A/N: In typical me fashion, I didn't get quite as far in this very long chapter as I had planned. At this rate, I wouldn't be surprised if this story ends up being more than 35 chapters. I still have a lot of loose ends to tie up. But we are getting close.

For the first part of this chapter I recommend you listen to ' How it Ends ' by DeVotchka. I love it when I'm writing and the perfect song for the moment comes on. :o)

Draco woke up the next morning to the feeling of gentle fingers stroking his hair. His eyes fluttered open and he found Hermione, smiling as she leaned over the bed, already dressed for her work day.

"Morning," she said.

Draco blinked a few times. "What time is it?" he asked, beginning to sit up.

"Early," said Hermione, pushing him back down. "You don't have to be up for another twenty minutes, I just wanted to tell you before I left. I'm, uh …" She paused and took a deep breath. "I'm going to Ron's before I have to be at work."

Draco's brow furrowed. "What?"

"He and I are overdue for a talk," she said sternly. "Especially after last night. As sure as I am that you didn't help the situation, in fact, you most likely goaded him, but hitting you crossed a line."

Draco frowned.

"Just what did you say to ignite the first strike, anyway?"

He shrugged. "I believe I asked him what 'just a kiss' meant."

Hermione put her hand to her head and shook it. "And that is your business how ?"

"He hurt you," said Draco. "And he still doesn't even want to admit that bringing that harlot around is wrong."

Hermione lowered her hand and looked him in the eye. She sighed. "All the more reason for him and me to talk." She leaned down and kissed him. "There's coffee ready in the kitchen for you. And be careful on that ankle. If it still hurts then you might want to go to St. Mungo's, or at least call Alex to help you get to work." She smiled and stroked his cheek. "I love you."

Draco leaned in and kissed her again. Then he gazed into her eyes and said, "I love you, too. Call me if you need someone to kick his arse."

"No more violence, please," she said, standing and heading for the bedroom door. She looked back at him once more before exiting.

Not feeling it was appropriate to just Floo into Ron's flat, she opted to Apparate there instead. She arrived outside and let herself into the building with a key she had in case of emergencies. Then she walked the two flights to his flat and knocked.

Silence.

She knocked again.

A slight thump came from behind the door, probably all the way from the bedroom. Hermione tensed. She swore if Colette answered that door …

But the heavy footsteps that followed could only belong to one person. Ron was always heavy on his feet, especially in the morning when he was half-asleep. The footsteps stopped just outside the door and the peephole went dark. She stood up straight and waited for Ron to build up the courage to open the door.

Then it began to open very slowly. Ron poked his head out, his eyes dark and exhausted-looking. "Hi," he said quietly.

"Mind if I come in?" she asked.

He nodded. "Just give me two seconds."

Ron left the door open and darted for his bedroom. Hermione caught a faint glimpse of his shirtless back disappearing. He reemerged a minute later with a T-shirt and jeans pulled on sloppily.

"Did you come here to hit me?" he asked, crossing his arms and staring down at the floor.

"I ought to," she answered. "What you did last night was not all right."

"He started it."

"Oh, I have no doubt," she said. "I am fully aware that Draco is no angel. He's an arse by nature and the two of you have a history so he doesn't even attempt to fake it with you."

"If he's an arse then why are you with him?" Ron asked, looking up at her with cold eyes and a straight mouth.

Hermione sighed and said, "He's not an arse to me, Ron. He's loving and caring, and overprotective to the point where he will tell someone something in the harshest way possible. Something they should hear from me." She took a deep breath and gazed sadly into his eyes. "Only hours after signing the divorce papers you brought Colette around, and since you once told me how manipulative she was I can only assume her meeting you right where I could see was for my benefit. It was a cruel shot, Ron."

Ron grimaced and looked away again. "Why does it matter who I bring around? We're divorced."

"You know why it matters."

"Oh, and I suppose it doesn't matter that the person you're seeing used to find joy out of insulting me and my family! Even you, Hermione! He was an arse to you !"

"When he was a child, Ron! We were all children! We said stupid things and we grew out of it! He's not the same person anymore."

"He's still a fucking arse," he spat.

"Maybe so, you can spin it however you like, but I never cheated on you with him!"

"Didn't you?" asked Ron, raising his eyes and glaring at her. "Last I checked, we were still married until two days ago."

"We were separated , Ron," she drawled. "And we agreed from the beginning that we would see other people."

"Maybe," he said. "But …"

"But what?" she asked.

Ron's expression became strained as he continued to look at her, the faint hint of tears hidden inside of his eyes. "I haven't been with anyone else, Hermione. Ever. And to find out you've been sleeping with this man I loathe since June … It bloody hurt, all right?

That look in his eyes made her hurt right along with him.

"He told me last night that you two were first together at the engagement party. Just after that night I'd asked you to try again and you said you would. But you didn't, Hermione. You never tried, even though you said you were going to. Was it because of him? Were you seeing each other the whole time, bloody laughing at me or something?"

Hermione gulped and shook her head. "No, of course not. Yes, we were together at the engagement party, but we had agreed before we ever did anything that it was just going to be the once."

"Then when did it start again?" he asked.

Hermione looked towards the floor and began to wiggle her foot. "Do you remember when we moved Rose into her flat? I was making you dinner that night but you canceled on me to work, just like when we were married, and it …" She gulped. "It just hit too close to home. Draco and I had agreed we were only going to be together that once but he went back on his word pretty quickly. He had asked me to come over that night but I told him no because of you. Then, when you didn't show up and I was hurting, I went."

Ron backed up a few steps until the backs of his knees hit the sofa. He sank down onto it.

"I know it sounds unhealthy and it probably was. I was using him to forget about you, to feel something again, but then, somewhere along the way, something shifted and I fell for him. It wasn't planned, Ron. I … I never wanted to hurt you but -"

Ron held up his hand to stop her from going on, his head hanging low as his eyes stared dazedly at the floor. They stayed silent for a moment, both painfully aware of the awkwardness that filled the room around them. This wasn't natural anymore. They weren't natural anymore.

Without lifting his eyes, Ron finally said, "When I signed the divorce papers I had secretly hoped you wouldn't do anything with them, but it was only minutes before I got a notification that they were filed and it was over. I was upset. That's why I called Colette. Not to hurt you …" He paused. "Maybe to hurt you a little. Unconsciously. But, really, I was using her to forget about you."

Hermione supposed it was only fair that she had her own words used against her.

"I was bloody pissed last night," Ron continued. "At you. At him." He stopped and sighed. "But I heard him. He said I didn't even like her enough to defend her and he was right. We both betrayed you, only she's easier to kick out of your life than I am. It's all not real, anyway. Just bloody hero worship."

Hermione raised her eyebrows.

Ron looked at her and gave a joyless smile. "She's a fan. That's why she likes me so much. I never really understood it myself until I found her bloody scrapbook about me."

Hermione's eyes widened.

"I'm not going to see her again, Hermione. I don't even know what I was thinking contacting her again. I went to her place last night after that whole Malfoy thing and I told her it's done. For good."

"And what did she say?" Hermione asked.

"Oh, she went off on me. Told me I'm a terrible person and I would never find happiness without her. Then she went off on some tangent about how I'm not the real Ron Weasley, because the one she read about would never hurt her like this. I don't know if she's going to stop bothering me, probably not, but I'm not going to see her again. Ever."

"Thank you, Ron."

The two of them stared at each other for a moment, both smiling softly until the reality of their situation hit again. They looked away, releasing deep breaths.

Ron closed his eyes. "It's never going to be the same. Is it?"

"No," Hermione said, the word feeling heavy on her tongue. "But I want it to. I want to get there, Ron. Because I love you. I'm always going to love you." She went over and sat down on the sofa next to him, taking his hand. "You're my best friend."

"Yeah," was all he said, staring down at their clasped hands.

"I don't want it to be like this. You so angry with me, hitting my boyfriend."

Ron's face tensed. He pulled his hand away. "I'm not angry with you. I don't have a right to be, especially when you don't seem to be angry with me." He paused. "I won't hit him again. I shouldn't've the first time, but that prick knows how to press my fucking buttons."

Hermione nodded. "I'll talk to him about that."

"He asked me what 'just a kiss' meant. You told him about that?"

She sighed. "Yes. He's the person I've been confiding in. I never felt right putting Harry or Ginny in that role and there's no one else I really feel comfortable enough with to talk to about it."

"Do you want to know the answer?" he asked, looking up at her. "I know you said you didn't before, but it kinda feels like I'm lying to you by not talking about it."

Hermione was about to say no again, but then she began to really think about it. It was all the same whether they had barely locked lips or they almost slept together, cheating was cheating, but it might give them both peace of mind if they didn't have these secrets between them.

"All right," she finally said, immediately wondering if she was going to regret this. "Tell me."

Ron's eyes widened a little and she could tell he was surprised by her answer. Leaning forward on his knees, he clasped his hands and stared down at the floor. He gulped. "I Apparated to your office looking for you. I thought we could grab dinner. I was trying to be spontaneous or romantic or something since I knew I messed up on our anniversary. I was just so bloody tired that night, you know? It was all a blur. I know that was the night things changed for you. I could literally see it happen."

Hermione's eyes began to flood as she stared vacantly in front of her.

"Colette must have heard me because she walked in right then. Told me you'd gone off to dinner Cormac, sort of implying that it was more than just business."

Hermione grunted and said, "Never."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, I know that now, but I didn't then and … I know it sounds stupid but I could already tell that you were thinking of leaving me and I thought the worst, all right? So when she started rubbing my arm and telling me I deserved better I ate it up. And then she was kissing me and I … I let her. I let her do it, I kissed back, it was heavy, her shirt came off and I touched her a little. But then she started to undo my trousers and I bolted. I got out of there as quickly as I could, I went home and I waited for you, because I love you and I didn't want to lie, but I didn't want to tell you the whole truth either. Because you have every right to hate me for what I did."

Hermione gulped to relieve her aching heart. It hurt less than she thought it would, but it still hurt. She stared at him, her eyes damp and unblinking. He was crying, his head now in his hands as he relived what she truly believed he saw as the worst moment of his life. And they had been through a war together, seen loved ones die, but the day he lost her matched that in his heart.

"I love you, Hermione. I'm always going to love you. I understand that it's over and it's never going to be the same, but I … I'm not ready to be your friend." Ron gulped, his throat dry and in pain. He clenched his eyes shut. "I'm not ready to see you with him . Because I've seen it, the way he looks at you, and that's what hurts the most. That you're not just dating someone, but you've moved on with someone who really bloody cares about you, and I hate it. I hate him ."

Hermione sighed again. "Ron … you know he has nothing to do with -"

"That doesn't mean I can't hate him," he said. "You're the love of my life, but, from what I've heard about him and his wife, I think you're the love of his too, or you're going to be, and I don't know where that leaves me." His head lifted and he suddenly looked at her expectantly.

"I don't know, Ron," she said with a shrug. "I've loved you since I was eleven. You were my husband, you are the father of my children. I will never love anyone the way I loved you. But Draco … it's different. The feelings are different. I can't explain it." She probably could, but then she'd have to go into the passion and lust she felt for Draco and that really wasn't something she thought Ron needed to hear. But there was one part she could explain. "I guess he challenges me."

"Is that your way of saying I'm an idiot or something?" Ron asked with a slight laugh.

Hermione did the same. "No," she answered. "But I think we can both agree that I'm a tad bit more intelligent than you are, but only because you don't apply yourself as much as you could."

Ron's laughing increased. "That's not why."

Hermione smiled before looking at her watch. She frowned. "I better be going. You still have to get ready for work." She stood, then turned back and looked at him. "I know Scorpius saw the two of you fighting last night. He knows about the divorce and he thinks we should wait to tell Rose until after the wedding, but …" She paused and bit her lip. "I know Hugo is going to Hogsmeade this weekend. I was thinking of going under the guise of taking him and Lily shopping for their tux and gown, and telling him what's happened. Did you want to come with me? Tell him together."

Ron thought for a second, then slowly shook his head.

"Are you sure?"

"Are you going to tell him about Malfoy, too?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Then I'm sure."

She frowned. "All right. Let me know if you change your mind."

Hermione stood and walked towards the door. Ron followed after her, staying a few steps behind with his eyes watching his feet and his hands in his pockets. She opened it and turned around.

"I know you're not ready to be my friend, Ron. And, truth be told, I don't think I'm ready to be yours either. But I just … I want us to be civil towards each other."

"And towards him , right?"

"Yes," she answered. "I know he's not innocent, Ron, I do, and I'm going to talk to him about this too, but I just … I need your help with this. To meet me halfway."

Ron nodded. "Yeah. No hitting. I won't even talk to him."

"Unless you have to. For the wedding," she added.

He nodded again. "I'll try."

Hermione sighed. She knew that was as good as she was going to get. She started to turn to leave but, at the last moment, she faced him again, threw her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. Ron's body began to shake. She could feel him breathing heavily but, still, she held on tight. Slowly, he raised his arms and hugged her back, both of them crying as they realized this might be it for a while.

Hermione was the first to pull away, wiping at her wet eyes as she said, "I love you, Ron."

And then she was turning, running out the door, the faint sound of the words, "I love you, too," filling her ears as she left the man she had loved for so long behind.

Scorpius stepped out of his washroom on Saturday morning, freshly showered and wearing nothing but a towel around his waist. Rose was sitting in the center of their bed, still in her pajamas with wedding stuff sprawled all around her. She was typing something aggressively into her phone.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Reminding my mom not to let Lily pick anything too scandalous. I can't believe I'm trusting her to pick the dress! I hope my mom is firm."

"Your mum's always firm."

"Yes, but so is Lily. It'll be interesting to see who wins the battle of inflexibility. Or, better yet, who caves."

"My Galleons are on your mum." Scorpius walked over to their dresser and began digging through it for some clothes for the day.

"Let's hope you're right," she said, lifting two samples of lacey white fabric that looked almost identical. "Which tablecloth do you like?" she asked.

"A little small, don't you think?" he joked as he pulled on his jumper.

Rose narrowed her eyes at him.

Scorpius laughed. "Honestly, I think it's a terrible idea to have white tablecloths. People always spill on them."

"But the entire wedding it red and white, and red tablecloths just seem like too much."

"Why not black?" he asked, stripping off his towel and pulling on some boxers.

Rose was momentarily distracted by his nakedness and it took her a moment for his suggestion to hit her. " Black ?" she spat. "Like a funeral? Are you kidding?"

Scorpius' eyes darkened. She quickly replayed the words in her head, suddenly remembering the funeral they would be going to in the not-so-distant future.

"Oh. Scorpius, I'm … I'm sorr -"

"Don't be," he interrupted, trying to be strong. He was always trying and never just was.

Rose frowned and looked down at the tablecloth samples. "Maybe I should take all of this over to your grandparents' house today. I'm sure your grandmother will be more help than you are."

Scorpius forced a smile.

Rose began packing her things up in a box she had decorated with lace and pearls just for wedding stuff. When that was done, she climbed off of the bed and walked over to Scorpius, who was drying his hair with his wand. Eirwen was flying just behind his head, holding out his wings and letting himself get caught in the breeze. Perdita was on top of the dresser, watching the owl closely and shaking her little bottom like she was going to pounce. Rose picked her up and put her on the floor before she could. Then she wrapped her arms around Scorpius' waist. He stopped drying and put his wand down. Eirwen hooted in disappointment before returning to his perch.

"You alright?" she asked.

"Yeah," he answered, putting an arm on her back and looking down at her. "Why?"

"I don't know. You've just seem off all week. Ever since that night I kicked you out so I could get some planning done. Did something hap -?"

"No, of course not," he said quickly.

"Are you sure?" she asked, looking up into his eyes.

Unable to find his voice in that moment, to lie while looking into her beautiful blue eyes, he found himself nodding and distracting her with a kiss. He pulled away slowly. "I think I'm going to head to my dad's now. Then maybe we can get to the Castle of Magical Flowers early and meet you at my grandparents for dinner."

Rose smirked. "Your mom will kill you if she hears you call it that."

"Probably," he said, letting her go and running his hands through his freshly dried hair a couple of times. "But I want to see how many times I can get away with it before she does." He winked at her, then started walking towards the kitchen to grab his pouch and keys. "Don't forget to owl my grandmother to let her know you're coming. She hates unannounced visitors."

"Yes, Scorpius, you have trained me properly," she said, going into her desk and coming out with one of several pieces of parchment she had already prepared for when she needed to get a message out quickly. All she had to do was sign her name, attach it to Eirwen's leg and send him on his way.

"Later, baby," said Scorpius, kissing at her before Disapparating.

Rose looked at the spot he just was and quietly said, "Bye," frowning as she wondered just what exactly it was he was keeping from her.

Scorpius hated that he had to Apparate instead of Floo to Malfoy Manor, since now he had to do the bloody code to enter the gate. It really was inconvenient not having a fireplace in their tiny flat.

He also hated arriving unannounced. What if Hermione was here? She had told him she loved his father the other night and, by the way Draco was acting throughout his drunken stupor, Scorpius was fairly certain that the feeling was mutual. But, still, he often wondered if his father even knew how to love. In that way, at least. If he had loved his mother at all he had certainly never shown it.

It was weird, the whole bloody mess, and he planned to talk to his father about it today. See if it wasn't too late for them to end this thing before Rose ever found out. It was one thing that her parents were now divorced and she didn't have a clue, but this . This just might push her over the edge, and Scorpius did not want to give her any reason to not marry him.

Scorpius walked up the cobblestone path he had been on a million times before, often running and, on more than one occasion, scraping his knee. Yet, somehow, it seemed unfamiliar. Darker. Quieter.

He opened the front door and walked down the hall to the drawing room. When he arrived it was empty, as to be expected. It was early and his father was more than likely still in his bedroom. On the chance that he might have company with him, Scorpius had no intention of going anywhere near there.

Then he heard it. A laugh. Coming from the kitchen. And then there were two laughs. One a man's, and the other a woman's.

Scorpius gulped before slowly heading towards the noise. He could hear people talking but could not make out what they were saying. But they sounded happy. Really, really happy.

"You've really learned to do it without magic?" he heard the woman ask. A voice so similar to the one he heard every day. The voice that woke him up peacefully each morning, and whispered 'I love you' to him each night.

"Of course I have," answered the man. His father.

"Show me," she demanded.

Scorpius arrived at the doorway to the kitchen but stayed a few steps back, just able to catch a glimpse of the two people standing over by the stove, Hermione sipping out of a mug while Draco handled a skillet. Draco smirked at her, moving the skillet around before jerking it up, a pancake flying out of it, doing a flip in the air before landing back flat in the skillet.

Hermione 'awed', then smiled brightly. "Well, look at you. Barely two months you've been cooking and you already have me beat in skill."

"It's about time I beat you at something."

They both laughed. "Does that mean you're not going to teach me?" she asked as he moved the finished pancake onto a plate and poured more batter into the skillet.

"Of course I will," he said. "Just give me a minute to get it to the right consistency."

"Quite the expert," Hermione said proudly before leaning in and kissing him.

Scorpius debated interrupting, but could not bring himself to tear his eyes away from them, watching curiously as his father cooked . Something he would not have believed if he hadn't been looking at it with his own eyes.

Then the pancake was ready. Hermione put her mug down and took the skillet, Draco wrapping his arms around her and putting his hands on top of hers. He kissed her on the cheek before giving her brief direction. They flung their hands together, flipping and catching it proudly. She squealed with excitement.

Draco lowered his hands so they were on her hips and let her do the next flip on her own. She mimicked as best she could and managed to flip the pancake out of the pan, but it didn't do an entire flip. Still, she caught it and seemed plenty satisfied, jumping up and down a little before turning and kissing him.

It was then that Scorpius saw it. The smile his father was giving as she held onto him. It was like nothing he had ever seen on him before. So happy. So genuine. And then Draco looked at Hermione with eyes he had never looked at Scorpius' mother with. His father was in love, in a way he had never been before. He couldn't ask him to give that up.

Suddenly, Scorpius felt sick. He stepped back, hoping to run to a washroom, but crashed into an end table instead. Why was that bloody thing even there?

"Scorpius."

Scorpius looked over to see Draco and Hermione staring at him. She moved behind the counter, and only then did he realize she was wearing one of his father's dress shirts, presumably with nothing underneath.

"You're early," Draco said.

Scorpius gulped and took a step into the kitchen. "Yeah, I thought we could get an early start. Rose is heading to Granny and Granddad's to do some wedding planning and I told her we would try to meet them for dinner."

"Oh." Draco looked at Hermione.

"That's all right," she said. "Actually, I should probably get to Hogsmeade to scope out the dresses before Lily gets her claws into something inappropriate."

"But what about breakfast?" Draco asked.

"You two should have it," Hermione said with a smile. "Let Scorpius see what a good cook you've become. His pancakes are my favorite." She tried to move her smile to Scorpius, but when he didn't give one back she looked shyly to the counter she was still hiding behind. "I'll see you later."

Draco and Hermione instinctually went in for a kiss, both catching themselves before making contact. They blinked at each other, Draco going in again while she tried for a hug. When that didn't work, she held out her hand and he shook it awkwardly. They both stared down at their clasped hands for a moment before shrugging it off and kissing each other's cheeks.

Hermione Apparated to Draco's bedroom, pressing herself against the wall and holding her head as she blushed from embarrassment. She knew Scorpius was coming today, even if it was not meant to be for another hour. Why hadn't she bloody changed?

After a quick shower, Hermione got dressed, doing her hair and makeup quickly before texting Theo that she was on her way. They were taking a Portkey together so that he could see David. As far as his son knew, Jaclyn was still engaged to Alastair, not shacking up with her ex-husband. And, from what Theo had told Hermione on their lunch date the other day, it looked like Jaclyn would not be moving out anytime soon. In fact, she had already moved into his bedroom with him. When Edie had realized what was happening between her parents, she made a clear point to stay at James' flat as often as she could.

Theo and Jaclyn had decided together that he would be the one to tell David about them, in an attempt to bond them again, or something. Hermione was just happy she was not the only one making a huge confession to their child today. And alone.

After grabbing her purse, Hermione Apparated to the drawing room. Draco was standing by the fireplace when she arrived, holding a thermos she knew was filled with coffee.

"I knew you'd be all right missing breakfast, but not this."

She smiled and took it. "My hero," she said. Then she looked around. "Where's Scorpius?"

"Cleaning up in there so I can get ready." Draco leaned in and kissed her. "Good luck. Message me when you're back," he said, smiling before Disapparating.

Missing him already, Hermione used the fireplace to Floo to Theo's. When she arrived, Edie was in the living room working on Rose's dress while James watched. She turned when she heard Hermione and smiled as best she could with all of the pins in her mouth.

"Baby, don't swallow them!" James said, sounding legitimately concerned.

Edie draped the tape-measure she held around her neck and took the pins out of her mouth. "Sorry. Hi, Hermione," she said brightly. "What do you think?" She motioned towards the dress. "How's it looking so far?"

"Like some pieces of cream-colored cloth pinned together," Hermione admitted. "I really know nothing about designing, but I presume this is progress?"

"Yeah," said Edie, looking back at the dress. "I'm going to need Rose to come in soon. I need to fit a few things and want to discuss some ideas I have with her."

Jaclyn walked into the living room from the back of the house. "Oh, hi, Hermione," she said, smiling but looking a bit uncomfortable.

Hermione knew Jaclyn didn't like the idea of keeping a secret from her best friend, but she had agreed and, from what Theo said, she would stay true to her word.

"Theo, she's here!" Jaclyn called.

Theo walked out a moment later. "Morning," he said. "Portkey's in the kitchen."

Hermione nodded to Edie and James and said, "See you all later. Good luck, Edie."

She followed Theo into the kitchen, chugging from her thermos of coffee. It was a bit hotter than she liked but she didn't want to take it with her.

"Mind if I leave this here?" she asked Jaclyn once she was finished.

"Go ahead," said Jaclyn. "Just leave it in the sink, I'll wash it."

Hermione did just that, trying not to watch as Theo and Jaclyn shared a kiss. Once they were finished, Theo led Hermione over to the table, which had a pocket watch in the center of it.

"Ready?" he asked.

Hermione nodded. "Bye, Jaclyn."

She smiled before Theo and she both reached out and grabbed the pocket watch. Over the years, Hermione had gotten much better with Portkeys, landing smoothly when she arrived on the outskirts of Hogsmeade. Theo stumbled a little but stayed on his feet. Once they were settled, he slipped the pocket watch into his pocket for later use.

"Are you meeting David right away?" she asked.

"No. He wanted to get some Christmas shopping done first so I'm just going to kill some time at the Three Broomsticks until he's ready."

"You're welcome to come to the dress shop with me."

Theo laughed. "No thank you. I'll see you later."

Hermione nodded, both of them walking off in their opposite directions.

It was still early and Hermione knew she had a good half hour before Hugo and Lily showed up so, when she got to the dress shop, she immediately went to work on finding wedding-appropriate bridesmaid dresses. The clothes in this shop were all just samples so any dress could be changed into the color she wanted. She flicked her wand and changed every dress she grabbed into a deep, rose-red.

As Hermione was inspecting one dress, trying to decide if she liked it or not, the bell above the front door dinged. She turned, immediately met with a disapproving look.

"Aunt Hermione, no !" Lily insisted, hurrying over and putting the dress back on the rack.

"I was just looking, Lily," said Hermione, grabbing her niece and hugging her. "But I do already have some in a dressing room for you."

"Are they all as hideous as that ?"

"This is a classy affair," Hermione reminded. "Rose wants long dresses."

"Whatever." Lily rolled her eyes before heading back towards the dressing room, grabbing a long but skintight dress along the way.

Hermione frowned then looked back towards the door, smiling when she saw Hugo glancing around the shop like he was lost.

"Not even going to give your mother a hug?" she asked.

Hugo looked at her and gave a small smile. They walked towards each other and she hugged him tightly, suddenly realizing how much she had missed him.

She kissed his cheek and said, "I hope you're ready to come home to chaos."

"That bad, eh?" he asked.

"Oh, it's only just begun," she said, guiding him over to the menswear.

They had barely begun looking when Lily walked out in the first dress. Or stomped out, really. She was not happy and not afraid to show it. "This does nothing for me," she said.

For once, Hermione had to agree. The dress was a bit too matronly. "Fine, go on and try the next one," said Hermione.

Lily was just about to when her eye caught something outside. She grunted. "What's he doing out there?"

Hermione and Hugo looked to see Parker pacing outside of the dress shop, glancing inside every few seconds. "Oh," said Hermione. "Actually, it's not such a terrible idea for him to be here. Then we can test some suits on two of Scorpius' groomsmen."

" No ," Lily said firmly. "He's been acting even weirder around me for the past two bloody weeks."

"Are you talking to him again?" Hermione asked.

"No," Lily said before turning on her heel and marching back towards the dressing room.

"Rumor is he broke up with Issy last week," Hugo said loud enough for Lily to hear.

"Don't care!" she called from her closed curtain.

Hugo's outfit was simple enough to find. All they needed was a dark gray suit with red accents. A deep red, as Rose had explained. Nothing too bright.

Hermione snapped a photo on her phone of Hugo looking dashing and sent it off to Rose. Normally Muggle technology didn't work in Hogsmeade but, working at the Ministry, she had pulled a few strings and made it so her phone was not blocked by magic.

Rose responded back almost immediately, saying that she liked it.

Hermione looked outside and saw that Parker was still out there, staring in. "What's he doing?" she asked Hugo.

"Honestly," he leaned in and whispered, "I think he's finally figured out that Lily likes him. Or that he likes her, or something. He broke up with Issy really suddenly and now just always seems to be wherever Lily is."

Lily stepped out of the dressing room and looked at them curiously. "What are you whispering about?" she asked.

"None of your business," said Hermione, looking at Lily in her current dress. It was the best of the bunch but still not great.

"Can I please pick my own stuff," Lily asked, giving her aunt those sweet, doe eyes that had been working so effectively on her father for years.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Don't try to manipulate me, Lily Luna Potter. "I know your tricks. You may pick a few but nothing too revealing. You need to take this seriously."

Lily beamed at her before rampaging through the shop, grabbing a good five dresses before retreating to the dressing room.

Hermione looked outside at Parker again. He was shivering as a light snowfall came down on him. She frowned. "That's it. I'm inviting him in."

"NO!" Lily screamed from the dressing room as Hermione headed towards the door.

"Parker," she called to him, stepping one foot outside.

He jumped when he heard his name, not quite expecting to see her there. "Yeah?"

"Come try on the suit we've chosen. I want to make sure it looks good on more than just Hugo."

"Oh. All right," he said, his voice quivering. Hermione wasn't sure if it was from the cold or nerves but, either way, she wanted him inside.

"So what do you think?" asked Hermione, guiding Parker over to where Hugo was still standing in his suit. "I imagine the red will look better on you." She laughed as she pushed her son's red hair back.

Hugo hit her away. "Thanks, Mom ."

"You can thank your father for the clashing hair."

He frowned. "Rose and Lily look good in red."

"It's a woman thing."

"So we're all wearing Muggle clothes?" Parker asked.

"Yes, but you'll also be wearing long capes since we'll be outside in the snow," Hermione explained. "Narcissa's idea. It's our compromise."

Hermione noticed Lily had been in the dressing room for a very long time. She called the shop girl over and had her help out Parker while she went to check on her niece.

"Lily," she said, standing outside of the curtain. "Everything all right?"

" No ," Lily answered. "Why'd you let him in here?"

"Isn't it time for you to forgive him and move on?" she asked. "Just a few months ago the two of you were friends. Probably best friends."

Lily opened the curtain, her eyes wet as she looked at her aunt. "He left me drunk and alone at the World Cup, Aunt Hermione. Then when his girlfriend spread rumors about me he did nothing to stop it. He disrespected me. That is unforgiveable."

Hermione shrugged. "I admit, that's not very good. But maybe he wants to apologize and your avoidance of him is making it impossible. And if he broke up with his girlfriend -"

"That's just a rumor. Issy swears to everyone that it's absolutely not true."

"Then why isn't he with her now?" Hermione asked.

Lily bit her lip and thought.

Hermione looked her up and down. "I don't like this one. Try on another and come out here. Show him how unaffected you are by him."

Hermione winked and walked back over towards Hugo and Parker as Lily disappeared behind the curtain.

When Lily finally came out, Parker was in his own dressing room, which was fine. This wasn't the dress anyway. Just as Lily walked away, looking defeated, her eyes spotted something. Her head snapped to the side and she darted across the shop, gasping when she saw a dress that was so perfect. Hermione did not get a very good look at it before Lily snatched it up and ran to her dressing room.

Hugo was still standing around in his suit, rolling on his heels and looking around.

"So who is going to be your plus one to the wedding?" Hermione asked.

He shook his head. "Don't need a plus one."

"Why not?" she asked. "Don't tell me you're not dating anyone. There always seems to be someone with you." She smiled.

Hugo smiled back. "Yeah, maybe," he said. "And if there is then maybe she's already going to be there."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Is that true, or are you messing with me?"

" Maybe you'll see." He winked.

"He's dating my bloody sister," said Parker, coming out of the dressing room with a scowl on his face. "I swear, Weasley, if you even think about -"

"Mother in the room!" shouted Hermione, covering her ears.

"Quite a feeling, being judged by the guy who's been stalking my cousin all week," Hugo spat.

Just then, Lily's curtain opened and she stepped out, all smiles. "Oh my gods, Aunt Hermione, this is the one!" she sang.

Hermione was speechless as her niece twirled around. The dress was perfect. A sheer fabric with a flower design lay across one shoulder and curved into a low sleeve on the other. The waist was tight with a slightly darker red wrap around it and, below that, the skirt was long and flowy, dancing with Lily as she moved.

Lily stopped her twirling. "It looks good, right?" she asked hopefully.

"Very good," said Hermione. "It's perfect. Even your cousins will look lovely in it."

"Even Molly ," Lily said with a snort.

Just then, Lily noticed Parker. He was standing there, eyes wide and jaw to the floor, just staring at her.

"What?" she asked, crinkling her forehead.

Parker shook his head. "Nothing." He gulped. "You look … very pretty," he said, blushing.

Lily made a face. "You're acting bloody weird. What do you think, Hugo?"

"I like it," said Hugo. "But I thought all bridesmaids wore ugly dresses to make the bride look prettier or something."

Lily laughed loudly. " No ," she said. "I would never agree to that rubbish."

Hermione snapped a photo and sent it to Rose. It was quickly approved and Lily squealed with excitement.

With everything decided, Hermione placed the order with the shop girl while everyone else changed back into their normal clothes. It was all being sent to a sister shop in Diagon Alley, where the other bridesmaids and groomsmen would have their fittings next weekend. Luckily, Lily's dress fit like a glove so not much else would be needed for her.

Once that was done, they all stepped outside.

"I promised I'd meet some friends when we were done," said Lily, "but try and find me before you leave. Okay, Aunt Hermione?"

"Sure," said Hermione, leaning in and giving Lily a hug, just in case she didn't find her.

Lily hurried off. Parker stared after her for a few seconds before nodding at Hermione and Hugo and following.

Hugo pretended to cough and shouted, "Stalker!"

Parker glanced back and gave him a hard look before running to catch up with Lily. He successfully stopped her and said something before pulling her off in the opposite direction. She looked hesitant but still went.

"Shouldn't you be nicer to him if you're dating his sister?" Hermione asked as she and Theo walked off towards the Three Broomsticks.

"Why?" asked Hugo. "He's not nice to me."

"But this whole thing started over a girl neither of you are dating anymore."

"Yeah, well, he still thinks I broke them up intentionally, and I'm not about to rat Lily out."

Hermione smiled. "Fair enough. It's sweet you want to protect your cousin."

"That and she'd bloody kill me if I told!"

They both laughed.

Hermione and Hugo entered the Three Broomsticks. While searching for an empty seat, she spotted Theo sitting with David. There was a table in the corner just a little ways behind them, so she and Hugo started walking over.

When they were just about there, Theo spotted them. He smiled and waved, and David turned immediately to see who his father was looking at, his eyes narrowing when he saw Hermione.

She puckered her brow. "Hi," she said.

"What is she doing here?" David demanded, turning back towards his father.

Theo cocked an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"Is this why you wanted to meet today? To force me to spend time with your new bloody girlfriend!"

Hermione's eyes widened. She looked at Hugo, who was watching the whole exchange curiously, and shook her head.

"No," sad Theo. "I -"

"Well, I don't want to fucking know you!" shouted David, looking back at Hermione and rising to his feet.

"What did you just say to my mum, you little piece of -"

"Hugo!" Hermione put up her hand to silence him. "We were just on our way to that table," she said, pointing and latching onto Hugo's arm. "I'll see you later, Theo."

Hermione pulled Hugo, who was still busy glaring at the third year who was a good five inches shorter than him.

"David, sit down!" ordered Theo, shaking his head in embarrassment.

David listened, but he did not look happy about it.

"She's not my girlfriend."

David puckered his brow. "But you just told me you were seeing some -"

"Yes, I am, and that was bad bloody timing," said Theo. "I am seeing your mother , alright? Your mother is my girlfriend. We're back together."

David's eyes widened. "What?" He glanced over at Hermione, who was trying to pretend she wasn't watching, and blushed a little. "But what about Alastair?"

"He's not around anymore," Theo said simply.

"Why?" David demanded. "What did you do?"

"Nothing."

"You had to have done something ! Mum was finally happy again! Why are you doing this to her?" he shouted, his face turning red.

Theo sighed and leaned forward on the table. He looked into his son's angry eyes and said, "David, your mother was not happy. Alastair … he is not a good man. You're old enough to know the truth, so I'm going to tell it to you. He hurt your mother. Many times. Do you understand what I mean?"

David grimaced. "You're lying," he spat.

"I wish I was," said Theo, "but I would never lie about this. Not about something so serious. He's out of our lives forever. All right?" He leaned in a little more and cupped his son's cheek.

David stared at him, his eyes wet but softening. It was not long before he no longer looked angry, but very sad. "You can't leave her again, Dad."

Theo nodded. "I know."

Hermione continued to watch from her table in the corner while Hugo was off getting them two butterbeers. At least Theo and David were talking, but it didn't look like David was completely over it. He had felt abandoned when his father left and, while trust could be shattered in a matter of moments, it took much longer to get it all back.

Suddenly, someone moved in front of Hermione, obstructing her vision. She focused her eyes to see Hugo, sitting down and handing her a hot butterbeer.

"Care to tell me what that was about?" he asked.

"Theo and I have become friends and you know how the tabloids just love to create stories," she explained. "We spend a lot of time together and we took a Portkey here together, but we're not together."

"Oh," said Hugo. "Good. The last thing I need is that little piece of -" He stopped and cleared his throat. "- kid as a stepbrother."

Hermione nodded solemnly. She stared down at her drink.

"What is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

She looked up at caught Hugo's eyes, staring into them for a long moment before letting out a sigh.

Hugo's face sunk. "This is the conversation, isn't it?"

"What conversation?" she asked.

"About you and Dad. You're getting divorced."

Hermione frowned. "No," she said breathlessly. "We … are divorced."

"Oh." Hugo cast his eyes towards the table as they grew wet. He gulped. "When?"

"Monday, officially," she answered. "But the papers had been drawn up for some time."

"Does Rose know?"

"No," said Hermione, her eyes filling with tears just talking about the end of her marriage. And Hugo's sad face didn't help. "We were planning to wait until after the wedding. Do you think that's a terrible idea?"

"I don't know," he said, holding onto his mug but shaking his leg as he refused to look at her. "I think she'll be pissed when she finds out she's the last to know, but from the owls I've gotten from her I can understand why telling her right now might be a bad idea."

Hermione nodded. "There's something else."

Hugo's leg stopped shaking. He sat very still for a moment, then his eyes rose to meet his mother's once more. "What?" he asked, his face tense as he looked on the verge of his tears spilling over.

Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

"Don't tell me Dad's marrying that bloody Cole -"

"No," Hermione said quickly. "Of course not. This is not about him. It's about me."

" You're marrying Colette?" Hugo cracked a small smile.

Hermione attempted to smile back, but it didn't go so well. "No, I … I'm not marrying anyone, nor have I changed my sexual preference." She paused. "But I am seeing someone. I've … been seeing someone. For several months."

Hugo blinked. "Oh." He looked back down at the table and his leg started fidgeting again. "Anyone I know?" he asked.

"Yes."

Hugo stopped for a second, then began to turn his head towards Theo.

"No, Hugo. Not him."

He turned back but still didn't look at her. "I've seen the tabloids, Mom. There's only one other man you're seen with regularly." His eyes slowly lifted.

Hermione only looked at him for a moment before staring down at her drink again.

" Fuck ."

"Language, Hugo."

"I'm sorry but …" He leaned in and whispered, "Draco Malfoy . Scorpius' dad . That's weird ."

"It's not weird."

"It's pretty weird."

"Okay, maybe a little," she admitted. "But it's not like anyone's related."

"Except your future grandchildren."

Hermione huffed and looked at him. "Fine. Yes, it's weird! But I like him and I'm going to keep seeing him."

Hugo bit his cheek.

"I know this is a lot to take in," she said with a sigh. "I'm sorry. Maybe I should have waited -"

"No," he interrupted. "I'm glad you told me. I figured when you said you wanted to talk to me it was about you and Dad getting divorced. I kinda hoped it wasn't, but I'm not shocked or anything."

"And …" She gulped. "… the other thing?"

" That I'm shocked about," he admitted. "He's kinda Dad's polar opposite. And there's just so many bloody rumors about him …"

"Don't believe everything you hear," said Hermione. "He's a good man. I wouldn't be with him if he wasn't."

Hugo's face contorted. "That's really weird to hear. That you're with someone," he said. "Does Dad know?"

Hermione nodded. "Yes."

"Is that why he finally signed?"

She looked at him and blinked. "Finally?"

Hugo frowned, tapping his fingers on the side of his mug. "I saw the divorce papers in his desk last summer. I wasn't snooping. It was an accident."

"Oh." Hermione bit her lip and thought. "I guess, in a way, it is why. In the very least, finding out gave him that final push. But it was over, Hugo. Long before this ever happened."

Hugo nodded. He leaned forward on the table and rubbed at his face. "I need a minute. To think about this. Is that alright?"

"Yes, of course," she said.

Hermione watched sadly as Hugo stood, not even giving her a glance as he turned and darted for the door. She was left alone with two untouched mugs of lukewarm butterbeer.

Just then, the chair next to Hermione scraped across the floor, but no one had touched it. She went on full alert, looking around nervously. Her mind immediately thought of the worst, that some reporter had been spying on her and Hugo, just looking for their next story and -

"Aunt Hermione," someone whispered right next to her.

Hermione stared at the empty chair. "Lily?"

"Yeah." Lily pulled back the hood of her father's Invisibility Cloak just enough for Hermione to see her eyes.

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked.

"Hiding," Lily answered.

"From who?"

"From Parker." She looked away bashfully. "He kissed me."

Hermione beamed. "He did? But, Lily, that's great! Why are you -?"

"Because he told me right after that Scorpius told him I liked him, that stupid prick! So I ran the hell away from him! Bloody Scorpius … who does that?"

"Oh, I … I don't -"

"I mean, to not like me until someone tells him I like him. That's the exact same thing that happened with Issy! We're all the same in his eyes!"

Hermione smiled. "Lily, I'm pretty sure he liked you before."

"Well, he had a funny way of showing it." Lily plopped her head face down on the table, making her completely invisible again. "Oh gods, I'm so embarrassed."

"Excuse me. Mrs. Weasley."

Hermione looked up to see Parker standing there, looking nervous.

"You haven't seen Lily, have you?" he asked.

She felt someone grab forcefully onto her leg, shaking it like it was a head saying no.

"No, I haven't. Sorry, Parker."

He nodded and walked away, looking defeated as he headed back out the door.

"Maybe you should hear him out before you dismiss him so easily," said Hermione.

Lily lifted her head. "Maybe when the bloody humiliation wears off I'll consider it."

Hermione smiled and straightened the cloak so none of her red hair was falling out. "Did Al give this to you after he graduated?"

Lily snorted. " Please . I took it from him two years ago. What does that bloody, goody two shoes Gryffindor need with it? No offense."

"None taken," said Hermione. "But, as a fellow goody two shoe Gryffindor, I often had a use for it."

Lily rolled her eyes. "Whatever." Then she looked at her aunt and smirked. "So Mr. Malfoy, huh?" She bobbed her eyebrows suggestively. "Hubba hubba."

Hermione went stiff. After swearing her niece to silence, she took the invisible Lily Potter to Honeydukes and bought her a good supply of candy to consume while overthinking every little detail about Parker.

Then the time came for all of the Hogwarts students to return to school. Lily took off her cloak since she would need to be accounted for, hugged her aunt goodbye and disappeared into a group of boys she knew Parker wouldn't dare try to drag her away from. That was the good thing about being a tomboy for so many years. A lot of big brothers.

Hermione watched as the students gathered, trying to find Hugo in the crowd, but she didn't see him.

"Mom."

Hermione turned, her eyes lighting up when she saw Hugo standing there. He leaned in and hugged her.

"I'll see you in a few weeks," he said, still holding onto her.

Hermione shed a few tears as she nodded, not wanting to let her son go. "I love you, Hugo," she said, kissing his cheek.

"Aw, come on, Mom!" he shouted, pulling away and wiping at his cheek. "People ae watching ."

She laughed and kissed him again. "I don't care. I'm your mother and if I want to kiss you I get to."

Hugo grunted but let her continue.

"I love you," she said again.

"Yeah, yeah, love you, too."

He smiled before running over to join his classmates. Pauline was waiting in the back of the group for him. She giggled and said something to make him blush before taking his hand.

Hermione heard footsteps beside her. She looked over to see Theo standing there, watching the students.

"Your son and Goyle's daughter," he said. "This class mixing is getting out of hand." He glanced sideways at her and smirked.

Hermione smirked back. "Good talk?"

Theo nodded. "Yeah. You?"

"Yes. All things considered."

"Yeah … I guess it's never going to be perfect," he said with a shrug.

They both stood there silently, watching as their children returned to a world that had always seemed so simple, even when having to battle trolls, basilisks, and even Lord Voldemort. At least life was pretty linear in those times, trudge onward and fight for freedom. Now … her life was all over the place.