A/N: I wasn't going to post this until tomorrow since I was debating adding another scene somewhere in the middle, but I changed my mind. So here you go. Have a happy weekend!

Towards the end you should listen to November Rain by Guns N' Roses. There are probably better songs out there for the scene but this is one of my top 5 favorite songs EVER, so you're just going to have to listen.

"Hey, no boys allowed!" the younger Molly shouted as Victoire and Teddy walked into the dress shop, the latter pushing a baby carriage.

"Sorry," said Victoire, "but Daddy and I need to run errands and no grannies were available to babysit." She peeked into the carriage and cooed before making faces at the small baby.

Rose ran over and hugged them both. "You brought Nymphadora!" she said excitedly, looking down at her new cousin. "Aww! I swear, she just keeps getting cuter."

The baby held up her little arms and Rose took this as a sign that she wanted to be picked up. "Can I?" she asked.

Teddy pulled some hand-sanitizer out of the diaper bag he was holding, gave it a squeeze into Rose's hands and slipped it back in, all without missing a beat.

"My mum's mad we brought her out this young," said Victoire as Rose picked her up, blanket and all, "but I've been reading up on it and most people say it's fine. And we have so much to do today."

"We still cast a few charms to keep her protected though," added Teddy.

"Aww, look at her little sweater," said Roxanne, beaming at the baby as a woman followed her, trying to pin the bridesmaids dress she was wearing so it would fit a little better in the bust.

"Uh oh, I think we've brought a distraction," said Victoire. "Where's my dress?"

"Over here," called Hermione, holding up the dress.

Victoire hurried over. "I hope it fits me with my baby weight," she said.

Hermione laughed. " What baby weight?"

Suddenly, the door to the shop opened again and Edie hurried inside, a little damp from the foggy air outside. "Sorry I'm late," she said when she saw Rose. "I forgot everyone would be out Christmas shopping. It's a nightmare out - Aww! Who's this?" she asked, smiling when she noticed the baby.

"My cousin's daughter," answered Rose, handing her off to Teddy. "Should we get started?"

"Yes, of course," said Edie. "The dress is in the back. I'll meet you at the dressing room. Just remember, it's not finished."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember," said Rose, following her towards the back and giving her mother a knowing look as she passed her. Victoire wandered to a different dressing room with her own dress while the many other Weasley girls twirled around in theirs.

"Teddy, did you want to head out and get some of your errands done now while Victoire is busy here?" asked Hermione.

"I guess I should," he said. "Even with the charms I don't really like taking Dory out in that cold."

"Well, sanitize me and I shall babysit," said Hermione, holding out her hands.

Nymphadora in one hand, Teddy reached back into the diaper bag and pulled out the sanitizer, gave Hermione a squirt and slipped it away. Already an expert, do-it-all with a baby in his arms dad.

"There is a Sanitizer Charm that I will have to teach you later," said Hermione.

She took Nymphadora while Teddy wandered out the door, already on his mobile, most likely letting Victoire know he was leaving.

"So what exactly are mothers of the bride and groom supposed to wear?" asked Astoria, wandering over to Hermione after spending a very long time lost in the back of the dress shop. "Red? Because, personally, I think this red thing is getting out of hand."

"Wear any color," said Hermione. "If you get a Slytherin green dress you'll really make this wedding look like Christmas."

Astoria huffed. " Please . I wore enough of that during the first years of my marriage. It was, like, our family's theme color or something. Now it just makes me want to vomit."

Hermione laughed. "Well, we don't want that."

Suddenly, Astoria looked at the baby, which was falling asleep in Hermione's arms as she rocked from foot to foot. "Is that Draco's secretary's child?"

"Yes."

"A little young to be out, don't you think? I was afraid to take Scorpius anywhere until he was at least two months old."

"When you have to run errands and your entire family is busy there's not much you can do about it. At least the wizarding world has charms to protect young children from most illnesses. We're not quite as lucky in the Muggle world."

"Sounds dreadful," said Astoria, crinkling her nose. She began looking around, still scanning the dresses. "What are you wearing?"

"A long, black dress," she said. "It's fairly simple but I figure I can dress it up with jewelry or something."

"I look terrible in black," said Astoria.

Hermione looked her up and down. "Why not gold? You would look lovely in gold."

"I don't know about that."

Hermione glanced around the shop, noticing Narcissa sitting on a sofa, trying to pretend that she wasn't feeling awful. The older Molly walked over to her, handing her a cup of tea. She took it gratefully. Then Hermione noticed all of her nieces still dancing around.

"Girls, if you're done with your fittings, please go and take the dresses off," she ordered. "We don't want anything happening to them before the wedding day."

"Yessir!" said Dominique, giving her a salute before running back towards the dressing rooms with Lucy and Roxanne, all of them laughing. Only Molly was left, being very particular to the woman doing her fitting. It was obvious she did not like the dress Lily had picked.

"Let's find you something gold," said Hermione, taking Astoria's arm and pulling her back towards the dresses.

Hermione and Astoria wandered through the shop. Hermione found it funny how Astoria kept going for garments that were more matronly, especially since she had such a lovely style normally. While she didn't dress young her clothing was always form fitting, yet sophisticated.

"Why don't you try something like this?" suggested Hermione, holding up a sleeveless gold dress with the hand that wasn't occupied by a sleeping baby.

Astoria cocked an eyebrow, a look Hermione was sure she must have picked up from Draco over the years. "Isn't that a little young looking? I'm a mother."

"Yes, you're a mother but you're not dead. Why not? It would look lovely."

"Oh, that's so pretty!" said Dominique, appearing beside her aunt and back in her street clothes.

"It's not really me," said Astoria.

"That's fine," said Hermione, putting it back. "But none of that old lady stuff. You're forty-three and still look like you're in your thirties. Show that off."

Astoria tensed, for some reason not seeming very comfortable in her own skin.

"Do you want me to take over baby duty, Aunt Hermione?" asked Dominique.

Hermione smiled. "Something tells me this isn't for my benefit."

Dominique giggled before using her own hand-sanitizer and taking Nymphadora.

Both hands now free, Hermione began scurrying through the shop, grabbing several things and Astoria grabbing a couple others before ushering her into one of the dressing rooms. While she was busy in there, Hermione went over to where Rose was wearing her dress, instructing g Edie while the other witch pinned a few things. She turned her head when she saw her mother.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"It's finally starting to look like something," said Hermione with a smile.

Edie attempted to say something but, with the pins in her mouth, neither of them could understand her. She stopped what she was doing and took them out. "I promise, after this fitting it will be a dress. Then I'll just have to focus on all of the details."

Rose looked at herself in the mirror and bit her lip. She knew they would be cutting it close and was clearly nervous about it. "You're really going to have enough time for this?" she asked.

"Yeah, of course," answered Edie.

"James says you've been staying up all night working on it. That you haven't been sleeping," said Rose. "If it's too much for you -"

"It's not," insisted Edie in a somewhat harsh voice.

There was a moment of tense silence as Edie focused on the hem of the dress, Rose watching her closely in the mirror.

"You don't owe me anything," said Rose under her breath.

Edie froze, her hands shaking a little before glancing back into the mirror. Only, she wasn't looking at Rose, she was looking at Hermione, knowing instantly by the way Hermione averted her eyes that Rose had told her a secret.

Edie sighed and went back to working on the dress. "I admit, I've been sleeping less to get this done, but I haven't been going without. It will be finished by the wedding no matter what but I'd rather finish by next week for any last minute changes that need to be made. Now -" She stood up, "- do you like the sleeves fitting on your shoulders like this or did you want them to flare out a bit?"

"I like them fitting," answered Rose.

"Alright, and I was thinking about having the lace connect them in the back just below your neck, but then leaving your back open until about here." Edie touched Rose's lower back. "I know it's outdoors so you might not want to do that."

"But I don't want to be all matronly and covered," said Rose. She turned and looked at her back in the mirror. "Maybe a smaller opening that goes to just a few centimeters below my shoulder blades."

Just then, Astoria came out of her dressing room. Hermione turned at the sound and went over to her, smiling when Astoria met her eye. "That looks lovely," she said.

"You don't think it's too young-looking," said Astoria, eyeing herself in the mirror. The dress was definitely form-fitting, but it looked great on her.

"Not at all," said Hermione. "I think sometimes you forget how young you still are."

"I'm not that young. My only son is old enough to get married," said Astoria, still looking at herself in the mirror. She bit her cheek. "I need to try the others."

While she headed back to her dressing room, Hermione went to the front of the shop and sat down next to Narcissa, who was still holding her teacup but had let the drink grow cold.

"Are you sure you're up for being here?" asked Hermione.

"If I'm confined in that house for another minute there is a good chance I might go insane," answered Narcissa, waving her hand over her cup to reheat the tea before taking a sip. "I may not be feeling my best but I'd rather be here than there."

Hermione nodded. "Just let me know if that changes."

They both watched as the older Molly and Dominique helped Victoire with her dress, giving instructions to the seamstress. Every now and then, Molly would glance over at Hermione with a sad look in her eye. It was obvious that Ron had told her about the divorce, but she was keeping quiet about it. Hermione wondered how long it would be before she ever talked to her directly again.

In the midst of all of this, Dory started crying in Dominique's arms. Hermione immediately stood, taking the baby back and checking her diaper. As she suspected, it was time for a changing.

After that was done, Hermione held on to Dory and sat back down next to Narcissa, the older woman eyeing the baby curiously.

"I suppose your lack of voice on the matter means my sister has refused to see me," she said, her eyes becoming desolate.

"No," said Hermione. "She hasn't made a decision."

"Do you know which way she's leaning?"

"No," she said again. "She hasn't returned any of my owls since I first spoke with her, but I know she will once she decides."

"How do you know that?" Narcissa asked sadly.

"Because I know Andromeda. The reason she hasn't gotten back to me is because she doesn't have an answer, not because the answer is no."

Narcissa nodded. "Even if it is no you will tell me?"

"Yes," said Hermione. "If that's what you want."

With another nod, Narcissa said, "Thank you."

Just then, Astoria walked out in her next dress. She looked around until she saw Hermione and walked over to her. "I really just don't think any of this is me," she said, looking down frustrated at the dress.

"And what is you exactly?" asked Hermione.

Astoria didn't have an answer. She looked blankly around the shop for a moment before excusing herself and returning to the dressing room.

"Are you sure you should become so friendly with her?" Narcissa asked quietly.

"Why not? Our children are getting married. I don't want there to be any animosity between us."

"But there will be animosity," said Narcissa. "By this time next month she will hate you."

"You don't know -"

"I do, actually. I'm not saying don't be friendly. I'm just saying be careful. Your family isn't the only one who is going to be hurt by your announcement."

It was not long before all of the bridesmaids' dresses were altered and ready. After speaking with Teddy on her mobile, Victoire took Dory and headed home, letting Teddy finish the errands on his own. Even with all of the charms protecting Dory they didn't want to risk keeping her out in this weather. Dominique was more than happy to leave with her big sister, while Molly took Roxanne, Lucy and the younger Molly out for tea. Rose was supposed to go too but she stayed behind to spend some more time with Edie working on her dress. She seemed a bit disappointed about it, but Hermione promised she would take her daughter out for tea the moment she was finished.

Not counting on Rose spending this extra time in the shop, Scorpius arrived with his groomsmen not too long after all of the bridesmaids had left. "Uh oh," he said, spotting Hermione and Narcissa. He pulled out his pocket watch. "Are we early?"

"No, Rose is running a little late," said Hermione. "Just go over to the men's section and stay away from the women's dressing rooms. I'll let her know you're here."

As Hermione walked back to warn Rose, she carefully eyed Scorpius' groomsmen. The only ones she knew of were Hugo, Parker, Albus and Deacon. Albus and Deacon were here now, along with two others who had the arrogant presence only purebloods could emit. Poor Albus looked incredibly uncomfortable. He was only a groomsman because of Rose's urging. He and Scorpius had become friendly during their last year at Hogwarts but they were not exactly friends.

To Hermione's surprise, James walked in after the others. He looked around, then when he spotted her heading towards the back he followed her.

"Aunt Hermione, am I allowed to come back here?" he asked, hurrying to catch her.

Hermione beckoned him and led him around the corner where Rose and Edie were. "Rose, make sure you stay back here. The other half of the wedding party has arrived," she said.

"Okay," said Rose. "Mom, what do you think about the neckline? Should I keep it sweetheart? I feel like every bride does sweetheart."

"What else would you do?" asked Hermione, watching as James walked over and kissed Edie on the cheek, a last minute decision once he realized she had her signature pins in her mouth. He then sat in a chair that was there and watched.

Rose glanced sideways at him. "I don't know," she said. "Maybe a scoop neck, or something square-ish."

Hermione bit her lip and thought. "Keep it sweetheart," she answered.

Rose nodded. "Alright. I think we'll be done here soon. Has Scorpius' mom found a dress yet?"

Hermione went white. She had forgotten for a moment that Astoria was here. And that …

"No, not yet. Excuse me."

Hermione hurried back out, catching a glimpse of Astoria walking out to the front room, glancing around. She quickened her pace and grabbed the other woman's arm, turning her around.

"Oh, this one looks lovely," said Hermione. "Is there a mirror back here we can look at it in?" She put an arm on her back and tried to guide her towards the dressing rooms.

Astoria pursed her brow. "There are mirrors everywhere. What are you -?"

"Astoria, hi."

Astoria's eyes widened. She gave Hermione a grave look before turning slowly, coming face to face with Deacon. "Deacon. I must have lost track of the time if you boys are here. Where's Scorpius?"

"Over there," said Deacon, not pointing anywhere. He was too busy looking her up and down, stopping on her face. He gulped. "You look … beautiful."

While most women would be flattered by the compliment, Astoria looked bloody angry. She was just about to say something when someone shouted, "Mum!"

The three of them looked to see Scorpius hurrying over holding a suit. "What do you think?" he asked, showing it to her. Then he looked her up and down - in a much more respectful way - and said, "You look pretty. Is that the dress you're getting?"

"I don't think so," said Astoria. She took a good look at the suit he was holding. She smiled. "It looks nice. Am I allowed to see it on?"

"Yeah, if you come over there," he said, pointing towards the men's dressing rooms. "I'm not allowed on this side." He looked at her again. "I think you should reconsider that dress."

Before heading back over to the men's section, Scorpius stopped by the sofa Narcissa was on, showed her his suit, kissed her cheek and finally hurried off. But Deacon stayed where he was, staring at Astoria with dreamy eyes. She looked away uncomfortably before heading back to the dressing room, followed by Hermione.

"Well, that was embarrassing," said Astoria once they were alone in her dressing room.

"You really seem to have done a number on him," said Hermione, glancing out of a crack in the curtain and seeing that he was still standing there. It was a good ten seconds before he finally turned and left.

"He's young, he doesn't know any better," said Astoria. "He thinks …" She paused, looking ill for a moment before taking a deep breath. "He thinks sex is love. Being Blaise's son, one would assume he'd know better." She fidgeted around a bit, glancing at herself in the mirror. "Do you really think this one's alright?" she asked.

Hermione looked the dress over. It was long and gold, with a tight bodice and a flowing skirt, sleeveless but with a high, lacy neckline.

"I think it's lovely," said Hermione. "Definitely my favorite of the ones you've tried on."

Astoria continued looking at herself, grabbing her long, dark hair and pulling it back to see what it would look like. "I don't know. I'm really terrible at this."

Hermione laughed. "How are you such a horrible shopper? You always look so put together."

"I never pick out anything for myself," she admitted. "I hire someone for that."

"Then why didn't you do that this time around?"

Astoria dropped her hair and turned to look at Hermione. "I thought this is what women do. Come to these sorts of places and try on a million things until they find what they like. Besides -" She looked in the mirror again. "- I never got to choose my wedding dress. I thought it would be fun to try it out for my son's wedding. But it seems that there's a reason I have never shopped for myself before."

Hermione laughed again. "I think you're doing alright. After all, you grabbed that dress. Not me."

"Did I?" asked Astoria, looking slightly proud as she smoothed it out. "Well … if Scorpius likes it I think I should get it."

"You definitely should," said Hermione. "I'll let you change."

Hermione left the dressing room and returned to Narcissa.

"Is that boy still bothering her?" Narcissa asked quietly.

"Seems like it," said Hermione.

Narcissa shook her head. "I truly hope Scorpius never finds out about that."

She wasn't the only one. The more Hermione got to know Astoria the more she realized that Scorpius was everything to her, and a scandal like this coming out would be damaging to their relationship, to say the least. The woman already seemed so fragile, she would not do well if she ever lost her son over something she truly did seem to regret.

Victoire rode the lift in Malfoy Enterprises on Monday morning, fidgeting nervously as the air seemed to get thinner. Draco had invited her for lunch. This was the first time she had been here since giving birth to Nymphadora and the few times she had seen Draco he had not mentioned if there was still a job waiting for her or not. From the beginning it was supposed to just be temporary, so it was completely understandable if he had hired someone else.

She stepped out of the lift on Draco's floor, a little thrown off when she saw someone sitting in her chair. But it wasn't just that. This wasn't one of the usual ditzy-looking temps they seemed to bring on in this place. This was a young man dressed very professionally and typing vigorously on his keyboard. Most likely a Muggle-born by how quickly his fingers were moving. He looked up when he saw her and smiled pleasantly.

"Hello," he said. "You must be Victoire." He stood and met her halfway to shake her hand. "It is such a pleasure to meet you. You were so organized. All of your notes have made learning everything really easy since the temp I replaced didn't seem to know anything."

So he wasn't a temp. "Thank you," she said. "And your name?"

"Eddie," he said. "Eddie Parish. Let me tell Mr. Malfoy you're here."

He hurried back to her - his desk and pressed his intercom orb, or so she liked to call it.

"Mr. Malfoy, Mrs. Lupin has arrived."

" Tell her I'll be right there ," the familiar voice of Draco replied. " And you can go ahead and take your lunch, Edward ."

"Alright, thank you, Mr. Malfoy." Eddie took his finger off of the orb and looked at Victoire. "He doesn't like to call me Eddie," he said with a laugh. "Says Edward sounds more professional. Don't think anyone's ever called me that except my mum when she's angry."

Victoire smiled. He was a bit quirky yet, somehow, charming. She hated that.

"I'll see you later. Have fun," he said, grabbing his wallet from her - his desk and heading for the lift.

As soon as he was gone, Victoire sat down in her old chair, feeling sad as she realized everything was rearranged, a photo of Eddie and some girl by his computer monitor making it seem like he would be staying awhile. Her photos were nowhere to be found.

Paul cooed. Victoire stared at him. He still wasn't looking well. She stuck out her finger and he climbed onto it, happily nuzzling her when she held him against her chest. It was then that she noticed it. A door adjacent to Draco's which had definitely not been there before.

Draco's office door opened and she stood, still holding onto little Paul.

Draco smiled when he saw her. "What? No baby today?"

Victoire smiled back. "No, my mum is watching her. We had to take her out over the weekend and we didn't want to do it again so soon."

"Understandable," he said. "Astoria didn't let us take Scorpius out anywhere until he was about two months old." He held out his arms. "Come here, kid."

Victoire smiled, putting Paul down before going over and giving Draco a hug. She had missed him. She had missed this whole place.

"And how is motherhood?" he asked.

"Exhausting," she admitted, pulling away from their hug. "But great."

"You look exhausted," said Draco, never one to tiptoe around someone's feelings.

"Thanks. Your new secretary seems nice," she said, unable to hide the bitterness in her voice.

"Yeah, he's alright. Works hard but he's a bit … what's the word? Wholesome?" Draco scratched his chin. "No, that's not right. But he's the type of person to say things like 'by golly' and 'swell'. I'm hoping to dirty up his language a bit."

Victoire laughed. "After hearing you day in and day out that shouldn't be a problem."

"I'm not as bad as I was in my youth," he said with a laugh. "Oh! Before we go there's something I want to show you."

Draco smirked and headed towards the new door Victoire had seen. She followed curiously, Paul struggling to fly after her and landing on her shoulder.

"This is something I've had them working on since before you left," said Draco, opening the door and letting Victoire step in first.

Victoire gasped. She had been expecting a larger kitchen or something, but what she got instead was an office. Not nearly as large as Draco's but definitely well-sized, with potted plants in the corners and the photos she had left behind on the mahogany desk. She went up to it and immediately noticed a name plate, picking it up and reading:

Victoire Lupin

Executive Assistant

"What is this?" she asked, her fingers shaking.

"Your office," said Draco. "That is, if you want it."

"I … don't know," she said even though her mind was screaming ' yes '. "Dory …"

"Oh, I haven't shown you the best part."

He went over to her desk and pressed something underneath it. Victoire watched as the wall across from the desk opened up, revealing a large screen with a clear picture of what appeared to be a children's playroom.

"I've been meaning to have one built for years," said Draco.

Victoire blinked. "A Day Nursery?"

"Yes, on the third floor. We have just hired a lovely woman and she will be starting next week. It's available for all employees. And, of course, you can always keep Dory up here," said Draco. "I'm not asking you to start working again tomorrow but, when you're ready, the job's here for you."

Victoire looked at him again, trying hard not to become overwhelmed with emotion. "I'll have to talk to Teddy."

"Of course," said Draco. "But he does already know about this. He approached me at the Ministry, wanting to make sure you still had a job."

Victoire gulped. "He did?"

Draco smiled. "Yes, he did. You were meant to work here, kid. He sees that. We all do."

And that was it. Victoire couldn't hold it together any longer. She leapt into Draco's arms and hugged him tight, crying into his chest as she was overcome with happiness. She still had a job. Her husband wasn't upset over it anymore. And she had the most perfect baby girl in the entire world. Life was good.

"Does this mean she's taking the job?"

Victoire pulled away from Draco, looking over at the door to see Alexandra standing there, smiling. She nodded in response.

"Oh, thank gods," said Alexandra, walking over and giving her a hug. "Malfoy Enterprises could not afford to lose such a great asset to our team."

"Thank you," said Victoire with a sniffle. "But I can't start right away. I want these first months with Dory."

"Of course you do," said Alexandra, putting an arm around her shoulders, accidentally nudging Paul a bit. "Is the owl coming with us to lunch?"

"I think he plans to," said Victoire with a laugh.

"I suppose that works since Colby can't make it." Alexandra looked over at Draco. "He says he has too much work to get done."

Draco and Alexandra exchanged a look. Colby had been acting strangely all week. They assumed he and Annette were fighting again but it had become such a common thing that they never knew how serious it was. Still, this time seemed different. Maybe it was over for good. Draco could only hope.

Hermione sat in her office on Wednesday morning, sipping her lukewarm coffee while reading over the curriculum she was creating for this new class for the thousandth time. It was finally getting somewhere, but it was still far from being done.

There was a knock at her door. She looked up, a little surprised to see Rose.

"Rosie, what are you doing here?" she asked. "I thought you worked today."

"I did but I got someone to cover for me," said Rose, walking into her mother's office.

"Why?"

Rose stopped by Hermione's desk, fidgeting with her hands before reaching into her purse and pulling out a piece of parchment. "I received an owl this morning." She handed the parchment to her mother, her hands shaking from nerves.

Hermione took it and read it over. It was from Parvati Patil at Witch Weekly , inviting Rose to come in and interview for a writing position.

Hermione lifted her eyes from the parchment and gazed at her daughter.

"I know, I know," said Rose. " Witch Weekly is our mortal enemy. But I applied for a nature writing position, not gossip."

"But the interview is with Parvati."

"Yes, because she's the assistant Editor-in-Chief, and she's the one who posted the position, so it's not weird."

"If you say so," said Hermione, handing the parchment back to her daughter.

"So you don't think I should go?" asked Rose.

"I didn't say that. Just … be cautious."

"Yeah …" Rose stared down at the letter with a frown. "I hate this. Top of my class and all I can get is a bloody part-time job in a bookshop."

"It's only temporary," said Hermione. "Until you find that perfect position. Who knows, maybe this is it."

"I doubt it," said Rose. She began fidgeting again. "I'm really nervous. Can you do a practice interview with me?"

Hermione smiled. "Of course."

Hermione and Rose did two mock interviews together before the latter had to leave, rushing home to change before her real interview.

Hermione sat at her desk, her elbows propped up and her chin in her hands, silently hoping that this was a real job interview. It could very well be, since having a member of the Weasley family working for Witch Weekly would be good for business, and might even make their gossip look more legit, but for as long as Hermione had known Parvati she was perfectly aware that the woman didn't always look at the big picture. By the way she spoke to Hermione when their paths occasionally crossed at fellow former classmates' functions it seemed like she truly believed they could separate their business and personal lives. But it was hard not to hold grudges when she attacked Hermione's family so horribly and so often.

Draco came into Hermione's office right around lunchtime, his hair wet and a bag carrying sandwiches in hand. "It's horrible out there," he said, shutting her door before walking over and giving her a kiss. He could tell instantly by the way her lips felt that something was off. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," said Hermione, taking the sandwich he handed her and just holding it. "I just feel so … drained. I don't have many spare minutes and the ones I do go towards the wedding. I'm exhausted."

"You work too hard," said Draco, propping himself against the desk in front of her and taking her hands. He brought her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her waist.

She plopped her head against his shoulder. "That's a bit funny coming from you ."

Draco chuckled. "I may work hard but it's nothing compared to you, love. You need a break," he said while soothingly rubbing her back.

"Just holding you is the only break I need," she said, squeezing him a little tighter.

"As touched as I am, we both know that isn't true." Draco brought one hand up and cupped her chin, moving her head back so she had to look at him. "Let's go for a walk," he said.

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "A walk?"

He nodded.

"To where?"

"Do we need a destination?"

"Yes."

"Well … I don't know." Draco searched his mind. "Ice-cream."

Hermione raised her eyebrows higher. "Ice-cream?"

"Yes."

"But it's pouring down rain outside," she said with a laugh.

"It's off and on," said Draco, moving to stand and taking her hand. "Come along. We'll go to that Muggle shop Alex dragged me to when we were finished here a few months back."

"Is it as good as Florean Fortescue's?" she asked.

Draco smirked and dragged her towards the door. "Better."

"I seriously doubt that."

The two of them released hands before leaving her office, saying a brief goodbye to Teddy before heading for the lift.

Only ten minutes after they left, Rose came barreling out of the lift, her eyes red and cheeks wet, not stopping until she noticed her mother's door was open and no one was inside.

"Teddy, where's my mom?" she asked, looking at him.

Teddy looked up and blinked, his mouth falling open when he saw how upset she looked. "She stepped out for a minute. But she should be back shortly."

Rose nodded, wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

"Did you want to wait in her office?" he asked.

She thought then shook her head. "I need some air. Could you have her call me when she's back?"

"Sure," he said. "Do you want to tell me what's wro -"

"No," she said, cutting him off and returning to the lift. For a brief moment she thought about going to see if her dad was in his office, but he was not the one she really wanted to talk to.

The interview had been horrible . Her mother had been right. It took less than two minutes for her to realize that she was not interviewing for the job she had applied for at all. Instead all that bloody Patil woman wanted was gossip on her and Scorpius' families. Offered a pretty good price for it too, even said Rose could write her own articles about them. Anonymously, of course, so as not to expose her spy.

It took everything in Rose's power not to smack the woman. Her entire life had been overrun with camera flashes and hurtful words. Everyone loved her mother, father and Uncle Harry. They were the golden trio, the saviors of the wizarding world and defeaters of Lord Voldemort, why was everyone so quick to believe such horrible things about them?

The lift opened and Rose rushed out of it, running through the atrium and not stopping until she reached the telephone booth. She took it, taking a moment to close her eyes and breathe as she was brought up to the Muggle world.

When the booth stopped she opened her eyes. It was sprinkling a bit outside. She pulled on the hood from her dark trench coat before opening the door and stepping out.

It felt good to be outside, even though she was just in thin ballerina flats and her feet were getting soaked in the puddles. As Rose walked, she began kicking at them, finding a strange sense of joy in watching the water fly.

Eventually, Rose stopped walking, stepping into an alley and leaning against the wall. She lifted her face towards the muggy, gray sky, letting the random rain drops crash against her frozen skin as she closed her eyes again, trying to understand why this was so hard. Her parents had found success almost instantly after graduating Hogwarts. They knew what they wanted to do and they did it. Rose wanted to write. She was good at it and had a highly respected family name. While she did not expect things to simply be handed to her because of who her family was - her parents had taught her better than that - she still had to wonder why the name hadn't opened any doors. Other than a bloody gossip column that would basically be her spying on and betraying her loved ones.

All of this might be easier if Scorpius liked his job, but he didn't. He was bored. Even if he didn't always say it, she knew he was. When they first got together he would always talk about all of the adventures he wanted to have. Travel the world, work with dragons, see everything , but for some reason he had put that all on hold to marry her. And could that really be considered a reason? They were both stuck at dead-end jobs that they hated. At this point they might as well just pick up and leave. Find a bloody dragon somewhere and study it or something. Anything was better than this feeling of melancholy.

Rose would never forget this conversation she had with her mother years ago. She was eleven and only a few short days away from starting Hogwarts. She didn't know why she asked it - who knew why children asked anything - but she had wanted to know if her mother had any regrets in life. Of course, she had gotten the typical, doting mother answer that she had everything she needed in life right in front of her. A loving husband, two amazing children, incredible friends … But, even then, Rose didn't buy it. So, after much probing, her mother caved and admitted something she had never admitted to anyone before. She regretted starting her life so fast.

Her mother and father had been together since they were eighteen. The day after her mother finished school she started her job at the Ministry, and while she had risen in her position she had never left. Not even for a holiday. She had never taken the time to live her life and see the world. While she loved Rose's father, and she made that very clear while talking, she had never truly lived for herself. Just gone to the ocean one day with no one's company but her own and soaked it in. She never knew what it felt like to feel small on the top of a vast mountain or what the forest sounded like when no one else was around. She had never just been alone with her thoughts, not having to worry if the presentation she was giving on Monday was prepared or if her bills were paid.

And, even at a young age, Rose saw the sad look in her mother's eyes and she swore to herself that this would not be her one day. That she would do it differently and take time to enjoy life. The only difference was that she didn't want to experience it by herself. She wanted to experience it with Scorpius. Maybe that's not how she would feel in twenty years but it was how she felt now. Only, if they continued going down this humdrum road they were on then it was never going to happen.

Eyes still closed and face lifted towards the sky, it took Rose by surprise when the rain suddenly became more than just a few droplets. She was soaked in seconds, opening her eyes and pressing herself as closely to the wall as she could to hide under the little bit of roof there was until she could locate her umbrella.

Then she heard it, a familiar laugh. One that she had heard a million times before. It was her mother's.

Rose stayed put but turned her head to look towards the street, watching as two people ran, each with one hand over their heads while the other held a small cup.

"So much for being lucky with the light rain," said Hermione, ducking under a roof directly across the narrow street from where Rose stood in the shadows.

"It'll pass in a moment," said Draco, attempting to look up at the sky from their little hideaway.

Rose took one step away from the wall. She had just started to call for her mother when a loud wave of thunder echoed through the sky. Hermione screeched and jumped into Draco's arms. Rose's eyes widened. She took a step back again, standing frozen.

Draco laughed as he held her. "Should I Transfigure an umbrella for us?"

" What ? Draco, no. This is a Muggle neighborhood we're in. For Merlin's sake, respect the rules."

He laughed again. "So I guess we'll just wait it out then."

"I guess so," said Hermione, pulling away from him and staring in the direction they wanted to go. She lifted the small cup she was holding, taking out a spoon and eating whatever was inside.

"So what do you think," asked Draco.

"It's good. But not better than Florean Fortescue's," she answered with a smirk.

"That's only because you refused to get something with chocolate," he insisted. "Bloody sorbet. Who gets that shit?"

"I do," she said, still smirking as she took another bite.

"Do me a favor and try this," said Draco, scooping up some of his chocolate ice-cream and holding it out towards her.

Hermione opened her mouth and let him feed her. "That's not bad. Actually, they taste really good together," she said, taking a spoonful of her sorbet before reaching over and adding a little of his ice-cream on top of it. She took her bite.

"Really?" he said.

She nodded as she swallowed.

He looked around, making sure no one was walking their way. The street was clear. "Then perhaps I should give it a taste."

Draco leaned forward, capturing Hermione's lips with his and giving her a tender kiss. Hermione's eyes closed as she sunk into him for a moment, not even noticing as another round of thunder echoed above their heads.

When Draco pulled away, he smiled. "Mmm. That does taste good."

Hermione laughed and hit his chest. She looked at the street again. "It's died down a bit. Should we make a run for it?"

Draco handed her his cup and took off his coat. "Let's go," he said, wrapping one arm around her shoulders while the other held the coat over their heads. Then they ran, still completely blind to the girl standing in the shadows, not even caring that she was getting soaked.

Rose stayed there, eyes glossed over as she took in everything she had just seen. Suddenly, her silly interview didn't seem so important anymore. Not when her already fragile world had just shattered around her in one devastating moment. She knew that things in her life were changing, she just never expected that her mother, her confidant through all of the chaos, her one constant, was one of them.