Enjoy :) Hopefully things will start to pick up from here on out.
It was just reaching noon when Draco stirred from under the massive comforter. It was almost too warm and his arm felt pinned to the cushion and he didn't understand why. When he finally blinked in the light streaming in from the balcony he realized why he couldn't move.
Hermione's still sleeping form was curled into his chest, her brown curls spilling all over the place in quite the mess. Draco almost laughed. He really had forgotten she was there but now that he remembered all the proceedings of the morning he smiled at her. She looked peaceful, despite the drool leaking out of her mouth.
Draco used his free hand to calm the fire, it was much too warm in the room now and they didn't need it. When he tried to free his other, unconscious arm from under her, she finally stirred, snuggling into him closer. "Oh come on, I was so comfortable," she murmured in a sleepy daze.
He chuckled as the words made their way to him. "Yes but I'd like to keep having two working arms, if that's alright with you."
She huffed as she uncovered her face from under the blankets. "How did you sleep?" she asked casually, eying his features.
"Very well actually," he considered. "Must be I got up too early." Hermione rolled her eyes. He smirked at her, throwing the blanket back over his face.
"Nothing to do with the incredible company," she mused, pulling it down to face him again.
"Oh not at all," Draco smiled looking at all the freckles smearing her cheeks. "Although it is deathly hot in here, I don't know how you could keep sleeping so long." He pulled the blanket down to their hips and reached for a glass of water still sitting on the side table.
His shirt slid up then and Hermione eyed two large black splotches that took up a major part of his waist. "What in the world-" she stated, not even bothering to ask. She was already pulling at his shirt.
Draco was caught by surprise and whipped back, a bit of pink tinging his cheeks. "Hello, can I help you?" he asked curiously, very confused. It was Hermione's turn to turn red.
"I just- I saw the, and well I…"
"I'm perfectly fine if that's what you are wondering," Draco said then and he lifted his shirt for her to see the whole of it. He had two large black marks, looking like ink spreading across his hip and across his rib cage. The marks looked like leather. "They are scars, from a family friend, another death eater who decided to test out new curses on children. Theo and I were five. There was some sort of illness trapped in the curse, gave us these horridly painful black splotches and we were bedridden for two weeks. Luckily my mum hunted down the person after that and we had the money for the best healers..."
Hermione blinked not believing what she was hearing. "You were a child? How could someone do that?" She reached a hand out to touch it but that instant the door flew open. Her hand retreated faster than she thought was possible as the red of a blush rushed back to her cheeks.
Theo came waltzing in, ready to jump onto the bed when he noticed it was already empty. Hermione ended up snorting and Theo appeared utterly lost until he realized where the sound was coming from. "Do you always bull rush your friends to wake them up?" she laughed as Draco tried to force his shirt back down without it looking obvious.
A grin plastered itself on Theo's slim face as he took in the scene before him. He walked over to the sitting area and fell into an armchair. The smug look on his face eyed Draco's hands fumbling with the blanket. "I mean, it usually is an entertaining way to rouse someone… or in this case multiple someones. Most notably someone like Draco who, well you see him, is a right grouch." Theo smiled at Draco.
Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "What do you want Theo?" Draco asked, his voice scratchy, with sleep or with irritation, no one could be sure.
"Well you see, Luna and Ginny won't stop talking about being prepared for the worst case scenarios and the like, so I have graciously offered to make healing potions in the likely event we'll ever need them. Figured your arse could use the practice."
Hermione's eyes grew wide. "You'll help, right?" she looked at Draco hopefully. "I have read hundreds of pages already about potions. I'm so interested. Can I help?" she was suddenly talking very fast and all Draco could do was laugh.
"I don't have a choice now, do I?" he stated, as she was already throwing back the comforter and standing to face Theo. She smiled with excitement and Theo chuckled.
"Alright then," he said, eying Malfoy behind her. "You up for it there?" Theo threw him a smirk.
Draco smiled as he swam through the comforter Hermione had so nicely pushed into his face. "Doubt I have a choice," he laughed, stretching. He had slept quite well for once and he pushed the thought out of his mind that it had something to do with the burnette now standing beside him.
"What a good morning, I didn't even have to twist your arm," Theo raised his eyebrows in interest at Draco before getting up. "I'll meet you both downstairs then." And with that, he was out the door.
Hermione found herself standing there awkwardly. She turned, seeing a sleepy looking Malfoy staring up at her with a slight smile. "What?" she asked.
He turned away, still smiling. "Nothing. You're very determined when it comes to learning, that's all," he commented. "It's- it's rather lovely."
She could feel the blush climbing up her cheeks then. She grabbed the nearest pillow and smacked him with it. "You must be delusional from finally getting some sleep," she said to him when he straightened. "Come on already, you lazy arse!" she started walking towards the door.
She stopped and turned back, catching him watching her. "Coffee?" he smiled as he reached for his wand on the table and stood.
She rolled her eyes. "You really should learn the spell," and with that, she was out the door.
…
Theo and Draco stood near the large cauldron in the kitchen, a smell of eucalyptus and something similar to burnt hair was filling the air. A light smoke wafted off the top of the cauldron as Theo stirred it in a swirling pattern. Hermione poured over the Advanced Potions textbook laid out in front of her. It was Luna's and it was stained with remnants of ingredients Hermione had never heard of.
Blaise was seated at the table, weighing out more ingredients from small jars or little pouches spread out over the table. When she had first arrived and read the potion over twice, Hermione took the time to analyze all the special ingredients.
Obviously they were nothing like the ingredients to any recipe she'd ever seen. Her mind reeled over the containers of newt eyes, dragon liver, essence of dittany, lacewing flies, powdered beetles, and knotgrass. She did see a couple of ingredients she recognized: lavender oil, dried kelp, and ground taro root were all things she had seen in the health food store near campus. She watched Blaise organize the ingredients into an order that made it efficient for him to weigh.
In an hour he seemed to have it down, not even watching his hands as he stared off out the window. So naturally he was the one to see Luna and Ginny, sprinting up the path in the backyard. "Where are they coming from?" Blaise said, putting the jar of lacewing flies down and standing to watch as the girls came bounding up the stairs. Hermione looked up from the book and, following Blaise's gaze, realized what he was talking about. She smiled.
"They were at the library," Hermione told him as they reached the door.
Ginny's face was flushed as she yanked it open. "We've got it!" she said triumphantly, barreling in and clapping Hermione on the back with a grin. Draco turned, his eyebrows knitted as he watched Ginny dance around Hermione with glee. Luna beamed at them as she set a small brown book on the table. It appeared water damaged and the spine was loose. She kept her hand on top of it as she spoke.
"I finally found one of Rowena's diaries on charms. It is one of the only known tomes that contains a detailed analysis of the Protean charm. It mentions repairing a broken connection and redirecting the master object to a new one," she explained. "Guys, I fixed the coin!"
Hermione's eyes widened and she threw her arms around Luna. "Oh my God! Does this mean you can contact Harry and Ron now?"
"Hell yeah it does!" Ginny sang, dancing around them.
"Lucky us," Theo said under his breath to Draco, "I was wondering when we'd get to see our great hero and his faithful sidekick again."
"Oh stop, I'm sure Potter will be thrilled to see his girlfriend's been spending all her time making friends with a bunch of Slytherins," Draco smirked, but Ginny had clearly heard him. She walked right over to him and slugged him in the arm. Luna and Hermione laughed while he rubbed the spot gingerly.
"Ouch! Oh come off it, you know old scarhead's not going to love this," he replied, looking from Ginny to Hermione. She glared at him for the 'scarhead' comment and Ginny crossed her arms.
"Well, it's only if Harry and Ron still have their coins," Luna mentioned. "If not them, possibly Neville or the twins. Maybe even Seamus or Katie. As long as we can reach someone, it would help. I trust anyone who was in the D.A. to keep our location a secret."
"And what if the coin has fallen into the wrong hands?" Blaise asked, coming around the table. "Don't get me wrong, it will be amazing to get a scrap of news and we can handle more Gryffindors but… we have no way of knowing. Our lives are on the line, Draco's especially since he's still being hunted, not to mention you two are on the undesirable list right under Potter and Weasley."
The seriousness of Blaise's tone made Hermione's smile fall. Theo was still stirring the potion but he eyed Draco, who had crossed his own arms, his jaw tight.
Ginny huffed. "At this point I'm ready to put it on the line," her voice was growing angry, "We need information. What if the Order's already lost?! Harry could be dead for all we know and You-Know-Who's hailing his dead body on the cover of the Prophet! It was a stupid plan for us to relocate and it's stupid for us to be continually sitting in the dark."
"Oh Ginny, don't think that way," Hermione started.
"Don't tell me not to think of the worst because Merlin knows the death eaters already have been!" Ginny snarled. Theo raised his brows as if in reluctant agreement.
Hermione and Luna exchanged worried looks at Ginny's sudden outburst. The stress of non-action was really getting to her. Luna came and put a hand on Ginny's shoulder before addressing the boys. "Look, we know this is a bit of a risk. But it's all we have. I coded out the message so hopefully only the right people will understand it. I think we will be safe. If the coins have gotten to others I doubt they'll notice anything weird in the serial numbers of a galleon."
"I hope you're right Lovegood," Blaise looked uncertain for the first time. He exchanged looks with Theo and they both eyed a stoic looking Draco.
He was leaning against the counter and staring at the ground. His right hand absentmindedly started scratching at his left forearm over the top of his shirt. At this, Theo elbowed him in the ribs. Draco glared at him.
"So what happens when someone does get back to us?" Hermione asked, looking at Luna and Ginny. Part of her felt excited and she almost felt guilty for it. She tried to just sound interested instead. "I mean, if it comes down to it I'm with you, I want to fight back and help any way I can. I know I'm not great at magic yet and I have lots to learn but I can be useful somehow to the Order, I could do research or-"
"Oh Hermione!" Ginny's anger began to break. She leaned into Hermione's shoulder, feeling the weight of the war come crashing down. "You are too brave. The Order would have you, gladly."
"Bloody Gryffindor and she's never even stepped inside Hogwarts," Draco mumbled, looking at the girls with a hint of annoyance. Theo chuckled but Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "Of course you'd join right off the back," Draco said then, but the minute it left his lips he regretted it.
Hermione's anger rose quickly. "And you wouldn't? After all the shit you've been put through with the death eaters?"
Blaise's eyes grew wide and Ginny almost laughed as Draco's features tensed harder. But when he ventured to speak again, his voice was low and sarcastic. "Like I'd even be allowed to join. I doubt the top candidates for entry have 'ex-death eater' on their resumes." Theo went to give Draco a high five, unable to contain his laughter. Ginny looked ready to punch them both in the jaw.
The two laughed together but Blaise's voice cut over it. "What are you laughing at Nott, you told me two night's ago you'd join the Order or don't you remember?" Blaise said, raising a brow. Luna looked up then, hopeful.
Theo turned towards the cauldron, slightly embarrassed. "Alright, but you took that out of context a bit. What I said was I'd join the Order if they'd allow someone as fucked up as me. And they most likely won't, we're all walking liabilities, let's be serious."
It was Luna who laughed this time and it took them all by surprise. "You underestimate the Order, Theo. Vastly. Harry's more of a liability than anyone and he's still involved. I think when you all explain how you defected and why, the Order will have no choice but to welcome you in. And I mean it, they've very welcoming," she smiled. "Compassion and forgiveness. It's what makes us different from them, in the end."
Hermione was still angry at him, but she let her gaze wander to Draco's anyway. She wanted to see if he had any reaction to Luna's words, even the slightest. His breath seemed to be quicker than normal as she watched his arms rise and fall on his chest. She saw he was still staring at the floor. Suddenly his gray eyes flickered up to meet hers. They were searching, as if he were frantically contemplating the ability of being forgiven.
He dropped his gaze as quick as he had started it and walked to the other side of the kitchen, away from her. His arms were still firmly crossed on his chest as he stared out the window at the frozen ground.
Blaise eyed him curiously. "When the time comes, we will all be ready to do what is needed. I promise." Ginny gave him a weak smile as Hermione rubbed her arm in comfort. Luna put her book away on a chair to get it out of the way before walking over to Theo. She took the ladle out of his hand and began stirring, gesturing with her chin at Draco. He was still over by the window stewing.
Theo sighed and walked over, shoving his hands in his pockets. Draco felt him approach and wanted to ask him not to say anything, but he couldn't find his own voice. Luna called over to Blaise for more ingredients and the rest of them began talking about the potions.
"You know, The Order doesn't sound so bad when you think about it," Theo mused as he stared out to the cold lawn. "I know it's not how you pictured it, with Gryffindors galore and the mark still staring at you day to day and thinking about joining Potter. But I happen to like the idea of not going to bed hungry or tortured half to death for breathing the wrong way. You?"
Draco took a while to respond. His arms were still crossed and his hands were digging into his sides like it might somehow relieve him of the stress. "None of this is like we pictured it anymore, is it?"
"No. No it's not," Theo agreed, "But forgiveness sounds an awful lot like a second chance. I can't be mad at that. Merlin knows we need it."
Draco sighed. He let out more air than he realized he had been holding in and it was probably because he needed a lot more courage to say the next four words. "We do need it."
Theo looked at him. "Relax. We'll make it. You aren't completely full of shit or you wouldn't be here. We've been telling you this for weeks now, you'd think you'd start believing it. Granger's been down your neck about it too, maybe she needs to go further south to convince you."
Draco's eyes flashed up to Theo's and he almost laughed. He felt his arms finally relaxing and wondered how much longer his instinct would be to fight back. Theo was right and he owed Granger and the lot of them for it. He wanted to go apologize to the rest of them but he felt too foolish and he knew Theo could tell. Damn pureblood pride.
Instead he laughed in spite of himself, thinking about it all. "The Order will lose their minds when they hear Draco Malfoy's trying to court a muggleborn. They won't believe it." He glanced over at Hermione, who still had Ginny in her arms. They were now chatting quietly, Ginny looking much more at ease. Draco admired her ability to be such a source of solace for them all.
"Proof you truly have deflected." Theo smiled. "But you know," he said, nudging Draco, "if they don't believe you, it's actually rather easy to catch you two in the act. I should know."
Draco rolled his eyes. "Yes, I need to get back in the habit of locking the door."
Theo chuckled. "Yes please do. But to be frank, I'd say second chances are starting off pretty well for you."
Draco stayed silent and looked out to the lawn again. Everything was frosted except the bright green of the grass in the shape of Ginny and Luna's footprints up the pathway. His mind drifted considering the future and for the first time, what it meant to have a second chance.
…
Draco laid on his bed reading from the Keats poetry book he had taken from the library. It was a quiet evening after the rest of the day's potions were made and cleaned up and dinner had been made and cleaned up too. Draco had actually eaten his fill, which he was getting more used to doing, and was glad Ginny had remembered enough of her mother's recipes to provide them with such great food.
He had spent the rest of the time after dinner helping Granger learn to block with Theo's help. It was complicated without a wand at first, but she learned quickly and easily mimicked the moves he and Theo were doing. By the end, she managed to draw up a basic shield against two duelers at once.
He flipped the page and was grateful to have taken the book in the first place. It really was a good read. Even so, he was more grateful for the pounds of Honeydukes candy he found in his school trunk when he'd looked for books for Granger. It was still good and he managed to ration it out to himself so he'd get to enjoy it much longer. He was laying back, enjoying some literature and a lemon sugar quill. It was the first time in a long time he was content.
That was how Hermione found him when she knocked on his door at half past eight and stuck her head inside. The fire was low but the room was so warm, like she remembered it being this morning. Her eyes searched the room before she spotted the white blonde of his hair. There was a lamp near the bed and it was clicked on, showing his sharp features in a soft glow. He had a book resting on one knee and he was sucking on the end of what appeared to be a yellow lolly.
Hermione cocked an eyebrow at him with a smile. "Is that Keats again?"
His eyes flashed up to her, looking almost embarrassed. He took the sugar quill out of his mouth. "I've got to remember to lock my door," he sighed.
She opened the door the rest of the way and walked in before flopping down on the sofa. "Thought you wanted to lock Theo out, not me," she said, teasing.
"Very true, I rather like when you're here," he said before he could stop himself. "You let me sleep at least." She smiled at him. "Alright well, I'll make you a trade. Wizarding candy for your discretion?" he waved the book in the air.
"Deal," she responded and she leaned over to rummage through the candy littering the coffee table. She picked up a green sugar lolly and realized it was shaped to look like the quills she had found in Ginny's trunk. Looking to Draco, she saw that was what he was holding too. She laughed.
"Although, why would I tell anyone anyway?" she grabbed a toffee and popped it into her mouth. He could just see her head over the back of the arm, her long curls spilling over merrily. It made him smile and he was happy she wasn't looking at him this time.
"You do realize a man of my reputation reading poetry in his spare time is quite the scandal," he said sarcastically, letting his voice trail with a sense of austerity.
She eyed him playfully. "And here I thought the purebloods were all properly read gentlemen. Go figure."
Draco laughed before he paused, looking at her quizzically. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"Well I was looking for my sweatshirt, I thought I brought it with me this morning to the library but since it's not there…" she trailed off and she swung her legs to sit up. She grabbed another toffee as she gazed around the room thoughtfully.
"I haven't seen it here," Draco said flatly, when he realized she wasn't just here for him. It was a stupid thought, but he still had it nonetheless. It annoyed him so he set his book down and descended from the bed without warning. It was a very fluid motion that made Hermione blink. He walked towards two french doors that were slightly ajar on the opposite side of the fireplace. "Green or black?" he stated, before disappearing inside.
"Uh, green?" Hermione questioned, watching as he emerged within seconds. He walked back over to her and tossed a ball of fabric at her. When she turned it over in her hands, it was a green sweater with a silver stripe across the breast. She raised an eyebrow at him.
Draco began looking through the pile of sweets on the table. "Opal shrunk the sleeves on me so. It's all yours."
"Who's Opal?" Hermione asked, folding the sweater into her lap.
"A house elf actually," Draco mused, grabbing the box of Bertie Bott's. He spotted her confusion and went on. "House elves are basically servants, small batty creatures that serve their designated wizarding family. They like it, at least I liked to think they did. My father was horrible to them. My mum and I always trying to make them feel better, treated them fairly and gave them a nice place to live. Opal was my favorite, she made jokes even though she knew she wasn't supposed to."
Hermione was smiling at him when he looked up from the box. He felt a little red coming to his cheeks and blamed it on the cinnamon bean he had just eaten instead. "She felt so bad shrinking that," he pointed to the sweater on her lap, "Apologized about a hundred times. I couldn't bear to get rid of it."
Hermione laughed again. He hadn't realized how nice it sounded. "That's cute actually. But what do you mean, treated them fairly, gave them a place to live. There must be laws of governing the treatment of such workers?"
Draco shrugged. "I don't think so. It's just sort of, the way it's been for centuries." He frowned. "Now that you put it out there though... I guess it's sort of barbaric."
Hermione rubbed her forehead. "So you're telling me our world is fighting a war for civil rights but the other races are just sitting there still having to shovel all our bullshit! So backwards," she sighed. "Sometimes it makes me wonder if I really should put myself into this world of ours…"
Draco froze at her words. "What do you mean? This world, magic. You can't mean that. Sure, it's a bit fucked, but so is the muggle world."
"True," she sighed again. "But it doesn't make it any easier."
Draco waved a hand and the candy cleaned itself up into a discarded bowl. Then he waved again and again and Hermione watched as the bed made itself, the clothes on the dresser hung up all on their own, and the fire sprang to life. Then, he moved his hand one more time and she felt herself be pulled to her feet and sent soaring across the room into his arms.
The look of shock on her face was met with a smirk. "I would say magic is pretty useful," he stated, as she regained her spatial awareness.
"What the hell was that? I thought Luna said you couldn't summon living things," she recited sternly. He shrugged.
"Your clothes aren't living, so I summoned them instead. It doesn't always work but," he shrugged again, "worth a try."
"You're annoying," was all she could muster. She was now becoming aware of his hands still clutched to her lower back. It sent a small shiver down her spine and he smirked again.
"I know," he said honestly, "but you still like me."
At that, she felt her cheeks redden and his hands move ever so slightly. It was enchanting, just taking a moment in all the madness to be this close to someone. She looked into his gray eyes again and they were nothing short of hopeful.
"You're tolerable," she smiled as she leaned in to kiss him and she could feel the smirk on his lips. He moved a hand up her back, sending another shiver and she reached for his hair. It was soft and thick as she reached his neck and pulled him even closer to her.
It was like fire in his chest and Draco pulled her closer to him still. He felt her lips trace down his neck and then back up and he gasped before she was kissing him again. He glided a hand up her spine and felt the magic under his skin sparking. Hermione sighed into his lips as she felt a quickening of her own magic race through her veins.
She pulled back then, feeling the quickening of her magic as it coursed under her skin. It had never been like this before, like it was ready to burst out of her fingertips. The only time that came to mind was as a child, when she hadn't known what powers she had or how to really control it. It was both curious and unnerving now to have such an experience come back all of a sudden. Especially since she could still feel her magic almost aching to be back in his arms.
She looked down bashfully and backed out of his arms slowly. She was still smiling as she sat back on the couch for a minute catching her breath. Draco watched her curiously, his eyes still alight.
"You wouldn't want to go back to a world without," he breathed into the space between them, his voice low. "You said yourself you've always been different, didn't fit in completely. You've been given a second chance at life here."
She had already gotten up. "Kind of like you, huh?"
Draco stiffened as he watched her walk towards the door, his heart still beating too fast in his chest. He wanted to follow her or ask her to stay. But he couldn't make the words come out and she was pulling the sweatshirt over her head. "Ginny's going to hate this," she chuckled as she vanished through the frame.
He couldn't stop from smirking at her as he stood there, waiting for his pulse to slow. The remnants of his magic jumped every so often. He had forgotten how much he'd liked that.
...
Since they were now set on preparing supplies, it was hard to justify going to muggle classes. Even Blaise, who was usually on Hermione's side about schoolwork, figured it was better to spend their time making potions and training her in case the coins did lead the wrong people here. Although Luna continued to assure them everything would be fine and Ginny claimed not to give a flying shit who showed up. It made Hermione frown and Draco laugh.
But they ended up going back to classes on Hermione's insistence. She argued that they should stick to a routine and that it was beneficial to occupy their minds with something besides war. It also would keep the professors or the university from getting suspicious.
Many times Draco just skipped class altogether, except for the one he had with Hermione. He was then dragged out of bed and taken to campus far too early for his liking and she made sure he stayed the whole time. Luckily, she let all the other classes slide since he was still spending many of his afternoons or evenings helping her learn more magic.
Hermione had also pestered all of them for books so she could continue to learn more about the magical world. It was amazing she could even keep up with her classes as they were constantly searching around for old textbooks for her.
So was the case that day in the old magical library on campus, where Hermione should have been grading papers. Instead, over top of the large stack she leaned precariously close to the edge of the table, a giant volume covered in red leather laid out before her.
Hermione didn't hear the trap door open or the blonde boy sneak his way in, much too lost in whatever spell she had been reading about to care what was going on around her.
"Shouldn't you be grading papers like a good teacher's pet instead of reading boring magic textbooks?" He said loudly in her ear before kissing her cheek. It startled her and she sighed in annoyance.
"I'm not a teacher's pet," she said flatly, "and this book is far from boring thank you very much. Maybe you didn't notice it's one of your old textbooks."
"Yes, but I've already taught you half of what's in there," he said nonchalantly, "What is it, anyway? Standard Book of Spells?"
He eyed the cover as Hermione sighed. "Yes. Year 5, if it's any mind to you."
"You'd probably find transfiguration or arithmancy much more to your liking you know. I'll have to find you some copies, I bet Blaise still has them somewhere."
"Fine," she said, "only because I would really like to see those," her voice trailed off as something on the page caught her interest.
Draco watched her, chuckling to himself. "Standard Book of Spells, what a joke," he said under his breath, but Hermione clearly heard him. Her head popped up suddenly, her forehead creased with annoyance. As much as she was growing to like him, he could still be an irritating little ferret when he wanted to.
"This book is far from rubbish Malfoy. I've noticed you like to exclude much of the history and nuances to each of these spells. You truly are a right lazy wizard; details can be highly important, especially with spell work I'm seeing."
Draco laughed. "Lazy my arse, I think you mean resourceful! I simply learn and remember what's essential. Speaking of learning and whatnot, you find my paper amongst that stack yet, have you?" He smiled charmingly, as he eyed the papers under her book that were practically falling on the ground. "I'm hoping for another A."
Hermione scoffed. "That's if you bothered to write it at all."
Draco smiled. "Guess you won't know until you read them all," and with that he grabbed one of the armchairs nearby, tossing his bag to the ground.
Draco hadn't noticed Theo sitting by the window, as he had kept especially quiet through their whole conversation. So Draco wasn't ready for the comment that left Theo's mouth then, a whisper catching him off guard. "You know, sleeping with the grader doesn't mean you don't have to do the assignments."
Draco was instantly out of his seat taking several steps towards Theo, whose lips curled into a grin. Hermione's head shot up from her work, her cheeks puffed in irritation.
Draco was inches from him when he spoke. "Well Theo that thought didn't even cross my mind since I am in fact not sleeping with the grader at all. And I did write up a little something for the assignment too."
"Come off it, you serious?" Theo asked, looking from Draco to Hermione and back again. Draco was watching her with a smirk still hanging on his lips. Theo laughed out loud. Hermione's eyes were fierce as they shot him a look and he instantly looked away. He pretended to busy himself with looking out the window.
Hermione went back to her book and papers, clearly annoyed.
"You aren't sleeping with her… yet," Theo said under his breath so only Draco would catch it. Draco closed the gap between them and smacked Theo on the back of the head. "Ow!"
Hermione looked up once again, seeing the two interacting. She narrowed her eyes at them and they both turned away, feeling nervous. "She's sort of scary like that, eh?" Theo whispered.
"Sort of is more of an understatement," Draco whispered back as quietly as possible. He didn't want her hearing him say that.
"Glad to see you aren't completely won over by her charm yet," Theo laughed as he nudged Draco with his elbow. "Oh relax mate, it's not a secret, I caught you practically in bed together last week. Don't you remember?"
Draco shrugged and looked over his shoulder at Hermione, still pouring over the textbook. She didn't appear scary when he watched her now. If anything, her slight smile as she poured over the words was rather cute. She brushed a piece of hair behind her ear as he turned back to Theo.
"Your ambition never ceases to show itself when you decide you want something," Theo told him then.
Draco huffed, a little embarrassed. He was still the same old Draco, ready to prove he was worth a girl's time if he found one he liked and his friends obviously knew that.
"Hey, she's a good fit for you mate. Don't think about the past. Relish in the here and now," offered Theo, "besides, you've become a hell of a lot more pleasant, I think you needed someone to keep your mind busy."
Draco laughed. "Thanks Theo,I'll remember to still be an arse to you on occasion, so you don't forget what it feels like."
"See what I mean, so pleasant!" Theo said, clapping him on the back. At that moment, the door to the library swung open. A rush of cooler air carried into the room as Blaise and Ginny made their way inside.
"Hello, Hermione. Malfoy, Nott," Ginny said with a nod. Her face was red from the cold as she unwound a large, cozy scarf from around her neck. She walked over to Hermione, looking frustrated.
Hermione paused. "Are you alright Ginny?"
"It's nothing, just these stupid coins," she said, tossing the gold coin onto the open textbook in front of Hermione. "I thought for sure Ron or Harry would still have theirs, or Neville Parvati or anyone for Merlin's sake! But nothing," she said with a huff. She took a seat in a nearby armchair, slumping disheartenedly.
A frown crossed Hermione's lips. "I'm sorry. I wish there was someone looking out for them," she said, picking up the coin and turning it in her hand. The markings on it looked like runes, but when she passed a finger along the edge just so like Luna had shown her, the markings changed into the coded words of outreach.
Hermione felt bad for her friends; she knew they must be anxious being cut off from the real world. They just wanted answers, wanted to know what was going on when they were miles away in safety. It wasn't fair. And she just wished she had a way to fix it.
Ginny took out her wand and mindlessly started tapping in on the arm of the chair. She was obviously trying to take her mind off the lack of communication, but instead blue sparks began to pop from the tip and she threw it down in an irritated huff.
Seeing that Ginny did not want to talk anymore, Hermione went back to her book. She clutched the coin in her own hand, deciding to hold onto it for a while for Ginny for safe keeping. She glanced over to see the boys by the window, none of them paying attention.
Blaise had made his way over to them, a cup of coffee in his gloved hands. "What are you two smiling about?" He asked, sounding genuinely interested.
Theo chuckled. "Oh nothing, just a little winter romance is all."
Draco elbowed Theo hard in the side, making Theo double over in pain despite the laughter escaping his mouth.
"Ah," Blaise smirked, "you've come such a long way. Lucius and Narcissa would be so proud!" he said sarcastically sipping his coffee.
"Would they though?" Draco deadpanned, looking out the window as the snow swirled in great clouds on the walkway. They had realized that the windows gave an excellent view of campus while being enchanted so that muggles could not see them. Made a great spot for people watching, that was for sure.
Theo and Blaise laughed in unison as Draco watched a short man with a ski hat almost get swept away down the stairs. He spoke, but didn't turn away from the vast snowfall outside. "No doubt he'd skin me alive is more like it."
It was a morbid thought, but probably true. His comment sombered his friends. Theo sighed. "Well, yeah. But we won't let that happen, now will we?" He clapped Draco and Blaise on the shoulder, practically spilling Blaise's coffee down his front.
"Watch it!"
"I'm just keeping you on your toes," laughed Theo, "never know when we're going to need…." his voice trailed off as his face suddenly grew rigid.
He had turned back towards the windows as he was talking but now his eyes were fixed on a figure. It was moving through the wind blowing across the sidewalk. He pointed, his finger hitting the glass, making a frozen circle in the moisture.
"Never know when we're going to need what?" Blaise asked, as he noticed Theo pointing. He followed and his jaw dropped open. "No way…" he said, his voice a whisper.
Draco was the only one who didn't speak. He saw everything, watched as Theo pointed and followed his finger to the person in question. His gray eyes fixed on the figure, big, the bulk of him moving sluggish despite being strong enough to combat the wind. And his hood was drawn up to block out the chill but you could just see the flat nose, the thick neck that was bare of any scarf.
The boys' sudden quiet made Hermione pause. She didn't look up, only waited to see if they were just trying to keep her and Ginny out of their conversation. But when she heard no voices she glanced up and her stomach dropped.
Before they could say something bad had happened she could sense it. Theo looked like a statue. Blaise had backed away, nervously rubbing his chin as he began to pace. But it was Malfoy, Malfoy of all people that frightened her most.
His pale skin looked sharp in the light. His features grew dark, his eyes contemplative and fierce. It wasn't an inviting look by any means, but Hermione got up at a once and went over to him.
"What's going on?" Hermione said loudly, startling Ginny from her own reveries. The redhead shot up and was over to her side in an instant. Hermione approached Draco, knowing that somehow he wouldn't lie to her.
"Goyle," he said through gritted teeth. He tensed his hands, balling and unballing his fists, trying to keep his breathing from giving him away.
Hermione frowned. The boy from that newspaper article, she remembered. He had been their friend, but now… now he was working for the death eaters. Now, he was out to get people like her.
She looked away nervously at first, but she didn't want to seem like a scaredy-cat either; she wanted to fight for what was right. Ginny grabbed her hand and she mustered all the bravery she could as she looked back at the boys. Now was not the time to panic. They had to figure this out.
Draco saw the fear flash across Hermione's face then, but she covered it up as quickly as it came. He could tell she remembered all they'd said about their old pal, all the terrible things he'd done and was probably still doing. It made him hate Goyle all the more. His temper was rising.
Draco's face had gone pale and rigid. His jaw was obviously locked in an almost painful way and he stood with his arms at his sides. She saw his left arm twitch as if the tattoo were itching again.
And she wanted badly to put an arm around him, hold his hand or something to take all the tension away. But she wasn't sure it would really do the job. And she wasn't sure if he would oblige either, his pride surely trickling to the surface in front of all his friends and this unfortunate state of unknown. Instead she chose to place herself next to him, hoping her proximity would be enough.
It was Theo who finally asked, "How the fuck did he get here?"
"Dunno," Blaise was quiet. "But what are we going to do if he knows we are here?"
"Fuck him up, that's what," Ginny stated like it was normal. "He can't see us up here right now so we should be safe, except-" she froze as realization came to her.
"Luna," Hermione breathed.
"Where is she?" Theo asked, looking nervous.
"I-I think she is in class until two today," Hermione said, her voice wavering as she checked her watch. It was only 1:35.
"We've got to track him or something though, otherwise he could go anywhere, talk to anyone," Blaise was saying as he paced. Draco nodded.
"Fuck, are there any spells for that or?" Theo asked, looking at Blaise, Ginny, and Draco for any ideas.
"I'll do it," said Hermione firmly before anyone could protest. Ginny grabbed her hand. Draco stiffened even more and he took a step towards her like he was going to physically stop her. She eyed him suspiciously and he stood there watching her.
"You can't!" Ginny stammered, "He'll kill you Hermione! Or something worse first."
"He's not one to mess around with Granger," Blaise barked, her last name sounding aggressive in his mouth. "Er, Hermione. Sorry." Blaise looked embarrassed and went to look out the window again. Goyle was still there, walking around as if he were waiting for someone.
"He won't get at me if I'm just following him at a safe distance Gin, besides," she said, looking at them all, "he has no idea who I am or that I know any of you, remember?"
Everyone stared at her. Blaise had stopped walking misstep while Ginny bit her lip, looking like she wanted to argue. Draco stared indifferently, although she could feel somewhere inside he was angry at the whole thing.
Theo was the only one seeming to consider it. "Can't really argue that, can we?" He said reluctantly. "It's not like he knows you are connected to us at all. He's never met you."
"It's…. something," Blaise offered, looking at the group knowing there wasn't any other offers on the table. He scratched his chin again, looking unsettled.
"It's a bad idea," Draco finally spoke, his voice barely audible above the wind now thrashing at the windows.
"Do we have a better option?" Hermione asked firmly, her mind already made up. She walked over to her book and papers and began packing them up. She left the spellbook open to her spot, the gold coin laying on top.
"Not really," said Ginny. Malfoy shot her a piercing look and she sneered back.
"She's right though Drake, he's not going to notice some muggle girl," Blaise told his friend with reassurance. "It's risky if she tries to talk or even look at him, but it's all we got…"
But that wasn't the answer Draco wanted to hear. He scoffed and walked to the bookshelf nearest him instead of engaging anymore.
Hermione, Theo, Blaise, and Ginny exchanged knowing looks as they talked about the rest of their plan. "So, keep a safe distance and just sort of, see what he's up to," Ginny said. "Don't go like, all over the place with him, especially if he goes somewhere suspicious."
"Of course not Gin," she said, squeezing Ginny's hand.
"Yeah, he's pretty daft but he couldn't be completely lost, so pay attention but don't make it obvious," Theo explained, giving her a weak smile.
"He's bound to have friends around, so if you see him interact with anyone in particular, pick out some noticeable features that we can identify them with, scars, tattoos, colored robes or crests, the like," Blaise listed. He wrung his hands. "Just, stay safe Hermione."
"I will," she said, as she found her coat and scarf. She eyed Draco then, not sure if she should say anything to him before she left. He was pretending to be busy with some book on the shelf, but when she lifted the trapdoor, he looked over for just a moment. They locked eyes as he mouthed be careful, and then she was gone.
She was gone over half an hour before Ginny had paced herself around the room six times. On the next round, she stopped to look at the book Hermione had been reading. She snatched up the galleon annoyed and began flipping it in the air as she paced. On the fourth flip, Ginny felt the warmth of the gold heat her fingers. Stopped dead in her tracks and the galleon clattered to the floor in front of her. "Oh no."