Authors Note: Ack! Sorry it took so long to update! I was on holidays in Adelaide for a few days ... sorry about that! Anyway, this chapter is a little on the short side, but I should be updating more often again now =) Hope you enjoy!
---
Dinner that night was extremely awkward. Ron was being sort of stand-offish to me, which was confusing Harry enormously. I was thankful that Ron hadn't told Harry that he didn't believe me, but the silence was torture.
I stole a glance over to the Slytherin table, and saw Malfoy looking at me. I meant to look away, but I held his gaze for a moment or two. Pansy Parkinson was obviously trying to get his attention, so he looked away for a moment to glare at her.
When he looked back, he winked.
I could feel the blood rising up to my cheeks, and looked away quickly, hoping he wouldn't notice.
Unfortunately, Harry did.
"Hermione? Why are you turning red?"
I pretended to busy myself with my food, and didn't look at him.
"I'm not turning red, Harry. It must be the light. Why would I be turning red?"
"I dunno. That's why I asked."
I felt something press into my foot, and looked under the table to see that Ginny was kicking me from her seat next to me. I frowned at her, and she flicked her eyes between me and Malfoy for a moment before glaring at me.
Great. She had seen the whole thing.
---
"Ginny?"
I walked over to where Ginny was sitting on the edge of her bed. She looked plenty mad.
"Ginny I-"
"You promised nothing was happening with him!"
"Look, Ginny, lots of really weird stuff is happening and I-"
"Weird stuff? Hermione, this is Hogwarts. In case you haven't noticed, there is always weird stuff happening around here. Doesn't give you permission to be flirting with Draco Malfoy from across the dinner table!"
I closed my eyes to hide my visible flinch. Ginny was irritating me, but I knew why. She was absolutely right. I had been in worse fixes with Harry and Ron on an almost yearly basis, and that had never lead to anything other than friendship. What made Malfoy so different?
"I know. I know it doesn't. And I wasn't flirting with him, I seem to recall, he winked at me, not the other way around" I sighed. "This is really messed up, Ginny. I'm sorry. I don't know what I'm doing."
Slowly, I turned around, attempting to hide the fact that I was starting to cry. It had been an extremely long day, and the last thing I felt I could deal with was one of my very few good friends turning on me because of one little wink.
"Don't you try and play the sympathy card with me! You don't think I know what it's like to fall for somebody you shouldn't? I'm trying to help you!"
My anger flared.
"Help me? This is how you want to help me? By going insane at me when I-"
"Alright, alright" her voice had calmed down. She took a deep breath. "Hermione, just think about this. There is no way, no way, that this can end well. No way."
"I know" I whispered.
---
That night, I had a dream.
I was peering through that very same crack in that very same door, only this time I was watching Draco himself. This time, I was not seeing the past. This time, I feared, I was seeing the future.
"It has come to our attention that you have disobeyed your father's order."
I was watching in horror as Draco Malfoy was strapped roughly to a metal chair, facing away from me. The chair was facing the same scarred and ugly man who had been interrogating his Lucius Malfoy in my first dream. Wilder.
My insides squirmed as I watched Draco flinch. He spoke in a low voice, filled with dread and defeat.
"Yes, I did."
"And you knew the full consequences of your actions?"
"I ... I wasn't informed."
For the first time I noticed that Lucius was watching the scene unfold from a dark corner to Wilder's right. His face was deadpan, which scared me almost as much as the interview. His son was being condemned to death, strapped to a metal chair and meanwhile Lucius' face was totally deadpan. I shivered as Wilder spoke again.
"You knew that the task was for the Rising, therefore you must have known the consequences. I know you are not stupid, boy."
Malfoy nodded, a shock of light hair falling in front of his face. His reflex was to push it out of his eyes, but his hands were tied to the chair. He struggled for a brief moment, and then slumped back. He said nothing.
"Well, it seems your son has chosen his path, Lucius. Guards, take him away."
---
Dinner that night was extremely awkward. Ron was being sort of stand-offish to me, which was confusing Harry enormously. I was thankful that Ron hadn't told Harry that he didn't believe me, but the silence was torture.
I stole a glance over to the Slytherin table, and saw Malfoy looking at me. I meant to look away, but I held his gaze for a moment or two. Pansy Parkinson was obviously trying to get his attention, so he looked away for a moment to glare at her.
When he looked back, he winked.
I could feel the blood rising up to my cheeks, and looked away quickly, hoping he wouldn't notice.
Unfortunately, Harry did.
"Hermione? Why are you turning red?"
I pretended to busy myself with my food, and didn't look at him.
"I'm not turning red, Harry. It must be the light. Why would I be turning red?"
"I dunno. That's why I asked."
I felt something press into my foot, and looked under the table to see that Ginny was kicking me from her seat next to me. I frowned at her, and she flicked her eyes between me and Malfoy for a moment before glaring at me.
Great. She had seen the whole thing.
---
"Ginny?"
I walked over to where Ginny was sitting on the edge of her bed. She looked plenty mad.
"Ginny I-"
"You promised nothing was happening with him!"
"Look, Ginny, lots of really weird stuff is happening and I-"
"Weird stuff? Hermione, this is Hogwarts. In case you haven't noticed, there is always weird stuff happening around here. Doesn't give you permission to be flirting with Draco Malfoy from across the dinner table!"
I closed my eyes to hide my visible flinch. Ginny was irritating me, but I knew why. She was absolutely right. I had been in worse fixes with Harry and Ron on an almost yearly basis, and that had never lead to anything other than friendship. What made Malfoy so different?
"I know. I know it doesn't. And I wasn't flirting with him, I seem to recall, he winked at me, not the other way around" I sighed. "This is really messed up, Ginny. I'm sorry. I don't know what I'm doing."
Slowly, I turned around, attempting to hide the fact that I was starting to cry. It had been an extremely long day, and the last thing I felt I could deal with was one of my very few good friends turning on me because of one little wink.
"Don't you try and play the sympathy card with me! You don't think I know what it's like to fall for somebody you shouldn't? I'm trying to help you!"
My anger flared.
"Help me? This is how you want to help me? By going insane at me when I-"
"Alright, alright" her voice had calmed down. She took a deep breath. "Hermione, just think about this. There is no way, no way, that this can end well. No way."
"I know" I whispered.
---
That night, I had a dream.
I was peering through that very same crack in that very same door, only this time I was watching Draco himself. This time, I was not seeing the past. This time, I feared, I was seeing the future.
"It has come to our attention that you have disobeyed your father's order."
I was watching in horror as Draco Malfoy was strapped roughly to a metal chair, facing away from me. The chair was facing the same scarred and ugly man who had been interrogating his Lucius Malfoy in my first dream. Wilder.
My insides squirmed as I watched Draco flinch. He spoke in a low voice, filled with dread and defeat.
"Yes, I did."
"And you knew the full consequences of your actions?"
"I ... I wasn't informed."
For the first time I noticed that Lucius was watching the scene unfold from a dark corner to Wilder's right. His face was deadpan, which scared me almost as much as the interview. His son was being condemned to death, strapped to a metal chair and meanwhile Lucius' face was totally deadpan. I shivered as Wilder spoke again.
"You knew that the task was for the Rising, therefore you must have known the consequences. I know you are not stupid, boy."
Malfoy nodded, a shock of light hair falling in front of his face. His reflex was to push it out of his eyes, but his hands were tied to the chair. He struggled for a brief moment, and then slumped back. He said nothing.
"Well, it seems your son has chosen his path, Lucius. Guards, take him away."