"Please let me see her, Draco," Pansy begged as she stood in front of his desk. She was in her robes, holding a silver mask in her hands. There was always so much confidence behind her stance, unless it came to her asking for something Draco wouldn't give her.
Gone. He wanted her to leave as soon as she stepped foot in the room. She had come shortly after he arrived, knocking on the door, breaking her way into his office. Her mind was so jumbled, he didn't care to read her thoughts, she'd say them out loud anyways.
"Leave, Parkinson," he groaned, leaning back in his chair.
Pansy dropped her mask on the floor and set her hands on his desk, leaning forward, trying to look intimidating. It had been adorable to Draco in the past when she attempted to scare him into submission, but now, it simply annoyed him. He could never say no to her, he'd never hear the end of it.
"She needs me, Draco," Pansy insisted, furrowing her brow.
"She doesn't, she really fucking doesn't," he snapped. "You need her, not the other way around."
"Please, just let me see her before you fuck her up and turn her into a fucking vampire," she said, nearly growling at him.
Astoria didn't need to be stressed any further, and he thought Pansy's presence would be too upsetting with her being in such a frail state. But Pansy seemed so desperate, she knew the war was over once Hogwarts was taken. She was trying to make amends before she was sent off to serve time for what she had done in the war.
Was she desperate enough to help him?
Draco sat up, looking her in the eyes for what felt like the first time in months. "I'll let you see her if you get something for me."
"What do you want?" she asked, her knuckles turning white as she gripped onto the edge of the desk.
"I need you to get information," Draco replied. "Goyle's been on about some shit he knows that I don't."
Pansy's anger quickly faded as her lips curled into a smirk. "Jealous of little Greggory, are we?"
"Do you want to see her or not?" Draco reiterated, not wanting to play Pansy's games.
"Fine, Draco. I'll do it for Astoria," she grumbled.
"About the only thing you've done for her," Draco spat, making sure she knew where she stood. He wasn't letting her back into their lives without something big in return.
"Why am I the only one punished for something we both did?" Pansy asked, a crack in her voice, nearly tearing up in anger. Astoria would forgive anyone who had hurt her, but he and Daphne made sure she wouldn't be so easy on Pansy.
They had made sure she kept a distance, and though he knew they still were in contact, she hadn't come around or was even invited to the wedding.
"Did you ever really care about her? Or did you just use her so you could sink your claws deeper into me?" he asked.
"Astoria is my best friend. Of course I fucking care about her," she yelled. She was telling the truth, but he knew that two things could be true, that she could care for her while also still using her.
"Then get me that information from Goyle. And I mean all of it. Something substantial," Draco threatened, dangling Astoria over her.
"What are you going to do?" she asked, crossing her arms defensively in front of herself.
Draco glared at her. "I need to know everything that's going on so I can ensure Astoria's safety. If there are secrets being held from me, that doesn't bode well, now does it? Especially now that we've lost Hogwarts."
Pansy had a blank look behind her eyes, the realization of the war coming to an end was finally fully dawning on her now that he had said it out loud. Her thoughts were racing, wondering if she could leave the country without being caught by Voldemort and experiencing a worse fate than Azkaban.
And for the first time, she looked recognizable. Like the once scared girl that he received his Dark Mark with, binding them to the point they were now. Like the girl he thought was so pretty he stuttered as he asked if she wanted to get butterbeer with him in first year.
"They're going to kill me," she thought to herself. "Either Voldemort kills me, or The Order does. At least The Order will be more merciful."
"Parkinson, stop thinking," he told her, wishing she would quiet her mind for a moment to think.
Her shoulders fell as her head hung low. "I'm so scared, Draco."
"I need you to be brave for Tori," Draco said, softening his voice and lowering his intensity, remembering what Astoria had told him to do when someone needed comfort. "I'll protect you from him. From all of them."
She dried tears away from her cheeks with the back of her sleeve, her mascara streaking down her face. "Did you ever love me, Draco?"
"Maybe when we were kids," he replied truthfully.
"Do you love her?" she asked. Hermione was at the forefront of her thoughts, but Draco didn't want to delve into that topic.
"I love Astoria with all of myself," he said.
"You know I'm not talking about her. I meant Granger. Do you love her?"
He held back a groan, not wanting to upset her further. "Why would you even ask such a thing?"
"Because you changed when she came around. And I've seen the way you look at her. You've never looked at me like that."
"If I did say I loved her, what would you do?"
"Nothing. There's nothing I could do. I'd get your information from Goyle and then say my goodbyes."
Draco knew he could trust her for now. "Then it doesn't matter if I do or not. The only thing that does matter is Astoria."
Pansy nodded, turning around and making her way slowly to the door. "You matter to me too. Even if I am nothing to you."
—
Hermione observed the blood cells under a microscope, counting each uninfected cell over and over again, making sure she was accurate in her recordings. She had reached an average of 74.3% success in her latest trial, but it was far from close. It took exponentially more resources and effort with each iteration, and she needed to be precise and make sure every measurement and spell were performed at the highest level. It would be good enough to mask symptoms of vampirism for a while, but over time the curse would eventually take over again. If they were diligent, they could keep administering the counter curse, but the ingredients would be costly to get, even after the war.
And that wouldn't cure Draco either. She knew he would make sure Astoria got every drop of the counter curse if it was only temporary fixes.
As she pulled the glass slide from the microscope clip, she tried to still her shaking hands. Exhaustion was beyond what she felt, but she knew she wasn't as tired as Astoria was, so she kept going. Kept moving until she was either done or couldn't go any longer. It had been a few days since the wedding, Astoria had spent most of her days asleep. Hermione had spoken to her a few times very briefly. Most instances she was too weak to hold a conversation, so Hermione would just keep her company.
"Bed time, Granger," Draco said, shortly after he came home. She heard him go to Astoria's room before coming to retrieve her. It was late, and she was tired, but she had so much more to do.
"I'll be there in a minute," she said as she carefully placed the glass slide into a box.
"You're so fucking stubborn," he grumbled. "Will you ever do as I say?"
"I do what you say quite often, Draco. Do you not remember last night?" she asked with a soft smile.
Draco came towards her, leaning down and kissing her temple softly. "How could I forget?"
He pulled her back against his chest, his hands tugging at her shirt. Cold lips touched her ear, making her face feel hot. His hand wrapped around her throat, holding her close as he whispered in her ear how delicious she looked and how badly he wanted her in bed. The desperation in his voice was intoxicating and her knees began to buckle when he began to describe the things he wanted to do to her.
"Do you want me to do that, baby?" he asked, pressing his fingers into her pulse points, kissing the side of her face, drawing her further into temptation. "Fuck you till you're tired and then eat your pretty cunt until you fall asleep."
"Yes, I want it," she replied breathlessly. His hand slipped into the front of her pants and cold fingers pressed into her clit. She moaned out, an airiness filling her head.
"Say it," he growled against her ear. She felt his cock stiffen against her back, her own desperation surfacing.
"I want you to fuck me and then eat me out," she whispered as she dripped onto his fingers.
"Then you better go lay down in bed," he said, pulling away from her.
"I need to shower and…"
"No you don't, I want you just as you are now," he said, turning her to face him. He brushed the hair away from her face and leaned down to kiss her lips. "Go to bed. Now."
She obeyed his command and got into bed. He crawled on top of her, kissing up her chest as he removed her clothes. Eventually, his lips found hers again, and for a few moments, she forgot everything but him.
It was a distraction for both of them to get lost into each other. It was just a few hours a day they would get to spend together, so they made an effort not to discuss topics that would upset either of them. Hermione thought it may have been a little unhealthy due to the numerous books she read on creating and mending healthy relationships she had read when she and Ron were having issues communicating, but she didn't think that advice would help them now.
When she had asked him how his day was, he normally just responded with news that he felt she needed to know, never delving about how he actually felt. He'd tell her that he was happy when he was with her, but never much more. But she didn't know if he would tell her how he genuinely felt if she asked him how he was doing with everything that had transpired over the past few days.
His forehead pressed against hers, his cold breaths brushing against her face, filling her nose with the scent of iron and spearmint. "What are you thinking about?" he asked, seeing her deep in thought.
"About you," she nervously admitted. "How are you feeling, Draco?"
"I'm hungry and the only thing that will satisfy me is you," he said, kissing her neck.
"How are you feeling about Astoria?" she asked again.
Draco stopped cold in his tracks, rolling off of her and onto the bed. Laying down on his back, he draped his arm over his eyes. "That's a boner killer."
"You don't want to talk about it?" she asked, shifting to her side to look at him.
"What's there to talk about? Tori is dying, I'm sad. Anything else that needs to be elaborated on?" Draco sighed.
Hermione wrapped her arm around his torso, pulling herself closer to him. "I'm sorry, Draco."
"Nothing for you to be sorry about," he said softly.
"If I could just figure out this counter curse…"
"No, Granger. That isn't your fault either. It's my fault for asking so much of you in so little time. I'm sure if you were given better circumstances, you would have it figured out by now. Probably would have a cure for lycanthropy too," he chuckled.
"I'm scared I wont get done in time," Hermione whispered.
He took a deep breath, "I am too."
Though it hurt when he agreed, it was honest. And she was glad he was with her. It let her know that he was actively planning for the worst. He was likely already planning for Astoria to make a horcrux before she passed, but when that would happen, Hermione didn't know. They were monitoring her closely, but each time she opened her eyes, they seemed more and most lost.
"What are you going to do?" she asked.
Draco stared at the ceiling, a blank expression on his face. "What I promised her father. Turn her into a monster just like me."
"Are you going to be okay with that?" she asked.
"It will destroy me." His voice was hollow, trying not to break. "But I can't lose her. I refuse to lose any more. You, Daph, and Tori are all I have."
"I'll always be with you, Draco," she assured, kissing his shoulder. "Don't worry about me."
A soft knock came at the door, and Tappy entered after Draco told him he could enter. The house elf shuffled awkwardly before making his announcement. "Miss Parkinson is here to see you, Lord Malfoy. Tappy let Miss Parkinson know the Master was occupied, but she insisted it was urgent."
"Pansy?" Hermione asked, raising an eyebrow at Draco.
"Come on, Granger," he insisted, standing up and holding a silk robe out to her. She pulled the cold material over herself, wrapping it tight and tying the rope around her waist. She followed behind Draco, holding his hand as he led her down the stairs. Pansy sat on the sofa in the sitting room wearing a thick wool jumper and carrying a bouquet of flowers and a stuffed bear.
Without greeting her, Draco sat in his usual spot next to the fireplace. Hermione took the seat next to him, and looked at the ground. She could feel Pansy's eyes staring into her, but she didn't acknowledge it.
"Is she drugged up?" Pansy asked.
"She won't care about a word you say," Draco replied.
"You're a sick fuck, Draco," she hissed, shaking her head. Out of the corner of her eye, Hermione saw him smirk, looking smug as he sat there in front of Pansy.
"I'm assuming you have what I want and you're here to see Tori now," he flatly said. Hermione was shocked at how cruel Draco had been to Pansy, using Astoria to extort information.
Pansy nodded. "Goyle told me the Lestranges have the last horcrux in their possession, and that Voldemort is planning on attempting to create another after Hogwarts fell."
"Did he tell you what the current horcrux was?" he inquired, leaning forward.
Pansy shook her head. "No, I don't even think he knows."
"Tappy, take Pansy to Lady Malfoy's room," Draco called to the house elf.
"Yes, master," Tappy said.
Before leaving with Tappy, Pansy looked quickly at Hermione. "When she comes to her senses, she'll realize how horrible you really are."
"Let's hope she stays in her delusion," Draco replied as Pansy and Tappy disappeared up the stairs. Once they were out of earshot, Draco poured two glasses of whiskey.
"You snuck into Bellatrix's vault at Gringotts once, right?" he asked, handing a glass to her.
"Yes, using Polyjuice."
Draco downed his glass, a mischievous smile plastered on his lips. "Think you could do it again?"
The first time she did it, she didn't think she had done an exceptional job impersonating the witch. However, if they managed to get her Polyjuice, she'd be willing to try.
"I can. Just get me the potion and some clothes," Hermione said confidently, drinking the whiskey, letting it cover her in a warmth she loved so much.
"That's my girl, always so brave," he smiled, and leaned over to kiss her cheek. "And always so fucking pretty."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Trying to sweeten me up, Malfoy?"
Draco took her hand in his, holding it tight. "If I'm going to make you look like Bellatrix for a whole hour, I'm going to have to be extra nice, aren't I?"
A set of footsteps came storming down the stairs and Daphne came storming to them. "What the fuck is Pansy doing here?"
"To see Tori," Draco replied without skipping a beat.
"She came up with some flowers and a teddy bear and now Tori is all doe eyed and alert like she's not been unconscious for four whole days," Daphne scoffed, reaching for the bottle of fire whiskey and drinking straight for the bottle.
"Let them have some time together," Draco reiterated.
Daphne gave out a sarcastic, dry laugh. "What? You two make up or something? Planning on adding her back into the harem?"
"No, she helped me with something. We know where the last horcrux is now," he justified himself.
"That's got nothing to do with Tori," she said, falling onto the couch.
"Are you doing okay, Daphne?" Hermione asked. "Can I help you with anything?"
"No, just do your little science experiments. That's already too much work. Watching Tori is nothing," she replied, taking another swig.
"If it's nothing I got a little task for you then," Draco said, not being able to hold back a smirk.
"What the fuck do you want?" Daphne groaned.
"Need a strand of Auntie Bella's hair. Think you could get that for me and Granger?" Draco asked, pouting his lip, making Hermione and Daphne laugh.
Daphne's eyes narrowed at him in curiosity. "What are you two plotting?"
Draco stood up, holding his glass up in a triumphant manner. "A heist, of course."