A/N: Here's another chapter for your enojoyment. There are only ten or so chapters left!

I own nothing.

Chapter Thirty-Eight – We Are Not Monsters

"Harry?"

The boy sighed and shot a remorseful smile to his companion before turning to face the witch that came running to her. "Hello, Chang." He said, trying to contain the sudden spark of anger that shot through him.

The Asian witch hesitated a moment once she stopped before the Boy-Who-Lived-Twice. Maybe this was a bad idea. On one hand his companion was shooting daggers at her and Mandy and was holding his wand with a death grip. On the other hand, the snarl with which they were greeted let her know that they were still far from being forgiven. But then again, they had acted like real hags, so maybe what she was about to do could help them reform themselves. "We were wondering if you'd could give this to Miss Lovegood?"

Mandy held an envelope to the two boys that were eying them with the upmost suspicious. It was a plain one, made of light parchment and with clear navy ink was written the name of the recipient of the letter.

"Are you stupid?" It was Draco who finally broke the silence. "There's no way we're giving Luna something of yours."

The younger Claw gulped. "We want to apologize and say thanks… it's just a card signed by the entire House."

Both boys stare at them, a blank look on their faces. Did they really think that a simple card would make everything better? Not only had they attacked Luna for year and a half, but the little blonde had been gracious enough not to press charges against the four that actually were stupid enough to assault her, instead of being expulsed they had been suspended from school for the three weeks that remained until the new term started. It had been humiliating, yes, but the knowledge that the Queen Claw had been that close at having her wand snapped had shocked some common sense in the stupid Ravenclaw House.

Not that it would do them anything good in the eyes of both Princes of Gryffindor and Slytherin.

"Sorry, but no." Harry was the one to speak this time. "I don't trust you and frankly I don't think Luna would even accept it." He held out hand to stop Cho and Mandy from speaking. "However, if you want to try, give it to her yourselves."

"That's the problem." Cho said. "We can't find her in the halls and she always disappears as soon as classes end… and Miss McGonagall had made it clear that we are not to be around them…"

Draco smiled sardonically, Hermione had to be contained every time she saw Chang and her gang, it was actually the Claw's luck that those two were joined at the hip, with Luna around Hermione behaved… mostly. "That's too bad. Not sorry we can't help you." He said as he grabbed the younger boy by-a-whole-month by the arm and dragged him towards their next class. "Com'n Harry, Snape'll kill us if we are late."

The two lost Ravenclaws simply watched as the boys left almost at running speed. There was something about those two that made them uneasy. How it was that the two worst enemies that touched the school were now such good friends?

XxXxX

"I really, really hate her." Harry commented as he and Draco joined Hermione in the bench of Potions class.

The brunette, with her nose buried in a book like always when alone, simply asked without looking at the boys that sat at either side of her. "Who?"

Draco and Harry exchanged a wary glance for over the brunette's head. They had been discussing the little meeting they had just had and had kind of forgotten the Ravenclaws were taboo around their friend. "Nobody?" The shaggy haired boy said.

Hermione snapped her book shut and turned in her seat slowly too face the boy. It was just creepy how the girl was a mask of utter calmness with just a hint of anger. "Let me guess. Chang?"

Harry winced. How it was that Hermione always knew what they were talking about? Did the girl read minds or what?

Draco was of the same opinion. "Are you now practicing Legilimens, or what?"

The girl between them smiled sadistically as she turned to him. "No, Drake. I just happened to see how you two talked to her and Brocklehurst like you four were friends!" She almost snarled the last part. Who it was that her male friends were so stupid?!

The blond frowned. "We are not friends, you insolent witch." He hissed. "They wanted us to give Luna a card. We tell them no."

The brunette seethed. "And you didn't hex them?!" The temperature in the usual warm room dropped dangerously low. It was in their good luck that the room was still empty and they were the only three in there. Hermione arrived early because she had to drop Luna in Charms and used a passage near Flitwick's classroom to the dungeons and the wizards were early because both boys had had a free period.

Harry gulped behind her. An annoyed Hermione was not a good thing, but a furious one was something to really be afraid of. He had not seen her like this in a really long time, not even that day when he lost Luna had she been so angry. He looked at the jars and vials in the shelves and noticed how they were starting to be covered in a fine sheet of ice.

"No, Hermione, we didn't." Draco's stern voice only made him wince. Draco was starting to get angry too… not a good thing, not a good thing those two combined. "We know we are forbidden to do that. Your mother would have our asses if we even attempt to harm them. Hell, she even changed our schedules so we don't see a Claw anymore!"

"Argh!" Hermione yelled frustrated. Somewhere in the back of the room a crashing sound was heard. The brunette gripped her book so tightly that her nails pierced its soft cover. Her body started trembling and Harry did not have to see her eyes to know they were no longer bronze.

"Hey!" The blond wizard held her face and forced her to look at him. Her eyes were indeed deep blue, with a strange glint lurking behind them. "Call the hell down, Mia!"

Tears started pouring down her cheeks as she scrunched up her nose. "I want to kill her!" She sobbed out, trying to regain her composure and failing miserably.

Harry looked alarmed at Draco. The vials in the walls had starting shaking and he could see his breath coming out his mouth. That was not what was bothering him, no, it was the unmistakable fury in the girl's voice and the grip on her powers that she was losing. Her pendant was even floating in the air, only the chain that connected it with Hermione preventing it from flying away, and her hair was flapping with the force of her powers. It had taken Harry by surprise one day to discover her friend making snowballs in the sitting room of her old quarters and throwing them to a giggling Luna. Hermione had explained to him that it was a power she had always but had only learnt to control it last summer with McGonagall's help. Now the little snow fights were common on lazy days when the blondes sided against the brunettes or it was boys versus girls. It was nice, it was fun.

Hermione had an iron grip on her frosty powers. She never lost control… unless she was truly upset.

"Mia, calm down, you can't kill her." Draco explained gently. "No matter how much we want it, we can't."

Harry got up and ran to the door, quickly casting a series of charms and spells to lock it and prevent anyone from hearing or entering the place. Class was schedule to start in only ten minutes and he knew he was of better use in the door than trying to comfort Hermione, that was Luna and Draco's job.

"Why not?" She cried as she tried to take deep breaths and forced her trembling down.

"Because we are not monsters." The blond boy said calmly. It was not use to get angry with the girl when she was feeling too much. Until now he had thought Hermione was simply being the usual girlfriend looking for a little revenge, but that she claimed to want to kill her… that was just too much. There was something wrong, entirely wrong here. "Mia, we are not coldblooded murderers."

"But she hurt Luna." Hermione let her eyes close. "She made her life miserable for more than a year." It was a surprise for Draco to realize that it was Cho Chang the first to antagonize the little blonde, she had been the one to invite the rest of the house and she had been the one that was responsible of every prank, insult and theft that the girl suffered, both directly and indirectly. Hermione wanted the bitch to hurt as Luna had been hurt, or preferably worse.

"But she is a stupid girl." Draco tried to reason with his friend. He could hear Harry still chanting the spells, but he could also hear the pounding to the door. Snape was here. "She is a child, she is not mature enough to realize her mistakes, and she hasn't lived enough."

And that was true. Hermione was wise beyond her years thanks to her schooling, Granmama's training and the living experiences she had had, just as Draco and Harry were more mature because the way they were raised and the dangers they had faced. It was one thing to be an Inner Circle Death Eater's child, an abused kid by his uncle and aunt or a girl forced to learn everything but was showed no love, and another totally different to be a spoiled brat. Cho Chang was the youngest of three, born in a wealthy Chinese family that specialized in enchanted silks. She was far down in the line to not to have to learn the family's trade nor to worry about the family's finances. She was the baby of the family, the one that always was granted everything and on whom there were no expectations.

"But she could've killed her." Hermione murmured, her anger finally waning. Was it fair to punish a child so harshly when it did not know better?

"She didn't, Mia, she didn't." The Slytherin sighed. "Chances are that if I didn't antagonize them Edgecombe wouldn't send that curse. It is partially my fault."

The brunette opened her eyes, they were no longer blue and had changed back to their normal bronze hue. "No. You saved her. I was not there to defend her and she was alone. You helped her and saved her, and I thank you for that." She let herself fall into the boy's chest, spent at having to control her powers. "I'm sorry I snapped." They could hear Snape yelling and Harry cursing.

"It's okay, Mia. You are in control now." Draco murmured, embracing the girl. "Remember we are not monsters, we are not Candice, we are not Richard."

"We are no Lucius." Hermione smiled at the little phrases that had been so common between them once they became real friends and they started sharing their pasts and the fear both had of becoming their parents. That Draco had been the one to start using them just made it sweeter. "We are not Vernon." She simply had to add because they knew Harry was listening and because it was true, none of the three were like them, even when the three feared they could be like them one day.

"Aye. We are not Voldemort." The blond hummed. "Ready to face the greasy git?"

The brunette laughed out loud. "I guess." She turned to the younger boy whose wand was still waving around. "Come here, Harry. I'll keep the shields up." Harry nodded and once he felt the spells were supported he jogged back to his seat.

Five minutes later Snape finally was able to open the door, Slytherins and Gryffindors peeking over his shoulder, only to find three students silently reading their potion manuals and discussing quietly the potion they did last class. When questioned they confused replied that they arrived early to study but never heard him at the door. It was just the trio's luck that Peevees chose that moment to appear in the middle of the room and crackled up while slamming the door shut before escaping through the wall, promptly taking the blame of this little 'prank'.

Or maybe their luck was that the poltergeist was witness of the brunette's melt down and was, for once, nice enough to help her out.

XxXxX

Daphne watched perplexed at the blonde boy that was without doubt holding Morgen's hand beneath the table. Something strange had happened as soon as the school started back after Easter Break. The whole school was encouraged to stay during the week so that they could do the mountains of homework not unusual for the break. But no matter how busy the Snake's Den had been, nobody had noticed that Malfoy was absent most of the time.

Then, the first day of the new term, they finally noticed. Gone were the boy's things, the bed was made but there were neither trunk nor clothes in the wardrobe. His Nimbus 2001 was also missing in action from the shed the Slytherin House had for their brooms. For a moment the house had panicked as their Prince was gone. Was he expelled? Did he simply packed and left? Was his father debt to the Ministry so big he no longer could afford the school?

All their fears were nullified when he showed up in class, sitting relaxed reading a book none of them knew ever existed. His usually gelled hair was uncombed, leaving his platinum locks wild and too cute for words. What made all the Slytherin actually jaws drop was that the boy was in the Gryffindor side of the room and was sitting beside Morgen. The Boy-Who-Lived-Twice was also with them, and while all the Cubs where giving him the evil eye, he simply kept reading until Professor Greenwood arrived and started her lecture.

The pattern kept repeating. In all the classes they shared with the Lions Draco would sit with Morgen and Potter. Amazingly enough it did not ended there, no, in the classes they shared with the Puffs the Morgen girl and Potter brat suddenly appeared, sitting next to Draco, the only red and golden clad students in a sea of greens and yellows. Well, Potter was in fact the only one wearing red and golden, albeit a little on the grey side, but the Morgen girl's tie and robes were as black as they got when new. And in the classes that they shared with the Claws there was no blond wizard anywhere to be seen. It was just too strange.

Then the rumors started. A seventh year heard that Malfoy had been re-sorted in the Gryffindor House and that Gran-, no, McGonagall, had been forced to spend time with him every class so that he could acclimate to the Lion's ways. A firstie swore that he saw how Malfoy and the Headmistress' daughter were snogging away in a closet near the third floor corridor that had been closed since she started school. Some second year heard how a third year Claw was telling her friends about the ambush four of their housemates did on Loony Lovegood and how Malfoy had helped her out.

She did not know why but that last one was the most unrealistic one. The second one was also a lie and everybody and their mother knew that. The Weasley Twins had started going around school with a bet pool around the second weekend of January, apparently the closeness between Morgen and Loony was sign enough that something deeper would develop. Most of her classmates bet, there were little things funnier than making money out of someone's love life and, while most of them bet that they would not end together, all of them were surprised that Professors Lupin and Greenwood also bet. The DADA teacher bet on them kissing around Valentine, which was too cliché, and the Transfiguration teacher bet on them kissing between Christmas and the start of term. Why the woman lost her money so pitifully was just something they could not grasp; why would she bet on a date that had already passed and was more than certain they had not kissed yet?

Either way, something happened to the Slytherin Prince that drove him to Morgen's arms, and in consequence put him in the hit list of all the pureblood fanatics, in other words, just shy the half her House.

She smiled. He was so brave.

A/N: So what do you think? I'd like to kill her too, but alas, I'm not a witch :(

Question for ya, how do you like Snape better? As an evil git or a misunderstood hero? I like him both ways, he's such a versatile charater for fanfiction, he can either be a degenerated evil Death Eater or a gold-hearted savior and still be aloof and mysterious.

Leave a review if you''d like :D