Father Dearest | By : icicle33 Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 2354 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0 |
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any part of the HP universe/fandom. This story is only written for the purpose of enjoyment and to satisfy my own twisted obsession with the HP characters. I am not making any type of profit off this story. |
Author's Note: Hello everyone! I just wanted to thank everyone who read and especially those who reviewed chapter 1 of my story. I was going to wait longer to publish this chapter, but since I've received positive response so far, I decided to update early. Here you have chapter 2 and hopefully you will have chapter 3 soon. I'm going to attempt to update once a week. Again, please let me know what you think, whether it's good or bad. Also, all errors are mine because I don't have a beta right now, so feel free to point out any errors you find.
Enjoy!
~Chapter 2: Letters from No One~
* * *
"Miss Granger! Miss Granger!" yelled Professor McGonagall.
"Yes, Professor?" asked Hermione.
"I need to speak with you."
"Certainly, what do you need, Professor?”
"Well my dear, the two Slytherin prefects are ill and I need someone to go into all the Slytherin dormitories and make sure everything is in place and that everyone is awake. As you know, The Hogwarts Express will be leaving shortly. Promptly at 11 am."
"Yes, Professor,” Hermione replied reluctantly. She hated the Slytherins, but at least she could yell at them today. Besides, she was rather bored. Much to her dismay, Hermione hadn't gone on an adventure since third year. Harry didn't need her help anymore. He now had his pick of silly bints who surrounded him constantly. Hermione started biting her nails in frustration, but she knew now was not the time to reminisce about Harry. Professor McGonagall had given her a very important task and Hermione was always efficient in completing her tasks, no matter how unpleasant they were.
Besides, maybe I'll be able to get the Slytherins in trouble. That would definitely be a perk.
As she walked toward the Slytherin dungeons, she contemplated McGonagall's words. Ill? Malfoy hadn't been ill the last time Hermione had seen him in the library. Perhaps she could expose him for lying and maybe she could even get Malfoy a detention.
That would be brilliant.
God, she really hated him. It wasn't in Hermione's kind nature to hate, but something about that twitchy little ferret always drove her mad.
When Hermione walked into the Slytherin common room, she was really quite appalled. Hermione wasn't exactly a "girly girl", who needed everything to be flowers, kittens, and an annoying overload of glitter, but then again, she would still never want to live in such a dreary place. Thank God, she wasn't a Slytherin.
She would never survive.
Indeed, the Slytherin common room was chilly and rather uninviting. As soon as she stepped through the portrait hole, the fire had gone out. It was as if the common room knew she was an intruder and decided to try to frighten her. It was very dark and only a small green light was visible; she had never seen such a desolate place in all of Hogwarts and being a prefect, Hermione knew the castle well. Oh well, she sighed. There was nothing she could do about the dreariness anyhow. The Slytherins probably deserved it, since they were such an unsavory lot.
Come on Hermione, just keep it together and you can get out of here quickly, she muttered to herself.
Without pondering a second negative thought, Hermione put her best authoritative face on, and went from dormitory to dormitory making sure everyone was awake and properly packed. She made sure that she yelled at the largest number of Slytherins possible.
Sometimes, being a prefect was great she smiled to herself.
After she finished checking all the dormitories, Hermione was feeling rather proud of herself. Finally, she decided to go to Malfoy's dormitory. She had saved his for last, so she could expose him for the lying, conniving little ferret that he was. She was surprised to find the room completely barren except for some parchment scattered on the floor. She picked up the papers that appeared to be letters and placed them on what she assumed to be Malfoy's bed. As much as she hated to admit it, Draco Malfoy was smart; he was almost as bookish as she was, and he was a constant presence in all of her advanced lessons. She even had to work with him on several occasions, so she was familiar with the git's handwriting.
Regrettably, there was no doubt in her mind that the scattered letters on the floor were in Malfoy's elegant script. She carefully stacked the letters on his desk and was about to leave when she noticed a stray piece of parchment at her feet. Lying at Hermione's feet was the first letter that Draco had written to his father. She didn't want to read it—she was a Gryffindor and a prefect, but she just couldn't help herself. She was curious as to what kind of relationship Malfoy had with Malfoy senior. Little did she know, that a single piece of parchment would change her entire life.
*****************************************************************************************************
Dear Father,
I'm writing to tell you how I always felt. I always try to please you and do everything you say. Still, you punish me...
* * *
When Hermione finished reading the letter, she was almost in tears. She couldn't believe that the same slimy git she had hated all these years had written this letter. The Malfoy who wrote this letter was a different Malfoy, a sad boy, Hermione had never seen before. This boy was kind hearted. He was very troubled and all he really needed was a little bit of love. How could she have been so oblivious to the fact that Malfoy acted the way he did for a reason? She knew it had something to do with his father, but she had no idea that he was actually abused. Come to think of it, after every holiday, she had remembered seeing him with bruises. Since Malfoy had always acted so dreadful, she hadn't cared much. She just figured that the wanker had gotten himself in trouble with that foul mouth of his.
He really was a cheeky bastard.
But still, arse or not, Malfoy didn't deserve to be abused. No one deserved to be abused. Not even Malfoy.
No, not Malfoy...Draco.
The boy that had written those letters, was most definitely— Draco. This Draco, had been abused since he was a child. All he ever wanted was his father's love and approval. Even now, Draco claimed that he still loved his father. Who was this Draco that Hermione had seen in this letter? Was this the real Draco, which nobody ever saw? She couldn't let Draco go ahead and end his life. She had to stop him, but how?
Before she continued with her train of thoughts, a letter on the edge of the bed caught her attention. It was addressed to her, so she didn't feel too guilty reading it.
*******************************************************************************************************
Dear Hermione,
Hello! Wait, before you tear up this letter, just listen to me first. I want to apologize for the way I've treated you. I never meant to hurt you. Okay, that's a blatant lie. I did mean to hurt you, but not for the reasons you think. It has nothing to do with your heritage or blood. You see, at first I hated you for besting me in all my lessons, but then I got intrigued by a girl that was smarter than even me. Who was this girl? I needed to know you. That's why I started going to the library all the time, to do my work, instead of doing it in my common room.
The first time you slapped and insulted me, I was shocked. No girl has ever insulted let alone slapped me before.
* * *
Hermione took a small break from reading. She had tears in her eyes, she had always hated Draco with a passion and wanted to curse him, but he was already cursed. She felt horrid for insulting him and slapping him. She remembered one day recently when she had insulted him, and of course, she had to go and mention his father.
* * *
*Flashback*
*
"If it isn't the Mudblood—"
Hermione knew that she should probably just ignore Malfoy and not succumb to his level, but she was not having a good day. Today was not the day to mess with Hermione J. Granger, so she decided to give Malfoy a piece of her mind:
"Draco Malfoy...you think you are so sinister, but you aren't. You act the way you do because of that bastard you have for a father. If I were you, I'd want to kill myself. I bet that you've never experienced any real love in your whole entire life. You are just a rich spoiled brat.
Your parents don't love you, they just buy you things to shut you up. They can't even stand their own son. I thought your father was the coldest cruelest man I had ever met, but I was wrong. The only person that comes close to him is you, Draco Malfoy. You are a cold and unfeeling arsehole! How do you even look at yourself in the mirror? Don't you hate yourself? I know I would, if I were you. I may not be rich, Draco Malfoy, but I rather be dead than ever become cold, arrogant, spoiled, idiotic, and heartless like you."
The blond was staring at her, with his mouth agape and his eyes widened as large as an owl, but before he could get a retort in, Hermione continued her tirade.
"You don't have a heart, Draco Malfoy. I don't know how you live with yourself. You don't feel; you only hate! You're just a spoiled rich prat who has this perfect life, but still feels the need to bother others with his petty jealousy. I pity you Malfoy, because no one will ever love you. You might go out and probably sleep with a good number of girls at Hogwarts because of your name and money, but deep down you know it's true that everyone hates you and they always will!"
OOoOo
Draco was speechless; he always had an acerbic retort on his tongue, but not this time. It was ridiculous, a Mudblood had insulted him, and he didn't have anything to say back. To make matters worse, it was true— all true, nobody loved him. Not his parents, not his friends, come to think of it, he didn't have any real friends. Not even the girls he slept with cared about him. He just stood there frozen and thought to himself.
I will not let her see that what she said hurt me. I cannot show my vulnerability to her.
Before he lost his cool composure, Malfoy sauntered over to the door.
"Whatever, Granger, I have more important things to do than talk to you. Go ask for an extra assignment or something."
That had probably been Malfoy's lamest comeback ever, but there was nothing to be done. He had no other words for this bushy haired girl, who had flabbergasted him and broken his heart.
*
*Flashback ends*
* * *
Hermione remembered the look of terror on Draco's face when she said those horrid words to him. She had wondered why a few words had affected him so, and now she knew why. She felt guilty for dragging his father into their argument. She could've sworn that she noticed his eyes water a little bit when she said those nasty things, but perhaps she just imagined it.
Oh God, she hadn't meant to hurt him so much. She was just angry; she didn't think words mattered to him, but apparently they did. Perhaps Draco Malfoy wasn't the Slytherin Ice Prince that everyone presumed him to be. Perhaps she had been too rash in writing him off as an unfeeling bastard. So many different thoughts were flying through her mind, and finally, Hermione— the girl who always kept her cool—even when faced with life and death situations, lost the fierce battle with herself. She couldn't hold back the tears any longer, and for the first time in a long while, Hermione let out angry, silent tears as she read the rest of Draco's letter.
********************************************************************************************
I always think about that day, since you told me the truth right to my face. No one has ever done that before. You were right; I am a horrible, cold, unfeeling person who doesn't deserve to live, let alone be loved. I'll always remember what you said to me. That was the day reality set in. I always avoided the truth because I was afraid, but the truth always comes out in the end. The truth is that I don't have a heart, and if by some miracle I do have one, then its defected because I can't feel anything except hate.
Be that as it may, I don't hate you or even Potter and the Weasel. Actually, I am quite fond of you. Girls used to be just an object to me, but not anymore. You made me see that girls are very intelligent, and there's more to at least some, then make up and fancy dress robes. You are different than any girl I have ever met. I have thought a lot about you since what you said to me. In fact, I think of you very often. I'm not implying that I have feelings for you because I'm not even sure myself. It's very hard for me to sort out my feelings. Rather, my wish is for us to get to know each other.
You are the most interesting person I have met at Hogwarts. I know, that after the way I treated you, you don't want anything to do with me. I completely understand, besides, it wouldn't work out anyway. My father would kill me if he knew I had you as a friend. However, I 'd like you to consider what I said in this letter. I really hope that one day you can find it in your heart to forgive me. Please Hermione, this is my last wish. I'm not going to be around anymore, so at least you'll be able to have one fond memory of me.
Goodbye forever, Hermione.
I wish you well in all of your future life's endeavors. I have no doubt that you will be successful in whatever you chose to do.
Please, do one last thing for me. Being the Gryffindor do-gooder I know you are, I have no doubt that you will do as I ask of you. In the big envelope, I've enclosed three letters, one is for Potter, one is for the whole Weasley family, and the last is for Longbottom. Please deliver these letters to them; this is my final wish. If you do this for me, I'll be able to rest in peace. Thank you for your help in advance.
Sincerely,
Draco Lucius Malfoy
***********************************************************************************************
* * *
As Hermione finished reading the letter, her eyes started to swell up again. Even though she knew she was being stupid, she still felt partly responsible for Draco's decision to take his own life.
Why did I have to say those awful things to him? Yes, he always made fun of me, but still, I had no right to insult him that way. I'm just a horrible person. I'm going to be responsible for the death of another human being. I don't care if he's an insensitive, arrogant, devious, bastard…who is no better than vermin. He still doesn't deserve to die. I have to stop him!
Hermione wasn't sure what to do; she didn't know whom to tell. She finally decided not to tell anyone and to see if she could sneak on the Hogwarts Express and go to Malfoy Manor. She had to speak with Draco and try to talk him out of killing himself. But how? She needed someone who cared about Draco to go with her. She thought long and hard about who to ask for help, but the only name she could come up with was Professor Snape. There was no way she would ask him for help.
No, she would just have to do this herself.
Poor Draco, she muttered to herself.
I can't believe I'm actually feeling sorry for Draco Malfoy. I can't believe I'm going to risk my life to help that wanker.
Oh God, what am I doing?
Hermione had said she wanted adventure in her life again; well, be careful what you wish for, you just might get it. One second she was going to spend another boring Christmas holiday at home, and the next she's sneaking off to Malfoy Manor on a secret rescue mission to save her worst enemy.
* * *
To be continued…
Author's Note: Okay, so what did everyone think? I know that it's another cliff hanger, but I couldn't help it. I promise no more letters, at least for a while. This isn't going to be an epistolary fic...lol. Anyway, I hope to update again soon. But since you can't add a story alert on this site, if you want me to update you when I post a new chapter I will. Just leave me your email in a comment and I'll be sure to send out a mass email for all future updates. Thanks again for reading and if anyone wants to volunteer to beta that would be very helpful.
Cheers.
~Icicle
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