Dark Magic and Lies: Descending to Madness

A single candle sat on the bedside table. Wind from an open window caused it to flicker and sway, casting busy shadows along the ceiling. Hermione sat watching them with little interest from her perch on the end of the large master bed. The breeze rolled over her bare shoulders, creating a shiver that descended her spine. She fiddled with the crystals on the hem of her strapless dress before, with a sigh, lifting her bottom from the bed and heading toward the armoire. One well manicured hand supported her weight as she leaned down and removed the black stilettos that had been killing her toes since mid-evening. A smile graced her features as the bedroom door opened and closed behind her. Moments later arms encircled her waist and she leaned backwards turning her face upwards to take in the sight of her husband.

“You looked beautiful this evening. I couldn’t keep my eyes off of you Mrs. Malfoy.” His slender fingers were at the closure to her dress before she could even respond. He slowly pulled the zipper south, then held the light fabric open for her to step out. His eyes darkened a bit as he watched her body separate from the dress.

“What about now?” She turned to face him, grabbing the dress and throwing it to the floor. “Well, Mr. Malfoy?” Her eyes enticed him with an evil glimmer, drawing him into their depths. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

“I’m pleased.” His gaze turned to the dress. “That cost me quite a bit of money.” He said, referring to the discarded clothing.

Her fingers started slowly working at the buttons of his dress shirt. “What does that matter when you have me, who filled the dress, right here?”

“You were worth every penny.” A laugh escaped his throat. His attempt to remain serious had failed.

Hermione smacked his arm playfully before grabbing either side of his tuxedo jacket. Standing on her tip toes she kissed Draco’s nose. She turned away from him and slowly made her way to the bed, shedding her black, lacy undergarments. He quickly caught up to her, grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her small frame onto their bed. She ran her nails along his chest, pushing the white dress shirt to the floor. Draco grinned devilishly at her, his eyes pooling silver. The sight of her laying completely nude among the jade pillows was an excellent end to his evening. His hungry lips crashed against hers and giggled when he reached over and put the candle out between his thumb and forefinger, plunging them into darkness.

Draco stirred, his legs able to move freely about the bottom half of the bed. Hours had passed since making love to his wife and he was dreadfully tired, yet, a tightness in his chest was slowly rousing him from sleep. His eyes shot open as he began to realize no air was passing through his lungs. Vision that was normally sharp was blurred and he barely made out a dark shape atop his chest. He plunged his hands forward, tangling his panicked fingers into silky curls. His chest was starting to burn and tears rushed from his bloodshot eyes as he realized his wife was robbing him of his precious life. She was crying as well, soft distressed cries leaving her parted lips. Draco realized she wasn’t going to release her grip. In a last ditch effort to save his own life he grabbed a handful of Hermione’s hair and pulled with all the strength he could gather. She screamed, removing her hands immediately from his throat. He jumped from the bed, rubbing his swollen neck.

“What in the bloody hell are you doing!!??” There was panic and anger mingling in his voice. A coughing fit sustained any further outbursts allowing his assailant to run from the room.

“Stay away from me you monster!” She yelled as she leapt two at a time down the grand staircase.

Draco recovered and did his best to run down the stairs after his wife. He could hear her desperate cries for help drifting from the kitchen, then from the sitting room. When he finally reached the bottom of the staircase he nearly tripped over her in the darkness.

“Lumos!” He half yelled. Holding the wand to her face he could see she had done a number on herself as well. No doubt from wandering around the manor in the dark. A deep wound on her cheek was bleeding moderately but she cried out when he tried to heal her. She was still in a state of undress due to their previous encounter. “Hermione? Darling? What is it, what is going on here?” The air passing his vocal chords was weak causing it to sound strained.

“I’m so confused…Please. What am I doing here? Why don‘t I have any clothes on!?” Her brown eyes had grown twice their size with a deer in the headlight effect.

“You live here love. You’ve lived here for more than ten years now. Don’t you know me? Your own husband?”

Slowly her head moved from left to right, causing Draco’s heart to falter. “I…I. can’t be married to you. Harry and Ron must be furious with me. What have you done with them!? And Ginny!?”

“I’ve done nothing with them! You seen them mere hours ago at our anniversary party! Why would they be angry over our marriage?” He kneeled, trying to get closer to her.

“You are their enemy, MY enemy.” Tears once again littered her face. Her breathing came faster and faster until she simply passed out from the hyperventilation.

He lifted her easily from the foyer carpet, forgetting about the murder he almost witnessed, his own. There was no rational explanation for Hermione’s actions. There was nothing he could think of in that late hour that would cause his own wife to strangle him.

Wiping the events from his mind he placed her on the bed, pulling a dressing gown over her naked body before pulling the covers up. His body was heavy, weighed down by stress and a near death experience. Deciding against risking his life a second time he stretched out in the arm chair by the open window and dozed off, hoping he was just having a really bad dream.

Hermione woke with the sun, forgetting where she was. Once her eyes adjusted to the gray early morning light occupying the room she swung her bare legs over the bed, relishing in the lushness of the carpet. She tiptoed by Draco’s sleeping form silently not wanting to wake him. Bits and pieces of the previous night sat idle in her tired mind. Her reflection in the mirror startled her and she ceased her exit to check out the woman in the mirror more intensely. A good sized gash was marring her otherwise perfect skin. Purple circles were starting to form underneath her dull chocolate eyes. She watched her hand in the mirror, touching her lips, still stained pink from makeup she didn’t remember applying. There was a large diamond on her left hand held snugly in place with a simple silver wedding band.

“I am married.” She spoke softly to herself, mostly in disbelief.

Nothing about her life with Draco was present in her memories. Waking up in his bed the night before was shocking to say the least. There was a huge piece of her life missing and the only thing to do was go right to the people who knew her best.

Draco woke, immediately realizing the bed was empty. His neck ached horribly, presumably from the awkward angle of the armchair and his near strangling the night before. Rubbing the knot he rose, throwing on a shirt and sleep pants. His wife had tried to murder him and he had to get to the bottom of it. Perhaps it was a nightmare. If indeed it was a nightmare it was one he never wanted her to have again.

“Hermione?” He called as he reached the bottom of the staircase. When there was no answer he continued on, sure she wouldn’t have left. As he crossed the hall he noticed the front door, half open, the morning fog rolling in. There, he found her. Standing on the gravel walkway still in the gown he’d put on her and barefoot. “Love? What are you doing out here like this?” He motioned to her bare legs and feet.

“I can’t dress in clothes that aren’t mine.” She started to cry. “I want to see Harry and Ron. I was going to go but I don’t know where they live.” Her mouth crumpled into a sob. Draco had never felt so sorry for someone in his life. This woman standing before him was not the woman he married.

“Let me take you inside. At least come inside and have some tea.” He tried to grab her by the elbow but she drew back, obviously scared by his mere presence. “Listen to me Hermione. This is crazy. Come inside, get warm and I will take you to Harry and Ron myself.”

Draco turned and started walking back towards the open front door. His wife stepped feebly behind him, her eyes blurred with confused tears. Knowing she was married to Draco Malfoy scared her to death, yet, he was terribly upset over her. Any fool could see his eyes glistening and the ragged look slapped across his face.

“Can I just go and have a bath?” Her voice sounded tiny in the large foyer. It she had spoken louder she would have noticed the sound reverberating off the papered walls and marble floor.

Nodding, Draco ran a hand through his disheveled blond locks. Trying to keep his cool was becoming more than he could handle. He was going to break unless someone stepped in to mediate the very peculiar situation. Grabbing a parchment and quill he wrote a quick note and sent it off to the Potters. If Harry couldn’t fix his wife at the very least he would have a drinking buddy. Drinking would blanket the part of his brain that cracked under pressure, the part that would really give Hermione something to be scared of.