FicWad

Chapter 1: Then and Now

(this chapter is a lot of explaining and setting the tone so don't freak out, I actually find it quite interesting.)

Draco lay in his bunk, twisting, turning and sweating. It was the end of his last day of his sixth year at Hogwarts and tomorrow he would be riding the Hogwarts Express home. Summer was approaching very quickly and he couldn't wait. He thought of Hermione and his trombone as he smiled.

For the past six years the two of them had been the best of friends, secretly though. If his father had ever found out....Draco gave a shudder. Ever since his first year Draco did not have a moment he could truly do anything he wanted. His father always had an on-going spell on Draco; he was watching him, his every move making sure that his son was the strongest, nastiest bully in the school. 'It is essential' his father had told him first year when he protested to his father's watch on him, 'to your future as a servant to the Dark Lord.' Draco had never wanted the future chosen for him but if he hadn't played along with it all these years he reckoned that he wouldn't be alive today. His mind turned to the summer again.

Hermione had found a passion for music early on in life. The summer before her first year at Hogwarts she begged her parents to send her to band camp. After much pleading her parents gave in and she was sent off on an eight week trip with the new instrument she wanted so badly to become good at, the Bassoon. (FYI if you guys don't know what the hell a bassoon is, no big, just google it)

Draco, on the other hand, had only gone though life doing as his father said, and this time he was being forced off to a muggle band camp. Lucius had thought that it was a good idea, in Draco's youth, to send him somewhere where he could observe the muggle-kind. He also sent the young boy with all sorts of magical gadgets to let Draco torture the little-music-loving-muggles with. He figured this would be a good learning ground to start Draco on being a bully, little did he know that his own son would wish to go back next year, and the year after that. At first Draco begged to for his father not to send him, but he had no choice but to take his enchanted-trombone and fly out to Colorado to the camp.

The first day at band camp was probably the best day of both Hermione and Draco's lives. Both of them felt right at home and they made tons of friends real quick (all muggle-born of course). Hermione was a little more popular with the boys to tell you the truth, girls were too caught in the drama of life to really have a laugh and enjoy things. Since bassoons (what Hermione plays) were rarely found at band camps the instructors suggested that Hermione be placed back with the low brass and low woodwinds while playing but Hermione didn't complain since all of the people in the front were girls were girls and all of the bass players were guys.

Now the cabins were also sorted by the type of instruments (low brass/low woodwinds, Brass, Flutes/Clarinets/Oboes, Drums, you get the picture) and the level of the students playing. Since Hermione was considered a bass player she was put, trustingly, in the low brass/low woodwinds cabin. Her cabin consisted of four sometimes five people (depending on if the had a tuba player, which are EXTREMELY hard to find in today's day in age); the baritone (euphonium) player James, the bari. sax player Chase, the trombone player Draco, and in her first summer, Alex the tuba player, and at last Hermione. Now this was not ALL of the bass players at the camp this was merely the first-chair (the best) bass players at the camp.

Sharing a cabin together made the five of them all friends really fast; James (who had short light, brown hair with gray eyes), Chase (with his black wavy hair) and hazel eyes), Alex (with his dark blonde hair and green eyes), Hermione and Draco. No one really understood the five of them, they constantly made fun of one an other but clearly they loved each other. Draco began to actually enjoy the cheery atmosphere of these muggles and he soon forgot about the real reasons he was suppose to be there. He starting having some really fun for once in his life (something his father had never allowed unless it involved hurting someone), and after that he NEVER turned back, he was now officially a Band Geek. Had it not been for his first trip to band camp why, he might just be enjoying the death eater world his father had chosen for him.

The life at band camp was very simple; every week day you play your instrument with the proper band you were placed in (all five of our characters were in the upper band of course, the highest ranking). Class started at 10 in the morning and ended at 12 for lunch, then you started up again at 3 and went till 6 when you had dinner, the rest of the day was yours. Weekends were the best, the lakes were open then. Mostly everybody was out swimming on the weekends. And if it was raining then everyone was inside reading or practicing their instruments. The boys bathed at night and the girls in the morning.

During classes the five of them played in the very back (again because they were bass instruments. sry just trying to drill this into your heads) First there was Alex then James to the right of him, then Hermione, Chase and Draco. Some years there was a guys named Roy that also played trombone and took second chair. He was a bit annoying to tell you the truth, he was a bad boy but cute as hell in Hermione's opinion. Sometimes the conductor would put Alex and Draco just behind the other three. Draco would poke Hermione in the back with his trombone making her screw up and laugh during her solos. Even James and Chase would crack up and have to pull themselves away from their instruments.

Even if these new muggle friends of his weren't muggles, Draco's father still wouldn't have approved. They weren't evil enough for him.

Things got bad there for a while after the first summer of band camp. When Draco got to Hogwarts he knew that he had to be on his nastiest behavior or his father would be displeased. Needless to say he was quite surprised when he met Hermione on the train unexpectedly. He remembered it like it was yesterday.

"Draco...Draco" Draco had been walking down the train trying to find an open cart when he turned around to see Hermione waving and running his way, dropping a few books in the process and quickly picking them up. Oh shit, he thought and shut his eyes for a spill second thinking of what to do. She had reached him now, "Draco," she was smiling from ear to ear as they say, "I had no idea you were coming here too. Oh dear what a load of fun this is going to be. If only the others were here, I miss them so don't you? Draco?" his face was blank but it soon changed.

"I haven't the slightest idea what you are talking about you filthy muggle. I've never met you before in my life," his eyes were scrunched and disgust covered his lips. This was an expression Hermione had never seen on him before, "please get out of my sight before I catch one of those diseases they discuss only muggles can get."

Holding back what seemed like a waterfall of tears, Hermione turned slowly saying but one thing to him in a hushed voice, something she had never in her life thought she would say to anyone, "you bastard," she did not look back and walked back the way she came to continue helping the nice little boy she had just met search for his frog Trevor.

It that moment Draco's heart was broken. He wished his father was not watching, he could have just been so happy to see her and they would have embraced.

The road had not been easy that year. He continued to torment Hermione especially after the fact that she had grown friends with Harry Potter (who he had been given special orders from his father to manipulate more then others). To tell you the truth he really didn't mind Potter or Weasel-boy. If anything he respected them for being such great friends to his dear book-nerd. But the image, he had to keep he bad boy image. The watch of his father was always on him, if he slipped just once, oh what trouble he would be in.

When they got back to band camp that summer Hermione did not say a word to Draco as they all greeted each other. Draco immediately tried to explain his situation to Hermione. After a loooooonnnnnngggg discussion on the subject Hermione finally apologized and so did Draco for all the mean things he had ever said to her. It was weird that he had remembered every single cruel thing he had said to her all year at school. It all ended and hugging and crying from the both of them with James, Chase and Alex in the background looking very confused; since they had been using words like 'muggles' 'Hogwarts' 'spells' and such. The two just smiled and began another long story of explaining.

At first the muggles really didn't believe them until Hermione received a letter from Harry on Hedwig. Hermione begged Draco to let her explain his situation to Harry so they could all be friends, but Draco strictly said NO. His father would find out somehow.

In the end the muggle-borns accepted and grew use to what Hermione and Draco really were.

That second year at band camp Draco admitted to Hermione that his trombone was enchanted and that he really was no good at all. Hermione completely understood, she was good like that. So, on the weekends and on their free time Hermione taught him on Roy's normal trombone. He became quite good as the summer progressed and when he got home he secretly un-enchanted his trombone. He's been the finest trombone the band camp had every seen, and he's better then he was when he was playing a trombone with a spell on it.

But now Draco was falling asleep, dreaming oh so much of his trip tomorrow to Band Camp. He turned over and drifted into a peaceful sleep. He wished he could smile, but his father..........well, at least he can't read my mind......mmmmm......Hermione.

(Did ya'll like it. It really was a loud of fun to write, and it gets better. This was mostly the set up for everything)