Red & Green ~ Dramione

Chapter 3

She shook her head, "No." 

Malfoy looked over at her when she spoke. 

"No," she said again and left the room, she ignored Ginny's questioning look and headed straight for the portrait hole. Just before she left she called out over her shoulder, "I'm going for a walk."

Ginny made to follow her but was stopped when Malfoy grabbed her arm.

"Malfoy, let go of me," Ginny said with a menacing tone.

"She needs to be alone right now," he replied, ignoring her.

"What makes you think that you know what she needs?"

"Because I know exactly how she's feeling," it was a feeling he was all too familiar with.

"Oh yeah, sure," Ginny said, unconvinced. 

"She feels like she has lost all control over her own life. And that's not something you talk out with a friend, that's something you deal with on your own," Malfoy said as he finally let go of Ginny's arm.

##

She didn't know where she was going, truly she didn't care. As long as she got away from that room, that bed, that person. Because seeing that, seeing a bed that they were meant share, she didn't know if she could do it. 

Paintings flashed by as she walked through the corridors and then suddenly she was outside. She inhaled the fresh air as tears came to her eyes. Half an hour, that was how long it took the ministry to change her entire life. To force her into a marriage that never would have occurred naturally. What was that bloody hat thinking? 'Could you two work out your differences, I wonder.' That was what it had said to her, differences, she scoffed to herself. Differences sounded too mild. Their relationship was based on years of blood prejudice, bullying and hatred. That could not just be undone in a day. She remembered what she said to Ron during the welcoming feast, she had said that perhaps Malfoy had changed. So maybe, just maybe, if he had changed they could work it out. It might take months, but maybe... If he was willing to.

She walked for hours: on the edge of the black lake, through the empty quidditch pitch, along the outskirts of the forbidden forest. Each place brought old memories to the surface. The Triwizard Tournament in fourth year, setting Snape's cloak on fire in first year, hiding Buckbeak in the forest during third year. She had gone through many things during her years at Hogwarts and she had come out on the other side. She could get through this as well.  

She walked until she realised that the sun had dipped below the horizon and the sky turned dark.  Hermione started the journey back to her new common room with a plan circling her mind. She was going to confront Malfoy and propose a truce. 

##

The door to her room opened with a slight push and Hermione closed it behind her. There was no-one in the common room and she assumed they were all down at dinner, that was until her eyes lifted from where they stared at the wooden floor to see that Malfoy was sat on the bed. He had a book in his hands and didn't notice her until she started speaking. She had put so much thought into what she was going to say but when she saw him all those words left her and instead she said, "I'm not sleeping here. I'll sleep on the sofa." It wasn't what she had wanted to say but she had.

Malfoy looked up at her like she was crazy and, without missing a beat, said, "Don't be ridiculous. Those sofas are tiny, you can't sleep on those."

"Since when do you care about what I do? I thought you'd be happy. You get the bed all to yourself."

"Since when do I care," he muttered with a scoff and took a step towards her, "Maybe since I found out that I have to spend the rest of my life with you."