Chapter 10 : Protea

She Apparated them right onto a secluded part of the Jubilee Gardens, landing clumsily on gravel.

"You know, Granger, if you told me that there might be a chance of me falling on my face and into a pile of rocks, I could at least prepare myself for it." Malfoy drawled.

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Relax, Malfoy, you didn't ruin your pretty face, there's nothing to complain about."

The fiendish smirk that appeared on his face the moment the words slid off her tongue made her eyes narrow in suspicion.

"What?" she snapped.

"Oh, nothing." he said, whistling as he moved ahead.

Hermione huffed, "You don't even know where you're going."

"That's what you're here for, aren't you?"

She resisted the urge to smack the back of his head, though the mental image still brought a grin to her lips. "Come on then," she said, "you're going the wrong way."

"What is that?" came the question a few moments later as they cover of trees cleared.

The behemoth of a structure rose from the ground and into the sky, the seemingly tiny capsules on it moving as the wheel turned. The London eye was a new a sight to her as it was to Draco, as it had only been built very recently. She had heard that it was the largest Ferris wheel in the world, and it lived up to its moniker.

"That's the London Eye." she said, grinning at the shock on the blonde's face. The late afternoon sun was just beginning to dim enough that she could look at the structure without shielding her eyes.

"You're joking me." Draco said, "Granger, tell me you haven't gone bloody insane."

"Come now," she said, dragging him by the elbow. "We'll miss our schedule."

Forcing a reluctant Draco Malfoy to do something he didn't want to do was beginning to be more difficult than she had anticipated. Currently, they were waiting to board their capsule in the private lounge.

"Malfoy, how many times do I have to tell you that it's perfectly safe." she groaned.

"Nothing is safe about being suspended over a river in a large metal box, Granger." Malfoy argued adamantly.

"It's been tested, Malfoy." she insisted, "There's little to no chance that it'll fall."

He harrumphed for the millionth time in the span of twenty minutes since they had arrived.

"Malfoy, if you don't get on it, I'm going to Imperius you into doing it." she warned as a man in red and white uniform approached them.

"Miss Granger, your capsule is ready." said the man.

Hermione smiled, getting to her feet. "Let's go, Malfoy."

The Slytherin stood, apprehension written across his face as the red velvet rope was pulled away.

"Don't worry, sir," said the man, "there's absolutely nothing to be afraid of."

Malfoy scoffed, "I'm not afraid." He stomped into the capsule like he was on a mission, hesitating only for a minute when he realized he was no longer supported by the ground.

Hermione giggled when the man winked at her knowingly.

"Thank you." she whispered.

During the time they waited for the wheel to begin moving again, they were served champagne, which left Malfoy pleasantly surprised, especially since it wasn't half bad. Before the wheel started, he had already downed three flutes.

"Merlin, Circe and Morgana," he cursed as the wheel jolted into motion.

It was slow, pleasantly so, and Hermione couldn't conceal the look of wonder on her face as the view of the Thames appeared just as the sun began to set.

"Come closer to the windows, Malfoy." she urged, "It's absolutely gorgeous."

Malfoy crept closer cautiously, as if his added weight would tip the entire capsule. Even he couldn't hide his surprise as he took it all in.

"That's Big Ben." Hermione said suddenly.

"Who?" he asked, looking at her as if she had just sprouted an extra head.

"Not a who, a what." she laughed, "It's what the clock tower is called. Right next to it is the Parliament building."

"What do you think?" she asked, after they both had lapsed into silence.

Draco shook his head, they were getting right to the top. He wasn't so shaky on his feet any more.

"Remember what you said about the world being big earlier?" he asked quietly. "It struck me just now how true it might be. Everything's so fucking big."

Hermione smiled mostly to herself, "And they've done all of this without magic."

"It makes you wonder where you'd be if you couldn't do magic." he mused, "I don't think I'd know right from left if someone took my wand from me."

Hermione hummed in agreement, "It's silly if you think about it, how we just came out of a war that killed probably thousands, but the muggles live on. They may have experienced the back lash a bit, but they got through it. The bridge that was cursed to crumble was rebuilt just as quick, and life went on. They don't even know that they were in danger."

"Lucky them." Draco muttered into his glass.

"Lucky them." Hermione echoed, just as the ferris wheel came to a halt.

"Thank you." he said, after they had exited McGonagall's office.

Hermione nodded, "You're welcome."

He wavered for a moment, opening and closing his mouth, "I - I had fun today, surprisingly."

She smiled, "I did, too, surprisingly."

"Do you think you'd want to do it again?" he asked cautiously, in a voice that sounded like he was talking to a rabid dog.

"I think I might." she said, "But not too soon, I - have a lot to do." she finished lamely.

"Of course," he said, sounding mildly pleased with himself. "Would you like me to walk you back to Gryffindor tower?"

She startled, "What? No, that won't be necessary, Malfoy."

"Just trying to be polite, Granger." he shrugged, "Well, see you at breakfast, then."

Hermione was climbing up the steps of the tower when it struck her. Almost immediately, the warmth seemed to leave her body, taking with it the air in her lungs. The stairwell flashed in and out of vision, the memory of people hurrying down flashing in her mind. The all too familiar feeling of dread bombarded her sensed, crippling her to the point that she tried to back up, but her feet slipped on the stone steps.

Her scream was only heightened by a pair of strong arms encircling her waist, clutching her tightly.

"Shhh," the attacker said, as she tried to wrench herself away, "Breathe, Hermione, it's alright, you're safe."

Her struggling faded into wrenching sobs, her body fell limply against whoever was still holding her tightly. When the panic attack subsided, she twisted around, wiping her tears in embarrassment. She hadn't been prepared though, to face Malfoy, who was eyeing her with barely concealed worry in his eyes.

"Are you alright?" he asked, loosening his grip on her waist. She caught his hands in hers, keeping them there.

Her sense flew out the window as the alarm at having his comforting hold disappear shook her, "Give me a moment," she gasped, looking down at his chest, "Just, just hold me for a moment, please."

She missed the look of surprise on his face at her request, but the immediate tightening of his hold shocked her that he so readily agreed. She felt him pull her closer, and she breathed out a sigh of relief. Harry and Ron had always known to stay close to her over the summer, in case she had an attack and needed consoling.

The embrace grew awkward quickly, and she found herself pulling away. "Thank you." she said, looking at the floor.

"Don't - don't mention it." Malfoy choked out.

"Were you following me?" she asked, spying the telltale flush on his cheeks at being caught.

"I wanted to make sure you were alright." he said quickly, "You had a long day, I just -"

"Thank you." she said softly, interrupting him. "Good night, Malfoy."

"... Good night, Hermione."

a/n: Incredibly sorry for my absence. I was a bit distracted. Here's a really short, mildly disappointing chapter for all of you. I promise to make up for it. Just trying to get my wits together.