Between Fine Lines

Twenty-five.

A/N : this chapter contains graphic descriptions of torture, mentions of past torture, mentions of blood and gore and features behavior from both regulus and hermione that surpasses the general "morally grey" concept, please proceed with caution. please be kind with commentary, this was my first time writing something this dark.

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Hermione's eyes scanned carefully along the area, her and Regulus currently hiding under a strong disillusion charm. Diagon Alley was barely occupied, but even less this late at night. Her eyes peeked up at the store that belonged to Fred and George as they made their way carefully along the wall, inch-ing themselves closer to Knockturn Alley where they had watched some cloaked figures make their way.

Once Hermione had explained the map to Draco, helping him understand how it worked and locating Theo's name floating peacefully in the boy's dorm of the Slytherin common room, Blaise's name floating nearby Pansy's, the two of them in the common room. An unfamiliar look of peace had come over Draco's face when he set his gray eyes upon his three best friends and Hermione's heart hurt for him as he quietly thanked her and took the map back into his room with him.

She and Regulus had made quick work of slipping back into their own room, changing into all black clothing to sneak their way around Diagon. Hermione had almost dragged Regulus back to bed while he stood casting protection spells, weaving them into the necklace her parents had given her, because Regulus in all black left a bitter taste in his mouth, reminding him of his (brief but still) death eater days. But for Hermione? It left her with a need for a taste of Regulus.

"What are you thinking about?" Regulus whispered as they stayed in the shadows, his eyes watching two figures head for Borgin and Burkes.

"I'll show you later," Hermione replied back, voice as quiet as his, but tone suggestive. Regulus chuckled, love tapping her bum as he went to reach for her hand to pull her along the corridor that would conceal them in Knockturn Alley. "I spent way too much time in these alleyways," he murmured.

"Shh," Hermione's eyes widened at the sound of a familiar voice. "Do you hear that?"

Regulus pressed himself against the wall, inching a little closer to where it rounded the corner, a devilish smirk upon his face.

The drunken voice of Antonin Dolohov blabbering about Thorfinn Rowle 'disappearing' was unmistakable.

Regulus peered around the corner carefully before looking back at Hermione. "He's only got one other person with him, I think we stun and snatch on the count of three. Are you ready?"

Hermione's eyes sparkled at the challenge, nodding as she gripped her wand more firmly in her hand. "I want Dolohov."

"As you wish... One... two... three."

—-

"Harry... are we... where I think... we are?" Ron spoke quietly as the snow fell around them. He turned his head to look for his best friend, panicking at first when he did not see Harry. Ron's eyes finally locked on the boy crouched down in the snow and he took a few steps to see what Harry was doing, a frown coming upon his face when he realized that his assumption had been right.

Harry had brought them to Godric's Hollow.

"Can you believe I've never seen this?" Harry questioned quietly, brushing off more snow from the shared stone that was his parent's headstone. Ron peered up at the statue just behind Harry, of a man and a woman and their child. "Never once, did anybody ever think to bring me here..."

"You have a whole statue in honor of your family-your parents," Ron patted his friend on the shoulder. "They would be really proud of you Harry, I know they would be."