Chapter 26: Goodbye

Hermione, Harry, and Ron were waiting in the Ministry's café. All three of them had given their testimonies, and they were now waiting for the Wizengamot to give their verdict. Ron was holding Hermione's hand to try and reassure her, and she smiled at him. It wasn't easy for him; she knew how much he was hurting inside.

"Mr Potter? Ms Granger? Mr Weasley?" It was the woman from the courtroom. "The Wizengamot have reached a verdict. If you could please return to the courtroom in the next ten minutes." They nodded, and she walked back to the lifts. They got up and joined her. Once inside the courtroom, they re-joined their seats, and waited. Hermione was sure her heart couldn't take any more. At last, the Wizengamot entered the courtroom again, and Draco was taken once more to the seat in the middle of the room.

"We have reached a verdict." The wizard had stood up, and every one in the room did the same. Hermione grabbed onto Ron's hand once more, and closed her eyes. "The normal sentence for his crimes would be 10 years in Azkaban." Hermione held her breath and fought back the tears. "However, due to Mr Malfoy's honesty and his regret, as well as the evidence brought to light by the witnesses and his help in the defeat of Lord Voldemort, the Wizengamot has reached the verdict that he will be sentenced to Azkaban for five years. That is all." Hermione started to cry. Ron put his arms around her and stroked her back to soothe her, and she was grateful for it. When she had finally calmed down, the three of them walked towards the door. Outside, the ministry witch was waiting for them.

"Ms Granger?" She asked Hermione. "If you would like a final goodbye with Mr Malfoy, he is in the room at the end of this corridor, where the guards are standing. He will be there for the next half an hour. The same goes for the two of you, of course." She nodded to the boys, who nodded back. She then went back to her clipboard.

"Do you want to go, Hermione?" Ron asked her quietly, and Hermione nodded in response. She took a deep breath, and started to walk shakily towards the guards.

"I wish to speak to Mr Malfoy before he is taken to Azkaban." Hermione told them.

"His mother is currently in there, but she will be finished in a moment." The guard on the left told her in a deep voice. She nodded, and started to pace. Ron took a step towards her, but she stopped him.

"No. Please, could you leave me alone for a minute?" Ron nodded, and walked to the other end of the corridor to join Harry. After a minute or so, Narcissa opened the door. Her face was covered with tears, and Hermione stepped aside to let her pass, but Narcissa stopped to face her.

"Thank you. Thank you for standing up for him. I can't thank you enough." She sobbed, and hugged Hermione, who was not quite sure what to do. When she released her, Narcissa looked at Hermione. "He loves you. You are good for him. Thank you for being in his life." She smiled a watery smile, and then walked away, sniffing quietly. Hermione was left slightly embarrassed.

"Ms Granger?" The guard was gesturing to the door that Narcissa had walked out of. She nodded, and walked through.

Draco was sitting at a table. The room was dark and dingy, and reminded Hermione of the dungeons at Hogwarts. The door slammed shut behind her, which made Hermione jump slightly. Draco looked towards her, and his eyes lit up. Hermione smiled shyly back at him.

"You came." He smiled at her, and stood up.

"Of course." She smiled back, and walked towards him. The guard in the corner watched them carefully.

"Thank you. But I didn't deserve that."

"Of course you did!" Hermione shot back, outraged. "Why should you go to Azkaban when you helped us, you saved my life. Twice." Draco hung his head.

"I nearly killed Weasley and Bell, not to mention letting the Death Eaters into Hogwarts…"

"But that doesn't matter, you were 16, you were scared." She took his hand in hers. He smiled at her, staring into her brown eyes.

"Weasley better treat you right." Hermione giggled.

"That is none of your business."

"Well, no, but I love you, so that makes it my business." She smiled at him, and he stroked her cheek. "I have never loved anyone as much as I love you."

"Draco…"

"No, I have to say it. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me. I wish we had become friends in our first year, I wish you could've saved me years ago."

"Draco. There's no point in wishing to change the past; what's done is done."

"Ms Granger? You have five minutes." The guard informed her, and she nodded at him.

"Listen. I love you so much. You have given me so much pain, and so much worry, but I love you no matter what." Tears were falling down her face thick and fast.

"Hermione. Have a good life. I'm sorry for everything I have ever done. I don't know what I did to get you to love me, but I do not deserve you. Whatever I did to get here with you I would do again. I would go through a lifetime in Azkaban just to kiss you one more time." His face was covered in tears almost as much as Hermione's was.

"I love you Draco." Her heart ached at the thought of leaving him.

"I'll come and see you as soon as I'm out." She nodded.

"I would love that." And with that, she kissed him. The fireworks were there, exactly as they had been over a year ago. The feeling of belonging overwhelmed her, a feeling of intense contentment filled her up, and she realised that she would never love anyone as much as she loved Draco. They fit, like two pieces of a puzzle. Like Clockwork.

"I'm sorry," the guard told them, breaking them apart, "but the time's up. I must take Mr Malfoy to Azkaban now." Hermione nodded and tried to wipe her tears away, but it was pointless. Draco's face was covered in tears as well, and they gave each other one last hug, before each going to their respective doors. She looked back one last time, and their eyes met. Grey to brown, brown to grey. She smiled weakly before walking out.

Somewhere, far away, a clock struck twelve.

There you go. That's it. That is my first story. I am in the process of writing a sequel, so look out for it, it'll be called 'A Spanner in the Works'. Thank you to all who have left a review, favourited, and set this story to alert. It means a lot to me. See you next time!

WarnedBeYou.

xxx