Yesterday

Disclaimer: don't own it, never will.

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"I'm sorry Hermione…" Dumbledore said, "They're dead…"

"No…" she whispered, already backing away from the figures in the room.

"There was an attack at the house… it seems He found out where we were hiding. The Death Eaters picked out the weakest of the bunch and killed them off. Moody and the others fought them off, but it was already too late… for your parents," he said.

"No… no…" she shook her head, "It's not… IT'S NOT POSSIBLE!" she yelled, running out of the room.

Draco caught her in the middle of the stone staircase leading down to the hallway and grabbed her around the waist from behind. She struggled against his hold, but nothing fazed him. She fought against him, trying to break free.

"No! It's not true!" she screamed, "They can't be dead! THEY CAN'T! They promised me they'd be safe… YOU PROMISED, REMUS! How could they be… let me go! It's not true! He's lying…" her voice grew weak and she turned to look at Draco, "Tell me he's lying… tell me they're not dead!" she whispered, clutching his shirt in a vise-like grip.

"I- can't…" Draco said, and she collapsed in his arms.

"Will she be okay?" McGonnagal asked.

"I think so… with time," Draco replied.

"Watch her as much as you can, and you, too, Harry," Dumbledore said, "If she tries anything drastic, do everything in your power to stop her."

"Yes, sir," they said.

"Now… take her back to the dorms and see that she gets some rest," Dumbledore ordered.

They complied with haste and laid Hermione in her bed. They sat next to her bed and just watched her. They never said a thing, but had somehow communicated that both were very fond of her, and just wanted to sit with her. The sun set and Harry left, silently. As soon as Harry was gone, Draco climbed into bed next to her and wrapped her in his arms lovingly. She turned over in his embrace and buried her face in his chest.

"I wish I could disappear…" she whispered, startling Draco, who had thought she was asleep.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because…" she said, sounding like a two year old.

"Because why?" he said.

"If I disappeared, then nobody would see me cry… if I disappeared, I wouldn't have to see people die every day in this stupid war. I could pretend that my parents weren't dead and everything would go back to normal," she whispered.

"That's stupid," Draco said, "Could you really abandon everybody you still care about?"

"No…" she admitted, "But I wish I could just disappear for a while… just for a while."

Draco kissed the top of her head. "Run away with me…" he whispered into her ear, and she looked up at him with wide eyes. "Just for Christmas. I own Malfoy Manor, and nobody would expect you there… just for Christmas break?"

Hermione nodded. "I'd like that… I'd like that a lot."

They fell into a deep slumber, holding onto each other tightly, and woke still entangled in each others arms.

The next day was Saturday and it was a Hogsmeade weekend. Hermione decided to play hooky from her assignment and go to the Three Broomsticks with Harry and Ron. They sat down at the bar and Harry and Ron almost immediately picked up a conversation about-what else?- Quidditch. Of course, Hermione wanted nothing to do with it, so she took this time to think.

It seemed just yesterday to her that Draco was calling her a "mud-blood" (still don't like that word), and treating her like the dirt he walked on. She wasn't sure if she should trust him, but she couldn't help that she did. She thought back to all the horrible things he had said and done to her, and how, since their fifth year, they had seemed to grow less and less. She looked into her butter beer and sighed.

"You look like you could use something a wee bit stronger than butter beer, lassie," the new bartender, Ayden, said.

Hermione smiled. "Yeah… you can say that again. But I'm underage."

"Well," Ayden winked, "If you won't tell, then neither will I…"

Hermione smiled. "What do you recommend?"

He opened a clear bottle full of a red liquid. "Wine coolers are what the lassies prefer. They're fruity, so they taste good, and they have a kick to them."

Hermione picked up the bottle- which Ayden had removed the label- and toasted him. "Thanks," she said, taking a large drink. She had downed the whole thing within a few minutes and Ayden replaced it.

Draco walked in about two hours later at nearly eight o'clock, hands in pockets, and stopped dead in the doorway. Hermione was flirting- FLIRTING!- with a tall red-headed bartender. And in her hand was an alcoholic beverage, which he recognized as a wine cooler. (His mother drank them… and often.) He stormed over to where she sat and took the seat next to her.

"What do you think you're doing?" he whispered in her ear, making her jump.

"Nothing…" she said, innocently.

"Nothing my ass! Why, pray tell, are you drinking- that?" Draco demanded.

"It's just juice…" she lied.

"Right… if I weren't so damned kind hearted I would report this and get you fired… but I'm feeling gracious today, so I'll settle for you staying the hell away from my girlfriend," he growled at Ayden, who promptly settled at the other side of the bar.

"Why'd you go and do that?" she asked, "He was rather nice…"

"Give me that!" Draco said, grabbing her drink and, as she made a grab for it, downing it in one gulp.

"Draco!" she exclaimed.

"You don't need it… we're leaving!" he said, grabbing her hand, "Where the hell did Potter and Weasley go?"

"I don't know… probably to meet with Snuffles…" Hermione said, "Shit!"

Not even going to ask… he thought, dragging her out of the pub.

"Where are we going again?" she asked.

"Back to school…" Draco said, "How many of those damn things did you drink?"

"About… six… or seven… somewhere in there," Hermione said, giggling.

Jesus Christ! Why didn't anybody notice? he though, sighing. Better get her back to the dorms before anybody notices how… wasted she is.

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They got back to the Common Room and Draco set her down on the couch. She looked up at him with hazy eyes and smile. She sat up and patted the couch next to her. He sat down reluctantly and Hermione leaned her head on his shoulder.

"You really are too nice to me…" she yawned, "Quit it."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because, it's harder to resist you when you're being nice… I want to hate you like I did in our second year…" she replied.

Draco grinned. "It's hard to resist me?"

Hermione nodded, not catching the mischievous tone hidden in his words. She wrapped her arms around his waist.

"You smell like you just took a bath… do you always smell so clean?" she asked.

Draco chuckled, the sound rumbling in his chest. "Of course I do. It's cause I'm so perfect."

"Magic?" she asked.

He laughed. "You know it. Ah, the glories of being a wizard."

She laid down so that her head rested in his lap. One of her hands lie beneath her cheek, the other on his knee.

"You know why I like you so much?" she asked, trying to keep her eyes open.

"No, why?" Draco replied, stroking her silky hair.

"Because… you make me forget there's a war going on. When I'm with you- like this- I can forget about the Order, and Voldemort, and destiny, and- my parents…" a tear slipped down her cheek when she said this, and Draco brushed it away with his thumb, "How will I ever complete my assignment now?"

"What exactly is your assignment?" he asked, hoping her state of mind would allow her to tell him more.

"I can't say…" she said quietly, closing her eyes, "If I did, Voldemort might come after you… and I don't want that."

Draco sighed, his hopes crushed. "Just sleep, love. I'll get it out of you sooner or later." Hopefully sooner, rather than later…

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Hey! I was listening to EvanEscence's "Hello" while I wrote this chapter, so if it's a little… sad… I'm sorry. Of course if you're a heartless beast like me, you could read and/or write this without a single tear even threatening to spill… lol. Neways, review. Remember… min of 10 reviews. Although I might settle for nine if I feel like being nice.