THE COVER UP

DISCLAIMER: I don't own any part of the Harry Potter universe and I am grateful to be able to borrow them for a short time.

Reviews are a writer's coffee: they keep us going as long as we get some. *hint*

Over the course of the next week, they learned just how few returned for the 7th, technically 8th year. There were only 15 students returning; 14 students from three houses and only 1 from Sytherin house. Not surprisingly, Hermione felt estranged from the other Gryffindors. Even after a month, the only person she really spoke to was Ginny and that was rarely. Even when she was younger she never gossiped with the others in her year. After the war, she just couldn't relate to any of the other students. The everyday worries of the kids around her were, to her, pathetic. She just couldn't find it in herself to be excited about the latest fashions or who was seeing whom.

She found herself seeking her usual refuge once school started: the library and her school work. Nearly every day she saw Malfoy there, studying by himself just like she was. Looking just as forlorn and silent as she felt. One day she was approached. "May I join you?"

She looked up to see Malfoy standing there. Without saying a word, she moved some of her school work to the side in order to make room for him.

"Thanks. I tried to study in the common room, but they were annoying me and the library is kind of busy." He said as he sat down and pulled out his work.

"Yea. Me too. The incessant chatter…" She said as she shook her head and looked around the library. He was right, it was pretty busy. He arranged his work and they both turned to their school work.

An hour into their companionable silence, she noticed he hadn't moved for a bit. Debating with herself on whether or not to question him she watched him out of the corner of her eyes. She let it go for a few more minutes before, "What's wrong?" When there was no answer, she reached over and put her hand on his left arm. He immediately jerked his arm away startling her. "Draco, what's wrong?"

"Nothing." He said as he unconsciously rubbed over his arm that held the Mark ignoring the fact that she used his given name.

"Does it still hurt?" She asked as she looked at his arm.

He followed the line of her sight. That was when he noticed what he was doing and stopped. "Not really. Sometimes. I just wish I could get rid of it. I've tried everything I can think of, everything I've ever heard of and some stuff I probably shouldn't have tried." He shrugged, "now I just charm it to cover it up. The charm doesn't last long and when it wears off, it hurts." He hadn't realized he was still talking. He looked up slightly embarrassed at having spoken so much about it and to Granger of all people but she didn't seem to mind.

She touched her left arm and Draco knew what was under her sleeve because sometimes he could still hear her screams when he tried to go to sleep, "Mine only hurts when I think about it. So every time I shower, change clothes, roll up my sleeves which I try not to do anymore, or basically anytime I see it. I know it doesn't really hurt, it's just my mind playing tricks on me. Sometimes the mind is a terrible thing to use." She tried it lighten up the mood with a small joke.

Draco gave her a courtesy chuckle but neither had found much to laugh about recently. He knew the person sitting next to him had scars just like he did. "Hermione, why are you back?" He asked out of the blue. She used his first name after all, so why couldn't he?

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she let it out she tried to center herself, it worked a little. She took another deep breath and answered, "I'm lost." She opened her eyes and looked him in the eye, "I've spent the last 7 years fighting Riddle. Everything I did was to further that goal and to beat him. Now that's done, I don't know what do with myself. I don't want to be an Auror. That's just another fight; actually it's the same fight if you think about it. I don't want to fight anymore but I'm afraid I don't know what else to do. I'm hoping to find something here," she waved her arms around at the school, "that I might want to focus on. These kids, they know a battle and war happened but they don't understand what that means or meant. They're just starting out in life, I'm not even 20 and I feel like I'm finishing mine."

He didn't know what to think about her telling him, let alone telling him so much. Apparently she needed to say it to someone and he just happened to have been there when it all came out. He didn't know what to say at that point so after an awkward moment of silence, she cleared her throat and they both turned their eyes back to their own work and continued with it.

This routine continued every evening including weekends through the fall semester. They would share a table in the library while doing their studies and both trying to figure out what they wanted to do with their lives. They would ask each other questions and answer as honestly as possible. They did discover there were a couple of topics neither would address and those boundaries were respected. One of those subjects was why Draco returned to school. Another was what either was going to do after graduation.

It was during one of these study sessions that the topic of the upcoming Christmas break was talked about.

"Are you going home for the break?" Hermione asked him.

Draco exhaled a sigh, "Yes. Mother wants me home. It's our first Christmas without Father. It's going to be a complete shambles of course, but I want to be there for her. It's her first Christmas without him since they met. What about you? Are you going home?"

'Home' for Hermione was a touchy subject but she answered him, "I'm going Australia, actually."

"What's there? I thought you would go see your parents. I thought you spent part of each holiday with the multitudes of the ginger-headed Weasley horde." He had gotten better about not making snide remarks about Ron or Harry but occasionally he slipped. Hermione recognized his effort and didn't rebuke him for those few slips.

She wasn't sure if she trusted him enough to tell him the truth so she told him a half truth, "I'm going to visit a friend I met while I was traveling there after the war. He's a wizard but he's muggle-born and loves the muggle world. He even has a muggle job." She noticed that he was rubbing his arm again. "I think you should stop putting the charm on your arm." He looked up at her. "Yes, I know I rhymed. But I still think you shouldn't use the charm anymore. You're already wearing a long sleeved shirt because it's winter and all, who's going to see it?"

He thought about it for minute, then pulled his sleeve up and waved his wand over it. She watched as the Mark appeared on his arm. He quickly pulled the sleeve down and went back to work like nothing had happened.

Later that day, they left the library and were headed for the Great Hall for dinner when they saw Ginny Weasley breaking up an argument between some 2nd years. They stopped and watched for a few minutes to see if she needed any help. Ginny was attentive and relaxed with the children. She listened to both sides while helping them to solve their own argument. Amazingly enough it wasn't a house fight; it was 3 Slytherins & 2 Ravenclaws vs. 2 Slytherins & a Gryffindor.

That brought a question to Malfoy's mind, "Granger, why aren't you Head Girl?"

She watched Ginny for a moment more before answering quietly so no one else would hear, "It was offered to me."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow at her asking the question without words.

"I didn't want it. Well, I did want it and my grades warranted it, but I think they really only wanted me to be Head Girl because of my role in the war. And that's exactly why I didn't want it. I'm not a walking poster-child for be good or He will get you! Or some such rubbish. I thought it should go to someone who deserved it and who would have gotten it if I didn't come back. I didn't know who they were going to give it to but that person shouldn't have to lose out just because I'm here. That's not fair."

He thought about it for a moment before realizing that it was a very 'Granger' thing to do. After Ginny helped the younger kids and sent everyone on their way, she looked up and saw the two 8th years watching her. Without prompt they broke into quiet applause for the Head Girl. She blushed with a smile and moved on. "She's a good Head Girl."

They continued on to their destination. "Growing up with 6 older brothers plus Harry? What else could she be? You wouldn't believe the arguments she has had to deal with. And she had Molly as an example. Ginny's the right person for the job. I've never seen anybody withstand her 'Molly' stare for long."

"Sometimes I envy her."

Hermione snorted at his comment, "What?"

"You're an only child right?" She nodded her head, "She has siblings and parents who would do anything for her. They can't give her everything but they would do anything for her. Don't you wish you had that sometimes?"

"I did until I met Ron & Harry during first year. After that I had 7 brothers, a sister, 2 mums & 2 dads. But you're correct, we would do anything for each other. And when Molly is determined to protect a member of her family, not many people can stand against her. Ginny told me it was Molly that killed Bellatrix after Bellatrix went after Ginny." They were getting to the Great Hall and like it was an everyday experience even though it was the first time, they sat together at the end of the Slytherin's table while they continued to talk. They garnered a few strange looks but nobody really cared that they were sitting together or where they were sitting.

"I would bet all the money in Bella's vault that she was really pissed about that. Bellatrix always thought she was the best at dueling. She was talented at it but it was more because she was willing do anything to win; cast the spells that only The Dark Lord would be willing to cast. We both know she wasn't sane but she could cast a vicious Cruciatus curse."

Hermione wanted to get her thoughts off the insane witch but picked an odd subject to do it with, "Riddle wasn't that good at magic was he? I mean, he was mostly a fear-induced leader right? He was willing to do the dark magic that nobody else would do and that's what made people follow him." Hermione questioned.

Draco wasn't ready to talk about the Dark Lord in such casual terms yet but still answered her, "No he was quite talented and magically strong. He performed some pretty amazing magic. They were terrible and evil things, but he was impressive." He paused then continued, "Why do you call him Riddle?"

Hermione didn't miss a beat before answering, "Because he doesn't deserve anything else. He was a man nothing more, nothing less. Well, mostly a man, I guess. He was evil and twisted and insane but still mostly human. He gave himself the title Lord Voldemort. Harry told me that the words 'lord voldemort' are a mix up of the letters of his real name 'Tom Marvolo Riddle'. I won't show him any kind of respect by calling him anything other than the name he was born with; the name of his muggle father. He doesn't deserve anything but disdain no matter how strong or impressive he was."

He understood what she was talking about but Draco wasn't ready to think of him as anything other than the Dark Lord. The fear he felt about the Dark Lord would be with him for a long time. He looked around for a different topic. He found one when he saw her book bag sitting on the bench next to her and a Charms book peeking out. "What were you talking with Flitwick about? It sounded like more than the usual charms work."

"Oh, we were talking about some really advanced spells and how one goes about inventing and testing a spell."

"You've got something in mind?"

She launched into a description of the spell she wanted to invent and test and the conversation continued on this vein as they discussed ideas on how to make the spell work.