A/N: I would like to thank all of you who have faved/followed/reviewed/read this story! I wish I could thank all of you personally (and I am with reviewers), because your support means so much to me. This next submission ended up at well over 500 words originally, becuase I just had so much to say about it! But alas, I had to trim it down to 300. Oh well, what's done is done. I hope you enjoy this next chapter, as it provides some insight to who Draco and Hermione are.

Note: The writing in italics is from the past. The normal writing is the present.

WARNING: Mental health and eating disorders are the theme of this piece, reader discretion is advised.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor will I ever. JK owns that title.


Prompt: "Gaunt"

Word Count: 309

Hermione Granger was no fool.

She saw the way Draco's form became lank and bony.

The towel was slung low on his too-thin hips, showing his sickly physique. His shoulder blades jutted out, there was a prominent outline of his spine running down his back, and worst of all -shadowed indentations of his ribs.

She noticed the way he would turn away from her accusing glare during meals.

Hermione focused her attention on the silver-haired Slytherin across the Great Hall.

At first glance, it would seem that he was no different to any other student at meal time.

But Hermione looked closer.

Draco was artfully moving his food around his plate, even stabbing some food onto his fork, but it never reached his mouth.

He looked up at her then, and she pointedly looked down at his plate and frowned. His face remained skilfully blank as he looked away.

She watched as his angular face grew drawn and hollow, and he emotionally shut down.

Now, she had had enough. She had told him time and time again that she was a set of ears he could use if needed, a shoulder to lean on, even a person to hold. But he had refrained.

Now, she marched determinedly to their new shared dorms, to get him to listen to her.

What she didn't expect was to find him curled into a ball in front of the fireplace, tears streaming down his pinched face, sobbing great sounds of sorrow that pulled at her heart.

"Draco," she called softly.

He cast his stare up from the flames and to her face. She was both scared and relieved at the amount of emotion that shone in his eyes for the first time in weeks.

But it was the one word he said to her that melted all barriers between them.

"Help."


A/N: That's this weeks prompt done! I hope you found this entry a good read, as it definitely resonated with me as I was writing it. Mental health plays a major part in my life, and I think that there needs to be more awareness surrounding the illnesses, and more resources available for both the patient and their families.

Please leave your comments!

SlyTwiHunter xx