Written for the 'Wishes do Come True' Challenge, the OTP Boot Camp Challenge prompt #16 (silence is golden), the 25 Days of Christmas prompt snowflakes, the Pick a List Competition prompt #5 (elixir of life) and the One AU World Challenge prompt #7 (left behind).
A World of Wishes
Fear.
He'd always been the fearful type, the person who stands in the background of war and let's others do the dirty work because he's afraid to lift up his wand and take a life. He'd always been fearful, since the day Voldemort incorporated him into the world of Death Eater's. He feared killing, but he also feared being killed. It was a constant struggle for survival in Malfoy Manor.
But his life, he knew, didn't quite match up to hers. He had the freedom to walk the halls of the Manor, even if he feared to. She wasn't allowed to walk at all, and instead groveled on the floors.
She was unbreakable, and that was her biggest flaw. People wanted to see her break. She was only setting herself up to be hurt.
Draco knew that. She knew that. Yet she continued to retaliate against every single Death Eater who came down to interrogate her in the dank cells beneath the Manor. Each one came back satisfied, giddy, but unsuccessful. It was almost a game now, to see what it would take to make her break.
And one day, it was his turn to venture down beneath the Manor and interrogate her. He'd never been so bloody nervous in his entire life. If the Death Eater's found out that he was going against protocol and being gentle with her they would both be tortured. But he couldn't imagine harming someone, least of all a former schoolmate.
Opening the cell door, he got his first glance at her in a long time. She was chained to the wall, barely covered in what remained of her clothing, but she was alive. And she looked just as lively and rebellious as ever.
He almost felt intimidated stepping into her cell. Almost. He still had the wand- the upper hand. She had nothing, literally.
"I see they finally sent you down," she said, her voice scratchy. Lighting his wand, he got a glimpse at her face. She'd been scarred greatly over the past few months that she had been imprisoned here. "I wondered when we would get to talk. Have you come to try the same lame treatments that they do?"
Draco shook his head, slightly surprised that she spoke first. It took a long time for him to gather his voice. "I'm not an animal Granger. I don't just fuck anything that moves."
"Oh, right. I forgot that the Malfoy's are such a high and mighty clan. So mighty, that I've seen a hundred other Death Eater's before I ever saw you."
"So I fell out of favor," he replied, matching her spiteful tone, "At least I'm not the one chained to a wall in nothing more than a few scraps of fabric."
"Oh yes, their handiwork," she muttered, looking at what she had left on. "I used to feel ashamed about what they left me in, but I've come to ignore it. Any sort of emotion seems to bother them. Well go on then Malfoy, get it over with. At least then I can go back to being alone."
His eyebrows shot up. From the stories he had heard, he thought Granger was close to death and insanity. Yet she sat before him nearly as level-headed as before, spiteful, and full of fire. She might not have hope anymore, but she was a damn fighter. He could see that she was nowhere near breaking.
How funny, considering that he was almost to that point. And he had the luxuries of a bed, clothes and lots of food. She was barely kept alive down here with the other prisoners.
Surprised by the condition he found her in; he sat on the floor and stared at her. Apparently she wasn't used to this, and frowned. "What are you doing? Just get it over with Malfoy!"
He arched an eyebrow. "You're very eager for the torture to begin."
"The quicker you have your fun, the sooner I'm left alone. Dragging it out is a waste of time on both of our parts. So do me a favor and quit staring at me. I already know that I'm naked."
"Yet you're not ashamed?"
"What's the use of being ashamed if people just find it funny? I'd rather not give them anymore to smile about then I already have to."
He cringed at her implication. "I'm not like the other's Granger, if you haven't noticed. I'm not… I'm not capable of doing what they've done."
"So you're a softy now? Well, I'm not really sure if that's in my favor or not. Don't you think they will notice when you go upstairs looking unsatisfied and with no answers? They'll just retaliate against you then. If you want to do something useful, do you're worst. One of us will get away with something then."
"You really don't have any hope left in you, do you?"
"What's there left to hope for Malfoy? They left me behind here. When Harry and Ron saw an out they took it, and they couldn't come back for me. It would mean sacrificing the war, giving up everything for a friend. And they just can't do that, even if they want to. They can't give up everything for me. Then Voldemort might win, and our cause will die. Without Harry, Britain has no hope of a better future."
"So he sacrificed you. You're just a casualty of war."
She cringed then, her shoulders shaking slightly. "Yes, you can look at it that way. Voldemort's wish is to defeat Harry, but it's also to break me. At least one of those things is going to come true."
"And you're so ready to give into him?"
"No, I'm not. But someday, if the end of the war doesn't come first, I'll break. Everyone has a breaking point."
"Silence is golden Granger," he says, catching her attention. "And you're silence is like an impenetrable wall. You'll never say anything that might give us the upper hand."
"No, I won't. Now stop talking Malfoy, just stop! Do what you were sent down to do and get out of here. We both know that you have to go through with it one way or another, so do it now. Then you won't be punished, and I can be left alone. Then we all win."
"I'm not going to do anything Granger. I don't rape."
"You're just like them!" she screamed, shaking her head. "In the end under your mistakes you're still a Death Eater, a bitch of Voldemort. You'll do whatever it takes to survive."
"And you'll do what it takes to make sure the greater good wins, right? Even if it means sacrificing your body and your soul? Even if it means that the Weasel probably ran off and hopped into bed with Brown?"
"Ron wouldn't do that," she hissed. "He doesn't know if I am dead or not. He doesn't know what's happened to me, just that I'm still here somewhere in one form or another. He's going to work to get me back."
"Good to know Granger. Now I know who we should capture. A quick bit of torment inflicted on him and I bet you'll spill any old secret I ask about."
She looked up then, meeting his eyes. He could see her resolve breaking, her angst reflected in her irises. "You would have to have him first."
"It won't be had to get him. We're going on another hunt tonight. They will capture survivors and bring them here. If I mention Weasley's name as a way to break you then they will make sure to bring him back alive, so you can watch him die."
"You don't even know the hideouts Malfoy! These are empty threats."
"How would you know what I know Granger? You're down here rotting in a cell while you're friends risk their lives, fighting for a greater cause. They're the noble ones, the ones sacrificing something. No one's going to remember what you did for the Order Granger, no matter who wins. It's not a plan anyone set up. It's something you made up to stay alive. And no one will remember how bravely you've fought. No one will remember that the great Hermione Granger held her own in the end. They're only going to remember that you whored yourself out in the end to stay alive. Nothing more, nothing less."
"This isn't a choice Malfoy. But as soon as I give up and die, you win. And I will never let any of you win, not willingly. This is the only way I have left to fight. The lot of you took everything else away."
"Well don't start thinking that you're going to get any of it back Granger. You'll die down here before any of that ever happens."
"It hasn't been that long Malfoy. There's time yet for the Order to win. I might… I might even get out."
He arched an eyebrow. "Do you realize how long you've been down here Granger?"
"How could I, when I have no way of telling time. I used to think that you guys came down only once a day, but I realized sometimes it's more than once a day. I don't know how long it's been anymore."
"There's no falling outside Granger- snowflakes. Winter's arrived. You've been here for many months."
Her breath hitched, and for a second time she looked up and met his eyes. "It hasn't been that long. The Order wouldn't wait that long to act."
"Oh, but they would. The number's on Potter's side decrease each day. I think the Dark Lord will win this war."
"He won't! No one will let him! There will always be someone out there who decides it's time to take him down, if Harry were to fail. He will not reign supreme forever."
"No, he won't. No one ever does. But when Potter dies, who will be left to fight who has a chance?"
"Harry won't die! They were searching for the elixir of life-"
She clamped her mouth shut, realizing her mistake. He hiked her up to such an emotional state that she stopped thinking clearly, and let something slip. Harry, Ron and herself thought about going after the elixir of life, which was probably a bloody myth, right before being brought to Malfoy Manor where Hermione was left behind.
And she just told Malfoy what Harry was probably still looking for. She jeopardized everything in that single moment.
"The elixir of life," he whispered, slowly standing. "That's what Potter's after."
"Malfoy- pretend like you didn't hear that. Please. Voldemort can never know what Harry's gone after!"
He laughed, slightly hysterically. "If I tell the Dark Lord what Potter's bee searching for, then I can save my family. Good news means good graces. He wouldn't kill any of us at the meeting tonight." Draco laughed a second time, twirling towards the door again. "You did it Granger! You're going to save my family."
"Malfoy- Malfoy come back! Don't tell him, please! Malfoy, please come back!"
Her voice fell on hollow ears as Draco left the cell, a skip in his step and a grin on his face as he hopped up the stairs. He was supposed to gain information or have his way with her, and he didn't jeopardize his reputation tonight. He did what no one else could.
He got an answer.
Draco knew he looked way too elated and smug as he stepped up from the dungeons, a smirk on his face. All eyes turned to look at him, and people actually quieted down at the expression on his face. Voldemort himself actually stepped forward, Hermione's pitiful screams echoing quietly in the background.
"Come back Malfoy! I'll give you anything-"
"Miss Granger is very lively tonight," Voldemort noticed, listening to her screams. "How strange."
"She spoke," he said, sounding jovial. The room seemed to stand still at that, Voldemort inclining his head in Draco's direction.
"And what exactly did the girl say?"
His smirk widened. "Potter's gone looking for the elixir of life. He must be pretty worried about failing if he's taking such measures. She says it's only something they mused about before she was captured, but I gather that she suspects that might be what's delaying the final battle. He's still on a little search."
The man grinned wickedly at that, clasping the young blond on the shoulder. "Excellent Draco, excellent. And you're sure this is what she said?"
"You can check again if you like. She's still pretty hysterical right now, and I bet she's much more willing to talk than usual."
His eyes flashed at that. "Excellent, excellent! Perhaps it's time we go down and get a few details from the girl?"
"I would go right now, my Lord."
Voldemort nodded, beckoning behind him. Bellatrix and Yaxley stepped forward as expected, Rodolphus following suit. The biggest surprise was when Voldemort beckoned to Lucius as well.
"You as well, my old friend. Your son seems to have done well tonight."
Draco beamed at that, knowing such a compliment provided safety from execution for a few days. The satisfaction of living a while longer overshadowed the guilt he felt towards Granger for what he'd done to her, and what would happen next. Obviously, they were going to go down and torture her right now, torture the answers out of her.
And in her current state of mind, she might finally break. If she did, she would lose the battle. She would lose all those all she had built up.
He tried to not think about it too much. His dream for tonight had come true- the Malfoy's were safe. As his father passed by on the way down to the dungeons he sent his son the slightest nod- a nod of approval. His heart soared.
It didn't make what he'd done to Granger better, but he was ignoring that as a whimper sounded up the stairs. He did what he had to do for his family.
Voldemort won in a way too. His dream had come true too.
A/n: Might be continued, but I'm not sure. I have to think about where it would go. Comments?