She needed some time away from loving couples and her lonely reality.

He was stuck with a non-refundable pre-honeymoon and decided not to let it go to waste.

99 days on board of the ship Arcadia. Peace, sun and sea. That was the plan.

Expect smut, adventure, bantering, romance, during a journey of 99 days at sea.

My beta partner for this story is again my amazing Magzillasaurus, which for I'm so grateful to have at my side.

Disclaimer: Aside from the plot, all the rest belongs to J.K. Rowling, God bless her HP world.


Prologue

*Hermione*

"We should move on, go our separate ways." Ron's words didn't hurt as they should, they were merely the confirmation of what her heart already knew, also him admitting the truth about their relationship. The fire that used to exist, extinguished with the years. It was not for lack of trying, enough attempts to reawaken it were chanced.

A romantic trip to Rome, a place none of them had ever visited. The romance was forced.

Finding a cosy place to live, far enough from everything but not too far away to create distance between friends and family. Both ended with working long hours or using excuses to avoid being alone, on their own.

Their last resort, relationship therapy with a Healer. Even that man ran out of alternatives.

None with the desired outcome.

In the end, there was nothing left but to throw in the towel, "We should move on…" today almost to the day, three years ago.

It was hard to admit, but she considered this a personal failure. Ron's touch, on the latest, a sensation she endured instead of enjoying like you're supposed to - though she attempted not to show her apathy. To Ron and the other men who followed him.

Up to the point that Hermione started to believe the problem lied with her.

Ron was now happily married, his nuptials had been one for the romantic novels. Hermione was happy for him, but also slightly jealous. This kind of love, one Ron deserved, without doubt, was the type she wanted for herself.

To be the centre of one man's focus, his genuine feelings out there for anyone to see. In return, her undeniable pride of having this man at her side. The yearning to go home so impossible to ignore and which would force her to stop working long hours at the office. Neither Ron or any other bloke brought it to her.

She was tired of seeking her fairytale. She was tired of resigning her own needs for another man's, hoping that this time, she finally found the one.

Tired, above all, of seeing everyone in her inner circle to settle down, get married and beam with the ultimate happiness. She needed to take some time off, away from her reality.

-oOo-

"Welcome Hermione, I'm so happy to see you've come." Harry was exhilarated, celebrating the birth of Albus, his second son. He invited every close friend and their partners to the Burrow, in a similar way to the Christening of a muggle baby.

He rubbed her arms, in a familiar way, comforting. Seeing his two best friends break apart, had hurt him. Not that he was blind to the reality, it had been visible to anyone who wanted to see. It just it broke their special bond.

Susan joined their circle, a woman who loved Ron as he should be loved; Harry saw Hermione accept Susan as the perfect replacement and he was even impressed with how his best friend refrained from lashing out or causing any of the typical fuss between exes.

Instead, she gave Ron the little push he needed, to propose to Susan; and Harry admired her for it.

He saw her date a few acquaintances, hating at a certain point the ability to foresee if the wizard was or not the one. There was something about Hermione, and the way she looked at the man that tipped Harry off - it started with number two post-Ron as he began to call it. She was currently at number six, or better said, she kicked number six out of her life a day or two ago.

His best friend was not the type of woman meant to be alone, but he was out of suggestions. Yet, he invited a wizard or two to the party, single men, wishing that one of them could catch her eye. Harry knew better than to warn Hermione of this fact, the last time he came very close to receiving one of her famous hexes.

Internally, he sighed and hoped for the best.

"Why wouldn't I come, Harry? It's an important celebration, the birth of your youngest son, not one of the countless remembrances of a war we all would love to forget." She kissed him heartily. "You haven't invited any blind dates, have you?"

"Only a few new colleagues from work, not for you…" He showed his hands, "Just me, being friendly and make them feel more welcome on the team."

"Hmm." She saw through his game, but it wasn't the time to throw a fit. This was a celebration, after all. "I want to talk to you later, after the party." In the meantime, she waved at Neville, with Hannah at his side. The look the pair exchanged caused a new pang in her heart, but she ignored it for the time being.

"Something I should worry about?"

"No, relax. Just letting you know of a plan of mine, exactly to prevent you from worrying about me." She pushed him forward to join the gathering. Ron came to her, kissing both cheeks before engulfing her in a Ron-hug as she labelled it. "Hello, Ron. Where's Susan?"

"Over there, talking to Billy and Fleur." The goofy smile plastered on his face, pointing out to where his wife stood, "Hermione, I'm going to be a father!" He couldn't contain his enthusiasm at the prospect.

"That is wonderful news, Ron. The family is expanding once more, I'm so happy for you." She did feel genuinely happy for him, hugging him fiercely. And still, in the back of her mind, a new stab. The thought where am I now? colliding with her belief that she really needed to put more than some distance between all the happy faces. Her heart squirmed in longing, she wanted a family. She had a career instead, and a cold house to go home to. It's time I leave.

Hermione greeted every Weasley and their partners, cuddled with their siblings, politely talked to the two newest faces - Sorry Harry, not working - laughed, ate and celebrated. Apart from the strangers, this was her family, she loved them and would die to protect them. That she felt an emptiness in her life, wasn't their fault. It was her failure. Miles of distance indeed, hoping that a change of scenery would shift her mindset; she hated above all, to feel such a dark mood.

-oOo-

In the end, only their inner circle remained behind. Harry and Ginny - while James and Albus slept in Ginny's old room; Ron with his Susan, whom he couldn't stop pampering, and the couple, Arthur and Molly.

"Hermione, spill the beans, what are you going to do?" Harry's curiosity could take that much.

"A cruise. Ninety-nine days at sea aboard the Arcadia doing thirty-one destinations in twenty-three countries. P&O is offering a cruise around the world, and I'm going to indulge myself."

"If you get bored…" Ginny couldn't see herself jailed inside of a floating object, surrounded by water at every side. The choice of length and what it meant as a whole, didn't sound completely strange, knowing that Hermione was choking in the way she lived her life.

"I'll go off-board and take the next plane back to the UK." She set the leaflets on the table, "Aside from Europe, they are docking at nearly every continent. I'll see a piece of the world, and force my mind to breathe some new air."

"Where does it leave from?" Molly couldn't hide her concern, neither could Arthur.

"Southampton, in two days." Hermione had expected more counter-arguments, "It will be among Muggles, not that it worries me." She took a new sip tea, "I went over-budget for this also, I booked a suite with a butler and everything."

"Aren't you against House-elves?"

"Butlers are paid, Ron. I want to be pampered, this one time in my life."

Harry asked curiously, "How much did it cost?"

"Nineteen thousand Galleons plus a few sickles and some knuts; in British pounds, a total of fifty-seven thousand pounds, almost fifty-eight."

"Hello, that's quite an amount." He chuckled, hands in the air, "It's your money, your decision, Hermione. No judgement from me, sweetheart. But if my girl here ever wants to do the same, we'll choose a different class before we go bankrupt."

"I'm single and have an excellent job. Have no reason to save, and even with it paid, I still have enough for a comfortable life, if I keep up with a decent lifestyle. This is the one-time experience, and I want to go full-option."

"You'll be pampered as if you were a Malfoy." Ginny needed to have a talk with her husband, no way she would be sent out in the sea… she wasn't that good a swimmer.

"Why the hell not? I need this."

"We'll take you there…" Harry checked with Ginny for rejection but was happy to see none.

"Yes, Ron and I will come too, you need someone to wave you off with a handkerchief." Susan looked dreamy at the leaflet, and Ron felt it in his gut that this would be a trip she would love to do later. He only would negotiate about the duration. "Ron, look! It's just like that tinanic from Hermione's movie."

"The Titanic, Susan." Hermione laughed softly, remembering that Susan had seen the movie twice at her place by now. "I don't expect to find my Leo Dicaprio on board."

"You never know, sister. You could relive your Rose and Jack story…" Susan wished for a romantic ending. It would put Ron finally at ease, ending his concern about Hermione once and for all. Hermione was no threat, only that one family member everyone cared and worried about. If I light a candle, will it help? She was a half-blood witch who often used the Muggle prayers for her personal relief.

"The Titanic movie was full of Hollywood's hocus-pocus, Susan. I'm no fairytale princess."

-oOo-

*Draco*

"Draco, I'm ending our engagement as per immediately."

"Oh, is that so, Astoria? Don't you need my vaults anymore to satisfy your every desire?" His snappy comment came, foremostly, from his inability to be friendly to the witch, and less because he felt offended for being ditched.

"The Royal Prince of Abu-Dhabi has proposed to me, offering me much more than you ever did." Her nose in the air, hoping to find the stab to hurt Draco. He didn't react the way she expected, not that she was willing to change her mind. Being a princess from a Middle-East country sounded so much better than being Mrs. Malfoy…

"Do tell, Astoria. What does the man have, that I don't?" Give her the last pleasure, before he could celebrate his new gained status.

"A palace? Probably bigger vaults than you, and you know what else, Malfoy? A bigger dick."

"Nice to know that you cheated on me… you sampled the goods before making up your mind."

"He has made love to me with more passion that you in the earlier days."

"Wait until he finds out what a pain-in-the-arse you are. Fucking an iceberg requires quite an amount of energy." Time to end her glory, "I find it lately a burden, only using your cunt to achieve my pleasure for lack of a better offer. I was planning on knocking you up with my heir after our wedding ceremony before I would seek real satisfaction with another witch. Don't pretend to be surprised, honey. It makes your face wrinkle."

"Fuck you, Malfoy."

"Give the ring back, bitch. You're polluting the air I breathe." He caught it likes a good old snitch before it could damage his face. Her anger made the issue much more enjoyable.

"Our honeymoon, remember? The cruise around the world that cost nearly forty thousand Galleons? It's non-refundable." It seemed to be the last stab she could deliver, a fact he was going to check himself. The stupid trip was her idea, and he went along before she could go complain to his mother over the lack of enthusiasm. Oh hell, not my biggest concern.

"If that's the case, don't worry. I'll use it to fuck every bird and then some and erase my mind of our sex sessions. My cock needs a decent workout, inside of a wet quim. Yours lacks lubrication, nowadays." Her eyes flashed in anger, furious for not being able to get him undone.

Not, when becoming single again sounded like a blessing instead of a curse - that is, after his mother learned about the cancelled event. He should send an owl instead of visiting her and delivering the good news personally. He bet, however, that his mother's frustration would be more significant for having to cancel the celebration of the year, and less from him losing his fiancée. His mother stopped being a big Astoria fan, after a few nasty encounters.

His wide grin after she left with an un-elegant huff, spoke volumes.

-oOo-

The next round of drinks was one of his, the third of the night. But hell, he was still celebrating his new status as an unwed wizard. His mother's rage was more directed at the blond witch, for all the insults at the Malfoy heir, and as expected, the amount of annoying work she was foreseeing: cancelling the guests and the rest.

"Is it true? About the cruise?" Blaise raised his tumbler.

"I'm not sad…" The golden liquid twirled around his glass, "I mean, I'll be surrounded by water, inside this massive thing Muggles call a boat; yes that's going to be slightly annoying. On the other hand, the bloke from the travel agency assured me, those ships are full of rich old slags, looking for a young stallion to satisfy their need for a good shag. I'm taking all the sex I can have, to make up for the dry sessions with As-fucking-toria."

"Rich old slags?"

"Yes, the guy told me literally: women close to their expiry date who are wealthy and absolutely not looking for a side piece, only to fool around as long as the cruise goes. Easy sex, mate. Easy cunts to use minus the danger of getting a witch knocked up or being tricked into marriage. Perfect for me. Freedom at last!" He sipped anew, "There are things Muggles do better than we do, brother. When one of those old witches become widows, they mourn and cry rivers in your ears. The Muggles go party and fuck around, left and right…"

"Liberating, I should join you."

"No Zab's, do your own thing. I want to be absolutely anonymous on board. No one is supposed to know Draco Malfoy is travelling. I might use Drake as a name instead."

"Drake Malone."

"I dig it!" Tumblers clinked. "Drake Malone it is."

-oOo-

*Southampton*

Not much impressed Draco Malfoy nowadays, but he had to admit, the sight of the ship in front of him did demand respect. Next to it, he felt inconsequential, the mastodon of a boat with its eleven decks above water.

Previously, he pulled a Hermione Granger and read the leaflet from head to toe, surprised about its technical specifications, as the muggles called it. He honestly never came across a wizarding description of something so detailed as this ship was. The fact that it could support more than two-thousand guests and eight hundred crew members was as remarkable as comprehending that the whole vessel weighted above eighty-one thousand tons and didn't sink.

Blaise and Pansy were drooling next to him, if possible, they would go aboard in a jiffy. Draco didn't mind the impossibility: one, he wanted some peace of mind, he had had enough of female nagging to last for ages; plus he wanted to score as many pussies as possible without his best friend keeping score - he even practised the use of those rubber cock-jackets, following the advice of travel agent to use protection. He trusted magic enough to keep him healthy, but forewarned is forearmed. Two, he didn't mind a new experience in life next to anonymity. No judgement coming from his last name, no pointing fingers and side looks.

In the worst case scenario, he would search for the nearest Wizarding community and arrange a port-key back home. He was Draco Malfoy, not Ronald I-need-Granger Weasley, for Salazar's sake.

-oOo-

A butler dressed to the nines welcomed him aboard this majestic ship called Arcadia. Draco frowned at the countless times the man bowed before showing him his suite, The Rio de Janeiro Suite, according to its golden placket. He could order room service at will, all included in the price, announced said butler, the ship offered every type of fitness classes he desired, if anything were not to his full desire, only a word and Mr. I-dont-know-who would take care of it in a second, and all the extra blah blah blah.

The accommodation was to his taste, indeed. Small to the Malfoy standards - but this wasn't a Manor after all, although, the sight the double window offered of the open sea satisfied him, and they weren't even navigating yet.

The bed looked welcoming and comfortable, the bathroom - again small compared to the manor's - had a luxury bathtub and a separate shower to accommodate his cravings.

Draco saw it all before him. He would enjoy the sun rays on the inviting lounger, with a nice beverage at his side; join dinner and seek out the flavour of the night; fuck her senseless and send her back to her room to avoid attachments.

The man kept talking in vain while setting his trunk inside the room and describing what all the buttons were for. It the man spoke in a very childish way, one-time explanation sufficed to Draco to understand all switches worked. The little closet the man opened with beverages inside, was new to him; well, he would figure it out. He had ninety-nine days to such end, why worry?

It came silent, the butler was apparently waiting for a reaction, "Mr. Malfoy, is everything to your taste?"

"For the moment, yes, thank you Mr.?"

"Mr. Perkins, sir." A polite smile followed the discreetly raised hand.

"Thank you Mr. Prikens. That will be all." The man turned around baffled at the lack of tip. A late hunch tipped Draco off, and he held the butler to offer him a bill of twenty pounds. British currency felt to him like play money, and he honestly had no idea if it was adjusted.

Sometimes he thought having Granger at his side would be a good idea, freeing her mouth just long enough for him to have his answer of course.

-oOo-

*Hermione*

Harry parked his Range Rover between all the Bentleys and Jaguars on display. Next to him, a couple of elders argued about the amount of bags the missus needed for a three-month stay, "They have a laundry service on board, Rosemary."

"I can't be seen with the same outfit twice, Gerard, Madeline will be watching. Imagine what she would say." How elegant could someone huff, wondered Harry? "Now carry these and keep your snatch zipped, darling." The woman sounded worse than aunt Petunia.

"Harry, stop throwing shade." Hermione followed the dispute mockingly, hoping to be spared from discovering more about this Madeline-woman. She was about to take her bag from the trunk, but Harry shook his head, taking the honours. Ginny said not a word, much like Susan, both women taking in the sight of the ship and mentally adding a cruise to their bucket list.

"It's so much more impressive than on the picture, Hermione " Susan spoke with reverence, "Ron, for my birthday, and my Christmas and the next Mothers-day…"

"Honey, the baby…"

"A short cruise, when the baby is old enough. Ron, look at the decks…" She was in awe. "Just like the Tinanic."

Ron glanced at Hermione thanks, sweetheart! The brunette shrugging off innocently. The party of five reached the desk for the suites, prompt attended by a butler who introduced himself, "Pleasure, Mrs. Granger. I'm your butler Mr. Perkins, and I'll be at your service for the entire journey."

"Likewise, Mr. Perkins. But it's Miss Granger, though you can call me Hermione."

"Of course, Miss Granger. I'm at your disposal twenty-four hours if you require anything or wish to book any excursions. You can call for my services from within your suite." The man didn't know how much to schmooze, hoping for a bigger tip than the twenty quids of the cheapskate from earlier.

"Mr. Perkins, could my friends accompany me to my room, just to have a look? My brother," pointing at Harry, Ron was hard to turn into a sibling with his red hair, "and my sister in law would love to see the suite."

It went against the rules, but when someone paid quite an amount and still had to tip you, there was so much he was willing to refuse, "Of course, but the captain does want to launch on time."

"It won't take long, Mr. Perkins. I'm very thankful." She followed him, with her company in tow. Harry mumbled, "Are you going to make our wives more nuts about a cruise? The outside is doing already its job. Showing off your sleeping quarters is only going to make my end totally heavier."

"Harry, your salary at the Ministry can cover one of these for a smaller journey. Not all trips take three months, you have shorter one of five days or less…"

"You always know an answer, don't you?" He chuckled while admiring the interior of the boat with all its gold, crystal lights and marble floors. Harry had to step aside to allow a wrinkled woman passage, wobbling dangerously on thin high heels.

Ginny murmured, "It seems that one hit her expiry date a while ago." He kissed her with a twinkle in his eyes.

The butler opened the doors to the Rome suite and heard a general gasp from the female attendance. Every time the same reaction. This time, his guest listened to every word he said, paying attention to every detail - so much different than the pale vulture next door - and asking the right questions. He knew the sight of this and next doors suite was the best the ship could offer and he made sure this lady knew it. At the end of his speech, he didn't need to hint for a tip, his guest already offering him hundred pounds for his delivered services. I know who to serve first.

The spacious suite with its queen-sized bed, whirlpool bath and separate shower was the high-water mark of luxury. Just like the Rio de Janeiro Suite, it offered a television with DVD player, a mini-stereo device, a safe and floor-to-ceiling windows that served as doors to the balcony with its lounger, comfortable chairs and table. Basically, a guest in this suite could remain the entire stay inside his room unless he desired a swim or any other form of entertainment. Privacy guaranteed.

Thankfully, Harry and the rest understood why the man remained at the entrance, and after checking the entire room and testing the bouncing quality of the mattress, the group said their goodbyes and left.

Hermione breathed deep. She put everything away as desired, securing her wand in a secret pocket of her dress and snuggled comfortably in the lounger, waiting for the nearly inaudible sound of the engines to announce their departure.

A new beginning. In peace.


I did a thing during NaNoWriMo Nov 2018, it's not yet complete but it counts already 52,2k words and I'm not even halfway. None of my other stories is abandoned, but it has been a difficult month for me and writing for 99 days gave me a much-needed escape from reality. So don't worry, I'm finding again my peace.

The ship Arcadia exists, this amazing journey is one you can still join - departure is Jan 2019 (if you got the money - see P&O ferries - btw I have no affiliations with them). All the places including their activities are real, though some aspects might have been tweaked to fit the storyline. If I made a critical mistake, I always appreciate constructive criticism.

Plus your reviews makes me all fuzzy and forces me to write more...