so before i begin. i am so sorry to whomever followed this story. i know it has been a year or more since i last updated. well, i have no excuse. but i promise i have made a whole lot of progress in this story in all that time. so, yeah wait for regular updates.

Chapter 9

So Hermione met both Draco and Theo

Draco the angry boy who treated her with disgust like she had some disease that will infect him and cause all his blonde hair to fall off.

Theo the calm boy who always apologized for his friend's actions, his friend whose last name is Malfoy the same last name of the woman who wrote Hermione's letter.

But no, Hermione was sure that it was all a coincidence. The white blonde hair, the brown hair, the weird thinks they were talking about. Things that nobody understood, the last name of Draco and Narcissa. Her brain couldn't deal with it so, she decided that she won't connect the dots.

Her life at the diner kept going in fact it was going fairly well. As Caleb one of hers and Chloe's friends asked her on a date. She was so excited for her date that she stopped thinking about Theo with his mysterious attitude and the dark aura that surrounded him.

She prepared for her date with Chloe's help. Caleb took her bowling. It was simple and sweet. He didn't ask a lot of questions and she was glad since dating was about getting to know each other.

She started going on regular dates with Caleb. It was fun. She told herself that she is happy that she didn't notice that the boys didn't come to the diner anyway, that she didn't feel an ache at her heart if she thought of them.

It was late at night; Hermione was the one closing the diner that day. Uncle Jacob was sick and Chloe left early she had to revise for exams. While Hermione was closing the doors a very drunk and intoxicated Theo Nott stumbled in front of her.

"aha, Hermione granger and here we meet again."

"Theo?!" she looked at him worriedly not knowing what to do. "what are you doing here? Are you drunk? Do you need any help?"

"you are a strange girl Hermione, do you know that?" he gazed at her for a while and then continued "who are you?! Tell me why do I feel like something is pulling me to you?" Hermione kept looking at him with worried. She didn't know what to tell him. Could she tell him that she felt heart ache when he didn't show up even though she doesn't know him and they aren't friends

"I wasn't supposed to come here again, did you know that? Did you know that I was a punished the first time I came for coming to a muggle place." He kept going not waiting for her to answer. " but I kept coming and coming like some magnet is pulling me here against my will."

"Theo, you are not well. You are drunk and not making any sense. Do you live close from here can I take you home?"

Theo looked at her for a moment then started laughing hysterically like a mad man.

"yes, I can imagine it. Hey dad this is Hermione granger and guess what she is a muggle." He told her while still laughing then he sobered up quickly "he will have us both skinned alive and fed to the animals."

Hermione was afraid. She didn't understand what's happening and she was frightened. She thought about leaving and letting Theo deal with himself but a part of her said no you can't do that to him. So she took a deep breath trying to calm herself then looked at him.

"okay, I won't take you home. How about I open the diner you sleep inside and I will come early in the morning to get you out."

"that's okay" he told her sleepily his eyes dropping for a while.

Hermione helped him inside and when she made sure that he was okay she left to her home with a heavy heart and a brain that was filled with thoughts.

Hermione went to bed while still mulling over Theo's words. Punished! What did he mean by that what kind of punishment? As in grounded or some other kind. She remembered them coming while Draco was apparently hurt, but Theo was okay. So, what happened.

Also, what did he mean by muggles. He kept calling her muggle over and over. She felt like she fell into one of her novels or a weird fiction movie that you won't find out the real story in it until the very last seen and she was waiting for that last seen with her breath held

And why would his father skin them alive. She hoped that he was talking metaphorically. She thought that maybe he did belong to some strange cult or something and his dad is mad because he is taking to people outside of their cult.

So, Hermione went to sleep with so many questions in her mind and none of them answered.

Hermione woke up from her sleep gasping for air. She had a nightmare. She didn't remember it or what it was. Walking to the kitchen she made herself a cup of warm milk to help her go back to sleep. Some bits were coming back to her from the nightmare. It wasn't a nightmare at all. It was a memory.

A memory from the past that she wanted to forget, that she was already forgetting. It was her encounter with Narcissa Malfoy

I came to take you to the muggle world to live where you belong.

Take you to the muggle world.

This sentence kept going on and on in her mind like something was wrong with it. Or like it was there. Telling her the truth is right in front of your eyes. Grab it. Focus on it. Hold on to it.

Then it came to her. She spilled her glass of milk from her shock. She became wide awake.

Muggle world. Muggle. Theo called her a muggle.

It was one of two things. Theo knows that woman or he knew Hermione a long time ago which was it.