DRAGON'S HEARTSTRINGS || dramione | harry potter

Chapter Two

Hermione knew a thing or two about the High Reeve, and none of those things were any good. She heard he was Voldemort's most trusted Death Eater, that he was ruthless and merciless, ready to kill everyone and anyone who dares to stand in his way. She heard he had no morals, that he thrived amidst this war where monsters alike him could show their true faces without any retribution, and that everybody, even Death Eaters themselves feared him tremendously.

The difference between the prideful and spoiled pureblood boy he used to be and the coldblooded war criminal and genocidal maniac he was now was stark and gruesome, and Hermione wasn't sure exactly when one became the other – she knew it started sometime after the Battle of Hogwarts, sometime after both of his parents were killed (no one was sure how) and the more time went on, the more crimes seemed to be committed not by Voldemort himself, but by his right hand High Reeve.

He wants to have you as his wife.

Hermione wasn't sure what that could mean for her. Why would a person like that want her as his wife? Certainly, the reason cannot be anything good or rational. He must want her just to humiliate her, insult her, maybe even physically hurt her – all because he could and would have the right once she became his wife. He probably also wished to use her as his personal slave – in more ways than one. Why else would he ask for such an absurd thing?

Hermione clutched the warm mug of tea in her arms while sitting in Snape's office and trying to wrap her head around the news. Snape stood by his desk and Moody sat in front of her, both of them waiting for what she had to say. She was so shocked that she didn't speak up until they were in the dungeons.

"I didn't know he was on our side," she spoke quietly after almost an hour of silence.

Snape and Moody exchanged a look. "Not quite," Snape answered at the same time as Moody said, "It's complicated."

"He is on our side," Snape explained. "But he wants to be sure we won't turn our backs on him in case we win. And he's hard to control. He was ready to give us in, so we've been trying to negotiate for weeks."

Hermione looked at them, trying to understand. "And that's what you've negotiated? To give me away?"

"That's what he wants. And we're not giving you away, Granger. It's more complicated than that," Moody interjected.

"Why does he want me anyway? Surely not because he actually wishes to wed me, there has to be something else. His pureblood prejudice would never let him marry a mu—"

"From what I gathered, he's willing to use you as leverage to keep the Order intact," Snape said, and when he saw Hermione frown, he added, "Kingsley Shacklebolt promised to get him acquitted of all crimes if we do win the war. But he doesn't trust Shacklebolt to keep his word, so he wants to have something against us."

"And that something is... me," Hermione made sure she understood that right. Moody nodded. "But why marriage? Why won't he just... take me then? As a war prisoner or something like that?"

"I believe he will ask you to give an Unbreakable Vow," Moody said. "He wants to insure we won't set him up."

"But if I won't do it, he threatens to set us up?" Both of them nodded. "And what if he does... something bad...? I mean, to me?" What if he kills me?

"He made an Unbreakable Vow to me, promising that no harm will come to you on his watch as long as we do our part and insure all his crimes are forgiven once the war is over," Snape rushed to assure her.

"Will you do that?" Hermione asked quietly.

"That's the deal, Granger. He marries you and makes sure he doesn't get screwed over either way, and you become our informant, taking Parkinson's place," Moody said.