Learning To Love

As the carriages took the last turn towards the castle, Hermione sighed contentedly, while her parents just looked puzzled at the sight in front of them; all they saw was a bunch of ruins with signs warning of chemical toxins.

The gates to the castle opened up and Hermione took each of her parents' hands. It was as if that single touch enabled them to see the castle in its true form. Her mother let out a small "ahh" and smiled at her daughter. She now understood why her daughter was so in love with this World and she felt a pang of regret that she could not truly enjoy it with her.

The carriages stopped at the entrance and everyone got out. It was almost dinnertime, so Hermione led her parents into the Great Hall with Draco trailing behind.

"Wow," her father said, staring at the ceiling.

"Hermione, it's beautiful," her mother told her breathlessly.

Instead of the four long house tables, there were three smaller round tables sitting in front of the Head Table. Harry, Daphne and her family had already taken seats at the table on the far right, so Hermione led the way to the table on the far left. Her parents took the two seats to Hermione's left, leaving only the seat to her right free. Groaning slightly, Draco slid into it.

Looking up at the Head Table, Hermione saw Professor McGonagall, now Headmistress sitting in the center, with Professors Flitwick and Sprout on either side of her. Next to Professor Flitwick sat Hestia Jones, who Hermione knew to be Assistant to the Minister of Magic and next to Professor Sprout sat Minister Weasley.

Professor McGonagall stood up and all the quiet talk in the Great Hall stopped.

"Former students, welcome back, and newcomers, welcome to Hogwarts. I hope you will enjoy your stay with us. I know everyone must be hungry, so I will try to keep this short. After dinner, you will be shown to your quarters. After breakfast tomorrow morning, we will discuss arrangements and begin preparations for the impending marriage. Thank you, and enjoy your meal."

She took a seat and the food appeared in front of everyone. The Muggle families couldn't believe what they were witnessing. Dinner, itself, was a quiet affair, except for the plethora of questions that Mrs. Granger had for her daughter and Draco. They answered every one as best as they could, but by the end, their annoyances were starting to show through.

After dinner, Professor McGonagall stood and asked everyone to follow her. She led everyone to a painting of a young girl, holding a basket of flowers. Saying the password, 'Sugar Quills,' she led them all inside.

"These will be your quarters during your stay here. Up the stairs and to the right is a dorm for all the brides to be and to the left is a dorm for all the grooms. If you follow the stairs up one more level, the families will find individual rooms they may stay in. Make yourself comfortable and after breakfast tomorrow, we will go over more of the details," the Headmistress said, before taking her leave.

At this point, Mr. and Mrs. Greengrass came over to introduce themselves to Hermione's parents. Mrs. Greengrass explained that while her husband had gone to Hogwarts, she herself had been brought up in France and attended Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. Slowly the other families came over to introduce themselves, and they all made their way up the stairs to see their quarters.

Hermione made her way up the stairs a few minutes later after exchanging a brief good night with Draco, and collapsed onto her bed. As she lay there, she thought back to when she first learned that Draco had turned to the Light...

It was the summer before their seventh year, and most of the members of the Order of the Phoenix were at 12 Grimmauld Place, celebrating Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour's marriage. Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny were sitting in front of the fire, when the flames turned green and Professor McGonagall, who had been conspicuously absent tumbled out, pulling a disheveled Draco Malfoy behind her. Harry stood immediately, pulling out his wand, while Professor McGonagall just shook her head and walked into the kitchen, Draco following behind.

Hermione couldn't help but notice how bad Draco looked. His hair was all different lengths and it looked like it hadn't been washed in days. He had lost some weight too which was very noticeable and his robes were torn to shreds.

All talking in the kitchen ceased, when the new Hogwarts Headmistress entered with one of the enemy following behind. She made a small announcement that all members of the Order convene in the dining room and continued to lead the way. Harry, Hermione, Ron and Ginny followed behind Mrs. and Mr. Weasley, and because of the shock of the situation, no one stopped them.

Professor McGonagall began to speak as soon as everyone was settled into the room. "I was in Hogsmeade this afternoon, tending to some business when I found Mr. Malfoy here, lying unconsciousness behind the Hog's Head. After some careful questioning, including under Veritaserum, which he agreed to, I can tell you that Mr. Malfoy tried to escape from his father's house a fortnight ago and to make his way out from Voldemort's inner circle. He was found a couple nights ago and was tortured by his pursuers. He was left to die in Hogsmeade, however, I was lucky to have found him. He has been attended to by Madam Pomfrey and has agreed to join our side and help us in whatever way he can."

At this point, Mad-Eye Moody spoke up. "How can we be certain he is who he says he is and that he has not somehow found a way around Veritaserum? We need to remember who we are dealing with. He was sent to kill Albus!" Moody spoke with passion, as the loss of Professor Dumbledore was still so recent.

"Alastor, I understand your concerns, but I have questioned him and I have no reason to believe that Mr. Malfoy means any harm."

The conversation then turned to how best to keep Draco safe and where he could stay. He stayed quiet during all of this, and Hermione could not help but notice the vacant expression in Draco's eyes. It was as if they were not talking about him, but some other person and he couldn't care less.

That expression stayed with Hermione through the years, and it was what she remembered first when she received the letter from Minister Weasley, even before all the hateful things that he had said to her.

Sighing, Hermione thought about how great it was to be back at Hogwarts, however, she wished it had been for very different reasons. When she heard Parvati and Daphne enter the room, she rolled over, pretending to already be asleep, and, as she closed her eyes, she once again saw Draco's vacant, lonely expression.