Chapter Forty: Malfoy Manor
Hermione had never been to Malfoy Manor in person, and so she had no idea which window she should choose to look for Abraxas. Deductive reasoning would indicate it was somewhere upstairs, but she didn't wish to look in every single window till she found him. She knew that ancestral homes usually had wards as well, and she did not wish to awaken any Malfoys other than him.
"Perhaps Hilly was here before," she whispered, and she concentrated as hard as she could, hoping that would be the case. A mental image of the entire manor popped into her head, and using it as a guideline she worked out which window to approach.
"Wow," she said. "I should have melded with an elf long ago."
Without a broom, Hermione could not fly up to Abraxas' window, so she whispered, "Wingardium Leviosa," and floated herself up. She grabbed the casing as soon as she got there, and used her other hand to rap on the glass as quietly as possible.
She could see Abraxas sleeping in his bed. He barely stirred at the sound she was making, so she tried harder. He opened his eyes blearily and caught sight of her hovering there. Eyes wide, he quickly grabbed his wand and gave it a flick, and the window opened.
"Hello, Hermione," he said, covering his bare chest with his blanket. "Have you finally come to your senses and decided you wanted to visit my bedroom instead of Tom's? There's plenty of room for two."
Hermione did not laugh as usual, and Abraxas' grin immediately fell as he sat up more fully.
"Tom's in big trouble, Brax," she told him. "He's going to need your help. Yours, and all the other knights."
"You know about that?" he inquired. "I didn't think he'd told you."
"Well, not precisely, I suppose, though it doesn't matter how I discovered it at this point," she hedged. "Is there any way you can get in touch with the others, and arrange for us to talk?"
"Hold on, now, I've no idea what you're talking about," he said. "I can't very well call a meeting if I don't have all the details. They'll all want to know what sort of trouble it is."
"There's very little time," Hermione insisted. "I would far rather tell the tale only once, and far from here. The last thing we need is for your parents to become involved."
"You've got that right, at least," he agreed. "Wait here. If anyone comes looking, you must hide yourself. I don't think I want to explain the presence of a young woman in my bedroom while I myself am not even in it. I'll return as soon as I can, and take you to meet the knights. All right?"
"Yes, all right," she agreed, and found a chair to sit on as Abraxas Apparated away.
It wasn't long before she heard a loud pop. Startled, she stared at an equally startled house elf and realized he was Dobby.
"Forgive me, mistress. I did not know Master Braxas was-entertaining."
"Oh, no, Dobby, don't be silly," Hermione blurted out without realizing he probably did not know her until she'd already spoken. "I mean, we're not—"
"How do you know my name, mistress?" he inquired as he examined her more closely. "I have seen you before, it seems. In a future dream."
"What do you know of the future?" Hermione asked, her heart skipping a beat.
"The future is always in motion, mistress," he said. "One dream becomes another so easily. Even this chance meeting may change it. But I do wonder how a dream of the future has come here."
"Through a secret room at Hogwarts," she explained. "Dumbledore put it there, it seems."
"There are a great many secrets at Hogwarts," Dobby replied.
Just then Abraxas reappeared and saw the two of them together, with the elf standing near the feet of the young woman. "Dobby, what have I told you about speaking to my guests?" he growled, and moved forward to kick him.
"Brax, please, not on my account," Hermione pleaded. "He was merely surprised to find me here at all. No harm done."
Abraxas sneered slightly, but subsided. "You must never let the elves believe they have rights, you know," he told her. "Who knows what they might get up to if we did that."
"It's not important," Hermione insisted. "You may go now, and mind you tell no one of my presence. Secrecy is quite imperative just now."
"Yes mistress," he agreed, then looked uncertainly at Abraxas. He waved at him dismissively, and the little elf popped away again.
"I've arranged a meeting in the Forbidden Forest," Abraxas told her. "It was a bit difficult to convince them to come at your behest instead of Tom's, but I reminded them just how upset Lord Voldemort would be if we failed to save him in his hour of need. That seemed to do the trick."
"Yes, undoubtedly."
"If you'll give me your arm, I'll take you to them now," Abraxas said, holding a hand out to her.
Hermione set her elbow into the outstretched hand, and the pair of them Apparated away, landing deep in the heart of the forest with a soft pop. When she got her bearings, she saw that about ten other boys were present, most of them sitting on logs that had been arranged in a semi-circle.
Alphard and his younger brother, Cygnus, stood off to one side arguing with each other about something. Hermione was just curious enough to listen for a moment.
"Well, Wally will just have to get over it," Cygnus piped up. "She's not the first witch who has gotten betrothed to her cousin just to preserve a bloodline, and she certainly won't be the last."
"But it's indecent," Alphard complained. "She's going to have to make babies with someone who has practically been like a brother to her all her life. I can't imagine that's going to be a very comfortable wedding night."
"Wally's well enough to look at," Cygnus scoffed. "Too bad I wasn't older, I'd be all for a match with a witch like her."
"Excuse me, gentlemen," Hermione interrupted then. "I have called you together to impart news of the utmost importance. Will you all please let me tell you? I believe your time has finally come to help your Lord in truth."
Alphard and Cygnus quickly joined the others on a log, and Abraxas set Hermione on the log that faced them. It was not lost on any of them when next he took a seat beside her there. Inching away just a bit, Hermione turned to face the knights and tell her tale.