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Searching	By : avari20 Category: Harry Potter > Het - Male/Female > Draco/Hermione Views: 10921 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Searching
- 2-Part I
- 3-Part II
- 4-Part III
- 5-Part IV
- 6-Part V
- 7-Part VI
- 8-Part VII
- 9-Part VIII
- 2
- 3
- 4
Disclaimer: Me no own nothing. Damnit.

Part II

He�d thought being cursed was bad. Having to travel to backwoods Scotland, far, far, far away from civilization had only defined his misery. Then he�d spent all those hours he would never get back among his ancestors� worthless treasures, convincing himself that nothing could be worse.
Oh, but he�d been wrong.
Draco�s eyes traveled up the length of tempered metal currently held to his throat to the face of a seriously angry Highlander. None of what had come before, he thought to himself, could possibly compare to being thrown back 600 years into the Highlands where being English was not a good thing to be.
Especially if you wanted to keep breathing through your mouth and not a hole in your throat.
Perhaps losing his temper with the girl might not have been the best thing to do, but hindsight was 20-20, so Muggles said. He�d climbed out of the water (by himself, Merlin forbid that she help him! he thought sarcastically, casting the girl in question a dirty look) and watched as she stumbled away, eyeing him warily. The resemblance to Hermione Granger had been uncanny, like she�d decided to play dress up one day. He had looked at her, soaking wet, shivering, hungry, and all of a sudden extremely pissed off.
The stress of the seemingly fruitless search, his frustration at the curse, his despair at being chronically single, and his resentment at the knowledge that his fate was not in his own hands� All of it had rushed to the fore and crashed together inside of him to form a gigantic ball of fury. Words had begun to pour out of his mouth. In all honesty he couldn�t remember half of the things he�d said, and the half he did remember wouldn�t have made sense to anyone but him. Which explained why the Hermione doppelganger�s eyes had gotten bigger and bigger with every word.
Back, back, back she�d gone. She�d made it halfway up the stairs, warning him to �Stay away, now. Nice madman�.staaaaaayyyyy�.� before she�d thrown caution to the wind and bolted. Draco had been after her like a shot, tearing through the cellar, up the second set of stairs, and down the hall that was now covered with new tapestries. He should have been able to catch her, but she was fast and he kept slipping on the puddles he made.
It occurred to him now that he could have used his wand, but hindsight and all that.
Anyway, he�d followed her for some minutes, passing a number of very startled people on his way. He hadn�t really run into trouble until he�d skidded around the corner into the Great Hall. There she was�.surrounded by a least a dozen of the tallest, broadest, ugliest buggers he�d ever seen. All of which were possessed of very big, very sharp swords.
Which led him to his current predicament.
�Er..� he began, his hand inching toward his wand. The Highlander saw the slight movement and pressed the blade that much closer. �Doona think about it, English,� the man growled. It sounded like a water beating on a drum.
Draco changed the direction of his hand and lightly fingered the weapon. �Right, none of that.� He tried to discretely push the sword away, but it was no good. �A little help here,� he muttered to Hermione out of the corner of his mouth.
She kept trying to duck out from under the arm of a particularly protective Highlander. He was a tall boy barely out of his teens, with black hair and green eyes. There was a vague resemblance to Harry Potter, Draco realized, but not much. �Hermione,� the boy said, trying to keep a steady hand on his sword while flailing an arm to block the girl out. �Stop that!�
�Conall,� Hermione hissed. �Let me through before I wallop ye!�
The boy grunted when she stomped on his toe. �Why ye little-! First ye run from him like the devil was on yer heels, and now you want to go to him? What sense is that, girl?� He now had her back pressed to his front while she flailed.
��Tis my own, and if ye know what�s good for ye-�
�What-� a smooth voice broke in- �is going on here?� As one the group turned back to Great Hall�s entrance. Even Draco could not prevent his eyes from seeking out the owner of that commanding voice. It possessed a quality to it that arrested him completely, a quiet confidence and authority that brought out the latent soldier in him. He managed to turn his head just so without skewering himself. And couldn�t believe his eyes.
An exact copy of the Hermione doppelganger (a copy of a copy?) stood in the doorway. Unlike the Hermione he�d met first, this one possessed the bearing of royalty. Brown orbs were cool and calculating as they swept over the crowd to him. She missed nothing. He had the uncanny feeling that she was looking into his soul rather than his eyes. �Well, well, we have traveled far, haven�t we?� she murmured. She�d come around so that he didn�t have to strain himself to watch her. She came to a stop next to the one called Conall, folding her arms over her stomach.
Her very large stomach.
This Hermione look alike was heavily pregnant. In fact, she looked like she was about to give birth at any minute, Draco thought to himself. But that wasn�t as important as the fact that she seemed to know all about his little detour through time. �Who are you?� he demanded. It came out rudely, but he didn�t have time for social niceties at the moment. The woman merely arched a brow at his manner. �I am Lady Hannah,� she stated crisply. �That,� she pointed at the still-captive girl- �is my sister Hermione. The Lady of the Keep, and you�d best remember that. Lower your swords,� she ordered the men. For a moment Draco was sure they would ignore her and run him through, but they did as she asked.
He rubbed the sore spot on his throat and grunted. �She�s the lady here? You must not have very high standards.� Hermione gasped in outrage. She made to go at him again, but Conall restrained her. �I�ll show you standards, ye crazed Englishman!�
�It�s easy to be brave when you�re surrounded by sword-carrying Berserkers, hmm, Granger?�
�For the last time, I�m not this Granger person-�
The one called Hannah clapped her hands briskly. �Everyone in this hall will leave. Now.� Said everyone obeyed, reaffirming Draco�s opinion that a serious change in management needed to occur. Hannah had the command of a woman, and this Hermione had the staying power of a mere girl. He was vaguely amused when a whispered discussion occurred between Conall and Hermione. It was obvious the boy didn�t want to leave by the suspicious looks he kept casting Draco, but in the end he had no choice. Draco barely restrained the urge to flip him off when Conall stalked past.
Hannah walked, or waddled rather, to the nearest bench and sat upon it heavily. She sighed as though the world had been lifted off of her shoulders. Then she fixed him with a long, measuring look. �Tell me your name.�
Draco wasn�t sure he appreciated the commanding tone, but decided to give in anyway. Just this once. �I�m Draco-� was his surname going to get him killed? He wasn�t sure. �--of nowhere.� Well, wasn�t that a brilliant save? He resisted the urge to slap himself. Really, couldn�t he have thought of anything better?
Hannah laughed. It wasn�t unpleasant, but it set Draco on edge nonetheless. There was this steely quality to it that refused to go unnoticed. His mother had had that quality, and she certainly had been nobody�s fool. �Draco of Nowhere. I like it.� She shifted to the side to make room for her sister to sit. Hermione plunked down with all the grace of a four year old, Draco noted with a snicker. He decided that it did him no good to continue standing like an idiot. He chose to seat himself on the bench to the twins� left, keeping both them and the door in his sight. No more swords at his throat.
This Great Hall wasn�t significantly larger than the one at his old school, yet it lacked the same cozy feel. It felt larger, if that made any sense. Maybe it was the lack of candles on the ceiling. It was set up similarly, with rows upon rows of tables. There were tapestries on the walls and a shaggy rug thrown here and there to cover the floor. The men had been in the middle of eating when he�d made his unorthodox entrance. Eyeing the meat on the center dish, Draco tried to decide if he was hungry enough to risk the germs. In the end his stomach won the argument. He reached out and gingerly broke off a bit of meat. What was this, pork? He sniffed it.
The twins looked at each other. �Nobleman,� they said in unison. Draco just grunted and stuffed the meat in his mouth before he could think the better of it. He chewed as fast as he could while he took in details that he�d missed.
Side by side, the differences in the twins were hard to miss. Physically they were identical (Hannah�s pregnancy notwithstanding) from curly brown head to little tapping toes. It was the little things that set them apart. Hannah wore her hair in a perfectly coiffed bun, while Hermione�s flowed willy-nilly down her back in frizzy disarray. Hannah followed every move he made like a hawk. Her gaze was much sharper, calculating everything she saw with a cunning light in her eye. Cynical, Draco decided. Worldly wise.
Hermione, however, was much softer in form and aura. Even as she glared at him, her lips set in a mutinous pout, her eyes were much softer. She couldn�t really hate anyone if she tried, Draco thought. Severely dislike, yes. Hate, no. It just wasn�t in her, even six centuries in the past. His eyes drifted to their hands. They were clasped tightly between their bodies, though neither seemed aware of it They were obviously close. But then, he supposed twins were like that.
Of the two, Hannah was seemed to be more intelligent. More Granger-like. Definitely more courage, he thought to himself with a snort. But why did they look so much like Hermione Granger? And why did neither seem to be all surprised by his unconventional arrival? The Middle Ages had hardly been an understanding time. If this had been a normal household, he should have been tied to the first stake they saw by now. Something wasn�t ringing right.
He decided to test the waters. �Why did you say that?� he asked Hannah. �About traveling?�
Hannah�s lips quirked. He experienced that same soul-searching feeling again. �Magic existed long before your time, Draco of Nowhere. Even in Scotland.� She turned to her sister. �He�ll be here for a few days, Hermione. Best to get him settled in.�
Hermione looked surprised, but not more so than Draco. �You trust him?�
Hannah shrugged. Draco did not find that at all comforting. �He poses no threat to us,� she said instead. He saw her squeeze Hermione�s hand. �You�ll be fine.�
Hermione was clearly struggling with herself. Should she or shouldn�t she? Yet Hannah had told her it was all right, and Hannah�s word was law in these subjects. She stood abruptly. �Come along, then.� She strode out of the hall without looking to see if he had followed. Draco looked at Hannah questioningly. �You�d better go,� she advised. �She�s devilishly fast.�
Remembering Hermione�s earlier flight, Draco decided it was more prudent to go than stay.

~*~

It was amazing how much the castle had changed. It was warmer now. People were rushing everywhere through halls that were now devoid of the hodgepodge of treasure. Tasteful tapestries and the occasional bit of furniture now decorated the walkways. The courtyard that had once lay silent was now brimming with people attending to everyday life. As a matter of fact, Draco had never seen so many people living in the same place at one time. It rather dazed him to realize that every single one was needed to keep the castle going. No house elves here. It was mind boggling.
He and Hermione went through hall after hall after hall in complete silence, which frankly disturbed him. She didn�t seem like the type to keep quiet. Shouldn�t she be hurling insults his way? How did she even move in that outfit anyway? She should have been passing out from lack of air. �I�m losing my mind,� he muttered.
�I believe it�s already gone,� Hermione returned without pause.
Ah, there was that spark he�d been waiting for. Some proof that this was indeed an earlier version of Granger. Was she an ancestor? Clearly not a direct one, that would have to go to Hannah, but still. And that reminded him� �Why isn�t Hannah the lady of the keep?� He didn�t like the way she was looking straight ahead, attempting to ignore him.

�I am the first born,� she said shortly. Her voice was strained. It was obviously a sore subject.
He snorted. �Pity. She seems much more suited for the job.� He brushed his wet hair out of his eyes, ignoring the strange looks he was getting. It must be his clothes, he decided. That, or his remarkable good looks.
�And what are ye meanin� by that?� Her accent got thicker when she was annoyed, he noticed. He shrugged despite the fact he knew she couldn�t see him. �She�s obviously nobody�s fool. Sharp. Doesn�t seem to trust anybody farther than she could throw them. She wouldn�t wander around the castle whenever the mood suited her. No, she�d maintain complete control over everything around her. Much more sensible, tougher even-�
Hermione swung around before he could finish his sentence. One hand shoved him backward until he hit the wall, catching him by surprise. Her face came dangerously close to his. She had to stand on her tippy toes to do it, but he could clearly see the fierce light burning in her eyes. He opened his mouth to snarl at her. �Hannah�s husband is dead,� she ground out.
That shut him up.
�She loved him from the first moment they met when we were thirteen and he a year older. She loved him, wed him, and lived with him in happiness until his best friend stabbed him in the back in jealousy. My Hannah was shattered, but put herself back together for the babe that will never know its father. She is harder, colder. Ye think that those qualities make a better leader. I think that the cost to refine those characteristics is too high.� She backed off abruptly and turned away. �Much too high.�

Well, I�ll be damned, Draco thought as she once again walked away from him. This one was more like Granger after all.

~*~

The next two days passed by too fast. He�d begun by spending most of his time searching for something, anything that would give him a clue what Aniston was looking for. Draco had always taken books for granted in school, always certain that all he needed was to pick up the right tome and the answers he sought would be there. In 1473, libraries like the one at Hogwarts were a fantastic dream. Draco quickly discovered that books were a precious commodity in this era, reserved only for the disgustingly rich. Even then they were in small quantities. The printing press had yet to be invented, meaning each book was hand scribed and ridiculously expensive.
Hermione and Hannah possessed a total of three books, kept under lock and key, and that was regarded with awe by their contemporaries.
He found himself trying to glean information from servants, which was awkward. He�d never really spoken to a servant before and had struggled for words most of the time. Thanks to a pretty little chatterbox named Magda (who was far too young for him, sadly), he had managed to learn a few things about the era.
Firstly, men�s clothing was utterly ridiculous. He�d been walking around in a pair of pants (trews, they called them here) that were made up of red and black plaid material. It had been either that or wear a plaid, and Draco Malfoy showed off his bare legs to no one but his woman. Which was to say none one, period, at this point.
Secondly, Aniston Malfoy was very, very well known, and very, VERY disliked. Not much had changed in six hundred years. Magda had informed him that Scotland�s new king, James III, had become so focused on territorial expansion that he�d even married a princess for two islands. He wanted an alliance with England so badly that he was rumored to be betrothing children he�d yet to father to England�s king. As it was, James ignored justice administration at home. He turned a blind eye to more than one English faux pas in an effort to garner favor from everyone but his own people.
Aniston was taking advantage.
No one, thank the gods, had seen Aniston personally, but his reputation as a marauder in Englishman�s clothing was ironclad. He was moving ever closer, and Magda could only wonder what he was doing the Highlands. Draco refrained from enlightening her. It turned out that the only real source he had were the twins themselves. So he watched and waited�and learned.
He�d soon discovered that Hannah�s foray into the Great Hall was rare indeed. She spent her time in what they called her sitting room, sewing or embroidering or whatever women did with their time. At least, that�s what they said she did. Draco usually found her staring out the window whenever he peeked in, her projects lying forgotten in her lap. It was a sad scene, one that even effected Draco. He began to realize that his romantic troubles paled in comparison. No, he�d not found the One for him yet�.but he hadn�t lost her to Death�s cold embrace, either.
Hermione�.now, there was a surprise. At first it had appeared that she was flitting aimlessly about the castle, talking to everyone at random. Once he had really begun to listen, Draco quickly realized that Hermione was indeed a skilled taskmaster. She embedded her orders in suggestion, drawing her people closer rather than allowing her exalted position to alienate them. She really was rather young, he realized, but no one seemed to be bothered by it. They treated her like a daughter.
He noticed that she always made sure to pass Hannah�s room several times. She would poke her head in and say hello, or offer a flower, or tell a story that would bring a smile to Hannah�s lips. She was clearly devoted to her sister, and Draco found himself experiencing rare shame for what he had said that first night. Hermione was a capable, caring leader, not the flighty coward he had originally thought.
He needed to apologize. Maybe then he could finally get some of the answers he come back six hundred years for.

~*~

He found her in the garden.
It was her own private section of the land, one that most would have missed if they hadn�t been looking for it specifically. Magda had had to give him directions twice because it was so well hidden among the outbuildings. A little patch of earth hidden by civilization. It wasn�t very big. Barely eleven square feet, in fact. But it was bursting with every plant imaginable, herb and flower alike. Draco was a bit impressed as he approached the fencing. Snape would have had a field day, he thought to himself. He leaned against the wood and searched her out among the wildlife. It stood so tall that it took a moment to spot her brown hair. �Hermione,� he called.
Brown eyes appeared over a bush. Draco found himself strangely arrested by them. It was the same feeling he got when Hannah was doing her soul-searching thing. Funny, it felt much more pleasant with Hermione somehow. He cleared his throat nervously. �I, uh-� Come on, Malfoy! Get yourself together. You manage a multi-million galleon company. Surely you can speak to one lone girl�

Right. Deep breath. �I was wondering if I could talk to you.�
An eyebrow quirked. �You�re talking to me now,� she observed. Draco managed to stifle the groan of frustration that threatened to emerge. �Can I come inside?�
�Aye.� With that, she disappeared among the blooms once more. He managed to find her minutes later, examining each flower and muttering to herself. �Nay, that won�t do. The petals aren�t quite the right shade�.� He crouched beside her and observed.

It finally hit him what she was doing. �Are you gathering supplies for your potions?� Why hadn�t he seen this before? Hermione had always been drawn to the precision required in potion-making, despite her aptitude for charms. It would explain why she never used magic in front of him. She didn�t need a wand to accomplish her brand of magic. Unaware of his astonishment, Hermione shrugged delicate shoulders. �It is where my talent lies,� she answered. �Hannah can do bigger things. Once she set Conall�s shoes on fire when he wouldn�t give her doll back. I can�t even manage sparks.� For a moment she looked mournful, but it soon passed and she returned to her task. �Was there something-?�
�I�m sorry.�
She paused in the middle of plucking a new flower to blink owlishly at him. �I�m sorry,� she said. �I thought I heard ye just apologize to me.�
�I did.� He was looking everywhere but at her. �I was wrong. You�re very good at leading your people.�
�Well, I--um, that is to say---Thank you,� she finished in a rush. A blush crept up her pretty cheeks and stained her neck. Draco was amazed to admit to himself that Hermione was actually�quite attractive.
She busied herself with anything she could find, but Draco found he was in no hurry to leave. Instead he leaned back against the fence and watched her idly. Time passed in surprising comfort, with no need to fill up the moments with conversation.
She really was like Granger. Looks aside, their personalities were virtually the same. In school Granger had driven him crazy with her eager attitude. He had been unable to fathom why anyone would actually want to be helpful, or loyal, or even caring. Those had been troubled, depressing years, and Draco could now view his teenage self objectively. He�d been struggling with the hand he�d been given, a strange childhood that had handicapped him in many ways. But nothing had held him back more than his own choices. He could have tried to understand the other side of his father�s arguments, or been a little less loud in his opinions.
Older, and hopefully wiser, Draco found the same qualities that had driven him mad as a teenager were captivating him as a man. He kept experiencing the urge to talk to her, yet at the same time content to just watch her.
Why had it taken six hundred years for him to warm up to her? Would he have done the same if he and the Hermione he knew had met in his time? Draco wasn�t really sure. All he really knew was that for the first time in a very long time, Draco Malfoy was content to spend time with a pretty woman in silence.

~*~

To be continued�.

A/N- I'm a History major, people, therefore I feel compelled to cite my source.
"James III".Wikipedia. www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_of_Scotland
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