No Way Out | Dramione Fanfiction

༺ 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏 ༻

Ronald Weasley was a nuisance. 

Hermione stomped into the great hall where breakfast had just begun. She marched up to the Gryffindor table and slammed down a large stack of papers. "How many times do I have to tell you, Ronald? Stop meddling with my stuff!" she said.

"I didn't do anything!" Ron said, folding his arms across his chest.

"Then who else could it have been?" Hermione growled back. "I know for a fact that Harry would do no such thing as to touch my research!" She turned her ferocious stare on Harry Potter who raised his hands in surrender and shrugged. 

Ron looked down at his large — nearly empty — plate of waffles. "I just wanted to—"

"To do what?" Hermione asked, her voice dropping to a normal volume. "Were you going to check if I cited my sources? Rearrange my bibliography?"

On her left, Hermione heard Ginny Weasley snort, failing to suppress a laugh. "I'm sorry, 'Mione," Ron tried, looking up at her flushed face.

"We've spent the past few months learning all we can about—" she gestured to the papers "—so that we can end this war once and for all! We want the same thing here. So I can't understand why you feel the need to do something like this. If you wanted my notes, you could have asked."

Ron played with his fork. "Look, 'Mione, I think— I think you should slow down on the research." He wouldn't meet her eyes. "I— Harry and I were thinking, and we think it would be best if you let us do the actual Horcrux hunting."

Hermione's eyes danced around the room, making sure no one heard Ron. She frowned. "So you don't want me to come with you to retrieve it?" she asked. Ron nodded. Hermione crossed her arms. "Alright then. I'll just give you the information or— or I'll let you know if I have any leads while you're out there."

Ron just shrugged. "Yeah sure."

Hermione knew there was something else she was missing but she decided to ignore it and sat down next to Ginny. 

༺♢༻

Draco was not in the mood to socialize. He was sick of people. He ignored Blaise's efforts to get him to leave the Slytherin common room, and after a while, Blaise gave up and walked out for breakfast. 

His boredom drew him to the small bookshelf near the wall where he picked out the first thing he saw and headed back towards the sofa. He had just sat down when he heard a light tap at the window. He turned his head and saw his owl with a letter between its claws.

He stood up and retrieved the letter from the owl, and then sat back down. Upon opening the letter, Draco realized it was not a letter. It was a howler. The third one he's gotten this week, in fact. 

"Draco Malfoy! I am very displeased with you!" said his father's voice. "You've turned down the opportunity to become a Death Eater every time we offer. The Dark Lord is growing unhappier by the day. There is and will be nothing left  for you at that school once the Dark Lord reigns. I suggest you quit your whining and foolish thoughts and accept your place. Don't make me disown you."

With a pop, the howler shredded itself to pieces. A dry laugh escaped Draco's lips. He doesn't even bother to sign it, he thought to himself bitterly. 

Draco had refused to take the Dark Mark and made it his mission not to leave Hogwarts, knowing the Death Eaters couldn't reach him in person there. After Professor Dumbledore died, Professor McGonagall had set multiple wards around the castle.