Hermione's hazed depiction of the matter was undeniably unreliable. Everything in her mind wasn't trustworthy, it were as if she had a picture pasted in her memory yet there were splotches. She had sentences she heard from war yet some words were missing.
She knew very little, but what she did know was the feeling of a tight grip on her wrist being lured out of the imprisoned cell.
"This one better be of some use." A voice peered through, yet she was hardly regaining any sense of stability to put a name with the voice.
"The dark lord always has a need." The second voice responded, she hated the words they exchanged. She still had her blurry perception of time, yet she was already hearing of the dark lords name.
Dolohov and Greyback, those are who had a stance on her current state. Death eaters swarmed the castle, they were at every angle, in every corner, guarding every entrance and all exits.
"We're taking her to Pomfrey, she needs to be conscious to be useful." Dolohov spoke as they turned the corner making way to the infirmary. She resisted, yet the lasting effects of crucio took their toll causing a limit on movement. The pain still carried through to where it was almost as if she was dragging her feet against the floor beneath.
She was thrown into the room where others lied. Some were in critical condition, and others were chained down to the thin spaced beds. Madame Pomfrey showed looks of pain and agony as she cared for the beings she had present. There were death eaters practically watching her like a hawk, whilst she kept her gaze focused bandaging and healing each individual who required it.
It was as clear as day that not a single soul left that battlefield without a mark nor a scratch, there were dozens being treated, yet there were also familiar faces being securely guarded by death eaters that did whatever they could to move from the space they were isolated into. She didn't know which question she wanted answered first, yet by the look of Pomfrey's stoned stare she shouldn't have asked anything too loud.
"This one, test her memory, she can barely stay up right." Dolohov muttered, whilst he practically chucked Hermione to Pomfrey's hold, whilst she gripped her upper arm keeping her two feet on the ground.
Hermione took a few looks around as she tried to pinpoint any face of familiarity. She saw Luna and Ginny across the room whilst they read looks of misery. Practically every single being who survived the battle were heavily surrounded by death eaters, whilst their bodies shivered and lips quivered.
"Miss Granger are you alright?" Pomfrey slightly spoke whilst she kept her eyes at every corner and whispered in almost silence.
"What--happened?" Hermione forcefully spoke, whilst she still shrugged to keep a steady posture.
"Hermione, what was last you remembered?" She uttered while she sat Hermione down slow and steadily.
"I--the war--Harry, dead--" She spat words that flowed through her head, none of which correlated with the previous.
"Dear, that was days back." Pomfrey said confused and with slight worry.
"What? How long was I in the dungeons for?" She immediately questioned.
"A while miss Granger." She said, whilst Hermione's eyes scattered the room, in hopes of seeing a door that wasn't blocked off, or a window that shed light, yet there was nothing. All that stood were dozens of the dark lords workers.
"Well, we have to get out, we can't stay--"
"Hermione, put away you're Gryffindor pride, actually kill it off from now. Don't try to be smart, don't be foolish. Keep you're gaze fixed down, whatever you might think will work, won't. People have been trying to get out of this place for days, none of which succeeded." Pomfrey turned her head as did Hermione to the remaining students whom of which looked dreadful. They all looked as if they had been tortured, and practically flinched at any given movement.
"Everyone practically has their each and own death eater to watch their every move. The dark lord plots and plans as we speak, for now we are caged in." She spoke hopelessly.
"Well, that is whoever is left, someone had already lost at the hand for simply thinking they can outsmart."
Hermione felt her chest close up, her stomach ache in agony, and her head spin for miles. Her breathing fell out of place, whilst the words struggled to form. "Who?"
"Neville, he tried quite a few times, yet they had enough. All of us thought you had escaped, never crossed my mind they threw you in the cells."
"You don't know much of what's going on do you?"
Hermione moves her head in no.
"These death eaters, their whispers are far too loud. After the dark lord got his reign, we all assumed he would gather whom he desired to work for him. Yet he has far more complex plans, he truly won't rest till he is undefeatable. He wants every last Horcrux in his possession, this ensures he shall stand for good."
Pomfrey's look intensified and read discomfort at the recognition of her own words.
Hermione's face changed in confusion. The Horcruxes? She was almost certain she and the rest retrieved them, then again the dark lord still stood, and her memory were to be unreliable. Yet she still tried to recall the past events of her position with aiding the help of trying to defeat the dark lord. Her head clouded--spun, she couldn't remember anything for certain.
"We never found them? Me, Ron--Harry, we all looked for them--we all tried--"
"Yes, well I am sure you did, yet you didn't retrieve them."
"Hermione, the dark lord knew of you and the rests expedition to access the very objects in needs to kill him. Do not think for a second that he won't be eager to get a word in with the very person who dug the deepest to find those items."
None of this clicked in Hermione's mind. Why would the very person who created the Horcruxes want to speak to the ones who merely got close? He must have known where they were himself.
"Madame Pomfrey, that doesn't make any sense. If he wanted to obtain the Horcruxes surely he knows where they lie." Hermione spoke in a slight louder whisper, whilst she still kept it down and her guard up.
"It seems that way, yet if what these guards that surround speak the truth, then the dark lord was never the one who physically hid them." Hermione tried to piece the words, yet they were still hard to hear.
"He made them, of course he hid them." Hermione said with confidence in her statement.
"Hermione, he ordered a different death eater to hide each Horcrux. He had all these workers and you truly think he wouldn't use them every second of every day? Of course he would, that way it was harder to retrieve each one, they were all in completely different spots, hidden by entirely different people."
Pomfrey looked worried, as Hermione's expression grew concerning by the minute.
"Thats why they are letting everyone including you out from the dungeons, he will with no doubt enslave most--yet any who withholds useful information will be wanted upon his request. They now order me to check you're mental and physical stability to ensure you're use."
Hermione grew nauseous, whilst Pomfrey looked as if tears were about to erupt.
"I thought this were to be over, yet I fear it has just begun." Said Pomfrey helplessly.
Hermione sat in disturbing silence for just a mere moment, as she felt slightly in shock. It was always horrible before, yet it was a worsened nightmare come to life.
"We--have to get out of here." Hermione said as she scrambled whatever words she could to express her devotion to run and never turn back.
Pomfrey looked at her with pity.
"No, we absolutely cannot. I have told you this merely minutes ago, the dark lord has his death eaters at every inch of this castle. Their guards are up higher than ever, he has them set automatic to kill whom ever disobeys. He has dozens to go after whoever doesn't comply."
Pomfrey's gaze shifted around, as she eyed the death eaters that guarded every minuscule edge, and kept a fixed gaze on every being present.
"The Malfoy's, they are ruthless, they will kill as if it's simply nothing. Practically a copy and paste of the dark lord himself." She said bitterly, yet still read disgust.
"When the chaos erupted outside this place, I thought I had seen them kill more than the other death eaters. The dark lord favors their assistance over any other soul. They don't feel remorse, they kill on continue until the dark lord says otherwise."
"All of them--thats wrong--that can't continue." Hermione spork in disbelief to the inhumane acts she spoke of.
"Yes, well while you all were hauled down to the dungeons I practically seen dozens upon dozen fall just at the Malfoy's hands. Lavender Brown, Dean Thomas, those are most likely ones that hurt to hear the most. Yet at the dark lords and his followers power who knows who's next. All they did was simply mutter a killing curse, and just like that they are gone."
Pomfrey looked at Hermione's determined, yet disturbed expression.
"Miss Granger I beg of you, do not act on you're foolish thoughts that I know you have. I have been the ears of these walls since the war, and I have heard the plans and I have seen the deaths. I am simply warning and prepping your for what's to come. It's disturbing and its utterly terrifying and if you do not comply they will have no mercy, nor feel any ounce of remorse."
Pomfrey started to slightly grow determined in her ongoing statements, yet kept herself weary of the surrounding. Her expression immediately fell as footsteps near behind her. Terror filled her being.
"The dark lord wishes I check in on the Mudbloods current status." Spoke up Dolohov as he kept eyes on Hermione. Pomfrey's breath excellerated and her voice slightly shook.
Dolohov placed his hand upon Hermione's chin forcefully bringing her eyes to meet with his as he closely examined her features present. She immediately pulled her whole being back as Dolohov looked down upon her in complete disgust.
"Of course, it's always the flithy Mudbloods." He spat as his jaw clenched, as he drew his wand out and extended his arm, whilst Hermione laid right upon the tip.
"Crucio." he muttered with no resistance, as Hermione fell down from the infirmary bed and crumbled upon the cold touched floor. A few more death eaters came from out the shadows whilst they stood behind Dolohov in extra precaution.
Hermione went back into that state of complete stone cold pain, as she just staggered through the excruciating effect the Cruciatous curse casted.
"S-she has a very hazy memory, she didn't even know how long its been since the war, she's slowly starting to forget past events--I figure I--its from all the pain and the torturing has starting to mess with her mind. it surely can also be her trying to suppress the traumatic memories she has encountered, in hopes of forgetting all the bad doing she has witnessed. She also could have simply been struck too hard on the battle ground--or might have had a terrible head injury t--that had been causing gaps within her memory."
"Can she remember events from before the war?" Dolohov demanded.
"Her mind remembers some, yet others are hazy. I--I expect that with time, they will slowly start to make their way back, and she will remember certain times one by one." Pomfrey quivered as she spoke every word. The death eaters were practically on her back, forcing ever ounce of information she had uncovered.
"What if one had a look in her mind?" Dolohov questioned.
"Well, that depends on ones skill, it still will not work as adequately. Yet if someone were to master the skill, it might be of use." Pomfrey rapidly spoke.
"I guess we must give it a try." Dolohov spoke as he went to perform legilimency. Hermione tried with all she could to block him out, yet it was far too late for that. Although he managed to get somewhat within her core memory, it was apparent that he wasn't a master.
He still was able to dive into very minuscule, distant memories. Yet they were also ones that weren't of any interest to them, not the dark lord.
Instead he saw moments of when she was young. Ones from first and second year, ones of her parents, and ones of her loved ones. He wanted to uncover moments in which she and her peers had went to go Horcrux hunting, yet he wasn't skilled enough to get into the memories Hermione had hazy and clouded within her mind. The ones he saw were scattered, useless, in the sense that nothing he saw helped the dark lord in any way.
With every inch he chose to dive in deeper it exhausted Hermione's brain even further. She felt trapped, ad isolated, she felt herself diminish under the spell, and fell in defat even greater with every second that had passed. She knew she was screaming with her might, yet she wasn't aware of how loudly and vivid her terror echoed through.
Dolohov finally removed himself from her thoughts and grew frustrated at the event. Not only was Hermione witnessing the immense throbbing of her minds ability, but her body trembled at the remaining feeling of the torturous curse.
"Why are you blocking out you're thoughts? You cannot conceal a thing." Dolohov spat as Hermione tried to remain any ability of strength or speech.
"I--I'm not--I cant remember everything--I don't know much." She stuttered out, as her voice was shaken up. She kept her gaze on the ground whilst Pomfrey grew anxious at the scene.
Dolohov's hands balled up as he was almost shaking in the presence of fury.
"The dark lord will do well with it, hopefully he kills you mudblood to nothing." Dolohov harshly spoke as Hermione kept her gaze down and so did Pomfrey.
"The dark lord will not spare you filth." He says with a grin of joy at the image.
"At least let me torture the Mudblood to shambles." One of the death eaters that stood behind spoke, as he began to draw out his wand.
"No, the dark lord will need her conscious. Besides she'll get what's coming her way." Dolohov interfered, as the tension in the room grew heavy and full, whilst it weighed down ones being.
"Call Severus, If I am correct he taught this one." Dolohov beckoned, as one of the few who stood behind went out for a couple minutes whilst he returned with Snape right beside.
"What seems to be the problem." Snape spoke as he looked down upon Hermione's fragile state whilst she still yearned for air.
"This one can't seem to remember certain crucial events. I tried looking through her minds space, yet I couldn't uncover the necessary information. Perhaps you can give it a try."
"Yes, I remember this one, one of my most horrendous students." Snape spat, as he looked at Hermione. She barely had any strength to defend herself. She couldn't find it in her to resist, nor remember.
Hermione sensed Snape's cold gaze fixed on her, as he pried his way through her minds enclosure. He didn't see much different than Dolohov had. He viewed interactions with fellow students, earlier times in her life and very scattered moments of the battle. Yet he couldn't bring himself to find any moment in which she journeyed on her search.
Hermione soon grew sued to the sense of her mind being invaded, yet her head still spun and screams slightly carried through. He eventually found himself going through nonsense moments to which he withdrew from her minds capacity.
"Did you see anything of use?" Dolohov immediately asked, as Hermione bit down and clutched herself close to stop the continuous shaking she experienced.
"All I could uncover were nonsense and small moments from battle, nothing I believe the dark lord will take any interest in. I can't decipher whether she's concealing her thoughts, or if she merely cannot remember." Snape spoke in slight question, whilst he went off into thought.
"The dark lord will want to know what she knows." Dolohov said slightly worried like. It wasn't clear how much trust he put into the other death eaters, yet hey had to respond to his every beck and call.
"Yes, well she could very much be lying, or can't dig deeper within her own self. Unfortunately there is no way to know for certain, perhaps the dark lord can uncover what's needed."
"Is there a particular reason as to why she's unweary?" Snape questioned as he turned to Pomfrey, whilst she stood in pure shock and fear.
"Based off w--what I have seen I presume she's experienced major injury, causing memory gaps, o--or she has automatically suppressed--t--the traumatic experiences, but its hard to tell." Pomfrey immediately said as she could barely look him in the eye.
"Is torturing it out an option? She might get flashbacks of the time of the war." Snape questioned as Hermione grew a pit within her stomach at the idea he projected out.
"I--I am afraid that will only make it far worse t--torturing might have been a factor of the memory loss in the first place. She cannot handle it whilst still trying to remember past events I--it would b--be all too much a--at once." Pomfrey said whilst Snape looked at her In a cold stone stare as she struggled to get the words out.
"The dark lord has given me far too many tasks to focus on this one, I suggest we leave it him. If anyone could get their full perspective into ones mind it's surely him." Snape said with full confinement within his words.
"The Malfoy's. They are exceptionally well at the skill, I might bring the situation to their attention as well." He spoke.
"Indeed they are, I have seen them merely torture one to the ground for how well they invaded their mind." Responded Dolohov, as Hermione simply took all this talk as agony within itself.
"Very well then, we will bring it to the dark lords attention, for then he will decide how to go about it." Snape concluded, as he took one last spine rattling glare at Hermione, as she lifted her head up for merely a second as her body still remained weak.
Hermione shifted her gaze from where she sat all the way across the room as Ginny had already been looking right at her to capture her attention. She looked as if she were trying to say words yet she couldn't quite figure them out.
Within a split second she witnessed Ginny drawing out her wand from the back. She had no clue as to how she managed to have it within her hold, she surely did not have hers. Ginny slowly raised her hand, with the wand clutched as she had two death eaters right in front of her with his back turned. Hermione looked at her with refusal, she practically begged with her eyes for her to stop, yet she just signaled her head to the exit.
Was she trying to distract them? Whatever she was doing she was foolish.
"Drop the wand." Dolohov hissed as he caught glance of her action.
Ginny kept a firm grip of the wand, as the death eaters whom guarded her turned around and immediately pulled out their wands as well.
"I said drop the wand now." Dolohov screamed out once again, yet Hermione witnessed the determination within her eyes and the hesitance in her plan.
Dolohov and Snape made their way, wands out to where Ginny and the other death eaters were practically having a stand off. All attention diverted towards Ginny.
"Hermione. Run." Ginny shouted from across the infirmary right as she tossed her wand as Hermione caught it. She had no clue as to why Ginny gave up her only source of protection. Was it with the intention that Hermione would get them both out? She had no clue. It took Hermione every ounce of strength she possessed to head for the door. She stumbled and shook as she still had the pain run through, yet she still made her way.
She turned back, whilst she ran through the corridors and clutched onto that wand for dear life. She continuously looked over her shoulder, yet could practically hear the death eaters following closely behind. She kept running to the best of her ability whilst she turned every corner to try and get them off her track, yet they still were to be heard running down the same halls she did.
She turned the last corner where she was met with a dead end. Dolohov turned at the exact same moment. Hermione knew she had messed up, whilst she saw Snape follow right behind.
"Crucio." Dolohov shouted, yet Hermione dodged the curse.
"Expelliarmus." She aimed, yet Dolohov blocked.
"Here I thought you were one of the smart ones." Dolohov spat as he chuckled slightly in admiration to Hermione's current state.
"Crucio." Dolohov casted once more, yet Hermione was quick to move and still maintain a steady gaze on him. She switched her eyes from him to where Ginny was restrained by Snape, whilst he had his wand digging into her chest. He was doing so in a threatening manner.
Yet after all his misses, Dolohov did not rest.
"Crucio." He said once more, as Hermione's gaze fell from Ginny and her whole being hit the ground beneath. She let the pain of what felt like hundreds of knives edging through carry out as she scrambled across the cold hard floor for the wand.
"Drop the wand Granger." Dolohov hissed as she tried to rise from the ground. Wand in hand.
She debated. She could either stay and fight between them till one falls or make her way out to an exit.
"Granger." He spoke threateningly.
At this point Ginny was on the ground and Snape had his wand pointed directly at her. She could not do anything in Ginnys favor.
Hermione looked at her with eyes filled with Pity, as Ginny gave her a helpless nod.
She watched as the killing curse consumed Ginnys body, to where she lied there completely still. Completely quiet. She fell to her knees as she saw the satisfied look upon Dolohov's expression.
Dolohov made his way to where Hermione sat slumped as he grabbed her wrist restraining them back as she didn't see the point to resist.
"Not very smart, are you now?" He smiled through his words as he pushed her in front.
"Take her back to the infirmary, it won't be long before we take her to the dark lord." Snape said as Hermione read looks of disgust at what just took place. The words Snape spoke made it even worse.
Dolohov kept a steady grip of both her wrists, whilst he forcefully moved her in front as she struggled to keep herself up right. She couldn't do anything, as harsh hands forced her steps.