Abyss

Abyss

"This is ridiculous!" Hermione exclaimed as she stared at herself in the mirror. The robe that Malfoy gave her fitted perfectly, which wasn't all that surprising since she and Pansy were about the same built. But that was exactly what was ridiculous, for the robe was designed to reveal more of Pansy's body than conceal it. As a result, it showed an awful lot of her cleavage and leg; an awful lot of skin she would normally want hidden rather than exposed. Hermione glanced at her nightgown, the one hanging on one side of the bathroom, and frowned. "I shouldn't have washed it," she murmured wistfully. She looked at the mirror again. "I should have checked this robe first before even thinking of washing my gown! Talk about obscene! This is totally ridiculous! I will never wear this with Malfoy looking!"

Then, an idea came to her. Are you a witch or not? "Of course!" she said as she resisted the urge to smack herself. "I can just use Malfoy's wand to dry my nightgown." Hermione went to the door and was about to open it when she heard sounds coming from the other side. She pressed her ear firmly to the door, and cursed when she heard Malfoy's voice. "So much for his not looking," she muttered under her breath. Hermione inhaled deeply before she gathered her wits and opened the door.

Her eyes widened when the wonderful aroma of food greeted her senses. More surprising, though, was what greeted her sight. She saw that not only had Malfoy brought along with him a bedraggled house elf, but that the house elf was the one who was carrying the food. "Malfoy--" she began uncertainly.

He turned around, and she did not miss the way his eyes seemed to appraise her body as he looked at her from head to toe. She began to cross her arms protectively in front of her chest when he spoke. "Finally, you've decided to grace us with your presence." Malfoy glared at her as he, too, crossed his arms. "I thought I told you that I wanted to see you out of there by the time I got in?"

Hermione glared right back at him. "I had to wash my clothes, too. After all, I wouldn't want to wear this all the time."

Malfoy rolled his eyes. "You should've given your nightgown to me; I could've gotten the house elves to wash it. Or wait-- no, you were right not to do that. We better burn the damned thing."

"We will not!" she said loudly. She bit her lip before she continued in a lower voice, "That is the only possession I have left. I will not let anyone, most especially you, touch it!"

"Fine." Malfoy gestured at the food that was already arranged at their table. "Eat. You must be starving."

Her stomach growled in agreement, but before she satisfied her urge to satisfy her stomach, she had to ask him something. "I thought..." Hermione glanced at the house elf, before she returned her eyes on him. "I thought you said nobody's supposed to know I'm here?"

Malfoy took a seat at one of the chairs. He gestured lazily at the elf. "Becky's mine," he stated simply. "She will do anything I tell her to. Isn't that right, Becky?"

The house elf nodded vigorously. "Yes! Becky will do everything Master Draco asks her to. It will be a pleasure for Becky to do what Master Draco wants!"

"You see?" he said to Hermione. Then, he turned to Becky again. "Ah, Becky. I want you to keep her being here a secret, do you hear? I don't want anyone else to know I'm keeping her in my room. If anyone discovers this... you know what I'm to do to you."

Becky covered her ears protectively. "Yes, Master Draco! Becky is to do what Master Draco wants. Becky will not tell anyone about Master Draco's friend. Becky does not want her ears to burn again!"

Malfoy looked very pleased. "Good," he said. "Very good."

Hermione, on the other hand, was completely disgusted. "That's absolutely barbaric!" she exploded. "Completely inhumane of you, Malfoy! To treat her like... like some common thing when she is obviously anything but!"

He yawned at her display of temper. "First off, I don't want to hear more of your speeches about house elf rights. Second, this house elf here may not be a thing, but she was bought to do services for me. It is entirely my right as a customer to give her punishment when I deem her work to be completely unsatisfactory. Lastly, you have no right to tell me what I can or cannot do. I am her master, and I can do anything I want to her. Now," He pointed at the food on the table, "are you going to eat this food or not? I'd be delighted to tell Becky here to remove all of these if you're just going to stand there."

How she would love to wipe that triumphant smirk off his face! She slowly walked towards the table, her steps deliberately small so as to not bare too much of her leg. She saw him smirk at her actions, as though he knew exactly what she was doing. Hermione then carefully sat on the chair opposite his. She noted that the food was arranged on one huge platter at the center, and that there were two empty plates, one for her and another for Malfoy. She took a big bun from the platter, and then bit into it. She had never tasted anything as delicious, for the bread surely tasted like heaven. "This is good," she said after she swallowed. She gestured at his plate. "Have you eaten already?"

"Of course," Malfoy drawled. "I ate downstairs."

Hermione looked at the house elf. "What about--"

"Don't even think it, Granger," he told her threateningly. "I know all about your stupid house elf movement, and I will not have you promoting your inane activities inside my house. Do you understand?"

"Fine." She pushed her plate away, and shot him a contemptuous look. "Take this away. I'm not hungry anymore."

"Are you sure?" he asked her.

"Positive," she replied. "I just had my fill of your insults, thanks."

Malfoy smirked at her again. "Becky," he called.

The house elf needed not to be told more. She approached the table, took the plates, stacked them in her hands, and then disappeared.

"Thanks for the wonderful dinner, Malfoy. Truly, you are a charming host." Hermione rose from her seat. "Where's your wand?" she asked him.

"What do you need it for?"

"I have to dry my nightgown."

"And I ask, yet again, what do you need it for?"

She gestured at her robe. "I can't wear this! This robe is for... for... for women like Parkinson whose only hobby is pleasuring you! I can't wear this, I look totally ridiculous!"

"Hmm..." Malfoy looked at her again, and she fought the urge to blush under his scrutiny. "You're right, you do look ridiculous. Only women should be allowed to wear that, never the likes of you."

"Why, thank you, Draco Malfoy for that completely uplifting statement," she told him with heavy sarcasm. "Now, unless you have another robe of Pansy's to lend me, I'll ask you again: where's your wand?"

"It's already hidden."

She gaped at him. "What?"

Malfoy raised his brow at her. "Are you daft, Granger? Oh, wait. Stupid question." He grinned tauntingly at her. "My wand's already hidden. Becky arranged this room before she arranged your food. It's... somewhere around here."

"And what if you need it, then?"

"I'll ask Becky to get it for me." He looked tired as he answered this. "Do you want me to call her for you, Granger? I could, but since it's already past midnight, it'd be inhumane of me to ask her to get it now, would it? Not to mention totally hypocritical of you. I mean, all those campaigns and--"

Hermione found it increasingly difficult to keep her temper in check. "Fine," she spat. She sank on the chair again, and then yanked the end of her robe to cover her exposed leg. "Don't look at me!" she shrieked.

"As if I'd be interested in you, Granger," he jeered, his eyes conveying a different sentiment. "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get some sleep." Malfoy stood up from his chair and headed straight towards the bathroom before she could say anything more.

Hermione sighed, then busied herself by looking around the room. It had a huge bed in the center, draped completely with mahogany coverings. It had about ten pillows, a comforter, and a quilted blanket on top of it. She also found a long sofa at the bed's side, its color complementary to the bed. "I suppose that's where I'll be sleeping," she muttered to herself. She stood up, walked towards the bed, took three pillows and the blanket, and carried them over to her makeshift bed. She was spreading the blanket when she heard him speak. "What do you think you're doing?"

She turned to look at him, and then quickly looked away. "Before I answer that, at least have the decency to put a robe on, Malfoy!"

She heard him chuckle lightly. "Don't be such a prude, Granger. As I've already established a thousand times, this is my house, therefore, I am free to not wear whatever it is I do not feel like wearing. Now, I'll ask you again: what do you think you're doing?"

"Making myself comfortable."

"With my beddings?"

This time, when Hermione looked at him she did not break her stare. "Well, where else am I supposed to find what I need? It's not like you're going to offer to take the sofa."

"Of course not," Malfoy scoffed. "I'm perfectly comfortable in my own bed, thank you very much."

"I guessed as much." She climbed onto the sofa, and lay there, her face purposely turned away from him. She pulled the blanket all the way to her chin. "Goodnight, Malfoy. Oh, and before I forget, do make sure to lock the door, would you? I don't think your parents would approve if they found out you're having a slumber party in your room."

Malfoy cursed quite loudly before she heard the rustle of the beddings under his weight. Soon, the lights were out and they were both encased in total darkness.

But despite the peaceful dark, Hermione did not sleep well that night. In fact, she didn't sleep at all.