Draco and Hermione had gotten back safe. She was mad at the fact that Lucius' Expelliarmus charm had made Draco drop the wands.
"Hermione I put an spell on them, the wands can't be used badly anymore… well for at least a while."
"You don't think that the dark lord can lift that spell?"
"Probably. But think about it. Voldemort is going to be so pissed off that they failed he will probably kill them, I doubt he will perform the counter spell for them, and if he does it will be a while." Draco tucked his wand into his pocket, and went to the fridge grabbing a large bottle of Firewhisky and two glasses. He took a long pull straight from the bottle before pouring two glasses. He took them both and handed one to Hermione.
Hermione pulled off her long coat and sent it to the closet with a flick of her wand, she was tired, and at the moment the last thing she wanted to do was start any fight with Malfoy. She took the glass greatly and downed it.
"Your not half bad out there Granger, I guess some of the Boy-Who-Forgot-To-Die's abilities rubbed off on you."
"Don't start Malfoy we all know that it's the other way around." She turned and grabbed the bottle and poured another glass for her self offering the bottle to Draco. He drank the rest and put his glass out for another one to which she poured him another glass.
They drank in silence for a few minutes. It was Hermione that moved first. She set her cup down and started walking away. "I'm going to go to bed, good night Malfoy…"
"Good-night…Hey… Granger…"
She turned around at this, "Yes Malfoy?"
"Um… Thanks, for everything back there, with … him…"
"Think nothing of it…" with that she turned back around and went to her room, leaving Malfoy standing in the kitchen, drunk, pissed at his father, tired, and turned on by that enchanting siren that had just left.
The next few days went by uneventfully. They patrolled the nights with out too much fuss, and they days they spent most of the time apart, except for the few times a day when they both went to the potions lab to get their daily potions.
Draco was feeling trapped. He was allowed out only to patrol. It wasn't Hermione's rule it was the ministry's. So he spent every day in board silence with only his thought s to occupy him.
Thoughts of his parents. Of how he hadn't been strong enough to stop his father. How he should have fled with his mother months before when his father had been in Azkaban. But he had been weak then at well.
HE DIDN'T WANT TO BE WEAK ANYMORE!!!!!
He screamed this in his head day after day. Each day he got more pissed off and angry, until he finally broke.
Malfoy stormed down the hall to Hermione's room, knowing of no other way to prove to the world that he wasn't weak, and banged on her door.
Hermione opened it wearing soft green PJ pants and a white tank top. She was holding a book and her wand. "Can I help you Malfoy?"
Malfoy looked down at her and drew his wand. "You. Me. Dual. NOW." Was all he said. Before storming out to find an empty room to dual in.
Hermione was taken aback. She put her book down and followed him. She had watched him get a little angrier every day. She had a feeling it had to do with his father, but she wasn't quite sure what he was going to do about it… I guess she now knew.
She followed him. She understood feeling helpless, feeling weak, and she understood the need to let out aggression and if he needed to dual till he fainted to do it, then she might as well help him. She was just happy that he didn't randomly attack her to do it but actually made it a dual, gave each of them a fair chance… She wondered when Draco had become so noble.
Draco found a room. With a swipe of his wand the walls and floor was padded. He took his position at the end of the room and waited for her. They knew the rules, no need to explain. Anything goes, except for unforgivable curses. Other wise let the best witch or wizard win.
Draco bowed and Hermione did the same.
"Furunculus" Draco yelled out. (A/N makes boils appear on targets face)"Reducto" Hermione responded (A/N blasts target)
At the same time both had moved out of the way of the other, letting the spells go by the way side. They then slowly made a circle around the room before trying again.
"Expelliarmus" Hermione cried.
"Locomator Mortis" Draco countered.
Again they both moved quickly out of the way of the other.
Draco looked at her…. "This might take a while."
Hermione smiled at this and nodded, " I don't know about you but I've got all the time in the world. I have 6 long years of bullying, teasing, and hate to pull off of, I could do this all night…"
Draco looked slightly pained at her comment but shook it off and fired another round of spells at her.
She countered every single one, just as he did when she shot them at him. Soon they were both sweating, throwing spell after spell at the other. Every now and then one would find its mark, but the victim would throw it off quickly and respond.
They had been at this for hours, it being one of the nights that they got off. Which was once a week. Both were leaning against adjacent walls whispering weak spells and hexes at the other, barely moving to dodge the other's hex.
Hermione blocked another one of his spells but instead of attacking she just looked at him, "Have you worked out what you needed to yet Malfoy, cause I'm getting kind of tired over here."
Malfoy gritted his teeth. He wasn't angry any more. He had withstood hours of back and forth dueling with the brightest witch there was, he had proven over and over he wasn't weak, but at the same time he still hadn't beat her, so he wasn't quite done. "Almost Hermione, I still have to make you cry uncle."
He shot one last Expelliarmus at her, and to his surprise her wand came flying through the air to him.
She was sitting against the wall starring at him. She had let him disarm her, she was tired and realized that it wouldn't help to have her win. If she wanted Draco to behave she had to give him a victory every now and then. "Uncle"