Stressful !

For as long as he could remember, his life had been one long, never-ending struggle in which he had never been victorious. It didn't matter what choices he had made : he had failed every time.

He had been mistreated for most of his life. By his father, his classmates, his friends and even his master, to whom he had sworn allegiance. And nothing and no one could prevent what he had endured : a broken family, a one-sided love... a torn soul constantly torn from side to side.

But despite all the trials of life, this man never gave up. He never gave up because he had a quality that almost no one in the world could match : his will !

He had decided to become a Death Eater, but not for the reasons he was given. Oh no, he had a completely different agenda : revenge. And to achieve that, he needed time, lots of time, and that was one of the last things Severus Snape had left. The woman he loved had been coldly murdered, his friend Lucius Malfoy was a complete fool... and the only person he considered of any value to him was his godson : Draco.

With Lord Voldemort's victory, England was on its knees and it would not be long before the rest of the world fell under his rule. Voldemort, though he might abhor Muggles, had carefully studied the broad outlines of human history. He had decided to spread a new disease among Muggles and what better way to do so than to create a biological weapon to finally get rid of these worthless creatures.

Lord Voldemort had entrusted this task to his faithful servant and potions master Severus Snape. Severus had to be able to make a potion that would finally convince the naysayers to join their ranks. The potion would have the ability to slowly and fatally attack the flesh of Muggles, eating away at their insides with no treatment.

In order to allow Severus to carry out this mission, the Dark Lord had exempted him from participating in raids across the country. This gave Snape plenty of time to work on the formulation of this deadly weapon. And by Merlin, the task was truly daunting. He had stopped counting the number of cauldrons that had ended up with holes in them or completely exploded from mixing ingredients.

The potions master was devoting all his time to the task his master had asked of him. Smoke was constantly rising from the room he was in. The shelves on the walls contained countless ingredients of all kinds as well as many books. The room was strewn with cauldrons, flasks, jars and manuscripts.

No one could doubt that the greasy-haired wizard was working hard to accomplish his mission. Yet no one could have imagined that behind all those vials, Severus Snape was simply preparing his revenge : a weapon against the man who had killed the only woman he had ever loved. This potion was intended to kill the Dark Lord once and for all.

At the moment, he was bent over one of his many cauldrons, dripping a blackish-looking liquid when something caught his eye.

There was no doubt about it: hurried, almost savage footsteps accompanied by heavy breathing. Who could it be ? He did not have long to wait for the answer. Indeed, a massive figure passed at high speed in front of his door: Fenrir Greyback!

— "Already ?!" Severus exclaimed.

If the lycanthrope was already here, the other members of the raid would soon appear. The Potions Master immediately stopped his brewing, lowered the fire under the cauldron and strode quickly towards the exit.

But no sooner had he stepped into the corridor than something else caught his eye : the space was empty. Nothing. There was nothing and no one else. Only the lycanthrope disappeared around the corner, the one that led to the dungeons.

This situation did not inspire him.

— "It's far too early... He shouldn't be here !" Severus grumbled in a low voice.

Driven by his intuition, Snape took off after the werewolf with a rustle of his cloak. But unlike the latter, the wizard was not running. He was moving at a fast pace, taking care not to be spotted by the sound of his footsteps, let alone by his scent.

Long minutes passed with the rhythm of the many staircases that had to be taken to reach the dungeons of the headquarters. At the beginning of the chase, all was silent around Severus until, gradually, muffled noises reached his ears. The sounds were indescribable at first, but as he got closer, Snape also heard voices, which made him speed up.

After a while, all the noise became clearer... much too clear. A huge, muffled crack sounded several times and shook the floor. Severus had to grab hold of the wall as best he could to keep from falling face first.

As soon as the shaking stopped, he ran towards the dungeons. As he reached the last door, he could hear Greyback say with a clear laugh:

— "You lost, you traitor !"

His sense of danger was at its height and that could only mean one thing : his godson was in grave danger. And for that reason, Severus did not dither for a moment about what to do. Draco was the last person he cared about and he could not afford to break his promise to Narcissa.

The Potions Master snapped his fingers and the door flew open as he pulled out his wand. Hermione's screams and the crash of the landslide drowned out the noise that had just been added to the scene.

Fenrir Greyback was unaware of the wizard's intrusion and the spell he had just cast behind his back.

— "Avada Kedavra !" Snape shouted with a quick wave of his wand.

The lycanthrope was immediately struck down. His body was thrown forward and fell into the void left by the ground explosion. Without realising it, a thin smile of satisfaction appeared on the corner of the Potions Master's lips. He had been dreaming of killing him for so long, and now it was finally done !

Hermione had automatically closed her eyes when she heard the death spell being uttered. She waited with fear and tension for the fatal outcome she had been dreading : that of tumbling down to the lake full of Inferi.

However, a few seconds after the spell was pronounced, she could still feel Draco's firm grip around her wrist. How could this be possible ? She ventured to open one eye, then the second, and gasped in surprise. In place of the werewolf was someone she would not have expected to see here.

However, her amazement was short-lived and she was brought back to the reality of the moment by Malfoy's harsh, imperious voice.

— "Granger ! I know you're a thrill-seeker... But get a move on !" Draco ordered as he pulled the young woman with all his might.

But as he tried to pull her up onto the ledge, a loud cracking sound was heard as he pulled her up. Draco immediately stopped all movement and stared at the witch who also seemed to have understood what was happening.

— "Slowly," Draco swallowed as he resumed his attempt to lift Hermione to him. But the situation was extremely delicate and the wizard stopped his endeavour once more as there was another creak not far from them.

The wooden beams that supported the rest of the structure were giving way. If he didn't act quickly, they would both end up several feet below. The blond knew that the young woman had also analysed the situation in which they found themselves. He also suspected that she would not be able to avoid sliding her gaze towards the lake.

— "Don't look down !" Draco ordered loudly to keep her focus on something other than the void she was suspended in.

This had the desired effect, Hermione looked into the blonde's tear-filled eyes. The young woman felt a mixture of fear and rage. Her helplessness could not have been more acute than at this moment. What a stupid death for a witch like her !

But the solution to their current predicament came from the wizard on the opposite side of the room.

— "Draco ! Stop pulling like that. If you increase the weight like that, everything will break. Tilt it," Severus explained.

The blond almost blamed himself for not thinking of it himself. He was too focused on not letting her down that he hadn't thought of it.

— "You heard Granger ! You're going to swing with your body and with the momentum I'm going to bring you back to the edge... but whatever happens, look me in the eye," Draco clarified with a strangely comforting tone.

Hermione had always been afraid of heights, hence her aversion to flying brooms. But despite her hatred for the Slytherin and this whole delicate situation, she nodded silently at his explanation.

It was better to try something than to do nothing.

She began by slowly swinging her legs back and forth to give the necessary impetus to the swinging movement. Then her body followed the swing until Draco felt it was enough.

— "Ready or not Granger, I'm going to throw you over the edge !"

He didn't wait for her answer as the creaking of the beams became more and more urgent. He threw her with all his might onto the stone slabs beside him.

Once relieved of this load, Draco immediately rolled to the side as the floor collapsed where he had been the moment before. They had narrowly escaped, but they could not afford any respite.

Malfoy straightened up on his feet and immediately looked for a way to continue their ascent of the dungeons when there was this gaping hole that prevented them from continuing. His gaze then fell on his godfather who was himself looking for a way to get them across the chasm.

Even if they could have considered using the levitation spell to cross the three or four metres of void, it would have been a very bad idea. Such a spell was only effective on inert objects and could possibly be used on children. But it was strongly discouraged on adults.

Severus looked around and found something that would allow his godson to carry out his project. With a flick of his wand he cut out one of the columns and placed it like a makeshift bridge over the crevasse. This would be enough for the two young wizards to cross over and reach the other side.

Understanding what his godfather was doing, Draco did not hesitate for a second. As soon as the pillar was placed, he climbed on it and turned to Granger who had not made a move.

— "Granger, come on, we don't have all day !"

— "I... I...," Hermione stammered softly between sobs that she couldn't suppress.

She herself did not understand what was happening to her. She had always been afraid of heights, but never to the point of being petrified. She usually managed to overcome it. But then why were her emotions so raw ?

— "Do you think crying over your own fate is going to change things ?" The blonde said in annoyance at her immobility. "No ! Then stop acting like a Sang-de-bourbe and get on that bridge !" Draco ordered viciously.

It had been a long time since he had insulted her in this way, but in the present moment it was a necessity. He could see that Granger was terrified, so he wanted to push her over the edge. He wanted another emotion to take over : hate. And as he suspected, it had the desired effect. Her hazel eyes darkened into an expression of rage mixed with a sort of will to quickly stop depending on him.

— "I hate you Malfoy ! You're nothing but scum ! A being devoid of feeling..."

— "I don't give a damn about Granger !" Draco cut in, holding out his fingers towards her.

The witch stared at the outstretched hand before her. She took a few seconds to catch her breath before grabbing it and pulling herself up onto the pillar. Draco did not turn around, however, and began to walk backwards. He kept his eyes in Hermione's to keep her focused on him and not down.

— "Don't stare into space, Granger. Look into my eyes and move forward !" He demanded firmly.

She seemed to hesitate for a split second. A part of her wanted to oppose this new injunction from the wizard, but the fear of the void was much greater. So she focused her gaze on Malfoy's blue-grey one and felt her body move. One step at a time. They weren't moving fast and strangely enough, the blonde didn't comment on the slowness of their movements. On the contrary, Hermione could even detect some encouragement coming from him.

The witch no longer paid attention to the surrounding noises, only her controlled breathing and the pounding of her heart reached her ears. The adrenaline coursing through her body kept her moving slowly but surely towards the other side.

— "...only a few more steps," Draco whispered, "look at me, still..."

The Slytherin was right, they did not have far to go. And no sooner had Hermione set foot on the ground than the tension immediately subsided. But this feeling of respite was short-lived. Indeed, the harsh and incisive tone of their saviour threw a chill into the atmosphere.

— "You've lacked judgment, Draco," the Potions Master chastised.

— "This is not the time for admonitions," retorted the man concerned, who was gently massaging his arms from the previous effort. "And in my defence, the parcel I have to deal with is not the most cooperative."

Hermione was far too shaken physically and mentally to react to the Slytherin's words. However, she did glare at him to show her displeasure at being called a 'parcel'.

— "Enough chit-chat, you're running out of time," Severus closed.

The Potions Master didn't wait, he twirled his black cloak in one swift motion and stepped into the corridor he'd just walked down to get them out of trouble. Draco took a quick look at the witch before following his godfather without saying a word.

Hermione found herself alone in the room that was slowly falling apart. She shrugged off whatever was going through her mind at the time and followed the two wizards as well. She could never have imagined that she would ever experience this : following in the footsteps of her former teacher, let alone her worst enemy in Malfoy.

But as she walked through the corridors, she noticed that she no longer needed Malfoy's magical light to get around. Torches were placed fairly evenly along the path and the emerald green flames accentuated the cold atmosphere characteristic of Slytherin House.

After several minutes of silent walking through the damp corridors, Severus Snape finally entered a room. Malfoy did not follow him, however, but merely stood in the doorway. Although his godfather was present, the blonde was still on the lookout for any suspicious noise. They were far from safe and Draco couldn't afford to let his guard down.

Hermione didn't know what she should do, wait silently by the Slytherin's side or enter the room where Severus was. Her curiosity was aroused as she heard the clink of vials clinking together. But she didn't have time to let her thirst for knowledge speak as the greasy-haired wizard emerged at that moment.

Snape was holding a small vial in his hand filled with a liquid that seemed to change colour from time to time. Hermione had a bad feeling when she saw this pan of changing colours. Especially as she was not familiar with this potion and this did not bode well.

The two Death Eaters continued on their way as if that stop in the potions room had not occurred. No words were exchanged, which only added to the gloomy atmosphere of the place. Yet, even though Hermione felt as if she was being totally ignored by the two other wizards in front of her, she noticed the blonde man glancing furtively in her direction.

Was he checking that she was still following them ? The brunette couldn't tell if Draco's actions were motivated by interest or if he was in some way concerned for her ?

The trio walked for a few more minutes before they came to a new door. When it opened, Hermione was immediately struck by the sound that came out : moaning... moaning that sounded like agony.

A prison.

They had entered another of the Dark Lord's prisons. Dozens if not hundreds of cells lined up on either side of them with prisoners awaiting their sentence.

Hermione's heart sank at the sight of all these innocent people condemned to a more than certain death. But what could she do to help them ? Nothing.

Her helplessness in the face of this new situation increased her own unease even more. All the more so as the two men continued to advance without paying any attention to their surroundings. How could they simply ignore all these dying people ? Were they deaf to their complaints ?

Hermione was living in a waking nightmare and all she wanted was to get out of it !

But that seemed so far from happening as neither the blonde nor the Potions Master seemed willing to give her any information about their intentions. She simply followed the two men, secretly hoping that they would not throw her into one of the cells.

After a while, she saw Severus saying words to Draco that she could not hear. It was brief, but enough to exacerbate the anxiety she felt. However, she could not dwell on it any longer because they stopped in front of one of the cells and Snape pulled out his wand. With a flick of his wrist, the door opened on a frightened prisoner. While holding him in his grip, the wizard ordered him to follow him. The condemned man obeyed without saying a word and walked forward, head down, with slow steps.

Still silent, Severus resumed his walk in the opposite direction. Hermione had no idea what was going on and she couldn't just stand there without trying to do something and without any explanation.

— "What are you going to do with him ?" She asked in panic. "Where are you taking him ?"

But the only answer she got was a cold look from the former teacher before he turned to the blonde.

— "Draco...," the man began in a voice of unconcealed concern.

— "I know, Severus... But you know I don't have a choice," Draco replied to his godfather's concern.

The latter nodded at the blonde's determination and finally handed him the vial.

— "Use only as a last resort," he said, adding, "don't fail."

The two men stared at each other for a brief moment before the older man left the room with his prisoner with a slam of the door. Hermione and Draco were alone again, surrounded by all those dying prisoners.

The former Gryffindor had witnessed this more than mysterious verbal exchange. She was trying to make sense of this dialogue that made no sense to her. Hermione had the distinct feeling that the two wizards seemed to know things that she herself did not.

There was nothing like it to make her even more curious and analytical. As far as she knew since joining the Order of the Phoenix, Severus Snape was a spy for their side. Harry had told her that he had complete confidence in the Potions Master's intentions.

Why had the blonde been told not to fail ? And what was in that vial that was given to him ? When had the two men been able to discuss its usefulness ? There were far too many unanswered questions for the Gryffindor.

Hermione didn't know what to think. Snape was playing his role as a spy perfectly and he hadn't given any hints that would encourage the witch in any way. Could she afford to trust the blond man at all, knowing that he had probably been advised by Severus ? Or should she be looking for a way to escape Draco at any cost when the time came ?

Unfortunately, she was drawn out of her thoughts by Malfoy's uncompromising voice.

— "Follow me," he ordered as he continued to walk briskly through the cells, ignoring the fearful or pleading looks around him.

The wizard still held the vial in his hand and slipped it into one of his pockets. This gesture did not escape the brunette, who jumped at the opportunity to get the beginning of an answer.

— "What was in that vial ? What's it for that Snape told you to use it only as a last resort ?"

— "Mind your own business Granger," Malfoy replied coldly. "And you should show Severus a little more respect. If it wasn't for him, you'd be dead already."

— "You haven't answered my question," Hermione snapped. "What's that vial Professor Snape gave us for ?"

— "To make fools ask questions and it's obviously working," Malfoy replied without looking back.

As expected, Hermione frowned and did not press the matter further. She simply followed the blonde once again through the seemingly endless room.

Once her annoyance had passed, the witch paid attention to her surroundings again and the horror that was before her made her stop.

Prisoners were crammed into the cells. Mostly men, asleep and certainly dead for some of them. But what startled the witch was the presence of a little girl among all these prisoners. She was crying softly, her knees bent against her chest. Her little arms wrapped around her knees and her head rested on them, hidden by a tuft of dirty hair.

How long had this child been there ? It didn't matter what the answer was, Hermione felt it was intolerable. She felt anger rising inside her at such cruelty. And it didn't get any better when Malfoy realised that she had stopped following him.

— "Go Granger !" Draco shouted loudly so she could hear him from where she was.

But the witch didn't move a millimeter. She wouldn't listen to him anymore, she wouldn't and couldn't ! She was tired of having to submit to all his injunctions ! She couldn't stand his insensitivity, his inhumanity ! Yes, she hated him for his attitude and behaviour ! Her anger was ready to explode and she began to clench her fists. She turned her head towards him, her eyes hard.

— "No !" She cried in a determined voice, as loud as he was so that he could hear her clearly.

Hearing her refusal, Malfoy stopped immediately, his back still turned to the witch who was staring at him. He let out a long sigh before pivoting and turning back to her.

— "What do you mean, no ?" Malfoy asked with a hint of annoyance.

He didn't want to waste time arguing with the brunette about anything. They had to move on and she was wasting precious minutes. But that was without counting on the witch's determination. She was fed up with all this circus that was pointless. She couldn't stand not knowing anything and not understanding anything. And above all, she could no longer accept being stepped on by this jumping weasel.

— "Why ?" Was the only question she asked, still staring at the young man.

She knew full well that by asking this, she would upset her enemy. But she was ready to do anything to finally get the answers she was waiting for. The expected reaction did not take long to appear. And despite the distance between them, Hermione could almost hear Malfoy's teeth grind in exasperation.

— "Where do you think you are Granger ?" He questioned impatiently as he strode briskly towards her with an angry aura around him. "This is not your Order headquarters ! And certainly not at Hogwarts ! Do you really think you can do as you please ?" He continued as he came up to her. "I'm trying to get you out of here ! So the only thing I expect from you is that you cooperate because I really don't want to die tonight !"

The two wizards faced each other, waiting for the other to give in first. But neither of them were ready for that, each having their own convictions. However, Hermione was the first to break the silence and the tension that was building between them.

— "If you want me to cooperate at least tell me why me ? Why not her or all of them ?" She demanded, pointing to the prisoners and in particular to the little girl who had raised her head in anticipation of her voice.

— "Because I don't care about these people ! I'm only here for you," Draco repeated, exasperated by the brunette's good Samaritan side.

— "And what will happen to them ?" She insisted, raising her voice. "They have the right to freedom too, as much as I do !"

— "I don't know what will happen to them ! Whether they die or are tortured is not my problem ! So now you shut up and follow me, Granger !"

— "No !" She objected again firmly, "it's either us or..."

— "Silencio !" Draco cut her off with a wave of his wand.

The witch was silenced by the Slytherin who had no time for futile negotiations. Moreover, he didn't waste another second and grabbed the young woman by the waist. He lifted her onto his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, holding her firmly so that she couldn't get down. He ignored even the multitude of punches on her back.

Even though Hermione was struggling badly, the witch was far too weakened by her detention and all the events that had just taken place. She was far from causing the blonde any harm and he turned back to where he wanted to go.

— "Whether you like it or not Granger, you will follow me ! And silently !"

Hermione stopped struggling after a moment. She was out of breath and reluctantly resigned herself to this umpteenth humiliation by her enemy. She watched the cells go by until she realised they were going up the stairs. Draco finally stopped for a brief moment and led the way, creaking the hinges of the exit they had just reached.

Hermione took one last look at the cells before the wooden door closed on her. At that moment Draco finally put her down. He rolled his shoulders back to relax his muscles before pointing his wand at the witch again. He spoke the counterspell, but before she could say a word, he whispered harshly:

— "I'm warning you Granger, we're not in the dungeons anymore and the slightest noise can get us killed. So you keep your mouth shut until we're out !"