I Love(d) You (Once)

Final Chapter

It ended like this.

Hermione was supposed to be the tasty, tasty cheese to the trap, but somehow, Draco was taken instead. That was what Hermione Granger said to Draco Malfoy two hours after the incident, in the comfort of a private hospital room, but right now, she alone, could only stare at their empty table in horror.

She was panicking as did the best of the human race when faced with a crisis, but she was the lucky few who could deal, and even revelled in the sudden change in the wind against her favour. She undid the drawstrings of her purse and swept her forearms across the dining table. Fina china, silverware and the wine glasses tumbled onto the floor. Hermione poured all the contents of her larger-inside-than-out bag onto the table top.

"Excuse me!" the waiter ran to her table, and Hermione kicked a chair at the waiter's direction to keep him from bothering her.

A few on-lookers were already whispering, though their discrete words were countered by them standing up and peering at the spectacle. Hermione tried to pay them no mind as she chanted Location Spells over the map. The map rose a foot into the air, and begin to spin... then its edges began to brown and the map began to crinkle. Hermione picked up a napkin from the floor and put out the growing flames on the map. "Anti-tracking spells. Neat."

But there was more than one way to catch a mouse and Hermione hadn't exhausted her arsenal of weapons yet. She scoured the assortment of gadgets she had thrown onto the tabletop to see if there was anything, anything helpful in locating her lost man. Lipstick, pen, parchment, cell phone…

Hermione almost snapped her device in two when she opened it and with trembling fingers, searched through the menu.

"Locating GPS position," the robotic voice announced. "Device XPS-500 is currently at…" Hermione grabbed her wand and disapparated from the spot.

One.

Two.

Three.

Three seconds was enough for Hermione to assess the situation and she slashed through the corrugated iron making an opening for herself and plummeted into the warehouse. Metal scraped against metal and dust, leaves and nails rained onto the cement floor. The lights went off and only moonlight, which shone through the gaping hole Hermione created through the ceiling lit the warehouse.

Draco felt metal shards whistle past his ears. In his wretched state he lay on his back, and watched as the love of his life yelled profanities.

"Claudius Wayward?" Hermione said. "You're the one responsible for all this?"

"How did you find me? The memory was meant to be untraceable."

"What memory?" she snapped, inching closer towards Claudius.

Ah, thought Draco idly. Leave it up to Hermione Granger to figure out the kidnapper's location before the tracking-Owl could find her and delivery the villains' demand.

She held Claudius at wand-point and without the unlike most villains in stories, she did not not brag, make small talk, or otherwise reveal her motives and plans. Instead, Hermione flicked her wand at him with a business-like precision. "Petrificus Totalus!"

The stunned expression froze on Claudius' face. He straightened up—as though someone had ironed his spine—and his arms flew to his torso like opposite ends of a magnet.

And just like that, it was over.

"Ilvvyyuu," Draco tried to speak. He meant to drop the L-bomb on her, just in case he died.

"I've sent for reinforcements," she said to him. "Just stay where you are, okay?"

It's not like I'm going anywhere, he thought. Now that it was over, he was a tiny bit ungrateful with how long she took in coming. His wounds throbbed with his heartbeat—and since he still had a heartbeat, he knew he was going to be okay. He tried really hard to move his lips, and since Hermione was touching his hands, he also tried to move his fingers, but soon he realised he couldn't quite feel his fingers either.

With embarrassment, Draco fainted as Hermione whisked the three of them away.

(Two hours later)

Maurice and Adrian Pucey stood on one side of the room with Pansy, whose eyes swollen from crying. Blaise stood guard at the opposite side of the room. Ignatius and Hermione stood closest to Draco's bed.

"Honestly," groaned Draco in his hospital bed, clad only in a thin hospital gown. "I thought you were attending a funeral—this is a visit, enough with this heavy atmosphere! Everyone, stop crying!"

"But you're so ugly!" Pansy wailed, who hated seeing ugly things. "I can't believe you marred your beautiful face!"

"Let's not forget the internal organ damage and his legs shattered for the second time in the past week," Hermione muttered, feeling guilty as it had been the falling debris and metal from her loud entrance that had wounded Draco's face. "I think those injuries are much more serious!"

"My leg hurts and I'm tired." Draco whined.

"How about this?" Blaise said. "Adrian and Pansy are together."

"WHAT?" Pucey Sr suddenly looked as though he should be the one on the hospital bed.

"And you had to spill it to my dad like that!"

"I was supposed to break the news! I was going to surprise everyone! You've ruined everything!" But Pansy grinned and tucked her arm into Adrian's, pulling him closer.

"Take it easy, Mr. P," Blaise said, clearly enjoying the situation he created.

"Speaking of romance," Maurice said to Draco, "And this from a father-figure to his son, did you and Hermione two pretend to hate each other? When did you get together? All that time when Ignatius and I were tip-toeing around the two of you because we thought you hated each other—"

"Rest assured, Mr. Pucey," said Hermione. "When you heard about our spats, we loathed each other. He was a being twat. Still is."

"Thank you, dear." Draco said, and touched Hermione's arm with earnest affection.

"How did it all start?"

"That's something I want to know as well," Hermione said.

Everyone looked at Draco expectantly and made a ruckus when he closed his eyes and pretended to snore. The nurses—who had twice warned them of their noise levels—eventually kicked everyone out.

Hermione snuck back into his room only to find Draco lying on his side, tired from meeting everyone and all his energy used to repair his black and blues. She climbed onto the bed and sat beside him. She studied his uneven breathing and (if you noticed it carefully) fluttering eyelids. "I have something important to tell and give to you. I know you're pretending to sleep."

"No I'm not," he said, "so feel free to confess at your heart's content."

"Draco, I'm being serious," she said, patting him on the shoulder.

He sighed and sat up. "What is it?"

She looked solemn for a moment and reached into her pocket. Hermione placed a thin glass vial in his hand and he stared at it, looking at her in question. "This is?"

"I ordered a sample of your mother's memories a few days' back. So you can find out the truth on what happened that night," she said, suddenly unsure of whether she should give it to him. "Obviously, I haven't looked inside. It's for you, if you want to know…"

He nodded and rolled the cool glass vial in his hand before he reached over and placed it on the bed side table. Then laced his fingers laced with hers. There were more pressing matters before him.

Hermione nodded, acknowledging his decision and changed the topic to something that seemed much more important before them. "Why didn't you answer Pucey's question?"

"I didn't want to discuss my personal feelings in front of everyone."

"If you liked me more, then you would have."

"If I loved you less, I would have," he corrected. "My feelings are... I need time to get the words right, especially to my some-what father." Draco pulled her arm and rolled slightly to the side to give her more space on the bed.

"You know, sometimes I hate being so smart and level-minded. I just accepted your reason like that!" She snapped her fingers for dramatic effect. "But seriously as Mr. Pucey put it, how did it start?"

"Just to put it out there, it hurts to talk. Punctured lung here."

Hermione cooed and gave him soothing kisses. Suitably compensated for his pain, he spoke up. "When I took interest in you? Or when I really thought you were going to be the death of me?"

"Both, if it doesn't hurt too much to speak of these things."

"I think the first time I took proper interest you was…" He paused to think. "When you shook my hand waaaay back at the departure gates when we left for Salem. We had a tingly moment."

"Tingly moment aye," Hermione said, trying to rein her laugh.

Draco sniffed snootily. "A tingly moment. I think, I loved you once then, for a whole number of different reasons which weren't particularly an accurate reflection of you," he said. "And as for now, now that I know who you really are?"

"Yes, when was that?"

"Hard as it is to believe, Hermione. You were frolicking in a barren wasteland, defaming me in front of Dementors. "What about you? When did you start liking me?"

"I think the first time I saw you as something special—"

"But I've been always special."

"I'm trying to pour out my heart here."

"Sorry, sorry, do go on."

"There is something incredible about you, being a person who is contrived, yet is willing to share a piece of himself and be vulnerable enough to fall in love." Hermione pulled up closer to him so their noses were just inches apart. She gave him a kiss on the lips and pulled the covers over their heads, it created extra privacy—made it feel as though they were in their own world—and made them extra snuggly and warm.

"I know," Draco said with smug satisfaction. "But mind you, I didn't do any of that by accident. It was a calculated risk."

"That's what so sweet about it," Hermione said. "You took the risk. You gave me a bit of yourself and loved me first. That's how you won this young maiden's heart."

"I wouldn't call you young anymore—Hey! Ouch! Ouch! Sheesh! I'm joking!" Draco pulled Hermione even closer to him so that his chin tucked under her head. "It's okay if you're old. I'll just be old with you."

"Ugh," Hermione muttered his arms. "I don't know if I like this, Draco Malfoy is turning into a total sap."

"Yeah, of course you don't like it, you love it."

"Yup," Hermione agreed, "I love you."

Done! Thanks for the reading until the end! This fic was totally my baby that I'm pretty sad to let go of even though I've left the Dramione fandom a while back. I also don't plan to write anymore on , but maybe I will see you guys around.