Chapter Seven
"The Boy Who Lived," Voldemort sneered, his red pupils glinting menacing in the night air. "Coming to Lord Voldemort to die." A soft chuckle escaped his mouth as he twirled his wand casually in his hand. Hermione felt her heart hammer against her ribcage as Voldemort glided closer to Harry. "Such courage, Potter. It's a shame that it must go to waste."
"No, no," Hermione murmured in her sleep, clenching her hands into fists. Her nails pressed painfully against her palms.
A jet of green light shot out of the wand in Voldemort's hand and hit Harry squarely in the chest. His body was blasted up in the hair and hung gracefully suspended in the air for a second, before crashing to the ground sickeningly. Hermione felt to her knees, clutching her hair in her hands. Shaking, she felt the sobs and screams ripping out of her chest.
"No! NO! Harry, oh god, no. NO!" Hermione's screams were choked as hot tears ran down her face, thrashing in her bed. She rolled around her bed, desperate to hold onto anything for support. She felt two strong hands around her wrists. Panic-stricken, Hermione opened her eyes and saw two bright red pupils hovering a foot in front of her. "Murderer!" She screamed, struggling against his hold and kicking him straight to the chest.
"Granger! Merlin, what the hell is your bloody problem?" Came a panicked voice. Hermione's gaze snapped back to where the two red eyes had been, but only say a pair of silver ones. Her breath came out in fast gasp, but she stopped struggling against Draco's grip. He pulled a chair next to her and sat down, winded from her kick. He rubbed his chest with one hand, holding both of her wrists in one hand, and winced as he felt a bruise bloom.
"What are you doing here, Malfoy?" Hermione's voice was a brave attempt at being cold, but Draco saw a few spare tears hanging on her lashes and the nail imprints in her palms.
Draco sighed and warily let get of her hands and scooted backwards from her. He didn't want to get punched tonight as well as kicked. "I heard you screaming." The tone of his voice was unfathomable, but Hermione saw silver fire blaze in the darkness.
"I was…screaming?" Hermione's voice floated out to Draco, broken and faint. Pain twisted her features and she hung her head in her hands. "What did I say?"
"'No, Harry, murderer,'" Draco listed off in a detached voice, but his usually iridescent grey eyes darkened. Hermione clapped a hand to her mouth and a few orphan tears escaped from the corners of her eyes. Draco sat perfectly still until Hermione calmed herself down by taking deep breaths, but his hands were clenched on top of his thighs.
"I'm sorry I woke you, Malfoy," Hermione said quietly, not looking at him. "I should have warned you –."
"Forget it, Granger. As long as it doesn't happen again," Draco replied dismissively. He rose to get up.
"Malfoy. 'It' happens… a lot," Anger and sarcasm colored Hermione's tone. "Just don't tell anyone about…it." A small smirk graced her features for a moment. "And if you do…you know I'll find out."
Draco sighed and ran his fingers through his ruffled blonde hair. His expression was severe which wiped the smirk off of Hermione's face. His eyes were enigmatic as ever and Hermione found it frustrating that his expression never matched what he really felt. The tension was palpable in his body and in his stance. "We have to leave at six tomorrow morning. Get some sleep – wouldn't want you falling asleep on the mission, Granger." With that, he swiftly exited the Hermione's room, softly closing the door behind him. Draco stood outside Hermione's door and leaned his back against the wood. He closed his eyes and forced himself to calm down. He would never admit it, but he hated seeing anyone cry. He never knew what to do, especially not with Hermione. To say that he had felt uncomfortable as he watched her relive Harry's death would be the understatement of the century. Draco let out another long breath and walked to his room, lying down on his bed. A regal brown and black mottled owl flew in through the open window and dropped a letter on Draco's chest. Painfully, Draco sat up and rubbed his eyes. Who would be sending him a letter at this time? Yawning, he opened the envelope and recognized the handwriting immediately. Blaise.
Draco,
I got Yaxley to pull some records on Granger. The most we found was that she checked out Time-Turners every week, but there isn't really a pattern to what days she took them out. I talked to Leenhoff and apparently she brought Time-Turners on the mission as well. If you're right, it looks like she's working on whatever business she's working on and this Greyback mission at the same time. That's all I've found out so far. You're right – they're really good. Will keep you posted.
I hope Granger hasn't hexed you yet.
Blaise
Draco smirked at his friend and rolled his eyes. Thank Merlin for the first piece of good news he had had for weeks. He would just have to find that bloody coin that Granger used 5th year. He would have to get her to trust him, somehow. From the way things were going, Draco wasn't sure how that was going to happen. Draco picked up his wand and flicked it once. A small flame ignited at the tip of it and Draco touched the flame to the paper. Satisfaction gleamed in his eyes as he watched the letter burn in his hands.
oOoOoOoOo
Hermione and Draco walked silently through the woods, careful not snap twigs or step on leaves. They were both cloaked by Disillusionment Charms and blended perfectly with their environment. There were large paw marks in the ground every few feet and Hermione felt icy fear shoot through her veins. She was thankful that Draco couldn't see her expression as they progressed through the forest. As the forest became more tangled and harder to navigate, the two of them decided to remove their Disillusionment Charms so they would know where the other was. The ground was splotchy with dried blood and an occasional limb littered the forest floor. Hermione felt herself turning green and glanced at Draco to see how he was holding up. When they stumbled across an arm she saw him swallowing hard before looking away. It felt as though they had trekked through the forest for days, looking for any sign of Greyback, when it had only been a few hours. Exhaustion set it, when suddenly they heard a cry a few feet away from them. Hermione's eyes shot up to Draco and he cocked a brow at her.
"Sounds like a kid," Hermione whispered.
"Could be a trick," Draco muttered back, but his body shifted towards the sound.
Hermione rolled her eyes and made her way toward the sound. She heard an exasperated sigh behind her, but was relieved to know that Draco had followed her. The duo made their way through the branches and thorns when they stopped in front of a clearing. There was a small girl with wide brown eyes and curly black hair playing with something in her hands. She couldn't have been more than three or four. Hermione felt the bile rise in her throat. Draco's eyes widened as he saw what the child was playing with and was grateful that Hermione hadn't identified what it was. It would have probably sent her over the edge.
"Stay here," Draco said hoarsely. Hermione opened her mouth to argue, but Draco clamped his hand over her mouth. "I mean it," He growled. Hermione closed her mouth and nodded, fearful of his sudden change in demeanor. She watched as Draco warily entered the clearing and walked towards the child slowly. Hermione forced herself to breathe easier while her chest constricted. Draco fluidly picked up the child and held her in his arms effortlessly. He was talking in a low voice to her, trying to convince her to leave her toy behind. Hermione squinted, but still couldn't see what the child was so attached to. Draco had managed pry the item out of the child's hands and the child showed every intention of crying. Hermione hastily shot a Silencing spell at the child while Draco pressed a long finger to lips and shook his head at the little girl. The girl bit her lip, but nodded her assent. Draco walked out of the clearing, still holding the girl, and his eyes were troubled. "Let's get out of here," He muttered darkly, not looking at Hermione.
"What was she holding?" Hermione asked softly, stroking the girl's curls.
Draco eyed her speculatively. His eyes were hard. "Her mother's finger."
Hermione swayed dangerously on her feet and Draco's eyes widened. He wrapped his arm around her waist and Apparated out of the forest and into their house before she could get sick on the forest floor. Hermione wrenched herself out of his grip and retched into the toilet, shaking violently. She heard Draco talking softy to the girl outside.
"Mama?" The little girl asked, puzzled. She held out her empty hands.
Draco felt pain shoot through his body as he saw the confusion the girl's eyes. He swallowed hard and forced himself to keep his voice level. "Mama's –." His voice shook and broke. He cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "Mama's not coming home."
