Hermione had no more landed in the Hogwarts Owlery before she had fallen asleep. There had not been a lot of owls inside the stony, cold room but Hermione had barely registered that. Between the torture and the anxiety, she was exhausted. She had strange dreams and seemed to float from one scene as if in a daze. She saw a bat with greasy wings thrashing wildly next to a bookcase, causing the books to fall on a jagged stone floor. She watched as a thousand rats tore through the Hogwarts quidditch field, writhing and screaming as one. A cream-colored snake no bigger than a common garden snake wrapped itself around golden chrysanthemum and bit its petals off.
Hermione woke suddenly, her nerves already rising. I cannot rest all night. I have too much to do. She had no solid plan worked out, more of an abstract idea of in what direction she needed to go. She glanced around the owlery and noted there was only a sparse number of owls in there with her. They seemed to be giving her a wide bit of room, as none would come near the perch she was on. Perhaps they can sense I am different… She thought curiously.
She spread her wings and flew out of the owlery's eastern window. The stars seemed to have gone from the night sky, although she was not sure if that was from the dementors or the approaching dawn. She kept close to the castles stone walls and followed them. Do I go straight to Voldemort and try wing it? Or do I watch him for a few days and then formulate my plan? But he might not stay at the castle long. Hermione tossed ideas around as she flew. The fresh air around her was calming, and the feeling of flying was relaxing to her. She dipped around turrets and above passing dementors with ease, so comfortable in her owl form, as if she had been doing this her entire life.
As she flew, she noticed that all the windows she passed were dark. No candles or fires seemed to be lit within the corridors and room she passed. Odd…where is everyone? As she rounded the south eastern corner of the castle, she saw that the great hall was lit, and light spilled out of its window to penetrate the gloomy dark around it. So, everyone is congregated in the great hall…why? But she felt, in her heart of hearts, she knew why. An image formed in her mind of the Death Eaters making a spectacle of torturing Draco. The image made her sad, and made her stomach hurt, but bigger than those feelings she felt guilt. He has lost so much, and now, thanks to me, he is losing more. She flapped her wings harder and flew straight up to land among the peaked windows that lined the great hall on all sides. She was not worried about being spotted, there were always owls up here.
She was right. Draco was on his knees at the front of the great hall, where the professors and headmaster would sit to eat. His robes were torn around him, and he was breathing raggedly. His had a few lines down his chest that were bleeding, as if he had been whipped with something. Hermione's chest tightened as she watched. She forced herself to look away from Draco, to map out the rest of the room. It was filled with death eaters…and students. He has brought the students in here too. More ways to scare them into conforming. Hermione thought disgustedly. At the front of the hall near Draco, were some familiar faces. Voldemort stood in front of him, with Blaise Zabini to his left. Antonin Dolohov was there as well, Pansy Parkinson, Tiberius McLaggen, Theodore Nott, and a slew of other faces she knew. Parkinson does not look good at all, Hermione observed some what surprised. Pansy had a bright red mark on her face, and she was standing in a posture that suggested she had a wounded leg. What happened to Parkinson? Isn't she one of the inner circle death eaters? Hmm.
"You are as weak and cowardly as your father," Voldemort hissed at Draco. "legilimens!" Voldemort rasped, and Draco's body tensed against the attack. All the faces in the great hall were turned towards the pair, watching intently. Hermione scanned the faces and noticed that Blaise Zabini seemed to be sweating, with a rigid look on his face. What is going on amongst the death eaters?
Voldemort put his wand down, rage rolling off him in palpable waves. "You may have energy to keep me out now, but it will run out Malfoy. You may thinkyourself clever, blood traitor, but you are filth beneath my feet. I will cast you down as I did your contemptable father and your loathsome mother." As Voldemort talked, he paced around Draco in a circle. "I regret only that I was not there to hear Narcissa's last scream with my own ears." Draco moved only slightly upon hearing his mother's name.
"Cruciatus!" Voldemort cast, and Draco began writhing in pain. It hurt Hermione to watch. Wait…that is not the elder wand that he is using! Hermione realized abruptly. Oh, merlin, please let him have the wand on him somewhere.
"If you will not tell me why you have brought the mudblood here, or where she has gone now, I have no further use for you. You will join your mother and father's heads on the spires outside of the ministry." Voldemort stepped back to face Draco.
A thousand thoughts seemed to explode in Hermione's mind all at once, with dawning horror she realized that the death eaters were putting human heads on spikes outside the ministry. She felt revolted. And Draco is next! It was too much for Hermione. She could see Draco in her mind's eyes, saving Luna's Life. She replayed him telling her about Astoria, and cracking jokes with her. These images were cast in a warm light in her mind's eyes. She took flight before her mind caught up with her subconscious. Her wings carried her to the windows above the entrance to the great hall where she flew gracefully down. She was just outside the entrance now, where the doors to the hall were closed. There was not a soul to be seen in the corridor that led to the great hall. Adrenaline was spiking through her blood like icy cold water. She had to act. She had to do something to stop the deaths. Before she knew it, she was in her human form, pulling the great halls doors open.
"Stop!" She screamed, the depth and urgency in her voice surprising herself. She knew she was being stupid. She knew she should not risk herself like this, while there was still so much, she needed to do. She knew, and yet could not stop herself.
Her voice seemed to reverberate off the walls of the great hall, silencing everything in front of her. A hundred faces turned towards her and Death Eaters started to rush through the crowd of students before her. She caught Draco's eye for a split second and then was pushing herself back out the door and shutting it just before the first pair of hands reached her. She was an owl again as the door opened, and she watched as frantic Death Eaters and students filled the corridor from high above them as she sat perched on a high sconce.
Oh, merlin, please do not have let a single ghost or pair of eyes have seen me, she prayed to herself. Adrenaline was still coursing through her body; she could feel panic forming in the depths of her conscious. She worked to calm herself.