Written for Hogwarts Online II October Phobia challenge

Disclaimer. I don't own anything you recognize.

Title: Just a Fear

Your Character: Draco Malfoy

House: Hufflepuff House

Name: Love From A Muggle aka Kara

Draco turned the corner shaking with fear as the moon rose high above the sky. How he wished he was where he wanted to be. Night had fallen quickly as he hurried out of the new Gringotts. The property he once shared with his parents was now going to be bought by the Wizard Bank.

Two years after the War, and Diagon Ally, Hogwarts, and Hogsmeade seemed to have rebuilt itself in what felt like overnight to Draco, even though he knew it wasn't that easy. It seemed to Draco as if everything that once was broken, rebuilt itself within two years. Everything that is, except Draco himself.

Draco still hated shadows. Not just shadows at night, but shadows during the day. Sciophobia. Or Fear of Shadows his psychologist had legally given a technical term for his fear of shadows. An owl hooted in the dark as Draco made his way to The Leaky Cauldron where he was to stay the night before heading back to his new home. Home. What a funny, fickle word. According to Draco, he had no home. For his home, The Malfoy Manor was never his home. It was a place where nightmares came alive. A place where according to The Wizard court appointed psychiatrist, where his fear of shadows started. Court. Another funny word. He hated it. He had to go to Wizard court once the aurors caught his father after the war. He had to testify against his father to try to clear his family's name.

The once Slytherin King jumped as he saw his own shadow at the threshold of The Leaky Cauldron. A snicker from behind made him pull out his wand and turned around. She was staring at him in half shock half amusement. Big brown eyes blinked before speaking.

"Sciophobia?" She stated as a matter of flatly in her know it all tone he always hated. She eyed him as she watched his every move.

"What's it to you Granger?" He barked, already annoyed. All he wanted was a whiskey and bed. Not polite chit chat.

"Your wand is still raised." She pointed out. The obvious. 'Damn. She was really a clever witch.' He admitted to his thoughts as he lowered his wand.

"How can you tell?" He asked. He knew she answered his question already, but wondered if he really could give his fear away. As she continued to watch him, he closed his eyes and remembered his first encounter with her after the war.

Flashback

He pulled her by the arm as he stepped up to her. Harry pulled out his wand protectively and aimed it at Draco's head.

"Put it away Potter. I need a word alone with Granger." Draco growled.

"Let go of my arm Malfoy, and I will consider talking to you." Hermione snapped as she glared her cold eyes towards him. He knew he deserved hatred, especially since she was hurt in his house. Something he would never forget.

"Harry, it's fine. I will only be a moment." Hermione encouraged her friend.

"It better be a moment. If you're not inside the courtroom in five minutes, I'm coming for you." Harry muttered before lowering his wand. He pocketed his wand and glared at Draco once more.

"Scream if you need me." Harry warned before entering the court room.

Once Harry was out of earshot, Hermione hounded on Draco raising her pointer finger at him in his face.

"If you're thinking of asking me to testify and lie that your father's house wasn't where we were when I got this-" she pulled up her left arm and showed him the 'mud blood' engraved on her arm forever watching him flinch. "I'll be a Muggle's wife before I start to lie." Hermione hissed. He had never witnessed her so angry, full of hatred before.

"Granger, I'm asking you to tell EVERYTHING. I'm pleading, no begging, yes Malfoy's do beg. It's rare when we do, but we beg. To tell them everything you saw. If I have other people helping me, he will go to jail." Draco begged her with his silver eyes.

"Why in the bloody hell would I help you?"

"You know, you really are sounding like Weasel," he said her boyfriend's name wrong on purpose, with hate at every vowel.

She opened her mouth, closed it and opened it again. When she couldn't think of anything to say, she lowered her finger.

"Because you hate him too. I can see it in your eyes. You hate him for allowing everything to happen to the famous Golden Trio. You hate him for his sister-in-law killing his old house elf Dobby." He said the elf's name as if he had meaning behind it. Her eyes swelled up with fresh tears as she remembered Dobby.

"Don't you dare speak of Dobby as if you knew him as a friend."

"How do you know he wasn't a friend of mine?"

"Besides, Malfoy, your father is going to jail. You know that. Even if I kept quiet, he'd still be going to jail. Now if you excuse me, I'm wanted in the court room. And so should you." Hermione stuttered the last part, not really knowing if he would follow.

End flashback

Another shiver ran up his spine as he remembered. His eyes locked on hers, knowing she was remembering the moment. Her right arm went to her left and felt where Mudblood was engraved forever.

"I am sorry I didn't help you that night." Draco spoke the truth, but shocked her at the same time. She stepped a few steps back, not really knowing what to do.

"Malfoys are never sorry." Hermione stated when she finally could speak.

"Yes, we are. We just don't say it enough. I had my reputation to think about, no that's a lie. My father was a horrible man. If I didn't do his bidding, I'd hear for it later. In the dark."

"Of the shadows." she finished the sentence. He was closer to her now. This time, he didn't flinch once he stepped in the shadows where she stood, alone.

"Where's Weasel tonight?" He asked as he realized she was alone for the first time.

"I don't know. I'm not his keeper. I accept your apology, but Malfoy, nothing could ever happen between us."

Draco moved out of the shadows in the light when he realized he was in the shadows. He hadn't amid for anything to happen at all. That was not his intention.

"I didn't plan on anything to happen. Can't we go inside and talk? I'd prefer to talk inside, away from shadows." He shuddered as he glanced around her, not knowing what was close to him in the dark.

"Malfoy, not all bad things happen in the dark. You have to learn to overcome your fear. I did." She hadn't meant to say his last part.

"What fear was yours?" he asked. He watched her bite her lower lip before she spoke.

"The fear of falling in love." Hermione stated.

"Philophobia" Draco whispered as he recognized the definition. He surprised himself for he remembered his mother talking about it. She stared at him with a surprised look.

"Yes," she answered the stare he gave her.

"We could both overcome our fears."

"How?"

He took her in the shadows, and kissed her lightly. He didn't know where this was coming from all of a sudden, but knew he had to have her right then and there. When he was done kissing her, he stepped out of the shadows.

"Maybe shadows aren't so bad after all. If I could be proven wrong about it, I'll give it another chance." He winked at her, knowing he had caught her with surprise.

"I could learn to love again. But if you break my heart, there will be hell to pay. Weasley broke it, I won't let anyone else break it again."

"In secret, under the shadows we could be lovers." Draco felt himself say the words before he could stop them.

"It has to be in secret. Only in secret."

Under the shadows, he slowly overcame his fear as she did the same. When he kissed her once more, they separated momentarily as they each walked in The Leaky Cauldren at different times not wanting to be seen together. In the shadows, they came together giving each other what they needed the most which was to get rid of their fears.

One Shot/complete.