Because of you

Chapter 7

A/N: Beware the shouty capitals!!

Chapter 7

I don't even bother to look at Ron. He marches over and starts looking between the three of us. Draco holds me tighter and he seems a bit uncertain about what to do. To comfort him, I nuzzle his chest. It calms him down for a moment, but I can tell that he's nervous. Being this close to Harry and Ron is unsettling him. Especially having Ron here, considering that he was my boyfriend until only a few days ago.
"You can't be serious." Ron says.
"I am." I reply.
"You do know who we're talking about right?"
"Of course I do. He's right here."
I stand up and make an exaggerated maneuver to grab Draco's hand. He doesn't look at me. He's too busy biting his tongue. By the look in his eyes, he wants to explode on Ron. Probably for a number of good reasons. It's only because Ron's my friend that he holds himself back.
"Do you forget how awful he's been? Especially to you." Ron says.
"No, but unlike some people I can forgive him." I'm really starting to get angry now.
"He's the reason Dumbledore's dead! He's a Death Eater Hermione!"
"Was a Death Eater."
"It's MALFOY Hermione!"
"I know that Ronald!"
"He's EVIL!"
"No he isn't!"
"You can just forgive him after everything he's done?!"
"No, but I can MOVE ON!"
"MOVE ON?! HE HELPED START THE WAR!"
"IT WASN'T HIS FAULT!"
"HE'S CALLED YOU A MUDBLOOD HERMIONE!"
"LIKE YOU HAVEN'T DONE WORSE!" Draco shouts.
"I HAVEN'T!" Ron shouts, his face turning as red as the shirt he's wearing.
"Oh really? That's not what I've heard."
"And what exactly have you heard?"
I look at Ron and he looks nervous. Draco looks at me and back at Ron. He bites his lip and closes his eyes. It's a few minutes before he opens his eyes. When he speaks, he ignores everyone else in the room and speaks directly to me.
"He cheated on you and there are pictures to prove it." Draco whispers.
My mouth drops open. Draco looks guilty for telling me, but I'm not mad at him. I'm furious with Ron though. He breaks up with me and doesn't give me a reason. Well at least I know why he was distant. He was too busy fraternizing with another girl to care about me.
"You did what?!" Harry shouts.
"It was one time." Ron says.
"Liar." Draco adds.
"Shut up Malfoy!"
"Make me Weasley!"
Ron pulls back his arm to punch Draco. Draco does move but his body tenses. He knows that he can't make the first move. I don't want him to get hurt though. If he hurts Ron he'll probably end up in Azkaban, regardless of who threw the first punch. This is why I step in front of him and take Ron's punch instead.
I feel my nose breaking as Ron's fist makes contact with my face. Draco's arms wrap around me as I start to fall. He bends down on one knee and looks at me. No one else in the room moves. My vision starts to fade in and out. I think Draco notices because he lays me down on the ground. I can't see his face, but I hear him growl before he goes to punch Ron.
I try to sit up and grab him, but Harry moves faster than me. He grabs Draco's biceps and pulls him back. Harry is struggling to hold me back which makes me realize that Draco is a lot stronger than he looks. After a few moments, Draco calms down. He shoots death glares at Ronald, but he doesn't try to assault him.
By the time all of this has happened, Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall come out of Madam Pomfrey's office. I hadn't even realized that they were there. Her office must have spells that keep outside noise from interrupting conversation or else they would have been out here sooner. Needless to say, it doesn't take them long to realize that something bad must have happened. Both of them run over to check on me first.
"Are you alright?" Minerva asks.
"I'll be fine." I reply.
She seems to believe and stands up to scowl at the boys. Harry looks down in shame and so does Ron, but Draco just keeps glaring at Ron. His jaw is clenched and his knuckles are white. He's still quite upset, but he understands the consequences if he does anything. It could mean imprisonment if he steps out of line.
Madam Pomfrey tends to me while Professor McGonagall waits for Draco to seem apologetic. I know that she's going to have to wait awhile. He didn't do anything to be sorry for and it knows that. The only thing that breaks him out of his rage, is me taking his hand. When I do, he calms down and becomes the loving Draco that I've come to know.
"What happened?" Minerva asks all of us.
"It's a long story." Harry says, still looking at his feet.
"I've got plenty of time."
None of us try to give her an explanation. Harry's right. It's a long story. Honestly, if someone else had witnessed what had happened they should be the one to tell the story. Details will only get skewed if the four of us try to tell her what really happened. Especially the details of who started the fight and what exact words were said. Too bad the only other person here is Ginny.
"It's not a long a story at all. Ron was being an arse and Draco called him out in. Then Ron tried to hit Draco and Hermione got in between them. Ron hit Hermione and Harry stopped Draco from hitting Ron. That's what happened." Ginny says as she jumps off off the bed and kicks Ron in a very... sensitive place.
Everyone looks at her. Even Ron, even though he's on the ground and in a great deal of pain. I don't think anyone really believes that that just happened. Ginny walks over to Harry and leans against him. After he comes to his senses, he wraps his arm around her shoulders and smiles.
"How long have been awake?" Draco asks her.
"Awhile." Ginny smiles.
"And you didn't think it was important to say anything?" Harry says sarcastically.
"I knew neither of them were going to let the cat out of the bag and they weren't happy having to hide, so I threw the cat out of the bag for them."
Ginny smiles at me and Draco as she finishes. I can't believe that she did that! I can't believe that she knew! Draco seems just a dumbstruck as I am. His mouth his open, but there a lot of admiration behind his eyes. Obviously, he didn't expect this to happen. Least of all for it to be Ginny that made us go public. I didn't even expect that.
"Well, it seems that everything is fine here for now. Mr. Weasley and Mr. Potter, you need to go home. Miss Weasley, Madam Pomfrey wants you to stay the night. As for you two," she looks at Draco and myself, "you two need to follow me." Professor McGonagall says.
She start to walk out of the hospital wing. Draco and I quickly walk after her. I'm not sure what she wants to talk about. Probably our relationship and how it will affect our lives at school. Both Draco and I already know that being affectionate in public will affect just about everyone in the school. It's why we decided not to say anything. We could very well be in a great deal of danger if the wrong person were to learn of our involvement with each other. Specifically Draco's father and the other Death Eaters.
"I trust that both of you know that this will affect more than just yourselves." Minerva says as we enter her office.
"Yes." Draco and I answer.
"And I assure that you know that both of you could be in danger because of it."
"Yes."
"And you're both sure about this?" She directs her question at me.
"Yes." I reply.
"Well, if that's the case it might not be safe for you to remain in Slytherin House Mr. Malfoy."
"I know." Draco says.
"That being the case, you still need a place where you can sleep without having to fear that one of your classmates might harm you."
"Yes."
"Come with me."
Professor McGonagall stands up and leaves. Draco and I follow her out. I'm not sure if she knew this might happen or if she just knew that Draco might not be safe. Obviously she already had a room planned for him. She hasn't had time to magically conjure up a room because of our situation. We've been with her the whole time since she found out. Although, if she's has Dumbledore's uncanny intuition she probably knew about this long before either of us did.
"Now, I must warn both of you. You mustn't tell anyone where you're staying, not even Miss Weasley. Understood?" Minerva asks before we reach our room.
"Understood." We reply.
She nods her head and continues around the corner. I look around and the corridor is empty. There's no portraits on the walls. I'm not even sure that any student has ever been here before. At least I haven't and if I have, I don't remember it. It isn't until we get close to the end of the corridor that I see a portrait. I almost break into tears at the sight of him.
"What's the password?" Fred smirks.
"George." I answer as my eyes start to water.
"I'm Fred, silly." He smiles before swinging open so we can enter.
Draco and I follow Minerva into our room. She explains that we're going to be staying here for the rest of the school year. I don't really pay attention as she explains where the bathrooms are and where our bedrooms are. After she's done explaining, she leaves Draco and I alone. Once she's gone, Draco walks me to what I assume is his room. He lays us both down on the bed and I break down the moment my head hits the pillow. That's how Draco and I spent our first night together. Me crying myself to sleep and him comforting me. This has already been a long year and it's just begun.