Chapter 25 : Apologies and Attractions

The heads' dorm was behind a painting of the founders of the school. The whole unity thing was going over board now. I get the point that it is necessary but if it's thrown on your face all the time, will we take it seriously? The dorms were on the east wing of the sixth floor. I will have to find a short cut to the Slytherin dorms. As soon as we entered the Heads' Dorms, I realised that I'm going to like this dorm a lot. We were in what looked like a common room. The right side wall was filled with bookshelves, in the centre of the wall, there was a huge fireplace where there was already a fire lit.

On the left side wall, were three doors. The first door had a 'Hermoine Granger' nameplate on it. The middle door didn't have any nameplate on it. On the third door, I could faintly make out my name on the nameplate from where I was standing.

"The first room and the last room are your rooms and the middle one, of course, is the bathroom. The bathroom can be entered from your rooms as well." McGonagall mentioned. Sharing a bathroom with Granger, this just keeps getting more and more interesting! Is it wrong for me to wish it were Pari instead? Gosh, I miss her! I wish it gets better with time.

There were a lot of sofas and armchairs around a huge coffee table. "You will have the prefect meetings here." McGonagall seemed to have read my mind. "Before I leave you, I want to remind you that I want the patrol duties by this weekend. You will also schedule the Quidditch matches. You need to speak to all the captains and ask them to hold the selections soon. It would be nice if the matches would start by the first or second week of October. You don't have hurry on that schedule. Good Night." She turned to leave us.

"Good Night." We said in unison.

As soon as she left, I turned to Granger and said, "I didn't know being the head boy would mean doing so much work."

For a moment she looked like she didn't know what to say, "Well, I always assumed there would be a lot of work."

What do I say now? "Hmmm…I didn't even think, I would be made the head boy. I thought Goldstein would be made head boy."

"I had a feeling that you maybe the head boy because, well, after me, you're the only brightest person in our year." Indirectly she said I'm second in the class.

"I know that, but given my history, I assumed, I will not be made head boy. I dreamt of being head boy since the day I joined Hogwarts. Those days, I only thought about how I can give people detention or take away their points just because I felt like it." I remembered.

"So, you only thought about abusing your authority? But you already did that when you were in the Inquisitorial Squad back in the fifth year." She pointed out.

"Granger, it was back then. I didn't even want to join that stupid squad. My father made me join it. Besides, now, I don't intend to 'abuse my authority' like you put it. Things have changed. I'm trying my best to change. This year is my shot at a second chance so, I can't blow it up."

"That's true. You've changed a lot. I noticed during the restoration." She admitted.

"So, you noticed me, ah?" She blushed a little. Am I flirting with her? I need to stop it now. I'm not yet over Pari.

"It's not like what you mean, Malfoy?" She tried to save herself from embarrassment.

"Hey, it's really not your fault if you noticed me. I am after all noticeable." I smirked at her. What am I doing? I need to go to my room now.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Malfoy." She retorted.

I raised my hands saying that I give up. "I'm tired, I'm going off to sleep. It was nice talking to you." Why did I say it was nice talking to her?

"Yeah! Sure. Good Night, see you tomorrow." She said.

"Ya. Good Night." I went into my room.

There was a huge bed in my room with green sheets on them. The room was decorated in Slytherin theme. There was a work desk near the window. There was a cupboard with my stuff already in it. There was a full-length mirror as well. I went to check the bathroom. The bathroom was white with all the necessities. The only thing it missed was a bathtub.

I changed into my nightclothes, brushed my teeth and went to sleep.

Hermione

He said it was nice talking to me. Did he mean it? Or was it one of those things that people say for courtesy sakes? It was weird he said that. He actually flirted me. I can't believe it. I didn't want to seem too eager. So, I tried my best to stop it. I don't understand why do all of our conversations have to end so awkwardly? We start off well but then it's just a standstill after a few minutes.

Ron and I really tried to make it work over the summer. Like really made efforts to make our relationship work. After a few days we realised that if we really love each other, we don't have to work so hard to make it work. Love shouldn't have to be work, right? In a way, it was hard to make it work because I was in Australia and he was here. At first we wrote to each other pretty often. After a while, we just grew apart. And we realised, we are better off as friends.

I've always had a crush on Ron and Draco Malfoy. Both are so different, yet I liked them. I found both of them attractive until they opened their mouths to speak. Ron and I used to fight a lot despite being friends. I can't deny the fact that being friends he said some really hurtful things to me in the past. And Malfoy, he's always mean been to me. He never spoke a kind word to me until the war was over. I still remember his exact words.

I was helping Madam Pomfrey with some of the injured people when I heard someone clear their throat behind me. I turned around to find Malfoy standing there.

"Hi, Granger." He sounded very hesitant.

"Hi."

"I'm sure, I'm probably the last person, you want to speak to right now. But please hear me out." I could tell he was still formulating his words as he spoke.

"Nothing like that. Go on." I wanted to put him out of his misery.

"I'm really sorry for what happened at the Manor. I can't believe it was my own aunt who did that to you. You should know, that by doing it my aunt just proved that she is inferior to you, I mean was inferior. You are very brave. I've never met anybody like you before. I really wanted to do something to help you. If I had done anything, it would have been my mother who would have borne the consequences. It would not have matter if 'he' would have killed me, I didn't want anything to happen to my mother."

He continued. "After a point of time, your screams started piercing me and I was almost about to stun my aunt. But thank Merlin, Potter and Weasley found a way out and your torture stopped. I never felt more relieved in my life. That was the first time, I started to believe that the light side may have a chance to win the war."

It was so unreal to have Malfoy come and apologise to me. Apologise for something he didn't do. For the first time, I felt like he regarded me like a human being. Also for the first time, I liked the words that came out of his mouth. I felt oddly comforted. Since the incident, Harry and Ron have been trying to their best to make me forget it. I know, they mean good but I can't just turn a switch off and make myself forget. It takes time.

"Thanks. It means a lot coming from you."

"So, am I forgiven?"

"You didn't torture me. So, there's really no question of forgiving you for it." I clarified.

"I didn't do anything to stop it either." He argued.

"You were worried for your mother, I guess, I would have done the same thing if I were in your place."

"Really?" He seemed surprised by my confession.

Oh boy! He has no clue to what lengths I can go to save my parents. "Yes." I answered tentatively.

"Am I forgiven for the other things I've said and done since the first year?" He sounded doubtful.

How can I let him off so easily? I smiled. "Well, you'll have to apologise for all the things you've said and done in the past if you want me to forgive you."

He looked down. He looked like he was scratching the back of his neck. When he looked up at me again, he had a smile on his face. A real smile. "I suppose your right about that. Hermione Granger, please will you forgive me all the things I've said and done in the past? I will try not to repeat them again." He added that for good measure.

World as I know it has come to an end! Malfoy apologised to me twice, in one day! I pretended to think for a while. My first thought – why am I talking to Malfoy like he is an old friend? Everybody deserves to start over if they are really willing. "You're forgiven." He smiled. "But remember and remember good! If you sidestep even once, I'm going to 'unforgive' you."

"You have my word. I'll try and behave." He smiled at me. "I'll be going now. I've a lot of apologies to make."

"On an apology spree, are you?"

He laughed. "Yup, something like that. See you around." He turned around and moved away.

After that, I realised that my nightmares about that particular day have considerably reduced. All people need is – 'closure'.

Ron

Harry and I were sitting on our usual seats by the fire. We were waiting for Hermione. There was something that has been bothering me since the morning. I didn't know how to bring it up. I was thinking of various topics I could start off with.

"What is it, Ron?" Why does he have to put me on the spot?

I took my time in answering. Think of something. Think of something. "What were you and Greengrass chatting about in the morning?"

"That's what you wanted to ask?" I shrugged. "We bumped into each other. We made small talk for the heck of it. It was nothing."

"Hmmm…She looked pretty dazed by you." She did look dazed. I'm not joking about that.

Harry smiled shyly. "You think so?" I nodded. "She is pretty cute."

"Does that mean you and Ginny are done?" It's the most uncomfortable situation to have your best mate date your only sister. I just need to know that it's finally over and I don't need to worry about that.

He looked embarrassed. "Ron, after the war, a lot of things changed. We went through a lot of things. She went through different things. We were not able to talk to each other about it. We tried but it was so awkward. We need different things in life. I don't know how to explain it but as of now, I don't see Ginny and I reconsidering our relationship."

That was a long explanation. "I understand, mate. The war messed us up in different ways. Maybe that's the reason Hermione and I could not work it out."

He nodded. "We are all looking for something different."

Now is the time, I should ask him. "Harry, have you ever noticed Pansy Parkinson?"

"What's there to notice about her? She's always got her nose in the clouds."

"Maybe in the past, yes. But today she looked so hot at the platform." Oh yes! She did.

"Did you ask me about Greengrass because you wanted to discuss Parkinson?" Harry questioned me.

"No. Why would you think that? She is pretty. Maybe because it was the first time ever I saw her wearing muggle clothes. She was wearing jeans, a t-shirt, a hoodie and sneakers. Yet she looked beautiful." I told him.

"Parkinson was wearing muggle clothes? Wow! Wait! Now that I think about it, even Greengrass was muggle clothes." Harry mused.

"From what I heard dad telling mum, Pansy and Daphne have been disowned by their families. They are apparently going through some rebellious phase."

"Ron, just because they rebelled a little, it doesn't justify their families in disowning them."

"It all started when they agreed to help with the restoration and then they took off with other Slytherins for a holiday against their families' wishes." I informed him. The wizarding world has reduced so much in size that word travels quicker these days.

"They got disowned just for this?" Harry sounded surprised.

"Mate, just because my family is open to a lot of concepts, it doesn't mean all the pureblood families are open. In a lot of pureblood families girls are not even allowed to wear pants, so, you can imagine how they would react if their daughters went off on holidays with friends."

Harry looked shocked. He shook his head. "Getting back to our topic. So, you like Pansy Parkinson now?"

I didn't say anything. He waited for me to say something and when I didn't, he said, "Good luck, mate. You're gonna need it if you want to pursue Pansy Parkinson."

Chapter 25! yeah! I was going through horrible writer's block that's why it took me so long to post this chapter, sorry!Please stay with me, the story will get better!

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Neepa :-)