It was over. After four long years, the war was finally over, but the horror that it left this generation was just beginning.

About two years into the war, Draco Malfoy defected from the dark side and set out to help the light. Although he was met with some resistance, he was a Death Eater at one point after all, Draco found himself employed at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, fourth floor, spell damage.

He woke up on Monday morning, after a restful yet lonely weekend. He found that most of his friends disserted him, even after what he thought was extreme devoted loyalty during Hogwarts. He hadn't heard from Pansy, who wouldn't leave him alone back at school, sense he deflected. And Goyle, Draco didn't understand how he was functioning, he had lost Crabbe and even when his partner was there, he seemed lost without some direction from Draco. He didn't miss them, however, and with the understanding that his decision was the right one, he pushed himself through his tedious morning routine, dressed in his robes and apparated to the hospital.

Once there, he greeted the witch at information desk, more out of pleasantries then anything. She was an awful woman in his opinion. Despite her position in customer service, she was not a people person. He made his way up to the staircases until he arrived at the desired floor.

"Morning Healer Saluscura" Kica Saluscura was the head of spell damage. She was a plump old women with a Scottish accent who Draco could imagine being a very good mother at one time. During his time at the hospital, she had become like a mentor him, a mother figure that he actually sought out and received warmth from.

Instead of her usually cheerful response back however, the older healer looked at him grimly. "A tough one at that. Some Aurors raided an old Death Eater's home. Found twenty. Twelve men, eight women. Well, more like kids. Its bloody awful, those heartless bastards if you ask me. Only six were still alive, and only four survived the night. I assigned you to one of them, room 413. It's going to be a little more than just a little potion work. Good luck, hun."

It was times like these where Draco knew he had made the right move. He didn't understand how people could be so awful. He didn't understand how he could have been so awful.

Draco walked down the halls until he found the room he was looking for. Number 413. He rapped his knuckles on the door in three quick movements before he opened it revealing an almost pitch black room.

He pulled out his wand, muttering Lumos, and pointed it at the patient. He was shocked at what he found. Their back was turned away from him and he could easily make out the ribs and spine, even through the dressing gown. They were coated in a thick layer of dried dirt and mud and could tell by the matted brown curls that this was one of the unfortunate women stuck at the death eater's home. Kica was right though, she was more of a kid than a woman.

"Hello," he said, breaking the eerie silence and introducing himself, "I'm going to be your healer. My name is Draco Malfoy. Do you mind if open up the curtains?" He walked to the other side of the girl and gestured to the window. He looked at her for a moment, her eyes were open but she wasn't making a move to look at him or to respond to his question, so he pulled open the black fabric letting in a stream of light.

Now that he could properly see, he pocketed his wand and looked back to the girl. He was utterly surprised, that underneath all the dirt, a broken Hermione Granger was laying in the hospital bed.

"Granger?" Even against the circumstances, Draco couldn't help but saying her surname in that cold harsh tone from school. When her eyes shot up to connect with his, he couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. All he saw was fear.

She didn't say anything, but just kept her eyes locked on his. Even after all the innocent people he tortured during his short reign as a death eater, he had never seen such terror filled eyes.

"Here, let me help you." He said in what he hoped was a much more warm voice. He had yet to master being kind, but he still gave it his best shot. He wasn't a Hufflepuff after all, and it took some effort. He pulled out his wand. Hermione's eyes fallowed his actions and they squeezed shut as her whole body tensed up in anticipation. Draco heard her let out soft whimpers. He looked back down at her. His stomach dropped as he realized her actions were out of fear of him.

"Shh, it's okay." He had some practice with comforting others since working at St. Mungo's, but he still felt that he was pretty bad at it, and soothing someone he used to verbal tortured would never be far from awkward. "I just want to clean you up a bit. I'm not going to hurt you. I promise. Is that okay?"

Her body didn't seem to relax any, but she opened up her eyes and nodded her head, keeping her eyes downcast.

"Scourgify." All the dirt left her body, but her skin was still sprinkled with bruises. The flesh that was not discolored by the offending marks was pale enough to revile his own. "Alright, do you mind if I heal up some of these bruises?" He received the same response as last time and set to work on ridding her of her visual injuries.

Letting out a sigh when he was finished, he glanced back up to her face. She looked much more relaxed than before, and although her eyes still had traces of fear she already looked much better.

"Right…" This was awkward for him. That was hard to deny. Kica must have known she had assigned him Granger. How she thought that was a good idea was beyond him. He looked to her as a mentor, and had spent plenty of time telling her how he was downright awful to the golden trio during his school years. He was definitely going to have a word with her after he leaves Hermione's room.

"I've healed all that I could based on what I could tell you have suffered. In order for me to do any further treatment, I'm going to have to know a little more." He watched as she shut her eyes in a grimace. He could tell that she didn't want to have to recount any of the horrors he was sure she went through. He could remember how awful his father's prisoners were treated. If it was anything like that he wasn't so sure he wanted to hear her tell him either. He felt a pang at having to bring that subject back up to her. He was sure she just wanted to rest and get back in touch with what was reality.

"I understand if you don't really want to talk about it right now. The important thing right now is that we start working on your weight. You are severely underweight. I am going to talk to the kitchen staff," he purposely ignored the fact that the kitchen was staffed by house elves. He remembered her S.P.E.W. pamphlets thrown around the great hall. "about a food plan for you."

He also didn't want to concern her with her treatment, but he recalled how she reacted to his attempt at simple healing charms. He felt that it was important for her to know what he was going to do to her while she was at the hospital.

"I know it's going to be hard for you, but if you are going to get better, which I'm going to make damn sure happens; I need your help too." He waited for some kind of response to know that she understood before she gave him a curt nod. He was really wishing she would start to use her words, but was thankful he was at least getting this.

"I'll leave you to rest. There will be some food here for you in a minute. Please make sure you eat it all. If you have any problems, don't hesitate to buzz me," he pointed to a small red button on the wall near her bed, "and I'll come running to help."

He started to make his way to the door when he stopped and thought of something. "Is there anyone you want me to tell that you are okay? Family, friends?"

Another nod.

"Who?" He asked her. He hoped she would finally open up and speak with his more open ended questions, but she remained quiet. Sighing he offered the best he could do. "I'll contact Potter for you. Will he be able to get in contact with Weasley and your family?" She gave her usual reply and Draco made his way back into the busy hallway of the fourth floor heading towards the kitchen.

The kitchen at St. Mungo's was underground the hospital and housed more than a hundred house elves. He walked into the crowed place and cleared his throat, hoping to draw the attention of at least one of the passing elves.

Instantly, around two hundred pairs of tennis ball shaped eyes looked at him, all looking eager to help.

Feeling uncomfortable, he cleared his throat again. "Uh, I was wondering if I could talk to one of you about one of my patient's meal plan."

One of the house elves closes to him to a step towards him. "Which patient, sirs?" Draco told him the floor and room number. "Domus will be ables to help yous, Sirs."

A rather small looking house elf with the typical pillow case type clothing stepped forward. She lead Draco over to a bench were he then informed her about his plans of the food going to room 413 on the fourth floor.

He didn't really understand why he was being so involved with this patient. He would never stoop so low as to consult the house elves on a patient's meal plan, but for some odd reason, Draco felt something in him that made him want to go out of his way to help Hermione. He didn't know if he liked it.

Putting that thought behind him, he left the kitchens and headed straight to his office to use the Floo Network to contact Potter. Even though Draco deserted Voldemort's ways in support of Harry Potter's side, he didn't necessary like Harry himself.

It seemed as though he was going to be put in all kind of uncomfortable situations today.

At least I don't have to talk to the Weasel. He thought grimly.

He threw in some Floo powder calling out the Ministry of Magic, Harry Potter's office as he did. He stepped out of Harry's fireplace and started to dust himself off.

"Malfoy, what the hell are you doing here?" Draco's head shot up from his self-grooming to see Harry Potter with his wand aimed straight at Draco's chest.

"Oh calm down, Saint Potter." He sneered. "I switched sides over two years ago and I haven't done a single thing to make anyone question it. And put your wand away, honestly, if I was going to attack you I'd have my wand drawn and have been a little quieter with my entrance. I guess being head Auror doesn't require brains."

"Did you come all this way to insult me, Malfoy?" His face was still hard with anger, but he grumpily put his wand away.

"It was one of my favorite past times, but no. This isn't just a cozy visit for some tea." He sighed, running a hand through his white locks. He didn't want to exactly be the one to tell Potter of the bad news.

"What is it?" Harry asked him, expressing some concern. It wasn't often he saw Draco Malfoy at all, but out of all the times he had, he had never seen him so frustrated.

Draco let out a sigh. He might as well get it over with. "It's Granger." With concern for his best friend, Harry lunged at Draco, slamming him into the wall with his wand out again, this time poking Draco in the throat.

"What did you do to her, you slimy little ferret."

Draco was getting frustrated now. He didn't understand why he was even here in the first place. He cared about his patients and loved his job, but he never went as far as seeking out their friends or family for them or going down into the kitchen to make sure they had the right nourishments, and he would never risked being attacked for his own mother, let alone a patient.

"Fuck this; this is why I don't try to do nice things for your lot. Always so quick to assume." He mumbled under his breath. He hoped that Harry didn't hear him, but based on his confused expression he probably did.

"I bloody told you," he said louder this time, with intentions of Harry hearing every word, "I am on your side, damn it!" He gritted his teeth and shoved Potter away from him.

With a calming breath, he tried to tell Harry what he had originally come there to say. "I got to the hospital today, Scarhead, and was told of some new patients that have been locked in some damn Death Eater's home, probably being tortured within inches of their life. Hell, over half of them were already dead when some Aurors got there. For fucks sake, you should know what happened; you're the head of the whole group. Anyways, I was assigned to look after one of the patients, and guess, to my surprise, who it was, my dear Potter."

Harry's face was soon overcome with unwanted understanding. "No. No, no, no." He muttered. He fell back into a chair covering his face with his hands. "Please, tell me, Hermione wasn't one of them?"

"Yeah, she was."

Harry let out a strangled cry. "Oh God. She was supposed to be in Australia and safe. She's been gone for at least nine months. How long was she…was she there?"

"I don't know. She won't talk. I've healed all her external wounds, and worked on a way to put some meat onto those bones, she looks awful. Broken." He paused and looked at Harry again. It was obvious he needed some comforting, so as Draco does best, he tried to leave as soon as possible. "Yeah well, she didn't tell me exactly, but she wants you to contact her family and Weasley King and probably go see her. So, I've delivered my message. Bye."

Draco grabbed a handle of Floo powder, about to say the address of his own office when Harry spoke.

"Thank you. Malfoy. For telling me. You didn't have to do that."

"Yeah, well next time get of your high horse and don't attack me. You're lucky I didn't just leave then and there."

He didn't give Harry and chance to respond, but instead went back to St. Mungo's in search of Kica. He needed a word with the old healer.

On his way to her office, Draco thought about what he had said to Potter. Why didn't he just leave as soon as the wand was thrust into his throat? He didn't like how much his new patient was affecting him.

When Draco didn't find her in her office, he started to wonder the halls in search of Kica. He finally found Healer Saluscura when she was leaving one of her patients' rooms. "Healer, may I have a word with you." The old witch turned to him, already somewhat aware of what Draco needed to talk about, and gestured him to follow her to her office.

"What is it, dear?" She asked, her Scottish coming in thick. She knew that Draco cared a lot about her, even though he would never admit it, and hoped that she didn't mess up too bad with him when she assigned him to Hermione Granger, because she cared about him too.

"It's about that patient you assigned me. You knew it was Granger. Why did you do it?" He wasn't in the mood for small talk. His meeting with Potter and the realization that he was going out of his way for a patient, Hermione Granger no less had pissed him off.

"Always one to cut to the chase," She let out a sigh, trying to sort through what she wanted to tell Draco. "I thought it would be good." She saw his face draw into a deeper scowl, so she elaborated. "For the both of you really. From what you tell me, you are not the same little ass from Hogwarts. I think it would be good for you to see that."

"I'm well aware that I'm not the same boy I was at school. I don't see how this situation is going to improve anything" He didn't see how dealing with Hermione and her fan boys would help him anymore. As far as he was concerned, he didn't really need much help. His face softened at her indirect complement however, but he was still angry.

"Well, you aren't the same boy around new people. How many people have you interacted with that you went to school with since you've changed?" After some thought, Draco realized she had a point. He hadn't seen practically anybody from Hogwarts sense he defected. "I'm guessing not many. I feel like this is a good opportunity to show yourself that you can act like that changed young man in front of those who only know you as that git."

Although he didn't want to admit it, it made sense. He just saw firsthand that he quickly reverted back to his old self when near his former classmate. "And how is this supposed to help her?"

"Well, you see, you will just have to find out later." She gave him an all knowing type of smile and a wink that only served to make him angrier.

He scoffed at her, dissatisfied with the conversation, and left her office.

He visited a couple of other patients, working to reverse hexes and jinxes that seemed miniscule to the spell damage done to his first patient of the day. He couldn't help but think about her through the rest of the evening.

Just before he was going to head to his flat for the night, he stopped by Hermione's room again. He knocked on her door and pushed it open.

"Hello, it's Healer Malfoy again. I just wanted to check up on you before I head home." He walked over to her. There were already two empty trays next to her bed that had shown that both the house elves and she had done what he asked. He couldn't help but notice she already look somewhat better.

"The buzzer still works, if you need anything, I'll be able to receive your call from my flat. I'll apparate back here if necessary." She nodded her head in acknowledgement. "And I stopped by Potter's; he said that he would talk to your friends. I imagine they will make a trip to come visit you soon."

He didn't know what else to do, so he made his way to the door again. "Do you need anything?" She shook her head no. "Alright then, night Granger." Her surname didn't seem to have the same malice as it did last time.

He shut her door and apparated home. Although it wasn't at all that late, Draco ate a quick dinner and then went to bed. That night he couldn't help but dream of a broken brown eyed girl.

AN: Its my first time publish a story, so let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!