Relationship: Draco Malfoy/Hermione Granger.
Rating: T.
Warning: Character Death.
Disclaimer: The only thing I own out of this is my thought process and characters that I may have made out of a whim. Everything else belongs to their original creators.
Summary: He was always told, that he was the villain of this story, a follower of the impending darkness. But not everything is black and white, and even a villain can find it in himself to be a hero.
Light and Dark, Black and White.
Selfish; Caring supremely or unduly for ones self; regarding ones own comfort,
advantage, etc., in disregard, or at the expense, of those of others.
He threw down the book he was absently flicking through the pages of, disgusted by it's meaning. But of course, it was true.
After all; Books never lie.
In all the muggle fairy tales, there was always the damsel in distress, the princess that needed saving and the glorious prince that rode up on a brilliant white steed, wearing armour that shined brighter than the moon and stars. He rescued the princess and they lived happily ever after. The villain always being slain and then, forgotten into the depths of fables and myth, lost until the story was read once again.
That's what he was in all of this, the villain in this unseemly fairytale and she was the princess he wished he could save.
He watched her across the great hall, the way her vibrant curls bounced with volume and the expressions that flickered across her face, ranging from pure joy to irritated by most of the pranks played by the Weasley twins, but he could tolerate them to be in her presence. He memorised her expressions, and daily there would be new ones to replace those he'd memorised yesterday. Anxiety waiting for test results, the cute way she bit down on her lip when she was worried, and surprise followed by confusion when she realised that he watches her.
He was completely enthralled by her every movement, the way her face scrunched in concentration while she was studying some new spell or potion, the way she smiled when she got something right, the way she would glance his way when she noticed him watching; not in anger but in confusion. Like the one thing she couldn't seem to figure out was this unending, constant fascination with her. To be completely honest, he couldn't even begin to comprehend it, himself.
All throughout his life, he was taught that blood purity is everything. If it isn't pure, it isn't worth having and it definitely didn't belong in the realms of perfection. When he is alone, he ponders this statement, as she is the furthest from being pure-blooded in the magical world as she could possibly be. Eventually he realises that everything he was taught about being a Malfoy was wrong, because if a muggle born witch can do all of the things that she does almost instinctively, then there is no point in blood purity. He'd remember his father's teachings, that mudbloods were no different to the magical creatures that grovelled at their feet. But she wasn't like that, oh no. The few times he'd try to enforce that, gain some control in the situations he put himself in, she stood straight and tall under his gaze. One time, she even had the nerve to punch him!
In school, his attraction was only stealing glances of her and memorising all the details of the smallest things, like how her hair glowed in certain light or the way her eyes shined when she was excited. All those little things that he wasn't supposed to notice and yet he couldn't help himself. He was selfish, and he wanted her for himself but he knew that he didn't have the courage to take her. She was muggle-born, she was supposed to be beneath him.
Then came war, where time ceased to matter, whether it crawled by or moved exceeding fast toward a final confrontation. But, always, he watched her from afar. The branded mark on his arm a constant reminder that he lacked the constant vigilance needed to survive through this, and a reminder that no matter what he did, he still couldn't have her. She was a third of what made up the Golden Trio, fighting to end the Dark Lord's reign of terror. All the while, all that he was destined to be was just another masked man in the ocean that was the Dark Lord's cronies and companions.
He fought, and killed, stunned where he was able, to make his way to her on the battlefield. She was glorious, like a true Lioness fighting for her life, her pride, and their future. It was after seeing this, that he realised; this is why the villain in all the stories is forgotten. The darkness will always be temporary, like the night fading away so that the sun will rise. But even if the darkest of nights, there are stars and while they were fighting this battle against the night, there was still hope. The Golden Trio were the stars that could light the way for the future.
His eyes met hers and held, it seemed like time ceased to exist, just for that moment. They needed no words, he walked forward in the midst of chaos and pulled her to him. The princess he was forbidden to have felt perfect in his arms and he knew that this moment would last him for eternity, he wasn't as alone as he always felt. He realised then, that feeling alone could have given him a world-class patronus. He leaned down and kissed her softly, ready to pull away if she resisted, and within seconds it was over and he was a new person, with a mission of his own to fulfill. He released the princess from his personal fairytale and looked down at her. "Thank you" he said, right before he turned and fought his way through the unending chaos, killing his former comrades as he went.
His brand new sense of purpose and determination led him to the final confrontation, where the Dark Lord and the 'Chosen One' were duelling, the not quite human embodiment of darkness, and the star that shone brighter than the rest, the Boy Who Lived. They were both fighting for a future of their choice, but neither can live while the other survives, and both of them couldn't exist in the same future. Voldemort, formerly Tom Riddle Jr, found an opening and launched a spectacularly green 'Avada Kedavra', and without thinking about it, knowing what he needed to do. The former villain threw himself in front of Harry Potter, taking the curse for him and giving Harry a chance to not only push back the darkness, but to defeat it, once and for all.
The war came down to it's final conclusion and former Death Eater, Draco Malfoy, watched from above as his beloved Gryffindor Princess found his body amoungst the defenders. Knowing what he had sacrificed, and knowing that he did it for her, she cried softly over his still form while Harry and a throng of red-headed Weasleys watched on.
Harry Potter, the saviour of the Wizarding world was left to explain that while Draco Malfoy was wearing the robes of a Death Eater, he had, at the last moment repented his sins and changed sides and in this man's sacrifice, the darkness had threatened to swallow them whole, had broken to dawn. It was proof that not everything was Light and Dark, Black and White.
He was the villain that turned hero, the true saviour of the Wizarding world.
The book is now closed, and his fairy tale is now over.
A/N:I originally posted this fanfiction in February 2009. I have since re-read, revised, and retitled it. I happily accept constructive criticism, and would love to hear your thoughts in a review.