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Daylight	By : pepperdoc Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 13124 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter Universe, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 11
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- 13
(Brief warning: There is a mention of rape in this chapter, but its past tense and not in detail)
The next few days went by in a blur for Hermione. Draco was in his office pretty much constantly from sunup to sundown and then would come into his quarters, where she had gotten into the habit of lying in and reading all day, to bring her to dinner with him. If not for the annoying grandfather clock, she was certain she would forget to eat lunch without him.
She had arrived on Sunday, and by Thursday she was dangerously close to falling in love with the Slytherin. She told him several times- guiltily lying to him- that she was too sore after the first time to have sex with him again after their first time. She was worried about her cycle starting soon, but far too embarrassed to tell him about it so early in their… relationship.
When she woke up at 5 A.M. on Saturday morning, she felt a familiar cramp and cursed Mother Nature for her ovaries. She went to the bathroom to shower and change for the day and then headed to the Hospital wing to see about a pain potion. The sign on the door read: “This is a Hospital, don’t worry, ring the bell and I’ll give you what you need. Jen, M.D.” and it had a little smiley face below the signature. Hermione felt less guilty as she rang the bell. She was wondering if the Mediwitch went by her first name like Rose did on the weekends as she waited for the bell to be answered.
When the Mediwitch was finally roused from her slumber, she opened the door with rollers in her honey blonde hair and in a dressing gown. She looked tired but ushered Hermione in with a smile, regardless. “What is it you need, what was it? Miss Granger?”
“Yes, Hermione is fine, also. I need a pain potion. Is it ok if I call you Jen?”
The Mediwitch turned to look on a shelf with what seemed like thousands of vials and answered at the same time, “Yes, I don’t want anyone to hesitate to come in; I insist all call me by my first name to help make it easier to talk to me. Oh, here it is.” She gave Hermione the potion. “What do you need it for?”
Hermione could feel herself blushing slightly and reminded herself that the woman was a doctor, it was normal to talk to her about it. “My monthly paid me a visit this morning,” She answered.
Jen grabbed back the vial, turned quickly and handed her a different one. “This one is better for cramps,” She explained. “It takes a little while to kick in, but it should work for the whole cycle. Also it helps alleviate the bloating and mood swings, if you are susceptible to them.” She wagged her finger at her with a stern expression on her face, “But don’t forget you are still on your cycle.” Suddenly, she smiled and continued, “Oh what am I saying, I was going to give you the speech like you don’t already know. Sorry, occupational habit. Here,” The Mediwitch turned and handed her a bar of chocolate with a wink.
They shared a laugh and Hermione decided to go outside for a walk in the rising sun so the pain potion would have time to work. She paused in her room on the way upstairs and deposited the chocolate on her bed before resuming her climb to the surface.
In the Mission itself, she found Landon, the DADA professor mid-prayer and quietly left so as to not disturb him. The horizon was only just brightening when she stepped out into the cool and quite damp morning air. She took a deep breath and began to walk toward the area she had arrived at- suddenly deciding that it was too particular a mode of travel which had been used to transport her. The Aurors, she knew, were still doing their investigations, so she kept an eye out to not surprise one who might be in the area.
It took her about twenty minutes to find the opening in the trees where the path continued. It was just too dark to see well and to make matters worse, when she had set out from the Mission, she had taken the wrong path. The sky was beginning to turn pink when she found the break in the trees and began to climb the gentle incline of the path.
The woods were silent as she walked and the potion had thankfully kicked in. She found the peaceful surroundings incredibly comforting. The deep shadows in the trees nearly hid the opening she was looking for, but the slight tickle of the remaining magic of the area drew her attention to the clearing. She touched her wand in her back pocket of her jeans absently as she entered the little clearing. She stood on the outside of the bent branches and stamped down underbrush to stare into the clearing, trying to make sense of what type of magic had sent her here. Then she started thinking about Draco’s sudden trip here, and a realization hit her.
If Rowle was working alone, it made no sense. Draco had been sent here nearly nine years ago, which would have made Rowle only 8 years old when he had sent Draco here. Hermione wondered if the Aurors had been continuing their investigation because of that. She remembered that Draco had been increasingly agitated over the last few days, and wondered how many times the Aurors had come to visit him since Rowle had been captured. They had talked to her a few times in his private rooms, but it had been just repeating her statement. They had not had any questions for her regarding any new information.
She had been so interested in getting to know Draco, that she had not asked him anything about the investigations at all. She understood that she was completely dense to not have realized it sooner. She sighed and walked around the perimeter of the circle outlining the rest of the still magically infused arrival point. Rowle was certainly a good dueler, even for his age. She had not thought it strange because of the way her own childhood had been. The entire student body had been highly skilled at dueling by the end of their fifth year in school, but that had been mostly due to Harry’s influence over them.
Hermione had learned hundreds of hexes and jinxes by the end of the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and she had not even competed. By the end of it, the confirmation that Voldemort was back spurred most of the other students to spend a bit more time practicing dueling. Of course all of them knew how to duel. But, now that Hermione was thinking about it, it would be incredibly unusual for Rowle to know that much about it.
She found herself walking back up to the campsite where she had woken six days prior, wanting to look down on the Mission from where Primrose had showed it to her the first time. She found the mostly hidden path that Rose had taken her down before after a moment. As she started down it, she jumped when a bird let out a harsh caw, breaking the silence. She put a shaking hand over her furiously beating heart and took a few deep breaths. She could see through the trees that the sky had lightened to a golden color and she wanted to see the sunrise, so she made her feet continue to climb.
Then, the trees were suddenly gone and she stood on the edge of the cliff with a light breeze moving her hair off her shoulders and the sun just peeking over the horizon. She smiled and sat down with her feet hanging over the edge of the cliff. There were another few calls of birdsong behind her and she saw a small flock taking off from the trees a little way away from her. She watched the sun rise for a while, allowing her mind to wander where it would.
She was so distracted she didn’t hear the footsteps approaching from behind. It was only when she heard a twig snap that she turned with her wand already in her hand. “Who’s there?” She challenged without thinking.
“Oh, Hermione. Hi. It’s Rose, don’t worry, put your wand down,” Said the amused voice behind the bushes.
Hermione lowered her wand and smiled. “Well come on then, I’m just enjoying the sunrise.”
Rose came around the corner in jeans and a cami, with her long hair swaying in a ponytail. She looked over Hermione’s head at the Mission and then back at Hermione, “It’s a while past sunrise. Draco’s a little worried. Jen told him you went to see her before sunrise and then no one has seen you since. The guy certainly does have a thing for you.” She sat while she was speaking.
Hermione felt herself smiling. “Yeah, he sure does, doesn’t he?”
Rose looked at her intensely for a moment. Her icy eyes seemed to be able to read Hermione’s thoughts, and Hermione started to feel a bit uncomfortable. “You seem a little weird today. You ok?” Rose asked.
Hermione rubbed her eye, tiredly. “Yes, I was woken by my monthly long before I would have liked.” Suddenly she realized what Rose was trying to tell her, “Did Draco send you?”
Rose smirked, “No. He would have sent a search party if it wouldn’t have been unusual to be so concerned. He tries so hard to never show what’s bothering him,” She looked away again, following the path of a solitary bird flying in the distance. She cleared her throat after a moment, “Anyway, it’s nearly time for breakfast. You have unanswered questions, I see. Any I can answer?”
Surprised, Hermione started, “How do you…”
Rose laughed and said, “It’s quite obvious. Why else would you have come out here? Something was bothering you. And aside from the times where you were lost, your trail led straight to the area you appeared at and then here, as if you were going over everything again. But you haven’t answered my question, can I help at all?”
Hermione thought about it for a moment, surprised again at Primrose’s intellect. “Why do you shy away from showing your intelligence?” Hermione found herself saying. The words had simply tumbled out of her mouth without her intending to ask the question. It had been bothering her though, so she let the question stand without apology.
Rose watched the bird circling an thermal updraft for a moment. “You know what kind of bird that is?” Rose said. Without waiting for a response, she answered her own question, “It’s a turkey vulture. Commonly called a buzzard in these parts. They’re ugly and eat carrion. They circle a dying animal and wait until it’s dead with no remorse. Or eat the remains of an animal without compassion. They don’t have the concept of course, compassion is a purely human response to the suffering of another creature.”
She fixed Hermione with her icy gaze once more, “But not all humans have such a gift for compassion. Some of us can pretend to have it, but only as a learned response, not as one which is innate. I was blessed-” She spat the word out sarcastically and bitterly, “With growing up in a world where compassion and empathy were nonexistent. My mother punished me for being too smart. For being too much like my father. When I turned to my peers in school, seeking some form of acceptance from them, believing wrongly that they might be less insane than my mother was. I was ridiculed daily for being ‘too smart’. Do you know what that’s like? You’re the smartest from your school, Draco said, did they do the same to you?”
Hermione nodded, her heart racing. Draco had mentioned that Rose had trust issues, but she had never expected something like this to be the cause. “It was the worst during the first two years. I thought it was just Muggles who were that mean, but even the Wizards wouldn’t accept me. I know what you mean,” Hermione said, trying to sound comforting. Obviously this was a huge part of her formative years that Rose was talking about, and given the haunted expression behind her eyes, it was worse than she was letting on.
Rose nodded. “It was the same for me. I should have been relieved, of course. To come to a school away from my mother, and not be ridiculed just for being different. It wasn’t until college that I made real friends, not the kind who kept me around just to copy my homework when they forgot to do it.” She sighed. “I was a hard person. No compassion. And then I met Luis,” She smiled sadly. “And rejected his romantic interest outright just because he is shorter than me. It was the completion of a cycle, do you see? I was rejected for my own genetics for the majority of my life and only knew how to reject others based on theirs.” She scoffed, “The definition of irony.”
“But you learned how to accept others, obviously, or you wouldn’t have married him.” Hermione pointed out.
“You’re right of course, but the lesson I had to learn was a hard one. He found me after…” Hermione heard her voice becoming strangled as though she were going to cry. Rose cleared her throat and Hermione could see her expression change to a more stoic one. “He found me after a man who I had dated had raped me. Luis found me bleeding and beaten, sobbing my eyes out. And he didn’t need any reason to continue loving me. He healed the physical wounds, of course. That part was easy. He had compassion innately, whereas I had to learn it from him.”
Hermione felt tears in her eyes as Primrose was speaking. She had such a hard childhood, and then to top it off she… Hermione made herself stop thinking of it. She was grateful for the potion Jen had given her or else she would have been crying already. Rose was silent for a moment, as though collecting her thoughts. “My point is, I am half-fearful of showing my intelligence, in case of ridicule, in case of those who don't know compassion. And the other half of me realizes that even though I’ve been through so much ridicule, I’m still arrogant about how smart I am. Isn’t that crazy? I don’t show off how smart I am in order to be more humble. It's one of those things, I don't want anyone to feel.... less because they aren't as smart as me. Does that make sense?”
Hermione looked at the turkey vulture in the distance as it flew between one hot air pocket and another to begin twirling again. “Yes. I think I understand,” She answered slowly. She was thinking Primrose believed that humbleness was a part of compassion, and Hermione did not know if she agreed or not. But, she reminded herself, it's not for me to judge.
Rose stood, “Come on, or your man will send a search party. Is he still worried about something having to do with the case? Can you even answer that?” She was smiling as Hermione stood.
“I actually don’t know. We’ve been avoiding the topic of late. Getting to know each other, you know?”
“Oh? I bet he’s such a good lay,” Rose said with a dreamy expression.
Hermione laughed, “I’ll put your mind at ease, yes. Yes he is.”
Rose tented her fingers in front of her chest and tapped them together eagerly, “Oh, juicy, juicy gossip. Better not mention anything about it to Al or the whole school will soon know everything you never did.”
“Is he really such a gossip?” Hermione asked over her shoulder as she led Rose down the path.
“Yes. And he hates Draco. I’ve overheard him saying he was thinking of leaving the school in protest of Draco’s appointment to Landon, he’s the DADA professor, have you met him?”
Hermione wrinkled her nose in disgust, the two of them had been quite rude to Draco on the day of his appointment. “Yes. They were sitting with Draco and me when he made the announcement of his new position.”
Rose laughed, “I bet that burned their asses. Draco has never gotten along with either of them very well. Al tells him gossip and tries to get information out of him to pass along the grapevine. It’s really annoying. He does it to everyone.” She sighed as they passed through the forest.
“And Landon?”
“He’s just… well, I don’t really know how to put it. He’s a jerk all around. He belittles people to their face and throws hexes at unsuspecting students in class for things like falling asleep and thing like that.”
“He can do that?” Hermione was shocked.
“He’s never been punished for it. I don’t think there is anything in the rulebook forbidding it, at any rate.”
They talked about all the teachers for the rest of the time it took to get back to the Mission. Hermione was glad for the insights, since she had been barely introduced to anyone at the Mission.
When they entered the shady interior of the Mission, Lieutenant Ptyalin was standing at attention next to the doorway which led to the lower levels.
Rose groaned dramatically, “Don’t tell me Draco called in the Aurors because Hermione went for a walk.”
“Mrs. Hernandez, this is no time for dramatics. There has been another attack. Were either of you able to see the Mission from wherever you were?” His face was deadly serious.
Hermione pressed her fingers against her lips, “Is everyone alright?” She said in a whisper through her fingers.
At the same time, Rose said, “Yes we could see it, but we weren’t really looking at it. We didn’t see anything unusual, Benny. What happened?”
“Please confirm your identity and tell me your role in the school.”
“Primrose Hernandez, Herbology Professor.” Rose answered automatically.
“Hermione Granger, Ward of the Headmaster.” Hermione answered absently.
He re-squared his shoulders and looked into the distance in between them as he gave his report, “At 0700, the suspect entered the school in an unregistered Animagus form. The alarms went off at the Aurors office that an unregistered magical signature had entered the premises and myself and my partner were dispatched to the school grounds.
“The suspect appeared in his human form in front of Draco Malfoy, Headmaster and attempted and failed to steal Mr. Malfoy’s wand.” The Lieutenant’s stoic façade twitched as he continued to speak and tears escaped his dark eyes, unnoticed by him, “He then proceeded to attempt to murder Mr. Malfoy barehanded. Anthony Drilb subdued the suspect after Mr. Malfoy had lost consciousness and a lot of blood.” His voice had become rougher and he cleared his throat. “One, Dr. Jennifer Henderson M.D. is working to revive Mr. Malfoy in the Hospital wing now. The suspect has been taken in for questioning.”
“Benny,” Rose said softly, her voice was comforting, even to Hermione. She stepped forward and touched his shoulder, “Benny why are you up here? Draco is your friend, don’t you want to go see him?”
The Lieutenant remained at attention, but there were still tears falling freely from his eyes as he stood there. “I do ma’am. However, if I were to abandon my post to see him, it would not be becoming of my title.”
Hermione looked at him for a moment, empathizing with his reliance on order to deal with the situation. “Lieutenant,” She said in a commanding tone.
He glanced at her face briefly and said, “Ma’am.” Before looking to that fixed spot on the horizon he had been focusing on during his report.
“Please contact your superior and ask them to come immediately.” She said, sounding far more confident than she felt. She needed to be strong. She was compassionate innately. That should give her a measure of strength.
Lieutenant Ptyalin nodded curtly and lifted his wand into the air. A pop behind them signaled the arrival of the superior. The Lieutenant said, “Miss Granger, this is Captain Amelia Zanker.”
Hermione turned and saw a plain faced brunette walking towards them in the customary Aurors robes. She was nearly as tall as Primrose and stern faced. Hermione thought she might not have a drop of compassion in her entire body. But she would bend to Hermione’s will. She thought of how Draco acted when he was nervous. I need to see him, and so does the Lieutenant. It is going to happen.
“Miss Granger. What is it?”
“Very simply Captain, I would like for Lieutenant Ptyalin to escort me down to Mr. Malfoy’s private rooms and brief me there on what has happened this morning. Please send a replacement for his post so that he might do that.” She answered. She made her voice stern but not bitchy. She tried to keep the tone mildly respectful, too.
The Captain looked at her for a few seconds and Hermione had just enough time to think the woman would deny her before Captain Zanker answered, “Very well, Miss Granger. Please allow a few minutes for the changeover,” With a curt nod. She Disapparated from the same spot she had arrived.
Ptyalin wiped his face, looking slightly embarrassed and told Hermione a quiet ‘Thank you’ before his replacement arrived.
There was a very brief conversation between the two Aurors, but Hermione was not introduced to the short Hispanic man who replaced Ptyalin. When they reached the bottom of the first set of stairs, Ptyalin wrapped his arms around Hermione in a fierce hug and kissed her cheek. “You are such a peach. Can we see Draco before we go down to his rooms?”
Hermione tried not to speak too loudly and answered, “Yes. I don’t know if I want to see his rooms for real right now, but I know,” She took his large dark hand in both of hers, “That you needed to see him. I do too. Come on.”
Rose patted his shoulder and gave him a comforting smile before preceding them into the staircase which would lead to the hospital wing.
When they walked in, the room was silent. Jen was sitting next to Draco and finishing healing a large scratch on his face. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief when she saw his grey eyes open and looking at her. She didn’t say anything, she barely registered that there were other people in the room. She felt like she was floating in a dream as she stepped closer to him.
Jen finished and stepped aside, fiddling nervously with her hair, which was out of its curlers, but mussed from her running around and nervous fingers constantly running through it. Rose walked with Hermione and the Lieutenant followed her. When she reached the bed she found her voice and said, “Malfoy.”
He smirked arrogantly. “Come on Granger, surely you could say something besides my name.”
“How…. What happened?” She asked.
“Well, that was much better. I was beaten to a bloody pulp by some guy.” He said, still smirking.
“Obviously. Who?” She said, the world becoming more real as she stared into his eyes.
“I’ve no idea, Granger. I imagine he had a reason, though.”
“Was he the guy who was working with Rowle?” She asked.
He looked surprised, “Why would you think Rowle was working with someone?”
“Well, it’s obvious once I realized it, he was much too young to have sent you here. So he must have had a partner. Or took over the mantle from someone else.”
“And a genius besides all this beauty. Merlin Draco, you’re hogging the second best looking girl in the room,” Benjamin said with a wink to Jen. Jen began blushing furiously and messing with her hair once more.
Draco raised his eyebrow at the Lieutenant, “Jen’s a genius also. Look, no scars at all. No bruises left. She’s an artist with those healing spells.”
Jen’s blush deepened. “I’ll just get you that Pepper-Up Potion, Mr. Malfoy.” She turned, embarrassed.
Benjamin looked at Draco with a question on his face and Hermione saw him wiggle his left ring finger subtly. Draco shook his head. Benjamin smiled broadly. Aloud, the Lieutenant said to Draco, “I’m glad you’re all right. I was pretty worried.”
“Hey, I meant to ask the last time you were here, has Rowle said anything yet?” Draco asked as he began to sit up.
“Silent still,” Benjamin answered, watching Jen come around the bed. She handed Draco the potion and told him he was free to go. She began to walk away and the Lieutenant followed her, “Doctor, I think I need a potion too,” He said, quickly before she could run away.
She looked up at him where they stood at the end of the bed, with bright green eyes shining out of her tanned face. “What’s wrong, Lieutenant?”
He smirked, “Nothing a date couldn’t cure, Sunday afternoon picnic- sound good?”
Draco snorted and then swung his feet off the bed, preparing to stand. Hermione took his hand and tried to help. Draco said quietly, so as not to disturb the flirting next to them, “She told me to take my time. I’m fine, Granger. Thanks.”
Jen laughed outright, “Is that the best line you’ve got?”
Benjamin clutched his chest and said, “Now I need something to help my pride recover from a recent blow. Ouch.”
Jen laughed again, “How about I prescribe you a dinner date tonight, and you can call me in the morning for a follow-up?”
“Oh, that is so corny,” Rose muttered to Hermione.
“Done.” Benjamin answered and she wrote down her phone number on a piece of paper she pulled out of her pocket. He leaned in a little close and whispered something to her, which made Jen blush and laugh harder.
Draco finished standing and they went to the cafeteria to finally eat breakfast. Luis was waiting for them in the empty room and made sure they had everything they needed before sitting with them to snack on some breakfast sandwiches he made. Draco filled them in on what they had missed.
“Well, I went to meet Granger for breakfast, around 6:45 or so, but she wasn’t here. So I went to her room, and there was a bar of chocolate on the bed, but no Hermione. So, I started looking around for her, asking if anyone had seen her. Jen told me she went in the hospital wing for a pain potion and then she left without mentioning where she was going.
“Right about then, the alarms went off and, of course, the Ward spell kicked in. I started feeling extremely ill, because she was too far away to protect. So, I ordered everyone to quarters and went to go to my own. Anthony followed me down to mine, to help me get around. And then, we saw a lizard change into a man right in front of us. Obviously Animagus, but it was still a shock to see.
“Anyway, Anthony took a bookcase to the head and got knocked unconscious for a few minutes, apparently.”
“He’s got the worst luck with things falling on him,” Luis said around a bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich.
Draco chuckled and continued, “He does. Hey, can I have one of those?” Luis nodded and offered him one which was sitting on his plate. Draco took a bite and groaned in happiness. Hermione felt her body take notice, but she ignored it. “So the guy tried to take my wand, but I punched him and he resorted to using his fists.. and feet… and elbows at one point. When Anthony finally was able to restrain him and get the Auror’s attention to his location, Jen took a look at me. I was still conscious and bloody hell, the pain…
“Anyway, she told me I had a couple of broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, a concussion. Oh, and he cracked one of my hips and I was bleeding from a couple deep gashes he made with a ring he was wearing. He might have thought he was being clever by putting poison on the ring, but Jen figured it out immediately and gave me the antidote.” He took another bite of the sandwich and chewed while he thought. “I think that’s about it.”

A/N: I’m sorry folks! I had to babysit all week it seems! No time to sit down and write when a ten-year-old is breathing down your neck! I hope you still like me…. Please, put the tar and feathers away! I’ll try really, reeeeeally hard to update on Saturday. All reviews have been replied to at http://www2.adult-fanfiction.org/forum/index.php/topic/51078-daylight-review-replies-n-discussion-thread/
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Daylight