#hdth26

She was so relieved to see them all there and that they all made it through the battle at Malfoy Manor. She thought they were all dead when she saw the blast cloud but somehow they all managed to make it back safely.

 She searched the faces that were all smiling down on her but Draco was nowhere to be found. She felt a lump form in her throat and she had to fight back the burning tears that were forming in her eyes.

 “What happened?” She asked quietly and wasn’t sure anyone had heard her until Harry finally grabbed her hand and answered back.

 “It was a curse. You’ve been out for some time now, we were all really worried for you.”

 He paused and glanced around as if to emphasize the fact that her friends cared about her.

 He cleared his throat and continued, “We didn’t think you were going to wake up... It’s been a long time.”

 “A long time?” She asked surprised and still confused. Had the blast really knocked them out for so long?

 “Yea, you passed out on the train during the ride here and you haven’t woken up since. We thought you were coming out of it a couple of weeks ago but then you got dragged back in.”

 Her face frowned in confusion. “I don’t understand… and where’s Malfoy?”

She didn’t understand what the hell was happening or why Draco was nowhere to be seen.

 “Malfoy?” He asked.

 He paused for a moment and then continued.

 “Malfoy was under the same curse but he hasn’t woken up yet. How did you know he was cursed too?”

 She sat up and ran her fingers through her hair in frustration.

 She let her hands drop in her lap.

“I don’t understand what your saying…”

 Before she could continue, she heard a commotion across the room and she heard a nurse yell out, “He’s awake! Mr. Malfoy is finally awake!”

 The other medical staff ran over to check him out and she could hear his friends talking excitedly and telling him how happy they are that he was finally awake.

 “Explain to me again. What exactly happened?” She said, looking over to Harry.

 “Okay.” He paused.

 He stood up and looked at all their friends.

 “Let’s give her some space. You all can come back to visit later.” He spoke softly but with a tone that they all took seriously because they all started walking out of the hospital wing without argument. Ginny gave an aggravated look but Harry shrugged at her and she kept walking.

 He sat back down next to Hermione and grabbed her hand into his again and gave a gentle squeeze. As he was about to start talking he was interrupted by a yelling Malfoy across the room.

 “Would you all just leave me the hell alone already! Get out!”

He threw a pillow that hit Crabbe square in the face and would’ve been funny if it all wasn’t so confusing. Harry thought it was funny anyway and let out a small snicker before turning back to Hermione.

 The room got quiet as the last of their friends exited the room. Hermione thought the whole room would be able to hear her heart pounding in her chest. She had a sick feeling and squeezed Harry’s hand to encourage him to continue.

 He took the hint and continued in a soft and steady tone.

 “We were all on the Hogwarts Express, on our way here for the start of the year.”

She nodded at him in understanding.

 “While we were on the train, something happened. Somehow you and Malfoy were hit by a curse. You have both been unconscious ever since.”

 He cleared his throat. “That was two months ago.”

 “Two months.” She whispered.

 She couldn’t contain the tears any longer and her cheeks felt hot and flushed.

 “It’s okay. You can make up the classwork, probably pretty easy for you and at least you are finally awake. We were really worried about you.”

 She felt sick. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Everything that happened to them since the train was all a figment of some stupid curse.

 ‘Was it all in my head?’ She thought to herself.

‘Maybe Malfoy experienced something completely different.’

 Harry startled her when he spoke again. “We all knew you were finally coming out of it, that’s why we were all here. We wanted to be here when you woke up.” He smiled at her.

 “How did you know?” She asked dumbly, not fully caring about the answer.

 “Madam Pomfrey, she found a way to monitor the curse. That’s how we knew you were coming out of it a couple of weeks ago. We don’t know why you didn’t fully wake up then.”

 They were both suddenly distracted by the loud noise happening across the room. Malfoy stood up and was getting dressed. The nurses were fighting with him to get back in bed but he was ignoring them. He pulled a pair of pants up under his gown and started to remove the gown.

 “Mr. Malfoy, for your own safety, please get back in bed. We still need to run some tests.”

 He stood up, now wearing a dark pair of trousers, and started pulling on a white button-up shirt. He tossed the hospital gown on the bed and grabbed a pair of robes from the chair next to his bed. Without buttoning his shirt, he threw on the robe and started walking out of the room.

 “Mr. Malfoy, please come back. We need to make sure you are fully out of the curse and safe to leave.”

 He glanced back and replied, “I’m out and I’m fine, now leave me alone.”

 As he started walking again, Hermione could have sworn that she heard him say to himself, “I’m definitely cursed.” Then he left the hospital wing and could no longer be seen.

 Hermione sat back against the bed and started crying harder. She was in love with someone who can’t possibly feel the same. She knew what she felt and experienced but what did he experience in his cursed state?

 Harry tried to comfort her. He moved to the edge of the bed and pulled her into a hug.

 “Hermione, it’s okay. Everything is going to be okay now.”

 All that Hermione could feel though was heartbreak as she thought to herself, ‘How did this happen?’

 A/N 3: ‘The End’  ... or is it?