Chapter 6
July 9th, 1992.
Hermione loved being at home, she really did. Just like she loved staying with Harry and Daniel at Lupin Cottage, and just like she loved staying at Neville's.
But this, right here, was like another level to her.
She had spent the last week at her grandma's place, doing nothing but chilling, cooking, baking and reading - a lot of reading. But though she enjoyed it deeply, it was also the biggest contrast from being surrounded by people 24 hours a day, to not seeing anyone but a few selected people.
Where her own house was in the countryside and just outside a small town, this one was so isolated from the rest of the world, that her grandma had never had much reason to do anything but a few muggle-repellant wards. Sure, she could if she wanted to, but with the large forest just behind the house, there was somewhere around 10 to 15 km to the nearest neighbor.
And her grandma owned everything in between them.
Hermione had always wondered why she had so much land when it was just herself, but now that she knew much more about magic and the magical population, she was also very much aware of what people would do to be left alone.
Also, there was the small fact that her grandma hadn't always been alone.
But beside being left completely to her own devices, it also meant that she had full access to her grandma's owl, Raven.
She often laughed at the irony of naming a large black owl directly after another sort of bird. But Willis had been very young when grandma had gotten the owl, and ravens were somehow the only birds he knew of at the time.
So, Raven it was.
Said bird had just delivered yet another letter from Draco mere minutes before, and she was currently fishing out some treats from the jar by the window.
"There you go." She muttered to the beautiful bird, before moving back to the couch where her book was resting frontside up, on a large pillow, quickly discarded once the bird had started tapping on the window.
She removed the book properly, and flopped down on the pillow to rip into her letter.
Hermione,
You really must be joking. You mean to tell me that you live less than an hour away from here (not counting floo), and then you decide to spend two weeks in the middle of nowhere, instead of doing casual drop-ins? It sounds like a conspiracy.
Though, I shouldn't really be surprised considering how many times I've found you lost in a new book in the library. I bet you're enjoying the peace and the long nights.
Is William there as well?
Anyway, I wanted to ask if you might want to come over next saturday? On the 18th? Theo is coming as well and will be staying for the following week. You're welcome to do so as well, if your parents say that it's okay. And should you want to, of course.
Draco
Staying with Draco? For a week? She didn't really know how she felt about that. It would be a long time to be around him, wouldn't it?
Below her, her stomach almost vibrated with internal butterflies and she found herself hiding her smile in another large pillow that she had dragged with her from her bed that morning.
No, it would be alright. Theo was alright, and Draco definitely was as well.
"Why are you lying like that? Isn't it awfully uncomfortable?" Grandma asked as she made her way into the living room, after having given the kitchen garden its daily once over.
"It's fine." Hermione mumbled into the pillow, where she was slowly suffocating while hiding her flushed face from the world.
"I don't speak pillow, darling." Grandma said, as she walked past the couch - probably towards the bookcase on the other side of the room.
Hermione, almost mechanically, lifted her head from the pillow and turned it on its side so that she could look in the direction of the other woman. "It was fine until I turned my head. This is surprisingly uncomfortable." She then continued to put all her weight on her hands as she lifted from the pillow, and instead crossed her legs, facing grandma who was in fact standing by the book case. What a surprise. "What are we having for dinner tonight?"
Her grandma always made the most delicious food - always including all sorts of vegetables from her own garden. Since before Hermione had been born, her grandma had been working on making her home as self-sustaining as possible. By now, she had a small amount of live-stock, a large kitchen garden, a magical greenhouse (with extension charms, of course), bees and probably a lot of other things that Hermione didn't even know of. This place was huge after all.
Since Hermione and William had been born, her parents had also taken some steps in that direction, though they were not nearly as accomplished as grandma.
Perhaps, a vacation at grandma's would do them good.
"A vegetarian chili. It'll burn those eyebrows off that you talked about plucking the other day." She laughed as she picked a recipe book from the book case and went to the kitchen to prepare the vegetables.
Hermione chuckled along, before going to help. She loved her grandma's chili and was already pretty sure that she would be rolling all the way to bed that night.
"Why don't you take out the durum flour - it's on the second shelf, somewhere in the back - and then start on the bread." Grandma directed as she opened a notebook to a page that Hermione had read a thousand times before.
…
Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody was blaring out of the speakers, from her dad's Range Rover as they made their way through the countryside. Her dad had insisted on driving her so that he could meet Draco and his parents properly, seeing as she would be spending an entire week there. Both of her parents had been talking multiple times with the Malfoy's over the phone, scheduling when she would be arriving and picked up, and so on.
Really, her parents had taken it much better when she suggested going. Their only concern had been that she would be needing a new bathing suit, so that she would not be using her bikini around the boys.
Unbeknownst to them, she had already given her bikini to a friend because it had become too small since leaving for Hogwarts.
Sometimes she was amazed by the changes that happened over a year.
"MAMAAAA, UUUUHHHH -"
She groaned loudly, realizing that she would be having that exact line stuck in her head until the end of time as they knew it - probably longer. She didn't care how great the song was - because it really was fairly good - she would be clawing her ears out if she had to listen to it one more time that day.
Her dad came to her rescue when he lowered the volume, "Not enjoying the music, Hermione?" She could hear the snicker on his face, even though she was staring out at the pouring rain.
"No it's fine - just an absolute banger of a song. I'll know every word of it before the summer is over, don't worry."
"Then I'll be sure to find the right radio station when you get home. Maybe Fantasy FM…" He mumbled lastly, maybe more to himself than her.
Luckily, his continuous advances of musical culture came to an end, when Malfoy Manor appeared in front of them at the end of the boulevard. Her dad whistled, clearly impressed.
"I know you said they were wealthy, but this wasn't exactly what I expected." He said as they neared the manor up ahead on their right.
The path in front of them was covered in stone, while each side had their row of beautiful, green, flowery trees, leading them forward. Entrenching and captivating.
Her parents might be having some issues getting her home by the end of her stay.
She gasped, as they turned around the final corner and found Malfoy Manor opening up, welcoming them forth. The image ahead was like taken out of a fairytale book she had on her bookshelf back home.
It was stunning.
The castle was made up of a light stone, and with so many windows that you didn't even bother counting. She really shouldn't be surprised by how large it looked seeing as she had already been her before. But seeing it from the outside, was something entirely different.
Mrs. Malfoy and Draco were waiting for them as the car slowed to a halt. She happily waved at them, removed her seatbelt and turned to open the door, only to find it already open - Draco standing on the other side, hand outstretched, palm down, to help her out of the car.
"Thank you." She said brightly as she stepped down, taking care not to fall on the slippery side step. "And thank you for inviting me. It's so beautiful here." She continued, amazed, and looked around as Draco stepped back, giving her her space back.
…
10 minutes later, after her dad had said his greetings to Draco and Mrs Malfoy properly, he hugged her goodbye. "Remember to call if there's anything you need my darling. I love you very much." He had whispered as he kissed the top of her hair.
"I promise. I love you too." She whispered back as she hugged him. "See you next week."
She and Draco waved goodbye as the car turned around, and made its way back home to Eyam. She found herself wondering what William would be doing for the following week until she got home once again.
"Want to go to the pool?" Draco asked excitedly as he turned to her. She grinned back, and was just about to comply when there was the soft clearing of a throat.
"I think you should wait for Theo." She told her son, who in return nodded his head. "Some lunch first, and then you can go swimming once he arrives." She said to the two of them and made her way towards the large double doors that would lead them into the manor.
"Then I'll show you to your room first. Lunch won't be for another hour, so we'll have plenty of time. And you can see my room, too!" He said. His excitement was rubbing off on her, and she gave him a bright smile as they ran inside, him holding her duffel bag over his shoulder.
When he finally stopped by a large set of double doors, she had lost complete track of where they were in the manor. Sure, she knew they were in the left wing, but beyond that, she was lost. "I don't know how I could ever forget how huge this place is." She said once she had caught her breath.
"Don't worry, by Wednesday you'll know this place like the back of your hand. It has so many great hiding spots! But until then, I guess I'll just have to find you if you get lost." He said, giving her a look that you couldn't quite interpret. "But this is your room - mine is the last one." He said, and pointed down the hall. "Theo has his room over there," He pointed to the door right next to hers, "and mum and dad have the room at the end of the hall." He finished and moved back from the doors, letting her open the doors herself.
The handle easily gave way for her, and the door slided open without a single sound, to reveal her bedroom for the week, lit up by three large windows right in front of her. Like the rest of the house, it was enormous. "Merlin, this is larger than my Living room." She mumbled, as she stepped forward and into the grand room.
The three main walls of the room were covered in a soft cream color, while one wall was painted a pale mauve - her favorite color, oddly enough. By the feature wall was a large bed that could easily fit her four or five times over, all while rolling around in it. At the foot of the bed were a large rectangular ottoman almost as wide as the bed, with a fussy golden blanket laying comfortably in wait for her to snuggle up in it. To her immediate right was a large fireplace made from some sort of white stone, if it was marble, quarts or something entirely different, she really had no idea. To her left, was a small sitting area with a small table, a sofa and an armchair, and on the other side, two identical doors.
She then remembered that she hadn't actually fully entered the room, and that Draco was still standing behind her. Quite embarrassed, she looked over her shoulder at him, and found him looking at her with a mixture of mirth and enjoyment. "Go for it, find me in my room once you're done, alright?" She nodded, not daring to open her mouth in case she would start rambling about the greatness of the room. Once he had turned around, she slowly walked into the room - the door clicking softly shut behind her.
Now that she was inside, she could see a couple of tall, empty bookcases to her left, which were followed immediately by two smaller ones, which only held a single layer of available storage. Her head slowly fell to the side as she took in the lowered space. Adding a few pillows and a comfy blanket, it could easily have been made into a sort of reading nook - yet there was none. It could also be intended as a sideboard, but it seemed like an odd height as it only just made it to her knees… She would have to ask Draco about it.
She shook her head at the oddity, and turned her attention to the two doors that she had yet to investigate.
The first one - the one on the left, and closest to the odd bookcase - held a large walk in closet. How on earth could she possibly, ever, fill this out? The room was completely empty, safe for a couple of plushy white bathrobes.
"Then the bathroom." She guessed, as she walked out of the room and into the next. The possibility of the room being anything but the en-suite was slim, but why not? It wouldn't be the first time this place had surprised her. This wasn't one of those times, though. She walked into the most exquisite en-suite she had ever seen. White stone-tiling filled the room, and gave her the feeling of having stepped into her own private spa.
The room held a large shower that just like bed, could easily fit her many times over. She also had a free-standing clawfoot tub, a large vanity, a sink, and of course a toilet. Golden towels were hanging both by the vanity, the sink, shower and bath. Upon further inspection, she found the drawers of the sink and vanity filled with different cremes, lotions, potions, shampoos, cotton balls, and everything else a girl could ever think of using in a bathroom. She was struck by the sudden realization that many of these things were in her favorite brands. Her eyebrows met in confusion. How would they know what things she uses?
Mum.
Mr. and Mrs. Malfoy had spent a lot of time on the phone with her parents, and her parents definitely knew all of these things seeing as they bought them for her.
"This is amazing." She said, as she walked through the door that Draco had just opened, allowing her into his room. The size and outlay of the room were almost identical to hers - though his room was slightly bigger and also held a desk with a chair. Besides that, his walls were completely white, yet largely covered in pictures, drawings, quidditch banners and posters. He had a large forest-green ottoman under one of the windows, with a bedspread in the same color. Excitedly, she turned to her left and found the same sort of bookcases as in her room, and snorted slightly; "Of course, that's what it's for - I should have thought about that." She deadpanned.
"What?" Draco enquired, confused, walking to her side from where he had been standing by the door.
She pointed to the platou she had thought to maybe be a reading nook, but which obviously was the perfect height for one's school trunk. "That. I didn't know what it was for, and had actually intended to ask. Well, no need for that now." She laughed lightly at her own stupidity.
"Where do you put it at home, then?" He asked, looking at her with clear confusion.
"On the floor, in front of my wardrobe. It's in the way most of the time, but I don't know where else to put it. William does the same. Maybe dad could put it in the attic…" She added with an afterthought. Draco's face had morphed from confusion to shock.
"Is your room that small?"
"Contrary to these rooms? Yes, absolutely. But in normal housing, mine is considered a nice size room. Also, I've never had a walk-in closet or my own bathroom, so this is like a luxury vacation for me."
"Welcome to your luxury vacation, then." He smiled at her, his arms spreading out wide so as to invite someone to their surroundings. She giggled happily.
A short while later a small house elf popped into the room, to let them know that lunch was served. "Thank you, Hensy." Draco replied, and they quickly made their way through the elaborate halls and into the dining room.
…
"Here I coooooome!" Theo shouted before doing his best cannonball to date. Water was flying everywhere, spraying against Draco and Hermione who were sitting on each side of the space Theo had occupied until his untimely and unplanned try of a water filled world domination. He was grinning wildly and freely when he emerged from the depths and shook his head to rid him of the water. "Was it good?!" He asked excitedly, eyeing the two of them.
Hermione nodded brightly while Draco stood up and spread out his arms so as to show how he was soaking wet, and exclaimed enthusiastically: "It was the best! How did you do that?!"
"I'd like to know that too… Seeing as you just drowned my book, and nearly me for that matter." Lucius drawled from the other side of the pool, now lifting up a clearly very wet book. He looked like he was fighting very hard to hold off a smile, but then he suddenly stood up and softly put the books down. He grabbed his wand and pointed it at the book - maybe he was drying it? She couldn't hear what spell he had muttered from the other side of where he was standing. given the book a satisfied nod, he turned to the three children, a smile now slowly blooming on his lips. "I guess I'll just have to show you once again, how it's done." Without much warning than that, he sprinted a few meters to the edge and jumped - almost flying through the ear, and landed with a SPLASH! just beside the boys.
As the water settled somewhat again and Lucius returned to the surface, she was laughing so hard that she almost fell into the water by accident. The boys looked at each other like they had just seen some kind of extinct animal and then continued to roar with laughter. They flung themselves against Lucius and started wrestling with him in the water. Lucius expertly avoided each of their attempts of getting his head under the water. She was just about to jump into the water and help, when an elf - Hensy? - popped up by the edge of the water. Instantly, all attention was on the elf.
"Sir - the mistress, she needs you. Now." It said, wringing its little hands agitatedly.
"Is she alright?" Lucius asked as he made his way for the latter in the corner.
"Umm… She…Ehh… She needs you, master." It finished. Hermione could see Draco and Theo being just as confused as she was. Narcissa had meant to go with all of them to the pool today seeing as it was a very warm day, but she had fallen ill during breakfast and had remained in bed for the day.
"Alright. My lady, gentlemen," He eyed each of them in turn, "One more hour and then it's up. Hensy, please make sure that they get out no later than an hour." He said to the elf, who in turn nodded its recognition of the plan.
Hermione slowly slid into the water and swam towards the boys. "I hope it's nothing serious with your mum." She muttered.
"Naah, she's probably fine." Theo said and used his hands to spray water at her, which made her scream in surprise and turn around. Unbeknownst to her, behind her back, Theo and Draco shared a knowing look.
…
Hermione was lying on a blanket, on the soft grass, after breakfast the following day, the boys had chosen to go flying. She had looked on as they grabbed brooms and soared high into the sky, with a mixture of fear and jealousy.
Of course, the boys had invited her to come along, Theo even going as far as physically lifting her off the ground and lifting her to the brooms, until she had managed to wrestle herself free. Obviously, Theo couldn't have known about her fear of flying, but had taken the cue once Draco told him to let it go.
Instead, they waved to her as they lifted off, while she stood in the grass and waved back.
Why can't I just do it? She thought to herself as she turned around to lie on her back, staring up into the big blue sky. The sky had endless possibilities. The sky was big and open. The sky was as open as her brain, when her thoughts and memories started drifting around. Freely and unhindered.
Like when she was flying.
She remembered soaring for hours and hours on end, only coming down because someone else told her that she had to.
We have to eat, Hermione.
It's time for bed, Hermione.
Time for school, Hermione.
Time for Hogwarts.
Above her, a person came flying into the part of the sky she was staring at, but was gone again before she had a chance to focus on them.
Hogwarts had changed everything for her, and sometimes she wondered if it was for the better. Or for worse.
Sure, she loved to learn more than anything. But she had also loved flying, and she had lost that. She had also almost lost Harry - twice.
But she could see William every day.
And she could see Draco every day.
When she met the boy a year and a half ago, he would have never guessed that she would be spending an entire week at his family home. When had they become so close?
When you started handing notes to each other in secret, you dummy. Her brain whispered mockingly at her.
Well… Maybe.
"What are you doing?" Someone asked loudly as they dumped down on the blanket, right beside her head, so abruptly that she yelped and flew to the side. She eyed Draco who were now laughing loudly
"What the hell are you doing?!" She yelled at him, still feeling her heart hammering away in her chest and only just beginning to get over the scare.
"I'm sorry," He cackled on, "You were so focused, I couldn't help myself." She raised a single eyebrow and looked at him skeptically. His smile never faltered and his eyes shone with mirth as he turned around, his face upwards and his arms spread out like he was welcoming her into a hug. "Are you mad at me?" He pouted slightly, though she could see his smile battling hard to shine through.
"You're insufferable." She huffed, and dumped down beside him - laying down on his arm in the process - very much meaning to hurt him, at least just a little bit.
She put her hands behind her head and looked up at the sky, and smiled slightly when she felt Draco withdrawing his hand from her back, and mirroring her position with his hands behind his head.
"Did you have fun?" She asked, not really knowing if she wanted to hear the obvious answer to her question.
"Yeah! Theo did a nose dive but he didn't pull up in time, so he took a tumble. Wasn't going very fast though - nothing happened."
Hermione had gone completely rigid at his side, hearing about how a friend of his had fallen off his broom…
"Are you alright?" He asked slowly after a while. Her body was still laying frozen next to his.
She somehow managed to turn her head, looking at him as he looked back at her. He must have seen the fear in her eyes, because when before he had been all laughs and fun, he was now looking at her seriously and with concern shining in his eyes.
"I'm… fine. Sometimes I just… I like being by myself. I used to do the same thing when I flew, but… yeah. Not anymore." She looked back up at the sky trying to put some distance to her current emotional state.
Nothing was said for some time, the two of them just staring at nothing and everything.
"Do you ever miss it?" He asked then.
"Everyday." She asked instantly.
"Then why don't you try again? Harry or Daniel could help you. Or William." She heard him shuffling around and looked to the side, finding him on his stomach, staring directly at her. "I could help you." he finished slowly.
For some reason she felt her eyes stinging and her cheeks warming as a blush creeped slowly up her face. She quickly averted her eyes back to the sky above them.
"I can't, Draco. Not anymore." She said, barely above a whisper.
"Do you trust me?" He asked after a moment's breath.
"Of course I do, Draco. You know that." She hadn't expected such an emotional moment when her dad dropped her off. Damn it.
She felt and heard him standing and then suddenly found him standing above her, with his hands stretched down towards hers. "Then trust me."
She didn't move. Frozen in place.
"Mum and Dad are out shopping and Theo takes these hour-long baths for whatever reason. that gives us about forty minutes. Come on, it's just us." he leaned down and grabbed her hands, lifting them off the blanket where they had been resting.
"Draco…" She said slowly, trying to come up with an argument as to why she really didn't want to, but the words were lost when she looked at him.
"Please, trust me. Please." He breathed as her body finally obeyed his words, and she found herself standing in front of him, holding his hands.
"I trust you." She whispered; her eyes locked with his. He dropped one of her hands and guided her by the other to where he had dropped down on the blanket, where she now saw that his broom was laying on the grass.
Her hand grasped his tighter as he slowly bent down and picked it up.
She felt her breathing quicken as he turned back to her, the broom in his hand. The close proximity made her involuntarily step away from it, which also meant letting go of his hand. Though it was a very warm day, she suddenly felt ice-cold.
"I… I can't." She whispered.
"What are you scared of?" He asked her softly, and suddenly she had a feeling like this boy in front of her could solve all the world's problems. Every war, all the hunger, all the hurt and darkness and distress. Her fear of flying… of falling… Everything would disappear from one moment to the next.
He opened his mouth, the words just at the tip of his tongue, but then he closed it again.
"I would never let you fall… You know that, right?"
Of course, she knew that, but right now she couldn't quite put her words into it with her tongue having decided to tie itself up completely.
The silence between them lasted longer than it should have, as she looked at their feet in the grass. "Well, I won't." He suddenly said matter-of-factly, making her eyes shoot to his. "We can do it in steps if you'd like, but I've seen you flying and I think you should be doing it again. With me."
"I can't." She said, talking another step away from him.
"You can." He said, stepping closer to her.
"No." She retaliated, stepping further back and crossing her arms in annoyance. Who did he think he was?
"Yes." He smirked; his eyes lit up with mirth.
"Is this some sort of game to you? getting me on that damn broom?" She asked, anger starting to bubble up just the tiniest of bits.
"No - my parents raised me better than that. But you're getting on that broom someday even if it'll be the last thing I do." he said as he stepped closer to her yet again. She found herself quite happy that they were in the middle of a grass field, as they were stepping further and further away from the blanket she had been lazing on.
She tucked her crossed arms closer to her body and looked at him defiantly, "I will not be touching that broom, Drac-" She stepped backwards while maintaining eye contact with him but was surprised when the heel of her foot hit the edge of something and she stumbled back with a small yelp.
With eyes closed, she reached out and grabbed for anything and everything. She stopped in midair, when her hand clasped around something long and wooden.
Her eyes snapped open and she eyed the broom handle in disbelief, before letting go quickly and falling to the ground - hitting it with a hard UMPF! emitting from her as her lungs emptied of its oxygen.
When she finally came back to herself and was fully able to breathe again, she looked up at Draco who was standing above her with a hand outstretched towards her.
"I hate you." She grumbled, not taking his hand.
"No, you don't - but congratulations, you just completed the first step. Wanna raid the kitchen for snacks?" He laughed down at her, his eyes still twinkling with mirth and mischief.
"Absolutely." She smiled and took his hand.
…
Later that day after having finished a late lunch, the trio sat in the living room playing ludo. "1…2…3, and that's your tokens going home, Hermione. So sorry to spoil the fun for you." he grinned mischievously. She looked on as he in fact landed on her third and fourth tokens that were standing on the same spot.
"Ah but I'm afraid you're mistaken, dear Theodore." She said sweetly. Too sweet.
He looked at her like she was spouting horns. "Why? No, I landed on you - I'm sending you home."
She looked at him with an raised eyebrow and a look of pure self-satisfaction: "No you're not, because I have two pieces standing on the same space which gives me sanctuary, in case you've forgotten - which means that your token is going home instead." She moved her own token back to where it had been standing, rolled the dice and continued to move one of the pieces to the right, and all the way up to the top. "And that was yet another token in, just one more left now." She winked at him, and watched in amusement as he flopped backwards onto the couple, groaning loudly as he did so.
On the couch further into the room, Narcissa and Lucius were watching with smiles on their faces and cups of tea in their hands.
Draco was just about to roll the dice when an elf popped into the room. "Master, Mistress. Mrs. Zabini and Misters Nott Sr, Dolohov, Macnair and Greyback are here to see you."
All the air in the room was sucked out, as all attention focused on first the elf and then Lucius and Nacissa - that last of which gasped loudly and covered her mouth, her eyes large in horror. "It's happening," She whispered, though Hermione could easily hear every word.
Lucius quickly rose from his seat on the couch and directed his full attention to the elf: "Send them into my office and return here afterwards. Then you will get the children and bring them directly to Hermione's room." The elf bowed its head and popped out of the room.
His attention now shifted to the children, as he walked closer to them, "Hermione, I am sorry to tell you this, but until we can deem it safe, you have to stay in your room - the boys will be with you, unless I need to call upon them." his attention shifted to the two boys. Theo had sat up fully, and Lucius put a steadying hand on each of their shoulders. "I fear that I will have to at some point. I need you all to remain calm, and stay in there until you are told otherwise. Do not roam the hallways and do not test me on this - hopefully they will leave soon enough. Alright?" He looked at each of them in turn, waiting for their confirmation.
Hermione felt cold. She felt scared. She didn't know any of the men safe for Theo's father - and that was only by name. But she knew that they meant trouble, and she was terrified. She nodded somberly and went to pick up the game pieces and put them in the case.
A few minutes passed before Hensy was back, and popped them into Hermione's room, leaving but returning quickly, with drink and snacks for all of them.
"I guess they mean for us to be her for a while, then…" Theo muttered and fell dramatically into her couch.
"Apparently." Hermione muttered, still feeling very much beside herself.
"I just don't get why they want us locked up." Draco sneered at no one.
"What, you'd rather be a part of that meeting? Have you lost your mind?" Theo sneered back, clearly offended. Hermione just looked on, not knowing what she should do or say. If she should even do or say anything at all. This situation was so foreign to her.
"No. But I don't get why they have to come back? Why can't dad just take care of it?" Draco answered exasperated. "He keeps talking about 'being neutral'. Something about being Switzerland whatever the hell that means, but they still keep coming back. Why isn't he doing anything?!"
"Maybe he can't…" Hermione muttered, and both of the boys turned to her like they had somehow forgotten that she was there. Great. "You said it yourself; you're a part of the Sacred 28. You're important to whatever course they have… Maybe - Maybe they won't stop?"
Hermione suddenly realized then that there was one of the big differences between the Blacks and the Malfoys, because these people sure as hell would never have stepped a single foot inside Lupin Cottage without having their toes blown off. But Lucius, on the other hand, apparently tried to be diplomatic with them… She wondered how it was working for him. And Theo's dad - well, apparently, he was happily in the middle of it all. Theo's words about his father from earlier that year suddenly made much more sense to her.
"I don't know…" Draco muttered, and sat down, clearly dejected, "Maybe he's collecting information and giving them to the other side? Like in those spy movies."
Hermione suddenly giggled, "I think he's a bit too blond, and a bit too married to be James Bond." The others laughed along; the tension of the room broken for a moment.
…
"So, you mean to tell me that you casually walked past a sleeping three headed dog, dropped down a trapdoor, through devil's snare, caught a flying key, across a living wizarding chess game, past a troll and then… a potion stopped you guys?" Draco summed up what she had spent the last 30 minutes telling them about.
She wondered for a moment if she had ever seen them so focused, but couldn't think of anything. "It wasn't quite as casual… but yes." She shrugged, "But it's not like it was easy, and I wasn't alone. We spent hours down there and it was exhausting." She said from her position on the bed, where she was sprawled out on her belly, looking at the boys that were sitting in the sitting area.
Speaking of hours, that was also how long they had spent locked up in her room. They had heard nothing from either of his parents or Hensy, but seeing as dinner hadn't been brought up, she figured that it just wasn't time yet. She looked at her bedside watch, suddenly remembering that she had one.
19:43
Maybe the guests just hadn't left yet?
"Wow, I wouldn't want to be in your shoes, that's for sure." Theo acknowledged. "I'm telling you, the moment I'm out of school - I'm out. I'm leaving this country and all its dark lords behind and never coming back."
"Maybe you could go to Brazil - dad and I talked about them the other day. Apparently, they have a large magical community down there."
"Where is Brazil?" Theo asked, confused, looking at Hermione like she had the answers to all of their questions.
"How would I know, Einstein - I'm 12!" She shrugged and rolled around to stare up at the ceiling.
"Maybe it's somewhere cold… You could go skiing!" Draco nodded with a laugh.
A knock on the door instantly brought the tension back into the room and all eyes zoomed in on the door, as it slowly swung open. Without thinking about it, Hermione had grabbed her wand from the bedside table and pointed it at the door.
In the doorway stood Narcissa, as beautiful and regal as ever and Hermione's wand dropped with a breath, she didn't know she had been holding. "Would you like to come down for dinner, my darlings? Our guests have left." Without answering his mother, Draco quickly stood and went to hug her, Theo only a few steps behind him once he saw Draco's intention. Narcissa happily hugged both of them, dropping a single kiss to the top of their hair. Her eyes went to Hermione, still on the bed but now up on her knees. Narcissa merely nodded, and then Hermione was moving as well.
There had been so much tension through the afternoon and early evening, but it all melted away as Narcissa's arm and then Draco's locked around her.
"There, there. It's alright now. Why don't you all wash your hands and then we'll go down together?" Hermione could hear the soft smile in Narcissa's voice, and it made her miss her own mum so much that it almost made her tear up.
…
The rest of the vacation went without any visitors - which wasn't that long really, seeing as she would be leaving that Sunday -, and all the trio did was lounge, read, play games and play in the pool.
On the 24th they all received their Hogwarts Letters with lists of which books to acquire for the coming year. The books were surprisingly a subject that kept being brought up.
"Why in Merlin's name do we need 7 books from the same fella? That's stupid." Draco said for the 4528th time over the past 24 hours.
"Or genius." Hermione inquired, "They're all on different subjects so maybe there's lots to learn from him. Look; Banshee's, Ghouls, Hags, Trolls - could have used that one last year - Vampires, werewolves and the Yeti, it's everything we have to cover in this year's curriculum."
"How do you even know that?" Draco moaned loudly
She loved how easy they were to be around; how easy they were to talk to. She enjoyed their company immensely, but because of that, she was already fearing for the coming school year. She knew that from the moment they arrived on the platform, all three of them would have to put on masks of indifference - and she hated it.
"I know that, because I overheard your dad saying the exact same thing." She winked, and he groaned loudly because of course.
…
"Hmpf, it's so unfair." Hermione grumbled, annoyed.
She and Draco were sitting by themselves in the living room, playing a game of monopoly. Theo had begrudgingly and not entirely by choice, left the night before after having been summoned by his father. Hermione would also be going home soon, but they did at least have a couple of hours before her dad would be coming to pick her up.
"What is it?" Draco asked, looking at her in question as he moved his car over 'start'.
"Thinking that I can have so much fun here, but the moment I leave, I have to pretend like you aren't one of my best friends."
"I'm your best friend?" He asked, the game completely forgotten as he looked at her so intensely that it made her want to look away.
"One of them at least - you're definitely in my top four along with Harry, Daniel and Neville." She said, smiling warmly up at him. Draco, in return, scrunched up his nose and looked at her incredulously.
"I've never understood what Longbottom is doing in your circle… he seems like the odd one out." He said, sounding both intrigued and confused all at the same time.
"He… Well - sometimes he is, but sometimes the rest of us are. But he… He's really been struggling while at Hogwarts. His magic has been acting out a lot and he's been bullied a lot for it…" She stumbled through her explanation, trying to make sense of what she had seen and heard and experienced since the three of them had left home the year before.
"Yeah, I've seen Zabini nag him a lot. Sometimes I hate this 'Switzerland'-stuff… No one deserves to be bullied like what Zabini is doing to Longbottom."
The silence was heavy around them with things that they both knew, needed to be left unsaid.
"The worst thing about all of this, I think," she said slowly, "Is that he used to be so happy and funny, but it seems that Hogwarts dimmed that down… Sure, he's been through hell and back, and I don't blame him even one bit for not wanting to be known as the third wheel with Harry and Daniel, but this is taking it a bit far." She let out a hard breath, very much annoyed at how other people were treating her friend. Someday, she would show them all that he wasn't just some idiot.
"What do you mean 'hell and back'?" Draco asked slowly, and it was then that she realized that she had spoken of something that wasn't necessarily her story to tell.
"Um… Please don't tell anyone, he doesn't like people knowing…" She almost whispered, like somehow there could be other people in the room overhearing their conversation. "His parents were tortured in the war… They're in St. Mungus."
"People go to St. Mungus every day, Hermione, that's no big deal." He half-laughed at her, the tension lifting for merely a second before Hermione felt it coming crashing down around them.
"I know - But the thing with his parents is that they won't be leaving it again. They're insane Draco. They've lost their minds." She said slowly, sitting up straighter and averting her eyes to look out the window.
"I don't… What? How?"
"Bellatrix Lestrange… Tortured them… For hours… She tortured them into insanity, because she wanted to know the location of Lily and James Potter… To kill… Harry." She mumbled and stumbled, trying to get the words out before she could start to choke on them. It had always been a sensitive subject in their midst, and of course Draco couldn't have known that… But that didn't make it any less painful to talk about.
"My sweet girl, why do you know all that?" A low voice rasped out, and she turned to the side to see Narcissa standing in the doorway with a hand to her cheek. She took a careful step forward, her hand leaving her cheek to grasp the back of the couch, anchoring her down.
"I don't know the specifics… But it's not like it's a secret or anything, it's just… very personal, to Neville."
Narcissa seemed to have gotten over the shock and went to sit on the floor by Hermione's side, while she looked at her with such motherly care it made Hermione want to hug her.
"But the specifics… why do you know all of this? Children so young - you shouldn't know about such things. Who told you this?" The concern was evident in her voice. Also, was Hermione picking up on the slightest hint of anger?
Had she done something wrong?
"Well… Neville's grandmother has always talked about how Neville's parents have made 'the greatest of all sacrifices', and about how he should be proud to be their son. Sometimes she says that he ought to be more like them… So… I guess it just comes up sometimes…"
Hermione couldn't remember ever having seen such loathing on the woman's face before her. Her lips were pinched shut and her eyes were narrowed; "That woman ought to love the grandson she has, instead of the son she lost." She huffed, and then suddenly stood after giving her shoulder a soft caress. "I merely wanted to tell you that your father is on his way."
The changing of moods was so striking that it took her completely by surprise. She was unable to do much more than utter a small 'okay' before turning her eyes downwards to her monopoly money before her, doing her best to focus on the numbers on the bills instead of the rock in the pit of her stomach.
…
August 26th, 1992
Hermione, being the bookworm that she was, for the very first time in her life, did not want to go into Flourish and Blotts.
The amount of people trying to push their way into the bookshop was astounding.
"Daaad? Can we come back another day?" Daniel said, standing to her immediate right and looking back over his shoulder at his dad that was looking forward with the exact same look like the rest of them.
She, Harry, Daniel had gone into Diagon alley for the day to do their school shopping, along with Sirius and aunt Em.
They had been in the wizarding street for the past 45 minutes, picking supplies up and moving past this very shop so many times - hoping that it would empty out just a little bit. Yet alas, it remained filled to the brim.
"Can we? Please?" Sirius asked Em by his side. Hermione couldn't see them, but had the unmistakable feeling that he was giving her his best puppy eyes.
"Sorry kids, but it has to be today - there is no other day before school starts that we have the time for it." She said, and Hermione knew that she was telling the truth. As fun and bright as Emmeline Black was and always had been - just as much, was she always telling the truth and speaking her mind.
Sirius let out a deep sigh of resignation. "Fine, then in we go - but no straying Hermione. We go in and get what we need, and leave. Agreed?" Everyone in their closed circle knew how Sirius HATED being in such close proximity with so many people at once. Unfortunately, though he had gotten out of Azkaban very quickly, it had still given him his fair share of scars - both physical and mental.
Hermione, Daniel and Harry all nodded their agreement, before they all moved closer to the shop, positioning themselves in the que.
"I wonder why there's so many people here." Harry said, trying to drown out the noises of the people surrounding them to talk to his friends. Behind them, Em leaned in to talk to all of them, her long black hair tickling Hermione on her bare arm. "It's Gilderoy Lockhart; the author of your DADA-books - I've met him a couple of times, and I mean this in the best of ways; he's manipulative and arrogant and you can't trust him. Ever. Okay?" Aunt Em finished brightly, almost like she had just promised them Ice cream or something like that.
The children eyed each other in turn, all wearing looks of astonishment. Em had been working as an auror for as long as Hermione could remember, and was right about people and their characters, more often than not.
Taking a couple of steps further forward, they each grabbed a stack of books they needed for school, which had been prepared on a large display by the stairs for the school children coming into the store to buy them.
Five minutes later after having moved less than a meter longer into the shop, Daniel was suddenly pushed hard into her and dropped all of his books. Him toppling over meant him falling into Hermione which in turn pushed her further into Harry, who barely caught both of them without toppling over. "HEY!" He exclaimed annoyed with a hand on Hermione's shoulder as she tried to stand up straight again.
With his other hand, he gave Em his own books before ducking a bit to help Daniel pick up his books. Only, his exclamation harshly drew the attention of the stranger and everyone else, who abruptly turned around and looked at him with annoyance and indignation, the stranger looking like he had been the one being pushed. His cold eyes quickly shifted into one of amazement and wonder - and that was the moment that Hermione realized that the stranger had seen Harry's scar.
That damn scar was like a magnet for starcrazed idiots.
"Could it really be?! HARRY POTTER?" A voice somewhere in front of them exclaimed, and then suddenly the people moved like Moses had parted the red sea. The photographer reared forward, grabbing a hold of Harry's shirt and tried to drag him towards the stranger at the front.
Sirius would not be having it.
He rushed in front of Harry whom he pushed further behind his form, before pointing his wand directly into 'the pusher's' throat while he growled loudly; "Get your filthy hands off my godson!" The man in front of them, whom Hermione now saw was carrying a large camera, was sneering back into Sirius' face.
The stranger from the front of the shop moved between the sea of people towards them and ended up by Harry's side, all smiles and with golden robes and hair glimmering like he had combed it with… butter… or something like that. Yuck.
Hermione looked behind her and saw aunt Em staring at the stranger; the suspicion and indignation was so obvious that she was somewhat expecting her auror-badge to be hanging at the front of her robes.
"Such a coincidence that you come into this very shop to buy my new biography Magical Me and have me sign it." He gave Harry a bright smile and somewhere to the side, a light flashed. "And you coming in here now, gives me the great opportunity of making a small announcement I've been keeping secret for some time!" One could have been able to hear a pin drop to the floor, as the people in the store all hushed instantly. "From the 1st of September, Gilderoy Lockhart, will be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, at Hogwarts school for Witchcraft and Wizardry! You heard that correctly; Harry Potter and his fellow school friends will be having the real Magical Me, teaching them the very best of the best, about the dark arts." The room was silent for a moment, before erupting into cheers. People were excitedly clapping, cheering and talking among themselves. Someone came to shake Lockhart's hand but were quickly pushed away when someone went to stand between their new professor and the Ton. A guard? maybe?
"Now, now. Harry came in here to buy my book, and he will - of course - be leaving with it! But free of charge!" People applauded loudly.
Hermione had the distinct feeling that Lockhart thought he was giving Harry a favor, while she knew that he would be binning the book the instant he walked out of the floo back home. Harry looked to be agreeing with her thought as he looked in disbelief at the man while stepping further away from him; "I don-" he began, but was forcefully silenced when the man continued, not even trying to listen to what Harry wanted to say.
"But what he didn't know - is that he would also be leaving with my entire collection!" A stack of books as large as what he had just handed to Em, was dumped into his arms. "No, there's no need to thank me, kid! I'm merely here to help the disadvantaged!" He said, clapping Harry hard on the shoulder before walking off.
"Oy, I'm not disadvantaged!" Harry yelled back towards the man who by now was completely ignoring him. Harry turned around towards where they had picked up their own books and came face to face with a pale girl, with long blond hair.
"How nice of him to give you books that you don't need - they will do well as firestarters for the chimney… Don't you think so?" She said, smiling warmly at Harry like they had known each other for years and years.
How… Odd.
"Oh, I wasn't getting them - I already picked my own. But you can have them if you'd like?" He answered and lifted the books towards the girl. She in return, smiled at him and took the books.
"That's so nice of you - thank you. I like the color of your aura by the way."
He looked at her dumbly and Hermione expected that both she and Daniel were mirroring his look.
"Bye!" She suddenly exclaimed, waved, and happily ran back to a man with equally blond hair. Hermione was making a wild guess that that was her father.
"That was so random." Harry said suddenly, gobsmacked.
"Aha." Hermione agreed as she watched the girl leave the store.
The group of a mix-matched-family turned together to walk towards the registry that had now cleared up, but had instead come almost eye-to-eye with the Zabini's and the Weasley's.
Mr. Weasley looked like he was seconds from jumping some dark-skinned lady and both Blaise and Ron looked like they could claw each other's eyes out. Behind them, stood a group of matching redheads, including a girl they hadn't seen before. Maybe that was the sister Ron had previously mentioned?
"My, my - your family will probably go without food for weeks just from buying this small amount of books." The woman tasked and dumped a book into the small redhead's cauldron.
"You don't know anything about my family, Zabini." The older Weasley answered before dragging his daughter behind him.
Hermione already liked Ron's father marginally more than Ron himself.
Mr. Weasley and a plump, red haired woman escorted their children to the checkout with deep frowns, which in turn opened up the room enough for the Zabini to have a direct view of the blacks, Harry and Hermione.
The woman crossed her arms, and looked at them with obvious disdain; "Well, well - I thought I smelled a dog - shouldn't you be chained outside?"
"Naah, don't worry - the only place I'll be chained is to my bed." He answered nonchalantly, and was rewarded by a loud chorus of 'eewww' from the surrounding children, while being smacked on top of the head by Em. In front of them, Mrs. Zabini was looking on in adamant horror, her eyes wide open in shock.
It was at that very moment that someone walked into her. Well, it wasn't exactly 'walking into her' but more like she felt a ruffle of her back and then someone walked so close to her that it must have been entirely by purpose that their arm grazed hers for as long as possible. She barely felt the tingling sensation before it subsided, and she looked up to find out who it was.
In front of her Draco Malfoy met his house-mate with a high-five, but was quickly hurried out of the store with Zabini by his mother, as she kept looking back at Sirius with a sneer.
Sirius merely waved back; "Toodeloo!" He called after them, before getting an elbow in the ribs from Em. He was laughing lightheartedly, hunched forward and with his hands on his knees for support.
"Honestly, Sirius. Grow up already." She chastised, but Hermione could hear the smile in her voice. Everyone knew that she loved Sirius's funny, vulgar moments, and that she would often go right along with it - if only to make other people extremely uncomfortable.
The humor was, after all, one of the reasons why Emmeline Vance had chosen to marry a young Sirius Black during the war, when they were barely out of Hogwarts.
"But whyyy?" He pouted and whined loudly like the dog that he was, "This is so much more fun!"
"As funny as that was, we need to buy these books and get a move on. There are too many people here, and I could really use a celebratory drink considering that." She nodded her head in the direction of the door where Zabini had just left.
"Can we get a celebratory drink, too?" Daniel asked, smiling brightly which resulted in Em releasing a small giggle and tugging her son into her by his shoulder.
"I'm sure we can work something out, love. But come now, we need to pay for your books."
…
August 29th, 1992
Hermione,
It was good to see you the other day, though the circumstances weren't that great. I've been asked by my father to let you know that Serefina Zabini was reminded of Sirius's existence, and has made it her mission in life, to drag him down into the dirt - or worse (whatever that means, I'm not sure). Father says it could be dangerous. He should probably consider laying low for a bit.
He also says that you should be careful at Hogwarts, too. Apparently something will happen this year, and he doesn't know what… But it's not a good thing.
With that being said, Theo just arrived yesterday and we're looking forward to leaving for Hogwarts next week. I'll see you there?
Also, Theo suggested that Pansy or Daphne might join us in the library some time?
Your friend,
Draco
Though Hermione would always enjoy Draco's letters, this was not one of those times. She folded the letter up carefully and put it into her pocket, making sure that it could not be seen, before rushing down the stairs.
"Muuum? Can I go to Harry's?" She called down while taking the steps two at a time.
"You can - If you will please stop running down the stairs. One of these days, someone will fall and really hurt themselves." Her mum answered from the kitchen, her voice growing clearer and clearer as Hermione came closer to her. "Also, there's dinner in an hour so please don't be long."
"Sorry, I will." She kissed her mother's cheek and rushed to the fireplace where she grabbed some floo powder and yelled out for Lupin Cottage.
"Hi, moony." Hermione said when she stepped out and came face to face with the owner of the cottage. The man was lounging in a sitting chair with a book in hand and one of their two cats, Snuffles, lounging in his lap. They looked as comfy as ever.
She was sure that Crookshanks was somewhere nearby.
"Hello Hermione. The boys aren't home I'm afraid - they're spending the night with Longbottom." He said, popping a piece of chocolate into his mouth.
"That's fine - I actually came to talk to Sirius. Is he here?" She said, wringing her hands a bit. Having the coming conversation with Sirius wasn't exactly something she was looking forward to.
"Oh. He's in the kitchen with Em." He said with a nod of his head before taking another piece of chocolate.
"Thanks!" She called out as she made her way through the house to the kitchen. Hopefully Remus will be hiding the chocolate soon. Em would have a fit if she saw him snacking right before dinner.
In the kitchen, she found them talking softly while Sirius was stirring a pot and Em was cleaning the counter.
"-I'm just saying, that Dobby coming to Harry isn't necessarily as harmless as you'd think." Sirius said slowly.
Hermione rapped on the door, making her presence known before they could say something that wasn't for her ears. She was all for secrets and knowing things that others didn't - but there had to be a limit at some point.
"Sirius? Can I talk to you?" She asked carefully as she made her way into the room and anxiously pulled out the letter from her pocket.
"Do I need to leave? This seems… Serious." Em said as she put down the cloth that she had been using to clean. She looked from Hermione to Sirius, though Hermione was quick to answer.
"No, you can stay - I just came for Sirius specifically." She said, picking at the corners of the letter.
"What is it, Hermione? You seem a bit distressed." Sirius said as he turned around and put the kettle on the burner. Tea was always the answer to Sirius, and when that didn't work - he would be finding something stronger.
"Umm…" She started, but then turned around and closed the door behind her softly. She didn't know how severe this was or what she should or could do about it, so better safe than sorry about someone else overhearing. "I need you to promise that parts of this remain between us. I don't need people to know who this letter is from. Or that it was sent to me for that matter."
Sirius and Em looked at each other in a mix of confusion and concern. It was Emmeline who broke the silence in the room by raising her wand to the door behind Hermione. "Muffliato!" She called softly, before continuing with a kind but concerned look in her direction. "Of course, we promise, Hermione. Please tell us what's going on."
Hermione nodded to herself and walked further into the room. "A year and a half ago, I met a boy while in Diagon Alley with William and grandma, and… we've been friends since. We write and read and study and have fun and… well, I just received this letter from him." She put the letter on the dining table and stepped away, digging her hands in her pockets so as not to fiddle. Sirius quickly went to pick it up, and Em read it with him in silence.
The silence dragged on for a couple of minutes while nothing was said, though the adults shared looks along the way.
"Is this the friend that you visited last month?" He then asked and frowned deeply. When she agreed with a nod, he continued. "There's obviously something going on that we have no power over…" He said but stopped like he didn't know how to continue.
"What Sirius means; is that difficult times are coming - and now is the time to be careful." Hermione could feel her bottom lip trembling lightly.
She didn't want to lose her friend.
She didn't want difficult times.
She just wanted to make cannonballs in Draco's pool.
"Oh, Hermione." Em cooed and embraced her, Hermione's head leaning on Em's shoulder. "It'll all work out my love. It'll be okay."
"Do I… have to stop… talking to him?" She stammered out, afraid of the words leaving her mouth in case the adults would say yes.
"Absolutely not!" Sirius's voice was loud and booming from where he was standing and she instantly looked to where he was quickly moving closer to them, where he put a hand on Hermione's shoulder and went down to her eye level. "In difficult times you keep your friends closer than ever. If you have fun together, then for all I care, keep doing it. But a word of caution; be careful and observant. The Malfoys are good people, but they might be in over their heads this time."
songs for this chapter: Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody
