Little Secrets

Chapter 2

Draco knew why he was there, but he wished he didn't.  He'd asked his mother before leaving and he'd asked Severus a few days before that, but he still hated the reason.  The Dark Lord hadn't bothered with much more explanation than he was needed to keep an eye on the students as a student.  It sounded pathetic to him, but he figured it was a fair assignment after failing to kill Dumbledore like he'd been tasked with last year.

Merlin, all of last year was a horrible blur for him.  After fixing the cabinet and telling Severus in a panic that he'd succeeded, he could have sworn he saw disappointment in his godfather's eyes.  He hadn't had time to read into it before Severus was handing him a letter from his father that had come a few days prior.  On the back, it informed him not to read it until he'd succeeded with the cabinet, probably the reason Severus had kept hold of it.  The seal wasn't broken and Draco knew even magic couldn't fix his father's seal once broken, so he'd read the letter while still standing in front of Severus and nearly forgotten how to breathe.

The rest of the year had been the worst few weeks of his life.  Between the anxiety of not knowing when Death Eaters would invade Hogwarts and the weight of killing Dumbledore on his shoulders, Draco had found himself spending most of his free time with Severus to perfect his Occlumency and relay some of his worries.

It was Severus who'd come up with the plan that provided Draco an escape from murdering the Headmaster.  It was easy enough to believe Draco would want his godfather to be restored to his prominent position in the Dark Lord's ranks, so he would step aside at the last minute and allow Severus to kill Dumbledore, claiming he only wanted to see his godfather return to his rightful rank and being willing to give up his own glory.  The Dark Lord had believed it (or at least seemed to believe it), but his mother had seen right through the lie and hadn't wasted a single minute in going to comfort him as soon as the coast was clear.

When he'd told his family he'd made Head Boy at Hogwarts but thought he wouldn't be returning, the dinner table had gone silent.  His Aunt and Uncle were there, but they didn't seem to care the Dark Lord hadn't informed him of the real reason for his return.

"Harry Potter's Mudblood friend Granger is going to be the Head Girl,"  Aunt Bellatrix had said happily.  She'd looked like she'd wanted to jump up and down as she told him,  "The Dark Lord has tasked you with keeping an eye on her.  Surely she'll be getting news of Potter's... travels.  You're to keep Dark Lord posted on the boy's whereabouts."

Draco hated the idea and said so to his mother that night.  While around his father, he had to pretend like his father and present himself as all Malfoy men in history had.  With his mother, however, he kept the secret of his friendship with Hermione and confided in her just how much he hated being around the Dark Lord.  Everything was said in a safe place, surrounded by more charms and magic than Draco could have thought possible.

When the day finally came to return to Hogwarts and begin his mission of spying on Hermione, he'd thrown up in the bathroom on the train to school.  He kept quiet as his friends mused and joked about the future, trying to seem unfazed by their ridiculous ideas and fooling everyone except Blaise.  For some reason, he expected things to look so much different when he entered the Great Hall.  Instead, he found Hermione making her way from the teachers' table to her usual spot.  He tried not to glare at Amycus who was watching Hermione in a way Draco didn't like, so he turned to talk to Blaise.

At the end of dinner, Draco tried to find Hermione and walk with her to the Head's dorm, but she was nowhere in sight.  It was probably for the best as if anyone saw them walking the halls together, they'd probably think something of it that it wasn't.  He really just wanted to make sure she wasn't attacked in the halls like he'd heard some of his housemates musing about.

He waited an hour after dinner before allowing himself to worry.  When she didn't return by curfew, he was sorely tempted to go hunt her down.  Just as he gave in to the urge and threw open the door, Hermione was standing in front of him.  They blinked at each other before Draco grabbed her arm and pulled her inside the dorm.

"Where have you been?"  he asked, shutting the door tightly behind him and turning to face her.  He still had his hand around her arm, but she wasn't pulling away.  "Do you know how dangerous it is to be caught after curfew now?  I was worried sick!"

"I was at Gryffindor tower,"  Hermione explained, giving him a small smile.  She glanced down at where he was holding onto her then looked back up and said,  "And you're hurting me, so please let go."

Draco let go of her so fast he stumbled back in the process.  He stuttered out an apology but was stopped when she grabbed hold of his shoulders and pulled him forward to hug him.  The touch immediately calmed him and he melted into her embrace, wrapping his own arms around her and relishing in the feeling of having her back.  Summer had been horrible, but at least he would be with her every day this year.

When they finally pulled apart just enough he could look at her, she was smiling.  He was about to ask why, but her hands found the protection amulet under his shirt and he smiled as well.

"I never took it off,"  he told her.  She beamed and reached to pull the chain necklace holding her ring out from under her shirt.

His smile softened as he remembered the accompanying note he'd written her that Christmas, practically begging her to be careful and make sure she was safe.  What he hadn't bothered to tell her about the ring was that he'd enchanted it so as long as she had it on her, it would let him know if she was in trouble.  He hadn't been able to put protection charms on it like she'd done to the amulet as she'd know immediately what it was, but he had managed to hide the one spell pretty well and he doubted she had any idea what the ring actually did.

"How was your summer?"  she asked, stepping away from him and moving toward the sitting room couches.  Draco frowned as he followed her over, sitting on the couch as well and moving so he was facing her.  "That bad?"  she asked.  He shook his head.

"You don't know the half of it,"  he answered.  She frowned and he turned the question back on her.  Her face went blank and his hand wrapped around hers without his mind telling it to.

"I obliviated my parents as soon as I got home,"  she told him quietly, looking at the carpet as she spoke.  "They were overwhelmed by the urge to move to Australia early June and I haven't seen them since.  I spent the rest of the summer with Ginny at the Burrow."

"I'm sorry,"  Draco told her.  She shook her head and wiped a hand across her face quickly.

"It's for the best,"  she replied and Draco knew she was right.

If any of the Dark Lord's followers found out where she lived or who her parents were, nothing good was going to happen.  They'd be targeted instantly and the best thing for them was to forget who she was and move far, far away.  Nevertheless, Draco could tell how much doing so had hurt her and gently squeezed her hand.

"The Dark Lord has taken up permanent residence at Malfoy Manor,"  he told her.  Her head snapped up and her eyes locked on his.  "I didn't want to leave my room, his presence was so horrible.  My father invites him to meals, of course, and my mother and I have to sit there and listen to them plot."

The room fell into silence as they sat in front of the fireplace.  After several minutes, Hermione announced she was going to bed and gave Draco a tight hug.  He stayed where he was, listening to her walk upstairs to her room and shut the door.  He stayed in the sitting room for almost an hour after that just watching the fire burn and wondering what the year would bring.

Eventually, he moved up to his room and got ready for bed even though he knew the nightmares wouldn't allow for a good sleep.  He could at least try, though, and laid on the plush bed, staring up at the ceiling.  When morning finally did come, he hadn't gotten any sleep at all and was dreading the time he would part with Hermione for the day.  He could only hope she wouldn't do anything to upset the Carrows and could make it through the day unharmed.