Hermione

We appeared in the one place I feared most in the word, Malfoy Manor. It was dark but I could make out that this was the same room Bellatrix had used to torture me in. It had the same smell which brought memories flashing through my mind. I pushed them back down determined that they would not over whelm me. We had to find Harry and make sure he was safe.

As I felt my legs beginning to take my weight I realised that I hadn't used them in five days and they weren't going to hold me up. I tried to move into Ron for support not wanting to fall to the floor but he was holding onto my hand so tightly I couldn't release it to take a firm hold of his arm. Instead I fell into him nearly knocking us both off our feet.

He caught his balance and used his free hand to hold my upper arm keeping me on my feet. We were still holding hands and he was stood inches from my face looking concernedly into my eyes. I could feel my feet adjusting to my weight and I shifted them beneath me and they began to hold me up.

"I'm ok." I whispered and he slowly realised my arm but kept hold of my hand. I looked around again and remembered where we were and how much I didn't want to be here.

I felt my hand start to shake inside Ron's. I didn't want him to feel me shaking, I didn't want to admit to him that I was scared of this place so I pulled my hand out of his harshly but I didn't look up to see the look on his face.

Everything was quiet around us and I wondered if this really was the place where Harry was. I was sure that we would have landed straight in the middle of a fight but everything was still and calm, it was a good job too because I'd moved to get my wand and realised that I didn't have it with me.

What was I going to do if we had to fight our way out of here? I was useless without my wand. In that moment I wanted to sink to the floor and never come out again. I needed my wand, it gave me power, but with out it I was walking around already dead and I couldn't put Ron and Harry through that again.

I had felt their pain and it was something I never wanted to put them through again but I could never be certain that I wouldn't. All it took was one tiny mistake in one tiny moment in this war and I could be gone again and I would be leaving them alone with all their hurt and pain. I couldn't bear to think about it and instead I forced myself to keep aware and keep myself alive for them.

I had to live for them; I had to be strong for them. I would not have them living their lives feeling guilt and pain just because I wasn't strong enough to survive.

I froze at the sound of Bellatrix's shoes tip taping down the hallway outside. I would know her footsteps anywhere.

"Ron, Harry's not here lets go." I whispered all too eager to get out of this hell hole. I couldn't feel Harry anywhere close to us so I hoped that he had apparated out of here at the first chance he got.

"We've got to have a look around he could be anywhere here." Ron said determinedly.

"Ron this is a huge house how are we going to search it from top to bottom?" I questioned hoping to change his mind. I wanted nothing more than to find Harry but this just didn't seem the best way to do it.

Ron paused for a minuet taking in what I was saying and he looked like he was thinking it over.

"We could so easily get lost or captured then we would be no good to him what so ever. We should go and see if he's got out, then if he hasn't we can make a plan and come back and get him." I was trying to sound level headed and intelligent but I wasn't sure if it was working. I just wanted to get out of Malfoy Manor and I would do almost anything to do so and do it as fast as I possibly could.

He took another ten seconds to think it over as I tapped my foot on the floor before he started to speak. I prayed that he would believe what I'd said and say we could leave.

"Ok, but if he's not there then we're coming straight back." I nodded trying not to show the relief on my face as I took Ron's hand ready to apparate.

I want to say a big thank you to rhmac12, bushyhaired-american-nerd and susieQ41 for reviewing :D The spell between Hermione and the knife would only break when she died but she couldn't risk being around Harry and Ron while Bellatrix could find them so easily so she had to try the potion and spell in the hope that it would work because Bellatrix would be able to find and kill her whenever she wanted anyway. All with Draco will be revealed in later chapters but he won't be unscathed, but first Hermione and Ron have to find Harry :D