1993 - Second Year
Hermione perched on a bench in the height of summer in the middle of Hyde Park, overlooking the small lake that sat before her. She welcomed the occasional gust of wind that blew past and cooled her down temporarily.
It had been four weeks since she had last seen Draco. They had communicated on a daily basis, more frequently than she had written to Harry or Ron. The pair had been unsuccessful in finding a time to meet each other without being caught.
After the first week of the summer holidays, Hermione had received a letter from the Improper Use Of Magic Office, warning her that she was not supposed to be doing magic outside of school unless she had been granted permission to do so or it was specific for homework. Since then, Draco had been sending his owl, which would have to wait for Hermione's response before leaving as she didn't own one herself. This meant that her replies were sometimes very rushed and she became frustrated with the current situation very quickly.
Finally, Draco had had enough of trying to find ways to meet up with her and had told his parents that he planned to go to London to meet up with one of his friends in Diagon Alley. Each time he had tried this, his father had told him he would accompany him on the way as he also had business to attend to, so Draco always had to cancel on her.
In one last attempt, Draco waited until his father left for the Ministry and told his mother he was leaving to get some supplies for the Masquerade party. She didn't fully believe the lie, but didn't question it as she smiled and nodded at him. He quickly left for the Floo where Draco was able to finally leave the manor without his overbearing chaperone.
He Floo'd to the Leaky Cauldron, his first stop before he made his way through muggle London, something he hadn't done since he was a child. Trying not to get lost in the busy streets, he followed the signs and made his way to Hyde Park and excitement buzzed through his veins the closer he got to his destination.
Once he arrived at the entrance, he made his way towards to bench he had told her to meet him at. Thankfully, the park wasn't too busy and it was just early enough that there were only a few dog walkers and the occasional jogger wandering around.
'Less chance of us being caught,' Draco thought.
Draco arrived at the opening of a small lake where, in the distance, he spotted Hermione sitting on a bench. She looked towards the trees and flowerbeds to the side of her, the wind blowing her hair away from her face. She looked picturesque and a small smile crept on his face at the sight of her.
Picking up the pace, he made his way towards Hermione. She was oblivious to her surroundings and hadn't yet noticed Dracos arrival until he tapped his foot gently against hers, causing her to jump.
It took a moment for her to register that it was him, somehow in the four weeks they had been apart, he had changed so much already. He stood taller, yet again. His face and body had filled out slightly, he was becoming leaner as opposed to the skinny, small boy she had met first year and his hair was more ruffled and slightly longer as it fell over his eyes. She looked up into his grey eyes and a smile spread across her face before she jumped up and embraced him.
"It's good to see you too," Draco laughed as he hugged her back. Hermione was the first to pull away and sit back down on the bench, gesturing for him to sit beside her.
"I swear you grow so much every time we have some time away from each other," she said, looking him up and down.
"Well I am a growing boy, Hermione," Draco chuckled as he moved his arm to rest along the back on the bench behind her.
"So, even though we have spoken every single day," Draco gave her a teasing smile, "How're you?"
"I'm good, warm, but good. The views here are beautiful, I've never been to this part of London before. In fact, I'm surprised you have."
"And whys that?" Draco questioned, raising his eyebrow as he smirked at her.
"Well... It's muggle London. I just can't picture your parents bringing you here to play with the duckies," Hermione laughed as she said the words.
"My mother used to bring me here before we would visit her sister, and no, I didn't play with the duckies. I would just sit and watch the world go by with her," he told her.
She took this moment to look out onto the lake once more and the sun rose higher in the sky lighting up the scene around her, she was enjoying every second of the moment.
"Did the muggles not bother you? I mean, with your family's beliefs and everything," she asked more quietly now, unsure as to whether or not the question would offend him.
"Not really, back then I didn't fully understand the difference between us and them. I only knew that we were better," he answered without looking at her.
"Thought," Hermione corrected, causing him to look at her once more.
"We are better Hermione, we have magic, power," he responded, making her sigh. She knew she had made progress breaking down the walls from his prejudice upbringing but some things she just couldn't change his opinion on. One day she would but for now, she had just gotten him back.
"So tell me, how did it feel to get a telling off from the Ministry you little rule-breaker," Draco winked at her and she scowled in response.
"Not great, mum and dad were disappointed. I explained that I didn't think it was magic significant enough for the Ministry to pick up on, did you know?"
"That you would get caught? No of course not, if I'm honest I didn't really think about it. It's different for me," he shrugged.
Hermione's face turned to a frown before she spoke, "Why? Because you're a Pureblood?" Hermione asked with a hint of sarcasm in her tone.
"Yes, but not because that status gives us some exclusion to the rule. It is because we are a household of magic, everyone there including the house-elves perform magic every day. So, it's difficult to pinpoint where and who the magic is coming from, the Ministry don't tend to bother investigating if it gets flagged up. Whereas in your scenario, you're the only one, therefore it's obvious," he explained, Hermione relaxed as she realised what he said made sense,
"Well it's just lucky that you figured out what had happened, I was scared you wouldn't write and would think I was ignoring you," she responded.
"After the first day you hadn't replied, I knew you had received it because it didn't come back to me. With that particular spell, if the recipient ignores it the note returns to sender. I assumed there was something wrong so I sent an owl, which is charmed to only release the letter to the intended recipient, it'll claw anyone else who tries."
"Did you think someone else had found the note, that's why I hadn't replied?"
"It crossed my mind, which is why I sent the owl."
"I just don't understand how I didn't receive one sooner. I'd used the same spell the first Christmas holidays and I cast a spell on the Christmas tree, they didn't say anything then,"
"They might not have thought you knew better yet. You'd not long been at Hogwarts and introduced into the Wizarding world, you might have had some leeway at first. Anyway, back to the original reason I told you to meet me here. If it wasn't for the trips here with my mother, I would've never discovered my favourite book store," he said. She turned to him, a smile on her lips and a glint in her eye.
"Book store?" she asked, he couldn't help but smile at her giddiness.
"Come on, I'll show you," he said as he stood up, leading the way out of the park.
The pair walked in silence through the ever-growing crowded streets of London, until eventually, they stopped outside a small terraced building that looked tattered and run down. Hemione took note of how close in location it was to the Leaky Caldron. The building appeared to be vacant, there were no signs that it was in fact a shop nor had it been for a very long time. Eyeing Draco who was still smirking at her, she pushed the handle of the door and stepped inside.
She couldn't help but gasp as she walked through the threshold, the sound of a bell rang twice as it closed behind them. What looked like a run-down, small shop from the outside, turned out to be a very large book store more than three times the size of Flourish and Blotts on the inside, with three separate floors of books.
Hermione was in complete awe with the beauty of the shop, when she felt Draco whisper in her ear, "Go have fun." She nodded as his voice left goosebumps down the back of her neck and without turning back to him, she wandered further into the shop.
The store was separated into two halves, muggle and wizarding authors. Each aisle was then categorized by genre, and then alphabetically. She knew she could get completely lost in the shop, and spend days just scanning through the aisles before she ever actually took anything. After a few moments of looking around, Draco caught up with her.
"See anything you want?" he asked.
She turned to him to find him leaning against one of the bookshelves with his arms folded. For the first time that morning, Hermione noticed he was wearing something other than robes. He wore black trousers that, had she known better, she could've sworn were jeans. His white shirt fit him snugly around the waist, untucked and his sleeves rolled up just above his forearms. He was dressed quite smart for a casual outing but he pulled it off with his ruffled hair and boyish smile. Hermione felt butterflies in her stomach as he stared at her, waiting for her response.
"There's too much to choose from," she answered finally, turning away to hide her blush.
'I'm obviously just overwhelmed by the bookstore,' she thought to herself as she tried to understand why butterflies were wreaking havoc in her stomach.
"There's a cafe on the third floor. This place is also a library so if you don't want to buy anything, you can just read." He told her and it was like music to her ears.
"Even better," she said as she grabbed a book off of the shelf and grabbed Draco's arm, guiding him towards the stairs.
The pair sat down as Draco ordered two milkshakes and Hermione opened her book to start reading before he noticed the book she was reading.
"Beings, Beasts and Spirits?"
"I'm hoping to find some information on house-elves, the outrageous abuse and enslavement horrifies me. I'd like to know more about why wizards find it acceptable to treat a fellow member of the magical community so cruelly," she told him very flatly. He simply nodded in response and watched as she turned back to her book to begin reading.
Draco sat with his third milkshake, watching Hermione as she read her book. They had been there for over an hour and she hadn't looked up once. If it hadn't been for the fact that he simply enjoyed her company, even without conversation, he would've left her to her book a while ago.
"Hermione, I'm going to have to leave shortly," he told her, the disappointment clear in his voice.
She looked up from her book, her expression matching his tone as she closed it and sighed."I'm sorry, I got carried away. We haven't even had a chance to talk."
"It's fine, we write to each other every day. It was nice to just spend some time with you," he told her and she couldn't help but smile up at him.
"Besides, I like watching you read. Your eyebrows scrunch up when you read something you don't fully understand and you kind of nod to yourself when it finally clicks. Not to mention you bite your lip when you find something interesting and itch your nose whenever you don't agree with what's written." he gave her a smirk and she couldn't help but blush at his observation.
"Will I see you again before school starts?" she asked, trying to quickly change the subject.
"I'm not sure, we could try. But then, it's taken us four weeks just to see each other once..." he answered, making her smile fall from her face as she nodded with understanding.
"There's a masquerade party happening at my house before we return to school," he started.
"Let me guess, I'm invited," she teased, knowing she was saying the impossible.
"I wish. No, I was thinking, while everyone is distracted, I could sneak out and come see you?" he suggested and Hermione thought it over for a second before she nodded.
"That could work, as long as you wear your mask," she chuckled.
He raised an eyebrow at her and smirked,"Oh really? Like the idea of me in a mask?" He teased, causing her to blush.
"I meant only that I wouldn't want you to be caught with me," she joked and Draco laughed, shaking his head before he stood up. She started to rise from her chair also but he held out a hand to stop her.
"No, stay. I've told the shop keeper that you're going to be buying something so make sure you choose a book. It's going on my tab," he told her and she sat back down. "Enjoy the rest of your day Hermione."
She looked up at him, unsure whether or not to hug him before he left. He smiled at her once more before he turned and headed towards the stairs and as he reached the top he looked back at her.
"See you in a few weeks, I'll be the one in the mask," he winked at her before he left.
Hermione turned back to her now closed book, her hand still placed in the middle, keeping her page. She felt her cheeks burn as she thought about Draco's exit. She had spent countless hours alone with him, fallen asleep in his arms time after time and yet something felt different, her heart raced a little faster and she even found herself at a loss for words at one point.
'Perhaps it's the fact that it's a different setting, outside of school, or that's it's been a while,' she told herself.
Finally, she opened her book and continued her reading, trying not to think about the next time she would see Draco again.
Trying, but failing.
~X~
Draco stood in his kitchen, eating the pancakes their new head house-elf had made him whilst he watched his mother put together the final pieces for the masquerade party that would happen later that evening.
He had said he would avoid the house whilst that very process was ongoing until he had asked his mother if at some point during the night, he could wander off with his friends so that they could have their own party. She had agreed that it was a good idea for them to spend time together as a group outside of school and it also meant that the adults would have time together without their children around.
At least, that was the point he had made which sold the idea for his mother. Her only condition was that he would help her where needed and he was beginning to wonder if it was worth it when she asked for his opinion on yet another decoration.
"Right, that's it, I'm done," Narcissa declared and Draco sighed with relief, the day was finally his.
"Try not to sound too pleased," She said sarcastically to her son that looked nothing but thrilled to be done helping her.
"I can't say it's been the most fun I've had in a while mother, but it wasn't awful. Now, I'm going to sort my own things out for tonight, I'll see you later," he told her before he kissed her on the cheek and wandered out of the room.
Evening dawned and Draco could hear the music from his room, along with the guests that had started to arrive. He looked at himself once more in the mirror, examining his fine tailored black suit that his mother had insisted he wore. He picked up his silver bow tie and fastened it around his neck before he picked up his matching silver mask and pulled it over his head, firmly placing it over his eyes.
'That'll do,' he thought, and left his room to join the party.
As he made his way down the stairs to the main entrance, he could hear the loud chatter from the guests, one loud shrill laugh stood out to him above all of the chatter.
'Pansy' he thought, before he shuddered.
"There you are," Narcissa said as she stepped out of the room she was entertaining their guests in and greeted Draco who stood at the bottom of the stairs, hoping to put off entering the room for as long as possible.
"The place looks wonderful mother, and as always, you look beautiful," Draco told her.
She smiled brightly behind her silver mask that was detailed very similarly to her sons. She wore a floor-length silver satin dress, that had long sleeves and fit comfortably around her petite body. Her hair pinned back with the most astonishing diamond hairpiece that glimmered in the light.
"Come on, you have guests to greet," she told him as she threaded her arm through his and began to walk with him back into the room she had just exited moments ago. She guided him through the room, where he tried to ignore the stares from the other guests,
"Narcissa!" a voice shrieked, causing both Draco and his mother to stop in their tracks whilst they witnessed a young woman in a bright green, short sparkly dress walk towards them very quickly. "I love what you have done with the place! It's positively darling," the woman drawled.
Draco felt his mothers grip tighten on his arm as if to indicate she did not want him to leave her with the woman.
"Thank you, Eliza, I'm glad you approve. Draco, this is Eliza Rookwood. Eliza, this is my son, Draco." Narcissa introduced him to the woman in front who beamed behind her mask at him,
"The youngest Malfoy! My husband has told me all about you," she said as she held out her hand for Draco to take. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
"The pleasure is all mine, Mrs Rookwood," he responded as he held out her hand and bowed his head slightly at her, causing her to giggle like a young schoolgirl. If it hadn't been for the unnecessarily large ring on her finger and her comment about her husband, he would've mistaken her for a 'Miss' given she looked like she couldn't be that much older than he was.
"Your son is such a charmer, Cissy!" she laughed, pulling her hand away from him.
Narcissa hummed in agreement before she pulled on her son's arm once more and prepared for her exit from the uncomfortable encounter with the woman in front of them. "It's been a pleasure, Eliza. I will try to catch up with you later, perhaps but we must get going, for now, we have lots of guests to welcome."
"Yes of course! I shall see you later!" She was speaking to his mother, but her gaze on Draco.
When they finally reached a good distance away his mother slowed down and sighed, "It's people like that why I hate these parties," she commented.
He chuckled quietly behind his mask and turned to his mother as they stopped to glance around the room at their guests. "Who was that? I nearly called her Miss, I assumed she was the daughter of August, until I saw the huge rock on her hand."
"Yes, that rock was given to her by Augustus Rookwood, she is his wife," she told him with a smirk, anticipating his shock as he turned to her.
"But she must be at least half of his age!"
His mother nodded at him, he turned back to the party and watched as the woman he had just been introduced to moments ago, was making her way around the guests loudly introducing herself.
"You can't tell me you wouldn't," Draco heard Blaise whisper in his ear as he walked around him and slowly came into view. He shook his head at his friend in disapproval before he turned to greet Narcissa.
"Good Evening, Mrs Malfoy. Your house is looking amazing as ever, truly breathtaking but then I expect nothing less from a host to match," Blaise said as he held onto Narcissa's hand.
She gave him a slight nod before she pulled her hand from his grasp."Thank you, Blaise, for your kind words."
She turned to Draco and gave his arm one last squeeze, "I will leave you boys to enjoy the party, try not to get yourselves into trouble and please wait a little before you wander off to your own party." She gave him a stern look behind her mask before she walked gracefully off back into the crowd.
"Y'know Draco, Your mum's pre-" Blaise started but was interrupted by Draco's fist in his stomach, hard enough to shut him up but not enough to cause a disturbance.
"I'm warning you Zabini, do not finish that sentence," he said quietly through his teeth.
Blaise took the hint and refrained from finishing what he was saying as he rubbed the soreness from his middle.
"Come on, let's go mingle," Draco told him and they both headed off into the crowd, greeting guests and making conversation until it was acceptable for them to sneak off to their own party.
~X~
"THEO, NO!" Pansy screeched before being thrown into the lake, with Theo willingly jumping in straight after her. The group of Slytherins had excused themselves within a few hours from the party and had not wasted any time before their own celebrations had begun.
Draco watched as Blaise stiffened beside him at the sight of Pansy in distress, smirking to himself and rolling his eyes. He glanced back at the soaking girl who was making her way out of the lake towards the fire they had built.
"Why don't you go along and help warm her up?" Draco teased, earning himself a punch in the arm from his friend before he stood and walked over to the fire.
"He does realise Pansy isn't interested in him in the slightest, doesn't he?" Daphne asked him, making him aware of her sudden presence.
"If he doesn't after all this time, then it's his own fault when he gets shot down," Draco chuckled.
"Evening all," Theo said as he sat down further in front of Draco, shaking his long hair like a wet dog before he tied it back.
"Thanks for that, mate," Draco wiped the cold water from his face. Theo grinned in response, showing all of his pearly white teeth and Draco couldn't help but laugh at his friend when he smiled like that.
"Enjoying yourself, Greengrass?" Theo asked.
"I was, until a certain someone came along," she responded.
"That's no way to speak about Draco, we are at his house after all," Theo joked, causing Draco to roll his eyes and stand up. "See, he's leaving now. So you should be more comfortable," Daphne looked up at Draco with a pleading look in her eyes.
"Play nice," he warned Theo who held his hands up in the air in an attempt to make himself look innocent.
Moving through the crowd of Slytherins he made his way back to the manor, slipping in through an entrance to the side of the house, he discreetly made his way to the fire in the kitchens. He never understood why there was an active Floo network there when there were only House Elves that entered that room, but he was grateful to be out of prying eyes when he called the words 'The Leaky Cauldron' out and made his way to see Hermione.
~X~
Hermione checked and rechecked the letter Draco had sent to her detailing the time and location he wanted her to meet him at. She glanced at the clock in her bedroom, it was past midnight and she was planning to sneak out of her house. It was something she had never even thought about doing before, something she had never envisioned herself ever doing.
Closing her door quietly behind herself, she turned and crept down the stairs slowly, taking deep breaths with every other step. Mumbling her destination in the fireplace as quietly and softly as she could, Hermione reappeared at a deserted Leaky Cauldron.
Stepping out of the fire, she wiped the soot off of her clothes and made her way towards the back of the pub to find the entrance to Diagon Alley. After walking through the brick wall into the Alley, she stopped for a moment to take in her surroundings. Everything seemed more magical with the only source of light in the streets being the reflection from the moon.
Inhaling a deep breath, Hermione moved on through the Alley, continuing on her route. As she turned the corner, walking past Gringotts, she spotted a figure beside the fountain. The closer she gained to the fountain, the clearer it became that the person who stood beside it was who she was intending to meet.
She allowed herself a couple of seconds to take him in, the view of him, the smart fitting suit, the silver bow tie but most importantly, the mask. She cleared her throat before she moved beside him, causing him to turn and face her.
She froze the moment his eyes fell upon her, the night's sky reflected off of his mask, causing his eyes usual pale eyes to swirl in pools of dark grey. It made his stare all that more intense for her.
The way Draco felt about Hermione's golden brown eyes glimmering in the sunlight, was how Hermione felt when the moon created swirls of various shades of grey in his.
"Hey," he said quietly, breaking Hermione from her trance. She shook her head slightly and stepped back, hiding her blush away from him.
"You wore the mask," she smirked as she looked back at him. He pulled it from his face and slowly placed it around her eyes, securing the ribbon at the back of her head as Hermione inhaled, taking in his scent.
"There, looks better on you," he said as he stepped away.
She looked up at him, grateful that the mask hid her pink cheeks.
"Come on, let's go," he said as he grabbed her hand.
"Go?" She asked as she remained rooted.
"This was just where I wanted you to meet me, this isn't where we are staying," he said with a hint of mystery in his eyes.
He turned away from her and pulled her towards the small closing between two buildings. They walked through various tight pathways and narrow gaps between buildings before they finally stopped before some ladders. Draco turned to her and gestured for her to climb and, without questioning him, she moved forward and did as he asked. When the pair finally reached the top, Hermione glanced around, only seeing brick wall with no means of housing further up.
Taking her hand once more, he pulled her through the brick wall where on the other side, they stood on top of a tall roof with no walls surrounding the top aside from the one behind them. Hermione held her breath, removing the mask Draco had placed earlier as she realised she could see the whole of London from where she stood, both Muggle and Wizard.
Without realising, she moved to the centre of the roof, suddenly very aware of how high up they were. She turned to Draco who had remained near the wall they had walked through, watching her as she stood in complete awe of her surroundings.
"This is amazing, the view is incredible," she whispered.
Draco gave a small laugh through his nose in response and moved towards a blanket that had been stretched out across the floor. After taking a seat he picked up a box off the floor and turned to Hermione.
"Care to join me?" He asked.
She smiled and moved to sit beside him, grateful for the lack of ledges surrounding them as she still had full view of the city. She watched as he opened the box before her and several globes shot out around them to hover and, after a few seconds, they started to glow.
"They're beautiful..." she whispered as she looked around at the lights before turning back to him, "How did you find this place?"
"Father used to bring me along to Borgin and Burke's when I was little. I got bored very easily, so I used to wander off and explore all of the back entrances to all of the shops, all of the secret passageways. One day I stumbled across this building when I climbed the ladders I found this rooftop and decided this was my safe haven away from home."
She nodded and turned back to overlook the city. "It's breathtaking,"
He nodded, all the while looking at her whilst she admired the view. "I'd rather be here than back home at the party."
"That good?" She chuckled.
"It was ok, I suppose. Blaise was throwing himself all over Pansy who isn't interested. Theo was trying his hardest to break down Daphne's walls, who again, isn't interested and Crabbe and Goyle were ignoring my 'don't get too drunk' rule."
"They were drinking?"
"It is a party." he laughed at her.
She wrinkled her nose at him, "Are your parents ok with that? We are much too young to be drinking.""
"You're such a stickler for the rules, it's adorable," he chuckled and nudged into her gently with his shoulder as she scowled at him. "No, they wouldn't be if they knew. Which is why I told everyone not to get overly drunk."
"Will they notice you're gone?"
"Perhaps, but they won't come looking for me. I should have at least an hour before I have to head back."
She nodded at his response and moved closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Thank you for bringing me here," she said quietly and he hummed in response.
She felt completely at ease with their closeness, nothing about it felt uncomfortable or awkward, more like she was at home. Draco noticed how calm and collected he felt whenever Hermione was around, everything else seemed to disappear around him. However, something felt different for them both.
Neither one could ignore the fact that their hearts raced a little more at their proximity, but neither one questioned why it did.
Author Note:
Disclaimer - I do not own the world of Harry Potter, I wish I did, but I don't.
MASSIVE shout out to KoraKunkel for being the best beta!
Thank you so much for all of the follows, likes, loves, reviews, you name it, I'm very grateful! I hope you're all still enjoying the story, I'm very excited to start on the next chapter as chapter 20 is the start of third year and things are going to change yet again! Keep up the reviews, I love hearing what you all think and I promise take onboard any criticism you may have.