Chapter Fifteen

Pietro sat in his study looking over the paperwork for some newly acquired items at the Museum of Magical History and Artifacts. He had been staring at, and filling out, paperwork for the past two hours and he was in dire need of a break. He set down his quill and leaned back in his chair, pinching the part of his nose that was between his eyes.

He had worked at the museum since he had finished his education at Hogwarts starting out as a guide to the Witches and Wizards that visited the famed establishment. Within just a few short years however, due to his uncanny ability to locate and acquire unique rarities, Pietro was promoted to Curator of the entire museum. It was a taxing job, to say the least, but he enjoyed it.

With a long sigh and a rub of his tired eyes, he sat forward and began looking over the paperwork in front of him again. He was just about to pick up his quill again when suddenly an envelope appeared on his desk in a burst of blue flames. He looked at it momentarily and then picked it up, easily opening it and pulling out the parchment within.

Pietro,

I went to Diagon Alley today to pick up some potions but DuBois would not sell them to me. Madame Malkin was in a right state as she searched for the book I needed…

Pietro stared at the first few lines of the letter with confusion for several minutes. He knew who had sent it but the actual content of the letter was lost to him. Then suddenly, it hit. It is code, he thought as he looked over the letter. Merlin, this has not been used in years.

He quickly grabbed his quill and began deciphering the code. Once he had managed to get that taken care of, he stared at what the message actually told him. Why on Earth does he want to speak with me there?

Draco leaned back slightly in his chair, all four legs still firmly on the floor, and let out a deep sigh. He had just finished the last bite of his food and he was thoroughly stuffed. Hermione, he notice however, was still working on her dinner and didn't seem to be showing any signs of stopping. A small smile flickered across his face.

Hermione looked up at him when she realized he was staring at her and said, "What?"

Draco chewed on the inside of his bottom lip in an attempt to keep from smiling. "I was just wondering exactly where you're putting all that food," he said.

"I have a fast metabolism," Hermione replied with a small shrug.

"Fast metabolism my arse," he said with a chuckle. "I've only seen you eat like this when you've been holed up in the library at school."

Hermione froze with her fork halfway to her mouth and looked at him questioningly. "And just how would you know that?"

Draco's face went serious and he cleared his throat. "I um…"

"All those times I caught you glaring at Harry…"

"Oh, I was really glaring at him," Draco said with laugh. "I used that as my cover-up for getting caught staring at you."

"Why were you staring at me?" Hermione asked, setting her fork down on her plate.

"Because… because I… I wanted to get to know you," he told her quietly.

Hermione looked at him in shock. "You did?"

Draco nodded.

"Why?"

He cleared his throat again and suddenly became interested in his fingers as Hermione eyed him curiously. She had never known Draco to be someone who got nervous about anything, especially girls. In fact, she had always imagined that he'd be rather cocky when it came to girls considering how handsome he was.

When he finally looked back up at her, his normally cold gaze burned into her with warmth she had never seen from him before. "I thought you were beautiful," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Hermione blushed madly at this and stared down at her plate, picking up her fork and poking at her unfinished food with it. "Me, beautiful?"

"Yes."

She looked up at him with uncertain green eyes. "Until last week I was just a plain, bushy haired know-it-all."

Draco shook his head and felt a bit angry at hearing how she had thought of herself. "No, you were more than that," he said, reaching across the table and taking her free hand. "You were, are, the most knowledgeable, kind-hearted, loyal friend, and beautiful person anyone could ever hope to know."

Hermione had a hard time believing him. She knew from experience just how good he was at making lies sound like the truth. He'd done it many times over the years. Yes, but those times weren't the same sort of situation as this, she argued silently, he could very well be telling the truth.

He put his hand under her chin and forced her head up gently so that she was looking at him levelly instead of just cutting her eyes up at him. "I may not be the smartest man alive, and I may not know everything about you but… I know that I've never found a woman more attractive than I find you, and it has nothing to do with your looks. You see, what I said earlier about a person's looks always meaning something? I only said that to find out whether you were attracted to someone because of their looks, or because of what's inside of them."

She searched his eyes for any sign of jest or lies. She was surprised at what she actually saw. Gone was the malicious glint that normally accompanied his words and smiles. Instead, she found a light, a vulnerability that was refreshing. It also unnerved her a little because she wasn't used to this kind of attention from him.

Hermione set down her fork and reached up to remove Draco's hand from under her chin. As she did this, she couldn't help noticing the tingling feeling in the hand that was already enclosed in his. "I've never been one that held a person's looks in high standing," she said with her hand resting on top of his and gently lowering it. "I could fall in love with someone who looked like a frog if they had a good heart."

Draco grimaced playfully and pulled back the hand she had removed from her chin. "Well, I don't look like a frog but maybe you could find it in your heart to give me a chance to prove that I'm not as bad as you probably once thought?"

Hermione chewed on her bottom lip for a moment then said, "Well, to be honest, I've always had this feeling that you weren't really the cruel jerk you act like at school."

"Yes, well, don't let anyone else know that," Draco said teasingly. "I've got a reputation to uphold."

Hermione rolled her eyes and laughed. "You sound just like Blaise."

"Uh-oh, I'd better stop that or you might start thinking I'm your brother and not your fiancé," Draco said with a tone of mock disgust.

"I don't think that's possible," she said with a laugh.

"Yeah, you're right," Draco said after a moment, "I'm far better looking than he is."

Hermione smirked. "You keep telling yourself that," she joked.

Draco tried to feign hurt but he couldn't resist laughing at how cute she looked when she smirked. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask you; have you looked through that spell book I gave you for your birthday?"

"Not yet. I've been a bit busy adjusting to my new home and enjoying the library."

Draco chuckled. "Ah, so you were holed up in the library weren't you?"

"I was looking up some things… for school," she replied carefully, trying to sound convincing.

"Somehow, I doubt that," Draco said skeptically.

"Why's that?"

"Something tells me you already know everything that's in our school books."

Hermione cringed slightly. Sometimes she hated that she was such a horrible liar. Then again, she had been raised to be honest and she respected the parents that raised her too much to start being deceitful now. She couldn't betray Blaise, though, so she said, "Well, you know me and books, I can't get enough of them."

"Have you always been so… bookish?"

"Well, I've always had a love for books, yes," she replied, "I didn't have a lot of friends as a child so books kind of became my best friends."

Draco chuckled. "And all this time I thought Potter was your best friend."

"Oh, he is, but no matter how good a person someone is, they have a way of disappointing you or letting you down; books don't."

"Hm, I see your point."

They sat in silence while they finished their dinner. It wasn't one of those awkward silences that generally went with first dates, it wasn't completely comfortable either. She had to admit that it was more comfortable than she had expected.

"The night is still young, shall we take a walk and maybe get some ice cream?"

"Sounds lovely," Hermione said as she wiped the corners of her mouth.

Draco stood and placed some money on the table. The two then made their way out of the restaurant and into the cool night air. "So um, what was Potter doing at your house earlier?" he asked.

Hermione looked up at him and smiled. "Why, Draco Malfoy, are you jealous?"

"I'm not jealous… I'm curious," Draco said as they made their way onto the main street.

"He just stopped by to see how I was doing," she said, stopping to look at a window display of amulets.

A particularly shiny one caught Hermione's eye. Hanging from the uppermost left corner was a silver amulet shaped like a crescent moon. Her green eyes stared at it curiously for a few moments. It reminded her of the birthmark she carried on the back of her left shoulder and also of the Prophecy her father had heard many years ago.

She knew that there was no way she would be able to do whatever it was that she was going to have to do on her own. She was going to need help but she wasn't really sure she wanted to tell anyone just yet. She wanted to do a bit of research and figure a few things out on her own first.

Draco stepped up next to her and looked her over. The expression on her face was dream-like and dazy. For the sake of his ego, he needed to do something to bring her attention back to him. He placed his hand on her shoulder and she turned her head to look at him. "Is everything all right?" he asked.

Hermione gave him a small smile. "Yeah, fine," she said. "How about we go get that ice cream?"

Draco smiled. "Your wish is my command."

Hermione laughed as they began heading to the ice cream shop. "Have you suddenly become a genie?"

"A genie?"

"It's a being in Muggle Fairytales that grants three wishes to whoever rubs its lamp."

Draco gave a small chuckle. "I've never heard of anything like that."

"Well, having grown up in a purely Wizarding family, I imagine you wouldn't have," Hermione said with a small smile.

"My family's not 'purely Wizarding'," Draco argued lightly. "My Aunt Andromeda married a Muggle."

"Yes, and I'm sure she was disowned for it."

"She was as a matter of fact. How did you know?"

"It was a guess," Hermione told him. "I'm a fairly good judge of character and I don't picture the Black family being tolerant of anyone that goes against… well, that goes against their ways. That, and Sirius was Harry's Godfather."

"Ah, that explains it then," Draco said with a small smile. "Sirius told Harry, Harry told you."

Hermione blushed a bit at being found out. "Well, yes."

"Listen, I hope that you aren't judging me by anything you've heard."

"Draco, we've discussed this already," Hermione told him lightly, putting her hand on his arm and stopping. "I don't think you're the person you pretend to be at school or around your friends."

"You really don't?"

"I would be trying to find some way out of our engagement if I did," she said, "Besides, that's why we're getting to know each other, right? Because we want this to work."

Draco nodded.

"And truthfully, the more I spend time with you, the more I'm beginning to like you."

Draco took her hand and lifted it to his lips, kissing it lightly. "Well that's good to know because you're sort of stuck with me," he said with a wink.

Hermione laughed. "Only because I want to be."

The two began walking again though this time, they were hand in hand. "So tell me, what was it like growing up with Muggles?" Draco asked.

Hermione smiled fondly at the memories that flooded her mind at the mention of her Muggle parents. "It was the most wonderful experience I could ever hope for," she said. "I always had everything I needed, but I was never spoiled. I remember when I was a little girl, my dad used to tell me bedtime stories about princesses and princes. I'd always beg him to tell me another one when he'd finish."

Draco smiled tenderly as he pictured a young Hermione pleading to hear another story. He then turned serious as he heard Hermione sniff. "You miss them don't you?" he asked. "Your Muggle parents, I mean."

"Yes; I know I've only been away from them for a week but I do miss them."

"Then you should go to see them," Draco told her.

"I was planning to do that tomorrow actually," Hermione said. "You see, they're both home on Sundays."

"Do they do anything for a living?"

Hermione looked at him curiously. "I take it your parents don't?"

"Well, my father used to be a Governor of Hogwarts but he was released from that last year, and my mother… well she never thought much of working," he said. "Not that she really needs to, she inherited loads of money when my grandfather died a few years back."

"Oh I'm sorry," Hermione said, squeezing his hand lightly.

"He wasn't the greatest of men," Draco assured her.

"Well, he was still your family. Now, to answer your question; my parents are dentists."

"What exactly is a dentist?" he questioned, slightly embarrassed.

Hermione squeezed his hand and kindly explained what a dentist's duties were. "And do they make good money, dentists?" Draco inquired with interest.

Hermione chuckled softly as they came to the ice cream shop. "Is everything about money with you?"

Draco laughed as he opened the door and ushered her inside. "No, but a man has to be able to support his family."

The two walked up to the counter as Hermione said, "Nowadays women are perfectly capable of working if they want to."

"If my future wife wants to work then it will be because she wants to. I'm not going to force her to sit at home and knit."

"Oh ha ha… very funny," Hermione chided. "And would you stop talking about me as if I were someone else?"

Draco opened his mouth to respond, but his attention was diverted when someone entered the main room from the back.

"Ah, young Mister Malfoy," said the old man.

"Mr. Danforth, how are you?"

The balding man smiled kindly. "I'm doing well, my lad, and who is this lovely young lady with you this evening?"

Draco smiled and wrapped his arm sweetly around Hermione's waist. "This is my fiancée, Hermione Zabini," he said, "though you may know her better as Hermione Granger."

Mr. Danforth's eyes widened. "Hermione, is that really you?"

Hermione smiled at him. "Yes, it is."

"Well my, my this is a shock. A Zabini you said, Draco? Pietro and Marjorie Zabini's daughter?"

"Yes, sir."

"I didn't even know they had a daughter."

"I didn't either, until last week."

After several minutes of chit chat, Hermione and Draco were sitting at a small table eating their ice creams. "Draco?"

Draco raised his eyebrows questioningly as he pulled his spoon out of his mouth. "Hmm?"

"I was just wondering if you'd like to go with me to see my parents tomorrow afternoon."

"If you want me to," he replied. "I'd really like to get to know them."

"And I'd love for them to get to know you. Oh please come with me."

Draco smiled at her. "All right, but um… do you think Blaise could come too?" he asked. "I'd feel a bit more comfortable with my best mate there too."

Hermione smiled tenderly. "Of course, I'll ask him first thing in the morning."

"Speaking of morning, it's nearly eleven; I should probably get you home."

"All right."

The two finished their ice creams and left the shop. They walked hand in hand back to the place they had Apparated to earlier in the evening. Hermione stepped close to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Ready?" Draco asked as he wrapped his arms around her.

Hermione nodded and a few seconds later, they were standing of her house. They walked up to the porch and Hermione began to open the door. Draco stopped her just before she turned the knob, however, turning her to face him. "Hermione, I um… I had a really great time tonight," he said quietly.

Hermione smiled up at him and placed a hand on his cheek. "So did I, Draco," she said.

Draco placed his hand over hers and smiled tenderly as he moved her hand to his lips and kissed her palm. "School starts a week from Monday; perhaps we could do this a couple more times before then?"

"I'd like that."

"Wonderful, well then, I'll see you tomorrow afternoon," he said. "Um, what time?"

"I think noon would be good. I'll send a note with Callidora to my parents once I speak with Blaise, letting them know we'll be there around that time," she told him. "We can have lunch with them."

"And, you're sure they won't mind?"

Hermione smiled. "My mum loves to cook so the more food she can make, the better."

"Okay, then I'll see you tomorrow at noon."

Hermione nodded and kissed him on the cheek. "Until then," she whispered.

"Until then," Draco repeated. He then took a few steps back and disappeared with a loud pop.

Hermione opened the door and walked into the house, quickly making her way to her bedroom. Once she was there, she let out a deep sigh and smiled to herself. Well, that went better than I'd thought it would, she thought as she changed into her pajamas.

As she ran her brush through her hair, she noticed a dreamy expression on her face. Her cheeks flushed and she took a deep breath. Don't get all starry-eyed, yet, she scolded herself, it was one good date. That doesn't mean he's suddenly falling for you.

She didn't need to remind herself of this, of course. She knew the type of man that had raised him and she knew that the type of hatred Draco had had instilled in him didn't just go away. It could be ignored, or masked, but it didn't magically disappear. I have to believe he can change.

She was by no means tired so she walked over to her desk and grabbed the quill she had discarded there a few days before when she had been making notes. She pulled a few pieces of parchment out of her desk and lay them in front of her. She hadn't written to any of her friends in several days so she thought it was time to do so.

She opened her ink bottle and dipped her quill into it. She then began writing a letter to Ginny. She knew that Ginny would want to know everything that had happened on her date with Draco but there was no way she was going to write it all down in a letter. Instead she wrote that they should get together that upcoming Monday so that they could spend some time together and talk about how they were doing and such.

Once she finished writing Ginny's letter, she wrote to Luna, and then to Ron. Seeing as she had just seen Harry earlier that day, she didn't feel it was necessary to write him. She then set her quill down and got up from her desk, crawled into her bed and fell into a deep sleep.

Pietro pulled his cloak tighter around him as he moved through the trees. Several feet in front of him, he heard the cracking of a small twig as it was stepped on. He withdrew his wand and silently lit its tip, looking around in the darkness for the source of the twig's breaking. "Show yourself," he said.

A man with long, white-blond hair came in to view, his cloak billowing around him softly in the cool breeze. "There is no need for your wand, Pietro," he said. "You knew it was I that sent the letter."

"That does not mean there are not unwanted listeners, Lucius," Pietro replied, lowering his wand but not putting it away. "Now, what is it that you wanted to discuss?"

"Your daughter."

"What about her?" Pietro questioned warily. He had suspected that this conversation would happen sooner or later. He had hoped later.

"Did you honestly think that you could fool me, Pietro?" Lucius asked, "We've known each other since before our time at Hogwarts; I know when you're being less than truthful."

"What is it you think I am being untruthful about?"

"You claim that your daughter was ill with some rare disease, yet she has been walking around under the name Granger, she's been attending Hogwarts… Exactly how is anyone to believe that she was ever ill?"

"Lucius, why would I have any reason to lie?" he questioned calmly.

"A question I've been asking myself," Lucius retorted, "I know you've been keeping things from me, Pietro, things about your daughter, and I demand answers."

Pietro was getting angry now. He clenched his hands into fists, his wand hand twitching up just slightly. "Do you tell me every detail of your life, or what is going on in your family?" he questioned angrily, "As you pointed out; we have known each other for a long time. As such, I know you just as well as you know me. You are private, often secretive, about the things you do not want anyone to know; especially when it comes to your family, so do not turn your anger on me because I have not disclosed every detail of Hermione's illness to you."

Lucius' eyes sparkled with triumph. "So you admit that you've been lying to me," he stated.

"Lucius, you are twisting my words to fit your own ideas and means. I have never lied to you!" Pietro practically shouted.

"So tell me now."

Pietro took a deep breath and furrowed his brow, looking at his best friend questioningly. "Why is it so important that you everything about my daughter?" he inquired, his tone accusatory.

"I have a right to know everything about the young woman that my son is betrothed to!"

"No, Lucius; you do not!" Pietro argued, "Hermione is my daughter, and if I choose not to tell the world that she was diagnosed with a rare blood disease for which the magical world has no cure, then that is my choice!"

Lucius gave him a questioning look. "Tell me, Pietro; if the situation were reversed, would you be satisfied with the answers you were given, even if they didn't make sense?"

Pietro knew that if he wasn't careful, Lucius would end up pushing him to the breaking point. As they'd both said, they'd known each other for a long time, which meant they knew exactly what to say to set the other off. Pietro knew that Lucius knew that, and he knew that Lucius was doing his best to pull information out of him.

"You wouldn't be the least bit curious?" Lucius pressed when Pietro still hadn't answered after a couple of moments.

"I have always believed curiosity to be an admirable trait, but with it, comes consequences."

"Pietro…"

Pietro held up a hand and Lucius quieted. The two friends stared at each other in silence for several long minutes. Finally, Pietro sighed. "It is obvious that you will not let this go, so I will explain it to you once more, and then you will cease to question me on the matter."

"I don't want a story, Pietro!" Lucius snapped, "I want the truth!"

"This is the truth," Pietro bit out through gritted teeth. He was finding it difficult to keep his temper in check.

"Lucius, I have never given you any reason to doubt me," he said, "Never; in all our years of friendship. So, I do not understand this sudden suspicious attitude you have toward me, and all because… what? Because I kept the specific details of my daughter's health private? That is our right, mine and Marjorie's."

Pietro could feel the guilt of that statement seeping through him, or perhaps it was the cold chill of the night. He had wished that he could have told Lucius about Hermione being the Bearer that The Dark Lord was looking for, but this was too delicate to trust anyone with. He couldn't allow himself to break. His family was the most important thing in his life. Marjorie, Blaise, Hermione; they were his world. True; he hadn't been around for Hermione while she was growing up, but that didn't mean he didn't love her and want the best for her. He would do anything for his family; including lay down his life, if that was what was required of him.

Lucius, Pietro knew, would not understand such selflessness. He had always looked out for himself. Whatever it took to keep his own head above the water, so to speak, Lucius would do; even if his own wife and son were lost in the process. He knew nothing of self sacrifice.

"For years you've lied to me, to The Dark Lord…"

"What does He have to do with this?"

Lucius suddenly looked scared. His eyes widened slightly and his pale face grew even more pale. "He came to my home, Pietro," he said, his voice trembling, "He questioned me about your daughter. Why did you send her to live with Muggles, Pietro, why?"

He was almost manic. Pietro could see his hand twitching toward the walking stick hanging at his hip like a scabbard, cleverly concealing his wand. "Lucius, hear me," he said, carefully stowing his wand and raising his hands in an attempt to calm his friend, "You have asked Marjorie and I that very question countless times and we have answered you just as many times, but I will answer you again if it will ease your mind."

Lucius studied him for a moment and then gave a stiff nod. Pietro took a deep breath and ran his hands over his face. "A few days after Blaise and Hermione were born, Hermione became ill. Marjorie and I took her to St. Mungo's. Every Healer at St. Mungo's looked her over and were baffled at what they found…" He explained, "They referred us to a Healer that specialized in rare diseases, but we were still left with no answers."

He walked over to a fallen tree and sat before continuing. "We spoke to every Healer in Britain, Ireland, Scotland… so many different countries… and they all said the same thing; that they could not help her. Marjorie and I became desperate so we began searching through every medical journal and publication we could find. Then, finally, we found a spark of hope. In one of the medical journals was an article written by a Muggle doctor by the name of Nelson. Dr. Nelson is what the Muggles call a Pathologist. This article was just one of many that he had written and it was just the thing we needed to help our daughter."

Pietro had been certain that Lucius would have interrupted before now, but he remained quiet, simply staring. "The discussion about whether, or not, to take Hermione to this doctor was a lengthy one between Marjorie and I," he continued, "We were worried what our magical community would think; our family, our friends… we knew we would be risking the loss of those closest to us were we to even speak to this Dr. Nelson. In the end, however, we decided that seeing this Muggle doctor was worth the risk if it meant our daughter could live… And so, we took Hermione to this doctor and she was diagnosed with Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria."

"What's…?"

"It is a rare, life-threatening disease that causes the destruction of red blood cells in the body," Pietro told him, "I have read every possible book I could find on it and I still do not fully understand it."

Lucius' eyes were curious as he stepped closer. "I assume this… doctor… was able to provide treatment for your daughter?"

"Yes, but not right away," Pietro answered carefully, "Tests had to be run and various other Muggle things that are beyond my comprehension. It was suggested that Hermione be placed with a family near the facility where Dr. Nelson worked so that he could keep a close watch on her during testing and treatment."

"Is that why she was left in the Muggle world?"

"It was not something we wanted to do, but after discussing it with the doctor, we felt it was the best thing for Hermione."

"But why did you leave her there for so long?" Lucius questioned.

Pietro rubbed his hands together and blew into them to warm them a little. "It took many years for a workable treatment was available, but that only worked for so long before another treatment was needed," he replied.

"I don't recall you ever taking a vacation, or mentioning going to see her."

He nodded. "We went a couple of times in the beginning, but we found it too difficult because we were not allowed to bring her home. We kept up with her progress, of course, but seeing her was just too hard, especially for Marjorie."

"And her schooling?"

"Well, just before she and Blaise received their letters, I got word that Hermione's current treatment was working better than Dr. Nelson had hoped. He said that he could see no reason why Hermione could not attend Hogwarts provided she returned periodically to receive further treatment," Pietro related, "Of course, he did not know of Hogwarts' magical background, nor ours."

Lucius was silent for several moments, the expression on his face clearly noting that he was processing what he had just been told. Then, he looked at his friend and asked, "So, why, during all the years she attended Hogwarts did you not claim her as your daughter? And why did you mask her true appearance?"

This was something he and Marjorie had discussed at length when deciding what the public story about Hermione would be. It had been difficult to figure out a plausible reason for Hermione being under a false appearance. "Because of the uncertainty of how long Hermione would be in the Muggle world, we felt it best that she look like the family that graciously took her in," he said, "You know how private we are; we did not want questions being asked, especially while Hermione was undergoing such difficult treatment. As for why we did not claim her during the last several years of her attendance at Hogwarts… well… because she was so young and still unable to come home, we felt it best not to reveal ourselves to her until such time as she was able to be home, where she belongs."

"And that time was the eve of her seventeenth birthday?"

"Hermione's recent treatment has made her stable enough to come home and be a part of the magical community indefinitely," Pietro confirmed, "Though, she is not completely cured. A cure has not yet been discovered for Paroxysmal Nocturnal Hemoglobinuria, but the course of treatment she is on is promising."

Lucius nodded and finally visibly relaxed. "The Grangers… How were they chosen to house Hermione during her treatment?"

"Jane Granger is Dr. Nelson's sister. He suggested that she and her husband, Tom might be willing to care for Hermione because they could not bare children of their own."

"I see," Lucius said, "There is one thing I still don't understand, Pietro."

"And what is that?"

"Why haven't you ever told me any of this before now?"

Pietro stood and placed his hands on Lucius' shoulders. "The only reason I never said anything is because Marjorie and I wanted to keep it between us. So you will forgive me if I ask that you not tell her I told you of this."

Lucius nodded in understanding. "I won't say a word."

Pietro gave him a smile and squeezed his shoulders. "Lucius, you have my gratitude. Now, if there is nothing else, I really must be getting home."

"Yes, of course. Give Marjorie my regards."

Pietro nodded and made his way into the trees. A few seconds later, he heard the tell tale pop of a wizard disapparating. He took a deep breath and ran his hand over his face, wiping away the silent tears that had begun to fall.

After taking Hermione home, Draco decided to take a walk. It wasn't something he did very often, if at all, but he needed to clear his head. The past week had been a roller coaster of events and he knew that he wasn't even going through the worst of it. He couldn't even imagine going through the things Hermione was.

Ever since the dinner Mr. and Mrs. Zabini had hosted the night Hermione was brought home, Draco's mind had been going crazy with thoughts that he never thought he would have. For instance; he never, in his wildest dreams, thought he'd start having feelings for Muggle-born Hermione Granger. Oh sure; she wasn't actually Muggle-born, or a Granger, but that was beside the point.

He had never had second thoughts about the manipulative things he did, but after spending some time actually talking to Hermione and getting to know her; he was beginning to think that there might be something between them if he gave it an honest chance. He had never expected that something like that would happen; especially with her. He could've seen himself falling for a girl more like Astoria, but he'd known several girls like her over the last three years, or so. Hermione, on the other hand, was something completely different.

Hermione was the most brilliant young woman he had ever met. She was also the most caring and forgiving. I mean; hell, she's giving me a chance, he thought, and I've never given her any reason to forgive me anything.

He sighed heavily as he ran his hands through his hair and looked up at the sky. He had no idea how to deal with the emotions he was feeling. He had always been taught to hide the things he felt, to wear a mask of sorts, because that was the Malfoy way.

It was for that very reason he had never allowed himself to feel anything for the girls he'd been with. He'd never allowed himself to get close to them. They had all tried to get him to open up, to show his feelings, but he never did. He simply played the part they had given him; the dutiful, loving boyfriend. His actual feelings had been nothing of the sort.

His thoughts turned to Astoria.

She was a good enough girl, he supposed, just like every other girl he'd dated. She was beautiful, wealthy, smart, from a noble bloodline his parents approved of, but he felt nothing for her. He was attracted to her physically, but that was where it ended. She brought him no joy, no comfort… She gave him nothing that a significant other should give. Well, the snogging and shagging is beyond excellent, he thought, but there's no passion, no… love.

Draco had been with Astoria much longer than the other girls and that was mostly because, until recently, she had been content with the way things were. But ever since my betrothal to Hermione, she's been pushing for more… For marriage. That was something he knew would never happen. His father was too set on him marrying Hermione because of some pact made when his father and Hermione's were young. Besides, as a Malfoy, he would marry whomever his parents chose. But as a man, he found himself slowly becoming enchanted by Hermione.

She was truly unlike anyone he had ever known. He had always known she was brilliant; that much had been obvious from their first meeting at Hogwarts. Lately, however, he was finding that she was so much more than just the quippy know-it-all he'd thought he'd known all these years.

Hermione was kind, caring, courageous, brave, funny, charming, and more beautiful than any woman he'd known. He wasn't thinking about her looks when he thought of her beauty, he was thinking about what was in her heart. He had never given her any reason to believe in him, and yet, since the day she set foot in Zabini Mansion, she had willingly agreed to see their betrothal through. Despite their history; despite everything they had been through, she was standing by him.

Not only was she standing by him, she was forcing him to take a look at the man he was. Hermione didn't take his words at face value, she questioned them, she challenged them, and she saw the true meaning behind them. She also saw beyond the mask he'd worked so hard to perfect to the man that he wanted to be.

Just in the short time they had been together, Draco could feel the ice he had so carefully frozen around himself melting. He wasn't exactly sure what it meant, he just knew that Hermione Granger… Zabini… was making him open up in ways he never had before.

There were times that he would find himself smiling, simply because he'd recalled something she had said, or done. Then, he'd catch himself wanting to see her. He didn't know how it had happened, but just staring into those green eyes of hers made him feel a peace he had never felt before. Of course, that peace never lasted because of his father's constant reminders of family duty and honor.

It was those reminders that caused him to slide right back into the cold, masked person he'd been raised to be. It never fails, he thought. Just when I manage to get out from under my father just a little, he finds some way to climb back over me.

He kicked a rock from his path and growled angrily. He really wanted to do more than just kick something and scream. Not that he was normally prone to violent outbursts, but there were times when he just couldn't help the feeling of wanting to hit something. His father was at the top of that list.

Since the day he was born, his parents had done nothing but dictate every detail of his life. They told him how to talk, how to dress, how to think. He wasn't allowed to have friends outside of the selected group his parents chose. They even picked the woman he would spend the rest of his life with. At least they're giving us the chance to decide for ourselves if we want to get married.

Knowing his father, there was a landslide of a chance that he would end up marrying Hermione, regardless of his own wishes. His father would remind him of the duty he had to his family, and the shame his would bring on them if he and Hermione didn't marry. That was a lot of pressure for someone to live with. He knew he could manage, but he didn't think he could subject Hermione to that sort of pressure; especially when she was going through so much already.

Or Blaise.

He often envied the life Blaise got to live. Apart from having an arranged marriage of his own, Blaise was allowed to make his own choices. He was also shown more love by his parents than Draco ever was. It was that, above all else, that Draco envied.

He wondered how different his life would be had he been raised by parents like the Zabinis instead of his own. Would he be as cold and distant as he was now? Would he smile more? Would he laugh? Would he be in a different house at Hogwarts? These were just some of the questions he asked himself on a regular basis.

Of course, if I were anyone else, I probably wouldn't be possibly marrying Hermione, he decided, and I probably wouldn't have Blaise as a best mate.

That wasn't something he really wanted. He liked Blaise very much; he wouldn't consider him his best mate if he didn't. Blaise was the one person, besides the recent addition of Hermione, that could make him forget about the difficulties he dealt with every day. They didn't always tell each other everything, but they knew each other well enough to know when to push something, and when to let it go. They also knew when to say something and when to keep their mouth shut.

Draco knew that his continued relations with Astoria would anger Blaise to a boiling point. He knew it wasn't right, but he'd decided to keep his mouth shut in regards to that. He preferred to keep their friendship intact. He figured that if he broke things off with Astoria now, then Blaise need never know. Hermione either, for that matter.

If he was going to give things with Hermione a good and honest chance, he needed to be with her. Only her. It was going to break Astoria's heart, as far as he knew, but he just couldn't really move things forward with Hermione if she was still around.

He wanted to be the man he was with Hermione one hundred percent of the time, not just when he was with her. He could feel that man just itching to come out, but whenever his father, or various Slytherins besides Blaise, were around that man would just slip away. As witnessed at Blaise's and Hermione's Coming of Age party, he would revert back to the loathsome Slytherin prince he'd been known for since his first day at Hogwarts.

He knew he needed to make some changes; he'd known that for quite some time. These changes weren't going to happen overnight, and they weren't going to be easy. His rude, emotionless, distant, cold side would probably make an appearance more often than he'd like, but he wasn't going to let that stop him from making the changes within him that he wanted to make. He needed to do this in order to really move forward with Hermione.

As he continued to walk, with no particular destination in mind, there was something gnawing away at his subconscious. When it crept up on him, he felt the same sense of dread that accompanied his father's constant nagging; only more intense. Of course, that's bound to happen when one is tasked with something by The Dark Lord I suppose, he thought.

After his father had told him what he was supposed to do, Draco had begun making a plan of his own. He'd sat up for hours thinking of every possible scenario and deciding on which one would work best. It had taken him a while, but he'd finally made a choice and he felt it was the only plausible one that carried the fewest chances for collateral damage.

Managing to implement his plan without Hermione's knowledge was going to be the trickiest part. If she were to find out, their engagement would be called off, she would probably curse him for all eternity, and his family would most likely be killed. That was why he needed this plan to work. There was just one problem…

He wasn't so sure he wanted to go through with his plan. He wasn't so sure he wanted to go through with any of it, for that matter. Well, perhaps the bit about marrying Hermione, he decided, I'm almost certain I want to go through with that.

Author's note- Hi all! I hope you liked Chapter Fifteen! What do you think Draco is up to? Is he up to anything? Do you feel his feelings are genuine? What about Lucius? Do you think he believes Pietro? Let me know your thoughts in the review box! :) -Sarah