Left Behind 2: Illusions (A Dramione Romance)

Trust

Hermione looked at him as if she were studying something that she couldn't quite grasp and then looked down smoothed her hands over the now repaired shirt.

"I'm sorry," he said, the words leaping off his tongue.

"Draco..." she said his name in a strangely sad tone and came closer.

Her hand touched his chest and Draco swallowed and resisted pulling back.

He wanted her touch, even though it burned him.

When Hermione moved her fingers Draco hissed as the fabric pulled against the cut she had inflicted with the kitchen knife.

"Oh..." he saw pain cross her face, at the reminder that she had hurt him, "I'm sorry Draco." She moved to pull her hand away and Draco's hand shot out and caught hers without him even thinking about it. He held her there, her palm pressed flat against the fabric of the shirt just over where she had cut him.

The pain, coming from her touch assuaged the guilt he felt.

"I deserved it," he said, trying to alleviate some of her own guilt.

"But...no," Hermione protested.

"It's okay," Draco insisted trying to say it firmly enough so that she would believe it.

"No it's not!" Her voice got louder. "I hurt you when all you were trying to do was help me," her eyes darkened and she looked off somewhere past Draco's shoulder.

"And I killed that man," she said, barely above a whisper.

Draco could see Hermione's thoughts start to spiral as she ripped her hand from beneath his grasp.

The movement made Draco squeeze his eyes shut briefly against the pain so that he wouldn't make a sound to upset her further.

When he opened his eyes only a split second later Hermione was several feet away holding both hands tightly to her chest.

"And Fred," she choked. "Fred is dead because of me."

"Don't" ordered Draco, stepping towards her. "Do NOT blame yourself for that," his voice was hard. He would not, could not stand by and watch her blame herself for someone else dying when it wasn't her fault.

"But it is my fault. If I had just stayed here locked up in your room... then they would have found me."

"If you had stayed you wouldn't be who you are," said Draco. He stepped close to her. "And who you are is someone worth saving."

His words caused the briefest of pauses as if they were both surprised at what he had just said.

"But..." Hermione went to protest.

No, thought Draco and cut her off needing to stop her from going down that road of self-blame. He knew it would destroy her if she let it.

"If you had stayed then The Dark Lord might have managed to kill Potter too," he said searching for anything he could say to dissuade her from villainizing herself. 

He had to use logic and reason to reach past her spiraling emotions.

"What's to stop him from doing it next time?" she asked. "I don't want more people dying because of me Draco."

"Well then we will work out a plan to make sure that doesn't happen next time," said Draco.

"We can't guarantee someone won't get hurt or killed again," her voice cracked.

"No, but we can optimize the odds."

"How?" her face was full of a struggle. He could practically see her building things up in her mind like little lego's trying to figure out how she could make everything perfect again.