Our Second Chance (Dramione)

Chapter 35 Changing the Future

"This is it. Only a few hours left. The sand pieces are running out." Hermione pulled her large trunk behind her. It was rather heavy due to the many thousand books she had shoved into it, and that was including an Undetectable Extension Charm, so the number of books wasn't an exaggeration. Most people were down at the feast celebrating the end of the summer term. Most students took advantage of this, considering that they would simply return in two months time, but as for the seventh years, this was it, no more Hogwarts. A few students were caught trying to steal objects to take home. One student even attempted to steal something from Filtch's office, and was immediately caught. These were the last few hours that they would spend in these castle walls, but there was always the chance of one returning to be a professor. There was a rumor traveling around the school that Neville would be it. "So many memories in this castle", said Harry

"Is it sad that our best memories were near death experiences?" Hermione rolled her eyes at Ron's statement, but unfortunately it was true.

"Getting attacked by a troll, getting caught in Devil's Snare, nearly dying from a basilisk, thinking that a mass murderer was after Harry, avoid getting burned at the Quidditch World Cup, trying to keep Harry alive in a tournament, trying to keep a Prophecy from Lucius, and attempting to kill the dark lord himself." Hermione tried to catch her breath after saying all that and walking up two flights of stairs. The three of them noticed that the Great Hall doors were closed, which hardly ever happened in all their seven years of schooling, and never happened during a huge feast such as this one.

"Pretty much", said Harry. Harry and Ron were pretty excited to be done with Hogwarts since they had their futures set as Aurors. Harry was practically set for the job in his first year, however, Hermione was wishing that it wasn't over yet. Even though Ron was correct about the near death experiences, it was also where she met her best friends. If she got the chance to do it all over again, she'd do it the exact same way. It was scary to think about the future right now. Maybe if she just enjoyed her meal and didn't talk to anyone then she wouldn't feel as bad, or maybe she could just borrow Harry's invisibility cloak. However, things took an unexpected turn when the golden trio entered the Great Hall. All the students stood on either side while one person stood in a pile of roses in the center.

Everyone started clapping when Hermione walked in, but she stared straight ahead at Draco. As she got closer to him, she started to get anxious. Hermione was already under enough stress, she really didn't need more. "Draco, what are you doing?", she asked with a worried voice that was low enough only he could hear.

"Doing what my heart is telling me too. Over these past two years that have kinda been nonexistent at this point considering we went back and repeated them, I realized that the world was a dark place, and you were the person who brought me to the light. I love you, and no one else's opinion of you is going to change how I feel. Hermione, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to see the muggle word from your point of view." He got down on one knee and opened a black velvet box. "Hermione Jean Granger, will you marry me?", he asked with a smile.

Hermione felt her heart drop. This was too soon. She may have been happy when Draco told her about his idea of the perfect future, but she just wasn't ready for that. "We'll get married when we're ready", she remembered him saying. 'Well I'm clearly not!', she thought to herself. She didn't want to fill every single Hogwarts student with disappointment, but she wasn't going to please everyone while she just wasn't ready. "I.. I can't." Draco's smile turned into a disappointed frown. She's realized as her heart started to break that the one person she was disappointing was him. She tried to move her eye gaze to somewhere else, but everybody else was watching her, including Harry and Ron.

"What?", he asked with worry. He got up and the box slipped from his hand.

"Malfoy..", she didn't even mean to say his last name. That mistake made Hermione feel ten times worse. She slammed her lips shut for a second to mentally beat herself up. A cruciatus curse would be less painful then this. "I'm sorry.... I just.. I'm sorry", she ran out of the Great Hall and out to the courtyard. As Draco stood in the middle of the Great Hall, his heart basically ripped to sheds and his eyes watering a bit. Pansy and Blaise joined him to comfort him.