"How'd it go?" Draco asked. I walked back into my room and Draco was sitting on my bed, smoking. "What?" I said. "You went to talk to Weasley? How'd it go?" he repeated. I nodded quickly. "Fine- good- I think-" I said. "What did he say?" he asked. "He just said ok." I lied. Draco nodded. "Well, I'm going to bed. Good night," he said. He hugged me and left my room. I finished unpacking and then I showered and went to bed. Ron's words echoed through my head as I tried to sleep. Earn it. I tossed and turned and eventually, I fell asleep. But I was still nervous.
The next day, I woke up early and got ready for school. We no longer have to wear uniforms. We can wear our regular clothes and our robes. I got dressed and grabbed my bag. Then I left.
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Draco and I walked down to the Great Hall and sat with our friends. We talked about our classes and the professors and stuff. Then it was time for our lessons. "What do we have first?" Pansy asked. "Charms," Draco replied. We went into class and people stared at us. Pansy winced as she sat down and I looked at her. "I'm fine," she mumbled. "Pans, you're in pain. I can tell," I said. She shrugged. "I'll be fine," she said. I nodded. Class began and I noticed Harry immediately. He walked in and sat down without saying a word to anybody. He didn't talk to his friends and he laid his head down on his desk. Guilt consumed me. Everything I did, it ruined his life. I went to class after class and I didn't see him speak one time. To anybody. Finally, it was lunch. We were walking to lunch and I saw Granger walking into the bathroom. I wanted to talk to her alone. I walked in and she was standing at the sink. She whipped around and I could see just a flicker of fear. I gave her a small smile as I put my wand on the table next to us.
"I'm sorry, if I scared you," I said. "You didn't," she said. I nodded. "What do you want? Am I the last stop on your apology tour?" she asked. "No- I mean- yes- it's not like that-" I said. She sighed and looked at me. "Say what you want to say," she said. "If I go back to our first year at Hogwarts, and change something, it would be how I treated you. I'm sorry, for everything I said, everything I did, I'm so sorry." I said. She nodded. "Are you sorry that you and your brother stood there and watched while your deranged aunt tortured me?" she asked. My face fell. "I was screaming, and begging you for help." she said. "I know," I said quietly. "Then why didn't you stop her? Were you really that big of a coward that you could stop them from torturing me?" she asked. "No- I- I didn't want-" I started. "What? You didn't want Voldemort to know you were weak?" she said. "No! You don't understand!" I exclaimed. "You're right, I don't. Explain to me because I sure as hell don't understand how someone could stand by and let that happen," she snapped. I looked down as tears filled my eyes.
"Granger-it's not- there are other things-" I stammered. She scoffed. "Give me an answer or I'm leaving." she said sharply. "Fine. I let them torture you because what they wanted to do was a hell of a lot worse!" I said. She glared at me. "Worse? What could have possibly been worse? Huh?" she spat. She yanked up her sleeve and I stared at the scar. Mudblood. "This is carved into my arm for the rest of my life. What's worse than that?" she asked. "Being raped!" I yelled. Her face dropped and she stepped back. "The memory of your clothes being ripped off your body, people staring at me while-" I started. I exhaled a shaky breath. That's scarred into my mind. And trust me, it's worse!" I spat. She stared at me with wide eyes. Fuck, what did I just do.
"I'm sorry. Please- I- I didn't mean to tell you that- please-" I stammered. "Meredith, calm down. You can-" she started. "Please, don't tell anyone. Please. I'll do anything, I'll do whatever you want. Please, don't anyone." I pleaded. A look of concern covered her face. "Meredith, it's ok. Ok? I won't. I promise." she said. I nodded and wiped a stray tear that had fallen to my cheek. "Can I ask- who was it?" she said quietly. "It wasn't their fault." I said. Now she looked even more worried. "Hold on, are they- do they go here?" she asked. Those days flashed through my head and I shook my head rapidly. "Please Granger- Hermione- please." I said. "You can tell me. Did they threaten you?" she asked. "They did it to save me!" I said. She looked at me with shock and confusion. "I don't understand," she said. "I know. Please don't make me tell you. I don't want to talk about it," I said. She nodded hesitantly. "Are you sure you're ok?" she asked. I forced a smile. "I'll be fine. It's over, ok. I'm sorry, again." I said. She gave me a small nod. "I forgive you," she said. Then she left.
