This is my Christmas gift to you all. I am actually quite happy with how this chapter turned out. I was going to make it longer, and just couple it with the next chapter, but you'll see why I didn't. I had it finished last night, but wasn't sure whether I wanted to add more on, as I mentioned before. Ending it where I did guarantees another chappy coming soon!! Before the weekend I hope...lol.

Disclaimer: don't own it...

Chapter 21: Mourning

Hermione awoke to the sound of murmurs around her. The last thing she recalled before passing out was fighting Lucius, and then, faintly, a large silver dragon protecting her, Draco's Patronus.

She wasn't in her bed, but in a stiff cot. The feeling was like when she awoke from being petrified by the Basilisk. She was in the Hospital Wing, the smell of medicinal potions surrounding her. It was dark, and as her eyes fluttered open, she could make out the outlines of a shadow hovering over her. She heard Draco's voice, faraway, and strained to hear him more clearly. Her vision cleared some, and she was able to make out the outline of Ginny's face, her hair a fiery red halo in the dim light.

"Hermione! You're ok! Guys, she's waking up!" Blinking a few times, the faces of Harry and Ron came into view. She searched frantically for a pair of gray eyes and the platinum blond locks that went with them. She sat up, looking around the room, but not seeing him anywhere.

"You gave us a horrible scare, 'Mione!" Harry's eyes were filled with concern, Ron standing beside him, simply nodding.

"How are you feeling?" She was surprised to hear Ron speak. Hermione had to bite back a stinging comment, as she realized Draco had rubbed off on her. She smiled softly instead, and responded in her usual way.

"I'm fine. A bit groggy, but otherwise alright." They all sighed, relieved. Madame Pomfrey appeared out of seemingly nowhere, fussing over Ron and Harry.

"Mr. Weasley! Get back to your cot! Your cuts are still not fully healed!" Hermione hadn't noticed it before, but his face was scratched up somewhat badly, probably a product of their fight with the Death Eaters. Healing cuts shouldn't have been a problem for the medi-witch, so Hermione suspected there was strange magic behind whatever spell had caused them. Ron looked frustrated, crossing his arms in front of him and moping back to his cot, across the room from Hermione's. "You too, Mr. Potter." Harry was in much the same condition as Ron, so he, too, was forced back to his cot, which was beside Ron's.

"Looks like you were the lucky one." Ginny shrugged, glaring daggers at her brother and Harry.

"Yeah, because those two didn't think I was capable of handling myself and found it necessary to treat me like a child. I'll show them next time." The last comment was muttered under her breath, but the two boys immediately responded.

"There won't be a next time!" She simply rolled her eyes.

"Ginny…where's Draco?" At the mention of the Slytherin's name, Harry and Ron immediately quieted, and Ginny went paler than she already was. The younger witch stood, moving to face the cot behind her, which was shielded by a curtain. Hermione hadn't noticed it before. Ginny looked to Pomfrey for permission to draw the curtain. The medi-witch nodded, a solemn look on her face. Hermione felt her heart drop at the sight before her.

Draco was on the previously hidden cot, deathly still and just as pale. Completely motionless, he looked like death itself. Hermione immediately hurried to his side, stumbling off her bed. Ginny went to help her, but the older Gryffindor refused the aid. She immediately sat at his side, resting a hand on his bare chest. The rise and fall was the only indication that he was still alive, that and his steady, soft heartbeat beneath her hand. Hermione felt tears well up in her eyes. She caught sight of the faded Mark on his arm, her heart stumbling. He had lied, and she wanted to reprimand him for it, but more than anything she wanted him to wake up, just so he could hold her again and explain why he'd lied.

"W-What happened?" She hated the feeling of her voice cracking in her throat.

"He intercepted a spell that was aimed at me." Again, Hermione was surprised at Ron speaking. "He used a shield charm, but it seemed to only lessen the hit. We don't know what the spell was, though."

"It may have been a variation of Stupefy, simply stronger, much stronger I think. A regular Stupefy would have been absorbed by the shield charm completely." Ginny finished Ron's thought. An altered stupification spell? This only worried Hermione more. If they didn't know what the spell had been, how was Pomfrey supposed to wake him up? As if reading her mind, the medi-witch interjected her own thoughts.

"We will have to wait and have him awaken on his own. I assure you Miss Granger, I am doing everything in my power to help him." Hermione simply nodded, but it didn't stop worry from erupting in her, constricting her throat and causing tears to run. Draco was in a coma, and there was nothing Hermione could do about it. She took a deep breath, running her fingertips along Draco's cheek, willing him to react to her touch, to move, even to just twitch. Nothing happened, and her heart sunk ever lower. Ginny moved to comfort her friend, putting an arm around her.

"It'll be ok. He'll pull through. Malfoy is a lot stronger than he lets on. You should have seen him fighting, Hermione! It was incredible, the way he protected you; wouldn't let you out of his sight." This caused a small smile to pull at the corners of Hermione's mouth. Her heart still ached, however, to see his eyes flutter open at her touch.

She sat by him like that for the rest of the night. Come morning, Ginny tried to make her leave for breakfast, but Hermione couldn't bring herself to leave Draco. Instead, Ginny decided to run down to the kitchens and bring food up for the four of them. When she came back, she wasn't alone.

"Ron!" The voice was familiar, and Hermione smiled at the sight of Pansy, knowing how worried she probably was about the redhead, despite their fight. The Slytherin girl rushed to Ron's side, throwing her arms around his neck, making him wince.

"Hey Pans." Hermione smiled at the way Ron's face blushed. Pansy pulled back, placing a light kiss on his lips. "I-I'm sorry. I was being stupid…" He rambled off on an extended apology, and Hermione was glad to see his ego deflating enough to apologize. Pansy simply sat beside him and listened. Once he was done, she kissed him again. She whispered something in his ear, causing him to smile. Then, she made her way towards Hermione and Draco.

"Drake…oh my…Hermione…what…?"

"I don't know. He's alive, but barely. Coma." Pansy's face mirrored the worry on Hermione's. She may not have romantic feelings for him anymore, but she loved him like a brother. Converted Slytherins had to stick together, after all. She placed a comforting hand on Hermione's shoulder. Both girls let out a sigh, urging for Draco to wake up.

The next few weeks were spent in anticipation of Draco waking up. McGonagall had assured them that the Horcrux, had, in fact been destroyed. Three days after Hermione woke up, Ron and Harry were allowed to leave the Hospital Wing, Hermione having been ok to leave the day she awoke. She barely ever left the Hospital Wing though. When she wasn't in class, she was sitting by Draco's cot, doing her homework while watching him rest. She even ignored as many of her Head duties as she could, assigning the Prefects extra patrols, cutting her own patrols down to twice a week, when she would usually do four or five. Every day she was there the hope that he would wake up dwindled further.

Hermione stopped asking Madame Pomfrey questions about Draco's condition after the first week. Her answer was always the same: only time could tell. He never moved from his limp position, eyes always closed. Watching him like this became increasingly difficult for the young witch. She didn't leave his side until Madame Pomfrey forced her out of the Hospital Wing. Because she was Head Girl, she was allowed later than the usual hours, but the medi-witch still made sure she was gone by one o'clock in the morning. Hermione would return to the Head dormitories each night, knowing she was in for another sleepless night.

Her friends saw her only in class. They saw the shadows underneath her eyes, how pale she'd become. She was always tired, and seeing her like this affected Ron the worst. She was like this because Draco had been hit protecting him, of all people. Ron felt beyond guilty, knowing that maybe he could have done something to prevent it. If he'd seen the spell coming, if he'd reacted sooner, Draco wouldn't have had to intervene. Hermione didn't blame him, though. She did her best not to let him see her, knowing what she looked like and how his guilt was eating at him. Every chance he got, he would apologize.

After the third week of Draco's coma, she'd had enough of waiting around, deciding instead to try to do something about it. Using her status as Head Girl to her advantage, she gained access to the restricted section of the library, looking up every revival spell and potion she could find. However, every time she would go to try something new, Madame Pomfrey would catch her, informing her that she had, in fact, already tried it. This didn't help Hermione's hopes.

The night of her final attempt to help, Hermione went back to the dorms in even worse spirits than usual. She though for sure that she'd be able to do something, but again she could only curse her intelligence. What good am I if I can't even save the man I love? She wished it was as easy as in the fairy tales of her days as a child. Draco could be the sleeping beauty, and she would wake him with a kiss. Unfortunately, real-life magic wasn't like that, and there was absolutely nothing she could do. She went to bed in that state of mind, feeling completely helpless, alone, and lost without Draco to hold her.

"Hermione…" He breathed her name. Hermione was sitting alone in her room, unable to sleep. In the doorway stood Draco, his form gaunt, his eyes completely exhausted. She rushed to him, catching him before he collapsed. They slowly made their way to her bed, and he lay in her arms, Hermione cradling his upper body. She couldn't stop the flow of tears.

"Draco…come back…please, wake up…I need you…" She kissed him, wanting him to respond, but his lips were cold, and he lay unmoving. She pulled back, watching as his gray eyes looked at her, unfocused, not really seeing her. Suddenly, the fog in his eyes seemed to lift, and his hand made its way up to her cheeks.

"I'm here…always will be…I love you…" His voice was softer than ever, and Hermione had to strain to hear the last words.

"I love you too…Draco, please…why won't you wake up?" The ghost of a smile formed on his lips, and he wiped a tear from Hermione's cheek.

"Don't lose faith in me, Hermione…" In her arms, he disappeared, and she was alone again. Emptiness overtook her, and there was nothing she could do to keep it away.

She shot upright in her bed, cold sweat dripping down her back. Breathing heavily, she tried to recollect herself. It had been a dream. She looked around her room, flooded in moonlight. The snow outside only intensified the light, and she had to look away until her eyes readjusted to it. She sighed. It was so hard not to lose faith…

She couldn't sit in her room any longer, getting up, she slipped on a pair of slippers and walked out. She opted to sit on the couch, staring at the fire in the hearth. This only made the feeling worse, but it was better than sitting in her room. Sitting on the couch reminded her of her parents, of losing them, and how Draco had comforted her. Their first kiss came to mind, how the mistletoe had appeared out of nowhere, the way she had fit into his arms perfectly. Without realizing it, she'd begun to cry again.

"Granger get a grip! He wouldn't want you to cry…" She sighed, the feeling of helplessness difficult to fight off. She knew she wouldn't be getting anymore sleep that night, so she made her way back to her room, grabbed a hoodie, and left the Heads' dorm, heading for the infirmary. The door was locked, but it wasn't something that would stop Hermione. "Alohamora." She heard the soft 'click' of the lock, and let herself inside. She was careful not to make any noise on her way to Draco's cot. She sat on the stool beside his cot, inching it closer so she could rest her head beside his.

She kept her hand on his chest, needing to know that he was still alive. His heartbeat hadn't changed in the month he'd been in the hospital.

"Draco…why won't you wake up? What did that Death Eater do to you? I miss you…please come back…" She caught sight of the outline of the Mark on his arm, and her pain began changing into anger, and Hermione could no longer contain herself. She shot up, beginning to pace by his bed. "How could you do this, Malfoy?! Lie to me and then leave before explaining! Do you hear me, Malfoy?! You better come back…or I'll…I'll…" She cried out in frustration, no longer caring if Pomfrey heard or not. She couldn't help the way her chest hurt, how she wanted badly for him to wake up so her yelling wouldn't be in vain. "Stupid ferret…" She was in tears again. "You left before I could tell you I love you! Do you hear me?! You can't leave, you can't!"

There was a resounding silence around her. She was so focused on reprimanding the comatose Slytherin in front of her that she never noticed Madame Pomfrey come in, watching her from afar. The elder witch looked on sadly, thinking better of making Hermione leave. Clearly the young witch was in extreme emotional pain, and the medi-witch didn't think it was right to force her to leave. Hermione collapsed onto the stool by the bed, slamming her fist onto the mattress, continuing to cry out.

"Stupid ferret…I'll never forgive you if you don't wake up! Malfoy! Wake up, dammit! Wake. Up!" With each plea her fist hit the mattress. On the last two words, her hand fell limp on his chest. She was shaking in frustration, so focused on willing him awake that she almost didn't hear, or feel, the thunderous roar of an explosion within the castle.

DUN DUN DUUUUUN....Another cliffy!! I can assure you, there will be action ahead, since I was dissatisfied with the action in the previous chapter.

Thanks for reading!!! Happy Holidays!!! I love you all!!! Review pretty please?? *click* ;)