from their night together at Knockturn Alley.
He finished the kiss. It was probably a first for them. The yearning of a kiss ended too abruptly sometimes left a deep emotional itch that stayed with a person. There was none of this now. When the kiss could go no further or take any more from either of them, they stopped. Draco was openly panting as he stared down at her with a look of reverence and wonder that made her heart swell.
"This isn't goodbye," she clarified. For both their benefits. In case he decided to misunderstand.
"No," he agreed. She might not have realised it, but at the moment, he wouldn' t have denied her anything.
Hermione put her palms on either side of his face. "You will give me your word that you'll remember to say goodbye. You will at least try to let us help you when we can, whether the Ministry is aware of it or not. And you will, wherever possible, tell me where you are and what you're doing and that your safe. Ok?"
Draco kissed the tip of her nose, her closed eyes, her forehead, her lips. He looked shaken.
"Don't ask this of me...."
"Say you promise!"
"Very well. I promise," he whispered.
Hermione nodded. It was enough for now.
**
It was an hour to lunch time and there was plenty still to be done before Hogwarts closed for the summer the next day, not the least of which was packing up the many belongings in her room.
She would not allow herself to be depressed by that. End of school melancholy had struck her more than two weeks ago and she was over it now. Hogwarts had done its part in raising her. It was time to put all that she had learned to good use in the community. There was the future to look forward to and she was content to know that Draco would feature in it, in one way or another.
Hermione walked back to the Castle after waiting a prudent five minutes for Draco to make his way back first. As Draco had predicted, Harry turned up at the supply shed to return his borrowed school broom and ended up walking with Hermione as far as the foyer. He announced that he was off to speak with Snape and would catch her up on why, later.
If Hermione seemed slightly dazed, he didn't comment. It had been a trying day for everyone.
As she walked past the open doors of the Great Hall, she caught sight of one of two of the few remaining Slytherins who hadn't as yet left for home.
It was the young, fourth year girl that often shadowed Draco. Today, however, she seemed wholly and happily occupied playing chess with the now infamous Tandish Dodders. It was the girl's t-shirt that caught her eye.
The thing was black, only slightly faded, with a bright green and yellow logo that said, 'Nutrisoil Fertilizer'.
Highly curious, Hermione pressed forward.
"Karen, is it?" she inquired of the girl.
She was a pretty, gamine little thing, with a sassy haircut and large, limpid blue eyes. The girl glanced up, though she seemed in no hurry to take her attention away from her game. She tucked her short, dark hair behind her ear and stared coolly at Hermione, no doubt unimpressed that the Head Girl did not know her name.
"Carmen, actually."
"I couldn' t help but notice your t-shirt," Hermione began. "You should be in school uniform."
Carmen's stare warmed considerably, despite the reprimand. She puffed her chest out a bit and grinned. "It's my father's latest business venture. You're not going to book me on the last day of school are you?" She inclined her head to the staff tables, where Professor Flitwick and Madam Hooch were sharing a pot of tea.
"Them haven't said anything yet."
Dodders looked up from his chess move and his jam-covered scone. There was a cheeky look on his face.
"Your dad's in the poo business?"
It was apparently a slightly touchy topic with Carmen. She went a bit red. "Yes, well we can't all be as fortunate as to inherit obscene amounts of money from deceased relatives, can we? Besides, it's not a 'business', it's an empire."
Dodders shrugged. "Hey, my father is one of those rare types that actually works for a living. At Gringotts," he added, just in case they didn't believe him and wanted to check.
"Why do you ask?" Carmen posed the question to Hermione.
"Oh, nothing really. Just thought I saw that logo on a um, student not too long ago."