How To Save a Life

How To Save A Life


Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life ~ The Fray, How To Save A Life




There was always something about Hermione Granger that Draco truly admired. It wasn’t her larger than life curly hair, or her perfect bow shaped lips. It was her ability to see straight through him. No matter how much he tried to fool her, she always saw straight through his lies and touched the deepest part of his soul. Thiers wasn’t the most conventional relationship, hell at most times it wasn’t even a relationship at all, but there was something about her that made Draco want to protect her. To take her away from all the hurt he knew she was going to have to be put through.


In the darkest corners of Hogwarts, they shared their secrets, they told no lies. On the darkest of nights they bared theirs souls to one another. It was there they pledged they would save each others lives, what ever the cost. In the simplest of terms, Draco Malfoy loved Hermione Granger. Loved her more than he ever thought possible, she was his air he breathed and if he didn’t catch one single minute alone with her each day, he felt like his heart would explode. Sometimes when he could of swore she wasn’t looking, he would just sit and watch her. The simple things she did stunned him into wondrous awe and he ached to hold her, or just to have the chance to submerge his face in her wild hair.


It was the desperation of being alone that finally drove Draco to tears, that night in the abandoned girls bathroom. He sobbed openly for hours with only Myrtle for company, pouring his heart out to a damn ghost just didn’t cut the mustard in Draco’s eyes. For once he wasn’t aware of everything around him, and his defences where down. He didn’t even hear the gentle footsteps that echoed gently off the marbled walls, until a warm hand was pressed to his hair. He looked up through red eyes and saw the concerned gaze of Hermione upon him.


He for one moment considered getting up, wiping the tracks of his tears from his face and sneering at her. But he knew it wouldn’t work now. She had seen him for what he really was, a lonely confused angst filled young man. One that was assigned with a task that to all intents and purposes was a suicide mission. He couldn’t find the strength within himself to take a life. No matter how much he practiced a cold demeanour, he could never pull it off. He had no one to turn to, and as much as he wanted to tell her everything, he couldn’t. His own father was incarcerated, and although he appeared cold and detached, he was a great support for his son. Dumbledore, what ever the Dark Lord said, was a good man. A man on many occasions had saved the wizarding world. Draco didn’t want to end his life, but to go against a being such as Lord Voldemort was paramount to signing your own death warrant.


Instead, Draco reached out for her with his hand and found it immediately encased in hers. She fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around him. He flinched for a second before relaxing in her arms, his chest shaking as he once more was over come with sobs. She ran a soothing hand down his back and rubbed the middle of his spine as he layed his head on her chest. Her fingers worked the knots in the base of his scalp and, for a second Draco closed his eyes and breathed.


He lost all conscious thought for a second as he breathed in the majestic scent of Hermione Granger. His mind reeled as he smelt the warming scent of freesia and vanilla, that clung to her sweatshirt. Her hands were still rubbing at the base of his neck, before she realised Draco had calmed down. She pushed a lock of shiny platinum hair away from his damp forehead and looked at him, his saddened face affecting her more than it should. She had never seen him like before, never imagined for one second that he could possibly have this much emotion bottled up inside him.


In all the years she had known him, Draco Malfoy had been a condescending, arrogant git. But in the last few months in which she had got to know him, she had realised he was a product of the elitist Pureblood machine. Draco had never been allowed to have his own personality or thoughts or feelings, having been raised to follow in his fathers footsteps and become the next head of the Malfoy family. But she knew Draco was different to his father, if tonight along with the many nights they had shared had to be considered. Hermione had noticed the change in Draco Malfoy, as subtle as it was, she always noticed it. Lately he had become withdrawn, not even sparing time for her. This was not the boy she fell in love with, this was a boy with the weight of the world on his shoulders.


They sat huddled together, Hermione’s arms resting on Draco’s shoulders. His breathing slowed and he just relaxed, resting his head on her chest, mesmerised by the rhythm of her chest. She shifted slightly and he looked up into her eyes, surprised to see them slightly red from where she had shed her own tears. He reached up and ran the pad of his thumb along the underneath of her eye, wiping her tears away. He noted how she shivered as his finger ran over the soft smooth skin of her cheek, feeling the slight heat of her blush under his finger tips. She had never looked as beautiful to him as she did right now. He felt her chest movements quicken as his gaze drifted downward toward her lips, and he moaned lowly as he watched her tongue dart out and lick them unintentionally.

Hermione was hyper aware of the intensity in which Draco was looking at her. She could feel the heat of his gaze right down to the tips of her toes. She breathed quickly as his head bent and she felt the warm caress of his lips on her neck, his left hand rose slowly and immersed itself in her hair, her curls wrapping around his fingers. His lips drifted upward until he tasted the salty remains of her tears. He licked away the slight dampness until all he could taste was her. He stared into her eyes, as his lips hovered a centimetre away from hers. She could practically taste him as he breathed in and out, the overwhelming scent of lemon drops and pure Draco filled her sense’s and her lust for him took over. She quickly closed the gap between them, kissing him with urgency, and a wild desperation she had never felt before.


In all the times he had kissed Hermione Granger, Draco had never felt the need to be with her as much as he did now. He needed to lose himself in all that was her, to immerse himself in all that was pure and right within this world. He loved her, he knew that, and knew that she loved him. He wished for so many good things for her, for all her dreams to come true in a world where she would grow into an amazing woman. A world where her children would play, happily and carefree. A world where she had a wizard who would worship her in the way he always wished he could have. He knew, infact he was certain, he wasn’t going to come out of this alive. A life for a life, he often thought of it as. A cruel waste of a life, cut short.


But it was worth it, just for her. It was all for her, to save the world in which she lived in. He loved her enough to put aside his own selfish ambitions for the one person who meant the world to him. She had become his everything, and if giving his life for her to be safe and away from all the horrors that he had seen. If tonight was the last night he was going to spend with her, he was going to make it special. He would never tell her what was going to happen to him in the coming hours but he would always love her, whether he was here or not. She would always know, that what he had done, was always to keep her safe.


Hermione shivered as Draco’s hands crept underneath her jumper, and his warm fingers touched the bare skin of her stomach. She jumped as she once again felt the warm tracks of his tears as they fell from his silver eyes. She pulled away from him, her eyes filled with concern, and he took a moment to shake his head, trying his hardest to compose himself. He didn’t want to die, knowing he had never had the chance to experience the true meaning of love. He wanted to die knowing he was loved, and if it was only by her, it meant everything to him.

He gently pulled her jumper over her head and continued to kiss her as he unbuttoned her shirt, her hands flying to the knot of his Slytherin tie. With surprising speed, their clothes soon lay on a pile on the floor. Draco took a moment to capture an image her in his mind, spread out, like a goddess before him. His breath hitched in his throat as she wrapped a leg around him welcoming him forward, near her scorching core. Draco groaned as his length touched the heavenly heat, and nearly came then and there as he sunk himself into her.

They moved together, as one. Fitting perfectly together, their bodies peaking together, bliss washing over them at the same time. Draco prayed for one second he could escape and take her with him.

For them to be never seen again, to hide away in their own little world…. Where their future hadn’t been cut short.

~*~

Hermione ran into the Great Hall, Harry following seconds after her. She watched as teachers battled Death Eaters, regardless of their blood purity. She watched as wizard after witch were slain, from either side. She could make out the mass of familiar faces moved quickly, different coloured lights shooting from their wands, straight into the chests of unsuspecting victims. Harry shot off into the throng, raising his wand and casting curse after curse, taking down as many as he could. Her wand shook slightly in her cut hands, the result of a badly performed slicing hex. She looked up to see the deranged eyes of Bellatrix Lestrange, as she drew her wand ready to curse the Muggleborn, she saw the Death Eater raise her wand and speak a curse only to be knocked from her feet by a familiar face in Slytherin house robes.


She stumbled slightly as a blur of black swept past her a bolt of orange light missing her by inches, the poor soul in front of her taking the fatal hit, blood spewing from the front of his school robe. She cried out and fell to her knees as the familiar face of Seamus Finnegan looked back at her. He was shaking uncontrollably, the fear and shock showing on his face. His breathing slowed and his eyes became glassy as he took his final breath.

Hermione sobbed as she rocked Seamus’ body in her arms over and over again. She felt a gentle pair of hands prize hers from his body and she felt herself being lifted away from the bloodied body of her housemate.

She looked up to see the one person she didn’t expect to see in her lifetime, helping her. Lucius Malfoy stared back at her with sorrow filled eyes and motioned to the figure laying at the foot of the hall. Hermione let out a strangled sob and tried to fight her way out of Lucius’ grip. He finally relented and let her go and she darted across the hall, dodging spells and curses that were flung her way, coming to a stop at the quivering body of Draco Malfoy.

“Mione?” he choked.

“I’m here, Draco, I’m here.” she said as tears fell from her eyes.

“I love you.” he said, his hands trembling as he caught hers in his.

“I know, Dragon, I love you too.” she said as she pulled him into her arms.

“I’m sorry, so so sorry, Mione.” he said, tears now falling from his own eyes.

“Don’t you dare say that Draco, its not your fault. Don’t you dare say those words.”

“I love you so much.” he said as his body convulsed and he cried out in pain.

“Please, Dragon, don’t leave me.” she begged as his breathing became erratic.

“I’ll love you forever.” he whispered, the pain written across his face.

“I’ll love you always, my life is yours.” she sobbed.

“We’ll share our lives together, even in death.” he spoke.

“Forever and always in love.” she cried her arms coming around him and holding on to him tightly, her magic singing in her grief, she felt the powerful tug on her magical centre as their bond was recognised. They were officially man and wife.

“I’ll see you before you know, it.” he said his hand tightening around hers.

“Please, don’t die, I cant live without you.” she begged.

“You wont have to.” spoke Lucius Malfoy as he motioned toward the ceiling of the Great hall.

A mighty blue phoenix was hurtling toward the foot of the hall, its wings glittering in the setting sun. It swooped down and landed on Draco’s trembling chest. Its head cocked to the side and came to rest on the open wound in the middle of the younger Malfoy’s chest. Hermione watched through tears as the phoenix wept into Draco’s wound, and sobbed as the skin began to heal. She clung to the shaking form of her now husband, and cried as the phoenix brought him back from the brink of death. Draco’s chest began to jerk violently as the curse was unravelled, and his body arched upward as the effects vanished from his system.

“Please, Dragon, come back to me.” she whispered.

“He will be fine, Miss Granger.” said a voice from behind him.

Albus Dumbledore strolled through the now defunct battle, alive and well, his death faked, in an attempt to fool the Death Eaters. He crouched down and stroked the bright blue birds head, as he considered his words.

“This here, is a keeper of death. If the keeper feels that the life it is about to receive is more worthy of life, it will return the soul to the body. It feels as if young Mr Malfoy, has a higher purpose in this life.” said Dumbledore as he looked pointedly at Hermione, “You are now joined in a blood bond, Miss Granger. You are now, according to all common law, Mrs Hermione Malfoy.”

“We knew what we were doing, Professor,” she said as she looked on at Lucius, “We love each other.”

“I don’t doubt that for a second Hermione, but you saved Draco’s life. The blue phoenix only appears on the promise of new life. New life created between those who share a true and powerful love.”

“What on earth are you talking about, Dumbledore?” asked Lucius.

“I’d say, in the next 8 to 9 months, you’ll understand.” smiled Dumbledore, his blue eyes twinkling.

“Hermione?” said Draco as shifted slightly.

Hermione let out a sharp cry and threw her arms around Draco, who clung to his wife tightly.

“I thought…I thought I’d never get the chance to see you again.” he said as took her face in his hands.

“Nothing will ever part me from you ever, Draco. I promise.”

“I love you so much, I would have give it all up, died a thousand deaths, just so you didn’t have to suffer one ounce of hurt.”

“You really do love me don’t you?”

“Forever and always, Mrs Malfoy.” he said, smiling slightly.

“It will be forever, Mr Malfoy.


He believed her with all his heart, and loved her twice as much. He turned his head to watch the sunset he believed he would never see. He had her now forever. He would live in a world where she was happy, where she was celebrated, and most of all in a world where she was his.

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I cried the whole way through, while I was writing this. It just stirred something in me and I couldn't help but sob my heart out. Thanks to LadyBlueEyes for listening to me moan over Yahoo! And for encoraging me to post this.