Chapter 22: Night Three

The day drug on as Hermione measured and cut five custom suits while Maggie pinched and pinned the new alterations against strangers' waists and shoulders. All the while, Hermione's mind was lost in the familiar place of Lucius' home, back in the gorgeous guestroom with the petite music box still in her hands.

As Maggie turned the open sign off, Hermione began to feel nauseous. She assumed it was from skipping lunch and the idea that soon she'd have to admit everything to Maggie: that they were in danger, that for whatever reason, the Death Eaters were after her and Lucius, and that tonight and other nights to follow, she'd be staying with Lucius until work the next day. The idea excited her 24 hours ago, but now she dreaded seeing him again. Not only did she leave without saying goodbye earlier, she had the strange feeling he was keeping things from her.

Even though Hermione came to his home after a horrible night with Ron, Lucius never approached Hermione with his feelings about his divorce from Narcissa. The fact that she cheated on him with a member of the council and, after years of marriage, decided to leave him. He never spoke about feelings of grief or loss, not even anger after finding out the Death Eaters were after him and Hermione. His emotions seemed under lock and key as if she had not yet earned the right to see them.

Did he not trust her with them? Had she done something wrong to make him feel he could not confide in her the way she did him?

As Maggie set the kitchen table with a tray of corn muffins and a pot of chili, Hermione searched the depths of her mind for possible answers, but the only answer she could come up with was to wait to see Lucius and ask him herself.

"Are you okay?" Maggie set down two bowls with two silver spoons sitting inside. She sat down across from Hermione and dipped a metal ladle into the pot of chili.

Hermione picked up her bowl and handed it to Maggie. "Yes," she said as Maggie filled her bowl, "Well, actually, no."

Maggie paused a moment before filling her bowl and scanned Hermione's face.

"Please sit."

Maggie crumbled a muffin into her bowl of chili and sat down. "What's wrong, Hermione?"

"I don't know how to say any of this," Hermione admitted while her mind was jumping from word to word as she tried to think of a way to explain everything to Maggie.

Maggie spooned a mound of chili and corn muffin crumbs into her mouth as her brows furrowed in confusion. "What is it, Hermione?" She swallowed hard and waited a moment. "You can tell me anything."

Hermione's shoulders dropped as she let out a long sigh. "It's about Lucius. It's about me and Lucius."

Maggie's eyes widened as she leaned toward Hermione and waited for her to continue.

"We've gotten a lot…closer. I know when we talked about it, we thought it was just a horrible dream, but last night—

"Woah woah," Maggie waved her hands for Hermione to stop. "You mean your dream about seeing a Death Eater?"

"It wasn't a dream, Maggie. It was real."

Maggie dropped her spoon back into her bowl. "What does this have to do with you and Lucius?"

"Last night, I saw it again." Hermione's gut felt like it was filling with rocks, her shoulders suddenly becoming heavy as the hairs on her arms stood up. "I saw it coming out of an alleyway across the street, so I put on the black wool coat we bought from Madam Jinx's and snuck into the street to get a closer look.

Maggie gasped and put her hands over her mouth. "Hermione, you didn't!" She whispered.

She stirred the bowl of chili again and nodded. "I did, and I was right. A Death Eater has been following me."

Maggie's face suddenly grew pale. "But why?"

"Lucius thinks it's because someone told them about the two of us."

Maggie leaned back into her chair. "I had no idea the two of you were getting so close," she said under her breath as she looked out into the streets. "Are they out there now?" She suddenly stood from her chair and pulled the blinds across the kitchen window.

"No, no!" Hermione lept from her chair. "I've only seen them late at night, and I won't be here tonight, so you don't have to worry about them being here."

Maggie's head snapped from the window down to Hermione. Slowly, her body slumped down back into her chair, her face contorting into complete confusion and pain. "What do you mean you 'won't be here'?"

"Lucius came here last night and created a portkey that leads to his home. Come look."

Hermione spun on her heels towards the store, and Maggie followed her through the glass door out into the store as the two of them turned to face the windows.

"There." Hermione pointed to the clock on the wall between the two bay windows. "That's the portkey that will take me to Lucius' home every night."

"Wait, the clock is a portkey?"

Hermione nodded as Maggie slowly approached the wall.

"Don't touch it!" Hermione shouted before Maggie could reach her arm up any further.

Maggie turned around and faced Hermione. "Why are the Death Eaters coming after you?" Something was behind the irises of Maggie's eyes. It was a pit of worry and accusations as if somehow Hermione had gotten herself into big trouble.

"I don't know, Maggie. I'm so sorry. I wish I knew." Hermione's knees began to wobble back and forth as she blinked away the hot tears that formed in the corner of her eyes. A single tear dashed down her cheek and fell from her jaw. "I don't know what's going on. I can't stay here. If the Death Eaters only come here at night, then for the time being, I'm going to be at Lucius' overnight and coming back in the morning."

Hermione felt like she would fall to her knees if she stood much longer. Suddenly, the tears were falling harder and faster as her words became sobs. Her chest became filled with anger. Anger with herself for ending up in this position, anger for putting Maggie's life in danger, and anger for ever deciding to stay in Hogsmeade in the first place. Hermione sat on the carpet and brought her knees to her chest. She buried her face into her kneecaps and cried harder than she'd ever cried before.

Maggie sat down next to Hermione and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry, Maggie." Hermione let out between sobs. "I never meant to put you or the store in danger. I should have boarded the train home, and I never should have fallen for Lucius Malfoy." Her shoulders bounced as she tried to breathe against the anguish.

"Hermione," Maggie's voice traveled quietly throughout the store, like a beautiful bird or an angel. Something about it reminded Hermione of her mother. "Remember what I told you earlier up in your room?"

Hermione lifted her head from her knees and wiped her nose on the sleeve of her hoodie. She thought for a moment, but her brain felt foggy.

"If it wasn't for you, I would have never been able to keep this place open. You're the reason this place is booming lately!" Maggie's face displayed a smile that stretched from ear to ear. "I couldn't be here in the store and out doing delivery services, and I have you to thank for that."

"I suppose so." Hermione shrugged and sniffled. "But you would have found someone eventually." She felt pathetic, pitying herself while sitting on the floor in the middle of the store. She knew this wasn't her, but something within her told her to crumble until she reached the center of the earth where she could harm no one else.

"You've become more than a seamstress here, Hermione. You're my best friend. And I believe you've changed Lucius Malfoy as well."

All of a sudden, Hermione's heart became swollen and full.

Maggie continued: "Before you, Lucius Malfoy was hardly seen in the daylight. He stopped taking care of himself. After the divorce between Narcissa and him, he had completely let himself go. Now, because of you, he's standing up for himself! Can you believe he told Narcissa no? I don't think he did that only for himself. I think he did that for you, too."

Hermione wanted to live in this moment forever. Suddenly, she had clarity. Lucius may never have opened up to her about his negative emotions, but that didn't mean he did not trust her.

"Still, I've put us in such a dangerous position," Hermione said, wiping the remaining tears from her cheeks and eyelashes.

"You said you would stay with Lucius at night, right?"

She nodded. "Yes, and there's also a portkey back at his place that will take me here every morning for work."

Maggie took Hermione's hands in hers and stood them up. "Then everything is going to be okay. Lucius is right. For now, you should be there where he can keep you safe. I'll be alright here."

"Maggie, if anything happens, you can touch the rim of that clock, and it will take you right to Lucius' home. Promise me, if anything happens, you'll go there first."

Maggie nodded and pulled Hermione into a hug. "I promise, but I'm sure things will end up alright. We need to wait this thing out. Lucius is still one of the most high-ranking, prestigious wizards in the wizarding world, and was once one of the most respected Death Eaters." She squeezed Hermione even tighter. "If anyone knows what to do, it's him."

Countless times now, Maggie has picked up Hermione's broken, ugly pieces. Hermione embraced Maggie even tighter, taking in her vanilla scent and wanting to remember every fiber of her existence. She knew if she didn't have Maggie, she would ultimately go insane. Even though her life suddenly felt crazy and unpredictable, Maggie was a stone that centered her.

Hermione pulled away. "I should go soon. The sun is starting to set, and I still need to pack some clothes."

"I'll help you." Maggie smiled as the two of them abandoned the chili dinner and walked up to Hermione's bedroom.

Hermione pulled out a small duffle bag from the inside of the large trunk she packed the day she left Hogwarts and threw it onto her bed next to Maggie. As she threw a few T-shirts and shorts onto the bed, Maggie would fold them neatly and tuck them into the duffle bag.

"You don't have to do that, you know? They're just PJ's," Hermione said as she threw Maggie one last T-shirt.

"I know," Maggie winked. "But I thought you could use some advice on what to wear during your nights there." She smiled, and they laughed as Hermione shut the bottom drawer of her dresser.

"Trust me, I could bring a new set of lingerie. Lucius would still have me sleep in the guestroom." She laughed as she took out a few pairs of socks and panties.

"He's a gentleman." Maggie sighed like a little girl talking about Prince Charming, like a glint of a 'happy ever after' was possible for Lucius and her. While Hermione had thought about it, she never considered Lucius a 'knight in shining armor' type.

"He is," she finally admitted as her cheeks began to glow hues of pink. The mushy feeling in Hermione's heart felt like it would eventually smother her. "What about you and Charles?"

Maggie fell backward onto Hermione's bed and flailed her arms out at her sides. "He finally reached out to me about Wednesday. I guess I'm still invited to that banquet with him and his brother." She smiled and closed her eyes while Hermione stuffed her undergarments into the duffle bag.

"That's exciting!" Hermione said as she clapped her hands, elated that Maggie seemed so happy.

"Yeah, I guess it's a pretty big deal. People get dressed up and wear their best clothes and jewelry. I've never gone to something like that." Her eyes opened to the ceiling, not staring at the popcorn texture but somewhere far off in space. Maybe in the future, when Maggie and Charles would be dancing in their finest get up like a prince and a princess. Hermione believed if anyone deserved it, it was Maggie.

Maggie sat up from the bed and looked back to Hermione as she grabbed a few extra pairs of pants for the mornings when she'd be taking the portkey back to the shop. She smoothened the back of her hair and wiped the corners of her eyes as she stood up from Hermione's bed and approached her bathroom door. "Will you take this?" She stepped out from behind the gap and held the burgundy spaghetti-strapped dress.

"What? No—

"Why?" Maggie asked, taking the dress off the hanger and draping it across Hermione's bed.

"Why would I take it? I'm only going for nights and very short mornings." Hermione shook her head and laughed as Maggie began to fold in the edges until the dress was smooth and folded into a neat square.

Maggie gently put the folded dress into Hermione's duffle bag. "What if he invites you to dinner or wants to take you somewhere nice? You could always go over early one night and show off this dress. Who knows? Maybe you'll move up from guest bedroom to office space."

The two of them burst into laughter as Hermione zipped up the duffle bag. She grabbed the strap and flung the small bag over her shoulder.

"Maybe," she said as she began to catch her breath again while two tiny tears dripped from the edges of her eyes. It was refreshing to finally shed tears from laughter after being broken by circumstance.

"So, you'll be back here before we open? We have a few outside services and two in-store fittings tomorrow," Maggie said as she followed Hermione down the stairs that led through the wooden door and back into the store.

"Yes, I'll be back before you're even awake," Hermione assured her.

Maggie touched the edge of Hermione's shoulder and spun her around for another hug. "Be sure to eat when you get there. I'm sorry we ditched out on dinner tonight," Maggie said as she walked Hermione closer to the clock that would take her back to Lucius'.

"No," Hermione started. "I'm sorry. You worked hard on the chili, and my selfish self ruined it with talk of Lucius and Death Eaters."

Maggie giggled and snorted as she held her hand up in protest. "Don't even worry about it. I'll wrap some up and save it for tomorrow. Please be careful."

After one last hug, Hermione secured the duffle bag over her shoulder and approached the clock.

'This is it.' She thought. 'I'm going to see Lucius tonight.' Her stomach roared with zoo lions trying to break free from their cages. The image of Lucius' long silvery threads tumbling down by his ears made the tips of her fingers tingle. Her heart felt like doing backflips at the idea of seeing him again, especially after leaving without saying a word that morning.

She held her breath and reached for the clock. The room around her began to spin, causing her head to feel like it could pop. She clutched the duffel bag tighter to her shoulder as her chest felt heavier. The floor beneath her disappeared, leaving her ankles feeling weak as she tried to stiffen her legs so she could land.

The air pushed up from beneath her as she landed in front of the black marble fireplace. She patted the front of her hoodie and straightened her hair with her fingers as she steadied her feet. Finally, the room stopped spinning.

She looked around an empty living room with no Lucius in sight. She walked toward the lavender couch and placed her duffel bag on the floor next to it.

Her ears began to ring as a deafening silence filled the air around her. She spotted the Russian nesting dolls on the glass end table by the couch, remembering the sweet words Maggie told her about Lucius only moments ago. She didn't know whether to sit and wait or if she should roam the house and shout for Lucius.

Did he remember she was coming?

She sat on the couch and looked around the glorious room. It was filled with beautiful decor and furniture, even down to the small intricate details that could have only been created for the Malfoys. She tapped the tops of her knees with her palms, wondering if any noise might stir up a Lucius somewhere in the house, but she heard nothing but her movements.

She decided to stand up. She tiptoed up the small flight of stairs and peeked into the kitchen. The lights beneath the cabinets cast a faint glow over the white marble countertops, giving just enough light to the rest of the room to show it was also empty. Across from an empty kitchen was an empty dining room, with the same amount of dim light, but it was not coming from the chandelier of snake bodies and heads that she had noticed her first time here. Goosebumps danced across her skin as an eerie feeling crept over her. Something told her she shouldn't be there—not by herself.

She tiptoed back down to the living room and toward the front of the house, where she found the two grand staircases that led up to the second floor. She checked behind her before heading up the left staircase where her room was. She took each step and pretended she was a feather gliding through the air after being plucked free from a bird. She gripped the railing and supported her light footwork as she made it to the top of the staircase and into the entrance of the long hallway.

She held her breath and listened, wondering if Lucius was gone and if he had forgotten she'd be coming. While she arrived earlier than the night before, she didn't think Lucius would risk her showing up to an empty house. She reached for the guestroom door handle and quietly turned the knob. The door slowly swung open to reveal an empty guest room, but something caught her attention. The music box was gone, and her bed was made up as if no one had slept there the night before.

She slowly shut the door and peered toward the end of the hallway. Her heart was thundering inside her ears as she pondered Lucius' room. Edging closer, sure to step lightly, she reached the end of the hallway to a separate indentation of two glorious black double doors. Carved into the front panels of the doors were glossy vines with glittery golden roses at the ends of them. She leaned closer to the door and put her ear against the cold wood. She could hear a muffled sound coming from somewhere inside.

She held the golden handle in her sweaty palm. Her knees began to shake as she gently tilted the handle, unlatching the gears and giving the handle away as the door opened to a dimly lit master bedroom. But this was no ordinary master bedroom. The room had to be larger than the entire footage of Maggie's Tailoring lying flat. The first thing she could see was the bed: a round bed large enough to fit ten—maybe twenty Lucius'. Its black velvet covers shimmered beneath the soft glow of warmly lit candles, their flames casting dancing shadows across dark green walls. At the end of the enormous round bed were two golden benches. On one was a black robe folded into a neat pile. Across from the bed was a stone fireplace bigger than the one downstairs, only a bit shorter.

Its gorgeous black cobblestone climbed up the wall, taking up the right amount of space to make the room feel huge. She stepped further into the room and found that instead of a warm red glowing orange fire, there was a soft green flicker of three dancing flames from two logs. Atop the stone and above the dancing flames was a painting. It was a portrait of Lucius and his infamous black cane with its silver snake head. His eyes seemed to follow her around his room, and she felt like an intruder in someone else's home.

Suddenly, she heard something. A creaking sound came from behind a door just to the right of the bed. Hermione must not have noticed the light coming from beneath the door before as she had walked past it to view the rest of the room. She stepped lightly toward the door and heard a rustling sound and a few more creeks of floorboards. She stood still, slowly putting her ear against the door to see if she could hear anything more clearly. Without any indication of further movement or noise, she gripped the handle and bent it sideways.

The door slowly opened, and the light coming from inside nearly blinded her. As her eyes adjusted, steam bombarded her face and filled her nose. Two large black rugs were laid across beautiful white marble floors with specks of gold placed strategically around the empty spaces. She stepped further into what she realized was the master bathroom. Ahead of her was a long and deep claw-foot bathtub with a matching black rug in front of it, with two towel racks above it. She took one more step in, suddenly seeing an opening into another part of the bathroom. As she blinked her eyes, adjusting herself in her spot, she could suddenly see a steam-filled shower with a wet, naked Lucius inside.