What If Draco Stayed Up to Guard Hermione? | Defector – V: I'll Keep the Watch | Dramione

When nightmares hit, Draco stays awake to guard Hermione. She lies trembling, soaked in breath, tears like a storm she can’t outrun. Draco brings water in a trembling hold, and she speaks in torn words, half‑swallowed sobs and a raw new form: “Crucio… again… until my bones were fire, too tired to stand, too weak to fight the wire.” He swallows guilt like sand, unable to rewrite the weeks he lost but determined to stay no matter the cost. He keeps the watch, letting the nightmares come but refusing to let them touch her. He sits beside her, silent, until she finally sleeps. He offers food, and she wonders where Harry and Ron are. Draco turns the Deluminator, curious, but can’t undo it fast. A smear of ink on a worn‑in page reveals a symbol—a triangle, circle, and a line through the middle—her pulse sharp as a struck bell’s riddle. She hunts the sign like a thread of snow, until she falls asleep in ink, out of time. Night again, her body jerks, a whimper caught behind her teeth. He’s up before the worst, hand on her shoulder, grounding breath. She wakes, wipes her face, and he asks if she’s alright. She nods, and he turns away to his own sheet, but the breath turns sharp, a muffled cry in the dark. He’s up again, voice small, hand on her shoulder, grounding her back with steady breath. He keeps the watch, letting the nightmares come but refusing to let them touch her. The symbol—triangle, circle, line—becomes a way out, a door when the world is doubt. He keeps her safe until morning light, and she knows he won’t look away now.