to deal with all that alone.'

Hermione almost mentioned Draco at that point but she managed to stop herself. She didn't want Ron to know about him at all. She wrapped her arms around him, pleased when he returned the gesture, and for a few minutes they sat that way, not speaking.

'It's not your fault, and I don't think it would have made any difference if you had been to see me. I just can't feel safe in my own home anymore so I have to leave,' Hermione told him once she felt calmer.

Ron nodded his head in agreement. 'Okay, I understand that. So we'll find you somewhere else to live.' He patted Hermione's hand soothingly. 'Don't worry, Hermione, you'll be fine.'

Hermione sighed. 'I can't go home. I know it sounds silly, especially as all my stuff is there, but I just don't want to be there any longer.'

Ron looked at his watch. 'Do you want to go now? I've got time if you want. I'll come with you and we'll get some clothes and stuff, enough for a couple of days while we sort out a new flat for you. If we go back to the Ministry we can Apparate from there and be back in half an hour. When we get back we'll go and see Harry. I'm sure you can stay with him and Ginny until we find somewhere else for you.'

'I can't Apparate. You'll have to take me Side-Along,' Hermione said. She felt another pang at the loss of her wand. She really needed to find the time to go and get another one.

Ron frowned. 'Why can't you Apparate?'

'Because I haven't got a wand anymore. Michael took it and they never recovered it. They think he destroyed it and I haven't had a chance to get a new one yet.'

Ron looked at his watch again as if weighing something in his mind. He sighed as he stood up. 'Okay, new plan. Let's go and get your stuff, then I'll take you to Diagon Alley and you can get a new wand while I go and talk to Harry about you staying with them. You can join us once you've got it. Harry can get Ginny to start looking for a new flat while we're working. It'll give her something to do and take her mind off the pregnancy for a little while. Hopefully, we should find you something fairly quickly and get you moved in and you'll start to feel safe again. Are you ready to go?'

Hermione stood up and linked arms with him again. She was smiling now.

'Thank you, Ronald. I'm sorry I'm such a pain.'

Ron laughed. 'You always have been, Hermione, but we love you anyway.'

Draco was feeling a mixture of trepidation and excitement as he opened the front door. He really wanted to get this out into the open, to admit to Caro his love for Hermione and the fact that he wanted to end their marriage. But there was a touch of nervousness, too, as he wasn't sure what sort of mood his wife would be in, especially considering he hadn't come home last night.

He closed the door and put his outer robe on a coat hook, slipping his shoes off as he did so. He wandered into the lounge. Caro, immaculate and expensively dressed as always, was sitting on their massive cream leather sofa reading the Daily Prophet, with her legs curled up underneath her. Their two dogs, a bullmastiff called Prince and a golden retriever called Piper, were laying directly in front of the sofa. Prince raised his head to look at Draco as he moved into the room.

Caro looked up from the newspaper. It was clear she wasn't very happy.

'Where the hell have you been?' she asked coldly.

Draco moved to the nearest armchair and sat down. Prince got up and moved so he was sitting near his master. Draco reached out a hand to stroke him although he was still looking at his wife.

'I need to talk to you, Caro,' he started, trying to keep his voice neutral.

Caro glared at him. 'Yes, you do, and you can start by explaining where you were last night, Draco. You didn't bother to come home at all. So where were you?'

Draco sighed. 'Look, I don't want to have an argument with you about this.'

'Oh, really?' Her voice was sharp and cold. 'So are you going to tell me where you were, or are you just going to pretend you were busy with work again?'

Draco looked at his wife appraisingly for a few seconds. 'I was with Hermione . . . Hermione Granger.'

'Hermione Granger? What the hell were you doing with her?' Caro asked sounding surprised.

'That woman I told you about saving the other day, the one that was abducted by her stalker, that was Hermione. It was the first time I'd seen her since leaving school and as soon as I did . . . I can't actually put it into words but it was amazing. She was amazing,' Draco admitted.

'You've been shagging her,' Caro spat accusingly.

She dropped the newspaper onto the sofa and changed position. Piper sat up and looked hopefully at Caro. She stroked the dog's head as she glared at Draco.

Draco nodded. 'It just sort of happened, to be honest. She was scared and needed looking after—'

'And you thought you'd do that by taking her to bed, did you?' Caro asked, her voice pinched. 'Gods, you are such an arsehole, Draco.'

'No! . . . Well, yes, but as I said, it just happened. And when it did I realised I was still in love with her.'

She looked at him in shock. 'Still in love with her? What do you mean you're in love with Hermione Granger? What the hell's that all about? I thought you always hated her at school. You were always fighting with her and calling her horrible names.'

Draco shook his head as he admitted, 'No, I never hated Hermione, I just pretended to. I should have hated her because she was Muggle-born, but the truth is that I fancied her like mad. Obviously, there was no way anything could ever happen between us so I kept it subjugated, which was great when I didn't see her for ten years. It wasn't quite so good when I saw her so scared and upset in that awful house. I just wanted to hold her and protect her. Things spiralled from there, really.'

'So why are you telling me this?' Caro asked, as if she really didn't have a clue why they were talking.

Draco looked at her in surprise. 'You know why, Caro. First of all, I've never lied to you, however bad things may have been between us, and I don't want to start now. But mainly it's because I want a divorce.'

She gave a sharp, bitter laugh, then said acidly, 'Granger comes back into your life for two days and suddenly you want a divorce. What makes you think she's going to want you? You're probably just a rebound shag, Draco, something to help her get over that pervert who abducted her. Once she's all better you won't see her for dust. Let's face it — she's never had any interest in seeing you for ten years.'

Draco considered for a moment before answering. 'That's not true. Hermione and I are ideal together. I'll be honest, the sex is the best I've ever had in my life — our bodies fit each other perfectly and everything is completely right between us. I already know she wants to be with me because we've talked about it. I'm not meant to be with you, Caro, I'm sure you know that as well as I do. Let's face it, our marriage has never been that great. I'm truly sorry I cheated on you, but I have to be with Hermione and I couldn't stop myself.'

'And you think I'm just going to let you go, do you?' Caro asked.

Draco shrugged. 'You don't actually have any choice. I'm telling you our marriage is over and I am going to file for divorce whether you agree to it or not. I'm just giving you the chance to sort this out reasonably, like adults, and get it over and done with as soon as possible so we can all get on with our lives and be happy rather than dragging it out through the courts . . . and the newspapers.'

Her face was hard as she said, 'Perhaps I won't agree to the divorce. Then what will you do?'

'That's entirely up to you. Even if you don't agree to it I'll still only have to wait a couple of years and then it'll go through anyway. But I can assure you that any goodwill I might have had towards you will evaporate as soon as you say no,' Draco said, his voice hard.

'But if you have to wait you won't be able to marry your wonderful Hermione, and she might not want to wait for you,' Caro pointed out maliciously.

Draco shook his head. 'She'll wait. We've already waited ten years. Anyway, we don't need to be married we just need to be together. I don't even need a divorce for that, but I was trying to do the decent thing here.'

There was silence for several minutes as he and Caro stared at each other.

Finally, she replied peevishly, 'All right, you can have your divorce. But you're not having the house. It's mine and I refuse to allow her to live in it.'

Draco shrugged. 'That's fine. I don't think Hermione would want to live here anyway. Is there anything else? We can get the documents properly drawn up later, but it would be good to get most of the negotiation done before the lawyers get involved. It always ends up messy otherwise.'

Caro took a deep breath. 'The dogs are mine, too.'

Draco immediately shook his head, pain flaring in him at the thought of the loss of his pets. He took a deep breath, thought about it for a moment and trying to be reasonable said, 'That's not happening. You can have Piper but not Prince. He's mine and always was.'

They glared each other down for a moment then just as Caro was about to speak Draco added quietly, 'You back down on this one, Caro, or I'll fight you for both of them.'

Caro looked mulish for a moment as she stared at Draco and Prince, then nodded her agreement.

'Is there anything else?' Draco asked, eager to get things wrapped up so he could be on his way to give the good news to Hermione.

'I can't think of anything offhand, but if I do I'll let you know,' she said.

Inside Draco was congratulating himself on his forthrightness and Caro's reasonableness. The whole discussion had gone far more easily than he had expected, although to be fair there wasn't much of a marriage left for her to try to cling onto and she was probably glad to see the back of him. This way she got to take the moral high road, which would suit her down to the ground.

'Good. In that case we can get everything else sorted with our solicitors. Do you agree?' he asked, trying to keep the glee out of his voice. He needed her to say yes, so he had to stay humble and in her debt for a little longer.

Caro sat silently, stroking Piper for a few minutes. Draco felt the urge to rush her but knew there was no point in getting annoyed, not when he was so close to getting everything he wanted. Hermione could wait another few minutes. Anyway, it would be worth the wait.

Eventually, sounding resigned, she said slowly and softly, 'Yes, I agree to your divorce proposal, Draco.'

Draco looked relieved. 'Thank you, Caro,' he said sincerely.

'Will you be leaving the Extractions Branch now?' she asked him.

Draco frowned. 'Why would I do that?'

'If you love Hermione as much as you say you do, you'll have no choice,' Caro told him honestly, feeling that now their relationship was over she could finally talk freely about his dreadful job. 'You have no idea how awful it is being married to you, Draco. I've spent almost every minute of every day of our marriage worrying that today will be the day when I get a visit from the Ministry telling me you've been killed. It's bad enough when you get injured, especially when it's serious — like last time. Don't make Hermione go through that for you. It's not fair to her. She'll think she can take it, but it soon wears you down and eventually she'll resent you for it, even if only a little bit. And if you're thinking of having children you definitely don't want to be in that game.'

'Is that why you never got pregnant?' Draco asked, sounding dismayed. 'I'm so sorry, Caro, I never realised. You should have talked to me about it.'

Caro sighed. 'It was partly that, although really I wanted to wait for a few more years anyway and I was hoping you might have got the Extractions thing out of your system by then without me saying anything and coming across as a nag. I know how much you love the job, Draco, but you don't have anything to prove, you know. You definitely need to think about giving it up for Hermione.'

Draco stood up, giving Prince one final pat.

'I'm going to take a few things and go. I'll leave Prince here for the time being to give you a chance to say goodbye to him. I'll move my stuff out over the weekend and take Prince to my parents' place. I'm not sure if Hermione can have dogs in her flat,' he explained.

'I'll look after him until you're settled somewhere you can take him,' Caro said staunchly. 'I won't fight you for him but it's pointless you leaving him at Malfoy Manor when I'm happy to have him.'

'Okay, thank you,' Draco said. He walked over and kissed Caro on her cheek as he had done so many times before. 'And thank you for your advice about the job, too. I will give it some serious consideration. I never thought about how it affected others before. I guess that means my parents probably aren't too chuffed about it, either.'

'Your mother hates it,' Caro confirmed. 'Every time we visit she's always lamenting the fact that you chose such a dangerous job. I don't think they understand why you went for it in the first place.'

'I guess I've always been selfish,' Draco said solemnly. 'I never really thought about what anyone else would think. I just wanted to do something that would help people . . . after Voldemort . . . you know.'

Caro chuckled. 'There are plenty of ways to do that without putting your life at risk every time you go out, Draco. It's especially crazy when you've no need to work anyway.'

Draco grinned ruefully. 'You're probably right. Point taken. I shall have to start looking for another job.' He nodded towards the door. 'I'm going to go now.'

'I honestly hope it works out for you,' Caro said magnanimously. She picked up the newspaper and began to flick through it, looking for the place she had got to before Draco had come in.

'Be happy, Caro,' Draco said softly. He bent to kiss her cheek again, then left the room.

Draco hoisted the heavy bag from over his shoulder and dropped it to the floor before he rang Hermione's doorbell. He waited for a few seconds and then knocked on the door. He listened carefully but couldn't hear any sound. Was Hermione not at home? He checked his watch: it was almost eight o'clock. Surely she should be home by now? For a moment panic rose in him that something nefarious had happened to her but he made himself calm down and think rationally. There was bound to be a sensible explanation for why Hermione wasn't at home. She was probably just working late or had gone shopping on her way home or maybe even to visit one of her friends. Hadn't he seen something in the paper recently about Potter's wife being pregnant and not able to play Quidditch for the Holyhead Harpies? That was probably it. There was no need to panic.

He rang the doorbell once more just to be sure she hadn't missed it, but after another few minutes passed Draco knew she definitely wasn't there. He resisted the urge to Apparate into the flat to see if there were any signs of a struggle. Gods, Hermione's fear of Antenucci was making him paranoid now.

Just calm down and wait, she'll be back soon, he told himself. She knows you're coming so she's not going to stay out all night.

With a sigh he sat down to wait, hoping that Hermione wasn't going to be too long. He was dying to share his good news about the divorce and even more eager to taste her beautiful lips. It would be good to see Hermione happy and smiling again. Although she had agreed to him staying last night and physically it had been every bit as wonderful as on the previous occasions they had spent together, Draco knew she hadn't really been all that happy. He sighed again. Of course, in retrospect it was stupid of him to have assumed that Hermione had known about his marriage. She was right that considering the stress she had been under at the time it wasn't fair of him to just take for granted that she would remember. He had been so desperate for things to get intimate between them that he had quite honestly assumed she knew and didn't mind, especially as she had made overtures to him in the first place. But then again, even if he had thought to query it he wouldn't have said anything. He wasn't going to risk losing Hermione because of his stupid soulless marriage, why would he do that? No wonder she was angry with him. Hopefully, the news of the divorce would make her realise that he was completely serious in his intentions towards her and they could start making plans, the first of which would be to find somewhere they could live together with Prince.

Of course, in retrospect it was stupid of him to have assumed that Hermione had known about his marriage. She was right that considering the stress she had been under at the time it wasn't fair of him to just take for granted that she would remember. He had been so desperate for things to get intimate between them that he had quite honestly assumed she knew and didn't mind, especially as she had made overtures to him in the first place. But then again, even if he had thought to query it he wouldn't have said anything. He wasn't going to risk losing Hermione because of his stupid soulless marriage, why would he do that? No wonder she was angry with him. Hopefully, the news of the divorce would make her realise that he was completely serious in his intentions towards her and they could start making plans, the first of which would be to find somewhere they could live together with Prince.

Hearing a noise he looked up, hoping that it was Hermione returning home. Instead, he saw the little, grey-haired figure of Mrs Hamblin coming across the landing towards him. She was wearing royal blue today and didn't look as happy as she usually did when she spoke to him. In fact, she looked rather serious. She was carrying an envelope. Draco hurriedly stood up to greet her.

'Is your name Draco, dear?' she asked kindly.

Draco nodded and said with a smile, 'Yes, that's me. I'm Draco Malfoy.'

Mrs Hamblin looked at him a little sadly as she held out the letter. 'Hermione asked me to give this to you when you turned up. I'm really sorry. I liked seeing you, you're a handsome young man and you obviously like Hermione a lot.'

Draco looked at her in confusion as he took the letter.

'What do you mean—?'

'Just read the letter, dear,' Mrs Hamblin said sympathetically.

Draco opened the envelope, pulled out the parchment, and began to read as the old woman returned to her flat.

Dear Draco,

First of all I want to thank you most sincerely and profusely for rescuing me from Michael's house. I am aware that it was your job to do so and it wasn't because of any special regard for me, but I will be eternally grateful to you and your team for getting me out of the scariest and most unpleasant experience of my life. I also want to thank you for helping me to get through those first few hours of freedom when I was so scared that Michael would find me and take me back. You were a wonderful support and you gave me so much that it makes it extremely hard to write this letter.

I honestly didn't know that you were married until Harry mentioned it in passing without having a clue what he had just done. If I had known on that first day I would never have come on to you the way I did and I would never have let things go any further than those few small kisses of gratitude, regardless of the desire I felt for you, which I still don't really understand. I honestly don't know if it's true that you thought I knew about your wife, or that you were going to ask her for a divorce, but although I hope it is, a small part of me remembers what you were like at school and it just seems too much to hope for that you have changed as much as I thought.

I tried to explain to you last night that I couldn't continue to be in a relationship with you, but you wouldn't listen to me, wouldn't allow me to end things in the way I wanted. Instead, you steamrollered me into letting you stay, even though you knew I wasn't happy about you being married. It has become quite clear to me that I am unable to end things when I see you face-to-face, as that strange attraction that I can't control seems to take over, so instead, I'm using this letter to tell you that this thing between us, whatever it was, is over and I don't want to see you again. I am not at home this evening and will not be returning to the flat. I am making arrangements to move and I strongly request that you don't look for me.

Go home to your wife and try to patch things up with her. There must have been a reason you married her, you just need to remember it and stop thinking about me. I am aware that this is going to be as difficult for you as it is for me, but if we just keep away from each other as we managed to do for the last ten years, I'm sure we'll both be fine. Eventually, it will just seem like a strange and pleasant dream.

Hermione

Draco stared at the letter for several minutes, unable to comprehend what he had just read. Hermione had moved out to get away from him and had begged him not to try to trace her. He had known she was unhappy about his marriage but she was in love with him, as much as he was in love with her, so why would she do this, especially when she knew he was going to get a divorce? As Draco read the letter through a second time his heart sank even further as he realised that she didn't believe him. Hermione thought he knew that she hadn't known he was married, and she never believed he was going to divorce his wife. She obviously thought it was just a fling for him, not the serious relationship he was so convinced it was.

He scrunched the letter and envelope up in his hand, pain and anger coursing through his body as he thought about Hermione. He had just given up everything for her and she had dropped him, not willing to take a chance that he was telling her the truth. He glanced at the door to the flat. Now what was he going to do? Hermione had asked him not to look for her. If he ignored her wishes and tried to track her down he would be as bad as that bastard sitting in Azkaban. But if he didn't find her his life wasn't going to be worth living. Hermione was everything he wanted, how could she expect him to make a life without her in it?

Draco gave a loud sigh. Well, there was only one thing for it. He had to go home. He bent down and put the letter in his bag before picking it up, then he pulled his wand from his pocket and after a moment's thought Disapparated with a loud pop.

Mrs Hamblin opened her door and looked across the landing at Hermione's door.

'You silly girl,' she said quietly, shaking her head. Then she went back inside and closed the door.

Draco felt the crunch of the gravel as he walked towards the house. In the distance, he could hear one of those bloody peacocks he'd always detested making a terrible racket. He honestly had no idea why his father liked the things so much, all they ever did was make noise, and not a pleasant one, either. He knocked on the door and waited dejectedly for a house-elf to open it. He knew his parents would be happy to see him, although what they would say when he told them his news he had no idea. It couldn't be considered in any way ideal but at least he would have a roof over his head until he could find somewhere else to live.

The house-elf was pleased to see him and excitedly ushered him inside, sending him towards the drawing room where his mother and father were spending the evening. Draco turned down the offer of food and drink, and leaving his bag at the foot of the stairs he made his way to see his parents, knowing he had to at least say hullo.

'This is a very pleasant surprise,' his mother said happily as Draco entered the room. She opened her arms so he could go and hug her. 'What's brought you here this evening, Draco? Is Caroline with you?'

Lucius Malfoy studied his son as Narcissa fussed over him. It was clear from the look on Draco's face that something was definitely wrong, although obviously there had to be for his son to turn up unannounced. The last time Draco and Caroline had come for lunch was almost two months ago and neither of them was the type for impromptu house calls.

'Do you want to join us in a drink?' Lucius asked. He indicated the drinks cabinet that contained a range of bottles and decanters as he stood up and moved towards it. 'I've got rather a fine Scottish single malt that I would recommend. I received it only yesterday. It's a 1957 Bowmore. Superb flavour.'

Draco nodded eagerly. 'Yes, please, that would be great.'

Lucius poured Draco a measure of the dark amber liquid, added another measure to his own glass, then retrieved a bottle of Baileys from the cabinet.

'Can you pass me your mother's glass, please, Draco,' Lucius said as he held out the glass of whisky to his son.

Draco took his mother's glass and passed it to his father, then took his own drink, swirling the rich amber liquid around the glass.

'So where's Caroline this evening?' Narcissa enquired. She looked towards the door as if expecting her daughter-in-law to join them at any second.

'She's at home as far as I'm aware,' Draco said, keeping his voice neutral. He moved to take a seat as Lucius replaced the bottles in the cabinet and passed Narcissa her drink before taking his own place.

'Is everything all right?' Lucius asked. He stared at Draco.

Draco shook his head and sighed. 'No, not really.'

Narcissa instantly looked worried. 'What's the matter, Draco? What's happened?'

Draco considered his mother's words as he took a sip of the whisky. It was truly magnificent, although it was always going to be considering what his father had probably paid for it.

'I don't think I really want to talk about it at the moment,' he said sounding apologetic.

Narcissa looked anxiously at her husband, making a hinting movement with her eyes that Lucius should talk to him. Lucius took a sip of his whisky, savoured it for a moment, then looked towards his son.

'Is everything okay with Caroline? Or is work causing the problem? You know you can talk to us about anything, Draco. We're here to support you, whatever's happened.'

Draco swirled the glass again before taking another sip. This was the downside of staying with his parents: having to talk to them about his life. What he really wanted was to fill his glass with the marvellous whisky and go to his old bedroom and mope around like a moody teenager, lamenting what Hermione had done to him and getting drunk in an attempt to forget all about it for tonight. What he didn't want to do was to sit down here playing happy families and admitting to his hyper-critical father what a mess he had just made of his life.

'I assume the problem is with Caroline, otherwise she would be here, too,' Lucius continued, determined to root out the reason for his son's unexpected visit.

Draco stared at his father for a moment, then looked over at his mother, who still looked worried.

'We're getting a divorce,' he admitted, sighing again as his mother gasped.

'But why?' Narcissa asked, sounding disappointed. 'I always thought you and Caroline—'

'Were so suitable for each other,' Draco said bitterly. 'Yeah, so suitable. Except we're not really compatible in any way. The only things we have in common, apart from our propensity to argue, are money and school House. Not exactly the best basis for a long and loving marriage.'

'Your mother and I have managed perfectly well,' Lucius pointed out.

'But you were a couple at school. There was already love between you when you married. Caroline and I had affection and admiration for each other, sure, but not love. I don't think we've ever really loved each other,' Draco replied.

'You have to work at marriage,' Narcissa told him. 'It's not all moonlight and roses all the time, Draco. You have to make compromises and meet each other halfway. I'm sure you and Caroline can work things out if you just talk to each other.'

'Things can be that good all the time,' Draco retorted passionately. 'I know they can because I've had a taste of it, and if the woman I love hadn't just done a disappearing act on me then I wouldn't be sitting here right now getting a lecture off you two about how I need to work at my marriage.'

'The woman you love,' Narcissa repeated, sounding shocked. 'You've been having an affair? Did Caroline catch you? Gods, Draco, why did you have to be so selfish? You need to go home and apologise to her and tell her that it was a big mistake. I'm sure you can work it out.'

Draco ignored his mother's babbling to look at his father. It was interesting that he, who usually had a myriad of advice for Draco that he never wanted to hear, hadn't said anything yet about his infidelity.

'Leave the boy alone, Narcissa,' Lucius said chidingly as he looked back at Draco. 'I'm sure Draco wouldn't be here if he wanted to get back together with Caroline. He's not an idiot and I'm sure he's thought things through properly — has considered the ramifications of divorce from one of the most influential women in the country.'

'But surely he can do something to stop it,' Narcissa said.

Draco sat back and continued to sip his drink as he watched his parents discuss his marriage, seeming to forget that he was actually in the room with them. After a few minutes, when it seemed things were going to turn into an argument for them, too, he coughed to remind them he was there.

'I asked Caro for the divorce,' he stated as his parents looked at him, Narcissa in horror and Lucius with interest. 'I've fallen in love with someone else and I want to be with her, not Caro, so I asked her for a divorce. She agreed it was for the best . . . as I said, we've never had the greatest marriage.'

He took another swig of the whisky, aware that this was not the way to treat such a great vintage single malt — confirmed as his father winced — but at the moment he didn't care. He needed to dull the pain and it was all he had.

'Everything should have been perfect . . . would have been perfect if I hadn't been so bloody stupid,' he admitted. Feeling sorry for himself now that the alcohol had started working, Draco added, 'Instead, the woman I love has disappeared, convinced that I was just using her, and probably hates me right now. I'm not going back to Caro because I don't want to be anywhere near her and I have nowhere else to go.' He opened his arms, making himself a target. 'So here I am, ripe and ready for you to take a pop at.'

'And just who is this mysterious woman who's suddenly become the love of your life?' Lucius asked.

He stood up and took Draco's empty glass from him, heading to the drinks cabinet where he poured him a large measure of a whisky considerably lighter in colour than the one they had been drinking. He returned the glass to his son.

'Hermione Granger,' Draco said despondently.

He took a mouthful of the whisky and grimaced as he swallowed it. It was still a single malt but without any of the refinement and aging of the older one he had just drunk. This was green and cheap and it wasn't surprising that his father was giving it to him after what he had done with the Bowmore, especially as it was clear he just wanted to get drunk.

Narcissa looked confused as she mused, 'Hermione Granger? I don't think I know her. The name doesn't ring a bell at all. Where are her family from?'

Lucius smiled coldly. 'The Muggle-born. It took you long enough to work that out, Draco. What's it been, ten years since you left school?'

Narcissa looked at her husband and then Draco in horror. 'A Muggle-born? Draco, you can't be serious. You haven't honestly ended your marriage to Caroline for someone with no family and breeding. Please tell me it's not true.'

'You need to be careful what you say about Muggle-borns,' Draco warned his mother coldly. 'People aren't very tolerant of old-school Pure-blood bigots these days, Mother.'

'Don't talk to your mother like that. She can't help being surprised at your choice of partner,' Lucius admonished.

Draco looked at him. 'I'm a little surprised that you're not.'

Lucius shrugged. 'It was obvious that you had a thing for her when you were at school. All that arguing and name-calling. It didn't take a genius to work out that you fancied her and felt guilty about it because of what she was. Why do you think I detested the girl so much? I didn't want her turning your head and making you into a blood-traitor, as she obviously liked you, too. She was dangerous and far too clever by half, and I had to bring her down a peg or two to remind you what she was. I'm just surprised it took you so long to work it out. Surely you must have realised while you were at school that what you felt for her wasn't hatred, as you tried to pretend?'

Draco shook his head morosely. 'Unfortunately, I did a brilliant job of fooling myself. I honestly did believe I hated Hermione. It was only when I saw her again that I realised what all that fighting was about and it was like love at first sight, although of course it had been years in reality.'

'Are you talking about the rude, scrawny girl with the awful bushy hair that was at the Quidditch World Cup?' Narcissa asked. Her nose wrinkled with disgust as she remembered. 'Honestly, Draco. How on earth could you ever choose that monstrosity over Caroline? She didn't have a clue about breeding, or even dress decently.'

Draco took another large mouthful of the whisky. He was beginning to feel a little light-headed and he wasn't very happy with his mother's assessment of Hermione.

'That's right,' he said tetchily. 'Hermione's the one with the curly hair that likes to do its own thing. You might also remember her as the girl Aunt Bellatrix tortured here at the Manor.'

'That's enough, Draco,' Lucius said warningly as Narcissa paled at the remembrance.

'Oh . . . sweet Merlin, I'm sorry, Draco,' Narcissa said quietly. She sounded really upset. Lucius moved to wrap his arms around his wife to comfort her.

'No, I'm sorry, Mother,' Draco answered, suddenly feeling guilty.

He knew his mother had never agreed with what his aunt had done and had been extremely upset about it at the time. It was unfair of him to rub it in her face as if she were the perpetrator just because he was upset at what she had said about Hermione.

'I think we all need to calm down a bit,' Lucius said soothingly. He turned to Narcissa. 'Although Hermione is Muggle-born, she is an extraordinary witch by all accounts. She has done a lot of good work in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, and I understand from several of my friends at the Ministry that she's tipped to be a future Minister for Magic, although whether she'll achieve that if she's got Draco here mooning over her is debatable.'

Draco scowled. 'Are you saying I'm not good enough for her?'

'I'm not saying anything of the sort, Draco,' Lucius replied smoothly. 'I'm just explaining to your mother that Hermione has changed somewhat since she last saw her. I haven't seen her for a year or so myself, but she seemed to me to have improved immeasurably since school, looks-wise at least.' He looked at Narcissa again. 'I don't think you would feel embarrassed to have her in our company, Cissy. She's a pretty young woman and she dresses appropriately. Not quite as expensively maybe, but money isn't everything.'

'Do you mean you approve of this . . . this relationship?' Narcissa asked her husband, sounding astonished.

Lucius nodded. 'I just want Draco to be happy and I don't think you need to be particularly insightful to understand that he and Caro weren't the perfect match. If Hermione makes him happy I'm all for it . . . although I am a little concerned that there seems to be trouble in paradise if she's run away already.'

Narcissa looked at Draco, who had been downing his whisky again and was looking blearily at the bottom of the empty glass. She looked meaningfully at Lucius.

'Well, look at the time. I think I need to go to bed,' she said chirpily. She handed Lucius her empty glass and stood up. 'I'll leave you two men to talk.'

She walked over to Draco and stroked a lock of hair back from his face as she looked at him adoringly. 'It's lovely to see you, Draco, whatever the reason,' she said with a smile, and she bent to kiss him goodnight.

Draco stopped looking at the glass long enough to kiss her back.

'Goodnight, Mother,' he said, his voice slurring a little.

Narcissa released him, brushed the lock of hair from his face again, then moved to give Lucius a kiss before leaving the room. As soon as the door closed Lucius stood up and walked over to Draco. He pulled the glass from his hand and moved to refill it with the cheap single malt, which he gave back to his son. He poured himself another small measure of the Bowmore, then went and sat near Draco, looking at him intently.

'So come on, then, Draco, tell me all about the lovely Hermione. You obviously need to get it off your chest — and you never know, I might even be able to help.'

He raised his glass as if in a toast and Draco clinked his own glass against it as he debated where to start.