Chapter 15.
Following the first escape, every couple of nights, another dozen girls would slip past the Death Eaters and escape, most times without Hermione's accompaniment. The number of slaves was fast depleting, and only the older ones were left. Conditions for them were worse; they had to take over the jobs, and were tortured on a regular basis for information. Thankfully, no one suspected Hermione, except Flint, who followed her and watched her like a hawk for the majority of the time. He did not trust her, and Hermione knew it, it was evident on his face that he did not.
Draco was not having a better time. Voldemort blamed him and his fellow Death Eaters for the slaves escape, and Draco was taken out of his classes, to be taught advanced Dark Arts by Bellatrix Lestrange and Barty Crouch Junior. His concentration on his lessons was diminishing every time he had one, because of Hermione.
He felt that he was betraying her when he learnt these curses and spells,because she was tortured with these curses every week. After a few months, and hours of training, he could use two of the Unforgivable curses; Cruciatus and Avada Kedavra. He of course, did not tell Hermione this. He knew that she would be repulsed by what he could do, and Draco cared too much about Hermione to hurt her. The couple had gotten into a few fights lately, their relationship was strained, for whatever reason, Draco did not know. But he cared about her, more than anybody else, and would do anything to be with her. Anything.
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For several weeks, Hermione did not see James, Sirius and Remus (who had by then, told her his real name). Hermione decided one day to slip out of Hogwarts castle to see them, but she knew that Flint would follow her. She took several fake turns and paths in an effort to lose him. Positive that she had, she hurried to the small old cottage that the three older men were saying in for a few weeks, hoping that they were there.
The cottage itself was surrounded by thick tree and bushes, hiding it from view. It was covered in vines and ivy, the windows were boarded up and the garden was unkempt. It was quite far away from any civilisation, and it took Hermione quite a while to get there.
She approached the house in caution, knocking twice on the door. She checked her surroundings for any Death Eaters, and, satisfied, pushed open the door. The heavy wooden door opened with a creak, and Hermione darted inside, closing the door behind her.
She could feel the magic of this place, the amount of magic used to conceal this house was tangible, the wards against non-order members were in place, and she thanked Remus silently for being so good at Charms.
She felt a ripple of magic go through her and outwards, and she knew that the residents of this house had been alerted to her presence.
Sure enough, bounding down the stairs a few seconds later was Remus, his wand in his hand. At the sight of her, he paused on the steps, and sighed with relief.
"Hermione!" He said ecstatically, enveloping her in a hug. "I've been so worried! Are you alright? Have you been hurt? I've seen Snape recently, but he said he hasn't seen you either. Where have you been?"
Hermione laughed at the flood of questions, but before she could answer, Sirius and James arrived in the hallway, and Sirius swept Hermione into a hug, James hanging back. Sirius asked the same questions Remus had, but with more swear words regarding her disappearance. Hermione laughed it off, and when she confirmed that she was fine and had not been too terribly hurt, Sirius and Remus ushered her into the kitchen. James was silent, leaning against the wall, his eyes searching her happy face. Hermione was aware of his scrutinizing gaze, but tried to take no notice of it as Remus poured her some tea.
She stirred the liquid diligently, listening as Sirius excitedly told her about the progress that was being made, and the steps to release the prisoner from inside the castle, who was apparently important in Voldemort's destruction. She listened carefully, the smile that had been present for many months still on her face, and James did not miss this. In fact, when Hermione laughed for what seemed the fourth time, James glared at her, strode forward, grabbed her arm and pulled her up the stairs, ignoring the protests belonging to Sirius and Remus.
He flung her into one of the rooms upstairs and closed the door, locking it. A few seconds later, Sirius pounded on the door. "James, what the hell are you doing? Let us in!"
"Leave us alone!" James shouted back.
"We can unlock this door; you know very well that we can." Said the rational voice of Remus.
"Go back downstairs you two! We'll be there in a minute!" James replied angrily.
Hermione could hear them retreat down the stairs, Sirius muttering angrily to himself. James was looking at the door, making sure that they had truly gone. His black hair messily hung in front of his glasses, and when he turned back to Hermione, his hazel eyes burned furiously.
"I told you not to see him again." James growled, taking a step towards Hermione.
Hermione shrunk into the wall, fear and confusion mixed on her face. "What-I don't know-"
"You know bloody well what I'm talking about." James said angrily. "I told you not to see him again, I warned you didn't I? And that's where you've been all this time, with him, with Draco Malfoy."
Hermione was silent; she could not take her eyes off his angry face.
"We've been so worried Hermione, I've been so worried. I thought you were dead for crying out loud! Do you know how much I wanted to get into that castle and find you?! Did you know how much I wanted to do that?! If he's hurt you, I swear to Merlin, I'll fucking kill him." James growled, his eyes burning with so much hate that Hermione gasped.
"He's diff-"
"Do not tell me that he is different Hermione! Merlin, how can you be so blind!" James shouted passionately. "He's just like them!"
"No he's-"
"Yes he is. Do you know what Snape told me a few weeks ago? He told me that Draco Malfoy has been taking Dark Arts classes from Bellatrix Lestrange and Barty Crouch Junior. Do you know who they are, Hermione?"
"They tortured the Longbottoms into insanity." Hermione said tearfully.
"Not only that. They did it to Fred and George Weasley too."
Hermione's hand flew to her mouth, and she collapsed against the wall, sliding down to rest on the floor. James glanced at her, running a hand through his hair. He sighed, and sat next to Hermione, his head in his hands.
"I didn't know." Hermione said tearfully.
"I know." James said, glancing at her. "The reason why I'm telling you this is because I don't want you to get hurt." He sighed, and looked straight ahead of him at the door, his eyes filling with tears. "My wife, before she died, was pregnant. Her name was Lily, and she was the most beautiful person in the world. To me anyway. When she got pregnant, we were ecstatic. Sirius, Remus, and another one of our friends, Peter, were ecstatic. Anyway, she had the child. His name was Harry, and he looked exactly like me." He smiled in remembrance. Hermione gazed at him intently. "But when he was only a couple of months old, we were betrayed. Peter turned out to be a Death Eater. And he killed my wife, and my son." Tears fell down his cheeks; James did not bother to wipe them away. "It was the worst thing that ever happened to me. I lost my wife, child and friend, all in the same night. I never thought Peter would do something like that. He had been my best friend for years. Looks can be deceiving." James sighed, and looked at Hermione, whose tears were flowing freely. "Harry would have been your age if he lived. You two would have gotten on so well, I just know it." He smiled, and Hermione took his hand, squeezing it gently, suddenly feeling like the adult, instead of the child. "The reason why I'm telling you this is that you are more than just a friend. You are more than just an ally. You're like a daughter to me. A child that had a chance to grow up, unlike my own. And even though Malfoy says he's good, and isn't a Death Eater. He could be lying. And I want you to be prepared for that, if it happens. Because I don't want to see you get hurt. Not in the way I have."
Hermione was silent; her mind processing everything James had just told her. It was no surprise to her that he was so reserved and tended to daydream, having gone through such an ordeal like that. To lose everything in one moment, Hermione knew what that felt like. When Voldemort had taken over, she had lost all her friends and family, her life and her childhood. She knew what it was like to lose everything at once, to have everything ripped away from you in a heartbeat.
"Tell me you'll end it." James said, in a desperate voice. "Please. Before it's too late."
He glanced at Hermione, who stared at an invisible mark on the door, avoiding his gaze. He sighed, the sound echoing in the almost bare room.
"It is too late isn't it?"
"I don't love him James. But I do care about him, and if I'm not with him....I'll go insane in there. He's the only thing, the only one keeping me alive in that castle."
"Hermione, I'm not trying to be the bad person here. But Draco Malfoy will kill you. Whether he does it personally, or you do something stupid and risky for him. And I know you're not like that, but...sometimes, love is blind. And love, can make you do the craziest things. And I know what you two have is not love...yet. So please, stop this, before it gets dangerous."
"How long?" Hermione asked quietly.
"How long what?"
She swallowed, a lump rising in her throat. "How long has he been learning the Dark Arts from Lestrange?"
"Five months. Almost six." James said shortly.
Hermione gasped, bile rising in her throat. Her eyes watered, and she gasped for breath, finding it increasingly difficult to breathe. James grabbed her arms, whispering soothing words into her ear, his placid voice calming her down.
She could not believe it. Draco had been learning Dark Arts for almost half a year. Who knew how much he could have learnt...what he could be capable of? For many years now, Hermione had hated people who learnt the Dark Arts, people who used it...death Eaters. And the first person she trusted for the first time in a long while was turning out to be one of those people. A Death Eater. A killer.
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An hour later, and Hermione was heading back to Hogwarts, her tears dried, her face set into grim determination. She marched into the castle, stormed up the stairs, and rapped loudly on Draco's door.
He opened it swiftly, and smiled genuinely when he saw her. He ushered her in, and she entered stormily. He shut the door behind her, making the mistake to not check who was in the corridor, watching the door.
"Hermione-"
"You lied." Hermione interrupted coldly, her arms crossed in front of her chest, staring at Draco stonily.
He stood where he was, the smile disappearing off his face at the tone of her voice. "About what?"
"Who's Bellatrix Lestrange, Draco? Have you heard of Barty Crouch Junior?" Hermione demanded, not missing the slight flinch belonging to Draco at those names.
"How do you-"
"How do I know those names? They are famous for torturing the Longbottoms and the Weasley twins into insanity, but do you know what really makes me upset? Do you know? You were getting tuition from them!"
"Hermione, I'm sorry."
"Sorry about what, Draco?" Hermione asked tearfully. "Sorry about lying to me? Sorry about learning from them? Sorry that you are currently in training to be the next fucking Dark Lord?!"
Draco flinched at her language, and took a tentative step towards her.
The sun was setting outside, casting a pinkish orange glow in the sky. Draco's and Hermione's shadows mingled together on the stone floor, but they could not have been more apart in reality.
Hermione sighed, pushing back her hair from her face. "Tell me the truth Draco. What have you been doing for the last five months?" Hermione asked dejectedly.
"Learning the Dark Arts from Bellatrix Lestrange and Barty Crouch Junior, under Voldemort's instruction." Draco replied blankly.
"I don't care if it's under Voldemort's instruction or not, Draco!" Hermione yelled.
The clock on the wall chimed seven, but its alarms were not heard, were not paid attention to.
"I didn't have a choice!" Draco yelled back, his hair falling in front of his eyes.
"I can try to overlook your learning, Draco, I really can. But the fact is, you lied to me. You lied to me. Didn't you think I had a right to know?"
"I knew it would hurt you." Draco said lamely.
"So what do you think now? Do you think I'm angry now? Do you think I'm upset? Did you not think that it would be worse if you just left it for it to come out in the open?"
"I did not know what to do!" Draco yelled back heatedly. "Do you think I didn't want to tell you?"
"Then what stopped you?"
"Like I said, I didn't want to hurt you." Draco said truthfully.
"Well you did anyway." Hermione spat.
"I'm sorry."
Hermione stared at him, and sighed. She ran a hand through her hair, making it even messier than before. "I can't trust you." Hermione said quietly, so quietly that Draco had to strain himself to hear her.
But he heard anyway.
"What?" Draco breathed.
She shook her head, looking away from him, as if looking at his face made it harder for her. "I can't do this anymore. It's too hard. So much is going on right now...I don't need to be worrying about you, and what you're up to."
"You don't have to!" Draco shouted desperately, stepping towards her and grasping her shoulders. "All those things that I'm learning...I don't want to learn it! I'm not like them! You don't have anything to worry about, Hermione!"
Hermione bit her lip, the things James had said to her ringing in her head. She cared about Draco, it was true...but she had too much to do, everything that the Order was doing was taking up almost all her time and it required her full attention. She could not do that if she was with him.
"Let go of me." Hermione said in a low voice. Draco looked quizzically at her, but did not let go. "Let me go." She said again, in the same low voice.
He did, stepping back from her. Hermione wrapped her arms around herself, he had not hurt her, but she did not look at him.
"I'm sorry." Hermione said. "But I can't."
Hermione stepped around him and quickly left the room, leaving Draco upset and alone.
As Hermione left the room, shutting the door behind her and running down the corridor, tears flying behind her, Flint stood out from his corner, his view of the door perfectly clear, a small, wicked smile on his face.
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I'm so glad you all like it, and are still reading! Yay, I'm happy! I really appreciate the reviews, so please keep them coming!
So things look pretty bad at the moment for our hero and heroine, but no fear, 'cos things are going to get even worse ;)
And here is where the rating goes up. The rating is going up for language and violence only. There will be no smut in this story, 'cos I don't write it. And when I say violence, I mean one really really bad thing, but it won't be terribly graphic, it's just the idea of it, that's all.
Anyway, thanks for reading, and please review!