Hey Guys
I'm just going through and making small changes on all the chapters up to maybe chapter 20. I was about 13/14 when I wrote the original and 15 when I wrote this one… and now I'm 19. And I'm looking at these first chapters and in some areas I'm just like… what? What? Why would you write that… Like not the whole story cause I love this story more than anything but I just wanna re-do some of the spur-of-the-moment additions that really just, yeah, make no sense to me now…
So these are the exact same chapters you read before I've just gone through and smoothed the rough patches out… I HAVE NOT COMPLETELY REWRITTEN THEM.. but if you do re-read them hopefully you'll notice the improvements!!!
SO FEAR NOT… I'M NOT CHANGING THE STORY JUST SOME MINOR EDITING… I've only done up to chapter 4 so far.
Chapter 1
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It was the end of fifth year and Hermione, Harry and Ron sat silently, staring out their compartment's window. The silence that lay between them was like the words they refused to speak; the silence had been between them ever since Sirius died. They had not spoken about his death, or his life.
Harry's usually bright green eyes were now dull murky green, the death of his godfather had left him subdued and angst-y, he rarely spoke and never smiled. Ron had been trying to break through Harry's silence, trying to get him to talk to them, but after a couple of failed attempts and even more screaming fits, he gave in and sat in a moody silence most of the time, losing the spark that made him Ron.
Hermione was just as angry and silent as Harry and Ron, lost in her own world of suffering and silence. She never spoke, or laughed or smiled, she never did anything. She did the homework assigned in class but never any extra credit and she never raised her hand to answer the questions in class.
They just sat together in silence; during meals, during class and in the common room. Their sudden apathy for life has shocked the other students at first, but, after a while the wall that the three Gryffindors had built around them had been reluctantly accepted. All the teachers, even Snape, had approached the 'Golden Trio' and tried to break through the invisible wall but all they got in return was silence and blank stares.
Hermione only broke her silence around one person and never in public. She knew that Draco would never betray her.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
They had been on the train for around three hours when Draco decided to make an appearance. The compartment door slid open, and much to two-thirds of the trio's surprise Draco Malfoy stepped into the compartment and slid onto the seat next to Hermione, wrapping an arm around her shoulders she turned her face away from the windows and looked at him in the eyes.
"You're here" her voice was raspy from disuse. Draco nodded and his arm tightened around her shoulders, "I'm here, Mione, I'm here" she knew he knew and Hermione's face crumpled and she buried her head in his neck and sobbed silently, crying and crying.
Harry and Ron had instantly prepared themselves for anything when Draco had entered the compartment, finally coming out of their stupor and looking like someone had breathed their old lives back into them. Of course they had been prepared for anything but the blond boy wrapping his arm around their silent best friend who, like them, had been silent since the Ministry.
Ron was angry, very angry. The ferret had somehow bewitched Hermione that was the only way that he would ever be able to get Hermione to talk to him, right?
Harry was confused and angry, more confused than angry. He was glad Hermione had someone to talk to since she wasn't talking to them, but still he was uneasy at Malfoy's sudden change of heart. He cast an uneasy glance at Ron and saw his redheaded friend was about to blow.
"Ron no, not yet" he whispered, placing a strong and yet weak hand on Ron's shoulder not allowing the other boy to stand and start something. Ron glowered at him but still held enough commonsense not to argue when Harry had that look on his face.
Hermione eventually stopped crying and fell into an uneasy sleep from exhaustion. When Draco brushed a stray curl from his best friend's face, he remembered that they weren't alone in the compartment and looked to Harry and Ron, who were both respectively glaring at him.
"What do you want Potter, Weasel?" Just because he was Hermione's friend didn't mean he was going to be nice to these idiots. He didn't know how she could stand to be around someone of their intelligence, but to each their own; after all he was forced to put up with his two idiot oafs.
"Get your filthy ferret hands of Hermione" Ron whispered, trying not to anger and wake Hermione, "No thanks weasel, my hands are happy where they are" he retorted, knowing that the way he had phrased his words would anger the weasel.
"Malfoy?" Potter's voice broke through their heated yet soft argument, "What Potty?" Draco snapped, shifting trying to dislodge Hermione incase this came to blows. "Why are you being nice?" Harry asked him, damn Potter. Draco snorted, "I'm not nice Potter," he sneered, "Malfoy's don't do nice" he managed to make nice sound like a dirty word.
"You are, to Hermione, you hate Hermione" Harry pointed out, Draco shook his silvery blonde locks and sneered, "You have no idea Potter, there are things between myself and Mione that will stay between us" he glared menacingly at them.
"Whatever Malfoy, if you hurt her, I will kill you" Harry threatened him; Draco nodded sharply and continued to ignore them. Harry stood and pulled Ron into the next compartment.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Harry! Are you insane?" Ron broke free of the hold Harry had on him, "That's MALFOY in there, you know the ferret! The one who relentlessly teased and tormented her!" Ron was yelling now.
"No Ron, he's different, I can sense it" Harry shook his head slowly, and sank into the bench, "He won't hurt her, he… he cares about her" Ron collapsed onto the bench across from him, "It's… it's not possible, he's, he's Malfoy" Ron took a shuddering breath.
Harry smiled grimly and nodded sadly, "She's been different Ron, all three of us are, surely you noticed, since… since the... well it" Harry sighed heavily his shoulders drooped. "I watched her, she disappeared for ages at a time. Oh how I wanted to follow her and find out what she was doing, but she always came back looking a little happier each time." He shrugged, "I didn't want to ask her, not after that time she got that owl, the one from her parents then she just disappeared and came back two hours later, calmer than before"
Ron nodded and spoke, "I noticed as well, I mean, she was different, but I thought it was because of, well it, I never thought anything more of it" he sighed and shook his head, "I've been a real idiot Harry, haven't I?" Harry cracked a weak smile and nodded.
Both boys broke into weak grins and spent the time until the platform quietly laughing and joking with each other, slowly beginning to find themselves again.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
With Draco and Hermione.
"Drac?" Hermione mumbled softly, her voice even raspier from crying. "Hey Mione, you're awake. Are you ok?" he asked worriedly, "Yeah," she gave a small smile, "I'll be fine, really" she added seeing his disbelieving look.
"Where're Harry and Ron?" She asked, noting the absence of her best friends, Draco scoffed, "Potty and the weasel are probably shagging somewhere" Hermione glared at him and Draco quickly shut his mouth and restart his sentence, "They left when you fell asleep… ooh look the platform" he was suddenly interested in the platform.
Hermione snickered and Draco turned to glare at her, she just grinned innocently back at him.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
On the platform
Harry and Ron looked around anxiously for Hermione, even for Malfoy, what they never expected was that the two of them would be together and greeting his parents. Lucius Malfoy and his wife Narcissa were both cold and beautiful, both arrogant and at the same time graceful.
Mrs. Weasley swept Harry and Ron into bone crushing hugs while Ginny giggled behind them, rolling her eyes at the two boys, her eyes twinkling. Mr. Weasley hugged Ron and shook Harry's hand before giving him a swift hug, Tonks grinned at them both, Kingsley nodded and Mad-eye was staring off in the direction that Hermione was with the Malfoy's.
He strode off in that direction not a moment later, leaving the rest of the order to stare after him and gasp at what they saw.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
With Hermione and the Malfoy's
Draco and Hermione strode through the masses towards the end of the platform and found Narcissa and Lucius glaring at anyone who looked at them for too long, most people were in awe of the Richest family in the whole of the Northern Hemisphere and the fact they were even at the platform.
"Oh, Lucius, here they come" Narcissa's usually cold voice held a trace of warmth when the two 15 near 16 year old children. Lucius's lips curled faintly upward at the two approaching children before dropping back to his usually emotionless face.
"Father, Mother" Draco said respectively, nodding to his parents, they smiled faintly and Draco saw the emotions in their eyes that others couldn't see; Love, pride and happiness.
"Lucius, Narcissa" Hermione smiled at the Patriarch and Matriarch of the Malfoy family, they nodded to her and that meant the world to Hermione. She smiled again and they chattered for a while until Mad-eye came barging through the crowds and grabbed Hermione's arm and started to drag her away.
"Let me go" she struggled to break free and he let her go, with the momentum Hermione fell to the floor, Draco rushed to her side and helped her up while glaring at Mad-eye.
Hermione dusted herself off, "You could have just asked nicely, no need to drag me half way round the platform" Lucius glared and Narcissa sniffed her disapproval of Mad-eye's handling of Hermione.
Hermione smiled to the Malfoy's once more and mouthed 'three days' before walking off towards Ginny, Harry, Ron, Fred and George, Tonks, Molly, Arthur and Kinsley. "Wotcher Hermione" Tonks said in a stunned voice, Molly Arthur, Fred, George and Kingsley just opened and closed their mouths, Ginny smiled, Harry and Ron just stood and Mad-eye came over, grabbed their stuff, shrunk it and held out a pizza box for them to grab.
Hermione shook her head sadly, her eyes darkening and her mouth set in a grim line, she would do anything to not return here, his house, Sirius's house.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Dumbledore awaited them in the kitchen of number 12 Grimmauld Place, when he saw the group of bedraggled and tired students, his attention focused on Hermione. He opened his mouth but she held up her hand, "Please, not now" and brushed past them all and up the stairs into her room.
After a few seconds Ginny followed her.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Upstairs, Hermione found the room she would be sharing with Ginny completely clean; the windows were open, the beds clean, no dust and their trunks had been unpacked. Kreacher had always looked out for Hermione and done as she asked; Hermione figured it was because she was nice to him.
"Hermione?" Ginny voice was muffled through the door, "Come in Gin, it is your room too" Hermione said softly, her voice was better after drinking some water. "Are you really sure you want to do this?" Ginny asked softly, not meeting her friend's eyes. Hermione raised a brow in a Malfoy-ish way, causing Ginny to giggle. "You look like them when you do little things like that, you do know that don't you?" Ginny giggled, Hermione smirked, causing Ginny to giggle more. Hermione threw a pillow at her friend, knocking her on the chair she was perched precariously on.
"What choice is there?" she replied to Ginny's earlier question, a steely resolve in her voice "If I have to reorder time to bring Sirius back then I will"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX