An Empty Shell

Chapter 4

Hermione's POV:

I woke up at a loud sneeze. I once again peered through the haze of my vision and saw a familiar form sitting in one of the chairs.

"Pansy?" I asked. My voice was slightly croaky, and I cleared my throat, trying to fix it.

The form in the chair turned its head, and I sat up, shaking my head to clear away the fog that had taken hold. My head was pounding, but I ignored it and pasted a smile onto my face, like I had done every day for six months.

Pansy walked over to me. "Granger. What are you doing here?" I could tell by the slight waver and the dip of her voice that she knew, though.

What? Just because I was exhausted didn't mean I was any worse at analyzing people. Or at least, analyzing her.

"It's Harry," I said. "What are you here for?" 

She shrugged. "Draco had to come for the Ministry so they could say he wasn't mad. I didn't know if they were going to pump him full of potions, though, so I figured he better have someone with him. Besides, I mean, he's my friend."

I felt my fondness for the girl in front of me grow. Sure, I had always respected her as a witch, but I had never really talked with her. I had heard her talk, though, and she was actually a pretty nice person. Underneath her outer, protective layer, that is. But aren't we all? We all have our boundaries and people have to break through them to see who we really are.

"I heard about Pott...Harry. I have my suspicions, but I want to know yours." 

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. It got caught in a dozen tangles, however, so I quickly gave up. "I think...I miss my friend. And I want to make sure that he comes back. I think he has a choice. Just like he told us he had a choice in the forest. I think he doesn't know what to choose, and I think he is scared. I know he's scared. And he has never been good at being scared. He always wants to know just what he is doing, and he is always petrified when he can't figure out what to do." I sighed and held my head in my hands. "Can you...can you tell me something? Something to take my mind off of Harry?" 

Pansy thought for a moment, then she said, "My best friend has a crush on yours." That'll do it.

My head jerked up. "What?" 

Pansy nodded. "Draco's liked Harry for ages. Since they first met, really. But Harry has never liked him back, so he pretended to hate him." 

I was speechless.

"Wha...Why didn't he ever say anything? Harry's liked him forever!" 

Pansy's mouth dropped. "What? Why didn't he say anything?"

"Because he thought Draco hated him!" I exclaimed.

"But he always thought Harry hated him!" She groaned. "I was such an idiot! I told him that him and Harry may become friends later, after the war, you know? And then I told him---" She cut off, staring at someone over my shoulder.

I turned around and saw that Draco was watching us curiously.

"Mind giving us a moment, Draco?" Pansy asked. "I'm sure there are...things you need to attend to." I wasn't sure what she meant by things. Talking to Harry? To a Healer? It baffled me, and I didn't like being baffled.

Draco rolled his eyes. "Whatever you want, Pans," he said with a small smile. He then walked off down the hallway, heading towards the cafeteria. It's the only place I figured he'd go. That or the gift shop.

"What was he just off doing?" 

Pansy smirked. "Probably visiting Harry. We were talking about him, that's where I got my suspicions, and I think he went to check up on him."

"But Ron's with him! Won't Ron make an argument or something?" 

Pansy shrugged. "Maybe he wasn't there. Draco seemed to be in good spirits. Not at all like he had just had a fight with Weasley." 

I jumped to my feet. "I have to go. Harry shouldn't be alone. What if something happens and no one is around? Ron shouldn't have left him alone in the first place." 

I made to walk away, but Pansy grabbed my hand. Hers was surprisingly soft.

"He'll be fine, Hermione. I'm sure Ron has returned, otherwise Draco would for sure still be there. It's okay. Harry is in a building full of Healers. If something were to happen, they would know. They have sensors for these things."

I strained against her surprisingly tight grip, but my strength quickly faded. I really was exhausted.

"I just...if something happens, I don't want him to be alone."

Pansy gently tugged on my wrist, and I sat back down beside her. She pulled me into a hug, and I gratefully hugged her back.

"He won't be alone, Hermione. He has everyone he needs. He has you, ready to spring into action in a second. He has Weasley, who will barely leave his bedside, even when he is ready to keel over from exhaustion. He has a team of Healers who will make sure he is alright. But he won't have you if you pass out from lack of sleep, so go back to sleep. Don't worry. If something happens, I'll wake you."

She pulled away and gave me a smile. "Don't worry. I'll make sure to wake you if anything happens." 

I sighed. "Promise?" 

She nodded. "Promise."

I was about to lay down, but then shook my head. "What if Ron really did leave? I guess I shouldn't have expected him to stay so long, anyway. I...I can't sleep knowing that Harry may be alone." 

Pansy sighed and shook her head. "Remember, he has loads of people. But you, one of his people, won't be around to see him come out of it if you're dead somewhere from exhaustion and dehydration."

I sighed and reluctantly nodded, then laid down so my head was in Pansy's lap. I saw her smile and felt my heart give a soft flutter.

"Promise to wake me if anything happens?" I asked again. Pansy smiled and ran her hands through my hair, somehow avoiding the knots.

"Promise."

I just saw her smile before I closed my eyes and instantly fell asleep, the feeling of Pansy's hand running through my hair leaving a small smile on my face.