Chapter 20 Dinner with Dumbledores
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"To be loved is to be fortunate, but to be hated is to achieve distinction."
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Draco sat in the library waiting for his partner in crime. It was nearly midnight and he was carefully enclosed in a corner of the restricted section. He made it through his Wednesday and Thursday classes. He had dropped his note to Harry on Tuesday but they hadn't been able to meet until now. Draco was busy planning. He had to rearrange his rooms and enchant a few things before Saturday and Friday he had his meeting with Dumbledore.
"I believe I can see the smoke." Harry's voice appeared out of nowhere followed by the rest of his body. He laid his invisibility cloak on the table then sat across from Draco.
"I always knew you had one," Draco said eyeing his cloak pensively.
"Explains a bit doesn't it?" Harry smiled loosely.
"Why aren't you attacking me for cheating on your friend?" Draco asked.
"The truth?" Harry sighed and took his head in his hands, "I haven't been there for her and you have. She told you about Ron and I had to hear from him after Snape threatened to castrate him in our common room. I didn't even have a clue and I didn't know she was pureblood or about her father. She trusts you, even if it doesn't seem like it right now, and I trust her judgment."
"If it makes you feel any better, she didn't tell me the whole story with Weasley. All I know is it happened with him this summer."
"Yeah, that helps." Harry grinned, "So, why did you get me out of bed, with my girlfriend no doubt?"
"A yes, the girl Weasley. Is she...helping Hermione?"
"Yes, Hermione's sleeping in her dormitory. Now, answer the question."
"Alright, I want to give Hermione the most romantic night of her life."
"How do you plan on doing that?"
"I'm in cahoots with her mother." Harry smiled.
It was two hours before Harry and Draco stumbled sleepily out of the library doors. They parted ways at the end of the corridor. Harry smiled at the other man. He could tell Draco loved her. To tell the truth, Harry wouldn't have minded someone doing something like that for him.
Draco fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. His dreams had stayed away since his marriage but since Hermione left, his old nightmares had resurfaced. He tossed and turned that night a new dream coming.
He was in a large, stone room. Bodies littered the floor; blood splattered on the walls and ceiling. The Dark Lord was seated on a throne laughing manically at the man in front of him. Draco could make out the form of Harry Potter standing before the throne wand in hand and eyes ablaze. The Dark Lord suddenly turned his eyes towards Draco; they were full of fury. He stood and aimed his wand. He started to recite curses and Draco artfully dodged them. Draco watched himself trip over a body as a curse caught him. Harry called out the killing curse and the Dark Lord fell. Draco watched as Harry rushed towards him.
The dream faded away. He woke drenched in sweat and gasping for breath. The sun was filtering in through the window and Draco hurriedly got dressed not bothering with a shower. He ran to double Potions making it in seconds before Severus.
Classes passed as slowly and uneventfully as the rest of the week and he found himself in the Headmaster's office without really knowing how he got there.
"Ah, Draco, so good of you to come, but, where is Mrs. Malfoy?" Dumbledore asked a smile on his face as he entered from a door that presumably led to his private chambers.
"I believe she's in the Gryffindor rooms, Headmaster. We had a slight row." Draco explained.
"Oh, call me Albus." He said waving a hand, "But that will not do."
"What will not do, dear?" Minerva inquired walking into the room.
"Hermione had decided not to grace us with her presence this evening." Albus gave a knowing smile to his wife. She gave a tight smile in return then nodded.
"I'll just find her, shall I?" She hurried out of the room and Albus gestured for Draco to sit down.
"Now, what was this particular row about?" Albus asked settling into his own seat. Draco blushed lightly and lowered his head.
"H-hermione may have walked in on one of my study times with Pansy." He muttered staring intently at his feet.
"Well, surely that itself was too innocent to have a row about, mm?" Albus' smiled knowingly as he prodded the young man for the whole story.
"No, sir, actually, Pansy made inappropriate advances towards me. Some of which Hermione happened to witness." He replied all in one breath.
"I see. Surely you shall apologize?"
"I have, sir. She didn't believe my apology sincere so I planned upon others means for an apology."
"Indeed?" Albus eyes twinkled more brightly than Draco had ever seen them and he recoiled a bit from the sheer power that radiated of the older man. "Now then, I did not wish to speak of Hermione this evening."
"Oh?" Draco inquired attempting, and failing, not to show his interest. Albus was about to continue when the door opened. Minerva entered looking as graceful as ever followed by Hermione looking rushed and flushed. Albus rose and greeted Hermione.
"I do believe we are ready to attend dinner." Draco eyed Hermione who was casually turned away from him staring at a seemingly interesting spot on the wall. Albus held out a piece of paper with a time written on it.
"This is an automatic portkey. It will activate at the time specified on it. Quickly take hold." They all grabbed a corner and before long, Draco felt the familiar tug on his navel. Draco opened his eyes and found himself in the Leaky Cauldron. He was reminded of his first date with Hermione and couldn't hide the small smile that appeared on his face. They sat at a small corner table with Hermione and Draco on side and Minerva and Albus on the opposite side. Hermione scooted her chair as far away from Draco as possible before finding her self pushed uncomfortably against the wall.
"Hallo, professor." Tom the barkeep smiled as he walked over to take their order.
"Good evening, Tom. All is well, I trust?" IT was a simple inquiry but Draco had the feeling there was more to it than met the eye. He looked at Hermione to confirm she had the same feeling.
"Oh, you know, professor, everything runs according to plan."
"Excellent." They gave their order then sat in silence after Tom walked away.
"If you don't mind me asking, professor, why are we here?" Hermione referred to herself and Draco. Minerva looked worriedly at Albus for a moment but he just smiled.
"All shall be revealed in time, children." The conversation revolved around safe topics such as the weather, the state of the inn, and the baby. They ate silently and stood to leave. Albus pulled another portkey paper from his pocket.
"Are we going back to Hogwarts?" Draco asked expecting an automatic 'yes.'
"No, I'm afraid we have another stop to make." They all grabbed the paper and were transported to outside the Ministry of Magic. Dumbledore crowded into the phone booth with Draco followed by Minerva and Hermione. Once they were all inside, the walked through the wand checks and security. As they approached the corridor, Hermione stopped recognizing her surroundings.
"The Department of Mysteries?" She asked in clear confusion.
"Yes, only this time, you will have a guard accompany you." As if the mere mention of it made him appear, a guard approached them from behind.
"Albus, I trust that only the appropriate people will be entering the prophesy room." He voice was more of a low wheezing.
"Of course, Elphias. Hermione, Draco, this is Elphias Doge, he shall by your accompaniment." The wizard bid farewell to Albus and Minerva leading only Draco and HErmone through a series of doors and winding passageways. They finally reached a room Hermione recognized. He led them to row 96 all the way to the end. Draco looked at a small blue jar with his name on it.
"This was one of the unknowns a while ago, but Albus insisted it was yours." Draco removed the jar from it's shelf during Elphias' explanation.
"What is it?" Draco asked quietly amazed by the swirling smoke he viewed inside.
"It's a prophesy, of course." He said no more leading them back to the place where they could meet their elders.
"Everything went well." Albus' statement wasn't a question but Draco nodded anyway. They left the ministry building and Albus activated another portkey. When they arrived back in the Headmaster's office, they sat down for tea.
"Why did I have to go with Draco?" Hermione spoke suddenly causing Minerva to jump and slosh tea onto the saucer.
"I think you will find that the prophesy speaks of you, also." Albus smiled.
"Where you there when it was made?"
"No, no, even I am not that old. My grandfather happened to be...socializing with Gilda Trelawney while his wife was away when she made her first prediction. I know what the prophesy pertains to just not the actual wording."
Hermione grinned at the word socializing realizing that they may have been doing much more than playing a game of cards or the like, "Is Glinda a relative of Professor Trelawney?"
"Yes, her Great-Great Grandmother."
"How do I hear the prophesy?" Draco asked still tinkering with the jar.
"Break the glass." Albus told him. So he did.
A/N: Dun dun dun. Sorry for the cliffhanger. I wanted to keep going but I felt the urge to post this tonight and I'm too tired to finish. Good news though, I know what I want to do for the next three chapters so they should all be coming quickly. I won't be home tomorrow or Sunday but I plan to type out Chapter 21 tomorrow morning and Monday. It will be posted by Tuesday at the latest.
Next chapter: The Prophesy in which you learn the prophesy, how it pertains to Draco and Hermione, and Draco makes an important, life-changing choice.
Reviews: Wow, 100 reviews!
Erilyn Rose: Will definitely take your advice about Pansy but I won't tell you if you were right about Elizabeth and you know who.
Gryffindor 620: Thanks for reviewing every chapter so far!
Angel5blue5: I'll watch for it.
Falling-Blossom, Angel Of Doom, Sunflower18, and potts: Thanks for the support! As I said before, I love loyal fans.
Anarane Anwamane: Thank you so much.
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"To be loved is to be fortunate, but to be hated is to achieve distinction."
%%%%%
Draco sat in the library waiting for his partner in crime. It was nearly midnight and he was carefully enclosed in a corner of the restricted section. He made it through his Wednesday and Thursday classes. He had dropped his note to Harry on Tuesday but they hadn't been able to meet until now. Draco was busy planning. He had to rearrange his rooms and enchant a few things before Saturday and Friday he had his meeting with Dumbledore.
"I believe I can see the smoke." Harry's voice appeared out of nowhere followed by the rest of his body. He laid his invisibility cloak on the table then sat across from Draco.
"I always knew you had one," Draco said eyeing his cloak pensively.
"Explains a bit doesn't it?" Harry smiled loosely.
"Why aren't you attacking me for cheating on your friend?" Draco asked.
"The truth?" Harry sighed and took his head in his hands, "I haven't been there for her and you have. She told you about Ron and I had to hear from him after Snape threatened to castrate him in our common room. I didn't even have a clue and I didn't know she was pureblood or about her father. She trusts you, even if it doesn't seem like it right now, and I trust her judgment."
"If it makes you feel any better, she didn't tell me the whole story with Weasley. All I know is it happened with him this summer."
"Yeah, that helps." Harry grinned, "So, why did you get me out of bed, with my girlfriend no doubt?"
"A yes, the girl Weasley. Is she...helping Hermione?"
"Yes, Hermione's sleeping in her dormitory. Now, answer the question."
"Alright, I want to give Hermione the most romantic night of her life."
"How do you plan on doing that?"
"I'm in cahoots with her mother." Harry smiled.
It was two hours before Harry and Draco stumbled sleepily out of the library doors. They parted ways at the end of the corridor. Harry smiled at the other man. He could tell Draco loved her. To tell the truth, Harry wouldn't have minded someone doing something like that for him.
Draco fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow. His dreams had stayed away since his marriage but since Hermione left, his old nightmares had resurfaced. He tossed and turned that night a new dream coming.
He was in a large, stone room. Bodies littered the floor; blood splattered on the walls and ceiling. The Dark Lord was seated on a throne laughing manically at the man in front of him. Draco could make out the form of Harry Potter standing before the throne wand in hand and eyes ablaze. The Dark Lord suddenly turned his eyes towards Draco; they were full of fury. He stood and aimed his wand. He started to recite curses and Draco artfully dodged them. Draco watched himself trip over a body as a curse caught him. Harry called out the killing curse and the Dark Lord fell. Draco watched as Harry rushed towards him.
The dream faded away. He woke drenched in sweat and gasping for breath. The sun was filtering in through the window and Draco hurriedly got dressed not bothering with a shower. He ran to double Potions making it in seconds before Severus.
Classes passed as slowly and uneventfully as the rest of the week and he found himself in the Headmaster's office without really knowing how he got there.
"Ah, Draco, so good of you to come, but, where is Mrs. Malfoy?" Dumbledore asked a smile on his face as he entered from a door that presumably led to his private chambers.
"I believe she's in the Gryffindor rooms, Headmaster. We had a slight row." Draco explained.
"Oh, call me Albus." He said waving a hand, "But that will not do."
"What will not do, dear?" Minerva inquired walking into the room.
"Hermione had decided not to grace us with her presence this evening." Albus gave a knowing smile to his wife. She gave a tight smile in return then nodded.
"I'll just find her, shall I?" She hurried out of the room and Albus gestured for Draco to sit down.
"Now, what was this particular row about?" Albus asked settling into his own seat. Draco blushed lightly and lowered his head.
"H-hermione may have walked in on one of my study times with Pansy." He muttered staring intently at his feet.
"Well, surely that itself was too innocent to have a row about, mm?" Albus' smiled knowingly as he prodded the young man for the whole story.
"No, sir, actually, Pansy made inappropriate advances towards me. Some of which Hermione happened to witness." He replied all in one breath.
"I see. Surely you shall apologize?"
"I have, sir. She didn't believe my apology sincere so I planned upon others means for an apology."
"Indeed?" Albus eyes twinkled more brightly than Draco had ever seen them and he recoiled a bit from the sheer power that radiated of the older man. "Now then, I did not wish to speak of Hermione this evening."
"Oh?" Draco inquired attempting, and failing, not to show his interest. Albus was about to continue when the door opened. Minerva entered looking as graceful as ever followed by Hermione looking rushed and flushed. Albus rose and greeted Hermione.
"I do believe we are ready to attend dinner." Draco eyed Hermione who was casually turned away from him staring at a seemingly interesting spot on the wall. Albus held out a piece of paper with a time written on it.
"This is an automatic portkey. It will activate at the time specified on it. Quickly take hold." They all grabbed a corner and before long, Draco felt the familiar tug on his navel. Draco opened his eyes and found himself in the Leaky Cauldron. He was reminded of his first date with Hermione and couldn't hide the small smile that appeared on his face. They sat at a small corner table with Hermione and Draco on side and Minerva and Albus on the opposite side. Hermione scooted her chair as far away from Draco as possible before finding her self pushed uncomfortably against the wall.
"Hallo, professor." Tom the barkeep smiled as he walked over to take their order.
"Good evening, Tom. All is well, I trust?" IT was a simple inquiry but Draco had the feeling there was more to it than met the eye. He looked at Hermione to confirm she had the same feeling.
"Oh, you know, professor, everything runs according to plan."
"Excellent." They gave their order then sat in silence after Tom walked away.
"If you don't mind me asking, professor, why are we here?" Hermione referred to herself and Draco. Minerva looked worriedly at Albus for a moment but he just smiled.
"All shall be revealed in time, children." The conversation revolved around safe topics such as the weather, the state of the inn, and the baby. They ate silently and stood to leave. Albus pulled another portkey paper from his pocket.
"Are we going back to Hogwarts?" Draco asked expecting an automatic 'yes.'
"No, I'm afraid we have another stop to make." They all grabbed the paper and were transported to outside the Ministry of Magic. Dumbledore crowded into the phone booth with Draco followed by Minerva and Hermione. Once they were all inside, the walked through the wand checks and security. As they approached the corridor, Hermione stopped recognizing her surroundings.
"The Department of Mysteries?" She asked in clear confusion.
"Yes, only this time, you will have a guard accompany you." As if the mere mention of it made him appear, a guard approached them from behind.
"Albus, I trust that only the appropriate people will be entering the prophesy room." He voice was more of a low wheezing.
"Of course, Elphias. Hermione, Draco, this is Elphias Doge, he shall by your accompaniment." The wizard bid farewell to Albus and Minerva leading only Draco and HErmone through a series of doors and winding passageways. They finally reached a room Hermione recognized. He led them to row 96 all the way to the end. Draco looked at a small blue jar with his name on it.
"This was one of the unknowns a while ago, but Albus insisted it was yours." Draco removed the jar from it's shelf during Elphias' explanation.
"What is it?" Draco asked quietly amazed by the swirling smoke he viewed inside.
"It's a prophesy, of course." He said no more leading them back to the place where they could meet their elders.
"Everything went well." Albus' statement wasn't a question but Draco nodded anyway. They left the ministry building and Albus activated another portkey. When they arrived back in the Headmaster's office, they sat down for tea.
"Why did I have to go with Draco?" Hermione spoke suddenly causing Minerva to jump and slosh tea onto the saucer.
"I think you will find that the prophesy speaks of you, also." Albus smiled.
"Where you there when it was made?"
"No, no, even I am not that old. My grandfather happened to be...socializing with Gilda Trelawney while his wife was away when she made her first prediction. I know what the prophesy pertains to just not the actual wording."
Hermione grinned at the word socializing realizing that they may have been doing much more than playing a game of cards or the like, "Is Glinda a relative of Professor Trelawney?"
"Yes, her Great-Great Grandmother."
"How do I hear the prophesy?" Draco asked still tinkering with the jar.
"Break the glass." Albus told him. So he did.
A/N: Dun dun dun. Sorry for the cliffhanger. I wanted to keep going but I felt the urge to post this tonight and I'm too tired to finish. Good news though, I know what I want to do for the next three chapters so they should all be coming quickly. I won't be home tomorrow or Sunday but I plan to type out Chapter 21 tomorrow morning and Monday. It will be posted by Tuesday at the latest.
Next chapter: The Prophesy in which you learn the prophesy, how it pertains to Draco and Hermione, and Draco makes an important, life-changing choice.
Reviews: Wow, 100 reviews!
Erilyn Rose: Will definitely take your advice about Pansy but I won't tell you if you were right about Elizabeth and you know who.
Gryffindor 620: Thanks for reviewing every chapter so far!
Angel5blue5: I'll watch for it.
Falling-Blossom, Angel Of Doom, Sunflower18, and potts: Thanks for the support! As I said before, I love loyal fans.
Anarane Anwamane: Thank you so much.