𝐄𝐔𝐍𝐄𝐈𝐑𝐎𝐏𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐀

☾ Chapter 26

☾

*viewer discretion is advised*

The fire had been tamed by the time she awoke, subconsciously dragging her hand around the sofa in search of his body, but he was no longer there.

She was tucked beneath the black blanket laying on her side, eyes blinking open to find Malfoy's presence missing, his bedroom door closed and locked shut.

Hermione couldn't fathom why he kept leaving her.

She wasn't in the mood for a confrontation, so the moment his door burst open she squeezed her eyes shut, nuzzling back into the warm blankets.

She heard him stride lightly into the kitchen with a groan, metal teapot screeching onto the stovetop before turning on with a small click.

The floorboards began to creak, his footsteps halting right in front of the maroon couch.

Hesitation vented from his shoulders.

Slowly he reached down a hand, brushing a curl that had fallen in front of her eyes back behind her ear with a small whisper.

"Oh, Granger..."

He let out a sigh and returned to the whistling teapot.

The clink of china against the table meant he had left her a drink, the shut of the front door signaling she could open her eyes.

He was always so soft with her whenever she wasn't awake.

Finishing off her tea she plopped the empty cup gently into the sink, rinsing it with warm water and soap before placing it on the drying rack.

She looked upwards.

A small radio sat at the top of the shelf. How hadn't she seen it before?

Standing on her tip toes, she tuned it to the last channel she remembered having information regarding the war. Most had been demolished due to bankruptcy and extortion.

Broken voices mixed with the hiss of white noise.

'...The Dark Lord's army continues to taint our..... cities and towns ransacked.... missing magi list.... many people are...... pray for their families... Mary Darkbird, Lilah Honeycreek, Aleksander Harbor..... Oleander Maxwell, Miles Marcus....'

A large wave of feedback forced her to turn it off, covering her ears.

She returned to the living room with a squeal at the sight of a large stack of books by the fireplace, the shelf in his room having been completely cleared out, the dirt cleansed from his floor.

Hermione began by organizing them into categories, choosing one from each pile to start with.

She didn't stop flipping pages until her stomach began to grumble for lunch, taking deli meat and two slices of white bread from the little refrigerator, making sure no crumbs made their way to the floor.

She watered his plants once again, green leaves fluttering in the calm wind, moist dirt strengthening their roots. She only shut the slightly open window when rain began to trickle inside, onto the counter.