Aftermath

F I V E

The library was stiflingly quiet, filled only with the distant drumming of rain against the high, arched windows. Hermione was painfully aware of the person seated across from her, the silence thick with the resentment that lingered like a ghost between them. 

She had hoped, somehow, that the task of organizing the memorial would keep them too busy for bickering, but the tension had been building with every second.

Draco Malfoy slouched in his seat, his fingers tapping out a steady, grating rhythm on the table's edge. Hermione shot him a sharp look, and he smirked, a challenging glint in his eyes that made her skin crawl. 

Every time she glanced at him, she was reminded of his cruel remarks, the years of sneers, the way he seemed to revel in every stumble she'd made.

Finally, the silence broke. "Are you always this serious?" he drawled, watching her with a faintly amused expression as she meticulously scrawled her notes.

Without looking up, she replied, "Some of us actually want to do this well, Malfoy. Unlike you."

He scoffed, leaning back further, a sarcastic smile tugging at his lips. "And here I thought Gryffindors only pretended to care about noble causes." His voice was low, mocking, each word dripping with sarcasm.

She forced herself to breathe, but the irritation churned in her stomach. "Right, because Slytherins like you are only ever interested in what benefits them," she muttered, not bothering to mask the bite in her words. She finally met his gaze, her brows raised. "Honestly, it's a wonder you're even bothering to show up."

His face twisted briefly, the trace of anger in his eyes flashing before he masked it. "Don't presume to know why I'm here," he replied coldly, his voice barely above a whisper.

For a moment, she almost felt a pang of something close to regret for pushing him. But then she reminded herself that this was Draco Malfoy—the boy who'd sneered at her since she'd first stepped foot in Hogwarts, the boy whose family had supported the very people who'd caused her so much grief. Whatever he was feeling, she doubted it was anything close to remorse.

The rain grew louder, filling the silence that fell between them like a wall, their loathing simmering beneath the surface. Hermione shifted in her seat, clearing her throat. "Look," she said, her tone clipped, "I don't want to be here any more than you do. But if we're going to do this, we might as well make it count—for those we lost, if nothing else."

Draco scoffed, his eyes narrowing as he leaned forward. "For those you lost, you mean," he muttered, his voice thick with bitterness. "Not all of us have the luxury of playing hero, Granger."

She felt her fists clench around her quill, the familiar sting of anger coursing through her. "You think this is some kind of game to me?" she shot back, her voice sharper than she intended. "This isn't about heroics, Malfoy. It's about respect. Maybe if you'd cared about anyone besides yourself, you'd understand that."

He looked away, his jaw tight, the flicker of something dark and raw crossing his features. "You don't know anything about what I care about," he replied, his voice barely a murmur as if he hadn't meant to say it aloud.

Her anger faltered, replaced by a grudging curiosity, but she quickly pushed it aside. She couldn't afford to let her guard down around him, not when he was clearly as antagonistic as ever. "Fine," she said, forcing her voice to stay steady. "Let's keep it that way."

They both sat in tense silence, the rain filling the gaps between their harsh breaths, each of them unwilling to concede anything to the other. She tried to focus on her notes, but her gaze kept straying to him, her mind racing with the ugly memories he represented. Everything about him set her teeth on edge, from his arrogant posture to that perpetual smirk he wore like armor.

"Look," he finally said, breaking the silence, his voice flat, "if we're going to get this over with, we should at least agree on something." His gaze was cold and calculating, and it was clear he'd rather be anywhere else than here.

She nodded, though she kept her expression hard. "Fine. I was thinking... something simple. Something that's about remembering them, rather than dredging up the past." She forced herself to keep her tone civil, even if every fiber of her being wanted to snap at him.

Draco gave a small, unimpressed shrug. "So, light a few candles, say a few words, and pretend that solves everything?" His tone was mocking, dismissive, as if the entire concept was beneath him.

She narrowed her eyes. "It's about respect, Malfoy. I wouldn't expect you to understand that, considering how much you used to mock anyone who wasn't exactly like you."

His smirk faded, his eyes flashing with anger. "You're right, Granger. I don't understand your naive need to keep playing saint, especially when everyone knows how self-righteous you are."

The words stung, and she felt her jaw tighten. "And I don't understand how you're still this arrogant after everything that happened. After the way you were on the wrong side of everything."

They stared at each other, a cold intensity simmering between them, the weight of their pasts pressing down on them like a suffocating blanket. She could feel her pulse racing, her body tense with anger, every word between them sharpening the animosity that still held them captive.

"Maybe we're both just as intolerable as ever," Draco muttered, a bitter edge to his words. He picked up a parchment, idly examining it, but she could see the tension in his posture, his hand gripping the page a little too tightly.

"Fine," she snapped, barely holding back the venom in her tone. "Let's just finish this and be done with it." She turned back to her notes, her fingers gripping the quill hard enough to make her knuckles turn white.

The minutes dragged on, the air thick with hostility, neither of them willing to back down. It was a truce built entirely on resentment, the forced civility hiding the hatred that simmered just beneath the surface. 

And as she scribbled out her thoughts on the memorial, she could only hope this would be the last night she'd ever have to sit across from Draco Malfoy again.