'Cassie, please open the door, Cassie?' Harry knocked again. He hadn't seen Cassie since she had left the meeting the evening before. Draco had returned some time later saying that she had gone to bed.

'I can't, Harry.' Cassie finally replied.

'Please? Come down for a moment, we have a surprise for you.'

There was a pause until there came the sound of the key slowly turning in the lock. Harry let out a sigh of relief.

Harry had to stop himself from touching Cassie as his instinct was to hug her tightly as she looked awful. Her face was red from crying and her breathing was unsteady.

'Oh, Cassie I wish there I was something I could do...' He found himself rather inadequately saying.

'Harry it is ok.' Cassie looked uneasy and walked downstairs. She paused at the bottom of the stairs and waited for Harry to catch up with her. She followed him into the living room.

'Dobby? Oh my goodness it is so good to see you.' Dobby had run over to Cassie, she had bent down and they were hugging each other.

'Mistress Cassandra.' Dobby said.

'Dobby, I have missed you so much. I was so pleased when I heard that Father had accidently given you clothes, but I did miss you. Have you been ok?' Cassie was on her knees in front of Dobby.

'I also have missed you, Mistress. I have been very well. I have been working at Hogwarts.'

'Dobby, none of this mistress lark, you know you don't call me that.' Cassie smiled and Harry realised that it had been the first time in nearly a week that he had seen Cassie smile and this was a genuine smile.

'Sorry, Cassie.' Dobby seemed to find it difficult to say Cassie's name.

'How did you do that? I have tried so many times to get him to call me just Harry.'

Cassie answered, 'the difference is that you are a wizard and I am a muggle. As a muggle Dobby shouldn't have anything to do with me but he was there for me when I needed him most.'

Mr Weasley spoke up, 'Dobby is here to look after you.'

Dobby smiled as he looked at Cassie.

Draco hadn't been able to stop himself from smiling when he had seen Cassie's reunion with Dobby. He had know that Dobby had been the one to have nursed Cassie back to health when she was eleven but he hadn't realised that they had become as close as they evidently were. He supposed that it had been inevitable really Cassie must have felt so lonely and rejected. She must have been so dependent on Dobby. He hadn't thought that Dobby's freedom could have affected anyone other than being a slight annoyance to his father in that Harry Potter had got one over him. He had left Cassie and Dobby alone for a couple of days to catch up. Well that the reason he was trying to convince himself he was doing when really it was because he felt so helpless. There wasn't anything he could do and feeling useless was something he had been brought up to dislike.

Harry, Hermione, Ginny and Ron had been discussing the horcrux in the woods near Hogsmead. Draco had been let into the secret given that his sister had nearly been killed in passing on the information about it. He knew that what was happening to Cassie had refocused their attention back onto Voldemort and the need to defeat him. They were planning on leaving later today. That was the reason why Draco was stood outside Cassie's room as he was going to break the news to her.

Draco knocked on Cassie's door. The lock turned and the door opened. Draco had to look down as it was Dobby.

'Master Draco.'

'Dobby, can I see Cassie on her own for a while?' Draco asked.

'Of course Master.' Dobby clicked his fingers and disappeared.

Draco pushed open the door. Cassie was sitting on her bed, she looked up as Draco walked in.

'What are you doing here Draco?' She asked.

'To see you silly,' Draco smirked.

'Oh.'

'How are you?'

'Not too great to be honest,' she looked at the floor.

'You look awful, Cassie.' It was the truth. She looked like she was trying to keep it all together but she had bags under her eyes. She had also lost weight, weight which she really couldn't afford to lose.

'Thanks, you know how to make a girl feel good about herself, don't you?' she smiled weakly.

'I wish there was something I could do...' he started but was interrupted.

'I never thought I would say it, but you sound just like Harry.'

'Have you had many...?'

'Daydreams. Yes, more and more.'

Draco sat down on the bed beside Cassie and put his arm around her.

'Harry and the rest are going to look for the horcrux today.'

'Oh, about time I suppose. Are you not going with them?'

'No, I thought I would stay here, just in case.'

'Ok.'

There came a knock on the door before it opened. Cassie stood up in alarm as Harry walked in.

'Hello Cassie,' Harry said lightly.

'Harry, you shouldn't be in here, get out.'

'I just wanted to say goodbye,' Harry explained.

'Well you have done that now, sorry, but you need to leave.' Cassie began pacing up and down.

Draco felt he should say something, 'Cassie, I think you should calm down. Harry isn't going to touch you. He just wants to say goodbye.'

Cassie turned to Draco, desperation showing in her face, 'Draco, get him out.'

'What is wrong?' Harry asked seeming to sense what Draco was thinking that there was something more going on.

'Please, just go, I can't explain.' She started violently shaking. Draco tried to hold her but she struggled. Harry instinctively came to Draco's aid. Cassie screamed out as everything went black. Draco felt dizzy as they all seemed to be moving.

Harry hadn't meant to touch Cassie but when she had started shaking he felt compelled to try and help. He had felt the darkness closing in on him and tried desperately to maintain contact with Cassie. It felt like they were spinning in the darkness until they all landed with a thud. They had landed on what felt like grass. Harry quickly stretched out his body but nothing seemed to be broken. He was lying face down on the grass. He looked around for Cassie and Draco. He spotted Draco first who was sitting up on the grass rubbing his elbow. They nodded at each other. They both noticed Cassie at the same time. She was curled up in a ball facing away from them. Harry suddenly became aware that she was crying. He quickly made his way over to her.

'Cassie, what's wrong? Are you hurt?' He asked gently.

Her voice was unsteady, 'I told you, I said to stay away, why didn't you listen to me?'

'You knew this was going to happen?' Draco asked, he was kneeling next to Cassie.

'I had a feeling that something like this would happen, I tried to stop it.' She sat up slowly and rubbed her tears away with the palm of her hand. She looked around, 'well it looks like I have saved you a trip Harry.'

'Where are we?' Harry asked. Then he realised what Cassie meant. They were in a wood. They were in front of a small log cabin. 'Oh, I see... then the horcrux may be in there.' He pointed to the cabin.

Cassie nodded. Harry pulled out his wand.

'Come on, let's get this over and done with,' Harry said standing up. Draco helped Cassie stand and they walked over to the cabin. Draco nodded and Harry opened the door and they walked in.

At first glance the small cabin appeared to be empty. It wasn't until their eyes adjust to the darkness of the cabin in comparison to the bright sunlight that was outside that Harry realised, as he had expected, they were not alone.

'Well, well, well quite the family reunion we have here don't we?' It was Lucius and before Harry or Draco could react he had pointed his wand at Draco and Harry and a thin rope appeared from nowhere and tied itself around them and a pillar in the cabin.

Harry kicked himself for not using a light spell before walking blindly into the cabin. He tried to struggle against the bindings but it was to no avail.

Lucius spoke without emotion, 'I shall deal with you two later, first my traitor of a daughter. Crucio.'

Cassie crumbled to the floor and cried out in pain.

Harry shouted out, 'stop it, she brought us here, she did what was required of her.'

Lucius, however, seemed unable to hear him and continued to stand over Cassie with his wand raised.

'You don't know what I have suffered for your betrayal. Crucio.'

A hand appeared on Lucius' shoulder and he stopped the spell. A woman stepped out from behind him and spoke, 'Lucius, dear, let us not forget why we are here?'

'Mother?' Draco sounded surprised.

Lucius shook off his wife's hand and turned his attention back to Cassie, 'get up you good for nothing muggle.' Cassie didn't move.

'I said get up!' Lucius said firmly but Cassie seemed unable to move.

Lucius bent down and pulled her up roughly.

'Look at me.' He ordered. Harry noticed that Cassie was shaking violently and she hesitated before looking at her father, who raised his walking cane and struck Cassie around the face so hard that she fell heavily to the floor.

'Lucius enough now.' Narcissa's tone was urgent.

Lucius shouted, 'stay out of this.' He threw Narcissa against a wall and she collapsed to the floor unconscious.

Lucius turned back to Cassie, 'you stupid girl. Look at what you made me do. Crucio.'

Cassie screamed.

Harry couldn't stand this any longer and called out, 'stop. Just stop. She did what you wanted, she brought me here, leave her be and get on with what you have been asked to do.'

Lucius took one last look at Cassie and kicked her before turning his attention to Harry and Draco.

'Potter, Potter, life doesn't always revolve around you, you know.' Lucius seemed to be regaining his self control.

'I don't understand,' Harry found himself saying.

'Your role here is to just be a witness, so you are aware that those around the Dark Lord know about your silly quest. A quest which is futile by the way, a pathetic attempt to kill someone who is immortal. The Dark Lord has firm orders that you are to be unharmed, we are all to save you for him. For when the time comes he will kill you and because of all the years he has waited and the many setbacks you have caused him I don't think it will be a quick, painless death. No, by the end Potter you will be begging for release.'

Cassie gasped.

'What do you want?' Lucius appeared annoyed as he turned to Cassie. 'Oh, you want more, crucio.'

'STOP IT.' Harry turned to face Draco, who had shouted out, as best as he could given the tight bindings they were in. He was grimacing in anger and his fists were clenched.

'Oh I wondered when you would get involved. Now, Potter as an outsider to the Malfoy family. Where did I go so wrong? I mean look at how my children I have turned out – it was all looking so hopeful but then this one turned out to be a useless muggle,' he poked Cassie hard with his cane. 'And this one, who seemed to be happily following in his father's footsteps by becoming a death eater and then turned out to be a coward who then betrayed me as well. Crucio.' Harry could almost feel Draco's pain as he struggled against the bindings.

'Please, stop, please,' Cassie's face was streaked with tears and she was still shaking violently.

'I think I was too lenient, what do you think Potter?' Harry was beginning to realise that Lucius was trying to hide it but deep down somewhere he was hurt by his children's behaviour and despite his mocking attitude was actually seriously considering his previous actions. He continued, 'If both of you had been truly afraid of me then you would have never betrayed me.'

Draco spoke quietly but passionately, 'maybe we just realised that your way was the wrong way. You are a following a monster who doesn't even look human any more. You seem to be under this illusion that your loyalty to the Dark Lord will be rewarded.' Draco said the Dark Lord in a mocking tone. 'But you must realise by now that there is only room for one at the top of Voldemort's world and that is him. He will dispose of you as soon as you are no longer of use of him. Maybe that time is now, is that what you are so worried about?'

'Draco, stop, you will just make things worse,' Cassie pleaded.

'I suggest, 'son', you listen to your sister.' Lucius was obviously furious.

'Oh, yes my sister who in your precious Dark Lord's proposal for a 'better' world wouldn't exist. There wouldn't be any muggles. Look at her, look at your daughter.' Draco emphasised the word daughter. 'I know there was a time when you loved her, you would have done anything for her.'

'Please, Draco,' Cassie had sat up and was cuddling her knees

'Well those times have gone and I want you to know this, neither of you, my precious children will leave here alive.'

Harry had felt helpless on numerous occasions in his life and it was a feeling that he really didn't enjoy. His mind raced as he tried to think of something that he could do that would stop Cassie and Draco being killed but he was out of ideas. He had no wand, Lucius did. He was tried up whilst Lucius was free...

'Just so everyone is clear it is because of you Draco that she is here.' Harry's thoughts were interrupted by Lucius' quiet comment. His forehead creased in confusion.

'What? Don't you mean me? You somehow have used the link Voldemort and I seem to have and got to Cassie through that.' Harry said.

'Like I said before, Potter, not everything revolves you although it was useful to me for you to think that. Distracted you from the truth that it was me, not the Dark Lord, who was using Cassandra. I used the connection that I had made between myself and Cassandra whilst I was punishing her for her betrayal. Something that Draco missed, tut tut. Draco's presence strengthened this connection just by being around. You see, Cassandra,' he pulled up Cassie firmly by her arm. 'you have Draco to blame for this. He helped me to get in your head.' He poked Cassie's forehead she tried to struggle but Lucius gripped either harder.

'Did you know about this? If you did Malfoy, I swear...' Harry turned his attention to Draco.

Draco interrupted him, 'what are you going to do? I think my father has already stated that he will be killing me so what is the worse you can do? Especially when you are wandless.' Draco's tone was bitter. 'No, I didn't know. I can't even begin to imagine how he did this. Sorry Cassie.' He added quietly.

Cassie shook her head, 'you have nothing to apologise for.'

'Oh, enough of all this brotherly, sisterly love,' Lucius pointed his wand at Cassie who struggled again to get free.

Draco pleaded, 'leave her alone, haven't you done enough?'

'Not nearly enough,' Lucius muttered before throwing her to the floor.

'Fine I will do as you wish I will leave her alone. Although you do realise that without me she would be dead – look,' he pointed his wand at Cassie who hid her face. He said a spell under his breath and Cassie screamed and then passed out.

'Pathetic muggle.' Lucius kicked her. 'Now, it is so tempting to just let her die like that but unfortunately I just have one more thing that I want her to do.'

He pointed his wand once again at Cassie, she shook all over and cried out.

'Get up,' he ordered.

Cassie looked pale and strugged to her feet. It appeared that her whole body was shaking violently and she seemed to finding it hard to stay balanced on her feet as she reached out for the wall for stability. She was breathing deeply, her face distorted in pain.

Lucius meanwhile was lifting up what seemed to be a trapdoor in the floor of the cabin. He pulled out a box, it was wooden and slightly bigger than a shoe box he placed it carefully on the only piece of furniture in the room an old, large table. 'Come here,' he pointed at Cassie.

She shook her head.

'Oh, you silly girl, you think you can stop this, delay it,' he muttered under his breath and Cassie moved towards him. 'See? You are powerless. Now this box is locked, what does it say on the top?'

Cassie looked, her forehead creased and she shook her head, 'I don't understand what it says. Although there seems to be the shape of a key carved into the lid.

'Of course you can't read it – it says that to open the box it requires a payment. A payment of unclean blood.'

'Cut your wrist Cassie. It will be so much more 'fun' if you do it yourself rather than me doing it.' He passed her a knife, Cassie dropped it on the floor.

'Stop trying to be clever,' he muttered under his breath and Cassie screamed. She bent quickly down to the floor and picked up the knife.

Her right arm was shaking as she brought the knife to her left wrist. Cassie cried out in pain as the knife's blade made contact with her skin. The blood began to pour from the deep cut Cassie had made.

'Into the mould,' Lucius muttered taking her arm. He roughly squeezed the blood into the mould. Cassie was crying and fell to the floor holding her wrist as soon as she was released.

Lucius said a long and complicated spell which caused his wand to send out a black jet of light onto the top of the box. He lowered his wand and lifted out a dark red key that had been created in the mould. He placed it into the key hole and unlocked the box.

Harry strained to see what was in the box. Lucius was in the way and he seemed hypnotised by the contents for the moment. Harry finally saw that it was a cup, an old looking cup as Lucius held it up in the air. Lucius was smirking to himself as he held the cup up to the light in one hand whilst the other one closed the box. It was at least a minute before Lucius seemed to remember where he was and looked down at the floor expecting to see Cassie, 'thank you my dear.' He said but then realised that Cassie wasn't there. He looked around.

Harry felt the bindings come loose and looked down in surprise to see Cassie cutting them using the knife she had cut herself with. Harry and Draco reacted quickly to their release and picked up their wands from the floor. Harry's spell pulled the cup out of Lucius' hands and it fell noisy at his feet. Draco had chosen expelliarimus.

Lucius looked stunned.

'Ma..Ma... Malfoy's never give up,' Cassie voice was breaking and hardly stronger than a whisper.

Lucius seemed to be attempted to regain his self-composure and stared at Draco who was pointing his wand at him, 'what now, Draco? are you going to kill me? Well go on then.'

Harry's attention was diverted by Cassie's urgent whispering, 'Harry you need to destroy the horcrux.'

'How?' Harry whispered back.

'I don't know, is there anything written on it?' Cassie picked up the cup which began to glow, her eyes bulged. 'What's happening?' She asked shakily.

Harry clutched his scar, 'I don't know, but whatever you are doing, keep doing as Voldemort doesn't like it.'

Cassie closed her eyes.

Harry tried to ignore the pain he was feeling and concentrate on Cassie, 'Is it hurting you?'

'Just burning a little.'

'NO!' Lucius shouted.

Cassie jumped but kept hold of the cup, Harry whispered 'keep going Cassie.'

'But it is hurting you.'

'Keep going.'

'How is this happening anyway?'

'I don't know could be something to do with the muggle blood your hands are covered in.'

'Oh.' The horcrux let out a rainbow of different coloured jets.

Harry stumbled with the pain he was feeling. He was trying to hide his intense discomfort from Cassie but it was starting to prove impossible. She was gripping the horcrux and seemed to be concentrating on keeping hold of it when her instincts must have been telling her to drop it. Seconds passed but these felt more like hours until finally the lights went out one by one. Cassie's hands shook violently, her eyes closed in concentration, and as the last light went out she cried out and dropped it. 'Sorry, I can't hold it any longer.' She said quietly.

Harry felt the pain intensify for a minute or two before ebbing away, 'it's ok, I think you did it. I think the horcrux has been destroyed. You did it Cassie.'

Cassie fainted. Harry knelt by her and anxiously felt her pulse. He wasn't an expert but he knew that Cassie's pulse was dangerously low. He turned his attention to Draco and Lucius who seemed to be trying to stare each other out.

Draco was trying to do several things at once which he was finding more than a little difficult to do. He was trying to not be intimidated by his father as they stared intensively at each other. He knew that he had the upper hand given that he was the only one of the two of them to have a wand, his father's being safely on the floor on the other side of the room. But this man in front of him, if Draco was truthful, could still reduce him to a quivering, jelly mess. There was too much history to just ignore. Too many punishments, too many times of Draco failing to live up to expectations and too many times when he had disappointed his father even though he tried so hard to gain his approval. All he had wanted was for a well done, but that would have been impossible for his father to have said. Instead Draco had continued to try and make up to his father for the intense loss that he had felt when it had turned out that his beloved daughter was a muggle. It was no secret that Cassie had been his father's favourite, she had been the apple of his eye and he would have happily laid down his life for her. The secret was the effect the news Cassie was a muggle had on his father. Draco had heard his father do something that he had never heard before or since. He had sobbed like a baby. He had stormed off in a rage and Draco had followed him and had listened in surprise to the tears that had continued for a considerable about of time before he had crept away before he could be discovered.

He looked briefly at Cassie, he had never told her this. And somehow this didn't seem to be the time. She was so brave, and had been through so much at the hands of her father. Someone who had loved her so intensively that Draco had felt at times that there wasn't much love left for him. All this had changed though and all because she could never be a witch. Draco wished her father could see Cassie for what she really was. That despite everything she had grown up to a compassionate, determined and committed young lady with so much courage to stand up for her convictions. But her father had been brainwashed by Voldemort and all those that had come before him with the ideology that muggles were nothing and were worthless. All you had to do was look at a muggle like Cassie and realise that this ideology was what was worthless.

He shook his head and swallowed. He was letting his thoughts run away and was getting distracted. He had to concentrate. He had to try and block out whatever Cassie and Harry were doing to the horcrux and concentrate on his father. Who, Draco couldn't help but smile despite the situation, didn't seem to be liking what was happening to the horcrux. His father shook his head and in the split second before he composed himself Draco saw a glimpse of his father's fear. Voldermort wouldn't like the loss of another horcrux at the hands of his supposedly most loyal follower. His father would be heavily punished for this and added to Cassie and Draco's involvement, the punishment was more than likely to be death.

'What are you going to do Draco? Stare at me all night.'

Draco forced himself to remain silent.

'Pity you don't have as much courage as your sister, as if you did I would already be dead. You would have killed me that moment you got my wand. What's stopping you now though? As by the look of it the horcrux is destroyed. Oh but then you know that if you kill me Draco, Cassandra will die.'

Draco remained completely still.

'I can still cause her pain without a wand look,' Cassie squirmed, clearly in agony and opened her eyes.

'Stop,' Draco said quietly.

'There is only one way to stop me.'

'Please, Draco just do it,' Cassie quietly pleaded.

What was wrong with him? It was just a spell. He had cast dark spells before that had caused pain to his opponents why couldn't he cast this one? Especially when Cassie was begging him to do it.

'Draco... please... it doesn't matter... please...'

'AVADA KEDRAVA.'