"I think I'm ready," Hermione said, dragging her trunk downstairs.
It thumped the last few steps and hit the landing, sending up a cloud of
dust that had settled on the floor.
Draco stared at the trunk and several bags Hermione was carrying. "Did you come here with that much stuff?" he asked her.
"Pretty much," she replied, looking around. "I'm just going to run up and take one more look to make sure I have everything. I don't want to get back to school and then realize that I've forgotten something vital." She took the stairs two at a time and raced into her room.
The walls were bare, the bed was cleared and the shelves were empty. Taking a moment, she sat on the bed and looked around. The last year of her life had been quite the ride. But eventually, she could feel, she would be walking down the aisle to become Mrs. Draco Malfoy for real this time. She grinned and hugged her middle, thinking of the reunion she was to have with Ron and Harry when they came back from Australia. It would be the first time that Draco and the two boys would come face to face since school and Hermione was more than sure she would have to have her wand prepared just in case.
"Daydreaming?" Draco appeared in the doorway, smiling at her, his arms crossed. "You know, they say if you save your daydreams for dreams at night, it makes them ten times better."
"I'll bet," Hermione said, watching Draco strut across the room to her. He sat beside her on the bed and took her hand tenderly. "No matter how much hell this place has put me through, I will miss it," she told him sadly.
"Now you know the internal battle I'm suffering," Draco said and Hermione got the distinct impression that that was more an internal thought than anything. She squeezed his hand gently and smiled.
"We had better go," she told him, standing up and pulling him to his feet. They left the room, closing the door softly behind them. Draco stopped at his bedroom door and swung it open.
"I just want to say goodbye."
She laughed and pushed him. "We'll be back in a few months," she told him. "Your dad left a few conditions and one of them is that we come back on Christmas vacation."
"I know," he said, pulling her inside and closing the door, "but I still want to say goodbye. I've lived here for the past who knows how many years of my life."
"Minus the few months we lived in our mansion," she reminded him as he pulled her close. He gave her meaningful glances towards the bed.
"Once more in my bed? For old times' sake?"
"Um, no. We've got to go; lessons start tomorrow and Snape wants to go over some things with you before then. He doesn't want you poisoning the students."
"I don't know why," Draco said, releasing Hermione and opening the door again. "They're such horrible little brats. I really hope I wasn't like that when I was in my younger years."
"You're still like that now," Hermione teased him, amazed at how much he reminded her of Ron at that point. They reached the front door but Lucius was nowhere to be found.
"Tell him we said goodbye," Draco told the maid as they boarded the carriage that would take them to the castle. "And tell him that we'll write as soon as we get settled in."
Hermione couldn't help but notice the look of despair on Draco's face. "He probably just didn't want to suffer the feeling of goodbye," she told him softly as the carriage pulled away from Malfoy Manor.
"Right," Draco said, craning his neck to look for his father somewhere behind the carriage. He continued to look until the Manor was well out of sight. "Can't help but feel disappointed," he muttered, turning back around.
"Yeah," Hermione said but she knew exactly why Lucius was avoiding them. It was hard enough for him to lose his wife but losing his son was another story. Sure, Draco would be back, but Narcissa's death had taught everyone in the house not to take things for granted and Hermione guessed that Lucius didn't want to say goodbye to his son for fear that he might never see him again. If you don't say goodbye, you never have to say hello again, therefore, you've never really left.
Hermione smiled to herself and held Draco's hand as the carriage took them towards their new future. There had been a lot of firsts Hermione had been experiencing in the past few years and she hoped that it would never end.
Draco stared at the trunk and several bags Hermione was carrying. "Did you come here with that much stuff?" he asked her.
"Pretty much," she replied, looking around. "I'm just going to run up and take one more look to make sure I have everything. I don't want to get back to school and then realize that I've forgotten something vital." She took the stairs two at a time and raced into her room.
The walls were bare, the bed was cleared and the shelves were empty. Taking a moment, she sat on the bed and looked around. The last year of her life had been quite the ride. But eventually, she could feel, she would be walking down the aisle to become Mrs. Draco Malfoy for real this time. She grinned and hugged her middle, thinking of the reunion she was to have with Ron and Harry when they came back from Australia. It would be the first time that Draco and the two boys would come face to face since school and Hermione was more than sure she would have to have her wand prepared just in case.
"Daydreaming?" Draco appeared in the doorway, smiling at her, his arms crossed. "You know, they say if you save your daydreams for dreams at night, it makes them ten times better."
"I'll bet," Hermione said, watching Draco strut across the room to her. He sat beside her on the bed and took her hand tenderly. "No matter how much hell this place has put me through, I will miss it," she told him sadly.
"Now you know the internal battle I'm suffering," Draco said and Hermione got the distinct impression that that was more an internal thought than anything. She squeezed his hand gently and smiled.
"We had better go," she told him, standing up and pulling him to his feet. They left the room, closing the door softly behind them. Draco stopped at his bedroom door and swung it open.
"I just want to say goodbye."
She laughed and pushed him. "We'll be back in a few months," she told him. "Your dad left a few conditions and one of them is that we come back on Christmas vacation."
"I know," he said, pulling her inside and closing the door, "but I still want to say goodbye. I've lived here for the past who knows how many years of my life."
"Minus the few months we lived in our mansion," she reminded him as he pulled her close. He gave her meaningful glances towards the bed.
"Once more in my bed? For old times' sake?"
"Um, no. We've got to go; lessons start tomorrow and Snape wants to go over some things with you before then. He doesn't want you poisoning the students."
"I don't know why," Draco said, releasing Hermione and opening the door again. "They're such horrible little brats. I really hope I wasn't like that when I was in my younger years."
"You're still like that now," Hermione teased him, amazed at how much he reminded her of Ron at that point. They reached the front door but Lucius was nowhere to be found.
"Tell him we said goodbye," Draco told the maid as they boarded the carriage that would take them to the castle. "And tell him that we'll write as soon as we get settled in."
Hermione couldn't help but notice the look of despair on Draco's face. "He probably just didn't want to suffer the feeling of goodbye," she told him softly as the carriage pulled away from Malfoy Manor.
"Right," Draco said, craning his neck to look for his father somewhere behind the carriage. He continued to look until the Manor was well out of sight. "Can't help but feel disappointed," he muttered, turning back around.
"Yeah," Hermione said but she knew exactly why Lucius was avoiding them. It was hard enough for him to lose his wife but losing his son was another story. Sure, Draco would be back, but Narcissa's death had taught everyone in the house not to take things for granted and Hermione guessed that Lucius didn't want to say goodbye to his son for fear that he might never see him again. If you don't say goodbye, you never have to say hello again, therefore, you've never really left.
Hermione smiled to herself and held Draco's hand as the carriage took them towards their new future. There had been a lot of firsts Hermione had been experiencing in the past few years and she hoped that it would never end.