Salvation

Sorry this took so long to get out. I have a total of 5 chapters written so far not including this one, so I'll be putting those up eventually.

Dinner

When Hermione arrived home after work, and more importantly after lunch, she was met with a site that didn't really surprise her. Ron and Harry were sitting on the couch, not talking - just waiting. She walked in to find the two of them sitting, legs crossed, hands in the laps, waiting. They didn't speak when she first walked on, but stared at her with a gaze that seemed to penetrate her.

"Did he hurt you?" Ron shouted at once.

"What happened?" Harry yelled.

"What did he say?"

"Are you okay?"

"Do you need me to curse him?"

"Are you poisoned?"

Finally, they both yelled, "SAY SOMETHING!"

Hermione laughed, shook her head, and walked out. When she came back, she was out of her work clothes and ready to have a comfortable night at home. If she was going to get the third degree from them, she would at least be comfortable.

"I'm perfectly fine you two," she finally said calmly, after she sat in the couch between the two. "I actually had a wonderful time."

"You have got to be kidding," Ron huffed while setting his glare to the most intense level it could reach.

She sighed heavily. "He took me to a very nice restaurant and we just chatted while enjoying a pleasant meal."

"And what did you talk about?" Harry demanded at once. Maybe he had done wand-less magic on her and she hadn't even realized it. He needed to know every single word Malfoy uttered.

"Whatever came to mind, Harry. There was nothing in particular that stood out." She decided telling Harry about the little spaz attack Draco had would not be a very good idea. There were bigger things to deal with. "And, he's coming to dinner tomorrow night," Hermione added bravely.

"No he's not," Ron said immediately. When he had finished saying it, he even looked surprised he said it. It was a natural reaction.

"Yes, he is," Hermione replied quite forcibly.

"Why?" Harry moaned, knowing Hermione was never going to let them win this argument. He never thought that maybe he just wouldn't show up. He sometimes forgot that he didn't live there.

"Because I think it would be nice for him to have a home-cooked meal with a group of people. And I think it would be good for you two to realize that he isn't a bad person at all. He is a very smart, caring human being now and you need to accept him." Hermione was on a roll. "Even more importantly, we are supposed to be the group that accepts everyone for who they are and don't want to change them. You are not showing that inner strength I know you both have!"

Ron sighed. "You can't just compliment us and hope we agree with you."

Hermione's gaze set to kill and she looked ready to pounce. "If you do anything to stop this dinner, Ronald Weasley, you will be on the couch for a year!" With that she stood straight up and walked off to the kitchen.

Whispering, Ron said to Harry, "You can still mess it up - she can't make you sleep on the couch."

"I heard that!" Hermione yelled from the kitchen. She walked out and had her wand pointed at Harry. "I may not be able to make you sleep on the couch, but I still know more, painful spells than you do. You mess with me and you're going down, Potter." Harry didn't know if he should laugh or cower.

Hermione then regained her composure and let her wand down. "You will be civil or you will be out, that simple." And that was that.

The next day, Harry couldn't control his nerves over what was to come. He was so anxious he was having a hard time focusing at work. And no matter how he tried to make the time go slowly, it seemed the clock was playing a cruel trick on him. In no time he was off work, dressed almost decently, and at Hermione and Ron’s house to wait for hell to unleash itself.

Ron and Harry were sitting on the couch, waiting for dinner. Hermione said they couldn't help with anything, not wanting to risk them trying to poison their guest. They were stuck twiddling their thumbs.

"Has Hermione said why she suddenly wants to be Malfoy's friend?" Harry asked when he was sure Hermione couldn't hear.

"Nope. All she's said is that if he leaves with one hair out of place, she's ripping out all of ours one by one," Ron answered, looking slightly nervous.

"I think your girlfriend has finally lost her mind," Harry whispered while slouching on the couch.

After much fussing and complaining, there was finally a knock on the door. Everyone silently braced for what was to come.

Quickly, Hermione ran to the door and let in the blond. His hands seemed full, but he was smiling. Harry wanted to punch the smile off his face.

"Hello, Draco! It's good to see you," she said while opening the door wider for him to step in. "What's that you have?"

"It's a plant I found," Draco said while holding it up proudly. "It's a rose bush that will never die. You still have to water it to keep it looking well and all, but it can always be revived."

"Draco, that's amazing! Thank you so much!" Hermione said excitedly, while taking the plant and putting it in the middle of the coffee table. Ron and Harry knew she was putting it there just to show them how thoughtful Draco had been.

"Oh, and I figured you two wouldn't be too excited for flowers, so I brought you something, too," Draco said while extending a small paper bag.

Ron and Harry were nudging each other to take it first. Ron finally took it after Hermione had sternly said his name. After opening the bag, a large smile covered Ron's face. "Chocolate Frogs!" he said excitedly.

Harry dove to the bag and took most of them out with one handful. Ron then took them back from his hand and they squabbled a bit over who would get how many. They didn't seem to realize that Draco had brought an even number on purpose... Hermione and Draco simply watched. When the blond looked at Hermione, all she could do was shake her head and sigh.

"Isn't there something you want to say, boys?" Hermione asked.

"Thanks," they both said at the same time, both turning red.

It wasn't long before everyone was seated, Harry, then Ron, then Hermione, then Draco. However, sitting at a round table, it meant that Harry and Draco were sitting right next to each other. All the tension was back within seconds.

Silence consumed the table while the four ate. No one wanted to be the first to start conversation. Finally, at the same time, Draco and Ron both said, "This is great," while looking at her. Then they glared at each other.

Harry thought he was going to scream. Ron ALWAYS said how good it was first and then Harry agreed. It worked like that every day for every meal they shared. How dare Malfoy come in and try and change the order? How DARE he? Harry was trying to not jump across the table and choke the words right out of him.

Needless to say, the tension was back tenfold.

"So," Hermione started. "At lunch, Draco mentioned that he was thinking about teaching at Hogwarts."

Draco turned an odd shade of pink that Harry couldn't help but notice. He hadn't even realized he asked him what subject he was thinking about teaching until Draco answered.

Everyone already had a guess on what Draco was going to say, and it was confirmed when he opened his mouth. "Potions," he said simply.

"Hey, if you're so good at potions, you should make Hermione more pain potion," Harry joked while winking at Hermione. She still hadn't gotten any more. Then he heard Ron's slight gasp and saw Hermione's smile. He had just joked with Draco Malfoy. The world was coming to an end.

"You know, they actually put something in the pain potion you buy that makes you addicted to it. So it cures you just fine, but you can't help but wanting to take it, even when you need it," Draco said while taking a bite of dinner.

"Really?" Harry asked while scratching his head.

"Yeah, I read about it. They can't actually prove it to stop it, but they've watched people absolutely lose it when they didn't get it," Draco informed the table. "If you want, I can show you how to brew the potion properly yourself and then you'll be able to do it by yourself."

Harry, really without thinking, said, "Wow, Malfoy, you're just being way too nice. Did you hit your head?"

Draco threw the napkin down that he was holding and half yelled, "I was on your damn side!"

"Yeah, after you failed at killing Dumbledore and needed somewhere to go," Harry shot back defensively.

"You consider it failing too, do you?" Draco asked dramatically.

"What?" Harry drawled, not really wanting to listen to a rant.

"You aren't the only one that thought I had failed when I didn't kill him. When I went back to the Dark Lord I had to plead just for him to not murder me on the spot! I had to beg to keep my life because I couldn't take another's! Do you know how much blood I had to spill and abuse I had to take to get back in the group just so I could get you the information you so desperately needed?! Do you have any idea what I had to go through just so I could help you!? No! I don't think you do!" Draco wished there weren't witness around so he could brutalize Harry.

There was another tension - only this one was more awkward. Harry felt like an idiot. He really didn't know that. He just always assumed they had welcomed him back. Well, he actually just never thought about it. Harry hadn't noticed all the cuts and bruises and gashes on Draco that refused to heal.

Hermione, needing to break the tension, decided to change the subject quickly. "Draco, did you know the twins are putting a shop in at Hogsmeade? Filch is absolutely livid. He says kids will be wreaking havoc all over the place."

"I swear, those two can wreak havoc thousands of miles away," Draco said lightheartedly. This is why Ron didn't attack him for making fun of his brothers.

Hermione realized this wasn't enough to ease the tension that was still thick in the air. Without thinking, she said, "And did you know Ginny, Ron's little sister, is married to Dean Thomas?"

Ron slapped his palm against his forehead as soon as the words left Hermione's mouth. Draco was smart enough to know that this was a touchy subject to someone, and judging by the process of elimination, it was Harry. Perfect.

"Oh really?" he asked, faking interest. "Wasn't she going out with someone else, though, in school?"

Hermione didn't catch on to what Draco was doing. All she knew was he was in a happier mood. "Well, she was dating Harry, but she said she couldn't wait around all her life for him. Then her and Dean started dating again, you know, they had dated in school for quite some time. One night, out of no where, Dean asked her to marry him. She said yes of course and they were married two months later."

"Didn't she recently graduate?” He wanted this conversation to go on forever. Harry was bright red.

"Yes, it was very quick. Everyone was quite surprised, but she just looked so happy on her wedding day. She was absolutely beaming the entire time." Well, it was true after all.

The tension was back and didn't leave when Draco left. Harry was seeing red. Before running out, slamming the door so hard the house shook, he told Hermione, "You are a terrible dinner host!"

Hermione looked as if she was about to cry when he was gone. She hadn't meant to hurt him - she was just trying to keep them from killing each other. It was the first thing that popped in her head.

"Come on, 'Mione, you know he didn't mean it. You just embarrassed him in front of Malfoy. And you know how much he hates hearing about it in the first place," Ron said while holding her close when they were lying in bed.

"But I wasn't trying to make him feel bad," she replied quietly. "If he cared about her so much, he wouldn't have let her go."

"Maybe, but you still shouldn't have brought it up around Malfoy," was Ron's response.

"Harry just needs to grow up,' Hermione said before falling asleep. Ron was up a little longer, debating if he agreed with his girlfriend or should stick up for his best friend. He decided he would avoid thinking about it and just go to sleep instead.