For once in his life, Draco was grateful for the hundreds of Cruciatus curses he'd been placed under because right now, as the ring's curse caused a pain that quickly overtook his body, he could barely feel it.

Okay, he could definitely feel it, but it didn't seem like it was having that much of an effect on him. Of course, since this was Voldemort's curse, Draco would probably end up dying. Yeah, that wasn't so appealing.

"Take off the ring!" Dumbledore commanded. Draco obeyed, but he found that he couldn't.

"It's stuck to my finger!" he exclaimed. He pulled the ring harder but it didn't work. The pain had now reached his neck and his body fell limp onto the ground.

"Stay still!" Dumbledore unnecessarily ordered.

Of course Draco would stay still. He actually couldn't move. It felt like his entire body was on fire and his limbs had gone stiff. He couldn't see Dumbledore because of the way his head was positioned but he felt his headmaster grab his arm and rotate it so that his palm was flat on the floor. As his legs began twitching on their own, all Draco could hope was that Dumbledore wasn't about to cut his fingers off.

All of a sudden, he felt a pressure on his finger and a loud roar echo throughout the shack. His head started throbbing and he felt himself blacking out, only to be woken a few seconds later. Dumbledore was shaking him violently.

"What just happened?" Draco asked, unable to forget what he saw during those few seconds. He felt a sensation in his pocket but he couldn't take out the coin, not in front of Dumbledore.

"I destroyed the ring with the sword," Dumbledore began, "and these smoky figures attacked me. That was Voldemort's soul being demolished. We must get out of here, but alas, you cannot be apparated nor left alone."

The ring was gone, but the curse was still there, evidenced by the blackening of his left hand. The darkness was slowly spreading up his arm, and although Draco could sit up, he was unable to lift his hand off the ground. Dumbledore quickly moved his hand over Draco's and the blackness dissolved.

Just then, there was a crack, and Dobby appeared.

"Master is in trouble," the house-elf said.

"Dobby, you must retrieve Professor Snape," Dumbledore instructed without even questioning how Dobby knew what was going on or how he got there.

In a flash, Dobby disappeared and reappeared with the potions teacher.

"You asked for me?" Snape drawled, ignoring the Slytherin on the floor.

"Quickly, Severus," Dumbledore said. "We destroyed a Horcrux, but not before it cursed Draco. I fear he is on the path to death. By myself, I cannot reverse the effects of the curse. You must help me slow this down as best as we can so that we can actually take him back to Hogwarts, where we can try to determine what has overtaken him and hopefully save him."

Snape just nodded and brandished his wand, Dumbledore doing the same. Draco even took out his wand from the wand holder Hermione had given him.

Hermione! he remembered. He summoned the coin from his left pocket as the two professors set to work on his left hand.

He might know where you go when you vaporize.

So that option was out.

Turning to the two men, Draco asked, "What do you want me to do?"

"Nothing," Dumbledore told him. "You must remain still."

"I'm not so sure we have enough strength to do what needs to be done," Snape said. "Perhaps he can help."

"What do you want me to do?" Draco repeated. "I want to get back as soon as possible."

Snape went over what each of them would do and they began. Spells flew around Draco's left hand as the three wizards worked to save him. Draco had never been more focused or thankful for his heritage. If only Merlin were here, perhaps Draco could be saved. But he realized that Merlin lived on in Draco. There was hope after all.

Draco put in the last of his energy as they completed the job and passed out as he was apparated back to Hogwarts.

Dumbledore and Snape appeared in the headmaster's office with Draco in their arms.

"Professor!" Harry called as the professors were in sight. "I just had a vision-what's going on?"

Ron and Hermione were right next to him as they all noticed Draco and the state he was in.

"What happened to him?" Hermione demanded, not caring how she appeared in front of Harry and Ron.

"We must get him to the Infirmary," Dumbledore said, pushing past them. They all hurried away from the office and met up with Madam Pomfrey right outside the doors.

"What on earth-" she began.

"Bed, Poppy," Dumbledore interrupted. The nurse spun around and pushed open the doors as everyone rushed in. The two professors set Draco down and Dumbledore turned to Pomfrey.

"He was cursed by very dark magic put into place by Voldemort himself."

Nearly everyone in the room gasped.

The headmaster continued, "He helped Severus and me stop the curse but we need to know all the effects it has taken on him. And he's only passed out because he used what little energy he had left to help us. Severus and I will attempt to identify exactly how Voldemort cursed the ring-"

"Ring?" Harry and Hermione piped up at once.

"-but we require the effects in order to do that," Dumbledore kept going as if no one had said a thing. "He may be curse-free for now, but it could come back any time. We didn't even get to his hand that quickly. I should have done something immediately but..." he trailed off, entering the deep abyss of his mind as he walked out of the room without another word, followed by Snape.

Madam Pomfrey went away to fetch her materials.

"Now's our chance!" Harry exclaimed.

"What?" Ron said.

"Let's see if he's got the mark."

"No, Harry!" Hermione admonished.

"Why not? Why do you think he was cursed in the first place? Maybe he did something wrong."

"Dumbledore was with him! I don't know where they were" lie "but if Dumbledore and Snape carried him here, then I suspect they were there with Draco."

"Why did you call him that?" Ron questioned.

Frustrated, Hermione shouted, "Oh, grow up! It's his name! I never believed that you two could be so insensitive."

Her anger jolted Draco awake.

"Hermione?" he mumbled.

"Yes?"

"I saw him. He was angry...and he was scared. When Dumbledore destroyed the ring, I saw the Dark Lord...and he was furious. I think he knows he's in trouble." With that, Draco fell asleep.

"So Dumbledore was there," Hermione confirmed. She turned to Harry, who was frowning. "Oh, what is it this time?"

"That's exactly what I saw! Right before I went to Dumbledore, I saw Voldemort getting really pissed off. It was like someone destroyed his soul...not that he has one."

Suddenly Hermione knew exactly what Dumbledore and Draco had been doing. Draco had told her all about the conversation he'd had with the professor about Horcruxes. This ring must have been one.

It wasn't until hours later that Draco finally awoke for good, and he was surprised to find Hermione still at his side. The morning sun poured in through the windows.

"Have you been here the entire time?" Draco asked, remembering the few seconds during which he'd been awake earlier.

"Were you and Dumbledore looking for a Horcrux?" Hermione said, jumping right to it.

Draco nodded, wincing at the pain from the movement.

Madam Pomfrey came into the room and told him, "You must stay in the Infirmary until tomorrow morning. I want to run a few more tests and make sure that you don't walk out of here unless you're stable."

As she retreated into her office, Dumbledore and Snape approached him.

Snape said, "We have reason to believe that you are not safe yet. We first thought that we stopped the curse, but we only temporarily stopped its effects."

"So you figured out what it was?" Hermione asked.

She received a nod from the Potions professor as Dumbledore told Draco, "The curse is still very much present and its effects could return at any moment. Once Madam Pomfrey has completed her analysis, we will know for sure what will happen to you. For now, I recommend plenty of rest and hope. I have a feeling you will be fine."

Draco hoped he was right. He didn't fear death, but he sure wasn't ready for it. At least not while Voldemort was still around. He decided to obey Dumbledore and go to sleep, not realizing that his cursed left hand was in Hermione's.