*~* To Love a Malfoy*~*
Chapter 4: Spawn of Aragog
Draco and Hermione stayed motionless gawging at the beast in the shadow. It slowly edged closer, enjoying the teenagers fear increasing with each step it took. It seemed like hours before Hermione's brain began to work again. Reacting quickly, she pushed Draco off of her, so they both were standing. Draco was still open-mouthed, his eyes glued to the monster. Hermione ran. She had taken about 15 strides or so when she realized that Draco wasn't behind her. Hermione stopped suddenly and swung her head around. There, standing pertrified, was Draco and only a few feet away was the creature, thirsty for blood. Hermione watched hopelessly as the beast closed in on Draco. Without giving it a second thought Hermione began to sprint back to Draco. As she neared him, she stretched out her arm, ready to grab onto Draco and pull him with her to safety. But the thing in the darkness reached him first. It's pincers sunk deep into Draco's calf, tearing through his robe with ease. The monster held tightly onto Draco's leg and dragged him along the floor with such ease that it appeared Draco was nothing more than a mere lifeless rag doll. Draco flopped uselessly along the ground, the blood from his gash being smeared across the floor. Dropping it's victim, the beast licked the blood from it's pincers, growing hungry for more. During those few seconds, Hermione tightly held onto her wand and pointed it at the creature, "IMPEDIMENTA!" The spell took instant effects and the creature's movements were in slow motion, it gave the impression of being unmoving. Knowing that the spell would not last long, Hermione darted to Draco's side. Since no healing enchantments sprung to mind, Hermione helped Draco up as fast as possible and slipped an arm around his waist for support. She then placed his arm around the back of her neck. As swiftly as they could they hurried down the hall, as far away from the monster as possible. Hermione took a moment to glance at Draco's face. His appearance was paler than usual, he was biting down hard on his bottom lip, and his expression really showed how much pain her was in, yet he did not utter a sound. She felt sorry for him. All he did was talk with her in the corridor. . . during dinner, where everyone was supposed to be. Hermione began to wonder why Draco had been there in the first place, but now wasn't the time to be thinking about that, The main concern was to put as much distance between them and the monster as possible. Hermione glimpsed quickly over her shoulder. She saw the creature's speed increase. Her heart pounded against her ribcage, her heartbeat growing faster with each second that passed. That's when she finally saw the beast properly for the first time. It was a gigantic spider with black bristly fur covering its starved, gaunt body, including its eight lanky, stick like legs. It's numerous eyes were staring hungrily after the fleeing students, while it's pincers clicked together at a snail's pace because the effects of the spell had not warn off yet. Hermione instantly recognized the creature, an acromantula. She had read about them in books, but she had never encountered one in real life before, until now. They were much more terrifying than the books described. Hermione could only begin to imagine the frightening things it was capable of, and she wasn't going to wait around to find out. Trying to speed up their pace was difficult because Draco was badly wounded. Each time he put a little amount of weight on his leg, a fresh surge of pain bolted up through his leg. It was short and sharp, but it caused him a vast amount of pain. The pair of them stumbled down a set of stairs and then down another, Draco left a trail of blood, making it easier to find them, but the scent of blood and flesh was enough to lure the beast towards them.
"We've got to go faster." Hermione puffed, "The effects of the spell are probably wearing off now."
Draco just nodded. He didn't dare allow himself to speak incase he yelled out in pain, he didn't want to appear weak. An angry roar echoed through the corridors. It was soon followed by the pounding of several feet, scurrying to seek out its prey. Hermione broke into a run, heaving Draco with as much strength as she could muster. But as fast as Hermione and Draco went, the enormous spider went faster and Hermione knew that eventually it would reach them. And at the worst possible moment, Draco fell.
"I can't go on." He said through gritted teeth, his voice filled with agony.
"Come on. You can do it." Hermione was trying to pull him up, but he just pushed her away, refusing her help. Draco's hand was clutching his injured leg, "Just go away!" He shouted, "Leave me alone!"
Before Hermione could respond the horrific monster came crashing down the hallway and came to a halt a few meters away from the Gryffindor and Slytherin. Doing the only thing she could, Hermione fumbled in her pocket and drew out her wand. She stepped over Draco, her wand arm stretched forwards towards the beast. Standing protectively in front of Draco she growled, "Bring it on!" Her normal cheery brown eyes flickered with an angry fire as her Gryffindor instincts kicked in. Hermione was expecting the creature to charge and attack her but not to start- "Laughing? Are you laughing at me?" Her voice dripping with hate. The giant spider replied with a deep, hoarse, manly voice, "Ha! You, a mere human being cannot beat me! I'm far stronger than you will ever be." He continued to laugh his deep menacing laugh.
Hermione took one step forward and said coolly, "I think it would be wise to not underestimate my power."
This made him laugh even harder. Hermione muttered something under her breath and pointed her wand to the statue just behind the spider. A flash of yellow light bounded across the hall and struck the statue accurately on the chest. An explosion sent small chunks of the statue flying in every direction. His laughter faltered and then stopped completely. A thick cloud of gray dust surrounded the three of them. After the big bang there was silence except for the sound of Draco coughing. As the dust settled, Hermione was still standing firmly, her wand pointing threateningly at the beast before her. Everyone's attention was drawn to the remains of the statue, which wasn't much. All that was left was a pile of grey dust, rubble, and a few small pieces of statue.
"Who are you?" His harsh voice cut through the air.
Hermione gave him a piercing stare, "I am Hermione Granger." Her eyes still fixed unblinkingly on him.
All this time Draco had just been gawking helplessly as the scene unfolded. He had dragged himself to the nearest wall and slumped against it. He couldn't believe what was happening. First of all an oversize spider appears from nowhere and attacks him, then he gets help from a Gryffindor trying to escape, and now this! Hermione Granger standing there actually protecting him! "What's happening? Am I dreaming?" He thought to himself. His leg injury still hurt him greatly, but by now he had been using most of his energy to try and block out the pain.
"And who are you?" Hermione's voice stopping his train of thoughts, "And what is your business here?"
"I am Azmordes. I have been banished from the depths of the forest by my family and friends. All I search for is for food." He stepped closer, but Hermione did not flinch, "And I do believe I have found it." And with that he leapt forward, his pincers gleaming in the moonlight.
"Stupefy!" Hermione yelled the first thing to come to her mind. Azmordes looked a tad bit dazed, but still bounded forward.
"Expelliarmus!" Hermione waved her wand professionally, knocking the starving spider backwards. Trying to position herself in a better dueling stance, Azmordes gained an advantage and knocked Hermione over.
A shriek escaped from Hermione's lips, panic flashed in her eyes, but left as quickly as it came. "Expelliarmus!" Azmordes slammed against the wall Hermione tried to lift her wand arm, but she couldn't. In the vicious attack Azmordes had injured Hermione's arm.
"No!" Hermione said in a desperate voice. She grabbed the wand with her left hand and began to wave her wand around wildly, not used to the feeling. For a fleeting second Hermione remembered back to her first year when Ron was attempting the levitating charm, and like she was now, had started to swish his wand around violently. *SMACK* Hermione was now the one who was sent flying and crashed into the wall, further hurting her right arm. Draco, who was close by, forced himself to Hermione's side and grabbed her wand and spoke a spell Hermione had never heard before. Black light seeped from her wand and struck Azmordes. This enchantment greatly weakened Azmordes, but it also drained the remaining power of Draco, who was struggling to keep consciousness. But even after an assault like that, Azmordes still was determined to claim his meal. He lurched forward and trod intentionally on Hermione's damaged arm. Tears welled up in Hermione's eyes, she did not want to give him the satisfaction of screaming out in pain. He stepped back and smiled widely, showing his pincers. Hermione knew this was it. She turned to Draco and whispered, "Thank you and I'm sorry." Draco looked at Hermione like she was insane. Here they both were, about to be killed, and here was Hermione apologizing to him!
Azmordes's words echoed through the halls, "Good bye Hermione Granger."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
And yes that is where I leave you. I didn't want to leave it there, but in this case I hope you'll come back to find out what happens to Hermione and Draco. I know that 'IMPEDIMENTA' is actually a freezing charm but Azmordes is very powerful and the spell just slows him down, just to clear that up in case you were wondering.
Slim-Shady's-Modeling-Baby: "Easy Tiger, I expect dinner and a movie first." That was my favourite part too. I just had to add that in =)
kiki-0303: Now you know what the monster is. I thought I should use an Aragog spider dude cause I thought it would be wicked. That's why this chapter is delayed, because my friends and I were busy trying to find a name for the Spawn of Aragog, as I liked to called it, but every now and then I would accidently say 'Spawn of Aragorn'.
Lavon: Finally added this chapter. From now on I'm just gonna go straight ahead and type them. It will be a lot quicker that way.
FoXyRoXiE: Did I tell you you were one of my favourite reviewers? Skiing was brill, once I got the hang of it again. The 'Easy Tiger' part was one of my favourite parts too. Thanks for liking my chapters. I personally am not too fond of this chapter, it's worse than the rest. But since the rest of my story is kinda good it all balances out. I swear you compliment me way too much :D
Starfruit: Yes I am evil, EVIL! Muh ha ha ha! Isn't it weird that evil spelt backwards is live. It's just really weird. Us vampires must unite together!
Baby T: hehe, thanks. Thanks so so so much for the review. I'll try and update sooner.
Chapter 4: Spawn of Aragog
Draco and Hermione stayed motionless gawging at the beast in the shadow. It slowly edged closer, enjoying the teenagers fear increasing with each step it took. It seemed like hours before Hermione's brain began to work again. Reacting quickly, she pushed Draco off of her, so they both were standing. Draco was still open-mouthed, his eyes glued to the monster. Hermione ran. She had taken about 15 strides or so when she realized that Draco wasn't behind her. Hermione stopped suddenly and swung her head around. There, standing pertrified, was Draco and only a few feet away was the creature, thirsty for blood. Hermione watched hopelessly as the beast closed in on Draco. Without giving it a second thought Hermione began to sprint back to Draco. As she neared him, she stretched out her arm, ready to grab onto Draco and pull him with her to safety. But the thing in the darkness reached him first. It's pincers sunk deep into Draco's calf, tearing through his robe with ease. The monster held tightly onto Draco's leg and dragged him along the floor with such ease that it appeared Draco was nothing more than a mere lifeless rag doll. Draco flopped uselessly along the ground, the blood from his gash being smeared across the floor. Dropping it's victim, the beast licked the blood from it's pincers, growing hungry for more. During those few seconds, Hermione tightly held onto her wand and pointed it at the creature, "IMPEDIMENTA!" The spell took instant effects and the creature's movements were in slow motion, it gave the impression of being unmoving. Knowing that the spell would not last long, Hermione darted to Draco's side. Since no healing enchantments sprung to mind, Hermione helped Draco up as fast as possible and slipped an arm around his waist for support. She then placed his arm around the back of her neck. As swiftly as they could they hurried down the hall, as far away from the monster as possible. Hermione took a moment to glance at Draco's face. His appearance was paler than usual, he was biting down hard on his bottom lip, and his expression really showed how much pain her was in, yet he did not utter a sound. She felt sorry for him. All he did was talk with her in the corridor. . . during dinner, where everyone was supposed to be. Hermione began to wonder why Draco had been there in the first place, but now wasn't the time to be thinking about that, The main concern was to put as much distance between them and the monster as possible. Hermione glimpsed quickly over her shoulder. She saw the creature's speed increase. Her heart pounded against her ribcage, her heartbeat growing faster with each second that passed. That's when she finally saw the beast properly for the first time. It was a gigantic spider with black bristly fur covering its starved, gaunt body, including its eight lanky, stick like legs. It's numerous eyes were staring hungrily after the fleeing students, while it's pincers clicked together at a snail's pace because the effects of the spell had not warn off yet. Hermione instantly recognized the creature, an acromantula. She had read about them in books, but she had never encountered one in real life before, until now. They were much more terrifying than the books described. Hermione could only begin to imagine the frightening things it was capable of, and she wasn't going to wait around to find out. Trying to speed up their pace was difficult because Draco was badly wounded. Each time he put a little amount of weight on his leg, a fresh surge of pain bolted up through his leg. It was short and sharp, but it caused him a vast amount of pain. The pair of them stumbled down a set of stairs and then down another, Draco left a trail of blood, making it easier to find them, but the scent of blood and flesh was enough to lure the beast towards them.
"We've got to go faster." Hermione puffed, "The effects of the spell are probably wearing off now."
Draco just nodded. He didn't dare allow himself to speak incase he yelled out in pain, he didn't want to appear weak. An angry roar echoed through the corridors. It was soon followed by the pounding of several feet, scurrying to seek out its prey. Hermione broke into a run, heaving Draco with as much strength as she could muster. But as fast as Hermione and Draco went, the enormous spider went faster and Hermione knew that eventually it would reach them. And at the worst possible moment, Draco fell.
"I can't go on." He said through gritted teeth, his voice filled with agony.
"Come on. You can do it." Hermione was trying to pull him up, but he just pushed her away, refusing her help. Draco's hand was clutching his injured leg, "Just go away!" He shouted, "Leave me alone!"
Before Hermione could respond the horrific monster came crashing down the hallway and came to a halt a few meters away from the Gryffindor and Slytherin. Doing the only thing she could, Hermione fumbled in her pocket and drew out her wand. She stepped over Draco, her wand arm stretched forwards towards the beast. Standing protectively in front of Draco she growled, "Bring it on!" Her normal cheery brown eyes flickered with an angry fire as her Gryffindor instincts kicked in. Hermione was expecting the creature to charge and attack her but not to start- "Laughing? Are you laughing at me?" Her voice dripping with hate. The giant spider replied with a deep, hoarse, manly voice, "Ha! You, a mere human being cannot beat me! I'm far stronger than you will ever be." He continued to laugh his deep menacing laugh.
Hermione took one step forward and said coolly, "I think it would be wise to not underestimate my power."
This made him laugh even harder. Hermione muttered something under her breath and pointed her wand to the statue just behind the spider. A flash of yellow light bounded across the hall and struck the statue accurately on the chest. An explosion sent small chunks of the statue flying in every direction. His laughter faltered and then stopped completely. A thick cloud of gray dust surrounded the three of them. After the big bang there was silence except for the sound of Draco coughing. As the dust settled, Hermione was still standing firmly, her wand pointing threateningly at the beast before her. Everyone's attention was drawn to the remains of the statue, which wasn't much. All that was left was a pile of grey dust, rubble, and a few small pieces of statue.
"Who are you?" His harsh voice cut through the air.
Hermione gave him a piercing stare, "I am Hermione Granger." Her eyes still fixed unblinkingly on him.
All this time Draco had just been gawking helplessly as the scene unfolded. He had dragged himself to the nearest wall and slumped against it. He couldn't believe what was happening. First of all an oversize spider appears from nowhere and attacks him, then he gets help from a Gryffindor trying to escape, and now this! Hermione Granger standing there actually protecting him! "What's happening? Am I dreaming?" He thought to himself. His leg injury still hurt him greatly, but by now he had been using most of his energy to try and block out the pain.
"And who are you?" Hermione's voice stopping his train of thoughts, "And what is your business here?"
"I am Azmordes. I have been banished from the depths of the forest by my family and friends. All I search for is for food." He stepped closer, but Hermione did not flinch, "And I do believe I have found it." And with that he leapt forward, his pincers gleaming in the moonlight.
"Stupefy!" Hermione yelled the first thing to come to her mind. Azmordes looked a tad bit dazed, but still bounded forward.
"Expelliarmus!" Hermione waved her wand professionally, knocking the starving spider backwards. Trying to position herself in a better dueling stance, Azmordes gained an advantage and knocked Hermione over.
A shriek escaped from Hermione's lips, panic flashed in her eyes, but left as quickly as it came. "Expelliarmus!" Azmordes slammed against the wall Hermione tried to lift her wand arm, but she couldn't. In the vicious attack Azmordes had injured Hermione's arm.
"No!" Hermione said in a desperate voice. She grabbed the wand with her left hand and began to wave her wand around wildly, not used to the feeling. For a fleeting second Hermione remembered back to her first year when Ron was attempting the levitating charm, and like she was now, had started to swish his wand around violently. *SMACK* Hermione was now the one who was sent flying and crashed into the wall, further hurting her right arm. Draco, who was close by, forced himself to Hermione's side and grabbed her wand and spoke a spell Hermione had never heard before. Black light seeped from her wand and struck Azmordes. This enchantment greatly weakened Azmordes, but it also drained the remaining power of Draco, who was struggling to keep consciousness. But even after an assault like that, Azmordes still was determined to claim his meal. He lurched forward and trod intentionally on Hermione's damaged arm. Tears welled up in Hermione's eyes, she did not want to give him the satisfaction of screaming out in pain. He stepped back and smiled widely, showing his pincers. Hermione knew this was it. She turned to Draco and whispered, "Thank you and I'm sorry." Draco looked at Hermione like she was insane. Here they both were, about to be killed, and here was Hermione apologizing to him!
Azmordes's words echoed through the halls, "Good bye Hermione Granger."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
And yes that is where I leave you. I didn't want to leave it there, but in this case I hope you'll come back to find out what happens to Hermione and Draco. I know that 'IMPEDIMENTA' is actually a freezing charm but Azmordes is very powerful and the spell just slows him down, just to clear that up in case you were wondering.
Slim-Shady's-Modeling-Baby: "Easy Tiger, I expect dinner and a movie first." That was my favourite part too. I just had to add that in =)
kiki-0303: Now you know what the monster is. I thought I should use an Aragog spider dude cause I thought it would be wicked. That's why this chapter is delayed, because my friends and I were busy trying to find a name for the Spawn of Aragog, as I liked to called it, but every now and then I would accidently say 'Spawn of Aragorn'.
Lavon: Finally added this chapter. From now on I'm just gonna go straight ahead and type them. It will be a lot quicker that way.
FoXyRoXiE: Did I tell you you were one of my favourite reviewers? Skiing was brill, once I got the hang of it again. The 'Easy Tiger' part was one of my favourite parts too. Thanks for liking my chapters. I personally am not too fond of this chapter, it's worse than the rest. But since the rest of my story is kinda good it all balances out. I swear you compliment me way too much :D
Starfruit: Yes I am evil, EVIL! Muh ha ha ha! Isn't it weird that evil spelt backwards is live. It's just really weird. Us vampires must unite together!
Baby T: hehe, thanks. Thanks so so so much for the review. I'll try and update sooner.