The night Draco had fled from that small apartment where Hermione Granger lived with her daughter was not a peaceful night. He apparated home, fumbling with the keys before letting himself into his apartment he shared with Eva.

Eva. She had just arrived home and worry crossed her face the second Draco bolted himself in the bathroom, not appearing until she finally gave up and went to sleep in the early hours of the morning. Draco didn’t sleep, he took comfort by standing by the window and smoking. It would kill him eventually, he knew that, but was the world going to change in any way if Draco Malfoy wasn’t in it? He didn’t think so. So he smoked until he had nothing else to smoke.

He fell asleep in the bathroom and woke up after noon in his bed. Eva had opened the door of the bathroom and managed to get him in bed by a wave of her wand. She left him a note saying she would be back late and that he should take care of himself. Draco found the note after he had taken a shower and got changed and grabbed an apple for breakfast. He crumpled it up and put it in the bin, grumbling under his breath.

A breeze flew in from the open window in their too small living room as Draco took a seat on the sofa, grabbing his guitar and putting it on his lap. He looked at the curtains floating up for a second as his hands absentmindedly struck some chords. He bit his lip, shaking out his hand, before he started to play a song he had made for Eva one night while they lived in France. He hummed under his breath as he struck the right chords, frowning when he struck the wrong ones.

‘Shit,’ Draco muttered, closing his eyes. He pictured Hermione’s face in his head; her hair, her lips, her eyes, her body. He started to play again, a different song, humming under his breath.

Draco sat for hours on the sofa, plucking chords and writing down on his sheet music. He whiled away the time like this until the clock started to tick closer to six pm and he knew Eva would be home in three or four hours. He had nothing else to do but wait... wait for Eva to come home so that they could eat and sleep. The usual.

Or you could go to Hermione’s apartment and explain to her why you fled as though it was a crime scene? You know where the apartment is, all it takes is two seconds to apparate. Doesn’t she get off work right about now?

Draco closed his eyes, putting his guitar next to the sofa. Of course, he could go right now and explain to her but would she accept him back into her life when he had left her just like that again? Who knows. Worth a try? Draco thought it must just be worth a try so he stood up. Draco went into the kitchen and scribbled a note for Eva. While he wrote the note, he knew perfectly well that a part of his mind had always been on Hermione, ever since he woke up he had planned on going to her apartment tonight.

Eva,

Don’t worry, I’m perfectly fine. I need to get some air and if I’m not back by the time you’re home, don’t wait up on me. Eat dinner without me.

D.M

He looked at the letter and sighed before sketching two figures sitting side by side with the Eiffel tower looming over them. She would like that, he hoped. He chuckled a little to himself before grabbing his wand, jacket, and putting on his shoes.

Draco disapparated.

---

*Hermione’s POV*

Hermione hugged her mother goodbye and thanked her for taking care of Rose while she had to work. She closed her front door and sighed, absolutely exhausted after a long day of work since she started earlier today. It wasn’t easy having to support not just herself but a child. That being said, she loved Rose more than she had ever loved anyone.

‘Okay, listen up, Rosie, the plan of action for today is this,’ Hermione smiled as the brown eyes turned to her mother from where she was colouring in. She stood up, excited as Hermione walked around, talking more to herself than her daughter, ‘I’m going to start your bath, get you in, put dinner in the oven, finish your bath, eat dinner with you and then put you to bed.’

‘I don’t want to take a bath,’ Rose moaned, sitting back down on the floor and colouring in a drawing of a family on the beach, ‘and I’ve already had dinner. Grandma gave me the l... l... lasagne you made last night.’

Hermione chuckled a little as she had difficulty saying lasagne. Hermione glanced into the kitchen to see that the lasagne was still in the oven. She smiled and put the oven on, heating it up for herself to eat. She put the oven on a low setting and went to the bathroom.

‘Come on, love,’ Hermione said, going over to the bathroom. She put the plug in the bath and let the water run, sighing when Rose didn’t oblige. She smiled, ‘I’ll put bubbles in?’

Rose smiled from the living room and left the pencils and colouring book and sketchpad on the table. She ran to the bathroom, grinning as Hermione poured in the liquid for the bubbles, and Hermione smiled before starting to take off her clothes.

‘What did you do today?’ Hermione asked her while gently putting her in the water, closing the tap.

‘I went to school and I coloured, Mummy. I drew a picture too,’ Rose giggled as she played with the bubbles. She really was a beautiful girl, Hermione thought just as the doorbell rang.

‘Stay right here, love,’ Hermione smiled, making sure she would be safe before she left the bathroom. Her hands were wet as she opened the front door, expecting perhaps her neighbour or her mother come back to get something. She stopped, frozen, when she opened the door and saw who it was. Her hand itched to go to her wand as she frowned, ‘what are you doing here?’

‘I came to... explain,’ Draco said, standing on her front step with his hands buried in his jeans pockets and his shoulders uplifted. He glanced in, his eyes going to the colouring book, pencils, and a sketchpad on the table. He then looked at Hermione, knowing her hand was clutched around her wand, ‘listen, Granger, I had to go. It was too much but I promise I’m not going anywhere now, alright?’

‘Draco, I have to give Rose a shower, get her changed and put her to bed. I don’t have time for this,’ Hermione said, shaking her head. She thought of last night when he had just fled as though the room had suddenly caught fire... and now he was back again?

‘Let me help you with that,’ Draco said, sighing, as his grey eyes stayed right on her brown ones. She was hesitating, he knew that, but he kept his eyes on her.

Hermione regarded him for a second with watchful eyes. She did not want Draco Malfoy near her daughter... no, correction. She did not want the Hogwarts era Draco Malfoy near her daughter. He must have changed, he looked like he had changed. After a minute of deliberation, and Rose calling her mother from the bathroom, she opened the door and let him in.

‘If you must help, can you please tidy up her pencils and other mess? I guess you could stay for dinner,’ Hermione suggested and Draco nodded, moving to the living room.

Hermione sighed, playing with her wet hands, and went to the bathroom to see Rose having fun with the bubbles. She blew some into the air and giggled like the happiest child in the world. Hermione started to shampoo her hair and wash it out before getting her all cleaned up. She smiled as Rose spluttered a little with her hair plastered over her face.

‘You remember my friend from yesterday?’ Hermione asked her, letting the water go down the drain and helping her out the tub. She took a towel and wrapped her in it as Rose nodded, looking at her, ‘well, he’s here right now. You be nice to him, okay?’

Rose widened her eyes in excitement and Hermione played along with her as she dressed her in pyjamas. She combed her hair and told her to shut her eyes before waving her wand so that her hair dried. Rose opened her eyes again, awed at her dried hair.

‘Draco?’ Hermione asked with Rose trailing after her. She expected the apartment to be empty, she expected Draco to have fled again. But that wasn’t the case. She saw him sitting on the sofa, drawing something on Rose’s sketchpad

‘Here you go,’ Draco said, handing Rose the sketchpad back with a smile. Rose took it from him and held it up so Hermione could see. It was a drawing of Hermione who was holding Rose in her hands, looking down at her lovingly. Hermione was drawn to near perfection, down to the freckle.

‘I’m going to put it in my room, Mummy!’ Rose said, hugging the picture to her chest Just before she ran off, she smiled at Draco, ‘thank you!’

‘How did you learn to draw like that?’ Hermione asked, glancing at Draco as she went into the kitchen. Draco got up and followed her, leaning against the doorway, as she took two plates out.

‘I had time to kill,’ he shrugged. In fact he had a lot of time to kill while being stuck in that same room all day, every day, getting crazier and crazier as the seconds ticked by...

‘I’ll just put Rose to bed and then we can eat,’ Hermione said quietly, turning to look at him.

‘Yeah, that’s fine,’ Draco shrugged as Rose came back to the kitchen. She took a seat, putting a sketchpad beside her, and then gestured for Draco to sit down next to her. A little amused, Draco sat on the seat as Hermione raised her eyebrows.  

‘Do you want to see my pictures?’ Rose asked, handing him the sketchpad, ‘I drawed Mummy, Grandma, Grandpa, my best friend. His name is Michael and he’s very funny!’

‘Ah, this is very nice,’ Draco said, smiling at the stick figures she had drawn and coloured in messily. He flicked through the pages, making various appreciative noises, ‘wow, you’re a great drawer, Rosie.’

Rose giggled, ‘only Mummy calls me Rosie.’

‘You don’t mind if I call you that, do you?’ Draco asked and smiled when she shook her head.

‘Draco Malfoy, good with kids, who would have thought?’ Hermione muttered, smiling at him. He really had changed quite a bit, he was less arrogant that’s for sure, ‘come on, love, let me put you to bed,’

Rose smiled at Draco before running off to her room. Draco watched Hermione go after her, his mind going back to the night when he had thought she was dead... He shut his eyes briefly, clearing that thought from his mind. She’s alive, she’s here, she’s well. He moved over and got two plates, putting lasagne on each and then taking them out to the living room. He came back to the kitchen and got two glasses, filling them with wine before bringing them to the living room. Draco took a seat on the sofa and glanced around.

The apartment was bigger than his but not by much. The front door opened to a living room that consisted of one sofa, two armchairs, a table, and a television. There was a green plant in the corner, spruced and very neat just like Hermione would have wanted. The kitchen had a blue and white colour code and the table in the kitchen matched the colour code. He hadn’t seen much else of the house but he did like it. It felt like a good home for a child.

‘She goes to sleep quickly,’ Hermione said, walking into the living room a couple of minutes later. She had changed out of her work clothes and was now wearing jeans and a loose top. She hesitated before sitting down on the sofa beside Draco, ‘she’s a really good girl, you know, and I love her.’

‘I can tell,’ Draco said, handing her a plate of lasagne. Hermione took it from him, eyeing the wine with her eyebrows raised. Draco just shrugged, ‘thought we could use some.’

Draco took a bite of Hermione’s lasagne and a burst of taste flooded his mouth. He groaned appreciatively and a light pink blossomed in Hermione’s cheeks as she muttered, ‘thank you.’ They ate in silence for a while, listening to the news. Draco’s mind kept going back to that night with Hermione bleeding on the floor...

‘Draco, I don’t know what you expect of me,’ Hermione said suddenly, looking down at her already half eaten lasagne. She shook her head as Draco looked at her, noticing the slight frown in her eyebrows. She spoke to Draco, but addressed the lasagne, ‘I’ve lived five years on my own, going through my life. I don’t know why I expected you to come back for me... I guess I thought what happened at Hogwarts was... was real. But I gave up hope when Rose was born and... I met someone else.’

‘You met someone else?’ Draco asked, still looking at her. Hermione just nodded, not able to meet his eyes. Finally, she let out a sigh and looked up to see Draco’s eyes fixed on hers.

‘His name is Michael. He lives in the apartment just across from me and he helped me when I moved in because I was pregnant. We sort of just hit it on from there. Rose showed you the picture she drew of him and said they were best friends? Rose and Michael get along great and he’s such a nice guy,’ Hermione sighed helplessly as she sipped her wine. She really liked Michael but she couldn’t stand the way Draco was looking at her even though there was no expression on his face.

‘Right,’ Draco nodded and ate his lasagne.

But it wasn’t right. There was nothing right about this. Hermione had a boyfriend called Michael and that thought was like a knife straight to Draco’s stomach. He didn’t know Hermione was alive... he had wasted his chance with her... It was his fault. No one else’s. All he could hope for was that she was happy with whoever she wanted to be with.

‘Do you have anyone in your life?’ Hermione asked a little hesitant as she leaned back into the sofa.

Draco briefly told her about Eva, not wanting to talk much about himself. Hermione just nodded, glad to know that at least he wasn’t alone. Draco frowned a little and looked at her.

‘Do you remember that letter I sent you in the shape of a paper boat?’ Draco asked quietly when they had both finished eating. Hermione’s hand froze for a second as she gathered the plates and then she nodded before putting his plate on top of hers and grabbing her glass of wine. Draco frowned, ‘and I said that I would find you after everything that had happened and I would explain to you why I had to do what I did?’

‘Yes,’ Hermione said, her voice was calm but she felt her insides jerk. He had been the one to start all of this. It was his fault that Dumbledore had died!

‘I was being threatened by Voldemort. He was going to kill my family if I didn’t do what I did, Granger. You don’t realise the amount of stress and the burden on me. I didn’t want to do any of that but I had to,’ Draco shook his head with a grimace, ‘after that, I was locked up in a room for such a long time. I didn’t have access to any newspapers or anything so I didn’t know you were alive.’

‘I don’t blame you,’ Hermione said after a second. She was surprised when the words left her mouth but it was true... she did not blame Draco.

‘You should. What I did-’ Draco started, shaking his head.

‘You did what you had to,’ Hermione said, watching his eyes as they looked down at the glass in his hand, ‘and we don’t need to talk about it. It’s over, Draco, in the past.’

Draco shook his head slightly as if to disagree but he let the subject drop. He glanced at her, ‘you remember in that note I also said that when I found you after the war I would give you something?’

‘A boat ride to wherever I wanted to go,’ Hermione chuckled a little sadly but the sound was like music to Draco’s ears. She smiled, ‘we were young, Draco. You don’t have to give me that boat ride.’

‘Too late,’ Draco shrugged and reached into his pocket to take out two tickets for a boat ride. It was quite expensive but it was worth it for Hermione. He handed them to her, ‘it’s in a couple of weeks time so you have time to plan it out. No kids are allowed on the boat ride and it’s only two days. You should... take Michael.’

‘Draco, this is too much. I can’t...’ Hermione held the two tickets in her hand, staring at it unbelievingly.

‘Granger, just accept it. It’s the least I can do,’ Draco muttered, looking at his glass and then glancing at her as she finally nodded and put the tickets on the table between them.

‘Then you and Eva must come over for dinner tomorrow. You can meet Michael,’ Hermione suggested, biting her lip a little. It would be awkward, she knew that, but she hoped her and Draco could be friends. Draco looked a little hesitant but Hermione raised her eyebrows, ‘it’s the least I can do.’

‘Fine,’ Draco shrugged and finished his wine, standing up suddenly. Hermione also stood up and put the glass on the table before crossing her arm over her chest and watching him as he glanced at her, ‘I should be going now.’

‘Where?’ Hermione asked, not wanting him to leave. Draco furrowed his eyebrows a little at her question and her tone. Hermione chuckled, ‘I mean, we haven’t seen each other in years and you’re leaving?’

‘I’ll be over tomorrow night for dinner, Granger,’ Draco rolled his eyes at her.

Hermione nodded and brushed past him to lead him to the front door. Draco’s arm lightly brushed against hers and he closed his eyes as he smelt her perfume. He shook his head, opening his eyes, and followed her to the door. Hermione opened it for him and then turned to him.

‘Goodnight, Draco,’ Hermione muttered. She really had missed those grey eyes, like pools you could swim and then probably drown into when you got on the bad and angry side of him.

‘Night, Granger,’ Draco replied, looking at her for a second, memorizing her face that had changed infinitesimally since the last time he saw her.

Draco then walked past her, glancing at the apartment across where Michael lived, and then walked down the hallway. Hermione watched him go, raking her eyes across his back.

She was right. Draco had changed.