My Heroin Girl.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of places from JK Rowling's 'Harry Potter'. And I do not own any of the songs used in this fic.
Chapter 1
The summer was warming up as the Hogwarts express slowly moved away from Hogsmeade station, the students were unruly- like they always are when they go home. Hermione was seated in a carriage with her two best friends. She smiled lovingly as their conversation became more animated and loud. She may not contribute to the conversations about Quidditch but she loved to watch the carefree expressions cross their faces and the awe that shone in their eyes when they spoke about certain manoeuvres or teams.
She closed her eyes and thought back to the previous year, she had done so much and learned so much. She had sung in front of some one-she had never done something like that before.
After a while of listening to her friends' conversation she heard the compartment door slide open and the hush of Harry and Ron's discussion.
"What do you want Malfoy?" Ron spat. Harry remained silent, strangely enough so did Draco. Hermione opened her eyes and was met with the intense blue orbs of a Malfoy.
"Nothing." He muttered before he shook his head as though to clear it and turned to leave.
That was the last time Hermione saw Draco Malfoy for another two weeks.
Upon her arrival home from school everything seemed to be wrong for Hermione, her parents were fighting about everything, her friends didn't write to her and deep inside she had a churning feeling, that wouldn't go away.
It was an ever-present burn, just bellow her ribs, and a feeling in her stomach sort of like the coil of excitement and apprehension that every body feels at least once in their lives. Why she had this, she had no idea.
She fled her parents fighting; one summer day fled to the sanctuary of Diagon Alley. A safe haven for her in some way, a place where she could be herself and not have people judge her, saying she was weird, a 'witch' as though it was a bad thing.
Her parents didn't hate her. She knew that. They just hated that they didn't know anything about her anymore. They hated not being the fountain of information about life like they believed all parents were supposed to be.
She was hidden in a dark corner of Flourish and Botts when she saw him again. He was different some how, more jaded maybe. She couldn't tell.
He walked with his head high as he always did, but there was a distinct lack of light in his eyes. He was dressed in tailored robes -like he always was, his hair was immaculate and his face held the expression of superiority that was ever present.
He had glanced at her, nodding slightly before he reached up for one of the top shelves.
They didn't say a thing to each other. He didn't throw an insult or sneer at her, and she didn't comment on the chipped black nail polish, and band of leather around his wrist.
He sat down not too far from her and read a large leather bound book that seemed to whisper to him as he read, though Hermione could hear what it said.
They sat in silence, reading their books and watching each other, Hermione watched as Draco pulled out a warn note book and wrote something on the corner of a page, before slipping it back into his pocket. And Draco watched as Hermione fiddled with the ring she wore on her right hand as though to settle it before she finished the page and turned to the next.
They left at the same time, and that was the first time Hermione noticed the bag that Draco carried with him, it was a muggle messenger bag. He placed the large book in it, and Hermione knew it was enchanted to hold a lot more then it normally would have been able to.
"Where are you headed?" she asked. Draco jumped slightly at her question, not expecting to be spoken to. He looked at her, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hand against his forehead and looking into her eyes as though judging the reaction he would receive.
"Don't know yet. I think I'll know when I get there." He shrugged and let his hand fall away from his face. He leaned his face back basking in the warm sun like a lizard on a rock.
"How can you not know where you're going?" she enquired.
"Because planning ahead is over-rated." At her dubious look he continued. "You could plan to go to New York, or Paris, but when you get there you could find out it's not for you, but by the time you realise this its already to late for you to plan to go some where else. This way I go anywhere I want, until I get somewhere I want to stay." They walked down a couple of sandstone steps into the crowded streets of Diagon Alley;
"What are you looking for?" Draco shrugged and looked over the crowd, deciding to go left or right.
"Home." He stated simply.
"Aren't you already home?" Draco looked at her, and smiled a wistful smile that should have looked out of place on a Malfoy; instead it lightened up his eyes and made him look his age for once, not years older like his hardened mask often portrayed.
"Home doesn't have to be where your family is. Home is where you're free to be who you want to be, to do what you want to do.
Home is where you can sing and dance and not be afraid of anything, home is where you don't have to pretend." They didn't say anything more for a few more minutes before Hermione walked towards him.
"Take me with you. I want to find a home."
And that was how it began, how Hermione found herself on the road in a muggle mustang painted blood red, speeding down a highway towards the afternoon sun. They hadn't said a word of meaning. Draco didn't question her choice and she didn't ask him why he needed to leave.
Hermione watched as Draco pulled a cigarette to her lips and light it. The smoke didn't smell like normal smoke, it was sweeter somehow.
"What is that?" she asked before she could stop herself.
"Just a joint." He stated glancing away from the road ahead to look at her as he offered it to her. She shook her head as she looked at the roll of paper held between his thumb and forefinger.
"Should you be smoking that while you're driving?" Draco shrugged and returned his gaze to the empty expanse of road ahead, taking another deep drag and letting te smoke settle in his lungs before blowing it out his open window.
"Probably not," he paused and grinned mischievously, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye "But it's more fun this way." Hermione roller her eyes and looked out the passenger side window.
:"Your insane." She state though there was a hint of amusement that tinged her voice. Draco snorted in reply and threw the butt out his window.
"Maybe I am." He said a little dreamily, with one hand on the wheel of the car, the other resting precariously on the window sill.
"What will your parents say when they find out your gone?" Hermione looked away from the window and rested on the side of his head where she noticed a piercing in his ear, though no ring or stud was present.
"Don't know. Probably blame each other, or my being a witch." Draco snorted and glanced at her.
"Muggle's think wizards are bad?" he chuckled deep in his throat at that, Hermione rolled her eyes before giggling along.
"Yeah. They think muggle's are so much better." She said after they had both calmed down. Her voice was tinged with an emotion Draco couldn't understand, she almost sounded bitter.
"Yeah well," he resettled himself in the seat, and raised some sunglasses to his face to shield his eyes from the glowing sun, "I still think muggle's are dumb." Hermione smiled and looked out the window once more, feeling for the first time all holidays the burn below her ribs flicker out and the coil in her stomach tighten, before seeming to disappear completely. For the first time all summer; she felt calm.
They drove in silence towards the reddening setting sun.
A/N The first chapter. Please review once you've read. And thanks to all those that reviewed the previous chapter.
Constructive criticism is welcome, and so are complements ; )