Chapter 21
Hermione sat to herself in the stairs leading up to the Astronomy tower. The last thing she wanted right now was to be surrounded by people, especially those she was avoiding at the moment. She didn't want to see Ron, because the two of them had gotten into another petty fight over something that really made no difference in the long run.
And she wasn't sure why they still fought like so. It had been that way since they were kids, rarely getting along, except when something happened that forced them to put aside their differences. They rarely saw eye to eye, and it felt like more often than not, she found herself on these stairs avoiding him and yet another fight. Because it was getting exhausting, and Hermione could only take so much of it.
She was avoiding Harry, because she had no idea how to look her friend in the eyes, knowing she was beginning to feel the way she did. How did she look at her friend who she loved dearly as a brother, knowing she was lying to him constantly, about all of it? About the study sessions, that she all but had confirmation that Draco was a Death Eater, even if an unwilling one, about the fact that she was falling for Draco, the boy who had been their sworn enemy, or the fact that a few days ago she had kissed Draco Malfoy, and wasn't completely disgusted.
How did she admit that to her friend? That she actually enjoyed it, even though it went against everything she had been taught to feel from a young age. That she actually liked him, and didn't mind kissing him.
Her friends would never understand, and she didn't blame her. She barely understood. If she wasn't in the position, or wasn't the one who was going through all of it right now, then she definitely wouldn't understand what was happening. Because it was all so strange and confusing to her.
She had barely dated anyone before. She and Viktor had tried a few years back, but due to the competition and the distance afterwards, it was hard to maintain a regular relationship. They had agreed to still be friends afterwards, but he still was the only guy she had previously dated.
It most certainly didn't help that Ron and Lavender kept claiming her to be jealous of their relationship. And maybe in another lifetime she could have been, but too much had changed between her and Ron for her to want that with him. In reality, she couldn't care less about the two of them, and as far as she was concerned, the two of them being together meant that she had to deal with him less.
"Hermione?" she heard a soft voice call out and looked up in surprise to see Ginny standing there. "Are you doing alright?"
"What are you doing here?" Hermione asked in confusion. "I thought you and Dean had a date tonight? Or at least were going to sneak off to some part of the castle where your brother wouldn't see you snogging him."
"I cancelled," she shrugged, "I was more worried about you."
"Me?" she asked, furrowing her brows, "Why?"
"Because you've barely said a word to anyone in the last couple of days," Ginny said drily. "And no matter how convinced Ron is that it is because of him and Lavender, I know you better than that. You couldn't give a rat's ass about the two of them together. So tell me, what's the real reason you're hiding yourself away in secluded parts of the castle, hoping that no one will find you? Who are you hiding from in particular?"
Hermione paused slightly before confessing, "Draco Malfoy," she admitted.
"Why? What has that sorry excuse for a human done now?" Ginny hissed. "I'll hex him for whatever it was. Since when did you cower from him anyways? You've stood up to him more times than I can count. What's changed?"
"We kissed," she whispered softly, saying the words aloud for the first time since it had happened. She hadn't planned on telling anyone, but it was eating her alive. And unlike her two friends and despite having the same temper as the rest of the Weasleys, Ginny could be logical about things like this.
"You kissed him?" she said incredulously. Or maybe not. "How in the name of Merlin's saggy balls did that even happen?"
"I didn't mean to!" she said defensively, "We were studying together, and it kind of just happened."
"Since when do you and Malfoy even study together?" Ginny asked, surprised.
And Hermione sighed to herself, before telling her friend everything, about the project, about how she finally got him to agree to meet up with her in the library, and how after they finished, they kept studying, how she confronted him, and how she got him to be civil to her. How she's been having feelings for him, and how they finally kissed, before she ran away and has been avoiding him since.
"You like him," Ginny said plainly before smiling at her.
"You're not mad?" Hermione asked in surprise, as she looked at her friend, "For fraternizing with the enemy and what not?"
"Do I look like my brother?" she asked, before grimacing at the comparison. "Hermione, you're the smartest witch I know. If you thought for even an instant he was using you to get to Harry or to annoy Ron, then you wouldn't even be coming to me with this. You would have punched him again. You're not stupid, and you seem to know what the implications of the two of you being together would mean. The very fact that you're so confused means that you know the truth. That you care for Draco Malfoy, despite your history. That you could actually see yourself with him. And if you can see that, I most certainly am not going to talk you out of your feelings for him."
"When did you get so clever?" Hermione asked her friend softly.
"Since I had a friend talk to me when I was just as confused, who told me to follow my heart, but not to lose myself in the process."
"I don't even know how he thinks of me," Hermione confessed. "What if he still believes me to be a filthy mudblood?"
"If he does, then I'll curse him," Ginny told her firmly, "But you do not know how he perceives you until you actually talk to him about what happened, and what it means. But firstly, you need to figure out what it means to you. Do you want to have a relationship with him? Do you want this to become something? Or would you rather forget what happened?"
"There's a war going on outside these walls, and I'm worried about my teenage feelings," Hermione sighed.
"I think because there is a war going on outside, we've been forced to grow up far too soon," Ginny told her, "We're still kids, trying to find ourselves. Hermione, think about what you want, and once you know, fight for it with everything you have."
Narcissa entered her husband's study in the Manor, a thing she had not done in the decades of their marriage.
Lucius looked up at her, a look of confusion, anger, and annoyance flooding his face. "What is it, Narcissa?" he asked her, a little warily.
"I know you are aware of what happened to the Granger girl," Narcissa said, "That Draco loves her and almost coincidently she got kidnapped after that relevation came to light.
"I do not know where you are going with this," Lucius said firmly. "Now if you excuse me, I have matters that I need to attend to.
"No," Narcissa said firmly, "I've stood by in our marriage while you've done unspeakable things, Lucius. I've let you hurt our son and force him into taking the mark. I've let you control me for far too long in this marriage. But I will not let you harm our son in any way further. If I find out that in any way you are involved in whatever scheme is going on, then it's over between us Lucius. I stood by your side for years, facing humiliation as you all but ruined our family. I will not let you destroy is, or our son. I will not let you be the reason my son is left hurting. You've done enough damage to us through the years."
"And what will you do?" he sneered at her, as he finally spoke out.
"If I find out that you are involved in any way with whatever is happening, then I will leave you Lucius Malfoy."
Golden Girl Gone Missing?
By Jane Aspen
In the days following the highly publicised divorce proceedings of Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley, it would appear that the Golden War Heroine has gone missing. News first leaked of her disappearance when she failed to return home after a long day at work.
And two days later, not a work has been released on whether Hermione Granger has been found, or if she's still missing. At this point the Auror's office has no leads as to where she could be or if she is even still alive.
I for one, find it highly suspicious that days after her divorce she is taken. Especially after her highly public romance with Draco Malfoy moments after her divorce was finalized. As Malfoy was a notorious Death Eater during the war whose actions lead to the death of Albus Dumbledore, one cannot help but wonder if he was somehow involved in the abduction of his 'lover'. Could Malfoy have been blackmailing Granger into leaving her husband for him, and when she tried to leave him, he abducted her? Or is this all revenge due to his loyalty to the Dark Lord?
The timing of it all cannot be more suspicious, and I pray for Miss Granger's sake that she is still alive and that the Aurors realize the criminal is among them all.
Ron stormed into the Auror's office moments after leading the article about Hermione, feeling furious. He knew that Draco Malfoy was evil, but no one seemed to listen to him after the war when he tried to warn them all. And now his wife had been kidnapped, and who knew if she even was still alive? For all he knew, Malfoy offed her the moment they left the hearing.
He should have pushed harder, made Harry listen to him, but he had backed down, and look where it had gotten them.
"Malfoy!" Ron snarled as he approached the other man, drawing a wand at him, "Where is she? Where is my wife?"
The blond looked started at that, and Harry immediately drew a wand, but instead of taking his side against the Death Eater, his best friend drew his wand at him. "Ron, put your wand down. You've been placed on a leave of absence in light of your divorce proceedings. You shouldn't be here. Now leave before you do something you regret."
"The only thing I regret is not killing this bastard when I had the chance!" Ron glared, "And now he's probably murdered Hermione."
Malfoy faked looking surprised, and if Ronald didn't know better, he might have believed him.
"Why would I have hurt Hermione?" Malfoy asked, stunned, "I've been running around for the last couple of days trying to find the sick bastard who took her."
"Because she served whatever sick purpose she was meant to so you didn't need her anymore," Ron said stubbornly. "Drop the act, Malfoy. We all know you took her."
"I did no such thing," Malfoy yelled, "I would never hurt her, unlike you. I love her."
"Prove it," one of the younger Aurors said timidly. "Prove that you weren't the one who took her. We all read the article, Malfoy. Prove it wasn't you."
"He doesn't need to," Harry silenced them all. "You've worked alongside Draco for years. He's a good man who cares about Hermione. He helped put away some of the most notorious Death Eaters and he fought alongside us during the war. He's loved Hermione for years. He couldn't hurt her, even if he wanted to, not in the way you're suggesting. Now I suggest you all get back to it. Now that this article has leaked, you all are going to be assigned on finding out what happened to Hermione Granger; it is the first and foremost priority."
The Auror who had tried to stand up to Malfoy had the gall to look chastised and immediately issued an apology as Harry turned to face him, a look of anger and disgust on his face.
"Go home, Ron," Harry said softly, "I'll send you an owl when she's safe. But there's nothing for you to do here now. You have no right to be here after everything you've done to Hermione already. I understand that you must be upset, but she's not your responsibility, professionally or personally. As your friend, I don't want to have to use force to make you leave, but I will if I must."
Ron's face grew red, "I don't think you understand, Harry. Draco Malfoy is the one who is behind all of this, and if you can't see that, you've gone blind. He's got all of you under his spell. You must see that, right? He's evil! He was back when we were in school and he is now! Please, for Hermione's sake you must pursue this!"
"Ron, at this point, he is far less of a suspect than you are," Harry said firmly, "If it weren't for the fact that several eyewitnesses ID-ed you drinking excessively at the Leaky, you would be the one in the interrogation room now. I suggest you leave now, before I am forced to arrest you for trespassing."
Ron felt betrayed, as he turned around and left. Fine, let the bitch rot away. He had tried to help her, and this was how he was treated. For all he cared, she could rot in hell.
Hermione felt herself coming back to consciousness as she winced in pain. Her entire body was burning with pain.
She lost track of how many hours that had passed since she had been taken, not even sure if it was all still the same day or if at least a week had passed.
She felt panic sweep over her at the thought. Was Rose okay? Was she worried, or scared? Her daughter had never been away from her for more than a couple of hours while she worked, never more than a day. Never anything like this.
She cursed herself, she should have been more vigilant while she was walking. She should have seen to it that she was armed at all times. Constant Vigilance, as Moody liked to remind them. And she had gone and gotten herself kidnapped, all because she was lost in her own world, thinking about her date, over her safety.
Surely by now her friends would have realized that she had been taken, but would they figure out by who in time? Would they know that it was Rodolphus and Lucius that had taken her?
She felt her heart break at the thought that her boyfriend's father was one of the people behind her abduction and all the murders. She knew it would break him if anything happened to her, let alone by his own father's hand. She prayed that for his sake she would make it out. She prayed for her daughter, hoping she would not have to grow up without a mother.
She needed to conserve her strength. It was the only chance she had without a wand.
"So the mudblood has woken up at last," Rodolphus grinned down at her, as he noticed her moving slightly. "I was worried that our last session had taken too much of a toll on you. But you are nothing if not a fighter, aren't you. Which means you can stand to take some more pain."
She braced herself, as she was hit with a crucio, feeling her body fill with immense pain and hurt, she shook on the ground, trying to keep herself tethered to thoughts of her daughter and Draco. She thought of her friends, and happiness, trying to escape the world of pain she currently was facing. She refused to lose her mind to the wands of Death Eaters. She refused to let them win.
"Enough," Lucius' voice commanded as he walked into the room, stopping Rodolphus. "Do not forget yourself, Lestrange. We are here in an attempt to bring back your dead wife. A feat which has my wife threatening me that she'll leave me. So we better succeed, or I'll kill you myself. And if the mudblood dies before we get to that stage, then we'll never be able to bring back my dear sister in law. So hold yourself and remember your place."
"I am not casting any curses which cause her to bleed," Rodolphus said in an annoyed tone. "We need her alive, but we don't need her sound. We can have as much fun with her as we want as long as she's alive at the time we preform the ritual."
"Speaking of which," Lucius cut in, "I've heard murmurs of a Valkyrie in the northern regions of Germany. Her heart could be vital to us for our spell. Go retrieve this for me, and I'll mind the prisoner. It'll allow me to take out some of my unhappiness at my son's choice of a lover.
Rodolphus looked unhappy, but he nodded.
"Fine, Malfoy, I'll go get your little heart. But when I return, I will continue having my fun with the little bitch, and you will not deny me that. Bella hated the mudblood whore, and I intend to tell her that I made the little girl's life hell before she died."
Lucius gave him a look of indifference and Rodolphus turned leaving the room, and Hermione behind. She only prayed for her sake that Lucius would be kinder to her than he was.