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CHAPTER 8.
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Katherine clutched Hermione's wand before it could reach the floor. She took one look at the startled Healer and steadied her reflexively.
The contact from the younger witch's hand brought Hermione back to her senses and after those few seconds of shock, she quickly shifted into professional mode.
She took her wand back from Katherine and looked into the floo.
Luckily Healer Frank was still there. He seemed as bewildered as Katherine did.
"Healer, I want you to bring me the patient NOW. I'm keeping the floo active and please accompany him. Inform the coach and other players to come as soon as they can." Hermione barked.
The other Healer nodded and sensing the emergency, he left.
"Katherine, I want you to go inform the head nurse on the 3rd floor special ward to keep a room ready. I want an legilimency monitor and the sleep monitor attached before I come up to check in the patient." Hermione ordered.
Katherine nodded and hurried off.
"Delinda, ask Murphy to get the stretcher. I don't want to apparate him to his room. It may not be the best thing for his brain in this condition."
"Attention, patient coming in." A voice said from the other end of the floo.
" Received notice. Come along." Hermione answered.
The fireplace blazed bright green and Hermione stepped aside to the left.
It continued blazing for more time than it normally took for an entry or exit and after a few seconds, 3 people emerged.
Healer frank headed the group and another staff member was the last to step out.
Held carefully between them on a stretcher was Draco Malfoy.
Hermione's breath hitched in her throat and she felt her eyes prickle uncontrollably.
Of the so many ways that she imagined in which she would meet, this was a far cry from it.
She should have known that something was wrong when she stopped receiving his letters. He never took longer than 4 days to write.
Seeing one of her best friends lying in front of her, in a condition that was yet not even determined was not the reunion she had wanted.
Hermione was sure that If Draco was awake now; he would have kissed the bludger that hit him and sent him here for it allowed him to meet the reclusive Hermione Granger, even if it were not the most social event.
He looked like he was sleeping. Peaceful and restful. Without the telltale messy bed and sprawled body parts.
She had woken him up many a times in the past with the help of her voice alone. And now she was a Healer. Surely something that she must have studied somewhere would help her help him.
Murphy returned with the stretcher and they exchanged Draco's position.
Hermione mechanically thanked Healer Frank and after signing a parchment that Delinda put in front of her, she went off with Murphy as he levitated Draco to the 3rd floor, leaving the Healer from JRH with Delinda to complete paperwork and formalities of the transfer.
She silently held the sleeping Draco's hand all the way till his room.
Please be okay. Please be okay. She chanted in a fierce rhythm.
They reached his room and Hermione saw Katherine emerge from it.
"All monitors set up in addition to the normal ones. Is there anything else maam?" Katherine asked.
Hermione looked around the room to see if anything was missing. The bare white walls were clean but stern.
She could just imagine Draco waking up and complaining like a spoilt brat.
"Come on Granger! How can you work here! It wouldn't hurt to have more colour in this room. If I see the white any longer I may just have to be treated for snow blindness as well."
Shaking her own head at her silly double/single? Monologue she said, "A vase of fresh red carnations, charmed to stay alive for a few weeks would be nice."
Katherine nodded and left. If she found this request odd, she did not say so, neither did her facial expressions betray much.
Now alone with Draco in the room, Hermione looked around some more.
The room was awfully white. The red carnations would do nicely by adding a splash of colour in here. It also didn't hurt that they were his favourite flowers and contrary to many popular beliefs, red was his favourite colour.
Shocking. She had almost laughed till tears came out of her eyes when she realised that red was his favourite colour.
"Don't lie to me Draco. It's ok. Just because red is my favourite colour, you don't have to say it's yours too." Hermione said wiping the tears of mirth from the corners of her eyes.
Draco gave her a steely look and said, "Why would I lie? You asked me a question that was simple enough not to warrant a lie."
"Oh. And may I ask which questions are the complicated ones to which I should be aware that the answers may be nothing but lies?" Hermione asked, raising her eyebrow.
Draco gave her a long look before averting his equally steely eyes. "None. I would never lie to you." He said softly but truthfully.
"Really?"
"It won't matter what I say until you decide to believe me."
"But how can your favourite colour be red? It's a ... a... "
"A Gryffindor colour?" Draco completed.
"Well... Yeah!" Hermione conceded.
"Well let me ask you something then."
Hermione nodded.
"What is your favourite colour?"
"You know its red."
"When did you realise that red was your favourite colour?" Draco asked.
"Oh that's easy. I was 4 and it was Christmas. And I kept asking mum to buy all kinds of decorations and wrapping paper in red. It just looked so much brighter and prettier than the other options! I had almost every article of clothing in red at one point of time." Hermione chirped.
"Okay. So at 4 did you know anything about Hogwarts let alone the fact that you'd be a Gryffindor?" Draco asked.
Hermione shook her head slowly. She realised what Draco was getting at.
"And has your colour preference changed over the years?" Draco prodded.
"No."
"Then how can you be so adamant about house colours influencing ones personal choice?" Draco asked.
Hermione was silent.
"What's weaslette's favourite colour?" Draco asked.
"Green." She replied without missing a beat.
Draco smirked.
"Ohhh. I never thought it was odd before." Hermione breathed. "You know, I'd always imagined you in surroundings like green and silver. Like your bedroom, the sheets, your clothes etc."
"Thinking about my bedroom are we?" Draco teased.
Hermione slapped him on his head and glared at him.
"Okay okay. I'll tell you something though. Red is truly my favourite colour. But in front of father, it's silver. I can't bear the slytherin green so even lying to my father about it was not an option. So since even silver is a slytherin colour, I'm safe." Draco said.
"When did red become your favourite colour?" Hermione asked.
Draco shifted uncomfortably at this question. Because Hermione was closely observing him, she detected a hint of embarrassment? Well, she thought. This could be interesting.
"Umm. I think I was 3." Draco said.
Hermione waited for the story but Draco pretended to look at his parchment of charms essay which they had completed hours ago.
"And? I'm waiting." Hermione said impatiently.
"And what?
"How did you realise you liked red so much?"
"It's nothing Hermione. Everything doesn't need to have a story behind it."
"I'm sure this does. Come on Draco. Tell me. You promised you'd never lie to me."
"I promised I'd never lie. I didn't say I'd tell you everything." He smirked.
Aaarrggh. Damn that Malfoy smirk. She sometimes wanted to strangle his neck till the smirked wiped itself from his face.
"Hmm. Okay. Be that way." She said trying to be indifferent and getting up.
"Where are you going?" He asked. He knew that not knowing something must be killing her.
"To sign this book out. Madam Pince won't be too happy if I leave without logging out." She said.
"Wait wait. But I thought we were spending until dinner here at the library where no one would see us." Draco pouted.
"I don't have anything else to say to you. Why? Do you?" She asked innocently.
Damn witch. She may be in Gryffindor but the girl knew a thing or more about manipulation.
She waited for a few seconds expectantly and turned around to leave.
"It's the colour of my mother's lipstick." He said silently.
Hermione stopped short in her tracks and slowly turned around again.
If she was shocked, she didn't show it. She didn't want him to stop talking now that he had started.
"When I was small, she kissed me on my cheek when father was away. Malfoy's are not allowed to show affection in any manner. But the faint red mark that her lipstick made on my pale cheek was proof that she loved me for who I was. Her son. And nothing more. My achievements meant nothing more than motherly pride to her. It was the first sign of affection I had received. Since then it's always been red." He said in a small voice.
He was looking at her icily as he shared this with her.
Had she not known him, she would have mistaken his look for hatred but she knew it was only a defence mechanism.
Revealing something about him that concerned feelings had always left him vulnerable. So he always masked it with hate, anger, indifference.
Hermione was his friend. He knew that. She was the only one he had told her this to. Hell, she was the only one in front of whom his defences involuntarily slipped.
Hermione looked at him searchingly, smiled and left her book on the table top and took the seat next to Draco, snuggling into him.
He tensed up, not used to physical affection. She didn't leave his side though. She leaned up slightly and gently kissed his cheek.
"I'm glad you don't like green then. Somehow reminds me of vomit." She said.
He looked disgusted for a minute, not wanting to hear the story behind that weird statement, but smiled nevertheless.
Hermione smiled at that memory. It had taken a lot for her to believe that he liked red that much. She thought it would be nice for having him wake up to red carnations.
On second thought, she changed the colour of his sheets to a nice light and dark blue printed set.
This wasn't unprofessional. Was it?
She decided that she didn't care. She went closer to him and kissed his cheek gently like she had that day.
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They meet.
Well not exactly.
But he's here!
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