Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. JKRowling does. But you all knew that anyway.
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Belinda asked them about their day as they sat having dinner and Hermione found herself answering the questions quite cheerfully. She left out the part at which the two of them had sat together on the tree trunk, making it sound as though they had spent a peaceful afternoon walking through the forest. Belinda told them how pleased she was that they had sorted out their "little misunderstanding".
Hermione sat on her bed that evening, reading the book she had started earlier that day. She felt much happier than she had for months, but couldn't really think why. There came a knock at the door and she went over to open it. Malfoy stood outside. He held a Wizard's Chess Set and looked a bit awkward.
"Hi" he said, attempting to cover up the fact that he was not at all at his ease in the situation.
"Hi" Hermione replied, trying not to smile. She could not help finding the situation amusing. Malfoy had never appeared uneasy or awkward in front of her before. He had certainly never looked as though he didn't know what to say, the word "Mudblood" always coming easily to his lips.
"Belinda thought you might be lonely" Malfoy said, confirming Hermione's suspicions that he was there on Belinda's suggestion. "I thought you might like to play chess".
Hermione had never really liked chess. She had never been very good at it and because of this had little time for it. She didn't want to turn him away though when he was obviously trying hard to be friendly.
"Ok" she said, smiling at him and stood back to let him into the room. She sat down on the carpet and Malfoy sat down near her. He put the board between them and busied himself arranging the pieces.
"I'm not much good at this" Hermione warned him and was pleased when he grinned at her. She had not been looking forward to sitting playing this if Malfoy insisted on avoiding looking at or talking to her.
"I can teach you" he told her "I used to play all the time when I was at home. My mother - " He stopped abruptly and Hermione quickly changed the subject.
"I've never really played much" she said and Malfoy looked grateful that she had covered up the awkward moment. He started giving her tips the improve her playing.
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As the evening wore on, Hermione found that she was actually starting to enjoy the game. Malfoy was very good at it and the first game was won within fifteen minutes. On the second game, he started showing her where she was going wrong and a few hours later, she was playing without his guidance. He still managed to beat her, but it got to be a narrower win every time.
What surprised Hermione even more was that as time passed, she was starting to enjoy Malfoy's company. He became easier to talk to and they both started to enjoy themselves. Belinda came in at one point with drinks and some snacks for them, obviously delighted at the way they were chatting and laughing together.
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It was late in the evening before Malfoy left and Hermione was surprised to find that she was reluctant to pack away the game and say goodnight. She had enjoyed the evening immensely. She hadn't laughed so much for months.
Malfoy turned as he reached the landing. He smiled at Hermione.
"Goodnight Granger" he said and turned to go.
"My name's Hermione" Hermione called after him smiling and he turned back to her.
"Ok" he said grinning. "Goodnight Hermione"
"Goodnight Draco" she replied and closed the door, feeling very pleased with the way the evening had gone.
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Hermione found it easier to talk to Draco every day and soon found that he was interesting to talk to and had a good sense of humour. She enjoyed his company and he was becoming a much nicer person. She hardly ever cried anymore, though she had in no way forgotten Harry. She was still sad about it sometimes, but the pain had lessened and she found herself able to remember the happy times without letting her mind dwell on the pain of his death.
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Draco woke early one morning. The house was quiet. It was too early for anyone else to be up and about. He went over to the window and drew back the curtain to look at the sunrise. The sky was orange and yellow. I looked like being a bright, warm day.
He was just about to let the curtain fall back into place, when Draco's eyes fell on a something that alarmed him. Hermione was sitting on the garden bench below him, her face red and swollen, tears pouring down her face. Draco had never seen her so upset.
He pulled on some clothes quickly and ran down the stairs, making as little noise as possible. He opened the door and let himself out into the garden.
Hermione looked up when she heard the click of the door closing and quickly tried to wipe the tears from her eyes. They kept coming, defying her efforts to stop crying and she gave up the attempt.
Malfoy sat down beside her on the bench.
"What's wrong?" he asked softly, putting an arm around her. Hermione could tell he was worried about her.
"It's so cruel" she sobbed. "Why did he have to die? He was so young" She shook uncontrollably and Draco reached out and put his arm round her. She was surprised, but grateful all the same. She leaned her head on his shoulder, comforted by his presence.
"Today would have been his birthday" she said, her voice blurred by the sobs. "He shouldn't be dead. He had his whole life ahead of him."
Draco felt helpless. The sight of Hermione so unhappy made him desperate to help her, but he knew he couldn't. He sat with his arm around her until she quietened and stopped shaking.
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That day was perhaps the worst of all the days she had experienced since Harry's death. She could not stop crying and spent a lot of time in her room, lying on her bed and simply staring into space. Draco came into her room about noon and set up a game of wizard's chess in an attempt to distract her, but she could not keep her mind on the game. She did not feel like eating anything and Belinda became quite worried about her. She asked Hermione if there was anything she would like, hoping to tempt her to eat something, but Hermione didn't want anything.
Looking back, Hermione knew that if it hadn't been for Draco, she might have killed herself that day. His attempts to distract her failed, but he offered her a shoulder to cry on and she was very grateful.
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That evening, just as Hermione was thinking it was time to go to bed, someone knocked on her door. She called to them to come in and Draco opened the door.
Hermione got up and went over to him.
"I just came to see how you were" Draco explained, obviously relieved to see that she wasn't crying. Hermione managed a strained smile at him.
"I'm ok" she said and Draco smiled.
"Goodnight then" he said and made to leave. Hermione put a hand on his arm and he turned back.
"Thank you" she said, her voice unsteady again. "I couldn't have survived without you." Her eyes clouded over again and Draco put his arms around her. She put her head on his shoulder again, just like she had done that morning, once again, comforted by him. She managed to stop herself from crying and was about to pull away from Draco when he pulled her closer and kissed her.
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Author's Note: I know Alice (FakeDoll) is going to kill me for this shipping, but I'm writing it anyway. I hope that didn't get too lame towards the end.
FakeDoll: Stop trying to kill off my characters gruesomely Oo . Isn't Avada Kedavra bad enough:P
Rizahawkeye21: Updated as quick as I could. I'm glad you like my fic and hoped you liked this chapter.