AN: Merry Christmas!
Figured I'd write a Christmas themed Dramione. I'm working on the last chapter now, but I'll update with another chapter tomorrow, and another on the 23rd. I think there's going to be a total of five. :)
ENJOY!
Hogwarts was on lockdown. Every teacher was scouring the premises for a lost boy who had been reckless enough to wander off by himself; all because of a ridiculous dare.
'Foolish child!' Potions Professor Hermione Granger thought as she marched out into the woods calling out his name.
This had been her first year as a professor, and she was starting to regret her choice of career. This year, a rumour had started claiming that Slytherin was a house full of ninnies, and since that had spread, it appeared that every last student from Slytherin had to prove that wrong.
Hermione could not count how many times she had to help a student out of one horrid predicament or another. One child had been stuck hanging out of the window of a tower. The sight of seeing a third year girl nearly falling to her death had to have knocked a few years off Hermione's life, for sure!
It had been a nerve wrecking year so far. She had thought about quitting numerous of times but decided to at least finish the school year first. Rules had been made against daring students to perform such stupid actions, but that wasn't going to stop any of them.
Hermione called out the boy's name again, her wand held out firmly. It was lit up brightly so that she could see in the moonless, pitch black night.
One of the students who had seen Nelson enter the woods said that he had done it only just an hour ago. Hermione couldn't see how he could have gotten too far in, the large roots of the trees were enough to hinder her own steps.
An hour is just enough to get lost though.
'Shut up!' she snapped at her pessimistic mind. She couldn't think the worst, it would cause her to panic.
And right now was definitely not a time to panic.
"Nelson?" She paused her steps and slowed her breathing. Hermione swore she had hear a twig snap. She listened for a while, hearing nothing but the faint whisper of the icy breeze.
Hermione shivered from the cold and puffed into her gloved hands. It was entirely to cold to be outside. She just had to find Nelson.
There was a scream then. Followed by a series of thrashing. Hermione ran toward the sounds, hollering out for the boy.
He wailed. She knew it was him. She ran faster and harder, truly afraid what she was going to find of him. He sounded in incredible pain. He continued to scream. Loud. Long. Agonizing.
"HELP! PLEASE! SOMEONE! NO—!"
His cry was cut off just as Hermione saw a large shadow of something several feet off in front of her. Whatever it was whirled around at her light and faced her. It growled.
With a quick thought, Hermione cast a stunning spelling, hitting the creature at the center of its body. It instantly flew back, revealing another shadow at the ground. Hermione hurried over to it and learned that it was Nelson.
The dark-headed boy was covered in his own blood, and he whimpered in pain. "He-He…!"
"Get up!" Hermione demanded, pulling the boy up to his feet. He could stand, thankfully. He seemed just a little shaken.
She helped him through the forest, but just as they got to the edge, she felt something sharp dig into her shoulder, and she was jerked backward, landing square onto her back. Pain jolted throughout her body.
"Professor!" Nelson gasped.
"Run!" Hermione screamed, realizing that it had been the beast that had attacked her. She tackled the beast to stop him from going after Nelson. "Keep running!" she screamed after him when the boy had stopped to see what was going on.
She heard an ugly growl, and the beast spun around in anger, planting its back foot right into the side of her head.
Her hearing was the first to go. There was a faint ringing in her ears. Then it was her sight; everything around her went blurry, and she struggled with keeping her eyes open until she could no longer.
*\*
"You always did have a temper."
Draco rolled his eyes. "And as usual, everything is always my fault!"
Narcissa looked up from the young woman to give her son a pointed look. "This is very much your fault."
"I can't help it that I've been bloody cursed!"
"You did not need to hurt the woman."
"She attacked me first!"
"And we both know why she did. Arguing with me is rather pointless. You still did a beastly thing."
He crossed his arms in frustrated defeat. His mother had used 'beastly' purposely to annoy him. "Will she be alright?" he asked quietly. He had regretted what he had done to her immediately after doing it, but he could not help the actions that he had done to her. It was in his cursed blood to first react before thinking while he was feeding.
It was the beast part of him.
Just like it was to feed on children who did not heed to the warnings to stay out of the Forbidden Forest.
His stomach churned at the thought. He grimly set a palm up to his forehead finding it to be drenched with sweat.
"I believe so," his mother answered him after a few moments. "At least until she wakes."
Draco stared at his mother's black eyes for a few seconds before he fully realized what she had met.
He set his jaw sullenly. Well, isn't this just lovely.
"Set her up a room," he grumbled and made to leave his mother to deal with the woman. He needed a few gulps of fresh air.
*/*
Hermione woke up dreadfully confused, barely remembering anything from the night before. All she could remember was screaming and the fearful look on Nelson's face.
She sat up in an oversized bed (it was enough to sleep the entire Weasley family!) and looked around, creasing her eyebrows together. She couldn't remember how she got into this elaborately decorated room, but it was gorgeous just the same. Rose pink and tan scheme with a vanity and a table and chair set. It also had a floral love seat with a matching chair. A pair of french doors led out to a balcony that overlooked a lake.
It was too fancy for Hogwarts, and too cheery for St. Mungo's. It didn't belong to anyone she knew either.
Hermione slid out of bed to see if she could find a person to talk to. She felt down her side, noticing an unusual feeling against her skin. A pink night dress hugged her body from her shoulders all the way down to her toes.
Satin. Expensive satin. Comfortable satin. She had never wore something so lovely before, not one to splurge on such fabrics.
Had she checked into a hotel?
That idea didn't seem right, and surely she couldn't afford to rent a room as extravagant as the one she stood in.
Hermione made her way to one of the many doors that the room had. The first one was an amazing bathroom that had automatic water flow and toilet flushing, a soaking tub equipped with every bathing supply known to man and enough towels to cover for an entire Hogwarts house.
The next door over concealed the biggest walk-in closet that Hermione had ever seen— not that she had seen many in her life— and it was stocked with shoes, jewelry, dresses, suits, blouses, skirts— everything! And she was sure that every piece cost a pretty sickle!
The second to the last door lead to another room that was the exact duplicate of the room she woke up in.
The fourth and last door lead out into a corridor that seemed to go on forever. There must have been over two hundred feet of corridor! She walked down it until she came to a staircase.
"Hello?" Her voice traveled out in an echo.
There was a crack right then, the indication that a house elf had apparated near. "Madam," an elf with a blue and black bow tie greeted and bowed. "Welcome to Malfoy Manor."
"Well, thank you. Now I request that you do not bow to me from here on out."
The elf gave her a tilt of his head in obvious confusion by her request. This was not new to her. She'd rather not use the elves' slave status for any sort of gain. Even if that meant in a simple greeting. Not that many elves respected her wishes, but at least she tried to give them the option decide on their own.
"Does the Madam wish to dine for breakfast?"
"Is it part of the…" she paused, looking around. It did look like an expensive bed and breakfast. "Package?"
The elf sent her another one of those looks. "Querty apologizes, but he does not understand what you mean, Madam."
"How much will the breakfast cost? Is it free with the room?" She patted her nightdress, just now remembering that she was not in normal attire. "I'm afraid I'm not dressed for breakfast. Would you happen to know where my clothing is?"
"In the closet of your room, Madam."
"But those are not mine."
Querty nodded. "They are so, Madam. You be picking out anything you wish. You call me when you finish, and Querty will escort you to dine." He disaperated with a pop, and Hermione made her way back to the room she had woken up in. She had left the door open, but Hermione probably wouldn't have found it if she hadn't— all the doors were identical.
She looked all around for her plain, ordinary Muggle clothing, but they were nowhere to be found. Her eyes shifted to a purple and blue body-length dress.
The elf did say to pick out anything she wished. Her own clothing could be in the wash, and she would need something decent to wear for breakfast.
What the hell. Why not? She snatched the dress off the rack and checked to see if it would fit. She could always resize it with her wand—
Her wand! Hermione's eyes widened, and her pulse picked up at the thought. She sprinted out of the closet, hastily looking for her most valuable item, but it was nowhere to be found!
Oh, no! No, no, no! Where is my wand?!
Her hand flew up in her distress and touched her temple. She immediately dropped it, shocked by the pain the simple touch had brought.
"What happened last night?" she whispered to herself.
"Madam?" Querty's squeaky voice called out for her, following with a knock. "Does the Madam has something picked out yet?"
Knowing that elves were commonly punished for the things that could not be helped, Hermione answered with a "Yes!", and she began dressing as quickly as she could, telling him that she would be right out.
Hermione smoothed out all the wrinkles that occurred during her rush and found a pair of blue shoes that matched the dress. With a deep breath, she made her exit to join Querty who had been patiently waiting for her to finish.
"Querty thinks you look beautiful," he commented.
Hermione smiled. "Thank you, Querty, that is very kind of you to say." She ran her hand through her hair. "Oh, dear! I forgot to do my hair!"
"Do not worry, Madam, I can help you with that!" With a snap of his fingers, Hermione felt her hair lift up from her back and pile up onto the top of her head. Querty presented her a mirror to see how he did.
"Oh!" she gasped out in delight. Her hair had been twisted into a bun all except for a few loose curls that draped down her cheeks. "It's amazing!" she whispered. Hermione had never been able to dress her hair up, she usually got frustrated with it and always ended up just brushing it out and tying it at the back of her head— conventional and practical. She never thought that her hair could be so pretty until this moment.
Querty bowed low, pride apparent on his face. "You are welcome." He then straightened back up with a snap. "We must get down to breakfast now."
"Oh, right." She followed him through a maze of corridors and stair cases before he finally stopped at the doorway of a massive-sized dining room.
"Take any seat that you desire— except for the one on this end." Querty spoke about the incredibly long and rectangular table that was already set and loaded with all sorts of breakfast food.
"Thank you," she said and began walking. She decided that she was going to sit near a woman who was already seated.
The woman rose to her feet when Querty announced Hermione's presence. "Good morning," she spoke softly. "I trust you had a fair sleep?"
"I most certainly did—"
At least I think I did…
Hermione didn't say that she couldn't remember much of anything from the night before.
"—thank you."
"And how is your head?" The woman had silvery blonde hair, and she was dressed in black from head to toe, her skin, paler than any tone Hermione had ever seen. She looked genuinely worried though, and lifted her hand up as if she was going to touch Hermione's head, but lowered it down quickly, changing her mind. "You came here quite injured."
Hermione refrained from touching the sore, knowing it would hurt if she did. "As long as I don't touch it, I barely notice a thing."
The woman nodded. "Do sit down before the meal gets cold." She gestured to the chair that Hermione stood behind. "I apologize, we have not been properly introduced— when my son brought you here, we were both concerned that you wouldn't make it through the night."
"What happened anyway— and thank you for your help!" Hermione slightly looked down at her empty plate, feeling a little rude. She was dying to learn what had happened though.
The woman chuckled, not in the least bit offended, relieving Hermione of her guilt. "You were attacked by a horrendous beast last night. It's a good thing my son brought you here."
"Did Nelson return safely? The boy, do you know? I think the beast was after him. Or at least, I remember seeing Nelson's face and him screaming for help."
"My son did not mention an injured boy. It is highly likely that the boy escaped."
Hermione heaved out a sigh, and began serving herself up a meal, following the suit of her host.
"I'm Narcissa, the Lady of the Manor."
"I'm Hermione Granger. I do appreciate your hospitality ."
"Not at all. It's just a shame Draco is not here to also meet you— he's not feeling well today."
"I do hope he's okay, I would like to personally thank him for saving me."
"Well, I'm sure that you'll have plenty of chances to do that. For now, eat up, you will need the energy for a complete recovery."
As Hermione ate through the meal. Narcissa watched her extremely close, and it worried Hermione a little. It felt uncomfortable, and she wondered what she was doing wrong.
Maybe it was the expensive dress. Maybe Narcissa was worried about her spilling food on it. Hermione concentrated on each spoonful, ensuring that every morsel of food went only to her mouth.
When the meal was through, Hermione asked where her own clothes were so that she could change into them.
"They were not in your room?"
Hermione shook her head. "I could not find them."
Narcissa immediately called out for an elf and ordered it to find Hermione's clothing.
"I do not mean to be a bother," Hermione said regrettably.
"It's absolutely no bother, dear," Narcissa assured her kindly. "Now how about I show you around?"
"Oh, I really can't stay for much longer. I'm the Potions Master at Hogwarts, and I should get back."
"Don't the children leave for holiday today?"
Hermione thought on it, and she looked at her watch. Narcissa was right. They had left on the Hogwarts Express almost two hours ago.
"You can stay here for the holiday, we won't mind."
Here would certainly be better than Hogwarts. Hogwarts was awfully dull when it was nearly empty. "I shouldn't impose…"
"Impose!" Narcissa shrieked. "Never! Come, come!" She motioned for Hermione to get up. "I'll owl the Headmistress that you plan on spending the holiday here— she won't mind!"
"You know McGonagall?"
"Oh, sure. We go way back!"
*/*
"Minerva, you are going to need to find a replacement for Hermione Granger. She is stuck here until further notice, but do not worry! I will take great care of her!
—Narcissa
P.S: I think my son really likes her— he just doesn't know it yet!"
"Is something wrong, Minerva?" Neville Longbottom asked.
The witch nodded, her face ghostly white. The letter from Narcissa Malfoy vibrated in her hand from the movement. "We're going to need a new Potions professor."
Neville took a large step toward her. "Is Hermione alri—"
"She is to be replaced," was all the woman said. She took her glasses off and rubbed her eyes with the tips of her fingers.
The Headmistress clamped her jaw tightly. Her stomach was sour from the news. If she knew it would do any good, she would try to rescue the woman who used to be her favourite pupil, but the attempt would be useless.
And fatal for all involved.
If anyone could manage such a sentence, it would be Hermione Granger.
