Third Year

"I need to warn you both. You need to stay safe this year," Snape said seriously to Hermione and Theo.

It was a month before they had to head back to Hogwarts and Snape had never been more worried for his goddaughter and nephew.

"Did Sirius Black really betray the Potter's," Hermione asked, her eyes glassy thinking about her best friend and what his parents had to go through.

Snape didn't know. At first, he thought it impossible seeing how close Sirius had been to James and Lily. But now, he just couldn't be sure.

"All I can tell you both is loyalty never wavers unless... You're either loyal until the very end or you never were to begin with. Sirius Black would have done anything for his friends."

He sighed and sat across from them. "This year is going to be dangerous, not because trouble seems to follow Potter everywhere he goes–" he shot a glare at Hermione who rolled her eyes, "– but because Sirius Black has escaped Azkaban, he's going to be looking for Potter. Dumbledore has agreed to let the guards of Azkaban watch over Hogwarts for security. And I'm warning you now, you especially, Hermione, to stay out of their way. They're nasty, dark creatures. One wrong move and they could target you, drain you of all happiness. And while this warning may be futile because you're so unbelievably stubborn, try to distance yourself from Potter."

Hermione scoffed. "That's never going to happen, Uncle Sev. You know that. If anything, Harry's going to need my help more than ever–"

This earned her two twin groans of annoyance. Hermione's features pinched and she crossed her arms against her chest. "You can't make me do anything."

"Hermione I don't know what I'll do if something bad happens to you," Theo pleaded.

"Please. We've had this conversation over and over, Teddy. I could hold my own–"

"Yes, until you can't," he glared.

Before Hermione could disagree, Snape cut her off. "I'll be teaching you both the Patronus spell. But I'm sure you know what it is."

Both children nodded excitedly. They've seen their mother communicate with Snape through her own Patronus and had always been eager to learn it themselves, but were told they were too young.

"Very well," Snape nodded and stood, he held out his wand and watched both children following in his lead. Taking a deep breath, he conjured up his happiest memory and he silently cast the Patronus but was shocked to see it had changed form from a doe to a swan. Amelia. It had been a while since he even attempted to produce a Patronus. The last was after Lily was murdered.

Three shocked eyes watched as the swan glided around the room and circled around each of them before fading into wisps.

"Mum," Hermione and Theo whispered hoarsely in unison.

"Amelia," Snape said in confirmation, more to himself.

He cleared his throat and looked down. "Very well. A Patronus is conjured up through harnessing pure happiness, it takes great effort and emotion to actually produce a corporeal Patronus. I don't expect you two to be able to produce a fully corporeal one, but some practice should do for now. Now, think of the strongest and happiest memory you have and concentrate on it. Harness the feelings you've had from that memory. Don't let that feeling go. And once you have it say, 'Expecto Patronum'. You will not get it on your first try and may only produce wisps of silver but you must keep trying."

Hermione found herself struggling. She did have good memories, great ones, even, but part of her just couldn't get herself to feel it completely. At the end of the day, only Theo was able to produce even a wisp.

Theo grinned at his effort and hugged Snape who simply patted his head in return.

Hermione frowned and turned to sit down.

"Hey, whats wrong?" Theo asked, sitting next to her while Snape opted to remain standing.

"I couldn't conjure even a wisp," she said simply.

Theo, not knowing how to comfort her for this, looked at Snape for help.

"A patronus," he started then conjured up his once again and allowed it to glide towards the siblings, "represents everything that part of us that is hidden. Unknow yet necessary to who we are. It represents... us in our most purest form. But one can only produce it when they're able to feel, to completely encompass themselves in that feeling. I suspect, Hermione, you may struggle a bit because while you do have what it takes, you're shadowed by constant doubt. I do believe, you- both of you, will be able to produce a full corpreal one, one day. It will just take time."

Draco had been noticing weird things with Granger. It was almost as if she was everywhere and nowhere. He first noticed the peculiarity when he saw her in the library with books from every single class you could take that year. At first, his mind conjured up the idea that the swot was just self-teaching the subjects but when he saw her in ancient runes but heard her complaining about how rubbish divination was which happens to occur at the same time, he knew something was definitely up.

Of course, Draco denied to himself that he noticed these things because he was watching her and listening to her complain to the dunderhead duo on their way to Care for Magical Creatures. No, he was most definitely not watching her, he just happened to notice these things. He is, after all, a very perceptive person.

"I think they're funny," Hermione said.

"Oh, yeah. Terribly Funny! Really witty!" Draco snarked overhearing the conversation. "God, this place is going to the dogs! Wait until my father hears that Dumbledore's got this big oaf teaching us classes!"

Hermione rolled her eyes and shot him a glare and Draco smirked back.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Harry growled.

Draco's eyebrows shot up and he glanced over to Hermione to see her watching wonderboy with worry and he narrowed his eyes.

Shoving his bag into Theo's chest, much to his surprise, Draco sauntered over to Potter and sized him up. He was a good foot taller than Harry and that made Draco's pride inflate.

"Careful, Potter, there's a Dementor behind you," he sneered.

Hermione's eyes flashed. How dare this arrogant prat say something like that to her best friend. She walked over to Harry and shot Draco a withering glare before pulling her best friend around and away.

Draco kept up the smirk on his face and as soon as they had their backs turned to him, his expression dropped back into the stoic expression it usually presumed but Theo who was standing right next to him heard him let out an exasperated fuck under his breath and pretended as if he never heard a thing over the loud chatter around him.

An act indeed, Theo thought.

When Draco watched Hermione reach for the ginger prat's hand in nervousness at watching Potter pet the big chicken, he felt a spark of anger and annoyance flare in his chest. That freckled face moron may be a pureblood and she may be a mud- muggleborn- but even she doesn't deserve to have his impoverished, filthy self touching her delicate skin.

Delicate skin? Draco shook his head furiously at the thought and watched, vexed as everyone whooped and cheered for the boy-who-lived for having had ridden a damn Hippogriff.

Draco shouldered everyone out of his way and sauntered to the blasted creature. Surely if Potter could ride it, he could too.

For all his arrogance he cowered down when Buckbeak started fussing and in his fear and the chaos, he barely registered the beast going up on his haunches and bringing down its talons, scratching straight across his arm. Next thing he knew, he was on the ground cradling his injured arm and crying out that he's dying and it's killed him. He distantly heard Granger's panicked voice tell Hagrid that he needed to be brought to the hospital. Momentarily, he wondered if she was worried but quickly dismissed the ludicrous notion. Still, it didn't stop the pang of disappointment he felt.

His thoughts were quite literally shaken out of him when Hagrid lifted him up easily as if he were merely a ragdoll. He could hear the outcries and disagreements following closely behind as the students all followed them back to the castle. Out of everyone, he could hear pug-face Pansy Parkinson's screechy voice crying that it was Hagrid's fault and he would certainly be fired for letting the blasted bird injure her Drakey. Draco rolled his eyes. Sure, he could put up dramatics, but Pansy always takes the pudding.

"I'm going to see if he's okay!" Draco overheard Pansy say as Hagrid carried him up the marble staircase where everyone stopped and he internally groaned.

"No, Parkinson, you stay here. Blaise and I will go," Theo said annoyed.

Distantly Draco heard her high-pitched squeal of indignation and rolled his eyes again. What a drama queen. Then he heard footsteps rushing over to catch up with them.

"You good, mate?" Theo asked Draco after Madam Pomfrey had released him with some gauze wrapped around his freshly healed wound and had given him a sling. The warmth from Theo's bracelet was fading but he knew it'd be back again in about five minutes. As much as he knew Hermione loathed Draco, she still worried. Albeit she mainly worried more that Hagrid might get into bigger trouble if it had been worse, he knew she worried nonetheless.

"Yeah. Wait until my father hears about this. Hopefully, he'll get that big oaf tossed out on his arse and get that bloody chicken's head cut off," he growled.

Theo looked over to Blaise and rolled his eyes while Blaise snickered. Seriously? Subtly, he tapped his bracelet three times and immediately felt the warmth again.

"Come on, let's go get food. You must be starving, Draco, I know I am," Blaise grinned and they all went down to the Great Hall.

Draco was leaning against the wall waiting for DADA to start. It was his first day back in class and already Pansy was hovering over him. Theo and Blaise found it hilarious and the traitors didn't bother to do anything about it.

"Does your arm hurt terribly, Draco?" the annoying twit simpered right as Hermione passed them. She wasn't here just a second ago.

Suddenly, Draco's awareness took over and he immediately went from confused to feigning misery.

"Yeah," he grimaced. "But I consider myself lucky. I was so close to losing my arm."

"Aww, you poor boy," she said dismally.

Draco turned to Theo and Blaise who smirked before glancing over at Hermione in time to see her rolling her eyes and shaking her head. His smirk faltered and he cleared his throat, going back to ignoring Pansy's continuous babbling about whatever girly nonsense.

Remus Lupin began his lecture about the boggart, but every time he tried concentrating on the professor, his eyes would drift to the back of Hermione's head.

She was at the front and centre as usual. Some yellow stick sticking out of her hair, he supposed was to keep her hair up into a messy bun. Tendrils of brown, curly locks escaped the chignon and framed her face. It didn't escape Draco's notice of how every year her hair became tamer and wondered if it was because of his continuous taunts of her being bushy-haired. It was a shame because he thought her wild her was quite... fun. Almost like a lion– almost electric with magic.

Electrocuted, more like. He tried to reason with himself when he realised he was treading on the path of complimenting her hair...again.

Draco didn't want to participate in the lesson. For everyone to see he had a great fear would be like admitting he had fear in the first place and doing so would mean showing weakness and he just couldn't have that. When he looked over to Theo to tell him he's not going to participate and that he was going to the back of the class, he saw his friend hardly paying attention as he focused on his bracelet continuously rubbing it. Draco knew very well Theo's greatest fear would be seeing Remington hurt his mother while he couldn't protect her.

"I don't think my injury will allow me to participate. Want to step out of this one with me, mate?" Draco said.

Theo looked at him gratefully and nodded. They had both missed Hermione's worried glance. Sure Draco Malfoy could be a prat but he had his moments and she was severely grateful that Theo had someone in his corner who cared for her brother. She was honestly worried about participating as well. She didn't want to risk revealing her true identity.

And just like some divine intervention as soon as Harry's boggart had taken the form of a dementor, Professor Lupin had ended class early. Hermione felt guilty that she was thankful for it and as a way to make up for it, bought Harry a basket of sweets from Honeydukes and dismissed the gesture as just trying to make him feel better.

Of course, she missed the way Draco glared across the Great Hall when Harry had hugged her, albeit a little awkwardly, as he was still learning how to give and recieve affection in appreciation. She also missed Theo rolling his eyes and Snape growling under his breath about boys- especially a Potter- coming near his goddaughter.

Draco, Theo, and Blaise were walking around the forest when they heard soft chatter. Draco and Theo instantly recognized the female voice as Hermione's and the male as Ron's.

Moving further down they found the pair alone looking over at the shrieking shack. Theo who was further back from Draco and Blaise groaned to himself and rolled his eyes. Hermione had mentioned Ron may be developing a crush on her and Theo instantly objected. He didn't think anyone was good enough for his sister.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" Draco drawled. He noticed how the pair stiffened.

When Hermione turned around, she saw the coldness in his eyes. She huffed and was already dreading this confrontation.

"Shopping for your new home, I see?" Draco sneered.

"Shut up, Malfoy," Ron said with very little confidence.

"Ooh, not very friendly. Boys I think it's time we teach Weasel-bee how to respect his superiors," Draco smirked.

Hermione's mouth dropped open and she glanced over at Theo who was holding his head in his hands, knowing that his sister might just kill Draco and not knowing how to react.

She chuckled humourously and took a few steps towards Draco, an angry glint in her eye. Raising her fists ready to fight like she's seen in muggle movies, she glared at him. "Hope you don't mean yourself."

Draco looked taken aback for a moment before sneering. "How dare you talk to me? You filthy little mudblood!"

He then turned to Ron. "What, can't even fight your own battles? You have to have your mudblood whore do it for you?"

A series of gasps came out from everyone.

"Mate," Blaise said cautiously. Even he knew that comment was too far.

Ron had become red in the face and looked about ready to avada Draco. Theo felt the same way.

Draco instantly regretted the comment when he saw Hermione falter. While she continued her brave stance and appearance, he noticed the glassiness to her eyes.

Theo had noticed as well. To say he had never been more furious with his best mate was putting it lightly. Before he could retaliate himself, an invisible force began pelting the three Slytherins with snowballs.

Hermione and Ron stood there, mouths agape and confused as something pantsed Blaise, pushed Theo to the snowy floor, then pushed Draco face-first into the snow and dragged him around by his feet.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" Draco shrieked.

Blaise after pulling his pants up helped Theo up then Draco and all three fled as fast as they could.

Hermione and Ron looked at each other before they burst out laughing.

"Harry is that you?" Hermione called out.

Harry removed his invisibility cloak and laughed with his friends. Hermione's sniffled and hugged him tightly as a thanks.

"Always got your back," Harry said awkwardly.

"Me too," Ron added, sheepishly.

Tears fell down Hermione's eyes and she pulled Ron in for a group hug. Draco's comment rang in her mind. It was truly awful and absolutely ghastly. She just couldn't understand how Draco could be that cruel. After that, she just couldn't find herself thinking of a single reason why she could ever like someone like him.

"He did what?!" Snape bellowed.

"He called me a mu-mudblood whore," Hermione sniffled. Theo frowned and pulled her against him.

"Theo, did Draco really say that?"

"Yes," he spat. He was too angry for his sister.

Snape sighed heavily and fell to his seat. "I should talk to him-"

"No!" Hermione cut him off.

"What?" they said in unison.

"No. If you do that he'll think you're playing favouritism and remember you're not supposed to like me. He's supposed to be your godson and if he thinks you're reprimanding him he'll surely think something suspicious."

"Hermione he already thinks something's wrong with you. You need to be more careful with that time-turner of yours. If you get caught being in two places at once-"

"I know, I know. I promise I'll be more careful." she turned to Snape, "Just don't say anything. I know the protective nature in you wants to but you can't. Remember, it's a very vulnerable situation we're in. We all have to play our parts. Besides, Harry stuck up for me," she said proudly.

"Yeah, and honestly Uncle Sev, after that trick he pulled, I've got to say, I'm impressed. I think both those morons will always protect 'Mione. Maybe they're not so bad," Theo grimaced. He really hated those words coming out his mouth.

Hermione grinned and gave her brother a bone-crushing hug. "Thanks, Teddy!" Before he could respond, she pulled away and punched him in the arm, hard enough to give him a bruise.

"Ow! What the bloody hell was that for?" He cried, rubbing his arm.

"Don't call my friends morons," she said, putting her hands on her hips reminding him of his mother whenever she would lecture him for being so careless when flying on his broom.

"Friends my arse! What were you and Weasel doing alone in the forest? Snogging?"

Snape's eyes snapped to Hermione and he glared. "What?!"

Hermione gasped and she punched Theo again causing him to cry out.

"Bloody hell woman if you don't stop this instant!"

"Excuse me?!" she shrieked.

They continued yelling back and forth. Snape closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. He slumped back against his chair and let out a pained groan. These children will be the death of him.

"You– you foul, loathsome, evil, little cockroach!" Hermione snarled as she approached Draco, Blaise and Theo right next to him looking scared as they should be. And before Draco could get a snarky reply out she pulled her fist back and decked him right in the nose.

There was a loud crunch before Draco was on the floor crying out.

"What the fuck have you done?!" He shrieked. Because he was holding on to his now very broken and bleeding nose, his voice came out nasally.

Hermione was ready to jump him again but Harry and Ron snapped out of their shock fast enough to grab a hold of her. Ron was carrying her around her waist and Harry was in front of them with his wand pointed out to the three Slytherin's as they tried to assist their friend. But of course, in typical Hermione Nott fashion, she was trying hard to break free of Ron's hold by kicking, squirming, and screaming.

"Let me go!" she shrieked.

Theo and Blaise helped Draco up and they ran for it without looking back.

"I'm good, you can let me go now!"

Ron shared a look with Harry and cautiously let Hermione down. As soon as she felt his arms loosen around her midsection, she jumped out and huffed out a breath while fixing her clothes.

"Harry, you'd better beat him in the Quidditch final," she said shrilly.

All Harry could do was nod as he and Ron stared at her impressed.

That was for the insult, she thought smugly.

"You punched my godson," Snape said pinching the bridge of his nose.

"He had it coming," she shrugged.

They stared at each other for a few moments before the corner of Snape's mouth quirked up in a smile, "Get to class, Hermione."

Hermione grinned and skipped out.

Draco was sitting in his empty dorm nursing his bruised nose with an ice pack. At least the bleeding had stopped. Madam Pomfrey had fixed it right up and given him a potion for his pain.

Hermione Granger had literally punched his face.

He replayed the scene in his head. And it still left him baffled.

Sure, he did deserve it and probably worse. After the Merlin-awful insult he threw at her, Draco felt ill. That wasn't him. He wasn't like those people his father called friends. He was a Malfoy. No matter his name, he knew to always respect women.

Blaise and Theo had both been angry with him and for good reason. He didn't know what happened and why those despicable words came out because that wasn't him. After he saw the look on her face change he knew that if she didn't hate him before, she surely did now.

Draco wanted to take it back but he didn't know how. He didn't even know why he did, but he just so desperately wanted to apologise.

Then he went and mucked it up even more. But this time she held her own and bloody punched him! She punched him and Draco thought it was... the most amazing thing to have happened to him. He briefly thought himself a masochist for this. He felt as if he would willingly subject himself to that if that meant she'd offer him absolution.

The way her whisky coloured eyes blazed in anger and the way her magic crackled around her– she was a sight to behold and Draco had found himself breathless– well breathless from a mix of both fear and awe. He felt a stir in his stomach, something he never knew he could feel until he started puberty and whenever he bantered with the firey witch. Draco couldn't comprehend that feeling. He knew exactly what it meant- he was horny of course- but he couldn't comprehend why Hermione Granger was the only girl able to make him feel this way.

Curiously, he scoot up his bed to lean against the headboard and closed the canopy of his bed. He undid his pants and slowly pushed his hand down, grabbing himself for the first time and experimenting. When he found himself enjoying a certain rhythm at the thought of a certain curly haired witch with the most perfect pink lips, it was merely minutes before he felt his skin grow flush and hot then suddenly he hit a pinnacle. The feeling was so foreign and so intense he thought he was having an outer body experience. He had never felt such pleasure like that before.

After he had finished Draco scourgified himself, plopped back on his bed, and let out a pained groan. He liked Hermione Granger. He liked Hermione Granger and all it took was her in all her glory punching him in the face to finally realize it. Yep, he was well and truly fucked.

Snape felt like he just about lost another ten years the minute he caught sight of the whomping willow swinging his screaming goddaughter and Harry Potter around.

"Oh, Amelia, forgive me. I just might kill your daughter before she kills me," he muttered under his breath and ran his hands through his grown-out hair.

As soon as Harry and Hermione fell through the hole, he ran over and immobilised the tree then followed through.

Hermione had never experienced anything as crazy as what she was at that moment. She, Ron, Harry, and Ron's rat, all cornered by Professor Lupin and escaped prisoner, Sirius Black. What the hell had they gotten themselves into?

Everything went by quickly no matter how brilliant Hermione was, even she couldn't quite comprehend what was going on.

Sirius and Lupin were trying to convince Harry that it wasn't Sirius who betrayed his parents then Snape turned up trying to apprehend them and bring them to the castle. He had shot Hermione a withering glare and she couldn't bother to look ashamed. Then, next thing she knew, Harry had taken her wand and knocked her godfather out. It was for the best, she thought.

After that, Sirius and Lupin accused Scabbers, Ron's rat, of being Petter Pettigrew. Which they revealed to be correct. It was all barmy, really.

As they made to leave the Shrieking Shack, Hermione whispered a quiet sorry to Snape's unconscious form before following along. Then as usual chaos erupted once again and a very much awake and very much furious Snape forgot he was furious to begin with when he had to protect them from Lupin's werewolf-turned self.

The whole ordeal of the night was so confunding by the end of it she could do no more than just save it for thought later.

Harry and Hermione burst through the doors and laughed as Ron freaked out about having had seen them time travel.

"We're one crazy trio, aren't we," Harry grinned, wrapping his arm around Hermione as they sat in the hospital wing. And for the first time she noticed he didn't hesitate or feel awkward.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't have it any other way," Hermione nudged him with her elbow.

"I've gone mental, haven't I?" Ron said to himself. Harry and Hermione shared amused looks. "It must have been some type of rabies Scabber or Pettigrew or whatever he was had. Yeah, that must be it."

Hermione stood and smacked the back of his head. At his cry of protest, she laughed, "Nope, not mental. At least not yet."

They all burst out laughing once again- that is until Snape sauntered in, black robes billowing behind him.

"Miss Granger, Mister Potter, follow me. As for you, Mister Weasely, just try not to do anything more stupid unless you want to be scrubbing cauldrons for the remainder of the year. Oh wait, you three will already be doing that." And just like that he turned and sauntered out with Hermione and Harry following behind all the way to the headmaster's office.

Much to Snape's annoyance, the idiotic Golden Trio didn't get reprimanded. Instead, Dumbledore praised them for revealing Petter Pettigrew was very much alive and Sirius was very much innocent. The old man already knew that though, adding on to Snapes irritation.

They may have been off the hook with Dumbledore but not with him and he vowed to ground Hermione for the entire summer. That meant no trips to the muggle world.

Hermione didn't protest this too much– it was reasonable– but it was still upsetting.

Draco was out in the courtyard with Theo, Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, and her girlfriends when all of a sudden a group of students were running out of the Great Hall led by the Golden Trio.

"Is that the Firebolt? The fastest broom in the world?" Blaise said in awe and Draco sneered. Of-bloody-course.

As soon as they got out into the middle of the courtyard, Harry mounted his new broom and took off at lightning speed while everyone watched in awe. Once he made his round circling the perimeter of the castle they watched as he landed back in the courtyard and pulled Hermione onto the broom in front of him despite her protests.

"Harry Potter I'm going to kill you!" She screamed over his laughter and the harsh winds.

Draco watched them in contempt and jealousy. His sneer deepened and he stormed back into the castle.

On his way in, he had passed by his godfather who turned his look of annoyance from the flying figures to him. He quirked a brow in question and Draco huffed, stomping away.

Snape caught sight of Theo glaring at the sky and clenching his fists. They both knew Hermione hated flying so he was certain Theo was cursing Potter right about now. Wait until he hears about just what she had been up to. Snape was sure even Theo might die of a heart attack.