A/N: So, this story has been floating around my notebooks for a while, and I guessed this would be my first Chapter Songfic, with tons and tons of music from every genre and band that I like.
DISCLAIMER : The song belongs to Three Days Grace, and the characters and setting are most definitely JKR's. Seriously, if these characters were mine, I'd be RICH! MWAHAHAH *cough* which I'm not, but I'm working on that.
Chapter Uno
Tonight, my head is spinning
He stumbled into the girl's lavatory on the second floor, tears clogging his vision. Myrtle came out of her toilet at once; she'd know those sobs anywhere, but she still asked as if she didn't know who it was.
"Oh, its gotten worse hasn't it? You can't keep it all bottled up you know."
"It's not bottled up, I told you, didn't I?" Myrtle was momentarily surprised at how smooth his voice was, and how it never trembled, even now.
Myrtle floated closer, careful not to get close enough for him to feel her chill. "I meant someone living, Doofus." A half-laugh bubbled up from between the sobs, and Myrtle allowed herself a small smile. "You need her, Draco. Without her, someone living to help you, you'll just keep breaking down like this."
He ignored her depressingly truthful words and uncorked a firewhiskey, trying to ignore the fact that her eyes had turned to dark coals of hatred as they fixed on the bottle as if they alone could cause it a death worth of Bellitrix Lestrange.
I need something to pick me up.
Just as he pulled out his wand to magically uncork the bottle, which he now held in one hand, Myrtle swooped down and made him drop it. He watched the Firewhiskey swirl in the drain for a few moments before he raised his eyes to where Myrtle stood defiantly.
"But Myrtle… I needed that." His words seemed to make her expand, rage rolling of her as if she were a dragon and he had just demolished one of her only eggs. He instantly cowered, imagining that any second, flames would descend and burn him to ashes… which would probably solve his problem, now that he thought about it.
I've tried but nothing is working
"You need her, not that accursed drink." Myrtle shrunk again. "Potter's already on to you as it is. You don't need to get sloppier."
"So you're saying I'm sloppy NOW?"
"No duh. You almost killed two other kids. No duh!" Myrtle snarled. "I'm gonna go get her. You STAY HERE!" She swooped into the nearest toilet and disappeared into the pipe. After checking the pipe and he was sure that she was really gone, he pulled out another Firewhiskey and uncorked it. Then he poured it down the sink. Myrtle was right… Of course she was right, she was bloody Moaning Myrtle! She was always right… when it came to his life, at least.
I won't stop; I won't say I've had enough.
Draco leaned against the bathroom wall and sighed. Knowing Myrtle, as he had during the last two months, if he left, she'd just bring what she believed he needed to him, no matter where he was; Including the Slytherin Common Room and his dorm. According to Myrtle, he needed Her.
And of course, Myrtle was right once again.
He needed to warn her, to get her out of the castle.
Draco turned to the row of the sinks and ran cold water. His fingers almost turned to ice when he touched the flow, so he splashed it on his face, glad for the icy clarity it brought.
Tonight, I start the fire
His mind went to the room of requirement, then to the broken Vanishing Cabinet. If he couldn't fix it, they'd kill his mother, and that was for sure. His father had said that as he'd forced his son to give his lifelong services to the Dark Lord. He said that Draco should do it for his family, for his honor.
Yeah, upholding the family name and honor. Sounds like a Zuko line. But this isn't Avatar The Last Airbender, or even a fanfic of that… maybe I'll write one later…
Draco planned to somehow overthrow the dark lord, to run away and never come back… but first he needed to save his mother.
Narcissa Malfoy was a caring mother and a shield to most of his father's anger. Lucius Malfoy couldn't come close to this much love. When he thought of his mother, Dumbledore's ramblings of love overcoming Voldemort sometimes sounded plausible.
Plausible. Not Possible.
But he had a plan for tonight, or at least, Myrtle did.
Tonight I break away
Meanwhile in the Gryffindor Common Room:
The Golden Trio is in their favorite chairs in front of the fireplace. Harry and Ron are staring uncomprehendingly at the essays in front of them while Hermione waits for the ink on hers to dry, her head in her favorite book.
"Hermione, can you please look over this essay? Snape'll have my head if it's not done right." Ron pleaded his eyes wide and innocent.
Hermione scoffed. "Snape'll have your head whether it's done right or not." She said eyes on Hogwarts, A History. "Snape'll have your head even if you hand in a perfect essay that was two inches longer than requirement."
Ron gave Harry a questioning look. Harry shrugged. "H-Hermione?" Ron asked. Her eyes looked up at him from her book, and annoyed frown on her face.
"What?"
"C-Can you check my essay?" Ron felt something wrong with the way Hermione was looking at him. Something angry and annoyed that he'd never seen before.
"I could look at it…" Ron smiled. "But I don't really feel like it. It's boring." The smile slid off Ron's face. Harry and him exchanged glances. As Hermione's eyes returned to the book, Harry made motions towards her to Ron.
"Boring?" asked Ron with a 'help me' look at Harry.
"If it wasn't boring, you'd do it yourself." Hermione said.
"Well… Yeah… but… Aren't you…?"
Hermione slammed the book shut. "Aren't I what? Boring?"
"No! That's not what I-"
Hermione stood up and stomped out of the Common Room.
Break away from everybody
Hermione wished she was someone else. Anyone else. She knew that she was boring, Ron had even said so. Ron….
Hermione's anger flashed. Her book bag was startlingly heavy. She pulled out a heavy library book, and stared at it, coming to a standstill in the hallway. She's walked as far away from the Gryffindor Common Room as she could without going to any other floors. There was a bathroom to her immediate right, and she got the feeling of being lost; a feeling that she hadn't had since first year.
Break away from everything
Without warning, another flash of anger shot through Hermione, and she cast a spell she'd sworn she'd never use.
"SECTUMSEMPRA!"
The book was torn to shreds. A sick sense of pleasure and contentment filled Hermione, and she replaced the scraps of book in her backpack. She walked into the bathroom. The long windows in front of the sink reflected her; her bushy brown hair that could not be tamed, and her figure disguised in her billowy school uniform. The only thing that she liked about herself were her eyes, but her other features were too distracting, too… Goody Two Shoes- ish.
These features made her Hermione Granger, Gryfindor Book Worm. She hated it, hated everything but her eyes.
With her eyes on the mirror, she raised her wand to her hair.
If you can't stand the way this place is
Thick frizzy brown locks soon cluttered the bathroom floor. She cast only two more spells on her hair, and then it was perfectly different, perfectly new, and perfectly Anti-Bookworm.
Take yourself to higher places
Hermione had just finished her hair when Moaning Myrtle popped out of the toliet behind her. She appraised Hermione's new look with awe and a smile.
"Hermione." Said Myrtle, her eyes still glued to Hermione's hair. "Someone in my bathroom needs you right now." Myrtle floated up out of the toliet and placed her ghostly feet on the ground. "I love the hair though." Myrtle started to float towards the door, but then stopped and looked back at Hermione. "Come ON!"
"Just a moment, Myrtle." Said Hermione, pointing her wand at her clothes. "I just need to do one more thing…"
Back In Moaning Myrtle's Bathroom
Draco was pacing now, trying hard to think of a way out of this situation. There was no way he could tell Hermione; She was a part of the Golden Trio! She was the brains, she was the plans. Potter might be the most famous one, but Hermione was the center. They couldn't function without her.
'Stop thinking like that, Draco.' He thought. 'Think of something else, anything else.'
His eyes roamed over the bathroom, and rested on the window. Outside the window the dark and cold Hogwarts Grounds seemed to sway, watching him, and reaching for him. Voldemort. The Dark Lord was out there, depending on him once again. He'd already failed at killing Dumbledore, he'd already been forced to come back for a seventh year… wasn't this enough?
No, it wasn't. Nothing would be enough for the Dark Lord, not until Potter was dead.
At Night, I feel like a Vampire
Draco's eyes left the sinister-looking scenery and rose to the sky. The stars were so comforting on most nights. Now, they mocked his dependence on this girl. They mocked the fact that he was waiting for a Muggle Born to get him out of a problem only a Pure Blood could understand. The Dark Lord would never want a Muggle Born to serve him on the level of a Deatheater. It was that simple. Muggleborns were as low down as House elves. He should leave before she got there, and never have to worry about it.
It's not right, but I just can't give it up
Draco heard the bathroom door open and close. He didn't turn away from the window.
"Are you who Myrtle was talking about?" Hermione's voice came. Draco closed his eyes, maybe if he ignored her, she'd go away. "The one who needs my help?"
Without a thought the word "Yes" floated out of his mouth. How in HELL did he let that slip?
"What's wrong?" Hermione's voice distracted him from mentally kicking himself. She sounded sincere. She sounded like she actually cared. Draco was sure it was a ploy, to make him give up his plans, and to make him sure that he'd be cooperative and capture him and ship him over to the Order of the Phoenix.
Draco sighed. "I don't think I can tell you, Granger."
"Why not?" She sounded hurt now. Like she didn't know why.
"You'll run off to Potty and Weasel. It wouldn't be a secret anymore." Draco heard a sharp intake of breath and turned around. "It has to be a se… se…" His brain stopped working as his eyes swept over Hermione. At least, she sounded like Hermione, of course, but she sure didn't look like Hermione.
I'll try to get myself higher
The witch in front of him had shoulder length straight black hair that fell artistically around her dark chocolate eyes. She was wearing Hogwarts Robes, but the Gryffindor Crest seemed to have been torn off with a severing charm, and had been cut so it was like a regular Muggle jacket. Her white blouse was form-fitting, but not sluttily tight, and missing a tie. The top two buttons were open, giving him a glimpse of skin that made him shudder. Her skirt wasn't as loose as it had once been either, but about a half inch shorter, and Merlin was that a difference. There were Muggle Sneakers on her feet, but that didn't change the fact that her legs were long. Deliciously Long.
"Hermione?" he asked hoarsely. "What have you done to yourself? You look…"
"I look like how I feel." Hermione's voice was guarded.
"I guess you feel beautiful then." There was a silence after those words, and Hermione's eyes on him made him realize that he'd said them. Crap.
"So, why do you need me?" Hermione asked, breaking the confused silence.
"The Dark…" Her eyes made him want to tell all, but Malfoy training kicked in. "Darkness… I can't tell you Hermione, I just need you to help me fix something. You are the smartest witch of our age aren't you?" When she nodded, he smiled a wide smile that made her blink a few times.
A few hours later, Hermione smiled. "I don't know what you're up to, Malfoy, but this thing is definitely fixable." She gently kicked the Vanishing Cabnet. "If we research a few things, learn a few spells, I think we could get it working."
"Great! Thanks a lot, Hermione." She smiled at him before kicking him out of the room of requirement, declaring that that was where she was sleeping from here on out.
When he stepped outside, a smirk played on his lips. How hard would it be to fix it now that he had Granger, bloody GRANGER, helping him? They were the brightest students in the entire school, and if it could be done, it could be by them. Sure, he could do it himself, but that would take months. With Hermione…
Another smirk came. This would be almost too easy.
Let's go, we're gonna light it up.
A/N: Hey you. YEAH YOU! Review, please, because if I check the Traffic thing and there's tons, but only like 3 reviews, I'll be mad. REALLY MAD…. So this is the idea I got. If I don't get at least 15 reviews per chapter, then I won't post the next chapter, plain and simple.
So, to make your reviewing easy as possible, here is the key:
Type : BANANA, if its awesome, and you want me to keep going
Type: BLEH, if you think it sucks and I should stop
Type: BANAPINORANGE (which is a Banana Pinapple Orange, in case you're wondering), is it's one of the most AMAZING THINGS YOU'VE READ ON THIS SITE.
Type: augauerkjghanu (Not that exactly, any random keyboard presses really), if you think that reviewing is stupid but this was easiest cuz you just want me to keep going and shut up about it already.
Then again, you could leave a regular review, and tell me what you liked. :P but who does THAT? Jk, review however you want.
~Amortentia Veritaserum