Chapter Warning: This Chapter contains a description of torture.

Chapter 7

She was breathless by the time she made it back to the Fat Lady.

"Where on earth have you been young lady?"

Not wanting to fight with the portrait, Hermione ignored the comment and said the password, "memento legi caesorum," which was Latin for 'remember the fallen'.

As soon as she entered, all attention was on her. Harry, Ron, and Ginny, who had been up all night worried, were standing in the center of the room. Ron ran towards Hermione and embraced her with a tight hug.

"Thank god you're okay 'Mione," he said in relief. "When Ginny said you weren't in your room, we all were very worried that something bad had happened to you. We searched the castle for a while but couldn't manage to find you. Blimey, I don't know what I would have done if something happened to you."

He released his tight grip and noticed her change of clothes.

"What are you wearing? Are those…" he paused for a moment in disbelief, "Slytherin clothes?"

The drinks she had consumed throughout the night were beginning to wear off, and her head was starting to hurt. However, she knew that the pain from the hangover would be nothing compared to the pain of losing her friends. She was terrified the truth would ruin everything but had no choice but to tell them.

"I need to tell you something, and I think it's best if we all take a seat first."

They sat in the large armchairs around the fireplace. Harry, Ron, and Ginny's eyes were fixated on Hermione as she began to explain the past 10 hours. She started by explaining the drink dosed with an anxiety potion. Ron commented, "I swear I'm going to kill Zabini next time I see him."

"Well, I didn't realize it was a potion at first. I thought I was just feeling a little bit overwhelmed by the party. So, I went to the hall for some space, and that's where I ran into Draco."

"What did he do to you Hermione?" Harry questioned.

"Nothing bad, I swear. He actually helped me."

She knew she would have to emphasize the kindness Draco had demonstrated if she wanted any chance of her friends being okay with what happened. And so, she told them all about him brewing her an antidote for the anxiety, and even backtracked to tell them about the sleeping potions he had given her in September.

"He had been extremely kind to me this whole semester. So, when he asked me to go to the Slytherin party with him…" she was trying to gauge their facial expressions but couldn't tell what they were thinking, "I said yes."

"You went to a Slytherin party," Ginny said in disbelief.

"It was awkward at first but ended up being quite fun. And umm…" she was scared to say the next part, but knew she had to, "Draco sort of… kissed me."

She added that it was a dare, hoping to lessen the anger.

Ron's face was a deep red. He began to yell, "you got mad at me for getting over things too soon. Saying that I didn't even care that my brother was dead! And yet, here you are running around kissing the death eaters. You know what I think Hermione? I think you're the one who doesn't care at all."

He stood up and stormed out of the room.

The others remained quiet in contemplation for a moment. Finally, Harry broke the silence, "I don't trust him Hermione. I know he tried to help us at Malfoy Manor, but he still was on the wrong side at the battle. Maybe you're right, maybe he is trying to be better this year. But I think he's going to hurt you. I think deep down he'll always be the person who ends up fighting for the wrong side." His voice was kinder than Ron, but still, he was not supportive of her actions.

Harry stood up and said, "I better go check on Ron."

Then Ginny had her turn to voice her opinion, "I'm not going to lie to you, I think Harry is right. I think this is a bad idea. But if Draco is the only person who can help you get through everything, then I'm not going to hate you for it. I just want you to be happy. I just want the old Hermione back. I've missed you."

It was a relief to know that at least Ginny would still be there for her. It gave Hermione hope that one day Ron would forgive her too.

"Thank you, Ginny. It means so much to know I won't lose you. I think I need to get some sleep if that's okay."

Hermione fell into her bed and dozed off. Her dreams were filled with flashes of the evening. In her head, she was able to relive her kiss with Draco over and over.

But as normal, her dreams eventually shifted to nightmares. At first, she could hear Ron yelling hateful words beside her. And then, as she kissed Draco, he pushed her away and began to laugh.

In her mind, he responded with things like, "I'd rather end up in the hospital than have to kiss that filthy mudblood."

The circle of Slytherins laughed as she was rejected and amongst them, Hermione could hear a wicked laugh that belonged to the vilest person she knew. Bellatrix Lestrange entered the scene and mocked Hermione.

"How dare you try besmirch my nephew with your filthy mudblood lips. I think we need to have another conversation, girl-to-girl," she taunted before yelling, "CRUCIO!"

Hermione screamed, just as she had done that night in Malfoy Manor. The pain consumed her, and it felt as though every nerve in her body was on fire. She was twitching horribly in response to the pain. All of a sudden, as quickly as it had begun, the agony ended.

Hermione's screams caused her to wake up. She was no longer lying helpless beside Bellatrix. Instead, she was alone in her dormitory. She glanced down to noticed she had scratched so severely at her scar in her sleep, that the letters were red with blood. Glancing at the clock, Hermione realized she had slept through most of the day, it was almost 5 PM.

Hermione's stomach ached with hunger. She got out of bed, changed into fresh clothes, and headed to the hall for dinner. When she walked into the room, she felt lost. She had no idea where to sit. The nasty glare Ron gave her across the room made it clear she was not welcome near her usual friends. She looked over to the Ravenclaw table, but Luna was not in sight. And so, she found an empty region of the Gryffindor table and sat alone.

Just as she reached for the pumpkin juice, a large hand grabbed her shoulder. She looked up in surprise to see Hagrid standing above her.

"Ferget about yer ol' pal Hagrid, did yer? Well, it looks like yer might be needin' a friend right about now. How about yer come down to my house for yer dinner?"

Hermione was relieved to have a friendly face to look at. She stood up from her table and walked out of the castle with Hagrid.

Note to readers: I've uploaded a version of the story with Draco as the main character. If you're enjoying the story I recommend you read it as well to see Draco's perspective!