Disclaimer: Please do not confuse me with the brilliant JKR, who does, in fact, own HP!
Her even breathing assured him that she was finally sleeping soundly. He himself wouldn’t be sleeping anytime soon. He was too anxious. Draco felt like his world was spinning out of control. The one person he’d die to protect had been taken- and then released- by the most evil wizard to exist in centuries. The only two people he’d trusted- Dumbledore and Hermione- had betrayed him. Now he found himself hiding out from both sides of a war to protect his daughter. He had been contemplating how to disappear with her- to disappear for good. He wasn’t worried about money or any of his business interests. He didn’t care about his mother- she would be taken care of. But he knew that if Voldemort was indeed after Louisa then there would never be a safe place- not as long as the Dark Lord clung to life.
The thoughts behind his desperate actions- which had seemed crystal clear only hours before- now seemed murky. He wasn’t sure if he’d done the right thing in leaving. And he felt horrible about what he’d done to Hermione. He closed his eyes and remembered her look of sheer horror when he’d Disapparated with Louisa.
“She’ll never forgive me now,” he moaned. He wished he kept firewhiskey here in the safe house. Though he’d never been intoxicated in front of Louisa, he felt like desperate times called for desperate measures. He was having trouble thinking clearly. His heart was threatening to explode. He just wanted to dull some of the ache- or, perhaps, dull the memory of Hermione’s terror-stricken eyes.
He took several deep breaths. He needed to gather his wits in order to process his current state of affairs.
What do I know? he thought. Voldemort and the Death Eaters kidnapped Louisa. She was gone for at least four hours whereas the other children who had been kidnapped were returned instantaneously. He tried to remember the exact image of Louisa’s return. That memory was tied to another more bittersweet one. He’d been in Hermione’s arms- just laying there, seeking comfort from the one person who would understand his pain.
Focus! he thought. Then he remembered the shimmering image of Louisa returning. Something about her return was troubling him. He strained to recall it entirely.
“There was no portkey,” he breathed. “How did she get away?” He’d have to wait for her to wake up before finding out about that detail. He resumed his thinking.
Louisa recognized Hermione, he mused. He thought about how Hermione would have had access to Louisa’s home. He struggled to remember what Hermione had been saying to him before they Apparated.
What did she say? Think! he sighed. He remembered looking down at her, her eyes filled with fear and anxiety. He remembered that she’d held onto his arm and told him that she’d known his secret almost from the beginning. She’d tried to calm him while she herself was tittering on the brink of losing control. He could picture her now as she said, “I promised you that I’d always be here for you- and her. That’s why I’m here now.” He could envision her eyes- her eyes had confirmed the truth in her words.
He felt his throat tighten. He knew then that he’d made a mistake. She hadn’t betrayed him. His breath was coming shallowly now as he realized that she’d die to protect Louisa. He was so lost in this revelation that he didn’t notice the wetness on his cheeks. He didn’t notice anything until a small warm hand slipped into his own.
“Daddy.” Draco scooped up his daughter, holding her close. He cried into her soft curls. He felt so lost now, despite that fact that he had his daughter in his arms again. He knew he shouldn’t be crying- knew that it was selfish to seek comfort from a child who needed him to be strong. But he couldn’t stop the burning tears.
“I thought I’d lost you,” he whispered. “And now I think I’ve lost her,” he said, even more faintly. But Louisa had heard him. She sat with him on the couch, gently patting his shoulder, her own tears flooding her eyes.
When they had both spent their tears, Draco gently pushed his daughter to his side so that he could look directly at her.
“Louisa, I need for you to be strong. I need to know what happened to you,” he said, taking her little hand in both of his own. She gave him a small nod, squared her shoulders, and then took a deep breath.
“I was playing in my room when I saw a broomstick hovering outside of my window. I thought it might have been a gift from you- or maybe from Hermione. I opened the window- I remember feeling nervous- like maybe I was going to get into trouble for trying to play with it when the Muggle children were around- ‘cause the others were just playing in the yard, right underneath it. But they didn’t notice- so then I thought that this must be just for me- and that it would be okay- so I grabbed it,” she said, slowly. Draco smiled at her so she’d know that she wasn’t in trouble and then nodded his head for her to continue.
“Well, then, I felt really strange- like something was pulling very quickly. I didn’t understand and I was really getting scared. I closed my eyes- I guess I landed somewhere- somewhere dark and cold. I couldn’t stand- I was dizzy- so I laid on the ground- it was like being in Ms. Dorothy’s basement. Then there was a bright light in my eyes- and I heard two men speaking. They were talking about me- because there was no one else around. They said that I was the right one- that at last they’d found me. They were laughing and I heard a shout. Then I felt like I’d been knocked over- like I couldn’t breathe. I fell asleep, I guess,” her tears had started again. Draco squeezed her hand, too horrified to speak.
“I woke up and someone was standing over me. A man- he was ugly- short and balding- he was gross. He was laughing at me, too. I was so mad- I didn’t know what to do. I was afraid but I felt like I had to do something. So I jumped up and kicked him as hard as I could. I kept kicking him. That’s when I heard the woman for the first time- she was laughing. I couldn’t see her. But I heard her tell the man to quit playing around and to get the blood,” she stopped, beginning to tremble. She took another deep breath, though, determined to finish her story. Draco felt a surge of pride at her resolve.
Now, her words came rushed, “So the man pulled out a knife- he had a knife in one hand and some kind of jar in the other. I started to run but the woman shouted something and I felt frozen- like I’d never move again. He stood over me- he hit me a few times- and then he cut my arm- and he held the jar underneath the cut- he was collecting my blood,” she gasped. But before Draco could say anything, she opened her mouth to continue.
With raspy breaths now, she resumed, “I thought he was going to kill me. I thought I would never see you again. I was so frightened. I started to feel like I was going to burn up- like someone was setting me on fire- I couldn’t breath- I screamed for you, Daddy. And then I heard a loud noise- like the sound of a gun- and I was back in the room- and you were there,” she paused. “You were there with her- and I thought I’d be safe- that maybe it was a nightmare.” She slumped over now, clearly exhausted from recounting her experiences. Draco pulled her to him again.
“You were so strong, Louisa. Now you listen to me because I know what you’re thinking. Taking that broomstick was not your fault. You were tricked by an evil wizard- none of this is your responsibility at all. If anything, I should have warned you- I should have been there,” he said, placing her back on the couch. Then he moved onto his knees in front of her, so he could look into her eyes.
“Louisa, things will be different now. You can’t go back to Ms. Dorothy and Ms. Nancy again. I can’t go to my apartment either. It’s no longer safe.” She nodded her head.
“We are going to stay here for just a little bit longer. I need to write to someone- someone who will help us. I don’t know what will happen after that. But I promise that you and I will stay together from here on out. Okay?” She nodded her head again, this time with a small smile. She leaned into him for a hug. He held her tightly for a few minutes.
“You’re going to write to Hermione, right? She always helps us. She’ll know what to do. And I think she’ll forgive you for tying her up- she’ll know that you were scared, Daddy,” Louisa assured. Draco looked over at his daughter, wondering if she was right about Hermione forgiving him.
“No, I’m not writing to Hermione,” he paused when he saw her expression change. “It’s not because I think she’s bad, Louisa. I don’t “ and I was wrong to think that in the first place. It’s because I need to write to someone else “ Albus Dumbledore. I think that he’ll know what to do,” he explained.
He got up and walked over to a little desk in the corner of the room. He took out some parchment and a quill and began to detail Louisa’s experiences, including her apparent use of wandless magic to get away. He paused for a moment, shuddering at the thought of what might have happened to her if she hadn’t escaped.
His owl had turned up at the safe house just minutes after they had arrived. He gave the owl the letter and watched it as it soared away. Louisa joined him at the window and they both watched the sky deepen into a lavender blue.
Within an hour, Draco’s eagle owl returned. The two had finished a couple of rounds of exploding snap when they heard the rustling of feathers. Draco jumped up and retrieved the letter from the owl. He read it very quickly several times before returning to the table where Louisa still sat.
“Louisa, remember I said that things were going to be different? Well, we’re starting that right now- Dumbledore has offered us a place to be together where I think we’ll be safe. Do you feel ready to go now?” he asked her gently.
“Will she be there, too?” she queried back, an expectant look on her face.
“I don’t know, Louisa.” He paused, looking away for a second. Then he looked back her with a curious expression on his face.
“What do you think, Louisa? Do you believe that she’ll come back to us?” he couldn’t explain why but he was very sure that his daughter would have the insight to answer this question.
She seemed very thoughtful for a moment, as if she was deliberating with herself. Then, looking directly into her father’s eyes, she responded, “Yes.” He looked at her a little bit longer, feeling a flutter in his stomach at her pronouncement. Then he walked over to his coat, reaching into one of the pockets. He pulled out the small piece of parchment that Dumbledore had given him just the day before. He returned to Louisa, kneeling at her side. He handed her the slip.
“Louisa, read this and commit it to memory.” She looked at the parchment and quickly read its message.
The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix can be found at 12 Grimmauld Place.