Secrets and Masks

34. Empty graves

16th May

The first thing Hermione saw when she opened her eyes was Malfoy's face, and for some reason, she couldn't seem to look away from him.

In all her years of warfare, in all the battlefields she'd fought on, she didn't think she'd ever seen anyone look so desperate, so utterly fucking lost and vulnerable that it made her stomach twist and her chest feel empty. She'd never seen him look so ... open. It was almost scary to see him like that. To see the way his hand shook as he clutched his chest. The distraught look on his face. And his eyes, the clearest, ocean blue she'd ever seen. His walls were down, and it made him look so much younger.

The tension in the air was palpable and heavy, weighing down on the bedroom like a fog, and for the longest time, no one said a word. The Death Eaters just stared, their eyes flickering from Hermione, to the head in her lap, and then back to Hermione again.

"Is Astoria .." Blaise whispered, and the way his voice broke was enough to tear Hermione's attention from Malfoy - for a moment. "Is she ... ?"

Although he was speaking to Hermione, his eyes were locked on his wife, looking for a tiny rise of her chest or flutter of her lashes. Desperate to see a sign of life.

Out of the three of them, Blaise understandably looked the worst. He looked almost insane with guilt. The image of a man who would open the balcony doors and happily throw himself over the edge if Hermione didn't give him the answer he wanted.

"She's alright," she answered quickly, her own voice hoarse and thick with exhaustion. "I managed to slow the bleeding and get her stable shortly after Romy and Quinzel left to get the three of you."

As soon as Hermione said it out loud, a wave of relief swept through the room.

Theo exhaled loudly like he'd been punched in the stomach. He leaned against the doorframe for support, like the relief he felt had liquified his bones and he could no longer stand on his own.

Blaise's hand flew to his mouth to quiet his sob of relief and his eyes glazed over with tears.

Malfoy just stood in the doorway staring at Hermione. Unmoving. As still as the Renaissance paintings she often thought he resembled. She couldn't be sure if he was even breathing.

"She'll need plenty of rest and blood replenishing potions - but after a few healing charms she'll be fine."

"How did you ...?" Blaise whispered as he took a cautious step closer. "You don't have magic ... "

"The muggle way. She split the back of her head open when she fell. I haven't managed to close the wound - you'll need to do that with magic as soon as possible - but I did slow the bleeding by ripping a piece of my dress off and using it as a compress." Hermione's eyes flickered down to the blonde head in her lap, and she started drawing circles across her back, avoiding Blaise's eyes. "But she was unconscious and so cold from the amount of blood she'd lost. She would have died if I didn't get her warm, and I suspected she'd have had a spare blood replenishing potion in your room in case of emergencies." She jutted her chin towards the empty bottle on the floor, confirming her suspicion was correct. "I don't have magic so I couldn't levitate her, but I didn't dare leave her to fetch a blanket and check your room, so I had to drag her up here."

The sharp hitch in Blaise's breath made her flinch slightly, expecting him to hex her for not being so delicate with his wife.

"I suspect she'll have some minor bruises and scratches along her back, " Hermione rushed through the words, wanting to make it abundantly clear to Blaise that everything she'd done was in Astoria's interest, "and you may want to cast some healing charms on them when you heal her skull, just to be safe. I'm sorry, but it couldn't be helped-"