Airborne Miracles
Disclaimer: If I owned them, would I be writing this? No. They're owned by J.K. Rowling.
A/N: WOW! Over 200 reviews! *gives everyone chocolate* People who reviewed chapter 7 were: animegirl-mika, googoo4you, Trancos, Aniron, zumamoonlight, L. Meylan, KAOS, LydiaGotven, Fiery-chan, Nellie-chan (x2), f0xyness39, Anakah (x2), SophieBabe, harrypotter-chik, silver_rose, JAMTillDawn, shibbydragongirl, FairLady, Amythest-Angel462, Juliet-Potter426, Weasley Pride, libella, Random Anonymous Person, kaori, Rebecca, hyper_shark, aime, firey fairy, Slytherin Angel, Adi, Safiya, SuSaMiNa, kalariah, Cosmic Angel, Rosa, sam, Stephanie Gamble, Dragonsbane and ce!
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And so, about five minutes later, the trio were ready to go. Harry was clutching Hermione tightly, one arm around her waist, the other combining the task of holding the broomstick with that of pillowing her head on his elbow.
They took off out of the window, and into the night. Although Draco couldn't feel the chill of the air cutting past him, the clear taste and smell of it told him it was another typically cold March night. The full moon shone down brightly, and the wind blowing in their faces made their eyes sting. The sky was purple-black, star dotted and crisp. It was a perfect night. Now they were out of the Manor, it all seemed safe. Draco had succeeded in taking the Malus Orbis, they had Hermione alive, and they were heading back to safety.
Ron and Harry flew together, for Hermione's sake as much as to talk. Draco flew a little apart but could still overhear some of their conversation.
'They kidnapped her to get me, you know. It's my fault she's hurt.'
'Of course it's not! You can't help it if they suddenly get some evil plan and kidnap her. And you don't even know why they did it.'
'I'm sure they'd take the time and effort to get into Hogwarts just to capture one Muggleborn girl.'
'But if they took the time and effort to get into Hogwarts, and it was you they were after, wouldn't it be much simpler to just go and kidnap you?'
Harry looked relieved at this thought, until Draco spoke.
'There are wards all over your dormitory. No-one with a Dark Mark would be able to enter.'
Harry was surprised. 'Wards on my dormitory?'
'How do you know?'
'My father's a Death Eater. I pick things up.' He said, enjoying the looks on their faces. As if they didn't know anyway…
Harry shivered, and changed the subject. 'It's cold.'
'Freezing.' remarked Ron.
Draco said nothing. He was always freezing, after all, and he couldn't tell how cold it was.
They flew on in silence, each one lost in thought. Draco wondered whether he would wake up soon and find it was all a dream. He didn't know whether he wished it or not. On the good side, he had the Malus Orbis, and a living Runes partner. On the other hand, his father was likely to murder him as soon as possible. Tonight had been too different, out of the ordinary. It had been terrifying, exhilarating, wrong and somehow right, madness and sanity all rolled into one. It had been life changing.
And it was about to become even more so.
Harry and Ron were now talking animatedly, or maybe even arguing. Draco wasn't listening. He kept glancing over his shoulder, afraid of being followed. What if one of the Death Eaters had looked out of a window? What if they were chasing them now? What if they had faster brooms, and they knew Darker curses, and they could catch them and kill them one by one…
He was so lost in this line of thought that he didn't see exactly how Hermione fell.
'HERMIONE!'
Draco's head whipped around at the cry, and his eyes fixed on the terrible sight. Hermione was falling, tumbling head over heels. His heart skipped a beat.
Without thinking, he threw himself into a dive. Faster, faster, he willed the broom. The trees were rushing up to meet him, like deadly black-green spikes. He was dimly aware of Harry a short way behind him, and a vague memory of all the times they'd played Quidditch against each other sparked in the back of his brain. But his unwavering concentration was focused solely on the girl in front of him, hair buffeted by the wind, falling obliviously towards death.
He reached out a hand, stretching as hard as he could, and grabbed her wrist. She jerked to a stop, and her full weight hung from Draco's arm.
A second passed. And then…
A wave of something spread up his arm, starting from where he clutched her wrist in a death-grip, swelling and growing until it covered him completely. It took him a second to recognise it. Warmth. He was warm again.
Somehow, the Glacios curse had broken.
Harry rather spoilt the moment by stopping beside Draco, white-faced. 'Is she alright?' he asked, sounding vaguely panicky.
'She's fine, Potter, apart from being dropped by an incompetent fool.' Draco drawled automatically. He carefully pulled Hermione up. Some part of him – the part still full of witty repartee and insults, as opposed to the dumb amazement which was so irritatingly filling him - gloated in the expression on Potter's face. He looked so guilty.
He instinctively pulled Hermione onto his lap, glaring at Harry, and Ron who had flown down in the meantime. 'You couldn't be trusted taking care of a Flobberworm.' he told them, then shifted Hermione to a more comfortable position. 'I'll carry her.' He flew off before they could argue.
They didn't argue, but Draco could sense a wave of resentment from them. He ignored it, and went back to his own thoughts. How had the curse been lifted? What had happened? There were so many possible answers, criteria that had been met. But it was over. And it felt amazing.
He had forgotten just how crisp the chill of the night air could be, how warm another person felt. He glanced down at Hermione, unconscious in his arms. It was hard to hold her, he had to admit, but right at that moment he wouldn't have given her up for a thousand Galleons. A part of him knew, in the same way that you know fire will burn or ice will freeze, that the cure had something to do with Hermione. This night had changed him completely. Before, he had been… cold. The Glacios curse had been only part of it. There had been another kind of coldness, too, beneath the skin. He had not cared for anyone other than himself, he had been mean, he had been cruel. But tonight, the Glacios curse had been broken. And as he looked down at the unconscious girl in his arms, he felt a rush of something warm inside, too.
And for that, he was grateful.
Ron's voice cut into his thoughts. 'I hate to tell you this, but look behind.'
Draco turned to see what he had feared. Ten or so Death Eaters were following them.
A curse whizzed past them, disappearing into the dark night. Draco pulled out his wand. Time to fight.
But first, he pointed the wand at himself. 'Funis.' Ropes spun out of the end of the wand, winding around himself and Hermione, a few loops securing them to the broomstick. He looped some strands around the pocket containing the Malus Orbis, wishing he had the time to bind it to himself. He had experience of Dark curses, and did not want to take any chances.
They flew in a tense silence. The Death Eaters were too far behind to attack, but they were closing the gap with alarming speed. As their pursuers got closer, they began throwing spells. Harry and Ron couldn't do much more than blocking the curses, or dodging them completely. Their retaliation was mainly in the form of Impedimenta curses and so forth, which couldn't slow the Death Eaters down for long. Draco, on the other hand, was a different matter.
'Malfoy, are you using Dark curses?'
Draco grinned his most evil grin at the rather scandalised Harry. 'Not very Dark. Shadowy, at most.' He paused for this to sink in. 'Haven't you ever heard of fighting fire with fire?'
Harry looked doubtful, but turned back to dodging the curses. Suddenly, like the Holy Grail, the dim shape of Hogwarts loomed on the distant horizon. It would take about five minutes by Draco's estimation to get there, and…
'AVADA KEDAVRA!'
An all too familiar voice shouted the killing curse, and it took Draco barely a glance over his shoulder to tell it was heading straight for him.
Jerking the broom reflexively, pulling it as hard as he could, he swerved just enough to avoid the bolt of death. He sensed it whiz past him, harmlessly. He dimly heard a voice – either Harry or Ron, he couldn't tell – swear in surprise. His heart pounded violently. That voice…
He didn't have time to pause, before the voice was back, this time with a different tactic.
'Crucio!'
Draco barely dodged the familiar curse. He threw his arm tighter around the unconscious girl he was carrying, hoping with all the hope he had that she would not slip through the ropes.
He was not quick enough to dodge when the Death Eater cast the second Cruciatus. Pain flooded him, and he gave an involuntary cry of pain before biting his lip to stop himself. He would not scream… mustn't scream… mustn't show weakness…
With a strange shift of perspective, he felt the world turn upside down. Except, of course, it was himself that was upside down, hanging by the ropes from his broomstick. He dropped his wand, felt it leave his fingers to fall to the ground so far below. He dimly realised, through the burning pain that was his world, that his arms had wrapped themselves around Hermione, holding her protectively. He didn't want her hurt…
And then the pain vanished.
'Are you alright?' asked a voice. He opened his eyes to see it was Harry.
'I'm fine.' he replied, putting his hands back onto the broomstick and pulling himself upright. He touched his lip where he had bitten it, and felt warm blood.
'We're almost there, keep going.' said Ron, glancing at the ever-gaining Death Eaters.
Soon, the towers of Hogwarts loomed into view. And, the instant it became clear that the boys would reach Hogwarts before the Death Eaters could catch them, Voldemort's minions turned away, flying back to the manor.
Harry and Ron whooped and cheered. Draco just smiled. They were safe. And whatever madness happened tomorrow, however things changed, for now he was safe.
They flew in the Infirmary window, terrifying the life out of Madam Pomfrey. Then all the usual things following such an adventure took place. Hermione was tucked up in bed, and Dumbledore came in to listen to their story. Draco sat back in his chair, and listened while Harry and Ron related what had happened to Dumbledore. The headmaster seemed quite amused at their adventure, and kept giving Draco interested and knowing glances. Personally, Draco thought anyone that gave interested and knowing glances should either come out and say what he knew that was so interesting, or go and gouge his eyes out. He knew which one he preferred.
They seemed to be nearing the end of the story.
'And one of the Death Eaters tried to kill Malfoy, but he swerved in time.'
'It was really close. And then the Death Eater tried the Cruciatus on him.'
On hearing this, Madam Pomfrey swooped down. 'Headmaster, I must insist! The Cruciatus is extremely painful, I should have been told immediately! He needs rest, he needs sleep …'
Dumbledore cut her off mid-flow. 'Of course, Poppy. You may take him now.'
Within five minutes Draco was in a soft bed, his cut lip cleaned and healed, and a large slab of chocolate, which he had been ordered to eat. His cloak was draped over the back of a chair; the Malus Orbis surreptitiously removed from its pocket, and hidden under his pillow. He grudgingly nibbled the chocolate. He did not particularly like the milk variety, preferring bittersweet dark chocolate.
But the chocolate wasn't bad, so he ate it, listening to the chatter as the two Gryffindors finished their story. They left soon, and Madam Pomfrey turned out the light, muttering about reckless boys and Death Eaters.
Draco lay in the darkness. He glanced over to the bed next to him where Hermione lay, recovering. She looked so frail, yet peaceful. He hoped she was alright.
He fell into a peaceful sleep. But, for the first time in so long, his dreams were filled with warmth.
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Did you like it? What will happen next? Well you'll have to wait for Chapter 9 to find out. Whereas you can answer the first question very quickly by clicking the review button…