Written for Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry (Challenges & Assignments)
Oneirology with Head Girl Bex - Task 1: Write about someone unexpected becoming a hero
Word Count: 1579
My Bloody Hero
Hermione rounded the corner and pushed herself back against the brick wall before daring to peek around it.
'Honestly!' she snapped, moving quickly down the alley she'd turned into. With one glance over her shoulder, Hermione shoved past the few people in her way and ran into Potage's Cauldron Shop.
Taking a deep breath, she started moving around the shop, glancing at a cauldron, then at the door, and back to another cauldron. She could feel a drop of sweat slipping down her back at having moved so quickly in the summer heat. This shop wasn't helping either. As she took another risk of looking back to the door, she stepped backwards and collided straight into a firm body.
She turned quickly to find a lot of black fabric before her- black shirt, black jacket … teal tie though, with a snake tiepin keeping it in place. It had a green jewel for an eye.
'Oh for goodness sake!' Hermione muttered, knowing as she lifted her head that she was going to meet Lucius Malfoy's gaze.
'Miss Granger,' he said by way of a greeting, raising an eyebrow with no hint of warmth in his features.
'My apologies, Mr Malfoy,' she said quickly, trying to move around him with another glance to the door. 'In a world of my own.'
'Clearly.' He half-turned his torso to look at the door before looking back to Hermione. 'Hiding from someone?'
'Not at all,' she said a little too quickly. Her eyes were now firmly looking at a price tag of a large cauldron.
'You often shop in Knockturn Alley?' he asked. She didn't need to look at him again to know there was some form of smirk on his lips. She could hear it in his voice.
Bloody Knockturn Alley?! Blinking hard, Hermione silently cursed herself for going right instead of left.
'Sometimes I just want to disappear,' she said nonchalantly. Well, nonchalance was what she was attempting. Instead she sounded like she was being throttled.
She moved onto the next cauldron. She felt Lucius follow her. 'I'm just shopping for a new cauldron. Like you,' she said sweetly.
The bell above the door rang. Hermione twisted sharply to look, nearly losing her footing at the appearance of the person she was trying to get away from. Instinctively, Lucius had gripped her wrist and kept her upright. She barely acknowledged the contact as she let out a small groan, her eyes now darting around the shop for a hiding place.
She took a step towards the other side of the shop only to be pulled back by Lucius' firm grip on her wrist. She looked at his hand and then his face.
'Are you sure you're not hiding from someone?' he asked, enjoyment of the situation clear in his tone.
Hermione realised that with where he was stood, she was hidden from the door. Stepping a little closer, she tried to pull her wrist out of his grip. 'Don't be vindictive, Mr Malfoy. Let me go,' she said through gritted teeth.
'What in the seven levels of hell is that?!' Cormac McLaggen's loud voice called to her right.
Both Hermione and Lucius immediately looked to Cormac, stunned at the volume level. He pointed at Lucius' hand. 'What is this, Hermione?'
'Absolutely none of your business, Cormac,' Hermione said, her teeth remained firmly clenched together. She wasn't sure what she was more angry at; Lucius' grip or Cormac chasing her through Diagon Alley.
'You need to let go of my girlfriend,' he warned Lucius, moving closer to them.
Lucius snatched his hand away from Hermione, glancing at his palm where she'd sent an unintentional shock through it from the contact on her skin. Without missing a beat, he turned to Cormac. In that small movement, Hermione was half-shielded by Lucius' body. She frowned up at the back of his; was he protecting her?
'What is it you intend to do if I don't?' Lucius asked, straightening up to his full height, which brought him a head taller than Cormac.
Cormac squared up to him, barely two inches between them, not phased. 'Touch her again and find out.'
Hermione wasted no time in shoving herself between the two men, giving them both a sharp elbow into their stomachs, before facing Cormac. 'I'm very much capable of handling myself, thank you,' she said primly.
She yelped when Cormac suddenly grabbed one of her hands in both of his. 'We belong together, Hermione. You know this. Why do you keep fighting it?'
She watched in horror as he bent his head, bringing her hand up at the same time, and his lips landed a wet kiss on her knuckles. She turned to Lucius with a silent desperate plea to him. She had to be desperate if she was needing Lucius Malfoy's help.
'Is this Amortentia?' he whispered to her as Cormac placed another kiss on her knuckles.
'I don't bloody know,' Hermione snapped, yanking her hand out of Cormac's. 'If it is, someone's been feeding it to him for years.'
She didn't get to say anything else as Cormac pulled her roughly to face him again, his hands on her shoulders. 'It's okay, Hermione. I forgive you for this' –he shot Lucius a look of annoyance– 'indiscretion.'
'Excuse me?' Hermione tried to shake her shoulders from his grip, pulling at his forearms.
'I forgive you,' he said with a nod, moving to kiss her forehead.
'Well this is disturbing,' she heard Lucius mutter behind her.
The oddest thing happened next; as Hermione lifted her hand, having pulled her wand out of her back jeans pocket, Lucius neatly – effortlessly – extracted her from Cormac's grip and pulled her behind him. 'Let's not get your hands dirty, Miss Granger,' he said with a small glance over his shoulder to her. 'Allow me.'
Lucius lifted his arm to point his own wand at Cormac's chest. He let out a strangled scream. Lucius laughed in bemusement. 'Was that a scream?'
'No, it was a very manly yell,' Cormac said firmly, eyes constantly watching the wand pointed at him. 'I wasn't expecting the movement. That's all.'
'Of course it was,' Lucius said quietly before muttering a Stunning spell. With the shop being full of cauldrons, Cormac had nowhere to go except against one of the large pewter cauldrons with a dull, metallic thud.
'If that's dented, Mr Malfoy, you'll have to pay for it,' the shop owner called from the counter.
'Naturally,' Lucius replied calmly, pulling out a bag of money from his inside jacket pocket and using his wand to send it across to him.
He turned around to look at Hermione, who was staring at Cormac with a frustrated look. 'Well,' was all she could manage to say.
'You're welcome,' he said, putting his wand back into its walking cane holder.
'Oh my bloody hero,' she said, snapping her head up to look him in the eye, fury in her own. 'How was this helping me? Now he'll think I'm somehow cheating on him.'
'Are you?'
She nearly brought her wand back out to stun him at hearing the laughter in his voice. Instead, she sighed heavily. 'Thank you, I suppose.'
Lucius moved to stand by her, both of them looking down at Cormac. 'Would it be imprudent to suggest a drink as a way of a thank you?' he asked.
Hermione rolled her eyes, shooting him a withering look. She opened her mouth to refuse. Nothing came out. She closed it and looked back at Cormac's prone figure. 'I suppose I can do that,' she said begrudgingly.
'Excellent.' He moved to kneel by Cormac's side. 'I'll deal with ... this while you run ahead to the Leaky Cauldron. Give you chance to get away. Yes?'
Hermione frowned, biting hard on her bottom lip. She wasn't sure what was happening here, but she couldn't deny she was feeling quite grateful for his help today. She gave a nod of her head before leaving him.
Lucius watched Hermione leave, making sure she was completely out of his sight.
'This is certainly unexpected,' the owner said, leaning on the counter to peer at Cormac.
Lucius ignored him and woke Cormac up.
'What's going on?' he asked groggily, starting to sit up against the cauldron. When his eyes finally focused on Lucius' face he scowled, an odd noise coming out of his throat.
'Rethinking your life decisions?' Lucius gave him a cold look. It wasn't really a question. 'Probably a good choice.'
'What are you talking about?' Cormac gingerly touched the back of his head.
Lucius grabbed at Cormac's face with one hand, his fingertips digging into his cheekbones. Cormac grabbed on to Lucius' wrist but it was pointless.
'Let me make myself clear. You will rethink your decisions in life where Hermione Granger is concerned. Do you understand me now?' He let go of Cormac, his head hitting the cauldron again. 'You'll lose this battle if you so much as attempt to speak to her again. Leave the woman alone.'
Standing up, Lucius straightened his jacket, tucking his walking cane under one arm. 'Give my regards to your uncle.' He looked to the shop owner. 'Be sure to send my purchases on.'
They silently watched Lucius leave the shop, the only sound was of the bell ringing when the door opened.
'You want my advice, boy – maybe don't chase a lady to the point that she requires the help of an old enemy,' the shop owner said firmly. 'Now get up, learn how to be a gentleman, and get out of my shop.'
