A/N: Hello all, for the last time! This is the epilogue for you all, ready and waiting to be read. I cried while writing it, not because it's sad, but because I've invested SO much time in this story and it's over. There will not be an Author's Note at the end of this chapter because I wish for Hermione and Draco to have the last word ;) Saying that, I need to say a few things in this note. First, I should be posting a new story within a couple weeks, so be on the lookout! Next order of business.... I would like to say thank you to ALL of you who have stuck with this story and to EVERYONE who has reviewed. It means the world to me. Saying that, I have a few special thanks to give:

To: SeraphimeRising, thanks for reading and reviewing from the beginning. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.

To: black wolfgirl2722, thanks for reviewing a large majority of the chapters and for chatting with me in messages... It kept my morale up.

To: ohhbabiix, once you found the story, you consistently reviewed it, making me one of the happiest writers ever.

To: xXSarahCullenXx, I can't thank you enough for your comments. They always made me smile.

To: Brie H, you give the sweetest reviews that are so encouraging. Thank you.

To: BlotOfInkOnFinger, thanks so much for your input. I made Draco the way he was in chapter 19, just for you.

To: MargueriteHOL, I'm so glad to have gotten you into this couple. I hope you continue to read about them! Thanks for your reviews

To: Kuuipo-girl, I really appreciate the praise. It kept me going and one of your reviews prompted me to update insanely fast. Thanks

Last but not least, To: MoonBeamDreamer, I want to thank you for giving me the first review that made me cry out of sheer joy. I really appreciate all your encouragement. I'm so glad you found my story ;)

I am the most blessed author to have such wonderful reviewers... and so I would like to dedicate this chapter to you! :D

DEDICATION: This story, Captivated by Love, in its entirety, is dedicated to one of my closest friends, Kirstin. I sent her every chapter before posting it here and her encouragement is a HUGE part of why this story was completed. You're the best, Kay! *hugs*

That's all I have to say! Hope to hear from you all when I post my next story! All the best, XOXO elegantgoth89

EPILOGUE- The Rest Of Our Lives

It was August 31 and Hermione walked into one of the many rooms of the Malfoy Manor, the sitting room to be exact.

She smiled when she saw the two tufts of blonde hair she'd been looking for lying on the sofa. "There you are Emma, I've been looking for you and your father everywhere." Hermione reprimanded.

"Shh," her eleven year old daughter replied, "Daddy's sleeping." She climbed off of the sofa and walked over to her mother, her blonde curls bouncing.

"Well run along then and go get changed. Harry and Ron should be here shortly."

Emma looked up in excitement. "Are Potter and the Weasel bringing James and Rose with them?" she squealed.

Hermione looked down at her husband and knew he wasn't really asleep because a proud smirk appeared on his face as he tried to suppress his laughter.

"Emma," Hermione scolded, "How many times have I told you that you are to address Harry and Ron as Uncle Harry and Uncle Ron, NOT Potter and Weasel."

Emma responded, "But Daddy said that Uncle Harry's ego is so inflated that it does him good to call him Potter, so for the sake of his ego, never call him Harry. As for Uncle Ron, Daddy says it isn't mean to call him Weasel, because one, he actually looks like a weasel, and two, Weasel very closely resembles his last name." She stated this as if it were the most common information in the world and with a tone of superiority that would rival Hermione's.

At these words, Draco was no longer feigning sleep and actually snorted, while shaking with laughter on the couch. If nothing else, their eldest child had definitely inherited Draco's personality.

Hermione looked reproachfully at her laughing husband and did her best to suppress a chuckle. Funny though it may be, she did not want her daughter behaving like that, especially since she was off to Hogwarts on the morrow.

"Emma!" Hermione said, in her best scolding tone, "You are not to speak that way about your mother's friends. It's rude. Do you understand me?"

Emma looked over at her father who had just sat up, hoping for him to defend her. He gave her a look that said 'your mother is right'.

Emma folded her arms and said, "Sorry, mummy. I won't do it again."

Hermione gave her daughter a hug and said, "Okay. Now, go to your room and have Mitzy help you finish packing. I'll come get you when James and Rose get here. Oh, find your brother and send him down here, while you're up there."

Emma nodded and happily traipsed out of the room, her strikingly blonde curls bouncing. The second she was out of sight, Hermione rounded on Draco.

"Draco! Stop doing that!" Hermione yelled, her hands on her hips, "You can't undermine my authority like that. We're supposed to be a team! If I tell her one thing and you tell her something else, how the hell is she supposed to know who to listen to?"

Draco was laughing again, "I'm sorry. I can't help it! She's so witty. Did you hear her? She recited that speech perfectly. I can't resist making her do things like that! It's hilarious!"

"Draco!" Hermione said, yet again, "She's your daughter! Her brother is supposed to prompt her to do things like that, not her father!"

He smirked and said, "Well, I never had siblings, so-"

She interrupted him, "I'm serious, Draco! You aren't supposed to be friends with your children. You're supposed to be their parents! How many times do we have to have this discussion?"

Draco was often a little too lenient with their daughter. It was a fight Hermione had often had with her husband. Still, saying that, Hermione adored how close Draco and Emma were. He was an excellent father by all standards and Hermione wasn't surprised in the least. She remembered that night eleven years ago, the night Emma was born. After numerous hours of labor on Hermione's part and numerous hours of panicked waiting on Draco's part and Hermione had placed their newborn daughter in the arms of her father. Draco's eyes had connected with his daughter's and he had instantly fallen in love with the little blonde baby in his arms. Emma had reached the age of eleven and was extremely close to both her parents, but there was special bond between Draco and his daughter that Hermione did envy just a bit.

About a year and a half after Emma was born and their little family had grown by one. Hermione had had a little boy that Draco had named Declan. Hermione could say with pride that she shared the special bond with Declan that Draco shared with Emma.

Draco was just as excellent a father to his son as he was to Emma. Really, his fears about being a father were completely unfounded.

Still, here they were, however many years later, still having this 'parents are parents, not friends' discussion and honestly, it was getting old.

Apparently Draco thought it was getting old, too because he said, "Okay, okay. Calm down, woman. I understand."

He grabbed her wrist and gently pulled her into his lap. She smiled at this gesture and pecked him quickly on the lips, because even after her lecture, he was still affectionate with her. After all this time, they were still madly in love… for lack of a less cliché phrase.

She then said, "With all the influence you've had on her, I swear that girl is going to be in Slytherin!"

"She better be." Draco said, "I would expect nothing less of her."

Hermione huffed, "Well, at least I know our son will be in Gryffindor."

Draco looked thoughtful and said, "Well, I don't know. He's so bookish, I wouldn't be surprised if he landed himself in Ravenclaw."

"No. I'm bookish and I didn't get put into Ravenclaw. I guess the sorting hat knew I needed to be friends with Harry and Ron."

Draco groaned, "Isn't it enough that I have to see those two tonight? Do you have to bring them up in conversation, too?"

Hermione swatted him playfully on the arm. "Hey, shut up. You spend just as much time with them as I do."

"Well, that's only because I love you." He mumbled.

"And because our kids just happen to be best friends."

"Well, that too." He said with a chuckle.

"Come on. You don't hate it as much as you make it seem like you do." She said.

"Yeah, I do. When we were in school, if you'd have told me that I'd be married to you, that we'd have two kids and the people I spend the most time with were Weaselbee and the Boy-Who-Lived, I'd have pitched myself right off the top of the Astronomy Tower."

She frowned at him, slightly hurt by his joke.

Seeing this, he kissed her softly on the lips and whispered, "You are completely worth it, though."

She smiled against his mouth. She loved it when he said that to her, which is probably why he said it. She rotated her position in his lap, moving herself so that she was straddling him. She then kissed him hard on the lips, pushing him back so that he was on his back on the sofa. Draco ran his hands through her bushy hair, down her back, finally settling them on her bum. He slid his tongue into her open mouth and she marveled at the fact that after twelve years, she still got the chills while kissing him.

Draco moved his mouth from hers and started kissing down her neck. He loved the fact that her skin still felt like fire against his and that after all this time, he had never tired of the feel of her against him. Just as he had begun to nibble at her neck, they heard the pitter-patter of little feet coming towards the sitting room.

"Mum!" they heard a crying Declan shout.

They both groaned at the interruption, and Draco sighed at the loss of contact as Hermione sat up. Hermione looked at the door as ten-year-old Declan wandered into the room, tears slowly coming from his eyes. He looked at his mother and waited for her to open her arms, an invitation for him to join his parents on the couch.

He tottered over and plopped himself between his parents.

He then said, "Emma is packing her bags!"

Draco said, "Yes, son. And?"

Declan sniffed, "She's leaving to Hogwarts! I want to go, too!"

Hermione looked at Draco and sighed. They had had this conversation with their son numerous times since Emma had gotten her letter.

She said, "You will be, darling. You just have to wait until next year when you turn eleven."

"That's not fair! I'm already smarter than half the twits going now!"

Draco looked over at Hermione in half shock, half amusement and chuckled, "Dang, Hermione. With that attitude, this one might just end up in Slytherin, too."

Truth be known, Draco was very proud of the way his kids had turned out.

Hermione said, "Good grief. What am I going to do with the pair of them?"

Draco smirked and said, "Might be time to just face the facts and realize they turned out just like their father."

Hermione arched her eyebrow and addressed her son, "Sweetheart, that's not a very nice thing to say." She couldn't resist adding, "No matter how true it might be."

"You promise I'll get to go next year?" he asked.

"I promise." She said.

Just then, they heard the loud whooshing sound that indicated someone arriving in the floo.

Declan stood up and shouted, "James and Rose are here!"

He bolted out of the sitting room with a speed that only ten-year-olds can achieve, intent on finding his best friends. Draco then stood and held out his hand to Hermione. She took it gladly and waltzed out with her husband to meet Harry, Ginny, Ron and Lavender.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in each other's company, talking, laughing and eating. Finally, when evening rolled around and it was time for the Potters and Weasleys to leave, they all walked over to the fireplace.

Hermione said to Harry, "Thanks for letting Emma and Dec spend the night tonight. They haven't stopped talking about it for days."

Harry nodded, "Of course. See you at the Platform tomorrow, then?"

Draco said, "We wouldn't miss it. I don't think Em would forgive us if we didn't see her off."

Ginny said, "Well, at least you'll still have Declan here once Emma goes. I don't know what I'm going to do without James."

Ron said, "You'll be fine. Lavender and I did just fine without Rose."

Hermione said, "Well, see you lot tomorrow!"

Declan and Emma pattered over to their parents, giving them both a squeeze.

Draco said, "Off you go."

One by one, everyone left, each getting engulfed by green flames.

When they were gone, Hermione turned to Draco and said, "I think I'm going to do some straightening up before bed, okay?"

He nodded, "I'll just be in my study."

Hermione rolled her eyes. Even after being married to him for twelve years, she still could never figure out what he did in that giant study of his.

She turned to leave but Draco said, "Meet me back here in a couple hours. I need to talk to you."

Hermione looked at him curiously and asked, "Should I be worried?"

He smirked, "Maybe."

She whined, "Now I am worried."

He kissed her nose and whispered, "Trust me."

She smiled softly at those words, then nodded and said, "Okay."

Hermione went about her business, doing some basic cleaning spells around the Manor. Mitzy often offered to help Hermione with this task and Hermione usually accepted, but when she wanted to be busy, she liked to do it herself.

She was obsessively cleaning Emma's now empty room, trying to keep herself from crying, when she heard the grandfather clock in the hallway chime ten. It had been two hours and with one last look at Emma's room, Hermione made her way to Draco's study.

When she arrived, she opened the door and sauntered in.

She said, "So what did you want to talk about?"

Draco put down his quill, stood and walked over to her, a mischievous look in his eye.

He then said, "I have a surprise for you."

She smiled at him curiously and repeated, "A surprise?"

He nodded and asked, "Do you trust me?"

She nodded excitedly. He walked up behind her tied a scarf around her eyes, blindfolding her. What the hell was he up to?

He whispered in her ear, "Come with me."

She then felt him grab her hands and gently start to pull. She followed where he guided her and let him lead her all over the Manor. Some ten minutes later and he came to a halt.

He placed a kiss on each of her cheeks and said, "I've been waiting for a night when both the kids were gone to show you this. Are you ready?"

She said, "I hope so."

He reached up and removed the blindfold. What she saw was not anything special at all. She found herself standing at the door of the room she had been held captive in. Since they had moved to the Manor, Draco had not let her enter it. Hermione had not had a problem with this, having no wish to go in anyway.

She looked at him and asked, "Why are we here?"

He whispered, "I want you to go in now."

She closed her eyes and was flooded with memories of that year and of being cooped in this room. Even though Draco hadn't really mistreated her, she still related this room to other events that had occurred.

She said, "I really don't want to."

"Trust" he placed a kiss on one ear, "Me." And then placed a kiss on the other.

She took a deep breath, reached out and slowly turned the handle.

What Hermione found on the other side of the threshold was enough to make silent tears fall down her cheeks.

Over the bed was a small banner that read 'Where It All Started.' Throughout the room were blown up, moving pictures of every moment in their lives together up until then.

As Hermione's eyes wandered throughout the room they landed on the Daily Prophet Article that showed Draco in Azkaban, the hilarious article after he had been released and them cuddled on the couch of the little flat they had lived in. She saw the room they had first had sex in, photos of them on their wedding day and pictures of her lying on the beach during their honeymoon.

There was a picture of what she looked like each month she had been pregnant with both of their children, with a grinning Draco measuring around her growing belly. Her eyes landed on pictures of them at the park enjoying their first picnic together, a moment she had forgotten up until now.

There were pictures of them snuggled up by the fireplace at the Burrow, happily laughing at whatever the topic of conversation might have been. Next there were pictures of a very angry looking Hermione, quite possibly after one of the many fights they had shared.

Her eyes then found pictures of her and her children on the days they had been born. There was Draco, holding his children in his arms for the first time, a look of utter amazement and contentment on his face as he slowly swayed back and forth.

She saw Emma and Draco reading a book together on the couch, Emma snuggled in her father's lap. There was Hermione kissing Declan goodnight and tucking him in.

Next was a photo of her and Draco dancing in the light of the Eiffel Tower on their fifth wedding anniversary, happily wrapped in each other's arms.

More pictures showed each trip they had taken their small family on, showing their children fighting while Hermione scolded them. The last photo Hermione saw was one that had been taken not five days ago. It was of the four of them in Diagon Alley. Hermione was planting a kiss on Declan's cheek as Draco planted a kiss on Emma's.

Hermione turned around to look at Draco, tears pouring down her cheeks. He had taken a room she had once hated and turned it into a room that documented their whole lives in the sweetest way possible.

She emotionally said, "Have I ever told you how much I love you?"

He smiled, pulling her into a hug and said, "There's one more thing to show you."

He walked her to the far right side of the room, which held no pictures at all.

Still crying, she asked, "What's this empty space for, then."

He wrapped his arms around her and softly pressed his lips to hers.

He then pulled out of the kiss and placed his mouth right next to her ear before whispering, "The rest of our lives."

THE VERY END.