Draco was already in the dining room when Hermione came down to breakfast. He smiled at her as she joined him at the table but Hermione was certain it was as fake as the one she returned.

'Morning, sleepyhead. You really were tired, weren't you? Did you forget you were abandoning me for that blighted hell-hole, the Ministry of Magic, today?'

Hermione picked up a slice of toast and began to butter it as Draco poured her a cup of tea.

'No, I didn't forget, but I did forget to mention that Harry gave me permission to return to work on Monday rather than today.'

Hermione bit her bottom lip anxiously as she awaited Draco's response, not entirely sure what it was going to be. Her heart beat faster as he stared at her, an expression of delight crossing his face at the news, but it soon faded to be replaced by concern.

'But don't you need to go in to sort things out in your department?' he asked, sounding a little confused. 'You're the boss now, aren't you, and after yesterday there must be loads of things that need sorting out.'

Hermione shook her head. 'I'm still officially working for the EPT until Monday, then I take over Sylvia's role — they'll be suspending her on Monday morning as she doesn't work weekends, and I think she was going away to spend time with her family over the holidays so they probably can't get hold of her, anyway. That's why Harry said I could stay here — if you don't mind me staying on. I can always start work on packing up the items that need to be shipped out if you want me to earn my keep.'

'Of course I'm happy for you to stay — the longer the better as far as I'm concerned,' Draco told her, but his less than enthusiastic tone belied his words and Hermione's heart sank a little.

They ate in silence and Hermione could feel the tension rising between them. She felt she needed to say something before Draco walked out on her, leaving her unsure of whether he really did want her to stay or not, but before she had a chance he rose and headed for the door.

Given no choice, Hermione jumped up and went after him, catching up with him in the entrance hall. He looked surprised as she called his name, trying to get him to stop.

'Look, Draco, if you'd rather I left I can go this morning as originally arranged,' Hermione told him despondently.

'No — no, stay. I want you to stay,' Draco insisted.

Hermione surveyed him carefully. 'Are you sure? You don't seem like you want me to stay. I know you're saying it but your manner says the opposite, and I really don't want to outstay my welcome.'

Draco was silent for a few long seconds, then he told her quietly, 'I really want you to stay, Hermione.' He paused for a moment, then admitted, 'But the longer you stay the harder it is to let you go.'

Hermione stared at him in astonishment, her heart banging like a drum at his words.

'I don't want to go,' she told him honestly. 'I want to stay with you.'

'What?' Draco seemed completely stunned by her response.

Hermione closed her eyes for a second, took a deep breath and admitted, 'I want to stay here with you. I don't really care about the job, not at the moment. I just want to be with you.'

Draco moved towards her, close enough that they could touch.

'Do you know what you're saying?' he asked.

Hermione nodded. 'I'm in love with you.'

'Please, Hermione, you can't say things like that — it's not fair.' Draco sounded upset.

Hermione moved the final step between them.

'I love you, Draco Malfoy,' she told him.

Then she kissed him.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then Draco wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly as he returned the kiss. As they broke apart Hermione saw that his eyes were full of tears.

'Hermione.'

He pulled her close and kissed her again, making Hermione feel light-headed and dizzy, and a bubbly champagne feeling inside her threatened to erupt.

'Oh gods, I am so in love with you,' Draco told her.

Hermione had no idea what was happening between them but she was enjoying the kisses and wasn't inclined to stop, especially if Draco was admitting to being in love with her, too. They kissed again and then Draco held her tightly, squeezing her for a few heartbeats before releasing her.

'You've done it! Thank you so much, my love,' Draco said, grabbing her hands. The tears Hermione had seen in his eyes had been released and ran down his cheeks as he beamed happily at her.

Hermione was confused. She had no idea what she had done although she got the impression that whatever it was it was a good thing. Draco seemed to recognise that she had no clue what was going on and laughed through his tears.

'Look around,' he announced.

Hermione gave him a sideways glance, wondering if she had pushed him over the edge and he had finally lost his sanity. Still holding her hand, Draco lifted his own to indicate around the room. She looked, her breath catching as she understood what Draco was showing her. The once dilapidated room was now immaculate, looking as if it had been freshly decorated. As she stared around she wondered if the whole house had changed, trying to work out what had happened.

Draco was pulling her towards the drawing room so Hermione followed him, eager to see if the signs of decay were gone from one of her favourite rooms. Sure enough, the place was pristine, the colours of the room so much brighter than she ever remembered them. It was almost as if she was in a different house.

Draco pulled her down to sit on the sofa, a fervid gleam in his eye now.

'I don't understand,' Hermione told him.

'You did it,' Draco told her jubilantly. 'You broke the curse.'

Hermione stared at him not sure she had heard him correctly.

'When you say curse . . . ?'

'I mean that my father didn't just bequeath me his fortune before he went to Azkaban,' Draco explained sourly. 'He was furious that the Ministry of Magic were trying to force him to pay compensation and he was determined it wasn't going to happen. But the only way he could do that was to pass it all to me. There was no point in giving it to Mother, she was already seriously ill and we knew she wasn't going to last much longer.

'Unfortunately, my conduct during the war led my father to conclude that I was a blood traitor so he really didn't want me to end up as the beneficiary of the Malfoy estate. But, of course, he had no choice, me being the only heir and the only remaining living relative apart from my mother. So, he transferred everything to me but he also placed a curse upon me, one that gave him revenge for what he thought of as my treachery.'

Hermione thought of Draco living all alone in a slowly decaying house for the last decade and suddenly she knew what Lucius had done to his son.

'The curse was an old one, simple but extremely effective. I would get everything — the house, the grounds, all the wealth that belonged to the Malfoy family — but I would also be trapped on the Malfoy estate, unable to leave or tell anyone what had happened to me, appearing to everyone to be some reclusive coward until I was freed by my true love's kiss like some bloody fairy tale.'

Draco sounded bitter as he continued. 'Of course, being my father, he didn't leave it at that. No, of course not. We couldn't have just any old true love, no. It had to be a Muggle or a Muggle-born — to punish me for my so-called blood traitor tendencies.

'Then, as if he hadn't already completely fucked up my life, he dug in the knife and twisted it some more. The estate would begin to decay, year after year, and I would be able to do nothing to rectify it. Spending money wouldn't work, as it was part of the curse. The only thing that could reverse the effect was — yep, you've guessed it — true love. That magical kiss would solve everything.'

'As you can imagine, I was not overly optimistic about my chances. The Malfoy family name was at its nadir and no one wanted to know me, not even the purebloods, so what chance did I ever have of attracting a Muggle-born, particularly after the way I had always treated the ones I knew at school? I already knew a Muggle was completely out of the question as the concealment charms make us invisible to them; it's been years since one has come any closer to the property than that public footpath outside.

'Meanwhile, my mother was fading fast and there was nothing I could do to help her except try to make her final days as comfortable as possible. Once she died I was so depressed by the whole situation that I locked down the manor almost completely. I didn't want to see anyone; didn't know how or have the energy to break the curse my father had placed upon me. And I'll be honest, I felt incredibly sorry for myself.'

'Unable to leave the estate, I couldn't keep control of the finances as I was unable to visit the business investments and the Goblins at Gringotts do not like to travel nor are they happy to do business via owl. I half-suspected that my father had put some sort of curse on that part of my life, too. Nothing I tried was profitable and the money steadily drained away, disappearing faster and faster as the years went on until there was nothing left but an almost empty vault.

'Which was when the Ministry won their bloody Wizengamot case and suddenly I found myself having to provide money that I no longer had to pay for the father who had completely shafted me. Perhaps you can understand now why I wasn't awfully keen to acknowledge the debt.'

Hermione, who had been listening in growing horror and disbelief to Draco's tale, said, 'I can't believe your father did that to you. I know he was supposed to be "evil" and didn't like Muggle-borns, but what he did to you, his own flesh and blood — that's absolutely horrific.'

Draco, who was wiping his eyes to remove the last few tears that were still trailing down his face, gave a snort of derision.

'You obviously missed what I said the other day about the Malfoy family being single-minded in everything they do and how they'll use any means available to them, regardless of how terrible it is, to achieve their ends, Hermione. Don't you remember the earlier Lucius Malfoy who hexed the Queen of England because she wouldn't marry him?'

'I thought that was just one of those stories handed down through generations that only had a hint of truth in it and had been aggrandised to make it more interesting,' Hermione admitted.

Draco snorted again. 'Not in our family. Every nasty thing we're ever reputed to have done is true. In fact, if anything it's probably been underplayed to make us sound nicer than we actually were. Once I had been stuck here for a few years I finally came to the conclusion that my father had probably done a good thing — without meaning to, of course. If I died, alone here, then there wouldn't be any further Malfoys to wreak havoc on the world.'

'But you're not like that,' Hermione insisted. 'I know you were a bit of an idiot at school because you idolised your father, but when it really counted you didn't take the easy path, the path he expected you to take. You knew what they wanted you to do was wrong and you defied them. That's why he punished you — for doing the right thing. So don't you dare tell me the world is better off without you, Draco Malfoy because that's that complete and utter rubbish.'

'I think you must be seeing me through rose-tinted spectacles, Hermione. I was a bit more than an idiot — I was a bloody Death Eater, for Merlin's sake.'

'Not really. I know you took the Dark Mark but I don't believe your heart was ever really in it, was it? Harry told me what happened with Professor Dumbledore, how you were about to let him go and I saw for myself how you tried to help us, in the only way you could, when we were trapped here with your father and your aunt. You refused to identify us when everyone knew that you knew who we were.

'But then your mother was the same, wasn't she? She helped Harry when he needed it most and it could have got her killed. If it wasn't for her he might never have been able to defeat Voldemort. I think you take after your mother far more than your father. Just because you look like him doesn't mean you are him, and I wouldn't have fallen in love with you if you were like him. He's a horrible man who's exactly where he deserves to be, especially for what he did to you,' Hermione retorted, annoyed now.

Draco stared at her, shaking his head as if in disbelief. 'I really can't believe you've fallen in love with me, Hermione. I've no idea how I got that lucky . . . but it must be true because the curse has broken.'

'Why should me being in love with you be any more surprising than you being in love with me? I assume you didn't just say that because I'm Muggle-born and you were hoping it would break the curse,' Hermione demanded.

Draco wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him, kissing her gently on the lips.

'Of course not. That wouldn't have worked, anyway. The spell would only break if we were both truly in love — and to answer your other question, you're far easier to love than I am. You've always had that innate goodness about you, a willingness to fight injustice and give people the benefit of the doubt.

'Look at the way you came here, even after what happened with my aunt, and you were willing to work with me to find a way to pay the debt despite all the nasty things I did and said to you at school. You didn't have to do that. You could have acted the same way your boss did, but instead, you came here and helped me.

'When your boss stepped in and took over, what did you do? You came back and stayed to fight even though you knew you might lose your job in the process. You even tried to protect me by risking your own life. How could I not fall in love with you after all that?

'—especially when I think I was already a bit in love with you from school, anyway — not that I would ever have admitted that at the time.'

'Why do you think I came back?' Hermione said. 'It was because I was in love with you. I wasn't lying when I said I wanted to spend Christmas with you — there was nothing I wanted more. I was actually supposed to be going to the Burrow, but I said I wasn't doing anything because I didn't want you to send me away out of some stupid sense of duty.'

'I am so glad you came back,' Draco admitted, 'and not just because of the curse, either.'

'Now I understand why your house-elf didn't want me to leave the first time I came here,' Hermione said.

Draco looked confused.

'I had a feeling you didn't know about that, although I couldn't work out how it could beg me to stay when you had told me to leave, and in no uncertain terms, too. I know house-elves have a problem going against the direct orders of their masters, especially ones that have been indentured as long as yours have. Normally, it should have been attempting to punish itself for what it was saying, but it wasn't.

'Now I understand that it wanted me to stay because it thought I could break the curse and that was what you wanted, too, although you couldn't say anything — and you were still rightly annoyed with me and weren't ready to forgive me. But the one thing I don't understand is why your mother's room was still perfect. There wasn't any sign of decay in there.'

'That was my mother,' Draco said quietly. 'She heard the curse my father put on me and she was determined it wasn't going to affect her rooms. Knowing that my father was working towards leaving me destitute, she was determined to preserve her share of the wealth so that if I ever managed to break the curse there would be something left for me to inherit.

'She put a strong counter-charm on the rooms that meant they would stay untouched by my father's curse as long as no one but her went in there. That's why I made it off-limits — I knew that if you went in there the spell would be broken and it would start to decay in the same way as the rest of the house and the treasures within would begin to disappear like the gold in the Gringott's vault.'

'But then I ignored you and went in there anyway and broke the protection charm. No wonder you were so angry with me. I'm so sorry, Draco,' Hermione said in dismay.

'I was really furious with you at the time, but then I realised that nothing I could have done would have stopped you going in there sooner or later. You would have insisted on it so you could tell the Ministry of Magic that you'd done your job properly.'

'But why did you take me in there again?' Hermione asked.

Draco shrugged. 'The protection charm was broken by that time so there wasn't anything to lose. I wanted to see it again, too, wanted to feel my mother at a time when I was feeling so despondent, was convinced the curse was never going to end, and I had just lost the one thing that was keeping me going. I hadn't been in the rooms since before her death and had forgotten how beautiful it was in there. But I could already see the first signs of deterioration, even that quickly. It was heartbreaking.'

'That was why you were so upset,' Hermione said, understanding now, and she rubbed Draco's arm soothingly. 'I didn't see any deterioration, though.'

Draco sighed. 'It was there, just beginning to show. I rushed you out before you noticed it. I couldn't risk you questioning me about it because you knew the place had been immaculate the first time you entered and it had only been a few hours. I couldn't explain to you about that any more than I could tell you anything else about the curse.'

'So will it have been reversed there, like the rest of the house?' Hermione asked anxiously.

'I assume so.'

'Do you want to go and check?' Hermione suggested.

Draco shook his head. 'No. I want to kiss you again. There hasn't been enough kissing so far, and I've imagined kissing you so many times that I feel I'm missing out.'

'Yes, please,' Hermione whispered happily as she pulled him to her.

Hermione lay on the sofa, stretched out with her head in Draco's lap, her eyes closed as he stroked her hair. They had recently finished dinner and were relaxing with a glass of port, enjoying the peace and quiet of the evening. Ever since they had admitted their love for each other the couple had been almost inseparable, not wanting to be apart for more than a few minutes.

Unfortunately, Hermione knew it couldn't last. Since the ending of Lucius' curse Draco seemed to think everything had changed, and although he hadn't said anything to her directly she was sure that he thought her comment about wanting to stay with him meant she intended to do so regardless of her job.

But the weekend was almost over and she was going to have to return to work tomorrow whether she wanted to or not. Despite telling Draco she didn't care about her job, Hermione knew that wasn't entirely true. If nothing else, her sense of duty meant she had to return so she could make sure her colleagues were okay, and she had to give her statement about the raid on Malfoy Manor and all the other things Sylvia had done.

Maybe she wouldn't take on the role Kingsley had suggested, and maybe she would be able to return to Malfoy Manor within a few weeks if she decided to hand in her notice, but she was definitely going to have to leave tomorrow and she wasn't sure how to break it to Draco without upsetting him.

'Would you like another drink?' he asked, looking down at her.

Hermione, who had opened her eyes, shook her head and gave a small sigh. 'No, thanks. I really need to keep a clear head. That port is quite heavy. It'll give me a headache if I drink too much of it.'

'I can always get a house-elf to bring us something else,' he suggested.

'No, I'll be fine. I might have a hot chocolate later.'

'With brandy?' Draco smiled.

Hermione smiled back at him. 'Maybe, if I'm going to bed straight afterwards.'

'I'm up for an early night if you are,' Draco proposed, his tone lascivious as he gave her a cheeky wink.

'I could probably be persuaded,' Hermione admitted.

Draco leant down to kiss her. 'In that case—'

He kissed her again, moving them so they were now both laying on the sofa.

'I was thinking about tomorrow,' he said once their snogging session had concluded, at least for the moment.

'It's Monday,' Hermione said helpfully.

Draco rolled his eyes. 'Yes, I know that, clever clogs. What I meant was I was thinking about what we're going to do tomorrow.'

Hermione stiffened a little, knowing she should tell him about work before Draco suggested something she would much rather do than go to the Ministry of Magic. But lying there enjoying his arms around her and the wonderful kisses, she was having trouble speaking.

'I was thinking it might be time for me to leave Malfoy Manor,' Draco said. 'After all, I've been here for over ten years — a change of scenery might be nice for once. To be honest, it's actually a bit scary, the thought of going outside, but with you with me, Hermione, I should be okay.'

Hermione felt her heart constrict as she thought of having to dash his hopes. She was fairly certain that Draco wouldn't want his first excursion into the outside world to be to the imposing halls of the Ministry of Magic, even if they were lighter and more inclusive with Kingsley at the helm than they had been under previous regimes.

'Draco, I—'

Draco kissed her, then said, 'I know you're worried about me, Hermione, but I'm sure I'll be fine. I'm not really talking about immersing myself in a place crowded with hundreds of wizards, like Diagon Alley. I was thinking of starting with something a little less traumatic. I seem to recall you inviting me for dinner at your flat. I thought we could start with that, maybe after you finish work tomorrow evening, and then perhaps we could go for a walk after dinner?'

'You remembered I have to work tomorrow,' Hermione said, sounding relieved. 'I thought maybe—'

'—I thought you wouldn't go back because you prefer me to your job,' Draco finished. He chuckled. 'While I can understand why you might want to spend all your time with me — because I am an impressive specimen of a man — I realise you have work to do, particularly with the investigation about to start, so I can't commandeer all your time, as much as I'd be happy to. Anyway, what would poor Daphne do without you there to look after her?'

'I was thinking of turning down the supervisor post,' Hermione admitted.

Draco looked nonplussed. 'Why would you do that? I thought you were going to use the time to decide whether or not you wanted to apply for it permanently.'

'I was, but maybe I'll have better things to do. Perhaps I don't need to work at the Ministry of Magic any longer,' Hermione told him.

'What do you want to do instead?' Draco asked interestedly.

Hermione shrugged and said, 'I don't know. But if you're going to be joining the world again you might have plans that make working there difficult for me.'

'Not in the short term. It's going to take me a while to get back into the swing of things, so you've got plenty of time to try out being boss to see if it suits you. I know you were fed up with the place but it'll be completely different now that Sylvia's gone.'

'I suppose you're right,' Hermione agreed, a touch reluctantly.

Draco grinned and gave her a big squeeze. 'Anyway, I've got a far more selfish reason for keeping you working. I want to make sure my case is properly dealt with. No disrespect, Hermione, but I don't trust any of those Ministry bods to handle it correctly without you there to check up on them. What if they give my case to Daphne or something?'

Hermione chuckled. 'Okay, you've convinced me. It's back to the grindstone tomorrow for me.'

'There is another reason I want you to go back,' Draco said, his voice more serious now. 'You might not be spiteful . . . but I am. I want to make sure your boss gets everything she deserves, and you need to be there to make sure that happens. For what she did to me, if not for yourself.'

Hermione kissed him. 'You don't have to worry about that. Everyone I know will be working to sort her out. Harry was so angry about what she did to you that he's pushing to have her prosecuted. If that happens she might well end up in Azkaban.'

'Perhaps she'll be housed near my father and the two of them can bitch together about how much they despise me,' Draco retorted bitterly.

'I wouldn't worry about it. You don't need those sorts of people in your life. They only drag you down,' Hermione told him.

Draco brightened. 'True. Actually, the only person I need in my life is you, Hermione.'

They kissed again.

'So, you want to come to my flat for dinner tomorrow; after I've been at work all day?' Hermione asked.

'Yes. I'm looking forward to seeing this compact space you've been talking about.'

'Okay. That's fine, but I won't have time to cook so it'll have to be a takeaway. I'll pick it up on the way home,' Hermione mused. 'What time were you thinking of coming and how are you getting there?'

'What time do you want me?' Draco asked. He was grinning in a louche manner. 'Do you want to stick your head through the Floo and give me a call when you're ready?'

Hermione shook her head. 'I don't have a Floo connection in my flat — no fireplace. I'm trying to think of somewhere close you can Apparate to that won't be too busy — as you said, you don't want to end up in Diagon Alley with all those people, but I'm just trying to think of somewhere you'll know and can Apparate to easily. I suppose we could meet outside the Leaky Cauldron, or is that too much for your first time?'

Draco looked a little apprehensive at the suggestion but said, 'It should be okay if you're already there waiting for me. Would you do that?'

'Of course I will. How about we say meet at six-fifteen outside the door on the Muggle side, as that's likely to be less crowded? That should give me time to leave work and get a takeaway and be there when you arrive.'

'Okay. We'll do that.' There was just the slightest hint of a tremor in Draco's voice.

Hermione hugged him tightly. 'You do know I'm really proud of you for doing this, especially so quickly. I thought it might take you a while to get your head round the fact that you can leave the estate.'

'I have an ulterior motive that's driving me,' Draco admitted.

'Really? What's that?' Hermione stared at him curiously.

'Your flat. I want to see how much of a fight you're going to put up.'

Hermione looked quizzical. 'A fight? What sort of fight?'

'I want to see how easy it's going to be for me to convince you to give it up and come and live here with me. You said you can walk to work from your flat, but you can get the Floo from here. It'll be quicker,' Draco pointed out hopefully.

Hermione chuckled. 'You don't even have to see my flat for me to give you the answer to that, Draco — the answer is yes, of course I'll come and live with you. Why wouldn't I want to? I always thought this place was fantastic, and that was while the curse was on it. It's even more wondrous now.'

'I still want to see your flat,' Draco said quickly as if worried that Hermione was going to cancel his trip out.

'And I want you to see it because I want you to understand that most people don't live in a house like this one, they live in places like my flat and struggle along. It'll give you an idea of how lucky you are — and I say that despite the curse,' Hermione retorted.

'Really, I just want to see what your bed is like,' Draco told her cheekily.

'Smaller than the ones here,' Hermione said. 'Talking of bed, I think I'm ready for my hot chocolate.'

'Are you sure you want it?' Draco asked between whisper-soft kisses that he was placing on her throat, making Hermione sigh gently. 'We could forgo the drink and go straight to bed.'

Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck. 'Mmmm, actually I quite like that idea. I don't think I need another drink anyway.'

'An early night in readiness for tomorrow and the start of our new life together,' Draco said, his eyes gleaming.

'I love you, Draco.'

'And I love you, Hermione.'

Draco removed his wand from his pocket, made sure Hermione was held tightly in his arms, and Disapparated.