Things Change

Chapter 20

Things were going as planned. Draco hadn't found out about the meeting. Or at least, not yet.

Draco was still in the common room at 1:00, Hermione took that was a good sign. Little did she know, Pansy was informed of a time change. She thought she had saved him.

Draco's POV

"I'll meet you out by the gates at midnight. We can apparate together." I was sitting at lunch, and out of nowhere's, Pansy asks me to meet her at midnight. What the fuck is going on?

"What are you talking about? Apparate where?"

"Don't you know anything?" she asked impatiently. "The meeting tonight?" What? "At your house?" What?! "You are so useless. Just meet me at midnight. Don't be late." Then she sashayed away, as if she wasn't an eye sore.

I didn't know what to do. Of course it was what I think. What other kind of meeting would it be? To plan a birthday? Yep, definitely what I think.

Everything seemed to shatter around me. It was over, my life was all over. Everything I had worked for, to forget all this, was gone.

Hermione's POV

The day went by, and Draco never left my sight for more than a few minutes. Where he went, I trailed not too far beyond. I just was making sure he never went anywhere.

After a long day of following him around, I did a little reading in my room before going to bed.

Draco's POV

At 11:55, I made sure Hermione was no where in sight as I left I common room.

She'd been around all day, I thought she'd never leave.

Pansy was already waiting impatiently and it wasn't even midnight. Women, I thought, Nothing's ever right.

As she roughly jerked my arm, I realized how big of mistake this was. I could have ditched her and not gone, but then what would I tell her? My family already had a bad enough reputation, I didn't need to make it worse.

I'll think of a way of of this later.

As we apparated, I felt my body being stretched and pulled and squished. I landed off balance and would have toppled over if Pansy wasn't clutching onto my arm.

As I took a moment to steady myself, afraid I might hurl, I hunnched over, taking deep breaths.

"Come on already!" she barked at me. Oh, how I wish I could smack her. But I followed.

The moment we stepped into the manor, it felt as if I had just apparated again. I lost balance so I latched onto Pansy's arm, and I felt sick to my stomach. I stared at the ground thinking about hurling all over Pansy's shoes, but that wouldn't make a good impression.

So I swallowed and looked straight at their faces. Each and everyone of them. I recognized some of them, but only a few.

There was about ten or twelve of them, and Pansy informed me these were only a few.

"Draco, how nice to see you after all this time." The one at the front said, and I had a flash back.

Hermione screaming. A man in a cloak. Hermione dying on the ground. He had been in that cloak. It's like I've known this was gonna happen all along.  "Pansy told me you gotta share a room with that mudblood Granger. I wish we coulda finished her and Potter off just like that filthy blood-traitor." I wanted to say something, tell them that it's not that bad, but they wouldn't like that.

So, I just nodded. Instead, I tried to place some names.

The one up front...his name is... uh, Mulciber, then there's Macnair, Yaxley, Travers, Jugson, Avery, and in the back, trying to hide himself, Goyle. When I saw him, I felt angered, but also relief.

*Okay, I know in the book Crabbe dies, and I think Goyle dies in the movie, but I'm going with what I know from the books. So please don't argue about who died and who lived. It's just a fan fiction, it doesn't have to follow the facts if I don't want to. It's my book, I'll do what I want. Don't like it, don't read it. Anyway, carry on with your reading ;)*

All this time, I thought I had lost him too. He haven't even bothered to let me know he was okay, or alive. But at least he was still alive.

We sat at the table a little while. They talked, I listened. They made plans to break Dolohov, the Carrows, Rookwood, and the rest of the death eaters out of Azkaban, but keep it on the down-low. They didn't want anyone to find out they were making a "come back," as they called it, just yet. No matter what it took,  no matter the risk, they were gonna bring him back.

I'm sure that's why they wanted to try to bring him back. Most likely they were just trying to save their skins. Father had told me how angry he was when no one came to look for him. They didn't want that to happen again if he could find a way back.

Finally, after what seemed like the longest meeting ever, we were dismissed. I found Mother, in the living room, looking into oblivion. Her hands were gripped so tightly around her cup, the knuckles were white, but she was still shaking.

She gestured for me to sit next to her. Once I did, she looked around to make sure no one was lurking where they weren't supposed to.

She pulled me in close. "I didn't invite them here," she said in a harsh whisper. "I don't want them here. You don't want them here, I know that. Just do whatever you can to stop this." Then she shoved me away. Pansy grabbed my arm and dragged me outside. I stumbled off the doorstep and before both my feet had touched the ground, she was disapperating, pulling me along.

I walked back into the castle without really meaning to do so. I was just thinking about what Mother had said. She wanted me to stop this. All along, I thought this is what she had wanted. But I would, I would find a way to end this. No one needed to deal with this again.

No POV

Hermione planned to tell Harry about the letter, but she was in such a good mood, she had forgotten.

Her mother and father had sent her a letter saying they were going on another skiing trip for Christmas vacation, asking if she wanted to come.

Harry was going back to the burrow with Ginny, and she would stop there at some point. It was nice, they were going to have a normal year for once.

Hermione's POV

I couldn't wait to go skiing, it was going to be so much fun! I wonder if Draco was going home...

But it was going to be nice to be back in the muggle world and spend some times with my parents. We hadn't done that much since their memories had been restored.

I was glad I saved Draco from going to that meeting. I couldn't stop the others now, but we eventually would. Don't we always?

*A/N

So, what is Draco gonna do? Comment what you think! But, sorry about the short chapter, don't hate me, but I've been at the dentist all day getting examined for braces, and they don't let you use electronics, how stupid?! But I quick wrote this up so you guys would have an update. To make up for it, I'll do an extra long chapter tomorrow ;) Love yas!

Love this quote so much, its perfect for a relationship like Draco's and Hermione's <3

"You may not be her first, her last, or her only. She loved before she may love again. But if she loves you now, what else matters? She's not perfect—you aren't either, and the two of you may never be perfect together but if she can make you laugh, cause you to think twice, and admit to being human and making mistakes, hold onto her and give her the most you can. She may not be thinking about you every second of the day, but she will give you a part of her that she knows you can break—her heart. So don't hurt her, don't change her, don't analyze and don't expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she's not there."

-Bob Marley

~OxMrsMalfoy~