After learning what a terrible mistake he and Harry had made, Ron at least had the sense not to make the situation worse by detaining Draco in a custody cell. Instead, he arranged for them to take over the large conference room every floor was equipped with, while they waited for Harry's inevitable arrival. Draco did suggest that they move to the floor where his wife worked, but Ron just glared at the blond and didn't bother to answer him. The last thing he wanted was for even more people to find out about the mistake they'd made, which would inevitably happen if they moved around the Ministry too much. Although judging from the smirk on Draco's face as he settled down in a chair, he knew exactly what Ron had been thinking, and his reasoning for staying where they were.
Picking a chair that was as far away from Draco as it was possible to get, Ron slumped down, still hardly able to believe what was happening. Not wanting to dwell on the potential trouble he could be in, he instead wondered about the blond wizard and how he'd ended up married to a witch who must have been around his mother's age. Ron wasn't stupid, and he could see that Malfoy wasn't exactly bad looking and would no doubt have no trouble attracting a witch of his own age. So why was he was with someone so much older than him, not to mention a witch who seemed pretty bossy and scary. Not that Ron was going to ask the blond for answers as he didn't want the former Slytherin to think he was interested in his life.
At thoughts of Malfoy's scary wife, Ron's thoughts inevitably drifted back to the rollicking he was sure was coming his and Harry's way. No doubt Kingsley would have plenty to say, but he was also expecting a roasting from the Minister of International Relations. Given he'd been raised by Molly, had Ginny had a sister, had once been best friends with Hermione and had Professor McGonagall as his head of house, Ron was rather used to formidable witches giving him a telling off, but it wasn't something he was looking forward to repeating. Especially not in the presence of Malfoy, who would no doubt love every second of his wife tearing a strip off him.
Although Ron couldn't put off his fate forever and all too soon he heard voices outside of the conference room they were sitting in. Recognising Kingsley's deep voice, Ron steeled himself for facing his boss, but when the door opened it wasn't Kingsley who was first into the room. Instead it was Hermione was entered the room, carrying a small child in her arms. Ron frowned at the puzzling sight, but he didn't have time to ask questions as Kingsley followed her into the room, his sharp glare rendering Ron speechless. Harry then shuffled into the room, looking pretty sheepish and he was followed by Pierre, who was pushing an empty pushchair. Ron fully expected Malfoy's wife to also put in an appearance but her security officer shut the door behind him.
"And just what have you been up to?" Hermione asked in a teasing voice.
Despite being shocked by the light tone of Hermione's voice, Ron opened his mouth to answer before realising that she wasn't even looking in his direction. Her entire focus was on Malfoy, and he watched with an open mouth as Hermione made her way to where he was sitting and gave him a brief kiss. The child in her arms immediately reached for the blond wizard, who scooped him into his arms.
"I know I don't have my mother's knack for gardening, but I didn't realise I was so bad I was criminal," Draco joked, earning an amused snort from Pierre, who had moved to be closer to him and Hermione.
"What is going on?" Ron questioned, words finally emerging from his mouth. "Where is the Minister for International Relations, and why is there a baby in the room?"
"The Minister for International Relations is right here," Hermione answered, turning to face Ron and pointing to herself as she spoke. "And the baby is my son, who couldn't be left at home because you arrested his father."
"Father?" Ron echoed blankly, his mind really not wanting to join the dots. However, as much as it pained him to do so, he eventually had to accept that they had entered some sort of twisted reality where the witch he had once wanted to spend the rest of his life, had married their arch enemy.
Ron looked towards Harry, who confirmed everything with a quick bob of his head. Still not quite believing what he was learning, Ron turned his attention back to Hermione and her family and he suddenly remembered that when they'd seen Malfoy in the muggle village he'd had a baby with him, a baby who seemed about the same age as the one now in his arms. At the vineyard they'd never thought about what he had done with the child, and maybe if they'd stopped to question the child's absence they would have reacted differently and maybe wouldn't have made such a mess of everything.
"I think we need to talk," Kingsley said, his tone of voice not hiding how annoyed he was at his two best Aurors. "Harry, sit down."
"I really don't think Scorpius should be here for this," Hermione muttered, not at all sure how fiery things were going to get with her old friends. So far they hadn't had much of a chance to react to her news, but that would come and if they reacted badly, she didn't want her son upset by any shouting that might take place.
"I could take him home," Draco offered.
"I'd rather you stayed with me," Hermione admitted.
"I'll take Scorpius down to the café for a while," Pierre offered, well aware that Hermione was perfectly safe whilst in the Ministry, and that his services wouldn't be required for a while.
"Thank you, Pierre," Hermione said, smiling at her security officer as her husband handed over their son. "He's got a bottle in the bag. There's also some mashed potato and carrot, but he hasn't really taken to veg yet. Mash him up something sweet and he's as happy as Larry, but trying him on veg isn't proving easy."
"I'm sure I can get some down him, I'm used to dealing with stubborn wizards who simply need a firm hand," Pierre remarked with a grin.
"I just bet you are," Draco snorted as Pierre settled Scorpius into his buggy and the pair headed off to give everyone else some privacy.
"Let's deal with the most pressing matter first," Kingsley said to Harry and Ron as soon as the door was closed behind Pierre and Scorpius. "I'm sure you both have a lot to say to Hermione, and no doubt she has plenty to say to you as well. But there is a more important matter to deal with. Namely, why you arrested Draco in the first place."
"I explained back at the vineyard, sir," Harry said. "We were prioritising your safety."
"I may have agreed with you back at the vineyard, but that was before I discovered who you had arrested," Kingsley said. "And I am not referring to the fact he's the husband of a high ranking Minister in the French Ministry. I am referring to the fact you have arrested someone, who may have the Dark Mark and may officially be classed as a former Death Eater, but who has never been convicted or suspected of anything illegal since the end of the war. I could have understood it if you'd arrested one of the Death Eaters who had never been caught, or even one who had gone to Azkaban and is still monitored for potential criminal acts. But why such a rash move when you were just dealing with Draco?"
"We didn't have time to think of all of that," Ron protested. "We saw a former Death Eater acting suspiciously in your vicinity, sir. We acted swiftly to save your life."
"And just how was Draco acting suspiciously?" Kingsley asked.
"He was carrying sacks into an outbuilding," Harry replied. "After we immobilised him we quickly checked the sacks and they seemed to simply contain dirt, but you know how easily things can be hidden..."
"Compost," Draco remarked, interrupting Harry's explanation.
"Excuse me?" Kingsley frowned, glancing towards Draco.
"I was moving bags of compost back to where we store it," Draco explained. "I just wanted to be clear, I was moving compost, not dirt."
"Dirt, compost, it's all the same thing," Harry snorted. "And it's a material that can easily hide things like explosives."
"And did you find any explosives in the compost?" Hermione asked, although her tone of voice indicated she already knew the answer.
"We hardly had time to check," Ron muttered.
"You hardly had time for anything," Draco retorted. "You were too busy stunning me to ask questions and find out what was going on."
"Is this right?" Kingsley asked, refocusing his attention on his two Aurors. "Did you stun Draco without first trying to establish what he was doing?"
"Yes," Harry admitted. "But again, I will reiterate we were thinking about your safety, Minister."
"I think I have to disagree, Harry," Kingsley said with a shake of his head. "You are both experienced Aurors, and it shouldn't have taken you very long to assess that Draco wasn't an immediate threat. His past record should have been taken into consideration before you acted. You also should have taken into consideration that there was two of you, and you are both specifically trained for this sort of thing. Given that Draco was busy, you could have easily cornered him without any threat to yourselves and questioned him. Had you done so, you may have saved everyone a whole lot of trouble. But I believe you saw Draco and let your past colour your judgment. I believe you acted the way you did because you have never like him."
"Bullshit," Ron swore. "We acted the way we did because even though he didn't go to Azkaban, he was a Death Eater. He did serve that monster. He did partake in dark acts."
"All of which were dealt with at the end of the war," Kingsley said firmly. "I know that you were not privy to all the intimate details of Draco's case, but the public information released was enough for you to know how he was forced into doing Voldemort's bidding. We had a lot more evidence that was never made public, and the Ministry made what I believe is the right call. We chose to give Draco a second chance, a chance to make his own way in the world, and from everything I see, he has made the most of that chance."
"We were hasty in our judgment," Harry said, jumping in before Ron said anything else that would land them further in trouble. "We're sorry Kingsley. We should have approached the matter differently, shouldn't we Ron?" Nudging his best friend, he prayed that Ron would use his brains and say the right thing.
"Yes," Ron admitted through gritted teeth. "We handled things badly."
"You can say that again," Kingsley muttered. "Now we've got a diplomatic incident on our hands."
"I'm not sure we need go that far," Hermione said softly. "I assume Draco's arrest was never made official?"
"No," Ron replied. It would have happened once they got back to the Ministry, but luckily he'd learnt the truth before officially recording the arrest.
"In that case, I think Draco can be persuaded to let the matter lie," Hermione said. "We can all agree it was a mistake and that there was no real harm done."
"I'm sure I can be persuaded to see things your way, sweetheart," Draco purred, giving Hermione a heated look that let the whole room know just how she could persuade him to do as she wished.
"We appreciate it very much," Kingsley said with a sigh of relief. "Although of course, we will issue Draco with a formal apology. As well as personal ones," he added, giving Harry and Ron pointed looks.
"I apologise, Malfoy," Harry said stiffly, knowing that he needed to take the lead if there was any chance of Ron swallowing his pride and apologising to someone he detested.
"I also apologise," Ron said, looking as though he was forcing the words through his lips.
"Apologises accepted," Draco said magnanimously, earning him a grateful smile from Hermione.
"Let this be the end of it," Hermione declared. "I'm sure no-one here wants this incident to derail all the hard work Kingsley and I have done over this last week. We want to forge stronger links between Wizarding France and Wizarding Britian, so let's not let this mistake ruin that. Let's move on and declare the week a success."
"I second that motion," Kingsley said with a firm nod of his head. "As far as I am concerned, the matter is closed. Although, I do think there will be changes in the future," he added, looking back towards Harry and Ron. "I think this will be your last trip acting as my security. You both need to prove your judgment to me before I trust you with such responsibility again."
Harry and Ron exchanged horrified looks at Kingsley's announcement, but neither of them offered any protest as they knew they didn't have a leg to stand on. Truth be told they had messed up on an epic scale, and quite honestly they were lucky to be getting off so lightly. But that didn't mean it didn't hurt being let go as Kingsley's personal security. It was a clear message that he had lost faith in them, and everyone would know it.
"Hermione, would you like to speak to Harry and Ron?" Kingsley asked.
"If they would like to speak to me," Hermione replied. Given what had just happened, part of her was tempted to say that she didn't wish to speak with her old friends, but she felt as though it would be stupid to waste the opportunity. However, what she did know was that the meeting was not going to be the first step towards reconciliation, not after the last couple of hours, instead it was more likely to act as a final goodbye to her past. "That was why I invited you up to the vineyard, so we could speak in private and I could tell them all about my life, and who I share it with."
"Harry? Ron?" Kingsley questioned. "Would you like some time to speak with Hermione, or should we go back to the hotel?"
Hermione waited as her two old friends turned to look at one another. Even though not a word was exchanged they still seemed to have a silent conversation with each other. After a moment, Harry nodded his head and confirmed that yes, he and Ron would like a chance to speak to Hermione.