Disclaimer to JK Rowling

Chapter Three: Do I Hold the Past?

With a hostile eye at my flushing cheek,
With a malice that marks each word, each sign!
O enemy sly and serpentine,
Uncoil thee from the waking man!

Robert Browning from Never the Time and the Place

The next morning, Hermione found herself lazing in the sun as usual. Lacie was in a ballet lesson with her summer ballet teacher and Malfoy was swimming laps in the pool. She had half expected to see him when she breakfasted, but only saw him when she had gone out to lie in the sun with her half-finished textbook. He was jogging around the grounds as she sat down, and he didn't seem to notice her as he neared her. He did several more laps before stopping by the sun loungers. He pulled his T-shirt off and threw it on a sun lounger next to Hermione.

"Morning," he said rather gruffly before walking towards the pool. He hadn't waited for a response from her before walking to the pool and lowering himself into it. He pushed himself and started doing laps in the pool.

Hermione largely ignored Malfoy as he swam his laps, but found herself often peering at him as he did so. He swam like he played Quidditch, by gliding elegantly. Hermione had forgotten briefly that Malfoy was actually a decent Quidditch player, something she hadn't anticipated after he had essentially bought his way onto the Slytherin team. He had caught the Snitch in the match against Ravenclaw (the Ravenclaw chasers were too good for the Slytherin Keeper, though, and they ultimately lost the game), which made him almost even with Harry. Almost.

Malfoy stopped for a moment to even his breathing and looked across at Hermione. Hermione blushed and hid behind her book, mentally chastising herself for being caught watching Malfoy. She continued to hide behind it, even when she heard the splashes of Malfoy swimming again. She only wished that he would not comment on the fact that she had been staring at him, or even mention it to Lacie.

Soon she was too absorbed by her textbook to be distracted by Malfoy. As she learned more about number divination, she barely noticed that Lacie had arrived and the sun was at its peak. Lacie tried to converse with Hermione in vain, Hermione was barely answering as she pored over her book. As she flicked a page, the book slipped out of her fingers and into the air and out of her reach. Hermione groaned and glared at Lacie.

"Magic is forbidden outside of Hogwarts," Hermione started to lecture but Lacie had a smug expression on her face.

"But house-elf magic is not," she taunted a little, before turning to the little house-elf carrying a tray of drinks and saying, "Dans la piscine, s'il vous plait."

The house-elf clicked her fingers and the book went zooming from the air and fell into the swimming pool where it sank like a rock. Hermione hadn't even noticed that Malfoy had stopped swimming and was now stood next to his sister and slurping on his drink. His mouth was pulled into a crooked smile, and didn't question his sister. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Mature," Hermione commented as she stood up.

Lacie lifted up two of the drinks off the tray and offered one to Hermione. Hermione was suddenly too aware that Malfoy was looking at her and she was in a simple black one-piece swimming costume that probably fit her too tightly. She hadn't bought a new swimming costume for years as she wasn't much taller than she had been before she started Hogwarts, but she was developing in areas that were all-too-noticeable in the swimming costume. This was becoming painfully obvious and Hermione tried to hide it by crossing her arms. Malfoy looked away. Hermione looked past the drink that Lacie was offering and winced as she saw the book in the depths of the pool.

Hermione shoved Lacie gently, "That was a library book!"

"Relax, you know that old library hag has probably cast every kind of protection spell she has gathered over the years on it," Lacie said before holding out the extra glass in her hand, "Apple juice?"

Hermione ignored and walked past her. She walked to the deeper end of the pool, and twisted her hair into a bun as she went. She tied it up with a bobble from her wrist and tucked any loose strands behind her ears. As she neared the water's edge, she thought carefully about what she was going to do and she stood at the edge of the pool, aware that Lacie and Malfoy were watching her. Her toes curled over the edge of the pool, and she raised her arms above her head before bending down so that her upper body was parallel to the water. Hermione took a deep breath before diving as gracefully as she could into the pool.

It was a rush of water and bubbles as she glided through the water. She could barely see the book in the water, as it was a blurry mess but she had a general location. She raised her head above the water to take a breath before swimming towards the book. Once she saw it under her, she stopped for a breath again and went head first into the water as if she was doing a handstand. She grabbed the book and triumphantly swam back to the pool edge with it. Hermione rubbed her stinging eyes.

"Show off," Lacie muttered as she drank her juice through a straw.

Hermione flicked some water as her and Lacie jumped away. Hermione chuckled, "Well, in Muggle schools they teach children how to swim, it's a rather important life skill."

Malfoy snorted into his drink. Hermione raised her eyebrow at him, but knew better than to utter so much as a retort. She chose to examine the book that she had retrieved on the edge of the pool, keeping it safe. Lacie had been right, there were protection spells on the book but an ugly strike had appeared on the sheet that indicated that it had been checked out. Hermione dreaded returning it, and amidst her thoughts on what unpleasant punishment Madam Pince would have her do, there was a loud splash as something – or someone – fell into the pool. Hermione looked at the still water, and saw ripples in the water. She knew it was wasn't Lacie, as her friend was glancing at the stack of periodicals that must have just been delivered. Just as she pushed away the library book to pull herself out of the pool, she felt a hand around her ankle pulling her underwater.

Bubbles and water rushed over her as she kicked out, flailing in the water. She had lost her bearings, and what was worse had gulped a mouthful of pool water in her surprise. Her arms thrashed in desperation as she pulled herself up out of the water. Hermione gasped and spluttered and her throat burned and she grabbed onto the pool's edge. She rubbed at her stinging eyes and the world started to focus again. Malfoy was also spluttering and he ran a tentative hand through his blond hair as turned to Hermione. He was grinning at her.

Hermione had half a mind to curse him.

"Are you alright?" Lacie asked frantically, and she had moved to the pool's edge and was peering over the edge. She looked at Malfoy with a murderous expression as well before saying, "I am going to kill you."

"Were you going to spend all day lying in the sun? Where is the fun in that?" Draco said with a raised eyebrow, he glanced between Hermione and Lacie.

"Yes," Hermione said sardonically, "I forgot how much trying to end my life was fun."

"You are overreacting."

"Am I?"

"Yes, you are far too tense, just lighten up, for Salazar's sake."

"I do wonder why I'm so tense, but then again, Doxy venom is causes amnesia."

"You two, just… Draco you were being childish, so just apologise and we will just forget all of this."

Malfoy's lips pressed into a hard line before he took a deep breath and apologised for dragging Hermione under the water. Hermione did not care for his sullen tone, but nevertheless, for the sake of peace she nodded in acceptance. She went to pull herself out of the pool, and Malfoy had extended an arm to his sister. Hermione sighed as she easily pulled herself out of the water. She went to grab a towel to dry herself off, when she heard a resounding splash behind her.

Hermione whipped around and watched as she saw Lacie's arms flail in the water before her head broke the surface. Hermione went to the pool's edge with her towel, and watched as Lacie exchanged some angry words with her brother. His smirk was wiped off his face within milliseconds, before she shoved him away from her, and Malfoy floated away easily like he was a flower petal. Lacie glowered at Hermione as she pulled herself out of the water, and snatched Hermione's towel out her hands. Without so much as a backwards glance at her brother, she stormed off in the direction of the house.

Malfoy pulled himself out of the water.

"You just couldn't help yourself could you?" Hermione said, as he stood up, dripping water everywhere.

"I thought…"

"No, you weren't thinking," Hermione said. "You were just trying to have fun."

"How was I supposed to know that it would not be funny?" Malfoy countered, his eyes flashing dangerously. "It is not as if she tells me everything."

"You're her twin brother, does she really have to tell you everything? Or are you just that dense?"

He glowered at her before walking away, dripping water across the garden as he went into the house. Hermione grabbed another towel and hung it around her shoulders, not that she needed to dry herself off properly in the Mediterranean heat. She grabbed her textbook, which despite its watery adventures was surprisingly dry, as well as the latest Daily Prophet, before making her way back into the house.

She found Draco sitting outside of Lacie's room, clearly waiting for her to let him in. Malfoy was probably going to be there all day, soaking wet and remorseful. Hermione raised her eyebrow at him as she went to her room to drop her textbook off and she glanced at the front cover of the Prophet. On it, was a moving photograph of a wretched looking man, who was gnashing his decaying teeth at the photographer. Hermione dawdled as she scanned the article.

"Anything interesting?" Malfoy called out to her, Hermione turned to look at him before walking to her doorway and leaning on the frame.

"Someone's escaped from Azkaban," Hermione replied.

Lacie's door suddenly opened and Malfoy fell back. He saved himself from cracking his skull against her marble tiles by throwing his arms on the ground and propping himself up. He looked at her reproachfully.

"Lace?"

She silenced him by putting her hand in his face whilst looking at Hermione and saying, "That is impossible, Azkaban is one of the most highly guarded places in the world. You do not just escape from Azkaban."

Hermione shook her paper at Lacie so that she could read the large headline. Malfoy must have spotted it as he said, "That was yesterday's headline."

"The owl takes a bit longer for foreign subscriptions," Hermione clarified.

"Well, Lace, it was cousin Sirius."

Lacie's mouth fell open and she looked down at her brother, "Really?"

Malfoy nodded, and Hermione's mouth also fell agape. "You're really related to a man who," Hermione turned her attention back to the article and quoted, "killed thirteen people in a single blast?"

"Most pureblood families are related, intermarrying between cousins is quite common actually," Lacie explained. "I think we are even related to Ron Weasley… something like fourth cousins, five times removed?"

"On Mother's side," Malfoy added, before shuddering, "Also, I doubt the Malfoy side of the family would actually marry first cousins together to keep the bloodline pure."

"Wasn't there a rumour in first year about fraternal pureblood twins being betrothed from birth?" Hermione asked. Lacie and Malfoy exchanged a grimace before turning back to Hermione.

"Those are reserved for the zealots, proper purists… although there are less and less purebloods around these days, few would marry brother and sister together to ensure blood purity, it does…things to you. They always said that the Most Ancient and Noble House of Black was plagued by insanity, and I wonder how much of that is because of selective partnerships," Malfoy said. "Also, no offence, Lace, but as much as I want to honour the family I would never marry you."

"None taken, I would not dream of marrying you either."

"Does it even matter?" Hermione asked.

A smile played on Malfoy's lips for a moment, as if he was remembering a long-lost joke before he said, "Yes. Yes, it does."

The curtness of his response took Hermione aback for a moment. She had hoped for a moment, although it was her optimism speaking, that he was going to say that blood purity did not matter. Obviously, she was being naïve, as Malfoy was never going to go against his pureblood heritage, especially after he had bragged about it from the moment they had first met. That didn't stop something in her gut feeling slightly disappointed at his answer. It was as if, no matter how much he tried to accept her, he would never truly do so because of her heritage. Well, that's just stupid.

Instead of responding, Hermione folded the paper back up, and pulled her hair free and shook it out. Lacie squirmed backwards back into her room, and Hermione giggled as she realised that she was accidentally spraying Lacie and Malfoy with water droplets.

"What are you, some filthy mutt now?" Lacie asked with a upturned lip.

"Fitting," Hermione said as she smiled at her friend, before she turned to Malfoy who had pulled himself up, and was now standing up, "Don't get any ideas."

"Would not dream of it," Malfoy said, rolling his eyes as he walked down the corridor towards his own room.

x-x-x-x-x

As the days wore on, even Draco began to notice that his mother was absent from activities during most of the day. Whenever Draco asked his sister, she would open a bleary eye as she lay in the sun and told him that it was normal behaviour, and their mother only left her room on the rare occasion. She was most likely crumbling apart in her room. Lacie and Granger had learned to leave the woman be, but Draco knew his mother better and could not leave it be.

Narcissa Malfoy was a woman that struck fear in the heart of most witches and some wizards in England. She would walk into a room, and knew how to draw attention to herself, and she was the social butterfly of the higher echelons. She was not a woman to be crossed or denied, and so to fall apart… that was wholly uncharacteristic of his mother.

So, why was she not burning her husband's most prized possessions and hosting extravagant parties, but instead spending all of her hours asleep with her curtains closed?

Draco tried knocking for his mother, only to be stopped by the pesky Sandrine and the elf told her that his mother was sleeping.

"Sleeping?" Draco had asked in French, and the elf had nodded with urgency in response. Draco had raised an eyebrow before checking a clock, "But it is three in the afternoon."

"Madame Malfoy likes to take a nap during the day," Sandrine whispered back, and Draco's eyebrows knitted together. Whilst his mother appreciated customs in general, he was not aware that she like to take a siesta, or that she needed to. He returned to the garden where Granger was fussing over an owl, which he recognised as Potter's owl, and as he sneered at the animal, his worries about his mother soon dissipated.

"Do you want to send Harry anything for his birthday?" Lacie asked as they finished tying up several packages to the owl's leg.

"I have only eternal adoration for the Wonder-Twit-Who-Lived-Again, but I do not think that his owl can carry that," Draco said, sarcasm dripping from every word. The owl squawked at him threateningly, before taking flight. Lacie scoffed, and asked him if he had to be so rude. Granger merely ignored him, preferring to stare at the trees in the distance than at him. Draco snapped back, wondering what Lacie really wanted from him. He could play nice with Granger, but would rather lick Uncle Sev's dungeons clean than kowtow to Potter. Lacie only scoffed again and stretched out in her sun lounger.

"You are just like mother, except she does not laze in the sun every day," Draco commented as he walked to the pool. Ever since he had seen Granger dive so… gracefully in the pool, he had been determined to try it himself. So far, every time he fell into the pool like wriggling fish, and was not happy with his progress.

"I exhaust myself every morning and relax in the afternoon, mother only laments in her room, there is quite the difference," Lacie retorted. "I do not see why you do not pick on Hermione; all she does is read."

"I'm exercising my brain," Granger muttered, as her fingers ghosted a new textbook, this one was a beginner's guide to Ancient Runes. Draco wondered how many textbooks Granger had borrowed from the library before she had left Hogwarts.

"Does it not bother you though, how despondent our mother is?" Draco inquired, and Lacie raised a thin eyebrow at him.

"No, she is better off without father and she will soon see it," Lacie said curtly. She closed her eyes and turned away from Draco, indicating that the conversation was over. He stomped all the way to the other side of the pool and mentally visualised what Granger had done.

He fell into the pool with a splat, and it hurt every part of his torso. He had to concede, he could not learn this trick on his own and at some point he would have to consult Granger, who was looking at him with a small smirk. He furiously swam laps until his body tired, which was long after Granger and his sister had left to eat dinner. Draco stormed past the dinner table, and into his room to shower and merely lie on his bed, the exertion of his muscles was too much. He would dine later.

Later that night, he woke with a start. His stomach grumbled, and in the darkness he realised that it was well past midnight. He had fallen asleep in his shirt and trousers, intending to only let his body rest for a few moments before joining Lacie and Granger at the dinner table. He yawned as he rubbed his blurry eyes and sat up, his stomach aching from both swimming and being hungry. He was sure that Sandrine could whip him up something, or he could look in the Muggle cooling appliance for leftovers. He padded over to his door, and when he opened it and stepped out, he could only hear the most bloodcurdling scream. He fell back into his room, where there was blissful silence and held his ears. He ran to his bedside table and snatched up his wand and ran into the corridor.

The screaming was from Lacie's room.

Draco sprinted towards the room, with his hand gripped tightly on his wand. He knew he was not allowed to do magic outside of Hogwarts, but for his sister he would risk it. Draco burst into the room and raised his wand, before glancing around the room. He found his mother cradling and rocking his sister as she mumbled something rhythmic under her breath. The screaming soon subsided, and their mother lay her on the bed, where Lacie was muttering something, a thin sheen of sweat slicked all over her body. Their mother looked up at Draco with a sad expression on her face.

"What is wrong with her?" Draco asked when he found his voice.

"Your sister did a heroic but reckless thing when she went down to the Chamber of Secrets a few months ago," his mother said quietly, as she walked over to an armchair. She invited Draco to come into the room, and he did so, closing the door behind him. He knelt beside her. "She was tortured and nearly killed, and surprisingly, it was not because of her friendship with Hermione Granger and Harry Potter, it was because of her name."

"Why?"

"Your father made a lot of mistakes in his past," was all his mother said, as if it explained everything. When Draco pressed for a better explanation, she simply traced his face with her index finger and pinched the bottom of his chin with it and her thumb. She smiled weakly at him.

"I do not wish for both of my children to have nightmares tonight," she whispered. She looked sadly over at his sister, who was breathing heavily in her sleep and turning in her sleep.

"Is this why you spend all of your time in your room?" Draco asked quietly, "You sleep during the day because you are here all night?"

"Yes," his mother replied, not removing her gaze from his sister.

"Does she know?"

His mother shook her head.

"You should tell her, she thinks that you spend your days sobbing into a pillow over father," Draco said, and his mother shook her head. "Why, Mother? She regards you with such disdain that - …"

"Because I made her like this," his mother cut in softly. "Did you think that all I did was teach her needlework and tea ceremonies, whilst you played in the gardens? I taught her to be brave, and to never let anything break her. If I had not interfered with her training, and only did what I was supposed to do, she probably would have never gone into the Chamber, and would not be having these nightmares. She might even be a Slytherin."

"So, you are punishing yourself?" Draco asked. His mother did not answer, but she did not have to. Draco knew the answer, and it almost tore his chest in two. He was ashamed at himself for listening to his sister's criticisms of their mother, even for a moment, because she was a far stronger woman than they both knew. As Draco watched his mother watch over his sister, he only wondered if Lacie knew how self-sacrificing their mother was. It also explained far more about Lacie's behaviour, how reticent she was about their father and her reluctance to do anything besides lie in a sun lounger all day.

"I can help too, I can stay in here all night too," Draco said, and his mother froze for a moment before turning to look at him. She smiled, but it did not reach her eyes.

"No, that will not be necessary -…"

"But -…"

"No buts," his mother said firmly. She leant towards him and pressed her lips to his forehead, "Good night, my dear."

It was clear to him that he was being dismissed. Draco stood up, and cast a look at his writhing sister who was still muttering in her sleep. He went to the door and opened it, before hurrying to the kitchen to grab a snack and ate it quickly before returning to his own bed.

That night, he did not sleep a single wink, haunted by his sister's screaming.

What had happened to her?

x-x-x-x-x

Hermione stared out the window as she ate her breakfast, and watched as the rain battered the open parasols and marble tiles outside. She sighed as she retreated back to her room to change into some clothes, and wondered how she would spend the day before Lacie had finished with her lesson. Aside from the bedrooms and the grounds outside, Hermione hadn't really explored the villa. She knew to stay away from Narcissa's quarters, and even then, her elf would only lead her away from that wing but there were several rooms that Hermione hadn't looked at yet, despite having stayed there for over a month now. As she neared a part of the villa she had never explored before, she could hear voices and she tentatively opened the door.

"Morning," a voice said beside a large desk, Hermione looked up and saw Malfoy standing next to Sandrine, who was holding a long piece of parchment and a quill.

"Morning," Hermione replied, as she looked around the room. It was clearly a study, but there were no personal items in there aside from a desk and several chairs. There were a few books on the opulent bookshelves and comfortable looking reading chairs, but there was nothing to marvel at in the room.

"I see the rain ruined your plans too," Malfoy smiled, before whispering what seemed to be more instructions for the elf and she nodded and scribbled down everything he said.

"Yes… well, I thought I would take a look around the house, seeing as I haven't seen everything yet. What are you going to do?" Hermione asked, awkwardly trying to make conversation.

"My summer homework, I am asking Sandrine to go back to the Manor and collect some books for me, is there anything I can get for you?"

Hermione stepped forward and looked at the list that Sandrine was holding, and her eyes widened at the scrawled French on the parchment. She knew that Malfoy could speak French quite well, she didn't know that he was that good. He seemed to read her thoughts as he laughed.

"No, I am not that good at French. Sandrine has put a translation spell in the room so everything spoken in English gets translated into French for her, and everything spoken in French gets translated back into English for me," Malfoy said. "It makes life easier for the both of us."

"So, Sandrine can understand everything I'm saying?" Hermione asked.

"Yes, Miss Hermione," the elf answered before turning to Malfoy, "Is that everything?"

Malfoy nodded before thanking her, and the elf disappeared with a crack. Malfoy returned to the desk, where there were scattered pieces of parchment lying everywhere. He sat down and appraised one of them before frowning at it. Hermione watched as he placed it back on the desk with a huff and began scribbling on a fresh piece of parchment.

She didn't know what to say, or what even to do. Normally she would just linger in the sun and wait for Lacie, but the rain had seen to that idea. She could read in the drawing room, but there was something oddly comforting about the eerily empty study, as if she was in the Hogwarts library again. She couldn't sit in the room and ignore Malfoy though, as much as she disliked him. The way that he spoke to his elf perturbed her. She had never seen him act so kindly or carefree before, as if there was some weight off his shoulders all of a sudden.

"You're nice to Sandrine," Hermione said, after a moment.

Malfoy looked up at her, with his quill raised in the air. "So?"

"And to Anaïs," Hermione said, "But you're not nice to me unless you're told to be. Why is that?"

"Have I done something?"

"Why do you hate me?"

Malfoy placed his quill in a quill-holder, before crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "I think it is absurd to think that I hate you."

"And I think it's absurd that you hate me because of something I can't control. Somehow I was born into a Muggle family and had magical powers, it doesn't make me more repugnant than you," Hermione said walking up to the desk.

Malfoy stood up, his grey eyes seemed to be boring into her as he uncrossed his arms to place them on the desk, mimicking his mother during that first dinner, "I think this is becoming quite the circular argument."

"No, I want to know why you have hated…" Hermione paused at the indignant look that Malfoy was giving her, "Fine, disliked me from the moment that you met me. You didn't know who I was and you disliked me."

"Do you really have to know everything?"

"Yes, I am an insufferable know-it-all, after all. Stop answering my questions with questions."

"Fine, I admit that I disliked you because of your background," Malfoy acquiesced, falling limply in his chair. He offered the chair in front of the desk to Hermione, as if they were sitting in a business meeting and drawing up their respective arguments. Hermione glowered at him and continued to stand. When it was clear that she was not going to sit, Malfoy cleared his throat as he thought about his next words.

"As a child, I did not mingle with anyone who was not like me, and most of my friends, you must have noticed are quite privileged and are purebloods," Malfoy started. "We were spoiled, and raised to believe a certain way. You know my family motto and you have met my father, I am the heir to the Malfoy family and I honestly thought it was the right way to think and conduct myself."

"Then explain Lacie," Hermione said. "Explain why she is so different to you? Why did she run after me when you first called me a Mudblood?"

"She has always been a better person than I am," Malfoy said with a smile as he looked down at the desk.

"Insulting yourself is not explaining yourself," Hermione stated.

Draco looked at her, meeting her gaze with an irritated cockiness. "Lacie was never treated the same that I was, she threw herself into her training and my father was always, always harder on her than he ever was on me."

"So you're a bigot because you're spoiled?"

"I suppose so," Malfoy sighed.

Hermione was surprised at his honesty, even though it wasn't a satisfactory answer for her. Even she knew though that it was the best answer that he could actually give, though and she appreciated at how frank he had been. She had never seen this side of him before. Hermione knew that Malfoy like to laud his knowledge over her, and made her feel insignificant because he had grown up with magic around him. He had done that during the summer when he explained pureblood families, but she was seeing sides of him that he probably never even showed his friends. He was having fun, and he was laying all his cards on the table in front of her.

I think he is taking his mother's words seriously.

"You said that you thought it was the right way to conduct yourself, what's changed?"

Malfoy blinked at her for a moment before cocking his head, "Pardon?"

Hermione snickered. Malfoy was more like Harry than the pair could care to think. She composed herself before repeating herself, "You said before, that being the heir to the Malfoy family, you thought it acting a certain way was the right way to conduct yourself. What's changed?"

Malfoy blinked repeatedly at her again, and opened his mouth before closing it with a frown. He pursed his lips and then said, "I suppose spending some independent time with my father has changed my perspective a little."

"Daddy dearest isn't so dear after all?"

"Watch your tone," Malfoy warned in a low voice, before continuing. "The Malfoy name has taken quite the hit recently, and my father does not take failure well."

"Maybe he should have thought of that before purging Hogwarts of Muggle-borns," Hermione retorted. "And trying to discredit Professor Dumbledore."

"Like I said, he does not take failure well, and I do not think that he anticipated my mother leaving him on top of it all."

"What does that mean for you?" Hermione asked, finally taking the seat in front of Malfoy, and Hermione felt his eyes follow her as she did so. Hermione looked up and met his eyes, again.

"It means…" he said trailing off and staring in the distance. He squinted slightly as he focused his gaze somewhere else. "I suppose it means that I can act without having to first consider how it would sully my family name."

Hermione turned around to look at what Draco was looking at. Whilst she didn't understand Wizarding politics, and she knew it was a conversation for a later date, as she was intrigued by it all, she realised that something had changed in that room. They sat in silence, contemplating everything that had been said, and after a long time Draco picked up his quill and started scratching away at his parchment again. Hermione kept staring away from him, and had focused her attention on the window where the rain was dribbling down the glass outside. No one said anything, until Lacie burst in looking quite flustered.

"Of course you are in the library," Lacie huffed and she quirked an eyebrow as she peered behind Hermione and at Draco. "Why are you in here?"

"I was here first," Draco muttered as he continued writing. He did not look up from his work to greet his sister. "But your friend gave me some interesting facts about witch-hunts from a Muggle perspective for my History of Magic homework."

"Oh," Lacie said. Hermione turned to look at Draco, wondering why he was lying about what they had been talking about. She also wondered why Lacie seemed to accept his lie so easily, Lacie seemed to always see through Hermione's lies. "Glad to see that you are making friends with each other."

"Draco and I aren't -…" Hermione started, and realised something.

It was the first time that she had called Malfoy by his given name, or even thought about him with his given name. Draco looked at her with that expressionless mask before saying with annoyed voice, "As much as I would like to sit in a circle and make friendship bracelets with you both, I do have homework to complete. Unfortunately for you two, I actually care about my studies."

Lacie rolled her eyes at her brother more linking arms with Hermione. Hermione merely narrowed her eyes at him

Well, really! And to think I was getting somewhere with him!

A/N: Apologies if the French is off, according to one of my apps I am only 20-something percent fluent in French.

Also, I love writing Dramione fluff/moments in general.

Remember to give Bright Star/Bound by a read if you haven't already.

Happy reading, CSxo