Chapter Eleven - Ready to Run, Hermione?
The wrought iron gates closed behind us and the front doors to the white building began to slowly open. There was a figure, tall and regal, standing in the center of the entryway. Their long blonde hair stood out against the dark robes and at first, I thought Lucius Malfoy was standing there ready to kill us. I could not believe my own emotions, I was petrified and for the very first time, I felt void of any bravery. 'So much for my Gryffindor spirit,' I sneered at my own behavior.
A single large hand found its way into my shaking one and I focused my attention towards the contact. Looking to my left, I noticed Thomas giving me a worried smile as he squeezed our hands together. My mind went back to when we were children and my mother would try to force us to separate because she felt it was inappropriate. No one knew -or rather no one could understand- our bond. I felt strong for a brief moment. Nothing else existed. But that moment had to be cut short, like every other good thing in my life.
"Draco! You are finally returning home!" the elegant, commanding, motherly voice that only Narcissa Malfoy could possess rang through the air as if she was next to our group instead of several meters away. It seemed like ages passed before she noticed the rest of the group, though, I figured she noted Draco's silence and decided to address us.
"Well, yes, come in. Do not touch anything that you are not given permission to. Hurry along. I do not wish to remain in this heat all day," the reluctance was obvious in her dismissive tone. At least she ushered us in and we were able to be that much closer to leaving.
I felt as if I had been dragged into the manor by the time we settled in the front room. It seemed as if we still had to wait a moment for Narcissa to return before she would allow our group to leave. Draco had taken to incanting several charms and spells to discover the manor's inhabitants and their locations. Other than the rather surprisingly small amount of house-elves, it seemed as if only Narcissa and one other inhabited the home. My fear only heightened at this news.
While I knew I could trust Draco to keep his mother from killing me, seeing as she treasured her only son's life, I could not guarantee that from Lucius. Logically, I knew Lucius was not in the picture, but my fears refused to allow me to believe logic. It was not until Narcissa returned that my fears ebbed slightly.
Standing just slightly behind Narcissa was a tall, pale, raven-haired young woman. The woman was dressed in elegant sangria robes with an onyx trunk levitating beside her. Her raven-haired was pulled back into a tight side-pulled fishtail braid with a simple white rose looped through the leather tie at the end. This woman was intimidating in beauty and I quickly looked at the three mates that were standing beside me. Relief washed over me as Charlie and George seemed completely uninterested in this woman's appearance, but it was Draco's reaction that permitted jealousy to settle in on top of the panic attack I was trying to refrain myself from falling into.
The blood rushing in my ears and the tension in my chest seemed to stabilize. It was difficult enough to handle these reactions towards my memories. My mind could not focus on reality for long, despite the slow deep breaths I continued to take. It had taken Draco's touch on my wrist to finally settle some of the tension in my chest and the pounding of the blood rushing in my ears ceased slightly, just enough to hear the conversation beginning.
"Mother, what is she doing here?" the cause of my jealousy stated, nodding his head at the beautiful woman. His eyes had quickly attempted to keep themselves averted from focusing on her and it was destroying me inside.
"Ah, yes… As you can see, Draco, darling, I will be accompanying you no matter where you lead me to. We are, after all, intended. Or did you forget your duties as the Malfoy heir?" the woman's voice was bubbly and light, but I knew that tone well enough. She was masking many other emotions, very much like her Slytherin counterparts.
"Rosie, we were never going to wed. We made that agreement as children. It will never happen. If you wish to accompany us, I will let my intended decide if she is willing. Though, know this, I am intended to Hermione Granger. She is my mate and there will be nothing you can do to tear that. Granger is quite literally my life-line, so, I must protect that at all costs," he stated emotionlessly before turning towards me and extending a hand. I took it gently, afraid to let go of Thomas and dragged my childhood best friend with me as I was tugged forward.
"This is my intended, Hermione Granger. Granger, meet Rose Selwyn, the last of her family. We grew up together here at Malfoy Manor as her parents died when she was barely a year old, much like Potter. Very much like Potter now that I think about it. Rosie never attended Hogwarts for the fear of Riddle finding her. She was sent to France with a nanny and attended Beauxbatons. As children, we used to pretend to wed, as it pleased Father and Mother. That is most likely where her delusions took root. Since I turned eleven, I had only ever seen her during our summer holidays to France or over Christmas hols. Pay no heed towards her influence on me, it has waned greatly over the years," my mate explained before I finally made eye contact with him.
"Draco Lucius Malfoy! You will not speak about Rosie as if she was some- some mudblood!" Narcissa's voice shrill and enraged. I shrank back into myself and tried to hide the flashbacks of Bellatrix. My body was beginning to violently shake and I could barely hear the world around me.
"Mother! You cannot speak in such a manner around Granger! It is hard enough for her to even be in this vicinity, but for her to step foot back into this forsaken manor, that took more bravery than our family has combined. I will not tolerate you belittling her further! Look what you have done!" Draco screamed before Charlie began to gain order.
"Draco, enough. We must remove Hermione from here, now. Bill, begin leading everyone. Hurry before Hermione loses her last grain of sanity. Everyone, remember where we must go. Bill, silence the grate, that way we can keep our location secret. Now, move!" the dragon tamer demanded.
Sure enough, Bill immediately followed through and George entered the grate, green flames engulfing him. And so it went, one by one, everyone began following their order and going through the emerald flames without fussing, apart from Draco. He refused to leave before I was safe. Just before I was tugged towards the grate, I heard Rosie call out to us.
"As you wish Draco, I will ask your intended before she leaves," her bubbly voice was beginning to annoy me, but that only got worse once her attention was directed towards me. "Miss Granger, would you mind terribly if I joined Draco on your foray?" This was my final straw. I turned back and glared at the blasted woman.
"You are not welcome," Charlie came to my defense quickly as tears poured down my face. I could not handle this any further. A pair of strong arms guided me towards the fireplace grate and into it.
"Remember, Weasley Cottage," Bill whispered into my ear before extending the pot of floo powder and encouraging me to take a handful. I nodded and took one last look at Narcissa and Rosie before I dropped the floo powder and called out my destination.
As soon as my feet met solid brick, I stumbled forwards and straight into another pair of arms. My sight was clouded by the tears, but I could hear and feel myself being picked up and brought away from the entry point.
"Molly still has not returned, but Fred is here somewhere. Minsy just confirmed it with Blaise. But, until Hermione calms down, we may not be able to leave regardless. She needs a clear mind in order to create those sickles. We need to come up with a plan to rescue Fred and to protect Hermione at the same time," Thomas spoke to what seemed like no one. There were no responses and I felt myself being laid onto a soft sofa before a gentle kiss was placed on my forehead.
"Thomas, you can do wandless magic, can you not?" George asked.
"I can to a degree use it, yes. Casting shields and simple conjuring, those are about all I know. Why?"
"Trying to figure out how best you would be suited for this. Seems like protecting Hermione is not an option for you, so you will help find Fred. A shield charm is more effective that way. As for everyone else, we are still waiting on Malfoy and elder brothers. I hope nothing is going wrong," George replied with a hint of alarm in his voice.
"George, it will be fine. Until they come, we must focus on protecting Hermione. Blaise, you watch the front door. George, watch the rear door. Thomas, you and I will focus on the fireplace," Ginny called out orders and no one seemed willing to argue.
My tears slowly diminished and left my face feeling tight from the salt drying on my skin. I knew my eyes were most likely red and swollen, but I could not care any less. Sanity was becoming prominent again and I was welcoming it openly. The floo had roared to life twice more before anyone commented.
"Where is Bill?" Ginny asked the two males that had just come through.
"He told us to continue on and he would apparate here. That Rosie girl is in the middle of a duel with him. We left when we witnessed Bill disarm her and Narcissa. He should be arriving any moment. Narcissa had called for an elf to contact the Ministry and close her floo, so we needed to rush. Bill knows this cottage's location, he can apparate, so that is the path we chose. Until then, we are to find Fred or hold off mum. Whichever was required. No sign of mum?" Charlie finished out of breath from his long winded reply.
"No, Molly is not here. But we cannot be certain how much longer. Minsy reported the moment I got here. Molly remains at Grimmauld Place where Arthur appeared with several hexes and deformities. Most likely his way of protecting himself and us. She was last seen nursing him as he attempted to have her escort him to St. Mungo's. Minsy will inform us if anything alters," Blaise interjected before looking down at me.
"Hi, Blaise," I weakly spoke.
"Hello, Asteriae. Feeling better?" the dark man inquired.
"A little. Can we find Fred please? I want to get out of here," my throat croaked out.
"Of course, Asteriae. Anything for you," he smiled and turned his attention to everyone else. "Anyone have a plan for finding the missing twin? We should get that done and be prepared to leave the moment the eldest Weasley arrives".
"Ay, Blaise, Thomas, and George, you lot will remain with Hermione. Malfoy, Ginny, you two pair up and search upstairs. I will search downstairs. If you notice anything off, summon your Patronus. I will do the same. Ready?" Charlie called out before guiding Draco and Ginny away from us.
"No need to worry, Hermione. We are here," George tried to smile, but I could see he was just as worried as I was.
"Let's wait and see what happens. Asteriae, can you and Thomas watch the fireplace? George and I will watch the doors," Blaise patted my shoulder before turning away.
I trained my attention at the fireplace and listened for any disturbances that could be going on above and below us. Other than the occasional creak of the wooden floor, there was no sign of distress. Two sets of feet descended back down the stairs and began scouting each room on the main storey. The sounds of Charlie's footsteps were overtaken by those of Draco and Ginny's own footsteps. My concern dissolved the moment I spotted Charlie emerging from the basement and catching up with two still searching.
"We think he is silenced, but have not tried to locate him using 'Homenum Revelio'. Malfoy just realized we could do that and it would help us," Gin explained to Charlie. Of course, it was brilliant; it would reveal any human presence.
"Well, let's try it. Malfoy, the honors?" Charlie inclined his head towards Draco.
"Homenum Revelio". A soft sweeping of air flowed through my body and I noticed it heated up just slightly. As I looked around, I noticed it was similar to thermal imaging. Everyone that was human had a red glow to them with a blue core. We all looked around and counted nine people within twenty-five meters, that included us, plus Fred and Bill, hopefully.
"We will go towards that room on the far end. You lot," Charlie pointed towards the couch I was still resting on, "focus on that front door. It could be Bill, but be vigilant!" He took the lead and charged towards the room on the opposite end of the cottage.
"Fred!" The shriek of Ginny was heard throughout the dwelling.
A shuffle was heard from the direction of Ginny's voice just as the front door opened. Wands out, our focus trained our wands towards the door. Bill stepped inside, cautiously.
"First time I ever met you, Bill?" I asked, repeating the methods of verification we used in the Order.
"The day you arrived for the Quidditch World Cup. I was visiting mum and dad for the same event," the redhead replied before I lowered my wand.
"We think the others found Fred a moment ago. Do you mind if we head that direction? I would feel safer if we were all together," I questioned Bill.
"Yes, we should stick together. Fleur has sent a Patronus, mum is on the move. She is visiting Fleur as we speak, so we need to get you out of here. Her next place will be here," Bill waved his arms to get us moving.
I began to stand and found that I was too weak to hold my own weight. George ran to my side and lifted me before cradling me into Thomas's arms. With no one to hold us back now, we made our way towards the room. It felt strange to be in Thomas's arms, but I understood why. Every wand was important and since Thomas would not be gaining his wand back soon, he would be carrying me.
Taking this time, I summoned two galleons from the beaded bag and began charming them into portkeys. We were to use them the moment all of us were together. I thought about the best location for our next destination and settled on Snowdonia, it was where I first learned to ski as a child. I knew that it would be safe for the time being. We would need to move often after this.
I had barely finished charming the galleons when Bill opened the door to the room in which Fred was and the others had gone. Peering inside, I spotted Draco trying to hold Ginny back from Fred. Charlie had been working with his wand and Fred looked as if he had spent a year or two in Azkaban. This explained the door being closed and the shuffling. Fred's life seemed all but drained from him and it broke my heart.
"Bill, help me with this. It is a curse and I am jank with these things," Charlie briefly looked over his shoulder. Bill obliged immediately and Charlie took the opportunity to close and seal the door. A silencing charm was placed around the room and I realized just how much Charlie was hiding from me in that moment. The realization did not ease my discomfort of being around everyone. They had betrayed me at one point or another since we went on the run, Thomas excluded, he had done so nearly a decade earlier.
I slumped out of Thomas's arms and shakily made my way to Fred. I knelt down in front of him and placed my hand on his cheek.
"Fred, come back to me," I cried.
It seemed as if it was slowly working. Fred looked into my eyes and I saw pain. Pain beyond comprehension. He had been tortured. I knew that pain, I saw it in myself for this last year. Taking my wand, I summoned a Pain Potion and eased it into his mouth. Fred swallowed it all and slowly, his eyes began to clear. Throwing the vial to the side of the room, I took his hand in my own and kept calling his name.
A sound outside of the room startled everyone. Not a soul within these four walls failed to jump at the loud 'bang'. We knew we were out of time and had to move. I handed Bill one of the galleons and unbound the rope around Fred, holding the other galleon in my wand hand.
"Bill, take Fred, Thomas, and Draco. I will take Charlie, Ginny, George, and Blaise. Just wait for it to heat up. All you need to do is focus on the danger and have everyone touching the galleon. It will activate immediately, so be prepared," I stated as I was surrounded by the four I would take with me. We each held a small area of the galleon and focused hard enough. The galleon warmed and we were pulled together in the portkey just as we witnessed the other group doing the exact same thing.
Landing on a soft mound of grass, everyone took in the scenery. Right now, we would breathe, but we knew this would not last long. The beautiful green scenery would quickly become wooded and charmed. Making our way down the tall hill, we spotted the edge of the forest close to us. It began just before the bottom of the hill.
"We will go in at least a kilometer before setting up the tent. Once we deem we are far enough in and away from muggles, Charlie and Bill, please set up the charms to repel them. As well as the protection spells you both know," I smiled softly to seem confident before I began to feel weak again.
Crying had taken its toll and I was being carried, yet again. Draco had cast a Feather-Light Charm on me before picking me up. George had done something similar with Fred, who despite gradually regaining his conscious, was still too far gone to walk on his own for any period of time. Everyone was carefully maneuvering through the forest and we had gone a little more than a kilometer before the perfect spot had been found.
Fred and I were set down next to one another. I summoned my knapsack from my beaded bag and began sorting through it for the tent while Charlie and Bill set up the wards. It took me a moment, but I had the tent out and watched both George and Draco work together to set it up. Blaise and Ginny had agreed to clear out the area and prepare a stack of wood for our use. Thomas sat on the other side of Fred and kept him from falling over. An hour later, we were all inside on the couches and armchairs recollecting today.
A lot had changed. Thomas had shown up, the Weasley men went missing, a rescue party had been formed, I learned of Molly's plans, Narcissa and Rosie were quite enlightening on their feelings towards me, and finally, all four of the Weasley men that went missing were now found and safe, and we were now, officially, on the run.
It was not until shortly after the sun set that we even thought about food again. Blaise summoned Minsy and asked him to make a simple supper out of the food we had brought. With a quick bow, the elf went on his way and we ate a delicious roast. For the first night since this ordeal began, I felt somewhat at rest. I was going to enjoy this because who knew when I could experience this again.
-Author's Notes-
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