My Soul Mate

Chapter Twenty Two - The Devastation...

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Dil mera, churaya kyon,

Jab yeh dil todna hi tha?

Hamse dil, mila kyon,

Hum se moonh modna hi that?

Why did you fall in love?

Why did you break my heart?

Why did you go, away, away, away?

-

Why did you steal my heart,

When you had break it?

Why did you love me,

When you had to dump me?

Why did you fall in love?

Why did you break my heart?

Why did you go, away, away, away?

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After the Order of the Phoenix's meeting, the holidays passed by slowly and glumly, without event. In one way or the other, all were glad that school had reopened. Draco, Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny had to live together, eat together and sleep together, but school, homework, library and flying practices took most of their time.

Harry, Ron and Hermione had the same classes and therefore, they were together generally. The school was quite surprised to see the Golden Trio back, laughing and joking, as if nothing ever had happened. Cho wasn't very pleased, but Harry managed with her.

Hermione and Draco has less time together than in the holidays. They shared only three classes together - Potions, Care of Magical Creatures and Arithmancy. During the classes, they hardly saw each other. But they had their meals together in the Prefects' quarters, along with Harry, Ron and Ginny. After classes were over, Draco would go out to the Quidditch pitch twice a week for flying practice. He was the Captain of the Slytherin team and therefore, was quite busy. Hermione always went to see his practice, making Draco glad that she was making up for the times they had lost. After their flying practices, they would go to the library together and work. They would return only at dinnertime. And after dinner, they all sat down and completed their homework or played games. And when Draco didn't have his Quidditch practice, he and Hermione would go to the Room of Requirement or take a stroll around before work. That never bored them; they invented new scenarios and rooms each time. They had much more interesting things to do too, so they had no chance of getting bored. Frequently, Draco would teach Hermione new spells and charms that Hermione had never thought of. Sometimes, Hermione would sleep with Draco in the night but get up early and go back to her room before anyone noticed anything. They were both very happy and contented. They had the perfect understanding and never fought.

"But once in a while, you should fight," Ginny had told Hermione on one occasion. "You'll get to know each other better than ever."

"We know each other completely," Hermione had answered. "And there is point where we can fight."

"Yet, there isn't any spice. Don't you feel its monotonous?"

"Monotonous? No way!"

Ginny thought that they were an unusual couple. They never fought. They had different ideas but they never criticized them, they discussed them and made reasonable deals. Ginny considered them rather strange. They had become inseparable. But she was glad anyway.

Ginny was cooped up completely with her OWLs. She was working hard, but Hermione encouraged her to work even harder.

"The school needs a good Head Girl after me," she had told her, rather smugly.

Harry had a lot on his mind too. His practice sessions scheduled were on each morning and once a week, he had to conduct the DA. He had invited Hermione back to the DA, but Hermione had refused. She said that she was busy with her schoolwork and once the Order's plans were in action, there would be no school and nothing to learn about, so she was learning new theory magic as much as possible.

"And anyway, Draco is teaching me some useful magic, really," she had said.

That had left Harry insulted and infuriated. Draco had beaten him in yet another race. He tried to get Hermione's thoughts out of his mind but he found that he couldn't. So whenever he was alone, he would think of her. Thinking if he loved her or not. But he knew there was no point in loving her - Draco had beaten him to there too.

Harry also had Quidditch pressure on him. And his greatest fear was that Draco had bought himself a Firebolt too. The Gryffindor team was highly threatened by this.

But the thing that worried him the most was the nightmares he was getting constantly. He saw he was with Hermione, playing with her by the lake when Draco swooped down on his new broomstick and took Hermione away. And then suddenly, the lake and skies dissolved into a cold and dark dungeon where Voldemort was, ready to duel him. But Harry never saw dueling him. Either he would wake up or his dream would change. But the nightmares were so persistent that he had learnt it by heart, each scene, each feeling.

As a result, he couldn't give Cho a lot of time. He failed to take her on dates and fought a lot with her, when she accused him. He would lose his temper and say rude things to her. Cho would end up crying. Harry would feel guilty and depressed each time and it took him a lot to make up with Cho. But he was wearied fighting with her. He had to admit - he couldn't carry on with Cho for long.

But he didn't have the guts to break up with her. And he wanted to keep his mind off Hermione, so he continued.

Yet, times changed and he became tired of Cho. He found himself avoiding meeting Cho and fantasizing more about Hermione. And help came to him when Pansy Parkinson cornered him in the library one day. Half an hour later, Harry had emerged from the library, looking very happy about something.

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Hermione and Draco looked forward to Monday, Thursday and Friday each week, because on these days they had the classes that they shared together. They openly sat next to each other during those periods, with Harry and Ron close too. The students had been shocked to see Harry and Ron with Draco. They had never it to be possible even in their dreams.

On one such Friday, when the Gryffindors and Slytherins had double Potions and Care of Magical Creatures together, the devastation began.

Hermione had slept with Draco the previous night; they enjoyed each other's company ... rather physically. They never had an intercourse though. Draco was gentle and tender, and that was all Hermione could want. Draco on the other hand was perfectly satisfied with Hermione, though he would have given everything he had for coitus.

Thus on that Friday morning, in the second week of January, Hermione and Draco headed for Care of Magical Creatures along with Harry and Ron, after breakfast in the Prefects' quarters. Ginny had set off for her Divination class. They reached the grounds in front of Hagrid's hut. Many students were already there. This time, no one bothered to give them a surprised look. They have seen such scenes almost every day after school had reopened.

Neville, Dean, Seamus, Lavender and Parvati gave them smiles and waved at them, though not to Draco, at least not directly. After Harry, Ron and Hermione had left their respective dormitories in the Gryffindor Tower, Professor McGonagall had told the others that it was none of their business where they had gone or when they will return. The Gryffindors had of course asked Harry, Ron and Hermione, but they were given incoherent and incomplete answers. They had no idea about the Prefects' quarters. It was a secret for all, except for the Prefects themselves.

Soon, Professor Grubbly-Plank traipsed to the grounds and told them to open the chapter on Forest Nymphs in Sortilege Beasts. They spent an enjoyable lesson in the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, studying the Nymphs. The Nymphs were pretty creatures about a foot long and variously colored. They were friendly and hovered above the students' heads as the students learnt about them.

After Care of Magical Creatures, the Gryffindors and Slytherins parted ways. The Gryffindors had Charms in the castle while the Slytherins had Herbology in Greenhouse Four.

After an hour and a half, Draco met Hermione, Harry, Ron and Ginny in the Prefects' quarters for lunch. After lunch, they went together for Potions. They had been brewing the Invisibility Potion and the concoction was ready to be drunk. Snape had locked all entrances so once everyone was invisible, no one can slip out. They had an unusually nice class. Neville, Crabbe and Goyle had made terrible potions and only some of their parts had managed to vanish, like their heads or limbs, giving them a particularly eerie look. Ron hadn't done a good job either; he became visible after one hour, instead of two. There was chaos, when some ran into some. Quills, bags, cauldrons, inkpots and scrolls hanged in midair.

For two hours then, Draco had dragged Hermione into a corner had started kissing her. Both were careful not to make much noise, in case anyone found out.

Harry pulled out a note from his school robe's pocket and kept it on a chair, before leaving the dungeon classroom when the bell rang. Pansy Parkinson found it and then smiled. It said 'This evening, half past seven, in the Slytherin Prefects' room.'

"Surely," she said to herself and left the dungeon too.

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Draco had an hour's flying practice at four o' clock. So Hermione and he went to the Quidditch pitch together. Hermione sat in the stands and watched Draco swoop and zoom expertly on his new Firebolt. After an hour, Draco came down and walked to the changing room to change out of his green Quidditch robes. Then he came back to the Quidditch pitch and set off for the library with Hermione.

"Your flying is getting better in each session," Hermione said as she snuggled to Draco closer in the cold. "Your Firebolt is great."

"Yeah, but Potter has one too," said Draco, putting an arm around Hermione. "The final match will be really exciting, I guess."

"I don't know whom to support," Hermione confessed. "I can't betray my house, nor can I go against you."

"Support no one. Either way, I am going to win. Even if Gryffindor win, it'll be your victory. And your victory is my victory too."

Hermione smiled at Draco. This was what she loved the most in him. His small philosophies in his small life which brought great happiness.

"And if Slytherin win, it'll be my victory too," she said.

Draco nodded and kissed her cheek. They together went into the library with their bags hung over their shoulder. In the library, Madam Pince and generally Professor Flitwick were found late in the evening. They were there to guard Hermione and Draco.

Hermione and Draco entered their usual study room and took out their Arithmancy homework. They both liked Arithmancy and were both brilliant at it. They spent two hours having fun at solving difficult problems and cracking them. Then, Harry arrived.

"Hey, Harry!" said Hermione. "What are doing you here?"

Yeah, thought Draco, couldn't perhaps tolerate Hermione with me alone. Bastard.

"Hi!" said Harry cheerfully, coming towards them. "I just wanted to give you some good news."

"Good news? What good news?"

"Wormtail. He's dead."

Hermione stared at him. She still didn't think that killing people was good news. "How d'you know?" she asked him weakly.

"Sirius sent me an owl. He has killed Wormtail and now, only Bellatrix Lestrange is left. After she is killed, Voldemort will surely run away."

"And then we'll go away too," said Draco. "Pity killing Wormtail. He has helped me a lot you know. If it weren't for him, Hermione and I both would probably have been dead by now."

"He was a cad," said Harry icily. "And I am damn glad that he's dead."

"Drop it both of you!" cut in Hermione. "Wormtail's dead and he had to be. It's the Order's success."

Harry and Draco nodded.

"Well, Draco," continued Hermione, "shall we go back? It's dinnertime."

"Sure," said Draco.

He and Hermione got up and started packing their things. They, along with Harry, set off for the Prefects' Quarters.

"Would you like a Chocolate Frog, Hermione?" asked Harry.

"All right," said Hermione and accepted one from Harry. She broke the frog into half and gave one part to Draco. Both of them ate it.

By the time they reached the Prefects' quarter, it was fifteen minutes past seven.

Fifteen more minutes were left before devastation started.

Draco and Hermione dropped into the chairs in the living room. Hermione had a strangely dizzy feeling, as though she had just woken up from bed after a good long nap. From the faraway look on Draco's face, Hermione could tell that he was feeling the same too. Harry on the other hand, looked perfectly normal. After a few moments, Hermione realized that Ron and Ginny were not there.

"Harry..." she said, and found her own voice a bit thick. She was surprised. She tried to speak again. "Harry..." her voice was thick again. What was happening to her?

"Hermione..." said Draco. His voice was thicker too.

To Hermione, Draco's voice was audible but it bounced in her brain in a distant chamber and echoed a few times. Hermione thought that the weather was perhaps bad and since she and Draco had been out, they both were feeling different and Harry, okay. But hadn't we been out two hours before? she thought. Strange, really strange.

"Hermione?" sounded Harry's voice. "D'you want another chocolate frog?"

"Sure..." said Hermione; she knew that chocolate was recommended in the wizarding world to come over fits or seizures. However, it was an effort to do so. She saw Harry fumbling with the package and take out another Chocolate Frog.

"Here," he said, "eat it."

Hermione took the Frog from him with shaky hands and ate it. The chocolate was warm and sweet in her mouth.

After a few moments, Hermione's mind felt more energetic.

"Harry," she said again. Her voice was normal. Harry was standing in front of him, looking mildly concerned.

"Are you okay, Hermione?" he asked. "D'you feel dizzy?"

"Dizzy? No, I don't," said Hermione clearly. "But I did feel like that a few moments before."

"I did too," Harry lied. "And Malfoy too."

"Draco?" asked Hermione surprised. "What happened?"

Harry shrugged. Hermione got up from her chair and rushed to Draco. He was rubbing his temples and his eyes were drooping, looking glassy. He was swaying slightly on his seat.

"Draco?" asked Hermione concernedly. "Draco, are you feeling dizzy, Draco?"

"Yeah..." said Draco. "A bit."

Draco wasn't able to see clearly. His vision was slightly clouding. He felt as though his mind was flying. He felt as though he was soaring uncomfortably on a broomstick. A wave of nausea swept over him.

"Draco, how are feeling?" Hermione's distant voice said.

Draco tried to focus on seeing one thing but he couldn't. He looked up at Hermione and her face swam across, in and out of vision. His hands were getting clammy.

"I ... feel ... queasy," he said in a slurring voice.

"Hermione," said Harry from behind her back. "I think Malfoy hasn't recovered."

"But what could have happened?" said Hermione frantically. She had her hands clasped to Draco's arms. "What happened? Why did three of us suddenly feel so groggy?"

"I don't know, but we recovered," said Harry, in a puzzled voice, "and Malfoy hasn't. I have no idea what has happened ... Hermione, shall we take Malfoy to his room?"

"I think so," said Hermione. "Draco, Draco get up. I'll take you to your room. Help me, Harry, I don't think he can walk by himself."

Harry came forward and helped Hermione lift Draco to his feet.

"Draco, try and walk," said Hermione. She looked very worried.

"I can walk myself..." slurred Draco indignantly.

"Don't be so conceited now, Draco. We'll help."

So Hermione and Harry dragged Draco to the Slytherin prefects' room. They pulled him and then dropped him on his bed. Draco was looking paler than ever.

"What do we do, Harry?" asked Hermione, her eyes helpless over Draco's reeling form.

"I think I know what we should do," said Harry, feeling Draco's pulse. "Hermione, you go and call Madam Pomfrey. She'll see Malfoy. I think I'll call Dumbledore."

"All right..." said Hermione and hurried out of the room, but not before giving Draco a small kiss. "I'll be right back," she whispered to him.

Once Hermione was out of the quarters, Harry left Draco and rushed away. He went out of the quarters too and met a voluptuously figured girl outside.

"All set," he said. "Go in."

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Hermione ran to the hospital wing. She had a dreadful feeling in her stomach. Why had all of us suddenly felt so strange? she thought. Why did only Harry and I recover? Why not Draco? What could have happened? What did it? Who did it? Why?

Questions circled her mind, lowering in arcs around her head. She had to get Madam Pomfrey fast. She needed to. Draco was getting sick. Peculiarly sick.

"Hermione!" a voice yelled behind her.

Hermione turned sharply and found Harry jogging up to her.

"Hermione!" he called again.

Hermione stopped in her tracks. "What happened, Harry?" she said as Harry neared him. "Did Draco's condition get worse?"

"Worse?" gasped Harry. "Hermione everything is wrong. Malfoy ... Malfoy, he is doing ... oh you wouldn't believe it!"

"What happened to him?" Hermione demanded. She said that so loudly that the people in the paintings on the stony walls of the castle started accusingly at her. Hermione couldn't care less. She grabbed Harry's front robes. "What happened?" she shrieked. "Why aren't you telling me?"

"I don't know how to tell you ... You see it for yourself!"

"Harry stop beating around the bush! What happened to Draco?"

"I don't know! You go back and see what he is doing!"

Hermione felt like slapping Harry then and there. It was all she could do to restrain herself. Draco was not well and Harry was being so strange. She glared at him and ran in the opposite direction. Her heart was pounding against her chest and a stitch formed there, but Hermione didn't stop. She ran. She ran to Draco.

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Draco saw Hermione go away. She told him something but he couldn't hear. Harry was next to him. Draco didn't feel well. He could neither see nor hear properly. Everything was clouded. And then, he saw Harry go away. His vision steadily obscured and became foggy. He wished Hermione came back.

She did.

Draco could see that but he felt a bit different around her.

"Draco!" she whimpered. "How are you feeling?"

"Not well," Draco gasped. Under normal circumstances, he couldn't have heard Hermione's voice. Her voice was soft and soothing but now it was shrill and piercing. "Your voice..." he started but he couldn't complete his sentence.

"It's all right, darling. Just do as I say."

Suddenly, Draco felt his clothes vanish. He was utterly naked. "Hermione..." he gasped on his bed. "Is it you?"

"Of course, sweetheart, it's me. You'll be all right in a minute."

Draco could see her coming forward. She wasn't wearing anything either. She had darker hair and darker skin. He felt her warm, nude body press against his.

"Draco," she said. "Draco ... d'you want this?"

"Yes..." Draco managed to say.

"Then make love to me, Draco. Touch me."

Draco raised his hands and felt her huge, extremely huge breasts. He tried to knead them but his hands were weak. A pair of soft hands helped him touch her properly. His vision was completely clouded; he could see nothing now.

After a few moments, he heard a bloodcurdling scream shoot through the air. Then, he knew no more.