Sorrow's Ocean
Disclaimer: We do not own Harry Potter! We don't own the Titanic! And we don't own the extract of the song Sorrows Ocean by Helen. Trevellion
Dedicated to Aurorablu
Happy B-Day Sierra!
A/N: This is our first (and probably only) Draco/Hermione fic. Just to let you know, we can tolerate it but are not fans of it. But this is a fic written for our good buddy Aurorablu. Enjoy!
Sorrow's Ocean
This stretch of ocean is her life…
Her ships have sunk to sandy graves…
The lonely winds cry out their sorrows,
The warm horizon brings no joy
A drowning wish beneath the waves…
Tracks left on the sand were the only indication of a presence. The whole beach, hidden and tucked away neatly behind a sheer cliff of rock and coral, was wet. Little shells were left, stranded in the sand, and its owners were already gone.
Barefooted. Her hair was a tangle of curly brown. All she wore was a white nightgown. Her dark brown eyes were anguished. Whilst she stood, she watched the ship slowly sink, still large and solid, but helpless against the relentless waves…
Tears fell from her eyes; making no difference to the gentle waves lapping at her feet except causing soft ripples in the pools of clear water, still floating in the sand. But she was strong, still able to keep herself from fully losing all her faith.
Anxiety mingled with despair as she searched desperately for any sign of him. A breeze picked up, pulling at strands of her long, wavy brown hair. Her nightgown ruffled slightly as the wind gently caressed her broken form.
There were still sounds of shouts. She turned away, unable to bear the sadness. The little cove where she had landed was small, unaccommodating for her. A shallow rock face jutted out of the cove, providing a primitive roof.
Her white gown flared out as she sank to her knees, burying her face in her hands. Sobs racked her body. A steady flow of water from the rock face dripped onto her hair. The rain slowed.
Unable to bear the exhaustion, she fell back against the sand, her cheek brushing the grains of gold beneath her, one arm still stretched out, hoping…calling futilely for a lost family…lost friends…and a lost love…
Later…how much more time did she have left? Her eyes fluttered open, bathed in the warm sunshine falling across her face. Groggily, she sat up, hoping…wishing…that she was still on the ship.
She remembered the lovely oak doors, the wonderful scent of roses and perfume. She remembered the luxurious food and the wonderful music and dancing. The gentle and comforting rocking of the large ship, so safe and strong. And she remembered the people she had met…
Parvati and Padma, all second class passengers-almost first class. They had appeared to her as she leaned against the railings, dressed in identical gowns of pale, rose pink and twinkling sky blue. How much fun they had had discussing clothes and different thoughts.
Neville, a rather clumsy second-class boy she had spotted whilst walking around the bottom deck. Lavender, a kind girl she had seen whilst sitting below deck. Ginny Weasley, a wonderful red-headed third class passenger. She had smiled at the thought of her parent's faces if they had found out.
Fred and George, such entertaining brothers of Ginny. Percy, another one of the brothers of Ginny. Ginny's mother, a wonderfully hospitable woman. And Ginny's father, a great, honest man. And through them, she had met…
Harry and Ron…
Harry, from the second-class passengers had somehow managed to become best friends with Ron, Ginny's last brother. She had bumped into Harry and Ron on her way to see the ocean from so close.
The ocean had felt so tame…so relaxing and peaceful. Those days with Harry and Ron, chatting and laughing, watching time fly by. They had been like brothers to her…even more than brothers. No, she had felt some feelings other than a strong brother and sister relationship for Harry and even Ron but her love had been taken by someone else…
This was when the real tears started falling.
Draco…Originally a stuck up, snobbish boy in her class, the only person she knew from the top deck that was her age. She had been biased about Draco, hearing what Harry and Ron had said.
He didn't notice or care about her. Or so she thought. But that night was to change everything…
000
Her hair was done up in an elegant bun, with curly strands of her smooth, brown hair dangling in front of her face. She was dressed in a silky, light, flowing dress that trailed to the floor.
The bell-like sleeves shielded her shoulders from cold. The whole dress was in layers of comfortable material, with a peachy hue to it. Little diamond earrings dangled from her ears. Leaning against the railing, she revised some French she had been taught whilst in her large estate.
Then, she noticed his presence.
His demeanor and aura, usually shadowed and veiled by a mysterious sort of mist, lurked around him. It was one of the reasons she disliked him. That, and the fact he bore a sneer on his face every time he saw her.
It was as if she was in a lower class, somehow. The worst thing at that time was her parents were completely enraptured with the Malfoy family. She rolled her eyes inwardly. Any fool could tell the latter didn't respect a hair of her family.
And her parents were practically worshipping the Malfoys like they were some kind of god. How could her parents have been so stupid? And that also meant that she was to spend practically all her time on the top deck with him.
She tried to ignore him; focusing, instead, on Harry and Ron's faces. But even their warm and friendly smiles couldn't distract her from the obvious person now standing beside her.
Narrowing her eyes, she gazed out into the ocean, focusing on the waves of dark navy water lapping against the hull of the ship. The light breeze picked up a strand of her brown hair, making it dance in the wake of the element.
Finally, she couldn't stand the cold, grey eyes on her any longer.
Swinging from her position at the railing, she faced him defiantly. The light from the dinner inside flickered and danced on her face, which bore a light frown and a suspicious glare.
"Greetings," He said in an indifferent voice, his cold sneer gone from his face for once.
"What do you want Malfoy?" She demanded, abandoning all pretense of politeness.
"Is it a crime to take a stroll in the Upper deck now?" He shot back at her.
"It isn't," She replied, "Unless you are going to stand near me."
"Are you nervous around my presence?"
"No!" She exclaimed, raising her voice to an unladylike level.
He smirked at her, his grey eyes dancing with triumph. Putting one hand across the rail of the ship, he faced her confidently, with no sign of nervousness or anger.
For her, it was a different story. Fists clenched in and out, debating inwardly whether to shoot some insult at him or walk away. She pictured Ron's angry face and Harry's incredulous one.
All the time, the silvery-black eyes never left her face. It was making her nervous.
"Pray-stop staring at me!" She half shouted.
"Temper, temper," He mocked, another smirk appearing on his face.
She almost screamed with annoyance. Oh, how much she wanted to slap that smug, arrogant face. Instead, she clamped her mouth shut and prepared to stalk away.
Suddenly, an arm shot out and gripped hers.
"Wait."
She froze as Draco Malfoy let go of her arm and walked up to her.
"Look-don't go yet," He said in a tone that was hard to read or identify.
"What?" She snapped irritably.
"Just…don't okay?" He snapped back, his tone irritable and yet, mixing with a strange emotion.
She turned to look at him, her brown eyes surprised. She suddenly realized she hadn't really taken a good look at him for the entire time he had been on the ship. When she had to face him or his family, she would quickly turn away.
He was dressed in a half tuxedo suit, which looked really uncomfortable. His hair was so pale that it didn't really look blonde. It looked creamy, as if his hair had been made of cream. He had a pale face to match his hair, complete with a set of cold, grey eyes.
"Are you going to talk or simply stare at me?" He said coldly, snapping her from her reverie.
"What is it that you want Malfoy?" She said with contempt.
"Don't you snap at me like that," He replied with a sneer.
She rolled her eyes and turned to walk away. This time, he didn't chase after her. Feeling a strange lump in her throat, she fled down to the second-class deck, anxious to find her friends…
000
But that had not been the end of it. The following morning, she had been told that she was to spend an entire day with Draco Malfoy because her parents were off 'talking' with the Malfoys. She had groaned inwardly, sure that 'talking' meant fawning over their money and power.
She had taken a book, Romeo and Juliet, along with her to pass time and, hopefully, use as a distraction to ignore him. She expected him to take no notice of her as she read and fiddled with her rose-shaped bookmark.
What she didn't expect had been that…
000
With a faint flutter, her treasured rose bookmark slipped from the pages and landed right beside where he was sitting. She cursed inwardly, itching to utter some profanities. But she didn't expect him to bend down and gently pick up her bookmark.
What she did expect him to do was toss the rose back to her carelessly and get on with staring far into the horizon. She put on an angry frown as her fingers narrowly caught the treasured item, inches away from falling into the ocean, lost forever.
She sighed in relief as the light of the setting sun bathed her face in its orange glow, lost in the beautiful tranquil wonder. Closing her eyes, she relaxed in the light, unaware that Draco Malfoy was watching her with apparent confusion and empathy.
000
That had been the trigger. She felt a sob rise up her throat as she remembered the first time she had ever faced the gentle side of him.
000
"Beautiful sunset isn't it?" He commented, completely out of the blue.
"Yes…" She said slowly, wondering if this was a trick or ruse.
"Will you be here tomorrow?"
"What?" She asked rather rudely for her class, shocked at this strange question. And coming from the mouth of the normally stuck-up Draco Malfoy! Where was the world coming to?
"I asked: Will you be here tomorrow?" He repeated slowly.
"I-I probably will," She stammered, eyes still wide at this strange example of genuine politeness.
He nodded.
"Good."
000
More tears spilt from her eyes, dripping onto the water and sand. He had come everyday and, slowly, she had found a strange liking to him. She had not known and still didn't know why she had gradually begun to look forward to seeing him, leaning against the railing.
They had quite a lot in common, though he never admitted it. But she trembled as the unbidden memory, the memory of the day Harry and Ron had found out this 'secret' meeting, the day when she and Draco had almost kissed, shot into her mind.
000
Their faces were an inch apart. She was trembling so badly with fright and nervousness she felt nostalgic. She could feel his breath on her face. Shuddering, she gripped her hands into a tight fist.
It was then the door burst open, jolting the two teenagers out of their almost hypnotic trance. She screamed. He flung himself away from her. There, in the wake of the sound, stood Ron, his eyes blazing with anger.
Then, she could see Harry, standing behind Ron, an incredulous look upon his face. Shock and hurt blazed in his emerald eyes. Ron, however, looked almost mad. His eyes were blazing with pure fury.
She felt Draco edge away from her and stood up, her legs unused to the sudden weight. Without looking at her, Ron marched into the room, ignoring her pleas, and slapped Draco, apparently, with all the strength he could muster.
"RON!" She could hear the combination of her and Harry's yells.
All she could see was Draco, lying on the floor, pain filling his silvery eyes… She tried flinging herself across from the boy and yelling for Ron to stop but Harry held her back, his emerald eyes blazing.
"Draco!"
000
Her eyes snapped open in shock and fear as she suddenly realized something large was floating somewhere to her left. Springing up, she took a closer look at the object. Her hand flew to her mouth in fear as she distantly recognized the figure.
Sprinting as fast as she could, she rushed into the cold water, ignoring the numbing pain in her leg and hauled the object shore. It was a body…a human body! Her eyes widened and filled with tears as she saw the familiar shade of white-blonde hair.
"No," She found herself moaning as she heaved him ashore, "No…"
It was Draco. But how changed! His pale skin had paled even further to a deathly white. His clothes were worn and tattered and his blue lips weren't moving.
Please don't be dead…Tears spilt onto his unconscious face as she bent over him, crying and sobbing. More memories hit her, like a barrage of arrows.
000
"You like him don't you?" Harry's low voice reached her ears, filled with pain, hurt, shock but also a knowing tone.
"I-I don't know anymore," She replied, sobbing.
"I knew it," Harry said, talking to no one in particular.
"I-I'm so sorry Harry…I-I didn't know…"
He faced her, emerald eyes no longer angry, but sad. Her heart felt like shattering at the deeply mournful look he gave her.
"I can't change who your heart belongs to. But I want you to know-"
CRASH!
000
It was when the boat had hit. She had never found out what he had wanted to say. And she probably would never find out. But there was no time dwelling on those thoughts.
Her tear-stained eyes shot open as she saw a faint twitch of his hands. Grabbing onto them in a full panic mode, she willed him to wake up, to assure her with those eyes and even that sneer.
"Please Draco…please!"
Then slowly, those grey eyes opened, filled with deep sadness and despair-an expression rarely seen on him. The orbs focused on her tear-streaked face and closed.
"No! Don't leave! Please!"
He opened his eyes again, a shadow of warmth in his eyes. It shocked her so much she stopped crying. Then, those blue lips moved, letting loose a voice long forgotten.
"I'm sorry…"
"No! Please! Don't!"
His eyes closed again, a deep breath escaping from his mouth, his last breath of life, air and feelings. The waves lapped at their feet, hungrily reaching out for their victim and sacrifice.
"Draco…no…" She sank beside him, crying into her hands.
His hand tightened against hers. Squeezing his eyes shut, she watched as, with a sigh of almost pure relief, his life fluttered away from his body.
"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…Hermione…"
This stretch of ocean is her life
She's all alone, to face the tide
The lonely winds cry out their sorrows,
Driving to the empty skies
Fading dreams where hope has died…
A/N: Once again, happy birthday Sierra! Hope you like this! And please review people! Whether it's a compliment, suggestion, flame, anything is welcome! And this was written by me, Eternal Phoenix as a gift for my close friend Sierra (Aurorablu). Hope you've liked my attempt at a Dramione fiction because I am not a D/Hr shipper. Basically, it's been interpreted from the Titanic incident. And it's an AU fic.
Cheers!
Eternal Phoenix