What Lies Within

Sophie was miserable. Draco wasn't speaking to her, two of her best friends were still in hospital, supposed to be getting out the next day, ready to head back to class as good as new. It was Sunday though and she was wandering the grounds alone, unsure of where to go. Ron and Harry were asleep, Draco was nowhere to be found, she had looked in the Room of Requirement but couldn't find him at the cabinet, their bedroom or even the tree house. Hermione was in the library studying. She offered for Sophie to join but as Sophie wasn't exactly doing her work anymore, or caring about class in general, she declined and decided to walk the grounds for a bit.

There was a nice warm, spring breeze blowing across the lake as she wandered through the grass. She looked across the hills, into the snow-capped mountains. The view of the Hogwarts grounds had always been gorgeous. The Malfoy Manor in Wiltshire had beautiful scenery but honestly, nothing beat Hogwarts. She would truly miss being here. Hogwarts was one of the only places, apart from the Burrow and her home with Draco, that she could truly relax. This year excluded, of course. Hogwarts was more of a home to her than the Hill Manor ever had been growing up. She was happy to never have to step foot in that place again, honestly. It was most likely in disarray by now; her father dead, her mother imprisoned.

She could care less, let it rot to the ground for all she cared. It had always been more of a prison than a home, it had never really been a home in the first place. She hadn't felt what it was like to be at a home until her summer after first year, her first year at the Burrow. Oh what she would give to go to the burrow again. She hadn't been there since the summer before 4th year, the summer they all went to the Quidditch World Cup. Draco had been there with his father, as had Sophie's father. Sophie came with the Weasley's of course but had a run in with Lucius and her father later that night when they, along with many others, attempted to burn down the entire campsite.

Sophie found a nice place to sit in the sun on the edge of the water and took a seat, looking out across the water, watching the water ripple and flow. The sun glistened off the water, bouncing back at her. She leaned back on her hands, tilting her head back, trying to soak up all the peace and calm that she could.

"Sophie?" Sophie's head snapped up and she turned her head, seeing her husband walking towards her, his hands stuffed in his pockets. She turned to look back out at the water as he took a seat beside her, sighing. "I went looking for you at the hospital but ran into the mud blood, I mean... Granger," Sophie shakes her head a little. "and she said you had went for a walk. I thought I might find you here." Draco looks over at his wife, willing her to look over at him but she doesn't, she keeps her eyes focused on the tides of the lake.

"What do you want, Draco?" She asks, still not turning to meet his gaze. "You weren't exactly happy with me last night." She finally turns to look at him, meeting her eyes with his grey eyes as he frowns.

"I'm never exactly happy with anyone or anything anymore, Sophie." He told her honestly. "I just... I don't want to get into it. We'll just fight again and I don't want that."

"I was just trying to help, Draco. There's nothing wrong with needing a little help." She insists but he shakes his head. She goes on before he could interrupt. "Snape said he'd do it, ya know? He would-"

"And then you die." Draco interjects, glaring at his wife. She just didn't get it... and he couldn't understand why she didn't. He had to perform the tasks set to him or he would be punished and the only way to punish him was to harm, or even kill, her. The Dark Lord knew how much they meant to each other, the bond they had created over the last year and a half and he was using that to get what he wanted. And he would get it. Draco would kill Dumbledore, he has to, for the sake of his wife, he would. "It needs to be me."

"You aren't a murderer though, Dray. You aren't." She reaches over, resting her hand on his cheek. His skin was smooth and soft beneath her finger tips. "You're my sweet, caring, kind hearted husband." Draco grimaces and pulls back from her touch. She lets her hand drop back into her lap sadly.

"You make me sound so weak all the time, Sophie." He looks across the lake as he mutters this, not wanting to look at her.

"So because I think you aren't a murderer that means I think you're weak?" She frowned, shaking her head. "Draco, you're the strongest person that I know." Draco sighs and finally looks back over at her. She meets his gaze, giving him a soft smile.

"Your confidence in me still shocks me." He smiles softly back, reaching over to pull her against his side. She melts against his side, resting her head on his shoulder.

"I have all the confidence in the world in you, but that doesn't mean I think you can murder someone. Not because you aren't strong enough but because that isn't you, that isn't the kind of person that you are." She lifts her head to look up at him.

"I feel like this conversation just went in a big circle." He mutters, taking his arm away from around her. Sophie sighs, dipping her head down as she leans away from his side. "I should get-"

"Why do you want me to think you're capable of murder? Why do you want me to be okay with my husband taking someones life?" She asks him, cutting him off. "I don't care what it would cost me, Draco, I'm worried what, in the long run, it will cost you. You may not recover from it." Draco stares at her for a second, his eyebrows furrowed together.

"That's the problem here, Sophie..." He trails off, shaking his head. "You don't care what it would cost you, just what it would cost me but what you need to remember is that what happens to you, happens to me, too." He tells her. "You're trying to protect me, when I'm trying to do the same for you. You need to let me do this, for both of us." Draco was right, obviously. She didn't know what to say. "I need to get back to the cabinet, I've been brainstorming some new ideas on what to do about Dumbledore. I have work to do." He starts to stand up, Sophie follows.

"What are these ideas?" Sophie asks, knowing he wouldn't tell her anyway. He smiles at her and reaches over, resting his hand on her cheek.

"I love you." He leans down, kissing her forehead. "I'll meet you later for dinner." With that he turns and heads back up the hill towards the castle, his hands stuffed in his pockets. Sophie sighs, turning back towards the lake. She stared across the water for some time, lost in thought about what Draco could be planning when a hand on her shoulder made her jump.

"Thought I might find you out here." Hermione says to her best friend, giving her a soft smile. "Everything okay?" Sophie contemplated saying the generic answer, that everything was fine, she just wanted some fresh air but then remembered that Hermione knew everything, she could open up to her best friend and it would be okay. She could tell her the truth.

"I went to Snape for help." She tells her, staring back at the water. Hermione sighs, nodding.

"And let me guess, just like at Christmas, Malfoy is less than pleased with the idea of help from Snape?" Hermione guesses, Sophie nodding in response.

"He said he needs to do this alone... for us." Sophie shrugs. "I guess he's right. Whatever happens to me, happens to him and vice versa." Sophie shrugs. "I just feel so lost and confused, ya know? And Draco and I can't seem to get along for more than a day or two at a time. We fight and argue and get on each other's nerves."

"This is a stressful time for both of you. You both want to protect the other but unfortunately, there really isn't any way to do that."

"But what if he never recovers, Hermione? What if he does manage to murder Dumbledore and he's never the same again?" Sophie speaks her biggest fear. "He's not a murderer and I'm just afraid on how this will change him. That's You Know Who's plan all along. He's punishing Draco for his fathers mistakes, and me for my mothers. He want us to suffer long term for this and well... he's succeeding. No matter what happens, Draco and I are getting the worst out of this entire situation and that's exactly how You Know Who wants it." Sophie had to control her voice from rising. While the grounds were basically deserted, most everyone was inside doing homework or relaxing inside, she didn't want to risk being overheard.

"I'm so sorry, Sophie." Hermione frowns at her friend, kind of at a loss for words. "I wish that there was something that I could do." Sophie gives her best friend a soft smile.

"Just being here with me, listening to me, has helped a ton. I'm so glad I told you everything and have someone to go to about all of this. Any time I try to talk to Draco about this situation we fight and he just won't listen." She says. "I'm sorry I've dumped all of this on you, though. I'm sure it's got to be hard to keep it from Harry." Sophie and Hermione exchange smiles.

"You were my friend before Harry was, so I'm here for you first, you know that." It was true, Sophie befriended Hermione well before Harry and Ron did. Sophie was the smart kid in class, just like Hermione and they clicked within the first week of first year, even being from rival houses. "Harry is very much so on your guys' case though. I don't know if I should be telling you this or not but he had Kreacher and Dobby follow you guys around, mostly Malfoy, but he wanted to find out if you guys were doing anything suspicious."

"And I'm sure he found nothing. We are very careful." Sophie responds, getting a nod in response from Hermione and then a smile.

"It made Harry quite mad to hear that you guys eat in the great hall, sleep in the dormitory, always go to class, everything you should be doing basically. They did tell him how you guys go to the seventh floor a lot but since you cleared up why you go to the Room of Requirement, Harry has hit a wall in his suspicions of Malfoy being a Death Eater and doing anything suspicious."

"Oh, if only he knew. Harry is going to have the biggest 'I told you so' moment when everything comes out." Sophie actually found it funny, imagining how happy Harry will be when he finds out that Draco was everything, and doing everything, he had been accusing him of all year. The two girls laughed.

"Harry thinks we should kidnap you this summer so you can't go back to the Malfoys." Hermione says, turning serious. "That it would be safer at the Burrow rather than there."

"Well he's kind of right, isn't he?" Sophie shrugs, sighing. "Draco and I probably won't even be finishing out this term, so who knows where I'll even be come this summer."

"You know you can always come to the Burrow, they'll let Malfoy come too." Hermione says. "I'm sure Mrs. Weasley would understand. They could keep you safe, both of you." Sophie couldn't help but smile at her friends excited voice, having come up with a plan.

"Draco would never leave his mother. I've tried to get him to come to the Burrow with me before. And he's tried to get me to go there, knowing the kind of protection they have there but just as he wouldn't leave his mother, I wouldn't leave him." Hermione nods sadly, knowing it could never work anyway. She just didn't know what to do anymore, she wanted to help Sophie, and even Draco, so much but just didn't know how. She feared for her best friends life, really really feared for it. She was afraid that in a couple of months she may lose her and that terrified her.

"When do you think the cabinet will be done?" Hermione whispers, not sure she wanted to really know.

"Soon... We got a bird through. It came back but... it was dead." Sophie responds, remembering the night before when Draco killed one of the other remaining birds in his anger to show her he could murder.

"I'm scared for you." Hermione barely whispers, reaching over to take her friends hand tightly in her own. Sophie smiles back at her gently, returning the pressure her friend was giving her.

"I'm scared too." She whispers back, tears welling up in her eyes as she grips at her best friends hand like it were a lifeline, having nothing else solid to hold on to anymore.