Her life had continued the same way for a few more weeks, the only difference was that meeting were now three times a week. Hermione had behaved at these most recent meeting, but she felt her anger beginning to build again. She wanted to be treated like a normal human being, but what she wanted most at the time was shower. She couldn't even stand the smell of herself, and even the Malfoy's stood a good distance away from her, their lips curled in disgust.
This was the main reason she was behaving, she was hoping good behavior would grant her a shower. That or they would grow so tired of her filth that they would give in and allow her to bathe herself. She was lost in this thought when her bell rang loud in her ear.
Scrambling to her feet, Hermione rushed out of her closet, the light stinging her eyes as she rushed forth, trying to locate who had called her. It was Narcissa, who stood casually in the kitchen with a wine glass in hand. She sneered when Hermione arrived, and took a slow step back when Hermione got to close.
"You called Mrs. Malfoy?" Hermione obediently asked, hating every bit of it.
"Yes, and you made it here rather fast Mudblood. I'm hungry, whip me up my favorite meal and serve it to me in my room." With that she strode off, heading for the stairs.
Hermione bustled around the kitchen, taking her time to make everything right. She desperately wanted to make it horrible, but she was trying to her hardest to fight that urge. Once finished, Hermione hurriedly ran upstairs, tray in hand. She had come to know the manor well, while it was dark, it had its beauty. She arrived at the door to Lucius's and Narcissa's room, the doors were black, with beautiful deigns woven through out it. She gently knocked, and waited for Narcissa to call her in before entering. Narcissa was leisurely relaxing on her four poster bed, eyeing Hermione with her normal distasteful look. Hermione approached her with the tray before Narcissa raised her hand stopping her.
"Don't come any closer, you smell positively disgusting. Leave the tray on the table there." Hermione nodded her head and turned to leave before Narcissa order her to stop.
"Bleak!" She called out, and instantly a house elf appeared next to her, waiting for his request.
"Take Hermione to the bathroom in the east wing. I am sick of her putrid smell. Only allow her to shower for 3 minutes, and give her our cheapest soap." She commanded, the elf simply nodded his head before leading Hermione out of the room.
Hermione was in complete shock, and she found herself happy for a small moment. This was all she had wanted for months, and the last person she expect to grant her this was Narcissa. She followed closely behind Bleak, not wanting to lose him and lose this opportunity. She was so caught up in her happy thoughts that she almost ran right into Draco.
"Oh, sorry Malfoy, I didn't see you." She mumbled, tucking some hair behind her ear.
"You should be," He sneered, "What are you doing here anyways? Bleak, where are you taking her?" He asked, turning his attention to the house elf.
"Oh, Bleak is taking her to the shower, as he has been ordered." Responded Bleak, looking at Malfoy with such submission it broke Hermione's heart. "Is there anything Master is needing?" The house elf asked, completely forgetting Hermione.
"No, continue with your task." Draco ordered, turning on his heel and leaving without saying anymore. Hermione watched him go until Bleak spoke to her to get her attention.
"We should go Mudblood." Hermione whipped around and looked at him, fire filling her soul.
"What did you call me?" She demanded angrily, her hands forming into fists.
"Mudblood, it is your name." Bleak stated, not looking one bit fazed. Her mouth dropped open in shock, she gapped at him for a minute in surprise.
"My name is Hermione!" She insisted, her face going red with anger.
"Not here it isn't." He responded before turning and continuing forward, she was about to respond when he took them into the bathroom. It wasn't big, which surprised her, as everything in the manor was big, but it was still beautifully designed. A plush rug lay on the floor in front of the small shower, the curtain was black and green, standing out against the white porcelain.
"You have 3 minutes." Bleak called before leaving the room, leaving Hermione to hurriedly undress and jump in the shower.
The water was so warm and she just wanted to stand and enjoy it, but she knew she didn't have much time. She grabbed the soap and quickly scrubbed herself, leaving the water at her feet brown. She dumped large amounts of shampoo in her hair, scrubbing it furiously, before moving on to the conditioner and untangling her hair as she cleaned it. It wasn't perfect, it was still a bushy bundle, but it felt much softer and cleaner. Since Bleak hadn't retuned yet she scrubbed herself till her skin turned pink. Just as she finished washing the bubbles away, the water stopped, leaving her shivering.
Hermione grabbed a towel and dried herself before stepping out of the shower. She felt so much better, she hadn't showered once since she had entered the Malfoy Manor, and it had meant a lot to her to be able to finally clean herself.
"Bleak has washed your clothes." Bleak called from the other side of the bathroom door. She almost asked how he had done that so fast, before she remembered magic. It had been so long since she used magic, she missed it so much, it was like a part of her was missing. She briefly wondered if she would ever be able to use it again.
She quickly dressed herself before exciting the bathroom, but Bleak was nowhere to be found. She assumed he had left so she started heading towards her closet again, not looking forward to being shrouded in darkness. She took her walk back slowly, enjoying this small bit of freedom. Her walk sadly came to an end when she reached the door to her closet.
Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and prepared to enter, but was suddenly surprised. There on the floor of her closet was blanket, she stared at it in wonder for a moment, before bending down to examine it. It was a little older, but when she touch it, it was soft. She closed the door behind her and slowly lowered herself onto it. She hadn't felt comfortable since she arrived, but this one blanket allowed her a small amount of comfort. As she lay down she cover herself with it, reviling in its warmth. For the first time, Hermione fell asleep in her tiny closet, contently.
Hermione could hear a bell ringing around her, but her mind was so heavy with sleep she couldn't quite figure out what it was. As she came to her senses, she quickly realized where she was and what the bell meant. She jumped to her feet, leaving her blanket to fall to the floor as she rushed out of the closet, bursting up the stairs to locate the Malfoy's. She came to halt in front of their door and quickly rapped on it.
"What took you so long?" Lucius asked calmly after letting her into the room, surprisingly, all the Malfoy's were in there, and Draco looked at her with disdain.
"I-I'm sorry!" She stuttered. "I was sleeping sir." She looked down after speaking, not wanting to make eye contact.
"At 4 o'clock in the evening? Seems rather lazy." He responded with contempt, his fiery gaze never leaving her.
"I'm sorry, it's hard to keep time, it's very dark in the tiny closet you expect me to call a room." She spat, her eyes still not leaving the ground.
"Are you complaining about your accommodations? After Narcissa kindly allowed you to shower today?" His voice was rising and Hermione knew that it probably wouldn't end well, she gulped and finally pulled her eyes to look at him. His grey eyes were filled with fire as he looked upon her.
"No sir, I was just explaining my terribly timing of falling asleep." She gritted out of her mouth. This was ridiculous, she shouldn't have to grovel for sleeping, she was only human.
"Alarte Ascendare!" His wand was out so fast, Hermione hadn't been prepared. Before she knew it she was flying so high her back hit the ceiling with a sickening crack, before she tumbled quickly to the ground, her arm crumbled beneath her. Pain tore through her body, and she examined herself mentally. Her arm was definitely broken, and some of her ribs had cracked when she hit the ceiling. Her breathing came in painful short bursts and blood left her mouth, pooling on the carpet.
"Do not stain my carpet with your filthy blood!" Lucius roared, using his foot to forcefully roll her onto her back. She could see now how oddly bent her arm was as she cradled it to herself. Lucius quickly used scourgify to clean her blood, before summoning Bleak.
"Take this waste of space back to her dingy little closet, and give her Skele-Gro. Not much though, I want it to be a long painful process." He ordered the elf before turning to her.
"Maybe this will teach you to be appreciative of what all I have given, and don't be late again." He told her dismissively, before turning back to his family. Narcissa still looked upon her with disdain, and Draco wore an unreadable look upon his face again. They met eyes and he looked somewhat pained for a moment, before covering it so fast with a sneer that she thought she might have been seeing things.
With a snap Bleak had her back in her closet, lying on her blanket, pain riddling her body, causing her to shake. He briefly looked at the blanket in confusion, before forgetting it and forcing her to drink a small amount of Skele-Gro. The taste was absolutely horrid and she was tempted to spit it out, but she knew better, she wasn't get much as it was and she needed all she could get. Once Bleak was satisfied she had taken it all, he closed her door before disappearing, leaving her in her agony.
She lay there for a long time, wondering how long her healing process would be. With the small amount of Skele-Gro given to her, she figured it would at least be a week. She moaned at the thought of being stuck in her closet that long, and who knew how long it would be before she got food again.
Two months had passed and she had long ago healed. But Lucius seemed even quicker to anger than before, it seemed the Dark Lord had put a lot of stress on him and he was taking it out on her. It seemed that he was breaking her bones weekly. This time though he would give her just enough Skele-Gro to heal so that he could still use her, and hurt her as he pleased. But it usually still was a smaller amount, leaving her in severe pain as she did her duties. She was growing so wary, and she knew that this was also his plan, to break her. She feared anytime her bell rang, or her door open.
She was hiding in her closet now, her leg still sore from healing over night when the door opened. Draco Malfoy stood before her. He had been surprising the last few months, he would bring her food, but still sneer and make rude comments. But she was living off of the food he brought her and even though she would return his behavior, she was appreciative.
She stood to grab the plate from him, but pain shook her and she collapsed, her leg had not fully healed, and probably wouldn't fully heal with the little Skele-Gro given her and with her being constantly moving. She groaned at the pain and settle in the corner, reaching for the plate instead of standing.
"You know I have always hated you Granger," He sneered at her, "But I don't think anyone deserves this." He whispered, handing her the plate. She was taken back, it was the nicest thing he had ever said to her before. "There is nothing I can do you know. Father would kill me if he knew I bring you food, or if he knew about that blanket." He admitted while pointing at the blanket she was lying on.
"So it was you who brought the blanket." She murmured, still in shock at his change of behavior. He nodded, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.
"But you know, it would be a lot easier on you if you'd just do as you're told, and not be so opinionated." He threw the jeer in, peering at her with a mix of contempt and pity. Hermione gave a soft chuckle at that.
"I'll die before I become the servant they want me to be." She told him, peering into his eyes. He winced slightly and bent down to look at her closer.
"That's what I worry about, that you will get yourself killed. Like I said Granger, I hate you, but nobody deserves to die like this." He offered, his hand waving over her to show that he was worried she would die eventually if she carried on the way she was. She repositioned, giving a small shriek as pain shot through her leg.
"You know that probably won't fully heal in the condition you are in." He informed her, to which she just nodded. He sighed before reaching into his pocket, causing her to jump backwards slightly. He held up a hand meaning he was going to do no harm, before pulling out a muggle night light.
"I found this in muggle London. I've charmed it to turn on and off whenever you touch it." He stiffly told her, before tossing it at her. She caught it one handed as her other hand held her plate.
"Thank you Malfoy," She nodded toward him, observing it in her hand, "You know, I miss magic so much." She mumbled, her cheeks going red. "I feel like I'm missing a part of myself. I wish I could just do little spells here and there."
Draco stared at her in thought, his mind obviously wandering as his eyes seemed to be zoning out. He sat like that for a long time, before his eyes refocused and he looked down at her injured leg.
"If it doesn't get any better Granger, I can give you some more Skele-Gro. If you never heal, you can never be of any use to us." He whispered, looking skeptically around him as if to assure no one was listening. Obviously giving her more Skele-Gro could result in him getting punished.
As if reading her thoughts, Draco trained a glare on the crazy haired girl sitting in her dark closet. "Don't tell anyone about this conversation, or that muggle light, you hear me? I will be punished for showing kindness to a Mudblood, which I'm still not sure why I have.." He trailed off, again looking lost in thought. Hermione bit her lip, she desperately had been wanting to ask him a question, one that was on the tip of her tongue every time he came to her closet. She swallowed her fear and looked at him with resolve, before finally deciding to ask.
"Malfoy," She asked quietly, making his eyes flick to her, a grimace still upon on his face. "I was wondering, do you think I could write a simple letter," His face scrunched up, and he seemed to be angered by this, but before he could interrupt, she hurriedly continued. "I wouldn't say anything that would give anything away, I would simply just tell my friends that I'm ok, I'm sure they have been worried sick." She finished, biting her lip again, feeling extremely nervous.
His face hardened once again, any kind of kindness he had previously showed disappeared in a heartbeat, leaving his face stone cold, no emotion coming through but rage. His hands formed in fists and they started to tremble, she actually found herself slightly scared.
"How dare you even ask such a thing," He hissed, but his voice was even. "My father and Voldemort would see that as a betrayal, I could be killed for allowing such a thing!" His grey eyes looked stormy and dark as they bore into her wide open brown orbs.
"I-I'm sorry Malfoy.." Hermione murmured, dropping her gaze from his, staring at the floor beneath her. She heard the fabric of his robes shuffling as repositioned himself to a standing position, when she looked back up at him, he still had a hard grimace upon his face.
"Don't ever ask me such a thing again!" He warned, obviously seething, before turning on his heel and slamming the door on her. She sighed in frustration, before slowly eating the food that had been brought to her. She thought long and hard about the conversation, and decided there was still hope in contacting her friends, she just had to find out how to get on his good side again.
