A.N - Surprise! Extra chapter this week. Due to personal commitments I will not be able to publish any chapters next weekend so I hope that this early release will sate you all until the following weekend (12/12/20). Thanks as always to my beta MrsFelton1988. Please feel free to leave reviews and do let me know your thoughts about this story. I love reading your feedback. Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 10

"Well isn't that the most delectable news, Draco?" Blaise said slowly

For the first time that night, Hermione felt his eyes lift away from her as he turned to face Blaise giving him a hard stare.

"Do you find it so?" Draco's voice barely a whisper.

"Indeed, I do. War Heroine, Sacred-28, Brightest-Witch of her Age, stunning, and available. She'll have suitors lining out the door." Blaise smirked at her.

Hermione felt a little dizzy. The dull throbbing pain shifted into a slightly sharper ache. She felt a bit of her inhibitions loosen. Bolder. More Reckless.

Hermione wondered if it was the wine although she hadn't had a lot.

"Do you have someone special in your life?" she asked, shifting her body, so it leaned slightly more towards Blaise. Draco finished up the rest of his Firewhisky in a single gulp and set his glass on the table.

Theo cleared his throat. "Well, we all do." Hermione turned to him surprised.

"Draco and I are set to marry Astoria and Daphne respectively. Blaise is betrothed to Felicia Orseolo from the Italian noble house. "

"Oh wow. I didn't realize you and Daphne were dating."

"We're not. We aren't together right now." He clarified "She's just who I'll be marrying. Eventually."

Hermione frowned. She didn't understand that. They acted like they had no choice in the matter. It was the person they'd spend the rest of their lives with and they just accepted the arrangement. The pain had moved to her temples like little toothpicks drilling holes on either side of her head.

"Miss Daphne and Miss Astoria is arrived." Vippy's voice announced

The three men stood up and unsure if she was supposed to, Hermione tried to slightly stand and changed her mind at the last minute and sat back down. She could see a small smirk forming around Draco's lips. Theo and Draco walked around, greeted the sisters, and escorted them to the table.

"Ladies don't have to stand, Hermione." Daphne answered the question in her mind. "Didn't you ever go to finishing school? Oh I see. Interesting. I suppose you never needed to before. Well, you would have hated it. Tori and I sure did. We had the worst instructor. Bitter old woman – Madame Breguet."

Draco had a full-fledge smirk resting on his face, silver eyes glittering. Hermione felt a pinch of irritation tug at her. She took another sip of her wine. As Draco escorted Astoria to her seat, he tenderly held her, and his face shifted from a smirk to an anxious worried smile. She noticed how Draco protectively moved around her and when he guided her to her seat, she could see that his fingers tentatively grazed her hand almost as if he were afraid of being too rough. A pang of envy bubbled up in Hermione's chest. She couldn't remember anyone she dated ever holding her like that, not Viktor, Ben, Cormac or Ron.

Theo had poured out a glass for each of the sisters. Astoria was seated by Draco and had a pleasant smile on her face as she gazed at him. Hermione noticed that she looked almost identical to her sister, a bit more youthful with the same blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. In contrast to the strong confidence that Daphne held, Astoria looked frail and breakable. Her features were so delicate, Hermione felt that just looking at her would cause her to shatter. As she went to grab her glass of wine, Hermione noticed a small flinch on her beautiful face, as if the action caused her pain.

"We found it." Astoria said to the group. "He definitely has one, in his vault hidden on his estate. We'll have to steal it. Daph and I were able to piece together how to access it, though we might be missing areas. He wasn't clearly thinking about the route and we didn't want to raise his suspicions. But it's heavily enchanted with dark magic Draco. It's going to be complicated to get. I think you'll have to do some … difficult…" her words trailed out with heavy implications. "Oh you haven't told her yet." She looked at Hermione with an inquisitive face.

Hermione felt slightly peeved. She knew they were natural legilimens but she wasn't sure how comfortable she felt with all her thoughts exposed.

"Darling, she hasn't read your mind yet. You have one of the most expressive faces I've ever seen. We could tell, just by looking at you. Although I am sorry, when you and I spend time together, I can't give you the privacy you desire. Perhaps, try learning Occlumency. Draco's quite good – I'm sure he'd be delighted to teach you." Daphne said with a sly smirk.

"I'm Tori. We haven't had the pleasure of meeting prior to today." Daphne's sister said while smiling beautifully.

"Hermione. It's nice to meet you." she gave her a tense smile back. The toothpicks continued pushing deeper into her temples, each second causing more agony.

"Can either of you meet him again? Daph perhaps to see if you can get more information? How dark is the magic that I'd need to do?" Draco asked urgently.

"What are you talking about? What are you trying to steal?" she narrowed her eyes at him

Hermione knew that Draco was acquitted from a sentence in Azkaban but it appeared that he was totally comfortable going back to doing illegal things. She had vouched for him and from the sounds of the conversation, it seemed like he was going back into meddling with dark magic. The high-pitched stabbing pain now enveloped her entire mind.

"Oh get off your high-horse!" he snapped at her. His composed façade that had surrounded him all night fell away.

"My high-horse! You are blatantly talking about doing something illegal and performing dark magic." she hissed. The pain began compounding like daggers repeatedly wounding her mind.

"Right … but when you break into Gringotts and steal, the whole wizarding world is supposed to bow down at your feet." he snarled back

She slammed her glass on the table and the silverware in the room began to tremble. "I did that to defeat Voldemort. To protect the wizarding world from vile, disgusting bigots like you." The pain was almost blinding her like a vice grip squeezing tighter and tighter.

"…Hermione" she barely heard Theo's soft voice caution

Draco stood up slowly leaning forward, his expression full of anger. "The only thing that the wizarding world needs protection from is your vile and disgusting-."

The pain in her mind crescendo. Suddenly, it was like a rubber band snapped and the pain disappeared. She had her wand drawn out.

Draco flew back and slammed against the wall. There was a loud crunch, and she knew his rib cage had been broken. She stood up and walked towards him, the dining table split in half creating a pathway to him. She lifted her wand, and his body smashed into the ceiling, his head cracking open and blood oozed out weaving through the platinum hair. She released and he dropped crashing into the floor. She watched as he tried to get up, a smile creeping on her face.

She could hear soft voices, like they were underwater. Like music, tones gliding and singing along with no meaning associated with the words.

A low panicked baritone - I can't get through! It's impenetrable!

A hysterical soprano – She's going to kill him! Save him please! Do something!

A pleading begging tenor – Hermione! Hermione! Let me through!

A horrified alto – It's the maledictus. She can't hear us. Her thoughts…her thoughts are…

A high-pitched chime – Mistress! Mistress Hermione must stop.

A crackling noise, like a distant thunderstorm. It was so far away. The soft melody of voices melding together in harmony.

He crawled on his knee, wincing as he tried to stand, blood flowing down his face. Hermione examined him. The moonlight streamed through the window, making his platinum hair look like strands of liquid silk. So beautiful. She moved her wand and forced him to stand. An anguished sound of agony escaped through his lips. Deep and gravelly. She loved that sound. He towered over her, broken and shattered. Hermione forced his chin down, wanting to see the silver eyes. Craving to see the fear, just as she had imagined. She got nothing. No emotion. No hatred. No anger. No fear. Cold steel. The stream of blood had trickled towards his lips, staining them scarlet. She didn't like that. She slowly wiped his mouth with a single index finger, lightly brushing against his lips.

He spat at her face. Showered her with his saliva and blood. And then it was like she was doused in a bucket of cold water. She shook a head and it cleared.

Draco's body crumpled to the ground. She couldn't look away. Blood pooled all around him, seeping into the marble floors.

There was frantic movement around her and she stood frozen. Vippy was casting healing Elvin Magic trying to fix the bones mumbling ancient incantations. Blaise was hurriedly cleaning up the blood on his head, running a diagnostic charm checking for a concussion. A wailing sound, Astoria on her knees by his feet.

"We need to take him to St. Mungos!" she screeched.

"No! We can't! They'll take Hermione! She'll be executed." Theo snapped

"She deserves it!" Astoria whipped

"Tori, we're so close. We can break it. I know we can. For both of you." Daphne's soft pleading voice

"I need help Daph! I need to stop the bleeding and sew him up. You need to hold his head up. Theo! Get me essence of dittany!" Blaise hurriedly ordered.

Hermione stood still, unable to process what just happened. He walked up right to her. She saw Theo's brown chocolate eyes, reflections of her own staring back. Holding her in his arm, he raised his wand to her head.

"Stupefy."

Hermione slumped into his arms and everything faded to black.