f o r t y - o n e

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Hermione needed air – for the second time of the night. Even as Headmistress McGonagall and the other professors had dispersed the crowd that surrounded her, even as her friends came rushing in to her aid and led her back to their table, even as the reporters have all been promptly escorted out and Ron was nowhere to be seen, the suffocation she was feeling continued to rage on.



It was only when she realized that Draco's hand was still firmly connected to hers, never even leaving for a second, that she felt she could breathe again.


"That went well, don't you think?" Ginny's sarcastic voice broke through the awkward silence that had descended upon all of them.


"Are you mad? That was an absolute disaster!" Seamus.


"I was expecting death, so anything short of that is well enough really." Blaise.


"Remind me again why we even let 'Mione associate with you snakes in the first place?" Seamus' eyes narrowed into slits as he turned to Blaise and Theo who joined in their merry little band.


"The words 'grown woman' come into mind." Theo.


"Shouldn't we go after Ron?" Luna piped up.


Dean snorted. "Oh, most definitely, because nothing fixes bad news like having it explained in more detail."


She was about to tune out their entire conversation when Harry spoke.


"Does he make you happy?"


Hermione looked towards him who was standing in front of her and Draco with his arms crossed over each other, and then to Draco who was sitting beside her. "Yes, he does."


Harry extended one of his arms, a motion that Hermione thought would end in the death that Blaise was talking about, but instead of using it to point his wand on Draco, he simply held his palm out. "If I can trust Hermione with my life, I think I can trust her poor choice in men."


She watched Draco as he blatantly just stared at Harry's proffered hand. For a moment, she was afraid he wouldn't take it, but the moment went as quickly as it came because he did. "No need to worry, Weasley is out of the picture now."


And as their merry little band of both old and new friends laughed, none of them noticed the figure that was approaching their table.


"Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Granger," Headmistress McGonagall addressed, glancing briefly at their intertwined hands that have not separated all night, and the presence of Theo and Blaise. "Congratulations." Then left.


Hermione fought gallantly to suppress the blush that was threatening to spread across her cheeks again. Congratulations for what? She and Draco were in fact, not together.

"But they haven't actually said they were official." Harry. "Right? So it's not yet too late for you to change your mind?"


"How about you just let us work things out at our own pace? You know, because it's our relationship?" Hermione while shaking her head at her friends. And they say I'm the bossy one.


"Honey, I've seen glaciers move faster than you two. It's been seven years; how dare you think you can waste any more time." Dean.


----


Later that night, Draco offered to walk Hermione up the Heads' dorm.


"You didn't have to walk me all the way here." She said as the two of them stopped in front of the portrait hole.


"I wanted to."


Hermione's smile faded into a serious line. "Can I ask you something?"


"You already are, but go on."


"If I wasn't the girl in the photograph, would you still want to go through with this? With me?"


Draco stepped forward. "The photograph was never in the equation, Granger."


Satisfied with his answer, she grinned. "Hermione."


Taking another step forward and resting his forehead against hers, Draco smirked. "Goodnight, Hermione."


As he retreated with his front still facing her, Hermione bit her lip. What the hell.


"Would you like to come inside?"


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A/N:

AYE YO IMMA JUST PLUG MY FRIEND'S STORY ON HERE IF YA'LL DON'T MIND BC SHE'S JUST STARTING OUT. JUST TAKE A QUICK PEEK AT HER BIO  AND YOU'LL SEE HER STORY ENTITLED 'COLOURS OF THE ROAD'. Thank you, my lovelies!

Epilogue is next :(

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