A/N: This may be the last chapter but I am working on a sequel.
Chapter 13
Most of the next month Tabitha either studied for her own exams or helped her friends' study for theirs. Theo and Daphne learned quickly that if they needed to find her, Tabitha was usually in the library, her head in a book and jotting down notes. "Why are you looking up Eileen Prince?" Theo asked his sister one day, looking at a stack of old Prophets.
"Don't worry about it." Tabitha replied. "Can I help you?"
"You're mean when your studying," Theo muttered. "Are you still doing the muggle thingy after school?"
"Seriously Theo?" Tabitha groaned. "Yes, if the rest of your friends will do it, I will gladly host them for a few weeks after school ends, but they have to inform me bythe last day, or I won't have time to plan it out."
"I'll inform them." Theo walked out of the library, only to be replaced by Ginny.
"Tabitha," Tabitha groaned as she looked at her friend. "Sorry, but can you help me with my Transfiguration? I don't think it's right." Tabitha sighed, and helped Ginny go through the things she needed for her O.W.L.s, happily returning to her own studying a few moments later. "Is she always like that?" Theo asked Ginny as she walked away from Tabitha.
"Every year, she gets really scary around exams." Ginny replied. "You don't?" Theo shook his head.
"There's a reason I'm third in my year, I study just enough to get good marks, now Draco is usually the one putting in a lot of work with studying, but his father is a bit harsher about grades than mine is."
"How's he doing?" Ginny asked, glancing at Tabitha.
"Okay, he healed, what about her?"
"Are you kidding me? She almost ripped Harry's head off his body when he sent Draco to the hospital wing. She's too hurt to admit it, but she misses him." Theo shook his head and the two went off in their separate directions, their conversation being heard by Tabitha who just groaned.
Once the exams were finally done, Tabitha finally allowed herself to relax some, and started planning her muggle week for her Slytherin friends, as Daphne, Pansy, Ginny, and Luna all agreed to come. "I'll come to your muggle experiment thing." Pansy told her one day. "I don't really want to go home anyway."
"Okay," Tabitha smiled at her. "That means no magic for two weeks."
"My mother is trying to find a husband for me for when I leave Hogwarts, I don't want to be home for that." Pansy explained, at Tabitha's look on confusion she shook her head. "Don't ask you don't want to know."
"Okay, well, we're all meeting at Kings Cross a few days after returning home, I'll let you know more once I've finished planning."
"Sounds like a plan." With that Pansy left, and Tabitha returned to her planning. As the end of July came near, and the end of the school year, Tabitha started packing up her trunk, putting all but her textbooks, notebooks, and school uniforms away so the night before the return home all she had to do was pack the last few things. The last day of June Tabitha sat with Ron in the common room, reading a book like always. When Harry explained what he was doing, and what he wanted them to do, she protested but was met with resistance from her friend. A little while after he left, while Ron was in the bathroom, Tabitha noticed Draco suddenly appear on the map and head towards the dungeons. Tabitha quickly cleared the map then rushed out of the common room down to the dungeons where she found Draco and Snape talking in Snape's office. "You're not doing anything wrong right?" She asked the teen in front of her.
"Tabitha." Draco said.
"No," Tabitha cried. "Don't, you just got better, you don't have to."
"Yes, I do," Draco told her. "I can't explain it right now, I have things I need to do, but I have to do this."
"Can't you stop him?" She begged her Godfather who only shook his head. "Will you two at least be careful?"
"Of course." Snape said Tabitha looked at Draco.
"Can I have a kiss for luck?" He asked weakly. Tabitha looked at him for a second then sighed before giving him a quick peck.
"Please," She told him before pulling away from him. "Please, be careful." With that she left the room and returned to her common room.
Tabitha anxiously waited in the common room as Ron watched Draco on the Marauder's map, jumping when he suddenly jumped up and shouted. "It's time!" Ron looked at her. "Go get Luna and stand guard at Snape's office, wait and see what he does." Tabitha nodded as she left the common room and went to the Ravenclaw bookcase, and after knocking, waited till Padma opened the door. "Hey Padma, can you get Luna for me?"
"Of course, Tabitha, give me just a second." Padma closed the bookcase, only to be replaced by Luna a few moments later.
"Hello Tabitha, what's up?" Luna asked.
"Come with me, I'll explain on the way." Luna nodded as she closed the bookcase and followed Tabitha through the castle, listening as Tabitha explained what happened with Draco and Trelawney, as well as Dumbledore. "So, we're supposed to keep guard of Snape's office in case he does anything?"
"Basically, yes." Tabitha said. "Harry doesn't trust Snape, never has."
"I never had a problem with Snape." Luna said. "He wasn't keen on my potions, but he was never harsh or anything towards me."
"Oh," Tabitha said as they found a spot to sit and wait. "How are things going with Blaise?"
"Not good, we broke up." Luna said with a shake of her head.
"Oh, I'm sorry, what happened?"
"I liked him, he was an excellent kisser…and other things," Luna blushed. "But he wasn't quite as understanding about the Quibbler and the rest of my interests as you and the rest of my friends are."
"Wait, what do you mean by other things?" Tabitha asked, at Luna's shy look she gasped. "Luna, you didn't!"
"We did, multiple times, like I said he was good." Tabitha just shook her head in disbelief. "Are you doing better now that it's been a few months after you and Draco?"
"A little, I still hurt, I wanted to choke Harry when he hurt Draco back in May, so I'm not sure how to take that."
"Death Eaters!" Flitwick shouted. Tabitha and Luna got up as the professor ran past them into the Snape's room, the two girls look at each other as Snape stepped out of the room.
"Flitwick collapsed," Snape told the girls. "You should help him." Luna rushed into the office to help her Head of House while Snape stood in front of Tabitha. "Please be careful." He told her, kissing her forehead to her surprise then he rushed down the hall. Tabitha stood frozen for a second before going into the office to help Luna.
After the battle, and making sure all her Order of the Phoenix friends that were there were okay Tabitha walked to the Slytherin common room, barely knocking before Daphne ushered her in. "Am I allowed in here?" She asked as she looked around.
"Not the point right now, are you okay?" Daphne asked her friend.
"Of course, what about you?" Tabitha asked, spotting Pansy, Theo, Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle. "Where's?" Tabitha started to ask, but at the look on everyone's she faltered.
"We don't know," Daphne explained. "He came in earlier, warned us that the entire house should stay in and not leave, no matter what we heard, then left. We heard the commotion, Theo wanted to come and find you but Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle held him down. What happened?" Tabitha sighed as she went and sat with her brother.
"Draco attacked Dumbledore." She explained, barely noticing the gasps from her friends. She started explaining what Harry had told them in the hospital wing. "I guess he left with Snape." Tabitha started crying, only to be pulled into a group hug. "How could he?" She asked, crying on her brother's shoulder, not noticing when Daphne left, nor when she returned with Ginny a few minutes later.
"Come on." Ginny said, gently easing her friend. "Let's go to bed, I doubt you want to stay here."
"She can," Theo offered.
"Do you want to?" Ginny asked, at Tabitha's nod she sighed. "Okay, I'm going to my bed, I'll see you at breakfast." With that she left the Slytherin common room. =
"Do you want to stay with me?" Daphne asked. "Or do you want to go to Draco's room?"
"Can I go to Draco's room?" Tabitha asked. "I know it must be weird, but…" She trailed off as Theo helped her off the couch and lead her to Draco's room. "Daph will be here in a minute with some night clothes for you." Theo said. "My room is right next door." Tabitha nodded as she looked around, smiling when she saw a picture of her that Colin Creevey took of her at the Yule ball on his nightstand. She opened his dresser and pulled out one of his school shirts and sniffing it.
"I guess you won't need these." Daphne said from the doorway, earning a blush in response.
"I don't know why I'm here." Tabitha admitted. "We weren't even talking anymore."
"It's okay," Daphne reassured her. "Go to sleep, you'll feel better in the morning. Goodnight." Daphne left the room and Tabitha quickly changed into his shirt, then climbed into the bed.
"How could you Draco?" She asked as she started crying again.
The following morning Tabitha kept Draco's shirt on as she went up to breakfast, giving a week smile to her housemates. "Where were you?" Ron asked as she sat beside him. "Where did you get that shirt?"
"Don't worry about it." Tabitha answered as she started getting her own breakfast. Ron just looked at her in confusion as the mail came in and a grey eagle owl landed in front of her. Tabitha hesitantly took the letter from it and started reading.
Tabitha,
I hope you can understand how sorry I am. I never wanted to hurt you, as Snape told you the day I was attacked by Harry, I've been wanting to date you since the day you hit me in third year. I love you. But I had no choice, it was either do as Voldemort said or he'd kill my mother, and possibly even me. The day you accept my offer to date was the happiest I've ever been. I didn't tell you because I was scared of the disappointed look you'd give me, that you gave me. Just know that I never lied about anything, besides being a Death Eater, I love you, and wish you would forgive me one day. Severus asks for the same thing, he's here with me. We're both okay, if you're wondering. Don't respond, it's not safe, I just wanted you to know how sorry I am.
Love,
Draco.
Tabitha choked back a sob as she handed the letter to Ginny then rushed out of the room Great Hall. "What's that about?" Harry asked.
"Don't worry about it." Ginny said, giving him a quick peck then shooting a look at Daphne.
The rest of the week Tabitha would sneak down to the Slytherin common room and helped Theo pack Draco's room. "You don't have to help." Theo said.
"I know, but Ron is asking a lot of questions, once I can't really answer." Tabitha explained as she folded a shirt. "Does he not have any t-shirts?"
"None of us do." Theo explained. "Muggle clothes remember?" Tabitha just shook her head as Daphne knocked on the doorframe.
"Gin's here, time for you to return to your own House." Tabitha sighed as she got off the bed.
"Why do you get your own rooms while Gryffindor has to share?" Tabitha grumbled as she met with Ginny and walked back to the Gryffindor common room. After the funeral for Dumbledore, and Ginny explaining why Harry broke up with her, Tabitha returned to the Notts for a few days. "Are you okay?" Adrianna asked once the twins arrived at the house, now being allowed to apparate.
"Yes." Tabitha reassured her mother and father. "Theo hid out, like all the Slytherins, and I had taken a Felix Felicis."
"The one Harry won the first day of potions?" Theo asked.
"The very one, he gave some to me, Ron, and Ginny before he left with Dumbledore."
"Why was he even with Dumbledore?" Theodore asked.
"Who knows," Tabitha said. "It's well known that he's Dumbledore's favorite, or was." The family had dinner then each went to bed, Tabitha still sleeping in Draco's shirt. The following day she looked through the Nott library, finding a specific spell, before having help from her brother taking the furniture, she liked from the Nott house to the Granger house. After making sure everything was prepared for the arrival of her friends, and the house was decorated the way she liked, she apparated to Kings Cross Station where she met with Ginny, Pansy, Daphne, and Luna. "We're going by muggle train, follow my lead." She handed the four girls a ticket then took them to the correct train and talked with them about their plans for the rest of the summer. Once they all arrived at her home, she directed them to their rooms, Luna and Ginny in her old room, Daphne and Pansy in the guest room. Once everyone was situated, she started explaining how things work, starting with the television, then on to how dinner was going to be made. She had all five of their wands in a locked box in her room, the only condition Pansy fought with. The following day, after comforting a crying Pansy who could not magically style her hair, she was getting the girls ready to go into town when there was a knock on the door. Tabitha shot the four girls a confused look before opening the door and gasping. Theo stood in front of her with a worried looking Draco. "Can I stay here?" He asked pitifully.
"Tabitha?" Theo asked when she just stood there, not answering Draco or moving. "Mate, I think we shocked her."