Chosen

Seven Years Bad Luck

Draco was in a room. It was cramped and dingy, with watery light filtering through a gap between bars of a strip in the ceiling. Water was dripping. He made to stand, when he fell back, something tugging on his wrists. He looked down. Thick linked chains bound his wrists, clanking and rattling as he attempted to move. He was suddenly afraid. Where was he? Why was he here? He didn't remember how he got there; all he remembered was dancing with Hermione... 

There was a shuffle of footsteps from somewhere beyond the room. He backed away from the direction of the sound, his feet giving out on the slippery surface of the ground. He landed clumsily, his elbow smashing hard on the stone floor. There was a grinding as someone unlocked the door that Draco could hardly hear over the racing beats of his heart. Everything happened so fast, it was a blur. His father walked into the room. 

"Have you changed your mind, Draco?" His hand brandished a cane. 

Suddenly he was in front of him; he didn't even seem to have walked. With a crane and a sharp movement, the cane pore down, across Draco's chest. He screamed out, his head jerking back in suprise and smashing against the stone wall as the cane pierced his skin. He looked down. His shirt was ripped open, a red mark spreading across the white from the cut that looked too deep to have been made by the cane. Lucius wielded the cane again and Draco threw up his arms. Cuts opened up across his arms as he yelled again. The cane rose again.

"No! Please!" Draco cried out, his voice cracking, tears streaming down his face.

Lucius no longer stood above him. It was a man Draco feared more than his father; someone everyone feared but Harry. Lord Voldemort. 

"Draco." The Dark Lord hissed, "Tell me." His voice was low, snake-like and somewhat compelling, "Tell me where the girl is."

"Never." Draco spat, Hermione's smile tearing through his pain. 

Voldemort's face twisted. His tongue flicked out in forks. His eyes narrowed. His body folded in on itself, bones cracking audibly. Draco felt sick to the stomach. A snake was what was left, a huge, teeth-baring snake. It reared back, then attacked, its mouth wide open.

"NO!" Draco sat up bolt upright, bright white light making him clench his eyes shut again.Sweat drenched his body, pasting his hair to his forehead, his heart beating rapidly. 

As his racing heart calmed, he swallowed, looking around the infirmary. How had he gotten here? Was it a dream? If it was a dream, then where had he collapsed? He was dancing. Yes, that was it. But who was it with? 

Hermione. 

He flung himself out of the bed and sprinted down to where Madame Pomfrey stood over a younger student. 
"Where's Hermione?" He demanded so suddenly, Madame Pomfrey visibly jumped.

"Oh Merlin's Beard!" She exclaimed, before turning to Draco, "Hermione? That wretched girl who panders me about when you'll be waking up and at the first sign you do she leaves!" 

"Thank you!" He yelled as he ran from the infirmary. Hermione had staed with him. But, why did she leave?

Draco was impatient as he tore through the empty halls and bounced on his feet as he waited for the stairs to finish changing. By the time he had reached the portrait hole, he was out of breath and a bit dizzy. He prayed the stairs would let him up as he hopped up the steps to the girl's dorms. Apparently, his intentions were good enough as he made it up with ease. He pushed the door open and there she was: Hermione. 

Hermione was packaging her trunk when the door banged open and Draco fell into the room, panting heavily with a stupid grin on his face. She swallowed, then turned back to her dresser, pulling out all the jumpers she'd need for the holidays. 

"Why didn't you wait?" Draco's voice was strained, as if he had been running. Which she supposed he had considering the heavy breathing, "Why didn't you wait for me, Hermione?"

"I needed to pack. " She shrugged offhandedly. It wasn't at all to do with the fact he had almost kissed her... and she had almost let him. The boy who grew up in Malfoy Manor with the likes of Bellatrix Lestrange; the boy who had called her a Mudblood in their second year; the boy who had teased her for loving Ron. Ron. Her heart felt torn and ragged, not for the first time that day. 

"Hermione, don't block me out. Don't-" Hermione's cursing cut him off. 
She had plunged her hand into her drawer and smashed the mirror at the bottom, the glass fractures cutting into her palm, blood already being drawn to the surface. 

"Hermione." Draco was there in an instant, standing in front of her holding her hand carefully as he examined the wounds, "Come with me."

Hermione was sat on the bathroom counter top, her hand cupped in Draco's as he attempted to remove the glass fractures. They were in silence, the only sound of the running tap in the sink beside them and the occasional yelp from Hermione. Once the glass was removed, Draco set to cleaning out the thin cuts, washing them out and bandaging her hand up. When he looked up, he was at eye-line with Hermione. He realised her eyes weren't just brown like he had thought, but had flecks of gold in them and smudges of green too. 

"Seven years bad luck." Hermione said, breaking the tension.

"What?" Draco questioned, perplexed.

"Muggle superstition says that breaking a mirror causes seven years bad luck on the person who had broken it."

His frown deepened, "How can a mirror control a person's fate?"

"I think it is a metaphor, personally. That your actions change your path. The violence and destruction of breaking a mirror are the traits that will effect your future."

He watched her as she examined her bandages. It would be so easy to kiss her. But he couldn't do that. Instead he leaned forward and pressed his lips against her forehead. As he pulled back, she looked stunned, but he just offered her a small smile, then his hand. She took it and slid off the counter top and they walked back into her room to finish packing. 

Okay sorry for not uploading in AGES but I am currently revising for my GCSE/ final exams. Hope you enjoy this part but I won't be able to upload regularly at the moment because of said exams. But anyway, remember to vote and comment and look out for the next update!! byeeee