Disclaimer: I wish…

My Note: Delays. Delays. Too busy. No time. Squeezing in. Pardon grammar and likes. Burned out. Still blocked.

Chapter 17: Prejudice

I was amazed at the civility that we had shown each other since we arrived here. I for one never dreamed of myself walking down the street hand in hand with my worst enemy. We passed by a quidditch shop and I couldn't help but notice the warmth in Draco's eyes, I can't imagine him feeling excited actually feeling anything at all. I chuckled and he looked at me disapprovingly, "Now what?"

"Nothing," I replied. I found great satisfaction whenever his brows knit together. It could only mean I was bothering him.

"You want to kiss me again don't you, Granger," he goad.

"I live for it," I answered sarcastically.

"Want to do it again," he asked, pivoting until he faced me and had his other arm on my waist.

"If you even try…" I remembered the fear that paralyzed me when he did that the first time and flinched when his face inched closer then he pulled back and laughed at me.

"Granger. Granger. Granger," he replied as if he was telling off a little child.

I pulled my hand away from his and walked briskly to get away from him, but he easily caught up with me with only a few strides. He gestured to take my hand, but I brushed it off. "Bugger off!"

"Touched a nerve, didn't I?"

I refused to answer and just kept my pace not looking at him the whole time. We were already halfway to the manor when he spoke again, "You're not seriously mad at me, are you!" He had an arrogant smirk plastered on his face.

I saw in a movie once that saying a demeaning thing at exactly the right moment may bring temporary satisfaction but afterwards you would wish that you hadn't said anything and just kept your mouth shut. I didn't believe a word of it. This cannot possibly apply to someone as heartless as Malfoy, "I do not expect you, an unfeeling brainless obnoxious ass, who blackmails me to help visit his mother who I am assuredly is just as bad, to understand what emotions are. You just don't have them."

I knew that Malfoy loved his mother and it was underhanded for me to insult her when I haven't even met her. I half expected him to hit me, but he didn't. His eyes just grew cold and the smirk that was on his face earlier dissolved into a scowl. He walked quickly away from me I had to run just to catch up with his long strides. The movie I saw knew exactly what it was talking about. I wished I hadn't said anything and just kept quiet. Even if I was mad at him it didn't give me any right to insult him or his mother. Especially since he had kept his word and stopped insulting me.

I tried to apologize but whenever I was close enough to speak he would quicken his pace and I would just lose my breath trying to catch up. We were only a few miles from the front gate when he veered to his left and entered the forest. I asked him where we were going but he didn't reply. I was running after him just so I wouldn't get lost. I scratched myself on a branch that was sticking out from the side while I was running after him. It didn't hurt at first until I saw blood emanating out of the wound. I wanted to attend to it but Draco moved too quickly and I could hardly see him so I went back to following him.

After a few more minutes, I saw Draco stop. He was standing in front of a statue. It was a 20 feet tall statue of a dragon, its eyes made of emerald and its scales were covered with silver and gold. I was in awe of the beauty of this statue but the greater awe came when the statue started to move. Its joints creaked as its tail started to swing then suddenly it screeched. I backed away fearing for my life, but Draco stood calmly in front of it. The dragon gently nudged him with its nose. Draco pet the dragon and it purred like a kitten. He whispered something in its ear then it suddenly transformed into a falcon. In all the books I had read there was never a mention of a creature that could change into another form except for the one which we saw in Lupin's class and this was definitely not it. I was so dumbstruck that I couldn't move. The falcon, formerly the dragon, flew to the manor which was still a few miles away.

"Start walking," was all he said before he started walking again. I followed him closely, curious of what I saw and sorry for what I said. We walked for another twenty minutes then I saw the enormous iron fence which surrounded the manor. Draco paused and took out his wand, "Lesciat vincit Derou."

He gestured to me still scowling, I walked in front of the gate and muttered the spell I had made to keep us from being detected by everybody else. It required a fancy wand movement which afterwards gave me a shooting pain that came from my wounded arm. I looked at it and saw that it was no scratch, a fragment of the branch had embedded itself on my skin and was turning violet. Violet? That means the tree is poisonous. I felt a numbing sensation on my arm, it was worsening. The poison was spreading itself quickly inside my body. I was going to ask Draco for help but he had already made a whole in the fence and was inside. I followed him and we walked to the manor.

The manor was a breath taking, Its vine covered walls and incredible structure made me catch my breath. The inside was just as well. The elegant paintings of generations of Malfoy's who scowled at me were amazing. The sculpture of a man infused with a dragon was the center piece on the entrance. It was astonishing. The falcon I saw earlier appeared in front of us then a gentle voice accompanied it. A beautiful woman emerged from the doorway, "Draco, you came." She walked over to Draco and hugged him tightly.

"I missed you.," he replied. I thought I saw tears in his eyes. They pulled away from each other and she acknowledged me. "You brought a lady friend?"

"She's Potter's friend, Granger." He answered scornfully.

"Granger? Hermione Granger," she asked. I expected her to scowl and then insult me. I thought that if she did then it will justify my actions earlier and lessen my guilt. "My dear, thank you for visiting me."

So much for less guilt. Mrs. Malfoy approached me and also gave me a hug. I felt miserable for being such a bitch. "You have a lovely home," I commented. She smiled and thanked me. Draco was watching and still had the scowl on his face. I was going to apologize to her when I felt my knees buckle and the last thing I saw was the intricate painting on their ceiling.

When I came to, I was in a golden room and Draco was tending to my wound. "I'm sorry-for saying those things to you." I knew that he may not accept my apology but I had to. I'm pretty sure he didn't want to tend to me and his mother just forced him to. He looked at me still with anger in his eyes and told me to rest, "Don't move. The poison had done a lot of damage and the healing spell is not yet active. I have to prepare dinner." He hurriedly walked away leaving me on the bed. Did he just say prepare dinner? I gently lifted my arm and walked out of the room. Uh-oh. The manor was huge. There were rooms after rooms and with only the three of us in the house it will be impossible to find the kitchen.

I entered several rooms to find the kitchen. I was going to give up when I walked in a room and saw Mrs. Malfoy. She was watching the garden her back towards me. I turned to leave when she called out to me, "Sit with me,dear."

"I'm sorry for my intrusion," I replied.

"I enjoy the company."

I made my way beside her, she patted the seat next to her. I sat down and looked at the magnificent view of the Malfoy garden. The scent of flowers greeted me warmly and a splash of colors abound. I was still admiring the plot when she spoke.

"You know you are the first girl she ever introduced to me. Numerous women have passed in his life but he never introduced any of them to me."

"I think you misunderstood. We are not together. He just bla-asked me to help him."

"Draco is usually misunderstood. He isn't the person you see now. He was a sweet child. His father reprimanded him whenever he showed compassion towards others. He would constantly punish him for not being the best and I blame myself for not stopping him," tears slowly started to form in her eyes. "Now that his father's gone he will be able to be happy."

"Mother, dinner's ready," Draco called.

While we were having dinner I couldn't help but notice the warmth in Draco's eyes. He looked calm, peaceful and happy. I realized how much I didn't know about him. Spending time with him and hearing what her mother's words tugged at my heart. Draco's life was full of misery. That's why he was always so cruel. After a delicious meal I volunteered to clean up the plates. Mrs. Malfoy forced Draco to help too. When we were left alone I tried to talk to Draco ,but he didn't answer. He was leaning over the sink and cleaning the plates. I didn't know what to say. I walked over and hugged him.

My Note: I knew it wouldn't make any sense…see…still have block!