"Hermione."
Ginny Weasley, finally bored and frustrated from trying to wake Hermione from her deep sleep, sat at the end of her bed and sighed. It was not just frustration that affected Ginny; it was the fact that she had found her lying on the sofa, out of her mind with an almost empty glass of Firewhisky.
"Hermione..."
The girl in question was still dreaming, the unmistakable face of Draco Malfoy leering in front of her. At the flash of silver before her eyes she woke with a start. Blinking in the harsh light she tried to make out the figure at the foot of her bed. She was in bed, comfortably so and for a moment tried to understand why on earth Ginny was frowning at her.
"Oh, morning Ginny."
"Look, I promise not to tell Harry if you tell me everything."
Oh god, please don't tell me I've said something stupid. Hermione remembered last night distinctly, drowning her sorrows with glass after glass of Firewhiskey and yet could not get the sight of Draco Malfoy attempting to kill her out of her mind. She then decided that Firewhisky was probably not the best method to use for trying to forget things.
"What are you on about?" She replied, acting innocently.
"Malfoy. That's what. You were talking in your sleep. You should be grateful that the Firewhiskey had a Hangover Charm on it."
Hermione sank back, defeated, into her soft, warm pillow and let out a deep sigh, dreaming of returning to sleep. Of course Ginny's worried. I'd never have drunk myself silly before. She smiled at the sudden thought, and looked back at her.
"Okay, but swear that you won't breathe a word." Hermione whispered, looking Ginny truthfully in the eye. The girl nodded, and held a sombre expression on her face. "I was attacked in Hogsmeade. There were two Snatchers, or muggers, or whatever they were... and they took my wand and threatened me. One of them was injured by Malfoy but the other ran away. I didn't realise it was him until the next morning. He gave me shelter for the night and I came back here."
She saw Ginny's face change from shock to confusion to uncertainty, taking in what she had just rushed through.
"So that's why you weren't here that night. What about all those other days you said you were 'working for McGonagall'?" Ginny asked, listening with interest.
"That was true. I did need to get stuff from McGonagall."
"Alright. I believe you. And I won't tell anyone." Ginny smiled. "Not Harry?"
Hermione looked up, and shook her head with another smile. She felt tainted and strange, as if drink certainly did not agree with her and swore to herself she would go nowhere near Firewhiskey again.
"Oh. Harry hates Malfoy, you know that." She stretched out that particular word with distaste. Though she hadn't given Ginny the whole truth, at least she hadn't lied completely.
Hermione and Ginny brushed off the soot from their shoes as they arrived in the Leaky Cauldron, and waved to Tom the barman. Making their way towards the back where they were able to enter Diagon Alley, Hermione suddenly felt quite ill, a dull headache which she presumed was from the effects of the Hangover charm.
"I'm going in here. I'll meet you later, okay?" Ginny headed off to the Quidditch shop, presumably to find something for Harry.
Instead, Hermione perused the bookshop Flourish and Blotts. There were rows upon rows of Potions books, mostly school ones. She ran her finger along the top shelf, looking for Beautifying Potions, since Ginny had been hinting about them. Handling three red and pink books in her hand, she paid and moved towards the door.
Just upon leaving she saw someone about to enter who she had really no want to meet again. How could Draco Malfoy just decide to waltz into Diagon Alley as though everything was fine? Is he following me? He's the one that needs keeping an eye on! She flinched her hand away from his as he brushed it discreetly and she honestly felt like punching him in the face. She clenched her fist around her bag as she walked past, stopping by the corner of the main street.
She turned to check that Draco had walked away before she felt a sudden pain in her head. She heard a strained voice, as though in agony and a tall figure came into view. It was Draco, that was clear by his pale skin and blond hair. She tried to call out for him but it was hopeless, he was being dragged across a frozen lake as though by an invisible force.
The sight dissolved just as she heard a crack of ice and a piercing scream. She ran, all the way back to Flourish and Blott's where there was no sign of Malfoy anyway. Without another second's notice she apparated on the spot.
Freshly fallen snow crunched under Hermione's feet when they made contact the ground. Where was he? She saw her breath flee into the darkening sky. There it was. The same forest pool. Ron. Ron saved Harry's life here. This brought back memories, firstly about how she had defiantly shouted at Ron for leaving, and what she knew had been the place where the Slytherin horcrux had been destroyed. But she couldn't focus on that now. She ran around the lake, ignoring the slippery ice beneath her feet as she stumbled around the trees in search of him.
"Malfoy! Malfoy... are you-"
A black hole, visible against the silver sheen of the ice, was rippling. Draco was in there. He had to be.
Forgetting any of her magical skills, she threw off her cloak and skidded over the ice, pulling herself to a halt by the black water.
With one step, she fell through the ice as it splintered from the centre. Screaming suddenly, she tried to swim upwards yet the mark upon her right hand made it impossible to grip onto any surface ice. She turned in circles, searching for her wand before realising she had left it within her cloak. There was no sign of Malfoy for as far as she could see yet she dived further down to try and find him. She was sinking further and further into the dark depths when a shard of ice scratched across her palm and she let out a scream, her breath leaving her body.
Barely seconds later, Draco Malfoy appeared in the same place, brushing snow from his hair and looking frantically around.
"Lumos." He breathed, his whole body shivering in the cold. His heart sank to his stomach.
A black coat with red ribbons around the hem was crumpled by the bank. She's gone in. A strong swimmer himself, Draco aimed his wand at the ice to melt a larger hole before performing a Bubble Head charm. How long had she been in there? A few minutes? An hour?
The water wasn't the only thing that made him feel cold. The full moon's reflection was blocked by a hooded figure. A skeletal hand reached through the air, edging slowly closer to the forest pool. He hadn't realised as he dived in.
This is all Draco's fault. I bet he planned this and everything else that's been happening. Hermione wavered between consciousness as she was enveloped by the same chilling feeling, but she wanted it to take her away from it all. Everything. The Snatchers, the horcrux. This was all a trick to kill me. I doubt that was even a real horcrux... he was trying to kill me all along...
"Granger!" Draco tried to shout, but the charm seemed to silence him.
A mass of dark hair was plastered across her face. He couldn't be too late, her eyes were flickering. The bubble around his mouth had prevented Hermione from hearing him but he knew no silly charm could get in the way. A few bubbles escaped her lips. She must still be alive. If she died it would be all his fault and he couldn't live with that. Clasping her arm tightly he darted to the surface only to realise it had strangely darkened, as though all the happiness had fled from the world. He pulled himself out of the water, still holding on strongly to Hermione. A Dementor swooped down out of nowhere, revealing one of his darkest memories.
"You have disappointed me, Lucius. Your order was to leave the boy and yet you seem adamant to send your own son to kill him. Your wand has been useless just as you have been."
The scarlet eyes darted across Draco's father's face. Lucius was pleading, his white blonde hair shielding the fear in his eyes.
"My lord, I-"
There was a flash of green light and his father lay there, on the floor of the Shrieking Shack. All the breath in Draco's lungs left him. His father, the one he looked up to most; he was dead.
Hermione's hand started to slip from his grasp. He couldn't let her go back again. He thought of her for an instant, when she had woken in Malfoy Manor with an awkward smile on her face.
"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" He shouted; a white light erupted out of his wand, slowly forming into a silver dragon, a blinding fire issuing from its mouth. The Dementor closest to him and the others that had crept into the forest flew backwards and disappeared back into the darkness.
He pulled Hermione onto the frosty grass. She couldn't die. Not like this. He had to explain. Thinking rapidly, he warmed her clothes with a spell and checked her pulse. After ten seconds he waited and listened until he felt a faint beat from her neck.
Draco hovered over her face, searching for a sign that she could breathe, and pressed his mouth over hers, praying she would show any other sign of life. Relief flooded him as he moved back and saw her chest begin to rise and fall properly. He pointed his wand to the sky, protecting both of them. She coughed up water until her eyes slowly closed again, her breathing regular. Out of utter exhaustion, he lay down beside her, shivering until he could shiver no longer.
Coughing and spluttering, Hermione sat up. It was dawn; the pale sunlight streamed between the trees upon her. Realising she was on a patch of dewy grass, she pulled herself onto her feet. The pain in her head was still there, but she couldn't tell where it had come from. Hermione turned. There he was. That stupid Slytherin who had ruined the past few years of her life.
She ran into the trees, angry but determined to get back home. Ginny. No, she couldn't go back. She left her there in Diagon Alley, which meant if she did go back she would have a lot of explaining to do.
No. I don't want to wait for that idiot to wake up.
To her disappointment, Draco had woken up shortly after her. When he noticed Hermione wasn't there he thought she wouldn't have gone far in the state she was in, barely able to think straight. But he was at least grateful she could walk.
"Homenum Revelio." He sighed, as the spell glimmered further into the woods. "Granger, come back here."
She heard him and, knowing this was entirely stupid of her, walked back to the lakeside, arms crossed as she glared at him.
"There you are." He smiled, relieved. Hermione obviously took this to be a smirk.
She lunged at him, pushing him with far more might than Draco had expected from her and he fell, his back slamming against the ground painfully. Thinking fast, and wishing not to be attacked any further, he cast Protego around him. Hermione scowled at him; if looks could kill, Hermione would have murdered Draco there and then.
"What did I do-"
"DON'T DO THAT! OF COURSE YOU KNOW!" She yelled. She had all this anger in her waiting to burst out and she felt now would be the perfect moment.
"Granger, I-"
"Shut up!" She shouted. "This is all your fault. You've just been trying to confuse me and trick me. You make out you're all good and everything, well I don't believe it one little bit."
She's gone mental. And I thought Granger was smart.
"You've hated me, Harry and Ron since we first met. Me, the Mudblood who always answered the questions right. Harry... Oh, don't tell me you weren't jealous of him! That's why you hated him!" Her voice became more furious with every word.
"Remember our second year? You called me Mudblood, always the jealous Slytherin that wanted attention. Third year, I know this was just to wind me up, you acted all- Oh no a Hippogriff scratched me- and you're lucky I didn't punch you any more than that about Buckbeak." She had pulled her cloak on forcefully, and ignored her shivers and shakes as she paced, glancing angrily at him. "Fourth year, that hex that made my teeth grow. Okay, I'll admit there was a plus side to me getting my teeth fixed - but that's besides the point. Fifth year, Umbridge and your little Inquisitorial Squad, getting rid of Dumbledore and flashing off that you could dock points."
"Granger, stop, I-" Draco frowned.
"No! You have no idea what I've been through! Sixth year, oh where do I begin!" She screamed. "You became a Death Eater, nearly tortured Harry, and caused Hogwarts to fall to ruins. And last year. Last year, you-"
"That's enough!" He roared, standing up to his full height. She looked at him, really looked at him. His face was full of remorse and hopelessness.
"Well. Now you know what I think." She breathed, her throat sore from the screaming. She continued to narrow her eyes at him, waiting for a response as she sat down, quietly.
"You're right."
"What?" The surprise in her voice shocked even herself.