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Forgiven	By : Tassanaburrfoot Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 18105 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 2
Disclaimer: I do not now, nor have I ever, owned Harry Potter or the books or contents. This work is purely for my own pleasure, no profit to be made.

Chapter List
- 31
- 32
- 33
Silence prevailed the room as everyone stared at Hermione in shock, but the witch only had eyes for one person. She had always been amazed by how well he had been able to hide his emotions and it didn’t take her long to learn that he was quite the skilled Occlumens. Given that Voldemort had once presided within these walls, such a thought wasn’t surprising, but it always made it difficult for her to discern what he was thinking, what he was feeling.
She watched in wonder as she could literally see the walls come crashing down in his eyes. Shock and fear swirled within his silver eyes and then she saw it. For the first time in her life, Hermione saw true hope in Draco’s eyes. “Draco?” she whispered, breaking the silence.
His mouth hung slightly open as he stared at her. He momentarily forgot how to breathe and his heart skipped a beat. “Is it true?” he asked, his voice a soft rasp.
Pressing her lips together, Hermione gave him a soft smile and nodded. He suddenly sprang into action, grabbing her by the waist and picking her up in a hug. He twirled her around a few times and she threw her head back, laughing. When he finally put her down, it was to give her a deep, passionate kiss.
Neither Draco nor Hermione knew what their parents were doing, nor did they particularly care. Releasing her, his lips drew back in a wide smile that showed his straight, white teeth. His brows dancing along his forehead as he breathed, “I’m going to be a father?”
She giggled. “Yes, my prince,” she told him. “You’re going to be a father.”
He hugged her again, kissing her cheeks, her forehead, her nose, her lips, her chin… every bit of her face that he could. He then buried his face in her neck, holding her tightly against him. “A father,” his hot breath tickled the tender skin and she tilted her head towards him in reaction.
They broke apart and he turned to his parents. “I’m going to be a father!” he told them, his eyes as wide as his smile.
Narcissa shared in his joy, smiling as she opened her arms to embrace her son. Lucius was happy as well, inclining his head proudly and giving his son a soft smile. “Congratulations,” the man said.
“My baby’s pregnant!” Mrs. Granger gasped and Hermione turned to her mother.
Mr. Granger frowned. “You’ll be twenty-one soon, Hermione. Are you sure?”
The Muggle born simply smiled and gave the man a nod. “Yes, Daddy, I’m sure,” she told him. “One thing I’ve learned from the war is that life is short. I lost some very close friends who will never be able to have even a percentage of the life I have now. I want… I need to make the most of what I’ve got.” She took her mother’s hand and turned to the Malfoys to see Narcissa resting her head on Draco’s chest and smiling at the Muggle born. Hermione returned her smile. “I’ve never been more content with my life. Draco has done so much for me.”
She glanced up at her father. “Early this morning I was called away to my office and, whilst there, I learned that one of my proposals had been accepted and we’re finally starting to work on the actual law,” she gave a small smile and let her eyes gaze back at her husband. “That wouldn’t’ve been possible without the generous amount of money Draco gave. I also learned that he had purchased the land Pansy and I were looking at the other day.” She tilted her head. “Plans are being drawn now, my prince, for the school.”
He nodded and she continued, “I don’t know where I would be were it not for him.” She looked back at her parents. “He’s given me a life, hope, love… He’s helped me bring you home and his father restored your memories. None of this would ever have been possible without Draco. I’m well and truly blessed.”
Releasing his mother, Draco approached his wife from behind, wrapping his arms around her waist and resting a head on her shoulder. “I feel just as blessed, love,” he murmured. “You’ve helped me learn to live and laugh again. I’ve never been happier than I have with you.”
Mrs. Granger looked at her daughter. There were tears in the Muggle woman’s eyes and she held out a hand to take the girl’s. Hermione accepted and Draco released her so she could embrace her mother. “Oh, my Hermione,” the older woman said as she rested her head against the witch’s. “All I’ve ever wanted was for you to be happy. To be the best woman you could be in life.”
The Muggle born smiled as she looked at her mother. “And I am, Mum,” she told her. “Life as Draco’s wife isn’t always the happiest. We have our downs as well as our ups, but he completes me in every way. You’ll see. Did you know he was second in our class?” She gave a smirk to her father. “He would’ve been first had it not been for me. And the year Harry, Ron, and me were on the run, Draco was Head Boy. I would’ve been Head Girl if it hadn’t been for the war.”
“Head Boy?” Mrs. Granger asked, looking at Draco. “Handsome, charming, and intelligent?” Her eyes shifted to Lucius as she asked, “Are you sure you’re not part Greek God? Only, after living with Hermione for the better part of her life, it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest.”
Lucius chuckled, actually chuckled, and shook his head. “There is no Greek in our ancestry, though we do have quite a bit of Roman blood. I doubt it has anything to do with the gods, however,” he said respectfully.
Mrs. Granger turned her attention to Draco. Letting go of her daughter, she touched either side of Draco’s face with the tips of her fingers. “Would you know when Hugo and I were changing in our rooms, when we thought we were Monica and Wendell, I made a comment of how much I wished I had a daughter so she could meet a fellow like you? Little did I know that she actually has,” she told him with a smile. Then, she pulled Draco to her in a hug. “Welcome to the family, my dear.”
Draco returned her hug, a rather goofy smile playing on his lips. “You as well,” he said, kissing her cheek and stepping away.
“You’ll treat her right,” Mr. Granger said to Draco sternly, his eyes unwavering as he glared at the young wizard.
Though Draco felt a sense of amusement at the Muggle’s words, he inclined his head respectfully. “Yes, sir,” he replied.
“You’ll support her endeavours, you’ll never leave her wanting,” the man continued. “And, most importantly, you’ll never hurt her.”
“Yes, sir,” Draco said again, as he worked hard not to crack a smile. “You’ll never have to worry about her with me.”
“I better not,” Mr. Granger threatened. “I happen to know Mr. Harry Potter and I know the relationship she shares with him. If I give the word, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that he’ll hunt you down and destroy you.”
Draco couldn’t help himself as he snorted. “Somehow I think he’d hunt me down regardless of what you say,” he said. “With pleasure, too.” He shook his head. “Your daughter is in good hands with me, sir, and I really do wish I could have asked you before taking her hand. In fact, I had planned that very thing until I was told about your memory loss. After that, it became my mission to do what I could to help my father restore your memories so I could receive your blessings.”
“Oh, Mrs. Malfoy, you have raised such a perfect gentleman,” Mrs. Granger gushed.
The smile on the Pureblood witch’s face broadened. “Narcissa, please,” she said. “As Draco has stated, we’re family now.”
“Then I insist on you calling me Rosie,” the Muggle woman replied and the ladies touched cheeks with one another.
Lucius rested his hand on his wife’s waist as the ladies parted and inclined his head. “And you may call me Lucius, if it pleases you,” he told the Muggle woman.
“Oh, I have a very large desire to call you Adonis,” she told the wizard. At his soft smile, she continued, “But I suppose Lucius will do as well. Did you know that Lucius was originally a Roman general who had fought against King Arthur? It’s a very strong, proud name to have.”
Draco smirked at Hermione. “Now I see where you get it from,” he teased, kissing her forehead.
Hermione lifted her hand to pop his chest, but stopped herself. “We’re going to have a baby soon,” she reminded him and he beamed.
“That we will,” he agreed.
She met his eyes and offered him a smile for a moment before it faltered. “I spoke to Ron today,” she told him.
“You did what?” he asked, his brow furrowing as he looked at her.
She nodded and told him about what had happened.
(II)(II)
Earlier that day…
Ron knocked on the open door. “Hermione? May I speak to you for a moment?”
The Muggle born glanced up from her desk and rolled her eyes. “What do you want, Ronald?” she asked tiredly.
He stepped into the room and pushed the door so that there was just a crack in it. She watched as he crossed the room, indicating a chair next to him. “May I?”
She waved her hand in irritation. “If you must.”
Sitting down, he stared at his hands. “I wanted to apologize to you,” he started.
“What?”
He shook his head. “I realize that I’ve never treated you right,” he told her. “For years you wanted to be with me and I kept turning you down. I was stupid and couldn’t see what I had in front of me. Then, after the war…” He looked up, but found he couldn’t meet her eyes, so he let his eyes fall to the desk. “All I ever wanted was to make you happy, but how could I? I knew you were hurting what with your parents and everything else. Ginny told me that you had taken much of the deaths onto your own shoulders and felt that you were at fault.” He looked at her. “You weren’t. Fred, Lavender, Parvarti… Everyone who died. It wasn’t your fault, Hermione. Just like it wasn’t Harry’s. They all died fighting for a cause they believed in. Your parents? That’s not your fault either.”
“I Oblivated them, Ron,” she said as she felt a lump in her throat begin to form.
“You did what you had to do to protect your family,” he corrected her. “No one can be blamed for that. I…” He sat back in his chair as his eyes lit with a realization. “You did the same thing Malfoy did. You’re the brightest witch of our age, Hermione. You’ve always put others before yourself and I’m an idiot.” His eyes welled with tears that he refused to shed. “I thought I had you. Thought you were mine. And you were so strong, especially after the war that I didn’t even stop to think that you could be just as broken as I was. I was selfish,” he confessed, staring at the desk. “I’m still selfish. And you were right, just like you’ve always been. I still love you, Hermione. I always will, but I know now that I never could have made you happy. You need someone who is as dedicated to you as you are to them. Someone who can lift you up and catch you when you fall. I could never be that man, but Malfoy… Draco, I think, is.” His eyes lifted back up to hers. “I truly am sorry for all the hurt I’ve caused you. A friend should never hurt a friend and I…” He shook his head and stared back at his hands.
Hermione had watched him all during his little speech and she could feel her heart clench the more he spoke. “We used to be such good friends,” she told him. “What happened between us?”
He scoffed. “We dated,” he said honestly. “Then I asked you to marry me.”
“Yes. Why did you ask me to marry you?” she asked as she reclined back in her chair.
He shrugged. “Thought it was what I was supposed to do,” he replied honestly. “Harry and Ginny were getting married and, well, isn’t that the next step?”
She sighed. “For what it’s worth, I forgive you, Ronald,” she told him finally.
He smiled hopefully at her. “Friends?”
She shook her head. “No. No, I don’t think so,” she said. As she watched him become crestfallen, she explained, “It’s not that I don’t want to be friends, I just… We lead two very different lives and, while I do forgive you for all that you’ve done, I can’t forget it. You hurt me a lot. For years, too. And if I forget that, it might cause you to forget as well and we’ll end up right back where we are now.”
“It’d be different though,” he told her. “You’re married to Draco now. I can’t hurt you anymore.”
“You’re right,” she said with a raised eyebrow. “You can’t because I won’t let you. My life is with Draco and with Lucius and Narcissa. They are my family and have been my support system for over two months now. I may not understand all of it, but I know a bit about the animosity between your family and mine. I don’t see it changing any time soon, though we can be cordial to one another. Maybe one day, when we’re old and grey and wrinkly, we can be friends. But for right now… I’ll accept your apology and we’ll part ways. I do care about you, Ronald. But it’s like you’ve said. I will always do what I feel is right for my family and they are my family.”
They both stood up and shook hands. “I guess this is goodbye?” he asked. At her nod, he took a deep breath and sighed. “I’ll see you around, Mrs. Malfoy.”
“See you, Mr. Weasley,” she replied. “Please, shut the door on your way out?”
As he did what she asked, she sat back down in her chair and finally cried. On the other side of the door, Ron leaned against the wood and cried as well. Their time together was truly over.
(III)(III)
Still earlier that same day…
“Oh, Hermione!” Luna said wistfully as she danced into the office. “I have such wonderful news that you’ll never believe.”
The Muggle born smiled. “And what is that?” she asked.
The young Ravenclaw giggled. “Theo is going with me to find Erumphants and Cogginods,” she told her friend.
The Gryffindor gave the girl an amused look. “You really do like him, don’t you?”
Luna gave a slight nod. “He understands me,” she explained. “You know his mum died from experimenting with potions? Only, he was just a wee lad when it happened and he doesn’t remember it at all. Still, it does warm my heart knowing how much we have in common. We’re going to travel the world, you see.”
“You’ll be back in England for Blaise and Padma’s wedding, though, won’t you?” the Muggle born asked.
Luna nodded. “Of course! I wouldn’t want to miss it for anything. And there’s still your birthday party to go to,” she added with her usual wistful smile.
Hermione groaned. “Oh, don’t remind me,” she joked.
(IV)(IV)
She had gotten home from her office and found a note left to her from Draco.
“My princess,
I hope you’ll forgive me for not being here to welcome you home. I had some business to take care of and it required my immediate attention. My parents have asked me this morning if we could dine with them tonight and you know I can never turn them down. Also, Mother mentioned to me this morning if you would be willing to help her make some decorations for your birthday. (I don’t know what that’s all about.) I will be at Malfoy Manor this evening, I promise.
Love truly,
Draco”
She pressed a hand to her abdomen as she read the letter a couple of times. Why Narcissa needed her help, she hadn’t a clue, but she did enjoy spending time with the Pureblood witch. Despite their differences, or maybe in spite of them, Hermione had grown rather attached to her mother-in-law. The whole idea of a “first generation” witch or wizard was, admittedly, a bit insulting, but it was also endearing. For the Muggle born, it showed true effort from her in-laws to learn to accept her as one of their own.
She changed into something a bit more comfortable than her work clothes and cast the pregnancy charm, expecting, like always, for her wand to emit a red light. But this time, it didn’t. Hermione froze mid-step and cast it again. To her pure shock, a green light shot from her wand. Her jaw dropped and she touched her stomach.
She hurried to the floor length mirror and cast the spell again. Green. She gasped, holding back a sob. They had been trying so hard and now… She kneeled down on the floor and sat on her legs. Covering her face with her hands, she wept.
Ever since Hermione had started dating Draco, Narcissa had done everything she could to make the Muggle born feel welcomed. Even Lucius had started warming up to her once she and Draco were married. But this? A baby? Their baby.
There weren’t words that could express this moment well enough for the bookworm. They were finally going to be a family. And that meant everything in the world to her.
(V)(V)
“Ah, Hermione, my dear,” Lucius said as the Muggle born Apparated into the drawing room. He was sitting at the piano with his wife, though from the looks of their position, Hermione highly doubted they were actually playing any music.
The Muggle born gave an uncomfortable smile. “Should I return later?” she asked, blushing.
“Oh no, darling!” Narcissa said as she untangled herself from her husband’s embrace. “Lucius was just playing me the first song we had ever danced to as a married couple. I was so enchanted that I simply forgot myself.”
Hermione placed a hand over her mouth to stifle the giggle that she felt bubbling up. “No, really, I can come back,” she told them.
“Nonsense,” Lucius argued as he fixed his robes and straightened up. He turned to look at her. “You’re already here. Besides, I wanted to speak with you about something.”
Her eyes widened and she bit her bottom lip. What was the appropriate way to tell a gentleman his fly was open? Thankfully, Narcissa spared her the embarrassment as she stepped in front of her husband, rose up on her toes and whispered something in his ear.
Hermione had never witnessed mortification from Lucius Malfoy, and, to her surprise, she didn’t witness it now. He simply reached down and zipped up his trousers as though nothing awkward had happened. “Do you think Mrs. Potter would fancy that colt that was recently born?” he asked effectively diverting the Muggle born’s attention.
Tilting her head, Hermione looked at the wizard curiously. “Colt?” she asked.
He inclined his head as he limped to the liquor cabinet. “I was sure Draco had taken you to see it,” he commented. Taking out three tumblers, he began filling them with brandy.
Noticing what he was doing, Hermione shook her head. “Oh, none for me, Father,” she told him. “Please. I…” The memory she had of the tour flashed in her mind. “I do remember seeing the horses,” she said. “Though, I don’t think I… Wait. That house elf did tell Draco that one of the mares was going to have a foal soon.” She smiled. “She had a colt! Oh, I know you must be happy, but why would it matter what Ginny thought of it?”
He handed a glass to Narcissa and took a sip from his own. “I was contemplating giving it to her,” he answered.
The Muggle born’s eyes widened. “You were what?” she asked, not sure she had heard him correctly.
Lucius lifted his shoulders slightly. “It would be no loss to our brood as we have at least two more mares with foals on the way,” he told her. “And I know Mr. Potter has no room to house such an animal, so it would no doubt stay here anyway. However, it has promise to be a fine beast that I’m sure your friend would love. And she can come here any time, day or night, to see it. Once it’s old enough to be trained, she can even decide what she wants to do with it, whether it should be a derby horse or not.”
Narcissa smiled and gave a little wrinkle of her nose that reminded Hermione of that old television show “Bewitched” that her parents used to enjoy watching. The Muggle born bit back a laugh at the thought. “He does come from the finest bloodline, too, darling. You’ve seen his father perform, after all, in the derby.”
The young witch giggled at that. “Comet? Oh, Ginny loved Comet! I’m sure she’d love his colt, too,” she told the wizard. “I’ll have to send her an owl and invite her to the estate.”
“If you’d like, we can always wait until after your birthday,” he suggested. “That way, she can truly enjoy the idea without it being overshadowed by your celebration.”
Hermione nodded in surprise. “Yes, of course,” she murmured and then added, “That’s very thoughtful of you, Father. Normally you would be more interested in overshadowing everyone else. How much have you had to drink?”
The man scoffed. “I am a respectable person, my dear,” he said haughtily, his head held high. “Besides, it isn’t likely Potter will be buying any land any time soon, so the colt will stay here for a bit longer.”
The Muggle born smiled. “Unless Harry decides to buy that piece of land out in Cambridge,” she said nonchalantly.
The patriarch’s eyes widened. “Why in God’s name would he buy land out there?” he asked, looking at her.
The witch shrugged as she sat down near the bookshelf. “Well, he and Ginny live in London, you know? Grimmauld Place. And he has his parents’ home in Godric’s Hollow.”
“Is he going to sell them?” Narcissa asked.
Hermione shook her head. “No,” she told them both. “He has no interest in selling the home his parents once lived in and Grimmauld Place just has so much history in it. Never mind the fact that both homes are wizarding homes and anyone living in Grimmauld Place would have to deal with Mrs. Black.”
Narcissa lifted an eyebrow to which Hermione shrugged. “I’m sorry, Mother. I’m sure your parents may have been close to Mrs. Walburga Black, but her portrait shows nothing but a horrible woman who would, no doubt, flay all of us alive.”
“Why don’t you just take the portrait down?” The older woman asked. “My aunt wasn’t the most pleasant woman even in life.”
“She put a permanent sticking charm on it,” Hermione answered. “I’ve tried figuring out a way…”
“That’s an easy fix,” Lucius said suddenly. “If I were able to go to Grimmauld Place, I could take care of it.”
Hermione gave him a kind smile. “I’ve no doubt you could,” she told him. “However, that would be considered skipping out on your probation and you wouldn’t be the only one getting in trouble. Also, I would rather you be here, free, than locked up in some cell.”
He looked at her curiously as he joined her by the bookcase and took the chair opposite her. “And why is that, my dear?”
She wanted to tell him about the baby, but she felt that she should wait. Draco deserved to be the first to know. So, instead, she commented, “You’re Draco’s father. I… I know what it’s like to be without one’s parents. On the best of days, you feel a tightening in your chest and a bit of sadness. On the worst… The entire world is before you and you can feel the ground trying to swallow you up. You can’t breathe, you can’t do anything. Nothing is right. Nothing will ever be right again…” She stared out nothing, her gaze unfocused, though her eyes looked towards the books. Then, she looked at Lucius. Really looked at him. “Draco’s going to lose you one day,” she told him cryptically and he met her eyes. “Both of you. One day, I don’t know how long it’s going to be, but one day he’s going to wake up and you’re not going to be here.”
She closed her eyes and shook her head, turning it away from him. “The time you’ve spent in Azkaban because of a madman was bad enough. I can’t… I won’t put Draco through that again. I will do everything I can to protect him from that pain.”
When she opened her eyes, it was to see the wizard’s hand reaching out to hers. He took her small hand into his two large ones and she glanced up at him, meeting those stormy eyes that looked so much like her husband’s. Just like with Draco, it was hard to tell what the man was thinking.
“You’ll never know how grateful I am, my dear,” he whispered, his voice husky with emotion, though he showed none of it on his face. Hermione caught the way he swallowed, however, and she knew he had pushed past a lump in his throat. “You’ve given me a second chance that most people wouldn’t.”
She sighed. “Just… Please don’t make me regret it? Hopefully, Draco and I will have children soon, or sometime in the near future. I want you to be in their lives. I want them to know their grandfather, not as the Death Eater who got himself caught and thrown in Azkaban for the rest of his life, but as this highly educated, loving wizard who would do anything for his family. You have your flaws, we all do, but I’ve seen the good man you can be if you just let him.”
“My crimes have made it almost impossible,” he pointed out. “All the things I’ve done…”
“I forgive you,” she said, placing her free hand atop his hands. “And one day, everyone else will, too. And if they don’t, well… that’s on them. The important thing, Father, is to forgive yourself.”
Hermione could have sworn she could see tears in his eyes, but they never fell and with a blink and a smile, they were gone.
(VI)(VI)
Present…
Draco just stared at his wife as she told him about Ron and the conversation she had had with him. When she finished, the blond wizard didn’t say anything for a long time. He released his hold on her and turned away, staring at the wall as he thought.
“Draco?” she asked hesitantly.
He closed his eyes. The Weasel had spoken to Hermione, but it was more of an apology than anything. He hadn’t tried to get back with her and even Hermione hadn’t seemed to want to rekindle anything with the red haired pauper. He turned back to her and looked at her with a single eyebrow raised. “If I had it my way,” he told her, “you would never have anything to do with that pauper ever again.”
She opened her mouth to argue, but he held up a finger. “However,” he continued, “I know the three of you had gone through a lot together. Not just with those months spent Merlin knows doing what during our seventh year, but in the years leading up to that as well.”
He placed a hand on either of her arms so that they were standing face to face. “You mean everything to me, Hermione,” he told her. “You always have.” She raised her eyebrows and he gave a soft smirk. “Yes, even when we were in school and I teased you. The moment I saw you, I wanted to be with you. I believe I even wrote to my father that same day, or maybe it was the next, to tell him about you.” He glanced at his father and received a nod of confirmation. Draco turned back to Hermione. “When I learned what you were… I was angry for a while. A long while, honestly. I think I even took it out on you a bit.”
He wrinkled his nose as he let go of her. “How can a girl with no magical background at all be so damn smart and beautiful? You beat me at everything, no matter how hard I tried. You were always a step ahead,” he said. “I wanted to hate you, you know. I even vocally wished for your death. That year when Muggle borns were dropping like flies, I kept telling people I had hoped you’d be the next one. And then you were and…” He sat down and, resting his elbows on his thighs, he leaned forward. “I’ll be honest with you, Hermione. Something I hadn’t been to myself all those years ago. When I had heard that you had been Petrified, I could literally feel as though something was dying inside of me. Even worse, I had no one to go to. No one would understand my infatuation with you and, at the time, I believed that’s all it was. Then the Yule Ball came. One look at you and I knew I was done for.” He glanced up at her. “When we kissed… it was Heaven and it was Hell, because I knew we could never be.”
He reached into his pocket and took out the picture that had been taken of them in the library. “And then I received this with a letter,” he told her, handing her the photo. “It actually gave me some hope, though I had dismissed it at first, but I knew that if we were to have any chance at all, I would need my parents’ approval.”
Hermione studied the picture, completely mystified. “I never knew,” she whispered.
He shook his head. “I doubt you were the only one who didn’t,” he replied. “I didn’t know how I was going to go about it, and, honestly, it really was bad timing. The Dark Lord had returned and shit was about to start happening that I had no control over. But every night, after everyone else was asleep, I would stare at that photo of us dancing under the stars and I would dream up different scenarios of how we would end up together,” he told her. “After my father went into Azkaban the first time, I had even come up with this idea of my mum finding me looking at the photo, but I couldn’t risk it. Not with the Dark Lord and Aunt Bellatrix staying here at the Manor. If one of them would have seen…” He shook his head. “No, better that they never knew. Instead, I bided my time. When you and your friends escaped here, I knew that you were going to win. I don’t know how I knew, but I knew. I just hoped you would remain living. Once the war was over…”
He stood up and turned away from her, meeting his father’s astonished eyes before turning from them to look at his wife again. “I’m a coward, Hermione,” he admitted. “After all was said and done, I felt like I didn’t deserve you. I knew you would return to Hogwarts, so I hid in my Manor, trying to pretend I didn’t exist and painfully awaiting news that you and Weasley had married so I could move on with my pathetic life. But you didn’t. A couple of years went by and you still weren’t married. My father was incarcerated, my mother was set in a permanent state of depression. The Manor walls were beginning to cave in around me and I knew I had to do something. So, I began taking that photo out again.”
“With the same idea of your mother seeing you with it?” the young witch suggested.
“Brightest witch of our age,” he said with a smile. “Yes. And she did. I let her think I was an unwilling participant in her schemes, but inside I was literally jumping with glee, especially if I could pull it off.”
“Which you did,” Hermione finished. “We’re together now. Forever. But Draco, how did you know?”
He cocked a bow and shrugged. “I suppose I was relying on the idea that you would come to forgive me of the things I had done. That you would see past the boy who had become a Death Eater. That you would see the real me. It had taken careful planning,” he told her. “Flowers from an unknown suitor set right when I knew you would meet up with the Weasel, allowing my little house elf to follow me around like a pup, and, most importantly, being there to comfort you when you were upset after the fight I knew would occur over the flowers.”
Her eyes narrowed as she stared at him. They were quiet for a while, Narcissa glared at her son for a moment, but then she knew how madly in love with the Muggle born he was, so she took a deep sigh of defeat. Lucius placed a comforting hand on his wife’s shoulder.
“I should be angry with you,” Hermione said finally. “But for some reason, I’m not. You only did what you’ve always done.”
The young Slytherin looked at his wife curiously. “And what was that?”
Hermione looked around the room, waving an arm to indicate the people standing there before turning back to him. “Whatever it took to bring our family together.”

Author's Note: Ok, so this was unexpected. I was sitting here at my desk, writing this chapter out when I finished the scene with Luna and realized: This is it. I might write an epilogue, haven't decided yet, but I do believe this is the last chapter. I hadn't even meant to do this, but honestly, if I continue it from this point, I will literally be dragging it and it would become very boring. That being said, I hope all of you have enjoyed this little ride. (Maybe I'll write another continuation in the future, perhaps something about Draco and Hermione's child(ren?) Dunno.)
My reviewers! Love you people so much!
Mady: Why, thank you! :) Personally, I couldn't think of a better way to put it.
Moxy Mayhem: Lucius is always awesome. I'm sure he has his reasons for being so... nice about all of it. (No doubt it's more of a "well, fuck! Can't beat these bastards, might as well join them.) I'm sure if I were to make another story set further on we'd see some of his hotheadedness come out. He did just get out of Azkaban after all. As for her parents, I think Hugo and Rosie are still in a bit of shock. I mean, they get their memories back only to find out that their only daughter had married the richest wizard bloke in England. and now she's pregnant? Really?
DaFossil: This is why I'm surprised at myself. I honestly thought there was more to write, but all the main points I had for this story have been hit. I honestly have no reason to continue it. Maybe another sequel, I don't know.
Fleur: Yeah, while I'll read stories with short chapters, those aren't really my favourites. I find that the longer chapters help a person get to know the author's perspective of the characters a bit more. For this reason, I try to keep my chapters no less than 5k words. Usually the first chapter or two (the setup) I may let be a bit shorter at 2 or 3k, but I really like them long.
paigeey07: Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Rae: Again, I will seriously have to think about a sequel to this. (Funny thing is, I love sequels and series, so this might actually end up being a part of one. Like my Wicked stories, only a bit longer.)
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