14. The Confession

Leaving daylight behind, Draco stepped down into the dimly lit tunnel. A dozen steps later, the air was heavy and damp. The only light available was from a long line of candles that ran down the tunnel as far as the eyes could see. The candles were held by black sconces caked with a candle wax made of mutton tallow; and the acrid smell of burning mutton tallow was thick and pungent. The tunnel resembled a catacomb with deep compartments dug out along the right side of the tunnel walls. Some of the compartments were empty but others were giving off a stench of decay. As they passed by a dugout recess, a Dementor's foul and rotten mouth shot out and hissed loudly as it attempted to inhale as much hope and happiness as it could steal. Draco felt the icy pull and pushed onward to put the thing behind him. He immediately moved over to the left side of the tunnel and moved forward cautiously while holding onto the tunnel wall for support.

Every ten paces or so, another Dementor would lean out of its catacomb recess but was apparently unable to break free from the constraints of the sepulchral chamber. In spite of this restriction the Dementor drew as much of the energy of life as it could hold. Draco was weakening and his knees were beginning to buckle. After a few more Dementors had their way with him, the blond wizard stumbled and fell. Oldowe pulled him up and muttered something about taking a few more steps.

Barely able to walk further, Draco approached a heavy looking door with black iron hinges and fixtures. Oldowe reached in his pocket and drew out an ancient key, polished by wear. He gave the key a turn and clicked the latch to open the door. They entered a dim room with several more doors. There was a couple of benches between the doors.

"Welcome to Azkaban," Oldowe said. "And I hope you have a wonderful stay. We're a few minutes early so make yourself comfortable for a while," he said and pointed to an oily looking bench.

"Loved the bellmen," Draco said as he fell down on the bench by the door.

"Well, I could use a smoke – be back in a few minutes," Oldowe announced. "Whatever you do, don't go back down the tunnel. You won't make it," he said with a smile and exited the room from a side door.

Draco couldn't tell if it was the dim light or the effect of the Dementors kiss but his world had turned to black and white. He couldn't remember or relive one happy thought. The only thing he could think of was how bad it would get. Would it be worse inside the prison? How much worse? Already, he was sick and deeply saddened by this whole experience. Outside, he was able to convince himself this had been the correct course of action – but now – inside the prison, it was different. Any positive outcome that he had imagined quickly disappeared.

He tried to remember Granger but couldn't see her face. He couldn't remember the eyes that were like cauldrons of hazel or the auburn pageboy. He knew in his mind they existed but he couldn't see them or remember how they looked.

‡‡‡‡‡

"Miss – is you alright? We need to go Miss. There's nothing here now," Winky said, holding Hermione by the hand.

"Oh Winky... yes I'll be ready to go in a minute," Hermione said, and then looking up at the steep hill she had come down, she settled back down and relaxed on the bench.

"Well, maybe a couple of minutes," she added.

"Maybe we all should have a rest," Winky said, and her and Gilbert pulled themselves up on the opposite side of the bench, their faces long with the realization that their plan had failed.

‡‡‡‡‡

The deathly silence was broken as the side door opened and Oldowe bulged his way back in. The big man looked down at the sight of Draco holding his head in his hands and laughed.

"Do you know who I am – have you ever seen me before?" Oldowe asked with amusement.

Draco looked up at the huge man and then dipped his head, shaking it slowly.

"No, never seen you," he muttered.

"I'm Odd-job Oldowe, you wanna hear a funny story?" he asked.

"Are you kidding?" replied Draco.

"It might do you some good – so listen up. I do a lot of different jobs, you know – just the way I am I suppose."

At this point Draco looked at the big man and wondered what the hell was going on – the man telling anecdotes in the middle of Azkaban.

"Well one I do, it's around Christmas time, and it's a lot of fun. I play the department store Santa in Diagon Alley," he said and bellowed a huge laugh.

"You don't say," Draco added sullenly to humor the big oaf.

"Yeah I do," he said firmly, "and that's where you come in," he said and dropped the laugh.

"Where I come in?"

"Yeah... I noticed those kids you brought into Diagon Alley – St. Mungo's kids they were – seen em last year too. Well, I know what the hospital can afford to spend on them and it's not much."

Draco shook his head – it would be an appropriate moment to laugh – if he could. "So what's the point?"

"So," Oldowe continued. "The point is – those kids had more, a lot more. You were buying those kids the extra gifts – weren't you," Oldowe said with an air of discovery and Draco managed a nod.

There was a pause and a deathly silence about the room.

"Anyone would have?" Draco muttered with his head in his hands.

"Let's go," Oldowe finally announced and Draco struggled to get up.

Oldowe opened a door adjacent to the one they used to enter. He held the door and waited for Draco to drag through. Another tunnel but unlike the first. This one had smooth plaster walls that were a dingy grey in color, or at least they seemed grey to Draco's altered state of mind. There was a string of naked light bulbs attached to the top of the tunnel, spaced a half a dozen paces apart.

They continued walking with Draco holding onto the wall for support. Finally, after a distance roughly the same as they had traveled to enter the prison they stopped at a dead end. Off to the side of the tunnel's end was another door. Oldowe pushed Draco aside and opened it with his key. There was light – bright light, and Draco could feel Oldowe's hand on his back and pushing gently. After a few steps, they were standing at the base of the stone stairway they used to enter the first tunnel. The smell of the foamy sea was everywhere and Draco turned to face Oldowe.

"Are we..." he struggled for words.

"Yes, we're back out," said Oldowe.

"One tunnel in and another out," Draco muttered, "Why – why are you doing this?" he added.

"Same tunnel, but different magic," Oldowe said and grinned. "The other part of your question," he said and paused. "I don't believe you're all that bad – hell, maybe not bad at all. You don't belong in there," he said and motioned toward the prison. "Maybe someone else will bring you back – but I won't."

Draco shook his bowed head – still struggling to comprehend the moment.

"And there's someone out there – waiting for you I think. Seen her when I went out for a smoke," Oldowe said sternly and nodding. "You'd be a fool to mess that up, so you better go," he said with a smile and turned to leave. "But if you do mess things up again, hell, I may be the one to come after you. Can you make it up the steps?" he asked.

"Bloody hell, I'll make it alright," Draco said.

"Well, then go – I've got business back inside," Oldowe said and turned this time for good.

Weak and washed out, Draco struggled with each stone step as he finally made it up to the level ground above. Just as Oldowe had said, there was a brunette sitting on the old bench under the oak tree. With her head in her hands, she couldn't hear his soft footsteps above the sounds of the sea breaking on the rocks. The two house-elves were on the other side of the bench with their elf heads in their hands. The whole trio looked quite glum. Gilbert was the first to notice.

"Master..." he said.

Draco, almost stone faced looked blankly at the trio.

"Well Granger – what are you doing here?" he asked.

Hermione jerked around to see Draco standing there a few feet away. She jumped up from the bench and rushed up to the wizard. He was pale and shaky looking. She stood there for a few moments until she could summon the words.

"You know why I'm here," she said as if answering a silly question and reached for the wizard's hands. "So how did you... did Oldowe...", she said and looked intently into grey eyes.

"He just let me go," he said, still trembling. "But the Dementors..."

"Oh my God," she said and hugged the blonde wizard.

"So why did you come Granger?" he repeated.

"Why are either one of us here? I can't believe you tried this," she said shaking her head.

Slowly the color started to re-enter his world. He looked deeply into the hazel eyes before resuming the kiss that was so rudely interrupted weeks ago at the restaurant.

‡‡‡‡‡

Hermione felt the kiss – fumbling and clumsy at first as if Draco was still not quite himself. He slowly warmed to her touch and and the exchange felt like fire. Pulling away a little, he canted his head and kissed her again. Tongues were darting and playing past parted lips.

Crashing against the rocks, the sea added an orchestration of percussion. The whistling wind quickly chimed in at the same moment, leaving behind a fragrance of the ocean breeze. Draco was definitely warming up now. His hands entered her coat and went roaming. Completely drained of hope and happiness, his hands went on a groping rampage. Hermione could sense, that Draco was re-filling his soul after the Dementors had taken all he had. She stood there still, knowing, giving, and passionately replacing what he had lost. Slowly she was recoloring his world, and finally he pulled away and took a deep breath of air.

"Sorry – carried away, I guess. The Dementors, they took all..." Draco shook and bowed his head, unable to continue.

"That's okay Draco – I understand," she said and at that moment remembered Ron's betrayal. "I can help you." And Ron – payback will be a bitch.

"Help me?" he asked, and she nodded with a puzzling smile. Hermione chuckled at how she would be the one, and not Astoria or Narcissa, to refill Draco's world with warmth.

"Yes and it beats chocolate – just agree to one thing," she pleaded.

"What?" he asked.

"You promise to go back to the Ministry and let Cynthia take over," she explained.

"Okay, and then what?"

"You promise then?" she asked again.

Draco nodded sincerely.

"Then I'm yours," she said with a grin. "Let's get of here."

"You mean?"

"Yes," she said and nodded.

"Then, there's only one question left," he asked playfully.

"Yeah – what's that?" she said, puzzled.

"Your place or mine?"

Hermione laughed and said, "It'll have to be my place. I still have nightmares about yours."

Draco chuckled at that and they turned toward the stone pathway.

Remembering the house-elves, Draco stopped and looked back at the pair.

"Oh, Gilbert – take the day off," he said.

"Winky, you have the day off as well – and thanks," Hermione added, and with one leaning on the other, the two squeezed in tight to negotiate the narrow walkway.

‡‡‡‡‡

And all this time the two house-elves stood there with grins and huge smiles as they watched the couple leaning on one another to negotiate the narrow pathway to Prisoner Point. After a time had passed, Gilbert reached for Winky's hand.

"You think we was right to do this?"

"Do what?" Winky asked, innocently.

"Working to put these two together – you think it was right?" he croaked.

"I think so – they wasn't happy before – besides, they make a good looking couple," she said looking affectionately at the pair as they neared the top of the hill.

Gilbert reflected on this a bit. "So do we," he said and gave Winky a little peck on the cheek. "So do we."

Putting the thoughts of Azkaban prison far behind them, they all began the trek toward Prisoner Point as a red sun began falling into a foamy sea.

:

:

:

A/N: A short epilogue will follow in a few weeks I hope. My crystal ball is a little dim for this couple and really can't imagine how long they could remain a pair. I know Narcissa will do everything in her power to mess things up. Maybe a poll could settle things. Some of the other characters are more clear to me and they are why an epilogue would be nice. This story has been a blast to write and submitting a chapter each week has become addictive. I'll hate saying goodbye to these two, But am planning the next story to be back to Harry and his next adventure in the Ministry as an Auror.

The Poll is up! It's on my profile page - Please Vote.

As with my story and all those you read, please review. And last but not least: Thank you for reading.