Draco and Hermione

Chapter 19

Chapter 19

At around ten o'clock, Luna and Dean slipped back upstairs to their rooms. Draco and Hermione were still in the lounge room, now comfortably relaxed on the couch. They were both still waiting for the Order to return, even more anxious than before since the Order had been gone for nearly two hours now. But talking helped to take their mind off of it, so they'd been talking about anything and everything.

"I'm serious! What is shaking someone's hand going to do? If you were making an agreement, you'd make the Unbreakable Vow," said Draco, still confused by the muggle hand shake.

"Muggle's can't make Vow's, Malfoy. They shake each other's hand as a sign of trust," explained Hermione.

"Muggles," sneered Draco in amusement. "Even what they're called is stupid."

"Hey! My parents aren't stupid. And besides, they're called humans, just like we are," Hermione said firmly as she got more comfortable on the couch beside him.

"Except we're better. Admit it Granger, we are!" said Draco exasperatedly as he heard her sigh.

"I'm not going to judge them. I love my parents, grandparents, cousins, aunties and uncles, they're all muggles. I love my muggle school friends too, and I still see them at home. I might be 'better' than them, but power isn't everything, Malfoy. Love is," said Hermione simply, as she looked up to make sure he understood.

"Spoken like a true Dumbledore fan. 'Love is everything'," said Draco, but his halfhearted smirk faltered and was replaced with a thoughtful expression. He gazed into the fire, thinking on what she'd said. He still looked pale from Hermione's point of view, and he was beginning to get more and more tired with each passing minute. The only thing that would help him recover completely was sleep. He continued gazing tiredly at the fire, seemingly mesmerised by the flickering flames. Hermione smiled briefly at him, before opening her book again. She was getting tired as well. If the Order didn't arrive soon, they were probably both going to fall asleep in the next hour.

"What's your book about? Transfiguration?" asked Draco with a smirk.

"No, I'm not always studying. It's called 'Romeo and Juliet'," replied Hermione without looking up. She looked so peaceful when she was reading, he'd noticed this at Hogwarts of course, but back then she was always reading. This was the first time he'd seen her read anything in ages. The fire was lighting the room up in a golden glow, and the entire scene made him feel drowsy and relaxed.

"Never heard of it, sounds lame," Draco yawned.

"It's a muggle book, I enjoy it," said Hermione, glancing up at him. "You should sleep. I'll wake you when the Order returns."

"Right... g'night Granger," he murmured, as he leaned back into the couch. The words had barely left his lips before his eyes slowly closed, and he was fast asleep. He looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. Since they were both on the same couch, he was tucked into a ball with his head against the other end. There was easily enough room for her to fit as well, since she was much smaller than him. With a drowsy smile, Hermione conjured a blanket with her wand and threw it over him and herself. She returned to her book, but within minutes she too had fallen asleep.

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During the early hours of the morning the Order finally returned. Hermione and Draco were sleeping on opposite sides of the same couch, under the same blanket. The fire was now a pile of red hot embers, emitting a warm glow over the sleeping figures. Next to Hermione's face was an open book, and it was obvious that she'd fallen asleep reading. Under normal circumstances, Harry and Ron would have been furious with her sleeping on the same couch as Draco. But the current circumstances were far from normal. The circumstances were both great, and tragic. Harry walked over and gently shook Hermione awake.