Saved by Malfoy*

Chapter 5

Hermione's P.O.V

“Hermione, I found a countercurse. You can tell me what happened,” Draco said, waving his book around.

“How does it work?” I asked, moving to his side.

“This says it's painful for a few seconds. You're supposed to lay down first then I'll say the indication,” he replied.

“H - how bad is it?”

“I'm not sure, but it won't last too long,” he replied.

I took a deep breath, mustering up what was left of my courage, and laid down. He muttered the indication a few times before looking back at me.

“Ready?” He asked.

“As I'll ever be.”

He quickly muttered the indication. I felt a sharp pain in my head, but it only lasted a few seconds.

“Did it work?” Draco asked.

“Ron went evil,” I said quietly. “Yeah, it worked.”

“Will you tell me what happened?”

I fidgeted a bit with my fingers. I knew this would come. He’s wanted me to tell him since I got here.

“I'm gonna cry if I tell you,” I stated.

“That's alright.”

I took a deep breath.

“It all started when Hagrid carried Harry's body out of the forest. Once I heard Harry was dead… I tried to get some comfort from Ron. He realized we lost the war, and he was a pure blood. He would be safe if he got the mark and found a way to help the dark lord.

“Well, he had an idea. When I went in to hug him, he threw me to the ground. I didn't know what to do. My wand dropped a few feet away from where Rob pinned me down. I ended up being captured and Ron made a deal with the dark lord.

“He started his company. I was the first Mudblood, then more came, and more. He named the company 394, to ruin every last good memory we had together. All of the Mudbloods were kept in cages, like dogs.

“We were beaten every day, over and over. I saw many of the others go to complete insanity. I was Ron’s favorite, as I was the only one to survive this long. I think he did that on purpose, but I really couldn't be sure.

“We had to follow rules. If we slipped up, hours upon hours of torture. Some rules were simple, easy, while others, not so much. The number one rule was your always fine. The list of rules go on forever.

“One day, I got lucky. I was able to escape by stealing a hair pin from the girl next to me and picked the lock. I didn't even make it to the door before I was hit with the cruciatus. After that, Ron started to brand everyone with the numbers 394. If one of us would get lucky enough to escape, we would be brought right back. Since that moment, I got tortured far more often. Each slave there was also tattooed with their owner's name.

“Beaten, cursed, cut, broken, they got pretty creative with the torture. All until I escaped again. I made it a block, before Ron slammed me to the ground. He told me I was going to be killed that day. The pain I felt in that moment, realizing I would have been done, never felt pain, then throwing it away. I was taken to an auction and sold.

"This is the longest I've been without being tortured to the brink of death in years."

I'd already had tears streaming down my cheeks. I pointlessly wiped the tears away just to have more come in it's place. Draco wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. He let me cry, something I was not allowed to do with Ron.