His hand rose to her lower back as he pushed them onwards, and she jumped at the contact before settling into the warmth of his hand. He steered them towards one of the blocky buildings, about three stories tall and as long as the entire courtyard.

She wondered what kind of sordid debauchery awaited her inside the walls. How many of her friends would she find in chains, beaten and broken? How many familiar faces would she find abusing and raping the innocent? The courtyard answered her in silence.

They reached the entrance, the wooden doors heavy and foreboding. A pause, and then Draco pushed open the door for her.

Music, lifting above the stone floors and into the wooden arches overhead A soft jazzy tune she remembered from her Muggle life. A bustling of laughter and clinking glasses.

She tried to peer around the edge of the entryway to see more, but a girl appeared, blocking her view. She held a tray of champagne glasses and wore a short slip that shimmered like the bubbles in the flutes. She wore a silver collar around her thin neck.

The girl looked up at them, eyes landing on Hermione with a flicker, before turning a coquettish smile on Draco.

"Good evening, Master Malfoy."

"Charlotte," he greeted, lifting two champagne glasses off the tray. He silently offered Hermione one, and she stared down at it until he pushed it into her chest.

She clutched the crystal between her fingers as Charlotte stepped aside for them, and Draco guided her into the room.

It was a hall, maybe half the size of Hogwarts' Great Hall. People mingled, glasses sparkled, and conversation bubbled up to the arched ceiling. Her eyes struggled to capture everything. Chandeliers hung over the room, burning low and casting shadows over the suits of armor and coat of arms lining the walls. Her eyes flew to a looming fireplace across the room, its pale stone reaching high towards the vaulted beams. Perhaps an escape route if she could find Floo powder, assuming it wasn't charmed against her tattoo.

The men standing about sipping champagne or swirling tumblers of scotch weren't in Death Eater robes, but still had a stiff uniformity about them, as if they could be called away at any moment. She scanned, recognizing Jugson, Crabbe Sr., Runcorn from the Ministry, and Rabastan and Rodolphus Lestrange. And just after she caught sight of Mulciber, she found Cho Chang looking at her from where she dripped off of his arm like wax.

Hermione's breath caught, and she heard sound in a vacuum as Cho turned away, sipping her champagne as if they didn't know each other. Cho smiled sweetly at something Mulciber said, leaning in and looking up at him through her lashes, her long hair swaying down her back. She didn't flinch as his hand slipped down to rub her backside.

A chill pressed over her. "Dolohov?" she whispered.

A quick shake of Draco's head, and Hermione felt the knot in her stomach unwind.