Hermione walked towards the seclusion of tombstones on the Hogwarts grounds, her steps resonating with purpose. It was Valentine's Day and she was sure that no other person would dare be paying there condolences on such a happy day and so she was promised solace.
The drizzle of unbidden rain couldn't ruin her plans.
Reaching the clearing, Hermione pressed her hand towards Dumbledore's grave, the cold, white marble before laying down the flowers by his grave and staring with unseeing eyes at the other erect and hardy tombstones.
She hadn't even been there five minutes, when a crack of a twig alerted her to someone else's presence.
Not wanting to alert them of who she was, Hermione said hurriedly 'I was just leaving'
'Don't, I'm sure they'd all prefer your presence to mine, Granger'
Hermione's blood ran cold and unbidden memories sprang to the forefront of her mind. She hadn't heard this voice in three years, not since his trial had ended. She got up, but a gentle hand rested on her shoulder and willed her to stay.
She obeyed mutely, staring at the tombstones in silent, as a white flash of strikingly blood hair from under his hood, proved her suspicions to be true.
It was Draco Malfoy.
She watched as he moved towards each tombstone, uncovering a new bouquet of flowers at each one and placing it at the foot of each one.
'Aren't you cold?' He asked her, looking at her bare hands.
Hermione nodded, not having the energy to lie. He reached into his pocket and brought out a fresh pair of gloves, passing them to her.
'Thanks'
'You're welcome' he said that phrase with so much sincerity that Hermione turned to stare at him.
The war hadn't done him well. There were hard lines and creases of trauma on his face where only joy should lie and his hair was unkempt and greasy. She had so many questions to ask him, but each sentence as it reached her tongue fell to pieces and disintegrated. He'd been proven innocent by law, but the social repercussions of wizarding society must have hit him ten-fold after that. She wondered how he survived these three years; she knew that she almost didn't.
They stood in silence for another few minutes before Draco, muttering a short 'Bye' swung on his heel and disappeared once more.
Hermione then realised that she was still wearing his gloves.
It became a ritual. Every year the two of them would meet and pay their condolences to the martyrs of the war together. Mostly, they wouldn't even speak, but sometimes they'd utter a word or two.
'I'm sorry' Draco sighed on their third meeting.
Hermione stiffened.
'I'm sorry for causing you, Potter and Weasley so much trouble over our school years' he continued. 'And everything else I ever did to you. I wish I'd known better'
'I forgave you about that ages ago'
'You did?'
'Yeah, you were just being a stupid, bigoted prat'
A smile cracked the facade of Draco Malfoy, as he turned back to the rows of tombstones. 'I was, wasn't I?'
Almost unconsciously, Hermione felt herself step closer to him, slowly and purposefully entwining her fingers with his, letting her head rest on his shoulder.
Draco didn't dare protest, his smile growing wider.
To any passer-by, they'd look like a Valentine couple, grieving the dead.
Draco Malfoy hobbled towards the seclusion of tombstones, a greying shawl wrapped tightly around his shoulders. There were far more tombstones scattered around than the first time he'd visited, as more heroes and heroines of the war had requested their burial sites to be placed near their loved ones.
Draco had eyes for only one and slowly he knelt precariously beside it, conjuring a bouquet of flowers as he did so.
'I miss you' he croaked. 'A lot. The children and grandkids do too. Sometimes they forget you're not here. Only yesterday, Lyra called out to you for help with her homework accidentally' Draco wiped a tear from his eye shakily.
'No one's here to reassure me anymore. I'm lost. I feel myself fading slowly every day, as if my heart is slowing down gently' Draco paused, regaining himself. 'I can't tell the kids, but I'm not scared. I just want to see you again.'
'Happy Valentine's Day, Hermione' Draco muttered, kissing his fingertips and letting them graze along the lone words 'Et in code tuo usage in sempiternum', the cold metal sending a mystical tingle down his fingertips. 'Save me the seat next to yours'
A/N: Please Read and Review
