LOVE AT SECOND PUNCH

Chapter 8 (H)

Hermione felt a lump rise in her throat as tears started running down her cheeks at the sight of her parents. They looked totally disoriented. Draco looked Hermione in the eye and then carefully wiped her tears away.

''Go on, talk to them." Draco prompted. Hermione nodded. "I'll come with you."

"OK," she whispered. The two of them made their way to Hermione's parents but they were suddenly interrupted.

"DOBBY HAS BROUGHT THE MUGGLES TO MALFOY MANOR!" The houself that used to serve the Malfoy's appeared and Hermione and Draco's jaws dropped to the floor. The music stopped and everyone looked at Dobby and the very disoriented Mr. and Mrs. Granger.

"DOBBY?" Harry Potter shouted from somewhere in the mass of people.

"HARRY POTTER!" Dobby screamed, running across the room and thrusting himself into Harry's arms. Hermione turned to face her parents and she opened her mouth to speak but she was once again interrupted, by the very dramatic swish of a black cloak.

"Who's that?" Draco had gone very pale in the face.

"Ah." Said the man, surveying the room. Hermione practically face planted when the man turned to face her and Malfoy.

"SNAPE??" Ron yelled from somewhere in the crowd.

"That's professor, to you Weasley," Snape said teasingly, a little smile pulling at his lips.

'SEVERUS?!" Lucius bellowed.

"BUT YOU'RE DEAD!" Harry burst out from somewhere in the room. Dobby was still hugging Harry's leg.

"WHAT IS GOING ON?!" Draco yelled, Hermione had fallen into his arms, he was supporting her.

"I would like to know the same thing," Mrs. Granger said, tentatively raising a hand.

"Dobby can explain!" The house elf perked up.

"Do tell," Malfoy said, running a hand through his hair.

"Dobby was on his way to find Harry Potter and tell him that he wasn't dead. The house elf that was posing as me was actually the one who had died. Dobby was put into a deep sleep and he could only be awoken by true love's kiss. After many years of waiting, I was awoken by a beak pecking at my lips. I opened my eyes to see Harry Potter's owl, Hedwig--"

"HEDWIG IS ALIVE?!" Harry roared.

"Yes, if only you would let Dobby finish. Anyways, Hedwig told me that she was Avadakedaverad by one of the Death Eaters but Dumbledore's phoenix had used her magical tears and brought Hedwig back to life," Dobby spoke in Harry's direction. Harry was standing there, in utter awe. Dobby continued. "I didn't know where to find Harry Potter so I wandered the area around here, wondering what to do. At that moment these two Muggles--" Dobby gestured at Mr. and Mrs. Granger-- "They told me they were trying to find Malfoy Manor to attend the engagement of Hermione and Draco. Dobby was very happy to hear that Draco had gotten over his prejudice against Muggle-borns so he happily took Mr. and Mrs. Granger to Malfoy Manor, you know, to attend their daughter's engagement party..." Dobby trailed off, the talking had obviously exhausted him.

"We have a daughter?" Mr. Granger asked. Hermione put her face in her hands.

"This is a disaster," she muttered.

"That-- is where I come in," Snape said, his expression placid. "The man who Voldemort killed was not me and only someone posing as me. I was put under the same spell as Dobby, and I knew I was hopeless. Lily being the only one I had ever loved, but then she came. She kissed me and I awoke. It wasn't Lily, more of a memory. But I was awake. Naturally I came to Malfoy Manor, seeing as it made the most sense. As for your parents, Granger," Snape nodded in Hermione's direction. "Obliviate? I can reverse that..."

Every soul in the room looked confused.

"I can't handle this," Hermione whispered to Draco.

"We should go handle it elsewhere," he agreed.

"Dobby, Severus, Harry, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, Mum, Dad-- will you please join us in the other room?" Draco said over the growing chatter in the room. "The rest of you please enjoy dancing and dessert."