Court Cases and Cafes

Ch. 31

"What I mean, Granger, is that there is a potion that will reverse the effects of that spell Weasley put on you."

Hermione sagged into the counter, her breathing heavy.

"You mean," she said shakily, "That I learned Braille for nothing?"

Malfoy chuckled, and she heard him rummaging through a cabinet of some kind.

"I ordered the petals of a Juliet rose for that potion the moment we got here," he said, and Hermione could hear the clank and clatter of glass bottles and vials hitting the counter. "And I think that's my owl with a package now."

Sure enough, Hermione could feel the wingbeats of a large bird entering the house, and Draco's sharp intake of breath.

"They're beautiful," he whispered. "Like...like a sunrise."

For a long while, the only thing to be heard was the clatter of bottles, the hiss of chemicals, and Malfoy's measured, even breath.

"It must boil for ten minutes. Then we mist it onto your eyes."

Hermione's hands shook.

"Then you can see."

It felt like an eternity and a snap of her fingers all at once when Malfoy pressed something into her hand.

A small, cold vial.

Hermione raised the uncorked glass container to her nose, and the scent of fresh tea caressed her senses.

"It'll burn like a-" Sneeze. "Bless you," Malfoy said, "So don't let it touch any other part of your skin than your open eyes."

"I assume this will hurt," Hermione said, bracing herself on the counter.

"Not really. There will be a tingle on your eyes, and you won't be able to see until I've gotten both." She heard the click of a sprayer, and held her breath.

The first spritz nearly sent her out of her mind as Hermione jumped a foot and a half. The spray missed her completely.

Malfoy put a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down. It's not going to kill you. And neither am I. have you no faith?" Hermione knew a smile when she heard one, so she tried to relax. "Besides, I'm taking a certain pleasure in knowing I'll be the first thing you see when you open your eyes."

"Let's try that again," she suggested, sighing at him.

"Three, two, one...." Squirt.

"Three, two, one...." Squirt.

Hermione opened her eyes.

"Dear lord."

At that moment, another owl flew into the house.

The seal on the package it carried was a large 'L'.

"Lestrange," Hermione said, puzzled.

Scanning the letter, Malfoy's face got whiter than Hermione thought possible, and a sinking sense of dread filled her stomach.

"Merlin's beard."

"Malfoy..."

"Just read it."

Hermione obliged.

"Rodolphus Lestrange? I thought he was dead..."

"Apparently not." Malfoy looked up into her fury-filled eyes, his own ice-cold.

"He's come back...to collect his property."

"What could he possibly not want his ancestors to have? And why would he contact us about it? It would have to be something he had taken personally, something that means a lot to purebloods and is pure junk to the rest of us."

Malfoy leaned on the counter, and for a long moment, he didn't say anything.

But when he turned, quick as a flash, his answer to her question was barely more than whisper.

"Theo."