I'm sleepy after having a big lunch. Someone needs to patent a coffee IV. That would be very, very useful.
Chapter 15
It was a visit from Harry, a week later, that turned the tides. Hermione had taken to working later hours than usual, and no one had seen her outside of the Ministry. She was hunched over her desk, a quill in hand, as she read through her latest proposal. So distracted was she that Harry sat there for five minutes before making his presence known.
"Keep up these hours, and you're gonna make yourself sick," he warned her.
"I won't apologize for doing my job," she retorted, returning to her file.
"Will you apologize for ignoring me?" he asked. The quill fell from her hand as her head snapped up. "Ginny told us about the fight and her uninviting you from the wedding. You have to understand, though, the Malfoys were never good people. They were awful to the Weasleys, and Draco lived to torture you and me. We can't all suddenly decide that he should be welcomed into the fold with open arms."
"I understand that," she murmured, leaning back defeatedly in her chair. "He's not like that anymore though. Not that it matters."
Harry frowned as he adjusted his glasses. "Why doesn't it matter?" he wondered. "Look, I've talked to Ginny and Molly. You're my best friend. You were my best friend long before Ginny was my girlfriend. I told them there was no way in hell I would let you miss my wedding. You might not be the maid of honor anymore, but I still want you to be there. And if it'll make you feel more comfortable, you can bring Malfoy."
Hermione shook her head and seemed to sink deeper into her chair. "I know how stubborn Ginny can be, and I said some awful things to her. Could you tell her I'm sorry?" she asked.
Rising from the chair in front of her desk, Harry rounded the large, mahogany piece and sat on the edge. They were closer now, and he could see how hard she fought to hold back tears. "Talk to me, Hermione," he implored. "Did something happen? I can't believe you would be this upset about Ginny."
She turned her head so he could no longer see her face. She hadn't mentioned Draco once in the past week, and she wasn't sure she could do it now. The memory of him walking out of her kitchen was still too fresh. The hollowness in his voice as he said goodbye still rang in her ears. She hadn't been able to look at him, or else the image would be all she could see.
"Did something happen with Malfoy?" Harry ventured. "Did he hurt you?"
Face still turned away from him, Hermione shook her head. "Draco's never hurt me," she replied. "I, on the other hand..."
Harry rounded the chair and crouched down beside her, taking hold of her chin so she couldn't look away again. "It's over," he guessed. She nodded minutely, and Harry released his hold on her. "You broke it off?"
"I had to," she reasoned.
"Why?" he wondered.
Hermione scoffed. "Please, Harry, we both know you weren't happy when you heard about Draco and me," she replied. "The Weasleys are the least forgiving people I know, especially in a situation like this. It was either stay with Draco and lose all of you, or keep you and lose him. It's easier to lose him."
Sighing, Harry got to his feet and leaned against the edge of her desk. "No, it's not," he said. "It's clearly not been easy on you."
"I'll be fine," she insisted. "Really, Harry. It's no big deal."
But nothing she said would convince him that she wasn't hurting. Harry had known her far too long, and had learned long ago exactly how to see through the lies she told herself. He wanted to help, needed to help her. Short of actually speaking to Malfoy, another plan began to form in his mind.
"What if I can promise you that you won't lose us? Me, the Weasleys, anyone else you're afraid you'll lose if you stay with Malfoy," he said. "I mean, I think it's crazy that you're worried about it at all. I'm still here, aren't I?"
"Yeah, but you're it," she replied. "I haven't spoken to Ron since he told me about him and Astoria. Ginny's already decided we can't be friends anymore. At some point, she's going to make you side with her, Harry."
Harry extended his hand to her, and with pleading green eyes, urged her to take it. "I won't let that happen, Hermione," he vowed once her smaller hand was safely tucked in his. He gave it a gentle squeeze before he continued. "If you trust Malfoy, I mean really trust him, then I have no reason not to. After all we've been through, I think we deserve to be happy. Were you happy with them? The Slytherins."
It took some time, but Hermione finally nodded. She had been happy with them. They were nothing like the boys she remembered them being in school. The war had had a profound effect on each of them; Draco more so than the rest. A smile briefly curled her lips as she recalled the memory of a nightmare-riddled Draco clinging to her in his sleep. A gentle touch and a soothing voice was all it took to banish them. She wondered if that was how he had approached her nightmares too.
"He's not going to want me back now," she mumbled as she attempted to extricate her hand. Harry refused to let it go as he urged her to explain. "I hurt him, Harry. I basically told him he wasn't important enough, that it didn't matter how he felt about me. After the charm was reversed on my parents and they stayed in Australia, I so desperately wanted a family. I'd lost one already, and the thought of losing another was too much to bear. So he left thinking I don't care about him."
"Talk to him," Harry urged. "Let him know that he's important to you. I'll deal with Ginny and Ron and the rest of the Weasleys. And come to family dinner on Sunday night. Molly won't leave me alone about your absence. You could bring Malfoy if you wanted. Might encourage Molly to move on from 'Hermione's pining for Ron.'"
"And also ensure it's Draco's last meal," she added.
Harry shrugged. "Like I said, I'll handle Ginny, and Ron's not coming this weekend," he replied. "Apparently the Greengrasses are going to Paris to celebrate Daphne's anniversary and Astoria's engagement."
Hermione's mouth hung open in shock. "Ron's engaged?"