A/N: Chapter 30 has been edited, please re-read or it may get confusing

Chapter 31

"I'm not sure what you want from me then" he stated, "I've been honest with you, I've tried helping you, I-" he paused momentarily thinking, "I feel as if we are just going around in circles, pussy-footing around one another"

Hermione nodded taking in his thoughts and attempting to process them without get muddled "You have only just broken up with your Husband, it's unfair on both of us to expect anything at this moment in time. I think maybe we're rushing it, we need to take a step back, we both have admitted we have feelings, too many emotions are playing a part here, so I propose we postpone whatever is going to happen until it feels right."

She looked to her lap and the thumbs she was twiddling there, "I'm scared" she finally admitted feeling like a weight had been taken off her chest.

And it was that one statement that caused Draco Lucius Malfoy to stop worrying about his own feelings, and look at the woman in front of him, truly look at her, a time in which he could see the bags forming under her eyes, no matter the glamour charms she had used, he could hear the meekness in her voice, that subtle vulnerability how she sounded like a mewing cat rather than a ferocious lioness. The way she must have been nibbling on her nails in worry, seeing the few jagged edges to the keratin fibres of her nails.

With this sudden realisation he couldn't prevent himself from his next actions, as he pulled the brunette from the seat and into his waiting arms, accommodating her as close to his body as he could, and just as he was about to speak a voice shouted from the locker room, "Malfoy get a move on, we're about to be called out- you're the last one in here!"

Draco sighed, breathing deeply through his nose, breathing in the scent that was uniquely Hermione, a raspberry aroma tinged with lavender and rosewood. "You should get going" Her muffled voice finally spoke, causing a warm breeze to flitter across his still naked chest.

The blond pulled back to look in the brunette's eyes, nodding his head once, "I should" he agreed, but he had more pressing matters, "But are you okay?"

"I'm a big girl now Malfoy"

He nodded his head, "I know you are, but I can see behind your facade" he shrugged, "I'm here for you"

She forced a weak smile, "Go, before they send a search party" she pushed him in the direction of the door, and as he reached for the handle she spoke again, "Oh and Draco..."

"Hmm?"

"Win for us"

"I will Princess, I'll see you after the game" And with that he pulled his number eleven jersey over his head, Hermione following him as he walked into the main locker room grabbing his arm and shin guards as he sat down fixing them into place, before placing his fingerless gloves on, and picking his cape off the hook it was hanging.

He grabbed his broom from the rack at the door before the pair of them were stood outside the room, where Daphne re-emerged following her earlier escape. Draco gave a single wink to Hermione before he was walking down the corridor towards the players tunnel, leaving the two women to amble back to the private box in the stands.

The whispers of Daphne echoing lightly down the walls as he went, "So you two are okay then?"

-DMHG-

-Four hours later-

"I thought I'd find you here" Hermione's head snapped around startled at the sound of Draco's voice, to find the blond wearing his black overcoat, stood a few metres away from the bench she was sat.

"How did you know where I was?"

He signalled next to the empty bench seat adjacent to Hermione, to which she nodded, "Lucky guess really, this is where you were last week, I assumed you'd come back to your sanctuary if you were upset" he spoke as he sat next to the brunette.

"I'm not upset" she clarified.

"Just thinking things through then?"

She nodded, wrapping her own coat tighter around her frame "Nobody, well except yourself, knows about this place, or how often I come here" Hermione looked amongst the headstones you could see throughout the field, "I just miss them in times like this". There was a few minutes of silence as the pair just sat there enjoying each other's company, before Hermione spoke again, "Congratulations on the win by the way"

"Thank you" Draco turned towards Hermione, "Rose enjoyed it as well, she gave me an in depth analysis of what she saw" he laughed lightly, "She even told me I blind side going anticlockwise around the pitch" He shook his head, "I was thinking if you don't mind, next weekend, I can teach Rose to fly, it would be good for her to have some idea before she goes to Hogwarts."

Hermione nodded distractedly, "I'm sure she'd love it"

"Granger?" she turned towards Draco arching her eyebrow, "Speak to me, your clearly distracted, and small chit-chat is not getting us anywhere"

"I'm just thinking how much my life has changed in this one week, my husband has been having an affair for goodness knows exactly how long, I've realised that my savings are no more- and that said husband has spent them. And to top it off I have to go to this gala, put on a show for everyone, when to be honest all I want to do is curl up with a book, may be some chocolate, and let all my emotions go." She lifted her face from looking at the ground, "I so badly just want to cry"

"You can do that tomorrow- I'll take Rose with me and Scorpius to Diagon Alley, or at least keep her out of your hair, and you can have a day to yourself"

"Draco you've known me for a long time, how often have you seen me let my emotions out?"

"Touché" he conceded. "There are other ways to relax, the manor is a rife with pleasurable activities to partake in" he let his inneuendo filled sentence hang in the air, as he continued to silently watch the brunette.

After a few spare minutes of silence, Draco stood, holding his hand out to Hermione, "Come. We need to get ready for tonight, and we both know how long it can take you to tame that wild thing you call hair"

Hermione's eyebrow arched, "Yes, Mister my tie is skew-whiff I must re-do it a million times!" He smirked in reply before he apparated them back to Malfoy Manor

-One hour, forty-seven minutes later-

Draco found himself sat in one of the leather bound chairs of the Manor's travelling room, a glass of fire whiskey perched precariously between two fingers of his right hand, his eyes staring into the flames of the hearth.

"Father?" Scorpius spoke from the doorway, and Draco immediately span around in the chair, stopping facing his only child. "This stupid thing won't tie!" he huffed trying to tie the bowtie his father had insisted he had to wear.

"Just leave it for now Scorpius" the young boy huffed again leaving the black material resting over his shoulders, as he took a seat on the settee next to the chair Draco was sat. "Scorpius I have a request of you this evening"

The younger blond looked towards his father, "Yes father, I know, don't let Amando drag me into any pranks or show you up, Grandfather already told me"

Draco smirked, "Actually I was going to say keep an eye on Rose"

"I'm sure Amando will do that perfectly fine on his own..." Scorpius commented, trailing the end of his sentence off.

But before Draco could comment on what his Son meant the door to the Travelling room opened and in walked the aforementioned Rose, her strawberry blonde hair falling in small waves down her neck to her forest green dress, and it was as Draco looked closer his mouth dropped open unceremoniously, for behind Rose was the picture of perfection- in Draco's eyes, and no doubt many other men's that evening- her Mother. The first thing that sprung to Draco's mind was Pansy's words the other day- that dress was made for her!

A/N: A short chapter before the Ball, which will be the next chapter... Expect tension, shouting, and may be a punch or two, who knows?
Thanks for reading, until the next installment, Scorpio219