Disclaimer:
Draco: We finally get a battle scene next chapter!
Hermione: It took a hell of a long time. I almost thought that she would make us hold hands forever.
Harry: You've done much worse in other fics.
Hermione: What did I do? Did he put his arm around me all the time or something?
Draco: I put my arm around you all the time in this fic.
Hermione: Yeah, you do. Get some deodorant, ok?
Harry: (Snigger)
Draco: So when do you figure JKR will be back from wounding the author?
As you can see, I wasn't present to steal anything in relation to the Harry Potter world.
……………………………………………………………………
Author's Note: Well, it's been a while. I know I haven't updated in a while, but I had no clue how to write this chapter. I wanted to keep it as light as possible, but I soon gave up after realizing that the battle scene next chapter would suck if I kept it light and fluffy. I even tried getting half the battle in this chapter, but I rushed the in between stuff that was much needed build up to the end. I'm also just trying out the angst and ling, detailed writing to see if I'm good at it. I thinking of writing a one-shot as angsty, so I just wanted to experiment. I also wanted to see if I could stir emotion, cause all good writers do. Well, anyway, I hop you enjoy.
Thanks to:
Medievalrynn: Glad you liked it. What site were you talking about. It didn't appear on my review page.
Sammeh: Thankyou for understanding. I hope this satisfies you a bit, though it's not without a cliffy.
Drama Queens Rule: Thank you for liking my disclaimers, though it wasn't my original idea. Better and older author's came up with it, and I just thought it would be amusing to do so too.
Alenor: Yeah, real life does get in the way of our fanfiction world. If it were me, I would forget Ron too, but the plot needs him, as does she.
potc-and-hpfan: Ron is immature at the momment. I hope this chapter is the breakthorugh chapter for him.
luver19: Actually, your idea was what I originally had in mind, but I read four stories where the same thing went on, so I decided to be different.
blondestbrunette: Glad you like the last chapter more than I did.
cargarbinx: I wish I could put Ron in a freak accident, because I hate writing him in thisstory, but he is necessary.
starrish and eyed: I'm 14 actually, as of February. I'm glad you think I should become a writer, but I don't have the attentionn spanfor it. I don't even know how I got motivated to finish this, butit's almost done!
Hearts and All: I know they're out of character (although it was nice to hear why they were from you, becaue usually ppl just tell me they were out of charater), and I wish I hadn't started the story off that way. I've grown rather fond ofthe Hermione I've written though.I'm going to go back and edit chapters after I'm done to change Draco a little though. Oh, and Hermione does study.I just mostly write about the times that she's in the workroom, which is probably an hour or two in her day (Except when Gryffindor was mad at her). I do appreciate your criticism, because you didn't bring my story down like people I had in the earlier chapters. So, all and all, thank you.
black padfoot: Yeah, I'll try to specify more for you. I hope this chapter is better.
frifri: Yes, Ron is quite the PMSer in this story. I was kind of hoping thatall the fluff would help them get in love by the end of the battle, but that didn't work out too well, so I'm going to go edit last chapter after this story is done.
Well, I wish I could thank all of you, but that would deprive you of this chapter even longer. Well, i hope you like my experimental dark (or at least as much as I tried to make it) part.
……………………………………………………………………
Ever since that talk with Ron, the humor has been sucked out of my life. I've had to be cautious and serious with Harry, cautious and surprisingly romantic with Draco, and just plain cautious around Ron. In fact, I've had to be cautious in order to avoid bumping into him. My hope was that he would somehow eventually forget about our bet or at least get some sense to not continue on with it.
I was wrong.
A week before I've had to break up with Draco, I received the dreaded reminder by way of owl. The only thing the note said was 'You have a week.' I wanted to burn Pig and give him to the spiders at the rudeness of his note. Unfortunately, I was fond of his owl, so I could only dream.
This did cause a panic within me though. Ron's stubbornness had gone to a whole new level. Harry tells me that he's just trying to cope with the fact that I used him for a perverse reason, but I retorted with the fact that he's the one who's using me for his perverse reason.
I knew then, that he really was getting his payback. The surprise and rage at Ron's stubbornness sort of dwindled a little bit at Harry's memory of Ron during fourth year. In fact, I felt foolish for not expecting it. The only difference between this matter and the other is that Ron claimed he loved me and I broke his heart. He had a right to be angry, but considering his age and the maturity level required, he needs to grow up. Sure, he's allowed to be mad at me, but he needs to deal with it way better than he is now.
I knew though, that he wouldn't let our bet go, so I had to go through with it. I could just give Ron up. My mind told me that all the time. However, no matter how corny this may sound, my heart was telling me different. I want Ron to be my friend, yet I want him to end up badly hurt in the hospital wing.
Me hurting him would not be permitted, especially with the paranoia that came with the war. Voldemort grew more and more every day judging by Harry's screams. It made me hate the Dark Lord with a passion knowing that his power caused Harry pain.
The only good thing about this is that our research was progressing as Harry's rage grew. He was actually being studious and spent most of his time in the library with me.
We did uncover how to navigate ourselves through the tunnels despite them being sealed. The opener, namely Crookshanks, would be our safety net through the dark tunnels. There would be ancient Goblin writing all over the wall, and only through the eyes of The Opener will we be able to navigate. If the opener dies or leaves, and since we are not Goblins, the tunnel will eventually fill itself with a dangerous, magical, colorless gas that would make us suffocate and die a slow death.
That means that Crookshanks needs extra protection. Dumbledore made sure to charm my cat with as many spells and potions as possible to minimize his risk of dying or going stray. Crookshanks seems to know that he was needed and seemed to be making precautions himself. He spent more time with me, hardly ever left my room, and it seemed like he was practicing his stealth just in case he needed to hide in the shadows.
We also know where the battle will take place. Dumbledore found in one of Hogwart's secret and ancient libraries a record of our specific tunnel. It was from an anonymous explorer who managed to satisfy his curiosity and come out alive with not as much as a small bruise. Apparently, the tunnel leads to under the Forbidden Forest, which explains why some creatures mysteriously disappeared in the days the Goblin black market was open. Most of the victims were unicorns, so I'm pretty much guessing that there blood was sold for a good profit.
Now that our information was complete, Dumbledore had to raise an army. Of course, the ministry was a little slow to join at first, but now we have all the lower staff and ten of the most powerful at our side. Hagrid eventually got the giants to join with Grawp as a sidekick. The growing Order members gathered their contacts from around the world and summoned them…permitted they weren't dead yet. Just last week, Americans, Asian, and some Hispanic wizards arrived for their temporary stay at Hogwart, though their journey was made difficult by some of Voldemort's followers.
Seventh years were being rounded up secretely by the teachers. We were instructed to convince fourth years and up to participate. Our houses were connected to a room were Professor McGonnagall would come and teach us magic that is way beyond our years. Despite this adding extra hours to our day, our house in particular summoned their courage to have the whole spirit of Godric Gryffindor live in them. We were prepared, and given a few touch-ups, we were ready.
To our surprise, we also had every type of dragon found in Europe on our side. We all thought that they would side with Voldemort. Apparently, dragons weren't exactly serpents, so I guess they had a change of heart. I'm guessing Norbert helped out a little. He's gigantic compared to what he looked like seven years ago. Charlie and a couple of trained Order members will be riding on the dragons backs. Magic, to a dragon, is almost a whisper in the wind. Hardly any spells can penetrate their naturally magical skin. Of course, knowing Voldemort, he probably knew just how to get through to a dragon.
The squid in the lake also agreed to help. To my knowledge, the lake goes far enough into the Forbidden Forest for the squid to watch the battle. Dumbledore made sure to put all the necessary charms on it. The squid will serve as one of his back up plans. If the squid sees that, God forbid, we failed the battle, all he would have to do was put all of his tentacles on the wall separating us and the battle and lightly push. This would hopefully drown or confuse the Death Eaters long enough for our other back-up plans to work.
Unknowingly to everyone except Dumbledore, the DA had meetings almost everyday. We went to the room every time we were allowed a long enough break, and we did final touch ups on the spells we learned earlier. Harry made it a point to teach the younger ones at least seventh year magic to the point of much needed protection. The meetings were great, if not a little hectic, because we, as the Golden trio, were getting bombarded with questions about strategies and plans. Harry told them that their only worry was to leave the castle unharmed if leftover death eaters did attack the castle. The spells were for defense, not fighting, and he told them in a serious tone that if they decided to join the battle, it was every man for himself. No one would be guaranteed a back up. This explanation scared the seventh and sixth years, who would be going into battle, but it almost made the younger years pee their pants. The fifth years weren't particularly giddy about being the ones responsible for the little one's safety should the rest of us fail. Harry was determined we wouldn't.
On the side, I felt so guilty for trying to get just a little information out of Draco. I want him. That much is certain, but we are on different sides, and he refuses to switch just as much as I do. Yet, we're still together, and the workroom was our sanctuary. In there, we do the opposite of work. Mostly we play, and we never bring up the forbidden subjects of war and our relationship. He assured me that if he was in the area, he would not kill me, only wound me. I wanted to believe him, but my cautious side didn't let me give in. There was always that scenario of whether, if given the choice of kill me or die, he would choose to kill me and not betray his side. I wasn't a guarantee to him, but the dark side was. I could tell without words that that's what he felt. He, in little ways, made sure that I would come back to him for as long as I could. It wouldn't last, and we knew it.
We also knew that we shouldn't associate with each other, but he was drawing me closer to him with every little thing he did. He knew how much sugar I wanted in my coffee, he made sure everything looked organized so I wouldn't have a fit, and he gave me unconditional hugs. He would give me silence when he knew I didn't want to talk, he gave me a debate when I did, and he gave me comfort when we read together in front of the fire. Over the last couple of months, he warmed me even though the world was getting darker and taking my thoughts along with it. There wasn't one person I knew who didn't have dreams of death and misery. A battle was coming after all…but the thing is, he let me forget. We were free in our workroom, our second home, and we could do as we please. Time doesn't wait for anyone, so Draco and I decided to make the most of it. He surprises me all the time by doing the before mentioned little things.
During our time together, I realized that that's what was so important. Big things like the over romanticized love during war thing didn't draw us close together, and neither did jewelry or missing each other all the time. My mom once told me that people find happiness once they stop looking for it. If you hope for the big things, then you'll have a higher risk of disappointment. People hated disappointment. It was a form of pain, and it was in our nature to avoid pain. Big things don't come to people all the time, so people should stop expecting them. Little things come a lot easier however. They're there all the time whether people neglect them or not, and they're there in an almost endless supply. I knew that Draco wearing a ripped, white muscle shirt and telling the world how he feels about me with no repercussions was not going to happen, so I have a much better appreciation for just a touch or a fond gesture. The little things are what people need to appreciate. All the little things are what I appreciate. I just hope it's the same for him.
"So how's Blaise?" asked Draco during a rare talk about the war.
"He's great. The secret passage to his room is nicely lit," I replied, playing with the fabric of my robe.
"So, he's not fighting for the Dark Lord anymore?" he asked, although it sounded like a statement. He ran his fingers through his silky hair and looked at the dancing flames in front of us. He told me countless times how they had planned to fight the light side together. Now, it's a little more difficult since the Death Eaters put him next to Harry on their list of people to kill.
"I'll make sure he stays alive when he's in my sight," I reassured him, grabbing his hand. "And I know you can protect him should he decided to wander wherever you're fighting."
He shook his head lightly and started weaving his hands in and out of mine. His face was full of emotion, which gave me a sort of pride despite his pained expression. He only shows his emotions to me, and it made me feel that much more wonderful. He then kept his face in a sort of grimace and turned to look at me. "How can we be so casual?"
I gave him a confused look.
"We know we'll be killing the people that we care about. We'll be on different sides, Hermione. We'll be obligated to kill each others friends and family. We'll have to sacrifice people for our safety. I'm pretty sure I'll be confused as hell when we're fighting," he said worriedly. He searched my face for any kind of understanding on what he should do. He looked so lost on what to do, and it hurt me to know that. He shouldn't be confused. Confusion causes hesitation and death.
I breathed out a deep sigh, hoping that I could say what I was going to say with some strength. I absentmindedly started stroking his thigh as I said, "Draco, you know I've chosen to ignore the fact that we're on different sides when we're together. On the battlefield, I we can't understand or take the time to. If you see me and I'm in your way…don't hesitate."
I looked away quickly, trying really hard to not cry. I wasn't originally supposed to care. I mean, I only have a crush, right? The last month or so was a fling. It was supposed to be like summer love or something that someone spontaneously does.
But it wasn't.
I knew it became way more when he remembered how much sugar I wanted in my coffee three weeks ago. It was that little thing that got me. But, the little things won't happen in this war. Our feelings, or at least mine, have to be put aside during a war. Everything in a war was fair game, and that included me. I could cry all I want, but it won't help me face the facts. We had to be apart, and we were going to fight like we were.
Surprisingly, he grabbed my arm to the point where it hurt and made sure I was looking at him.
"How can you ask me that? Hermione, if you ask me that, I just might do it. I can't change my mind in battle, and I won't if you ask me that. So rethink what you just said," he said sharply and urgently. His eyes were almost pleading.
I sighed inwardly. Now I couldn't tell him to think of me as fair game. Instead, I looked at the flames who seemed to have gotten dimmer as the conversation went on and said, "Do what you have to do, Draco. I won't stop you until the need calls for it."
He let go of my arm at this comment. He then grabbed my face and kissed me. First they were soft pecks, then longer sweeter kisses, and finally the fiery, passionate kind. I got lost in him. He was wonderful and I had a feeling in the pit of my stomach that told me just how wonderful he was. It was really hard to pinpoint when he was kissing me though.
The kiss itself wasn't lighthearted like they usually were. He needed reassurance for some reason, and I could give him a little. If we kept talking, all the reassurance we had would leave. We weren't a guarantee, and we never were, but it felt nice to feel like it could happen.
We broke apart after the need for air arose.
He put his arm around me protectively, and we both silently looked at the fire that all the sudden got brighter. We both inwardly decided that talking would lead to an argument or regret, and I wasn't up to feel or do either.
After how ever long we were sitting, I asked, "What time is it?"
Draco looked at his watch. "It's five till five. Why?"
I looked away from the fire to the table where my feet and two books lay. "I have to return these to the library. Madame Pince wants my head on a platter now that this book is overdue by two days."
Draco quirked his eyebrow. "Overdue, is it? I told you Weasley was a bad influence."
I laughed softly and got up. "I'll be back, and you can have you time until dinner."
He smirked at this and gave me a naughty look.
I rolled my eyes, ignoring his sexiness, and picked up the books. As I was rushing out, I didn't realize that I dropped one of the books on the ground. Draco, however, noticed within the ten minutes of when I left the room.
…………………………………………………………..
I only had two more corners to turn before getting to the library. I had no time to stall, because Madame Pince warned me not to keep them for two months like I did last time. She already granted me a month in a half considering what my research was for. I had no excuse for keeping them later than the allotted time though.
To my dismay, as I turned the first corner, I saw Ron waiting for me. He looked uncertain but a little giddy as well.
"Hermione," he said, pronouncing my name clearly and firmly.
I stopped in my tracks, not bothering to go any further.
"It's today," was all he had to say to send me crashing back to reality.
That's right. It was today. Today was my stupid damn it to hell deadline. I knew pretending that nothing was happening on the outside world in our workroom would make me forget detail. I let it happen, and now I would have to pay the price.
"I don't want it to be today," I said softly but firmly, hoping that Ron would be hit with understanding.
"Well it is," he said as he hardened his look. "You promised."
I looked at his face and felt like smacking him. I knew he could hold a grudge, but this was insane. He was as stubborn as an old and oversized donkey. He made me angry. Vengeance wasn't supposed to be in him, and I was determined to drain it out.
"I know, but don't you understand Ron? Don't you see? Didn't you hear? I don't want it too end. I know I shouldn't have taken on that damn bet, but this isn't funny anymore!" I screamed.
He stood there, waiting for my voice to stop echoing in the hallway. "Hermione, you hurt me. He made you hurt me. And yes, I do know he likes you. That's why I want you to dump him. He made you hurt me, and this is my opportunity to show him how I feel. I want him to feel like dirt, Hermione. I just want him to know how it feels to be me for just one short moment in his life. So you're dumping him Hermione," he whispered venomously.
I felt another tear appear. I refuse to cry in front of him. Instead I looked up in his eyes and felt slightly surprised. It was killing him. He was in pain too. I don't know what he was in pain for, but he was hurting. Maybe if I knew why…
Ron's gaze shifted behind me and turned into a look of horror and surprise. I had seen this before, only without the horror part, and I don't have any good feeling towards this particular action. I turned around slowly and saw what I dreaded most.
It was Draco.
He dropped a book he was holding and briskly walked off.
I looked down in my hands and realized that I was only holding one book. He was going to give me the book. How could I have been so careless? I looked back at Ron and glared. This time, the pain was showing on his face. I threw the book I was holding into his nether regions hoping that that look of pain would stay on there a little longer. I then turned around and ran after him.
……………………………………………………….
I got to him just before the wall closed on me.
"Draco. Draco!"
"What Granger? Come to play some more with me. Go ahead. I've never experienced the love of a whore before," he said icily, not bothering to turn around.
That hurt. That hurt to the core. It hurt my pride and it hurt my feelings. On the surface though, it made me feel angry. I walked up to him, grabbed his arm, and whipped him around. "Don't you dare call me that! Don't you dare compare to a whore! You didn't think of me that way when you were making me hurt people. If I remember correctly, you made Ron feel that way too."
"You agreed Granger. You agreed to the bet!" he yelled, letting his hurt at me get to him for a few short seconds.
"You know I can't turn down competition," I said helplessly.
"So that was it. I gave you a challenge, you took it, and he gave you a challenge, and you took his too. You played me for his revenge. I didn't even know Gryffindors had revenge in their vocabulary!" he yelled taking his arm away from my grip.
"At first, I did. I didn't like you in the way that I do now when I made his promise. Did you even listen to the whole conversation? I didn't want to leave you!" I said urgently, pleading him with my eyes not to let his anger take over. I pleaded with him to not build up the walls again.
"Like hell you didn't," he retorted. "Don't try to keep me until your deadline, because I won't be around."
"Today is my deadline you stupid git! Why would I try to keep you past the deadline? I'll tell you why, Draco! It's because I lo-."
"Shove your lies up that small ass of yours Granger. I don't want you. I was playing you too. We both got played, end of story. We both were in a fake relationship, and now we can get out of it. Forget everything I promised you. You have no ties to me," he said icily before turning on his heels and leaving for his Head Boy room.
I sat there staring at his back, and I collapsed when his retreating back was out of sight. I sat there for a long time, wondering whether or not I should cry again. I wanted to, but falling to pieces wouldn't do anything. It wouldn't get him to come back to me.
I had to take action. It's been at least thirty minutes since he left. He should've cooled down considerably. Slytherins weren't known for their hotheaded tempers.
Hope filled me as I uttered the password to go down to his dorm.
When I got down there, what I found scared me to the depths of my soul.
He wasn't there. I walked to his dressers and closet and nightstand, but all of his things were gone. There was no sign of him, and it chilled my bones more than facing Voldemort himself. What scared me even more was where he was headed.
He had finally found his reason to leave Hogwarts and return to Malfoy Manor, his father, and the Dark Lord himself.
……………………………………………………………………
Author's note: So, how was that for an interlude chapter. I'm scared that rushing though the last month or so kind of quickened the story too much, but I couldn't find some important event to write about, plus, I know everyone wants the end to come soon. I hope it wasn't too dark and angsty to the point where it was sucking you into a depression. I tried to keep it fairly light in some areas. It's just, I wanted to try angst to see if it works for me. I'm going to try to write a fic of this style of writing. I don't know if I'll actually pursue it though. I know this was originally supposed to be fluffier than I mentioned, but I can't very well have them fighting a happy battle scene next chapter. The build up had to be dark so the battle won't sound like a walk in the park. Well, I guess review and criticize. Tell me if I made you cry or not (JK). And yes, I know I'm cruel for breaking them up.
Preview notes:
Battle will be two parts.
Not everyone I wrote fondly about will survive.