~A/N>Thanks for all the great reviews on the last chapter; I'm glad you liked the H/Hr action! And just so
you know, I have no idea how many chapters are left, at the beginning I thought this story would only be about twenty
chapters at the most. It's taken on a life of it's own. I am going to try to have another update by Wednesday,
but I'm not promising. My husband comes home from a six month deployment in the Gulf next Friday and there's
lots to do between now and then. A big thanks to Spaz141 for all the help; your brilliant mind saved part of this
chapter!!! :)
Ron and I made our way up to our dorm to pack our trunks; while we were going up the stairs everyone else was going down to dinner. I couldn't believe they were shutting down Hogwarts. Wasn't this supposed to be the safest place in the Wizarding world? I was brought out of my thoughts when Ron walked up and kicked his trunk pretty hard.
"What the bloody hell were they thinking, agreeing to let that wanker stay at our house?" he shouted. I really didn't know what to say since I didn't know if the question was directed at me or not. When I noticed him glaring at me, I realized he was waiting for me to answer.
"They were probably thinking that Malfoy's life is in danger if he goes back to Malfoy Manor" I answered. When Ron's face started to turn a deeper shade of red I tried to explain, "when we went to the Manor, Wormtail saw us and he knows that Draco was there to help me. His Father would probably kill him the minute he stepped foot into the Manor."
"Then why not let him stay at Hogwarts?" Ron asked, sounding a little calmer.
"Probably for the same reason they're not letting us stay" I replied. "I'm sure Dumbledore has his reasons Ron and truth be told, I'm not exactly thrilled to have him there with us either."
After that we both started packing our things into our trunks, the air in the room charged with anger. Once I was done I sat on the side of my bed and waited for Ron to finish; when he was finally done we made our way downstairs with our trunks levitating behind us. To no one's surprise, Hermione was sitting on the couch, her trunk in front of her, waiting for us.
"Took you long enough" she quipped.
"We had some...things to discuss" I replied.
"Yeah, I could hear those 'things' all the way down here" she said, looking from me to Ron. "Honestly Ron, obviously your parents know the implications of letting Draco stay in their home; there's no reason to get all upset about it."
Ron didn't say anything; he just started to make his way to the portrait hole. When Hermione gave me a questioning look, I said, "I don't think that's what he wanted to hear right now."
She just shrugged her shoulders and made her way out as well; I took one last look around the Common Room and hoped that I would be back soon.
~*~
I couldn't believe the sudden turn of events; first Harry and I were...doing what we did and then we're being rushed up to Professor Dumbledore's office and told that we have to leave Hogwarts immediately. It seemed as if nothing could stay normal for very long between Harry and I.
I followed Ron back to Dumbledore's office and once again the seven of us were assembled. A thought suddenly came to me and I asked, "wait a minute, where's Ginny?"
"She's already at the Burrow dear" replied Mrs. Weasley, "I sent her ahead so she could get Percy's old room ready for Draco."
I noticed the strange way she said Draco's name; it was as if she were trying to spit something horrid out of her mouth and I realized that they were not as thrilled to have Draco at the Burrow as they pretended to be.
"Well then, shall we?" asked Mr. Weasley as he motioned towards the fireplace, "Dumbledore has provided only a temporary connection to the Burrow, so we need to be quick about it." We basically formed a line and took turns flooing to the Burrow; I went after Harry, and as I stumbled out after the wild ride he caught me so I wouldn't tumble onto the floor. Ron was the last to arrive and he looked just as angry as he had before we left Dumbledore's office.
As Harry and I watched Mr. Weasley levitate our trunks upstairs, Ginny had come down to greet us and offered to show Draco to his room. Not a second after they left, Ron stalked out of the kitchen after them, and I suddenly had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach; a feeling that was soon proven true.
"What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?" Ron shouted, and Harry and I quickly made our way upstairs. When we got to Percy's old room and looked inside the first thing we saw was that Ron had slammed Draco into a wall and was holding him there.
"Ron STOP!" shouted Ginny, looking just as angry as he did.
"I didn't do anything" Malfoy yelled, trying to get away from Ron. When he realized that he wasn't going anywhere, Draco just stood there glaring back at Ron, as if daring him to do something.
"Liar!" yelled Ron, "I saw you talking to my Sister; I don't want you talking to her, or looking at her for that matter, again."
"I was just thanking her for bringing me up here" Malfoy said quietly; so quietly I almost missed what he said.
"Yeah, well don't, she was only doing what our Mother told her to do" Ron spat as he let go of Draco's shirt.
"What's your problem Weasley?" Draco asked, glaring at Ron. "I've left you alone, I even tried to help you and all you've done is get in my face about it."
Ron stood there, glaring back at Draco and after a moment said, "just stay away from my sister." I watched as he turned and quickly made his way to his room, slamming the door.
When Draco made to go after him, Harry put a hand on his chest and said, "Why don't you and I go outside for a bit and cool off?" Without letting him answer, Harry basically grabbed his shirt and pulled him down the stairs; he paused at the doorway, turned to us and said, "why don't you two try to calm Ron down?"
~*~
I basically dragged Malfoy down the stairs and quickly said, "We'll just be outside for a bit" to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley before I opened the door and practically threw him outside.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he angrily asked. I just stood there for a moment, watching as he started to pace back and forth, letting him cool down.
"I got you away from Ron so that the two of you could cool off" I replied calmly. "Knowing Ron, he would have made up an excuse to come after you again."
"But I didn't do anything!" he shouted at me. "I was just trying to thank Ginny when he came barrelling into the room!"
"Since when do you call her Ginny?" I asked suspiciously.
"Since her parents were nice enough to let me stay in their home" he answered almost impatiently. "Are we done talking now? It's bloody cold out here."
"No we're not done; I want to know why you came to the Burrow so quietly? You've made no rude remarks, you've seemed quite calm about it all actually; what are you up to?" I asked, eyeing him wearily.
"What do you mean, what am I up to?" he replied. "I thought after our trip to the Manor you would have figured out that I want nothing to do with my Father or his 'Master'. You know, I always hear about "the wonderful Harry Potter", but I see nothing outstanding about you. It's disgusting how everyone gushes about how great and powerful you are; they must be blind, or stupid."
"Excuse me, aren't you the arsehole who attacked Hermione not once, but twice?" I asked, astounded by his sudden memory loss. "The first time you almost killed her, the second time you tried to rape her, so you'll have to forgive me if I don't put one ounce of my trust in you."
"I already explained that to you" he exclaimed, "my Father made me do those things; it would have been one of the Dark Lords followers going after her otherwise."
"That's a lame excuse and you know it!" I replied. "You did it because you wanted to prove yourself to your Father."
"I could see it now; the almighty, powerful Potter comes to the rescue yet again" he drawled. "Why don't you get over yourself?!"
"Why don't you tell me what it is you have against me?" I replied angrily; this little game with him was getting old, fast. "What's the matter, weren't you good enough for Daddy?"
For a moment I thought he might lunge at me; his face had suddenly turned a bright shade of red and his eyes shone with his hatred for me. "Shut it!" he growled.
I had obviously struck a nerve, so I decided to push my luck a little further. "Let me guess, Daddy was so busy trying to bring his Master back that he practically forgot about you? He was disappointed that you weren't the powerful little wizard he expected, so he made you his whipping boy?"
Suddenly Malfoy took two quick steps toward me and punched me square in the jaw. "I said SHUT IT!" he yelled.
I messaged my sore jaw for a moment, watching Draco pace furiously back and forth; he was mumbling to himself. Steeling myself for another punch, I asked, "What do you have against me Malfoy? What did I ever do to cause you to bully me and my friends for the past six years?"
He sat there glaring at me for quite a while, as if contemplating whether he should answer or not, and then said, "You lived".
"What?" I asked, not sure I had heard him right.
"I said, you lived. The night the Dark Lord killed your parents; you were supposed to die, not him. When my Father found out what had happened, he made it his purpose in life to resurrect that evil bastard, no matter what." He was quiet again for a moment and then continued, "you were the reason my Father never paid attention to me; he was too busy trying to figure out how to kill you and bring his Master back."
I just stood there staring at him, dumbstruck. A part of me couldn't believe that he had actually just admitted that to me and another part was telling me that it might be a trick. But then I realized, why would he degrade himself by telling me that if it weren't true? "Draco...look, I'm..."
"Don't! I don't need a fucking apology from you, let alone your pity Potter. You asked a question, and I answered it honestly; you can decide from there whether you feel you can trust me or not." He started to take a couple of steps toward the front door, stopped and then turned around to face me; "let me know what you decide."
I just stood there, watching him walk into the Burrow, and I couldn't believe it; growing somewhere in the deep recesses of my heart was a small inkling of respect...for Draco Malfoy.
~*~
When Harry came back in, about twenty minutes after Draco, he looked like he had been gobsmacked. "Harry?" I asked, a little worried about him.
He looked up and focused on my face and said, "Hey luv; sorry, I didn't realize you were there."
"What's wrong? What did you and Draco talk about?" He looked at me for a moment and then grabbed my hand. He led me over to the sofa and sat down, lightly pulling me down with him. I started to worry more when he just sat still, looking at me; "Harry, what is it?"
"Is everyone else already in bed?" he asked, looking around the room.
"Yeah, they went up about ten minutes ago" I replied, squeezing his hand lightly. I just sat there, trying to be patient, and let him know I was there to listen if he needed me.
"How would you feel if you found out you were the reason for someone's horrible life?" he whispered.
His question threw me completely off guard; where in the world was this coming from? "Harry, what...wait, is Draco blaming you because his Father raised him to be a Death Eater and taught him how to terrorize Muggleborns?"
"No, nothing like that" he replied as he started to rub his thumb across the top of my hand. "I love you, you know that right?" he asked quietly, without looking at me.
I lowered my head so that I could catch his eye; when he finally raised his head and met my gaze, I replied, "I know you love me Harry. I feel it deep in my soul; I cherish the way you show me you care." I watched him nod his head in acknowledgement, "And you know how much I love you in return, right?"
He sat there and stared at me for a moment and it made me a little uneasy. He took a deep breath and said, "I know you love me 'Mione, but I have to admit that sometimes I feel like I don't deserve it." He suddenly got up from the sofa and started to slowly pace in front of me. "I just found out that I'm the reason Draco's Father made his life hell; when I asked Draco why he treated us so badly the past six years, do you know what he said?" I just shook my head no, not daring to even make a guess. "He said it was because I lived; his Father took it upon himself to bring Voldemort back and to get rid of me and that caused him to ignore his own son."
"That doesn't make it your fault Harry; Draco's Father made his own foolish decisions" I said, jumping off the sofa and standing in front of him to stop his pacing. "That night that Voldemort attacked your family, you lived because your Mother loved you so much that she gave her life for you; unconditional love is something that Lucius Malfoy will never be able to understand. I'll admit that I have no idea what the sequence of events were, but I bet that she somehow knew what a great wizard you were going to be. She died so that you could live, grow up and save our world from evil; I would do the same thing in her place."
"That's what I'm afraid of!" he exclaimed, "I don't want anyone else's life to be ruined because of me; I don't want anyone else to DIE for me, especially you!!"
"I know that, I'm just trying to prove to you that you deserve to be loved Harry. There was nothing you could have done that night, you were just a baby, but somehow your Mum knew that her unconditional love for you would help to protect you. That way you could grow up to share that love one day and know exactly how she felt when she died; she had experienced the ultimate love with you and your Dad. She wanted you to have the chance to experience it too, and she gave you that chance when she died for you." I grabbed both of his hands, looked him right in the eyes and said quietly, "love can conquer all evil Harry; you're living proof."
I saw him blinking furiously and I knew he was trying to keep the tears from falling from his watery eyes. Trying to spare him embarrassment, I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him tightly to me. "I love you with all my heart; don't ever doubt that okay?"
"Okay" he whispered, holding me tightly. We stayed that way for a while, holding on to one another and whispering to each other quietly, completely unaware of the person on the stairs watching us.
~*~
There was nothing I wanted more that night than to be able to sleep in the same bed as Hermione, but I knew that we would face the wrath of Mrs. Weasley if she caught us. I walked her up to her and Ginny's room, kissed her goodnight, and then made my way to Ron's room. When I walked in Ron was snoring rather loudly; luckily I was used to it, what with sleeping in the same dorm as him for the past six years. I changed and crawled under the covers, my mind working overtime as it went over everything that had happened that night. Finally I was able to clear my head and drift off; I dreamed of Hermione that night and they were dreams that made me wake up the next morning hard and very uncomfortable. Thankfully Ron was up and out of the room already, probably sitting at the kitchen table waiting for breakfast. After thinking disgusting thoughts about Snape I was able to get up and go to the bathroom to shower; when I arrived in the kitchen I was shocked to see Dumbledore sitting next to Hermione, eating breakfast.
"Good Morning Harry" he said as he looked up and noticed me standing there.
"Good Morning Sir" I replied, confused by his appearance at the Burrow.
"I know you're probably wondering why I am here" he said with a smile, "I have decided that the five of you should start training; I have no doubt you will all be a factor in the fighting and I want to make sure you are completely prepared to defend yourselves."
I just nodded my head in understanding and sat down across from Hermione and next to Ron; I looked around the table and noticed that Draco wasn't there. "Where's Malfoy?" I asked and immediately felt Ron tense up next to me.
"He's all ready eaten breakfast and returned to his room" explained Hermione.
"Probably fancies himself too good to sit with the likes of us" mumbled Ron.
"Mr. Weasley, I can understand that there is some animosity between you and Mr. Malfoy, but I trust that you will do your best to get along with him while he is a guest in your home" said Dumbledore, looking at Ron over the top of his glasses.
"Yes Sir" answered Ron sullenly and I watched surprised as he pushed his plate away. "I'm going to get changed" he said and then walked out of the kitchen.
"I fear that Mr. Weasley will let his dislike of Mr. Malfoy cloud his judgement and that will only cause further problems," said Dumbledore looking from me to Hermione. "Maybe the two of you could convince him that now is not the time for petty grudges; we must stand together, shoulder to shoulder with anyone fighting on the side of Light, whether they be friend or foe."
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