AN: A lot of you stated something about Hermione's necklace in your reviews. Just want to clear up the confusion. She did take it off but at the last minute, put it back on and charmed it to be invisible. But the ash/salt circle was deflecting its magic so that's why it was unable to protect her.
Song: Love Song by 311
Chapter Twenty Five – Healing
*Draco*
As my fingers touched Mina's, despite the predicament we were currently in, I felt relieved. I turned onto my side and pulled her into me, waiting for the flames to begin licking my body. With my last strength I would protect my future wife from further harm.
I didn't know what the spell was that Ron had casted on me but it was working fast at cutting off my air supply. Hermione was trying to say something but was shaking too much to get her words out.
"Dr-Dra-Draco, I …I"
"Shush, save your breath and your strength. This isn't the time for last words. We are going to make it out of this." I coughed out, looking around for the safest way out of the burning shack.
All the windows were boarded up and the flames were spreading out of the room and through the rest of the shack at an accelerated rate, catching fire on the broken rafters and discarded furniture.
Knowing that apparating out would cause more injuries to Mina, I weighed our options. Either we stay right where we were and die, hope someone would put the flames out before we perished; or risk further injury to myself and brave the flames to get Mina to safety.
Summoning the last of my strength, I pulled myself to my feet and gathered Mina into my arms. I adjusted her and pulled my dress robe off my back, folded and draped it over her before braving the flames.
It took me a few minutes to get out the door. I had to keep adjusting Mina in my arms to keep my robe from catching fire.
The hallway was no easier to navigate through. It was cluttered and very narrow, flames on both sides of me. I stumbled a few times and my foot got caught in the holes but I kept my grip on Mina's body and fought through the flames. The air, heavy with smoke was acridly coating my lungs and my limbs were stinging from the pain of the fire ripping through my skin.
We had just made it through the hallway and into the main room when the door opened and in walked Pansy.
She immediately took one look at us and rushed to my side, gingerly grabbing my elbow, taking care to avoid the burns. Before I could say anything, we were whooshing through the air, apparating right outside the hospital wing.
Pansy ran off to find Madam Pomfrey while I carried Hermione into the wing and placed her on empty bed before collapsing in a chair next to her.
When I awoke, my first thought was Mina. The last thing I remembered was me carrying her through the shack.
"Welcome back to the world of the living, Mr. Malfoy." Professor McGonagall called out from the side of the bed.
I pulled myself up, wincing as I stretched my stiff limbs. "What day is it?"
"It's been three days since you and Ms. Granger were brought in with very severe injuries. We've been waiting for one of you to wake up so we can understand what happened."
It was then that I noticed who else was in the room. Three Aurors stood off to the side, chatting with Madam Pomfrey.
Apparently, she owled them after addressing our wounds and discovering the true extent of Hermione's injuries.
The one I recognized as Williamson from my father's trial stepped forward and began questioning what led to us arriving in the state that we were in.
"It was Ron. Ronald Weasley. He lured Hermione to the shrieking shack and had Pansy bring me there, where he tortured her using muggle rope and some salt mixture before he physically abused her by slamming her head into the ground and breaking her nose. Ron then used the unforgiveable Cruciatus curse and the forbidden Sectumsempra curse before setting fire to the shack, leaving us to die. I'm not sure what curse he used on me but he mentioned something about Antonin Dolohov; there was a flash of purple light and then I felt my lungs restrict, making it hard to breath."
Williamson nodded and finished recording the physical evidence. Knowing now what happened and who was responsible, the Ministry would be on the hunt for him.
The Aurors spoke with McGonagall before leaving, their brown coats whirling behind them.
I threw the covers back and slowly placed my feet on the ground. My forearms were covered in bandages and smelled of strong herbs. On the table next to my bed were 10 vials of brightly colored liquids and a set of instructions on when to take which.
I began to get up when the door to the hospital wing opened up and in flew Ginny and Harry, to my surprise.
Both of them stopped by my bed and asked about Hermione.
"Have you seen her yet? Is she okay? What happened?" Ginny cried out
"I just woke up today. And I'm sure Potter can fill you in on the incident. Right now, all I want to do is find out where Hermione is and see how she's doing." I struggled to my feet but before I could take a step, Madam Pomfrey rushed forward and handed me a pair of crutches.
"Your landing outside the wing wasn't the smoothest. You hit the ground pretty hard in an attempt to keep Ms. Granger in your arms so you broke your ankle. You'll need these for the next couple of days while the bones regrow."
I looked down, just noticing the bandage wrapped around my left foot. I did as she advised and stuck them under my arms.
"Where is Hermione?"
The elderly nurse looked into all of our faces, almost afraid to answer us. But she had no other choice but to show her to us.
She led us to her bed and removed the privacy screens. Ginny let out a sharp cry and I almost fell to my knees. Harry grabbed me and led me to her bedside and helped me into the chair.
Hermione was lying there in the bed, bruises on her face and her head was wrapped up to stop the bleeding. There was a splint holding her nose in place and thick gel all over her skin where Ron had cursed her.
"I am going to kill him. I am going to hunt him down and kill him." Harry gritted through his teeth.
I held her hand and stared at the bed for a bit before asking Madam Pomfrey what was the extent of her condition.
"Ms. Granger is under special attention. She suffered a massive amount of blood loss and aside from repairing her skin; she will have to go to St. Mungo's for further treatment on her abdominal section."
"Why can't you treat her here? From what I heard, all he did was kick her a few times in her stomach."
As Madam Pomfrey explained the reason, I shook my head, not wanting to believe what she was saying. I felt completely numb.
"She'll be transferred to St. Mungo's later today once her blood has been fully replenished. You can visit her there."
As soon as the elderly witch left, I made a solemn vow to Hermione.
"I am so sorry Mina. I should have done more to protect you. And I promise I will make that fucker pay for what he has to you and our child. I won't stop until he is begging for death. That much I can promise you."
*Hermione*
I awoke to the sounds of three familiar voices, speaking in hushed voices over my bed. I blinked a few times and tried to sit up but found it more difficult than I thought it would be.
"Look, she's finally awake." Ginny called out.
Immediately Draco, rushed to my side, followed by Harry and Ginny. I gave her a look that said we would need to speak about it later.
"Mina. Oh thank Merlin. How are you feeling?" Draco cried as he kissed my lips tenderly a couple of times.
"A little dizzy and a bit confused. Why am I in St. Mungo's ?" I asked, recognizing the stiff cream sheets.
Draco shared a look with Harry and Ginny, who broke into tears and threw her arms around harry. He gave Draco a stern look and shook his head.
"She needs to know, Potter." Draco stated, bordering on anger.
Harry sighed and shook his head, saying that it could wait but didn't attempt to stop Draco from telling me what could only be bad news.
"Mina, do you remember how Ron lured you to the Shrieking Shack and tortured you?" He asked, trying to be as vague as possible about the event.
I nodded, remembering the intense pain and the sickly sinister smile on his face as he abused my body.
Draco hung his head and fought back tears before continuing on. I reached out to grab his hand, which he grabbed quickly and kissed, holding it within both of his hands.
"Ron did more damage than Madam Pomfrey originally thought and to give you your best chance, she had you sent here. You lost a lot of blood as a result of the words he magically carved into your arm as well as from the head trauma you suffered."
I felt back into my pillows as images from that night came creeping back to the front of my mind. The slashing pain I felt that reminded me of Umbridge's blood quill and the massive headache. I looked myself over, noticing that the words were light white in writing and somewhat faded.
"The Mediwizards did all they could to make them go away but it looks like it will just have to heal the muggle way first before they can remove them by magic." Harry explained.
I looked up and knew that there was something they were keeping from me. Something even more terrible than just the scars I would bear for a while. Something so utterly painful that it brought Draco to tears.
"Please just tell me. I want to know." I let out in a small voice.
Harry looked over at Draco, a look of sympathy on his face. Draco summoned his courage and straighten his face before asking me, "Mina, did-did you know…that we were expecting?"
I shook my head no and as his words sank in, I knew. Tears began streaming down my face and I shook my head, crying out, "No. No, Draco. Tell me, tell me the baby survived. Tell me!"
Draco said nothing and just hung his head, tears brimming in the corners of his eyes. Ginny sobbed softly into Harry's shoulder and he patted her back, trying to comfort her.
I started up at the ceiling for a bit before my own tears spilled over. I was pregnant with Draco's child and Ron made us lose it. I had been fighting for my life on the floor of that dirty rotten floor while another was taken from us; one that we would never be able to get back.
Harry spoke next. "Mione, the Aurors' office isn't allowing me to be on the case since Ron was my best friend but they have instated a full on manhunt, the likes of which haven't been seen since the Ministry was trying to catch Sirius.
"He's been banned from the Burrow and the Ministry placed me in charge of the wards surrounding it. If he stands at the edge of the field, I will know and the Aurors will as well. But I have to ask. Is there any place that you could think of that Ron may have only told you about?"
I thought about this, trying to remember the location of the flat Ron lived in after the war.
"It was in a muggle neighborhood and the door was green, I think. I'm sorry I can't remember more."
Harry wrote down what I said and assured that I had given them plenty. He spoke with Ginny and headed out the door but not before motioning for Draco to follow me.
*Draco*
I knew what Harry was going to say before we even got out the room. After dealing with so many Aurors during my father's and my own trial, I knew that had ways to track wizards that didn't want to be found. And despite what he may have thought, Ron wouldn't be smart enough to cover his tracks.
Sooner or later he would make a mistake and I would be there when he did. So it was inevitable that Harry would tell me to not go after Ron on my own personal vendetta. Just let the Aurors do their job and bring him in on their own.
"I saw how you looked when Hermione told us about the flat that Ron has. And I know that it would make no sense for me to tell you to stay away. So I won't. Just let me find out what I can first before you go charging off after him."
I was surprised Harry Potter, an Auror was telling me to go after someone who was now their top priority.
"Why are you telling me this?" I asked, suspicious of his motive.
Harry shrugged into his black Auror's jacket. "Like I said, it wouldn't make any sense. I know you won't stay away."
I was surprised but grateful Harry understood the position I was in. I headed back into Mina's room. Ginny was sitting on her bed and holding her. The mediwizard was speaking with her about the damage that was done.
"The damage that was done was very severe. We can fix it but I can't deny that it will be very difficult for you to conceive and carry a child in the future. Not impossible, just difficult."
"What about the scars on her arm? What are you doing to accelerate the healing process?"
The mediwizard looked over his chart and mentioned they were in the process of brewing a potion to help restore the skin tissue so she could be released later on this week, then come back before the start of school and have them magically shrink the scars.
I thanked him and asked Ginny to give us some time to deal with everything.
"I know this is a dumb question but how are you feeling?"
Hermione shrugged and struggled with her thoughts before finally stating, "Hurt. I feel hurt."
I nodded and ambled my way over to her bedside. She had just noticed that I was using crutches to get around.
"Don't worry, I'm fine. My ankle broke when we landed in the hospital wing after apparating out of the shrieking shack. I'll finally have a use for my father's cane when I return home. Hopefully with you on my arm?"
"Actually, I was thinking I may go home. Being in the shack felt too much like being in the manor when the snatchers caught us." she explained.
"Can I see you at all during the break?"
"Just give me some time. I'll meet you at the wizarding resort for the last week of break. But right now, I just want to be at home in my own bed, safe with my parents."
I feigned a smile, upset that she no longer believed that I could keep her safe. Hermione must have seen something because she corrected herself.
"I feel safe with you as well Dragon but after hearing that I lost our child, I know that I don't want to put off the future any longer."
Hope swelled up inside of me like a balloon. Could she be saying what I think she was saying?
"I know that I said I wanted to wait until we were finished with school and have my career off the ground before but after everything that has happened, I don't want to wait any longer.
"I want to come out of this stronger than before and start the process of beginning our lives together. So if you'll have me…" she smirked before reaching over and pulling the box I had in my robes.
"How…"
"I'm guessing when we landed in the hospital wing, this fell out of your jacket. Pansy placed it on my bedside table before she left. That was the last thing I remembered before passing out."
"Pansy, she uh, she came back and helped us out of the shack. I was struggling through the hallway and against the flames. My sleeves were gone and the fire was slowly making its way up my legs and my back. I had wrapped my robe around you and held you close enough to me that you weren't near the flames. She grabbed us and apparated us to the hospital wing.
"I made sure you were safe before I blacked out. I told you I would always do my best to protect you." I told her, opening the box.
Lying there on the velvet was her necklace. The chain was 18" of pure silver, holding an antique silver plated ornate filigree pendant. The center of the cameo held a dark green background with the Malfoy family crest minus the scroll that stated the family motto, "sanctimonia vincent semper" {purity conquer always}.
I set my crutches to the side and with some difficulty, knelt at her bedside. Taking her hand in mine, I spoke what was in my heart.
"Hermione Jean Granger, our relationship hasn't been an easy one. it had been one filled with problems, distrust and people trying to tear us apart. But in the end we proved that we belong together. Despite what was thrown our way, we made it through because of the love we share. Will you give me the honor of allowing me to call you my wife one day?" I stated.
Hermione slid up in her bed and placed her hand on mine. "Draco Lucius Malfoy, I have heard your proposal and I accept. I pledge to be your wife one day and honor you as my husband."