Hate Love Rebound Chapter 2, a harry potter fanfic

A/N: I DO NOT OWN THE CHARACTERS AND THEIR ABILITIES AND SUCH ALIKE. THEY BELONG TO J.K.ROWLING. I only OWN THE plot.

Please read and review. Enjoy.

HATE-LOVE REBOUND

Chapter Two: Whee…. I'm Ah-Twirling and Ah-Whirling …

Date: 21.08.06 to 22.08.06

There was a ring of circle. A white blinding line of circle and it was around her. She didn't like it any better than she liked being on a broomstick. Then as soon as the thought was over, she felt herself being sucked into a vortex, like when traveling by Portkey but it felt quite unlike it as she didn't feel the tugs on her stomach. And whirling she went for sometime like if she were ten, enjoying herself with her friends on a waterslide. She looked down after what seemed an eternity to pass by. By that time, she had started sewing hats for the elves. After tiring of that, she decided to halt the whirling by standing up and looking down to find the apex of the vortex.

To her surprise, she realized as she stood up, she wasn't whirling anymore … she was falling. She felt like crying; she should have stayed how she had been and kept on sewing. But there wasn't anytime for to cry while she was falling . . . falling . . . falling . . . falling . . . Ok, this was getting ridiculous. She was just falling and falling and it seemed she would never land. Therefore she now had time to cry. That was ridiculous too.

She decided to try something new. All this time it had been all action and no words. So maybe it was time for her to let out her voice. And let it out she did. After some moments, she realized her mouth was open and all that was happening was that air was rushing into it and no sound was being emitted from her. And now, she did cry but the tears that came were long in shape and would not get off her eyelashes. Now, what was she to do? She was falling, her voice refused to let out any sound and her tears were hanging onto her eyelashes literally and permanently.

Suddenly, she heard something. It sounded suspiciously like someone she knew but she couldn't be quite sure because the person was speaking in a tone she had never heard the person to speak in before. And now it came louder, so loud in a few moments that she abruptly landed and it wasn't comfortable.

"Ow," she said, then, "hey, my voice is back. Thank Merlin. Oh look, my tears are no longer hanging on."

"Who are you?" a cold voice asked, "and why are you babbling? Your voice has been there all along, and you've been screaming and crying quite unnecessarily for a long time."

She turned around. It seemed to her that there was a bubble around her. The bubble was a pretty blue colour and she liked it a lot. But the blue was also blurry and she couldn't make out who it was that was talking. "Umm, who are you? I can't actually see you because there seems to be a bubble around me."

"Look, whoever you are, I don't see any bubble around you. Maybe you are delusional after all. Or maybe I am. I can't see you and I have no wish to either. All I command of you is to get out of this dream … Can't I even be allowed to be alone in my dreams?"

At the word 'dream', her bubble shattered and an almost distinguishable figure appeared before her. But before she could process any thoughts, the hand that she had outstretched towards the figure disappeared in front of her eyes and then she saw horrifyingly, the rest of her was turning to dust as well. She cried, "Help …" and then she was no more …

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Goddammit all. Being physically away should mean all relenting of control over him but that wasn't enough. He had to leave reminders and of course, being a filthy rich person helped. The elves were there always. Always watchful of what he did when, how and where. Nothing was private anymore. Anything he did was logged away and duly reported to his father, whose skinny ass was sitting in a rotting cell on a rotting island very very far away from his estate. But even there, he had friends of a sort, or maybe he should say influence, over the Dementors. Nothing was freaking right in this stupid blasted world. Why the crap did he need to keep an eye on him?

I lose my way and it's not too long before you find it out

I cannot cry because I know it's weakness in your eyes

If his mother were to hear him, she would admonish him and would uncannily say something like his father would say, "Draco dear, a Malfoy never stoops that low to start swearing. They simply show that they are unaffected by such situations." Of course she wouldn't hit him; his father would. But that was all in the past so then why did he feel so attached and angry?

"Young Malfoy Master, the Mistress Malfoy requires you to be present in the dining hall for dinner in the next ten minutes. She also requires for you to be dressed appropriately as she is expecting a guest," a small but dignified elf said as he popped right in front of him. This was Mason, one of the oldest and most trusted house elves working for the Malfoys.

"Who is she expecting, Mason?" he asked.

"I am unaware of the fact, young Master and even if I were to know, Mistress Malfoy does not wish for you to know."

"Fine. Tell Mother I shall meet her in the dining hall in the time she stated."

The house elf disappeared, leaving Draco to wonder who it was that his mother was bringing over. Ever since the Dark Lord had been defeated and his father taken away to Azkaban, they had lain low, trying not to call attention to themselves, and had therefore hardly entertained anyone. It had to be someone who was in connection to the Dark Lord. If not, he still had to wear something that his mother would choose for him. He went to his walk-in closet and selected a dark green robe that was very expensive and used for such occasions. He slicked back his hair with his wand and then deciding he was looking fine, he headed downstairs towards the dining room.

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"Ah, there you are Draco," his mother said upon seeing him walk into the room. The room was a dining hall and hall was the right word for it. It resembled a large cavernous cave and in the very center of the hall, hung a crystal chandelier with hundreds of candles floating around it. There was a long table which could sit at least 20-25 persons.

"Hello, Mother," Draco said, "and how are you feeling this evening?"

"I am fine, thank you, Draco," she replied, "and now before we start dinner, there is someone I would like to meet or perhaps I should say get reacquainted with."

She headed to a small door that was located to the far right corner of the hall and went into the room that was on the other side. Draco followed his mother into the room and then looked around for the person she wanted him to 'get reacquainted with'. To his surprise and shock, he saw his godfather sitting on one of the armchairs. He stood still and looked at his mother intently.

His mother, Narcissa Malfoy, was a beautiful petite woman with coiffed blond hair and blue eyes that shone rarely; it shone only on certain occasions when she felt happy and secure and now he noticed they started shining the moment they landed on his godfather, Severus Snape.

"Well, well, hello, Godfather," he drawled, "long time no see. Of course, I hadn't expected Mother to dally with such a traitor as yourself."

"Hello, Draco. It is good to see you although I say it only because your Mother wishes me to," Snape said, then with a slight cough, "and I don't think 'traitor' refers to me only."

"Hmm," Draco said leisurely, "well, Mother, I have been reacquainted with my godfather long enough. Is it fine with you if I were to go and start having my dinner or should I remain here and listen to your mundane conversations?"

Narcissa looked up at him, disappointed in his words and yet proud that he refused show any of his emotions and remain detached from the situation. "No, I am not fine with it," she said, and left the room huffily, leaving Draco and Snape to look at each other.

"Look Draco, I …," started Snape, but Draco cut in, "Stop, Godfather."

"Let me finish, you insolent twit," Snape snapped, "your mother wanted to me to explain some things to you but I won't until I feel you're ready for it, and this clearly seems not to be the time as you don't look ready. I am going after your mother to see if she is fine and to tell her what I have just told you. You can go ahead and begin your dinner."

Snape got up from the armchair and walked to the door, relying heavily on his left leg. At the doorway, he turned around so he could see Draco, "Here's something else for you to ponder. You're Narcissa's son and she loves you a lot, but I will not see you hurt her indirectly or directly. Do you understand me, boy?"

Then he left and Draco stood there, looking at the fire roaring in the fireplace and pondered. The last time he had seen Severus Snape was that night in the Headmaster's Office where he had been supposed to complete his task but hadn't been able to so his godfather had stepped in and done it for him. He had felt ashamed that he had unable to do his task but later on, realized that it was a chance he had been given: to leave the cause and hide until everything was over. He owed Snape his gratitude for that.

That same night, he thought he had gotten Snape into deep trouble with the Dark Lord but from his hiding place, he had learned from his mother that Snape was a double agent, working for both sides up until that incident. He had gone to the Dark Side, showing that he was siding with the Dark Lord. Then two months ago, when the Final Battle came to pass, his true colours were shown then. He was on the Light Side and it was his help and information that he had gathered while under the Dark Side that helped the Golden Boy, Harry Potter to defeat the Dark Lord. And where was he all this time? Hiding in a house with his mother under a Fidelius Charm with him being the Secret Keeper.

So where then had the remark with 'traitor' come from? Had Draco himself supported the Light Side and not the Dark Side? Why didn't he have the Death Mark on his forearm? Why had he hidden like a coward? All of this did not show his support for the Dark Lord, did it? So that meant he was a traitor to his kind, too.

The embers were slowly dying out in the fireplace and he still hadn't moved from his spot. Mason, seeing that the Young Master hadn't eaten, brought a plate with dinner on it for him. Draco took it mechanically and ate the food woodenly, knowing that if he had refused, Mason would have forcefully spoon-fed it to him. Mason had taken care of him since he had been a child so he had the right to feed him and not get whipped for it, and besides, his mother might have also given him the order to do so if he didn't eat the dinner.

He finished eating and then headed back to his room, discarding all his clothes on a nearby chair, and fell into his bed wearily, wondering exactly what conclusions he had come to …

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Hermione opened one eye slowly and took a look around her. Nothing seemed different until her gaze hit upon the clock. It read 8.30 a.m. Something about the timing seemed familiar to her or it must be the date that was displayed beside the time: 22.08.05. She closed her eye and searched her mind for any appointments that she had for the day then she finally struck upon one. Her Apparition test.

HER APPARITION TEST. Oh my dear Merlin, oh shit, it's 8.30 already and the test is at 9. In five minutes, her blanket had been thrown off; she had rushed into the bathroom, taken a shower, brushed her teeth and hair, and put on a maroon robe over a red t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

It was as she was literally flying down the stairs that she realized why in the first place she had her Apparition test on that day. It was what she had been waiting for expectantly for two weeks and it was finally here and she hadn't even realized it. It was her birthday today. She was finally 17 years old. She did a little jiggy dance right there on the stairs and then she headed towards the kitchen to bid everyone a very cheery good morning.

"Good morning, everyone," she said, her mood unnaturally bright.

At the table was Ron, Harry, Ginny and … in fact, everyone but her was already there.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HERMIONEEE!!!!" they all shouted.

"Thanks everyone. I didn't even realize that today's my birthday until I was half way down the stairs. Can you believe that?" she shook her head.

"Try those charms yet?" Harry asked teasingly.

As an answer, he got a clout on the back of his head and he laughed even more. Ron and Ginny looked, wondering what he was talking about but decided not to broach it as Hermione was acting and looking happy meaning she was in a good mood about something so it was best not to disturb her.

"Mrs. Weasley, may I have my breakfast please? My Apparition Test is at 9 a.m. and I only have another 20 minutes before I reach there."

"Not to worry, dear. Arthur will take to you there. But first, you must eat a slice of your birthday cake and then open your presents before you leave," Molly said.

"Oh, I have presents and a birthday cake, too," she said questioningly.

"Of course, it's your birthday, Mione," Ron said, "Here's mine." He handed her a small gift. She unwrapped it and found a small pair of earrings inside. It had the design of a quarter moon with a small star sitting on the moon's lap.

"Oh, Ron," she sighed, "they are so pretty. I'm going to wear them now. Thank you so much." She gave him a hug and a kiss on his cheek. He blushed slightly.

Harry handed her his present. She gasped. It was a book on Charms. Not just any Charms, Advanced Charms that only the most experienced witches and warlocks used. "Harry … this is fantastic. Thank you so much. You know how much I love Charms." She gave him a hug and kiss too.

Then Ginny gave her present in the form of a slip of paper that read, '#9, 15 Newts Lane, Diagon Alley.'

"What's this, Ginny?" she asked.

"You'll see," said Ginny mysteriously, "meet me there after your Apparition test, ok?"

"Ok," she agreed.

After receiving a light brown jumper from Molly and some sort of candy from the twins, she ate a slice of her birthday cake and her breakfast and then left with Mr. Weasley for the Ministry of Magic via the Floo Network.

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Hyperventilating was not a good form of letting out stress. She knew this, told herself this before leaving the Weasley's home, and yet she found herself doing just this as she and Mr. Weasley approached the building where her test would take place. As they neared the door, she started chanting "Om" under her breath. Mr. Weasley heard her and chuckled silently, wanting to assure her that it was nothing at all but probably this was how she was before every exam.

They went through the door and headed for the desk where the secretary was seated. "Hello, Ms. Tiller, Hermione Granger is here for her Apparition Test," said Mr. Weasley when it seemed Hermione was still hyperventilating.

"Yes," stated Ms. Tiller efficiently, "Ms. Granger, you are to be seated in one of those chairs until the officials are ready for you. I shall inform you when they are."

Mr. Weasley led Hermione over to the green seats that matched the light green walls that surrounded them. "Ok, Hermione. This is where I leave you now. Try not to worry yourself too much. When this is all done, you will realize how easy this has been. May the best of luck be with you." He turned and left the building.

Hermione quickly evaluated her options. She could leave thereby avoiding the terrible test or she could stay and fail. Which sounded better? The leaving, of course, she thought then another voice popped up saying, 'Now, now, this won't do at all. Is this Hermione Granger who fought on the frontlines at the Final Battles, whose brain was so brilliant that the Dark Side fought to have her on their side? Muster up your Gryffindor courage and get your butt in there.'

She was Hermione Granger, she repeated to herself, her now new mantra. Soon she placated herself so by the time Ms. Tiller came to tell her that it was her time, she pretty much had that Gryffindor courage in check.

"Yes, Ms. Granger," said the efficient Ms. Tiller, "the Ministry officials are now ready for you. If you will, please follow my directions. Enter that hall and go straight ahead until you come upon the third door to your right. Knock on that door and wait until you are told to head in, OK? Best of luck to you."

"Thank you," Hermione made out softly, then squaring her shoulders and lifting her head high, she thought that this was silly; she was more apprehensive now than she had been at the Final Battle. She made her way to the door and when she finally reached in front of it, she stalled slightly before raising her hand to knock.

"Ms. Hermione Granger?" came the question.

"Yes sir."

"Please enter," the reply came.

She opened the door and went into a room that was as huge as the Hall back at Hogwarts. To one side was a long table at which sat three witches and one wizard.

"Hello, Ms. Granger. You are here for your Apparition test. Therefore, let us begin," stated one of the witches.

They took almost an hour to explain what she had to do or accomplish. They told her about the steps, then they went on to list the consequences of what would happen if she didn't concentrate or the consequences if she willfully let herself end up in a place that was the designated Apparition point. She listened nervously and noted all the points feverishly and then gulped noisily once or twice.

The witches, on seeing this, told her that she had nothing to worry about. For the next ten minutes, she practiced Apparating within the room itself and then at 10.15 a.m., she felt a bit more confident and concentrated on the designated Apparition point. But something jarred her concentration. One of the witches had taken off her hat and revealed long blonde hair. It looks remarkably like Malfoy's, she thought, and at that moment, she Disapparated from the room.

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With a soft oomph! she landed on her butt on a soft teal carpet. "Ow," she said, standing up and rubbing her butt gingerly. Then she looked around to see where she was. By the look of her surroundings, it most certainly did not look like the Ministry designated field in which she was supposed to Apparate to. But she didn't recognize this place she was in either. The carpet she had landed on, covered the whole room, although room wasn't probably the right word to describe it, and then disappeared into another room, where she could see that the door was open. In the bedchamber as was its name, was a large four-poster bed that was dark green in colour and had white mixed into it. The tall window that invited one to stand there and look out to the beauty that surrounded this abode, had drapes that matched the colourings of the bed. Next to the bed was a small night table that held two drawers and atop the night table, was a clock that read 10:30. She was surprised. How long had she been Apparating for?

"Hello is anyone here?" she called out. Not hearing any response to her question, she headed to other room. This room was clearly a sitting room with comfy green sofas and armchairs and a study desk that appeared to be crammed with study texts. Being the curious witch that she was, she headed towards the desk, knowing that one of them would contain the name of the owner who stayed in this room.

Unfortunately, before she could reach the desk, a sound reached her ears. It sounded like a door opening not from this room but from the bedchamber she had just come from. She headed that way again, pausing at the doorway, not believing what she saw or what she hadn't seen.

The bedchamber contained another door, one which she hadn't noticed in her haste to get to the room that already had its door open, which apparently led to a bathroom with a shower. The obvious reason was because the person, who had just walked out of the bathroom, was now standing in front of an open closet, which on closer inspection was actually a walk-in closet. The person was rummaging around his belongings, tossing out one after the other, apparently not liking his choice of apparel to wear for the day.

And it was a he alright. A gorgeous he, she might add. He was covered in only a towel, that was draped loosely around his hips. Her breath came in short breaths. His hair was a dark blond, and it was dripping wet. The water droplets fell from his tangled wet hair and slid down his back which was very muscular and doing a lot of bunching as he searched for his clothes. One particular drop slid down his back and her eyes followed it until it disappeared under the towel. She growled slightly at the inconvenience. She had wanted to see where it would lead to. That towel was doing a good job of hiding what was under the towel and she sighed. This was a tall guy, and he had to be a guy who was just turning into a man, by the breadth of his shoulders. Speaking of which, was wonderfully wide enough not to be considered girly or jock. And his legs seemed to go on and on, and they seemed so strong and strapping. Even as he searched for his clothes, it was clear that he was quite graceful in his fluid movements.

A full ten minutes and he still hadn't found the right clothes he wanted to wear. She heard his irritated sigh and before she could discern what he was going to do, he turned around to view the mess he had made on the floor. She emitted an "Eep!" when she saw the profile of his face and instant realization hit her as to who she had been ogling all this time, and it had only been his back.

She quickly turned and ran to the other end of the sitting room, concentrating now on getting to the designated Ministry area and getting the hell out of there before he realized who she was or the fact that she had been gaping at him for a full fifteen minutes.

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Draco heard the startled sound and looked up in time to see long bushy brown hair fly into his sitting room. He jumped over the pile of clothes and sped to the other room, shouting, "Who's there?"

By the time he reached the room, all he heard was a small pop that indicated someone had just Disapparated from his room, back to wherever she had come from. Deciding it would be futile to go after his mysterious visitor in only his towel, he paced the room wondering who it could be and how she had gotten in his bedchambers. Well, that was obvious, she had Apparated but he had thought that the manor was equipped with Anti-Apparition Wards. It must have been temporarily un-updated, he thought. Still, why would she run from him like that? It couldn't be from his looks, for sure. He sat on one of his chairs and pondered, still in only his towel.

Five minutes later, a knock came at his door, and his mother's voice rang throughout his room, "Draco, are you ready dear? I've given you an hour already. You should be ready by now."

Draco jumped at the sound of her voice, having forgotten guiltily about their trip together. "Another ten minutes, mother and I will be ready," he replied.

He heard his mother sigh very audibly from behind the door. "Honestly, Draco, if I didn't know better, I'd think you were a girl instead of a boy, the amount of time you take up to make yourself presentable. I shall expect to meet you downstairs in exactly ten minutes and no later, otherwise you shall be spending the day in the manor by yourself." She left then.

A thought struck Draco and shook him imperceptibly. Maybe that's why the mysterious she had left, she thought him to be acting too girly and probably thought he looked gay. The thought made him feel nauseous but the fact that he might be spending the day alone at the manor was enough for him to banish the thought immediately and get his ass into something quickly. He being gay … ha! like if, he thought scornfully.

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A/N: … Well? I hope you liked the chapter and the story so far. Hope it's long enough to satisfy the temporary quench. I'm not sure when next I'll be updating. Please read and review. Especially reviewing because that is what makes me tick and actually spurs to write even lengthier chapters. So review please. (I would like at least a minimum of 5 reviews!!)

:: Nandini709 ::