,,DRACO!" a voice bellowed from behind him.

As Draco turned swiftly to see who it was, he saw a flash of green light and a dark figure falling, crumpling at his feet. At the sight of it his insides went cold, as if he had chugged an entire barrel of icy cold water.

His eyes went straight to the face of the figure and he froze in place, mouth opened in a soundless scream. The lifeless eyes staring back at him were his father's. Lucius Malfoy was dead, killed while trying to save his son.

,,No" Draco murmured, choking on air, feeling his legs failing to support him. ,,No, you were supposed to be bad. You were supposed to hate me. I was supposed to hate you forever."

Hermione reached Draco just in time. A Death Eater was coming up behind him, sneering as he raised his wand. Feeling her blood boil from all the frustration she had accumulated while being unable to move, she shouted 'Stupefy', sending the Death Eater flying a few feet away from them. She turned around and did the same to another one who was just about to cast a killing curse in the direction of an Auror.

,,Hermione" Harry said breathlessly, reaching her and stopping to catch his breath.

He had several small cuts across his face and arms, but other than that he looked unharmed. Hermione let out a sigh of relief.

,,Hermione, take him away from here. Take both of them away." Harry said gesturing towards Draco and Lucius's lifeless body. ,,Apparate to St. Mungo's. I've made sure anyone of us can get there directly."

,,But what about you? There are still so many of them."

,,I'll be fine. We can deal with them, don't worry. You just get yourself to safety!" Harry urged, getting ready to enter the battle again. ,,And Hermione," he said quickly as if he remembered something. ,,Take care of him, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." He finished grimly, gesturing towards Draco.

,,Alright." Hermione reluctantly agreed. ,,Take care of yourself Harry. Don't try to play the hero." she finished with a small smile.

,,I don't have to. I already am one." Harry replied with a wide grin. ,,Now go!"

He ushered her to leave and then turned his back on the small group, going back into the battle, calling on his Aurors and trying to organize them around him.

Hermione took one more look at her best friend before grabbing Draco by the arm, her other hand touching Lucius's chest. She Apparated them straight into the hospital.

Draco, who seemed oblivious to what was going on around him, stared around for a moment, confused as to why there were so many people bustling around him. Then, everything came back to him and he jumped to his feet, turning on the spot, frantically searching for a certain someone. He saw her talking to a healer, just a few feet away from him. He didn't even notice his father being taken away, he just went straight for Hermione, grabbing her from behind, keeping her close to him.

,,Draco..." she let out, startled by the sudden touch. She tried turning around but was unable to move in the tight embrace he was giving her.

,,You're alright. You're alright..." Draco kept saying under his breath, hugging her tighter and tighter.

,,Yes, I am alright. You don't have to worry about me. But, Draco, your father... he... he's..." but Hermione wasn't able to finish. She felt Draco's arms slackening their grip. He slid down and his body touched the cold floor with a thud.

,,Draco!" Hermione shouted, turning around she saw him sprawled on the floor.

The healers instantly gathered around and took him to a private ward.

***

,,He doesn't seem to be hurt, not physically at least." the Principal Healer was telling Hermione, a deep frown on his face. ,,But my guess is that the events of today might have shaken him pretty badly. We'll just have to wait and see when he wakes up."

Hermione nodded, unable to say a word. Draco had been unconscious for a whole day and she felt restless. Harry had sent her a Patronus a few hours ago, saying that McKinley got away, but they managed to catch all the rest of the Death Eaters that came with him that day.

She was now pacing the hallway in front of Draco's ward. With all the calming draughts and strengthening potions the Healers have given her, she still felt nervous. She kept wringing her hands and felt her entire body trembling.

A soft thud came from the ward behind her and Hermione's breath caught in her throat. She hurried inside and saw Draco on the floor, struggling to get up.

,,You shouldn't be out of bed just yet." she told him, hurrying to help him onto the bed. ,,You're in shock and your body is still too weak for you to move around."

,,Leave me alone." he said under his breath.

Draco pushed her hands away, clenching his jaws tightly. He saw a flash of disappointment crossing Hermione's features and he felt a pang of pain in his heart but tried to ignore it. Instead, he placed his cold, impenetrable mask on his face, avoiding eye contact with her.

Hermione saw the transformation with an uncomfortable twitch in her heart.

,,Draco, I am sorry about your father. He..."

,,He was an evil man, Granger. No need to be sorry. I know you hated him." he said coldly.

,,I did, hate him, for a while." Hermione said simply, staring at Draco intensely.

Her simple statement made him flinch, but he tried to hide his reaction quickly.

,,Then no need to be sorry." he said under his breath.

"But after today I realized something." she continued as if he hadn't said anything. ,,Everyone is able to redeem themselves as long as they want to. He saved you Draco, that ought to have saved at least part of his soul."

,,Even the worst kind of animals protect their own offspring. The fact that he did the same doesn't make him a hero, Granger" Draco said in a disdainful tone.

,,He protected me." Hermione blurted out.

She was desperate to make him understand, to make him see that just like him, his father wasn't all he seemed to be at first glance. She wasn't happy with admitting it, but she knew she partially owed Lucius her life that day. There was something more to that story and she was determined to find out what. Why was Lucius there? Why did he seem to be involved with those Death Eaters only to keep them away from her? Those questions kept nagging at her mind, confusing her to no end. She had to find out and hoped against hope that Harry found out something helpful by interrogating the Death Eaters they'd caught.

Hermione looked up and noticed Draco staring at her. Her statement from before seemed to have aroused him from his indifference. His eyes were boring into hers, as if he was trying to see the truth there.

Seeing those grey eyes looking at her so intently, made her look away, suddenly reminded of when Lucius used Legilimency on her.

Just then, a Healer entered the room, announcing that it was time for the patient to have his treatment. Hermione nodded and scuttled away, without another glance at Draco.

After the Healer left, Draco found himself alone with his thoughts. He didn't know exactly what he felt about the whole situation. He hadn't expected Lucius to ever do something like that for him. They never loved each other after all. There was never a tender moment between them to show Draco just how much Lucius cared about him.

Maybe love doesn't always mean tender moments. Perhaps it sometimes means teaching or caring from the shadows, disguising it as firmness and exigence. After all, Lucius had thought Draco a way to survive based on principles that were past on generation after generation in the Malfoy family. It didn't matter if that way was morally wrong towards others or simply wrong in general. Lucius had brought him up the only way he knew how. He had made Draco who he was.

Draco may have been too young to understand why his father behaved like that towards him or made the choices he had made, but he understood now. It was out of fear, fear of losing his loved ones, his family, their home and past.

All this meant he was capable of showing the same love towards someone, right? He was able to show the same restrain in feelings and emotions his father had showed. He now had to keep his love in the shadows in order to protect the one he loved.