Hermione
Hogwarts
June 30th, 1997
The gentle brush of a finger tracing a pattern against her forearm was how Hermione awoke the morning after their breakthrough with the cabinet.
Her eyes flicked open to see the dim light of the Room of Requirement. It shown dull and gray, as always appearing from some unknown source. It felt like waking up outside at dawn.
She stirred slightly in Draco's arms, enjoying the warmth that radiated off of him.
"Morning," he said softly into her ear. An effortless smile spread across her lips.
"Morning," Hermione whispered back, craning her face over her shoulder to take him in.
While it was hard to choose, Hermione thought that perhaps morning Draco was the best Draco. She watched him without restraint through the morning light with his eyes cast down to her bare shoulder, targeting a spot he wanted to kiss. She hummed along with the buzz of her skin.
His features were calm as he idly, yet with a sense of curiosity, found new ways to touch and feel her while they laid together. She watched his stark blue eyes cut through the curtain of his lashes. They didn't look as piercing as they sometimes could. Now, they gave off the impression of a cool, blue summer lake. The type of lake she'd very much like to build a quaint cottage by, and never leave it.
His fingers returned to the section of skin that he traced earlier. He seemed fixated on a particular cluster of freckles that were scattered across her forearm.
"You suddenly seem interested in my freckles," Hermione teased, settling back into him.
"I'm always interested in your freckles," he replied, placing his lips to her temple, making her chest clench.
"But these ones specifically," she pressed on.
He stayed silent while continuing to trace his fingers over the freckles, like he was connecting the dots.
"This cluster," he began, rubbing his fingers over the smooth part of her forearm. "They remind me of a consolation."
Hermione looked at the spot he was moving his hand over. She had never noticed it before, but there were a handful of freckles sprinkled over her forearm that appeared darker than the other softer clusters of melanin spread across her skin.
"What consolation?" Hermione asked, looking at the spot where he continued to rub his finger.
Draco sighed, sounding like he felt hesitant in saying it. She peered over her shoulder and found that his cheeks were slightly flushed.
"It kind of reminds me of the Draco constellation," he said, his eyes drifting down as she turned back to look.
He leaned over the couch, only moving Hermione slightly in his arms to grab his wand. Touching the spot on her arm that bore the freckles with its tip, a line appeared connecting them together.
Hermione observed the connected dots, and couldn't help but grin. On her left forearm was a condensed, but very accurate duplicate of what looked to be the Draco consolation.
"It's fitting," Hermione finally said as the faint line from the charm began to fade away. "We both have reptilian marks on our left arms"
Draco was about to protest his mark having any connection to her whatsoever, but Hermione preemptively tsked him, turning around in his arms to face him.
She couldn't let him believe that his mark made him some wicked person.
"Draco," her voice was steady to offset any further objections, "you took the mark to protect your family. You knew the dangers when you took it, but you did it because you are loyal to those you love."
The word "love" hovered between them like something charged with static electricity; each perhaps excited and a bit scared to touch it, but also fearful of what it could do if grazed.
Draco's eyes shifted to something heavy, like he was about to say something. But a ruptured feeling akin to panic overtook Hermione, and she silenced it by taking his mouth with hers desperately.
Hermione would not let him go, her hands holding tightly against his neck and jawline.
It wasn't clear if Draco was about to say what she thought he might, but so much was up in the air. Hermione had no clue what would become of them after their plan went into motion.
They stayed entangled until the light of the room was just bright enough to signal that time was passing too quickly, and they couldn't risk being unaccounted for any longer.
Hemronie sat in the Gryffindor common room quietly as she switched between checking over her Arithmancy homework, to admiring the cluster of freckles on her left arm.
She willed herself to focus on her homework, if only to keep the looming, fearful thoughts about what could happen all too soon at bay.
"Hermione…" Ginny broke her focus.
Hermione looked up to where Ginny sat in an armchair, her legs curled up in a twist, a book resting on top of her knees. "For the DADA OWLs, was it more defensive work or non-lethal proactive preventive attacks?"
Ron made a grumbling sound from the otherside of the couch which he occupied with Hermione, with ample room in between them.
"You could ask me Gin, I am your brother," Ron protested. Ginny rolled her eyes.
"And Hermione is the smartest witch of a generation, grow up Ron," Ginny spat back, looking back to Hermione.
"Professor Snape seems to favor defensive spell work. I'd wager he'd lean more heavily on that."
Ginny nodded and turned back to her book. Hermione looked over to Ron and gave him a sympathetic smile.
Ron rolled his shoulders in retreat. "You are much smarter than me."
Hermione scoffed. "Ron you got an outstanding on your DADA OWLs. You're very smart."
He smiled and redirected his attention back down to his paper.
Thankfully, Ron's energy had quickly shifted back to something much more comfortable. The entirety of their relationship had been versions of water; sometimes warm, other times nearing a simmer, and before it never made any sense. Now, the waters were calm, pleasant even.
Her eyes drifted down. All morning she kept looking at the cluster of freckles on her arm, thinking about Draco.
In the Room of Requirement, she thought Draco may have been ready to say something to her that would change everything, and she panicked.
It took her a bit to understand her response, but it finally materialized. Regardless if their plan did, or did not work, there was a chance she would never see him again. If their plan did not work, and they went with the backup plan, she wasn't even sure what she'd remember.
And the thought made her physically ill.
Everyone she loved was in jeopardy. Her parents would have to be obviated. Harry was being hunted by Voldemort, which in turn meant Ron was in danger.
And Draco was in the impossible position of balancing his own survival with the safety of his family. And if what they planned for didn't work, he would have to return as a Death Eater, which posed its own threats to his life.
Hermione knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she was desperately in love with Draco Malfoy. And the thought of not being able to be with him, see him, hell even remember him was making her insides crawl.
She continued to contemplate these deep, unending feelings, even letting her quill graze in between the freckles, leaving faint lines of ink behind as evidence, when Harry stormed in through the portrait door.
Last time Harry rushed in like that, he had nearly killed Draco. She immediately scanned for blood.
He moved quickly to put himself between Ron and Hermione on the couch. Ginny looked on, but there now seemed to be an understanding between them on what she could be privy to, so she remained out of earshot but observed warily.
Harry was fishing through his bag as he began to speak quickly. "Dumbledore needs me to go with him. He thinks he found one."
Hermione and Ron exchanged looks, but then the gravity of what Harry had just said crashed over Hermione like a suffocating wave.
It hadn't even been 24 hours since they had repaired the cabinet, and they would already need to put their plan into action.
Hermione's face splotched red as she fought off the tears that were building behind her eyes.
Harry continued to explain the situation, but mind was useless. It wasn't until Harry said his name that she refocused.
"I think Malfoy is going to do something, tonight. I don't know, he just seems different today. I have a bad feeling. Please just watch him and take the Felix so you all stay safe," Harry rattled off, handing Ron a small bottle of golden potion. Harry cast an apprehensive look over to Ginny, and even without context, she returned a brave, fiery look.
"You should take it" Ron said, pushing Harry's outstretched hand back into his chest.
Hermione shook her head. Of course Harry should take it. She knew better than anyone that the danger at the castle tonight would be minimal.
Would it be minimal? What if the Order suffered losses because of their plan? In Hermione's mind, tipping them off before the Death Eaters even arrived would reduce any chance of unnecessary injury, or worse…
But it wouldn't eliminate it.
Hermione felt bright, itchy patches of skin light up around her throat. Harry pushed the bottle back to Ron and Hermione.
"I'll be with Dumbledore, I'll be safe" Harry said, his voice steady as he spoke. Ron nodded and took the potion in his hand.
As soon as Harry turned to leave, Hermione did the same, faintly hearing Ron call out to her, but she was already barrling up towards her dorm room.
She needed to write to Draco right away.
Safely alone in her room, Hermione locked the door, tore out their parchment from her back pocket and found a quill.
As soon as the quill was to paper though, Hermione paused. There wasn't any time to delay, but she couldn't force he hand to move.
What if this was it? What if she had no more time with him?
She had to focus, she could not jeopardize his safety for her lack of wits.
Draco it's time. Harry just left with Dumbledore. You have to call them now
She sat there, hip resting on her bed, staring at the parchment.
OK it wrote back, and the tears begin pouring over her eyelids, landing on the parchment in big lopsided drops.
"Hermione!" Ginny bellowed, pounding on the door behind her. She brushed it off and looked back at the parchment.
Granger neat even letters wrote out, then paused. No matter what, I'll find a way to be with you
The tears moved quicker now, her body shaking as she wrote.
I know she replied. I'll see you on the other side of this.
A sob overwhelmed her, which she stifled quickly.
I'll see you on the other side