As promised, the next chapter! I hope you all like it.
"Draco, I'm going to head back to class." Blaise said. "I think Theo got your things."
"Yeah, tell him thanks. You too, thanks." Draco sighed.
"Do you want me to bring anything?" Blaise asked. "I can bring up your books or homework or something."
"No, it's okay." Draco waved him off. "Get back to class."
Blaise nodded and hurried away. In the meanwhile, Draco leaned back and began counting the lines on the ceiling.
A few minutes later, he heard the door open and caught sight of Headmaster Dumbledore stepping into Madame Pomfrey's office. After a low, heated discussion that he couldn't quite catch, they stepped back out.
"Mr. Malfoy." Madame Pomfrey began nervously. She took a deep breath. "This is a bit difficult to understand. As I understand it, there was a fight, and two girls tried to curse each other."
"Yes, ma'am." Draco replied. He sort of wished she would just blurt out what she was trying to say.
"Well, the curses seemed to have bonded into one, ultimate curse. This is incredibly rare, and has only happened once before. I was lucky enough to have been studying it recently, which is why I recognized the signs." Madame Pomfrey continued. "You see, Mr. Malfoy, Miss Granger has been hit with a de-aging spell that was coupled with a deflection and memory spell. Those girls used very advanced versions of those spells. This results in Hermione Granger becoming de-aged. She won't remember very much, and the memories that do filter in will be distorted so she is not afraid of us or concerned with anything that would normally not make sense, but in an essence, she will be a child again."
"But…she's still stuck to me." Draco stated. He had stripped away all the finer details to the few facts that would be the most important to him. "She's still stuck to me and now she's a kid."
"In essence, yes." Dumbledore said gently. "I understand if you need a few moments to wrap your head around this. It's a bit overwhelming."
"Why does this keep happening to me?" Draco growled. He clenched his hands into fists and took a deep breath. "I guess this means you'll want me to take care of her."
"That would be very kind and considerate of you." Dumbledore's eyes seemed to twinkle. "Of course, if you would prefer, we can always transfer one of her friends into all of your classes, to care for Miss Granger."
Draco closed his eyes, trying to imagine being trapped with one of Granger's moronic friends. "That won't be necessary. How long will she be…be like that?"
"Not too long, I hope, as the spell sizzled out almost immediately after it was cast. Of course, this has only been recorded once, so I'll have to take notes. You'll have to bring her up every day so I can make sure her vitals are normal and everything is alright with her." Madame Pomfrey clapped her hands in a way that Draco really and truly did not appreciate.
"I do not think Mr. Malfoy shares your sentiments, Poppy." Dumbledore laughed lightly. "I can arrange for dinner to be brought up here tonight, Mr. Malfoy."
"Thank you." Draco said stiffly. He dropped down onto his chair, frowning as Madame Pomfrey moved to curtain Granger out of view. "How long is it going to take until the transformation is complete?"
"Oh, not long now. Not long at all." Madame Pomfrey replied.
Draco pursed his lips. Under his breath, he began cursing the very day he ever met Hermione Granger.
XXXXXX
Two hours later, Draco was bored out of his mind. He had taken to walking around the curtain, making sure to stay well within his limits.
"Draco, we brought dinner!" Pansy's voice reached him.
Draco turned to see his friends all smiling at him. Pansy had a plate in her hands.
"We heard about what happened to Hermione. Is she alright?" Daphne asked. "What's going on?"
Draco accepted the food from Pansy and sat down, beginning to explain.
"You mean, right now, she's transforming into a little kid?" Theo confirmed in awe. "That's…really odd."
"I'm going to kill Ambrosia and Yasmin." Draco said calmly. "They have no idea how much pain and suffering I am about to go through."
"I honestly can't even imagine you taking care of a baby Granger." Blaise snickered.
"Shush, you." Pansy smacked him lightly. "Don't worry, Draco, we'll help. You won't have to raise her on your own."
"I'm not raising her, Pansy. It's not like she's my actual child. I'm just watching her until she gets back to her regular age." Draco responded.
"Still, this'll be fun. It will be good practice for us, Blaise." Pansy grinned at her boyfriend, watching as he paled a little.
"I don't want to think about children just yet." Blaise blanched.
Pansy and Daphne dissolved into lighthearted laughter.
Madame Pomfrey rushed into the room.
"It's just about time. You all stay behind the curtain, do you understand? When I feel comfortable enough allowing Miss Granger to see the rest of you, I will pull it." Madame Pomfrey ordered.
"Yes ma'am." Theo agreed for all of them.
The nurse ducked behind the curtain. At first, there was silence. Then, a loud, powerful scream rang out, making everyone jump a little.
After the scream and a little bit of soothing noises from Madame Pomfrey, there were soft sobs. It was a good eight minutes before the sobs subsided, and Madame Pomfrey began to murmur something.
Then, the curtain was pushed back, and Madame Pomfrey held a child in her arms.
The little girl had soft, chestnut colored hair that reached her shoulders in smooth waves, and she had two rosy cheeks. When she opened her mouth, everyone could see that she was missing her two front teeth. She was small, so small that someone would have guessed she was only two years old. That couldn't have been the case, however, as her big doe eyes held pools of intelligence far beyond any toddler's.
"Mr. Malfoy, meet Hermione Granger." Madame Pomfrey said proudly. She bent down and let Hermione onto the floor.
Hermione took a few steps forward – and then fell down. She rose unsteadily and toddled over to Draco.
"What's your name?" She asked excitedly, in a voice that decidedly did not belong to a two-year-old. "I'm He-He-Hewhiny. My mommy and daddy call me Mione. I'm five years old. How old are you? Are you going to take care of me? That nice lady over there said you were going to take care of me while my mommy and daddy are gone."
Draco blinked. Well, at least that explained her age. "I'm Draco Malfoy."
"Dra….Drac…Draco." Hermione pronounced carefully. She glanced up triumphantly. "I can say your name! I can't say mine right yet. I wish I could but it's really hard. I wish I had a nice name."
Hermione had a beautiful pronunciation. Most of her words were crisp and clean, and there was a slight whistle whenever she said her 's's and her 'r's. It was rather ironic how she could say everything perfectly, except her own name.
"Oh, I think your name is lovely." Pansy told her. "I'm Pansy, by the way."
"Pansy." Hermione repeated. She beamed.
"I'm Daphne. This is Theo, and that over there is Blaise." Daphne told her.
"Da…Daph…Daphne." Hermione murmured. "Theo and Blaise. I got it!"
"It's very nice to meet you, Hermione Granger." Theo said, hiding a smile.
"You said my name right!" Hermione gasped. "How?"
"I think you just need your front teeth to say it." Theo replied, smiling a little.
Hermione frowned sadly and pushed her tongue through the small gap. "I hope they come soon."
"Don't worry, they will eventually." Daphne told her. "Come on, are you hungry?"
Hermione nodded enthusiastically.
"No way." Draco cut in. "You are not taking her down to the Great Hall. In case you forgot, we're still attached. And until I have to be seen with a child, I won't."
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked in confusion.
"Nothing." Daphne assured her. "Don't worry. Come on, you can have some of Draco's food."
Draco rolled his eyes, but he leaned back in his chair and handed the plate to Pansy. There was a sense of dread in his stomach, but he had long since learned how to ignore it.
