A/N: Thank you all so much for your reviews, favorites and follows on this story! This one came from a tumblr prompt from kristeristerin, and I can't believe it morphed into this story. I really hope that you enjoy how it ends! You can follow me over on tumblr (nauticalparamour) where I post sneak peeks, story updates and answer questions. If you like my writing, I do have a Daphne x Theo story going right now called Whistle For the Choir. I will be posting some Theo x Hermione in a few weeks, though, too!

Please let me know what you thought of the story!

One Year Later.

Hermione sighed as she walked back up the street towards her flat, eager to get home for the night. Her book bag was really growing much too heavy ever since she started her law degree. She'd thought that she'd had to do a lot of reading for her history degree, but really, the law school took things to a whole new level.

Rolling her head side to side, she was ready to just have a relaxing evening after spending her whole Saturday in the library, but knew that she'd promised her friends that she would go out for a change. Really, she didn't want to be a total hermit, just because she was still full into schooling, while most of her friends had moved on to their careers.

Turning the corner, Hermione's attention was grabbed by the little 'for let' sign that was once again posted in her front garden, advertising the garden level flat that had once been occupied by Rabastan, but had remained empty for the past six months or so. She wondered how long it would remain empty for Hagrid this time, and if the next neighbor would change her life as much as her former neighbor had.

Putting her key into the lock of her front door, Hermione happily deposited her book bag onto the bench that sat in her foyer, her progress impeded by a happy cat running between her legs, pressing his face against her calves, eager to be greeted.

"Well hello to you, too," she said, picking the cat up in her arms as if he was a baby doll and giving him belly pets. "Did you have a good day to yourself?" she asked, knowing that the cat wasn't going to answer, but unable to break the habit all the same.

Dropping the cat back down to its' feet, Hermione walked towards the kitchen, the cat hot on her heels. As soon as she entered into the kitchen, she smiled, seeing bolognese left in the pot in a lazy simmer, with bubbles slowly rising to the top.

"You've got to help me," Hermione said in a done up voice. "There is a terrible beast called Salazar who won't leave me be," she teased, looking down at the gray cat who'd been waiting for her at the door, flopping to his side, waiting for more pets and scratches. Crookshanks watched from his favorite spot in the window with disinterest.

Rabastan made a show of grabbing her and pulling her behind his back. "Never fear, babe - I can keep you safe from this greedy little blighter!" he responded.

Salazar just meowed up at the young couple in absolute contempt.

Spinning around, Rabastan pulled Hermione into a hug before picking her up by the waist, and setting her on the counter. He settled between her legs and pressed his mouth against hers in a sweet kiss. "My hero," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "How was work today?" she asked.

Ever since Rabastan had his little run in with the law, he'd begun a dual program of formal education and hands-on experience to become a certified mechanic. He still had a few months of formal training remaining, but Hermione was impressed to see how much he was taking to it. He would frequently explain different parts of the mechanics of motorcycles to her, and even though she didn't particularly understand all of what he was saying, she loved watching him come alive when he was able to do something that he actually enjoyed doing. Even if that meant that his hands were stained more often than not.

He'd told her once, when they'd just moved in together after his own lease was up, as he held her body against his, about how she was the first person to expect anything of him. He finally opened up to her about his home life with Rodolphus and how their relationship was built around Rabastan just wanting someone to fucking notice him for once. How he'd do anything to just be praised for once. Becoming a mechanic meant that he was doing something for himself and himself alone.

And by all accounts, he was excellent at it. His boss, a short man with a bushy mustache, had told Hermione about it one year when she stopped by the shop once. The man looked at her with a confused look, as if to wonder just what the hell a girl like her was doing with a former felon, but he was keen to sing Rabastan's praises nonetheless.

The shop owner's reaction to their relationship was quite typical. After everything that had happened, Hermione's friends were extremely reluctant to give Rabastan another chance. Ultimately, it had been Luna Lovegood who had knocked enough sense into everyone. "Don't you know that Hermione's going to date him, even if we don't give him our approval? She's forgiven him, so why shouldn't we?" she asked, with that dreamy smile on her face. "Besides, they've absolutely smitten with one another. Just watch how he looks at her."

It had been an uncomfortable deeper look into their relationship, but Hermione was ultimately glad for Luna's intervention. Of course, her friend was right that she wasn't going to base her relationship decisions on what her friends thought of her boyfriend, she was glad that everyone could get along. It had taken a few weeks, but things quickly got back to normal. Ron and Harry had even brought Rabastan to watch a football match not too long ago, and he was going to Harry's stag do.

Despite being ten years apart in age, having spent most of his adult life in prison, Rabastan was just happy to go experience adulthood.

That wasn't to say that Hermione and Rabastan's relationship was all sunshine and rainbows. Of course they had their ups and downs, and their share of fights, especially when Rabastan would really get far too possessive for his own good. And, despite her best efforts to be understanding about some of the idiosyncrasies of Rabastsan's, there were some things that he did that she just couldn't get. It would take time for them to adjust to one another, but with a focus on open conversations, they always forgave each other at the end of the day.

And the make up sex wasn't terrible either.

Blinking, Hermione realized that Rabastan had gone fully into a discussion of how he'd begun work rebuilding an engine that day, including all the little intricacies of how he'd found the perfect screw length, and she felt her heart melt. She wondered how her life had been so completely turned upside down by this man, all teenager eagerness and oversexed masculinity. She remembered how Harry had once mentioned that she didn't seem the kind of person who would go for Rabastan's type, but now he was so irresistible to her. Tattoos and all.

Holding out a spoon for her, he indicated for Hermione to taste the sauce. "Open up, I want you to taste this," he instructed.

Hermione gratefully did as she was bid, trying his newest iteration of bolognese. Although he still enjoyed frozen pizza culinary skills, Rabastan was always game to try and ferret out the secret of Zabini's bolognese sauce, but had so far been unsuccessful. "Mm, it's good," she told him. "Your best yet. What's the secret?" she asked.

"Hint of nutmeg," he told her, eyebrows furrowed as he tried it himself. "I want to perfect it before your parents come to visit for Christmas."

Her parents, once perfectly content to remain in Australia, had suddenly become far more interested in their daughter's life once she told them that she'd asked her new boyfriend to move in with her. She hadn't shared very many details about him with her parents, worried that they would disapprove. They had immediately planned a trip home, wanting to ensure that their little girl was going to be safe with this new boyfriend.

To say that their first meeting had gone poorly was an understatement. Rabastan, having a massive chip on his shoulder, had been positive that they would hate him and then Hermione would want to leave him. After all, no man wished that his daughter would date a former convict, let alone someone who'd been arrested for attempted murder.

And, Rabastan had been right. Mr. and Mrs. Granger took one look at his tattooed hands and leather jacket swagger and insisted that Hermione break up with them.

Unfortunately for the other three, Hermione was stubborn. She wanted their meeting to go well and to get her parents approval. She told them in no uncertain terms that she hadn't been sure about Rabastan initially either, but since she'd gotten to know him, she knew that she wanted to be with him. That she loved him and she wasn't going to dump him just because her parents - who were just now visiting her for the first time in four years - told her to.

Bolstered by Hermione's passionate defense of him, Rabastan felt that he could relax a bit more around the Grangers. Without a wall up around them, they slowly got to know him a bit better by the end of the trip. He'd impressed them with his work ethic, and by the end of the week, Mr. Granger was even joining Rabastan in the back garden to watch him work on his motorcycle.

They'd left commenting that Rabastan was not the man that they would have selected for their daughter, but it was clear that he loved Hermione. They trusted that she was in good hands, and had made plans to join the couple again at Christmas.

"Well, I'm sure my mother will fight you for the recipe, Rab," Hermione told him encouragingly from her perch on the countertop. "It's perfect." It was so cute how worried he was about making a good impression when he already had.

He helped her down off the counter before guiding her to the kitchen table so that they could eat lunch together. A bowl of pasta in front of her, Hermione wished that she could just spend the rest of the night with Rabastan. Maybe she could convince him to join her in the bath.

It seemed as if Rabastan was having the same thoughts. "Are you sure we have to go out tonight?" he questioned. "Ron's been especially moody since he broke up with that Lavender."

Hermione sighed deeply. "Unfortunately, yes," she told him with a half-smile. "I've promised Ginny that we wouldn't blow them off again this weekend, like we did last week. Which, if you will remember, was your fault," she accused.

Rabastan looked mock hurt at her words. "What? How is it my fault that we blew them off?" he pressed, grabbing her leg under the table so that her tiny foot was cradled in his lap. Using his fingers, he gently massaged up the arch of her foot, turning Hermione into absolute putty under his hands. He gave her a cheeky grin.

"You know what you-" Hermione's words were cut off when his fingers had her seeing stars. "Rabastan, you remember what you did last weekend. I was all ready to go out and then you threw me over your shoulder and carried me back to bed!"

Her boyfriend didn't even look mildly apologetic. "What did you expect me to do when you wore that grey dress?" he asked, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You clearly were looking to get fucked, and I merely delivered."

Hermione laughed, even though she knew she should scold him for being an absolute scoundrel. If there was one thing that never changed about Rabastan, it was that he was absolutely willing to shoot his shot, making it abundantly clear how physically attracted to her he was. When she'd first met him, she'd worried that he was just after any woman after being in jail for so long. She'd worried that he'd tire of her once he'd finally had her - that there were girls more his type and that she was merely forbidden fruit. After over a year of dating, she was pleased to note that he was always hungry for her and her alone. He hadn't wavered once.

"I just don't see you couldn't have waited until after we got home from the bar," Hermione scolded, though she didn't really mean it. It had been an utterly enjoyable weekend.

Crossing his arms over his chest, Rabastan leaned back and made no secret the way that he was drinking in her form. "What will you give me if I agree to go out tonight?" he negotiated, even though he didn't really need to be convinced. They always had a good time out.

"If you go out with me, I will...I don't know, try to learn to ride a motorcycle," she offered, knowing that he'd been dying to teach her for months. Despite her nerves, she was coming around to the idea. While she doubted that she would ever have her own motorcycle, she could see the benefits that she'd have if she learned.

"That sounds amazing," he purred, leaning across the table to invade her personal space. "But, I had something a bit different in mind..." he trailed off, letting his fingers trail up the inside of her leg. "If I go out with you, promise that you'll sneak away from your friends with me and meet me in a bathroom for a special treat."

Hermione scrunched her nose. "A bathroom, really?" she asked, thinking that it sounded a bit cliche and a bit dirty.

Rabastan nodded. "Well, if I thought you'd agree to meet me in the coat room, I'd have suggested that, but I know how you'd feel about the potential audience," he said with a snort. "Though you know that I'd love to show everyone that you are mine."

Feeling a thrill zing up her spine at being called his, Hermione tried not to show Rabastan how much the idea excited her, too. Biting her lower lip, she knew that it wasn't too much of a hardship to agree, but she didn't want to give the impression of giving in too quickly either. "Alright, but...just this once," she told him. "I agree."

He gave her a sexy little look and it was all Hermione could do not to blush. Letting go of her foot, Rabastan stood up from the table and began to clear it. "I love you, babe," he said tenderly.

"Oh, is that all you say? I agree to let you have your way with me in a men's room at some club and you just leave me here?" she pressed, feeling as though she should have been praised more for stepping out of her comfort zone.

Rabastan turned to look at her with absolute lust reflected in his sea-green eyes. "It's taking all I have in me not to change my mind right now and throw you over my shoulder again," he told her honestly. "Now go and get changed before I lose it."

Hermione laughed, amazed at how easily he'd slotted himself in her life, but she knew that she wouldn't have it anyway. Standing, she flounced out of the kitchen, only to grab the door frame on her way out. "You know I love you, too?" she asked, waiting for him to lock eyes with her again. "Who's to say we can't do both?" she questioned saucily.

He gave her a surprised look, before closing the gap between them. He picked her up easily, before pressing her over his shoulder and giving her a smack on the rump. "You asked for it, witch!" he teased her back, stalking off in the direction of their bedroom.

She laughed the whole way, excited for what the night - what life - had in store for the two of them.