Not Quite Dark Magic

Ultimate Sacrifice

When they were pulled into the daylight, Hermione saw that there were another ten Death Eaters waiting on the lawn. They were all dressed in black robes and had evil grins on their faces. Hermione's stomach twisted.

"Shall we be off, Draco?"

Hermione recognized Nott Sr. She was glad to see he resembled Theo so little.

Each man went and flanked the prisoners on the outside. They were all trapped within a circle of Death Eaters.

They had no idea the grave error they'd just made.

Hermione physically felt when the wards disappeared. She side eyed Draco and he gave a slight nod. She hadn't realized all the time she'd spent designing, constructing and destroying wards had made her so sensitive to them. But then again the Pureblood Manors were all heavily protected. It wouldn't be too hard to feel magic that strong drop away, especially if she was searching for it.

She turned her head to both sides. All eyes were on her. Everyone had managed to find themselves with the group they were assigned. They were all ready, just waiting on her signal.

She raised her arm over her head. The group in the middle came to a stop, drawing the attention of the Death Eaters behind them. Quickly they all moved together, forming a tight ring in which they all linked elbows. Hermione looked on from the side and tried to seem confused.

They all spun in the same direction.

A giant crack so loud blew them all off their feet. Hermione landed on her arse several feet away. When she looked up, dust had been stirred up, but she could clearly see an empty spot where twelve bodies had just stood. She smirked.

Around her chaos had broken out. Several people charged after her and grabbed her roughly to ensure her escape didn't follow, and the majority were yelling.

She looked off to the side to see Draco's eyes on her. Through their bind she could feel his anger sizzle and pop.

---

After they'd arrived at the Manor, Draco pulled her into a bedroom upstairs. Hermione turned on him sharply.

"Those muggleborns that were down in the dungeons with me. They weren't randomly selected."

Silence. And then, "no."

"They all had unique abilities, jobs or relations."

"Yes," he answered.

"Why were they being taken to Nott Manor?"

Draco's eyes fell to the floor. He licked his lips before taking a deep breath and meeting her gaze directly.

"Things slow down in the winter time. You know this. The Death Eaters get bored. They were looking for something to keep them... entertained this holiday season."

Hermione could feel her heart rate picking up. She tried to pull up her Occlumency shields to counteract the effects, but she failed.

"And this entertainment... it involved those muggleborns?"

He sighed. "Yes."

Her breathing increased. She could feel the color flushing her face as her anger began to overtake all rational thought. Hermione closed her eyes and tried to reign in her emotions.

"What were they planning?" she asked through clenched teeth.

She knew it, knew what he would say before it came out.

"A hunt."

But hearing it out loud was surreal.

"Tell me," she said, eyes still closed. "Tell me what they planned."