Harry awoke with a flash of pain, followed by bittersweet warmth. His mouth had a cotton feel to it, and there was a persistent tingling in his fingers and toes. He tried to sit up, but found at the moment he couldn't. Harry then decided to shift his focus on opening his eyes. Slowly the world came alive to his senses. He felt the sterile warmth of the ever too familiar infirmary bedding. He smelt the starchy scent of poultices and potions in the air. His fuzzy mouth transformed with the taste of copper, an indicator that he had bitten his tongue. His eyes were filled with gray and blue light filtering into the room through rain covered windows. And above the sound of tapping rain he heard someone speak, repeating a sentence he thought he would never hear.

"I am going to forgive Harry."

He knew that voice. It belonged to Hermione, one of his best friends, a person he thought he would never intentionally hurt. Yet he had, and he himself would not be able to excuse his actions. Somehow, here she was saying that she was doing just that. Forgiving him. A tingle ran down his spine.

"You were very right when you said I wouldn't like it," A second voice spoke, this one was also familiar. "I more than don't like it. I hate it. I don't understand, why would you want to?" This was none other than Draco Malfoy, his school rival of sorts. He might not be as bad as Voldamort or even Snape, but he was still high on the list that made Harry's life miserable. "No, one little hex to the back does not make you even, tell me, who would put such an idea in your head?"

"You need to understand," Hermione began, "I am going to forgive Harry, but I am not forgiving his actions."

"You're not making sense Hermione, how can you forgive him? He is responsible for his actions!" Malfoy's voice was filled with more than its usual malice; his tone was much harsher than normal.

"That's exactly it, he is not responsible for these particular actions…Draco please, this is very hard for me, and you said you would support me."Harry heard the rustle of fabric and slowly moved his head to peer at them through cracked eyes; his vision had begun to focus. He saw Hermione embracing Malfoy, heard him sigh as he pulled her closer, resting his cheek on the top of her head.

"I want to support you; really, I made a promise that I would stand beside you. But you cannot stand here and tell me that suddenly he is no longer accountable for what he has done." Malfoy's eyes were filled with an emotion that Harry himself had not seen on his adversaries face. If he had to describe the look it would be along the line of concern and worry. This made Harry's stomach twist. Seeing his friend in the arms of someone he hated was just wrong. Hearing Malfoy talk to her with such endearing passion made Harry squirm with great unease. Knowing that it was his own actions that drove said friend into said foes arms made Harry cringe in guilt and self loathing.

"But he isn't!" Hermione protested, "As much as part of me is unwilling to accept it, I know now that the biggest thing Harry is at fault for is defying You-Know-Who by living." Harry almost jumped at Hermione defending him. Why would she after what he had done? For once he was in agreement with Malfoy, which only made Harry feel worse about the whole situation.

"What does that have to do with the price of dragon dung in Romainia? Are you saying that just because he is the wondrous Boy-Who-Lived that for some inane reason you are just going to live and let live, forget all that has happened t you, just bloody forgive him and be one big happy sappy Gryffindor family again?" Hermione pushed herself away from Malfoy dug her hands into her hair.

"You are not listening Draco! Somehow He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named got inside his head to the point that Harry did not have full control over his actions." Harry was not sure how she found out, but he was glad that Hermione knew that Harry by himself would not do something so awful to his friend. It did not lessen or take away the pain from him doing it, but it eased his mind. If Hermione knew it meant Harry was suddenly not alone. Maybe Ginny was right, maybe he could beat Voldamort. Harry's train of thought was derailed when Malfoy opened his mouth and said something that felt like a punch in Harry's already upset stomach.

"So what you are saying now is that you can forgive Potter because it wasn't him who molested you, it was only the leader of the Death Eaters that nearly gang raped you. I call bullshit, whoever told you that is a liar trying to get Potter off the hook once again. Who was it that fed you that load of crap?" Hearing it in such blunt terms was hard, not only for Harry, but for Hermione too. She began to weep as she answered.

"Dumbledore," Hermione let the name out in a nearly breathless whisper. "He knew, said he even knew in advance that something might happen." She buried her face into her hands as her shoulders began to shake. Malfoy collected her into his arms once again, this time guiding her to the chair and pulling her into his lap. Harry felt uncomfortable again as he saw how at ease she was with Malfoy, turning into him as he rubbed her back. Her voice was muffled by his shirt and her tears as she said, "He knew and didn't stop them, wouldn't stop them. He said it was supposed to happen, that it had to."

"Bloody hell Hermione," Malfoy bit out, "Next time I see that old tosser I will personally hex his dangly bits right off."

"He said there was more, but he left before telling me. He only said that this is a key element for turning the tide in this blood war." This information was a surprise to Harry. He thought he was alone, that no one knew. But here his mentor had known and had done nothing. Harry felt like Dumbledore had betrayed them all. Why would he let something like that happen? What benefit was there in having Harry tormented by his own actions, actions that hurt many of his friends. Not only was Hermione hurt by this, there was Ron to think of as well. Would his friendships be salvageable? Even if they were to be saved, they would not be the same again.

"Everything always seems to come back to this infernal war. At this point I feel no matter what side you are on you have to see what complete nutters the men whom are leading it are."This earned a small laugh from Hermione. Malfoy gave her a small smile then pressed his lips to her temple, "So you believe forgiving Potter will save him, and all those who are counting on him as well. Well, like I said, I don't like it, but if that's your choice. I'm still not letting you be alone with him, or even out of my sight at the moment."

"Thank you," she said, leaning up to give him a small kiss.

"I thought I told before that you don't need to be thanking me for anything. I do things for only one, well now two, reasons." Malfoy adjusted his grip on Hermione, one arm encircling her and supporting her back while his other hand toyed with the bracelet on her wrist.

"Oh yeah, and what would that be?" Hermione said with a hiccup.

"Reason one is because I want to, and reason two," Malfoy paused as he leaned in to nuzzle her ear, "reason two is because I want you to be happy." Harry watched as Hermione's face turned from sadness to one of bashful delight. Her response to that died on her lips as the door opened, emitting two red haired siblings.

oOo

Draco had felt uncomfortable the moment the Weasleys came into the room. Before they entered, it was just him and Hermione. Yes, Potter was there, but he was still out and therefore did not count. Now it felt like he might as well be hanging in the Gryffindor common room. He watched as she jumped of his lap to go greet them. True to what he promised he did not leave, but he wasn't feeling exactly wanted when the first thing out of the Weaselettes mouth was to question his presence.

"Hermione, what is he doing here!" the small girl asked while pointing an accusing finger at Draco.

"Doesn't matter what I am doing here, only that I am here and I am staying." Draco replied, turning his nose into the air by a fraction, keeping his seat.

"It's ok," Her brother was the one to respond, "They are together now I guess."

"What!" The girl shrieked, her voice a growing likeness to the one Draco heard through a howler back in second year. Turning on Hermione the She-Weasel asked, "When did this happen!"

"I'm not sure what to say, we have been studying together, and he has been helping me, and now it's a bit more complicated I suppose…" Sensing that she was beginning to babble the Weasel jumped in again.

"I'm not sure what's so complicated about it," the Weasel gestured to their wrist, "Check it out, they even have those things. You would have known if you weren't so busy puking your brains out the other day." At his gesture she looked, her eyes got even bigger; her mouth formed a large 'O'. For a moment Draco thought she had been stunned into silence, but then her face turned red as she screeched again,

"Are you serious!" She turned on Hermione, grabbing her wrist. She examined the bracelet and saw the recent puncture marks on her finger. "You are serious! This is real? I need to sit down…" Draco stood and offered her his chair then moved to stand by Hermione. "Ron, how can you be so calm about this? Hermione is married to Bloody Malfoy!"

"Actually it's Draco Malfoy," Draco interjected, earning a withering glare from the fuming girl. She then turned her sharp eyes back to her brother.

"Well?" She demanded "Don't make me repeat myself Ronald Bilius Weasley!" Underneath her stare Draco watched as Ronald Bilius Weasley turned a few shades whiter.

"Gordon Bennett! Ginny, it sounds like you somehow swallowed mum whole! I bet she would be very proud of you right now…"This did nothing but turn up the heat on her glare. Ron sighed as he answered, "I suppose you could say that I'm not in the position to make judgments on others love lives right now. Ginny, I suppose there is something I need to tell you…I think I'm…"

"I know already," She interrupted, trying to motion for him not to say anything in front of Draco. "We will talk later."

"That's alright Weasleys, I already know too." Draco said with a certain smugness. "But that's alright; you don't have to say anything in front of me. In fact I would rather you didn't." This brought her wrath back full circle to him and Hermione.

"See what a poxy-prat he is Hermione! How could you marry such a barmy blighter! Have you forgotten that he is a complete prick!" It looked like she was about to sink into her chair when Hermione's answered propelled her upwards.

"Would you believe me if I told you that I actually didn't know what I was doing, and that it is not really real?" Hermione's friend grabbed at her wrist once more, this time in an attempt to remove the Contegam Uxorem. The head of the snake reared up with a hiss, bearing its fangs at what it thought could be an attacker. The female Weasley released Hermione's arm and took a step back, halting the serpents growing transformation. When it showed to be dormant once again the girl gave a bit of a 'har-ump'.

"Not real my arse! According to that reaction I would say that you have pretty much completed every requirement for the grand veneficus nuptiis! How can you say that you didn't know? Are you telling me that you accepted the terms, had a great feast where it was announced, and you slept with him, all without knowing what you were doing?" Exasperated the girl flopped into the chair once more. Draco could practically see the cogs in Hermione's brain whirling away, the facts clicking into place.

"That's not exactly how it happened but..."Hermione began when Draco cut her off,

"But we will talk about this later, thank you. After all, are we not here to see to poor Potter; who I believe has only been pretending to sleep for the past few minutes, if not longer?" With Draco's announcement all eyes turned to the boy in the bed. Indeed his green eyes were cracked, his face showing a mix of pain and displeasure. Seeing how the attention was now fully on him; Potter opened his eyes.

"Hey."

"Hey? Hey!" The yelling started anew; the she-weasel seemed to always be angry. What was it that Blaise saw in her? "Harry Potter, here we have been worried about you, and there you are, only pretending to be asleep. And what do you have to say for yourself? Just 'hey'!"

"Well," Potter began, "I'm not sure what to say really. Other than I'm sorry of course. I mean not that I am sorry for eavesdropping, or pretending to sleep; but that I'm really sorry for hurting everyone." Potter took a deep breath and looked to Weasley, "I'm sorry Ron, I used your feelings, and I have to be honest when I say that I don't truly feel that way. I haven't been myself lately" Weasley looked a crushed, but took it in stride.

"I kinda expected that, really. Besides, it wouldn't have worked out anyway…" Weasley flashed a half smile, "But anyway, your better now, right? I think I can forgive you, but only if you guys let me break it to mum myself."

"Thanks Ron, that means more than you now." Potters emerald eyes turned on Hermione next. "Did you really mean what you said?"

"When I said what exactly, how long have you been awake anyway?" Hermione peered at Potter in a way that let him know exactly what she thought of him listening in to what might have been a private conversation.

"When you said you were going to forgive me…I understand if you don't mean it, I wouldn't forgive me…" Before Potter could wallow in his own despair Hermione looked him in the eye and answered.

" I meant what I said Harry. It will take me a while to get over everything personally, but," She paused as she stepped up to the cot and took his and in hers, "I forgive you Harry Potter, for actions I know now that you were not responsible for."

The moment the words were out of her mouth there was a brilliant flash of light, bathing Potter in a golden glitter from his feet to his head. He fell back heavily onto the bed, his eyes rolling back until all you could see were his whites. Then a terrible hissing scream ripped from him. Draco was not a parselmouth, but it didn't take a genius to know when they were hearing the sounds of the serpent language. As abruptly as the event started it stopped. Everything in the hospital wing fell silent, letting them hear the clear clapping of feet running their way.

"Alright, that's enough now. I promised Albus I would let you in to see Mister Potter, but I believe you have done enough now," The matron began to shoo them out of her hospital wing, " I knew I was right to tell him that what he needed was rest, but you know the headmaster. Now out with you all, and don't come around again until after class tomorrow!" Being at the tail of the group Draco caught said headmaster exiting Pomfrey's office.

"Come now Poppy," Draco heard him say through the already closing doors, "I told you that some things have to happen. Hopefully it will be enough to protect Harry in the upcoming battle with Tom." Draco turned to Hermione as they walked away, hoping for a bit more in the way of an explanation.

"What was that?" He asked, taking her hand.

"If I had to wager a guess, I would say that it was the power of unconditional love. By forgiving Harry, he now has yet another weapon in which to use against You-Know-Who. And once again the weapon was delivered to Harry by his own hands." She gave his hand a squeeze, "Come on, I believe we have some things to discuss." Draco swallowed hard at her words. He knew what he was in for, he only hoped he could come out to the other side unscathed. But, just in case,

"Hey, Weasley!" He shouted to the siblings ahead of them. They both halted and turned to look back at him.

"Yes Malfoy?" The brother asked.

"Not you, her!" If Draco was not going to see tomorrow, he was at least going to help one of his friends odds in life.

"Me?" She questioned.

"Yes, you, if you need someone to help you get over Potter you should give Blaise an owl." Draco tried his best at an innocent smile, knowing that while Blaise was going to be mad initially; if Draco succeeded Blaise would have to thank him later.

"First off, seeing how you are now with Hermione, you will have to start calling Ron and I by our names. Mine is Ginny if you didn't know. And second, Zabini? Why would I owl him?" Ginny's arms were crossed, her face in a tight frown.

"First off," Draco said, mimicking her, "It is Blaise, if you insist on us calling you by name you must return the same courtesy. And second, just send him a message by whatever means you like, hell, you might even try talking to him. Give him a chance, he is a nice guy." Before she could respond Draco was off with Hermione in tow. If he was going to face the music, he was going to do it on his own terms.

oOo

Draco led her through the halls of Hogwarts, whenever she attempted to speak he would try and be playful by running ahead, or would completely talk over her, not letting her get a single word in. She was becoming very furious by the time they got to the Jade Elephant. He took the stairs two at a time with her hot on his heels; she was defiantly not going to the let the subject drop, if that's what he was aiming for. When they entered the suite he transfigured a fruit basket into an actual picnic basket and began to fill it up. Next he dashed into the bedroom and grabbed a blanket, adding that to the basket as well.

"Draco, what are you doing? I thought we were going to talk about how we are apparently married and you failed to say, no not failed, you outright lied and said we were not!" Hermione was becoming more livid with his every movement.

"We are going to talk," He finally said, turning to address her. "I thought if we were going to have this conversation, then we might have it someplace more pleasant. Not only that, but all the commotion with Potter you have skipped a few more meals. I thought a late picnic as a lunch would suit both needs." There was a tap at the window and his eyes lit up. "Perfect timing!" He exclaimed, unlatching the window and allowing his broom to sweep through the window. Grabbing the basket with one hand he used his other to mount his broom. "Are you coming?" He asked over his shoulder.

"No," was her stern reply. Confused he looked at her, seeing the alarm in her eyes.

"No?" He questioned.

"No, as in I do not fly about on a broom stick." Hermione's face was severe; he already knew it was going to be hard getting her to change her mind. On the other hand, she was no longer thinking about how she was going to blast his bits off…

"Come on," He said while thinking on how exactly he was going to persuade her. "What type of witch doesn't ride a broom?"

"This kind of witch." She stated, her feet planted firmly on the ground. "Draco, no matter what you say, I am not getting on that broom. You will have to find another way."

"But Hermione, I had it all thought out," his voice was full pout with a twinge of whine, " I was going to take you to a nice place on the far side of the lake, we were going to eat while talking, you would realize you might love me and that you are not really mad at all, and after you forgive me we would have a nice and wonderful life together… see doesn't that sound nice?" Hermione couldn't tell how much he said was serious and how much was a joke to get her to ride the broom. "If we were to walk to our destination it would take a lot longer, not to mention you might get grumpy because you're hungry, you might even slip and fall into the lake, becoming all wet…well then again it wouldn't be too bad, a nice campfire to dry off with the sun setting over the water, followed by some night time adventure," Here he stopped to wiggle his eyebrows. "And if it gets us there faster I will even wear my glasses that you like so much." He ended this with a big grin, and she couldn't help but laugh at the preposterous plan he came up with.

She was about to purpose a compromise when there was a second tap at the window. This time the tap came from an agitated looking owl. While similar to Draco's owl in the way it was also an eagle owl, its colorings and mannerisms were quite different. Bubble had luminous orange eyes with black and white featherings. This owl, which was a half a size bigger, had sharp yellow eyes, its feathers a mottled range of tan and brown. Draco, although surprised to see him, seemed to know this owl. He gestured the owl in, and reached forward to take the letter when the owl bit his fingers.

"Rudy!" Draco snapped at the owl, "This is not the time, give me the letter. Now." He ground out. When the owl would not deliver his letter Draco growled and dug into the basket. Pulling out a bit of ham he tossed it to the bird who caught it, swallowing the piece of meat in one greedy gulp. Only then did he protrude his leg, offering the message. Draco tore the envelope from the bird then attempted to shoo the bird off. The owl did not budge, he merely hunkered down, fluffing up his feathers.

"This is my father's owl," Draco explained. "His name is Rudesind, meaning path of fame." Upon hearing his true name the owl preened in pride. "However I think Rudy fits him just fine." The bird scowled and hissed, once again trying to make his presence larger than it truly was. "Father must want an immediate reply; otherwise Rudy would have dropped the letter and flown off." Draco quickly read the letter and immediately paled.

"What's wrong?" Hermione dropped their current argument when she saw the distress color his face.

"My parents, they are coming early." Draco dropped his broom to the floor, tossing the basket onto the couch. "Go get washed up and put on the dress, hurry now, we don't have much time."

"What? Why" Hermione knew she was not making the most intelligible remarks, but she wanted to know why she needed to rush about for his parents.

"Pansy must have sent an owl to her parents at some point, and they told mine, who are on the way here, so we don't have time to stand about, go get ready." He once again was trying to usher her towards the bedroom door.

"Told them? Told them what," Hermione spun to face him with a gasp, "Draco, are you saying that until we entered the Great Hall the other night no one knew about your inane plan to marry me? Are you completely gormless?"

"Yes and no. Yes, no one knew about the plan. No, I am not gormless, it was a very good plan. It would have protected you from Potter if he had tried anything again. You said it even defended you from Pansy! Besides, do you think they would have sent me what I wanted if they knew who it was for?"

"Oh, so who did you say it was for then?" Hermione continued to question him as he succeeded in leading her into the room.

"I didn't, I just told them to send it on and that I would talk to them later. I was just hoping it would be much, much later, or at least until after I convinced you not to kill me."

"About that, I'm not exactly planning your death, but I'm not jumping for joy as it is. You are not getting off this hook, no matter how many distractions you come up with." Hermione grabbed his wrist as he passed her the green dress. "You understand what I'm saying, yes?" Draco froze, his eyes locked onto hers. He put his hand onto the one hold his wrist, trapping it there. Pulling he close he touched his forehead to hers, then tilted his head up, kissing her fully on the mouth.

"I understand that you are unhappy about some of the things I have done and said," Draco whispered as he broke away, "But I also understand that every time I do this," he put his arms around her as he captured her lips once more, teasing them with his tongue, "that you don't stop me, and that you might even enjoy it a little. So for the sake of this argument I'm going out on a limb to say that you like me a lot more than you think. I will also let you know that I do in fact like you a lot more than you know." Seeing her stunned into silence he released her, handing her the dress once more. "Go on and get ready, while I might not have been a hundred percent truthful in the beginning I am telling the truth now. This," he said, pointing between them, "what we have here is real, and we will either learn to work it out together, or you will kill me in my sleep one day. That is, if my parents don't kill me today. Now go, we will have that picnic some other time." With that he gave her one last push towards the bathroom. When the door clicked shut he turned to the owl with a glare.

"Is there any way we can come to an agreement where I don't have to send a reply letter?" He questioned the bird. Rudy hissed again, flaring out his wing feathers and snapping his beak. "I didn't suppose we would." Draco sighed and feigned like he was going to the desk for a quill and ink, then turned on the owl and hitting the bird with a levitation spell.

"Send my love to mum, but tell the old man where he can shove it!" Draco flung the bird out the window, closing it right behind the upset eagle owl. Rudy caught himself in the air, and flew in a circle to leave a rather large splat on the window before taking off.

"Dumb bird." Draco muttered before turning to prepare himself for his parents' early visit.

oOo

AN:

Here it is chapter 14! It would have been posted much sooner but I had a few complications. Right after posting my one shot (When Squids Fly) I took a break, and when I returned my space bar was broken! I have never had that happen to me before. Lucky for me, my husband works with computers and had a replacement part in a few days. Then I had an incident where I lost my flash drive with all my work on it. I admit I super spazzed until it was found. Lucky for me the coworker who found it does not have computer access and so I was spared the shame of being made fun of at work. (The 'women' I work with are extremely judgmental at times.)

I have to admit, this chapter was much longer originally, but after some thought I decided it would work best broke into two separate chapters. What this means is I will hopefully have the next chapter out soon because I have a few days off thanks to a federal holiday! I also want to say that my job has me working long hours (545-1800) and my break is spent eating, sleeping and occasionally working out. I spend my break at a coworker's house to save gas, so I don't have a lot of time to dedicate to my hobbies and fixing my house. But between all of that I love getting your encouraging reviews and messages, I have had some awful work days with the new management, and this is one of the few things I really look forward to. SO feel free to review or send PM's, they make my day. You can let me know if you agree with Hermione's decision to forgive Harry, or comment on the fact that Ron is openly admitting he is gay, or even on what was your favorite line or moment. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and sorry for the long authors note!

(sorry, not doing a stat count on this chapter….)