Dramione Challenge 019- Alternate Universe
Draco and Hermione as Tributes
Hermione sat on the damp Earth. Her hair fell like cascades of muddy waves down her arched back. Beside her, laid an unconscious Draco Malfoy, soundly sleeping. Hermione watched the rise and fall of his chest, the small flutters of movement he made. We’re safe for now, Hermione thought.
“Go to sleep, Granger,” muttered Draco as he stirred awake. Hermione couldn’t help but gasp at his appearance. Back home, Draco had been different. Being the son of the wealthiest family, Draco never suffered the same kind of labor she did. He had always lived a charmed life.
The Draco that sat before her was different. His arms were pocked with scars and burns, his normally well-groomed hair in a tangle of mud-streaked chaos. His once tailored-clothes were replaced by fighting uniforms assigned to each Tribute.
“Stare all you want, Granger. It may be the only chance you get.” The contempt in his voice was rich. Hermione couldn’t help but wince. Draco quickly gathered his things into his pack. “We’ll probably be dead by tomorrow anyway.”
“What makes you say that?”
“There’s 24 of us, only one gets out alive. Don’t you see? This is a game, a frenzy of planned attacks and strategic battles. It’s every man for himself.”
“Then why did you come back for me? I was dying and you came back for me.” Hermione searched his eyes. “You would have to kill me soon. So why?”
For a second, Draco held her gaze. Then he looked away. His eyes wander the perimeter of their makeshift camping ground. “What I said out there, it’s true. I do want to survive. But I can’t…I can’t lose you.”
Hermione stared at him, searching for mockery in his eyes. But there wasn’t any. A moment passed before Draco blinked and moved away slightly. In the eerie silence that followed, Hermione crawled back inside the cave and leaned her head towards Draco’s shoulder. It felt like the most natural thing in the world to her then. Draco shuffled, but didn’t say a word. He simply looked outside, his eyes watchful. His fingers laced around hers.
She heard the faint rumble of thunder from a distance. She fell asleep to the whisper of the wind and the beating of Draco’s heart.
