Chapter 13 Goodbye and Hello
It was Saturday. Everything was ready to go at Hogwarts and on the Death Eaters end. "Draco, are you ready?" Lucius asked. "Yes Father" he answered. With a nod all of the death eaters disapperated.
Hermione and Harry were nervous. Harry was not happy with Hermione's plan B and was hoping that it wouldn't need to come to that. So many things could go wrong. She was staring out of the door leading into the grounds when she saw them. "Ok Team" She said as she stepped forward. The Potters, Zabini's, and Longbottom's followed her out of the doors.
Draco watched as they walked down to meet them in the grounds. And had some very mixed emotions. He was staring at Hermione and she was gorgeous walking with purpose and determination. He hadn't felt this way about her since the yule ball. He shook his head those feeling were supposed to be gone. She was with Weasley and she was his boss, there was nothing there and he shouldn't feel this way, no couldn't feel this way. It wasn't right yet trying not to look at her felt even more wrong.
Lucius shot a spell at Hermione who blocked it without batting an eye. Draco felt pride. What wait? "Lucius it doesn't have to be this way" She said.
"Awe Miss Granger awake I see. Pitty I didn't think you would be up so soon. Being a Gryffindor and all that. You are supposed to be fearless, I guess that just makes you weak." Lucius spat
"Fear isn't a weakness. It strengthens you, When you know what you fear you can learn to overcome it" She said. That is why she is the boss Draco thought. She can use her words to move people even if they don't want to hear it.
"Ha you're foolish to believe that" Lucius said
"Foolishness, belief, fears are not weaknesses. Without them we are no better than animals, Right Draco?" She said, He was staring at her. She hadn't called him Draco since the Final battle. Thanking him and walking away with Weasley and Potter. He was jealous than because he had developed a crush on her by then but, that had faded when he started working with her.
"I must disagree fear is a weakness, Granger" Draco replied. He watched as hurt shown briefly in her eyes. Why was he being affected by her so much today.
"Knowing your fear is strength…"
Draco cut her off "Not the time for a lesson Granger" he spat. But calling her Granger and saying it that way, with hate didn't feel right. But he had always called her Granger. His head was starting to hurt.
"You right, that particular lesson can wait" She turned to Lucius. "It doesn't have to end like this" she said again. "We lost so many last time and for what?" she asked. "Why do this again?" This is way she was, she gave second chances and preventing death was her main goal.
"No I will not stop!" Lucius shorted. "You deserve nothing you have, you Mudblood" Hermione laughed
"Do you really think that that word is going to hurt me" Draco felt anger at the laugh
"It should" Draco growled at her.
He didn't understand where the anger came from he was supposed to be on their side. But he couldn't help it. Everything about her was wrong and his head was hurting. He shot a cruse her way she blocked it. Harry raised his wand next to her and pointed it at Draco. Hermione made a motion for him to put it down. Why did Draco send the spell at her. Did he really want to be a death eater again. Why was his head hurting so bad.
"I am giving you all a chance to change your minds. I know you were here for the stone but It is not here any longer." She said. She was lying of course it was in her pocket. Draco's anger rose again. She had out bested him again, no she was supposed to get it first. His mind was conflicted. He was thinking about what Harry had told him a few days ago. Lucius gave you a potion, trust yourself. Than he realized what the potion must have been Tethering Tonic. His father had tied his emotions to him so that way he could control him. Of course his father knew that the Imperius curse he could throw off and Legitimacy wasn't an option either. But the tonic he was able to persuade Draco into believing his own thoughts. Draco's wand fell to the floor, his head was pounding. He was trying to fight the potion but wasn't strong enough. Hermione was talking again but he couldn't hear the words she was saying.
"Shut up you stupid filthy mudblood!" Draco shouted at her. He knew he shouldn't of called her that but every word she said was painful and looking at her hurt. He glanced at her and tears shone brightly her eyes. Than she looked at Harry and nodded. What were they up to he thought and then he heard her in his head.
Goodbye, my love
Than she was on the floor motionless.
"Hermione!" Everyone yelled. Draco head had stopped hurting for a brief moment then he felt dizzy. His mind was going a million miles an hour. And Memories started changing and more appeared.
Meeting Hermione for the first time
Her smile
The Forbidden Forest
Calling her mudblood
There diaries
Her petrified
Her punching him
The Yule Ball
Umbridge's squad
Her watching him
Her helping him
There secret meetings
Her torture
The final battle
Her and Ron
Her forgiveness
Working together
Berlin
Her break up
First kiss
First date
First time
When he told her he loved her
When she told him she loved him
The ring
His Otter
Everything he had felt the last few days toward her disappeared. His head stopped hurting and he looked down at her again everyone was surrounding her and the Death Eaters were laughing. Nott shot a spell at the fallen Gryffindor but she had placed a protective spell around them before falling. His brain went into overdrive. he ran to her. "Harry" he said and Harry turned on him "You did this" he said "No I was cursed, it's broken" Draco pleaded and pushed Harry out of the way. He fell on his knees next to her "Hermione Hermione!" he shouted as he shook her. He disillusioned his bracelet blank no color. "Hermione!" he shook her again he was suddenly enraged. He grabbed her hand and found the stone. The stupid stone. He looked at Harry "You said I did this, but she looked at you before she fell what happened?" He growled with a deep voice grabbing the stone as he stood. Harry looked at him and tears started to form in his eyes "She said you didn't remember and you were hurting. She was hurting you. She needed to go for you to live. I tried to stop her. She couldn't do anything to help you so she helped the only way she knew how. She saved you from whatever Lucius did. She needed to make sure you were safe" Harry finished.
He looked down at her. He had called her a mudblood again. He said would never do that. He promised her and now she was gone. He knew she wanted to stop this and stop this he would. He felt the stone in his hand and a magic moved to his wand. He continued to look at her. She had forgiven him for everything and he had done it again and this time there would be no forgiveness. "I am sorry" he whispered. Turning toward the Death Eaters
"You removed my memories and tainted by mind" Draco said pointing his wand at Lucius. He was looking surprised. "I did" he replied. "Why?" Draco asked "You needed not to love her." Lucius said disgustedly. "What?" He questioned. "The Prophecy said to sever the bond love my no longer exist. When did you start liking her?" Lucius questioned. Draco grinned at his father, he was going to make him squirm with his answer. "We were friends form the very start. We meet on the train and agreed to be friends in secret. I Develop feelings for her in our third year when she punched me and couldn't take my eyes off her in froth year after the yule ball." Draco answered. Lucius was furious. "My son has been a blood traitor since the beginning of time. Avara Kedavra!" Lucius Shouted. The spell rebounded off of the shield charm Hermione had placed around them.
Draco's insides were on fire now. His father had tried to kill him. He turned to Harry, and Harry noticed his eyes we so dilated that the sliver disappeared. "Get her" He pointed to Hermione "and them" he pointed to the team, "back into the castle, I can deal with them" Draco's voice was deep and forceful. "Malfoy, I don't think.." Harry stopped speaking when he noticed the stone glowing. He remembered the prophecy. Death will only strengthen the bond and Darkness will fail. Plus he had the stone as his disposal. Harry nodded and took the team and Hermione into the castle. "You Mudblood lover" Nott shouted at him. "Never call her that again" Draco growled. Spells flew from all directions. Draco was able to move and block and cast his own spells with ease. He was getting tired of this game. "Levicorpus" He shouted. All 50 death eaters rose up in the air dangling by their feet. Draco wasn't sure how he had managed to get all of them up at once but he felt the power of the stone and knew he could do anything.
Draco was staring at Lucius. Magic flowing through his body. He looked as if you would have touched him you would have been electrocuted. Lucius was unable to gauge his son's magic and fear spread across his face when he noticed the stone in Draco's hand. Draco saw where his father was looking and noticed the fear in his eyes. He laughed. "I thought you said fear was a weakness father." The power of the stone was raging through him. Nott was trying to point his wand at Draco but Draco easily deflected the spell and Notts wand flew into his hand.
"I should kill you, all of you" Draco said. He raised his wand to Lucius. But then he heard a voice. Not a voice but a memory. It doesn't have to end this way, we have lost so many why do it again? Hermione had said those words. He remembered her beauty and fierceness, He continued to point his wand. "You are a coward, you are a disgrace and no son of mine" Lucius said. Another memory came to Draco.
*Flashback*
Draco was sitting on the steps of Hogwarts with the oak doors behind him. Elbows propped on his knees and face in his hands. He sighed loudly. "Such a big sigh for such a small Slytherin" He looked up to face Hermione. "Granger" He nodded. She turned, Potter and Weasley were waving at her, she turned back to Draco. "Thank you" She said. What? He looked at her confused. She shook her head. "Thank you Draco for being on the right side in the end. You have gone through so much, I know you have. But you are better than you think you are. You are worth more than you realize" He was ecstatic that she had said his name. He got up and hugged her. Pulled back looking into her eyes. He had grown to care for here quite a bit over the years and wanted to tell her, no show her how he had felt. But was to much of a coward. "Thank you Hermione" He said. She looked at him for a brief second and that nodded walking to Potter and Weasley. She turned back "Remember what I said" She said. "Always" he answered to himself. .
"Who would want to be your son. I am better than you and worth so much more." He turned to everyone who was hanging upside down. "It's your lucky day, Say hi to the dementors for me" With that Draco waved his wand and the all vanished. He slumped to the ground and felt a hand on his shoulder. "She would have been proud of you" It was Ginny and she knelt next to him. "It's my fault, my head was hurting and I said things to make her think I didn't love her" Draco started to get tears in his eyes. "She knew you were hurting and knew you didn't mean it. Have faith that she knew you loved her, I whom was never your biggest fan should see you felt something. She knew Draco, she knew" He nodded and stood up and so did Ginny. They walked into the Great Hall together. Everyone was sitting around the head table where they had laid her down. She looked so peaceful he thought as he sat next to Harry and grabbed her hand. Draco placed the stone on the table and glared at it. It was because of this that he death eaters had joined ranks. Without a second thought he throw the stone in the air and blasted it. It shattered into smithereens and the particles floated down upon them. No one said anything, they knew the stone would have had to been destroyed, sooner that later.
Draco tears reappeared in his eyes. He had so many things to tell her. He wanted to say he loved her one more time. The last thing he had said was horrible. Shut up you stupid Mudblood, That was the last thing she had heard him say. But she had still said Goodbye My Love. He had always wondered how she could have loved him after everything he had done and know he had done it again, but there would be no way to say sorry. He knew he would never have the chance.
"Shes alive" Harry Said, Draco stared at him
"Are you daft, no she is not, look" He showed Harry the bracelet. No Color. Harry shook his head
"What is your greatest fear Malfoy?" He asked
"I am not in the mood for this Potter"
"What is your greatest fear?" Harry asked again
"Why? What does it matter?" Draco asked
"Do you trust Hermione?" Harry asked
"Of course I did" He spoke in a hushed tone
"Than trust me as well, what is your greatest and greatest fear?" Harry asked again
Draco thought about the question, what was his greatest fear. He feared dying, Hermione dying, being alone, it being his fault. "Something happening to her and it being because of me and I did nothing to stop it. Which by the way has happened twice now" Suddenly he her Hermione gasp and looked down "Hello, you know sometimes doing nothing can be the greatest help of all" She said smiling.