If You Were Mine

The Elder Wand

Hermione woke the following day in Ginny's bedroom. She was set up on the spare bed, her shoes and jacket laid out neatly on a chair not far away. She faintly remembered how she got here, she had been on auto pilot after the trial had ended, after Lucius had blown her world to smithereens. She clutched at her chest, her heart was nothing but cinders, Draco had burned through her, just as she predicted he would, except she never thought it would hurt this bad.

She let out a pained cry. She had let herself be vulnerable, let herself fall for him... she was a fool! She should have known better than to trust anything Lucius had to say. He'd orchestrated the entire thing, knowing she wouldn't help unless she was coerced and knowing Draco wouldn't fight for himself, but he would fight to stay out of Azkaban for Hermione.

Now Draco was acquitted, Lucius didn't need Hermione to motivate Draco anymore, Lucius didn't care if he broke Draco to keep him in line. He'd built him up just to tear him down, proving once and for all who was in charge.

There was a gentle tapping on the door that caught Hermione's attention. Ginny stepped inside. She stood a little way away as if afraid to startle Hermione.

Hermione wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeves, doing her best to stop crying. 'Ginny!' she greeted her.

'Hermione... I'm so sorry,' she said, sitting next to her on the bed. 'I know how much you liked him... even if you wouldn't admit it,' she said touching her forearm.

'I feel so stupid,' Hermione told her. 'So stupid!'

'You were tricked by Lucius, he is a conniving, cruel ass hat!' Ginny swore. Hermione laughed and cried.

'He is!'

'At least your parents are safe, that's all that matters,' Ginny said, tapping Hermione's arm.

'You're right, of course you're right! I've been consumed with trying to do everything I could to help them... I should be relieved!' she said, sobbing again. 'I I.. I just didn't expect to...' she covered her face again, trying to pull herself together. 'Fall for him,' she said finally.

'I know,' Ginny sighed.

'He hates me,' she added. 'He called me a Mudblood,' she sobbed. It hurt just as much as it had the very first time he had called her it back at school. She fingered the rune around her neck. Did he truly mean it? Or was he just angry and lashing out?

'I know you don't want to hear this... but you're better off without him, we all think so,'

Hermione couldn't get anymore words out, they stuck in her throat and she gagged on them. Ginny wrapped her arms around her and Hermione cried herself out.

*

Hermione stayed locked away in Ginny's room for a few days, no one bothered her. She mostly lay in bed or sat by the window watching the birds outside. She tried to remember who she had been before she had fallen for Draco. The problem was the old Hermione was gone and all that was left, was a chard broken version of herself she didn't recognise.

A different Weasley brought her a different meal throughout the day, each one trying to coax her to leave the room.

'Come on Hermione,' Ron said gently thumping her shoulder. He had brought her a cup of tea. He wanted her to cheer up. She gave him a withering look. 'Dads looked into your parents, off the books of course, they are safe. Lucius doesn't know where they are and he will never find them,' Ron reassured her.

'Thank you,' she said grateful.

They sat in silence for a while. Ron held her hand. 'I don't like seeing you this way,' he said, shaking his head. He started pinching the air with his fingers all around Hermione.