Draco’s eyes, the grey ones that he could use on girls to his advantage, spotted Hermione when the pub door opened. Draco looked her up and down, slowly. Her hair was loose, just how he liked it, and curly but not frizzy like it usually was. She wore light make up: a brush of mascara and a touch of pale lipstick. Hermione wore a tight fit green top and some jeans, carrying a white handbag which matched her coat. She shivered slightly into her white scarf and peeled her gloves off.

‘Granger,’ Draco called out, holding up his hand. Immediately, her eyes caught his gaze and Draco felt glad that she had reacted so quickly to her surname... or the surname she used to have. He couldn't bear to call her Weasley, it felt wrong on his tongue – foreign, almost.

‘You ordered me a drink?’ Hermione asked, noticing the two glasses in front of him. He nodded, gesturing to the seat in front of him. Warily, Hermione sat down and put her handbag on her lap. She looked down at the drink as though a dragon would erupt out of it, ‘what is it?’

‘Butterbeer. Don’t worry, I haven’t poisoned it,’ Draco replied, pushing it closer to her. Hermione rolled her eyes at him and took a little sip. She licked her lips and nodded her head in approval of the taste. Draco watched her closely,

‘I’m used to stronger drinks since I’m not pregnant anymore. Plus, it’s a way of relaxing, especially when Amelia started school,’ Hermione explained and then blushed a little at Draco’s raise of eyebrow. He obviously couldn’t imagine Hermione being drunk but he said nothing. He wanted to hear her voice, it was like music to his open ears. Hermione shrugged, ‘but it’s nice to have some butterbeer instead of firewhiskey.’

‘Your eyes are a lighter shade of brown,’ Draco stated when there was an awkward silence between them. Hermione didn't blush, nor did she look away in embarrassment, like Draco had expected she would. She gazed into his eyes, narrowing hers slightly, wondering what he wanted from her and how he could notice such an insignificant detail like her eye colour. Draco stared right back at her, ‘your eyes used to be a chocolate colour and now they’re... almost copper.’

Hermione said nothing, she stared at him. Her, apparently, copper coloured eyes gazed into the grey eyes that had not changed colour at all. Draco’s eyes seemed to still be brewing up a grey storm. Hermione sighed, even Fred doesn’t notice her change of hair or eye colour. Hermione would be surprised if Fred noticed that she had a hair cut! How can Draco notice such a small and unimportant factor such as her eyes? Draco smirked at her when she was the first to look away.

‘I saw you at the train station when I dropped of Scorpius. I compared you to your nineteen year old self and I have to admit, you don’t look that different. Not a day older than nineteen. It’s just your hair...’ Draco roamed his eyes over her brown hair that was in a bun at the back of her head. Soft waves of hair came down, framing her face as she looked up at him.

‘What’s wrong with my hair?’ Hermione asked, almost defensively. Draco smiled at her, shrugging.

‘Matter of opinion, love. My opinion is that I think you suit your hair loose and curly. Like how you had it when you were nineteen,’ Draco shrugged and he swore he saw a ghost of a smile appear on Hermione’s face but it soon disappeared as she drank her butterbeer.

‘You can’t turn back time,’ Hermione whispered.

‘If you could?’ asked Draco and she looked up at him with confusion. His smile slid off his face and he repeated the question with a little explanation, ‘if you could turn back time, would you? Would you not get pregnant, not meet Weasley? Would you change your life?’

‘I love Fred. I’d give my life for him,’ Hermione said and she did not see Draco since as though in physical pain. Hermione sighed down at her drink and looked up at him, ‘I’ve been through a lot when I was pregnant. Fred started to drink and I felt as though I was losing him. We broke up because of you, you took away everything I had but... would I change that? The answer is no. Fred and I are as close as we ever could be and I love him so much. I had to go through all that and it made me who I am today. I wouldn’t give Amelia up for anything either. Of course, I wished you didn't take away our source of money and I still haven’t forgiven you for that-’

‘I had to do it for Scorpius. I had to give my child a place to live and necessities,’ Draco explained.

‘I know that. I would do that same for Amelia so I understand why you did it but... I can never forgive you for that,’ stated Hermione and took a sip of her drink before looking at Draco curiously, ‘would you change anything?’

Would I change anything? I’d change the year I called you a mudblood and made you cry. I’d change the year where I didn’t have enough courage to ask you to the Yule Ball because I was sure you would say no... and even if you did say no, I should have at least tried. I’d change all those times that I hurt you. I’d change the time when I walked over to the dark side with your eyes following my every move, wishing you would call out my name to stop me. I’d change the fact that Weasley was there for you when I couldn't be. I’d change the way I had to take everything from you just to start my own family. I’d change the way I used you to get some money. I’d change my wrong decisions so I could have ended up with you and we could have had kids that looked like us. I’d change the fact that I couldn't say those three words to you when I had the chance...

‘I asked you if you would change any of your past, Malfoy?’ Hermione repeated the question, watching him closely.

‘Just my wrong choices,’ Draco said after a pause. He stared at her as she nodded as though his answer was acceptable enough. I can’t sacrifice your happiness for mine, Draco thought. He wouldn’t tell her how he felt. She was happy, that was all that mattered.

Hermione sighed loudly, leaning back. Draco snapped out of his reverie too as they both sipped at their drinks. The unsaid words were locked away forever.

‘I had to lie to Fred just to get here so can we get on with it? Why did you call me here?’ Hermione asked, sipping her butterbeer and putting the glass down. She hesitated before saying, a finger trailing the top of her glass, ‘Amelia doesn’t know about... us and what we did before she was born. I... I don’t want her finding out about that so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell your son.’

‘What will you give me in exchange?’ Draco asked, capturing her attention once more. Hermione stared at Draco in disbelief of his arrogance. Draco smirked, ‘that’s what we do, us Slytherin’s, don’t we? We always want something in return.’

‘I can’t give you what you want,’ Hermione stated, knowing exactly what he wanted. She would not go down the same route as she did before Amelia was born. Draco seemed like Rumplestiltskin; someone you should never make a deal with.

‘If I didn’t have a son, I’d have made gotten something from you as a deal. But since I have Scorpius and I don’t want to hurt him any more than I already have... I won’t tell him about us,’ Draco muttered, looking down at his glass. Hermione looked up, was that compassion and love she heard for the first time in Draco Malfoy’s voice? Draco sighed, still looking down, ‘I called you here because we obviously need to talk about Scorpius and... Amelia, is it?’

‘Our kids only have half a year of Hogwarts left, they’re just having fun. I’m sure Amelia and Scorpius aren’t in a serious relationship. When they leave Hogwarts, they’ll forget about each other and...’ Hermione trailed off at the look on Draco’s face. He was frowning at her naivety as Hermione kept talking. She sighed, rolling her eyes, ‘they’re kids. They are not... in love.’

‘Are you really that naive? They were out after curfew... drinking and who knows what else!’ Draco shook his head disapprovingly.

‘I haven’t been out with a boy after curfew unless it was Harry and Ron and I never drank whilst in Hogwarts. Fred did but I hope Amelia takes after me rather than my husband. What about you, Malfoy? Have you never been out after curfew with a girl and a couple of drinks?’ Hermione asked harshly. She took a sip of her butterbeer as Draco sighed impatiently which gave Hermione her answer. Draco was famous in Hogwarts... especially with the girls, she had to admit. Hermione herself once fell for his charm! Hermione sighed, ‘keep your son away from my daughter and I’ll do the same.’

‘I’ve talked to Scorpius, alright? He won’t listen to me and I’m sure Amelia won’t listen to you either. They like each other and I don’t think they’re going to stop seeing each other just because we say so,’ Draco grumbled angrily. Hermione rolled her eyes at him showing him how wrong he was.

‘They are kids,’ she emphasises once more.

‘They’re seventeen years old! Basically adults!’ Draco took a deep breath and calmed down a little as Hermione raised her eyebrows when he raised his voice. He took a swig of butterbeer and then said, ‘I want my son to be happy. Amelia makes him happy and if I have to endure you and Weasley for my son... I’ll do so.’

‘Your son is a bad influence on my daughter,’ Hermione stated, ‘I don’t like this at all.’

‘Don’t talk about Scorpius like that. He may be my son but he’s not like how I was in Hogwarts. Well, he wasn’t like that before and I think that Amelia will be a good influence on him. They balance each other out,’ Draco muttered and was tempted to say like us after but he stopped himself. Hermione opened her mouth to argue but he held up a hand, ‘just talk to your daughter about this and we’ll see what she thinks.’

‘Fine, I’ll talk to Amelia when she comes home for the holidays,’ Hermione agreed with a nod. She finished off her drink, ‘is there anything else you’d like to discuss?’

‘No, that’s all,’ Draco muttered, watching as she tugged on her coat and fastened it up. He wanted her to stay but he really had no business talking to her. It was best to stay away, he guessed. Hermione opened her purse and Draco frowned, ‘what are you doing?’

‘Paying you back for buying my drink,’ Hermione said casually and started to count out the amount of money that was needed to buy one butterbeer.

‘No, I don’t want your money,’ Draco said, immediately standing up and shaking his head.

‘You won’t take my money willingly but you’ll take it when I don’t want to give you any?’ Hermione asked, narrowing her eyes at him. Draco frowned at her. She was still keeping a grudge over that, fair enough.

‘You know what? I’m going to give you back all that money I took of you,’ Draco muttered and finished his drink. He started to put on his own jacket as Hermione raised her eyebrows at him. Draco said, ‘expect a cheque soon.’

Without a word, Draco strode out of the door and into the cold snow. His anger at her words was probably radiating off of him, melting the snow. Hermione stared at his back as he walked away. Draco Malfoy was going to pay her back? She nearly laughed at how absurd he could be.

Hermione wasn’t laughing the next day when Draco’s money arrive in the form of a cheque by owl. She stared at the cheque for a couple of minutes until Fred asked her what she had there. Lying, she told him that it was a card from Harry and Ginny.

Maybe Draco Malfoy wasn’t as absurd as she once thought.