Paralyzed

Chapter 5: Crackle

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and its characters aren't mine (tragic, I know) but this plot is.
Enjoy!

Ron closed the door behind him and stopped short at the sight of his best mate sitting forlornly on the second bed Molly had set up against the far wall of his cozy childhood bedroom. He knew from the tiny burn mark on the headboard that this bed had belonged to Percy before.

"Kingsley left. It's starting to make sense why Mum and Dad wanted to give us time to come to terms with all this," Ron said glumly, handing Harry one of the two bottles of butterbeer he'd brought upstairs with him and falling back onto his bed. "Bloody hell! We're gone for five years and my family thinks it's okay to cozy up with the git who made our lives hell at Hogwarts."

"I was supposed to be an Auror after the war," Harry said quietly, leaning back against the wall. "You and me both. Best friends and partners on the field. I was going to marry Ginny and we were going to live in Grimmauld Place. Except now everyone thinks we ran away from the Battle of Hogwarts, Ginny has probably moved on, all of our friends are so busy with their own lives that they can't be bothered to come see us, and everyone fucking loves Draco Malfoy."

"It's like they think the sun shines out of his arse," Ron added darkly.

"I wish Ginny and Hermione were here. It would be so much easier to deal with all this if we had some support from familiar faces."

"I know exactly what you mean, mate," Ron said. "I thought the kiss meant something to Hermione, but she hasn't even sent an owl."

"At least Malfoy hasn't taken Hermione from you," Harry whined, contemplating throwing the bottle in his hand across the room. "I'm homeless, Ron, and the entire Wizarding World hates me. Hates us. I heard your dad talking to your mum that it would be better for us to complete our NEWTs from home instead so that people don't murder us in our sleep."

"Come on, Harry. This'll blow over. Back in fifth year they all hated you because they thought you were a liar. When everyone finds out that we didn't run away, they'll get over it and go back to adoring the Chosen One and his best friend."

"Since when is life ever that simple, Ron?" Harry grumbled, scratching at his chest as a kernel of jealousy festered there. "I never imagined in a million years that a Death Eater would be worshipped like he was the Virgin Mary."

"Uh, who?"

"Never mind." He waved the redhead off. "I just…Ron, what are we supposed to do now? You don't - you don't think that Ginny and your brothers and Hermione all think we abandoned them, do you?"

"Of course not, Harry! But I mean, that would explain why they haven't written to us yet or insisted on seeing us."

"You'd think they would know us better than that," Harry spat out in disgust. "My whole life has been about defeating Voldemort. Why would I give up and hide at the last second?"

"Exactly, so let's not assume the worst. Knowing Hermione, she's probably busy with her career at the Ministry. She wanted to work for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures before working her way up to Minister of Magic, remember? And Ginny? My sister always wanted to join the Holyhead Harpies and knowing how wicked she was on the pitch I bet she's just busy with training since Quidditch season just started. Fred and George have the shop to manage and Percy is a git. It's not easy getting an international portkey all the way from Romania to England, and Mum said Bill was busy with his family. All very justifiable reasons to not come running to meet us."

"Remus and Tonks are dead. That's their reason," Harry added flatly, his chest aching at the memory of his beloved friends. The passing of the young couple was one of the only things Molly and Arthur had told them.

"Do you think Andromeda will bring Teddy around on Sunday?" Ron wondered, not wanting to think about their friends' deaths. "Even if you were here, Andromeda would've taken in Teddy because guardianship would go to natural family members. I reckon having Teddy around would've helped her deal with losing Tonks."

"You're right. I asked Lupin about that and he said if something happened to both him and Tonks then Andromeda would step in to raise Teddy. We - er - we only discussed this briefly, but he wanted me to be a large part of Teddy's life. I hope Andromeda doesn't mind me trying to help out with him. I missed five years of my godchild's life, but not anymore."

"Consider this, you have no expectations of how Teddy was before we left because he was just a baby then. Meeting him won't be like when you meet Ginny and get your heart gets broken because she moved on and changed."

"Ron, I have no reason to be upset if Ginny moved on," Harry reminded him lightly, ignoring the fact that it did in fact hurt a ton to picture his ex-girlfriend happy with someone else.

"That's the thing, Harry," Ron replied quietly, staring down at the rim of his butterbeer bottle with an indescribable expression. "If you have no reason to be upset at Ginny, then I have even less of right to be upset with Hermione for moving on. It was just a kiss. Granted, it was the best kiss of my life, but that could just be because of all the adrenaline in the middle of the battle."

"Maybe, but Hermione had feelings for you for quite some time. At least as far back as fifth year," Harry recalled. "Besides her education and work has always been at the top of her list of priorities. I can't imagine she's dated much when there's a career to be built. I can already see her, taking the Wizarding World by storm with her agenda."

"True. Harry, the kiss happened five years ago. That's what I'm struggling to wrap my head around. For me it was just a few weeks ago, but for her it's probably a faint memory."

"Either way, Ron, if Hermione and Ginny have moved on, then we have to accept that gracefully. It's unfair to expect them to have waited."

As much as Ron hated hearing the words, he knew realistically it was the most likely scenario. He could only wistfully hope that Hermione had been too busy with her career to have much of a love life, but at the end of the day, Ron wasn't an idiot.

"Come on. Let's get to bed. Talking about it makes my head hurt," Ron sighed, not wanting to think about all this any longer. "We have to be up early for our appointment with the Healers."

"I don't like this," Draco said for the twelfth time.

"So you've said," Hermione remarked, not looking up as she dug through her purse to make sure she had everything she needed.

"The Healer said to rest."

"I'm pregnant, not dying from a terminal illness. I already took time off for Greece so I need to go into work," she said and turned to find him frowning down adorably at the tie that hung around his neck. Shaking her head slightly, she strode over to him and took the ends of the tie out of his hands. She held his gaze as she tied the designer silk fabric and then slid her hands up his chest, locking them around his neck.

"I just don't want you to overwork yourself," he murmured, his own hands resting on her hips.

"I know and I won't," she whispered before reaching up on the tips of her toes to capture his mouth with hers. "I promise, love."

She pulled away to gather her stuff and he followed her out the room. It was the day after he'd spoken to Kingsley and even after hearing everything the Minister had said, his stubborn wife was going into work. Of course, her dedication to her work was part of what made her such an amazing Healer, but it also meant she often neglected her own health as a result. Draco knew that she would be more cautious in this pregnancy than the last, but he couldn't help but worry still.

They headed down to the Hall of Hearths, kissing each other goodbye before stepping into separate fireplaces and flooing away at the same time. Draco heard his wife's firm cry of, "St. Mungos," over his own, "Ministry of Magic," before he was swallowed by the roar of green flames.

Several other ministry members greeted him as he strode through the atrium and took the lift up to his floor. There weren't many workers in the Ministry this early, but Draco was a morning person like his wife. They preferred to start work earlier so as to make it home to their family at a suitable time. As a rule, the family ate dinner together every night. Narcissa had insisted upon it when they got married so that she could get to know her daughter-in-law better and inadvertently force Lucius to bond with the Muggleborn he had so despised. Evidently, it worked like a charm.

"Draco, we're up," Seamus called out from the other end of the hall as he strode towards Draco whilst pulling on his jacket. "Harry and Ron have an appointment at St. Mungos this morning and we'll be escorting them. We also need to get a copy of their reports from their Healer."

Ever the perceptive partner, Seamus noticed the tightening of Draco's jaw and the calculating look in his eyes.

"Who on Earth thought it would be a good idea for Potter and Weasley to make a public appearance?" he spit out, quickening his pace alongside Seamus.

"That would be the Aurors we replaced," Seamus snorted, shaking his head at the idiocy. Then seeing the contemplative look on his partner's face, he asked, "What're you thinking?"

"What if we just had their Healer do a home visit? Have them come by the The Burrow instead of risking their identities being exposed?"

"That's probably the approach the aurors should've gone with to start with," Seamus admitted. "It's ridiculous that they didn't. But I doubt we can get the Healer to shuffle around their schedule on such a short notice."

Draco swore under his breath and led the way down to the atrium. Seamus snickered at the way the blond's barely restrained temper had people scuttling out of the way. Despite being hailed a saviour, Draco was known to have trained as a Death Eater and his skills with and without a wand were legendary in the Ministry. People feared the infamous Malfoy wrath and they recognized the barely concealed gleam of fury in his silver eyes.

"Ease up, mate. Rodriguez nearly sprained his ankle diving out of the elevator," Seamus said amusedly.

Draco exhaled, but barely loosened his stiff posture.

"What's got your wand in a knot?"

Draco waited until they were out of earshot of everyone else walking down the corridor with them and muttered, "Hermione is working today."

"Oh. Shit," Seamus groaned. "At least we'll be at St. Mungos so when you kick their arses they can get healed up right away."

"Kick their arses? What makes you think I'll be doing that?" Draco asked with an amused smirk.

"I lived with those two for six years so trust me when I say that they will blow up like one of Neville's cauldrons. You already know what the Weasley temper is like and Harry was protective of Hermione like a sister. Ron was also sweet on Hermione and all of that combined with the rivalry between you three…phew, maybe we should owl ahead and have a Healer on standby for this inevitable train wreck," he mused.

Draco rolled his eyes and stepped up to the grate of an empty fireplace. Throwing down a fistful of floo powder, he said loudly, "The Burrow."

Harry was sitting at the dining table with Ron, both sleepily chewing on their toast and watching Molly move around the kitchen. They were both of the opinion that it was entirely too early in the morning, but the Aurors were supposed to be coming by anytime before their appointment to escort them to St. Mungos. Personally, Harry could do without starting the day off with Malfoy's face, but he had no choice but to bare with it.

The typical morning noises of birds chirping and roosters crowing were interrupted by the floo flaring to life in the other room. Immediately, they straightened up and exchanged wide-eyed looks. Molly gestured for them to stay seated as she bustled out of the room. They could hear her greeting their visitor as the floo sounded a second time. Another deep male voice joined the first, both of them vaguely familiar but Harry could only identify the first as Malfoy's.

Molly returned to the kitchen, giving them worried looks as they stared at the two men that had followed her in. The first thing Harry noticed was that Malfoy looked different. He had filled out and while his features were still pointy, they painted the picture of a man. This was no longer the skinny, sickly looking teenager from their seventh year, instead his chest was broad and his arms muscular. He was much taller than Harry remembered, but the silver eyes were the same as the ones he'd met with in Malfoy Manor before snatching his wand.

"Seamus?" Ron exclaimed as he stood up, and it was then that Harry realized the man beside Malfoy was his Irish dorm mate.

"Ron, Harry, glad to see you lads are okay," Seamus remarked.

Seamus came forward and gave both of them a one armed hug, clapping them on the back as he did.

"What're you doing here?" Harry asked with a wide smile. "Not that we don't want you here. It's just that we haven't met anyone else since we've been back and I can't tell you how good it feels to see you."

"Draco and I are partners. We're the ones in charge of your case now," he explained.

At this, Harry and Ron turned back to face the blond who'd been watching their exchange quietly.

"Potter. Weasley," Malfoy nodded, his face impassive.

Swallowing down the feeling of loathing stirring up inside him, Harry stepped around the dining table and held out his hand to Draco.

"Malfoy, thanks for doing this. I heard you're the best of the best," he forced out. Given the circumstances, Harry had had trouble falling asleep last night and ended up deliberating how to approach this entire situation. He despised Malfoy for stealing everything from him, but he also knew that he was treading on thin ice. The last thing he wanted to do was give the prat the satisfaction of behaving just as he expected.

Malfoy arched his brow at this and it was clear he didn't expect such civility, but he shook the outstretched hand.

"It's my job," Malfoy shrugged.

"Draco, Seamus, take a seat. How do you like your eggs?" Molly interrupted, coming around to usher them to the table.

"It's alright, Molly. I grabbed a bagel from the cafeteria and we've got to prepare for the appointment," Seamus protested.

"Nonsense. There's still two hours until the appointment and that Ministry cafeteria sells what can hardly be called food," she retorted. "I've just put on a fresh pot of tea. Draco, sweetheart, as I recall you like your eggs sunny side up?"

"Molly, thank you, but you really don't need to bother. The elves prepared a lovely Danish spread this morning," Malfoy tried to tell her, but she hushed him up with a look.

"I know well enough that you have a healthy appetite and you need to keep up your strength for Auror work. Besides, Godric knows both you and your wife rush to work without eating enough. Speaking of, I baked a fresh batch of blueberry lemon scones. Make sure the both of you don't leave without taking some."

"You're the best, Molly," Malfoy said with a soft smile, surprising both Harty and Ron who had thought the blond's facial muscle incapable of anything except sneering. "This'll make her day. Your scones are her absolute favourite, especially the blueberry lemon ones."

"Oh you're married, Malfoy?" Harry asked politely.

The blond clenched his jaw and nodded stiffly.

"Purebloods almost always have arranged marriages right out of school," Ron piped up. "Loads of them have betrothal contracts by the time they start at Hogwarts."

Malfoy frowned, but didn't say anything as Molly placed a plate of food in front of him.

Ron turned to Seamus and asked, "What about you?"

"I'm seeing a lovely lass who works in the Department of International Magical Cooperation office. It's starting to get serious."

"That's great, man. I'm happy for you," Harry congratulated.

"Thanks, Harry. It's about time actually. Everyone I know is already married and having babies. I'd like to have something like that."

Malfoy snorted elegantly and remarked drily, "Say that after you stay up all night with a hollering newborn and then just when you close your eyes it's time to drag your arse to work after."

"What're you talking about, Draco? You had elves to do all that for you," Seamus scoffed.

Malfoy barked out a laugh. "Have you met my wife? Salazar forbid we wake up the elves past their bedtime for anything."

"Your elves have bedtimes?" Ron wondered, looking equal parts confused and amused.

"You have a kid?" Harry asked at the same time.

Malfoy hesitated before nodding, "Two boys."

Harry nodded and mumbled something.

"I beg your pardon?" Malfoy said, his pureblood manners kicking in.

"I said, it's just really weird for us. The people that we grew up with are married with kids and," he trailed off awkwardly.

"And you haven't even finished seventh year yet," Seamus finished for him.

"And the last time we saw our classmates was in a battle," Ron corrected sadly.

For the first time ever, Harry saw a look akin to pity come across Malfoy's face. The fact that someone as heartless as his childhood bully felt sorry for him was a slap in the face. You knew your life was a disaster when Draco bloody Malfoy pitied you, Harry thought miserably.

"The two of you look exactly like the scrawny gits you were five years ago so that's pretty weird too," Seamus added. "It's bloody bizarre!"

"Language!" Molly tutted just as the shrill whistle of tea kettle broke through the melancholy hanging over them.

Malfoy jumped up from his seat to help her with the tea but she waved him off. "No, no, dear. Go settle down in the living room and I'll bring around the tea."

Harry and Ron exchanged looks before following the two Aurors out of the kitchen. They took the couch and Seamus sat in the armchair by the fire, while Malfoy chose to remain standing. Harry noted that Malfoy had slipped on an emotionless mask, betraying nothing of his thoughts or how he felt. None of the men spoke until Molly had given them each their teacups and had left the room.

"We have a little under an hour to debrief them and apply the glamours," Seamus said after glancing at his watch.

"Glamours? Why do we need glamours?" Ron asked quickly.

Malfoy and Seamus exchanged looks and the latter said, "Well you may not be aware of this but due to your untimely departure from the Wizarding World five years ago, public opinion of you two is at an all time low. That is to say -"

"They hate you," Malfoy cut in impatiently.

"What he said," Seamus finished weakly.

"We knew that already, but why?" Ron cried hotly, looking affronted.

"Everyone believes you betrayed them," Malfoy remarked with a cruel smirk. "As far as the Wizarding World is concerned, the pair of you are cowards who ran away with their tails between their legs."

"You'd know something about that, wouldn't you, Malfoy?" Ron sneered.

"Ron -" Seamus began to say, but the redhead wasn't finished.

"No! Are we really going to sit here and pretend this prat didn't try to kill Dumbledore, let Death Eaters into a school full of children, and then run away like the coward he is? Now he's acting like he's better than us."

"Ah! There it is. I was wondering how long it would take for this to come up. Got anything to add, Potter? Want to bitch about how I stole your glory of being the Saviour who killed the Dark Lord?"

Harry wanted to strangle the arsehole, but the pleased gleam in Malfoy's eyes held him back. That stupid smirk was taunting him to finally snap, but Harry couldn't give him that satisfaction.

"How did you do it? How did you kill Voldemort? The prophecy -"

Malfoy scoffed, "Your bloody prophecy was clearly bullshit. Otherwise, we wouldn't be here with the war behind us."

"Can we please get back to debriefing?" Seamus interrupted loudly, scowling for the first time that morning. "I knew you lot could only be civil for so long."

"I'm not the one who has trouble being professional and has the emotional range of a teaspoon," Malfoy shrugged.

His words brought with them a sobering effect as Harry and Ron exchanged pained glances at the memory of a bushy-haired girl saying those exact words back in fifth year.

"Look let's be professional for the duration of this case and after that we never have to see each other again," Harry mumbled.

Seamus, who'd just taken a sip of his tea, started choking and coughing. Malfoy sighed and lazily waved his wand at his partner, clearing his airway with a wordless spell.

"Thanks," he sputtered with watery eyes.

"We'll be glamouring your appearance because the general public has no idea that you two are back and we want to keep it that way for some time. Kingsley wants to orchestrate your return with the right publicity so there isn't any backlash or danger to your lives," Malfoy explained, his disappointed expression making it obvious he relished the idea of their lives being endangered.

"That makes sense. The Wizarding world can't know about us yet, but why does that mean we can't know anything about the Wizarding world?" Harry sighed.

"What do you mean?" Seamus asked confusedly.

"That wasn't their call. The Healer advised us not to shock you," Molly answered, surprising them as she appeared in the doorway suddenly. "It could set your recovery back and until they know how your body has been affected, they don't want to take risks."

"Speaking of, shall we?" Seamus stood up and turned to his partner questioningly.

It took all of twenty minutes before both Malfoy and Seamus were satisfied with their disguises. Harry's hair was changed into a dull chestnut and smoothed down with a charm Malfoy claimed his mother taught him. They had added a few inches of height to him and made his glasses invisible. His emerald green eyes were now a pale blue. They even gave him slight facial hair and sharpened his cheekbones. Last but not least, where his trademark scar was on his forehead now only had clear skin. Ron, on the other hand, was shortened down to average height and his eyes were changed to dark brown. His distinct Weasley red hair now appeared to be dark brown curls and his skin freckle-less.

"Do you two have clothes that are any less noticeable?" Seamus gestured to the Gryffindor Quidditch t-shirts both boys were wearing.

They nodded and hurried out of the room with ill-disguised relief.

"What happened to playing nice?" Harry hissed as they climbed the stairs.

"I tried, but that smug prat was gloating about the fact that we're pariahs now," Ron retorted, his eyes flashing angrily. "He's loving being the new Saviour and doesn't bother to hide it, don't you see?"

"I know, Ron, I really do. But we can't let him win."

"I can't believe people don't see he's the same old evil Malfoy," Ron complained, throwing open the door to his bedroom.

"We'll make them see. But first we need to keep our heads down and get into the Auror program. We need people to trust us if we're going to have a chance at exposing his true colours," Harry said as he bent over his trunk to shuffle through his belongings.

"We really need to get in touch with Hermione. If anyone can help us pull this off, it's her," Ron said, his voice muffled by the shirt he was pulling over his head.

"You're not wrong there. But until we can see her, we need to find out everything we missed for the past five years. You know Hermione can't say no when presented with thorough research."

"Thank you for attempting to be civil with them," Molly said as she came to sit with Draco at the table. "I know it's not easy for you. There's a lot of bad blood there."

He dipped his chin in acknowledgement and admitted, "It wouldn't do the investigation any good if we were at each other's throats. I'm a damn good Auror and I won't let two boys with a grudge compromise that."

"They're just having difficulty processing this ordeal. In their cases, they've just come out of a war and the wounds are fresh. They haven't had time to grow and mature in a post-war world where prejudices mean little."

"Have you considered sending them to therapy?" Draco asked cautiously.

"Arthur and I talked about it briefly but we don't know how the boys will take it. I think we're still holding out hope that Saturday will make them realize how much things have changed and that it'll inspire them to move on with their lives."

At his questioning look, she expelled a heavy breath and explained, "They're avoiding the topic of completing their N.E.W.T.s and too many times have I overheard them reminiscing about how things were when they left. Don't get me wrong, they understand that things are different now and anticipate that their friends and family have moved on."

Draco waited quietly, hearing the unsaid 'but' that hung in the air.

"You heard my son. They're clinging to what is familiar and so far, their prejudices are all that they have. Their view of the world is split into good and bad, and now that they are faced with a terrifying new world, they're trying to categorize everything they come across. It's easier that way, I suppose. You're supposed to be an evil Death Eater, but the man they met today defies that label."

"It can't be easy," Draco admitted begrudgingly. "If I were in their shoes, I'd be scared and my head would be spinning with all of this. I sympathize with them, it's hard not to. But, Molly, whenever I look at them, I just see two boys who will tear my world apart. They'll try to take everything that makes my life worth living."

Seamus, who'd been quietly nibbling on a scone in the corner of the room, came forward now and placed a hand on Draco's shoulder.

"Stop being so foolish, Draco. Hermione will straight up Avada anyone who tries to harm her family, no matter who they are. Honestly, I'm more worried about what she'll do to them than anything they could do to either of you," he remarked, a faint smile coming onto his face at the picture his mind conjured up. "But seriously, you're scaring me. Malfoys don't feel fear, remember? It's unbecoming."

It worked, his words enticed a laugh out of the blond and the morose mood in the air lifted.

"Ginny finally owled me last night to let me know they'll be here on Saturday. She said you have a way for her to travel safely in her condition."

Draco nodded and explained, "An international portkey that I got from a contact in Israel. Hermione and I took it when we went to Australia just three months before Scorpius was born. You remember how delicate the pregnancy was? But she was insistent on going so I had to find a way to ensure her complete safety."

"What's Mrs. Malfoy wants, Mrs. Malfoy gets," Seamus snorted.

"Damn straight." Draco grinned.

"Thank you, Draco. My daughter is lucky to have you as a friend."

"She's just lucky Blaise loves her. The idiot is a right arse when she isn't happy, so help them I must," Draco sighed dramatically.

"Yeah, I can see you're all torn up about it," Seamus snickered.

"Mind you, the portkey is a tad bit illegal here in England, but completely untraceable," Draco added.

"An illegal portkey?" Ron questioned, walking into the room just in time to overhear the tail end of their conversation.

Harry stared at Draco disbelievingly. "You're an Auror."

Draco cocked an eyebrow at him. "I'm a Malfoy."

Draco didn't miss the look Harry and Ron shared.

"But surely something like that would be awfully expensive," Molly pointed out.

Draco just shrugged, but when the worried expression on her face didn't fade, he replied, "Regardless I owe those two for looking after Scorpius last weekend."

"That boy is the most Slytherin three year old I've met," Seamus said, shaking his head disbelievingly. "I don't know how your elves didn't quit by now."

"They had practice with me," Draco retorted with a smirk.

"Are you going to stand around gossiping like old witches or are we going to this bloody appointment?" Ron interrupted.

Molly handed both Draco and Seamus wicker baskets with the scones she'd promised before shooing them out of the kitchen. Seamus stepped into the floo first, calling out St. Mungos and disappearing in a green blaze. Ron went next, followed by Harry and then Draco bringing up the rear. Given the early hour, the hospital was not as crowded as Harry had seen it every other time. He paused to look around, recalling the last time he'd been here, which had been to see Mr. Weasley. Harry never thought he'd look back at his fifth year as when things had been uncomplicated, but everything that had followed had been so much worse. At least back then he knew who he was and what his purpose was. Defeat Voldemort. That's all Harry had ever known. Now he was just floating around untethered in a world he didn't understand.

"Mr. Malfoy, so lovely to see you again," the witch at the front desk greeted the blond exuberantly. "Is she expecting you? Should I page her?"

Harry and Ron exchanged confused glances as Draco shook his head quickly and handed the witch a piece of parchment. Her mouth fell open and she looked over at the two of them with wide eyes. She had a hushed conversation with Draco for a moment and then he gestured for them to head to go ahead. Taking the parchment back from her, Draco followed them to the elevator and as the doors closed, Harry watched the now dazed expression on her face.

"The letter from Kingsley was charmed so that she could sign you in for her appointment and then forget about you two after giving it back to Draco," Seamus explained.

"Blimey," Ron breathed out.

"Is it really that dangerous for people to find out we're back?" Harry asked quietly, hesitant about revisiting the conversation that had result in their argument.

"We wouldn't be taking all these precautions if it weren't," Draco replied shortly.

The mediwitch had Ron go into the examination room first, while Harry and Seamus sat in the waiting room. Draco had disappeared almost immediately after speaking to the mediwitch.

Seamus excused himself to the bathroom and Harry nodded absentmindedly, his attention on the people walking past this ward. He studied the crowds of patients and staff walking past the waiting room, narrowing his eyes at a bushy mane of hair he'd recognize anywhere. It was silkier than he remembered but there was no doubt that it belonged to Hermione Granger.

Scrambling to his feet, he rushed to catch up with her as she hurried away.

"Hermione!" He called out, not caring that he was drawing attention to himself. "Hermione, wait up!"

Recognizing the voice she hadn't heard in years, the slim woman froze in her steps and turned slowly with wide eyes. At the sight of his unfamiliar appearance, confusion coloured her stricken expression and her mouth fell open. She struggled to voice the questions that were no doubt overwhelming her, but he hurled into her arms before she could.

"It's me, Hermione. It's Harry," he whispered excitedly.

"Harry?" She breathed out in a strangled voice and slowly raised her arms to hug him back. She wrapped her arms around his back tentatively, as if unsure that he was real.

"Yeah, it's me. The Aurors put glamours on us, but it's really me. I can't believe you're here. We missed you so much! It's been shite without you honestly."

"I missed you too," she replied in a teary voice and hugged him to herself tightly. "It's been so long since I've heard your voice. Where's Ron?"

"He's in with the Healer. He's been dying to see you too!"

"I can't believe you're back. You're really back," she breathed out, more to herself than him.

"I'm here, Hermione. I swear I'm really here. I know you must think all sorts of things about me, but I didn't abandon you. Neither of us did. You have to believe me," he rushed to get out when her disbelief didn't give way to joy. "I would never leave when -"

Harry jumped away with a start when her wand beeped loudly and vibrated rapidly in short bursts.

"Ah! I'm sorry. I have to go. My patient…." She trailed off. "I'm so glad to see you. I really missed you, Harry."

"You're a Healer then?" he confirmed, gesturing to her green robes with the St. Mungos logo stitched on.

She nodded with a bright smile.

"I didn't expect that, but I can tell it suits you. I have no doubt you're amazing at it too."

"That's sweet of you to say, Harry," she said as her smile dropped fractionally with her next words, "Give Ron my love. I can't wait to see you both at the Burrow this weekend."

"Wait! Can you wait for Ron really quick? He'll be out any second now. He's been wanting to owl you since we came home. Both of us did."

"Harry, I really need to go," she said with a frown.

"Then meet us in thirty minutes? Surely they'll let you take a quick five minute break? Say you've got to grab coffee or a fag. Please, Hermione."

When she looked like she was about to refuse again, he added, "Last time we saw you was five years ago in the middle of a battle. We didn't know if you lived or died."

Her resolve crumbled and she gave him a pained nod.

"Meet me at the entrance in half an hour. I'll only be able to slip away long enough to say hello."

He nodded eagerly and watched her walk away, feeling lighter than he had in months.

She pushed open the door to her office and smiled weakly at the man sitting on the edge of her desk. He took one look at her red eyes and pulled her into his arms.

"I missed them so much," she whispered into his collar. "I - I didn't even realize h - how - how much until I saw them."

"I know, baby," he said quietly.

Pulling back, she peered up at him with wide eyes and furrowed brows. "You didn't tell them anything, did you?"

He shook his head and gently tugged her bottom lip out from between her teeth.

"All they know is that I'm married and I have two sons. Weasley dismissed my marriage as a typical pureblood arrangement right away. We were all careful not to mention your name."

"I hate all this waiting. It's the not knowing that sucks. Why can't we just tell them everything and let them yell it out from the other side of a strong silencio before slipping them a calming drought," she muttered petulantly.

"You know why, darling," he reminded her softly. "Arthur and Molly reckon this way they can witness our loving relationship before they have the chance to make judgements."

She nodded forlornly and then asked, "What're they doing here?"

"They have a follow-up appointment with their Healer. Kingsley doesn't want to risk their return going public at the moment so we're escorting them. I didn't know about the appointment until I got into the office. I'm sorry. I would've warned you if I could."

She shook her head, her curls swinging around her face as she did. "It was bound to happen. I love it when you're so protective."

"Always," he said softly before kissing her. "Don't you know? I'm crazy about you, darling."

"Even if I tell you I agreed to meet Ron after Harry's appointment?" she confirmed, peeking up at him shyly.

Draco sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he nodded reluctantly.

"Even then," he replied quietly. "But you have ten minutes while I talk to their Healer."

She nodded quickly. "I'll be gone long before then, I promise."

Leaning back against the edge of the desk, he folded his arms across his chest and stared at her pensively. She recognized the look immediately, placing a hand on his elbow as she reassured him, "I'll be fine, I promise. I can handle it."

Two blueberry scones and half an hour later, she cursed under her breath and prayed to Merlin that she was right. Draco was already at the end of his thread and another breakdown from her would send him over the edge. He needed her strength now more than ever, her courage being the kindle to his flame that kept him going.

She could see two figures huddled by the water cooler off to the side of the entrance, one of whom she recognized as the glamoured Harry from earlier. The man next to him was unrecognizable by first glance, but his voice was all Ron Weasley when he caught sight of her and cried out, "'Mione!"

"Hermione, it's so good to see you," Ron breathed out, burying his face in her hair as he hugged her tightly. "I was so worried something had happened to you after we left."

"Me? You're the one who's been gone for five years. You can't imagine what a relief it is to see you after all this time," she said softly. "The two of you gave us quite the scare."

"Damn! You look so different," he remarked, stepping back to take her in, head to toe. "It's good. You look amazing."

"It's the old age," she laughed. "I guess I'm six years older than you two now."

"Bloody hell," Ron grumbled, but he was grinning widely.

"Can you imagine how shocked we were when not only had so much time passed but you weren't anywhere to find?" Harry said as he pulled her in for a hug. The faint scent of blueberry scones clung to her subtle perfume and reminded him so much of old times at the Burrow that his eyes began to water.

Hermione grimaced, "Sorry about that, boys. I was in Greece for the week you two returned and then work has kept me busy."

"You're here now. That's all that matters," Ron shrugged. "So you're a Healer? Blimey, Hermione, didn't expect it but I imagine you're damn amazing at it."

"Yeah, what happened to helping the house elves and changing the werewolf regulations?" Harry asked, only half teasing.

"I promise we'll sit down and talk about all that's changed this weekend. I'm sorry, but I've got to go. My boss only let me go for a few minutes," she replied when she caught sight of Draco and Seamus stepping out of the elevator.

"Yeah, we can tell you all about how bloody bizarre it is having Draco sodding Malfoy as the Auror heading our case," Harry muttered darkly, following her line of sight, while Ron shook his head in agreement.

Biting down on her bottom lip, she gave them both quick hugs and waved over of her shoulder as she hurried away in the opposite direction from her husband.

So today, December 1st, is my birthday and I decided to celebrate by posting this chapter! I hope you liked the first meeting with Harry and Ron. The drama has yet to unfold.
Please leave me your thoughts on the chapter in the reviews and if anything, do it as a birthday present to me haha.