When Hermione was back in the Heads dormitory, she went into her room and sat down on her bed with a sigh. Now that she had calmed down slightly, she realized she had overreacted with Harry. I always blow up at people these days, she thought with frustration. What's wrong with me?
She let her eyes and thoughts wander as she curled up on her bed and let out a deep sigh. These days, nothing seemed to be right - she wasn't the calm, collected, and responsible Hermione anymore. She regularily got into fights with her friends and slacked off on her homework. All of this, she had realized, was because of Draco's constant presence in her mind.
Suddenly, she saw a glint of light on her desk. The allievrae! she thought in excitement. It had been a long time since she'd last looked into it, and she was curious as to what she would see now.
Sitting up abruptly, Hermione took the allievrae and put it on her bed. "Ostendo Posterus," she whispered, tapping the wrapper. She waited for the now-familiar morphing from wrapper to whirlpool to finish, then looked into it with bated breath.
At first, all she saw were the ripples on the surface of the puddle. Then, an image shimmered into view.
Draco lay on his bed in Malfoy Manor, alone. He had his arms stretched out behind his head, and looked as if he were in deep thought.
"Draco," came a voice from behind him. He looked up in surprise to see his father standing in the doorway. "I've just now received news of a little exchange between you and the Granger girl while you were at St. Mungo's."
Draco sat up and glared at his father coldly. "So I guess your little slaves are a bit behind when it comes to spying," he said, his voice flat and emotionless.
"Apparently," replied Lucius. "I believe we need to discuss your recent...activities. Allow me to make it clear that I will not accept you romping around with some mudblood. You're one of us, Draco, and you need to show it."
"I'm not one of you," Draco said in a trembling voice. "Nor will I ever be."
"Lift up your sleeve, child. Tell me what you see," answered Lucius in a dangerously soft voice. "The mark is there to remind you in times of doubt. You cannot escape what has already been set in stone."
"What was that you once said about Malfoys, father? Malfoys don't give up. And you can bet your damn mark that I won't give up on Hermione." Draco was now on his feet, and he stood with his arms crossed in front of Lucius. His eyes dared his father to try to stop him.
"Then I suppose there's nothing we can do about you," said Lucius, sighing disappointedly. "You're a hopeless case." He turned around to leave, but Draco apparently wasn't done yet. The younger wizard suddenly grabbed his father's arm, spun him around, and punched him squarely in the jaw.
"Oh yeah?" said Draco furiously. "Well not hopeless enough to give you what you deserve."
In one swift movement, Lucius stepped forward and grabbed Draco by the neck. His piercing blue eyes stared down into his son's grey ones menancingly as he spoke. "You've forgotten your place. Answer me this, child: What happened to you? What brought about this foolish and rebellious attitude?"
"Hermione happened," Draco said, his voice somewhat choked because of his father's hold on his throat, although his eyes still burned with hatred. "I love her, and it's something you'll never understand."
Lucius's grip visibly tightened, and Draco winced in pain. "So you love her," he said, his voice nearly a whisper now. "Is there anything else you'd like to tell me? Anything more that -"
The scene ended there as Hermione gasped and splashed the image away with one sweep of her hand. Draco is in trouble, was all her mind could tell her as she watched the droplets move back together and take on the wrapper form again. Her whole body was shaking because of what she had seen. "I have to go save him," she said out loud.
Grabbing the allievrae, she ran out of the dormitory and to Dumbledore's office. She hurriedly muttered the password to the gargoyles, then climbed up the staircase that appeared behind them, not bothering to wait for it to bring her to the top. She began knocking on the headmaster's door the moment she stepped off of the last step. "Professor Dumbledore!" she called, continuing to pound on the door. "Please, it's important."
There was no answer, and just as Hermione's fists began to hurt from slamming them against the heavy wooden door, it opened. "Finally!" she exclaimed, before she saw that it was not Dumbledore's kind face looking at her, but McGonagall's stern one. "Professor McGonagall," she said, stepping back in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"I believe the better question is, what are YOU doing here, Miss Granger?" replied McGonagall with raised eyebrows.
"I'm here to see the headmaster," explained Hermione, nervously fidgeting with her hair.
Professor McGonagall frowned and replied, "I'm sorry, but he's not here at the moment. A cousin of his is sick, and he went to visit her in Alsterdad."
Hermione's heart sank. "Then you have to help me," she pleaded. "Draco is going to be attacked at his home sometime soon; I NEED to get there before he is."
The deputy headmistress shook her head. "I'm afraid that's not possible, Miss Granger. Besides, I highly doubt that Mr Malfoy will be attacked at his very own home. Perhaps the pressure of being Head Girl is getting to you? You might want to get some rest."
Hermione groaned. "Nevermind," she mumbled as she turned away. It was obvious that McGonagall was not going to help if she thought Hermione was dillusional. "Sorry for wasting your time, Professor."
As Hermione descended the stairs, another person came to mind - Professor Haymen. That's it! Professor Haymen can help me! Her pace picked up with this new revelation, and soon she had reached the DADA teacher's office.
She rapped on the door, and seconds later, Professor Haymen opened it. "Ah, Hermione!" he said, looking pleasantly surprised. "What brings you here?" he added as he opened the door a little wider to let her in.
"Professor, Draco is in trouble. The allievrae...it showed him being attacked by his father in his room." The words came out of her mouth in a rush as she desperately grabbed the sleeve of his robes. "I need to get there and help him."
He looked down at her and sighed. "Are you sure that's what you saw?"
"Yes, I'm absolutely sure it was. Please, I need you to help me find a way there."
"Sometimes your eyes may deceive you. You can't always trust everything you see, not even the allievrae," he replied quietly.
Confused, Hermione asked, "What do you mean?"
The teacher shook his head slightly, then responded. "I apologize. My mind drifted off. Hermione, you know perfectly well that I can't allow you to leave the school grounds. I am a professor, and it's my job to ensure that you stay safe within the castle."
"But Professor!" Hermione exclaimed. "He's going to be ATTACKED!"
"I'm sorry, but that's my final word. I'm sure Draco can manage on his own...if he does get attacked. He has the shield, and I trust in his ability to defend himself." Professor Haymen gave Hermione's shoulder a pat as he said these words, then added, "I know it's not like you to do so, Hermione, but don't make any rash decisions. Remember the consequences of Harry's decision to save his godfather in fifth year." The last sentence he emphasized, and was accompanied with a knowing look.
"But..." she said, but the door had already been shut, and Hermione was once again alone in the corridor.
Fifth year...Harry's decision to save his godfather... Professor Haymen's last words echoed in her head as she tried to decipher his statement. Then, it hit her. The thestrals! That's it, I'll use the thestrals to get there!
With her mind made up, Hermione immediately began heading towards the forbidden forest. Along the way, she tried to remember what it was that the thestrals were drawn to. In her fifth year, they had been attracted by the scent of blood on Harry's robes. She also vaguely recalled Hagrid luring a few with fresh meat.
As Hermione approached Hagrid's hut, she stepped up to the door and called out, "Hagrid, are you there?"
The door swung open, and Hagrid's bushy beard and smiling face appeared. "Hermione! Great to see yeh! I'm jus' cookin' up some dinner fer me n' Fang. Aye, come in."
"I'm really sorry, Hagrid, but I can't right now. I was just wondering if you had any..." her voice trailed off when she saw the large hunk of raw meat Hagrid held in his right hand. Her eyes lit up, and she pointed to the meat as she said, "Can I borrow that?"
"Fer what?" he asked in a confused voice, but Hermione had already snatched it out of his hand and begun running towards the forest.
"I'll tell you later! Thanks, Hagrid!" she called back.
When she reached the edge of the dark forest, she leaned against a tree, panting. Dropping the huge piece of meat on the ground beside her feet, she slid down to wait.
Time seemed to slow down as she settled down and scoured the trees that surrounded her. After 40 minutes of waiting, a pair of gleaming yellow eyes appeared, followed by a skeletal, horse-like form. It was followed by another one. Perfect, Hermione thought happily as the first thestral began to tear off chunks of meat.
She waved her wand, and a magical rope flew out from its tip, arranging itself into a crude lasso and falling loosely over the second thestral's head. The thestral let out a neigh that sounded more like a screech than anything else, but otherwise did not seem to object to being tied up.
"Sorry guys," Hermione muttered as she swung unto the first thestral's back and entwined her fingers in its silky mane, "but snack time is over. Let's go." She slapped its rump lightly, and immediately, it took off into the air.
Hermione had just enough time to grab the end of the rope which was looped around the other thestral's neck before the rush of wind met her head-on. She gasped for breath, and instinctively leaned forward to maintain a firmer grip on her thestral's neck. Her spirits lifted as she soared through the sky. She was on her way to save Draco.
[A/N: Ahhh I know, cheesy way to end the fic. This chapter and the one or two that follow won't have *a lot* of romance, but don't give up yet; starting from the end of chapter 16 it will get sappy again :)]