Disclaimer: It’s all JKR, of course.
Draco was barely aware that he was still in Hermione’s office. He knew what he had to do. He strode out the office door, retrieved his jacket, and was checking for his wand when he felt her arm on his. He felt the burn of her touch and then suddenly it was as if the volume in the room was being turned back up. He was watching her mouth move before he could actually hear what she was saying to him. Long years of training to just survive as a Malfoy allowed his detached sense of self to note that she seemed desperate. He had to get to Louisa but somehow the warm brown eyes that were now flashing at him were keeping him rooted to the spot.
“- and I’ve known almost from the beginning. And so I’m coming with you “ Draco, are you even listening to me. Draco? Draco! Oh let’s go, already.” She was yelling now. He still couldn’t understand what she was saying to him. Some part of his brain began to acknowledge that Hermione Granger was, in fact, going with him to see his daughter. Panic edged into the calm detachedness of his mind.
“What?” he yelled. But it was too late, with her hand locked in his, they had both Disapparated to the same large tree near Louisa’s home.
He was still yelling when they appeared. She immediately shushed him and pulled him down behind the large tree.
“Draco, look at me,” she said, waiting for him to look into her eyes. When she was sure that he was coherent enough to understand her words, she continued, “Draco, I know about Louisa.”
He sputtered but she held her hand up.
“Do not interrupt me right now- I know about her. I’ve known for a long time. I promised you that I would always help you- and her. And that is why I’m here. Now, we are going to go over to the home and check on her. You said that she’d be very well protected and that Dumbledore himself already knew where she was. She’s probably just fine. If you walk in there with that crazed maniacal look in your eye, you are going to seriously frighten her.” What she didn’t know was that her own eyes had a bit of a crazed gleam in them. Draco had taken this in, though he nodded at her, still at a loss for words. The two stood up, hands locked together, and calmly walked towards Louisa’s home.
“Mr. Malfoy,” said Ms. Dorothy, as she opened the screened door. “How lovely to see you. And you must be?” she looked hopefully at Hermione. Being rather fond of the tall blond man, she’d always hoped that he would show up with a special friend. She took a closer look at Hermione then and made the connection.
“Well, bless me, you’re the woman who first came to us about little Louisa. Well, my, you’ve grown up, too, -Ms. Granger, isn’t it?” She looked at Hermione now, taking in her round cheeks and mounds of brunette curls. She shrewdly said none of what was currently on her mind but made a mental note to tell her sister, Nancy, that she’d finally met Louisa’s mother.
“Ms. Dorothy, we’d like to see Louisa, now. I know we’re a bit early for lunch.” Draco was straining to maintain control of his voice. The matron just smiled at him, believing him to be nervous about introducing his daughter to the woman who could only be her mother.
“Of course, she should be in her room, Mr. Malfoy. Why don’t you two just go on up there,” she said, still smiling. She walked them into the hallway to the foot of the staircase.
“I’ll have tea ready whenever you all decide to come down.” With that, she turned and bustled towards the kitchen. Hermione squeezed Draco’s hand and the two started up the stairs. When they got to the landing of the third floor, Draco gestured towards the second door on the right. Taking a deep breath, Draco briefly knocked on his daughter’s door, before turning the doorknob.
He gently pushed the door open and the two walked in. Hermione took note of the cozy canopy bed, the full bookshelves, the large dollhouse, a cute brown owl resting in a gilded cage, a child’s broomstick, and the lingering scent of fresh irises. It was a beautiful room- it was a beautiful empty room.
Draco was looking under the bed, in the closet, and outside of the window. Hermione ran back out of the room, calling Louisa’s name. She checked all of the other rooms on that floor. Her calls had brought Ms. Nancy down from the fourth floor. Now the entire house was aware that the child seemed to be missing. Ms. Dorothy was searching the grounds with Draco, while Ms. Nancy and Hermione were going though every cabinet and closet in the four-story home.
Several hours later Hermione walked back upstairs to find Draco sitting on Louisa’s bed. She paused at the doorway, noting how out of place he looked sitting hunched over on a very pink feminine child-sized canopy bed. Under any other circumstance, Hermione would have giggled at the juxtaposition. As it was, though, the image was breaking her heart. He didn’t seem to notice her standing there. With a sigh, she walked over and sank down on the bed next to him. He still didn’t seem to recognize her. She put her arms around his shoulders, slightly drawing him out of his slump.
“We’re going to find her,” she whispered. “I’ve already alerted Dumbledore. Plus, the Muggle police have been here to pick up her picture.”
He looked over at her then, seeing comfort, concern, and fear in her warm brown eyes. She leaned in closer and he allowed himself to be pulled into her warm embrace. He didn’t say anything. He didn’t move his own arms around her. He just collapsed onto her, desperately seeking comfort from the only other human being who could have reached him in that moment. Hermione thought that he seemed both strong and fragile in her arms. Her tears started coming then. She had held them in check until then but now she felt her body rack with silent tears, all the while still holding Draco firmly in her arms. They wouldn’t ever remember how long they stayed like that.
Hermione’s tear-swollen eyes were now so puffy that not even one of Ginny’s spells could have disguised them- not that she cared, at that moment. She was still holding Draco, when they both saw a shimmering image in front of them. With a loud swooshing noise, Louisa Malfoy fell onto the floor of her bedroom.
She scrambled herself up immediately, taking in her father and then the familiar woman sitting with him.
“You!” she said, pointing at Hermione. But Draco had already jumped up and was rushing to his daughter. Hermione stood, too, curtailing the strong desire to give the girl a bone-crushing hug. She quietly watched the reunion, feeling as though her heart was going to burst from too much emotion.
Draco pulled away from his daughter to look over her appearance. Her hair was mussed, which wasn’t terribly out of the norm but her clothes were dirty, too. She had numerous scratches, a split lip, and one deep gash on the inside of her arm that was still bleeding. He ripped a piece of her canopy and pressed it into her wound. He then noticed that her eyes had remained on Hermione.
“You!” Louisa said again, though this time in a whisper. “I know you from the park and the puppet show. I’ve seen you. I’ve seen you many times. You’re- you’re my benefactress,” she finished in a tremulous voice.
But Draco was now eyeing Hermione, too.
“You already know her? But you were to meet only today,” he said slowly. He pulled Louisa closer to him and away from Hermione.
“You’ve been spying on her, Granger?” he asked, with an icy edge. Had Hermione been calmer she might have registered the warning tone in his voice. But she was, after all, still recovering from shock.
She stuttered a reply, “Er- yes, well, not spying- just checking in on you,” she said lamely. “I wanted to tell you but I was afraid that you’d freak out and then cut me off- and then I’d never know where you two were again,” she said now, rather desperately.
Draco stood, holding his daughter in his arms. The maniacal look was back on his face. Suddenly, Hermione knew what was about to happen.
“No, you don’t understand!” she began.
But Draco had drawn his wand. In a rush of words, ropes flew out of his wand and bound Hermione, knocking her over onto the bed in the process. She tried to speak but then found herself gagged on the rough rope.
“Oh, I think I understand, Granger. You tried to convince me that she was safe- you even said that that old fool would keep her safe. But she wasn’t, was she? You nearly had me deceived into thinking that you cared,” he spat at her prone form. Louisa was whimpering now.
“But you knew it was me- you knew about Louisa- and yet you said nothing? What do you want with her? What does Dumbledore want? Answer me!” he flicked his wand and the gags were gone. Hermione choked a bit at the sudden release of pressure.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Draco. Please untie me. I don’t understand this. Please- I would never hurt either of you! Never!” but the gags had returned.
“I am leaving now and taking my daughter with me. She is not going to be some pawn in anyone’s war with Voldemort. You will never see us again,” he said in a calm but fierce voice. Still holding his wide-eyed daughter in his arms, the two Disapparated in a small pop.
Hermione was now in complete panic mode. She was bound too tightly to reach her wand. In her increasing delirium, she realized that Draco must have locked the bedroom door and put silencing charms on the room because no one seemed to be coming in to check on her. Her breaths were coming too quickly. All that she had feared had now happened. Louisa had been kidnapped, though returned extremely shaken up. Draco now knew of Hermione’s secret. And, just as she’d dreaded, he taken Louisa and now they were gone.
Gone. Gone!
Hermione felt like her blood was literally going to boil. She needed to do something. She needed Harry and Ron. She felt her chest convulse and then there was quite a loud bang.
Harry and Ron were suddenly right in front of her.
“What the?” Harry said, looking around, his wand already whipped out. “Ron -what are you...?”
Ron was so disoriented that he fell over. Then they both noticed their best friend, bound and gagged, lying on a child’s bed, clearly in the throes of hysterics.
“Finite Incantatem,” Harry cried, leaping over to her, as the ropes disappeared. Ron got up on his knees, leaning onto the bed next to her.
“Hermione, what is going on?” they asked at the same time.