Hello Lovely Readers!
Here's the next bit. You'll all be happy to know that I got a merit for my speech and I'm now on holiday so you could be getting quite a few updates over the next few days.
Happy Reading!
Disclaimer: I own nothing of this magical world
Chapter Fourteen: So small as a memory
As the days went by and no owl came to deliver the next trial date, every occupant of Hermione's household became increasingly paranoid. Lucius took to pacing in his room when he was not called into Hermione's office where she had now taken residence in a pile of paperwork. Rabastan had taken to flying around the large garden and in the forest next to the house to abate his nerves and Severus had become even more vigorous with Aria's lessons, not only teaching her potions but taking over her tutelage all together now. Harry and Lavender had taken to drinking several cups of tea or coffee within an hour or cleaning the hell out of every surface inside. When Hermione had told them that the attic was in desperate need of a scouring they had both jumped at the chance and only returned to make dinner. Even then they fidgeted with every piece of silver they could get their hands on and polished it several times over. This entire trial had the house on edge. The only thing that made it any easier was Draco sending his revised witness list to her some days after the trial…
Granger
Revised list attached. Send your list to the Manor as soon as possible.
D.M
Short, instructive and very revealing of his state of mind. He was just as stressed out as everyone else. Hermione had a feeling that his team was doing just as badly as her own. As she looked down at the list he had sent she realised that there were only a few amendments. Lucius had been taken off almost all of the charges and so had most of the attending Aurors. She frowned when she saw the Ron was still on the Death Eater and Terrorism list but half of the others had been removed. Either Malfoy was leaving him there just to annoy her or he had something really good up his sleeve as far as Ron was concerned. Considering her talk that she had had with him a while back now she wouldn't be surprised if it was the latter. Along with the amended list came reasons as to why they had been crossed off. This part of the document was not as official as the list and so Draco had felt free to write his comments in which ever way he pleased.
Alistair Borgin...Thought his shop was more important than justice.
Grinbo…agoraphobic, prefers the mines beneath Gringots
Thork…Another Goblin with a grudge against wizards. At least Grinbo was original
Dribble…since freed can't be arsed doing anything but sitting by a pool in New Caledonia sipping butter beer martinis.
She had to admit that the last one made her laugh. Thank Merlin for Lavender and her quick thinking. She always knew that girl had a brain…even if it was in her knickers. Hermione hadn't failed to notice Lavender's increasing stress, even when it was minimal when they had first started on this crazy ride, it had been obvious that the girl was having a few withdrawal symptoms. She had never known Lavender to drink or smoke or do drugs and she had all the healthy and not so healthy food alternatives at her very fingertips so it drew Hermione to the conclusion that there was only one thing that she could possibly be missing. As she sat across from Rabastan in her office with a slight smirk as she looked up at him…she could only say that this was an advantage. Not only was Lavender far more focused when she was sexually frustrated she also exerted…femininity. There were only three single men in the house; one was her former Professor so she wouldn't go there and another was on trial. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the third except for the occasional need for a personality transplant in Hermione's opinion and as far as she could remember, she owed him a great favour for his assistance in this trial.
"Have you got Creevey's murder sorted?" Rabastan suddenly asked her. She put down her quill and rubbed her hand over her eyes.
"Yes," she answered tiredly, "Chang is up for a mighty fall when you question her."
"I wish you would do it."
"You know I would love nothing more than to be the immediate cause of her shame and humiliation," Hermione told him, "But I need to keep the crowd on my side. You have to remember that I'm the one presenting the Death Eater arguments."
"Yeah I know," he said, "Have you actually got your Death Eater argument sorted?"
"Yeah," she said after a yawn, "I don't know how well everyone's going to take it though. It's one hell of a pill to swallow."
"We'll find a way to get it through their thick skulls," Rabastan smiled, reaching over and resting his hand on top of hers, "We're in the right here. Now what about the Cooper case?"
She suddenly gave a great heavy sigh and moved over to her liquor cabinet, retrieving two glasses and a bottle of fire whisky before sending off her revised witness list to Draco. She then sat back across from Rabastan and gave an annoyed scowl.
"That one is the next one up and it's the only one he refuses to talk about it," she said frustratedly.
"What do you mean he refuses to talk about it?" Rabastan asked her in state of muted shock.
"What I mean is that every time I ask him he changes the subject and every time I push him he walks out the door to either prevent himself from spilling the beans of biting my head off," she replied taking a large gulp of amber liquid.
Rabastan paused for a few moments and looked up at her meaningfully. When he caught her eye she shook her head and screwed up her face.
"No," she said, "It's not possible."
"He was under the Dark Lord's control for a long time-"
"But an eight year old? Come on Rabastan, why would Voldemort make him rape an eight year old girl?"
"Punishment perhaps?" He asked as he stood and began pacing, "The Dark Lord was very creative in that department."
"But what for?"
"That I can't answer," he told her with a shake of his head, "I can't get inside Malfoy's head any more than you can."
She took another sip of whisky before turning back with him.
"Who else was out of favour with Voldemort in 1998?" She asked, placing her glass back on the desk.
"I know Bella was because of the whole Gringotts debacle," he told her, "And because she let you lot escape. Come to think of it I think that may have been Malfoy's fault in his eyes too."
"Who else?" She pressed.
"I think Greyback had fallen from grace too," he continued, "And then there was Avery-"
"Avery?" She asked, "What for?"
He shrugged.
"I can't remember," he said, "I know it was for something pretty bad but- hey! Where are you going?"
She didn't answer. She simply walked out the door and almost ran into Lucius' room where he was sitting with Severus and a refillable bottle of mead.
"I can't do it Severus it would- Miss Granger? What can I do for you?"
She paused slightly and looked at Severus before looking back at Malfoy. Severus made to get up but she stopped him.
"Don't Severus," she said, "I won't be here long. I just need to ask a question or two of Mr Malfoy."
Lucius inclined his head, telling her to ask away and she stepped further into the room.
"With the Cooper case," she said slowly, "Is this one of those things where I need to go elsewhere and figure it out myself so that I'll believe it?"
"No," he said curtly.
She stepped even further into the room and took a deep breath.
"Would you like me to save you some pain and go elsewhere anyway?" She asked quietly.
He stared at her blankly for a few moments until he realised that she had caught on somewhat to his declining mood every time Melanie Cooper was brought up in their sessions. Severus looked at Lucius for a few moments as if asking whether he should leave or not but Lucius shook his head, standing himself and then leaving the room. He walked straight past Hermione without another word and she closed her eyes in frustration.
"It does not matter what you do Miss Granger," Severus told you, "You will never spare him pain."
"Not when he's so unwilling to co-operate with me, no," she half yelled, "I won't be able to do anything for him if he keeps acting like this. I knew the whole obedient little dog act would wear off but come on Severus! Even you have to admit that this is ridiculous."
"He's a Malfoy," he rolled his eyes, "Malfoys are born rich, pompous, dramatic and yes, ridiculous."
"It's starting to get old," she told him flatly.
"You need to get used to it," he retorted, "Lucius is a very private man and this trial is forcing the secrets he has fought so hard to keep out into the public where they do not belong. He's going to be difficult so get over it."
She gave another frustrated sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. She then looked up at Severus, almost pleading for his help.
"Do you know what happened to Melanie Cooper?" She asked quietly.
"Yes," he said, "I believe I'm one of the very few he told. The only others who would know are the ones who were there and Narcissa."
"I'm not going to Narcissa," she told him firmly, "With her having been there at the trial the press will be all over her and I can't risk them finding out what's going on. Who else was there?"
Severus said nothing, clearly communicating that she wouldn't get anything more out of him. She gave another huff.
"Fine then," she said indignantly, "I'll go on a hunch."
***
She entered the shack without hesitation this time around, instantly taking a seat on one of the chairs by the magical fireplace. She didn't even flinch when Avery pointed his wand at her.
"Don't you Gryffindorks ever knock?" He asked her impatiently.
"No we don't," she said quietly, "We have no sense of personal space whatsoever."
"What do you want now?" He asked her as he lowered his wand, "I'm in a bit of a hurry."
"Why?" She asked, "Where do you have to be?"
"I'm moving safe houses," he told her, "These things are only built to feed you for so long."
She felt her phone vibrate within her pocket and took it out to see that Harry was calling her. She placed it on the table and let it keep vibrating until Harry got her answering machine. Avery looked at her funnily for a few moments but said nothing.
"Make sure that Malfoy can still find you so that I'm able to get to you when the time comes for you to testify," she said firmly, "Otherwise I won't be able to help you off your charges."
He gave a grunt and a nod before he resumed his previous activities of packing and wand waving. She watched him in his rush, calmly pouring herself another glass of whiskey from his cabinet.
"Do you know exactly what Malfoy's been charged with?" She asked him.
"I don't know, nor do I care at this stage," he said, his back still to her.
"Six counts of individual murder," she told him.
He snorted.
"Malfoy never got individual victims," he told her with a smirk, "And if he did he passed them on to the others. Hated getting his hands dirty."
"Many counts of Death Eater Activities and Terrorism too," she told him.
"Not surprised," he shrugged.
"Also a count of Hippogriff theft," she informed him.
He scoffed once more.
"Please," he rolled his eyes, "If Lucius wanted a Hippogriff that badly he could just have easily bought one."
Her phone started to vibrate again with a call from Harry again but she ignored it. She could see that Avery was looking at it apprehensively until it stopped moving again.
"And then there are three charges of rape."
Avery instantly stopped what he was doing and stared at the wall ahead of him, making sure to keep his back to her. He knew something. He knew why she was here now. She stayed in her seat with stoic eyes and stared at his back where his head hung low.
"The first was Georgina Everstein," she pressed, "They say he got to her while she was shopping in Hogsmeade. Dragged her up to a cave and had his wicked way with her."
She could see his breathing become unsteady as she went on.
"Then there was Crystal Clearwater who we dealt with at the last hearing," she told him, "She was a bit of a joke but convincing to some all the same. Said she had an affair with him and when she tried to end it he got a little violent."
He stood up straight, his head still bowed, knowing exactly what was coming next.
"Next up is Melanie Cooper," she said quietly, "Eight years old at the time of her attack. Beaten, tortured and raped for hours on end. No one around to help her, no one to pick up the pieces. She was right near death when she was dropped off at St Mungo's-"
"Stop," he suddenly said, "Just stop."
She stood quickly from her seat and walked over to him, a heavy look in her eyes.
"He won't tell me about it," she said to him as she spun him around to face her, "He won't tell me what happened and I can't defend him if I don't know what happened."
"I suspect that he doesn't want you to defend him for this one," he said quietly, "He might want his freedom but not at her expense."
"You know," she said daringly, placing her hands on his shoulders and shaking him, "I know that you know. You have to tell me."
"No," he said flatly, pushing her away from him.
"Why not?!" She yelled, "How the hell do you Death Eaters expect me to help you if you don't-"
"I don't want you to help me at all!" He yelled back, "I want you to leave so that I can leave!"
"Fat chance Avery," she spat, "I'm through being polite so either give me a memory or start talking!"
She made her point by quickly drawing her wand. She had had enough of this Death Eater crap! She didn't care that they were innocent! She didn't care that they were probably in pain! If they wanted her to do her job properly they had to start talking! She was starting to lose her mind!
"Put your wand down Granger," he said quietly.
"Not until you give me what I need," she said fiercely.
"Will you be able to handle it though?" He asked her.
She felt unsteady for a moment, her anger softening as she looked at him strangely. Her phone suddenly went off again, this time from Lavender and once more she ignored it. Avery gave a frustrated growl and picked up the damned thing, opening it up and putting it to his ear.
"She's not going to answer," he told them on the other end, "So stop bloody calling!"
Then he hung up.
"What did you mean before?" She asked guardedly, completely ignoring the fact that he knew how to use a phone.
"There's more than one reason why Lucius can't speak of it," he told her, ignoring it too, "More than one reason I think this will do you more harm than good."
"Are you going to start talking or not?" She asked him coldly.
He gave a great sigh with a few mutters of "Bloody Malfoy" and slowly pulled out his wand. With a heavy heart he drew it to his temple and extracted a silvery substance that was neither liquid nor gas. A memory. Hopefully the one she wanted. He quickly summoned a crystal vial from the other room and placed the memory inside. He then turned to her with a cold hard look.
"This is my greatest shame," he said to her coldly, "Lucius' most painful memory. If you misuse-"
"Why would I do that?" She asked him quietly, "I'm here to help you not ruin you."
"All the same-"
BOOM!
And everything went black.
***
"Granger! Granger! Where are you?!"
Her head was pounding as she groaned lightly, heat engulfing her every limb. She could feel the fire the explosion had created dancing around her, circling her like a predator waiting to pounce. She couldn't move. Her limbs heavy, her eyes unwilling to open. She was completely helpless where she was. She couldn't even speak to answer the voice that was calling her name. Was it really there? Was that tiny ray of a hope a figment of her imagination? Some cruel illusion brought on by the sudden blow to her head?
"Granger!"
She felt someone's hands on her arms, shaking her. She groaned again. If it was an illusion it was a very painful one. Pain. It couldn't be an illusion if she could feel pain! She slowly found the strength to open her eyes. She saw red. Literally. Blood lined her vision. She was bleeding. It definitely wasn't an illusion now. A shadowy figure wiped her eyes and her vision improved if only slightly.
"S-Severus?"
"Can you walk?" He asked her. She shook her head.
"Where's Avery?"
"Dead," he replied as he picked her up in his arms and taking out his wand. She saw Avery's body lying some meters away from where she had been.
"The body," she coughed out, "Grab the body."
"What the hell for?" He asked her.
"Do-do it."
He gave a frustrated growl and flicked his wand in its direction and levitated him behind them. He then moved quickly through the burning rubble with more agility than she had ever seen him use, not even in the final battle was he that quick. With smoke filling their lungs, they managed to get out of the shack and stumble a few yards away before the magical safe house exploded fully. The force of it knocked them to the ground, Severus shielding Hermione with his body as they hit the muddy forest floor. When the debris had finished flying he slowly lifted himself from her and turned her over to look up at him once more.
"You alright?" He asked her. She nodded mutely after giving him a few coughs.
"Do you feel well enough to apparate?" She nodded again. He picked her up once more and added a hand to the body of Carlos Avery before transporting them back to the gardens of her estate. Once there several people came running out of her house to find her in a bloodied semi conscious state.
"What the hell happened?!" Harry's voice bellowed. Severus didn't answer him. He walked straight past and handed her over to someone she couldn't see. They took her into the house where it was quiet and Severus barricaded everyone else outside before coming in to join them. They laid her on what was unmistakably her kitchen table.
"She has dark magic written all over her," Severus told them, "From the way the hide out exploded I'm thinking Fiend Fire."
"She wasn't the intended target," she heard Lucius' voice say as his hands moved over the wound on her head, chanting as he went. She felt a warming sensation over her bloodied brow and her skin instantly began to knit back together. She felt a cool wash cloth run over her newly repaired skin as they continued to talk.
"She may not have been the intended target but whoever did this enjoyed having her as a bonus prize," Severus told him, "She's reeking of dark magic. We need to find out what spells were used and quickly."
She felt a warm hand over her decollate as it grabbed a hold of the black poison she had bought from Crispin Forster all those years ago.
"She was lucky that this didn't shatter on impact," she heard Lucius mutter as he took it away from her and set it beside her head where she could almost see it.
Then all talking ceased and the two concentrated fully on what they were doing. Severus forced several potions down her throat and Lucius continued to chant, healing her broken bones and bruises.
"Magicus Revealio," Lucius said calmly. She felt her body turn cold as ice and she shivered uncontrollably.
"Nightmare Hex," Severus whispered, as though making a note of it.
Her body suddenly went from icy cold to blazing hot in a matter of seconds. She began to sweat and was relieved when the cool cloth came over her forehead once more.
"Memory Demolisher," Lucius muttered.
Then the pain started all over again. Thousands of knives stabbing her all over her body, her mind racing as she screamed for it to stop over and over and over again.
"Cruciatus," they muttered together. And then the pain stopped. She rested against the table top once more and opened her eyes to them. They looked slightly stunned that she was able to do so. She breathed heavily as she sat up and almost collapsed again but Lucius held onto her tightly around the waist. She leaned back into him and tried to stop seeing double before she got off the table and stumbled slightly. All the while Lucius would not let go.
"Where do you think you're going," he asked her lightly as he picked her up completely to stop her from getting away.
"To find out what the hell happened," she said in between deep breaths. Her eyes were glowing with what could only be described as murderous rage. Lucius gave a slight nod to Severus who moved out of her vision.
"We already know what happened," he told her quietly as he sat down in a chair and left her in his lap, "At least we have strong suspicions in any case."
She leaned into him, too tired to really care who she was sitting on. He was too comfortable for his own good and it wasn't like he himself was uncomfortable. Severus came back into the room, stopped slightly at the sight of them sitting on a chair together but said nothing as he came into view with the Evening Prophet.
"What does the paper have to do with it?" She asked them quietly.
"A great deal," Severus told her, "Are you able to read the headline?"
Hermione slowly took the paper from his hands with a slight scowl and focused her eyes as much as she could on the front headline.
Witness lists released: Secrets behind the Defence and Prosecution cases for Lucius Malfoy Revealed!
Her eyes widened in fear and she leapt from Lucius' lap immediately, completely forgetting her physical state. Lucius instantly caught her once more as she fell back onto him. She focused her eyes completely on Severus
"It's why Potter was trying to get a hold of you," he told her, "Why he and Miss Brown called you so many times. I take it Avery was the one who picked up?"
"You need to get all my witnesses inside my house where I know they're safe!" She half yelled at him, "Have Harry bring Ginny as well. If they're attacking witnesses who knows what they'll do to the wives of body guards."
"Do you have enough room for them all?" Severus asked.
"We'll find room," she told him, "Now go!"
Within seconds, Hermione could tell that only she and Lucius were the ones left inside the house. No doubt Severus had employed the help of the other three to get everyone in her house safely. She felt Lucius shift slightly beneath her but he did not move to shift her off of him. He held her firmly in place so that she would not slide from his lap onto the floor.
"Perhaps you had best get some rest," he told her, "A lot of explaining will have to be done once the others get here."
"No," she told him firmly, "Only my body is weak. I need to look at Avery's body."
She felt him shudder slightly.
"Are you able to help me with that?" She asked almost tentatively, "It needs to be done. I have some questions that need answering."
She felt him give a stiff nod from behind her and place her on the chair while he went outside to grab Avery. He came back seconds later with the floating body right behind him. He placed it on the table where she had once been and then moved over to help support her so that she could see him. Avery was just as bloodied and battered as she had been but ten times worse. Before she looked at him properly her eyes found her poison sitting beside his head. She conjured a new chain for it out of thin air, seeing as the old one appeared to have broken and wrapped it around her neck once more.
"And who is that intended for?" Lucius asked her.
"No one who's alive now," she said back before turning back to Avery, "Would you mind turning him over for me?"
Lucius used a steady hand and flicked it once so that the body rolled over onto its stomach. Several long gashes were there, fresh, angry and raw. Younger versions of those she had seen on another not too long ago.
"Have you ever seen anything like this before?" She asked Lucius. He peered down at the lacerations with an inquiring gaze, careful not to drop her as he leaned forward over the body.
"I've only ever known one man to make those kinds of marks," he told her gravely, "And only at the full moon. But Greyback is safely behind bars."
"Perhaps another werewolf?" She asked.
"No other werewolf would know where the safe house was," he shook his head, "Come to think of it, not even Greyback knew where the safe house was."
"Then whoever did this to me and to Avery has to be some kind of Animagus or Metamorphagus," she said quietly before screwing her face up in concentration, "Why can't I remember his face? I know it was a he, I know he attacked me after he had dealt with Avery. What I don't remember is was he looked like."
He stared at her for a few moments before he remembered the Memory Demolishing Charm that had been placed on her moments before Severus found her unconscious in the shack.
"The reason you can't remember who attacked you is because of a particular dark memory charm that your attacker used," he told her.
"Memory charms aren't dark though," she stated, "They simply block a memory from one's consciousness and push it to the back of one's mind."
"The reason this one is so dark is because it cuts a memory from your mind, literally," he told her, "In your case a particular piece of the memory. You will never remember what he looked like unless you see him again."
"So he's taunting me then?" She asked, suddenly cold, "Dangling the answer in front of my face?"
"So it would seem," Lucius told her, "And there are very few who would do such a thing to you, most of them Death Eaters who were loyal to the Dark Lord from the beginning…most of them still in prison. What do you remember?"
She searched inside her head, finding pieces of images, hazy, cloudy snippets of memory. Still pictures and moving glimpses of static.
"Pieces," she said to him, screwing her face up in concentration, "The explosion…Avery being tortured…Passing out…Pain, lots and lots of pain…and then nothing. I can see a body, a man, every time I try to remember…but no face to put to it."
"Whoever used the charm was very effective then," he muttered before turning back to her, "Do you need to look at the body any more?"
"No," she said as she shook her head, "I think this may be coincidence more than anything else. There's no way that Bellatrix's death and Avery's are related. I'll floo the minister once my guests arrive and tell him what's happened."
Lucius gave her a curt nod and carried her into the lounge where he seated her on his lap once more and again she did not complain. It just seemed so natural at the time, so right. There was no point in trying to move when he seemed so intent upon keeping her there, keeping her safe personally.
"What did you go to Avery for?" He asked her quietly.
"To go and get answers," she told him honestly, "Neither you or Severus would speak to me so I went to go and get what I wanted from someone else."
He stiffened slightly and looked away from her but did not push her away as she expected him to.
"And did he give them to you?" He asked with a slight tone of fear, reluctance for what he might hear in return.
In answer, she pulled out the crystalline vial from her pocket. She felt him swallow from behind her and shudder slightly. This memory, what ever he had done within it, whatever Avery remembered, he clearly did not want her to see it.
"Hermione," he whispered uneasily, "That memory-"
"Is obviously something you aren't proud of," she cut him off, turning slightly to stare at him, "But I know that what ever you did, you had no choice but to do it. If I don't witness this then I can't attest that you weren't responsible."
He looked away from her. Perhaps Avery had been right. Maybe he didn't want her to defend him on this charge. She turned his face back to her with the tips of her fingers and stared him directly in the eye. Her gaze was soft when met with his cold hard stare, something that she had come to see as a defence mechanism in the time that she had truly gotten to know him. He didn't mean to be so harsh. It was just all she knew.
"Lucius," she whispered, his given name sounding foreign on her tongue, "What will I see in this memory?"
His gaze softened slightly but not all that much as he answered with heavy words of what sounded like guilt.
"Things that I would rather forget," he told her, "Things that you will wish to forget when you see it."
She was about to respond when she was cut off by the floo. Severus walked through with Narcissa and Blaise right behind him. He stopped in mid stride when he saw them together on the couch but said nothing. Blaise raised a silky eyebrow at them but also stayed silent. Narcissa was the only one who felt comfortable enough to speak. Not really all that surprising considering her relationship with Lucius and her client relationship with Hermione.
"Hello Miss Granger," she smiled softly, "Lucius."
"Cissa," he smiled back, something Hermione had never seen him do, "How are you?"
"A little confused as to why I am here but otherwise alright," she told him, "You?"
"Considering the circumstances, not bad," he responded, watching as Narcissa went to sit by Blaise, clasping his hand as she went. Blaise sent him a look that clearly said 'keep your mitts off my woman'. Hermione had to disguise a laugh as a cough within a matter of seconds.
"Lucius," Severus suddenly said, "A word, if you will?"
Hermione couldn't help but know what this talk was going to be about. Lucius carefully moved her from his lap and onto the couch. He stopped for a few moments when she groaned in pain but she told him to get on with it quickly and she would be fine. He left her there with the others and moved into the next room with his old friend.
"When did this start?" Narcissa asked her.
"What do you mean?" Hermione asked her. She raised an eyebrow and Hermione rolled her eyes.
"He's been taking care of me," she told her, "I was just involved in an accident that he no doubt blames on himself."
"Miss Granger," Narcissa said carefully, "I know Lucius, very well. I was married to him for half my life…You may only see it as him simply taking care of you. He may even see it that way too. But-"
She was cut off by the sound of Lavender coming through the floo and Crispin Forster just behind her. Hermione was instantly by her side and hugging her before she could protest.
"Are you alright?" She asked, "Snape wouldn't tell us anything-"
"I'm fine," she stated, "Just a little shaken."
Crispin made his way over to her side and shoved a foul tasting potion into her mouth before she could even make a sound. She spluttered and spat until she stood and Lavender held her back from trying to strangle him.
"What the hell was that?!" She roared at him.
"What indeed?" Crispin smiled. As Lucius and Severus came running back into the room Hermione looked down at herself and they stared at her in shock. Crispin said nothing more as he walked over to the nearest armchair and sat smugly in their presence. She glared at him slightly.
"I probably should thank you but I find myself uninspired to do so," she told him curtly.
"I shall take your silent, unwilling gratitude easily enough Miss Granger," he told her with a smile that she supposed was meant to be polite but turned just as smug as the last. Lucius instantly walked over and inspected her limbs; presumably to make sure that whatever Crispin had given her didn't interfere with his somewhat illegal handy work. He ran his cool hands down her arms and up her sides and then inspected her forehead which had bled uncontrollably upon arrival. She could see Severus roll his eyes out of the corner of her own and she saw Crispin raise an eyebrow and smirk.
"Well this is interesting," he said quietly. Hermione removed herself from Lucius' grip and glared at him as she sat down on the couch. Severus and Lucius took either side of her. At that moment Harry and Ginny came through her fireplace and she instantly stood once more to receive the redhead that ran straight at her, knocking her back onto the couch. Severus instantly stood but Lucius seemed to refuse to move.
"Are you ok?" Ginny asked her desperately, tears almost in her eyes for the first time in a long time, "Harry said you'd been attacked and that I might be next and-"
"Gin, I'm ok," she told her best friend, engulfing her into her arms, "I'll explain everything once you let go, Ok?"
She stood from the couch once Ginny let her go and then moved over to Harry who engulfed her as well.
"Don't you ever do that to me again," he said in a fierce whisper, "I'm your bodyguard for a reason. I don't care how illegal your activities are, I'm going to be there from now on."
She nodded into his shoulder and it was apparently all the confirmation he needed. She let him go and went back to her seat on the couch next to Lucius. She could see Ginny eying him suspiciously and knew that things would have to be dealt with later but for now they all needed to talk. But…wait. Where was-
"Where's Lestrange?" Lucius suddenly asked her. She looked over to Severus.
"As far as I know he went to alert the ministry to the fact that one of your witnesses has been murdered," Severus told them, "It may take him a while to get through the paperwork that's involved-"
"One of your witnesses?" Narcissa suddenly said, "I thought it was Granger that was attacked."
"I was," Hermione stepped in before anyone else could, "I had gone to the place where Avery was hiding for," she paused and looked at Lucius for a moment before continuing, "For a follow up interview. We were interrupted by an explosion. After that everything gets a little hazy."
"An explosion?" Blaise asked her.
"Yes," Severus said, "From the way the hide out was burning I would say that Fiend Fire was involved."
"Avery is dead?" Narcissa asked quietly, Hermione nodded, "I'm sad to hear it. He was one of the better Death Eaters…when he was lucid I suppose."
"Lucid?" Hermione asked her.
"Well I'm assuming that he was constantly under the imperius curse because most of the time his eyes were glassy," she told her, "It was a lot like…Lucius was."
Her eyes met with that of her ex-husband and she clapped her free hand over her mouth in horror for not figuring it out before.
"Oh Lucius," she said, "How did he do it for so long? How did I not notice?"
"For all his horrid ways, Tom Riddle was an intelligent man," Severus told her, "He deceived many. Do not blame yourself for not seeing it sooner."
Ginny was looking from Narcissa, to Lucius to Hermione at a rapid pace trying to figure out what she had missed. Blaise just held onto Narcissa's hand to give her strength. Lavender looked away from everyone else in the room and appeared to be waiting for someone to come through the fireplace. Hermione decided to address them all at once.
"Ginny," she said softly, "I'm going to put some trust in you and allow Harry to tell you everything that he knows. If you have any other questions we will all be willing to answer them. Miss Black-"
"Zabini now," Blaise smiled, "You interrupted our honeymoon."
Lucius raised an eyebrow at his ex-wife and gave her an amused smile. She smiled back at him.
"Congratulations," Lucius said to the two of them.
"Mr and Mrs Zabini," Hermione addressed them with a smile, "And Mr Forster. I would very much like it if you would please stay at my home for the duration of the trial. My house and grounds are heavily warded and I have traps ready for intruders at any moment. At least this way I'll know you're safe."
"Do you have the room for us?" Crispin asked, "It seems you already have a merry band of followers Miss Granger."
"We'll find room," she told him firmly, "But if you are going to ignore me and leave, please do me the honour of staying at least one night so that I have time to figure out who's done this and know that you won't be attacked while I'm gone."
Blaise looked to Narcissa and she nodded.
"We'll stay as long as you need us," he told her. Hermione nodded to them gratefully. She then looked over at Forster.
"So long as I can leave to tend to my shop I will stay," He told her with a slight incline of his head. At that final word Rabastan re-emerged from the fireplace and brought several Aurors and the Minister for Magic with him. Hermione stood once more, a cold hard look in her eyes as she addressed them.
"The body is on my kitchen table," she said to the Aurors before turning to Kingsley, "And I want to see you upstairs in my office along with Rabastan, Lavender and Lucius. We've got a lot of things to discuss. Everyone else just stay out of the Aurors' way and we'll find you some rooms once I'm done here."
She led them up to her office, holding the door open for them once all three staff members and the Minister were inside. She instantly turned on them with a very business like manner. She picked up the Evening Prophet and threw it on the desk in front of Kingsley.
"I want time to address the press at the next hearing," she demanded, "And then I want them thrown out of the courtroom."
"Hermione there's no guarantee-"
"One of my witnesses is dead! An innocent man is dead!" She yelled at him, her voice cracking under the strain, her eyes blazing with anger, "How the hell else do you explain it?!"
Kingsley snorted at the word 'innocent' but quickly silenced when he saw the look in her eyes.
"With the amount of dark magic that was used," Lucius stepped in and told her, "On both yourself and Avery, there is no guarantee that it was a member of the public gone rogue."
"How do you know there was dark magic involved?" Kingsley asked suspiciously.
"You didn't expect me to just sit there and let my Law Enforcer die did you?" He asked curtly, "Especially when she was there for my sake, when I was too stubborn to give her what she needed."
As Hermione looked at him she realised that was about the closest thing to an apology she would ever receive. Kingsley coughed and seemed to get the point.
"Whether it was a member of the public or another runaway Death Eater it still does not excuse the fact that our witnesses should not have been given to the press in the first place," Rabastan told them all, "Hermione's owls are extremely vicious when intercepted and Draco's nearly bit my arm off when it wasn't. Anyone who tried to tackle them from their journeys has to be completely mental."
"Or the ministry has a mole."
They all turned to stare at Lavender.
"Think about it," she said, "Each member of the Wizenagmot gets a copy of each witness list too. Why bother to intercept an owl when you can just take a list from a desk that's more than likely to be unwarded. Not every member is as careful as they used to be. Or perhaps one of the members themselves did it."
Kingsley stared at her for a few moments before breaking out into nervous laughter.
"That's impossible," he said, "If they were ever caught-"
"They would face up to six months in Azkaban and be a thousand galleons lighter," Rabastan stated, "But compared to sending Lucius Malfoy back to prison, isn't that a small price to pay?"
"But both lists were sent out," Kingsley retorted, "Why would they send both lists if they intended to only destroy the defence?"
"Because sending the prosecution's list doesn't really harm their case," Hermione told him, "Which reminds me…Lavender? Could you please stick your head in the fireplace and tell Malfoy to get out of bed? He needs to hear about this."
Lavender walked out of the room.
"Is now really the best time?" Lucius asked as he placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Better he hears now and gets all his witnesses to safety than he hear it later and find himself in the same predicament we're in," she told him softly, "You never know what could happen."
"Wouldn't that be better for us?" Rabastan asked. Hermione rolled her eyes.
"We're bound by law to tell him what's happened and there's no point in being impolite," she told him harshly, "Besides, would you really like to see someone else die tonight?"
He nodded, getting the point quickly.
She turned back to the Minister.
"So do I get my time or what?" She asked.
He sighed.
"I'll see what I can do," he told her, "Rest assured though, the Daily Prophet shall be charged for this."
Hermione rolled her eyes as he walked away and Lavender returned with a very tired looking Draco Malfoy, clad only in a pair of boxer shorts. He was so tired that he didn't seem to care that his father was in the room.
"Two questions Granger," he yawned as he rubbed his eyes, "Why the hell are there so many people in your house and what the fuck do you want at this hour?"
Hermione couldn't help but snort as she walked away from his father and over to him.
"Draco I've told you before," she smirked, "Either wear a muggle suit or nothing at all. I happen to have no suit in my office so-"
"I've said the same thing about you and your leather pants," he shot back, "And yet you never listen to me."
She chuckled softly as she went and warded the door with silencing charms. She then turned on him in all seriousness and all joking was put aside.
"Did you see the Prophet this afternoon?" She asked him.
"No I've been out all day," he told her, "Why?"
"They've gone and revealed our witness lists to the world," Rabastan told him.
"And now one of my witnesses is dead," Hermione cut in, "And if it weren't for Severus and Lucius I probably would be too."
His eyes met his father's for a brief moment before he began to pace the office as though it were his own.
"Any idea how they got the lists?" He asked.
"We're still working on that," Hermione told him, "I'll be putting Lavender on it personally."
"I'll have Pansy dig around too," he informed her.
"It also might be good if you move your witnesses into the manor," Hermione suggested, "You never know what people will do. And Death Eaters are still on the run."
"Will do," he told her, "Better to be safe than sorry."
He then did something that the others did not expect. He walked over to her and embraced her, kissing the top of her head. She leaned into him much as she had Lucius that afternoon.
"You ok?" He whispered.
"Yes," she said back, "I'm fine now."
"You'll have to tell me what happened," he said firmly.
"Harry could-"
"Harry wasn't the one who was almost killed today," he told her, "I want to hear it from you."
"Alright then," she nodded, "After the next hearing we'll get together for a drink."
"It's a date," he smiled before exiting the office once more. Everyone else just continued to stare at her as she watched him go and mutter to a passing Auror that he missed a spot. She turned back to a completely silent office and she rolled her eyes.
"Oh spell a bridge," she told them.
"I never realised that you and Malfoy were so…flirtatious," Rabastan smirked.
"We've been through a lot together and against one another," she told him, "We were bound to figure out there was some chemistry there sooner or later."
"And have you ever…acted on that chemistry?" Lavender asked, still slightly dazed at the sight of the Malfoy heir in his boxers.
"Would I still be here if I did?" She responded, "Honestly is that all you two ever think about? We have more pressing matters to discuss. Like the fact that my entire argument for the Death Eater Charges has now gone out the window."
"What do you mean "gone out the window"?" Rabastan asked her incredulously, "We still have the evidence and the Zabinis and Forster-"
"But we have no living example of what happened to Lucius," she told him firmly. They all seemed to look at her strangely once more for using his first name, as strange as she had felt when she used it for the first time. But once more they said nothing on the matter. Hermione distantly wondered how long that would last.
"Without that living example," she told them all firmly, "The case loses its credibility."
"We'll find someone else," Lucius told her, "There are bound to be plenty more who were in the same predicament that I was in, many others who remember very little of what happened during the second war or even the first."
"I wish I had your confidence," she muttered so no one could hear. She then went over to her desk and picked up the Cooper case files and evidence.
"Where are you going with those?" Rabastan asked her.
"I have work to do," she answered curtly.
"You got what you needed from Avery?" He asked. She looked over at Lucius who was looking away from everyone else.
"Yes," she said, "But I've decided to deal with this one on my own."
"Granger this is a huge case-"
"I know how big it is Lestrange I don't need you to tell me," she quipped as she walked over to Lucius. She turned his face back to her much the way she had when she was seated on his lap.
"I'm not going to let anyone else see it," she told him, "Not until the trial. I'm going to look at it in the privacy of my ministry office where I have wards everywhere and my own pensieve."
"You need rest," he told her firmly, "We are unsure of what Forster gave you or how long it will last-"
"Whatever Forster gave me is obviously working and he wouldn't give me anything harmful if he knew what was good for him," she smirked.
He paused slightly, giving her a once over before he relented and gave her a slight nod. She smiled and vanished out the door and into the fireplace before anyone else had a chance to ask what was going on.