Disclaimer: All characters and locations belongs to JK Rowling, the masterful genius.
Kill Her
He felt ice cold, from his chest to his fingertips, alike an icicle. He couldn't have heard right. His eyes were widened in disbelief.
"Common now! Kill her!" Bellatrix shrill voice mused.
He wanted to ask why. But he already had a hunch. Why it had to be him though, he didn't know.
"Son…" Lucius Malfoy grumbled threateningly.
Draco swallowed hard, but didn't move. He couldn't, even if he had wanted to. His feet felt as if etched to the ground, rooting through the floor.
"It's just a mudblood, Draco." Bellatrix big, crazy eyes were poking out their sockets and her grin was cracked wide. She quickly slid up next to Draco and hissed seductively. "Kill her."
Several moments passed as the bystandards watched his every move. He closed his eyes and his brows came closer together. He finally took one small step forward. His fancy shoes clicked on the marvel flooring and echoed loudly in the giant room. It sounded almost like his lonely heartbeats, drumming in his ears.
After what felt like ages, but were mere minutes, he finally stood infront of the young woman whom was standing on her bare knees. She was barely conscious, her eyes averting towards the cracked, gray floor.
Was this the end she had had in mind, he asked himself. Probably not. She had probably hoped for it to go calmly, with the sea-breeze caressing her soft and wrinkly face, as she presumably would be old. It would probably happen out on her porch to her little cottage she would have shared with her future husband. Pictures of her grandkids would probably be decorating the windows, alongside some of her children and friends. The last thing she would see would probably be her old husband sitting next to her, holding her hand. She would have a small smile on her face before she would breath her last breath. As her heart would come to a halt, images of all things she loved would cloud her mind, and the euphoria of those beautiful memories would lead her to whatever was to follow.
Instead she was here. No one was holding her hand, them being tied to her back with a rope charm. Her friends were since long dead, and she had had no time to form any kind of relationship with anyone. There was no smile on her bruised face, just blood. A black eye also decorated her usual beautiful face, along a swollen lip and cuts and bruises, deforming her features. She weren't supposed to go like this. It was wrong. She was supposed to go calmly, in peace, as she deserved after all she had been through at such a young age. Not like this. And not here.
But what could he do. It was him or her. He might not want to see her dead, but rather her than himself. Anyone but himself! The only one he would die instead of was his mother. Other than that he would reach to any end for self preservation.
He took a deep breath and hesitantly rose his wand. When he pointed it at her chest he wanted to look away. Instead he watched as she lifted her own to look her killer in the eyes.
Her mouth trembled and her brows furrowed slightly. She couldn't see much after the beating she had taken, but when she squinted she could make out the sharp face looking back at her with a scared expression.
"Malfoy?" She whispered.
It felt as if all air got punched out of Draco when she spoke his name. She recognized him. After everything his own face was the face she would associate with all of this. With her death.
He took a small step back and shook his head. He tried to speak but no words came out.
A cold, gentle hand grabbed his shoulder and he turned around and came eye to eye with his mother.
"Draco?" She asked worriedly.
"I can't" He whispered.
"You have to" she said shakily.
"There's got to be another way!"
At this she placed her other hand on his other shoulder. "She's just a mudblood, Draco."
He was still shaking his head. "I'm not doing it." He said firmly and swallowed the sick feeling lumping in his throat.
"I'll do it!" A shrill, excited voice cheered. "I've wanted to since the day I carved in her name on her arm." She was standing infront of Hermione now. With a disgusted face Bellatrix grabbed Hermione's hair and pulled her head back. "I was going to do it then already. But that bloody lowlife elf thought it wise to use his so called 'magic' to set you all free."
"Dobby." Hermione whispered.
"What was that now?" she shrieked.
"H-his name was Dobby." Hermione spoke up.
Bellatrix leaned in close to her face. Her breath sending chills down Hermione's spine. "Like I care what his name was?" She threw Hermione back onto the floor with the hand of hair she had been holding. "It doesn't matter, you see. Just like you, you all's names are worthless, because you are all just waste! Undeveloped and disgusting imbeciles!" She twirled around her own shoulder and looked happily around the room. "And that's why you have to die. Despicable trash like yourself seem to view themselves as significant. Worthy magic." Bellatrix fervently moved to close the giant circle she had been walking around Hermione. "This will show all inferior species what happens if they don't stick to their rightful place!" At this she pointed her dark wand towards Hermione in an outstretched arm.
"Stop."
A moment of silence fell over the room. To Hermione it felt as if time stood still. No one really knew what had just happened.
Bellatrix twitched. "What now?" She whispered vigorously in a much too shrill tone.
Draco tried to speak but no sound came out. He had been watching the scene play out and in the end he hadn't been able to let it happen. No one would have been able to, he defended himself.
Bellatrix seemed taken aback about this whole situation. And to be honest, so was Draco himself. Nevertheless, she slowly moved towards him with her crazed head tilted to the side. Draco wanted to move backwards, a step away from her with every step she took in his direction. In fact he wanted to run away from there as fast as he could, and never look back. But that wasn't possible. Especially not now.
"Now now, what do we have here?" she sighed and pouted with her lips. "Has little Draco dear fallen in love with the filthy mudblood?"
Draco didn't know how to react to this turn of events. How she had come to that conclusion was beyond him, as well as everyone else in the room.
Without moving his head more than an inch he tried to look at his mother standing next him. Her eyes looked equally as confused as his own, questioning Bellatrix delirious rambling. When he looked back to the scene before him Bellatrix was much closer to him than he had expected and he jumped back slightly. At this she seemed rather amused.
"I-I don't think she should die." Now he had to improvise as to why, and he had no clue. He had watched so many before her be tortured and eventually killed. None of it was in any way entertaining, as the rest seemed to find it. However, he had never stopped it from happening. With bemused attention he had done his evil deed through association and attendance. In this case, though, he couldn't just stand by and let her die. And he could not, for the life of him, figure out why he was willing to risk himself for her.
"She belonged to the Dark Lord" Narcissa Malfoy shot in and stepped up next to her son.
Bellatrix's nostrils flared as she was breathing in harshly.
"Indeed she did" Bellatrix said with a deliberative expression. "However, my dear Dark Lord is dead, so how does that affect her outcome? She serves no purpose anymore; the Potter kid is dead and brought Him down with his death." She was panting and sitting out her words in Narcissa's face, hovering infront of her. "That disgusting child killed Him!"
"That does not give you the right to kill her." Narcissa said coldly.
Bellatrix looked ready to crack. "I was the Dark Lord's most dedicated disciple, and I still am! I have every right to kill her!" At this she moved backwards and pointed at Hermione. "She stands for his downfall, she deserves to die!"
"I think killing her would grant her the grand escape she's been wanting since she got here."
The delirious look on Bellatrix's face was prominent and almost comical.
"Letting her live, in this torturous state, would surely make a much better punishment, equal to your loss." Narcissa gestured around the room to all the Death Eaters and snatchers that were gathered. "All our loss."
Bellatrix's head twitched threateningly before coming to her critical point. "Fine." She spat. "I'll let her live. Here. With you!" She pointed at Draco.
"And you" she moved her focus back to Narcissa, "you better make sure she suffers; I will check up on you, to make sure she gets what she deserves." She went on to staring bewilderedly at Narcissa.
Narcissa had recollected herself in the mere seconds it took for the information to sink in. Draco on the other hand, had not. His mouth was agape and his perturbed expression said more than a thousand words.
"What are you all waiting for! Lets move!" In a few seconds most Death Eaters had disappeared into thin air, in clusters of smoke. The snatchers got apparated with a few of the others, and soon the room was empty as to the Malfoy family. And a broken Hermione.
Slap!
A stinging pain shot through Draco as his mother's hand had crossed his cheek. He grabbed it as the sharp pain was soaring.
Narcissa was the first to speak up, after clearing her throat. Without looking at anyone she said "Take her to one of the rooms on the first floor, she needs to rest if she's going to survive. She looks foul. And please do heal her up a bit, so it will be possible to look at her at least.".
Draco nodded scantily.
Narcissa came up to her husband who said harshly "I should just kill her now.".
"Now dear, don't be grim, it's not fitting."
"This will all come crashing down on us unless he lives up to this."
"Let's go dear." she said and hooked her tiny arm into his.
When they were all alone Draco stood above Hermione not knowing what to do next. How was he supposed to live this up, and more importantly, live this through? He didn't want to hurt her. Obviously, that's why he stopped her murder. However, he didn't want to die.
He sighed and decided to call for one of the house elves to help out. "Polly!"
With a loud poof she appeared infront of him. "Yes master?"
He gestured to Hermione lying on the floor, where Bellatrix had tossed her. He didn't trust his levitation charm at the moment. He didn't trust anything he did right now. "Will you locomotor Granger to the second room on the first floor." He merely whispered rather than spoke, as he didn't trust his voice to hold.
"Of course young Mr. Malfoy." She squeaked and followed Draco as he made to slowly move towards the giant doors. She snapped her fingers and Hermione flew up into midair where she hovered. Draco nodded firmly at Polly and lead the long way to Hermione's confinement.
It was one of the smallest rooms in the Malfoy Manor, including their pantries. It was, however, decorated as a guest room, including a bed, cupboards, and a majestic closet. The dark room was only lit up by Draco's wand. The diffused Lumos led Polly to the bed.
"You can put her here." He said, and she did as instructed.
Once she was laid down on top of the bed they both watched her, not quite knowing what to do next.
After some time Polly piped up. "Is she to stay long, Master?"
"I don't know" He didn't take his eyes off of Hermione Granger laying on the bed infront of him.
"Leave."
Polly nodded and disappeared with a loud pop, leaving Draco and Hermione alone in the dark room.
I hope you all enjoyed this very first chapter. Please let me know what you think of it!
Love