Her Soul To Keep

“I'm not going to punish you, Granger.”

Her head snapped up and she stared at him incredulously.

“What do you mean?”

"Just what I said. I'm not going to punish you. Yet. I have some important business to take care of just now”, he explained as he rose from the bed and picked up the black traveling cloak slung over his leather chair. “But don't think you've gotten away with anything. I will deal with you when I return.”

She nodded silently, watching as he slid the cloak over himself and walked over to her cage.

“Get in,” he demanded, holding the door open for her.

Hermione sighed and strode over to the the cage, ducking her head as she climbed inside. Malfoy shut the door behind her, smirking at the sight of her hunched over like a dog.

“I shouldn't be too long, Mudblood, so enjoy what little time you have.”

He made his way across the room to the door, preparing to leave but turned back. “Oh yes, almost forgot...”

He pointed his wand at her cage and a large iron padlock wound itself through the bars of her door and clicked into place, making escape impossible. Or so he thought.

She watched him sweep out of the room and waited with bated breath to see if he would return again. A few minutes passed before she decided that he really was gone and pulled the file out of her pocket.

Sliding her hand through the bars of the cage, she pulled the lock towards her and inserted the file. After a few tries, she heard a tiny click and the lock fell to the floor with a thud. Smiling, she pushed the door open and climbed out.

Tip-toeing to the door, she peeked her head out to check if the coast was clear. The corridor was empty and silent; the only sound was her heart pounding loudly in her ears. Taking a steadying breath, she stepped out of his room and closed the door quietly behind her.

She moved silently down the hall, and descended the stairs to the first floor of the manor. Her heart was beating furiously against her chest in fear and excitement.

I'm so close to being out of this bloody place. If I don't get caught, it will be a miracle.

Creeping down another long corridor, she opened the first door on her left. It was only a bathroom, so she closed the door again.

“Really, Lucius, do you think that's necessary?"

“Yes, Cissy, I do. I don't see why you're so against it.”

Hermione whimpered in fright and ducked into the nearest room. Closing the door silently behind her, she listened as the voices passed and faded away. Breathing a tiny sigh of relief, she turned to study the room she had entered.

It was a guest room, decorated with silver and green furnishings. White roses sat on the table beside the bed. Across from where she stood was a window that opened up into the Malfoy's back garden.

She walked over to it and peered out. The ground was only about two feet under her, and the hedge that enclosed their land was only meters away. As gently as she could, she pushed open the window and swung herself over the sill, her feet landing firmly on the ground. Without a glance back at the manor, she sprinted over to the hedge and forced her way through it.

The twigs cut at every part of her body that they could reach, and by the time she had made it through to the other side, she was covered in hundreds of tiny scratches, the blood just coming up to the surface.

Turning on the spot, she disapparated, leaving Malfoy Manor behind her.

She stumbled as her her feet met ground but managed to stay upright. Looking up at the beautifully decorated house in front of her, she smiled. She was finally home.

Hermione took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the warm afternoon air, before walking up to the door and pushing it open.

“Mum? Dad?” she called, as she stepped into the kitchen. Nothing look different, except that the house seemed to be completely empty.

Maybe they've gone to the shops.

She walked through the kitchen and up the stairs that she knew led to her room and the upstairs bathroom.

As she entered her old room, she noticed that nothing had been touched. The only thing different was a thick layer of dust, coating every surface.

Striding over to her wardrobe, she pulled out a pair of light colored jeans and a red and white striped t-shirt. Slinging them over her arm, she made her way into her bathroom across the hall and closed the door behind her.

Turning on the shower, she stepped in and let the hot water flow over her skin, washing away the dirt and blood from climbing through the Malfoy's hedges. She shuddered at the thought of him.

I wonder if he is back yet.

She smiled at the though of him coming back and finding her gone, storming around in a rage, swearing that he would find her and kill her...

She stopped lathering her hair with shampoo in shock.

What if he came looking for me? Here. Oh my God, I've got to leave! I can't stay here. But where can I go?

Hermione rinsed her hair quickly and climbed out, drying herself off with a towel. She quickly pulled on her clothes and walked back into her room cautiously, half-afraid that she would find Malfoy there.

She strode over to her desk and rummaged around for a minute before pulling out a slender box and flipped open the top; pulling out a wand.

She had bought a spare years ago, just to be safe, but had never really found a use for it until now. Her old wand had been snapped when she was taken to Riddle Manor along with Ron's and Harry's.

She gave it a flick and a large stack of books and a few articles of clothing neatly placed themselves in her school bag. Muttering under her breath, she watched as the contents of the bag slipped further down, leaving more space for other things to be packed, but the bag looked just as small. She loved using an undetectable extension charm. It made traveling so much easier.

Making her way into the bathroom again, she looked into the mirror, sighing. She knew what she had to do.

Pointing her wand at her face, she imagined an image in her mind as she screwed up her eyes in concentration. She could feel a warm heat on her face as her features began to change. As the last detail was added, she opened her eyes. Staring back at her was not bushy, brown-haired Hermione but a pale, dark haired one with shockingly blue eyes.

She summond her bag with her wand and slung it over her shoulder before heading downstairs. She paused at the door, looking back at the pictures of her and her parents on the mantlepiece, feeling tears well in her eyes. Blinking them away, she pushed open the door and stepped out into the sunshine before turning on the spot and disapperating once more.

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