"Hermione"
When Hermione woke, she hadn’t expected to find herself in the poisons ward at St. Mungos, nor to find Draco Malfoy sleeping uncomfortably in a plastic chair at her bedside.
She pressed the button on the side of the bed, summoning a mediwitch. “Miss Granger,” The witch said, stepping inside the room.
Malfoy stirred, eyes opening slowly. He made no sudden movement towards her or the witch. His bloodshot eyes looked tired, the sea of gray rimmed in red.
“How are you feeling?” The witch, a tall, willowy woman with auburn hair, asked.
“Not quite sure,” She replied. Her honeyed eyes rolled back for a moment and she could hear Malfoy as he scuttled to his feet.
When Hermione could see again, there were three mediwitches in the room, one running a diagnostic and another casting a healing charm at Hermione’s head.
The third was magically restraining Malfoy, his arms bound back at his side and his yells and grunts being held in a shield, effectively silencing him.
“Where is my daughter?” Hermione asked, looking around the room for Willa.
“Calm down, Ms. Granger,” one of the mediwitches said, though Hermione wasn’t sure which one. “Your daughter is with Mr. Potter and his family. Mr. Malfoy sent her with him and Ms. Lovegood has already been by this morning to check on you.”
“How long have I been out?”
“Heart rate is decreasing,” one of the witches called.
“Is it steady?” The other asked, still casting spells at Hermione’s head in a steady stream.
“Steady,” the witch replied.
“Ms. Granger, do you consent to being questioned by Auror Malfoy?”
“About?” Hermione asked, still feeling dazed.
“What happened to you to get you into this state?” The mediwitch asked gently. “We can ask him to leave if you want to wait until a later time to answer–,”
“I’ll speak to him,” Hermione’s voice was soft. “Let him loose, I am sure his ego is taking a torching from being held back by a first year mediwitch.”
“I’ll have you know,” Malfoy spluttered, “that I was feeling unwell and caught unaware–,” he stepped away from the shorter mediwitch, unwilling to meet her eyes as he stepped back around towards the side of the bed.
“As if you haven’t seen casualty in the battlefield,” Hermione quipped, though her heart wasn’t in it.
Malfoy pursed his lips, “Well, Granger, how did we go from having tea to you ending up here?”
“It was coffee,” Hermione corrected.
“Just needed to be sure you are you,” Malfoy replied. She thought she heard him mutter under his breath, swot.
“Who else would I be?”
“A demon or something, I don’t know,” Malfoy snarled, but there was little malice to it. “How are you feeling, Granger?”
“Truly?” Hermione paused, “This feels worse than when I gave birth to Willa in a Muggle hospital.”
Malfoy nodded at her, “Need anything?”
“Just to find out why this is happening to me,” Hermione quipped. “Anyway, you want to know what happened?”
Malfoy nodded.
Hermione looked around the room for a moment, taking note that they were finally alone. “Promise me something,” Hermione whispered.
“Depends on the promise, Granger.” Malfoy’s eyes were hard, the smile lingering at his lips had begun to fade away.
“I don’t want you to immediately jump to conclusions…”
“We shall see,” Malfoy hummed.
“I was arguing with Theo, if you can call it arguing. He was quite angry with me, you see.” She paused, swallowing harshly. “I hadn’t told him about the bookshop, and when you are with someone, I suppose you ought to tell them the important things–,” Hermione stopped, supposing that Theo had kept a fair amount from her, too. Whatever was going on that made him so frazzled lately. He had been like a live wire, jumping and electrocuting. Dangerous. “Anyway, I suppose I ought to have asked what he thought before he jumped to the conclusion that I am setting up roots here –,”
Malfoy looked paler than he had a moment before.
“I’m not saying we are going to stay here, Willa and I, or even with Theo, for that matter–,”
Malfoy looked like he was struggling not to interrupt her, but continued to let her speak.
“All I recall is that he left, I was getting ready to run a bath when I stopped remembering anything at all.”
After clearing his throat, Malfoy’s gray eyes met her honeyed ones, “When you were cleaning the bookshop, was there anything unfamiliar that you might have come into contact with?”
Hermione thought for a moment, looking out the window and towards Muggle London. The sky was dusky pink and it seemed the drizzle from the day before had cleared up.
“Maybe a little bit of blood, I thought. Though I magicked that away. I didn’t clear that with my hands.”
“The mediwitches think that it was your ring,” Malfoy stated, probing her for answers. “They think perhaps you came into contact with something and the Nott signet either picked it up and corrupted you or perhaps he did something to it when you were arguing –,”
“No,” Hermione barked, a cough spluttering behind the word. “Teddy wouldn’t do something to intentionally harm me, Malfoy. I know the two of you have your differences–,”
“Hermione, listen to me,” Malfoy implored, “something is not right with him and you know it. He’s been liquidating funds and visiting with ministry officials–,”
“Teddy has been clearing out some of his mother’s jewelry and I know why he saw the minister–,”
“It’s not just been once, Granger,” Malfoy’s eyes were fiery, his tone as muted as he could make it. “I’ve had a tail on him for days. I think he’s going to cut and run. I think his plan is to take you and Willa with him, but I don’t know what he will resort to if you won’t go willingly.”
Hermione was silent for a moment, thinking. “Have you put your eyes on Willa today?”
Malfoy stood up from the chair he had been occupying, watching Hermione intently, “You don’t think–,”
“I don’t,” Hermione agreed, “I just think it might assuage your anxiety to make sure she is okay. Mine too, if you don’t mind. Bring her to me?”
Malfoy looked at her skeptically, but agreed.
Hermione looked at her hand, naked without the Nott signet ring. She tried to silence the doubt in her mind, but now she was unsure. She needed to talk to Theo.