Chapter 10

They were the last ones to leave the prefect meeting, closing the door behind them. "So, patrol for an hour and then…" Hermione's voice drifted off.

Draco looked at her and nodded sharply. "Yes, we'll patrol for an hour and then head off to the Room of Requirement." He said as he turned on his heel and started to stride down the hall.

Hermione ran to catch up to him and could barely keep up with his pace. "Malfoy, slow down, please."

Draco sighed but slowed down anyway. "I don't understand this. I don't understand why we have to go through this."

"I know, me neither. But obviously Colin has a reason." She said, grateful that she could walk at a comfortable speed.

"Which for some reason, we are not privy to." Draco added bitterly. "I'm getting tired of being some pawn in that bloody ghost's game."

Hermione nodded. She was tired of the emotional turmoil that Colin was putting them through as well. She could see the way Draco was fidgeting with his robes as he walked that he was uncomfortable. She felt for him, knowing that these pictures had been especially hard on him. But they had been hard on her too and they brought the two of them together, though she wasn't ready to admit that was a good thing.

They walked in silence for the rest of the hour before they found themselves in front of an empty wall. Hermione looked at Draco and he gave a curt nod before walking back and forth in front of the wall. Soon, a door appeared and they both stood in front of it nervously.

Draco took a step forward and opened the door quickly, crossing the threshold and staring at the familiar room, however, instead of a room full of stuff it was an empty room with empty tables and shelves. The room looked normal, not a sign of fire or soot, but all of the things that had accumulated there were gone. All of the hidden things destroyed in the fire.

Hermione stood at his side and slipped her hand into his and gave it a squeeze. She didn't know why she felt the pull to do this but she didn't fight it. He didn't resist and instead held on to her hand tighter. A picture appeared on the back wall, next to a set of empty bookshelves. They looked at each other and walked toward it slowly, never letting go of the other.

As they got closer they could see a picture of Crabbe, looking disgruntled per usual and his arms crossed in front of him. Underneath the picture a sentence appeared. "It wasn't your fault."

Draco's eyes narrowed at the words and an angry scowl came to his face. "Of course it's my fault! You wouldn't have been there if it wasn't for me! You wouldn't have cast that stupid spell!" He yelled at the top of his lungs.

A pair of arms wrapped around his waist and held him close. She felt the need to comfort him and it felt oddly natural. "It wasn't your fault, Draco." Hermione whispered to the blonde boy. "I was there. It wasn't your fault."

Draco shook his head. "I shouldn't have let him come with me. I should have saved him." He said, resting his head on hers.

"We tried, Draco. You practically died in there yourself. He cast the spell. It wasn't your fault." She repeated. Hermione hadn't realized he held this guilt with him. It must have been eating him up on the inside.

"He was one of my closest friends. And now Goyle won't talk to me, either." He said sadly. "Why? Why are you showing us this? Why are you making us relive the worst parts of the war?" He yelled out to the empty room, his voice echoing.

Hermione tighten her arms and held him closer, knowing that he desperately needed the comfort. "Colin certainly is picking the worst moments to bring up." She agreed, trying her best to stay calm.

Draco's arms snaked around her waist without thinking and he held on to her, taking all the comfort she was offering. "Do you think there's a lot more pictures?"

"I hope not." She answered as she stared at the picture of the deceased boy. "It's not your fault." She reiterated, reading the sentence again.

Draco took a deep breath. "I've been carrying it around with me, the idea that I caused his death. It seemed like I deserved it after everything I had done. If I didn't cause it, why did he die?"

Hermione stepped away from him and broke their embrace. She looked up at him and had a stoic look on her face. "A lot of people died in the war and it was all for the same reason. It was for the light side to win. Crabbe died in a war that we were all too young to be involved in, but we still were. And now we all have to live with the memories but in no way can we carry the sins of war on our shoulders. It wasn't you fault, Draco."

Draco looked at her and felt the piece of guilt he carried around with him shatter. And it felt like a weight was lifted from his shoulders.

Hermione smiled at him as she saw the guilt melt off of him. His eyes suddenly looked clearer and his posture a little straighter. And her smile grew when he gathered her up in a hug and held her close. His scent filled her nostrils and she vaguely wondered when she became familiar with what he smelled like.

"Thank you, Hermione." He said, her name rolling off his tongue. He looked over her head and stared at the picture of Crabbe. "Thank you, Vince." He said quietly, a ghost of a smile gracing his face. In that moment, he felt closer to her than he had ever felt for anyone else and it alarmed him slightly. He broke apart from Hermione quickly all of the sudden, needing space from the girl. "Shall we head back to the dorms?"

Hermione nodded and they walked toward the door in silence. Hermione looked at him from the corner of her eye and she couldn't help feeling comfortable with him. More comfortable than she had felt at the Burrow with Ron, in fact. She shook her head quickly and attempted to banish the thought from her head.

"You know, you're not half bad, Granger." Draco said casually, as if discussing the weather.

Hermione chuckled, thankful he broke the silence. "You too, Malfoy. Not nearly as much of a git as I remembered."

"You're not as much of swotty know-it-all as I remembered." He answered back to which he got a friendly slap in the shoulder.

"Better than your fiancée?" She asked, teasing him boldly.

Draco sighed. "Anyone's better than my fiancée. The thought of spending the rest of my life with her gives me the heebie jeebies."

"So don't marry her." Hermione said, seriously. "Do you really have to?"

Draco turned and looked at her. "Of course I have to marry her."

"Why?" She asked.

"My parents arranged it." He answered quickly.

"So?"

Draco stared at her for a moment, no answer immediately entering his head. "It's expected of me."

Hermione nodded slowly. "Right, so, because your parents want it and it's expected of you, you're going to spend the rest of your life, which is usually pretty long for us magical folk by the way, with a witch whom you can't stand and will probably drive you batty within a year."

Draco stared at her, his mouth open slightly. He racked his brain to come up with a witty come back but none entered his head and he watched as she smirked at him and then continued walking towards the door. "You don't understand!" He finally yelled out, propelling his body into motion. "You just don't understand." He said as he caught up to her.

"No, I apparently don't." She answered as she turned around to face him again. "But then again, I'm not sure you do either."

"I would lose everything; my inheritance, my social standing. I would be disowned!" He explained, listing all the reasons he had to go through with the wedding.

Hermione looked at him and she could see the debate going on in his head. "Yes, and that is worth a lifetime of unhappiness?"

Then Draco said the most blatant that had ever crossed his lips. "That, that is happiness."

Hermione shook her head and looked at him with a touch of pity. "No, it's not, and I think somewhere you know it."

Draco could feel his temper rising, the defense mechanism he knew and was comfortable with. How dare she pity him! Him! A Malfoy! "You just say that because you're nothing but a lowly mudblood with no social standing." He lashed out. He threw her a glare and stormed out of the room, the door slamming behind him.

Hermione recoiled back, hurt by the word she hadn't heard him use in months. Oddly enough, it hurt much more than it had in the past. She looked sadly at the door. Hedidn'tmeanit.HewasjustmadthatIcalledouthiswayoflife. She rationalized to herself. Satisfied with her rationale, she walked towards the door, but with a little sting in her heart that refused to leave.

o.o.o.o.o.o

Draco sat in front of the fireplace, nursing a glass of firewhiskey that he had snuck into the castle. He stared at the fire for a moment before finally looking over at his companion.

Blaise sat in the seat across from him, a glass of firewhiskey in his hand, and he relaxed against the back of the chair. "Man, Heads certainly have the cushier accommodations." He said, taking a sip of the drink.

Draco looked over at him and ran a hand through his hair. "Blaise, do you, do you think there are more important things than social standing and wealth?"

Blaise almost choked on his drink and sat up with a cough. "What?" He asked between gasps of breath.

Draco looked down at his drink, swirling the amber liquid in his glass. "Just that. Do you think life is only defined by your rank and money?"

"Well, I guess, some of it is. Why? I've never thought you would ask that kind of question." Blaise answered, sitting back in his seat, trying to get rid of shock on his face.

"I don't know. Just been doing some thinking." He answered as he took a drink.

Blaise chuckled. "Geez mate, living with Granger has certainly rubbed off on you."

"What? No! This has nothing to do with Granger." Draco answered quickly.

Blaise raised an eyebrow at his friend's quick denial but let it pass. "So, then, maybe it's cold feet from marrying our year's biggest gold digger?"

Draco scowled. "I have to live my entire life with that shrew and the prospect makes me want to drink myself into a stupor."

"Ah, so that's it. Are you weighing the pros and cons of following through with the wedding?" Blaise asked, aware of Draco's discontent with the prospective marriage. "If I were in your shoes, all the galleons in the world couldn't make me marry her."

Draco sighed. "But what about being disowned? What about losing money, family and standing?"

"That's a tough one but I guess you have to decide where your limits are and how much you're willing to do in order to stay in good standing with your family." Blaise answered, feeling for him. "Is there someone else, Drake?"

Draco looked down at his drink. "Of course not." He answered, but a pang in his heart told him otherwise. He had started to begrudgingly admit that a soft spot was starting to form for his dorm-mate, though it took a night of struggling and throwing pillows in order to recognize it.

Blaise watched the emotions play over Draco's face and he sighed. "I know you're lying and I have a pretty good idea who it is." Draco's head snapped up to look at him but Blaise cut him off before he could say anything. "Does she know?"

Draco's shoulders drooped and he shook his head slowly. "There's no chance there anyway, Blaise. It's just a passing fancy and I'm sure it'll pass soon."

Blaise smiled at his friend sadly. "Well, I won't tell anyone, your secret's safe with me." He reassured him. "And besides, she's better than Pansy."

Draco smiled at him. "That's not saying much, mate."

A/N: Another chapter! Woo! I hope you guys are enjoying this one. I know there's not a lot of fluff but I think my two main characters are coming a long way, don't you? Please review! I'm gonna keep on chugging! ~Chrissy