What I Deserve

Gryffindor

Narrator's POV

Hermione woke up in a grey colored room. She felt like she had slept on a rock and her pillow was a log. She was under a warm blanket and to her left was a window that let light enter the room and unto her face. She realized there was no sun in the cloudy sky, and yet the world had figured out how to bring light.

The door opened, and Narcissa walked in. She said nothing but smile faintly and nod to Hermione. The silence was awkward and loud, as if someone was screaming for them to talk. Narcissa opened another door which seemed to lead to a bathroom and turned on the sink. She came back with a wet towel and placed it on Hermione's head.

"Thank you," Hermione managed to say, coarsely. Narcissa reached for a cup of water on the nightstand and lifted it up to Hermione's lips, which Hermione sipped.

"Draco always whines when he's sick," Narcissa started. "He always gets bad dreams, and the wet towel seems to calm him down. I never let anyone else take care of him when he falls ill."

Hermione smiled, happy to hear of Draco, but immediately frowned when she's reminded of the situation. "Draco," Hermione says. "He needs help! We need to go help him!" Hermione grabs Narcissa's hand. "We need to go now!"

Narcissa calms Hermione down, taking her hands in. "It's alright," Narcissa hushes. "Draco will be fine. I know Astoria well enough to know she won't harm him."

"But, she threatened to kill him!" Hermione cries. "She threatened his life! The only reason I left was because she said she would kill him if I disobeyed her."

Narcissa's eyes widened in anger and fear. "She threatened you with his life?"

Hermione nodded. "Please," she whispered. "Harry and Ron. She has them too. Cormac and Astoria are working together. They've already killed someone, they'll do it again! We need to help them!"

Narcissa was filled with worry; her eyes fluttered and her breath quickened. "First, we need you to recover. You're the only one who can help locate them."

"I doubt it," Hermione said. "Not even Astoria and Cormac are dumb enough to stay in the same place. They would've moved by now."

Narcissa fixed the towel on Hermione's forehead. "Astoria will come herself. I know it."

Hermione let her tears fall. "But will they be okay? Harry? Ron?" Hermione's voice cracked. "Draco?"

Narcissa did the one thing she could do; she smiled with the heart of a mother. "They will be fine. I'll see to it."

Hermione rested easier and closed her eyes. She was so tired, and within seconds, the image of Narcissa's loving smile faded and she was in deep sleep.

*****

Harry woke with a thud. He felt the earth move from under him, his body scraping against the ground. He was being dragged. He couldn't see anything; there was a cloth covering his sight, but he was cold and the floor beneath him felt like dirt. The smell, it was so familiar. It smelt like....a forest. Harry could smell the strong scent of trees and the earth and the....lake?

Hogwarts, he thought. We must be in the Forbidden Forest!

Harry's hands, too, were tied, but he could reach his face. He carefully tugged on the cloth over his eyes and pulled it down. It was dark out and the moon provided light. He turned his head around to see Cormac, or his back. He looked around for anyone else, Ron, Hermione, Draco. But he was alone with Cormac who had his wand sticking out of his back pocket, dangling and ready to fall. Harry held out his hands, ready to catch the wand once it fell.