Draco/Hermione fic: A Reason chapters 5&6
A Reason update
Chapters 5&6 for your reading pleasure
Chapter 5: Take The Train Again Mione?
Author: Ally
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: Hermione gets upset, and Remus is acting weird!
A/N: Well I have decided to be nice and throw in some humour in this chapter, as the fic will generally be a dark one. (just how we all like it eh? Wink wink!) Also this chapter is a bit here and there but Hermione is hard to write at times when she isn’t alone! And I had to set up for the next one, which could go so many different ways, and I must narrow it down to only one! Ahhhh!
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I don’t know why I told them. I had come home and sure enough they were there waiting for me already, as I had opted for the train. I smiled in greeting, put my coat on the hook and went to start dinner.
“Take the train again Mione?” Ron asked from the couch as he was attempting to beat
Harry in some mindless game boys never seem to outgrow and they make me keep in my flat for when they visit. They come over, officially, for dinner three times a week. Unofficially, well I have lost track of how many times I have found them on my couch, in my fridge, in my bath, behind the plant by the window. The latter is due to a spontaneous game of hide-an-seek I managed to interrupt one Wednesday night about a month ago. Who would guess these boys have fought the baddest of the bad and, well, come out alive?
Sundays however, are sacred. That is Burrow Day. Every Sunday since leaving Hogwart’s we have all gathered at the Weasley’s for some really outrageous feasts. Everyone who can make it comes. Just last Sunday Charlie Weasley had appeared for the occasion, causing great surprise all around. Neville had even brought his Gran, who proceeded to tell Dean, Seamus, Justin, Harry and Ron that they had absolutely no manners at all, while smiling sweetly at the Weasley Twins, who for some unknown reason, had decided to impress the poor woman. Most Sundays end up turning into an impromptu Quidditch match before everyone apparates home.
I sighed at the memory, having allowed my thoughts to wander as I watched the water slowly boil. Last Sunday had also played witness to another event, one the boys didn’t know about. I had been helping Lavender clear the table and was headed to the kitchen to deposit the dishes when I overheard Charlie and Mrs. Weasley.
“I already told you Mum, there is no word of him,” Charlie was saying while scrubbing a dish free of its extra food. “It’s better that way, considering.”
“Oh dear, well I suppose you’re right. It is just that, well it’s been so very long,” Mrs. Weasley said and smiled up at her son. Suddenly she paused and said slowly, “You don’t suppose, well, you don’t think they killed him?”
“Dumbledore would have known Mum,” Charlie replied causing Mrs. Weasley too visibly relaxed. “No, he isn’t dead. I think Draco Malfoy will only be found when he wants to be found.”
At the mention of his name I dropped one of the plates I had been carrying, ending any conversation in the kitchen as they bustled out to help me. I hadn’t heard anyone mention Malfoy’s name in what seemed like forever. It had been somewhat shocking. Which is why today had been so bizarre. Seeing Malfoy just sitting there, looking for all the world...normal. Nothing was making sense anymore. My life was full of too many questions these days and not enough answers.
My thoughts were interrupted as Harry entered the kitchen. “So what’s for dinner then?” he asked, leaning casually against the counter, his unruly hair falling into his eyes and his hand stuffed in a cookie box.
I cast my eyes back to the now boiling water and reached for the box of pasta. Harry must have seen something in my eyes cause he asked, “You all right?”
I smiled as casually as possible, “Yes Mr. Potter, I am fine thank you.” Laughing quietly at his expression, I spoke without pausing to think of the consequences, “You’ll never believe it, but I saw Malfoy on the train ride home today.”
“WHAT?” Ron screamed from the lounge.
And that is when the floodgates really opened.
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A week later found me sitting at the Weasley’s kitchen table helping Mrs. Weasley and Ginny prepare dinner. “So I told Padma that she should go with the violet colour instead of-“Instead of what I never found out because at that moment Remus Lupin swayed in from the dark, rainy outdoors.
“Evenin’ Molly,” he said with a lopsided smile while brushing rain all over the floor from his jacket. “There are certainly some lovely young ladies in here tonight,” he said trying to wink at Ginny and myself.
“And where have you been?” Mrs. Weasley shrieked at him, pointing a carrot accusingly at his chest. Remus’ eyes widened in surprise. “Don’t think I can’t smell the alcohol flowing off you in waves Remus Lupin. You get yourself to that bathroom and make yourself presentable for dinner or so help me,” she shot at him. One would never guess they were the same age. Mrs. Weasley chose to mother everyone, including drunk, wet werewolves.
“Yes Miss,” replied Remus innocently enough, though with a gleam in his eye. Ginny was trying unsuccessfully to smother her giggles behind a parsnip.
Mrs. Weasley shot Ginny a warning look and whispered, “Don’t you dare encourage him!”
“Arthur home from work yet?” Remus asked over his shoulder as he fled the room while trying to rip his shirt over his head. It wasn’t working.
“No not yet. The clock shows him on his way though,” Mrs. Weasley answered, turning back to her cooking and choosing to ignore his behaviour.
“Good. I found something tonight, something we thought we’d lost,” Remus said, his voice now distant as he went to find the bath.
At his words, the carrot dropped from Mrs. Weasley’s hand and a shocked look crossed her face. “Oh,” she murmured, her eyes flicking quickly to mine. Suddenly she regained her composure and turned back around giving Ginny instructions on how to chop the parsnips just so with just the right spell.
I didn’t have time to figure out what the something was because at that moment Harry and Ron entered noisily.
“Was that Lupin?” Ron asked, leaning over and giving him mum a peck on the cheek.
“Yes it was. Now you and Harry help Hermione. Your Father is on his way home and I expect to be eating while this is still hot.”
Harry winked at me before magically floating the plates to the table. Suddenly a horrible sound could be heard from the inside of the house. Everyone froze. Ron reached for his wand. And then, “Blue Mooooooon, I saw you standing alooooone.” Remus’s voice from the shower echoed through the silence of the house in a horrible rendition of an old Muggle song.
“Good Lord. Is he drunk?” Said a surprised voice behind us. We all turned to stare at Arthur who had returned from work unnoticed.
“REMUS LUPIN!!!!” Mrs. Weasley screamed while storming down the hall. Sounds of a door opening, water splashing, and a grown man screaming met our ears.
“She didn’t?” Harry asked mouth agape.
“Oh I have no doubt that she did,” Ron replied through his laughter.
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The mood was light and full of good humour at the dinner table, but I found myself wishing I had refused the invitation. Though I will never forget the sight of a drunk, wet, half naked Remus being chased from the bathroom by Mrs. Weasley, the week had taken its toll on me.
After I had explained the really short encounter on the train, Harry and Ron went a little crazy. Sometimes they are too overprotective for my liking. They bombarded me with question after question while I had finished preparing dinner, all the while regretting having mentioned it.
“Look, he didn’t even see me,” I had shouted as I set their food before them.
“Sorry Hermione, its just no one has seen him since that night at Hogwart’s. Most people thought he was dead,” Harry had said softly.
“I know, its just, can we just eat?” And I demonstrated my desire to end the current conversation by stuffing a forkful of pasta into my mouth.
I should have known they wouldn’t be able to let it go. It had taken only 24 hours for word that Hermione Granger had seen Draco Malfoy in Muggle London to spread through the entire Ministry. “Sorry,” Ron had muttered when our paths crossed before practically running the other way. And it’s a good thing he did. The week that followed was full of nosy, gossip loving women asking for every little detail of the encounter. Ministry official after ministry official had filed in asking this and that. The general feeling I got was that no one really knew how to deal with this. After all, for all intents and purposes, Draco Malfoy had been dead for the past two years.
As I sat watching the Weasley family and guests laugh and eat their dinner, I couldn’t help but remember a day very long ago. A day a young boy from Slytherin had almost killed me. A day I had hoped he would. I had never told Ron and Harry about that day, and if I have my way, I never will. They would never have understood, they never will. I had wanted Malfoy to cut me then, and not for any rational reason I could later come up with.
I saw his eyes, drinking in every inch of that blade. I saw him that night, for the first time. I had never been afraid of him, not truly. To be honest, I didn’t think he could actually really harm me when it came down to it. He was a child, I was a child, and I had been so very naïve. Things at that time had been very bad. A lot of people were dieing. People I knew, people I loved. Who knows now how the mind of a teenager works, but at that moment, when he pushed that blade into my throat, I hoped he would end it for me then and there. I wouldn’t have to see the outcome of everything. I wouldn’t have to see who else would die. I wouldn’t have to hurt anymore. They wouldn’t be able to use me again to get to him. They wouldn’t be able to touch me again.
I had given up on a lot of things. Draco Malfoy had seemed my way out. Even then I knew that this war would kill me. One way or another, they were going to get me. Why not beat them to the punch. I would take my fate in my own hands and never let them touch me again. The past year had been hard on all of us. Things had happened. Horrible, troubling things and ignoring them had seemed to everyone like a great way to move on. Well I did not want to ignore them any more. I wanted to come face to face with everything and everyone and scream ‘Fuck you!’ Physical pain is infinitely easier to deal with then emotional or mental pain. The blade goes in then out, but the memories, well they stay forever.
What had surprised me most was that Malfoy had seen all this in my eyes. He had seen it and he had fled. He saw my pain, my self-loathing and had understood. For a moment, we had been equals. This had been my secret; this had been why I never wondered why he never called me Mudblood again.
I am ripped from my memories by Ginny’s scream. Fred is dangling a rat above her, while George is holding her down. Mrs. Weasley starts screaming at them, “NOT AT MY TABLE!”
Five minutes and two apologies later, I suddenly notice Mr. Weasley and Remus whispering to each other at the other end of the table. I suddenly remember Remus’ comment to Mrs. Weasley earlier, and though I am tired, several things start to fall into place. They feel my gaze and glance cautiously at me. I send them a smile full of malice and both are taken aback.
“You all right there, Hermione?” Remus asks, his eyes guarded.
“Fine thank you,” I reply somewhat coldly. “What was it you were saying to Mr. Weasley, Remus? I couldn’t hear you over the Twins.”
Arthur and Remus glance at each other quickly while the Twins say in the background, “Well, we do try.”
“Well I was just telling Remus here about a really interesting incident today involving a muggle lamp and a-“
“You really expect me to believe that?” I say harshly, effectively silencing any conversation at the table. I could feel all their eyes on me, Ron’s fork hanging halfway between his mouth and his plate. I didn’t care. I was an adult who had proved herself time and time again, yet they insisted on treating me like porcelain. “You really expect me to believe that? I am not a doll. I won’t break. You people think you need to protect me from the truth. I’m not stupid. I see the looks you all shoot me.” My voice, I notice, has reached a high almost hysterical pitch. I was just so damn tired. I let my eyes fall to my lap and reign in my temper. “I see the way you look at me and I want to know why.”
My words are met with continued silence. Mrs. Weasley was looking uncertainly at her husband, whose face had gone an amazing shade of red. Remus had his head buried in his glass, looking warily at me through the corner of his eye. He was suddenly sober. Harry and Ron sat across from me mouths slightly open in wonder and confusion. Fred and George were stunned into silence for once, their grips falling loosely from Ginny who was no longer struggling to leave their hold.
When no one seemed likely to reply, my anger boiled over. “Fine, that is just fine. I can figure it out on my own. I wasn’t head of my fuckin class because of my looks.” I draw a ragged breath before continuing carefully. “It has to do with him doesn’t it?” There was no need to say who ‘he’ was. No one said anything but from the look in Remus’ eyes, I had my answer. Remus and I were too much alike. I could read him better then Harry and Ron.
I stand up quite suddenly. “Since no one seems inclined to answer me I am going home. I don’t feel well.” Remus moves as if going to speak, but then thinks better of it and sits back again. “I’m sick of the looks. Sick of them. Two years you have been giving me them. You either tell me why or stop it,” I say calmly choosing to look at Mr. Weasley, the head of this fucked up family. His eyes widen slightly in shock, but I am beyond caring. “I know it has to do with Malfoy, I have known for a long time. I know him better then any of you think. I know something happened. When you feel ready to fill me in, you can come find me.” I turn around, ignore Harry’s voice and walk out of the house into the cold wet night.
I know that something happened, something involving Malfoy that had indirectly had something to do with me. I wasn’t blinded by old school grudges, like Harry and Ron. I had seen the look in Malfoy’s eyes that night at graduation. I had seen the pain and loss. But I had seen something else also. That something else had kept me awake too many nights. I wanted to know what the hell was going on, and I wanted to know now. I knew just where to start. Taking a deep breath and preparing to apparate, I have one last thought.
‘Look out Draco Malfoy.’
I didn’t see the hands flying towards me till it was too late.
Love, Ally
“She just can’t be chained to a life where nothing is gained, and nothing is lost.” -Ruby Tuesday...Stones
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Chapter 6: Night Revelations And Shining Memories
Summary: Hermione’s attacker is revealed.
A/N: I really like this next chapter. I don’t know how you all will take it, but well, it is tied for my favourite with the chapter where Remus talks to Draco. Anyway I hope you all like it.
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“Ahhh!” the screamed was ripped from her throat before she could stop it. Forgetting completely about her wand, she resorted to attacking her attacker with her hands.
“Damnit Hermione! Will you”, slap, “stop”, slap, “hitting me! What, you want the whole house to think I am kidnapping you?”
Hermione, now on the ground covered in dirt, leaves and a certain Fred Weasley, finally took in her surroundings. “FRED!?!” she shouted pushing him roughly off her so he landed to her right with a thud.
“Damn, where the hell did you learn to slap like that?” Fred asked while rubbing his face and chest gingerly.
Hermione, still reeling from the shock she had just received and still angry from the events at dinner, stood up, crossed her arms, and glared down menacingly at Fred. “And just what the HELL do you think you were doing sneaking up on me like that Fred Weasley? Huh? I could have cursed you into oblivion?”
Standing up slowly Fred picked up an object wrapped in black that she must have knocked unknowingly out of his hands. “Yeah well lucky for me then that you didn’t reach for your wand.” He smiled slowly but with none of his usual mirth.
“What the hell are you doing out here anyway? If you hadn’t noticed I stormed out during dinner. Let me finish my storming!” Hermione said sounding slightly defeated.
“Yeah well I think everyone noticed the storming,” Fred said, carefully eyeing Hermione then the house. “Listen I followed you for a reason.” He took a deep breath and for once in his life looked as though he were picking his words carefully. “I have something here I want to give to you,” he said indicating the small, wrapped bundle. “It...well it is something I found a long time ago and...well...I am not stupid either, okay? I may play dumb and try and get the laugh but I see what is going on around us Hermione; I see the same people dying that you do. I have scars just like yours.” He paused here and slowly dragged his hand through his now wet hair.
Hermione was stunned into silence by not only her curiosity, but at the seriousness of Fred’s words. Never had he spoken to her with such sadness in his voice. He and George were usually the ones who helped everyone forget the bad day they had had and just laugh.
“Things are reaching a head, I know that. This war is about to explode whether we want it to or not and I am not afraid to say I don’t know who will come out alive.” Fred drew a deep breath and looked at the bundle in his hands. “Like I said, I see what is going on around me, and well I want to give this to you.”
Hermione could see he was battling with himself and decided to break her silence. “What is it Fred?”
He looked up and met her eyes for the first time. She was surprised at the darkness she found in them and suddenly realized how deeply effected everyone was by the times they were living in. “Well, ha, funny thing is it isn’t even yours. I don’t know why I am even giving it to you, I mean it may be totally inappropriate and well maybe I shouldn’t, but for some reason,” he rambled on mumbling more to himself then to her.
“Fred,” Hermione said and held out her hand. He took one last look at the bundle and slowly reached out and placed it in her hands. She was surprised at the weight of it. It had looked so small and light. Slowly she peeled back the soft, black fabric and revealed the gift Fred had chosen to give her. She gasped. “Oh!” she said, her eyes flying to his for an explanation.
Fred, somewhat encouraged that he had not as of yet been slapped, let go of the breath he had been holding. Not able to meet her eyes any longer, he glanced at the house that has been his home for almost 22 years now. “Like I said, I found it, years ago. I was outside by the lake waiting to ambush Ron. George was hiding by Hagrid’s hut and we were hoping to catch Ron unawares and steal his prefects badge.” He was interrupted when he heard her laugh quietly, a haunted look in her eyes as she stared down at his gift.
He was suddenly struck by how beautiful Hermione Granger actually was. The rain had plastered her hair to her face and the barely visible moon was casting a pale light that fell elegantly off the planes of her face. He had been so close to her for almost nine years now and had never before looked at her, really and truly looked at her. “You’re beautiful,” Fred said.
Hermione had to laugh out loud then, because he hadn’t said it in a lustful way. No, in fact Fred had said it in a surprised, matter-of-fact sort of way. It was almost as if he had walked by her on the street and seen her for the first time all over again. “Yeah well, you’re not so bad yourself,” she said lightly.
Fred shook himself and glanced warily around him. The night had taken on an eerie feeling and he yearned to go back inside, but he wasn’t finished here yet. So he continued with his tale. “Well I was hiding behind one of the bushes by the lake when I saw someone running down from the castle. I hunched lower hoping that if it was Ron he hadn’t seen me.” He paused again and cleared his throat.
“It wasn’t Ron, was it,” she stated.
“No, not by a long shot. He came running right towards me full out. For a minute I thought he had seen me, but when he got closer I could see his eyes were full of...well to be honest Hermione I don’t know. I had never quite seen that look on Malfoy’s face before but hell, for the first time I pitied him. I didn’t have long to wonder what was bothering him because he suddenly did something that distracted me from his eyes. He reached into his robes and practically ripped out that dagger.”
“He stood there staring at it absolutely transfixed for a few minutes. He was mumbling to himself too low for me to hear, when suddenly, as though the dagger had burned him, he threw it into the lake with all his bloody strength. He stood staring at where it fell for a few moments. Before he turned away from it he said something about blood and not believing something. I don’t know, he was speaking too low for me to hear him, but when he turned back his eyes were back to normal and well, he just strolled back up to the castle,” Fred said, looking visibly relieved to have gotten this off his chest.
“But if he threw it into the lake, then how did,” Hermione said staring at the dagger in her hands.
“Took me all bloody night, but I found it. I don’t know why I went after it exactly, but you know me, look before I leap right. And a lot of good finding it did for me. I was stupid enough to think it might be worth something so I went swimming around the bottom of that freezing lake for hours and all I had to show for it was that damn dagger and the worst cold I have ever had in my life.” Fred finally met Hermione’s eyes again before continuing. “Once I had it, well, its weird. I didn’t want to sell it. I had seen the look in Malfoy’s eyes and well I just kept it. Threw it in the bottom of my trunk and barely thought about it. Rarely took it out. The first time I looked at it again, after I had retrieved it, was the night of Ronnykin’s graduation. I saw that same look in his eyes again when he was talking to you and well, I think I started to piece a few things together.”
“He changed after that day at the lake and I knew it had something to do with that dagger. He stared at you a lot more after that, you know,” Fred said and noticed the slight surprise in her eyes. “Yeah, well don’t worry, I don’t think anyone else noticed. You kind of had to know what to look for. Anyway, considering the way things have been going lately, I started thinking about the dagger again.” Here Fred paused as if afraid to go on. Here was the tricky bit. “I see the way they look at you too Hermione. I have always seen it. I see how you notice them also. It makes you so mad sometimes I wonder how you manage not to scream all the time,” Fred said with an understanding smile.
Hermione felt a single tear fall down her face. She had never known this side of Fred, had never seen him this way before. She looked at the dagger again and then into his eyes. “But why give it to me?”
“Yeah well, don’t really know. I think you’ve seen it before though, I can tell that much from your reaction. And well I think...god I am not good at this serious thing,” he growled out, running both hands through his hair now. “God I don’t really know Hermione. It’s like I said, I see things. And though I can’t put it all into words or down on paper, well I got the feeling that I should give that to you. You could have either thrown it back at me disgusted or taken it, I was prepared for either.”
“Fred,” Hermione said quietly, “You’re right. I have seen it before.” She couldn’t bring herself to say thank you, not for this gift, but she felt he deserved that bit of truth. She stared at the dagger, all the memories flooding into her as the moonlight reflected off it. She couldn’t explain it, but she was very pleased that Fred had made this decision. Seeing the dagger again had made her look at her life and be thankful that Malfoy had not followed through.
“Well, it’s yours now. It spent too many years gathering dust in the bottom of my trunk,” Fred said, the smallest hint of a smile reaching his lips. “I think, regardless of what any of them inside that house think, that Draco Malfoy has answers for some of your questions. Find him and maybe you will find what you have been hiding from all these years.” He paused here, reaching out a hand and slowly let it graze the side of her face. “You have been through so much Hermione, we all have. Don’t let it beat you, don’t you dare let them win,” Fred said softly, silently thanking whatever god was watching that this young woman was in his life. He let his hand drop and turned to walk back to the house.
Hermione watched as Fred began to walk home, her mind a complete blank. Suddenly he stopped. She watched him turn slightly to her. He said quietly over his shoulder, “No one knows about the dagger. Not even George.” And with that Fred walked back into the house. Hermione was stunned. Fred confiding in her had meant a lot to her. The fact that he had never confided this with his twin meant even more.
No longer noticing the rain, Hermione slowly wrapped the dagger back up in its black prison. Fred had given her a gift that meant more then he probably knew. For so long she had gone through the motions with her friends, thinking no one understood half of what she lived through. Oh she wasn’t stupid, she knew everyone was hurting or had lost someone. She knew everyone was affected equally by everything around them, but she had always felt that she alone had so many unanswered questions. Fred had shown her tonight that she had been wrong.
She had always loved everyone one of the Weasley’s in different degrees: Ron as her best friend and her protector; Molly and Arthur as loving parents; Ginny as the sole girlfriend she had had for so long; Charlie and Bill for the maturity and experience they brought to the group; Percy for his intelligence, even if he was being a prat these days; and the Twins she had always loved for their laughter. But Fred had surprised her by understanding her better then any of the others. And for that she loved him for being a true friend, she loved him for being the one who really saw her. Only one other person had ever done that.
Smiling to herself in the rain, her anger forgotten with the arrival of Fred’s unexpected kindness, Hermione decided to go home. She still wanted her answers, and she would get them. But for right now, she wanted to sleep. Taking a deep breath and clutching the wrapped dagger to her side, she closed her eyes and apparated. When she opened them again she looked around her flat and for the second time that night was startled. Only this time she didn't scream. This time her hand flew to her mouth to cover a gasp. She stood absolutely still staring down at a very unconscious and very bloody Draco Malfoy.
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A/N: Okay I had been so stuck on where to go from the previous chapter and how to connect two parts of my story and well suddenly, when I thought all hope was gone, this came. I really like it, I don’t know why because I am rarely truly happy with my chapters. No matter what anyone says I like it! I think that Fred and George are such very interesting characters in the book with more layers then they are given credit for.
I had written the last chapter with no idea who snuck up on Hermione, so all you readers and I were in the same boat. It could have been so many people from both good and bad, but somehow Fred and the dagger seemed to fit perfectly. I hope you all like it and hopefully the next chapter will be up soon. Next chapters will most certainly have more Draco/Hermione and some questions are finally answered!
Love, Ally
‘But here was heroism, the kind that honour sings; the courage to be lovely and smile, in spite of things.’
Chapters 5&6 for your reading pleasure
Chapter 5: Take The Train Again Mione?
Author: Ally
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Summary: Hermione gets upset, and Remus is acting weird!
A/N: Well I have decided to be nice and throw in some humour in this chapter, as the fic will generally be a dark one. (just how we all like it eh? Wink wink!) Also this chapter is a bit here and there but Hermione is hard to write at times when she isn’t alone! And I had to set up for the next one, which could go so many different ways, and I must narrow it down to only one! Ahhhh!
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I don’t know why I told them. I had come home and sure enough they were there waiting for me already, as I had opted for the train. I smiled in greeting, put my coat on the hook and went to start dinner.
“Take the train again Mione?” Ron asked from the couch as he was attempting to beat
Harry in some mindless game boys never seem to outgrow and they make me keep in my flat for when they visit. They come over, officially, for dinner three times a week. Unofficially, well I have lost track of how many times I have found them on my couch, in my fridge, in my bath, behind the plant by the window. The latter is due to a spontaneous game of hide-an-seek I managed to interrupt one Wednesday night about a month ago. Who would guess these boys have fought the baddest of the bad and, well, come out alive?
Sundays however, are sacred. That is Burrow Day. Every Sunday since leaving Hogwart’s we have all gathered at the Weasley’s for some really outrageous feasts. Everyone who can make it comes. Just last Sunday Charlie Weasley had appeared for the occasion, causing great surprise all around. Neville had even brought his Gran, who proceeded to tell Dean, Seamus, Justin, Harry and Ron that they had absolutely no manners at all, while smiling sweetly at the Weasley Twins, who for some unknown reason, had decided to impress the poor woman. Most Sundays end up turning into an impromptu Quidditch match before everyone apparates home.
I sighed at the memory, having allowed my thoughts to wander as I watched the water slowly boil. Last Sunday had also played witness to another event, one the boys didn’t know about. I had been helping Lavender clear the table and was headed to the kitchen to deposit the dishes when I overheard Charlie and Mrs. Weasley.
“I already told you Mum, there is no word of him,” Charlie was saying while scrubbing a dish free of its extra food. “It’s better that way, considering.”
“Oh dear, well I suppose you’re right. It is just that, well it’s been so very long,” Mrs. Weasley said and smiled up at her son. Suddenly she paused and said slowly, “You don’t suppose, well, you don’t think they killed him?”
“Dumbledore would have known Mum,” Charlie replied causing Mrs. Weasley too visibly relaxed. “No, he isn’t dead. I think Draco Malfoy will only be found when he wants to be found.”
At the mention of his name I dropped one of the plates I had been carrying, ending any conversation in the kitchen as they bustled out to help me. I hadn’t heard anyone mention Malfoy’s name in what seemed like forever. It had been somewhat shocking. Which is why today had been so bizarre. Seeing Malfoy just sitting there, looking for all the world...normal. Nothing was making sense anymore. My life was full of too many questions these days and not enough answers.
My thoughts were interrupted as Harry entered the kitchen. “So what’s for dinner then?” he asked, leaning casually against the counter, his unruly hair falling into his eyes and his hand stuffed in a cookie box.
I cast my eyes back to the now boiling water and reached for the box of pasta. Harry must have seen something in my eyes cause he asked, “You all right?”
I smiled as casually as possible, “Yes Mr. Potter, I am fine thank you.” Laughing quietly at his expression, I spoke without pausing to think of the consequences, “You’ll never believe it, but I saw Malfoy on the train ride home today.”
“WHAT?” Ron screamed from the lounge.
And that is when the floodgates really opened.
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A week later found me sitting at the Weasley’s kitchen table helping Mrs. Weasley and Ginny prepare dinner. “So I told Padma that she should go with the violet colour instead of-“Instead of what I never found out because at that moment Remus Lupin swayed in from the dark, rainy outdoors.
“Evenin’ Molly,” he said with a lopsided smile while brushing rain all over the floor from his jacket. “There are certainly some lovely young ladies in here tonight,” he said trying to wink at Ginny and myself.
“And where have you been?” Mrs. Weasley shrieked at him, pointing a carrot accusingly at his chest. Remus’ eyes widened in surprise. “Don’t think I can’t smell the alcohol flowing off you in waves Remus Lupin. You get yourself to that bathroom and make yourself presentable for dinner or so help me,” she shot at him. One would never guess they were the same age. Mrs. Weasley chose to mother everyone, including drunk, wet werewolves.
“Yes Miss,” replied Remus innocently enough, though with a gleam in his eye. Ginny was trying unsuccessfully to smother her giggles behind a parsnip.
Mrs. Weasley shot Ginny a warning look and whispered, “Don’t you dare encourage him!”
“Arthur home from work yet?” Remus asked over his shoulder as he fled the room while trying to rip his shirt over his head. It wasn’t working.
“No not yet. The clock shows him on his way though,” Mrs. Weasley answered, turning back to her cooking and choosing to ignore his behaviour.
“Good. I found something tonight, something we thought we’d lost,” Remus said, his voice now distant as he went to find the bath.
At his words, the carrot dropped from Mrs. Weasley’s hand and a shocked look crossed her face. “Oh,” she murmured, her eyes flicking quickly to mine. Suddenly she regained her composure and turned back around giving Ginny instructions on how to chop the parsnips just so with just the right spell.
I didn’t have time to figure out what the something was because at that moment Harry and Ron entered noisily.
“Was that Lupin?” Ron asked, leaning over and giving him mum a peck on the cheek.
“Yes it was. Now you and Harry help Hermione. Your Father is on his way home and I expect to be eating while this is still hot.”
Harry winked at me before magically floating the plates to the table. Suddenly a horrible sound could be heard from the inside of the house. Everyone froze. Ron reached for his wand. And then, “Blue Mooooooon, I saw you standing alooooone.” Remus’s voice from the shower echoed through the silence of the house in a horrible rendition of an old Muggle song.
“Good Lord. Is he drunk?” Said a surprised voice behind us. We all turned to stare at Arthur who had returned from work unnoticed.
“REMUS LUPIN!!!!” Mrs. Weasley screamed while storming down the hall. Sounds of a door opening, water splashing, and a grown man screaming met our ears.
“She didn’t?” Harry asked mouth agape.
“Oh I have no doubt that she did,” Ron replied through his laughter.
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The mood was light and full of good humour at the dinner table, but I found myself wishing I had refused the invitation. Though I will never forget the sight of a drunk, wet, half naked Remus being chased from the bathroom by Mrs. Weasley, the week had taken its toll on me.
After I had explained the really short encounter on the train, Harry and Ron went a little crazy. Sometimes they are too overprotective for my liking. They bombarded me with question after question while I had finished preparing dinner, all the while regretting having mentioned it.
“Look, he didn’t even see me,” I had shouted as I set their food before them.
“Sorry Hermione, its just no one has seen him since that night at Hogwart’s. Most people thought he was dead,” Harry had said softly.
“I know, its just, can we just eat?” And I demonstrated my desire to end the current conversation by stuffing a forkful of pasta into my mouth.
I should have known they wouldn’t be able to let it go. It had taken only 24 hours for word that Hermione Granger had seen Draco Malfoy in Muggle London to spread through the entire Ministry. “Sorry,” Ron had muttered when our paths crossed before practically running the other way. And it’s a good thing he did. The week that followed was full of nosy, gossip loving women asking for every little detail of the encounter. Ministry official after ministry official had filed in asking this and that. The general feeling I got was that no one really knew how to deal with this. After all, for all intents and purposes, Draco Malfoy had been dead for the past two years.
As I sat watching the Weasley family and guests laugh and eat their dinner, I couldn’t help but remember a day very long ago. A day a young boy from Slytherin had almost killed me. A day I had hoped he would. I had never told Ron and Harry about that day, and if I have my way, I never will. They would never have understood, they never will. I had wanted Malfoy to cut me then, and not for any rational reason I could later come up with.
I saw his eyes, drinking in every inch of that blade. I saw him that night, for the first time. I had never been afraid of him, not truly. To be honest, I didn’t think he could actually really harm me when it came down to it. He was a child, I was a child, and I had been so very naïve. Things at that time had been very bad. A lot of people were dieing. People I knew, people I loved. Who knows now how the mind of a teenager works, but at that moment, when he pushed that blade into my throat, I hoped he would end it for me then and there. I wouldn’t have to see the outcome of everything. I wouldn’t have to see who else would die. I wouldn’t have to hurt anymore. They wouldn’t be able to use me again to get to him. They wouldn’t be able to touch me again.
I had given up on a lot of things. Draco Malfoy had seemed my way out. Even then I knew that this war would kill me. One way or another, they were going to get me. Why not beat them to the punch. I would take my fate in my own hands and never let them touch me again. The past year had been hard on all of us. Things had happened. Horrible, troubling things and ignoring them had seemed to everyone like a great way to move on. Well I did not want to ignore them any more. I wanted to come face to face with everything and everyone and scream ‘Fuck you!’ Physical pain is infinitely easier to deal with then emotional or mental pain. The blade goes in then out, but the memories, well they stay forever.
What had surprised me most was that Malfoy had seen all this in my eyes. He had seen it and he had fled. He saw my pain, my self-loathing and had understood. For a moment, we had been equals. This had been my secret; this had been why I never wondered why he never called me Mudblood again.
I am ripped from my memories by Ginny’s scream. Fred is dangling a rat above her, while George is holding her down. Mrs. Weasley starts screaming at them, “NOT AT MY TABLE!”
Five minutes and two apologies later, I suddenly notice Mr. Weasley and Remus whispering to each other at the other end of the table. I suddenly remember Remus’ comment to Mrs. Weasley earlier, and though I am tired, several things start to fall into place. They feel my gaze and glance cautiously at me. I send them a smile full of malice and both are taken aback.
“You all right there, Hermione?” Remus asks, his eyes guarded.
“Fine thank you,” I reply somewhat coldly. “What was it you were saying to Mr. Weasley, Remus? I couldn’t hear you over the Twins.”
Arthur and Remus glance at each other quickly while the Twins say in the background, “Well, we do try.”
“Well I was just telling Remus here about a really interesting incident today involving a muggle lamp and a-“
“You really expect me to believe that?” I say harshly, effectively silencing any conversation at the table. I could feel all their eyes on me, Ron’s fork hanging halfway between his mouth and his plate. I didn’t care. I was an adult who had proved herself time and time again, yet they insisted on treating me like porcelain. “You really expect me to believe that? I am not a doll. I won’t break. You people think you need to protect me from the truth. I’m not stupid. I see the looks you all shoot me.” My voice, I notice, has reached a high almost hysterical pitch. I was just so damn tired. I let my eyes fall to my lap and reign in my temper. “I see the way you look at me and I want to know why.”
My words are met with continued silence. Mrs. Weasley was looking uncertainly at her husband, whose face had gone an amazing shade of red. Remus had his head buried in his glass, looking warily at me through the corner of his eye. He was suddenly sober. Harry and Ron sat across from me mouths slightly open in wonder and confusion. Fred and George were stunned into silence for once, their grips falling loosely from Ginny who was no longer struggling to leave their hold.
When no one seemed likely to reply, my anger boiled over. “Fine, that is just fine. I can figure it out on my own. I wasn’t head of my fuckin class because of my looks.” I draw a ragged breath before continuing carefully. “It has to do with him doesn’t it?” There was no need to say who ‘he’ was. No one said anything but from the look in Remus’ eyes, I had my answer. Remus and I were too much alike. I could read him better then Harry and Ron.
I stand up quite suddenly. “Since no one seems inclined to answer me I am going home. I don’t feel well.” Remus moves as if going to speak, but then thinks better of it and sits back again. “I’m sick of the looks. Sick of them. Two years you have been giving me them. You either tell me why or stop it,” I say calmly choosing to look at Mr. Weasley, the head of this fucked up family. His eyes widen slightly in shock, but I am beyond caring. “I know it has to do with Malfoy, I have known for a long time. I know him better then any of you think. I know something happened. When you feel ready to fill me in, you can come find me.” I turn around, ignore Harry’s voice and walk out of the house into the cold wet night.
I know that something happened, something involving Malfoy that had indirectly had something to do with me. I wasn’t blinded by old school grudges, like Harry and Ron. I had seen the look in Malfoy’s eyes that night at graduation. I had seen the pain and loss. But I had seen something else also. That something else had kept me awake too many nights. I wanted to know what the hell was going on, and I wanted to know now. I knew just where to start. Taking a deep breath and preparing to apparate, I have one last thought.
‘Look out Draco Malfoy.’
I didn’t see the hands flying towards me till it was too late.
Love, Ally
“She just can’t be chained to a life where nothing is gained, and nothing is lost.” -Ruby Tuesday...Stones
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Chapter 6: Night Revelations And Shining Memories
Summary: Hermione’s attacker is revealed.
A/N: I really like this next chapter. I don’t know how you all will take it, but well, it is tied for my favourite with the chapter where Remus talks to Draco. Anyway I hope you all like it.
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“Ahhh!” the screamed was ripped from her throat before she could stop it. Forgetting completely about her wand, she resorted to attacking her attacker with her hands.
“Damnit Hermione! Will you”, slap, “stop”, slap, “hitting me! What, you want the whole house to think I am kidnapping you?”
Hermione, now on the ground covered in dirt, leaves and a certain Fred Weasley, finally took in her surroundings. “FRED!?!” she shouted pushing him roughly off her so he landed to her right with a thud.
“Damn, where the hell did you learn to slap like that?” Fred asked while rubbing his face and chest gingerly.
Hermione, still reeling from the shock she had just received and still angry from the events at dinner, stood up, crossed her arms, and glared down menacingly at Fred. “And just what the HELL do you think you were doing sneaking up on me like that Fred Weasley? Huh? I could have cursed you into oblivion?”
Standing up slowly Fred picked up an object wrapped in black that she must have knocked unknowingly out of his hands. “Yeah well lucky for me then that you didn’t reach for your wand.” He smiled slowly but with none of his usual mirth.
“What the hell are you doing out here anyway? If you hadn’t noticed I stormed out during dinner. Let me finish my storming!” Hermione said sounding slightly defeated.
“Yeah well I think everyone noticed the storming,” Fred said, carefully eyeing Hermione then the house. “Listen I followed you for a reason.” He took a deep breath and for once in his life looked as though he were picking his words carefully. “I have something here I want to give to you,” he said indicating the small, wrapped bundle. “It...well it is something I found a long time ago and...well...I am not stupid either, okay? I may play dumb and try and get the laugh but I see what is going on around us Hermione; I see the same people dying that you do. I have scars just like yours.” He paused here and slowly dragged his hand through his now wet hair.
Hermione was stunned into silence by not only her curiosity, but at the seriousness of Fred’s words. Never had he spoken to her with such sadness in his voice. He and George were usually the ones who helped everyone forget the bad day they had had and just laugh.
“Things are reaching a head, I know that. This war is about to explode whether we want it to or not and I am not afraid to say I don’t know who will come out alive.” Fred drew a deep breath and looked at the bundle in his hands. “Like I said, I see what is going on around me, and well I want to give this to you.”
Hermione could see he was battling with himself and decided to break her silence. “What is it Fred?”
He looked up and met her eyes for the first time. She was surprised at the darkness she found in them and suddenly realized how deeply effected everyone was by the times they were living in. “Well, ha, funny thing is it isn’t even yours. I don’t know why I am even giving it to you, I mean it may be totally inappropriate and well maybe I shouldn’t, but for some reason,” he rambled on mumbling more to himself then to her.
“Fred,” Hermione said and held out her hand. He took one last look at the bundle and slowly reached out and placed it in her hands. She was surprised at the weight of it. It had looked so small and light. Slowly she peeled back the soft, black fabric and revealed the gift Fred had chosen to give her. She gasped. “Oh!” she said, her eyes flying to his for an explanation.
Fred, somewhat encouraged that he had not as of yet been slapped, let go of the breath he had been holding. Not able to meet her eyes any longer, he glanced at the house that has been his home for almost 22 years now. “Like I said, I found it, years ago. I was outside by the lake waiting to ambush Ron. George was hiding by Hagrid’s hut and we were hoping to catch Ron unawares and steal his prefects badge.” He was interrupted when he heard her laugh quietly, a haunted look in her eyes as she stared down at his gift.
He was suddenly struck by how beautiful Hermione Granger actually was. The rain had plastered her hair to her face and the barely visible moon was casting a pale light that fell elegantly off the planes of her face. He had been so close to her for almost nine years now and had never before looked at her, really and truly looked at her. “You’re beautiful,” Fred said.
Hermione had to laugh out loud then, because he hadn’t said it in a lustful way. No, in fact Fred had said it in a surprised, matter-of-fact sort of way. It was almost as if he had walked by her on the street and seen her for the first time all over again. “Yeah well, you’re not so bad yourself,” she said lightly.
Fred shook himself and glanced warily around him. The night had taken on an eerie feeling and he yearned to go back inside, but he wasn’t finished here yet. So he continued with his tale. “Well I was hiding behind one of the bushes by the lake when I saw someone running down from the castle. I hunched lower hoping that if it was Ron he hadn’t seen me.” He paused again and cleared his throat.
“It wasn’t Ron, was it,” she stated.
“No, not by a long shot. He came running right towards me full out. For a minute I thought he had seen me, but when he got closer I could see his eyes were full of...well to be honest Hermione I don’t know. I had never quite seen that look on Malfoy’s face before but hell, for the first time I pitied him. I didn’t have long to wonder what was bothering him because he suddenly did something that distracted me from his eyes. He reached into his robes and practically ripped out that dagger.”
“He stood there staring at it absolutely transfixed for a few minutes. He was mumbling to himself too low for me to hear, when suddenly, as though the dagger had burned him, he threw it into the lake with all his bloody strength. He stood staring at where it fell for a few moments. Before he turned away from it he said something about blood and not believing something. I don’t know, he was speaking too low for me to hear him, but when he turned back his eyes were back to normal and well, he just strolled back up to the castle,” Fred said, looking visibly relieved to have gotten this off his chest.
“But if he threw it into the lake, then how did,” Hermione said staring at the dagger in her hands.
“Took me all bloody night, but I found it. I don’t know why I went after it exactly, but you know me, look before I leap right. And a lot of good finding it did for me. I was stupid enough to think it might be worth something so I went swimming around the bottom of that freezing lake for hours and all I had to show for it was that damn dagger and the worst cold I have ever had in my life.” Fred finally met Hermione’s eyes again before continuing. “Once I had it, well, its weird. I didn’t want to sell it. I had seen the look in Malfoy’s eyes and well I just kept it. Threw it in the bottom of my trunk and barely thought about it. Rarely took it out. The first time I looked at it again, after I had retrieved it, was the night of Ronnykin’s graduation. I saw that same look in his eyes again when he was talking to you and well, I think I started to piece a few things together.”
“He changed after that day at the lake and I knew it had something to do with that dagger. He stared at you a lot more after that, you know,” Fred said and noticed the slight surprise in her eyes. “Yeah, well don’t worry, I don’t think anyone else noticed. You kind of had to know what to look for. Anyway, considering the way things have been going lately, I started thinking about the dagger again.” Here Fred paused as if afraid to go on. Here was the tricky bit. “I see the way they look at you too Hermione. I have always seen it. I see how you notice them also. It makes you so mad sometimes I wonder how you manage not to scream all the time,” Fred said with an understanding smile.
Hermione felt a single tear fall down her face. She had never known this side of Fred, had never seen him this way before. She looked at the dagger again and then into his eyes. “But why give it to me?”
“Yeah well, don’t really know. I think you’ve seen it before though, I can tell that much from your reaction. And well I think...god I am not good at this serious thing,” he growled out, running both hands through his hair now. “God I don’t really know Hermione. It’s like I said, I see things. And though I can’t put it all into words or down on paper, well I got the feeling that I should give that to you. You could have either thrown it back at me disgusted or taken it, I was prepared for either.”
“Fred,” Hermione said quietly, “You’re right. I have seen it before.” She couldn’t bring herself to say thank you, not for this gift, but she felt he deserved that bit of truth. She stared at the dagger, all the memories flooding into her as the moonlight reflected off it. She couldn’t explain it, but she was very pleased that Fred had made this decision. Seeing the dagger again had made her look at her life and be thankful that Malfoy had not followed through.
“Well, it’s yours now. It spent too many years gathering dust in the bottom of my trunk,” Fred said, the smallest hint of a smile reaching his lips. “I think, regardless of what any of them inside that house think, that Draco Malfoy has answers for some of your questions. Find him and maybe you will find what you have been hiding from all these years.” He paused here, reaching out a hand and slowly let it graze the side of her face. “You have been through so much Hermione, we all have. Don’t let it beat you, don’t you dare let them win,” Fred said softly, silently thanking whatever god was watching that this young woman was in his life. He let his hand drop and turned to walk back to the house.
Hermione watched as Fred began to walk home, her mind a complete blank. Suddenly he stopped. She watched him turn slightly to her. He said quietly over his shoulder, “No one knows about the dagger. Not even George.” And with that Fred walked back into the house. Hermione was stunned. Fred confiding in her had meant a lot to her. The fact that he had never confided this with his twin meant even more.
No longer noticing the rain, Hermione slowly wrapped the dagger back up in its black prison. Fred had given her a gift that meant more then he probably knew. For so long she had gone through the motions with her friends, thinking no one understood half of what she lived through. Oh she wasn’t stupid, she knew everyone was hurting or had lost someone. She knew everyone was affected equally by everything around them, but she had always felt that she alone had so many unanswered questions. Fred had shown her tonight that she had been wrong.
She had always loved everyone one of the Weasley’s in different degrees: Ron as her best friend and her protector; Molly and Arthur as loving parents; Ginny as the sole girlfriend she had had for so long; Charlie and Bill for the maturity and experience they brought to the group; Percy for his intelligence, even if he was being a prat these days; and the Twins she had always loved for their laughter. But Fred had surprised her by understanding her better then any of the others. And for that she loved him for being a true friend, she loved him for being the one who really saw her. Only one other person had ever done that.
Smiling to herself in the rain, her anger forgotten with the arrival of Fred’s unexpected kindness, Hermione decided to go home. She still wanted her answers, and she would get them. But for right now, she wanted to sleep. Taking a deep breath and clutching the wrapped dagger to her side, she closed her eyes and apparated. When she opened them again she looked around her flat and for the second time that night was startled. Only this time she didn't scream. This time her hand flew to her mouth to cover a gasp. She stood absolutely still staring down at a very unconscious and very bloody Draco Malfoy.
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A/N: Okay I had been so stuck on where to go from the previous chapter and how to connect two parts of my story and well suddenly, when I thought all hope was gone, this came. I really like it, I don’t know why because I am rarely truly happy with my chapters. No matter what anyone says I like it! I think that Fred and George are such very interesting characters in the book with more layers then they are given credit for.
I had written the last chapter with no idea who snuck up on Hermione, so all you readers and I were in the same boat. It could have been so many people from both good and bad, but somehow Fred and the dagger seemed to fit perfectly. I hope you all like it and hopefully the next chapter will be up soon. Next chapters will most certainly have more Draco/Hermione and some questions are finally answered!
Love, Ally
‘But here was heroism, the kind that honour sings; the courage to be lovely and smile, in spite of things.’