CHAPTER 8

A/N: Once again thank you to all my readers! A special thanks to those who chose to review. You guys are the wind behind my sails. When I see a new review…I just get soooo happy! Patty Cake Rocks: glad you are still loving it! Thank you for your faithful reviewing! Nikki Pond: I always felt like Draco could be a good person buried under it all, and this has given me the opportunity to make that dream come true. The Dragon and The Rose: I thought the same thing about Hermione not thinking of Draco as a possible money donor. As far as she knows, he hates her, and he is on probation with one of the conditions being that he can't touch his money. Glad to hear that you are liking it.

Now on with the story! Only a few more chapters until Draco is done with his probation!

"Why the sudden interest in Ms. Ganger?" Chaz asked quietly as the two wizards sat in Draco's small apartment.

"I realized that I had donated the money to her, but I didn't know much about what she does for the Ministry," Draco replied trying to sound breezy and nonchalant.

Chaz raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything for a few moments. "So, what do you think, now that you know?"

"I think that it suits her. She was always worrying about others at school, and with this job, she will be able to help people."

Draco tried to ignore the look that Chaz was shooting his way. To his credit, the other wizard did not say anything. For quite a few minutes, the two wizards sat in silence. Then Chaz spoke in his usual jovial voice, "I have another project for you."

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And that was how Draco passed the next five months, project after project. He didn't mind because it kept him busy, and it kept him out of the office. There were only nine months left of his probation, and he could hardly wait. Every time he was in the office, he made sure to listen in to Janella's conversation, trying to hear anything he could about Hermione. He was waiting to see if she would soon start a new project, but it seemed as though she was still knee deep in the orphanage, or at least that was what she was telling Janella. From what he had heard she was just as excited now as she had been when if first started. He wasn't surprised. He was sure that she would have put everything she had into it. Draco had continued to give to various charities and groups. He liked the feeling of helping others, which was foreign and strange to him. He had expressed this to Chaz, and the man had laughed, telling him that he should embrace the things that felt good and start trusting his instincts.

This scared Draco. He was worried that he wasn't ready to start knowing right from wrong. Prejudice from normalcy. He had to try though. Not just for himself, but for Chaz. Chaz had been amazing for him. It seemed like he was always on Draco's side and always trying to help in any way possible.

Chaz had been very helpful in finding him projects. He had help rebuilt a few houses in a neighborhood that had been blasted apart by the Death Eaters, he had worked with an Auror to help track down a few of the lingering Death Eaters that were still hiding, and he had given more statements about events that he had witness or been a part of. However, his favorite project had been helping a muggle born man rebuild his shop in Diagon Alley. It had taken the longest of all the other projects: two months. It had taken so long because the man had wanted to do everything the muggle way. Draco had been annoyed at first, but the more he worked with the man, the more he learned, and the more he enjoyed himself. The man taught Draco many important lessons, and he became a great friend to Draco.

Old Albert, now had himself a great sweets shop. It had been rebuilt with love, sweat, and quite a bit of Draco's blood. The power tools had taken a lot of getting used to. Draco was sure that he would never touch a power saw for the rest of his life. He had decided the thing was evil. The slice in his hand had taken a trip to St. Mungos to mend.

Chaz promised to let him know when he found another project for Draco, but for now it was back to work. Every day on his way into and out of the Ministry, he hoped that he would run into Hermione. He wanted to ask her about the orphanage and how it was going. He was sure that it would be amazing. Hermione had never been one to half-ass anything. In school, she had always gone above and beyond when she needed to and a lot of the time when she didn't need to.

On the way into work the next day, Draco was sure that he had seen a head of brown hair duck into an elevator.

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Hermione had been on cloud nine for the last five months. A month after she had been given the go-ahead, they had broken ground on the orphanage. The best part had been the look on Sam Trinkly's face when she had told him. He swore up and down that he believed there was no way she would pull it off. He had kissed her square on the lips and hugged her tightly. Hermione had been stunned. The next day Sam asked her out. She said yes.

The orphanage was almost done, and Hermione had almost fully staffed it. She had also met quite a few of the children that would be staying in the orphanage. She wanted the place to feel homey and comfortable for the children. She did not want even one to feel unwanted.

That night she and Sam were going out to get coffee from a place just down the street from the new orphanage. When Hermione arrived, she could see that Sam had grabbed a seat and was waiting for her. Sliding in next to him, she accepted the peck her pressed to her lips. Sam was truly a wonderful man. He treated her wonderfully, was handsome, and cared about her feelings.

"Hermione, how was work today?" Sam always asked about her day, and he always listened when she told him.

"It was really good. I only have a few more people to interview for positions at the orphanage. My boss told me that as soon as the orphanage is up and running, he wants me to start working with the vampires again. I guess they are asking for me. They want something from the Ministry, though Daniel wasn't completely sure what. I guess they are being pretty tight lipped about it all."

Sam listened and nodded along. "I hope your boss knows how good he has it, having you around."

Hermione blushed and looked down at her drink. He was always saying things like that. She reached up and brushed a stand of light brown hair that had fallen in front of his eyes. He had the most magical brown eyes. She always felt like she was drowning in them. He caught her hand and pressed a light kiss to the inside of her wrist.

"I am sorry that I can't come to this Ministry Ball tomorrow."

Hermione felt a bit taken aback for a moment. The quick change of subject had startled her. It took her a second to realize that he was talking about the ball that the Ministry was putting on. Her boss had informed her that it was required for her to attend. She had balked at the idea, but Ginny had taken her dress shopping and talked her into it.

"No need to be sorry, I understand why you can't." The full moon was tomorrow night, and Sam would be locked away in a cage somewhere. She had been brewing him wolfsbane potion since they started dating, but he still felt more secure locked in his cage. Hermione had never seen his cage, and she not been allowed to be present on the full moon.

"Yes, well…" he let the thought trail off.

Hermione had been feeling the strain of his condition for a few weeks now. It had been a fight to get him to accept the wolfsbane potion when she made it, but when he finally took it from her she thought they were making progress. Since then he had not wanted to talk about all about his once-a-month-wolfiness. That was a topic that was off limits. He was perfect in every way expect in trusting her with this part of him. He was closed off and skittish. She thought that it would get better and maybe it still could. Time, he just needed time.

"Well perhaps next ball," Hermione said, trying to change the subject.

"Perhaps."

It seemed as if their night had taken a turn for the worse, but Hermione was used to it. He always got upset and moody before the moon.

Not long after the two said their goodnights and went their separate ways. Hermione found herself back on her bench in front of the pond. She had brought her book this time and opened to her page. There was nothing better than reading a book on her bench. This was her relaxing place; she could let all her worries go here. She did not have to think about how touchy Sam was with her, she did not have to think about the fact that he hadn't met any of her friend but Harry. She could just sit and enjoy her book in the fresh evening air.

A/N: Leave me a review to let me know what you think! Anyone have any requests on things they would like to see in the future?