Disclaimer: Sadly, I never owned Harry Potter.


SALVATION - A Dramione Fanfic

"At this time in war, all we have is ourselves. We're the only ones who can save each other," Hermione said weakly.

Draco nodded slowly in assent. He understood it now.

She was the salvation he was looking for, and he hers.


PROLOGUE

Confusion.

If Draco Malfoy could bottle up all his feelings right now, he'd sum it all up in that one word. He didn't know what to do, what to say, or what was to become of him.

His recent failure to follow his Master's command was not something the Dark Lord was likely to forgive. Being chosen for the task was a heady thing, he knew. Killing Albus Dumbledore was supposed be his first and greatest feat yet as a Death Eater. But he had failed. Severus Snape had to take over the task because of his 'softness,' as his companions called it.

"What say you to a bet? Twenty galleons, I say he won't last ten minutes inside the Dark Lord's room," he heard Amycus Carrow whisper to Fenrir Greyback.

Fenrir chuckled. "Deal. But I'm telling you, I'm betting he won't last five."

Draco wanted to punch a wall. Yes, a wall. He was a Death Eater and all, but he knew he wouldn't stand five seconds in a duel with a veteran like Carrow nor would he be able to manage a go at Greyback without getting bitten.

He sighed. As the world seemed so eager to punish him, there was no wall in sight. Instead, he vented all his anger on the nearest object by his feet, which was an old and bent tin can. He kicked it as strongly as he could, hoping he would hit either of the two men.

Their little company of Death Eaters walked on, and Draco was a bit surprised as to why they haven't Apparated yet. He was about to ask when someone pulled him from behind. Before he knew it, he was taken into a thick patch of wood, away from his companions. He could hear Bellatrix Lestrange's distant cackle.

"Get off," he growled, his hand reaching into the pocket of his robes for his wand.

"Draco, it's just me," Snape said. Draco watched as his old Professor took out his wand and muttered an Imperturbable Charm.

Draco unclenched. "What do you want?"

"You have to leave. Now." Snape wasn't a fan of beating around the bush. "The Dark Lord will not forgive you for this. He'll kill you."

Draco let out a snort. "Yeah, I know that."

"You don't seem worried at all."

"Maybe it's because I don't have anything left to live for."

Snape frowned. "What about Narcissa? Don't you think it matters to her if you died?"

"She never cared for me." At least she never showed she did, Draco thought.

"Listen, Draco. I made the Unbreakable Vow. I swore to protect you with every inch of my life. Now, if I disobey, I might as well just die too."

"You're more than welcome to join me if you'd like."

Snape cocked an eyebrow. He seemed irritated. "I'm not interested in dying at the moment."

"Then what do you suppose we should do? No one can evade the Dark Lord. Even if I do manage escape he'll be able to track me down."

"You forget that I am the Dark Lord's most trusted servant. I always have a plan," Snape replied, his eye twinkling in the dark night.


"I'll have to fake your death."

Draco looked stunned. "Fake my death - what? That's insane!"

"But not impossible. There is a potion that mimics death, but only puts the drinker in an unconscious state."

"Like the Draught of Living Death, you mean?" Draco asked.

"No. That can really kill you; this one won't." Snape took out a small crystal vial filled with fluid of a green mist swirling around black substance. He gave the phial to Draco, who took it between his index finger and thumb.

"Wait. I won't really die, correct?" Snape nodded. "So how will I wake up?" Draco weighed the phial in his hand. It was light, close to holding nothing.

"The plan is this: I am positive that the Dark Lord will not facilitate your death; you're too unimportant." Ouch. Draco had opened his mouth to speak but Snape gave him a stern look to silence him. "I knew you couldn't kill the Headmaster, so I had to make a contingency plan.

"The Dark Lord does not know of this potion yet; I have only recently devised this. I did tell him, however, that I made a special poison and wanted to test it on you, should you be unsuccessful. He gave me permission to do so, but what he doesn't know is that once I give you this potion, it will only render you unconscious.

"But that's not all. This potion will freeze your heart, thus stopping your heartbeat. That way if he does check, he will believe that you are dead. There is an antidote to this, but it must be given within the next half-hour, or else, your heart will freeze permanently and you will die, so it is crucial that you follow whatever I say right now."

Draco was silent throughout his explanation. Finally, he said, "Sounds dangerous. What do I have to do?"

Snape smiled furtively. "First, we have to get back to the others. We will return to the Manor. Then when the Dark Lord calls all of us together in the dining hall, we wait.

"He will ask you to explain yourself, all the while you will probably be put under the Cruciatus, and after doing so, he would call me in and tell me to kill you. He'd probably stay and watch, but he won't do it himself.

"After your death, he will tell me to dispose of your body; I will levitate you outside, and once we are completely alone, I will give you the antidote. Once you awake, you are to your appearance as thoroughly as possible, and then Apparate right away to the Leaky Cauldron.

"After that, ask Tom for the room reserved under my name, and you are to stay there tonight. I will knock on your door at exactly seven in the morning. Your belongings will be there waiting for you, as well as other things you might need. If you don't mind, I took all the money you have in your Gringotts account and transferred it to your safehouse – it won't be very safe for you to have a traceable account at Gringotts right now. I will tell you further instructions tomorrow morning, but I must tell you this…" Snape looked at Draco with a serious look on his features.

"We are to be careful because if anyone discovers our plan, both of us will die, understand?"

Draco looked amused. "You seem to know the Dark Lord really well; I'm surprised you're not on a first-name basis," he chortled. "But the plan seems simple enough. I'm sure we can follow through if things happen accordingly."


At ten minutes to seven the next day, Draco was pacing back and forth in his room. All his things were ready – his trunk was packed and his moneybag was safely stashed inside it.

At exactly seven o'clock, three knocks rapped on his door; Draco lunged for the doorknob.

Severus Snape came in, the stealthy smile back on his face. "I'm impressed." Draco scowled in response. "The disguise would have fooled me if I didn't know."

It was still Draco of course. But he had turned his hair a sandy shade of brown and made it shaggier, eyes a brilliant blue, and nose a little bit bent, like he'd just been in a fight. He hated the ugly transformation, but seeing as it would only be a matter of time before he would have to lift it, Draco decided to be patient. But that didn't mean he would keep the scowling to a minimum.

He chuckled darkly as he closed the door. "What are the rest?" he asked conversationally.

"You'll be staying in the Muggle world," Snape told him coolly. "I have a house there; it was the place I grew up in. Small, but enough to shelter you – if you want you can cast an Engorgement Charm to make the inside bigger."

"A Muggle house?" Draco asked, incredulous. "What makes you think I will live in a Muggle house?"

"You don't have another choice. Unless of course, you want to roam around the streets until you get discovered, then you are very much welcome to, but once you get caught, I will not vouch for you anymore."

The scowl came back, pulling the corners of Draco's mouth lower this time. "Where is this place?"

Snape gave him a piece of paper. There, it was written, was an address. The house of the Half-Blood Prince is at 22 Castledore Road, Hexham.

"I've cast the wards needed in case intruders find out. There's also a Fidelius Charm set upon the house – I'm Secret Keeper. But I'm transferring it to you once you are inside the house, just in case."

Draco knew the time was almost up. With a pang in his heart, he took in the look of his teacher one last time.

Severus Snape was the only father figure he had. He was the only person he admired and trusted. But for the past year Draco was horrible to him, shunning him away whenever he offered his help. If only he had listened to him, maybe all this wouldn't have happened.

"Professor," he began. Snape looked at him and tilted his head to the side, waiting. "Why are you helping me after all I've done to you?"

Snape considered for a moment. "I should say I'm helping you because I would die if I didn't, thanks to the Vow. But that's not all.

"I care about you, Draco. Your mother entrusted you to me, and I feel that it is my responsibility to vouch for you."

And with that, Severus Snape left.


Draco Apparated to Castledore Road immediately, and walked towards the alleyway between numbers twenty-one and twenty-three. No sooner had he thought the words, had the house emerged from the dark alley. The Muggles were completely oblivious to what just happened, and for this Draco was delighted. The lesser witnesses the better.

He heaved his trunk towards the two-story building, all the while keeping the straight look on his face. He was itching to remove the disguise, as it was getting rather tempting to just get out his wand and change in the middle of the street.

As he entered the house, the lights flicked on by themselves. As soon as he was inside, he lifted the disguises and looked around. It seems that Draco need not put in an Engorgement Charm anymore – the house was big enough for one. The house too, was surprisingly tidy; Snape must have been there first to do some cleaning. He saw that two more trunks similar to what he was carrying were placed in the sitting room. Draco went to open them and saw that it was filled with more of his things – this time it carried all the clothes he had left at home. Bless that man, Draco thought.

He levitated the trunks upstairs to the first bedroom on the left, which he declared as his since it was very much Slytherin-inspired. If the situation hadn't been so serious, he would have laughed at the emerald walls that matched the beddings. Draco then pursued fixing his things from the trunks, but as he levitated one of his favorite cloaks to the closet, he heard a crack from downstairs. Used the sound of Apparition, Draco stopped at once and descended down to find out who the intruder was.

"Young Master Malfoy!" a familiar squeaky voice cried as soon as he was standing on the last step. Before he could make sense of what was happening, he felt small arms wrapping around his knees.

"Is that you, Nereus?" Draco asked in confusion. He looked down and saw the house elf nod in satisfaction. "But how did you get here?" he asked again.

"Master Severus showed Nereus how to find Young Master. He also told Nereus to give this to Young Master." The elf let go of Draco and handed him a letter.

Draco opened the envelope and read the contents of the parchment inside.

I hope you are finding your new home well. I have sent your house elf to you, in the hope that he will help you in whatever you need. I have removed myself as Secret Keeper of the house and have transferred it to you. This is the last letter you will receive from me. I will not provide any more for you; you must survive now on your own.

Even without the signature, Draco knew who it was from. He looked down at the house elf at his feet, which was now smiling from ear to ear, and began to smile himself. At least his favorite house elf would be able to keep him company.

"Does Master Malfoy want anything from Nereus?" Nereus chirped.

"Well, Nereus first, get me an eagle owl from Diagon Alley. And I forbid you to tell anyone or anything about this place, do you understand?"

Nereus nodded happily and snapped his fingers to Disapparate.


A/N: Sorry for the long prologue! Please review! I might set up Chapter 1 if I get some...

P.S. Some of you may have noticed... this is actually a revised version of Redemption.