Chapter 10: Echoes

"I think you should sit down," Ginny told Hermione as they entered the Gryffindor Common Room.

"What's happened? Is Harry ok? Is Ron?" The Head Girl was increasingly concerned. Her best friend had barely uttered two words to her since they had left the library. At first, she had been worried Ginny was not as on-board with the Malfoy situation as she had let on at dinner. Now, however, Hermione noted the way Ginny avoided her eye contact and kept putting her hands in and out of her robes. The gravity of the situation appeared to be far worse.

"Yes, the boys are fine," she responded in a rushed sort of way. "Just sit."

"Oh good, she's here," Romilda appeared, clutching the Daily Prophet against her chest. "Hermione, I'm so sorry."

"What?"

"Sit!" Ginny commanded.

Hermione jumped slightly at her tone, but obeyed. She was not going to be on the end of one of Ginny's Bat-Boogey hexes. There was silence. Ginny and Romilda both seemed to be considering something unsaid. "Ok, so are you going to tell me what's going on now or are you both going to continue acting like a bunch of nervous Nellies?"

Romilda and Ginny looked at each other. The red-head sort of mouthed something to her friend, who shrugged, then she tried again to no avail. Slapping her palm against her forehead, she groaned and turned back to Hermione. "Do you recall how Rita Skeeter was supposed to do the write-up for your engagement announcement?"

"Yes," Hermione replied, slowly, cautiously.

"Do you also remember how you discovered her unregistered Animagus ability your fourth year?

"Yes."

"And proceeded to capture her in a jar?"

"Yes."

More silence.

"Well she came back at you...in a big way," Romilda declared, thrusting the newspaper into Hermione's lap.

"Romilda!"

"Sorry! Better she hears it from us than everyone else."

Hermione barely heard the rest of their bickering as her eyes scanned the headline: Public Heartbreak from War Heroine to Best Friend.

While the war gave many of us a new perspective on life and love, the war heroine, Miss Hermione Granger has yet to be satisfied. The tenacious temptress is still sinking her claws into various celebrities even as she returns to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to complete her N.E.W.T.S. Though some proclaim Miss Granger as a key component of the highly praised "Golden Trio" (which includes Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley), this reporter finds it important to note her lesser known qualities that may have you rethinking her title.

Yesterday afternoon, Miss Granger's long-time boyfriend and invaluable Auror, Ronald Weasley, demonstrated the ultimate romantic deed by proposing at their Alma Mata. His proposal was the result of months of careful planning and coordination to be conducted in front of a group of close family and friends. This event was brought to a halt when Miss Granger publicly rejected Mr. Weasley's proposal, humiliating him in front of all in attendance. Though Mr. Weasley wanted a queit and intimate affair, Miss Granger, ever the attention-seeking witch, expected a grandiose gesture from her significant other. One may ask if she planned on refusing him because she, like Mr. Potter, are publicity-hungry war survivors.

Miss Granger was not available to comment, however, upon interviewing her classmates at Hogwarts rumors have spread that she has been seen in the company of another wizard. Draco Malfoy, Slytherin and former Death Eater has been repeatedly caught with Miss Granger. Mr. Malfoy, whose parents are currently testifying at the Ministry of Magic against their prior associates, fought against Mr. Weasley during the Battle of Hogwarts last year. Could it be that Miss Granger's desperation has no bounds? Has she decided to go searching for her next victim? Only time will tell. This reporter gives fair warning to all eligible wizards - Stay away from Hermione Granger.

When Rita had wrote about her being devious in fourth year, the article's words had stung. What had been worse was that when Mrs. Weasley read it, she had automatically blamed Hermione, treating her unfairly until Harry stood up for her. It had been Harry, not Ron, who had stood up for her and vanquished the rumors. She could hardly imagine facing Molly now. While the facts had been twisted and molded into providing Rita a dramatic read, the end result was the same. She had ended her relationship with Ron only a day ago. Regardless of if his mother believed what was said in the article or not, she would not be pleased with Hermione. Ron was her youngest son. She had always favored him. Hermione was beginning to doubt that she would receive an invitation to the Burrow for this Christmas holiday.

She had told Ron no and in so doing, she had quite possibly ruined her friendship with him. Regardless of how he had acted, she still care for him. Yes, she was mad. Yes, she was hurt. Deep down, she knew those feelings would fade and she'd start to miss him. Ever since they had become the trio during their first year at Hogwarts, she had held a strong connection to both him and Harry. She had never expected them to ever be parted. They had come close several times, especially last year, but she had always thought if they were to die, they'd be together for that as well. It was a true bond, a connection unlike anything she had shared with anyone else, including her own parents. Now, she was the reason that bond had been broken...potentially forever.

The fact that Rita had drug Malfoy into it was even worse. Hermione felt sick. She hadn't had the chance to confide in Harry about her friendship with Malfoy. She honestly did want to tell him. Harry, out of all of her friends, knew the best and worst of Malfoy. Still, she thought next to Ginny, he would be the most understanding. After all, he was a better man than his father had been at his age. While Hermione didn't think Harry would listen to anything Rita had to say, she did want him to hear about her relationship with the Head Boy from her first. Ron deserved the benefit of the doubt as well. Neither of them should find out from a stranger, especially one who was profiting off their misery to accelerate her career. The main problem with coming clean to the boys about Malfoy was that she had no idea what he was to her. Friends seemed to be not strong enough of a word.

He had kissed her. Unconsciously, she ran her fingers over her lips. She could almost taste him lingering there. More than the kiss was the fact he had admitted he had feelings for her. He had spouted out his intentions rather loudly in the middle of the library, startling her. At dinner, she had planned on seeing if he cared enough about her to be kind in a predictable way. Her plan had backfired somewhat. She had never expected him to be so blunt with her. She certainly hadn't expected him to express that level of sentiment. It had her more confused than before.

"Hermione?" Ginny placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

The Head Girl hardly heard her friend. She was still replaying Malfoy's confession. I want you, Granger. I want you to be mine and mine alone, but I know bloody well that I don't deserve you. So there it is. No teasing. No lies. Maybe you fancy me. Maybe you don't. But I do fancy you...maybe more than fancy. When had had spoken those words to her, Hermione had been aware of how loud her heart was beating in her chest. She had held her breath, afraid that if she moved, even the slightest bit, she would wake up and the whole exchange would be nothing more than a dream. That was how she had realized how much she wanted to hear him say that. When he had finished, she had wanted to tell him how she had been feeling. She wanted him to know that he wasn't alone in this...what ever this was.

It was stupid, a fact now made even more apparent by Rita's article. Hermione was insane to think that she could have a relationship with Draco Malfoy. She had just ended her first real relationship. It hadn't been a simple boyfriend/girlfriend situation. She had dated her best friend of seven years and had turned down his public proposal. It was beyond complicated. She knew it wasn't healthy to jump into another relationship so quickly...if that was even what Malfoy was offering. He hadn't gone into specifics. Hermione knew herself well enough to know that she was not the type of girl to enter into an uncommitted relationship or have a fling. She was a romantic. She wanted real love, true romance, even if that meant waiting an awfully long time for it.

Of course, she may need to wait even longer after Rita was done with her. The thing that bothered Hermione most about the article was how it got under her skin. She was questioning herself and her own actions since reading the twisted version of the truth. Earlier today, she had concocted a plan to test Malfoy to see if he cared for her genuinely. Maybe Rita was right. Maybe she was hungry for attention and never satisfied. Maybe her feelings for Malfoy weren't real. Maybe she was just using it as an excuse to console herself for pushing Ron away. Had he really been so terrible? She had waited for him for nearly six years and then once she had him, she realized he wasn't what she wanted. What kind of person did that?

"Hermione," Ginny sat down next to her, tugging on her hand. "Hermione, are you alright?"

"Yeah, of course," she answered automatically, not registering how monotone her voice sounded.

"She can't publish this. It's complete rubbish!"

"Why doesn't your nitwit of a brother do something?" Romilda grumbled, her arms crossed over her chest. "It's his fault she was even here."

"Not helping," Ginny growled.

"How did you get this?" Hermione asked, handing the paper back to Ginny.

"She owled it to you at dinner, but it arrived late. This is the draft. The real publication will be released tomorrow morning."

"Bitch," Romilda hissed. "She's baiting you to see what other juicy drama she can stir up."

"I probably deserve it," Hermione sighed, letting her head fall into her hands.

"What! How can you say that?" Ginny snapped.

For a brief moment, Hermione considered coming clean with Ginny about what had just transpired in the library. Her best friend had appeared extremely mature and supportive of the situation earlier. However, a newfound unease was growing within Hermione. As much as she hated herself for falling for Rita's revenge, she had to be honest with herself. It was getting to her.

"I rejected Ron's proposal."

"It was lame," Romilda said rather defensively. "I mean if he really loved you, he should have go-."

"Not. Helping." Ginny silenced the witch with a steely glare.

"I waited all those years for him. I kept hoping he'd see me the way I saw him. I thought after all we went through, all the fighting, all the lose..." Hermione trailed off, her eyes glazing over. "I thought we really meant something to each other but it was like after the Battle ended...we did too." She stopped, shaking her head and sighing. Ginny wrapped her arms around her shoulders, hugging her.

"Hermione," she started in a quiet voice. "Just because it didn't work out with Ron now doesn't mean Rita is right."

"Feels that way. Who waits years for a person to fall in love with them, then decides they don't love that person anymore, at the same moment when that person loves you back?"

"A witch who deserves better," Romilda answered, ducking as Ginny threw a pillow at her head. "Watch it, Weasley!"

The Head Girl didn't expect an answer to her question. Her friends were too busy fighting and having an all-out pillow war about the Common Room to provide any further insight. She was exhausted. The day had been an emotional roller coaster. She had had no chance to process anything that had happened between her and Ron or her and Draco. Malfoy, she mentally reprimanded herself. His name is Malfoy. Hermione decided she needed time alone to think, away from her schoolwork, away from her friends, and away from her roommate. Without saying goodbye, Hermione left Gryffindor Tower, slipping out onto the Hogwarts grounds and down to the Whomping Willow. She hadn't been in the Shrieking Shack since Professor's Snape's death, but it was the only place she knew she'd be left alone.

Upon entering, she shivered. Evidence of the horrors that had taken place in the old building had been removed, but the echoes of the past still lingered. Walking past a shattered mirror, Hermione studied her reflection. She was barely a shadow of the girl she had been the first time she had walked through this place. That Hermione Granger was gone. She didn't know who she was anymore.

"Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" Draco shouted, as he threw objects about his room. He was glad he had been wise enough to cast noise-cancelling charms around his chamber when he moved in. He didn't want anyone overhearing his rather unflattering tantrum. Grabbing a vial from his desk, he smashed it into the floor. The glass shattered into tiny fragments around his feet, while the light purple liquid leaked out. Books lay scattered about. His drapes were ripped to shreds. Parchment, quills, ink, and even some Bertie Botts Every Flavour beans were strewn about the floor. He grumbled a curse before twirling his wand to clean-up the mess.

He was berating himself for his declaration. Draco Malfoy did not get jealous. Draco Malfoy did not confess his feelings to anyone, least of all the witch he was interested in. Draco Malfoy did not lose his cool and kiss women in the library. No, he wasn't acting like himself, not one bit. Moving away from the few belongings he had that still remained intact, he stepped into his bathroom. He leaned back against the door, sighing and running a hand through his hair. He had been one-hundred percent, completely honest with Granger back there. He couldn't recall a time when he had been that honest with his own parents, let alone anyone else. What was happening? Why did he feel so out of control?

Desperately he wished he had someone to talk to - Crabbe, Goyle, Blaise, hell at this point he'd even take Pansy, but not a single one of them could help him. He was falling in love with a Muggleborn. His father would probably cast the Killing Curse on him if he ever found out. Lucius Malfoy had been raised to believe that purity of blood was next to godliness. It was perhaps the only thing Lucius considered more valuable than the power and gold he surrounded himself with. Draco had undergone many teachings about it through his younger years. Prior to being sent to Hogwarts, Lucius had made sure he was tutored privately at home by some of the finest, though he screened them before-hand to ensure they all shared his belief on blood purity.

Years of lessons and enduring the Cruciatus Curse had him blindly following in his father's footsteps. Upon arriving at Hogwarts, his sincerest wish was to be sorted into Slytherin House and achieve great marks in Potions, same as Lucius. When he had been beaten out his first exam by a witch, he had been angry. Knowing she was Muggleborn and a Gryffindor only made his defeat more painful. He had been ashamed to admit it when Lucius had owled him. As anticipated, he suffered for his failure during the Christmas break. Despite the pleading from his mother, Lucius had administered not one but two doses of "Crucio".

He had hated Granger for it. Naturally, being young and guileless, he had blamed her for his failure. Draco had assumed she had cheated. He had always impressed his private instructors. He intended to impress the Hogwarts professors as well. The summer before Second Year, he had been at Borgin and Burkes with his father, who was trying to sell off some of his dark arts items to the shop owner. He had eyed up the Hand of Glory each time his father permitted him to come to the shop. That year, he figured he was old enough to ask for it. After receiving the second highest marks of anyone in his class, he assumed his father would willingly purchase it for him. Secretly, Draco had been hoping it would give him an edge over Granger. When he had showed interest, his father had lashed out with one of his typical comments. Lucius Malfoy certainly had a talent for belittling his only child.

Draco had been sore about it the rest of the day. His mood had not improved when he had run into Potter, Weasel, and Granger at Flourish and Blotts only moments later. He had been annoyed that Potter had gotten special treatment just for being "The-Boy-Who-Lived." Everyone loved him instantly, while Draco's own father couldn't even spare him a simple pat on the back or "Nice work" when he came home with top grades. Draco hated him for it. Then there was Weasel, who had an entire family of supporters. They had enough members to start their own Quidditch team and they always had their matching sweaters, as if they were already doing that. They had next to no money, but they were always happier than he was. Draco hated him for that. And finally there was Granger.

That day, his father had insulted her and her parents indirectly, but she had never once turned away from his sneer. Her parents, though clearly upset, had not gone running from the store either. Even after his father and Mr. Weasley had gotten into a scuffle, the Muggleborns stood fast. At the age of eleven, she was far braver than the majority of those he knew. If what she had survived during First Year was any indication, she was capable of dealing out far more harm than people gave her credit for. The look of pure defiance in Granger's eyes had stuck with him. He remembered laying in bed that night thinking how she actually looked kind of pretty that way.

The altercation had had a difference impact on his father. Lucius had instantly purchased Nimbus Two Thousand and Ones for the entire Slytherin Quidditch team, with the expectation that one, his son would be added to the roster and two, he'd be given premium seating to watch the matches. Mistakenly, Draco had seen his father's gesture as a step in the right direction. He had assumed Lucius wanted to take a more active role in his life. Draco had believed it was his love of Quidditch that inspired his father to purchase the brooms. However, time proved that this, like many of Lucius' actions was a power play.

His mother had taken him out the next day to get the best in Quidditch apparel for practicing and so he'd "shine up like a new Galleon" on the field. Narcissa was unlike his father in many ways. She often embraced him, spoke to him with affection, and treated him as if he was the only thing of value in the manor. Like his father, however, she considered their elite status as part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight critical. She often teased about marrying him off to one of the other families eligible daughters. When he had brought up the fight Lucius had had with Mr. Weasley, his mother had bristled slightly, then muttered something foul.

Lucius had said the word 'Mudblood' often. Draco knew well enough not to use it in front of his parents, but he had thrown it around to his fellow Slytherins last year in the Common Room when attempting to assert himself. Hearing his mother say it then had startled him. His mother was a Black, one of the most regarded Pureblood families. His aunt Bella was imprisoned in Azkaban for her loyalty to those beliefs, having led her to follow the Dark Lord. His other aunt, Andromeda Black, was a complete mystery. He had seen a picture of her once. The second his mother caught him looking at it, she had taken it from him and told him to never speak of her again - something to do with who she had married.

Later that year, after school had begun, he had said that hateful word to Granger. She had belittled him in front of his new friends on the Slytherin Quidditch team. They were all older than him and he had been hoping to get their advice on how to beat her in his classes. Plus, he figured no one would touch him if he was hanging out with the older students. It gave him credit with his own group too, having impressed those in his year beyond Crabbe and Goyle. Then Granger had come along and tried to ruin it for him. She already had the grades. Did she have to mess up Quidditch too?

So he said it. He called her a 'Mudblood.' The instant the word came out of mouth, he felt something clench in his chest. Granger hadn't responded at first. She looked more confused than angry. He was about to gloat, finally having come up with something she didn't know when everyone around him went into attack mode. Weasel had even tried to curse him. In the end, the entire fiasco worked in his favor. Flint, the captain, approved of his use of the word and they all had a good laugh about Weasel's curse backfiring on him. Seeing the red-head run away while trying not to puke up slugs was hilarious.

But that night, Draco was restless in bed. He hadn't liked the fact that being rude to Granger twisted him up so much. He decided it was because she was still beating him in classes, so he continued using the word, even going as far as to tell his friends that he hoped she died. In truth, he did not want her dead. He only continued to say hurtful things because he wanted it to become a habit so he'd stop worrying about it each night.

By the next year, he was getting crueler with his words, taking a new approach by being cruel to those Granger favored too. He still wanted to beat her in classes, but teasing her and her friends seemed to aggravate her to no end, especially since he had grown over the summer. He was now taller than her, so when she got angry she couldn't shout in his face, she had to look up. It gave him a rather satisfied feeling. When he tried to one up Potter in Care of Magical Creatures, he wound up in the Hospital Wing. The result was his parents demanding the execution of the creature in question. He took it too far when he made light of the situation in front of her. She had slapped him. And that was it.

That was the moment.

The slap had made his ears ring. His cheek had been sore for days. It hurt worse than what the hippogriff had done, but he never mentioned it to either of his parents. Hermione Granger was the first person who had ever made Draco doubt his upbringing. After she had struck him, everything had changed. Outwardly, he remained the same. Internally though, it was a constant battle. His mind was at war every day. There were appearances to keep up with. With the looming threat of the Dark Lord's return, his thought process became increasingly dangerous, but it continued.

When he saw her in the corridors or watched her studying in the library, he contemplating joining her. He started conversations with her hundreds upon hundreds of times in his head, wondering about her life, what she did with her summers, how Muggles managed the heat...he had so many questions. Mainly, he wanted to know her, know how she could live with such passion.

Shoving himself off the bathroom door, the blonde wizard stepped into his shower, needing the warm water to release the pressure in his muscles. He had denied his attraction to Granger for longer than he cared to admit. After years, it had burst from him in the most sincere and raw manner possible. If he had been aware of how dangerously close he had been to the edge, he would never have gone to the library.

She doesn't like you, he thought mournfully, replaying how quickly she had run off in the library. How could she? He had never treated her well until this year. Constantly, he had mocked her and been cruel on purpose. The last couple of months couldn't make up for the last several years of torment he had inflicted upon her. She was right to run away. He had never been brave like her or her friends. He had always been too afraid, too weak. He didn't deserve her love.

Perhaps Draco was being punished. He had made all the wrong choices. All these years he had been attempting to achieve what was defined as "right" by his father. Living to please Lucius had resulted in an empty life. He should have been living his life the way Granger did. She saw opportunities in every situation. Where he saw the limitations, she saw ten different ways to achieve the impossible. Where she saw prejudice and mistrust, she found common ground or held the high ground. When he was met with resistance, he lashed out or closed himself off. There had been countless times he could have rejected his father's teachings, pulled away to form his own path. It had taken the Ministry stepping in and his family defecting from the Death Eaters for him to finally act on his own opinions.

For years she had been there, teaching by example. He had been too narrow-minded and hindered by his tunnel vision to realize what was right in front of him. Now that he had, he realized the next part: He couldn't have her. He was being punished. He had waited too long. He had lost his chance.

All that was left was an echo, a shadow of the life he could have had.

A/N: Wow! The response to the last chapter was absolutely amazing. Honestly, thank you all for your faithful reading, following, reviewing, etc. I probably wouldn't stay motivated to continue without your love.

I do apologize for the delay. I just started a new job last week, which took up more time than I anticipated, but writing fanfiction doesn't pay the bills so... Then this week my brother was in an accident, so I couldn't focus. That being said, we all have our days when the world gets to us. We're only human. For Hermione, Rita's article is one of those times, but don't count our girl down and out just yet! We all know she's capable of some pretty amazing things.

Nichole87 - Not Ron...entirely, but still an annoying character I believe we all loathe to some extent.
Guest - Sorry for the delay. Hoping to get the next chapter out quicker.
pgoodrichboggs - That was my favorite part to write. I never thought Draco was an evil person, he was just raised differently and unfortunately didn't take care of him the way Hermione takes care of her friends.
nellaine824 - I do love Ginny. I think she is such an underrated character. Being the youngest and having all older brothers gives her a different perspective on things, especially men.
Helloitsme996 - Oh there will be a Ron/Draco confrontation in the future...don't you worry!
caprubia - I'd be flustered if Tom Felton cornered me in the library and made suggestive jokes...but I'd also die a very very happy fan girl.
distractedbyshinyobjects - Chapter 11 should be out sooner than this one, hopefully. Fingers crossed.
Guest 2 - Thank you! I'm so happy to know you enjoyed it and stuck with it from the beginning.
Sage McMae - Glad you get it. I can't stand the hate Dramione fans get because everyone claims Draco is pure evil or incapable of change.
Elsa007 - There will be more tension, as you can see from above, but that's half the fun of their relationship. The more they deny it, the truer it becomes.
chphil80 - Thank you. I wanted him to be the first one to say it (out loud at least) because I feel it shows his maturity as a person, learning from his past mistakes and trying to turn over a new leaf.
Guest 3 - Yes, I do like to keep you all guessing and hanging on for more.
lasvegasskye - When are you going to write another fic, Skye? I've been waiting. Letters was such a tease.
Thali - No, no! Don't die. Just hang on and I'll get another chapter out pronto!
Rayah19 - When I'm writing, I see everything playing in my mind, like a movie. Actually, my best scenes come to me at the most random times and I have to quickly get to my laptop or my iPad to get it all down before I lose it. Of course, they usually need some editing, but they still remain my favorite and absolutely most organic scenes.
The Gryffindor Hatstall - Love your handle. Out of curiosity, were you sorted into Gryffindor on Pottermore?
Green Eyed Lana Lee - You are freakin' AMAZING! You blew up my Inbox like Woah! But seriously, thank you for all of your well-written and detailed reviews. I sincerely appreciate all the feedback and your views on my decisions as I develop this story.
Guest4 - Sorry for the delay. Hoping to have the next chapter up within a week or so.