Disclaimer: I own none of the characters in this story.
Hermione's P.O.V
When someone calls me a Mudblood it feels like they are taking a pair of tweezers and plucking every individual hair from my body. It's that painful. But when Draco calls me a Mudblood, it just feels like death. He hasn't used it on me for a while, not since we've become whatever we are, but to hear him use the word half-breed...it just reminds me that this is who he is, what he's lived, what he's been taught. And how could I change that?
I didn't see him for a few days after Hogsmeade, and I have to admit I was preoccupied with helping Harry work out the next task for the Triwizard Tournament. Cedric had told him to take the egg to the Prefect's bathroom, which I'd never condone under normal circumstances, but he needed to know what he was up against or things could get pretty dangerous for him.
Ron and I had promised to help him, but McGonagall called us to her office the night before the task. I was concerned that my classwork wasn't up to scratch or she'd caught us doing something bad, but when Ron and I arrived in her office we found Cho and a beautiful young girl who looked just like Fleur sitting around looking daunted. We were the next task.
McGonagall told us we would take something to put us to sleep, but that there was a chance that if our champion didn't succeed, we might not be rescued at all. At first I wondered why Harry had to rescue two of us, before I realised that it was Viktor who'd be dragging me to safety. My heart pounded in my chest and I found myself squeezing Ron's hand so tightly that when I finally took my hand away I could see grooves from my nails pressed into his skin. It looked painful, but he hadn't said anything to me about it. He looked pretty drained of colour and it reminded me of the time his hex rebounded and he threw up slugs.
We drank the potion which would put us to sleep and after that everything was just darkness.
The next thing I remember is being thrust upon the surface of the lake, freezing with my teeth chattering loudly in my mouth. We were pulled to safety and Madame Pomphrey attended to us, ensuring we were safe and warm enough. So many things ran through my mind at that moment. Where was Harry? Where was Ron? How did Krum save me? Why is Fleur on her own?
Why wasn't Draco by my side?