Chapter 18
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot.
The next day, Hermione woke up very early because she has planned to surprise Draco by doing a general cleaning of his apartment. Making sure he was already asleep, she woke up at four in the morning and crept down the hall. Opening the lights, Hermione scanned the entire apartment with her eyes and it suddenly looked very spacious. Thinking of how she would clean this, Hermione decided to bend her plan a little to make it easier, and faster.
Quietly getting back to her room, Hermione opened her closet and reached for her bag. She dug to its contents until she found what she was looking for. Drawing her hand out of the bag, she held out her wand. "We finally meet again," she whispered to it. "I knew you would come in handy."
Hermione went back to the kitchen and noticed that she would have to start from the living room, through the kitchen, then to the hallway. She emerged at the living room and noticed some spider webs on the corners as she looked up. Hermione waved her wand three times then whispered a short incantation, which made the wand emit a pale blue beam. Hermione pointed the beam onto the webs and they instantly melted away. "Instant vacuum," she said.
Turning off the beam, Hermione used another spell to wipe all glasses clean, including those of the window, the glass table, and glass figurines.
Hermione's eyes caught a rip on the sofa and she knew what she had to do. Muttering "Reparo," she pointed her wand on the rip and it patched up straight away. "Instant repair!"
Hermione moved next to the kitchen and realized that it would take her longer to fix things here than it took her in the living room.
"Mobiliarbus!" Hermione whispered to her wand. Immediately, everything she pointed her wand to hovered into the air. Using her wand, she rearranged the position of objects so that they would be in more order. Hermione placed the plates together, the large and small bowls, the spoons, forks, and knives, pots, pans, kitchen utensils, and place mats, grouped in an orderly fashion. Here and there, objects were flying in front and behind her, and over her head.
After the last utensils flew to their respective places, Hermione cast the same spell she had used in the living room to clean the glass dining table. She also repaired any scratches and breaks she saw on the wooden chairs. Hermione even proceeded on re-arranging the things inside the refrigerator, putting things where they were supposed to be. "Now I've realized how not orderly Draco is," she told herself, as she magically closed the door of the fridge.
Finally, Hermione used one spell to clear the entire ceiling and floor of the apartment of dirt, including the entire hallway. Sitting down on one of the chairs she had conjured to her, Hermione sighed. "That was tiring! Considering I used magic. I can't even imagine being able to do all that manually!"
Hermione glanced at the time. She gasped. It was only 4:35! "It only took me 35 minutes to clean the entire apartment?"
She dragged herself to the living room and lay on the couch. She dropped her wand on the table and turned around to face the sofa, closing her eyes. Before she knew it, she was already asleep. Though she had cheated and used magic, it was tiring nevertheless.
***
"Hermione, wake up!"
Hermione turned around to face the faint light and tried to open her eyes. She immediately covered them with her arm to block the light.
"What is it, Draco?" she said sleepily.
"Hermione, did you do all these things?" she heard him speak.
She slowly opened her eyes and saw the vague outline of Draco looking down on her. She opened them entirely and sat herself on the couch. "What did you say?" she said, rubbing her eyes.
"I asked if you did all these," he said, gesturing to the apartment. "Clearly you've got nothing else to do on your spare time."
What he said sent a bolt of electricity up her spine. "I'm sorry, Draco," she exclaimed, standing up all of a sudden. "I just wanted to put things in order and---"
"Hermione, what are talking about?" he said, smiling. "You shouldn't say sorry. I like it!" he added, grabbing her by her shoulders.
Hermione's eyes widened. "You like it?"
"Of course I did! How did you do all these?"
Hermione smiled. She was really awake now. She pointed to her wand using her mouth and upon seeing it, Draco grinned.
"You used magic to clean my apartment?" he asked, beaming.
"What are you smiling at?" she responded, sitting once more on the couch.
"Because I never thought of that," he said, doubling up with laughter.
"Wait," Hermione said, starting to chuckle. "Don't tell me that you always cleaned your apartment manually."
Draco sat down beside her, still laughing. "No, I never cleaned my apartment ever since I got here. Not this much."
"What?" Hermione exclaimed. "That's why it was so filthy and full of dirt!"
Draco chortled. "That's the reason why I was shocked when you told me you wanted to clean my apartment. Because I'd never done that myself."
"You lousy old jerk," she said, pushing him sideways with both hands. She then rested her back on the couch, still wearing a smile. "What time is it, anyway?" she asked, looking around for a clock.
"Eight thirty," Draco answered. "I guess you got so tired you fell asleep."
"You bet!" she said, slapping him on the arm with the back of her hand.
"You really surprised me, Hermione," Draco said, looking up as he rested his back on the couch beside her.
"Well that was what I meant to happen. And I'm glad it worked. I told you I was going to clean your apartment!"
Draco turned his head to look at her. "You know, what you did back there in the kitchen remind me of my mother. For a moment I actually thought she had freed herself from the manor and that she had gone here, until I saw you sleeping on the couch."
"Does your mother like to fix things?" she asked.
Draco shook his head. "My mother's fond of fixing everything. It was her job, after all, to clean after my father's mess. It was dirty work, but she loved what she was doing. Because she loved my father very much," he explained.
"Loved? Why do you use the past tense?"
"Because my mother had awakened the moment my father decided to throw me out of the house. She had warned Lucius not to do anything he would regret, but he just shoved her aside and threw me out. Before the door closed I heard her shout my name, and I heard her curse his, telling him that she would never love a man as cruel as he," Draco added.
Hermione saw the pain and anger reflected in his eyes. She placed her hand on Draco's lap and tapped it lightly. "It's your father's fault your life turned out to be like this, not yours. You didn't opt for this to happen," she uttered. "Nonetheless, the choice is yours to change it."
"What do you mean?"
"Professor Dumledore always told me that destiny is a matter of choice, not chance. He said we hold our lives in our hands and that we have the power to mold it into whatever shape we want," she explained.
"But it appears to me that my father has always controlled my life. and he still does," Draco responded, looking down and breathing heavily.
Hermione lifted her hand and touched his face. "Only you control your life, Draco. Nobody else has the power over it. Do not let your father fool you by making you believe that he can manipulate it under his own will. He doesn't hold a single strand of your life to begin with," she told him.
"But he holds my mother's life," he answered. He then took Hermione's hand and spread her palm. He opened his hand as well and lifted it beside hers. "This is our lifeline," he said, tracing a long curved line on each of their palms using his free hand. "And mine is gradually being cut short," he added.
He dropped their hands and stared up the ceiling. Hermione sat there in silence, watching him. She decided to join him in his reverie, pondering on what he had meant.
"Draco," she finally spoke, "what would you do if you could live your life all over again?"
Draco didn't move but he managed to answer. "Mother and I would live away from father as possible, avoiding him at all costs." He then turned his head to her. "What about you?"
"It would be nice to be able to live my life all over again, but I wouldn't choose to," she said.
"Why not?"
"Because I've come a long way to get where I am right now. And I don't want to go through that kind of hardship all over again," she answered, slightly shaking her head.
"That's it? That's you're reason?" he said, eyebrows curled.
"And also because I'm afraid that if I change even a single moment in my past, then it would mean changing the course of events that happened after it," she added.
"How would you know that?" he asked.
"Because our future changes with every decision we make, Draco. And I might risk not facing the challenges that have made me stronger, and meeting the people that have given me inspiration," she uttered.
Draco sat up straight and looked at her. "Hermione, what if you have less than an hour to live? Who would you spend that time with?"
Hermione smiled. "That's easy. My family, of course."
"How about a day?"
"Still my family."
"A lifetime?"
Hermione looked straight at him. "I would spend it with the people I love."
Draco leaned back again. He stared up the ceiling for quite a long time. Hermione did the same. She was wondering where their conversation was leading to. Finally, she decided to get up and go to the kitchen. When she stood up and started to walk, she heard Draco ask her one last question.
"Are you doing that now, Hermione? Are you living your life with the people you love?"
Hermione turned around a flashed a smile. "Every hour and every day."
Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot.
The next day, Hermione woke up very early because she has planned to surprise Draco by doing a general cleaning of his apartment. Making sure he was already asleep, she woke up at four in the morning and crept down the hall. Opening the lights, Hermione scanned the entire apartment with her eyes and it suddenly looked very spacious. Thinking of how she would clean this, Hermione decided to bend her plan a little to make it easier, and faster.
Quietly getting back to her room, Hermione opened her closet and reached for her bag. She dug to its contents until she found what she was looking for. Drawing her hand out of the bag, she held out her wand. "We finally meet again," she whispered to it. "I knew you would come in handy."
Hermione went back to the kitchen and noticed that she would have to start from the living room, through the kitchen, then to the hallway. She emerged at the living room and noticed some spider webs on the corners as she looked up. Hermione waved her wand three times then whispered a short incantation, which made the wand emit a pale blue beam. Hermione pointed the beam onto the webs and they instantly melted away. "Instant vacuum," she said.
Turning off the beam, Hermione used another spell to wipe all glasses clean, including those of the window, the glass table, and glass figurines.
Hermione's eyes caught a rip on the sofa and she knew what she had to do. Muttering "Reparo," she pointed her wand on the rip and it patched up straight away. "Instant repair!"
Hermione moved next to the kitchen and realized that it would take her longer to fix things here than it took her in the living room.
"Mobiliarbus!" Hermione whispered to her wand. Immediately, everything she pointed her wand to hovered into the air. Using her wand, she rearranged the position of objects so that they would be in more order. Hermione placed the plates together, the large and small bowls, the spoons, forks, and knives, pots, pans, kitchen utensils, and place mats, grouped in an orderly fashion. Here and there, objects were flying in front and behind her, and over her head.
After the last utensils flew to their respective places, Hermione cast the same spell she had used in the living room to clean the glass dining table. She also repaired any scratches and breaks she saw on the wooden chairs. Hermione even proceeded on re-arranging the things inside the refrigerator, putting things where they were supposed to be. "Now I've realized how not orderly Draco is," she told herself, as she magically closed the door of the fridge.
Finally, Hermione used one spell to clear the entire ceiling and floor of the apartment of dirt, including the entire hallway. Sitting down on one of the chairs she had conjured to her, Hermione sighed. "That was tiring! Considering I used magic. I can't even imagine being able to do all that manually!"
Hermione glanced at the time. She gasped. It was only 4:35! "It only took me 35 minutes to clean the entire apartment?"
She dragged herself to the living room and lay on the couch. She dropped her wand on the table and turned around to face the sofa, closing her eyes. Before she knew it, she was already asleep. Though she had cheated and used magic, it was tiring nevertheless.
***
"Hermione, wake up!"
Hermione turned around to face the faint light and tried to open her eyes. She immediately covered them with her arm to block the light.
"What is it, Draco?" she said sleepily.
"Hermione, did you do all these things?" she heard him speak.
She slowly opened her eyes and saw the vague outline of Draco looking down on her. She opened them entirely and sat herself on the couch. "What did you say?" she said, rubbing her eyes.
"I asked if you did all these," he said, gesturing to the apartment. "Clearly you've got nothing else to do on your spare time."
What he said sent a bolt of electricity up her spine. "I'm sorry, Draco," she exclaimed, standing up all of a sudden. "I just wanted to put things in order and---"
"Hermione, what are talking about?" he said, smiling. "You shouldn't say sorry. I like it!" he added, grabbing her by her shoulders.
Hermione's eyes widened. "You like it?"
"Of course I did! How did you do all these?"
Hermione smiled. She was really awake now. She pointed to her wand using her mouth and upon seeing it, Draco grinned.
"You used magic to clean my apartment?" he asked, beaming.
"What are you smiling at?" she responded, sitting once more on the couch.
"Because I never thought of that," he said, doubling up with laughter.
"Wait," Hermione said, starting to chuckle. "Don't tell me that you always cleaned your apartment manually."
Draco sat down beside her, still laughing. "No, I never cleaned my apartment ever since I got here. Not this much."
"What?" Hermione exclaimed. "That's why it was so filthy and full of dirt!"
Draco chortled. "That's the reason why I was shocked when you told me you wanted to clean my apartment. Because I'd never done that myself."
"You lousy old jerk," she said, pushing him sideways with both hands. She then rested her back on the couch, still wearing a smile. "What time is it, anyway?" she asked, looking around for a clock.
"Eight thirty," Draco answered. "I guess you got so tired you fell asleep."
"You bet!" she said, slapping him on the arm with the back of her hand.
"You really surprised me, Hermione," Draco said, looking up as he rested his back on the couch beside her.
"Well that was what I meant to happen. And I'm glad it worked. I told you I was going to clean your apartment!"
Draco turned his head to look at her. "You know, what you did back there in the kitchen remind me of my mother. For a moment I actually thought she had freed herself from the manor and that she had gone here, until I saw you sleeping on the couch."
"Does your mother like to fix things?" she asked.
Draco shook his head. "My mother's fond of fixing everything. It was her job, after all, to clean after my father's mess. It was dirty work, but she loved what she was doing. Because she loved my father very much," he explained.
"Loved? Why do you use the past tense?"
"Because my mother had awakened the moment my father decided to throw me out of the house. She had warned Lucius not to do anything he would regret, but he just shoved her aside and threw me out. Before the door closed I heard her shout my name, and I heard her curse his, telling him that she would never love a man as cruel as he," Draco added.
Hermione saw the pain and anger reflected in his eyes. She placed her hand on Draco's lap and tapped it lightly. "It's your father's fault your life turned out to be like this, not yours. You didn't opt for this to happen," she uttered. "Nonetheless, the choice is yours to change it."
"What do you mean?"
"Professor Dumledore always told me that destiny is a matter of choice, not chance. He said we hold our lives in our hands and that we have the power to mold it into whatever shape we want," she explained.
"But it appears to me that my father has always controlled my life. and he still does," Draco responded, looking down and breathing heavily.
Hermione lifted her hand and touched his face. "Only you control your life, Draco. Nobody else has the power over it. Do not let your father fool you by making you believe that he can manipulate it under his own will. He doesn't hold a single strand of your life to begin with," she told him.
"But he holds my mother's life," he answered. He then took Hermione's hand and spread her palm. He opened his hand as well and lifted it beside hers. "This is our lifeline," he said, tracing a long curved line on each of their palms using his free hand. "And mine is gradually being cut short," he added.
He dropped their hands and stared up the ceiling. Hermione sat there in silence, watching him. She decided to join him in his reverie, pondering on what he had meant.
"Draco," she finally spoke, "what would you do if you could live your life all over again?"
Draco didn't move but he managed to answer. "Mother and I would live away from father as possible, avoiding him at all costs." He then turned his head to her. "What about you?"
"It would be nice to be able to live my life all over again, but I wouldn't choose to," she said.
"Why not?"
"Because I've come a long way to get where I am right now. And I don't want to go through that kind of hardship all over again," she answered, slightly shaking her head.
"That's it? That's you're reason?" he said, eyebrows curled.
"And also because I'm afraid that if I change even a single moment in my past, then it would mean changing the course of events that happened after it," she added.
"How would you know that?" he asked.
"Because our future changes with every decision we make, Draco. And I might risk not facing the challenges that have made me stronger, and meeting the people that have given me inspiration," she uttered.
Draco sat up straight and looked at her. "Hermione, what if you have less than an hour to live? Who would you spend that time with?"
Hermione smiled. "That's easy. My family, of course."
"How about a day?"
"Still my family."
"A lifetime?"
Hermione looked straight at him. "I would spend it with the people I love."
Draco leaned back again. He stared up the ceiling for quite a long time. Hermione did the same. She was wondering where their conversation was leading to. Finally, she decided to get up and go to the kitchen. When she stood up and started to walk, she heard Draco ask her one last question.
"Are you doing that now, Hermione? Are you living your life with the people you love?"
Hermione turned around a flashed a smile. "Every hour and every day."