Torture a loved one will not go unpunished. Enjoy the payback, beta read for you by my sweet Martee98.
Chapter 25: Hunting with Elegance
Draco remained a few days in what Hermione knew as medical induced coma, from the Muggle Medicine. Not to give his brain the time to relieve the pressure, but give his body the time to restore itself from the abuse.
The Healer had quite a job to convince Hermione and thereby also Narcissa that putting him out with the charm was a right decision. The agreement came after a Neville intervention, who Hermione floo-called to ask advice.
The injuries were attended timely, you could literally synchronise your watch each time. The dittany essence - non-stop refilled thanks to the mediation of Lucius Malfoy and his well-placed connections - performed miracles in sealing the wounds and healing the scars. The list of favours the Malfoy's owed to Neville grew by the day. He was able to get his hands on dragon meat, and Draco slept now on a layer of flesh patches, in the hope to minimise the whip's marks.
In the meantime, Narcissa and Hermione grew closer, the friendship developing into something more profound. The mother asked the girl all about her youth, her parents, her first steps into the magic world.
Hermione described it all, reliving the emerging moments of magic and her surprise after the shock. Her parents obliviate was irreversible, often she thought, why am I so thorough in my work? And she did miss a mother to confine with those little details everyone walks around with, the need to ask for guidance or to vent frustrations. A father was the buddy to do the more adventurous things, but your mother is always that certainty in your life. Your best friend. Hermione missed it dearly, and Narcissa was filling in, unexpectedly.
"I scared myself to death when my mother's roast floated over the dinner table. I didn't know what I was doing, but I knew it was me who did it."
"How old were you?" They were enjoying a rosebud tea.
"Probably four, five. I only remember wearing this flowery overall and piggytails." Hermione rolled her eyes, "My mother loved to dress me in all flower power kind of fashion, I think she never outgrew her hippie time, Woodstock and such."
"Hippie time?"
"Oh, Narcissa, imagine people smoking pot, behaving as if everything was ok, peace to all, back to nature and walking around buck naked." The blonde's eyes grew wide, "I'll see if I can dig up some pictures later, if you react like this to my description, wait until you see the real deal."
"What is that smoking pot?" The idea of intoxicated wizards wasn't a total novelty, in a world with potions…
"Muggles dry roll weed in a thin piece of paper and light it up to inhale the smoke. You know weed as cannabis, and it makes you feel high in a way sorta like you're floating, really calm and can sometimes make you a little hungry. " Hermione snatched the third biscuit of the day, "Really unhealthy though in my opinion."
"What about Woodstock?"
"That was a music festival of all kind of types of music, Rock 'n' Roll, Blues, Jazz… very famous. According to my mother, she saw my father there for the first time…"
Narcissa refrained from asking what rocroll and jaasss were, fearing to be forced to listen to some atrocious performances. Quite the opposite of Hermione, who thought to introduce the older witch to some Muggle music. Jazz and Blues were probably more accessible than Rock 'n' Roll, which was something you had to digest in small portions. Opening Draco's mother to Elvis Presley's Heartbreak Hotel or Tina Turner's Proud Mary was probably better than to a Welcome to the Jungle from the Guns 'n' Roses.
"Your parents have a happy marriage."
"Oh, definitely. My dad could surprise my mother with a bouquet of roses, just like that. Because he felt like it. My mother spoiled him in return with his favourite dessert, sticky pudding." A moment of homesickness overwhelmed her, leaning deep into the offered shoulder. Strong arms snaking around her frame, extending compassion. Later Hermione would think back about this moment and remember how very Malfoy-unlike it was.
Pansy entered the room, shared an embrace with both women, before heading to the bed and caress Draco's face. "How is he?"
"They'll re-enervate him today, the Healers believe the internal damage to have improved enough," Hermione spoke softly, from behind Pansy. Spinning around, the Slytherin witch hugged the brunette fiercely. Who was giving support to whom, temporarily not evident.
"I can't wait to see his smirk directed at me, mocking me for the slightest." Pansy faced her, "How are you hanging on, Hermione? It was hard on you too… Blaise told me how he found you."
"I refuse to allow those bastards a win, by letting what they did to me to take me down." Hermione had cried enough, while Narcissa slept. But, finding her willpower within her spark, she decided to let it all go. She was certain that a part of her revenge would be setting a score right, for every endured assault. They had it coming…
"You are planning-"
"No, Pansy." Narcissa interrupted, "We are planning. This time it will not go unpunished. They messed one too many times with my son, for me to stand idly by and do nothing."
"When?"
"When I find someone I can trust to keep an eye on him, while we are gone. Longbottom comes and goes, helping us treat him, but I don't want to add another debt to the long list we have already. This person needs to protect him, while we're hunting." Narcissa was undoubtedly serious.
"I'll do it. I'll go fetch Blaise to stay with me. Do you trust us enough, Narcissa? Hermione?"
-oOo-
An hour later the two witches were in the middle of Knockturn Alley, confident that Draco was in good hands and protected. Both had left him behind, after kissing him goodbye. A motherly peck on the forehead; a promising kiss on his lips.
"Hermione, keep your wand at ready but don't intervene unless I sign you to. We can't scare them away, but I do know how to handle these scum." Narcissa readied to enter her first mark. "Let's put the Black upbringing to good use."
Hermione had the feeling she was looking at a completely different woman. There was a shine of lethal danger Narcissa, as dangerous as Bellatrix but more controlled. You wouldn't see her coming until it's too late, she thought. Just what I need at my side.
The bell's chime was muted in a second. A filthy man came from deep between glass counters, smiling his yellow teeth in recognition, "Mrs. Malfoy, welcome to my noble shoppe. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Hermione wondered between the exposed bottles of all sorts of poisons, pointing out to Narcissa some disputable ones.
"Mr. Krallian, I remember you maintained connections with a few old friends of ours. I'm looking for them. Specifically, your good friend Antonin Doholov."
"Yes, yes, yes, my good ol' friend Anto, I haven't seen him in a while, but when… I mean if I do, I'll tell him you're looking for him." The man seemed to shrink deeper.
"Mr. Krallian, I appreciate honesty above anything else." Her fingers lingered on a bottle of poison n. 07, playing coy with the cork. 'Hermione, did you know if this poison goes airborne, it can cause boils that St. Mungo's has to pierce open before it can heal… I've heard it can be quite painful, as they can't use painkilling potions to numb…"
"Mrs. Malfoy, I…" The old man sweat profusely, "I don't know where Anto is, he never tells me his whereabouts, but the old barmy at the Ye Olde Curiosity's has the means to get in contact with him."
With a classy but frightening finesse, Narcissa approached the man, "If I find myself returning to this foul place, Mr. Krallian, I'm not going to be so forgiving. Are you sure…" Her wand rolled between her fingers, dark eyes met female dark brown ones with a glint. The stinging hex is barely spoken aloud, "You don't know more?"
"I wouldn't…" He jerked in pain, "Lie to the queen among the Sacred Twenty-eight."
"The queen?" She shared a side look with Hermione, who smiled softly, "I guess you'll be the princess, my dear…" Hermione recognised Draco's drawl, never expecting it to hear it on Narcissa's voice. "Well, it seems we'll need to pay a visit a few doors away from here. However, if I don't like what I find, I'll make sure you'll understand exactly how displeased I'll be."
-oOo-
"For a moment, I feared that I had to raise a shield against those fumes, Narcissa." Hermione was more than impressed, "You really scared him to death, I almost suspect he did it in his slacks."
"When you play poker bluff, you must do it with elegance, Hermione. Do you think I would have put us both in danger without previous warning?" Narcissa walked further down the alley, searching for the entrance of the curiosity shop. The cracking of the door announced their appearance.
"I'll be right with you." A cracking voice met them, coming from behind a half-open door. "Ah, Mrs. Malfoy… what a pleasure. These old eyes don't see beauty come here often." The wizard had a Santa Clause appearance, in Hermione's opinion. One who didn't wash his hair at least weekly though, by the looks.
"Oh, another slimy wizard, Hermione. Tell me do you consider me the queen of the Sacred Twenty-eight?" Her attention was caught by an eyeball that kept rolling in his own axis.
"But of course, we all respect your husband and you, my lady. It's not justified the punishment that bloody Ministry has cast on your spouse." Hermione bit on her tongue before uttering a remark, it was unjustified only if you saw it from their point of view. Lucius was far from a saint in this whole ordeal.
"Well, in this case, you must tell me where I can find Dolohov." The request came out in real royalty way.
The wizard palled, "I…" The stinging hex forced the man to speak… "He'll kill me."
"Fear me more."
"Mrs. Malfoy…"
"This man has nearly killed my son. I will not stop until I have brought justice upon him. Now, Mr. Swivle, if you don't tell me exactly where I can find him..." The silence was meaningful. "I'll allow my dear Hermione to exercise one or two of her favourite charms before I give her a lesson in untraceable curses that leave no scars. Better said, I'll show her how it's done according to the Black tutoring." The wizard retreated a few steps, putting the counter between him and the witches. Not that it helped.
"Should I give him a taste, 'Cissa?" Fingers already cracking around the wand.
"Yes, dear."
"Engorgio" The mans' arms swelled up immediately, followed by his belly and legs. "Should I aim for the throat, 'Cissa?"
"Just a little bit, dear. We need him to talk." The effect of choking caused the man to gurgle in panic, for nearly a half minute. "Do you have something to share?" With difficulty, the man nodded, and Narcissa applied the countercurse. "If you'll be so kind…"
"He's hiding, my lady. He'll wait until it all calms down before reappearing again, his biggest wish is to bring terror back into our Wizarding community."
"Blah blah blah, 'Cissa, I've heard this before. Better, even Draco has heard it." The wand was ready, "Lacarnum Inflamarae". Her fireball put the man's cloak on fire. "Speak before the flames burn through your clothes."
"Madam Malfoy, please…" Compassion was far from Narcissa's mind, who approached and pointed her wand to cut in the man's arm. "He has a hiding place at the Docks, Muggle London."
"Old news, my son was found there, on the verge of death."
"No, no, that one too, but one that's close to what Muggles call undergond."
"You mean underground, the tube?" Hermione put out the fire with a simple flick of her wand. "How do we find it?"
"I don't know Miss," The brunette feared that the man would succumb from a heart attack by the way he was shaking. "I heard him talk that he had to freeze a metal train each time he wanted to enter the place if one crossed at that moment."
"You're certain about the location?"
"I heard him brag about a secret tunnel between both places, something he built, and I quote, right under their noses."
Narcissa slit again through the underarm, "Do you feel this?" She calmed the other woman with a look, her plan wasn't to let the man behind hurt, just to give a taste. "It will feel like heaven, compared to what I'll do…" The skin knitted together, as she uttered a healing charm, "If I realise this is all a big pile of dung you sold me, and my efforts turn fruitless..."
Hermione froze the man to where he stood, "I would refrain from sounding an alarm if I was you, you don't want Dolohov to escape before we got to him, do you?"
The man nodded frantically, letting a sigh of relief escape when she unfroze him.
"It seems we should move over to the Wharf where they found us, I'm sure I'll find the underground in the neighbourhood…"
"Hermione, I follow your lead. Show the way, dear."