A/N:

**I've drastically changed Chapter 2 because I really didn't like it all that much so if this feels a little disjointed, that's why. (I think that the new Chapter 2 fits much better.)

**Many points to Cassie Claire, who started me writing this story in the first place. Love her stuff, can't wait for DV Chapter 11 (hint hint)

**Points to D for proofreading and pointing out my subtle plot-flaws and showing me the inconsistencies that I'd overlooked. Read her stories: she writes as DracoDew17.

**THANKS TO: Hermione18, maxziod, DracoDew17 (always and several times), Sila-Chan, f0xyness39, Ashby, and heavengurl899. ::squeals:: I LOVE reviews

 A special loving hug goes to: maxziod, f0xyness39, and OF COURSE, DracoDew17, for their multiple reviews

**To all readers: enjoy!! This is probably the longest chapter I have ever written and it kinda sets up the plot. And many, many points to all who review with constructive criticism…

Disclaimer:

Please don't sue me! I have no money! I cannot afford it! I acknowledge that all things Harry Potter belong to JK! (although I do admit to pouting about it…)

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Daylight Fading

************

Daylight fading

Come and waste another year

All the anger and eloquence are bleeding into fear

When we see the early signs that daylight's fading

We leave just before it's gone

 -Counting Crows

"Harry!!" Lavendar Brown's sister, emerging from behind Hermione and Draco, had been poking through his notes and wanted to ask him a question. She pushed Malfoy out of her way and looked up to see Harry kissing Gin Weasley.

Her jaw dropped. Good for you, Gin! she cheered silently. A smile crept onto her face. Then she noticed the absolute shock on Ron's face, the uneasiness on her sister's and Parvati's face, and that she was standing behind Hermione who was holding Draco Malfoy's elbow in an attempt to steady herself. Draco Malfoy?!? Since when was he back at the castle? And what was he doing with Hermione?

Harry broke away from Gin at the sound of his name. Ginny clung to him as if she was dizzy and he held her up quite willingly.

Then the world exploded.

"Harry!" screeched Hermione. "How wonderful—"

"Harry! What the bloody hell d'you think you're doing kis—," raged Ron.

"Harry! Congratulations, you two!" squealed Lavendar and Parvati at the same time. They smiled at each other.

"Whoa, whoa," Draco Malfoy held up a hand. "I think we all ought give Potter and Weasley a minute alone, don't you?"

Ron gave Malfoy a Suspicious Look and said gruffly, "Thanks, Malfoy," before striding up to Harry and grabbing him by the elbow.

Malfoy interceded. He pulled Ron off Harry and said scathingly, "I meant your sister, Weasley."

Draco rolled his eyes dramatically and dragged an indignant Ron off to the Great Hall. Hermione, Lavendar, Lavendar's sister, and Parvati followed them.

"What d'you think you're doing, Malfoy?" spat Ron.  "Trying to play hero? And what happened to your 'Daresn't touch a Weasley' rule?"

"Ron!" said Hermione in annoyance, "Draco was just trying to help. Be civil at the least."

"Why should I, Hermione? And why should you? Why should any of us? He's a Slytherin--," Ron began.

"You say that as if it's a bad thing," said Draco smoothly. "Look, Weasley. I know we've not been the best of friends, but sometimes it takes… a little change of scenery for a person to see things differently"

"What the bloody hell are you talking about, Malfoy?" snapped Ron, his face beet red. He crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'm saying that America's a hell of a different environment, Weasley. You aren't revered from birth for things you have yet to do. Your decisions aren't made for you, they're made by you. You aren't always worried that you can't live up to people's expectations." Draco looked sullen at the thought that he was almost apologizing to a Weasley.

Ron was quiet for a moment. The whole bit about living up to people's expectations seemed to hit home. "So, you went away for a few months and now you're all sparkly-clean and sunshiny-nice?" he asked.

Draco looked horrified. "I don't do sunshiny—," he began, disdainfully.

Hermione, biting back a laugh, said softly, "Draco, please. Ron, dear, come on. It's all for the best, please see that…"

Ron gave Malfoy a distrustful look. "Why should I trust him, Hermione?"

Hermione squared her shoulders and said, "Because I do."

Ron gave her a long, hard look. Then he looked at Malfoy. "You hurt her, you hurt my sister, you hurt Harry, and I'll kill you," he said.

Draco smiled. "I have absolutely no interest in your sister or Potter, Weasley. And as for Hermione, I have no intention do harming her. Not that I think she needs you to protect her, mind."

They measured each other with their eyes for a moment and then Ron let out a disbelieving snort. "Malfoy," he said, and stopped.

Hermione held her breath. She so hoped that these two would try, just try, to be nice to each other.

"America must be one hell of a place," Ron said, and kind of smiled.

****************

Harry James Potter swallowed, glad for the first time in his life that he was able to do so. His throat had cleared just after Malfoy dragged Ron and the rest of them off to the Great Hall. Harry wouldn't ever really like Malfoy, but he was grateful for these few moments alone with Ginny.

"Harry," she breathed, her eyes bright. "Oh, Harry, please—."

He smiled, then, showing his straight, white, kind smile; the smile Ginny had longed to be directed towards her since the first day she'd met him, at King's Cross. 1 September, 1991 would be imprinted forever in her mind.

"Ginny," he said, "I'm so sorry."

Her hopes, the hopes that he might have been earnest in his kiss, the hopes that finally, finally Harry would notice her and love her the way she'd loved him for so long, came crashing down. She choked back words of anger, words of sorrow. Her eyes brimmed with tears.

He saw her beautiful dark velvet eyes fill with tears and knew she had misunderstood him. "Oh, Ginny—," he said, rushing a bit to get the words out, "I'm so sorry for taking so long to realize how beautiful you are, how smart you are, how much I need you… how much I need you with me, in my life. I-I've been a prat, and I'm sorry." He hung his head.

Ginny was so startled by this confession the she actually jerked away from him.

Harry closed his eyes. Well, you can't really expect her to still want to be with you after the way you've treated her for all these years, he told himself. Still, it hurt that when he'd finally realized his feelings for her, she had moved on.

Ginny saw him close his lovely green eyes and knew that he had misunderstood her. "Oh, Harry," she breathed. She stepped closer to him and threw her arms around him, reveling in the closeness of it all. "Oh, Harry, I'm so glad."

He tightened his arms around her and lowered his head into her hair. She smelled like raspberries. He breathed in all of Ginny and wondered what the hell he'd been thinking the last six years.

Ginny nestled into Harry and breathed in his scent. He smelled like soap and a little bit of wood, the scent of a Quidditch player. She sighed contentedly.

"Ahem."

Harry looked up from Ginny's hair and into the silver eyes of Draco Malfoy.

"Can I release the hounds?" he drawled.

Harry actually smiled. He looked down at Ginny, who smiled back at him, and they moved apart. He took her hand and then said to Malfoy, "Look, Malfoy. I think it's a lot to ask to be nice to you. But for Hermione…," he paused as she came out of the Great Hall and stood next to Draco.

Without realizing, she slipped her hand into his.

Harry saw it and frowned, but said nothing about it. "For Hermione, I'll try."

"That's all she wants, Potter," said Malfoy seriously. "I'll be civil. But if you ask me, friendship is  pushing it a bit between us."

Harry grinned. "We'd never survive the holidays, much less the next year and half if we were friends, Malfoy."

Ron, his mouth full of biscuit, came out of the Great Hall and said, "Oy, you lot! Dumbledore's starting without you!"

And so they went in to dinner.

************

Ron and Harry had a "discussion" after dinner about Ginny, and Ron grudgingly admitted that if Ginny had to be with anyone, he would rather it be his best friend. Even though it pained him to see his baby sister all grown up. 

Hermione, happy that her three boys were finally getting along, invited Draco up to the Gryffindor Common Room that night. She, Gin, Lavendar, Lavendar's sister, and Parvati decided to postpone their girls' night and be with the boys tonight. Ginny was glad. More time to be with Harry, in her opinion.

So, after dinner was finished, the eight of them trooped upstairs into the Common Room. Draco raised his eyebrows skeptically at the decorations.

"I always suspected Godric Gryffindor had horrible taste," he said, pursing his lips. "This only proves me even more correct than usual."

Hermione playfully shoved him and giggled.

"No, honestly, Hermione," he said, looking about the room again. "Whoever thought gold and red make a good color combination was certifiable." He sniffed.

Ron rolled his eyes and ignored him. Malfoys, he thought. I'll never be rid of them. He flopped into his favorite armchair by the fire.

The group settled in around him. Harry and Ginny were snuggled together in Harry's armchair, opposite her brother. Ron looked vaguely nauseas at the sight of them.

Hermione and Draco settled into the couch, with Lavendar and Parvati sprawled on the floor. Lavendar's sister excused herself and went upstairs to the girls' dormitory.

They were all silent for a moment, and then, slowly, a grin spread across Hermione's face.

"Harry?" she said, shifting slightly closer to Draco.

"Hmm?" he said, momentarily coming out of his Gin-induced euphoria.

"What do you think we'd be doing right now if we were Muggles?"

"Starting a fire with sticks while wearing loincloths and breathing through our mouths?" suggested Draco brightly.

Harry shot him a dirty look. Then he smiled. "Spin the Bottle," he replied.

Hermione grinned and said, "Lav? Ti? Will you go fetch a glass bottle from the kitchens… yes… it's the pear…thanks."

***********

Anne Granger took a deep breath. "Paul?" she asked hesitantly.

Her husband turned slightly.

"What is it, Paul? News from Hermione?" The owl had arrived a few moments ago, bringing with it a single sheet of parchment.

Paul Granger thrust the letter at his wife. No, he thought, This can't be happening. Not now. She was just seeing how truly wrong all of that magic business is. We were just starting to get her to be a normal person. And now… now it's all been a waste.

Annie crumpled the paper in her hand and let out a shaky breath. "Oh, Paul…" She seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Damn it all, Annie! We should NEVER have let her go that school," he said, his anger erupting suddenly. He slammed his fist down on the table.

Annie wanted to do the same, but she restrained herself. "They wouldn't take her from us, would they, Paul?"

"Of course they would! Didn't you read that letter? This is why she's not normal! This is why she's never been normal! When that damn letter from her school came, we should have sent it back! We SHOULD NOT HAVE LET HER GO!"

Annie Granger began to cry softly.

"We were so stupid, Annie, to think that her going to that school would be harmless…" Paul's anger fizzled and her moved to take his wife into his arms.

They had tried for many years, after they were married, to have child. When they found that that wouldn't be possible, Paul and Annie Granger decided to adopt.

And they'd always thought their beautiful baby girl, who had appeared ever so mysteriously at the orphanage, was a little odd. A little different.

Their baby, Hermione Anne, was not, in truth their baby.

The parchment in Annie Granger's hand fluttered to the floor.

Mr. and Mrs. Granger-

It has come to our attention that you may be helpful to us in a case that has remained unsolved for nearly eighteen years. One of our most prominent wizarding families, the Spencers, had a baby exactly seventeen years and four months ago. Their daughter was kidnapped. We spent nearly a year searching for the child, but to no avail. It has come to our attention that Ms. Hermione A. Granger, currently attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, may be the child in question. We would be much obliged if you would please make  yourselves available for an official Ministry Inquest, to be held within the month. We will notify you of the location and  date of the Inquest approximately a week in advance.

With thanks,

Pierce Oculin, Head of the Department of Unsolved and Utterly Hopeless Cases

****************

Lavendar and Parvati arrived back in the Common Room with the bottle and a mischievous look on their faces.

Hermione immediately seized the bottle from them and ordered them all onto the floor. Draco lowered himself carefully onto the carpet with a disdainful sneer at its condition. Hermione placed herself between Draco and Harry. Ginny sat on Harry's other side, Ron beside her. Parvati sat between Ron and Lavendar.

Hermione placed the bottle in the middle of the circle. She smiled as she pointed it directly at Ron.

"Alright, Spin the Bottle is Muggle game teenagers play. All you do is spin the bottle," she demonstrated, "And you have to kiss whomever the points to when it stops." The bottle stopped, pointing right at Harry.

She laughed casually, and leaned over. Harry kissed her on the cheek swiftly. He blushed red and Ginny grinned at Hermione, and took Harry's hand.

"Now, because we hadn't started yet, Harry didn't have to fully kiss me. But once we begin, none of that peck-on-the-cheek business," Hermione said briskly. "All right, who's going first?"

Nobody said anything. Draco looked at her skeptically and Parvati shot a quick look at Lavendar.

Lavendar saw her and spoke up. "I'll go first." She seized the bottle and spun it.

Around and around it went.

Lavendar held her breath as the bottle began to slow.

The mouth of the bottle pointed at Ron.

Ron looked very uncomfortable. It was common knowledge that Lavendar had been Harry's girlfriend for most of the first term. Obviously, it really was over, because the both of them had moved on to other people, but Ron still felt a little awkward kissing his best friend's ex-girlfriend. It was a very brief kiss; their lips barely touched.

Draco sat there grinning like an idiot. "I think I could get to like this game," he quipped. "Especially if I get to see Weasley look as if he's got a reindeer up his butt."

"Sod off, Malfoy," growled Ron, turning his infamous shade of purpley-red.

"Draco, you're next," announced Hermione.

Draco shook his white-blond bangs from his eyes and put his hand on the bottle. With a swift and graceful flick of his wrist he spun it.

Around and around it went.

Draco held his breath as the bottle began to slow.

The mouth of the bottle pointed at Ron.

Draco blanched. "No—," he said, disbelieving.

Hermione fell over on her side, laughing so hard so could scarcely breathe. Harry grinned in a very Malfoyish manner. Both Lavendar and Parvati looked highly amused.

Ron went from purple to green in a very alarming fashion. "Absolutely not!" he roared.

Hermione subsided into giggles. "Those are the rules, Ron…" she said and went into peals of further laughter at the look on both Draco and Ron's faces.

Draco looked positively nauseas as he said, "Let's just get this over with, Weasley."

Draco pushed aside Parvati and Lavendar and stuck his face in Ron's. It was highly doubtful that their lips even touched, but everyone else was laughing too hard to notice.

A very disgruntled looking Draco settled back into his spot and crossed his arms across his chest. He pouted as he said, "The things I do for you, Granger."

Hermione squeezed his arm in reply. The rest of the group, Ron notably excepted, composed themselves as Hermione spun the bottle.

Around and around it went.

She didn't hold her breath, and it came to a stop pointing directly at Draco.

"Well," he said, matter-of-factly, "That's better."

Hermione turned pink. She leaned over and lifted her face to Draco's.

It wasn't her first kiss, but it was the first kiss where she ever felt anything like what she felt when Draco gently lowered his lips to hers. Fireworks didn't even begin to explain it. The power behind his gentle kiss was amazing and comforting at the same time. She kissed him back, and clung to him just as Ginny had to Harry in the Great Hall earlier. This was the perfect kiss. They broke apart at the sound of a discreet cough.

Ginny smiled slightly at her, but Ron's face was, if this is possible, even more horrified than when he had to kiss Draco. But he said nothing. Hermione didn't notice that Ginny was digging her nails into Ron wrist to keep him from lurching across the room to kill Malfoy. Harry didn't look happy, but he didn't say anything either.

He picked up the bottle and spun it slowly. It landed on Parvati, who gave him an incredibly quick peck on the lips.

Ginny spun and got Harry, whom she gladly kissed.

Ron was next. He looked distrustfully at the bottle before spinning.

Around and around it went.

Ron held his breath as the bottle began to slow.

And, luckily, it landed on Ginny. Hermione graciously granted them an exception to the no-cheek-kissing rule because as she put it, "That's just disgusting."

Parvati then hesitantly spun the glass bottle.

It spun slower and slower and came to a halt pointing at Lavendar.

The two girls smiled at each other.

"I knew I liked this game," put in Draco, grinning evilly.

Lavendar and Parvati leaned in and kissed. And kissed.

And even Ginny's discreet cough didn't stop them.

Draco raised his eyebrows. "Well," he said. He looked at a loss for words.

Harry's jaw hung open and Ron kept shaking his head and rubbing his eyes, as if he didn't believe what he was seeing.

Hermione finally shook them apart. "Guys," she said. "Come on."

They broke away from each other and looked sheepishly at the rest of the group.

"Wha—," sputtered Ron. "How—how--?"

"You are so blind, Ron," said Ginny, rolling her eyes. "Anyone with a pair of eyes could tell. Sorry, dears," she said to Lavendar and Parvati, sounding just like her mother, "But we did know. And congratulations."

Parvati took Lavendar's hand. "We—we weren't planning on telling anyone…" she began.

Lavendar finished the thought. "Yet, anyway," she said. "We—well, you know how well everyone took Cho Chang's er- coming out." She looked a little hesitantly at Harry.

Harry sighed heavily. God, he thought, Every girl I date seems to turn out to be a lesbian. I must be a very depressing date.

Ginny slipped her hand into his and smiled up at him.

Then it hit him. He just had a thing for independent girls. Girls who went after what they wanted and didn't make excuses. Both Lavendar and Cho were like that, and Gin even more so.

He smiled at Lavendar. "Congrats, Lav."

She sighed and nodded gratefully. "Thanks, Harry."

Draco sat up, his eyes bright. "Can we play another round?" He looked eagerly at Lavendar and Parvati.

Lavendar rolled her eyes at him and looked at Hermione. "Actually, Hermione, I'm getting a little tired. I think I'm going to bed."

"All right, dear. I'll be up in a while. I'm tired of playing anyway," replied Hermione. She glanced meaningfully at the others.

Harry nodded and picked up the glass bottle. He threw it into the fire and helped Ginny to her feet. They resumed their snuggly position in Harry's armchair.

Ron snorted in disbelief once more at Lavendar and Parvati and said, "Well, I've got to owl Susan anyway." He went upstairs, muttering. Hermione only caught a few snippets of what he was saying (along the lines of …Malfoy… perfectly outrageous… go brush my face…).

Lavendar dragged Parvati upstairs with a cheerful, "Goodnight, all."

When they were gone, Hermione smiled up at the stairs after them and said, "They need to talk about it. I don't think either one intended to come out tonight."

Ginny agreed. "It's nice to have everything out in the open," she said looking pointedly at Draco.

Hermione went pink again. She pulled herself up onto the couch next to Draco, who, as soon as was allowed, had gotten up off that filthy ragged Gryffindor carpet. He caught the look and slid an arm around Hermione, almost protectively. She leaned against him, instinctively.

All was still and they sank into a calm, comfortable silence.

The momentary peace was not to last.

An enormous owl banged at the window, demanding to be let in. Ginny jumped up off Harry's lap and let the great gray owl in. He snapped at her when she tried to take the letter from him. He flew over to Hermione, who had risen as well. He perched on the arm of the couch. Draco quickly moved his arm to avoid having it taken off. He got up from the couch and stretched his long legs. Harry, sensing something was wrong, got up from the armchair. Ginny went to stand next to him.

What they all knew but weren't saying was that any mail delivered so close to the holiday couldn't be good mail.

Hermione took the letter from the huge bird successfully, and then petted his head for a moment. He allowed her. Then, in a flutter of feathers, he went back out of the window in the direction of the Owlery.

Hermione looked at the single sheet of parchment in her hand. She didn't recognize the handwriting. I do hope everything's all right at home, she thought fleetingly. Oh, dear. Perhaps I've been a little harsh on Mum and Dad. Oh, what if something's happened to them? I should have gone home for Christmas!

She ripped open the letter, which had been simply folded in half and wax-sealed closed.

Dear Ms. Granger,

I know that this will seem a very odd thing to read, but I'm afraid you have to be told. My name is Pierce Oculin, and I am the Head of the Department of Unsolved and Utterly Hopeless Cases. We took on a kidnapping case about seventeen years ago that involved the four-month-old daughter of one of the wizarding world's most prominent families: the Spencers. Their child was mysteriously and seemingly untraceably taken from them. We were anonymously tipped off that you may have a connection with this case, and after considerable backtracking, it is highly possible that you, Ms. Granger, are the child abducted from the Spencers seventeen years ago. I apologize to you for having to deliver this information to you in such a manner. Ms. Granger, I know that this comes as a great shock to you, but we here at the Ministry need your help to determine if you are, indeed, the Spencers' daughter. If you can be present at our Official Inquest, January 3rd, we shall be able to sort out this properly. I have written to Mr. and Mrs. Granger and your Headmaster concerning this. Thank you for your assistance, Ms. Granger, and again, I apologize.

Sincerely, Pierce Oculin, Head of the Department of Unsolved and Utterly Hopeless Cases.

The letter fluttered from her hand.

"Hermione!"

And Draco caught her as she fell.

*************************

A/N :              

Whew! Done! Finally! Sorry this took me so long to get out, but there was a lot of plot development going on in this chapter and I wanted to get it right.

And I would like to say that the bits of Counting Crows ARE relevant to the story. "A Long December" described the hope of a better year because of the new and improved Draco. "Round Here" was a short quote, but I thought the chapter was somewhat setting up this chapter, and therefore, I am carving out my name. As well as Draco, who's carving out his new name; his new self. "Daylight Fading" is talking about Hermione's parents, who wasted all their time with her fighting her and trying to change her and though they want her to ("come and waste another year") and it talks about them realizing they've lost her ("all the anger and eloquence bleeds into fear"). I think the last line's talking about her "day" with the Grangers ending and her new day with the her real parents beginning ("when we see the early signs that daylight's fading…")

Sorry this chapter is so long, but I couldn't finish it somehow; it kept growing. And I would like to warn everybody that my senior paper is due in less than two weeks, so chapter 4 might take a while; hopefully I can work on it this weekend… but we'll see. And for future reference, I'm taking 9 credit hours worth of college classes in the spring, in addition to high school,  so if I don't wrap this story up before then, be warned that I will have NO writing time. But I promise to try.

Hope ya'll liked it! Review! PLEASE!

UP NEXT: Someone dies, we play "Meet the Parents," we find out what Lavendar's sister's name is (finally! And I'll read and review all of the stories of the person who guesses it. D- you don't count since you already know.), we get to meet Hermione's sibs, and we unravel a bit of the mystery surrounding her kidnapping!

STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS!