Gently pushing herself away from Draco, Hermione sat forward. "You realize all this proves is that I am adopted? Not where I originally came from?"
Every the pragmatic, he almost smiled. "Of course. But it is a start to your history."
Hermione stared bleakly down at the manila envelope sitting on the piano. The ordinariness of the envelope taunted her. Anything could be inside. Report cards, receipts, family vacation photographs. Anything at all really.
But it wasn't 'anything' it contained records that threw her entire life in to question. Who was she? Where had she come from?
"It is likely I am just an ordinary muggleborn from a different family." The idea that she was pureblood was ridiculous.
"You are not an ordinary anything, Hermione." Now why had he said that out loud? It was likely to lead to a misunderstanding "I mean…."
She waved it off "I know what you mean, it takes a special kind of swot to look like they are literally going to explode if they don't answer a question."
They both laughed, and if the laughter was a little awkward for both of them neither mentioned it.
Hermione couldn't help but wonder what he had meant by that comment. She was also left more than a little affected by the way he had held her while she wept. But that was all purely physical. It was her need to affirm life in the midst of her parent's death. Nothing more.
Absolutely nothing more.
Draco was in his own turmoil worried that she had taken his comment differently than he had meant it. Except that even he was not certain how he had meant it.
Standing up, Hermione wandered over to all of the pictures on the wall. Those of her growing up. She had immediately replaced them once her parents memories had been restored.
She went one by one, through her infant pictures all the way to the summer that she had obliviated them. She finally noticed the one thing missing.
"I can't believe I never saw it before…" she whispered.
Draco had followed her looking at all of the pictures. Including one of her holding someone's baby in her arms. Something about that picture caused his heart to squeeze painfully in his chest.
He finally remembered she had said something. "Noticed what, Hermione?"
"No newborn pictures. Nothing from the hospital. My parents tried for so long to have a baby. So many miscarriages and still births. It is now obvious, they would have taken so many pictures of my birth and the pregnancy. They would have covered walls with them. But there isn't a single one. I should have questioned that." She ran her hand across the first one of her as an infant. She looked maybe three months old.
"You have been a little preoccupied since starting Hogwarts." Draco said soothingly "It really isn't a wonder that you did not notice small details in what must have once been a safe haven." He sounded so sad.
"That is one more thing we have in common." Hermione squeezed his arm on the way past. "Come on, let's find out if there is any decent tea left."
Following her downstairs Draco wondered what she had mean 'one more thing in common'.
Digging around in the cupboards Hermione found a tin of tea that was still in good shape and put a mug out for each of them. They sipped their tea in silence for a while before Draco's curiosity got the better of him.
"What did you mean when you said we had one more thing in common?" he asked.
"This home was my oasis in some very dark times. Now it is just a reminder of those who wanted me dead." She stared in to her tea swirling the leaves around at the bottom. "I imagine you must feel the same way about your childhood home."
He felt exactly that way but he wasn't sure how vulnerable he wanted to be in front of her just yet. While considering a response he picked up the envelope her adoption papers had been in and felt something heavier than papers settle to the bottom "What is this?" he murmured shaking the envelope and dropping a key into his hand.
Hermione leaned over to get a better look. "It appears to be a safety deposit box key. I… wonder what is in there?"
"I am almost positive it is clues to your identity, but who knows? It could have been the biscuits that should have gone with this tea." He looked down in to his mug sadly.
Hermione stared at him a long time opening and closing her mouth. Finally she could not hold it in any more and started laughing. She laughed so long and hard it could probably rightly be called hysteria, but when she was done she felt better.
"I think we can rule out the biscuits." She finally gasped out.
"In the safety deposit box or in the cupboards?" he asked hopefully.
"In either one. I don't think you want to eat anything in here." Looking at the date on the tea tin he was pretty sure she was correct.
"Well, I don't know what a safety deposit box is, but that is where we should search next. Is it something your parents would keep in the house?" He looked around as though expecting the box to appear out of thin air.
"No, it would be in a bank. I am sure the same one these receipts have been deposited in to." she picked up the receipts she had still been clutching when she went to the piano.
"Ah, so muggles use banks too, I thought it was all those little plastic cards." He motioned with his fingers in a "about this size" way.
"They do use credit cards, but those cards are linked to a bank account that has money in it. Sort of, not in the way a Gringotts vault does, that is more like what muggles call a safety deposit box. Except the box is a lot smaller." Hermione wasn't quite sure how to explain the muggle banking system since she wasn't certain she fully understood it.
"It sounds overly complicated." Draco said standing up and taking his mug to the sink.
With a wave of her wand Hermione cleaned the mugs and put them away "The bank my parents used is not too far from here. It is only a twenty minute walk."
The pair walked in companionable silence. Hermione was surprised to find that she was not uncomfortable walking with Draco. He was equally surprised, she did not require the constant pampering and flattering of the other girls he knew. It was oddly nice to simply walk along quietly.
Once at the bank it took a bit of convincing, and Hermione suspected a condundus charm on Draco's behalf to get the bank manager to allow her access to her parents safety deposit box, even though she had all of the necessary paperwork in order.
Once inside the room set aside for them with the small box in front of her, Hermione was suddenly terrified at what she would find in the box. With shaking hands she slid the key home.
Inside she found a sealed letter with her name on it and a ring. The ring was beautiful silver with a very intricate "G" in the center.