A/N: So, I had to dig this one up out of my archives. This is an oldie, but still a favorite of mine. It is in two parts. This is the first part. Part two is titled Betrayal Leads to Revenge. I am starting to pull fics from my HPFF account that I loved writing. The others can stay over there since they are rubbish and most of them I have no plans to finish.
Happy reading!
Henny, that lucky Penny!
School crushes.
That is what they were called.
Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger had been forced to live together when they were each selected as Heads. Being as stubborn as they both were, they had refused the offer to live within their Houses. Many believed them completely mad, but they could see what it was.
A pissing contest.
That is what brought a Malfoy and a mudblood together. Their sheer wills to be better than the other. Malfoy to prove what a Malfoy does; prove they are the best. Granger to prove that she was the smartest witch of her age and that she would not, under any circumstances be bested by an arrogant, egotistical pig. This drove the both of them to stay in the Head dormitories.
As they lived together, they became accustomed to one another's actions, their habits and moods. They began, without realizing it, to cooperate without the bickering. They would answer each other civilly. They would go a whole day without name-calling. They may not have seen it, but the student body at Hogwarts certainly did.
Then, one night, Hermione had been acting out of sorts. She was grumpy and irritable. She passed it off as mood swings. Little did she realize she was having a mental breakdown. She had been tolerating a silent treatment from Ron and Harry. Hermione had been okay with it, almost admitted that she might have deserved it, until she was crying out of nowhere. Her screaming and bashing around roused Draco from his room. That night had changed everything.
"All I ever did was try to help them!" I could hear her screaming through my door. "Ignore me will they? Well, fuck that!" I heard a choked sob. "Fuck that." She did not yell this time. At this point, I felt obliged to go see what was happening to my Common Room.
I open my door and an interesting sight is revealed. Glass was shattered all over the place. Little splinters of wood strewn all over the floor. And in the middle of it all, was a weeping Hermione Granger. The sight also amazed me.
Out of all the time we have spent together in the Head Dorms, I have not seen her cry once. Not even sniff. Yet, here she was, amidst all the wreckage, sobbing like there is no tomorrow. Her tiny, skinny frame was shaking violently. Her breathing was ragged and uncontrolled. I felt sympathy. I do not know why, but I felt sympathy.
I carefully walked my way around the debris and sat next to her. She either did not hear me, or did not want to register my presence. So, I placed an arm gently around her shoulders and brought her shaky body close to mine. What she did surprised me. Instead of jerking away, she leaned into me and started to cry on my shoulder. I did the only thing I could do. I held her closer and tighter to give her the support she needed.
"It isn't fair." she murmured into my shirt, "It just is not fair." and she continued to cry.
"Shh." I hushed her gently, "Nothing ever is fair."
All the while I was holding her; I felt her body fit perfectly with mine. And although she was crying and sweaty from tossing things about, she smelt sweet and very feminine. I felt myself jolt with the realization that she was tolerable. I also realized that I had not called her a 'mudblood' in almost two months. My stomach flopped at finding that I did not hate her. I loved Hermione Granger.
As he sat on the floor holding her, Draco had realized what he had done. He had fallen in love with the type of thing he was bred to destroy. He was very aware of the Mark upon his left arm, successfully hidden from anyone who did not need to see it. Including his roommate. And he had intended to keep it that way.
He had brought his concerns to the Dark Lord. Voldemort saw an opportunity arise with this new development. Voldemort had instructed Draco to play along, to string Hermione along. To keep Harry Potter's friend close. As the saying goes, 'Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.'
A few weeks after that night, Hermione had finally come to terms with Ron and Harry, much to the happiness of Lord Voldemort. Now he had a strong connection to Harry Potter, the bane of his existence. Well, since Dumbledore had been murdered anyway.
As the school year had drawn to a close, Hermione and Draco had found a small flat together. Draco claiming that his father and mother had disowned him. They were madly in love with each other. Ginny had seen how much Hermione adored Draco. And that made Ginny happy.
Being one of the few girl friends that Hermione had, Ginny had seen the changes to Hermione that Draco made. In Ginny's eyes, Hermione's life was perfect for her. She had great friends who were there for her, she was madly in love with a man who felt the same towards Hermione and she enjoyed her job. Ginny wanted all that to stay for her best friend.
A year flew by the happy couple. They had talked about marriage and kids. They felt not quite ready yet, but had future plans for both. Ginny was very supportive whilst Harry and Ron were still suspicious of Draco. All the same, they were happy for Hermione because she was happy.
All the while, Draco had gone on secret missions. He was a very active member of the Dark Lords army. His deception to Hermione brought him pangs of pain, but he told himself that he would be able to save her somehow when Lord Voldemort killed off Harry Pothead and all the blood traitors.
When Draco received his instructions on the elimination of his beloved girlfriend, he almost backed away. The Dark Lord saw a flash of unwillingness to comply in the young man's eyes. He turned that right around to complete willingness with a few 'Crucios.' Draco realized he had no choice. He had to kill one of the few things he loved. He had to do it.
So, he mustered all the courage he could, marched to the flat he shared with Hermione and then proposed they meet later that day for a date. Hermione promised to be there, although she did have her suspicions. She had to pretend to go to work. Instead, she fled to Headquarters and asked for a council.
Everyone but Ginny seemed convinced that Draco was up to something. Because Hermione was almost as important in the war as Harry, she was advised not to go. She complied, but Ginny was still unconvinced. She said as much to Hermione, in hopes that Hermione would see it her way and meet with Draco.
"Hermione?" I timidly came up behind Hermione.
"Hmm?" she answered without looking up from one of the many books she had her nose stuck in.
"Why won't you meet with him?" This time, she did look up and her expression was not warm and inviting like it normally is. This time, it was cold.
"Because, although he may say he has renounced his father's ways, I do not believe him. I may love him, but there are times when even lovers have secrets." she saved her page in her book and set it down. "Why are you so concerned?"
"Because you love him." I said plainly. She opened her mouth to say something, but I interrupted her, "He does wonders for you. I've noticed that since you have been with him, you always, not matter what, have a big smile plastered to your face. You have only glowed. You are happy."
She had closed her mouth and looked at me thoughtfully. I stared at her, keeping everything out of my eyes. I was not going to let her see anything I wanted her not to see. She may have been my best friend, but even best friends have secrets. And if I could not convince her, I had a very big secret to keep.
"I rather like living and keeping my safety, thank you." she said to me coldly, "I will not meet him. There was a look about Draco when he came and talked to me. I do not like certain looks. And that look has me suspicious." Hermione dismissed me by picking her book up again and began reading.
I left her silently and hurried to put my plan into action. I would resolve this my own way.
Instead of trying to console her, Hermione called her naive. Ginny did not understand how Hermione could say that she loved someone one minute, then the next say that she did not want to meet him for a friendly meeting. She was baffled. So, while Hermione was on her own little spiel about why she should not meet with Draco, Ginny was thinking of a plan. And that is when she thought of the Polyjuice Potion. The one she knew that was brewing a Headquarters for emergencies. She felt this was an emergency.