Cursed [Dramione/Beauty & The Beast]

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The bus juddered down city streets, belching black smoke. Draco flinched as it shook to a halt. He clung to the seat until his knuckles turned white.

'Will you bloody relax?!' Harry hissed, his voice barely audible over the traffic. 'And Mione, for God's sake, stop playing with your hair!'

Hermione dropped the lock of long, blonde hair and stared out of the dirty window. She had barely spoken in days.

'Ours is the next stop,' Harry told them.

Draco nodded, running a hand through his dark hair. A lorry roared past, shaking the bus. Draco squeezed his eyes shut and groaned.

'Let's go.'

Hermione stood up and slung her backpack over her shoulder. Moving woodenly, she nodded to the driver and stepped off the bus. Draco tripped slightly as he underestimated the distance to the pavement. Harry grabbed his elbow and dragged him down the street. Hermione followed in silence.

'Here it is.'

They stopped outside a terraced house. Harry pulled a key out of his pocket and let them in. The door opened into a small living room with garish, outdated wallpaper. There was a sofa next to a gas fireplace with a large TV above it.

'The kitchen is just through here, fridge and cupboards are fully stocked,' Harry said, taking them into the next room. 'There's a little back garden, too.'

Draco looked out of the kitchen window to the tiny space behind the house. It was covered with concrete slabs, with high walls surrounding it.

'I'd hardly call that a garden,' Draco sneered.

'There's two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs,' Harry said, ignoring Draco. 'It's not much, but it's safe.'

'Are you sure?' Draco asked.

'As I keep telling you, Malfoy, the only people who know you're here are me and Beastly. No-one even knows this place exists. It's also protected with every top security spell I could personally provide.'

'You planning for the apocalypse or something?'

'I once spent months living in a tent, never staying in one place for long because we had nowhere safe to go. I didn't want to ever repeat the experience. So, I bought this house the muggle way. I've been working on it ever since.'

'Constant vigilance!' Draco grinned.

Harry smiled slightly. They both glanced at Hermione to share in the joke, but she didn't seem to have heard. She was looking out of the window, arms wrapped around herself.

'So, er, remember, no magic. Just in case they can track it. You've got to do everything the muggle way,' Harry said. 'Try to avoid going out, but you've plenty of polyjuice potion for emergencies. I'll stop by as often as I can without raising suspicion, and I'll bring you regular groceries.'

'Are you sure Beastly will be safe?' Draco asked. 'He's all the family I've got left...'

'Minerva will take good care of him,' Harry reassured him. 'He's in good hands at Hogwarts. You know he'd be miserable if he was stuck on a magic ban. And I know from personal experience that elf magic is traceable. Hopefully we'll get all this wrapped up in a few weeks and everyone can go home. Including Beastly!'

'That's what you said last time,' Draco muttered.

'Well, last time I didn't have a prison full of New Order soldiers to interrogate.'

'Your polyjuice is running out,' Draco commented. 'Woah, that's so weird to watch...'

The copper of Harry's skin was fading away. His hair was growing and straightening, the brown slipping from his eyes. Harry squinted and pulled his glasses out of his pocket. His clothes hung loosely as he shrank to his usual size.

Hermione glanced down at her arms, watching the melanin rush back. She lifted her hand to her hair and felt her it twist into curls. Her shoes started to pinch as her body changed, shooting up several inches.

Draco looked into the mirror on the wall. His almond eyes reshaped as he watched, his hair lengthening until it flopped over his forehead. It lightened slowly, until black was replaced with blonde.

'I need a haircut,' Draco muttered.

Harry rolled his eyes and picked up his backpack.

'I'll go upstairs and change back,' he said. 'See you in a minute.'

Draco looked aimlessly through the cupboards as they waited. He prodded the oven curiously.

'It cooks food.'

Hermione walked over and turned one of the knobs. It clicked a few times then a circle of flames burst on the top. Draco jumped and stumbled backwards. A flicker of a smile passed across Hermione's face.

'I'll teach you,' she offered.

'Uh, yeah, that'd be great!'

The door opened and an Indian man walked into the kitchen. Hermione and Draco instinctively grabbed their wands.

'It's just me!' Harry said. 'You forget what I look like already?!'

'Sorry Potter,' Draco drawled. 'I'm not used to seeing you so...tall.'

'Ha. Ha.' Harry muttered. 'Oh, don't forget, if you do have to go out in disguise, remember to use fake identities too. You've both got very distinctive names, so...'

'What name am I supposed to choose?!' Draco looked slightly panicked.

'I dunno,' Harry shrugged. 'Google the Top Twenty names in China or something!'

'Goo...what?'

'Oh for God's...Hermione, help him?!'

Hermione nodded absently, having returned to staring out of the window.

'Ok, I've got to go before someone notices I'm away. Text me if you need anything, Ok?'

'Ok.' Draco said. 'Uh, thanks, by the way.'

'Yeah, no worries. Bye, Hermione.'

'Bye.'

Draco and Harry shared a worried glance, then Harry left. Draco heard the front door thud closed, leaving the house in silence.