A/N: To my reviewers: I shall try and get back to the bashing of the old man but he's not my main concern. To the others, marked M for a reason! You had been warned! Besides, nightmares are merely the fantasies we are afraid to embrace...
As always! Welcome to the new readers! Welcome back to the old ones!
Draco and Blaise had been stuck at the manor receiving after getting the mark. Draco couldn't even tell anyone about the diary left at the cottage. He needed to get to it. He couldn't imagine what Hermione would have been writing or thinking.
Meanwhile Hermione had been mostly alone with Sirius stuck in the house. She had new found respect for him and wondered exactly how he'd managed it. Ron had gone back to the burrow for a bit as his mother wanted him to stay away from the order work. Hermione was of course invited but she felt like she needed to be alone at the moment. She wasn't ready to tell anyone about her parents just yet and Sirius never asked too many questions. The house was also filled with all sorts of books and artefacts so that kept her busy.
"Why don't you visit the burrow… at least you'll get a chance to get out a bit…" Hermione asked Sirius over dinner one day
"Why don't you?" Sirius asked
"Errr… well… the thing is…"
"Molly… " Sirius said "She's hinted more than once that she would love to see you marry Ron but you are with mini Malfoy…"
Hermione smiled "She's pretty obvious isn't she… with all the not so subtle hints of making us do chores together and seating us at the table together…"
Sirius snickered "Oh yea… she thinks she's being so subtle… so how is the Lucius look alike?"
Hermione sighed "I don't know… haven't heard from him in a couple of weeks"
"Only a couple? I've never seen an owl for you here?" He asked
"We have our ways…" Hermione said cheekily
"Alright, I won't pry" Sirius said narrowing his eyes unsure if he should pry, being the adult and all, not something he had much experience in. Maybe he'd ask Lupin for his opinion.
"Actually, I've been meaning to go see a friend and I'm sure she wouldn't mind having you over… besides from what I've heard they have a lot of garden space as well….:" Hermione said
"Anyone I know?" Sirius asked
"Luna Lovegood… her father runs the Quibbler…" Hermione said
"Of course, loony Lovegood! Xenophilius!" Sirius said and Hermione raised her eyebrow at him "Oh come one 'mione, he is a little barmy with his theories on Nargles and Whack -a-doodles… " Sirius laughed
"Whacksuprts and that's not the point… He helped harry when no one believed him and Luna is a Ravenclaw and also in the top 10 students in her year, did you know that?" She asked
"Okay okay! I won't call them Loony as long as you don't go all Molly on me…" Sirius said raising his hands in surrender
"I'll write to her… Isn't Harry supposed to come her next week? Maybe we could all go?" Hermione said as she put away her dishes
"Great… let me know when… I'll take any excuse to get out of this house…" Sirius said
—
Blaise may have been bedridden with pain but he had been planning thought it. So after almost two weeks when Narcissa finally let them get off bed rest, Blaise decided he needed to warn Luna about the dangers of returning to school this year. He knew he'd have to sneak off without Draco knowing because he would insist he come along and that was just too risky.
Draco on the other hand was preoccupied with how to get diary back. He wanted to write to Hermione and tell her everything but a part of him knew he was not worthy of her anymore. He kew that going ahead with this would mean dragging her into the darkness with him and that was not something he wanted for her. Ever. He also knew she was relentless enough to not let go without good reason. A reason that he was lacking at the moment. Lost in thought he was absentmindedly going through his mail when the reason fell in front of him. Daphne Greengrass. She wasn't an old friend and they had even tried dating but then she'd been sent to Beauxbatons so Hermione would never meet her. He could tell her that he'd met her over the summer and rekindled an old flame and been unfaithful. His heart sank because he could already see the look of hurt and betrayal in her eyes. He had been Hermione's first but she had been his first too. He'd never told her that but he knew, he knew how much it would hurt her. He kept convincing himself he had to do it but he knew that he would need Blaise to be in on it. Hermione wouldn't believe it without Blaise saying so.
Draco caught Blaise just as he was about to sneak out of the floo in the parlour
"What are you doing?" Came Draco's voice making Blaise jump out of his skin
"Merlin Malfoy! Keep it down would you!" Blaise whispered
"Are you going somewhere? Without me? After going bloody Gryffindor on me and ensuring I owe you a bloody life debt for this" Draco said grabbing Blaise's hand revealing the mark
"You'd have done the same for me…" Blaise said
"That's just it Blaise… I don't know if I would have… I'm a Slytherin remember… I look out for myself…" Draco said disgusted with himself
Blaise put a hand on his shoulder and said "Your more than just some stupid school house we were sorted into… I know that, your girl knows that, now you just have to look in the mirror and see it for yourself…" Blaise said
"I need your help"
"I'm sure you do, but right now, I have something to do that has nothing to do with you…" Blaise said
"Everything you do has something to do with me. Shut up and tell me where you're going… Also can we make a stop at the old house… I left my favourite book there…" Draco said
"No, and no… I'll get your book… You stay here… all your movements are being watched, you are expected to fail or better die trying… I won't let that happen… I care about you… Now let me go make sure the other person I care about is safe…"
"Lu…" Draco started
"Shut up!" Blaise said
"Are you mad?! You can't go there, she was part of the DA, her father might call the bloody Aurors and the aren't going to want to chat with that on your arm!" Draco hissed
"I'm not daft Draco! I'll get you your damn book… now let me go make sure she's okay and that she's not coming back this year cause god knows what we'll have to do…" Blaise hissed back
"You're not even together!" Draco said
"And you're telling me that you haven't thought of a zillion ways to break Granger's heart from the minute you got branded?!" Blaise spat back
They were both silent for a minute staring angrily at each other
"We're a bunch of smitten gits…" Blaise said falling into the couch and looking at the ceiling
"You mean bewitched blockheads…" Draco said sighing
After another long silence
"I just want to make sure she's safe…" Blaise said
"And I really want to my book back cause I know she'll be going mental…" Draco said
"She'll be organising a search party…" Blaise said seriously
"You'd think that but no… she'll go off on her own looking for me…" Draco said
"That's worse…" Blaise sighed
"Sure is…"
"Let's get your book back…" Blaise said gabbing a handful of floo powder and stepping into the fireplace
As they disappeared in burst of green flames, both of them knew, they'd die before Draco broke Hermione's heart.
—
As the boys stepped out of the floo 300 miles away from Wiltshire, Hermione and Sirius stepped out of the floo a mere 100miles from Malfoy Manor. Xenophilis Lovegood welcomed them to his home some herbal tea.
"Its nice to see you out and about Lord Black…" Xenophilius said
"Please call me Sirius… How have you been?"
"I've been well, I've started an Herb garden with the help fo dear Luna, we will be re-planting the mandrakes later today…" He said in the same dreamy voice Luna had
"Oh wow, haven't done that since school. If you have an extra pair of gloves, I'd like to help out" Sirius said
"Mr. Lovegood, where is Luna?" Hermione asked
"Down by the brook, take that door out the back…" He said guiding her in that direction, he then pulled and extra pair of gloves and earmuffs out of a Drawer and said "Shall we Sirius?"
Hermione found Luna sitting by the Brooke practicing water charms when they heard the first mandrake wail in the distance "Hi Luna!"
"Hermione! It's so nice to see you, we never have any visitors, everyone thinks my father and I are crazy…"
"They don't know you like we do… "Hermione said smiling. She had warmed up to Luna considerably after their time together in the DA
"You're a nice person Hermione, It's probably why Draco likes you so much…"
Hermione choked on air "What? How?"
"Don't worry, I know it's a secret, I didn't even tell Blaise I knew… He's nice too… "
"Luna, how did you find out?"
"You both have Nargles on you. They usually infest mistletoe and make people want to kiss, but you both have them, all the time on your head, especially when you are near each other…"
"Oh… " Hermione was at a loss for words
"In your letter, you'd said you want to talk to me about something. What did you want to talk to me about?"Luna asked as she made pearls of water rise out of the stream and make various shapes
"yeah… Luna do you know what the Deathly Hallows are?"
"Sure, the Resurrection Stone, the wand and the Cloak of invisibility… doesn't Harry have the Cloak already?" Luna asked matter of factly
"We're not sure, but it could be possibly, what do you know about the resurrection stone?"
"Well it brings shades of the dead back. Like an imprint of the person. It's not a good thing. Once they are gone we should just let them go. Besides we can hear them just beyond the veil…"
"What happens if the persons who is dead still has a body?" Hermione asked
"A shade is not a replacement for a soul…" Luna said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world
As they sat in silence thinking Luna suddenly said "It's too quiet?"
"Huh?"
"I can't hear the mandrakes anymore…"
Hermione listened and sure enough there was nothing but wind. Suddenly there were sounds of spells being cast as swishes and cracks filled the air. Hermione and Luna ran towards the side where the garden was. There were a couple of Death Eaters fighting against Sirius and Xenophilius.
"Luna go inside!" Xenophilius yelled but it was too late. Both the girls were summoned and grabbed before they could cast a single spell. As soon as the death eaters had them they apparated away.
"Noooooo!" Cried Xenophilius but it was too late
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