Aconite - Dramione/Blinny

Ch. 26

Draco's attic reminded Hermione of something out of a movie she would watch with her parents. It was a rather large space with plenty of room to move around and there were only a few boxes tucked into a corner. She was grateful that there was a large window along the back wall that allowed to see outside; it would make it easier to keep track of where the moon was.

"He doesn't really use this space much, does he?" Hermione asked as she looked around.

"Not really," Blaise shrugged before setting the bottles and glasses down on the floor. "I'm sure I can whip up a place for us to sit if you wanted to get the lights?"

She nodded and they pulled their wands out, Blaise moving to the middle of the room while Hermione walked along the edge with her wand pointed towards the ceiling. Small bubbles of light began to sprout from the wood beams as she walked underneath them and the space slowly began to grow brighter. After circling the room, she walked straight through the middle for added measure, and then crossed over with more lights.

"Is there any kind of magic you aren't good at?" He asked with a small laugh.

"Oh stop; it's such a simple charm," She said with a grin.

She joined him in the middle of the room where he had conjured up a small, round table with two chairs on either side of it. He had already opened a bottle and poured himself a glass before looking up at her again questioningly.

"Are you sure you don't want one?" He asked, lifting the bottle.

"I'm alright for right now," She said. "I want to wait to see what happens after he changes."

Blaise nodded and set the bottle down before sitting back into the chair with a sigh. "I have to admit, this is the first time I've been here for this."

"I've seen it a few times," Hermione said quietly. "With other clients."

"I had a feeling considering your plan to keep him contained," Blaise said.

"Those are just precautions," She shrugged. "From what he told me, it sounded like he would staying inside if we weren't here, considering what happened when he stopped taking his potions before."

"He told you about that?" Blaise asked, surprised.

She nodded. "When he first brought me here for lunch, he showed me the basement and I saw the scratches on the wall, so I asked if he had ever not taken his potions. From the way it sounded, he managed to stay inside the manor for a few months."

"I believe he did," Blaise nodded. "I think he mentioned putting spells on the basement door so he wouldn't get out. But something must have happened because he did."

"That's partially why I put so many spells on so many different places," She explained.

"You mentioned a Caterwauling charm," He started curiously. "Does that actually work on werewolves?"

She smiled slightly. "Somewhat. It really just catches them off guard long enough to notify me that they breached it. Some werewolves are more affected than others. I've tried altering it to be more like a dog-whistle that will hurt their ears and basically subdue them, but I haven't had much luck yet."

Blaise's eyes widened. "Do dog whistles work on werewolves?"

Hermione paused and then gave him a look. "You better not use one on Draco."

He let out a laugh and shook his head. "No, no; the rolled-up newspaper works just fine with him. I was more asking out of curiosity."

"I actually haven't tested it," She admitted. "I'm worried that it might just draw them to me."