Chapter Four
Under the Tree

"Dammit, Granger!" an angry voice bellowed as the door steadied itself. Everyone at the table whipped their heads around to take in the fuming blonde young man standing in the doorway. "Where is she?" the stranger demanded of the slack jawed people at the dining table. No one answered him. Nor did they have to. The shattering of a glass was all the answer he needed.

Hermione had just entered the dining room with a mug of tea. But at the sight of the blonde, her dead eyes ignited and the mug fell to the floor in her shock.

The stranger's tensed body relaxed visibly at the sight of her, but his anger did not ebb. "Damn you, Granger," he fumed, advancing across the room. "Did I not tell you to wait for me by the Whomping Willow? I mean, if you meant to say no, you might've told me rather than leading me on this month long goose chase."

Hermione still hadn't moved from her frozen state. He seemed not to have the patience for her lack of reaction. "Well? What have you got to say for yourself, you crazy bint?" he raged.

Finally, she spoke. "Y-you're n-not dead."

He rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Dead? Of course I'm not dead, you-" He cut himself off when he actually took her in. Her breaths were fast and shallow, her eyes wider than the moon and brimming with tears.

"Hermione?" he wondered softly, taking a hesitant step toward her.

In a blur of movement, she nearly tackled him to the floor. He staggered under the sudden weight of the girl, but he righted himself before crashing to the floor.

"You're alive! Oh, sweet Merlin, you're alive!" she sobbed into his chest.

"Of course, I'm alive, Hermione. What gave you any doubt?"

"After, well, after, you know, I went to find you. And you were nowhere to be found. Your parents were being rounded up and your mother was screaming. She was saying, 'No, not my boy! He can't be gone!' And when I asked what she was on about, everyone who knew what you looked like that night said that they'd seen Greyback make off with you into the Forbidden Forest. And I couldn't find you anywhere, so I believed it to be true."

The blonde pulled her impossibly closer, one hand on the small of her back, the other tangled in her hair. His eyes were shut tight, as if he were savoring the feel of her against him, like he thought it might never happen again. "Oh, Hermione, love, I'm so sorry. All this time, you thought I was dead? I can't even-I couldn't-oh Merlin. Greyback did have me, but I fought him off. He turned tail and ran when Aurors came to help. I blacked out and, as I was still in disguise, no one knew it was me till early the next morning. Only to have Longbottom tell me you left the minute you could with no words as to where you went. I thought you changed your mind."

Hermione frantically shook her head. "Of course not! But so many people didn't make it that night, and to think that you were one of them…I had to get out of there as soon as possible. I couldn't take it any longer. And this is the only place I had left to go."

Positively beaming down at her, he cradled her face in his hand, brushing away her happy tears. Just as he was about to speak, Auntie Sharon reminded them of their audience.

"Hermione, what on Earth is the meaning of this?" her shrill voice shrieked. Startled, Hermione jumped away from the boy. He wasn't having it, though. The blonde slipped his fingers into hers and remained close to her side. Amos felt a conflicting emotion that can only belong to a father figure. The adoring look the young man was giving his niece made him swell with happiness that someone loved her so much and yet, also had him planning his best, 'You hurt her, I hurt you,' speech.

"Pardon my manners, madam. My name is Draco Malfoy. Terribly sorry about my entrance, it's just-I've been looking for Hermione for quite some time now," Draco Malfoy explained politely.

Her family could only continue to gape at the two. The transformation that Hermione had undergone at the sight of him indescribable. She, well, blossomed. Her pale cheeks darkened ruby red with a heartfelt blush. Her deadened eyes twinkled happily once again. The slumped shoulders had squared themselves confidently, a brilliant smile splitting her face.

"Well, son, come on then. We'll set a place for you," Uncle Amos cut in, trying to break the tense air. The two teens hardly noticed it, too busy smiling goofily at each other to care. Even as they sat, Draco taking a place to her right, Hermione couldn't keep the look of utter amazement off her face.

Amelia didn't mind being separated from her cousin, not when she saw how happy this unexpected boy made her. She felt a bit nervous around him, though. He held such a refined, regal air without even realizing it. It was hard not to find him intimidating.

"So, um, Draco, was it?" Amos double checked, "You're friends with our dear Hermione? How did you meet?"

So, apparently everyone was going to gloss over his startling entrance. That suited Draco just fine. "We met at school."

"Ugh, you're from that ridiculous school, as well," Lisa scowled, irritated that such a handsome bloke seemed so into her cousin.

"If by ridiculous, you mean the most highly respected and prestigious school of its kind, then yes. Precisely the one," Draco suggested with a sickly sweet tone. Hermione stifled a giggle at Lisa's shocked face. "We met when we were 11, but we didn't become friends until we were about 14."

"This one here was a right little git," Hermione teased happily. Draco rolled his eyes but didn't deny it. "But I grew up, didn't I?"

Hermione's eyes melted to a soft caramel. "That you did," she agreed.

"And I apologize for my entrance. You see, we were supposed to meet…about something rather important, I might add," he stated with a meaningful glance to Hermione. She blushed and bit her lip. "But there was a misunderstanding, evidently, in which we both assumed the worst. So, I was rather put out with her, I'm afraid. It was terribly rude to burst in like that, but I admit that our friendship has never much minded manners."

No one seemed to have anything to say to his eloquent apology. "By your accent, you're clearly not from Scotland. Where do you call home?" Auntie Amber asked conversationally. Neither she nor her husband understand why the two teens stiffened.

Draco glanced worriedly at Hermione before clearing his throat. "Well, I've just come from my villa in France, thinking Hermione had gone there. She mentioned it once and I thought I'd have some luck." Lisa and Anna's eyes widened at the casual mention of such wealth. He was not boasting about it, merely telling his story. "But, my family has lived in our manor in Wiltshire for the past several , I must say it hasn't felt like home in a very long time," he finished softly with an apologetic look at the brunette beside him. Amelia was the only one to notice him reassuringly squeeze Hermione's hand. It was fairly obvious to her that the mention of the boy's home was particularly unpleasant to Hermione.

"How did you manage to find Hermione, then, son?" Amos asked curiously. Draco sighed, deliberating his answer. "Well, as I said, I assumed the worst when she failed to show up. I reacted rather… poorly. I threw myself a spectacular pity party. Then some…friends gave me a good kick in the arse and agreed to help me find her."

"Who?" Hermione wondered.

Rosy patches colored his pale cheeks and he avoided her curious gaze. "I thought they were terrifying with their pranks, but nothing is more intimidating than those two gingers when they're serious."

Hermione's jaw dropped in astonishment. "Weasleys?"

"I must say that not all of them are as useless as I had once thought," Draco admitted, finally turning to look at her. She shook her head, disbelieving. "I'm sorry. Who? What-how-"

"The remaining twin-I was terribly sorry to hear about Fred, I always liked the twins-and the She-Weasel. Apparently, they're much more observant than your other friends. They were insistent that it had been a mistake. They were the only ones you told about leaving. And they weren't sure where you'd gone, just that you were looking for family. Three weeks later, and here I am. You're rather difficult to find, you know?" Draco explained calmly.

"George and Ginny? And you?" Hermione repeated. "That's…unexpected."

"They've known the whole time, actually. That's how they knew to come find me," Draco informed her. With a thoughtful look, he mused, "Not really sure how they knew...they never told me now that I think about it."

"But how did you find this house?" Auntie Sharon finally joined in the conversation, in awe that her plain Jane niece had such a handsome, wealthy boy chasing after her so determinedly.

"Well, I knew where Hermione lived. I didn't think she would be there, but we tried anyway. When we arrived, no one was there," Draco paused and sent Hermione a sad smile. Her grin had faded somewhat, her eyes troubled. "But we could tell that she had been there. And we saw a calendar on the kitchen table that had 'family reunion' written on it with an address. And here we are."

There was an awkward pause as they soaked in his words. Then, Steven, known to be painfully shy, quietly asked, "Did you say your name was Draco?"

The blonde smiled nervously at the boy. "I did."

Steven's chocolate eyes widened. "Did you know that 'Draco' means dragon?"

Hermione's heart melted when Draco offered her young cousin a brilliant smile. "As a matter of fact, I did. I was named after the constellation."

"Do you like dragons, too, then?" Steven wondered excitedly.

"Do I like dragons? Of course! They're incredible. My personal favorite is the Norwegian Ridgeback, naturally, but guess what. Did you know that Hermione here actually rode one?" Draco whispered dramatically, looking about as if to make sure no one could hear them. Steven was enraptured. Hermione couldn't believe how casually Draco was interacting with her Muggle family. It nearly brought tears to her eyes. Again. Steven looked to her in awe. "That's right. She's crazy, huh? Hopped right on a Hungarian Horntail. Nasty dragons, they are."

Hermione shook her head, looking as though she were about to deny the story. She surprised them both. "No, no. It was a Ukrainian Ironbelly, boys. Honestly, Draco, get the facts right."

Draco beamed at her unabashed by his sappy behavior` while Steven went nuts. The adults smiled in amusement, recognizing the newcomer's gift with kids, not for a moment thinking he was telling the truth.

"She's the only one who will ever play dragons with me, you know?" Steven claimed solemnly. Draco frowned, "Well, that won't do, will it? What do you say, Hermione? Shall we give him a brief history of dragons tonight?"

"Sounds delightful."

"Excuse me, young man," an elderly man interrupted. Draco looked to him curiously. "You seem awfully sure of yourself. This is a family event that you are interrupting, and I don't appreciate your presence. Once this dinner is done, I expect you gone."

Draco's happy grin fell, his grey eyes darkening. The deadly mask he had worn as a Death Eater returned. The family felt a chill fall over them at his icy demeanor. "With all due respect, sir, I don't give a damn what you think. I can honestly say that I have been through hell, as has Hermione, and we've only just become free of it. I have fought the devil himself to be able to sit here beside her, so, quite simply, where she goes, I go. And if that means she intends to stay here, so do I. I'll be damned if were torn apart again."

The two men, young and old, glared defiantly at each other.

"If you would excuse us, we've got a lot to talk about," Hermione bade calmly. With a light grip on his arm, Hermione pulled Draco out of his seat. She quickly led them from the room. He followed her silently to her temporary room. Once inside with the door shut, the two relaxed.

Hermione launched herself into his arms again and he breathed her in.

"Oh, love, I thought I'd lost you," he whispered sadly. He felt her shake her head. "Draco, I thought I had lost you. As in lost you to death. You can't know what it was like, thinking you dead."

"But I'm not. We don't have to worry about that anymore. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere unless you want me to," Draco promised fiercely.

"I don't want you to go anywhere," Hermione murmured, gazing up at him fondly. He seemed nervous suddenly, and she frowned. "What is it?"

"The Whomping Willow. Why we were supposed to meet there. You remember, don't you?"

"Oh."

"I never got my answer," Draco said slowly. "Would you have shown up? Would you have met me under the tree if you'd known I was okay?"

Warms lips hesitantly pressed against his own. His heart had begun healing the day they became friends, but in that moment, he felt the last broken shard stitch itself back together. She pulled away quickly, chewing her lip nervously, her cheeks blazing red. "Really?" he breathed, "Do you really mean it?"

"I want nothing more than to be with you, Draco Malfoy. So, yes. I would have shown up that night, had I known. That's all I've wanted since fifth year," Hermione admitted shyly. She let out a surprised squeak when he suddenly swooped down and kissed her the way he'd been dying to for years.


A/N: What do you think? I hope it's not confusing. Their story from Hogwarts will eventually be explained, don't worry. Just know that they were secret best friends from 4th year on. Hope you liked it, your reviews make my day! :)