Hi All!

This story is about 36,000 words total and a new chapter should be posted every few days. I will be doing final checks to the chapter before I post each one, but do let me know if you notice any grammar/punctuation errors and I will go back and fix them up.

A few warnings: cheating/assault (not between HG/D), false accusations, dark magic use, steamy scenes, AU (one AU bit being - let's just pretend there was a pretty bit of magic which ensured no-one died in the final battle): I tend to gloss over details, but the issues are mentioned. Also, as people who have read my other stories will know, Ron is not a favourite of mine and can be portrayed as greatly less honourable: that's all I'm saying without giving too much away. This is a Draco/Hermione story, so the majority will focus on them. Also, this is not a Harry/Ginny story.

Hmm... what else, I suppose that is pretty much it. I hope you enjoy this story, the mystery and the HG/DM interactions.

So, onward with the story! Hurrah!

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter etc etc. Please don't sue me!

Please review and let me know what you think!

Hermione stood in front of the bright kitchen's fridge, staring at the food unseeingly and wringing her hands as she mentally went through her list.

'You'll do great,' came the voice of her husband from behind her. He wrapped his toned arms around her and squeezed her tightly. A sweet kiss lightly brushed her cheek.

Hermione melted into his warm arms as she continued to squish her fingers. 'It will be very different from France, I won't know all St Mungo's preferred protocols or—'

'You will be brilliant, I know it,' he replied with conviction.

Hermione blew out a rush of air and smiled, craning her neck so her lips captured his.

She counted her blessings as she kissed him, thanking destiny again for crossing her path with Draco's in France two years ago. Her fate colliding with Draco's, was the best thing that had happened to her since she received her letter from Hogwarts at the tender age of eleven. And a definite improvement on the prior few years.

She had moved to France after a period of, as she termed it, misfortune.

When she had travelled to Australia with the intention of restoring her parents' memories and begging their forgiveness, she was devastated to learn that they had died from a drop bear attack: blaming herself for sending them to the dangerous land on the opposite side of the globe and not changing their accents, she had quickly returned to England with red-eyes and a fragile heart.

Upon arriving at the Burrow to tell the Weasleys, Harry, and her boyfriend, Ronald, what had happened, she was confronted with the image of Ronald and Lavender on the lounge floor, entwined and naked, in the throes of awkward intercourse. Ron had insisted it was a misunderstanding and a mistake; she, of course, didn't believe him and dumped the naked man immediately. The slow fumbling sex she had witnessed was clearly not a misunderstanding: although Lavender had probably considered it a mistake as she tried repeatedly to correct his position. Hermione had then left the Burrow, intending to return around supper time when others were likely to also be around: she may have broken up with Ronald, but the rest were like family and she didn't want to lose them too.

When she arrived back at the Burrow that evening, she was surprised that she had apparated onto the edge of the property. Unable to enter through the wards, she had cast her patronus to alert the others to her arrival and current predicament of being stuck outside the wards.

Molly, Arthur, Ronald, Harry and Percy had strode out (the rest now living elsewhere) and told her she was horrid for crushing Ronald's heart for no reason and she would regret treating him so poorly. Hermione had tried to explain the error, but they refused to listen: Molly shouting over her that she was no longer considered a member of the family and they never wanted her to contact them again. She had stayed in The Leaky Cauldron for a month, sending letters to them all, trying to explain, but her letters returned as confetti and the Burrow wards were never re-altered.

Fortunately, the whole family had not abandoned her. Unfortunately, none of those people willing to listen, lived within easy reach. Ginny, who thought it was about time she dumped her brother as they were clearly poorly matched, was finishing her final year at Hogwarts. George and Fred, who were overseas hunting for rare ingredients to experiment with, had responded that Ron was a twerp and she was well rid of him. Charlie, at the Dragon reserve in Romania, said Molly had decreed that the family cut all contact with her; he said his mother was clearly being irrational and that she was welcome to visit anytime. Bill, in Paris with Fleur, had suggested she move to France and get a fresh start.

She had taken Bill's advice with some trepidation and some relief.

Bill and Fleur helped her to find a place to live, perfect her grasp of the lilting language, and encouraged her to apply for a two year healer training program.

She keep in touch with all of them, except Ginny; the younger girl having stopped replying to her letters after two years.

Draco leaned away from the kiss and sat her at the table, placing a steaming black coffee and plate of food before her.

Hermione breathed in the smell of her favourite breakfast. 'Thank you, love.'

'My pleasure. Now, I had better be off to the British Ministry before I'm officially late. Good luck today. I love you!'

'I love you too!'

With a parting kiss, Draco stepped into green flames and disappeared.

Hermione sighed and began to eat in the hopes that it would halt the feeling of scrambling newts in her stomach.

She prided herself on being an excellent healer, so the thought of clambering to learn protocols, procedures and the English words for different medications and materials was one she would have happily done without. Unfortunately, it was preferable to leaving her husband for three months and twiddling her thumbs in their temporary apartment for the duration of the transfer.

Stupid moronic French and British Ministries, she thought.

The British and French Ministries had been trying to strengthen their relationship since the war. The result was sending their employees on temporary transfers between the ministries to 'share knowledge' and 'forge professional relationships'.

Draco had dodged transferring to England for as long as he could, explaining to the French Minister that it was more likely people would take exception if he showed up in Britain, resulting in worse relations, rather than the desired betterment. The French Minister had waved away his concerns, saying that, as Draco was the second-in-charge in the Département des Mystères [[translation = Department of Mysteries]], he needed to agree to a transfer of three months.

The couple were unable to support the idea of being away from each other for so long, so Draco had agreed on the provision that a matching transfer was also arranged for Hermione. The French Minister quickly secured her a position in St Mungo's, to Draco's unsurprised dismay, and gave them one week to pack and prepare for the three month move.

Today was to be their first day of work in England, and, in Hermione's mind, the start of the three month countdown.

Swallowing the last of her rich coffee, Hermione tidied up with a wave of her wand. She smoothed her clothes and, after checking her appearance in the mirror, flooed to St Mungo's entrance.

A/N: Hope you enjoyed Hermione and Draco's interactions! If you see any Oxford English punctuation/grammar corrections, please PM me so I can fix them up. Otherwise, reviews and favouriting make me ever so happy :D