A/N: This is my second attempt at a Draco/Hermione, the first having been an utter failure that I didn't even bother to finish writing. We'll see how this one goes. I'm having a lot of trouble with it right now, due to the loose-ended nature of the story. It's much easier to carry on a series past its completion rather than finish it, since you can have as much or as little plot as you'd like. With something like this, unless you AU it, or gloss the plot entirely (which most people tend to do, and nothing against it, but I'm obsessive compulsive and a perfectionist, so glossing doesn't cut it for me), it's awful to try to write something convincing about something we know is never going to happen in canon. I wrote myself into about six different corners while working on this first chapter alone, and they were bloody difficult to get out of.
Important Note: The Godric's Hollow that appears in this story is of my own design. I'm basing it solely off of the little information that we were given in the books. If anyone has information from JK in interviews and such about Godric's Hollow, feel free to send it my way. This doesn't mean I'll listen to you, as my set-up is one of the few things I actually like about this story so far, but at least I won't be writing ignorantly. It says in Prisoner of Azkaban that Hogsmeade is the only entirely non-muggle settlement in Britain, so I knew that I had to include muggles somehow, but it didn't feel right to have them totally integrated in a place that practically screams Gryffindor as its founder. Thus, the "together yet separate" idea came to me. The town is, as of yet, unnamed because I was too lazy to look at a map of England. If anyone ever wants to use my Godric's Hollow, please feel free, but give me credit (as well as the story name so I can see what you've done with it!).
A few people looked up as the petite girl walked in the door of the pub. There was nothing special about her, being neither ugly nor stunning, dressed in clothing so plain as to not attract too much attention in either the wizarding or muggle world, so the patrons turned disinterestedly back to their own food, drink, and company. Pulling a few notes out of the rucksack slung over her left shoulder, she ordered a large glass of juice from the man wiping glasses with a towel. She took a seat at a table by herself in the corner, one of the few places in the room where the afternoon sun glaring through the large front window would not blind her. Placing the sack against the wall, she slouched in her chair, thankful to be out of the merciless summer sun. She thanked the man when he brought her drink, and took a long sip before reaching into her beg and pulling out a slightly crumpled piece of paper. Though she'd memorized the words already, her eyes scanned the words again and again.
Dear Hermione,
I know you and Ron were planning to come with me, but I've thought it over, and I think going out alone is for the best. It's the same as it was with Ginny. Voldemort's going to try to use you to get to me, and I don't want to put the people I care about in that kind of danger. Stay with the Weasleys and the Order, they'll protect you. Goodbye.
Love,
Harry
Hermione sighed and returned the letter to its place in her bag. Her mind wandered, returning to the night she'd received the letter. She had been packing away the last of her things, as she was due to meet Ron at the Dursley's in two hours' time to pick up Harry. It was July 30th, just after ten o'clock at night. The spells on Number Four Privet Drive would end at midnight, Harry's birthday. He would be moving immediately to The Burrow, where the three of them would plan out how they would search for the remaining horcruxes. She had just finished her own things and was beginning on a bag for Crookshanks when an owl rapped sharply on her window with its beak. Curious, she opened the window and untied the parchment from the small, tawny bird's leg. The bird took off without waiting for a reply, though Hermione didn't notice anything but the letter she held. Quickly, she scribbled a goodbye note to her parents, not wanting to take the time to run downstairs to explain the change of events. She gathered up the smallest clothes bag she had, a bit of money, her wand, and Crookshanks, and apparated out of her room. She absolutely hated the sensation, but she needed to get to The Burrow immediately.
She arrived outside the Weasley's large house moments later. She shook her head to clear the slight dizziness and knocked loudly on the door, calling for Ron.
"Hermione! Have you heard from Harry?" Ron had rushed to the door, waving a piece of parchment similar to the one in Hermione's hand as she set Crookshanks and her bag down on the floor.
"Yes, I have," she'd replied. "Calm down, Ron."
Ron had been anything but calm, his ears and cheeks beginning to turn red with unvented anger. "We're his best mates! How could he do this? We were supposed to go with him, help him!"
"I know, Ron. That's why he felt he had to leave. Before us, he didn't really have anyone who cared about him, and I think a part of him is still having trouble getting used to the idea."
"He can't just get away with this, Hermione! He can't face everything alone like that!"
Hermione took a deep breath and glanced around the room at the other Weasleys, who had followed the shouts to find out what was going on. "He won't. We'll have to find him. But we can't just go about willy-nilly. We have to have a search method."
Everyone sat around the kitchen table. Hermione began to scribble on a piece of parchment Molly had put in front of her as she thought aloud. "There won't be many of us to spare, with jobs and the wedding in a couple weeks…"
"I'll talk to Bill and Fleur about that in the morning, perhaps something can be arranged," Molly interrupted.
Hermione nodded, continuing to scribble and mutter. "He'd said he wanted to go to Godric's Hollow first, but who knows how much ahead of us he already is… It's possible that he's already looking for the horcruxes, particularly the locket… He may be using Sirius' house as a form of base when he needs to…"
"So what do you think we should do, then?" Ginny had asked her, slowly processing the young woman's words.
"Perhaps, Ginny, if you could get Tonks to stay at Sirius' house with you, in case he turns up there? We should keep Fred and George on the lookout for him in Diagon Alley, since they have the shop to run. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, you should stay here, in case anything happens. You can keep us informed of news in the Order as well."
"What about you and me, Hermione?"
"Harry said he wouldn't go to Hogwarts again, but I think we should check there just in case. I think you should be the one to go there, Ron. Godric's Hollow is going to involve a lot of work around muggles, and I do know that side of the world better."
Arthur cleared his throat, voicing the worry evident on both his face and Molly's. "Are you sure it's wise to be traveling alone? I'd think it'd be better if there were at least two of you."
"It would be safer, perhaps, but harder to move undetected. It's easier to sneak and run, should it come to that, by yourself than to have to watch out for someone else. We'll all keep periodic communication, as much as we can. Owls have a somewhat unnatural knack for finding people, even if they're on the move."
"You're set in this plan, then?"
"I think it's the best chance we've got, but I'm open to suggestion. I'll meet with Ron in two weeks' time at Hogwarts, if nothing's happened in that space of time. Hopefully we'll be able to use the library there to work on the horcruxes."
Hermione had left shortly after that, giving Molly and Arthur her home address along with a request that they retrieve Crookshanks' things and watch over him. Before disapparating, she'd left them with a final warning: "Make sure that no one knows more than they have to, even among friends. If Voldemort finds out we're after the horcruxes, Harry won't stand a chance." She had disapparated from The Burrow seconds later with her bag, traveling to a small alleyway near King's Cross Station. She retrieved some more notes from her bank account using the machine before buying a ticket on the next train to a small town about halfway to her destination. It would have been unwise to apparate the whole way to Godric's Hollow, partly because the magic might attract unwanted attention, but mostly because she didn't know the area very well. She'd decided that she would take the train part way, stop over at the town, and then continue the rest of the way by muggle bus the next day. Her travel had gone relatively unhindered, except for the extra hour she'd been forced to spend on the train due to some wayward sheep along the track, and she'd finally arrived at Godric's Hollow, where she now sat. Taking another long drink of her juice, Hermione looked around the pub, known as The Hanged Griffon. Godric's Hollow, she'd read, was a small wizarding neighbourhood of a few large blocks on the east edge of a muggle village. The pub, run by wizards but catering to both wizard and muggle customers alike, was the hub of all the protective spells around the neighbourhood. The spells themselves were relatively simple, much like the ones that had been protecting the Quidditch World Cup area, making muggles suddenly remember something they'd forgotten to do somewhere else and the like. However, being a residential area instead of a temporary campground, the spell required semi-frequent re-casting, which the family running The Hanged Griffon had been in charge of for generations.
Finishing her drink in two more gulps, Hermione hoisted her bag back over her shoulder, pushed the small wooden chair back under the little round table, and exited into the street. She began to roam the streets, making sure to mentally note the direction she went in. Upon arriving, she'd asked an employee at the station for directions to the pub, as well as any nearby inns. The woman had listed three, all privately owned and run. Hermione hoped that a room would be available for at least a few days in each. She knew it was foolish to count on a room being available for almost a full two weeks, but she didn't want to have to change inns every other night. She found one of the inns, the Lilyrose, on a corner three blocks away from the pub. It seemed like a decent place, light brown brick with white trim, French doors, and a large sign with a white lily painted in great detail on it.
"Good afternoon," said the woman at the front desk with a smile. "Welcome to the Lilyrose Inn. How can I help you?"
Hermione smiled back. "Well, I need a room, but I'll be in town for some time, and you probably don't have anything free for long…" she trailed off, eyes pleading.
"Actually, your luck is better than you think. This is our off season, because everyone takes their holidays across Europe or by the sea. How long were you looking to stay?"
"Until the 12th, hopefully."
The woman tapped a few keys on her keyboard, brushing aside a few strands of her short blonde hair. "And it's just yourself, I presume?"
"Yes," she replied, nodding. She could scarcely believe her luck. Staying in one place was probably not the safest idea, but it would be much easier to collect information on Harry's whereabouts working out of one location. Besides, she doubted she would run into much trouble here. It was far more likely that Voldemort was building power and followers than searching for her.
"We have a room available that should suit you fine. It's a small, single-bed room with complete water closet facilities. Will that do?"
"That would be wonderful. Thank you very much."
Once the necessary information had been collected, Hermione took her key and slowly began to climb the narrow, wooden stairs to the third floor. The stairs and banister were the same oak-stained wood as the desk had been, and the walls were painted the same cream colour. The fatigue that she hadn't yet felt from the last two nights of sleepless worry finally hit her as she walked up the last flight of stairs and down the short hallway to her room, the only room on the floor. She slung her bag on the floor in front of the small oak dressing table as she flopped heavily onto the bed. She barely had time to register the overdone floral theme of the room before her eyes slammed shut. She woke once, hours later, to groggily seek out a small supper before returning to her bed. She would begin her search the next day.
A/N: Overall, I'm not terribly pleased with this chapter. I think it's the large amount of expositorial writing that bothers me. While necessary to the story, it's really boring. Except the sheep. They were completely unnecessary to the story. But they show how bored I was, that I had to plug them in to make it a bit funnier. I don't do drama (a strange phrase to be coming from a Theatre student). I've decided that, in order to make this work, we'll abandon plot for a while in Godric's Hollow to focus on the Draco/Hermione stuff, and then move forward with the plot until the two can finally connect. By next chapter, it should be better. Plus, it'll have Draco (I think), which always makes things better. Don't expect an update soon, though, because like I said in the beginning, this is not an easy writing job for me.
Let me know what you thought, but please, no senseless flames. They only show your utter lack of intelligence. If there is some way to improve this, or if you spot any typos in my writing (a normal occurrence, I assure you), do let me know!
Aindel S. Druida