Let the Games Begin! [open]

[draco]

Draco was floating around without a care in the world in the fields of flying donuts and pigs with wings. Draco leaned back and gently floated grabbing a donut as he did. Then suddenly he was falling. He was plummeting like a rock. He heard a voice.

"It's all your fault Draco. You are the reason I am dead," the voice of his father, Lucius Malfoy boomed. Draco blinked and tried shutting his eyes, but his eyelids were clear!

"You did the right thing Draco. You made the right choice," the voice of Albus Dumbledore rang. Draco looked around, but all he saw was the white blurs of him falling, until the two faces showed up, seeming to fall with him. Draco tried ignoring his father's voice, but the words, "You are the reason I am dead" rang in his ears, never seeming to leave. Draco tried to speak but the words wouldn't come. Really he wasn't sure what to say. He had felt terrible since the day he heard the news of his father's death. Was it truly his fault? If he had just said the two words to end the old man's life, would Lucius still be alive?

A broom appeared besides him, following him as well down. Draco made a grab for it, but it moved away. He looked down at the nearing ground, desperate to save himself.

And then...

Light floated into the grey eyes. The light pierced the eye lids. The sun gleamed into his window. Slowly Draco opened his eyes almost being blinded by the direct light. The warmth was such a great feeling. Rays beat down on the milky white skin, before he realized what was happening. He wrenched his eyes open and jumped out of bed. He changed out of his pajamas into a pair of jeans, and a T-shirt, slipping on a robe to go above it all. Draco bolted down the creaking stairs, to the kitchen where his mother was cooking breakfast.

Before Narcissa could question what he was doing, Draco grabbed a piece of toast before apparating on the spot. Draco appeared in a crowded room large with a statue near the middle. He was currently in the Atrium of the Ministry having eaten his toast faster than he had ever done before.

Today was Auror training and he was running late. He had about ten minutes before he was late, and was praying he wasn't going to be. After school he took a couple years to help out his mother before he joined the Aurors in training. He had been training for one year, and was doing all right, being outshone by a few people who were also training, such as the golden boy and the golden boy's best friend. Draco was improving at least, but a tardy on his unblemished perfect attendance (which had improved a lot from his school attendance records) wouldn't be too great.

Draco quickly cut through the crowds of people hurrying to the lifts. He stated his level and the lift quickly moved, full of people. He stood impatiently as other got off at other floors waiting for level one, for the Auror office. Finally after almost FIVE whole minutes he arrived at the desired level where he ran out quickly. There weren't as many people here as there were in the Atrium, but that was expected.

Draco was breathing hard as he ran as fast as he could. Soon there was a group of people blocking his way to the desired destination so he jumped as high as he could, almost hitting one of their heads with his feet, though he didn't. He did a roll to recover himself and started running ignoring the faces that watched him as he ran. Finally he was almost there, and nothing seemed to be able to stop him, until BOOM! A person opened a door in the hallway only a couple doors away from Draco's room, and Draco ran right into it, falling to the floor, and breaking his nose, and probably cracked his jaw. Draco stumbled up before the person who opened the door could try to help him, and he hurried/stumbled the rest of the way. He could hear the person saying apologies and offering to fix him right up, but he ignored them and continued on.

Draco opened the door too see the other Aurors in training and several Aurors who were training them. Draco pulled out his wand and used Episky to heal his face, before joining the other trainees with a minute to spare before being late.

Score!

[Hermione Granger]

||TIME WARP xD Technically Hermione has to finish the argument with Harry, go to visit her parents, talk to Harry and Sirius about being an auror, send an owl to Kingsley, and get a response before she should be here, but hey, I really wanted to respond. So, despite the confusion that I hope won’t occur, I’m posting, and we’ll just pretend all of that other stuff that I’ll RP out later has already happened. That okay? ^^||

Hermione’s morning had started out rather interestingly. Of course, she hadn’t gotten up late; rather, she had been quite nervous about her first day of training and therefore woke up at least an hour before she had needed to. She’d helped with breakfast, taken a shower, and ensured that the children were safe with Sirius before grasping Harry’s hand and Apparating into the Ministry. Leaving the children had been a hard thing for her to do. She had only left them once before, and then they’d been with her parents. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Sirius - she really did, and despite his playful nature, she knew he could be responsible and take care of the children; it was the look in their eyes when she had said that mommy was leaving. Lilly had held on to her leg for dear life and only let go when Sirius transformed into a black dog that she let go to pet Sirius, who promptly became human again and wrapped her up in his arms, tickling her. James had been far more reserved but still didn’t seem all too happy that she was leaving. Still, with a kiss to the forehead and a promise to be home soon, she had left them, her flesh and blood, and it was killing her.

Once inside the ministry, her need to be on time and make a good impression overrode her motherly instincts, at least momentarily. She had half-dragged Harry to the elevator despite his protests and chuckling. However, after exiting the elevator, a group of older wizards had grabbed Harry to speak with him - about what, Hermione wasn’t quite sure. Nevertheless, Harry had waved her on and told her to let whoever was training know that he had been detained by a man whose name Hermione did not catch. She had nodded and, with the turn of her heel, sped off in the right direction. To her, being late was being less than ten minutes early, and she had only five minutes before she was truly late.

Heart pounding, she finally reached the door but debated opening it. Doubt had crept into her mind. Could she do this? Of course you can, her mind echoed. Of the people who had gone to Hogwarts, several had joined the Ministry after the final battle under Kingsley’s urgings. From what he had told her, only Ron and a few she didn’t know well had immediately taken the offer. Funny, Ron’s the one who jumps into a job, she had laughed to herself. Still, he was the only of the trio who currently held a job, as he had graduated the program fairly quickly. She had also learned from her meeting with Kingsley that Draco Malfoy, who had had a change of heart a few years ago, had joined in the training after having taken a few years to help his mother out, Merlin bless her; she had lost a husband in the mess, though it partly was Lucius’ fault for dragging his family into the mess, in Hermione’s opinion. Last of the people she had known to join training was Harry who, at Sirius’ urging, had inquired of Kingsley about any jobs or training spots open. Of course, Mr. Shacklebolt could get most anything he wanted, being Minister of Magic, and he definitely wanted Harry Potter, the boy who lived - twice - to be an auror. In fact, because of the war and the destruction that had taken place at Hogwarts, Kingsley had waived the need for aurors to sit for their NEWTS for a few years, allowing Ron, Draco, and Harry to join in training despite not having attended school their seventh year. It had apparently put some strain on the training department as well as the aurors who helped train, but they had all seemed willing enough, especially since many of the trainees had prior experience fighting Dark Wizards. When Hermione asked if she could join training, Kingsley gave her the same privileges: she would not be required to finish her seventh year of schooling and, because she had been one of the golden trio who had tracked down the horcruxes and beaten Voldemort, not to mention that she had killed Belatrix Lestrange, she would be allowed to join in on the current training. Anything that she lacked skill-wise would be dealt with by a trainer. Essentially, he was setting her on the track to graduate and become and auror whenever Harry did, which, though she protested, Harry had said she deserved because she would work twice as hard as any other trainee. Somewhat reluctantly, she had agreed.

Opening the door slowly, Hermione slipped into the room and greeting one of the men who looked like a trainer and repeated Harry’s message, to which the man smiled, shook her hand, laughed, and said that he wasn’t too surprised, seeing as Harry was quite a legend. After exchanging a few words with him, Hermione joined the other trainees before hearing the door open. Glad that Harry was now joining them, she was shocked to see Draco Malfoy. Of course, she knew that he would be there, but she still didn’t know how she felt about him or how to take him. Gathering herself up and steeling on a very, very light smile, she approached him with an outstretched hand.

“Draco. How are you?”

[draco]

Draco looked around at the group of trainees, and saw quite a few he recognized. Especially the bushy haired Hermione. It was hard not to recognize her, her having changed little. Though she did seem different. Children probably had that effect on most people. It was hard to think that, just a few years ago he was still teasing her and her friends, calling Hermione a mud-blood and other foul language. He really deserved some of what he got, but in the end he got more than he bargained for; a Dark Mark, and a mission resulting in Lucius Malfoy's death. He spent nights and days thinking about what he could've done to save his father. All Draco cared about towards the end was his family. Not the Dark Lord, his family. And for his family, or what was left of it, to survive, the Potter boy did as well. After danger was adverted, Draco felt horrible for everything he had done in his sixth year. He let the Death Eaters into Hogwarts, and... he spared Dumbledore. He actually was in control of the life of the Dark Lord's greatest enemy and he spared him, hoping that his family would be safer in Dumbledore's hands and not the Dark Lord's. In that instant he rejected everything he was taught from birth. The Dark Lord is supreme. Muggles are stupid. And Pure Bloods Rock. Boy was he wrong. In that instant he felt liberated and free from Voldemort's iron tight grip he had on Draco. It was a fantastic feeling, which he had for years, ever since the end of his sixth year.

He didn't exactly know everything that had happened to Hermione, only snipets of what had happened. Really most of it was rumors, or at least he thought them to be. Did Harry and Hermione really have children all ready? Probably. It was one of the rumors that didn't change. Draco actually felt a bit sorry for her, and her early found motherhood. Draco liked having time to be an adult and be free, but knew she couldn't have it the same way, even if children were a blessing. Draco really would want a kid... but later, not for years at least.

“Draco. How are you?” Truthfully? Tired, and alone. Tired, alone and actually quite happy. Would he say that? No. Of course not. Draco was more cautious, especially when it came to mud - he stopped himself, muggle borns. Yes. He had gotten used to the fact muggle borns weren't as bad, even after a lifetime of teaching, but that wouldn't stop him from being cautious, because he learned in his seventh year, that there were very few people one could actually trust. Draco smiled slightly at Hermione, and sighed.

"Just... Just fine. How about you?" Draco countered politely.

[Hermione Granger]

Be nice, Hermione. There’s no need to make enemies early, especially not in this profession. I might have to work with him. I might have to save him one day. He might have to save me one day. Don’t make enemies. Don’t make this more difficult than it needs to be. Just breath, calm down, be cordial. Pretend he’s. . . Lavender. No, she’s an idiot. Draco might not be the brightest kid, but he’s not an idiot. . . Neville. No, I like Neville. I don’t really like Draco – he’s an idiot. I think. I haven’t seen him in two years. Ahh. I’ll pretend he’s Snape. There’s someone I don’t know how to take. Never did. Just be nice, she told herself, arguing inwardly yet remaining rather neutral outwardly. She tried to rationalize how to take Draco now, but nothing came to mind. It had been a while since she had seen him, and even back then, she had her misgivings. Sure, he had spared Dumbledore and gone to the side of the Order, which was good, but. . . He still had called her a mudblood and just been a pain in general, so the feelings were definitely mixed.

But for some reason, Draco seemed more respectable than he had before. Perhaps it was because time had matured him; it seemed that it had Ron, from what Hermione could tell. A lot of people were matured by the way and the deaths that ensued. Draco had lost a father, so he probably had to grow up a lot from that. Maybe he’s not too bad of a guy, she mused, determined to talk to Harry about him later. Harry would have been in training with Draco before and probably knew a little of what he’d been doing. Yes, she’d ask Harry; he would know.

Talking to him seemed normal, but she noted that he seemed a little off guard, but found it a good sign that he wasn’t already attacking her. In fact, if she had to settle on one word, she would have found him to be polite, of all things. She gave him a soft smile and lowered her guard slightly. Really, what was he going to do here, in front of everyone, knowing Harry would be here soon? He’d been more agreeable in their seventh year, when they ran into each other during the fightings, so why would he be worse now? He shouldn’t; in fact, he should be better. No harm in a nice conversation, she told herself.

“That’s good. I’m managing, you know. Being gone for two years doesn’t make it all to easy to assimilate back into things. How’s the training going? Is Narcissa doing well?” she asked, dropping her voice slightly. She didn’t really know how Lucius’ wife had been after his death, and she assumed Draco wouldn’t want everyone listening in.

[draco]

Oh geez... he had forgotten she had been gone for two years. How stupid was he? Of course Hermione had been gone. What in the world was he thinking? He had been just so busy with everything that was going on. His mother, Rebuilding, His father. It was all so complicated for him at the moment and he didn't remember the crucial fact of her being missing. Draco felt like an idiot, and terrible, since he had kept tabs on what Ron, Harry, Neville, Ginny, and Luna were up to. But he had almost forgot Hermione, especially since he only knew snipets of what had happened to her. He had just heard rumors, nothing more... Now he wasn't stalking Ron, Harry, Neville, Ginny and Luna; he wasn't the monster under their beds, that would be just plain creepy, but Draco knew what was up with them and made it a point to make sure nothing bad was going on.

Of course with his change of sides in his 7th year, well Draco considered Neville, Ginny, and Luna almost friends, though he was sure they never really trusted him. They were allright, and while Draco hated to admit it, they were almost better than him... ALMOST.

“That’s good. I’m managing, you know. Being gone for two years doesn’t make it all to easy to assimilate back into things. How’s the training going? Is Narcissa doing well?”

"I doing quite well in training," Draco replied dropping his voice down as well, feeling some of these people shouldn't know what was going on in his personal life at least at the moment, "Mother's been doing better, she's spent the better part of the last two years grieving and staying in the house doing basically nothing."