imprisonment

Chapter 37; H

Hermione woke up days later in an unknown place. She wished that everything was just a dream. She prayed to whoever was listening that it wasn't real. She hoped she could open her eyes and she would be in his arms again.

She had never felt this way before. She felt utterly alone. As selfish as it sounded she didn't give a damn about the war or the order. She wished she could be with him, in their little cell with no other worries. When she was in Azkaban she got a break from all the death. She wished she could still have that.

Visions of their time together echoed across her mind, making her homesick. Draco had become her home during the duration of her time in Azkaban and it felt foreign to be anywhere else. She was a prisoner homesick for her prison.

She laid there for what seemed like ages unable to open her eyes. She was afraid when she did she would be assured that she was gone.

She could feel the presence of someone hanging over her. She prayed it was Draco coming to take her back. She didn't care if he was mad at her, she would rather him hate her than not be there at all.

"Hermione," she could hear her voice being called out around her. It belonged to a female, making her wince. It hadn't been a dream.

"Mhmm," she groaned trying to stretch out her limbs. She felt like she had been ran over by a car. Her whole body ached in pain from being petrified. Before she could organize her thoughts, she was hit by the memory of the night before.

She jumped up, taking in her surroundings. She noticed she was in a room that wasn't her cell. She was on a bed and Ginny stood over her. Her heart thumped in her chest. She tried to hoist herself up, causing Ginny to put a hand on her shoulder.

"We're having a medi-witch evaluate you in the following days. We worry how the isolation affected your psyche." Ginny started to speak in a calm voice trying to comfort her. She wanted nothing of the sort. She stared up at her in horror.

"I'm fine," Hermione spoke trying to force herself to stand up. She wanted to leave as soon as possible and find her way back to Azkaban to save Draco. She didn't care about her own health, she wanted to make sure he was okay.

"No, you're not. Whatever was going on between you are Draco was just a symptom of your—" Ginny started to speak. Anger rose inside of Hermione. She was furious that Ginny wouldn't let her speak. She wanted to tell the order everything and confess her heart to them. She wished they would just listen to her.

"Ginny don't fucking go there," Hermione shot back. She didn't care if Ginny was her friend or not. She wasn't going to listen to her bullshit.

"We are worried about you. It's got to be some form of Stockholm Syndrome. Hermione, he is a bad person he's—" she pushed a button causing Hermione to lose it.

"DON'T SAY THAT ABOUT HIM," she screamed out enraged. She wanted them to just believe her and stop patronizing her. Nothing was wrong with her. She wasn't insane and was tired of being treated like a victim. If only they knew the moments they shared. Draco wasn't rotten and she wanted them all to know that.

"Calm down. I'm trying to understand, but he must have manipulated you or done something to make you feel this way," Ginny said lowering herself to Hermione. She wrapped her arm around her friend and tried to calm her down. Hermione shoved her away, trying to stand up again but failing.

"We have to go back and save him...I—I can't do this without him," she struggled to get the words out. She fell to the ground, her legs weak. Tears started forming in her eyes and she broke. She fucking hated how weak she felt. She was supposed to be strong.

"We aren't going back for him. We can't. It's just not feasible," Ginny tried to explain to Hermione, but she didn't want to listen. She was going to save him—she had to.

"Ginny please—he's not what you think," she tried to explain, but before she could Ron walked into the room. He looked years older, his orange-red hair covering part of his face. She hasn't seen him in so long he looked like a stranger.

"Have you gone mental?" He yelled towards her. She could tell a part of him was hurt that she hadn't wanted him. She could tell he had expected her to fall into his arms and call him a hero. She couldn't though. She didn't feel that way for him.

"Maybe I have Ron, who cares," she sneered. Azkaban had changed her. She was arguing with her best friend, treating him like the enemy. Maybe she had gone mad.

"Malfoy is a fucking shit person. I'm not going to stand for you justifying the things he has done. He is a Death Eater. They killed Harry. Did you forget that?" He yelled back causing guilt to rise inside of her.

'Then don't. I wish you would have just left me there," she muttered. Draco wasn't like the rest of them. He wasn't as bad as they all claimed him to be.

She felt paralyzed. She didn't want to go on, as dramatic as it sounded. She stared emotionless at them and moved back under the covers, refusing to speak to them or anyone who entered the room. Several others including Neville and Luna tried to comfort her, but she just sat there in silence like a broken doll. It wasn't until later that night when she finally gave in.

She was laying there, staring up at the ceiling counting the cracks when she heard someone walk in. She closed her eyes pretending to be asleep. The door creaked open and she could hear footsteps approach her.

"Hermione, psst, get up," the voice spoke softly. It was a man's voice. It was deep and filled with kindness.

She turned over to face him and gingerly opened her eyes. "Hmm, what," she said pretending that she had just woken up.

"Hey, we should talk," he said causing her to look up. In her disbelief, she saw Theodore Nott standing before her. He was a Slytherin in the same year as her. He had been friends with Draco and Blaise. It was rather peculiar he was there. She rubbed her eyes making sure she had actually seen him.

"Theo, what are you doing here?" She wondered why he wasn't with the other Death Eaters. She figured he had taken the mark.

She could see his brown hair and the outline of him in her room. He sat on the bed next to her and began to speak. "I defected and joined the order. I heard you talking about Draco—."

"Are you here to tell me I'm crazy," she muttered out, not willing to listen. How was he supposed to help her?

"No. I have a plan," he said in a whisper intriguing her. She would do anything to save Draco. If Theo had a plan to save him, she would take a part in it.

"Go on," she said motioning him to speak. 

"I lost someone too. When I defected I had to leave Pansy behind. I think we can work together and try and get them back. If you're in?" He looked solemn when he mentioned Pansy's name. She had no idea they were together, but it seemed to be serious by the way he spoke.

"Yeah, of course," she said nodding her head. Theo was a godsend. She needed him on her side since everyone else thought she was insane.

"We just have to keep it low profile. Wouldn't want weaslebee finding out," Theo said reminding her of Draco. It hurt knowing she couldn't be with him. It was comforting to have someone believe her.

"So, I see you haven't lost your Slytherin," she smirked trying to lighten the mood. She hadn't spoken to him much in their days at Hogwarts, but she could tell he was good at heart.

"Hey, old habits die hard am I right," he said in the jokingly way that Theo was known for.

A/N

Y'all didn't think I would forget about Theo?

Also If this story gets a good amount of views by the time I finish it I will commission fanart by avendell. Comment what scene you would like illustrated. 

The next chapter will be posted Thursday, Feb. 4.