Chapter 3: Graduation
The sky was without a single cloud. Draco mounted his broom, soaring upwards, becoming only a blip on the horizon. As he increased his speed, the wind whipped playfully about him. His robes flapped noisily and his once perfectly placed hair broke free from the gel he had applied earlier that morning.
Meters above the stadium, he could see the whole of Hogwarts. Over time, the old castle had become a welcomed vacation from the dreary mansion he had grown up in. He'd miss it. Draco pulled the broom to a halt when he reached the middle of the pitch. He had come out here to clear his head. He had no time to worry about being nostalgic. Sentiments were for Mudblo-
His thoughts stopped as he pictured Granger's broken face. Perhaps there were some exceptions to the rule. Not everything his father had dictated to him was truth. In fact, as far as Draco could tell, Lucius had been full of shit.
Though Azkaban was not the appropriate place for Lucius, Draco had to admit that he had been slightly relieved when he had heard the sentence. Death would not have solved anything in the case of his father. Dying with his stubborn beliefs and loyalty to a Dark Lord who no longer existed, would have been going out in style for the wizard. Azkaban, though not the perfect solution, served to shame the Malfoy name. It was something that would eat away at Lucius long after he had expired.
Draco didn't hate his father. He just didn't understand why Lucius had been so power hungry when he knew he would always serve under another. It had been the most ironic thing Draco had ever witnessed. Furthermore, his father had been plotting to make sure Draco became the next Dark Lord. That plan was shot to hell the minute the Dark Lord had fallen. Draco would have been lying if he would have said he wasn't relieved when his archenemy killed Voldemort.
Not that he would admit that to anyone.
Springing the broom in motion once more, Draco swept past the Quidditch pitch and took a turn around the Forbbiden Forest. He recalled the first time he had entered the place. It had been in first year. He had been spying on Pothead and when he saw the Golden Trio leaving school grounds, it had been too easy to follow them. In the end, his deed had not gone over looked. Professor McGonagell, the stubborn-headed Gryffindor that she was, insisted that he had to serve detention with his peers because he had also been out of his dormitory. Draco had never been so humiliated.
The forest had brought back the first time he had seen Granger as something more than a Mudblood. In the woods, he had been paired up with Potter, but when he had run off upon hearing a noise, he had rejoined Weasel and Granger. The two had been trailing behind the large gameskeeper and he had instantly clung to the first thing he could grab, hoping they were not an illusion.
That item had been Granger's cloak. In that single moment, he had seen something in her eyes, a type of compassion for him, despite his cold exterior and the way he mocked her. There was a hint of sorrow in her eyes also, as if she pitied him. That had made him drop his hold. He wanted nothing of pity. He was a Malfoy. Malfoy's learned to stand on their own. They needed no one to assist them.
Still, that memory meant something to him now. It brought the guilt back. Granger had not done anything to him and here he was, stealing the only thing that she had ever truly worked for. He hung his head. What could he do? He rebelled against the ways of his father, but that didn't make him any less of a a Malfoy. It only proved he was stubborn. He could not give in to Granger the way any other person in his position would. If he was going to do this, he had to do it his way.
He landed and marched off towards the dormitory. He had to hurry if he was going to be able to write his speech in time for the ceremony. It was sure to be the most memorable thing he had ever done.
Hermione's eyes were still blood shot when she reetnered the Head's dormitory. She immediately went to her room. She did not want to wait and see if Malfoy had returned yet. She couldn't face him...not now, not ever.
Once inside her own personal space, she collapsed into a heap on the floor. The bed was as unmade as it had been this morning and she made sure to keep her eyes away from it. The idea of being violated there, in a space that had been her home for so long, in a castle that had become more than just a place to live, but a place to grow; it was almost too much for her to take. She turned away from it all, staring into the corner. Her thoughts ran free, randomly skipping through the years she had lived at Hogwarts.
She pictured the day she had met Ron and Harry on the train. She saw herself being called the most impressive student in over a century by McGonagell. She felt the exhilaration of fighting the Dark Lord alongside her two best friends. She felt, saw, heard all the memories from days past. She recalled those moments when fear and unease were not in her vocabulary. She remembered not feeling weak or powerless in front of her demons. Now she was worthless, huddled in a corner, ripped down into nothing more than a one-night stand. It was the worst position she could have ever been placed in.
And of all the people to do it to her, Malfoy had to be the one.
She was disgusted with herself for allowing it to happen. Why had she had those drinks? Why had she come back to the dorm like that instead of staying up in Gryffindor tower like the rest of her peers? She shook her head. Too many mistakes in one night. It was her fault, true, but would sitting her clear the air of the past? No. She blinked away a new string of tears. She was Hermione Granger, Head Girl, and valedictorian. She was not just a one-night stand. She was not Malfoy's mistake. She was not just another witch. She was important. She had helped vanquish the Dark Lord. She had gotten a job with the Ministry of Magic.
She would not let this conquer her.
Malfoy may have the last laugh. Let him. If he truly wanted valedictorian so badly, let him have it. She had something more. She had the courage to fight back. She would stand at graduation aside of Harry and Ron and not be beaten by this man who had taken everything from her. She would not back down from her position as Head Girl. She would not yield.
Feeling much stronger than she had since she had woken up that morning, she rose to her feet. She began to finish packing. She wanted nothing left to do when she returned to the dorms. She was about to embark on the next road of her life. She needed no ties to the past. But even as she thought this, she realized how much she was going to miss Hogwarts. As she packed up the last of her robes and books, she looked around her room.
It was early afternoon and the brilliant beams of sunlight were streaming in from her west window. They danced playfully around her dresser where bottles of cream and perfume were situated. A few rays crossed her bed, ending dramatically on the floor by her feet. She thought of the day she had moved in.
"This is all mine?" she asked Professor Dumbledore.
"Yes, Ms. Granger."
"There is so much room! I have no idea what I will do with it all." She said as she walked around, already planning where she was going to position all of her furniture.
"I am confident that you will figure out the best layout for yourself," he grinned, before leaving.
Hermione danced around the floor, amazed that she did not have to watch where she was going. She flopped down on her bed, giggling. It was the most girlish move she had made all summer. She thought of how wonderful the year was going to be. No Lavendar or Parvati to keep her up at night with talk of Hogwart's Hottest Boy. There would be no Ron and Harry constantly knocking on her door to ask her what she wrote down for Snape's latest Potion's essay. She grinned, feeling more at home than any year preceding this one.
A sharp slam broke Hermione from her thoughts. She took a deep breath as she realized Malfoy had just returned. Closing her eyes, she willed herself to continue with her packing. Seeing him would only undo all her mental preparation. She had to remain calm and focus on her goal: to get through graduation as strong as she had been when she started out the year.
Before she knew it, the final hours had passed and there was a brief knock at her door. A familiar pair of voices rang through the thick wooden door. "Mione, it's us. Are you ready?"
"Don't worry about it, Mione." Ron said as the trio walked in the stadium together for the last time. "We're going to sit right by you. If that ferret tries anything I'll curse his fick-"
"Ron," Harry shook his head. "I don't think that will be necessary." He put his arm around Hermione's shoulders. "Mione, it's only for show. You have valedictorian on paper and in ten years, who will remember his speech anyway?" He gave her a hug.
Hermione nodded. "You're both right. Thanks guys." Even though she smiled at them both, she still felt a small pang of hurt when she realized how different this ceremony was going to be from how she had pictured it.
The three of them followed the procession inside. They passed the other students who had already taken their spots. The front row loomed before them, empty. Hermione kept her eyes from looking up at the stage where all the professors were seated and Malfoy. She followed quietly behind Harry, keeping her eyes on the grass. She barely even heard the Headmaster's direction to be seated.
"And now for the graduation speech, I present Mr. Draco Malfoy, Head Boy for this year." Professor Dumbledore waved for Draco to stand and then stepped aside.
Draco walked across the stage from where he had been seated, feeling a slight tremor in his legs. He cleared his throat, opened his scroll, and began to read. "Headmaster, professors, and the graduating class, I do not wish to speak to you today about all the things you will do after you leave here or reminisce with you about all the things we've done here our past seven years." He paused, searching the crowd for the girl who he was really speaking to. When he spotted Hermione, he stared at her, as if at any moment she would disappear. "Instead, I stand here before you to correct a wrong that was committed today; a wrong that ruined one person's life."
Hermione held her breath, watching him as intently as he was watching her.
"All of you know Hermione Granger. She is, without a doubt, the most intelligent person in this student body and probably," he chuckled, "the only one of us who won't admit it."
Hermione felt herself blush as Harry and Ron turned to look at her. However, she still found her eyes focusing on Malfoy.
"This morning, Hermione Granger woke up in my bed." There was a stir amongst the crowd, as well as the staff. "I tell you this for two reasons. One, Hermione Granger fell asleep in my bed thinking it was her own. She was up late last night practicing her valedictorian speech and was disorientated when she came back to the dormitory. The second reason I tell you this is because I lied to her when she woke up. I told her that she seduced me in the night. And because of this, it is me standing before you right now, instead of her. I would just like to convey to you all that I have no reason to be up here. And if the professors had any sense they woud allow Ms. Granger her proper place in this ceremony, which is where I am standing at this very moment. Thank you." Draco rolled up his scroll and sat back down.
Hermione nearly fell out of her chair.
An extremely flustered Professor McGonagell took the podium. "Well, um...thank you Mr. Malfoy," she stuttered. "We will now begin calling the names of our graduating stu-,"
"Excuse me, professor, but I do believe Hermione Granger should have the honors," Professor Dumbledore interrupted, motioning to Hermione.
The Head Girl was frozen in her chair. She couldn't feel her legs, let alone move them. Harry and Ron were saying something to her, but she couldn't hear them. All she could do was stare at Draco Malfoy, the Slytherin Prince. He had given it up. He had done what no Slytherin had ever done and submitted to a Gryffindor. In that single moment, she realized all the lines he had to have crossed in order to give her back what was rightfully hers. She was beyond shocked; she was paralyzed.
"Ms. Granger?" Professor McGonagell asked, expectantly.
Hermione was vaguely aware of Ron helping her walk up to the stage. She barely noticed as he picked her up to carry her up the steps. It wasn't until McGonagell was handing her the listing of her peers that she realized what was happening.
Amazingly, the first name came out of her mouth easily. "Abbott, Hannah." She started reciting all of her classmates as if she had practiced this a dozen times. "Finnegan, Seamus." The initial nerves died away as her happiness shown through. "Longbottom, Neville." She was unaware of the pair of grey eyes that watched her from the corner of the stage.
Draco Malfoy, always the villian, never the hero, felt something course through him as he saw Granger in her element. He knew he would never be as good as she was. He was not a people person. He was a loner, destined to live out a life of solitude and success. He'd be like his father, great and feared, but also alone and cold. Before she could reach his name, he rose from his seat, and depared from the stadium.
No one noticed his absence.
