Chapter 15
Draco’s POV
For the next few days, they stayed hidden within the vast expanse of the Malfoy estate in France. It was a strange sort of limbo—one where the weight of what had happened still lingered, but none of them spoke about it directly. Hermione spent most of her time in the library, buried in books she wasn’t really reading, while Theo took it upon himself to be her personal distraction.
Draco watched it all unfold from a distance, unsure of his place in it. He wasn’t like Theo—he didn’t know how to make her laugh when she was close to breaking. But he wasn’t going to let her fall apart either.
It wasn’t until the morning of the third day that Draco knew they couldn’t stay in hiding forever. He found Theo sprawled across the sitting room couch, lazily twirling his wand between his fingers.
“We can’t stay here much longer,” Draco said, his voice cutting through the stillness of the room.
Theo arched a brow but didn’t sit up. “And here I thought you were enjoying our little vacation.”
Draco rolled his eyes. “Be serious, Nott. We need a plan. Weasley isn’t going to just let her go, and Potter isn’t exactly willing to see reason.”
Theo sighed, finally sitting up. “Yeah, well, it’s not like we have a lot of options. We can’t go to the Ministry, and we can’t trust anyone who still thinks Weasley is some kind of saint.”
Draco clenched his jaw. He hated that he was right. The entire situation was a mess, and he knew Hermione was running out of time before Weasley started tearing apart the country looking for her.
“I’ll handle it,” he said finally. “You and Hermione stay here. Keep her safe. I’ll figure out what needs to be done.”
Theo eyed him suspiciously. “You sure you want to go at this alone?”
Draco nodded. “The fewer people moving around, the better. If I can get some leverage over Weasley, something that forces Potter to actually look at the facts, we might have a chance to clear this up before it gets worse.”
Theo exhaled sharply but nodded. “Alright. But be careful, Malfoy. If you get yourself caught, I’m not breaking you out of Azkaban.”
Draco smirked. “Noted.”
With that, he turned on his heel and strode toward the study, already running through a dozen different possibilities in his mind. There had to be a way to end this—to get Hermione free from Weasley’s grasp once and for all.
He just had to find it.
Draco spent the next few hours in the study, pacing in front of the fireplace as he mapped out his next move. The problem wasn’t just Weasley—it was Potter, too. As long as Potter believed whatever lies Weasley had fed him, Hermione would never truly be safe.
There had to be a way to make Potter see the truth.
Draco had a few options, none of them good. He could try going back to the Ministry and demanding an official investigation—but with Potter backing Weasley, that was as good as walking into a trap. He could go directly to Weasley, but that would likely end in bloodshed, and as much as he wanted to break every bone in that bastard’s body, it wouldn’t solve anything. No, he needed proof. Hard evidence that Weasley had been abusing Hermione—something that couldn’t be ignored or explained away. He just didn’t know where to find it.
A knock at the door broke him from his thoughts.
“If you’re about to tell me I look like hell, Nott, I already know,” Draco said, running a hand through his hair as the door creaked open.
“Actually, I was going to say you look like you’re plotting murder, which is much more concerning.”
Draco sighed as Theo strolled in, holding two glasses of Firewhisky. He dropped into one of the armchairs and handed Draco a glass.
“You’re thinking too hard,” Theo said, stretching out like he had nowhere else to be. “You need to relax.”
Draco shot him a look. “Relax? Hermione is hiding in this house, terrified that Weasley is going to find her, and you want me to relax?”
Theo sipped his drink. “You losing your mind isn’t going to fix anything, Malfoy. And besides, I’ve been thinking too.”
Draco raised an eyebrow. “That’s dangerous.”
Theo grinned. “I know. But hear me out. Weasley’s been turning people against Hermione for years, yeah?”
Draco nodded.
“So there has to be a pattern. Something he said or did that made them believe him over her. If we can figure out what that is, we might be able to prove he’s been manipulating them.”
Draco considered that. “Even if we can, it won’t be enough. We need something undeniable. Something even Potter can’t ignore.”
Theo hummed, tilting his head in thought. “What about medical records? She had to have been to St. Mungo’s at some point, right?”
Draco clenched his jaw. He hated the thought of Hermione suffering injuries bad enough to require treatment, but Theo had a point. If they could get access to her records, they might be able to prove the abuse.
“It’s risky,” Draco admitted. “But it’s a start.”
Theo smirked. “That’s why you keep me around. I come up with all the good ideas.”
Draco rolled his eyes but didn’t argue. “I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, keep an eye on Hermione.”
Theo gave him a mock salute. “Aye aye, Captain. But if you don’t come back with something useful, I’m going to start charging you for my brilliance.”
Draco shook his head, downed the rest of his drink, and stood. He had a plan now. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better than nothing. And if it meant finally getting Hermione free from Weasley, he’d do whatever it took.