Snake Charmer

Dinner was oddly quiet. Hermione had picked a seat in between her parents in the event she felt a need to restrain herself from killing Draco. Draco had been picking at his food for roughly a half an hour now. Mrs.Granger's cooking was, let's face it, horrible.

"Are you ok, Draco? You haven't eaten any of your potatoes." Mr.Granger observed with his mouth stuffed with food. Draco rolled his eyes. 'Annoying muggle.'

"I don't care for muggle food very much." Draco lied, and took another sip of what the muggles called Pepsi. He had to admit, the soda was good.

"Funny how muggle food and pureblood food is so much alike." Hermione said lightly. Draco shot her a deadly glare before turning to Mrs.Granger.

"So, can I be excused? I'm tired from the trip here." Draco grinned politely. Hermione's mouth dropped in shock.

"A long trip via what? A broom? Floo powder? Yeah, I could see how the trip was so long."

Draco didn't wait for Mrs.Granger's answer as he got up to head for his room. Hermione stalked after him, while her parents sat there, completely lost for words.

"Malfoy! We need to talk!" Hermione rapped on his door loudly. Draco opened it, a smirk on his face.

"No Granger, I'm not having sex with you."

Hermione felt her hands fly towards his neck, but she clutched them in fists at her side instead. She needed to make a truce with him; otherwise this summer would not be possible to live through. "I think we need to come to a truce...a temporary truce." She added hastily when Draco opened his mouth to protest. "I don't want to have a shitty summer, and you don't want to either."

Draco plopped onto his bed. He couldn't help the fact his summer was ruined. He knew it was the moment he came here. Hermione looked out the window. It was getting late, and she was too tired to do this now. Still, she sat beside him, her legs ready to spring up in case he threw a punch at her.

"Granger, do you have any idea why I'm here?"

"Dumbledore wants to give you something."

"Yeah, but I'm here because I don't have any other choice. If I don't join the Order, I'm going to be a Death eater. I'm old enough to be initiated next year."

Hermione turned to look at him. Was this a change in character?

"So you want to be on the side of good or what?"

"No! Mudblood, I wouldn't do anything for the 'side of good' if Dumbledore hit me with a Crucatus Curse! I just know what will happen if I become a Death eater." Draco got up and began unpacking his things. Hermione felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment. Does Dumbledore know this?

"Whatever Malfoy, I was the idiot to think maybe you were human after all. Anyway, we need to at least tone down the fighting; otherwise you're going to regret coming here against your dad's wishes." Hermione got up and began to walk to the door.

"Nothing will make me stop hating you, Mudblood." Draco turned to face her, his hatred written across his face.

"Good night to you too, Malfoy." Hermione closed the door behind her and went to her own bedroom. So there would not be a truce any time soon. Figures. Hermione locked the door before tucking herself and her book in for the night. Hermione glanced casually at the door in frustration at the blond Slytherin, but what could she do? She hated him as much as he hated her.

Hermione shut her book in defeat. She didn't feel like reading now.

________________________________________________________________________

A lady with long blond hair and stone grey eyes made her way to her own room, her face tear-streaked from earlier.

The verdict was finally in. Lucius was to serve a life's sentence in Azkaban for multiple charges. It was final, despite Fudge's sympathies to the family. Narcissa knew it was just to save his own Death eater ass, but still she had expected for him to lift charges.

Mrs.Malfoy knew deep down that Lucius would escape. Only a small number of dementors were still at Azkaban, along with many Aurors trying to keep things under control. Azkaban had gone to the dogs.

Narcissa pulled her robes closer to her as an open window brought in a chilling summer breeze. She had been alone often before Draco was born, but never like this. During war.

War. She supported no one; really, though her belief that purebloods were the only true magical people in the world were sound. She had never argued nor accepted the life of a Death eater as Lucius had, and was genuinely afraid of the Dark Lord. She supported his cause, she supposed, and after that Potter boy landed Lucius in prison she wanted nothing more than his death.

Narcissa was worried for her son. Staying in some Mudblood's home for a whole summer. Could he take it? She hoped that he would come home and drop Muggle Studies, a class she let him take behind her husband's back. Her son wanted to work in the Ministry, and wanted to be successful. He didn't want to be tied down by his father, even if he loved him. Mrs.Malfoy had the compassion to let him be that way, as she had refused to have the Dark Mark on her arm as well.

When Lucius breaks free, he'll come looking for Draco...

"Miss Malfoy? Do you want a cup of coffee?" A small house elf stammered. Narcissa shook her head.

"No...just get back to work." She got up to close the window, when an owl flew in past her. Mrs.Malfoy didn't recognize the owl, but had an idea of who it was from.

______________________________________________________________________

Hermione woke up upon hearing shrieking from the bathroom. She rubbed her eyes sleepily and crawled out of bed. She had heard that same shriek in her third year, when Buckbeak scared the shit out of a certain Slytherin.

Preparing for a fight, Hermione cautiously knocked on the bathroom door. She could hear running water over the screams. "Malfoy? Did you fall in the toilet?"

Draco blushed even though he knew the Gryffindor couldn't see him. Grabbing a towel just in case, he stepped out of the freezing cold shower. "How do I work this thing?" He shivered slightly. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Turn the right one for hot water, Malfoy." She walked back to her room, shutting the door behind her and beginning to change. Suddenly something odd struck her. Running back to the bathroom, Hermione called out, "do you have any muggle clothes?"

Draco frowned. "Um...no."

"I thought so...damn." Hermione made a mental note. 'Must go shopping for ferret boy.' She began to walk back into her room when she spotted a large golden eagle perched on her bed. She recognized it as the Malfoy mailman. The eagle dropped the letter on her bed hesitantly, and flew off.

Hermione shut the door behind her. Was the letter to her? The Malfoys must not have much control over their bird. She opened it, and read the header. It was to Draco. Her hands went to put the letter back into the envelope, but with a sudden panicking she began to read it. If it was to Draco, it might be about Harry, or an attack, or...

Or his father. Hermione folded up the letter, her heart pounding with guilt. Lucius was sentenced to life in Azkaban. Hermione couldn't help but feel sympathy for him. When Draco came out of the shower, Hermione went to deliver the letter to him in his room.

"Are you decent?"

"Maybe. Come in." Malfoys. Hermione opened the door a crack and slid the letter through, catching a glimpse of his bare chest and flushing.

"Just delivering mail." Hermione shut the door and tried to sneak away before he shouted, "GRANGER QUIT READING MY GODDAMN MAIL!"

Draco stormed after her, and Hermione actually began to run in fear from his rage. The Malfoys had a temper that rivaled anyone she has ever met. She had always been afraid of Lucius, and now Draco made her on edge too.

"Can you tone it down a bit? You're lucky my parents are at work!" Hermione spun around when she reached the kitchen.

"Granger, look at me." Draco rolled up his sleeves and lifted up his shirt, turning around so she could see his back as well. "The damn Dark Mark isn't on me, ok? My mum isn't one, either. If you can't trust me, than you're more Gryffindor than I thought."

"Oh really? What the hell does that mean?" Hermione crossed her arms and rolled her eyes.

"It means that because you have this picture of what's right and wrong you can't see who your friend is and who is not! You, and Potter, and Weasley are all the same!" Draco hissed. Hermione was stunned only for a second before realizing that she was dealing with Malfoy. Of course he wasn't implying a friendship.

"So what are you? You're not a Death eater, but yet you support your daddy and hate me because I'm a muggle-born."

Draco sighed. "Exactly. My point is that all I'm here for is to do an assignment, pick up a package from Dumbledore and be on my merry way without any interruptions, not to torture you. I have plenty of time to do that at Hogwarts." Draco walked over to the fridge and pulled out a two-liter of Coke, chugging it from the bottle.

"So we're enemies." Hermione repeated, confused. What in the name of God was he talking about?

"I hate you. You hate me. Just because we're not strangling each other doesn't mean we can't hate one another. It just means that none of us feel like committing a crime this summer. "

'Well that makes me feel even better about his dad coming here now," Hermione thought, but yet knowing Draco had said she wouldn't hurt her physically, she wasn't sure what he would do with a wand. Draco stalked out of the room, two liter in hand. She sat at the table, picked up her dad's newspaper and began to read. Somehow, she felt that maybe there is a truce. Even if it was only an agreement to keep one another alive.

______________________________________________________________________

"No letters, no nothing." Ron plopped down at the dinner table. Pig had just come back from Harry's house letter less again. Ginny sat down beside him, feeling a bit smug that she knew things that he didn't. It was usually the other way around.

"Harry's having a rough time. Let him go, Ron. Maybe he needs space in this relationship." She teased. Ron elbowed her in the ribs.

"The longer he's at the Dursley's, the better," Lupin replied simply, passing a dish to Mrs.Weasley.

"Well, something's wrong with him, and I don't think it is Sirius." Ron shoveled mashed potatoes into his mouth. Mr.Weasley glared at him, knowing that Lupin was taking the loss just as hard as Harry was.

"The boy needs some time to think, Ron. How is Hermione?"

Ron shrugged. "I dunno. She wrote me back saying something about a vacation and she couldn't come until later. Her letter was literally two lines long, and she had spilled ink all over the parchment!" Ron felt his ears go red in anger. She was up to something, and with SPEW in the back of his mind he figured it was something he wouldn't enjoy.

"She is probably worried about OWLS. Speaking of which, when do they come?" Mrs.Weasley looked at Ron, who felt a lump gather in his throat.

"Don't look at me! I didn't do anything to them!"

There was a loud crack, followed by shrill wailing and Tonks crying, "sorry!" The interruption was enough to allow Ginny and Ron to slip away from the dinner table.

"Ginny, what is going on with Hermione?"

Ginny made an odd coughing noise, ignoring Ron completely.

"Ginny, what is going on?"

Ginny threw up her hands. "Ron, if I knew I would tell you!"

True. Ginny couldn't keep a secret. Yet, after watching Fred and George get hit repeatedly with bat-bogie curses, he wasn't sure if Ginny was still the same Ginny. Especially after she had gone with them to the Department of Mysteries last year.

"Ok, you win. I'm going to write Hermione again." Ron went off to his room, and Ginny was relived she was able to keep quiet.

________________________________________________________________________

"No way I'm I wearing this."

Draco was being particularly pouty as Mrs.Granger and Hermione looked him up and down, admiring the clothes he was wearing. The trio was at the mall, trying to find clothes for Draco. It was harder than it sounds.

"It looks nice, Malfoy. Besides, we've been in five stores already and you still can't decide on clothing. We're buying this outfit too." Hermione was already holding three bags of clothing and was ready to go home. It was a sight for sore eyes to see Draco in a Gap sweatshirt and jean much like a normal muggle boy. Mrs.Granger pushed him back into the dressing room and pulled a wallet from her purse.

"Right, now all we need is both of your wedding outfits for Aunt May's wedding in Ohio and we're on our way."

"Wedding? What? What's Ohio?" Draco groaned. Shopping was so primitive when it came to muggle shopping. He had never had to look for clothes his size before. Robes normally shrunk to the size of the wearer. Draco came out in his Hogwarts shirt and pants, which was his only outfit he could wear around a muggle area, and was clutching his head in pain. "Damn, I need a-"

"Brain?" Hermione offered. "Ohio's a state in the USA, and a wedding is-"

"Shut it up now, Granger. I know what a wedding is, but I don't know why I'm going."

Mrs.Granger returned from the check-out line, looking a bit worn out.

"Well come along then. One more store and we're done."

"Bloody hell."