The Dragon of Hogwarts

The Dragon of Hogwarts

Chapter 6: Questions, Answers, and more Questions

Blaise ambushed her the next morning as she was trying to leave for breakfast.

"I didn't betray you," he said, picking up the conversation from the night before.

"Then tell me what happened," she said, flatly.

He stared at her, hard for a moment.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"I took an oath."

Hermione's head started to hurt. Life was a lot less complicated when all she had to worry about were trolls and giant snakes.

She shut her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Are you responsible for what happened to me?"

He didn't answer right away and she felt a righteous anger sweep over her.

She pulled off her cloak, and started unbuttoning the shirt underneath.

Blaise swallowed hard as he watched her hands.

She threw the shirt to the ground and pulled out her wand.

"Finite Incantatum!"

Hermione winced, realizing that she had taken off the pain vanishing spell as well as the glamour. But she wanted him to see it all. Needed him to understand how betrayed she felt.

At the sight of her battered body, Blaise eyes instantly turned gold and he pulled her to him. His hands were gentle, yet firm as he lightly ran his them over her wounds.

He picked her up and carried her to her bedroom, setting her on her feet in front of the mirror.

"Watch in the mirror," he commanded in his deep, rumbling voice.

Hermione watched as he lowered his head to a particularly nasty looking gash over her right breast.

He pulled the cup of her bra down, almost all the way to the nipple before his tongue came out and bathed the wound with warmth.

If she hadn't been in so much pain, she would have been very aroused. She still was, a little.

After a few minutes, he pulled back and went to stand behind her.

"Look at it," he said.

Hermione stared at the gash. It looked exactly the same as it had before he'd licked it.

"I can't heal wounds that I don't cause."

He turned her around to face him.

"I would never hurt you, Hermione. I swear it." His eyes were returning to their rightful color.

Hermione raised a hand to his face. "I want to believe you. I want to trust you, but if you don't tell me anything, then how can I?" she whispered.

He nodded. "You're right. It's time we talked about a lot of things."

"Tonight, after the staff meeting..." she began.

"No, before the meeting. Let's skip Potions," he said.

"I am not skipping Potions! How dare you suggest such a thing?" she scolded.

Blaise laughed, holding up his hands in surrender.

"Okay, okay! No skipping classes. Maybe we can have lunch somewhere? I don't know if here is a good idea. I don't want anyone to hear us."

Hermione thought about that for a moment.

"The Room of Requirement. We can have lunch there."

He nodded in agreement.

Hermione put the glamour back on herself, but decided to wait and let Harry do the pain spell.

She blushed as Blaise helped her put her shirt back on, his long fingers dipping below the waistband of her skirt as he tucked it in.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say this was turning you on," he commented with a knowing smirk.

"Well, it's a good thing you know better then," she answered back, then winced as his hand brushed a sensitive bruise.

"Sorry," he whispered, then offered her his arm.

He walked very slowly with her, down to the Great Hall, and she was grateful.

He eased her down into her seat and nodded at Harry and Ron who were staring at him with blatant distrust.

"I'll see you at lunch," he said, and left for the Slytherin table.

Harry and Ron started firing questions at her, but she held up her hands to stop them.

"I showed him the bruises and I accidentally removed the pain spell. Harry, would you mind?"

Harry immediately pulled out his wand, and cast the spell.

A dreamy smile crossed Hermione's face as the pain swiftly left her.

"You're very good at that," she told him and he blushed.

"So, what did Zabini say?" Ron asked.

"He said he'd never hurt me," she answered honestly.

"Was he surprised to see you hurt?" Harry demanded.

"No."

"Son of a bitch!" Harry yelled jumping to his feet.

Ron grabbed him, and pulled him back down.

"Not yet," Ron hissed at him.

"He knows what happened, but I don't think he caused it. He said he couldn't tell me about it because he took an oath. We're having lunch together in the Room of Requirement to talk things over." She said in a rush, hoping to placate her friends.

"We're going with you," Harry said, firmly.

"Harry, listen to me! Blaise is my friend, not yours. I need to know what he knows, and if you're there, he won't tell me," she said, pleadingly.

"We'll use the invisibility cloak..."

"NO! I will not betray him like that. As soon as you guys are finished with lunch, I want you waiting for me outside the door. If and only if I have not come out by the time the lunch hour is over, break down the door."

It took several more minutes of pleading and a couple of threats to get the two to finally agree to her plans.

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Hermione opened the door to the Room of Requirement and quickly shut it, glancing over her shoulder to make sure that no one saw.

She'd done the required pacing in front of the wall, thinking of all of the things they might need, but apparently the room had picked up on a different train of thought. The room had been small, with a romantic fireplace and a huge bed draped in red satin.

"We need to talk, not shag!" she hissed at the closed door.

She jumped at the sound of footsteps and turned to see Blaise approaching.

"Maybe we should do this back in our room," she said, reaching for his arm.

He gave her a strange look and brushed passed her.

She shut her eyes in embarrassment as he opened the door.

"What are you doing? We don't have a lot of time you know," he said irritably sticking his head out of the door.

Cautiously, Hermione opened her eyes and saw that two cozy armchairs had replaced the bed.

Sighing in relief, she quickly followed him into the room.

Once the door was shut, they both put up wards and silencing charms. When they were satisfied that their conversation would remain private, they made themselves comfortable in the chairs.

"Ron and Harry know that we're in here. They'll be waiting for me out in the hall after lunch," she told him.

"You really don't trust me, do you?"

"Blaise, you saw the bruises. I can't really afford to trust you right now."

He nodded.

For a few minutes they didn't say anything, unsure of where to start.

"Why don't you ask the questions and I'll answer them as best as I can," Blaise said, finally.

"Okay. What happened to me over Christmas?"

Blaise opened and shut his mouth a few times, a pained expression on his face.

"Alright, let's start with something easier. What are you?"

He snorted.

"A wizard."

Hermione gave him a look.

"I am a wizard. I just happen to go through a transformation once a month."

"What do you transform into?"

"A dragon."

It had been the answer that Hermione was expecting, but it still shocked her.

"So, were you bit by a dragon or something?" she asked once her brain unfroze.

He laughed at that.

"I'm not a 'were-dragon'. It's not a disease, and it's not... contagious, for lack of a better word. It's hereditary. Most of the men in my family are this way."

"Just the men?"

"Yes, but not all of them. The transformations don't start until puberty, so we don't know until then if we're affected or not," he said causally.

"How awful," Hermione commented, shuddering.

"But it's not. It's really the coolest thing that's ever happened to me. I'm so strong, Hermione. I don't get sick anymore and I never bruise. And the transformations don't hurt at all."

"They just itch?" she asked him with a smirk and was pleased to see him blush.

"Yes. They also make me very hungry," he admitted.

"What about when you're a... dragon? Do you keep your mind? Is that what you take the potion for?"

He took a minute to gather his thoughts before answering.

"The potion gives me control, so that I won't change form if I lose my temper or something. I don't have to wait for the full moon to change into a dragon. I guess it's more like an animagus form or something. I can control it, except for the nights of the full moon. Then, I have to change."

Hermione wished she'd had thought to bring some parchment and a quill.

"When I'm in my dragon form, I'm still me. I have my own thoughts and everything; I'm just in the body of a huge beast. And I can fly," he grinned.

It struck her that Blaise really enjoyed what he was, and probably looked forward to the full moon each month.

"And breathe fire?"

"Yes, and as you've probably guessed, I don't have to be in my dragon form to breathe fire," he said, sheepishly.

"Is that what happened with Malfoy on the train?" she asked.

"I didn't mean to burn him, I really didn't. But when I finally got through the door, you looked like you were dead, and that scared me. I hadn't had my 'control' potion in a few days and well you can guess what happened."

Hermione giggled.

"He deserved it," she said.

Blaise looked at her sharply. "He didn't mean to hurt you, Hermione. Draco was under strict orders from his father, to scare you. Breaking your arm had really been an accident."

Hermione felt bad for her earlier words.

Draco had always said very mean things to her, Harry, and Ron, but he'd never tried to physically hurt them. And if his father really was as controlling as she thought he was, then it was entirely possible that Draco didn't hate them as much as he let on.

"I didn't think he meant to do it," she admitted.

"Next question?"

"Um, what did you do for Christmas? I mean, you were on the train on the way back, but where did you go?"

"The night after you left, I changed form, and flew home."

"That's it? You just went straight home and stayed there until yesterday?"

"I did not fly straight home."

He motioned with his hands as if trying to persuade her to continue that line of questioning.

"Where did you go?" she asked curiously.

His eyes widened and he bit his lip.

"Okay, I get it. Um, did you go to the Malfoy's?"

"Yes!" he cried jumping up.

He blushed and then sat back down.

"Sorry, I didn't think I'd be able to tell you that so I overcompensated."

She smiled, but continued with the questions.

"How long were you there?"

"A week."

"Was I there?"

"Yes."

Hermione felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. She had been at the Malfoy's and didn't remember it!

"Did I arrive before or after you?" she whispered.

"Before."

"Did you know I was there? Is that why you went?"

He nodded.

"Who hurt me?"

He shook his head.

"Was it Draco?"

"No."

"Who was it?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why? What happens if you do?" she demanded, getting upset.

"You don't understand. The magic binding me to the oath physically prevents me from speaking it," he explained.

Her jaw dropped.

"But, that's extremely dark magic!" she cried.

"I know. I was dealing with extremely dark people," he said, simply.

Hermione sat back in her seat with a sigh and tried to reign in her whirling thoughts.

Blaise remained silent, giving her the time she needed.

"Why did you take the oath?" she asked, finally.

"It was the only way they would let me take you home," he seemed surprised that he'd been allowed to say that.

"When you say 'they', do you mean Death Eaters?"

He nodded, solemnly.

Hermione rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically.

"Harry was right. It's always about him," she muttered.

"Speaking of Potter, how much do he and Weasley know about all of this?" Blaise asked.

Hermione debated whether or not to be completely honest with him. "They think you're some kind of were-dragon, and they want me to be careful around you. They also think you might be responsible for what happened to me."

At first he looked angry, but then he sighed in resignation.

"I'd probably think the same things if the situation was reversed," he admitted.

"How did you know I was at the Malfoy's?"

"You called me to you."

Hermione gave him a look of confusion.

"What? How?"

He sighed again. "I'm not sure how you did it. I was just on my way home, when I heard your voice in my head. You were screaming for me and I knew you were in pain."

He stood up and started pacing in front of her.

"How did you know where I was?"

He stopped, and looked her directly in the eye.

"I asked you, in my head, where you were. And you told me."

A loud banging at the door startled them both, and Hermione realized that lunch must be over.

"What are they trying to do, break down the door?" Blaise asked.

"Yes," she answered.

"One last question. You said that you didn't know how you were able to hear me, but has it happened before? If not to you, then maybe to one of your male relatives who are, uh, like you?"

"Yes, it's happened to all of them."

"What do..."

Blaise held up a hand to stop her, and reached for his bag.

Hermione watched him pull out a very old-looking leather journal.

He just stared at it for a moment and then held it out for her.

When she reached for it, he pulled it back.

"This is a journal that has been passed down through seven generations of my family. It has everything we know about the transformations and the side effects. It's very special to my family and me. I'm only letting you borrow it, because I know that you'll take good care of it."

"I promise I will," she swore, unable to keep the eagerness out of her voice.

She took it from him, reverently and slipped it into her own bag.

Then she turned toward the door where she could hear the muffled sounds of bangs and curses.

"Hermione?"

"Yes?"

"I know why I could hear you and I'd tell you now, but I don't think you'd believe me. I guess I'm hoping that seeing it in writing will convince you."

He looked very nervous.

"Okay. So, I'll look over it, make some notes and..."

"No! You can't write anything about us down! It's my family's secret, Hermione. I had to get permission from them to even show you this," he said, gesturing to the journal.

"They're letting a complete stranger have access to their deepest secrets? Why?" She demanded.

"Read it. You'll understand."

When they released the wards on the door Harry and Ron came falling in. Hermione and Blaise watched them in amusement as they got to their feet and tried to look nonchalant.

"Are you, uh, ready for charms Hermione?" Ron asked.

Hermione looked at Blaise and then down at her bag that contained the journal.

"Actually, I'm a little tired. I think I'll go to McGonagall and get permission to rest for the afternoon," she said.

Harry and Ron looked shocked, while Blaise laughed and started down the hall.

"Where are you going?" Hermione asked him.

"The kitchens. We didn't eat, and I'm starving!"

End Chapter 6