Hello! Sorry for the wait, school just started and I've been busy. Please enjoy chapter five (:

So I don't know what's real and what's not
Always confusing the thoughts in my head
So I can't trust myself anymore

Chapter Five

Draco didn't know how long he had been trapped in the room with Granger, but it was a long time. With the doors and all the windows shut, the tasting room felt like a sauna. Plus the paint fumes made Draco feel like he had a few glasses of firewhiskey.

"How long has it been?" Hermione asked. She was slumped against a wall beneath a window. Her wand was a few inches past her hand on the floor. For what seemed like hours she went around to each window and shouted just about every spell she knew at it. The only option she felt that remained was to blow a fireball straight through one of them — but she didn't want to burn down the building.

"Years?" Draco's reply was muffled. He was lying face down across the room. He was resting with his face towards the wall, and with his ear pressed to the ground, Draco could hear his heart beat. It seemed to be slowing down. Or was that just time slowing down?

"We have to get out of here." Hermione said, rolling her head upward to stare at the ceiling. "I am not going to die with you in here."

"I don't want to die even one million feet away from you," Draco said, struggling up to sit against the wall. On his face was a faraway expression.

"Malfoy are you okay? I think the fumes are getting to you." Hermione titled her head and tried to keep her eyes open. A few minutes past.

"You know what I'm gonna do if I get out of here?" Draco heard Hermione's voice.

"I don't care, Granger."

"I'm gonna — I'm gonna…"

It took Draco a few moments to realize her voice had trailed off without conclusion. "What, Granger?" He opened his eyes and looked at her. She was sleeping.

Then there was a knock at the door. Draco slowly got to his feet, tripped and fell down, then got up again. He walked unsteadily to the door. "Hello?" Draco heard unidentifiable voices from the other side.

"What was that?"

He was thrown backwards. The door was blasted open, rocking dangerously on its hinges. Draco hit the ground and managed to roll over.

"What's wrong?" It was Mr. Lafayette's voice. "Why are you two still here?"

Draco felt his eyes being pried open. "We're stuck. The doors, the windows. They're stuck." Draco said his hand waving feebly.

"Hermione, wake up!" Harlow shook her. Hermione jumped, inhaling deeply. "What? Oh, you're here!"

"You two painted yourselves in?" Scott Lafayette asked them, helping Draco to his feet and looking at him and Hermione.

The latter nodded. "We couldn't get out."

"Well c'mon now, let's get you inside." Harlow put an arm around Hermione and helped her to her feet as Scott led Draco outside.

At the house, Susan began to fuss over Hermione and Draco. She made them rest on the soft leather couches Hermione hadn't noticed before, and gave them each a glass of water.

"I feel bad leaving them alone, but Felicity's parents are finally in town before their three-week expedition in Alaska, and it will be too long before we see them again." Mrs. Lafayette said, wringing her hands.

"They'll be fine mum, they're old enough to stay home alone," Harlow reassured her mother when she entered the room.

Until now Draco didn't notice how nicely the Lafayettes were dressed. Scott had on dress pants and a black jacket, Susan was wearing a white blouse with khaki crops, and Harlow had on a flowery green dress.

"Where are you all going?"

"Felicity's parents are in town and we're going to dinner to meet them." Matt came in the room straightening his tie. Draco thought he saw Matt's hands shaking a little. "Are you all ready to go?"

Mr. and Mrs. Lafayette walked out of the room with Matt.

"Don't get into trouble," Harlow warned as she slowly left Hermione and Draco.

+one day later.

"We're getting married!" Matt bust into the kitchen shouting. His parents, Harlow, Draco, and Hermione were all seated at the kitchen table.

Susan rocketed out of her chair with a great cry of delight and smothered her son with a bear hug. "Oh Matty I couldn't be happier!"

"Son that's great news!" Scott wrapped his arms around Matt.

"It's about time!" Harlow grinned at her brother from her seat. "I'm really happy for you."

Matt thanked his sister and rushed from the room with his father and mother, with the latter quickly naming all the florists in the area.

"Aren't they a little young to be getting married?" Draco asked Harlow when the three left the room.

Harlow looked over her shoulder and dropped her voice. "Well, yeah. Even from across the pond Americans know about the Dark Lord in your part. Young couples like Felicity and Matt are worried about some 'apocalypse dark magic takeover' and so they're all getting married pretty young. It was common last generation too."

"Isn't it a beautiful day?" Matt entered the room, a huge goofy grin on his face.

"Congrats, Matt." Hermione said.

"Thanks," Matt grinned some more and sat down next to Draco, across from Harlow and Hermione.

Suddenly two shapes flew in from the open window. Draco looked up as two owls soared through the air and landed on the table; one brown and one grey.

"You've got mail!" Harlow said after she caught the letters from one owl and tossed two envelopes at Draco. The owl was strutting around the table and getting awfully close to Draco. He took his mail and glared at the bird.

"You've got some too, Hermione." Matt took two envelopes from the second bird's claws and tossed them at Hermione.

She swallowed her sip of orange juice and looked down at where the letters landed by her fork.

"How do you know this is for me? I don't see any writing on the front." Draco was studying his envelope, where his name did not appear.

"Tap the paper twice with your wand. The letters are charmed so the mail won't be traced. The whole point of this summer is that you won't be found." Harlow told Draco.

Draco picked up his wand and poked the envelopes with it. Slowly his name and the Lafayette winery's address formed in neat, boyish script on one, and in loopy cursive on the other. He shooed Harlow's owl away from his juice glass and began to read.

'White Lightning— Hey mate, how is it going? Sorry for the nickname, I couldn't think of anything better than what we made up back in second year. I'm not supposed to write this with our real names, but rather use a code name. I'm somewhere in Montreal, Canada with Luna Lovegood. It's been a few days now. The family we're staying with lives in the huge old house and Luna and I are in charge of packing up a few floors before the family moves at the end of the summer. There's a girl our age living with us, Nathalie, and a few teens in the neighborhood. We hosted a party last night and Nattie busted out this game called Pair Dare. It's a pretty lusty game, bloke. Well Luna and I got paired up and … heh, well we know each other better now. That's all for now. Don't let Granger kill you! —Black Thunder'

All of the sudden Draco started laughing. Hermione looked at him with a terrified expression.

"You alright there?" Matt asked him.

Draco nodded and chuckled, and opened his next letter.

'My Slytherin sex god— I miss you sooooo much! I'm spending too much time with Potter. He isn't sexy and hot like you, or mean and likes to push me away like you do. He actually listens when I talk to him, which isn't often, and he doesn't want to have casual hook-ups! Potter has even smiled at me once. You never do that. Okay anyway, I'm not trying to make you jealous or anything, but I've got to go. Love you, miss you! —Your Slytherin goddess'

As Draco put his letter down, Harlow leaned a little bit and read some of what Pansy wrote.

"You're a 'sex god?'" Her eyebrows rose.

"Pansy?" Hermione asked without looking up from opening her first letter.

"It's just a girl who is obsessed with me. My best bloke wrote too." Draco said. Hermione pulled her letter out of the envelope and began to read.

'HJ— I assume if you're reading this Malfoy hasn't killed you yet? Well if he hasn't, you are reading this anyway, so it's all good. This sucks. I hate Millicent! She is so big and mean and scary! But my host family cooks really good food. I love it here. It's bloody cold though. Okay I can't think of anything else, so I'm going to wrap this up. I hope that Malfoy hasn't ruined your holiday yet. Best wishes for that. —RB'

Hermione gave a small sigh and dropped the letter on the table, opening up the second.

'Curly— I hope everything is going well. Pansy and I are not getting along horribly. Sometimes she won't talk to me. I'm not being mean, but I think she wants me to… she has a huge crush on Malfoy so maybe it's a turn on. If you're reading this Malfoy hasn't killed you yet. And if you're reading this, you haven't killed him, and I bet you wouldn't get mail in Azkaban. But you could probably find a way out of Azkaban… well that's all for now. I hope your town has more going on than mine does! —Messy'

"Who wrote to you, Hermione?" Matt asked.

"Harry and Ron," she answered and put the letters down on the table. Harlow dropped her fork and grabbed the top letter.

"Harry Potter?" "Yes, that's him. Harry is my best friend." Hermione smiled.

Draco rolled his eyes. "If only scarhead knew of his international fame."

"Of course he's internationally famous!" Harlow cried, waving the letter around in her hands.

"Merlin's beard calm down, are you some sort of fangirl?" Draco asked, looking revolted.

"Sort of, well I just respect him for his Quidditch skills." Harlow replied, nodding, and set the letters down by Hermione. "Seeker his first year? I made the team my third year."

Susan Lafayette came in the room, still dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief. "Oh, I see you got mail? Harlow won't you fetch them some paper to reply?"

Her daughter impaled a sausage with her fork in one hand, and grabbed her wand in the other. She flicked her wrist a few times and paper came flying in the room.

Draco was drinking from his glass when the bundle circled around the table and hit him in the back of his head. Matt tossed him a pen and he began to write.

'Black Thunder— You really couldn't have thought of a better code name? Whatever, this one is amusing. Granger and I haven't killed each other yet. Better report that Crabbe, I heard he's taking bets. Put down a few galleons for me. But really, Looney Lovegood? Don't let that Canadian air change you too much, mate. How about that Nathalie chick? —White Lightning'

Hermione looked at the pen Harlow gave her. "You don't use quills?"

"Quills?" Harlow repeated. "C'mon Hermione you know what century it is don't you."

Hermione gave her a small smile and started to writing. '

Messy— I understand your code, very clever, Harry. Things aren't going very well with Malfoy, he's incredibly thick and close-minded, and arrogant and obnoxious… but I'll stop there. My host family is very amiable, and they own a winery. The son Matt just got engaged! Harlow is our age, and she is very outgoing. Good luck with Pansy, she doesn't sound much better a partner than Malfoy. —Curly'

'RB— Hello! I wish things were going better for you. I can't imagine Millicent being any less of a monster than what you described. Maybe by the end of the summer you two will become acquaintances. Don't let her Slytherin attitude get to you. What is your host family like? Take care. —HJ.'