AN: So all good reviews so far. I really do love getting them, it 's like your reviews have a direct link to my fingers and they move so much quicker. Hopefully you will like this chapter as much as the last.

Thank you to my lovely Beta Astarte_Lydianna for looking this over. She has some great Harry Potter and Twilight stories up and not up but in the works so head over to her profile.

Disclaimer: All recognized characters and situations belong to J. K. Rowling. I make no money from this.

The next morning Hermione woke up early. It was the first night she had spent away from either Ron or Harry in a year and she felt disconcerted. She went straight into the bathroom and went through her usual morning routine, emerging fresh and ready to start on whatever project she was given by the building crew.

She joined the few other early risers sitting at what she had found the day before to be picnic tables, sharing breakfast. The ever-loyal Hogwarts house elves were working out of what could only be described as a trailer, but they still managed to produce large amounts of quality food for the workers.

She sat next to Seamus and Dean, who were discussing the project they had started the day before. They had been shown the proper way to magically lay bricks to build the outer walls of the castle and were starting along with a group of ten builders and twenty other volunteers with the walls around the Great Hall.

Hermione had gathered the evening before that general consensus was to rebuild Hogwarts in the exact same way it had stood before the battle. The blueprints showed to them by Professor McGonagall reinforced that this was the plan and now that the foundation of the building was stable and the majority of the rubble had been removed it was time to actually bring the castle back together.

As Hermione was finishing her toast and tea an owl flew over and dropped a letter in front of her. She recognized the untidy scrawl immediately and ripped open the parchment envelope.

Dear Hermione

How was your first night back at school? Everything here is the same, Molly cleaned the kitchen three times after you left and now I can hear her casting charms around the living room even though you and Ginny just did it. Ron hasn't said a single word, not sure if he's missing you or just being a moody git.

There was a piece of news I wanted to tell you before you saw it in the Prophet. As you know I went to the ministry to testify on Draco and Narcissa Malfoy's behalf. Lucius was still sentenced to life in Azkaban but Narcissa and Draco have been let off with lesser punishments.

The Wizengamot ruled that Narcissa was an accomplice by force and would have to pay a substantial fine and do community service but no Azkaban and to be honest I'm glad I could keep her out of there, she did save my life after all.

Draco was given the same sentence, and the reason I'm telling you all of this is that he has to do his community service at the school. He has no choice, he has to help rebuild Hogwarts and behave the model wizard or he is going straight to Azkaban. If he so much breathes a word against muggles, he goes straight to Azkaban. There were some other stipulations but I didn't really want to stay around much longer after I heard the sentencing, the press were everywhere.

We all know how much you want to help at Hogwarts, but no one would think any less of you if you came home. We would all understand you not wanting to be around him.

Either way I hope to hear from you soon, it's weird not being around you.

Love Harry

Hermione read the letter twice. Her first thought was how unbelievable it was that Harry wrote so much in one letter. She shook her head at the least important fact in all the information she just took in.

She then contemplated the situation she now faced. She wanted to stay and help rebuild Hogwarts more than anything. To be doing something so positive after everything she had been through was a wonderful feeling.

The problem was that it had only been a couple of months since her little trip, as she preferred to refer to it, to Malfoy Manor and the thought of it caused the scar on her arm to tingle, a reminder that would not go away of everything that the Malfoy's did to her.

She rubbed at the sleeve that covered her scar momentarily then looked back to the letter. Stubborn determination crossed her brow. After everything she fought for, there was no way that little bigot was going to make her leave. After all, he had to behave now.

Hermione left the table and took her letter back to her tent. She penned a quick reply to Harry, thanking him for warning her and telling him that she was fine. She sent it from Hagrid's hut where they had built a temporary owlery that was really only big enough for a few bird but seemed to work as most of the birds that lived in the original owlery were students pets anyway.

After watching the tawny owl she had used fly away, Hermione joined her designated crew and waited to find out what she would be doing for the day.

…

Three hours later, Hermione put down her tools and wiped her brow with her sleeve. She had been asked to help recreate the sculpture of Gregory the Smarmy. Using magical tools certainly helped with keeping straight lines straight and curves curvy, but sitting out in the hot July sun was making Hermione tired and thirsty.

Being more academic than artistic, Hermione was very pleased to hear the call for lunch. She sat what at what was rapidly becoming the Gryffindor table. Most of her year group from Gryffindor had come as she had thought the evening before and she felt almost back to normal to be sitting among Neville, Seamus, Dean and the girls from her old dormitory.

They talked about their various tasks whilst eating lunch, Neville commenting on how glad he was that his job was in the Herbology greenhouses helping Professor Sprout to heal the plants that had been damaged when the greenhouse glass shattered and fell in on them.

"We actually had to rebuild one of the greenhouses from scratch, nothing in it could be saved, but I managed to get the frame up on my own" Neville seemed ever so pleased with himself, and Hermione felt rather proud considering his usual luck with trying most wandwork.

After lunch Hermione went back to work on the statue along with two girls who had been Hufflepuff's at Hogwarts but at least two years above her. One of them, Lauren Reynolds, worked as an artist professionally and had taken the lead, which Hermione was very pleased about.

It was Lauren whose breath caught and alerted the people around to the fact that a new, unwelcome face had come to Hogwart's.

Hermione took a deep breath before turning round and looking Draco Malfoy straight in the eye. He looked thin, paler than usual. He had stubble on his face and his hair wasn't in its usual perfectly styled state.

Most of the death eaters had been held in Azkaban until their trials, but the ones that were on trial for association had been kept under house arrest, this included Draco and his mother and it appeared that he was a little worse for wear after the ordeal.

Hermione felt extreme satisfaction at seeing him this way, even though there was a little guilt for feeling that. She was not a vindictive person, but the man she was looking at stood by and watched as she was tortured.

Hermione turned back to her work and continued with her day.

…..

Two weeks went by and Hermione had rare glimpses of Malfoy. It appeared that Professor McGonagall was giving him jobs that kept him away from pretty much everyone, maybe for his own safety, Hermione was unsure but she was more than happy not to be near him.

In that time, the Great Hall, the marble staircase and the classrooms in the dungeons were completed. After finishing the sculpture of Gregory the Smarmy Hermione was given a few more jobs that actually required building work and after mastering the wand movements after only being shown once she was allowed to work on the walls of the kitchens.

She was much happier doing this as it took more logic and less art. The walls had not taken too much damage and were nearly repaired when she joined the crew working on the area.

Hermione had been given an area to begin work on around the doorframe. She levitated each new brick and flicked her wand the way she had been shown, laying it in place and then casting the spell to grout around it.

She found the repeated movement very calming and after a few layers had been built, began to do it without really having to think about it and went into her own mind. The problems with Ron were getting worse, Harry had written to tell her. All you had to say was hello and he would bite your head off.

Hermione felt guilty to be leaving everyone else to deal with him, but she was more than happy to have time away from his tantrums. She was happily placing brick after brick, trying to think of a way to help him when she felt herself being yanked hard.

She looked up from her spot on the floor to see that the area she had been standing was now covered in broken bricks. She felt movement and realised she had landed on top of whoever had moved her away.

She quickly rolled and turned to say thank you and see that she hadn't hurt the person, only to see blonde hair. She flinched and shot backwards to get away until she realised that he had just saved her from being severely hurt.

"Thank you" she whispered. For some reason her voice would not come out any louder.

"Are you okay?" Draco asked, moving towards her and stopping when he saw her recoil at his movement.

"Err… Yes I think so. What happened?" Hermione asked.

"That idiot builder Smithers, he wasn't concentrating when he was levitating the pile of bricks. I saw him lose control of the charm and pulled you out of the way" Draco replied, he spent the entire conversation looking at the floor.

Hermione finally managed to find her voice "Did I hurt you when I fell on you?"

Draco shook his head. "Oh good" Hermione was relieved, Malfoy or not he had just saved her and Hermione was not a cruel person.

"Thank you again Draco" Hermione was careful to use his given name. He nodded and walked away. Hermione took a moment to calm her nerves and then turned to the pile of bricks. At the other side of the room the builder in question was getting seriously told off by the group supervisor. Hermione turned her back on the scene and began to manually pick out the bricks that were not damaged.

…..

A month went by and after a few more disasters and Smithers being fired, everything was on track for the school's opening. The majority of the building had been rebuilt and only the Astronomy Tower and Gryffindor Tower needed to be finished.

There was still a lot of visual work to be done, paintings to be brought in, carpets to be laid and such things that would bring the buildings original beauty back, but the actual physical building work was finished.

All the people that had come to work on the school were now staying in the Hufflepuff and Slytherin dormitories and the Great Hall and Kitchens were back in use. Unfortunately for Hermione the girls were in Slytherin's dormitory and the boys in Hufflepuff to make it easier in terms of bathroom and bedroom use, with so many people from different walks of life to cater for.

Hermione was sitting at a dinner table in the great hall with Harry and Ginny. They had come for the weekend; Harry had this particular weekend off from Auror training so he and Ginny came to see what they could help with and to visit Hermione.

Harry had paint in his hair from where he had been put on duty painting a classroom on the fourth floor. Hermione had tried to tell him but Ginny stopped her, she thought it was really funny. Ginny had been with Hermione in the library. They had spent the entire day stocking the shelves with the extensive book delivery.

They had spent the entire day working and had barely done ten percent of the shelving work.

Harry was feeling a little self-conscious as everyone in the hall was staring at him. The people there from his year group were fairly normal but the rest seemed a little star-struck.

Hermione decided not to let Harry suffer anymore and suggested they go into her common room and relax. Harry and Ginny agreed and they left the hall.

Hermione led the way down to the dungeons and whispered the password to the new portrait of Professor Snape that covered the door. "It was Neville's idea. After he heard the story of everything he secretly did he seemed to think it fit that he should still be protecting something, even if it is just the Slytherin dormitory" Hermione told them.

Harry agreed and it seemed fitting to him that it be Neville, who always held the most fear of their late potions professor, who felt this way.

They entered the common room and hear a familiar voice coming from the downstairs dormitories.

Hermione turned just in time to see Ron coming up the stairs, tugging his shirt over his head. Shortly behind him Lavender was tucking her t-shirt into her jeans. Hermione gasped and Ron looked up "Shit! 'Mione. Wait I can explain".

Hermione turned and ran straight back out of the common room and up through the dungeons with tears in her eyes.

She could hear Ron behind her calling her name, she just ran faster until she ploughed straight into Draco Malfoy. "Granger! What the hell is going on?" he enquired in shock at having her running at full pelt into him.

The tears turned into sobbing, just in time for Draco to see Ron running towards them.

He made a split second decision, took Hermione's hand and pulled her away.

AN: So, how much of a jerk is Ron? I know you haven't seem much of Draco yet, but really this is just setting the scene, we will he see more of his sexiness soon enough. Reviews would be lovely.