Disclaimer: I own nothing but my imagination. Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling and that is not me.
Chapter 7: The letter
Harry is arranging some fresh flowers in a vase by Hermione's bed. As a guy, he has no feel for flower arrangements and of course, Hermione can't see them anyway. Yet, he feels like they should look nice. It is kind of like he wants to control the only thing in the room he can control, and also give him something to do other than stare at one of his best friends miserably, hoping for some miracle to happen. Harry has been coming to bring Hermione flowers every couple of days since they found her body. Ron doesn't visit her body nearly as much. Not that he doesn't care, quite the opposite actually. Seeing Hermione lying motionless in that bed pains him more than he can say. Therefore, he simply avoids coming there as much as he can.
Ron and Ginny are still mad at Harry. In their opinion, he isn't doing enough to fight the war. Together with Luna, Neville, and their twin brothers, the two siblings have been trying to figure out a way to attack the Death Eaters. The Order is also working on a something but have so far kept all of them in the dark. "It is for your own protection" they keep telling them. "The less you know the better, it will keep you from being a target like Hermione was" they say. All of the students feel this is bullshit. As if they haven't proven they can fight more than they can count. Dumbledore's death and Hermione's coma have probably scared them. They have lost many more but because Dumbledore is gone they feel vulnerable and are terrified of losing any more of the young students. Harry and his friends, however, are even more motivated to fight for their cause, to avenge their losses and prevent more casualties. But how much can a bunch of young adults accomplish when vital information is being kept from them? All of them want to do something. Anything but sit in that safe house being powerless and have no clue what is happening. However, they cannot seem to agree on what they should be doing instead.
Harry is speaking to Hermione. He doesn't quite know what to say but in case she is able to hear him, he wants her to know he is there. He tells her about his day, about how Ginny refuses to speak to him, how everyone misses her and wishes she would come back, how much they need her, etc. Ron coughs behind him to announce his presence.
"Hey" Harry says as he looks up to his best friend.
"Hey" Ron replies. "How is she doing?" He enters the room and pulls up a chair.
"The same."
"Oh." His face falls slightly. He hasn't exactly expected any other news but feels sad anyway. At least she isn't getting worse.
They are silent for a little bit.
"You need to talk to Ginny, Harry." Ron tells him.
"I'm not avoiding her, Ron, she is avoiding me."
"I know, but she has a plan. We need you. She is just too stubborn to admit it."
Harry sighs. "What kind of plan?"
"Talk to her, Harry." Ron tells him. He squeezes Hermione's hand and tells his comatose friend he will be back very soon and leaves without another word to Harry.
.
.
Hermione realizes she has worked with Draco all night when she sees the sun coming up through the windows of the library. Hermione still doesn't understand why he suddenly had a change of heart the night before and is suddenly helping her, but she isn't going to question it. He probably just wants to get rid of her which is understandable. If the roles were reversed, she would definitely do everything she could to get rid of him. The thought alone that he would see her all day like she sees him. At least she waits outside while he uses the bathroom but she doubts he would have shown her the same courtesy. Never mind his intentions, the fact remains that they haven't actually found a way to get her back into her body, yet. They have read many books and papers but nothing seems even remotely like the situation they are in and therefore nothing seems like it could help.
Hermione shifts her attention from the window to Draco. He is leaning on the table with his cheek on a book, fast asleep. His hair is ruffled and his tie is loosened as well as the first few buttons of his shirt. A ray of the morning sun is shining across his face making his hair and skin appear even whiter. Hermione stares at him. He looks really handsome without the perfect appearance he always tries to keep up. Even in jeans and a shirt he always looks ready for business and now everything is ruffled and messed up. It makes him look more, what? She wonders. More, relaxed? More, approachable? He truly is quite handsome this way if it wasn't for the pained expression on his face. The dark circles under his eyes give him a tired and worn out appearance.
He must have felt her staring as he stirs and suddenly shoots up looking bewildered. He looks at her.
"What time is it?" He asks her sleepily.
"How should I know?" She says.
He drags his hand through his hair to smooth it back a bit while looking at the books and articles in front of them.
"How long have I been asleep?"
"Not long, I think. I just noticed actually."
He nods.
"Draco..." she starts. "I have an idea."
He groans. "It can't be anything good if you start by calling me by my first name." He squints his eyes and waits for her to continue.
"Well... I was thinking. What if I could see myself? Perhaps I could, I don't know, jump back in my body or something?"
"That sounds ridiculous."
"Well, do you have a better plan?" She asks him and crosses her arms over her chest. "We have worked all night and have come no closer to an answer to our problem."
"It doesn't matter anyway Granger, it's not like we know where your body is."
"But we can easily find out!" She tells him and jumps up.
"And how do you propose we find out then?"
"We could ask my friends of course!" She exclaims, as if it was the most obvious solution in the world.
He sighs. "Be serious Granger." He tells her.
"I am serious!"
"Well, then you are just stupid."
"Hey!" She protests.
"Come on Granger. What do you expect will happen? Do you want me to send them a letter?" He continues sarcastically; "Dear Potty and Weasel, would you please tell me, Draco Malfoy,Pure-blooded god, Death Eater and your sworn enemy, where you're beloved bookworm's body is. Thanks."
Hermione rolls her eyes. "You're not a god, Malfoy."
He pretends he doesn't hear her and continues his rant. "What do you think they will do? Never mind what my father would do if he got word of it, or better yet, The Dark Lord!" Draco tries to keep his voice down, he doesn't want anyone to hear him talk to himself of course, but he has a hard time.
"Well of course it wouldn't be easy. Especially if you insist on the nicknames. But you could tell them the truth, that I am haunting you and that in order to get rid of me you wish to see my body. You could tell them something only I know to prove it too."
"Like what?" he has an evil glint in his eyes that makes Hermione raise one eyebrow.
"Really, you want me to tell you secrets before you agree to help me?"
"Fine, but I'm not sending a letter. Someone could find it."
"Fine. Go to the burrow then."
"As if! I am not setting one foot in that filthy thing they call a home. It's disgusting! All those people in such a tiny space. Dreadful, really."
"Watch what you're saying Malfoy!" She points a finger at him which was supposed to be threatening or something but he just laughs. "Damn it Malfoy. I honestly don't understand how you can live with those ideas. You can just be so simple minded sometimes!" She accuses him. Of course that doesn't help her cause.
"Well then, figure it out yourself Granger. You wouldn't want someone so simple minded to help the great and all knowing Hermione Jean Granger!" he shouts and then stalks off as a dramatic gesture, knowing very well she will be forced to follow him anyway, and that it is a bit childish.
She is taken aback for a moment. "How do you know my middle name?" She asks him but he ignores her.
In the hallway they see Mr. Malfoy. It is the second time Hermione has seen him and she has been in Malfoy manor for six days. Come to think of it, she has only seen his mother once and Blaise twice. Draco must be awfully lonely living like this. Hermione doesn't have any brothers or sisters but she is hardly ever alone. She has many friends and sees them and her parents regularly. Not a day goes by that she is completely alone. And honestly, the house-elves don't count in Draco's case as they are mere servants to him. She doesn't speak to annoy Draco as she is curious what Mr. Malfoy has to say.
"Draco." He greets his son.
"Father" Draco nods.
Lucius malfoy hands his son a letter and stalks off. Nothing else is said between the two men. He rally must be lonely. He has no interaction with his parents at all. Hermione thinks to herself while Draco opens and reads the letter with his back to her.
After reading the letter Draco folds it and shoves it in his jeans pocket and continues to walk towards his study where he throws the letter on his desk, sits down behind it, and starts scribbling something on a piece of paper which he then folds and places in an envelope as well. He closes the envelope with a wax seal and presses a stamp with the Malfoy family crest into it.
"Who are you writing?"
"Your friends." He answers her truthfully and gets up from his desk and walks out of the room. She follows him.
"Have you changed your mind? Shouldn't we just go to the burrow instead of writing?"
Draco keeps walking. "They are not at the burrow."
"Why not?" She asks him as she follows him. He is going so fast she has to almost run to keep up with him. "How do you know?"
Draco is ascending a spiral staircase with no windows. It was a very small staircase as if in a tower. There were no pictures on the wall, like the rest of the house, which makes it awfully sinister and dark. Only a few lights are on the wall to show the steps.
"They are not there because Death Eaters burned it down a few weeks ago." He tells her.
"What?!" She exclaimed. "What happened? Are they okay?"
"Probably. There was nobody home. It was only a message."
Hermione sighs in relief. "Oh thank Godric. But wait... where are you sending that letter then?"
"My owl will find Potter" Draco tells her right when he reaches a door at the very top of the staircase which leads into an owlry with five owls in it.
"I didn't know you owned an owl." She says as she looks around the room.
"There is much you don't know Granger."
Draco ties the letter to the paw of a small brown owl, gives it a treat and tells it to find Harry Potter. Hermione is a little nervous what will happen next. She doesn't know the content of the letter, nor the content of the letter Lucius Malfoy gave his son, which seems to have made him change his mind about contacting her friends.
.
.
"Hi Harry" says Luna as she enters his room at the safe house they had been staying in.
"Hi" he replies. She walks over to him and hugs him.
"Are you coming downstairs?" she asks him while they embrace.
"Yes. I suppose so."
Ginny is still mad at Harry but according to Ron she had a plan and Harry needs to be a part of it. He doesn't look forward to the coming conversation though. The stress is really getting to him. The war does not appear to be ending any time soon and lately he and his friends have been fighting more often than not. Nobody really knows what to do. Luna is the only factor in his life keeping him sane. They have been dating for a few months and she has a good influence on him.
Harry sighs and lets go of his girlfriend. "Okay, let's do this." She grabs his hand and gives him an encouraging smile. Together they walk towards the kitchen where Ron, Ginny and Neville are waiting for them. As Harry and Luna enter the room, the rest stops talking. On the table are lots of papers and Hermione's journal spread out. Harry recognizes it right away as he has seen her scribble notes in there so many times.
"Is that Hermione's?" he asks.
"Yes" Ron answers "but give us a moment to explain!" he adds hastily before harry can get mad. Ron can see on his face that Harry is angry already but he stays quiet.
"It's been weeks since we found Hermione. And you know how it didn't make sense to us why she was attacked, or at least, why then?"
"Go on" Harry replies.
"Well, Ginny figured she must have known something the Death Eaters wanted to keep her from telling anyone. And she did! Ginny read her journal and Hermione did know something. Harry, this could help us defeat him!"
"You shouldn't have read her journal that is private." Harry tells Ginny.
"She would have wanted us to know Harry! She would have wanted us to defeat him!" She defends.
"But you can't go reading people's journals!" Harry was raising his voice a little. Luna placed her hand on his arm which calms him down a bit.
"Please listen Harry, listen to what they found out." Luna tells her boyfriend. He looks at the pleading look in her eyes and sighs. He pulls up a chair and sits down.
"Fine." He tells his friends. "What did Hermione discover?"
Ginny smiles at him. Relieved that Luna could talk some sense into him. But just as she wants to start talking there is a tap on the window. The brown owl Draco had sent has found them. Neville, who is closest to the window, walks over and takes the letter from the tiny bird. It is wet from the rain and Neville offers him a treat and lets him inside to dry his feathers.
"It's for you Harry." Neville tells him holding out the letter. A frown appears on Harry's face as he reads the letter.
"what does it say?" Ron asks.
"Who is it from?" adds Ginny.
Harry reads out loud:
Potter,
I know how to help your friend Granger. Meet me at noon at the burrow.
Bring Weasly, but nobody else.
"There is no name on it" Harry tells his friends.
Ginny walks over and snatches the letter from his hands. She rereads it and frowns. She looks at the envelope and folds back the top to put the two parts of the broken seal together. Her eyebrows shoot upwards.
"Malfoy." She half whispers confused.
"What?!" Ron yells.
"Harry, it could be a set up!" Neville tells him. "You're not thinking of going are you?
"I wouldn't be alone" Harry tells him considering the proposal. Never in a million years would he trust a Malfoy, and he assumes the letter was sent by the younger version, but he could take Draco if he wanted to right? "Ron will be there too".
"I don't know Harry, it sounds shady to me" Ron tells him.
"What?" He asks. "You're not coming? What if this is legit? What If we actually can help Hermione? We owe it to her to do everything we can! She would do the same for us!" Harry yells. He doesn't understand his friends. They are all looking at him with worried looks on their faces. "You have all been pushing me to do something. This is our chance to get off our arses and actually gather some information!"
"Hermione wouldn't risk her life for something like this Harry" Ginny tells him.
"Haven't you said yourself you believe Malfoy is a Death Eater?" Neville asks Harry worriedly.
"Perhaps" Harry answers both Ginny and Neville at once. "But I'm going. Alone if I have to." He looks at Ron as he says the last part.
Ron hesitates but knows he won't be able to talk his friend out of it. "Fine, I'm coming too."
"I'm coming as well." Ginny tells the group.
"No you're not." Ron and Harry say in unison.
"Why not? It says bring Weasley, but not which one!"
"You know damn well he means me little sis. You're not coming"
"It's almost noon Harry" Luna tells him quickly to prevent the argument from turning into a full blown fight.
"Okay, we'll go right away. We'll apparate in the fields around it so we are hidden from sight. That way we can see if Malfoy is alone and hopefully rule out the possibility of being set up."
"We'll all go" Ginny tells him again.
"No! I don't want to risk losing the chance to help Hermione. If something does go wrong, we need someone to look after her too." Harry kisses his girlfriend but only a chaste kiss. "Ready to go Ron?" he asks.
"Ready" he replies and the two boys apparate out of the room, the plan Ginny came up with long forgotten.
Thank you for reading! I hope you liked it. Please review! I really appreciate it when you do.
The next chapter will be uploaded on Friday August 21st. Sorry! Two weeks from now. I will try to upload another one somewhere in between but I can't promise I will because I will not be around.
