Saving Granger

By - Keshia Kay Mansell

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Last Time:

"You're silly, Draco." she said rolling her eyes.

"But you wouldn't have me any other way." he teased as he wrapped his arms around her.

The rest of the night was quite peaceful. Hermione chose some sort of horror film at the theater. Draco didn't really understand most of it, but he did enjoy it when she hugged onto his arm for dear life on the scary parts. When they finally got home, both were sad to see the night go having each learned something about the other. As the went to sleep their dreams were filled with thoughts of the other.

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Chapter 7: Harry Pays A Visit

Present Time:

Hermione and Draco were eating breakfast when Harry's owl, Hedwig, flew through the window. The beautiful snow owl landed in front of Hermione and lifted it's leg up. She carefully untied the parchment from the bird's leg and tossed it a piece of bacon before watching it fly away.

"Friendly bird Potter has there." Draco commented as he continued eating his eggs.

"Her name is Hedwig and she's only friendly if she knows you, she'll bite your fingers off otherwise." Hermione informed him.

"I'll keep that in mind." he smirked. "So what does Harry have to say?"

"Read it for yourself." she shrugged as she handed him the note.

Dear Hermione & Draco,

I will be visiting you around noon to discuss when your court dates are. I feel that I must also inform you that Ronald Weasley was promptly arrested early this morning. Though he is no longer a risk, I still don't recommend that you go anywhere without concealment charms.

Until this afternoon,

Harry James Potter- Head of the Auror Department

"It's a bit formal, don't you think?" Draco questioned with his brow quirked.

"Perhaps, but that is to be expected. After all, he is doing his job. Wouldn't it look odd if his owl was intercepted and it said, 'Hey, Herms! Be at your all's pad in an hour.'?"

"I see what you mean." Draco chuckled as he thought about it. The idea seemed ridiculous and amusing. "We have about three hours until he arrives. You want to go shopping or something?"

"You, the great Draco Malfoy, just asked me to go shopping?" Hermione giggled. She could just imagine him rummaging through clothes at a department store like a little girl trying to find the perfect outfit. "Oh, I've got to see this!"

"What? I'll have you know that I like to shop." Draco said as he raised his chin defiantly. "So is that a yes to my offer?"

"Yes, indeed." Hermione smiled in an amused sort of way. "I bet that I can find a better outfit then you can." she challenged.

"Oh, really? I highly doubt that." he said as they both disappeared through the emerald green flames of the fireplace.

Exactly three hours later, both Hermione and Draco returned to the manor with bags loaded with clothes. Both had large smiles donned on their carefree faces. "Did you see how big Madame Maxine's eyes got when we told her we'd buy all this stuff?" Draco chuckled good naturedly.

"I almost thought she was going to have a heart attack!" Hermione laughed just as hard.

"Well, it's good to see that you two are getting along so well." a familiar voice sounded from the kitchen.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed as she dropped her shopping bags and rushed to him, giving him a big hug.

"Hey, Potter." Draco greeted as he walked to the two, who were still standing in the door way.

"Malfoy." Harry nodded as he led the trio to the kitchen table. They all seated themselves and prepared to talk seriously. "I assume you both got my letter, is that correct?" Both nodded, so he continued, "Since Ron is now in custody, the Ministry has decided to trail him in a week."

"Oh, Harry! That's wonderful!" Hermione smiled. It was obvious to both men in the room that she was starting to get her old spark back. Draco smirked at her, but Harry on the other hand, looked as if he had swallowed something sour.

"Actually, it's quite the opposite." Harry said sadly. "See the problem is not Ron himself, but his family. The Weasley's all, with the exception of the twins, work at the ministry in powerful positions. The issue with that is that most likely they will be on the jury."

"You mean that they don't believe me?" Hermione asked quietly.

"Out of all the Weasleys, the only one who believe us, Mr. Weasley. The twins do as well, but they are not on the Ministry so they can't help us."

"Ginny doesn't believe me?" Hermione asked in a barley audible tone.

"She's hurt inside, Hermione. I did my best to explain, I really did. She just didn't want to hear it." Harry paused, then added, "She left me, Hermione. It was all to much for her."

Hermione looked into the painful eyes of her friend. He was suffering just as much as she was, but she couldn't help but feel like she was the cause. "I'm so sorry, Harry. I never wanted this." she said tearfully.

"It's all right. We'd been having problems for awhile now. This is probably for the best." Harry had expected her to cry on his shoulder since her tears were now freely flowing, but he was farley surprised when instead, she turned to Draco. Harry watched curiously at the exchange as Draco wrapped his arms around her waist and allowed her to weep on his shoulder. For the first time, Harry actually saw Draco as a human being who cared for another individual other then himself. Harry was astonished by this discovery.

After giving the two an exact copy of the court dates, Harry bid his adieu. He had a lot on his mind and needed some time to think things out.

"Are you going to be alright?" Draco asked as he escorted Hermione to her room. They stopped to face each other when they reached her door.

"I'll be alright. It's just… I can't believe that there's a possibility that I went through all of this for nothing. Draco, I'm so afraid." Hermione confided in him.

"You have nothing to be afraid of." Draco informed her as he looked into her damp, amber eyes. "I'll protect you." he whispered in her ear as he pulled her into a gentle embrace.

"I don't know what I'd have done if you hadn't of saved me when you did, Draco." she said tenderly. She leaned back so she could see his liquid-silver eyes. "You've helped me so much."

"I'm sure I can help you even more." he said in a husky voice as he leaned closer. When their lips touched, it was like a brilliant flame. Each felt the excitement that was behind it and each understood what it meant. Things between them would never be the same again.

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A/N: So sorry this update was so late. I've been working on a seven page essay for my History Class and just couldn't seem to get away from it long enough to finish this chapter. The next chapter might be a slow update too. I made it into a play, TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD, and will be attending the practices for the next two weeks. The play is going really well so far, but nothing will ever beat the book. J