Draco Malfoy's Kill-Her Birthday

Draco Malfoy's Kill-Her Birthday

*Only Time Can Save Us Now*

I turn sixteen years old today, on the seventh of July. I am sitting at the breakfast table reading the Daily Prophet. Hey, just because it's my birthday doesn't mean my father will not expect me to know what's going on in the Wizarding world -even if it is just my Daily Horoscope.

~Cancer 69~

You will face many obstacles today. Emotional, physical, and mental. Beware of the leader -the matriarch, for he will destroy what is most precious to you. Treasure what you find today -it will be gone tomorrow. Don't ever lose hope in anything, for it shall prove to be your downfall.

I wonder why that article seems so...well, direct. Instead of the usual horoscopes I have -which are vague and can be interpreted in many different ways. I also can't help but feel that my birthday is going to be damned. I guess I'll just have to make do with what comes, but -treasured? Surely, some of my gifts must be very valuable and expensive, no doubt about that. I just hope it isn't my new Firebolt 2000 model! Not even scar-head has one of those!

No mystery about who the matriarch is. My father -Lucius. Damn man thinks he owns me or something. Precious? I am a Malfoy and we only find ourselves precious... is he going to destroy *me*? Hardly. Why would he?

***

Draco laid down the paper back onto the mahogany breakfast table. A section titled 'Breaking News' slipped out of the folds. The article that caught Draco's attention stated,

'Miss Hermione Granger, who many of the Witch Weekly readers will have heard about as Harry Potter's steady girlfriend, has been abducted. She was last seen in Berlin, Germany, with her Muggle parents. Witnesses say that she was there one minute -gone the next. Here is what her father had to say, "We only sent her to get a traveler's brochure...When she failed to return -that is when we started to panic". Aurors and Muggle police have been notified of her disappearance. The Prophet has some leads to believe that magic was used to transport her. The truth remains to be told as of yet, but The Prophet will keep you updated.'

Draco placed the section back into its corresponding order, and tried to analyze what he had just read.

Hermione? Granger? The Mudblood? Kidnapped? Were just a few of the main streams of thought flowing through his confused mind.

The only good thing about that disgrace called a witch is her brains. Which father never fails to remind me of every summer. Thank god she's gone! Yet, all the same -Draco couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt for wishing her gone, at least not without getting his own revenge on her. He just wanted to beat her in school, that was all. Regardless of what the others in his student body felt he would do to Hermione -all he wanted were better grades than her. Even for just a day.

He finished up his late breakfast and with a scrape of his chair -left the table. Just as he raised himself off the chair, he felt a cold hand upon his shoulder.

"Son, go get ready for your party. The guests will be arriving shortly," Lucius told his son in a barely audible whisper that sent shivers up Draco's spine. Lucius continued after consulting his watch, "as in two hours -at six o'clock. Why did you sleep in so late by the way?" Lucius gave his son a stern look.

Ok...so, I can't really tell him I was reading "Anthem", so I'll lie -which is something I'm quite talented at, fortunately.

"I was reading A Tale of Two Evil Overlords," Draco made up.

"Good, good. It's nice to see you're catching up on you *proper* studies," Lucius commented, his stern look replaced with approval. Draco mentally sighed with relief as he exited the breakfast room and ventured up the flight of stairs and to his right was the door to his bedroom. Opening the door, which creaked slightly, Draco walked in and went over to his wardrobe. He found a pair of black trousers, a black silk button-up, and a black with green trim cloak.

Draco set the clothes on his bed; starting to dress himself. Afterwards, he charmed his silver blond hair to stay in place.

***Eleven in the afternoon***

"Let's hear it for my son, and heir! Draco!" Lucius shouted to the crowd of party goers.

Cheering and applause were given at a tremendous volume for the young blond man making his way up to his proud father.

This is actually fun; I wonder what father's gift to me shall be? I just wish all these guests would leave now! I want my present!

Draco got his wish. After cutting, and distributing the enormous triple layer chocolate cake, the guests slowly started to trickle out of the front doors.

The party finally ended. All of the guests were now gone. Lucius called for Draco to follow him.

"Yes father?" Damnit! It had better be good! "This as you know, is your initiation day as well -right?"

"Yes father, I know".

Damnit, where the hell is my present? The two silver-haired men walked on through the enormous manor. "Father, is it in my room that I shall be initiated?" Draco asked with a slight tremor of nervousness peaking in his now-deepening voice.

Lucius' evil grin gave Draco his answer.

He forced himself not to roll his eyes in exasperation at his father's lunacy. Ok...psycho, just give me a fucking straightforward answer. I hate your fucking 'grins'; they make you look constipated!

"Explain what I must do, father," Draco finally answered Lucius.

"There is a Muggle girl in your chamber. You must rape her, or you, my dear son will die," Draco could just see his father mentally rubbing his palms together in anticipation.

Damn. I have to fucking rape a fucking Muggle?! Some birthday...wait a minute! I've never had sex! Some initiation ritual -this isn't something I expected. I thought I would have to kill someone. Ah, well...it's only some Muggle girl.

"Ok, father I will do it," Draco responded. Ha! A Pun! 'Do it'...haha!

"Draco, what do you find so amusing?" Lucius inquired of his smiling son.

"I'm fine father. I was just laughing at my pun -do it," Draco answered. "Well Draco, do not get so amused with yourself. It wouldn't do for a Malfoy to seem so...self absorbed," Lucius grinned slyly. "Yes, father," Draco obliged while smirking slightly.

"Now, go on in and scare the silly Muggle out of her mind!" Lucius opened the doors and threw Draco in. He locked it after his son was completely inside.

Why are my candles out? It's too damn dark in here.

Draco tripped over the end of his carpet. Fuck! My toe feels like its bloody broken!

Draco searched his room around with his hands, groping whatever came in his way. The thick darkness forbade him the ability to see what he was falling upon. But the rolling sound of candles on the floor, made Draco fall to the floor on his knees and he groped around for the objects.

Finding the familiar round, cylindrical objects, Draco lit them up and the candles slowly flickered to life. He could make out a lumpy shape of a body on his bed! Draco walked over to the candle nearest to the Muggle. He lit it and peered closer at the Muggle girl.

Oh. My. God.

What the hell is she doing here?

Draco's eyes widened and he approached the girl. The girl had tears -fresh and old, streaming down her pretty face. The girl's eyes widened when she saw Draco. She looked scared shitless.

"Hermione? Hermione Granger?"

The girl nodded her sad head slowly.

Oh damn. Not her. I can't do this...this is fucking insane! As much as I called her a Muggle -she isn't one! She's a bloody Witch!

Hermione was gagged and couldn't speak, cry, or say anything for the matter.

I can't see her like this -this sad, this depressed, this...in this treatment!

"Hermione, if you remain quiet, I will take that god damn gag out of your mouth. Alright, be smart and don't start screaming or something. My father would be in here within a matter of seconds -he will not hesitate to kill you," Draco told Hermione in a hushed whisper right by her trembling ear. She nodded with wide eyes, yet she understood the full importance of following Draco's directions.

Draco carefully removed the cloth from Hermione's dry mouth. He shook his head sadly.

"Hermione, Hermione...How in the world did you get in this mess?"

She shot him an incredulous look that frightened him to core.

"*You* should know! Your father told you!" Draco cut her off by placing a finger on her parched lips -sufficiently shushing her.

"That question was rhetorical," Draco smiled at her sadly.

His resolve from earlier that day dissolved completely. He couldn't worry about his place in school; not when a person was going to die most assuredly either that night or the next morning. As much as he tried to fill his father's footsteps -Draco just felt that this -the fact that Hermione, whom he'd practically grown used to as an annoying sister of some sort was going to die- was a bit much.

Silence.

Hermione decided to ask the one question foremost on her mind. About her life.

"Draco? What will happen to me after I get..." she gulped and closed her cinnamon eyes before continuing, "raped?" Hermione desperately seeked her "Gryffindor" bravery at this point in her life. She decided to take one step at a time. Even though each step meant getting closer to one of her fears -death. She always knew that being Harry's best friend and girlfriend would get her killed one day.

Draco sighed, frowned and looked her in the eye before answering. He knew what might happen based on the stories his father told him of past Death Eater activities.

"Once we are done...the Death Eaters," Draco still didn't consider himself capable of this atrocity and thus not worthy of being called a Death Eater himself, "will probably take you away. They will decide from two choices -your fates. One choice is to let you go back to where they originally kidnapped you -after raping you themselves. And leaving you scarred for the rest of your life. Rape, I guess can do that to you. I wouldn't know..." Draco trailed off and looked down in his lap embarrassedly. Hermione looked onto him for a continuation to the second choice. He continued, but with a low, sad undertone to his normally vicious, cold voice, "The other option would of course be to get rid of all evidence -including the body...which is fed to Nagini, Vold- the Dark Lord's snake".

Draco gulped and hoped against all odds that Hermione would not face the second option. Hermione mentally agreed. She started to cry in slow streams that started to run into raging rapids down her pale cheeks.

He saw her desperate face and felt his heart melt.

"You know, we could just pretend we had sex. And we could make it convincing!" Draco told her, trying to sound optimistic in the light of their plight. He wasn't so sure that this plan would work, but he knew it would cheer up Hermione. She giggled slightly, bumped her head on his shoulder and whispered, "And just how would you go about making sex seem real?" Then her face turned serious, "No. They'll probably cast a charm on me to make sure its true and not a lie. We have to have sex. If not -*both* of us will be dead by tomorrow morning," Hermione sadly informed a distraught Draco.

"Hermione, I never actually wanted to kill anyone. Father told me you were a Muggle".

"Yes, I heard. He is truly mistaken," Hermione told him with a sigh.

"I guess we better get this over with, and as much as I -and I a *guy* at that...I'm supposed to jump at any chance like this. At least before I lose my nerve we'd better get going," Draco told her truthfully.

He dimmed all the candles, which caused eerie shadows to crawl about the stone walls.

Hermione, purposefully started to remove her robes, leaving her even more vulnerable than before. Draco too removed his robes and forced himself not to look at Hermione in her most natural state. Draco -as much as he wanted to be a 'bad-boy', couldn't. This was pure torture for him. This was something most people found *fun* -not obligatory! Most of the time, people his age were sneaking around the library or the Astronomy Tower trying to do this. Nope. Not for him. He was *forced* too.

Hermione herself restrained her eyes from traveling all over Draco's pale but muscular torso...and below.

They climbed into Draco's bed, under the covers.

"Are you sure?" Draco asked her one more time. He just didn't feel right about this. For some odd reason.

"Yes," came Hermione's tiny voice from under the covers.

They took it slowly. Draco didn't want to rush poor Hermione into doing the one thing she probably would never have done with him if this situation hadn't arose. It made sense to both of them -to save their lives, or to preserve whatever life was left available to them.

Purely sustenance of the highest and weirdest degree.

They were in bed together, not completely void of distance between. They were one. And yet both felt detached somehow. *This* was not how they had wanted their first time to be like. It was more of a mockery of their previous innocence.

Yes -Hermione was scarred for life, but she couldn't help but let Draco know what she felt when she was around him. In the most literal sense.

They finished up the job, and Hermione touched Draco's bare arm gently.

Draco felt unprecedented feeling overcome his mind with just the mere touch of her hand on him.

Looking into his stormy blue-gray eyes, she whispered, "Draco, I'm just happy that if it had to be anyone I was doing *this* with...it was you".

He smiled reluctantly. He still felt guilt.

"I'd totally agree with you on that one Hermione, but I really wish that *us* being like this didn't have to be forced," Draco said sadly.

He was raking his fingers through her now (just recently) straight, smooth light-brown hair.

"Hermione?" Draco asked tentatively.

Hermione had fallen asleep. She had laid her head on his bare chest and her soft breaths tickled Draco, yet calmed him down at the same time. Draco could understand that, for he too started to feel the natural lull of slumber pulling down his eyelids. Before he finally fell into a deep sleep, Draco kissed Hermione lightly on her eyelids and nose. "I love you, Hermione. Just thought I oughta let you know," Draco told her in her ear.

"I do too," came her unexpected response; which Draco heard and smiled down on her.

The two fell into a deep slumber with each other's arms tightly wrapped around one another.

***July 8^th: Early Morning***

The sun had not even risen when Lucius Malfoy stormed into Draco's bedroom chamber. Hermione and Draco were still asleep, wrapped even tighter around each other then before.

Draco groggily opened his eyes, his blurry early morning vision not aiding him in deciphering what the hell his father was doing in his room. Before Draco's eyes and mind could adjust to the earliness of his awakening -before Draco could even say good bye, no hugs, no nothing...

Lucius grabbed the bleary eyed Hermione by her arm. He through her off the bed and to the hard, cold, stone floor.

"Get up Muggle!" Lucius screamed down at the fully exposed and highly embarrassed Hermione.

She slowly rose to her feet and tried with all her might from crying. She knew, and Draco knew that *this* it.

The Death Eaters could either kill her or leave her. Only two choices. But one of them was to be decided upon yet. The two lovers exchanged worried, yet loving glances to each other before Lucius took her away for the final 'decision'.

That was the last time Draco saw her.

Lucius Disapparated with his grip strong on the petrified girl. Her face clearly showed the early worry lines when she had turned to look at Draco for her last time.

I swear to God. They had better not give her the second option...she *can't* be killed! She can't!

***School Starts today: Draco doesn't take the Hogwarts Express because his father delivers him by carriage***

The summer had sped quickly by.

Draco had kept watch on the Daily Prophet regularly -waiting for a sign of Hermione's return. Not a word was written nor spoken about Miss Granger, who was still officially 'missing'. He was looking forward to school because he wanted to know for sure whether or not she came back to Hogwarts at least.

As much as Draco hated to admit it, he knew Dumbledore was very trustworthy and would most likely hide Hermione -so efficiently that even the Daily Prophet Special Reporters (skilled in their snooping techniques) wouldn't be able to take so much as a whiff of her scent. So to speak.

Draco had arrived early, much to his happiness. He was there before his other classmates had even turned the corner of Hogsmeade Station's road to Hogwarts. He and his father had had a long talk about alliances to Voldemort before Lucius even considered taking Draco to Kings Cross station for the train. *That* was why his damned father dropped him off by carriage, much to Draco's chagrin.

At least I'm not as stupid as Potty and the Weasel...taking a Muggle car flying! Ha! At least I travel in style!

He sat down in the Great Hall at his usual spot on the Slytherin Table.

Finally, after waiting for what seemed an eternity -the other students and some stray teachers poured into the Hall with great raucous. The new first years then arrived; the Sorting began and ended. But still there was no sign.

No sign of a Miss Hermione Granger, that is.

He was starting to worry. Dumbledore stood up, lacking the usual sparkle in his robin-eggs blue eyes. Calling for silence with a wave of his wrinkled, gnarled, old hand -the noise, laughter, and side discussions abruptly ended.

Everyone awaited the traditional School Song, and announcements from Dumbledore.

Little did they know.

"I hope all of that are still with us today, have had another summer filled with happiness, love, and peace. For some of us, unfortunately -there has been much pain, suffering, war, and deaths. One death in particular will affect our very school. This exemplary example of a student was abducted by Death Eaters this summer and has not been found since. We have received a message directly from the Death Eaters regarding her most definite murder. We didn't trust this statement until we tried owling her. To no avail, the owls returned *with* the letters -thus blatant proof of her death.

Miss Hermione Granger, a friend to almost all of us in some way, shape, or form was murdered,"

A few sobs and stifled cries could be heard emitting from every table but Slytherin.

But that didn't mean Draco wasn't deeply affected. He was terribly shocked; his mind couldn't even correspond with his heart. A mind that was taught to hate her kind was now muddled by the deeper, stronger feelings of his heart telling him to care. To care that the one girl he would've rather seen alive was now dead. Never to be seen again; never to be heard. He would miss her bossy voice; the one she used when helping poor Squib Neville with his Potions...the voice of reason for him when he would've rather gotten her out of the situation to begin with. Even if it had meant his own death -even a death by his father's hand. He wouldn't have minded his own death if it meant saving her life. She was the first person he had ever felt such strong convictions for. His heart 'thought' faster, more responsively than his mind when it came to Hermione. She was the very presence of hope inside him. And now that flame, which was once inside Draco, was forever extinguished. The silent, invisible tears of his broken heart had put out the flame of her candle.

Some of the other Slytherins, the more 'understanding' of the house could be seen with forlorn expressions played across their usual scowls. They knew that her death was a blow, a blow to the good side. A blow to the obnoxious, yet harmless Harry Potter. It wasn't as if all Slytherins were dying to become Death Eaters. Some even had had high hopes of becoming famous Quidditch players, News reporters, Singers, etc. All those dreams were now somehow down the drain. All because their Death Eater parents probably killed the one girl that had helped Harry Potter in a many deadly situations.

Then again, there were a few people from every house that didn't dare cry. It was for the weak-hearted. And some just plain ol' didn't like Hermione Granger one bit.

Dumbledore continued his address after letting some of the more sympathetic students settle down again.

"We will forever cherish the memory, spirit, and soul of one -Hermione Anne Granger. Let us raise our goblets in the honor of one of our times' greatest friend, greatest asset -Hermione Granger- the friend whom most of us have known, or would have in the future."

A sudden clatter of goblets being raised to skies could be heard. All tables -except Slytherin raised their goblets respectfully. Draco, surprisingly was an exception.

He raised his high -high enough to be over the heads of his fellow Slytherins. His housemates all looked at him as if he had suddenly acquired two heads. They were not accustomed to a Mudblood-loving Draco. Then again, neither was Draco for the matter. But he knew that what his heart was saying was more important then a mind that was almost constantly controlled by Lucius.

After Dumbledore lowered his goblet, while sending an appreciative look towards Draco -the students too followed his suit. The clammer of goblets being lowered and clunking on the tables were echoing across the quiet Hall.

Draco felt compelled to talk to 'Potter' and 'Weasley' for some odd reason. Maybe it was his heart telling him what to do. But the reason was that he felt obliged to receive their condolences.

Potter and Weasley were nowhere to be seen. Probably being told about Hermione in private, with their head of house, thought Draco. He actually felt left out. He felt that he had a *right* to be with Potter and Weasley as much as they did -being told in private with McGonagall, where it'd be alright to let loose his fighting tears.

But he didn't dare cry in front of his housemates. Word would reach Lucius within a matter of seconds...if Draco was lucky.

So, no tears fell. Then again, no tear-drop could ever help him feel any better. She was his first, and he was her first. The last happy moment of each of their lives was spent holding each other in bed. Draco couldn't even eat. He just wanted to sit alone in the common room. He left the Great Hall with a stride that betrayed nothing of weakness to his untrustworthy housemates. But some of the more observant people within the other houses noticed a *slight* slump of the shoulder, the *slight* magnetic pull of his gray eyes to the floor beneath him.

He knew they were curious as to why Draco would get upset, but no one dared challenge the Slytherin. Some even wondered why he raised the goblet. Others told them that he did that because he was 'grateful' for her death. Not upset. They would continue thinking such things about Draco because he would never dare to correct them. At least if word got out that he had 'respectfully' raised a glass in honor of a Mudblood -Lucius would know, no - *think* that Draco had done so out of gratefulness of one less Mudblood in the world.

Draco continued making his way through the empty corridors. He was a Prefect after all, the letter had arrived a week after Draco and Hermione had gotten to 'know' each other. He also had his own dorm room -the benefits of being a Malfoy and a Prefect.

He slowly closed his door behind him, lay down on his soft green blanket and started to cry.

Draco had never cried in his life before this, so he had no idea how to dam his tears from escaping his eyes. All throughout the day and night, Draco wept until his eyes could no longer supply tears. He fell into a troubled deep slumber, a sleep with dreams.

He dreamt of Hermione and Harry Potter. The way Hermione looked was the same as she did in her third year. She still had her enormous buck-teeth and long bushy hair. In Draco's dream, a vision of Hermione and Harry flying a Hippogriff that looked oddly familiar came into view. Oddly enough, to Draco -the dream didn't seem fake. It seemed *real*. As if he himself were there flying with them.

Draco looked at the younger Hermione longingly.

He longed for her to be *here*, still breathing, laughing, eating, studying, talking, reading, kissing...the same old Hermione.

He missed her desperately. Only when Draco saw a brief shimmer coming from Hermione's neck, did he notice something that he knew was hard to obtain.

A Time-Turner.

Draco reached out a hand to grab the necklace. His hand went through a cloud and he fell off the Hippogriff. Fell out of the dream...

***Three Months Pass***

For the next three months, Draco dreamed the same dream. And fell out of it the same way. Every night, the dream-nightmare came to haunt him.

He didn't mind seeing Hermione every night, but he minded the fact that he could never, no matter how hard he tried -get the Time-Turner. He had no idea *why* his dream-self found this necklace so damned important. However, he did know that it frustrated him -for *no* Malfoy was ever denied something for long. And no Malfoy ever had to try so hard to obtain such an object.

One night, after a pretty vivid reoccurrence of the dream, Draco decided he wanted to have one night, just one night without dreams that left him feeling so hopeless, and helpless that it hurt.

He decided to go to the Infirmary for some Sleeping Draught.

Draco was walking through the empty, quiet corridors when a sound emitted from the library. He became distracted of his goal and made way for library instead. He half-expected to see a rowdy couple not being secretive enough, making books fall. Instead, what he saw left him breathless, heartbeat-less, and stunned One-Hundred-Percent.

His wand light poured onto the person Draco least expected to find in the library...ironically enough.

Hermione Granger's ghost.

Draco's shock was evidently over by now -for he started to cry. He couldn't *believe* it. Hermione? Here?

Hermione's ghost or Hermione floated over to weeping Draco. She had a sad look in her transparent light-brown eyes. Draco looked up at her floating form sadly. His tears subsided finally after five minutes of seeking composure.

"Do- Does anyone else know yo-you are he-here?" Draco asked her, his voice stammering from the cry he had just finished.

"Um. No, not even Harry or Ron know I'm here," she echoed, even though it was intended as a whisper.

Draco knew that a person's spirit wouldn't rest in its grave if it was unhappy when it died and had unfinished business.

"Why are you still here?" Draco didn't want to sound rude for wording it so cuttingly, but there was no need for him to explain his rash sentence. Hermione was a smart girl, and would definitely know what he was trying to convey by that question.

"I still have unfinished 'research' to complete. Don't ask what it is about -You know for a fact that I cannot tell the living what it is," Hermione's echo-whisper returned.

Draco pulled out a chair form under a table laden with heavy tomes, and sat down on the chair backwards. His chin resting on his arms, as his arms were crossed on the top of the wooden chair. He sighed deeply and looked at her. She was cold looking, although it was to be expected from the dead. Draco still didn't understand what could possibly keep her back from journeying to Heaven. Where in his opinion, she belonged. Wishing to break the unbearable silence that fell upon them, Draco asked her another question. Hopefully one with a definite answer, he thought.

"So tell me, how it has been since...since..." Draco gulped and couldn't bear to say the word 'died'.

"It's ok Draco, you can say it...I'm dead. Nothing's going to change that, but that doesn't mean we can't still be friends -right?" Hermione asked Draco with a questioning eyebrow raised.

All he could think was: I'm friends with a ghost of the girl I care for deeply. Arg! The one I loved! ARG! The one I still love... "I don't see why not," he answered truthfully, while Hermione remained oblivious to the inner conflicts going on inside Draco's mind. He smiled at her for good measure.

"Good," she happily said. "You know, I have had dreams about you *every* night," Draco admitted to her.

"What was it about?" she asked curiously. Draco described the entire dream to her listening ear. Even down to his *many* failed attempts at grabbing the necklace's ornament.

The ghost gasped and said softly, "*THAT* actually happened! Three years ago to be exact".

Draco paled visibly, and asked her what the significance of the dream was. She replied in a somewhat distant eerie tone.

"Only You can discover the significance of your own mind's mentality. Discover this and a whole avenue of forgotten memories and thoughts will reappear to you".

"Right..." Draco replied somewhat sarcastically. He didn't believe in baloney like divination, and from what he had heard from other students -neither did Hermione.

"So...Hermione, where *did* you obtain such an item of extreme rarity and value?"

"Professor McGonagall gave it to me, so that I could get to all my extra classes on time," she answered.

The two continued to chat. They talked about the dream; they talked about their everyday lives. They obviously missed each other -even though they had spent but *ONE* night together as friends -as lovers.

Draco promised to visit her every night. And he kept his promises. Although, one of them was living -the other dead, their frequent visits to each other created a bond like no other...love.

They were in love. And they knew it. The two knew nothing could be done for their situation to help -but they still regarded each other's visits with much enthusiasm.

Most of the time, Hermione and Draco -when there was no topic to talk about, researched Time-Turners. They actually found a lot of information in the restricted section -thanks to Hermione, and they set to work trying to dissect Draco's dreams.

Every night the dreams became more and more vivid -more life-like. Every night, he felt he was coming closer to grabbing the Time-Turner. It was like one of the Snitch practices his father once put him through twice a day during the summer. Lucius would charm a Snitch to *never* be caught, and Draco would chase, and chase it until he either fell from the sky exhausted -or flew down to the ground; Ever ready for the punishment surely to be dished out by Lucius for giving up.

After a while, Draco realized what he must do.

He had to ask his father for a Time-Turner. He mustn't give a reason, but he *knew*, somehow, that it was necessary for him to obtain one.

Draco stayed over the Christmas holidays at Hogwarts. One night, as an early Christmas gift -Lucius sent the Time-Turner to his son. A note came attached to it. Stating, in Lucius' narrow, slanted writing:

Draco-

Use this Time-Turner to change things of the past. Be careful! Don't go back further than 24 hours -otherwise you may be changing more than your test grades' outcome. (That *is* the reason you wanted this, right?) That's my boy. Make me proud. Use this whenever you feel a Mudblood, or that damned Potter is getting in the way.

If you can, and this would make me extremely proud of you -when you go back in time, create as much chaos and trouble for the old coot Dumbledore as you possibly can. If you are a true Malfoy -then I won't have to worry about you getting caught.

Do not disappoint me Draco. Your mother and I will see you during the summer holidays.

-L.M.

Draco had shown this letter to Hermione, who just laughed.

She had said in a mocking tone, "Do *not* disappoint me Draco! I am GOD! You will obey me and my master! Damn, who the hell does he think he is?"

Draco couldn't have helped but to laugh.

They got down to business after talking out Lucius' letter.

"Ok now...open *that* book up and flip to page One-Thousand-Seven-Hundred-Twenty-Three," Hermione said.

She was sitting cross-legged, floating in the air. Draco's wandlight played across the book Hermione wanted him to open. He flipped through a lot of stale-smelling pages and finally landed on the appropriate page number. He coughed lightly because the dust had flown up at him.

"I'm on it now," he informed an amused Hermione.

"Now read it and keep your eyes open for anything that sticks out for you," she told him vaguely. Draco nodded and sank into his seat. He read, and read. His eyes were hurting, but he knew he had to continue. It wasn't as if Hermione could possibly help. She couldn't even flip a feather if she tried. Just how she made noise that one faithful night of her discovery was still a mystery to Draco. "Hermione, how did you make that noise back when I first discovered you?"

She thought for a moment and then replied, "I remember now! It was that wretched cat -Mrs. Norris who dropped the books. She was chasing a mouse out of the library just as you walked in. Didn't you see it?" He shook his head. "Hmm, you might've been too surprised at seeing *me* to care what passed you by".

The peaks of sunlight were just starting to stream in through the high placed windows when Draco jumped up into the air excitedly. Mind you, his eyes failed to register his obvious exhaustion -but he knew he must quickly tell her of this before it slipped his mind.

"What!?" she echoed. Hermione looked at Draco weirdly, expecting him to answer her right away. She made a hand movement, that suggested a flow of conversation would be nice...

Suddenly, Draco snapped back into reality and shook his head clear of sleepiness.

But his thoughts raced back and forth through his conscious mind. *This* will allow Hermione -umm...her ghost -to come with me! This is great!

A sound of echoing or actually it was Hermione clearing her throat, "Mind telling me what's going on inside your head?"

"No! Not at all!" Draco shouted cheerfully. Oddly cheerful for someone who hadn't gotten any sleep and was still up at 4:30 A.M.

"Maybe you need to go to sleep Draco," Hermione told him with a touch of concern playing across her words. "Oh Hermione! I *couldn't* possibly sleep! This is too wonderful!"

"Yeah, yeah...*again*, tell me what your on about, or go to bloody sleep!" She said while crossing her translucent arms.

"Did you know that if a person who is alive places the chain of a Time-Turner around that of a person who is a ghost-" Hermione cut him off, "That the ghost can't go with the living, because they aren't exactly 'complete' beings". He looked at her with a raised eyebrow and continued, "NO, actually your wrong. A ghost *can* use the Time-Turner. Says so right here in the second paragraph to your lef- no right," he said while pointing out the evidence for his claims. She looked slightly put-off for getting something wrong, but didn't complain.

"That means *you* can go with *me*!" Draco chose to clarify. He was clearly excited about this.

"Go where?" she asked.

Draco stopped short of answering her and said, "Actually, I don't know *yet*, but I will by tomorrow. I think I need some inspiration...maybe my Hippogriff dream will help me? I hope..." Hermione shook her head, she just knew Draco would say something like that.

He thought: I need to see a living 'Hermione' to be inspired. Sorry, but the 'ghost' of Hermione being translucent doesn't give me much *hope* of saving your life.

That early Saturday morning, Draco dreamed his usual dream. Except this time -he caught the Time-Turner.

About damned time! He thought.

That was pretty inspirational in itself, Draco decided. He woke up around mid-afternoon and went down to the library to read. He knew he couldn't talk or *see* Hermione during the day -because she 'chose' to stay hidden from others.

He could feel her presence though. It sent shivers down his spine -but he still didn't mind her being there.

Nightfall came, Draco hid in a hardly used aisle of the library, and waited for Madame Pince to leave the library. Finally, after much waiting, Hermione popped into visibility beside Draco. She floated up to the ceiling to check if Madame Pince was gone yet. She definitely was. Hermione let Draco know it was safe to come out now.

He told her about his latest dream and told her his plans.

***Night of 'The Plan'***

It was about midnight when Draco finally enacted his plan. He looped the chain around the ghost's neck- and surprisingly, it stayed suspended around her neck. "Turn it back... Two Thousand, Seven Hundred and Thirty Six times. Each turn for the number of hours you wish to go back," she told him.

"Now, don't count wrong! We don't want to go back to the Founder's time!" she warned him, looking an awful lot like McGonagall with her strewn up face, and finger pointing at Draco accusingly.

"Don't worry McGonagall! I'm not dim. I can count," Draco reassured her.

Draco began the turns backwards. Then once he reached the final number, he stopped. Draco felt a tug -similar to a Portkey- pulling him, pulling him through time, it seemed.

Hermione and Draco flew back in time and it seemed to only take one minute. They finally felt the tug ending, and they opened their eyes. They were standing in the library at around the time at which they wished to be arriving. A quick Portkey was configured by Draco to link him to his bedroom chambers, and with the Turner still wrapped around both of them -they touched the Portkey and popped away.

***Draco's Bedroom Chamber: July 7^th, Midnight***

The arrival of there future selves into his bedroom jarred them for a second. They didn't have time to lose. A life -or possibly two were at stake.

Draco could make out the lumpy shapes of Hermione's body (alive) on his bed. He didn't even see his past self anywhere. He now cared more for her than he did himself. The past year had been dedicated for her, by his un-dying ambitious goal of bringing Hermione back to the living world. Who said ambition was a bad thing? The sorting hat sure knew that that was where Draco definitely belonged.

Hermione the ghost suddenly whispered into Draco's ear, "Did they have to stun *and* gag me to get me here to you?"

Draco looked at her and was about to answer. The sounds of footsteps stopped Draco from saying anything however.

"Hide!" he whispered to ghost Hermione. "Are you kidding me? I'm a friekin' ghost! I *can* hide! You however should follow your own rules!" Hermione told Draco indignantly. "Whatever..." Draco grumbled as he threw himself behind a high-backed arm chair by the fire.

The door clicked open, and Draco saw 'past' Draco walk into the room uncertainly. What was I afraid of? Draco asked himself. Maybe I *never* wanted to do it with *anyone* *THIS* way... Draco saw the door shut and lock behind 'past' Draco. Draco quietly walked up behind his past self. He put a hand over 'past' Draco's mouth -preventing him from shouting out.

'Past' Draco was dragged to the bed where 'alive' Hermione sat wide-eyed. When 'past' Draco saw her, he froze up and his eyes widened.

"Shut up and listen to me...Draco," Draco demanded of his past self. 'Past' Draco nodded his head in agreement and clear submission.

"Hermione's life is in danger. Would you like to meet the 'product' of her murder? Her ghost?" Draco asked 'past' Draco.

Draco released his tight grip on 'past' Draco, waiting for an answer. 'Past' Draco whirled around to face his speaker. "What in fucking hell are *you* doing in *my* room!? And who the fuck are you!?" 'Past' Draco inquired of his future self.

"I'm the future *you*. See this Time-Turner?" Draco pulled the necklace out of his shirt and showed it to 'past' Draco. "Yeah, so...you're telling *me*, that you're really *me*?" 'Past' Draco asked Draco semi-rhetorically.

"Yes I am. And we need to hurry. This is urgent, you must listen to me and *trust* me!" Draco demanded of his 'past' self.

He ended up explaining the entire situation to 'alive' Hermione, and 'past' Draco. When he was finished, he called out for 'ghost' Hermione.

"Yeah?" she asked/echoed.

Hermione floated to them. She 'sat' down next to Draco on the bed. 'Alive' Hermione and 'past' Draco gasped. They listened to Draco -but didn't want to believe him. *Now*, well...they *had* to.

"Holy shite!" was all 'past' Draco could get out at such a moment.

'Alive' Hermione was going through some sort of shock...I mean -*who* would want to see themselves as a ghost? And know that they will die in a few short hours' time?

Then 'alive' Hermione took 'past' Draco aside and talked to him. Draco and 'ghost' Hermione sat there, watching the other two nod their heads and shake them, and finally -they seemed to come upon a decision it seemed.

"We've decided to ask you for help to save Hermione's life," 'Past' Draco rolled his eyes and asked what they should do. Draco told him to tell his father that he killed the Muggle after 'using' her, and transfigured the body into a speck of dust.

"Eww! That's kind of disturbing!" said both Hermione's at the same time.

"Well, what other choice do we have? Leave Hermione, I mean *you*," Draco pointed to 'alive' Hermione, "here?"

A series of "no..." was grumbled out from both Hermione's. Before Draco was about to leave the past, he pulled 'ghost' Hermione to the side.

"Hermione. I just wanted you to...I just -wanted to let you know that I- I lov- love you. And if I never talk to you again...Well, at least now you know," Draco finished. She hates me...she hates me...she... "I love you too, Draco," came her soft reply. They looked into each other's eyes -well, in Draco's case: through her eyes, and they smiled.

"Hermione, did you explain the *entire* past -I mean...future for them? So that we never forget what we went through together?" Draco asked her. He was nervous about changing the past and bringing someone back from the dead.

"Shh...Draco. *Look*, I don't think we'll be having any problems talking to each other when we get back to our time," she told him quietly. She was right, the 'past' Draco and 'alive' Hermione were sitting together on the bed -side, by side.

They were holding hands and talking -occasionally throwing a loving glance at each other when the giver didn't think the receiver was noticing.

Hermione continued, "But, yes. I *did* tell her everything. Just in case..." Hermione stopped and wiped away a tear. "I feel like I'm going to die *again*. But my 'past' self is really *me*. Why do I feel like I'm committing suicide or something?" she whispered.

Draco hugged her and said, "You were never dead to me. I saw you in my dreams, my nights, and now -I will actually be able to *see* you and not *through* you. If you know what I mean," Draco told her lovingly. Hermione stopped wiping away her steady stream of translucent tears and laughed at Draco's attempt to make her feel better.

The time had finally arrived when the four of them *knew* they *HAD* to leave now. In about ten minutes, Lucius was supposed to come in and take Hermione to her doom.

The four had stayed up all night, talking and Draco had talked to 'past' Draco about how to deliver the 'dust speck' plan successfully. Another point for the Slytherins; they always were clever enough to come up with original plans.

And this is why Slytherins are smarter -*they* come up with the cunning, intelligent plans, Draco thought smugly. Actually, *both* Draco's thought this at the exact same time.

"Good-bye! And good luck Draco," Draco told 'past' Draco.

Damn, this chain is long!

He turned it forward Two Thousand, Seven Hundred, Twenty Four times.

The familiar tug and pull came, and went.

Draco opened his eyes and saw Hermione-the 'entire' Hermione (ghost and body) -unconscious, on the floor of the library. He quickly picked her up and raced through the doors of the library. Practically 'flying' through the halls, he called out at the top of his lungs,

"Madam Pomfrey! Madam Pom---oof!" Draco shouted while running into the door. He hadn't been watching where he was going. He had been crying with tears of happiness -for his Hermione was back. Along with the still unconscious Hermione -Draco slumped to the cold, hard floor. Now *he* was unconscious. He would definitely have a nasty bump the next day.

"What in the name of - OH MY GOODNESS!" Madam Pomfrey yelled, she had nearly fainted at the sight of Hermione's still *alive* body on top of Draco's still body. She rushed to their sides and first checked Hermione's pulse. It was beating regularly.

Madam Pomfrey *could not believe this*. Hermione Granger was supposed to be dead. And to top it all off! Draco Malfoy of all people found her! Well, now they were both incapable of explaining *anything*, so Madam Pomfrey levitated their bodies onto two separate hospital beds beside each other. She decided to get Dumbledore while letting the two sleep and rest. *That* was the only treatment the nurse could come up with for healing the two children.

***The Next Morning***

Draco slowly opened his eyes to the bright sunshine pouring down onto his face. He saw something silvery white next to his bed.

Sitting up, and promptly being pushed back down by the hands of Professor Dumbledore.

"Rest Draco. Rest," he said gently.

Draco turned his head in the other direction -looking for Hermione. He saw her -still asleep but *alive*. That was all that mattered. Draco smiled when he saw her sleeping.

Dumbledore took notice of this oddly Non-Malfoyish behavior and raised an eyebrow with interest.

Draco looked back at Dumbledore. He was starting to get anxious to tell the whole truth to him. The old man noticed this and started to speak, "Draco, you may explain everything to me now if you'd like."

He nodded his head and started from the beginning. He skipped the parts about him and Hermione having sex together, and went straight into the explanation of the dreams and the significance of the Time-Turner. Once Draco had finished, Dumbledore nodded and silently sat next to Draco for the next ten minutes.

Finally, Dumbledore broke the silent spell, saying quietly, "You have changed the past in the most dire ways -but I must commend you on not having the intentions to change anything selfish. I'm sure Ms. Granger will thank you most profusely once she awakens, which should be soon I hear."

Draco nodded his thanks, he was not used to being complimented for his *gasp* intentions.

Dumbledore had left Madam Pomfrey to treat her patients.

After dinner, Draco had awoken once again to the hunger pangs in his empty stomach. Incidentally, Hermione was starting to become hungry after not eating for almost two days. Draco started when he opened his eyes, to find a hospital-patient-clad-robed Hermione, standing over his bed on his right side.

"Hermione! What are you doing out of bed?" she shrugged and sat down at the side of Draco. He sat up with a start and Hermione pushed him back down with her hand. "Calm down Draco! Why are you so jumpy?" she asked concernedly.

"Sorry, I'm just so used to a ghost-Granger, not live-Granger. You sitting here -in the flesh, freaked me out a bit," he admitted. She looked sad and lost, yet happy. Bittersweet. "Believe me, its weird that once you get used to being able to float, to disappear, to not touch," at this word, Hermione hugged Draco tightly. Draco grunted with the exertion Hermione had thrown towards him.

"Draco -you have no idea how much I owe you -my *life*. You saved me."

The world around them didn't exist anymore than did clouds on a sunny day.

The only thing -the only people they noticed were each other.

"No -you saved *me*," Draco said to her as he pushed back an unruly strand of her brown hair, before wrapping an arm around Hermione's neck -pulling her down to him.

And Father said Mud-erm...Muggle-borns are bad kissers! Ha! What does *he* know...

~FIN