Sold-Chapter 8-Eavesdropping

By Marmalade Fever

Draco leaned back in his chair in his study, a bottle of firewhiskey hanging limply in his hand. Now that he was a bit tipsy, he seemed to be able to think a little more clearly about the situation. "You don't like her," he slurred. "You were just thinking about what that little brat said…"

Hermione swooped down from her flight pattern as the words echoed toward her and she landed on the door handle to listen intently.

"She's not even pretty! Well… she used to be… but not now!" Malfoy grumbled. Hermione hesitantly stuck her head around the door. He didn't seem to notice. His head wasn't toward the door, anyway. In the hand that wasn't clasping the neck of the bottle was a photo and he seemed to be staring at it. "She is sort of pretty in this… Merlin! Is that Mum's dress?" Hermione tensed as she heard him give a low and flattering whistle. "She looks good." Well, if that didn't make Hermione uncomfortable, she didn't know what would. "And there's Potter." He spat. "Bloody, stinking, savior of the world Potter! Like I'd ever make him my best man!" He took another swig of the alcohol and rubbed his eyes. His glance swept around the room but only hovered over Hermione's tiny bird head. "Well, Mr. Potter, your daughter's life is in my hands! Now what do you think of that, eh?" He set the photo down and removed a sickle from his pocket. He eyed it. "Heads, I go after the girl, tails, I leave her for the werewolves to munch on." Hermione held her breath and waited, her tiny heart beating even faster than normal.

Then the world came crashing down as they both heard footsteps coming down the hall. She immediately pulled her head from the doorway and turned toward the intruder. It was Evander… and he had seen her. He eyed her, but held a finger to his lips as if giving her his pledge of honor. No sooner had he dropped his hand than Malfoy made his presence known, still clutching the coin and the bottle. "What now, runt?" Malfoy asked, looking thoroughly peeved.

"I just thought I'd tell you that you might want to speak more softly. These walls have ears, you know."

"So it would seem, but so do I," Malfoy answered pointing the neck of the bottle at Evander pointedly.

"I also would like to offer my sincerest hopes that the coin lands on heads."

"Really? I would never have guessed." Malfoy sneered. They stared at one another, identical expressions plastered on their faces.

"Are you going to toss it or not?" Evander asked, his eyes flicking to where Hermione was still stationed on the doorknob. "Or would you rather that I did the honors, since you seem to be too drunk to actually catch it again?" Malfoy sneered at him again and set the bottle of whiskey on the floor. He gave Evander a piercing glare before flipping the coin through the air. Despite his inebriation, he caught it without any problems. He simply stared at it for a moment, his hand blocking the results from Evander's view.

"Well?" Evander asked, stepping forward. "What is it? Are we rescuing Lily or no?"

"There is no we. For your information, I will be rescuing your little girlfriend for you."

Evander made a very Malfoy-esque smirk. "Thank you, Father, I knew you were in there somewhere." He very deftly moved himself in front of the door knob to hide Hermione from view, and raised his hand as if allowing Malfoy to enter the office.

"Don't get cocky with me, boy," Malfoy grunted, taking his firewhiskey with him into the office and slamming the door closed behind him.

Evander smirked and offered a finger for Hermione to step up on. "That was close," he murmered, once they were out of ear-shot. "I saw you leaving the dungeons and it looks as if I guessed correctly." He navigated himself with ease up the stairs and into his bedroom, where he set her down carefully on his bed. Hermione cocked her head sideways and gave him a very birdly look. She returned herself to her normal form and just about collapsed on his bed.

"A real mattress," she muttered, lying limply. "I haven't seen a real mattress in years…"

"I bet it would freak you out if I said that in my world, you share a bedroom with him."

"I'm not sure if anything can freak me out anymore." Hermione was exhausted as Evander lay down beside her as if he were accustomed to doing so.

"I've never been away from my Mum for so long before," he muttered. "I can't believe they expect kids to cope without their parents for so long."

"Are you in your first year?" Hermione asked, glancing sideways at the boy with her curls.

"Yeah."

"What house are you in?" she asked. She hadn't noticed any colored ties or crests to indicate a house.

Evander smirked. "What house do you think I'm in?"

Hermione smiled. "I'm hoping against hope that you're in Gryffindor."

"Beep, wrong," he answered, grinning.

"You aren't in Slytherin, are you?" she wrinkled her nose. She hadn't had a pleasant conversation like this in so long…

"Nope. I chose my own route. I'm in Ravenclaw. The hat felt so torn between the two houses he decided to put my in a different one instead."

"I was almost in Ravenclaw…"

"That's what it said!" He laughed. "It also told me how fast it put my dad in Slytherin. That's why it doesn't surprise me to see him this way…"

"You really love him, don't you?" Hermione said, cautiously.

"He really isn't bad in my world. He's a wonderful Dad. You two… you two are perfect together. I don't know how to explain it. It tears me to pieces thinking that you two can be apart here.

"I was born at your ten year Hogwarts Reunion," he added, as an afterthought.

"Oh?" Hermione asked, looking at him.

"Yeah, and guess who delivered me."

"Madam Pomfrey?"

"You wished! It still frightens you to this very day, but it was Professor Snape!"

"Ew…" Hermione muttered, frowning. "Why would you tell me something like that?"

"I just find it interesting, especially when I have to sit through one of his potions classes. Ravenclaws double with the Slytherins. Half of them respect me like crazy while the other half sort of hiss like deranged cats."

"And how about the Gryffindors? How do they treat you?"

"Some of them are good, like Lily and the Weasley kids…"

Hermione rubbed her head. "Who is Lily's mother?"

"Oh, you wouldn't know her. She's a muggle named Penelope."

Hermione nodded, but then she froze a little. The mention of the Weasley's frightened her. Ron had died years ago, Ginny and her parents had gone into hiding, and the others were scattered about, some dead, some not.

"You had better go back to your cell now. We don't want him to know that you can escape whenever you want to," Evander commented. Hermione gave him a smile and turned herself back into a swallow before making her treacherous journey back to the dungeon.

A.N.: Yes, I know, this update took too long and it's still short… Thank you all for reading and reviewing!