Chapter 13

At ten o'clock on Saturday night, Draco Malfoy donned dark robes in his bedroom to blend into the night. He was preparing for a raid, a raid of the upmost importance, for it would expose Bulstrode as the traitor for certain and he would feel secure again. As he prepared, he thought of what led to this night.

The entire week following the wedding was useless on the research front. Armand was in the Caribbean with Cecile. Theo was finally moving in on Daphne Greengrass so he had spent much of the week out with her. That left Malfoy with Blaise only to narrow in on Bulstrode. He might have asked Granger for help if he was not avoiding her. Again.

Draco Malfoy came to the realization two days before Toussaint's wedding that he could not avoid Granger forever. He argued with himself about whether or not he should bring her to Toussaint's wedding for days until he finally determined it would be a good idea, if only for the extra help in spotting the traitor. Of course he would not recognize the fact that he wanted an excuse to talk to her for the first time in days had something to do with his decision.

When he found her out in the garden, wearing the white sundress he bought for her, he was taken aback. He knew she had been outside all day, and as a result her skin darkened slightly, causing her to look absolutely stunning in the bright white dress. Malfoy could hardly fathom his reaction to seeing her. He was constantly around women far more beautiful than Granger, but none of them elicited such strong admiration in him. Once he sat beside her, close enough to feel her next to him, he returned to his original argument of whether or not he even should bring her to the wedding, which resulted in sitting on the bench in complete silence longer than necessary.

Once she opened her mouth though, Malfoy found it easy to revert back to his usual condescending manner with her. He enjoyed patronizing her, making her uncomfortable, the way he did before he started avoiding her. He stood closer than necessary to her just to watch her squirm. His decision to have her attend as his date was a completely spur of the moment decision. While he stood there, he knew it would have her on edge. Plus, he did not like the idea of her openly mingling with any other men.

Surprisingly, he found that Granger played her part well. And by exposing Bulstrode, she proved that she was a valuable asset, as much as Malfoy hated to admit it. He was so pleased with her that he wanted to bring her to more formal occasions that required a date. It would certainly be easier than finding a new woman for every occasion, aside from the fact that he would not be guaranteed sex after the event. Another downside was that he had a reputation to uphold. He was not a one woman man.

As this thought passed through his head, he paused in front of his full length mirror and smirked at his reflection, pleased by his own attractiveness. Surely bringing Granger to more formal events couldn't put a damper on his sex life.

His thoughts then flowed into dangerous territory. He thought of kissing Granger by the forest. The smirk fell from his face to be replaced by a frustrated look that he had every time he thought of kissing her. He turned away from his reflection in disgust.

What was he thinking, kissing Granger? At the time, he was angry with her for not listening to him, for dismissing his requests as usual. But he was also so thrilled with her. She pointed him in the direction of finding the traitor and she saved him from the wrath of Mathis. His feelings towards her were a mixture of strong emotions and at the time, nothing seemed more natural. And to feel her reacting to him with equal fervor, for at least a brief time, he had never been more shocked or pleased. Not until she pulled away from him with an unfathomable look in her eyes did he come to his senses.

When he saw his wand on the ground, he was even more shocked she did not use it against him. He hardly heard her saying that she was going back to the party and he had no intention of stopping her. He was already trying to rationalize his appalling behavior.

Malfoy stayed away from her for the rest of the night and even had Blaise escort away from the party at the end of the night. Blaise questioned Malfoy's strange behavior, but he wouldn't explain.

The following day, after endlessly berating himself for his actions, he deemed the whole situation as Grangers fault. So while he planned his course of action with Blaise, he kept her locked in her room although it would have been safe for her to roam the grounds all week. He knew that keeping her caged in would upset her more than just about anything else. He thought this was suitable punishment for what she made him do.

At least with Granger locked away, for the most part he was able to focus solely on bringing Bulstrode down. The plan he and Blaise devised was simple but it would be effective. They planned a raid in a small wizarding town in northern England, where they knew Death Eaters resided. The only one of his followers told of the location in advance was Bulstrode. If the Death Eaters were prepared for a fight when they arrived, she would be exposed.

Malfoy slipped on his boots and strode confidently from his room into the hallway where he could Apparate. He had no doubt in his mind the mission would be successful.

He apparated to the meeting point; a small shack about a mile away from the small village.

As his followers began popping up around him, they gathered around, listening for directions. There was only a handful of Death Eaters living in the small town, so Malfoy only asked some of his best fighters to be there. As he looked around the group, all of their faces reflected his confidence. He did not expect and losses tonight.

Theo and Blaise were the only ones present who knew the real reason behind this raid, and when Bulstrode showed up, they immediately tried to read her, for any hint that she betrayed her knowledge of the raid to the enemy but her face was completely blank. Others amongst the group were Parkinson, Greengrass, Flint, Pucey, Warrington, and Higgs. Malfoy regretted that Armand was still on vacation since he was another one of his strongest fighters.

They opted to walk silently into the town, rather than apparate which would only immediately divulge their arrival. They passed swiftly and silently through the fields surrounding the town. They were the epitome of stealth as they crept through the town, making their way to where they told Bulstrode the first attack would take place.

Malfoy and his followers surrounded the building, still hidden in the shadows. After a moments pause, Malfoy emerged from the shadows and started towards the building. He barely took three steps when a curse was shot at him. He dodged it and heard from inside, "They're here boys! Give 'em hell!" And dozens of Death Eaters poured out of the house.

Malfoy stood, his eyes widened in shock. He never expected such a large gathering. He only had a moment to realize that he had led his most loyal and skilled fighters to a massacre, before being drawn into the fight himself. Chaos surrounded him. He took it upon himself to find Bulstrode and destroy her himself. He searched for her through the swarm of fighting men and women, shooting as many curses as he could towards the Death Eaters. His fighters were holding up well, taking on three and four Death Eaters at a time.

He finally spotted Bulstrode trying to make her way into the house. He raced up to her while trying to evade the curses being sent his way. She almost reached the door when he caught up to her, knocking her off her feet with a curse as he flew up the porch steps. She was on her knees before him, with a sick smile on her ugly face.

"Thought you'd get away with it did you?" Malfoy snarled.

"Didn't I?"

He responded with "Avada Kedavra," and she fell dead before him.

Malfoy stood over her for a moment, letting his victory in destroying her wash over him. Then he felt a searing pain as a curse hit him, leaving a long cut down the length of his back. He roared furiously and turned around as he heard someone shout "Malfoy!"

He searched for the source of the voice and in a moment found Higgs, surrounded by five Death Eaters, barely managing to block their curses. Ignoring the pain in his back, he leapt off the porch of the house and sprinted to Higgs' aid. He moved swiftly to kill two of the Death Eaters around Higgs, before Malfoy himself was under fire from numerous others. Minutes passed and the fighting didn't let up until Malfoy heard Higgs' defeated shout as a killing curse hit him, sending him to the ground. Numerous Death Eaters closed in on Higgs' body, like a pack of wolves, and they beat the body to a pulp.

Malfoy immediately shouted into the night, "Everyone pull back!" and he heard the distinct apparition pop's as all of his followers left the scene.

Malfoy ferociously pushed his way through the Death Eaters violating Higgs' dead body, killing as many of them as he could. He reached the body, held on for dear life and apparated. He landed in the shack where everyone else was waiting for him.

First thing, he looked around the room and felt relief wash over him seeing that everyone who was supposed to be there was there. Most looked injured in some way or another, but nothing fatal. They all stared at Higgs' dead body on the floor in shock. He then cast a spell barring anyone else the ability to apparate into the shack.

"I can't believe this happened," he started remorse seeping into his tone. "I've never been angrier with myself. I should have prepared for a tougher fight; I just never expected so many of them."

"There's never been any history of more than five of them being here at one time. Why were there so many tonight?" Adrian Pucey questioned, sounding exhausted.

"Bulstrode. She tipped them off."

"Bulstrode!" Marcus Flint burst out shocked by the information.

"But where is she now?" Greengrass asked, and everyone else seemed to notice at once that Bulstrode was not there.

"She's dead," Malfoy said tersely. "I suggest everyone go home and get some rest."

After a moment, the only people remaining with Malfoy were Blaise and Theo, and Malfoy's demeanor completely deflated.

"I've got to take Higgs' body to his family," Malfoy said gruffly, staring at the body at his feet.

"No, Draco. We'll take him. We were much closer with him and his family, it'll mean more if we take him," Theo said.

Malfoy shook his head. "No, it's my fault he's dead, I've got to take him."

"Don't beat yourself up over it Draco. None of us expected this, we all should have been more careful," Blaise said.

Malfoy's shoulders sagged but he didn't say anything. His anger was eating away at him.

Nott placed his hand on his friends shoulder. "Go home Draco, we'll take care of Higgs."

Malfoy nodded solemnly, murmured a thank you and then apparated to the hallway outside his bedroom. He walked into the room and closed the door silently behind him.

He took one long look around his room and then the fury began.

He let out a furious shout, loud enough for anyone who might have been on the grounds outside to hear. He stormed further into his room and tore off his robes, leaving him in his t-shirt and black pants. Cursing at himself, he stormed through the room smashing everything he laid his eyes upon. He was so consumed by his rage that he didn't hear the alarm on his wand go off or hear a door open.

"What on earth is going on in here Malfoy?"