Chapter 7

The next day, Malfoy was not at breakfast. Or in classes. Or lunch or dinner.

The day after that, he was still missing.

By dinner, Hermione was starting to worry so she approached Blaise. She was not looking forward to the possibly humiliating conversation with the Slytherin as she was supposedly Malfoy's girlfriend and therefor should know of his whereabouts. However, her worry overpowered her pride and she was forced to corner Blaise on his way into the Great Hall.

"Jesus Salazar, Granger. What's your problem?" He snipped yanking his arm from her grasp.

"Have you seen Draco?" She tried to ask casually, his name tasting weird on her lips.

"He sent me an owl two days ago saying he went to stay with his mother for a few days."

Two days ago. He must have left after what happened in his room. Hopefully he had gone to check on his mother's wellbeing and not to get away after… whatever that was. Surely he couldn't just leave school, so he must have worked something out with the headmistress.

Hermione was glad to hear that Malfoy had gone to stay with his mother. Maybe that will help her state of mind and lessen the chances of anything happening to her.

She was, however, a little peeved that Malfoy would fail to send her an owl as well. After what he had told her, she at least deserved an explanation of his absence.

Her face must have showed the disappointment of not receiving a letter as well.

"Oh, he didn't tell you. I thought everything was going so well between the two of you. So sorry to see that it's not working out," Blaise sneered at her.

What was his problem?

"Sorry to disappoint you, Zabini," Hermione snapped at him. "But everything is going quite fine. He told me he might be coming back today and I haven't seen him. That's all." It was funny how much easier lying was getting.

He nodded, but didn't look completely convinced.

"Alright, Granger. I'll let you know if I see him. Later." He inched away from the corner like she might grab him again and once he decided she wasn't, he quickly darted away.

Hermione glanced into the Great Hall and decided she had lost her appetite and would just head to the library.

Despite her best efforts, she was starting to miss Malfoy. He had become one of her only friends at the castle since returning. Sure she had Ginny, but with quidditch going on, Ginny was becoming less reliable for companionship.

She was also quite worried after seeing the anguish on his face as he spoke about his mother. She could not imagine what his life must have been like living in the same home as that monster. Life hadn't been easy for her the previous year- hell she was tortured in that house too- but she couldn't even begin to imagine watching your family tortured day in and day out and living with those memories.

She found her corner of the library empty as usual and took a seat at one of the tables. She took out a sheet of parchment and started writing a letter.

Malfoy,

I'm

What could she even begin to write? I'm sorry I shoved you off of me while you were having an emotional breakdown? I'm sorry about your mistreated mother? I'm sorry you don't trust me enough to write me? I'm sorry I can't be there for you? I'm lonely without you?

She crumbled up the parchment and threw it across the room. Then she pulled her knees up to her chest, laid her head on her knees and began to cry.

….

Draco pulled on his pajama bottoms and slowly climbed into bed.

He hated this bed. He hated this room. He hated this house. His blood was boiling with anger before he had even stepped through Professor McGonagall's floo to arrive here. But he had come back for one of the only things that mattered in his life anymore; his mother.

He wasn't sure what he would see before arriving, but it definitely wasn't what he had walked into. His mother was guided into the room by her sister Andromeda. Her hair was limp and unwashed, her clothes hung off her body like she had lost a tremendous amount of weight and her eyes were sunken and hallow. She looked even worse than when she had been held at Azkaban for 30 days before her trial.

She looked as though she had no true understanding on what was real or not, but as soon as she laid her eyes on Draco, her face lit up and she crossed the room quickly to embrace him.

"Draco," she had whispered. "I'm so happy you've returned to me."

"Mother, I can only stay for a few days," he regretfully replied. Now that he had seen what sort of state she was in, he feared leaving her again.

"That is quite alright, darling. I know you have a lot to do." She pulled back to look at him. "You're looking very well. How is school?"

He shot a bewildered look to his aunt, who still lingered in the doorway.

"She's having a good day," his aunt replied with a shrug. "Once she heard you were coming, she seemed to snap out of it."

He looked back at his mother glumly. If this was how she had looked after his being at school for a few short months, he worried how she might fare when he moved into his own home, which he was hoping to do right after school had ended.

"Come, my love. Let's go have some tea in the gardens." His mother grabbed his hand and pulled him along.

After putting his mother to bed and having a long conversation with Andromeda, Draco had decided to call in some expert healers. He had to return to school. He would go just as crazy as his mother if he stayed in this horrid place any longer. Andromeda had a grandson to care for and with her husband recently deceased, she had had to return to work so she was only able to drop in every few days to check on her sister.

It took a lot of convincing and a handsome amount of money to finally get a healer to agree to come care for Narcissa.

The healer had met with Draco the day before to go through all of the routines, potions, and therapy that he was hoping would improve Narcissa's mind. Draco tried to keep track of it all, but ended up having to copy the healer's notes so he could keep up.

His mother was willing to partake in the care, but for the time being had wanted to just spend time with Draco, so he had to sit in on some of her sessions. It had been heartbreaking to see his mother relive those horrifying moments and break down all over again. He had to walk out of two sessions when the details had gotten to be too much for him. Not only did he have to live with his own memories of the torturous moments, but to get his mother's personal recollections of them was too painful.

This last session he had walked out on had been a particularly difficult memory of his father assaulting his mother in front of at least a dozen Death Eaters, including himself. He ran from the room without a word to his mother or healer and ended up in his sitting room surrounded by a numerous amount of bottles.

He had drunk until he passed out and then drunk some more after awakening. Now his head pounded and he felt like the living dead, but he refused to take a hangover potion, as the pain distracted him from the memories.

He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling.

He was supposed to be returning to Hogwarts tomorrow. Which meant having to face Granger again. He was unsure why he had kissed her when he did. Surely it was just an outburst of emotion after telling her about his mother. He hadn't known how to process his feelings and wanted to take his grievances out on the closest thing to him. Honestly, he probably would have done that to any girl that was there at the moment.

Although would he have shared that much with another girl? Probably not.

He hadn't had a moment to himself for the past few days to think about what he was going to say to Granger when he finally saw her again. He was sure that she wouldn't want to continue their fabricated relationship. Did he want to? That he was still unsure of.

He heard a knock at his door and groaned.

"Yes?" He tried not to sound too cross as it might be his mother.

However the person that opened the door was that of his aunt.

"Oh you're in bed."

"Not sleeping though. What did you want?" He slowly sat up to lean against the bed frame.

Andromeda crossed the room and sat on the edge of his bed.

"I just wanted to say how thankful I am that you came home to be with your mother and bringing in that healer. I think he will be a large help to her. She's already looking better after just one day." She sounded really hopeful.

Draco tried not to put too much hope in the healer, as much as he wanted to. The healer might help his mother for awhile, but he wasn't sure it would last long-term. His mother was tortured with dark magic by very powerful wizards and that sort of magic left lasting effects.

"Of course I came back. I would do anything for her," he snipped maybe a bit too harshly.

Andromeda blinked at his outburst. "Of.. of course. I'm sorry, Draco. I wasn't trying to imply that you didn't care for your mother."

Draco rubbed his forehead with the palm of his hand. "I'm sorry. It's been a long day. I didn't mean to snap at you. I… I just want to say thank you for being here for her when I couldn't."

Andromeda nodded and placed her hand on top of his. "She's my sister. Of course I would be here for her. We might have not spoken in years, but that doesn't mean I don't still love her. I'm just glad we're given a chance to reconnect."

Draco nodded, feeling a warm sensation from her hand on top of his. There were times like these that he wished he wasn't an only child. To have someone to share this burden with was comforting to say the least.

"Just keep me updated and… take care of her," he managed to mumble out.

"I will." Andromeda patted his hand as she stood up and walked towards the door. "Goodnight, Draco."

"Goodnight, Aunt Andromeda." He earned an earnest smile before she shut the door.

He sighed and laid back onto his pillows. Maybe it will all work out okay.

….

Hermione had woken up to a note being slid under her door.

Meet me in the library.

-DM

She didn't hesitate as she pulled on her clothes for the day.

She stood in front of the mirror for a moment to make sure she looked presentable. Her hair stood on one end from sleep and she tried to make it stay down with a hair charm. Having no luck, she ended up pulling her hair into a high bun. Nodding to herself, she grabbed her bag and raced down the hall.

While she was a bit anxious to meet Malfoy, she was optimistic as he had asked to meet her. He had obviously gotten back early this morning and the first thing he wanted to do was meet her. This could be promising. Unless… Her feet slowed to a mild trudge. He wanted to meet her early so he could hurry up and end their fake relationship.

She could deal with that. Everyone seemed to think it had all gone awry anyway, so it didn't seem so awful to her. Hopefully he would still want to study with her. Unless he didn't want anything to do with her anymore. That, she would not be able to handle.

The library was quiet with its lack of students. Early mornings and late evenings were her favorite time to spend in the library. There were no disruptions, and the windows let in the most beautiful light that bounced off every surface. It was what she had imagined church was like for other people.

She rounded the corner of the back section to see Malfoy, with his eyes closed, on the sofa.

She walked a little closer and cleared her throat.

Malfoy jumped and pulled himself into a seated position.

"Rough night?" She got out, trying to make a playful jab.

Upon closer inspection, she realized he probably did have a rough night, but not in the way she was suggesting. His eyes had dark bags under them and his jaw was brushed with a layer of stubble. He also looked like he hadn't eaten the entire time he was gone.

"Oh," she replied to his appearance, coming to a stop just short of the sofa. "I'm sorry. Was it that bad?"

"Worse." He rubbed his hands down his face. "Look, Granger. I just wanted to apologize for my behavior the other night. It was uncalled for and it won't happen again."

Hermione gaped at him for a few moments. He was apologizing to her for his actions. Maybe it hadn't been right to take his pain out on her, but she had understood. Grief makes people do strange things.

"It's… alright. I understand." She sat next to him and laid her hand on his shoulder.

"You couldn't possibly understand," he growled, his eyes flashing with turmoil. He took a deep breath and glanced at her from under his lashes. "But thanks."

After a few moments of silence, Hermione pulled her hand from his shoulder and laid it in her lap. "So… are we…?"

"I'm ok with continuing if you are," he replied without even looking up.

"I am." She thought for a few second before adding, "Maybe we should increase the PDA a bit."

"Granger, I told you I don't do PDA."

"Well not like complete snogging, because I wouldn't be all for that either," she said quickly holding up her hands.

"You didn't just love sucking Weasley's face in a crowded street?" His voice had a mocking tone, but didn't carry any of the malice it had in the past.

Hermione snorted loudly. "Hardly. I barely liked going out once everything was over."

"I could see that. I was tired of seeing your relationship plastered all over the Daily Prophet too." He turned and smirked at her.

"I'm just saying," she continued their previous conversation, "maybe a kiss on the cheek every so often. It's not that big of a deal!" She shot back when Malfoy groaned.

"I just don't see the need to put on a display for other people about my feelings with someone. If I have a girlfriend, it obviously means I like her. I don't like putting on a show for the sake of others."

Hermione nodded in understanding. "I agree, but when you were… gone, there was a lot of talk that you were to fed up with me that you had to leave school entirely."

"Well that's their problem." Malfoy shrugged. "Once they see I'm back and that we're obviously still together than the rumors will change."

Hermione threw up her hands and rolled her eyes. "Fine!"

Malfoy smirked and bumped his shoulder against hers. "Is it really so hard for you to admit when someone is right, Granger?"

Hermione rolled her eyes again. "No, I'm just agreeing that maybe the rumors will change, but at least think about it."

"Alright. But first, breakfast." He stood up and reached a hand out to her, which she took.

"Fine, but this won't be an every day thing now."

"Whatever." He flashed a grin in her direction and led the way to the Great Hall.

…

Draco was feeling better as the week went on. He had been spending more time with Granger and he wasn't bothered about it. She was easy to get along with, kept up with him academically and actually had a good sense of humor.

He was also getting regular letters from Andromeda that spoke of his mother's progress with the healer.

He even had some time to get out on a broom to help Blaise improve his keeper techniques.

That's why he was surprised when people had resorted back to their usual whispers and pointed fingers the following week.

"What did I do now?" He asked sliding into the seat beside Blaise in the Slytherin common room.

"Apparently word's gotten out that you or Granger haven't been spotted in either of your rooms. Which obviously means that you haven't slept together yet," Blaise responded without looking up from Quidditch Times.

Draco scoffed as he reached for the most recent copy of the Daily Prophet. "That's ridiculous."

Blaise flipped another page, still not looking up. "Is it? Because I haven't seen you two alone together either."

"Well if you saw us, then we wouldn't have been alone now would we?"

Draco heard Blaise finally put down the magazine and turn to face him. Draco still didn't make eye contact with him.

"You know what I mean. Draco," Blaise pushed the newspaper to Draco's lap to gain his attention, "You're not like… taking it slow are you?"

Draco blew air through his nose in humor. "Slow? Me? Of course not."

Blaise looked at Draco in disbelief. "Oh my fucking god. You haven't slept together yet!"

"Shut up," Draco hissed. "Of course we have. But you know, with her being Head Girl, she obviously can't be seen as a slag."

Blaise nodded but still didn't look convinced. "Sure." He picked his magazine back up and tried to be nonchalant with his next question. "So what's she like?"

Draco rolled up his newspaper and swatted Blaise with it. "Shut up, you prat."

Using his hands to defend himself, Blaise chuckled in response. "Fine, don't share, you selfish arse."

…..

The next day in Arithmancy Studies, Granger was completely ignoring him as she copied her notes from the blackboard.

"Have you heard the latest rumors?" Draco whispered to her.

"About what?" She kept her eyes on her notes.

"About us."

"Oh? What's that?" She still wasn't looking at him.

"That we haven't slept together yet," he breathed.

She finally looked at him from the corner of her eye.

"So?"

"So? So everyone thinks I'm taking it slow," he hissed out the last word.

"What's wrong with that?" She went back to her notes.

"Draco Malfoy does not go slow."

"Oh I've heard."

"Excu…. what?!" He was stunned that Granger would listen to those rumors.

"Mr. Malfoy, please keep it down," Professor Vector called out from her desk.

"Girls talk," Granger shrugged. "What do you want to do about it?"

Draco thought for a moment. If they were lying about so many other things, what's one more lie?

"We tell people. Tell our friends details and let the word spread."

"Fine," Granger replied. "But you'll probably have to do most of the talking."

"Me? I'm sure you could do just fine too." He glanced over from his notes and noticed her cheeks getting red. "Granger, you have had sex before, right?"

"No, I haven't," she retorted.

"What? But I thought…"

"Mr. Malfoy, there are notes to be copied," Professor Vector called out to him again.

"Well it's not like I didn't have any opportunities," Granger continued as if the professor hadn't just spoke. "There were a few chances with Ron, but nothing felt right. And then there was fourth year with Viktor." Granger tapped her chin with the end of her quill.

Draco rattled his brain to think of any Viktors he knew that Granger had been involved with.

"Krum? Viktor Krum?!"

"Mr. Malfoy, please!" Professor Vector raised her voice even louder.

"Sure, but that didn't end up working out," Granger whispered back as though having an almost love affair with a professional Quidditch player was totally normal.

Draco smirked at her suddenly wanting to push her buttons. "Maybe that's something we could add to the contract."

Granger whipped her head to face him. "You are against PDA but totally for intercourse?"

Draco chuckled. Of course she would make it sound so formal.

"Well PDA is with a bunch of people around. Plus you could always view it from an academic side. Learn something you don't know about." Draco was sure this would get a rise out of her.

She looked thoughtful for a moment before she completely shocked him by shrugging and replying, "Sure."

"Granger!" He burst out, forgetting himself.

"Mr. Malfoy! Detention!" Professor Vector bellowed.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I've been picturing the classroom scene for quite a few days now. :)