A/N: This is my first Harry Potter fic, so any reviews would be very much appreciated. I hope I've done both characters justice. I would also like to give a special mention to AmoRay, who gave me so much help and guidance with this fic, I feel as though its as much hers as it is mine. Thanks so much, I hope you along with everyone else enjoy it.
Mayhem has broken out once again. Teachers and students of Hogwarts, along with the remaining members of the Order of the Phoenix were fiercely duelling the numerous Death Eaters that had charged into the Great Hall on the order of their Dark Lord. Hermione had not yet entered the Great Hall to carry on her role in the battle. She really didn't see the point. Harry, the one hope they had of defeating Voldemort, was now dead. While taking a split-second to compose herself, she realised that too many of her friends had already lost their lives for her too give up now. She charged forward, but her attempts to re-enter the battle were halted when she crashed into another woman.
As Hermione opened her eyes, she quickly scanned the woman she had run into. She had long blonde hair, which had black streaks in it. Her hair was unbelievably neat, considering there was a battle going on around them. The woman has smooth porcelain skin, which was greatly complemented by her immaculate hair, and crystal blue eyes. As Hermione's chocolate brown eyes connected with the clear blue, she felt everything else slip into oblivion for a moment. It was only as she fell into those eyes that she realised she has seen them before. They were the eyes of Narcissa Malfoy.
"Oh, Mrs Malfoy, sorry about that, but, I really have to go," rambled Hermione. She couldn't believe she was apologizing to Narcissa Malfoy, a woman who had no toleration for her or her 'kind' when at this very moment more of her loved ones could be losing their lives.
"My son, have you seen my son?" asked Narcissa; barely even aware of who she was talking to.
"Malf…Draco is still in the castle, most probably in the Great Hall," answered Hermione, finding herself feeling concerned for Draco, as well as the well-being of his mother. "Mrs Malfoy, did you hear me? Draco is most likely in the Great Hall. Now, I really must go, I have to help." Hermione wasn't even sure she was being heard. Mrs Malfoy was merely staring into the Great Hall.
"Thank you Miss Granger, I will not forget this," said Narcissa in a surprisingly calm voice, before she withdrew her wand from her robes and walked briskly into the Great Hall.
It was over. The battle has been won. Harry, after finally revealing himself to be alive, had triumphed over Voldemort.
Hermione now sat with her friends in the Great Hall, attempting to collect her thoughts. As she looked around the Hall, her eyes came to rest on Narcissa Malfoy, who was sitting with her husband and son in the far corner of the Hall, away from the rest of the survivors. Her hair was no longer in the immaculate shape it had been during their encounter outside of the Great Hall. She was holding her son close to her, while Lucius Malfoy simply stared at the ground, obviously trying to ensure he did not catch anyone's attention.
Without being fully aware of what she was doing, Hermione stood up and began to walk towards the 3 Malfoys. As she moved closer to her destination, she began to lose her nerve.
"Come on Granger, you've just survived a war, you can walk over and speak to the Malfoys," she said to herself, willing herself to keep moving.
As she reached them, Hermione saw Lucius raise his eyes to meet hers. As he saw who had walked over to them, Hermione saw his eyes narrow and his brow furrow. It was clear from this expression that he still thought Hermione was below him, and merely a 'mudblood'. Hermione found herself not caring though, as she directed her gaze at the older witch sitting in front of her. As crystal blue met chocolate brown for the second time that night, Hermione, once again, found herself falling into oblivion, as she was swallowed up by the blue eyes of Narcissa Malfoy.
"I… I just want to thank you Mrs Malfoy, for what you did for Harry in the forest. If it wasn't for you, the outcome of this war would most definitely not have been the same," stated Hermione. As she said this, she felt someone come to stand beside her. She turned her head and saw that Harry had joined the four of them.
"Hermione obviously read my mind when she came over here. I'd also like you Mrs Malfoy for what you did. No matter what your reasoning was, I appreciate your bravery in lying to Voldemort about me being dead. I won't forget about this," said Harry, speaking loudly and clearly, allowing the rest of the people in the Great Hall to hear what he was saying. Following his declaration, Harry gave Narcissa a small smile and nod, before simply walking away to re-join the Weasley's.
Following Harry's departure, Hermione also began to turn away from the Malfoy's, but was stopped from walking away when Narcissa stood up and held her hand out to Hermione.
"And I want like to thank you again Miss Granger for your help outside the Great Hall earlier this evening," she said, waiting for Hermione to shake her hand.
As Hermione timidly took Narcissa's hand in her own, Hermione felt the most peculiar feeling. She felt the warmth from Narcissa's hand move into her own and all the way up her arm. She had never experienced anything like it. Ron's touch had never given her this feeling. As she quickly removed her hand from Narcissa's grip, Hermione felt her cheeks turn red. She quickly turned around and finally made her way back to Harry and the Weasley's, feeling more confused than she had before she approached the Malfoy's in the first place…
A/N: Well, there you go. Hope you liked it – please review! This is the first fic in a series of Hermione/Naricssa stories, although it could stand alone. The sequel to this has not yet been written, and I am currently undecided as to whether it will be a one-shot or 2 or 3 chapters long. But, back to this fic, another huge thank you to AmoRay for all her help, and once again, please review.