When You Loved Me (Druna Fanfiction)

Dead Memories

With a trembling hand, Hermione brushed a strand of bushy hair that has been plastered to her forehead by cold sweat. She opened her mouth but no sound came out, as if her ability to speak was non-existent. Finally, she shook her head and spoke in a small voice.

"Look, Draco" At this, the blonde's pacing stopped and he looked at Hermione with a fierce intensity, as if urging her to go on. Hermione drew out a shaky breath. "There is something we have not been telling you."

"And exactly what is that, Granger?" Draco's voice echoed through the room, seething in anger and yet bursting with curiosity.

"Something that we ought to have told you long ago." It was Harry. "We apologize, Draco, for not telling you. But what can I say, it was a secret. Luna trusted us with it, and we felt obliged to keep it for ourselves. Honestly, we agreed not to tell you. Luna's wish, of course. But we should have been wiser. We should have known that you'd need to know it, especially since it concerns you." Wearily, like a man drained from work, he took off his glasses and polished it with the sleeves of his shirt.

Draco opened his mouth to ask the burning questions that he wanted to be answered but Harry raised his left hand, signalling him to stop. Harry motioned to an empty chair beside Hermione, and Draco obliged, crossing his legs, looking around his companions and weighing the inevitable.

"All we ask of you, Draco" Harry said suddenly. "Is to hear us out. We'll answer all your questions, all of it. I promise you that. But for now, just...just let us explain."

Draco nodded. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His heart hammered through his chest: a combination of frustration and something else he couldn't quite make of. It could have been fear. Fear of what he was about to hear.

With a final look at Hermione and Ron, Harry began to speak. "It started, of course, two years ago. Luna was heartbroken. There's no sugarcoating it. She wouldn't eat. She barely slept. She wouldn't talk to any of us. We tried talking to her, we really did but she would just shake her head and say that she wouldn't want to hear about it...about you."

With this, Harry stole a quick glance at Draco, hoping to see a reaction but Draco was surprisingly taking it quite well and just nodded for Harry to go on. Harry obliged.

"Days passed, weeks passed and Luna still hadn't improved. In fact, she got even worse. After her father died, she continued to live in their house near Ottery St. Catchpole but it was as if she wasn't even there. Like I said, she wouldn't go out. Luna lost an awful amount of weight too and if you'd had the chance to see her during that time, I doubt if you would recognize her."

Hermione pursed her lips and nodded slowly as a silent tear rolled down her cheek. It was her who spoke this time. "I talked to a muggle doctor, a psychiatrist because I knew that Luna needed help. The doctor said that she might have depression. It was obvious, of course. I had known deep inside that she was suffering from something, but I had to be sure."

She paused and took a deep, shaky breath.

"And as her friends, it really hurt us to think that Luna- the Luna that we knew, the Luna who was dreamy, and carefree, and strong...the Luna who could never be fazed by anything or anyone was depressed."

There was no anger in her voice, not even grief or sadness. In fact, there was no distinguishable emotion in it. Hermione simply stated it casually, like how you would tell a person that his shoelaces are untied or that he has a stain on his shirt.

It was as if she had not been holding it for two years.

There was silence. Hermione's tears now fell uncontrollably and Harry's eyes were glassy behind his glasses.