DRAGON'S HEARTSTRINGS || dramione | harry potter

Chapter Three

Two days later, when everything was already arranged, Hermione packed up an enlarged small suitcase with her clothes and books, climbing down the Hogwarts stairs with both hands full feeling at home one last time. She wasn't sure what awaited her in the future, she didn't know where her home would be from now on, and if she will even have a home, but she was certain that the next time she will be at Hogwarts it won't feel like this anymore.

She was almost down to the east wing on the first floor where Snape had told her to wait when she heard someone scream, "Granger!"

She turned around and saw barefoot Pansy with her hair tangled up and an infirmary's blanket thrown over her shoulder, making her resemble a gnome. She was trying to catch her breath after running all this way to catch up. But what surprised Hermione was what Pansy had in her hands – the ginger fur of her pet was bright and shiny.

"Crookshanks!" Hermione exclaimed, and the cat meowed pitifully at her.

Pansy reached out her hands as if disgusted by the animal, "Granger, you have to take this beast with you, don't leave it here!"

"I can't take him with me. Should I remind you where I'm going? Besides, Harry promised to take care of him."

Pansy rolled her eyes, "You know Potter's promises are worthless, and he might allow all sorts of creatures in his bed, but I won't be sleeping with this demon next to me."

Hermione ignored the implications of that last part. "Merlin, fine, give him to me," she said, taking the cat from Pansy's hands. "And please, put on some shoes. Cho will be so mad if she sees you running around like this."

Pansy grinned, "I won't tell of you won't." After a moment of mutual silence, she added more quietly, "And don't let him scare you."

Hermione smiled sadly, "I won't."

This could've been a great moment to hug, and Hermione terribly wanted to hug someone since no one except for Pansy came to see her out. Sure, it was really early in the morning, and everybody had better things to do, but she really hoped for something different. She would hug if it was someone closer to her, but Ron was dead, Harry was somewhere else, and there was no one else she could want by her side now. So Pansy and she just stood there awkwardly for a couple of moments.

Pansy agreed to let her go only after a bunch of more threats, and when Hermione finally got to the main door of the east wing, he was already waiting.

He stood there with his back turned to her clad in a black cloak. Then he turned around, and instead of his face, she saw a mask that resembled a skull – the usual Death Eater outfit, but slightly different from what she remembered. Upon closer look, she noticed the robes were embroidered with metallic ornaments, there was also a belt with at least ten sharp knives. He wore thick leather gloves, and his hair was hidden by a hood of his cloak. He held no wand between his lithe fingers. When Hermione came to stand side by side with him, she realized he was so much taller and so much bigger than her. She couldn't help but wonder whether using dark magic and torturing and killing people while having no single empathetic bone in one's body makes people grow into literal walking mountains. If so, the Order was doomed.

Why was he wearing his Death Eater clothes? Why was he hiding his face under a mask, for a second time even? Was he trying to intimidate her like that? Did he want her scared? She had to admit, it was hard not to feel threatened by his darkly overwhelming presence.

Neither of them said anything, and Hermione started wondering whether this was actually the High Reeve and not some random Death Eater coming here to take her. She looked around after getting a strange feeling of being watched, and she could swear she saw Moody hiding in the shadows, nodding to her. She looked back up at the High Reeve – it was impossible to guess what he was thinking, what he wanted, what he expected from her because his face was hidden and all she saw before her was camouflage. But something in his body language made her think he was looking down at Crookshanks in her hands.