The Sweetest Downfall

Fire and Ice

After her first year as an Auror, Harry entered her office one afternoon to inform her that she was finally getting a partner. She was thoroughly excited about the idea, she'd constantly felt lonely without one, but she had agreed to hold off until the Department found her someone capable of keeping up with her. She was not just another Auror, her muggle degree in criminal psychology made her an asset, but that meant that her excellent mind needed a partner to match it. Her surprise came when Harry announced that someone equally skilled and intelligent, alike her, was none other than Draco Malfoy himself.

Considering who they were, fire and ice, winter and summer, the first few months of their partnership was a complete disaster. Things were broken, insults were thrown, hexes were cast, and they both quit their jobs several times. Eventually, after a very awkward and intense meeting with Kingsley Shacklebolt, both agreed to put aside their differences for the sake of their civilians. Though she vowed to honor her duty as an Auror, Hermione couldn't help but still see Malfoy as nothing else than a conniving and cruel git. She later went on to find, as he surprisingly respected their pact to be civil, that he only retaliated against her as a means to defend himself. He didn't tell her that directly, of course, but she noticed it in his behavior. When she stopped provoking him, he was quiet and did his work ethically, impressively, and seriously. He kept to himself mostly, or only associated with those who wanted to associate with him, and was polite to the others. Little by little, she eased her, ironically, bigoted perceptions of him.

Though they could never identify themselves as friends, their partnership became tolerable and quite amicable on their third year of working together. They would sit together on occasions in the cafeteria, chatting about a case mostly, or they would head off to a small cafe around the corner of the Ministry. Soon after, their conversations were not entirely work related, but they (she) opened up a tiny bit. She shared things with him, like her favorite book, painting, ice cream, and holiday location. Sometimes, when nights were long and the stress was insane, she rambled on and on and he'd listen to every single word without an insult or complaint.

Though she was the one who spoke a lot, she did get to know more about him through his patterns. Surprisingly, he was a gentleman: he held the door for her whenever they entered or left a building, let her borrow his cloak whenever she foolishly forgot hers during a raid, and often waited for her to Floo home first after a long night in the Ministry together. His favorite color was grey, not a shocker considering the unique hue of his eyes and his time as a Slytherin; he constantly wore the color on either his ties, socks, or button-ups. When it was cold, he became increasingly silent; he tended to look out the window and lose himself in thought. And when it rained, when there was lightning in the sky, fear and remorse plagued his essence. But on those rare, warm British days, he glowed like the sun and she dared herself to think him beautiful.

The night her mobile rang and she answered the call to learn that her parents had died, he was the one with her. They'd been locked in his office, swamped with paperwork for a case they had to present to the Wizengamot the following morning, and he heard it all. He heard the first gasp and saw her break into waves of sobs and uncontrollable shaking. Everything was drowning in pain, so she didn't really realize that he gathered her into his arms and held on tightly. She vaguely remembered his hand rubbing soothing circles on her back and his silence being eaten by her cries.

Two weeks after that awful night, after growing tired of being secluded in her flat and being smothered by her friends, she returned to work. She hated the pity in everyone's eyes, their constant questioning on how she was, or their offering of a shoulder to cry on, but she didn't get that with him. She didn't expect Malfoy to be smothering at all, so she really appreciated when he brought a new case to her office and gave her the heaviest part of it. He sat down on one of her chairs and said, 'well, get on with it, Granger. We've got a murderer to catch.'