The Resistance

Chapter 8

Hermione was confined to the hospital wing for a further three days, until finally the end of term approached and Madame Pomfrey had no choice but to release her. She did so reluctantly however, and on one condition, that Hermione did not spend the holiday alone in the castle as she had originally thought to do.

"She won't be," Narcissa had said, making them both look up at her. "Because she'll be staying with me." Hermione had struggled to conceal her shock at this as the matron huffed loudly and discharged her. The thought of spending two whole weeks with the infamous Black family was nothing short of terrifying. Not to mention, there was an unsettlingly high probability of her coming into contact with Bellatrix, something she had actively avoided since her narrow escape from Malfoy manner. She still had to use glamour charms to conceal the scars on her forearm, and the though of coming face to face with the woman that had put them there made her very insides quake with fear .

She slept badly that night, her usual nightmare replaced by images of tall gaunt men and women with perfectly styled black hair standing over her, their wands drawn, screaming obscenities about her blood status down at her. When they woke the next morning Hermione had dark circles under her eyes, and she felt more exhausted than she had done all week. She dressed swiftly and silently, and then sat on the edge of Narcissa's bed and watched as the blonde faffed with her hair. Narcissa looked at her through the mirror, and once she had pinned the last slid into place, she turned and took the girls hands in her own.

"Okay?" she asked. Hermione looked up at her and forced a smile. Her stomach was tying itself in tight knots; squirming and writhing like a pit of snakes.

"Nervous," she said.

"Don't be. They'll love you," Narcissa said. "Just so long as they don't find out about your blood status and who you really are," she added with a nervous laugh.

"I can manage that." Narcissa smiled and planted a soft kiss on her forehead.

"You'll be fine." Then she took her by the hand, and with one final glance around the room, they made their way down to the train.

Once Hermione and Narcissa had stowed their trunks into the luggage carriage they found an empty compartment, closed the door behind them, and drew the blind down against the intruding eyes of the rest of the train. They sat side by side in silence for a moment, Hermione's fingers drumming against the edge of the seat. Upon noticing this Narcissa looked at her and raised a single slender eyebrow incredulously.

"What could you possibly have heard about my family that could make you this nervous? If they don't find out about your blood status you have nothing to worry about."

"Can't tell you," she said. "Sorry. You know the rules. Need to know only." Narcissa rolled her eyes.

"I have told them you are coming. They said they are looking forward to meeting you. Relax. It will all be fine," she reassured her, taking her hand in her own and giving it an affectionate squeeze.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you more," Hermione said. Narcissa's expression softened and she sighed; sweeping a stray curl from her face, she kissed her.

"It's okay," she said. "Now relax. You look exhausted," she added.

"Nearly drowning and then contracting hypothermia will do that to a woman," Hermione smiled weakly.

"Sleep then my love," Narcissa said. She kissed her once more and Hermione rested her head in her lap. Soon, due to the combined efforts of the rocking of the train and the soothing stroking of Narcissa's light fingers through her curls, her deep hazel eyes fluttered shut.

Narcissa watched for a while as the fields and lakes sprinted past the train windows, idly stroking her fingers through Hermione's hair, toying with her curls. She was right to be afraid of course. If her parents even suspected that they were in any way romantically involved, well, it didn't bare thinking about. They'd be furious, disgusted even. They would have to be careful. She knew that Hermione would easily be able to hide her blood status and her true past; that was the least of Narcissa's worries. What worried her most, was her sister. Bellatrix had always been able to see straight through her lies. Narcissa even suspected her sister knew her better than she did herself. She could figure out a person's motive, before they really understood them themselves. It wasn't legilmency, (though Narcissa knew she was perfectly capable of that also.) She simply had a way of reading people, and cutting straight to the heart of the matter. But would she tell? Would she even care? There was no way of knowing. She was like the weather, unpredictable, capable of changing without a moments notice, and at times, even dangerous. And Hermione clearly feared her family. The question was, why? She knew Bella could be frightening to some, and that her parents were conservative in their views to say the least. But what could they have done, or rather, what would they do, to elicit such fear in a person who had seen battles and fought a war? The idea that her own family might be capable of provoking such fear, terrified her.

When the train finally rumble to a stop in Kings Cross Station Narcissa woke Hermione and they stepped out onto Platform 9 ¾. Narcissa gave her hand one last reassuring squeeze, and out from the crowd, a tall, curvatious witch sauntered towards them. Bellatrix Lestrange. Hermione swallowed nervously. She was, just as Hermione had imagined her to be. Her hair was exactly as it was in the future, wild curls toppling over her back, sans the single streak of grey, in a dark black tumbling mess of chaos that had been roughly pinned back from her pale slender face. Her eyes had yet to become sunken and ringed by black thunderclouds; her face, though slim, was still young and beautiful, waiting to be made thin and gaunt by the dementors of Azkaban. She looked over Hermione, taking in every detail of her with one, long, penetrating sweep of her black eyes. A grin spread across her face and she turned to her sister.

"Well sister," she said, "what have we here?"