Shattered hearts and broken paths

Discalimer: Not mine, Sorry, I just like to use other people's characters. I promise, I wont harm them... Much! All these Characters belong to the Brilliant JKR! I take no credit!


~2~


Bright yellow light seeped through the window of the head dorms announcing morning. Hermione woke up to face reality all over again. “Good thing it’s a Saturday, and there is no classes today” she said aloud as she rolled over, hugged her pillow to her chest and stared out through her window hangings at the black lake.

Am I an unbearable person? Do people just pretend to be my friend because they feel sorry for me because I’m a muggle born? Do people just be nice to my face and disrespect me behind my back? How long have these affairs been going on? Why does Ron want to be with Lavender rather then me? Am I ugly? Am I hideous? Do people think im just a stuck-up bookworm because I take my schooling seriously? What is happening to my life?

Depression set in as reality slapped her in the face. Ron cheated on her because she wasn’t easy. Because she was serious about their relationship, like she was serious about her life, like she was always serious. Way too serious.

“Life is too short to be serious all the time,” she told herself as she crawled out of bed. “Its time for a change, a big change, one no one would ever expect. A change for me, a change to show them I can be fun too.” She continued as she stripped out of her shorts and camisole. “How do I change?” she pondered while pulling up her hipster jeans and a bright green v-neck shirt over her head.

She walked slowly down the stairs of the Head Common room and caught silver hair and cold gray eyes staring at her. “Morning Granger.” Draco said and smiled weakly as she descended the rest of the way down the marble staircase.

“Morning Malfoy” she replied under her breath.

“Want to walk to breakfast with me?” he asked quietly while fidgeting with the hem of his dark green silk button up shirt.

“No, Sorry, I think I am going to skip breakfast and go to the astronomy tower to catch some air and think for a while.” She replied half shocked at how he asked to be seen walking with her as an equal.

“Can I join you?” He asked trying not to meet her eyes.

“What for Malfoy? So you can nose into my business?” she spat getting irritated at his persistence.

“No, I just thought it would be nice if we could, you know… talk.” He said as he looked up to meet her eyes.

“If you must,” she said walking through the portrait and down the hallway.

Draco walked down the long corridor by her side in silence. No words were said and she was relieved he didn’t try asking her what happened last night or why she was so upset, she didn’t think she could deal with the thoughts again.


They reached the astronomy tower in complete silence. Not one word was spoken between the two and Hermione liked the quiet Malfoy better then the one that was quick witted with snide and rude remarks.

“Great view in the day, I hardly come up here unless I have to.” Draco said breaking the silence.

“Yeah, its quiet breath taking” she said as she walked closer to the ledge and looked over the lake and Hogwarts school grounds.

“Hermione, err uh… Granger… Can I call you Hermione? If you don’t feel like telling me I understand, but what happened last night? Why were you so upset?”

“Uhm, Ok, Draco, last night was just nothing, too much stress catching up with me, nothing serious, I’m fine.” She said half truthfully.

“I don’t believe your telling me the whole story.”

“Why does it matter?”

“Because Hermione, I want to change, I want to be a better person, With my father being locked up in Azkaban makes me free from his abuse and lets me make my own decisions now, and now I want to change, all this pure blood bullshit is nothing more then that, bullshit, How can people be so desperate to follow a man who is a half-blood himself to rid the wizarding world of people like himself and have control over them with the greater blood? How can he rule and have people follow him without question? Does that seem wrong? I just want to change, and I want to make up for all the nasty things I have said to you, I am sorry, I want to be a better person.”

Hermione was taken aback at his speech about change. She was not the only one looking for a change, or for something new, a new start, a new life, a new change. This may be her opportunity. She looked into his stormy gray eyes to see if it was all tricks and head games but the sincerity in his eyes told her it was neither and he was serious about wanting to change.

“Draco, If I may, Sorry is a strong word, and please don’t apologies if you don’t mean it. You are looking for change, I am too, I want to be a different person, I want to learn how to have fun, be fun, and not be known as a stuck-up bookworm. I am tired of being treated like im a princess held so high up on a pedestal, Virgin, Top grades, Head Girl, know it all, Morals, Standards, structure. I have done nothing but take my life serious from day one, everything I do has to be done to the best of my ability, but the thing I am failing at is living my own life, living a life on a path that is not chosen or expected. A life with fun and simplicity.”

Draco tilted his head and smirked a sly smirk. “Dumbledore has been wanting house rivalry to die down and every one to get along, what do you say we give it a try? You teach me how to be a better person and I will teach you how to have fun, as what would you and Harry call it? As friends? Not only Head boy and Head Girl as an obligation but because we want to, we need this.”

It made sense. Draco wanted to be a better person and change his way of life and Hermione did too, so why not hang out with the opposite of whom you are to pick up the characteristics of the person you are trying to become?

“Uhm, Alright… I guess… It couldn’t hurt to try could it?” She asked thinking about how this could end up, and how it could end up badly for her.

“Right then… its settled.” Draco said glancing off into the distance at the Quidditch pitch,

“Draco, since we are friends now, Can I ask you an honest question?” Hermione asked.

“Sure, that’s what err… friends do right?”

“Do you think I am ugly?” she asked in a small voice instantly regretting the question, and turning to look away from his stormy eyes.

“Hermione, No, You are one of the prettiest girls in school, Stubborn, but very pretty, and I really am sorry about calling you all those nasty names.” He said while looking at her with a questioning look. “Why do you ask?”

“Ughhhh! Everyone has got to know by now anyways so you may as well know too. Ron cheated on me with Lavender Brown.”

“Sonofabitch!” Draco said pissed off that a friend would do that to a friend. “What would make him be so stupid?”

“Well I think that’s my fault, we were together for what seemed like ever, everyone knew that, but we have never… umm… Ok this is weird… We never had sex.” She stated and blushed a little bit embarrassed at how easily she could just open up to this person who she hated for the past 6 years.

“So, If you are with someone you never cheat regardless of the circumstances.” He stated as if it were a law.

“Well that only applies to some people I guess.” She mumbled

“Well I am hungry, you look like your hungry too… want to walk with me to the great hall now? And Hermione. Thank you for umm listening to me.” He said and moved towards the staircase.

“No, I think I am going to sit a little bit longer, I will see you later back in the common room.” She said and smiled at Draco as he sighed and retreated down the staircase towards the great hall.

‘Is this a dream? Is Draco under a spell? Or a crazy potion to make him be nice? Or is he being sincere and actually trying to change? It’s so hard to tell with him. I guess we will find out sooner or later. I guess I just have to watch how much I let him into my life.’ She thought gazing down at the forbidden forest.

~*~

“Where is she?” Harry asked looking around the Great hall searching for his brown bushy haired friend. “She never misses breakfast.”

“Yah well I don’t blame her, I wouldn’t want to see Ron either after what he pulled last night, Im surprised all he has is a hand print across his face, and never got his balls hexed off. She is more the capable of it and you and I both know it.” Ginny stated irritated at her brothers actions.

“Yah, but she’s not mad at me is she?” he asked Ginny worried that he might be on the receiving end of a guilt trip sooner or later.

“Why should she be? Your not the one who slept with the Hogwarts whore, she’s like a broom. Everyone has given her a ride at least once, maybe more, She could be starting to re trace her steps, who knows” Ginny said glaring at the other end of the table were Lavender sat with Parvati telling her about her latest sexual encounter.

“Yah but, I am his best friend.” He said moving his eggs around his plate with his fork.

“Yah but you are HER best friend too!” Ginny said. “And you are acting like a baby, why not go look for her? She is probably in her Dorm studying or finishing up an essay that isn’t due till next week, you know how she likes to keep on top of her work like that.”

“Yah, You are right.” Harry said as he drank down the rest of his pumpkin juice and stood up from the table.

~*~

Hermione left the astronomy tower and was walking down the corridor towards the head dorms. A nice bath in the prefects bathroom would be good, that’s always relaxing, and I know Ron cant get in there so I will be safe from his pathetic apologies. She thought while walking into their common room.

“Hey Gra... I mean Hermione. What are you up too?” Draco asked as he stood up from the black couch and placed a potions book on the coffee table.

“Nothing, was going to grab my swimsuit and go soak in the prefects bath for a while, their bath is bigger then ours and its so nice.” She said absent-mindedly.

“Yes Hermione, I know what the prefect bathroom looks like, I was after all a prefect last year.” He said looking at her quietly.

“Oh yes sorry, Im just in a little daze, Well Im going to go now.” She replied heading up the stairs to get her swimsuit and towel.

Draco was still standing looking at her when she came back down into the common room.

“Uhm, Do you want to come with me?” Hermione asked looking down at the pink flip-flops on her feet.

“Uhm, Alright… One moment.” He said as he headed up the staircase to his room.
Moment later they were again walking down the corridors beside each other in silence. They reached the prefect bathroom. Draco muttered the password and the door came open. Hermione and Draco stepped inside slowly without a word.

Hermione changed behind a cloth divider into her swimsuit and when Draco said ok she stepped out from behind the divider and walked slowly towards the bath. It was huge. They had a prefect bath party last year after the Yule ball and you could easily fit 10 people in it. There was a bench all the way around the wall of the bath and if you stood the water was neck high.

Draco looked at Hermione. Her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. Her swimsuit was like nothing her had ever seen before, there was no straps or ties, it was a pink tube top that covered her chest and the bottoms were pink short shorts of the same material. A silver dot on her stomach caught his attention.

“What is that?” he asked pointing at her belly button.

“Oh that’s a belly button ring.” She said and brought her hand to her stomach and touched the ring.

“A ring on your belly button? I have never heard of such an absurd thing!” he said astonished.

“Yah it’s a muggle thing.” She said as she slid into the bath.

“Oh…”

Hermione watched Draco enter the bath, He was about 6’2 with a lean body, and you wouldn’t have been able to tell he was so muscular behind the bagginess of their school robes. His stomach looked rock hard. His abs a perfect six-pack, his arms weren’t big but you could tell they were muscular. His shoulders broadened out a lot since their first year.

She smiled as she looked at his flawless pecks up to his gorgeous face. His hair was still long and shaggy. His eyes cold and gray could pierce through anything. His smile was devious. You could never actually tell what he was thinking. Her eyes wandered all over his body, searching for a dark mark, she didn’t see it. She sighed in relief and knew she could trust him a bit.

She never really checked him out before, she knew he was a spoilt brat and that was about it. She was surprised at how in shape his body was. She smiled and looked up at the stained glass window of the mer-person. She could feel his eyes on her and she looked up to meet his gaze.

“So, that thing in your belly button… How did they do it?” Draco asked curiously.

“Well they take a clamp and hold the skin of the belly button and get a hollow point needle and push it through the skin and then put the metal bar through and as quick as it happens you don’t feel it much and its done. That’s it.”

“You mean, they actually shove a needle into your flesh! You’re a madman, or uh, woman.” He said surprised by the steps of such a body modification.

“Well maybe, but like I said it is a muggle thing, its normal.”

Draco walked to were Hermione was sitting and sat on the opposite of the bath from her and looked at her again wondering why Ron was so stupid, she really was the perfect girl to take home to mom, she was smart, pretty, polite, and extremely well mannered. Now if she is a freak in the sack she’s my kind of girl, he thought to himself.

“So how have you found the first few weeks going?” She asked trying to keep a conversation going.
***

They sat in the bath for an hour talking about school and classes, which teachers were their favorites and which ones the dreaded going to. They talked about what they wanted to be after graduation and after the war.

The topic of the war made Draco shift slightly in his seat, uncomfortable with the conversation he looked at his hands, “Ahh, I am all wrinkly like a… a… old person!” he said as he stood and headed towards the stairs that led out of the bath..

Hermione chuckled and followed his lead, grabbing her towel from the side of the bath as she climbed the stairs and stepped out, wrapping herself in the towel.

"Hermione?" Draco's voice broke the silence of the prefects bathroom while they where changing.

"Yes Draco?" She replied relieved that the bath never made things akward.

"How would you go about the war if you were me?" He asked quietly.

Hermione was taken aback by this question, She knes Draco's father was a famous death eater, and knew that Draco was raised to believe that the ways of Voldermort where favored greatly by pureblood families such as the Malfoy's.

"Draco, I would not let your father know that you are trying to be a better person at the time being, I would how ever follow his wishes,,, and pretend to follow Voldermort until the War so you knew how to prepare yourself, and maybe even help out the light side? So there was some sort of advantage. And then when the war finally broke out stand next to your father at the begining of it, but stand for what you believe in by the end. But if you want to help out the light, I would surely advise you let Dumbledore of all people know so he can keep you protected from people who may think you are a death eater." she replied not to sure of what she would really do herself in that situation.
"If only it were that easy." he replied then paused."If I wish to follow my fathers wishes, I have to be branded by that lunatic, and recieve the dark mark. It is easy now to say that I am scared of recieving the mark, and I can stick to that story while I am still here at Hogwarts, Because He wants me to keep an eye on Harry and not get caught of being a death eater. But once I get that mark Hermione, there is some dark Magic and he can tell if I am lying or not without using Occulmency or Legillamecy. I would rather be killed at the wand of Harry Potter then at a unforgivable curse by that lunatic. His beliefs are absurd."

"Are you spying on Harry?"

"No, I just tell him what I can. Snape Backs me up alot, he is part of the reson I want to be a better person, He has such will power to stand and lie to Voldermort and convince him that he is still on the dark side."

"Alright, Well Draco, I dont know what to say, Why are you telling me all this?"

"I want to be a better person, Remember?"

"Yes... But I dont see what being a better person has anything to do with Voldermort, I
understand you dont know how to go about htis War situation, But I cannot make that decision for you. That is something You have to do on your own. And I will stand behind you if you choose to fight with the light, But You need to let me know so we can talk to Dumbledore about this properly."

"I understand.. Thank you Hermione, I have not really had anyone to talk to this about, Crabb and Goyle are already faithful to Voldermort and You know as well as I know that Zabani has already gone 100% to the light. I couldnt talk to him, I cant make that risk, At least I have you in the privacy of our Head Dorms."

"Its ok, Really it is Draco." Hermione replied while stepping behind the cloth devider and slipping back into her school robes.

The walk back down the hallway towards the head dorms was quiet, A lightly heated conversation was going on around the corner and Hermione and Draco walked briskly to see what all the noise was about.

"I knew you were still with Miss Bookworm, and I knew that you would never say no, or stop to me. she is the most desired person in the school and you had her, and you were one thing I could take away from her. Ron ever since the 6th year when we were together I could not help it, and when you said you were in love with her, it hurt me, and I couldnt deal with it. I love you, and you lost her, and you enjoyed me as much as i enjoyed you." Lavander was saying to Ron who had his hands clenched tightly into fists and was leaning face forward onto the wall trying not to look at Lavender.

"You screwed up my relationship."

"You didnt seem to mind too much last night."

"Excuse me... Shouldnt your little love quarrel be dealt with in the Gryffindor Common Room, or out of publics ears. We dont care about who hurt who, the only person who is suffering right now is Miss Granger, Now clear the hallways before detentions are handed out." Draco interupted coldly.

"Draco why dont you shut... Oh Hi Hermione, I was hoping I could talk to you." Ron replied.

"She has no reason to talk to scum like you Weasel."

"Wacth your tongue Malfoy."

"WOULD THE BOTH OF YOU JUST STOP!" screamed Hermione, as she took off sprinting towards the Head Dorms.

~*~