Sigyn: That’s not a chapter title, it’s an arc in DoF.
‘ANNE: O, wonderful, when devils tell the truth!
RICHARD: More wonderful, when angels are so angry.’ – William Shakespeare, Richard III
Cin: Yeah, I’m still getting DoF vibes.
Piffy: Yeah, I’m not going to have a fun time this chapter.
Serleina: NOT WITH THAT ATTITUDE!-
It’s strange. When we were at Hogwarts Draco seemed so much taller than he looks now.
Piffy: I see that Teens Are Short.
He follows his father into my bedroom.
Sigyn:
Lucius turns to lock the door, trapping me in a room with a man and a boy who probably hate me more than anything else in the world…
Cin: If you consider yourself an adult, you should also consider Draco one, so that would be “two men”.
Well, no. I can safely say that about Lucius, but I’m guessing that particular honour is reserved for Harry in Draco’s case.
Sigyn: I’m getting Notice Me, Senpai! vibes from this, and not just because it’s me.
Piffy: I dunno, Harry screwed Lucius over in canon a lot too.
But I’m sure I’m not far down his list.
I’m certain I’m at the top of Lucius’ though.
Sigyn: Hey guys, remember that episode with The List?
Regardless of whatever else might happen, I can always be absolutely certain that he hates me.
Cin: Is she, like, planning to stop hitting us with dead herrings at any point?
Piffy: I wish she would spice it up and hit us with some live herrings.
Lena: That’s animal cruelty. I’m reporting you.
Piffy: oh nooooooooooo
It’s what goes with that hate that I wish I knew more about.
Cin: Why do you care? Hate is hate.
They both stand in front of me, both of them in robes of black,
an almost identical sneer on their pale faces. They’re so similar in every way…
And yet so very different.
Sigyn: Microsoft Word just recently updated to basically Snob Mode. Apparently, the Judgmental Paperclip is also tired of seeing the word “very”, so for every instance of “very” in this fic going forward, I am going to replace it with my favorite Judgmental Paperclip suggestion. Behold:
And yet so vastly different.
‘Good afternoon, Miss Granger.’
Lucius’ voice. Just a greeting, that’s all. Nothing malicious in it, if you take it purely on objective terms.
Cin: So why don’t you want us to take it purely on objective terms? Put another way, why are you trying to create unnecessary drama?
Piffy: I question the accuracy of that sentence, because the situation is objectively full of malice.
I stand up straight as Draco smiles his spiteful smile at me. I’m not going to let this beat me. I mean, it’s only Draco, for crying out loud!
Piffy: You think just because Draco’s incompetent, it’s not going to be that bad?
I’ve had to face Voldemort himself, Bellatrix, Dolohov, and Lucius…
Serleina: EMO ROLL CALL!
All the same, it seems so… wrong that I’m going to have to face god knows what
coming from someone I’ve known since I was eleven years old.
Cin: yes, and you’ve known his father since you were 12. What’s your point?
I can remember Draco being sent sweets by owl post, gleefully unwrapping them at the Slytherin house table.
Piffy: Yes. Most humans were, at one point, Baby. We get it.
Sigyn: Dolohov even got to Be Baby at two points!
Now he’s going to torture me, under supervision from his precious bloody father.
Sigyn:
Loki: Why is she calling him “precious”?
Piffy: Is she making fun of Draco for being a daddy’s boy?
Cin: Wasn’t he a lot closer with his mum in canon?
More than anything, it’s downright humiliating to know that Draco’s finally going to triumph over me.
It doesn’t matter,
Cin: Then shut the fuck up about it
because whatever happens I think it’s safe to say that Draco truly lives in his father’s shadow now.
Sigyn, deadpan: uwu
He’ll never, ever scare me like Lucius does, no matter what he decides to do to me today.
Cin: I’m really tired of getting slapped in the face with dead fish.
Corri: …
Cin: Not @ you.
‘Alright, Granger?’ Malfoy junior asks,
Sigyn: YOU– JUST– YOU– YOU KNOW HOW TO– AAAARRGLE RAARGLE
Piffy: Agree.
practically sniggering at me. ‘Lovely day, isn’t it? Brilliant weather for this time of year. But, of course,’ he grins maliciously, ‘you wouldn’t know, would you, being stuck in here all day.’
Piffy: Brilliant taunting. Absolutely fantastic.
I want to roll my eyes, but as my gaze flickers to Lucius
Piffy: as it always does
I see that he’s already doing just that.
Sigyn: Solidarity uwu
Piffy: She can’t roll her eyes now because he’s already doing it! If she did it, she’d be copycatting.
Cin: photo.png
Oh, not at me. No, that would indicate some kind of… comradeship.
Piffy: The word is “camaraderie”.
No, it’s just to himself.
Draco doesn’t notice, of course.
Cin: No, unlike you, Draco isn’t obsessed with his father’s every facial tic.
‘Never mind,’ he drawls, his grin so wide it looks like he’s going to split his face in half.
‘I’ll spare you a thought when I’m out in the sunshine and you’re in here in the dark. I’ll be laughing when I do it, of course, but still – it’s the thought that counts, isn’t it?’
Piffy: *sighs in exasperation* He’s just so good at taunting. He’s been the school bully for 7 years and now he’s just perfected his craaaaaft.
Lucius smirks at that one, but it doesn’t register with me.
I let my thoughts drift to the world outside for a moment.
It’s sunny out there, then. But he said ‘for this time of year’, so it must be… well, at least September, from what he was saying.
God, that must mean I’ve been here for… a month?
Cin: Bold of you to assume God cares.
Less than that, maybe…
Focus, Hermione. The here and now.
Oh yes, the here and now. Cold stone, no light, and heir pale faces,
Sigyn: lolwut
Cin: Yes, we know Draco inherited his father’s pale face. Can we move on?
waiting for an answer to Draco’s taunts with an almost perverse expectancy.
Sadism must run in the family.
Cin:
‘My, someone’s feeling particularly witty this morning,’ I say. ‘How long did it take you to come up with that little jibe, Draco?
Cin: I don’t know, Akumione, how long did it take you to come up with the wrong word for “camaraderie”?
Piffy: I hate that she has a point. Draco’s taunting sucks.
All evening, was it? You mustn’t blame yourself. My guess is you’ve always been a little slow, if your performance at school was anything to go by.’
Sigyn: Wasn’t his performance second in his grade? That doesn’t indicate slowness.
Piffy: Also, this is a terrible time to taunt him.
A ghost of a smirk crosses Lucius’ lips.
Cin: Wow. Way to support your son, douche.
Draco just blanches in rage. I’ve hit a raw nerve with that remark.
Stop Holding My Hands With Your Hamfists!: 88
He never could handle me beating him in class.
Cin: Yeah, because his dad was a dick about it!
Piffy: Also, she says that as though beating him at grades was the only thing she ever did to him.
Draco whips his wand out of the pocket of his robes. I take an involuntary but automatic step backwards.
Evryn: How does “involuntary” in any way contradict “automatic”?
He smiles at that. So does Lucius.
‘Oh yes, Fine Lady,’ Draco says. ‘Unlike you, I still have my wand.’
Which wand is he referring to?
Sigyn: *titters like a 12-year-old girl*
My real wand, that I last saw snapping in half in his father’s palm, or the wand I used last night, that I last saw being crushed under his father’s boot?
Does it matter?
Evryn: No, so you should probably shut up about it and stop asking stupid questions we don’t care about.
Piffy: Any wand. Just, a wand.
‘Which means I can do this.’
A burning crack of pain cuts across the back of my knees, causing them to bend involuntarily.
Sigyn: No, really? I thought you’d bend your knees on purpose when you’re in pain!
Piffy: She’s also used “involuntary” and “involuntarily” too close together, especially since she could have just used “automatic” the first time.
My kneecaps bruise as they bang onto the ground, taking the brunt of my fall.
Cin: Wow, you bruise really quickly.
Sigyn: Why is she looking at her knees?
But I didn’t cry out. I somehow managed to avoid that. That’s one small victory, anyway.
‘Exceptionally good, Draco.’ That’s Lucius’ voice; deeper, more refined than his son’s, somehow.
Sigyn: I know what she’s going for and
‘But I think perhaps we can do better than that, hmm?’
You sick, sadistic bastard!
“Bastard”: 39
I hate you!
‘I did it exactly how you taught me-‘
‘No, you misunderstand me. What I mean is that if you want your revenge to prove satisfactory then you need to do more than a simple scorching hex.’
Piffy: Gee. Maybe he’s just warming up?
Sigyn: *deadpan* Lu-chan, if you want to walk properly, maybe you need to do more than just simply moving your knees. That’s disgraceful. I’m very ashamed of you.
I roll my eyes up, ignoring Draco but staring at his father
with so much hatred that it would surely kill him if thoughts could take physical form.
Piffy: How do you describe magic again?
Sigyn: Also, boggarts are basically just thots taking physical form. And you can Begone them with Riddikulus. Although saying “Begone, Thot!” while giggling would probably achieve the same effect.
He watches me with a sadistic smile.
Piffy: Yes, we get it. He was doing that last time you checked.
He’s daring me to react to his words. He’s goading me into providing him with an excuse to push me away…
Sigyn: Wow, okay, so you’ve gotten attached enough to him that the thought of him “pushing you away” has– okay.
I gather up whatever dignity I have left and I push myself up onto my feet, lifting myself up from the crown of my head downwards.
Piffy: That’s not how standing up works.
Akuma: But Enzerus R Diffint! –wait… Sorry, force of habit.
Lucius breathes a chuckle. Draco grins, although his eyes slide over to his father, ever so slightly, as if he wants to know what exactly is so amusing.
Cin: Maybe it’s just Stare at Cthucius Day. Ever think of that?
Sigyn: That’s every day for Hermione.
He shouldn’t intrude on things he doesn’t understand.
Sigyn: The son of the man with whom you are obsessed should not intrude on your dynamic, because he doesn’t understand it.
Maybe I should tell him all about what his father did last night. That would wipe the smug smile off Lucius’ face, oh wouldn’t it just?
Sigyn: See previous comment.
But… no. I couldn’t tell him. I couldn’t ever tell anyone. It’s as if what happened last night is a secret, a dark secret that I don’t want anybody, least of all Draco sodding Malfoy, to know about.
Piffy: *makes distressed arms flailing* I need more leaf juice.
*gets leaf juice, returns* I feel like forcing Draco to imagine those things would have more impact than “Ha! I got better grades than you!”
Lucius has got me trapped into silence, playing along with his sick little game, and he hasn’t even had to threaten me into it.
Sigyn: Did You Mean?
– you have handed yourself over, given me complete power over you willingly–
God, I hate him!
Sigyn: I don’t know whether to put a God or Kefka here, so I’m just gonna
‘What do you notice about the way she’s standing, Draco?’
Draco looks at me. ‘She’s standing up straight?’ He voices it as a question.
Evryn: Really? Because we couldn’t tell by the question mark.
Cin: Why is Draco Malfoy using uptalk? He’s not an uptalk guy.
‘Exactly,’ Lucius says with satisfaction. ‘Which means?’
Sigyn: She’s got good posture? … I mean, it wouldn’t be the most OOC thing about her.
Cin: Seriously would not be surprised if Akumione thought books went on her head instead of in it.
‘She’s not afraid of us?’
‘Don’t be a fool. Is she stupid?’
Draco smirks. ‘Well, no-one says so, but-‘
‘An important lesson, Draco – never dismiss the abilities of your opponent,’ Lucius says coldly.
Sigyn: That’s good advice, but I honestly don’t blame Draco here.
‘I repeat – is she stupid?’
‘No,’ Draco replies reluctantly.
‘Which means she is certain to fear us.
Sigyn: No, she’s certain to fear you, the guy who’s actually been torturing her for stupidteen chapters.
And so why do you think she’s standing up straight?’
Cin: The Malfoys don’t start sentences with “And so”.
The stupid little ferret smiles maliciously when he finally gets it.
Piffy: a. Good coping mechanism, imagining Draco as a ferret.
b. Yes, “maliciously”. We get it. You keep using those words as if we have forgotten them.
Stop Holding My Hands With Your Hamfists!: 90
‘It’s a matter of pride. She’s trying to convince us that she’s not afraid of what we’re going to do to her.’
‘Precisely.’ Lucius sneers at me. ‘But all three of us know that to be a charade, I think.’
Piffy: You think?
Cin: Signs and wonders.
Bloody bastard,
“Bastard”: 40
you won’t let Draco think I’m scared of him!
‘I’m not afraid of you,’ I say quietly, but I catch sight of Lucius’ raised eyebrow and I modify my words to make them less of a lie. ‘Not of your son, anyway.’
Sigyn: Why are you giving him that? Why. Why would you give him that, you stupid person.
Draco’s lip curls up in anger as Lucius smiles a gratified, gloating smile.
Cin: You could literally just say ‘Lucius preens’.
Piffy: Why is he treating his son like a peer he’s in competition with?
Sigyn: I don’t know. Ask Drepanon.
‘And why not?’ Draco asks almost petulantly. ‘I’ve got a wand, and I can do magic that you can only dream of-‘
‘Oh, but I do dream of it, Draco, every night,’ I hiss back, losing my temper.
Cin: ~ Every night in my dreams~
Sigyn: *doubles over cackling*
‘I have nightmares about the sort of magic you’re talking about, your bloody father’s seen to that-‘
‘Enough.’ Lucius doesn’t even raise his voice, but the warning is clear. I shut my mouth. He smirks at me
and turns to his son.
‘Wouldn’t it be gratifying if she could be as afraid of you as she is of me? It doesn’t take much, you know.’
Corri: Just get on with it!
He smiles at me mercilessly.
Piffy: Yeah, yeah, yeah. You don’t need to tack these obvious adverbs on the smile, I promise.
Stop Holding My Hands With Your Hamfists: 91
‘She might pride herself on being a Gryffindor, but she’s just a little coward at heart.’
“You Coward!”: 22
I hate you. So much.
Sigyn: I think we need to bin this vinyl because it’s a broken fucking record.
Draco laughs. ‘Well she hasn’t got Potter to protect her now, has she?’ he says triumphantly. ‘How does that feel, Fine Lady? All you’ve got left is Weasley, and even if he were here with us he would probably prove himself to be as useless as he always does.
Sigyn: Hey remember that time in Philosopher’s Stone when Ron was completely useless so Harry just recruited Draco to solve the protection puzzles instead?
Piffy: Yeah, and all those times he had to bail Hermione out of trouble instead of the other way around.
Why don’t we bring him up here, just for five minutes-‘
‘I told you, no.‘ Lucius’ voice isn’t raised, just steely.
Sigyn: Because he only raises his voice for you uwu
‘Weasley is not to be harmed when his safety is the one thing keeping his parents under our control.
Sigyn: okay the fact that the bit about the Weasleys joining the Death Eaters wasn’t just something they said to fuck with Ron really pisses me off.
Piffy: *pterodactyl noises*
Cin: I don’t care if they are father and son, Lucius should not be undermining Draco’s authority as a captor in front of their captive. That’s just bad parenting.
To put their loyalty in jeopardy simply for your own desire for vengeance would be pure selfishness.’
Cin: *searches avidly for a point within the first 6 books wherein “pure selfishness” was not the Malfoy way*
Piffy: How do you describe abandoning your objective of “capturing Harry Potter” in favor of “recapturing the Muggleborn you would personally like to fuck”?
Sigyn: Yeah, Hermione should bring this up. In front of his son. Who’s the same age as her. Shut up, DoFcanon.
Two pink spots appear on Draco’s cheeks and he turns away from his father, glaring at me as if somehow it’s my fault that his father chastised him.
Sigyn: This is giving me pilot-episode-of-JoJo vibes, except that Dio was refined and JoJo wasn’t a whiny little twit.
‘Fine,’ he splutters, losing his cool. ‘That’s fine. We don’t need him, anyway, do we Granger?
Piffy: We get it, you’re sad that you can’t torture Ron.
Do you want to see what I’ve learned since I left school? Do you want to see just how little it matters how well you did at Hogwarts? Oh, you thought you were so special, didn’t you?
Cinmione: If you don’t mind, could you cast Crucio and *then* monologue so I don’t have to hear it?
Piffy: FFS!!! Why is everybody so obsessed about Hermione’s grades?
Everyone’s favourite little Fine Lady pet.
Evryn: *gleefully rubs her hands together* I was waiting for him to say that.
None of that matters now.’
Epiphany: [That was either too much zap or not enough.]
Evryn: There’s no such thing as too much zap.
Orion: I disagree.
Sigyn: What was that? Can’t hear you over the baby going “weblblblblblbblblblbl”
He laughs maliciously.
Stop Holding My Hands With Your Hamfists!: 92
‘I’m going to make you sorry that you ever presumed to be better than me, you little Muggle cow!’
Ahrry: Moo, I’m a fish!
I want to start shaking, but I stop myself. I will not be afraid of Draco Malfoy. He’s just the school bully, that’s all he is. He does not scare me.
Sigyn: Great. Are you trying to convince us or yourself?
Piffy: He was the “school bully”, now he’s a Discount Hitler Youth.
Cin: He’s got the blond hair, pale eyes, and everything!
Piffy: I’m also indignant that the hypothetical shaking is out of fear, not pure rage.
My gaze slides over Lucius,
Sigyn: of course it fucking does.
who leans against the wall as he watches us, his expression unfathomable,
Illybrius: To simplify things, every time she can’t read his expression, I’m just going to assume it’s lust.
Cin: You would.
Illybrius: Am I wrong, though?
Piffy: No, but you’re late to the party.
before it moves back over to Draco.
Illybrius: … I would like to retract my question.
Orion: No, you are not wrong, in fact, you are absolutely correct especially in this instance.
‘Nothing you do to me will change the fact that I beat you at school, will it?’ I say quietly, forcing a shaky smile onto my face.
Cin: omg what are you guys, 17?
Illybrius: Well Actually.
Cin: …oh. Right.
Sigyn: This is still annoying, though.
Draco snarls and raises his wand, and I automatically recoil, preparing myself for what’s to come…
Sigyn: Hey. Pod person. Hermione does not “automatically recoil”. I know you’re a Gutless, but sooner or later that just stops being an excuse.
‘Wait.’ Lucius raises his hand in command
Cin: As opposed to raising it for a high five?
Stop Holding My Hands With Your Hamfists!: 93
and walks over to the pair of us. Draco lowers his wand, glowering at me as his father approaches me, coming closer, I realise now, than he has for the entire duration of this visit.
He probably doesn’t want his son to know just how cosy some of his visits can get.
Sigyn: Do people discuss that kind of thing with their kids? Because I have no intention to.
Piffy: Also, Voldemort would have some issues with this.
Cin: If he wasn’t Mother Superior Voldemort, Our Lady of Eternal Patience.
He stands about half a metre away from me. Too close, and yet further away than he usually is.
Piffmione: “I hereby demand my government-approved 6 feet of personal space.”
Desmoda: Government-approved, Doberman-enforced.
‘You might want to apologise for that little remark,’ he says quietly.
Cinmione: “Or I might not. What are you going to do, kill me?“
God help me,
I don’t know why I say what I say next, but I just can’t bear him behaving as if nothing has happened,
as if nothing has changed since when he first captured me, as if he’s as indifferent to me now as he was then.
Piffy: OF ALL THE THINGS. (okay, Piffy, breathe)
I won’t help him put up this charade for his son.
‘Are you going to apologise for what you did last night?’ I whisper.
His hand whips across my face in one of the hardest slaps he’s ever given me.
Like Muggles Do: 229
Serleina: MMMMM WHAT’CHA SAAAAAYYYYYY
My head reels back and I fall to the floor.
I can taste blood in my mouth.
Desmoda: *struts back in* That’s called food. We taste it when we eat.
He looks at me for a few moments, his jaw twitching like a ruminant, before he turns away from me and walks swiftly escapes to the other side of the room. I bring my hand up to my mouth. Warm blood runs out of my lips, over my fingers.
Desmoda: Your table manners leave much to be desired.
Draco watches me with a smile on his face, but it’s a smile that’s slightly uneasy. I don’t think he heard what I said, but he saw what his father just did to me.
Serleina: DESPAAAIIIIIRRR! IF DADDY SMACKS HER AROUND THE SAME WAY HE DOES TO ME, WHATEVER SHALL I DO TO PREVENT MYSELF BEING SUPPLANTED?
Akuma:
And I think it’s shocked him.
Akuma: WHAT SHALL I DO, TO WIN MY LORD AGAIN? FOR BY THIS LIGHT OF HEAVEN, I KNOW NOT HOW I LOST HIM!
Sigyn: Is that really how y–
Serleina: Yes.
Akuma: YES, AND if obsessmuch insists on quoting Shakespeare, she should quote something actually relevant and interesting in the context of the story.
Cin: If that’s what you wanna call it.
Have you still got the strength to follow in your father’s footsteps, little boy?
Cin: You’re the same age so like, why are you infantilizing yourself?
Lucius looks at me with intense hatred for a moment from the other side of the room,
Sigyn: He was a foot and a half away from her, and now he’s on the whole other side of the room. WOW.
Drepanon:
Piffy: This is more telling than anything Hermione could have said to him.
his face out of his son’s view, before he forces his expression into one of calm.
‘Cutting hexes first, I think, Draco.’
Coward.
“You Coward!”: 23
Why can’t he do it himself if he wants to push me away?
You answered your own question there, Hermione.
Piffy: Also, why would he downgrade from scorching hexes to cutting hexes?
Draco frowns at me slightly before he approaches me, his wand raised in his shaking hand.
I crawl across the ground, claw my way over the stone as the throbbing after-shock of the Cruciatus curse twinges through me. My arms shake to carry my weight, but I’ve got to get away from them. I can’t go through that again, I just can’t.
Cin: You’ve gone through it before and you’ll go through it again. Ho hum.
Piffy: I am grateful she put a jump cut there, though. It’s a good place for it.
We’ve been at this for hours now, surely they can just stop!
They’re Fucking Evil!: 103
‘She’s trying to get away.’ That’s Lucius’ voice, cutting through me, causing me almost as much pain as the Cruciatus curse itself.
Piffy: Is he trying to sound like nails on a chalkboard?
Sigyn: Maybe he’s hoarse from giving Draco so much instruction or something.
Piffy: He should go get some water.
Cin: And drink it in front of her to taunt her.
‘You might want to stop her.’
‘I was just about to-‘
‘You’re not making fast work of it, are you?’
Sigyn: You think he talked to Draco like this when Draco was learning to latch?
Piffy: Probably. Dad of the Year, everyone.
‘She can’t exactly get far, can she?’ Draco says sulkily.
‘It’s the principle of the matter that concerns me. She needs to learn that this meeting is on your terms, not hers.’
God, Draco’s got a lot to learn, I think irrationally, something pulls at my hair and wrenches me onto my back, dragging me across the floor.
Sigyn: This sentence is a disaster. Also,
I look up into their identical sneering faces,
Piffy: We get it. Draco’s a little Lucius clone.
slip my gaze over Draco to look at Lucius,
who only watches me for a moment before his face flickers and he turns to his son. I catch sight of Draco’s wand and my eyes roll back into my skull with remembered agony.
Sigyn: So remember close to the beginning of this spork when I was like, “I’ll come back in a few months and let you know if Hermione’s descriptions of agony are consistent with my thought processes during labor!”? I discussed this offscreen and…
I curl up onto my side, shivering.
‘You’re doing well, Draco.’
Cin: Finally, some positive feedback!
A foot tucks under my chin and rolls my head up,
Like Muggles Do: 230
and I open my eyes despite myself to see them both looking down at me as Lucius withdraws his boot from my face.
Bad Touch: 342
They’re sneering at me, although both of them have something lurking just underneath the surface of their distain.
Draco looks distinctly uneasy now. He almost looks frightened, despite his arrogant air.
Whereas Lucius still has that same old look on his face. Arrogance, anger, abhorrence.
Sigyn: THAT PARAGRAPH IS A DISASTER! Dependent clause as its own sentence, and then just a list of words beginning with “A”. No. Write better!
And then that small spark of something, that something that he never had when he first captured me but that I see on his face so often now.
Illybrius: iiiit’s LUUUUUUUUSSSSSSTTTT
I think I might be on my way to understanding what that something is.
Illybrius, deadpan: *claps*
Piffy: Finally caught up, have we?
I’m sick of trying to figure him out.
Sigyn: And we’re sick of reading it.
I want him to tear off the Death-Eater’s mask and stop pretending.
Piffy: How are you laser-focusing on every little facial expression of his when he’s wearing a fucking mask?
Sigyn: I actually think that was supposed to be a metaphor. But I agree with you because Death Eaters literally wear masks.
I want to scratch away at the surface and see what’s underneath so that I can truly know him,
even if what I see hurts so much and causes me so much pain that I want to die.
‘Look at her,’ Lucius says quietly, although he himself won’t look at me.
Cin: In addition to offering unconstructive criticism, Lucius is also a “Do as I say, not as I do” parent.
‘I don’t think she’d deny that she fears you now, after what you’ve put her through.’
He smiles at his son, although his son’s reciprocation seems a little forced.
God.
Who would have thought that Draco Malfoy, the bully I’ve known since we were just children, would be able to cause that much pain.
Piffy: The thing about bullies is that they like to cause pain. That’s kind of, definitionally, what they do.
Almost as much as his father.
And yet somehow nowhere near as much as his father.
My cheek stings with a burning streak of invisible flame.
‘Look at me… at us, Fine Lady.’
I do as I’m told.
Cin: Besides Spunky Agency, that’s all you ever do.
Now he’s looking at me.
‘Please,’ I whisper. ‘Just… please…’
His face tightens before he turns to his son. ‘Perhaps one more time, Draco,’ he says coldly. ‘Just once more to punish her for the audacity of asking us for anything, let alone to show mercy on a worthless Fine Lady.’
Cin: He’s got a point. And by that, I mean
They’re Fucking Evil!: 105
Draco looks down at me, frowning. ‘Don’t you think…’
He trails off, his cheeks turning slightly pink.
Lucius raises an eyebrow.
Piffy: Not the Eyebrow of Fatherly Disapproval!
‘Do you have something to say?’ he asks quietly.
Draco shakes his head and raises his wand.
No. No!
Sigyn: Yes, that’s what shaking your head means.
I drag up all the strength I have left and roll to the side. The green light of the Cruciatus curse misses me by millimetres.
Piffy: That’s Avada Kedavra, not Crucio.
I push myself up onto my knees and I stare at the pair of them, my breathing harsh. Draco’s eyes are wide, incredulous trenchers.
Piffy: On the one hand, congratulations on making me look up a new word. On the other, I’m not sure why you’d use this word and not just “dinner plate” or something more serviceable.
Lucius is almost smiling.
I hate him. I hate him!
Piffy: That’s great. Are you going to do anything about it?
‘Have you had enough, Fine Lady?’ he asks coldly.
I take a deep breath.
There’s one thing I can do. One thing I can use against him to make him stop. I don’t want to, I don’t want Draco to know,
Cin: Why not?
Piffy: Why don’t you want to embarras Cthucius in front of his son and squick Draco the fuck out?
but I’m damned if I’m going to let this go on.
‘You will stop this,’ I say shakily. ‘Now.’
Draco laughs a disbelieving laugh, but Lucius frowns at me, his eyes flashing a warning.
Sigyn: Was it one of the annoying generic warnings from the beginning of the fic?
‘And why would I want to do that?’ he asks quietly.
I steel my nerve.
Sigyn: I’m imagining Shirou doing that thing with his spine.
I can’t say anything. I don’t dare to, not in front of Draco, but I can still think. He hasn’t taken that away from me yet.
Evryn: For a sufficiently-inclusive definition of “think”.
I lock my gaze onto his, and I fill my brain with words as I feel his mind interweave with mine.
You will stop this, or I’ll tell Draco some very interesting things about his father.
Sigyn: That instance of “very” did not have a suggestion in Word. I am disappoint.
His eyes narrow into slits of rage, but I continue to scream the words in my mind.
I’ll tell him all about you and his Aunt. And when I’ve finished with that, I’ll tell him all about what you did last night after we came back…
His face freezes with absolute fury, filling my insides with ice.
Cin: Why does this power only come up in scenes like this and not, like, Cthucius invading her mental privacy during interrogation to actually get information that she doesn’t want him to know? This is really dumb.
‘Father, what’s going on?’
But quick as a flash Lucius crouches over me, planting his wand into my throat with such force that it almost makes me gag.
Sigyn: I insist on reading this as Cthucius force-feeding her his wand.
His free hand grips onto the front of my robes, wrenching my face up close to his.
Bad Touch: 343
He should be careful. He can’t come too close in front of Draco.
‘No, you won’t,’ he says whispers, so very quietly.
Sigyn: Word also let that instance of “very” stand 😦
Cin: “He says whispers, so very quietly” sounds like bad slam poetry. Or just… slam poetry.
‘Unless you want Weasley to be tortured half to death in front of you, you will keep your filthy mouth shut.’
Damn. Damn. He could use Ron to get me to do anything.
Sigyn: Uh, Hermione?
I clamp my lips together. He’s won this one.
Cin: Only because you’re dumber than a goldfish, ok.
Lucius nods, his face still white with rage as he lets go of me. But he doesn’t put a safe distance between us once again.
Cin: Wait, why wouldn’t he?
Draco laughs because he’s also dumber than a goldfish, which irritates me beyond belief: Fact or Fiction. After all, he doesn’t have the remotest clue about what’s reallygoing on.
Welcome to the club.
‘Oh yes, you wouldn’t want your precious weasel harmed would you?’ The ferret sneers at me.
Cin: I love how they’re both mustilids. Also,
‘Well at least you’ve got each-other’s company to wile away the hours.’
Cin: If only they were actually being wily with their time, though.
‘Indeed, Draco.’ Lucius smirks at me with pure malice.
Stop Holding My Hands With Your Hamfists!: 94
His face is still quite close to mine, although not as close as it could be.
Illybrius: Lick his face, just to be annoying.
Piffy: At least spit on him!
Sigyn: Next time he calls you That Word, threaten to bleed on everything he loves.
‘Although why anyone, even scum like Wealsey,
Cin: Who?
would want this ugly little throwback is really beyond me.’
Sigyn: Throwback to what?
Piffy: How would a Pureblood wizard know Darwin’s Theory of Evolution?
Anger pounds through me, flies through my veins like electricity.
Cin: Every time you reference Muggle things like electricity, you’re just proving the Purebloods right about you. I don’t actually fault Hermione for this, but it is lazy writing on the part of obsessmuch.
How can you say that?
They’re Fucking Evil!: 106
After everything, why do you still call me ugly?
Sigyn: Evil is Petty.
It’s not fair, it’s not fair,
They’re Fucking Evil: 108
you BASTARD,
“Bastard”: 41
if I’m so ugly then why the hell did I wake up last night to feel your fingers trailing up and down my back,
Orion: BECAUSE EVIL IS PETTY AND MOLESTATION IS A FORM OF EVIL, YOU DUMB, DUMB, DUMBY, DUMB!
why, why, WHY? I HATE YOU!
He flinches back, sucking in his breath sharply.
‘Father?’
I blink, watching Lucius,
who doesn’t respond to his son but turns back to me, frowning.
What’s going on?
‘Father,’ Draco says tentatively, ‘you’re… you’re bleeding.’
Bleeding?
God, he’s right.
Cin: gOD STILL DOESN’T CARE.
Beads of blood are seeping out of a tiny cut in the white alabaster of his cheek
Piffy: Oh, the white alabaster of his cheek
Sigyn: Yeah, why is Hermione suddenly describing Lucius like she’s a romance novelist? Also don’t @ me.
that definitely wasn’t there a second ago.
Sigyn: The white alabaster of his cheek wasn’t there a second ago?
I gulp.
How the hell did that happen?
Evryn: I don’t know. How does gulping work?
‘What was that?’ Draco asks, but Lucius still looks at me, his eyes narrowed. ‘Did she have a magical reaction or something-‘
‘SILENCE!‘ Lucius shouts suddenly, making both Draco and I jump.
Evryn: Shouting doesn’t make I jump, it makes me jump.
He watches me closely, looking deeply into my eyes, his face pale and twisted with what looks like…
Worry?
Sigyn: Congratulations, AkumioneBot, you’ve learned to parse a new emotion!
Piffy: I wonder if she’ll keep it up.
‘Well… I mean, it’s not the end of the world, is it?’ Draco says nervously. ‘She must have done it before-‘
‘I told you to be quiet!’
He’s staring at me with such intense rage that I have to stop myself from apologising for hurting him out of pure fear.
“I’m Scared!”: 43
What’s Draco talking about, anyway?
Cin: I don’t know, have you tried listening to the words coming out of his mouth?
Evryn: Actually, I’ve tried doing the opposite of that, because I don’t really care what he’s talking about.
Does he mean the wandless magic people used to talk about in school? The kind that made Harry blow up his Aunt, and Neville bounce down his back garden-
–the kind that made him fly backwards and away from you–
I… what?
I swear I just… but it’s gone, I can’t…
Cin: So not only does Lucius suck at healing spells, he sucks at memory modification.
Piffy: Sounds legit.
I try to grip it again, to grab hold of that sudden thought and work out what it means, but it slips away from me like water and I can’t remember what it was.
Sigyn: I hate it when that hapens, and it happens all the time.
Piffy: Mood.
Lucius’ eyes widen for a moment as they lock into my own, and yes, I was right, there’s definitely worry there now. His face contorts before he grabs me by the front of my robes,
Like Muggles Do: 231
pushing his wand into my throat.
‘You… insolent little bitch,’ he whispers.
‘I’ll teach you your place if it kills me. Crucio!‘
Sigyn: Why would it kill you?
Pain slams into me, and I spin away, fall through darkness…
One thousand sounds and pictures. All alien. All familiar.
Piffy: If a picture is worth a thousand words, that’s like… how many more chapters of this fic?
Sigyn: *groans*
‘By God, you will learn your place, by the time I am finished with you.’
What is… what? I can’t remember it…
I can remember it. Pictures, sounds, thoughts, all crystal clear.
‘Pushed into it, you say?’ He walks over to me, slowly. ‘Alright, Fine Lady, I’ll make a deal with you.’
He reaches me and he raises his hand to my cheek, brushing my hair away from my face.
‘I am going to try and ‘push’ you into doing some wandless magic,’ he says quietly. ‘If a magical reaction is provoked in you, then I shall probably end up getting hurt in some way, but I give you my full permission to do that. Do you understand me, Muggle? I am so certain that you will be unable to perform any wandless magic that I am giving you permission to hurt me.’
Cin: Wow, he REALLY sucks at Memory Charms. He could actually learn a thing or two from Lockhart if, you know, Lockhart wasn’t in St. Mungo’s.
He gave me permission to do it, didn’t he? But when I did, when I did…
What happened when I did?
Sigyn: He punished you for it and that’s moving the goalposts and I know he’s Fucking Evil but that’s really annoying ok
More memories cram into my mind.
‘So I want control over you, do I?’ he hisses. ‘I want power over your body, is that what you’re suggesting?’ He laughs mirthlessly before he slaps me hard across the face with the back of his hand. ‘You pathetic little bitch! Do you really think that I’d ever consider even thinking of you in that way?’
He pummels his fist into my stomach and I double over, collapsing onto the ground.
‘You are filth!‘
Sigyn: Fun fact: Filth is the name of Loki’s pet cat in Warframe. He asked me what he should name it and we had just finished watching a DR of My Immortal.
His voice is harsh with rage. ‘You are nothing! What right have you to say such things to me?’
I’m crying, crying in front of him again like I promised myself I would never do, screaming as he kicks out at me again, and again…
Sigyn: Was there a time limit on that Memory Charm or something? That’s really shoddy work. This wasn’t codified as something that could happen in canon and it feels lazy and plot-convenient.
Piffy: This lazy convention is especially egregious here, because she is being tortured, and pain fucks up your memory. People are much more likely to forget things while being tortured than remember them.
I needed him to stop, I needed it to end, but he just wouldn’t, even though I begged and pleaded with him…
They’re Fucking Evil!: 109
Yet more thoughts and visions come screaming back at me.
‘You are useless. Worthless. I don’t need to prove to you how worthless you are – if you don’t know it already then there’s no helping you.’
Oh just FUCK OFF! Leave me alone leave me alone!
He wrenches my head round brutally to face him again, and he looks into my face intently for a moment…
And then he slaps me again.
I can’t bloody stand that bloody personal infliction of pain!
I hate him so so so much!
That electricity flies through me, coursing through my veins.
Cin: IT’S NOT ELECTRICITY, IT’S FUCKING MAGIC, YOU DUMB MUD–
Focus, Hermione! Channel it!
He chuckles cruelly.
‘As if I’d ever touch you,’ he murmurs, ‘you piece of muggle scum!’
Come on! Push it out of you! Force it through your fingers!
HATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATE!
I feel the electricity shoot out of me, through my fingertips, and suddenly he flies backwards, flies away from me across the room, back, and back…
He lands on the ground on the other side of the room, sprawled on the stone floor.
I did it! I remember. God, I remember!
The final piece of the puzzle soars into my mind, making it whole once again.
‘You coward!’ I whisper incredulously.
A muscle goes in his jaw.
‘Believe what you like about me, Fine Lady,’ he says quietly. ‘It is of no consequence to me.’
He raises his wand.
No!
‘Obliviate!’
Cin: SHE REMEMBERS THE MOMENT THE MEMORY MODIFICATION CHARM WAS CAST?! NO! YOU CAN’T DO THAT! You can’t remember the moment you were struck on the head and blacked out, and you absolutely can’t remember when a fucking memory charm was cast at you. In fact, this is MUCH WORSE than the “oh, he hit me on the head and I blacked out” thing a lot of writers do.
Piffy: Also, the copypaste is implying that she has perfect recall.
Sigyn: *roars in rage and throws her computer, printer, desk, chair, and mini-fridge out the window*
Serleina: great now we have to go pick that stuff up and reassemble it thanks a lot ugh this is the fourth time this week and it’s only Tuesday
I swim up through darkness, clawing my way to the surface.
Air rips into my lungs in a huge, gasping breath as my eyes throw themselves open,
Sigyn: You don’t even open your own eyes! They just throw themselves open.
Piffy: Like windows in a storm!
Sigyn: I hate you so much. You have less agency over your own body than my literal baby, who has just learned that he can roll around and grasp stuff.
not seeing anything because my mind is still processing the new memories, everything slotting into place, everything making sense, all of it…
My body bucks and heaves on the ground as I take huge, rasping breaths.
Desmoda: You know, recovering from plot point amnesia doesn’t usually cause orgasms, but go off.
‘What’s the matter with her?’
‘If I knew, don’t you think I’d do something to stop it?’
Sigyn: NO!
Did You Forget Your Prejudice?: 49
Sigyn: In fact, I’m straight-up shook that Our Lady of Eternal Patience didn’t choose to, ah, terminate your services after you let Harry Potter (whom he wants to capture) get away, and recaptured the Mud (whom he doesn’t care about).
His voice. I cling onto it, let it drag me to the surface.
Cin: Why. Why must you depend on something from a man. Why can’t you just have agency and internal motivations and all that good stuff Canon Hermione had?
Things come into focus, all the blurriness is swept away as my mind clicks back into place. Lucius’ face is close to mine, his brow furrowed and his eyes flickering over my face with what is definitely fear.
Averna: Ah, finally, the good part!
Sigyn: I wouldn’t hold my breath.
Averna: Let me have this moment.
Sigyn: Okay. And not just because you’re holding an axe.
‘You…’ My voice comes out as a thread. Lucius watches me with disgusted incomprehension, but I’ve got to say this, I’ve got to. ‘You… my memory… I…’
Sigyn: Why would you provide him with that information?! You’re so dumb and I hate you so much
His eyes widen and his face loses its colour, going so pale in his rage that his skin is almost translucent.
Cin: Like Bella Swan!
‘Draco.’ His lips barely move as he speaks. ‘Get out. Go down to the hallway, I’ll meet you there.’
‘But Father-‘
‘OUT!’ Lucius shouts suddenly. With great effort I move my gaze over to Draco, who glares at the back of his father’s head before he turns and walks towards the door, throwing me the look of deepest dislike as he leaves the room, slamming the door shut behind him.
Lucius stands up, gripping me by the arm and wrenching me to my feet.
Like Muggles Do: 233
Bad Touch: 344
His fingers bite through my robe and into my skin as he shakes me in his fury.
Like Muggles Do: 234
‘What did you see?’ he asks harshly. When I don’t reply he slaps me hard across the face.
Like Muggles Do: 235
‘Answer me!‘
Cin: You can read her mind! Just read her mind!
Piffy: He forgot he can read minds.
God, I’m so angry, I’m so angry!
Cin: FINALLY! SHE’S ANGRY! GOOD! THIS IS GOOD PROGRESS!
Sigyn: SHE’S NOT THE ONLY ONE!
I just don’t care about anything any more. How could he?
They’re Fucking Evil!: 110
‘You obliviated me!’ I shout in fanspeak. ‘You bloody coward, you obliviated me!’
“You Coward!”: 24
He nods his head, a tiny angry smirk coming back to his lips as he tries to force his anger away.
Cin: You are giving the enemy ammunition, you stupid hothead. You should really just keep quiet about the fact that you know your memory was modified and now you’ve got it back, because guess what he’s going to want to do again?
‘And if I did?’ He grips my chin,
Bad Touch: 345
bringing my face so close to him that I can see every line of fury grooved into his face. ‘In case you’d forgotten, I own you.
Sigyn: Unfortunate Implications!
Piffy, simultaneously: ~ Tag your slave AU~
That means I can do as I like with you, Fine Lady. You have no right to question my actions.’
Sigyn: Yes the fuck we do.
I wrench my face out of his grip. ‘I have every right in the world!’ I yell. ‘It’s my memory! How dare you take away my memory?
They’re Fucking Evil!: 111
Isn’t enough for you that you’ve taken every aspect of my existence under control without taking hold of my mind, too?’
They’re Fucking Evil!: 113
He draws back his hand but I turn and run from him, hating myself for not shutting up and keeping quiet because now I’ve made him angry again,
Sigyn: That’s not why you should have kept it to yourself. Also, shutting up and keeping quiet are synonymous. But at least you’re finally running away from him.
I can never stop making him angry-
Cin: That sounds like a him problem. I mean, you can’t stop making us angry either, But That’s Different.
‘Don’t run away from me, you revolting animal!’
Sigyn: If she’s a revolting animal, why don’t you want her to run away?
Piffy:
An invisible hook draws me back and fireworks explode and limbs snap as I slam back into the cold, unforgiving stone wall. He steps in front of me, his face furious.
‘It doesn’t matter,’ he says quietly. ‘Wandless magic can’t be controlled. You could never use it to your advantage.
Cin: Then why were you egging her into using it before?
Piffy: He’s lying out his ass at this point. He has lost control of the situation and *sighs* *incredibly tired pterodactyl noises*
One can’t pick and choose what spells to perform without a wand unless you are a wizard of the most advanced kind, and even then it’s extremely difficult to conjure.’
Sigyn: Okay but she’s allegedly the brightest witch of her age, my good dude. What was that you were saying earlier about not underestimating your enemy? I mean I know you’re lying out your ass, like Piffy said, but still.
I don’t say what I’m thinking – that it doesn’t matter if I never do wandless magic again, what good it’ll do me.
Sigyn: It’s good that you’re not spouting off every thought that flies into your empty little head again, but that’s not what you should be thinking.
Piffy: So Akumione, there’s this thing Muggles tend to do with electricity (*ignores Cin’s disgusted groan*) to punish criminals. It’s a special chair.
No, what matters is that both he and I know that I am just as magical as he is.
Cin: No, what matters is that you use that to your advantage!
He can’t ever again say to me that I’m an incapable witch without both of us knowing it to be false.
Sigyn: You already knew! Why are you entertaining this train of thought?!
Piffy: Why is she so fucking preoccupied with his feelings?
He runs his wand down my cheek.
Bad Touch: 346
‘Besides,’ he says negligently,
Evryn: That’s not a good adverb.
‘what’s to stop me from doing it again? I could erase this whole day from your memory with a flick of my wand.’
Cin: We already pointed that out, Remedial Literature.
I stand stock still, not even comprehending him.
Cin: Oh look, she’s in the class too.
‘You said once, after you killed my parents, that you’d never lied to me,’
Sigyn: Yes, and we pointed out why that was a lie.
I say quietly, shaking with how much I hurt right now.
Sigyn: NO! YOU SHOULD BE SHAKING WITH ANGER RIGHT NOW!
‘But you did, Lucius. You took my memory away from me, and you never told me about it. You’ve lied to me every day since you did that.’
Sigyn: That’s a valid point. I will give her that.
Piffy: Mud in her leg. Killing her parents. There’s a lot of things he’s done that are worse than simply being lied to.
If I didn’t know him as well as I do I’d say that he flinched a little at my words.
Cin: You don’t know him that well, because he totally did.
He flicks his wand at me, releasing me from the wall. I stumble forwards slightly and he catches me by the arm.
Like Muggles Do: 236
He draws me up to face him, pulling me close,
Bad Touch: 348
and suddenly there doesn’t seem to be enough air in the world. His eyes have drained it all away from me.
Sigyn: ~ Your eyes, your eyes / I can see in your eyes, your eyes / Everything in your eyes, your eyes ~
He… he reaches out and trails his finger down my cheek, writing a blush over it.
Bad Touch: 349
Piffy: That sound a lot like contact dermatitis.
He’s looking intently into my eyes, bringing his face close, so close.
I breathe in unsteadily, but I can’t hear him breathing.
Cin: I thought YOU were the one who couldn’t breathe. Again, make up your mind.
He draws his fingers back from my face, clenching them into his palm as his mouth sets into a thin line.
‘One day you’ll go too far,’ he says quietly, releasing me from his grip, ‘and you don’t even want to think about what my reaction will be when you do.’
Sigyn: You’ve threatened that already, so…
The Counts So Far!
“I’m Scared!”: 43
Like Muggles Do: 236
Did You Forget Your Prejudice?: 49
“You Coward!”: 24
Stop Holding My Hand With Your Hamfists!: 94
They’re Fucking Evil!: 113
Bad Touch: 349
“Bastard”: 41
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