She had been waiting for a little while already. She was staring at her watch, watching the minutes go by, hoping he would show up. She had spent the day in the Infirmary, having Madam Pomfrey fuss over her. With the wonders the woman could do, she barely felt any pain anymore.

She was growing restless with the whirlwind of emotions and thoughts coursing through her. She worried about people like her, about her friends, about the world she came to live in, about her and Theo. She couldn't tell what the ending of their current predicament would be. There were so many scenarios in which things go could wrong so quickly—and there was no telling what would become of them—Theo and Hermione—after things ended, however they would. Would they still be friends, be more than that? Would it even be possible for them to try? In that moment, all she knew was that she wouldn't let this curse reign free for much longer, and she needed Theo by her side.

"You don't listen, do you?"

Theo's voice echoed in the broken classroom, making her jump up from her seat at the table. She saw a mixture of elation and annoyance cross over his features and she huffed at him.

"You should know it by now."

He came up to her, but kept a distance between them. She ignored it, reaching out to pull on his sweater and bring him closer to her. He made a 'tsk' 'tsk' sound, leaning over her ear.

"Just can't keep your hands off."

She pushed on his chest, crossing her arms. "If you didn't want to see me, you could have stayed in bed. Just thought you might need a distraction."

Theo chuckled at her. "You make it hard—" he stopped, looking over her body pointedly and she could feel the heat rush into her cheeks and slowly move its way downwards. "—to tell you no."

She rolled her eyes at him, trying to get her hormones under control. "How did it go with the Headmistress?" she asked instead, keeping her hands to herself.

"Oh," Theo said, putting a strand of her hair behind her ear. "You only listen when you shouldn't."

She kept her hands firmly crossed over her chest, raising a brow at him. Theo didn't stop touching her, caressing her cheek, moving over her shoulder and down to her waist, resting his hand there.

"Fine. She kind of had to deal with bullshit like that for a long time, so she wasn't even impressed when I dropped Malfoy into her hands. She wouldn't tell me where she decided to put him though."

"Smart woman," Hermione said, trying to keep her focus on the conversation.

Theo hummed in response.

"Are you—" she started, feeling anxious as the next question formed in her head. "what is going on in your mind with what is needed to be done—with your father and—"

He shushed her with a brush of his lips over her own. "Be my distraction."

She didn't need to be asked twice as she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her. She felt the heat spread all over her body at the feel of his kisses and hands roaming over her. His hands lingered over her waist, slowly making their way upwards, inch by inch, until they finally came to rest over her breasts when she hadn't made any noise of protest. She was burning, her every nerve flaming, bringing him closer and closer to her, needing him, her lips bruising and fingers digging into his back. She needed a distraction just as much as he did.

He slammed her into the table, hard, pulling onto her hair with force. She yelped in response, clutching onto him even more, kissing him even more fervently, consumed by the scorching intensity he ignited within her, making her feel alive with desire. Theo moved his mouth over her neck, her ear, and she was ready to explode.

"If you wanted it rough, you should have said so," he whispered into her ear, grabbing her ass, letting her feel how much he wanted her.

She had never once thought that being pushed, pulled, and grabbed the way he was doing now could feel this good. She was beginning to see how she could explore, herself and her body, with him and almost felt giddy at the idea.

Theo's grip grew weaker and his kisses started to disappear from the side of her neck, and she could hear his murmur of no.

She couldn't tell what he was referring to, because her mind was in a haze, and she could clearly feel that he was enjoying it as much as she did, so she buried her head into his chest, whispering into it, "Is something wrong?"

He didn't respond, bringing their lips together again, kissing her and kissing until she could taste blood. He grabbed her hips strongly, his fingers digging into her bones, adding more and more pressure and she yelped again, this time in pain.

He jumped away from her and she could see that behind the desire in his eyes, there was another emotion—something more sinister.

She froze in place, asking tentatively. "Are you okay?"

She could already tell that the curse was taking hold, more firmly than ever, fueled by their heated moment and before she knew what was happening, Theo picked up the chair standing by and threw it towards her. She barely managed to duck, hearing it splinter against the stone floor.

The heat was quickly replaced with an icy feeling in her veins, and she moved away from him. "Theo—"

But he wasn't listening, instead flipping the table that stood in between them and hitting her in her knee in the process. She hissed and the next time she blinked, he was aiming his wand at her.

"Come here," he growled, following it by, "Leave right now!"

She turned and started to run, hearing the beat of her heart and the walls collapsing as the spells he was casting blindly hit everything around them.

She ran and ran and ran, feeling her breath shake in her lungs, followed by the hollowed screams until the deafening silence hit her. The castle was covered in the veil of darkness and hands reached out, grabbing her, pulling her backwards, hissing over her ear.

She tried to shake herself free, but those hands grabbed onto her tighter, ignoring her screams.

"Make her shut up," a voice said and Hermione was certain it belonged to Ginny. She screamed louder and then the world turned to black.

When she came to, she was still surrounded by darkness, and when she reached her hands out, she touched a wall. After a longer inspection, she decided that it wasn't a wall, but she found herself in a box. She was locked up in a box. She tried not to panic, trying to keep herself composed and ready to think her way out of her predicament. She was without her wand and kicking and pushing onto the wood, unsurprisingly, didn't work.

Stay calm.

Once she felt the cold water seep inside, panic started to settle in. She tried to cast wandless Alohomora, but the box stayed shut. She focused her mind on any and every spell that could help her in the situation, trying to feel for her magic, willing it into compliance. She had never spent much time on wandless magic, carrying her wand everywhere, needing it like she needed to breathe. Her wand was a physical reminder that she was a witch and no insults and none-believers could change that. Tears prickled at her eyes when the icy water reached her knees and she was still stuck inside.

Stay calm.

She tried over and over again, feeling the water rising and flickers of magic within her, but not enough to make any spell work. She wouldn't give up. She wouldn't go out without a fight.

She closed her eyes, ignoring the cold and focusing solely on what was happening inside her. Her magic. There was no better time to remind herself that she was a witch. She could do it. She remembered the time in the woods, looking for the hidden library, and the way the magic in there whispered to her, weaved its way into her bloodstream, led her towards her goal. The way every sound around her tuned out, fading into complete silence, and the only sense was the rush of the magic, everywhere, encompassing her whole being, sizzling. Her magic was right there, she just had to make it listen to her.

Stay calm.

The water was above her waist now. Her eyes stayed shut, working on her magic. Help me, the thought floated in her mind, trying to get her point across. She needed her magic willing, ready to work with her, for her. She tried again, feeling the wisps of it coursing through her, budging in response.

Stay calm.

With only her face now above the water, she continued. There it was, the magic at the tip of her fingertips, her tongue, just waiting to be unleashed. Go, she said. Holding her breath, she kept whispering, pleading, commanding in her head, waiting to be released. There it was again, the surge, stronger this time, coming to life. She was so close, she knew freedom was almost hers.

Stay calm, she reminded herself, starting to lose her breath, her consciousness.

What she felt next was almost electrifying, pushing her towards staying awake. She was floating now, still in the darkness, but free of the confines of the box. She went upwards, aware of being in the Black Lake, but unaware of how far was the surface, not seeing any light ahead. Her mind was getting dizzy, and with the last thought she could muster, she screamed HELP ME, suddenly taking a leap of breath. Spent, she breathed into the bubble around her head, feeling the energy leave her, struggling to keep swimming. She had gone this far, she wouldn't give up now. She continued, the strength in her arms and legs waning, until she saw the light above her head and then black void consumed her.