Author's Note: Sorry about the late update. Track started yesterday and I was miserable when I got home. They made us run hills in the freezing cold and the rain. It wasn't fun.

Anyway, here is the next update, better late than never, and I hope you enjoy! I'd love it if you'd review!


Climb into the ring for a battle that you can't win
Swing as hard as you can swing, it will still mean nothing
I should have seen it coming, it had to happen sometime
But you went and brought a knife to an all out gun fight
And the only thing to save
Is the banner that you wave
To be wrapped around your grave

~This Means War by Nickelback

Chapter 6

Before they even walked in to the house, Hermione could tell that whatever had happened was bad. The normally cheerful house seemed to have an aura of deep darkness or evil that permeated down the street, telling the muggles that something awful happened here and that it needed to be avoided.

Hermione sighed and looked at Harry, who gave her an encouraging grin. Together, they walk into the house, Hermione shivering with the feeling of great evil that increased the closer they got.

Once inside, the magic was so strong that Hermione felt it like a punch to the gut. This wasn't the result of a simple murder. Whoever had been behind it came back, either before the body was found or after the aurors had left. Hermione took a deep shuddering breath and tried to be strong. This was too important for her to break down.

"Was it like this before?" She breathed. Harry nodded.

"Whoever did this was doing more than just a murder. The only time I've ever felt something with this much dark magic was when Voldemort was returned from his horcrux in fourth year," he said. Hermione's stomach dropped. This was worse than they'd feared.

"That means that whoever is behind this is planning on more than just a few assassinations, Harry," she said quietly. "Them bringing people back from the dead means that they are intending to stay."

She had considered the possibility, but now that it was confirmed, she felt the little bit of hope she had drain out of her.

"This is the beginning of a war," she said, voicing her thoughts. Harry nodded grimly.

"Come on," he said. "I'll show you where we found the body."

They walked silently through the house, the weight of the situation pushing down on their shoulders. This couldn't be happening. Would they ever have any peace?

They walked into the room, and the dark magic permeating from it was so intense that it hurt to breathe. The thing she noticed after the magic was the black Dark Mark burned into the wall. Below the Mark, someone had carved the words ashes to ashes, you'll all fall down. That was a threat if Hermione ever saw one, making it clear that whoever was behind the murder wouldn't come directly for them. They're going to murder their allies first, to isolate them from the world. Hermione understood the logic behind that. As Luna said, if it was just them alone, they weren't as much of a threat.

"Harry," Hermione breathed. She cleared her throat with a cough. "Do you think Voldemort-?" she started to ask.

"Absolutely not. We destroyed all of his horcruxes," he said, vehemently cutting her off. She nodded.

"It was just a thought. People have to be warned," she said. "Whoever made the horcrux had to have been within Voldemort's inner circle. They'll have a serious grudge and be one of the most evil wizards or witches ever. We have to warn the Order."

Harry looked at her. "It might put them in more danger if they know that there are people that may attack them, Hermione," he said. She sighed.

"I doubt it. Telling them could only protect them. They could go into hiding, and if they didn't want to do that, they could at least be better protected and prepared. They'd be on the look out for anything suspicious." She said.

"Alright," Harry said. "We'll tell them. I just hope you're right."

After that, Hermione set to work, running diagnostic spells to determine what had been used. She found the residue of the Cruciatus Curse, like Harry had said, as well as the Avada Kedavra curse. But she also found magic residue she had never seen before, residue that was extremely dark in nature.

Every spell leaves a unique residue in the air. Hermione was able to use that knowledge, discovered by Anthony Goldstein, to develop a spell that read the residue and told her what spells had recently been used in the area. It was extremely useful as an auror.

"Hey Harry," she said. He walked over to her.

"Yeah?" He said.

"I'm pretty much done here, for now," she said. "I need to do some research about some of these spells that were used. I know that they're dark magic, but not much else."

He nods. "That sounds good. Do you need me to help with anything? I could probably secure you access to the library in the Department of Mysteries."

Hermione smiled slightly but shook her head. "Harry, I'm staying with Draco bloody Malfoy. I'm pretty sure that his library in the manor will have more than enough information on dark curses. I'll send you a patronus when I find something."

Harry's face darkened. "Hermione, you won't be going back to the manor. You can stay with Ginny and me."

Hermione felt her temper start to flare up.

"Don't order me around Harry. You can't tell me what I can and can't do! I want to stay at the manor. Don't ask me why because I couldn't tell you. I honestly don't know. But I feel like that's where I need to be," she said. His eyes narrow.

"Hermione, it's Malfoy. He was a Death Eater. He's dangerous. And his father is even worse. You said that Lucius doesn't even know you're staying there. You have to know that he will eventually find out. It isn't safe there. The house itself is even against muggleborns. It's full of dangerous dark artifacts," he reasoned. Hermione's eyes narrowed as she dropped her hands to her hips.

"I'm a grown woman now, Harry," she said. "I can take care of myself."

They glared at each other in silence for a minute before Harry sighed and nodded in resignation. He knew when it wasn't worth the fight.

"Fine. Just…be careful, okay?" He said. Hermione smiled and nodded, hugging her friend.

"You know I will be, Harry," she said. He nodded, his eyes sad, and watched her apparate away.

She appeared outside the gates of Malfoy Manor. She sent Draco a patronus telling Draco to come let her in. A few minutes later, she sees him walking across the grounds.

"Well?" He asked expectantly, and a not a little rudely as he opened the gate for her. She narrowed her eyes.

" 'Well?'" she repeated incredulously. "Did you honestly think I would answer that?"

Now his eyes narrow.

"It's my house, mudblood," he said with a sneer. "I'd consider fessing up."

She knew that he'd hate her if she said anything, but she could tell that his heart wasn't in the insult. His eyes betrayed him, as hard as he tried to hide it, she could see the worry buried very deep in their mercurial depths.

"If I didn't know better, Malfoy," she said. "I'd say that you were worried." He scoffed.

"Of course not. I have nothing to fear. I'm pureblood, and I did serve the Dark Lord, even if I hadn't enjoyed the experience." He said. Hermione raised an eyebrow and nodded.

"Whatever you say," she says. His eyes narrow, but he motions her into the grounds.

"Seriously though," he said, his hostility seeming to give way to his curiosity. "What happened?"

Hermione grimaced.

"This isn't just going to be hit and run assassinations," she said. "They want a war. They aren't just after the deserters and the muggleborns. They want the power. And I think they want revenge, and that's why they're targeting us first. We're the biggest threat.

"The want to isolate us. They're going to go through all of our friends and allies until its only Harry, Ron, and I left," she said.

"Did you find anything that might help you track them down?" He asked. She shook her head with a rueful smile.

"No. But we know that they revived someone from a horcrux, and they used dark spells that I've never even heard of before. I was wondering if I could use your library to do some research," she said. She looked at him nervously before deciding to make the leap. "And I thought that maybe you could help explain some of them to me as well."

Draco's eyes darkened at the insinuation, but he nodded, knowing that, for everything that had happened, she didn't mean to insult him. She was just using her resources, and, really, he couldn't blame her. He would have done the same thing had their roles been reversed.

"Good," she said. Then she explained what all of the spells were that she hadn't heard of. As she continued, Draco's already pale skin paled even more with horror. She could tell that he had a theory and that, if it worried him that much, she certainly wasn't going to like it.

"Do you have any ideas?" She asked. He nodded stiffly.

"I have several," he said.

"Those spells are extremely dark, the majority being of Voldemort's own creation," he said. "That means that the people leading this, or at least one of them, was part of the Inner Circle. A few weren't, however, and were characteristic of certain members of the Inner Circle, the ones who invented them.

"Mortum Flagrantia is a spell that causes the victim's blood to literally burn in their veins. It means burning death, and it was designed to cause insane amounts of pain. It was characteristic of Bellatrix Lestrange. It is horrible spell, one fitting of the inventor. The Illusio curse was created by Rudolphus Lestrange. It became his go to spell. It was designed to cause the victim to become trapped in delusions and dreams in which they were tortured, either with pain, or, if he was feeling particularly evil, their greatest fears."

Hermione shivered as she listened. Those curses were awful.

"So we know that Rudolphus Lestrange is obviously behind this. He has motives, as well: revenge for the death of his wife. But he doesn't seem the type to make a drastic move like this alone. Someone is helping him," Hermione said. Draco nods.

"That sounds about right," he said.

Hermione smiled grimly. "We're one step closer to figuring out who's behind this."

Draco had to admire her determination, though he wasn't sure she knew what she was getting into.