Damaged Goods by slytherin_after_dark

Chapter 28

- NOT MY STORY!! ALL CREDITS TO @slytherin_after_dark ON A03!!

Slowly, she was applying what Professor Eriksson had told her and it seemed to work. One step closer to finishing her potion, so many more to go.

She cringed when she looked at the calendar. It was the Quidditch playoffs. She had promised Ginny she'd go. Slytherin versus Gryffindor. There were going to be recruiters in the audience to get the best players for the national team. In another universe somewhere, Draco might have made the team. Or he would have bought it. One or the other. Perhaps Harry would have gone professional too? No, he was always destined to become an Auror.

The stadium was packed. Hermione got some sideway stares when she sat down in the Gryffindor section with her green robes. Not that she actually cared about the game.

"Want some?" Harry asked as he put a bag full of candy in front of her.

Sour-tasting apple gummies always reminded her of her first year at Hogwarts, specifically the first Quidditch game she ever watched. She had been in awe of the speed of the game; players flying on their brooms. After several years of it, the excitement had worn off. Sitting on the metal stands for hours to watch people zoom by on brooms had become less than thrilling to her.

"Sad you're not on the field today?" Hermione asked Harry. He was still playing for fun with a group of friends.

"Oh no, happy to sit back and watch. Seems rather stressful to play professionally."

Ginny was all decked out in Gryffindor gear, watching as the players entered the stadium. Ron wasn't anywhere in sight. Ginny had informed her that he had broken up with Maureen.

Hermione was thinking about her potion, wondering what the next best step was when she noticed pale blonde hair across the arena. Draco was sitting next to Nott, Blaise, and Pansy. They were chatting and he looked back to his normal self. She hadn't heard from him since the night he had crashed unconsciously into Nott's home. She knew he would hate if she asked him how he was feeling. So, she had refrained and he seemed to stay away from her entirely since then.

The game began and Hermione tried to get comfortable in the seat, which seemed impossible.

"How is work at the Ministry?" Hermione asked Harry.

"It's good. Scrimgeour actually invited me to talk to him next week about my future at the Ministry. I'm rather hopeful he might offer me a promotion."

The name of the Minister of Magic made her stomach twist. Part of her really wanted to share her concerns with Harry. It killed her that she didn't trust her former best friend enough to tell him that the Ministry used Draco as an assassin through a permanent imperius curse. Back in the day, she wouldn't have hesitated to tell him, knowing he would help her regardless of what it was. That was before the war. As the years went on, Harry started to make sacrifices to keep his morals. Never using dark magic in a war against the Dark Lord had its price.

She watched the Seekers fly after the Golden Snitch while the Slytherin Catcher scored a goal with the Quaffle. Slytherins jumped up and cheered and Hermione couldn't help but watch Draco. Nowadays it would be him she'd go to for help. He wouldn't hesitate.

The hero would sacrifice you to save the world. A villain would sacrifice the world to save you. That quote floated through her head and she suddenly felt a pang of sadness wondering if he had anyone in his life who would sacrifice the world for him. Someone had to do something about Scrimgeour and the Ministry, even if it wasn't Snape and it most certainly wasn't going to be Harry.

"I'm sure you're getting a promotion, Harry," she said. "You're the boy who lived!"

He always flushed with embarrassment when someone called him that or talked about him killing Voldemort. Harry was the definition of modest.