Signum Vitalis (a dramione story)

In which there might be tears and onions

The second the last class was done for the day, Hermione threw her parchment and quill into her bag, made a beeline for the floo points, and floo-ed to WiNY. She had already looked up Harjeet and Samir's restaurant and it was a scant few blocks from WiNY and the church they held the AA meetings in. However, even that short walk had nearly frozen her by the time she had found the restaurant and hurried inside.

She was immediately greeted with warm air that wafted the spicy and also sweet pastry scents of the kitchen out towards her. It seemed small, but that may have been because the front entrance crowded with statues and plants and large paintings. The wallpaper was a busy dark red pattern and the walls were covered in rugs and heavy fabric curtains. The physical warmth combined with the warm tones of the room was enough to make Hermione want to curl up in one of the booths and just doze off for awhile. Last night's sleep hadn't been the greatest she had ever gotten, with all her worries about Draco circling around and then diving off into memories like the media debacles surrounding the Triwizard Tournament during fourth year. Even when she had finally fallen asleep, she had had nightmares about Draco and what might happen to him now that his past had caught up to him.

Harjeet was dressed in a sky blue tunic and loose pants that were both embroidered with bright magenta flowers. She greeted Hermione with a smile and welcomed her inside. "Ah, you have come earlier than we planned as well."

Hermione hesitated as she pulled off her coat. "Sorry, is this an inconvenience?"

Harjeet shook her head. "No, I've just been having Draco help with food prep so that when I come back Samir will be able to act as host without Amar being overwhelmed in the back.

The thought of Draco chopping vegetables made Hermione smirk.

They both wound through the low lit tables until they came to the kitchen and its glaring florescent lighting against the bright metal counters.

"I'll join you both once the lunch rush is finished," Harjeet said, patting Hermione's back. "Maybe you two will have a chance to talk about why Draco is so gloomy."

Samir, who was working over a large skillet and several pots, smiled at Harjeet over his shoulder.

Draco looked up from his cutting board and glared Harjeet's way. "Maybe I just wanted to cut class," he groused.

Harjeet shrugged. "I'll see you two in an hour or so."

Draco rolled his eyes and nodded before turning to look at Hermione. He gave her a playful smirk. "Want to see my cooking skills?" He twirled the knife in his hand and Hermione couldn't help wondering how many cuts he had gotten before he had perfected that. Then the annoyance of him standing nonchalantly in the kitchen while he cowardly ditched his future overshadowed anything else.

She curled her hands into fists and breathed in carefully, trying not to throw the words at him that were crashing around her head. Hadn't she just finished saying that he didn't run away from things or something like that when she was defending him? Yet, the second he encountered some trouble at school, he turned tail and ran.

The smirk on Draco's face slid off and he stared back solemnly, his jaw twitching a little.

At the silence, Samir turned from his stovetop and gave them both a quick glance over before turning back to his pots. "So, it is a lover's tiff that has got you moping all over my kitchen. Take out the trash and sort out whatever this is in the back alleyway."

"The trash is barely half-full," Draco stated, not taking his solemn eyes off of Hermione.

"And I want your useless ass out of my kitchen so you'll stop crying over my vegetables."