She came tumbling down out of the cabinet at five in the morning. Heart pounding, wearing nothing but a cloak, she rushed to the exit of the Room of Requirement. No one should see her like this.The moment she watched the door vanish from the wall, she set up to cast a Disillusionment charm. When she raised her wand a chilling voice whispered in the dark."There she is..."Malfoy?"She could see his form rise from his crouching position against the opposite wall and stepping out of the shadows. Draco approached her slowly like a predator. He had grown taller through the years, almost as tall as his father. Their resemblance was uncanny, no matter how hard he tried to reject or neglect his appearance.Hermione dropped her wand with a long sob. She sank on her knees, with her hands covering her face and began to cry inconsolably.He froze on the spot. He had not been expecting this kind of reaction."Granger?" His disdainful facade was gone in an instant. "Granger, what’s wrong?"He was by her side in seconds and held her wrists in an attempt to pry her hands from her face. When she didn’t answer he began to inspect her for any signs of harm. Her neck was covered in bruises and he was startled to discover she was wearing nothing under her cloak. Her marks continued as far as he could see. His hands dropped by his sides closed in tight fists."Did He do this to you?" The anger in his tone was almost palpable. "Talk to me!"Her sobs intensified as she nodded frantically."Fuck!" His knuckles hit the wall in frustration."Please, spare me the reprimand," she sniffed. "If your next words are going to be I told you so, I don’t wanna hear it."No, Granger. If anything, I didn’t say enough."He reached to pat her cheek, but decided against it."You are coming with me. I’m taking you to the Headmaster."No! You can’t. He can never know."Granger, he can help you. This stops now! You have been manipulated and abused. What’s coming next, hm? I refuse to watch you walk this path of self destruction. I’m done losing the people I care about."She frowned at his last statement."Did something happen to Potter?He closed his eyes and dropped his head back with a painful expression."He... He is not recovering well. I... Am afraid he is losing his mind. Even when he’s awake he sounds broken. When he speaks he doesn’t make any sense..." Draco shook his head and then looked at her. He was on the verge of crying. "It was her, wasn’t it? My aunt."Hermione felt confused for a moment."She did that to him. He keeps mentioning this... Lady."She visibly panicked for a moment, but then realized there was no way Potter had been able to identify her."You are terrified too. I can see it in your eyes. You are coming with me now."Draco..."He seemed shocked at the sound of his name. It was the first time she called him that."I'm tired. I want to stand under a shower head for days and then sleep until the end of the world. I don’t think I have the energy to discuss anything that happened tonight."You need to come forward, Hermione. You have to stay away from Him. We can protect you."There it was again. He just couldn’t help himself. She would remain forever a fragile witch in his eyes.