Didn't know what I was doing with this but it wouldn't leave my mind, anyhoos...continue along
-
Hermione hadn’t the slightest idea what kind of present the Governor intended for her, but it was most certainly not this.
In the darkest corner of the dungeon was a man bound in chains. Dirt and dried mud covered his visage but there was no hiding the shocking blond hair and grey eyes that was once viewed as the most prestige.
That man was a wizard. A pureblood at that.
“What, may I ask my dear Governor, will I do with him?” her soft voice prompted the man to lift his head the slightest. She had been told that purebloods held the rarest colour of eyes but she most definitely was not prepare for the amount of absolute loathing that was directed at her.
Not a second longer he dropped his gaze and his body lay limp against the manacles, immobile even at the harsh chill that fell in the dungeon.
“Whatever you wish, Miss Granger. He is at your disposal. We want to say thank you for all you have done to keep Little Whinging free of these…eccentrics.” his laughter ricocheted off the stone walls and Hermione did her best for force out a tight smile.
“Of course. Whatever I can do to help. Shall we continue on with our afternoon tea?” she suggested while leading the way out of the dungeon, not once looking back.
He didn’t know how long he’s been in there. He didn’t know if it was day or night. All he knew was that he’ll be damned if he let fucking muggles take him out.
He licked his cracked lip, the metallic taste of dried blood was nothing new. His body begged for food, his throat pleaded for water, but he refuse. He refuse to give in even when every muscle, every joint, every fucking bone ached in absolute pain.
His head snapped up when the doors to the dungeon swung open forcefully and his body tensed. Wand or no wand, he would not go down without a fight.
However, as the pitter-patter of light footsteps came closer, he furrowed his brow in confusion. It wasn’t until he saw her abominable hair did he recognized her.
That girl.
Her cheeks were flushed and her wild curls flew around her face as she shuffled through her clothes. He looked at her in alarm when she pulled out a wand from her beneath her cloak.
“Who the fuck-“
“Rumpere,” she murmured, blue light shot out of her wand, and in seconds, his chains fell to the ground.
“Listen to me,” she said quickly as she retrieved another wand from her cloak and handed it to him. He instantly felt the energy surge through him and thump thump thump went his heart.
He had never been more glad to have his wand.
“The war is drawing nearer. The army is approaching soon and they will not be as kind as the governor,” the sarcasm wasn’t lost to him as she accio‘d a set of large robes and a glass with questionable contents in them.
“Change into these robes and drink this once you leave this manor. There is a secret exit to the left of the dungeons. It is midday now and the potion will only last until sundown. Keep going south until you reach the Forbidden Forrest. You must reach the Forrest at sundown, and from there-” the whispered words were shooting at him at an incomprehensible speed before he stopped her in the middle of her sentence.
“Wait, what? The Forbidden Forrest? Are you fucking crazy, do you even know what lurks in there?” he sounded raspy after so long of little use from his vocals and he could barely recognized his own voice.
“You have a wand, Malfoy! Use it!” she snapped at him, her rampant hair flying in different directions. “If snatchers shall question you, you are to take the identity of Dudley Dursley, the governor’s ill son seeking refuge in the next town over. And trust me,” her voice emphasized on the last two words, “there will be snatchers.”
“On the other side of the Forbidden Forrest, there is an inn called The Burrow. Go inside and ask for Harry Potter and tell him Hermione Granger send you. I have already send a patronus informing him of your arrival and you should be safe after that,” her words were once again hushed and his eyes widened as she whispered Levicorpus and a charred object took what used to be his place beside the broken manacles.
“What the hell is that?”
Hermione pursed her lips into a thin line and look away before she replied, “What use to be Dudley Dursley.”
“Merlin’s balls. You are so fucking me right now,” he fought to keep his raising bile down and tried to keep himself from looking at the remnants.
“I can’t even if I wanted to,” he heard her acerbic remark cut through the air.
He felt himself disappear after she casted a Disillusionment Charm on him and he quickly followed after her.
“Why can’t we just apparate?” he asked, trailing after her and trying to make as little noise as he possibly could.
A bitter laugh escaped her and he looked at her as if she was mental, “If only it was that easy,” she spat, disgust laced in every word. “Muggles aren’t as obtuse as they use to be. They have used alchemy to create a magnetic field that stops the magic air from flowing. Anti-disapparition wards are all over the place. You’ll have better luck just running on foot.”
“Then how are you-“
She waved his question in dismissal; her facial expression turning back to stone with every step they took, “The governor refuses to have anti-magic jinxes in his manor. Said it disturbed the air quality. And no one dears to question a man in power.”
Silence fell upon them as they came to a stop. Before them stood a door no taller than 120 cm. Dust covered the surface and Draco squinted his eyes just to see the outline of the door.
“Wait, where’s the governor now?” he asked, but after her answer, wished he hadn’t.
“I haven’t the slightest clue. Most likely suffering the same fate as his son.”
He watched as she kicked the door, his eyes quickly shutting in pain as the harsh daylight hit his face for the first time in months.
“Hurry and drink the potion. There isn’t a lot of time left. Once you leave, you cannot, can not, look back.”
He turned around to face her. So many questions, so many things he wanted to say but only one made its way through his mouth. “Come with me,” he blurted out and silently cursed at himself for sounding like a blundering idiot. “We’ll leave together,” he didn’t know whether to wince at the over-used line or laugh at the context it was being used in.
She looked up at him and the corners of her mouth slightly curved up into the first real smile he had seen from her and it was then he realized just how small she was and how young she looked.
Too young. They were all too young. Too young to be fighting. Too young to be running.
“There are moments when one has to choose between the easy choice and the right choice, Malfoy,” her brown eyes softened slightly as she looked passed him and onto the empty path before them. “This is one of those moments.”
Before he could say another word, a shriek was heard from inside the manor and she pushed him outside, “Hurry!” she hushed.
“Wait!” he yelled before she could turn back inside, “Will I see you again?” he knew it was a stupid question to be asking, but he had to know.
“Maybe,” she gave him one last smile before her face fell solemn again as another screamed was heard and she quickly shut the door.
Hopefully.
He turned around and began to walk. His walk turned into a run, which quickly turned into a sprint. Before he knew it, he was already out of breath. He was heaving, his limbs hurt, his chest ache, but he didn’t care, he just knew he had to keep on running.
And not once did he look back.