We need to talk

Hermione felt a buzzing in her pocket and it felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped on her head. She realized that the light vibration came from her wand, most likely Harry trying to contact her. All the same, the small tremor worked as a most effective wake up call. Hermione froze just as Draco was leaning down to kiss her once more.

'What in the name of Magic are you doing?' Her thoughts were screaming at her. 'You're here for a business meeting and you end up frolicking in the forest with your flipping bodyguard, for Merlin's sake! What has come over you?'

It seemed Draco had no trouble discerning her inner furore. He swept his finger under her chin, tipping her face up and forcing her to look at him. As he determinedly held her gaze, the screaming in Hermione's head faded to the lightest whisper.

'Don't regret this, Hermione. Not after everything we've been through. You and I need to talk…' he paused as if lost for words, 'about everything. There's a lot we need to get through. But don't you dare regret this for a moment.'

Hermione was so stunned all she could do was nod. It wasn't that she regretted the kiss—or to be fairer to Draco, the inexplicable moments of passion—. The fact of the matter was, losing Draco so suddenly and devastatingly ten years ago had driven all of Hermione's defences up. And while his silent protectiveness and sarcastic repertoire had slowly charmed her over the past weeks, those defences were still there.

The buzzing in her pocket became more insistent and Hermione could almost picture Harry hopping up and down with worry over her whereabouts. She reached into her pocket and grasped her wand. It calmed immediately at her touch.

'We had better get back. Harry and Dumbledore are waiting.' Hermione whispered, her throat still tight with emotion.

Draco didn't say anything. After one last searching glance he stepped back, clasped his hands behind his back and his surly bodyguard guise had returned.

Hermione immediately set about straightening herself up. She brushed down her robe and flicked back a few unruly curls. With that done, she reached over and slicked Draco's hair back behind his ears.

She didn't realise what she was doing until she noticed him grinning at her. With an embarrassed smile Hermione turned to make her way out of the forest. As both of them strode towards the castle they knew that neither of them would be able to concentrate very well on the meeting ahead.

When they arrived in front of Dumbledore's office, it was just as Hermione had imagined. The Professor was smiling indulgently from his seat behind his desk, and Harry was pacing around impatiently. When she entered with a quiet apology, Harry gave Draco a suspicious glare before taking his seat. Hermione did the same while Draco remained standing by the door.

The meeting went surprisingly well, all things considered. In her current state, Hermione had been afraid that she wouldn't be able to do Susan's proposal any justice. However, Professor Dumbledore had been very thorough in his examination of the proposal notes and didn't seem to have too many questions. She was able to answer most of the questions he did have, and those she couldn't, Harry was more than capable of doing so. It seemed Harry took his poster-boy role for this scheme very seriously.

'Certainly I have my doubts about the proposal. But if I didn't have any doubts I would be wondering what I had missed. Nevertheless, an exercise such as this might seem to give the impression that I do not trust my students. And that is not the case at all. It has been my experience that showing a little trust can induce a person to choose the right way of things by themselves.' Dumbledore said.

'That's all well and good, Professor, and I do admire your sentiments. However, it's becoming clear—as Susan's statistics have shown—that trust is no longer enough. It is not the aim of the Ministry to set-up a Big Brother type conspiracy. We are trying to protect these curious young witches and wizards from any harm they may unknowingly do to themselves. The wand tag would be a precautionary measure which would hopefully dissuade students from giving into their curiosity.' Hermione enforced.

Dumbledore smiled with his fingers templed in front of him, pausing in thought. The room fell silent as Harry and Hermione waited for his response.

'We'll be hard-pressed to convince parents that this isn't an invasion of privacy. But I will put forward this proposal at the next school councillor's meeting, with my full approval. If all goes well, we should be able to implement a trial wand tagging for the next holiday.' He said finally.

Both Hermione and Harry turned to each other with simultaneous smiles. They had both known that Dumbledore's support was all they really needed to get the proposal through. Susan was going to be celebrating her victory tonight.

Harry had already stood up to shake Dumbledore's hand and Hermione blindly followed his example. Now that the meeting was over, she was back to being confused about her dilemmas with Draco. Even so, her position called for professionalism at all times and she was determined not to let that falter.

'I'd like to thank you, Professor, for taking the time to meet with us on this proposal.'

'Not a problem at all, Ms Granger. There are, however, a few other things I wish to discuss with you. Would you mind if I had a word with you in private?' He addressed the last of this towards Harry and Draco, both of whom seemed to take the hint and left with only a glimmer of curiosity on their faces.

Hermione was somewhat confused and intrigued by Dumbledore's request. She could only imagine he wanted to discuss Hogwarts-Ministry relations, however she didn't understand the exclusion of Harry and certainly not her bodyguard, who was expected to be with her at all times.

Hermione wasn't left wondering for very long, though. As soon as the men departed Dumbledore dove right into the subject at hand and Hermione didn't wonder at his request for privacy any longer.

'You seem to have adjusted to Draco's surprise resurrection rather well. Even gone so far as to hire him as your personal bodyguard.'

'You know I never truly believed he was dead, Professor.' Hermione was slightly surprised by his words. 'And the bodyguard-thing wasn't my idea.' She fell silent for a moment, allowing herself to absorb his words. 'You knew he wasn't dead, didn't you?'

'Not at first, Hermione. For I knew the litany that accompanies the Malfoy ring: Received upon birth, removed only in death. His disappearance and the fact that his ring was no longer on his person did seem to indicate that Draco was dead. When I finally discovered the truth of the matter, I realised that Draco was doing everything in his power to keep you safe—'

Hemrione stiffened at these words. Her heart seemed to be pounding in her ears. Dumbledore knew why Draco had left her!

'What do you mean he did it to keep me safe? Safe from what?'

He paused at her reaction, surprised.

Hermione forced herself to relax in the hopes that Dumbledore would continue his explanation.

'He hasn't told you why he left, has he?'

She stiffened again and for a split second considered lying. But when her eyes lifted and met the piercing gaze of Albus Dumbledore's she reconsidered and simply shook her head.

'He disappears for ten years; only to suddenly reappear, and you don't wish to know why?'

'Draco didn't think I needed to know. He said it wouldn't change anything.'

'Certainly it won't change the ten years that have passed. But Draco's sudden reappearance and his newly acquired position by your side seem to indicate that he still has feelings for you. And if those feelings are mutual, Hermione, an explanation could affect your future.'

It took a great deal of Hermione's composure not to blush at the thought of her feelings for Draco being so obvious. She tamped down her embarrassment. She was finally going to get some answers to the questions that had plagued her for ten years.

'I want to know everything.' She whispered. An ominous feeling overcame her as soon as she said it.

Dumbledore stood up and began pacing, working through his thoughts. This only served to make Hermione feel all the more nervous.

'Draco was never a very happy boy. He always had family issues to contend with and a definite social image to live up to. Until, that is, he found you. The fact that he would leave you after he had finally found happiness with you troubled me greatly. That he left his ring behind seemed to indicate something. So I searched for all I could on the tradition of the Malfoy rings. The rings have been a secret and a tradition held in the Malfoy family for generations. Every Malfoy male receives one at birth. There was not a lot I could gather on it. But what I did discern was rather telling.'

Hermione looked down at the ring that was still on her left hand, but she remained silent, desperate for Dumbledore to continue.

'When they become of age, each Malfoy boy must undergo an initiation which sets them up as true Malfoy men. This initiation begins and ends with their ring. The lore of the ring states that upon coming to age a Malfoy must spill the blood of those of the diluted race.'

'Mudbloods.' Hermione spat bitterly.

Dumbledore nodded and continued, 'Failure to accomplish the task meant failure as a Malfoy. Since this would not be tolerated, it also meant death. That is what Draco had to contend with: the murder of a mixed-blood or his own death. His ring would be spell-bound to ensure it.'

Hermione was absolutely stunned by the thought of such a barbaric notion. She had always believed the Malfoy family to be twisted in their prejudices, but she could never have imagined this.

'Having come of age, Draco would have heard the strong call of the ring. It seems to me that he didn't want to take the chance that he may be driven to hurt you, so he left.'

'But how did he survive? How did he get the ring off if it would have meant his death?'

'The only way I imagine he could have accomplished the feat was to convince the ring that he was dead. If he had severed his ring finger, allowing it to die, the ring would have technically been removed in death.'

Hermione gasped at the horrific imagery and frantically began to twist at the ring on her finger.

The Professor persisted, unaware of Hermione's distress, 'Since, as far, as I could tell Draco still has all of his fingers I assume he was able to heal himself and re-grow his finger— Hermione, what's wrong?' Upon noticing her distress, Dumbledore swept towards her and knelt in front of her chair. 'What are you doing?'

But Hermione was almost hysterical in her attempts to pull the ring off her finger and she took no notice of him. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. Her movements were becoming increasingly agitated as she failed to remove the band.

'I don't want it on me anymore.' She wailed frantically. 'I put it on because it was Draco's but I don't want it. Not after what it's done to him.'

Dumbledore laid his hand over hers in order to calm her, and Hermione finally looked up at him. 'Are you saying that you're wearing Draco's ring? The Malfoy ring?'

'Yes,' she stared at him incredulously, 'can't you see it?' She waved her hand in front of him.

'No, Hermione. I may know more about the ring than anyone else outside the family, but I have never seen one. I don't expect I ever will. A Malfoy ring can only be seen by family—'

'And those worthy of the Malfoy name.' Hermione interrupted. When Dumbledore raised his brow at her, she explained, 'Draco told me about it the night before he disappeared. That was the first time I had ever noticed him wearing it.'

'Even knowing that the ring believes you and Draco are meant to be together, you still want to take it off?'

'I don't want to be a part of something that has cost the lives of mixed-blood people.'

'Neither did Draco. He literally severed all ties with that ring and all it meant in order to keep you safe. And yet he deliberately left it behind. I don't believe he left the ring behind for you with any thought of the Malfoy tradition. Maybe he left it for you because of what it showed between the two of you; that you were his worthy companion. By wearing his ring, don't you think that says that you feel the same of him?'

Hermione didn't respond; however, she did stop her frenetic attempts to remove the ring. Seeing her calming down, Dumbledore grasped her hand in his own.

'When Draco disappeared I watched you crumble. I watched you build yourself up again, piece by piece, slowly but surely. I tried to find him once I realised the truth. I tried to trace him using the same wand tracking spell you plan to use for the wand tagging project, but to no avail. He seemed to have stopped using his wand completely.'

A number of things seemed to click at Dumbledore's words and a lot of Draco's unexplained, odd behaviour became clearer. 'Draco didn't need his wand anymore. He can perform spells without it.' She muttered, remembering Draco healing her hand and unlocking her door without his wand. She had been puzzled by it at the time but hadn't given it anymore thought.

'Telekinetic use of magic is a very rarely used branch of Magic. I'm not surprised Draco was able to accomplish it though. He was always very determined when he wanted something bad enough.' Dumbledore paused before continuing once more. 'I never told you what I discovered back then because I believed that you needed to move on. I'm telling you this now because you need to know. So you can move on with your life, with or without Draco. Only you can decide, and you can only decide with all the facts. You and Draco are going to have to talk things through. Maybe you should think about that before you do anything drastic about getting the ring off your finger.'

Hermione was grateful that she seemed to have regained control of her emotions. She stood up and gave Dumbledore's hand a squeeze in thanks for all he had given her today.

'Feel free to use my fireplace to floo back. It's been a long and no doubt emotional day for you. There's no reason to prolong it with travel.'

'Thank you, professor.'

He released her hand and guided her to the door. 'Go on, Hermione, he'll be waiting for you.'

When she left Dumbledore's office with a shaky breath, she had expected Draco (at the very least) to be waiting outside for her. When he wasn't there she was somewhat puzzled and, truth be known, slightly disappointed. When she looked around and noticed the darkening sky, then looked down at her watch Hermione realised why Draco, Harry and Ron had not waited around for her. She had been in Dumbledore's office for much longer than she had anticipated. She could hardly fault Draco for not waiting around for two hours when she had been cloistered safely in the headmaster's office. Nevertheless, she did wonder where they were now.

As she made her way down the corridor, she passed a few students. They took no notice of her, so absorbed were they in their own anguishes.

'I've got a pimple the size of a boil on my nose. There's no way she's going to say yes if I ask her out now!' the boy wailed.

Hermione didn't have the heart to ask the boy and his friend whether they had seen Draco and company. She didn't want him to be embarrassed if he suspected she had overheard his misfortune. Plus she would have found it hard-pressed to contain her laughter if his pimple really was the size of a boil. Luckily it soon became apparent that she wouldn't need to ask the melancholy teen, because Draco was making his way towards her.

Hermione was about to enquire as to Ron and Harry's whereabouts but caught sight of Draco's face. She gasped at his appearance instead. 'What happened to you?'

Draco's hair was ruffled almost as much as Harry's usually was. His robes were in a general state of disarray and he was sporting a shiner of a black eye.

'What? Oh, I'll explain later.' He mumbled with a glance towards the few students that were passing through the same corridor they were in. 'You ready to go?'

'Where are Ron and Harry?'

'They've already gone. It's getting late. Harry wanted to get back to his baby carrier and I convinced Ron to go back with him, since I can see you home myself.' Draco slipped his hand to the small of her back to guide her to the doors but Hermione stopped him.

'Dumbledore says we can use his fireplace to floo back. It'll be quicker. But first tell me what happened to you.'

Draco looked around the corridor but it was deserted. All the students seem to have gone to the Great Hall for dinner.

'Alright. While you and Dumbledore were having your meeting Harry and I decided to walk down to the quidditch pitch, since it's been a day of reliving old memories. Surprise, surprise Ron, quidditch-nut that he is, was already down there trying to convince Madam Hooch to let him steal a broomstick and have a whiz around.'

'Did they decide it would be more fun to attack you with the broomsticks instead?' Hermione asked impatiently. Draco seemed to be acting deliberately slow when it came to relaying the tale.

'No. After we convinced Hooch, the three of us had a rip-roaring game of quidditch.'

'And…'

'And what?'

She gave him a vicious glare, 'And how did you get that lovely black eye you're sporting?' she said it slowly treating him like a simpleton. Hermione waited, and if she didn't know better she would have sworn that Draco was blushing.

'If you must know, I got distracted. We were playing quidditch, I caught sight of the forbidden forest and started thinking of all the lovely things we were doing there this afternoon, and I caught the ball with my eye because of it.'

Hermione laughed—just a little—she couldn't help herself. Without another word, both Draco and Hermione walked down towards Dumbledore's office again.

'Are you alright?' Draco finally asked after they entered the office to see that no one was there. 'That private meeting seemed important. And you seem a little far away now.'

'I just…We need to talk.' Hermione sighed as she looked up at him. Those four words always conjured images of dread and awkwardness. She desperately wished that her relationship with Draco could remain as light-hearted and carefree as it had been just minutes before. However, Dumbledore was right. There was a lot that Draco and herself had to talk through.

Seeing the worry on her face, Draco reached up and brushed the furrow from between her brows. 'Okay.'

She grasped a handful of floo powder from the pot sitting on the mantle and threw it into the fire. 'Let's go home.' She whispered as she watched the flames turn green.

A/N: I do not own any of the above characters. I am not that talented. Copyright belongs to J.K Rowling. Woops haven't done that in a while. Anyhoos, hope y'all liked that one. Fingers crossed it answered some of your questions, but there's plenty more to come (insert tense music). Thanks again for all the support y'all have been giving me. It gives me special tingly feelings (of a totally non-dirty manner) to know that there are so many of you who read and review my story.

Luv HoByTlaH ;0)