DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HARRY POTTER

A/N: Decided to post on Thursday night because I don't want to wait. Whatevs. Enjoy & please review.

Hermione spent the next few days either locked in the formal dining room with Voldemort or asleep. Draco was, regretfully getting impatient. He had wanted to spend time with her but she was spending more time with Voldemort plotting world domination.

One day, after a particularly long meeting that went well on past midnight, Hermione opened her door to find Draco sitting on her bed.

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes," Draco said.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I haven't seen you in three days."

"I've been busy."

"I've noticed."

"Why do you sound so mad?"

"Because I kind of feel like I'm not welcome in your life anymore."

"But you are."

"Not in the last three days."

"That's three days!" Hermione said, "It's only been three days."

"Three days where you never even tried to see me."

"You never talked to me either."

"I wrote you three notes! I left them on your night table."

"But I never…"

"Maybe you didn't notice them in your rush to get talking about world domination daddy."

"You know, I think you're just jealous that my father and I actually have a relationship!"

"Yeah, that's it, Haven. I'm jealous. I'm jealous because you actually have a relationship with your father. I'm jealous because you have a father that actually cares about you. That's exactly my problem, Haven. You win. I'll leave you alone now."

Draco left the room and slammed the door behind him. Hermione opened the door and rushed out to the hallway.

"Draco, wait!"

"No, Haven," Draco said, "If you're going to be like this-"

"Draco, I'm going to benefit us all!"

"How, Haven?"

"But making sure that only wizarding kind remains."

"Haven, you were once one of them! Before Voldemort came and you found out you were his daughter, you were a Muggle born. You, Haven."

Hermione stopped in her tracks and stared at Draco, mouth agape.

"So just… shut up with the 'making the world a better place' and 'purifying our race' because it's sick. Before, you wouldn't have said anything like that and now you're all about stomping out the Muggle borns and Squibs and putting the Muggles in their rightful places. Its bullshit, Haven."

Draco turned around and this time Hermione didn't stop him. She turned and walked back into her room, looking at her bedside table and seeing three notes left there. She walked over and picked one up.

Haven,

If you aren't too busy, I'd like to meet up sometime this week. Just let me know.

-Draco

That one was the most recent. Hermione looked at the second one.

Haven,

You're a bit busier than usual but that doesn't mean we can't still see each other, right? Just let me know when you're free and we can go out to our secret place again.

I love you.

-Draco.

Hermione dropped that letter and picked up the last one, the oldest one.

My dearest Haven,

I just wanted you to know that I miss you… even though we're in the same house it feels like we're miles apart from each other. That night was really important to me and I wanted you to know that you mean more to me than life itself. What I have with you is just so different from anyone else. I feel as if you and I have this special connection… you're really the only person I can talk to in this house. I am a constant disappointment to my father and while my mother loves me, she must listen to what my father tells her. I can talk to her, but not the way I can talk to you… it's much easier with you. I just thought that you would like to know that… and that we should meet up tonight… I'll be waiting.

-Draco

Hermione put down the letter and got up. She walked downstairs and back into the dining room.

"Ah, Haven… let's continue, shall we?"

OoOoOoOoO

Harry and Ron went back up to Ron's room to talk about possible strategies for infiltrating Voldemort's hiding place, wherever that was.

"What about what we did last time? I mean, now that Voldemort's got a body, there is no way we are incorporating students from Hogwarts, whether they're of age or not. Ginny isn't going either," Ron said.

"I know, Ginny and I already talked about it. I told her that I didn't want her coming with us because I didn't want her parents to be risking what's left of their sons and their only daughter. I mean, you all already lost Fred… I'd hate to see your mum if Ginny was lost, too."

Ron's face hardened at the mention of Fred's name. It had been hard of everyone and Harry, honestly, hated mentioning that name around the Weasleys because of the depressed state everyone seemed to move into for a few seconds before shaking it off and making off like nothing happened. It's no doubt they missed him… and Harry didn't think George would ever be the same after losing his other half.

"Harry! Ronald!" Mrs. Weasley called, "Come down here, please!"

Harry and Ron ran downstairs where Mrs. Weasley gave them the job of shelling peas into a bowl for dinner.

"I don't see why we have to do this," Ron said, "It's degrading!"

"It takes your mind off things," Harry said picking up another pea pod and opening it up.

"I know but I'd rather be doing something else."

"There's not much you can do in a Muggle neighborhood, Ron."

"Are you sure? Whatever happened to your neighbor? The Squib?"

"I'm not sure… I haven't seen her since my fifth year."

Come to think of it, Ron hadn't even thought of Mrs. Figg since that one night and he wondered where she was and whether or not she was still in the neighborhood.

"Is she still there?"

"I'm not sure, Ron."

"Let's go check, then?"

"What?"

"I say we go and check if she's still there… pay her a visit."

"Why?"

"Because theree's nothing fun to do here."

"Fine. We'll go."

Harry and Ron shelled peas as fast as they could so they could go next door.

Harry walked up to Mrs. Figg's front door and knocked. There was no answer. Harry looked in and saw that the house was completely empty. There were no cats, no furniture, nothing.

"She isn't there," Ron said.

"Nope."

Harry walked around back to the backyard with Ron following behind him.

"How did you live here for sixteen years?" Ron asked, "It's dead here."

"It's a Muggle neighborhood. I mean, we could have gone back to Ottery St. Catchpole."

"That wouldn't have been safe."

"Then don't complain. This isn't the place I'd chosen to be… but it was where I lived."

"You should have lived with us."

"I couldn't have."

"Yeah, well…"

"I would have if it was possible… if it was safe to. And I basically lived with you since summer before second year."

"I know."

"And we shared a dorm."

"True."

"Which basically means I have lived with you since first year. I mean…"

"We're practically brothers."

"Yep."

"You know, Harry… out of all the crap we've been through… having near death experiences all six years we spent at Hogwarts, hunting horcruxes, almost being killed trying to kill Voldemort…"

"Yeah?"

"I don't regret being your best friend."

"I'm beginning to think that day on the train was fate," Harry said.

"Me too."

OoOoOoOoO

Hermione walked out of the dining room at about three in the morning. She dragged her feet up the stairs and into her room, flopping down on her bed. As she lay there, she let a few tears leak out.

She was so stupid. Why had she even said that to Draco? She'd fallen in love with him and lost him just as quick.

She needed to apologize. She needed him.

She was about to get up when she was pushed against her bed by a large amount of pressure… as if the gravity in her room had just doubled.

"You do not need him."

"Yes, I do!" she said aloud to the voice in her head.

"No, you don't. Love will just get in the way of power. We cannot afford a setback. This will do nothing but slow you down and we don't need that. You need to be independent. The only one you can ever depend on… is me."

"But I love-"

"No, you do not!"

"No… I don't."

"Exactly."

Hermione was no longer pressed on her bed against her will but stayed there on her own. She did not get up. She didn't want to talk to Draco anymore. She didn't feel like talking to him ever again.

Hermione didn't want anything to do with him. Hermione didn't know what Voldemort had done inside her head but if he was trying to keep her away from Draco, whatever he had done had worked.