"I'm fooling myself. She'll never think of me as anything but a monster."
When Hermione awoke, her eyes were red and stinging. She had cried the night before and no matter how hard she tried to stop, she couldn't. Memories of the first time she was held prisoner at Malfoy Manor struck through her mind like a whip. Each moment painful, wrenching, bloody.
Wait. All except... except for the mudblood.
The moment Bellatrix LeStrange said those words. Her whole life changed.
No. Please. Please.
She remembered begging. That was one of the worst memories she had. She had begged. But the cruciatus curse does something to the way a person thinks. The pain. It makes you less than you were before you felt it. It makes you a beggar.
The screams.
They seemed so far away. As if they belonged to someone else, but they didn't. They were coming from her. But the one thing, the only thing, that kept Hermione sane was that no matter what Bellatrix did to her. Even the scar. She never told her the truth. She gave no one away.
Even in her darkest moments Hermione could hold onto that.
There was knock at the door. Hermione jumped.
"Who is it?" she said, her voice harsh from crying.
"Lucky. May I come in?" He sounded impatient.
"Yes." Hermione pulled the silk robe she was wearing tighter and wiped the remnants of tears from the corner of her eye.
The door squeaked open and Lucky entered, Hermione's old clothes in his arms. She walked over to him and scooped up the freshly cleaned outfit.
"Thank you," she said quietly.
"Starry asked me to bring them."
Hermione nodded.
"And I brought you this," he continued. Hermione sighed relief. Her wand. It was like having a part of herself returned.
She took it into her hands and felt the smooth wood beneath her fingers. Hermione smiled at Lucky.
He looked away then started walking to the door. "Uh, Miss Granger," he drawled her name. It almost sounded like Draco.
"Yes?"
"Master told me you have a soft spot for house elves."
"I guess you could call it that." She grinned sheepishly
"Well then, can I give you some advice?"
Hermione shrugged. "Sure."
"I've been married for a long time."
"You're married?
"To Starry."
Hermione tried to hide her smile. Their incessant bickering made a lot more sense.
"Starry and I, it may not seem like we get along, but we really do. And you know how we've stayed together all this time?"
"You're trapped here against your own will."
"No." Lucky scowled. "It's because we give each other the benefit of the doubt."
It didn't seem like the benefit of the doubt when they were snapping back and forth.
"Look. If Starry really upsets me or I really upset her, you know what she does. She just tells me and I just tell her. Then we do our best not to do it again, but if we screw up. You know what we do?"
Hermione looked back in Lucky's grey eyes. They weren't exactly warm, but they were determined. He was on a mission – and she was his mission.
"You give each other the benefit of the doubt."
"I want you to know I had this same conversation with someone else this morning, understand?"
Did he mean Draco?
"Well, need anything else before I go, miss?"
Hermione shook her head. "No. Thanks."
Lucky's hard look returned to his face as he marched out of the room and shut the door behind him.
Strange fellow, Lucky.
Hermione sat down on the bed thinking about what Lucky had said. About giving people the benefit of the doubt. Hermione was still determined to find a way out of this place, but it would take her some time. And in the meantime maybe it wouldn't hurt to just give Draco the benefit of the doubt.
Over the next few months, things got better. Hermione listened to and followed Lucky's advice as best she could. It seemed that Draco had done the same. Still it wasn't like they were friends, or really talked. They just tolerated and gave each other space. Hermione spent most of her time, digging through the huge library in Malfoy Manor searching for anything that could help her escape.
But that wasn't the only thing she did. In the grounds behind the manor, there was a spacious pumpkin patch and vegetable garden. Starry had planted it in the summer, but Hermione had fallen in love with it so Starry left it to her to tend.
It was Halloween and Hermione was out in the garden, pulling bright colored squash and carrots from the earth and putting them into a basket. She loved the garden because it was the one time she allowed herself not to think of anything else but the present.
The pumpkins were wide and plump and bright, bright orange. She was cutting through the vines, planning to bring in a few. Some for carving and some for the pumpkin pie Starry wanted to bake.
The wind had a slight chill to it. She pulled her burgundy coat closer to her body. It felt a little shallow, but Hermione really loved the clothes she had here. They were well-made and tailored, constructed of the finest materials.
She heard the small garden shed's door shut. Hermione looked toward the sound to see Draco Malfoy. He was wearing a black wool coat and a green scarf flopping behind him in the wind. Draco slipped a pair of gloves onto his hand and lifted the rake that was leaning against the shed.
The grounds were covered in a layer of red and orange leaves. Draco ran the rake over the ground, piling the leaves.
"Nice day isn't it?" he said over the sound of the metal prongs scraping across the grass and leaves.
"Yes. Fall is great, isn't it?"
He nodded. Hermione didn't know why, but she didn't want their conversation to end there.
"Why are you raking? Couldn't you use a spell for that?"
Draco looked at her, one eyebrow raised. "Couldn't you use a spell for that?" He gestured to the garden. He was right. She could, but she did it to get away, to feel useful. That was one of the worst parts about being stuck in Malfoy Manor. She felt useless a lot.
"You should rake them into a big pile."
"Why's that?"
"So we can jump in them, of course."
"Why in Merlin's name would we do that?"
Hermione sighed and sat down the basket of vegetables she was carrying. "Because it's fun."
Draco grunted, but she could see he was smiling. "Looking like an idiot is fun?"
Hermione never thought she'd hear herself say this, but it was true. "Sometimes it is... can I help?"
"There's another rake in the shed."
Hermione jogged over to the shed and grabbed the other rake. She worked with Draco to push most of the leaves into a huge pile in the center of the ground.
"This is crazy, Granger."
She half-smiled at him. He looked down at her, uncertainty etched across his wind-blushed face. "Who are you afraid of looking stupid in front of? If you're right and we're never leaving. It's just me, Draco. And we might as well just enjoy ourselves.
"I don't usually enjoy things."
Hermione let out a quiet laugh. "I've noticed that... ready?"
"I don't know."
"Together?"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Fine."
Side by side, they sprinted across the grounds. Hermione breathed in the sweet autumn air as it rushed around her. For those ten seconds, nothing seemed to matter but the pure joy of the moment. She leaped and collapsed into the leaves, smelling the earthy scent and feeling their light scratches on her face.
Draco started laughing and the warm sound filled up the air. Hermione couldn't stop herself from laughing either. I was perfect abandonment. She hadn't felt that good since before the war.
"What is going on out here?" Starry's small voice rang like a bell from the back door of the manor.
"Nothing. Just acting like a couple of crazed muggles." Draco shook his head and stood, brushing the leaves off him. The sun lit his eyes and they looked like little silver stars. He reached his hand out to Hermione and she just stared at it. "You getting up?"
She nodded and placed her hand in his. Draco helped her to her feet.
"Come on, kids," called Starry. "I'm making apple cider."
Draco helped Hermione carry in the pumpkins and they sat them around the house. Draco stood in front a pumpkin in the foyer, flicking his wand at it and changing the face over and over.
"Can't decide?" asked Hermione, leaning against the wall, her hands wrapped around a mug of apple cider. It was warm and sweet. Perfect on her tongue.
"Which is scarier?" He flicked his wand at the pumpkin. "This." The little cut-outs rearranged to make the face of gruesome vampire. "Or this?" He flicked his wand again. It was... her.
"Hey that's mean." Hermione narrowed her eyes, but the grin on Draco's face...
"Take a joke, Granger," he elbowed her in the side. They hadn't been very friendly over the past few months, but the limited arguing had made things a little easier between them. And maybe it was just the holiday but they were having fun.
Hermione rolled her eyes and took a drink of her apple cider.
"Is that any good?" asked Draco.
Hermione nodded and before she could say anything. He took the mug and drank a big gulp. "Not bad."
He handed the mug back to her. She couldn't believe he just shared her drink. Didn't Draco used to find her dirty? A mudblood. Hermione also couldn't believe that she didn't mind.
"I miss Halloween at Hogwarts," sighed Hermione. She loved the huge feasts and the excited feeling in the air. Something crazy always happened to her, Ron and Harry on Halloween. Her stomach dropped. She really missed them.
Draco must have noticed the change in her demeanor because he asked, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Sorry."
Draco stared down at his Hermione pumpkin. "I rather like it. I think I'm going to keep it this way... you know? He do kind of live in a haunted house. There are worse places to be on all Hallow's eve?"
"I guess," she said.
"Did you know?" Draco slipped his wand into his pocket. "That there are catacombs under the house?"
"You're serious?" Hermione had never seen an entrance to these so called catacombs but she wouldn't put it past a place like this to have them.
"What do you say? Want to spend Halloween exploring the catacombs of one of the most historic buildings in the country?" He had mischievous grin on his face and Hermione had no idea how to say no.
Then a thought went through her mind. What if Collingsworth was right? What if the Fluxon Changer was there? She hadn't seen any evidence of it yet, but there was more to this strange place and Draco just offered to take her there. If they found the Fluxon Changer, they might have a chance of getting out of Malfoy Manor.
Ooo... I wonder what they shall find in the catacombs on Halloween night. Thanks for reading and reviewing. I hope everyone is enjoying this story. Let me know what you think :)