23 March, Friday, 2312 GMT
Hermione squeezed the back of her neck, trying to relieve the tension as she sat in the idling Chevrolet Traverse SUV. She had just pulled into her driveway. She looked up into the cold, dark night sky and could not stop a tear from rolling down her cheek.
She pulled her cellular phone from her coat pocket and looked at the keypad. Over the last week, she had attempted the familiar speed dial number more than twenty times in hopes of reaching Draco. She took another deep breath as she wiped the tear from her cheek with the back of her right hand.
She looked at the clock on the phone's LCD screen. It read 11:12 p.m. She bypassed Draco's number 2 and hit the number 3.
It was Draco's idea to give his parents cellular phones as gifts for Christmas. Hermione was a bit more skeptical of the gift. She remembered watching Lucius's eyebrow cant as he opened the box. He paused and then shrugged at Narcissa, who laughed. Hermione nodded her head toward Draco and Mr. Malfoy rolled his eyes. That's when everybody began to laugh.
Draco and Hermione had taught his parents how to use the Muggle device. Hermione knew they would hardly use it; maybe only on the occasions that Draco or Hermione had no access to the floo network. Recently, though, both Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy had been keen to using the device to get in touch with their daughter-in-law over the past six days; probably worried about the emotional state that she was in since Draco went missing.
She heard her father-in-law's phone ring twice before she heard the familiar voice on the other end. "Hermione?" Lucius Malfoy answered, recognizing the phone number on the caller identification. She didn't say a word for a moment.
"Hermione," the older wizard said again.
Hermione finally spoke, "Hi, Dad. Sorry to have called so late."
"Nonsense, Hermione," the wizard said reassuringly. "Mum and I were just checking on Drew. What's up?"
"Nothing, Dad. I just called to hear a familiar voice," her own voice almost cracked. She heard him take in a breath.
"Hermione, everything's going to be okay," Mr. Malfoy said calmly. "He'll turn up."
"I know, I just," she said softly, pausing. "I wish he were already here."
"I know," Mr. Malfoy agreed as he walked into Drew's nursery. He mouthed, 'Hermione,' to his anxious wife. She nodded.
"Dad," Hermione said, turning the engine off. "I just got home. The hospital was very busy tonight.
"Would you guys mind it at all if I picked Drew up in the morning?" She said tiredly as she shut the driver's side door behind her.
The melting snow, what was left of the late winter, crunched beneath her Adidas trainers. She shivered a bit.
"Of course we don't mind, Hermione," the platinum blonde wizard said. "Here, talk to Mum."
He handed Narcissa the phone. The older witch greeted her daughter-in-law warmly, "Hello, dear."
Hermione whimpered. "Hi, Mum," she said as a new set of tears flowed down her cheeks.
"There, there, Hermione," Narcissa Malfoy said soothingly. "Everything will turn out."
"I was just talking to Dad, if you guys wouldn't mind it if I pick up Drew tomorrow morning. It's been a long night in the E.R."
"Of course we wouldn't mind at all," the older woman said as her husband kissed her cheek. "In fact, why don't you drop by for the day tomorrow?"
"That sounds nice, Mum," Hermione sniffled as she turned the key to her front door.
"Get some rest, Honey," Narcissa said in her motherly tone.
"Goodnight, Mum. Kiss Drew goodnight for me," the young Muggle-born mother said.
"Goodnight," Narcissa said as she heard the phone click.
She looked at her husband. He nodded at her as he took the phone from her. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze.
o-o-o
Hermione shut her eyes for a moment as she closed her front door. It had been a very long week. Once or twice during the past week, doubts had clouded her mind about the circumstances surrounding Draco's disappearance. What if he had just decided to leave the life he knew behind? She eschewed that thought rather quickly.
She took a deep breath as she turned on the lights to the living room. The Muggle-born witch suddenly felt the hairs on her arm stand on end. She looked around her living room. Everything seemed to be in place. She pulled her white doctor coat tighter around herself.
Then she heard the familiar cracking noise; several to be exact. She drew in a breath.
The six hooded figures drew their wands. "Stupefy!" one of them uttered. Hermione was thrown into the television stand, breaking the 32 inch set. She went into a coughing fit, trying to get air back into her lungs as one of the hooded figures approached.
Hermione looked up to a face that she recognized. Kellen Tanner, a Slytherin during her year looked down at her. He smirked at her, not unlike the smirk that Draco was known for when they were kids. She remembered him being part of Draco's close circle of friends at Hogwarts.
He aimed his wand at her. She braced herself. He uttered the torture curse. It hit her full force. She writhed in pain on her living room floor until he released the spell. She took a strained breath.
Kellen yanked her up by her hair. She stood up wobbly. Then surprisingly, she rammed her forehead into the bridge of his nose. She felt liquid run down her cheeks. She wasn't sure whether it was Kellen's or her own.
Two of the Death Eaters grabbed Hermione. Kellen Tanner shook off the pain as he aimed his wand at her. Where Hermione got her strength, she didn't even know. She pulled both her arms together and the two wizards crashed into each other. She grabbed one of their necks and twisted it around, killing him.
The other tried to wrap his arms around her. She elbowed him in the ribs. She turned to face him and shoved the bottom of her palm into his nose, breaking it. She grabbed his neck and twisted it as well.
She staggered to one knee before stumbling forward. She got to her feet and rushed into the kitchen but not before being hit with another Cruciatus curse.
"Shit!" Kellen Tanner swore as he checked the pulse of one of the fallen Death Eaters. One of the other Death Eaters checked on the other fallen comrade.
"Go after her," Kellen sneered as he stood up.
Hermione lurched toward the counter. Her hand grazed the knife stand. She pulled her favorite chef knife.
She heard the swishing of robes enter the kitchen entranceway. "Crucio," the young man hissed as he aimed his wand at her. She just barely ducked behind the kitchen table with the curse grazing her. She trembled in pain. He drew near her.
The young man aimed his wand at her again. She spun, surprising the wizard. He didn't see or feel the large knife stick into the center of his chest. She twisted the hilt, causing more damage as she watched the young man gasp in surprise.
They both collapsed to the floor. Hermione stumbled out of the kitchen. She reached her bedroom, hoping to get to her wand in the drawer of the bedside table. The remaining three Death Eaters gave chase.
One of the Death Eaters tackled her into the bottom of the windowsill as she reached for the drawer. He stepped away from her. Kellen hit her with a torture curse. Then he sneered before hitting her with another one. Kellen's companion pulled her up by her hair. He threw her at the feet of the lead Death Eater.
Kellen Tanner kicked her in the sternum. She doubled over, coughing up blood. He pulled up on her hair so that he could look her in the face. The two other Death Eaters flanked her.
"You are a bitch to kill, you know that," he said bringing her up on her feet. "Roxanne seems to think that you are the sole reason the Death Eater movement isn't faring so well."
She looked him straight in the eye and spat. A splatter of blood and saliva marred his cheek. He slapped her across the face. Kellen swore under his breath and then uttered another curse, "Crucio!" She fell to one knee as the curse lessened. One of the Death Eaters grabbed onto her forearm. He yanked her up to a standing position.
"It will be my great pleasure to rid the world of another Mudblood," he said measuredly. He aimed the wand at her chest. "Avada," he started to utter the killing curse.
Even in her state, she moved quickly. She yanked the Death Eater clutching at her arm in front of her. The curse hit him full force in the back. Hermione's eyes enlarged as the young man writhed before succumbing.
Kellen kicked his fellow Death Eater away from the brunette witch. He turned his attention to his former classmate. He narrowed his eyes at her. He grasped her neck choking her. Hermione's eyelids grew heavy. She started to see black.
"We have to go, Kellen. This place will be teeming with aurors soon," the last Death Eater said. He placed his hand on Kellen's forearm, forcing Kellen to let up on Hermione's neck.
"We'll have to side along apparate with her," Kellen said grabbing onto the unconscious Gryffindor.
"Just leave her," the young Death Eater said.
"I know who'll be able to finish this. To the Compound," he said icily.
The Death Eater took in a breath. He aimed and said an incantation. The three disappeared from the Muggle home.
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