Beginning note to new Readers:This story is NOT Cannon. Draco is out of character. I'm aware of this fact. And its AU in that The Half Blood Prince and The Deathly Hallows didn't happen. Draco did not Complete his mission. Nor did he take the mark; He fled instead and is MISSING for the entirety of the war. PLEASE keep that in mind when freaking out because he's out of character or knowing things you don't think he should. Also, If you plan to review, don't just leave me a message saying there are errors my beta missed; if you spot one, please tell me what it is and I will go back in and fix it. Thank you.
Chapter 7: Sunrise
Bill Weasley was waiting for them when the apprentices staggered into the cafeteria for breakfast. Days at site started before the sun rose and ended after it set so they were still mostly asleep, most not even paying attention to what was placed in front of them.
"Today you guys are going to be working various jobs around the site. Since, as Curse Breakers, we don't have house elves or easy access to many magical establishments we have to do the work ourselves. Draco, Hermione, and Xue are to go pick up supplies for the site; you three have the most experience with muggles. And you're taking the dune buggy; magic in muggle Cairo is expressly forbidden, Apparating especially. Evgeni, Caroline, you two have the best potions skills, so your to help restock the infirmary. Meet up with Mr. Williams after breakfast and he'll tell you what he's needing, you're then to get with the team going into the city and give them the list of the ingredients you need. Benoit, Katie, Sipho, you're helping reinforce the wards and notice-me-not charms."
It wasn't long after that, that breakfast was consumed and everyone headed out to their respective assignments. Xue stayed in the cafeteria to retrieve the list of supplies they needed, and Hermione accompanied Evgeni and Caroline to find out what ingredients where required for the potions. Draco, on the other hand, trudged out to the dune buggy, wand illuminating his surroundings as he checked the oil and the gas.
When the girls finally made their way out, they found Draco with his wand between his teeth bent over the engine, dipstick and rag in hand, a can of gas at his side. The sleeves of his white shirt where rolled up to his elbows and it mostly unbuttoned, only half tucked into a pair of ragged blue jeans that had numerous stains of unknown origin, but mainly looked like they where car related. His hair was pulled back into the useless rat tail he seemed to favor, but the look suited him.
The sight made Hermione pause, blinking. Was she really seeing what she thought she was? Malfoy playing mechanic? One second he's a pure blood prince who spent the last 6 years calling her a mud blood and hexing her, and the next he's some charming mechanic who rolls around in the sand, plays with her hair, and wears mismatched socks? Who was he and what did he do with the spoiled brat she went to school with?
"Your partner is a total hunk; how often do you find a wizard that knows anything about muggles; total upside. Being a half blood and all I can't bring home a guy who doesn't know what a rice-cooker is or how to use it."
Hermione sputtered for a moment. "Malfoy is not a hunk. And I know what you're implying but he is certainly not mine."
Xue looked at her curiously and raised her hands in surrender. "Whatever you say."
The exchange was still weighing heavily in Hermione's mind when they approached him. He flashed a brilliant smile at her when he turned around from loading the can back in the trunk and saw her standing there with the exuberant Asian girl chattering beside her.
He gave an exaggerated bow, gesturing to the door of the dune buggy. "Your carriage awaits, madams."
Xue giggled and flung herself into the backseat with relish, hoping to dose off for a while longer, as Hermione gave a reluctant smile, slipping into the passengers seat. "Cheeky."
"I try, I try." he replied with false modesty. He then jumped into the drivers seat and strapped himself in. "You girls might want to buckle up, I'm a bit of an aggressive driver."
"Aggressive?" Xue asked unbelieving from the backseat. She was peering up at them, sprawled across the cracked leather on her back.
"Where did you even learn to drive?" Hermione looked at him curiously, tentatively buckling herself in.
"Greece, actually. Drive like maniacs over there, almost got run over twice." He stated conversationally, turning the beast on and putting it into gear.
Then they where off.
Hermione was decidedly uncomfortable about them catching air in the small vehicle, even though Xue and Malfoy where cackling like children every time they shot up into the air, landing again moments later with a cloud of sand flying up around them. And she was decidedly frazzled, and awake, by the time they finally hit pavement. That lingering fuzzy feeling of too little sleep which normally accompanied her mornings was nowhere to be seen as she clung tightly to the guard rails the vehicle was made of.
Once they where in the city though, Draco's driving vastly improved. He was the picture of calm as he weaved through the busy streets with the practiced ease of someone who had spent vast amounts of time on the road. He pulled up against the sidewalk in front of a small grocery, into a spot that by all rights should have been far too small for anything bigger than a motorcycle, but he made it work.
It was the second time in his company that Hermione found herself scrambling out of the vehicle, watching him with wary eyes as his lips twitched with barely constrained laughter. "You drive like you fly, you know that?"
"Wild, I know. It applies to all aspects of my life." He then shameless winked at her, and an elderly couple passing behind her on the sidewalk giggled at the exchange. Her cheeks heated.
"Cheeky little bugger." She muttered as he climbed out of the seat, Xue right behind him laughing delightedly at the pair.
He stuck a hand in his pocket as he moved to hold the door open for them, and Xue grabbed a basket. "I'll get fruits and vegetables, you guys get meats and we'll meet in the middle."
Draco saluted her flippantly and grabbed a basket for himself and Hermione, leading her though the store as if he shopped the muggle way every day. Browsing the lanes and occasionally checking the list, or sending her forward to search out 'stew meat' or 'spaghetti sauce'.
It was a surreal experience to say the least. Shopping with Malfoy? Joking with him, if not a bit warily. Lounging around the commons with him and the others after dinner? It was almost like someone had flipped the script on her life.
On everyone's life. Her Malfoy and the Malfoy from before the war where two completely different people and she wasn't sure how to reconcile the two. Her Malfoy, Bill claimed was just as knowledgeable about muggles as she, a muggle born, and Xue, a half blood were. Her Malfoy knew how to drive, and apparently went shopping at the grocery, and wore clothes that didn't cost more than her parents made in a month.
He was not the Malfoy she grew up with.
Something during that year that he disappeared was the deciding factor in that change. And she wished she knew what it was. Maybe then she wouldn't fumble though their interactions; not sure which version of him she was talking too.
With Malfoy sending her off to get stuff from the list while he zoomed through the isles himself, they found themselves that the checkout fairly quickly.
Xue met them in front of the cashier, and handed Draco a wad of cash. "You're better with the conversions than me."
He merely nodded and started throwing things on the belt for them to scan. "You guys go put this stuff in the car while I pay."
Out on the curb though as they where packing the thinks in the trunk, Hermione eyed the small girl curiously. "You mentioned you where a half blood, right?"
She nodded. "That's right. Mom is a pureblood, and dad was one of my grandfather business partners in the muggle world; he thought a marriage between the two, what with the unrest in the wizarding world at the time, would afford our family some security."
"But... I thought there was this stigma about muggles and muggleborns?" Hermione fingered a curl nervously, eyes shifting to Malfoy's form though the glass. He was leaning against the counter, chatting with cashier who was motioning for his coworker to give him change from the other register.
The other girl followed her gaze to where Draco was standing; watching as some of the customers flocked around him, laughing and smiling as he said something. She knew pretty quickly where this line of questioning sprung from. "You mean the whole Death Eater thing?"
"Yeah."
She hummed thoughtfully for a moment, watching as he laughed at something another customer said and pointed out to where they where seated saying something else that made all of their eyes turn toward them. "Not all purebloods where followers of the Dark Lord; most of them weren't actually. It was almost unheard of in china. But I mean, it's not like you have to worry about that."
Hermione blinked at her in confusion, dragging her eyes away from a winking Malfoy who was smirking at her. "Hm? Oh, yeah, I did help defeat the Dark Lord; I never really thought about it like that, but I guess it does give me a bit to stand on in terms of issues like that."
Xue gave her a funny look, glancing back and forth between her and Draco. "Sure, I guess you could look at it like that." She stood up and brushed of her pants. "Why don't I head on over to the apothecary and start gathering up the ingredients? You guys can catch up when he's done, but make it quick; Draco's got all our cash."
Flustered, Hermione eyed the girl once again. She wasn't sure why, but it seemed like they where having two different conversations. It was almost like they had misunderstood each other, but she wasn't sure how it was possible. It was a good idea though. Not only logically, as it would speed everything along nicely, but it gave her an opportunity to ask him the questions burning on her tongue.
"What? Oh, alright, sure." She agreed readily, trying not to seem overly eager. It wasn't as if she wasn't fond of the girl or anything.
After waving Xue off, Hermione turned to watch Draco though the glass door. Apparently the both registers had been out of change so they had to make some cash trades with another customer while everyone waited. He turned to her and mouthed 'sorry' as she fidgeted against the wheel of the car.
Shortly after that he managed to escape from the store, sprinting out to her with a winning smile. "Apparently they didn't have any change in the drawers after someone came in to break a 20."
"It's alright." She shoved herself off the side of the car, moving over to stand by him. "Xue went on ahead to the Apothecary to start gathering things up for us."
He pointed toward an alley down the way. "She went this way right?" Hermione nodded and started down the street, Draco falling into step beside her.
"So what all do we need ingredients for?" He asked idly, watching the image of their shadows stepping in sync.
She hummed thoughtfully for a moment, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. Was it her or did he seem to be in good spirits? "Blood Replenishing Potion, some Bruise and Burn-healing Paste, and Boil Cure. I think that's it anyway, Xue has the actual list."
He laughed lightly, started to whistle a tune that sounded suspiciously familiar like something from 'A Goofy Movie'. "I forgot that Katie fell into that pit and used the last of our Bruise Paste."
They fell into companionable silence after that, walking next to each other down the crowded Cairo streets. Occasionally stepping closer to avoid other passerby's, but always moving an acceptable distance away, not wanting to test the tentative friendship.
"Hey Malfoy?" She asked after a long moment while they were waiting at a crosswalk.
He paused in his whistling to give her his full attention. "Something on your mind Granger?"
Steeling her nerves, she finally asked the question she'd been itching to. "What were you doing in Greece where you had to learn to drive muggle cars?"
"Ah ah ah. Nosy Granger." He turned slightly to tap her on the nose, before offering his arm to escort her across the street. She accepted it hesitantly and allowed him to lead her though traffic. "That's not a story I'm willing to tell yet, and one you're not ready to hear. Let's save it for a more appropriate time."
"Oh really? And when would be a more appropriate time to tell me?" She asked, feeling irrationally annoyed with his avoidance of the question.
He stopped in the middle of the street to face her, making the crowd move around them. "I promise I'll tell you, the entire story one day."
"What should I expect on that day then, since obviously it's going to be a memorable one." Hermione shot back, scathingly sarcastic.
"I suspect we'll be stuck in one of the pyramids of an undetermined amount of time. Why? I'm not sure yet, but it seems the most plausible." He answered lightly, an amused smirk lighting up his face as he tugged her back into motion.
"I'll hold you to that then. We ever get stuck together, you have to give me everything."
His smirk grew into a full blown grin at that, making him look devilishly charming. "And would you like my heart included along with my guts while I'm spilling them?"
She eyed him then. "You, Draco Malfoy, are a contradiction."
"I do try." He replied with false modesty, resuming his whistling of what was really sounding like Disney songs.
Note: Dude, totes forgot to put a note in here. Also, The Song I had in mind was Stand Out by Powerline (A Goofy Movie) This is your first hints of some Disney obsession
