Marked

The Bargain

Chapter 7: The Bargain

"Theo Nott?" Hermione repeated, struggling to keep Malfoy on his feet as he swayed against her. "You're sure you saw him?"

Harry hesitated. "I'm - I'm pretty sure - "

"'Pretty sure' isn't good enough, Potter," Malfoy snarled, stumbling as he regained his footing. He abruptly pulled out of her grasp and took a couple of hasty steps back, something strange and cold beginning to glitter in his eyes.

Hermione sighed. "Malfoy - "

"I don't want to tell you I'm positive, Malfoy, because I'm not," Harry interjected pointedly. "I was focused on Gregorovitch, and I was caught off guard - "

"So it could be someone else, then," Malfoy said dazedly. "You could be wrong. It might not have been him."

Harry hesitated, looking quickly to Ron, who shrugged helplessly, and then back to Malfoy. "I guess there's a chance, but I really think - "

"It wasn't him," Malfoy said, shaking his head with finality as though daring them to disagree. "It couldn't have been. There's no way. Theo's not a murderer."

Hermione's heart sank as she caught Harry glance guiltily at his feet. She could see that he was considerably more certain than he was letting on.

"Malfoy," she said quietly, reaching for him. "Draco, if it was Theo - "

"It wasn't," he snapped instantly, his voice taking on a strange, childish tone. "It wasn't him, Potter just said - "

"If it was Theo," she repeated, stepping in front of him and placing her hands coolly on either side of his face, "there would have been a reason for it." His eyes were startlingly unfocused and she pulled his face to hers, forcing him to look at her. "Draco, there would have been a reason."

"Voldemort was making him do it," Harry told them, and despite his best intentions, Hermione fervently willed him to stop talking. "He probably didn't have a choice."

Malfoy winced, shutting his eyes forcefully as though he'd been physically struck by Harry's choice of phrasing. "No - not Theo - "

"You didn't have a choice," Harry pointed out, and Hermione grimaced as Malfoy's eyes snapped open.

"Yes I did," he seethed. "Don't think for a second that I didn't, Potter, because I did. I chose to take the Mark for my father and everything that happened afterwards - whatever control I allowed the Dark Lord to have over me - it always came back to that choice."

Harry shook his head apologetically, backtracking. "I didn't mean - "

"Theo knew what taking the Mark did to me," Malfoy said, visibly agitated. "He knew how bad it was - he knew," he rasped, and Hermione was gutted, watching him. "He wouldn't have taken the Mark, it wouldn't make sense, unless - "

He looked up, disturbed. "Unless this is my fault," he whispered, bringing his hand to cover his mouth. "What if he's being punished for my mistakes - what if they know - "

"They don't," Harry said quickly. "If they did, we'd have heard something - "

"Draco," Hermione said, gripping his chin to return his gaze to hers, his grey eyes glazed over and darkened. "Draco, we'll find out. We'll find out the truth, I know it."

She tilted his chin down to kiss him gently, unconcerned with the opinions of her uneasy audience. "Nothing is as it seems anymore, Draco," she whispered against his lips, closing her eyes for a moment before glancing up to look at his face.