Thank you all for your wonderful reviews! Thanks a lot to everyone who read/alerted/favourited this story too. I am SO sorry I couldn't update sooner! The first week of college has been busy. Thanks for all your good wishes for my first day of college too!

I really hope this chapter isn't confusing to anyone. I've tried my best to get it across right, but if anyone gets confused, please let me know and I'll change it. Also, the timeline may be a little off, but just ignore that...

This chapter starts a week before the previous chapter ended. It's still May 26that the beginning of this chapter and May 2nd at the end where it catches up with the previous chapter. The first part is all about what happened to Draco until he burst into the museum in the previous chapter.

Please review!

Disclaimer : I don't own HP.

May 26th, 2005. Tuesday. 7.30 PM

Draco walked into his flat, lightheaded from the afternoon's kiss. Hermione still loved him! His brain constructed fantasies of a 'happily ever after.' He spun around like a giddy schoolchild as he entered his flat and abruptly stopped mid-spin, the goofy grin sliding off his face when he saw the people sitting comfortably on his sofa.

"Expelliarmus!"

Draco's wand was out of his hand in a flash, he was defenseless. He reached for the doorknob –

"Petrificus Totalus."

Draco was immobilized with only his head left free to move. He glared at the man who had Disarmed and cursed him, a mixture of confusion and hatred on his face. "Theo? What are you doing? Let me go!" he demanded.

Theodore Nott smiled. "I'm afraid not, Draco. My Lady, he's home," he called over his shoulder.

A tall, dark-haired girl stepped out of the kitchen. Draco went pale. The girl looked exactly like his Aunt Bellatrix, right down to the manic eyes.

"Well, hello cousin. It's so nice to finally meet you," she smirked.

Gawain Robards rose from the sofa too, his eyes greedy and watchful. "I'm Lyra Lestrange. Your Aunt Bellatrix's unknown daughter," Lyra said.

"But you died years ago! That's what I was told," Draco blurted.

"Oh no, not at all. I'm just a very well kept secret," she said, smiling slightly. She ran a finger across his cheek, her eyes narrowed. "You have never seen me, but I have watched you grow up. You really do get more handsome every day, just like a Black family member should. But you can do so much better than that Mudblood."

"Don't call her that!" draco snarled.

"A pureblood with no respect for the old ways? Disgraceful," Lyra hissed. "Crucio!"

It was agony being tortured, yet unable to move and squirm like he wanted to. He refused to scream and give her the satisfaction. "This is nothing," Draco thought to himself, his lips pressed together, "Voldemort used to do much worse to you."

Lyra lifted her wand. "Not bad, but I suppose you've had lots of practice at not showing weakness. You can scream you know. No one can hear you, I made sure of that. Not even the Mudblood downstairs."

"If you do anything to her, I'll kill you," Draco snapped, his eyes dark.

"How touching, especially considering you can't even move right now," Lyra said, disdainfully, "But don't worry. I won't hurt her – not yet." She pushed up Draco's left sleeve, trailing her finger slowly up the fading Dark Mark on his forearm. "It's such a pity. The Dark Lord chose you for revenge and it led to his own downfall. What goes around, comes around, I suppose. If only I had been there instead."

Draco wanted to shudder. Her touch, her voice, everything about her repulsed him. "What do you want?" he said, repressing the tremor in his voice.

"Always to the point, you Malfoys. You're just like your father. His first concern was also for his wife. He wasted no time with lies and denials. He was ready to give me what I wanted as long as I left his family alone. In fact, your parents took the least torture before I left them to burn," observed Lyra.

Anger, pure, unbridled anger pulsed through Draco. He suddenly lunged at Lyra's throat, breaking through the body-bind curse. Lyra was startled but she quickly paralyzed Draco again. He glared at her, trying to struggle against the spell, but to no success.

"Interesting! You can still perform accidental magic under stress. We'll have to be more careful with you," she said. Her tone became serious. "To business, then. Where is Slytherin's locket?"

"Which one?" he asked innocently.

She slapped him. "The destroyed Horcrux! I know you know which one I'm talking about so don't act as though Slytherin owned a jewelry shop and ask me to describe it from the hundreds of lockets he possessed!"

"Didn't my parents tell you about it? That's what you went to them for, isn't it?" he snarled.

She grabbed him by the collar, her eyes dangerous. "We both know that they led me to a fake. Where is the real one?"

"Buried in Hell. It won't be long before you find it there," Draco shrugged.

She shoved him back angrily. Nott flicked his wand and a deep gash appeared on Draco's face. He still refused to scream although a gasp of pain escaped him as the hot blood flowed down his cheek. "Tell us what we want to know!" Nott shouted.

Draco smirked. "Now, Theodore, I thought you were raised better. Is this the way to treat an old friend?"

Lyra shouted with fury, torturing Draco again. This time he did scream, black spots winking in front of his eyes. Out of the corner of his eyes, though, he could see Robards hanging back from the other two. Draco gasped for breath as Lyra ended the spell.

"You listen to me, Draco Malfoy," she said, her voice low and dangerous. "Either you tell me what I want to know, or I will decide that it is time to hurt Granger right now. I was saving it for later, but I can always change the plan. I will drag her up here, torture her and make her face resemble Bill Weasley's. All the while, you will watch. I won't kill her; I'll leave her here and torture her every single day until you crack. Hell, I'll even take Polyjuice Potion, turn into you and torture her. That should hurt her even more," Lyra hissed.

"Her friends would find her," Draco said confidently.

"I will make sure they don't until it's too late," Lyra retorted. Draco saw the manic glint in Lyra's eyes. He knew she wasn't making idle threats. He'd had a hard time watching Hermione being tortured by Bellatrix in his house; he couldn't stand watching Lyra do it this time. He looked defeated as he nodded at the bedside table.

"There's a secret drawer in the table. The latch's under the second leg in the front. Pull if down," he said dully.

Lyra was beside the table in a flash, Nott still pointing his wand at Draco. Soon, Lyra was cradling the broken Horcrux. "Oh yes," she said, "Now, I can bring back the Dark Lord very son."

"That's your plan? You want to resurrect the Dark Lord?" Draco asked, horrified.

Lyra nodded casually.

Draco looked at Theodore and Robards incredulously. "You two are helping her? Have you forgotten the horrors of the Dark Lord's rule?" he demanded.

"At least we had a life then, Malfoy!" snapped Robards, although at Draco's words, he seemed a little less convinced.

"You and your family suffered under his rule because you angered him. We were perfectly happy under his regime. You and your family walk free today, despite your previous crimes which you committed with no second thoughts because you were considered scared and only trying to protect your family. My parents are rotting away in Azkaban when they are no guiltier than yours were! If the Dark Lord's rule ensures my family's comfort and freedom, I will bring him back!" shouted Nott.

"But you're following this mad woman to do it?" Draco said, nodding at Lyra. "She'll treat you like the Dark Lord did me. She'll keep you around only till you're useful, she'll keep you wondering whether you and your family will live to see another day!"

Robards hit him. "Don't speak of Lyra that way," he growled. But, Draco saw the doubt in his eyes; the question of whether Draco was right about Lyra.

Nott had his wand out. "Can I kill him now, Lyra?"

"No. He is of no use dead," said Lyra.

"He isn't much use alive either," muttered Nott.

Lyra looked at Nott. "You will turn into him using Polyjuice Potion. You will infiltrate the Aurors and Auxilium for the rest of this crucial week and bring down their attempts to stop us from within. You will help me steal the ring and crush the Mudblood's spirit. She's the most dangerous of the trio." She eyed Nott's light blond hair. "At least your hair won't need much changing. It might make the transformation less painful."

Nott looked disgusted. "I'm already in Auxilium. Why should I impersonate him?"

Lyra sighed. "Your old sob story about your mistakes convinced Auxilium to let you in their ranks, but your little talent only got you to rank 40. As Draco, you will be right on the inside, to get me the information I need. Also, you will allow certain people to glimpse you, shifting suspicion to Draco."

Nott looked reluctant, but nodded. Draco was subdued and stuffed into a secret room behind his closet.

X-X-X

Everyday, for the rest of the week, someone from Lyra's team would come, torture him, feed him, and take his hair for the potion and leave. The same night that Draco was captured, Nott returned, gloating gleefully about how McGonagall saw him and would suspect Draco.

Sometimes, Lyra would come and taunt him about Hermione. Draco kept track of the days, using his Auror training and his previous experiences to stay sane and aware. Two nights before 1st May which would be when Lyra went to steal the ring from the museum, Robards came with his food.

"Hello, Robards," Draco said, as he was let out of his closet. "Tell Lyra that Auxilium members were here looking for me yesterday."

Robards hand slipped as he tossed Draco some bread. "They were?"

"No need to worry, they didn't find me. What's got you so jumpy today?" Draco said.

"Shut up," said Robards.

"Nott ranted a lot about the heist being messed up. What's the matter, Lyra blame you for it? You've been tortured by her too, haven't' you? It's alright, you can tell me. I've been through this before," Draco said.

"I told you to shut up!"

"It's a thankless job, you know, being a Death Eater. You start off with ideas of rewards and honour. But soon, you realize your old life was far better. At least you knew you would make it through the day," shrugged draco.

Robards couldn't help himself. "Did the Dark Lord hurt you often?"

"Oh yes. Whenever a job went wrong, his way of letting off steam was to torture someone." Draco looked Robards in the eye. "Joining the Dark side all sounds grand and powerful until you experience it. Then, you realize it's all wrong. Dark Magic is powerful, but it will turn on you the minute you show weakness. Voldemort would have murdered me and my family and anyone who displeased him without a second thought. The only people who flourished under his rule were liars, cowards and crooks. He would have killed me the moment I became expendable. He won't show any mercy to you either. Think about it, Robards. Do you want to live as a good man in a kind world where there are opportunities for the reformed, even though they may be a little slow in coming to you at first, or in an era of constant fear and temporary luxury? I, for one, am entirely happy with being an Auror in this world than I was a Death Eater."

Robards left soon, but draco knew he'd been filled with doubt at his own actions.

X-X-X

1st May, 2005. Around midnight.

Neville was looking at the file he'd shown Hermione the previous day. Though he chastised her for it, he too believed that Draco wouldn't betray them like his. He'd got some agents to pull the records of the Library for the last three months.

He noticed that Theodore Nott used the library a lot, more than really necessary. Nott had joined Auxilium quite soon after it was started and hadn't shown any signs of suspicious activity and soon, everyone had let their guard down around him. As he looked at the files, Neville noticed something. Every time Draco Malfoy had been in the library, so had Nott. He looked at the signatures in the Library's log book and saw it immediately. Draco's signature had changed suddenly in the last week. The really important files had gone missing in the last week. He compared Nott's signature to Draco's. Draco's was clearly forged.

Draco wasn't behind any of this, Nott was. Neville got up quickly. He had to get to Draco's apartment. He might be held captive somewhere there.

Neville left, completely forgetting that he was supposed to be guarding Ginny and James that night.

X-X-X

Neville ran to Draco's apartment. "Homenum Revelio," he said. No human presence registered, but he knew that Draco would have put up protective wards so he didn't want to rely on the spell. Meanwhile, Draco had managed to prop himself up against the secret panel that led into his closet. He couldn't open the panel from the inside without a wand.

Neville unlocked the door and tiptoed in. He saw a lattice of Alarm spells and quickly nullified them. A faint banging reached his ears from the vicinity of the closet. He approached carefully, wand at the ready. He banged on the door. The banging from inside became louder, he could hear shouting too. Neville yanked the door open, but the closet was empty.

"Who's there?" he asked.

"Neville? It's Draco! Where's Hermione? I'm trapped behind a secret panel. We have to stop Lyra!" came Draco's voice.

Neville kept his wand up. "What did you give Hermione for her 21st birthday?"

"An edition of 'Quidditch Through the Ages.' I was going to teach her how to fly. What did I give you to pass on to Hermione for Christmas when I was in Bulgaria?" draco asked, remembering that he wasn't sure if it really was Neville outside.

"A stuffed toy, it was a lion," Neville replied. "How do I get you out?"

"There's a lever on the left wall. How's Hermione?" Draco called.

"Alive, last I checked. She's guarding the ring at the museum," Neville answered, pulling on the lever.

Draco fell out, his face white as Neville cut through his bonds. Draco jumped up immediately, ignoring the weakness he felt.

"She's with the ring? Oh Merlin, Lyra's going there now! Send reinforcements to Voldemort's grave!" Draco told Neville, rushing out.

X-X-X

It was 2.30 in the morning of 2nd May when Draco arrived at the museum. He simply ran through the halls, ignoring the security system he'd set off. He could hear the fight in the ring room now. The guards were trying to get in. Draco grabbed the doorknob with his left arm. He knew Nott had a Dark Mark too and he would have sealed it so that only someone with a Dark Mark could get in. Draco ran in just in time to see Lyra grab the ring and disappear.

The ceiling began to fall as Nott hit it with a spell. "Hermione!" he yelled, tackling the brunette. She looked confuse as she looked at him.

"Draco?" she asked. Then, suddenly, she had pinned him and Nott to the wall, their wands in her hand, both Dracos bound by a spider-web like material.

"Which of you is the real Draco?" she demanded.

"I am!" they both responded, Nott doing his best to be believable.

"Don't listen to him, Hermione. He's an impostor," the real Draco shouted.

"Enough of this," growled Nott. He slipped a knife into his hand and sliced through the bonds with a single stroke. He pulled his wand out of Hermione's hand, dueling her again. A stray spell hit the web around Draco and he fell to the ground. He picked up his fallen wand, jumped in front of Nott and began dueling him, protecting Hermione.

"Hermione, you have to believe me!" yelled Draco.

"No, I'm the real Draco!" insisted Nott.

Hermione watched them fight, her eyes darting from one to the other. She knew one of them had taken Polyjuice Potion but she couldn't wait for it to wear off. She had a sudden idea. She pointed her wand at them both and yelled, "Identitatem Revelare!"

A huge wave of water shot out of her wand, dousing the two men. They coughed and spluttered, knocked to the ground. Hermione pointed at the coughing Nott who was now back to his real appearance. "Stupefy!" she yelled. Nott fell unconscious immediately.

Hermione ran to Draco. "I knew it. I knew it! You couldn't be the bad guy!" she sobbed, flinging her arms around him.

He hugged her back just as fiercely, neither of them caring that he was soaking wet. "I've missed you so much," he said into her ear, sending pleasant shivers up her spine.

"What happened?" she asked, touching the cuts on his face.

He explained what he'd been through quickly as she healed him. She looked at him sadly when they were both done. "I'm sorry. You had to go through all that because they threatened to hut me. I'm really sorry."

"Don't be. You would've done the same for me," he replied. He kissed her gently. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Just then, Harry and Ron burst through the new hole in the ceiling, being unable to get through the door.

"Well that was fast. You came in after all the action was over," Hermione said sarcastically.

"We're sorry; we had to get through all the security measures Malfoy set off when he ran through the museum. Neville explained that Draco's innocent. What-?" Ron stopped, spotting Nott on the floor.

"I used the Thief's Downfall. He was an impostor," Hermione began to explain, but Harry stopped her. He looked miserable and furious at the same time.

"Not now, Hermione," Harry said, looking anguished. "Lyra has the ring but that's not all. We have to go to Little Hangleton. Lyra's kidnapped Ginny and James."

Did you like it? Please review and let me know! I will try my best to get the next chapter (the last one!) up by Wednesday, but if I can't, it'll definitely be up on the weekend.

Oh and I got into Pottermore! I actually found it kind of lame...not really what I was expecting...

At least five reviews again?