A/N: Hello everybody! I think you're all due an explanation as to why I put this story on an unintentional hiatus for so long.

Honestly it's been a mix of things: school, other hobbies procrastination, etc. Speaking of school, I'm in the middle of exams right now! And as I've mentioned before, I've moved on to other fandoms, so this story wasn't really high on my list of priorities. I've also decided to edit the chapters that i've not put up already because wow… I did not realise how much improvement my writing skills needed, (Side note, please don't hesitate to point out any spelling/ grammar errors, etc. Believe me, as an avid fanfic reader I am all too aware of how annoying those can be.)

But once exams are over I'll be back submitting my stupid fantasies about my otps to you all once again. And here comes the obligatory review scrounging...believe it or not, it really does wonders to a writer's confidence if you leave a review or choose to follow/favourite. Just saying… ;-)

Feel free to PM me as well, I'm always up for a chat with fellow fans in a fandom! And with that I give you this fluffy little number. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Believe me, things would've played out very differently if I owned Harry Potter.

Chapter 9

The next day, Draco lounged on one of the windowsills that lay around Hogwarts, looking out on to the grounds below. He then pulled out a quill, a sheet of parchment and a book to lean on from his bag, and proceeded to write a letter to Narcissa.

Draco had been writing to his mother since the first week of term; she suggested he do so before he went back to school. He often wrote about what his day had been like, or what him, Blaise and Theo got up to. But he never told her if he had a bad day, as he felt like she worried about him too much already. He was halfway through his letter when his ears picked up the sound of footsteps. As the student walked past him, the corner of his eyes caught a flash of brown, curly hair. It was Hermione, and her eyes were slightly red; she had obviously been crying. Draco felt an unfamiliar feeling beginning to stab at him. The feeling of guilt.

In all honesty, Draco hadn't meant to lash out at her in the way he did. But over the years he had come to accept the fact that he had very little control over his temper. He had gone to class that morning, and had discovered that Hermione wasn't there. He was surprised to say that this had worried him, as the little bookworm missing class was like an elephant walking through Times Square; an incredibly rare occurrence. Even in the afternoon she hadn't shown up. Had she shut herself inside her room all day, and cried?

Draco stood up and called her name. "Granger!"

Hermione, who hadn't noticed him when she walked past, suddenly froze.

"What do you want?"

Draco was completely thrown by how upset she sounded. "I…um..."

"Just spit it out!" Hermione suddenly yelled, whipping round to face him, her vision once again becoming blurry with tears, "Just throw your insult at me so I can carry on with my day! I don't know why I'm even wasting my breath on y..."

"I'm sorry!" Draco shouted, causing Hermione's brain to momentarily shut down in shock.

"W…What?"

"I'm sorry," He repeated, "I didn't mean to call you a Mudblood. I don't even believe in that crap any more. I'd just been having a shitty day and that last thing caused me to snap. You of all people should know I have a terrible temper, but I know that's not an excuse for being a giant arse. How about we just put this all behind us and call a truce?"

Her mouth moved to form words, but alas, she made no sound. Draco Malfoy had just apologized, to her. She had to be dreaming. It was the only reasonable explanation. After a painfully long pause, she slowly nodded her head.

"Good." Draco said. The awkward silence remained in the air for a few seconds before he asked, "Do you want to sit with me?"

This question surprised the both of them, as did Hermione's reply.

"Okay."

Both sat down on the windowsill. Silence once again ensued, then Hermione noticed Draco's half-finished letter.

"Who are you writing to?" she politely inquired.

"My mother." Draco smiled, picking it back up. "I've been writing to her once a week since the beginning of term. You know, so she doesn't worry about me as much."

Hermione beamed back, but felt her eyes begin to sting again. "That's surprisingly sweet of you."

"Believe it or not, I'm not a complete monster. I still have parents and everything. And besides, my mother is the only one I'm not cheeky to, because I know she'd kick my arse if I ever were." He laughed. "I'm sure you often write to your parents as well."

Hermione stiffened. Didn't he know? Judging by the confused look on his face he now wore , he didn't.

"What's wrong?"

Hermione took a deep breath. "Last year, before I went looking for horcruxes, I had to Obliviate my parents."

A quietly surprised "Oh." was all she got in reply. Then, "Um...stupid question, but..."

"Why?" She asked for him. She looked to the wall opposite them, not meeting his gaze. She was intent on not crying for the second time that day. "If I died, I didn't want them to go through the pain of losing someone close to them. I'd experienced it enough already by then. Once I obliviated my parents' memories, Professor McGonagall helped me make arrangements to send them to Australia, where I knew they'd be out of harm's way. I have no idea where they are in Australia, but once I've finished here, I'm going to go look for them."

She glanced back at Draco, who was watching her with an unreadable expression.

"That was an incredibly brave thing to do." He stated

Hermione let out a quiet, dispirited laugh. "Well, I am a Gryffindor."

"That's not the point." He asserted, his voice deadly serious, "No one should have to go through that."

Her hand automatically went to her left arm."I've been through worse."

The guilt once again crept up Draco's spine. He had always regretted standing idly by as he watched his aunt torture her that night. He would always tell himself though that the guilt was only a result of the little humanity he had left, and not because of the feelings towards her that were steadily growing in size. Determined to change the subject, Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out a Chocolate Frog box. A few weeks before, Filch had added Chocolate Frogs to his ever growing list of banned items, after an incident where a few second-years had released twenty into his office as a prank.

"Do you want this?" he asked, holding it out to her. "I confiscated it off a first-year this morning."

Hermione took it. "Thanks." She was very confused. 'Since when has Malfoy been this nice?'She thought as she pulled the string off the box.

"I haven't had one of these in ages." She told him, before she bit off the head. It was slightly melted, which meant the chocolate was deliciously soft. She took another bite, slightly smearing some chocolate on the corner of her mouth. Without thinking, Draco leaned forward, bringing their faces very close together. He then brought his hand up to her cheek, and wiped away the chocolate with his thumb. He kept his hand there, wondering if Hermione would pull away; she didn't. Her brown eyes were drawing him in, just like they had two days ago. Then, Hermione whispered,

"What are you doing?"

"I don't know." He replied, before standing up. He quickly gathered his things, his heart thudding painfully against his ribcage.

"I'll see you later, Granger." He said before hurrying away, not looking back. Hermione sat numbly at the windowsill, desperately willing her own heartbeat to slow down.