For The 'Voldemort Wins' Challenge. This is my first ever fan fic so I hope you enjoy it. Please review :)
The room was small, dark and damp. A single tea light candle burned softly on the dust covered table. A blue and bronze threadbare rug covered a small patch of the wooden floor beneath the table signalling that the house belonged to a Ravenclaw. The curtains were drawn shut, covering the dirt stained windows. A girl with long, dark hair slowly walked over the table, making every floorboard creek along the way. She sat down on one of the old worn out chairs and sighed. Looking around the room, the girl took in her surroundings. One lumpy couch, a small coffee table, a battered old tv that probably doesn't even work, a bookcase with about three well thumbed books and a mirror, hanging unbalanced on the wall to her right above the empty fireplace. She stood up and moved cautiously towards it. Looking into it she saw her reflection in the filthy, cracked glass and shed a tear. Her face was covered in cuts and bruises; a particularly nasty cut was just above her left eye.
"How could I have let this happen" she said softly, for only her ears to hear "How could I have allowed myself to end up here? You're worthless Cho!" She slowly drew back her arm, made a fist, and punched the mirror sending shards of broken glass everywhere.
Cho stared down at her hand; it was covered in cuts and was already starting to swell. She turned round and swiftly left the room, entering into a dingy kitchen. Paying no attention to what was in it, she moved towards the rotting door at the back of the room. Walking through she found herself in a garden, the barest garden she had ever seen. One single flower grew, and as Cho advanced towards it she found it was an almond blossom, the flower that symbolizes hope. There was a rustle from a nearby tree, Cho turned around sharply but couldn't see anything. As she was about to turn round, there was another rustle. Slowly, two people came out from behind the tree. Cho immediately recognized them all.
"Hermione" she exclaimed "Dean" she ran over to hug each of them in turn "What are you doing here, you'll get caught"
"Actually" Hermione corrected "We would of got caught if we hadn't of came here"
"We need your help" Dean finished
Ten minutes later, Cho, Dean and Hermione were sitting around the small kitchen table each with a cup of coffee in their hands. There was silence for a few minutes as no-one seemed to come up with the right thing to say. Suddenly Dean broke the silence.
"We need you to hide us" he explained "Somewhere, in this house"
"Why?" Cho looked at Dean in confusion.
"The Death Eaters are after us" Cho turned to face Hermione as she continued "Well, they're after all muggle-borns, but we're the only ones left"
"You mean they've killed them all" Cho said in absolute horror.
"Yes, every last one of them" Dean confirmed, only to allow Cho to look even more horrified.
"Okay, you can stay here. There is a small storage cupboard under the stairs. If you would like to follow me" Cho said leading the way out of the kitchen and into a grim looking hallway. She continued walking until she reached a small door, opening it to reveal the small storage cupboard, just about big enough to fit two people "Right, you two go in there, and I will check on you soon"
"Wait, why do we have to go in now?" Hermione asked "I mean, we've only just got here"
"The Death Eaters check the house at precisely 12o'clock" Cho finished just before she heard a loud banging on the door "Quick get inside" She ushered the two into the cupboard and closed the door, hoping they will not get found out.
"Open up!" a gruff voice shouted from the door, rattling the handle to get in.
"Coming!" Cho replied, unlocking the door and opening it widely. She was met by the faces of Lucius Malfoy and Bellatrix Lestrange "Come on in"
Bellatrix skipped into the house followed by Lucius. They both glanced into the living room and saw the shattered glass lying on the floor. No one said a word. They walked into the kitchen and saw the three cups sitting on the table.
"Why is their three cups?" Lucius questioned "I thought you lived on your own"
"I do, I've just had a couple of friends round, and haven't got round to clearing up" Cho explained, rather worryingly.
Bellatrix and Lucius glanced at each other, but again stayed quiet. They continued to walk around the house, checking every room, making sure everything was the way it should be. Finding nothing they decided to give up, coming to the conclusion that Cho wasn't hiding anything, although she did seem a little jumpy. Arriving back at the front door Bellatrix turned and faced Cho.
"Well, everything seems to be in order" she said, sadly "We will be back tomorrow at the same time"
After closing the door Cho let out a sigh of relief. She went towards the small storage cupboard and opened the door. Hermione and Dean were standing there, side by side, holding hands very tightly. Hermione's head nestled against Dean's chest. They both had their eyes closed, and had fear written right across their faces.
"It's okay, it's only me" Cho said happily, causing them to open their eyes. Dean pulled the two girls into a hug; he knew that everything was going to be okay.
The three walked out into the garden in a line holding hands. Cho lead them over to the flower. They all gazed at it. The almond blossom, the symbol of hope.