Companions

Part 21: The Boy In The Dark

Tiny little toes, splashing in the puddle.

Slowly- ever so slowly- raising her head, Hermione moves in a way to hopefully not scare off the being in front of her. When she's sitting all the way up, she finds a sweet little white haired boy with big silver eyes looking at her with his head cocked to the side.

He can't be more than five.

His thin, skinny little pale body clothed in little black trouser shorts, a tiny little white dress shirt, with suit jacket and a black bow tie knotted under his shirt collar- her examines her quietly- as if she is a new species from so far off planet.

"H...hello?" Hermione quietly says. The boy just blinks- his big taking her in silently. "Are...are you Draco?"

"Yes." He shyly says and sways back and forth with his hands behind his back all timid.

"How old are you?"

"Four."

"Four...you're very dashing for four. Are you going...to a party?" He shakes his head no and looks around. "Do you know where we are? What this place is?"

"It's safe here." He says and it sends a chill down her spine.

"It's safe? What do you mean?"

"Not-ting scary here." His little pouty lips stays long and open on his face and it kills her how sweet he looks.

"Scary? H...how do we get out of here?"

"You don't want to leave....bad things happen. When you go." Swallowing hard in her throat, she doesn't know what to do. Head his warning? Or go against it? Sitting forward, she places her hands on either side of his upper arms and looks him dead in the eyes.

"I won't let anything bad happen to you...but I need to get out. I need to find some...some truth that's hidden somewhere...in—here." She looks around and back at Draco, who seems very sad.

"What's your name?"

"Hermione." She's never experienced a memory like this in the pensive. Typically, you sit and watch more or less. No one sees or hears you. No one talks to you. You simply walk through the memories the person gives you.

Draco is beyond the power of my magic if he can conjure this.

"He talks about."

"He? He who?"

"A lot of he's. A lot of scary hes."

"Please show me...please. I don't have a lot of time- Draco. I need to find the truth....but I can't do that without your help." Staring at her for a few moments, Draco turns his head from side to side slowly as he stares into her eyes softly. Ever so slowly, he extends his hand to her and she takes it- getting up, she follows the small boy through the black world and water.

Suddenly, before her eyes the world begins to take shape and color pools in and before she knows it, they are inside a small gray and green bedroom with a small toddler bed and a bunch of toys.

"Is this your room?"

"Shh...don't talk or they hear." He warns her quietly and opens the door. Still holding onto her hand, they leave his room and descend down the stairs and the farther down they go- the louder the yelling and crying gets. Standing just in the archway of one of his many parlor rooms- Draco and Hermione watch in silence as his parents fight.

"I am doing this for the greater good! Why aren't you ever happy?!" Lucius yells- he looks far younger than she's ever known him and Narcissa is just a beautiful young woman with a slight bump to her stomach.