Hermione finds a hurt, very sick Draco Malfoy and nurses him back to health. In doing so she becomes attached to him. He hates being in her debt, but he's slowly falling for her anyway. The Death Eaters kidnap Hermione and Draco is crushed. He doesn't have his wand. Ron and Harry are furious and suspect that he's got something to do with Hermione missing. Draco is gone when they come looking for him. The Death Eaters put Hermione under the Imperius and keep her as their ultimate weapon in the impending war. Hermione destroys lots of things while under the influence of the spell. She and Draco duel, he's on the light side, she's chained to the dark. Who will win? Will anyone survive? And is there such a thing as happily every after?
Chapter One
The Discovery of Compassion
Dusk was just falling over the nearly empty streets of Diagon Alley, as a lone figure hurried towards the entrance to the Muggle world. Hermione Granger was rushing because she was all alone at a time when she shouldn't be. She'd been in Diagon Alley shopping with the Weasley family and her best friend Harry Potter, but they would have a fit if they knew what she was doing. She left them, saying she was meeting her parents in the Leaky Cauldron. This was a lie, her parents were at a convention in Oxford, and she was staying at her house alone.
She hadn't wanted them to worry about her, so she'd made her excuses and left. Now as she neared the familiar brick wall, she shrugged deeper in her jumper, wishing she had been wearing her robes. She was planning on apparating in the bathroom of the Leaky Cauldron. Tapping the bricks she stepped through the hole that opened up in front of her. She was just heading towards the backdoor of the familiar pub, when out of the corner of her eye she saw something odd.
Sitting beside the rubbish bin where a set of shiny black shoes. Hermione paused and her curiosity kicked in, she stepped over the overflowing trash to investigate. Remembering to be cautious, she pulled out her wand and held it at the ready. Carefully bending down she moved aside a plastic bag and found that the shoes were attached to legs, legs covered with fine grey dress pants.
Mind racing at the possibilities, Hermione touched one of the legs, it was warm. Letting out a relieved breath, Hermione moved aside more trash uncovering the body of a wizard. Lifting the final bag of trash, she was apprehensive of looking at his face, finally she allowed herself to glance down. She gasped, because she knew this man. It was Draco Malfoy.
She was floored and for a few moments all she could do was stand there and stare at him, her mouth open in shock. Looking around she wanted someone else to be there, to tell her what to do. But there was no one. She had to make a descision, she looked at Draco again, biting her lip. He looked dead, his face had a faint blue tinge to it and even though he was her enemy, she was a kind person.
Her mind made up, Hermione clasped Draco's ankle and apparated to her house.
Thinking ahead she'd apparated them into her own room, so she wouldn't have to drag Draco up any stairs. He looked heavy. Letting him flop onto the hard wood floor she moved towards her bed and dove under it. Heaving with all her strength she pulled out the roll away she'd had there since she was a little girl. She tucked her wand in her pocket, just in case and moved towards the unconscious young man.
Dragging him by his upper arms she got him onto the bed. She let him drop and then moved to his feet, setting them on the bed as well. This done, she looked down at him, wondering not only what in the world she was doing, but what to do now that she'd made such a rash descision. Making up her mind, she knelt and took off his shoes. His socks were a glowing white and she couldn't help smiling grimly at how well groomed he was.
Moving to his head, she felt his pulse, which beat strongly beneath her fingers. He was alive, very much so, but now she knew what was wrong, he had a terrible fever. The skin she'd touched had been amazingly hot. She stood up and went into the hall. A few steps away she came to the hallway closet, full of linens and towels. She grabbed two large blankets and a small wash cloth and moved into the bathroom. She wet the wash cloth with icey water, and as she was doing so, she looked into the mirrior. She looked fine, just a bit rattled.
Satisfied, Hermione went back into her bedroom. Draco was still laying out, although there was some color in his face now. Hermione unfolded the blankets and layed them on top of the fully clothed Malfoy and then lay the wash cloth on his forehead. It was all she could do. She went into her closet, turned on the light and shut the door to get her pajamas on.
When she was dressed, she reentered the bedroom and moved to her bed. Feeling exhausted, for no reason, she crawled under th covers and fell asleep, her wand clutched tightly to her chest.
Hermione didn't sleep well. She woke a few times during the night. She wondered if Draco had plotted this all along and was going to kill her while she slept. But as the night wore on, she realized how stupid this was. He barely moved, only had burrowed deeper into the covers and now lay on his side. She got up and refreshed the washcloth, which had become as warm as a heating pad while he wore it.
In the morning, Hermione awoke with a groan. She rolled onto her back and looked at her ceiling debating whether to get up or not. Slowly she sat up, shaking her mane of wild hair. Remembering what had happened the night before, she scooted to the side of her bed and peered over it. Draco was still sleeping, although she saw his eyelashes flitter once. She thought about how unfair it was that boys had longer eyelashes then girls and then sat up again and moved to the end of her bed. Standing up she moved to her closet and grabbed some clothes.
She left her bedroom and headed into the bathroom, intent on a refreshing shower.
As the day wore on, nothing exciting happened. Hermione cooked herself, breakfast, lunch and dinner, always checking up on Draco before to see if he might be awake, but he was the same as always. She read a book, watched some T.V. and cleaned around the house. And still Draco slept.
That night she crawled into bed and turned out the lights, settled down and went to sleep. She didn't sleep well again, she kept waking up, because she heard Draco moving around on the bed. She scooted to the edge of her bed and watched him for a time. For a while he moved around fitfully, kicking at the blankets, the wash cloth had fallen off his head. Hermione went and wet it again and set it back on his skin. He settled down and so did she, but sometime later she awoke again.
She just sensed something was going on, she peered over the side of the bed and saw Draco, now curled in a ball, shaking like a leaf. He'd kicked his blankets off ealrier when he'd been too hot, but now he was shivering, so Hermione crawled out of bed and covered him with blankets again.
The morning couldn't have come soon enough, Hermione was sick of laying in bed by the time she felt light hit her face. She rolled over and looked down, expecting to the see the usual sleeping Draco. She was surprised to find him lying on his back, with his eyes wide open.
"Granger," He said thickly looking at her with wonder.
She sat up, clutching her blankets around herself, suddenly conscious that she was wearing her pajamas.
"Good morning, Malfoy," Hermione said and Draco blinked at her.
"What happened," Draco asked putting a hand to his forehead and looking very confused.
"I was hoping you could tell me. Yesterday I found you outside of Leaky Cauldron, buried under rubbish. You were passed out and very sick. But how in the world did you get there," Hermione asked and Draco seemed to be searching his thoughts.
"I don't know," Draco said, sounding frustrated and Hermione sighed.
"I thought as much. Whoever left you there wiped your memory," Hermione said and Draco eyes widened and he tried to sit up.
Feeling pain throb through his head and chest, he fell back down on the pillow breathing hard.
"Why'd you help me," Draco asked and Hermione blushed.
"Would rather I'd left you to die in that rubbish pile," Hermione asked and Draco smirked.
"No, I'm glad you're a goody-good Gryffindor at heart."
"You're lucky I am," Hermione said and she got out of bed and left her blankets behind. She went to the bedroom door and stopped to turn and look at him. He moved slightly so he could watch her move.
"Would you like breakfast?"
Draco stomach rumbled at her words and she smiled, while his cheeks turned slightly pink.
"Yes, please," Draco said using the manners he'd been taught by his mother, but had never used with Hermione.
Hermione went out of the room, confused in the change she saw in him. Malfoy's never were civil to Muggle-Borns.