Chapter Fifteen
Grimmauld Place
The snitch turned on itself and swooped down. The two followed it, so close that their shoulders collided.
Draco shoved Harry aside and his curse sounded throughout the stadium.
"Fuck you, Malfoy!" he shouted, gathering momentum and shoving Draco harder.
Draco grunted something under his breath and moved back to his side, just as they were about to hit the ground. The snitch changed its path, flying back up, and they both pulled their brooms upwards, following it at full speed.
But the Firebolt was faster and Harry passed Draco, catching the golden ball in his right hand.
"Shit!" Pansy shrieked, slamming the metal railing angrily.
Hermione giggled, looking over to where the two Seekers stood. Draco was grim-faced and Harry was a few feet below him, celebrating the victory with Ron and Katie and waving the snitch in triumph. Luna and Marissa were also on their feet, chanting Harry's name as they laughed.
Ginny landed on the floor next to Charlie and they both sighed. Hermione walked down the stairs with the other three girls and they approached the centre of the pitch, where the two teams were talking.
Draco was still on his broom about twenty metres above them and didn't seem too keen to join them. Hermione gave him a sidelong glance and put a hand on Harry's shoulder, who was teasing Ginny about losing the match.
"Can I borrow your broom for a moment?"
His green eyes watched her and he nodded, passing her the Firebolt. Touching it, Hermione felt it vibrate. The broom positioned at the perfect height for her, waiting for her to ride it.
Hermione bit her bottom lip, hesitant. She was still quite afraid of flying. She swung a leg over the broom and tilted it up an inch. Instantly, the broom started to rise smoothly.
Hermione blinked several times in surprise. The Firebolt was so easy to handle, almost as if it read her thoughts. Three seconds later, she reached Draco. He was watching her with mocking eyes.
"Are you coming to rescue me?" he asked, flying towards her until they were only inches apart.
"Yes. You looked sad."
"Anyone would be depressed if that stupid Potter had just beaten him."
Hermione rolled her eyes, gripping the broom tighter with both hands.
"Will you two ever stop fighting?"
"No, it's funny."
Just the same as Harry's answer to that question. Hermione smiled and Draco reached out a hand, brushing his fingers across her cheek.
"He only beats me because his broom is better than mine."
"If you say so..." Hermione muttered mockingly.
"Do you doubt it, Granger?" Draco asked, narrowing his eyes.
Hermione chuckled and Draco got closer, holding the Firebolt's handle with his left hand and pushing down a little. The broomstick descended a few feet with a thud and Hermione screamed, clutching desperately at the broom and Draco's arm. He had come down with her, too, laughing.
"That's for teasing me."
"Draco! I nearly had a heart attack," she protested, holding a hand to her chest.
"As if I'd let anything bad happen to you," he replied, raising an eyebrow.
He let go of her broom and landed next to the others. She followed, handing the Firebolt back to Harry.
"You two are coming home with us, aren't you?" he asked, averting his gaze to his old enemy.
Draco wrinkled his nose. Another little meal at the Potter house, just what he needed. Hermione nodded, smiling, and helped Ginny paralyse the bludgers so they could put them away.
After walking through the green flames of the Grimmauld Place fireplace, Hermione pulled some clothes out of her beaded handbag and handed them to Draco. He sighed and headed towards the downstairs bathroom for a quick shower. Harry and Ginny were doing the same upstairs so Hermione entered the kitchen, levitating glasses and plates towards the dining room.
Opening the fridge, she saw that there was a huge meat pie inside. She turned on the oven and, after putting it in to warm up, returned to the dining room. She poured some water into one of the glasses and was drinking when Draco came in.
Hermione almost choked on it when she saw him. His blonde hair was wet, falling messily over his forehead, and his grey shirt was still open. She looked down at his jeans, she had just convinced him to start wearing them.
Draco walked over to her without noticing that she had stopped breathing, leaning beside her on the table as he fastened the buttons on his shirt.
"Potter should get another shampoo, it's annoying that my hair smells like honey every time I take a shower in here."
Hermione grinned.
"If you keep telling him it bothers you, he won't stop buying it."
"We're twenty now. He's still too childish."
"And you don't?" Hermione questioned, arching an eyebrow and trying not to laugh.
"Not as much as him," he replied, snorting.
They looked at each other and she bit her lower lip as his eyes flicked down her body, staring at the Slytherin jumper. His lips curved into a smile she knew all too well.
"You wearing this, it makes me want to rip it off and..."
"Here again, the Mudblood dares to return to this noble house as if she were welcome."
They both turned their heads at those words and saw Kreacher in one corner of the room, glaring at Hermione with a grim face. He opened his mouth again, but Draco had pulled his wand from his pocket.
"Silencius."
Kreacher was speaking, but not a word could be heard.
"Draco! Don't do that to him," Hermione protested quietly, looking at the old elf out of the corner of her eye.
He ignored her, his eyes still fixed on Kreacher.
"You should know better than to talk about her like that. I'm getting tired of having to silence your filthy mouth."
Hermione sat up and grabbed his chin, forcing him to look at her.
"He's too old and it's what he's been taught his whole life, there's no way he's going to change. You should understand that better than anyone."
He clenched his jaw and some golden sparks flew from his wand.
"I mean, you know what it's like to live surrounded by stupid traditions. You had a hard time changing yourself... imagine trying to change your grandfather's mind," Hermione added, seeing him so angry.
"If he were still alive, it would be impossible," Draco agreed, leaning back against the table.
After one last glance at Kreacher, he decided to ignore him. He caught Hermione's free hand, running his fingers along the back of it as she drank a bit more water. Ginny appeared in the dining room followed by Harry, who was carrying the pie in his hands.
Harry raised both eyebrows at the sight of Kreacher's lips moving.
"Did you silence him again?" he asked, meeting Draco's gaze.
He nodded and Harry took a few steps towards Kreacher after setting the food on the table.
"I've told you many times that you have to treat Hermione with respect, Kreacher. Go away and don't insult her again," he said, waving his wand.
"Whatever Master Potter says," the elf snarled, walking out of the dining room as he glanced sideways at Hermione.
The four of them sat down and Ginny sighed.
"That elf is the worst thing about this house... at least he's at Hogwarts during the week, though. The rooms aren't so bad now, are they? Harry's done a good job," she said with a smile.
"Well, you've helped me a lot. A year ago I was still a bit scared to live here," Harry admitted.
"You're welcome for helping you get rid of the cursed objects, Potter," Draco muttered, poking at a piece of food with his fork.
"I already thanked you, Malfoy. I can tell you're quite the expert in those dark matters," Harry replied, leaning back in his chair and squinting.
"I'm an expert on a lot of things, just ask Hermione."
She blushed and Ginny burst out laughing.
"Let's have the meal in peace, ferret," the redhead said, still chuckling.
"All right, Ginevra."
Ginny rolled her eyes and Draco gave her a small smirk. Hermione sighed, shaking her head as she smiled. They had all managed to get along, albeit in a rather odd way.
"Next game we have to beat him," Draco added, looking at Ginny and pointing his fork at Harry.
"That's a given, Malfoy," she replied.
"You can't bear a loss," Hermione whispered, taking a sip from the glass of hot milk Draco had just given her.
It was already dark and she was tucked up in her bed. He had just entered the room and was changing into his pyjamas.
"Of course not, I hate losing. Especially if it's against 'The Chosen One'," he grunted, sniffling.
He pushed the covers aside and lay down next to Hermione. She pulled the sheets over him and snuggled against him, resting her head on his chest.
"Say what you want, but you're getting along better and better with Harry. I think you two are starting to become friends."
Draco's mocking laughter echoed through the room.
"Are you drunk?"
"I only drank water at Harry's house."
"You're insane, then."
Hermione laughed softly and sighed, shaking her head until she brushed his throat with her nose.
"Thank you for making the effort to get along with them."
His two arms wrapped around her.
"I'd do anything for you."
Hermione smiled and they both fell silent. A few minutes later, she was completely asleep. Draco's eyes were open and he was tugging at his bottom lip with his teeth, lost in thought. He sighed and moved carefully, laying her head on the pillow.
He picked up his wand, which was on one of the bedside tables, and vanished what was left of the glass of milk. He couldn't risk Hermione drinking the rest in the morning.
"Lumos."
As he got up, he saw Crookshanks' beady eyes in the corner.
"I'll be right back," he said quietly, crossing the corridor.
He returned shortly with eight small vials in one hand. Draco sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Hermione, who was still sleeping soundly.
He pursed his lips, raising his wand.
"Legilimens."
Draco moved through her mind, trying not to be distracted and focusing on finding the memories he wanted. It didn't take long to find them. He opened his eyes and touched her forehead with the tip of his wand. As he pulled it away, a small glowing thread stuck to it, sticking out of her skin.
Draco tugged until the memory fell away and tucked it into one of the vials. He did the same thing again until all eight were full. After that he left the room, illuminating the corridor with the light of his wand, and when he entered the room again, the vials were gone.
He put the wand back on the bedside table and went back to lie down at Hermione's side. He stroked one of her cheeks with his fingers, brushing away a curl that fell over her eyes.
"I hope you can forgive me," he whispered, kissing her forehead.
After he closed his eyes, it took him a long time to fall asleep. He couldn't stop thinking about what she would say if she knew what he was doing.
The next morning, Hermione woke up feeling better than ever. She had slept through the night, without waking up once. It was the first time that had happened since she had been living in the forest with Harry and Ron.
She turned off the alarm and heard Draco curse under his breath.
"Even on Sundays that thing sounds, for fuck's sake."
She sat up and saw him hugging the pillow, reluctant to get up.
"What if I make you pancakes?"
His grey eyes snapped open.
"Then I'll love you forever."
Laughing, Hermione stood up and left the room. The smile disappeared from Draco's face as soon as she was gone. He lay there for a long time, until he heard the sound of several plates being placed on the table.
After a sigh, he slipped his feet into his shoes and went downstairs with Crookshanks following in his footsteps. The huge cat leapt onto the sofa and Draco entered the kitchen. On the table were two plates with three pancakes each and two glasses full of chocolate milkshake.
"For a tooth-healer's daughter, you have a bit too much of a sweet tooth."
"Dentists."
"Dentists, whatever," he grunted, sitting down in one of the chairs.
"Idiot," Hermione muttered.
They both started to eat and she took a big sip of her milkshake.
"I haven't slept this well in years, Draco."
He choked, coughing a couple of times.
"I'm... I'm glad," he said when he was able to speak again.
"Maybe it's because of the idea you had last night. Did you have a glass of milk before bed when you were little?"
"No, I read about it in one of those Muggle books. They say it helps you rest better," Draco replied without taking his eyes off his plate.
"Well, it was a good idea."
The phone began to ring and Hermione went out into the hall to answer it. Draco dropped his cutlery and put both hands to his face, sniffling softly.
"Shit."
Hermione was busy on the phone with Andromeda so Draco went ahead. He reached Malfoy Manor via the Floo Network and called Minsy, who soon appeared at his side.
"Hermione will be here soon, so help her come inside when she's on the other side of the gate. I'll be in the garden."
Minsy nodded, disappearing again. Draco walked down the hallway on the right side to the end and through a door, stepping out into the gardens of the manor. He heard a flutter and smiled as he saw Dark flying around him.
"Will you join me for a walk?"
The owl hooted and followed Draco into the woods surrounding the manor. He was going to his aunt's house for the first time that afternoon... he needed to calm down and get used to the idea.
Hermione appeared with a crack right in front of the metal gate around Malfoy Manor.
"Miss! Minsy was waiting for you."
Hermione smiled and took the elf's proffered hand, stepping through the steel gate beside her.
"Master is in the forest with Dark," Minsy explained, pointing to the large trees at the end of the garden.
Hermione nodded and walked over, taking in every flower and the two stone fountains along the way. She passed under a white marble archway and walked through the trees, looking for Draco's figure. She couldn't hear anything, just the sound of the wind and some animals.
She started to get nervous after a few minutes without finding him.
"Draco?"
She kept walking, very attentive to any sound. There were so many trees that the sunlight barely penetrated their leaves and the atmosphere was somewhat ominous.
Hermione heard a rustling sound and turned around, startled, but saw nothing. She pressed her back against one of the tree trunks and sighed, forcing herself to remember that no one could enter the grounds of Malfoy Manor without help from one of them. She was safe.
Suddenly, she felt something cold dig into her throat and gasped.
"Fuck, Hermione. You scared me," Draco whispered, lowering his wand and wrapping his arms around her.
Dark flew past them. You could barely hear her wings flapping.
"Why? What's wrong?" Hermione asked, also in a low voice.
"I've heard voices. There are people around the manor."
Her eyes widened and she pulled out her wand. Draco took one of her hands and they started walking together, searching through the undergrowth.
"Where's the fence?" Hermione whispered.
"It should be a few metres away."
They approached it silently, holding their wands aloft, and both of them froze as they saw what was behind it.
Ten people, all dressed in white robes and with their wands in their hands.
Well, they weren't exactly robes. Hermione shivered as she noticed that what they were wearing was exactly the same as the Death Eater uniform, but in white. They were even wearing masks.
"Ah, finally one of the Malfoys notices us," commented the one right in the middle, the only one who wasn't holding a wand.
"I don't know what you're doing here or who you are, but you're not welcome. Leave, now," Draco replied in a stern voice.
Hermione squeezed his hand, reminding him that he was not alone.
"And, of course, the traitor is with you."
All the cloaked figures turned to Hermione and she flinched.
"Traitor? Her?" Draco asked wryly.
"You purebloods are scum and the most famous Muggle-born in the country shouldn't be anywhere near you, let alone touching you," a woman's voice replied, clicking her tongue at the sight of their clasped hands.
"If she's with them, she's against us," added another.
"Who are you?" Hermione asked.
"We're the Liberators, and we're going to rid the world of rubbish like him."
Draco snorted, laughing derisively.
"Liberators? You could have thought of a better name."
The man in the middle raised a hand, where he held something metallic, and pointed it at Hermione. She didn't have time to react before the shot was fired.