His only Need

“Oi, where have you been?!” Ron yelled at them, storming over the entrance hall. “Ginny came running into the great hall, and shouted something about Draco being attacked. The whole bloody room freaked. And the professors had to convince us all that it couldn’t be Death Eaters again.” He shook his head.

Hermione flashed red. She hadn’t thought that Draco’s scream of joy would cause such panic.
“I’ll go tell the Headmistress that you’re all right, both of you,” Skylark smiled, making Hermione flush even deeper.

“Don’t tell me that, that scream…. ‘MIONE!” Ron looked in disbelief from Hermione to Draco and by Draco’s smirk Ron knew that his thoughts were right. “You two were shagging in the garden!” Ron hissed in a low voice. “Tell me, did you enjoy ruining the party for the rest of us?! DON’T answer that, Malfoy.” Ron glared at a chuckling Draco.


“Hermione! You’re all right!” Ginny ran down the stairs and threw her arms around Hermione’s neck. “Don’t EVER do that again. I was so afraid that someone had hurt you and Draco. Where were you?”

“They were shagging in the bushes.” Ron spat out.

“WHAT!... Oh my God… And I thought…” Now Ginny’s face turned the same deep red colour as Hermione’s “Sorry… Thought you were in trouble…” Harry and McGonagall joined them.

“It was false alarm, they are fine.” Ron said and walked off to find Skylark, shaking his head. Harry and McGonagall looked after Ron and then turned to look at Hermione and Draco. “What’s with Ron?” Harry asked.
“He’s sour that the party was stopped because of us,” Draco said in a regretful voice “Sorry! We didn’t mean to ruin it for everyone. We just needed some alone time.”He sighed and put his arm around Hermione’s waist. “Come, Mi… Think it’s best if we make ourselves scarce.”

Hermione looked embarrassed and stared down at the floor and the two left Harry and McGonagall to wonder. “Do you think I should have a talk with Hermione about responsibility?” The older witch asked Harry.
“I think that it's too late, Headmistress.” Harry said.
“Oh dear!” McGonagall whispered. “Hope they know how to … ehm… protect themselves.”

The last comment made Harry grunt, “They better!”




The next day, Hermione and Draco got a lot of different looks at breakfast. This was the last breakfast the 7th year students would eat together and Hermione was very sad that it had to be in a bad mood.

Ginny hugged her and apologized again, but it didn’t help and Hermione’s eyes fogged up. A tear ran slowly down her cheek, making Ginny very upset… “That’s enough!” She jumped up on the bench cast Sonorus on her throat.

“IT WAS MY FAULT THE PARTY WAS RUINED! I WAS THE ONE THAT OVERREACTED AND MISREAD WHAT I HEARD! FOR PITY’S SAKE. IT’S HERMIONE GRANGER… WHEN HAS SHE RUINED ANYTHING FOR ANY OF YOU!? SHE WAS THE ONE THAT FIGURED OUT THAT IT WAS A BASILISK THAT LURKED AROUND THE SCHOOL IN MY FIRST YEAR. SHE WAS ONE OF THE REASONS THAT I’M STILL ALIVE!” Ginny’s voice quivered with anger and tears, “LEAVE HER ALONE! IT’S THE LAST DAY OF THIS SCHOOL YEAR. MANY OF YOU WILL NEVER SEE EACH OTHER AGAIN. IS THIS THE WAY YOU WANT TO REMEMBER THIS DAY!?"

Some of the students looked down on the table in front of them, embarrassed, while others looked in disbelief at Ginny. Ron looked at her with pride and Harry beamed with love and respect and then someone started clapping LOUD.

Hagrid stood behind the professor’s high table and clapped his big hands together. Slowly it spread throughout the hall making Ginny flush and she cast Quietus to stop the spell and sat down.

Hermione threw her arms around Ginny, with tears running down her face and she thanked her friend and then cried even harder when she realized that they wouldn’t see as much of each other the next year. The same thought had struck Ginny and the red-head’s eyes flooded over with tears as she whispered, “Please come and stay with us at the Burrow this summer! I’m sure mom would be pleased and would even let Draco come, too!”

“I have to get home to my parents the first week at least and then I have to get ready to start at my new studies, but I’ll try to come and visit for a couple of days… Ohh, I’m going to miss you SO MUCH!”

A hand lightly placed itself on her shoulder. “Mi… Please stop crying… It’s a happy day! Come let’s join the others out in the lawns and send them off to enjoy their summer holiday.” Draco slowly stroked her back as she tried to stop the stream of tears.

Harry, Ron, Draco and Hermione said their goodbyes to Ginny as she left for the Burrow and then the four, who had to remain at Hogwarts for another 3 weeks, said goodbye to their classmates wishing them good luck with their new jobs or further education. All felt as if an era was over. Suddenly they realized that in three weeks time, after their exams, they could be leaving Hogwarts too and entering the wizarding world as adults.

Harry felt a cold hand clutch his stomach. Hogwarts was the only home he had ever really had. He knew he owned his godfather’s house at Grimmauld Place, but he didn’t like the thought of being alone in the house.

After Voldemort’s death the Order of the Phoenix had moved out of the house and used the rooms at the ministry that were provided by the new Minister for Magic as a peace offering.

Draco’s thoughts were much like Harry’s. He hadn’t been back at the manor since the murder of Dumbledore and didn’t know if his mother would be there. And if she was, would she be glad to see him? He knew she didn’t support his father’s manic devotion to Voldemort, but she hadn’t been strong enough to keep Draco from following in his father’s footsteps. With his father in Azkaban, Draco wondered why his mother hadn’t contacted him when she heard that Voldemort was defeated. “Well, in a few weeks I’ll be going home, then we’ll see!”


When the last carriage disappeared from sight, they went back into the castle. Feeling quite heavy at heart they didn’t speak for a while.

“Now, why these long faces?” Skylark’s melodic voice sounded from behind them. She walked up and put her arm in Ron’s and looked at the four young wizards.

“We’ve just grasped the fact that we’ll be leaving Hogwarts soon. It’s been kind of a home to us the last 7 years. Didn’t think it would matter as much…!” Hermione said in a shivering voice. Draco pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head.

“Now, sweeties! It’s not the end of the world. It’s the beginning of a whole new chapter of your lives.” She smiled at them, recalling the way she felt when she left Beauxbaton. She was so glad to leave, she’d had enough of the girly chit-chat and being one of the only girls not in a coven.

“Tomorrow we’ll start class again. Maybe it will cheer you up that your Wolfsbane potions worked.” She laughed when Hermione’s face lit up in a big smile. “That’s more like it! See you all tomorrow.” She quickly kissed Ron right on the mouth and walked up to her chamber.

“Well, well…” Draco smirked at Ron, who just squinted his eyes at him and growled, “Don’t go there, Malfoy!” Making Draco laugh out loud and causing Ron to take a swing at him.

“Stop it you two!” Hermione barked at them. “Really! Can’t you two just get along? I’ll be in the library!” She walked to the stairs, looked back, then shook her head and left the boys.

“Quite a temper, that one!” Ron said and looked at Draco, “Good luck!” Then they both laughed and Harry murmured, “Crazy! Both of them,” rolling his eyes. The three boys went to their common room to play a few rounds of exploding snap, while Draco tried to uncover just how close Ron and Skylark had become.


It was the day of their first exams. The quartet all had Potions, Transfiguration, Charms and Defense Against the Dark Arts exams on the same days. Beside that Ron had Herbology and Hermione had Arithmancy.

Draco looked over at Ron “I’m still amazed that you want to be a Healer, Weasley! Thought you hated Herbology?”

“Wuell… Wun dud wus attuck bu Nuguni…” Ron started with his mouth full of pancakes.

“Ron… You have the table manners of a troll,” Hermione said in a motherly way, which made Draco and Harry laugh and Ron stare angrily at her.

He swallowed the pancake and started again. “When dad was attacked by Nagini in the ministry, I decided that I would become a Healer so I could help him, or anyone, that needed medical help!”

“I think it’s great,” Harry said. “And with Neville’s tutoring you’ll pass with no effort!” He smiled confidently at his best friend.

“Funny, how things work out!” Ron marvelled. “If anyone had told me that Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter would be helping each other and sparring together in DADA so that they both could become Aurors, I would had asked if they had had a 'Trelawney'.” Ron had begun using Sibyl’s name as a pseudonym for a false prophesy after being in her classes.

Harry and Draco looked at each other thinking that it indeed was a very different relationship they had now. Harry thought of how had hated Draco for tormenting him through the first 6 years and now felt sympathy for the Ferret, hell, he even thought of him as a friend.


They had had some very interesting conversations when they took breaks from duelling in DADA. They talked about family; having none versus having one that didn’t care. Draco had confessed that he had been afraid of his father, and would do anything for his respect.

Lately they had talk about the future, love and facing the world as a Hero and Villain turned good.

“Think they’ll ever trust a Malfoy?” Draco had asked one evening.

Harry hadn’t answered right away. He frowned. “Well, some won’t, because Lucius has hurt a lot of families. I won’t lie; you’re in for a big fight earning trust for the Malfoy name.”

“Ha. Maybe I should just change my name. What about Draco Granger!” They laughed long and hard at the thought of what that would do to Lucius Malfoy.

Harry smiled. Draco smiled back putting his hand round Hermione and whispered “You know I love you, don’t you?” She beamed at him and nodded.

“It’s time for you DADA-exam, Mr. Weasley. Follow me.” And the exams started.