Prologue

Originally a one-shot songfic I wrote back in 2012, now translated to English and continued as a multi chapter fic. This will consist of various time jumps, all clearly indicated.

Summary: A tired Draco Malfoy manages to escape to the Order of the Phoenix, not knowing what to expect, trying his best to start over and leave the darkness behind.

An equally tired Hermione Granger does everything she can to help their new member to fit in, also not knowing what to expect.

A warfic idea that has been in my head for quite a long time, now finally trying to put it into words.

Trigger Warnings will be posted at the end of each chapter.

I took my love

Down to violet hill

There we sat in the snow

All that time she was

Silent still

So if you love me

Won't you let me know?

Violet Hill - Coldplay

February 9, 1998 - On a hill at who knows where

It was cold, terribly cold. That kind of cold that creeps up your bones and inhabits your body, making you forget about any kind of warmth you've ever felt. The days have been filled with snowfall, something that didn't make life any easier for them. She was used to cold and snowy winters from her time at Hogwarts, but this… this was hell, just frozen.

This goddamn snow made this goddamn war even less bearable. Today the sky was painted a light blue, the ground resembled powdered sugar and all the trees and branches were covered in crystal like snow. It could have been a perfectly beautiful day for a walk, hadn't there been the dead bodies spread across the entire meadow.

Beneath the bushes, around the trees or just in the trenches.

Some of them already didn't look like people anymore, even if they had been alive just a few hours before. Nowadays, no one left it at a simple killing spell. Whether light or dark side, they all used crueler methods than thought.

It was no surprise that the field was soaked in blood. Was it bizarre to think the crimson snow looked a bit like those slushies she bought in the muggle world back when she went on holidays with her parents? If she hadn't been in shock, Hermione would have chuckled about her own thought but now was not the time. It seemed like the drenched snow wanted to compete with the sun, trying to prove a point that something so cruel could outshine something so pure.

It looked like some kind of war scene description she only knew from books. Unrealistic but real. And she and her friends were right in the middle of it.

The more she fixed her gaze on the battlefield, the more adrenaline rushed through her body, not really helping her in gathering her thoughts and getting her body moving.

It felt like a fucking miracle that she wasn't killed down there she thought to herself, staring down from the hill at all those people she once called her friends. Maybe not her closest friends, but friends are friends and she just lost some of them to yet another vicious attack by the Death Eaters.

Speaking of Death Eaters, she did not sit alone on this wicked hill. Well, to be fair, he wasn't one of them anymore, but most members of the Order of the Phoenix still thought about him like that.

Just like her, Draco sat in the snow and stared down, his face not giving away the slightest emotion despite the crimson marks left down there. He wondered why she didn't say anything, but after knowing Hermione Granger for a good while now, he could feel that she was just as in shock as he was. Well, given the fact that he was very good at concealing how he felt most of the time, he probably looked less agitated by the situation.

Pretty much everything had gone wrong today, he noticed. They were all camping in a random forest, as if he would remember the name, low on supplies and energy. Still hunting the horcruxes Potter was so serious about. Or was it just one? He had lost count. Not too long ago they actually had managed to destroy that old locket, shortly after he had joined the Order.

Speaking of … Leaving the Death Eaters - and his family - seemed to be an out of character move for him, at least in the eyes of the others. For him, it was the escape he had dreamed of ever since Voldemort made his way back into his life, around fifth year.

Sure, he was a Slytherin and took every chance to demonstrate how opposed he was to Muggleborns and the like, but Voldemort… this man just scared the hell out of him from the second he had appeared at Malfoy Manor. His father, of course, the ever so obedient follower. Never not trying to impress the Dark Lord, putting him above everything else in his life. Even above his own damn family, his wife and his son. Draco didn't enjoy thinking back to how much his mother changed once her crazy sister and You Know Who came back into their lives.

Narcissa Malfoy had always been a proud woman, most elegant in her appearance and ever so put together. But Merlin, how all of this changed her. During school Draco would have never admitted that he was a "Mummy's boy", he didn't really talk about her. Just the obvious comments about how he would let his father hear about this and that. Lucius was far from the perfect father, always busy with some kind of "meetings" and away from home most of the time. His mother, however, poured all her energy into spoiling him, not that he would have ever complained about that. Books, robes, sweets, anything. Never had she denied him a single thing and oh he got so used to always getting what he wanted.

Just that all of this crumbled into pieces once a certain someone decided to come back from the presumed dead and ruined everything. Fucking great. It didn't take long until his mother turned into a quiet and seemingly scared person, mainly concerned for her son. He figured that the time where his parents had an actual relationship was long gone and well, having Death Eaters occupy your house didn't help. Either way, the more he thought of it, the more his mind tried to push back these memories into the most hidden bookshelf of his brain. As if his body went into self defence mode whenever he recalled them. Now was not the time to indulge in reminiscences anyway. There was a war going on and he escaped to the other side, period.

Looking down to his shoes, he saw that even his socks had blood stains and wondered who shot off all these curses that made people bleed out like animals. But after all, weren't they just animals too? It did not matter, anway.

A couple of metres left he heard Potter and Weasley half mumbling, half arguing. Usually he tried to ignore them as best as he could, the three of them weren't exactly fond of each other, without a doubt. But when he heard his name fall in their conversation, he turned his attention towards them.

"Don't you think it was him? He's not to be trusted, even when fighting on our side, what if he's a spy and this is all a charade-" Weasley. Of course. Always the first to see the worst in Draco. As if he would do that now, do that to her. He wasn't stupid. If there was one thing his mother had taught him, it was to protect those he loved, although she failed at that, but who was she to blame?

"Calm down, Ron", he heard Potter say.

"He's proven himself more than enough-"

"But Harry, it's Malfoy, he-"

"I know who he is, but if Lupin and Kingsley and even Mad Eye trust him, what-"

"But they don't know him like we do, why-"

"We are not at Hogwarts anymore, Ron, stop it and try to get up, let's check on the others."

Fair play, Potter, he thought. They were indeed not at Hogwarts anymore and many things have changed, some things even for the good. Good. Like the girl sitting next to him, still not speaking nor moving. Hermione has always been the embodiment of good in his eyes. Even at school when he called her slurs he would never put into his mouth again, he knew. Deep down in his twisted pure blood head he'd always known. Now even more than ever.

"Granger?" His mouth barely voiced her name and yes, he still called her by her last name sometimes. As did she. "Listen, Hermione … we need to move, we can't know for sure if they're all gone, you understand? We gotta get back to-" He didn't finish his sentence once he saw the slow, big tear running down her face. She was not a cryer, not usually. Always trying to keep it together, for them, for Potter and Weasley, for everyone. Draco guessed that this was a bit different.

Despite their rules of showing minimal affection and interaction in front of the others, he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her a bit closer to him, not really knowing what to say to her. Draco has never been a man of words, at least not this kind of. He figured it was best to give her a moment of comfort, ignoring the others while already bracing himself for the comments that would surround them in a few seconds.

"Bloody hell, Harry, what is Malfoy up to?" Ah yes. There we go.

He did not see the two of them, as they were behind them, but at least Granger seemed to gain back control of her situation. "Just give me a minute, will you?", she whispered next to his ear and grabbed his hand. Both had lost their gloves during the battle and he didn't think her fingers would feel even colder than his. Goddamn Draco, haven't you heard of Warming Charms?

"'Mione!"

Mione. Will the red head ever stop calling her like that?

He almost wanted to shout something like 'Yeah, I'm doing what you've failed to do. Helping her.' but something inside him flinched at the thought of revealing what they had.

Not now, Draco.

Obviously, they didn't know shit about their relationship, he thought to himself. He'd talked a dozen times with Hermione about how it would be rather unwise to tell them, although it was not hard to see that they stopped hating each other a while ago.

"Malfoy!" The Weasel was now standing just a few footsteps away from him, his face looking more confused than ever, something that amused Draco and he couldn't help but smirk at him.

"Get away from her, what do you think you're doing? Hermione, let's-" Resisting the urge to start a fight with Ron, Draco simply tried to ignore him, hoping for her to finally say something and get up. Surprisingly, Ron's comment seemed to get her out of her almost trance like state, Draco could feel her pull away from him and start to move.

"Will you stop acting like that, Ron?" A minute ago she seemed like she lost herself, but now she seemed furious with him.

Good.

"Will I stop acting like that, what are you talking about? Bloody hell Hermione, it was you acting all weird right now, sitting there with him! Come on, let's go look for the others before I hex you, Ferret."

Oh, so we are back to Ferret.

"Stop calling him that, I thought we were over this! We are all working together, it's been months since he's joined us, why can't you just deal with it, Ron?"

Then it was Potter, of course, who tried his best to keep things peaceful.

"Enough", he said with a calm but determined voice. "You two arguing will be the death of us, quite literally. Ron, just leave them be, whatever they are doing. We just had a goddamn surprise battle down there, we can't waste our time with this. Not now, not here."

And he was right. They really couldn't spare any more minutes on this hill.

For now, Draco was relieved that Hermione was up and arguing with Weasley, meaning that she was back to normal.

"Alright", Ron snorted. "Maybe Harry's right, we really should go. But Malfoy, if you do anything to h-" He couldn't finish the sentence because they all froze on their spot when they heard the sound of apparition not far away from them.

Fuck. Did they come back for them?

"Potter!" A distant voice called and a man appeared behind a bush, quickly running towards them. Not the enemy, he figured, but also not somebody he could identify at first sight.

"I can't believe y'all are still standing, they got your patronus about the attack, but there was almost nobody left at Grimmauld Place, they called me back from the other mission and we were terrified you wouldn't make it, I'm so-" It's been a while since Draco had seen a person looking so out of breath as this guy.

"Ernie, we're fine. We were just about to leave. Hermione, let's use your portkey, shall we?" Harry looked eager to finally leave this place behind and Draco could not agree more.

Granger hastily fumbled around her small (but charmed) bag, pulled out an object that looked like some sort of muggle thing he didn't know and held it in her hands.

"Get on with it, now", she muttered and they all made sure to grip the object (a rusty old bicycle pedal) which instantly transported them back to Grimmauld Place.

No more camping for a little while, Draco thought and looked forward to a hot shower and maybe sneaking into Hermione's bedroom at night.

Notes: Mentions of blood