Eloquently Put

Hermione Granger

"Draco, why on earth are you protecting a mudblood?"

Lucius sounded more amused than angry. That scared me more that anything. It reminded me of the time when I was eleven and I was taking piano lessons. My teacher got easily frustrated with me, but he held it in. He would twist his face into a very forced, subtly angry smile and say calmly, "Okay, Hermione, why don't you try that again?" He'd say it though his teeth and everything. It scared me more than if he would've just outright screamed at me for not knowing the song. I think, looking back, that I would've preferred that.

"Father," Malfoy said slowly. "I'm not protecting her."

"You moved in front of her when you saw me, so that might've given me the idea," he said. "You know, Draco, I understand you don't have a wand. I ran into some dreadful Ravenclaw third year who is headed to The Blaze. I intimidated him into telling me that everyone breaks their wands before they get there. He wouldn't give me the directions, though…" Lucius trailed off with an evil smile. "It's a pity the world lost such a kind, brave soul."

"Father, I'm not going to this Blaze thing," Malfoy lied.

"That was the most blatant lie I ever saw, son."

Malfoy looked at the ground in shame. I took the opportunity to read what was written in the dirt. It was in Ginny's handwriting, and I was standing right in front of it. "Hermione, Draco's father was spotted near here… we ran away, but I think he's looking for you both. This is charmed (wand usage was necessary here) so that only you can read it. Ron buried the wand next to the fire pit… if you're standing near this, it's easy to reach. There's a pebble right on top of the tip. We'll meet up with you later."

When Lucius and Draco were talking about things, I tuned them out and waited for my chance. I got it when Lucius said, "I don't want to have to use my wand against two defenseless teenagers, but I will if I have to," he smiled sweetly at me. I maintained my glare.

Draco lunged at him, and I went to the fire and unearthed the wand discreetly. Draco and turned his father around and was punching him in the stomach and back. It was a hard position for Lucius to get to his wand, but I saw him try, so I stupefied him before he could get to it.

"Where'd you get that?" Malfoy asked.

"Ron buried it near the fire. They saw your father before he saw them and took the chance to run."

"I guess they deserve a little more credit than I give them," he admitted, looking at his father. "Give me the wand."

I handed it over without thinking twice. That was a big mistake.

"I'm going to do what I should've done ages ago," Malfoy went to his father and took his wand. He gave it to me and I pocketed it. Another one would come in handy later, I supposed. I kept that thought to myself, though, to avoid being called a pessimist.

Malfoy revived his father and then yelled, "Crucio!" with more passion than I'd ever heard anyone say it. I cringed as he tortured his father. "This is because of all the times you beat me! And because of all the death eater meetings you made me go to! And for making me get the mark! And for lying to me! And for hurting people I cared about!"

I started to cry. I think it first hit me right then that Draco Malfoy was, indeed, a human being and he did, indeed, have feelings.

Then he made me take that back when he looked at the heap on the ground that was his father and said in a dangerously low tone, "Avada Kedavra."

I cringed and more tears poured out of my eyes. Draco dropped the wand when he realized what he'd done. He turned away from me and started running through the words, thrashing anything in his way aside. "Draco…"

He ignored me and kept running. I ran after him, tears blinding me. I started sobbing at this point, my throat making forced choking sounds. I finally caught up with Malfoy and I put my hand on his shoulder.

He spun around and looked at me with an emotion that was a cross between sorrow, regret, anger, and confusion. "Draco…" I repeated, sobs still leaving my body. He looked terrible and I just threw my arms around him and hugged him close to me. He froze in shock and then pulled away.

"Don't touch me. Don't talk to me. Leave me alone, Granger."

I kept crying.

"And stop your goddamn tears!" he bellowed. "Why are you crying, anyway? My father deserved that. He's not worth your tears."

"I'm crying for you," I whispered. I couldn't begin to imagine what he must be going through… he killed his own father!

He glared at me when I said that and told me, "I hate pity more than anything. I don't want your goddamn sympathy."

I wiped my tears and tried to control my emotions. I felt terrible, and I had some pressure to remember the directions.

"Hermione!"

I was saved by Ron, Ginny, and Neville.

"What happened?" Ginny asked, looking at my face and Malfoy's blank expression.

I shook my head. "Draco… he… Lucius…"

"I killed my father," Malfoy came out with bluntly.

Everyone just stared.

----

As we continued walking, no one talked. What on earth was there to say? Malfoy was giving us all the cold shoulder, which was expected. He singled me out in particular… he wouldn't even look at me.

Ron yawned loudly. "I'm tired."

"Me too, but there's no way I'll be able to sleep after… well…" I looked sheepishly at Malfoy, who just scowled at me.

"What if there are more death eaters out here?" Neville asked.

"Yeah," Ginny agreed. "What if we're leading some of them straight to The Blaze?"

Malfoy made the first attempt in a while for conversation. "No, my father came alone. I'm sure of it. He was too damn stubborn to accept back-up."

We all looked away uncomfortably. What was there to say? None of us had ever been in a situation like this before.

"Granger," Malfoy said suddenly. "I want to talk to you." He cast a glance at Ron. "Alone."

He walked off into the brush and I followed. "We'll catch up, you guys go ahead," I called over my shoulder to the rest of our group. Once we were alone, I asked, "What?" and crossed my arms over my chest.

He sighed, ran his fingers through his once-slicked-back hair. "Look, I just…"

I patiently waited. He looked unsure of what to say.

"What happened back there…. it was a long time coming."

I merely blinked.

"I thought about killing my father for years. Every time he'd finish beating my mum or me or someone I knew…. I would wish he was dead. At night sometimes, I would just lay there, looking at the ceiling, planning his death."

I shivered.

"I know, I know… it's pretty sick. But what happened today wasn't something I ever thought I was really capable of. I never thought I would actually kill him like I pictured in my day dreams. I just didn't think I'd have the heart to."

"Impulses are—"

"Impulses aren't supposed to get acted upon," he interrupted. "I just have to tell someone this… and you were there so I picked you." He sighed again. "I feel terrible. Granger… I want to just jump off a cliff. Drown myself. Put a wand to my head and say those two words that ended so many lives."

I shook my head. "Malfoy… you can't."

"What have I got to live for? If we go to The Blaze, it'll just be a nightmare and if I go back… someone will kill me."

"Please, don't think about things like that, Malfoy," I said softly. "I know you have this persona that you're tough and arrogant and think highly of yourself. No, let me finish. Call it what you want… say it's just because you're 'a Malfoy,' but it's a persona no matter how you look at it. I can see through you sometimes. You do have a heart and you aren't a complete cynic. I thought you were at one time, but you're not. You saved my life countless times… if you truly hated me like you say you do, you would've left me to die in the field, or let me fall off the cliff. But you didn't because you are a semi-decent human being, Malfoy. And semi-decent human beings don't commit suicide."

He looked at me with raised eyebrows for a moment. "That was eloquently put, Granger." He then smiled evilly. "And it was also better than I expected. Do you honestly think I'd kill myself?"

"You mean… all of that…?"

"No, just the suicide part. The rest is true." I glared at him as he smirked. "You really have gone soft, Granger."

"No I haven't!" I insisted. Had I?

"Yes, Granger, you have. I thought you hated me, but you just proved me wrong. You are a semi-decent human being."

"Are you done?" I asked.

"I suppose."

We caught up with the others quickly, and they all cast us suspicious glances. "So, when do we get to The Light?" I asked Neville.

"I've been wondering what the hell that meant," Ron added.

Neville smiled. "We should be getting there soon."

"And then what?" Ginny asked.

"And then we wait."

"For what?" Malfoy asked.

"For someone from The Blaze to come and get us."

Author's Notes: You guessed it. Well, anyway, some of you figured out it was Lucius. I was pretty obvious about that, I suppose. Well, thanks—as always—for all the great reviews. I'm really glad you're all enjoying this so much. NEXT CHAPTER SPOILER: Well, they keep walking and get to The Light. Which is? I know, I know… that was pretty vague of me. Well, you'll find out… I think it's pretty clever (Modesty is not my strong point). And then The Blaze? Don't get over anxious, kids… that comes a few chapters down the road. And then we see romance. But that comes LATER! This is going to be drawn out and stretched out to as long as it can be without getting pointless. I'll post in 2-4 days, as always!