A/N: This chapter is fast forwarded, but there's flashbacks to fill in the gap of a year.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Draco slumped his head back against the cold, hard wall and sighed. Azkaban wasn't doing him any good and he felt so empty. He glanced to his left and counted the self tally sheet he had made on the stone wall.
Three hundred and sixty days. Draco counted, Five more days until I'm a free man.
He looked back up the ceiling and sighed again. He couldn't tell whether it's day or night out, but every time he received his meal, he would use a stone to etch in another strike on the wall. For the first day or so, he refused to eat the food that was presented to him because he deemed it "unfit for a human being", but he quickly realized that they weren't going to present him steak and potatoes. The only reason that Draco was granted a trial was because of Harry, even though he didn't ask for a trial.
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Flashback
Draco cried out desperately as he saw Hermione fall from a curse that was sent by Bellatrix. He started to run towards her, but the twins gave him a sad look before they apparated her away.
"Confringo!" Draco cried out and pointed his wand at a Death Eater's back. He quickly ran to his room and shut the door behind him. He quickly conjured up a bag and shoved everything he thought was important into it. He didn't know what he was doing, in fact, he didn't know what he was doing the moment he saw Hermione collapse. His body took over and led him to his room while his mind shouted "No no no! You can't run away from battle!" He didn't even know what spell had hit her, for all he knew, she could be dead.
After shoving everything in, he ran downstairs dodging curses.
"Going somewhere Malfoy?" Ron asked pointing his wand at him.
Levicorpus! Draco casted a non-verbal spell without giving it a second thought. The next thing Ron knew, he was dangling from the ceiling screaming profanity at Malfoy who just gave him a nasty look. Suddenly there was a loud, anguish scream from the other end of the room. Draco looked over and saw Voldemort collapse while Harry was breathing hard. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked over. Silence filled the room as everyone waited to see if Voldemort was going to rise from the floor, but that didn't happen. All the Death Eater hissed and tried to run to the door and apparate away, but the members of the Order of Phoenix quickly blocked it and arrested the Death Eaters after knocking their wands out of their hands.
"Let me down!" Ron cried out, waving his hands like an idiot. Harry quickly released him from the spell and looked over at Draco. The twins had returned and was quietly talking to Kingsley, who looked over at Draco.
"Harry, can we have a word with you?" Kingsley called, Harry cast Draco a final glare before walking back towards the twins and Kingsley. Ron gave Draco a rude hand gesture before he followed Harry. Draco realized no one has taken his wand, as he was standing just a few feet away from the door. He can always run and hide out somewhere in the world, but he can never be with Hermione that way, and it would be selfish of him to ask her to hide from the world with him.
"Malfoy, give me your wand please." Harry said quietly as he broke Draco's thoughts. Draco looked at him and was surprised to see that Harry didn't look angry, in fact, he gave him a sympathetic look. Draco looked down at his wand and slowly lifted his arms and placed the wand on Harry's outstretched hands.
Every Death Eater was escorted out of the manor with one member of the Order to each Death Eater. Draco saw his Father gave him a defeated look as he march passed him.
Draco waited until most of the Death Eaters were out before he went to the end of the line. He felt a hand on his shoulders, turning him around.
"You're granted a trial." Harry said. Draco looked at in him surprised and took a step back in case Harry was joking and was going to avada him right there.
"What?" he asked, incredulous.
"You're granted a trial tomorrow, as for the time being we'll be providing you an accommodation in the Ministry. Draco was too shock to speak, but Harry took the silence as a 'thank you' since he didn't expect too much from Draco.
The trial went on for an hour, and Draco barely had much time to say his own side of the story, but whatever he had said earned him one year in Azkaban, as oppose to ten. When they marched him out of the courtroom, he stopped in front of Harry.
"Is Hermione okay?" he asked. Ron snapped his head to his direction.
"Don't talk about her! You've hurt her enough keeping her locked up like an animal!" Ron said angrily, "If it was up to me, you'd be spending a life time in Azkaban!" Harry put up his hand to stop Ron from talking.
"She's fine, but she's in rough condition." Harry said curtly, before the guards pushed Draco forward. Harry gave him a quick nod before the door closed behind him.
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Draco closed his eyes as he tried to imagine how Hermione smelled like, how she felt like, but he couldn't. The memories were too painful to relive, even if was only in his head. Draco clutched his head and groaned as he felt a wave of nausea hitting him like a ton of bricks.
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Flashback
A week into his stay in Azkaban, the guard told him he has a visitor. Draco lifted up his up in surprised. Who could be visiting him?
"Who is it?" Draco asked.
"A young lady name Hermione Granger." the guard said roughly, making it clear that he's not a messenger guy.
Draco froze, Hermione came to see him? Could he actually face her or would seeing her just bring back painful memories? Draco walked over to the door as the guard took out the keys to open the lock.
"No." Draco finally said, "No, tell her I do not wish to see her." The guard looked up, surprised.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive." Draco nodded and went back to the bed and sat down. The guard stowed his keys away and walked off.
Everyday for that week, Hermione went to visit him and everyday Draco refused to see her. Eventually, at the end of the week, he guard had stopped coming to his cell telling him Hermione wanted to see him. Draco wasn't sure if Hermione had stopped coming, or the guard just simply told her that Draco doesn't want to see her. Soon after, letters from Hermione started flooding in. Of course, by the time the letter had reached him, the seal to the envelope were opened. Obviously the Ministry wanted to read it before it reached him, making sure there were no wands or any sort of instructions in it.
My Dearest Draco,
I went to visit you many times, yet you do not want to see me. Part of me wants to scream out in frustration at your stubbornness, but the other part of me understands why. I have done you and your family wrong, and have lost your trust. I, out of anyone, would know that trust is hard to earn but easy to lose. I will do anything in my power to earn your trust back when you're out of Azkaban, as a free man. I will wait for you Draco, no matter how long it'll take. If you do not want to see me after coming out of Azkaban, I will still wait for you. No one will ever be as perfect for me like you are. I love you.
Forever and always, Hermione
Draco wanted to scream, "No! No you don't understand!" She deserves better, she deserves a nice, heroic man like Harry Potter. Not a guy who has a ugly dark mark on his left forearm. He wanted her to be with a guy who, when walking out in public with her, won't receive frowns and looks of disgust from people.
Draco shoved the letter back in the envelope and threw it at the corner of his cell.
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He turned and looked back at the same corner where he threw his letter. There were about a bit over thirty of them. She had started writing everyday, but slowly sending once a week, than once a month. Not once, did Draco ever replied.
He looked down at his left hand fiddled with his ring. He waited everyday for something to happen to it, but nothing did. He waited for that one day when Hermione would stop loving him and his hands would get cut off or set on fire or something dreadful like that. He didn't know what would happen for he had never gotten married before, for all he knew, nothing could have happened. He won't even know. Maybe it's better that way, him not knowing.
Hermione's probably with all the Weasley's right now and Potter while enjoying each other's company. For all he knew, she could be married to Potter and have her own family and he wouldn't even know. Draco's heart twisted as he imagined Hermione and Potter smiling down at their kids running around their house. But another part of him wanted Hermione to have the perfect family.
Family. Draco's family has been ripped apart by Voldemort, who ended up dying, leaving the mess he had created years before. Lucius had been sentenced to ten years in Azkaban, and his mother…oh his mother.
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Flashback
Draco was fighting with Charlie Weasley, dodging his curses and shooting curses back. Draco didn't notice that Bill had approached his back and was about to send a curse his way when he heardNarcissa called out his name. He spun around to see his mother, who was Bill, casting a shield him and Bill. The curse had rebounded off the shield and had hit her as Bill had successfully dodged it. Draco opened his mouth as he saw his mother fall over. He quickly rushed over, ignoring Charlie and the other person. Surprisingly, the two people had left him alone with his mother.
"Mother!" Draco cried out, shaking his mom, "Wake up! Wake up!" but he gotten no response from her. He quickly levitated her, while dodging curses, and put her inside a room. He didn't know if she was going to be okay or not. He quickly shut the door behind him, "Colloportus!" he pointed his wand at the door and locked it.
He quickly made his way downstairs, but when he passed his room, he paused. He hesitated, but then pressed his ears against the door and heard Hermione crying her heart out. Draco's heart tore into pieces as gripped his wand tightly in his hands and forced himself away from the door and down the stairs. He saw Ron running at him full on shouting random curses at him. He blocked them easily and send curses his way. After a while or fighting, he wanted to end it once and for all. He wanted to kill the man before him for putting Hermione through so many pains, physically, emotionally and mentally. Again, he didn't notice another member of the order sneak up behind him, and the next thing he knew his wand was knocked out of his hands. He looked up in horror as Ron shouted, "Avada Keda-" Then he heard her voice.
"Protego!" he heard Hermione cried out of nowhere. He turned and saw her fighting against the twins, "Expelliarmus!" he heard her send another curse at Ron, who flew back and hit his head. The next thing he knew, his wand was levitated in front of him. He grabbed it and was about to run to Hermione when he saw Bellatrix's curse hitting her square in the chest.
"Hermione!" Draco's heard himself crying out desperately but the twins already gave him a sad look and apparating her away.
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"Noo!" Draco cried out, as he shot up from his bed, sweating. The image of his mother and Hermione falling always replayed in his mind. Whenever he closes his eyes, the images would pop back up in his mind. He stood up and paced around his cell.
Five more days. Draco thought over and over. Then a tray appeared inside his cell with his food on it, Okay then, four more days.
He walked over and picked up the stale bread and broke it into two. He shoved one half into his mouth and chased it down with water. He sat down and looked over at his unappetizing dinner.
Just four more days of this crap. He chuckled to himself as he imagined himself walking into a restaurant as everyone looks at him in fear. He shovelled the rest of his meal down and went to his bed as the tray disappeared. He was resting on his back with his hands behind his heading thinking about the freedom he'll be getting in just four days. Should be go find Hermione? Or should he just leave and never see her again? The image of her and another guy appeared in his head. He growled and flipped himself over the bumpy cot. He heard his cell door open.
"Malfoy, you're free to go." Draco turned around, expecting to see a guard, but instead, it was Kingsley.
"What?" Draco said and sat up, "I have four more days to serve."
"You are granted to leave four days earlier then." Kingsley said, staring down at Draco, "You're mother is still in St. Mungo because she's not capable to live by herself."
"She's been at St. Mungo for almost a year?" Draco gasped and he stood up quickly, "Is she okay?"
"She was in a coma for half the year, and she's been sort of disorientated a bit, but she's getting better." Kingsley explained, "The hospital is getting full because of the latest accident down by a potion factory. Huge explosion sending quite a few to the hospital. Seeing you're released in four days, it wouldn't make a difference if you leave now."
Draco quickly grabbed his letters and followed Kingsley out of the cell and down the hall. About halfway down, a hand reached out of the bars and grabbed his arms.
"Son…forgive me." Lucius rasped. Draco stared at him coldly and jerked his arms away.
"You have to earn your forgiveness." Draco said coldly.
"Take care of your mother." Lucius bowed his head down and retreated back to his cell. Draco felt bad for him, and moved towards the cell.
"I'll write to you telling you how mom is." Draco told him, in a softer tone. Lucius looked up and gave him a small smile and nodded, "I'll see you in nine years father." and with that, he continued down the hall. Once outside, the guard handed him a towel.
"You can freshen up in the washroom down there." he pointed at the door. Draco walked into the washroom and there was a bar of soap, shampoo and robes, which was folded nicely by the bench. He quickly took a shower and came out feeling much better and cleaner than he had all year.
He quickly thanked the guard and walked toward the door. He paused for a bit while his hands were on the door's handle.
He pushed the door open and stepped out as the sunlight shined upon his face for the first time in a year. He was a free man now, and he is willing to do whatever he can to bring the Malfoy name out of the dirt and have a fresh beginning. He looked down at his ring and immediately knew where he's going to start.
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A/N: Thanks for the reviews guys! I was going to upload this chapter a few days ago but I lost my USB port! (my story was on it) but I found thank goodness lol. Just a few more chapters to go!
