For The Will Of It, Part 2

Chapter 1: History

By pantheradraconis

"Ah, Granger, there you are. I have been looking all over this castle trying to find you. I looked in the dungeons, the great hall, the Quidditch field, everywhere! Who would have thought you'd be studying in the library." Draco's smooth sarcasm barely made the brunette flinch.

"Oh no, poor Malfoy. Having to walk around everywhere trying to find me. How will I survive with this guilt." She turned the page of her potions book trying to figure out how Harry came to the conclusion to add a mustard seed instead of six of the steps listed in her directions. Half-Blood Prince or not, you can't just ignore half the potion.

Realizing he wasn't getting the attention he deserved, Draco sat across from the Gryffindor and cleared his throat loudly enough for the librarian to shush him. Hermione continued to ignore him easily; it seems her years of attempted studying with Ron and Harry had paid off, she could now ignore anyone.

Seeing that all his normal efforts towards getting Hermione's attention would fail, Draco decided an unexpected approach. In a hushed tone, appropriate for a library, Draco said, "Excuse me dear Hermione, wisest of wise in Hogwarts. I find myself in need of your ever patient, ever diligent, ever knowing brain." Hermione finally looked up and eyed Draco cautiously. Although she found herself approving of Harry and Draco's relationship, she still wasn't sure if she trusted the young Slytherin in front of her. Draco decided to continue. "I've found myself very happily in a relationship with your best friend, but seeing that I'm not used to... Well, I'm not used to dating a guy, I don't know what would be an appropriate idea of a date. I also don't think Harry would be quite as excited about a fancy restaurant, followed by a walk in the park and me trying to get up a slightly drunk girl's shirt." Hermione frowned. "Now wait and listen. I'm saying that I want better for Harry. I don't have the best history of being romantic. I was mostly just looking for approval from my friends. I'm a guy, it's what's to be expected. I'm also a Slytherin, being with the best Pureblood girls and getting the farthest is expected. Harry... he's shown me that I don't need to be what's expected of me, how do I show him that I understand?"

By the end of his speech, the blond was very apprehensive of what type of reaction he'd get from the Gryffindor. If it had been a Slytherin girl, she probably would have laughed and told him to just shag the boy. Although that idea had passed Draco's mind, many a night, it wasn't what he was trying to do. At least not for this date. They'd only been going out for a month and the few times they'd gone on "dates" had simply been short trips to Hogsmeade and getting away from their friends to have a butterbeer together. Draco mostly just wanted to bring Harry on as special a date as their first had been.

Hermione allowed a small smile to break from her lips and a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding, slip out. "I guess you really do like Harry. Now you really can't be surprised that I would think you'd have ulterior motives, even after all this time. It's good to know your intentions are pure." Draco smirked at the word 'pure' but Hermione simply ignored her mis-choice of words. "Harry is simple, that's probably why you're having so many problems thinking of what to do for him. You're right that he wouldn't really care about how much money you spent on the date. In fact, he'd probably like you more if you could do something that's free. Having Ron as a best friend makes it difficult for Harry to spend a lot of money. He also grew up poor, so I guess he just doesn't think of money as important. That's probably really weird to you, but just remember, you chose him! Now as for something simple and free."

Hermione started to ponder about dream dates she and her female friends had discussed growing up. There were many simple things to do, like walk in the park... without the groping that is. They could do something having to do with Quidditch, maybe go to see a match, or practice, meet the team. She was sure Draco could make that happen. But it just didn't seem right. There was a certain amount of, dare she say it, intimacy that was missing from it.

"History." The brunette stated, an invisible light bulb above her head.

"I'm sorry?"

Giggling, Hermione replied, "You two have history. And the past is very important to Harry. He holds onto his friends because of what we've been through, he holds onto Professor Dumbledore and Sirius and Hagrid because of their friendships with his parents. History. Out of everyone in Hogwarts Harry has held only two relationships longer than the one he holds with you. Now, while Hagrid and Ron were certainly friendship, the interaction between the two of you was always constant. Always important. Always at the forefront of Harry's mind."

Draco let that theory set in his mind a bit. "Okay, that's true. But what does that have to do with a date?"

Hermione sighed, "I'm not the one dating here and I have work to do. Figure it out yourself, Malfoy. You're smart enough."

*** *** ***

"Figure it out yourself, Malfoy. You're the one dating, Malfoy. Always constant, always vigilant. Stupid git."

"Have you always been one to wander the grounds talking to yourself? Or is this some dark magic Potter has put on you to keep anyone else from trying to steal you away?"

Draco found himself confronted by Pansy, of all his luck, catching him talking to himself while wandering near the lake.

"Why Ms. Parkinson. To what do I owe this pleasure?"

"My dear Mr. Malfoy, I am simply concerned with your well-being. In all the years I've caught you mumbling to yourself it's always been about stupid Potter, never a mention of your own name. Strange that a turn away from your narcissism would cause the change in topics." Pansy smiled at her own words, thinking to herself how astute she has become with the English language. She knew exactly how this conversation would go. She would bring up the name Potter and Draco would go all berserk. Maybe not like he used to, but Pansy was sure once the "new love" vibe ended, Draco would go back to complaining about the Gryffindor. Maybe the complaints would change to bad kissing techniques or poorly dressed for some date, but the idea would be the same and that would be enough for Pansy.

"You know what? You're right." Pansy turned to look Draco in the eye, confused. "I should be talking about myself. Tell me Pansy, when did we meet?"

"Uh, well, what?"

"When did I make your acquaintance? When did we become such great allies? When did we swear we'd be in Slytherin together?"

Regaining her composure after the conversation she had planned collapsed, "Well, we must have been as young as three when we met, just babies anyhow. You've been around for so long, our parents being friends and all. It was you and me until around seven or so. Then Muris showed up. Not that I didn't like him, don't give me that look. I just wasn't too sure about playing with him."

Draco smiled at this, "That's just because when we played house, he never wanted to be your husband. I always played the husband and he played the ever loyal servant to the man of the house. It's amazing the implications that small role played at such a young age." Draco laughed out loud. "My we were strange children."

Pansy smiled too, "It was all fun and games back then. Just the three of us running around like animals, searching the quote, jungles of Africa, unquote, or just pretending to be our parents." The mood dropped a little, they both felt it. "I think it was around the age of ten or so when we all promised to be in Slytherin together. And only when we got our letters from Hogwarts that Muris found out he was going to Durmstrang. Then it wasn't Muris, you and me. I don't even know if it was you and me any more."

"What do you mean? It's always been me and you, Pansy. You're the only one whose gotten me as far as this. The only one who really knew..."

"I know that, but when we came to Hogwarts it was you and Crabbe and Goyle. And then it was Nott and Blaine and you. Just imagine if Potter had been in Slytherin. You two would have been inseparable from day one. Things would have been so different." The brunette girl stared out across the lake letting her mind slip back. Soon she laughed, "Just image it Draco! I bet you would have taken Potter to the Yule Ball instead of me!"

Draco laughed too, "Don't be crazy. I never would have chosen him over you!"

But Pansy had stopped laughing and took a cold, sober look at her friend. "Draco, you've always picked Harry first." Using the Griffyndor's first name to make a point, Pansy pressed on. "Even without being his friend, you choose him over Crabbe and Goyle for company, over Nott and Blaine for a challenge, over me for a teenage crush, and even over Muris. When we were young you picked me to pretend marry over Muris. Remember that? Muris was so upset; he wanted to be with you forever. Of course this was before we knew everything involved in love and marriage, but even then you felt like you were supposed to follow some law your father put forth. That was even before Lucius told you he had arranged our marriage with my parents. I swear, if your head hadn't of been so thick maybe you would have agreed with Muris back then. It took going to Hogwarts, growing away from your father, and getting a backbone for you just to realize that you were wrong all that time. And then, after all that, you chose Harry and not Muris. It was inevitable, I guess."

Draco sat down on the grass. A year ago he would have worried about grass stains on his newly pressed pants, but with all that has happened around him, it was the least of his worries. "If Potter had taken my hand on the Hogwarts Express 6 years ago, everything would have been different." They sat in silence for several minutes when Draco cleared his throat. "That's the history I've been looking for."