Hey guys! I didn't forget about this but I have been in a bit of a rut and so I didn't want to send out a chapter that I wasn't proud of. While I'm still iffy about this chapter and may revise it at a later time, I don't want to keep you guys waiting or prevent the story from progressing. Feel free to leave a comment with constructive criticism!
"It's been a month, Harry..."
Harry just finished warding their camp with the list of spells Hermione had left them when Ron spoke up, obviously distressed with what little progress they made. A sigh escaped him, and he folded the piece of paper, stuffing it into his pocket.
"You act like I don't know this…" Tension ran deep without Hermione at their side. They both had different ideas on how to find her and where to start. At this point, Harry was resigned in searching for her, not because he didn't want to, but time did not favor her or them for that matter.
"Listen, if she was taken by him, do you really think he'd keep her alive for this long?"
"Harry! Don't—"
"Don't what? Tell the truth?! We have a better chance of finding his horcruxes than we do her! Maybe if we hunted him down, he'll get reckless, maybe reveal something! But going in circles is getting us nowhere close to him or her."
Ron said nothing, but his ears burned red and his hands were balled into fists. Harry was surprised he hadn't hit him yet.
"Take out you know who and maybe we'll get her back. Remember our second year? We didn't have Hermione then either. I love her, Ron, same as you. But this is bigger than her, bigger than all of us… Maybe we should think about our next step carefully."
It pained him to say all this, but would Hermione want him to risk the fate of the world for her? She was usually their logical thinker, able to rationalize what they could not. Without her, Harry picked up the slack.
"You've changed, mate."
"Yeah, well… Everyone grows up eventually. At least with the horcruxes, we have a clue."
His hand gripped the fake necklace, the initials running through his mind. He wasn't sure where to start but part of him felt like it was time to go home, or, to the home that was left to him.
"Let's go to Grimmauld Place in the morning. Maybe Kreacher remembers something. The Black family had a history in the dark arts."
Ron couldn't look at him, but he nodded all the same before trudging off, kicking at the dirt and rocks. It wasn't like this was fun for him. He had to make tough decisions for them now, whether Ron liked it or not.
Harry took one more look at him before sighing and entering the tent for the night.
"Ah, Draco, come in! Don't be shy."
His voice pierced his very soul as he entered the study that had been turned into Voldemort's personal office. The man stood by the window, looking out of it as if he saw the world, not the sad garden filled with dying plants that was there. No one sought to rectify the smudge of death on their property and so it remained as it was.
"You asked for me, My Lord?"
"Yes, yes please sit. Relax."
Draco inched forward tentatively and slipped into one of the Chesterfield chairs. Nagini made her presence known by wrapping around it, partly resting on his feet. Fingers dug into the leather, his face remaining emotionless.
"How is the girl? Is she trusting you? Confiding in you?"
Draco paused, still curious as to why he tasked him with this job. Why did he want to get to know Hermione? Of all people? None of this made sense to him.
"She's… reluctant and cautious. As she should… We're not exactly her favorite people…"
A chuckle escaped the man and it put Draco on edge to think such a sound could be made by such an evil wizard.
"We've talked about trivial things. But… I don't know what you want me to get out of her. Why am I doing this…? Excuse me if I've spoken out of turn…"
Voldemort strode over to him, resting bony hands on his shoulders.
"I want to know how someone like her can be considered 'the brightest witch of her age'. I want to know why she can be so powerful and yet have parents who are so weak. I want to break her by giving her hope and then taking it away. I want to kill her spirit first before I kill her outright. Is that a proper explanation for you? I don't enjoy repeating myself."
As he spoke, his grip on Draco tightened and the boy could feel his heart beating faster than he thought possible. He released him and walked back around the desk to the window once more.
"Find out more about her family, her practices. Find her limits. I'll be evaluating her soon enough. You may leave."
Nagini removed herself from the chair and Draco slowly made his way to the door.
"Before you leave, let's give the girl something to worry about…"
Draco couldn't breathe. His body tensed and the pain that radiated from his very core enveloped him. Any strength he might have had left him and he crumbled to the ground, convulsing. His skin felt like fire and it felt like a thousand knives were stabbing him everywhere. It didn't take long before his silence turned to screaming.
Voldemort made his way to him, his wand pointed at him and a smile spread across his face.
"Dolohov, Rowle."
Both entered the room, refusing to glance down, most likely in fear that they may receive the same treatment.
"Take him away. Do whatever you want with him. Tell no one and then give him to the girl."
She didn't know how long she'd been there. It probably felt longer than it was. She was getting stir crazy, being stuck in a room for so long. She exercised when she felt weakness in her limbs and remembered books when she grew bored. There was nothing for her to do besides wait for Draco.
He visited more often now, not just to bring food. They argued over the classes at Hogwarts and which one was the best. At one point, she swore she saw him laugh. A genuine smile on his face was strange to see. He was handsome if he didn't scowl so often.
She shook herself out, smacking her head a few times. Thinking of him as an actual person would only cause her trouble. This whole scenario screamed of betrayal and treachery. She couldn't trust anyone, especially her caretaker.
Just as she resigned herself to the bed; walking around didn't seem to be doing her any good; Draco fell through the door in a heap, blood splattering on the carpet as he coughed. He shook in pain and she wasn't sure if a single part of him wasn't bloodied or bruised.
"Draco!"
She was at his side in a second, unsure if touching him would make things worse. What was bleeding and what had already stopped? Panic and questions filled her, but she had to remain calm, for Draco.
She didn't have a wand and just by looking at him, she assumed he didn't either. The dittany he had given her in the beginning was long since gone. Taking a deep breath, she rested her hands above him, focusing all her energy into her palms.
"Please… Please work… Tergeo..."
Slowly, the blood from his clothes and that which pooled at his wounds lifted from him and onto her hands. At least it allowed her to see what was still bleeding and she could assess him better. Wiping the blood onto the sheets, she slowly moved him making soft shushing noises as he groaned. Her heart ached hearing him in so much pain. Why had this happened? What had he done to anger them so much? Did he defend her?
Eyes scanned his body, finding every cut and bruise that she could. It seemed that he was mostly bruised, though whether there was internal bleeding, she couldn't tell. She wished for her bruising balm that Fred had given her and was thankful of what she learned from Madame Pomphrey after her second year. The healing magic would do well right now, so long as she could muster the energy to perform it wandless.
"Episkey."
She had no way of targeting a spot, so she hoped the general area would be affected by her hand as she waved that over his face first. She watched as his lip slowly stitched itself together as well as the cut above his left eye.
It took some time for her to heal the minor wounds that she could see. Each time he winced, she winced with him. It didn't take her long to realize that he had been under the cruciatus curse. His pain was mental from the way he flinched and shook.
Unable to imagine what he had endured, or why, she continued until he opened his eyes and began watching her carefully.
"You shouldn't… be able to… to do… so much…"
She was relieved to hear him speak and she released a heavy sigh.
"My second year, I was petrified by the basilisk. After that, I spent some time with Madame Pomphrey and she taught me some healing magic. I practice almost every day… Well, I did anyways."
She helped him sit up against the bed, brushing his hair from his face and making sure there wasn't anything she missed. He was still covered in bruises, but the cuts were healed, and he thankfully had no broken bones.
"You can do this without a wand…" His voice was barely a whisper and she had to lean in to hear him.
"Practice…"
"This was what he wanted… He wanted you to show this…"
She knew how difficult wandless magic could be and to accomplish so much at her age was unheard of. Was this what Voldemort wanted? To know her power? What was Draco thinking in this moment? She had so many questions, but could she even ask them? Was he listening to them or had he been listening all along?
"Don't ever… ever use your magic like this again. Not while you're here. I don't know exactly what he wants, but it has to have something to do with this."
He sounded stronger and while she was afraid of what he was saying, she didn't regret using her magic to heal him.
"What if he does this to you again?"
"I know what I said…"
Was he willing to be beaten like this for her? Would she have the resolve not to heal him? She was losing her mind in this room, expecting to be tortured or worse… And yet, Draco was the one bloodied on the floor, not her. The psychological effects of her experience here really took its toll and tears sprung to her eyes.
"Don't… D-Don't do that…"
She couldn't help it. She was afraid for her life. All the niceties of the past month had left her waiting for the end, constantly on edge. She had thought that she'd be tortured, beaten as she was when they snatched her. This sort of treatment was worse than she could imagine.
The tears slid down her cheeks as she bit down on her lip to try and stop herself. Showing vulnerability was the last thing she wanted to do.
"Stop crying… Stop!"
The louder his voice, the weaker she felt. She looked down and away from him so that even if she couldn't stop, he wouldn't have to see.
"Hermione…"
It was the first time he said her name and she faced him with shock. A hand reached out to brush tears from her cheek, a gentle thumb smoothing along her skin. Her heart jumped into her throat and heat rose to her cheeks. His fingers reached out, rubbing her curls between them before falling to his side.
"I need to rest…"
His words snapped her out of it and she pushed herself up to grab a pillow from the bed. There was no way he had the strength to leave for the night despite her healings. The best she could do was make him comfortable. If they wanted him, they'd retrieve him.
She put the pillow down and helped him slowly lower himself onto it, a groan here and there causing her to look away. He didn't fight her about staying, not that he had a choice. He fell asleep almost instantly and Hermione stayed on the floor with him, watching him sleep. It didn't take long for her to slowly drift off as well.