CHAPTER FORTY FIVE- Anchors Away
Hermione knew instantly the sparks weren't from Greek Muggles setting off fireworks. They were from Malfoy telling her that something had gone wrong. She burst out of the cabin and began to prepare the ship to sail west.
Once she got up to the deck the sparks had stopped. As she was ready to cast the spells to take them away she saw a man on a broom fly directly over their ship. With her wand drawn she was ready to curse the man if he somehow broke the enchantment.
The man did break through the protective spells and Hermione shot him off of his broom. "Granger! It's me! Stop that!" The man said after a hitting the deck with a loud thud.
"See? It's me," Malfoy said with is hands up in the air. "Prove to me that you're Draco or I'll drown you in the sea," Hermione threatened. The man claiming to be her husband could have easily taken a hair from his head and put it in a batch of Polyjuice Potion.
"You mean besides the fact that I broke through a Fidelius Charm? Ouch! Careful!" Malfoy screamed as Hermione scorched the tips of his robes with a spell. "Fine! In second year you cursed me across the Slytherin tables in the Great Hall!" Malfoy said.
Hermione scorched him again. "Everyone I went to school with knows that. Try harder," she threatened. With his hands still in the air he said, "You talk in your sleep. You also wake up in the middle of the night to write in the notebook in your nightstand. Are you satisfied?" Malfoy said.
"A Slytherin girl could have told you that. What does the notebook contain?" Hermione asked. "I don't know. Whenever I try to open the damn thing it bites me and I can't lift the curse," Malfoy said.
Hermione finally lowered her wand. "I have good ideas when I'm sleeping so I write them down. I changed it to bite when we got married. It used to make Slytherin girls grow facial hair," Hermione said.
"I don't care about your diary at the moment, Granger. Where is Isola? We have to get to the house," Malfoy said. "Why did you send up red sparks if nothing is wrong?" Hermione questioned.
"False alarm, I'll explain later. Get your cloak on and I'll get Isola ready, we need to leave," Malfoy said heading to the cabins.
With Isola tucked into Hermione's cloaks they all boarded the broom Malfoy flew in on and reconciled the ship for safekeeping. The house they arrived to was humble and painted white in the Greek style. Once inside Malfoy set up two more charms before turning on the lights.
"Draco, is she here?" A woman's voice said from the living room. The sound startled Hermione who drew her wand and held onto Isola tighter. "Put that away, it's my mother," Malfoy said as he went to the living room.
If Malfoy had not said his mother was here, she would not have believed him. The woman standing before them looked years older than what Narcissa Malfoy had looked like when they left Black Landing.
Her hair was disheveled and her already thin frame had wasted away giving her a skeletal look. "Mother, this is your granddaughter- Isola Jean Malfoy," Mafloy said as he gently took the sleeping baby from Hermione.
As Malfoy presented their daughter to her grandmother, Hermione realized that is the first time she heard Isola's middle name. "You gave her my middle name?" Hermione asked but Malfoy did not seem to hear her.
"Oh, Draco. She looks just like you. Look at those eyes, look at all that hair… She is beautiful," Narcissa said as she wiped away happy tears.
"She gets all the hair from her mother," Malfoy said as he admired the scene. "Is she healthy? She is so small, look at her little hands," Narcissa commented.
"Isola is stronger than she looks, mother. She may be fragile now but she will be in good health," Malfoy reassured her. "Where is the girl? Is she healthy too?" Narcissa said looking around for Hermione.
"I am getting stronger everyday. It hasn't been easy as I'm sure you can assume," Hermione said stepping closer to the Malfoy family. Narcissa was there the day Malfoy sent her into early labor and was unlikely to forget the screams that brought her granddaughter into the world.
"How did you find us?" Hermione asked at last. For the first time in a month they were off the ship and she needed answers more than a good shower. After they all sat down and Isola was content Narcissa began her story.
"When Lucius and Severus felt their arms burn I fled seconds after you did. Your father and I have talked about this before, Draco. Our plan was always to get you and I out of the house should anything ever go wrong," Narcissa explained.
Giving a nod of understanding, Malfoy asked his mother to continue. "I don't know what happened from there… to your father. I left as soon as the doors burst open and could hear someone scream…" Narcissa said as she took a tissue from her pocket to dry her eyes with.
"I don't know where he is or if he is alright. I had to find you. I started in Bucharest then to Montpellier. After not finding you in Izmir or Milan I came here. I was so exhausted I ended up staying here longer than I should have, but now here you all are," she finished.
"Do you have any news? Anything at all that might help us? Is anyone looking for us?" Malfoy asked as he held his mother's hand.
"Oh yes, my dear. But it is not news that you will enjoy," Narcissa said drying the last few tears from her eyes.