WHAT YOU DO TO ME | Draco Malfoy

Year Seven - Part Four

"A goblin by the name of Gornuk was killed. It is believed that muggle-born Dean Thomas and a second goblin, both believed to have been traveling with Tonks, Cresswell... and Gornuk may have escaped."

Ron's radio woke me up one morning with news about Dean Thomas. I sat in my own bunk and just listened to the crackling while Ron fiddled with the device. It didn't get any easier to hear the names of people you cared about on Ron's radio. It felt like the first time every time.

"If Dean is listening or anyone has any knowledge of his whereabouts his parents and sisters are desperate for news. Meanwhile, a muggle family of five has been found dead in their home."

We spent most of our time walking on foot these days. Ron still was not well enough to apparate. Every once and a while we all took turns wearing the locket. I hated wearing it. It made me so angry. Angry at my friends, angry at my family, angry at the world. Hermione and I were sitting outside by one night stoking a fire one night when we could hear someone coming.

"I'm going to go investigate." I whispered to her as I drew my wand out of my boot.

"I'll come with you." She said, and I nodded. We fell silent from nerves and just in case the enchantments we had put up proved faulty. We walked to the edge of Hermione's enchantments and stood still. I could see a group of people walking and it looked like they were dragging something. I gasped and held Hermione's hand when I realized they were dragging bodies. One of them turned at the sound of my gasp. I was worried that Hermione's enchantments had worn off when he stared straight towards me.

I recognized him. Scabior. He was the same Snatcher from the Ministry. There was no doubt in my mind he was the one that took my sister. "What's that?" He moved closer. "What's that smell?" He asked as he inched forward again only centimeters away from me now. I knew exactly what he was referring to. Hermione and I had been sharing perfume. After another moment, he turns to leave. Hermione and I finally start to breathe again.

"Snatchers." Harry said as he walked up to us. I nearly jumped at his presence. I was put on edge after seeing the snatchers so up close. What if they had found us? "Good to know your enchantments work, Hermione." Harry smirked in the moonlight.

"He could smell our perfume." Hermione told him.

"I think it's time you two stop wearing it then." Harry suggested. I glared at him in the darkness. It was hard enough to stay clean living in the woods and now he wanted us to give up the only thing that reminded us of home? The necklace started vibrating on my chest and I yanked it off and handed it to Hermione.

"Your turn." I muttered before stalking off back towards the tent.

Every day things got more tense in our group. Ron was paranoid about Harry and Hermione wanting to be together. Hermione was stuck having to choose between coddling Ron's emotions, or helping Harry with the Horcrux. Harry was furious with Ron for his attitude, and I was just stuck being a therapist for everyone to complain to, which put me even more on edge. Every day the list of missing people got longer and longer, and with it we began to feel even more demoralized. The necklace was getting to each of us, and made it that much worse.

Absolutely Nothing was worse than when Hermione had the locket on. She became a completely different person.

I had been trying to find new ways to cook mushrooms since they were the only thing we could find to eat when she tried to talk to me. I couldn't hear her over the mushrooms sautéing on the stove and the crackling of Ron's stupid radio.

"Olivia Fern would you listen to me!" She screamed. "Or are you too busy daydreaming about Draco Malfoy to pay attention to anyone else?"

"What did you just say?" I spun around to stare at her. Her words completely shocked me.