Scars (Oneshot)
Title: Scars (Oneshot)
Author Note: This is a Draco/Hermione story I wrote for a Dramione Fanfiction contest on Tumblr
“Expelliarmus!” With a flash of scarlet light, Draco’s wand flew out of his hand and across the room. With a scowl on his face, he went to retrieve it. “You have to be quicker than that Malfoy.”
He turned around and glared. “We have been at it for hours. I need a break.” After retrieving his wand, he walked back towards Hermione.
She sighed. “Fine, have your break. I need to work on my charms essay anyway.” Picking up her bag, she made her way towards the door. “We will continue this tomorrow.”
“I’ve got Quidditch practice tomorrow,” he called after her.
Hermione looked back at Draco. “We will continue this tomorrow,” she repeated before shutting the door behind her.
Draco glared at the door long after Hermione had left. It irritated him to no end how effortlessly she managed to beat him time and time again. Her skill was the reason why she was chosen for the task of tutoring him but it was still Hermione Granger, the insufferable know-it-all.
It was Headmistress McGonagall request that the Head Girl would tutor the Head Boy to make up for the work he had fallen behind on during his sixth year; the year he spent on the task that was set to him by the Dark Lord. The Dark Lord had been destroyed by Harry Potter during the famous Battle of Hogwarts. However, Draco still had the scars; scars that he had received during his weakest moments.
He was weak when he gave into the Dark Lord’s plans, he had given into blackmail and he had been rewarded with a mark on his arm. He was weak when he gave into his emotions in the boy’s bathroom and was rewarded with dark curse that sliced him open. He was weak at the top of the astronomy tower but instead of being rewarding with a scar on his soul and restored glory, he was rewarded with a scar on his pride and was made to return home with further shame to the family name.
Draco made sure that he would never let himself be weak again, but Granger made it too easy. Frustrated, Draco packed up his belongings, left the empty classroom and made his way to the Head’s common room.
***
Hermione sat at the desk in the common room, scribbling away on a roll of parchment. The Charms essay was due in a couple of days and Draco’s lessons had made her fall behind schedule. All she had wanted to this year was to focus on her studies and score high results on her NEWTs, however, the request that Headmistress McGonagall had given gave her less time to do this.
The cause of her troubles entered the common room and dumped his bag on one of the desks. Hermione ignored him as he stormed out the room without a single acknowledgement of her existence. It bothered her that Malfoy had been chosen as Head Boy above the rest of the boys in the year. There were much more suitable candidates for the position yet he was chosen. She still couldn’t figure out why. Regardless, she was forced to put up with him for the year without the support of her two best friends.
Harry and Ron had decided to not come back to finish their studies. Harry had gone straight into Auror training while Ron had taken the year off to be with his family. The loss of Fred had taken a toll on the Weasley family and Ron thought that it was important to help out in any way he could. It had also taken its toll on Ron and Hermione’s relationship. They had decided to take a break at the beginning of the school year. They both needed to focus on their own priorities instead of each other. Hermione missed Ron but she thought they had made the right choice and with Voldemort finally gone they had plenty of time on their hands.
Hermione looked down at her watch and noticed that it was dinnertime. Packing up her things, she left the common room and made her way down to the Great Hall. A positive of being Head Girl was that the walk to the Great Hall was remarkably shorter. She no longer needed to travel down seven flights of stairs. The common room was located on the fourth floor which she found extremely convenient for her lessons.
Walking into the Great Hall, Hermione made her way to the Gryffindor table and sat down next to Lavender Brown. Despite their previous clashes, in particular sixth year, they had grown on each other. The war had changed Lavender and made her more mature. Even though most of her annoying traits were still there, Hermione had been able to look past them and allow herself to get to know her properly. They were also the only two Gryffindors from their year that had returned to complete their education.
“Almost thought you wouldn’t make it,” said Lavender, smiling. “Really Hermione, you need to sort out your priorities.”
Hermione frowned. “My priorities are fine, thank you very much.”
“So you personally believe that studying and homework are more important than eating,” she teased.
She rolled her eyes as she began serving food onto her plate. “I was working on my Charms essay and lost track of time.”
Lavender frowned. “Isn’t that the essay due in a couple of days? Thought you would have finished that by now.”
Hermione took her time chewing her food and swallowing before answering. “Normally I would have but with Head duties increasing and tutoring, I have had less time on my hands.”
“My advice; let Malfoy rot and look after yourself.” Lavender looked thoughtful. “But then again even with all the extra work you do you still manage to be top of the class for every subject. Honestly, if you took your NEWTS tomorrow you would score top marks.”
Hermione looked horrified. “Oh Merlin no. There is still so much revision to be done and-”
“Hermione. Calm down. You still have six months to revise.”
Hermione glared at Lavender. “That is plenty of time to fall behind in my studies and fail my NEWTs.”
She sighed. “All this talk of exams is putting me off my food.”
***
Draco sat at the Slytherin table, poking at the food on his plate. Meal times had become lonely since he was the only Slytherin from his year that had returned. His mother had talked him into returning to school. The Malfoy fortune had taken a blow when the Malfoys had been put on trial for their actions during the war. Draco’s father had not been sent to Askaban though he faced house arrest. A large donation to St Mungos had to be made to sway their decision. The Malfoy family was still wealthy however Draco could no longer entirely rely on the fortune to support him for the rest of his life. Draco needed an education to obtain a job and improve his future.
Returning to Hogwarts had been one of the hardest things he had ever had to do. He had lost of a lot of the influence he had over the Slytherins and the rest of the school treated him as an outcast. The only thing that was keeping the Slytherins from turning on him was the badge that was pinned to his chest and the title that came with it. Draco was mostly left alone with the exception of prefects and team mates. The only time he was really acknowledged by his house was at Quidditch games when he was lucky enough to catch the snitch. This had become more often due to Potter’s absence on the field. The only person that didn’t ignore him was the girl that had moved to sit across from him.
“Wow, you look cheerful this evening Malfoy,” said Astoria Greengrass with a smile. “Did Hermione beat you again?”
Draco gave her his worst look.
Astoria smiled, completely unfazed by his expression. “I’ll take that as a yes.” She sighed. “Don’t be surprised that she beats you, I mean, she is the brightest in the year plus she has had a lot of firsthand experience from being friends with Potter.”
He didn’t reply. Instead he looked over at the Gryffindor table where Granger sat talking animatedly with Brown. What an odd pair. As if hearing his thoughts, Granger looked up and met Draco’s gaze with a frown. He looked away, returning his focus to Astoria.
“I just wished we would move on from simple spells and into more complex ones. If I wanted to learn at this level I would have picked up a book.”
“Why don’t you tell her that?”
Draco pretended to be shocked. “Astoria, are you actually asking me to have a civil conversation with a Gryffindor?”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m sure she will listen to you.”
He smirked. “How sure are you?”
Astoria raised her eyebrows. “Really, Draco. Another one of your bets?”
“I bet a gallon it will end in a fight.”
“I bet a gallon that she gives you what you want.”
Draco smiled. “Deal”
Draco liked being friends with Astoria. Even though she was nice, she was still a Slytherin at heart.
***
Draco headed back to the common room five minutes before curfew. He had walked with Astoria to the Slytherin common room and remained at the entrance talking with her. She had suggested that he should come in but he had felt uncomfortable doing so. He didn’t mention that though, instead he reminded her of the bet and wished her goodnight.
When he arrived at the Head’s common room, he found Granger sitting at her desk scribbling away furiously at a piece of parchment. He had learnt to never ever disturb her when she was like this. It always resulted in a book being thrown at his head.
Draco picked up his bag and moved to the desk. He decided it was best to wait it out and he might as well do something productive while he waited. Professor Slughorn had set extra work for him to complete. He opened his potions book and began planning his essay on detecting poisons.
It had been a full ten minutes before Hermione dropped her quill in frustration. “What is it?”
Draco looked up innocently. “What is what?”
“There is something you want to tell me. I know it.”
“The only thing I want to tell you Granger is to quit interrupting my homework.”
Hermione turned to face him. “Spit it out.”
He sighed. “Fine.” He turned in his seat to face her. “I wanted to discuss with you my lessons.”
She frowned. “What about them exactly?”
“We are moving too slowly. I want to start something more challenging.”
“We will start something more challenging when you get the basics down.”
“Oh please, like I don’t already know basic duelling spells” Draco could already feel his frustration increasing.
“Those spells are always useful in life.”
“Which was why I learnt them years ago. If you haven’t realised already, we are taking our NEWT’s this year. I need to learn advance spells.”
“I am aware Malfoy, but I have already planned everything out-”
“You know what I think,” Draco said cutting her off. “I think you want me to fail my NEWTs as revenge for me calling you a Mudblood all these years.”
Hermione glared at him. “What? How dare you say such a thing! Not everyone is Slytherin like you. I don’t spend my free time plotting; I spend my time helping people.”
“Do you do that before or after you finish sabotaging my education.” Both their voices had slowly risen and had continued to rise with each retort.
“You know Malfoy, you are being completely ungrateful. I could have turned down McGonagall’s request and just left you to rot but I have taken up my time to tutor you. And considering everything that has happened, it is a miracle I even said yes.”
“Oh please, spare me your selfless reasoning. You wanted to say no but the only reason you said yes is because you enjoy sucking up to teachers.”
Hermione got out of her seat and Draco did the same. “FINE! I will teach you an advance spell! But if you don’t perform it successfully, we are going straight back to the basics.”
Draco was tempted to retort but instead he took his victory with a smirk. “Thank you for your generosity Granger.”
Hermione scowled at him before storming out the room. Draco waited a minute before she came storming back into the room to retrieve her things. She left in the same manner but with a blush on her cheeks. He couldn’t help but laugh at the poor Gryffindor. His laughter was short lived when he realised that she might be the one laughing tomorrow.
***
A loud banging noise on his door awoke Draco the next morning. He lifted the covers over his head. When the banging continued, he reached for the pillow to cover his head as well in a helpless attempt at blocking out the horrid noise. There was one last bang as the door slammed open.
Draco peeked from under the covers to see Hermione glaring down at him. “Someone better be dying.”
“Get out of bed Malfoy,” Hermione said as she began trying to pull the covers away from him.
“Honestly Granger, didn’t think you were this keen to get into bed with me.”
Hermione replied by hitting him over the head with a pillow.
“Ouch! Fine, fine. I’m getting up. You can stop hitting me.” Draco sat up in bed and reached for the watch sitting on his bedside table. Draco looked at Hermione horrified. “Do you know what time it is?”
She smiled. “Exactly, I knew you would appreciate me waking you up. Imagine how horrible you would have felt if you woke up and-”
“It’s nine thirty.”
She frowned slightly. “Yes.”
“It’s Saturday.”
Her smile became smaller. “Yes.”
“What horrible person wakes someone up this early on a Saturday?”
Hermione hit him with the pillow again.
“Hey! What was that for?”
“It is not early! I have been awake for three hours already.”
“Well not everyone is insane as you are.” Draco grabbed the pillow before it made contact with his head. Unfortunately, Hermione was firmly attached to the pillow and came crashing down on top of Draco knocking him back down against the bed.
They both continued to glare at each other, their faces only a few inches apart. “Get up Malfoy.”
He smirked at her. “I would if you weren’t squishing me, how much do you weigh exactly Granger?”
Her eyes widened in horror. “I am not squishing you. And for your information I am a perfectly normal weight.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Do you really want me to get out of bed?”
She saw the mischief in his grey eyes causing her to hesitate before answering. “Yes, we have a lot of work to do to and with Quid- AAHH!” she yelled as Draco rolled her off him making her land with a hard thud on the floor. Draco got out of bed and stepped over her as he made his way to his trunk.
“Honestly Granger, you should have seen that coming,” he said as he sorted through his clothes.
“Well Malfoy, you should have seen this coming.” Draco turned and saw Hermione pointing his wand at him. “Stupefy!”
With a flash Draco was knocked to the ground. Hermione walked up to him with a pleasant smile on her face. “See you at breakfast in ten minutes.” With a wave she left his room. Draco groaned. It’s too early in the morning for this.
***
Draco approached the Slytherin table where he sat next to a shocked Astoria. He frowned at her. “What?”
“I must be dreaming but is Draco Malfoy actually out of bed on a Saturday before ten o’clock?”
“I was woken up by a small crazy girl with big bushy hair. You might know her.”
Astoria looked over at the Gryffindor table as Hermione looked at the Slytherin table. Draco joined her gaze and Hermione gave them a large smile. Astoria smiled back and couldn’t help but laugh at Draco’s expression.
“So did you talk to her?” Astoria asked.
“As a matter of fact I did,” he replied.
“And?”
He smirked. “Let’s just say we both won the bet.”
They both ate breakfast, discussing possible spells Hermione might teach Draco. He hoped that whatever she chose wouldn’t be too difficult. He wouldn’t hear the end of it if he failed.
“Hey Draco.”
He looked at Astoria. “Yes?”
She replied without looking at him. “You know that small crazy girl with big bushy hair?”
Draco raised an eyebrow. “Yes?”
“She’s coming this way.”
Draco looked over and saw that Hermione was in fact heading towards them. “Oh Merlin, what does she want now?”
Hermione finally reached the Slytherin table. “Ready Draco?”
He looked at her puzzled. “For what?”
“My God Draco, maybe I should have let you sleep in. Didn’t know those precious moments of sleep would dramatically increase your intelligence.” When his expression didn’t change she answered his question. “Your lesson.”
“I thought that would be later.”
“Well if you didn’t knock me to the floor you would have heard me explain the plans for today.” Astoria raised an eyebrow at Draco but he ignored it. “I am going to brief you about the spell you will be learning and if we have enough time you may get a chance to cast it. Then you can attend your Quidditch practice and try casting the spell again after practice is finished. I am giving you the entire weekend to successfully perform the spell. Any questions?”
Draco shook his head.
“Meet me in the classroom in five minutes,” said Hermione before leaving the Great Hall.
“Wow, aren’t we lucky to have such an organised Head Girl. She doesn’t get enough credit for her skills,” said Astoria. She turned to smile at Draco. “Well good luck.”
Draco got out of his seat and followed Hermione’s direction out the Great Hall.
***
Hermione sat on the desk waiting for Malfoy. She had thought long and hard. Only when an owl arrived did she finally think of the perfect spell. The letter had been from Harry who had written to her about all the interesting things he had learnt in the auror training program. She had remembered during fifth year when Harry had taught Dumbledore’s Army. There was one spell in particular that she had learnt from him that she wanted to teach to Malfoy.
The door opened and Hermione looked to see Draco walking into the room towards a desk opposite her. He sat down and gestured for her to begin.
“Now the spell I am going to teach you is very advance magic. Don’t be surprised if you don’t get it straight away.”
Draco rolled his eyes.
“The spell I am going to teach you is called the Patronus Charm.” Hermione ignored his bored expression and continued. “The most known use for a Patronus Charm is to protect one’s self from Dementor attack. It also can be used to send messages to other wizards and witches. The Patronus itself takes the form of an animal that reflects the castor’s personality. For instance my Patronus is an otter. Casting the Patronus Charm requires two things; strong concentration and a very powerful, happy memory.”
“Is that all?”
“Yes, the incantation is Expecto Patronum. Before you try, I want you to close your eyes and think of a memory. The happiest memory you can think of. A Patronus is like the opposite of a dementor; instead of fear making it stronger, happiness makes it stronger. The happier the memory, the stronger the Patronus.”
Draco sighed before closing his eyes. He thought back through his life. He wasn’t sure when he had been happiest, or if he had ever been happy at all. Sure, there were moments when he was taunting Potter but he doubt that they would be powerful enough to cast a Patronus. He thought of his mother but all of his happy memories with her involved his father and since the war, his views of his father had altered. That left Astoria. Even though she was a good friend, he didn’t think he shared a moment with her that made him truly happy.
He looked up and saw Hermione watching him. Her expression puzzled him. It was confident yet there was something in her eyes that countered it. “Out of curiosity, what is your memory?” he asked her.
She frowned. “That’s personal Malfoy.”
“I want to know so I know how powerful my memory has to be.”
Hermione looked at him, bitting her lip. She had started to trust Malfoy over this year. She had realised early on that he had changed since the war. He hadn’t called her a Mudblood and rarely complained about them working together. Another reason was that if McGonagall could trust him, then she could as well. She hesitated then decided to answer his question. “There was a time when we were looking for the means to destroy Voldemort.”
Draco flinched at the name. “Seventh year? When the three of you didn’t go back to Hogwarts?”
“Yes. Things were getting very...tense between us and Ron had a huge fight with Harry. He left us.”
He frowned. “I don’t see how this is happy.” Usually when Malfoy talked to Hermione he used a mocking tone but he sounded sincere for once.
“It wasn’t. We had to keep moving so no one would find and capture us, which meant that Ron wouldn’t be able to find us either. I woke up one morning and Harry said he had news. I saw Ron standing there with a smile on his face. I was shocked to see him at first but then I was furious.” A smile began to form on Hermione’s face. “I charged at him and started punching him.”
Draco burst out laughing and Hermione couldn’t help but laugh with him. “If that’s how happy my memory has to be then I have six years of material.”
She sighed, shaking her head. “That wasn’t the happy part. It was when Ron explained how he came back,” she said blushing slightly.
Draco knew she wasn’t going to explain any further and he didn’t want to know exactly what he said; he probably would have puked. “Could you demonstrate the spell?”
Hermione focused. She breathed in and out slowly before pointing her wand. “Expecto Patronum.”
Silver light erupted from her wand and took the form of an otter. The otter glided around the room and circled around Malfoy who was watching curiously. A moment later the otter vanished.
“Now you try,” she said.
Draco reluctantly pulled his wand out of his pocket. He closed his eyes trying to come up with a memory happy enough to cast a Patronus. He finally decided on the memory of when his parents had given him his first broom. He concentrated completely on the memory, pointed his wand and said; “Expecto Patronum.”
When he opened his eyes, he saw his wand exactly as it was before. No silver light.
“Don’t worry, no one has ever cast it on their first go,” said Hermione reassuringly.
But that was not what was bothering Draco. Every time he pictured the memory in his head, he couldn’t help but think of his father which cut off his happiness completely. Even when he tried focusing on his mother’s face he couldn’t help but think of her fearful gaze as she pleaded for him not to participate in the war.
“I’m going to be late for Quidditch practice,” said Draco abruptly. He stood up and headed to the door without a glance at Hermione.
“Draco.” He turned when he felt her hand on his shoulder. He didn’t look her in the eyes, instead waited for her to say what she wanted to say.
Hermione didn’t speak. She tried but she couldn’t. She stood there frozen long after he had shrugged of her hand and walked out the door.
***
The library was surprisingly quiet when Hermione arrived there. She set up her books and parchment at a nearby desk, ready to complete the increasing pile of homework. She opened her Ancient Runes book, flicked to chapter fourteen and began to read.
It took Hermione a couple of minutes to realise she had read the same paragraph three times already. She tried concentrating but her thoughts kept drifting to a certain blonde. She couldn’t stop thinking about the pain in Draco’s eyes as he tried to find a happy memory. She had picked the spell for its difficulty but she hadn’t anticipated that it would be even more difficult for him. It was too late to change the spell though. If she voiced her concerns to him, she knew it would end up in a fight. A fight that would cross a few very personal boundaries.
Hermione knew that this weekend would end either two ways. Either she and Draco would be closer together or further apart. She wasn’t sure which one she preferred.
Hermione placed her head in her hands. What have I gotten myself into?
***
The Quidditch change rooms were almost completely empty when Astoria walked in. The only other person there was Draco who was tying the laces of his shoes. She sat down on the bench next to him. She thought for a moment that Draco didn’t notice her come in until Draco spoke. “Yes?”
“I walk all the way down from the castle with gifts in the form of food and you greet me with ‘yes’?” Astoria hit him gently on the arm. “You’re not being very considerate.”
Draco’s eyes widened at the mention of food. “What did you bring me? I’m starving.”
He reached for her bag but she quickly snatched it away. “You’re not getting anything until you tell me what’s got your wand in a knot.”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wand. “See, it is perfectly straight.”
Astoria rolled her eyes. “Your attempt at humour is pitiful.”
“Like I said, Astoria, I don’t know what you are talking about.”
She frowned. “It’s Granger isn’t it. What is she trying to teach you?”
“I can’t talk about matters like this on an empty stomach.”
She sighed. “Fine, have some food.” She handed over her bag to Draco who pulled out a sandwich to eat. When he was half way through it she asked him again. “So what is she trying to teach you?”
Draco’s eating speed dramatically slowed down. He chewed, delaying the answer to her question. When he couldn’t delay it any longer he swallowed and looked at her. “The Patronus Charm.”
“I’ve read about that spell. It doesn’t seem too complex; all you need is a very happy- oh.” Astoria looked away. She knew what was bothering Draco immediately.
They remained in silence for a few moments which gave Draco the opportunity to finish his sandwich. The silence was broken when Astoria suddenly stood up furious.
“What a bitch!”
Draco looked at her alarmed. “Excuse me?”
“What a sadistic bitch! Surely she must know. I mean she has known you for eight years.” Astoria stormed up and down the room. “No wonder she looked so bloody smug at breakfast. I swear, the next time I see her I’m going to hex her into oblivion.”
“We have been fighting for eight years. That hasn’t exactly given her a chance to get to know me.”
“Why are you defending her? What she has done is incredibly low, not even a Slytherin would do something this low.”
“Because I don’t honestly believe she realised. At least not before this morning.”
Astoria began to calm down. “So, you think, you think she knows now?”
“I don’t know,” he quietly replied.
She sat back down next to Draco, putting an arm around him. She rested her head on his shoulders trying to give him some form of comfort. Draco had only just begun to heal and didn’t need a Gryffindor to mess that up.
***
Hermione nervously waited in the classroom. Lavender had visited her in the library but books always bored her so she quickly left. Luna Lovegood had found her a little bit later which would have normally been welcome however Luna was extremely perceptive and had noticed her emotions immediately. Hermione had quickly made up an excuse about Head Girl duties before escaping.
Hermione jumped when the door opened and Draco walked in. He sat in the same place he had this morning, yet he seemed as eager for this lesson as she was.
The silence that followed was incredibly awkward. Hermione tried to find something to say while Draco stared at the window.
“How was Quidditch practice?” Hermione asked.
Draco looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “Pleasant.”
“Err, that’s nice.”
“Granger, cut the pretences and get on with the lesson.”
She bit her lip. "Yes, of course.” She stared at Draco’s hands which were tapping impatiently against the desk. “Do you need me to go over anything from this morning?”
“No”
“Okay. Well, try it again.”
Draco sighed as he took his wand out of his pocket. He decided it was best that he didn’t use the same memory from before. Instead, he thought of when Astoria had first sat next to him at the Slytherin table. She had been shy at first but she saw that he was lonely. It had been the start of a beautiful friendship.
“Expecto Patronum.” He waited for the silver light to appear but it didn’t. Maybe he wasn’t concentrating hard enough. He thought of the memory again. “Expecto Patronum.” Still nothing appeared.
He stood up taking a deep breath as he closed his eyes. He envisioned the scene before his eyes. He let out the breath, opening his eyes again. “Expecto Patronum!”
Sweat was beginning to drip down his face, his hands were shaking. “EXPECTO PATRONUM!”
Draco stared in disbelief as nothing happened. His frustration climaxed as he turned to the closest desk and kicked it over.
“Draco!” Hermione watched painfully as Draco walked around the room knocking desks over. “Draco, stop!” He ignored her completely and continued on his rampage. Hermione rushed over to him and tried to hold him back, but she was weak compared to him.
He turned to face and saw the fear in her warm brown eyes.
“Please.” Her voice was barely louder than a whisper.
Draco’s breathing slowed down back to its normal pace.
They stared at each other, speechless.
Draco was the one to break the silence. “Why?”
Hermione frowned. “What?”
“Why did you choose this spell? I looked through the textbook and it isn’t even mentioned.”
“It was one of the spells Harry taught us during our fifth year when we were having secret lessons. It’s advance magic so I thought you wanted the challenge.”
Draco wiped the sweat away from his face with the back of his hand. “Astoria’s right,” he muttered to himself. “Never thought you could be cruel, Granger.”
“What?”
“You sit there watching me suffer over a spell I cannot perform.”
“I didn’t realise you would have this problem that-”
“Granger, you already know what I’ve been through. Surely you would have realised how it has affected me.”
“Draco, I’m so sorry. I didn’t realise. We can change the spell-”
“Oh, so now that you realise you were wrong you take the easy way out of this.”
Hermione’s eyes widened. “The easy way? I’m trying to make things better for you!”
“Why thank you, thank you for making it better. Now I can pretend that you haven’t been a heartless bitch and move on with my life,” he said sarcastically.
“You! You...insufferable...inconsiderate jerk!” Hermione shouted at him. “I already feel horrible, you don’t have to go and make me feel worse.”
“Yes, because it is always about your feelings!” Draco shouted back at her.
Hermione’s glare was murderous. “You are the most horrid man I have ever had the misfortune to meet. You are nothing but a Death Eater and you always will be. I have no idea why Headmistress McGonagall even made you Head Boy!”
From the look Draco gave her, she knew she had pushed it too far. He walked past her and headed to the door. Before he turned the doorknob, he looked back at her. “Because I changed sides,” he answered before slamming the door behind him.
***
Hermione sunk to the floor, in between two overturned desks. She let the tears she had held back from Malfoy fall freely. What she had done was horrible enough, why did she have to say those things? She had never mentioned anything to do with the war around him. It was a forbidden topic. I really am cruel.
The classroom desperately needed to be tidied up. With a flick of her wand the desks and chairs moved back to their original places. Hermione stood up, wiping the tears off her cheeks. Malfoy’s final words had bothered her. What did he mean ‘I changed sides’? Hermione knew that tonight was the only night she would get the answer from him. It was now or never.
***
When Hermione entered the common room, Draco wasn’t there. She wasn’t surprised. He probably thought that she would leave him alone if he was in his room. He was wrong. She opened his door to find Draco sitting on his bed, the sleeve of his shirt on his left arm pulled up. What Hermione saw made her gasp; the Dark Mark.
Draco, hearing her gasp, looked up startled. “What the hell are you doing here?” He didn’t rush to cover the mark, leaving it in plain sight.
Hermione shook away her shock and walked over towards him. She stood before him with her arms crossed over. “What did you mean ‘I changed sides’?”
“Leave, now,” said Draco, emphasising each word.
“No, I’m not leaving until you tell me.”
“I know you were raised by muggles, but I’m sure they must have taught you something about privacy.”
“I’m not leaving.”
“You are really pushing it today Granger.”
Hermione stood her ground and watched him. In his eyes she could see the wall he had carefully formed, blocking away all emotions. But as the minutes went by, she watched the walls slowly crumble and fall.
“Fine. I’ll tell you,” Draco finally said. Hermione took this as an invitation to sit down next to him. Grey eyes met brown as Draco told her everything...
***
Walking along the corridors, war surrounding him, terrified Draco. He wasn’t sure where he was safer; inside or outside the castle. Draco licked his lips and tasted blood. He had almost forgotten Ron had punched him. Wiping away the remaining specks he continued down the corridor. When he reached the end, he almost walked straight into a girl.
He looked down to see Daphne Greengrass staring right back at him, tears streaming down her face. “Draco,” she said, her voice cracking. “My sister, have you seen her?”
Draco shook his head. “No, I have not. What are you doing here?”
“I came back when I didn’t see Astoria at the evacuation point.” Daphne grabbed Draco’s shoulders. “Please, please find her.”
The intensity of her gaze made him uncomfortable. “Err, I’ll keep an eye out for her,” he said, backing away from her and walking away.
War brought out the desperation in people. That’s what Draco told himself as he kept on walking. He turned a corner and walked straight into a fight. He recognised one of the people as one of the Weasleys but the others remained unrecognisable. Draco quickly darted out the way and ran back the way he had come.
He tried another path and found a large chunk of the castle wall blown away. Looking down, Draco saw that the drop wasn’t very far. Taking a deep breath he jumped and landed roughly on the lawn. He regretted his decision immediately as he saw the fighting that took place outside.
Wizards and witches fought as well as many creatures. Draco rushed over to get to cover in the trees of the nearby forest. He didn’t feel safe there but he came to the realisation that nowhere was safe. He wondered where his parents were and if they were safe.
Unable to stand still, Draco walked amongst the trees, careful not to get too close to the battle. The trees thinned out into a gap in the forest. In that gap stood three figures; one figure was Astoria Greengrass.
As Draco approached, he saw the other two figures were men, one he recognised as one of the snatchers that had captured Potter. The other man held Astoria’s arms behind her back as she struggled to get away.
“Let me go! I’m Pureblood!” shouted Astoria as she tried to kick the snatcher.
“She’s a feisty one, Scabior. Is she really worth the trouble?” asked the man holding her.
“She’s also a pretty one,” replied Scabior as he moved closer to Astoria. He reached out a hand and caressed her cheek.
Astoria rewarded him with a kick in the shins.
“Ow! Stupid girl!” Scabior laughed. “You like it rough, do ya?” He pulled a wand out of his coat pocket. “I can show you rough.” He pointed his wand at her. “Cru-”
“Pertrificus Totalus!” shouted Draco. The spell hit Scabior’s back causing him to fall to the ground frozen. The man let go of Astoria, looking for the source of the spell. His eyes met Draco’s as he shouted; “Stupefy!”
The spell blasted the man against a tree. He fell to the ground, unconscious. Draco rushed over to Astoria who was on the ground, frozen in shock. He offered his hand to her and she gratefully accepted it. She was surprisingly light when Draco pulled her up off the ground.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
Astoria took one look at him and burst into tears. She threw her arms around him and sobbed against his chest. Draco, after a moment’s hesitation wrapped his arms around her.
“About time you realised what side you were meant to be on Mr Malfoy.” Draco looked up and saw Professor McGonagall watching them. Before he could reply she had turned around and walked away, back towards the battle.
Draco stood with Astoria in his arms, speechless. He didn’t know what to make of his teacher’s words but he didn’t care at the moment.
“Everything’s going to be okay.” Draco wasn’t sure he was talking to Astoria or himself...
***
A few minutes went by in silence. Hermione hadn’t said a word while Draco was talking and she still hadn’t spoken. He was too scared to look her in the eye. Instead he stared at the floor. The room had gotten considerably darker and the only source of light came from the moonlight shining through the window.
Suddenly, Draco felt pressure on his hand. He looked down to see Hermione had threaded her fingers through his. Draco finally found the courage to look up. Her brown eyes were warm and loving; tears were spilling out of them.
He frowned. “Why are you crying?”
Her mouth opened to answer yet no sound came out. Instead of using words to answer his question, she used actions. She leaned her body into him. He let go of the hand she was holding and wrapped it around her instead. He thought she was reaching for his other hand. Instead she held his arm. Her fingers gently traced the outline of the Dark Mark.
During his weakest moments in his life, he had received scars. These included the scar on his pride, the scar on his chest and the scar on his arm. Draco never tried to show weakness again but Hermione Granger made it too easy. He had showed weakness to Hermione now and was rewarded with a new scar; a scar on his heart. But this time it was a scar he wanted to keep.
THE END