Love, War and Friendship - The Wizarding Way

He approached her cautiously, the dewy smell of outdoors still clinging tight against his skin. He wasn't sure how'd she'd react to his presence or words after their last real conversation that had involved his love sick confession. But the soft smile that lit up her eyes held no resentment or awkwardness.

"How'd it go? Did she help at all?"

Hermione shrugged, inching over to give him space to sit. "That would be a matter of opinion."

"So what's the what?" he asked, feeling everything slid back into place. "Nothing too bad I hope."

She looked down at her lap, hands entwined tightly together. "It's, uh, it's just depression. Situational, she said. Whatever that means. I'm supposed to go see her to talk."

"Well whatever makes you feel better huh?" Ron grinned, trying to lighten her mood. He reached over to squeeze her hand, a move that would have been considered perfectly innocent just weeks ago caused her to jerk away, eyes darting frantically around the room to see if anyone had noticed.

"Hermione-"

"Ron don't," she whispered, pulling her knees in close to her chest like a small child. "Please."

He didn't know what to think over her reaction. He'd expected something more along the lines of revulsion or anger.

"I don't think I made clear the other day in the owlery when you ... when we talked how I felt."

Ron's heart froze. Was she going to say she'd changed her mind? That it wasn't Harry she'd wanted after all but him?

"Ron I -" Hermione hesitated.

He waited patiently as she sat trying to string her words together. He would wait as long as it took to hear her say those words to him.

"I don't love you," she stated abruptly. "I'm sorry but I don't feel that way towards you at all. I'm in love with Harry and I have been for as long as I can remember. It was a mistake to lead you on and lie to you this summer. I'm sorry."

This time his heart stopped for a different reason. The pain of her words was so immense, so shocking it became a struggle for him to breathe. The oxygen refused to go to his heart, escaping through the airway it had entered. A mistake to lead him on and lie to him this summer? That meant, his body shook involuntarily. That meant she had never cared about him, not beyond the bounds of friendship anyways.

"Are you alright?"

Ron was tempted to snap or shout at her. Of course he wasn't alright. She'd only just ripped his heart out and stomped all over it. But he couldn't, couldn't endanger the small fragment of friendship left dangling between them and most certainly could not be the cause for further tears.

"No biggie," he murmured, eyes concentrating hard on the collar of her shirt as lying was not one of his strong points and he knew if he looked at Hermione she would see straight through him. "I think I was just exaggerating. I do like you a lot, don't get me wrong but love?" he forced himself to laugh. "That's a bit extreme."

Hermione nodded with relief, visibly relaxing her posture. An awkward silence hung in the air, neither one knowing quite what to say. The two had grown unused to each other's presence and things though no longer tense between them were not the way they used to be. Hermione would have been incredibly grateful to anyone who came up with an excuse to whisk her away but of course no one did. Most of the Gryffindors no longer spoke to her. What was the point? She never listened anyways. Always lost in her own world.

"There was another thing," Ron said finally breaking the ice with the sledge hammer of his voice. "You remember that necklace that I gave you to research? Well I kind of need it back now."

"What about the info you wanted? I'm no where near finished. Actually," a tinge of pink lightened her cheeks. "I haven't done anything at all."

"It's okay. I know what I wanted to know already."

He was about to ask her where it was and if she could get it for him when she slid off the couch, pulling the cushion up with her. Her right hand dug beneath the cracks, avoiding the spilled popcorn and spaghetti stains from students eating late night dinners. Moments later she unearthed the pendant along with several sticks of already chewed gum.

"You hid something like that in the couch?!" Ron exclaimed loudly, receiving several annoyed looks from a group of studying forth years. "Are you out of your mind?"

"Yep," she said, taking it in good stride, determined to not let anything else get to her. "Besides do you know who sleeps in my dorm? Parvati Patil. If anyone from Gryffindor would steal something dark magic, it'd be her."

Ron blushed, realizing she was right. "Sorry," he mumbled, taking the necklace and pulling it over his head so it dangled gracefully from his neck. The metal felt tingly against his bare skin, giving him the eerie feeling that it was alive.

"It's okay," Hermione shrugged, surprised at how calm she was. "Anyway I've got a lot of homework to do so I'm going to head to the library. I'll see ya later." And with no trace of tears, anger or disappointment she flounced out of the common room leaving Ron to stare open mouthed. He wasn't the only one.

"Did she just say library?" Seamus asked from behind him. "Library and homework?" These two words stuck to his throat uncomfortably. It had been a long time since Hermione had cared about school. What had the counsellor said to her?

Ron nodded wordlessly. He had to go tell Harry. News like this shattered the unspoken agreement between them. Hermione seemed to have finally gotten better.

***

Hermione wandered the stacks listlessly. She had really meant to catch up on her work but she had missed so many classes and assignments she didn't know where to start. She should probably make meetings with her teachers and get some review work. She wasn't going to let something as stupid as depression wreck her future. Depression. The word bounced around her head with an odd sense of relief. She was not just being stupid and girly. Something was really wrong with her.

She had reached the part of the library she had never been to before. She hadn't even known Hogwarts had fiction books. She pulled a thick novel from the shelf closest to her head and flipped through it. Poetry. Hermione had never been a big fan of poetry. She found rhyming words immature and childish and poems about love were so cliché. But the book drew her in as if it had been the book's decision for her to pull it from it's home. None of the poems rhymed and none of them were about love or not the fairy tale love poems she despised. They told the story of broken hearts, pain, betrayal and depression. She dropped the book to her feet and began pulling others madly from the shelves, tossing all happily - ever - afters back. She didn't want happiness right now, she wanted understanding.

***

"Are you sure that's where she went?" Harry asked, checking his watch. She'd been gone for 3 hours, which was longer than she had been alone since Fred's death. Ron shrugged, looking disappointed. "That's what she said."

Harry sighed, folding his arms neatly across his chest. "Are you sure she wasn't upset?"

"She was fine," Seamus put in sensing a fight. "She's fine."

"Who's fine?"

All three of the boys' heads swivelled around to see Hermione, arms piled high with books standing behind them.

"N-no one," Seamus stammered, his face beet red.

"I see."

If she realized they were talking about her she gave no notice, instead dumping her books down on the nearest arm chair and settled herself down on the floor in front of it.

"Get any work done?" Ron managed to choke out. They were slightly embarrassed to have been caught talking about her.

"No," she answered simply, picking a book from the top of the pile and beginning to read.

"As Darkness Cowers?" Harry read the title out loud. "What's this? You're reading Dark Magic book's now?"

"No!" she waved away his sceptical gaze. "It's poetry."

***

"No she's not." Draco was too drained to stop himself from answering. "She's depressed."

"So?" Ginny would be back any second now.

"Hermione," Draco sighed. "Look I know the god damn plan but it's not gonna work after Harry's frigging hissy fit this summer. Get a new plan."

Draco snorted. "Improvement?" But his father had already left. A pounding silence filled his head. It was time to talk to Patil. She'd know what was going on.

"Draco?" Ginny asked as she entered the room to find her boyfriend rummaging through his trunk in a frenzy. Placing the platter of food on the bedside table she placed a gentle hand on his back. "Draco?" she said again. "What are you doing?"

"I - um - I gotta go out for a bit," he said quickly, not turning to face her. "I forgot about an assignment I agreed to do with Professor Sprout out in the greenhouse after class. I'll be back in twenty minutes or so alright. You can stay here. I'll be back." Still without looking at her, without a good bye hug or kiss he scrambled out the room before she could reply.

Ginny sat down on the bed without a word, her eyes filling gently with tears as they faced the window peering down at the huge pumpkins outside Hagrid's hut. It was time for her premonition to come true. If only she could be sure he wouldn't go through with it.

***

She was exactly as he'd known she would be. Waiting for him in the dark shadows from the tall tower.

"Patil," he hissed.

"Malfoy," she replied in the same tone, an evil smile flitting across her face.

"The plan," he began, a firm hand clenched around his wand in case she tried anything. "I -"

"You'll carry through with it. You will rejoin us," she said, placing a hand on his arm. "Because you are a Slytherin. You know power is what you want. It's in your blood."

"Being a Slytherin doesn't dictate who I am," Draco spat, shoving her back against the brick walls of the school.

"You'd give up on all this - your family, your true friends, your calling - all for the love of some silly little girl?" Parvati rolled her eyes in disgust. "She's brainwashed you."

Draco wondered how much she knew, wondered how much his father knew and told the other Death Eaters.

"We were only together a god damn week," he snapped shoving her against the side of the school for the second time. Parvati let out a low laugh.

"That's right. I'd forgotten about the night you betrayed everyone who ever helped you and went running to Potter, the wonder child. You know why I was waiting here, Draco. You knew and you came anyways. Isn't there anything I can do to tempt you to come back to us?"

"Patil," he warned through clenched teeth.

"Come on. You know you want to," she said and without waiting for his answer pulled him into a kiss.

Draco let her kiss him for a moment. She tasted different than Ginny. Her lips were cold and brittle, not like the soft carmel of Ginny's.

"It doesn't work anymore," he laughed, grabbing her arms. "I can't be seduced. Not by you and not by the Dark Side. You see I used to be a scared little boy who would give in to anything that scared or excited him but I'm not that boy anymore."

Parvati laughed right back, even with her wrists in Draco's death grip. "Really? So the Weasley girls made you a man has she? About time someone should."

Draco ignored her quip, gripping her wrists even tighter. "Now you're going to tell me everything you know. And I mean everything."

"Everything?" she whispered, pulling herself away. "Now why would I do something silly like that?" She faltered slightly as she saw Draco reach into his pants pocket to retrieve his wand. "Fine," she threw her hands up in the air. "Fine. If you wanna play dirty that's fine." She crossed her arms and glared. "The Weasley children are staying here over the Christmas break which means so will Potter and Granger. You are to lure Hermione away to your father where she will be held in safe keeping until Potter has rushed to her aid. Once he enters the fortress he will face the Dark Lord once again and he will die."

Draco's face paled. "I'm not helping."

Parvati shrugged. "Whatever you say."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Your father has promised You - Know - Who that you will assist them in the downfall of Potter."

"My father doesn't control me."

She smirked. "I'm sure."

Draco's mouth dropped open, ready to argue more but Parvati had already begun to walk away. He would not help. He wouldn't. Besides as if Hermione would go anywhere with him. She hated him.

***

Hermione sat in the corner of the common room curled cosily in an armchair with both Crookshanks and a pile of books in her lap. In the past few days she'd managed to catch herself up in nearly all her classes by working night and day and spending several hours a time in the library. But right now she wasn't studying, she was content to watch Harry with a smile, who was playing cards over by the fireplace with Ron and Seamus. He'd been so supportive and kind to her. All the harsh words and fights that they'd struggled through since Fred's death had dissolved and everything was like it should be again. She knew it was all thanks to Veronica's diagnosis. The interviews they'd all gone through had been a great relief to both of them. She was supposed to go for her first "official" visit with the counsellor in a few moments but she couldn't bring herself to get up or to draw her eyes away from his laughing face.

Harry finally turned to see her watching him and leaving his card game, approached her with a small smile. Kneeling at her elbow he took her hand lovingly. "About time to leave isn't it?"

She nodded. "Ya it is. ... Harry," she whispered in a soft voice. "I don't wanna go. What if they can't help me?"

A flicker of fear crossed his eyes at her hesitation but was quickly replaced by a warm reassurance. "It'll be fine. C'mon, how bout I walk you there?"

"Isn't that a bit far?" she asked, smiling at him in spite of herself.

"Nah," he shrugged, pulling her to her feet. "Nothing's too far as long as I'm with you." And slowly she let him lead her out the common room door, through the winding staircases of the castle and out past the gate.

Hermione stopped to look up at him for a moment.

"What is it?" Harry asked clutching her hand tightly.

He was perfect. He was the perfect boy. She saw him as others saw him, so strong and kind and most of all she saw his heart, beating brightly for all to see. It hadn't been a fluke that You-Know-Who couldn't destroy him as a little boy. Harry was meant to live. He was meant for great things. And he was hers. If she didn't get better for her she had to do it for him. Because if she didn't eventually he would leave. The tears, and the stress would be too much for him. And he would leave.

"I'm gonna get better, you know that right?"

He smiled. "I know." And without another word continued to walk her to Hogsmeade, where like the perfect boyfriend he was he would sit in the waiting room for an hour to walk her back home.