(Untitled)

[lucky_halfblood]

Since Bill left, Terry hadn't attempted to bring Hermione out of her room. Now, though, he figured that it was finally time to step in and make sure that she didn't lose herself in depression. The Contention was still weak and everybody needed to be part of it. There wasn't any room for people slowing themselves down

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[muggle_lioness]

The knock at the door tore Hermione's eye away from the fire place. She'd been sitting on the couch with a large mug of tea for who knows how long, but she hadn't drunk a sip. As soon as she sat down, she lost her self in the flames, wondering. No matter how much she tried, her thoughts always strayed back to Bill.

She wondered if he was okay, if he had gotten her letter, if Lucius had allowed him to keep Esmond, and if he ever thought of her. All she wanted to do was sleep and get these thoughts out of her head, but she'd run out of the last shipment of sleeping potions three days ago.

Tonks had said that the shipment was supposed to last until her next visit, but there were days when Hermione would take two or three vials a day, leaving her trembling when she didn't have any. Even now, she couldn't fill her tea mug all the way up because of her shakes.

Shaking her head and setting the mug down on the coffee table, she ran her hand over Bill's spot on the couch beside her before getting up and making her way to the door. "Hi, Terry," she said after opening the door.

[lucky_halfblood]

"That wasn't very happy sounding," Terry told her. He didn't move into the apartment, not wanting to. If he went inside, it might take longer to get Hermione out. "Come on, smile?"

The small glance inside the apartment that he was able to see didn't look promising. It looked bad, as if Hermione just sat in one place and didn't move. A small frown crossed his face, but he didn't say anything about it. What could he say?

"Are you ready?" he asked instead. "The smell's getting stronger."

[muggle_lioness]

"Sorry if you were expecting Bright and Bubbly Hermione. She doesn't really live here anymore." Hermione frowned and ran a hand through her hair, stepping fully out into the hall, reluctantly, and shutting the door behind her.

"I don't have a clue as to what it could be. . . but let's go," she said, her arms crossed in front of her chest.

[lucky_halfblood]

Terry shook his head, taking a step back so Hermione could move out of the room. "I didn't expect that, but a small smile and a brave face would have worked."

He hesitated a moment before nodding and leading the way to the old Hufflepuff halway. "Neither do I, that's why I asked you. It might be an old dungbomb that decided to go off now... maybe."

[muggle_lioness]

"Those are getting harder and harder to come by," she said, not meeting his eye.

"There are probably a million things it could be."

[lucky_halfblood]

"Then we'll just have to make it easier," Terry told her. "Bill won't like it if... when he comes back if you're like this." he wasn't sure what he could say to convince her of that, but he'd try.

"We'll just have to see. We can't say what it is or isn't until we see it." He turned his head back, offering a small smile to see if he could get one in return.

[muggle_lioness]

"If he comes back," she muttered, hoping Terry wouldn't hear her.

When he turned back, she looked up and met his eyes for a moment. Seeing his smile, she attempted to return it but felt she didn't quite live up to his expectations.

[lucky_halfblood]

"When," Terry corrected. He had heard her and he didn't want her to keep like this. "When he comes back. Be optimistic, Hermione."

The smile wasn't what he wanted, but he hadn't expected anything more. He would get her smiling, or distracted, if it were the last thing he did. She deserved to not be as depressed.

[muggle_lioness]

"I've been optimistic, Terry. It's time to be realistic. He's not coming back any time soon, and there's nothing I can do about it." She sniffed and wiped at her eyes, thinking she was going to start crying, but no tears came. She'd cried them all out. She had none left.

They entered the basement and were approaching the Hufflepuff hallway. The smell she had been starting to notice began to get stronger. Strong enough she had to bring up her shirt to cover her nose.

[lucky_halfblood]

"Would he want you walking around like this?" Terry asked her. "Would he want you sitting in his room, hoping that something will happen? Come on, Hermione. I thought you were a Gryffindor." Terry felt like a hypocrite for saying this, especially when he himself had run from the big problems.

The smell, though, was distracting him. He wrinkled his nose and raised his wand to cast a quick spell, dimming the scent. "Any idea just from the initial smell?"

[muggle_lioness]

Shaking her head, she turned away from him, almost ashamed of herself. "Terry, you don't have any clue what has happened to me. I'm different. It's not my fault."

Cautiously sniffing the air, she thought a moment. "It smells like something's. . . rotting."

[lucky_halfblood]

"You're right," Terry told her softly, shaking his head. "I don't know because you won't tell me. I don't know what it's like to be on the selling block or so have something branded into me. I'm sorry."

He turned back to the hallway, taking a few steps forward. As soon as Hermione mentioned the rotting, though, he frowned. It did smell like it. "That's odd..."

[muggle_lioness]

"I don't tell you because I don't want you to know. I'm trying to protect you, all of you. You're completely unharmed by all of this and it wouldn't be fair for me to bring you down. You don't want to know what I've been through."

"It smells like. . . like it's coming from over there." She pointed over to a corner of the hall.

[lucky_halfblood]

"Maybe I need to be taken out of my protection," Terry said sharply. "Maybe I need to experience what you did. I feel ridiculous being who I am." He did, in a way. Sometimes Terry wondered if he should have just stayed and gotten himself captured. Then he could at least know what to do about the haunted look in everyone's eyes.

"I'm surprised nobody else noticed this smell," he murmured, moving toward the smell. "Stay back," he told Hermione, pushing aside some debris in the way. As he saw what it was, though, he wanted to be sick. A half-eaten house elf lay on the floor and it looked as though it had been there a while. "Ug... that's disgusting."

[muggle_lioness]

"No, you don't," Hermione said, grabbing his arm and turning him to look at her. "You don't want to know what's it's like to have a brand burned into your neck and then get raped every night for a year. You have no reason to feel ridiculous. You're one of the lucky ones. I envy you." She sighed and let him turn to check out the smell.

"What is it?" she asked, ignoring his instruction and stepping beside him. What she saw was horrifying. A closer look at the body revealed it was. . . Winky. "Winky! Oh no!"

[lucky_halfblood]

Terry blinked as Hermione grabbed his arm. He hadn't expected it, so it took him a moment to realize she was saying something to him. "I may be lucky, but I don't know anything. I can't know what to feel when the entire population of Hogwarts has this knowing look in their eyes that I can't understand. I was a coward Hermione. I'd do anything to change it." If only he had fought harder, stayed behind. That it was impossible to just go back and change it.

"Wait-" Terry tried to stop her from moving forward, but it was already too late. When she identified the body, though, he felt sick. Winky had been a tad annoying, but she didn't deserve this. "Merlin... who could have done this?"