This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
A/N: This was what popped into my head after reading a plot bunnie on FAP. The specific plot bunnie is "Malfoy is in Divination Class when Trelawny makes a prediction. You choose if it's real or not, Malfoys reaction, etc., but the prediction must be about that certain someone he loves, which has now been revealed to the other Slytherins!"
Predicted
The Rescue
Pansy was one of those Slytherins. She watched as two Gryffindor boys entered, and grew more worried when she noticed that they were missing their third part. That was the strange part: a Slytherin caring for the well being of a Gryffindor.
She decided to seek help from the only person that she knew could help in this situation. She went to find Draco.
He was found wandering a corridor, obviously on duty. But as soon as she relayed the information that she had, he raced through the corridor and out of the castle. She had known for sure that Draco really did love Granger when she saw his expression after Nott had called Granger a Mudblood. She was fine with it, though she didn't like Granger very much. Draco deserved to be happy for once, after all the crap he had put up with, with his father.
-IV-
Draco swept through the grounds, searching for Hermione. His heart was pounding, hard, against his chest as he thought of all the terrible things that could have happened to her. He couldn't believe this was happening. Why would someone do that?
The first place he searched was the lake, since that was where Pansy had said she'd seen her last. He did not see anything at first, but then, an object caught his eye. It was still in an area that was considered shallow, so he waded out, worry etched on his face. If it was Hermione, there was no way she was still alive. Her face would be underwater, and there would be no way for her to take in oxygen. But, as he reached the object, he found it was not Hermione, and sighed in relief. She could still be alive. The thought made him move quicker through the water, as he thought of the next area to search.
Where would someone go to get rid of someone on Hogwarts grounds?
And then he knew. As he got out of the water, he looked towards the Forbidden Forest. It looked eerie, grim, and uninviting. All kinds of dangers lurked within the shadows, and Draco was scared. But he took in a breath, to try to calm his racing heart, and started to walk slowly towards the edge of the forest.
He scanned the area slightly, looking for danger and any sign of Hermione. When none could be found, he ventured a little deeper into the forest. Igniting a light with a whispered lumos, he waved it over likely hiding spaces without result.
He was just about to leave the area when he heard a slight rustle. Following his instinct and ears, he made his way towards a small clearing. There, he found a centaur standing in the middle. It was looking down at something.
Draco tried to enter the clearing as quietly as possible, so as not to alert the centaur, but he was heard nevertheless. The centaur turned to look at him, and Draco recognized him as the one from first year. As Draco tried to slowly approach the centaur, it took on a defensive stance, all the while remaining quiet. So Draco stopped, not wanting to upset him further.
"I won't hurt you," said Draco.
The centaur looked skeptical, but turned slightly, showing Draco what was hidden from view behind his body. And Draco was filled with relief.
It was Hermione, and though she looked battered and bruised, she was still alive. She was unconscious, but breathing, even if they were shallow breaths.
He raced forward immediately, wanting to take Hermione back to Madam Pomfrey, to make sure everything was really all right. But the centaur blocked him again. For a moment, Draco stood there, confused. And then he realized why the centaur acted so protectively.
"Look, a lot has changed over the years." Draco said calmly. "I am not the same boy that you met. I don't mean any harm to either one of you. I just want to get Hermione back to the castle and make sure she is really all right."
"And how will I know that for sure?" Firenze asked, finally breaking his silence. "How will I know that, once you are out of my sight, you will not harm her?"
"I swear," Draco paused, searching his brain for something to swear on, "I swear on my pride that I will not harm her once out of your site."
Firenze looked appeased by this, and moved out of the way.
"Thank you." Draco murmured, as he knelt down by Hermione, and cradled her head.
He gave her a quick look over, trying to make sure she was okay to be moved. When he was satisfied that moving her would not cause anymore damage, he picked her up and began to make his way out of the forest. He soon realized that Firenze was following him and stopped.
"You don't trust me?" asked Draco.
"That is not it. I don't trust the creatures that roam the night, in this forest," replied Firenze. "I'll walk you to the edge of the forest, to be safe."
Draco nodded.
-IV-
"Harry, she's coming over," said Ron, nervously.
"Who is?" Harry asked, looking around.
"Harry! You know. Her."
"Oh. Her." Harry tried to stifle a laugh.
"Harry, it's not funny!" Ron gulped, as she got closer.
"Oh Ron, just ask her out already!"
"But she's in Slytherin! It won't work."
Harry gave Ron a look that called him all kinds of coward.
"It won't work!"
"How do you know if you don't try? You're in Gryffindor, for Merlin's sake! One of-"
"Hello boys." The subject of their conversation interrupted.
"Err..." Ron stammered. "Hello, Pansy. I mean, Parkinson. I mean..."
Pansy quirked a small smirk.
"Parkinson." Harry said, more calmly. "What do you want?"
"I think that you two should get to the infirmary right away," she replied, looking grim again.
"Why?"
"It's a long story, that I'll explain later. But the main thing is, Hermione's been injured."
"What!" Both boys exclaimed, jumping out of their seats.
Pansy nodded. "Go, now."
Both boys nodded at her, and then got of their seats and left the Great Hall, not even thinking about the fact that Pansy was a Slytherin and could have been lying. Once out of sight of the professors, they began to run through the halls, their worry defined across their faces.
-IV-
Draco crossed the grounds and raced through the castle in record time. If this wasn't such a dire situation, he'd be patting himself on the back for his accomplishment. But it was, and so he didn't. Instead, he began to pound on the infirmary door, waiting for Madam Pomfrey. In all his racket, he did not realize that he had woken up the patient in his arms.
"Malfoy?" Hermione whispered, questioningly. Her face showed her pain, as she spoke.
"Shh. Don't worry." Draco tried to reassure her. "You're at the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey should be here any minute now."
Hermione stared at Draco, still questioningly, until Madam Pomfrey appeared.
"Dear Lord!" Madam Pomfrey exclaimed. "What happened?"
"I'm not exactly sure." Draco replied, before Hermione could, trying to keep her from anymore pain. "But I know Hermione is in a lot of pain. You can see it in her face."
"Yes, yes." Madam Pomfrey agreed. "I'll give her a sleeping potion, so that she won't feel the pain. Bring her in and set her down." She motioned towards a bed towards the back of the room.
"She's going to be all right, isn't she?" Draco asked, worriedly, as Madam Pomfrey looked Hermione over.
"Should be. But she'll have to stay here for a couple of days."
"All right."
Draco watched as Madam Pomfrey administered the sleeping potion. Hermione tried to spit it out, because it pained her to swallow. But Madam Pomfrey eventually got her to drink it all. Draco stayed by her side, until she fell asleep, which didn't take long. Madam Pomfrey took pity on Hermione, and had made the potion a bit stronger, allowing it to take faster effect.
He watched her for a while, looking so serene as she slept. But soon he noticed the time and realized that he needed to get back on duty. He looked at her one last time, and made a spontaneous decision. Leaning down, he gave her a light kiss on the lips, and then left.
As he was leaving, he ran into Potter and Weasley.
"Malfoy!" Both boys exclaimed.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Harry asked.
"I was helping someone in need."
The boys gaped at him.
"Close your mouth boys. It's not very attractive." Draco said, as he began to walk away.
"Wait a minute Malfoy," Ron said. "You didn't have anything to do with Hermione, did you?"
Malfoy paused, contemplating if he should tell or not. He decided not to, and started walking away again.
This angered Ron, slightly, and caused him to imulsively shout, "Stay away from Hermione! I don't care about the damn prophecy! You better not have hurt her!"
"Maybe in the past, but not now." Malfoy said, cryptically, as he continued walking away.
A/N: What did you think of that? That was the longest chapter so far. Wow.
Still looking for a beta-reader. Email me if you're interested.
Constructive criticism would be greatly appreciated. ;
TBC