Stormy Weather

Draco stalked his way into the Slytherin common room, the perfect Malfoy scowl back on his face where it hadn't been in months. Something's up with her. I think she's going to try and dump me. How could she?

"Draco?" He ignored his parents, staring into the fire intently. "Draco, something is troubling you and I want to know what it is." His mother could be quite insistent.

"Nothing." So could he.

His mother shook her head ever so slightly, the light glinting off of it as she did so. "How is Hermione, dear?"

"She's resting." His answers were short and clipped, just like he was feeling at the moment.

"What else is wrong, Draco?" Narcissa moved closer, touching his hand. "You can tell me."

This was almost starting to sound like one of those bad Muggle entertainment things that he'd heard of from Hermione. I'm going to have to tell them something, or they're going to be after me until I do. It wouldn't be the first time. "I just have a bad feeling about tonight. She seemed so distant." There, that should pacify them.

His mother nodded a little, seeming to accept it, but his father moved a bit closer. He'd always been harder to fool than Mother. "Draco, I have been wondering. Have you had any unusual dreams lately?"

Huh? Why'd he ask that? What's that got to do with anything? Draco wasn't entirely certain if the question bothered him because of the irrelevancy of it or because of the fact he could only answer in the affirmative. "I've been dreaming about what happened when we were captured, only it was from her point of view."

He shivered as he spoke, trying to expunge the memories. The dream had been vivid to the point he had actually felt the whip cutting into Hermione's body as if it were lashing into him. "Why do you ask, father?"

Lucius didn't answer right away, then he spoke only a few words. "You're not the only one."

Draco wrenched himself around to stare at the elder Malfoy. "You too?" His father nodded slightly, and Draco leaped to his feet, sick fear spurting all through him. "I have to find out if she did too!" He ignored the looks his parents were sending each other as he raced out of the common room and back towards the Hospital Wing.

This could be the last of the time release spells, but what's it doing affecting us if it is? That made no logical sense, as far as he knew, much less any magical sense. He'd have to talk it over with her, preferably as soon as possible. Now would be good, last week would be better. For it to have never happened at all would be best.

He slid to a stop in front of Madam Pomfrey, who was just coming out of the Hospital wing, and stared at her. "I need to talk to Hermione. It's important!"

"She's asleep," The mediwitch told him firmly. "She needs her rest, Mr. Malfoy."

Draco shook his head; why was someone always getting in his way when he needed something? He was a Malfoy! This shouldn't be happening at all! "I reallly need to talk to her!"

"She's asleep. It can wait until morning." Madam Pomfrey's stern and firm tones didn't change. "There's certainly nothing that important you must discuss."

Draco blinked a little; how tired had she been? "She's not going to the ball tonight?" It was the last event to wrap up the parents' weekend, a dance for everyone, and he'd been hoping she would go with him. He hadn't actually asked her yet, but...

"It depends on if she's awake or not."

"I'm awake." They both turned to see Hermione sitting up in bed, looking towards them. Draco pushed past the nurse to come stand beside his girlfriend.

"Hermione, I need to know something. Have you been dreaming about what happened when we were being held prisoner?" She nodded a little, seeming to want to say something else, but didn't. Draco moved a bit closer to her. "So has my father. And so have I."

Her head snapped up in surprise. "So has my mother." That was surprising; why would it affect a Muggle? He put that aside; there would be time to deal with that later. He hoped. There was no way to avoid the truth now. "Does the Headmaster know that you're seeing the dreams as well?"

"I haven't told him." Draco couldn't see any reason he should have either. This was something for them to deal with, not the Muggle-loving fool.

"You might want to." Hermione's lips twitched ever so slightly. "He just walked in."

Draco turned his head to see Albus Dumbledore standing at the doorway, the usual infuriating calm quirk to his lips as the old wizard spoke. "Miss Granger. Mr. Malfoy. How nice to see you. I trust you are feeling better?" He directed the question towards the witch on the bed.

"I am, thank you." Hermione nodded slightly, but didn't try to stand up. Draco was almost certain she was still a little dizzy and just didn't want to admit it right now. He caught her shooting a look at him, and rolled his eyes mentally, knowing what she meant. She knew he knew, and he knew that she knew that he knew. He diverted that train of thought; it was too confusing right now.

"Headmaster, the last of the time released spells seems to have affected her mother, my father, and both of us," Draco told the old wizard. "That's not what was supposed to happen. I don't suppose you know why?" His slightly acidic tone seemed to have no effect whatsoever on Dumbledore, and he found himself wanting to hit that annoyingly happy face over and over. It was definitely time for a few sessions with the Dumbledore Dartboard he'd gotten for his sixteenth birthday.

"The most likely possibility is that the child protected Hermione in some fashion. Gestating veelas have some degree of power, just as wizards do, and extend some protection to their mother. However, because the child isn't capable of choosing just what to do, the spell wasn't so much deflected as it was...shared," Dumbledore suggested, his gaze going briefly to Hermione. "I believe once you, yourself, deal with the memories of that night, the spell will break for everyone. The potion Severus made will enable both of you to survive, though you will, of course, have to take it every day until the child is born." He glanced from one of them to the other. "Perhaps you both should get ready for tonight's festivities."

Hermione nodded, then started to get out of bed, holding onto the head of it for a few moments to gain her balance. She adjusted her robes a little, glad Madam Pomfrey hadn't bothered to change her into a nightgown just yet, and looked over at Draco, who was looking back with a worried tinge in his gaze.

"Can I walk you to Gryffindor Tower?" he asked, a touch more courteously than anyone but she and sometimes his housemates were used to hearing from him. She nodded slightly, and the crease between his eyebrows deepened. "Are you feeling all right?" He had never worried about someone like he did her. He wasn't all that certain he liked it, either.

"Yes, I'm fine." She said nothing else as they walked out of the hospital area and through the shifting hallways and stairs. Draco watched her out of the corner of his eye, trying to figure out just how to ask something very important.

They were just a short way from the Fat Lady portrait when he decided to just do it. "There's something I want to ask you. It has nothing to do with what your father said, but I had to wait until I had something from my grandparents before I said anything."

He pulled a small box from the depths of his robes and held it out to her, top open to reveal a glistening ring. "Will you marry me, Hermione? Start a family with me, and be with me forever?" She said nothing at all, just looking at him quietly. "Hermione?"

"I don't think now is the right time for this," Hermione said at last, her voice serious and firm. "I think we should spend some time apart."

"Oh." Draco had absolutely not one clue on how to think or feel at this moment. "I see." Without another word, he turned and walked away, heading back to the Slytherin dungeons with all of his dignity wrapped around him like a protective cloak. She made me look like a fool. I wouldn't be surprised if Potter and Weasley were there under that cloak of his, laughing about me.

A snapped word opened up the dungeons to him and he flowed inside as if he were animated ice water. He could tell his fellow Slytherins were staring at him, the younger ones openly, the elder ones covertly from behind whatever they could use to conceal themselves. It didn't matter to him. He slammed his door shut and threw himself petulantly onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

"Draco?" Pansy knocked on his door sharply. "Draco, are you ready to go? The ball's about to start."

"Get lost." He had paid no attention to the passing of time. It wasn't worth bothering over. "I'm not going."

He could easily envision her confused expression. "Why not? You were talking about asking the Mudblood last week."

"I said that I'm not going. It's none of your damn business why I'm not going, so get lost, or you're not going to make it yourself. It's a little hard to dance with your feet growing out of your head, you know."

Pansy left.

"I hear Draco isn't coming tonight." Sam peered around the corner of the door to look at her cousin, who looked back at her with confused eyes. "I overheard Pansy Parkinson talking on the way up. Draco's not coming to the ball tonight. He seems to be in a really bad mood from what she said. Any idea what happened?"

"He asked me to marry him." Hermione turned away, not looking at her cousin any more. "I told him no. We need to spend some time apart. And it's just not the right time."

Sam stared at her, not believing a word of what she'd just heard. "He honestly asked you to marry him?" Hermione nodded. "And you turned him down? No wonder he's in that kind of a mood! How is it not the right time?"

"It just isn't."

"That doesn't make any sense, Hermione." Sam very rarely used the full version of her cousin's name, but this was serious. "He's not asking you to run off and marry him right now you know."

The British witch turned slightly, and Sam could see her more clearly now. Her eyes were red and puffy, and tearstains spotted her robe lightly. "Just trust me?"

Sam said nothing at all for a few moments, then nodded. "All right. I just hope you don't lose him." She shook her head a little in disbelief. Hermione was supposed to be the smart one! "Believe me, that's not a good feeling." She refused to speak of how she knew. It made no difference here and now, anyway.

"I know. I hope I don't either."

The freshly-blonde witch nodded once more. "You might want to think about it, though. From the way Pansy was talking, you may have." She headed out quietly, closing the door behind her as she did so. I have to talk to someone about this. Before I go back in there and start screaming at Hermione to stop being such a stubborn...witch! Though to be honest, witch wasn't quite the word she wanted to use. It did rhyme with it, however.

It seemed fate was conspiring with Sam just then, because as she stepped into the common room, the first two people she saw were Ron and Harry. Perfect. Just perfect. "Hey, guys, got a few minutes? We need to talk, in private."

All the other myriad of Gryffindors inched away from the corner where the three of them settled in to talk, but no one came close enough to listen. Sam wasn't fooled, though. They were all keeping an eye out on what was going on. Gryffindors were brave, but they also loved a good gossip.

She looked at her boyfriend and his best friend, then spoke two simple words. "Draco proposed." Both of them stared back at her as if she'd suddenly started to speak in Esperanto or something of that nature. It got only worse when she kept on talking. "She turned him down. All she would tell me was that it wasn't the right time." She glanced briefly back to the staircase that led to Hermione's room and tried not to think too much about strangling her cousin. "They both deserve to be happy, and I don't really want them losing each other."

Harry nodded. "I know what you mean." He couldn't really grasp caring so much about anyone but Ginny like that, and Hermione seemed to love Malfoy just as much.

The same thoughts must have been running through Ron's mind, since he said, "I may not like Malfoy, but Hermione is honestly happier with him." As soon as the words left his mouth, he looked as if he'd just swallowed about a half a dozen lemons. Based on what she'd heard of Draco in their earlier years, Sam could easily understand why. Before he could add anything, he jerked a little to the side, staring at the staircases.

"Hermione." The three turned to see her coming towards them, looking a little more composed than she had just a short time earlier. She was also in the best dress robes she had, her hair tidied and styled beautifully. Ron fidgeted a little as she came closer and once she was in earshot asked, "Hey, Sam told us about what happened. Are you sure you know what you're doing?" She nodded quietly, and he nodded back at her. "All right. If you're sure."

The dark-haired witch pulled up a chair and sighed. "Actually, no, I'm not sure. I feel like I need time away from him. That's all." She stared down at her hands as if not quite certain what to do with them. "He's hovering. Everyone is hovering."

Confusion reigned on Ron's face. "Because we care about you, Hermione!"

"I know. But I haven't had any time to myself in so long." Tear after tear slipped silently from her eyes, and she didn't bother wiping them away. Ron shook his head and got up.

"I'll talk to him, Hermione. I'll make sure he understands." He hugged her gently as she sobbed more, the others moving in to wrap their arms around her as comfortingly as they could. Friendship did overrule everything, after all.

Draco stared out at the ballroom, exuding an aura of come near me and suffer something so horrible Avada Kedavra will be an improvement!

"Why did Father have to make me do this?" He grumbled under his breath, not caring he sounded more like a seven year old than a seventeen year old. He didn't want to come so he shouldn't have had to! He didn't even have a proper date!

A familiar set of dress robes going by, with a very familiar person inside of them, caught his attention, and he watched as Hermione stepped out onto a magically added balcony that would probably be gone in the morning and stared up at the stars. She doesn't look very happy. And I don't care. Or at least he attempted to tell himself that.

As she came back inside and headed over to her parents, Draco wandered casually in that direction, listening.

"How are you feeling?" Mrs. Granger wondered. Hermione shrugged a little.

"Better. Professer Snape finished the potion, so I'm physically fine." Draco caught the qualification, but didn't say anything about it. Noting her start to look towards him, he did a quick about face and headed out to the balcony himself. Lovely view of the stars there. Maybe he could pick up a quick bout of studying for Astronemy class. He could use the extra study time. Astronemy wasn't really his best subject, after all. He could still hear her, no matter how hard he stared at the twinkling lights in the sky. "I'm sorry for being so moody and ruining your trip here."

"It's to be expected." That was the last thing Draco heard before he stepped out onto the balcony proper and started inspecting the sky for wear and tear. He didn't stop until he heard his name being called from behind him by Hermione.

"What is it, Granger?"

He didn't look to see just what effect that had on her, but her tone was very upset. "So we're back to calling each other by our last names, then?" He said nothing, just stared out some more. "Sorry. I just wanted to explain my reasoning, but I guess you don't want to hear it."

Draco kept on staring at the stars as she walked away, watching their cold shimmer, and wishing he were like them. They didn't care. They were just stars.

As much as he wanted to, however, he couldn't hide what was going on around him, and as he stared, something he would have never thought to see unfolded beneath him. It began with his father striding out to where Hermione was seated outside.

Hermione dropped down onto a bench on the grounds, buried her face in her hands, and sobbed uncontrollably. I know I hurt him, but why won't he just listen? She hated crying like this; she felt so girly leaking at the eyes. She dabbed the tears away as best she could at last, and was about to get up when a hand landed on her shoulder.

"Do you have a moment?" Lucius Malfoy asked, looking so much like Draco that all she could do was nod. "Has Draco mentioned the dreams?"

"Yes," Hermione nodded. "My mother's also been having them. He told me that both of you were as well."

The elder Malfoy nodded slightly. "Is that what actually happened? What you felt? Thought?" Hermione flinched ever so slightly at the thought of him seeing what had been going through her mind then. She also managed a brief nod of agreement to his question, hard as it was for her to do so.

"I don't know why you're all seeing them. I'd stop it if I could," she told him. "I don't even know how to stop them for myself. Getting over them sounds easy but it isn't." She looked away, catching sight of Draco's eyes on them from the balcony above. I didn't know we were this close. As long as he doesn't say anything... "We've told the Headmaster about them. I'm certain he'll find some way for you all not to see them any longer."

Lucius made a slight wordless noise, then pinned her suddenly with his clear gray gaze. "What is going on between you and Draco?"

She was taken by surprise too much to say anything but the utter truth. "At the moment, nothing. He asked me to marry him, but I told him that it wasn't a good time to ask me." She broke his gaze and stared at a tall set of trees intently. "I need some time to think, to be away from everyone. He won't let me explain that, though."

There was a sound that would've been a laugh if it had come from anyone but him. "Malfoys have a temper."

"Obviously," Hermione returned dryly. "I love your son."

Silence for a few moments, then words that seemed to be wrung reluctantly out of him. "I'm certain he feels the same way about you."

Hermione looked back at him, one eyebrow raised. "So, you approve of us being together?"

"You are...not quite as objectionable to me as you once were. I do not like you, Miss Granger." Lucius stared down at her darkly. "But Draco has made his choice, and I will simply live with it."

That's probably as close to acceptance as I can get from him. Hermione really hadn't ever expected that much to start with. As he walked away, she glanced back up at the balcony, to see Draco gone from there. I might love him...but I don't think I'll understand Malfoys.

She started back inside, feeling a little better than before, and ready to have some more fun.