A Breaking Heart and a Forbidden Love

A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews, it inspires me to know that you liked it from such a short chapter. This was orginally a story I wrote on a whim, but seeing as there is interest in it I will give you another chapter. I will try and make this one longer and I do warn you, Harry and Ron do not react kindly. Without further ado, here is chapter two.(Hehe, that rhymed.)

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Hermione reflected on her decision to tell Harry and Ron about her and Malfoy's relationship. She knew what their immediate response would be, and therefore she wasn't looking foward to doing this. She saw the two boys sitting in the Gryffindor common room, they were playing wizard chess, which Ron was of course winning, and chuckling at each other. This was probably the best time to broach the subject with them. I hope.

"Hey Harry, Ron." Hermione's voice was up an octave higher than usual. Better take it down a notch, they'll sense that something is wrong. "How's it going?"

"Good." Harry said contemplating his next move, which he made, and Ron's queen demolished his knight. "Damn."

"Beating Harry's arse." Ron said with a chuckle.

"That's cool." Hermione said with a nervous chuckle.

"What's up 'Mione?" The boys asked unison.

"Oh, not much, well, I mean..." It's now or never. "...I've been seeing Draco secretly, we're a couple."

"Draco? As in Malfoy?!" Ron screamed.

"Ron keep it down."

"Well what did you expect Hermione, for us to say, good on you hun? Go be the dragon boy, the pride of Slytherin?" Ron said coldly.

"But Ron I--" She was cut off by a slap to the face by Ron.

"Just shut up and go be Malfoy's whore." Ron's voice was cold, ice cold.

"Harry..." Hermione whispered as she raised a hand and held it to her hot cheek where she had just been slapped.

"He's right Hermione. Just leave." Harry said and turned away from her. Refusing to speak or acknowledge her presence any further.

"You know, I thought you guys were my friends, I guess I was wrong." Hermione said as she fled the Gryffindor common room, tears streaming down her face.

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Draco had been sitting anxiously in the Slytherin common room, Hermione had told him that she was going to tell Harry and Ron about them. He protested her going alone, but she professed that she could handle it herself so he let her go. She's been gone an hour, I never should have let her go alone! He chastised himself as he walked out of the common room, to make his way over to the Gryffindor common room when the lake outside caught his eye. Someone was sitting outside, which was insane, the weather was postiviely frigid outside. As he looked closer he saw the silky brown hair that was positively curled and he knew in that instant. Hermione. He rushed down to the lake and saw her rocking back and forth, her lips had turned blue from the cold for she had not a coat or anything else on besides her school uniform. He rushed to her side and encircled her in his arms. She fell into his chest shaking from cold. He hugged her tight.

"Hermione, why are you out here? You're going to catch your death, love." Draco said in a soft tone, she was scaring him right now as she rocked back and forth in his arms.

"They told me to leave, I left. Couldn't think of any better place than outside, I'll show them yeah."

"Hermione..." He looked at her shocked. "...you mean Weasel and Potty?" A sudden violent flash of anger surged through Draco's body. "What did those son of a bitches do to you?" But he felt her nearly buck into him at the mention of their names. He stroked his hand in her hair and down her back soothingly. "Shh..." She was crying now. Damn you POTTER! He thought savagely. "Hermione, please come inside with me, I don't want you to catch chill." Draco said as he stood up with Hermione, she followed him wordlessly and submissively inside. Draco didn't like this Hermione, he wanted back the girl who was fiery and always fighting him, that was his Hermione.

He brought her over to sit down by the fire and she was staring out blankly, this was the first time he really got to examine her. There was a large red mark on the left side of her face. One of them slapped her, how dare they.When she noticed his attentions to that side of her face, she turned the other way, so that he couldn't see. But he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him.

"Hermione, did one of them do this to you. Please don't lie to me." He said, and it was not a command, rather a request. He would be hurt if she lied to him about this and his liquid mercury eyes showed this.

"Yes." Her voice was small and quiet.

"Who?"

"I can't tell you that." Her eyes looked up at him, they were pained.

"Why not?" Draco had to fight to keep the anger out of his tone.

"Because you'll go ballistic and curse him into oblivion." She said simply and quirked a small smile.

"I promise I won't if you simply tell me."

"You do, you give me your word, and that you won't go back on it?"

"I give you my word."

"Ron." That single word echoed in Draco's ears.