AUTHOR NOTE:
This fic is going to start off with Ron and Hermione, rest assured, we will get to Draco and Hermione. Hope you enjoy!
Post-war England was rebuilding and trying to forget the horrors that have happened. Heroes were recognized, criminals were imprisoned while some pardoned. The trails extended for the better part of a year.
Most notable of all of those pardoned were the Malfoys. While Lucius Malfoy was sent to Azkaban for his undeniable involvement in Voldemort's return and his status as a Death Eater, the rest of his family was spared. The Chosen One and The Golden Girl recounted the events that Hermione spent in Malfoy Manor and the Dark Forest. The circumstances surrounding Severus Snape and Draco Malfoy also contributed to the decision.The Wizengamot then ruled to place Narcissa and Draco Malfoy under house arrest for two years and ordered them to contribute some of their vast wealth into the rebuilding effort following the war.
And so, almost three years after the war, the Malfoys rejoin the rest of society.
"Draco, darling, are you ready yet?" called the Malfoy matriarch.
Draco Malfoy had grown into a man. He stood in front of a mirror and admired his physique. He was now twenty years old and he had grown taller still. He kept his hair longer now, less short and sleeked back. He had a careless devil may care look about him which was amplified by his choice of attire. He wore a black long-sleeve, with the top three buttons undone. This was paired with black pants and black dragon hide shoes. He had a subtle silver chain around his neck that almost blended into his pale skin. His height was not the only notable growth in him. His arm muscles rippled through his shirt and made him look even more intimidating. He had grown bored in his two-year confinement and busied himself in his home gym and trained.
He walked out to meet his mother in the garden who waited patiently by a Grecian column.
He extended his arm and said, "Mother."
Narcissa took his arm as he apparated them away.
A few seconds later, the Malfoys arrived at one of their several establishments. They were greeted and welcomed upon their return. Draco was now heir to everything and was ready to assume his role. He had been kept in the loop while he was under house arrest. Draco was kept in the loop as his closest non-imprisoned relative, Harry Potter became the public figure. The two had stricken up a bond following the war and the trial. Draco was apprehensive at first and insisting he didn't need Potter's charity, but had grown more appreciative and came close to a half-apology. Potter had put the war behind him insisting that he could have been in Draco's place had he not asked the sorting hat to steer him clear of Slytherin.
Harry visited him and his mother often, occasionally bringing the Weasley girl. On one count he had brought the rest of his trio but that ended abruptly when Ron had a bitch-fit. It wasn't Draco's fault that he's much better at arguing than the Weasel. Hermione didn't say much but she didn't look at him in the same disgusting cockroach way she used to. She didn't look bored either, it was more of an observant air.
Anyway, Draco could care less what they thought of him. He was back.
"Potter," greeted the blonde, "you're in my seat."
Harry laughed and clapped Draco's back. He gestured towards the large leather chair, "All yours, mate."
Draco smirked and took his seat and proceeded to ask for an update. They had gone through everything and Draco was pleasantly surprised by the success of his companies despite being run by Potter. Meaning no offence, of course.
"I have to say, Potter, this is impressive. I honestly half-expected you to run my family's business to the ground."
Harry laughed sheepishly and said, "well, I had some help. I brought in the biggest brain I knew since I didn't want to single-handedly bankrupt the Malfoy fortune."
Draco raised an eyebrow, "and who is responsible for this? I'd like to meet him."
Harry chuckled and said, "Who said anything about a him?"
Enter Hermione granger, Malfoy business consultant (pretty much the head of the place,) researcher, writer, and advocate of the downtrodden
It was just another day in the office for her, she was going through the statistics of a sales report when a knock came.
"Hermione?" Called her best friend.
"Come in, Harry."
"Are you busy?"
She gave him a look that said What do you think.
Harry merely chuckled, "stupid question, sorry. Do you have two minutes to meet someone."
Hermione continued to work away, already disinterested. "Who?"
"Someone very grateful, he's dying to chat." Harry was grinning.
Hermione, whose nose was buried in paperwork did not catch on to her friend's sarcasm and thought it was perhaps one of the downtrodden. So she replied, "fine fine, tell him to come in. I only have a few minutes."
"Wonderful" Harry's grin grew wider as he spun on one foot and exited Hermione's office. Harry retrieved a grump tall blonde who unwillingly followed him to Hermione's office. He can't believe they put her in charge. The girl who called him a cockroach and turned him into a ferret. She despised him! For all he knew, she could have taken sweet sweet revenge and burned his family's legacy to the ground. I mean, yes, she advocated for him at the trial, but that was probably only to feed her Golden Girl saviour complex. It really was a huge risk, he convinced himself.
The door squeaked open as Draco entered and Harry shut the door while remaining outside. Hermione still had not looked up, so he was naturally, annoyed. How could she not sense his magnetic presence? He thought.
So, he was reduced to announcing himself, annoyance clear in his voice,
"Granger."
Hermione's head bolted up. Her eyes wide.
That's more like it.
Then he watched as her surprise turned into mild annoyance, as if he was inconveniencing her. This irked him even more.
"Malfoy, I heard you wanted to thank me profusely for not leaving you destitute." She leaned back into her chair.
A chair that I paid for. In fact everything in this office belongs to me.
Draco plucked a mint from a bowl on her desk and planted himself on a chair across from the brunette. He mirrored her and leaned back.
"You might want to pay a visit to the hairdresser, Granger. Seems like the huge nest on your head is making you hear things."
He earned a scowl from that comment, and it made him feel all warm and fuzzy. Ah, the joys of irritating Granger.
"How creative, I see that two years holed up in that manor did nothing to fill the hollow space in you skull."
Ah, the lioness bites back.
He smirked, "Ah, that space is filled. It's bigger than you can imagine, just like the rest of me."
A piercing glare hit him, "you are filthy, just say you're thankful and get out of my office."
"Woah woah, I was referring to my muscles," he got up from his chair and planted his palms on her desk, flexing every so slightly. He leaned in and looked her in the eyes. He watched a blush creep up her cheeks. "If you were thinking of another big thing, that was all you Granger."
Her face turned a deeper shade of pink and she stumbled over her words, "G-get out Malfoy."
He smiled and strolled out, but before he shut the door, he looked back. "It's my office by the way."
The brunette groaned and rolled her eyes, internally reminding herself to quit.
He chucked, "But honestly, thank you, Granger for the excellent work, and stimulating company." He left with a wink, but not before he saw the beginning of another embarrassed flush.
"How was your day, dear?" Narcissa kissed her son on the cheek and dusted the Floo powder off of him. She passed him a cup of tea and motioned for him to take a seat on the chaise.
"Productive, interesting," he smiled as he remembered his banter with Granger.
Narcissa gave him a puzzled look, "care to elaborate?"
He leaned back, and took a sip from his cup, "Well, mother. Do you remember the girl I talked about from Hogwarts. She was a bushy haired know-it-all with brown eyes and always had her nose buried in a book?"
Narcissa's eyes glimmered in amusement, "Ah, yes the esteemed witch whose testimony contributed to us not sharing your father's fate? How could I forget, silly me. You only spent half your letters from Hogwarts complaining about her."
Draco turned his nose up and crossed his arms, "I did not. She was just an inconvenience. As I was saying, she's been practically running the Malfoy enterprises."
"Has she now? Not the least bit surprising, honestly. Potter probably pawned the job off to her the minute he struggled."
"Typical Potter, wouldn't have survived the war without Granger."
Narcissa chuckled, "no, I dare say, he would not have." She poured some more tea and added, "I assume she's been met with success?"
Draco gave her a laugh as if that would even be a question, "Astoundingly success. Don't tell father, but she's running the place better than he ever has."
"I think you've found your COO."
"That's funny, mother."
She set her teacup down and said, "I wasn't joking." She walked over to her son and gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, "goodnight, darling."
"Goodnight, mother."
Draco walked to his wing in the manor and settled into his plush king sized bed. He had his hands behind his head and was deep in thought. Hermione as COO? She would never accept. But if she did, I could boss her around. She'd hate it so much. The business will be booming tho. And I'd get to see her annoyed frown everyday. Might actually be worth considering.
Draco fell asleep to his "evil" plots.
Meanwhile, in a humble townhouse tucked away at the edge of the city, our bushy-haired know-it-all did have her nose buried in a book.
After the mentally draining day of running a multi-billion dollar business, researching new cures and curses, Hermione liked to tuck herself in a reading nook she had designated in her home. She had just cracked open a new romance novel and was sniffing the parchment. Small joys in her life included the smell of new books and parchment.
She made herself a cup of earl grey tea sweetened with rose syrup and a splash of cream. She had stumbled upon a cafe that sold the sweet pink liquid and decided to try it. She immediately fell in love and started putting it in her teas and cocktails. This tea combination has been her favourite so far. She has just taken a sip when a knock at the door disturbed her carefully curated comfort.
"Mione, it's me."
oh, it's Ron.
She walked to the door and let him in, "everything, ok?"
He placed a peck on her lips, "yeah, just thought I'd pop by to visit my girlfriend. I haven't seen you in a few days."
Hermione apologized and said she's been busy with work.
"I know, you're always so busy though. Harry told me that git Malfoy came back, today."
"He did, he took back control of the company." She went back to her chair and tried to get comfortable again.
"I assume you'll be leaving then? Since Harry doesn't need to run it for him anymore." Ron sat across from her, so that she'd always see him even as she tried to read.
"You mean, I ran it for the two of them. Harry was just the public figurehead. Besides, I haven't decided yet." She said with mild annoyance.
Ron took a bite of the scone Hermione had laid out for herself, "you can't honestly be considering it, Mione. Working with Malfoy, oh I can't think of anything worse!" He helped himself to some of her tea too
I can. That's my scone and my tea!
"ugh," Ron made a disgusted face. "What is in this Mione? It tastes like flower petals."
"it's earl grey with rose syrup."
"Yuck! It's what butterflies would drink if they had tea," Ron summoned a glass of water from her kitchen and it zipped between them almost splashing Hermione's book.
"Careful! And I like it that way." She tried to return to her reading.
"You've got bad taste, Mione. First this job, and now your weird tea." Ron kept munching on her scone and it really was irking her now. She just wanted to relax and read.
"Thanks, Ron." she mumbled.
Ron tapped her hand, and with mouth still full of scone said, "don't be cross, Mione! I was just kidding."
"I know," she gave him a small smile as she got up. "I'm actually quite tired so I might go to bed."
Ron's eyes lit up, "Can I join you? I could stay the night."
Perfect. No reading tonight.
She slammed her book shut and said, "of course!"
She made a beeline for the bathroom and looked at her reflection. Dark circles shadowed her eyes and her hair was a mess. She looked tired. She took a shower and dried herself before changing into pyjamas. They were comfy cotton ones she found in a Muggle store And they have little cats on them.
She walked into her bedroom, Ron was waiting half naked on the bed. He groaned and said, "I thought you'd be coming out in something more revealing. It's been so long."
Hermione wanted to jump off the window and camp in the woods. Peace and quiet that's all I want. No, Hermione, be nice to him, he's just trying.
"Sorry Ron, I'm just really tired." She crawled under the blanket and faced away, trying to fall asleep.
"You're always tired, Mione," grumbled the redhead.
Hermione shut her eyes and felt a pang of guilt. Ron and her have been dating since the battle of Hogwarts and yes it felt like a long time coming. It was fun at first, dating her best friend, her school crush, but lately she's been feeling a bit off. She can't really point out what's wrong but his presence felt draining. Maybe she really was overworking herself. She led this train of thought until it brought her sleep.