Hermione leaned against the wall, her eyes now vacant as tears continued to fall silently down her face. She slowly turned around and walked back into the common room carelessly throwing herself down on the couch gazing at the fire. She slowly lay her head down on the arm of the couch, unaware of Dracos bedroom door opening. She barely felt Dracos arms slid under her and she heard a voice whisper
"Silencio." It sounded so far away. She was aware that everything had become silent and finally her eyelids slammed shut.
"What do you plan to do with her?" A small voice asked.
"It is none of your business what the dark lord plans." A deep resonating voice harshly replied. Hermiones eyes slowly fluttered open.
"Leave us." The deep voice commanded.
"Well Miss. Granger, nice to see you again." Hermione blinked a few times before becoming fully aware of her surroundings. Dark, smoke stained stonewalls surrounded her. There were no windows and the only furniture was two green velvet chairs facing each other in front of the fireplace, a small dresser in the corner, and the small stiff cot on which she lay.
"Where am I?" She moaned. Panic hit her when she saw who her gracious host was.
"Lucius." She quickly sat up.
"Where am I? Why are you here?" She asked, unable to mask the panic in her voice as she spoke. Lucius said nothing and Hermione spoke again.
"Why am I here?" Lucius smiled a little.
"You are here because your presence has become increasingly irritating to us all." he spat out. This time Hermione said nothing.
"Unfortunately our lord seems to think you may be useful in some way, which spares your life for the time being." Hermione fritted her teeth.
"I'll never help Voldemort." She wasn't even aware that Lucius had moved until his hand collided with her face, the force of which threw her onto the cold, dirty floor.
"You will never speak the dark lords name." Lucius said, his cold eyes now burning with hatred.
"The next time you do, your consequences shall be dire." he finished, smiling coldly at her.
"Now if You'll excuse me, I have other business to attend to." With a loud crack Lucius was gone. Hermione lay silently on the floor rubbing her face as tears began to well up in her eyes. She slowly picked herself up off the floor, wiping away her fallen tears. She gazed around the room and spotted the small 3-drawer dresser. She carefully kneeled in front of the small dresser and was surprised to find a small photo album in the top drawer. She carefully pulled it out. Hermione quickly made herself comfortable in one of the velvet chairs, tucking her legs under her and absorbing the warmth of the fire. She opened to the first page and was surprised to see the smiling faces of Alice and Frank Longbottom. They stood, arms wrapped around each other laughing and waving.
Hermione smiled a little, knowing Neville would love to have the picture. She gingerly turned the page and was shocked to see a wedding photo. She squinted at the smiling bride and recognized her as Lily Potter. Next to her stood James and than Sirius. Hermione smiled at the happy faces of all three. She laughed a little finally realizing how much Harry really did look like his parents. She was about to turn the page when a loud cracked snapped her out of her trance. She spun around and was surprised to see a boy about her age. His curly brown hair was dull and greasy, his face was unshaven and he stood about 5'8. His eyes, though a dull brown, had a strange light in them. A light of hope.
He slowly turned around and set the tray of food, which he held on the tiny dresser. He turned to face Hermione and held his hand out to her giving her a comforting smile.
"Hi, I'm Casey." Hermione extended her hand and hesitantly took his.
"I'm Hermione..." In the light of the fireplace she should clearly make out his clothing. His pants could have easily been a light color, but they were too stained which dirt and grime to tell. His shirt was long sleeved and at least 2 sizes too big and filled with holes. Casey noticed her eyeing him and chuckled.
"I know, I'm not a pretty sight." Hermione smirked a little.
"Sorry, not accustomed to seeing a death eater dressed the way you are." Casey scoffed.
"You wouldn't would you? I'm not a death eater, that's why." Hermione raised her eyebrow.
"If you're not a death eater, why are you here?" Casey opened his mouth to speak, but quickly closed it.
"I have to go. Your food is right there. It isn't the best but it's better than nothing." He finished and was gone with a crack. Hermione felt downtrodden, already hating not having anyone to talk to. She quickly devoured her food, which consisted of a cold watered down soup, a stale piece of bread, and a glass of water. After finishing her dinner she picked up the photo album and was about to open it once again when another loud crack filled the room and Lucius stood in front of her.
"Put your silly book away girl. It's time to meet your new lord."