Bloodlines.
-war of hearts -mercy -ill be good -sweater weather
It felt odd,walking those hallways again.
Her hands grazed the newly repaired walls,an odd sense of relief and calm washing over her as she felt the rough cement under her cold pink was quiet,something these hallways rarely were back in the air smelt like chalk and old wood,which she found pleasing and stingy at the same marble floor was clean and scrubbed dirt free,faintly reflecting her dark robes and bouncy hair.
She was the first student back here, and Harry would be arriving a day later with the rest of the had recieved an early call from McGonagall,
her headgirl duties being sheer excitement and happiness at comming back,a day earlier at that!,had earned her much expected eye rolls from the boys.
"Only mione would be excited for school."Harry had mused.
"And a day earlier at that."Ron provided,stuffing his face with pie.
She strutted down the familiar corridor,feeling rather odd without her truck-heavy duffel bag overflowing with book slung across her gaze went towards the empty portraits,searching for the familair faces,and letting a dissappointed sigh as she realized that maybe she was a bit too early.
But Professor McGonagall had summoned her,and if she was honest,she was excited to be was their last year at had decided to repeat the grade,having spent the previous year mostly fighting or was an honour,as Hermione saw,to be headgirl,a seal,a label on all the hardwork she had put into her studies(Ron had said he'd rather have failed than get more duties because of good grades).
She reached the gargoyle statue,looking at it longingly as she remembered how it was before all that happened, this staircase would lead them to him,his long white beard and half moon spectacles,and gentle,so gentle and warming was gone would never use this office would never be Dumbeldores Office like before.
So much had been lost to avoid losing more,she thought grimly.
"Password."The Gargoyl statue groaned,as if rusty and out of practice.
"Prancingpixie."She spoke at huge stone statue creaked and shook,producing a bit too much sound that one would find pleasant in a student-less empty hallway as it was now,and revealed a set of stairs.
She fixed her robes,patting down her wild hair and giving her heart a jab,for it beat to loudly with excitement and curiosity as she ascended the had talked to Professor McGonagall quite frequently over the past few months over mail,not being able to visit much between being busy with finding her parents and dealing with other had missed many celebratory gatherings while she away to find her wasnt able to help in the repairing of the school like others,as she was out of country for most of it.
She heard her voice before she saw and authoratative with the right amount of when Hermione Granger stood facing her,
the tall elegsnt figure clad in rich black robes,she saw the same McGonagall she had seen when she had enetered Hogwarts for the first time,such a long time seemed like a centuary,another world away,those days.
"Miss Granger."Her voice was gentle, face was curved in a smile,the biggest smile she had seen on McGonagall.
Hermione felt those lean,warm arms wrap around her tightly,engulfing her in a hug,her face burried in the warm material of McGonagalls closed her eyes for a moment,warmth washing over her like a tide,feeling happiness bubling inside eyes stung with tears,but she held them back,as tears of happiness were,per ritual."Professor."She said,her voice cracking just a bit,as she brought her arms around her,and returned the embrace.
It felt like an eternity,hours and decades,as they held each was a big part of her life,a mother-figure when her real mother had no memory of her,a protector,a true friend,a teacher,a was grateful for her and would have traded nothing in the world for this moment with her.
She could feel it,without any words needed to voice knew each others knew the they were glad,so glad that they had won.
They had won but they had lost so would carry their scars,and strive forward in would live on and move on for those who couldnt.
Only when they broke apart did Hermione notice another presence in the room.
She let out a tiny gasp as she stared wide eyed at the silver haired boy sitting quietly at one of the chairs infront of the headmasters desk."Malfoy?"She whispered, was the last place she had expected to see the last six months since the war,she had seen almost every one of the students from hogwarts,around hogsmade,or when they had come to repair the school and the quiditch matches and celebratory malfoy,she had almost forgotten existed.
"Are these your Gryffindor manners?"Snapes voice,cold and stingy as always, yelped,her eyes drifting to the paintings adjacent to the .His hair black and sleek,lips tilted in a scowl,gaze sharp and threatening like she remebered.
Tears welled in her eyes as soon as her eyes drifted to the painting next to . kind eyes twinkling beside his shiny glasses.
"Professor-"She said,unable to hide the longing and sadness in her eyes moved between Dumbeldore and Snape,two great great great men.
"Good to see you,Miss Granger."He had said said nothing,but she knew him knew she had percieved him he wasnt what met the was a man much great and amazing than she had spent her years seeing him as..
"Come a seat."McGonagall said,breaking her out of her daze.
She watched Professor McGonagall sit down at the headmasters chair,which once Albus Dumbeldore eyes involuntarily went towards the cage behind,where his pheonix faux used to sit perched,in all his birdly inisde her twisted,her lips trembling a bit as she cautiously took a seat beside Malfoy,facing McGonagall.
She hadnt failed to noticed how pale and stiff he looked;like a wax doll, face showed no emotion as he nodded curtly in her direction,to which she failed to give a response too in her utter looked so ,this would be where he would have spat something pathetic out his foul mouth.
She wondered why he was here,and suddenly,it hit her!She gasped,loud and unhidden,and stared wide eyed between him and professor McGonagall."Is...
Is HE the headboy?"She could hear the shock and bitterness in her own voice."Malfoy?How..This cant be-"
"She finally did the math."Snape drawled.
McGonagall regarded her with patience,"Mr Malfoy will be the headboy,as chosen by myself."Her tone was neautral."His previous grade records have fairly beaten other options,and he stands not very far from you,Miss Granger,in his scores."
Hermione looked baffled."B-but-"
Behind them,Snape was tsking in irritation,muttering something she couldnt quite register over the buzzing in her was furious!Draco sodding Mafloy!
Of all people!She knew Harry wouldnt be made Headboy because his grades had dropped considerably as the war had had prepared herself for thought it was going to be Seamus or maybe ,even Blaise this!This was absolutely ridiculous!
"It does not do well to dwell on the past.A past you dot know in depth about,at Malfoy has proved himself worthy of this position,and has my full trust and support."Her gaze sweapt over the two heads,"I understand that you both have some past unresolved conflicts,and i am sure,a lot of misundertandings-"
"MISUNDERSTANDINGS?!"Hermione had shreiked,her icy glare fixed at the boy beside her,who refused to look at anything but his holded pale hands on the desk infront."Professor,he's one of 's a DEATHEATER."She saw him flinch slightly at that from the corner of her eyes."He tried to KILL dumbel-"
Behind them,Snapes painting groaned,shaking his head,and walked listened to the conversation intently.
"Miss Granger!"Professor McGonagall had slammed her hand on the desk,silencing her."Enough."Hermione saw McGonagall glance cautiously at Malfoy,
who hadnt blinked an eye.A proud,arrogant rat!."Mr Malfoy is not to be blamed for the has suffered as much as you and had his faith in him,and so did Severus-"
Hermione shrank back in her chair,confused at what to swirled inside . .She hated hated hated hated was a continuos mantra in her was was a bad had never once looked at her without reminding her of her had been a complete git to her since the had brought deatheater to had tried to kill had joined had stood against father-The list just went on and on and was a silver haired pale little packet of foulness.
Her train of thoughts was interrupted as Malfoy suddenly got up from his chair and tuned to face stared at him,eyebrows raised,lips twitching,
prepared to shoot him down with an opposing remark to she loathed him!
But what happened next shocked her speachless.
"Im sorry."
Hermione coughed,astonished."W-what-"She had surely heard him incorrect.
"I apologize,Granger."He repeated,his words as hollow and stiff as tried hard to find spite or irony in his words,but failed to do sounded empty,like he was a hollow log,a bottomless well.
Hermione could form no in Merlins name?
Professor McGonagall,taking her shock and surprise into consideration,smiled faintly at Malfoy,"You may now sit down,Draco."
He looked weary as he obeyed,taking his seat beside Hermione again,and continuing to his stare contest with his pale hands.
The next half an hour went by without either of the two heads saying a word as McGonagall explained their duties,schedules and room arrangements.
It had been decided that the sorting would take place like were told about the teachers,the meetings,how they would have to handle the new students and how they would have to keep an eye for the old year was dedicated to .McGonagall went through everything,
but she knew,she knew as she looked into their eyes that they had barely heard a word she had spoke,both lost in their own worlds.
Hermione looked perplexed,utterly stunned,a small frown playing on her lips as she distractedly stared into Minerva McGonagalls knowing on the other hand-
Draco stood up suddenly,as soon as MCGonagall had finished speaking,and excused himself.
Hermione watched every single step he took as he left the office,her eyes say she would trust a chewed chewinggum with him would be too her,he was nothing,nothing but a pathetic ,how much she wished to hex him,right there and wished Harry and Ron were would agree.
She thought back to when they had saved him in the room of a wasted oppurtunity to ride the worl of was absolutely,
mortifyingly,disgusting.
She was snapped out of her thoughts as McGonagall cleared her throat.
"You reacted quite rashly,Hermione.I would have expected more from you,after everything-"Her tone was calm,collected,but the dissappointment was quite clear.
"Professor,his father-"
"Lucious Malfoy is dead."McGonagalls word hung in the warm air,the fire cackling behind them in the fireplace as a speck of ember floated out.
"What?"Hermione gasped."I heard he was thrown in Azkaban after the war with the rest of the de-"
"Where he remained till he died a week after the war ended."McGongall paused a moment,letting Hermone absorb the new found was surely big news,and had definitely been published and reported,but hermione had been so busy figuring out her own knott of troubles,she had missed it."Narcissa Malfoy now resides out of the Malfoy has been living with since."
Hermione rememebered Narcissa Malfoy,the only person of that surname that didnt make Hermione grit her remebered Harry recounting his visit to the forest,how Narcissa Malfoy had lied for had to admit,it was brave,even if it was her own had risked her neck for harry,whatever the had testified for her,and Narcissa Malfoy was saved from Azkaban and declared free of Narcissa hadnt done what she did that day for them,thhey wouldnt have made it had been the glue to their efforts at some point.
"You must understand Miss Granger,that everything Mr Malfoy did during those times was something maybe you and I would have,perhaps,been compelled never partook in anything unless it was to protect ,unknowingly or knowingly,merlin knows,placed his family in a position of utter not obey the Dark Lord would mean to bring about his own death,as well as his -"Her voice cracked,something so oddly alien on McGonagall."-he deserves a chance."
Ofcourse,Hermione knew,in some dark locked corner of her heart that Draco Malfoy wasnt given the brightest spectrum of was do or die for him,maybe a bit like it was for the clear threat,Malfoy had been unable to do his had failed,not because he lacked the skills,but because he couldnt kill even when everything he had was on line.
But-
"Draco Malfoy is not I assure you Miss Granger,that you will find him a better man."McGonagall sounded pleading,and hermione let it sink in.
"Professor dont you...dont you think-"Hermione spoke carefully,glancing at Dumbeldores portrait,where he stood looking almost still,listening."-the rest of the student-"
"Aah ."McGonagall leaned slightly back,a sad smile playing on her thin lips."I do expect some resistence from the student body on this i believe this years Slytherins will have it Mr Malfoy will ofcourse,given his image,will face difficulty in the position he is put-"
"Everyone hates him."Hermione had said,not in mirth or was a simple statement,a the events of the war, the deatheater incident,she doubted anyone in Hogwarts would want to associate themselves with Malfoy,much less,bear or obey him as a was no way that would work.
"Not more than he himself does."McGonagall said,her voice low,almost a sad turned around to meet Dumbeldores eyes,and something passed between them,unspoken,but loud."Theres so much more than these wall that needed fixing."
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