"So you did it?" Draco asked eagerly. "You convinced her?"
Kyle glanced at the ground, relishing making him wait so anxiously. Deciding to answer slowly, he dragged the answer out. "Well…I think that maybe…"
"Spit it out!"
"She's got quite a bit of considering to do. You know, I always thought I should be on a debate team. I really know how to drive my point home."
Regaining his coolness now that he had the positive reply, Draco said uninterestedly, "That's fascinating. Well…thank you, Thompson."
"I'm sorry, I don't think I quite heard you correctly," Kyle replied with a grin, shaking his blonde hair.
"Don't push it."
---
Don't turn your back on love.
What garbage. Who ever said that, and truly believed it? She wasn't even sure if what she felt was something that could be qualified as love! Shouldn't she be able to pinpoint exactly what made her "love" him? And why in the world would she?
Things were complicated enough, weren't they? How would Carrie understand that after five years of never knowing a father, her real one had suddenly just up and appeared, ready to love her?
Children are resilient, she remembered Harry saying one day when they were talking about Carrie.
But what about me?! Hermione protested internally.
"I'm not that strong," she said out loud. "I can't handle this. Years of hardening myself to him…just to be thrown away because Kyle thinks he's clever?"
She continued on, mentally wondering precisely how sane it was to rant to ones' self during a time of need, when there were others she could rant at.
"Kyle isn't clever, by any means. He's just been saying what I've been thinking all along. He's just been saying what I've been afraid to say. He better not think he used reverse psychology on me, or whatever other garbage he has up his sleeve."
She half expected it to be Kyle, or even Draco, standing in her kitchen when she heard the can drop. She wasn't expecting Ron.
"Hermione, Hermione, Hermione," he tsked with a friendly smirk. "Didn't we teach you to ignore the voices in your head?"
Hermione shot him a glare, and immediately felt embarrassed that it was the second time in two days someone had walked in on her rants. "Yes, well, didn't I teach you how to properly act?"
"Only by example, Mione. Only by example," he retorted. "And if I were to lead by your example, I'd be doing this."
He paused to wander around her kitchen dazedly, bumping into counters, and staring at the ceiling. "I wonder what I should do…? He's not as clever as he likes to think…No, not nearly as clever as my handsome, charming friend Ron Weasley…"
She smacked the back of his head, turning rather red. "Oh, be quiet, Ronald."
"Uh oh, I know that tone! That's the one you use when you want to be mad at me, but you know you have no reason to be, so it frustrates you," Ron teased. He mussed up his bright red hair a little, out of boredom. "So what's your malfunction today?"
"It's nothing," Hermione answered slowly, fiddling with her leather belt.
"Don't you think that five years of 'It's nothing' gets a little old?" he asked vaguely irately. "Five years of hiding things. Not to guilt you, or anything…" Ron trailed off flashing the faintest traces of a smile.
It was such a difficult thing to discuss with him. It was too hard to find words to express, and make him understand. She desperately hoped he'd figure it out.
"You can tell me when you're ready, I guess. Just don't let it be five years later, ok?" he asked laughing.
Feigning anger, she asked passionately, "How come my mistakes are always up for joking about, five years later?"
"Because it's just way too fun reminding the poster girl for perfection about what she's done wrong," Ron answered.
Seeing the look on her face, which she had tried to hide, he immediately apologized.
---
Draco wasn't entirely sure what to do. Now that everything had been cleared up, and both he and Hermione had been tricked into fully realizing what they felt, he wasn't sure who should or would make the first move.
He didn't expect that Hermione would race to him, in tears once more, insisting she was terribly wrong. Because there were a few things stopping that wistful fantasy.
One, it wasn't her in the wrong—it was him. Two, she'd done enough crying in the past for a lifetime. And three, there was her pride to consider.
He wasn't going to let a little thing like pride get in the way of happiness.
After much consideration, Draco made the not-so-difficult decision of going to her tomorrow. There always needed to be an open space of one day of procrastination.
He sighed heavily and fell onto his bed. It was a good thing Kyle had given him his room back.
---
"You," she breathed at the sight of him. She looked away from the onions she was preparing to cut, and tightly gripped the knife.
"Disappointed much?" he asked breezily, surprised at how his smugness returned once he was sure of himself again. His eyes briefly flickered to the weapon in her right hand.
Hermione looked confused, angry, and hurt all at once. "What are you doing here?" she demanded harshly.
"I've come to apologize. Again. Look, Hermione, I know… I know I haven't done much to deserve you, but you've messed up too," Draco insisted.
"Not exactly the best way to apologize, Malfoy," Hermione informed him dryly.
"When are you going to face your mistakes?" he asked, annoyed. "I've busted my ba-arse to get you to understand me and forgive me, and all you can do is shovel the blame on me!"
"Don't you dare yell at me!" Hermione shrieked, shaken. "You h-have no right—"
"Oh, spare me the sob story, Hermione! I've heard it before!" Draco yelled back, the anger within him now sparked. "You know, you'd think with the way that you act and treat me, that you want to be alone for the rest of your life."
She let out a small gasp at the words, and turned back to the counter and away from him. She began chopping the onions to distract herself.
"You love me, Hermione," he said softly, grabbing a hold of his control. "You know it; I know it."
Hermione refused to respond to his words. So Draco took a step toward her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. She still did nothing, and he turned her around to face him.
Tears were streaming down her face, and at the sight of his concerned expression, the knife fell from her hand.
"You're crying," he observed with a quirk of his mouth.
Hermione quickly wiped the tears away with her sleeve. "I'm cutting onions, you idiot," she hissed.
"You've only cut one," Draco reminded her.
"I'll never be alone," she said finally. "Harry and Ron will always be there for me."
He groaned. Why did it always have to come back to the loser twins? She was taking a stab at him, trying to hurt his pride.
Angry again, Draco took a step back. "You tell yourself that when you're lying awake at night, cold and alone. Who will be there for you then?"
Hermione's eyes widened momentarily in shock. "I have Carrie."
He glared at her, infuriated that she had implied that their daughter was hers, and hers only. So what if she had many people there waiting to comfort her? It would never be the same as having the only person whom could comfort her in heart, mind, body, and soul.
Adjusting his black robes, he cast her a meaningful look laced with regret, hurt, and temptation. With a hand on the door he asked, "You're honestly going to let me walk out this door without one last regret?"
By the time he had asked the question, she had already hardened herself to him. As an answer, she simply watched with pursed lips as he turned the doorknob slowly.
"This is goodbye then," Draco said, his now dark gray eyes flashing. He slammed the door shut, letting it echo hollowly in her heart.
---
Kyle walked into Draco's room, a smile plastered onto his face.
"So, how'd it go?" he asked cheerily, glancing around for the man. "Are you all packed up and ready to move into her house?"
Draco emerged from the closet with shirts draped over his arm, mustering up his best glare.
"What? What happened?" Kyle asked with concern.
Draco shoved the shirts into his enormous green suitcase, settling them in with a punch. "It's over," he growled. "I'm packing up so I can move far away from this hellhole. Granger's made her choice."
It's amazing how quickly it comes back to "Granger", Kyle thought wryly.
"Where do you intend to stay?"
"Well," Draco began sarcastically, "I can't go back 'home'—if you could even call it that—because I've severed ties with my Father all because of her. And by 'far away' I mean a completely different continent."
"What?!" Kyle exclaimed. "Y-You can't do that! Hermione, she's a stubborn girl. But she'll come around…"
"You wanted to keep me as far from her as possible before, but that changed rather suddenly," Draco accused. "I don't care how much you want her to be happy, I'm tired of bending over backwards for her. I'm not a damn gymnast."
Kyle ran a hand through his blond hair, trying quickly to think of a way to keep him there. At least until he could get through to Hermione.
"Isn't this just a bit rash?" he asked desperately.
Draco waved his wand lazily, causing all of his belongings to fly neatly into place in the suitcase. "No," he drawled, "it's not. I'm not just going to sit around forever, twiddling my thumbs while she blatantly ignores me."
"Just let me talk to her again!" Kyle yelled, frustrated that after everything, the two hadn't fell into each other's arms.
"Yes, because we all see how well that worked yesterday. That was quite the success."
Kyle finally let his anger speak for him. "It's not as though we should expect anything different from you," he said loftily.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Draco growled.
"Only that when things get tough, you run away from your problems rather than dealing with it. Doesn't that ever get old? I mean, you ran from Hermione at school, you ran from your father a few months ago, you ran from 'Hope' when she tried to help you, and now you're running from Hermione all over again."
Draco's eyes narrowed dangerously. "If you think your stupid reverse psychology is going to work on me again, you're very wrong, Thompson. I'm leaving because I'm tired of Granger's ridiculous mind games."
To accentuate his words, he closed his suitcase, locked it, and picked it up. Without another word, he shoved past Kyle and walked out the door.
---
Hope tentatively opened the door, revealing an anxious and upset Hermione. She glanced worriedly at her 'friend-by-marriage' as it had been termed.
"Hermione, darling, are you alright?" she asked softly, reaching her delicate hand out. "Would you like me to go fetch Harry?"
Hermione hadn't met her gaze until that moment, with her honey eyes wide. She shook her head furiously insisting, "Oh, no. I came to ask for some advice; witch to witch."
Hope tilted her head, her honey-colored hair spilling past her shoulder. "Of course," the woman agreed. Her nearly violet eyes sparkled with concern as she led the distressed Hermione to the sofa.
"So what's wrong?" Hope asked after finally getting settled. She turned to face Hermione, and placed her hands in her lap, waiting for the response. "Don't tell me Harry's been giving you trouble again, or I swear—" she started angrily.
"No, no," Hermione interrupted immediately. "Not him. No one's caused trouble, really. Well, no one besides me, anyway."
Hope's expression softened at the confession, and she gently asked, "Did it have to do with a certain Draco Malfoy?"
Hermione nodded slowly. With a derisive laugh she inquired, "When is it ever not about him lately?"
Harry's wife was worried by his best friend's scornful tone.
"So tell me exactly what happened," Hope suggested.
---
Hermione paused for a moment, giving herself the opportunity to really admire Harry's bride.
Her almond-shaped violet eyes set against gorgeously tanned skin gave her an exotic look. Her hair was absolute perfection; which was nothing short of annoying. The waves of Hope's honey hair were always perfect and never failed to keep a soft, shiny appearance.
She could see clearly now why Harry chose her. She was beautiful, and she had a lovely personality that could get on with just about anyone.
Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Hermione finally began her story.
"Why is it that I can't let people close to me anymore?" she demanded. "I turned him away! He apologized for everything; he offered me the world with just one glance! But do you know what I did? I turned him away," Hermione said bitterly. "Smartest girl in Hogwarts, indeed!"
Hope blinked, momentarily unsure of what to say. "Hermione," she began, clearing her throat, "the best advice I can offer you is blunt and harsh."
Hermione urged her forward, not heeding the warning.
"Get over it."
She was stunned by how acute and to the point it was. She was stunned by the brilliance hidden in the simplicity.
"I-" Hermione started. "Erm, goodbye!" she shouted, leaping to her feet and rushing out the door. Suddenly it was all too clear what she had to do to fix this mess.
---
"Kyle, where's Draco?" Hermione asked breathlessly once he'd opened the door. "I need to talk to him, it's urgent!"
Kyle shifted uncomfortably, suddenly interested in the tiles of his home. Clearing his throat he admitted, "He left," rather sheepishly.
"H-he left?" Hermione repeated in an astonished stutter. "Where did he go?"
"Well, in his ever-so informative rant, he mentioned something about another continent," Kyle offered dryly.
That is so not helpful, Hermione thought unhappily.
Grabbing his sleeve she ordered, "You're helping me."
---
Three hours later, Draco Malfoy dropped his suitcase in front of the entrance to The Leaky Cauldron. He had run out of options, and couldn't think of where to go. Until he could get certain details ironed out, he'd have to live here for a week, and then he'd be off like nobody's business.
He entered The Leaky Cauldron, eager for a place to stay. "I'll take Room 13," he said importantly. "I expect I'll be here for seven days."
Without letting the owner get in a word, he dropped the fee onto the bar, and took the keys with the Accio spell.
He climbed the stairs, and opened the door to his new room for the next week. Draco glanced around, observing the lowly status of the room. It was less-than homely, and it was certainly not 'quaint'.
He wandered around the room, wondering where to start planning for his escape when the door flung open.
---
"I've been looking everywhere for you," Hermione breathed, drinking in his beauty. "You didn't really pick an original location," she said with a laugh.
"What, expect something more expensive for me?" Draco asked coolly. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you this, but you don't know me."
She walked towards him, not allowing his harsh words to hurt her like he wanted.
"I don't know how many times I have to tell you I want to know you."
His cool gray eyes looked up to meet hers. With a quirk of his mouth, he growled, "Then come here."
Quicker than she could process, Draco had pulled her into another searing kiss. This one was fueled with anger, regret, relief, passion, and numerous other ridiculous emotions that add up to an incredible kiss.
"Forgive me?" Hermione whispered softly against his lips.
He rested his forehead against hers and smiled genuinely at her. "It's good to see you finally figured out who's been right this entire time. Honestly woman, when will you learn? I'm always right," Draco teased in his snotty voice.
Hermione scoffed and crossed her arms, stepping immediately away from him. "You and that cocky attitude of yours is always going to get you in trouble."
His arm snaked out and grabbed her retreating wrist. He pulled her back and said with a sneer, "It's just like old times, isn't it?"
She laughed at him as he shoved her against a wall, this time careful not to harm her.
A/N: Well… that's that, folks. T.T Sad, isn't it?? The journey is over! -wails-
Still, I hope everyone enjoyed the ride. It's been really fun. I don't really know what to say, haha. Mildly awkward… -clears throat- I hope the ending fit well and all! All things considered.
If you run out of things to do, and are now bored to tears (see T.T), you can feel free to theorize about what happened to Carrie. She just never really seemed to fit in, I'm sorry.
Or you can read some of my other stuff. I updated my Lily/James fic. It's going splendidly, thank you! Converting some of you would be fun, so go check it out! They're just like Draco/Hermione for me, hehe.
Sadly, I don't think I will be doing anything more to this series. I started writing the Kyle/Hermione thing a year earlier, but it's not necessary. As for the Carrie future fic (paired with James), well… I think some things are best left as is. So remember me; and my second-ever completed fic!
Read, review, and ENJOY, please. :D
BY THE WAY::::: I made the update journal! So go check it out at http: www. Greatest journal. com/ users/ musikluver/ without all the spaces, anyway. I think you'd enjoy the look of it. I designed it myself! Hehe.
[Submitted: July 6, 2004]