Hermione's lips were white, and she was shaking as she stared at the body of the man laying in a pool of blood. Draco felt a little sick, remembering the war, but he didn't really regret killing the man. He'd protected her, and that deeply satisfied him. He stepped over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. "Hermione, are you okay?" She nodded numbly, although she really wasn't. She had been hoping that they wouldn't have to kill anyone on this odd journey, but apparently she'd hoped in vain. She slumped slightly, and Draco stepped closer to her and rubbed her back. "We had to do it, he was going to kill you. You need to sleep." She leaned into him, exhaustion clouding her mind.
"Yeah..." She muttered lowly, closing her eyes. He picked up her limp form and laid her on the bed. She was asleep as soon as he pulled the covers over her, and he wondered if she'd have nightmares. He hoped not, because he couldn't stay here all night. He felt tired now, no longer wide awake and worried. After making sure she was comfortable, he turned and lugged the body to the window, silently cursing the entire time. If he'd had his wand, he could have cleaned it up in a moment. But since he didn't, he would have to do it the hard way. It took some time, but soon enough the body was lying on the bottom of the moat below her window and the blood was pretty much out of the carpet. After he was done, he shot one last look at Hermione and stepped out of the room, locking the door behind him. He then headed down the hall, his eyes heavy with sleep. All danger had now passed, at least for the night.
Hermione sat up suddenly, gasping. The sun was shining in from the window and she could hear the servants in the hall. It took her a moment to calm down and remember where she was. Shifting in her bed, she looked over at the spot where the body had fallen. It wasn't there, and she wondered if it had just been a weird dream. But when she got up and walked over to the spot, she could see the dark stain on the carpet and knew that it had been real. After searching around for a couple of minutes, she found a soft rug and covered up the stain. If she were to be asked about it, she would just say that the floor hadn't been soft enough for her feet. She hated to pull the spoiled princess card, but if she had too, she would. There was a knock at her door, and she straightened her nightclothes as she stepped to the door. "Yes?"
"It's me, Princess Hermione, I am here to take you to your bath." Hermione opened the door and let in the maid, watching her warily. But she acted just like a normal maid, quickly choosing some clothes and leading her to the bath. The bath was only a few steps away, and the water was warm and inviting. She felt weird when the maid completely undressed her without so much as a blink, but when she stepped into the bath and felt the grime washing off her skin, it was completely worth it. She took a rather quick bath, then let the maids redress her and comb her hair. They all chattered excitedly as they worked, and Hermione listened carefully. Nothing was said about her or Ron, or the fact that they were enemies of the kingdom, but she hadn't expected them to say anything like that. She was in the room, so it was dangerous to talk freely. When they finally finished doing her hair and making sure she looked perfect, she was sent to her room to wait. Once again alone, she looked down at her dress. It was a brilliant green color with a silver sash, and she smiled wryly. Slytherin colors, how nice. The thought of Draco complimenting her on her choice of clothing flashed through her mind, but she quickly dismissed it. Why in the world had she though of Draco first? There must be something wrong with her, she muttered to herself. Otherwise, Draco wouldn't be on her mind all the time. A loud 'bang' snapped her out of her thoughts, quite literally. Her bed shook and she almost fell, but managed to hold onto the bed post. She could hear footsteps in the hall, and some yelling, and she ran to her window. To her horror, in the sky were three dragons, lazily circling the castle as smoke began to rise from the walls. The castle shook again, and things began to fall down around her. Grabbing her knife, Hermione ran to her door and pulled it open. After she secured the knife in a small pocket in her dress, she headed down the hall towards where she assumed the guys were. She was scared, her heart pounding, but she ignored the shaking of the floor as she hurried along, her heels clicking with every step. There was a yell behind her, and she turned to see Ron running towards her. He stopped beside her, panting slightly.
"Dragons." He said simply, nodding his head towards the window. "We have to get out of here." She agreed with that wholeheartedly.
"Where are Harry and Draco?" He shrugged.
"Down that hall, I think. At least, I saw Harry come from there this morning." There was another terrible shake, and suddenly, the pillars beside them gave in and the ceiling above them began to fall. Hermione scrambled backwards and fell as pieces of the ceiling fell down around her. Then, everything was quiet again. Breathing heavily and coughing, she stood to her feet.
"Ron?" She cried out, staring at the wall of rubble where they had just been standing.
"Hermione? Where are you?" His voice sounded far off, and she realized that he must be on the other side of the new rock wall.
"I'm over here! Are you okay?" She heard scuffling on the other side on the fallen ceiling.
"I'm fine. Are you?"
"Yes. Try and get out from that side, I'll be fine!" She wasn't sure how to get out of the castle, but she felt certain that they could both get out safely if they kept going.
"If you're sure you'll be okay... Try to find Harry and Malfoy!"
"I'll be fine, Ron! Just hurry and get to safety!" She heard his footsteps retreating and turned herself. Heading towards the hallway that Ron had pointed out, she wished that she wasn't wearing heels. Her feet had begun to sting from the blisters she'd gotten by running, and she tried not to limp as she walked. As she stopped to take a breather, she heard someone behind her and turned to see a large man quickly gaining on her, and his gaze didn't look friendly. She tried to run, but when she had turned so quickly, her right heel had bent, and now it snapped in half, sending her sprawling. Terrified, she pushed backwards in the dust until her back hit the hard wall behind her. An evil cackle rang through the hallway and his steps got closer to her until he was looming over her, sword in hand. She squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the slicing pain as he raised his sword high above his head, ready to strike. But instead of the pain, there was a loud clang as sword met sword. Draco had made it just in time.
