Draco let out a loud sigh and plopped himself down on his sofa. He watched Hermione kick off her shoes and place them near her bag which was hanging on his coat-rack. She walked over to him slowly as he spread both arms across the back of the sofa. Her stocking feet made silent steps on the marble in his direction. He enjoyed watching her hips and dress sway with each step. When she reached his side she sat gingerly down on the couch next to him, tucking her feet comfortably beneath her. He wrapped his arms around her and they sat in comfortable silence for a while.
"When is our interview tomorrow?" she asked quietly.
He sighed softly, "Lunchtime. I thought we'd have her over to my office. I didn't want her here and I assumed it a bad idea to have the meeting at your office."
Hermione nodded "Still, I wish I could just squish the little bug"
Draco chucked softly but then his eyebrows knitted together.
"When you say bug.."
"Yes, I know Rita is an Animagus and I know you know." He felt her sigh against him and snuggle in closer as if she was a cat trying to get comfortable for a nap in the sun.
my little kitten, he thought.
"I found out her secret during the triwizard, held her in a jar until we got to London after term ended."
"You.. You held her in a jar..?" he asked, clearly surprised.
"Yes, in bug form obviously. I charmed the jar so she couldn't transform and .. well I suppose I blackmailed her into not writing about us.. clearly only lasted a few years... "
He stared, dumbfounded, at the top of her head. "You were a worse student than I was"
She laughed loudly at that. "I suppose. We got into quite a bit of mischief" She admitted sleepily.
Draco scoffed, "A bit? More than my lot."
She nodded against his side. "Sometimes you have to break the rules when the other side doesn't bother to follow them."
He nodded. She had a good point. for the greater good suddenly popped into his head. It was then that he realized she did nearly everything for the greater good. Perhaps that's why Kingsley had so eagerly made her minister. Why she was so widely accepted by the wizarding world, despite her being a muggleborn. They saw it too - even the purebloods. She continuously put everything and everyone before herself. If Rita's book and the rumors were true, Dumbledore had acted out of guilt. Of fear that certain events were his fault or due somehow to his mistakes, his weaknesses. He thought it was about him. Hermione, however, was good because she was good. Nothing she did was ever selfish. She had known suffering, by his own family and himself for that matter, and yet she was good. Inherently good. She wanted the best for everyone and everything and if someone didn't have a voice she used hers. Even today, She did what was right.
"Hermione?"He asked softly.
"Hmm?" She responded sleepily.
He shifted so that he could hoist her into his lap. Her legs were over his and her head was resting on his shoulder now. Her breath tickling his neck. Her hand on his chest.
"I do adore you, Hermione." He whispered.
She hummed sleepily again and cuddled into him, wrapping her arm around his middle. "Thank you for being there today. I know it was .. weird. And thanks for calling in Theodore. He did a good job. That made things much easier for us. Although I'm sure some are still unhappy with the result."
"mm" Draco said.
Hermione took a deep breath and Draco felt her shift under his arm. His head had fallen back on the back of the sofa and so he pulled his head up to look at her.
