Etean allowed his eyes to flutter closed as the blast of wind washed over him. The world spun and shifted, he felt the sudden sensation of travelling at great speed. The world flashed by him, he could feel it as he apparated. Fighting down the nausea, he focussed his mind on his destination, pictured where he wanted to be and suddenly he was there. The wind died, he opened his eyes to see the corridor. The disorientation lasted less than a second. The corridor was dark, lined with heavy wood, perpetually cold despite the burning torches and heated floors, this was home. The tall windows that lined one of the walls were shuttered, as they should be. Sunlight should not shine in this house today, not today. In the light of the torches the corridor seemed empty, but it wasn't. Etean knew that he wasn't alone, he needed no enhanced senses to know where the guards would be, he could locate them blindfolded. He had located them blindfolded hundreds of times over the years. A game he had played time and again as a child. But today was different, today was no game. Gathering his will and his thoughts about him he stepped forward, listening to the click of his heels on the tiled floor.
The faces of Eteans long dead stared out at him from their portraits on the wall. They shifted about but remained silent, none of them spoke as they watched this, the last march of Master Robert Etean. He reached the archway of the entrance to the antechamber outside the master bedroom and stopped. Two guards, the only two that were visible flanked the bedroom door, they snapped even further to attention when they saw him. Their gaze beneath the visors of their helmets was fixed straight ahead but Etean could feel them watching him. He didn't recognise them, their armour managed to disguise any distinguishing features they may have had, leaving them as faceless guards. That was of course the point, they were Etyar. To be Etyar was to be seen but never identified, a symbol rather than a person, cold anonymity. It was how their armour had been designed, meant to intimidate and impress all who saw it. Looking at these two, it was clear that the goal had been achieved. They stood like statues, stoic and severe in their silver and blue…and black. Etean swallowed a curse when he saw the memorial ribbon tied across their chests, it was premature and he was sure that they both knew it. He was about to chastise them for it, tell them that their master was not dead yet but he stopped himself. What was the point? It would be true soon enough. Anger surged in him at the thought. He ground his teeth and retreated further behind his mask, this was no time to show emotion, emotion was weakness. Drawing himself to his full height he stepped forward and opened the door.
The air inside was colder than the corridor, it was heavy and smelled of decay. The widows were barred and shuttered like the corridor, the only illumination was from the dozen candles that burned in recesses set into the wall above the head of the bed. Etean surveyed the room, there were no guards in here, this place was out of bounds even to them. This was the private chamber of Lord Etean, a room he had stood in on countless occasions before today, but it had never felt like this. The room seemed different somehow, it seemed…emptier, he couldn't figure out why. His mind seemed to be running slow, thoughts wouldn't form. He turned and walked to the foot of the bed before he realised that he wasn't alone, a dark figure, silhouetted by the candle light was hunched over the bed. Noticing his approach, the doctor straightened and turned to face him. He was about to speak but Etean raised his hand and cut him off, the man merely bowed low and left without a sound. Etean looked down at the bed, bathed in shadow he could determine the shape of its occupant,
"Father," he spoke the word quietly, barely even able to force a sound from his throat. After a moment, he could sense his father become aware of him. He clenched his jaw and looked down, a scratching sound emanated from the bed, his father was trying to speak but was making no sense. There was movement, his father raised his arm. Etean moved round the corner of the bed to stand beside him, reaching out to take his hand. His flesh was cold, his skin was dry and cracked. Etean had to fight to keep from pulling free at his touch, it was like he was holding death, he could feel every feeble bone, every wasting sinew. The scratching sound returned as his father again fought to speak. Etean maintained his grip on his hand as he bent down, bringing his head closer to his father. Through the rattling, wheezing breaths he managed to say,
"I'm sorry," before he was silent. The breathing stopped. Etean froze, unable to move, he stared into the shadowy eyes of his father, watching as the life left him. His hand went limp and slid from Etean's grasp. The eternity of the moment shattered. He felt a cold, hard lump in his fist as it closed. The ring! He squeezed it hard and stood up. His fist tightened still further until he was sure that the ring had torn his skin but he didn't let go. The finality of the situation settled over him, he could see his life laid out before him with no turning, no freedom, only duty. A gentle hand grasped his shoulder, his head spun. Professor Snape was staring down at him,
"Professor Dumbledore would like to see you," he said quietly. Etean took a second to recover himself and remember where he was before he nodded. He shook his head and stood up. Snape turned round and headed for the door, Etean followed him. He paused to scan the room. Pansy was sitting with her head in her hands, sobbing hard. Professor McGonagall was sitting beside her with her arm round Pansy's shoulders trying to console her. McGonagall looked up at Etean, he could see the anxious worry on her face. She smiled at him in an attempt to reassure him. He couldn't help but feel grateful, despite how ridiculous the gesture was.
Etean followed Snape out of the staff room and down the deserted back passageway that led to the Headmasters office. They emerged into the corridor from behind a portrait. Snape spoke the password and stepped aside, gesturing for Etean to take the lead. Dumbledore was pacing back and forth in his office when Etean entered. He crossed to the centre of the floor and waited. Behind him, he heard Snape close the door with the barest click, leaving him alone with the Headmaster. Dumbledore looked down at Etean, for once his face lacked the seemingly perpetual smile he normally wore. He stared at Etean for a moment before he turned on his heel and marched smartly over to his desk, Regal stood perched on a stack of books. The Headmaster reached out and casually stroked his head before turning to look at Etean again,
"You have a beautiful bird Mr. Etean,"
"Thank you Professor," Etean was surprised at the rasp in his voice, he coughed slightly to clear his throat. Dumbledore moved over to sit on the edge of his desk, he steepled his fingers in front of his eyes for a moment before lowering them to his lap,
"How are you?" Etean was puzzled, what was supposed to be wrong with him?
"Sir?" Now Dumbledore smiled,
"Your neck, I believe Mr. Malfoy injured you," instinctively, Etean raised his hand to his throat, it was almost healed. He could only feel the slightest twinge when he swallowed now,
"No," rubbing the skin hurt, the bruising must have been worse than he thought it was, "Not really," he lowered his hand and smiled, "Besides, I don't think Draco meant to hurt me," he shut his eyes, "I don't think he knew what he was doing," Dumbledore continued to stare at him, then he shook his head,
"I don't believe he did, but I am glad that you realise it. This morning's events were…chaotic, it pleases me that you at least are able to view them with a degree of…detachment," Etean frowned, what was Dumbledore trying to say?
"Detachment Professor?" Dumbledore nodded,
"Yes, detachment. The ability to look beyond emotional obstructions to see the facts for what they are," he paused as his eyes slid closed, "A trait that it seems I lack," the sound of defeat in Dumbledore's voice worried Etean,
"Professor?" Dumbledore straightened and stepped forward, his tone changed,
"You were there when the…package arrived were you not?"
"Yes,"
"Yes, and according to Mr. Malfoy, there was a note attached to it when it arrived. A note that identified the sender,"
"His father," Dumbledore paused,
"Is that what the note said?"
"Didn't Draco tell you?"
"He did, but he was unable to produce the note. He said you had it," Etean patted his pockets and drew out the crumpled scrap of card. He handed it to Dumbledore. The Headmaster examined it for several seconds, then sighed. He returned to his seat on his desk before looking at Etean again,
"This appears to remove all doubts," he set the card down on the desk, "I have known Lucius Malfoy for a long time, a very long time. I even taught him when he attended this school," his voice faded away as he drifted in thought, "Until this morning I thought I had the measure of him and knew what he was capable of. But this…this act of barbaric cruelty I cannot fathom," Dumbledore's voice grew harsh as he spoke that last sentence, Etean felt the urge to take a step back from him. The Headmaster paused and seemed to get control of himself. He stood and paced again in front of the desk. After a moment, he took a deep breath and turned to look at Etean again, "You know what it is to lose a parent?" the question rocked Etean, it was delivered in a calm manner, with no trace of emotion. That fact alone kept Etean from charging Dumbledore down. After a moment to steady himself, he nodded. Dumbledore acknowledged his response with a nod of his own before he spoke again, "Mr. Malfoy will need a lot of time and help to recover from this…tragedy. He will need his friends, now more than ever he will need their…your support to get through this," Etean nodded,
"I understand Professor," Dumbledore looked at him, Etean could feel him reaching out with his Legitimence powers to read him. Automatically, Etean retreated behind his mask, letting Dumbledore read the false thoughts and emotions he was hiding behind. Dumbledore smiled, apparently satisfied,
"I know you do, Mr. Etean," he nodded, "That will be all. Off you go," Etean raised his arm and whistled, Regal took off from the desk and landed on his arm as he turned to leave. He descended the stairs and stood outside in the corridor as the gargoyle closed behind him, trying to decide what to do, where to go. He didn't have any classes to attend until after lunch and he didn't feel like facing the grilling that would await him in Slytherin. He pushed his mind out to sense Draco, after a moment sifting through the noise of the school he found him. He was unconscious, probably sedated. Based on the direction and distance, he presumed he was in the Hospital Wing, probably in a private room, out of the way. Etean decided to leave him be, for now it was better that Draco sleep. All that consciousness would bring him would be pain, and that, he decided, could wait. Etean turned and walked down the corridor, headed nowhere specific. As he wandered, he noticed people staring at him. He heard them whisper, the rumours were already in full flow. They huddled and whispered but nobody bothered him, Regal sitting on his arm was enough of a deterrent for that.
He reached a corner and turned, stepping through an open door onto an open bridge connecting two of the castle's towers. He paused and sat on the rail, perching Regal on his knee. He took long slow breaths and looked off into the distance, letting his mind flow. His thoughts never strayed far from Draco,
"I'm sorry I got you into this Draco," he whispered into the wind. Nobody could hear him but saying it helped, a little. This whole mess was his fault. This was his plan after all. 'No,' he shut his eyes and scolded himself, 'You didn't kill her, Lucius killed her. This is his fault, not yours.' The thought gave him little comfort. He had made a mistake, he should have seen this coming. But how could he have? How could he have predicted that Lucius would be so cruel? How could any father do that to their own child?
Lost in thought, his thumb stroked his ring and he felt his eyes drawn to it. Watching the pale sunlight glint off the silver band, he couldn't help but think about his own father again. Bad idea! He shut his eyes but couldn't block the memory from playing again, the image of his father lying in that bed seven months ago flooded into his brain. He had looked so…weak. That was the thing that Etean remembered most, the way that the poison had sapped his strength. He felt a lump form in his throat as he remembered hearing the croaking broken sound of his fathers last words,
'I'm sorry.' That was all he had said, and then he was gone. In that one second, Etean had stopped being a boy and had become a man. No longer Master Robert, he had become Lord Etean. Moments after his father had died he had put the ring on, knowing that he could never take it off for the rest of his life, but not knowing what being Lord Etean really meant. He lifted his hand and wiped away the single tear that was rolling down his cheek. Now he knew what it meant, it meant a life of lies, secrets and deceptions layered so thickly onto each other that the truth was all but irrelevant. It meant that he had to make decisions that affected peoples' lives, decisions which cost people their lives,
"What are you thinking about?" Ginny's voice made him jump, he hadn't felt her approach. As he moved, Regal shifted on his leg and dug his claws in to prevent himself from falling off,
"What?" he turned to look at her,
"You looked like you were a million miles away," Etean took a deep breath,
"No, only a about a thousand," she frowned in confusion, he reached out and took her hand in his, shaking his head, "Never mind. Don't you have a class or something now?" she stepped closer to him, reaching out to stroke Regal as she shook her head,
"No, I'm done until after lunch, not that there was much point in classes today,"
"Why do you say that?"
"Well," she shrugged, "all the teachers seem to be on a different planet or something," she paused, "Em, Etean…what really happened this morning, with Malfoy?" Etean turned to look at the horizon again,
"How about we talk about something else yeah?" Ginny sighed, she seemed disappointed,
"Ok, it's just…" she paused, he looked back at her,
"Just what?"
"Well, there are all kinds of rumours flying around. People are talking," 'I know they are, so much for changing the subject,' he sighed,
"And what are they saying?"
"They say that Malfoy's mother has been killed…that his father killed her and…," Etean closed his eyes, the rumour mongers in this school were pretty good. Ginny trailed off for a moment, he could feel her hand start to shake. "Its true isn't it?" he looked at her and nodded. She gasped and lifted her free hand to cover her mouth, "I don't believe it," he shook his head,
"It's true. Lucius murdered her, and apparently he felt the need to rip his son's heart to shreds too," he turned away from her and reached out to stroke Regal. The bird looked at him for a moment before turning his head to stare out at the grounds. Neither Ginny nor Etean spoke for a while. Etean watched Regal, the bird tensed, he had spotted something. "You see something boy?" he asked, again trying to change the subject. He turned to scan the grounds, it didn't take him long to find what Regal was looking at, he smiled,
"What is it?" Ginny leaned down, her head drew level with Etean's, "What's he looking at?"
"A rabbit, it appears that Regal wasn't satisfied by his breakfast, he's still hungry," he looked at her, she was frowning in concentration, her eyes were darting about as she tried to find the rabbit,
"I can't see it," Etean laughed,
"How did you ever play seeker Ginny?" he stroked Regal again, "Watch," he lifted his hand and snapped his fingers. Regal took off and flew into the air. They watched as he cleared the castle and swooped low over the grounds. The rabbit never even saw him coming, Regal was the merest dot when he made contact and lifted the his prey into the air,
"He got him," Ginny smiled,
"Yes he did, he never misses," Etean sat back and folded his arms across his chest, Ginny turned round and leaned against the railing, resting on his knee. The smile faded from her face, she turned to look at him,
"You saw what was in the box, the one Lucius sent to Draco, didn't you?" Etean nodded, "What was it?" He rocked his head back and swallowed. His throat still hurt, the pain made him wince. He shook his head,
"Believe me Gin, you don't want to know."
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Hermione dumped her bag onto her bed and yawned. She was stiff, it seemed as if her arms and legs were made of lead. She stretched to try and loosen them. This had been one long day. A day that she was certain she would never forget. She frowned and rubbed her eyes, one thing this school was not short of was gossip. She had lost count of the dozens of different rumours and suspicions that had bounced round the castle all day. Most of them had been wrong, some had bordered on the ridiculous but a couple had gotten it right, or close to it at least. Despite her admitted know-it-all nature, Hermione hadn't told anyone the truth, she hadn't even agreed with those that had guessed correctly, somehow it felt…wrong for her to do so. Ever since Professor Vector had told her, she had felt alone, cut off from everyone else. They didn't know the truth but she did, she had known before anyone else. It was no use denying it anymore, she knew what Professor Vector was going to tell her before she had said it, she had known it from the second she woke up this morning. She didn't want to believe it, she had spent the whole day twisting it around, cutting it up and dissecting it but in the end there was the only answer. The dream had been real, there was no escaping it now.
'But how could it have been real? It was just a dream,' she nodded at the thought. Dreams were just fantasy, a way for the mind to pass the time while you were asleep. Weren't they? That's what she had always believed. That's what they had to be, all that Divination nonsense was just that, nonsense. Still?
The door opened and Lavender came in, giggling under her breath. Hermione frowned,
"What are you so happy about?" Lavender stopped short when she saw Hermione, she shook her head,
"Oh nothing. Just Seamus messing about," she blushed as she crossed to her bed and dumped her bag. Hermione turned back to her own bed and stretched, grimacing as the muscles of her stomach and chest complained. She lowered her hand and rubbed her gut, the pain was less severe, the mark was fading but it still hurt. "Are you coming?" Lavender asked, Hermione turned to see her standing by the door,
"What?" Lavender rolled her eyes,
"Duelling Club tonight…ring a bell?" Hermione blushed when she remembered the Club meeting. She had completely forgotten about it,
"Oh," she checked to make sure she had her wand, "Yeah, I'm coming," she ran out of the room, catching up with Lavender on the stairs down to the Common Room. It was packed. In addition to the rest of the Gryffindor House, most of the sixth years were still there. It was apparently the plan for them to head down to the Great Hall as a group. Seamus stood up when he saw Lavender,
"There you are, how long does it take you to dump a bag?" Lavender blushed and pointed at Hermione,
"I was waiting for her," Seamus turned to Hermione and was about to say something but Harry cut him off,
"If we are all here," he shouted over the din in the room, gaining instant silence, "then maybe we should get going," Hermione was aware of him turning to leave the room and she was fairly sure Ron was staring in her direction, but she deliberately avoided looking at either of them directly. She fell into step behind Lavender and Seamus as they left the Common Room and headed down the stairs. Lavender looked ahead, Harry was already clearing the fifth floor landing,
"What's his hurry?" she turned to Hermione as she asked the question, Hermione shrugged,
"Etean," Seamus answered,
"Etean?" Hermione and Lavender asked in one voice, Seamus looked at both of them for a moment before he laughed,
"Yes, Etean. Harry wants a crack at him. He hasn't shut up about it all day, I think he really wants to be champion of our year,"
"That and Etean's an arrogant Slytherin git," Hermione looked up as Ron drew level with them, she had thought he was ahead of them on the stairs. He looked at her, one second of eye contact was enough to re-ignite the anger in her. Her cheeks flushed red and she had to bite her tongue to stop herself yelling at him. He opened his mouth as if to speak to her, but she just glared and turned away. Ron clicked his tongue and pushed forward around Seamus and galloped down the stairs. Lavender stopped, blocking Hermione's path,
"What was that about?" she asked, Hermione looked at her and shook her head,
"Nothing," Lavender didn't move,
"It didn't look like nothing, did you two have a fight or something?" Hermione shook head again,
"No. It's nothing, really!" she put as much emphasis on it as she could. Lavender wasn't convinced, she stared at Hermione for a second before turning to look at Seamus. She flicked her head, signalling him to move on. He hesitated then continued down the stairs. Lavender turned back and whispered,
"No, something is definitely going on. You two have been acting weird all week, Harry too, what happened?"
"I…I don't know what you mean," Hermione made to push past and continue down the stairs. Lavender blocked her again, she smiled,
"You're a bad liar Hermione, did I ever tell you that?" Hermione growled in frustration,
"Look, there's nothing going on Lavender alright?" she sounded harsher than she intended to. Lavender drew back from her,
"Fine," she sounded hurt, "Don't tell me then," she spun on her heel and headed down the stairs. Hermione swore under her breath, 'Great, now she hates me too,' she bit her lip and chased after her, catching her on the next landing,
"Lavender," she reached out and caught her arm to stop her, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you,"
"Whatever," Lavender shook her off and turned away, Hermione moved fast to get around in front of her,
"No honest, I'm just tired that's all. I…I haven't been sleeping well," Lavender looked at her,
"I was just trying to be a friend Hermione," Hermione nodded,
"I know you were and believe me I appreciate it," she shut her eyes and took a deep breath, "The truth is, I'm not talking to Ron or Harry. We…had a fight," she raised a hand to cut off Lavender's question, "Please, don't ask what about, it doesn't matter. Let's just say that they showed me a side of themselves that I don't like. Can we leave it at that?" Lavender frowned, and then nodded,
"I suppose we can," Hermione smiled,
"So, we're still friends then yeah?" Lavender still seemed confused, clearly she wanted to know the whole story but Hermione was just not ready to tell her. In the end she nodded and smiled,
"Yes, friends. Now come on or we'll be late," she turned and tugged Hermione on down to the Great Hall.
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Etean pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed in vexation,
"For the hundredth time Millicent, I'm fine," Millicent reached out and took hold of his hand,
"You don't look fine Etean," she moaned, "you look tired," Etean growled under his breath, trying to make this girl listen was an exercise in futility,
"Look," he barked and bounced to his feet, bringing his face to within an inch of hers, "I am tired OK? And do you know why?" he paused long enough for her to open her mouth before he cut her off, "I'm tired because I have spent the last hour listening to you whining at me," her mouth dropped open, Etean made no attempt to level the tone in his voice, "Now, I am going to say this one more time Millicent, and I want you to listen very carefully. I…am…fine! Got it?" she stared at him for a moment, open mouthed. Then she nodded, "Good," he stepped back, "Then leave me alone," he turned and marched out of the Common Room, dimly aware of the other sixth years falling into step with him as he went. Theo Nott drew level with him as they turned to climb the stairs,
"Now, don't bite my head off or anything Etean," he said, reaching out to stop Etean, "But we need to have a little chat don't you think," Etean raised an eyebrow, this seemed interesting,
"Do we?" Nott looked around, the other sixth years had conveniently given them some breathing space, Nott stepped forward so Etean could hear him whisper,
"Yes, because what happened this morning was big," he leaned down to stare right into Etean's eyes, "very big," Etean nodded,
"No argument here. But my question was why do we need to talk?" Based on what Etean could see in Nott's mind, there was a lot more to that we than the two of them. Nott looked around again then whispered,
"Not here, not now. We'll talk later. Just do me a favour, don't talk about what happened this morning to anyone," now Etean's curiosity was really spiking, he pushed himself further into Nott's mind, surprised to find that his thoughts were a lot harder to track down than they should have been. He nodded,
"Sure," Nott looked around again, Millicent was turning the bottom step, Nott turned to leave, pausing to whisper,
"Not anyone," in Etean's ear. Etean let him get two steps up the stairs before he followed him. Once inside the Great Hall, Etean kept to himself. Nott was standing with the rest of the Slytherins, Crabbe and Goyle were guffawing and laughing at some infantile joke. Etean ignore everyone else, whilst he openly appeared to be staring at the floor, lost in thought, mentally he was intently focussed on Nott. After a few seconds he gave up, Nott was hiding behind a mask, a shield of false thoughts and lies. Etean was impressed at how well he was maintaining it, that level of control was rare. He could see Nott's true thoughts, but to read them would require a lot more effort, he would have to push, and he was sure that Nott would realise it if he did. He turned around as he heard Snape calling him.
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Hermione stood by the side of the duelling platform, deliberately keeping Lavender and Seamus between herself and Harry. She scanned the room, no sign of Malfoy, no surprise there, there had been no sign of him all day. Pansy Parkinson was also absent, again no surprise. She spotted Etean, he was standing in the corner talking to Professor Snape. After a moment the Professor turned and marched to the head of the room, his presence suddenly assuring order,
"If I may have your attention please," a moment's pause, "Welcome to the second meeting of the Sixth Year Duelling Club," he started to turn slowly as he spoke, "Now, this meeting shall take a slightly different format than the last one. For this evening, you will devote your time to practicing the skills you possess and hopefully, learn some new ones. To begin we shall divide in half," he stopped, facing lengthways along the table, "those on my left will be one group, and those on my right will be the other. Within these groups you will participate in a series of exercises and supervised duels. I shall supervise one group, giving instruction where necessary, Mr. Etean shall supervise the other," Hermione's eyes moved to Etean, he was looking at the Professor, he nodded as the Professor pointed to him and stepped back, calling the Slytherins and Ravenclaws with him. Snape turned toward the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, waving them into a group. "Now then, form a circle all of you, the first exercise we are going to try is…"
"Aren't we going to duel Professor?" Harry spoke up, Snape glared at him,
"I have just told you Mr. Potter, that we are not,"
"I thought that was the point of this,"
"Well, maybe in future you should listen," Snape growled. He looked up at the remainder of the group and barked at a couple of them to reform the circle, "Right, as I was saying, the first exercise we are going to perform is one that will enhance your reflexes…to begin, I will require a volunteer," he looked around at the students. For once, Hermione didn't want to volunteer, looking around she saw that nobody else did either. Eventually Harry stepped forward, Snape stared at him for a moment, "Stand ready," The students behind Harry parted as Snape took out his wand and aimed, Harry raised his wand, "Lower it," Snape ordered. Reluctantly Harry lowered his wand, a barely visible grin tugged at the corner of Snape's mouth as he took a breath, "Pigmenus!"
A tiny spell shot out and hit Harry on the shoulder, he barked in pain and stepped back, reaching up to rub the spot where it had hit,
"Relax Mr. Potter, the spell was harmless,"
"Harmless? It stung,"
"Yes, a deterrent, nothing more. Lower your hand," Harry took his hand away to reveal a glaring red blotch on his robes, "The charm, Pigmenus," Snape continued, "will leave a temporary mark on you whenever it hits, but will do no lasting damage whatsoever. It also has a limited range, so crossfire shouldn't be a problem. You will now divide into pairs, each pair will then attempt to hit each other with that charm…that charm only!" he stressed the last part, "The goal is to hit your opponent while avoiding being hit yourself. I will move amongst you and monitor your progress," he paused, nobody moved. Snape clapped his hands, waking them from their reverie, "Pair up, fan out, move," he barked. The class divided, Hermione was about to turn to ask Lavender to partner with her but she wasn't fast enough, Lavender was already headed away with Seamus. She looked around for another partner, Pavarti…no she was with Dean, Neville…with Harry.
She froze as she saw Ron headed toward her. She turned, trying to find someone else, anyone else, but there was nobody. She looked back to see him staring at her, they were in a fairly open space, enough room to duel. She shook her head and drew her wand,
"Ready?" she asked,
"Hermione…" he started but she didn't want to listen,
"Pigmenus!" she shouted, the spell shot out and hit him dead over his heart. He staggered back, wincing in pain,
"Hey," she stood ready again,
"Ready?"
"Hermione…"
"Pigmenus!" this time he caught it in the shoulder, she stood ready again,
"Ready?"
"Hermione…" she was about to fire again when Snape stepped into her line of sight and she hesitated. Snape ignored her and focussed his attention on Ron,
"Now, I thought that I had made the point of this exercise clear enough that even you, Mr. Weasley, should have been able to understand it. But, since you seem to have missed it, I will re-iterate. You are supposed to be dodging her attacks," Ron drew himself up and looked at Snape,
"I know that Professor,"
"In that case why aren't you?"
"Well I was…"
"You were standing there, making a decent impression of a target," Snape looked at Hermione, then at Ron again, "Now stand ready, both of you," they complied, another look at them both and Snape stepped out of the way, "You may fire when ready," Hermione looked into Ron's eyes, he stared back at her, she saw him prepare to fire, but beat him to it,
"Pigmenus!" Hermione's spell was already flying at him before he fired,
"Pigmenus!" She saw her spell hit his chest before his connected. She felt it hit in exactly the same spot the Harry's stunner had hit her. She had prepared herself for it to hurt, she had seen Harry's reaction, but the pain that she felt was a hell of a lot worse than she had expected. She felt the detonation ripple across her stomach as the wave of pain rocketed up her spine.
Based on the way she was suddenly surrounded by people, she assumed she must have screamed. Arms caught her beneath her armpits and lifted her up, she didn't remember falling down. She heard voices, people asking her if she was alright but she didn't answer, the truth was she didn't know the answer. The fiery pain in her stomach remained as she was led away out of the Great Hall to the Hospital.
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Madame Pomfrey bustled and fussed over Hermione, mumbling and grumbling under her breath,
"What did you say he hit you with dear?" she asked for the fifth time,
"A Pigmenus charm Madame Pomfrey, that's all," Madame Pomfrey shook her head,
"Well, in all my years, I have never seen that charm cause bruising like this," her frown deepened, "Some of this appears to be from…an older injury. Did something else happen to you lately?" Hermione thought fast, it was clear to her Madam Pomfrey wasn't going to let up until she could explain the injury, she had to think of something. But she couldn't tell her the truth, that would get Harry and Ron in trouble and, mad as she was at them, she didn't want to see them in that kind of trouble,
"Well…I…I fell getting out of the shower the other day,"
"You fell? Why didn't you come to me for treatment?"
"Well, it was only a bruise, I didn't think it was that serious," Madame Pomfrey looked dubious, "Honestly," Hermione struggled to sound unconcerned, "It was nothing, and it had almost healed, I guess Ron just hit the wrong spot," she laughed, Madam Pomfrey stared at her for a moment, then turned to the treatment tray, she turned back and handed Hermione a lump of bloodroot,
"Here, you'd better take this with you," she didn't sound happy, but then she never did, "Rub it well into the wound before you go to bed and again in the morning. If the bruise hasn't faded by then come back and see me," she turned and left. Hermione sat up, wincing in pain as she straightened her shirt and pulled on her robes. She tried to keep the pain from her voice as she thanked Madam Pomfrey and left.
She turned the corner and stopped, Ron was waiting for her. She put her head down and made to storm past him but he moved into her path to block her,
"Please stop Hermione," he pleaded, she sighed,
"Ron, just leave me alone will you," he reached out and took hold of her shoulders,
"I just wanted to make sure you were alright," she held her arms out and shrugged, ignoring the pain in her stomach,
"Yeah? Well now you've seen that I am. So you can let me go," she pushed his arms down and tried to step around him, but he moved again to block her,
"Hermione please, just talk to me will you?" she rolled her eyes,
"Talk? About what?"
"I…I want to make things right between us again,"
"And how do you plan on doing that?"
"By saying I'm sorry and…"
"Sorry? Is that it? You're sorry?"
"Well I am,"
"You don't get it, do you Ron?" she shook her head and ducked round him, ignoring his calls as she marched down the corridor. She reached the lowest landing before he caught her and turned her round. Out of reflex, she slapped him. She was surprised to realise that she wasn't the least bit sorry about it either. He reeled for a moment, then looked back at her,
"It's OK Hermione, I know you didn't mean that," there was a waver in his voice, she felt anger rush up inside her again,
"Oh I wouldn't be so sure of that if I were you," she made to storm off again but he caught her elbow and held her back, she glared at him, "Unless you want another one Ron, you had better let me go," he stared at her,
"I don't want to lose you Hermione. I know I was wrong to hex you the other night. Please, just tell me what I have to do to make this better,"
"You think I'm mad at you for hexing me? Is that it?" he seemed puzzled,
"Aren't you?"
"Of course," she stopped when she realised she was shouting, she glanced about to make sure no one was listening before she continued, "Of course I am," she said, fighting to keep her voice down, "But that isn't the only reason," his frown deepened,
"What else did I do?"
"You scared me Ron," he was taken aback when she said it, "Do you get it now? You scared me, Harry did too," she paused, feeling the tremble start inside her. Realising that tears weren't far away, she felt the urge to be alone but he was still holding onto her. She took a breath, determined to make him understand, she stared him straight in the eye, "You were supposed to be my best friend, I trusted you. I thought I knew you but what you did the other night proved me wrong, it made me realise that I didn't know you at all," she felt the tremble grow stronger as his face paled, it was taking all her will to keep her face stern, 'Say it Granger, get it done,' "You showed me a whole new side of you, a completely different Ron Weasley, and I don't like him. In fact I don't want anything to do with him!" she stressed the last part, and got the reaction she wanted, his grip on her slackened. She shook her arm free and headed up the stairs, grateful that he didn't seem to be following her.