Chapter 4.8

"Have you done this before?" Draco was examining most of her equipment, he recognize the magical Athame typically used as a ceremonial blade, there were also books on necromancy, blood magic and soul sorcery, some of it he's familiar with from their many collection in Malfoy Manor others were too obscure for his liking. There was also a suspiciously pure gold bowl – a very large gold bowl with inscriptions all over . How she got that, he doesn't know. But there are also items he's just seen now, more of those syringes she used on the dog, long elastic tubes, things like an IV Drop, and lots and lots of squishy clear bags she calls plastic, there are even more of those bags filled with some unknown dark substance. It looks like blood… Oh it probably is. The room looked like a nightmare. Definitely not a place of worship.

"Not really…" Was she serious?

"What? And you're just going to… what do you call it again?"

"Administer a blood transfusion."

"And what would that do… I feel faint, are we really killing an escaped convict? On a Hogsmead weekend? I should've been drinking Butterbeer by now, probably going around the shops to look for gifts. My mother likes Pashmina, you know? More than the popular Egyptian silk, however she also prefers the filigree work on those silk…. W-what is that?"

"Eldon Cards. I just have to prick just right here…" She proceeds to prick the unconscious man's finger and drew out a tiny amount of blood, however not tiny enough for Draco.

"Oh fuck… fuuuuuck… we are so going to fail this. He is going to die and your little ritual will backlash at us. I'll probably loose all of my Black magic from this treacherous act against my Paterfamilias, I'm actually quite surprised the magic is not fighting back. Why are you dropping that on that piece of paper? What the fuck is the purpose of this?!"

"Will you snap out of it Draco! Geez you talk a lot do you know that!" Seriously the boy was making her more nervous, he should really shut the fuck up.

"Blood typing is based on the way red blood cells agglutinate." "Huuuhh?" "Dried blood clumps together, these clumps will tell me how his blood will react to the A and B antigens." Unfortunately, Draco still looked helpless.

"Goodness Draco, how backwards is the Wizarding world that you don't even know that blood literally has more than three types. And it has nothing to do with your ancestors… Ok well, it does, but not in that sense!"

"Anyway, I have to determine whatever blood type he has so that once I literally drain his body with every drip of his blood, I can administer the correct bloody transfusion – quite literally, and revive his unconscious body from apparent death. I don't want to poison him in the end with the wrong blood type."

"Oh we are so gonna fail this." He cried, horror written all over his face. 'Forgive me Mother, for I have sinned. And sinned greatly I have.' He wanted to cry, he wanted to puke, he also wanted to eat. All this stress is making him hungry.

"Just… conjure a long metal post for me. Something taller than you by a foot, with two protruding bars on top." Of course he follows, how could he not?

There was a bag with saline solution, another bag with a big letter B and a cross sign on it, probably stands for Blood because it was filled with it. Some tubing of sort with weird mechanisms on it that she rolls, a vial connecting the two called a drip chamber, and a single long tube connecting to the man's left arm by some sort of needle, a really - really large needle. There was also another one of those large needle on his right arm, one that will drain him dry, another tube directed towards the gold bowl.

The whole scene was disgusting, the man's blood was slowly dripping, filling the bowl. It looked like a Borscht soup in a gold bowl. Oh he wanted to vomit.

"What do I have to do now.." He felt helpless, and frankly he just wanted to do something, instead of fidgeting and pacing back and forth.

"Draco, you did read the written plan right?"

"Well yes… but this is really disconcerting Hermione. We're killing a man!"

"Not for long! He just has to stay dead until we are done and over with the ritual. Aren't you the least bit excited to become Lord Black?"

"Yes… No… Oh I don't know!" He was whining like a big baby, but he can't be blamed, they were doing something sinister and he is so sure his mother will find out, mothers always do. Thank Salazar his Grandfather had insisted he be well-trained on his pureblood Occlumency lessons, of course at that time he was guarding their trips to the muggle world from Father, especially those trip starring a Miss Tempest Rose . Oh if his Godfather finds out, he'd be sure to be shipped-off to Durmstrang and Hermione will be thrown back into the muggle world, obliviated, or worse – kissed in Azkaban. Oh by the gods, they are going to fail. They will be found out! Draco was breathing harder, pacing like a caged animal while the witch was calmly flicking the one called a drip chamber.

"Stop over working yourself, I need you calm. I can't help you with your part and frankly you might over do it to the point a Dittany won't close the wound."

"Okay—okay." He breathes heavily, trying to calm his nerves. After a few minutes he settled down and the golden bowl was almost filling up to the brim. Hermione hands him the Athame.

"Be ready, once the last of his blood is drained and his heart stops beating. I have to cast the stasis charm on him before he goes into cardiac arrest. And that I cannot undo." She licks her dry lips, waiting for the last of Sirius' blood to drain and when the tube was pumping nothing but air, she did the charm.

"Teneat Gelida" The body froze into statis, and the two brace themselves for the ritual.

She was honest with him, it will not be a painless journey. First he had to slash his left palm, the wand hand, with the Athame, a silver one to counter the gold. That blade however was no ordinary blade, aside from the painful sting of cutting open your palm, there will be a burning sensation to it. His pristine skin will scar unfortunately, something silver like according to her books. After that, he will hold his injured hand suspended over the goo of blood as he say the incantation she found in one of Salazar's tomes, while she will watch in morbid fascination as the blood rises defying gravity. The blood will enter his injured palm, along with the magic the blood brings. And in slow tortuous minutes, his body and core will convulse as it continues to absorb the foreign matter, until none is left. And the once scion of Malfoy will fully transition to Lord Black – something the Wizengamot will find out when he turn of legal age. Oh his father will kill him, he was definitely sure of it. But none of it registers as he experience pain like no other, and later on in his life he will compare it to the pain of his Aunt's favored Cruciatus Curse.

"Are you ready Draco?"

"Not really," He looked green. "but let's go for it! Gryffindor courage, hoo!" And he may have slashed his hand deeper than necessary.

"What an idiot."

"Is he alive?"

"I.. I think so?"

"You think so? Hermioneeee!" His voice was weak, they were both seated at the grimy floor, backs rested at the base of the altar. Sirius on the other side has remained unconscious all through out. They were both sweaty, he had blood all over his robes, and his hair was sticking out in places it shouldn't be.

"What Draco? I can't just Rennervate him. That's ridiculous, we don't even know if he's still a wizard! Regardless, he is still a convict, a mass murderer. I will not wake someone who can easily kill us with his bare hands!"

"He… he might not be a wizard?" His wide eyed gaze stared incredulously at her.

"I'm not sure. He still has a core, but it could just be depleted and might likely restore back some of his magic."

"Like magical exhaustion…"

"I don't know."

"Well colour me surprise, Hermione Granger doesn't know everything." Draco smirked faintly.

"Oh for fucks sake Draco, can we focus on something else. LIKE HOW DO YOU FEEL?"

"I… I don't know." Oh just great.

"This is such a weird feeling. I.. I recognize you." Hermione was tidying up their space a little, ignoring the unconscious but thankfully still breathing man on one of the marbled counters. Draco was trying to stretch his arms and legs, standing on wobbly feet. During the ritual, Hermione had to support him upright as his body started convulsing. Now his limbs felt like an octopus' tentacles, all sluggish and soft. His mouth felt dry too, probably from all the screaming.

"Recognize me how?" She went back to him and applied a new layer of Dittany to his wound. It sealed neatly, just a strand of silver scar. It was actually cool looking. Kind of bad arse.

"I recognize it… That your core pulses with energy, that there is more darkness in you than what you show. That a part of your magic is broken, vulnerable, but at the same time wild and uninhibited. It's beautiful actually, a gem, potent and forceful." He said, clearly at awe with what is probably the familial magic at work.

"This is overwhelming, but my magic is grounding me. It's like a storm inside me suddenly abated." He shakily said, too much in wonder and probably is still in shock to reciprocate any coherent thoughts.

"Cast a spell!" Hermione said and he heartily agrees but his wand got slapped away the moment he brandished it.

"Not on me you idiot!"

"Sorry… Expul…"

"ARE YOU DAFT DRACO?"

"Geez woman! Fine, fine. Reduciooaaahh! WHAT NOW!?"

"We are probably a hundred feet under ground Draco! Do you want us to be buried alive?!"

"Alright, fine! What would you like then?"

"Something that won't kill us, possibly non-explosive." She said, hands on her hips like the feisty little witch she is.

"Damper my party will you." He muttered under his breath. "Fine then. Aguamenti!" He clearly said.

And because Hermione is usually right, the ante-chamber filled up with water.

AN: I have no idea how a blood transfusion really works. And I would really like to expand more on what goes on behind the scenes of our duo, but it kinda gets boring. The acquiring of tools, ordering sandwiches, dragging Black underground undetected... It's too tedious and let's just say the two has abused the time turner too much that it's not even December in this fic and they have done a lot.. Like a whole lot.