Disclaimer: I'm sooooo bored right now.
Hermione couldn't stop sobbing. What she had seen before they had disapparated had totally destroed her.
"Ron..." she murmured. The blow came fast, causing her to stumble forward, crashing into the brick fireplace.
"Shut up!" sneered the deatheater. Hermione drew herself to the wall, clutching to her now bleeding arm.
"Well, well, what have we here? A mudblood in our mist... and she's completely alone," drawled Lucius Malfoy as he stepped forward his tall form adding an even more sinister look to the forboding man. Hermione glared up at him in silent mutiny, her utter loathing for the man radiating clearly. Lucius smiled at her silence.
"You're smart, aren't you?" Still she didn't speak. Lucius signalled to the man at the door. "Get the girl... let this infidel see what happens to those who have broken down the pure line." Hermione watched in horror as they dragged in a girl. She couldn't have been no more than eighteen, twenty max. She was barely conscious, her body covered in what Hermione guessed to be her own blood. They dropped the girl in the middle of the room, watching in amusment as Hermione crawled over to the girl. The girls clothes were ripped, soaked in red. Hermione grabbed the girl and pulled her into her lap, trying to wipe the blood off the girl's face. She was younger than Hermione, no doubt, yet her tortured features expressed a life beyond Hermione's imagining. Hermione pulled the girl closer to her as she looked up at a smirking Lucius.
"What did you do to her?" she asked. Lucius ignored her. Turning around he motioned for one of the men.
"I want those two in the cavern... Draco may be dangerous but he's also foolish. Once he realizes what's at stake, he'll come... and when he does, I'll be ready."
Draco watched silently as the two men moved away, oblivious to the three men in the bushes. The two deatheaters moved off towards the desolate manor. The moon casting shodows across the dark grounds. Draco turned and sat down, leaning his back on a tree. Ron and Harry looked down at him.
"Well..." Draco shook his head.
"Not now... we can't go now. There are still more out there," Draco answered, raking his fingers through his hair. Ron squinted into the dark, trying to glance any sign of movement.
"I don't see anything," he whispered. Draco chuckled.
"No, I'd suspect that you wouldn't." Harry frowned.
"Why are we really waiting?" Draco looked up at him, his grey eyes alluminated by the pale moon.
"Hermione's not the only one they have... I have to tred lightly. My father's not an idiot. He know's I'll come." Harry sat down, followed by Ron. The two men stared intensely at the blonde, a question surfacing that had been torturing them ever since Hermione had revealed Draco to them.
"Malfoy."
"What?" Came Draco's tired voice. Harry and Ron looked at each other then Ron spoke.
"What did you do?" To their surprise, Draco smirked.
"I was waiting for you to ask me that. What? Hermione didn't tell you..." Harry frowned.
"Look, Malfoy, we're here for the same reasons, so what did you do?" Draco sighed, looking over to the large clearing before the once great manor.
"Let's just say, my affections went to that of a lower breed." Ron frowned.
"A muggleborn?" Draco smiled.
"It seems that I've stooped lower than you Weasley."
"What?" Draco looked up at him.
"You love the muggleborn and I ended up marrying the muggle." Ron jerked in surprise. Both him and Harry stared at him in disbelief.
"No freaking way!" Draco glared at him.
"Shut up Weasley! You want the whole manor to hear you," he hissed. Ron shut his mouth, still staring at him. Harry spoke up.
"You married a muggle," he muttered. Ron just stared, the wheels turning in his mind. Draco Lucius Malfoy had married a muggle. Past conversations started going over in his mind.
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"No! You look!" She pointed to Draco. "Look at him! He's weak! He's unarmed! Are you two so willing to risk everything that has been our friendship just to put him on trial! He's not the man you think he is!"
"He's a deatheater!" Ron countered. She glared at him.
"He's more like you than you think..." she whispered. Ron advanced menacingly.
"Don't you ever compare me to him. Ever."
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"Draco's not the man you think he is!"
"You always tell me that 'Mione, but you never back it up! What has he done that you're willing to do this?!"
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Ron cursed himself. His hatred for Malfoy had clouded his trust in Hermione. He had said things... Ron groaned. He and Malfoy did have more in common than Ron was willing to admit.
"Come on," Draco whispered. Ron shook himself back into reality to find both men were standing, watching the manor. Ron stood, walking softly to them.
"What happened?" Draco pointed to the closing front door.
"The last one just went in, this is the only chance we have to get in." Harry couldn't help but chuckle slightly. He recieved an annoyed look from Draco.
"What are you laughing about Potter?" Harry pointed to the door.
"We're sneaking into your house." Draco rolled his eyes and started for the door when he was stopped by Harry.
"What now Potter?" he hissed. Harry took off a small bag none of them had noticed he had been carring. He pulled out some type of silvery fabric.
"Someone should go in, incognito." Draco smiled.
"Good... that way I don't have to look at your ugly mug." Harry rolled his eyes.
"Let's just do this."
A/N: Well, at least they know now why Hermione was keeping secrets about Draco. Just to clear it up for everyone, the Caronas curse is basically like cancer. It's an infection trasfered only thourgh the wand. Depending on who you are, muggle, muggleborn, half or pureblood, you die eventually. Only Dark Magic can cure it. Magic only prolongs the life, but doesn't end the curse. Seeing as Ron and Draco are pureblood, they won't die as fast.
Reader of Canon FF: Yes, it is a R/Hr fic. Knowing me, I'll probably do something to screw up what could have been. ;-)
Wesker888: I hope I cleared that up for you. Yes, Ron's been hit by the curse.
Coconut Girl: Uh! I'm appalled! Using my own words against me! Uh! (can't find any words to say and am currently looking through the dictionary.) Ugh, I'm not getting anything with my e-mail. I didn't get the alert for your story and I'm not getting any of my reveiws. I'm so freaking pissed. I'm not even sure that I'm getting notices form harrypotterfanfics .net. I've gone on and have seen what you've done (for which I am eternally grateful) and I'm not getting anything. BTW, have you found a banner, I'm really interested to see it if you have.
Chapter Tease: (Might as well, seeing as I haven't been doing a very good job with it.)
"Draco," she whispered softly, tears streaming down her face. "Draco,where is he?" Draco gasped for air and pointed over to the limp form. He then started coughing and choked up blood. Hermione, crying, brushed the hair out of his face and kissed his forehead.
"I'll be back in a minute," she murmured, frantically crawling over to Ron's body. Blood was everywhere. Hermione was sobbing as she grabbed his shoulders. She jumped when a thunderous crash sounded. She looked around trying to spot Harry. All she saw was a slaughter house, Aurors and deatheaters alike falling.
"Harry!" she screamed. No answer came. She continued to drag him across the ground until they reached Draco's heaving form. His chest was bleeding as Hermione pulled Ron up beside him. She grabbed hold of Draco's wand and willed herself to stop trembling. She jerked when a bloody hand grabbed her wrist. She looked down into Draco's eyes.
"Do it now..." Hermione nodded, closing her eyes to remember the incantation. She yelped in pain when someone grabbed her hair. Her head was pulled back and she found herself looking into the fierce eyes of Lucius Malfoy.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
