To the Death
Thank you for the good reviews! Hermione's POV
HERMIONE'S POV:
My heart was thudding against my ribs. I've never been more afraid for myself in my life. Usually I'm constantly worried or afraid for other people. I'm always afraid for other people, but never me. This was new for me. I was afraid for myself.
"And now for the women." I stared into Ron's crystal blue, tear filled eyes. Ron broke the contact and looked up. I suddenly felt sick, suddenly feeling light headed. I looked up at Lucius as he drew four names.
He opened the first one and looked directly at me. I could feel everyone's eyes on me as he began to speak. "Penelope Clearwater." He kept his cold eyes on me as the crowd erupted with anger. Why was he staring at me?
He opened the second one, still keeping his eyes locked on me. He gave a sigh, almost in disappointment as he said a name I didn't recognize.
One, two, three more women were selected. My heart filled with overwhelming relief. I wasn't chosen! Ron ran at me, picking me up and spinning me around. Our joy was cut short by Lucius's cold voice.
"I believe I can pick one more mudblood. Someone I… look forward to seeing fight for her life. Someone who should have died a long time ago." My heart froze as he shifted his gaze on me. "Someone who deserves to die a slow…painful death." He turned to the other tributes. "Keep that in mind."
He looked at me once more. "I choose Hermione Weasley." The entire room exploded. The crowd reacted much worse than they did when the others were chosen. I could feel the blood drain from my face.
Ron stepped in front of me as if shielding me from danger. "THAT'S BULLSHIT! YOU CANT DO THAT!"
I felt hopeless. I had no choice. I began to walk ever so slowly toward the other tributes, my eyes staring at my feet. Ron scrambled forward screaming.
"NO! NO! I VOLUNTEER! I VOLUNTEER! I'LL TAKE HER PLACE! PLEASE!" Lucius laughed.
"Mr. Weasley, you are pureblooded and your blood is precious. Therefore I cannot allow you to take her place." I stood next to Penelope and looked around at everyone. They all had solemn faces as they looked at the nine people about to walk into their deaths. "If there are any mudbloods that would like to take her place, speak now."
My heart broke. Nobody stepped forward. Of course I would never in a million years allow anybody to make this kind of sacrifice for me. But I was still a bit disappointed.
Ron was forced back to his side by the guards. Molly was sobbing and wailing, clinging to Arthur as if for her life. Ginny was crying and clinging onto Harry as Molly was to Arthur. Harry had tears streaming down his face. Ron had his face buried in his hands, his body wracked with heart breaking sobs.
My blood boiled with anger as Lucius began to speak. "These are our tributes!" He took my hand and raised it above my head as if I had won something. I tried to pull my hand back down, but he resisted. I looked at Ron, his face red with anger.
"DON'T FUCKING TOUCH HER!" Ron ran forward, only to be punched in the stomach roughly.
Ignoring him, Lucius continued to speak. "The families of these worthless creatures will be able to say their final goodbyes." My heart exploded with anger. How dare he say something like that about me? How dare he say something like that about ANY human being? The crowd began to become restless. I turned to Lucius, daring myself to speak.
"You disgust me." He turned to me, fire in his eyes. I continued to speak, my mind telling me to stop. My voice was filled with absolute humility and sadness. "You are absolutely sick. I wouldn't even consider you a human being."
I should've seen it coming, but I didn't. He raised his fist and punched me square in the nose. The entire crowd gasped. My knees became weak as he hit me again… in front of the entire ministry, mind you. He grabbed the collar of my shirt and picked me up roughly, choking me a bit. Somewhere in the distance I could hear Ron say something like, "No! Let her go!"
His breath smelled of poison as he spoke in a whisper. "You forget your place, mudblood. You will die first. I will make sure of it." He dropped me back on my feet. I struggled to regain my breath as he let me go.
"If you are family of these miserable creatures, I take pity on you. Not because you will lose a loved one, no. But because they are what they are." He looked directly at me as he spoke, hatred dripping from his voice. He fixed his gaze upon my sobbing family in the front row.
"If you are family and you would like to say your final goodbyes to them, meet them at Kings Cross Station in approximately one hour. They will be taken to Bulgaria to be trained overnight to fight. Then they will be taken to the Arena tomorrow afternoon." He gave a sick smile towards Ron, who was seething with anger.
"Here's the interesting part. The entire games will be broadcasted on every channel of every magical household." I felt like I was going to throw up. Nobody should be forced to see this. Ron shouldn't EVER be forced to see me fight for my life.
"When the games begin, you will be given the option to only see what happens to the tribute of your choice." I looked directly at Ron. We made eye contact immediately and I could tell from his expression that he was going to watch me. I shook my head at him.
Lucius turned, addressing all of us. He spoke in the most condescending tone I've ever heard in my life.
"May the odds be ever in your favor."