Hope you enjoy--aren't you lucky for this update so soon. Don't worry, Draco is in no way weak in this story, Ron isn't going to be able to get the upper hand for too long. At any rate, enjoy and reveiw, and things get even more exciting and stuff... um, yeah... have fun, and reveiw!!!!

Chapter 10

"You!" Ron said, eyes narrowing in anger, he felt betrayed, in a way he had never even expected. "you were 'loyal to the Dark Lord right up until the end'? Regardless of where you were and what you were doing?"

Draco levelled a glare at him, he hadn't heard that tone in years, and he wasn't about to stand for it now, just like he hadn't stood for it then. But he realised they needed to stay calm, they had a mission to complete, and a lot of things to think about--the most predominate being what Lucius Malfoy had to do with the Chirloc. Besides, Ron was hell to calm down once he was angry enough.

"Of course I was. Did you forget that I was a Deatheater by choice Weasley?" Draco asked, voice taking on a hint of mild curiosity. Surely that could not be it, because if it was he was not going to be pleased.

Ron was literally made speechless by that, he couldn't believe it, and he hated to admit that he had forgotten. And what was worse, he couldn't believe he had forgotten… no, that wasn't true, he had never forgotten, had always known Draco was a Deatheater, he had just somehow managed to push it aside… but when? And how? Right now it seemed as if Draco had just betrayed him in the worst possible way. "Of course I didn't forget!" he spluttered finally. "But--"

"But nothing." Draco cut him off sharply. "now, if that's all, we have things to do."

If Draco had wanted to keep Ron from getting angry he had failed, being interrupted and having what he considered major concerns just brushed under the mat like that gave rise to his suspicions, made them all more true. "They can wait." Ron spat angrily. "You supported You-know-who all this time?" it wasn't really a question, more an accusation.

Draco bit back a sigh. "Of course I did Weasley. I supported the Dark Lord just like you supported your 'blessed' Order."

"That was different!" Ron stated, eyes narrowed. It had been a long time since he had been confused and angry enough to have no idea what he was going to say or do.

Draco quirked an eyebrow. "How so?" he asked, pushing down his own rising temper. He had heard all this before, he could remain calm, had to remain calm, or something would happen that could never un-happen, and then he would have to train up a new partner.

"We were the good guys!" Ron almost yelled.

"Were you?" Draco asked, his tone condescending. "As far as I was aware your Order was an organisation full of bumbling idiots, lead by the king of all bumbling idiots. However, I don't see how allegiances from over ten years ago have any bearing on what is happening right now." he brushed a strand of hair away from his eyes.

"You told… you said you were loyal to you-know-who!" Ron snapped, as if that was the answer to everything.

Draco pursed his lips, his patience wearing incredibly thin. They had far more important things to deal with, and he intended to deal with them. "Of course I said I was loyal to Voldermort, because I was. I followed and supported my side in that war just like you did yours, so I don't see what your problem is. So unless it is a damn good one, one that affects how you work for instance, we have things to do!"

Ron spluttered for a minute. He knew, in the back of his head, that what Draco was saying was true, he had followed the progress of the war, cheered the victories for his side. But he had never seen or heard Draco do the same…

"but… I thought…" Ron stuttered, thoroughly confused now.

Draco bit back a full fledged scowl, letting only the barest hint show. He couldn't believe this at all. "You thought what? That jus because I didn't flaunt the Dark Lords victories, didn't rub your face in your defeats, didn't take my anger out on you when my side lost a battle, that I didn't support them. If that was true we wouldn't have spent the first two years of our working relationship trying to get past allegiances. I did not enjoy that time, and I will not stand for it again." he practically seethed now. "Now--we have a job to do, so get over your petty grievances and lets to it!"

Ron's confusion didn't clear, but changed into anger. "I'll not take orders from you!" he grit out to stop himself from yelling.

"Oh, that's rich Ronald, you've been doing it for ten years already, why stop now." Draco knew he was allowing himself to be drawn in the argument. H knew he shouldn't. knew he should turn around and leave, give Ron a chance to cool his head before he tried again. But then again, He could do that and Ron could have let it fester and the argument could be worse. That was the reason he would give for allowing himself to be goaded into the fight. In truth it was his pride that wouldn't let him back down right now. Weasley had pushed too far this time.

Ron growled deep in his throat, struggling to keep his magic in. Using every single shred of self control he had left in him he turned his back on Draco and walked away, well, stormed away is perhaps more appropriate. "I don't work with deatheaters!"

X

Ron reached the streets of the town. He had hoped his angry storming would have calmed him down a little, but it hadn't. he knew, logically, that all this had been said before, that this very same argument had been had before. That he had stormed off exactly like this years ago. He stopped and slumped against the nearest fence and blew out a sudden sigh.

How had he gone through eight years not remembering that Draco was one of the bad guys? How had he lost that anger at him? It just didn't make sense. If he was to consider, which he really didn't want to, he could probably have rationalised that after the war it just wasn't as important that Draco had been a deatheater. They had been sleeping together by then so the lines were blurred. That was it. The lines just got blurred, and now they were focused again.

That was it.

So why was he still so bloody confused!?

Ron's thoughts were turned inward so much that he didn't notice the Chirloc before it was too late to put some distance between them. He tried to take off, put the distance of the sky between them while he gathered himself for the attack. The claw round his leg stopped that idea short and he was dragged back down and thrown to the ground.

"Don't kill him." came the drawl.

Ron's eyes flashed up, almost glad when he saw it was Lucius. Draco sounded almost exactly the same. Though he shouldn't have been surprised. Like father and son after all.

He tried to struggle up, but the Chirloc forced him down. His head cracked against the ground, and consequently a small stone and his vision blurred. He tried to pull himself up again, but couldn't. there was a throbbing there, and he couldn't stop it when the Chirloc lifted him on Lucius' order. The next jostle sent a shot of pain rattling through his skull and his vision went black.