A/N: Chapter three! Wee x

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xxxxxx

When You Lose Your Way

Closer to Wrong

xxxxxx

Nothing to feel guilty about. Nothing whatsoever.

That was what I was trying to convince myself of as I made the short walk remaining to the common room I shared with Granger.

So then why was it that when I thought, and said that to her, it sounded utterly and completely wrong?

Granger was really pissing me off.

The horrendous event of showing her some sympathy she didn't deserve, had me feeling suddenly tired. Apparently this is what you got for trying to be a good guy for once. Try and help someone you've tortured for so many years? Forget about it! It'll just leave you exhausted as hell. All I wanted to do right now was sleep, and forget about everything that had recently happened.

I found myself, though I was tired, standing outside the common room door, though I knew I had already walked through it. My vision was terribly blurry. How did that happen so suddenly? And just as quickly as I stumbled my way closer to the door did I find out I was dreaming. Mainly because I was falling everywhere from left to right and not feeling any pain. Or because I was yelling Pansy's name. Yeah, that probably did it.

And then I heard the door slam shut.

I shot up from my bed, beads of sweat coming down like waterfalls from my forehead. I wiped it away quickly, and wondered why I was hyperventilating. It wasn't a nightmare that I had been dreaming... but it certainly felt like one.

I opened my door and peeked through. I found out I had slept for an hour or so.

Granger was just taking off her coat and putting he shoes neatly away. She wasn't looking very happy. Maybe that face meant she actually went through with the appointment. I watched her more closely, and I realized that she had stopped in front of the mirror that hung on our living room wall on her way to her bedroom. She looked around her surroudings quickly. I guess to make sure I wasn't there.

And then she began rubbing her stomach softly in circular motions. She stuck her back out, as if something were pushing her spine. I watched even closer, to see if she was doing what I thought she was doing and sighed. This was a private moment for Granger. I shut the door quietly, and sat at my desk.

If Granger was really pregnant, and I hoped not (as much as it pained me to do so) because she would have to go through the pregnancy alone, her life would be ruined, guaranteed. I contemplated for a while on telling Potter or Weasley, just so she wouldn't be alone, but I forgot about it quickly. She didn't want my help, so I wouldn't give it to her.

As I gave up on thinking about Granger's situation, my mind floated back to the dream. The common room... my unbalanced walk... me yelling Pansy's name... all the while getting closer to the door. I couldn't interpret the dream at all.

After a while, I heard my door creak open. I didn't bother to check who it was, for I was so immersed in my thoughts.

"Malfoy," said the voice softly. I fought the urge to snap my head around. "I just want you to know that I went to the clinic. They'll owl me the results in forty-eight hours."

She closed the door and I heard her footsteps go to her bedroom. I sighed, thankful she went through with it.

I realized I was still very tired, minutes after she was gone. Unwillingly, for I still had homework to do, I dressed for an early nap, and tucked myself inside my blankets. It didn't take long for my eyes to get droopy, and for me to give in to the fatigue. Slowly and effortlessly, I fell asleep, lapsing myself into the same dream I had dreamt earlier before.

xxxxxx

I hate Mondays. There's always something about Monday's that people hate. For some, it was the end of the weekend. For others it was the classes they had that day. For me... well, it had been fourty-eight hours. Take a wild guess as to why I hated today, yet anticipated it with great anxiety.

"Oi!" Blaise whispered from across the room. "Oi!"

"What?" I asked, irritated.

"What's number 22 B?"

"Look in the textbook!"

Blaise scowled at me for not giving him the answer. He flipped the pages in his textbook, though it seemed he did so just because I had said. I forced my eyes back to the work I had been given for today, and rubbed my eyes.

I hadn't had that dream for the past two days. I was glad, for it really plagued me. What was I doing at the door and why did I yell Pansy's name like that? I hadn't missed Pansy for months. I had the feeling that I wasn't in my right state of mind during the dream, and that's why everytime I spoke Pansy's name it was very connected. I shook my head in frustration.

A pecking noise was heard from the window, and my head looked up lazily. Anything to distract me from my thoughts.

A barn owl, one I knew didn't belong to Hogwarts, was waiting patiently outside the window. It had a rolled up note tied around it's left leg, and I squinted to see the name written on it. Hermione J. Granger. I gasped slightly the same time someone else did.

"To whom does the owl belong?" I heard Professor McGonagall ask.

I looked around to face Granger. Her face was red, but oddly pale at the same time.

"Um, mine, Professor." I saw Potter and Weasley steal glances at her. They knew she didn't own an owl. She would have to lie to them about it later.

"Well, go on then, open the window for it," McGonagall said.

Granger stood up from her seat, and quickly made her way to the window. She slid the glass up, and untied the letter quickly from the owls leg. It flew away almost immediately after, not staying for a snack or for a treat for it's work. Granger stowed it away in her pocket, not looking once my way or Potter and Weasley's way as she walked back to her seat.

Potter and Weasley were more than obviously trying to ask her about the letter, but she gave them warning looks and shook her head. As she did so, she caught my eye, and glared furiously. Taken aback, I gave her a confused look. Granger was odd like that, I suppose.

Luckily, class was over soon, and it was time for lunch. I hung back in the classroom, lolling around, pretending to organize my books.

"Coming?" Blaise asked.

"Nah. Save me a seat, I've got to ask Professor a question." Blaise nodded and walked away, leaving just me, Potter, Weasley and Granger in the room.

I pretended to fiddle with the buckle on my bag, while listening intently to their conversation. They didn't notice I was still in the room, thankfully.

"What does the letter say, Hermione?"

"It's from my Mum and Dad," she told them. They looked at her with alarm. "It's nothing," Granger assured them. "They've lost something inside the house and they... wanted to know if I knew where it was."

They exchanged confused glances.

"Well... what did they lose?" Potter questioned. Leave it alone, I wanted to say.

I saw her hesitate, but only for a moment. "The cat."

"...The cat?"

"The cat," she confirmed.

"We didn't know you had another cat."

"Oh, no, no, no," she said with a good fake grin, "they're taking care of Mittens for the vacationing neighbours. They're going to have multiple ulcers if they find out she's been lost."

Weasley gave her a worried look. "I hope your neighbours don't find out when they come back."

"Oh, don't worry."

They all smiled together all at once. What an insanely odd relationship of friendship this trio had. All smiling, laughter and joy. I felt like vomiting.

"Alright, well, coming to lunch?"

"No, I'm sorry," Granger rejected, "I'm sorry to bail out on you guys again like this, but I've got so much homework I need to do instead of let it pile up. Meet me in the common room later?" she suggested with a smile.

"Sure thing, Hermione. Later!" And they pushed passed the desks and chairs, and were quickly out the door. I sighed, glad that they hadn't seen me.

I waited for Granger to realize I was there. Turns out I didn't have too.

"Are you trying to make things obvious or what, Malfoy?" she asked me rudely.

I rolled my eyes. "Right. Like if they see that I stayed behind they'll suddenly suspect it's because you're pregnant and you were owled the results."

She glared at me, and took out the letter from her pocket.

"Just don't make this look suspicious," Granger warned. I nodded my head quickly in comprehension, so she would hurry with the results. She took in a deep breath before unrolling it quickly.

Her eyes moved from side to side slowly. Her expression was completely unreadable. By the looks of it, I could probably guess that her parents had written her just to say hello. That's how hard Granger was to read.

"Well?" I asked, trying to hide my impatience.

She stuck the letter back in her pocket.

"I should go."

"And you're not even going to tell me the results?"

"Why should you care?"

"Why should I not? Frankly, nothing this juicy has ever happened in the history of Hogwarts, and I want to be the first on the scene."

I said that, trying to make the intensity between us subside, and make it light, but apparently that was the wrong thing to say. She glared firey hot daggers at me.

"Is that what you call my pregnancy, Malfoy? A juicy hot topic, so that you can tell the whole school?"

I sighed, regretting what I said. "Okay, wrong thing to say."

"Obviously," she bit out.

"...Will you tell me the results?"

"...Maybe."

We glared angrily (half apologetically for me) for about ten seconds. And then my mind reeled.

"Wait a second," I told her. She continued to glare.

"You said 'my pregnacny.' Does that mean what I think it means?"

She was taken aback for only a moment. And then she turned on her heel and began walking out on me, just like that.

"Hey hold on!" I yelled quietly, just in case. "You won't even tell me?" She kept on walking. "And after all I did?"

Granger scoffed, as if she was sharing some sort of inside joke with herself. "Exactly."

xxxxxx

I didn't find Granger in the common room. I didn't see her in the Great Hall during lunch or dinner. I couldn't find her in the libraries, nor the lavatories. Where had she gone? I was about to give up, when I was on my way to the common room, and I heard, as always, sobs coming from the door.

I creaked it open after saying the password, and found myself not surprised, to see Granger sitting in front of the fireplace, watching the fire crackle.

"Granger?" I asked, mostly to let her know I was there.

She didn't turn around. Instead, she wiped at her eyes furiously and ignored me.

"Go away," she muttered.

I walked slowly up to her. I could tell she wanted to crouch back in fear, or run away and hide under her covers, but she didn't. I didn't know whether to be rude, nice, or sympathetic towards her right now. She looked up at me, as I kneeled down beside her, looking at the fire. I saw a paper burning slowly, the words half ashened in the flame.

I read the words 'congratulations,' 'your symptoms,' 'common affects,' and 'two months along.'

I knew it then, that Granger was indeed, pregnant.

"Are you..."

"Okay? Does it look like I am?" she snapped. I sighed. Maybe I would take the nice route today.

"Granger..." I half whispered, "you're pregnant..."

A tiny sob came from her mouth that I could have also thought was a wimper. The thoughts seemed to surprise me as it did her. Granger... pregnant. The words just didn't go together, especially if she was still a teenager in school.

"Are you happy now?" she asked me. I was very surprised.

"Why would I be?" I challenged her.

"You were right. I am pregnant. Knocked up and alone."

"That's not usually a good thing."

"Yes, but it's what you wanted, Malfoy."

I was silent for a moment.

"I wouldn't wish this upon anyone and you know it, Granger."

She sighed and got up. I followed her.

"I'll be in my room. If anyone comes up for me, I'm asleep, okay? Don't try and comfort me please. Your comfort, especially your comfort," she added pointedly, "is the very last thing I want."

I glared at her and was about to bring up the fact that she wouldn't have even known for sure had I not forced her to go to the clinic, and that I had helped her tremendously, but it obviously wasn't the right time for it. I decided some... sort of nice words, would be okay for the moment.

"Granger," I said, as she touched the knob on her door. "This isn't your fault."

From my side view, I almost thought her cheek was turned up in a smile. But she couldn't be smiling. She was smirking. And a bitter smirk at that.

I sat once more and began watching the fire burn the rest of the letter that sentenced her to a difficult future ahead. I began to think that maybe my words had some affect on her, and I was glad.

"No," she whispered angrily. "It's yours." And she slammed the door.

Or not.

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To be continued...

A/N: Aw... our poor Hermione. What ever shall she do? Well, let's hope she'll figure it out, and that Draco will figure out his muddled dreams as well! Review if you hate it, review if you love it! Love you guys!