Hello my lovelys! I hope you guys aren't too mad at me for this uuber long wait. I hope I satisfied some sort of Dramione fix by udpating. It would make me all giddy inside to know.
A special dedication and thanks to Prurient penmanship, my dedicated reviewer and good friend, for keeping me going through his wonderful, detailed reviews and keeping me up to finish this chapter tonight. Even though I'm still mad at him for not telling me that he could hear me singing _
And now, what you've all been waiting for!
Disclaimer: Oh ya'll already know these characters aren't mine, I just twisted the plot for my sick and twisted pleasure. Onward!
Sleep had become a foreign concepts to the sixth and seventh years at Hogwarts. As soon as they found out about their former potions professor becoming the Headmaster, they started to draft some new soldiers. Dumbledore's Army had expanded four times its original size with Ginny, Neville, and thankfully Luna as the masterminds behind operation: Battle of Hogwarts. Each leader took on a group by specialty and made it perfectly clear that needed to be prepared for the worst of the worst.
"If you think that the beasts that rule the forbidden forest are the most dangerous you can come up against, you got another thing coming," the youngest Weasley stood amongst a group of second years that looked on the verge of tears.
"They're people just like us, people who believe their side is the way things should be. The right way. But we have to prove to them that we will stop at nothing to make sure the light comes out victorious...and alive," Neville had raised his eyebrows as he whispered the last parts, causing a fourth year girl to gasp and a fifth year to pass out from a panic attack.
Luna paced, as unorthodox as a worried pacer could be, with her head tilted to the left; unsure of how to break it to her dear friends and fellow students. Death had already influenced her life heavily, and yet no one knew, other than Harry and the thestrals, that is. She had to prepare them for the inevitable, because no matter who won; everyone was going to lose.
"Does anyone know what a thestral is?" Her dreamy tone slightly subdued by her teaching moment and this solemn time. Raised eyebrows and confused faces threw themselves at Luna and then amongst each other to voice their bewilderment. A small voice tried to make itself known despite the tears that could be heard with it.
"I do," the tiny hufflepuff stood.
Luna gave a sympathetic smile and stuck out her hand to motion the girl to come closer. After Luna and Abigail, as her name turned out to be, ended their embrace, Abigail turned to face her peers.
"We're near them all the time when we're coming to Hogwarts, only, you can't see them unless you've witnessed a death," she said softly as she shedded a tear. "He Who Must Not Be Named...killed my parents when he was rising to power again. Called them a waste of magic and matter..." she faltered off, putting her head down.
"They're quite frightening," Luna stated in her airy voice, "but only if you're not prepared to face them."
The wide eyed faces grew as the confusion became like wildfire. Luna huffed softly and patted Abigail's back to sit down.
"What I'm trying to say is, no matter who wins this war, everyone is going to lose. Some of your best friends and classmates may fall under the hand of Voldemort and his followers; but you cannot- CAN NOT- lose your focus. Otherwise, everything they died fighting for, will be for naught." Her eyes prickled with threatened tears from memories of her mother's and Dobby's lives flashing before her eyes. A sniffle from the group of little soliders-in-training brought her back to the present. She softly smiled at them and looks around the room.
"Blibbering Humdingers," said excitedly, "looks like you will all come out ok."
Ginny smiles from afar at her whimsical yet strangely empowering friend.
"So wait, Voldemort has split his soul to keep himself alive all this time?" Draco sputtered a bit of hot tea, causing an amused Hermione to shyly chuckle.
"Honestly man, you'd think someone would know at least basic info about his bloody house guests," Ron tried to harbor his condescending tone, but the look on Hermione's face as he turned her direction said that she wasn't having it.
"Yes," the lioness stated in her oh too familiar scholarly tone, "that's how he came back during the Triwizard tournament and that's how he will fall."
"If we can even find them," Harry huffed.
"We will find and destroy all of them, Harry. The prophecy says so," she said matter of factly, trying to get a smile out of him.
"The prophecy states that only one shall live. We don't know which one." The Chosen one could be so frustrating when he was being pessimistic.
"Well then, we'll make the bloody prophecy work in our favor, yeah? We'll find and destroy all of horcruxes and defeat Voldemort." The Slytherin prince tried to lift everyone's spirits, but all it got him was a comforting squeeze on the arm from his lioness. He knew it was gonna take awhile for them to accept his input, well, the boys anyway.
"It's been a long night," Harry said, rubbing the back of his neck in distress. He stood up slowly patting Ron on the back while on his back to his room. Ron Getting the signal, gave Draco a look of disdain and followed suit with Harry.
"They'll come around. They may be stubborn arses at first, but this mission means everything to us-especially Harry. Just give a bit a bit of time, ok?" she comforted her Slytherin prince with a kiss on the cheek as she headed towards her room.
"Oh and Draco," he looked up to face the sexiest smirk on a woman-ever, "...if you get any bad dreams, or need some company...you know where to find me." And with a final wink, she disappeared up into the darkness.
"Wow," was all his throat could muster up after that inconceivable moment. Hermione surely has changed over the years. Watching from afar, she's grown from a prude, emotional, know-it-all bookworm to a strong, sexy, independent woman. Even so, some habits never die.
Tiptoeing down the steps in a dark emerald lace nightgown was none other than the object of his affection. Merlin, did her sexyness just tenfold or what?
"Um, I forgot my books," she sheepishly said, a blush creeping across her face as she looked at him through the bangs of her hair. She quickly snatched the books off the couch and carfully ran back up the stairs, but not without the fabric of her nightgown going up just enough to see her matching underwear. Hot damn.
Realizing the tightening of his pants, Draco decided it was his turn to start up the steps, possibly to "bump" into his little seductress. Not before another presence stopped his path, however.
"Come back to tease me more, Princ-uhm-uh-Potter" he quickly looked at the steps with fervor as his face turned bright red.
Harry slight frustration switched to amusement as he let Draco hear a chuckle. "Thanks mate, but I wouldn't lead you on just to your disappointment when you realize you can't get any," he patted his new friend on the shoulder.
He coughed a bit to get rid of the embarrassment and regain his composure. Before he could even get a word out though, he was caught off guard, yet again.
"I just wanted to thank you; for saving Hermione and bringing her back to us. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. She's like a sister to me, and you can only imagine how hard it was to go through my days without knowing her whereabouts." Harry sputtered out bashfully, making sure he didn't wake anyone else up with his blubbering.
"I can imagine how hard it was; but I didn't intend on bringing her back," he sternly retorted. Harry's shock was apparent, but he kept his mouth shut to hear the rest.
"We were in the woods on our way back from a market when we saw it. A doe patronus."
"You saw it too then," Draco gave Harry a look that told him to let him finish the story.
"Hermione wanted to follow it because she said it looked familiar, but we heard a big splash and it disappeared. I made her hide behind a tree because we didn't know whose side they were on; and then you jumped out. She was so overwhelmed with joy to see you and Ron still hunting without her, so who was I to stop her just because I enjoyed her company?"
"Someone who loves her," Harry smiled, "and she loves back. I saw the pain on your face at the beach, and the way she looked at you when she finally woke up in her room. I may not have liked the idea of it before, but if she's happy, that's what's important. You have my blessing. If you were ever really looking for it."
"Thanks, mate."
"Now, I'm gonna head back to bed and pretend that you didn't call me princess when I came down here." The Boy Who Wouldn't Die chuckled and elbowed the once arrogant prat now ally to the light side.
Draco finally showed off a genuine smile and laughed back, "Please do," as he headed to his respective room.
R&R PLEASE!