Protective Draco

"Sorry about all this, Malfoy," Harry cringed as he followed him down the downstairs hall with a small trunk in tow.

"No problem, Potter. I find the whole situation quite amusing."

Harry rolled his eyes and entered the room Draco had opened for him. He set the trunk at the end of the bed and looked around.

"Merlin, Malfoy. Is every room in your house this big? And I thought our house was ostentatious."

Draco merely gave a bored shrug. "Never thought about it really." He pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "Bitsy's preparing lasagna from scratch if neither of you have eaten yet."

He shook his head and followed him back down the hall. He happened to glance into the open library and noticed the giant stack of books near an empty shelf.

"Hermione been book shopping again?"

Draco smirked but didn't bother to turn to look at him. "Always. We can't very well make a trip to Diagon Alley without her making a stop into the book shop."

"And you, of course, wouldn't dream of stopping her. Merlin, can't imagine what your children will be like if you spoil your wife like that."

Draco lifted an arrogant eyebrow and glanced at him. "There's quite a difference between spoiling your wife and spoiling your children, Potter. Besides, I don't think someone as sensible as Hermione would allow them to turn out like I did as a child."

"Wasn't trying to offend you, mate."

"None taken. I was a brat. It's common knowledge."

They rounded the corner into the kitchen where the table had already been set. Hermione was setting the piping dish of lasagna down as Ginny filled everyone's wine glass.

"I offered for Bitsy to join us," Hermione announced when she saw them approaching, "but she has a date," she grinned.

"A date," Draco asked unsurely.

"Yes, with Mickels, one of the Pincer's house elves."

"That bloody elf has more of a social life than some of the people in our office," Draco mumbled.

They both took a seat next to their wives and immediately dug into dinner.

Harry groaned when he tasted the lasagna and looked at Ginny. "We need to hire Bitsy. Neither one of us can cook like this."

Ginny nudged him roughly in the ribs and ignored his whine when he called foul.

"This isn't the quidditch pitch and that won't work on me."

"Be thankful that Hermione never had an interest in quidditch, Malfoy. She was abusive enough with her books without the extra training."

That earned him a kick to the shin under the table from Hermione.

Draco sipped his wine with a satisfied smirk. "Keep digging that hole there, Potter."

"You're beginning to sound like Ron," Ginny accused her husband.

"Now I've never been that thick," he argued.

"Speaking of Ron," Hermione interrupted them. "I talked to him briefly when he met Luna at Flourish and Blotts. He's not quite come around yet but it will be soon. I think he and Luna will be fine though."

"I haven't spoken to him yet," Harry admitted.

"Maybe I'm mental but I actually got the impression that Weasley feels weird because he's attracted to her and doesn't know what to do about it," Draco added.

Hermione gave him a blank look for a moment. "I could actually see that. That makes a bit of sense."

"Don't sound so surprised," he retorted.

"When's the ceremony anyhow," Harry asked. "They're one of the few who opted to do something besides just have it at the ministry."

"Next weekend, I believe," Ginny answered. "Doesn't really surprise me that Luna would opt for something more real. She's always been a bit of an idealist."

"A bit," Hermione and Harry questioned simultaneously.

"Oh alright, a lot then."

They finished their dinner without much argument and Harry and Draco cleaned up the kitchen. They, amazingly, did so without causing more of a mess.

Draco separated from his co-worker at the stairs and nearly ran up them to the bedroom he was as of that morning sharing with his wife. He paused after he closed the door behind himself, taking in the state of the room that had once solely been his before she moved in and before they moved his things back in that morning. Her white bedding remained but his books were on the right hand nightstand, looking awfully similar to her nightstand on the left.

A corner of his mouth tipped up when he noticed that she'd set out his suit for the next morning and chosen a tie for him, along her own clothes that she apparently set out each night. Apparently, he'd be wearing a steel blue tie tomorrow.

The sound of running water tore his attention from the slight changes to the room and he glanced at the open door to the bathroom. He crept closer, shucking his shoes in the closet along the way, and approached quietly.

Everything about this was still new and he didn't know what she'd be receptive to yet. Was he welcome to bathe with her on a regular basis? What were her normal bathing habits anyway? What did she normally sleep in?

He peeked around the corner and saw her standing in front of the vanity mirror, standing there in her underwear and a fluffy white robe that she'd not even bothered to tie closed.

He watched as she pulled her thick hair back and into a messy bun behind her head. Her bare feet padded over to the large, round tub he'd never used when he'd lived here by himself, and reached to turn off the faucet.

Draco finally cleared his throat and moved fully into the doorway as she whirled around to face him. He reached to scratch the back of his neck.

Hermione saw the nervous twitch of his jaw as he stood there, clearly trying to figure out where to go from there. They'd jumped so head deep the night before and earlier that morning that the logistics of how to move forward seemed to be up in the air when they weren't drowning in the heat of the moment.

But he was her husband in every sense of the word now. She wanted to be comfortable with every aspect of him. So against her urge to cover herself and close the robe, she instead approached him and lifted onto her toes to kiss him.

"Did you want to…" She glanced over her shoulder at the tub brimming with bubbles. She'd felt the need for a good, long soak after the day they'd had.

Draco watched the way her brown eyes darted to the tub suggestively before connecting with his own. The look in her eyes was very clear.

He nodded and crossed his arms at the hem of his shirt to slip it over his head. She waited until he shucked all of his clothes and stepped into the bubbly water.

There was something odd about undressing in front of someone else when you weren't about to have sex. She felt his grey eyes on her as she dropped her robe and slowly removed each piece of underwear.

She felt her skin flush when he held a hand out to her and slowly guided her in with him, settling her back against the hard wall of his chest before she drew her knees up.

With a heavy sigh, Hermione closed her eyes and relaxed at the feel of his hands smoothing over her stomach while the steam of the water curled around them. She reached for each one and threaded their fingers together, holding them up out of the water where she could see them now drenched in bubbles.

"You have rather large hands," she observed as she scrunched their fingers together.

Draco chuckled behind her, the movement of his chest jostling her slightly.

"Well, I guess better than small hands. I'd look awfully strange if mine were the size of yours, wouldn't I?"

Hermione relaxed against him again with a sigh. "My mother used to say men with big hands have big hearts." She grinned when he craned his head to look at her. "She was a very intelligent woman, both my parents really, but I think that was a random bit she'd learned from my grandmother. Doesn't make much sense I suppose."

He rested his cheek against her temple. She rarely discussed her parents and he was well aware as to why. The fact that she was even mentioning them to him now meant she really trusted him.

"Then the brains come naturally then. Sounds like your parents gave more sage advice than mine ever did."

They were quiet for a moment as she gnawed on her lower lip. "I'm sorry, Draco."

"Whatever for?"

"That you don't have better memories with them."

He shrugged and adjusted his arms around her stomach, cocooning her more snugly. "They're not good people, Hermione. I think back on the things that were said in our household, the things my father did, and…I don't know..." He huffed out a breath, blowing a few wisps of her hair that had managed to escape the messy bun. "Did you know that my father had me convinced, at least until our second year at Hogwarts, that muggle-borns' blood really was the color of mud?"

Hermione couldn't help it—she laughed at that. It was just so ridiculous. "Sorry, I'm not laughing that you believed him but just at how ridiculous it is."

"Oh, I realized that the first time I saw one of you bleed after getting burned in Potions. I felt like a bloody fool."

She cringed at the sound of disgust in his voice. She didn't want him spiraling into another diatribe of self-hatred. She entwined her fingers with his again over her stomach under the bubbles. A change of subject was due.

"Draco?"

He'd somehow distracted himself with the sight of the tops of her breasts, slicked with bubbles. "Hm?"

"What do you love about me?"

He scrunched his eyebrows together at her question. "Hermione, I've told you everything already. You believed me, didn't you?"

She turned her head against his shoulder to glance at him and smiled. "Humor me."

With a self-conscious groan, he nodded. He hated talking about his feelings. Only for her, he told himself.

"I love your mind. Probably always have even if I wouldn't have admitted it. I admire your intelligence. I love watching you work through problems."

"You still tease me," she reminded him.

"With love," he smirked. "I like seeing you blush or that stubborn look in your eyes when I do. I love your stubborn kindness."

She snorted. "Stubborn kindness?" Seemed like a backhanded compliment.

"Yes, because even when someone doesn't deserve another chance you give it to them anyway. Like me."

"You deserved a chance," she whispered.

"Maybe but I'm not complaining regardless."

Hermione pushed herself up with her hands on either side of the tub and turned to him. His hands came up to her waist to help her and brought her back down to straddle his legs.

Draco watched as she brought her wet hands up to cradle his face. Her chocolate eyes probing deeper than he used to be comfortable with. But she was his wife, and not just on paper anymore, and that meant anything she wanted he would give it to her.

If there was one positive thing he'd gotten from his family, it was that the men of the Malfoy family always cherished their wives—no matter how the marriages came to be.

"I admire the courage you've developed, Draco. You do the right thing." She shook head, a bit of a sheepish expression playing in her eyes. "I won't lie. I probably wouldn't have fallen in love with the same Draco from school."

He snorted again, "I wouldn't have loved him either if it helps. I think I like myself better this way."

"And that. I love that you're confident in what you believe in now. No one has told you what to believe. You chose for yourself."

He didn't know if he could handle anymore of her compliments. He knew she believed what she was saying but that didn't mean he felt it was who he really was. He was still a surly prick to most. The wizarding world was torn on whether or not they hated him and possibly might always be. Somehow, it hadn't tainted her.

It begged the question of how their world would react to any children they might have.

When he met her eyes again, she was studying him closely, her brows scrunched together tightly in concern.

"Draco?"

"Do you want children?" The question was spoken oh so quietly and her eyes seemed to soften as the crease in her brow relaxed.

Hermione nodded slowly, an odd weight settling in her gut. "Do you?"

"I do." He nodded and leaned forward to capture her mouth in a soft kiss, the steam from the tub making her all the more delicious.

With eyes still closed, she whispered against his lips, "Practice makes perfect, Draco."

~o~O~o~

"Did you see the size of that shower," Harry asked Ginny as he climbed into bed next to her.

"I know," she laughed. "Leave it to Malfoy to have a home where each room has its own bathroom twice the size of the normal bathroom."

"He's got to have some sort of extension charm on the house. I swear it doesn't look this huge from the outside."

"So did you notice them over dinner," she asked as she tied her hair back.

"What do you mean?"

"I could be wrong but I think she's in love with him now."

"I've been thinking that for at least a week now, I—," Harry stopped midsentence. "Did you hear that?"

Ginny's hands dropped from her hair as she listened closely. Her brows knitted together as she definitely heard something. They both glanced at each other as they heard it again, louder.

"Do you think…"

"Draco!"

"Bloody hell," Harry laughed.

"Well she had to have told him she loved him or…" The noise increased, "Or she wouldn't be doing that with him right now," she laughed.

"God, I'm going to have nightmares about this. Though I'm happy they've got it all worked out it seems."

Ginny reached for her wand on the nightstand and cast a quick spell. "As happy as I am for them, I can't say I want to listen to them having sex either."

Harry was the first to make it downstairs before work the next morning. He greeted Bitsy politely before she went off to work in the garden and poured himself a cup of coffee. He looked up with a mischievous grin plastered on his face when Draco rounded the corner, working on tying his tie and humming happily to himself—which was very un-Malfoy-like.

"Morning," Harry drawled in greeting.

"Morning, Potter. Sleep well," he asked without glancing up from his task.

Harry smirked at him, amused that he even thought to ask considering he was still Malfoy. Hermione must have really done a number on him to have him this cheerful.

"Funny you should ask. Ginny and I had a bit of trouble getting to sleep. Kept hearing something go," he grinned wider when Draco looked up finally, "bump in the night."

Draco eyed him for a moment before his eyes went wide in understanding. "Potter," he hissed quietly, "She's a little self-conscious about how loud she is in bed. Don't you dare utter a word to Hermione about—"

"Utter a word to me about what?"

Both men clamped their mouths shut as she entered the kitchen and reached for the coffee pot.

"Probably about how loud you both were last night," Ginny interjected as she joined them.

Hermione's eyes went wide; a warm blush quickly crept over her cheeks as she slowly turned her eyes to Draco.

"You're not," he assured her quickly.

"Like hell! Whatever it was Malfoy was doing, you seemed to be enjoying it by the way you screamed his name," Ginny teased.

"Damn it," Harry muttered as he smacked his forehead.

Hermione blinked a few times, turned on heel awkwardly, and walked straight out of the kitchen.

"Shit," Draco growled. He turned to follow her but heard the floo and knew it was too late. He turned back to Harry and Ginny sporting his most menacing glare. "Now I'm pissed. Why'd you have to do that?"

"Sorry," Ginny cringed, stepping behind Harry a bit. "I didn't realize she was sensitive about it. Didn't realize you'd progressed to that in your relationship at all actually until last night."

He braced himself with both hands on the counter and ducked his head as he took a few calming breaths. "Well, it's a rather new development. Not that it's either of your business, mind you."

"Really sorry, mate." Harry took one last sip of his coffee and set the mug in the sink. "Come on. Better get to work. She'll likely have calmed down soon enough. I'll apologize first thing."

The first thing Draco did when he arrived at the ministry was to catch the first lift and head straight for her office. Dennis Creevey stood to intercept him as he passed but he merely bumped shoulders with wizard and forced past.

"Out of my way, Creevey," he snarled.

He knocked on her door and was thankful when he heard a muffled 'come in'. He slid into the office quickly and shut the door behind him. She must not have realized it was him as she didn't bother to look up from her parchment until he cleared his throat.

"What do you want," she sighed and set her quill down.

"Just wanted to make sure you were alright." He rounded her desk and pulled her to her feet despite her protests. He kissed her forehead, her nose, and then her lips before pulling her close as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm mortified," she mumbled against his robes.

"I know but you don't need to be," he told her softly as he began rubbing a hand over her back. He'd never been so gentle with another human being in his life. She brought out a side of him he'd honestly not known existed.

Hermione relaxed a little with each warm pass of his hand over her back and turned her face to press her cheek against his chest. "It was stupid to think they couldn't hear us. I should have cast a silencio on the room."

Draco smiled against her hair. "It's not exactly what comes to mind when you're in the midst of making love to your spouse," he teased. He pulled away enough to see her face and tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear. "At least it was our friends and not someone else. Do you think they would have cared if it were the other way around?"

"No," she finally laughed. "In fact, I heard far too much about their sex life after they first got married. There are just things you don't want to know about your best friends. But I'm more private than they are."

"I know you are but you need to stop feeling embarrassed. They're not judging you."

She groaned and craned her neck to rest her chin against his chin and look up at him. "Ugh, I hate it when you're right."

He gave her an arrogant smirk. "It's bound to happen once or twice in our marriage."

With a deep breath, she extracted herself from his arms. "I'm fine now. Thank you. Kiss me and get to work before Harry threatens you with the filing again. I've got to leave for a meeting soon anyway."

He let out a bark of laughter but did as he was told. "I'd like to see him try."

Draco held his head high as he left her office and almost wanted to stick his tongue out at Dennis as he passed by him.

He thought his morning would be looking up by then but when he got to the aurors' office, Harry asked him to work with Ron on some more field training. Needless to say, neither party was too happy with the arrangement.

"Merlin, Weasley, have you forgotten the simple swish-and-flick? That's first year skills."

Draco wasn't intentionally trying to irritate the redhead. It was only a happy byproduct. Harry should have known what would happen if he asked him to go over some basic field training spells.

"Malfoy, you git," he muttered angrily.

Ron flicked his wand and cast a powerful disarming charm at Draco, knocking the blonde flat on his back.

"Better," Draco breathed as he gulped a lungful of air.

"I don't know why Harry thought it'd be a good idea to have us work together anyway," he griped.

Draco was surprised to see his outstretched hand offering him help up. He lifted a questioning eyebrow but accepted it without a word.

In the back of his mind he kept reminding himself, 'behave for Hermione. Don't kill him for Hermione's sake.'

"Because Potter clearly has a twisted sense of humor."

Ron rolled his eyes and nodded. "Always has. Are we done for now?"

Draco shrugged. "Why not. You have more skill with a wand than Finnigan, I'll give you that."

"Not much of a compliment really."

"Never said it was," he smirked.

The training room was in the basement of the ministry. Draco and Ron walked in silence up the winding stairs to reach the lobby with the lifts. They still weren't fans of each other but it seemed they'd reached a truce of sorts, for the day at least.

"Oi! Malfoy!"

The two men stopped near the fountain in the middle of the lobby and turned to find Theodore Nott and Pansy rushing towards them.

"Weasley," he sneered as he approached.

Ron merely tapped his wand in his palm as he waited. They weren't to report back without one another. Harry had said he'd assign whichever one started an argument the office filing. As always, it had gotten backed up again.

Draco pocketed his wand and crossed his arms over his chest and waited with a frown on his face already.

"Nott, what are you doing here?"

"Came to speak with you." He glanced at Ron, "Do you mind, Weasley?"

Ron huffed and was about to walk away when Draco held an arm out to stop him.

"No, Potter threatened the filing and he never jokes with that," he reminded him. "We're at work here, Theo. Get to it."

He wanted to get away from the pair as soon as possible. He didn't particularly care for the way Pansy was eyeing him as though he were a Christmas ham, especially in front of her new husband.

Nott rolled his eyes. "Fine. Your mum sent me a letter. Apparently, you wouldn't listen to her so she hoped you might talk to me. Though I figure based on our last conversation that won't be happening."

"If this is about Hermione," Draco started.

"I still can't believe they made you marry that mudblood," Pansy scoffed.

Ron quickly turned three shades of red and his wand-hand twitched. "You—," but he didn't get to finish that thought.

Draco's eyes turned a darker shade of grey as he turned his focus to her. "Pansy, if you so much as think of my wife in that way one more time, I'll hex you within an inch of your life and call it on-the-job training. I'm sure Potter won't mind."

She shrunk back a bit, clearly deflated by his attitude. "Theo was right. You're completely mental," she frowned.

As luck would have it, Hermione was just coming through the front entrance of the ministry after the meeting she'd just had with Professor McGonagall. Her stomach lurched when she saw Ron and Draco with the other two.

"Merlin, I'm not in the mood for this," she muttered as she changed direction and instead of heading for the lifts, turned towards them.

"Speak of the swot now," Pansy smirked.

"Problem here? Ron? Draco?"

Draco's eyes never left the couple in front of him but he drew her to him protectively with one arm. "No, I think we were about done here."

A quick glance around them told him that they were beginning to draw too much attention of others passing through the area. Hermione might have been a department head herself but that didn't mean she'd want to deal with an inquiry from Kingsley.

"About done, my wand," Nott growled. "You're not yourself, Malfoy. You can't tell me you're into this whole," he gestured between him and Hermione, "marital bliss shit with a mudblood. Merlin, she's not even a halfblood, Draco. What would your father say?"

Draco dropped his arm around Hermione and stepped closer to Nott, ignoring Ron who was twitching angrily behind him. "I'll tell you one last time. Do. Not. Use. That. Word." Each word was punctuated with a lower tone. His wand was in his hand now and he jabbed it angrily at Theo's chest. "You do not want to test me, Nott. I may have changed but it doesn't mean I can't be just as brutal when crossed."

"Blood-traitor," Nott growled.

"Now that's enough," Hermione finally spoke up and separated them, one hand pressed Draco away and the other barely gracing Nott.

"Don't touch my husband, you filthy Mudblood," Pansy shrieked and before anyone could stop her, she spit in her face.

Everyone stilled as Hermione shut her eyes in exasperation. She was about to wipe her cheek when she heard Draco's spell.

"Scourgify."

Her face felt as if it'd been washed in a cool mist. When she met his eyes, her heart tightened. Anger and sadness warred within those grey orbs. His frustration was palpable.

"Someone call the aurors," an older man shouted.

"We are aurors, you halfwit," Draco snapped over his shoulder.

Draco's gaze left her face and he turned to the couple again. With a quick flick, he muttered "Experlliarmus." Both Pansy and Theo's wands flew into his hand. He tipped his head thoughtfully. "Weasley, I think these two should be brought in for assault against a Ministry department head. What code is that?"

Ron grinned suddenly at the duo and cracked his knuckles. "I think that would be Section 53, code 72."

"Right you are." With another flick, he bound their hands behind their backs and turned back to Hermione. "Are you alright?"

"Quite alright," she nodded with a small smile. She didn't much enjoy being spit on but people like Pansy and Theodore Nott stopped bothering her a while ago. They were a nuisance and it was a bit frustrating at times but she stopped believing their words meant anything years ago.

She watched with mild satisfaction as Ron poked them each with the tip of his wand as he moved them towards the lifts. "You two are getting along today?"

Draco shrugged, "A temporary truce I suppose. We have one thing in common at least and that's how much we both love you. Hopefully, now he understands that I mean it." Disregarding the prying ministry eyes on them for the first time, he leaned down and kissed her softly. "I'll see you at lunch."

He missed the surprised look on her face as she stood rooted to the spot.

Snapping out of her stupor, Hermione watched as they marched off in the opposite direction and crossed her arms over her chest in amusement when Ron cast a silencio on Pansy to shut her up.

Witnessing her husband's abilities as an auror firsthand was quite sexy. "I'm going to shag that man's brains out tonight," she smiled to herself and set off for her own office.

She stepped into a lift and rolled her eyes at the many sets of eyes still staring at her in awe. "Oh come off it," she shouted before the lift doors closed. "Don't you all have work to do?"

Draco knew that Theo and Pansy would likely only be hit with a steep fine and have the ministry watching them more closely after this incident but it was worth the trouble to him to prove his point. Mess with his wife and he'd make your life hell. No exceptions. Next on his list would be his mother. A very scathing letter would be in store for that horrid witch.

Angelina and Cormac took far too much pleasure in booking the two former Slytherins but Harry turned a blind eye to it when he found out why they were being charged.

"Probably won't teach them much but it should get them off your case and send a fairly clear message to your mother," Harry nodded in satisfaction.

Before Draco could disappear into his office, Ron intercepted him.

"Hey, Malfoy, I uh…what you did back there," he paused to scratch his hand through his hair, "well, it's obvious that you're not playing around about Hermione."

Draco nodded as he tapped his wand against his thigh. "Weasley, I'm not going to get into the full story with you right now, and maybe not ever, but I love her. I've loved her for longer than even she knew."

"So it was just some happy accident that the ministry matched you two with the law?"

He laughed and nodded. "No one was more shocked than me; I promise you. She wasn't very happy about it at first."

Ron gave a lopsided grin at hearing that. "Now that sounds like Hermione." He took a deep breath and held his hand out. "I don't promise to like you, Malfoy, but Hermione is one of my best friends and I want her to be happy. If you can do that, and you obviously are more than willing to fight for her, then I suppose you're not all bad."

Draco eyed his hand thoughtfully before finally accepting and shaking on it.

"Fair enough, Weasley. But you put one toe out of line with her and antagonize her anymore about us, and I don't promise to hold back."

After Pansy and Theo were fined and thoroughly warned, most of the department gathered for lunch in the cafeteria. They took up one of the big, rectangular tables near the windows and were likely the loudest bunch as they all laughed and enjoyed each other's company, both new and old aurors.

Seamus threw a roll at Draco's head which bounced off him and landed in Harry's lap. "What's gotten you so chipper, Malfoy? Finally getting laid at home?"

Harry and Ron both glared at Seamus for his crude joke. Draco growled as this was the second time in one day he'd have to talk about his sex life with his wife which had only even existed for a few days. He made for his wand but Seamus jumped in his seat when his eyebrow singed.

Hermione sat her tray on the other side of her husband with a smirk and leaned across the table towards her former housemate.

"Quit being an ass and be kinder to your new wife, Seamus, then perhaps it'd happen for you as well."

Harry and Ron both stared at her wide-eyed while Draco smirked and squeezed her knee appreciatively under the table. It seemed that their little talk earlier had calmed her.

"Hermione," Seamus whined as he touched the half of his eyebrow left.

"Oh shut it," she admonished while cutting into her food. "It'll grow back eventually. Don't be so crude next time and I won't be forced to hex you."

"You've got to admit," Ron laughed, "She doesn't retaliate often but she when does it's always good."

"It's not funny," he complained. "Parvati already thinks I'm an idiot. This won't help! I'm rubbish at growth spells."

Hermione crossed her legs primly and shrugged. "Should have thought of that before you opened your overactive mouth."

"Merlin," Draco was watching her admiringly, "Have you always been this brilliant?" He shook his head when Ron and Harry gave him an odd look. "Don't answer that. It was a stupid question."

"At least he knows it," Ron whispered to Harry.

News of the confrontation in the ministry spread like fire and by the time Draco made it home, he was a ball of irritation. He found Hermione at the kitchen table reading with a cup of tea and dropped his briefcase in the chair across from her unceremoniously like a sack of potatoes. He dropped his robes over it and began tugging irritably at his tie.

She marked her page and watched him with an amused smile. "Did your day somehow get worse?"

"Bunch of bloody busybodies we work with, you know that right?"

Hermione shook her head and stood to help him with his tie as it was only getting knotted worse. "Yes, I'm aware. I fended off about fifty different people all asking what happened. The story morphed from Pansy spitting on me to her yanking my hair and dragging me in circles before you pummeled Nott to the ground."

"I wanted to," he admitted. "Didn't think I'd be able to get myself out of that reprimand though, no matter who my wife is."

She finally loosened his tie and pulled it from his collar with ease. She'd already changed out of her blouse and skirt and into a comfortable pair of tights with an oversized sweater that fell past her hips. Without her heels, she had to stand on her toes to kiss him but he made it worth the effort when he snaked his arm around her waist to hold her up, his other hand tangled in her hair to cradle her head as he kissed her back heatedly.

He'd kissed his share of girls at Hogwarts but none he enjoyed as much as kissing Hermione. He couldn't help but feel so stupid over what he'd been missing. His father would be thrashing in his cell if he knew about the relationship they now shared.

Perhaps he should write him a letter.

The thought encouraged him to kiss her deeper still. Her soft moan when he allowed the hand on her waist to snake down and give her bottom a gentle squeeze only spurred him on.

Feeling the urgency to breathe, he gentled his kiss and pulled back from her. She fell back on her heels, both hands pressed against his chest as she breathed deeply.

As if she'd been on a similar line of thoughts, she said, "Merlin, what a distraction you'd have been in school."

Draco laughed and kissed her forehead before she untangled herself from him and retook her seat at the table. "I don't think you would have allowed me to though," he admitted as he joined her across the table, unbuttoning the cuffs of his sleeves.

"Probably not," she agreed.

"I don't recall ever hearing rumors of you and boys. Well, besides Krum and then the obvious pining over Weasley." His lip curled up at the mention of the redhead. They might have agreed upon a truce for her sake but he still didn't enjoy thinking about them together.

Hermione grimaced at hearing that. She hated most that it was true. Viktor hadn't been a huge temptation, more of a passing flirtation. She wouldn't deny that it had been flattering having someone like him notice her when no one else seemed to think of her in that way at all.

"Then again, Harry told me about McLaggen sixth year. Slimy git. I recently threatened to hex his nose off the next time I caught him eyeing you when you came to our offices."

Her face screwed up in disgust. "He's vile. Who did he end up with by the way?"

Draco's lips split into a most self-satisfied grin. "Daphne Greengrass. Slytherin and a pain in the ass. While her family didn't support Voldemort during the war, she's a complete diva and at one time my mother hoped to have me married to her."

Hermione laughed at his open disdain. "And blonde if I recall correctly."

He sneered as he finished rolling his sleeves to his elbows, no longer scared that her seeing his mark would make her angry. "Yes, and we both know I don't like blondes."

She smiled at him but it soon dissolved as a curious look overtook her face. Her brows knitted together as she stared at his left forearm.

"What," he asked after a moment. He glanced down, too, but didn't fully understand her sudden fascination.

She didn't answer him though and stood from her chair and hurried around the table to sit in the chair right next to him. She grabbed his arm quickly to get a closer look.

"Merlin, I was right."

Draco sighed. The wheels in that brilliant mind were working again and she wasn't explaining herself. He was beginning to understand Harry's rants about her 'epiphany' moments.

"Right about what?"

"Your dark mark and the magic behind it. I thought it looked different the other day when I caught sight of it in the shower. So when I was in our library…"

He snorted quite rudely before she could finish.

Hermione finally looked up at him like he'd lost his mind. "What?"

Draco shook his head, doing his best to ignore her finger still tracing the ugly mark on his arm. "Nothing. Just wondering how many times you've started a sentence with 'so I was in the library'."

She pressed her lips together and narrowed her eyes. "Oh shut it. Now, as I was saying. I was in the library and noticed you still had a few more informative books on fighting the dark arts. The magic he used to make these marks wasn't something he created…"

"Hermione," he interrupted gently, "I love it when you go 'textbook' on me which is why if you don't get to the point, I'm going to lose my self-control and lay you out across this table and have my wicked way with you."

He watched as she bit her lip, looking almost as if she was trying to decide if she should tempt him further.

She shook her head after a moment and continued. "Right, well, apparently the mark can actually fade over time."

"Well, I kind of knew that. It's not been as bright since he was destroyed."

"No, Draco, I mean completely fade. Like my scar. Fade until you only have a rough outline of the magic in your skin."

He glanced down at the mark she was still tracing and was surprised to notice that it really did look fainter now. He hadn't even noticed. He'd honestly spent most days trying to forget it was there.

"How?"

She licked her lips, a soft expression in her eyes. "Love. The one thing stronger than magic. The same way Harry survived Voldemort's spell when he was a baby."

"But I've been in love with you for years and it's never faded any more than anyone else's as far as I know."

Hermione smiled and leaned in to press a soft kiss on his cheek. "Yes, Draco, but you weren't able to express it. Not until recently. And not just express it but also have it returned. Add on the fact that you learned to love the very thing the mark was against."

He looked back to his mark and then to her. "It's not just the outline yet."

"It hasn't been that long since I told you I loved you. Give me a little more time, would you," she laughed.

He twisted his arm out of her grasp and leaned over her, one hand on her thigh as he kissed her. "Love me a little more then," he growled teasingly against her lips.

The scent of spearmint teased her nose as she kissed him. "I will later. Dinner first," she smiled as she pushed him away with a hand on his chest. "Bitsy's almost finished with dinner."

Draco stood with a knowing smirk and collected his tie, intending to go change before they ate. "I should have laid you out on that table when I had my chance."

"Behave, Draco," she admonished but he knew by her smile that she didn't mean it.